• Celebrating the spirit of the year- long Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav (AKAM), the identified districts are aligned with the birth place of 99 Freedom Fighters, who made the ultimate sacrifice for the nation during India’s struggle for independence.
• The goal of the campaign is to take up 17 select schemes with direct assistance to beneficiaries in saturation mode, reaching out to the person at the bottom of the pyramid in rural areas by each of the participating ministries/departments.
• The 75 districts, marginally lagging behind in the development parameters, have been shortlisted through MPCE (Monthly per Capita Indicators) and D5/D7 SECC-2011 (Socio-Economic Caste Census) data.

• This Scheme is an extensive drive to enable and facilitate MSMEs adopt Zero Defect Zero Effect (ZED) practices and motivate and incentivize them for ZED Certification while also encouraging them to become MSME Champions.
• Through the journey of ZED Certification, MSMEs can reduce wastages substantially, increase productivity, enhance environmental consciousness, save energy, optimally use natural resources, expand their markets, etc.
• Under the Scheme, MSMEs will get subsidy as per the following structure, on the cost of ZED certification:
  • Micro Enterprises: 80%
  • Small Enterprises: 60%
  • Medium Enterprises: 50%
• There will be an additional subsidy of 10% for the MSMEs owned by Women/SC/ST Entrepreneurs OR MSMEs in NER/Himalayan/LWE/Island territories/aspirational districts.
• In addition to above, there will be an additional subsidy of 5% for MSMEs which are also a part of the SFURTI OR Micro & Small Enterprises - Cluster Development Programme (MSE-CDP) of the Ministry.
• Further, a limited purpose joining reward of Rs. 10,000/- will be offered to each MSME once they take the ZED Pledge
• A provision of up to Rs. 5 lakh(per MSME) will be made available for handholding and consultancy support for MSMEs under ZED Certification for assisting them to move towards Zero Defect Zero Effect solutions.

Data from the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) shows that India’s labour force participation rate (LFPR) has fallen to just 40% from an already low 47% in 2016.

• This suggests not only that more than half of India’s population in the working-age group (15 years and older) is deciding to sit out of the job market, but also that this proportion of people is increasing.
• According to the CMIE, the labour force consists of persons who are of age 15 years or older, and belong to either of the following two categories:
  • are employed
  • are unemployed and are willing to work and are actively looking for a job
• There is a crucial commonality between the two categories — they both have people “demanding” jobs. This demand is what LFPR refers to. While those in category 1 succeed in getting a job, those in category 2 fail to do so.
• Thus, the LFPR essentially is the percentage of the working-age (15 years or older) population that is asking for a job; it represents the “demand” for jobs in an economy. It includes those who are employed and those who are unemployed.
• The Unemployment Rate (UER), which is routinely quoted in the news, is nothing but the number of unemployed (category 2) as a proportion of the labour force.

Centre orders restoration of historic 1000-year-old Anang Tal lake in Delhi''s Mehrauli

• He instructed to finish the work of cleaning of Anang Tal and declare it a National Monument immediately.
• The millennium old Anang Tal signifies the beginning of Delhi.
• Anang Tal has a strong Rajasthan connection as Maharaja Anang Pal is known as nana (maternal grandfather) of Prithviraj Chauhan whose fort Rai Pithora is on the list of ASI.
• Anangpal II, popularly known as Anangpal Tomar, was a ruler from the Tomar Rajput Dyansty.
• He is known to have established and populated Delhi in the 11th century.

Ministry of Agriculture is organizing a week long special campaign on ‘Kisan Bhagidari Prathmikta Hamari’

• As part of the campaign, Ministry of Agriculture, Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE) and Ministry of Rural Development will hold wide range of awareness activities tomorrow.
• As part of the campaign, the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare will organize demonstration on farm machinery through their FMTTIs (Farm Machinery Training and Testing Institute) at different locations across the country tomorrow.
• FMTTIs will also impart training to the women farmers simultaneously. Along with the physical field visits, online webinar will also be organised to provide interface between innovators and industries.
• The Ministry will organise field visits to Sunflower cultivation sites in Ambala Kurukshetra (Haryana) Fatehgarh Saheb (Punjab) and mustard farms in Jammu, Kathua and Udhampur (JK).
• Kisan Goshti programmes will also be organised to make farmers aware about the benefits of cultivation of cash crops.
• Training on microrhizome based disease free planting material production in Ginger and Turmeric will be provided by Directorate of Arecanut and Spices Development at Kerala Agricultural University, Thrissur.

