Education
AmbiTAG - India's first indigenous temperature data logger for the cold chain management

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about AmniTAG) + Mains ( GS III Achievements of Indians in science & technology; indigenization of technology and developing new technology + food processing)

What's the NEWS

• Indian Institute of Technology, Ropar (IIT Ropar) in Punjab has developed a first-of-its-kind IoT device - AmbiTag that records real-time ambient temperature during the transportation of perishable products, vaccines and even body organs and blood.

Know! all about AmbiTag

• That recorded temperature further helps to know whether that particular item transported from anywhere in the world is still usable or perished because of temperature variation.
• This information is particularly critical for vaccines including Covid-19 vaccine, organs and blood transportation.
• AmbiTag continuously records the temperature of its immediate surroundings "from -40 to +80 degrees in any time zone for a full 90 days on a single charge.
• It generates an alert when the temperature goes beyond a pre-set limit. The recorded data can be retrieved by connecting the USB with any computer.
• The device has been developed under Technology Innovation Hub - AWaDH (Agriculture and Water Technology Development Hub) and its Startup ScratchNest. AWaDH is a Govt of India project.
• Besides perishable items including vegetables, meat and dairy products it can also monitor the temperature of animal semen during transit.

Space Awareness
Tianzhou-2

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about Tianzhou-2 cargo spacecraft and china's space mission + Mains (GSIII awareness in the field of space)
What's the NEWS

• China took another step towards completing the construction of its first space station by the end of next year following the launch and docking of a cargo spacecraft

Know! about china's first space station programme

• The Tianzhou-2 cargo spacecraft, described by China's state media as "the delivery guy for China's space station", was launched late on a Long March-7 rocket from the island of Hainan, and docked eight hours later with the space station's first core module called Tianhe, or "heavenly harmony".
• The launch was a third landmark for China's space programme in recent weeks.
• China landed a spacecraft in Mars on May 15 carrying its first Mars rover, Zhurong.
• The Tianhe module, which the cargo spacecraft docked with on Sunday, was launched on April 29.
• The Tianzhou-2 spacecraft carried a range of supplies and will be followed by the launch of another cargo spacecraft, Tianzhou-3, and two manned missions, Shenzhou-12 and Shenzhou-13, later this year, each carrying three astronauts who will spend several months in orbit. The Shenzhou-12 launch is slated for mid-June.
• The six missions to follow this year, including for the space station's second and third modules, Wentian and Mengtian, will close to complete the construction of China's first space station, expected to be finished in 2022.
• Tianzhou-2, with a maximum takeoff weight of 13.5 tons and 6.9 ton-payload capacity, is the largest cargo spacecraft in service.
• The spacecraft is carrying cargo and propellant that will replenish the supplies of the Tianhe module

International Organisations
ECOWAS

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

• West African leaders were due to meet in Ghana to discuss a response to Mali's second coup in nine months, which has sparked warnings of fresh sanctions and deep concerns over stability in the volatile Sahel region.
• Mali's new President Colonel Assimi Goita arrived in Accra for preliminary talks ahead of the extraordinary summit of regional bloc ECOWAS

Know! about ECOWAS

• The Economic Community of West African States, also known as ECOWAS is a regional political and economic union of fifteen countries located in West Africa.
• The union was established on 28 May 1975, with the signing of the Treaty of Lagos, with its stated mission to promote economic integration across the region.
• A revised version of the treaty was agreed and signed on 24 July 1993 in Cotonou.
• Considered one of the pillar regional blocs of the continent-wide African Economic Community (AEC), the stated goal of ECOWAS is to achieve "collective self-sufficiency" for its member states by creating a single large trade bloc by building a full economic and trading union.
• The ECOWAS also serves as a peacekeeping force in the region, with member states occasionally sending joint military forces to intervene in the bloc's member countries at times of political instability and unrest.
• In recent years these included interventions in Ivory Coast in 2003, Liberia in 2003, Guinea-Bissau in 2012, Mali in 2013, and The Gambia in 2017.
• The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is made up of fifteen member countries that are located in the Western African region.
• These countries have both cultural and geopolitical ties and shared common economic interest.
• The region of West Africa is located west of north-south axis lying close to 10° east longitude.
• The Atlantic Ocean forms the western as well as the southern borders of the West African region.
• The northern border is the Sahara Desert, with the Ranishanu Bend generally considered the northernmost part of the region.
• The eastern border lies between the Benue Trough, and a line running from Mount Cameroon to Lake Chad.
• Colonial boundaries are still reflected in the modern boundaries between contemporary West African states, cutting across ethnic and cultural lines, often dividing single ethnic groups between two or more states.

