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NATIONAL AFFAIRS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. OXYGEN CRISIS IN INDIA
2. PM MODI INAUGURATED RAISINA DIALOGUE…
3. MANAS APP FOR MENTAL WELL BEING
4. SUPPLY CHAIN RESILIENCE INITIATIVE
5. NATIONAL MIGRATION LABOUR POLICY
6. TRIBAL HEALTH INITIATIVE
7. SANKALP SE SIDDHI DRIVE
8. MAOIST ATTACK IN CHHATTISGARH
9. INDIA & FRANCE NAVAL EXERCISE
10. PROJECT DANTAK
11. NATIONAL PENSION SYSTEM
12. NATIONAL RARE DISEASE POLICY
13. E9 INITIATIVE

#OXYGEN CRISIS IN INDIA

• With the COVID-19 crisis deepening every day, the shortage of Oxygen has become a major hindrance in India’s fight against Coronavirus.

• But as Central and State Governments scramble to procure enough oxygen for hospitals, demand for Oxygen Concentrators has also raised exponentially.

• With rumours and speculations around Oxygen running short in hospital, several people have started thinking about buying these devices for home or group usage in times of crisis, without any medical understanding or prescription for the same.

• Therefore, it is important now to understand what Oxygen Concentrators are and how are they different from Oxygen Cylinders that are usually used to supply medical oxygen.

• Medical Oxygen: The second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic has severely affected the lungs of patients making them gasp for breath.

• So to save the lives of patients, medical oxygen is used, which is 'high-purity oxygen' used for medical treatment such as, life support system, during anaesthesia, etc. The process to make medical oxygen takes place in the plant, where the air is cooled, and oxygen is distilled.

About Oxygen Concentrators.

• An oxygen concentrator draws in ambient air which is about 78 per cent Nitrogen and 21 per cent Oxygen and the remaining 1 per cent other gases.

• The concentrator filters the room air through a sieve and releases back the nitrogen back into the atmosphere.

• The oxygen retained in the concentrator is 90-95 per cent pure. It is compressed and given through a cannula. A pressure valve on the concentrators helps to monitor the supply which ranges from 1-10 litres per minute.

• A report by WHO in 2015 stated that oxygen concentrators have been designed as such that they can provide a continuous supply of oxygen for 24 hours, 7 days a week. They can work for up to 5 years or more.

Are Oxygen Concentrators beneficial for COVID-19 patients?

• Experts say that the 90-95 per cent pure oxygen generated by these concentrators is useful for COVID-19 patients with mild to moderate symptoms with oxygen saturation levels above 88 per cent.

• However, the patients in the ICU ward benefit only from 99 per cent Liquid Medical Oxygen. The oxygen from concentrators is not advisable for them.

• Also, experts do not recommend attaching the concentrators to multiple patients as it poses a danger of cross-infection.

How are Oxygen Concentrators different from Oxygen Cylinders

• Oxygen Concentrators are portable whereas oxygen cylinders are required to be stored and transported in cryogenic tankers.

• Oxygen Concentrators work on the power supply to draw in room air and generate oxygen while oxygen cylinders require refilling.

• Oxygen concentrators are only capable of generating 5-10 litres of oxygen per minute hence not suitable for patients with a critical need for 40-50 litres of oxygen per minute.

• What is the cost and maintenance of Concentrators versus Cylinders?

• Oxygen Concentrators are available for Rs 40,000 – 90,000 while oxygen cylinders cost around Rs 8,000 – 20,000.

• Oxygen Concentrators incur an additional cost of electricity and routine maintenance while oxygen cylinders involve refilling and transportation costs.

• The Liquid Medical Oxygen (LMO) crisis during the second wave of Covid surge has been precipitated by a shortage of tankers and the daunting logistics of transportation from distant locations.

 Liquid Medical Oxygen: It is high purity oxygen suitable for use in the human body. So, it is used for medical treatments.
 This oxygen provides a basis for virtually all modern anaesthetic techniques, restores tissue oxygen tension by increasing the oxygen availability, aids cardiovascular stability, etc.
 The World Health Organisation includes this on their List of Essential Medicines.
 According to the Drug Prices Control Order, 2013, LMO is placed under the National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM).
 LMO Production in India: India has a daily production capacity of at least 7,100 Metric Tonnes (MT) of oxygen, including for industrial use.
 Due to the crisis, the production has been increased to 8,922 MT. And approximately daily sale is 7,017 MT.
 The domestic production is expected to cross 9,250 MT per day by the end of April 2021.
 Therefore, India appears to be producing sufficient oxygen to meet the current need.
Reasons for the Crisis:
 Distance of Production Plants: Most of the LMO plants are located in the east, leading to long transportation hauls and a turnaround time of at least 6-7 days for each tanker. Add to this the problem of states holding up tankers on the way.
 Limited Tankers: At present, India has 1,224 LMO tankers with a cumulative capacity of 16,732 MT of LMO. This is grossly inadequate because at any given point, there are only 200 tankers in transit to meet a demand of 3,500-4,000 MT.
 Companies not Buying Cryogenic Tankers: Cryogenic tankers cost around Rs. 50 lakh each. Companies are not buying these tankers because once this wave is over, that investment will turn into losses.
 Cryogenic Tankers: These are tankers which store medical oxygen at -180 degrees C, have double-skin vacuum-insulated containers, including an inner vessel made of stainless steel.
 Leakage and Irrational Use: In the past, the Health Ministry repeatedly demanded hospitals to reduce wastage and unnecessary oxygen use in Hospitals. Industrial experts also raised concerns over possible leakages in hospital pipelines that supply oxygen.
 Black marketing of oxygen cylinders is another issue.

 

Government Initiatives:

 Oxygen Express: Trains to transport LMO and oxygen cylinders across the country have been started to fight the ongoing crisis.

 Disaster Management Act 2005: The Ministry of Home Affairs invoked Disaster Management Act, 2005 (DM Act) and ordered free inter-state movement of oxygen carrying vehicles.

 Restarting Plants: The government is restarting many closed plants to increase the supply of LMO, for example, Sterlite plant in Tamil Nadu will be reopened for 4 months to provide oxygen supply.

