 A baseline is a fixed schedule, which represents the standard that is used to measure

the performance of the project.

 Indian GDP – 2.6 trillion dollars/ India’s GDP in 2018 was $2.73 trillion dollars
 World GDP – 80.683 trillion dollars
 3.22% of world’s GDP is India’s share.
 The apparel brand Benetton uses lean supply chain strategies to predict
how many garments to make in each style. They make the garments to meet
the forecasted demand, but leave them un-dyed until customers select
which color they want. Their responsiveness to consumer demands is
borrowed from agile supply chain strategies. With this hybrid approach,
Benetton can remain responsive to their customers while keeping the
supply chain efficient.
 Another hybrid example comes from Kimberly Clark, which owns brands
such as Kleenex and Huggies. For their established products, they use a
lean supply chain strategy because the demand is fairly steady. But when
they’re promoting a new product they use a more agile approach to ensure
they’re able to respond to the demand even if it’s higher or lower than
expected.
 One example of a company using a hybrid strategy in its supply chain is
Zara, a Spanish fashion designer and retailer. Zara directly manufactures
most of the products it designs and sells, and performs activities such as
cutting, dying, labelling, and packaging in-house to gain economies of
scale. A network of dedicated subcontractors performs other finishing
operations that cannot be completed in-house.

 As a result, Zara has a supply chain that is not only agile and flexible, but
incorporates many Lean characteristics into its processes.

 Amazon has tied up with ShopX to digitally connect kiranas with large
retailers and FMCG companies. Amazon is said to be getting ready to rope in kirana stores
as part of its retail strategy. Amazon’s plan is smaller in scale.
 As ecommerce expands in India, online firms are tapping into the robust network of an estimated
12 million mom-and-pop outlets to be used as last-mile delivery agents or even to sell products
through them as part of omni-channel strategies. Modern retailers including ecommerce only
account for about 10% of India’s $650 billion annual retail market with small traders holding
sway over 90% of the business.
 Trump on Friday increased existing and planned tariffs on a total of $550 billion in Chinese
goods, in response to new tit-for-tat levy hikes announced earlier that day by Beijing on $75
billion of US imports.
 Gurugram-based logistics startup Rivigo on Tuesday
announced that its driver relay model has been granted patent
rights by the United States Patent and Trademark
Office (USPTO)
 “This is an endorsement of our pilot-first model.
This Relay technology will not just bring
efficiencies and help streamline the sector but
also ensure that truck driving becomes a viable
job opportunity for pilots as well.”
 The model ensures that the drivers are behind the wheel for a
maximum of four to five hours at a stretch and reach home the
same day.
 According to the company, the model uses algorithms to
develop intelligent driver allocation system that picks the
driver for duty and allows equal driving hours, rest hours, and
transit hours for drivers. Rivigo's system also records driving
behaviour of the drivers.
 The startup competes with the likes of LEAP India, Locus,
LogiNext, Shadowfax and Delhivery, which is the first Indian
logistics provider to achieve unicorn status.
 The finance minister announced the scrapping of enhanced surcharge on short-term and long-
term capital gains tax. “In other words, the enhanced surcharge on FPI goes,” said Sitharaman.
 There is some new trend about aggregator model... people prefer to use Ola, Uber for their
transport. There is some shift visible from people wanting ownership of vehicles. This is a global
trend and India is not an exception. – SBI CHAIRMAN RAJNISH KUMAR
 Rajiv Kumar, VC, NITI Aayog

 Other measures such as bank capitalization and government’s purchase of new

vehicles will aid economic growth
 Startups get relief as angel tax provisions will not be applicable on
them and their investors
 Government to infuse upfront ₹70,000 crore into public sector banks
to enable release of ₹5 lakh crore liquidity in the market
 Govt allows additional 15% depreciation on vehicles acquired from
now till March 2020: FM on measures to ease building auto
inventories
 Ban on govt departments lifted for purchase of vehicles to replace old
ones: FM on measures to mitigate distress in auto sector. Sitharaman
also announced that government will come out with a scrappage
policy for old vehicles. Faced with a massive sales downturn, India's
automobile industry has been betting big on a scrappage policy to
revive demand for the already dented sector. Accordingly, automobile
industry's representatives have sought an 'End of Life' policy from the
Central government as a measure to arrest the falling sales. The policy,
if implemented, is expected to encourage customers to go in for new
 purchases which will be backed-up by government incentives in lieu of
their old vehicles.
 Aadhaar-based KYC for opening demat accounts and investment in mutual funds
 Auto sector:
* BS-IV cars purchased till March 2020 to remain operational for the entire period of
registration.

* Govt asks its departments to replace old vehicles

* Higher vehicle registration fee deferred to June next year.

* Higher depreciation for all vehicle: Depreciation increased to 30 per cent for all vehicle
purchased till March 2020.

* Scrappage policy to be announced soon.

 RBI board accepts Jalan panel report, approves surplus transfer of Rs 1.76 lakh cr to govt
 When investments dry up and people see no new jobs being created,
with existing employees also getting laid off, their confidence to spend
takes a knock.

