RIMES:
·
The Regional Integrated Multi-hazard
Early Warning Systems (RIMES) nations recently agreed to share regionally
relevant meteorological and oceanographic data between partner institutions,
member-states and collaborating countries.
·
This was declared in the 2nd RIMES ministerial
conference.
·
The RIMES countries have also decided
to launch a capacity building programme for enhancing early warning systems for
small island states, in collaboration with regional and national institutions.
About
RIMES:
·
It is an international institution
managed by 12 member-states and is presently chaired by India.
·
It was established in April 2009.
·
RIMES evolved from the efforts of
countries in Africa and Asia in the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami to establish
a regional early warning system, and capacity building for preparedness and
response to trans-boundary hazards.
·
There are 19 collaborating countries
in RIMES, including Afghanistan, China, Pakistan, and Russia among others.
·
RIMES operates from its regional early
warning centre located on the campus of Asian Institute of Technology in
Pathumthani, Thailand.
·
JANSANKHYA
STHIRATA KOSH:
·
The ―Jansankhya Sthirata Kosh (JSK)
(National Population Stabilisation Fund) has been registered as an autonomous
Society established under the Societies Registration Act of 1860.
·
JSK has to promote and undertake
activities aimed at achieving population stabilisation at a level consistent
with the needs of sustainable economic growth, social development and environment
protection, by 2045.
·
The Union Health Minister heads the
General Body of JSK and the Ministries of Health and Family Welfare, Women and
Child Development, Department of School Education & Literacy, Rural
Development, Planning Commission are represented by their Secretaries on the General
Body of JSK.
·
All State Governments are members of
JSK.
·
Besides this the General Body has
demographers, representatives of Industry & Trade, NGOs, medical and
para-medical associations, general citizens as its members.
·
This enables JSK run as a civil
society movement drawing on the strength of its partners.
·
SURYAMITRA:
·
In order to create more professionals
in the field of solar energy, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy funded the
SURYAMITRA Programme to train future solar energy technicians.
·
The solar skill development programme,
named “Suryamitra”,has been launched under Ministry of New and Renewable
Energy.
·
Suryamitra mobile application:
·
National Institute of Solar Energy
(NISE), an autonomous institute under the Ministry, has launched a mobile
application to provide users information about technicians.
·
To achieve and maintain the target of
100 GW solar power plants for 25 years, India requires about 6.5 lakh
personnel, trained in solar energy sector (estimated by CII).
·
This course is designed and oriented
as per requirement of solar industry.
PUBLIC
FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (PFMS):
·
PFMS is a web-based online transaction
system for fund management and e-payment to implementing agencies and
beneficiaries.
·
The primary objective of PFMS is to
establish an efficient fund flow system and expenditure network.
·
PFMS also provides various
stakeholders with a reliable and meaningful management information system and
an effective decision support system.
·
PFMS, administered by the Department
of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance is an end-to-end solution for processing
payments, tracking, monitoring, accounting, reconciliation and reporting.
·
It provides the scheme managers a
unified platform for tracking releases and monitoring their last mile
utilization.
Government
to universalise the use of Public Financial Management System (PFMS):
·
The government has decided to
universalise the use of Public Financial Management System (PFMS) for all
transactions or payments under the Central Sector Schemes.
·
It will facilitate just-in-time releases
and monitor the usage of funds including information on its ultimate
utilization.
INDIA
RANKS SECOND ON GRD INDEX ON EASE OF DOING BUSINESS:
·
India has moved 13 positions to rank
2nd among 30 developing countries in 2016 on ease of doing business and China
is topped in the list.
·
About
Global Retail Development Index(GRDI):
·
The Global Retail Development Index is
an annual study that ranks the top 30developing countries for retail expansion
worldwide.
·
The Index analyzes 25 macroeconomic
and retail-specific variables to help retailers devise successful global
strategies and to identify developing market investment opportunities.
·
GRDI listed top 30 developing
countries for retail investment worldwide.
·
published by AT
Kearney
WTO
LAUNCHES NEW WORLD TRADE OUTLOOK INDICATOR:
·
The WTO has launched a new World Trade
Outlook Indicator (WTOI) designed to provide “real time” information on trends
in global trade.
·
The WTOI was unveiled in Shanghai,
China on 8 July, ahead of a meeting of G20 trade ministers.
·
Combining a variety of trade-related
indices, the WTOI is designed to give an early signal of the current direction
of world trade and where it is likely to go in the near future.
·
A reading of 100 would indicate trade
growth in line with recent trends, a reading greater than 100 would suggest
above trend growth, while a reading below 100 indicates below trend growth.
·
The WTOI will be updated on a
quarterly basis.
LOGISTICS
PERFORMANCE INDEX, 2016 : WORLD BANK REPORT
·
The index was published in the World
Bank bi-annual report.
·
Theme- ‘Connecting to Compete 2016:
Trade Logistics in the Global Economy’.
·
Among 160 countries India ranked 35th.
