UPSC Daily Current Affairs| Prelim Bits 13-05-2025

Pradhan Mantri Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises (PMFME) Scheme

Prelims: Current events of national and international importance.

Why in news?

Bihar has secured the first position in India for successfully implementing the PMFME scheme in the financial year 2024-25.

• PMFMPE – It is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme designed to address the challenges faced by the micro-enterprises.
• Launch – June 2020
• Nodal ministry – Ministry of Food Processing Industries.
• Objectives – To support Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), Self Help Groups (SHGs), and Producers Cooperatives along their entire value chain.
• To support upgradation and formalization of these enterprises.
• To promote the unorganized sector of the food processing industry and enhance competition.
• Support for Common Infrastructure – It includes infrastructure such as warehouse, cold storage and common processing facility for processing of ODOP produce.
• Convergence framework – The Food Processing Enterprises would be eligible for benefits under the various Government Schemes such as,
  • Start-up Village Entrepreneurship Programme (SVEP)
  • National Rural Livelihood Mission
  • PM MUDRA Yojana and others
• Branding and marketing support – It includes marketing training, standardized common branding and packaging, tie-ups with retail chains and state institutions, and quality control to meet required standards.
• Financial assistance – The scheme provides financial assistance through subsidies with 35% of their project cost.
• The Financial assistance is eligible for,
  • Farmer Producer Organization (FPO)
  • Self-Help Groups
  • Co-operatives
  • Existing Individual Micro Food Processing Entrepreneurs
  • New Units, whether for individuals or groups would only be supported for One District One Product (ODOP).
• Beneficiaries must contribute at least 10% of the project cost, with total investment including working capital up to 20%.
• Bihar has topped the implementation of the scheme with 10,296 applicants has been approved for loan.
• It will promote industries, employment and community-driven enterprises, especially in agrarian districts of Bihar.

References

1. The Times of India| Bihar tops implementation of PMFME scheme
2. My Scheme| PMFMPE Scheme

Tapti Basin Mega Recharge Project

Prelims: Current events of national and international importance| Indian Geography

Why in news?

Recently Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on May 2025, to implement the Tapti Basin Mega Recharge Project.

• The long pending agreement was finalized during a meeting of the Madhya Pradesh-Maharashtra Inter-State Control Board in Bhopal.

• Tapti Basin Mega Recharge Project - The project involves constructing three canals in the Tapti River, to address the draught of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.
• Objective - The project channels river water into the soil and underground aquifers to raise groundwater levels and help farmers access water through wells and borewells.
• Funding - The central government will fund 90% of the project cost.
  • The remaining 10% will be shared by the state governments of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra
• Canals - Three canals that are constructed in Tapti River to divert water are,
  • Right Bank Canal (MP)
  • Left Bank Canal (MP)
  • Left Bank Canal (Maharashtra)
• Water allocation - Annually 31.13 thousand Million Cubic Feet (TMC) is diverted and shared between as,
  • Madhya Pradesh - 11.76 TMC
  • Maharashtra - 19.36 TMC
• Significance - It will address water needs in North Eastern Maharashtra (including Nagpur) and provide irrigation support to Southern and South Eastern districts of Madhya Pradesh.
• The Jamghat Project, part of this initiative, will ensure water supply for Nagpur city for the next 30-40 years.
• It will boost irrigation for Vidarbha and North Maharashtra.
• Environmentally friendly - By adopting a groundwater recharge approach instead of traditional reservoir methods, the project minimizes environmental impact and avoids displacement of communities.

References

1. The New Indian Express| Tapti Basin Mega Recharge Project
2. The Hindu| MP Maharashtra ink MoU for Tapti Basin Project

Extended Fund Facility (EFF)

Prelims: Current events of national and international importance| Economic and Social Development

Why in news?

Recently the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) decided to allow for “an immediate disbursement” of $1 billion (Rs 8,500 crore) to Pakistan as part of IMF’s Extended Fund Facility (EFF) to Pakistan.

• Extended Fund Facility – It is a financial assistance program provided by the International Monetary Fund that is available to all IMF member countries.
• Objective - It is designed specifically for countries facing "serious medium-term balance of payments problems".
• It means that the countries that are unable to pay for imported goods and services due to structural economic weaknesses.
• Loan structure – The disbursement duration of the EFF is usually 3 years and it can be extended up to 4 years in special cases needing deeper structural reforms.
• IMF typically allows for repayment over a period of 4.5 to 10 years.
• It provides assistance only in the form of loans, not grants or aid.
• It is called "extended" because recipients need more time to implement structural reforms.
• Accountability framework – IMF regularly reviews the progress of the country throughout the disbursement period.
• The progress evaluations determine eligibility for subsequent disbursements.
• It also includes formal review processes to monitor progress on economic stabilization.
• It focuses on fundamental structural weaknesses such as
  • Inadequate physical infrastructure
  • Insufficiently educated workforce
  • Excessive government borrowing beyond repayment capacity
  • Underdeveloped financial and banking systems
• Pakistan's EFF– EFF is extended to Pakistan as the country has been on the brink of bankruptcy with its total GDP has been stagnant over the past decade.
• It is currently under a 37-month EFF approved on September 2024 with total approved disbursement of $7 billion.
  • Latest tranche - $1 billion on May 9, 2025

Reference

The Indian Express| IMF loan to Pakistan

Ceasefire Agreement

Prelims: Current events of national and international importance| Security Issues

Why in News?

