Education
MANTHAN- 2021 hackathon

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about MANTHAN 2021)
What's the NEWS

• Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) and All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) jointly launched MANTHAN-2021
• Manthan- 2021 is organized by Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) in coordination with the Innovation Cell of the Ministry of Education and AICTE.

Know! about MANTHAN 2021

• For MANTHAN 2021, BPR&D has released 20 challenge statements which offer unique opportunity to all our youngsters to think out-of-the-box and develop innovative concepts for solving some of the daunting problems faced by our security agencies.
• MANTHAN 2021 will have two phases. In the first phase, participants are expected to submit their concepts against the problem statements which they wish to solve on the portal.
• These submitted ideas will be evaluated by group of experts in the field and only the innovative ideas will be selected for the Grand Finale or 2^nd round
• Hackathon "MANTHAN 2021" is a unique national initiative to identify innovative concepts and technology solutions for addressing the security challenges of the 21^st century faced by our intelligence agencies.
• During this 36 hours online hackathon, scheduled from 28^th November to 1^st December 2021, selected youths from education institutions across the country and registered start-ups will participate to offer strong, safe and effective technology solutions using their technical expertise and innovative skills.
• Participants are expected to develop digital solutions under 6 themes for20 different challenge statements released today using new technologies like Artificial Intelligence, Deep Learning, Augmented reality, Machine Learning, etc. for ever-changing security related challenges, which include photo/video analysis, Fake Content Identification along with the information of creator, predictive Cyber Crime data analytics, etc.

Follow -up Articles of Current Capsules dated 25 August ( as some more info released by the government after its official launch)
Governance
Government of India launches the e-Shram Portal.

Relevance IN - Prelims (about e-shram portal)
What's the NEWS

• Minister for Labour and Employment, formally launched e-Shram portal and handed it over to the States/UTs
• For the first time in the History of India, a system is being made to register 38 crore Unorganised Workers.
• It will not only register them but would also be helpful in delivering of various social security schemes being implemented by the Central and State Governments
• If a worker is registered on the eSHRAM portal and meets with an accident, he will be eligible for Rs 2.0 Lakh on death or permanent disability and Rs 1.0 lakh on partial disability
• The registration under the e-SHRAM portal is totally free and workers do not have to pay anything for his or her registration at Common Service Centres(CSCs) or anywhere.
• After registering on the e-SHRAM portal, unorganized workers will need not to register separately for Govt's Social Security Schemes.
• e-SHRAM card containing a 12-digit UAN will be valid throughout the country:

NITI Aayog Releases North Eastern Region District SDGIndex and Dashboard 2021-22

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about NER District SDG Index& Dashboard -highlights) + GS II governance + centre-state relations)
What's the NEWS

• A milestone towards localising the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) was achieved with the release of the first edition of the North Eastern Region (NER) District SDG Index Report and Dashboard 2021-22 by NITI Aayog and Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (M/DoNER)

NER District SDG Index& Dashboard highlights

• The NER District SDG Index& Dashboard, a collaborative effort by NITI Aayog and Ministry of DoNER, with technical support from UNDP, is the first of its kind in the country as it focuses on the North Eastern Region, which is of critical significance to the country's development trajectory.
• The Index measures the performance of the districts of the eight States of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura on the Sustainable Development Goals and their corresponding targets and ranks the districts based on the same.
• The index is based on NITI Aayog's SDG India Index -the principal and official tool for monitoring progress on the SDGs at the national and State/ Union Territory levels and shares the common ethos of benchmarking performance and ranking on the SDGs to foster competition among the districts.
• The index offers insights into the social, economic, and environmental status of the region and its districts in their march towards achieving the SDGs.
• It is a unique policy tool which has immense potential to measure district level progress, highlight critical gaps, facilitate resource allocation, and will be a handy tool for policy makers in the eight North Eastern States

Overall Results and Findings

• Out of the 103 districts considered for ranking, 64 districts belonged to the Front Runner category while 39 districts were in the Performer category in the composite score and ranking of districts.
• All districts in Sikkim and Tripura fall in the Front Runner category and there are no districts in the Aspirant or Achiever categories.
• East Sikkim [Score 75.87] ranks first in the region followed by districts Gomati and North Tripura [Score 75.73] in the second position.
• The score for the 103 districts ranges from 53.00 in Kiphire [NL] to 75.87 in East Sikkim [SK].

