National Lok Adalat

Paper 2 –Polity

From the point of view of mains examination

Question: In the light of the statement ‘Justice delayed is equal to justice denied’, explain how Lok Adalats can play an important role in speedy justice?

Why Should You Know?

On 12th November 2022 National Lok Adalat is going to be held across the country.

In details –

• National Lok Adalat will be held on 12th November 2022 across the country to despose off pending cases through settlement.
• Considering the benefits of the Lok Adalat system and mutual settlement between parties a large number of consumer cases are expected to be disposed of.
• Groundwork for this exercise has already been initiated and all the consumer commissions have been intimated to identify cases that have an element of settlement and prepare a list of pending cases that can be referred to Lok Adalat. Regular monitoring of the making of the list is been done by the department.
• To have maximum outreach and benefit consumers, Department is reaching out to consumers, companies, and organizations through SMS and emails. Department has the phone numbers and emails of 3 lakh parties whose cases are pending before the commissions. The Department has done a Video Conferencing with the Consumer Commissions which has more than 200 pending cases.
• With the help of technology, a separate link is being created and circulated amongst all stakeholders wherein one can enter their pending case number and commission where the case is pending and easily refer the matter to Lok Adalat. The link shall be circulated through email and SMS.
• Through data analytics, sector-wise distribution of pendency has been identified such as banking with a total number of 71379 pending cases, insurance with 168827, e-commerce with 1247, electricity with 33919, railways with 2316, etc., and efforts are being made towards the settlement of such consumer cases on priority.
• Department of Consumer Affairs is constantly monitoring the disposal of cases in Consumer Commissions and is in the process of collaborating with the National Legal Service Authority (NALSA) for referring the inclusion of pending consumer cases to be disposed of through the upcoming National Lok Adalat, where both parties mutually agree on a settlement. Communication in this regard has already been made to NALSA.
• For further information and assistance to get their pending case referred to Lok Adalat, they can register their cases for the reference to Lok Adalat throughwebite or can call on 1915, National Consumer Helpline who will assist them in the process. Also, the Consumer Commissions can upload the updated list of referred cases on the portal through the above-mentioned link

Organizing Lok Adalats

• National Lok Adalats are held at regular intervals where on a single day Lok Adalats are held throughout the country, in all the courts right from the Supreme Court to the District level wherein cases are disposed of in huge numbers.
• The mission of the Department of Consumer Affairs is to strengthen consumer protection and safety through progressive legislation, empower consumers through awareness and education, and provide access to fair and efficient grievance redressal mechanisms.
• National Legal Service Authority (NALSA) along with other Legal Service institutions conducts Lok Adalats. It is one of the alternate dispute redressal mechanisms, it’s a forum where disputes/cases pending in the courts/commissions are settled/ compromised amicably.

Pending cases

• There are about 6, 07,996 consumer cases pending in the country. In NCDRC there are about 22250 numbers of cases pending.
• The major states like Uttar Pradesh with 28318 cases pending, Maharashtra with 18093 pending cases, Delhi with 15450 pending cases, Madhya Pradesh with 10319, and, Karnataka with 9615 pending cases are some of the states with the highest number of pendency.

About Lok Adalat

• Lok Adalat (People’s Court) is a Statutory Organization under the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987, and was created as an alternative dispute resolution mechanism used in India to resolve disputes/grievances outside courts.
• It is a forum where cases pending on panchayat, or at a pre-litigation stage in a court of law, are settled.
• Under this Act, the award (decision) made by the Lok Adalats is deemed to be a civil court case and is final and binding on all parties. No appeal against such an award lies before any court of law.
• If the parties are not satisfied with the award of the Lok Adalat (though there is no provision for an appeal against such an award), they are free to initiate litigation by approaching the court of appropriate jurisdiction.
• 1987 with a statutory status for using alternative dispute redressal mechanisms.The first Lok Adalats were held in Gujaratin 1982 and in Chennai in 1986.

Collaborative efforts betweenBIS and IEC

Paper 3 – Economy

From the point of view of mains examination

Question: “Before regulating the economy, it is necessary to regulate the standards prevailing in it”, do you agree with this statement? And if so, throw light on the important steps taken by India in this direction.

