“Malaria is not just a public health issue but also social, economic and political challenge that requires the co-operation of all stakeholders. India was the only high-burden, high-impact country in South- East Asia region to report a decline in malaria cases in 2020 as compared to 2019. India witnessed 85.1% decline in malaria cases and 83.36% decline in deaths during 2015-2022”. This was stated by Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya, Union Minister for Health & Family Welfare as he virtually addressed the Asia Pacific Leaders’ Conclave on Malaria Elimination in presence of Dr. Manik Saha, Chief Minister of Tripura, Dr. R. Lalthamgliana, Minister, Health and Family Welfare Department, Mizoram, Dr. V.K Paul, Member (Health), NITI Aayog, and Dr Poonam Khetrepal, Regional Director, WHO-SEARO.

Dr. Culwick Togamana, Minister of Health and Medical Services, Solomon Islands, Dr. Antonio Lalabalavu, Minister of Health and Medical Services, Republic of Fiji, H.E. Prof. Dr. Dante Saksoni Harbuwono, Vice Minister of Health, Republic of Indonesia, Dr. Zaliha Binti Mustafa, Minister of Health, Malaysia, H.E. Dr. Mao Tan Eang, Under Secretary of State, Ministry of Health, Kingdom of Combodia, Dr. Champa Aluthweera, Director, Anti Malaria Campaign, Ministry of Health, Sri Lanka, Dr Chuman Lal Das, Director, Epidemiology and Disease Control Division, Ministry of Health, Nepal, Dr Moh Moh Lwin, National Director, Myanmar were also present at the conclave.

Lauding the vision of Hon’ble Prime Minister,Dr. Mandaviya elaborated that Shri Narendra Modi ji was among the global leaders who endorsed the malaria elimination roadmap of Asia-Pacific Leaders Alliance at the East Asia Summit in 2015 which galvanized the region in striving to become malaria free by 2030.

Addressing the significant challenge posed by malaria particularly to the marginalized and vulnerable communities, Dr. Mandaviya added that “rejuvenated political commitment and strengthened technical leadership will play a monumental role in eradicating malaria from the world”. Citing the transformational impact of India’s health initiatives such as Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY), Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres, and Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission as well as the substantial role of its healthcare workers, Dr. Mandaviya said “India is committed to sharing our resources, knowledge and learnings with other countries in our endeavour to eliminate Malaria.”

Dr V.K Paul congratulated South Asian and Pacific Region countries in achieving significant decline in malaria cases and stressed on the goal to make malaria a history with a focus on working on most marginalized and vulnerable communities with an inter-sectoral approach. He highlighted the need for collaboration across borders while embracing whole-of-government and the whole-of-society’s approach. “We can’t eliminate malaria till we work together across borders. We need to prioritize research & innovation, and encourage behavioral change research. We need to work tremendously in developing vaccine against malaria in order to have additional arms against Malaria.” Advocating leveraging the use of digital tools for eliminating malaria, Dr. Paul stated that “We need to focus on high-burden areas and eliminate this disease with inter-sectoral collaboration which starts at village level.” Dr. Paul emphasized that urban areas with dense population, migrant population, areas inhabited by tribal population are some key challenging areas where we need to focus and work together as ‘One Team India’.

Dr. Manik Saha, Chief Minister of Tripura alluded to the devastating effects endured by Tripura in 2014 due to an outbreak of malaria. He informed how the State evolved and scaled its practices of vector-control measures, community awareness via institutional support such as Indian Council of Medical Research leading to an all-round development of the state and sharp reduction of cases of malaria.

Dr. R. Lalthamgliana, Health Minister, Mizoram highlighted the role and impact of political commitment stating “these deliberations, discussions serve to enhance knowledge and awareness in this endeavour, and illuminate further ways and means of achieving higher impact.”

Dr Ratu Atonio Rabici Lalabalavu, Minister of Health and Medical Services, Fiji discussed the practices deployed to eliminate malaria from their country. He said “There is a need for contingent and persistent efforts as no-size-fits-all and all countries must leverage the available resources to the best of their use, strengthening community engagement and institutional mobilization.”

Dr. Culwick Togamana, Minister of Health and Medical Services, Solomon Islands referred to impediments of financial constraints. He advocated employing whole-of-government, whole-of-society approach with support from different organizations in the endeavour to eliminate malaria. He further added “that this is an occasion to review our progress, re-affirming our commitments and strategize plan to eliminate malaria by 2030.”

Reiterating the importance of regional and political commitment to strengthen inter-sectoral commitment with a whole of system approach, Shri Rajesh Bhushan emphasized that awareness, detection, diagnosis and treatment need to be taken to the door step of the last mile community for successful elimination of the disease.

Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh added “Together, we must invest, innovate and implement, with a focus on reaching the most vulnerable first. Reaching these sections of the population is imperative for achieving the Global Technical Strategy and Sustainable Development Goal targets, and also for delivering on our promise of achieving zero malaria for everyone, everywhere in our region.”

