Poshan Gyan          

●NITI Aayog, in partnership with the Centre for Social and Behaviour Change, Ashoka University, and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, launched Poshan Gyan.

● It is a national digital repository on health and nutrition.

Key Points:

● Poshan Gyan is an online resource for any person working in the nutrition sector. It is also accessible for any person seeking information to improve nutritional outcomes.

●It holds communication materials that were created by government agencies and other developmental organisations.

● The materials held by Poshan Gyan cover a wide range of topics such as complementary feeding, antenatal care, adolescent health, anaemia prevention, diet diversity, etc.

Competency-based Assessment Framework 

• Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has launched a competency-based assessment framework for classes 6-10 for three subjects namely, English (reading), Science, and Mathematics. 

• It is a part of CBSE Competency Based Education Project which was in accordance with the new National Education Policy (NEP) in next 2-3 years. 

• For this, CBSE had a collaboration with British Council and three agencies from the UK namely Cambridge, NARIC and Alphaplus.

Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code Amendment Ordinance, 2021 

• The President of India promulgated the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Ordinance, 2021, which aims to provide an efficient alternative insolvency resolution process for the corporate persons classified as MSMEs.

• The ordinance allows the corporate debtor to submit a “base resolution plan” to the resolution professional. 

• Chapter III-A has been introduced to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 under the amendment. 

• It explains the initiation of the resolution, duties of resolution professionals and eligibility to take the benefits of pre-packaged insolvency resolution processes, etc.

eFuel by 2022       

Porsche has teamed up with Siemens Energy to produce 130,000 litres of climate-neutral eFuel by 2022. The project of eFuel production is called the Haru Oni project.

About eFuel:

●eFuels are essentially complex hydrocarbons that have been created by man, rather than the lengthy natural and man-made process it takes to create fossil fuels.

●Water is separated into hydrogen and oxygen using wind-generated electricity and then CO2 filtered from the air is combined with ‘green hydrogen’ to form methanol.

● It’s then turned into usable fuel by Methanol to Gasoline (MTG) technology.

● This hydrogen is then combined with the carbon dioxide filtered from the air to form methanol.

● The methanol is then converted into gasoline using ExxonMobil licensed technology.

●  The eFuel shall be used in any car.

World’s First Ship Tunnel 

Norway is set to construct World’s first ship tunnel which will start in 2022 and will be completed by 2025-26. 

Key Highlights of Project 

• Norway has planned to construct a Ship tunnel underneath the mountains in the Stadhavet peninsula of Norway. 

• Tunnel will burrow through the narrowest point of the Stadhavet peninsula for which conventional blasting will be employed. It will also use underground drilling rigs and pallet rigs. 

• The tunnel will be 37 meters high, 1,700 meters long, and 26.5 meters wide.

Freedom Pineapple Movement 

Taiwan released the “Freedom Pineapple” movement on Twitter to protest China's politically motivated ban on the import of pineapples from Taiwan.

About Campaign:

• The Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen kicked off a “pineapple challenge” on social media to attract more Taiwanese consumers to buy the fruit and counter China’s move.

• The call was seconded by the de facto embassies of the US and Canada in Taiwan, who posted pictures on social media professing their love for pineapples from the island.

• The campaign also received an enthusiastic response on social media in several other countries, including the UK, US, and India.

• The campaign helped Taiwan receive orders for 5,000 tonnes of the fruit from Japan.

Maitri Setu

• The Prime Minister of India inaugurated the ‘Maitri Setu’ between India and Bangladesh via video conferencing.

• The ‘Maitri Setu’ is a bridge that has been built in the River Feni, which flows between the state of Tripura and Bangladesh.

• It is a 1.9 km long bridge that connects the Sabroom in India with Ramgarh in Bangladesh

• The name ‘Maitri Setu’ has been chosen to symbolize the growing bilateral relations and friendly ties between both countries.

• The construction of the bridge was done by the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd.

INS Vajra 

Indian Coast Guard Ship Vajra was commissioned to the Indian Coast Guard by the Chief of Defence Staff at Kattupalli in Chennai. 

Key Points: 

• The ship was indigenously designed and built by Larsen and Toubro Shipbuilding Ltd. Sixth in the series of seven offshore patrol vessels, Vajra is fitted with highly sophisticated navigation and communication systems. 

