PIB Summary- 24th August, 2021 | PIB (Press Information Bureau) Summary - UPSC PDF Download

India – ASEAN

Context: The “India-ASEAN Engineering Partnership Summit” was organised by the Engineering Exports Promotion Council (EEPC) with support from the Ministry of External Affairs and Department of Commerce.

Details

• The summit offers an important platform for the engagement of Indian industry on India-ASEAN partnership in engineering trade and investments.
• Trade is an important engine of growth for India and ASEAN.
• ASEAN has over 15 percent share in India’s global engineering shipment.
• It is also likely to be a key region to focus with a target of around USD 16 billion of exports for 2021-22.
• ASEAN will be an important region for India with an export target of US$ 46 billion in meeting the global export target of US$ 400 billion in FY 2021-22.
• ASEAN as a region is the third largest export destination for Indian engineering products after the EU and North America.
• Among the ASEAN member nations, Singapore and Malaysia are major export destinations for Indian engineering products.
• The year 2021 marks the 25th anniversary of India-ASEAN dialogue partnership and 10 years of the Strategic Partnership.

Why read about ASEAN?

Recent Context about ASEAN for UPSC: India-ASEAN Hackathon 2021

A first-ever online hackathon was organized for students and mentors from 10 ASEAN Countries and India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced the hackathon at the 16th India ASEAN summit in November 2019. It was an online hackathon jointly organized by the Indian Ministries of Education and Extern Affairs.
The themes of the hackathon were ‘Blue Economy’ and ‘Education.’

ASEAN History

ASEAN was established on 8th August 1967 in Bangkok, Thailand with the signing of the Bangkok Declaration (a.k.a ASEAN Declaration) by the founding fathers of the countries of Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, and the Philippines. The preceding organisation was the Association of Southeast Asia (ASA) comprising of Thailand, the Philippines, and Malaysia.
Five other nations joined the ASEAN in subsequent years making the current membership to ten countries.

ASEAN Members

• Thailand (founding member)
• The Philippines (founding member)
• Malaysia (founding member)
• Singapore (founding member)
• Indonesia (founding member)
• Brunei (joined in 1984)
• Vietnam (joined in 1995)
• Lao PDR (joined in 1997)
• Myanmar (joined in 1997)
• Cambodia (joined in 1999)

There are two observer States namely, Papua New Guinea and Timor Leste (East Timor).
The Human Development Index rankings of the ASEAN members are given in the table below:
ASEAN Members by Human Development Index 2020-21

ASEAN Purpose

1. Accelerating economic growth, cultural development, and social progress in the region by joint initiatives in the spirit of partnership and equality to cement the foundation for a peaceful and strong community of SE Asian countries.
2. Promoting peace and stability in the region by incorporating respect for justice and the rule of law in the relationships between nations and adherence to the United Nations principles.
3. Promoting active collaboration and mutual assistance in subjects of common interest in social, economic, cultural, administrative, scientific, and technical domains.
4. Assisting member countries via training and research facilities in the educational, administrative, technical, and professional domains.
5. Cooperating for better usage of agriculture and industries, trade expansion (including studying the problem of international commodity trade), improving communication and transportation facilities, and improving living standards among the people.
6. Promoting SE Asian studies.
7. Exploring more avenues for further cooperation among themselves, and maintaining close and advantageous cooperation with other international groupings of similar objectives.

ASEAN Fundamental Principles

1. Mutual respect for the independence, sovereignty, equality, territorial integrity, and national identity of all nations;
2. The right of every State to lead its national existence free from external interference, subversion or coercion;
3. Non-interference in the internal affairs of one another;
4. Settlement of differences or disputes by peaceful manner;
5. Renunciation of the threat or use of force; and
6. Effective cooperation among themselves.

ASEAN Headquarters

• The body is headquartered in Jakarta, Indonesia.
• Secretary-General: Dato Lim Jock Hoi
• Official Languages: Burmese, Filipino, Indonesian, Khmer, Lao, Malay, Mandarin, Tamil, Thai and Vietnamese
• Working Language: English

Nidhi Company

Context: Government cautioned stakeholders as 348 companies fail to meet requisite criteria for declaration as Nidhi company under Companies Act 2013 and Nidhi Rules 2014.

Details

• Under Section 406 of the Companies Act, 2013 and Nidhi Rules, 2014, companies incorporated as Nidhi Companies need to apply to the Central Government in form NDH-4 for declaration as a Nidhi Company.
• Under Nidhi Rules, 2014, ‘Nidhi’ is a company which has been incorporated as a Nidhi with the object of cultivating the habit of thrift and saving amongst its members, receiving deposits from, and lending to, its members only, for their mutual benefit.
• Nidhi Company is a type of Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC).
• It is formed to borrow and lend money to its members.
• It works on the principle of mutual benefit.
• Nidhi Company is not required to receive the license from Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and hence it is easy to form (unlike other NBFCs). It is registered as a public company and should have “Nidhi Limited” as the last words of its name. They are governed by Nidhi Rules, 2014.
• Nidhi companies are more popular in southern India and 80% of such companies are in Tamil Nadu.
• A Nidhi company cannot deal in chit funds, leasing finance, hire-purchase finance, insurance or securities business.
• It is also prohibited from lending money or accepting deposits from non-members.
• Additionally, it cannot advertise to ask for deposits.

