NITI's Export Preparedness Index 2022

GS Paper - 3 (Economy)

Tamil Nadu has pipped Maharashtra and Gujarat to emerge as the top state in the Niti Aayog's Export Preparedness Index 2022. The index is aimed at assessing the readiness of the states in terms of their export potential and performance. Gujarat had topped the chart in the last two rankings.

More about the Index

• Tamil Nadu with an overall score of 80.89 topped the third edition of rankings. Maharashtra with a score of 78.20 was second while Karnataka (76.36) was third.
• Gujarat with a score of 73.22 was fourth, followed by Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, West Bengal and Kerala in that order in the ranking of coastal states, according to the government think tank's report released on 17 July 2023.
• Among hilly/Himalayan states, Uttarakhand (59.13) has ranked at the top position. It is followed by Himachal Pradesh, Manipur, Tripura, Sikkim, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram in that order.
• Haryana (63.65) topped the chart among the landlocked regions. It was followed by Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
• In the category of union territories/small states, Goa (51.58) was ranked first. Jammu and Kashmir, Delhi, Andaman and Nicobar and Ladakh were ranked second, third, fourth and fifth, respectively.

Flashback

• The index can be used by the regions to benchmark their performance against their peers and analyse potential challenges to develop better policy mechanisms to foster export-led growth at the sub-national level.
• The ranking is based on four main pillars: policy, business ecosystem, export ecosystem and export performance.
• The index is also aimed at promoting competition among all states (coastal, landlocked, Himalayan and UTs) to bring about favourable policies, ease the regulatory framework, create necessary infrastructure and assist in identifying strategic recommendations for improving export competitiveness.

TCRM Matrix framework to drive innovation

GS Paper - 3 (Economy)

The NITI Aayog released the Techno-Commercial Readiness and Market Maturity Matrix (TCRM Matrix) framework, an assessment tool that will allow stakeholders to jointly assess projects at the technology readiness level (TRL), commercialization readiness level (CRL), and market readiness level (MRL) scales.

More about the Framework

• The framework is expected to help the government prioritize funding, setting regulations, mitigate risks and enhance public-private partnership.
• Further, it is expected that the TCRM Matrix will help investors evaluate the commercialization and market readiness of their portfolio companies while industry and start-ups can use the tool for internal project planning and decision making on technology transfer or acquisition.
• Whereas there are a large number of frameworks that focus on one aspect for assessment, the insights they offer are limited in their scope. Hence, there is a need to encourage simultaneous assessment of technological, commercial, and market readiness, the Aayog said.
• The proposed TCRM Matrix framework seeks to fill these gaps through a joint assessment and can be useful in promoting innovation, reducing risk, and achieving economic and social benefits.
• The TCRM Matrix framework is set to play a pivotal role in catalyzing India's innovation ecosystem and creating a conducive environment for transformative ideas.

IEEE finally brings Li-Fi

GS Paper - 3 (ICT)

Dr. Harald Haas (Professor of Mobile Communications at the University of Edinburgh) touted as the father of Li-Fi (Light Fidelity) was the first to coin this term in 2011. It is capable of delivering almost 100X times faster internet speed compared to the current crop of Wi-Fi routers. After two decades, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) has formally announced the 'IEEE 802.11bb’ Light Communication Global standard.

About Li-Fi

• Li-Fi works on optical wireless communications (OWC) technology. Unlike Wi-Fi routers, which use Radio Frequencies to transmit data, Li-Fi devices (with light-emitting diodes: LEDs) will deliver data through light or infrared light.
• Li-Fi devices will be able to deliver internet speed close to 224 Gb per second. With such speed, users can download close to 20 high-resolution movies in a second.
• However, the hardware capable of delivering such speed is yet to be developed. For now, with the IEEE 802.11bb standard specification, the speed is limited to 9.6Gbps.
• For now, developers are working to optimise mixed use of Wi-Fi and Li-Fi at homes and offices.
• It should be noted that Li-Fi has one disadvantage, it can't connect to devices in a different room separated by walls. Both the device and LED Li-Fi router has to be in the line of sight for internet support
• It not only offers lightning-fast internet speed and also is said to be more reliable and safer compared to Wi-Fi and 5G cellular connectivity, as it is almost impossible to tap light from a far distance.
• Besides connectivity with phones and computers, Li-Fi comes in handy in connecting with Internet-of-Things(IoT)-based smart home appliances for instant connection.
• With the advancement in technology in the future, there is a possibility of companies coming up with multi-functional bulbs that support Li-Fi in every room of the office or the house for super-fast connectivity.