26-Nov-2021: India calls for BRICS to work towards rightful place in the global innovation index

India’s Minister for Science & Technology Dr Jitendra Singh, who chaired the 9th BRICS Science & Technology Ministers meet held today, has called for working towards rightful place for BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) in the Global Innovation Index and this, he said, can be achieved through further strengthening the cooperation in the field of Science, Technology and Innovation (STI).

Dr Jitendra Singh said that BRICS countries must come together and innovate cost effective, affordable, accessible, sustainable and scalable scientific solutions, as they face many similar and unique challenges. He said, BRICS is home to 41% of the world population with an increasing share of this consisting of youth and added that the potential exhibited by the young scientists must get its rightful place in the global arena.

Dr Jitendra Singh reiterated that the Indian Prime Minister has strong commitment to the strengthening of cooperation within BRICS counties in this key sphere of STI which directly impacts the welfare and progress of all our peoples. It is, in the interest of all of us, to enhance the scale, scope and impact of BRICS collaboration, the Minister added.

Mr. Zhang Guangjun, Vice Minister of Science and Technology, China; Dr. Bonginkosi Emmanuel Nzimande, Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology, South Africa; Mr. Marcos Pontes, Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Brazil and Ms. Natalya Bocharova, Deputy Minister of Science and Higher Education, Russia and senior officials from BRICS countries attended the meet and adopted the agenda.

Acknowledging that India has received full cooperation from all BRICS partners during its Chairmanship, Dr Jitendra Singh underlined that 2021 is an important landmark year in BRICS Cooperation as the grouping completed 15 years. India, for its Chairmanship, chose the overall theme of ‘BRICS @ 15: Intra-BRICS Cooperation for Continuity, Consolidation and Consensus’.

Dr Jitendra Singh said, in line with India’s overall priority, we worked for continuation of the good work from previous Chairmanships and also to consolidate our cooperation in Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) Track. He said, India also recognised the continued importance of cooperation in Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) to bring in technological and digital solutions for the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The Minister said that the Covid pandemic provided an opportunity to understand that global cooperation was the only way forward in alleviating such global challenges and during this period, we expanded intra-BRICS cooperation by strengthening preparedness and response to the pandemic.

During his interventions in different sessions, Dr Jitendra Singh informed that India under "Vaccine Maitri" initiative is providing COVID-19 vaccines to countries around the world. As of 22 November 2021, India had delivered around 70.70 million doses of vaccines to 95 countries and out of these, 12.7 million doses were given to 47 countries by the Government of India. The remaining 58 million were supplied by the Serum Institute of India under its commercial and COVAX obligations, he added.

Dr Jitendra Singh noted with satisfaction that BRICS scientific ministries supported several projects on COVID-19 covering the entire spectrum of research such as development of vaccine, new drugs, Genomic sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 Virus, epidemiological studies etc. He said, this will contribute to our ongoing efforts and will add to the global value chain.

Dr Jitendra Singh said, it is a matter of great pleasure for India to prepare the Innovation Cooperation Action Plan 2021-2024 with support from all BRICS countries and hoped that it will pave the way for cooperation among different actors of the innovation ecosystem. The Minister emphasized that India will actively contribute in implementation of BRICS STI Calendar of Activities 2022.

In his concluding remarks, Dr Jitendra Singh said that the 9th BRICS Science Technology Innovation Ministerial Meeting has come to a successful conclusion. All the member states have adopted the BRICS innovation Action Plan 2021-24, BRICS STI Declaration 2021 and Calendar of BRICS STI Activities 2022 which will act as a roadmap to take the cooperation forward. The Minister said, all of these new initiatives will not only benefit our citizens but will also enable BRICS as an institution to remain relevant in the coming years.

18-Nov-2021: BRICS Innovation Action 2021-24 prepared in India’s leadership agreed by all concerned countries as key deliverable of S&T Ministerial

The BRICS Innovation Action 2021-24, which has been prepared in India’s leadership, was agreed by all BRICS countries at the 13th BRICS S&T Committee Meeting. The Innovation Action plan would be one key deliverable of the forthcoming BRICS S&T Ministerial.

The BRICS countries’ Scientific Ministries met on 16 November 2021 to discuss the agenda and associated key deliverables for the forthcoming BRICS S&T Ministerial meeting scheduled to be held on 26 November 2021. India presented the draft declaration of the ministerial meeting, highlighting various scientific achievements, including thematic meetings and events organised during India’s BRICS Chairmanship. The meeting was hosted by Department of Science and Technology (DST), India. The Indian delegation was led by Mr. Sanjeev Kumar Varshney, Advisor & Head International Cooperation of DST.

The BRICS Science, Technology and Innovation Ministerial Meeting (comprising Ministers responsible for science, technology, and innovation in Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) provide an overarching vision and advice on institutional and financial frameworks for major BRICS science, technology and innovation programmes and initiatives.

This year Ministerial Meeting is being hosted by India. About 20 scientific meetings were organized in 2021 with some of the key events hosted by India, including BRICS Young Scientist Conclave 2021, BRICS Working Group meeting on Science, Technology, Innovation Entrepreneurship Partnership, BRICS working Group meeting on Astronomy.

28-Oct-2021: 13th Meeting of Heads of National Statistical Offices (NSOs) of BRICS Countries for Release of Joint Statistical Publication (JSP) 2021 and JSP Snapshot 2021

The 13th Meeting of Heads of National Statistical Offices of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) Countries was held in virtual format under the Chairmanship of India on 28th October 2021. Dr. G. P. Samanta, Chief Statistician of India and Secretary, Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), Government of India chaired the meeting. The meeting was attended by representatives from the National Statistical Offices (NSOs) of BRICS Countries.

