PIB Analysis : 28th June

Daily PIB Analysis for UPSC CSE

Topics Covered

1. G-20
2. Startup India Scheme
3. National Investment and Manufacturing Zones
4. First Resilient Kerala Program
5. Education Quality Upgradation and Inclusion Programme (EQUIP)
6. One Stop Centres
7. Schemes to Reduce Infant Mortality Rate and Still Birth Rate
8. Facts for Prelims : MSP and FRP

1 . G-20 Summit

Background

• After the Asian Financial Crisis in 1997-1998, it was acknowledged that the participation of major emerging market countries is needed on discussions on the international financial system, and G7 finance ministers agreed to establish the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting in 1999.
• The G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meetings were centered on major economic and monetary policy issues amongst major countries in the global financial system and aimed at promoting cooperation toward achieving stable and sustainable global economic growth for the benefit of all countries. The participating members in the meetings were the same as the current G20 members.

About G-20

• The Group of 20 nations (G20) is an international grouping made up of Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, the European Union, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
• The G20 Summit is formally known as the “Summit on Financial Markets and the World Economy”.
• Spain is a permanent guest invitee. It was established in 1999 to broaden the remit of the G7 – a grouping of the world’s most powerful nations, and its primary mandate is to “prevent future international financial crises”.
• The host country of the G20 summit leads the group over the course of one year from December through the following November as the G20 presidency. The G20 presidency also organizes relevant ministerial and working group meetings.
• Leaders initially met twice a year, but this was reduced to once a year since 2011. The leaders’ meetings are usually preceded by ministerial meetings by trade ministers, finance ministers and central bank governors, which are designed to set the agenda for the meetings of the world’s most powerful leaders.

Achievements

• In 2009, when the UK held a special spring summit, former Prime Minister Gordon Brown orchestrated a deal in which world leaders agreed on a $1.1 trillion injection of financial aid into the global economy.
• The G20 so far has made important progress in reshaping the governance of global finance by implementing macro-prudential policies, developing strict rules on the “too big to fail” problem, increasing the lending capacity of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and collecting richer information on the shadow banking system.
• The G-20 has also played a crucial role in strengthening the international financial regulatory system, including better coordination across countries. 

Challenges

• The G20 is widely perceived to have failed to address global inequality. The expansion of the G7 to include more emerging economies brought hope that this would be addressed, but in most member states, inequality is widening.
• The G20, like many plurilateral organisations, is often dismissed as a “talking shop”, where leaders offer plenty of bluster, but achieve very little material progress.

Osaka Meet decisions concerning India

• 2019 G20 meet happened in Osaka Japan
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi and United States President Donald Trump came closer to resolving trade issues when they met in Osaka, but on technological issues such as data storage and 5G network, India placed itself across the divide from Japan and the U.S., and alongside leaders of BRICS 
• The initiative for free flow of data, announced by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in January, came after the Reserve Bank of India’s guidelines mandating that the storage of all financial data, including by multinational companies, must be kept on servers in India.

2 . Startup India Action Plan

About Startup India Scheme

Start-up India initiative launched on 16^thJanuary 2016, consists of 19 Action Points that act as a guiding document for the initiative.

Salient features of Startup India action plan

• Compliance Regime based on Self-Certification with an objective to reduce the regulatory burden on Startups thereby allowing them to focus on their core business and keep compliance cost low.
• Startup India Hub with an objective to create a single point of contact for the entire Startup ecosystem and enable knowledge exchange and access to funding.
• Rolling out of Mobile App and Portal with an objective to serve as the single platform for Startups for interacting with Government and Regulatory Institutions for all business needs and information exchange among various stakeholders.
• Legal Support and Fast-tracking Patent Examination at Lower Costs with an objective to promote awareness and adoption of IPRs by Startups and facilitate them in protecting and commercializing the IPRs by providing access to high quality Intellectual Property services and resources, including fast-track examination of patent applications and rebate in fees.
• Relaxed Norms of Public Procurement for Startupswith an objective to provide an equal platform to Startups across sectors vis-à-vis the experienced entrepreneurs/ companies in public procurement.
• Faster Exit for Startupswith an objective to make it easier for Startups to wind up operations.
• Providing Funding Support through Fund of Funds with a Corpus of RS. 10,000 crore with an objective to provide funding support for development and growth of innovation driven enterprises.
• Credit Guarantee fund for Startupswith objective to catalyze entrepreneurship by providing credit to innovators across all sections of society.
• Tax Exemptions on Capital Gains with an objective to promote investments into Startups by mobilizing the capital gains arising from sale of capital assets.
• Tax Exemptions to startups for 3 Years with an objective to promote the growth of Startups and address working capital requirements.
• Tax Exemption on Investments above Fair Market Value with an objective to encourage seed-capital investment in Startups.
• Organizing Startup Fests for Showcasing Innovation and Providing a Collaboration Platform with an objective to galvanize the Startup ecosystem and to provide national and international visibility to the Startup ecosystem in India.
• Launch of Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) with an objective to serve as a platform for promotion of world-class Innovation Hubs, Grand Challenges, Startup businesses and other self-employment activities, particularly in technology driven areas.
• Harnessing Private Sector Expertise for Incubator Setup with an objective to ensure professional management of Government sponsored / funded incubators, Government will create a policy and framework for setting-up of incubators across the country in public private partnership.
• Building Innovation Centers at National Institutes with an objective to propel successful innovation through augmentation of incubation and R&D efforts.
• Setting up of 7 New Research Parks Modelled on the Research Park Setup at IIT Madras with an objective to propel successful innovation through incubation and joint R&D efforts between academia and Industry.
• Promoting Startups in the Biotechnology Sector with an objective to foster and facilitate bio-entrepreneurship.
• Launching of Innovation Focused Programs for Students with an objective to foster a culture of innovation in the field of Science and Technology amongst students.
• Annual Incubator Grand Challenge with an objective to support creation of successful world class incubators in India.

