Asian Development Bank (ADB)

♦ The Union Government and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed a $98 million loan on 29 November 2024 to improve horticulture crop farmers’ access to certified disease-free planting materials, which will boost their crops’ yield, quality, and resilience to climate impacts.

♦ The project supports the Government’s Atmanirbhar Clean Plant Programme (CPP) that enhances plant health management. It will help develop regulatory framework and institutional systems to effectively implement the CPP for horticulture in India.

♦ The project will involve close consultation with private nurseries, researchers, state governments, and growers’ associations to ensure its success and sustainability.

ASSOCHAM-Egrow report

♦ According to the ASSOCHAM-Egrow report, India’s nominal GDP is forecasted to surge from $3.5 trillion in 2023 to $22.8 trillion by 2047, with an annual growth rate of 7.5%.

♦ The report has projected that India’s economic transformation by 2047 will be driven by the manufacturing and services sectors, which are expected to employ 67% of the workforce and contribute 75% of the country’s GDP. 

♦ The services sector is set to dominate, increasing its GDP share from 54.2% in 2023 to 60% in 2047. Manufacturing will see modest growth, accounting for 18% of GDP, while agriculture’s contribution is expected to decline sharply to 10%, reflecting the ongoing structural transformation of the economy.

♦ Employment patterns will mirror this shift. By 2047, the services sector is expected to employ 52.3% of the workforce, compared to just 24.3% in 2000. Manufacturing employment will also rise, growing from 10.9% in 2023 to 15% in 2047. Conversely, agriculture’s share of employment is projected to drop dramatically, from 59.4% in 2000 to 22%.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB)

♦ The Asian Development Bank (ADB) Board of Governors has unanimously elected Masato Kanda as ADB’s 11th President on  28 November 2024.

♦ He is currently serves as Special Advisor to Japan’s Prime Minister and Minister of Finance.  Kanda will assume office in February 2025, succeeding Masatsugu Asakawa. 

♦ Since 2016, Kanda has served as Chair of the OECD Corporate Governance Committee, overseeing the review of the G20/OECD Principles of Corporate Governance in 2023.

♦ ADB is a regional development bank established in 1966, which is headquartered in Manila, Philippines. The bank also maintains 31 field offices around the world to promote social and economic development in Asia.

♦ The bank admits the members of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific, and non-regional developed countries. Starting with 31 members at its establishment, ADB now has 68 members.

Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA)

♦ The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approved the Income Tax Department’s PAN 2.0 project with an allocation of Rs.1,435 crore  on 25 November 2024. 

♦ The PAN 2.0 project aims to introduce a technology-driven overhaul of taxpayer registration services, offering several key benefits, including improved accessibility, faster service delivery, enhanced data accuracy, eco-friendly processes, cost efficiency, and upgraded infrastructure security for greater agility.

♦ The project will consolidate core and non-core PAN/TAN activities and upgrade the PAN validation service, thereby replacing the existing PAN/TAN 1.0 system.

♦ The CCEA noted that the PAN 2.0 project aligns with the government’s Digital India vision by establishing PAN as a universal identifier across digital systems for specified government agencies.

UNICEF

♦ IndusInd Bank and UNICEF announced a strategic partnership to support the 'Disaster Resilient Communities and Climate Risk-Informed Efficient Administrative Systems' as part of the Flagship CSR program of IndusInd Bank.

♦ The program aims to enhance government policies and develop climate-informed administrative systems in five select districts across India: Dharashiv (Maharashtra), Begusarai (Bihar), Virudhunagar (Tamil Nadu), Baran (Rajasthan), and Bahraich (Uttar Pradesh). 

♦ The partnership, formalized through a Statement of Intent (SOI), will focus on building disaster-resilient communities and empowering local governments to implement climate solutions.

S& P Global Ratings

♦ S&P Global Ratings projected the Indian economy to grow between 6.5-7 percent annually in the three fiscal years till March 2027.

♦ India’s infrastructure spending and private consumption will support robust economic growth said S&P Global Ratings in its latest global bank outlook report released on 14 November 2024. 

♦ According to the report, Indian banking sector’s weak loans will decline to about 3.0 percent of gross loans by March 31, 2025, “from our estimate of 3.5 percent as of March 31, 2024”.

♦ For the current fiscal, the Reserve Bank has projected economic growth to be 7.2 percent, lower than 8.2 percent in 2023-24.

Reserve Bank of India

♦ The Reserve Bank of India released its latest list of Domestic Systemically Important Banks (D-SIBs) on 13 Novembet 2024. The list includes State Bank of India, HDFC Bank, and ICICI Bank. 

♦ RBI said SBI, HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank continue to be identified as Domestic Systemically Important Banks (D-SIBs) under the same bucketing structure as in the 2023 list of D-SIBs. 

♦ The framework for D-SIBs was issued in July 2014. SBI and ICICI Bank were identified as D-SIBs in 2015 and 2016, while HDFC Bank was classified as D-SIB in 2017, apart from SBI and ICICI Bank. 

♦ Also as per the D-SIB requirements, SBI and HDFC Bank would need to maintain an additional capital buffer starting April 2025.

World Intellectual Property Indicators 2024 Report

♦ According to the World Intellectual Property Indicators 2024 report, India secured sixth place globally for patents, trademarks, and industrial designs.  This report was published by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) on 12 November 2024. 

♦ In 2023, India recorded a remarkable 15.7% growth in patent applications, the fastest among the top 20 countries. This growth marks the fifth consecutive year of double-digit increases in patent filings.

♦ India now ranks 6th globally with 64,480 patent applications, with over half (55.2%) of these applications coming from domestic applicants - a first for the country.

♦ Furthermore, India granted 149.4% more patents in 2023 compared to the previous year, underscoring the rapid expansion of its IP ecosystem.

♦ The WIPO report also highlighted India’s strong performance in trademark filings, with a 6.1% increase in 2023. India ranked 4th globally for trademarks, with nearly 90% of these filings originating from domestic businesses.

♦ The sectors leading in trademark filings included Health (21.9%), Agriculture (15.3%), and Clothing (12.8%). India’s trademark office now holds the second-largest number of active trademark registrations worldwide, with over 3.2 million trademarks in force.

Global Tuberculosis Report 2024

♦ Global Tuberculosis Report 2024 said that India’s journey towards tuberculosis (TB) elimination has been recognized globally, with a noteworthy 17.7 percent decline in TB incidence from 2015 to 2023.

♦ The rate is twice the global average decline of 8.3 percent. This report was published by the World Health Organization (WHO). 

♦ India, as a signatory to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals had pledged to achieve the “End TB” targets by 2025, five years ahead of the SDG deadline of 2030.

♦ There has been an 80 percent reduction in the TB incidence rate and a 90 percent reduction in the TB mortality rate compared to the 2015 levels.

Gross Goods and Services Tax

♦ Gross Goods and Services Tax (GST) collection in 2024 October rose 9 percent to over 1.87 lakh crore, the second-highest ever, mainly due to rise in domestic sales and improved compliance. The Central GST collection stood at 33,821 crore rupees, State GST at 41,864 crore rupees, Integrated IGST at 99,111 crore rupees and cess at 12,550 crore rupees during the month. The total gross GST revenue grew 8.9 percent to 1,87,346 crore rupees. In October 2023, the mop-up was at 1.72 lakh crore rupees.

♦ October 2024 recorded the second-best GST mop-up. The highest-ever collection was in April 2024 at over 2.10 lakh crore rupees.