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The Ministry of External Affairs on 13 September 2022 , said that India will invite a number of friendly countries and International Organisation  to the G-20 summit as  Guest countries to the G-20 Summit meeting being  hosted by India on 09 and 10 September 2023 in New Delhi.

Guest Countries 

India will invite  Bangladesh, Egypt, Mauritius, Netherlands, Nigeria, Oman, Singapore, Spain and UAE as Guest Countries. 

International Organisations to be invited 

India will invite the United Nations, International Monetary Fund(IMF),World Bank, World Health Organisation (WHO),World Trade Organization (WTO),International labour organization(ILO),Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD,Financial Stability Board(FSB), Head of African Union, International Solar Alliance ,Association of SouthEast Asian Nation(ASEAN) , African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD ) CDRI (Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure) and ADB (Asian Development Bank).

The G20, or Group of Twenty, is an intergovernmental forum of the world’s major developed and developing economies. It comprises 19 countries including Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, UK, USA and the European Union (EU).

The Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, Manoj Sinha inaugurated the 8th India International MSME Start-up Expo & Summit at New Delhi on 25 August 2022.

The event, organized by the MSME Development Forum, will continue till Saturday (27 August 2022).

This Event is the best platform for SMEs, startups, trade industry, and service providers to exhibit their products/services to find new business opportunities, markets, ideas, buyers, sellers, etc.

Importance of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) in Indian Economy 

The MSME sector has been a major contributor to the socio-economic development and employment generation of the country with around 30% share in India’s GDP. 

• As per Central Statistics Office the share of MSME in GDP for the year 2019-20 was 30.0%.
• Similarly, the shares in total manufacturing of the country during the year 2019-20 were 36.9%
• According to the Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics, the share of exports of specified MSME related products to all India exports during 2019-20 and 2020-21 were 49.8% and 49.5% respectively.

The 3rd Joint Committee Meeting between the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Government of India  and Ministry of Business, Enterprises and Cooperatives of Republic of Mauritius for cooperation in the field of MSMEs was held in New Delhi on 25 August 2022.

The Indian side was led by Union Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Government of India, Narayan Rane, and the Mauritius side was led by Soomilduth Bholah, Union Minister of Industrial Development, SMEs and Cooperatives.

In the meeting both sides reviewed the present engagement between India and Mauritius in the field of MSMEs, and held discussion on potential areas of cooperation in various areas.

Two MoU signed 

Two Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on cooperation were signed between the two sides.

• An agreement was signed between the SME Mauritius Ltd. and Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII)- Ahmedabad. 
• Another agreement was signed between SME Mauritius Ltd. and National Institute for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Hyderabad.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that India’s labour force has a huge role to play in realising dreams and aspirations to build a developed country and the future may require flexible workplaces, work from home ecosystems and flexi work hours.

• He was speaking at the two day (25-26 August 2022) National Conference of Labour Ministers of all States and Union Territories via video conferencing on 25 August 2022. Union Ministers for Labour Bhupender Yadav and Minister of State for Labour Rameshwar Teli and Labour Ministers of States were among those present on the occasion. 
• The National Conference of Labour Ministers is being held at Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh. 
• The Prime Minister reiterated the various efforts by the Government like Pradhan Mantri Shram-Yogi Maandhan Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana, Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana that have given a kind of security cover to the workers. 
• These schemes have assured the labourers of the recognition of their hard work and contribution.
• He further added that in the last eight years, the Government has taken the initiative to abolish the laws from the period of slavery that reflect the slavery mentality. “
• The country is now changing, reforming, simplifying such labour laws.”, the Prime Minister said. “With this in mind, 29 labour laws have been converted into 4 simple labour codes”.
•  This will ensure the empowerment of workers via minimum wages, job security, social security, and health security, he added.
• PM Modi said that the deliberations and decisions taken in the National Labour Conference will empower the labour of the country. It will help in strengthening the labour force in India through various schemes aimed at the upliftment of those working in the organized and unorganized sectors.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh attended the annual meeting of defence ministers of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) member states on 24 August 2022 at Tashkent, Uzbekistan.Rajnath Singh reached Tashkent on 23 August 2022 for a three day visit.