• The ship has a 30mm gun as the main armament and equipped with 2 FCS controlled 12.7 mm SRCG (Stabilized Remote-Controlled Gun) for enhanced fighting efficiency.

Arrow 4: Anti-missile system

Context

The Israel Missile Defense Organization and US Missile Defense Agency have commenced developing a long-range ballistic missile interceptor, named Arrow-4. Arrow-4 system includes next-generation interceptors and will replace the Arrow-2 over the next decades.

About Arrow-4 

• The development of Arrow-4 in collaboration with the United States will result in the technological and operational leap forward.

• Arrow 4 will be the next generation of Israel's multi-layered defence doctrine to intercept missiles in the atmosphere and space.

• Arrow 4 will also have extraordinary flight and interception capabilities

• Arrow 4 will be an advanced and innovative anti-missile system with enhanced capabilities to address a wide range of evolving threats in the region.

• The Arrow-4 system is expected to counter threats both inside and beyond the atmosphere, making it endoatmospheric and exoatmospheric.

• The cooperative program between the two countries illustrates US commitment to assist the government of Israel in upgrading its national missile defence capability to defend the State of Israel from emerging threats.

• Arrow is a family of anti-ballistic missiles, which has been designed to make the Israeli missile defense system more effective against ballistic missiles in comparison to other surface-to-air missiles. 

  • These missiles are being jointly funded and produced by Israel and the United States. 

  • The missiles started developing in 1986 and it is overseen by Israeli Ministry of Defense and the U.S. Missile Defense Agency. 

  • The MLM Division is the principal contractor for the Arrow weapon system and is a design, development and system engineering organization and it is the prime contractor for Arrow-4′s development

• Israel's Arrow-2 and Arrow-3 interceptors are already operational as part of a multi-layered system to destroy incoming missiles in the atmosphere and in space.

Indian And Indonesian Navies Conducted PASSEX Exercise

Context

On February 18, 2021, the Indian and the Indonesian navies held the bilateral military exercise PASSEX (Passage Exercise) in the Arabian sea. This military exercise was organised in order to enhance the operational interoperability and the overall cooperation.

Key Highlights 

• Indian Navy Ship INS Talwar and Indonesian Navy’s multirole Corvette KRI Bung Tomo took part in the exercise.

• Maritime cooperation between India and Indonesia has been increasing rapidly in the last few years.

• PASSEXs are regularly conducted by Indian navy with friendly foreign navies.

• Notwithstanding the coronavirus pandemic, the Indian Navy participated in maritime exercises in the last few months with a number of countries, including Japan, Russia, Australia and the US.

• In November 2020, India hosted the Malabar exercise, in which the navies of the US, Japan and Australia participated. India invited Australia for the exercise, making it a drill by all the Quad member nations.

  • Malabar exercise is a trilateral naval exercise between the United States, Japan and India. 

  • This drill was started in 1992 as a bilateral exercise involving India and the United States. 

  • In 2015, Japan was made a permanent partner in the exercise. 

  • The exercise is often joined by the non-permanent members like Singapore and Australia. 

  • The exercise held a number of activities like fighter combat operations from aircraft carriers, anti-submarine warfare, amphibious operations, diving salvage operations, counter-piracy operations etc.

ARHMD System for Indian Army

Context

Indian Army is in the process of acquiring niche technology by procuring quantity 556 Augmented Reality Head Mounted Display (ARHMD) Systems under Make-II Category.

Key Highlights 

• Augmented Reality Head Mounted Display (ARHMD) System is conceived as a capability enhancement to Land Based Air Defence Weapon Systems such as IGLA shoulder fired Infra-Red Homing Air Defence Missile System and ZU 23mm 2B AD Gun System which will provide the operator with radar and Thermal Imaging (TI) sight outputs as overlays.

• The proposed system intends to enhance the engagement capability during night and conditions of inclement weather. 

• The day-time engagements are also intended to be enhanced through increased reaction times, data computation for decision support and integration of output of TI sight. 

• The vendor responses were evaluated after which Project Sanction Order (PSO) was issued on February 22, 2021 to six vendors to develop the prototype.

• The contract will finally be placed with one of the firms after they successfully develop the prototype in accordance with the provisions of Buy (Indian-IDDM) category of DAP 2020.

