India has become chair of the Colombo Process for the first time since its inception in 2003.

Colombo Process:

• It is a Regional Consultative Process and it provides an important platform for consultations on the management of overseas employment and contractual labour for countries of origin in Asia.
• It serves as a forum for the exchange of best practices on overseas employment.

Membership:

• It comprises 12 Member States of Asia (countries of origin of migrant workers).
• Members: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, China, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam.
• India has been a member of the Colombo Process since its inception in 2003.

Objectives:

• Share experiences, lessons learned and best practices in labour migration management.
• Consult on issues faced by migrants, countries of origin, and countries of destination, and propose practical solutions for the well-being of overseas workers.
• Optimize development benefits from organized overseas employment and enhance dialogues with countries of destination.
• Review and monitor the implementation of the recommendations and identify further steps of action.
• The process is non-binding, and decision-making is by consensus.
• The process is coordinated through the Permanent Missions of Member States at the United Nations in Geneva.
• The process is governed by Ministerial Consultations wherein recommendations and action plans are discussed and adopted by the Ministers of the participating countries.
• The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has provided technical support to the Colombo Process since its inception and serves as its Secretariat.

There are five Thematic Area Working Groups (TAWGs):

1. Skills and Qualification Recognition (chaired by Sri Lanka);
2. Fostering Ethical Recruitment (chaired by Bangladesh);
3. Pre-Departure Orientation and Empowerment (chaired by Philippines);
4. Remittances (chaired by Pakistan);
5. Labour Market Analysis (chaired by Thailand)

The government of Jammu and Kashmir recently declared human rabies a notifiable disease under the Epidemic Diseases Act of 1897.

Rabies:

• Rabies is a vaccine-preventable, zoonotic, viral disease caused by the RABV virus.
• It primarily affects the central nervous system, leading to severe brain disease and death if medical care is not received before symptoms start.

Transmission:

• In up to 99% of cases, domestic dogs are responsible for rabies virus transmission to humans. Yet, rabies can affect both domestic and wild animals.
• It spreads to people and animals via saliva, usually through bites, scratches, or direct contact with the mucosa (e.g., eyes, mouth, or open wounds).
• Rabies is present on all continents except Antarctica, with over 95% of human deaths occurring in Asia and Africa.
• It is one of the neglected tropical diseases (NTD) that predominantly affects already marginalized, poor, and vulnerable populations.

Symptoms:

• The symptoms may be nonspecific at first but include lethargy, fever, vomiting, and anorexia.
• Within days, signs can progress to cerebral dysfunction, ataxia, weakness and paralysis, breathing and swallowing difficulties, excessive salivation, abnormal behaviour, aggressivity, and self-mutilation.
• Once clinical symptoms appear, rabies is virtually 100% fatal.

Prevention:

• It is a vaccine-preventable disease.
• Vaccinating dogs, including puppies, is the most cost-effective strategy for preventing rabies in people because it stops the transmission at its source.
• Treatment:
• Medical care following a rabies exposure is called post-exposure prophylaxis, or PEP.
• PEP includes wound care, a dose of human rabies immune globulin (HRIG), and a series of four or five rabies vaccines, which must be administered as soon as possible after exposure.
• This care is vital to prevent the disease from developing. It is nearly 100% effective if administered promptly.

Rocket with a 3D- printed engine has been launched by  space start-up Agnikul Cosmos Private Limited

• Agnikul Cosmos became the first company in the country to sign an agreement with ISRO under the IN-SPACe initiative to have access to the space agency’s expertise and its facilities to build Agnibaan in 2020.

Agnibaan SubOrbital Technology Demonstrator (SOrTeD):

Agnibaan SubOrbital Technology Demonstrator-

• The Rocket: The Rocket named, Agnibaan SubOrbital Technology Demonstrator (SOrTeD) comprises a single piece 3D-printed engine designed and built indigenously, is launched from Sriharikota.
• Sub- Orbital Launch: The mission was designed to reach a height of about 8 kilometres before splashing into the sea.
• Agnibaan SOrTeD will be Agnikul’s first flight and the second launch by a private startup in India.
• 1st private rocket launch:  Private launch provider Skyroot, achieved its first sub-orbital launch in 2022
• Private Launchpad: Agnibaan SOrTeD is India’s first launch from a private mobile launchpad, called ‘Dhanush’, established by Agnikul.
• India’s first semi- cryogenic engine: Agnibaan SOrTeD is  also India’s first semi-cryogenic engine powered rocket launch making it the  first-ever controlled flight of a semi-cryogenic liquid engine realised through additive manufacturing.
• The engine called,  Agnilet, uses sub-cooled oxygen as fuel.
• Purpose: To serve as a test flight and demonstrate in-house and home-grown technologies, gather crucial flight data and ensure optimal functioning of systems for Agnikul’s orbital launch vehicle, the ‘Agnibaan’.
• Payload capacity: While this was a suborbital launch, the vehicle can fly payloads ranging from 30 kg to 300 kg.
• Competitive edge: The use of the 3D-printed manufacturing process is likely to lower the launch cost and cut down the vehicle assembly time.

