News Analysis India

Tag: G-20

  • G-20 meet: India to launch portal to ensure that farmers get seeds of best quality

    Express News Service

    CHANDIGARH: The Union government will soon launch a seed traceability system to ensure the availability of good quality seeds to farmers. India has also developed some climate resilient varieties especially of wheat, which was a major area of discussion in the second agricultural working group meeting of G-20 to make agriculture sustainable with a climate smart approach. Digitalization for agricultural transformation and the global promotion of millets were also discussed.

    Taking to the media here on Thursday after the inaugural session of the meeting, Samuel Praveen Kumar, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, said, “We are developing a seed traceability portal, which will shortly be launched. It will clearly indicate what kind of seed reaches the farmers to ensure that they get the best quality seeds.”

    “We have about two lakh frontline extension workers reaching out to farmers. We are now working on a digital portal called digital extension platform,” he added.

    ALSO READ | Pandemic preparedness on agenda in meeting of G-20 science advisors in Uttarakhand

    Kumar said, “In this second agricultural deputies meeting of the agricultural working group (AWG), major focus areas are how to make agriculture sustainable and how we are coping with climate change. India has developed some climate resilient varieties especially when it comes to wheat. Despite a heat wave, we could manage production of 1.6 million metric tonnes. The idea is to have interactions with other countries, as Asia is the biggest producer and a major consumer. We have major countries like China, Japan, Korea and Thailand which are regularly contributing in exchanging ideas on what are the strategies we can use to become climate resilient.”

    “Secondly, we are focusing on millets as this is the International Year of Millets. Millets are a climate smart produce that not only have nutritional value but also make agriculture sustainable. In the budget announcement, the Indian Institute of Millets has been declared as a centre of excellence so now that will be a focal point to collaborate with other international organisations. The focus is to mainstream millets so that the common man starts eating them. We are creating awareness on millets which we call a ‘Super Food’. Millet production is 18 metric million tonnes in India, which is a global leader in this,” he said.

    Kumar said, “The third area is digitalization of agriculture transformation as we are developing the Agristat and other IT related platforms. Climate resilient innovation and technology is the way out. In the third meeting, scientists will be discussing the education and research part of the agenda,” he said.

    The 19 member countries, 10 invited countries, and 10 international organizations at the meeting will focus on drafting the communiqué and addressing four thematic areas — food security and nutrition, sustainable agriculture with a climate smart approach, inclusive agricultural value chains and food systems and digitalization for agricultural transformation.

    CHANDIGARH: The Union government will soon launch a seed traceability system to ensure the availability of good quality seeds to farmers. India has also developed some climate resilient varieties especially of wheat, which was a major area of discussion in the second agricultural working group meeting of G-20 to make agriculture sustainable with a climate smart approach. Digitalization for agricultural transformation and the global promotion of millets were also discussed.

    Taking to the media here on Thursday after the inaugural session of the meeting, Samuel Praveen Kumar, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, said, “We are developing a seed traceability portal, which will shortly be launched. It will clearly indicate what kind of seed reaches the farmers to ensure that they get the best quality seeds.”

    “We have about two lakh frontline extension workers reaching out to farmers. We are now working on a digital portal called digital extension platform,” he added.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    ALSO READ | Pandemic preparedness on agenda in meeting of G-20 science advisors in Uttarakhand

    Kumar said, “In this second agricultural deputies meeting of the agricultural working group (AWG), major focus areas are how to make agriculture sustainable and how we are coping with climate change. India has developed some climate resilient varieties especially when it comes to wheat. Despite a heat wave, we could manage production of 1.6 million metric tonnes. The idea is to have interactions with other countries, as Asia is the biggest producer and a major consumer. We have major countries like China, Japan, Korea and Thailand which are regularly contributing in exchanging ideas on what are the strategies we can use to become climate resilient.”

    “Secondly, we are focusing on millets as this is the International Year of Millets. Millets are a climate smart produce that not only have nutritional value but also make agriculture sustainable. In the budget announcement, the Indian Institute of Millets has been declared as a centre of excellence so now that will be a focal point to collaborate with other international organisations. The focus is to mainstream millets so that the common man starts eating them. We are creating awareness on millets which we call a ‘Super Food’. Millet production is 18 metric million tonnes in India, which is a global leader in this,” he said.

