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ARTH (21st February-29th February)

1.$3.7 billion surge in investments driven by mature fintechs: KPMG

KPMG International has published its latest report titled 'Pulse of Fintech H2'2019' which

sheds light on global fintech ( Financial Technology) investment in 2019. It highlights how

the investment fell just shy of 2018's record with $135.7 billion invested globally across

2,693 deals.

Keypoints-

The main theme for 2019's global fintech market was diversity.

Global fintech investment fell short of 2018's record year, with $137.5 billion

invested in 2019 compared to $141 billion in 2018.

VC (Venture Capital) investment participation rose during every quarter of 2019,

leading to $16.7 billion in total annual VC invested with CVC (Corporate Venture

Capital) involvement.

Cross-border mergers and acquisitions (M&A) held strong at $54.2 billion in deal

value – despite ongoing global trade tension.

The number of fintech deals by global tech giants increased for the fifth straight

year, with $3.5 billion invested more than doubled year-over-year, from $316.9

million to $646.2 million.

India sees surge of over $3.7 billion in investments driven by mature fintechs.

Payment continued to be the hottest areas of the fintech market in India.Insurance

was also a hot ticket in 2019.

2. Coronavirus may hit global GDP by over $250 bn: Industry body

The coronavirus outbreak may negatively impact global growth by 30 basis points or $250

billion, industry body PHDCCI. Disruptions in the global supply chains will not only hit

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China’s exports but also the exports of the importing countries as they import a large

chunk of raw materials and intermediate goods from China while exporting to other

respective destinations. Sectors such as pharmaceuticals, solar and iron and steel have

been facing disruptions in imports of raw materials from China due to the outbreak of the

virus.

3. New study points to where most foreign aid for the poorest goes- World Bank

In a recent report of World Bank,”Entitled Elite Capture of Foreign Aid: Evidence from

Offshore Bank Accounts” which was authored by economists Jorgen Juel Andersen, Niels

Johannesen and Bob Rijkers.

Keypoints-

Using data from offshore banks in places like Switzerland, Luxembourg, the

Cayman Islands, Hong Kong and Singapore, the researchers traced what

happened when aid disbursements were made to some of the world’s most aid-

dependent countries.

Around the same time that the money was released, the researchers noted there

was an increase in the number of deposits in those offshore accounts.

The aid that the World Bank was giving to some of the world’s poorest countries

appeared to be going directly into offshore accounts.

The finding also meant that the early transmission of these funds ensured that local

elites did not have to make tax payments on money that appeared to be stolen

from the people.

Particularly worst were countries whose GDP was made up with development aid.

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Some alternative explanations can be that the countries with less developed credit

markets moved the money to offshore accounts where it could be kept until it was

allotted to various development projects.

4. Guidelines for intermediaries at IFSC been amended by SEBI

Sebi amended the guidelines of the Sebi (International Financial Services Centres)

Guidelines, 2015 for intermediaries operating at the International Financial Services

Centre (IFSC), wherein such entities will be permitted to carry out operations without

forming a separate company.

Keypoints-

The facility would not be applicable for trading and clearing members.

Sebi has changed the guidelines for reporting of financial statements by issuers

listing their debt securities at IFSC.

The regulator said the changes are being made to “further streamline the

operations at IFSC, based on the internal discussions and consultations held with

the stakeholders”.

Further, the circular said a non Sebi-registered intermediary providing financial

services exclusively to institutional investors would not require Sebi’s approval.

This is subject to the condition that it is a recognised entity in a foreign jurisdiction.

Sebi said that a quantitative summary of significant differences between national

accounting standards and IFRS shall be prepared by such entity and incorporated

in the relevant disclosure documents to be filed with the exchange.

International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), US Generally Accepted

Accounting Principles (GAAP) and Indian Accounting Standards (Ind AS) are

among the various accounting standards

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An IFSC enables to bring back to India the financial services and transactions that are

currently carried out in offshore financial centers by Indian corporate entities and

overseas branches or subsidiaries of financial institutions. Currently, Gujarat International

Finance Tec-City (GIFT) is the lone IFSC in the country. Sebi-registered intermediaries

or its international associates may provide financial services relating to securities market

in IFSC, without forming a separate company subject to the regulator’s prior approval,

according to a circular.

