Current Affairs 2 April 2022

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NATIONAL AFFAIRS

20th Edition of India – France Naval Exercise VARUNA – 2022India and France are conducting the 20th edition of the Bilateral Naval Exercise “VARUNA – 2022” in the Arabian Sea from March 30, 2022, to April 03, 2022.

• Bilateral naval exercises between India’s and France’s navies began in 1993. In 2001, the exercise was given the name “Varuna,” and it has since become an essential part of the two countries’ strategic bilateral cooperation.

The 19th edition of the Indian and French Navy bilateral exercise ‘VARUNA-2021’ was conducted from 25-27 April 2021 in the Arabian Sea.
Highlights:
i.Various units from both navies participated in the exercise, including ships, submarines, maritime patrol aircraft, fighter aircraft, and helicopters.
ii.These units will work to improve and enhance their maritime operational skills, develop interoperability to conduct maritime security operations, and demonstrate their commitment to the region’s peace, security, and stability as an integrated force.
iii. The VARUNA series of exercises provides both the navies’ opportunities to learn from each other’s best practices. The exercise sets the stage for operational level understanding between the two navies, highlighting both nations’ shared commitment to the global maritime commons’ security, safety, and freedom.
About Indian Navy:
Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS) – Admiral R Hari Kumar, PVSM, AVSM, VSM, ADC
Integrated Headquarters of Ministry of Defence (Navy) – New Delhi, Delhi
About France:
President – Emmanuel Macron
Capital – Paris
Currency – Euro (EUR), CFP (Central Pacific franc) franc (XPF)  

PM Modi Virtually Addressed the 5th BIMSTEC Summit; India to Provide USD 1 Million to Increase Operational Budget

On 30th March 2022, Narendra Modi, Prime Minister(PM) of India participated in and addressed the 5th BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) Summit hosted in virtual mode by Sri Lanka, the chair of BIMSTEC from September 2018 to March 2022.

• 2022 marks the 25th year of the establishment of BIMSTEC. 

The theme of the 5th BIMSTEC Summit was “Towards a Resilient Region, Prosperous Economies, Healthy People”. 
India to provide USD 1 million to BIMSTEC to increase its operational budget
While addressing the 5th BIMSTEC Summit, PM Modi announced that India will provide USD 1 million to the BIMSTEC secretariat to increase its operational budget. 
The announcement was made in the backdrop of making early progress on the proposal of the BIMSTEC Free Trade Agreement (FTA) to enhance mutual business.
About Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC):
Established in 1997
Members–  7 members (India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, and Thailand)
>> Read Full News

Bharat Dynamics Ltd signs MoU on the field of Defence with Tawazun Economic Council, UAE

On March 31, 2022, Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) and Tawazun Economic Council (TEC), United Arab Emirates (UAE), exchanged a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to explore new business opportunities in various areas of mutual interest in the field of defence. 
i.The MoU was exchanged in the presence of BDL Chief Managing Director Commodore Siddharth Mishra (Retd.) and chief officer of the TEC Zayed Saeed Zaal Hadher Almeraikhi.
ii.Both BDL and TEC will work together to identify different business opportunities and assess the viability and feasibility of jointly implementing them in the field of co-development, co-production, establishment of joint ventures, setting up of maintenance, repair, refurbishment, life extension facilities, supply of military products as well as licensed production. 
iii.They will also explore the export possibility of the products to reach out to global demands.
About Tawazun Economic Council:
i.The Tawazun Economic Council is the defence and security acquisition authority for the UAE armed forces and also manages the procurement and contracts covering administrative, technical, contractual and functional aspects.
Chief Officer – Zayed Saeed Zaal Hadher Almeraikhi
About Bharat Dynamics Limited:
Chairman and Managing Director – Commodore Siddharth Mishra (Retd.)
Headquarters – Hyderabad, India

1st of-its-kind Mumbai International Cruise Terminal To Be Commissioned by July 2024

The 1st of its kind, Mumbai International Cruise Terminal is expected to be commissioned by July 2024. It is the sea cruise terminal which will be coming up at BPX-Indira Dock in Maharashtra.

