1. Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare , Narendra Singh Tomar , holds Bilateral Meetings with the Ministers of Guyana, Suriname, Zambia, Mauritius and Sri Lanka
On March 19, 2023, Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Narendra Singh Tomar, held bilateral meetings with counterparts from various countries such as Guyana, Suriname, Zambia, Mauritius, and Sri Lanka who participated in the Global Millets (Shree Anna) Conference 2023 in New Delhi.
(i) Meeting with Guyana's Agriculture Minister :
During the meeting with Guyana's Agriculture Minister, Zulfikar Mustafa, Union Minister Tomar emphasized that agriculture is a crucial area of cooperation between the two countries. Guyana has vast arable land and water availability, while India has the technology, expertise, and skilled workforce, which will mutually benefit the two nations. India is keen to share its expertise and experience in the development of agriculture and allied sectors in Guyana, for which an MoU is under finalization. India has assured that it will consider Guyana's request for the nomination of two experts to ITEC (Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation) from India for two years to help the Guyana Sugar Corporation management and revive the sugar estates/plants in Guyana at the earliest.
(ii) Meeting with Suriname's Minister of Agriculture :
During the meeting with Suriname's Minister of Agriculture, Parmanand Prahlad Sewdien, Union Minister Tomar noted that 2023 marks the 150th anniversary of the arrival of Indians in Suriname. India's exports of agri-related goods to Suriname in 2021-22 were USD 4.34 million.
(iii) Meeting with Zambia's Minister of Agriculture :
During the meeting with Zambia's Minister of Agriculture, Reuben Mtolo Phiri, Union Minister Tomar highlighted that Zambia is one of the few African countries that has greatly benefited from India's development cooperation program. India is one of the major investors in Zambia with dedicated investments of over US$ 5 billion. India provides scholarships for various higher education courses, ITEC training opportunities, and special capacity-building programs under the India-Africa Forum Summit (IAFS) along with Exim Bank credit, Railway Wagons, Flood Relief Grant, and Line of Credit.
(iv) Meeting with Mauritius's Minister for Agri-Industry and Food Security :
During the meeting with Manish Gobin, Minister for Agri-Industry and Food Security, Mauritius noted that people of Indian origin comprise around 70% of the Mauritius population of 1.2 million. India is one of the largest trading partners of Mauritius. Bilateral trade grew by 69% to reach USD 786.72 million in 2021-22. Diplomatic relations between India and Mauritius were established in 1948.
(v) Meeting with Agriculture Minister of Sri Lanka :
Various agricultural topics were discussed during the meeting with Sri Lanka's Agriculture Minister, Mahinda Amaraweera. India has been one of Sri Lanka's largest trading partners, and Sri Lanka is one of India's largest trading partners in SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation).
2. RBI has Conceded Authorization for Banks from 18 Countries to Exchange INR :
60 applications from correspondent banks in 18 different countries have been approved by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to open Special Rupee Vostro Accounts (SRVAs) to settle payments in Indian rupees (INR).
These correspondent banks are located in Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Botswana, Fiji, Germany, Guyana, Israel, Malaysia, Mauritius, Myanmar, New Zealand, Oman, Russia, the Seychelles, Singapore, Sri Lanka, and the United Kingdom (UK).
Vostro account – A “ Vostro ” account is an account that a domestic bank holds for a foreign bank in the currency of the domestic bank, which in India is INR . Rupee Vostro Accounts allow a foreign entity to keep its holdings in Indian banks in INR .
When an Indian importer makes a payment in INR to a foreign trader, the amount is deposited to this Vostro account. When an Indian exporter gets paid for supplying goods or services, the amount will be withdrawn from this Vostro account and credited to the exporter’s account.
Special Vostro Accounts – Normal Vostro Accounts only function as transit accounts, whereas Special Vostro Accounts permit the maintenance of INR (Indian Rupee) balances .
3. PM Narendra Modi Initiates Global Millets (Shree Anna) Meeting 2023 in New Delhi , Delhi
On Walk 18, 2023, the two-day Global Millets (Shree Anna) Gathering 2023 was officially initiated by Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi at Subramaniam Corridor , National Agriculture Science Complex (NASC) Complex, Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) Campus, PUSA New Delhi, Delhi,to promote millets exports from India and give producers access to the market .
The meeting was coordinated by Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI).
Millet filled in India is Pearl Millet , Sorghum, Finger Millet and minor Millets like Proso Millet, Kodo Millet, Little Millet, Foxtail Millet, Browntop Millet, Farm Millet, Amaranthus and Buckwheat .
India is sending out millet to 139 nations across the globe .
The significant bringing in nations were the United States of America (USA), Australia, Japan, Belgium and so on in 2011-12 which had been moved to Nepal (USD 6.09 million), United Arab Emirates UAE (USD 4.84 million) and Saudi Arabia (USD 3.84 million) in FY22.
India's export of millet is 64 million USD FY22. There is an expansion in the export of Millets by 12.5 % during the period April-December 2023 when contrasted with a similar period last year .
4. International Day of Happiness 2023 - 20th March
The United Nations(UN)’s International Day of Happiness is yearly seen across the globe on 20th March to perceive satisfaction , the fundamental goal of humans and to highlight its importance in the lives of people around the world .
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