    Kumar said, “The third area is digitalization of agriculture transformation as we are developing the Agristat and other IT related platforms. Climate resilient innovation and technology is the way out. In the third meeting, scientists will be discussing the education and research part of the agenda,” he said.

    The 19 member countries, 10 invited countries, and 10 international organizations at the meeting will focus on drafting the communiqué and addressing four thematic areas — food security and nutrition, sustainable agriculture with a climate smart approach, inclusive agricultural value chains and food systems and digitalization for agricultural transformation.

  • Pandemic preparedness on agenda in meeting of G-20 science advisors in Uttarakhand

    Express News Service

    DEHRADUN: Uttarakhand hosted the first meeting of the G20-Chief Science Advisor Roundtable (G20-CSAR) at Ramnagar, which saw in-depth discussions on science and technology issues of common interest.

    “Under the theme ‘Opportunities in Health’ for better disease control and pandemic preparedness, we discussed the plan for a flexible, adaptive and timely response to the pandemic,” said Principal Scientific Advisor (PSA) Professor Ajay Sood at a media briefing on Wednesday evening on the sidelines of the three-day G-20 meeting.

    “Integrated disease surveillance mechanisms for humans, livestock and wildlife, R&D roadmap for diseases of health importance, and investments in analytics such as disease modeling and data standards were discussed in detail at the summit,” he said.

    Sharing the achievements of the discussions at the summit, Sood said, “Under the theme of coordinating global efforts to expand scholarly access to scientific knowledge, we discussed that access should be free, immediate and universal. The high subscription and article processing fees levied by magazines should be reduced.”

    ALSO READ | Gandhinagar all decked up to host G-20 meet on disaster risk reduction

    “The repository should be reduced. There should be an open access mandate to establish interoperable inter-linking of national repositories with archives and to make knowledge production of public funded scientific research widely available,” he added.

    Sharing the gist of the brainstorming sessions of the summit, Sood further said, “Another theme was on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in science and technology. The participating countries also shared their work in advancing access to under-represented, disadvantaged, marginalized, minority as well as tribal communities in the larger scientific enterprise.”

    “The fourth session discussed the need for an institutional mechanism for an inclusive, sustainable and action-oriented global science and technology policy dialogue. It was agreed that scientific advisors play an important role in shaping policy choices by providing evidence-driven science advice and, in the spirit of collaboration and dialogue, it is the responsibility of the chief science consultants to collaborate and engage in international dialogue to address cross-border issues affecting the entire scientific enterprise so that science and technology can benefit all,” he said.

    Expressing happiness over the achievement in vaccination, Sood said, “The success in administering 220 crore vaccines in record time during the Corona period is a living example of India’s S&T power.”

    Dr Parvinder Maini, Scientific Secretary and Naman Upadhyay, Under Secretary at the G20 Secretariat, were also present.

    The meeting was attended by 51 delegates from 18 countries, of which 18 delegates are from India, four from Russia, one from Nigeria, two from France, two from Italy, two from USA, one from Korea, five from United Kingdom, one from Japan, one from Spain, four from South Africa, one from Australia, one from Netherlands, two from Canada, three from Saudi Arabia, one from Brazil, two from China and three from the EU.

    DEHRADUN: Uttarakhand hosted the first meeting of the G20-Chief Science Advisor Roundtable (G20-CSAR) at Ramnagar, which saw in-depth discussions on science and technology issues of common interest.

    “Under the theme ‘Opportunities in Health’ for better disease control and pandemic preparedness, we discussed the plan for a flexible, adaptive and timely response to the pandemic,” said Principal Scientific Advisor (PSA) Professor Ajay Sood at a media briefing on Wednesday evening on the sidelines of the three-day G-20 meeting.

    “Integrated disease surveillance mechanisms for humans, livestock and wildlife, R&D roadmap for diseases of health importance, and investments in analytics such as disease modeling and data standards were discussed in detail at the summit,” he said.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    Sharing the achievements of the discussions at the summit, Sood said, “Under the theme of coordinating global efforts to expand scholarly access to scientific knowledge, we discussed that access should be free, immediate and universal. The high subscription and article processing fees levied by magazines should be reduced.”

    ALSO READ | Gandhinagar all decked up to host G-20 meet on disaster risk reduction

    “The repository should be reduced. There should be an open access mandate to establish interoperable inter-linking of national repositories with archives and to make knowledge production of public funded scientific research widely available,” he added.

