CURRENT AFFAIRS

COMPENDIUM
2020

“ There never was a time in

our history when ignorance
of current affairs could be
“
so dangerous
- Edgar Dale

Department of Management Studies

INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY DELHI
(Institute of Eminence, Govt. of India)
1. POLITY & CONSTITUTION

1.1. Removal of Article 370 and 35A-

The Centre decided to end the special status given to Jammu
and Kashmir (J&K) under Article 370.
Art. 370 had “temporary provisions with respect to the State
of Jammu and Kashmir” which gave special powers to the
state allowing it to have its own Constitution. According to
article 370, except for defence, foreign affairs, finance and
communications, Parliament needs the state government’s
concurrence for applying all other laws.
Article 35A of the Indian Constitution, which stemmed out of
Article 370, gave powers to the Jammu and Kashmir
Assembly to define permanent residents of the state, their
special rights and privileges.

President issued a presidential order under Article 370 (1) of

the Constitution. This clause enables the President to specify
the matters which are applicable to Jammu and Kashmir in
concurrence with the Jammu and Kashmir government.
The order amended Article 367. Article 367 contains
guidance on how to read or interpret some provisions. The
amended Article declares that “the expression ‘Constituent
Assembly of the State…’ in Article 370 (3) shall be read to mean
‘Legislative Assembly of the State’. Article 370(3) provided
that the Article 370 was to be amended by the concurrence of
the Constituent Assembly. However, because of the
amendment, it can now be done away by a recommendation
of the state legislature.

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In other words, the government used the power under 370(1)
to amend a provision of the Constitution (Article 367) which,
then, amends Article 370(3). And this, in turn, becomes the
trigger for the statutory resolution - Resolution for Repeal of
Article 370 of the Constitution of India. As Jammu and Kashmir
is under the president rule, concurrence of governor is
considered as “Jammu and Kashmir government”.

1.2. National Register Of Citizens (NRC)

The updated and final National Register of Citizens, which
validates bonafide Indian citizens of Assam has was released
with over 19 lakh applicants having failed to make it to the list.
The NRC has its roots in the Memorandum of Settlement or
the Assam Accord signed between the Assam State Students
Union and the Government of India in 1985. The accord was
an outcome of the violent anti-migrant movement of the 1980s
and contained various clauses to curb illegal migration.
The Citizenship Act of 1955 was amended after the Assam
Accord for all Indian-origin people who came from
Bangladesh before January 1, 1966 to be deemed as citizens.
o Those who came between January 1, 1966 and March 25,
1971 were eligible for citizenship after registering and living in
the State for 10 years while those entering after March 25, 1971,
were to be deported. However, nothing much happened over
the decades.
In 2014, the Supreme Court asked the state government to
update the 1951 NRC in a time-bound manner. Present
exercise in Assam has been conducted under the supervision
of the Supreme Court.
The National Register of Citizens is a list of all the legal
citizens of Assam, the only state with such a document.

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It is governed by the Citizenship Act, 1955, and the Citizenship
(Registration of Citizens and Issue of National Identity Cards)
Rules, 2003 (amended in 2009) and a 2010 order of the Ministry
of Home Affairs, published in the Gazette of India.
It will include persons whose names appear in any of the
electoral rolls upto the midnight of 24th March, 1971 or National
Register of Citizens, 1951 and their descendants.
NRC Vs Census: The census is conducted every decade, on a
national level and gives the state a window into the size and
nature of Indian population. But the NRC is a unique exercise
for the onus to prove citizenship lies with the citizens. They
have to, through a documentary evidence, show how they have
come to be citizens of India living in Assam.

1.3. Regulating Social Media

In August’19, the Tamil Nadu Government told the Supreme
Court that social media profiles of users should be linked
with their Aadhaar numbers.
The Tamil Nadu government is seeking Aadhaar-social media
linking after two PILs were filed in the Madras HC for
authentication of identity. o But, the Madras High Court
dismissed the original plea to link Aadhaar to social media
accounts as it violated the Supreme Court's judgment on
Aadhaar.
On the other hand, various social media platforms including
Facebook have voiced their opinion against such a move, as
they fear it may be misused against them. o Different high
courts have conflicting opinions regarding this and these
platforms seek to transfer all these petitions to the Supreme
Court
The Supreme Court has highlighted that there is a need to find
a balance between the right to online privacy and the right of
the state to trace the origins of hateful messages and fake
news.

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However, the point of contention is on the manner in which
social media should be regulated.
A larger stakeholder conversation is required between
companies, law enforcement agencies, civil societies,
academicians and technical experts.
Social media can be brought within a degree of regulation by
adopting data protection laws. If these companies don’t
gather a lot of data, or if there is the right to correct data, it will
provide a higher degree of security to people.

1.4. National Population Register

Recently, government has decided to prepare a National
Population Register (NPR) by September 2020 to lay the
foundation for rolling out a citizens' register across the country.
The NPR is a list of “usual residents of the country”. o
According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, a “usual resident of
the country” is one who has been residing in a local area for at
least the last six months, or intends to stay in a particular
location for the next six months.
• The NPR is being prepared under provisions of the Citizenship
Act 1955 and the Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and issue
of National Identity Cards) Rules, 2003. o The Citizenship Act
1955 was amended in 2004 by inserting Section 14A which
provides for the following:-
✓ The Central Government may compulsorily register every
citizen of India and issue National Identity Card.
✓ The Central Government may maintain a National Register of
Indian Citizens (NRIC) and for that purpose establish a National
Registration Authority.
✓ Out of the universal data set of residents, the subset of
citizens would be derived after due verification of the
citizenship status. Therefore, it is also compulsory for all usual
residents to register under the NPR.

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• NPR will be conducted at the local, sub-district, district, state
and national levels.
• It will be conducted in conjunction with the first phase of the
Census 2021, by the Office of the Registrar General of India
(RGI) under the Home Ministry. o Only Assam will not be
included, given the recently completed NRC.

NPR vs Aadhar
The data collected in NPR will be sent to UIDAI for de-
duplication and issue of Aadhaar Number.
• Voluntary vs. Mandatory: It is compulsory for all Indian
residents to register with the NPR, while registration with the
UIDAI is considered voluntary.
• Number vs. Register: UID will issue a number, while the NPR
is the prelude to the National Citizens Register. Thus, it is only a
Register.
• Authentication vs. Identification: The UID number will serve as
an authenticator during transactions. It can be adopted and
made mandatory by any platform. The National Resident Card
will signify resident status and citizenship. It is unclear what
circumstances the card will be required for use in.
• UIDAI vs. RGI: The UIDAI is responsible for enrolling
individuals in the UID scheme, and the RGI is responsible for
enrolling individuals in the NPR scheme.
• Door to door canvassing vs. center enrollment: Individuals will
have to go to an enrollment center and register for the UID,
while the NPR will carry out part of the enrollment of
individuals through door to door canvassing.
• Prior documentation vs. census material: The UID will be
based off of prior forms of documentation and identification,
while the NPR will be based off of census information.

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Data collected in NPR
• The NPR will collect both demographic data and biometric
data.
• There are 15 different categories of demographic data,
ranging from name and place of birth to education and
occupation.
• For biometric data it will depend on Aadhaar, for which it will
seek Aadhaar details of the residents.
• It is working to update the Civil Registration System of birth
and death certificates.
• While registering with the NPR is mandatory, furnishing of
additional data such as PAN, Aadhaar, driving licence and voter
ID is voluntary.
How is it different from census and NRC?
• The exercise is different from the decennial Census and is not
linked to the National Register of Citizens (NRC).
• Census doesn’t ask for individual identity details, and at the
end of the day, is a macro exercise. The NPR, on the other
hand, is designed to collect identity details of every individual.
o Census data is protected by a confidentiality clause. The
government has committed that it will not reveal information
received from an individual for the headcount. NPR would
serve as the mother database to verify citizenship if a
nationwide NRC is carried out later.
• Unlike the NRC, the NPR is not a citizenship enumeration
drive, as it would record even a foreigner staying in a locality
for more than six months. o Once the NPR is completed and
published, it is expected to be the basis for preparing the
National Register of Indian Citizens (NRIC), a pan-India version
of Assam's National Register of Citizens (NRC).

