Daily Current Affairs 05 July 2023 – IAS Current Affairs
Current Affairs 05 July 2023 focuses on Prelims-Mains perspective. Major events are :
South Asia Regional Anti-Doping Organization (SARADO)
Source : PIB
GS II : Important International institutions, agencies and fora- their structure, mandate
Overview
- News in Brief
- Details of MoU
- About NADA
- About South Asia Regional Anti-Doping Organization (SARADO)
- World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)
Why in News ?
At the NADA India-SARADO Cooperation Meeting, SARADO, which consists of anti-doping organisations from Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka, and NADA India, inked an agreement.
News in Brief
- Highlighted India’s expanding involvement and accomplishments in the world of international sport.
- Additionally, it is eager to assume responsibility for advancing clean sport initiatives and making a contribution to the worldwide anti-doping campaign.
- A greater emphasis is being placed on top-notch instruction, accessible and upgraded athletic facilities, and expanding chances for all sports through contests and boot camps.
- India’s intention and goal to contribute to the global growth of sports are clearly reflected in its mainstreaming of initiatives to promote gender equality in sports.
- In order to close the gap between the global north and south, India is serving as a bridge.
Details of MoU
The MoU, through the project plan and areas of cooperation, aims to fulfill the following objectives over a period of three years:
- Developing an anti-doping education & prevention program in South Asia;
- Training & upskilling sample collection personnel, educators & other anti-doping education officers;
- Organizing courses, seminars, workshops, research & exchange tours on anti-doping education & prevention;
- Facilitating exchange of education officers, program managers, trainers, teachers and specialists on anti-doping education & prevention;
- Supporting anti-doping education activities and exchanging services of experts;
- Producing anti-doping education literature;
About NADA
- It was founded by the Indian government with the intention of serving as India’s autonomous anti-doping organisation with a focus on drug-free sports.
- On November 5, 2005, it was established as a registered society under the Societies Registration Act of 1860.
- The following are the main responsibilities of NADA:
- Put the Anti-Doping Code into action and ensure that all national sports organisations comply.
- Organise a drug testing programme with all involved parties.
- Advance anti-doping research and teaching in order to instill the importance of drug-free sports.
- Using best practise guidelines and quality control measures will help the programme be implemented successfully and continually improved.
About South Asia Regional Anti-Doping Organization (SARADO)
- It was established on May 16, 2007, during a project development meeting for the South Asian Anti-Doping Programme that was held in the Maldives.
- Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka are all members.
- Mission: To coordinate efforts among South Asia RADO member nations to combat doping in sports in all of its manifestations.
- SARADO works to fulfill the requirements of the World Anti-Doping Code and to promote doping-free sport in participating countries.
- Participants agreed that the establishment of a Regional Anti-Doping Organization will provide the ability for countries within South Asia to pool resources to support the Regional Anti-Doping Organization.
- Participating member nations agreed to the proposal and unanimously voted to give the RADO office for the Maldives.
World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA)
- The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) is a global, independent organisation that was established in 1999 with the mission of promoting, coordinating, and supervising the war against doping in sports in all of its manifestations.
- Composed of and supported equally by international governments and the sports movement.
- The World Anti-Doping Code (Code), a document that unifies anti-doping regulations across all sports and nations, was created and put into effect under the coordination of WADA.
Colombo Security Conclave (CSC)
Source : PIB
GS II : International Relation
Overview of Colombo Security Conclave (CSC)
- News In Brief
- Colombo Security Conclave (CSC)
- Significance and Cllenges
Why in News ?
Scientists from Bangladesh and Mauritius departed onboard India’s research vessel “Sagar Nidhi” as part of the Colombo Security Conclave (CSC).
News In Brief
- In a landmark event concerning maritime collaboration under the framework of Colombo Security Conclave (CSC) between the nations of Indian Ocean Region, scientists from Bangladesh and Mauritius onboard India’s research vessel ‘Sagar Nidhi’.