Dr Sarthak Das, CEO, Asia Pacific Leaders Malaria Alliance and senior representatives from various government departments, development partners and corporates were present.

Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar,  Minister of State, Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, and Electronics and Information Technology today inaugurated the Day 2 of one of its kind Future of Work exhibition under 3^rd Education Working Group (EdWG) meeting.  The inaugural ceremony was also graced by the august presence of Shri Atul Kumar Tiwari, Secretary, MSDE; Mr R Dinesh, President Designate, CII and Executive Vice-Chairman, TVS Supply Chain Solutions and Mr NSN Murty, Partner, Deloitte.

While addressing the gathering, Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar said that the conference is focusing on intersection of logistics, coastal economies and sustainability and is integral in the context of skilling in coastal economies. He further said that logistics will be an area full of opportunities for young Indians in the coming years, as much as Semiconductors, electronics, and Information technology. It will have huge scope for investment, entrepreneurship and employment.

The Minister highlighted that this is an interesting time for the world, representing opportunities and challenges and in this context, India has become the fastest growing nation of the world. And India is being looked upon by the world with lot more respect, he added.

Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar said the world is looking at resilient logistics and trusted supply chains, moving away from risk and moving to trusted resilient economy. With this, the focus and discussion on logistics is important in coastal states like Odisha. Citing the example of mobile phones production the Minister said in 2014, 82% of mobile phones consumed in India were imported, in 2022, almost 100% mobile phones consumed in India are manufactured in India. In 2014, India used to export almost zero mobile phones and this year alone, India has exported Apple phones, Samsung phones made in India to the tune of about 11 billion dollars. One of the arguments for India for many decades has been, that India did not have a viable market and capacity to become a global manufacturing hub as logistics cost of doing business in India was not competitive, today global majors are manufacturing semiconductors,  electronics, mobiles and many more products in India, exporting and selling in India as well as the underline logistics ecosystem has become more efficient, he said.

He further said that the Narendra Modi government’s programmes like Gati Shakti, National Master Plan for Multi-modal Connectivity, will create modern logistics ecosystem that will help India emerge as a global hub for blue economy products, food, and agricultural products.

Emphasizing that the future is about skilling, upskilling and reskilling, the Minister urged the students present at the conference to focus on acquiring skills, as that will increase the prospects of their employability. “As our Hon. PM says, Skilling should always remain a continuous process,” he added.

After the inaugural ceremony, the Minister visited nearly 70 exhibitors and lifted their morale by appreciating their efforts. The exhibitors included premier institutes and organizations from diverse sectors such as MeitY,  National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), NIESBUD, UNICEF, NCERT, NIT Rourkela, IIT Bhubaneshwar, IIM Sambalpur, CV Raman Global Institute, Odisha based start-ups and many more, displaying technologies that will drive the future of work with constant innovations in modern workplace, future skills, and innovative delivery models.

The guests and visitors witnessed many highlights, Future of Work exhibit in 3 sectors- Agriculture, Mobility & Healthcare, Metaverse, Reverse engineering and automated design solutions, drone technology, Ed-tech solutions leveraging AR/VR, industry 4.0 skills, vernacular learning-based tech solutions, virtual internship solutions, and assistive technology & tactile display for inclusion and live demo of assistive technology innovation. This exclusive exhibition is being put together on the sidelines of the 3^rd Education Working Group (EdWG) meeting under G20 presidency from April 23^rd to 28^th at CSIR-Institute of Minerals and Materials Technology (IMMT), Bhubaneswar, Odisha.

The Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE) and the Ministry of Education (MoE) hosted the second precursor event on the theme Transforming logistics for coastal economies with a focus on Sustainability. The aim of the precursor events is to create an environment that promotes innovation, collaboration, and learning by bringing together professionals from different fields to explore the implications of future of work for the government, industry, and academia. Today’s panels were attended by Mr Sanjay Mishra, Special Secretary, Commerce and Transport Department, Government of Odisha; Prof. Pradipta Kumar Nanda, Vice Chancellor, Siksha O Anusandhan University; Mr V. Venkateswara Rao, Chief Logistics Officer, Jindal Stainless Group; Mr Rahul Pandit, Chief Executive Officer, Horizon Industrial Parks; Prof Sasmita Rani Samanta, Vice Chancellor, Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT); Dr Vaibhav Chaturvedi, Fellow, Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW); Ms Madhulika Sharma, Chief Sustainability Officer, ITC Ltd and many more eminent speakers.

A unique Future of Work Experience Zone that has been setup aims to display to the youth that how the Future of work will evolve by getting a preview of the required advanced technical skills and softer transferrable skills at this experience zone, to remain market relevant. The exhibition will showcase a variety of technologies from different sectors that will shape the future of work, including innovations in modern workplaces, the integration of technology in traditional sectors, and novel delivery models. The exhibition will provide an exceptional opportunity for technology leaders, influencers, and academics to showcase the best practices in adapting to the future of work.

Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; Minister of State (Independent Charge) Earth Sciences; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh announced a special drive for StartUps and R&D activities in the new and emerging areas in the University ecosystems of North Eastern region, Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, in addition to Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Bihar, Telangana, and Rajasthan by providing basic infrastructure and enabling scientific facilities, at the “Vishwavidyalaya Anusandhan Utsav 2023” organised today at Dr Ambedkar International Centre here.

“In India’s quest for competitive advantage, our universities and related institutions need to play a major role towards generating high calibre human resources as repositories of national intellectual wealth in the S&T sector. In light of the vision by our Hon’ble PM that India’s self-reliance will be based on five pillars — economy, infrastructure, technology-driven system, vibrant demography, and demand it is prudent to strengthen the foundation of relevant R&D infrastructure across the Nation to contribute to the development of a self-reliant India,” Dr. Singh said at the inauguration of the Utsav.

Dr Jitendra Singh said that in order to meet these diverse challenges and strengthen the S&T infrastructure support system in the universities and other related academic institutions, the Department of Science and Technology (DST) nurtures and supports a variety of infrastructure related schemes like FIST, PURSE, SAIF, etc. towards augmenting/ facilitating the R&D equipment for research activities at various Universities/ Institutes and other Academic organizations as well as promote industry-academia linkages.It’s our endeavour that the youth of our country have access to quality R&D infrastructure to pursue research in all areas of S&T,” Dr. Singh added while speaking at the Utsav organised to showcase the achievements of the PURSE supported Universities.

Dr Jitendra Singh said that the Honourable Prime Minister’s vision is to step up the efforts in various fields to make the country ‘the most advanced laboratory for modern science’ in the ‘Amrit Kaal’-the next 25 years leading to the centenary of India’s Independence. Working towards this vision, the Government has committed to invest heavily on building research infrastructure in the country. Under FIST Program, DST has supported 3074 Departments and PG Colleges at a total budget of about Rs. 3130.82 crores for Scientific Infrastructure Building in various STEM Departments in Universities and academic institutions. Flexible infrastructure grants are being provided to universities nationwide to keep up the vigour of conducting highly challenging R&D activities with an investment of Rs 950 Crores till date. The Promotion of University Research and Scientific Excellence (PURSE) with a nationwide reach supports the university’s research ecosystem by making high-end research equipment available to our academicians/scientists, enabling our universities to compete with global standards,” Dr. Singh pointed out.

The Union Minister launched a new scheme, SUPREME, a first-of-its-kind program by the Government of India, to provide financial support for repair/ upgradation/ maintenance/ retrofitting or acquiring additional attachments to increase functional capabilities of existing analytical instrumentation facilities (AIFs) during the programme.

Dr. S Chandrasekhar, DST Secretary said that the future of scientific research will call for deeper and more widespread multidisciplinary collaboration among countries which will enable researchers to optimize the precondition of securing sustainable scientific collaboration. India can escalate this through deeper collaborations while hosting the G20 nations.

Department of Science and Technology has supported numerous Universities to augment their research infrastructure as they are striving towards potentially high-impact, interdisciplinary research (both basic and applied) aligned to national priorities and missions. Universities supported under the various programmes showcased their research accomplishments, novel findings, and technologies under the common platform for knowledge sharing provided by Vishwavidyalaya Anusandhan Utsav. A Book on the achievements of various universities supported under PURSE was also released.

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has expressed his happiness over installation of 254 4G mobile towers in Arunachal Pradesh.

In a tweet thread, Union Minister, Shri Kiren Rijiju informed that in Arunachal Pradesh, 254 4G mobile towers have been dedicated to the nation. This high-speed internet facility to 336 remote villages will transform the lives of the people, he added.

Responding to the tweet threads by Union Minister, the Prime Minister tweeted;

“Excellent news for furthering connectivity in Arunachal Pradesh.”

Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Minister for Education and Skill Development & Entrepreneurship today inaugurated one of its kind Future of Work exhibition under 3^rd Education Working Group (EdWG) meeting.  The inaugural ceremony was also graced by the august presence of Shri Atul Kumar Tiwari, Secretary, MSDE; Ambassador Atul Keshap, President, USIBC and Senior Vice President, South Asia, US Chamber of Commerce; Mr Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General, CII; Mr Vipin Sondhi, Chairman, CII Mission on Tech, Innovation & Research and Future Mobility and Former MD & CEO, Ashok Leyland and JCB India and Mr. Raghav Narsalay, Managing Director, Accenture Research.

The Minister visited nearly 70 exhibitors with keen interest and appreciated their efforts. The exhibitors included premier institutes and organizations from diverse sectors such as NIT Rourkela, IIT Bhubaneshwar, IIM Sambalpur, Microsoft, Meta, UNICEF, NCERT and many more, displaying technologies that will drive the future of work with constant innovations in modern workplace, future skills, and innovative delivery models. The exhibition received a positive response with 10,000 visitors attending it on Day 1.