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1.7. One Nation One Language
Recently, on the occasion of Hindi Diwas, the Union home
minister had proposed to promote Hindi as the country’s
common language.
The debate over One Nation One Language started in the
constituent assembly debates on
1. the official language. Hindi was voted as official
language, however due to outpour and anti-Hindi
agitation from various sections, English was also
continued as an associated official language.
2. Earlier the draft National Education Policy 2019 also
had some sections which were interpreted as
imposition of Hindi language and had to be amended
later.
3. In this background, the debate over one nation one
language has resurfaced in the country.

Basis for promoting Hindi language

• Article 351: It shall be the duty of the Union- o to promote the
spread of the Hindi language,
o to develop it so that it may serve as a medium of expression
for all the elements of the composite culture of India and
o to secure its enrichment by assimilating without interfering
with its genius, the forms, style and expressions used in
Hindustani and in the other languages of India specified in the
Eighth Schedule.
• Article 120 and 210 regarding language to be used in
Parliament and state legislature respectively gives the option
of transacting business in Hindi as well in English.
• Article 343 gives power to parliament to decide by law, the
languages to be used for official work.

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• Article 344 provides for constitution of a parliamentary
committee every 10 years to recommend to the President
regarding progressive use of the Hindi language for the official
purposes of the Union and restrictions on the use of English.

To preserve our ancient philosophy, our culture and the

memory of our freedom struggle, it’s important that we
strengthen our local languages simultaneously without
being biased towards any one language.
The need today is to respect, protect and nurture diversity
of our nation so that unity is ensured and it lies in the quality
of unity and togetherness. Those who talk about ‘one nation’
must realise that the true meaning of oneness lies in its quality
of unity and togetherness.
While the development of Hindi is undoubtedly a
constitutional command the Union government cannot ignore,
however, the manner in which it is done should not give the
impression to the States that there is creeping imposition of
Hindi. At the same time three language policy can also be
pondered upon.
1.10. Internet as Basic Right
Recently, in Faheema Shirin v. State of Kerala, the Kerala High
Court declared the right to Internet access as a fundamental
right.
While the Kerala High Court judgment acknowledges the role
of the right to access Internet in accessing other fundamental
rights, it is imperative that the right to Internet access and
digital literacy be recognised as a right in itself.

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 1. In this framework the state would have
2. o A positive obligation to create infrastructure for a
minimum standard and quality of Internet access as
well as capacity-building measures which would allow
all citizens to be digitally literate and
3. o A negative obligation prohibiting it from engaging
in conduct that impedes, obstructs or violates such
a right.
1. UNHRC resolution on Internet access
2. • People have the same rights online as well as
offline, "in particular freedom of expression, which
is applicable regardless of frontiers and through
any media of one's choice”.
3. • Any measures to "intentionally prevent or disrupt
access" to internet are "condemned
unequivocally," and all states should "refrain from
and cease such measures”.
4. Three generation of Human Right
5. • First-generation, “civil-political” rights deal with
liberty and participation in political life.
6. • Second-generation, “socio-economic” human
rights guarantee equal conditions and treatment.
4. • Third-generation, “collective developmental” rights
of peoples and groups held against their respective
states aligns with the final tenet of “fraternity.”

1.11. Right to be Forgotten

Recently, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled
that EU regulations on the right to be forgotten do not apply
beyond its boundaries.

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 1. GDPR and Right to be Forgotten
• GDPR states that individual shall have the right to obtain from
the controller the erasure (deletion) of personal data
concerning him or her without undue delay and the controller
shall have the obligation to erase personal data.
• It has outlined the circumstances under which EU citizens
can exercise this right under six conditions, including
withdrawal of consent to use data, or if data is no longer
relevant for the purpose it was collected.
• However, the request may not be entertained in some
situations such as if the request contradicts the right of
freedom of expression and information, or when it goes
against public interest in the area of public health, scientific or
historical research or statistical purposes.
About Right to be Forgotten (RTF)
1. • It refers to the ability of individuals to limit, de-link,
delete, or correct the disclosure of personal
information on the internet that is misleading,
embarrassing, irrelevant, or outdated. o Such
disclosure, may or may not be a consequence of
unlawful processing by the data fiduciary.
Right to be forgotten (RTF) in India
• At present, the right to be forgotten is not well-established
in India. The draft Personal Data Protection Bill, 2018 provides
a limited right to be forgotten.
o Unlike the GDPR, the Personal Data Protection Bill, 2018 only
provides for prevention of continuing disclosure of personal
data and not the deletion of personal data.

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✓ The grounds for exercising this right include cases where the
disclosure of the personal data has served the purpose for
which it was made or is no longer necessary; this
determination has to first be made by an Adjudicating
Officer.
1. ✓ The Adjudicating Officer also has to be satisfied that
the right to be forgotten overrides the right to
freedom of speech and expression, and the right to
information of any citizen.

2. INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
2.1. US-China Trade War
US formally labelled China a currency manipulator, further
escalating its trade war with China.
It's the first time that the US labelled a country a manipulator
since the 1990s, when China was also the target. The move
came after the People’s Bank of China (PBOC), the central bank
of China, allowed the yuan to suddenly depreciate relative to
the dollar by 1.9 per cent — one of the biggest single-day falls.
It signalled that the ongoing trade war between the world’s
two biggest economies was now turning into a currency war
as well.
The US and China trade is heavily skewed in favour of the
China. In 2018, the US had a trade deficit of $419.2 billion with
China.
In August, 2017, US President Trump asked US Trade
Representative to begin an investigation for possible tariff
hikes on Chinese goods.

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o It promptly started in January 2018, when Trump
imposed a 30 per cent tariff on foreign solar panels and 20
per cent tariff on the first 1.2 million washing machines
imported during the year. Both the moves primarily hurt
Chinese interests.
o US imposed heavy tariffs on imported steel and
aluminum items from China and it responded by
imposing tit-for-tat tariffs on billions of dollars worth of
American imports.
The dispute escalated in to trade war in which US
demanded China to reduce US $375 billion trade deficit,
and introduce “verifiable measures” for protection of
Intellectual Property Rights, technology transfer, and
more access to American goods in Chinese markets.
Made in China 2025 also drew the ire of US because of its
focus on making China the dominant player in emerging
fields of technology and manufacturing, as well as its
support for domestic firms with subsidies.
Lower world GDP: In a report earlier this year, the IMF
noted that the US-China trade tension was one factor that
contributed to a “significantly weakened global
expansion” late last year, as it cut its global growth
forecast for 2019.
o According to a Bloomberg Economics report, uncertainty
over trade could lower world gross domestic product by
0.6 per cent in 2021 compared to a no-trade-war scenario.
o If US and China continue to raise tariff and non-tariff
barriers, the global economic growth rate will fall to a
seven-year low of 2.8% and worse still, the world economy
could enter a recession in near future.

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2.2. No First Use Doctrine
Union Defence Minister recently said that India reserves the
right to change its policy of 'No First Use' (NFU), based on
future circumstances which has been the cornerstone of India's
nuclear weapons policy for decades.
"No First Use" is a pledge taken by a country to not use
nuclear weapons as a means of warfare unless a rival nation
resorts to such an action first.
These policies are generally declaratory in nature and there is
no diplomatic arrangement in place to either verify or enforce it.
o Those that have pledged can still use nuclear weapons first in
a conflict.
India adopted the "No First Use" policy after the Pokhran II
tests in 1998, asserting that its newly acquired arsenal will be
used only as a deterrent.
In recent times, many important leaders have called for the
policy to be scrapped.
o Late Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said in November
2016 that India should not "bind itself" through such a pledge
o Lieutenant General BS Nagpal, former commander-in-chief
of the Strategic Forces Command, recently described it as a
"formula for disaster".
On 4th January 2003 India’s official nuclear doctrine was
released. It spelled out two of the contingencies under which
nuclear weapons were to be used
o When Indian territory is under a nuclear attack, or
o Indian forces that may be outside India are under attack.
All doctrines need periodic reviews and India’s nuclear doctrine
is no exception. With the rapidly changing strategic
environment if India’s policymakers feel the need to review the
nation’s nuclear doctrine, they should be cognizant of the costs
involved in so doing. A sound policy debate can only ensure if
the costs and benefits of a purported policy shift are discussed
and debated widely.

