Union Minister of Cooperation Shri Amit Shah has stated that cooperative banks will not be treated as “second class,” but that they must adopt modern and transparent banking methods in order to compete.   Details – The Minister urged the Urban Cooperative Banks (UCBs) to implement institutional reforms, as they account for only 3.25% of… Continue reading Cooperative Banks

The U.S. state of New York recently passed the Fair Repair Act, which requires manufacturers to supply repair information, tools, and parts to independent repair shops and not just their own stores or partners.   Details – This provides consumers with the right to repair and refurbish their purchased goods. With access to relevant tools… Continue reading Right to repair

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) recently issued detailed guidelines on the tax deducted at source (TDS) rule for virtual digital assets (VDAs) such as cryptocurrencies. It lays out the various scenarios on how the tax will be applicable and who will bear the onus to deduct it.   What is the plan? With… Continue reading TDS on Virtual Digital Assets

The unemployment rate saw a decrease of 0.6% and fell to 4.2% in 2020-21, compared with 4.8% in 2019-20, according to the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) for 2020-21 released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation.   Details – This means that only 4.2% of adults who looked for jobs could not get… Continue reading Unemployment in India

India will be taking over an ambitious hydropower project in Nepal — West Seti — nearly four years after China withdrew from it, ending a six-year engagement between 2012 and 2018.   Details – It is a proposed 750-megawatt Hydropower Project, which is to be built on the Seti river in far-western Nepal, which has… Continue reading West Seti Power Project

A study by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has spoken about the possibility of capital outflows to the tune of $100 billion (around Rs 7,80,000 crore) from India in case of a major global risk scenario or a “black swan” event.   What is a ‘black swan’ event? A black swan is a rare,… Continue reading Black Swan Event

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has inaugurated the main tunnel and five underpasses of the Pragati Maidan Integrated Transit Corridor project. One of the key aim of this project is to decongest traffic around the Pragati Maidan Trade Centre, New Delhi.   About the ‘Pragati Maidan Integrated Transit Corridor Project’ – An integral part of the… Continue reading Pragati Maidan Integrated Transit Corridor Project

The 12th Ministerial Meeting (MC12) of World Trade Organization (WTO) members concluded with first major deal in nearly nine years. In 2013, at the Bali Ministerial, members signed WTO’s first trade deal on a peace clause on public stockholding for food security purposes and trade facilitation agreement.   Outcome of 12th Ministerial Meeting of WTO… Continue reading Outcome of WTO’s 12 Ministerial Conference

Recently, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has unveiled the Payments Vision 2025. The document proposes a host of innovative payment systems and regulation of BigTechs, fintechs, buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) systems, introduction of a central bank digital currency (CBDC), etc.   Key highlights – Five key themes — The vision document has five key themes –… Continue reading Payments Vision 2025

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has notified the cost inflation index (CII) for FY 2022-23. The Cost Inflation Index for FY 2022-23 relevant to AY 2023-24 is 331. For the previous year, i.e., FY 2021-22, CII was notified as 317.   What is CII? The CII is an index that is used to… Continue reading Cost Inflation Index