Daily Quiz: UPSC Prelims Marathon ( Reports, International organisations & Committees)–October 18th,2020

The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) is a regional organization comprising seven Member States lying in the littoral and adjacent areas of the Bay of Bengal constituting a contiguous regional unity.
•This sub-regional organization came into being on 6 June 1997 through the Bangkok Declaration.
•It constitutes seven Member States: five deriving from South Asia, including Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and two from Southeast Asia, including Myanmar and Thailand.
•Initially, the economic bloc was formed with four Member States with the acronym ‘BIST-EC’ (Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka and Thailand Economic Cooperation).
•Following the inclusion of Myanmar on 22 December 1997 during a special Ministerial Meeting in Bangkok, the Group was renamed ‘BIMST-EC’ (Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand Economic Cooperation).
•With the admission of Nepal and Bhutan at the 6th Ministerial Meeting (February 2004, Thailand), the name of the grouping was changed to ‘Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation’ (BIMSTEC).
Source: BIMSTEC

The Maldives re-joined the Commonwealth, more than three years after the Indian Ocean island nation quit the association amid mounting criticism of its human rights record then.
•In 2016, the Maldives pulled out of the Commonwealth terming “unjust” the grouping’s decision to penalise the country over former President Mohamed Nasheed’s controversial ouster in 2012.
•It followed the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG)’s warning to Maldives of suspension from the bloc, voicing “deep disappointment” over the country’s lack of progress in resolving the political crisis during former President Abdulla Yameen’s presidency, whose authoritarian slant sparked concern domestically and internationally.
Source: Indian Express

The Group of Twenty, or the G20, is the premier forum for international economic cooperation.
•The G20 brings together the leaders of both developed and developing countries from every continent.
•Collectively, G20 members represent around 80% of the world’s economic output, two-thirds of global population and three-quarters of international trade.
•Throughout the year, representatives from G20 countries gather to discuss financial and socioeconomic issues.
•Originated in 1999 at the level of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors, the G20 gathered for high-level discussions on macro-financial issues.
•In the wake of the 2008 global financial crisis, the G20 was elevated to include the leaders of member countries.
•The first G20 Leaders’ Summit took place in Washington D.C. in November 2008.
•Consequently, the G20 agenda expanded beyond macro-financial issues, to include socio-economic and development issues.
Source: The Hindu

Non-refoulement is a fundamental principle of international law.
•It prohibits states from forcibly returning refugees to conditions that caused them to flee their homes in the first place, where they would be likely in danger of persecution based on race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion.
•It is also in charge of the exchequer control and internal audits.
Source: The Hindu

Dharma Sabha: The orthodox Hindu led by Raja Radhakant Deb organised the ‘Dharma Sabha’ with the object of countering the propaganda of BrahmoSamaj.
Tatvabodhini Sabha: Debendranath Tagore, father of Rabindranath Tagore founded the Tatvabodhini Sabha in 1839 to propagate Rammohun Roy’s ideas. The Tatvabodhini Sabha and its organ the Tatvabodhini Patrika promoted a systematic study of India’s past in Bengali language and helped spread rational outlook.
Brahmo Samaj of India: Keshubsen and his followers broke away from Brahmo samaj in 1866 and established what was called the ‘Brahmo Samaj of India’.
Source: e-gyankosh

Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) organization is an attached office of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry and is headed by Director General of Foreign Trade.
•Right from its inception till 1991, when liberalization in the economic policies of the Government took place, this organization has been essentially involved in the regulation and promotion of foreign trade through regulation.
•Keeping in line with liberalization and globalization and the overall objective of increasing of exports, DGFT has since been assigned the role of “facilitator”.
•The shift was from prohibition and control of imports/exports to promotion and facilitation of exports/imports, keeping in view the interests of the country.
•This Directorate, with headquarters at New Delhi, is responsible for formulating and implementing the Foreign Trade Policy with the main objective of promoting India’s exports.
•The DGFT also issues scrips/authorization to exporters and monitors their corresponding obligations through a network of 38 regional offices and an extension counter at Indore.
Source: DGFT

Besides, economic reforms in various sectors, various Committees were set up from time to time (by the Government of India and by RBI) to discuss policy issues related to international trade and balance of payments.
Some of the important Committees were –
•Committee on Export – Import Policies & Procedures (Alexander Committee, 1978),
•Committee on Trade policy (Abid Hussain Committee, 1984),
•High – level Committee on Balance of Payments (Rangarajan Committee 1993), and
•Committee on Capital Account Convertibility (Tarapore Committee I 1997 & Tarapore Committee II 2006).
In 2003, the Vajpayee government forms a task force under Vijay Kelkar to recommend tax reforms. In 2004, Vijay Kelkar, then advisor to the Finance Ministry, recommends GST to replace the existing tax regime.
Source: Ramesh Singh

India has been ranked very low at 76th place out of 82 countries on a new Social Mobility Index compiled by the World Economic Forum, while Denmark has topped the charts.
The report, released ahead of the 50th Annual Meeting of the WEF, also lists India among the five countries that stand to gain the most from a better social mobility score that seeks to measure parameters necessary for creating societies where every person has the same opportunity to fulfill his potential in life irrespective of socioeconomic background.
Source: The Hindu

The key message from the UN’s World Population Prospects 2019 report is that national leaders must redouble their efforts to raise education, health and living standards for people everywhere.
•India is projected to become the most populous country by 2027 surpassing China, and host 1.64 billion people by 2050;
•The world as a whole could be home to 8.5 billion people in just over a decade from now, and the number could go up to 9.7 billion by mid-century.
•The largest increases in population between 2019 and 2050 will take place in: India, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, the United Republic of Tanzania, Indonesia, Egypt and the United States of America (In descending order of the expected increase).
•The UN report shows migration to countries with a falling ratio of working-age people to those above 65 will be steady, as those economies open up to workers to sustain economic production.
•Japan has the lowest such ratio, followed by Europe and the Caribbean; in over three decades, North America, Eastern and Southeastern Asia will join this group.
•India meanwhile will have a vast number of young people and insufficient natural resources left for exploitation. Preparing for the changes and opportunities migration offers will depend on a skills revolution.
Source: The Hindu

According to the International Labour Organization (ILO) report, Working on a warmer planet: The impact of heat stress on labour productivity and decent work, Globally two sectors projected to be hit worst are agriculture and construction, with agriculture worse affected.
•The ILO says 940 million people around the world work in the agricultural sector, which is projected to account for 60% of working hours lost due to heat stress by 2030.
•In construction, an estimated 19% of global working hours are likely to be lost.
Source: The Hindu