Diplomacy

News articles and essays on the Indian diplomacy at work around the world.

“India has Become the First Country in the World to Start Commercial Production of Nano Urea”: Shri Mansukh Mandaviya

In the presence of Union Minister of Chemicals & Fertilizers and Health & Family Welfare Shri Mansukh Mandaviya, a practical field trial of Drone Spraying of Nano Liquid Urea was conducted in Bhavnagar, Gujarat. The trial was attended by a large number of farmers. This demonstration of spraying liquid nano urea by drone was undertaken by IFFCO, a company involved in developing nano urea.

Over 5 Crore Tap Water Connections Provided Since Announcement of Jal Jeevan Mission

Jal Jeevan Mission was announced by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi on 15th August, 2019 to provide Functional Household Tap Connection (FHTC) to every home by 2024. In 2019, out of about 18.93 Crore households in rural areas, only 3.23 Crore (17%) had tap water connections. Thus, 15.70 Crore households are to be provided with tap water by 2024. In addition, functionality of all existing water supply systems and tap connections is also to be ensured. The programme directly benefits more than 19 Crore rural families, bridging rural – urban divide and improving public health. As on date, about 8.26 Crore (43%) rural households have tap water supply in their homes.

Senior Able Citizens for Re Employment in Dignity (SACRED) Portal

Many senior citizens having experience, time and energy can be used by the business enterprises looking for stable employees with experience. The Human resources cells of many private enterprises seek experienced but stable persons in certain positions. The portal allows bringing these people together by virtual matching of preferences.

ONGC Videsh Begins its Exploratory Drilling Campaign in Bangladesh

ONGC Videsh Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC), the National Oil Company of India, has spudded its first well Kanchan#1 in Block SS04, Bangladesh, on 29th September 2021 at Maheshkhali Island. This exploratory well is planned to be drilled to a depth of 4200 m and will be targeting two prospective formations. This well marks the beginning of exploratory drilling in Bangladesh by ONGC Videsh and will be followed by drilling at two more exploratory locations.

“At 87%, India has the Highest FinTech Adoption Rate in the World Against the Global Average of 64%”: Shri Piyush Goyal

The Union Minister of Commerce & Industry, Consumer Affairs & Food & Public Distribution and Textiles, Shri Piyush Goyal has said India is poised to become one of the largest digital markets in the world. Addressing the 2nd Global Fintech Fest-2021 through video conferencing today, he said, “At 87%, India has the highest FinTech adoption rate in the world against the global average of 64%.”

New Auto Debit Rules of RBI

On December 4, the RBI issued a directive to all banks, including RRBs, NBFCs, and payment gateways, stating that the processing of recurring transactions (domestic or cross-border) using cards, Prepaid Payment Instruments (PPIs), or the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) under non-AFA arrangements/practices would be discontinued after March 31, 2021.

PM Modi, Biden Cement Plan to Jointly Monitor Space Objects

Though Isro and Nasa have been cooperating on separate missions like synthetic aperture radar satellite NISAR project and Chandrayaan-1, this is the first time both the countries have decided to jointly work on a framework for SSA, which involves tracking space objects both natural like meteors and man-made such as satellites. SSA involves collating data on orbiting satellites, rocket parts and space debris and monitoring threats to a country’s space assets from any hostile satellite and analysing such data to convert them into actionable information to deal with such threats.