During the meeting, the Joint Statistical Publication (JSP) 2021 and JSP Snapshot 2021 for BRICS Countries were released. The first chapter of JSP 2021 provides a general information with comparable statistics of the five countries, while the other 14 chapters reflect the different aspects of the past development and current status of the individual countries. In addition, NSO India has also brought out the first BRICS JSP Snapshot 2021, a shorter version of BRICS Joint Statistical Publication, 2021, for engagement of wide range of users, as per the agreement by the member countries.

The theme of meeting was “NSOs efforts in monitoring Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)” wherein speakers from BRICS NSOs highlighted efforts taken so far as well as future plan in terms of data and methodologies in monitoring of SDGs.

The BRICS Heads of NSOs acknowledged the importance of collaboration and exchange of best practices on a regular basis to bridge the data gaps to support policy makers in evidence-based decision making.

The Reports JSP 2021 and JSP Snapshot 2021 are available at https://mospi.gov.in/.

27-Aug-2021: BRICS-Agricultural Research Platform operationalised to strengthen cooperation in agricultural research & innovations

Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Shri Narendra Singh Tomar today announced the operationalization of BRICS Agricultural Research Platform prepared and set up in India for strengthening the cooperation in the field of agricultural research & innovations amongst the BRICS member States. The Minister was addressing the 11th meeting of BRICS Agriculture Ministers under the theme BRICS Partnership for Strengthening Agro Biodiversity for Food Security and Nutrition.

The BRICS- Agricultural Research Platform, as a global platform for science-led agriculture will help in addressing the issues of world hunger, undernutrition, poverty and inequality by promoting sustainable agricultural development through strategic cooperation in agriculture and allied sector.

The BRICS-ARP has been operationalized to intensify cooperation in the areas of agricultural research, technology, policy, innovations and capacity building including technologies for smallholder farming and to sustainably increase yields and farmers income in the BRICS member countries. The platform shall escalate the exchange of research findings and innovation and best practices for upscaling in the respective BRICS Nations.

The Coordinating Centre of the BRICS Agricultural Research Platform is housed at NASC Complex, Pusa under the governance of Department of Agricultural Research & Education/ICAR, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare.  The domain name for BRICS Agricultural Research Platform is http://barp.org.in.All the Member States of BRICS concurred to this domain name in the Working Group Meeting held on 12-13 August, 2021. The BRICS Nations have also appointed their focal points for BRICS-ARP to interact virtually through the platform and identify the common problems and develop joint projects for finding the solutions.  Indian Council of Agricultural Research is the focal organization from India.

The Union Minister of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar and the Ministers of Agriculture of the Federative Republic of Brazil, the Russian Federation, the People's Republic of China, and the Republic of South Africa met virtually today for the 11th meeting of BRICS Agriculture Ministers.

Union Minister in his address to BRICS Agriculture Ministers stated that agrobiodiversity has a prime role in addressing the food security and nutrition and developing the resilient agri-food systems. He appreciated the efforts of all the BRICS Nations for promotion and conservation of agrobiodiversity and addressing food security during COVID-19 pandemic.

The Minister of State of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Shri Kailash Choudhary, Shri Sanjay Agarwal, Secretary, Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Dr. Trilochan Mohapatra, Secretary, Department of Agricultural Research & Education & DG, ICAR, and other senior officers of the two Departments joined the virtual meeting at Sushma Swaraj Bhawan, New Delhi.

27-Aug-2021: Union Agriculture Minister Shri Narendra Singh Tomar chairs 11th meeting of Agriculture Ministers of BRICS countries

Union Minister for Agriculture & Farmers Welfare Shri Narendra Singh Tomar today chaired the 11th Meeting of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) Agriculture Ministers. The Ministers of Agriculture from Brazil, Russia, China and South Africa deliberated virtually on the theme “BRICS Partnership for Strengthening Agro Biodiversity for Food and Nutrition Security”. BRICS brings together the major emerging economies of the world, hosting 41% of the world population, contributing 24% of the world GDP and over 16% share in world trade.

In his opening remarks, Shri Tomar said that the BRICS countries are well-positioned to take a leading role in helping to achieve the objectives of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals to eradicate hunger and poverty. By increasing agricultural production and increasing the income of farmers, the problem of income inequality and food price volatility can be overcome.

The Agriculture Minister highlighted the efforts made by India in preserving the agro-biodiversity by establishing and maintaining the National Gene banks for plants, animals, fish, insects and agriculturally important microorganisms at different respective Bureaus. India is actively promoting the diversification of its agri-food systems through countrywide programs such as pulses, oilseeds, horticultural crops, National Bamboo Mission and the recently launched National Palm Oil Mission. The objective of these programs is to increase the income of the farmers along with providing diversification in both farm and plate.

Shri Tomar said that on the initiative and proposal of India, the United Nations has declared the year 2023 as the International Year of Millets and preparations are being made to celebrate the International Year of Millets at the global level. Shri Tomar informed that India is focusing on capacity building in research, teaching, policy-making, trade and farming of nutritious cereals, which will benefit the farmers while conserving the amazing diversity available in this group of crops. Shri Tomar informed that the BRICS Agricultural Research Platform has been created to promote cooperation in agricultural research and innovations and its implementation has been started today.

The strong agricultural research base in BRICS countries and the need to harness and share knowledge, facilitate the transfer of technologies from lab to land to provide improved solutions for enhanced productivity, especially in the face of climate change, maintaining agrobiodiversity and ensuring sustainable use of natural resources was acknowledged.

The Ministers expressed their intention to make the BRICS Agriculture Research Platform developed by India functional and encourage research cooperation to improve the use and application of agricultural technologies for meeting the needs of producers and processors. BRICS Agriculture Research Platform (BARP) will promote cooperation in the areas of agricultural research, extension, technology transfer, training and capacity building.