• Development of Augmented Reality Head Mounted Display System under Make-II will be a game changer for Indian Army. It will be in sync with “Atmanirbhar Bharat” policy of the Government and will lead to “Self-Reliance” by giving boost to the Indian Defence Industry.

Make-II Projects 

In the Defence procurement procedure, the provision of ‘Make’ category of capital acquisition is the key pillar of realising the visions of ‘Make in India’ initiative. This category fosters the indigenous capabilities by design & development of required defence equipment, product or systems by public as well as the private sector industry.

‘Make’ Procedure is divided into two sub-categories: 

• Make I Projects: Under this sub-category involves the Government funding of 90%. The funding from the government is released in a phased manner. It is released as per the terms agreed between MoD and the vendor.

• Make II Projects: Under this sub-category involves the prototype development of equipment, system or platform. Make II Projects also involves the upgradation of the equipment or system. For the development of the prototype, no Government funding is provided.

Ingenuity Helicopter

• NASA’s Ingenuity mini-helicopter has recently been dropped on the surface of Mars in preparation for its first flight. The helicopter had been fixed to the Perseverance rover, which touched down on the Red Planet. 

• It had been feeding off the Perseverance's power system but will now have to use its own battery to run a vital heater to protect its unshielded electrical components from freezing and cracking during the bitter Martian night.

• Ingenuity will be taking high-resolution photography as it flies. Up to five flights of gradual difficulty are planned over the month. 

• Mars 2020 Mission was launched in July 2020, as a part of NASA's Mars Exploration Programme. The mission was launched from the Atlas-V Launch vehicle.

Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG)

• The government has formed the “Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG)” to conduct SARS-CoV-2 genomic surveillance across India. 

• This consortium comprises of ten Regional Genome Sequencing Laboratories (RGSLs) namely, ILS Bhubaneshwar, NIBMG Kalyani, NCCS Pune, ICMR-NIV Pune, CDFD Hyderabad, CSIR-CCMB Hyderabad, NIMHANS Bengaluru, InStem/NCBS Bengaluru, CSIR-IGIB Delhi, and NCDC Delhi. 

About INSACOG 

The INSACOG is made up of ten laboratories that specialize in Whole Genome Sequencing (WGS).

NanoSniffer 

• The Union Government recently launched the world’s first Microsensor-based Explosive Trace Detector called the “NanoSniffer”.

• It has been developed by an IIT Bombay incubated startup called NanoSniff Technologies. It is marketed by the IIT Delhi incubated startup Kritikal Solutions.

• The NanoSniffer can detect explosives in less than ten seconds.

• It can detect all classes of military, homemade and conventional explosives. It uses a Micro-Electromechanical System and can detect even nanogram quantities of explosives.

Madhukranti Portal

• The Minister of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare Narendra Singh Tomar recently launched the Madhukranti portal to promote the Honey Mission in India.

• The Madhukranti portal is an initiative of the National Bee Board. 

• It is operated under the National Beekeeping and Honey Mission.

• The portal has been developed to achieve the traceability source of honey and beehive products on the digital platform. Also, the platform will help in checking the quality and source of adulteration of honey.

Climate Change platform for poor countries

The World Bank and International Monetary Fund have launched a platform to advise the poor countries on funding for conservation and climate activities. 

Current Scenario

• According to the World Bank and IMF, twin global problems. They are as follows:

• The need to restructure or reduce the heavy debt burden of poor countries

• The need to reduce fossil fuel emissions contributing to climate change

• Therefore, the solution of including climate change into the debt restructuring process will help motivate sovereign lenders to write off a certain percentage of debt of poorer countries. 

About the platform

• The advisors in the platform will include officials from United Nations, private investors and ratings agencies.

• The platform is supported by the G20 economies as well.

• Three countries such as Chad, Ethiopia and Zambia have initiated the negotiations with the creditors under the new platform.

Carbon Capture, Use and Storage” Technology 

• A United Nations report has called to scale up carbon capture, use and storage in light of the Paris Agreement on Climate change which aims for the net-zero emissions goal in order to limit global warming.

• The scaling-up “carbon capture, use & storage” (CCUS) technology comprises components like capturing the CO2 emissions from the coal and gas power plants. It also aims to harness or reuse carbon dioxide from heavy industry for deep underground storage. 

• Carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) is a major technology for reducing carbon emissions. This technology can be extended to the entire energy market.