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs

• The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) track the progress across 16 parameters that include parameters such as no poverty, zero hunger, good health, quality education, gender equality, clean water and sanitation, affordable and clean energy, decent work and economic growth, industry, innovation and infrastructure, reduce inequalities. sustainable cities and communities, climate action, life on land, peace justice and strong institutions and responsible consumption and production.

NITI Aayog
NITI Aayog's Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP)

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about WEP and WEP Nxt) + Mains ( GS II government policies and interventions)
What's the NEWS

• NITI Aayog, the Government's public policy think tank, and Cisco launched the next phase of the Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP).
• Titled"WEP Nxt", this next phase of NITIAayog's flagship platform will leverage Cisco's technology and experience working with India's startup ecosystem to enable more women-owned businesses across the country.

Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP).

• WEP, initially launched by NITI Aayog in 2017, is a first-of-its-kind, unified portal that brings together women from diverse backgrounds and offers them access to a multitude of resources, support, and learning.

WEP Nxt

• WEP Nxt is a significant step to augment these efforts.
• Based on a focused study of Indian women entrepreneurs and their most urgent needs across six key verticals - community and networking, skilling and mentorship, incubation and acceleration programs, and financial, compliance, and marketing assistance - WEPNxt will be driven by evidence-based decision-making.
• The focused study, fuelling this transition, is also being made available for the benefit of the ecosystem.
• Additionally, as a part of this initiative, Cisco, in collaboration with the Nasscom Foundation, Sattva Consulting, and the DeAsra Foundation, will enable technology-led experiences and engagements to address the challenges faced by women entrepreneurs at individual and enterprise levels and create new opportunities for growth.

About Cisco

• Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide leader in technology that powers the Internet. Cisco inspires new possibilities by reimagining your applications, securing your data, transforming your infrastructure, and empowering your teams for a global and inclusive future.

About Women Entrepreneurship Platform, NITI Aayog

• The Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) is NITI Aayog's flagship initiative - a one-of-its-kind, unified information portal for women entrepreneurs.
• It strives to improve industry linkages and awareness of existing programs and services and provide access to peer support, learning resources, fundraising opportunities and mentorship.
• With an overarching objective of becoming an aggregator platform that solves for the information asymmetry in the ecosystem, WEP serves as a one stop solution for information and services relevant to women entrepreneurs.
• The platform currently hosts over 16,000 registered users and 30 partners and caters to six focus areas: Funding & Financial Management, Incubation Connects, Taxation & Compliance Support, Entrepreneur Skilling & Mentorship, Community & Networking and Marketing Assistance.

Governance
ECI organizes two-day SVEEP Consultation Workshop

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about SVEEP)
What's the NEWS

• The Election Commission of India organized a two-day SVEEP (Systematic Voters' Education and Electoral Participation) Consultation Workshop
• The agenda of the workshop was to review State SVEEP Plans & conduct extensive deliberations on the important aspects of SVEEP for a comprehensive strategy for the forthcoming elections.

Systematic Voters' Education and Electoral Participation program

• It is the flagship program of the Election Commission of India for voter education & awareness, spreading voter awareness and promoting voter literacy in India.
• SVEEP's primary goal is to build an inclusive & participative democracy by encouraging all eligible citizens to vote and make an informed decision & ethical choice.

Miscellaneous
NMCG hosts Session on ‘Zero Liquid Discharge Cities' on Day 4 of Stockholm World Water Week 2021

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about World water week and about ZLD)
What's the NEWS

• National Mission for Clean Ganga hosted the third Meet & Mingle session on ‘Zero Liquid Discharge Cities' on the Final Day of the Stockholm World Water Week 2021.
• Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) is a well-known concept but currently associated with industries.
• It is time to extend ZLD concept to Indian cities as well.
• Just like Net Zero in carbon emissions, the concept of ZLD is an aspiration in this journey to increase reuse of treated wastewater

World Water Week

• It is the leading annual event on global water issues, organized by Stockholm International Water Institute since 1991.
• The Week attracts participants from more than 130 countries and consists of a broad array of parallel activities convened by leading international organizations on a broad array of water-related topics, ranging from food security and health to agriculture, technology, biodiversity, and the climate crisis.
• In 2021, World Water Week will be held in a new digital format so that people across the world can join, regardless of the circumstances.