• It was announced by the Mumbai Port Authority  on the occasion of completion of 7 years of Sagarmala project.

About Mumbai International Cruise Terminal:
i.It is built on an area of 4.15 lakh sq ft, the first-of-its-kind iconic sea cruise terminal in India, two cruise ships will be able to berth at a time on the dock .The terminal will have 22 elevators, 10 escalators and multi-storied car parking for 300 cars.

• The total project cost of Rs. 495 crore, however  Rs. 303 crores will be incurred by Mumbai Port Authority and the remaining by private operators. 

ii.The terminal will have a capacity of handling 200 ships and 1 million passengers per annum.
About  other ongoing project:
i.Kanhoji Angre Lighthouse Development-Kanhoji Angre Island is being developed under the Lighthouse Tourism scheme. Rs. 18 crore project to develop the Kanhoji Angre Lighthouse on the Khanderi island off the coast of Alibaug near Mumbai is also underway and will be completed by March 2023.

• It aimed to enhance the scope of cruise tourism and attract international passengers.
• The project is fully funded by Sagarmala and Fisheries Department, to cater to increased demand from the fishermen community.

ii.Mallet Bunder Expansion- The Mallet Bundar harbor normally handles more than 700 trawlers per day and around 900 trawlers on peak days. 

• This may increase to 1,300. The authority is planning to develop a fishing harbor to decrease the congestion under the Sagarmala Project.

About Sagarmala Project:
i.It is an initiative of the Ministry of Shipping, to boost India’s logistics sector performance by unlocking the full potential of India’s coastline and waterways. 
ii.It aims to reduce logistics costs for EXIM (Export Import Bank) &  domestic cargo leading to overall cost savings of Rs. 35,000 to 40,000 cr. per annum.

• Under the project, 194 projects worth Rs. 99,000 crore have been completed and 217 projects worth Rs. 2.12 lakh crore are under implementation.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

9th India – Seychelles Joint Training Exercise LAMITIYE-2022 concludes at Seychelles

LAMITIYE-2022, 9th edition of India – Seychelles Joint Training 10 day long exercise was conducted between Indian Army and Seychelles Defence Forces (SDF) at Seychelles Defense Academy, Seychelles from 22nd March 2022 to 31st March 2022.
i.LAMITYE-2022, training exercise focused on broadening the aim of cooperation towards co-existence in the Indo-Pacific region. 
ii.The theme for the Joint Training Exercise were both relevant and contemporary for planning & execution of operations based on scenarios in a Semi-Urban environment.
iii.The 10 day long exercise features a range of complex military drills, demonstrations and discussions which enhance the level of defence co-operation between Indian Army and Seychelles Defence Forces (SDF) and will further manifest in enhancing the bilateral relations between the two nations. 
iv.The exercise saw the participation of an Infantry Platoon strength from both the Indian Army (comprising troops from the 2/3 GORKHA RIFLES group – PIRKANTHI Battalion) and the Seychelles Defence Forces (SDF).
About Indian Army:
Chief of Army Staff – General Manoj Mukund Naravane
Headquarters – New Delhi
About Seychelles:
Capital – Victoria
President – Wavel Ramkalawan
Currency – Seychellois rupee

Minamata Convention on Mercury: Indonesia & UN sought Support

The Government of Indonesia and the United Nations (UN) is looking for support and commitment from parties to the Minamata Convention for a Bali Declaration on combating Global Illegal Trade of Mercury.

• The issue was discussed at the second round of the fourth Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Minamata Convention on Mercury (COP-4.2). The meeting was held in-person from March 21-25 in Bali, with online participation.

Key Points:

i.The Minamata Convention on Mercury is the most recent global agreement on environment and health. It was adopted in 2013 and entered into force August 16, 2017.
ii.It was the first global environmental agreement negotiated in the 21st millennium to address public health issues due to mercury.

