Daily Current Capsules
20 and 21 February 2023

Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL)

 

What's the NEWS

• The Eurasian Patent Organization (EAPO), an international intergovernmental organization of the Eurasian Patent Convention, Moscow and the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) entered into a cooperation on the Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL) Access through a Non-Disclosure Agreement.

 

Agreement Highlighs

• Through this Agreement, the EAPO shall gain access to the contents of the TKDL database for the purpose of search and examination of prior art related to Indian traditional knowledge in patent applications, for the purposes of the Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) grant.
• With this cooperation with EAPO, the number of patent offices worldwide that have access to the TKDL database rises to sixteen.

Know! about TKDL

• The TKDL database, first of its kind worldwide, was established in 2001 by the Government of India, through a collaboration between CSIR and Ministry of AYUSH.
• The key objective of the TKDL is to prevent the erroneous grant of patents on Indian traditional knowledge (TK) and deter misappropriation of the country's traditional knowledge.
• Currently, the TKDL contains information on over 4.4 lakh formulations and techniques of Indian Systems of Medicine such as Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha, and Sowa Rigpa as well as Yoga from the traditional texts.
• The TK information from diverse languages and subject areas are transcribed into value-added information correlated with modern terminologies.
• The TKDL information is presented in a digitized format in five international languages including English, German, French, Japanese and Spanish, and format easily understandable by patent examiners.
• As per the extant approvals in place, the TKDL database is available only to patent offices through TKDL Access Agreements.
• The TKDL has been impactful towards protecting Indian TK from misappropriation, with over 283 patent applications world-over being revoked, amended, withdrawn or abandoned, based on the prior art evidences presented from the TKDL database.

 

World Day of Social Justice

What's the NEWS

• World Day of Social Justice is celebrated on 20 February every year.
• The theme for World Day of Social Justice 2023 focuses on the recommendations available on the common agenda prepared to strengthen global solidarity and to rebuild trust in government by "Overcoming Barriers and Unleashing Opportunities for Social Justice".
• The General Assembly determined that on November 26, 2007, February 20 will be observed annually as World Day of Social Justice.
• On June 10, 2008, the International Labour Organisation endorsed the ILO Declaration on Social Justice for Equitable Globalization.
• This is the International Labour Conference's third major declaration of principles and policy since the ILO's Constitution of 1919.
• The day is observed to elevate awareness about social inequality and to educate people about the importance of removing poverty, sexual identity and biological prejudice, religious bigotry, etc.

 

International Union of Railways (UIC)

 

What's the NEWS

• The 18th UIC World Security Congress commenced in Jaipur, India, today. The 3-day Conference is being jointly organized by the International Union of Railways (UIC), Paris and the Railway Protection Force (RPF).

 

Know! about World Security Congress

• The World Security Congress is a globally recognized security platform that brings together representatives from member Railway Organizations, delegates of UIC, policy makers, senior law-enforcement officials from State Polices and Railway Protection Force to discuss the current security challenges and deliberate on innovative solutions in the Railway Sector.

 

Know! about UIC

• The UIC (Union International Des Chemins) or International Union of Railways established in 1922 is headquartered in Paris.
• It is the worldwide professional association representing the railway sector for research, development & promotion of rail transport.
• Members are invited to take a proactive role in the UIC working groups and assemblies where the railways' position on regional/worldwide issues is shaped.

 

Know about Railway Protection Force (RPF)

• Railway Protection Force (RPF) is the prime security and law- enforcement organization in the field of Railway Security in India.
• Constituted as a federal Force in the year 1957, RPF is responsible for security of railway property, passenger and passenger zones.
• The RPF is now fully abreast of the dynamic security needs of the railway, its users and its stakeholders.

 

 

Kodaikanal Solar Observatory (KoSO)

 

What's the NEWS

• The longest continuous observations of the Sun taken from Kodaikanal Solar Observatory (KoSO)--one of the oldest astronomical observatories have been digitised and made available for community use.
• The digitised record of solar observations over more than 100 years taken on photographic plates/films can help scientists around the world strengthen their studies of solar variability and its impact on climate, spanning it over a longer time scale.
• Crucial sunspot data from KoSO, a field station of the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), Bengaluru, was usable for scientific analysis for the period of 1921-2011 due to some significant issues in the data.

 

Kodaikanal Solar Observatory

• The Kodaikanal Solar Observatory is a solar observatory owned and operated by the Indian Institute of Astrophysics.
• It is on the southern tip of the Palani Hills 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) from Kodaikanal.
• The Evershed effect was first detected at this observatory in January 1909.
• Solar data collected by the lab is the oldest continuous series of its kind in India.
• Precise observations of the equatorial electrojet are made here due to the unique geography of Kodaikanal.

 

National Conference on "Geospatial Policy for National Development"

 

 

What's the NEWS

 

• The Geospatial Policy for National Development conference kick-started with a session on Developing Geospatial Strategy at the Dr. Ambedkar International Centre, New Delhi.