Himalayan Serow spotted in the state of Assam

• A Himalayan serow is the newest creature that has been spotted in the state of Assam.

• Himalayan Serow has a resemblance of a cross between a goat, a donkey, a cow, and a pig. It’s a medium-sized mammal with a large head, thick neck, short limbs, long, mule-like ears, and a coat of dark hair. 

• Himalayan serows are herbivores, and are typically found at altitudes between 2,000 metres and 4,000 metres. They are also found in eastern, central, and western Himalayas, but not in the Trans-Himalayan region. 

• Recently it was spotted in the Spiti region of Himachal Pradesh.

State of Environment Report, 2021

Context

The Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) has released its State of Environment Report, 2021 on February 25, 2021. 

Key Highlights of the report

• According to the report, the country is all set to host a ‘pandemic generation’. 375 million children (from new-born to 14-year-olds) have a long-lasting impact ranging from being underweight, stunting, and increased child mortality.

• Reports state that the pandemic has its hidden victims. Out of the 500 million children forced out of school globally, India accounts for more than 50%.

• Covid-19 has also turned the world’s poor into poorer. 115 million additional people might get pushed into extreme poverty and most of them live in South Asia.

• India’s air, water and land have become more polluted between 2009 and 2018. 

• Of 88 major industrial clusters in the country, according to the Central Pollution Control Board, 35 showed overall environmental degradation, 33 pointed to worsening air quality, 45 had more polluted water and in 17, land pollution became worse. Tarapur in Maharashtra emerged as the most polluted cluster.

• India ranks 117 among 192 nations in terms of sustainable development. It is behind all South Asian nations except Pakistan.

• Report states that in the year 2019, 67 million Indians died due to air pollution. Its economic cost was over US $36,000 million, which is equivalent to 1.36% of India’s GDP.

• Environmental crime cases are increasing and disposal of the cases is slow. In 2019, 34,671 crimes were registered and 49,877 cases are pending trial. 

• Forestland diversion is continuing consistently. In the year 2019, over 11,000 hectares were diverted in 22 states. Eight coal projects were granted clearance in ‘No-Go’ areas. These projects diverted around 19,614 ha of forestland and evicted over 10,000 families.

About State of Environment Report

• State of Environment Report is an annual publication by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) along with Down To Earth. 

• This report covers aspects such as forests, wildlife, agriculture, rural development, water and sanitation, and climate change. This publication is regarded as the most credible and complete annual survey of India’s environment.

G-sec acquisition programme

In its recent monetary policy briefing, the RBI announced a Rs one lakh crore Government Securities Acquisition programme (G-SAP 1.0.). The first purchase of Rs 25,000 crore is to be made on April 15, 2021.

About GSAP 1.0:

• The RBI periodically purchases Government bonds from the market through Open Market Operations (OMOs).

• The G-SAP is in a way an OMO.

• But there is an upfront commitment by the RBI to the markets that it will purchase bonds worth a specific amount.

• The idea is to give comfort to the bond markets.

• In other words, G-SAP is an OMO with a ‘distinct character.’

Note:

• A Government Security (G-Sec) is a tradable instrument issued by the Central Government or the State Governments.

• It acknowledges the Government’s debt obligation. Such securities are short term (usually called treasury bills, with original maturities of less than one year- presently issued in three tenors, namely, 91 day, 182 day and 364 day) or long term (usually called Government bonds or dated securities with original maturity of one year or more).

Electoral Bonds 

• The Supreme Court of India recently refused to stay the sale of a fresh set of electoral bonds from 1 April. This decision was taken ahead of assembly elections across four states, viz. Kerala, West Bengal, Assam and Tamil Nadu and in Union Territory of Puducherry.

About Electoral Bond 

• It is a financial instrument similar to promissory note which is used to make donations to political parties and is issued by Scheduled Commercial banks after authorization from the Central Government. 

• It is issued only against cheque and digital payments which are redeemable in designated accounts of a registered political party within the prescribed time limit. 

• The Proposal to issue an Electoral Bond was announced in 2017.

National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development Bill 

• Parliament has passed the “National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development Bill, 2021” (NBFID Bill) which seeks to establish a National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development to support ‘infrastructure financing’ across the country. 

• NBFID would work as a principal development financial institution (DFIs). It includes the development of bonds and derivatives markets which are required for infrastructure financing. 