    Sharing the gist of the brainstorming sessions of the summit, Sood further said, “Another theme was on diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility in science and technology. The participating countries also shared their work in advancing access to under-represented, disadvantaged, marginalized, minority as well as tribal communities in the larger scientific enterprise.”

    “The fourth session discussed the need for an institutional mechanism for an inclusive, sustainable and action-oriented global science and technology policy dialogue. It was agreed that scientific advisors play an important role in shaping policy choices by providing evidence-driven science advice and, in the spirit of collaboration and dialogue, it is the responsibility of the chief science consultants to collaborate and engage in international dialogue to address cross-border issues affecting the entire scientific enterprise so that science and technology can benefit all,” he said.

    Expressing happiness over the achievement in vaccination, Sood said, “The success in administering 220 crore vaccines in record time during the Corona period is a living example of India’s S&T power.”

    Dr Parvinder Maini, Scientific Secretary and Naman Upadhyay, Under Secretary at the G20 Secretariat, were also present.

    The meeting was attended by 51 delegates from 18 countries, of which 18 delegates are from India, four from Russia, one from Nigeria, two from France, two from Italy, two from USA, one from Korea, five from United Kingdom, one from Japan, one from Spain, four from South Africa, one from Australia, one from Netherlands, two from Canada, three from Saudi Arabia, one from Brazil, two from China and three from the EU.

  • G-20 meeting in India ends without consensus on Ukraine war

    By Associated Press

    BENGALURU: A meeting of finance chiefs of the Group of 20 leading economies ended on Saturday without a consensus, with Russia and China objecting to the description of the war in Ukraine in a final document.

    The meeting hosted by India issued the G-20 Chair’s summary and an outcome document stating that there was no agreement on the wording of the war in Ukraine. The first day of the meeting took place on the anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

    The Group of Seven major industrial nations announced new sanctions against Russia on Friday, just as the talks of the G-20 group wrapped up in confusion in the Indian technology hub of Bengaluru.

    US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen condemned the “illegal and unjustified war against Ukraine” at a session attended by Russian officials and reiterated calls for G-20 nations to do more to support Ukraine and hinder Moscow’s war effort.

    ALSO READ | China seeks to water down G20 statement on Ukraine: Sources

    At the last major G-20 meeting, in Bali, Indonesia, in November, leaders had strongly condemned the war, warning that the conflict was intensifying fragilities in the world’s economy. The group includes Russia and also countries like China and India that have significant trade with Moscow.

    India’s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman told reporters that the communique prepared for the Bengaluru meeting carried two paragraphs from the Bali declaration, but Russia and China demanded they be deleted and said they could not be part of the final document this time.

    Their contention was they had approved the Bali declaration under the then prevailing circumstances, she said. “Now they didn’t want it,” Sitharaman said. She didn’t give any other details.

    The Bali declaration said that “most members strongly condemned the war in Ukraine and stressed that it is causing immense human suffering and exacerbating existing fragilities in the global economy – constraining growth, increasing inflation, disrupting supply chains, heightening energy and food insecurity, and elevating financial stability risks.”

    ALSO READ | India’s G20 Presidency comes at ‘incredibly important time’: UK Foreign Secretary Cleverly

    The declaration also said: “There were other views and different assessments of the situation and sanctions. G-20 is not the forum to resolve security issues, we acknowledge that security issues can have significant consequences for the global economy.”

    The second paragraph of the declaration, which is now unacceptable to Russia and China, said, “It is essential to uphold international law and the multilateral system that safeguards peace and stability. … The use or threat of use of nuclear weapons is inadmissible. The peaceful resolution of conflicts, efforts to address crises, as well as diplomacy and dialogue, are vital. Today’s era must not be of war.”

    Sitharaman said the meeting could not issue a communique because of the objections raised by Russia and China and decided to opt for a summary and an outcome document.

    BENGALURU: A meeting of finance chiefs of the Group of 20 leading economies ended on Saturday without a consensus, with Russia and China objecting to the description of the war in Ukraine in a final document.

