NITI Aayog/Science and Technology/GSIII
AIM, NITI Aayog & UNCDF announce first AgriTech cohort under South-South Innovation platform

What's the NEWS

• Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), NITI Aayog and the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) rolled out their first AgriTech Challenge cohort for its ambitious innovative Agri-tech program that aims to help smallholder farmers across Asia and Africa to address their challenges in the aftermath of the pandemic.

• AIM, NITI Aayog in partnership with UNCDF, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and Rabo Foundation launched a South-South innovation platform to enable cross-border exchange of innovations, insights and investments in July this year 2021.
• Through this platform, cross-border collaborations among emerging markets across India, Indonesia, Malawi, Malaysia, Kenya, Uganda, Zambia would be enabled.
• For its first platform AgriTech Challenge Cohort and Agri-Fintech innovators, applications were invited to facilitate their expansion to the international markets through two tracks- Main track and AIM track.
• A total of 10 high-growth innovators have been selected in the Main track, out of a total 100 applications.
• The key objective of the main track applications was ‘Expansion - Support solution pilot in the chosen international market.'
• The Cohort represents a diverse range of solutions across the value chain of the smallholder farmer, including soil analysis, farm management & intelligence, dairy ecosystem, carbon credits, solar-based cold storage, digital marketplace, fintech, livestock insurance, among others.
• The Agritech Challenge focuses on improving the financial health of smallholder farmers and will work towards helping the participants build and test their solution in the new market, as part of UNCDF's work under the Global Centre for Financial Health, with subsequent support on scaling the solution as well."
• The Challenge is also engaging with AIM-incubated early stage innovators under a dedicated AIM-track, to help build readiness for international expansion.
• An additional 15 promising AIM-incubated innovators have been selected across irrigation technology, fintech, online marketplace, smart farming, cold storage, among others.
• They will receive support to explore expansion through masterclasses by global experts and opportunity to engage with industry mentors.
• The Agritech Challenge is an inaugural initiative of the South-South Platform created to facilitate the exchange of knowledge and solutions between the two regions (Asia-Africa)

Government Schemes/GSII/Agreements
NITI Aayog signs a Statement of Intent with United Nations World Food Program (WFP)

What's the NEWS

• NITI Aayog signed a Statement of Intent with United Nations World Food Program (WFP)
• Recognizing the importance of millets, Government of India observed 2018 as a year of millets to encourage and promote the millet production.
• Leading this initiative further, GoI spearheaded the UNGA resolution for declaring 2023 as International Year of Millets

• The partnership focuses on mainstreaming of millets and supporting India in taking lead globally in knowledge exchange using the opportunity of 2023 as an International Year of Millets.
• Further, the partnership will aim at building resilient livelihoods for small-holder farmers and adaptation capacities to climate change and transforming food systems.
• The Sol focuses on strategic and technical collaboration between NITI Aayog and WFP, to strengthen the climate resilient agriculture for enhanced food and nutrition security in India.

• Phase I: Development of a best practice compendium around millet mainstreaming and a scale-up strategy
• Phase II: Support scale-up of millet mainstreaming through knowledge sharing and intense engagement with select states
• Phase III: Leverage India's expertise to support developing countries for millet mainstreaming
• Phase IV: Working on building capacities for climate resilient and adaptive livelihood practices

• Numerous steps have been taken to promote millets including establishment of centre for Excellence, Integration of nutri-cereals in National Food Security Act and establishment of Millet Mission in multiple states.
• Despite this, various challenges in terms of production, distribution and adaptability among consumers remain.
• Under the distribution system, it is time that we shift the focus of food distribution programmes from ‘calories fundamentalism' to providing a more diversified food basket, including coarse grains and millets to improve the nutritional status of pre-school children and women of reproductive age.
• NITI Aayog and WFP intend to identify and address these challenges in a systematic and effective manner.

• The first set of indigenously developed next generation Armoured Engineer Reconnaissance Vehicle was inducted into the Corps of Engineers of Indian Army

• The system has been designed by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and manufactured by Ordnance Factory Medak & Bharat Electronics Limited, Pune.
• The vehicle is capable of carrying out reconnaissance of water obstacles and boggy patches for execution of engineer tasks with capabilities to carry out reconnaissance and provide real time update to force commanders.
• The system will enhance existing engineer reconnaissance capabilities of Indian Army and would be a major game changer in support of mechanised operations in future conflicts.

• Defence Minister witnessed a Multi-Agency Exercise (MAE) and inaugurated an equipment display on the second day of PANEX-21, a Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) Exercise for BIMSTEC member nations, organised at College of Military Engineering in Pune, Maharashtra

• The exercise saw a coordinated display of rescue and relief efforts by Indian Army, Navy and Air Force.
• The equipment display, organised in association with Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI), is aimed to showcase the niche industrial capabilities and capacities of the Indian industry on disaster relief operations.
• PANEX-21 provides a fresh impetus for creating a more cohesive mechanism to respond to the HADR challenges in the region.
• The exercise will facilitate improved coordination for meeting future challenges related to cyclones & earthquakes and threats like COVID-19.
• PANEX-21 will create the necessary groundwork for BIMSTEC nations to strengthen protocols, involving all stakeholders, to respond to future disasters.

