National
National Best Tourism Village Competition 2024 and the National Best Rural Homestay Competition 2024
⇒ Ministry of Tourism has launched National Best Tourism Village Competition 2024 and the National Best Rural Homestay Competition 2024 to strengthen the promotion and development of Rural Tourism in the country.
- The earlier version of the National Best Tourism Village Competition 2023 recognized 35 villages all over India in Gold, Silver, and Bronze categories.
Objective:
- The competitions aim to develop healthy competitiveness among the villages and the rural homestays to identify and reward outstanding contributions to Rural Tourism, thereby incentivizing communities and individuals for active contribution to the sustainable development goals.
- The competitions will not only boost tourism in lesser-explored regions but also create a ripple effect to increase community involvement, preserve cultural authenticity, and promote sustainable and Responsible practices in the tourism sector.
Background:
- For the enhancement of Rural Tourism in India the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India launched the comprehensive National Strategy and Roadmap for the Development of Rural Tourism in India, along with the National Strategy for the Promotion of Rural Homestays.
- The Ministry has initiated the implementation of the National strategies in collaboration with the Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management.
- One of the strategic initiatives for the promotion of Rural Tourism and Rural Homestays is conducting the National Best Tourism Village and National Best Rural Homestays Competition.
Central Nodal Agency:
- The Ministry of Tourism has established the Central Nodal Agency Rural Tourism and Rural Homestay (CNA RT & RH) for the effective implementation of the initiatives for Rural Tourism.
- CNA RT & RH is conducting the capacity building session for the states to create the Master Trainers for the propagation of the competitions to the village level.
1st Ship of Survey Vessel (Large) 'SANDHAYAK'
⇒ Sandhayak (Yard 3025), the first of four Survey Vessel (Large) ships, being built at Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE), Kolkata, was delivered to the Indian Navy on 04 December 2023.
Built by:
» The SVL ships are designed and built to the rules of Indian Register of Shipping Classification society by M/s Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE), Kolkata.
- The Contract for four Survey Vessel (Large) was signed on 30 October 2018.
About Sandhayak:
- Sandhayak has a displacement of about 3400 tons and an overall length of 110 meters.
- The ship is fitted with state-of-the-art hydrographic equipment such as Data Acquisition and Processing System, Autonomous Underwater Vehicle, Remotely Operated Vehicle, DGPS Long range positioning systems, Digital side scan sonar etc.
- Powered by two Diesel Engines, the ship is capable of achieving speeds in excess of 18 knots.
Role:
- The primary role of the ship would be full scale coastal and deep-water Hydrographic Survey of Port/ Harbour approaches and determination of navigational channels/ routes. Zone of operation includes maritime limits upto EEZ/ extended continental shelf. The ships will also collect oceanographic and geophysical data for defence and civil applications.
- In their secondary role, ships will provide limited defence and function as Hospital ship during war/ emergencies.
Sandhayak has an indigenous content of over 80% by cost. The delivery of Sandhayak is an affirmation of the impetus being given by the Government of India and the Indian Navy towards ‘Aatma Nirbhar Bharat’.
International
2023 United Nations Peacekeeping Ministerial Meeting
⇒ Raksha Rajya Mantri Shri Ajay Bhatt participated in the 2023 United Nations Peacekeeping Ministerial Meeting in Accra, Ghana from 5-6 December 2023.
- In his address, he announced substantial pledges on behalf of India to support the United Nations peacekeeping operations.
» On the sidelines of the United Nation Peacekeeping Ministerial meeting, the Minister also participated in bilateral meetings with several friendly foreign countries to discuss matters of mutual interest and defence cooperation.
2023 UN Peacekeeping Ministerial Meeting:
» Peacekeeping is a powerful demonstration of multilateral cooperation. The United Nations Peacekeeping Ministerial Meeting is a biennial meeting organized by the United Nations in which all major donors and troop contributing states come together to discuss issues regarding peacekeeping operations under the UN charter.
- The UN Peacekeeping Ministerial meeting aims to address the security and operational challenges being faced by the UN peacekeepers and generate support for these missions deployed across the world.
- India has always been at the forefront by sending maximum number of troops and equipment to various UN Peacekeeping missions.
» 2023 Peacekeeping Ministerial was the latest in a series of meetings held at the Head of State, Government, or Ministerial level since 2014.
Co-hosted by:
- The flagship event was co-hosted by the Department of Peace Operations, United Nations and the Republic of Ghana.
- It was the first peacekeeping ministerial meeting held on the African continent.
Participation:
91 Member States and 3 international organizations expressed their collective commitment and political support to United Nations Peacekeeping at the 2023 UN Peacekeeping Ministerial.
Highlights:
- During the 2023 Peacekeeping Ministerial, 57 Member States announced new pledges to meet current and future challenges and needs, in line with ongoing reform under Action for Peacekeeping and A4P+, key priorities to improve peacekeeping effectiveness.
- Member States also announced new contributions of specialized military and police units, equipment, sustainable capacity-building initiatives, training and multilateral partnerships.
- The discussions also addressed concrete measures to improve operations in line with ongoing reform through Action for Peacekeeping, A4P+ and the Digital Transformation Strategy.
Areas of Focus:
With missions facing greater challenges than ever, the Ministerial focused on five key themes below, as outlined in the Concept Note.
- Protection of civilians
- Strategic communications (including addressing mis-disinformation and hate speech)
- Safety and security
- Mental health of peacekeepers, and
- Women in peacekeeping
» Building on previous discussions and, taking into account rapidly evolving operating environments, Member States considered issues such as:
- the generation of high-performing and specialized capabilities and other pledges to meet UN needs; and,
- new or expanded sustainable capacity-building, training, and equipping partnerships in key areas.
Next UN Peacekeeping Ministerial:
» Germany will host the next UN Peacekeeping Ministerial in the first half of 2025.
India re-elected to International Maritime Organisation (IMO) Council
⇒ India was re-elected to the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) Council for the 2024–25 biennium with the highest tally. Elections were held in its assembly on 01 December 2023.
- India’s re-election falls under the Category (b) of 10 states with “the largest interest in international seaborne trade”, alongside Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, and the United Arab Emirates.
- India secured the large-scale support of the international community at the International Maritime Organisation for India to continue to serve the global maritime domain.
» Under the MIV 2030 to enhance representation at IMO India aims at appointing permanent representatives at IMO London.
- With a view to enhance and garner maritime expertise for India, it is proposed that India should nominate at least 2 qualified candidates for the Junior Professional Officer (JPO) Program at the IMO.
- The JPO Program is an established program within the United Nations with the main objective of providing young professionals an opportunity to gain hands-on experience in international cooperation under the supervision of specialists and to contribute to the advancement of their nation’s mandate.
33rd Assembly of IMO:
- The 33rd Assembly of the IMO met from 27 November to 6 December 2023 at the IMO Headquarters in London.
- The Assembly of the International Maritime Organization elected the Members of its Council for the 2024-2025 biennium. It elected a 40-Member Council in three categories, including India. Elections were held on 01 December 2023.
About IMO:
- The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) is the leading authority that regulates the maritime industry, which supports global trade, transportation, and all marine operations.
- The council is the executive organ of IMO and is responsible, under the assembly, for supervising the work of the organization. Between sessions of the assembly, the council performs the functions of the assembly, except that of making recommendations to governments on maritime safety and pollution prevention.