 Use of Air Force: To speed up the transportation, Indian Air Force (IAF) is airlifting empty oxygen tankers and taking them to industrial units that have switched to producing medical grade oxygen.

 Oxygen Enrichment Unit (OEU): It is developed by scientists of Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-National Chemical Laboratory (CSIR-NCL), and will help reduce the requirement of ventilators and oxygen cylinders in homecare, villages and remote places. Oxygen enrichment units have special significance in view of the Covid-19 pandemic. Patient recovery can be faster with supplemental oxygen in early stages.
Ensuring an uninterrupted supply of oxygen:
• The Home Secretary while commenting on the latest order referred that the various measures taken so far are to ensure the uninterrupted supply of oxygen across India.

• He added that it was important to restrict the industrial usage of oxygen in order to ensure that the medical oxygen is available without any interruption. Necessary instructions in this regard were also issued on April 22, 2021, for restricting the use of medical oxygen.

• The Central Government after reviewing the oxygen supply situation decided that the use of liquid oxygen, including the existing stock, will be allowed for medical purposes only and also that all the manufacturing units must maximize their production of liquid oxygen.

Supreme Court Task force for allocation of medical oxygen

• The Supreme Court of India in an order passed on May 6, 2021, constituted a 12-member national task force that would assist with formulating a methodology for the allocation of medical oxygen to states and union territories during the COVID-19 pandemic.

• The Supreme Court has constituted the national task force at a time when the country is experiencing a shortage of medical oxygen to handle the mounting cases of COVID-19. Hence, the Court devised the national task force in the spirit to set up an ‘effective and transparent mechanism’ and ‘streamline the process’ for allocating medical oxygen to all states and union territories.

• A bench of Justices M R Shah and DY Chandrachud informed that the Union Cabinet Secretary will serve as the convenor of the national task force. The Secretary of the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare will serve as an ex-officio member of the task force.

• Sandeep Budhiraja, Max Healthcare, RandeepGuleria, AIIMS, and two IAS officers – one each from the Centre and the Delhi government, will also be part of the task force.

12-member National Task Force: Key highlights

• The task force will help the government with strategies and inputs to solve the challenges of the pandemic on a professional and transparent basis.

• The task force will constitute sub-groups or committees within each state and UT that will consist of an officer of the State or UT government (not below the rank of Secretary to the State Govt.), an officer of the Centre (not below the rank of Additional/Joint Secretary), two medical doctors in the State/UT, and a representative from the Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organization (PESO).

• The sub-groups or committees within each state and UT will audit to confirm if the supplies by the Centre reached the concerned state or UT, assess the efficiency of the distribution networks regarding supplies for healthcare institutions and hospitals, and determine if the available stocks are being dispersed in an effective, professional, and transparent mechanism.

• The task force will not interfere or scrutinize the decisions of the doctors but only ensure the successful distribution of the supplies and oxygen to every state or UT.

• The tenure of the task force has been set six months initially. The Centre has been asked to nominate two nodal officers who will be responsible for logistics, communication, and arrangement of virtual meetings of the task force.

• The task force will be provided with complete and real-time data from the Centre and State governments. All the healthcare institutions and hospitals are advised to cooperate with the task force.

Oxygen surplus state, Kerala: EDITORIAL

• The Covid-19 second wave has disrupted the demand supply scenario of medical oxygen in several parts of the country. However, Kerala seems to be sitting pretty, thanks to the efforts of Petroleum and Explosive Safety Organisation (PESO) in augmenting capacity and plugging leakages.
• The achievement has been made possible through concerted efforts to set up oxygen plants and maintain the existing ASU (Air Separation Unit) plants and manufacturing plants both in public and private sectors over the past one year.
• Allaying fears of an oxygen scarcity, RVenugopal, Deputy Chief Controller of Explosives, PESO, Nodal officer (Medical Oxygen Monitoring), Kerala & Lakshadweep) said the State has a stock of 430 tonneswith a daily supply of 140 tonnes. Currently, there are 11 Air Separation Units (ASU) for filling cylinders from gaseous oxygen and there is capacity to spare. The total production capacity of Kerala is 204.75 tonnes a day. About 52 tonnes is needed for Covid treatment and for non-covid care 45 tonnes, he said.
• PESO has approved the trial run for one more ASU at Palakkad that has a production capacity of 260 m3/hour gaseous oxygen and a liquid medical oxygen storage of 40 kilolitres. Besides, the agency has given approval for another ASU plant in Thiruvananthapuram to produce 130 m3/hour gaseous oxygen and a liquid medical oxygen storage of 33 kl, which would start functioning shortly, he said.
• It may be recalled that Kerala had to depend on the neighbouring Tamil Nadu and Karnataka for liquid oxygen requirements. In 2019, PESO granted licence to set up a 149-tonne plant of Inox India to ensure regular supply of oxygen in the State.
• “It was an online news report highlighting the shortage of medical oxygen in Italy in the Covid times last year that prompted me to augment the capacity of oxygen plants in Kerala”, Venugopal told “I had convened a meeting with liquid oxygen manufacturers in March 2020 to step up production so as to meet any emergencies eventualities with the spread of virus. They were asked to provide daily reports on the production and storage status including that of private hospitals.
• The public sector Kerala Minerals and Metals Ltd which set up a plant in September 2020 is producing seven tonnes per day, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited-Kochi Refinery produces three tonnes in association with Air Products, while the Cochin Shipyard produces another 5.45 tonnes, he added.
• Industry sources pointed out that that BPCL has offered to enhance its medical oxygen supply by converting its gaseous oxygen into medical cylinders. As it requires high pressure compressors, the petroleum marketing company is studying the feasibility of the project and once it is materialised, the supply of oxygen to the State would be further increased.

 

#PM MODI INAUGURATED RAISINA DIALOGUE

• Prime Minister Modi inaugurated the 6th edition of the Raisina Dialogue on April 13, 2021. The inaugural session of the dialogue was also joined by the Prime Minister of Denmark, Mette Frederiksen, and the President of Rwanda, Paul Kagame.

• Raisina Dialogue 2021 will be held in a virtual mode from April 13 to April 16. The Dialogue is India’s flagship conference on geoeconomics and geopolitics and is held annually since 2016. The Dialogue is jointly organised by the External Affairs Ministry and Observer Research Foundation.

