Daily Current Capsules

1 to 7 June  2024

Phenome India Project

• The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) announced the successful conclusion of the first phase of its groundbreaking longitudinal health monitoring project, the ‘Phenome India-CSIR Health Cohort Knowledgebase’ (PI-CheCK).
• For the first time, a pan-India longitudinal study is being conducted with an aim to develop an enhanced prediction model for cardio-metabolic disease, especially diabetes, liver diseases and cardiac diseases.
• Such a study is vital as these diseases have both genetic and lifestyle factors that contribute to risk
• The study managed to cross their target of 10,000 samples

Know about the PI-CHECK project

• Launched on 7th December 2023, the PI-CHECK project aims to assess risk factors in non-communicable (cardio-metabolic) diseases within the Indian populace.
• This unique initiative has already enrolled nearly 10,000 participants, who have volunteered to provide comprehensive health data.
• These participants include CSIR employees, pensioners, and their spouses from across 17 states and 24 cities.
• The collected data encompasses a wide range of parameters, including clinical questionnaires, lifestyle and dietary habits, anthropometric measurements, imaging/scanning data, and extensive biochemical and molecular data.

Importance of Longitudinal Health Monitoring

• It is important to understand the mechanisms which underlie the increasing risk and incidence of cardio metabolic disorders in Indian population and develop new strategies for risk stratification, prevention and management of these major diseases.
• Currently, most of these risk prediction algorithms are based on epidemiological data from Caucasian populations and there is evidence that they may be not very accurate for the Indian population due to ethnic diversity, varied genetic make-up and lifestyle patterns including dietary habits.
• It is therefore, important that India-specific risk prediction algorithms are developed.
• By generating a comprehensive phenome database tailored to the Indian population, the project aims to catalyze similar initiatives across the country, thereby ensuring that risk prediction algorithms are more accurate and representative of India’s diverse genetic and lifestyle landscape.

Intraoperative Ultrasound (iUS)

• The Neurosurgery department at Tata Memorial Centre (TMC), Mumbai, recently procured a state-of-the art intraoperative Ultrasound (iUS) machine for performing complex brain tumour surgeries.

Know about iUS

• iUS is cost -efficient and with appropriate training, can become an important adjunct in the neurosurgeon’s armamentarium.
• The bKActiv machine, which was recently acquired by the department is the first installation of this advanced iUS system in the country.
• Intraoperative imaging is crucial for safely and accurately removing intrinsic brain tumours.
• Combined with navigational aids (which is like a surgical GPS system), the iUS machine allows neurosurgeons to precisely track tumour remnants.
• Further, when combined with brain mapping techniques like awake surgery, they enable removal of tumours radically, even near critical functioning brain regions.

Rashtriya e-Pustakalaya

• The Department of School Education, Ministry of Education, Government of India, signed an MoU with the National Book Trust under the aegis of Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education in New Delhi to create an institutional framework for the Digital Library Platform, Rashtriya e-Pustakalaya.
• The Rashtriya e-Pustakalaya will be available round-the-clock, irrespective of the geographic location of the readers, making the books more accessible to them.
• A first-of-its-kind digital library, Rashtriya e-Pustakalya, will seek to instil a lifelong love of reading among Indian children and youth by offering over 1,000 non-academic books to children and adolescents published by over 40 reputed publishers in more than 22 languages besides English.
• It will be aimed at facilitating the availability of quality books across geographies, languages, genres, and levels and providing device-agnostic accessibility for children and adolescents in the country.
• The books will be categorized by four age groups, as per NEP 2020, for readers aged 3-8, 8-11, 11-14, and 14-18 years.

77th World Health Assembly

• The 77^thWorld Health Assembly agreed to the package of amendments to the International Health Regulations (IHR 2005) based on 300 proposals made by member countries after the Covid-19 pandemic.
• The targeted amendments to the International Health Regulations (IHR) aim at improving countries’ ability to prepare for and respond to Public Health Emergencies of International Concern (PHEIC) and Pandemic Emergencies (PE).
• They include provisions for facilitating equitable access to relevant health products during PHEIC and PE, as well as mobilizing financial resources to support developing countries in building, strengthening, and maintaining the core capacities required under the IHR (2005).
• The 77th World Health Assembly also approved a draft resolution to make organ donations, including those using tissues and human cells, more available around the world.

