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On expected lines, the Reserve Bank of India’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) unanimously decided to keep the repo rate unchanged at 6.5 per cent on worries over higher inflation amid uncertain food prices, and revised upwards the real GDP growth forecast to 7 per cent for FY’24 from 6.5 per cent.
Announcing the policy, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said the domestic economic activity is exhibiting resilience supported by robust investment and government consumption.
He, however, warned that the protracted geopolitical turmoil, volatility in global financial markets and growing geo-economic fragmentations, may pose risks to the growth outlook.
After a detailed assessment of the evolving macroeconomic and financial developments and the outlook, it decided unanimously to keep the policy repo rate unchanged at 6.5 per cent, adding that the monetary policy must continue to be actively disinflationary to ensure fuller transmission and anchoring of inflation expectations.
This is the fifth consecutive policy when the RBI has left the repo rate — the rate at which RBI lends money to banks to meet their short-term funding needs — unchanged. Between May 2022 and February 2023, the repo rate was increased by 250 basis points (bps). One basis point is one-hundredth of a percentage point.
In Parliament
Unethical conduct, contempt of house: What the report said (Page no. 5)
(GS Paper 2, Polity and Constitution)
The Lok Sabha expelled Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mahua Moitra from Parliament in a cash-for-query case. Earlier in the day, the Lok Sabha Ethics Committee submitted a report recommending Moitra’s expulsion from the House.
In October, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey, based on a complaint by Supreme Court lawyer Jai Anant Dehadrai, alleged that the Krishnagar MP had asked questions in Parliament in exchange for cash and gifts from businessman Darshan Hiranandani whose business interests conflicted with those of industrialist Gautam Adani. In an affidavit to the Ethics Committee on October 19, Hiranandani claimed that Moitra provided him with her login ID and password for the Lok Sabha members’ website so that he could “post questions” directly “on her behalf when required”.
SC has deployed AI to promote regional languages, RS told (Page no. 5)
(GS Paper 3, Science and Technology)
Union Minister for Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal said that the Supreme Court has deployed SUVAS, a machine-assisted translation tool trained by Artificial Intelligence, in order to promote regional languages in judicial procedure.
SUVAS has been developed with technical support from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. This tool is specially designed for the judicial domain and currently has the capacity of translating English judicial documents, orders or judgments into eleven vernacular languages.
Echoing the same sentiment before commencing the hearing of the pleas challenging Section 6A of the Citizenship Act, 1955, CJI DY Chandrachud remarked that the landmark Kesavananda Bharati verdict, which laid down the “basic structure doctrine” of the Constitution, is available in 10 Indian languages on the SC website so as to reach out to a wider section of Indian society.
Express Network
India climate action fourth strongest says report (Page no. 11)
(GS Paper 3, Environment)
India’s climate actions were rated the fourth strongest in an annual performance index released by Germanwatch, a non-government organisation based in Bonn, marking an improvement of one place from the previous year.
The Climate Change Performance Index ranks 59 countries and the European Union every year on their performance on climate actions.
None of these countries have been able to achieve a “very high” rating over the last few years, because of which the first three ranks are left vacant.
Like last year, Denmark’s performance was rated the best and was ranked fourth. India was in the top five to have moved up this year. The two other countries with better performance than India this year are Estonia and the Philippines.
The index assesses performance on four indicators — country’s total emissions, renewable energy deployment, energy use and climate policy.
India received a high ranking on the greenhouse gas emissions and energy use indicators, and a medium rating on climate policy and renewable energy deployment.
Govt further cuts wheat stock limits, bans onion exports until March 2024 (Page no. 11)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
With an aim to increase domestic availability and keep prices in check, the Government further lowered the limit of wheat that traders can hold. The move came a day after the Government banned exports of onions until March.
Wheat prices have remained elevated despite the Government last year banning exports following a shortfall in production and later imposing restrictions on stock. The all-India daily average retail price of wheat was Rs 30.96/kg, 1.18% higher than last year’s Rs 30.6/kg.