• One of the subsequent session was also joined by the Prime Minister of Australia, Scott Morrison. Because of the exceptional circumstances due to the Coronavirus pandemic, the dialogue is being conducted in a virtual mode.

PM Modi addresses Raisina Dialogue 2021:

• As the world sees the second wave of Coronavirus, PM Modi while addressing the 6th edition of Raisian Dialogue 2021 stated that the event is taking place at a watershed moment in human history. He added that a global pandemic has been ravaging the world. The last such global pandemic was almost a century ago.

• He further mentioned that even though humanity has faced many infectious diseases, the world today is still unprepared to face and handle the Coronavirus pandemic.

• PM Modi added that our researchers, scientists, and industry have answered some of the questions. Many solutions have emerged and many more are yet to come.

• Prime Minister during his address also highlighted India's struggles during the pandemic. He mentioned that in our own humble way, within our own limited resources, we in India have tried to walk the talk. India tried to protect its own 1.3 billion people and at the same time also tried to support the pandemic response efforts of others.

• PM Modi emphasized that the pandemic will not be defeated unless all of us, regardless of the color of our passports, come out of it. This is why despite many constraints, India supplied Coronavirus vaccines to over 80 countries.

Theme of Raisina Dialogue 2021:

• According to the statement released by the Ministry of External Affairs, the theme of Raisina Dialogue 2021 is ‘#ViralWorld: Outbreaks, Outliers, and Out of Control’.

Raisina Dialogue 2021

• The event will be seeing the presence of Former PM of Sweden, Carl Bildt; Former Prime Minister of Australia, Anthony Abbott and Former Prime Minister of New Zealand, Helen Clark.

• The Foreign Ministers of Slovenia, Portugal, Singapore, Romania, Nigeria, Italy, Sweden, Japan, Kenya, Australia, Chile, Iran, Maldives, Bhutan, and Qatar will also be participating in the event.

• The 6th edition of the dialogue will have 50 sessions with the participation of 150 speakers from 50 different countries as well as multilateral organisations.

• More than 2000 attendees from over 80 countries have already pre-registered. A large number of participants are likely to join the dialogue through various social media platforms.

About Raisina Dialogue:

• It is a multilateral conference which is held every year in New Delhi, India. The Dialogue by India is designed on the lines of the Shangri-La Dialogue of Singapore.

• Raisina Dialogue was first held in 2016 and since its inception, it has emerged as India’s flagship conference on geoeconomics and geopolitics.

• It is structured as a cross-sectoral discussion, multi-stakeholder, which involves a variety of global policymakers including Cabinet Ministers, heads of state as well as local government officials. Apart from it, the dialogue also welcomes major sector executives, as well as the members of academia and media.

• The name Raisina Dialogue comes from Raisina Hill. It is an elevation in New Delhi, the seat of the Government of India and the Presidential Palace of India, RashtrapatiBhavan.

• What is the goal of the Raisina Dialogue?

• Raisina Dialogue is India’s contribution to the global efforts for discovering solutions, providing stability, and identifying opportunities to a century that has already witnessed an eventful two decades.

The Conference addresses the most challenging issues faced by the international community. The global leaders, during the dialogue, discuss cooperation on a wide range of significant international policy matters.

• Since its inception in 2016, the dialogue has been able to attract leading minds from the global strategic and policy-making community for discussing broader foreign policy as well as strategic issues facing the world.

 

#GOI LAUNCHED MANAS APP FOR MENTAL WELL BEING

Recently, the government of India launched a mobile app, MANAS (Mental Health and Normalcy Augmentation System) to promote mental wellbeing across age groups.

 MANAS was endorsed as a national program by the Prime Minister’s Science, Technology, and Innovation Advisory Council (PM-STIAC).

 PM-STIAC: It is an overarching Council that facilitates the Principal Scientific Adviser’s Office to assess the status in specific science and technology domains, comprehend challenges in hand, formulate specific interventions, develop a futuristic roadmap and advise the Prime Minister accordingly.

About:

 It is a comprehensive, scalable, and national digital wellbeing platform and an app developed to augment mental well-being of Indian citizens.

 It integrates the health and wellness efforts of various government ministries, scientifically validated indigenous tools with gamified interfaces developed/researched by various national bodies and research institutions.

 It is based on life skills and core psychological processes, with universal accessibility, delivering age-appropriate methods and promoting positive attitude focusing on wellness.

 

Developed By:

 National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS) Bengaluru, Armed Forces Medical College (AFMC) Pune and Centre for Development of Advanced Computing(C-DAC) Bengaluru.

 Beneficiaries: Catering to the overall wellbeing of people of all age groups, the initial version of MANAS focuses on promoting positive mental health in the age group of 15-35 years.

 Aim: To build a healthier and happier community, to empower it to nurture its innate potential for building a Swasth and Atmanirbhar Bharat.

 Motto of MANAS:Uttam Mann, Saksham Jan.
Mental Health in India

 Data Analysis: A report published in The Lancet Psychiatry in February 2020 indicates that in 2017, there were 197.3 million people with mental disorders in India.
 The top mental illnesses were depressive disorder (45.7 million) and anxiety disorder (44.9 million).
 The contribution of mental disorders to the total Disability-Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) in India increased from 2.5% in 1990 to 4.7% in 2017.
 Depressive disorder and anxiety disorder contributed the most to the total mental disorders DALYs.
 DALYs: The burden of disability associated with a disease or disorder can be measured in units called DALYs.
 DALYs represent the total number of years lost to illness, disability, or premature death within a given population.
 Other Indian Initiatives to Improve Mental Health:

The Mental Health Care Act (MHCA) 2017:

 The Mental Health Care Act (MHCA) 2017 came into force in 2018 to meet the requirements of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities which India ratified in 2007.

 KIRAN: The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has launched a 24/7 toll-free helpline to provide support to people facing anxiety, stress, depression, suicidal thoughts and other mental health concerns.

Manodarpan Initiative:

 Manodarpan is an initiative of the Ministry of Education under Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan.

 It is aimed to provide psychosocial support to students, family members and teachers for their mental health and well-being during the times of Covid-19.

 NIMHANS RAAH APP: It is a one-stop source of data on mental health centres and professionals. It is developed by the NIMHANS.