 Chief Economic Adviser Krishnamurthy Subramanian

 Consider China. In 1990, its annual per capita GDP, at $318, was lower
than India’s $368, as per World Bank data. But cut to 2018, China’s per
capita of $9,771 was nearly five times India’s $2,016.
 Only they, not private enterprise, could have done that over an extended
period, by which time China s GDP had soared from $361 billion to $13.6
trillion (India s has gone up from $321 billion to $2.7 trillion between
1990 and 2018).
 The country's logistics industry is projected to be worth $215 billion by
2020-21, recording a 10 per cent compounded annual growth rate
(CAGR) over its approximate size of $160 billion in 2016-17.
 At present, the logistics sector is dominated by transportation, which
has over 85 per cent share in value terms. Its share is set to remain
high for the next few years. The remaining 15 per cent share is
accounted for by storage. The sector is employment intensive,
absorbing 22 million people.
 Steep logistics costs in India vis-a-vis other nations have been a vexing
issue. Logistics costs as a percentage of the country's gross domestic
product (GDP) is 13-14 per cent. The figure is higher compared to 10-11
per cent for BRIC countries and eight to nine per cent for
developing nations. USA spends 9.5 per cent of the GDP on logistics,
while Germany is even more competitive with a share of eight per cent.
Higher logistics costs in India could be ascribed to the lack of efficient
inter-modal and multi-modal traditional systems, the ratings agency
said in its report.
 Going ahead, the logistics costs as a share of the GDP is expected to
decline, led by initiatives like the implementation of goods and
services tax (GST), investments in road infrastructure, development
of inland waterways and coastal shipping, and the thrust on
dedicated freight corridors.
 American bike-maker Harley-Davidson on Tuesday introduced
its first BS-VI certified two-wheeler — Street 750 — in India
with a price tag of ₹5.47 lakh.
 The company also showcased its electric vehicle, LiveWire, in
India.
 India’s largest car maker Maruti Suzuki is hopeful of bouncing back
to its "usual rate of growth" in 2021, though the environment
remained challenging amid transition to new regulations during the
current financial year.
 This including new safety norms leading to car prices going up by
about ₹22,000, transition to BS-VI, rise in insurance cost and non-
availability of finance.
 “More significantly to my mind... during slowdown, nine States
increased road tax by substantial amount. There was a much
sharper dip in sales in these States. The result is that in these States
 customers have to pay up to ₹97,000 extra to buy a car,” Mr.
Bhargava said, adding it was time that States also become a
partner in the endeavour to grow manufacturing in the country.
 However, the challenges for electric vehicles in India, arising
mainly from battery technology, and infrastructure limitations are
likely to result in electric vehicle acceptance by customers being
slow in the short-term,” Mr. Bhargava said.
 He pitched for CNG vehicles, hybrid cars and the increasing use of
biofuels to achieve the objective of reducing oil consumption and
pollution.
 While this could still reflect falling demand only from higher income
groups, recently, Parle Products, once the world’s largest selling
biscuit brands, announced that it may have to lay off up to 10,000
workers (around a tenth of its workforce). The company blamed
falling sales due to the Goods and Services Tax (GST) that led to
higher prices of the cheapest small packets of biscuits at a time of
extreme price sensitivity because of reduced livelihood, especially
among rural consumers.
 But this isolates only one factor in the current slowdown: the
undoubted mess in the credit system, reflecting both the overhang
of bad debts of banks (worse today than in 2014) and the erosion
of non-banks after the collapse of the aggressive lender,
INFRASTRUCTURE LEASING & FINANCIAL SERVICES LIMITED.
 This is a factor, but this explanation completely misses the demand
side of the story. It is clear beyond doubt now that the slowdown
in mass consumption, combined with falling and then subdued
rates of investment over several years, have led to what is
undeniably a crisis of inadequate effective demand in the
economy.
 The hugely damaging impact of demonetisation in November 2016
was further accentuated by the poor implementation of the GST
barely seven months later. These badly managed policy measures
served as body blows to informal economic activity, causing major
declines in employment and output. At first, they did not affect
formal enterprises so much as they gained at the cost of informal
ones. But the resulting loss in livelihoods and wage incomes
eventually had an effect on demand for formal sector output,
which has worsened over time because there have been no
counterbalancing moves by the government. Total employment
actually declined by more than 15 million workers between 2011-
12 and 2017-18, even as unemployment rates reached their highest
levels in nearly half a century.
 The government could have countered this adverse impact of
declining employment and consumption demand, which in turn
reduced the profit expectations of producers in formal enterprises,
by providing a fiscal stimulus(An increase in public spending or a
reduction in the level of taxation that might be performed by a
government in order to encourage and support economic growth.). It did
not do so. Instead, it kept assuming or hoping that using optical
measures — manipulating “Ease of Doing Business” indicators and
offering further incentives to foreign capital to attract more
inflows, however volatile — would somehow attract investment
into the economy that would counteract all the negative impulses.
 In this context, the Finance Minister’s recent announcements of
measures to boost the flagging economy are not a case of “too
little too late”; rather, they completely miss the point. They do
nothing to address the issue of inadequate demand generation or
the underlying tendencies of wage suppression and low
employment growth. Instead, they once again reveal a supply-side
approach to the problem, which is unlikely to yield much benefit.
 The decision of the government to buy more cars to shore up the
automobile industry is bizarre in the extreme, because it
undermines the medium-term strategy of shifting to electric
vehicles as soon as possible.
 Rural distress is real and deeper and greater than the much-hyped
distress of angel investors and high net worth individuals; so a
massive increase in rural public expenditure, including in the
Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme
to provide public works as well as in social spending would provide
immediate relief. The multiplier effects of such spending would
generate more employment, incomes, consumption and,
therefore, investment over time — as well as more tax revenues
for the government. There is also both scope and need for
increases in “green” public investment for a sustainable future.
 The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) — in its annual report for 2018-19
— said it is the domestic demand that is holding back the animal
spirits in the economy even as it acknowledges that the recent
deceleration could be a cyclical one rather than deep structural
slowdown.
 The policy focus at this point of time should be on continuing focus
on improving ease of doing business, reforms in factors of
production, faster implementation of capital expenditures by
public authorities, among others.
 The disaggregated analysis confirms that a broadbased cyclical
downturn is underway in several sectors — manufacturing; trade,
hotels, transport, communication and broadcasting; construction;
and agriculture,
 In another round of boosters for the economy, Finance Minister Niramala Sitharaman today
announced amalgamation of 10 public sector banks into four big banks. After this the total
number of Public Sector Banks in the country will come down to 12 from 27 banks in 2017.
Apart from this the government announced Rs 55,250 crore upfront capital infusion in the
PSBs.
 Government also announced Rs 55,250 crore upfront capital for credit growth & regulatory
compliance to support economy.
 India's GDP growth slows to 5% in April-June 2019
 India’s GDP expanded 5% in the quarter through June, the slowest pace in six and half years.
 Manufacturing’ sector grew by 0.6percent as compared to growth of 12.1percent in Q1 2018-
19.
 High-frequency indicators such as automobile sales, rail freight, domestic air traffic and
imports (non-oil, non-gold, non-silver and non-precious and semi-precious stones)
indicate a slowdown in consumption, especially private consumption, even with low
inflation.
 India’s passenger vehicle industry suffered its worst performance in 19 years in July with a
31% drop in sales and the ninth consecutive month of declining sales, underscoring a sharp
decline in demand.
 Fiscal deficit touches Rs 5.47 lakh crore at July-end
 The government's fiscal deficit touched Rs 5.47 lakh crore in the June quarter, which is 77.8
per cent of the budget estimate for 2019-20.
In absolute terms, the fiscal deficit or gap between expenditure and revenue was Rs 5,47,605
crore at July-end, as per the data released by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA) on
Friday.
 The government estimates the fiscal deficit to be at Rs 7.03 lakh crore during 2019-20.
 Analysts expect that India's economic slowdown could continue for
the next two three years as the economy faces serious structural
issues, hurting consumer demand and manufacturing.
 Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government has held several
meetings with industry officials, seeking to stem the fall in auto
sales, a slowdown in lending by non-bank finance companies, and
revive consumer demand.
 Many indicators automobile sales, rail freight, petroleum product
consumption, domestic air traffic and imports - signal drops in
domestic consumption.’
 Auto sales in July tumbled 31% from a year earlier, the biggest
decline in nearly two decades, resulting in the loss of hundreds of
thousands of jobs.
 Several thousands of restaurants recently logged out of the platform,
blaming Zomato Gold for being unsustainable for them.
 While only 5,000 to 10,000 users were initially planned for Gold,
Zomato now has over 13 lakh Gold subscribers causing the
restaurants to run their businesses with “deep discounts”
 40 Tata Ultra Electric Buses Delivered To The Jammu & Kashmir State
Road Transport Corporation.
 Integrated Electric Motor Generator
 lithium-ion batteries
 rooftop to prevent breakdown due to waterlogging
 The Indian stock markets have lost nearly 5% since the presentation of the budget, with FPIs
pulling out as much as $1.8 billion.
 The finance minister had in the budget increased the surcharge levied on top of the applicable
income tax rate to 25% from 15% for those with taxable incomes between Rs 2 crore and up
to Rs 5 crore, and to 37% for those earning Rs 5 crore and more, taking the effective tax
rate on them to 39% and 42.74%, respectively. This increased surcharge impacts individuals,
Hindu Undivided Families (HUFs), trusts and associations of persons.
 The auto sector, which contributes more than 7% of
India’s GDP, is facing one of its worst downturns.
 The auto sector employs more than 35 million people
directly and indirectly, accounting for nearly half of
India’s manufacturing output.
 The present government of India has set a target to make India a $5 trillion
economy by 2024.
 In Budget 2019, 100 lakh crore rupees were announced for
infrastructure over the next 5 years. This will create lots of employment
opportunities and will improve the transport sector.
 Reserve Bank of India has announced interest rate cuts, which means EMIs
will get cheaper. So, this can result in more purchases by the public by taking
loans and thereby increases money circulation. Repo rate being 5.4% and
reverse repo being 5.15%.
 It was also announced that Rs.70,000 crores will be infused to banks so that
banks will be able to issue fresh loans.
 Because of the economic slowdown in India, foreign investors pulled out
approximately Rs.8,300 crore in August 2019 alone. Already there is a lack
of private investment and also a domestic investment.
 income inequality is very high. So, if the rich get richer and the poor
became even poorer, a 5 trillion dollar economy will be no use to the common
people.
 It should take effective steps to create a large number of employment
opportunities, to simplify GST and to bring structural reforms.