Organ Donation Draft Highlights

• It wants to make it easier for people in both poor and developed countries to get one.
• The resolution asks member states to come up with a global plan to improve organ transplants. This plan will be put into action in 2026.
• The target of the draft is narrowed even more by calling for donations after both neurological and, if necessary, circulatory death.
• This dual approach method aims to get the most out of the organs that are available while still following medical and moral standards.
• Countries are being pushed to make organ transplantation a normal part of their national healthcare systems, with donations from the dead being a normal part of this.

Know about WHA

• The World Health Assembly (WHA) is the forum through which the World Health Organization (WHO) is governed by its 194 member states.
• It is the world’s highest health policy-setting body and is composed of health ministers from member states.
• The members of the WHA generally meet every year in May in Geneva at the Palace of Nations, the location of WHO Headquarters.
• The main tasks of the WHA are to decide major policy questions, as well as to approve the WHO work programme and budget and elect its Director-General (every fifth year) and annually to elect ten members to renew part of its executive board.
• Its main functions are to determine the policies of the Organization, supervise financial policies, and review and approve the proposed programme budget.

Artemis program

• NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) are collaborating to develop a standardized time system for the moon as part of the Artemis program, which aims to return humans to the lunar surface. The initiative addresses the need for a unified timekeeping system to coordinate missions from different countries and private entities.
• The Artemis program is intended to reestablish a human presence on the Moon for the first time since the Apollo 17 moon mission in 1972.
• The program’s stated long-term goal is to establish a permanent base on the Moon to facilitate human missions to Mars.
• Two principal elements of the Artemis program are derived from the now-cancelled Constellation program: the Orion spacecraft and the Space Launch System (as a reincarnation of Ares V).

Importance of a Unified Lunar Time System

• With many lunar missions planned, including those by China, India, and private companies, the absence of a standardized time zone on the moon poses logistical challenges. “A common lunar time system is essential for ensuring the successful operation and coordination of these missions,”

Challenges in Establishing a Lunar Time Zone

Lunar Day-Night Cycle

• The moon’s day-night cycle, lasting about 29.5 Earth days, complicates timekeeping. Unlike Earth’s 24-hour day, this prolonged cycle necessitates a different approach to maintaining a consistent time reference.

Lack of Natural Timekeeping Reference

• Earth’s time zones are based on its rotation, divided into 24 hours. The moon lacks a similar natural reference point, requiring the creation of a new timekeeping system from scratch.

Coordinating International Missions

• Achieving consensus on a standardized time zone that meets the needs of various international and private missions is challenging. Different missions may have varying requirements and preferences for timekeeping

Technical Synchronization

• Implementing precise navigation and communication systems to maintain accurate timekeeping across different lunar missions is complex. All equipment and systems must be compatible with the new time zone.

Communication Delays

• The communication delay between Earth and the moon, about 1.28 seconds each way, must be considered to ensure accurate coordination and operation of missions.

Operational Practicalitie

• Adapting the new time zone for daily operations, including scheduling activities and coordinating with Earth-based teams, requires thorough planning and testing.

Data Management

• Converting data between Earth time and lunar time could pose challenges, requiring robust software and systems to handle time conversions seamlessly.

Potential Solutions

• One proposed solution is to base the lunar time zone on Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), providing a consistent reference for all lunar activities. Another approach involves creating a new time scale specifically tailored to the moon’s environment and operational requirements.

Future Steps

• NASA and ESA are working on technologies to ensure accurate timekeeping and synchronization for lunar missions. These efforts are crucial for the success of the Artemis program and future lunar exploration. “The synchronization of time will be vital for various aspects of lunar operations, including navigation, communication, and scientific experiments
• The Artemis program, led by NASA, aims to land the first woman and the next man on the moon by 2024. Establishing a lunar time zone is a significant step towards fostering international collaboration and ensuring the success of multi-national lunar missions.

JADES-GS-z14-0

• The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has discovered not one but two of the earliest and most distant galaxies ever seen, continuing to break the records it previously set.
• The furthest galaxy, JADES-GS-z14-0, is seen as it was around 300 million years after the Big Bang, existing at least 100 million years earlier than the previous record holder. That means that the light the JWST saw from this primordial galaxy has been traveling for 13.5 billion years on its way to reach us.
• JADES-GS-z14-0 isn’t alone, either. It was discovered along with another galaxy, JADES-GS-z14-1, that is almost as far away and takes second place in the ranking of the earliest galaxies ever seen by humanity.

