Eat Right Movement

•  “The Eat Right Movement” aims to empower the citizens by improving their health and wellbeing.
• Led by the FSSAI, it is a collective effort, to nudge the citizens towards making righ food and dietary choices.
• It is platform to provide credible information to help make informed and healthful eating choices. It is built on two broad pillars – “Eat Healthy and “Eat Safe”.
• “Eat Healthy” is about making healthy food choices. “Eat Safe” is about ensuring food safety from procurement to consumption and disposal of food.

Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI)

• The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has been established under Food Safety and Standards , 2006 which consolidates various acts & orders that have hitherto handled food related issues in various Ministries and Departments.
• FSSAI has been created for laying down science based standards for articles of food and to regulate their manufacture, storage, distribution, sale and import to ensure availability of safe and wholesome food for human consumption.
• Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India is the Administrative Ministry for the implementation of FSSAI.
• The Chairperson and Chief Executive Officer of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) have already been appointed by Government of India. The Chairperson is in the rank of Secretary to Government of India.

Highlights of the Food Safety and Standard Act, 2006

• Various central Acts like Prevention of Food Adulteration Act,1954,Fruit Products Order , 1955, Meat Food Products Order,1973,
• Vegetable Oil Products (Control) Order, 1947,Edible Oils Packaging (Regulation)Order 1988, Solvent Extracted Oil, De- Oiled Meal and Edible Flour (Control) Order, 1967, Milk and Milk Products Order, 1992 etc will be repealed after commencement of FSS Act, 2006.

Functions

• Framing of Regulations to lay down the Standards and guidelines in relation to articles of food and specifying appropriate system of enforcing various standards thus notified.
• Laying down mechanisms and guidelines for accreditation of certification bodies engaged in certification of food safety management system for food businesses.
• Laying down procedure and guidelines for accreditation of laboratories and notification of the accredited laboratories.
• To provide scientific advice and technical support to Central Government and State Governments in the matters of framing the policy and rules in areas which have a direct or indirect bearing of food safety and nutrition.
• Collect and collate data regarding food consumption, incidence and prevalence of biological risk, contaminants in food, residues of various, contaminants in foods products, identification of emerging risks and introduction of rapid alert system.
• Creating an information network across the country so that the public, consumers, Panchayats etc receive rapid, reliable and objective information about food safety and issues of concern.
• Provide training programmes for persons who are involved or intend to get involved in food businesses.
• Contribute to the development of international technical standards for food, sanitary and phyto-sanitary standards.
• Promote general awareness about food safety and food standards.

India-Korea Technology Exchange Centre

Context: The India-Korea Technology Exchange Centre was Inaugurated by the Minister of State (I/C) MSME Giriraj Singh and Minister of SMEs and Start-ups of Republic of Korea, Hong Jong- hak in New Delhi.

• MoU was signed between the Small Business Corporation (SBC) of Korea and the NSIC for cooperation in the field of MSME Sector.
• The SBC will mobilise the South Korean MSMEs for technical and business alliances with their counterparts in India and organise partner matching events in Korea for Indian delegations.

Aim

• To create a platform for micro, small and medium enterprises of India and Korea where they can be assisted to identify and exchange latest technologies, share management expertise, product development and technology applications for product development.
• Technology Centre will also work towards building reliable alliances in Space, Solar Energy, Nano technologies and some other upcoming technologies.
• It will work towards identifying Indian technologies which can be exported to Korea and find suitable Korean partners for the same.
• Initiating various cooperative MSME projects complimenting each other’s strengths in MSME sector, creating Technology Data Bank from each side to encourage technology transfers, production of high quality products in India and encouraging Joint Ventures and business matching between Indian and Korean SMEs, besides others.

National Small Industries Corporation (NSIC)

• National Small Industries Corporation Limited (NSIC) is a Mini Ratna PSU established by the Government of India in 1955.
• NSIC is an ISO 9001-2015 certified Government of India Enterprise under Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME).
• NSIC has been working to promote, aid and foster the growth of micro, small and medium enterprises in the country.
• To manage operations in African countries, NSIC operates from its office in Johannesburg, South Africa. In addition, NSIC has set up Training cum Incubation Centre managed by professional manpower.

