Relevance IN - Prelims (about the Innovate for Accessible India campaign + about NASSCOM)
What's the NEWS

• Microsoft India and NASSCOM Foundation announced the launch of the Innovate for Accessible India campaign in partnership with the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (DEPwD), Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment, Department of Science & Technology (DST), Ministry of Science and Technology and ERNET (National Research and Education Network under MeitY).

• Innovate for Accessible India is a nation-wide innovation challenge aimed at empowering people with disabilities with the technology and tools required for better integration into society and access to equal opportunities.
• The campaign will be an aggregator of workable technology solutions developed using Microsoft Cloud, Artificial Intelligence and other technologies that address gaps faced by people with disabilities, especially in acquiring services and support in education, skill building, employment, mobility, rehabilitation and other government services.
• The campaign will invite applications from students, citizens and social impact organizations to build customized solutions that address challenges faced by people with disabilities across the 21 officially recognized disabilities.
• The key areas of focus that developers are encouraged to address include mobility, e-governance and access, education, skilling and livelihood and health.

• The National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) is a trade association of Indian Information Technology (IT) and Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry
• Established in 1988, NASSCOM is a non-profit organisation.
• NASSCOM gives a platform to the developing companies to network and present their product.

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about Greenco Rating system ) + Mains ( GS III Environment conservation)
What's the NEWS

• GreenCo Rating, developed by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), has been acknowledged in India's Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) document, submitted to United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in 2015, as a proactive voluntary action of Indian industry / private sector towards combating climate change.

Know! more about GreenCo rating and its benefits

• It helps the industrial units in identifying and implementing various possible measures in terms of energy conservation, material conservation, recycling, utilisation of renewable energy, Green House Gases (GHG) reduction, water conservation, solid and liquid waste management, green cover etc.

• This system is beneficial for the environment as the GreenCo rating assesses the units on their environmental performance and thus aligns them to national priorities towards environment such as energy efficiency, water conservation, renewable energy, waste management, etc.

Know! about CII

• The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) is an industry association in India.
• CII is a non-government, not-for-profit, industry-led and industry-managed organization. Founded in 1895, it has over 9,000 members, from the private as well as public sectors
• CII works with the Government on policy issues. CII has been a catalyst of change in India's economic policy reforms.
• CII serves as a reference point for Indian industry and the international business community.

Space Awareness
ISRO's Assistance in finding Rich Fishing Areas

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about Potential Fishing Zone (PFZ) + about Oceansat-2 + about INCOIS) + Mains ( GS III awareness in the field of space)
What's the NEWS

• The Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), Hyderabad has reported that Oceansat Satellite data from Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) are used to prepare the Potential Fishing Zone (PFZ) advisories on the potential rich fishing areas and provide to the sea faring fishermen in all states.

Know! more about it

• ISRO has developed the methodology for the generation of fishery advisories and transfer to INCOIS since 2002 as an operational service for providing PFZ advisories.
• This service utilizes data on chlorophyll concentration (Chl) obtained from ISRO's Oceansat-2 satellite and the sea surface temperature from National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA / USA satellites).
• PFZ's are those regions where the fishes aggregate due to an abundance of food and they are demarcated by tracing those regions in the ocean.

Know! about Oceansat-2

• Oceansat-2 is an Indian satellite designed to provide service continuity for operational users of the Ocean Colour Monitor (OCM) instrument on Oceansat-1.
• The main objectives of OceanSat-2 are to study surface winds and ocean surface strata, observation of chlorophyll concentrations, monitoring of phytoplankton blooms, study of atmospheric aerosols and suspended sediments in the water.
• Oceansat-2 is second satellite in the series of Indian Remote Sensing satellites dedicated to ocean research, and will provide continuity to the applications of Oceansat-1 (launched in 1999).

Know! about INCOIS

• Indian National Center for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) is an autonomous organization of the Government of India, under the Ministry of Earth Sciences
• ESSO-INCOIS was established as an autonomous body in 1999 under the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) and is a unit of the Earth System Science Organization (ESSO).
• ESSO- INCOIS is mandated to provide the best possible ocean information and advisory services to society, industry, government agencies and the scientific community through sustained ocean observations and constant improvements through systematic and focussed research.

Human Resource Development
Comprehensive School Health Programme (SHP)
Relevance IN - Prelims ( about SHP and its objective) + Mains ( GS II Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health ,Education, Human Resources.
What's the NEWS

• Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Human Resources Development and Ministry of Health and Family Welfare have jointly developed comprehensive School Health Programme (SHP) under Ayushman Bharat to foster the growth, development and educational achievement of school going children by promoting their health and wellbeing.

Know! more about it

• A total of eleven themes have been identified under the SHP which include Reproductive Health and HIV Prevention. These modules create awareness on the subject among adolescents.
• In pursuance of the National Curriculum Framework, 2005, the Department of School & Literacy is implementing the Adolescence Education Programme (AEP) as part of the National Population Education Project (NPEP).
• One of the learning outcomes of AEP is to make the learners aware of the concerns of adolescence, i.e. process of growing up during adolescence, HIV/AIDS and Substance (Drug) Abuse and to inculcate in them positive attitude regarding these concerns.
  
  

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