The guests and visitors witnessed many highlights, Future of Work exhibit in 3 sectors- Agriculture, Mobility & Healthcare, Metaverse, Reverse engineering and automated design solutions, drone technology, Ed-tech solutions leveraging AR/VR, industry 4.0 skills, vernacular learning-based tech solutions, virtual internship solutions, and assistive technology & tactile display for inclusion and live demo of assistive technology innovation. This exclusive exhibition is being put together on the sidelines of the 3^rd Education Working Group (EdWG) meeting under G20 presidency from April 23^rd to 28^th at CSIR-Institute of Minerals and Materials Technology (IMMT), Bhubaneswar, Odisha.

After the inaugural, Shri Pradhan addressed the first precursor event of 3^rd EdWG Meeting, a seminar on Deep Tech with a focus on advanced technology in Future of Work at IMMT Auditorium in Bhubaneswar. Speaking on the occasion Shri Pradhan said that Odisha is a land of skills. Its art & architectural excellence and ancient trade linkages is a glowing testimony to this. He said 21st century will be knowledge-based and technology-driven. Guided by its civilisational ethos and as a natural hub of talent, captive market & resources, India is going to play a leading role in fulfilling global aspirations of the 21st century. Skills and competencies rather than degrees will drive the future, he added.

Shri Pradhan said Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has envisioned to transform India’s Yuva Shakti into job-creators rather than job-seekers. He said that as technologies continue to disrupt, we must think new approaches to skilling to prepare youth for future of jobs. Internet, mobility, and global connectivity provides us with an opportunity to think about global requirements. We must come together to convert this opportunity for India’s youth as well as for those belonging to the Global South, he added. The Minister expressed his happiness that today on the auspicious occasion of Akshaya Tritiya, industry, academia, startup ecosystem and all stakeholders have come together in Bhubaneswar under the G20 Future of Work framework to reimagine the skilling ecosystem, create future-ready global citizens and make India a global hub of skilled manpower. He also complimented and appreciated the spirit of Jan Bhagidari of the people of Odisha.

The Minister informed that more than 1 lakh youth have participated in month long G20-related events to generate and pique curiosity about India’s G20 Presidency as well as the 3rd Education Working Group Meeting in Bhubaneswar.

The Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE) and the Ministry of Education (MoE) are hosting precursor events on April 23^rd and 24^th, and for Day 1, the theme is ‘Deep Tech with a focus on advanced technology in Future of Work’. To delve deeper into theme around the advent of Deep Tech and its impact on Future of Work, multiple panel discussions were held today, including India’s prospects in global semiconductor ecosystem, the world of digitalization and new age startups. The speakers at the panel were Dr. Charan Gurumurthy, CEO, Fabrication (Semiconductor), Tata Electronics; Mr Kishore Balalji, Executive Director, Govt & Regulatory Affairs, IBM South Asia; Prof. Shreepad Karmalkar, Director, IIT Bhubaneswar;

Col. Amit Verma, Chief Administrative Officer, IIM Ahmedabad; Mr Nishit Gupta, Scientist E, MeitY, Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology, Government of India; Dr. Ashutosh Chadha, Director and Country Head, Public Policy & Govt Affairs, Microsoft India; Mr Abhishek Gupta, Chief Operating Officer, YuWaah, (Generation Unlimited) UNICEF; Dr G Narahari Sastry, Director, CSIR – Institute of Minerals and Materials Technology (IMMT) and Mr. Rohit Gupta, Program Director, Atal Innovation Mission, NITI Aayog.

A unique Future of Work Experience Zone that has been setup aims to display to the youth how the Future of work will evolve by getting a preview of the required advanced technical skills and softer transferrable skills at this experience zone, to remain market relevant.

Union Minister of Ports, Shipping & Waterways and Ayush Shri Sarbananda Sonowal today inaugurated major infrastructure projects in Chennai, Tamil Nadu to augment the capacity of Chennai and Kamarajar ports in the state. The projects – worth more than ₹148 crore – aim at boosting the capacity of Chennai and Kamarajar ports. The Union Minister also underlined the ongoing discussion between India and Russia to open up ‘Chennai-Vladivostok Maritime Corridor’ in order to bolster the maritime trade between the two countries.

A bunker berth at Bharathi Dock, Goods Shed yard at Jolarpet and 40 KLD (Kilo Litres per day) sewage treatment plant were inaugurated at Chennai port by Shri Sarbananda Sonowal. The total cost of these projects is more than ₹55 crore. The 182 m Bunker berth Project, funded under the visionary Sagarmala scheme of Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways  (MoPSW), is worth ₹50.25 crore. This will enable a capacity addition of 1 MMTPA (Million Metric Tonnes Per Annum) and will also handle Bunker Tankers up to 10,000 DWT. This will serve the bunkering needs of vessels calling at the regional ports in Chennai, Kamarajar and Katupalli and other vessels passing from nearby.