Defence
Indian Coast Guard Ship Vigraha

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about Indian Coast Guard (ICG) Ship Vigraha)
What's the NEWS

• Indian Coast Guard (ICG) Ship Vigraha, seventh in the series of Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs), will be commissioned by Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh in Chennai on August 28, 2021

Know! about ICG Ship Vigraha

• The ship will be based in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh and operate on the eastern seaboard under the Operational and Administrative Control of the Commander, Coast Guard Region (East).
• The 98-meter OPV, with a complement of 11 officers and 110 sailors, has been designed and built indigenously by Larsen & Toubro Ship Building Limited.
• It is fitted with advanced technology radars, navigation & communication equipment, sensors and machinery capable of operating in tropical sea conditions.
• The vessel is armed with a 40/60 Bofors gun and fitted with two 12.7 mm Stabilised Remote Control Gun with fire control system.
• The ship is also equipped with integrated bridge system, integrated platform management system, automated power management system and high-power external fire-fighting system.
• The ship is also designed to carry one twin-engine Helicopter and four high speed boats for boarding operation, search & rescue, law enforcement and maritime patrol.
• The ship is also capable of carrying pollution response equipment to contain oil spill at sea.
• The ship displaces approximately 2,200 tons and is propelled by two 9100 KW diesel engines to attain a maximum speed of 26 nautical miles per hour with endurance of 5000 nm at economical speed.
• The ship, on joining the Coast Guard Eastern fleet, will be deployed extensively for EEZ surveillance and other duties as enshrined in the Coast Guard Charter to safeguard the country's maritime interests.
• The ICG, with this ship joining the fleet, will have 157 ships and 66 aircraft in its inventory.

Polity
Arresting a Union minister
Relevance IN - Prelims ( about privileges of a MP )Rules of Procedures and Conduct of Business of the Rajya Sabha)
What's the NEWS

• Three FIRs have been registered against Union Minister and Rajya Sabha member Narayan Rane in connection with a speech at Raigad where he spoke against Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.

Procedure of arresting a Union minister

• A Union minister or a Member of Parliament enjoys certain privileges but most of them are available when Parliament is in session.
• If Parliament is not in session, police or other law enforcement agencies may arrest a Union cabinet minister in a criminal case.
• But, under Section 222A of the Rules of Procedures and Conduct of Business of the Rajya Sabha, the police or a judge issuing an arrest order is required to intimate the Rajya Sabha Chairman about the reason for and place of arrest.
• The Chairman gets it published in a Rajya Sabha
• A Union minister or an MP enjoys protection from arrest 40 days before the start of a Parliament session, during its sittings and 40 days after its conclusion.
• So, under Section 135 of the Code of Civil Procedure, Narayan Rane has the protection from arrest in a civil case as Parliament's Monsoon Session ended earlier this month.
• However, his arrest came in a criminal case. And, the protection from arrest does not cover criminal offences or preventive detention.

Rules within the precincts of the House

• No arrest, whether of a member or of a stranger, can be made within the precincts of the House without the prior permission of the Chairman/Speaker and that too in accordance with the procedure laid down by the Home Ministry in this regard.
• Similarly no legal process, civil or criminal, can be served within the precincts of the House without obtaining the prior permission of the Chairman/Speaker whether the House is in Session or not.

Prelims Factoids
Fit India Mobile Application

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about Fit India Movement)

• To celebrate second anniversary of Fit India Movement and as part of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, the Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports will launch the Fit India Mobile Application on 29th August 2021.
• The Fit India App will be available on both the Android and the iOS platforms and has been developed keeping in mind that it works even on basic smartphones.
• The Fit India Movement was launched on 29th August 2019 by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi with the vision of making India a Fit and Healthy Nation.
• Over the past two years, the Fit India Movement has reached millions of people across the country via its various fitness campaigns such as Fit India School Week, Fit India Freedom Run, Fit India Cyclothon, and many others.
• Currently, the Fit India Movement is also conducting Fit India Freedom Run 2.0 in celebration of 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav' - An initiative of the central government to celebrate and commemorate 75 years of India's Independence.

The National Sports Day

• It is celebrated on 29 August, on the birth anniversary of hockey player Major Dhyan Chand.
• This day marks the birthday of Major Dhyan Chand Singh, the hockey player who won gold medals in Olympics for India in the years 1928, 1932 and 1936. He scored 570 goals in his career, from 1926 to 1949
  
  

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