Registration Portal for Kashi Tamil Sangamam Phase 3 launched

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Recently, the Union Minister for Education launched the registration portal for the 3rd edition of Kashi Tamil Sangamam (KTS).

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• The portal, “kashitamil.iitm.ac.in” – hosted by IIT Madras, will accept registrations till 1st February 2025.
• The 3rd Edition of Kashi Tamil Sangamam, referred to as KTS 3.0, will commence on 15th February 2025 in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh and will conclude on 24th February 2025. 

Key Highlights of KTS 3.0

• The theme of KTS 3.0 will be “Maharishi Agasthyar” whose intellectual brilliance is the bedrock of Tamil language and literature as well as our shared values, knowledge traditions and heritage. 
• KTS 3.0 holds a special significance as it coincides with the Mahakumbh, and it is also the 1st Sangamam after the ‘Pran Pratishtha’ of Shri Ram Lalla in Ayodhya. 

The 3rd edition will bring about 1000 delegates from Tamil Nadu under five categories/groups: 

i. Students, Teachers, and Writers; 

ii. Farmers and Artisans (Vishwakarma Categories); 

iii. Professionals and Small Entrepreneurs; 

iv. Women (SHG, Mudra Loan beneficiaries, DBHPS Pracharaks); and 

v. Start-up, Innovation, Edu-Tech, Research.

About Kashi Tamil Sangamam (KTS)

• KTS is an inspirational initiative to celebrate the timeless bonds between Tamil Nadu and Kashi, strengthen the civilisational links and further the spirit of Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat. 
• The objective of the Kashi Tamil Sangamam is to rediscover, reaffirm, and celebrate the age-old links between Tamil Nadu and Kashi—two of the country's most important and ancient seats of learning.
• Kashi Tamil Sangamam is being organized by the Ministry of Education, Govt. of India in collaboration with other ministries including Culture, Textiles, Railways, Tourism, Food Processing, I&B etc. and the Govt. of UP.
• The programme aims to provide an opportunity for scholars, students, philosophers, traders, artisans, artists and people from other walks of life from the two regions to come together, share their knowledge, culture and best practices and learn from each other’s experience. 
• This endeavour is in sync with NEP 2020’s emphasis on integrating the wealth of Indian Knowledge Systems with modern systems of knowledge.
• The first edition of Kashi Tamil Sangamam was held from 16th November to 16th December 2022 while the Second Edition was organized from 17th December to 30th December 2023. 
• IIT Madras and BHU are the two implementing agencies for the programme.

Indonesian President to be Chief Guest at 76th Republic Day celebrations

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Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto will also be the Chief Guest for India’s 76th Republic Day celebrations.

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• The Indonesian President will pay a State Visit to India during 25-26 January 2025, during which he will also be the chief guest for this year’s Republic Day Parade.

• His visit will be the fourth Indonesian president to be invited as the chief guest on India’s Republic Day. 
• President Sukarno was the Guest of Honour during the first Republic Day of India in 1950.

• He will also bring the largest foreign contingent ever to march down the Kartavya Path alongside India’s military.

• In 2016, France became the first foreign contingent to march on Rajpath (earlier name of Kartavya Path) as its President was the chief guest.
• Since then, it has become a practice to invite the military marching contingent of the guest country.

India-Indonesia Relations

• Cultural Relations:

• India and Indonesia share two-millennia old close cultural and commercial contacts. The stories from the great epics of Ramayana and Mahabharata form a source of Indonesian folk art and dramas.
• The famous Bali Yatra, a week-long festival, is celebrated with a great deal of fervour and gaiety in both India and Indonesia. 

•Political Relations: 

• Indonesia as a member of ASEAN is an important pillar of India’s Act East
• In May 2018, India and Indonesia upgraded their ties to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. 
• In 2024, India and Indonesia commemorated 75 years of the establishment of diplomatic relations. 

• Economic Relations:

• Indonesia has emerged as India’s largest trade partner in the ASEAN region. 
• As per the Department of Commerce, the Total Bilateral Trade during the fiscal year 2022-23 was USD 38.85 Billion (a growth of 48% from the last financial year) with exports amounting to USD 10.02 Billion (18% growth) and imports amounting to USD 28.82 Billion (62% growth).