Speaking on the occasion, the Shri Sarbananda Sonowal said, “The rich history of Tamil Nadu’s marine trade has been a bedrock of growth and development of Indian economy. As we work towards building an ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji, these projects are expected to play a pivotal role in engineering the positive turnaround in the marine sector of the region. The projects inaugurated today will not only empower Tamil Nadu’s marine sector but also enable growth multipliers in the regional trade along with the EXIM trade. Our conscious effort to unlock the humongous potential of Blue Economy, through revolutionary schemes like Sagarmala, is in sync with the vision of  new India as envisaged by Modi ji.”

Commenting on the furthering marine cooperation between Russia and India, Shri Sonowal said, “India is in talks with Russia to open up Chennai-Vladivostok Maritime Corridor to further the special relationship between the two countries while unlocking the huge trade potential in blue economy. Under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji, India affirms its commitment to rejuvenate its trade & investment potential to propel the growth of India. This corridor will serve this purpose acting as a conduit of growth & investment cooperation between two historic cities with rich marine history – Chennai and Vladivostok – of the two  countries.”

The 15,000 Sq Meters large Goods Shed facility, with loading & stacking facilities at Jolarpet, will enable movement of cargo from up to Chennai Port through railway, increasing movement of cargo especially containers. The port will also get a revenue share (from Southern Railway) from the Terminal Access Charges.

As part of the Green Port Initiative of MoPSW, the Sewage treatment plant of 40 KLD capacity will enable reuse of waste water after treatment for various purposes. The Amrit Mahotsav Marg between Kamarajar Port’s 4.8 km access road from Vallur junction to NCTPS junction was built with an investment of ₹88 crores. This will boost hassle free movement of cargo with better road connectivity to the port. Widening and Concreting of Port Access Road from Vallur Junction to NCTPS junction was completed under Sagarmala and one of the “National Infrastructure Pipeline” projects of MoPSW.

About Sagarmala Programme

Sagarmala Programme has taken an integrated approach towards development of the maritime infrastructure of India and identified projects under 5 key pillars for development – Port Modernisation, Port Connectivity, Port-Led Industrialisation, Coastal Community Development and Coastal Shipping & Inland Water Transport. There are 802 projects worth ₹5.40 Lakh crore for implementation under the Sagarmala Programme by 2035. Out of which, 221 projects worth ₹1.12 lakh crore have been completed and 252 projects worth ₹2.29 Lakh Crore are under implementation. In addition to the above, 329 projects worth ₹1.98 Lakh crore are under various stages of development.

Out of the total Sagarmala Projects, 108 projects worth ₹1.46 Lakh. Crore are being implemented in the state of Tamil Nadu. Of the 108 projects, 43 projects worth ₹34,752 Crore have already been completed, 34 projects worth ₹67,759 Crore are under Implementation and 31 projects worth Rs. 44,057 Crore are under various stages of development. Under the Port Modernisation category, 44 projects worth ₹49,045 Crore, some of the key projects under this category being ‘Development and Operation of a full-fledged Truck Parking Terminal adjacent to NH-7A opposite to Fisheries College at VoC Port’, ‘Dredging the dock basin for coastal cargo berth at VOC Port’ etc.

The Chennai Port has been playing a crucial role in the industrialization of the southern India. Along with the Kamarajar Port, the Chennai port has been the backbone of the EXIM trade of the State. Chennai Port achieved an operating income of ₹943 crore for 2022-23 and a net surplus of ₹150 crore, which is the highest in the last 13 years. The Kamarajar Port also crossed the ₹1,000-crore income mark for the first time in FY23. KPL recorded a net surplus (profit before tax) of ₹670 crore in 2022-23, an increase of 24.39% over the previous year.

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has acknowledged the role played by Khelo India in encouraging sporting talent on completion of 5 years of the initiative.

Replying to a tweet by Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports, Shri Anurag Singh Thakur, the Prime Minister tweeted;

“As we mark 5 Years Of Khelo India, we acknowledge the role played by this initiative in encouraging sporting talent and giving a great platform to athletes to shine. Our Government shall continue to create the ideal environment for sports to thrive in India.”

Addressing an event organised by the Ministry of Earth Sciences to celebrate World Earth Day here today, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; Minister of State (Independent Charge) Earth Sciences; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh reiterated the “LiFE” (Lifestyle for Environment) movement launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said, India is committed to furthering sustainable development in line with our culture of living in harmony with nature.

United Nations Ambassador and Grammy Award Winning Indian music composer and environmentalist, Rickey Kej was the special guest of the day whose new music composition on ‘Earth and Environment’ was launched by Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh.

Dr Jitendra Singh recalled that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the ‘Lifestyle for the Environment (LiFE) Movement in June 2022 and stressed that the need of the hour is to solve the challenge faced by our planet using human-centric, collective efforts and robust action that further sustainable development.

Earth Day is an annual event observed on April 22 to demonstrate support for environmental protection. It was first held in 1970. The theme for World Earth Day 2023 is ‘Invest In Our Planet. This ongoing theme encourages us all to invest in a better future for our planet by tackling environmental issues such as climate change, biodiversity, and waste reduction.

The Minister mentioned that the idea of LiFE was introduced by the Prime Minister during COP26 promotes an environmentally conscious lifestyle that focuses on ‘mindful and deliberate utilisation’ instead of ‘mindless and wasteful consumption’.