 

#SUPPLY CHAIN RESILIENCE INITIATIVE

The Trade Ministers of India, Japan and Australia have formally launched the Supply Chain Resilience Initiative (SCRI).

 The SCRI aims to create a virtuous cycle of enhancing supply chain resilience with a view to eventually attaining strong, sustainable, balanced and inclusive growth in the Indo-Pacific region.

 The trio (India, Japan and Australia) along with the US makes Quad grouping.

Supply Chain Resilience (Concept):

 Meaning: In the context of international trade, supply chain resilience is an approach that helps a country to ensure that it has diversified its supply risk across a clutch of supplying nations instead of being dependent on just one or a few.

 Importance: In unanticipated events -whether natural, such as volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, earthquakes or even a pandemic; or manmade, such as an armed conflict in a region — that disrupt supplies from a particular country or even intentional halts to trade, could adversely impact economic activity in the destination country.

Supply Chain Resilience Initiative:

 Background: The Covid-19 pandemic was having an unprecedented impact in terms of lives lost, livelihoods and economies affected, and that the pandemic had revealed supply chain vulnerabilities globally and in the region.

About:

 Objectives: To attract foreign direct investment to turn the Indo-Pacific into an “economic powerhouse”.
 To build a mutually complementary relationship among partner countries.
 To work out a plan to build on the existential supply chain network. Japan and India, for example, have an India-Japan competitiveness partnership dealing with locating the Japanese companies in India.
 Features: The SCRI, first proposed by Japan, aims to reduce dependence on China amid a likelihood of rechurning of supply chains in the Indo-Pacific region amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
 Initially, SCRI will focus on sharing best practices on supply chain resilience and holding investment promotion events and buyer-seller matching events to provide opportunities for stakeholders to explore the possibility of diversification of their supply chains.
 Joint measures may include supporting the enhanced utilisation of digital technology and trade and investment diversification.
 Expansion of the SCRI may be considered based on consensus, if needed, in due course. The ministers have decided to convene at least once a year to provide guidance to the implementation and development of the SCRI.
 This assumes significance in the wake of Japan's keenness to onboard the ASEAN in the initiative, something that India has opposed.
 India wants to safeguard its interests from China’s indirect influence through the bloc (ASEAN) as it builds on its self-reliance through reduced dependence on imports.

Significance to India:

 Following the border tensions with China, partners such as Japan have sensed that India may be ready for dialogue on alternative supply chains.
 China still remains a large source of critical imports for India, from mobile phone components to pharmaceutical ingredients. An internal push to suddenly cut links with China would be impractical.
 Over time, if India enhances self-reliance or works with exporting nations other than China, it could build resilience into the economy’s supply networks.
 Way Forward
 It will help boost India’s manufacturing competitiveness and increase its share in world trade. In this pursuit, there is a need to create an infrastructure that raises the competitiveness of India’s exports.
 While India appears an attractive option for potential investors both as a market and as a manufacturing base, it needs to accelerate progress in ease of doing business and in skill building.

NITI AAYOG’S DRAFT NATIONAL MIGRANT LABOUR POLICY

Spurred by the exodus of 10 million migrants (as per government estimates) from big cities during the Covid-19 lockdown, NITI Aayog, along with a working subgroup of officials and members of civil society, has prepared a Draft National Migrant Labour policy.

Positives of Draft Policy

• Due Recognition: Intent to better recognise migrants’ contribution to the economy and support them in their endeavours.

• Radical Ideas: It puts forward several radical ideas, including the adoption of a rights-based approach and establishing an additional layer of institutions to create a more enabling policy environment for migrants.

• Dedicated Unit: It proposes a new National Migration Policy and the formation of a special unit within the Labour Ministry to work closely with other ministries.

• Helps bring Convergence across departments: The new structure would bring about much-needed convergence across line departments and would be a huge step towards a universal understanding of the causes and effects of migration as well as the interventions needed.

• Focus on implementation: The draft policy calls for improving the record on the implementation of the country’s many labour laws that have, by and large, failed to make a difference to the lives of labour migrants.

• Multiple laws considered: It discusses at length the provisions under the Equal Remuneration Act, The Bonded Labour Act, the Building and Other Construction Workers Act and the Interstate Migrant Workmen Act, among others.

• International Responsibilities addressed: It invokes the ILO’s Decent Work Agenda as well as the Sustainable Development Goals which aim to protect labour rights.

• Significance of data realized: It acknowledges the challenges of welfare provision to a highly fragmented migrant workforce due to recruitment patterns and the lack of data. It refers to the importance of collective action and unions and there are detailed plans for improving the data on short-term migration, especially seasonal and circular migration.

 

Issues associated

• The policy does not delve deeper into the causes underlying the poor implementation of labour laws that are linked to the political economy of recruitment and placement. It does not talk about gender differences in employment.

• Domestic workers are one of the most important occupations for migrant women. They have been ignored.

• Controlling tribal migration goes against the objective of recognising migrant agency to help tribal migrants to access the opportunities offered by migration.

 

#TRIBAL HEALTH INITIATIVE ‘ANAMAYA’

• Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan along with Union Minister of Tribal Affairs Arjun Munda launched the Tribal Health Collaborative ‘Anamaya’ through a video conference on April 07, 2021.

• A statement by the Union Health Ministry mentioned, “This multi-stakeholder initiative ‘Anamaya’ will converge efforts of various government agencies and organizations to enhance the health and nutrition status of the tribal communities of India.”

• Harsh Vardhan appreciated the efforts of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs to ensure holistic health for the tribal communities. He said, “In the past one year, several efforts have been made by the Health Ministry to jointly address the health gaps of the tribal communities with the Ministry of Tribal Affairs.

• Recently, the Tribal Tuberculosis Initiative was launched by both the Ministries to fulfil the PM’s goal of ‘TB Mukt Bharat’ by 2025, five years ahead of the global deadline.”

• The union minister also called on the senior leaders to create a similar level of awareness for TB just as it is for COVID-19. He mentioned that there will efforts to address other critical diseases prevalent in the tribal communities such as sickle cell disease, malaria, anaemia, malnutrition.

• He highlighted that though India has witnessed a huge improvement in the level of quality and access to healthcare services in the last decade, the tribal population still lacks access to health facilities and health care providers due to cultural and language differences, poor treatment-seeking behaviour, shortage of human resources, difficult terrain, etc.

