Current affair of 7th September 2019

Ministry of MSME conducted a national workshop in New Delhi

Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) conducted a  national workshop in New Delhi. The event was chaired by Union Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Shri Nitin Gadkari. The meeting included discussions on the issue of delayed payments to MSMEs and ways to deal with it.

Key highlights:

1. The workshop is conducted for business people and different partners from the MSME area on how to tackle the delay payments on MSMEs.
2. Also, the Finance Ministry has announced that it has some initiatives to strengthen the MSME sector. The MSME Ministry has announced its plan to launch Bharat Craft, a marketing portal for the marketing of their products.
3. During the meeting, the Ministry assured the implementation of the suggestions of the UK Sinha committee.
4. In June 2019, RBI appointed a committee to set up to study the problems faced by MSMEs under the leadership of U.K. Sinha. The committee has submitted its recommendations.

Zimbabwe former President Robert Mugabe passed away

Zimbabwe's former President Robert Mugabe passed away in Singapore at the age of 95 on 6 September. Mugabe is a country's independence struggler. He was receiving treatment in a hospital in Singapore since April.

Key highlights:

1. Mugabe was born on 21 February 1924, in the capital of Zimbabwe. Mugabe was educated by Jesuit priest and worked as a school teacher before attending to South Africa's University of Fort Hare. He was imprisoned, for more than a decade without trial, for criticizing the government of Rhodesia in 1964.
2. While he was still in prison he was chosen as president of the Zimbabwe African National Union (Zanu) in 1973. After the independence movement resulted in 1980, Mugabe was elected as the nation's 1st black prime minister until 1987. He was ousted in a military coup in 2017 after 37 years in power.

The 8th 2019 Seoul Defense Dialogue was held in Seoul

The Seoul Defense Dialogue 2019, an annual international security forum, was held in Seoul. It was hosted by the Ministry of National Defense, Seoul. Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh addressed the dialogue during his 3-day visit to Republic of Korea (ROK). The dialogue had four plenary sessions.

Key highlights:

1. Defense Dialogue 2019 discussed the numerous security challenges to safe from terrorism.
2. The dialogue called for a collective international action to check perpetrators who promote terrorism. It also suggested strong measures against those who support and finance terrorism and provide sanctuary to terrorists.
3. The Seoul Defense Dialogue was launched in 2012. The dialogue aimed for talks on Asia-Pacific cooperation and peace on the peninsula. Defense officers and specialists from around fifty countries and five international organizations except the U.S. representative attended the Dialogue.

Vatican awards Yunus the Lamp of Peace of Saint Francis award

Bangladesh Professor Muhammad Yunus was awarded the Lamp of Peace of Saint Francis award by the Vatican. The award recognizes his contribution towards establishing peace and harmony. Papal Basilica of Assisi and Father Mauro Gambetti who is the master of the Holy Convent conferred the award to Yunus.

Key highlights:

1. Muhammad Yunus was born on 28 June 1940 in Chittagong, Bangladesh. He is a professor, banker, and economist. He is famous for his work in microcredit. The book Banker to the Poor was published by him.
2. In 2008 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for founding Grameen Bank.
3. The Lamp of Peace was first presented in the year 1981. The first awardee was Lech Walesa, a Polish trade union leader. The award recognizes the distinguished work by an individual for promoting peace and dialogue among people.
4. Representation of the Lamp: It represents the simplicity of the Franciscan message. The lamp that is made of glass represents the nature of the glass. It recalls purity.

Chandrayaan 2: ISRO lost contact with Vikram lander before its landing

ISRO reported that Chandrayaan-2's, its lunar mission, landing module Vikram lost its contact with the ground base and failed to respond on 7 September at a distance of 2.1km from the Moon's surface. ISRO said that the initial path was normal and while descending Vikram went silent.

Key highlights:

1. Chandrayaan-2 was India's attempt to soft-land a probe on Moon for the first time. In 20018, India has already carried out an orbiter mission, Chandrayaan-1.
2. Chandrayaan-2 was cleared by former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on September 18, 2008. Initially, the project was to be a joint venture (JV) with Russia. Russian space agency Roscosmos was supposed to provide the lander. But the deal failed. ISRO started the mission in solo in 2012.
3. The Chandrayaan-2 spacecraft weighs around 3.8 tonnes. The total estimated cost for the mission was Rs.978 crore, that is Rs.603 crore for the space segment and Rs.375 crore for the launch.

First Mega Food Park was held in Telangana

The first Mega Food Park in Telangana was held at Lakkampally village in Nizamabad district. It was inaugurated by the Union Minister for Food Processing Harsimrat Kaur Badal. The food park was promoted by Smart Agro Food Park. The Smart Agro Mega Food Park was set up in 78 acres of land at a cost of Rs.108.95 crore.

