15,16 & 17 July 2023 – Current Affairs

Daily Current Capsules

15,16 and 17 July 2023

Nomadic Elephant – 2023

• Indian Army contingent comprising of 43 personnel left for Mongolia.
• The contingent will participate in the 15th edition of bilateral joint military exercise “NOMADIC ELEPHANT-23”.
• The exercise is scheduled to be conducted at Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia from 17 to 31 July 2023.
• Exercise NOMADIC ELEPHANT is an annual training event with Mongolia which is conducted alternatively in Mongolia and India, the last edition was held at Special Forces Training School, Bakloh in October 2019.
• The aim of this exercise is to build positive military relations, exchange best practices, develop inter-operability, bonhomie, camaraderie and friendship between the two armies.
• The primary theme of the exercise will focus on counter-terrorism operations in mountainous terrain under United Nations mandate.

Project Cheetah

• Of the 20 translocated Cheetahs from South Africa and Namibia, five mortalities of adult individuals have been reported from Kuno National Park, Madhya Pradesh, till date.
• As per the preliminary analysis by National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), the apex body entrusted with the implementation of Project Cheetah, all mortalities are due to natural causes.

Project Cheetah

• The Government of India has launched the ambitious project on bringing back Cheetah to India.
• The Project Cheetah is being implemented by National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), a statutory body under Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) in collaboration with Madhya Pradesh Forest Department, Wildlife Institute of India (WII) and Cheetah experts from Namibia and South Africa.
• The project implementation is being done as per the ‘Action plan for Introduction in India’ and a Steering Committee comprising of eminent experts/ officials involved in the first ever successful tiger reintroduction in Sariska and Panna Tiger Reserve, to oversee the project has also been constituted.
• Under Project Cheetah, a total of 20 radio collared Cheetahs were brought from Namibia and South Africa to Kuno National Park, Madhya Pradesh, in a first ever transcontinental wild to wild translocation.
• After mandatory quarantine period, all Cheetahs were shifted to larger acclimatization enclosures.
• Currently, 11 Cheetahs are under free ranging condition and 5 animals, including a cub born on Indian soil, are within quarantine enclosures.
• Each of the free ranging Cheetahs is being monitored round the clock by a dedicated monitoring team.
• Government of India has deployed a dedicated NTCA team of officials to work in close coordination with the field officials at the Kuno National Park.

India – Indonesia Economic and Financial Dialogue (EFD Dialogue)

• Minister of Finance, Indonesia, and the Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, announced the launch of the “India – Indonesia Economic and Financial Dialogue”.
• The platform, unveiled during the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors (FMCBG) meeting, seeks to strengthen cooperation between the two nations and foster a shared understanding on global issues.
• The EFD Dialogue is poised to enhance collaboration on bilateral and international economic and financial matters by bringing together economic policymakers and financial regulators from both countries.
• Areas of cooperation inter-alia, include macroeconomic challenges and global economic prospects, bilateral investment relations, and cooperation in G20 and ASEAN matters.

Bhoomi Samman 2023

• The President of India will present the “Bhoomi Samman” 2023 on Tuesday,18th July, 2023 at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi to 9 State Secretaries and 68 District Collectors along with their teams who have excelled in achieving saturation of the core components of Digital India Land Records Modernization Programme (DILRMP) – the core of Governance.
• The Department of Land Resources has achieved 94% digitization targets pan-India and is resolutely targeting to achieve 100% saturation of the core components of digitization of land records in all the Districts of the country by 31^st March 2024.
• Bhoomi Samman Scheme is a fine example of Centre-State cooperative federalism based on trust and partnership, as the grading system is largely based on reports and inputs of the States/UTs in the core components of computerization and digitization of land records.

Digitization of land records – Benefits

• Digitization process of land records and registration will help mitigate the huge pendency of court cases involving land disputes cutting down the GDP loss to the country’s economy due to projects being stalled over litigation involving land disputes.
• Land records related information can be very useful and effective for enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of various services and benefits of the programmes of Central and State Government Departments like Agriculture and Farmer Welfare, Chemical and Fertilizer, Public Distribution System (PDS), Panchayati Raj and Financial Institutions, etc.

Digital India Land Records Modernization Programme (DILRMP)

• The Land Reforms (LR) Division was implementing two Centrally Sponsored Schemes viz.: Computerisation of Land Records (CLR) & Strengthening of Revenue Administration and Updating of Land Records (SRA&ULR).
• Later on 21.8.2008, the Cabinet approved merger of these schemes into a modified Scheme named Digital India Land Records Modernization Programme (DILRMP).
• The main aims of DILRMP are to usher in a system of updated land records , automated and automatic mutation , integration between textual and spatial records , inter-connectivity between revenue and registration, to replace the present deeds registration and presumptive title system with that of conclusive titling with title guarantee.
• The DILRMP has 3 major components – (a) Computerization of land record (b) Survey/re-survey (c) Computerization of Registration.
• The District has been taken as the unit of implementation, where all programme activities are to converge.