About National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development (NBFID): 

• NBFID will be set up as a corporate statutory body, which will have the authorized share capital of one lakh crore rupees along with financial and developmental objectives. 

• It will act as a catalyst for the ecosystem of infrastructure funding.

Loan Moratorium Scheme

The Supreme Court of India has declined to participate in the government's and the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) decision on the loan moratorium system, refusing to prolong the moratorium term of six months.

Key Highlights:

• The Supreme Court has also stated that additional reliefs such as absolute waiver of interest cannot be granted because they would damage depositors.

• The Supreme Court has stated that no interest on interest would be paid to creditors during the moratorium duration, regardless of loan size.

Note:

A loan moratorium is a period of time during which lenders are not expected to pay an EMI on a loan they have taken out. This is also an EMI holiday time. Such breaks are provided to assist people who are experiencing temporary financial challenges in properly planning their budgets.

Gandhi Peace Prize 2020 

• The Government of India has conferred the Gandhi Peace Prize on Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman for 2020. 

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman: 

• He was known as Bangabandhu. Also regarded as "Jatir Janak" or "Jatir Pita" (both meaning "Father of the Nation") of Bangladesh. 

• He was born on 17th March 1920 in Tungipara, India (now in Bangladesh) and passed away on 15th August 1975 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. 

• Year 2020 marked the birth centenary of Bangabandhu.

About Gandhi Peace Prize: 

• The annual award was instituted by the Government of India in 1995 during the commemoration of the 125th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi for those involved in social, economic, and political transformation through non-violence. 

• The award carries an amount of Rs. 1 crore, a citation in a scroll, a plaque as well as an exquisite traditional handicraft/handloom item. The prize can be given to individuals, associations, institutions, or organizations.

3rd Janaushadhi Diwas 2021

Context 

Bureau of Pharma PSUs of India (BPPI), the implementing agency of Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana (PMBJP) is celebrating 3rd Janaushadhi Diwas 2021 on 7th March, 2021 with the theme:'' Seva bhi – Rozgar bhi”. This will be one-week-long celebrations and the celebrations would conclude on March 7, 2021.

Key Highlights 

• To mark the celebrations, the Jan Aushadhi Kendras conducted the Health Check-up Camps. The health check-up activities include Sugar level check-up, blood Pressure check-up, free doctor consultation and free medicine distribution.  

• The camps informed the educated general public who visited there regarding the price, benefits and quality of the medicines which are sold at the Jan Aushadhi Kendras.

• Janaushadhi centres are run as part of the Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana (PMBJP).

  • Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana is a noble initiative by Department of Pharmaceuticals, Government of India which is now making an impact on masses in its endeavour to provide quality medicines at an affordable price

  • The number of stores has grown to more than 7400 and all 734 districts of the country are covered.

  • during the financial year 2019-20, PMBJP has achieved sales of Rs. 433.61 crores (at MRP). This has led to savings of approximately Rs. 2500 crores of the common citizens of the country as these medicines are cheaper by 50% to 90% of average market price.

  • In the current financial year 2020-21, sale of Rs. 586.50 Crore is made till 28.02.2021, which has led to savings of about Rs. 3500 Crore to the citizens as compared to the branded medicines. 

  • This scheme is also providing a good source of self-employment with sustainable and regular earnings.

Note: BPPI (Bureau of Pharma Public Sector Undertakings of India) has been established under the Department of Pharmaceuticals, Govt. of India, with the support of all the CPSUs for coordinating procurement, supply and marketing of generic drugs through the Jan Aushadhi Stores.

Pakistan to remain in FATF grey list till June

Context

On February 25, the Global anti-terrorism watchdog Financial Action Task Force (FATF) decided to retain Pakistan on the “Grey list” till the next review of its performance during the June 2021 plenary session. 

Key Highlights

• The decision of retaining Pakistan on the “Grey list by the FATF was taken in the light of country’s failure to fully comply with the 27-point action plan of to combat the terrorism. This decision was taken following a virtual plenary session that was over three days.

  • Countries that are considered safe haven for supporting terror funding and money laundering are put in the FATF grey list. This inclusion serves as a warning to the country that it may enter the blacklist.

  • Countries placed on the ‘grey’ list face problems in getting loans from IMF, World Bank, ADB and other countries, Reduction in international trade and International boycott.