Key highlights:

1. The facilities in the park include a 5,000-tonne warehouse each for raw materials, finished goods, and commodities, 500-tonne deep freeze, Turmeric-Curcumin, Oleoresin Extraction unit of 5 tonnes a day, quality control lab and other related food processing facilities.
2. Mega Food parks aimed to facilitate the doubling of farmer’s income by 2022. The scheme functions along with the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi which is a government initiative in which all small and marginal farmers will get up to Rs.6,000. Mega Food Parks will reduce post-harvest losses and hedge the farmer’s risk.
3. The Ministry aims to boost the food processing industry. If the agriculture sector grows exponentially, it will become a major contributor to double the farmer’s income and Make In India initiative of the government.
4. The Mega Food Park leveraged an additional investment of about Rs.250 crore in 22 food processing units. It generated a turnover of about Rs.14,000 crore. It is also expected that the Mega Food Parks will also provide 50,000 direct and indirect jobs and benefit about one lakh farmers.

K2K Glory Run was Flagged off

Kargil to Kohima, an Ultra-Marathon- Glory Run, was Flagged-off at Air Headquarters, New Delhi. The marathon was flagged off by Chief of the Air Staff (CAS) Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa.

Key highlights:

1. The K2K – Glory Run will commence on 21 September 2019 and end on 6 November 2019. A team of 25 Air Warriors will cover the distance of more than 4500 km in 45 days by running an average of 100 Km per day.
2. The marathon is to commemorate 20th year of Kargil victory. The Kargil to Kohima (K2K) expedition was undertaken by IAF from Kargil War Memorial, J&K to Kohima War Cemetery, Kohima, Nagaland.

Venkaiah Naidu released Glorious Diaspora Pride of India in New Delhi

The Vice President of India, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu releasing the Coffee Table Book titled Glorious Diaspora-Pride of India in New Delhi. The book contains the brief profiles of the recipients of Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Awards (PBSA) from 2003 to 2019.

Key highlights:

1. The Coffee Table Book was brought out by the Indian Diaspora Club. The club was appreciated for the contributed for the welfare of the nation through their philanthropic and charitable work.
2. Indian Diaspora aims to effectively counter false propaganda and negative narration about India, particularly in the wake of the recent reorganization of Jammu and Kashmir State. The book also includes an inspiring profile of Distinguished Overseas Indians who have made their indelible mark in various fields.
3. Indian Diaspora is described as ambassadors of India’s great culture, heritage and its intrinsic values of humanism, the Vice President lauded their contributions for the welfare of the nation through their philanthropic and charitable work.

UNESCO ties up with Rajasthan to promote states intangible cultural heritage

UNESCO and the Rajasthan government joined to promote the state's intangible cultural heritage. Their main aim is to promote music, art and craft forms, and other intangible cultural heritage of the state to spur socio-economic growth of several artist communities.

Key highlights:

1. The project which will run for around three-and-a-half years will be implemented in Jodhpur, Barmer, Jaisalmer and Bikaner districts.
2. India and the Rajasthan government's tourism department today signed a partnership agreement to promote community-based responsible tourism based on the rich intangible cultural heritage of the state.
3. The project will focus on cultural heritage and traditions, such as pottery, weaving and other crafts, as well as music traditions, in order to create community-led and community-benefiting tourism opportunities.
4. The project plans on developing 10 cultural hubs across the four districts, which will help promote diverse types of cultural heritage through hosting of events, performances, and sale of handicrafts. It will also build capacities of local communities to manage and promote their intangible heritage.

Vice President advises educational institutions to be partners in Fit India and Khelo India

Vice President of India, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu to partner in programs such as Fit India and Khelo India and encourage students to lead a physically active life.

Key highlights:

1. The youth are important as their intellectual and emotional development. It was particularly essential in the wake of the spurt in the non-communicable diseases in the country.
2. He stressed the need to provide a multidisciplinary and holistic education that includes co-curricular activities and community service.
3. The authorities to empower the youth by revamping the education system and reorient it to suit the present-day needs ending the digital divide, improving the quality of education and building adequate infrastructure for skill up-gradation of rural youth was essential to realizing India’s demographic dividend.
4. India’s long and illustrious history of holistic education and the guru Shishya Parampara, the Vice President asserted that the main aim of education not for employment alone, but to enhance knowledge and provide enlightenment and empowerment to individuals.

Vice President advises educational institutions to be partners in Fit India and Khelo India

Vice President of India, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu to partner in programs such as Fit India and Khelo India and encourage students to lead a physically active life.

Key highlights:

1. The youth are important as their intellectual and emotional development. It was particularly essential in the wake of the spurt in the non-communicable diseases in the country.
2. He stressed the need to provide a multidisciplinary and holistic education that includes co-curricular activities and community service.
3. The authorities to empower the youth by revamping the education system and reorient it to suit the present-day needs ending the digital divide, improving the quality of education and building adequate infrastructure for skill up-gradation of rural youth was essential to realizing India’s demographic dividend.
4. India’s long and illustrious history of holistic education and the guru Shishya Parampara, the Vice President asserted that the main aim of education not for employment alone, but to enhance knowledge and provide enlightenment and empowerment to individuals.

