• Centre has launched framework for safeguarding and protecting consumer interest from fake and deceptive reviews in e-commerce. Secretary, Department of Consumer Affairs, Rohit Kumar Singh launched the framework in New Delhi.
• The standards will be applicable to every online platform which publishes consumer reviews. The standard will initially be voluntary for compliance by all e-commerce platforms.
• Bureau of Indian Standards will also develop a Conformity Assessment Scheme for the standard within fifteen days to assess compliance.
• Violation of the standards by any entity may be considered as an unfair trade practice or violation of consumer rights. A consumer may submit such grievances to the National Consumer Helpline, Consumer Fora or the Central Consumer Protection Authority.
• The standard provides for responsibilities of organization including developing a code of practice, and necessary stipulations for terms and conditions like accessibility, criteria, and ensuring content does not contain financial information.

• The largest tourism festival of Manipur, the Sangai Festival begins on Monday in Manipur.
• The festival named after the State Animal which is found only in Manipur have been organised in grand manner this time after the COVID-19 pandemic hit the festival in the last two years.
• The Union Minister of Tourism, Culture and DoNER G. Kishan Reddy along with the Chief Minister N. Biren Singh attended the inaugural ceremony of Manipur Sangai Festival 2022 held at Sangai Ethnic Park located at Moirang Khunou of Bishnupur district this afternoon.
• This time the festival is being held at 13 different places of Manipur to showcase the varieties of cultural items to both domestic and international tourists.
• The theme of the festival is ‘festival of oneness’.
• The ten days festival is expected to attract tourists in Manipur.

• The 25th National Conference on e-governance will be held in Katra, Jammu & Kashmir from 26th of November.
• The theme of the two-day Conference is Bringing Citizens, Industry and Government closer.
• The Conference will be inaugurated by the Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office, Minister of State of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions Dr. Jitendra Singh.
• The two-day conference will be organised by the Department of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances (DARPG) and Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India, in association with the State Government of Jammu & Kashmir.
• National Awards for e-Governance (NAeG) will be presented under 5 categories of the NAeG Scheme – 2022 to 18 e-Governance initiatives at Central, State and District levels, Academic & Research Institutions and Public Sector Undertaking.
• This includes 9 Gold and 9 Silver Awards.

• India has launched the official website of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) as it will host the next SCO summit as a chairman of organisation in 2023.
• The website highlights the events that will be undertaken under the chairmanship of India next year.

Theme Of the Event:

• The theme of the event is “For a SECURE SCO”. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had floated the concept of SECURE at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in China in 2018.
• Explaining the SECURE concept, the Prime Minister said ‘S’ for security for citizens, ‘E’ for economic development, ‘C’ for connectivity in the region, ‘U’ for unity, ‘R’ for respect of sovereignty and integrity, and ‘E for environment protection.

What is Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO)?

About:

• SCO is a permanent intergovernmental international organization.
• It’s a Eurasian political, economic and military organization aiming to maintain peace, security and stability in the region.
• It was created in 2001.
• The SCO Charter was signed in 2002, and entered into force in 2003.

Genesis:

• Prior to the creation of SCO in 2001,Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia and Tajikistan were members of the Shanghai Five.
• Shanghai Five (1996) emerged from a series of border demarcation and demilitarization talks which the four former Soviet republics held with China to ensure stability along the borders.
• Following the accession of Uzbekistan to the organization in 2001, the Shanghai Five was renamed the SCO.
• India and Pakistan became members in
• On 17^thSeptember, 2021, it was announced that Iran would become a full member of the SCO.

• The gaddi dance has got the third place in the category of crop harvesting in a competition organised during the National Tribal Festival at Raipur, Chhattisgarh.
• The participants of 52 cultural troupes of the country participated in the competition and presented a glimpse of varied culture of their regions.
• Deputy Commissioner DC Rana congratulated the artistes of the Saraswati Lok Kala Sangam of Chamba for getting the third position in the Gaddi.
• Lauding the cultural troupe, Rana said it was a matter of pride for Himachal that Gaddi dance of Chamba district had got the national recognition. He also asked the cultural troupe to enhance the talent.
• The DC presented a reward of Rs 2 lakh to the cultural troupe as prize.
• District Language Officer Tukesh Sharma lauded artistes Atul Sharma, Himanshu, Ramesh Kumar, Karam Chand, Uttam, Vinod, Neeraj, Vivek, Tilak, Tek Chand, Naresh, Sanjay, Neelam, Meenakshi, Pinky, Anita, Rekha, Vandana.

• Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar felicitated Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama with the Gandhi Mandela Award at McLeodganj in Dharamsala.
• The award was presented to him at a function organised by the Gandhi Mandela Foundation, which has been promoting the values and ideals of Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela in the interest of global peace and freedom.
• The award serves to recognise the global leaders who inspire citizens for peace, unity and freedom.
• The Dalai Lama said non-violence and compassion were essential for world peace and both these had been ingrained in the Indian culture for thousands of years. “Problems cannot be solved through war but through dialogue and peace,” he added.
• He asserted, “For world peace, we have to adopt non-violence and compassion as these are the guiding force for existence.”
• The Governor said the Dalai Lama was perhaps the most deserving person in the world today for this award as he was a universal ambassador of peace, who was carrying forward the Indian culture and ideas. “The Dalai Lama has given two principles — non-violence and compassion — which have become most relevant in today’s times. They are far more powerful than even an army,” he said.
• The Governor said ancient Indian culture lays stress on goodwill, compassion and love towards others which the Dalai Lama has taken forward. “After great personalities like Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela, it is the Dalai Lama, who has the potential to become a world citizen, not bound by physical boundaries of the countries,” he said.
• Earlier, Justice KG Balakrishnan, Jury Chairman and former Chief Justice of India, said the younger generation must follow the teachings of the Dalai Lama. Justice Gyan Sudha Misra, Jury Vice-Chairman and former Supreme Court Judge, said the Dalai Lama had shown the path of peace to the whole world.

