News: Earth System Sciences Council (ESSC) is in the news after its first General Body meeting reviewed the merged 5 MoES institutes.
About Earth System Sciences Council (ESSC)
- The ESSC is an umbrella body unifying five institutes of the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) for streamlined earth sciences governance.
- Aim: It aims to improve coordination, reduce administrative overlap, streamline governance, and enhance visibility of India’s earth science initiatives.
- It was formally registered in December 2023.
- Headed by:
- The Union Minister of Earth Sciences, serves as President of the Council.
- The Secretary of the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) heads the ESSC.
- It supports the government’s broader approach of “minimum government, maximum governance.”
- Five Institutes constituting the ESSC are –
- Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune
- National Centre for Earth Science Studies (NCESS), Thiruvananthapuram
- National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), Chennai
- National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), Goa
- Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), Hyderabad