INDIA
RANKED 105TH ON WEF'S HUMAN CAPITAL INDEX:
·
India has been ranked 105th out of 130
countries on the World Economic Forum's
Human Capital Index, which measures countries’ ability to nurture, develop and
deploy talent for economic growth.
·
The report was released by Geneva-WEF
in the Chinese city of Tianjin at its Annual Meeting of New Champions which is
also known as `Summer Davos’ summit.
ANNUAL
NETWORKED READINESS INDEX 2016: WEF
·
India is ranked the lowest (91st) with
Russia retaining the top place at 41st rank, followed by China at 59th (up three
places), South Africa up 10 places at 65th and Brazil moving up to 72nd
position.
·
The index, forming part of the WEF's Global Information Technology Report,
measures countries' success in creating the conditions necessary for a
transition to a digitised economy and society.
COLOMBIA
AND FARC REBELS SIGN HISTORIC CEASEFIRE DEAL TO END 50-YEAR CONFLICT:
·
The Colombian government and the
leftist FARC (Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia) rebels signed a historic
ceasefire and disarmament agreement.
·
This deal puts a definitive end to the
longest civil war in Latin America.
·
It was signed in presence of Colombian
President Juan Manuel Santos, FARC leader Timoleon Jimenez and UN Secretary
General, Ban Ki-moon at a ceremony held in Havana, Cuba.
·
Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos
accepted the Nobel Peace prize,2016 for this historic deal with FARC.
·
FARC is Colombia’s largest rebel group
and Latin America’s oldest left-wing insurgency.
·
It was established in 1964 as a
communist-inspired peasant army fighting to reduce the gulf dividing rich and
poor and land reform for equality in the Andean country.
INDIA
BECOMES 35TH MEMBER OF MISSILE TECHNOLOGY CONTROL REGIME:
·
India became the 35th member of the
Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), which will enable India to buy
high-end missile technology and also enhance its joint ventures.
·
MTCR aims at restricting
the proliferation of missiles, complete rocket systems, unmanned air vehicles
and related technology for those systems capable of carrying a 500 kilogramme payload
for at least 300 kilometres, as well as systems intended for the delivery of
weapons of mass destruction (WMD).
·
MTCR - Informal and voluntary
association of countries that works toward the non-proliferation of unmanned
delivery systems capable of delivering weapons of mass destruction and seeks to
coordinate national export licensing efforts.
·
It was originally set up in 1987 by
Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Britain, and the United States.
·
China, Pakistan, Israel and Iran have
not yet joined the voluntary regime.
·
Admission to the MTCR would open the
way for India to buy high-end missile technology, also making more realistic
its aspiration to buy state-of-the-art surveillance drones.
·
The MTCR membership will provide a
boost to India's space and missile technology, besides the government's Make in
India initiative.
WASSENAAR
AGREEMENT:
·
The Wassenaar Arrangement on Export Controls for Conventional Arms and Dual-Use Goods
and Technologies, commonly known as the Wassenaar Arrangement, is a
multilateral export control regime (MECR) with 41 participating states
including many former COMECON (Warsaw Pact)countries.
·
The Wassenaar Arrangement has been established
in order to contribute to regional and international security and stability, by
promoting transparency and greater responsibility in transfers of conventional
arms and dual-use goods and technologies, thus preventing destabilising accumulations.
AUSTRALIA
GROUP:
·
The Australia Group (AG) is an
informal forum of countries which, through the harmonisation of export controls, seeks to ensure that exports do not
contribute to the development of chemical or biological weapons.
·
The group, initially consisting of 15
members, held its first meeting in Brussels, Belgium, in September 1989.
·
With the incorporation of Mexico on
August 12, 2013, it now has 42 members, including the European Commission, all
28 member states of the European Union, Ukraine, and Argentina.
·
The name comes from Australia's
initiative to create the group. Australia manages the secretariat.
NSG(NUCLEAR
SUPPLIER GROUP):
·
The Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) is a
group of nuclear supplier countries that seeks to contribute to the
non-proliferation of nuclear weapons through the implementation of two sets of
Guidelines for nuclear exports and
nuclear-related exports.
·
The NSG was founded in response to the
Indian nuclear test in May 1974 and first met in November 1975.
·
It has also been referred to as the London Group, or the London Suppliers Group.
·
The name of the "London Club" was due to the series of
meetings in London.
·
The NSG Guidelines also contain the
so-called “Non-Proliferation Principle,” adopted in 1994, whereby a supplier,
notwithstanding other provisions in the NSG Guidelines, authorises a transfer only
when satisfied that the transfer would not contribute to the proliferation of
nuclear weapons.
·
As of 2014 NSG has 48 members.
INDIA
AND BANGLADESH TRANSIT FACILITY “KOLKATA-ASHUGANJ-TRIPURA” BECOMES OPERATIONAL:
·
The transit facility
“Kolkata-Ashuganj-Tripura” under the revised Inland Water Transit and Trade Protocol
between India and Bangladesh became operational after Prime Minister Narendra Modi
signed it during his visit to Dhaka in June 2015.
·
It has compacted the time of the
journey of cargo from 30 days to just 10 days between central India and North eastern
states.
