The Union Minister of Human Resource Development Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ today inaugurated the International Conference titled “Journey of Teacher Education: Local to Global” in New Delhi. The two-day event is being organized by the National Council of Teacher Education (NCTE) as part of silver jubilee celebration of its establishment in 1995.

Forty renowned experts from India and abroad are deliberating upon key areas like the present scenario of teacher education in the Indian context; innovations in teaching practices; integration of information and communications technology in teaching; inclusive education in teaching-learning environment; and internationalization of teacher education. Several policy makers addressed the audiences including Ms. Rina Ray, Secretary, Dept. of School Education & Literacy, MHRD, Govt. of India; Mr. R. Subrahmanyam, Secretary, Dept. of Higher Education, MHRD, Govt. of India; Mr. Yaduvendra Mathur, Special Secretary, NITI Aayog; Dr. Satbir Bedi, Chairperson, NCTE; and Mr. Sanjay Awasthi, Member Secretary, NCTE.

Speaking on the occasion the HRD Minister said that India has traditionally been known for leadership in education and teacher preparation. For thousands of years, ‘Indian Teacher’ was considered as Vishwa Guru (world’s teacher). Achievements of ancient Indian education system are legendary. School Education is the foundation of any progressive nation and teachers are the powerhouse of the society who mold and shape the future of students to become productive citizens of tomorrow and inculcate positive thinking and cultural ethos in them so that they can be an asset to the society, having both vision and a mission.”

Ms. Rina Ray, Secretary, Dept. of School Education & Literacy, MHRD, Govt. of India said “On August 22, 2019, the Ministry of Human Resource Development will be launching the world’s biggest project for teacher training named NISHTHA (National Initiative on School Teachers Head Holistic Advancement). More than 42 lakh teachers will be trained through this mission.

This initiative is in recognition of the fact that India cannot truly progress until and unless the skills of teachers are periodically upgraded. We have also mapped 15 lakh schools across the country on various platforms. In addition, 19,000 teacher training institutes in India have been mapped and put on Google Earth. Users can go online not only to see the geographical location of these institutes around the country, but also check their report card and give their feedback. Today, there are 8.5 million teachers in India, which is more than the population of Finland. We need to take care of our teachers and solve their problems. We need to focus on their welfare.”

Mr. Yaduvendra Mathur, Special Secretary, NITI Aayog said “The mandate of NCTE is very broad in its mission and vision and covers the entire gamut of Teacher Education Programs. Teachers are the pillars of transformation of the society, but it is important to upgrade their skills and ensure that they are trained in the best way. This is only possible in collaboration with teacher education institutions which play a key role in their actual transformation. Efficiency in teacher education is the need of the hour. International collaborations can play a key role in this.”

Dr. Satbir Bedi, Chairperson, NCTE, said “The teacher education system is responsible for preparing teachers for the school system, who would nurture and nourish the future generations. This conference has been organized to bring our school education system in alignment with global trends. It provides a platform to eminent educationist, academicians, thinkers, practitioners and administrators to brainstorm the various issues and challenges as well as solutions for the existing teacher education system in the country.”

NCTE was established on 17th August 1995 and was tasked with achieving planned and coordinated development of teacher education system throughout the country and maintenance of norms and standards therein. NCTE also serves as an advisory body to Central and State Governments to ensure maintenance of standards and quality in Teacher Education. The mandate of NCTE is very broad and covers the entire gamut of Teacher Education programmes, including research and training of persons to equip them to teach at pre-primary, primary, secondary and senior secondary stages in schools as well as non-formal education, part-time education, adult education and distance education courses. Teacher education institutions in India currently offer 17 Teacher Education programmes recognized by NCTE for prospective school teachers.

Aadi Mahotsav (National Tribal Festival), a joint initiative of Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Government of India & Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED) begins at Polo Ground, Leh-Ladakh today. The 9 day event from 17th August till 25th August, 2019 was inaugurated by Shri Arjun Munda, Union Minister for Tribal Affairs in the august presence of SmtRenuka Singh, Minister for State for Tribal Affairs and Shri R. C. Meena, Chairman TRIFED.

The theme of the festival is: “A celebration of the spirit of Tribal Craft, Culture and Commerce”. TRIFED essentially is to play the role of a ‘Service provider’ & ‘Market Developer.

