National
VAIBHAV Fellowships for Indian Diaspora abroad
⇒ On the occasion of the “National Science Day”, Union Minister of State (I/C) Science & Technology; Minister of State (I/C) Earth Sciences; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh launched VAIBHAV Fellowship scheme for the Indian Diaspora abroad on 28 February 2023 at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi.
Dr Jitendra Singh said, the Vaibhav Fellowship aims at improving the research ecosystem of India’s Higher Educational Institutions by facilitating academic and research collaborations between Indian Institutions and the best institutions in the world through mobility of faculty/researcher from overseas institutions to India. He said, the best of Diaspora minds will collaborate with domestic Minds to deliver world class projects and products.
VAIBHAV Fellowships Programme:
» The Government has launched the ‘VAIBHAV’ fellowship programme to connect the Indian STEMM diaspora with Indian academic and R&D institutions for collaborative research work leading to sharing of knowledge, wisdom, and best practices in the frontier areas of science & technology.
Implemented by:
The Vaishvik Bhartiya Vaigyanik (VAIBHAV) fellowships programme is implemented by the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Ministry of Science and Technology.
VAIBHAV Summit:
The Government of India had organized the VAIBHAV Summit to connect Indian STEMM diaspora with Indian Institutions which was inaugurated by the PM and saw the participation of more than 25,000 attendees.
- Indian STEMM diaspora from more than 70 countries participated in the deliberations.
Key Points:
- The fellowships would be awarded to outstanding scientist/ technologists of Indian origin (NRI/OCI/PIO) who are engaged in research activities in their respective countries.
- The 75 selected fellows would be invited to work in 18 identified knowledge verticals including quantum technology, health, pharma, electronics, agriculture, energy, computer sciences, and material sciences amongst others.
- The VAIBHAV Fellow would identify an Indian Institution for collaboration and may spend up to two months in a year for a maximum of 3 years.
- Fellowship would include fellowship grant (INR 4,00,000 per month), international and domestic travel, accommodation and contingencies.
- The VAIBHAV fellows are expected to collaborate with their Indian counterparts and help initiate research activities in the host institution in the cutting-edge areas of Science and Technology.
- The fellowship programme launched as a step to further those efforts by shaping and implementing the VAIBHAV programme, envisages collaboration between scientists of Indian Diaspora with Indian Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs), Universities, and/ or public funded Scientific Institutions.
International
India Wins GSMA Government Leadership Award 2023
⇒ The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi’s visionary leadership gets global recognition. GSM Association (GSMA) has conferred Government Leadership Award 2023 to India for implementing best practices in telecom policy and regulation.
- The GSMA is a global organisation unifying the mobile ecosystem to discover, develop and deliver innovation foundational to positive business environments and societal change.
- GSMA, which represents more than 750 mobile operators and 400 companies in the telecom ecosystem, recognizes one country every year.
India was declared winner in the ceremony held at Mobile World Congress Barcelona on 27 Feb, 2023.
2nd G20 Anti-Corruption Working Group (ACWG) Meeting
⇒ The 2nd meeting of the G20 Anti-Corruption Working Group (ACWG) under India’s G20 Presidency was held from May 25-27, 2023, in Rishikesh, Uttarakhand.
The 2nd G20 Anti-corruption Working Group (ACWG) was inaugurated on May 25, 2023, by the Union Minister of State for Defence & Tourism, Shri Ajay Bhatt in Rishikesh.
- He lauded G20 India’s efforts to promote international cooperation against corruption and called for enhancing transparency and accountability in the public sector.
The meeting had wide participation from 90 delegates of 20 member countries, 10 Invitee countries, and 9 International Organisations including UNODC, OECD, Egmont Group, INTERPOL, and IMF.
Indian Presidency has focused on five broad themes in the G20 Anti-Corruption Working Group namely,
- International cooperation for strengthening fight against corruption,
- Integrity and Effectiveness of Public Bodies and Authorities Responsible for Preventing and Combating Corruption,
- Role of audit institutions in anti-corruption,
- Leveraging Information and Communications Technology (ICT) for combating corruption in the public sector, and
- Gender and corruption.