• The FATF has decided to keep Pakistan into the grey list and will remain under increased monitoring because serious deficiencies were observed with respect to the terror financing.

• Though, Pakistan has taken several steps but it needs to act upon three important points out of 27 action points.

• FATF stated that, Pakistan needs to work on implementing following three remaining items out of 27 items:

  • Pakistan needs to demonstrate the Terror funding investigations and prosecutions targeting the persons & entities acting on behalf of the designated persons or entities.

  • Pakistan needs to demonstrate that Terror funding prosecutions result in Proportionate, effective and dissuasive sanctions.

  • Pakistan needs to demonstrate the effective implementation of targeted financial sanctions against all the UN security council resolution 1267 and 1373 designated terrorists.

 About FATF

• The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is an inter-governmental body established in 1989 on the initiative of the G7. 

• FATF is a “policy-making body” which works to generate the necessary political will to bring about national legislative and regulatory reforms in various areas. 

• The FATF Secretariat is housed at the OECD headquarters in Paris. 

City Innovation Exchange (CiX) platform

Context

The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has launched The City Innovation Exchange (CiX) platform. 

Key Highlights 

• City Innovation Exchange (CiX) will connect cities to innovators across the national ecosystem to design innovative solutions for their pressing challenges.

• The platform will ease the discovery, design & validation of solutions through a robust, transparent and user-centric process that will reduce barriers for innovators and cities to discover fitting solutions.

• Designed on the philosophy of ‘everyone is an innovator’, the platform will bring together Citizen Organisations-Academia-Businesses-Government to co-create for the future of Urban India in a transparent and sustainable manner. 

• Built on the concept of ‘open innovation’, the platform will help in the flow of ideas ‘outside in and inside out’, enhancing the skills and capacity required to deliver smart urban governance. 

• The Platform has more than 400 start-ups, 100 smart cities, more than 150 challenges statements and over 215 solutions at the time of launch.

• Through interaction with Academia and Businesses/Startups, the platform will benefit cities in the transfer of ideas from ‘labs’ to the real environment.

• Similarly, by helping urban governments interact with citizens, the platform will ensure the adoption of tested solutions that will be impactful and sustainable.

Significance of the platform

• The City Innovation Exchange (CiX) platform will be a significant addition to the growing innovation ecosystem of India and focuses on fostering innovative practices in cities.

• CiX, through an ‘open innovation’ process, engages with innovators to design-test-deliver on solutions to pressing urban challenges.

• This initiative is among the ongoing efforts to realize PM’s vision of New and AtmaNirbhar Bharat, by making cities more self-reliant and enabled to meet the needs of and provide services to their citizens.

• The platform in due time will help our cities in adopting solutions that will enhance the quality of life for their residents and significantly improve the Ease of Doing Business.

Smart Anganwadis 

• The Government of Kerala has sanctioned ₹9 crore for the conversion of conventional anganwadis into “smart” anganwadis with better amenities.

• The smart anganwadis will be built in order to provide early childhood care in a phased manner.

• These facilities will be established with the aim of making it more child-friendly. This way these facilities will help to nurture mental and physical development of children. 

• Anganwadi scheme is a type of rural child care centre that was started in the year 1975 by the Indian government. This scheme runs under the Integrated Child Development Services program.  It seeks to combat child hunger and malnutrition.

PM Atmanirbhar Swasth Bharat Scheme

Context

Recently, the Prime Minister talked about the need to address health issues in a holistic manner and to adopt a four-pronged strategy for a healthy India which includes implementing the PM Atmanirbhar Swasth Bharat scheme.

Four-Pronged Strategy for a Healthy India  

1. Prevention of illness and promotion of wellness including measures such as Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, yoga and timely care and treatment of pregnant women and children. 

2. Providing cheap and effective treatment to the poorest of the poors. 

3. Increasing the quality of health infrastructure and healthcare professionals. 

4. Working on a mission mode to overcome obstacles like Mission Indradhanush has been extended to the tribal and far-flung areas of the country.

PM Atmanirbhar Swasth Bharat Scheme

PM Atmanirbhar Swasth Bharat scheme is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme with an outlay of about Rs. 64,180 crores. Duration of the scheme is 6 years.The scheme aims to 

• Improve primary, secondary, and tertiary care health systems.

• Strengthen existing national institutions in the Health sector.

