National
"One Week, One Lab" countrywide campaign
⇒ Union Minister for Science & Technology, Dr Jitendra Singh, who is also the Vice President of CSIR (Council of Scientific & Industrial Research) addressed the 200th Governing Body Meeting of CSIR at the Science Centre in New Delhi on 17 December 2022.
- At the 200th Governing Body Meeting of CSIR, Dr Jitendra Singh announced a Special Call for Research Grant Proposals for Women Scientists.
- Keeping in tune with the transformations happening in CSIR, the Minister of Science and Technology also released the new tagline of the organisation, “CSIR-The Innovation Engine of India”.
During the meeting, Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh announced the launching of “One Week, One Lab” countrywide campaign from 6th January, 2023.
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 “One Week One Lab” campaign highlighting India’s global excellence in technology, innovation and StartUps on 06 January 2023.
- “One Week One Lab” theme-based campaign is expected to ignite the minds of young innovators, students, academia, and industry to look for opportunities through deep tech Start-ups ventures”.
- Each of the 37 CSIR (Council of Scientific & Industrial Research) Labs spread across the country is dedicated to a different exclusive area of work.
- In this, each of the 37 premier Laboratories/Institutes of CSIR spread across the country will, one after the other in every successive week, showcase their exclusive innovations and technological breakthroughs to the people of India.
» Dr Jitendra Singh informed that in the “One Week One Lab” Campaign of CSIR, each of its 37 constituent laboratories, spread Nationwide, will showcase their legacy, exclusive innovations and technological breakthroughs every successive week.
- During the campaign each CSIR lab shall be organizing week long events including industry & start-ups meet, students connect, society connect, display of technologies, etc.
» During the inaugural session, Secretary, DSIR & Director General, CSIR, Dr N Kalaiselvi informed that the “One Week One Lab” campaign of CSIR is a way to establish the right connect and to showcase not only the technological breakthroughs & innovations in CSIR laboratories, but also Future Technologies on which CSIR labs are working.
- The campaign will include events for Students Connect through interaction of Scientists and researchers of the laboratories with school students, who are the future Scientists, to inculcate the temper of science.
- The focus will be through CSIR’s existing collaborations with schools and programs such as Jigyasa and Atal Tinkering Lab.
- The campaign will also focus on academia and skill development, where interested students from varying domain get to know about the research activities and facilities of the CSIR laboratories and get a connect for future prospects.
- Another focus of the campaign is to support more and more Start-ups and entrepreneurship in the Nation with dissemination of science and wide spread of the technologies.
About CSIR:
- CSIR was established on 26 September 1942 and was registered as a CSIR Society under the Societies Registration Act, 1860. The first meeting of the Governing Body was held on 09 March 1942 that framed the Bye Laws for the Council amongst other agenda items.
- Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR), the largest public funded R&D organization in India.
- Carrying out world-class research for the scientific and industrial research and development has been CSIR’s hallmark.
- Started with 5 laboratories in 1942, in its eight decades of journey CSIR has grown into an organisation with 37 labs of 3521 scientists, supported by 4162 technical staff, 2612 administrative & other support staff and about 5500 young scholars.
Centre names new integrated food security scheme as “Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana”
⇒ The Cabinet led by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi had approved new integrated food security scheme for providing free foodgrains to Antodaya Ann Yojna (AAY) & Primary Household (PHH) beneficiaries, to be rolled out from 1st January 2023.
Key Points:
- New scheme has been named as Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana (PMGKAY).
- Implementation of the new scheme has started from 1st January 2023, benefitting more than 80 crore poor and poorest of poor people.
- Keeping in view welfare of the beneficiaries and in order to maintain uniformity across the States, free foodgrains will be provided under PMGKAY for the year 2023 to all PHH and AAY beneficiaries, as per entitlement under NFSA.
- The integrated scheme will strengthen the provisions of NFSA, 2013 in terms of accessibility, affordability and availability of foodgrains for the poor.
For effective and uniform implementation of NFSA 2013:
PMGKAY will subsume the two subsidy schemes of Department of Food & Public Distribution (a) Food Subsidy to FCI (b) Food Subsidy for decentralized procurement states dealing with procurement, allocation and delivery of free foodgrains to the states under NFSA.
» The Central Government will spend more than Rs 2 lakh crore in 2023 as food subsidy under NFSA and other welfare schemes, to remove the financial burden of the poor and the poorest of the poor.
Book – ‘Revolutionaries – The Other Story of How India Won Its Freedom’
⇒ Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation, Shri Amit Shah released the book – ‘Revolutionaries – The Other Story of How India Won Its Freedom’ in New Delhi on 11 January 2023.
Author:
The Author of the book is Economist Sanjeev Sanyal who is also a member of Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister.
The Union Home Minister said that this book is a good attempt to tell the armed freedom struggle to the public. He said, the British had gone but their mentality remained engraved and this new book will help to remove that confusion.
19th meeting of the National Board of MSME (NBMSME)
⇒ Union Minister of MSME Shri Narayan Rane chaired the 19th meeting of the National Board of MSME (NBMSME) held on 11 January 2023 in New Delhi.
Union Minister released the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) India Report 2021-22.
- The GEM is a global study conducted by GEM Consortium with the aim to collect internationally comparative primary data on entrepreneurial activity and its related concepts.
» A Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the Ministry of MSME and Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) for operationalisation of Formalization Project for bringing Informal Micro Enterprises into the formal ambit.
» The Formalization Project was launched by the Minister by including 8 lakh Informal Micro Enterprises.
School of Logistics, Waterways and Communication in Agartala
⇒ The Union Minister of Ports, Shipping & Waterways and Ayush, Shri Sarbananda Sonowal, along with Dr Manik Saha, Chief Minister, Tripura inaugurated the School of Logistics, Waterways and Communication on 11 January 2023 in Agartala.
Shri Sonowal said that the school will enable the rich pool of talent of the region to become world class experts in the transportation and logistics sector.
In order to unlock the promised economic potential of the Northeast, the school will be enable the innate capacity of human resources along our opulent waterways.
About Centre:
- The Centre for Logistic, Communication and Waterways would facilitate in conducting studies/research, training, workshops/seminars for stakeholders like businesses, exporters/importers, Chambers of Commerce and Industries, local entrepreneurs, tourist operators etc.
- It has been set up under State Institute of Public Administration and Rural Development (SIPARD).
- SIPARD is an autonomous body funded by the Government of Tripura and partially by the Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India.