[CA/BRel] President Pranab's Visit to China - an overview

Indian President’s visit to China – an overview

President Mr. Pranab Mukherjee visited China from May 24 to 27 to hold negotiation with Top Chinese leadership and announced first trip to China by an Indian Head of state in Six Years. President’s maiden visit to china came after his predecessor Ms. Pratibha Patil in 2010, after six years. President made his first visit in Chinese City Guangzhou.

Arrived in Beijing on May 25 and attended the reception hosted by the Chinese People’s Friendship Association for Foreign Countries (CPAFFC). Indian President met his Chinese Counterpart, Mr. Xi Jinping, Chinese Prime Minister, Mr. Li Keqiang and National Peoples’ Congress chairman Zhang Dejiang.

        India and China agreed the following things to be done in the near future to make two countries more reliable and friendly in nature.

ä India, China agree to advance ongoing boundary negotiations

ä Emphasise the relationship forward by expanding areas of Convergence and Managing areas of difference

ä To expand India’s Civilian nuclear programme

ä Agreed to strengthen cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy

ä Discussed the ways to strengthen cooperation in “investment, trade and tourism”

ä Promoting “practical cooperation” in areas such as railways, industrial zones, new energy and even possibilities in space cooperation

ä Showed interest in the flagship schemes such as Digital India and Make in India and in investment in the Smart Cities project

ä China to accommodate more Indian tourists (seven batches this year) to visit Kailash Mansarovar via the Nathu La Pass into Tibet

ä Agreed to advance the ongoing boundary negotiations under the special representatives mechanism

ä To take actions to maintain peace and tranquillity in the boundary regions

ä To eliminate International and Cross border terrorism under UN and BRICS frameworks

ä Thanked China for its support for India’s annexation in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation

On Sister City Relations:

ä President, Mr. Pranab Mukherjee noted that the bilateral trade between India and China has grown steadily since the turn of this century from $2.91 billion in 2000 to $71 billion last year.

ä Guangdon province boasts of a $1 trillion economy with high manufacturing and other industries along with being a powerful export house of China. It has sister province relationship with Gujarat and Maharashtra.

ä A pilot smart city cooperation project has been announced between Shenzhen and the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City in Gujarat last year.

Old Linkages:

ä Referring to the links of 2nd century before the Christian era between Guangdong and Kanchipuram through a direct sea route, Mr. Mukherjee said this is an exciting time for India and China to reinforce the old linkages and join hands for new.

ä Noting that India has recorded a growth rate of 7.6 per cent each year for over a decade now, he said India believes that it cannot grow in isolation.

Smart Cities:

ä President said the Indian government was setting up industrial corridors, national investment and manufacturing zones and dedicated freight corridors to stimulate investment in this sector. He invited Chinese companies to invest in this ambitious projects

ä President said that, India’s ‘100 Smart Cities” initiative will transform India into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy.

Made in China 2025:

ä President, Mr. Pranab Mukherjee said that, Indian companies can partner with Chinese enterprises in the new domain of ‘Internet of Things’ which underlines the ‘Made in China 2025’ strategy.

èNewly Added Topicsç

More on Current Affairs

[Study Materials/Notes] Schemes

[Study Materials/Notes] GK

[Study Materials/Notes] Indian Polity
[Study Materials/Notes] Indian Geography

[Study Materials/Notes] Economics

[Study Materials/Notes] Culture

[Study Materials/Notes] Indian Defence

[Study Materials/Notes] Other Topics

[CA] Important Points @ Glance: Part 8

Important Points @ Glance: Part 8

1)   The Indian Coast Guard ship ‘Arush’, the seventeenth in the series of twenty Fast Patrol Vessels (FPVs) was recently commissioned at Kochi. It is designed and built by M/s Cochin Shipyard Limited.

2)   According to the International Renewable Energy Agency’s (Irena) Annual Review 2016, India ranks fifth in the world in renewable energy (RE) job creation, with 416,000 employed in the sector during 2015. In the world, 8.1 million persons are employed in the clean energy space. China tops the list with 3.5 million, followed by Brazil with 918,000.

3)   RBI has directed all banks and white-label ATM operators to have chip-and-pin based card infrastructure. Earlier, the regulator has directed banks to issue only chip-and-pin based cards and migrate old cardholders to these new cards. RBI said though the cards comply with the new norms, ATMs continue to process card transactions based on data from the magnetic stripe, the old system. As a result, cards being used in ATMs are more prone to skimming frauds.