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2.3. G-7
India was invited as a special guest for attending the 45th G-7
Summit in France.
It is an intergovernmental organisation that was formed in
1975.
Initially it was formed as an effort by the US and its allies to
discuss economic issues, which included battling a global oil
crisis.
The G7 or 'Group of Seven' are Canada, France, Germany,
Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States
which discuss issues such as global economic governance,
international security, and energy policy.
The G7 was known as the ‘G8’ for several years after the
original seven were joined by Russia in 1997. The Group
returned to being called G7 after Russia was expelled as a
member in 2014 following the latter’s annexation of the
Crimea region of Ukraine.
The G7 nations meet at annual Summits that are presided
over by leaders of member countries on a rotational basis.
The G7 does not have a formal constitution or a fixed
headquarters. The decisions taken by leaders during annual
Summits are non-binding.
India is not a member of the G7 group.
No involvement of major countries like Russia, China etc:
The rise of India, China, and Brazil over the past few decades
has been reducing the G7’s relevance, whose share in global
GDP has now fallen to around 40%. The G7’s future has been
challenged by continued tensions with Russia, disagreements
over trade and climate policies

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Competition from G20: Group of Twenty’s (G20) rise is
becoming as an alternative forum. The power and prestige of
the G20 has surpassed that of the G7. Emerging powers
including Brazil, China, India, Mexico, and South Africa, whose
absence from the G7 was often noted, all belong to the G20.
The group’s member states represent about 80 percent of
global GDP and two-thirds of the world’s population.

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2.4. Kashmir Issue at Global Forums
Abrogation of Article 370 has brought about Kashmir issue at a
global level with both countries keeping their stand.
Related information-
Why plebiscite never happened?
• On 5 January 1949, UNCIP (United Nations Commission for
India and Pakistan) resolution stated that the question of the
accession of the State of Jammu and Kashmir to India or
Pakistan will be decided through a free and impartial plebiscite.
• However, as a prerequisite it was required that Pakistani
nationals and tribesmen, who had come to fight in Kashmir, be
withdrawn. This never happened and both countries failed to
arrive at a Truce agreement.
Article 35 & 51 of UN Charter Act
• It has been argued that had India taken the matter to the
United Nations under Article 51 of the UN Charter, instead of
Article 35, the outcome would have been different.
• Article 35 says that any member of the UN may take a dispute
to the Security Council or General Assembly if the parties to a
dispute are not able to resolve the matter through negotiations
between them
• Article 51 says that a UN member has the “inherent right of
individual or collective self-defence” if attacked, “till such time
that the Security Council has taken measures necessary to
maintain international peace and security”.
• However, the outcome of this was setting up of a United
Nations Mission invoked under Article 34.
India’s stand on Kashmir issue-
Article 370: India’s position that the abrogation of Article 370 is
an ‘internal matter’. For India, not just the state of Jammu and
Kashmir but even Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (Pok) is an
integral part of Indian territory

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. India believes that there is no scope for redrawing
boundaries. Absorption of J&K into the Indian Union is a
strictly domestic issue and does not affect India’s external
boundaries—either the Line of Control with Pakistan or the
Line of Actual Control with China.
How India has tackled Kashmir issue at Global level?
• No mediation from other country: India has mostly
succeeded in conveying that it would brook no third-party
mediation. o Diplomats of other countries and pundits familiar
with South Asia recognise India’s stance on Kashmir and that
any third-party mediation is unacceptable to India. o India
does not recognize the nine-country UN Military Observer
Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP), which has been in
existence since 1949 to monitor the ceasefire in the first Indo-
Pak war.
1. • Diplomatic win: India has been able to get its way
mostly on this — the nuclearisation of South Asia and
the growing global interest in India’s economy.
2. • United nations: United Nations Secretary-General in
January 2018 too ruled out any mediation for resolving
the Kashmir issue unless all parties agreed to it -- and
asked India and Pakistan to address all outstanding
issues through talks.
3. The recent move for internationalization of Kashmir
issue has been largely unsuccessful as India has been
able to remain on its stand with support from
international community. Indian security establishment
is perhaps internationalizing the Kashmir terrorism but
not the Kashmir problem.

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2.5. Dispute Settlement System of WTO
The Appellate body of the Dispute Settlement System of the
WTO is on the verge of becoming dysfunctional due to delay
in filling its vacant seats.
Dispute Settlement System (DSS) is a mechanism to
resolve trade disputes between member states. It utilises
both political negotiation and adjudication for dispute
resolution.
The Uruguay Round negotiations (1986-1994) culminated in
the creation of the DSS and the adoption of the Dispute
Settlement Understanding (DSU) to govern trade disputes
between member states.
The DSU embodies important principles for the functioning of
the DSS:
o to provide stability and predictability to the multilateral
trading system
o to establish a fast, efficient, dependable and rule-oriented
system to resolve disputes
Dispute Settlement Body: The General Council is WTO’s
highest decision-making body and it also meets as the DSB.
o It is essentially a political body and it administers rules and
procedure of the DSU.
o Decisions are taken here by the reverse consensus method.
That is, the decision is adopted unless there is consensus
against it.
Appellate Body (AB): AB is a seven-member permanent
organ that adjudicates appeals within the DSS.
o Members are appointed by the DSB for four-year terms.
1. o It follows the positive consensus mechanism.

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2.6. India- ASEAN: Review of Free Trade Pact
Recently, India and Association of South-East Asian nations
(ASEAN) agreed to review the Free Trade Agreement (signed
in 2009).
ASEAN, is a geo-political and economic organization with 10
member countries, formed in August 1967 by Indonesia,
Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.
The membership expanded to include Brunei Darussalam,
Cambodia, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Myanmar
and Vietnam.
ASEAN is India's fourth largest trading partner.
• India's trade with ASEAN stands at US$ 81.33 billion, which is
approx. 10.6% of India's overall trade. India's export to ASEAN
stand at 11.28% of our total exports.
• Between 1995 and 2016, trade between India and ASEAN
grew at a compound average growth rate (CAGR) of about 11.9
percent.
• However, India’s goods trade deficit has widened. The trade
gap was $22 billion in FY19, up from $13 billion in FY18.
India’s interest in collaborating with Southeast Asia is linked
to potential benefits in varied sectors such as agriculture,
energy, and gas. As India has a comparative advantage in the
services sector, especially information technology services,
domestic regulations in ASEAN economies need to be
liberalised to promote cross-regional cooperation.
Further, ASEAN member countries and India have been
working towards ratifying the Regional Comprehensive
Economic Partnership Agreement, which is expected to
improve trade and investment among all member countries.
This process needs to be expedited.

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Greater progress is envisioned in India-ASEAN relations upon
liberalisation of the services trade (particularly Mode 4 –
movement of natural persons).
Trade facilitation measures, thus would reduce the volume of
documentation required – and thereby the time of transit –
necessary to improve economic exchanges between India and
Southeast Asian countries.

2.7. India-China Economic Relation

Recently, India hosted the 6th India-China Strategic
Economic Dialogue.
India-China Strategic Economic Dialogue is a bilateral dialogue
platform between the planning bodies of India and China- the
Planning Commission of India (now Niti Aayog) and the
National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) of
China. The idea of having such a dialogue was first floated by
Premier Wen Jiabao on his visit to India in 2010.
Other such India-China Economic and Commercial platform
• Joint Economic Group led by the Commerce Ministers of both
sides.
• Development Research Center Dialogue and the Financial
Dialogue led by Secretary Department of Economic Affairs of
India and Vice Minister, Ministry of Finance of China.
Bilateral trade: Today, China is India’s largest trading
partner; whereas India is within the top ten of China’s trading
partner.
o A trade deficit of $51.11 billion USD with China is a cause
for concern for India because it signifies an inability to compete
with Chinese manufactured goods.
o A significant trade imbalance in favor of China, market access
issues, and security considerations have kept bilateral trade
limited.

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o Chinese exports to India include manufactured goods such
as electrical machinery and power equipment while Indian
exports comprise mainly of resource-based items such as iron
ore and cotton.
o India was the largest export destination of Fertilizers exports
from China.
o Even in sectors where India has a competitive advantage,
such as pharmaceuticals where India accounts for 20 percent
of global generic medication production, Indian firms find it
difficult to enter Chinese markets.
Investment: In 2014, China announced an investment of $20
billion USD in India over the next five years, such as in industrial
park projects in Gujarat, Haryana, and Maharashtra. o This
investment was expected to scale up India’s manufacturing
capabilities and assist India in reducing its trade deficit with
China.
o There has been significant private investment from China in
Indian start-ups, especially those focused on technology and
e-commerce.
• Banking: Seven Indian Banks have a branch of representative
office in China. Chinese bank, Industrial and Commercial Bank
of China (ICBC) has one branch in India in Mumbai.
• FDI: China’s foreign direct investment (FDI) into India between
April 2000 and June 2017 stood at $1.67 billion USD, which is
only 0.49 percent of the total FDI inflows into India over the
same period. o Still, India’s continued emphasis on greater
Chinese investment in manufacturing has yielded some
results—60 percent of Chinese FDI into India from April 2000
to September 2015 went into automobile manufacturing and
smartphone company.