Highlights of EAM S. Jaishankar visit to Maldives and Sri Lankai.On March 26-30, 2022, Union Minister Subrahmanyam (S.) Jaishankar, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) visited Maldives and Sri Lanka which are India’s key maritime neighbours in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), and also a part of a Indian initiatives of Security and Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR), and Neighbourhood First.
ii.His visit follows the invitation of Minister of Foreign Affairs of Maldives, Abdulla Shahid, and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Sri Lanka, Prof. Gamini Lakshman Peiris.
iii.He was on a two-day visit to Addu city in Maldives on March 26-27. The visit saw the signing of pacts on health and education along with inauguration of National College for Policing & Law Enforcement (NCPLE) at Addu City to  help the Maldives Police Service (MPS) to train its officers and enhance its crime-fighting capacities.
iv.The Indian EAM visited Sri Lanka on March 28-30 for interactions, bilateral meeting and to participate in the 18th BIMSTEC Ministerial Meeting on March 29 which was hosted by Sri Lanka in Colombo. 
v.India-Sri Lanka have signed a MoU for the Bengaluru (Karnataka)-based Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) to set up a state of the art Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre (MRCC) at the headquarters of the Sri Lankan Navy in Colombo, with a sub-centre in Hambantota. It will be established with a grant of $6 million from India.
About Maldives:
Capital– Male
Currency– Maldivian Rufiyaa
About Sri Lanka:
Capital– Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte (legislative capital), Colombo (executive and judicial capital)
Currency– Sri Lankan Rupee
>> Read Full News

BANKING & FINANCE

RBI extends Deadline for Implementation of Cassette Swap in ATMs till Mar 31, 2023On March 31, 2022, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for the second time extended the timeline for the implementation of cassette swap in all ATMs (Automated teller machine) by 1 year till March 31, 2023.

• This extension is due to the requests received by RBI from various banks and Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) citing various constraints in meeting the timeline. 

Background:
In July 2021, RBI had advised banks to use lockable cassettes in their ATMs which shall be swapped at the time of cash replenishment. It was to be implemented in a phased manner covering at least one third ATMs operated by the banks every year, such that all ATMs achieve cassette swap by March 31, 2021. The RBI later extended the deadline to March 31, 2022.

• This is aimed at mitigating risks involved in open cash replenishment/ top-up. 

Key Points:
i.As per estimates, each ATM will require three sets of five cassettes-one set in the ATM, one in transit and another at branch/ cash-in-transit (CIT) company (ready for loading next day). 

• The cost of each cassette is in the range of Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000. 

ii.As of December-end 2021, there were 2.41 lakh ATMs in the country. Of these, 2.11 lakh were bank-owned ATMs and 30,000 were owned by White Label ATM Operators.
What is a cassette?
The currency notes inside the ATM are stacked in boxes called ‘cassettes’. Each cassette is loaded with one denomination. 

JICA Signs Loan Agreements with India to Provide Japanese ODA Loans of 312.258 billion Yen for 7 Projects

On 31st March 2022, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) signed Japanese ODA (Official development assistance) Loan Agreements with the Government of India in Delhi, to provide Japanese ODA loans of up to a total of 312.258 billion Yen for 7 projects.

• This contributes to strengthening the Japan-India partnership and marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations by supporting the climate change response and building a resilient society.
• The loan agreements were signed between Rajat Kumar Mishra, Additional Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Government of India(GoI) and Saito Mitsunori, Chief Representative of JICA India.

The 7 projects are, 

• The Dedicated Freight Corridor Project (Phase 2) (III)
• Chennai Metro Project (Phase 2)(II)
• Bengaluru Water Supply and Sewerage Project (Phase 3) (II)
• North East Road Network Connectivity Improvement Project (Phase 6)
• Tamil Nadu Biodiversity Conservation and Greening Project for Climate Change Response
• Assam Health System Strengthening Project
• Uttarakhand Integrated Horticulture Development Project

About Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA):
President– Kitaoka Shinichi
Headquarters– Tokyo, Japan
Established in 1974
>> Read Full News

ADB & HSBC India Signs USD 100 Million Partial Guarantee Program for MFI  

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and HSBC India (HSBC) have agreed to set up a USD 100 million partial guarantee program to help over 400,000 micro-borrowers and largely women-owned microenterprises across India.