Know about JWST

• The James Webb Space Telescope, also called Webb or JWST, is a large, space-based observatory.
• The telescope was launched by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in December, 2021.
• The telescope is optimized for infrared wavelengths, which complements and extends the discoveries of the Hubble Space Telescope.
• It has longer wavelength coverage and greatly improved sensitivity, compared to the Hubble telescope.
• The longer wavelengths will enable Webb to look further back in time to find the first galaxies that formed in the early Universe, and to look inside dust clouds where stars and planetary systems are forming today.
• Webb is also designed to study the Solar System’s planets – Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune – and their satellites.
• It also studies comets, asteroids, and minor planets at or beyond the orbit of Mars.

Somalia with UN Security Council seat

• Somalia has won a non-permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council – hailed as a significant step for the war-torn nation.
• It will be the first time the country, which descended into civil war more than 30 years ago, has held the position since the 1970s.
• There are 10 rotating non-permanent members on the council, along with the five permanent members – the US, the UK, France, China and Russia.
• To win a seat, which can carry influence in world affairs, a country needs to secure the support of at least two thirds of the General Assembly delegations that are voting.
• Somalia was elected along with Denmark, Greece, Pakistan and Panama to serve for two years from January next year.
• It bagged the seat allocated to the East Africa region unopposed and went on to win 179 votes in a secret ballot in the 193-member General Assembly.

Somalia Civil War

• Somalia has also been battling the Islamist militant group al-Shabab, which still controls large parts of the country.
• The al-Qaeda-allied fighters want to topple the central government and establish their own rule based on a strict interpretation of Islamic law.
• In recent months, the government has intensified its fight against the group as foreign troops withdraw and pass the baton on to the Somali army.

Tele MANAS

• A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) and the Ministry of Defence (MoD) to facilitate collaboration between the two ministries in operating a special cell of Tele MANAS, the National Telemental Health Helpline of MoHFW, as a pilot project for a period of two years at the Armed Forces Medical College in Pune.
• Tele MANAS is the digital extension of the District Mental Health Programme (DMHP), offering comprehensive, integrated, and inclusive 24/7 tele-mental health services.
• The initiative provides toll-free number, 14416, in each State and Union Territory (UT) for easy access to mental health support.
• Currently, there are 51 operational Tele MANAS cells functioning across all 36 States and UTs, offering services in 20 different languages.
• Since its launch in October 2022, Tele MANAS has received over 10 lakh calls and is managing more than 3,500 calls daily.
• The data indicate a significant demand for mental health services and underscores the importance of addressing mental health issues comprehensively and inclusively, particularly in specialized contexts like the Armed Forces.

18^th  General Lok Sabha Election Highlights

• General elections were held in India from 19 April to 1 June 2024 in seven phases, to elect all 543 members of the Lok Sabha. Votes were counted and the result was declared on 4 June to form the 18th Lok Sabha. The legislative assembly elections in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha, and Sikkim were held simultaneously with the general election, along with the by-elections for 25 constituencies in 12 legislative assemblies.
• More than 968 million people out of a population of 1.4 billion people were eligible to vote, equivalent to 70 percent of the total population.642 million voters participated in the election and 312 million of them were women, making it the highest-ever participation by women voters. This was the largest-ever election, surpassing the previous election, and lasted 44 days, second only to the 1951–52 Indian general election.
• The Election Commission of India declared results for all the 543 Lok Sabha seats that went to the polls from April 19 to June 1. While the Lok Sabha (lower house of the Indian parliament) has 543 seats, the counting was held for 542 as the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate from Surat, Gujarat was elected unopposed.
• The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) formed the next government as the ruling party and its allies garnered a total of 292 votes.  However, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s BJP failed to cross the 272 majority mark and needed the support of allies to form the government. The ruling party won 303 and 282 seats in the general elections in 2019 and 2014, respectively.
• Meanwhile, the main opposition INDIA bloc, led by the Indian National Congress (INC), fought tough and won 234 seats. INC managed to get 99 seats compared to 52 it won in 2019. It was also the highest number of seats that the grand old party bagged since 2014. The Samajwadi Party (SP), a part of the INDIA bloc, won 37 seats, the third-highest overall after BJP and Congress.  The party, led by Akhilesh Yadav, also emerged as the single-largest party in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh which has 80 parliamentary constituencies, the highest in the country.