Why Should You Know?

Continuous collaborative efforts are being made between Bureau of Indian Standards and International Electrotechnical Commission for wide publicity of standards, let us know about it.

In details

• The Secretary-General & CEO, International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), Mr. Philippe Metzger during a recent visit to Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) emphasized on the collaboration between BIS and IEC.
• He had an intensive interaction with Shri Pramod Kumar Tiwari, Director General, BIS and encouraged Indian Standards community to take up further leadership positions in technical, policy and governance bodies of IEC.

• Presently, India is a member of IEC Standardization Management Board (SMB) and Market Strategy Board (MSB), the highest policy-making bodies of IEC responsible for technical matters and for identifying relevant subject areas for future work respectively.
• India also contributes in the technical work of IEC through its participation in Technical Committees (TCs), Subcommittees (SCs) and their groups.
• During the interaction, BIS officials discussed how both the organizations could have deeper engagements and can promote standards. Mr. Metzger had fruitful deliberations with Indian standards community to address needs and expectations of the community, members representing India in IEC Governance bodies.
• Representatives of relevant Industry associations discussed the significance of IEC from Indian perspectives, and prospects for further collaborations between BIS and IEC.

What is IEC?

• IEC is a not-for-profit organization developing International standards in the field of electrical and electronics, based in Geneva.
• India through the Indian National Committee of IEC (INC-IEC) is participating and contributing to the work of IEC. DG BIS is the President of the INC-IEC.

About Bureau of Indian Standards

• The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) is the National Standards Body of India under Department of Consumer affairs, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution, Government of India.
• It is established by the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 2016 which came into effect on 12 October 2017.The Act establishes the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) as the National Standards Body of India.
• The organisation was formerly the Indian Standards Institution (ISI).
• BIS is responsible for the harmonious development of the activities of standardization, marking and quality certification of goods and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
• The Minister in charge of the Ministry or Department having administrative control of the BIS is the ex-officio President of the BIS.
• BIS has 500 plus scientific officers working as Certification Officers, Member secretaries of technical committees and lab OIC’s.
• As a National Standards Body, it has 25 members drawn from Central or State Governments, industry, scientific and research institutions, and consumer organisations. Its headquarters are in New Delhi, with regional offices in Eastern Region at Kolkata, southern Region at Chennai, Western Region at Mumbai, Northern Region at Chandigarh and Central Region at Delhi and 20 branch offices.

International Film Festival of India

Paper 1 – Art & Culture

From the point of view of mains examination

Question: To what extent is the saying that “Cinema is the mirror of society” is true and why? Explain with example. 

Why Should You Know?

The 53rd edition of IFFI, the International Film Festival of India, has officially rolled out the red carpet for media delegates.

In details –

• The 53rd edition of IFFI, the International Film Festival of India, has officially rolled out the red carpet for media delegates. The festival, which is being held in Goa during November 20 – 28, 2022 will showcase a collage of the best of contemporary and classic films from India and around the globe.
• As a media delegate at IFFI 53, awaiting you are world-renowned filmmakers, actors, technicians, critics, academicians, not to mention fellow film enthusiasts, all of whom will congregate in the tourist state of Goa to immerse themselves in an ocean of cinematic celebration and inspiration.

Special arrangement for media representatives

• Inviting the media in IFFI said that- So come celebrate the joy of cinema, the vibrant beauty of the stories these films tell, and the eclectic variety of the lives, aspirations, struggles and dreams of the filmmakers themselves.
• Partake in the celebration of films which happens in, on and off the screens. Yes, the festival brings us not only a carefully curated selection of cinematic excellence from India and across the world, but also the invaluable opportunity to be inspired by an array of masterclasses, panel discussions, seminars and other conversations which make IFFI, and every great film festival, what it is.
• Information and communication has a central role in the success of the festival, in propagating film culture, in cultivating genuine love for the art, in helping us soak ourselves in the breadth and depth of the human condition. As we invite media delegates to register for and attend the festival, we invite you to also embrace the professional privilege of contributing to the celebration of the festival, through the power of the media to which you lend your pen, voice, senses and more.
• You can be a media delegate if you have completed 21 years of age as on 1st January, 2022 and belong to Print, Electronic, or even a Digital / Online Media organisation. You are also welcome if you are blazing your own path as a freelance journalist, provided you fulfil the age criterion.