• It is the ADB’s first partnership with HSBC, and under the terms of the agreement, an equivalent of USD 30 million in aggregate financing would be disbursed to three Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) in India by April 2022 to stimulate the partnership.

The partial guarantee mechanism will help the MFIs access funding for on-lending activities, breaking the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and allowing them to expand operations.
Key Points:
i.HSBC will expand its financing to MFIs and nonbank finance enterprises, with the ADB partially guaranteeing the loans.
ii. MFIs have evolved as lifelines for marginalised consumers, such as low-income households and small companies, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

• This programme will strengthen microfinance as a tool for boosting economic resilience, reducing gender disparities, and assisting in the revival of India’s economy.

Note: 
Since its inception in 2010, the ADB’s microfinance programme has granted over USD 1.8 billion in loans and helped mobilise USD 881 million in co-financing, benefiting microfinance borrowers, with 98% of them being women.
About Asian Development Bank (ADB):
A multilateral financial institution with a vision to make Asia and the Pacific a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable region while continuing to fight extreme poverty.

• It has 68 members (49 from within Asia and the Pacific & 19 outside). India has been a member since 1966.

President – Masatsugu Asakawa
Established – 1966
Headquarters – Manila, Philippines

Nabet India Ties up with PNB Housing Finance Ltd for a Unique Employment Generation Program for WomenNabet India & PNB (Punjab National Bank) Housing Finance Pvt Ltd partnered to start an initiative for women’s health and wellness.
Key points:
i.Under the partnership agreement, Nabet India will promote livelihood and employment opportunities for women particularly in rural areas and  also promote health and wellness to improve their quality of life.
ii.Nabet India would manufacture sanitary napkins at its own facility and PNB Housing Finance Pvt Ltd would provide machinery support.

• Pehel Foundation, a CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) arm of PNB Housing Finance, is sponsoring the machine equipment.
•  The napkins will be distributed to working women, school/college going girls and villagers in need. 

iii.Nabet India would also start a livelihood scheme to promote health and wellness amongst rural women. It will create employment for the underprivileged communities.
About PNB Housing Finance:
Managing Director & CEO- Hardayal Prasad 
Headquarters- New Delhi ,Delhi
Incorporated in 1988 
Tagline- Ghar Ki Baat

GoI To Borrow Rs. 8.45 Lakh Crore in H1, 60% Of FY23 Estimate
The Government of India (GoI) has decided to secure a fund of Rs. 8.45 lakh crore through borrowing in consultation with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in the first half (H1) or April-September period of Financial Year 2022-23 (FY23).

• It accounts for 60% of the total borrowing planned for FY23, continuing a practice of frontloading debt raising early in the fiscal year when private demand for funds is low.

By this way, the Indian government will expedite its capital spending programme to help fund the revenue gap from the ongoing recovery.
Key Points:
i.According to the FY23 budget, the gross market borrowing through dated securities was pegged at Rs. 14.95 lakh crore.

• The gross market borrowing is expected to be Rs. 14.31 lakh crore considering the switch operations conducted on January 28, 2022. Of that, Rs. 8.45 lakh crore is planned to be borrowed in the first half (H1) of FY23.

ii.The borrowing is scheduled to be completed in 26 weekly tranches of Rs. 32,000 -33,000 crore and will be spread under 2, 5, 7, 10, 14, 30, and 40-year securities and Floating Rate Bonds (FRBs) of various tenors.
iii. Weekly borrowing under Treasury Bills in the first quarter (Q1) of FY23 is expected to be Rs. 33,000 – 34,000 crore with net borrowing of Rs. 2.40 lakh crore.
iv.In addition, the government issued Rs. 2.4 lakh crore to states, exceeding the revised estimates in the budget, and has also provided Rs. 1 lakh crore in capital expenditure loans.
v.The GoI along with RBI would engage with the bond markets as partners through a non-disruptive borrowing plan.

