INDIA’S INFLATION TARGETING RAISES TOUGH QUESTIONS
Focus: GS-III Indian Economy What is the new monetary framework? The new monetary framework was an outcome of the agreement between the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the central government signed in 2015. The agreement explicitly made inflation targeting the objective of the MPC while using the repo rate as the instrument for it. […]
INDIA DOES NEED A FISCAL COUNCIL
Focus: GS-III Indian Economy Introduction The fiscal situation in India has been under severe stress even before COVID-19 and the novel coronavirus pandemic has only worsened it. While the prevailing exceptional circumstance warrants loosening of purse strings, it is necessary that the government must return to a credible fiscal consolidation path once the crisis gets […]
THE CHALLENGE OF CATCHING ELUSIVE TAXPAYERS
Focus: GS-III Indian Economy Introduction India’s tax collection is set to decline sharply in 2020 because of the decline in national income and fall in employment due to COVID-19. Thus, the fiscal deficit in the budget is set to rise unless other expenditures are cut. However, there are committed expenditures which cannot be curtailed and […]
GOI AND AIIB SIGN AGREEMENT TO IMPROVE MUMBAI RAILWAYS
Focus: GS-III Indian Economy Why in news? The Government of India, the Government of Maharashtra, Mumbai Railway Vikas Corporation and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) signed a loan agreement for a $500 million Mumbai Urban Transport Project-III. Details The Project aims to improve the network capacity, service quality and safety of the suburban railway […]
NOT POSSIBLE TO FULLY BLOCK CHINESE COMPANIES
Focus: GS-III Indian Economy, International Relations Why in news? Despite the uproar against the use of Chinese products amid the standoff on the border in eastern Ladakh and the government’s decision to ban several apps recently, government officials say it is not possible to fully decouple the trend due to the substantial investments by Chinese […]
INFLATION, MONETARY POLICY AND GROWTH
Focus: GS-III Indian Economy Introduced Consumer Price Index (CPI), India’s benchmark inflation measure, grew at 6.9% in the month of July. Headline inflation has been growing at more than 6%, the upper limit of RBI’s tolerance level, since December 2019. March was the only exception. India’s other inflation measure, Wholesale Price Index (WPI), has been […]
CENTRE TARGETS PSBS’ STAKE SALE
Focus: GS-III Indian Economy Why in news? The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) released a framework for setting up of a pan-India umbrella entity for retail payments systems. Details: The Entity for Retail Payments The pan-India umbrella entity for retail payments systems is to be incorporated under the Companies Act, 2013, would need to focus […]
RBI UNVEILS FRAMEWORK FOR RETAIL PAYMENTS ENTITY
Focus: GS-III Indian Economy Why in news? The Finance Ministry is working to expedite the sale of stakes in four state-owned banks — IDBI Bank, Bank of Maharashtra, Punjab & Sind Bank and UCO Bank — with the aim of completing the disinvestment process in the current fiscal. Details The government is looking to divest […]
IIP NUMBERS AND INDUSTRIAL ACTIVITY IN LOCKDOWN
Focus: GS-III Indian Economy Why in news? The Index of Industrial Production (IIP) numbers for June completes the data for first quarterly estimates of a major sector’s activity during the lockdown phase. Details The IIP has three components by economic activity: mining and quarrying, manufacturing and electricity. These three sub-sectors had a share of around […]
CABINET APPROVES PROPOSAL FOR LEASING OUT THREE AIRPORTS
Focus: GS-III Indian Economy Why in news? The Union Cabinetchaired by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has approved the proposal for leasing out three airports namely Jaipur, Guwahati and Thiruvananthapuram airports of Airports Authority of India (AAI) through Public Private Partnership (PPP). Background and Details These projects will bring efficiency in service delivery, expertise, […]