- It is to participate in the joint ocean expedition spanning nearly 35 days.
- The cruise is conducted by Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS) under Ministry of Earth Sciences.
- It is an outcome of the maiden CSC Oceanographers and Hydrographers conference held at Goa and Hyderabad in November 2022.
- During the expedition, the scientists will collaboratively undertake research on the ocean data to predict and manage changes in the marine environment and variation in ocean parameters.
Colombo Security Conclave (CSC)
- The CSC, was formed in 2011 as a trilateral maritime security grouping of India, Sri Lanka and the Maldives.
- It welcomed Mauritius as a fourth member at the fifth meeting of national security advisers.
- Bangladesh and Seychelles attended as observers and have been invited to join the group.
- CSC Secretariat IN Colombo, Sri Lanka and Governance held at the National Security Advisor (NSA)-level.
- Key areas of co-operation (5Pillers)
- Maritime Safety and Security
- Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief
- Combating Trafficking and Transnational Organized Crime
- Countering Terrorism and Radicalization
- Cyber Security, Protection of Critical Infrastructure and Technology
Significance
- China Factor: The CSC wants to limit China’s influence in a crucial strategic region and lessen its presence in its member nations.
- Additionally the alliance supports India’s objective of “SAGAR: Security and Growth for All in the Region” and India’s membership in the QUAD alliance.
Challenges
- Political Challenge
- The organisation will be susceptible to changes in domestic politics, such as those in governments.
- By forming working groups at the high official level, CSC may better institutionalise itself inside the participant’s systems.
- India’s Dominance
- Smaller nations in the organisation are concerned of India’s dominating position in the organisation
- They are cautious to work together on delicate security matters.
- They do not want the group to be seen as anti-China.
- Bilateral Mechanism
- India presently does not have a separate bilateral maritime security discussion with any of the other five CSC nations to supplement the CSC process.
- CSC has absorbed the erstwhile India-Sri Lanka-Maldives maritime security dialogue.
About Sagar Nidhi
- Ocean Research Vessel (ORV) Sagar Nidhi is a multidisciplinary vessel operated by the National Institute of Ocean Technology, Ministry of Earth Sciences.
- It was built in 2007 by Fincantieri, Italy.
- It is India’s third research vessel after Sagar Purvi and Sagar Paschimi.
- The ship is equipped to conduct oceanographic, meteorological, and geoscientific research.
- The vessel would be used to deploy remotely operated vehicles, monitor tsunamis, and find gas hydrates and mines.
- It would offer a cutting-edge starting point for the research of maritime operational theatres, including arctic and tropical settings.
Design Features
- It is 104 metres long and 18 metres wide.
- It is powered by fully automatic diesel-electric propulsion.
- It is designed with blue-water capability with ranges of up to 10,000 nautical miles (19,000 km) for voyages lasting up to 45 days.
- It is equipped to launch submersible capsules capable of taking scientists to a depth of six km below sea level.
23rd Summit Of The SCO
Source : The Hindu
GS II : Important International institutions, agencies and fora- their structure, mandate
Overview
- News in Brief
- About Shanghai Cooperation Organisation(SCO)
- 23rd Summit Of The SCO Details
Why in News ?
On July 4th, India successfully hosted the 23rd SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organisation) Summit though virtually. India was holding the SCO Chair this year along with that of the G20.
News in Brief
- Despite some internal issues, all the leaders of the nine members, including new member Iran, who accepted the invitation and participated, addressed regional issues of security, counterterrorism in all its manifestations, and new and old challenges like trade and connectivity.
- It also included leaders of Belarus -next member and Turkmenistan-only Central Asian country out of SCO.
- Kazakhstan is the next Chair.
About Shanghai Cooperation Organisation(SCO)
- It is a permanent intergovernmental international organisation.
- Founded in June 2001.
- It was built on the ‘Shanghai Five’, the grouping which consisted of Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.
