The Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) and the Ministry of Tribal Affairs will tomorrow ie Tuesday (January 19th) sign two MoUs. While one MOU is regarding the purchase of Khadi fabric for tribal students, the other MOU is on partnering of Tribal Affairs Ministry with KVIC as an implementing agency for Prime Minister Employment Generation Program (PMEGP).

The MoUs will be signed in the presence of Hon’ble Minister of MSME, Shri Nitin Gadkari and Hon’ble Minister of Tribal Affairs, Shri Arjun Munda.They are aligned with Hon’ble Prime Minister’s call for “Aatmanirbhar Bharat” as they aim at creating local employment by strengthening the Khadi artisans and a large chunk of tribal population across the country.

As part of the first MoU, the Ministry of Tribal Affairs will procure over 6 lakh meters of Khadi fabric worth Rs 14.77 crore in 2020-21, for the students in Eklavya Residential Schools being run by the ministry. As the government increases the number of Eklavya Schools every year; the quantum of purchase of Khadi fabric shall also increase proportionally.

Under the second MoU, National Scheduled Tribe Finance Development Corporation (NSTFDC), an agency of the Tribal Affairs Ministry responsible for economic development of tribals in India, will be roped in as a partner to implement PMEGP Scheme. NSTFDC provides concessional loan schemes for funding entrepreneurial ventures of aspiring scheduled tribes in all sectors of economy.The MoU will thus benefit the tribals by engaging them in various production activities and creating self-employment opportunities. The alliance of NSTFDC and KVIC will increase the coverage of PMEGP Scheme among the STs.

Source: PIB

The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, has given its approval to the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Scientific and Technical Cooperation between National Centre of Meteorology (NCM), United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) India.

The MoU provides for sharing of knowledge, data and operational products for meteorological, seismological and oceanic services, such as Radar, Satellite, Tide gauges, seismic and Meteorological stations. 

1. Exchange of experience/visits in term of scientists, research scholars and specialists, etc. for the purpose of research, training, consultation, focused on climatic information services, satellite data utilization for now casting and tropical cyclones forecasting.
2. Exchange of scientific and technical information related to common interest activities.
3. Organization of bilateral scientific and technical seminars/ workshops/ conferences and training courses on problems related to the fields of cooperation mentioned in the MoU and of interest to both countries.
4. Other fields of cooperation as may be mutually agreed upon by the parties.
5. Deployment of Meteorological observation networks on mutual agreement over Ocean waters.   
6. Cooperation in the development of special capacities of Tsunami models researches for faster and more reliable forecasts of Tsunamis propagating through the Oman Sea and Arabian Sea which affect the coastal areas of India and North East of UAE.
7. Cooperation to support the Tsunami Early Warning Centre (TEWC) in the form of forecast modelling software, specifically designed to support the Tsunami forecasting operations.
8. Sharing the real-time seismic data of some of Seismic stations situated in south and west of India and North of the UAE for monitoring the seismic activities which may generate Tsunami in Arabian Sea and Sea of Oman.
9. Cooperate at the field of Seismology which includes the study of Seismic activities having the potential to generate Tsunami waves in Arabian Sea and Oman Sea.
10. Cooperation in Early warnings of Sand and Dust storms through the exchange of knowledge.

Background

Weather services make critical contributions in enhancing efficiency of weather dependent sectors of economy; and in managing risk in weather-dependent economic sectors such as agriculture, transport, water etc. which underpin the economic growth in the region. Resilience can be strengthened through regional and global cooperation as countries invest in early warning systems and modernize weather and forecasting services. Due to evolutionary nature of weather, regional collaboration can help improve understanding of changing weather patterns, devise effective response strategies, lower investment costs, and foster regionally relevant technological innovation and address challenges related to modernization and sustainability of weather services.

Collaborative participation within MoES (India) and NCM-UAE in terms of activities related to multi-hazard early warning system and climate resilience can significantly contribute to economic growth in the region.

The scientific activities being carried out by the respective Institutes in India and NCM-UAE were discussed during the UAE delegation visit at MoES on 8th November 2019 and found many common areas of research. Both sides showed interest in the scientific and technical collaborations faster and more reliable forecasts of Tsunamis propagating through the Oman Sea and Arabian Sea which affect the coastal areas of India and North East of UAE.

Union Education Minister Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ reviewed implementation of New Education Policy- 2020 with the senior officials of the ministry.

During the meeting the Minister has recommended the constitution of a Task Force for coordinating of NEP implementation between higher education and school education departments of the Ministry of Education to facilitate the smooth transition of students from school education to higher education. The Minister suggested that a Review Committee and an Implementation Committee headed by Secretary, Higher Education be formed to ensure speedy implementation of NEP.

Shri Pokhriyal emphasised the need for shifting the focus from package culture to patent culture. The National Education Technology Forum (NETF) and National Research Foundation (NRF) are critical for the success of policy so they should be established in the year 2021-2022. He called upon the stakeholders to ensure synergy between implementation of NEP and existing policies of the government. He also stressed on enabling linkages between the industry and academia for better results.

A total of 181 tasks have been identified for implementation in Higher Education and a dashboard for monitoring the progress of these identified 181 tasks of NEP with clear timelines and targets may be prepared. A monthly and weekly calendar should be drawn up for implementation of the tasks so that every stake holder is updated about its implementation

The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) in association with Andhra Pradesh Drought Mitigation Project (APDMP), an externally aided project funded by IFAD, organized a Virtual Buyer Seller Meet with Millet Exporters and FPOs of Millet for establishing marketing linkages.

Considering the potential of increasing exports of Millets and Millet products and the focus given by Government for development of Millet sector of Nurti Cereals, APEDA is closely interacting with Indian Institute of Millet Research (IIMR) and other stakeholders like National Institute Nutrition, CFTRI and Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) for perspective planning of five years for promotion of Millets and Millet products. This platform has provided an opportunity to the exporters and FPOs to interact with each other for supply and sourcing of products.

APEDA is making efforts to prepare a perspective Action Plan for increasing export of Millet and Millet Products for a period five years i.e. 2021-2026 to enable all concerned stakeholders for taking necessary action in a time bound manner for achieving the target.

Further, efforts would be made on identification of Organic Millet clusters, registration of FPOs and exporters of Millets at Farmer Connect Portal developed by APEDA for further interaction for buy and sell activity, and identification of new Potential International Markets for promotion of Indian Millets. 

Increasing interest in reviving the consumption of millets across various countries is favoring the growth prospects of this product in recent years within the country and for exports as well

Dr. M. Angamuthu Chairman APEDA, Shri H. Arun Kumar, Commissioner Agriculture, Government of Andhra Pradesh, Shri G. Vinaichand, COO, APDMP, Senior Officers of APEDA and APDMP, FPOs and exporters of  Millet participated in the programme.

Millet is a common term to categorize small-seeded grasses that are often termed nutri-cereals, and includes Sorghum, Pearl Millet, Ragi, Small Millet, Foxtail Millet, Proso Millet, Barnyard Millet, Kodo Millet and other millets. Millets are the cereal crops generally small-seeded and known for high nutritive value.

The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, via their official Twitter handle, has released a poster, making the general public aware of the HSN Code for Goods and Services w.e.f 1st April 2021. Read the official Tweet below:

Attention GST Taxpayers

Declaration of HSN Code for Goods and Services effective from April 01, 2021.

Attention GST Taxpayers

Declaration of HSN Code for Goods and Services effective from April 01, 2021. pic.twitter.com/cVUjEpdiqs

— CBIC (@cbic_india) January 12, 2021