Andhra Pradesh has bagged the first rank among all the states in the country in the state business reforms action plan-2019 (BRAP-2019), representing ease of doing business for Atmanirbhar Bharat.
About the Ranking
It is the annual ease of doing business index of states and UTs of India based on the completion percentage scores of action items points of annual Business Reforms Action Plan (BRAP) under the Make in India initiative.
This ranking is based on the implementation of the business reform action plan.
Some of the key focus areas are access to information and technology, the setting up of a single-window system, construction permit enablers and land administration, according to DPIIT.
It based on the progress of states in completing annual reform action plan covering 8 key areas.
The top ten states under the State Reform Action Plan 2019 are:
The cases of suicide and the number of accidental deaths registered an increase across the country last year compared to 2018, according to the annual National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report.
Do you know?
NCRB also released data on hate crimes, fake news, and anti-national activities etc.
(1) Data on Suicides
Statewise data: The maximum cases of mass/family suicides were reported from Tamil Nadu (16), followed by Andhra Pradesh (14), Kerala (11) and Punjab (9) and Rajasthan (7).
Unemployed person: Suicides by unemployed persons amounting to 14% were in Kerala (1,963), followed by 10.8% in Maharashtra, 9.8% in Tamil Nadu, 9.2% in Karnataka and 6.1% in Odisha. Of the 97,613 male suicides, the maximum were daily wage earners (29,092), followed by self-employed persons (14,319) and the unemployed (11,599).
Farmer’s suicide: Majority of victims engaged in the farming sector were reported in Maharashtra (38.2% of 10,281), Karnataka (19.4%), AP (10.0%), MP (5.3%) and Chhattisgarh & Telangana (4.9% each),” said the report.
Rural-Urban: The suicide rate in cities (13.9%) was higher compared to the all-India average. Family problems (other than marriage related problems)’ (32.4%); ‘marriage related problems’ (5.5%); and ‘illness’ (17.1%) accounted for 55% of the total suicides.
Gender-specific cases: The overall male-female ratio was 70.2:29.8. Nearly 68.4% of males were married and the ratio was 62.5% for female victims. While 12.6% of the total victims were illiterate, 16.3% had studied up to primary level, 19.6% up to middle level and 23.3% up to Matriculation level. Only 3.7% were graduates and above.
Defence personnel: In the Central Armed Police Forces, a total of 36 personnel died by suicide, 38.9% were due to “family problems”.
(2) Data on Accidents
Accidental deaths in the country increased by 2.3%. Compared to 4,11,824 in 2018, the figure stood at 4,21,104 last year.
The rate (per lakh population) increased from 31.1 to 31.5. The maximum casualties of 30.9% were reported in the 30-45 years age group, followed by 26% in the 18-30 years’ age group.
The highest rate was reported from Puducherry (72.8), followed by Chhattisgarh (68.6), Maharashtra (57.4), Haryana (54.3), Goa (51.5) and Madhya Pradesh (51.4).
Maharashtra reported the highest deaths (70,329), amounting to nearly one-sixth of the total figure. UP, the most populous state, accounted for 9.6% cases, followed by MP (10.1%).
Maximum deaths (85.4%) were in road accidents. While 38% of the victims were two-wheeler riders, 14.6% involved trucks.
Dangerous/careless driving or overtaking contributed to 25.7% road accidents, claiming 42,557 lives and leaving more than 1 lakh people injured.
(3) Deaths due to disasters
A total of 8,145 deaths were due to the causes attributable to forces of nature, including 35.3% due to lightning, 15.6% by heat/sunstroke and 11.6% deaths in floods.
Maximum deaths (400) due to lightning was reported each from Bihar and Madhya Pradesh, followed by Jharkhand (334) and Uttar Pradesh (321).
Back2Basics: NCRB
The NCRB is an Indian government agency responsible for collecting and analyzing crime data as defined by the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Special and Local Laws (SLL).
It is headquartered in New Delhi and is part of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
It was set-up in 1986 to function as a repository of information on crime and criminals so as to assist the investigators in linking crime to the perpetrators.
It was set up based on the recommendation of the Task-force 1985 and National Police Commission 1977.
PM had announced a panel to fight malnutrition in young women and ensure they get married at the right age. Take a look at how the two are linked:
How prevalent is underage marriage?
Data show that the majority of women in India marry after the age of 21.
Chart 1 shows the mean age of women at marriage is 22.1 years, and more than 21 in all states. This does not mean that child marriages have disappeared.
The latest National Family Health Survey (NFHS-4) found that about 26.8% of women aged 20-24 (Chart 2) were married before adulthood (age 18).
