Ganga council
Why in news?
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired the first meeting of the National Ganga Council in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh.
News summary
- The Council has been given overall responsibility for superintendence of pollution prevention and rejuvenation of River Ganga Basin, including Ganga and its tributaries.
- He urged for a holistic thinking process where ‘Namami Gange’ evolves to ‘Arth Ganga’ or a sustainable development model with a focus on economic activities related to Ganga.
- For monitoring the work progress under Namami Gange, PM also gave directions for the setting up of a Digital Dashboard where data from villages and urban bodies should be monitored on a daily basis by Niti Ayog and Ministry of Jal Shakti.
Indian-Ocean Rim Association
Why in news?
- At the ‘Delhi Dialogue’ conference, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said that Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) countries should build a common vision for Indo-Pacific.
News summary
- IORA is an inter-governmental organisation to strengthen regional cooperation and sustainable development within the Indian Ocean Region.
- IORA has identified six priority areas, namely: (1) maritime security, (2) trade and investment facilitation, (3) fisheries management, (4) disaster risk reduction, (5) academic and scientific cooperation and (6) tourism promotion and cultural exchanges.
- It was established in 1997.
- IORA has 22 Member States and 9 Dialogue Partners. The Secretariat office is located at Mauritius.
- IORA’s apex body is the Council of Foreign Ministers (COM) which meets annually.
White Island volcano
Why in news?
- The names of four more people killed in an eruption on New Zealand’s most active volcano.
News summary
- Sixteen deaths have been confirmed while two bodies are still missing, believed to be in the water off the island. About 20 people remain in intensive care with severe burns.
- All four victims named today were Australian. It brings the number of Australians identified as fatalities in the eruption to eight, along with two US citizens who had permanent residency in Australia.
- The only other person identified so far is New Zealander who was working as a tour guide on the volcano last Monday when it blasted out a huge plume of ash, rock and superheated steam.
- A minute’s silence will be observed in New Zealand today to mark one week since the deadly eruption of White Island volcano.
National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority
Why in news?
- The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) used its emergency powers to raise ceiling prices of 21 essential medicines by 50%.
News summary
- These essential medicines include Bacillus Calmette–Guérin (BCG) vaccine, anti-malaria drug Chloroquine, anti-leprosy drug Dapsone among others. The increase in prices of these key drugs was on account of a sharp rise
in the cost of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) from China. - The price increase was based on a recommendation by the Standing Committee on Affordable Medicines and Health Products (SCAMHP) under Niti Aayog.
About NPPA:
- The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) is a government regulatory agency that controls the prices of pharmaceutical drugs in India.
- It was established in 1997.
- The parent body Department of Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers.