Daily Prelims 8th February 2024

1) South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation (SASEC): Prime Minister laid the foundation stone of multiple road upgradation as part of the SASEC corridor connectivity.  

• Genesis: Established in 2001.  
• Secretariat : Asian Development Bank  
• Members: Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Maldives, Sri Lanka, Myanmar  
• Objective: It is a project-based partnership to promote regional prosperity by improving, 
• Cross-border connectivity  
• Boosting trade among member countries and  
• Strengthening regional economic cooperation  
• Four Main SASEC Sectors: Transport, Trade facilitation, Energy, and Economic corridor development. 

2) Prime Minister’s Science, Technology & Innovation Advisory Council (PM-STIAC): Principal Scientific Adviser (PSA) to the Government of India has convened the 24th PM-STIAC meeting.  

• Constituted in 2018, PM-STIAC advises the Prime Minister on all matters related to Science, Technology and Innovation.  
• Council works under the office of PSA and PSA acts as its chairperson.  
• Objectives: Synergizing Science & Technology collaborative research with various stakeholders.  
• Fostering effective public-private linkages for driving research  
• Formulating and coordinating major inter-ministerial Science & Technology missions.  
• PM-STIAC shaped several missions such as Deep Ocean Exploration Mission, One Health Mission, National Quantum Mission, etc. 

3) Nagoya Protocol: Cameroon, a central African country, has adopted the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from their Utilization.  

• Adopted in 2010 in Nagoya, Japan, it is a supplementary agreement to the Convention on Biological Diversity.  
• India is a party to the Nagoya Protocol.  
• It aims at sharing the benefits arising from the utilization of genetic resources in a fair and equitable way.  
• It establishes a clear framework on how researchers and companies can obtain access to genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge. 

4) Bharat Brand: Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution launched ‘Bharat Rice’ at a subsidized rate.  

• In the first phase, it will be offered to consumers through three central cooperative agencies – Kendriya Bhandar, National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd (Nafed), and National Cooperative Consumers’ Federation of India (NCCF).  
• Earlier, the government has started retailing subsidized Wheat flour and Chana dal under the ‘Bharat’ Brand.  
• It aims to stabilize prices, curb food inflation, and augment domestic availability of these food items. 

Places in News: 

1) Suriname (Capital: Paramaribo): 

• A Parliamentary delegation from the Republic of Suriname, called on the President of India.  
• Political Features  
• Located on northern coast of South America.  
• Boundaries: Atlantic Ocean to the north, French Guiana to the east, Brazil to the south, and Guyana to the west.  

Geographical Features  

• Tropical rainforest covers southern part of the country.  
• Economically, dependent on extensive supply of natural resources, most notably Bauxite.  
• Major Rivers: Maroni, Courantyne, Coppename, Suriname River etc.  
• Highest Peak: Juliana Top