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China’s protectionist policies: They hinder the ability of Indian
companies to enter Chinese markets. India has been pushing
China to open up its market to Indian IT, pharmaceuticals, and
agri-products, as well as for increased Chinese investments to
reduce their trade deficit.
Lack of Market Access: Indian pharmaceutical firms that
already have a presence in China complain about a lack of
market access and overly restrictive regulatory procedures,
which India has continually addressed with China, to little avail.
Land acquisition challenges: Due to which some of the
Chines projects have moved slowly.
China’s Belt and road initiative: After India boycotted the BRI
summit for the second time in a row, China tried to rope in India
to his Belt and Road Initiative with vows to prevent debt risks.
China’s vast size, its growing middle class, and its bid to move
towards a domestic consumption-based economy mean it
offers great potential as a future market for Indian goods
and services as well as a source of greater investments.
Overall, a stronger India-China economic relationship can be
beneficial for both countries, especially considering that India
plans to strengthen its industrial sector and China plans to
move up the value chain with respect to its manufacturing
sector.
Investment by China in Indian firms provides them with much-
needed capital to scale up their capabilities while China gains
greater technological skills, especially considering India’s
comparative advantage in sectors such as IT as well as
other legal, consulting, and marketing services.

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2.8. Russian Far-East
Recently, the 20th India-Russia annual summit and the fifth
meeting of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) was held in
Vladivostok, Russia.
The focus of the visit was on the development of the Far East
for which India has extended a $1 billion line of credit.
The Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) established in 2015 aims
to support the economic development of Russia’s Far East, and
to expand international cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region.
o Among the participants in this fifth Summit are India,
Malaysia, Japan, Australia, and South Korea.
o In the last five years, as many as 17 different countries have
invested in the Far East.
Importance of Russian Far East for India
• Resource Rich Region: The region is sparsely populated and
underdeveloped. With the centre of gravity of global
economics shifting to Asia, India can play an active role in its
development.
o The region has 98 per cent of diamond and 50 per cent of
gold are mined, is one the top priorities for the Russian
government.
1. • Investment Opportunities: For Indian investors which
can bring returns in the areas of oil and petroleum
fields like Sakhalin-I and Vankorneft among other
areas.
2. • Connectivity: A proposal for maritime route
between Chennai and Vladivostok has been made.

24
3. ECONOMY
3.1. Bank Merger
Recently government announced to merge 10 state-owned
banks to create four large banks.
Under the plan, Oriental Bank of Commerce and United Bank
of India will be merged with Punjab National Bank; Canara Bank
with Syndicate Bank; Andhra Bank and Corporation Bank with
Union Bank of India; and Allahabad Bank with Indian Bank.
This merger would bring number of public schedule bank in
India from 27 before 2017, to 12.
Global Banks: Big Indian Banks can slowly and gradually
transform themselves into global banks. With consolidation, the
Indian banks will gain greater recognition and higher rating in
the global market.

25
Risk management and large loans: Merger will result in better
NPA and Risk management. Also, Banks will not be reluctant to
approve big loans to averse the risk.
Customer service: Larger size of the Bank will help the merged
banks to offer more products and services and help in
integrated growth of the Banking sector.
Human Resource: The wide disparities between the staff of
various banks in their service conditions and monetary benefits
will narrow down
Improve regulation: From regulatory perspective, monitoring
and control of a smaller number of banks will be easier after
mergers.
1. To Reduce cost:
2. o These banks are owned by government and each
bank are competing with other for the same pie (in
terms of deposits or loans) in the same narrow
geographies, leading to each one incurring costs.
3. o The volume of inter-bank transactions will come
down, resulting in saving of considerable time in
clearing and reconciliation of accounts.
4.

3.2. Development Bank

Finance minister recently announced setting up a development
bank as a slew of measures to boost the economy and financial
market sentiments.
Development banks are financial institutions that provide long-
term credit for capital-intensive investments spread over a
long period.

26
These banks also extended useful services such as in-house
technical expertise, underwriting new capital issuance and
creating confidence in other lenders.
They performed a counter-cyclical role to ensure investment
flows even during economic downturns and actively
supported regional integration and the internationalisation of
domestic companies.
In India, Development Banking was started immediately after
Independence.
Industrial Finance Corporation of India (IFCI) is the first
development bank in India. It started in 1948 to provide finance
to medium and large-scale industries in India.
After 1991, following the Narasimham Committee reports on
financial sector reforms, development finance institutions were
disbanded and got converted to commercial banks.
Reliable and well-administered development financial
institutions with a well-defined mandate and sound
governance framework is an important vehicle to accelerate
economic and social development. They can create new
channels to crowd-in the private sector. Moreover, they can
play a catalytical role by generating new knowledge,
convening stakeholders, and providing technical assistance to
build capacity in the private and public sectors.

3.3. Slowdown in Indian Economy

Recent economic data Indicates that there is slowdown in
Indian economy
Current situation in India
GDP: The recently released government data showed that
Gross domestic product (GDP) grew at 5% in the first quarter of
FY20. This is marking the slowest growth since the fourth
quarter of FY13.

27
Investment: The investment rate as measured by Gross Fixed
Capital Formation (GFCF) as a per cent of GDP is showing a
declining trend. o GFCF as a per cent of GDP has declined from
34.3 per cent in 2011 to 28.8 per cent in 2018.
Similarly, the GFCF in the private sector declined from 26.9 per
cent in 2011 to 21.4 per cent in 2018.
Saving: Saving declined from 32.7 per cent in 2011 to 29.3 per
cent in 2018. The decline in savings rate is because the
economy is experiencing a declining wage growth (both rural
and urban wages).
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.
Export: During the period from 2011-2018, exports as a per cent
of GDP also declined from 24.5 per cent to 19.6 per cent.
Inflation: The inflation rate in the economy has declined from
10.03 per cent in FY13 to 3.41 per cent in FY19. Low inflation
rate depicts weakening of demand that would discourage
fresh investments and job creation.
What is cyclic slowdown?
A cyclical slowdown is a period of lean economic activity that
occurs at regular intervals. Such slowdowns last over the
short-to-medium term, and are based on the changes in the
business cycle.
Generally, interim fiscal and monetary measures, temporary
recapitalisation of credit markets, and need-based regulatory
changes are required to revive the economy.
What is structural slowdown?
A structural slowdown, on the other hand, is a more deep-
rooted phenomenon. It is driven by disruptive technologies,
changing demographics, and/or change in consumer
behaviour.

28
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.
Is slowdown cyclic or structural?
There has been a lot of discussion regarding the economic
slowdown that India is currently experiencing.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), in its annual report for 2018-19,
has said that the recent deceleration could be in the nature of a
soft patch mutating into a cyclical downswing, rather than a
deep structural slowdown.
Although RBI acknowledge that there are still structural issues
in land, labour, agricultural marketing and the like, which need
to be addressed.
Causes of slowdown
Global economy: With the US-China Trade war and Brexit,
global sentiments have remained poor, making the prospects
of an export-led growth bleak.
Series of disruptions: A series of reform like Demonetisation,
GST etc create disruptions in economy and gives a severe blow
to consumption and export growth.
Tight monetary and fiscal policy: Since 2016-17, the monetary
policy was focused on inflation. combined fiscal deficit of the
centre and the state was high. And government committed to
lowering its fiscal deficit, it left little room for government to
increase its spending to boost the economy.
Financial sector: Stress in financial sector due to rising NPA
and NBFC crisis created liquidity crunch.