AI for India 2.0

• Union Minister of Education and Skill Development and Entrepreneurship launched AI for India 2.0, a free online training programme on Artificial Intelligence, on World Youth Skills’ Day.
• A joint initiative of Skill India and GUVI, this NCVET and IIT Madras accredited online programme will equip youth with frontier skills.

National Council for Vocational Education and Training (NCVET)

• The National Council for Vocational Education and Training (NCVET) was established as a regulatory body by the Government of India dated 5th December 2018.
• It has been fully operational since 1st August 2020.
• The NCVET serves as an overarching national regulator with the aim of setting standards, developing comprehensive regulations, and improving the vocational education, training, and skilling ecosystem.
• The primary objective of NCVET is to ensure strong industry interfacing and implement effective regulations that enhance the quality and outcomes of vocational education and training.
• It is responsible for the development, qualitative improvement, and regulation of vocational education and training systems.
• Additionally, NCVET grants recognition to and monitors the functioning of awarding bodies, assessment agencies, and skill information providers. It also performs other incidental functions as specified in its resolution.

GUVI – Grab Ur Vernacular Imprint

• GUVI is an IIT-M & IIM-A incubated Ed-tech company that focuses on providing personalized learning solutions for its learners right from online learning, upskilling & recruitment opportunities in world-class quality. And, bestow tech-skills with the comfort of your native language.

World Youth Skills Day

• In 2014, the United Nations General Assembly declared 15 July as World Youth Skills Day, to celebrate the strategic importance of equipping young people with skills for employment, decent work and entrepreneurship.
• The theme for World Youth Skills Day 2023 is Skilling teachers, trainers and youth for a transformative future. It highlights the essential role that teachers, trainers and other educators play in providing skills for youth to transition to the labour market and to actively engage in their communities and societies.

MoU signed to establish 1st campus of IIT Delhi in Abu Dhabi

A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed between the Ministry of Education and Abu Dhabi Department of Education and Knowledge (ADEK), and the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IIT Delhi) to establish 1st campus of IIT Delhi in Abu Dhabi.

• The IIT Delhi – Abu Dhabi campus is expected to launch its academic programs in 2024  and a host of bachelor’s, master’s and Ph.D. programs, and operate research centers related to sustainable energy and climate studies, as well as computing and data sciences.
• IIT Delhi – Abu Dhabi is expected to offer a diverse range of programs covering Energy and Sustainability, Artificial Intelligence, Computer Science and Engineering, Mathematics and Computing and other disciplines of engineering, sciences, and humanities.
• IIT Delhi – Abu Dhabi graduates will join an illustrious alumni network of graduates from 23 campuses across India.

G20 Singapore-India Hackathon 2023

• The Union Ministry of Education’s All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University (NTU) attended the finale of the third edition of the Singapore-India (SI) Hackathon at the IIT Gandhinagar campus
• Over 800 students, start-ups, investors, policymakers, corporates, and attended the finale at IIT Gandhinagar.
• SI Hackathon Objective – to bring together the start-ups and students from India and Singapore to collaborate and create solutions for Financial Fraud Detection, Financial Inclusion and Credit Offering, Sea-level Rise and Coastal Flooding, Optimising Food Recycling, Monitoring Carbon Footprint, and boosting Singapore-India Trade Connectivity.
• This one-of-a-kind Singapore-India Hackathon 2023 has brought  together academic institutions such as NTU Singapore and IIT Gandhinagar, as well as corporates and the public sector from both nations to mentor and prepare aspiring entrepreneurs for building start-ups that impact some of the world’s most pressing global challenges of climate change and financial inclusion.

Namda Art

• Union Minister of State for Skill Development flagged off the first batch of Namda Art products for export to the United Kingdom (UK).
• The Namda craft of Kashmir is being successfully revived under a Skill India’s Pilot Project as part of the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY), with nearly 2,200 candidates from across six districts of the state, receiving training in the dying art form.
• The project sets a great example of the public-private partnership (PPP) model in the field of skill development, as it is being implemented in collaboration with local industry partners.