• The government may continue to use the greenshoe option to retain up to Rs. 2,000 crore in additional subscriptions for each of the instruments included in the auction notification.

FinMapp Gets Licence from PFRDA & IRDAI to Sell NPS, Insurance

FinMapp, a Financial services company, has received a licence from Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) under the National Pension Scheme (NPS) and a registration certificate from the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) recognizing it as a corporate agent.

• These licences will enable FinMapp to sell insurance and NPS products to its customers as a verified seller and help expand its customers base. 
• In the upcoming months, FinMapp will launch NPS as an investment tool on its app. 

SEBI Imposes Penalties Worth Rs 25 Lakh on 5 Entities for Non-genuine Trades

Securities and Exchange Board of India(SEBI) has imposed penalties totalling Rs 25 lakh on five entities for indulging in non-genuine trades in the illiquid stock options segment on BSE (formerly Bombay Stock Exchange).

• In 5 separate orders, SEBI has imposed a fine of Rs 5 lakh each on Abhishek Kumar Jain HUF, Ajay Kumar Baid, Sumit Shankar Dudani, Sumer Chand Jain and Sons and Milestone Viniyog Pvt Ltd.
• The entities violated the provisions of PFUTP (Prohibition of Fraudulent and Unfair Trade Practices) regulations by indulging in such trades in stock options. 

APPOINTMENTS & RESIGNATIONS    

CEEW CEO Arunabha Ghosh appointed to High Level Expert Group on Net-Zero Emissions Commitments

United Nations (UN) Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres appointed Arunabha Ghosh (India), CEO of Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), to an High-Level Expert Group on the Net-Zero Emissions Commitments of Non-State Entities. Dr Ghosh will be among three Asians (and the only South Asian) serving on the expert group.
High-Level Expert Group on the Net-Zero Emissions Commitments of Non-State Entities
Objective-To develop stronger and clearer standards for net-zero emissions pledges by non-state entities including businesses, investors, cities and regions and speed up their implementation.
i.The group was launched by  Antonio Guterres on 31 March 2022.

• It will be chaired by former Canadian Minister of Environment and Climate Change, Catherine McKenna.
•  The 16-member expert group comprises independent experts, drawn from different countries. 

The Expert Group’s recommendations for higher ambition and environmental integrity will address four areas:

• Current standards and definitions for setting net-zero targets;

• Credibility criteria used to assess the objectives, measurement and reporting of netzero pledges;

• Processes for verification and accounting of progress towards net-zero commitments and reported decarbonization plans and

• A roadmap to translate standards and criteria into international and national level regulations.

About Arunabha Ghosh:
i.He is the CEO (Chief Executive Officer) of the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), a climate and energy think tank.
ii.He has been appointed to the Government of India’s G20 Finance Track Advisory Group for India’s G20 Presidency in 2023.

• In 2021, he was appointed as Co-Chair of the T20 Task Force on climate and energy for Indonesia’s G20 2022 Presidency. 

About United Nation (UN):
Founded- 1945
Headquarters- New York, United States
Awards- Nobel Peace Prize(2001), Academy Award for Best Documentary (Short Subject) (1948)

Anthony Heredia appointed as MD & CEO of Mahindra Manulife Investment Management Private Limited

Anthony Heredia was appointed as the Managing Director(MD) and Chief Executive Officer(CEO) of Mahindra Manulife Investment Management Private Limited (Formerly known as Mahindra Asset Management Company Private Limited) with effect from 1st April 2022. He will succeed Ashutosh Bishnoi, who retired on 31st March 2022.

• The appointment was announced by Mahindra Manulife Mutual Fund/Mahindra Manulife Investment Management Pvt. Ltd., a joint venture of Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services Limited (“Mahindra Finance”) and Manulife Investment Management (Singapore) Private Limited.