29
3.4 SLOWDOWN IN AUTO-INDUSTRY
Reasons for slowdown
NBFC crisis: Nearly half the vehicles sold in rural markets are
financed by non-banking financial companies (NBFCs). Since
IL&FS crisis last year auto-industry faces a severe liquidity
crunch which almost drying up credit for dealers and
customers.
Policy reset: Meddling by multiple ministries and policy
flip-flops like leapfrogging from BS IV to BS VI, sudden
diesel ban, New axle load norms and EV thrust have hurt
sales o There is a possibility that some customers are
waiting to buy the latest Bharat Stage (BS)-VI emission
standard compliant vehicles or are waiting for more
incentives from vehicle makers who will be looking to sell
off their BS-IV compliant stocks before the April 1, 2020
deadline.
o In July 2018, the government increased the official
maximum load-carrying capacity of heavy vehicles by 20-
25 percent with the aim of bringing down logistics costs.
This adversely affects sale of commercial vehicles
o The lack of a clear migration policy towards Electric
Vehicles (EV) creates confusion among buyers,
contributing towards a reduction in auto sales.
• Multiple shocks: Starting with demonetization, many
decisions like GST roll-out and multi-year insurance have
weighed heavy on consumers.
• Shared mobility: Tech-led shared mobility from firms
such as Ola and Uber have dented demand in urban
market.
• Election pause: Big transitions like elections are known
to push consumers into wait-and-watch mode on buying
costly items like cars.

30
 • Growing organised pre-owned vehicle market: Over
the past five years, the size of pre-owned market has
expanded significantly, with higher share of organised
players. This may impact new vehicle demand, especially
in case of sharp price hikes.
A reduction in GST to 18% from the current rate of 28% will
help in an immediate price reduction and boost demand.
• Government should take timely measures to handle the
NBFC crisis to infuse liquidity into the system

3.5. Consumer Protection Act 2019

President gave assent to the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.
The new Act, which would replace the Consumer Protection
Act, 1986, is not an amendment to the 1986 law, but a new
consumer protection law.
It aims to address consumer vulnerabilities to new forms of
unfair trade and unethical business practices in the fast-
changing new-age economy.
A consumer is defined as a person who buys any good or
avails a service for a consideration. It does not include a person
who obtains a good for resale or a good or service for
commercial purpose. It covers transactions through all modes
including offline, and online through electronic means,
teleshopping, multi-level marketing or direct selling.
Central Consumer Protection Authority will be set up to
promote, protect and enforce consumer rights. It can issue
safety notices for goods and services, order refunds, recall
goods and rule against misleading advertisements.

3.6. Agricultural Credit

Recently, the report of the internal working group to review the
agricultural credit was released by RBI.
.

31
Agricultural Finance in India – A brief history
Phase 1 (1951-69):
o Thrust on developing primary sector since 1st FYP in 1951.
o National Credit Council in 1968 emphasized that commercial
banks must increase financing to small scale industries and
agriculture
o Nationalization of banks in 1969 put thrust on opening of
rural/semi-urban bank branches
Phase 2 (1970-1990):
o The decade of 1970s marked the entry of commercial banks
into agricultural credit with Lead Bank Scheme and regulatory
prescription of Priority Sector Lending (PSL).
Regional Rural Bank Act, 1976 enacted to specifically provide
banking and credit facility for agriculture and other rural
sectors
o National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development
(NABARD) established in 1982 to promote agricultural and
rural development, particularly by financing SHGs and
MFIs
o RBI introduced in 1989 service area approach (SAA) &
Annual Credit Plan (ACP) system to increase outreach to
rural areas
Phase 3 (1991-onwards)
o Implementation of Narasimham Committee Report of
1991 to increase operational efficiency of banks
o 1st major nationwide farm loan waiver in 1990
o Establishment of Rural Infrastructure Development
Fund (RIDF) with NABARD mainly meant for funding rural
infrastructure projects
o NABARD started a pilot project SHG-Bank Linkage
Programme in 1992.

32
Mechanisms of Agriculture Credit in India
Priority Sector Lending: PSL was introduced to ensure that
vulnerable sections of the society get access to credit and that
there is an adequate flow of credit to employment intensive
sectors like agriculture and MSME. o Besides the overall PSL
targets, banks are required to achieve agriculture target of 18%
and a sub-target of 8% of Adjusted Net Bank Credit (ANBC) for
small and marginal farmers.
Priority Sector Lending Certificates (PSL-Cs) were introduced
in 2016 to support comparative advantage of different banks in
their respective areas of specialization.
Interest Subvention Scheme (ISS) was launched for short
term crop loans in 2006-07. 2% interest subvention is given to
farmers, which is reimbursed to banks (through RBI and
NABARD). Additionally, 3% prompt repayment incentive (PRI) is
provided for good credit discipline. o Interest subvention is
also available on loan against negotiable warehouse receipts
issued on the produce stored in warehouses accredited with
Warehousing Development Regulatory Authority (WDRA)
Kisan Credit Card (KCC) Scheme, introduced in 1998, aimed at
providing adequate and timely credit with flexible and
simplified procedure for agriculture related and also
consumption requirements of farmer households.
Self Help Group - Bank Linkage Programme (SHG-BLP)
aimed at harnessing the flexibility of an informal system with
the strength and affordability of a formal system. The SHG-
BLP model accepted informal groups as clients of banks –
both deposit and credit linkage & allowed collateral free
lending to groups.
Joint Liability Groups (JLG) Scheme was initiated by NABARD
in 2006 to enhance credit flow to share croppers/tenant
farmers who do not have land rights.

33
Way Forward
Improve the Reach of Institutional Credit: o Complete the
digitization process and updation of land records in a time
bound manner.
o Reforming of land leasing framework by adopting policies
like the Model Land Leasing Act proposed by NITI Aayog, which
intends to make all lease agreements formal and enhance
access to formal credit. Under Andhra Pradesh Land Licensed
Cultivators Act, 2011, Loan Eligibility Cards (LECs) were issued to
tenant farmers, allowing them to approach banks for credit.
o Establish a federal institution in agriculture on the lines of
GST Council to enable consultation with states during
formulation & implementation of reforms
o Improve institutional credit delivery through technology driven
solutions. Banks should explore collaborations with agri-tech
companies/startups.
Addressing regional disparity: PSL guidelines should be
revisited for improving the credit off-take in central, eastern and
north eastern states.
Increasing Credit Flow to Allied Activities: Set separate targets
for loans towards allied activities under Ground Level Credit
(GLC) & Priority Sector Lending (PSL) guidelines.
Enhancing the sub-target of SMFs under PSL: Considering that
total operated area held by SMFs would amount to 51.85% by
the year 2020-21, increase the share of agricultural credit under
PSL to SMFs to 10% from current 8%.
Create a better mechanism to estimate oral lessees,
sharecroppers and tenant farmers, which have significant
presence across the states.
Interest Subvention Scheme: Replace interest subvention
scheme with DBT to targeted beneficiaries, on lines similar to
PM-KISAN scheme. To check mis-utilization of interest subsidy,
banks should provide crop loans only through KCC mode

34
3.7. Price Fluctuation of Agricultural Products
Recently, agricultural market has been witnessing the soaring
price of onions.
The price fluctuation of agri-products particularly TOP
(Tomato, Onion and Potato) in the last two years has been a
major issue in Agri-market.
Why price of onion has increased?
Seasonal Phenomenon: Onion price rise in September every
year due to seasonality, and is further accelerated every
alternate year due to storage and supply related constrains.
India has 3 crop seasons of onion: Kharif, Late Kharif and Rabi.
This rabi crop (harvested between April and May) meets the
export as well as domestic demand until the arrival of the
Kharif crop in the months of October-November.
1. Thus, every year, there is a spike in prices starting in
September which stretches until October and early
November. This is because stocks of rabi onion are low
and kharif onion is yet to arrive in the market.
Other reasons for price fluctuations
Distorted price support system: Price Forecasting Mechanism
for MSP (other than TOP) has been inadequate which leads to
suboptimal production of agricultural products (bumper or
poor production), which further leads to volatility in price of
products.
Moreover, any increase in price support system (MSP and
Procurement Price) may lead to rise in price of food products.
Global Trade: Advancement of agricultural trade liberalisation
lead to transmission of international price volatility into
domestic markets.
Cascading Effect: Multiple Intermediators in production chain
of agri-product and various levy charges by agricultural market
(Mandis) along the supply chain, have cascading effects on the
prices of agricultural products.

35
Inadequate infrastructure: High transportation cost (rising oil
price, poor road connectivity), lack of cold storage facilities, high
storage cost, inadequate food processing infrastructure
especially for perishable Agri-products make them prone to
price fluctuation.

3.8. Distress in Telecom Sector

In a dispute between Department of Telecommunications and
Telecom companies over the meaning of Adjusted Gross
Revenue (AGR), the Supreme court has given a judgement in
favour of government, according to which telecom operators
will have to pay additional dues of over Rs 1.3 lakh crore.
Government has also decided to merge the two loss-making
telecom PSUs BSNL and MTNL as part of their revival package.