Kochi to host 22nd India International Seafood Show after 12 years

The Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) joined with the Seafood Exporters Association of India (SEAI) is organizing the 22nd edition of India International Seafood Show (IISS) .

Key highlights:

1. Their aim is to provide an ideal platform for an interaction between Indian Exporters and overseas importers of Indian marine products, an opportunity for display and sale for manufacturers and suppliers of processing machinery, packaging systems, processing ingredient dealers and cold chain systems and also an opening for service providers like the logistics and certifying/testing segments..
2. They will highlight the technological advances and sustainable practices followed in seafood processing sector in India.The 22nd edition will have technical sessions by national and international experts.
3. The 22nd edition will have technical sessions by national and international experts. IISS 2020 will have over 250 stalls spread over 7,000 square metres (sq m), showcasing a wide range of products based on automated and IT aided technology, and energy efficient systems for value addition.

Fifteenth Indo-US military training exercise Yudh Abhyas 2019

The 15th edition of the biggest joint military exercise Yudh Abhyas 2019 took place between Indian and the United States(US) at Lewis McChord Joint Airforce Base,Washington(US) continue till 18th September.

Key highlights:

1. The main objective is to facilitate interoperability between two nations and train at Battalion level as well as brigade level.
2. The US side represented by a company of 5-20 Infantry Battalion of the US Army and the Indian side was represented by The Assam Regiment. The Indian army welcomed by Major General of US, Xavier Brunsen.
3. The two armies at the end of the exercise will undertake a joint exercise under a UN(United Nations) mandate where expert academic and military discussions.

Dr. B. Bala Bhaskar is the next newly appointed Ambassador of India to the Kingdom of Norway

B Bala Bhaskar appointed as the next Indian Ambassador to Norway. The ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Bala Bhaskar (IFS: 1993)appointed as the next Ambassador of India to the Kingdom of Norway. He will replace Krishan Kumar heading the Indian mission in Norway since July 2018.

Key highlights:

1. An IFS of 1993 batch will take up the assignment shortly.
2. The Joint Secretary of the WANA division of the MEA that deals with all the matters relating to India's trade with WANA region comprising 19 countries.
3. These countries are Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Iraq, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Sudan, Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Syria, Jordan, Israel, Lebanon, Yemen, Libya and South Sudan.

Centre approves Rs 350crores for 9th phase of Bru repatriation

The Centre approved an amount of Rs 350 crore for the ninth phase of Bru repatriation from six relief camps of neighbouring Tripura.The approval during a Joint Monitoring Group meeting on Bru repatriation, chaired by Special Secretary (internal security), Ministry of Home Affairs, A P Maheswari, in Delhi. The state last month identified 4,447 Bru families for the exercise, scheduled to begin on October 1.

Key highlights:

1. The approved amount of Rs 350 crore would cover transportation and rehabilitation package expenses, which includes Rs 5,000 per month for each resettled Bru family in Mizoram and free ration for two years.
2. The meeting were senior officials of the Ministry of Home Affairs, representatives of home departments of Tripura and Mizoram and organisations representing Brus.
3. The Bru community called as Reangs is among the 21 scheduled tribes in the country.
4. There are thousands of Brus fled to Tripura in 1997 in the wake of a communal tension triggered by the killing of a forest guard by militants inside Dampa Tiger Reserve.

RBI declines Equitas request to extend listing deadline for small finance bank

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) turned down a proposal by Equitas Holdings seeking an extension of the listing deadline for its subsidiary Equitas Small Finance Bank (ESFB) ordered freezing of the small finance bank's chief executive’s remuneration at the existing level.

Key highlights:

1. RBI communication to the small finance bank on Friday, the central bank told Equitas that its request for extension of timeline for listing of share of ESFB .
2. ESFB was not permitted to open new branches and further restrictions may be imposed if the bank fails to make satisfactory progress towards listing of its shares.
3. The small finance banks (SFBs) within three years of reaching net worth of ₹500 crore is mandatory as outlined in the guidelines for licensing of SFBs and as communicated to the bank at the time of granting of ‘in-principle’ approval and granting of license.

Govt launches updated Credit linked Capital Subsidy Scheme for MSMEs

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved an outlay of Rs 2,900 crore for the scheme. The upper limit on overall annual spending on the subsidy disbursal. There is an additional 10 percent subsidy for SC-ST entrepreneurs while special provisions have been made for 117 aspirational districts, hill states, and the northeastern region.

Key highlights:

1. The committee is set up under the MSME secretary to look into the issue of delayed payments. The finance ministry estimates that public sector undertakings owe MSMEs above Rs 48,000 crore.
2. The government is brainstorming ways to improve the TReDS (Trade Receivables Discounting System) platform and the online bill discounting platform which helps MSMEs raise funds by selling their trade receivables to corporates.