The Department of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances (DARPG) and Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India, in association with the State Government of Jammu & Kashmir will organize the 25th National Conference on e-Governance (NCeG) on 26th – 27th November, 2022 in Katra, Jammu & Kashmir.

Theme : The theme of this Conference is “Bringing Citizens, Industry and Government closer”.

 

The Conference will be inaugurated by the Chief Guest Dr. Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge), Ministry of Science and Technology, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office, Minister of State of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Department of Atomic Energy and Department of Space, Government of India.

 

26th November is celebrated as the Constitution Day to commemorate the adoption of the Constitution of India. As part of the celebrations Union Minister, Dr. Jitendra Singh will administer reading of the Preamble to the Constitution with all participants on 26th November, 2022 in the Inaugural Session of the 25th NCeG.

 

The National Awards for e-Governance (NAeG) will be presented under 5 categories of the NAeG Scheme - 2022 to 18 e-Governance initiatives at Central, State and District levels, Academic & Research Institutions and Public Sector Undertaking. This includes 9 Gold and 9 Silver Awards..

Source : PIB

The Ministry of Ayush has established the Ayurveda Academic Chair at Western Sydney University’s NICM Health Research Institute for a period of three years.

The Ministry has selected All India Institute of Ayurveda, New Delhi’s Associate Professor Dr. Rajagopala S. for the post of Academic Chair in Ayurvedic Science at Western Sydney University.

Aim : To strengthen India’s collaborations in promoting academic and collaborative research activities in Australia...

Source : AIR

The Tamil Nadu government Tuesday(22nd Nov 2022) issued a notification declaring the Arittapatti village near Melur in Madurai district as a biodiversity heritage site under Section 37 of the Biological Diversity Act, 2002.

 

The site is situated in an area of 193.21 hectare and is the first Biodiversity Heritage Site (BHS) to be notified in the state.

 

According to a statement, the Arittapatti village is surrounded by a chain of seven barren granite hillocks that act as a watershed and support close to 72 lakes, 200 natural spring pools and three check dams. The Anaikondan lake built during the reign of the Pandiyas in the 16th century is one among them.

 

The village has a rich biological and historical significance with the presence of around 250 bird species, including three flagship raptor species – Laggar Falcon (Falco jugger), Shaheen Falcon (Falco peregrinus) and Bonelli’s Eagle (Aquila fasciata) and wildlife such as Indian Pangolin (Manis crassicaudata), Python (Python molurus) and Slender Loris (Loris spp).

 

The site also features various megalithic structures, Tamil Brahmi Inscriptions, Jain Beds and 2200-year-old rock-cut temples adding to its historical value..

Source : Indian Express

The three-day apex-level regional strategic dialogue of the Indian Navy, the “Indo-Pacific Regional Dialogue 2022” (IPRD-2022) began in New Delhi on Wednesday, 23 November 2022.  

 

The IPRD is an annual international conference that seeks to foster exchange of ideas and promote deliberations on maritime issues relevant to the Indo-Pacific which, for India, stretches over a vast, predominantly maritime expanse from the eastern shore of Africa to the western shore of the Americas. 

 

The inaugural session of the event kicked off with Admiral Karambir Singh (retd), the incumbent Chairman of the National Maritime Foundation, and former Chief of the Naval Staff, welcoming all present and highlighting the importance of the Indo-Pacific in the prevailing geopolitical scenario, focusing specially upon India’s maritime policy encapsulated by the acronym SAGAR (Security And Growth for All in the Region) and ythe first-order specificity provided to SAGAR by the Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative (IPOI), which had been enunciated by the Honourable Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, on 14 November 2019 when he addressed the 14th East Asia Summit in Bangkok..

Source : PIB

The 10th Indian Film Festival in Busan was held from Nov 18-20, 2022 in South Korea. The festival screened selected award winning, critically acclaimed Hindi and popular regional films with Korean sub-titles at Busan Cinema Centre.