4)   The Union Cabinet has granted ex-post facto approval to the Memorandum of Understanding signed between India’s Ministry of Tourism and Maldives’s Ministry of Tourism for strengthening cooperation in the field of tourism. The MoU with Maldives will be instrumental in increasing arrival from this important source market. In recent years, Maldives has emerged as an important tourism generating market for India.

5)   Cabinet has granted ex-post facto approval to the Amendment to The Institutes of Technology Act, 1961 for incorporation of six new IITs at Tirupati (AP), Palakkad (Kerala), Dharwar (Karnataka), Bhilai (Chhattisgarh), Goa, Jammu (J&K) and conversion of ISM, Dhanbad to an IIT under the Institutes of Technology Act, 1961. The approval will bring six new Indian Institutes of Technology within the ambit of The Institutes of Technology Act, 1961 and declaring them as the institutions of national importance.

1)   Ex-post facto approval has been given to the MoU between India and Japan for promoting sustainable, stable and low-carbon thermal power development in India. The signing of the MoU will help India to address issues and barriers in promoting sustainable, stable and low-carbon thermal power development that have been identified through the preceding Pre-Primary Study and the on-going cooperation towards Energy Efficient Renovation & Modernization as well as new power development.

2)   The government has dedicated 20 Nirbhaya Buses of the Rajasthan State Road Transport Corporation to the public. This is an attempt by the government to provide safe and secure transport to women. These buses are provided under an initiative of the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways under the NIRBHAYA Scheme. These buses are provided with Vehicle Tracking System (VTS), CCTV cameras and Panic Buttons on every seat to provide immediate help to women passengers in distress.   

3)   The National Academy For Training & Research In Social Security (NATRSS) has been renamed as Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya National Academy of Social Security (PDUNASS). NATRSS was set up in 1990, by Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation. Ever since its inception, NATRSS has been emerging as a premier institution involved in training, research and consultancy in the social security sector.

4)   The Union HRD Minister, Smriti Irani has launched the multilingual knowledge portal www.bharatvani.in and app. This project is in line with the HRD Ministry’s efforts to not only ensure universalization of education but also towards creation of a knowledge society in the digital age. The Central Institute of Indian Languages (CIIL), Mysuru is implementing this ambitious project of MHRD. Bharatavani is the first knowledge portal of its kind in India which focuses on becoming a single point source for multiple language learning, content and technology. The portal will feature content from Indian writers, government and non-government organisations, boards of education, textbook corporations, universities, publication houses and academies. The app will enable users to search for one language text in another language as well as get meanings in different languages. Currently the App has 35 multilingual Dictionaries and MHRD aims to extend it to 250 dictionaries in a years time.

5)    About 58% of software installed in computers in India in 2015 was unlicensed, according to a survey. While the rate of installation of unlicensed software in India has shown a gradual decrease from 65% in 2009 to 60% in 2013, it remains significantly higher than the global average of 39%. India comes second after China ($8,657 million) in the Asia-Pacific Region in commercial value of unlicensed software sold in 2015.

    

Important Points @ Glance: Part 1 

Important Points @ Glance: Part 2

Important Points @ Glance: Part 3

Important Points @ Glance: Part 4

Important Points @ Glance: Part 5

Important Points @ Glance: Part 6

Important Points @ Glance: Part 7

èNewly Added Topicsç

More on Current Affairs

[Study Materials/Notes] Schemes

[Study Materials/Notes] GK

[Study Materials/Notes] Indian Polity
[Study Materials/Notes] Indian Geography

[Study Materials/Notes] Economics

[Study Materials/Notes] Culture

[Study Materials/Notes] Indian Defence

[Study Materials/Notes] Other Topics

[CA] New tribes added in ST Community

Amendments to ST Act

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi has given its approval for introduction of two Bills in the Parliament for certain amendments in the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950 so as to modify the list of Scheduled Tribes in respect of five States, namely, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Tamil Nadu, Tripura and identification of new communities in the Union Territory of Puducherry.

