Consulate General of India, Vancouver www.cgivancouver.gov.in
Vol. 04, Issue No. 15 April 09, 2020.
Do you know? Tamil Nadu Government is providing special incentives to MSMEs & large industries - to facilitate manufacturing of COVID-19 related medical equipment & drugs. To know more, visit: http://bit.ly/blogs_COVIDTamilNadu
India Perspectives India Perspectives is the flagship publication of the Ministry of External Affairs. Richly illustrated, this magazine provides our readers with an insight into India’s culture and tradition along with elements of contemporary India. Click here to read more‌. Ministry of External Affairs, India
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Vol. 04, Issue 15, April 09, 2020.
Consulate News Indian Community Organizations’ Initiatives in response to COVID-19
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High Commissioner interacted with leaders of Indian Community organizations in Canada High Commissioner Mr. Ajay Bisaria interacted with leaders from 25 Indian Community organizations spread across Canada to better coordinate efforts to support Indian students and community members in distress due to COVID19 pandemic.
High Commissioner meeting with representatives from Indian companies operating in Canada High Commissioner Mr. Ajay Bisaria spoke with representatives from Indian companies operating in Canada through a webinar organized by CII IBF about the challenges they face due to COVIDー19 pandemic and the road ahead.
Swachh Bharat Abhiyan To accelerate the efforts to achieve universal sanitation coverage and to put focus on sanitation, the Prime Minister of India launched the Swachh Bharat Mission on 2nd October, 2014. The Mission Coordinator for SBM is Secretary, Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation (DDWS), Ministry of Jalshakti with two Sub-Missions, the Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) and the Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban). Together, they aim to achieve Swachh Bharat by 2019, as a fitting tribute to Mahatma Gandhi on his 150th Birth Anniversary. In Rural India, this would mean improving the levels of cleanliness through Solid and Liquid Waste Management activities and making villages Open Defecation Free (ODF), clean and sanitised. Since 2014, around 10,28,67,271 new household toilets were built; 6,03,175 villages were declared “open defecation free villages”; 706 districts were declared “open defecation free districts” and 36 States/UTs were declared open defecation free. For more information, please visit the website on https://swachhbharatmission.gov.in/sbmcms/index.htm 2|P a g e
Vol. 04, Issue 15, April 09, 2020.
Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) Mahatma Gandhi Employment Guarantee Act 2005 , later renamed as the "Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act" (MGNREGA), is an Indian labour law and social security measure that aims to guarantee the 'right to work'. This act was passed in September 2005. It aims to enhance livelihood security in rural areas by providing at least 100 days of wage employment in a financial year to every household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work Another aim of MGNREGA is to create durable assets (such as roads, canals, ponds and wells). Employment is to be provided within 5 km of an applicant's residence, and minimum wages are to be paid. In the wake of COVID-19 outbreak, the Government of India has recently announced following relief packages: Rs 1.7 lakh crore for the most vulnerable sections of the population, including construction workers, widows, farmers, women Jan-Dhan account holders, employees of micro enterprises, healthcare workers, pensioners and beneficiaries of the employment guarantee scheme, MGNREGA. The package, among other issues, aims to address the most basic need of millions of Indians food security. 5 kilos of rice or wheat and a kilo of pulses free for the next three months through the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana. This scheme alone covers about two-thirds of the population, or 800 million people. An ex-gratia amount of Rs 500 per month for the next three months for women Jan-Dhan account holders. This could benefit about 200 million women. Rs 2,000 instalment under the PM Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana. A slew of measures, including cash transfers, cooking gas cylinders, provident fund contribution (both the employee’s and the employer’s) for small companies, insurance coverage for healthcare workers (Rs 50 lakh per person) including Accredited Social Health Activists, financial assistance for registered construction workers, and so on. For more information on MGNREGA, please visit its website on: https://nrega.nic.in/netnrega/home.aspx
Digital India Digital India was launched by the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi on 1 July 2015 with an objective of connecting rural areas with high-speed Internet networks and improving digital literacy. The vision of Digital India programme is inclusive growth in areas of electronic services, products, manufacturing and job opportunities. Digital India is a flagship programme of the Government of India with a vision to transform India into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy. The Digital India programme is centred on three key vision areas:
Important Trade Fairs in India – To know more, click on 3|P a g e
Vol. 04, Issue 15, April 09, 2020.