• Present at the launch event, Union Minister of Tribal Affairs Arjun Munda also spoke about the relentless efforts by the Tribal Affairs Ministry to address the health challenges of the tribal communities, engaging with State governments, civil society organizations and other stakeholders.

About the Tribal Health Collaborative ‘Anamaya’

• It is a multi-stakeholder initiative launched by the Union Health Ministry in collaboration with the Union Minister of Tribal Affairs on April 07,2021.

• The collaborative is in association with Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMFG) and Piramal Foundation. This collaborative aims at enhancing the health and nutrition eco-system of the tribal communities of India by converging efforts of various Government agencies and organizations.

• With this collaborative, the Ministry will work on setting up the National Council on Tribal Health and a Tribal Health Cell to monitor healthcare needs in the tribal areas as well as implement the Tribal Health Action Plan.

#SANKALP SE SIDDHI DRIVE: TRIFED

The Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED), under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, has launched “Sankalp se Siddhi” - Village and Digital Connect Drive.

 The main aim of this drive is to activate the Van DhanVikasKendras (VDVKs) in the villages.

About Sankalp se Siddhi Drive:

 The drive will entail 150 teams (10 in each region from TRIFED and State Implementation Agencies/Mentoring Agencies/Partners) visiting ten villages each.
 Thus, 100 villages in each region and 1500 villages in the country will be covered.
 The visiting teams will also identify locations and shortlist potential Van DhanVikasKendras for clustering as TRIFOOD, and SFURTI units as larger enterprises.
 Scheme of Fund for Regeneration of Traditional Industries (SFURTI) is a scheme of the Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSME).
 Rs. 200 crore Sales during the next 12 months is targeted as a result of this initiative once the VDVKs are activated in these 1500 villages.
 The teams will also identify tribal artisans and other groups and empanel them as suppliers so that they can have access to larger markets through the Tribes India network – both physical outlets and TribesIndia.com.

Other Involvements of the TRIFED:

 Village and Digital Connect Initiative: To ensure that existing schemes and initiatives reach the tribals, TRIFED’s regional officials across the country have been visiting identified villages with a significant tribal population.

 Schemes for Ensuring Fair Prices to Tribals: Schemes such as Mechanism for Marketing of Minor Forest Produce (MFP) Through Minimum Support Price (MSP) and Development of Value Chain for MFP provide MSP to gatherers of forest produces.

 The schemes ensure sustainability of the resource base by addressing the problems that tribals face such as perishable nature of the produce, lack of holding capacity, lack of marketing infrastructure, exploitation by middlemen, etc.

Tech ForTribals:

 Tech For Tribals program aims to transform 5 crore Tribal Entrepreneurs by capacity building and imparting entrepreneurship skills to tribal forest produce gatherers enrolled under the Pradhan Mantri Van Dhan Yojana (PMVDY).
 The Van DhanVikas Yojana is an initiative of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs and TRIFED. It was launched to improve tribal incomes through value addition of tribal products.
 The program will ensure higher success rate of the Tribal Entrepreneurs by enabling and empowering them to run their business with marketable products with quality certifications.

Van DhanVikasKendras:

 Van DhanVikasKendras have been provided by Van DhanVikas Yojana.

 Van DhanVikas Kendra (VDVKs) are for providing skill upgradation and capacity building training to tribals and setting up of primary processing and value addition facilities.

 Tribals are trained here and then provided with working capital to add value to the products, which they collect from the jungle.

 TRIFOOD Scheme: It is a joint initiative of the Ministry of Food Processing Industry, Ministry of Tribal Affairs and TRIFED and it promotes value addition to MFP.

#ATTACK OF MAOIST IN SUKMA, CHHATTISGARH

A team of security forces was attacked by a People’s Liberation Guerilla Army (PLGA) unit in the Tarrem area near the Sukma-Bijapur district border, Chhattisgarh. Several security personnel were killed and many were injured.

 PLGA was founded in 2000. It has been declared as a terrorist organisation and banned under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act-1967 (UAPA).

About the Sukma District:

 Located in the southern tip of the state of Chhattisgarh, the district was carved out of Dantewada in the year 2012. It is covered with the semi-tropical forest and is a mainland of tribal community Gond.
 One major river that flows through the district is Sabari (a tributary of Godavari river).
 Over a few decades, this region has become a fostering ground for Left Wing Extremism (LWE) activities.
 Uneven terrains and the tricky geographic locations made this region a safer hideout for the LWE activists.

Left Wing Extremism in India:

 Left-wing extremists, popularly known as Maoists worldwide and as Naxalites in India.
 The term Naxalism derives its name from the village Naxalbari of West Bengal. It originated as a rebellion against local landlords who bashed a peasant over a land dispute.
 The rebellion was initiated in 1967, with an objective of rightful redistribution of the land to working peasants under the leadership of KanuSanyal and Jagan Santhal.
 The movement has spread across the Eastern India in less developed areas of states such as Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.
 It is considered that Naxals support Maoist political sentiments and ideology.
 Maoism is a form of communism developed by Mao Tse Tung. It is a doctrine to capture State power through a combination of armed insurgency, mass mobilization and strategic alliances.

Reasons for Left Wing Extremism:

 Tribal Discontent: The Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 has been used to target tribals, who depend on forest produce for their living.
 Massive displacement of tribal population in the naxalism-affected states due to development projects, mining operations and other reasons.

Gaps in the Socio-Economic system of the Country:

 Government measures its success on the basis of the number of violent attacks rather than the development done in the naxal-affected areas. Absence of strong technical intelligence to fight with naxalites.
 Infrastructural problems, for instance, some villages are not yet connected properly with any communication network.
 No Follow-Up from Administration: It is seen that even after police take hold of a region, administration fails to provide essential services to the people of that region.

