DAILY PIB 7th January 2023

13th India-US Trade Policy Forum: Trade Policy Forum is a platform for continuous engagement between two countries in the area of trade and to further the trade and investment relations between the two countries. The TPF is chaired by the Commerce and Industry Minister from the Indian side and USTR from the US side. 

Both India and USA are natural partners and have trade complementarities, long standing strategic and economic relationship, people to people contact, and both are vibrant democracies too. The two countries are also collaborating under the QUAD, I2U2 (India-Israel/ UAE-USA) and IPEF (Indo-Pacific Economic Framework).

Protein (Ccn2a) from Zebrafish: Recently, a study found that a protein called Cellular communication network factor 2a secreted from intervertebral disc cells(Zebrafish) induces disc regeneration in aged degenerated discs by promoting cell proliferation and cell survival.It is a protein found in the backbone of zebrafish that plays a positive role in disc maintenance.

In humans, discs degenerate naturally, leading to many related health concerns, including low back, neck, and appendage pain.

Exercise Veer Guardian 2023: It is a air defence cooperation exercise between India and Japan  involving the Indian Air Force and Japan Air Self Defence Force (JASDF).India and Japan agreed to step up bilateral defence cooperation and engage in more military exercises, including holding the first joint fighter jet drills, reflecting the growing security cooperation between the two sides. This exercise will thus be another step in deepening strategic ties and closer defence cooperation between the two countries.

Dhara event: Ministry of Culture and Ministry of Education organized the Dhara on Sangeet  and Natya Parampara at SASTRA (Deemed-to-be University) in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu.

Dhara is   a series of conferences  under the aegis of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav to create awareness, preserve and promote multiple domains of Indian Knowledge Systems.

The aim of the event  was to create a Vision Document 2047 to revitalise and popularise our performing art traditions and effectively address the challenges that this ecosystem faces.

e-NAM Portal: e-NAM, a flagship initiative of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare,  has won the Platinum Award in the Digital Empowerment of Citizens Category in Digital India Awards 2022 held in New Delhi.e-NAM is a digital platform integrating 1260 APMC mandis across 22 States and 3 UTs to facilitate online trading of 203 agriculture and horticulture commodities to enable farmers to realize better remunerative prices for their produce. 

e-NAM is catalysing the digital transformation of mandi operations and e- trading of agricultural commodities.

e-NAM is empowering citizens by way of digitalization through ease of operation, accessibility, transparency and efficiency of operations for better price discovery for farmers.