Lok Sabha Election 2024 Final Results: Full List

No.	Party	Seats Won
1	Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)	240
2	Indian National Congress (INC)	99
3	Samajwadi Party (SP)	37
4	All India Trinamool Congress (AITC)	29
5	Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)	22
6	Telugu Desam Party (TDP)	16
7	Janata Dal (United) (JD(U))	12
8	Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackrey) (Shiv Sena (UBT))	9
9	Nationalist Congress Party-Sharad Chandra Pawar (NCP (SCP))	8
10	Shiv Sena	7
11	Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) (LJPRV)	5
12	Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP)	4
13	Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD)	4
14	Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M))	4
15	Indian Union Muslim League (IUML)	3
16	Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)	3
17	Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM)	3
18	Jana Sena Party (JSP)	2
19	Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) (Liberation) (CPI(ML)(L))	2
20	Janata Dal (Secular) (JD(S))	2
21	Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK)	2
22	Communist Party of India (CPI)	2
23	Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD)	2
24	Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (JKN)	2
25	United People’s Party, Liberal (UPPL)	1
26	Asom Gana Parishad (AGP)	1
27	Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular)	1
28	Kerala Congress (KEC)	1
29	Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP)	1
30	Nationalist Congress Party (NCP)	1
31	Voice of the People Party (VOTPP)	1
32	Zoram People’s Movement (ZPM)	1
33	Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD)	1
34	Rashtriya Loktantrik Party (RLTP)	1
35	Bharat Adivasi Party	1
36	Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM)	1
37	Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK)	1
38	Aazad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram)	1
39	Apna Dal (Soneylal)	1
40	All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSUP)	1
41	All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM)	1
42	Independent (IND)	7

Bonn Climate Conference 2024

• The 60th Session of UNFCCC Subsidiary Bodies, also called the Bonn Climate Change Conference, commenced on June 3, 2024 in the German city.
• Bonn talks are the key mid-point in the journey from COP28 in Dubai to COP29 in Azerbaijan to be held later this year.
• Discussions in Bonn focused on the elements necessary to operationalize the carbon markets.
• Discussions on carbon markets at the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) fora are grouped under Articles 6.2 and 6.4 of the Paris Agreement.
• At 28th Conference of Parties (COP28) to the UNFCCC in Dubai in 2023, governments failed to reach any agreement on addressing various elements of the framework for market mechanisms under both Articles.

Know about Emergence of New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG)

• The NCQG’s goal is to get developed countries to promise to give money to poor countries so that they can take action on climate change. At the conference, differences between developed and developing countries were brought to light, especially when it came to the NCQG’s financial standards and structures.
• The European Union pushed for a more diverse approach to funding, but the G77 and China, which form the largest group of developing countries, stressed the need for a big, needs-based goal that would be mostly paid for by public funds from developed countries.

Human-made wetlands Nagi & Nakti recognised under Ramsar Convention

• The Nagi and Nakti Bird Sanctuaries have been recognised as the wetlands of international importance under the Ramsar Convention.
• These sanctuaries are built on human-made wetlands and provide a natural habitat for a wide variety of flora and fauna, especially flocks of birds.
• Both these wetlands are deemed as protected areas situated in Bihar’s Jamui district.
• With their inclusion in the Ramsar Convention, the total number of such wetlands in India has risen to 82.
• It is important to note that the Kanwar Lake in Begusarai district was designated as Bihar’s first Ramsar Site in 2020.
• Ramsar Convention is an international convention to conserve wetlands and was signed in 1971 in the Iranian city of Ramsar.

World Environment Day

• The 51st edition of World Environment Day was a record-breaker, with an unprecedented 3,854 official events and tens of millions of people joining the conversation online.
• The celebration helped raise the profile of land degradation, desertification and drought, while showcasing the potential of ecosystem restoration.
• It also united world leaders, artists, celebrities, astronauts, school children and a chorus of others in a call to protect and restore the Earth.
• This year’s World Environment Day campaign focused on land restoration, desertification and drought resilience under the slogan “Our land. Our future. We are #GenerationRestoration.”
• The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia hosted the 2024 World Environment Day global celebrations.