5. Business Confidence Index rose by 7.8%

India Inc.’s business confidence picked up modestly in the November-January period,

according to the latest survey released by Delhi-based think tank National Council of

Applied Economic Research (NCAER)

According to the quarterly survey, the Business Confidence Index (BCI) rose by 7.8%

from the preceding quarter to 111.2.

Keypoints-

Despite showing improvement in the third quarter of the current fiscal, business

sentiments continued to exhibit lingering weakness and specifically fragility.

Indian businesses have been battling demand slowdown and liquidity crunch,

which resulted in economic growth rate cooling to a more than six-year low of 4.5%

in the September

quarter.

The BCI survey asks four questions with equal weight, such as future overall

economic conditions and financial position of firms, present investment climate and

present capacity utilization.

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6.Link floating rate loans for medium enterprises with external benchmarks-RBI to

banks

According to the Reserve Bank of India, all new floating rate loans given to medium

enterprises will be linked with external benchmarks from April 1. With respect to micro

and small enterprises, floating rate loans are already linked with external benchmarks.

RBI said it has now been decided that all new floating rate loans to the medium

enterprises extended by banks from April 1, 2020 shall be linked to the external

benchmarks.

Keypoints-

The move is aimed at further strengthening monetary policy transmission so that

benefits of reduction in key lending rate (repo) can be passed on to medium

enterprises also.

Floating rate personal and retail loans have already been linked to external

benchmarks.

RBI repo rate, treasury bill yields, and other market interest rate published by FBIL

(Financial Benchmark India Private Ltd) are among the benchmarks.

According to the RBI, subsequent to the introduction of an external benchmark

system, the monetary policy transmission has improved in respect of the sectors

where new floating rate loans have been linked to external benchmarks.

External benchmark

Banks can choose from one of the four external benchmarks — repo rate, three-month

treasury bill yield, six-month treasury bill yield or any other benchmark interest rate

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published by Financial Benchmarks India Private Ltd.At present, interest rates on loans

are linked to a bank’s marginal cost of fund-based interest rate, known as the Marginal

Cost of Lending Rate (MCLR).Existing loans and credit limits linked to the MCLR, base

rate or Benchmark Prime Lending Rate, would continue till repayment or renewal. Those

customers wanting to switch to the repo-linked rate can do so on mutually acceptable

terms.

.7. Sebi allows direct sales of mutual funds on exchanges

In a move that will increase access to direct schemes of mutual funds (MFs), Sebi has

allowed investors to directly use the infrastructure of stock exchanges to purchase and

redeem units directly from asset management companies (AMCs). Hitherto, investors

who wanted to purchase direct schemes (without intermediary charges) had to go to the

fund house or through a fintech platform like Paytm Money or Zerodha.

8. India emerges as 3rd largest fintech centre globally

According to Accenture who analyzed data from a CB Insights report, fintech investments

in India almost doubled to $3.7 billion in 2019, up from $1.9 billion the previous year. This

pegs the country as the world’s third largest fintech centre, trailing behind the US and UK.

Keypoints-

Investments in payments companies more than tripled to $2.1 billion from about

$660 million in 2018

Funding into insurtechs rose strongly, up 74% to $510 million.

9. Govt gets Rs 293 cr from SPMCIL share buyback

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The government has got Rs 293 crore from buyback of shares by state-run Security

Printing and Minting Corporation. With this, the disinvestment proceeds in current fiscal

touced Rs 35,138 crore. In the Revised Estimates, the government has pegged

disinvestment target at Rs 65,000 crore.

Security Printing & Minting Corporation of India Ltd (SP (SPMCIL) is a wholly-owned

government company under the admi administrative control of Department of Economic

Affairs.

10. No ban on foreign investors from Mauritius, says Sebi

Market regulator Sebi said foreign investors from Mauritius will continue to be eligible for

FPI registration with increased monitoring as per international norms. The regulator

issued clarification after the tax haven was put on the “grey list” of Financial Action Task

Force (FATF). A significant percentage of foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) investing in

the Indian market is registered in Mauritius. The island nation is the second largest source

after the US from which foreign portfolio investments come into the country. As per

January NSDL data, assets under custody of US FPIs are worth Rs 11,62,579 crore and

those from Mauritius stood at Rs 4,36,745 crore.

FATF

The Financial Action Task Force, also known by its French name, Groupe d'action

financière, is an intergovernmental organization founded in 1989 on the initiative of the

G7 to develop policies to combat money laundering.