Ease of Doing Business

Context: Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Haryana Top Rankers in Ease of Doing Business

• Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), Ministry of Commerce and Industry, released the final rankings of States in Ease of Doing Business in New Delhi.
• The top rankers are Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Haryana. Jharkhand and Gujarat stood fourth and fifth respectively.
• DIPP, Ministry of Commerce and Industry in collaboration with the World Bank conducted an annual reform exercise for all States and UTs under the Business Reform Action Plan (BRAP).
• The aim of this exercise is to improve delivery of various Central Government regulatory functions and services in an efficient, effective and transparent manner.
• States and UTs have conducted reforms to ease their regulations and systems in areas such as labour, environmental clearances, single window system, construction permits, contract enforcement, registering property and inspections.
• States and UTs have also enacted Public Service Delivery Guarantee Act to enforce the timelines on registrations and approvals.
• The current assessment under the BRAP 2017 is based on a combined score consisting of Reform evidence score that is based on evidences uploaded by the States and UTs and Feedback score that is based on the feedback garnered from the actual users of the services provided to the businesses.
• DIPP organised numerous outreach programmes including 30 workshops and periodic video conferences with States and UTs.
• Another practice introduced in the current reform exercise was handholding support provided by the higher scoring States.
• DIPP identified partner States to mentor another State and UT to facilitate implementation of reforms in States and UTs needing support.

DIPP

• The Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion was established in 1995 and has been reconstituted in the year 2000 with the merger of the Department of Industrial Development.
• Earlier separate Ministries for Small Scale Industries & Agro and Rural Industries (SSI&A&RI) and Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises (HI&PE) were created in October, 1999.

Functions

• Formulation and implementation of industrial policy and strategies for industrial development in conformity with the development needs and national objectives;
• Monitoring the industrial growth, in general, and performance of industries specifically assigned to it, in particular, including advice on all industrial and technical matters;
• Formulation of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Policy and promotion, approval and facilitation of FDI;
• Encouragement to foreign technology collaborations at enterprise level and formulating policy parameters for the same;
• Formulation of policies relating to Intellectual Property Rights in the fields of Patents, Trademarks, Industrial Designs and Geographical Indications of Goods and administration of regulations, rules made there under;
• Administration of Industries (Development & Regulation) Act, 1951
• Promoting industrial development of industrially backward areas and the North Eastern Region including International Co-operation for industrial partnerships and
• Promotion of productivity, quality and technical cooperation.

The Department administers the following Central Legislations through its attached/subordinate offices and statutory organizations:

• The Explosives Act, 1884, and the Inflammable Substances Act, 1952, is administered through the Office of the Chief Controller of Explosives.
• The Salt Cess Act, 1953 is administered through the Office of the Salt Commissioner
• Central legislations relating to Intellectual Property Rights (IPR’s), namely, the Patents Act, 1970, the Trade and Merchandise Marks Act, 1958 and the Designs Act, 2000 and their associated rules are administered through the Office of the Controller General of Patents, Design and Trademarks (CGPDTM).
• The Boilers Act, 1923 is administered through the Central Boilers Board, which is a statutory authority. Enforcement of this Act is the responsibility of both the State and Union Governments since the subject “Boiler” is listed in the concurrent List of the Constitution of India.

Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill

Context: MHA officials confirmed that a proposal namely Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill , 2018, which allows courts to award death penalty to those convicted of raping girls below 12 years of age, has been sent to the Cabinet.

• Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill , 2018, which allows courts to award death penalty to those convicted of raping girls below 12 years of age
• Besides providing for death penalty to those convicted of raping girls below 12 years, it also proposes to set up a National Registry for Sexual offenders, the proposal for which was recently rolled out by MHA
• The ordinance was promulgated by President Ram Nath Kovind, extending the minimum punishment in cases of rape from rigorous imprisonment of seven to 10 years to life term.
• The proposed Bill contains provisions similar to the one provided in the Ordinance for speedy investigation and trial in rape cases.
• For rape with a girl under 16 years, minimum punishment has been increased from 10 years to 20 years, extendable to imprisonment for the rest of life.
• The punishment for gang rape of a girl under 16 years of age will invariably be imprisonment for the rest of life of the convict.
• The draft Bill has provisions to make it difficult for rape accused to get bail. There will be no provision for anticipatory bail for a person accused of rape or gang rape of a girl under 16 years.
• It has also been provided that court has to give a notice of 15 days to public prosecutor and the representative of the victim before deciding bail applications in case of rape of a girl below 16 years.