Government Initiatives to Fight LWE:

 Greyhounds: It was raised in 1989 as an elite anti-naxal force.
 Operation Green Hunt: It was started in 2009-10 and massive deployment of security forces was done in the naxal-affected areas.
 LWE Mobile Tower Project: To improve mobile connectivity in the LWE areas, the Government in 2014, approved installation of mobile towers in LWE affected States.
 Aspirational Districts Programme: Launched in 2018, it aims to rapidly transform the districts that have shown relatively lesser progress in key social areas.
 SAMADHAN: It stands for
 S- Smart Leadership,
 A- Aggressive Strategy,
 M- Motivation and Training,
 A- Actionable Intelligence,
 D- Dashboard Based KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) and KRAs (Key Result Areas),
 H- Harnessing Technology,
 A- Action plan for each Theatre, and
 N- No access to Financing.
 This doctrine is the one-stop solution for the LWE problem. It encompasses the entire strategy of government from short-term policy to long-term policy formulated at different levels.

Conclusion

 Though the number of incidents of LWE violence has come down in the recent past, continued efforts and focus are needed in eliminating such groups.
 Government needs to ensure two things; security of the peace-loving people and the development of the naxalism-affected regions.
 Centre and states should continue with their coordinated efforts in development and security both where Centre should play a supportive role with state police forces taking the lead.
 Government needs to undertake technological solutions such as the use of drones to minimize loss of lives of security personnel.

 

#INDIA & FRANCE NAVAL EXERCISE ‘VARUNA’

• The 19th edition of the Indian and French Navy bilateral exercise ‘Varuna-2021’ has started in the Arabian Sea on April 25, 2021.

• According to the official release, the exercise will also showcase the increased level of coordination, synergy and interoperability between the friendly navies of India and France.

• The three-days exercise between the navies of two countries will be seeing high tempo-level operations at the sea, which will include advanced anti-submarine and air defence exercises, tactical manoeuvres, intense fixed and rotary wing flying operations, underway replenishment, surface and anti-air weapon firings and other maritime security operations.

• The 19th edition of the Indian and French Navy bilateral exercise ‘VARUNA-2021’ is scheduled to be conducted in the Arabian Sea from 25th to 27th April 2021.

Objective:

• The units of the two navies in the Varuna bilateral naval exercise will endeavor to enhance their war fighting skills in order to demonstrate their ability as an integrated force to promote security, peace and stability in the maritime domain.

Key Highlights:

• The Indian navy will be led by the Flag Officer Commanding Western Fleet Rear Admiral Ajay Kochhar. While, the French navy will be led by the Commander Task Force 473, Rear Admiral Marc Aussedat.

• From the Indian side, guided-missile frigates INS Talwar and INS Tarkarsh, guided-missile stealth destroyer INS Kolkata, Fleet Support Ship INS Deepak, with Chetak Integral Helicopters, P81 Long Range Maritime Patrol Aircraft and a Kalvari Class Submarine will be participating in the exercise.

• From the French Navy side, E2C Hawkeye aircraft and helicopters Dauphin and Caiman M embarked, aircraft carrier Charles-de-Gaulle with Rafale M Fighter, Aquitaine-class multi missions frigate FNS Provence with Caiman M Helicopter embarked, Horizon-class air defence destroyer Chevalier Paul, and command and supply ship Var.

• On the completion of the Varuna exercise, the guided-missile frigate INS Tarkashof the Indian Navy will continue to exercise with the Carrier Strike Group of the French Navy from April 28 to May 1, 2021, for best practices and enhance interoperability.

• During this time, the ship will also be taking part in the advanced anti-submarine, surface, and air-defence operations with the French Navy.

 

#PROJECT DANTAK: BORDER ROADS ORGANIZATION

Recently, Project DANTAK which is one of the oldest Projects of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) commemorated its Diamond Jubilee in Bhutan.

 Over 1,200 DANTAK personnel laid down their lives while constructing important infrastructure in Bhutan.
 About: Project DANTAK was established on 24th April1961. It was a result of the visionary leadership of the third King of Bhutan and then Prime Minister of India Jawahar Lal Nehru.
 DANTAK was tasked to construct the pioneering motorable roads.

Achievements:

 Road Connectivity: Over the years, the Project has completed approximately 1600 km of blacktopped roads and 120 km of tracks in Bhutan with 5000 meters of bridges over them.
 Other Projects Executed: Include the construction of Paro Airport, Yonphula Airfield, Thimphu – Trashigang Highway, Telecommunication & Hydro Power Infrastructure, Sherubtse College, Kanglung and India House Estate.
 Medical and Education Facilities: The medical and education facilities established by DANTAK in far flung areas were often the first in those locations.
 Food Outlets: The food outlets along the road introduced the Bhutanese to Indian delicacies and developed a sweet tooth in them.

Indo-Bhutan Relationship:

 Indo-Bhutan Treaty of Peace and Friendship, 1949: The Treaty provides for, among other things, perpetual peace and friendship, free trade and commerce and equal justice to each other’s citizens.
 In 2007, the treaty was re-negotiated, and provisions were included to encourage Bhutan’s sovereignty, abolishing the need to take India’s guidance on foreign policy.
 Multilateral Partnership: Both of them share multilateral forums such as South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), BBIN (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, and Nepal), BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) etc.
 Economic Partnership:Mutually beneficial hydro-power cooperation with Bhutan forms the core of bilateral economic cooperation.
 The 720 MW Mangdechhu was commissioned in August 2019. HEPs namely, 1200 MW Punatsangchhu-I, 1020 MW Punatsangchhu-II and Kholongchhu HEP (600 MWs) are under various stages of implementation.
 India is Bhutan's largest trading partner.

Border Roads Organisation

 BRO was conceived and raised in 1960 by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru for coordinating the speedy development of a network of roads in the North and the North Eastern border regions of the country.
 It works under the administrative control of the Ministry of Defence.
 It has diversified into a large spectrum of construction and development works comprising airfields, building projects, defence works and tunneling and has endeared itself to the people.

Some Recent Achievements:

 Atal Tunnel: It is located in Himachal Pradesh’s Rohtang pass. It connects Solang Valley near Manali to Sissu in Lahaul and Spiti district.
 Nechiphu Tunnel: Foundation stone was laid on the Balipara-Charduar-Tawang (BCT) road in West Kameng district of Arunachal Pradesh.
 Daporijo Bridge: It is over Subansiri river in Arunachal Pradesh.
 Kasowal Bridge: It is over Ravi river. It connects Kasowal enclave in Punjab along the India - Pakistan border to the rest of the country.
 Darbuk-Shyok-Daulat Beg Oldie Road: It connects Leh via the villages of Darbuk and Shyok at southern Shyok River Valley, with the Daulat Beg Oldi (DBO) post near the northern border.
 Barsi Bridge (longest bridge on Manali–Leh highway): It is built on Bagga river, which joins with Chandra river at Tandi in Lahaul to flow down into Jammu & Kashmir as the Chenab.