Headquarters: Paris, France

11.Digital payments rising sharply but cash remains the king: RBI

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According to a study of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Demonetisation and active

growth in the gross domestic product (GDP) brought down cash in circulation as a

percentage of GDP to 8.7 per cent in 2016-17.

Keypoints-

This increased to 10.7 per cent in 2017-18 and to 11.2 per cent in 2018-19 which,

however, is less than the pre-demonetisation level of 12.1 per cent in 2015-16.

India has Immediate Payment Systems (IMPS) and Unified Payments Interface

(UPI) as fast payments and the latter is driving the retail payments volume.

The value of digital payments to GDP increased from 660 per cent in 2014-15 to

862 per cent in 2018-19, making the shift to digital payments in India clearly

perceptible

However, a large population of the country historically lacked access to personal

bank accounts and credit lines. Digital payment methods have played a large role

in helping them manage their personal finances leading to their being financially

included.

The study said cash still rules but is increasingly seen as a way to store value as

an economic asset rather than to make payments.

The value of digital payments to GDP increased from 660 per cent in 2014-15 to

862 per cent in 2018-19, making the shift to digital payments in India clearly

perceptible.

12. 76 per cent of Jan Dhan account holders have RuPay debit cards

Three out of four Jan Dhan account holders now have a RuPay debit card, although it is

unclear how many use it. According to official data, the issuance of RuPay debit cards

under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana reached an all-time-high of 29.14 crore by

February 19.

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13. Fiscal Deficit Touches 128.5% of Budget Estimate at January-end

According to the CGA, India's fiscal deficit touched 128.5 per cent of the whole year

budget target at January-end.

The deficit during the same period during 2018-19 was 121.5 per cent of that year's

Revised Budget Estimate (RE).

In actual terms, the fiscal deficit or gap between the expenditure and revenue stood at Rs

9,85,472 crore. The government had targeted to restrict the fiscal deficit at Rs 7,66,846

crore during the year ending March 31, 2020.

Fiscal Deficit

A fiscal deficit is a shortfall in a government's income compared with its spending. The

government that has a fiscal deficit is spending beyond its means. A fiscal deficit is

calculated as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP), or simply as total dollars

spent in excess of income

14. Bengaluru continues to record highest number of digital transactions

A new report titled, ‘Wordline India Digital Payments 2019’ by online payment processor

Worldline India, Bengaluru accounted for the highest number of digital transactions in

India in 2019, followed by Chennai, Mumbai and Pune.United Payments Interface (UPI)

was the most preferred mode of payment.Bengaluru was the leading city in digital

transactions in 2018 as well. Maharashtra led the pack among the top 10 states with the

highest number of digital transactions. States including Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Delhi

held the next three positions in term of online payment volumes.

Keypoints

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United Payments Interface (UPI) was the most preferred mode of payment.

UPI was followed by debit cards, immediate payment service (IMPS), and credit

cards, in terms of volume share of digital transactions.

In 2019, these four payment modes recorded a combined transaction volume of

over 20 trillion and a combined value of over Rs 54 trillion.

UPI is also the fastest payment mode to hit 1 billion monthly transactions.

The report said that merchants in grocery, restaurants, fuel stations, apparel

stores, and specialty retail recorded the highest volume share of transactions in

2019.

Bengaluru was the leading city in digital transactions in 2018 as well. Maharashtra

led the pack among the top 10 states with the highest number of digital

transactions. States including Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Delhi held the next

three positions in term of online payment volumes

National Payment Council of India (NPCI) operated UPI recorded around 10.8

billion transactions in 2019, a 188% year-on-year (YoY).

In terms of value, UPI facilitated transactions worth Rs18.36 trillion in 2019, up

214% YoY compared to 2018.

.

15. Govt approves merger of Indus Towers with Bharti Infratel

The Department of Telecom (DoT) approved the merger of the country's largest mobile

tower company Indus Towers with Bharti Infratel, according to official sources. The

combination of Bharti Infratel and Indus Towers will create a pan-India tower company

with over 163,000 towers, operating across all 22 telecom service areas. The combined

entity will be the largest tower company in the world outside China.

16. Sebi chief Ajay Tyagi gets 6-month extension

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Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) chairman Ajay Tyagi was given a six-

month extension.