Dr Jitendra Singh said that the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) holistically addresses all the aspects relating the Earth System Science for providing weather, climate, ocean, coastal state, hydrological and seismological services. The services include forecasts and warnings for various natural disasters like tropical cyclones, storm surge, floods, heat waves, thunderstorm and lightning; alerts for Tsunamis and monitoring of earthquakes etc. In addition, the ministry also has the mandate of making ocean survey and exploration for living and non-living resources and exploration of all the three poles (Arctic, Antarctic and Himalayas).

The Minister added that the services provided by the ministry are being effectively used by different agencies and state governments for saving human lives and minimizing damages due to natural disasters.

Dr Jitendra Singh said that the Ministry of Earth Sciences has been supporting celebration of Earth Day / Ozone Day for the purpose, of spreading awareness and sensitizing the general public on the issues concerning to Earth and Earth Sciences in the country. MoES is also supporting celebration of Earth Day at more than 75 places / schools / colleges / Institutions across the country with a focus on Girls students / Differently abled students and aspirational districts.

The Minister said the across India, more than 7500 students / volunteers are participating in the activities comprising sowing the seed and seeing then grow as plants / plantation / slogan / rallys / paintings, etc. as part of Earth Day 2023. Moreover popular lectures are being organized at different Institutes including at MoES HQ.

Dr M Ravichandran, Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences, also spoke on the occasion and reiterated the Ministry’s commitment to furthering “LiFE” movement and sustainable development in India.

Hon’ble Union Minister of Textiles, Commerce & Industry and Consumer Affairs and Food & Public Distribution, Shri Piyush Goyal presided over the sixth interactive meeting with the Textile Advisory Group (TAG), on 22^nd April, 2023, to review the progress of initiatives for cotton value chain, as part of the Saurashtra Tamil Sangamam which is being conducted under the ‘Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat’ Initiative in Gujarat in Rajkot.

Shri Piyush Goyal noted the progress in the project on Traceability, Certification and Branding of Kasturi Cotton India and lauded that branding of Indian Cotton will add great value to the entire cotton value chain from farmers to end users.

He pointed out that the quality of Indian cotton is beneficial for farmers and industry both. Meetings of Steering Committee and Apex Committee have taken place and the funds for project have been released and the work on Traceability, Certification and Branding of Kasturi India Cotton has begun.

He appealed to TEXPROCIL to make aggressive efforts to brand Kasturi cotton as premium cotton in domestic and international markets.

Final approval for Holistic plan to enhance cotton productivity by targeting the technology of HDPS, Closer Spacing and ELS with an amount of Rs. 4186.85 lakhs was obtained from MoA&FW under NFSM. Cluster-wise identification of villages/farmers has been finalized in Rajasthan and the same is in progress in all the remaining cotton growing states where sowing will be taken up for the ensuing cotton season 2023-24.

Shri Goyal emphasized the need for strengthening certification systems for organic cotton and requested industry for active participation in promotion of organic cotton production amongst cotton farmers. Hon’ble Minister advised to form a working group of experts, representative from industry, respective Ministries & other stakeholders to have detailed plan of action to boost organic cotton production on cluster based approach.

Smt. Darshana V. Jardosh, Hon’ble Minister of State for Textiles and Railways and TAG Chairman Shri Suresh Kotak also guided the TAG meeting.

Smt Rachna Shah, Secretary, Ministry of Textiles, appealed to all cotton value chain stakeholders to work together in a cohesive manner to achieve the Hon’ble PM’s dream of five F’s from Farm to Foreign in the Cotton Textile Value Chain and regain Supremacy in Cotton to enhance value returns to producers.

Representatives from Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, CCI, APEDA, BIS, other senior officials from related Ministries and stakeholders from entire cotton value chain were also present during the meeting.

Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Indian Navy successfully conducted a maiden flight trial of sea-based endo-atmospheric interceptor missile off the coast of Odisha in the Bay of Bengal on April 21, 2023. The purpose of the trial was to engage and neutralize a hostile ballistic missile threat thereby elevating India into the elite club of Nations having Naval BMD capability.

Prior to this, DRDO has successfully demonstrated land-based BMD system with capability to neutralize ballistic missile threats, emerging from adversaries.

Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh congratulated DRDO, Indian Navy and Industry involved in successful demonstration of ship based Ballistic Missile defence capabilities.

Secretary DDR&D and Chairman DRDO Dr Samir V Kamat complimented the teams involved in the design and development of the missile. He said that nation has achieved self-reliance in developing highly-complex network-centric anti-ballistic missile systems.

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi addressed Civil Servants on the occasion of 16th Civil Services Day, 2023 at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi today. The Prime Minister also conferred the Prime Minister’s Awards for Excellence in Public Administration and released the e-books ‘Viksit Bharat – Empowering Citizens & Reaching the last mile Volume I and II.

Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister congratulated everyone on the occasion of Civil Services Day. The Prime Minister noted that the occasion of Civil Services Day this year becomes much more special as the nation has completed 75 years of its independence and is starting to move forward to achieve the goals and objectives of a developed India. He highlighted the contributions of those Civil Servants who joined the service 15-25 years ago and emphasized the role of young officers who will contribute towards nation-building in the next 25 years of Amrit Kaal. The Prime Minister expressed confidence that the young officers are extremely fortunate to serve the nation in this Amrit Kaal. “The responsibility to accomplish the dreams of every freedom fighter of the nation lies upon every shoulder”, the Prime Minister remarked as he pointed out the paucity of time but the abundance of potential and courage in the country.

The Prime Minister said that the country is prepared for take off due to the work done in the last 9 years. He said that different results are being obtained with the same bureaucracy and personnel. He acknowledged the role of Karamyogis in the growing profile of the country on the global stage, for the growing confidence of the poorest of the poor in ‘Sushasan’ and for a new momentum of development of the country. He mentioned India rising as the 5th largest economy in the world, taking strides in fintech as India is number one in digital transactions, one of the cheapest mobile data countries and the third largest startup ecosystem in the world. He remarked on transformative changes in the rural economy, railways, highways, port capacity augmentation and the number of airports. He said that the awards today reflect the contribution and sense of service of the Karmyogis.

Recalling his address from the ramparts of the Red Fort on 15th August last year when the Prime Minister invoked the ‘Paanch Pran’ namely the development of Viksit Bharat or developed India, breaking the slavery mentality, taking pride in India’s heritage, strengthening the unity and diversity of the country, and keeping one’s duties before anything else, the Prime Minister underlined that the energy emanating from these five resolves will take the nation to its deserved place in the world.

Dwelling on the theme of this year’s Civil Service Day being based on the notion of Viksit Bharat, the Prime Minister said that the concept of Viksit Bharat is not limited to modern infrastructure. “It is important for Viksit Bharat that India’s government system supports the aspirations of every Indian and every government servant helps every citizen in realizing their dreams and the negativity that was associated with the system in the previous years, turns into positivity”, the Prime Minister added.

Throwing light on decades of experience after India’s independence, the Prime Minister stated the importance of last-mile delivery in the implementation of government schemes. He gave examples of results from policies of previous governments and mentioned that there were more than 4 crore fake gas connections, more than 4 crore fake ration cards, and support was provided to 1 crore fictitious women and children by the Ministry of Women and Child Development, fake scholarships were offered to approximately 30 lakh youths by Ministry of Minority Welfare, and lakhs of fake accounts were created under MGNREGA to transfer the benefits of workers who never existed. The Prime Minister highlighted that a corrupt ecosystem had emerged in the country under the pretext of these fake beneficiaries. He credited the civil servants for the transformation that has taken place in the system where roughly 3 lakh crore rupees have been saved from landing in the wrong hands, which is now being used for the welfare of the poor.

The Prime Minister emphasized that when time is limited, it becomes very critical to decide the direction and working style. “Today’s challenge is not about efficiency but in figuring out how to find and remove deficiencies”, he said. He recalled the time when in the garb of deficiency even the small aspect was attempted to be controlled. Today, he continued, the same deficiency is being turned into efficiency and removing obstacles in the system. “Earlier, the thinking was that the government will do everything, now the thinking is that the government will work for everyone”,  said the Prime Minister highlighting the efficient use of time and resources to serve everyone. “Motto of the government is ‘Nation First-Citizen First’, today’s government’s priority is prioritizing the deprived”, the Prime Minister remarked, informing that the government is going up to Aspirational Districts and up to Aspirational blocks. He said today’s government is treating border villages as the first villages rather than the last villages. He said that for 100 percent saturation, we will need even more hard work and innovative solutions. He gave the example of departments asking for NoCs and information that is available somewhere in the system. He said for ease of living and ease of doing business we will have to find solutions for these.

Giving the example of PM Gatishakti Master Plan, the Prime Minister explained that all data layers related to any infrastructure project can be found on a single platform and stressed the need to utilize it to the maximum for better planning and execution in the social sector. He further added that it will greatly benefit in identifying the needs of citizens, tackling issues related to education that might arise in the future, and enhancing communication between departments, districts and blocks while also helping in the formulation of future strategies.

The Prime Minister stressed that the Amrit Kaal has brought immense challenges along with great opportunities.  The Prime Minister elaborated that today’s aspirational citizens are not willing to wait for long to see changes in the systems and this will need our full effort, he said. Taking quick decisions and implementing them with speed has become all the more important as the expectations of the world from India have also risen dramatically.  As the world is saying that India’s time has arrived, there is no time to be wasted by the bureaucracy of the country. “The country has put its faith in you, work while maintaining that trust. Basis of all your decisions should always be the national interest”, he insisted.