 On 5th August 2019, the Indian government passed Jammu & Kashmir
Reorganisation bill (2019), which divided Jammu & Kashmir state into
2 union territories – Jammu & Kashmir (union territory with state
legislature), Ladakh (union territory without state legislature).
 Bifurcation can result in better governance, more efficient
administration. It can also help in tackling terrorism.
 The Indian government announced that J&K will be turned into a state
once the situation becomes normal. So, we can consider the UT status
of J&K as temporary.
 Bifurcation of Jammu & Kashmir was done without consulting the people and
local leaders of the state. Moreover, there was a blackout of communication
channels and media, so they had no possibility of expressing their views. This
 sends a wrong message to the people and is against the democratic
principles of India. It is also against the federal principles, which guarantees
rights to states. Moreover, on the same day, Article 370 was revoked, so this
may make local people feel like they have no say in the decisions that impact
them.
 The main task before the central government is to bring the development in
Ladakh in the way the local people want.

 The crisis in the automobile industry from the past few months has
resulted in cutting down of more than 2 lakh jobs.
 In December 2018, the collapse of IL&FS resulted in the crisis in
NBFC (Non-Banking Financial Companies). So Non-Banking Financial
companies have started implementing stricter rules in issuing loans.
On the other hand, banks are also fighting with NPAs (Non-Performing
Assets) and hence implementing stringent lending forms. In general,
many people buy vehicles by taking loans. So, lack of loans and
rising interest rates are discouraging consumers and hence resulted in
low demand for vehicles.
 Traffic Jams in India are becoming worse than ever. Due to this, more
and more people are taking advantage of taxi services and sharing
ride services, instead of buying their own vehicles. With the introduction
of cab aggregator services like Uber and Ola, demand for private
vehicles has decreased.
 At present, GST (Goods & Services Tax) on motor vehicles is 28%. And
the insurance costs of vehicles, emission-related compliance costs
have also gone up. On top of that fuel prices are increasing. So, by
adding all these things buying and maintaining vehicles has turned
costlier. And hence resulted in the low demand for vehicles.
 As more startups are focusing on buying and selling pre-owned cars,
they have become attractive to middle-class people. Despite the
slowdown of automobile sectors, the pre-owned car market has
witnessed double-digit growth. Thereby, the second-hand car
market boom has also contributed to the crisis in the automobile
industry.
 The government should bring scrappage policy by giving incentives
to buy new vehicles in exchange for old vehicles. This will help the
automobile industry to a great extent and also will help the government
in its goal of phasing out fuel-based vehicles and replacing them with
electric vehicles.
 As the demand for public transport and cab sharing services is rising,
the automobile industry should focus on manufacturing buses and
other suitable vehicles in accordance with the growing demand instead
of manufacturing more cars. This will help in reducing vehicular
pollution and also will boost the automobile industry.
 By 2050, there will be 10 billion people on the planet.
 Circular Economy is an economic model which maximizes the use of the
materials extracted from nature. Each non-biodegradable material is used,
reused, recycled and remade in order to reduce the negative impact on the
environment. In contrast, countries mostly practice Linear Economy. It
ensures that each non-biodegradable product is reused, recycled and
 recast to the maximum extent possible. In a Linear Economy, a simple path
is followed by the products: extract raw materials, transform, sell, use and
throw them away.
 Also, the linear economic model produces several tonnes of plastic.
 Waste production and resource depletion are too high to be sustainable in
the current Linear Model.
 Several start-ups have emerged that are starting to provide alternatives to
the current non-biodegradable items to make the economy more circular in
its nature. Tipa, an Israeli startup, has created a flexible packaging material
with the technical properties of conventional plastic, but 100 percent
compostable. Algopack, a French company, is turning seaweed into
furniture, without using oil, pesticides or fertilizers.
 In conclusion, adopting a circular economy is the key to the sustainable
development of countries, businesses and even humanity.

 In the 5th meeting of NITI Aayog Governing council which took place in
June 2019, NITI Aayog had proposed that only electric vehicles will
be sold in India from the year 2030.
 Vehicular pollution is one of the major causes of air pollution.
 As per the report by the government, with this move, carbon emissions will be
reduced by 37% by the year 2030. This will also help in our fight against
climate change.
 As of 2019, India is importing crude oil for 82% of its oil requirement. By using
electric vehicles, we can reduce the dependence on other countries for oil
imports.

 To encourage consumers to buy electric vehicles, the

Indian government removed the registration fee for EVs from June
2019. It is also assigning green number plates for electric vehicles for
using eco-friendly option.
 Indian government plans to set up a number of charging stations in the
near future.
 NITI Aayog has also suggested starting E-highway project, which
contains an overhead electricity network to continuously supply
electricity to the electric truck.
 Motivating common people to buy an electric vehicle is a challenge. At
present, the cost of electric vehicles is much higher than engine-
powered vehicles. Making them affordable is a big task for the
government and automobile industries.
 Building infrastructure for charging stations is also another
challenge for the Indian government.
 Even though the imports of crude oil will be reduced, we will have to
depend on Li-ion imports for batteries of EVs.
 The people who bought electric vehicles have issues with the speed and
charging time, the efficiency of batteries and driving range. To
promote the sales of EVs, these things need to be addressed.
 Vakrangee will set up electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure
facilities across India through its Nextgen Vakrangee Kendra
 outlets. Vakrangee has 3,504 Nextgen Vakrangee Kendra outlets
spread across 19 states, with 68% outlets in Tier 5 and Tier 6 cities.
Vakrangee plans to increase the number of Nextgen Vakrangee
Kendra outlets to 75,000 by FY2021-22 and 3,00,000 outlets by
FY2024-25. - Livemint
 In Budget 2019, the government proposed to provide additional
income tax deduction of ₹1.5 lakh on the interest paid on loans
taken to purchase electric vehicles as part of efforts to accelerate
adoption of eco-friendly mobility solutions.
 The corridor will connect Darbar Sahib in Pakistan’s Kartarpur with
Dera Baba Nanak shrine in Gurdaspur district and facilitate visa-free
movement of Indian Sikh pilgrims, who will have to just obtain a
permit to visit Kartarpur Sahib, which was established in 1522 by
Sikh faith founder Guru Nanak Dev.
 “It is particularly distressing that the manufacturing sector’s growth
is tottering at 0.6%,” he said, adding, “This makes it very clear that
our economy has not yet recovered from the man-made blunders of
demonetisation and a hastily implemented GST.” – Manmohan
Singh
 More than 3.5 lakh jobs have been lost in the automobile sector
alone. There will similarly be large scale job losses in the informal
sector, hurting our most vulnerable workers
 Domestic demand is depressed and consumption growth is at an 18-
month low. Nominal GDP growth is at a 15 year low. There is a
gaping hole in tax revenues. Tax buoyancy remains elusive as
businessmen, small and big, are hounded and tax terrorism
continues unabated. Investor sentiments are in doldrums. These are
not the foundations for economic recovery
 But what has raised eyebrows this time is that the amount of funds
being transferred by the central bank to the government this year is
much higher than earlier — 146.8% more than what it had paid out
last year, when it transferred ₹50,000 crore as dividend. Previously,
the highest amount of surplus funds that the RBI had transferred to
the government was ₹65,896 crore in 2014-15. The net surplus
figures are: ₹52,683 (2013-14); ₹65,896 (2014-15); ₹65,880 (2015-
16); ₹30,659 (2016-17) and ₹50,000 (2017-18)
 In July, the government amended the Finance Bill to ensure that the
Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) transferred surplus
funds in its custody over to the government.

