PIB Analysis for UPSC CSE
Topics Covered
- UNIDO and National Institute of Solar Energy
- Lalit Kala Academy
- Facts for Prelims : Mt Elbrus
1 . United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and National Institute of Solar Energy
Context : An agreement was signed today between the National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE) and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) to initiate a skill development programme for different levels of beneficiaries in the solar thermal energy sector.
About the Release
- NISE and UNIDO will engage national and international experts to bring the best practices by developing specialized training material.
- The agreement is part of the ongoing MNRE-GEF-UNIDO project implemented jointly by UNIDO and to support capacity building and skill development of technical manpower in the Concentrated Solar Thermal Energy Technologies (CST) which are being used to replace conventional fossil fuels e.g. coal, diesel, furnace oil etc. and save costs and emissions in the industrial process heat applications.
About UNIDO
- UNIDO is the specialized agency of the United Nations that promotes industrial development for poverty reduction, inclusive globalization and environmental sustainability.
- The mission of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), as described in the Lima Declaration adopted at the fifteenth session of the UNIDO General Conference in 2013, is to promote and accelerate inclusive and sustainable industrial development (ISID) in Member States.
- Accordingly, the Organization’s programmatic focus is structured, as detailed in the Organization’s Medium-Term Programme Framework 2018-2021, in four strategic priorities:
- Creating shared prosperity
- Advancing economic competitiveness
- Safeguarding the environment
- Strengthening knowledge and institutions
- UNIDO’s four enabling functions:
- Technical cooperation
- Analytical and research functions and policy advisory services
- Normative functions and standards and quality-related activities
- Convening and partnerships for knowledge transfer, networking and industrial cooperation.
About National Institute of Solar Energy
- National Institute of Solar Energy(NISE), an autonomous institution of Ministry of New and Renewable (MNRE), is the apex National R&D institution in the field Solar Energy.
- The Government of India has converted 25 year old Solar Energy Centre (SEC) under MNRE to an autonomous institution in September, 2013 to assist the Ministry in implementing the National Solar Mission and to coordinate research, technology and other related works.
- The institute is involved in demonstration, standardization, interactive research, training and testing solar technologies and systems. It is an effective interface between the Government and institutions, industry & user organizations for development, promotion and widespread utilization of solar energy in the country.
2. Lalit Kala Academy
About Lalit Kala Academy
- The Lalit Kala Akademi was inaugurated in New Delhi in 1954, by the then Minister for Education, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad.
- The Lalit Kala Akademi or National Academy of Art is India’s national academy of fine arts. It is an autonomous organisation, established in New Delhi in 1954 by Government of India to promote and propagate understanding of Indian art, in and outside the country.
- The LKA was the principal establishment to direct its focus on activities in the field of visual arts.
- It is funded by the Union Ministry of Culture.
3 . Facts for Prelims
- Mt Elbrus – It is a dormant volcano in the Caucasus Mountains in Southern Russia, near the border with Georgia. It could be considered the highest mountain in Europe, notwithstanding that the Caucasus mountains are at the intersection of Europe and Asia, and it is the tenth most prominent peak in the world