After the meeting a Joint declaration of the eleventh meeting of BRICS Agriculture Ministers covering a wide range of focus areas for future cooperation amongst BRICS countries and the Action Plan for 2021-24 for agricultural cooperation of BRICS countries and BRICS Agriculture Research Platform were adopted. These documents were discussed in depth in the Meetings of BRICS Agricultural Experts and BRICS Working Group on Agriculture at the senior officers level.

The Action Plan of 2021-24 for Agricultural Cooperation of BRICS Countries was adopted in the Ministers' meeting. The Action Plan 2021-2024 provides for enhanced cooperation in the field of agriculture amongst BRICS nations and focuses on the themes of food security, welfare of farmers, conservation of agrobiodiversity, resilience of food and agricultural production systems, promotion of digital agricultural solutions etc. which are integral to the sustainable development of agriculture.

In view of the potential for the BRICS nations to collaborate in furthering the cause of agrobiodiversity for food security and nutrition, it has been proposed to include “Conservation and promotion of agrobiodiversity for nutrition and sustainability” as a focus area for collaboration in the Action Plan 2021-2024 for Agricultural Cooperation of BRICS Countries.

Shri Kailash Choudhary, Minister of State for Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Shri Sanjay Agarwal, Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Shri Trilochan Mohapatra, Secretary (DARE) & DG(ICAR),  Shri. Abhilaskha Likhi, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare and Ms. Alaknanda Dayal, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare attended the virtual meeting of the BRICS Agriculture Ministers.

18-Aug-2021: Brazil, Russia, India and South Africa to Study Intersection of COVID-19 and Tuberculosis Pandemics

A consortium of doctors and researchers from India, Brazil, Russia, and South Africa have partnered to conduct a study on the epidemiological impact and intersection of the COVID-19 and Tuberculosis pandemics in these countries.

Under this joint research, the teams from these countries will explore the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the epidemiological characteristics of TB infection and search for mechanisms responsible for the interaction of these two processes. They will also search for strategies to mitigate the negative consequences of the pandemic and develop individual recommendations for each participating country, which can help overcome the impact of epidemics of respiratory viral diseases on the epidemic of tuberculosis.

Brazil, Russia, India and South Africa currently rank 2nd to 5th in the number of cases of COVID-19 and belong to 24 countries recognized by WHO with the highest burden of tuberculosis in the world. Moreover, BRICS countries have the largest number of cases of drug-resistant tuberculosis. Hence the research will be conducted in these 4 BRICS countries where one of the highest-burden rates of both COVID-19 and tuberculosis has been recorded simultaneously.

This research supported by the Department of Science and Technology (DST) is being led by Prof. Urvashi B Singh from All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India, along with Dr. K S Sachdeva, Regional Director, South East Asia, International Union Against TB and Lung Diseases, Dr. Mandal, Deputy Director-General, and Dr. Sanjay Mattoo from National TB Elimination Program, India and Dr. Randeep Guleria, Director, AIIMS, New Delhi among others from the Indian side. The leaders from the other countries include Dr. Anete Trajman, State University of Rio de Janeiro, Social Medicine Institute, Brazil, Dr. Irina G. Felker, Novosibirsk Tuberculosis Research Institute, Department of the Tuberculosis Epidemiology, Novosibirsk, Russia, and Prof. Anneke Hesseling, Desmond Tutu TB Centre Department of Pediatrics and Child Health, Stellenbosch University, South Africa.

The teams will assess the impact of COVID-19 on trends in the structure of the M. tuberculosis population, primarily through the interaction between scientists from Russia and India. The teams from Brazil and South Africa will evaluate the impact of tuberculosis on the clinical course and treatment outcomes for COVID-19 at the individual level. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and associated restrictive measures on morbidity and tuberculosis-related mortality will be assessed using mathematical modeling.

This collaborative research will provide a differentiated country-based assessment of the negative consequences of COVID-19 on the provision of anti-tuberculosis care, its continuity, consistency, and adequacy through a comparative analysis of the inter-country similarities and differences in the interaction of the two epidemics at the population and individual level.

The analysis will provide insights into the most important points of application for epidemiological, medico-social, clinical, and socio-economic interventions that are expected to reduce morbidity and mortality from the interaction of COVID-19 and TB in both the short and long term. The approach used will allow the development of a unique platform for mathematical modeling of the epidemic tuberculosis process, which will also support and enhance epidemic modeling capabilities in BRICS countries and thus provide a solid foundation for future collaborative modeling research.

14-Aug-2021: BRICS Partnership for Strengthening Agro Biodiversity for Food and Nutrition Security

The Ministers of Agriculture of the Federative Republic of Brazil, the Russian Federation, the People's Republic of China and the Republic of South Africa deliberated virtually on the theme “BRICS Partnership for Strengthening Agro Biodiversity for Food and Nutrition Security”.

The implementation of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development noted that BRICS countries are well positioned to take a leading role in helping to achieve the objectives of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals to eradicate hunger and poverty. The strong agricultural research base in BRICS countries and the need to harness and share knowledge, facilitate transfer of technologies from lab to land to provide improved solutions for enhanced productivity, especially in the face of climate change, maintaining agro biodiversity and ensuring sustainable use of natural resources was acknowledged.

BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) Agriculture Research Platform has been developed by India to promote cooperation in the areas of agricultural research, extension, technology transfer, training and capacity building. The intention to make the BRICS Agriculture Research Platform functional and encourage research cooperation to improve the use and application of agricultural technologies for meeting the needs of producers and processors was also expressed.