 The government is expected to achieve its 3% fiscal deficit target

this year with the help of the funds it has received from the RBI. The
fresh funds will also help the government to spend more on any
fiscal stimulus plan that it may decide to implement in order to
tackle the slowdown in the economy. The transfer of money from
the vaults of the RBI to fund government spending will increase the
amount of money supply in the economy, thus exerting an upward
pressure on prices. The RBI’s transfer of surplus funds to the
government could thus effectively turn into a monetary stimulus for
the economy which has been slowing down for several consecutive
quarters now.
 After the amalgamation, only 12 PSBs will be left in India from the 27 earlier.
 Consolidated PNB+OBC+United Bank to be 2nd largest PSB with Rs 18 lakh crore
business and 2nd largest branch network in India.
 Scale, nationwide & global presence, and high CASA to drive growth.
 Sitharaman further asserted that the NPAs of banks have come down due to the measures
taken by the government to strengthen the financial sector.
 In the previous term of the Modi govt, five associate banks and Bharatiya Mahila Bank were
merged with State Bank of India (SBI). Moreover, Dena Bank, Vijaya Bank were also merged
with Bank of Baroda which came into effect from April 1, 2019.
 Union Cabinet on Wednesday eased foreign direct investment (FDI) norms for various
industries such as single-brand retail, coal mining, contract manufacturing and digital media.
 Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday allayed fears of job
losses following the proposed merger of public sector banks, saying
not even one employee shall be removed following the
amalgamation.
 She was replying to a question on the bank employees unions
opposing the merger plan on the ground it would lead to loss of jobs.
 Ms. Sitharaman on Friday unveiled a mega plan to merge 10 public
sector banks into four as part of plans to create fewer and stronger
global-sized lenders as the government looked to boost economic
growth from a five-year low.
 Responding to the government’s plan, the All India Bank Employees
Union has said the amalgamation would lead to closure of banks
besides job losses.
 Pakistan announced on Sunday that it will grant consular access
to Kulbhushan Jadhav on September 2.
 Foreign Office Spokesman Mohammad Faisal said Jadhav, 49, is
being provided consular access “in line with Vienna Convention
on Consular relations, ICJ judgement and the laws of Pakistan”.
 India’s biggest bank overhaul in decades may hurt the nation’s bad loan clean-up and slow
the lending approvals needed to reverse its economic slump.
 a move it said would create larger, healthier lenders. While that may be true in the long-
term, analysts predict that the efforts may be hurt by a near-term shift in management
attention to aligning resources such as personnel, technology and branch networks.
 The merged lenders, which control more than half the assets held by Indian banks, will get Rs
55,250 billion ($7.7 billion) of capital to jumpstart the process. Still, that may not be enough to
keep money flowing into the economy given India continues its struggle to contain the world’s
worst pile of stressed loans despite $37 billion of handouts over three years.
 Any more debt repayment delays or defaults risk reversing an expected recovery in India’s
gross bad loan ratio and worsen a widening shadow bank crisis.
 The government decided to go ahead with the mergers now because the banks are almost
adequately capitalized, there will be no disruption to business, and no bank employee will be
hurt by the process, Finance Secretary Rajiv Kumar said in an interview.
 the latest planned mergers will help the banks scale up but issues including personnel and
non-performing debt could impact interim profitability.
 India Manufacturing PMI fell to 51.4 in August from 52.5 in July remaining above the 50-
point mark that separates expansion from contraction. Output growth grew at the slowest rate
in a year and job growth remained marginal despite expansion in output.
 According to the report subdued sales to both domestic and international clients slowed output
growth to its lowest level in a year with some manufacturers reporting cashflow issues and a
lack of available finance.
 When it come to happiness, Indians consider good financial conditions and physical well-
being among the top-most reasons to remain joyous, a new survey said on Friday, adding that
India ranked ninth on happiness index among 28 global markets.
 Personal safety and security, friends and feeling in control of life were other top
determinants for Indians to stay happy, said the "Global Happiness Survey" from market
research firm Ipsos.
 Markets with the highest prevalence of happiness are largely the developed nations, known for
their citizen centricity.
Australia and Canada tied at the top spot (at 86 per cent) and emerged as the happiest
nations of the world, followed by China (83 per cent), Great Britain (82 per cent), France (80
per cent), the US (79 per cent), Saudi Arabia and Germany at (78 per cent), and India at ninth
spot with 77 per cent.
 Argentina (34 per cent), Spain (46 per cent) and Russia (47 per cent) emerged at the
bottom of the heap, among the 28 markets.
Notably, happiness levels receded in 2019. For India, there has been a six per cent drop (from
83 per cent in 2018 to 77 per cent in 2019).
 IL&FS was deemed ‘too big to fail’ by many experts but eventually succumbed to greed and
ambition.
 If we forget them, chances are there will be another IL&FS — a company that originated from a
white paper on infrastructure development in the 1980s, bagged a World Bank loan backed by
a sovereign guarantee, used its ownership structure to position itself as a top-rated quasi-
government entity that was simply ‘too big to fail’, and then succumbed to greed and ambition.
 IL&FS modus operandi was simple: aggressively bag new projects, borrow to fund them,
divert the money to repay lenders to earlier projects. The music stopped when State-
owned shareholders refused to chip in with more equity to bridge the gaps. IL&FS may have
been a full-blown scam. But the truth is most infrastructure projects are languishing, thanks to
their abysmal cash-flow and a nonexistent market for long-term debts.
 Banks may take 2-3 years to standardise core technology, products and customer
applications after the government proposed to merge some prominent public sector lenders
last week, analysts said.
 “The integration process would take 24-36 months. Website, mobile apps, IVR — all have to
get merged into one. While you are doing this, cyber security becomes an important
matter to look into,” said Sanchit Vir Gogia, chief executive, Greyhound Research.
 Banks may have the same core banking software, but they will have to synchronise financial
products and integrate other backend technology.
 During the integration, the lenders will generate huge amounts of data and analytics will play
a bigger role to create 360-degree user profiles, taking data from multiple banks, Gogia said.
A senior executive at a multinational tech services firm said even if the core banking platforms
are the same, each would require customisation.
Beyond technology integration, banks will need a better communication strategy.
 For example, there were differences in technology integration in the risk profile, asset
portfolio for banks in the Middle East and the US
 For example, Punjab National Bank is going to amalgamate with Oriental Bank of Commerce
and United Bank of India, and they run on Infosys’ Finacle core banking system. Indian
Bank is merging with Allahabad Bank, and they use TCS’ BaNCS software.
 Apart from integrating technology, banks have to deal with cultural differences.
 India's top carmaker going big on CNG will help reduce dependence on imported oil and
cut vehicular pollution.
 Maruti Suzuki, the country’s largest carmaker, will make all the small cars in its portfolio
available in compressed natural gas (CNG) variants to reduce dependence on imported oil
and cut down on vehicular pollution. The company expects the increase in sales of CNG and
hybrid vehicles to pick up the slack after its planned stoppage of diesel vehicle
manufacture.
 “All small cars in our portfolio will get converted to CNG,” Maruti Suzuki chairman RC
Bhargava told ET. “There is an acceptance from the government that CNG is a cleaner
fuel, and it is being accepted for transportation. They are setting up 10,000 CNG
distribution outlets.”
 Maruti Suzuki posted a 35.9% decline in domestic sales to 94,728 units in August.
 The company has 16 models in its portfolio.
 CNG-powered vehicles currently constitute around 7% of overall sales of the company.
In states where CNG distribution outlets are available, variants running on the fuel account for
about 30% of the sales of each model, company executives said.
 Bhargava said factory-made CNG vehicles cost substantially more than those retrofitted
with kits because of taxes and manufacturing costs but pointed out that they are also
safer.
 To promote Make in India, the government must encourage factory-fitted CNG vehicles…
We should make CNG kits in India. Safety levels of CNG cars should go up.”
 In a bid to push adoption of CNG vehicles in the personal mobility space, the petroleum and
natural gas ministry had last year announced plans to set up 10,000 CNG distribution
outlets in 10 years. It is estimated that the country will save nearly 2 lakh crore in oil imports
if personal car users switched to CNG vehicles. Maruti Suzuki said earlier this year that it will
discontinue production of diesel vehicles due to the steep increase in costs related to
the transition to BS VI emission standards from April 1, 2020.
 Maruti Suzuki India, which plans to launch is first electric vehicle (EV) in the country next
year, is finding cost of EVs to be prohibitive for mass adoption besides charging
infrastructure proving to be a big issue, according to a senior company official.
 there were three major issues of cost, charging infrastructure, and customer acceptance.
 MSI is currently testing a fleet of 50 prototype EVs based on WagonR model platform
developed by Suzuki Motor Corporation in Japan.
 Under the current circumstances, a mass segment EV is likely to cost around two-and-half
times more than the same vehicle type powered by a conventional engine.
 Addressing shareholders last week at the company's AGM, MSI Chairman R C Bhargava said,
"The fact that FAME (II) scheme does not provide any incentive for private buying of EVs is
a very clear signal that the government doesn't think that this segment is going to be at all
important in the coming time."
 The automobile sector accounts for 49 per cent of India's manufacturing gross domestic
product (GDP).
 state governments should adopt measures to ensure industrial development and wealth
creation to help revive demand in the local automobile market which has been in the midst of a
prolonged slowdown for the past one year.
 the slowdown being witnessed currently is different from those seen previously as the amid this
downturn when the affordability of middle-class consumers have been impacted severely,
the cost of purchasing a car has gone up significantly due to implementation of upgraded
safety and emission standards.
 Past few months; even when the slowdown had started last year; nine states increased road
taxes sharply. This has affected affordability of consumers as the average per capita
income of customers here are much lower than that in China....The automobile sector creates
jobs, generated revenues, states should realise all of this gets affected when the
industry falls.
 state governments should come forward and take measures to ensure industrial
development. The automobile industry in India contributes as much as 49% to the
manufacturing GDP and employs 37 million people, directly and indirectly.