36
Challenges being faced by Indian Telecom sector
Tariff war- the price of data is at an average of Rs 8 per GB,
which is one of the lowest in the world and calling service has
also been made virtually free. So, monthly average revenue
per user (ARPU) has plunged to Rs 113 in FY19 from Rs 174 in
FY15.
Low level of capital expenditure- because of cut-throat
competition in the sector, the sector is short of around 7 lakh
crore investment that is needed to provide qualities as
promised by 4G technology.
Large debts- telecom sector is under a debt of around Rs. 4
lakh crores because of various investment related and other
activities.
Limited Spectrum Availability- government auction spectrum
at an exorbitant cost and hence the available spectrum is less
than 40% as compared to European nations and 50% as
compared to China.
Import dependence- India imports around 40 billion dollars of
telecom equipment including infrastructure to setup 5G
technology.
Over the top services- Over the Top (OTT) applications such
as WhatsApp hampers the revenue of telecommunication
service provider.
High regulatory dues- spectrum liabilities, penalties, interests
etc further add to the burden.
High taxes- taxes and levies in the Indian telecom sector,
ranging from 29% to 32%, are one of the highest globally.

37
3.9. Vehicle Scrappage Policy
The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has formulated
Draft Guidelines for setting up, authorisation and operation of
Authorized Vehicle Scrapping Facility (AVSP) to legalise the
industry in India.
Scrappage is the process in which End of life - vehicles are
disposed of, typically using shredders that tear them down into
tiny pieces of metal which can then be recycled. Other non-
metal parts of the vehicle are also disposed of in an
environmentally sustainable fashion.
1. End of life – Vehicles means vehicle
2. o Not have valid registration,
3. o Owners are willing to voluntarily scrap their vehicles,
4. o Enforcement authorities have to scrap vehicles
impounded or seized by them, or
5. o In accordance with any court directions.
Benefits of Vehicle scrappage
• • Boost Auto Sector: vehicle scrappage policy encourages
vehicle owners to scrap vehicles older than 15 years and
purchase new ones instead.
• • Control Air Pollution: It helps reduce air pollution by
removing older and more polluting vehicles from the roads.
• • Encourage reuse: India imports 6 million tonnes of scrap
steel, which can be managed from proper dismantling
treatments of automobiles.
• • Job Opportunity: The policy is expected to generate new
business and job opportunities as new scrapping centres
are set up across the country.
• • Boost Economy: This will support the steel and other
sectors as well, and will benefits the broader economy.

38
4.Turkey’s attack on Kurdhish territory in Syria

• Turkey attacked Kurdish-run territory in northern Syria soon

after the US withdrew their troops from Syria. Kurds were
the major allies of US in Syria in the fight against ISIS.
• The attack is because Turkish government fears Kurd-
dominated forces in Syria will link up with Kurdish rebels in
Turkey, who have been fighting for a breakaway state for
decades.
• About Kurds: The Kurds are the world’s largest stateless
ethnic group. They live in the highlands of southern and
eastern Turkey, northern Iraq, the north-eastern Syria,
north-western Iran, and parts of south Armenia, and are a
minority in each of these countries. Small communities live
in Georgia, Kazakhstan, Lebanon, and eastern Iran as well.
After World War One and the defeat of the Ottoman
Empire, the victorious Western allies made provision for a
Kurdish state in the 1920 Treaty of Sevres. But the Treaty of
Lausanne (1923), which set the boundaries of modern
Turkey, made no provision for a Kurdish state and left
Kurds with minority status in their respective countries.

5.Hong Kong Protests

• Hong Kong has seen months of protests sparked by a
controversial plan to allow extraditions to mainland China.
• The existing extradition law states that it does not apply to
"the Central People's Government or the government of
any other part of the People's Republic of China".
• But the proposed changes would have allowed for the
Hong Kong government to consider requests from any
country for extradition of criminal suspects, even countries
with which it doesn't have an extradition treaty and
including mainland China, Taiwan and Macau.

39
• These protests have brought into focus the "one country,
two systems" deal under which Hong Kong is governed.
• When Hong Kongwas handed over to China in 1997 by
Britain, both sides agreed that the city would remain a
semi-autonomous region under the Basic Law, its mini-
Constitution, for 50 years.
• The Basic Law provides people in Hong Kong more
political freedoms than their counterparts in mainland
China.
• There is a relatively free press, an unregulated Internet and
a less-controlled judiciary in Hong Kong. But China has
increasingly tried to exert its influence on the city in recent
years, raising concerns of the city’s pro-democracy groups.
• The protest movement is leaderless. Protesters are now
demanding greater democracy and an inquiry into alleged
police brutality during past demonstrations.

6.Climate Action Summit

• The UN 2019 Climate Summit was convened on the theme,

‘Climate Action Summit 2019: A Race We Can Win. A Race
We Must Win’ by UN Secretary General.
• It has key focus on raising ambition and accelerate action
to implement the Paris Agreement.
• It is built on the outcomes of the Global Climate Action
Summit (GCAS), the 73rd session of the UN General
Assembly (UNGA 73), COP 24 to the UNFCCC, and the
Global Conference on Strengthening Synergies between
the Paris Agreement and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development.

40
• It seeks to develop ambitious solutions in six areas: A global
transition to renewable energy; sustainable and resilient
infrastructures and cities; sustainable agriculture and
management of forests and oceans; resilience and
adaptation to climate impacts; and alignment of public and
private finance with a net zero economy.

CURRENT AFFAIRS
SEPTEMBER

Awards and Recognition:

Amitabh Bachchan selected for Dadasaheb Phalke award
2018. (India’s highest award in the field of cinema)
IIFA Awards-
Best film-Raazi
Best actor male-Ranveer Singh
Best actor female-Aliya Bhatt
Narendra Modi was conferred the Global Goalkeeper award
2019 for his leadership in Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.
Persons in News:
Kristalina Georgieva of Bulgaria has been appointed as the new
MD of IMF. She succeeded Christine Lagarde.
Jack Ma officially retires from the position of chairman of
Alibaba group.
Air Marshal Rakesh Kumar Bhadauria has been appointed as
the next chief of Indian Air Force. He succeeded BS Dhanoa.
National and International news:
Assam government has released the final list of National
Register of Citizen (NRC). In this list out of the total population
of approximately 3.1 crore of Assam, 19 lakhs people are
excluded.
Union government announced the complete ban on e-
cigarette in India.

41
Two major oil production facilities of Saudi Aramco, Saudi
government’s oil company, came under drone attack on 14
september. Houthi rebel group based in Yemen claimed the
responsibility of this attack.
Business & Commerce:
Union finance ministry reduced the corporate tax rate from
30% to 22% (effective from 1 April 2019). With inclusion of cess
and surcharge the effective tax rate will be 25.17%. And for
domestic manufacturing companies incorporated after 1st
October 2019 the tax rate is even reduced to 15%.
Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced the
merger of 10 public sector banks into each other. After this
merger these will be organized into only 4 banks. After this
merger the total PSBs in India will come down from 27 to 12.
RBI has decided to transfer 1.76 lakh crore rupees out of its
reserves to the central government. This decision was taken on
the recommendation of Bimal Jalan committee.
RBI puts Punjab and Maharashtra Cooperative bank under its
direction this puts a ban on withdrawal of money from the
bank accounts for six months. This comes as RBI found found
that 73% of PMC’s total loan was only given to HDIL.
Science & Technology:
India’s Chandrayan 2 could not be completed successfully in
the final stage. Its Vikram lander failed to soft land on the lunar
surface.
8 Apache AH 64E combat helicopter inducted into IAF.
Sports:
US Open 2019- Men’s single champion- Rafael Nadal
Women’s single champion- Bianca Andreescu
Lionel Messi won the FIFA best player of the year award for
the record sixth time.
Viral Kohli became most successful test captain surpassing MS
Dhoni.