    The meeting hosted by India issued the G-20 Chair’s summary and an outcome document stating that there was no agreement on the wording of the war in Ukraine. The first day of the meeting took place on the anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

    The Group of Seven major industrial nations announced new sanctions against Russia on Friday, just as the talks of the G-20 group wrapped up in confusion in the Indian technology hub of Bengaluru.

    US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen condemned the “illegal and unjustified war against Ukraine” at a session attended by Russian officials and reiterated calls for G-20 nations to do more to support Ukraine and hinder Moscow’s war effort.

    ALSO READ | China seeks to water down G20 statement on Ukraine: Sources

    At the last major G-20 meeting, in Bali, Indonesia, in November, leaders had strongly condemned the war, warning that the conflict was intensifying fragilities in the world’s economy. The group includes Russia and also countries like China and India that have significant trade with Moscow.

    India’s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman told reporters that the communique prepared for the Bengaluru meeting carried two paragraphs from the Bali declaration, but Russia and China demanded they be deleted and said they could not be part of the final document this time.

    Their contention was they had approved the Bali declaration under the then prevailing circumstances, she said. “Now they didn’t want it,” Sitharaman said. She didn’t give any other details.

    The Bali declaration said that “most members strongly condemned the war in Ukraine and stressed that it is causing immense human suffering and exacerbating existing fragilities in the global economy – constraining growth, increasing inflation, disrupting supply chains, heightening energy and food insecurity, and elevating financial stability risks.”

    ALSO READ | India’s G20 Presidency comes at ‘incredibly important time’: UK Foreign Secretary Cleverly

    The declaration also said: “There were other views and different assessments of the situation and sanctions. G-20 is not the forum to resolve security issues, we acknowledge that security issues can have significant consequences for the global economy.”

    The second paragraph of the declaration, which is now unacceptable to Russia and China, said, “It is essential to uphold international law and the multilateral system that safeguards peace and stability. … The use or threat of use of nuclear weapons is inadmissible. The peaceful resolution of conflicts, efforts to address crises, as well as diplomacy and dialogue, are vital. Today’s era must not be of war.”

    Sitharaman said the meeting could not issue a communique because of the objections raised by Russia and China and decided to opt for a summary and an outcome document.

  • PM Modi wants India to become self-sufficient, global leader in farm sector

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday made a strong case for modernising the farm sector by using technology so that India can become self-sufficient and a global leader in the agriculture sector.

    Addressing the meeting of the Governing Council of the Niti Aayog, he said that rapid urbanisation can become India’s strength instead of weakness by leveraging technology to ensure ease of living, transparent service delivery, and improvement in the quality of life. He said that India should become self-sufficient in the production of edible oil.

    The Prime Minister also spoke about upcoming India’s presidency of the G-20 in 2023. G-20 is a grouping of developed and developing nations. He asked the states to set up dedicated teams for G-20 with a view to deriving maximum possible benefit from the initiative.

    This was the first physical meeting of the Governing Council since the onset of the pandemic, with the 2021 meeting held via video conferencing.

    The meeting was attended by 23 chief ministers, 3 Lieutenant Governors and 2 Administrators and Union ministers.

    The Governing Council discussed four key agenda items -crop diversification and achieving self-sufficiency in pulses, oilseeds and other agri-commodities; implementation of National Education Policy (NEP) in school education; implementation of NEP in higher education; and urban governance.

    NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday made a strong case for modernising the farm sector by using technology so that India can become self-sufficient and a global leader in the agriculture sector.

    Addressing the meeting of the Governing Council of the Niti Aayog, he said that rapid urbanisation can become India’s strength instead of weakness by leveraging technology to ensure ease of living, transparent service delivery, and improvement in the quality of life. He said that India should become self-sufficient in the production of edible oil.

    The Prime Minister also spoke about upcoming India’s presidency of the G-20 in 2023. G-20 is a grouping of developed and developing nations. He asked the states to set up dedicated teams for G-20 with a view to deriving maximum possible benefit from the initiative.

    This was the first physical meeting of the Governing Council since the onset of the pandemic, with the 2021 meeting held via video conferencing.

    The meeting was attended by 23 chief ministers, 3 Lieutenant Governors and 2 Administrators and Union ministers.

    The Governing Council discussed four key agenda items -crop diversification and achieving self-sufficiency in pulses, oilseeds and other agri-commodities; implementation of National Education Policy (NEP) in school education; implementation of NEP in higher education; and urban governance.