 On 26th August 2019, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) approved Bimal

Jalan-led committee report, which recommended transferring RBI’s
excess capital over the next 3 to 5 years. So this year, RBI transferred
Rs. 1.76 lakh crore to the government.
 Generally, RBI keeps some money for its regular operations and a large
reserve of cash to save the economy if the situation of economic
instability arises. Every year, at the end of the August, RBI transfers its
surplus earnings to the government after finalising its accounts.
 In 2018, the central government asked the Reserve Bank of India to transfer a
part of its reserves to the government. The government stated that the funds
with RBI is beyond the required amount, and this money can be put to better
use instead of keeping them idle. But RBI did not accept the proposal. RBI
feared that transferring some of its reserves will make it helpless at the time of
economic crisis. That resulted in the conflict between RBI & Government. To
come to a balanced decision, Bimal Jalan’s committee was appointed, which
is headed by Bimal Jalan, a former RBI governor.
 Out of these 1.76 lakh crore rupees, Rs. 28,000 crores were already
transferred as an interim dividend in February 2019. So, this comes
under the last year’s budget. And Rs.90,000 crores from RBI was
already accounted in this year’s budget. So, it will be spent on
expenditures. So, the remaining Rs. 58,000 crores are the additional
money that the government is getting.
 If this money is spent on the current expenditures, it’ll help in
maintaining the fiscal deficit target of 3.3%. But, that may not be able
to bring the economy to a normal state. So, this money is better put to
use to bring structural reforms and to invest in income-generating
sectors. This is really needed because at present there is a lack of
private investment.
 RBI’s surplus transfer bought the government some time. In this time,
the government needs to take steps on increasing tax revenues and
other revenue sources. GST collections are way less than the
expected amount. There is a need to take steps on GST simplification.
 In Union budget 2017-18, the target was set to double the farmers’
income by 2022.
 India is still an agriculture economy. Agriculture employs 50% of the
Indian workforce but contributes only 17-18% to the country’s GDP.
Improvement in this sector would mean improvement in GDP.
 Due to low incomes, Indian farmers are in distress. India has witnessed
5 farmers protests (large scale) in the last 2 years, with 4 of them in
the year 2018 alone and suicide rates have also increased, every 30
minutes, an Indian farmer commits suicide.
 Indebtedness among farmers is at an all-time high.
 All the above problems are due to the fact that farmers haven constantly
underpaid in India. For the past 45 years, the Centre’s minimum support price
(MSP) of wheat has risen 19 times during this period, salaries in government
jobs have increased 120-150 times. The 7th Pay Commission gives employees
108 kinds of allowances; MSP calculations include none.
 Storage facilities are mostly absent or inadequate for farmers in India, as
a result, they have to sell their produce to avoid them from rotting or attack
from insects and pests. Due to this hurry, they end up selling their produce
to middlemen at a price which was even less than their investment.
 Instead of providing the farmers with loan waivers, the government
should provide them cash, so that it can be readily used, and if all goes
well the farmer will be able to pay back the loan.
 Educating farmers: Farmers should be made aware of the modern
agricultural practices, they should be taught which crop will be
suitable for them to grow according to the climate of their area, using
the internet and other digital apps etc. for weather prediction and
factoring other variables too.
 FPOs: They are one of the best ways to improve the income of
farmers. According to the Department of Agriculture and Cooperation, the
FPO has emerged as the “most appropriate institutional form around
which to mobilise farmers and build their capacity to collectively leverage
their production and marketing strength.”
 Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her budget speech on Friday
hoped that 10,000 new Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs)
would be formed in the next five years.
 An FPO, formed by a group of farm producers, is a registered body
with producers as shareholders in the organisation. It deals with
business activities related to the farm produce and it works for the
benefit of the member producers.
 Technology-enabled solutions: Recently, technology has also reached out
to our distressed farmers. A host of apps have come into existence to free the
farmers from their perils. Apps like Mandi Trades have brought
entrepreneurs’ attention towards the agriculture sector.
 Roping in the Corporates: Agriculture has long been a field left untouched by
the private sector. Perhaps, a model can be worked out where private sector
entities can provide irrigation facilities at subsidised rates to farmers,
taking charge of particular regions.
 Proper implementation of government insurance schemes.
 Setting up organised market: In the absence of organised market and
other facilities, the farmers have to depend upon middlemen to dispose off
their produce ASAP after their harvest as they have to pay their debts, rents
and meet other commitments. Most of the small farmers are forced to sell
their produce to the local moneylenders in the village itself at whatever price is
offered to them. The government needs to come up with an organized market
structure for the farmers to improve their conditions.
 Analysts, logistics companies cut forecast from earlier this year; expect 27% growth.
 India’s two largest online marketplaces, Flipkart Group and Amazon India, are expected to
register 25-27% sales growth during the crucial festive season, lower than last year, owing
to sluggish consumer sentiment, a slowing economy and greater uncertainty around
regulations implemented this year.
 Latest growth numbers projected by logistics companies and sector analysts have been
revised downwards from earlier in the year, said people in the know.
Last year, the e-commerce industry registered a 35% GROSS MERCHANDISE VALUE (GMV)
growth and racked up sales of $3 billion during the festive season, as per estimates.
 Flipkart and Amazon India, though, are maintaining aggressive targets and expecting to clock a
combined GMV of about $5 billion (Rs 36,000 crore) in October, four top executives from
these companies said on condition of anonymity.
 However, independent estimates peg this figure at $3.7-4 billion. “There is a 15-20%
downward revision in estimates compared with earlier projections. A lot of it has to do with
the economic slowdown and regulatory environment affecting the two big companies —
Amazon and Flipkart — as they may have under-invested in inventory,” said an industry
executive on condition of anonymity.
 The market share split is expected to remain at 60% for Flipkart Group — including Myntra,
Jabong and 2GUD— and 40% for Amazon India, executives cited above said.
 GMV is the overall sales clocked by an online marketplace, and does not include
discounts, returns, cancellations and cashbacks on products sold. It is different from
revenue generated. Flipkart and Amazon do not officially disclose GMVs.
 “Even if the market is a bit slow, this will be our biggest Big Billion Days in terms of the number of
customers transacting and engaging with us. We are bringing in more brands and will see more
cities and newer customers from new demographics coming to Flipkart through our Hindi app,” said
Rajneesh Kumar, chief corporate affairs officer, Flipkart.
 “With selections from top brands, great deals and financing choices to make products affordable,
we look forward to celebrating the festive season with many more customers this year,’ said an Amazon
spokesperson.