The festival was organized by the Swami Vivekananda Cultural Centre, Embassy of India Seoul in association with Busan Cinema Center, the India Centre at Busan University of Foreign Studies, and Hannarae Foundation for Culture, Hongbeop Temple, Busan.

 

The festival began with the opening ceremony on 18th November. Hindi movie Padmavat was the first to be screened.

Total Six films were screened over a period of three days in Busan. These included: Padmavat (Hindi); Anandi Gopal (Marathi); Asuran (Tamil); Natyam (Telugu); House Owner (Tamil); and Shot Boot-3 (Tamil).

Organised by the Swami Vivekananda Cultural Centre, Embassy of India Seoul, the Film Festival offered diverse, high-quality films and a great opportunity to see the India story through the lenses of Indian films and showcases India’s vibrant diversity, progressive and rich history, cultural legacy and social values.

The festival has been supported by the Directorate of Film Festival, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India.

The Film Festival is a part of the ongoing annual flagship cultural programme of Embassy of India, Seoul ‘SARANG– The Festival of India in Republic of Korea’ and also celebrates ‘Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav’ commemorating 75 years of India’s independence.

 

A series of screening organized in partnership with local Korean host institutions has also been scheduled in other cities across Republic of Korea including Gwangju on 24th November and in Seoul, Incheon and Suncheon in December..

Source : AIR

Indian Institute of Technology, IIT Guwahati Director "T.G. Sitharam" has been appointed as the new chairperson for the All India Institute for Technical Education(AICTE). IIT Guwahati Director has been appointed by the Ministry of Education for a period of three years.

 

* Sitharam would be taking over the office from University Grants Commission, UGC Chairman M Jagadesh Kumar, who is currently serving as the interim chairperson for AICTE, following Anil Sahasrabuddhe's retirement.

 

* “All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) Act, 1987, the Central Government hereby appoints, Prof. T.G. Sitharam, Director, Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati, as Chairman, AICTE in Level-l7 of the pay Matrix, on deputation basis, for a period of three years we.f. the date of assumption of charge, or till attaining the age of 65 years or until further orders, whichever is earliest,” states the official notice issued by the Ministry.

 

* The Ministry had earlier appointed UGC Chairman M Jagadesh Kumar as the interim chairperson for AICTE has former chairman Anil Sahasrabuddhe would turn 65 this year, which would mark the start of his retirement.

 

* Professor TG Sitharam was the Chairman of the Board of Governors at IIT Guwahati during 2019-2020. He is also a member of the Science and Engineering Research Board, SERB at the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India.

 

* Currently, he has been serving as the director of IIT Guwahati since 2019. He is also a Senior Professor in the Department of Civil Engineering at IISc Bangalore and served there for more than 27 years..

Source : Times now News

Uttar Pradesh chief minister "Yogi Adityanath" inaugurated the  United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization(UNESCO)-India-Africa Hackathon 2022 at the Gautam Buddha University in Greater Noida on 22 November 2022.

 

The Hackathon has been organized by the Union Ministry of Education and students from 22 African countries are participating in the Hackathon.

 

 

* A hackathon, also known as a codefest, is a social coding event that brings computer programmers and other interested people together to improve upon or build a new software.

* In the present Hackathon students will engage themselves in coding for 36 hours non-stop to find technology-based solutions for issues in education, agriculture, health, energy and drinking water, among others.

* They will also try to figure out smart solutions for global issues such as climate change, environmental issues, and renewal energy.

 

* The students participating in the Hackathon have come from countries, including Botswana, Cameroon, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Equatorial Guinea, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mali, Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda and Zimbabwe.

 

* The U.P. CM also invited participating African students to travel to ancient cities like Varanasi, Prayagraj, Ayodhya, and others in the state..

Source : Times of India

 

 

Russia has become India’s biggest fertilizer supplier for the first time. Russian exporters reportedly grabbed a 21% share of the Indian fertilizer market in the first half of the 2022-23 fiscal year, overtaking China, previously India’s largest supplier.