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Digital Infrastructure as a Core Utility to Every Citizen Availability of high-speed internet as a core utility for delivery of services to citizens Mobile phone & bank account enabling citizen participation in digital & financial space Easy access to a Common Service Centre
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Governance & Services on Demand Seamlessly integrated services across departments or jurisdictions Availability of services in real time from online & mobile platforms All citizen entitlements to be portable and available on the cloud Digitally transformed services for improving ease of doing business Making financial transactions electronic & cashless
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Digital Empowerment of Citizens Universal digital literacy Universally accessible digital resources Availability of digital resources / services in Indian languages Citizens not required to physically submit Govt. documents / certificates
For more information, please visit the “Digital India� website on https://digitalindia.gov.in/
Cultural Heritage - Festivals of India Easter (April 12, 2020) The Christians celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ on Easter Sunday. It is considered as the wellattended Sunday service every year. According to Christian belief, Easter is the day when Jesus raised from death. It is believed that Jesus paid penalty through his death, burial and resurrection for the sin of his followers and disciples. Read more...
Source: https://www.tripsavvy.com/april-india-festivals-and-events-guide-1539397
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Vol. 04, Issue 15, April 09, 2020.
India News Section 1. WHO praises PM Narendra Modi’s effort to help poor amid COVID-19 outbreak World Health Organisation chief Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus on Thursday praised Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s efforts to help the poor amid the lockdown due to the COVID-19 outbreak. "Countries are asking people to #stayhome and shutting down population movement to limit #COVID19 transmission. These steps can have unintended consequences for the poorest and most vulnerable," said Dr Ghebreyesus on Twitter. Read more…
(Connected to India, Thursday, 2nd April 2020, 11:10 am)
2. WHO praises India's response to ward off COVID-19 Praising India's efforts in combating Covid-19, the World Health Organisation (WHO) on Wednesday, said that the country's USD 22.6 billion economic stimulus plan will benefit millions of poor who have been affected by 21-day countrywide lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus. Read more…
(ANI, Big News Network, Friday, 3rd April 2020, 12:28 pm)
3. Indian American Harvard medical student Pooja Chandrashekar launches COVID-19 health literacy project Bengaluru-based startup Bione has launched an at-home screening test kit for Covid-19. The kit would be available for sale on the company’s platform bione.in after approval from the regulatory authority, said the company’s founder Surendra K Chikara. Read more…
(Giovanni Albanese Jr., India West, Saturday, 4th April 2020, 5:28 pm)
4. "We are proud of you": Pakistan Air Traffic Controller praises Air India relief operations Air India recently found a rather unexpected praise from an Air Traffic Controller (ATC) of- Pakistan. Air India was operating special flights from India to Frankfurt with relief materials and evacuated European nationals, who were stranded in India as coronavirus swept across continents, perishing millions and crippling the system of passenger planes criss-crossing the world. Read more… (ANI, Economic Times, Sunday, 5th April 2020, 4:49 am)
5. India has closed its railways for the first time in 167 years. Now trains are being turned into hospitals When Prime Minister Narendra Modi imposed a nationwide lockdown on March 25, Indian Railways took the unprecedented move of suspending passenger trains across the country until April 14. It was the first time in 167 years that Asia's oldest rail network had been suspended. Now the railway network has decided to convert as many as 20,000 old train carriages into isolation wards for patients as the virus spreads. Read more… (Hema Ramaprasad, CNN , Monday, 6th April 2020, 10:59 am)
6. Indians light lamps to heed Modi's call for coronavirus comradeship Millions of Indians turned off their lights and lit up balconies and doorsteps with lamps, candles and flashlights on Sunday, in response to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's appeal to "challenge the darkness" spread by the coronavirus crisis. Read more… (Reuters, The Peninsula Qatar, Monday, 6th April 2020, 10:46 am)
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Vol. 04, Issue 15, April 09, 2020.
COVID-19 - Travel Advisories and Updates (Click on the headline to see the information...)