Delivering inaugural address, Shri Arjun Munda said that the national object of inclusive development (sabkavikas) includes the development of tribes as an important component. Our constitution enjoins upon the Government the responsibility of addressing the special needs of the tribals. The Ministry of Tribal Affairs is committed for the overall development of tribal people across the country who are deprived of the benefits of the many schemes of the government. The Government plans to setup 3000 Van DhanVikasKendras (VDVK) across the country in 2019-20 which include 13 VDVKs planned to setup in Ladakh, the Minister added.

He wished grand success to the AadiMahotsav in Leh-Ladakh. In her address, SmtRenuka Singh said that the Ministry of Tribal Affairs will organize many more such AadiMahotsav in all State capitals and in other parts of the country in the near future which will benefit large population of tribal people of our country in all respects. She said that now the products of Tribal artisans are being marketed all over the country through 104 retail outlets run by TRIBES India and to 190 countries across the country through Amazon, with whom TRIBES India has an agreement.

The inaugural event had two reputed local cultural troupes presenting Ladakhi folk dances. The troupes performedJabro Dance - a nomadic dance and song of people inhabiting eastern Ladakh and Spawo dance, a heroic song and dance associated with a legendary hero of Himalayan region called K’sar. Further on in the coming days other dance performances like Flower Dance, Abex Dance/song, Ghazal Dance, Aleyyatoo will regale the visitors.

The first of its kind event in Leh-Ladakh will see around 160 Tribal artisans from more than 20 states across the country, actively participating and showcasing their masterpieces. The product range will comprise of Tribal Textiles from Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Odisha, West Bengal; Tribal Jewellery from Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and North East; Tribal Paintings like Gond art from Madhya Pradesh, Warli art from Maharashtra; Metal craft from Chhattisgarh; Black pottery from Manipur, and Naturals and Organic products from Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka.

Mahotsav is also covering to identify:(a) Food and Forest Produces, which can be processed, value added and marketed under the Van Dhan Scheme of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs ; and (b) Artisans and master craftsmen and women of Ladakh for empanelling them as suppliers of TRIBES India. These products can then be marketed all over the Country through the 104 retail outlets run by TRIBES India across the country and 190 countries across the world through AMAZON, with whom TRIBES India has an agreement.

The tribes constitute over 8% of the country’s population. This is a very significant number. In real terms it corresponds to over 10 crore Indians. Moire than 70% population of Ladakh region are tribes. The government has conceptualized of organizing AadiMahotsav in Leh-Ladakh in Arptil 2019.

As the name of this event AadiMahotsav suggests, it is the ‘adi’ factor that is important about them. The Adivasi way of life is guided by primal truths, eternal values and a natural simplicity. The greatness of the tribes lies in this that they have managed to retain the primal skills, the natural simplicity. Their creations issue from the depths of time. This quality gives their arts and crafts a timeless appeal. The crudest tribal handicraft instantly touches a primal instinct in all of us. This is particularly true of tribal music and dance.

The Tribal Artisan Mela (TAM) has been organized during the currency of the event for livelihood generation of tribal artisans of Ladakh. During TAM, the artisans were identified and empanalled for their products selected for marketing through retail chain of network of TRIFED and also connect them for participating in the National Tribal Festivals which are being organized in all major cities/towns in the country.

In the run-up to the United Nations Framework for Climate Change (UNFCC) Conference of Parties (COP-25) meet to be held later in the year from 2nd to 13th December, the BASIC countries held its 28th Ministerial meeting on Climate Change from 14th to 16th August in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

India which was represented by Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Shri Prakash Javadekar said that BASIC countries coming together and putting views together is an important aspect of UN negotiations. “Brazil, South Africa, India and China put together has one-third of world’s geographical area and nearly 40% of the world’s population and when we unitedly speak in one voice this shows our determination and the BASIC Group could play an important part in making Paris agreement accepted by all the countries in its true letter and spirit” , stressed Shri Javadekar.

Shri Javadekar further added that BASIC will be united and will speak in one voice and the joint statement issued today has highlighted all the issues which are relevant today and the world must take note of what BASIC is saying ,on the eve of United Nations Session on Climate Change and the next Conference of Parties (CoP25) in Chile.