·
The Kolkata-Ashuganj-Tripura transit
route will provide central India cheaper and easier contact to the seven
interior northeastern states.
·
Under this Bangladesh is
allowed to transit goods to Bhutan and Nepal while India can access Myanmar via
Bangladesh giving impetus to Act east policy.
·
Though this protocol trade and
development will not only allowed between Bangladesh and India but also in the
entire sub-region simplifying trade and growth in the sub-region.
AFGHANISTAN,
INDIA INAUGURATED FRIENDSHIP DAM:
·
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi have inaugurated a multi-million-dollar dam
in western Afghanistan that will bring power and used for irrigation.
·
The Afghan-India Friendship Dam (Salma Dam) in Herat province, which borders Iran,
was built with Indian aid.
·
Salma Dam is a landmark infrastructure
project undertaken by Government of India on river Hari Rud , in Herat province
of Afghanistan.
·
Prime Minister Modi was also conferred
with Afghanistan’s highest civilian honour, the Amir
Amanullah Khan Award.
·
It is the Highest Civilian honour
bestowed by Afghan government to Afghan national as well as foreigners in
appreciation of their services.
·
The award is named after the Afghan
national hero, Amanullah Khan (Ghazi), who championed the cause of
Afghanistan’s freedom. He was the ruler of the Emirate of Afghanistan from
1919-1929 who led Afghanistan to independence.
ASIA’S
LARGEST ANNUAL SECURITY FORUM SHANGRI-LA DIALOGUE OPENS IN SINGAPORE:
·
The Asia’s largest annual security
forum “Shangri-La Dialogue”(15th Asia
security summit) has recently opened in Singapore to talk about security issues
in the Asia-Pacific region.
·
The forum has been organised by the London-based International Institute
for Strategic Studies (IISS).
·
The IISS Asia Security Summit was
launched in 2002 by the Singaporean government and British think tank the International
Institute for Strategic Studies.
·
This annual dialogue got its name from
the location of the meeting, the Shangri-La hotel in Singapore.
INDIA
JOINS THE HAGUE CODE OF CONDUCT AGAINST BALLISTIC MISSILE PROLIFERATION:
·
India has joined the Hague Code of
Conduct against Ballistic Missile Proliferation (HCoC), a global ballistic
missile proliferation regime.
·
What
is Hague Code of Conduct against Ballistic Missile Proliferation (HCoC)?
·
The HCoC is a voluntary, legally non-binding international confidence building
and transparency measure that seeks to prevent the proliferation of ballistic
missiles that are capable of delivering weapons of mass destruction (WMD).
·
It was established on 25 November 2002
as a result of international efforts to regulate access to ballistic missiles
which can potentially deliver WMDs.
·
The HCOC
does not ban ballistic missiles, but it calls for restraining their
production, testing, and export.
·
It is the only normative instrument to
verify the spread of ballistic missiles.
·
Ballistic Missile: It is a missile
with a high, arching trajectory which is initially powered and guided, but
falls under gravity on to its target.
·
Most of its trajectory is unpowered
and governed by gravity and air resistance if it is in the atmosphere.
·
In contrasts, cruise missiles are
aerodynamically guided in powered flight.
RAMPAL
POWER STATION:
·
Bangladesh and India
today signed a landmark deal for the construction of a 1,320 megawatt
coal fired power plant at Rampal , near the sunderbans., in Bangladesh.
·
Bangladesh-India Friendship Power
Company (Pvt) Limited (BIFPCL), the joint venture enterprise inked the deal
with Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL), for constructing the super
thermal plant.
·
India's Exim Bank will provide $1.49
billion for the project, scheduled to start generating power in 2019.
e-THEKWANI
DECLARATION:
·
In the ‘eThekwani Declaration’ adopted
during the BRICS summit in March 2013 at Durban ,it was decided to explore, besides economic issues, various new areas
of cooperation among the member States, including drug related issues.
·
In keeping with the spirit of the
eThekwani Declaration, the first anti-drug working group meeting of BRICS
countries was organized at Moscow, Russia in November, 2015.
·
The second anti-drug Working Group
meeting of Heads of Drug Control Agencies of BRICS countries Was held at New
Delhi.
PAT
SCHEME:
·
The Perform Achieve Trade (PAT) is an
innovative, market-based trading scheme announced by the Indian Government in 2008 under its National Mission on
Enhanced Energy Efficiency (NMEEE)
in National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC).
·
It aims to improve energy efficiency
in industries by trading in energy efficiency certificates in energy-intensive
sectors
·
The 2010 amendment to the Energy
Conservation Act (ECA) provides a legal mandate to PAT.
PROJECT
DEVELOPMENT FUND (PDF):
·
Project Development Fund (PDF) for CLMV countries viz. Cambodia, Laos
Myanmar and Vietnam.
·
PDF will corpus of Rs 500 crore and
should be located in the Department of Commerce.
·
It will be operated by the EXIM Bank.
FOR MORE DETAILS : Visit Vetrii IAS Academy
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