Recently, India and Pakistan have agreed to a ceasefire after the military escalations last week.

• A ceasefire – While there is no official definition of a ceasefire, Sydney D Bailey, describes it as “suspension of acts of violence by military and paramilitary forces, usually resulting from the intervention of a third party.”
• It is an agreement between nations involved in a conflict that seeks to regulate the termination of all military activity “for a given length of time in a given area.
• They also “do not reflect a juridical end to the state of war.
• It can either be formally documented, or agreed upon orally.

The terms ‘truce,’ ‘armistice,’ and ‘peace treaties’ were used distinctively prior to the introduction of the United Nations Charter in 1945. However, the flexible use of the term ‘ceasefire’ by the UN itself and the collapse of the pre-Charter concepts led to the use of these terms interchangeably.

• Regulation - A ceasefire in itself or a breach of a ceasefire does not have any legal consequences as the agreements are seen as a first step between conflict and peace.

In times of conflict, humanitarian law remains concerned, mostly, with regulation of the “use of violence and the protection of civilians.”

Remedies for a breach of a ceasefire

• They are detailed in the Regulations Respecting the Law and Customs of War on Land, also called the Hague Regulations, that were formulated in 1910.
• Article 36 of the Hague Regulations says that if an armistice or a ceasefire does not define its duration, then “the belligerent parties may resume operations at any time, provided that the enemy is warned within the time agreed upon.”
• Article 40 says that , a serious breach of a truce by one of the involved parties gives the other a right to denounce it, and in urgent cases, to recommence hostilities immediately.
• Article 41 states that a violation of the ceasefire terms by “private persons acting on their own initiative” authorises the “injured party to demand the punishment of the offenders or, if necessary, compensation for the losses sustained.”

Reference

The Indian Express| Concept of Ceasefire Agreement

Delhi Morphological Ridge

Prelims: Indian Geography | General issues on Environmental ecology

Why in News?

Recently, Supreme Court issued show cause notices to senior Delhi government officials for giving nod to the private housing project in the morphological ridge area without proper consultation with the relevant authorities.

• The Delhi Ridge – It is a prominent geological feature and biodiversity hotspot located in NCT of New Delhi.

• It is the tail-end of the city’s ancient Aravalli hill range, and an ecologically critical zone.

Delhi Ridge works as a green lung for the NCT of New Delhi (‘Lungs of Delhi)’ and a natural barrier against hazards such as desertification and pollution.

• Morphological Ridge – It is a geologically extended Ridge area and an ecologically sensitive zone.
• It is not officially notified as forest land but enjoys protection under several High Court and Supreme Court rulings over the past decade.
• Its extent is based on a Delhi Forest Department map, which itself based on the seismic zonation map of Delhi 2006, undertaken under the Geological Survey of India (GSI).
• Features – The region shares the same physical and ecological characteristics as the officially designated Ridge
  • Rocky Aravalli outcrops, shallow soil layers, and dry thorn forest vegetation.
• This land is often recorded as “gair mumkin pahad” (uncultivable rocky hill) in revenue records.
• It primarily features tropical dry thorn forest characterised by scattered trees, thorny scrubs and drought-resistant plant species.
• The native species generally exhibit stunted growth.
  • For instance, bistendu and the broad-leaved dhak, both native to Delhi, are common in such areas.
• Vegetation – It varies as one moves from north to south within the Ridge and the Morphological Ridge, reflecting the changes in the soil texture.
  • The southern Ridge – It is drier and more rugged, with thinner soils and exposed rocks
  • The central and northern Ridges – They have slightly more water-retentive soil and denser vegetation.
• Regulation - All land use changes in the Ridge or Morphological Ridge areas require approvals as per the directive under the M C Mehta vs Union of India case from the
  • Ridge Management Board (RMB) and
  • The Supreme Court-appointed Central Empowered Committee

The ground-truthing and field verification of the Ridge remain incomplete, delaying the final notification of the area as a Reserved Forest under Section 20 of the Indian Forest Act, 1927.

Reference

PIB| Delhi Morphological Ridge