The text of the joint statement follows :- Joint Statement issued at the conclusion of the 28th BASIC Ministerial Meeting on Climate Change, São Paulo, Brazil, 16 August 2019 1. The 28th BASIC Ministerial Meeting on Climate Change was held in Brasília and São Paulo, Brazil, on 14 and 16 August 2019. The meeting was chaired by H.E. Mr. Ricardo Salles, Minister of the Environment of Brazil and attended by H.E. Mr. XIE Zhenhua, Special Representative for Climate Change Affairs of the People’s Republic of China, H.E. Ms. Barbara Creecy, Minister of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries of the Republic of South Africa, and H.E. Mr. Prakash Javadekar, Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change of the Republic of India.

2. The BASIC Ministers expressed their concern for climate change and its adverse effects and reaffirmed their commitment to the successful implementation of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), its Kyoto Protocol and its Paris Agreement, based on the recognition of the needs and special circumstances of developing countries and in accordance with the principles of Equity and Common But Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities (CBDR-RC), in the light of different national circumstances. Ministers stated the importance of responsible, comprehensive,urgent and ambitious actions against climate change, including in the urban environment.

3. The Ministers stressed their support for the UNFCCC and its instruments, which remain the preeminent international forum for negotiating and addressing matters related to climate change. The BASIC countries reiterated their support for multilateralism, having made constructive engagements and significant contributions towards a series of milestones under the UNFCCC. They highlighted their determination to continue to work together with other Parties to further the process under the UNFCCC, which is irreversible.

4. Ministers underlined that BASIC countries are implementing ambitious climate action both in the pre-2020 period and in their proposed NDCs, having achieved substantial progress, notwithstanding the multiple challenges they face in terms of social and economic development and poverty eradication. They are committed to sharing best practices and supporting each other through south-south cooperation as they further develop their domestic climate policies and actions. They underscored that global climate action must promote climate justice by recognition of the fundamental right of all people in accessing economic growth and sustainable development.

5. Ministers took note of the synthesis report on pre-2020 implementation and ambition published by the UNFCCC Secretariat in September 2018. The Ministers highlighted the significant gaps in pre-2020 climate efforts not only in mitigation, but also in adaptation and support to developing countries. They underlined that time is of the essence for any meaningful pre-2020 action and that the implementation gaps should not present a burden to developing countries in the post-2020 period.They also urged developed countries to undertake ambitious actions to reduce emissions and fulfill their finance commitments, including in the pre-2020 period, in light of their historical responsibilities.

6. The 185 ratifications, to date, of the Paris Agreement were welcomed by BASIC Ministers. They called on all remaining Parties to UNFCCC to join the Paris Agreement as soon as possible. Ministers also welcomed the 130 ratifications, to date, of the Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol and recalled that only 14 acceptance instruments are outstanding for the amendment to enter into force. They urged Parties that have not yet done so to ratify the Doha Amendment to the Kyoto Protocol as soon as possible, to ensure its prompt entry into force, given the valuable contribution it could make to global climate action leading up to 2020.

7. Ministers appreciated the role of the Polish Presidency, commending its contribution to the UNFCCC process, particularly the decisions adopted in Katowice, during COP 24, CMP 14 and CMA 1, including the bulk of the Paris Agreement Work Programme. They pledged the group’s full support to the incoming Chilean Presidency of COP 25 and emphasized the importance of moving forward and reaching concrete results in Santiago, which is a crucial opportunity for closing the action and ambition gaps before 2020.

8. Ministers reiterated their commitment to work together with all Parties in an open, transparent, inclusive and Party-driven manner to achieve a balanced and comprehensive outcome on all remaining items of the Paris Agreement Work Programme.

9. Ministers emphasized that the UNSG´s Climate Action Summit, to be held in September of this year, should be fully respectful of the principles and provisions of the UNFCCC, its Kyoto Protocol and its Paris Agreement, as well as existing aims, targets and mandates. They look forward for the Summit to send a strong political signal for global low-carbon, climate resilient and sustainable development and produce positive outcomes for pre-2020 ambition and implementation support for developing countries. The Ministers applauded the UN Secretary General’s efforts to build political momentum for enhancing climate action and support.