 Satish Meena, analyst, Forrester Research, said, “Ecommerce companies will be more aggressive with
marketing to push sales, since the first half of the year was muted by regulatory and compliance
hurdles. This is the last window to push up sales and customer reach.” He expects sales volume to
increase 20% on-year, excluding services such as flights and hotel bookings. Meena said etailers will
be affected by the economic slowdown, albeit on a lower scale than offline retail.
 GMV growth will also be impacted because companies are pushing cheaper and unbranded
merchandise, which has lowered the overall order value, industry experts said.
 Last week, ET reported that Flipkart plans to launch exclusive products during its flagship Big
Billion Days sale, along with running contests and cross-selling across categories. It has also urged top
brands to give 50-70% discounts and make buy-one-get-one-free offers.
 Amazon too plans to offer two-hour delivery for high-value items such as smartphones, electronics,
furniture and high-repeat items such as grocery, with a focus on Prime Now app in top cities, sources
said.
 Mobikwik, an online payments platform, has appointed New York-based investment bank Goldman
Sachs's India unit for its fundraise, people aware of the matter said. Mobikwik looks to transition
itself into a financial services company from being just a mobile wallet.
 Mobikwik, which started as a mobile wallet in 2009, has been adding new businesses like lending &
micro-insurance over the last one year.
 Over the last one year, the company has also reduced its operating costs and monthly burn to get
consumers while competing against deep-pocketed Paytm, which counts SoftBank and Alibaba among
its investors.
 Flipkart Sunday announced its foray into the offline space with its decision to set up first Furniture
Experience Centre in Bengaluru.
 Spread across nearly 1,800 square feet, Flipkart would offer a touch and feel experience to customers
in the fast-evolving online furniture market, the e-commerce major said in a statement.
 According to the company, this is a step towards helping customers understand the vast selection of
furniture offered by Flipkart and increase awareness around the seamless buying and installation
experience it offers.
 Flipkart Vice-President (Furniture, Electronics and Private Label) Adarsh Menon said, "As a customer-
focused organisation, we understand the requirements of customers and hence 'FurniSure'. The idea
behind the FurniSure Experience Zone is to allow customers to explore Flipkart Furniture's offerings
in a new and innovative fashion."
 Flipkart is also working with Google to enhance customers' overall viewing experience at these
FurniSure Experience Centres through integration with Google Lens.
 Visitors at the experience centre can use their smartphone to scan the Flipkart Furniture icon at the
experience centres, which will then route them to the platform's furniture page, allowing them to explore
the product catalogue along with their various features.
 Consumer electronics and smartphone makers are giving retailers record margins during the
festive season as they seek to ensure a boost in sales, said people with knowledge of the matter.
Leading retail chains said this will be passed on as a discount in order to persuade consumers
who are holding off from making purchase decisions on account of the gloomy economic climate.
 Brands usually pass on 2-3 percentage points of extra margin in the period between Navratri and
Diwali. This year it’s been raised to 4-6 percentage points from Ganesh Chaturthi onwards in the
west and this will be rolled out across the country, said the chief of one of India’s four large retail chains.
This will lead to a price drop of 4-6% during the festive season, while some of the amount will also be
used for marketing.
 The sales drop in the last two months has jolted the industry since almost all categories, except
televisions, had continued to grow in the first six months of the calendar year from the year earlier.
Television sales have remained flat this year, leading to an inventory pileup. Smartphone sales have
slowed to single digits from double-digit pace this quarter. Consumers are cutting down on discretionary
spending amid growth slowing to a six-year low and stock market volatility. LG and Samsung didn’t
respond to queries. Sony and Xiaomi declined to comment.
 Walmart-owned Flipkart on Tuesday announced the introduction of 'Hindi' interface on its platform as
it aims to tap into the next 200 million customers coming online to experience e-commerce.
 Industry research suggests that 90 per cent of new internet users in India are native language
speakers, and it becomes imperative to offer a native e-commerce experience to impart familiarity,
comfort and aid in decision making.
 Last year, Flipkart had acquired Liv.ai, an artificial intelligence (AI) start-up which has built a platform
that converts speech to text in 10 Indian languages.
 Interestingly, Amazon had started its Hindi offering last year, a move that the US-based e-tailing giant
had said was aimed at bringing the next 100 million customers online.
 Ecommerce companies such as Flipkart, Amazon and BigBasket will have to find alternatives to single-
use plastic, as the government is likely to restrict its use for packaging from October 2.
 The government is also thinking of ways to make ecommerce companies recycle the waste that they
generate. This will, in turn, push these companies to come up with alternative packaging materials
quickly.
 Last Thursday, Walmart-owned Flipkart said it had already reduced use of single-use plastic by 25%
and has set a target of using 100% recycled plastic by March 2021.
 The homegrown etailer has also filed for an extended producer responsibility (EPR), aiming to
collect back 30% of the waste it generates in the first year.
 EPR is a policy approach where producers are responsible for treating or disposing waste after
the sale of products.
 Several other ecommerce companies, including Amazon and Big-Basket, are also trying to reduce the
use of single-use plastic. Big-Basket has stopped using them to package products in Bengaluru, which
has banned the use of such plastics altogether.
 “Creating alternatives for single use plastic packaging is one of the significant steps we have taken
towards fulfilling our commitment to create a sustainable ecosystem. Our long-term vision is to
eliminate the use of plastic and maximise the use of recycled and renewable materials,” Kalyan
Krishnamurthy, group CEO of Flipkart, said in a statement last week.
 Citizen engagement platform LocalCircles found in a recent survey that cashbacks — which
ecommerce firms have used successfully to grow business — could nudge consumers to be more
responsible with plastics use.
 LocalCircles found that 92% of consumers in a survey of over 10,000 respondents were willing to
return ecommerce packaging plastic for a small cashback, and 89% were willing to do so for cardboard
packaging boxes.
 Disconcertingly, the mainstay of demand — private consumption spending
— slumped to an 18-quarter low, with the expansion decelerating sharply
to 3.1%, from 7.2% in the preceding quarter and 7.3% a year earlier.
 Gross fixed capital formation (GFCF), a proxy for investment activity, grew
a meagre 4%, less than a third of the 13.3% growth it posted 12 months
earlier. The RBI had, in its annual report released on Thursday, noted that
indicators of GFCF had shown either moderation or contraction in the fiscal
first quarter and pointed specifically to gross value added (GVA) by the
construction industry, which government data revealed had eased to a
5.7% pace, from 9.6% in the year-earlier period. With demand for
 manufactured products ranging from cars and consumer durables to even
biscuits having sharply diminished, manufacturing GVA growth plunged to
an eight-quarter low of 0.6%. In fact, save mining, electricity and other
utility services and public administration and defence, all the five other
