UniFocus IAS ( UNIFOCUS UNIVERSAL )

As per the report  In 2022, India, Mexico, China, the Philippines and France were (in descending order) the top five remittance recipient countries. India is the first country to  receiving more than USD 111 billion of remittance.  United States of America is consistently been the top remittance-sending country in the world followed by Saudi Arabia, Switzerland,  and Germany. World Migration Report - 2024

Relevance: " World Bank, IMF meetings conclude without concrete plan on climate finance " - Business Standard The New Collective Quantified Goal on Climate Finance (NCQG) is a new global climate finance goal that the Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement (CMA) shall set from a floor of USD 100 billion per year, prior to 2025. In 2021, Parties agreed the aim of the NCQG as to contributing to accelerating the achievement of Article 2 of the Paris Agreement of holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2 °C above pre-industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 °C above pre-industrial levels. The ad hoc work programme was established in 2021 to facilitate technical discussions on the NCQG, running from 2022 to 2024. The CMA will take stock of progress made in 2022 and 2023 and provide further guidance on the work programme. In 2024, the CMA will set the NCQG.  UNFCCC , U

NASA’s Starling mission accomplished a significant objective for the StarFOX (Starling Formation-Flying Optical Experiment) experiment, a test of autonomous navigation, co-location, and situational awareness in space. Using downlinked images from onboard “star tracker” sensors, the team used ground-based software to demonstrate StarFOX’s ability to autonomously differentiate the background field of stars and other orbiting spacecraft from fellow members of the Starling swarm. The spacecraft captured one photo every minute, and despite inconsistencies in illumination and minimal relative motion, the software was able to use the angular positions of the other Starling satellites within those images to estimate their orbits accurately with respect to GPS measurements captured during the test. The next step is to demonstrate this software in orbit with similar results, autonomously correcting orbit predictions over time as each photo provides more data about the trajectory of spacecraft

It is a c ountry’s first indigenously developed vaccine for Hepatitis A. It is developped by  Indian Immunologicals. Indian Immunologicals is a  wholly-owned subsidiary of the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB). It is a two dose vaccine where first dose is administered after 12 months of age and second dose is administered at the interval of at least 6 months after second dose. Monycontrol Previous Article: <<<  About  Hepatitis

Hepatitis means inflammation of the liver. When the liver is inflamed or damaged, its function can be affected. Heavy alcohol use, toxins, some medications, and certain medical conditions can cause hepatitis, but it is often caused by a virus. In the United States, the most common hepatitis viruses are hepatitis A virus, hepatitis B virus, and hepatitis C virus. Hepatitis A ,  hepatitis B , and  hepatitis C  are liver infections caused by three different viruses. Although each can cause similar symptoms, they are spread in different ways and can affect the liver differently. Hepatitis A is usually a short-term infection and does not become chronic. Hepatitis B and hepatitis C can also begin as short-term, acute infections, but in some people, the virus remains in the body, resulting in chronic disease and long-term liver problems. There are vaccines to prevent hepatitis A and hepatitis B; however, there is no vaccine for hepatitis C. Hepatitis A  is a vaccine-preventable liver infectio

An Indian delegation led by Secretary Department of Science and Technology (DST) Professor Abhay Karandikar visited Mauna Kea, Hawaii, USA and discussed challenges in the progress of Thirty Meter Telescope ( TMT )  project and ways to overcome them. Thirty Meter Telescope ( TMT )  is a 30-meter diameter primary mirror optical and infrared telescope being established at Mauna Kea, Hawaii, USA. India is a Founder-Member Partner in this project which aims to open new windows to the universe through optical and infrared astronomy. Indian participation in this project was approved by Union Cabinet in 2014. About Thirty Meter Telescope ( TMT ) : Thirty Meter Telescope ( TMT )  is one of the world’s most advanced and capable ground-based optical and infrared observatory.  TMT is an international project which aims at building a 30-metre diameter telescope at Mauna Kea, Hawaii, USA at an estimated cost of 1.47 billion USD (Base year 2012 USD) involving an international consortium of scientific

The Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) notified the Point of Presence (PoP) Regulations 2023, simplifying the registration process with the objectives of ease of doing business and greater usage of digital mode. With this notification, banks and non-banks can act as PoPs to on-board NPS subscribers. Now, they require only single Registration for NPS, instead of multiple registrations earlier, and can operate with just one branch with wider digital presence. The timeline for disposing off applications has been reduced from 60 days to 30 days. The above simplification is in line with Union Budget 2023-24 announcement to review regulations to reduce the cost of compliance and enhance the ease of doing business. https://www.pfrda.org.in//MyAuth/Admin/showimg.cshtml?ID=2861 CLICK HERE FOR NOTIFICATION PIB