10. Ministers took note of the findings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Special Report on global warming of 1.5 °C and the Special Report on Climate Change and Land, which highlights the high vulnerability of developing countries to climate change effects, high resultant costs of adaptation and unprecedented transitions required in the development process.

11. Ministers urged developed countries to provide adequate and predictable means of implementation to developing countries to enable them to achieve their climate goals. In this respect, developed countries are called upon to enhance support to developing countries for actions related to project or programme development and implementation, including on adaptation, mitigation and transparency. This must be done through adequate provision of finance, technology transfer, and capacity building to facilitate the effective implementation of the Convention, its Kyoto Protocol and its Paris Agreement.

12. Ministers reaffirmed that adaptation is a key imperative for developing countries and requires an urgent global response. They emphasized the importance of the provision of enhanced as well as predictable support for adaptation from developed countries to developing countries, recognizing the adaptation efforts of developing country Parties.

13. Ministers stressed that the enhanced transparency framework established by the Paris Agreement should facilitate exchange of information, best practices, as well as address the needs faced by developing countries, ensuring the required flexibility. Ministers underlined the significant challenges of developing countries on transparency-related capacities and urged developed countries to provide new, additional, adequate and timely finance support in this regard.

14. Ministers noted with concern the trend of developing countries being denied their right to support in different fora, including the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and the Global Environment Facility (GEF). They stressed in this regard that climate finance should not be a vehicle for increasing the indebtedness of developing countries.

15. The BASIC Ministers urged developed countries to fulfill their climate finance commitments of mobilizing USD 100 billion annually by 2020 for developing countries in a transparent manner and on a grant basis. This support should be new and additional, and over and above their 0.7% of GNP commitment with respect to Official Development Assistance (ODA). They noted with concern the insufficiency and inadequacy of the support provided by developed countries to date.

16. They stressed that the 2020 deliberations on the new collective quantified goal on finance should be based on the lessons drawn from experience relating to meeting the USD 100 billion pledge, informed by the needs of developing countries and adequate to meet the ambition. In this regard, they stressed the importance of establishing a structured deliberation within the UNFCCC, in order to conclude this work.

17. Ministers restated that a new collective quantified goal on financeby developed countries, with a significant publicly funded component, is one of the crucial signals that the regime under the UNFCCC must give to investors, both public and private, in order to match the urgency of climate change. Securing scaled-up, adequate and proper means and resources for developing countries isindispensable to enable them to meet their commitments and implement the Paris Agreement.

18. Ministers expressed the expectation that the first replenishment of the Green Climate Fund by the end of 2019 will double the initial resource mobilization pledge, ensuring that financial contributions by developed countries match the ambition, needs and priorities of developing countries.

19. The BASIC group underscored the importance of concluding the discussions on Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, one of the remaining issues from the Katowice package of decisions, which will assist those participating in implementing the Agreement in a cost effective manner. The Ministers recalled that decisions on other subjects should not pre-empt discussions under Article 6 and expressed their expectation of reaching a satisfactory outcome on this matter in December, at the Santiago COP.

They underlined that Parties should address the Article 6 issues in a balanced and inclusive manner, including the issue of transition of projects under the Clean Development Mechanism. They highlighted that Parties have a strong foundation for future work on Article 6 and that it is important to conclude work in accordance with the mandates set out in the Paris Agreement and the accompanying decision.

20. Ministers noted the work of International Maritime Organization (IMO) and International Civil Aviation (ICAO) on reduction of carbon emissions and underscored that work being undertaken by IMO and ICAO must complement the UNFCCC, its Kyoto Protocol and its Paris Agreement and conform to their key principles, in particular Equity and CBDR-RC.

21. Ministers highlighted the importance of mechanisms on loss and damage under the UNFCCC and urged developed country Parties to provide funding for loss and damage arising from climate change in developing countries.

22. BASIC Ministers reiterated their unequivocal commitment to support the State of Palestine, as the Chair of the Group of 77 and China, with a view to strengthening the unity of the Group of 77 and China and advancing the common interests of developing countries. 23. Ministers welcomed the offer of China to host the 29th BASIC Ministerial Meeting.