1. Press Release - Discontinuation of walk-in consular services, including passport, at Consulate (March 16, 2020) 2. Advisory by Ministry of AYUSH regarding Ayurveda immunity boosting measures for self-care during COVID19 crisis. 3. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS – Travel Restrictions and Consular queries (March 30, 2020) 4. Travel and Visa Restrictions extended in response to COVID-19 (March 26, 2020) 5. Indian mission in Canada launches chatbot to answer COVID-19 related questions
6. High Commission of India in Canada's Help Desk to provide information/service regarding COVID-19, travel, visas etc. 7. Additional Advisory- Press Information Bureau (March 19, 2020)
8. Advisory for Indian Students in Canada (March 18, 2020) 9. Latest FAQ on new visa restrictions -COVID -19 as on 18 March 2020. 10. Precautions to prevent COVID-19 infection 11. Additional Travel Advisory for Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID - 19) - March 17, 2020 12. Additional Travel Advisory for Novel Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) - March 16, 2020 13. Important press release - No walk-in Consular services due to COVID-2019
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Press Release 70th Foundation Day of ICCR on 9 April 2020 The Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) is celebrating its 70th Foundation Day on 9 April. However, the grand celebrations planned earlier are now postponed by a year in the wake of Covid-19. “ICCR is all about cultivating an enlightened understanding of Indian culture and when the entire Global community is facing an unprecedented challenge, feeling lonely and disconnected, the message of Indian philosophy i.e. Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam or the world is a family has become more relevant than any time in the past. Even in this lockdown situation, ICCR is conducting etutorials in Yoga, classical dances and even Hindi and Sanskrit. We are working with a ‘show must go on spirit’. A Global Art Competition on the theme of facing the challenge of Covid-19 unitedly has already been announced and through many such programmes we will rise to the occasion”, ICCR President Dr Vinay Sahasrabuddhe said in his Message on this occasion. ICCR was founded in 1950 by India's first Education Minister, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, with the objective of fostering and strengthening cultural relations and mutual understanding between India and the world, and to promote cultural exchanges with other countries and people. During the last seven decades, the functioning of ICCR as an institution has acquired newer dimensions towards promotion of India’s cultural heritage and has emerged as the ‘soft power’ arm of the Ministry of External Affairs through an array of welldesigned and targeted programmes. A wide-range of ICCR’s cultural, academic and intellectual exchanges and promotion of India’s culture abroad encompass various outreach activities through its 38 cultural centres abroad and 19 Regional Offices within India, including Indian art, history, oral traditions, dance, music, yoga, languages, food, festivals and contemporary issues. Major programmes under the ambit of ICCR being conducted for the larger objective of creating an enlightened understanding of Indian culture amongst the global community, could be broadly categorised as follows: i. Promotion of Indian art forms by sponsoring visits of Indian cultural delegations abroad and holding Festivals of India abroad; ii. Hosting foreign cultural troupes and international Cultural Festivals in India; iii. Exhibitions of art and Craft in India and abroad; iv. Gifting Busts and Statues of India’s iconic figures abroad; v. Executing scholarship schemes for international students; vi. Fellowship programmes, establishing Indian Chairs in foreign institutions/universities; vii. Inviting distinguished and academic visitors from abroad to give them a glimpse of India; viii. Awards programme (alumni, Indology and Sanskrit); ix. Promotion of understanding of Indian languages, especially Hindi and Sanskrit and also Indian literature, abroad; x. Promotion of Yoga and celebration of International Day of Yoga abroad; xi. Conducting Annual Lecture Series ( Deen Dayal Upadhaya Memorial Oration to mark the World Culture Day on May 21) Over the years, through this cross fertilization of ideas, ideals and cultures, ICCR has taken our millennia old civilizational and cultural values to the world and has fostered the goal of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam- the world as a family. The strong cadre of ICCR alumni, who are infused with the same spirit of enlightened globalization has been instrumental in spreading ICCR’s message. The council now annually offers about 4,000 scholarships for Undergraduate, Postgraduate, M. Phil./Ph.D and PostDoctoral Fellowships in various Indian Universities/Institutes. The quest for knowledge has always been fundamental to Indian Culture and Civilisation. Since time immemorial, India has attracted knowledge-seekers and inquisitive minds from all over the world. India continues to be a centre for learning and promotes academic exchanges through Conferences, seminars, Chairs of Indian Studies and the activities of Alumni of Indian institutions. Seven decades of our existence is a matter of pride and joy. Due to the ongoing COVID19 pandemic that we face, ICCR will mark this occasion of its Foundation Day on 9th April by undertaking various online activities in India and abroad. Essay Competitions for international students and Indian diaspora will be held in India and all over the world. A blog space of ICCR students studying in India shall be launched and our Indian Missions abroad shall celebrate the day in their respective countries of accreditation in a befitting manner.
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