42
 OCTOBER

Awards and Recognition:

• Noble prizes:
Physics- Michel Mayor, Didier Queloz, James Peebles
Chemistry- Akira Yoshino, Stanley Whittingham, John
Goodenough
Medicine- Sir Peter Retcliffe, Gregg Semenza, William
Kaelin Jr
Litreature- Olga Tokarczuk(2018) as last year it was not
announced as selection committee was hit by controversy
under MeToo movement , Peter Handke(2019)
Peace- Abiy Ahmed Ali (PM of Euthopia)
Economics- Michael Kremer, Abhijit Banerjee, Esther
Duflo

• Booker Prize- Margaret Atwood, Bernardine Evaristo

For the first time it is jointly given to two writers
• Greta Thunberg won Right Livelihood Award (This is also
known as alternative Noble prize.
• Infosys won the UN Global Climate Action award.
Person in News:
• Indian journalist Kalli Purie was awarded India’s most
powerful women in Media. She is the vice-chairperson of
India Today group.
• IAS officer Pankaj Kumar has appointed as the new CEO of
UIDAI.
National & International News:
• India received the first of the 36 Rafale jets on 8th of October
which is Indian Air force day.

43
• Assam government has passed a new rule that after 1st
January 2021 no government jobs will be given to persons
with more than 2 children.
• Turkey launched a military offensive against Kurdish Rebels
in Turkey-Syria border. This came after US withdrew its
troops from Syria.
• Justin Trudeau re-elected as PM of Canada.
• South American country Ecuador has announced that it will
leave its membership of OPEC in 2020.
• The third Plenary meeting of Financial Action Task Force
was held in Paris where the decision was taken to keep
Pakistan on its Grey list.
Business & Commerce:
• RBI cut Repo rate by 25 basis point to 5.15%.
• IRCTC enter Stock market for the first time by launching their
IPO. By this government has offered its 12.5% stake in the
IPO.
Summits & Reports:
• Indian PM Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping
held an informal summit at Mamallapuram in Tamil Nadu.
• International Food Policy Research Institute released its
Global Hunger list 2019. India ranked 102nd out of 117
countries that were surveyed.
Sports:
• Sourav Ganguly has been appointed as the new President of
BCCI.
• Rohit Sharma broke Don Bradman’s test average record on
home soil.
• Women World boxing championship 2019 was hosted in
Russia. MC Mary Kom, Jamuna Boro and Lovlina Borgohain
won bronze medal in their respective category. Manju Rani
won silver medal in 48 kg wieght category.

44
 NOVEMBER

Awards and Recognition:

• Greta Thunberg and Divina Maloum won International
Children’s Peace Prize 2019.
• Human rights activist from China Ilham Tohti awarded
Sakharov prize for freedom of thoughts 2019. He was
awarded while he was in jail.
Persons in News:
• Justice Sharad Arvind Bobde appointed as the 47th Chief
Justice of India.
• Union government appointed Girish Chandra Murmu and
Radha Krishna Mathur as Lt. Governors for the newly
created UTs of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh
respectively.
• Former Chief election commissioner T.N. Seshan passed
away.
• US President Donald Trump announced that ISIS chief Abu
Bakr al Baghdadi was killed in US raid.
Places in News:
• Union Government announced the plan to merge the UT
of Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu.
• UNESCO’s creative city list 2019 has 2 Indian cities in it.
Mumbai as creative city of films and Hyderabad as
creative city of biryani and other cuisines.
• Kanpur is mentioned as Most Polluted city in Guinness
World record 2020.

45
National & International news:
• The Supreme court announced its verdict in Ayodhya Ram
janm bhoomi – Babri Masjid dispute. The bench comprised
of CJI Ranjan Gogoi, Justice Ashok Bhushan, New CJI SA
Bobde, Justice DY Chandrachur and Justice S. Abdul
Nazeer. In unanimous 5-0 verdict court ruled that the
disputed land will be given to hindus for the construction of
the Ram temple and 5 acres of alternate land will be given
to the Sunni Waqf board to build Mosque.
• The supreme court ruled that the office of CJI will come
under RTI.
• Kartarpur corridor between India and Pakistan opened for
pilgrims.
• Gotabaya Rajapaksha elected as the new President of
Srilanka. And Mahindra Rajapakshe appointed as the PM of
Srilanka.
Business & Commerce:
• Amazon India announced to launch Project Zero as an
effort to stop selling of counterfeit goods on its platform.
Summits & Reports:
• Third Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership
(RCEP) summit held at Thailand. India decide to stay out of
it.
• 11th summit meeting of BRICS held at Brasilia the capital
city of Brazil. Theme for 2019 was Economic Growth for an
Innovative Future.
• World Bank released the Ease of doing business rankings
2020. India improve 14 places and secured 63rd place in the
list.
Science & Technology:
• China has officially launched the 5G telecom services.
• ISRO launched advance Earth imaging and mapping
Cartosat-3 satellite along with 13 other nano satellite by
using its PSLV C47 rocket from Sriharikota.

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Sports:
• Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah has retained the top rank
ICC’s ODI batsmen and bowler rankings 2019 respectively.
• Manu Bhaker won gold in shooting world cup 2019 in air
pistol 10m category. In the process she also broke the
junior world record. With this win she has secured her
position in the Tokyo 2020 olympics.

DECEMBER

Person in news:
• Sunder Pichai has been appointed as the new CEO of
Alphabet Inc.
• Greta Thunberg has been appointed as a Time Magazine
2019- Person of the year.
• Union government has approved the creation of new post
of Chief of Defence staff (CDS). Gen. Bipin Rawat will be
appointed as the first CDS.
• Sanna Marin has been elected as the PM of Finland. The 34
year old become the world’s youngest PM.
National & International news:
• Parliament passed (citizenship amendment) bill, 2019. The
bill aims at providing citizenship to six minority community
from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan.
• The Parliament has Passed the transgender Persons
Protection of rights bill, 2019. The bill provides the
recognition of identity of transgender persons and to
confer upon them the right to self-perceived gender
identity, It provides every transgender person right to
reside with parents and immediate family members, it
prohibits discrimination against a transgender person
including unfair treatment and denial of service to
educational or employment institutions or other
opportunities available to public.

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• The alliance of Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, Congress and
Rashtriya Janta Dal won a massive victory in Jharkhand
state elections. The alliance won 47 in the 81 membered
assembly. Hemant Soren of JMM was sworn in as a new
CM of Jharkhand.
• The current British PM Boris Johnson won the second term
in the election held in December.
• The house of representatives of US parliament has voted to
impeach the President Donald Trump. He has been
charged with the abuse of power and obstruction in the
functioning of the US Congress. He has been alleged to
have illegally sought the help from Ukraine to tarnish the
image of his political rivals including Joe Biden during the
201 Presidential election.
• Special court in Pakistan has awarded the death penalty to
the former President Pervez Musharraf for his decision to
impose national emergency in 2007
Business & Commerce:
• The RBI released its fifth Bi-monthly monetory policy
statement 2019-20. Major highlights are:-
• Repo Rate unchanged at 5.15%.
• GDP growth estimates reduced from 6.1% to 5%.
• Consumer price inflation estimate raised from 3.6 to 5.5%.
• NCLAT has reinstated Cyrus Mistry as the executive
chairman of TATA Sons Group.
• Saudi Aramco has announced its first IPO. This is the
world’s largest IPO.
Summits & Reports:
• UN climate summit 2019 was held at Madrid in Spain.
• Human development Index 2019 was released. Norway
gets first position while India stands at 129 out of 189
countries.

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Sports:
• Ballon d’or 2019 awards were announced.
• Ballon d’or men went to Lionel Messi and Ballon d’or
women went to Megan Rapinoe.
• Indian Spinner Kuldeep Yadav became first Indian bowler
to take two ODI hat tricks.
• World anti-doping agency has recommended a global
four-year sports ban on Russia. This ban will include
hosting and participating in major international sports
events including Tokyo Olympics 2020, Beijing winter
Olympics 2022 and FIFA world cup 2022.