The Joint declaration of the eleventh meeting of BRICS and Action Plan for 2021-24 for agricultural cooperation of BRICS countries and BRICS Agriculture Research Platform were discussed in depth. This BRICS Working Group meeting will endorse the Action Plan of 2021-24 for adoption in BRICS meeting.

Shri Sanjay Agarwal, Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Shri. Abhilaskha Likhi, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare and Ms. Alaknanda Dayal, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare attended the virtual meeting of the BRICS working group held on 12 -13 August 2021 at Sushma Swaraj Bhawan, New Delhi.

6-Aug-2021: Scientists from four BRICS countries to carry out genomic sequencing and mathematical modelling of the COVID-19 pandemic

Indian Scientists, in partnership with Scientists from China, Russia and Brazil, will carry out genomic sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 and studies on the epidemiology and mathematical modelling of the COVID-19 pandemic. This will help trace genetic mutations, recombination as well as distribution of the virus and also make projections about the future of its spread.

A whole-genome sequencing is required for identification of genetic mutations and recombination of the virus, while epidemiological studies can help assess its distribution. Mathematical modelling is required to assess its future spread.

Keeping this in mind, a research plan has been made by including expertise of scientists and engineers from diverse backgrounds. A consortium consisting of Dr Ch Sasikala, Professor, Centre for Environment, Institute of Science and Technology, Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University Hyderabad, Yuhua Xin, Professorate Senior Engineer Institute of Microbiology, Chinese  Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China, Ivan Sobolev,   Senior Researcher, Federal Research Center of Fundamental and Translational Medicine, Timakova, Russia, Dr Marilda Mendonça Siqueira, Respiratory Viruses and Measles Laboratory, Oswaldo Cruz Institute, Fiocruz., Rio de Janeiro, Brazil will carry out different arms of this BRICS-Multilateral Research and Development Project.

Under this research supported by the Department of Science and Technology, India and Brazil sides will assess distribution of SARS-CoV-2 in environmental samples through metagenome analysis for wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) surveillance. Chinese and Russian scientists will carry out the Real-Time PCR detection of SARS-CoV-2 in biological material (nasopharyngeal swabs) from patients with symptoms of respiratory diseases and investigate the genomic variability, comparative genomics and phylogenetic analysis.

The genomic, metagenomic and epidemiological data from India, China, Russia and Brazil will be integrated to develop mathematical models for mutations analysis, population genetics, phylogenetic relationship, recombination analysis and risk evaluation to reveal spread network and dynamics of the virus. This can help trace spread routes and dynamics of the virus. The database developed by the different groups will also compare the distribution and survival of the virus in the different regions and establish the surveillance of the relevant early warning system.

The collaborative research plan has been developed considering the strengths of international collaborators from the Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences of China, Federal Research Centre of Fundamental and Translational Medicine of Russia and Respiratory Virus and Measles Laboratory, Oswaldo Cruz Institute of Brazil. The study will provide a common platform to share and analyse the data of four different countries and understand the spread routes and transmission dynamics of virus.

23-Jul-2021: BRICS MSME RoundTable Emphasis Upon Formulation of a Future Roadmap to Accelerate Growth of MSME Sector

Secretary, MSME Shri B.B. Swain has emphasized upon formulation of a future roadmap to accelerate growth of MSME sector post Covid-19 and a guide towards creating business environment for the benefit of MSMEs. Addressing the BRICS Nation’s vision of Post-Covid Roadmap for ‘the growth accelerating sector’, he called for evaluating the extent of damage of the pandemic on MSMEs and covid response policies/programs of govt. for safeguarding MSMEs.

Ministry of MSME has hosted BRICS MSME Roundtable which focused on BRICS Nation’s vision of Post-Covid Roadmap for ‘the growth accelerating sector’. The roundtable conference witnessed participation from the Government, private sector of all BRICS nations and there was also 200+ attendees from industry associations, MSME tool rooms, DIs etc.

Deputy Managing Director- Export-Import Bank of India, and President- India SME Forum  referred to Integration of MSMEs in Global and regional value chains; role of digitalization for MSMEs in post covid-19 scenario and govt. measures for their digital transformation;  leveraging BRICS forum for accelerated development of MSMEs.

This was followed by a series of presentations from the Government and private sector of BRICS Nations, scheduled in separate sessions, made by the concerned senior officials from the Government and private sector.

The BRICS partners appreciated the activities planned by India, being timely and relevant in the current context and expressed their support for working together on the various initiatives proposed by India.

20-Jun-2021: India set to organise two day summit on Green Hydrogen Initiatives involving BRICS nations

India is all set to host a two day summit on Green Hydrogen initiatives on 22nd June, 2021 involving the BRICS nations. The prestigious event offers a platform to share their respective Green Hydrogen initiatives and views on how to take it to the next level in their own countries. The online event will be held via a video conference and will conclude on 23rd June.

The event will be anchored by India’s largest power producer and one of the global energy majors,  NTPC Ltd , a Maharatna CPSU under Ministry of Power. The virtual summit will bring the best brains, policy makers and major stakeholders from the BRICS nations deliberating and discussing at length the future of Hydrogen in the energy mix.

On Day 1, the representatives from each country would be sharing respective initiatives undertaken by their countries on utilization of hydrogen and their future plans. The speakers will also share the relevance of different technologies developed on hydrogen and its priorities for their country.

Day 2 will witness panel discussions on ideas integrating hydrogen in overall energy policy framework by different countries. The discussions to entail financing options for the emerging green hydrogen technologies and the institutional support needed to create the requisite ecosystem for the technology to flourish.