It is a Parsi New Year festival celebrated to mark the beginning of the new Iranian calendar.

While the Balkans, the Caucasus, the Middle Easterns celebrate the festival on March 21, the first day of the Zoroastrian calendar, in India there is another version of the festival that is followed according to the Shahanshahi calendar and falls during the later months of the year. The dates change every year since the calendar doesn’t account for leap years. Also known as Pateti, Navroz will be celebrated on August 17th this year in India.

Navroz is also known as Jamshed-i-Navroz after the Persian King, Jamshed, who is credited to have created the Persian Calendar known as the Shahenshahi Calendar.

The time of the festival is decided in Iran and then it is passed on to the entire Zoroastrian population in the world.

It is a joint initiative of Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Government of India & Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED). The theme of the festival is : “A celebration of the spirit of Tribal Craft, Culture and Commerce”. TRIFED essentially is to play the role of a ‘Service provider’ & ‘Market Developer.’

The Mahotsav will comprise of display and sale of items of tribal art and craft, tribal medicine & healers, tribal cuisine and display of tribal folk performance, in which tribal artisans, chefs, folk dancers/musicians from 23 States of the country shall participate and provide glimpse of their rich traditional culture.

Significance of the event: As the name of this event Aadi Mahotsav suggests, it is it’s ‘Adi’ factor that is important about them. The Adivasi way of life is guided by primal truths, eternal values and a natural simplicity. The greatness of the tribes lies in this that they have managed to retain the primal skills and natural simplicity. This quality gives their arts and crafts a timeless appeal. The crudest tribal handicraft instantly touches a primal instinct in all of us. This is particularly true in tribal music and dance.

What is it? Know India Programme is a flagship programme of Ministry of External Affairs for engagement with Indian origin youth (between 18-30 years) to enhance their awareness about India, its cultural heritage, art and to familiarise them with various aspects of contemporary India.

Eligibility: Minimum qualification required for participating in KIP is graduation from a recognized University /Institute or enrolled for graduation and ability to speak in English. The applicant should not have visited India through any previous Programme of Government of India. Those who have not visited India before will be given preference.

The Geographical Indication (GI) under the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade has registered 4 new GIs.

They are: PalaniPanchamirtham from Palani Town in Dindigul District of Tamil Nadu State. Tawlhlohpuan and Mizo Puanchei from the state of Mizoram. Tirur Betel leaf from Kerala.

Shyamoli: What is it? It is the heritage house of Rabindranath Tagore. It was recently inaugurated. Shyamoli is an experimental mud-house built at Santiniketan in 1935. The house has been recently renovated by the Archaeological Survey of India as a deposit work and is a property of Visva-Bharati at present.

Need for legislation: Transgender community is among one of the most marginalized communities in the country because they don’t fit into the stereotypical categories of gender of ‘men’ or ‘women’.

Consequently, they face problems ranging from social exclusion to discrimination, lack of education facilities, unemployment, lack of medical facilities and so on. The Bill shall empower the transgender community socially, educationally and economically.

New definition: According to the new definition, a transgender person is somebody “whose gender does not match the gender assigned to that person at birth and includes trans-men or trans-women, persons with intersex variations, gender-queers, and persons having socio-cultural identities such as kinnar, hijras, aravani, and jogta”.

Highlights of the Bill: Aim: The Bill aims to stop discrimination against a transgender person in various sectors such as education, employment, and healthcare. It directs the central and state governments to provide welfare schemes for them.

The Bill states that a person will be recognised as transgender on the basis of a certificate of identity issued through the district screening committee. This certificate will be a proof of identity as transgender and confer rights under this Bill.

Going by the bill, a person would have the right to choose to be identified as a man, woman or transgender, irrespective of sex reassignment surgery and hormonal therapy.

It also requires transgender persons to go through a district magistrate and “district screening committee” to get certified as a transperson. Composition of the committee: The committee would comprise a medical officer, a psychologist or psychiatrist, a district welfare officer, a government official, and a transgender person.

Criticisms: The Bill is silent on granting reservations to transgender persons. The bill has prescribed punishments for organised begging. However, the Bill doesn’t provide anything to better to condition in those areas, it doesn’t provide for reservation.