World Environment Day Genesis

• World Environment Day was established in 1972 by the United Nations at the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment (5–16 June 1972), that had resulted from discussions on the integration of human interactions and the environment. One year later, in 1973, the first WED was held with the theme “Only One Earth”

Trishna

• In a major boost to global efforts to monitor and mitigate climate change, the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) is collaborating with the French Space Agency CNES on an ambitious new satellite mission called Trishna.

Know about Trishna

• Short for Thermal infraRed Imaging Satellite for High-resolution Natural resource Assessment, Trishna is engineered to deliver high spatial and temporal resolution observations of Earth’s surface temperature, vegetation health, and water cycle dynamics.
• Slated for launch in 2025, Trishna will be a game-changer in using space-based thermal infrared imaging to study the impacts of climate change and support sustainable management of precious natural resources like water.
• Trishna’s primary objectives are to monitor the energy and water budgets of the continental biosphere, quantifying terrestrial water stress and water use efficiency. It will also provide high-resolution observations of coastal and inland water quality dynamics.
• The 770 kg satellite will operate from a sun-synchronous orbit at 761 km altitude, carrying two cutting-edge imaging payloads.
• The Thermal Infrared (TIR) instrument developed by CNES will map surface temperatures and emissivities across four thermal bands.
• ISRO’S Visible-Shortwave Infrared (VSWIR) sensor will complement this with observations across 7 spectral bands for vegetation monitoring.
• The high-quality data from Trishna will directly contribute to tackling some of the biggest climate challenges facing humanity. In agriculture, it will help optimize irrigation, improve crop productivity, and enable sustainable water management practices.
• Urban planners will benefit from detailed urban heat island mapping, while water resource managers can monitor pollution in rivers, lakes and coastal areas. The mission will also support sectors like disaster management by detecting forest fires and volcanic activity.

NPCI International and the Central Reserve Bank of Peru Partner to Develop UPI-Like Real-Time Payments System in Peru

• NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL) and the Central Reserve Bank of Peru (BCRP) have announced a partnership to enable the deployment of a UPI-like real-time payments system in Peru.
• This collaboration marks a significant milestone, making Peru the first country in South America to adopt the globally renowned Unified Payment Interface (UPI) technology—a symbol of India’s pioneering excellence in digital payments.
• Last month, NIPL entered into an agreement with the Bank of Namibia to develop an instant payments system akin to UPI.
• The development comes as the RBI and NPCI are expanding the presence of UPI to other global regions.
• According to the RBI’s annual report for 2023-24, the central bank, along with NPCI, plans to introduce UPI in 20 countries, with an initial timeline of 2024-25 and a completion timeline of 2028-29.
• Currently, UPI systems are being used in France, Sri Lanka, Singapore, the UAE, Bhutan, Nepal, and Mauritius, among others. In India, the homegrown payments system set a record in May by processing 14.04 billion transactions, compared to 13.3 billion in April.

Know about NPCI International

• NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL) was incorporated on April 3, 2020, as a wholly owned subsidiary of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).
• As NPCI’s international arm, NIPL is devoted to deploying NPCI’s indigenous, successful real-time payment system—Unified Payments Interface (UPI)—and card scheme (RuPay) outside of India.
• NPCI has successfully developed and proved its products and technological capabilities in the domestic market by transforming the payment segment in India.
• Currently, there are several countries that seek to establish a real-time payment system or a domestic card scheme.
• NIPL, with its knowledge and experience, can offer these countries technological assistance through licensing and consulting for building real-time payment systems to meet the rapidly evolving needs of fast-growing global businesses.
• NIPL focuses on transforming payments across the globe through technology and innovation.
• It will not only enable payments for Indians but also support other countries by enhancing their payment capabilities using technological assistance, consulting, and infrastructure.

