December 17th, 2020, PIB:- Download PDF Here

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. India-Bangladesh Virtual Summit
2. IND-INDO CORPAT
3. Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure
4. 4th India – Indonesia Virtual Bilateral Meeting on Drug Control Cooperation
5. World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)
6. Research on Indian Monsoons
7. Indian scientists develop high-performance hybrid super capacitors with 
novel electrode material

1. India-Bangladesh Virtual Summit

Context:

The prime ministers of India and Bangladesh held a joint virtual summit.

Details:

• Both sides held comprehensive discussions on all aspects of bilateral relations, and exchanged views on regional and international issues.
• MoUs and agreements were signed on various subjects such as:
  • Cooperation in the Hydrocarbon Sector
  • Indian Grant Assistance for Implementation of High Impact Community Development Projects through Local Bodies and other Public Sector Institutions
  • Protocol on Trans boundary Elephant Conservation
  • Supply of Equipment & Improvement of Garbage/Solid Waste Disposal Ground at Lamchori Area for Barishal City Corporation
  • Cooperation in the field of Agriculture
  • MoU between Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Memorial Museum, Dhaka, Bangladesh and the National Museum, New Delhi, India
  • Terms of Reference of India-Bangladesh CEO’s Forum

Also read: India – Bangladesh Relations

2. IND-INDO CORPAT

Context:

The 35^th edition of India-Indonesia Coordinated Patrol (IND-INDO CORPAT).

About IND-INDO CORPAT:

• The IND-INDO CORPAT is being conducted between the navies of India and Indonesia.
• To reinforce maritime links, the two navies have been carrying out CORPATs along their International Maritime Boundary Line since 2002, with the aim of ensuring the safety and security of shipping and international trade in the region.
• CORPATs build up understanding and interoperability between navies and facilitate the institution of measures to prevent and suppress Illegal Unreported Unregulated (IUU) fishing, drug trafficking, maritime terrorism, armed robbery and piracy.
• The Indian Naval Ship (INS) Kulish is participating in this CORPAT, along with P8I Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPA).
  • INS Kulish is an indigenously built missile corvette.

Background:

As part of the Government of India’s vision of SAGAR (Security And Growth for All in the Region), the Indian Navy has been proactively engaging with countries in the Indian Ocean Region for coordinated patrols, cooperation in EEZ surveillance, passage exercises and bilateral/multilateral exercises, towards enhancing regional maritime security.

3. Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure

Context:

Union Health Minister addresses event by Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI) and UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR).

India took a major part in the formation of the CDRI. To know more about the CDRI, check PIB dated Nov 14, 2019.

4. 4th India – Indonesia Virtual Bilateral Meeting on Drug Control Cooperation

Context:

The 4^th Bilateral Joint Working Group (JWG) meeting between the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB), India and the National Narcotics Board (BNN), Indonesia was held.

Important for UPSC: Golden Triangle

5. World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)

Context:

India contributes USD 1 million to WADA for scientific research.

Details:

• Taking a step further to ensure an atmosphere of Clean Sport globally, India has pledged a sum of USD 1 million to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) towards the global agency’s scientific research budget, which will allow WADA to develop innovative anti-doping testing and detection methods.
• The money will also be used to further strengthen WADA’s independent Investigations and Intelligence Department.
• India’s contribution of USD 1 million is the highest among contributions made by other world governments, including China, Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
• The total contribution of all member nations will be matched by an equal sum by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to create a corpus of USD 10 million.
• The decision to build this corpus was made at WADA’s Fifth World Conference on Doping in Sport held in Katowice, Poland in 2019.
• This contribution is over and above the annual contribution made to WADA’s core budget by India.

Read more about WADA in PIB dated Dec 7, 2020

6. Research on Indian Monsoons

Context:

Research reveals that Disturbance from North Atlantic could be possible reason why Indian monsoon derails in August.

Details & Findings of the Study:

• According to a study published in the journal ‘Science’, a planetary wave from the North Atlantic is capable of derailing the Indian monsoon.
• The findings suggest that modelling efforts ought to focus on including the influence of mid-latitudes, in addition to the Pacific and Indian oceans, for getting a better handle on predictability of the monsoon, its variability as well as droughts.
• The research team analyzed daily rainfall during the two categories of droughts from 1900 to 2015 and noticed dramatic differences in the evolution of rainfall deficit.
  • Rainfall deficit in El Niño droughts sets in early around mid-June and becomes progressively worse.
  • By mid-August, the deficit is very high and spread across the country, with no sign of recovery.
  • During non-El Niño droughts there is a moderate decrease in June rainfall, followed by signs of recovery during mid-July to mid-August ‒ the peak of the season.
  • However, in late August, there is an abrupt and steep fall in rainfall, resulting in drought conditions.
• The research shows that in the past century, the Indian monsoon droughts that occurred in non-El Niño years were sub-seasonal, as against El Niño droughts, where the deficit persists throughout the season.

Research Team:

• The research was carried out by a team from the Centre for Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences (CAOS), Indian Institute of Science (IISc), supported in part by the Department of Science & Technology.

7. Indian scientists develop high-performance hybrid super capacitors with novel electrode material

Context:

Scientists have developed a low-cost super capacitor device with excellent capacitive retention with a novel electrode material they have synthesized, which can pave the way for the next generation high power-high energy storage devices.

What is a Super capacitor?

• A super capacitor is a high-capacity capacitor with a capacitance value much higher than other capacitors, but with lower voltage limits, that bridges the gap between electrolytic capacitors and rechargeable batteries.
  • A capacitor is a device that stores electrical energy in an electric field.
• It typically stores 10 to 100 times more energy per unit volume or mass than electrolytic capacitors, and can accept and deliver charge much faster than batteries.
• The super capacitor is a next-generation energy storage device that has received extensive research attention owing to advantages such as high power density, long durability, and ultrafast charging characteristic as compared to conventional capacitors and lithium-ion batteries (LIB).
• Among the four main components of a super capacitor – electrode, electrolyte, separator, and the current collector, the first two are the pivotal components, which directly determine the electrochemical behaviour of the super capacitors.
• The fabrication cost of electrode materials, as well as electrolytes, should be reduced because these two components account for a major portion of the device manufacturing cost.
• Super capacitors with high capacitance and excellent capacitive retention developed from low-cost fabrication techniques are the need of the hour, considering their potential utility in the commercial market.

The Study:

• Scientists have developed a facile, scalable, and cost-effective electrochemical route to synthesize electrodes made of nickel cobaltite containing nanosheet structures with incorporated oxygen vacancies as an active material, for hybrid super capacitors.
• These electrodes have been found to have excellent electrochemical performance.
• The team comprised of scientists from the International Advanced Research Center for Powder Metallurgy and New Materials (ARCI), an autonomous body of the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India in collaboration with IIT Hyderabad.

Read previous PIB here.

December 17th, 2020, PIB:- Download PDF Here