Try this question for mains:
Q. Discuss how marriage age and women’s health are linked with each other?
How does the age of marriage correlate with health?
Preventing early marriage can reduce the maternal mortality ratio and infant mortality ratio.
At present, the maternal mortality ratio — the number of maternal deaths for every 100,000 children born — is 145.
India’s IMR shows that 30 of every 1,000 children born in a year die before the age of one.
Young mothers are more susceptible to anaemia. More than half the women of reproductive age (15-49 years) in India are anaemic.
What delayed marriage can alter?
Poverty, limited access to education and economic prospects, and security concerns are the known reasons for early marriage.
If the main causes of early marriage are not addressed, a law will not be enough to delay marriage among girls.
What do the data show?
Women in the poorest 20% of the population married much younger than their peers from the wealthiest 20% (Chart 5).
The average age at marriage of women with no schooling was 17.6, considerably lower than that for women educated beyond class 12 (Chart 6).
Almost 40% of girls aged 15-18 do not attend school, as per a report of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights.
Nearly 65% of these girls are engaged in non-remunerative work.
That is why many believe that merely tweaking the official age of marriage may discriminate against the poorer, less-educated and marginalised women.
The National Strategy for Financial Education (NSFE): 2020-2025 documents has been released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
Try this question for mains:
Q.What is the role of Financial Education in ensuring financial inclusion in India?
What is the Strategy?
The NSFE for the period 2020-2025, the second one after the 2013-18 NSFE, has been prepared by the National Centre for Financial Education (NCFE) in consultation with all the Financial Sector Regulators (RBI, SEBI, IRDAI and PFRDA.
Other stakeholders include (DFIs, SROs, IBA, and NPCI) under the aegis of the Technical Group on Financial Inclusion and Financial Literacy (TGFIFL) under the Chairmanship of Deputy Governor, RBI.
Key recommendations
The strategy recommends the adoption of a multi-stakeholder approach to achieve financial well-being of Indians.
The document has recommended a ‘5 C’ approach for dissemination of financial education in the country. These include an emphasis on:
development of relevant content in the curriculum in schools, colleges and training establishments,
developing capacity among the intermediaries involved in providing financial services,
leveraging on the positive effect of the community-led model for financial literacy through appropriate communication strategy, and
enhancing collaboration among various stakeholders
Other objectives
The strategic objective is also towards improving usage of digital financial services in a safe and secure manner; as well as bringing awareness about rights, duties and avenues for grievance redressal.
To achieve the vision of creating a financially aware and empowered India, certain strategic objectives have been laid down including:
Inculcating financial literacy concepts among various sections of the population through financial education to make it an important life skill
Encouraging active savings behaviour and developing credit discipline
Indore was declared the cleanest city in India for the fourth consecutive time in the Swachh Survekshan, 2020 — India’s annual survey on cleanliness.
Note the following things about Swachh Survekshan:
1) Nodal Ministry (It is Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs)
2) Authority carrying out the survey
3) Various parameters of the survey
Swachh Survekshan
It is an annual survey of cleanliness, hygiene and sanitation in cities and towns across India.
It ranks India’s cities, towns and states based on sanitation, waste management and overall cleanliness.
It was launched as part of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, which aimed to make India clean and free of open defecation by 2 October 2019.
The first survey was undertaken in 2016 and covered 73 cities; by 2019 the survey had grown to cover 4237 cities and was said to be the largest cleanliness survey in the world.
Survey methodology
The surveys are carried out by the Quality Council of India. The criteria and weightage for different components of sanitation-related aspects used for the survey were:
a) Municipal documentation (solid waste management including door-to-door collection, processing, and disposal, and open defecation free status. These carried 45 per cent of the total 2,000 marks.
b) Citizen feedback – 30 per cent (450 + 150 marks)
c) Independent observation – 25 per cent (500 marks)
Highlights of the 2020 Rankings
Surat in Gujarat and Navi Mumbai in Maharashtra bagged the second and third spot respectively among the cleanest cities with more than a million populations.
Maharashtra’s Karad, Saswad and Lonavala bagged the first three positions for cities having a population less than one lakh.
Among the cities with a population between one and 10 lakh, Chhattisgarh’s Ambikapur was declared the cleanest, followed by Mysore in Karnataka.
In fact, Chhattisgarh has ranked the cleanest state in the category of states having more than 100 Urban Local Bodies (ULB). It was followed by Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh.
In 2019, Chhattisgarh was in the third position in the category. The survey found that Chhattisgarh is the first and only state where every city achieved Open Defecation Free (ODF)++ status.