- They came together in the post-Soviet era in 1996, in order to work on regional security, reduction of border troops and terrorism.
- Members
- China
- India
- Iran
- Kazakhstan
- Kyrgyzstan
- Pakistan
- Russia
- Tajikistan
- Uzbekistan.
- India acquired the observer status in the grouping in 2005 and was admitted as a full member in 2017.
23rd Summit Of The SCO Details
- One of the many decisions made at the summit was the decision to admit Iran as the alliance’s ninth and most recent member.
- Agreements
- The New Delhi Declaration, defining SCO nations’ areas of cooperation
- Joint declaration on preventing radicalization
- Statement on digital transformation, where India pledged to contribute knowledge on electronic payment systems like UPI.
- Members of the SCO also decided to look into alternatives to international dollar-based payments, such as the usage of national currencies for intragroup transactions.
- The Member States reaffirmed that certain nations’ unilateral and unrestricted expansion of their global missile defence systems has a detrimental effect on global security and stability.
- The Member States stated their desire to increase collaboration in the areas of sport, culture, health, disaster preparedness, tourism, and people-to-people interactions.
- Members of the SCO also decided to look into alternatives to international dollar-based payments, such as the usage of “national currencies” for intragroup transactions.
What is Bhashini Platform?
Source : Money Control
GS II : Developmental Studies
Overview
- News in Brief
- About Bhashini Platform
- What is the objective of Bhashini?
- What is the full form of bhashini?
Why in News ?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi while addressing the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit brought attention towards Bhashini, which is India’s indigenously developed AI-based language translation tool.
News in Brief
- It can become an example of digital technology and inclusive growth.
- National Language Technology Mission (NLTM), was launched in July last year to provide language technology solutions as digital public goods through the platform.
- The government’s aim is to deliver digital content in native languages instead of just English or Hindi.
About Bhashini Platform
- The platform is available on this website: https://www.bhashini.gov.in/en/
- The language translation platform run by Artificial Intelligence (AI) in India is called Digital India BHASHINI.
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay - It aims to make it simple for Indian language speakers to use the internet and digital services, especially voice-based access, and to support the production of content in those languages.
- In order to be used by Indian MSMEs, startups, and individual innovators, it intends to make Artificial Intelligence and Natural Language Processing (NLP) materials accessible in the public domain.
What is the full form of bhashini?
Bhashini stands for Bhasha Interface for India, the National Language Translation Mission (NLTM).
What is the objective of Bhashini?
- This would make it easier for developers to provide simple internet access and digital services in Indian languages to all citizens.
- This website’s unique “Bhasadaan” component, which anyone can access via the corresponding Android and iOS applications, enables them to participate in a variety of crowdsourcing projects.
- To allow contributions from the research programmes and the ecosystem, Bhashini will develop a unified architecture supported by open data and open source software principles.
- This will also encourage the ecosystem to develop an integrated strategy and layer on various solutions.
- The goal is to create a group of contributors that collaborate in unison to advance Bhashini’s stated goals.
Bhashini is under the Union minister for electronics and information technology.
Shanghai Cooperation Organisation
- A Eurasian political, economic, and security organisation, the creation of which was announced on 15 June 2001 in Shanghai, China by the leaders of China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan; the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Charter, formally establishing the organisation.
- It was signed in June 2002 and entered into force on 19 September 2003.
- Members made the following commitment: “oppose meddling in other nations’ internal affairs under the guises of ‘humanitarianism’ and ‘promoting human rights;’ and support one another in preserving the national independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity, and social stability of the five countries.
- Its affiliates make up roughly half of the world’s population, including observer states.
- The SCO’s highest governing body is the Council of Heads of State.
- A permanent body of the SCO, the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS), with its headquarters in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, works to encourage member nations’ collaboration in the fight against terrorism, separatism, and extremism.
- All SCO countries, with the exception of China, India, and Pakistan, are also Eurasian Economic Community members.
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