What's the NEWS

• The installed Renewable energy capacity (including large hydro) has increased from 76.37 GW in March 2014 to 150.54 GW in November 2021, i.e. an increase of around 97%.

• Permitting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) up to 100 percent under the automatic route,
• Waiver of Inter State Transmission System (ISTS) charges for inter-state sale of solar and wind power for projects to be commissioned by 30th June 2025,
• Laying of new transmission lines and creating new sub-station capacity for evacuation of renewable power,
• Declaration of trajectory for Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO) up to the year 2022,
• Setting up of RE parks to provide land and transmission to RE developers on a plug and play basis,
• Schemes such as Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evamUtthaanMahabhiyan (PM-KUSUM), Solar Rooftop Phase II, 12000 MW CPSU Scheme Phase II, etc,
• Notification of standards for deployment of solar photovoltaic system/devices,
• Setting up of Project Development Cell for attracting and facilitating investments,
• Standard Bidding Guidelines for tariff based competitive bidding for procurement of Power from Grid Connected Solar PV and Wind Projects.
• Government has issued orders that power shall be dispatched against Letter of Credit (LC) or advance payment to ensure timely payment by distribution licensees to RE generators.
• Green Term Ahead Market (GTAM) launched to facilitate procurement of RE power through power exchange in the country.

• India's installed renewable energy capacity is the fourth largest in the world.
• A total of 150.54 GW of Renewable Energy capacity (including large hydro) has been installed in the country as on 30th November, 2021.
• Further, a total of 219817.14 Million units of electricity have been generated from various renewable energy sources during the year 2021-22 (up to October 2021).
• Most of renewable energy projects in the country are being set up by private sector developers selected through transparent bidding.
• To protect the interest of small developers as per central government guidelines, States/UTs can procure power from solar projects (less than 5 MW capacity) and wind projects (less than 25 MW capacity) not covered under competitive bidding guidelines through Feed-in -Tariff (FiT) to be determined by the respective State Electricity Regulatory Commission.

What's the NEWS

• Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR) was implementing Backward Regions Grant Fund (BRGF) Programme (District component) during the period 2006-07 to 2014-15 which provided financial resources for supplementing and converging existing developmental inflows into identified districts to bridge critical gaps in local infrastructure and other development requirements.
• BRGF Programme has been delinked from the budgetary support of the Central Government since 2015-16 consequent upon the implementation of the recommendations of the Fourteenth Finance Commission under which the share of States in the net proceeds of the Union taxes was significantly enhanced from 32% to 42% that allowed the States with greater autonomy for financing and designing the developmental schemes, especially for the backward regions.
• Further, as apprised by NITI Aayog, Aspirational Districts Programme, implemented by NITI Aayog, aims at rapid transformation of 112 Aspirational Districts which shows relatively less progress in key social and economic indicators such as Health and Nutrition, School Education and Basic Infrastructure, Agriculture etc.
• Performance of these districts is monitored on a monthly basis which is available in the public domain on the Champions of Change Dashboard
• The broad strategy of the Aspirational Districts Programme rests on the 3 Cs - Convergence (between Central and State Schemes), Collaboration (between Centre, State, District Administration, Development Partners and Citizens) and Competition (between Districts).
• Every month, districts are ranked on the basis of progress made on the key performance indicators mentioned above, and this instills them with a sense of competition which results in rapid improvement.

• The Government has launched the Open Acreage Licensing Programme(OALP)Bid Round-VII for International Competitive Bidding.
• The Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy (HELP) was approved in March 2016.
• Since the launch of HELP on 30 March 2016, five rounds of OALP have been concluded for 105 E&P blocks; award of 21 blocks under sixth round of OALP is under progress.
• The Hydrocarbon Exploration & Licensing Policy (HELP), which adopts the Revenue Sharing Contract model, is a significant step towards improving the ‘Ease of Doing Business' in the Indian Exploration and Production (E&P) sector.
• It comes with attractive and liberal terms like reduced royalty rates, no Oil Cess, marketing and pricing freedom, round the year bidding, freedom to investors for carving out blocks of their interest, a single license to cover both conventional and unconventional hydrocarbon resources, exploration permission during the entire contract period, and an easy, transparent and swift bidding and awarding process.

• Approved in March 2016, the Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy (HELP) replaced the erstwhile New Exploration Licensing Policy (NELP)
• The Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP) along with the National Data Repository (NDR) were launched in June 2017 as the key drivers to accelerate the Exploration and Production (E&P) activities in India.
• Under OALP, companies are allowed to carve out areas they want to explore oil and gas in.
• Companies can put in an expression of interest (EOI) for any area throughout the year but such interests are accumulated thrice in a year. The areas sought are then offered for bidding.
• This policy is different from the past where the government identified areas and offered them for bidding.
• The successful roll-out of the HELP regime, followed by OALP Bid Rounds, has led to an increase in exploration acreages in India.
• The OALP has helped in removing red-tapism and brought in a quantum jump in the Exploration & Production sector.
• The OALP provides for discretionary powers to the Directorate General of Hydrocarbon (DGH) to accept the area for which EOI has been submitted or alter/modify the area after due evaluation.

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