About IFFI

• The International Film Festival of India (IFFI), founded in 1952, is among Asia’s most prominent film festivals. Held in Goa for the first time in 2004, the festival has since found a home in the coastal state, returning here every year. And in 2014, Goa was declared the permanent venue for IFFI.
• The idea of the International Film Festival of India is to celebrate films, the stories they tell and the people behind them. By doing so, we seek to nurture, promote and spread the enlightened appreciation and ardent love for films – far, wide and deep; to build bridges of love, understanding and fraternity among peoples; and to inspire them to scale new peaks of individual and collective excellence.
• The festival is conducted every year by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India in collaboration with the Entertainment Society of Goa, Government of Goa, the host state.
• While the Directorate of Film Festivals (DFF) in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has generally been spearheading the festival so far, consequent to the merger of film media units with the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC), NFDC has taken over the conduct of the festival.

Hydrogen co-firing in Gas Turbines

Paper 3 – Science & Tech

From the point of view of mains examination

Question: To reduce global carbon emissions, we have to adopt new technology constantly, is NTPC doing the right thing in this direction? Explain the role of NTPC in this background.

Why Should You Know?

Recently NTPC and GE Gas Power Signed a MoU for demonstrating Hydrogen co-firing in Gas Turbines to Further Decarbonize Power Generation.

In details

• In its efforts to adopt advanced powering technology to decarbonize power generation in India, NTPC Ltd., the country’s largest power generating utility, and GE Gas Power signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for feasibility to demonstrate of hydrogen (H2) co-firing blended with natural gas in GE’s 9E gas turbines installed at NTPC’s Kawas combined-cycle gas power plant in Gujarat.
• Under this significant collaboration, the two companies will jointly explore the pathways to reduce CO2 emissions from the Kawas gas power plant and further implementation at scale across NTPC’s installed units in India.

Use of hydrogen

• NTPC’s Kawas gas power plant is powered by four GE 9E gas turbines operating in a combined-cycle mode and has an installed capacity of 645 megawatts (MW).
• Further, GE’s advanced E- Class gas turbine portfolio currently can burn up to 100% by volume of hydrogen when blended with natural gas.
• This capability varies depending on the type of combustion system used. For fuels with over 5% hydrogen by volume, gas turbine accessories need to be evaluated and possibly modified to reliably deliver the fuel to the combustors.

• In this first-of-its-kind MoU with NTPC in India, GE Gas Power will evaluate the possible modifications in the gas turbine unit and auxiliaries required for blending H2 with natural gas.
• Thereafter, a pilot project for 5% Co-firing of hydrogen may be implemented at the Kawas gas power plant in a safe environment based on the feasibility report. NTPC shall provide H2 required for the project.

Role of NTPC

• “India’s power landscape is strengthened by the emerging technologies that are at various stages of development and industrial competitiveness. Hydrogen has a significant potential to play a complementary role along with other low-to-zero carbon fuels in generating electricity at scale.
• “NTPC, with a large fleet of power generation facilities delivering more than 70 GW across India, has been at the forefront when it comes to piloting new hydrogen-related initiatives.
• NTPC is committed to playing a key role in India’s energy transition journey as the country marches ahead to achieve the net-zero target and climate goals.
• In parallel, it’s crucial to invest and effectively utilize the proven technology that can generate electricity, which is affordable, accessible, and reliable.
• This MoU is among the steps we are taking in the direction to meet the objectives of the National Hydrogen Mission. As our collaboration with GE grows deeper, we are more focused to use advanced technology and leverage our gas power assets with a higher percentage of zero-carbon fuels such as H2, as the availability of the fuel becomes viable.

