PIB Summary- 8th December, 2022 | PIB (Press Information Bureau) Summary - UPSC PDF Download

NaviC System

Why in News?
The Centre informed that the usage of Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (NaviC system) has increased in India.

What is NavIC?

• NavIC, or Navigation with Indian Constellation, is an independent stand-alone navigation satellite system developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation.
• NavIC was originally approved in 2006 at a cost of $174 million. It was expected to be completed by late 2011, but only became operational in 2018.
• NavIC consists of eight satellites and covers the whole of India’s landmass and up to 1,500 km (930 miles) from its boundaries.
• Currently, NavIC’s use is limited. It is being used in public vehicle tracking in India, for providing emergency warning alerts to fishermen venturing into the deep sea where there is no terrestrial network connectivity, and for tracking and providing information related to natural disasters.

How does NavIC compare?

• The main difference is the serviceable area covered by these systems.
• GPS caters to users across the globe and its satellites circle the earth twice a day, while NavIC is currently for use in India and adjacent areas.
• Like GPS, there are three more navigation systems that have global coverage –
  • Galileo from the European Union,
  • Russia-owned GLONASS
  • China’s Beidou
• QZSS, operated by Japan, is another regional navigation system covering Asia-Oceania region, with a focus on Japan.
• India’s 2021 satellite navigation draft policy stated the government will work towards “expanding the coverage from regional to global” to ensure availability of NavIC signal in any part of the world.

Why is India promoting NavIC?

• NavIC is conceived with the aim of removing dependence on foreign satellite systems for navigation service requirements, particularly for “strategic sectors.”
• Relying on systems like GPS and GLONASS may not always be reliable, as those are operated by the defence agencies of respective nations and it is possible that civilian services can be degraded or denied.
• NavIC is an indigenous positioning system that is under Indian control. There is no risk of the service being withdrawn or denied in a given situation.
• India also wants to encourage its ministries to use NavIC applications to promote local industry engaged in developing indigenous NavIC-based solutions.

RoDTEP Scheme

Why in News?
Taking a major step to boost exports, Centre further expanded the scope of RoDTEP Scheme (Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products) by including the exports made from the Chemical sector, Pharmaceuticals sector and exports of articles of iron & steel

About RoDTEP scheme

• RoDTEP stands for Remission of Duties and Taxes on Export Products.
• It replaced MEIS (Merchandise Exports from India Scheme).
• The scheme will ensure that the exporters receive the refunds on the embedded taxes and duties previously non-recoverable.
• The scheme was brought about with the intention to boost exports which were relatively poor in volume previously.

Need for the RoDTEP Scheme
The US had challenged India’s key export subsidy schemes in the WTO (World Trade Organisation), claiming them to harm the American workers. A dispute panel in the WTO ruled against India, stating that the export subsidy programmes that were provided by the Government of India violated the provisions of the trade body’s norms. The panel further recommended that the export subsidy programmes be withdrawn. This led to the birth of the RoDTEP Scheme, so as to ensure that India stays WTO-compliant.

The following were some of the export subsidy programmes recommended to be withdrawn

• Merchandise Exports from India Scheme
• Export Oriented Units Scheme
• Electronics Hardware Technology Parks Scheme
• Bio-Technology Parks Scheme
• Export Promotion Capital Goods Scheme
• Special Economic Zones (SEZ) Scheme
• Duty-Free Imports for Exporters Scheme

Features of the RoDTEP Scheme

• Mandi tax, VAT, Coal cess, Central Excise duty on fuel etc. will now be refunded under this particular scheme. All the items under the MEIS and the RoSTCL (Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies) are now under the purview of the RoDTEP Scheme.

Automated system of credit

• The refund will be issued in the form of transferable electronic scrips. These duty credits will be maintained and tracked through an electronic ledger.

Quick verification through digitisation

• Through the introduction of the digital platform, the clearance happens at a much faster rate. Verification of the records of the exporters will be done with the help of an IT-based risk management system to ensure speed and accuracy of transaction processing.

Multi-sector scheme

• Under RoDTEP, all sectors, including the textiles sector, are covered, so as to ensure uniformity across all areas. Additionally, a dedicated committee will be set up to decide regarding the sequence of introduction of the scheme across the various sectors, what degree of benefit is to be extended to each sector, and such related matters.

Eligibility to obtain benefits of the RoDTEP Scheme

• All sectors, including the textiles sector, may enjoy the benefits of the RoDTEP Scheme.
• Labor-intensive sectors that enjoy benefits under the MEIS Scheme will be given a priority.
• Manufacturer exporters and merchant exporters (traders) are both eligible for the benefits of this scheme.
• There is no particular turnover threshold to claim the RoDTEP.
• Re-exported products are not eligible under this scheme.
• To be eligible to avail the benefits of this scheme, the exported products need to have the country of origin as India.
• Special Economic Zone Units and Export Oriented Units are also eligible to claim the benefits under this scheme.
• Where goods have been exported via courier through e-commerce platforms, RoDTEP scheme applies to them as well.

Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan

Why in News?
Under the Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan scheme, Rs 1,538.32 crore has been released to States/ UTs during the last three years

About Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan (RGSA)

• It is central government scheme that aims at making rural local bodies self-sustainable, financially stable and more efficient.
• Restructured RGSA to focus on training, building infrastructure, stepping up initiatives for e-governance under e-Panchayat Mission Mode Project (MMP) to deliver Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
• The scheme will extend to all states/UTs of country and will also include institutions of rural local government in non-Part IX areas, where Panchayats do not exist.
• Under the scheme of Rashtriya Gram Swaraj Abhiyan there is no provision for forming new Panchayats. Formation or reorganization of Panchayats is done by the respective States/ Union Territories as per their requirement.

Objectives

• To train and build capacity of elected representatives of Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs).
• It seeks to address critical gaps that hinder success of Panchayats by enhancing their capacities and effectiveness, and promote devolution of powers and responsibilities.
• It seeks to shift the participative planning, prepared from the grassroots level upwards and strengthen panchayat level governance with more appropriate capacity building.

Financial implications

• The total financial outlay of the scheme is Rs.5911 crore with the Central Share of Rs.3700 crore and that of State Share of Rs.2211 crore.

No. of beneficiaries

• Around 60 lakh Elected Representatives, Functionaries and other stakeholders of Rural Local Bodies including Traditional Bodies across the country will be direct beneficiaries of the scheme.

Major impact including employment generation potential

• The approved scheme of RGSA will help more than 2.78 lakh Rural Local Bodies including Traditional Bodies across the country to develop governance capabilities to deliver on SDGs through inclusive local governance with focus on optimum utilisation of available resources.
• The key principles of SDGs, i.e. leaving no one behind, reaching the farthest first and universal coverage, along with gender equality will be embedded in the design of all capacity building interventions including trainings, training modules and materials.
• Priority will be given to subjects of national importance principally under themes, namely:
  • Poverty free and enhanced livelihood in villages,
  • Healthy Village
  • Child Friendly Village
  • Water Sufficient Village
  • Clean and Green Village
  • Self-Sufficient Infrastructure in Village
  • Socially Secured Village
  • Village with Good Governance
  • Engendered Development in Village.
• As Panchayats have representation of Schedule Castes, Schedule Tribes and women, and are institutions closest to the grassroots, strengthening Panchayats will promote equity and inclusiveness, along with Social Justice and economic development of the community.
• Increased use of e-governance by PRIs will help achieve improved service delivery and transparency.
• The scheme will strengthen Gram Sabhas to function as effective institutions with social inclusion of citizens particularly the vulnerable groups.
• It will establish the institutional structure for capacity building of PRIs at the national, state and district level with adequate human resources and infrastructure.
• Panchayats will progressively be strengthened through incentivisation on the basis of nationally important criteria to recognise roles of Panchayats in attainment of SDGs and to inculcate spirit of healthy competition.
• No permanent post will be created under the scheme but need based contractual human resources may be provisioned for overseeing the implementation of the scheme and providing technical support to States/UTs for achieving goals under the scheme.

ODOP Initiative

Why in News?
ODOP initiative is operationally merged with ‘Districts as Export Hub (DEH)’ initiative of the DGFT, Department of Commerce, with the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) as a major stakeholder.

About One District, One Product

• The ODOP initiative is aimed at manifesting the vision of the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India to foster balanced regional development across all districts of the country.
• The idea is to select, brand, and promote One Product from each District of the country
  • For enabling holistic socioeconomic growth across all regions
  • To attract investment in the District to boost manufacturing and exports
  • To generate employment in the District
  • To provide ecosystem for Innovation/ use of Technology at District level to make them competitive with domestic as well as International market

Objectives of the scheme

• Preservation and development of local crafts / skills and promotion of the art.
• Increase in the incomes and local employment (resulting in decline in migration for employment).
• Improvement in product quality and skill development.
• Transforming the products in an artistic way (through packaging, branding)
• To connect the production with tourism (Live demo and sales outlet – gifts and souvenir)
• To resolve the issues of economic difference and regional imbalance
• To take the concept of ODOP to national and

Some of the achievements of ODOP

• The ODOP GeM Bazaar was launched on the Government e-Marketplace (GeM) with over 200 product categories created on the platform to promote sales and procurement of ODOP products across the country.
• ODOP products are showcased in various International forums such as World Economic Forum, DAVOS in May 2022, at International Yoga day (IYD) in New York, US in June 2022 etc.
• The ODOP initiative has been identified for the prestigious Prime Minister’s Award for Excellence in Public Administration in Holistic Development through One District One Product (ODOP) category in April, 2022.

Districts as Export Hubs Scheme

• It is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme.
• The Scheme will be part of the new Foreign Trade Policy(FTP).
• Under the scheme, District Export Promotion Committees(DEPCs) have been constituted in most of the districts and products and services with export potential have been identified in each district.
• Directorate General of Foreign Trade(DGFT) is the Implementing Body.
• Aim: To help producers across 200 districts scale up manufacturing and find foreign buyers for their goods.