contributors to overall GVA weakened from a year earlier. And as the RBI
observed in its last monetary policy statement, consumer confidence
gauged by its July survey has worsened appreciably, with 63.8% of
respondents expecting discretionary spending to stay at the same level or
shrink one year ahead. The comparable reading in June 2018 was 37.3%.
 That the government is cognisant of the gravity of the situation is
evident from its recent slew of policy pronouncements including
tweaks to investment norms to draw more Foreign Direct
Investment, moves to relieve the debilitating sales slump in the auto
sector and a sweeping consolidation of public banks. Any beneficial
impact from these measures will, however, take time to feed into the
economy and time is a luxury that the faltering economy can ill afford,
especially given the global headwinds. With the farm sector still stuck
in a low income trap and this year’s mercurial monsoon rains,
leaving some parts flooded and others still facing deficits and
engendering a shortfall in kharif sowing, rural demand is unlikely to
return any time soon. Also, with the RBI’s four interest rate reductions
since the start of 2019 having, so far, failed to incentivise credit-fuelled
consumer spending and business investment to any significant degree
and with limited fiscal headroom to try and prime the pump with
increased expenditure, big, bold structural reforms may be the only way
out. The government must lose no time in consulting with the widest
possible spectrum, including the Opposition, and then implement the
agreed-on reforms prescriptions to reinvigorate demand and investment.
 One of India’s top money managers says India’s economic slowdown has a lot to do with slowing
white-collar wage growth in India’s private sector.
 Indian economy has been through its longest growth slump since 2012 and June quarter GDP print
showed the slowest pace of expansion in six years. One economist called it ‘quasi-recession’, a term
used to describe a condition resembling recession.
 Prashant Jain, Chief Investment Officer at HDFC Mutual Fund, says India’s economic growth might
moderate to 5-6 per cent in the coming years, but profitability of India Inc would improve significantly
during the same period.
 While GDP is slowing down, what is shrinking ever more is discretionary spending of consumers.
This, Jain said, has been largely due to the fact that white-collar wages in private sectors have not done
well in the past few years. “In many areas of the economy, white collar wages have de-grown in real
terms,” he told ET NOW.
 “In the last few years, growth was sustained by an increase in household borrowings and falling
savings. Household leverage in India has gone up pretty sharply in last few years. We are coming to a
stage where there is not much for borrowing and consuming,” he said.
 “For the job market to pick up, private capex needs to be lifted by resolving IBC cases swiftly. Only
after the existing assets find a new home, will new capacity come in,” Jain said.
 Jain said India mobilises $20 billion worth of fresh equity capital, and the bulk of it is offer for sale by
existing shareholders. “Unless, India creates a pure primary capital market, how does one put up a new
capital-intensive project,” he asked.
 “The persistent supply of stock by the government and by other players in the core areas of the
economy like power, oil and gas and utilities has led to depressed valuations of core sectors. Private
sector companies in core areas today trade around or below book value. If you are the owner of that
company, you are not going to raise capital at such valuations,” Jain said.
 “The fact remains that the pipeline inventory was very high and since the growth did not come as per
expectations, inventories are being corrected. While retail sales too are falling, they are in high single
digits or low double-digits. So, the 20-30 per cent de-growth in a way is misleading and it should
correct itself overtime,” Jain said.
 The good news is long-term fundamentals of the economy remains intact, Jain said. “Growth can
accelerate, if not in 1-2 quarter, but in next 3-6 quarters. From a low base of this year, growth outlook
would be better. Besides, as interest rates come down, EMIs would come down. Cars would
become a bit more affordable,” he said.
 “As exports are not growing, the global economy is anyway growing at 2-3 per cent. India can only
increase exports through market share gain, which at present is low at 2-odd per cent. The US-China
trade dispute can give India an opportunity to increase manufacturing exports,” Jain said.
 The Indian economy is passing through a phase of economic slowdown, with the GDP growth
registering one of the lowest rates of 5.8 per cent in the last quarter of FY19. The GDP growth rate for
the first quarter of FY20 is feared to be lower than 5.8 per cent. While there is a consensus that the
economy is slowing down, the debate is still going on whether the slowdown is structural or cyclical.
 In simple words, a cyclical economic slowdown is a part of the business cycle having its peaks
and troughs. The economy will be moving in cycles with periods of peak performance followed by a
downturn and then a trough of low activity. These are expected to be short-term problems that
could be addressed with an adequate mix of fiscal and monetary policies.
 On the other hand, sometimes the problems of the economy can go deeper, impeding the efficient
and fair production of goods and services. In such a scenario, a monetary and fiscal stimulus won't
be enough to revive the economy. Fixing such problems would require the government to undertake
some structural policies. The best example in this regard would be the reforms that were carried out to
address the crisis in 1991.
 The economic growth of any country is driven by a virtuous cycle of savings, investment and
exports. Of all the three, investment is considered to be the key driver of growth. To quote the
Economic Survey (2019), investment, especially private investment, is the 'key driver' that drives
demand, creates capacity, increases labour productivity, introduces new technology, allows
creative destruction, and generates jobs.
 The investment rate as measured by Gross Fixed Capital Formation (GFCF) as a per cent of GDP is
showing a declining trend. GFCF as a per cent of GDP has declined from 34.3 per cent in 2011 to 28.8
per cent in 2018. Similarly, if we consider the GFCF in the private sector, it declined from 26.9 per
cent in 2011 to 21.4 per cent in 2018. Likewise, the new investment projects that were announced
in 2011 stood at 5,882, whereas it declined to 3,708 in 2018. On the other hand, the investment
projects that were dropped off in 2011 were 945 and it increased to 2,142 in 2018.
 A similar declining trend is also evident in the case of gross domestic savings as a per cent of GDP. It
declined from 32.7 per cent in 2011 to 29.3 per cent in 2018. During the same period, exports as a
per cent of GDP also declined from 24.5 per cent to 19.6 per cent. Thus, the performance of all the
three indicators considered to be the major ingredients of a growth story was not satisfactory.
 Another major area of concern that is also contributing to the declining savings in the economy is wage
growth. The economy is experiencing a declining wage growth (both rural and urban wages). Rural
wage growth has declined from 27.7 per cent in FY14 to less than 5 per cent in FY19. The corporate
wages have also exhibited a single-digit growth in FY19 compared to a double-digit growth a few
years back. The declining wages could also lead to a slowdown in consumption, which is what the
economy is experiencing now.
 All the sectors, especially the auto sector, is passing through a crisis like situation due to the declining
sales. The declining sales and piling inventories are forcing companies to cut down production. The
cutting down of production can have repercussions in the job market. For instance, the unemployment