Prelims Factoids
The National Rail and Transportation Institute (NRTI)
Relevance IN - Prelims ( about NRTI)
What's the NEWS

• NRTI should now do research on initiatives of Railways under taken in last 7 years like Bio Toilets, Rail Electrification,Infra upgradationetc" said Shri Piyush Goyal Minister for Railways while reviewing the progress of National Rail and Transportation Institute.
• All training institutes under Railways should come under one Management roof of NRTI.
• This would not only improve the quality of academic inputs but would also bring uniformity in training standards, reduce costs and optimise resource utilization.
• NRTI is on road to become a world-class institution of advanced study to develop new talent through focus on higher education, cutting edge research in rail & transportation technology and management.
• NRTI aims to develop interdisciplinary Centres of Excellence which would be collaborative constructs to promote research and education to the transportation sector.

National Rail and Transportation Institute (NRTI)

• The National Rail and Transportation Institute (NRTI) is India's first and only civil service training institute located in Vadodara, Gujarat, India.

Currently, it is running two state-of-the-art undergraduate programmes -

1. Bachelor of Business Administration (B.B.A.) in Transportation Management
2. Bachelor of Science (B.Sc.) in Transportation Technology

• At present, it accounts for enrollment of around 200 students from 20 states of India, across two academic years: 2018-2021 and 2019-2022.
• Once the project is fully executed, it will have close to 3000 full-time residential students on its rolls, across five schools - Management & Leadership; Engineering & Applied Science; Transport Planning & Design; Humanities, Arts & Social Sciences and Transport Policy & Law.
• The National Rail and Transportation Institute (NRTI) is India's first university exclusively focussed on transport-related education, multidisciplinary research and training.
• A Deemed to be University under the [[de Novo] starting of something new] category, NRTI is specifically established to create a resource pool of best-in-class professionals for the railway and transportation sector.
• A unique feature of programmes at NRTI is the using "live laboratories", the facilities and infrastructure of Indian Railways and associated establishments.
• The University has forged academic partnerships with ivy league and top-ranked global universities
• NRTI will offer multi-disciplinary programmes designed to cater to the needs of India's transportation sector.
• The Institute will follow a demand-driven curriculum while aligning with industry priorities.
• To ensure best-in-class delivery of education, NRTI will follow a highly experiential and unique interdisciplinary pedagogical approach that incorporates the latest technologies such as live classrooms and online programmes, and is delivered by high-quality faculty with global exposure.

Government Scheme
Horticulture Cluster Development Programme

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about Horticulture Cluster Development Programme (CDP).+ Mains ( GS II government policies and interventions for the welfare of various sectors + GS III farmers welfare)
What's the NEWS

• To ensure holistic growth of horticulture, Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare virtually launched the Horticulture Cluster Development Programme (CDP).
• In a pilot phase, the programme will be implemented in 12 horticulture clusters out of the total 53 clusters selected for the programme.
• A central sector programme implemented by the National Horticulture Board (NHB) of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare, CDP aims at growing and developing identified horticulture clusters to make them globally competitive.