As the world rapidly moves to decarbonise the entire energy system, hydrogen is poised to play a vital  role and build on the rapid scale-up of renewable resources across the world. Hydrogen when produced by electrolysis using renewable energy is known as Green Hydrogen which has no carbon  footprint. This gives Hydrogen the edge over other fuels to unlock various avenues of green usage. However, challenges lie in terms  of technology, efficiency, financial viability and scaling up which the summit will aim to address.

Green hydrogen has innumerable applications. Green Chemicals like ammonia and methanol  can directly be utilized in existing applications like fertilizers, mobility, power, chemicals, shipping etc. Green Hydrogen blending up to 10% may be adopted in CGD networks to gain widespread acceptance.  Further scaling up with greening of hard to abate sectors (like steel and cement) through hydrogen is  to be explored. Many countries have brought out their strategies and defined targets and roadmaps  based on their resources and strengths.

4-Jun-2021: Webinar on Harmonization of Regulation of Standardization of Traditional Medicinal Products of BRICS Countries

Ministry of AYUSH organized a Webinar on Harmonization of Regulation of Standardization of Traditional Medicinal Products of BRICS Countries under India’s BRICS Chairmanship of 2021recently. The event was attended by the eminent experts and stakeholders from the field of Traditional Medicine from India, China, South Africa, Russia and Brazil. Ministry of AYUSH had proposed to organise the said webinar during the “First meeting of BRICS Sherpas” held on 24-26 February 2021 as a part of India’s Chairmanship of BRICS 2021 which was agreed by the Member States. Ministry of AYUSH had also hosted the virtual meeting of the “BRICS Experts in Traditional Medicines” 25th March 2021.

Dr. Manoj Nesari, Adviser (AYUSH), Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India chaired the event and delivered opening remarks. While briefing about the Webinar, Dr. Nesari emphasized on India’s BRICS 2021 priorities and deliverables in the field of Traditional Medicine with the aim of enhancing and strengthening BRICS collaboration.  The proposal from India included MoU on BRICS Cooperation in Traditional Medicines and constitution of BRICS Forum on Traditional Medicine (BFTM). He underlined the need for harmonisation of regulation of standardization of traditional medicinal products amongst BRICS countries. Initiatives taken by India for the mitigation of COVID19 through AYUSH system of medicine were also highlighted upon.

During the first session of the Webinar, Country presentations were made by the representative of BRICS countries on Drug regulations; Service Standards & Regulations; Pharmacopeia of Traditional Medicine in their respective countries. “AYUSH regulations and Pharmacopoeial standards”; “Pharmacopoeia of Indian Traditional systems of Medicine - An overview and “Standardization and Regulation of AYUSH Healthcare Services” were made by Indian side. During the second session of the Webinar, discussion was held among the industry stakeholders from the field of Traditional Medicine from BRICS Countries. Comprehensive presentations were made by the representatives of  Traditional Medicine industry from India and China.

The experts and stakeholders of Traditional Medicine from the BRICS countries expressed their appreciation and extended cooperation and support for the India’s efforts and initiatives taken for the promotion of Traditional Medicine globally including for BRICS countries.

27-May-2021: BRICS meeting deliberated on emerging issues in Biotechnology and Biomedicine.

Experts deliberated on emerging issues in the various fields of Biotechnology and Biomedicine at the fourth BRICS Working Group meeting on the subject area.

More than 60 participants, including researchers, academicians, and government officials participated from all five BRICS countries Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, participated in the online meeting organized from May 25 to May 26 2021.

The members of the working group on Biotechnology and Biomedicine suggested future directions of research collaboration among BRICs countries in the areas such as Antimicrobial Resistance, Artificial Intelligence and Digital Health Medicine, Non-Communicable Diseases, Neurological Disorders, Agro-biotechnology, Food and Nutrition, Cancer, long Post-Covid Challenges and Complications including Molecular Pathogenesis of COVID-19 virus.

The meeting was sponsored by, Department of International Cooperation, Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST), China and was organized by the China National Center for Biotechnology Development. From Indian side, key scientific institutions that participated include Department of Science and Technology (DST), Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, All India Institute of Medical Sciences New Delhi, Indian Institute of Technology, Jodhpur, India, Banaras Hindu University, Delhi University.

India proposed BRICS Consortium to address Post Covid challenges, tackling Non-Communicable Diseases as Flagship Programme whereas Russia proposed Sustainable Agro-biotechnology for Healthy Food & Nutrition, advanced Virtual Reality assisted technology for neurorehabilitation. China proposed flagship on Cancer research as Flagship Programme.

The BRICS call secretariat representative indicated that the next call may likely be announced in the second half of 2021 and would include the Working Group recommendations.

The Indian side was led by Dr Sanjeev Kumar Varshney, Advisor & Head, International Cooperation Division, DST, who reiterated Indian commitment for co-investment of resources, including funding for supporting BRICS multilateral projects. Each BRICS country shared their experiences in fighting against Covid-19 and their pandemic preparedness. They presented their present work, their interests of joint funding areas, including opportunities for collaboration with other BRICS countries, their strengths, milestones and achievements in the field of Biotechnology and Biomedicine, highlighting research activities.

Key institutions from BRICS countries that participated in the meeting included The Tianjin Medical University Cancer Institute and Hospital, Tianjin, China, Peking University, China, International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, China, Department of Science and Innovation, South Africa, Skolovo Institute of Science and Technology (Skoltech), Russia, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Ministry of Health, Brazil, South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC), South Africa.

This meeting is part of BRICS Science, Technology and Innovation Calendar of Activities 2020-21 adopted by all BRICS countries. India has assumed the BRICS Presidency from January 2021; about 100 events, including Ministerial level meetings, Senior Official meetings, and sectorial meetings/ conference, will be organized as part of BRICS 2021 Calendar.