The data by the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) briefs us about the job losses due to lockdown restrictions imposed because of the COVID pandemic.
We can utilize this data as examples for answer writing.
CMIE data on job losses
Salaried jobs: They suffered the biggest hit during the lockdown, with a total loss estimated to be at 18.9 million during April-July.
Informal and non-salaried jobs: They have shown improvement during the same period increasing to 325.6 million in July from 317.6 million last year, an increase of 2.5 per cent.
Small traders, hawkers and daily wage labourers: They were the worst hit by the lockdown in April, comprising 91.2 million of the jobs lost from the total loss of 121.5 million in that month.
Farm employment: A sharp rise was seen in June to 130 million, with good rains and the consequent sowing absorbing a lot of the labour that was lost in non-farm sectors.
About CMIE
CMIE, or Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy, is a leading business information company.
It was established in 1976, primarily as an independent think tank.
CMIE produces economic and business databases and develops specialised analytical tools to deliver these to its customers for decision making and for research.
It analyses the data to decipher trends in the economy.
The Vice-President has released the Atal ranking ‘ARIIA 2020’.
Note the indicators on which the ARIIA ranking is based. Also try this PYQ:
Q. Which one of the following is not a sub-index of the World Bank’s ‘Ease of Doing Business Index’? (CSP 2019)
(a) Maintenance of law and order
(b) Paying taxes
(c) Registering property
(d) Dealing with construction permits
Highlights of the ARIIA 2020
The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras has topped the ARIIA 2020 under the ‘Best Centrally Funded Institution’ category.
Last year too, the institute emerged as the top innovative institution in the country.
IIT Bombay and Delhi have secured the second and third spots, respectively.
About ARIIA
ARIIA is an initiative of erstwhile Ministry of HRD, implemented by AICTE and Ministry’s Innovation Cell.
It systematically ranks all major higher educational institutions and universities in India on indicators related to “Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development” amongst students and faculties.
ARIIA 2020 will have six categories which also includes special category for women only higher educational institutions to encourage women and bringing gender parity in the areas of innovation and entrepreneurship.
The other five categories are 1) Centrally Funded Institutions 2) State-funded universities 3) State-funded autonomous institutions 4) Private/Deemed Universities and 5) Private Institutions.
Major Indicators for consideration
Budget & Funding Support.
Infrastructure & Facilities.
Awareness, Promotions & support for Idea Generation & Innovation.
Promotion & Support for Entrepreneurship Development.
Innovative Learning Methods & Courses.
Intellectual Property Generation, Technology Transfer & Commercialization.
The Monetary Policy Committee of the RBI has decided to keep the benchmark interest rates of the economy unchanged.
Try this PYQ:
Q.Which one of the following is not the most likely measures the Government/RBI takes to stop the slide of Indian rupee? (CSP 2019)
(a) Curbing imports of non-essential goods and promoting exports
(b) Encouraging Indian borrowers to issue rupee-denominated Masala Bonds
(c) Easing conditions relating to external commercial borrowing
(d) Following an expansionary monetary policy
What is the link between growth, inflation and interest rates?
In a fast-growing economy, incomes go up quickly and more and more people have the money to buy the existing bunch of goods.
As more and more money chases the existing set of goods, prices of such goods rise.
In other words, inflation (which is nothing but the rate of increase in prices) spikes.
How interest rates dominate?
To contain inflation, a country’s central bank typically increases the interest rates in the economy.
By doing so, it incentivizes people to spend less and save more because saving becomes more profitable as interest rates go up.
As more and more people choose to save, money is sucked out of the market and inflation rate moderates.
What happens when growth rate decelerates or contracts?
When growth contracts or when its growth rate decelerates, people’s incomes also get hit.
As a result, less and less money is chasing the same quantity of goods.
These results in either the inflation rate decline.
In such situations, a central bank cuts down the interest rates so as to incentivise spending and by that route boost economic activity in the economy.
Lower interest rates imply that it is less profitable to keep one’s money in the bank or any similar saving instrument.
As a result, more and more money comes into the market, thus boosting growth and inflation.
Why has RBI not raised interest rates this quarter?
RBI is facing an odd situation at present: GDP is contracting even as inflation is rising.
This is happening because the pandemic has reduced demand, on the one hand, and disrupted supply on the other.
As a result, both things are happening — falling growth and rising inflation.
It is true that for containing inflation, RBI should raise interest rates.
And under normal circumstances, it would have done just that. But raising interest rates at this stage would be catastrophic for India’s GDP growth.