Know! all about Horticulture Cluster Development Programme (CDP)

• The programme will address all major issues related to the Indian horticulture sector including pre-production, production, post-harvest management, logistics, marketing and branding.
• The programme is designed to leverage geographical specialisation and promote integrated and market-led development of horticulture clusters. Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare (MoA&FW) has identified 53 horticulture clusters, of which 12 have been selected for the pilot launch of the programme.
• Based on the learnings from the pilot project, the programme will be scaled up to cover all the identified clusters.
• The clusters of the pilot phase include Shopian (J&K) and Kinnaur (H.P.) for Apple, Lucknow (U.P.), Kutch (Gujarat) and Mahbubnagar (Telangana) for Mango, Anantpur (A.P.) and Theni (T.N.) for Banana, Nasik (Maharashtra) for Grapes, Siphahijala (Tripura) for Pineapple, Solapur (Maharashtra) and Chitradurga (Karnataka) for Pomegranate and West Jaintia Hills (Meghalaya) for Turmeric.
• These clusters will be implemented through Cluster Development Agencies (CDAs) which are appointed on the recommendations of the respective State/UT Government.
• The programme is expected to converge with other initiatives of the Government such as the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund which is a medium - long term financing facility for investment in projects for post-harvest management infrastructure and community farming assets and will leverage the central sector scheme of the Ministry for Formation and Promotion of 10,000 Farmers Producer Organisations (FPOs).
• The Cluster Development Programme has a huge potential to transform the entire horticulture ecosystem improving its global competitiveness by building last-mile connectivity with the use of multimodal transport for the efficient and timely evacuation and transport of horticulture produce.

Defence
MoD notifies ‘Second Positive Indigenisation List' of 108 items to promote self-reliance & defence exports

Relevance IN - Prelims ( about Second Positive Indigenisation List) + Mains ( GS III indigenization of technology and developing new technology)
What's the NEWS

• To boost indigenisation in the Defence sector, Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh has approved a proposal of the Department of Military Affairs, Ministry of Defence (MoD) to notify the ‘Second Positive Indigenisation List' of 108 items.

The second negative import list

• The Defence Ministry notified the second negative import list - now renamed as the ‘positive indigenisation list' - of 108 items that can now be only purchased from indigenous sources. The new list takes the total number on the list to 209.
• It is planned to be implemented progressively with effect from December 2021 to December 2025
• This will give further boost to indigenisation with active participation of public and private sector for fulfilling the twin objectives of achieving self-reliance and promoting defence exports.
• All the 108 items will now be procured from indigenous sources as per provisions given in Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) 2020.
• The second list (enclosed) lays special focus on weapons/systems which are currently under development/trials and are likely to translate into firm orders in the future.
• Like the first list, import substitution of ammunition which is a recurring requirement has been given special focus.
• Not only does the list recognise the potential of local defence industry, it will also invigorate impetus to domestic Research &Development by attracting fresh investment into technology and manufacturing capabilities.

Know! more about the ‘Second Positive Indigenisation List'

• The ‘Second Positive Indigenisation List' comprises complex systems, sensors, simulator, weapons and ammunitions like Helicopters, Next Generation Corvettes, Air Borne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) systems, Tank Engines, Medium Power Radar for Mountains, MRSAM Weapon Systems and many more such items to fulfil the requirements of Indian Armed Forces.
• This second list is planned to be implemented progressively with effect from December 2021 to December 2025.
• This second list has been prepared by MoD after several rounds of consultations with government and private manufacturing industry confederations to assess future capabilities of Indian Industry which will be able to meet requirements of the Armed Forces.
• This list provides continuous impetus towards self-reliance in Defence.
• This list also provides an excellent opportunity for ‘start-ups' as also MSMEs which will get tremendous boost from this initiative.

Second Positive Indigenisation List ( how to achieve it)

• Ministry of Defence, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Service Head Quarters (SHQs) will take all necessary steps, including hand holding of the Industry, to ensure that the timelines mentioned in the ‘Second Positive Indigenisation List' are met
• In August 2020, the ‘First Positive Indigenisation' List comprising 101 items was notified, in pursuance of Government's endeavor of ‘AtmaNirbhar Bharat Abhiyan' and to boost indigenisation in the defence sector.
• At that time, it was also highlighted that more such equipment would be identified progressively to facilitate and encourage defence manufacturing in the country.
• The Ministry is also soon expected to put out the final version of the ‘Defence Production and Export Promotion Policy (DPEPP) 2020', the draft of which was released last August for public feedback.

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