• Create new institutions, to cater to detection and cure of new and emerging diseases.

• Supporting development of 17,788 rural and 11,024 urban health and wellness centers and setting up of integrated public health labs in all districts and 3,382 block public health units in 11 states. 

• Help in establishing critical care hospital blocks in 602 districts and 12 central institutions. Strengthening of the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), its 5 regional branches and 20 metropolitan health surveillance units.

• Expansion of the Integrated Health Information Portal to all States/UTs to connect all public health labs.

• Help in rolling out the Covid-19 vaccination program as well as strengthen the delivery system and build better capability and capacity to combat any future pandemics.

PM Kisan scheme

Context

On 24 February, the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) completed two years.

About PM Kisan scheme

• Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi is a central sector scheme under the government of India which provides income support to the farmers and their families across the country, to enable them to take care of expenses related to agriculture and allied activities as well as domestic needs. 

• The PM-KISAN scheme was first implemented as the Rythu Bandhu scheme by the Government of Telangana where a certain amount was handed directly to the eligible farmers. Later, on 1 February 2019, during the 2019 Interim Union Budget of India, Piyush Goyal announced the implementation of this scheme as a nationwide project.

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the PM-KISAN scheme on 24 February 2019 in Gorakhpur, UP.

• The PM-KISAN Yojana administered by the Department of Agriculture, Cooperation & Farmers Welfare, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare, Government of India in partnership with the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC)

• Under the Scheme an amount of Rs 6000 per year is transferred in three 4-monthly instalments of Rs 2000 directly into the bank accounts of the farmers, subject to certain exclusion criteria relating to higher income status. 

• The Scheme initially provided income support to all Small and Marginal Farmers’ families across the country, holding cultivable land up to 2 hectares. Its ambit was later expanded with effect from June 01, 2019 to cover all farmer families in the country irrespective of the size of their land holdings. 

• The main objectives of the PM-KISAN scheme are mentioned below:

  • To provide income support to all eligible land-holding farmers and their families.

  • PM-KISAN scheme also aims to supplement the financial needs of the farmers in procuring various inputs to ensure proper crop health and appropriate yields, commensurate with the anticipated farm income.

Significance of the scheme

• The direct transfer of funds is one of the biggest advantages of this scheme.

• All the records related to farmers are registered officially on a digital platform which has made the registration and fund transfer easy. The digitised records have brought about a new start to this welfare scheme

• This scheme eases liquidity constraints of farmers

• PM-KISAN yojana is a big step towards the Government’s initiatives of modernisation of agriculture

• There is no discrimination in choosing the PM-KISAN beneficiaries

National Urban Digital Mission

Context

The National Urban Digital Mission (NUDM) has been launched by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) along with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.

Key Highlights 

• The central government has launched the NUDM to create a digital infrastructure for cities in the country.

• According to the MoHUA, this will institutionalise a citizen-centric and ecosystem-driven approach to urban governance and service delivery in cities by 2022, and across all cities and towns by 2024.

• The National Urban Digital mission was launched in order to create a digital infrastructure for all the cities in the country.

• NUDM will create a shared digital infrastructure that can consolidate and cross-leverage the various digital initiatives of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, enabling cities and towns across India to benefit from holistic and diverse forms of support, in keeping with their needs and local challenges.

• This mission will help in creating a shared digital infrastructure which in turn can be used to consolidate and cross-leverage the several digital initiatives of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.

• The government also launched India Urban Data Exchange (IUDX) and the SmartCode Platform.

  • India Urban Data Exchange (IUDX) serves as a seamless interface for data providers and data users, including ULBs, to share, request, and access datasets related to cities, urban governance, and urban service delivery.

  • IUDX is an open-source software platform which facilitates the secure, authenticated, and managed exchange of data amongst various data platforms, 3rd party authenticated and authorised applications, and other sources.

  • SmartCode is a platform that enables all ecosystem stakeholders to contribute to a repository of open-source code for various solutions and applications for urban governance.

  • It is designed to address the challenges that ULBs face in the development and deployment of digital applications to address urban challenges, by enabling cities to take advantage of existing codes and customising them to suit local needs, rather than having to develop new solutions from scratch.

  • As a repository of open-source software, the source code available on the platform will be free to use without any licensing or subscription fees, thus limiting costs to those involved with customising the code and developing a locally-relevant solution.