Mission Sagar

Context: Indian Naval Ship Airavat arrived at Jakarta, Indonesia to deliver Medical Supplies.

Details

• INS Airavat, with a primary role to carry out amphibious operations, is also configured to perform HADR missions and has been a part of various relief efforts across the Indian Ocean in the past.
• Airavat delivered 10 Liquid Medical Oxygen (LMO) containers, based on the requirement projected by the Government of Indonesia.

Overview of Mission Sagar

As stated earlier Mission Sagar is in alignment with the SAGAR initiative. The initiative is a vision for economic and security cooperation between India and its maritime neighbours.
Following the COVID-19 pandemic, the government of India took the decision to fulfill the vision of the SAGAR initiative by providing essential humanitarian aid to its maritime partners.
A series of 3 missions were launched in 2020, which were carried out by the ships of the Indian Navy. These ships bought essential items such as medicines to the ports of India’s maritime partners. We will further discuss the details of all the Mission Sagar’s launched by the government of India.
For more news of International and Domestic importance, visit the Current Affairs page.

The First Mission Sagar – I

India sent INS Kesari left port on 10 May 2020 with food items, medicines and medical assistance teams. It would make its way to the Indian Ocean nations of Mauritius, Seychelles, Madagascar, Comoros and La Reunion. These nations are part of the Indian Ocean Commission of which India became an observer
It was the first time that a single relief mission was undertaken to cover all the island nations in the Western Indian Ocean. The only notable exception was Sri Lanka where the Indian Air Force airlifted supplies into the country.
INS Kesari returned to the port of Kochi on June 28, 2020, traveling over 7,500 nautical miles over 55 days.

Mission Sagar – II

In November 2020, INS Airavat left port. It was delivering food to Sudan, South Sudan, Djibouti and Eritrea.
Along with fulfilling a humanitarian mission, India was also strengthening its strategic position as these countries sat on the major shipping lane between the Red Sea and the Suez Canal. Thus they are vital shipping routes and can prove to be a strategic asset in times of conflict.

Mission Sagar – III

In December 2020, INS Kiltan made its way towards Cambodia and Vietnam. The INS Kiltan was carrying 15 tons of Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) for disaster relief following catastrophic floods in Vietnam and Cambodia.
Like the previous Sagar missions, this exercise was to show that India is a dependable partner for southeast Asian nations and the first responder in the region.
It also highlighted the importance of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in furthering existing strategic ties.

Mission Sagar – IV

In March 2021, INS Jalashwa reached Port Anjouan, Comoros to deliver 1000 metric tonnes of rice to the island nation. This is the second time an Indian naval ship is arriving at Comoros. Earlier, as part of Mission Sagar I, India had delivered medicines and sent medical assistance teams to Comoros.

International Trade Financing Services Platform (ITFS)

Context: The International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) has invited applications from eligible entities that want to set up and operate the international trade financing services (ITFS) platform at GIFT City in Gandhinagar, Gujarat.

Details

• The ITFS platform will function from GIFT IFSC for providing trade financing services.
• Eligible entities can apply in the prescribed format along with supporting documents to the IFSCA by September 15.
• The IFSCA will then grant an in-principle approval to operate in its regulatory sandbox environment for the said period, before allowing regular operations.

About the ITFS

• The ITFS would be an electronic platform for facilitating the trade finance requirements of exporters and importers by providing access to multiple financiers.
• Once operational, it will play a role in arranging credit for exporters and importers from global institutions through factoring, forfaiting and other trade financing services at competitive cost.
• The platform is expected to be leveraged by exporters and importers across the world for availing trade finance services, making GIFT IFSC a preferred location for international trade financing.

eSanjeevani Initiative

Context: Health Ministry’s eSanjeevani initiative completed 1 crore consultations.

What is eSanjeevani?

eSanjeevani is the first-ever online OPD (outpatient) consultation service offered by the government of India to citizens. According to the government, this is the first time the government of a country is offering a service of this kind to its citizens.

• The scheme was started in November 2019.
• It is run by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
• Also called the National Teleconsultation Service, it aims to provide healthcare services to patients in their homes. 
• It includes a structured and safe teleconsultation between a doctor and a patient through online mode (eSanjeevani OPD).
• The eSanjeevani OPD portal and system has been developed by the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) in Mohali.
• The panel of doctors on the service is drawn by the state governments.
• A few states like Jharkhand, Kerala, Punjab and Tamil Nadu, etc. have started offering specialised doctor consultation services also.
• The service is also available on mobile application.