The Bill does not mention any punishments for rape or sexual assault of transgender persons as according to Sections 375 and 376 of the Indian Penal Code, rape is only when a man forcefully enters a woman. The legislation has been criticised by the transgender community for replacing district screening committees with bureaucratic impediments.

They have also highlighted that the provisions against discrimination have no enforceability.

The Bill has also attracted disapproval for only providing separate definitions for intersex persons but no provisions for transgenders.

Need of the hour: The Bill must recognise that gender identity must go beyond biological; gender identity is an individual’s deep and personal experience. It need not correspond to the sex assigned at birth. It includes the personal sense of the body and other expressions such as one’s own personal inducing proceeds.

Issues: A total of 51 lakh cultivators, loanee and non-loanee farmers, sharecroppers and landless agricultural labourers have been provided with financial assistance under the scheme so far.

The authorities have now found out that all beneficiaries were not entitled to the benefits under the scheme and have asked the ineligible people to refund the money.

More than one member of a family have managed to get assistance. In a majority of blocks, the number of applicants have outnumbered the number of ration card-holding families.

Key features of Krushak Assistance for Livelihood and Income Augmentation or KALIA Scheme: Involves payments to encourage cultivation and associated activities. Primary targetsare small farmers, cultivators and landless agricultural labourers.

All farmers will be provided Rs 10,000 per family as assistance for cultivation. Each family will get Rs 5,000 separately in the kharif and rabi seasons, for five cropping seasons between 2018-19 and 2021-22.

Targets 10 lakh landless households, and specifically SC and ST families. They will be supported with a unit cost of Rs 12,500 for activities like goat rearing, mushroom cultivation, beekeeping, poultry farming and fishery. Exception: A critical trade, dairy production, has deliberately been kept out because keeping a cow is more expensive, while milk production needs to have a collection route or agency that processes and refines this low shelf-life product.

It will assist the elderly, sick and differently-abled populationwho are unable to take up cultivation, by providing Rs 10,000 per household per year. The scheme includes a life insurance cover of Rs 2 lakh and additional personal accident coverageof the same amount for 57 lakh households. Crop loans up to Rs 50,000 are interest-free.

This is also going to be an area-specific schemein the sense that an input support for a particular trade, say mushroom cultivation, will be provided if it is prevalent throughout that locality so that there is aggregation of produce.

How different will KALIA be from a loan waiver? Unlike a loan waiver, (through which) banks appease a few farmers, KALIA’s main targets are rural activities as a whole. It will support farming on a small scale, sharecropping, fishing, animal herding, which are not covered under bank loans, but are caught in debt traps set up by local moneylenders.

Also, a farm loan waiver will reduce credit available to farmers in the long term, while income support can be used to make a repayment or at least activate a bank account which can then receive a loan.”

What has the court said? The court has directed Union Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF) to form high-powered committee by 22 August 2019 so as to look into environmental concerns.

Representatives from Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Physical Research Laboratory under government’s space department and Ministry of Defence will be part of the new high powered committee.

As per SC, committee shall hold quarterly meetings thereafter to ensure compliance and may suggest any further measure after each review meeting. It shall consider cumulative and independent impact of Chardham project on entire Himalayan valleys.

Committee will also suggest areas in which afforestation should be taken and kind of saplings to be planted.

What’s the issue? The proposed four-lane expressway to Gangotri, Yamunotri, Kedarnath and Bardinath in the hill state has been among the flagship projects of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways.

But the idea of the 900-kilometre road network in the sensitive mountains of Uttarakhand drew scepticism from environmental activists who fear the highways and the tourists they would bring in will be at the cost of the ecological balance.

About Chardham project: The project involves developing and widening 900-km of national highways connecting the holy Hindu pilgrimage sites of; Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri, and Yamunotri at an estimated cost of Rs.12,000 crores.

The highway will be called Char Dham Mahamarg(Char Dham Highway) and the highway construction project will be called as Char Dham Mahamarg Vikas Pariyojana(Char Dham Highway Development Project).

The roads will be widened from 12m to 24m and the project will involve construction of tunnels, bypasses, bridges, subways and viaducts.

