National
DCGI approves for emergency use authorization first of its kind intranasal COVID-19 Vaccine
⇒ Department of Biotechnology (DBT) and its PSU, Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC) announced the approval from DCGI for emergency use authorization first of its kind intranasal COVID-19 Vaccine to Bharat Biotech (BBIL).
Supported by DBT and BIRAC under the aegis of Mission COVID Suraksha, the mission was launched by DBT and implemented by BIRAC to reinforce and accelerate COVID-19 vaccine development efforts as part of Aatmanirbhar 3.0.
» BBV154 is an intranasal replication-deficient chimpanzee adenovirus SARS-CoV-2 vectored vaccine. It consists of a replication deficient ChAd vector expressing the stabilized Spike SARS-CoV-2 (Wuhan variant).
Key Points:
- DBT’s Autonomous Institute, National Institute of Immunology (NII), New Delhi utilized their “Human Immune Monitoring and T-cell Immunoassay Platform” to examine the vaccine-induced SARS-CoV-2-specific systemic and mucosal cellular immune responses the trial participants.
- Interactive Research School for Health Affairs (IRSHA), Pune completed the Plaque Reduction Neutralization Assay (PRNT) to quantify the titer of neutralizing antibody for the virus from three trial sites.
14th Global MedTech Summit 2022
⇒ Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) – National Medical Technology Forum (NMTF) organised the 14th Global MedTech Summit on 7 September 2022 in New Delhi.
Theme:
The theme of the 14th Global MedTech Summit was “Seizing the Global Opportunity”.
- In line with the theme, the summit strengthened the regulatory framework and created an ecosystem that enables innovation.
Objective:
The main objective of this summit was focus on India position as one of the largest medical devices manufacturing hub enabling healing of patients in India and the world, Incentivizing investments to encourage & RD & D and innovation in medical devices.
- The summit supported plans to create global impact through self-reliance and build strong collaboration across the globe and promote MedTech innovations from localization to globalization.
» 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 addressed the 14th CII Global MedTech Summit titled “Seizing the Global Opportunity”.
» Addressing the Summit, Union Minister said Healthcare sector in India is expected to grow to reach a size of $50 billion by 2025. Telemedicine is also expected to reach $5.5 billion by 2025.
- India aims to achieve 10-12% of the global market share of the medical devices sector to arrive at a $100-300 billion industry; the government’s draft policy pegs, adding that the country will have about 50 clusters for faster clinical testing of medical devices to boost product development and innovation.
International
ICAI's 6 Regions in the United States
⇒ Union Minister for Commerce and Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and Textiles, Shri Piyush Goyal addressed the gathering in San Francisco after launching the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) in 6 regions in the United States.
- Addressed the gathering, he asked Chartered Accountants all over the world to be ambassadors of Brand India.
6 Regions in the USA are:
ARIZONA, AUSTIN, LOS ANGELES, MICHIGAN, NORTH CAROLINA & OHIO
Cyber Security Exercise
⇒ India’s National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS) and the UK Government in collaboration with BAE Systems successfully designed & conducted the Cyber Security Exercise for 26 Countries.
- It was held as part of the International Counter Ransomware Initiative- Resilience Working Group which is being led by India under the leadership of National Cyber Security Coordinator (NCSC).
The exercise was facilitated by BAE Systems via the Immersive Labs platform, and the scenario were written specifically for the participants based on Threat Intelligence and operational experiences.
Theme:
The theme of the exercise was based on Energy Sector in which the respective National Cyber Crisis Management Teams of the CRI Partner Nations had to deal with a ransomware attack on multiple electricity distribution companies.
- These companies are responsible for the distribution of electricity to domestic customers and are the last link to the public supply. The exercise explored the complexity of decision-making around response to ransomware on Critical National Infrastructure.
» There were over 26 invitees, from CRI Partner Nations and their respective organisations; including Cyber Security, National Crisis Management, National Security Policy, Critical National Infrastructure, and Law Enforcement Agencies.
Aim:
The aim to organise this virtual Cyber Exercise on Ransomware Resilience was to simulate a large, wide-spread cyber security incident affecting organisations within a country.
Sports
70th Tri-Services Cricket Championship
⇒ The opening ceremony for the 70th Tri-Services Cricket Championship was held at Railway Cricket Stadium at Visakhapatnam on 05 September 2022.
The Tri-Services Cricket championship held for the first time under the aegis of Eastern Naval Command was declared Open by Surg Rear Adm R Ravi, Command Medical Officer, HQENC, the Chief Guest for the Opening Ceremony.
- Teams from Indian Army Red, Indian Army Green, Indian Navy and Indian Air Force participated in the month-long championship.
- The championship was conducted from 05 September to 02 October 2022 and played in various formats which include Four Day Test Cricket, One day and T-20 matches.
- The matches played simultaneously at GITAM University Cricket Ground and the Railways Cricket Stadium.
Winner:
Indian Navy won the title in the 70th Services cricket championship by virtue of the first innings lead over Army Red after the fourth and final day of the final match was washed out at the Railway stadium.
- Air Force’s league match against Army Green also ended in a draw at the Ukku stadium.
Important Day
6th Foundation Day of IEPFA
⇒ The Investor Education and Protection Fund Authority (IEPFA) and the National Council of Applied Economic Research organised a seminar on the occasion of the 6th Foundation Day of IEPFA on 07 September 2022, to promote financial literacy and investor awareness and protection among investors.
- The seminar concluded with a Panel Discussion on “Investor Protection in a Digital World”, focusing on the need for safeguarding investors in an environment of increasing digitisation of financial transactions.
About Investor Education and Protection Fund Authority (IEPFA):
» The Investor Education and Protection Fund Authority (IEPFA) was set up on September 7, 2016, under the aegis of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, Government of India.
- It was set up for administering the Investor Education and Protection Fund for making refunds of shares, unclaimed dividends, and matured deposits/debentures, among other things, to investors.
About National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER):
» NCAER is India’s oldest and largest independent economic think tank, set up in 1956 to inform policy choices for both the public and private sectors.
- It is one of a few independent think tanks world-wide that combines rigorous economic analysis and policy outreach with deep data collection capabilities, particularly for large-scale household surveys.
- NCAER is led by its Director General, Dr Poonam Gupta, the institution’s first woman head, who assumed office on 1 July 2021, and it is governed by an independent Governing Body currently chaired by Mr Nandan M. Nilekani.