Defence Minister proposes to host Defence minister’s workshop in India 

• Speaking on the occasion the defence  minister proposed to host a workshop in India in 2023 on the theme ‘Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief - Risk mitigation and Disaster Resilient Infrastructure’ for the Defence Ministries of SCO Member States. 
• He also suggested an annual seminar on ‘Topic of Interest’ among the defence think tanks of SCO countries. He said India will host the first such defence think tank seminar in India in 2023. 
• India will take over the chairmanship from Uzbekistan next year.

Defence Ministers Meeting in Uzbekistan 

• Currently Uzbekistan is the chairman of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and all SCO meetings are being hosted by Uzbekistan.
• Uzbekistan is going to hold the SCO Summit of Heads of State meeting which is scheduled to be held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan on 15-16 September 2022.
• The defence ministers meeting is expected to discuss issues which will be deliberated by the leaders in the summit meeting.
• Defence Ministers of China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan also participated in the meeting.

Other Engagement of the Defence Minister

• Rajnath Singh held bilateral meetings with his Uzbek counterpart Lieutenant General Bakhodir Kurbanov; Defence Minister of Kazakhstan Colonel General Zhaksylykov Ruslan Zhakslykov and Belarusian Defence Minister Lieutenant General Viktor Khrenin.
• During the stay in Tashkent, Rajnath Singh also paid homage at the monument of late Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri.  
• There is a memorial dedicated to Lal Bahadur Shastri in Tashkent. 
• The second Indian Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri died on 11 January 1966 at Tashkent. He was there to sign a peace deal with Pakistani President Ayub Khan to formally end the 1965 India-Pakistan war.  He died the next day after signing the peace deal with Ayub Khan.

Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) 

• It is a regional organization consisting of China, Russia, India, Pakistan and the four central Asian countries of Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.
• SCO has four observer states ;Iran, Mongolia, Belarus and Afghanistan
• It has six dialogue partner states; Armenia, Azerbaijan, Cambodia, Nepal, Turkey and Sri Lanka.

Union Minister of State for Textiles Darshana Jardosh inaugurated the Silk Mark Expo in New Delhi on 22 August 2022. This time, 39 exhibitors from 12 states are participating in the expo.

Organiser of the Silk Mark Expo

The expo is being organised by the Silk Mark Organisation of India under Central Silk Board, Ministry of Textiles from 22 -28 August 2022.

Highlight of the minister’s speech 

• Speaking on the occasion, Ms Jardosh said, the Textile Ministry has launched various schemes aiming at giving a boost to the textile sector.
• Highlighting the quality of silk products at the expo, the Minister said, weavers, especially women artisans have put rigorous efforts in making original silk products that will attract consumers across the country. 
• She said, Silk Mark is a quality assurance label launched by the government to determine that the product is made up of pure natural silk.
• This mark will highlight qualifying standards, which will eventually build consumer confidence in both domestic and export markets.

Silk Mark 

• Silk Mark was launched on 17th June 2004. Silk Mark is promoted by Silk Mark Organisation of India (SMOI), a registered society under the Karnataka Society Act 1960. 
• SMOI is an initiative of the Central Silk Board, Ministry of Textiles, and the Government of India.
• The Silk Mark labels are in the form of paper hang tags and sew-in labels. These are affixed only on pure silk products by the authorised users of Silk Mark. Each label has a hologram and a unique number printed on it, which helps the consumer trace the product back to the authorised user.

Silk and India 

India is the second largest producer of silk in the world after China.

Top silk producing state in India 

Karnataka is the largest silk producing state in India followed by Andhra Pradesh and Assam.

Union Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai inaugurated the 2 day (21-22 August 2022), 10th National Conference of Women Police held at Shimla, Himachal Pradesh. As per convention the Conference was inaugurated by the Union Home Minister.

The first National Conference of Women Police was held in 2002 and since then it has been held every two years.

Organiser of the Conference 

The conference is being organised by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPRD) in collaboration with Himachal Police.

Aim of the Conference 

The conference will showcase the achievements of women police officers as well as discuss issues and challenges faced by them. 

 It will also highlight and discuss the new roles and responsibilities of women in terms of changing technology and crime.

Highlights of the minister’s speech 

Speaking on the occasion the Minister said that women empowerment was significant to bringing change in society. He said the percentage of women in the police and the central armed police force (CAPF) had increased by 2-3 times in the past eight years.

Mr. Rai said that the centre is trying to increase the number of women in the police force.