India’s NFU: In 1998, India conducted nuclear tests under Pokhran-II and in 2003, it declared its nuclear doctrine based on credible minimum deterrence and a NFU policy while reserving the right of massive retaliation if struck with nuclear weapons first.

What is no first use nuclear doctrine? It refers to a pledge or a policy by a nuclear power not to use nuclear weapons as a means of warfare unless first attacked by an adversary using nuclear weapons. Earlier, the concept had also been applied to chemical and biological warfare.

India first adopted a “No first use” policy after its second nuclear tests, Pokhran-II, in 1998. In August 1999, the Indian government released a draft of the doctrine which asserts that nuclear weapons are solely for deterrence and that India will pursue a policy of “retaliation only”.

The document also maintains that India “will not be the first to initiate a nuclear first strike, but will respond with punitive retaliation should deterrence fail” and that decisions to authorise the use of nuclear weapons would be made by the Prime Minister or his ‘designated successor(s)’.

Why India should retain this policy? Adopting a no-first use policy enables New Delhi to keep the nuclear threshold high, especially as Pakistan tries to lower the threshold by developing tactical nuclear weapons, the Hatf-9 with 60km range.

It must also be noted that New Delhi is not bordered by just one nuclear weapon state. China adopts a no-first use policy and, in spite of calls for Beijing to revise its no-first use doctrine, it is unlikely to do so. Hence, if New Delhi gave up its no-first use doctrine, it could give Beijing a chance to adopt a first strike policy and shift blame on India.

In fact, India’s adoption of a first strike policy would be an easy excuse for Beijing to give up its no-first use doctrine against the United States and Russia as well. Moreover, India has always promoted herself as a responsible nuclear weapon state. Hence, a first strike policy would severely damage India’s reputation as a responsible nuclear weapon state.

Also, it is India’s no first use doctrine that has enabled both Pakistan and India to keep their nuclear arsenal in a de-mated posture rather than a ready deterrent posture. This means nuclear warheads are not mated with the delivery systems. This reduces the chances of nuclear terrorism in Pakistan and also reduces the likelihood of an accidental launch of a nuclear weapon. A first strike policy by India may not have allowed Pakistan to keep their nuclear arsenal in a de-mated posture.

A first-strike policy, coupled with a ballistic missile defense system, could provoke Pakistan to launch a nuclear pre-emptive strike against India. By adopting a no-first use doctrine, New Delhi has also made it evident that nuclear weapons are indeed the weapons of last resort. Abandoning this doctrine would make it evident that India considers the option of using nuclear weapons in the initial phases of the conflict.

Key facts: Aim: NEDL aims to bridge the current regulatory system’s gap that does not cover all the medical devices and in-vitro diagnostic device (IVD).

Significance: With this, India has become the first country to compile such a list that would provide guidance to the government for deciding the kind of diagnostic tests that different healthcare facilities in villages and remote areas require.

Uses: The list is meant for facilities from village till the district level. NEDL builds upon the Free Diagnostics Service Initiative and other diagnostics initiatives of the Health Ministry to provide an expanded basket of tests at different levels of the public health system.

Need for NEDL: Diagnostics serve a key role in improving health and quality of life. While affordability of diagnostics is a prime concern in low, middle-income countries like India, low cost, inaccurate diagnostics have made their way into the Indian market which has no place in the quality health care system.

The implementation of NEDL would enable improved health care services delivery through evidence-based care, improved patient outcomes and reduction in out-of-pocket expenditure; effective utilisation of public health facilities.

It would help in effective assessment of disease burden, disease trends, surveillance, and outbreak identification; and address antimicrobial resistance crisis too.

Background: In India, diagnostics (medical devices and in vitro diagnostics) follow a regulatory framework based on the drug regulations under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and Drugs and Cosmetics Rules 1945.

Why in news? A factor particularly spooking the markets in recent days has been the “inversion of the yield curve” in the United States.

What is it? The yield curve is a graph showing the relationship between interest rates earned on lending money for different durations.

Normally, someone who lent to the government or a corporation for one year (by buying a one-year government or corporate bond) would expect to get a lower interest rate than someone who lent for five or ten years, making the yield curve upward-sloping.

In the US in recent days the ten-year bond rate has fallen to the point at which the ten-year rate is below the two-year rate – so the yield curve is inverted.