About NTPC

• NTPC Limited, formerly known as National Thermal Power Corporation Limited, is an Indian central public sector undertaking under the ownership of Ministry of Power, Government of India which is engaged in generation of electricity and allied activities.
• The headquarters of  NTPC is situated at New Delhi.
• The company was founded on 7 November 1975 by India’s former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi as “National Thermal Power Corporation Private Limited”.
• It started work on its first thermal power project in 1976 at Shaktinagar (named National Thermal Power Corporation Private Limited Singrauli) in Uttar Pradesh.
• In the same year, its name was changed to “National Thermal Power Corporation Limited”.
• NTPC’s core function is the generation and distribution of electricity to State Electricity Boards in India.
• The body also undertakes consultancy and turnkey project contracts that involve engineering, project management, construction management, and operation and management of power plants.
• The PSU has also ventured into oil and gas exploration and coal mining. It is the largest power company in India with an electric power generating capacity around 67,907 MW.

SwachhtaSaarthiSamaroh 2022

Paper 3 – Enironment

From the point of view of mains examination

Question: We can give a fast pace by linking sanitation management with economic activities, is it true? Explain this statement while explaining about Swachhata Sarathi Fellowship.

Why Should You Know?

Recently, on 30 September and 1 October 2022, the SwachhtaSarathiSamaroh 2022 was organized in which the SwachhtaSarathi members from all over the country participated.

In details

• The two-day ‘SwachhtaSaarthiSamaroh’ was organised on 30th September and 1st October 2022 at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Delhi. This event marked the completion of the first year of the SwachhtaSaarthi fellowship (SSF) of the Waste to Wealth Mission of the Office of Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) to the Government of India.
• During the two-day event organized at IIT Delhi, the fellows showcased their work done over the past year in the form of posters/ prototypes/ papers/ presentations/ products in the event exhibition. The Scientific Secretary, O/o Principal Scientific Adviser interacted with the fellows during her visit to the exhibition booths.
• Apart from the exhibition, different sessions and workshops were also conducted for the students, including a Foldscope Microscopy Workshop for the Category A fellows and a session on Overview of Carbon Credit and Sustainable Future for the Category B & C fellows.
• On the second day of the event, an excursion to the Nehru Planetarium and the Rashtrapati Bhavan museum was organised for all the SSFs. The visits were followed by the closing ceremony where Mr. Vijay Kumar, Head of Operations, Wellbeing Out of Waste (WOW) Program, I.T.C. Limited, felicitated 21 fellows with a fellowship amount of Rs. 5000 each and also provided an opportunity to one fellow to join the WOW programme.
• Dr. Bhagwan Singh Chaudhary, Professor, Kurukshetra University, Haryana was the guest of honour for the closing ceremony and specially thanked the Office of Principal Scientific Adviser to GOI for making it possible to get such a heterogenous group of fellows from different age groups, different states to one single platform to enable learning from each other.

About SwachhtaSaarthi Fellowship

• The fellowship was launched in 2021 to recognize students, community workers/self-help groups, and municipal/sanitary workers who are engaged in tackling the enormous challenge of waste management, scientifically and sustainably.
• The fellowship is aimed at amplifying the role of young students from schools and colleges, and citizens working in the community through Self Help Groups (SHGs), or  sanitisation workers in sensitizing the society towards waste management and offer innovative solutions for conversion of waste to value.
• The 2021 cohort had 344 SwachhtaSaarthis consisting of high school students, college students, and community workers from across 27 States and 6 UTs that are currently making an impact through their efforts in waste management towards building a sustainable future.

Category-

Targeted to encourage community participation, the SwachhtaSaarthi Fellowships invites applications from students, researchers and community workers who have done previous work or are currently engaged in waste management activities, including awareness campaigns, surveys & studies. The three categories of awards under the fellowships are as below:

• Category-A – Open to School students from 9th to 12th standards engaged in waste management community work. An amount of Rs.  500/- per month would be given as fellowship for a period of 1 year.
• Category-B – Open to College students (UG, PG, Research students) engaged in waste management community work. An amount of Rs. 1,000/- per month would be given as fellowship for a period of 1 year.
• Category-C – SHGs or sanitary workers. A maximum of 2 citizens from the same SHG can apply an amount of Rs. 2,000/- per month would be given as fellowship for a period of 1 year.

Competition Commission of India

Paper 2- International Issues

From the point of view of mains examination

Question: “A healthy competition creates a healthy economy, so any country should develop a system for healthy competition”, explaining about the Competition Commission of India, explain whether this statement is correct?