About Anthony Heredia:
i.Anthony Heredia has served as the CEO of BOI AXA Investment Managers Private Limited from August 2021 to February 2022. 
ii.He has previously worked with Morgan Stanley Investment Management as Managing Director; HSBC Asset Management India as Senior Vice President and Birla Sun Life Asset Management as Associate Vice President – Business Development.
He has also served as the Director on the Board of the Association of Mutual Funds of India (AMFI).
Mahindra Manulife Investment Management:
i.Mahindra Manulife Investment Management, formerly known as Mahindra Asset Management Company, acts as the investment manager of Mahindra Manulife Mutual Fund which was earlier known as Mahindra Mutual Fund.
ii.In April 2020, Mahindra Finance divested a 49% stake in its wholly-owned subsidiary, Mahindra Manulife Investment Management to Manulife Investment Management of Singapore to form the 51:49 joint venture.
About Mahindra Manulife Investment Management Private Limited:
MD& CEO– Anthony Heredia
Headquarters– Mumbai, Maharashtra

World Largest Express Transportation Company ‘FedEx’ Appoints Raj Subramaniam As Its CEO

The Indian-American, Raj Subramaniam has been appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of world’s largest express transportation company ‘FedEx’ by replacing Frederick W Smith. Joined FedEx in 1991 in marketing roles, Raj, later appointed as Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing and Communications Officer. Also, Raj was elected to the FedEx Board of Directors in 2020 and served as the President and CEO of FedEx Express (subsidiary) Canada. 

• Frederick W Smith, the founder of FedEx in 1971 will remain as Chairman.     

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY

CJI, NV Ramana Launches ‘FASTER’ Program for Transmitting Judicial OrdersOn 31st March 2022, the Chief Justice of India (CJI), NV Ramana virtually launched the ‘Fast and Secured Transmission of Electronic Records’ (FASTER) programme.

It is  a digital platform to communicate interim orders, stay orders, bail orders etc., of the Supreme Court to authorities concerned through a secured electronic communication channel.

• It allows court orders to be transmitted in a quick and secure electronic format.

Objective- 
 To  eliminate the situation in which inmates’ release is delayed even after the Supreme Court grants them bail. 
About ‘Fast and Secured Transmission of Electronic Records’ (FASTER) programme:
i.The FASTER program was created in response to a news report published in July 2021, regarding prisoner release delays.
ii.It is developed on war footing by the Registry in collaboration with the National Informatics Centre (NIC).
iii.All nodal officers have been connected through a specific Judicial Communication Network (JCN) by creating a secured pathway.
iv.Every proceeding will have digital signatures of authorized Nodal Officers of the Supreme Court as well as institutional digital signatures. 

• Such  directives would be received by all parties affected on time, allowing them to take the necessary actions.

Antennas Of ESA Set To Track ISRO’s Chandrayaan-3 And Aditya-L1 

The European Space Agency’s (ESA) antennas will be in action to track the satellites of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) such as Aditya-L1 (Lagrangian point 1 ) solar observatory and Chandrayaan-3 lunar lander and rover. 

• Launch of Chandrayaan-3 will be India’s third mission to the moon.

Missions Of Aditya-L1 and Chandrayaan-3:

• The mission of Aditya-L1 is to study the sun. 
• The mission of Chandrayaan-3’s Lander is to land its Rover on the surface of the moon.

About The Launch:

• The mission is planned to launch from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota (SDSC SHAR), Andhra Pradesh.
• The satellite is set to launch in the 3rd quarter of 2022.
• Chandrayaan-3 will be India’s first soft lander in the outer celestial.