24.82 crore people escaped multidimensional poverty in last nine years. Findings of NITI Aayog’s Discussion Paper   ‘Multidimensional Poverty in India since 2005-06’   give credit for this remarkable achievement to significant initiatives of the government to address all dimensions of the poverty between 2013-14 to 2022-23. The discussion paper was released today by Prof Ramesh Chand, Member, NITI Aayog in presence of Shri B. V. R. Subrahmanyam, CEO NITI Aayog. Oxford Policy and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) have provided technical inputs for this paper. The Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) is a globally recognized comprehensive measure that captures poverty in multiple dimensions beyond monetary aspects. MPI’s global methodology is based on robust Alkire and Foster (AF) method that identifies people as poor based on universally acknowledged metric designed to assess acute poverty, providing a complementary perspective to conven

Ministry of Mines, Government of India has achieved a significant milestone with the signing of an agreement between Khanij Bidesh India Limited ( KABIL ) and  the state-owned enterprise of Catamarca province of Argentina CATAMARCA MINERA Y ENERGÉTICA SOCIEDAD DEL ESTADO (CAMYEN SE) at Catamarca, Argentina today i.e., on 15 th  January, 2024. This is the first ever lithium exploration and mining project by a Government Company of India.  KABIL will start exploration and development of 5 lithium brine blocks viz 1.  Cortadera-I, 2. Cortadera-VII, 3. Cortadera-VIII, 4. Cateo-2022-01810132 and 5. Cortadera-VI  covering an area of about 15,703 Hectare , located in the Catamarca province of Argentina.KABIL is also preparing to set up a branch office at Catamarca, Argentina. The project cost is about 200 crores. With this Agreement, KABIL has obtained Exploration and Exclusivity Right for 5 blocksto evaluate, prospect and explore and subsequent to existence/discovery of lithium mineral, expl

  The 14th Ministerial-level meeting of the India- United States Trade Policy Forum (TPF) was held in New Delhi, India on January 12, 2024. Minister of Commerce and Industry, India, Shri Piyush Goyal and U.S. Trade Representative, Ambassador Katherine Tai co-chaired the TPF meeting. Before the delegation level talks, CIM also held a small group meeting with USTR Ambassador Katherine Tai. The Ministers highlighted that the effective implementation of the TPF plays a pivotal part in fortifying resilient bilateral trade and in elevating the overall economic partnership between the nations. After the meeting a Joint Statement has been issued. Top ten highlights of the 14 th  India – USA TPF discussions are as follows: The Ministers committed to pursue  foundation to launch future Joint Initiatives in certain areas , including critical minerals, customs and trade facilitation, supply chains, and trade in high tech products, in which the United States and India will develop an ambitious and

Coal Controller Organisation, Ministry of Coal collects and maintains coal production data of all private and public sector coal mines in the country.The information is collected on monthly basis. To ensure fair production and commercial transaction, Coal Controller Organisation, a subordinate office under Ministry of Coal, has been entrusted with the following responsibilities:   Inspection of collieries so as to ensure the correctness of the class, grade or size of coal. To issue directives for the purpose of declaration and maintenance of grades of coal of a seam mined in a colliery. To act as the appellate authority in case of dispute between consumers and owner arising out of declaration of grade and size of coal. To regulate disposal of stock of coal or the expected output of coal in the colliery. Quality surveillance with respect to maintenance of grade, loading of coal in wagons/ trucks according to laid down procedures regarding grades and sizes. To grant opening / re-opening

"Illegeal Trade of Spem Whale Vomit: Ambergis"  © WWF. Some rights reserved. Sperm Whales   Physeter macrocephalus   are the largest of the toothed whales found in the deep waters of the world’s oceans. In India, their sightings and strandings have been reported from several coastal states. Of late, there are growing cases of illegal trade of ambergris derived from Sperm Whales in India.     AMBERGRIS IS A SPERM WHALE’S VOMIT Ambergris is a waxy substance formed in the intestines of Sperm Whales and is a highly valued product used in perfumery (Srinivasan, 2015). It is directly extracted from the whale (body ambergris), found floating in the ocean (floatsam) or washed up on the shore (jetsam). Due to its high value in the market, ambergris is often called the ‘floating gold’ and ‘treasure of the sea’. Sperm Whales feast on large quantities of Cephalopods, such as squids which pass into the gut leading to a series of biological events forming ‘ambergris’  that helps protect th