Why Should You Know?

Recently, the Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman inaugurated the Regional Office of Competition Commission of India (West) in Mumbai, let us know about the Competition Commission of India.

In details

• Union Minister for Finance and Corporate Affairs Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, inaugurated the Competition Commission of India’s (CCI) Regional Office (West) in Mumbai, here today in a virtual event. Union Minister of State for Ministry of Corporate Affairs Shri Rao Inderjit Singh also graced the occasion with his presence via video conference.
• The Regional Office (West) in Mumbai is the third regional office opened by CCI, after Regional Office (South) in Chennai (inaugurated in February 2021) and Regional Office (East) in Kolkata (inaugurated in April 2022).
• On this occasion, Smt. Sitharaman also released a pictorial e-publication titled “Competition Commission of India – A Journey Through the Years, 2009 – 2022”, which documents the formative years of CCI and takes stock of the various measures, events and actions that have helped shape this journey.
• The Finance Minister also released CCI’s competition advocacy booklets translated in Urdu and Punjabi languages. These Booklets, contain information on topics such as – How to File information with CCI, Cartels, Bid Rigging, Abuse of Dominance, Combinations, Leniency etc.
• Apart from Urdu and Punjabi languages, these booklets have also been earlier translated into 11 other languages i.e. Telugu, Bengali, Marathi, Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada, Assamese, Gujarati, and Odia, Hindi and English.

About Competition Commission of India

• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) is the chief national competition regulator in India. It is a statutory body within the Ministry of Corporate Affairs and is responsible for enforcing the Competition Act, 2002 to promote competition and prevent activities that have an appreciable adverse effect on competition in India.
• The CCI looks into cases and investigates them if the same has a negative impact on competition.
• CCI also approves combination under the act so that two merging entities do not overtake the market.
• The commission was established on 14 October 2003. It became fully functional in May 2009 with Dhanendra Kumar as its first chairman.

Need of CCI

• Fair competition in the market ensures easy access to a wide range of goods and services to the consumers at competitive prices. Business enterprises adopt a variety of strategies and tactics to protect their interests.
• They come together to gain more power and influence which can be detrimental to the interests of the consumers and at times lead to wrongful pricing, deliberately curtailing product inputs to increase the price, barriers to entry.
• creation, allocation of markets, nexus in sales, Methods such as high pricing and discriminatory pricing are adopted which adversely affect the social and economic welfare of different interest groups.
• Therefore it is necessary not only to prevent the formation of monopolies or business combinations but also to promote a fair and healthy competition so that consumers can get a better price for their purchases.

Objective

• Keeping in view the economic development of India, the Competition Act provides for the establishment of Competition Commission so that the following objectives can be achieved-
• Preventing practices that have an adverse effect on competition
• Promote and maintain competitiveness in the market
• protect the interests of consumers
• Ensuring freedom of trade in the Indian market or by other participants for matters connected therewith and incidental thereto

Inida-Japan MoU

Paper 2 – Health

From the point of view of mains examination

Question: Explain how India is promoting Ayurveda, highlighting the recent India-Japan MoU.

Why Should You Know?

Recently All India Institute of Ayurveda signed MoU with National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, Japan

In details

• The All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA), the apex institute of Ayurveda in India under the Ministry of AYUSH, and the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Japan have signed an MoU for academic establishment. AIST is a reputed and one of the largest public research organizations in Japan, focusing on technologies and on “bridging” the gap between innovative technological seeds and commercialisation.
• The MoU was signed by Prof. Tanuja Nesari, Director, AIIA and Dr. Tamura Tomohiro, Director General, Department of Life Science and Biotechnology, who was present online. The event was graced by Renu Wadhwa, Prime Senior Researcher, Head AIST-India DAILAB, Dept of Life Science and Biotechnology, whose efforts have been instrumental in making this collaboration a reality.