Role Of European Space Agency’s (ESA)
i.The ESA station supports Aditya-L1 and Chandrayaan-3 from the beginning of launch till the end of mission.
ii.The global deep space communication antennas of ESA will provide support to both missions (Chandrayaan-3 and Aditya-L1) in 

• Every steps of the way
• Tracking the spacecraft
• Pinpointing their locations at crucial stages
• Transmitting commands 
• Receiving telemetry and valuable scientific data.  

iii.The big iron’ 35-metre deep space Estrack antennas of ESA in Australia, Argentina and Spain will support Aditya-L1.
iv.Additional Support antennas 

• The 15-metre antenna of the spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana of ESA.
• The commercial 32-metre deep space antenna of Goonhilly Station in the United Kingdom. 

v.The combined ESA and Goonhilly antennas tracks, telemetry and command (TT&C) support for Aditya-L1, with ISRO’s deep space antennas in India to provide additional communication time. 
vi.Data and telemetry sent back by Aditya-L1 arriving through any of the ground stations will be forwarded to ESA’s European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) mission control centre in Darmstadt, Germany.

•  Later the data will be sent to ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network (ISTRAC) facility for analysis.

About Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO): 
Chairman –  S. Somanath
Establishment – 1969
Headquarters – Bangalore, Karnataka

BOOKS & AUTHORS

Dr Sreeram Chaulia Authored a New Book “Crunch Time: Narendra Modi’s National Security Crises”Social scientists Dr Sreeram Chaulia has authored a new book titled “Crunch Time: Narendra Modi’s National Security Crises”. The book was published by Rupa publications India.
The book was released by Meenakshi Lekhi, Minister of State for External Affairs at the India International Centre in New Delhi, Delhi.

• Ambassador Lakshmi Puri, former diplomat and Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations(UN) was also present during the event. 

About the book:
i.The book highlights the much needed public faith in the state to protect the country from security threats posed by India’s external adversaries.
ii.The book analyses PM Modi’s series of decision making moves during the crises with China and Pakistan. 
About Sreeram Chaulia:
i.He is a professor and dean at the Jindal School of International Affairs of O.P. Jindal Global University, Sonipat.
ii.He is a leading opinion columnist for Indian newspapers- the Economic Times and the Asian Age.
Other Books:

• Trumped: Emerging Powers in a Post-American World
• Modi Doctrine: The Foreign Policy of India’s Prime Minister
• International Organizations and Civilian Protection: Power, Ideas and Humanitarian Aid in Conflict Zones
• Politics of the Global Economic Crisis: Regulation, Responsibility and Radicalism 

STATE NEWS

Haryana Agriculture Minister launches crop insurance portal for ‘Mukhya Mantri Bagwani Bima Yojana’ On 31 March 2022, The Haryana Agriculture Minister J P Dalal launched the portal of ‘Mukhya Mantri Bagwani Bima Yojana’ with an initial corpus of Rs 10 crore for the scheme. Under which the farmers will be compensated for the damage caused to their crops due to adverse weather and natural calamities.
i.The scheme compensates a sum of Rs 30,000 per acre for vegetable and Spices and Rs 40,000 per acre for fruits, which will be compensated to the farmers upon claim via four categories such as  25 percent, 50 percent, 75 percent and 100 percent based on the survey.
ii.The farmers contribution will be only 2.5 percent of the insured amount i.e. Rs 750 per acre for vegetable and Spices and Rs 1000 per acre for fruits.
iii.The Scheme covers 21 crops – 14 vegetables (tomato, onion, potato, cauliflower, peas, carrot, okra, bottle gourd, bitter gourd, brinjal, green chilli, capsicum, cabbage, radish), 2 spices (turmeric, garlic) and 5 fruits (mango, kinnow, berry, guava, lychee).
iv.The scheme will be optional for all those farmers who will get registered under ‘Meri Fasal Mera Byora’ (a web portal through which the problems of the farmers of the state will be resolved). 
v.Monitoring of the scheme, review and resolution of disputes will be done through the state-level and district-level committees constituted under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana. 
About Haryana:
Capital – Chandigarh 
Governor –Bandaru Dattatreya
Chief Minister – Manohar Lal Khattar

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