HAL Begins Main airframe fatigue test (MAFT)

• These tests will be carried out over a period of eight to nine years. The successful completion of the MAFT will qualify the LCA [Air Force] Mk1 airframe for its full service life.
• As per the military airworthiness requirements, the MAFT had to demonstrate the capability of the airframe to withstand four times the service life.
• The airframe is the same for the LCA Mk1 in service and the more capable LCA-Mk1A, 83 of which the IAF has contracted for. The MK1A is expected to roll out in the next couple of months.
• The test plan and schedule for the MAFT has been jointly arrived at by the designers from the HAL and scientists from the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) in coordination with the Regional Centre for Military Airworthiness (RCMA), CEMILAC

• Xi last week first proposed what he called a Global Security Initiative, speaking at the Boao Forum in China, warning against “hegemonism, power politics and bloc confrontation”.
• China would like to propose a Global Security Initiative, which would “oppose unilateralism, and say no to group politics and bloc confrontation.”
• This would “oppose the wanton use of unilateral sanctions and long-arm jurisdiction”, appearing to refer to Western sanctions.
• China’s proposed security initiative would “oppose” what he called “the destruction of the international order under the banner of so-called ‘rules’ and the dragging of the world under the cloud of the ‘new cold war’”, and would “build an Asian security model of mutual respect, openness and integration”.

Targeting Asian NATO?

• China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi had also taken aim at the Quad last month, suggesting that the grouping was equivalent to the “Five Eyes” intelligence alliance involving the Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the U.S. and U.K. and the AUKUS pact, as a key element in what he called U.S. plans to build an “Asian NATO”
• The members of the Quad have rejected the notion that it is an Asian NATO or a military alliance, and pointed to its broad-based cooperation, including on vaccines and technology.

Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) organises 2 days’ workshop in Jharkhand on ADIGRAMS

• Adivasi Grants Management System (ADIGRAMS) Portal will provide a central database for Ministry of Tribal Affairs and the State Tribal Development/ Welfare Department to access, interact and analyse up-to-date scheme wise Physical and financial information and progress.
• The portal will enable the officials/stakeholders at Central, State, District, Block and village level to access, monitor and measure performance in a real-time basis and take decisions accordingly.

This portal covers the following schemes of MoTA:

• Grants under Article 275 (1) of the Constitution of India
• Special Central Assistance (SCA) to Tribal Sub-Scheme (TSS)
• Scheme for development of Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs)
• Institutional Support for Development and Marketing of Tribal Produce
• Mechanism for Marketing of Minor Forest Produce (MFP) through Minimum Support Price (MSP) and Development of Value Chain for MFP (MSP for MFPs)

NATIONAL CURRICULUM FRAMEWORK (NCF)

• The National Education Policy (NEP), 2020 recommends the development of National Curriculum Frameworks (NCF) in four areas- School Education, Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE), Teacher Education and Adult Education.
• For providing inputs for the development of these, four curriculum frameworks, 25 themes based on the perspectives of the NEP, 2020 are identified under the three categories, viz.,
  • Curriculum and Pedagogy
  • Cross-cutting Issues
  • Other important areas of NEP, 2020 focussing on systemic changes and reforms.
• The Mandate Document describes the development process of the NCF, its expected structure and objectives, and some of the basic principles from the NEP 2020 that will inform the development of the four NCFs.
• The NCF is being drafted through a collaborative and consultative process, starting from district to state level and then National level. The ‘Guidelines for Position Papers for the Development of the National Curriculum Framework’ is an integral part of this Mandate Document.