World Bank forecasts 6.5% GDP growth for India in FY25

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The Indian Economy is expected to decelerate to 6.5% in FY25 from 8.2% in FY24, reflecting a slowdown in investment and weak manufacturing growth. 

Key Highlights of the Report

• The Global Economic Prospects for January 2025 report by the World Bank stated that India's economy is expected to grow by 6.5% in the current financial year, 0.1 percentage points lower than the previous estimate.
• Further, the gross domestic product is projected to grow 6.7% each in FY26 and FY27, making India the fastest-growing major economy for the next two years. 
• The global economy is projected to expand by 2.7% in both 2025 and 2026, the same pace as 2024, as inflation and interest rates decline gradually. 
• Growth in developing economies is also expected to hold steady at about 4% over the next two years.

A new system developed for wearable devices that can detect stress

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Recently, Scientists from the Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR) developed a device that senses strain, mimics pain perception by adopting its electrical response and learns accordingly. 

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• The research was published in the journal Materials Horizons, Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC).
• The material that can sense strain is developed using a network of tiny silver wires embedded in a flexible, stretchable material. 
• The device combines sensing and adaptive response in a single, flexible unit and offers a streamlined, efficient way for technology to adapt to its environment naturally.

Working Mechanism of the Device

• When the material is stretched, small gaps appear within the silver network, temporarily breaking the electrical pathway. 
• An electric pulse can then prompt the silver to fill these gaps, reconnecting the network and essentially "remembering" the event. 
• Each time it is stretched and reconnected, the device gradually adjusts its response, much like how our bodies adapt to repeated pain over time. 
• This dynamic process enables the device to mimic memory and adaptation, bringing humans closer to materials that respond intelligently to their environment.

MoD inks ₹2,960 crore contract with BDL for Medium-Range Surface-to-Air Missiles for Indian Navy

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Recently, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has signed a contract with Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) for the supply of Medium-Range Surface-to-Air Missiles (MRSAM) for the Indian Navy at a cost of approximately ₹2,960 crore.

About MRSAM

• The MRSAM system, a high-response, quick-reaction, vertically launched supersonic missile, is designed to neutralise enemy aerial threats, including missiles, aircraft, guided bombs, and helicopters.

• It is already in use by the Army, Navy, and Air Force in various configurations. The system has a range of up to 70 km.

• The missile has a length of 4,500 mm, a diameter of 225 mm, and a weight of 275 kg. 

• It has been developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), in collaboration with the Indian industry.

• The MRSAM system is a standard fit, onboard multiple Indian Naval Ships and is planned to be fitted on the majority of the future platforms planned for acquisition.

• With the emphasis on ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’, the missiles would be supplied by BDL under ‘Buy (Indian)’ category with largely indigenous content. 

• The contract would generate employment of approx. 3.5 lakh man days in the defence industry, including various MSMEs.

African leaders adopt new Kampala Declaration and 10-year strategy to transform agriculture

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Recently, the African leaders agreed on the Kampala Declaration to transform Africa’s agri-food systems from 2026 to 2035 at the Extraordinary African Union Summit on the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Program (CAADP) in Kampala, Uganda. 

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• The Summit adopted the 10-year CAADP Strategy and Action Plan, and the Kampala CAADP Declaration on Building Resilient and Sustainable Agrifood Systems in Africa, which will be implemented from 2026 to 2035.
• The new Kampala Declaration is the successor to the Malabo Declaration, whose implementation period concludes this year.

•vIn the Kampala declaration, the 55 AU member states set forth six commitments that should transform and strengthen the agri-food system on the continent. It focuses on:

• Promoting climate-smart innovations for sustainable food production.
• Integrating agricultural policies incorporating nutrition and environmental sustainability.

• The strategy will also see Africa reduce post-harvest loss by 50%, triple intra-African trade in agrifood products and inputs by 2035, and raise the share of locally processed food to 35 per cent of agrifood GDP by 2035.

About CAADP

• The CAADP was launched in July 2003 at the AU Summit in Maputo, Mozambique to address problems like low agricultural productivity, food insecurity, and lack of investment in agriculture.

• It is an Agenda 2063 continental initiative that aims to help African countries eliminate hunger and reduce poverty by raising economic growth through agriculture-led development.

• Through CAADP, African governments agreed to allocate at least 10% of national budgets to agriculture and rural development and to achieve agricultural growth rates of at least 6% per annum.