 

#NATIONAL PENSION SYSTEM: PENSION SCHEME

Given the dominance of informal employment in India, the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation, which is contingent on a formal employer-employee relationship, only covers a fraction of the workforce.

About New Pension Scheme

• Started as the New Pension Scheme for government employees in 2004 under a new regulator called the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA), the National Pension System (NPS) has been open for individuals from all walks of life to participate and build a retirement nest-egg

• The NPS has been gradually growing in size and now manages ₹5.78 lakh crore of savings and 4.24 crore accounts in multiple savings schemes.

• Of these, over 3.02 crore accounts are part of the Atal Pension Yojana (APY), a government-backed scheme for workers in the unorganised sector that assures a fixed pension payout after retirement.

• The rest constitute voluntary savings from private sector employees and self-employed individuals, for whom some significant changes are on the anvil.

What overhaul is the PFRDA planning?

• Annuitisation of Savings: The law regulating the NPS allows members to withdraw just 60% of their accumulated savings at the time of retirement. With the remaining 40%, it is mandatory to buy an annuity product that provides a fixed monthly income to retirees till their demise.

• Exemption to annuitisation: Members who accumulate up to ₹2 lakh in their NPS account at the time of retirement are exempted from the mandatory annuitisation, and can withdraw the full amount.

• Proposal for New Exemption Limit: Recently, PFRDA chairman said this limit will soon be revised to ₹5 lakh.

• Suppose somebody reached ₹2.1 lakh at retirement, he will get an annuity component of ₹84,000 (40% of corpus), which, today, will give an income of ₹400 or ₹450 a month. So, now, PFRDA will allow those with savings up to ₹5 lakh to take the entire corpus out if they choose.

• More Flexibility: PFRDA has now proposed to give members a choice to retain 40% of their corpus with the NPS fund managers even after retirement. This, the PFRDA chief believes, will allow them to get better returns, and these savings can be paid out to members over 15 years through something like the systematic withdrawal plan offered by mutual funds.

• Relaxation in age norms: Age restrictions to join the NPS are also being eased to allow people to join the scheme up to the age of 70 years, from 65 years earlier.

• Additional Fund Managers: At least three more fund managers are expected to be appointed soon, which will take the total managers to ten.

• While this change shall need Parliament’s nod, the expansion of the annuity-free withdrawal limit from ₹2 lakh to ₹5 lakh is being done immediately.

What prompted this rethink?

• Complaints from NPS Subscribers: Falling interest rates and poor returns offered by annuity products had triggered complaints from some members and experts about the compulsory annuitisation clause.

• Poor returns: Since annuities are taxable, deducting the tax and factoring in the inflation means annuities are yielding negative returns. With retail inflation running at about 5%-6% over the past year, the returns on annuities are, in fact, negative, even if one does not factor in the tax.

What is the impact of changes being made?

• To avoid forcing people into such an unattractive investment, the regulator has tweaked its rules so as to allow better returns to its pension subscribers.

• The flexibility of the pension system will enable more people to invest in NPS as it will be considered as safe &risk free return on their savings.

• Appointment of additional fund managers shows that government is serious about expanding.

 

#NATIONAL RARE DISEASE POLICY, 2021

Recently, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has approved the National Rare Disease Policy 2021.

 Earlier, the Delhi High Court had directed the Centre to set up a Rare Diseases Committee, a Rare Diseases Fund and to finalise and notify the National Health Policy for Rare Diseases on or before 31st March, 2021.

 Aim:To increase focus on indigenous research and local production of medicines.To lower the cost of treatment of rare diseases.To screen and detect rare diseases early at early stages, which will in turn help in their prevention.

Major Provisions of the Policy:

 Categorization:
 The policy has categorised rare diseases in three groups:
 Group 1: Disorders amenable to one-time curative treatment.
 Group 2: Those requiring long term or lifelong treatment.
 Group 3: Diseases for which definitive treatment is available but challenges are to make optimal patient selection for benefit, very high cost and lifelong therapy.

Financial Support:

 Those who are suffering from rare diseases listed under Group 1 will have the financial support of up to Rs. 20 lakh under the umbrella scheme of Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi.
 Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi: The Scheme provides for financial assistance to patients, living below poverty line (BPL) and who are suffering from major life threatening diseases, to receive medical treatment at any of the super specialty Government hospitals / institutes.
 Beneficiaries for such financial assistance would not be limited to BPL families, but extended to about 40% of the population, who are eligible as per norms of Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, for their treatment in Government tertiary hospitals only.

Alternate Funding:

 This includes voluntary crowdfunding treatment by setting up a digital platform for voluntary individual contribution and corporate donors to voluntarily contribute to the treatment cost of patients of rare diseases.
 Centres of Excellence:The policy aims to strengthen tertiary health care facilities for prevention and treatment of rare diseases through designating eight health facilities as 'Centres of Excellence' and these will also be provided one-time financial support of up to Rs. 5 crore for upgradation of diagnostics facilities.
 National Registry:A national hospital-based registry of rare diseases will be created to ensure adequate data and comprehensive definitions of such diseases are available for those interested in research and development.

Concerns Raised:

 Lack of Sustainable Funding:Unlike conditions under Group 1 and Group 2, patients with Group 3 disorders require sustainable treatment support.
 In the absence of a sustainable funding support for Group 3 patients, the precious lives of all patients, mostly children, are now at risk and at the mercy of crowdfunding.
 Lack of Drug Manufacturing:Where drugs are available, they are prohibitively expensive, placing immense strain on resources.
 Currently few pharmaceutical companies are manufacturing drugs for rare diseases globally and there are no domestic manufacturers in India except for those who make medical-grade food for those with metabolic disorders.

