Read the daily PIB update and stay up-to-date on current affairs for the UPSC exam
Gabon new avenue for India
Context: The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Republic of Gabon, Mr. Regis Immongault, called on Union Minister for Commerce & Industry and Civil Aviation, Suresh Prabhu.
Gabon:
- Gabon, officially the Gabonese Republic, is a country on the west coast of Central Africa.
- Located on the equator, Gabon is bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, the Republic of the Congo on the east and south, and the Gulf of Guinea to the west.
India and Gabon
- Bilateral trade between India and Gabon is currently valued at USD $ 440.47 million.
- Indian companies are already operating in wood, plywood, mining and fisheries sectors.
- There is also a possibility that two countries will work together in sectors like logistics, infrastructure, energy, water, agriculture, services and tourism.
- Gabon has the 6th largest reserves of Manganese in the world. It is one of the four countries in the world with high-grade reserves along with South Africa, Australia and Brazil.
- Manganese Ore India Ltd (MOIL) team visited Gabon in July 2018 to explore possibilities of joint collaboration with Gabonese mining companies.
Himachal Pradesh first state to launch pan-India single emergency number 112
Context: The Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh launched an Emergency Response Support System (ERSS) for Himachal Pradesh at Mandi.
ERSS
Background: Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has accepted the recommendations of the Justice Verma Committee in the backdrop of the unfortunate incident of Nirbhaya in December’2012 and has approved a national project by name of ‘Emergency Response Support System’.
Objective:
- Providing a single emergency response number across the country.
- Providing 24 Hours and 7 Days (24×7) efficient and effective response system which can receive input from various voice and data services such as voice call, SMS, email, Internet of Things, panic buttons in public transport etc. to attend to citizens in distress.
- Identification of location of person in distress connecting through voice or data.
- Automated response system for timely dispatch of field resources (police) to the location of incidence using the system.
- GPS(Global Positioning System) enabled dispatch of vehicles to locate nearest vehicles.
- Integration with existing Dial 100, Dial 108 and other emergency response systems.
- Integrate with other relevant systems like CCTNS etc. Also, connect to TSP’s (Telecom Service Provider) databases to update subscriber information and to connect to GMLC (Gateway Mobile Location Centre) for location update.
Sustainable Blue Economy Conference
Context: Shri Nitin Gadkari addresses the Sustainable Blue Economy Conference in Nairobi. He said that India endorses the growth of the Blue Economy in a sustainable, inclusive and people centred manner through the framework of the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA).
About:
Kenya and its co-hosts Canada and Japan are inviting the world to Nairobi for the first global conference on the sustainable blue economy.
The Sustainable Blue Economy Conference is the first global conference on the sustainable blue economy. Over 18,000 participants from around the world are coming together to learn how to build a blue economy that:
- Harnesses the potential of our oceans, seas, lakes and rivers to improve the lives of all, particularly people in developing states, women, youth and Indigenous peoples
- Leverages the latest innovations, scientific advances and best practices to build prosperity while conserving our waters for future generations
Blue Economy: The objective of the Blue Economy is to promote smart, sustainable and inclusive growth and employment opportunities within the Indian Ocean region’s maritime economic activities. The Blue Economy is determined to initiate appropriate programs for: the sustainable harnessing of ocean resources; research and development; developing relevant sectors of oceanography; stock assessment of marine resources; introducing marine aquaculture, deep sea/long line fishing and biotechnology; and human resource development; among others.
India is also developing its maritime infrastructure as well as its inland waterways and coastal shipping through the launch of the ambitious “Sagarmala Programme” which aims to revolutionize maritime logistics and port led developments in the country. India’s national vision about this sector is clearly articulated in term “SAGAR”- Security and Growth for All in IOR which was coined by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
To ace UPSC current affairs section, read more PIB articles here.
Also see:
| India – Africa Relations |
| Indian Ocean Rim Association |
Comments