About MoU

• With the signing of this MoU, AIIA aims to promote Institute’s research activities both at a national and international stage.
• The MoU will enable both countries to promote research collaboration and building capacities in the field of the Indian Ayurvedic system of traditional medicines. All these activities will be executed in support of the Ministry of Ayush.
• The scope of activities that is intended by the participants includes research activities in the field of Ayurveda including studies in design and execution with the purpose of developing evidence-based guidelines for integrating Ayurvedic principles and practices with conventional medicine, evolving safety standards and protocols for the use of Ayurveda in Japan in conformity with medical guidelines, exchanging scientists, researchers and staff as determined by the collaborators on a project-to-project basis, students’ participation in collaborative activities to achieve excellence in Ayurveda towards achieving scientific advances, tools and techniques.

Background

• AIIA already has MoUs with the European Academy of Ayurveda, Bernstein, Germany; Western Sydney University, Australia; Graz Medical University, Austria; College of Medical, UK; London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, UK an Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Global Artificial Intelligence Summit

Paper 3–Science & Tech

From the point of view of mains examination

Question: What is artificial intelligence? Is it a necessity in the 21st century or just a convenience, explain.

Why Should You Know?

The 3rd edition of Global Artificial Intelligence Summit & Awards is organised on 7-8 October 2022.

In details

• The 3rd edition of Global Artificial Intelligence Summit & Awards is organised on 7-8 October 2022 in delhivigyan bhavan.
• The third edition of this conference and award ceremony was addressed by the Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and Textiles, Shri Piyush Goyal.
• The third AI Summit is organised by AICRA and focuses on the areas of defence, healthcare, agriculture, smart cities, mobility and education in partnership with the government. The aim is to develop a roadmap on how to use AI ecosystem and startups for the benefit of society.
• Global Artificial Intelligence Summit & Awards is focused on the prominence of AI in human lives & business industries.
• The Artificial intelligence revolution is here to stay and with the meaningful contribution by Industry, startups, incubators and academia, India is going to emerge as the hub of the artificial intelligence revolution across the world.
• The young minds should inculcate the spirit of inquiry and start thinking of different ways AI technologies can be harnessed to bring prosperity in our day-to-day life. They should explore how AI can play a crucial role in empowering the lives of farmers, fishermen and the MSME sector.

Summit Highlights

• Focused on the prominence of AI in human lives & business industries.
• Envision to highlight the roles of AI & its applicative properties in the world
• Come & witness how the world is progressing rapidly with the advanced innovations of AI.

What is Artificial intelligence?

• Artificial intelligence (AI) is intelligence demonstrated by machines, as opposed to the natural intelligence displayed by animals and humans.
• AI research has been defined as the field of study of intelligent agents, which refers to any system that perceives its environment and takes actions that maximize its chance of achieving its goals.
• Artificial intelligence is a branch of computer science that develops machines and software with intelligence.
• In 1955, John McCarthy named it artificial intelligence and defined it as “the science and engineering of making intelligent machines”.
• The goals of artificial intelligence research include reasoning, knowledge planning, learning, the ability to perceive and manipulate objects, etc.Currently, statistical methods, computational intelligence and traditional intelligence are involved in reaching this goal.

Credit Guarantee Scheme for Startups (CGSS)

Paper 3 –Economy

From the point of view of mains examination

Question: What is Credit Guarantee Scheme (CGSS) for Startups? Explain its advantages and challenges in detail.

Why Should You Know?

Recently the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) notified the setting up of Credit Guarantee Scheme (CGSS) for Startups.

In details –

• The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry has notified the establishment of the Credit Guarantee Scheme for Startups (CGSS) for providing credit guarantees to loans extended by Scheduled Commercial Banks, Non-Banking Financial Companies and Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) registered Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs).
• CGSS is aimed at providing credit guarantee up to a specified limit against loans extended by Member Institutions (MIs) to finance eligible borrowers viz. Startups as defined in the Gazette Notification issued by DPIIT and amended from time to time. The credit guarantee cover under the Scheme would be transaction based and umbrella based. The exposure to individual cases would be capped at Rs. 10 crore per case or the actual outstanding credit amount, whichever is less.
• In respect of transaction-based guarantee cover, the guarantee cover is obtained by the MIs on single eligible borrower basis. Transaction based guarantees will promote lending by Banks/ NBFCs to eligible startups. The extent of transaction-based cover will be 80% of the amount in default if the original loan sanction amount is up to Rs. 3 crore, 75% of the amount in default if the original loan sanction amount is above Rs. 3 crore, and up to Rs. 5 crore, and 65% of the amount in default if the original loan sanction amount is above Rs. 5 crore (up to Rs. 10 crore per borrower).
• The umbrella-based guarantee cover will provide guarantee to Venture Debt Funds (VDF) registered under AIF regulations of SEBI (a growing segment of funding in Indian startup ecosystem), in view of the nature of funds raised by them and debt funding provided by them.The extent of umbrella-based cover will be the actual losses or up to a maximum of 5% of Pooled Investment on which cover is being taken from the fund in eligible startups, whichever is lower, subject to a maximum of Rs.10 crore per borrower.