 

Some of the important applications of Geospatial Policy-

 

• Digital India Land Resources Modernization Program (DILRMP) of the Ministry of Rural Development has led to creation of huge spatial data with sizeable number of cadastral maps digitized and geo-referenced.
• India's leading programme ‘Namami Gange' uses geospatial technologies for river basin management and regulating the proposed protected and regulatory zones along the banks of the river.
• Under the SVAMITVA (Survey of Villages Abadi and Mapping with Improvised Technology in Village Areas) scheme of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj, the large scale mapping of rural inhabited areas has created durable records of village property holdings which will support comprehensive village level planning.
• The urban geospatial database prepared under AMRUT has enabled the State Urban Local Bodies to prepare their city Master Plans
• PM GatiShakti National Master Plan has been launched by the Government to prosper economic growth and sustainable development of India by providing multimodal connectivity infrastructure to various economic zones.

 

Suposhit Maa Initiative

 

What's the NEWS

 

• Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla launched the second phase of "Suposhit Maa Abhiyan" in Kota, Rajasthan
• In the campaign, 3 thousand women will be given nutrition kits for 9 months with the help of public support and health check-up will be done every month.
• "Suposhit Maa Abhiyan" was started by identifying 1000 women in Kota-Bundi parliamentary constituency in the year 2020 to overcome the nutritional deficiency among women.
• The goal of this initiative to keep every mother and child healthy.

 

Jaadui Pitara

 

What's the NEWS

 

• Union Education Minister recently launched an innovative learning material for foundational years of children called "Jaadui Pitara".

 

Know! about ‘Jaadui Pitara'

 

• The ‘Jaadui Pitara' or ‘Magic Collection is a play-based learning material for children in the age group of three to eight years.
• It is launched by the Union Ministry of Education.
• It has been designed on the motto of ''learning through play'', as envisaged in the new National Education Policy (NEP).
• It comprises of playbooks, toys, puzzles, posters, flashcards, storybooks, and worksheets, as well as reflecting the local culture, social context, and languages.
• It is designed to pique curiosity and accommodate the diverse needs of learners at the foundational stage.
• It is developed under the curricular goals of National Curriculum Framework for Foundational Stage (NCF-FS) as recommended by the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
• The resources on ‘Jaadui Pitara' will be digitally available on DIKSHA platform - portal and mobile app.
• The pitara is available in 13 Indian languages.

 

National Curriculum Framework for Foundational Stage (NCF-FS)

 

• It is one of the four National Curriculum Frameworks (NCFs).
• It is India's first-ever integrated Curriculum Framework for children between ages 3-8.
• It is a direct outcome of the 5+3+3+4 ‘curricular and pedagogical' structure that NEP 2020 has recommended for School Education.
• NCF-FS has been developed by NCERT through an extensive consultative process with States & Union Territories up to grass root level and various institutions and organizations.

 

 

Global Intellectual Property Convention (GIPC) 2023

 

What's the NEWS

 

• The 14th Edition of the Global Intellectual Property Convention (GIPC 2023) held from 18 to 19 February 2023 at Goa
• GIPC is organised by the Institute of International Trade, Kolkata, and managed by ITAG Business Solutions, Kolkata, since 2009.
• To date, more than 3900 participants from more than 50 countries have taken part in the conference.
• Global Intellectual Property Convention (GIPC) is Asia's leading conference designed for in-house IP counsels and innovators to interact with IP attorneys from around the world to discuss the latest trends, opportunities, and challenges in the IP field necessary for the optimisation and leveraging of IP Assets.

 

Malabar naval exercise

 

What's the NEWS

 

• The Malabar naval exercise, the most visible manifestation of the expanding military interoperability among the Quad countries, will be conducted off Australia for the first time this August.

 

Know! about Malabar naval exercise

 

• It was started in 1992 as a bilateral naval exercise between India and US navy.
• The first Malabar Exercise in the Bay of Bengal took place in 2007.
• It was expanded into a trilateral format with the inclusion of Japan in 2015.
• In 2020, the Australian Navy joined the Malabar Exercise, making it a quadrilateral naval exercise.
• The aim of the Malabar Exercise of India, the US, Japan and Australia is to coordinate for a free, open, and inclusive Indo-Pacific.
• It takes place annually in the Indian Ocean and Pacific Oceans alternatively.
• This exercise includes a diverse range of activities such as fighter combat operations and maritime interdiction operations.

 

Exercise Dustlik-2023

 

What's the NEWS

 

• A military exercise DUSTLIK (2023) will be conducted from February 20th to 5th March 2023 in Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand.

 

Know! about Exercise Dustlik 2023

 

• It is a military-to-military exchange program between the Indian Army and Uzbekistan
• It is the fourth edition of the biennial training Exercise.
• The Indian contingent will be represented by the 14th Battalion, The GARHWAL RIFLES, part of Western Command in this bilateral exercise.
• The Uzbekistan Army will be represented by troops of the North Western Military District of Uzbekistan Army.
• This joint exercise is aimed at enhancing military capability to undertake multi-domain operations in a Sub Conventional scenario under United Nations Mandate.

 

UPI PayNow Linkage

 

What's the NEWS

 

• Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and Prime Minister of Singapore, Mr. Lee Hsien Loong participated in the virtual launch of real time payment linkage between the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) of India and PayNow of Singapore.
• Singapore is the first country with which cross border Person to Person (P2P) payment facility has been launched.
• This will help the Indian diaspora in Singapore, especially migrant workers/students and bring the benefits of digitalisation and FINTECH to the common man through instantaneous and low-cost transfer of money from Singapore to India and vice-versa.
• Acceptance of UPI payments through QR codes is already available in selected merchant outlets in Singapore.

 

KEEP Learning KEEP Evolving
TEAM CL