Namda craft

• It is a rug made of sheep wool through felting technique instead of normal weaving process.
• Due to low availability of raw material, lack of skilled manpower and marketing techniques, the export of this craft has declined almost 100 percent between 1998 and 2008.
• Therefore, through this special project under PMKVY, the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) has designed short-term training curriculum to preserve this endangered craft.
• The Namda project is an industry-based training program with beneficiaries involved in Namda Crafts Production who will contribute towards preserving and reviving the rich heritage associated with Namda craft in Kashmir.

Export Preparedness Index (EPI)

• NITI Aayog is releasing the third edition of Export Preparedness Index (EPI) for States/UTs of India for the year 2022
• The report discusses India’s export performance amid the prevailing global trade context in FY22, followed by an overview of the country’s sector-specific export performance.
• The report further highlights the need to develop our districts as export hubs in the country and undertakes a district-level analysis of merchandise exports in the country.
• EPI is a comprehensive tool which measures the export preparedness of the States and UTs in India.
• The index undertakes a comprehensive analysis of States and UTs across export-related parameters in order to identify their strengths and weaknesses.
• EPI assess the performance of the States and UTs across four pillars – Policy, Business Ecosystem, Export Ecosystem, and Export Performance.

The overview of the four pillars in the index is –

1. Policy Pillar evaluates states and UTs’ performance based on its adoption of export-related policy ecosystem at a state and district level as well as the institutional framework surrounding the ecosystem.
2. Business Ecosystem assesses the prevailing business environment in a state/UT, along with the extent of business-supportive infrastructure, and a state/UTs’ transport connectivity.
3. Export Ecosystem focuses on the export-related infrastructure in a state along with the trade support provided to the exporters, and the prevalence of Research and Development in the state to foster innovation.
4. Export Performance is an output-based indicator which gauges the growth of a state’s export over the previous year and analyses its export concentration and footprint on the global markets.

• These pillars are further based on ten sub-pillars – Export Promotion Policy; Institutional Framework; Business Environment; Infrastructure; Transport Connectivity; Export Infrastructure; Trade Support; R&D Infrastructure; Export Diversification; and Growth Orientation.
• The EPI 2022 Report observed that most ‘Coastal States’ have performed well, with the states of Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Gujarat being the top-performers in the Export Preparedness Index across the country, in all categories of states.

23rd Prime Minister Science, Technology & Innovation Advisory Council (PM-STIAC) meeting

• Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) to the Government of India, Professor Ajay Kumar Sood convened the 23rd Prime Minister Science, Technology & Innovation Advisory Council (PM-STIAC) meeting at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi.
• The meeting brought together PM-STIAC members, key government officials, and experts to discuss the contemporary priorities of science and technology ecosystem in India including high performance Biomanufacturing, the role of Empowered Technology Group (ETG), and the recently introduced National Research Foundation (NRF) Bill.

PM-STIAC

• It is an overarching Council that facilitates the Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) to the Government of India to assess the status in specific science and technology domains, comprehend challenges, formulate interventions, develop a futuristic roadmap and advise the Prime Minister accordingly.
• The Office of PSA supported by the project management team at Invest India, is facilitating the delivery and progress of all Nine national missions under PM-STIAC.

The Nine missions under the PM-STIAC

1. Natural Language Translation – The mission will facilitate access to teaching and research material across all regional languages.
2. Quantum Frontier – This mission will initiate work in the understanding and control of quantum mechanical systems with many degrees of freedom.
3. Artificial Intelligence – This mission will facilitate the advancement in the field of Artificial Intelligence by engaging closely with academia and industry to develop core research capability.
4. National Biodiversity Mission – The mission aims to build exhaustive documentation of countries’ biodiversity by cataloging and mapping all lifeforms.
5. Electric Vehicles – his mission is critical for India to reduce fossil fuel consumption and mitigate emissions by facilitating the production of Electric Vehicles (EVs) economically.
6. Bio Science for human health – This mission will utilise healthy and disease samples to understand the impact of nature and nurture on human health.
7. Waste to wealth mission – This mission will identify, develop, and deploy technologies to treat waste to generate energy, recycle materials, and extract worth.
8. Deep ocean exploration – This mission will explore the deep oceans to improve our understanding of the blue frontier.
9. Agnii – This mission will boost the innovation ecosystem in the country and help commercialize innovative solutions.

Other Major Projects of PM-STIAC

• S&T Clusters
• Earth Museum
• Brahmaputra River System
• I-STEM
• Energy Security

Vidyanjali

• Department of School Education and Literacy (DoSEL), Ministry of Education signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PHDCCI) on Vidyanjali

Vidyanjali

• It is a school volunteer management program of Ministry of Education aims to strengthen Government and Government aided schools through community and private sector involvement across the country.
• This initiative connects volunteers from all spheres of life including the industry.