India’s rank in Different Indices

1. Human development Index 2018 - India’s rank: 130 (Norway

tops)
2. Global Peace Index 2019 - India’s rank: 141st (Finland tops)
3. Global Corruption Perception Index 2018 - India’s rank: 78th
(Denmark tops)
4. World Happiness Index 2019 - India’s rank: 140th (Finland
tops)
5. Global Innovation Index 2018 - Released by World
Intellectual Property Organisation
India’s rank: 57th (Switzerland tops)
6. Ease of Doing Business 2019 - Released by World Bank
India’s rank: 77th (New Zealand tops)
7. World Press Freedom Index 2019 - India’s rank: 140th
(Norway tops)
8. Henley Passport Index 2019 - India’s rank: 86th (Japan &
Singapore tops)
9. Global Talent competitiveness Index 2019 - India’s rank:
80th (Switzerland tops)

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Current RBI Policy Rates

(As on December 5 2019)

Repo Rate 5.15%
Reverse Repo Rate 4.90%
Bank Rate 5.40%
Marginal Standing Facility Rate 5.40%
Cash Reserve Ratio 4.00%
Statutory Liquidity Ratio 18.50%

International Organizations & Summits

· South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC):
It is the organization of South Asian countries. The South Asian
Association for
Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is the regional
intergovernmental organization
and geopolitical union of nations in South Asia.
Its member states include Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan,
India, Nepal, the
Maldives, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
SAARC HQ: Kathmandu, Total member states: 8.
· BRICS : Organisation of large economies of NICs (Newly
industrialized countries)
namely Brazil, Russia, China, India, South Africa.
2019 BRICS Summit: Brazil
· G4 nations: Informal group of countries which support each
other’s bids for
permanent seats on the United Nations Security Council. It
consists of India,
Germany, Japan and Brazil.
· Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and
Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC): international organization
involving a group of countries in South Asia and South East
Asia.These are: Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka,
Thailand, Bhutan and Nepal.

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2019 BIMSTEC Summit: Srilanka
· G7 Countries: The group of seven consists of Canada,
France, UK, US, Germany
and Italy. 2019 G7 Summit was held in France

Top E-commerce
· Flipkart: Kalyan Krishnamurthy
· Snapdeal: Kunal Bahl
· Paytm: Vijay Shekhar Sharma
· Ola: Bhavish Aggarwal
· Oyo rooms: Ritesh Aggarwal
· Alibaba: Jack Ma
· Amazon: Jeff Bezos
· Uber: Dara Khosrowshahi
Some other important CEOs/Chairman
· Amul: R.S. Sodhi
· Tata group: Natarajan Chandrasekaran
· Birla group: Mr. Kumar Mangalam Birla
· Reliance industries: Mr. Mukesh Ambani
· ITC Ltd: Yogesh Chander Deveshwar
· Wipro: Abidali Neemuchwala
· Infosys: Salil Parekh (CEO & MD)
Some foreign CEOs
· Apple: Tim cook
· Tesla motors: Elon Musk
· Google: Sunder Pichai
· Microsoft: Satya Nadella
· PepsiCo: Ramon Laguarta
· Facebook: Mark Zuckerberg
· Walmart: C. Douglas McMillan
· LinkedIn: Jeff Weiner
· Yahoo: Marissa Mayer
· Twitter: Jack Dorsey

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Tag Lines
Foreign companies
· The world's local bank: HSBC
· Always low prices. Always: Wal-Mart
· it’s everywhere you want to be: VISA
· Eat fresh: Subway
· All the news that's fit to print: The New York Times
· Just do it: Nike
· Your potential. Our passion: Microsoft
· Because I'm worth it: L’Oréal
· Don’t dream it. Drive it: Jaguar
· The power of dreams: Honda
· The most trusted name in news: CNN
· Think different: Apple
· Good food, Good Life: Nestle
· Impossible is nothing: Adidas
· Get there: Uber
· To fly to serve: British Airways
· The ultimate driving machine: BMW

Indian companies
· Britannia: Eat healthy, Think better
· Amul: The taste of India
· Pepsi: Pepsi thi pee gya
· Thumbs Up: Taste the Thunder
· Surf excel: Daag Acche hain
· Asian Paints: Har ghar Kuchch Kahta hai
· Frooti: Fresh N Juicy
· Raymond’s: The Complete Man
· Dairy Milk: Kuch meetha ho jaye
· Polo: The mint with a hole
· MRF: Tyres with Muscle
· Idea: An Idea can Change your life

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· Airtel: Express Yourself
· Tata Sky: Isko laga dala to life zingalala
· LIC: Zindagi ke Saath bhi, Zindagi ke bad bhi
· Chlormint: Dobara mat poochna
· Tata Salt: Desh ka namak
· Big Bazar: Naye India ka bazaar
· The Indian express: Journalism of Courage
· Videocon: The Indian Multinational
· Mentos: Dimag ki batti jala de
· ICICI Bank: Khayal Aapka
· Alpenlibe: Jee lalchaye, raha na jaye
· HDFC Std Life: Jiyo sar utha ke
· Reliance Industries: Growth is life
· Bank of Baroda: India's international Bank
Car companies and their native countries
· Toyota: Japan
· Volkswagen: Germany
· General motors: USA
· Ford: USA
· Maruti, Tata motors: India
· Hyundai: South Korea
· Honda: Japan
· Fiat Chrysler: Italy
· Nissan: Japan
· BMW: Germany
· Kia Motors: South Korea
Companies and their well-known Products
· Fiama di wills soap, vivel soap, wills lifestyle, john player’s
clothes, sun feast biscuits,
Ashirwad Atta: ITC Ltd.
· Lux, lifebuoy soaps: Hindustan unilever
· Cinthol, Kesh kala: Godrej
· Dettol soaps: Reckitt Benckiser
· Maggi: Nestle
· Madura Fashion & Lifestyle sells in-house brands such as
Louis Philippe, Van Heusen,
Allen Solly, Peter England and People: Aditya Birla Group
· Parle-G, Hide n Seek Biscuits: PARLE

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Name of G-20 nations, stock exchange and official currency

54
Economy of India
· The country is classified as a newly industrialized country, and
one of the G-20 major
economies, with an average growth rate of approximately 7%
over the last two
decades.
· Maharashtra is the wealthiest Indian state followed by UP and
Tamilnadu.
· India's largest trading partners are China, USA, UAE, Saudi
Arabia, Switzerland,
Germany, Hong Kong, Indonesia, South Korea, and Malaysia.
· GDP is the monetary value of all the finished goods and
services produced within a
country's borders in a specific time period.
· India's Nominal GDP ~2.972 trillion dollars. (2019)
· India's rank in world economies by size of GDP (nominal): 5th
India's rank in world economies by size of GDP (PPP): 3rd
· GDP Growth forecast for 2019-20: 7.0% by IMF, ADB and 7.5%
by World Bank
There are 3 sectors in Indian Economy:
Contribution of different sectors in Indian GDP:
· Primary sector (Agriculture): around 16%
· Secondary sector (Industry): around 30 %
· Tertiary sector (Service): around 54%
Ease of doing business rank of India 2019: 77
Trade partners in decreasing order:
· India's main export partners: - Arab league, European Union,
USA, ASEAN, China,
Hong Kong and Japan.
· India's main import partners: - Arab League, China, ASEAN,
European Union, USA,
Hong Kong, South Korea and Japan.
Inflation in India is measured by Consumer Price Index.

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There are 8 core industries in India-
· Electricity
· Steel
· Refinery products
· Crude oil
· Coal
· Cement
· Natural gas
· Fertilisers
The eight core industries of coal, crude oil, natural gas, refinery
products, fertilisers, steel,
cement and electricity, which have a 40.27% weight in the
Index of Industrial Production.
The output of coal, crude oil, natural gas and refinery products
recorded negative growth in
July 2019.
These eight-core sector industries had expanded by 7.3 per
cent in July last year.
During April-July, the eight sectors grew by 3 per cent
compared to 5.9 per cent in the same
period previous year.
11. India has one of the fastest growing service sectors in the
world with an annual growth
rate above 9% since 2001.
Important World Organizations & Head Quarters
· World Bank: Washington DC, USA
· International Monetary Fund [IMF]: Washington DC, USA
· World Health Organization [WHO]: Geneva, Switzerland
· World Trade Organization [WTO]: Geneva, Switzerland
· International Labour Organization [ILO]: Geneva, Switzerland
· United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
(UNCTAD): Geneva, Switzerland

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· New Development Bank (BRICS Development Bank):
Shanghai, China
· Asian Development Bank: Manila, Philippines
· United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF): New York, USA
· United Nations Populations Fund (UNFPA): New York, USA
· United Nations Education Scientific & Cultural Organisation
(UNESCO): Paris,
France
· International Atomic Agency: Vienna, Austria
· Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC):
Vienna, Austria
· Amnesty International: London, UK
· International Maritime Organisation: London, UK
· Commonwealth of Nations: London, UK
· South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC):
Kathmandu, Nepal
· Association of South East Nations (ASEAN): Jakarta,
Indonesia
· Food & Agricultural Organisation (FAO): Rome, Italy
· International Court of Justice: The Hague, the Netherland
· International Solar Alliance: Gurugram, India

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