rate was 5.6 per cent in July 2018, whereas in July 2019 it was 7.5 per cent.
 Further, the inflation rate in the economy has declined from 10.03 per cent in FY13 to 3.41 per cent in
FY19. The low inflation rate would be a relief to the consumers, but a prolonged period of falling prices
is not good news for the economy. Low inflation rate depicts weakening of demand that would
discourage fresh investments and job creation.
 The slowdown in the economy was further aggravated by the NBFC crisis triggered by the IL&FS
default. The NBFC crisis led to a liquidity crunch that further worsened the situation in the economy.
Liquidity crisis negatively affected the companies that were plaguing with lower sales. For
instance, according to the letter written by the SIAM to the Finance Ministry, 70 per cent of two-
wheeler sales and 60 per cent of commercial vehicles sales are financed by the NBFCs.
 Considering the performance of the above indicators, it could be inferred that the slowdown in the
economy is more than a cyclical one. The structural factors contributing to the slowdown is evident
from the fact that the successive rate cuts by the Central Bank have not yielded the desired results. The
limited fiscal space prevented the government from announcing any stimulus package in the budget.
However, even if the government had gone for a fiscal stimulus it could have only a limited impact in
addressing the present crisis.
 The liquidity crisis in the economy could be a cyclical issue, and the policy response from the RBI and
the government would help in addressing the issue. Nevertheless, the IL&FS default was also a result of
the delay in the rolling out of various infrastructure projects. The situation calls for simplification
of the land acquisition laws in the country. The IL&FS crisis indicates that the country requires
more reforms.
 Though the present situation in India is not similar to that in 1991, the slowdown is indeed worrying.
There is a need to unleash a fresh set of reforms that would help India to achieve the target of a $5
trillion economy.
 Critics, that being their job, have done quite a decent job of it. It ranges from commentary on how these
mergers wouldn’t help in achieving the $5-trillion economy, to loans to the weaker sections, to
reviving non-banking finance companies. In the short run, it could even slow lending.
 The Jan Dhan bank accounts have been the single biggest achievement of this government and it
wouldn’t have been possible without the push from the government. So is the case with Mudra loans,
the credit given to self-employed and tiny entrepreneurs.
 The link between nominal GDP and revenue growth is the most relevant barometer to ascertain the
impact and extent of the current downturn. An analysis of estimates for both nominal GDP growth and
revenue expansion shows that the Street is factoring in significantly higher revenue growth than nominal
GDP. That leaves room for more downgrades.
 Nominal GDP growth – or GDP expansion with inflation impact – has a direct bearing on corporate
revenue growth. Nominal GDP growth dropped to 7.9 per cent in the June quarter, the lowest in 16
years. This is the key reason analysts have turned rather circumspect.
 “Given that the nominal GDP slipped to 7.9 per cent, the risk of earnings downgrade has increased for
large companies where consensus earnings are still in high double digits,” Srinivas added.
 According to Bloomberg consensus estimates, revenue growth is projected to be 22.09 per cent
for 2019, which is significantly higher than the nominal GDP growth. In the past five years, nominal GDP
growth has outperformed the revenue growth of BSE 500 companies by about 5 per cent. The BSE 500
accounts for 94 per cent of India’s market capitalisation.
 The downward GDP revision will have a pronounced impact on companies where demand forecast is
linked to the GDP multiplier – such as cement, construction, real estate and consumer discretionary. For
instance, cement volumes typically increase 1.2-1.3 times of GDP growth and vehicle sales expand
about 1.3 times.
 Therefore, any reduction in GDP growth assumptions would lower the top-line and alter the PE
multiples. Typically, higher earnings growth companies are accorded premium P/E compared with their
average. Indian equities currently trade at a 45 per cent premium to emerging market equities.
 An almost 7% growth in India’s electricity demand at a time when economic expansion has cooled to
its weakest in six years may appear as a paradox at first glance. Clarity emerges with a closer look.
 Power requirement growth in the nation’s most industrialized states decelerated in the April-July period,
as demand from businesses cooled in line with the broader slowdown in Asia’s third-largest economy.
The overall jump in demand, on the other hand, came mostly because of a rise in demand from states
that happened to add a large number of households to the electricity network for the first time.
 Several automakers were forced to trim their workforce and shutter factories temporarily to manage
inventories as a prolonged slowdown in domestic consumption spawned the worst downturn in car
sales in almost two decades in July. Data on Friday showed GDP expanded 5% in the three months
through June from a year earlier, the slowest pace since March 2013.
 Increasing demand from factories and commercial firms is key to revival of India’s money-losing
electricity distributors. These consumers account for about half of the power consumption and pay more,
 helping subsidize others including poor households and farmers. Prime Minister Narendra Modi pledged
to electrify every home, a promise that helped in his re-election this year but one that could prove costly
for state utilities unless businesses purchase more electricity.
 Stalling of new private sector projects, a slump in sales of automobiles, especially commercial
vehicles, and a resulting slowdown in the auto parts industry contributed to slowing diesel
consumption in the world’s fastest growing fuel market.
 Nuclear power generation grew most rapidly in Asia, where generation increased 12%, up 56.3 TWh
to 533.0 TWh, now more than one-fifth of global generation. Worldwide nuclear generation increased for
the sixth successive year, reaching 2,563 Terra Watt Hour (TWh) in 2018.
 Nuclear power catered to more than 10% of global electricity demand according to data compiled by
World Nuclear Association, an international organisation that represents the global nuclear industry.
 “Currently over two billion tonnes of CO2 is avoided by nuclear power each year, by helping to
reduce our global dependence on coal. More than 50 reactors under construction today will avoid
emission of an additional 450 million tonnes of CO2 each year by 2025. By that date nuclear reactors
will avoid emissions equivalent to the annual CO2 emissions from all sectors of Japan, Germany and
Australia, combined,” the statement mentioned.
 Coal stocks have fallen at as many as 47 thermal power plants, with total installed capacity of
67,000 mw, to be barely enough for up to six days. These include a dozen plants which have just two
days’ stocks, eight that have one day’s stocks and six that don’t have stocks for even one day. However,
barring three plants, the situation is not considered ‘critical’ or ‘super critical’ in terms of coal stocks
because they have used more coal than they were to be supplied between April and now.
 According to data compiled by the Central Electricity Authority, four of these 47 plants have been
running at more than 90% capacity utilisation while nine have been running at 80-90% capacity
utilisation. Eight plants ran at 70-80% capacity utilisation. A dozen power plants ran at 60-70% capacity
utilisation.
 Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam on Wednesday withdrew an extradition Bill
that triggered months of often violent protests so the Chinese-ruled city
can move forward from a "highly vulnerable and dangerous" place and find
solutions.
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