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Recently, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) allowed Microfinance Institutions(MFI) the freedom to set interest rates they charge borrowers, with a caveat that the rates should not be usurious. The guidelines will take effect 1st April 02022. Earlier in 2021, the RBI proposed to lift the interest rate cap on MFI. Highlights of the Guidelines The RBI …

Recently, the Ministry of Tourism has formulated a National Strategy and Roadmap for Medical and Wellness Tourism. The policy envisages promoting India as a Medical Value Travel (MVT) and Wellness destination. Medical & Wellness tourism may be defined as ‘activities related to travel and hosting a foreign tourist who stays at least one night at the destination …

Recently, a fossil unearthed in central Montana (US) of a species named Syllipsimopodibideni represents the oldest-known relative of today’s octopuses and boasts 10 arms, with two twice as long as the other eight. It has been named after the US president, Joe Biden. Characteristics of the Species Syllipsimopodi, about 12 cm long, had a torpedo-shaped body and …

The vast scope and potential of blockchain technology has attracted the gaming industry over the past few years. In India too, gaming industries are exploring this option. Blockchain is a decentralised database that stores information. It relies on technology that allows for the storage of identical copies of this information on multiple computers in …

Recently, a leftover piece of a spacecraft flying (of Chang’e 5-T1 – a lunar mission of China) through space reportedly hit the surface of the moon creating a new crater that may be around 65 feet wide. This is the first recorded unintentional case of space junk hitting the moon. The speed, trajectory, and time …

A study published recently says that a significant part of the Amazon rainforest has been heading towards a tipping point since the early 2000s. It may be losing its ability to bounce back from extreme events such as drought or fire, threatening to become a dry savanna-like ecosystem. In this study, researchers analyzed 30 years of …

Recently, the Union Cabinet has approved the setting up National Land Monetization Corporation (NLMC) as a wholly owned Government of India company. The Finance Minister had announced plans to set up a special purpose vehicle for this purpose in the Union Budget 2021-22. In August, 2021, the government of India launched the National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP). …

Recently, the Minister of Finance presented the Union Budget2022-23. This section deals with proposals related to ‘PM GatiShakti’. PM GatiShakti National Master Plan for Multi-Modal Connectivity, launched in October 2021, is an initiative aimed at coordinated planning and execution of infrastructure projects. The objective is to bring down logistics costs. GatiShakti is a digital …

The Covid-19 pandemic has greatly affected the education sector. But even before the pandemic, the lack of an adequate number of universities led to limited options for aspiring students. This created a need to reform the way in which we impart higher education. The surge of digital technologies provided a whole new …

Recently, in its Budget 2022-23, the Government of India announced that its central bank will issue a digital currency as early as 2022-23. It is one crucial decision that most major economies are refusing to make in a hurry. The arguments in favor of digital rupee claim that an electronic representation of India’s legal …

Recently, the Finance Minister, in her Budget 2022 announced a 30% tax on income from virtual digital assets. Additionally, she also proposed a Tax Deduction at Source (TDS) on payment made in relation to the transfer of virtual digital assets at 1% above a monetary threshold. A person (deductor) who is liable to make payment of specified …

Recently, Chandra’s Atmospheric Composition Explorer-2 (CHACE-2), a payload onboard Chandrayaan-2, has made the first-of-its-kind discovery on the distribution of one of the noble gases, Argon-40. India launched Chandrayaan-2, its second lunar exploration mission after Chandrayaan-1, from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota in July 2019. Chandrayaan-2 Mission Chandrayaan-2 is an integrated 3-in-1 spacecraft consisting of an Orbiter of the Moon, …

Recently, the Finance Minister launched the E-bill Processing system on the occasion of 46th Civil Accounts Day (1st March). It was announced in the Union Budget 2022 to use the technology for facilitating the financial inclusion drive in India. The “Civil Accounts Day” is observed every year to mark the anniversary of the inception of the Indian Civil Accounts …

The National Supercomputing Mission (NSM) has deployed PARAM Ganga-a High-Performance Computational (HPC) facility at IIT Roorkee, with a supercomputing capacity of 1.66 Petaflops. Earlier, the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bengaluru installed the supercomputer ‘ParamPravega’. It has been established by the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) under the approach of NSM. The basic idea behind building a …

Amid the deepening crisis in Ukraine, the Indian Air Force (IAF) has decided to postpone its firepower demonstration, Exercise Vayu Shakti. The exercise was scheduled in the Pokhran ranges in Rajasthan. The last edition of Vayu Shakti was held in February 2019. What is Ex Vayu Shakti? It is a triennial exercise once every three year. It …

The Ninth Edition of India – Sri Lanka Bilateral Maritime Exercise SLINEX (Sri Lanka–India Naval Exercise) is being conducted at Visakhapatnam. The 8th edition of SLINEX was conducted off Trincomalee, Sri Lanka in October 2020. The exercise is being conducted in two phases, the Harbour Phase at Visakhapatnam followed by the Sea Phase in the Bay of Bengal The Harbour …

A team of scientists from the Botanical Survey of India (BSI) has discovered a new gin berry species named Glycosmis albicarpa from the Kanyakumari Wildlife Sanctuary in Tamil Nadu. BSI, established in 1890, is the apex research organisation under the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEFCC) for carrying out taxonomic and floristic studies on wild plant resources of the country. …

Recently, the Union Minister of Ports, Shipping & Waterways received the maiden voyage of food-grains from Patna to Pandu port via Bangladesh in Guwahati (Assam). Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) is planning to run a fixed schedule sailing between NW1 and NW2 heralding a new age of inland water transport for Assam & the Northeast India. The Inland Vessels …

Recently, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), released the second part of its sixth assessment report. This second part of the report is about climate change impacts, risks and vulnerabilities, and adaptation options. The first part of this report, on the physical science of climate change in 2021. It had warned that 1.5 degree Celsius warming was likely to be …

Recently, the Indian Army commenced implementation of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tagging of its ammunition inventory. Earlier in 2021, the Union Government integrated the E-Way Bill (EWB) system with FasTag and RFID. RFID is a type of passive wireless technology that allows for tracking or matching of an item or individual. The system has two …