FAO ISSUES LOCUST ALERT INDIA

 

FAO ISSUES LOCUST ALERT

 

• India should remain on ‘high alert’ during the next four weeks, say the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)
• Indian government has stepped up efforts and is using equipment such as drones and Bell helicopters to control the menace
• Rajasthan are the most affected State in the country
• Other affected States are Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Haryana and Bihar
• Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition and food security.
• Its Latin motto, fiat panis, translates to "let there be bread"
• Headquartered in Rome, Italy and maintains regional and field offices around the world, operating in over 130 countries
• There are 197 members: 194 member nations, 1 member organization and 2 associate members.
• May–June 1905, an international conference was held in Rome, Italy, which led to the creation of the International Institute of Agriculture (IIA) by the King of Italy, Victor Emmanuel III
• World War II effectively ended the IIA.
• Permanent organization for food and agriculture, which was establish on 16 October 1945 in Quebec City, Canada
• In 1951, FAO's headquarters were moved from Washington, DC, United States, to Rome, Italy
• FAO created the International Plant Protection Convention or IPPC in 1952.
• FAO and the World Health Organization created the Codex Alimentarius Commission in 1961 to develop food standards, guidelines and texts such as codes of practice under the Joint FAO/ WHO Food Standards Programme
• In 2004 the Right to Food Guidelines were adopted, offering guidance to states on how to implement their obligations on the right to food
• FAO is an official sponsor of International Day of Forests, on 21 March each year, as proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly on 28 November 2012
• FAO is composed of eight departments: Agriculture and Consumer Protection, Climate, Biodiversity, Land and Water Department, Economic and Social Development, Fisheries and Aquaculture, Forestry, Corporate Services and Technical Cooperation and Programme Management
• Helps governments and development agencies coordinate their activities to improve and develop agriculture, forestry, fisheries, and land and water resources. It also conducts research, provides technical assistance to projects, operates educational and training programs, and collects data on agricultural output, production, and development
• FAO's Regular Programme budget is funded by its members, through contributions set at the FAO Conference
• FAO assists countries in implementation of the Global Plan of Action for Animal Genetic Resources. FAO supports a variety of ex situ and in situ conservation strategies including cryoconservation of animal genetic resources
• ESSG is an acronym for the Global Statistics Service, the major "section" of the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization - Statistics Division. It is responsible for updating and disseminating the FAOSTAT report.

 

CHINA CLAIMS EASTERN BHUTAN BOUNDARY

 

 

 

CHINA CLAIMS ON EASTERN BHUTAN BOUNDARY 

 

• Bhutan sent China a demarche protesting against Chinese claim to the Sakteng wildlife sanctuary in eastern Bhutan
• Beijing claim including Bhutan’s ‘eastern sectors’ to the boundary dispute between the two countries for the first time
• Boundary between China and Bhutan has never been delimited. Disputes over the eastern, central and western sectors for a long time
• China’s attempt last month to stop funding for the Sakteng sanctuary from the UN Development Programs Global Environment Facility (GEF), on the grounds that it w2as ‘disputed’ territory
• According to written records, there has been no mention of eastern Bhutan, or Trashigang Dzongkhag (district), where Sakteng is based, that borders Arunachal Pradesh, in 24 previous rounds of boundary negotiations held between the two countries, between 1984 and 2016
• Sakteng Wildlife Sanctuary is a wildlife sanctuary located mostly in Trashigang District and just crossing the border into Samdrup Jongkhar District, Bhutan
• One of the country's protected areas
• Listed as a tentative site in Bhutan's Tentative List for UNESCO inclusion
• Part of the Eastern Himalayan subalpine conifer forests ecoregion
• Represents the easternmost temperate ecosystems and landscapes of Bhutan
• Protects several endemic species including the eastern blue pine and the black-rumped magpie.

NATIONAL LOGISTICS LAW

 

 

 

NATIONAL LOGISTICS LAW

 

• Commerce Ministry is considering replacing the Multi-Modal Transportation of Goods Act (MMTG) with a full fledged national logistics law with a view to promote growth of the sector
• National Logistics Efficiency and Advancement Predictability and Safety Act (NLEAPS), is under consideration and this law tends to define various participants of the logistics space and create a light regulatory ecosystem
• Multimodal transportation refers to a combination of more than one mode of movement, such as rail, road or sea, for end-to end delivery of goods
• Effective implementation of the policy would help provide an impetus to trade, enhance export competitiveness, and improve India’s ranking in the Logistics Performance Index
• India’s logistics sector is highly fragmented and the government aims to reduce the logistics cost from the present 14% of the Gross Domestic Product of less than 10%.

ZYDUS GETS NOD FOR COVID-19 VACCINE TRIALS

 

 

 

COVID-19 VACCINE TRIALS 

 

Zydus said it has received approval from Indian authorities to start human trials for its COVID-19 vaccine contender

ZyCov -D showed a ‘strong immune response’ in animal studies, and the antibodies produced were able to completely neutralise the wild type virus, Zydus said

Zydus Cadila, a leading Indian Pharmaceutical company is a fully integrated, global healthcare provider

Zydus earned a reputation amongst Indian pharmaceutical companies for providing comprehensive and complete healthcare solutions

Cadila was founded in 1952 by Ramanbhai Patel

In 1995, the group was restructured and thus was formed Cadila Healthcare under the aegis of the Zydus group

In 2010, Cadila Healthcare received a Wellcome Trust Award under the "R&D for Affordable Healthcare in India" initiative

In 2014, Cadila Healthcare launched the world's first adalimumab biosimilar under the brand name Exemptia at one-fifth the originator's price

In 2015 the company acquired another Indian pharmaceutical company called German Remedies

In 2019, injectable ketorolac tromethamine manufactured by Zydus (Cadila Healthcare) was recalled due to microbial growth

Good health, happiness, joy, growth, togetherness, discovery, learning, exploration, evolution, transformation, aspirations, are all intrinsically linked with life. Zydus is dedicated to all these dimensions

The group has forged meaningful partnerships with its key stakeholders both internal and external, partners in progress and the community at large

The group’s philosophy for community engagement is based on the principle of volunteerism and is an intensive, comprehensive and sustainable programme.