Execution

• Along with institutional mechanisms for operationalizing the Scheme, DPIIT will be constituting a Management Committee (MC) and a Risk Evaluation Committee (REC) for reviewing, supervising and operational oversight of the Scheme.
• The National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company Limited (NCGTC) will be operating the Scheme.

Background

• Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi  launched Startup India Action Plan on 16th January 2016 to lay the foundation of Government support, schemes and incentives envisaged to create a vibrant startup ecosystem in the country.
• The Action Plan envisaged a Credit Guarantee Scheme to catalyze entrepreneurship through credit to innovators and encourage banks and other member institutions in the ecosystem for providing venture debt to startups.

Significance-

• A dedicated credit guarantee for DPIIT recognisedstartupswill address the issue of unavailability of collateral free loan and enable flow of financial assistance to innovative startups through their journey to becoming full-fledged business entities. The Scheme further reiterates Government’s focus towards promoting innovation and fostering entrepreneurship for making Indian startup ecosystem the best in the world.
• With the objective of mobilising domestic capital for Indian startups, CGSS will complement the existing Schemes under Startup India initiative viz. Fund of Funds for Startups and Startup India Seed Fund Scheme.
• The framework of CGSS has been prepared in extensive consultations with the stakeholdersover the years with line ministries, banks, NBFCs, venture debt funds, academia and experts from startup ecosystem.
• The Scheme will act as a key enabler and risk mitigation measure for the lending institutionsenabling collateral free funding to startups.

MoU between BIS and Testing, Inspection, Certification Council

Paper 3 – Economy

From the point of view of mains examination

Question: Bureau of Indian Standards is playing its role well in Standard Management, explain it by highlighting the recent developments and MoU.

Why Should You Know?

Recently Bureau of Indian Standards signed a MoU with Testing, Inspection, Certification Council.

In details

• Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), the National Standards Body of India signed an MoU with Testing, Inspection, Certification Council, India.
• The two organizations will collaborate to promote and harmonise the implementation of standards and quality, safety and sustainability practices in laboratories.
• The organizations resolved to further work to improve the responsiveness for laboratories and exchange and disseminate the global best practices in the field of laboratories.
• The MoU was signed on 29 September 2022. Following which, a seminar on “Emerging Global Trends in Laboratories for AatmaNirbhar Bharat” is being jointly organized by the two organizations on 3rd Nov 2022 in New Delhi.
• Both the organisation looks forward to a mutually prosperous journey together. TIC Council (Testing, Inspection, Certification Council) is a global trade association representing the independent third-party testing, inspection and certification industry (TIC).

What is BIS

• The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) is the National Standards Body of India under Department of Consumer affairs, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution, Government of India.
• It is established by the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 2016 which came into effect on 12 October 2017. The Act establishes the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) as the National Standards Body of India.
• The organisation was formerly the Indian Standards Institution (ISI).
• BIS is responsible for the harmonious development of the activities of standardization, marking and quality certification of goods and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
• The Minister in charge of the Ministry or Department having administrative control of the BIS is the ex-officio President of the BIS.
• BIS has 500 plus scientific officers working as Certification Officers, Member secretaries of technical committees and lab OIC’s.
• As a National Standards Body, it has 25 members drawn from Central or State Governments, industry, scientific and research institutions, and consumer organisations. Its headquarters are in New Delhi, with regional offices in Eastern Region at Kolkata, southern Region at Chennai, Western Region at Mumbai, Northern Region at Chandigarh and Central Region at Delhi and 20 branch offices.