Government Policy

The government is considering restructuring the priority sector lending (PSL) scheme to allow deposits made by banks in the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) and such other funds to qualify as exposure under PSL. What are the norms for PSL? Reserve Bank of India (RBI) regulations require banks to allocate 40% …

Aadhaar-enabled Payment Services (AePS) is a bank-led model which allows online financial transactions at Point-of-Sale (PoS) and Micro ATMs through the business correspondent of any bank using Aadhaar authentication. There is no need for OTPs, bank account details, and other financial details for AePS. It allows fund transfers using only the bank name, Aadhaar number, and fingerprint captured during Aadhaar enrolment. Are …

Secretary, the Ministry of MSME presided over BizAmp, an outreach programme organized by the Ministry of MSME. It was organized in association with NSIC Venture Capital Fund Limited (NVCFL) under its Self Reliant India (SRI) Fund. Aim: The programme, aimed at empowering MSMEs from the North Eastern States and amplifying their businesses utilizing benefits under SRI Fund. BizAmp is the first …

The Government has approved Vibrant Villages Programme (VVP) recently. It is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme. Comprehensive development of villages of blocks on the northern border to improve the quality of life of people living in identified border villages. Development of essential infrastructure and creation of livelihood opportunities Time period: It is approved for the Financial Years 2022-23 to …

This week, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released the synthesis report of its Sixth Assessment Report (AR6) cycle, drawing together key findings from its six most recent reports. The report gains added legitimacy as its summary for policymakers is approved line-by-line by governments of the world. The United …

The Union Finance Ministry’s reiteration in the Rajya Sabha recently, of the legal position, i.e., the absence of any provision to allow the accumulated corpus of members of the National Pension System (NPS) to be “refunded and deposited back” to States, should have a deterrent effect on those States contemplating …

Prime Minister of India launched the ‘Call Before u Dig’ (CBuD) app recently. To facilitate coordination between excavation agencies and underground utility owners to prevent damage to utilities due to digging. To prevent damage to underlying assets like optical fiber cables that occurs because of uncoordinated digging and excavation. Implementing Authority: It is an initiative of the Department of Telecommunications, Ministry …

As the deadline for completing the Smart Cities Mission approaches, the government has asked 20 of the worst performing cities — ones that have completed the fewest projects under the mission — to buck up. Smart Cities Mission The Smart Cities Mission is an initiative of the Union Housing and Urban …

Around 60% of India’s voters now have their Aadhaar linked to their name on the electoral rolls. Activists have raised concerns on disenfranchisement, coercion and privacy as a result of the exercise, which has achieved coverage of over 90% in States such as Tripura, which went to the polls recently, …

India scored above the regional average in the World Bank’s Women, Business and the Law 2023 report. For India, report used data on laws and regulations in Mumbai, India’s main business city. India received a perfect score for laws related to freedom of movement, women’s work decisions, and marriage constraints. Women, Business and the …

Samarth is a demand driven and placement-oriented umbrella skilling programme of Ministry of Textiles. The implementation period of the scheme is up to March 2024. The scheme was formulated under the broad skilling policy framework adopted by M/o Skill Development & Entrepreneurship. Samarth aims to incentivize and supplement the efforts …

To mark the occasion of International Women’s Day, Ministry of Jal Shakti is celebrating women’s leadership by felicitating women who have contributed extraordinarily under various flagship programs of the Ministry through the Swachh Sujal Shakti Samman 2023. The President of India, Smt. Droupadi Murmu, will be conferring a total of …

For nearly a year now, many in Sri Lanka have been fervently chanting three letters — IMF (International Monetary Fund). As the country’s familiar balance of payments problem escalated last year, citizens experienced crippling shortages and painfully long power cuts. They took to the streets in a staggering mass protest …

On February 22, the National Stock Exchange of India received the final approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to set up a Social Stock Exchange (SSE). What is a Social Stock Exchange? The SSE would function as a separate segment within the existing stock exchange and …

On February 23, on the eve of the first anniversary of his country’s “special military operation” in Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that Moscow was unilaterally suspending the last remaining nuclear arms control treaty with the U.S., stating that the West was trying to destroy Russia. Making the announcement …

Over 60% of India’s 94.5 crore voters have linked their Aadhaar to their voter IDs, the Election Commission (EC) disclosed in a Right to Information response obtained by The Hindu. The total number of voters who have linked their Aadhaar is 56,90,83,090. Tripura, which went to the polls last week, had …

A year after Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine, there are signs of escalation everywhere. The West has recently announced the supply of more advanced weapons to Ukraine, deepening its involvement in the conflict. In response, Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has already reinforced Russian positions along the 1,000-km long …

From the beginning, social media platforms have trumpeted that they have ‘democratised’ self-expression. In important ways, this is true. Social media platforms have facilitated the circumvention of elite and/or authoritarian gatekeeping and have brought new voices into the public sphere. This has had a decidedly mixed effect on the public …

⦁ The Vibrant Villages Programme focuses on developing the rural areas in the northern border states and union territories ⦁ More than 663 villages will be developed under the programme. ⦁ It is to be implemented for two years, that is, between 2022-23 and 2025-26. ⦁ The Central Government allocated …

There have been many reports of lay-offs in the last few months, especially in emerging sectors. Lay-offs have been taking place not only in India, but in major economies like the U.S. too. Large, medium and small enterprises as well as start-ups have let go of dozens or even thousands …