Modified list:

State / UT	Inclusion/Exclusion/ Rectification/Identification	Community
Assam	Inclusion	Boro, Boro Kachari, Bodo, Bodo Kachar Karbi (Mikir)
Chhattisgarh	Inclusion/Rectification of Hindi Version of the Notification	Bhuinya, Bhuiyan, Bhuyaniv) Dhanuhar / Dhanuwarv) Kisanvi) Saunra, Saonravii) Dhangad
Jharkhand	Inclusion	Bhogta, Deshwari, Ganjhu, Dautalbandi (Dwalbandi), Patbandi, Raut, Maajhia, Khairi (Kheri) Puran
Tamil Nadu	Inclusion	Malayali Gounderxi) Narikoravan, Kurivikkaran
Tripura	Inclusion	Darlong
Puducherry	Identification (First Order)	Irular (including Villi and Vettaikaran)

Background:

The Constitution of India provides certain privileges/concessions to the members of Scheduled Tribes which are notified under the provisions of Article 342 of the Constitution of India. First list of Scheduled Tribes in relation to a State or Union Territory is to be issued by a notified Order of the President after having consultation with the State Government concerned. Any subsequent inclusion in or exclusion from the list of Scheduled Tribes can be effected through an Act of Parliament as envisaged under clause (2) of Article 342.

èNewly Added Topicsç

More on Current Affairs

[Study Materials/Notes] Schemes

[Study Materials/Notes] GK

[Study Materials/Notes] Indian Polity
[Study Materials/Notes] Indian Geography

[Study Materials/Notes] Economics

[Study Materials/Notes] Culture

[Study Materials/Notes] Indian Defence

[Study Materials/Notes] Other Topics

[CA] Chabhar Port

CHABAHAR PORT

Flashback / Why Iran allowed Indian Investment in Chabahar Port?

v In the early 2012, US put sanction against Iran Oil export, i.e. if any country imports crude oil from Iran, then that country’s bank (through which payments are made to Iran) will not be allowed to do transactions in USA.

v Because of this sanction, most of the nations stopped importing oil from Iran, except some big ones like India and China, but India too felt the heat of US diplomatic pressure and agreed to cut down oil imports from Iran.

v Majority of Iran’s nation income comes from Oil export, so, they’re also feeling the heat. They want money, so, Iranian Government has now allowed India do invest upto $100 million in the Chabahar Port Development project.

India’s Problem:-

Well, now Indian Government fears that doing any investment in Iran= USA will be annoyed. So, India wants two things

ü Afghanistan must make a commitment that it will do trading through this Iranian port. (otherwise the whole project will be economically unviable). Because there is a good chance, Afghanistan may not do any trading at all, with pressure from US and Pakistan.

ü Afghanistan should sign a triparitate MoU with Iran and India, make it look like Afghanistan badly wants this project for the Development of its own economy and we (Indians) are just helping in rebuilding the Afghanistan.

ü But Afghanistan has changed the tone now, they’re not saying anything about the project (may be under secret US pressure.) They’re not keen on signing any such agreement or MoU or statement.

In short, India’s problem is how to calibrate the political signal it sends out at a time when the West is focused on making economic sanctions work effectively against Iran, especially when Afghanistan too has been reluctant given the issues involved.

Chabhar Port:

·       Chabahar is a port located in south-east Iran that enables India to bypass Pakistan

·       Its location lies in the Gulf of Oman. It is the only Iranian port with direct access to the ocean.

·       The port was partially built by India in the 1990s to provide access to Afghanistan and Central Asia, bypassing Pakistan.

·       Create a route to land-locked Afghanistan from Chabahar where road network available to Zaranj in Afghanistan

·       The Zaranj-Delaram road constructed by India in 2009 can give access to Afghanistan’s Garland Highway, setting up road access to four major cities in Afghanistan — Herat, Kandahar, Kabul and Mazar-e-Sharif

·       India is doubling oil imports from Iran as well as develop a gas field

·       The Indian-component of the port is also part of the Ashgabat agreement, signed by India, Oman, Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, for creating an international transport and transit corridor facilitating transportation of goods between Central Asia and the Persian Gulf.

·       In May 2016, India signed an agreement to develop two berths at Chabahar port at a cost of $85 million, over the course of 18 months.

·       India is to make available a $500 million line of credit extended by the Exim Bank of India for the first phase of construction at the port.

