India to Accede to the Ashgabat Agreement
- Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has given its approval on March 23, 2016 for India to accede to the Ashgabat Agreement, an international , transport and transit corridor facilitating transportation of goods between Central Asia and the Persian Gulfi
- The accession to the Agreement would enable India to utilize this existing transport and transit corridor to facilitate trade and commercial interaction with the Eurasian region. Further, this would synchronize with our efforts to implement the International North South Transport Corridor (INSTC) for enhanced connectivity.
- India would become party to the Agreement upon consent of the founding members: The Ashgabat Agreement has Oinan, Iran, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan as founding members. Kazakhstan has also joined this arrangement subsequently.
Union Government Launched Mobile App ‘Pusa Krishi’
- Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh launched a new mobile app ‘Pusa Krishi’ at the valedictory session of the three-day ‘Krishi Unnati Mela’ on March 21, 2016 for farmers in order to take the technology to farm fields.
- With this mobile app, farmers can get easy solutions to their problems. Farmers can get information about weather and accordingly they can take measures to save crops.
- The app will provide farmers with information related to new varieties of crops developed by Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR), resource conserving cultivation practices as well as farm machinery and its implementation will help in increasing returns to farmers.
- Kisan Suvidha mobile app was also launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on March 19, 2016, which aims at providing information to farmers on weather, market, prices, farm machinery as well as identification and management of crop pest and disease.
Self Regulatory Code for Industry to Protect Consumers
- The Department of Consumer Affairs has entered into partnership with the Industry Association to implement six points’ agenda on March 21, 2016 in order to protect the rights of consumers against misleading advertisements, fake and counterfeit products, and for effective redressal of consumer complaints.
- The MoU will broadly cover the collaborative programmes on developing and implementing a self-regulated code of fair business practices, establishing a Consumer Affairs division/vertical within the Industry Body, initiating advocacy action against unfair trade practices and preventing fake, counterfeit and sub-standard products and services and adoption of voluntary standards by Industry members.
India Post Released Stamp on H AL’s 75-year of Service
- Usha Chandrasekhar, Chief Postmaster General, Karnataka circle, and VM Chamola, Director (HR), India Post released a customized commemorative stamp on Hindustan Aeronautical Limited (HAL) in recognition of the company’s 75 years of service to the nation on March 21, 2016.
- It is for the first time India Post is coming out with a customized ‘My Stamp’ and HAL is the first organization to feature on it. There is a tagline f.e: The force behind the forces’ for its platinum jubilee logo.
- The stamp depicts HAL’s special 75-year logo that signifies HAL’s journey over the past 75 years. The special logo depicts HAL’s first indigenous aircraft programme from HT-2 to the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas. The logo also reflects HAL’s rotary wing capabilities by displaying a watermark of HAL’s star performer the Advanced Light Helicopter Dhruv.