21-May-2021: BRICS countries underline importance of enhancing collaboration among astronomers

Delegates from BRICS nations highlighted the importance of enhancing collaboration among astronomers from the countries at the seventh meeting of the BRICS Astronomy Working Group Meeting.

Under the Science, Technology, and Innovation track of the BRICS 2021 calendar, India hosted the seventh meeting of BRICS Astronomy Working Group (BAWG) meeting of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, as well as astronomers from these countries in online mode from 19 to 20th May 2021.

From the Indian side, the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA), Pune, and Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India coordinated the meeting. It witnessed participation of all five BRICS countries with more than 50 participants, including researchers, academicians, and government officials.

The delegates deliberated on strategic and operational matters and recommended the networking of existing Telescopes in BRICS countries and create regional Data Network. They agreed to develop flagship project in this area. The members of the working group also indicated future directions of research in this area such as building network of intelligent telescope and data network, study of transient astronomical phenomena in universe, big data, artificial intelligence, machine learning application to process the voluminous data generated now a days due to enhance multi-wavelength telescope observatory.

The BAWG which provides a platform for BRICS member countries to collaborate in the field of astronomy recommended that the focal points in each country should present the scientific results of the work being carried out in each country.  This will help seek funding support to realize the flagship project whenever funding opportunity announced by BRICS funding agencies. BAWG noted the importance of enhancing collaboration among astronomers from the BRICS countries.

Shri S. K. Varshney, Scientist G & Head international Cooperation presented India (DST) perspectives and lead scientific researchers from each BRICS country presented their country report highlighting research activities and research infrastructure they have created.

The key scientific institutions which participated from BRICS countries included Tata Institute of Fundamental Research Mumbai, Indian Institute of Astrophysics, Bangalore, National Center for Radio Astrophysics Pune, Delhi University from India; National Laboratory on Astrophysics;  Brazilian Center for Research in Physics, National Institute for Space Research from Brazil; the Institute of astronomy of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Russia; National Astronomical Observatories, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China; the African Astronomical Society, South Africa.

India has assumed the BRICS Presidency from January 2021, about 100 events, including Ministerial level meetings, Senior Official meetings, and sectorial meetings/conferences, will be organized as part of BRICS 2021 Calendar.

13-May-2021: Ist BRICS Employment Working Group (EWG) Meeting amongst BRICS Countries

Shri Apurva Chandra, Secretary, Labour and Employment chaired the 1st BRICS Employment Working Group (EWG) Meeting held on 11-12 May 2021 in Sushma Swaraj Bhawan, New Delhi in virtual format. India has assumed BRICS Presidency this year. The prime agenda for the discussions were Promoting Social Security Agreements amongst BRICS Nations, Formalization of labour markets, Participation of women in labour force and Gig and platform workers – Role in labour market.

Apart from representatives of member nations i.e. Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, the representatives of International Labour Organization (ILO) and International Social Security Agency (ISSA) also made valuable interventions and suggestions on the agenda issues. The Indian delegations were represented by Mrs. Anuradha Prasad, Special Secretary, Shri R.K Gupta, Joint Secretary, Shri Ajay Tewari, JS & DGLW, Ms. Kalpana Rajsinghot, Joint Secretary and Shri Rupesh Kumar Thakur, Director from Ministry of Labour and Employment.

On the issue of Social Security Agreement (SSA), the Member Nations resolved to enter into dialogue and discussion with each other and take it forward towards signing of the agreements, while the ISSA and ILO on their part, expressed willingness to provide technical support in facilitating conclusion of such agreements. Member Nations also converged on devising multilateral framework for the same on a later stage. Social Security Agreement would help the international workers to port their benefit to their home countries thereby preventing loss of their hard earned money. Further they will be exempted from contributing both in home as well as host countries.

On the issue of formalization of labour market, Member Nations discussed various initiatives taken by them towards formalization of jobs and how Covid-19 has enhanced informalization risk.

On participation of women in the labour force, the member countries resolved to promote participation of women in remunerative, productive and decent work and to extend social security cover to the women workers engaged in informal sector. Impact of Covid-19 on participation of women in labour force was also discussed.

On the issue of Gig and Platform workers and their role in labour market, the member nations discussed how the proliferation of Digital Labour Platforms is transforming the labour processes in the world of work. Challenges faced by them and various measures being taken by member nations including extension of social protection system were also discussed.

The discussion took place in an extremely candid atmosphere and in seamless manner, where the Member Nations and International Organizations shared not only their initiatives and best practices, but also their concerns and challenges.

25-Mar-2021: Meeting of BRICS Experts in Traditional Medicine

The Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India hosted a virtual meeting of the BRICS Experts in Traditional Medicines under India’s Chairmanship of BRICS 2021 on 25 March 2021. The meeting was attended by Traditional Medicines Experts from Brazil, Russia, China and South Africa.

Addressing the experts, Mr. P.K. Pathak, Additional Secretary, Ministry of AYUSH, who chaired the meeting, provided an overview of the Traditional Medicine system in India and of the various initiatives of the Ministry of AYUSH including for the mitigation of COVID-19. Eminent experts from Ministry of AYUSH, All India institute of Ayurveda, Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS) and the Central Council for Research in Homeopathy (CCRH) outlined the role and importance of Traditional Medicine in achieving SDG 3 (Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages) by means of integrating it in the public healthcare system as part of the BRICS Agenda for health under the Economic and Financial pillar of intra-BRICS Cooperation.