Through an order Friday, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution halved the wheat stock limit to 1,000 metric tonnes (MT) for traders and wholesalers, and to 5 MT for retailers. For big chain retailers, the wheat stock limit was halved to 5 MT at each outlet and to 1,000 MT at all depots.
After banning wheat exports last year, the Centre on June 13 fixed the wheat stock limit at 3,000 MT for traders and big chain retailers. On September 14, it was further reduced to 2,000 MT.
As of November 1, the wheat stock in the central pool stood at 218.76 lakh metric tonnes (LMT), a little higher than 210.46 LMT on the same day last year.
Editorial
A continuing pause (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
The continuing pause by the Monetary Policy Committee of the Reserve Bank of India is no surprise. Nor is the retention of its withdrawal-of-accommodation stance in place since April.
First, although inflation has been trending down, the battle is far from over. While consumer price inflation — the MPC’s primary target — fell within its target range of 2-6 per cent over the past two months, it is still some distance from the preferred figure of 4 per cent.
The RBI expects consumer inflation at 5.4 per cent this fiscal, while our forecast is slightly higher at 5.5 per cent.
The good news is that core CPI inflation has been easing for the last five months. Core — stripped of volatile food and fuel components — is meant to give more durable signals on the inflation trajectory.
At 4.3 per cent in October, the gauge was lower than the overall CPI inflation of 4.9 per cent. The decline in the prices of commodities offered relief, reducing pressure on firms to pass on higher input costs to consumers.
World
Cooperation in Indian Ocean must include all regional nations: Maldives (Page no. 15)
(GS Paper 2, International Relation)
The new Maldives government on Friday said cooperation in the Indian Ocean must include all countries in the region and avoid “factionalism” to bring about development among the ocean communities in the area.
Addressing the China-sponsored second conference of the Indian Ocean Region Forum in Kunming, the capital of Yunnan province in southwest China, Maldives Vice President Hussain Mohamed Latheef said his country stands ready to forge stronger bonds, share expertise, and work hand in hand towards a resilient and prosperous Indian Ocean Region.
Since the Maldives graduated from the list of Least Developed Countries in 2011, it has sought to strengthen its partnerships in the Indian Ocean and beyond to contribute to peaceful co-existence and prosperity in the region, he said.
Cooperation in the Indian Ocean must be inclusive, without discrimination and must include all countries in the region.
Inclusivity would alleviate factionalism and contribute to the development and cooperation of our ocean communities in this region, which has historically been peaceful,” he said in his speech, which was released by the President’s Office in Maldives capital, Male.
Explained
State of geopolitics: Signals from Putin visit to Saudi, UAE (Page no. 16)
(GS Paper 2, International Relation)
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin made a daylong visit to Abu Dhabi and Riyadh and, the very next day, hosted President Ebrahim Raisi of Iran at the Kremlin.
Before this week, Putin had visited only China and Iran after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Russia is seen to have obtained a clear upper hand in the war in recent weeks, with the attention of the West focused on Gaza, and Ukraine facing a crisis of men, weapons, and funds.
The President received a high-octane welcome in the UAE, with a motorcade and full cavalry escort to the presidential palace where there was a 21-gun salute and the Emirati national air show team drew a Russian flag with coloured fumes in the sky.
Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, ruler of the UAE, called Putin his “dear friend”, and said he was happy to meet him again. The President reciprocated the sentiment: “Our relations, largely due to your position, have reached an unprecedentedly high level,” he told Sheikh Mohammed.
Economy
RBI to bring loan aggregators under regulatory net (Page no. 23)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has decided to bring digital loan aggregators under a comprehensive regulatory framework to increase transparency in their operations.
Web aggregators bring together loan offers from multiple lenders on an electronic platform; borrowers can then pick and choose the best available loan option.
Digital lenders have been accused of charging high interest rates and using illegal recovery measures. There are hundreds of unauthorised digital lenders which are outside the RBI’s purview.
The digital lending universe is classified into three groups: Entities regulated by the RBI and permitted to carry out lending business; entities authorised to carry out lending as per other statutory/regulatory provisions but not regulated by RBI; and entities lending outside the purview of any statutory/ regulatory provision.