Highlighting the importance and necessity of political parties with different ideologies in a democracy, the Prime Minister stressed the need for Bureaucracy to assess whether the political party in power is utilizing the taxpayers’ money for the benefit of the nation. “It is the duty of the Bureaucracy to analyze whether a political party is making use of taxpayers’ money for the benefit of their own organization or the nation’s”, the Prime Minister continued, “if it is using the money to create a vote bank or making the lives of the citizens easier; if it is advertising itself with the government treasure or making the people aware; if it is appointing its own party workers in various organizations or creating a transparent process for recruitment.” Recalling the words of Sardar Patel about the Bureaucracy being the steel frame of India, the Prime Minister said that it is time to live up to the expectations and prevent the dreams of the youth from getting crushed along with taxpayers’ money from being destroyed.

The Prime Minister told the government servants that there are two approaches to life, first, getting things done and second letting things happen. The first is an active attitude and the second reflects a passive attitude. People with faith in getting things done take ownership in a proactive manner and become the driving force of their teams. “By this burning desire to bring change in the lives of the people you will be able to leave a memorable legacy. You will not be judged by what you have done for yourself but by what changes have you brought in the lives of the people”, the Prime Minister told the Karmyogis. Therefore, he said “Good governance is the key. People-centric governance solves problems and gives better results”, he said. He gave examples of Aspirational districts that are performing better than other districts on many development parameters due to good governance and the efforts of energetic young officers. By focussing on people’s participation a sense of ownership is created among the people and this people ownership ensures unprecedented results, he said. He illustrated this with examples of Swacch Bharat, Amrit Sarivar and Jal Jeevan Mission.

The Prime Minister referred to the District Visions@100 that are under preparation and said that such visions should be prepared up to Panchayat Level. What sectors should be focussed in the Panchayats, blocks, district and the state, changes for attracting investment and identification of products that can be taken up for exports, a clear vision for all this should be developed, he said. He emphasized linking the chain of MSME and Self-Help Groups to promote local products and said “It is very important for all of you to encourage local talent, promote local entrepreneurship and start-up culture.”

Underlining that he has been the head of the government for more than 20 years now, the Prime Minister expressed delight at getting the opportunity to work with civil servants. He emphasized capacity building and expressed happiness that ‘Mission Karmayogi’ has become a huge campaign among all civil servants. He underlined that the Capacity Building Commission is taking this campaign forward with full force and said, “The aim of Mission Karmayogi is to utilize the full potential of civil servants.” Highlighting the iGOT platform that has been created to ensure the availability of quality training material everywhere, the Prime Minister stressed that training and learning should not remain a formality for a few months. “Now, all the recruits are also being trained on iGOT platform with the orientation module of ‘Karmayogi Prarambh’”, Shri Modi added.

Highlighting the government’s initiative to do away with the protocol of hierarchy, the Prime Minister said that he constantly meets the secretaries, assistant secretaries, and trainee officers. He also gave the example of brainstorming camps to increase everyone’s participation within the department for new ideas. He also stated that the issue of officers getting work experience in the Central Government on deputation only after living in the states for the first years has been addressed by filling the gap through the assistant secretary programme where young IAS officers now get a chance to work in the Central Government at the very beginning of their career.

The Prime Minister said that 25 years of Amrit journey is considered a time of duty (Kartavya Kaal). “The century of independence will be the golden century of the country when we will give first priority to our duties. Duty is not an option for us but a resolution”, the Prime Minister stressed. “This is the time of rapid change. Your role will also be determined not by your rights, but by your duties and their performance. The power of the citizens of the country has increased in the new India, the power of India has increased. You have got an opportunity to play an important role in this new emerging India.”, he added.

Concluding the address, the Prime Minister stated that young civil servants have the opportunity to make a mark of prominence in history when the accomplishments of the nation will be evaluated after 100 years of independence. “You can say with pride that I have played a role in creating new systems for the country and also improving it. I am sure all of you will continue to expand your role in nation-building”, Shri Modi concluded.

Union Minister of State for Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Dr Jitendra Singh, Principal Secretary to Prime Minister, Shri P K Mishra, Cabinet Secretary, Shri Rajiv Gauba and Secretary, Department of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances, Shri V Srinivas were present on the occasion.

Background

The Prime Minister has constantly appreciated the contribution of Civil Servants towards nation-building and enthused them to work even harder. The programme served as an apt platform for the Prime Minister to motivate and inspire Civil Servants across the country so that they may keep serving the nation with the same zeal, especially during this crucial phase of Amrit Kaal.

During the event, the Prime Minister also conferred the Prime Minister’s Awards for Excellence in Public Administration as well. These have been instituted with a view to recognize the extraordinary and innovative work done by districts & organizations of the Central and State Governments for the welfare of common citizens.

Awards will be given for exemplary work done in four identified priority programmes: Promoting Swachh Jal through Har Ghar Jal Yojana; Promoting Swasth Bharat through Health & Wellness Centres; Promoting quality education with an equitable and inclusive classroom environment through Samagra Shiksha; Holistic Development through Aspirational District  Programme – overall progress with special focus on saturation approach. Eight awards for the above four identified programmes will be given while seven awards shall be given for innovations.