Day 1: May 25
» On the first day of the ACWG meeting, a unique Side Event was held on ‘Gender and Corruption’.
Smt. Meenakshi Lekhi, Minister of State for External Affairs and Culture, delivered the keynote address.
» During this event, national and international experts and practitioners deliberated on the gendered aspects of corruption, the ways in which women’s empowerment is intrinsically linked with anti-corruption initiatives, and the need for gender-sensitive governance and policymaking.
Further, three sessions were held on the following:
Safeguarding Anti-Corruption Institutions: Delegates worked towards laying out an action plan for enhancing the integrity, transparency, and accountability of anti-corruption institutions and public bodies.
Strengthening Asset Recovery Frameworks: Delegates discussed the development of a robust and effective framework for the recovery and return of stolen assets, a core constituent of the international anti-corruption enforcement architecture.
In this pivotal session, deliberations happened on enhancing law enforcement cooperation to combat corruption. Delegates discussed the Accountability Report on the implementation of mutual legal assistance mechanisms by G20 members to facilitate the investigation and prosecution of corruption offenses.
Moreover, India is preparing an Accountability Report for 2023 with a unique focus on the analysis of the efficiency of Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA) procedures for corruption and other criminal offenses. It will help in understanding the practical and cross-cutting issues which arise while preparing and answering MLA requests.
Day 2: May 26
The second day of the meeting focussed on a comprehensive action plan. G20 India delegates initiated a session focused on drawing a 6-point plan for strengthening information-sharing mechanisms for targeted action against corruption & exchanging best practices in audits for combating corruption.
Day 3: May 27
The ACWG Meeting drew to a successful close in Rishikesh with discussions on concrete outcomes on strengthening law enforcement cooperation, prioritising asset recovery, ensuring the independence of anti-corruption bodies & more.
Over the past three days, there were intensive and productive deliberations on several key focal areas pertaining to Asset recovery, Fugitive economic offenders, formal and informal channels of cooperation for information sharing, institutional frameworks for combating corruption, and mutual legal assistance, among others.
The delegates agreed upon the three High-Level Principles-
- ‘Promoting Integrity and effectiveness of Public Bodies and Authorities responsible for Preventing and Combating Corruption’;
- ‘Strengthening Law Enforcement related International Cooperation and Information Sharing for Combating Corruption’, and
- ‘Strengthening Asset Recovery Mechanisms related to Corruption’.
Important Day
National Science Day 2023
⇒ National Science Day is celebrated every year on 28 February in India.
National Science Day is celebrated to commemorate the discovery of the Raman Effect by Indian physicist Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman, also known as Sir C.V Raman.
Theme:
The theme for the National Science Day 2023 was “Global Science for Global Wellbeing”.
The theme for National Science Day changes every year, and it is decided by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India.
The day is celebrated to recognize and appreciate the contributions of scientists and researchers to the field of science and to create awareness among the general public about the importance of science and its applications in everyday life.
History:
- The idea of celebrating National Science Day was first proposed by the National Council for Science and Technology Communication (NCSTC) in 1986.
- Government of India designated 28 February as National Science Day (NSD) in 1986. On this day Sir C.V. Raman announced the discovery of the ‘Raman Effect’.
- The discovery was announced on February 28th, 1928, and Raman won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1930, making him the first Indian to receive a Nobel Prize in a scientific field.
- The first National Science Day was celebrated on February 28th, 1987.
CV Raman Effect:
- The Raman effect is a phenomenon in which a photon interacts with a molecule, causing it to undergo a change in energy and momentum. Specifically, when a photon interacts with a molecule, it can transfer some of its energy and momentum to the molecule, causing it to vibrate or rotate. This change in the molecule’s energy and momentum results in a shift in the wavelength of the scattered photon, which is known as Raman scattering.
- The Raman effect is used in Raman spectroscopy, which is a technique used to identify and analyze the chemical composition of materials. In Raman spectroscopy, a laser is used to excite the molecules in a sample, and the resulting Raman scattering is measured and analyzed to determine the vibrational and rotational modes of the molecules in the sample.