• In a significant development and recognition to the country’s efforts in improving access to modern family planning methods, India is the only country to have received the Leadership in Family Planning (EXCELL) Awards-2022 in the ‘country category’ at the International Conference on Family Planning held in Pattaya city, Thailand.
• India has made outstanding progress not only in improving access but also adoption of modern contraceptive methods enabling couples to make informed choices about family planning. These are reflected in the National Family Health Survey (NFHS) – 5 data. As per NFHS-5 data, overall Contraceptive Prevalence Rate (CPR) has increased substantially from 54 percent to 67 percent in the country, from NFHS-4. Similarly, unmet needs of family planning have witnessed a significant decline from 13 per cent to 9 per cent. The unmet need for spacing has also come down to less than 10 per cent.
• The total ‘demand satisfied’ for family planning among currently married women aged 15-49 in India increased from 66 percent in 2015-16 to 76 percent in 2019-21 which has already crossed the SDG target of 75 set globally for 2030. The government’s focus on improving easy and affordable access to modern contraceptives are reflected in the fact that 68% modern method contraceptive users obtain their method from the public health sector, as per NFHS-5 data. Mission Parivar Vikas, one of the government’s flagship programmes, to reduce unmet needs in family planning, has also been a critical factor in the overall improvement.
• India’s efforts in improving family planning demonstrate the progress the country is making towards achieving the SDG targets on women and maternal health.
• The International Conference on Family Planning (ICFP) has served as a strategic inflection point for the global reproductive health community, providing a global stage for more than 120 countries worldwide, organizations, and individuals to make important commitments and celebrate achievements as the world’s largest scientific conclave on family planning and reproductive health. The event was attended by more than 3500 delegates physically and tens of thousands on the virtual platform.

• According to a report issued by the Sri Lankan finance ministry, Sri Lanka has exported five times more than its imports under the India-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement in the first nine months of this year, 2022.

About:

• Sri Lanka’s exports added up to over 140 billion Lankan rupees under the agreement.
• Imports into Sri Lanka from India stood at 28 billion rupees.
• Trade with India contributed to almost 65 percent of the total trade of Sri Lanka under four existing free trade agreements.
• The Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India and Sri Lanka was the first-ever bilateral trade agreement for both countries, signed in 1998 and enforced in 2000.
• The pact is aimed at further boosting the economic ties between the two countries by liberalising trade norms.

Free Trade Agreement (FTA):

• FTA is an agreement between the countries or regional blocks to reduce or eliminate trade barriers, though mutual negotiations with a view to enhancing trade.
• It can however be comprehensive to include goods, services, investment, intellectual property, competition, government procurement and other areas.
  • On goods, the key areas covered are customs duties or tariffs, rules of origins, non-tariff measures such as technical barriers to trade (TBT), sanitary phytosanitary (SPS) measures, trade remedies etc.
  • On services, the negotiations are on barriers to various modes of supply including domestic regulations.

Trade agreements could be bilateral, plurilateral or multilateral.

• Bilateral trade agreementsoccur when two countries agree to unshackle trade restrictions to expand business opportunities.
• Plurilateral agreementsoccur between a large number of countries, either in the regional context or otherwise.
• Multilateral trade agreementsis generally referred to for WTO negotiations since it covers a large number of countries and sets global trade rules.

About:

• The proposal, to allow a regular form of controlled trade in ivory from Namibia, Botswana, South Africa and Zimbabwe, was defeated at the 19th meeting of the CITES (CoP19) in Panama City.
• India’s abstention — a break from its past stand — was in tune with what Namibia had asked for when it agreed to transfer cheetahs this summer.

Ivory trade Ban

• The ivory trade was globally banned in 1989 when all African elephant populations were put in CITES Appendix I.
• No trade is allowed in species listed in CITES Appendix I while trade is strictly regulated in those under Appendix II.

What is CITES?

• It is an international agreement to which States and regional economic integration organizations adhere voluntarily.
• It was drafted as a result of a resolution adopted in 1963 at a meeting of members of IUCN (The World Conservation Union). It entered into force in July 1975.
• Its aim is to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten the survival of the species.
• Although CITES is legally binding on the Parties – in other words they have to implement the Convention – it does not take the place of national laws.
• The CITES Secretariat is administered by UNEP and is located in Geneva, Switzerland. The Conference of the Parties to CITES is the supreme decision-making body of the Convention and comprises all its parties.

• Commissioning of the sixth hydro power plant in the North East e. 600 MW Kameng Hydro Power Station in Arunachal Pradesh will be a major step towards fulfilling Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) of the Governement  of India pledged under Paris Agreement 2015. The project will form part of projected hydro capacity addition of  30000 MW by 2030.
• The project will form part of projected hydro capacity addition of  30000 MW by 2030.
• The project stretches over more than 80 kilometers in West Kameng District of Arunachal Pradesh at a cost of approx. Rs 8200 Crore.
• This will make Arunachal Pradesh a power surplus state with huge benefits to the National Grid in terms of grid stability and integration and balancing of solar and wind energy sources in the grid.