SPARSH [System for Pension Administration (Raksha)]

• Defence Accounts Department (DAD), Ministry of Defence has signed Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with Bank of India, Canara Bank, Central Bank of India and Utkarsh Small Finance Bank in New Delhi to onboard them as SPARSH [System for Pension Administration (Raksha)] Service Centres across 1,128 branches of the four banks across the country.
• The MoUs will provide last-mile connectivity to pensioners, especially in remote areas where they do not have technical wherewithal to log on to SPARSH.
• These Service Centres will become an interface for pensioners for SPARSH, providing an effective medium to update their profile; register grievances; digital annual identification; data verification, besides fetching detailed information regarding their monthly pension. The access to these centres would be provided free of cost, with nominal service charges being borne by the DAD.
• With these MoUs, SPARSH Services would now be available at over 26,000 branches of a total of 15 banks across the country.

Know! about SPARSH

• SPARSH is an initiative of the Ministry of Defence which aims to provide comprehensive solution to the defence pensioners.
• It is a fundamental change in managing defence pensions as it focuses on bringing in efficiency, responsiveness and transparency.

Gudleppa Hallikeri Award for 2024

• The veteran writer Siddalinga Pattanashetti has been selected for the prestigious Gudleppa Hallikeri Award for 2024.
• This declaration was made by the Gudleppa Hallikeri Memorial Foundation based in Hosaritti, Haveri District.
• The award, set to be presented on June 6 at a ceremonial event, includes a monetary prize of ₹25,000 and a memento.
• Siddhalinga Pattanashetti becomes the 19th distinguished individual to receive this honour, as stated by Veeranna Chekki, trustee of the Gudleppa Hallikeri Memorial Foundation.

Know! about the Award

• People who have made important contributions to literature, society, or social service are recognized with the Gudleppa Hallikeri Award.
• It was named for a famous freedom fighter named Gudleppa Hallikeri who believed in the same things that Mahatma Gandhi did.

WSIS+20 Forum

• Additional Secretary (Telecom) led a delegation at ITU Geneva, for the WSIS+20 (World Summit on the Information Society) Forum High-Level Event 2024 and ‘AI for Good’ Global Summit from 27 to 31 May 2024.
• The event was co-organized by ITU, UNESCO, UNDP and UNCTAD and co-hosted by ITU and the Swiss Confederation, with the support of remote participation.
• India is leading in drafting global standards for responsible and trustworthy AI, and the TEC (Standard’s body of DoT, India) has released a Standard for assessing and rating fairness in AI Systems.
• India took over the baton of hosting WTSA 2024 in New Delhi from 15-24 October 2024 during the AI for Good Global Summit at ITU Geneva and extended a warm invitation to the foreign delegates from across the globe to attend the upcoming WTSA in New Delhi. It was followed by launch of host country website of WTSA 2024 (https://www.delhiwtsa24.in/)

World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS)+20 Forum High-Level Event 2024

• The WSIS+20 Forum High-Level Event 2024 will mark a significant milestone of twenty years of progress made in the implementation of the outcomes of the World Summit on the Information Society, which took place in two phases — Geneva in 2003 and Tunis in 2005.
• Twenty years ago WSIS set the framework for global digital cooperation with a vision to build people-centric, inclusive, and development-oriented information and knowledge societies.
• The WSIS+20 Forum High-Level Event 2024 will serve as a platform for multistakeholder discussions with the objective to take stock of the achievements and key trends, challenges and opportunities since the Geneva Plan of Action in 2003.

World’s largest grain storage

• The National Level Coordination Committee (NLCC) for the World’s largest grain storage plan held its maiden meeting in the Ministry of Cooperation, New Delhi
• Ministry of Cooperation, along with Secretary (Agriculture and Farmers Welfare), Secretary (Food and Public Distribution), Secretary (Food Processing Industries), MD (NCDC) held the first meeting with Food Corporation of India (FCI), National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD, WDRA and other stakeholders.
• The committee reviewed the status of implementation of its pilot project in 11 States, which was initiated last year.
• The Plan envisages creation of various agricultural infrastructure at PACS level, including warehouses, custom hiring center, processing units, Fair Price Shops, etc. through convergence of various existing schemes of the Government of India (GoI), such as, Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF), Agricultural Marketing Infrastructure Scheme (AMI), Sub Mission on Agricultural Mechanization (SMAM) Pradhan Mantri Formalization of Micro Food Processing Enterprises Scheme (PMFME) etc.
• The Pilot project has been implemented by National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) with the support of NABARD, Food Corporation of India (FCI), Central Warehousing Corporation (CWC), NABARD Consultancy Services (NABCONS) in coordination with States/ UTs concerned.

 

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