National
Bharat Gaurav Tourist Train “Shri Jagannath Yatra”
⇒ Bharat Gaurav Tourist Train “Shri Jagannath Yatra” was flagged off on 25 January 2023 from Delhi Safdarjung Railway Station on its auspicious tour.
Train flagged off by Shri Dharmendra Pradhan Minister of Education, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, along with Shri Ashwini Vaishnaw Minister of Railways, Communications and Electronics & IT, and others.
Key Points:
- IRCTC Ltd, a public sector undertaking under Ministry of Railways, is running the train.
- Bharat Gaurav Tourist Train launch is in line with the Government of India initiative “Dekho Apna Desh” to promote domestic tourism.
About Tour:
- The 8-day Bharat Gaurav Tourist train tour had its first stop at Varanasi, the ancient holy city, where tourists visited Kashi Vishwanath temple & Corridor along with the Ganga ghat.
- After Varanasi, the train moved to Jashidih Railway station in Jharkhand and tourists visited Baidyanath dham Jyotirling temple.
- Further train departed from Jashidih to Puri. In Puri, tourists visited the Jagannath temple, the Golden Puri beach, the Sun temple at Konark and the temples of Bhubaneshwar.
- After Puri, Gaya was the last destination where tourists visited the Vishnupad temple. Train returned back to Delhi on 1st February 2023.
Visakhapatnam railway station receives ‘Green Railway Station Certification’
⇒ Visakhapatnam railway station of East Coast Railway has been awarded the ‘Green Railway Station Certification with highest rating of Platinum’ by the Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) for adopting green concepts thereby reducing the adverse environmental impact.
- Visakhapatnam is one of the few railway stations to get this prestigious certificate. Visakhapatnam secured 82 out of 100 points in six environmental categories.
- Visakhapatnam railway station performed well in categories such as sustainable facilities, health, hygiene, energy and water efficiency, smart green initiatives, innovation and development.
DRM/ Waltair, Anup Satpathy received the certification from Dr S Vijayakumar, Chairman, IGBC Visakhapatnam Chapter at a function organised at Visakhapatnam on 24 January 2023.
About Green Railway Station rating system:
- The Environment Directorate of Indian Railways, with the support of the IGBC, has developed the Green Railway Station rating system.
- It addresses national priorities such as water conservation, handling of waste, energy efficiency, reduced use of fossil fuel, lesser dependence on usage of virgin materials and health and well-being of occupants.
6-day Mega Event “Bharat Parv”
⇒ The six – day mega event “Bharat Parv” event was organized by the Government of India at the Lawns and Gyan Path in front of Red Fort, Delhi from 26th to 31st January, 2023, as part of the Republic Day Celebrations.
Key Points:
- The mega event was inaugurated on 26 January at Red Fort Lawns by the Union Minister for Culture, Tourism and DoNER Shri G.K Reddy.
- A large number of visitors were participated in the event on all days.
- Ministry of Tourism was designated as the nodal Ministry for the event.
- The physical event was organized after a gap of 2 years at the Lawns and Gyan Path in front of Red Fort.
- The event included showcasing of the best Republic Day Parade tableaux at the venue, cultural performances by the Zonal Cultural Centres as well as cultural troupes from States/ UTs, a pan – India Food Court and a pan – India Crafts Bazaar with 65 handicraft stalls.
» Bharat Parv was previously in held 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020 (and virtual in the year 2021) at the Lawns and Gyan Path in front of Red Fort.
International
MoU between Prasar Bharati and National Media Authority
⇒ India and Egypt signed an MOU to facilitate content exchange, capacity building, and Co-Productions between Prasar Bharati and National Media Authority of Egypt on 25 January 2023.
About MoU:
- The MOU is part of the efforts by Prasar Bharati to expand the reach of DD India Channel to show-case the country’s progress through programs focussed on economy, technology, social development and also the rich cultural heritage.
- Under the ambit of this MoU, both the broadcasters will exchange their programs of different genres like Sports, News, Culture, Entertainment and many more areas on bilateral basis and these programs will be telecast on their Radio and Television platforms.
- The MOU which will be valid for three years will also facilitate co-productions and training of the officials of both the broadcasters in latest technologies.
Background:
- Prasar Bharati, Public Service Broadcaster of India currently has 39 Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) with foreign broadcasters for co-operation and collaboration in the field of broadcasting.
- These MoUs provide for exchange of programmes with foreign broadcasters in the field of culture, education, science, entertainment, sports, news etc.
- The MoUs also provide for co-production opportunities related to themes of mutual interest and knowledge sharing through trainings.
14th South Asia Conference on Think20@G20
⇒ Director General, National Centre for Good Governance (NCGG), Shri Bharat Lal addressed a conference on “Water Security for high Economic Growth & Prosperity at the 14th South Asia Conference on Think20@G20.
Shri Lal said that “Har Ghar Nal Se Jal” under Jal Jeevan Mission will be completed by 2024. It is being implemented in a unique bottom-up and decentralized approach by mobilizing over Five Lakh Paani Samitis/ Village Water and Sanitation Committees (VWSC) to manage and operate village water supply infrastructure.
About Conference:
The 14th South Asia Conference was organized by Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies & Analyses (MP – IDSA) in New Delhi. The Conference was held on 17-18 January 2023 at MP-IDSA.
Theme:
The theme for this year’s conference was “Think20@G20: Towards a Resilient South Asia”.
Key Points:
- MP-IDSA has been organising the South Asia Conference since 2007.
- The South Asia Conference seeks to draw on a cross-section of policy makers, academics, civil society actors and young professionals from all countries of the South Asian region, to examine and discuss issues of common concern and interest.