India’s BRICS 2021 priorities and deliverables in the field of Traditional Medicine with the aim of enhancing and strengthening BRICS collaboration including an MoU on BRICS Cooperation in Traditional Medicines and a BRICS Forum on Traditional Medicine (BFTM) were presented and discussed during the meeting. The proposals made by India aim at supporting the BRICS Members in strengthening their national capacities in the area of traditional medicine and implementing a Traditional Medicine Action Plan, with particular emphasis on the safe and effective use of traditional medicine and its appropriate integration into national health care systems. The BRICS MoU and the BRICS Forum on Traditional Medicine (BFTM) would help foster BRICS cooperation on Traditional Medicine for holistic health care through promotion of BRICS collaboration in policies, approaches, strategies, institutional and regulatory framework of Traditional Medicine and sharing of knowledge among other things.

The BRICS experts expressed their appreciation and extended their cooperation and support for the substantive agenda and work related to Traditional Medicine that are planned by India in 2021, as the Chair of BRICS.

12-Mar-2021: 1st Meeting of the BRICS Contact Group on Economic and Trade Issues held

The BRICS Contact Group on Economic and Trade Issues (CGETI) leads held their first meeting under India’s Chairship from 9-11 March 2021. The theme of BRICS this year is -"BRICS@15: Intra BRICS Cooperation for Continuity, Consolidation, and Consensus”.

India, under its Chairship in 2021, presented the calendar of events for BRICS CGETI 2021, which included the priority areas for deliverables, schedule and scope of the MSME roundtable conference workshop on Services Statistics, and the BRICS Trade Fair. This was followed by a series of presentations, scheduled in separate sessions, made by the concerned Departments of the Government of India on the proposed deliverables during India’s Chairship under the BRICS CGETI track.

The deliverables proposed are on (i) Action plan based on the document “Strategy for BRICS Economic Partnership 2025” adopted during Russian Presidency in 2020 (ii) BRICS Cooperation on Multilateral Trading system including cooperation for the TRIPS Waiver proposal at WTO; (iii) Framework for Consumer Protection in E-Commerce; (iv) Non-Tariff Measures (NTM) Resolution Mechanism; (v) Sanitary and Phyto-Sanitary (SPS) Working Mechanism; (vi) Co-operation framework for protection of Genetic Resources and Traditional Knowledge; (vii) BRICS Framework on Co-operation in Professional Services. Each of these sessions was followed by detailed feedback sessions.

The BRICS partners appreciated the activities planned by India, being timely and relevant in the current context and expressed their support for working together on the various initiatives proposed by India. From now on till September, 2021, inter sessional deliberations will be carried out to reach a consensus amongst the BRICS countries. The BRICS officers tasked with CGETI would continue the work for the 27th official level CGETI meeting, scheduled to be held in June 2021.

24-Feb-2021: India hosts First Meeting of BRICS Finance and Central Bank Deputies

India hosted a Meeting of BRICS Finance and Central Bank Deputies virtually here today and was co-Chaired by Shri. Tarun Bajaj, Secretary Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, and Dr. Michael Patra, Deputy Governor, Reserve Bank of India. Other participants included BRICS Finance and Central Bank Deputies of Brazil, Russia, China and South Africa.

India assumed the BRICS Chairmanship in 2021, at a time when BRICS is celebrating its 15th anniversary. Under the theme BRICS@15: Intra-BRICS Cooperation, India’s approach is focused on strengthening collaboration through Continuity, Consolidation and Consensus.

This was the first meeting on the BRICS Financial Cooperation under India Chairmanship in 2021. During the meeting, India shared priorities under financial cooperation agenda   and issues for discussion during 2021 such as Global Economic Outlook and Response to COVID-19, Social Infrastructure Financing and Use of Digital Technologies, New Development Bank (NDB) Activities, Fintech for SME and Financial Inclusion, BRICS Contingent Reserve Arrangement (CRA), among others.

24-Feb-2021: 12th Technical Group Meeting of National Statistical Offices(NSOs) of BRICS Countries for Preparation of Joint Statistical Publication 2021

The 12th Technical Group Meeting of National Statistical Offices of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) Countries has been held today (24th February 2021) at New Delhi in virtual mode under the aegis of Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), Government of India.

With a view to providing a common platform for focused interaction, the association of BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China) Countries was mooted in 64th General Assembly of United Nations in 2009. The association came to be known as BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) in 2010 with the joining of South Africa. Since then, the association of BRICS Countries has been deliberating the issue of mutual interest under the Chairmanship of one of the BRICS Countries by rotation. India, Chair in 2021, is scheduled to host various deliberations in 2021.

The 12th Technical Group Meeting has been chaired by Director General (Statistics), MoSPI and attended by National Statistical Offices of BRICS countries. The draft Joint Statistical Publication (JSP) and JSP (Snapshot) have been discussed in the meeting. The Joint Statistical Publication (JSP) and JSP (Snapshot) will be released in “Meeting of Heads of NSOs” to be held in the month of August, 2021. The discussions centered around the data to be included in the various domains of Joint Statistical Publication such as Economy, Employment, Industry, Energy, Environment, Agriculture, Finance, Tourism, etc.

The meeting also discussed the draft proposals by ROSSTAT, Russia on cooperation between BRICS Countries, vision document on cooperation and statistical system development of BRICS NSOs and proposal regarding New Development Bank for project funding.

16-Aug-2020: 4th Meeting of the BRICS Anti-Drug Working Group held

The 4th Session of the BRICS Anti-Drug Working Group comprising of Brazil, Russia, China, South Africa and India was held this week. The Indian delegation was led by Shri Rakesh Asthana, Director General, Narcotics Control Bureau and comprised of Smt. B. Radhika, Deputy Director General (Ops), NCB, Ms. Vrindaba Gohil, First Secretary (Trade), Embassy of India, Moscow, Dr. Vaibhav Tandale, Under Secretary (Multilateral Economic Relations), MEA and Shri KPS Malhotra, Deputy Director (Ops), NCB. This year’s session, held over video conference on August 12, 2020, was chaired by Russia.