 

* Russian exports reportedly surged 371%, to a record 2.15 million tons from April to October. In monetary terms, India’s imports over this period increased by 765%, to $1.6 billion. Russia’s share of Indian fertilizer imports was hovering around 6% during the last fiscal year, while China’s stood at 24%. 

 

* In the first half of 2022-23, China’s exports to India halved to 1.78 million tons amid growing Russian supplies.

 

* Global prices for fertilizers jumped in March after the US, the EU and allied states introduced sanctions against fertilizer supplies from Russia and Belarus. While Western countries have since backtracked on the ban, Russia has found new markets, mostly in Asia, for its exports.

 

* Combined, Russia and Belarus accounted for more than 40% of global exports of potash last year. Russia accounted for about 22% of global exports of ammonia, 14% of the world’s urea exports and about 14% of monoammonium phosphate (MAP) – all key kinds of fertilizers.

 

India's Import Of Fertilizers : In June, India secured di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) from Russia at $920-925 per tonne on a cost and freight basis (CFR), when other Asian buyers were paying more than $1,000.

 

* The surge in Russian supplies halved China’s exports to India to 1.78 million tonnes in the first half of 2022-23.

 

* Exports from other destinations such as Jordan, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates also fell. In the 2021/22 financial year Russia’s share in Indian imports was around 6%, while China cornered 24%.

* Russia’s market share jumped to 21% in the first half of 2022/23, surpassing China as the biggest supplier to India.

 

* Global prices could have rallied more had India also moved away from Russia to other suppliers such as China and Morocco, which have limited supplies for exports, he said.

 

* India’s total fertilizer imports in the first half of 2022-23 fell 2.4% from a year ago to 10.27 million tonnes, although in value terms imports during the period surged 59% to $7.4 billion..

Source : Times of India

Former India winger "Babu Mani", who was an integral part of the national team in the 1980s and played with authority for the city’s all three big clubs, passed away at a city hospital on Saturday(19th Nov 2022). He was 59 and is survived by wife and son.

 

* Mani had been suffering from liver-related problems for long. According to family sources, he breathed his last at around 7.20 pm on Saturday(19th Nov 2022).

 

* “We knew that he was not keeping well. But his death came as a shock. We had been good friends on and off the field since our playing days,” said Aloke Mukherjee, former India defender and his teammate at club and national teams.

 

* Having joined Mohammedan Sporting in 1982, Mani shifted his base after two seasons to Mohun Bagan, where his true calling as a winger came to the fore and he scripted his most successful chapter in his playing career.

* He went on to captain them in 1987 and played a key role in helping Bagan win innumerable trophies, including four Federation Cup titles. 

 

* Mani — who was known for his extraordinary pace down the flanks — also played for East Bengal in 1990 and 1991. 

 

* A two-time SAF Games winner for India, he also helped Bengal lift the Santosh Trophy twice in 1986 and 1988..

Source : Times of India

The ministerial panel formed for casinos, race courses and online gaming under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime is likely to reiterate its earlier stance of a uniform 28 per cent tax rate for the three categories, irrespective of whether it is a game of skill or chance.

 

* The final call about the valuation mechanism, however, will be taken by the GST Council as the GoM members have differed on whether it should be levied on the platform fee or the entire amount paid by the participants.

 

* The panel, which met on Tuesday (22nd November 2022), is likely to fall back on the initial report presented before the GST Council in June. This would imply a hike in tax rates for online gaming, as online gaming platforms currently pay 18 per cent GST on platform fee alone, and not on the full value including prize money.

 

* The online gaming industry grew exponentially during the Covid-19 pandemic. Online gaming currently contributes more than Rs 2,200 crore of GST, as per a recent study by EY and Assocham. As per a KPMG report, the online gaming sector would grow to Rs 29,000 crore by 2024-25 from Rs 13,600 crore in 2020-21.

 

 

Most states in the GoM are learnt to have converged in favour of a 28 per cent tax rate, but they differ on the valuation mechanism. While West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh support taxing the total value, Goa has recommended a tax on the entry point for casinos..

Source : Indian Express