Daily Current Affairs 13/07/2021
India Industrial Land Bank (IILB)
Why in News
- The India Industrial Land Bank (IILB), a GIS-based portal, has seen a 30% increase in page views each month since April 2021.
Key Points
About India Industrial Land Bank (IILB):
- The Department for Promotion of Industry & Internal Trade (DPIIT) has developed IILB.
- It is a one-stop repository of all industrial infrastructure-related information – connectivity, infra, natural resources & terrain, plot-level information on vacant plots, line of activity, and contact details.
- Currently, the IILB has approximately 4000 industrial parks mapped across an area of 5.5 lakh hectare of land, serving as a decision support system for investors scouting for land remotely.
- The system has been integrated with industry-based GIS systems of 17 states to have details on the portal updated on a real-time basis and will achieve pan-India integration by December 2021.
- Regarding country wise visitors, after India, the US has the maximum number of visitors followed by Australia, UK, Singapore, UAE, Germany, and Indonesia.
About Geographic Information System (GIS):
- It is a computer system for capturing, storing, checking, analyzing and displaying data related to positions on Earth’s surface.
- It can show many different kinds of data on one map, such as streets, buildings, and vegetation.
- It can use any information that includes location.
- The location can be expressed in many different ways, such as latitude and longitude, address, or ZIP code.
Source: PIB
1st India-UK Financial Markets Dialogue
Why in News
- Recently, India and the United Kingdom (UK) held the inaugural meeting of the India-UK Financial Markets Dialogue (‘the Dialogue’).
Key Points
About the India-UK Financial Markets Dialogue:
- The Dialogue was led by senior officials from the Indian Ministry of Finance and HM Treasury.
- The Dialogue began with a government to government discussion, focused on four themes:
(1) GIFT (Gujarat International Finance Tec-City) City, India’s flagship international financial centre
(2) Banking and payments
(3) Insurance
(4) Capital markets
- At the meeting, Indian and UK participants discussed progress on the UK-India GIFT City Strategic Partnership.
- Both sides agreed on areas for further collaboration, including sustainable finance and FinTech, with the aim of supporting increased UK industry presence in the centre.
- The Dialogue was established at the 10th Economic and Financial Dialogue (EFD) in October 2020 to deepen bilateral ties in the financial sector.
- Financial Cooperation is one of the key pillars of the 2030 Roadmap adopted by the two countries during the recent meeting of the two Prime Ministers and the India-UK Financial Market Dialogue is one of the key elements of this Financial Cooperation.
About India-UK trade:
- India-UK trade has more than doubled since the first EFD in 2007, with bilateral investment supporting over half a million jobs across both countries.
- India-UK economic ties are important as together, they are two of the world’s top seven economies with a combined Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of over $5 trillion.
Source: PIB
STI-led BRICS Innovation Cooperation Action Plan
Why in News
- All BRICS countries have agreed to the STI-led BRICS Innovation Cooperation Action Plan (2021-24) proposed by India during the 12thMeeting of BRICS S&T Steering Committee.
- Department of Science and Technology (DST), India, hosted the 12thMeeting of BRICS S&T Steering Committee.
Key Points
About STI-led BRICS Innovation Cooperation Action Plan:
- Indian had proposed the plan to facilitate sharing of experiences of each other’s innovation ecosystem and networking of innovators and entrepreneurs.
- The Details of the Action Plan would be worked out by BRICS Science, Technology Innovation Entrepreneurship Partnership (STIEP) Working Group.
Thematic Areas:
- The BRICS officials discussed in detail about the thematic areas for this year’s call for proposals at the meeting and unanimously agreed for collaboration in ten thematic areas.
- All countries agreed to thematic areas proposed by India for the 6thedition of BRICS Young Scientist Conclave, which will be held in Bangalore during 13-16 September 2021.
- The 3 themes to be discussed at the conclave include Healthcare, Energy Solutions, Cyber-Physical System, and their applications.
Note: The 13th BRICS Summit will be held under India’s Chairship in 2021, and it will be the third time India will host the BRICS Summit after 2012 and 2016.
- The theme for India’s Chairship for 2021 would be ‘BRICS @ 15: Intra-BRICS Cooperation for Continuity, Consolidation, and Consensus’.
Facts about BRICS:
- Formation: 2009
- Countries: Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa
BRICS is an important grouping bringing together the major emerging economies from the world, comprising:
- 41% of world population with 3.14 billion people
- Total combined area of 29.3% of the total land surface of the world
- 24% of global GDP
- 16% of world trade
Note: The above data is based on World Bank data (2019).
Source: PIB
SPARSH [System for Pension Administration (Raksha)]
Why in News
- The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has implemented a web-based system SPARSH [System for Pension Administration (Raksha)].
Key Points
About SPARSH:
- It is an integrated system for automation of sanction and disbursement of defence pension.
- This web-based system processes pension claims and credits pension directly into the bank accounts of defence pensioners without relying on any external intermediary.
- It envisages establishment of Service Centres to provide last mile connectivity to pensioners who may be unable to directly access the SPARSH portal for any reason.
- In addition to several offices of the Defence Accounts Department, which are already functioning as Service Centres for pensioners, the two largest banks dealing with defence pensioners – State Bank of India (SBI) and Punjab National Bank (PNB) – have been co-opted as Service Centres.
Other Initiative:
- One Rank One Pension (OROP) scheme: OROP implies that uniform pension be paid to the Armed Forces Personnel retiring in the same rank with the same length of service regardless of their date of retirement.
Source: PIB
Indian Army names Military Firing Range after Vidya Balan
Why in News
- In recognition of Vidya Balan's phenomenal contribution to Indian cinema, the Indian Army has recently named one of its firing ranges after the actress.
- The Vidya Balan Firing Range is located in Gulmarg, Kashmir.
Key Points
- Vidya Balan is an Indian actress in Hindi cinema.
- She is the recipient of several awards, including a National Film Award and six Filmfare Awards.
- She was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India in 2014.
Note: Vidya Balan was recently invited to join the board of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, the governing body behind the Oscars.
Source: Economics Times
Noted Ayurvedic physician, Dr. PK Warrier passes away
- PK Warrier, Ayurvedic physician, was the managing trustee of the Kottakkal Arya Vaidya Sala - the famous Ayurveda treatment centre and producer of high-quality Ayurveda medicines.
- Warrier was honoured with the Padma Shri in 1999 and the Padma Bhushan in 2010.
Source: PIB
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