He said that the objective of organizing this conference is to further develop the quality of leadership among women and to discuss the challenges faced by women police officers and personnel.

An Indian Parliamentary Delegation led by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla will be attending the 65th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference scheduled to be held in Halifax, Canada from August 20 to 26, 2022.

The annual flagship event will bring together over 500 Parliamentarians, parliamentary staff and decision makers from across the Commonwealth for this unique conference and networking opportunity.

The Conference will also be attended by 23 Presiding Officers and 16 Secretaries from State Legislatures from India who are also members of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association.

Commonwealth Parliamentary Association

• The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association was founded in 1911 as the Empire Parliamentary Association.
• The Empire Parliamentary Association was later renamed as the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association at a conference in London in October 1948.
• The meetings of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association were held every two years. From 1961 the meetings were held every year.
• At present 56 countries are members of the Commonwealth.

The External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi in a tweet on 19 August 2022 said that the 17th Pravasi Bhartiya Divas 2023 will be held at Indore, Madhya Pradesh in January 2023. Pravasi refers to the Indians who are working abroad(Non Resident Indians) or person of Indian origin who has taken up the citizenship of other countries .

The 16th Pravasi Bhartiya Divas was held in a virtual mode on 9th January, 2021 with the theme "Contributing to Atma Nirbhar Bharat". Chandrikapersad Santokhi, President of Suriname was the Chief Guest.

 Who organizes the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas

The Pravasi Bharatiya Divas is organised by the Ministry of External Affairs in partnership with a state government and an Industry body, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) or Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI). 

It is normally organised on 9 January.

Significance of 9 January 

• On this day in 1915 the greatest Pravasi of India, Mahatma Gandhi returned from South Africa  in 1915 from South Africa  to India .
• His ship SS Arabia  docked in Bombay (now Mumbai)  on 9 January 1915.To honour and celebrate the occasion the government of India decided to start  Pravasi Bharatiya Divas  in 2003.

Reason for observing the Pravasi Divas 

• One of the main reasons for organizing the Pravasi Divas was the success of China. Like Indians there are many overseas Chinese and one of the main reasons for the success of China was that many of the overseas Chinese invested in the country.
• The Indian overseas diaspora is the largest in the world and many of them are very successful businessmen, technocrats and in positions of power in their respective countries.
• Through the Pravasi Divas events the government of India wants to engage the overseas Indians and wants them to invest in India and make a meaningful contribution in India's economic development.

History of Pravasi Bharatiya Divas

• The first Pravasi Bharatiya Divas was organised in New Delhi from 9-11 January 2003 and Sir Anerood Jugnauth, Prime Minister of Mauritius was the Chief Guest.
• Since 2015, its format has been revised and now the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas is held every two years.

Regional Pravasi Bharatiya Divas

• To reach the vast majority of the overseas Indians who due to various reasons cannot attend the main event, the Ministry of External Affairs organises Regional Pravasi Bharatiya Divas Conferences.
• The Regional conference focuses on a particular region of the world where there is a greater number of overseas Indians.
•  So far 10 such conferences have been organised by the ministry. 
• The first Regional Pravasi Bharatiya Divas was organised in New York, United States on 24 September 2007.
• The 10th Regional Conference was held in Singapore from 6-7 January 2018.

The Union Ministry of Culture and the National Museum in collaboration with Abheraj Baldota Foundation organized an exhibition ‘Sutr Santati’, celebrating 75 years of India’s Independence. Sutr Santati literally means the continuity of yarn.

A first-of-its-kind exhibition, Sutr Santati represents over 100 traditional Indian textiles by close to 75 participants, and highlights the diverse interpretations of beautiful textile craftsmanship of India, designed to foster Indian pride.

The Sutr Santati exhibition was launched on August 18, 2022 at National Museum Delhi. The Sutr Santati will later travel to various Indian and international museums throughout the year taking the offering of Indian heritage textiles globally.

On view are textiles created with the processes of hand weaving, embroidery, resist-dyeing, printing, painting, and appliqué, among other forms of yarn and fabric manipulation.

The exhibits are created using natural indigenous yarns as well as natural and azo-free dyes. The fibers employed in these commissions range from local varieties such as Kandu and Kala cotton, mulberry and wild silks, camel and sheep wool, goat and yak hair.