·       India has also offered to supply $400 million worth of steel towards the construction of a rail link between Chahbahar and Zahedan, as part of North–South Transport Corridor. Were Iran to take full advantage of the $500 million credit line, and the offer of $400 million worth of steel as per the May 2016 agreements, Indian contributions towards Iranian infrastructure development would be valued at approximately $985 million.

Delaram-Zaranj Highway

§  Delaram–Zaranj Highway, also known as Route 606.

§  Length about 200km

§  It connects Delaram (border city of Afghanistan) to Zaranj (Capital of Nimruz province of Afghanistan).

§  India totally financed this project (about 600 crore rupees).

§  Border Roads Organization (BRO) of India, has constructed this highway.

§  Construction started in 2005, and in 2009 the road was opened for public use.

§  During the construction of this highway,Taliban killed about 130 workers, including 4 Indians from BRO.

§  So far, all the roadway construction is finished.

§  India wished to access both Afghanistan and other central Asian nations (like Turkmenistan), through this Chabahar port, But the Chabahar port is not yet fully developed to handle the huge cargo to and from India.

§  All these years, India was requesting Iran to allow them to do some port Development on this port. Finally agreed for Chabhar Port.

Why India need to invest in Route 606?

·       Afghanistan is a land-locked country. Most of its international trade is done through Pakistani sea-ports.

·       Therefore, India wished to connect to Afghanistan via an alternative route (through Iran).

·       So, in 2003 a trilateral agreement was signed among India, Iran and Afghanistan.

·       Under this agreement

Ø Iran was to build a highway from Chabahar (a Port City of Iran) upto Afghanistan border.

Ø India was to build a road connecting Delaram (border city of Afghanistan) to Zaranj (Capital of Nimruz province of Afghanistan)

èNewly Added Topicsç

More on Current Affairs

[Study Materials/Notes] Schemes

[Study Materials/Notes] GK

[Study Materials/Notes] Indian Polity
[Study Materials/Notes] Indian Geography

[Study Materials/Notes] Economics

[Study Materials/Notes] Culture

[Study Materials/Notes] Indian Defence

[Study Materials/Notes] Other Topics

[CA/Bilateral Issues] Modi's visit to Iran

Narendra Modi’s visit to Iran – overview

Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi visited Iran for two days. During his visit, Modi held discussions with President Mr. Hassan Rouhani and also inked 12 bilateral agreements with Iran. He also met the Iranian Supreme Leader Mr. Ali Khamenei.

Highlights of the visit

Ø Two countries signed 12 agreements including the pact on developing the strategic Chabahar port

Ø The two nations also released a Joint Statement titled Civilisational Connect, Contemporary Context.

Ø Prime Minister and Hassan Rouhani lead delegation level talks in Tehran.

Ø Modi visited Bhai Ganga Singh Gurudwara in Tehran.

Ø Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi released the rare manuscript, Persian translation of the Panchatantra (Kalileh Wa-Dimneh), at the inauguration of the International Conference on ‘Retrospect and Prospect’ of India-Iran relations, in Tehran

Ø He released rare manuscript, Kalileh Wa-Dimneh, which is the Persian translation of the Panchatantra.

Ø Besides the bilateral pact to develop the Chabahar port for which India will invest 500 million US dollars, a trilateral Agreement on Transport and Transit Corridor was also signed by India, Afghanistan and Iran.

Ø Modi's visit, the first by an Indian Prime Minister in 15 years, came months after the lifting of international sanctions on Iran following Tehran's historic nuclear deal with the Western powers over its contentious atomic programme. Earlier, the former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had visited the country in April 2001.

Gifts Presented by Modi:

  Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi gifted Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Hosseini Khamenei a specially commissioned reproduction of a rare seventh-century manuscript of the Holy Quran attributed to Hazrat Ali, the fourth caliph; Written in Kufic script, this manuscript is a prized possession of the Ministry of Culture’s Rampur Raza Library

  Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi gifted Iran's President Dr Hassan Rouhani specially commissioned reproductions of Mirza Asadullah Khan Ghalib’s collection of poetry in Persian,Kulliyat-e-Farsi-e-Ghalib, as also Sumair Chand’s Persian translation of Ramayana