Difference between eSanjeevani and eSanjeevani OPD

eSanjeevani: It is a doctor to doctor telemedicine system that has been deployed nationally for the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare under Ayushman Bharat Scheme. It extends the reach of specialized healthcare services to masses in both rural areas and isolated communities. It tackles the issues of uneven distribution of healthcare personnel and infrastructure by bridging the divide that exists between urban and rural, rich and poor, in terms of access to healthcare services.
eSanjeevani was launched in 2019. The first state to launch this service was Andhra Pradesh.

eSanjeevani OPD: This is based on the eSanjeevani model and offers OPD consultation services to people in the comfort of their homes. This was launched during the COVID pandemic in April 2020. Here, doctor to patient teleconsultation is offered free of cost to the patients.
eSanjeevani OPD was launched in 2020.
Features of eSanjeevani OPD

Significance of Telemedicine Services like eSanjeevani

Telemedicine services are essential in a country like ours where the doctor to patient ratio is much lower than the number prescribed by WHO. In India, there is one doctor for every 1445 Indians (the WHO recommended ratio is 1:1000.
The availability of medical services including doctors is highly scarce in rural and remote areas of the country. In such conditions, it is important to have a system that will provide consultation services to people residing in rural and backward/hilly areas. This is where eSanjeevani OPD can be helpful.
Also, during the current pandemic times, it is important that patients find a way to have consultations with doctors for ailments. This can prevent them from travelling to hospitals/PHCs and increase the risk of catching infections especially covid-19. This has proved beneficial in containing the spread of Covid while simultaneously enabling provisions for non-Covid essential healthcare.

Directed Energy Deposition Process

Context: Indian scientists have for the first time repaired aero-engine components through the Directed Energy Deposition (DED) process.

Details

• The scientists from the International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy & New Materials (ARCI) have indigenously made powders suitable for the additive manufacturing process called the Directed Energy Deposition process.
• They made the powder using inert gas atomizer available at ARCI by melting unused scrap material.
• Utilising this, ARCI is developing the Laser-DED process for the repair of aero-engine components made of Ni-based superalloy.

Significance

• Ni-based superalloys are widely used in aero-engine components.
• Despite having exceptional properties, they are prone to damage due to extreme operational conditions.
• Manufacturing defects during the casting or machining process are another major cause of rejection, and tons of such unused components are scrapped due to minor defects.
• This development can significantly reduce repair costs and overhaul time.

What is the Directed Energy Deposition (DED) process?

• DED process is an emerging additive manufacturing or 3D printing technique.
• It allows for the creation of objects by melting the material in powder or as a wire with a focused energy source as it is deposited by a nozzle on a surface.
• In a DED printer, the nozzle head moves around a fixed object for depositing the material in specific locations.
• Despite it being possible to build full parts with DED techniques, they are typically employed for repairing or adding additional material to existing objects.
• Directed Energy Deposition (DED) is basically a 3D printing method which uses a focused energy source, such as a plasma arc, laser or electron beam to melt a material which is simultaneously deposited by a nozzle.
• The DED process is known by other names, including Laser Engineered Net Shaping (LENS), Direct Metal Deposition (DMD), Electron Beam Additive Manufacturing (EBAM), Directed Light Fabrication, and 3D Laser Cladding, depending on the exact application or method used.

NDC Transport Initiative for Asia (TIA 2020-2023)

Context: ‘Forum for Decarbonizing Transport’ launched in India as part of the NDC-Transport Initiative for Asia (NDC-TIA) project.

Who launched the forum?

• NITI Aayog and World Resources Institute (WRI), India.

Background

• India has a massive and diverse transport sector, which is also the third most carbon dioxide emitting sector.
• According to government data, within the transport sector, road transport contributes to more than 90% of the total CO2 emissions.
• Even though the government has initiated several programmes to decarbonise the transport sector, with a focus on the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs), there is a need to create a favourable ecosystem for different stakeholders to overcome the challenges faced.

About NDC Transport Initiative for Asia (TIA 2020-2023)

• The NDC Transport Initiative for Asia (TIA 2020-2023) is a joint programme of seven organisations that will engage China, India, and Vietnam in promoting a comprehensive approach to decarbonizing transport in their respective countries.
• The project is part of the International Climate Initiative (IKI).
• NITI Aayog is the implementing partner for the India component of the project.
• The NDC-TIA India component focuses on developing a coherent strategy of effective policies and the formation of a multi-stakeholder platform for decarbonizing transport in the country.

HGCO19 found safe after phase I trials

Context: India’s first mRNA-based Covid vaccine found to be safe, given nod for Phase II/III trial.

Details

• Gennova Biopharma, the Pune-based biotechnology company working on the nation’s first mRNA-based Covid vaccine, submitted the interim clinical data of the Phase I study to the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO).
• Consequently, India’s first mRNA-based Covid vaccine was found to be safe, and was given the go ahead for Phase II/III trials.
• The Vaccine Subject Expert Committee (SEC) reviewed the interim Phase I data and found that HGCO19 was safe, tolerable, and immunogenic in the participants of the study.
• Gennova’s mRNA-based Covid vaccine development program was partly funded by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India.