Fruitful exchange of opinions concerning the drug situation in the BRICS states, the international and regional trends of illegal trafficking in narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and their precursors, as well as the impact of various internal and external factors on the situation took place during the summit. The common points emerged during the discussions include need for real time information sharing among the member states and need to curb increased drug trafficking through maritime routes. Misuse of darknet and other advanced technologies for drug trafficking was one of the key focal areas of the meeting.

The member nations adopted a communiqué that covered all the points discussed in the meeting.

BRICS is an informal group of states comprising the Federative Republic of Brazil, the Russian Federation, the Republic of India, the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of South Africa. The growing economic might of BRICS countries, their significance as one of the main driving forces of global economic development, their substantial population and abundant natural resources form the foundation of their influence on the international scene and are the driving forces behind the grouping. Among other areas of collaboration, matters pertaining to drug trafficking is an important area of cooperation among the BRICS member states.

24-Oct-2018: Cabinet approves MoU amongst BRICS nations regarding cooperation in the social and labour sphere

The Union Cabinet has given its ex-post facto approval for the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) among Brazil, Russian Federation, India, China, South Africa, regarding Cooperation in the Social and Labour Sphere. The MoU was signed on 3rd August, 2018 during BRICS Labour and Employment Ministers (LEM) Meeting.

Details: In the MoU, the parties including India have agreed to cooperate and hold mutual events in the prominent areas viz. labour legislation and enforcement, protection of workers' rights with focus on vulnerable groups, Employment and labour market policies, Professional education, skills and training and Social protection. The member countries may utilize the BRICS Network of Labour Research Institutes and BRICS Social Security Cooperation Framework for cooperation on Social Security and other labour issues. The Memorandum is not an International Treaty and does not create rights and obligations for the parties governed by international law.

Major Impact: The MoU provides a mechanism for cooperation, collaboration and maximum synergy amongst BRICS member countries with the common objective of inclusive growth and shared prosperity in the new industrial revolution. This would facilitate member countries to share knowledge and also implement joint programmes on .matter of Labour and Employment, Social Security and Social dialogue. This would also ensure networking of international Training Centre of International Labour Organisation (ILO) with the BRICS Network of Labour Institutes which includes V.V. Giri National Labour Institute of India. This network would specifically focus on the theme of youth employment and research on new forms of employment. This network will also explore new learning technologies, including virtual network to deepen cooperation, exchange of information and capacity building. The BRICS Social Security cooperation framework will deepen social security cooperation among BRICS nations and would facilitate cooperation for improvement of social security systems and social security agreements among member countries.

Background: The 2ndmeeting of BRICS Employment Working Group was held on 30th July to 1st August 2018 and BRICS Labour and Employment Ministerial meeting took place from 2nd August, 2018 to 3rd August, 2018 under the South African Presidency in Durban, South Africa. The Draft MoU between BRICS countries regarding cooperation in the social and labour sphere was discussed, deliberated and finalized in the BRICS EWG meeting held between 30th July and 1st August 2018 and was signed by respective labour Ministers of BRICS member countries on 3rd August 2018. The provisions of the MoU clearly indicate its objectives as cooperation in the nature of successful sharing of policy measures; exchange programmes; consultations; expert meetings and conference etc. in the social and labour sphere.

18-Jul-2018: Cabinet approves signing of Memorandum of Understanding amongst BRICS Nations on the Regional Aviation Partnership

The Union Cabinet has approved the signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) amongst BRICS Nations on the Regional Aviation Partnership Cooperation viz. Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

Salient features: The objective is that BRICS countries would benefit from the establishing of an institutional framework to cooperate in the field of civil aviation. Among the areas of cooperation, following areas have been identified:

• Public Policies and best practices in regional services;
• Regional Airports;
• Airport infrastructure management and air navigation services;
• Technical cooperation between regulatory agencies;
• Innovation;
• Environment Sustainability; including deliberation of global initiatives;
• Qualification and Training;
• Other fields as mutually determined

Impact: The MoU signifies an important landmark in the civil aviation relations between India and other BRICS Member States and has the potential to spur greater trade, investment, tourism and cultural exchanges amongst the BRICS Nations.

 19-Jul-2017: Cabinet approves MOC in respect of tax matters between India and BRICS countries - Brazil, Russia, China and South Africa

The Union Cabinet has given the approval for the signing of Memorandum of Cooperation (MOC) in respect of tax matters between India and the Revenue administrations of BRICS countries namely, Brazil, Russian Federation, China and South Africa

The MoC aims to further promote cooperation amongst the BRICS Revenue administrations in international forum on common areas of interest in tax matters and in the area of capacity building and knowledge sharing. It envisages regular interaction amongst the heads of Revenue administration of BRICS countries to continue discussion on common areas of interest and strive towards convergence of views and meeting of the Experts on tax matters to discuss the contemporary issues in areas of international tax. In addition, the MoC accords confidentiality and protection to information exchanged under this MoC.

Impact: The MoC will stimulate effective cooperation in tax matters. The collective stand of BRICS countries can prove to be beneficial not only to these countries but also to other developing countries in the long run in tax matters being steered by the G20.

Background: The Heads of Revenue of the BRICS countries have been meeting regularly to discuss the potential areas of cooperation in tax matters and to exchange opinions and views based on the existing commitment to openness, solidarity, equality, mutual understanding, inclusiveness and mutually beneficial cooperation, as stated in the Goa Declaration issued on October 16, 2016. The BRICS countries have identified four areas of mutual interest on which understanding and cooperation can be further strengthened. The heads of Revenue of BRICS countries in their meeting held on the sidelines of FTA plenary at Beijing, China in May, 2016 decided to sign a MoC outlining these areas of cooperation.