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- Why in News?
- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s recent two-day visit to Delhi, invited by NSA Ajit Doval for the 24th Special Representatives talks on the boundary issue, marked a notable step forward in India-China engagement.
- Key Provisions:-
- Besides discussions with Mr. Doval, Wang met External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on normalising ties after the four-year LAC standoff, and was received by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who confirmed his upcoming visit to Tianjin for the SCO summit with President Xi Jinping. Agreements included reopening three border trade points, resuming direct flights, expanding Kailash Manasarovar pilgrimage slots, and easing visas. Talks also addressed Chinese export curbs, though India’s scrutiny of Chinese FDI remained unresolved. Both sides committed to expedite boundary resolution, reaffirming the 2005 Political Parameters framework. However, China’s Pakistan ties, BRI ambitions in Afghanistan, and contrasting positions on terrorism remain underlying concerns. Any reset, while useful for trade and diplomacy, must be pursued from a position of strategic strength.
- Why in News?
- India has granted the International Big Cats Alliance (IBCA) and its officials privileges and immunities comparable to those enjoyed by representatives of United Nations organisations, ensuring legal protection for their work.
- Key Provisions:-
- The IBCA was launched in 2023 in India during the event marking 50 years of Project Tiger. Established by the Government of India through the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) under the Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change (MoEFCC), the alliance is a multi-country, multi-agency platform dedicated to the conservation of seven big cat species — tiger, lion, leopard, snow leopard, cheetah, jaguar, and puma. With its headquarters in India, the IBCA brings together 95 range and non-range countries committed to big cat protection, with 12 countries currently as members, including India. By extending these privileges, India aims to strengthen international cooperation, facilitate smooth functioning of the alliance, and advance global big cat conservation initiatives.
- Why in News?
- The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has introduced a new framework after consultations with the Ministry of Cooperation, NABARD, and other stakeholders to enhance cooperative banks’ access to Aadhaar-based services.
- Key Provisions:-
- The initiative aims to help cooperative banks use Aadhaar authentication for customer onboarding and the Aadhaar Enabled Payment System (AePS) to expand financial services to underserved communities. Under the framework, only State Cooperative Banks (SCBs) will be directly registered with UIDAI as Authentication User Agencies (AUA) and eKYC User Agencies, enabling them to authenticate and verify customers seamlessly. To streamline operations further, District Central Cooperative Banks (DCCBs) will be assigned a unique “DCB-ID,” which will serve as an internal identifier linked to the SCBs. This structured approach seeks to strengthen the cooperative banking network’s role in financial inclusion, ensure secure identity verification, and improve service delivery in rural and remote areas.