3 . National Investment and Manufacturing Zones

About NIMZ

• National Investment & Manufacturing Zones (NIMZs) are one of the important instruments of National Manufacturing Policy, 2011.  NIMZs are envisaged as large areas of developed land with the requisite eco-system for promoting world class manufacturing activity.

Difference between SEZ and NIMZ

• The main objective of Special Economic Zones is promotion of exports, while NIMZs are based on the principle of industrial growth in partnership with States and focuses on manufacturing growth and employment generation.
• NIMZs are different from SEZs in terms of size, level of infrastructure planning, governance structures related to regulatory procedures, and exit policies.

4 . Resilient Kerala Programme

Context : The Government of India, the Government of Kerala and the World Bank signed here today a Loan Agreement of USD 250 million for the First Resilient Kerala Program to enhance the State’s resilience against the impacts of natural disasters and climate change. 

About Resilient Kerala Programme

• The Resilient Kerala Program will focus on strengthening the State’s institutional and financial capacity to protect the assets and livelihoods of poor and vulnerable groups through an inclusive and participatory approach. 
• New Program is part of the Government of India’s support to Kerala’s ‘Rebuild Kerala Development Programme’ aimed at building a green and resilient Kerala. 
• The World Bank has been working closely with the Government of India and Kerala since the floods struck in August 2018 in assessing the impact of the floods and assisting in recovery and reconstruction. The Bank support also helped identify policies, institutions and systems for resilience to disaster risks and climate change. 
• The Program, which represents the First ‘State Partnership’ of the World Bank in India, is the First of two Development Policy Operations aiming to mainstream disaster and climate resilience into critical infrastructure and services. 

The Program aims to support the State with:

• improved river basin planning and water infrastructure operations management, water supply and sanitation services
• resilient and sustainable  agriculture, enhanced agriculture risk insurance
• improved resilience of the core road network
• unified and more up-to-date land records in high risk areas
•  risk-based urban planning and strengthened expenditure planning by urban local bodies
•  strengthened fiscal and public financial management capacity of the state

5 . Education Quality Upgradation and Inclusion Programme (EQUIP)

Context : In accordance with the decision of the Prime Minister for finalizing a five-year vision plan for each Ministry, the Department of Higher Education of HRD Ministry has finalized and released a five-year vision plan named Education Quality Upgradation and Inclusion Programme (EQUIP)

Goals for Higher Education sector as suggested by 10 Expert Groups

• Double the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in higher education and resolve the geographically and socially skewed access to higher education institutions in India
• Upgrade the quality of education to global standards
• Position at least 50 Indian institutions among the top-1000 global universities
• Introduce governance reforms in higher education for well-administered campuses
• Accreditation of all institutions as an   assurance of quality
• Promote Research & Innovation ecosystems for positioning India in the Top-3 countries in the world in matters of knowledge creation
• Double the employability of the students passing out of higher education
• Harness education technology for expanding the reach and improving pedagogy
• Promote India as a global study destination
• Achieve a quantum increase in investment in higher education

6 . One Stop Centres

About One Stop Centres

• Ministry of Women and Child Development (MWCD), has formulated a Centrally Sponsored Scheme for setting up One Stop Centre, a sub – scheme of Umbrella Scheme for National Mission for Empowerment of women including Indira Gandhi Mattritav Sahyaog Yojana. Popularly known as Sakhi, the scheme is being implemented since 1^st April 2015. 
• These Centres are being established across the country to provide integrated support and assistance under one roof to women affected by violence, both in private and public spaces in phased manner.
• One Stop Centres (OSC) are intended to support women affected by violence, in private and public spaces, within the family, community and at the workplace.
• Women facing physical, sexual, emotional, psychological and economic abuse, irrespective of age, class, caste, education status, marital status, race and culture will be facilitated with support and redressal.
• Aggrieved women facing any kind of violence due to attempted sexual harassment, sexual assault, domestic violence, trafficking, honour related crimes, acid attacks or witch-hunting who have reached out or been referred to the OSC will be provided with specialized services.
• The OSC will support all women including girls below 18 years of age affected by violence, irrespective of caste, class, religion, region, sexual orientation or marital status.

The objectives of the Scheme

• To provide integrated support and assistance to women affected by violence, both in private and public spaces under one roof.
• To facilitate immediate, emergency and non – emergency access to a range of services including medical, legal, psychological and counselling support under one roof to fight against any forms of violence against women.

7 . Schemes to Reduce IMR and SBR

Schemes to reduce Infant Mortality Rate and Still Birth Rate

• Promotion of Institutional deliveries through cash incentive under Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY) and Janani Shishu Suraksha Karyakaram (JSSK) entitles all pregnant women (PW) delivering in public health institutions to free ante-natal check-ups, delivery including Caesarean section, post-natal care and treatment of sick infants till one year of age.
• Strengthening of delivery points for providing comprehensive and quality Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health (RMNCH+A) Services, ensuring essential newborn care at all delivery points, establishment of Special Newborn Care Units (SNCU), Newborn Stabilization Units (NBSU) and Kangaroo Mother Care (KMC) units for care of sick and small babies.
• India Newborn Action Plan (INAP) was launched in 2014 to make concerted efforts towards attainment of the goals of “Single Digit Neonatal Mortality Rate” and “Single Digit Still birth Rate,” by 2030.
• Mothers Absolute Affection (MAA) programme for improving breastfeeding practices (Early Initiation Breastfeeding within one hour, Exclusive Breastfeeding up to six months and initiation of complementary feeding at six months of age with continued breastfeeding up to two years or beyond) through mass media campaigns and capacity building of health care providers in health facilities as well as in communities.
• Universal Immunization Programme (UIP) is supported to provide vaccination to children against life threatening diseases such as Tuberculosis, Diphtheria, Pertussis, Polio, Tetanus, Hepatitis B, Measles, Rubella, Pneumonia and Meningitis caused by HaemophilusInfluenzae B.
• Mission Indradhanush and Intensified Mission Indradhanush was launched to immunize children who are either unvaccinated or partially vaccinated, i.e., those that have not been covered during the rounds of routine immunization for various reasons.
• LaQshya a Labour Room quality improvement programme is implemented in over 2100 health facilities across the country including medical colleges.
• Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyan (PMSMA) is implemented to provide fixed-day assured, comprehensive and quality antenatal care universally to all pregnant women on the 9^th of every month.
• Universal screening of pregnant women including anaemic pregnant women is carried out at all public health facilities and 180 iron & folic acid (IFA) tablets are given in the antenatal and 180 IFA tablets are given in the post-natal period to all pregnant women. Double doses tablets are given as a part of treatment regimen to those found to be clinically anaemic
• Name based tracking of mothers and children till two years of age (Mother and Child Tracking System) is done to ensure complete antenatal, intranatal, postnatal care and complete immunization as per schedule.
• Rashtriya Bal SwasthyaKaryakram (RBSK) for health screening, early detection of birth defects, diseases, deficiencies, development delays and early intervention services has been operationalized to provide comprehensive care to all the children in the age group of 0-18 years in the community.
• Iron and folic acid (IFA) supplementation for the prevention of anemia among the vulnerable age groups, home visits by ASHAs to promote exclusive breast feeding and promote use of ORS and Zinc for management of diarrhoea in children under Intensified Diarrhoea Control Fortnight (IDCF), administration of de-worming tablets to all the children in the age group of 1-19 years during National De-worming Day (February and August) are carried out.
• Health and nutrition education through Information, Education &Communication (IEC) and Behavior Change Communication (BCC) to promote healthy practices and create awareness to generate demand and improve service uptake.

8 . Facts for Prelims

MSP and FRP

• Government announces Minimum Support Prices (MSPs) for 22 mandated crops and fair and remunerative price (FRP) for sugarcane on the basis of recommendations of the Commission for Agricultural Costs & Prices (CACP), after considering the views of State Governments and Central Ministries/Departments concerned and other relevant factors.