Rare Diseases

 There are 6,000-8,000 classified rare diseases, but less than 5% have therapies available to treat them.
 Example: Lysosomal Storage Disorders (LSD), Pompe disease, cystic fibrosis, muscular dystrophy, spina bifida, haemophilia etc.
 About 95% rare diseases have no approved treatment and less than 1 in 10 patients receive disease-specific treatment.
 These diseases have differing definitions in various countries and range from those that are prevalent in 1 in 10,000 of the population to 6 per 10,000.
 However broadly, a ‘rare disease’ is defined as a health condition of low prevalence that affects a small number of people when compared with other prevalent diseases in the general population. Many cases of rare diseases may be serious, chronic and life-threatening.
 India has close to 50-100 million people affected by rare diseases or disorders, the policy report said almost 80% of these rare condition patients are children and a leading cause for most of them not reaching adulthood is due to the high morbidity and mortality rates of these life-threatening diseases.

Recent concern ‘Mucormycosis: Rare Fungal Infection

• The central government has issued an advisory on the management of Mucormycosis fungal infection among Corona patients. The centre stated that the fungal infection mainly affects people who are on medication that reduces their ability to fight environmental pathogens.

• The centre said that the infection may turn fatal if uncared for. It is generally being found in COVID-19 patients with uncontrolled diabetes and prolonged ICU stay.

What is Mucormycosis?

• Mucormycosis is a black fungus infection that is being detected lately in some COVID-19 patients in India who have had prolonged stays in the ICU. The spreading of the infection has caused few COVID survivors to lose their vision.

• Mucormycosis is a serious but rare fungal infection, which is caused by a group of molds called mucormycetes. These fungi generally live in the environment, particularly in soil and in decaying organic matter, such as compost piles, leaves or rotten wood or even decaying fruits and vegetables.

• According to health experts, it is found in the soil and air and even in the nose and mucus of healthy people.

How does mucormycosis affect the human body?

• The fungal infection affects the sinuses, brain and lungs of a person and can be life-threatening to individuals who are diabetic or severely immunocompromised such as cancer patients or people with HIV/AIDS.

• In some cases, the patients lost their vision in both eyes and in rare cases, the doctors were forced to remove certain body parts like the eye or jaw bone to stop the disease from spreading.

• According to doctors. the mucormycosis infections may possibly be triggered due to the use of steroids, which is currently seen as a life-saving treatment for critical COVID-19 patients.

• Administration of steroids reportedly reduces inflammation in the lungs of the critically ill COVID-19 patients, thereby helping in stabilising their oxygen levels.

• However, steroids also reduce immunity and lead to a spike in blood sugar levels in both diabetics and non-diabetic Covid-19 patients. This drop-in immunity is said to trigger mucormycosis among some of the COVID patients, especially when they are exposed to wet surfaces.

• Niti Aayog Member (Health) V K Paul said that most life-saving drugs that are currently being used to treat COVID-19 patients like dexamethasone, methylprednisolone and prednisolone suppress the immune system and this is when the fungus attacks.

• He said that even medicines like Tocilizumab and Itolizumabsuppresses the immune system and lead to mucormycosis in diabetic patients.

• Paul explained by saying that when the same COVID-19 patient, who has been administered these life-saving drugs, is put on oxygen support which has a humidifier containing water, the chances of him/ her getting the fungal infection increase.

Is there any way to prevent mucormycosis?

• According to doctors, the only way to prevent the fungal infection is to make sure that the Covid-19 patients are being administered the right dose and duration of steroids. Also, a constant check and care is required of the patient's sugar levels after their discharge.

• Niti Aayog Member (Health) V K Paul urged that when a patient is on oxygen support, it should be ensured that water does not leak from the humidifier. He also added saying that whoever has diabetes needs to control the sugar level always. He also advised rational usage of life-saving steroids and medicines.

 

#E9 INITIATIVE: SACLING UP DIGITAL LEARNING

• Minister of State for Education Sanjay ShamraoDhotre attended a consultation meeting of Education Ministers of E9 countries on the theme 'E9 initiative: Scaling up digital learning to accelerate progress towards SDG4' on 6 April 2021.

• Education Minister of Bangladesh, Dipu Moni, Deputy Secretary-General, United Nations, Amina Mohammed, Education Ministers from the E9 countries and officials from the United Nations, UNICEF and UNESCO attended the meeting.

• One Nation-One Digital Platform -DIKSHA, One Nation-One Channel programme of -SWAYAM PRABHA, SWAYAM MOOCS and radio broadcasting were used to ensure education in the remotest parts of India. He underscored that now is the time to work collectively and in solidarity to create an efficient ecosystem for digital education.

• The consultation was the first of a three-phased process to co-create an initiative on digital learning and skills, targettingmarginalised children and youth, especially girls.

• It aims to accelerate recovery and advance the Sustainable Development Goal 4 agenda by driving rapid change in education systems in three of the 2020 Global Education Meeting priorities-- support to teachers, investment in skills and narrowing the digital divide.

• The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the condition of the education system worldwide, prompting the deployment of digital learning. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 Global Education Meeting Declaration identified five key areas which required urgent action. These are as follows:

 Education financing
 Safe school reopening
 Supporting teachers as frontline workers
 Investment in skills
 Narrowing the digital divide

About E9 countries

• E9 is a forum of nine countries, namely Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria and Pakistan that aims at achieving the goals of UNESCO's Education For All (EFA) initiative. These countries represent more than half of the world's population and 70% of the world's illiterate adults.

• At the EFA Summit in New Delhi, the E9 initiative was launched in 1993. The partnership is aimed at working towards the achievement of SDG4-Education 2030.

What is the SDG4 Agenda?

In 2015, the United Nations (UN) member states adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. 17 goals and 169 targets are listed to be achieved by the year 2030. It is to be noted that SDGs are not legally binding.

Education For All (EFA)

• It is an international initiative that was first launched at the World Conference on Education for All by international organizations-- UNESCO, UNDP, UNFPA, UNICEF and the World Bank-- in Thailand in the year 1990.

• The nations endorsed an 'expanded vision of learning' and pledged to universalize primary education and reduce illiteracy by the end of the decade. However, many countries were still lagging behind in achieving the said goal.

• Therefore, a broad coalition of governments, civil society groups, and development agencies met again in Dakar, Senegal, and affirmed the commitment to achieving EFA by the year 2015. Also, six key education goals were identified to meet the learning needs of all children, youth and adults by 2015.