Contents
- SURYA KIRAN – XIV
- EASE OF DOING BUSINESS.
- INDRA TRI-SERVICES EXERCISE
SURYA KIRAN – XIV
Why in News?
The joint military exercise between India and Nepal was conducted at Salijhandi, Rupendehi district of Nepal from 3rd December to 16th December.
Details
- It is an annual event conducted alternatively in Nepal and India.
- The exercise will comprise of 300 soldiers from both Indian and Nepal Army, sharing their experience in conduct of various counter insurgency and counter terrorism operations as also various humanitarian assistance missions by both the armies.
- Aims to increase interoperability in jungle warfare and counter terrorist operations in mountainous terrain amongst other things.
EASE OF DOING BUSINESS.
India ranks 63rd among 190 countries improving by 14 ranks from its rank of 77 in 2019. India has improved its rank in 7 out of 10 indicators and has moved closer to international best practices. The 2020 edition of the Report acknowledges India as one of the top 10 improvers, third time in a row, with an improvement of 67 ranks in 3 years. It is also the highest jump by any large country since 2011.
Startup India- reaching new heights, making India a global leader in Innovation
A total of 21,778 startups are now recognised under the Startup India Initiative, of which 2,912 startups have been recognised since 1st June 2019.
India’s remarkable jump on the Global Innovation Index
In the past 4 years India’s rank in the GII has improved from the 81st rank in 2015 to the present 52nd rank in GII 2019 report. India became the first developing country to launch the Global Innovation Index (GII) in association with World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and Confederation of India (CII).
Export Credit Guarantee Corporation (ECGC) has introduced a new Export Credit Insurance Scheme (ECIS) called ‘NIRVIK’ for exporters
INDRA TRI-SERVICES EXERCISE
Why in News?
Joint Tri-services Exercise between India and Russia – Indra 2019 is conducted from 10th to 20th December at Pune and Goa simultaneously.
Details
- Exercise Indra-2019 is the second such joint tri-services exercise.
- As the name suggests it involves all 3 defence services – Army, Air force and Navy.
- Indian Air Force (IAF) and Russian Federation Air Force (RFAF) will take part in the exercise at Pune and Gwalior.
- Tri-services Ex INDRA 2019 will strengthen mutual confidence and interoperability and also enable sharing of best practices between the armed forces of both countries.
- The series of INDRA exercises between India and Russia began in 2003. However, the first joint tri service exercise began in 2017.
Related foreign ties that affect India-Russia relations:
- Close ties of Russia with China hurt India
- India’s LEMOA (Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement) and COMCASA (Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement) with USA bothers Russia
- India’s purchase of S-400 Missiles from Russia despite USA’s insistence under CAATSA (Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act) strengthens ties with Russia.