Risks of altering interest rates
If the RBI cuts the interest rate, it may be fuelling retail inflation further. It must be remembered that inflation hits the poor the hardest.
So, the RBI has chosen to do what many expected it to do: stay put and waits for another couple of months to figure out how growth and inflation are shaping up.
Back2Basics: Monetary Policy Committee (MPC)
The RBI Act, 1934 (RBI Act) was amended by the Finance Act, 2016, to provide for a statutory and institutionalized framework for an MPC, for maintaining price stability, while keeping in mind the objective of growth.
The MPC is entrusted with the task of fixing the benchmark policy rate (repo rate) required to contain inflation within the specified target level.
The meetings of the MPC are held at least 4 times a year and it publishes its decisions after each such meeting.
As per the provisions of the RBI Act, out of the six members of the committee, three members are from the RBI and the other three Members of MPC are appointed by the Central Government.
Governor of the RBI is ex officio Chairman of the committee.
India’s tiger population has reached a new high at 2,367.
Before reading this newscard, try these PYQs:
The term ‘M-STrIPES’ is sometimes seen in the news in the context of: (CSP 2017)
(a) Captive breeding of Wild Fauna
(b) Maintenance of Tiger Reserves
(c) Indigenous Satellite Navigation System
(d) Security of National Highways
Q.Consider the following protected areas: (CSP 2012)
Bandipur
Bhitarkanika
Manas
Sunderbans
Which of the above are declared Tiger Reserves?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 1, 3 and 4 only
(c) 2, 3 and 4 only
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4
All India Tiger Estimation
The tiger count is prepared after every four years by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) provides details on the number of tigers in the 18 tiger reign states with 50 tiger reserves.
However, this time, the census also included data collected from the rough terrains of north-eastern states which were not possible due to logistic constraints before.
The entire exercise spanned over four years is considered to be the world’s largest wildlife survey effort in terms of coverage and intensity of sampling.
Over 15, 000 cameras were installed at various strategic points to capture the movement of tigers. This was supported by extensive data collected by field personnel and satellite mapping.
Details of the report
India has 70% of the world’s tigers, says the report.
Madhya Pradesh has the highest number of tigers at 526, closely followed by Karnataka (524) and Uttarakhand (442).
Chhattisgarh and Mizoram saw a decline in tiger population and all other States saw a “positive” increase, according to a press statement.
Implementing CATS frameworks
India had embarked upon assessing management interventions through the globally developed Conservation Assured | Tiger Standards (CA|TS) framework.
This framework will now be extended to all fifty tiger reserves across the country.
Back2Basics: Project Tiger
Project Tiger is a tiger conservation programme launched in April 1973 during PM Indira Gandhi’s tenure.
In 1970 India had only 1800 tigers and Project Tiger was launched in Jim Corbett National Park.
The project is administrated by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA).
It aims at ensuring a viable population of Bengal tigers in their natural habitats, protecting them from extinction etc.
Under this project the govt. has set up a Tiger Protection Force to combat poachers and funded relocation of villagers to minimize human-tiger conflicts.
India’s premier organisation mandated to collect data about diseases, the NCDC is failing in its task as the spread of COVID-19 continues unabated.
Practice question for mains:
Q. Health infrastructure in India is hardly capable of handling any pandemic. Critically comment.
About the National Centre for Disease Control
The NCDC carries out nationwide disease surveillance through its Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP).
It is a vertical programme under Directorate General of Health Services.
Its formation
This programme has been present in the country in different avatars since 1997 when the National Surveillance Programme for Communicable Diseases was set up.
This was upscaled to the Integrated Disease Surveillance Project in 2004, with assistance from the World Bank, to address the demands of the WHO’s International Health Regulations, 2005.
Under this, each country had to assess public health emergencies of international concern within 48 hours and report them to WHO within the next 24 hours.
It was then included in the 12th Plan (2012-17) under the Union Health Ministry and renamed IDSP.
Mandate of the NCDC
To aid the process of an investigation, NCDC has put down 10 steps that need to be followed for each outbreak:
Determine the existence of an outbreak
Confirm the diagnosis
Define a case
Search for cases
Generate hypothesis using descriptive findings
Test hypothesis with the analytical study
Draw conclusions
Compare hypothesis with established facts
Communication of findings
Execute preventive measures
Why did NCDC fail?
IDSP’s manual says weekly and monthly updates are mandatory for each State and UTs even if no outbreaks are reported.
But this has never been observed to date.
There is an overlap between the diseases being followed by IDSP and other agencies like the National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme
The fact that IDSP does not collect mortality data was also a concern. Moreover, the IDSP was not investigating zoonotic diseases.