Usually engine parts are manufactured separately and assembled later. Agnibaan is the world’s most integrated single shot 3D printed piece, signalling the unparalleled  ability to rapidly assemble rockets.

Reserve Bank Of India’s Variable Repo Rate auction sees huge response by  banks suggesting an increased demand for liquidity in banking sector.

• Banks submitted bids worth ₹1,13,915 crore, significantly exceeding the RBI’s offer of ₹50,000 crore.
• Liquidity Deficit: It is estimated that liquidity in the banking system is in deficit to the tune of around ₹1.54-lakh crore.

Call Money Rate:

• Call Money Rate is the rate at which short term funds are borrowed and lent in the money market.
• Duration: 1 day is the duration of the call money loan.
• Participants: RBI, banks, primary dealers participate in the call money market.

Function:

• Banks resort to these type of loans to fill the asset liability mismatch, comply with the statutory CRR and SLR requirements and to meet the sudden demand of funds.
• Demand and supply of liquidity affect the call money rate. A tight liquidity condition leads to a rise in call money rate and vice versa.

Variable Rate Repo Auction:

• Also called Term Repo Rates, It is a liquidity injection tool of the RBI for liquidity management in the economy.
• Current situation: The RBI has been conducting VRRs to inject liquidity on a temporary basis into the banking system since december 2023
• In mid-January, the tenor of the VRR was increased  to 14 days to match the CRR cycle for  steady State injection. Further to this, it has been conducting short-dated VRRs (1-7day) periodically to ‘fine tune’ market liquidity.
• VRR Auctions: They are conducted by the RBI, when the weighted average call money rate trends above the repo rate in the interbank money market, serving as a signal to the RBI of System Liquidity Deficit.
• Tenure:  It is a short term liquidity injection against collaterals with a tenor of Overnight to 13 days usually.
• But, for injection of durable liquidity, the RBI conducts VRR auctions for a tenor beyond 14 days very rarely.
• Rate of Interest: It generally is  borrowed at a rate decided by market generally lower than Repo Rate (though not less than Reverse Repo Rate).

Other strategies to Infuse liquidity:

• The Target is to let interbank liquidity enter into a surplus by July.
• RBI Transfers: RBI has transferred to the government  ₹2.1 trillion as a dividend coupled with the cancellation of weekly treasury bill auctions of ₹60,000 crore.
• RBI’s Foreign Exchange intervention: The FX strategy of RBI is the main driver of interbank liquidity.
• FPI accounts have resumed buying India Government Bonds (IGBs), though in small sizes for now.
• Inflows: Inflows from GOI redemptions, interest payments and lower T-bill issuance will also start.

Recently, the Prime Minister of India, as part of his meditation exercise, performed ‘Surya Arghya’ during sunrise at the Vivekananda Rock Memorial.

Vivekananda Rock Memorial:

• The Vivekananda Rock Memorial is situated on a rock in the sea.
• Location: Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu, India
• Architectural style(s): Indian rock-cut and Cathedral
• This memorial was built in 1970 to honor Swami Vivekananda.
• The premises also feature a life-sized bronze statue of Swami Vivekananda.
• Structures and Features of Vivekananda Rock Memorial
• Vivekananda Mandapam: One of the primary structures of the memorial.
• Shripada Mandapam: The other main structure of the memorial.

Swami Vivekananda:

• He was Born as Narendranath Datta in 1863 into a Bengali family in Calcutta.
• He is considered the “father of modern Indian nationalism”.
• Famous for: He is known for introducing Vedanta and Yoga to the Western world and promoting Hinduism as a major world religion.
• Founded:The Vedanta Society of New York, The Vedanta Society of San Francisco, which laid the foundation for Vedanta Societies in the West.
• He was the disciple of Ramakrishna, a mystic saint.
• His birthday(12 January ) is celebrated as National Youth Day in India.
• Dhyana Mandapam: A meditation hall attached to the memorial for visitors to meditate,
• It incorporates architectural styles from various Indian temples.
• Surroundings: The rocks are encircled by the Laccadive Sea, where the Bay of Bengal, the Indian Ocean, and the Arabian Sea converge.

Historical and Cultural Significance:

• Swami Vivekananda: According to legends, Swami Vivekananda swam across the seashore to the rock, where he meditated for three days and nights, attaining enlightenment.
• This event is linked to his “Kanyakumari resolve” of 1892.
• Goddess Kanyakumari: The rock is also associated with the legend of Goddess Kanyakumari (Parvati).
• It is believed that the goddess Parvati performed tapas (meditation) in devotion to Lord Shiva on this rock.
• A specific area on the rock is believed to bear the imprint of the goddess’s feet.