Agreements signed b/w India and Iran:-

India-Iran Cultural Exchange Programme	The objective is to extend the CEP for the period 2016-2019 covering the areas of culture and art; radio, TV, mass media and cinema; and relevant general and financial terms.
MoU between the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) of India and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA) of Iran on Policy Dialogue between Governments and Interaction between Think Tanks	The MoU seeks to create a Joint Secretary/Director General policy dialogue as well as encouraging new institutional mechanisms between think tanks on both sides. There is also a provision for a conference on contemporary issues of regional and global significance
MoU between Foreign Service Institute, MEA and the School of International Relations, Iran’s MoFA	This MoU is intended to enhance cooperation between the two parties for training of diplomats and exchange of eminent speakers
Implementation Protocol between Department of Science and Technology, Ministry of S&T and Iran’s Ministry of Science, Research and Technology on Cooperation in the Fields of Science and Technology	The IP fleshes out the specific cooperation between the two sides pursuant to the 2003 MoU and covers areas like exchange of experiences, seminars, conferences etc.
MoU between Indian Council for Cultural Relations and Islamic Culture and Relations Organizations of the IR Iran	The MoU provides for institutional mechanisms for cooperation between ICCR and ICRO and lays down the modalities for the cooperation
Bilateral contract on Chabahar Port for port development and operations between IPGPL India Ports Global Private Limited] and Arya Banader of Iran	The contract envisages development and operation for 10 years of two terminals and 5 berths with cargo handling [multipurpose and general] capacities.
MoU between EXIM Bank and Iran’s Ports and Maritime Organization [PMO] on current specific terms for the Chabahar Port project	This MoU is intended for the purpose of credit of USD 150 million for Chabahar port.
Confirmation Statement between EXIM Bank and Central Bank of Iran	This confirms the availability of credit up to INR 3000 crore for the import of steel rails and implementation of Chabahar port.
MoU between ECGC [Export Credit Guarantee Corporation] Limited of India and the Export Guarantee Fund of Iran (EGFI)	The MoU seeks to establish a framework of cooperation between ECGC and EGFI in supporting and encouraging foreign trade and foreign investment between India and Iran and, where appropriate, the supply of goods and services from their respective countries as part of a project to a third country.
MoU between National Aluminium Company Limited (NALCO) and the Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization (IMIDRO)	The objective is for the two parties to jointly explore the possibility of manufacturing aluminium metal by setting up of a smelter on joint venture basis in Iran and/or entering into tolling arrangements with smelters in Iran or any other form of business collaboration including sale of alumina etc.
MoU between IRCON and Construction, Development of Transport and Infrastructure Company (CDTIC) of Iran	MoU will enable IRCON to provide requisite services for the construction of Chabahar-Zahedan railway line which forms part of transit and transportation corridor in trilateral agreement between India, Iran and Afghanistan. Services to be provided by IRCON include all superstructure work and financing the project (around USD 1.6 billion).
MoU for cooperation between the National Archives of India and the National Library and Archives Organisation of the Islamic Republic of Iran	The aim to for facilitation of exchange of information and knowledge in the field of archival matters through exchange of manuals, guidelines, rules, publications and other special literature on archival topics.

About Chabahar Port Development

·       Chabahar is a port located in south-east Iran that enables India to bypass Pakistan

·       Create a route to land-locked Afghanistan from Chabahar where road network available to Zaranj in Afghanistan

·       The Zaranj-Delaram road constructed by India in 2009 can give access to Afghanistan’s Garland Highway, setting up road access to four major cities in Afghanistan — Herat, Kandahar, Kabul and Mazar-e-Sharif

·       India is doubling oil imports from Iran as well as develop a gas field

India, Iran, Afghanistan trilateral transit pact

ä Iranian President Mr. Hassan Rouhani, Afghan President Mr. Ashraf Ghani and Indian Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi inked a three-way transit agreement on Iran’s southern port of Chabahar.

ä Hassles Free Transports of Goods between India and Pakistan through the Chabahar Port

ä To have connectivity to accelerate Economic Growth

ä Reducing the Cargo rate

To expand cooperation between the three countries in several areas including IT and Education

èNewly Added Topicsç

More on Current Affairs

[Study Materials/Notes] Schemes

[Study Materials/Notes] GK

[Study Materials/Notes] Indian Polity
[Study Materials/Notes] Indian Geography

[Study Materials/Notes] Economics

[Study Materials/Notes] Culture

[Study Materials/Notes] Indian Defence

[Study Materials/Notes] Other Topics