1) Eklavya Model Residential Schools (EMRS): The scheme of EMRSs was introduced in the year 1997-98 to ensure tribal students get access to quality education in the remote tribal areas.
- The schools would focus to provide quality upper primary, secondary and senior secondary level education to ST Students in these areas.
- In 2018, it was revamped. EMRSs will be setup in every block with more than 50% ST population and at least 20,000 tribal persons.
- There will be an Autonomous Society under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs similar to Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti to run the EMRSs.
2) Operation Barkhane: it is an ongoing anti-insurgent operation started on August 1, 2014 which is led by the French military against Islamist groups in Africa’s Sahel region.
- The operation is led in cooperation with five countries, all former French colonies, that span the Sahel: Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger.
- These countries are collectively referred to as the “G5 Sahel”. The operation is named after a crescent-shaped dune in the Sahara desert.
- The French military initially intervened in Mali in early 2013 as part of Operation Serval which successfully regained the northern half of the country from Islamist groups.
- Operation Barkhane was intended to act as a follow up.
3) Sir CP Ramaswamy Iyer: he was the Diwan of the erstwhile Travancore princely state from 1936 to 1947.
- His dream of an independent state and idea of ‘American model for Travancore’ made him unpopular. Communists were opposed to his move and the struggle against the Travancore Kingdom led to the merger of socialist parties, creating a new radical communist party.
- His policies led to a massive uprising, the Punnapra-Vayalar revolt, which was suppressed by the Travancore army and navy.
- The rage and discontent culminated in an assassination attempt on Sir CP, and he soon agreed to Travancore state’s entry to the Indian Union.
4) ‘Friend-Shoring’ Plan: it would involve supply chains only in countries that shared core values, assuring not just free trade but trade that is secure
- US will pursue the ‘friendshoring’ approach of deepening economic integration with trusted trading partners like India to diversify away from countries that present geopolitical and security risks to supply chains.
- Friendshoring is part of a “deglobalisation” process, which could see further supply shocks and higher prices in the short term and lower growth in the long run.
5) IUU Fishing in Indian Ocean Region: IUU fishing depletes fish stocks, destroys marine habitats, puts fishermen at disadvantage and impacts coastal communities, especially in developing countries.
- As per the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), coastal nations are responsible for addressing IUU fishing issues within their respective EEZ.
- There are two main regulations globally on IUU fishing: the Cape Town Agreement and the Agreement on Ports State Measures. India is not a signatory of either agreement.
- Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies (AFS) at WTO ministerial meeting (2022): prohibited subsidies from being provided for IUU fishing and overfished stocks.
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