17. RBI approves Sumant Kathpalia's appointment as IndusInd Bank CEO

The Reserve Bank of India has approved the appointment of Sumant Kathpalia as the

Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of IndusInd Bank. Kathpalia currently

leads the bank's consumer banking business.

18. Atal Innovation Mission, Nasscom tie up to launch AI-based module in 5000

ATLs

Niti Aayog's Atal Innovation Mission has collaborated with Nasscom to launch the

artificial intelligence-based module to be implemented across 5000 Atal Tinkering Labs

in the country, benefitting 2.5 million students.

Keypoints-

In this curriculum kids will get benefit from technologies avaialble at some of the

top partner companies including Adobe, SAP Labs, Microsoft, Wipro and Nasscom

among others. Going forward, government will launch AI kits to benefit children to

better know artificial intelligence.

The Atal Tinkering Labs are dedicated innovation workspaces of 1200-1500

square feet where kits on the latest technologies like 3D Printers and Robotics are

installed using a grant of 20 lakh rupees from the government.

Students from Class 6 to Class 12 can tinker with these technologies and learn to

create innovative solutions using these technologies.

Atal Innovation Mission is setting up world-class Atal Incubators at the university,

NGO, SME and Corporate industry levels that would trigger and enable

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successful growth of sustainable startups.

AIM

Launch year-2016

The Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) is a flagship initiative set up by the NITI Aayog to

promote innovation and entrepreneurship across the length and breadth of the country,

based on a detailed study and deliberations on innovation and entrepreneurial needs of

India in the years ahead.

19. Centre pays Rs 50,850 crore to farmers under PM-KISAN scheme

The Centre said it has disbursed Rs 50,850 crore to farmers so far under its landmark

scheme PM-KISAN, enabling them to meet farm input cost and household expenses.

PM-KISAN

launched on – 24th February, 2019

Place- Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh.

Features-

Under the scheme, the Centre transfers an amount of Rs 6,000 per year, in three

equal installments, directly into the bank accounts of the farmers, subject to certain

exclusion criteria relating to higher income status.

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The scheme was launched to provide income support to all landholding farmers'

families across the country and enable them to meet expenses related to

agriculture as well as domestic needs.

Total number of beneficiaries covered under the scheme is about 14 crore, based

on estimates of the Agriculture Census 2015-16.

As on February 20 this year,8.46 crores farmer families have been given the

benefits.

The scheme is effective from December 2018. The cut-off date for identification of

beneficiaries with regard to their eligibility was February 1, 2019. The entire

responsibility of identification of beneficiaries rests with the state /UT governments.

The scheme initially provided income support to all small and marginal farmers'

families across the country, holding cultivable land up to 2 hectares. However, its

ambit was later expanded to cover all farmer families in the country irrespective of

the size of their land holdings.

Affluent farmers have been excluded from the scheme such as income tax payers

in last assessment year, professionals like doctors, engineers, lawyers, chartered

accountants etc and pensioners pensioners drawing at least Rs 10,000 per month

(excluding MTS/Class IV/Group D employees).

All installments falling due on or after December 1, 2019 are being paid only on

the basis of Aadhaar authenticated bank data of beneficiaries to ensure genuine

beneficiaries and avoid duplicity in payments, except in Assam and Meghalaya

besides the UTs of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, which are exempted from this

requirement till March this year.

20. Microsoft, SBI join hands to train differently-abled people to find jobs

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Microsoft announced a partnership with SBI to train differently-abled people find jobs in

the banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI) sector. Over 500 differently-abled

youths will be upskilledin the first year of the collaboration.

21. NABARD sanctions over Rs 400 cr to boost infrastructure in J&K

National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has sanctioned

an amount of 400.64 crore rupees to UT of J&K during the current financial year

for giving boost to the infrastructure in the rural areas. The funding is a part of

the NABARD’s ‘Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) - Trench XXV’

which aims at augmenting rural infrastructure.

RIDF

Government of India created the RIDF in NABARD in 1995-96, with an initial corpus of

Rs.2,000 crore.

22. One in three payments for maternity benefit scheme credited to wrong account

According to a progress report on Poshan Abhiyaan (Nutrition Mission) released by the

NITI Aayog, one in three Aadhaar-based payments for the Pradhan Mantri Matru

Vandana Yojana (PMMVY), was credited to a wrong bank account.

Keypoints-

A substantial number of payments (28% of all Aadhaar-based payments, of 31.29

lakh) are going to different bank accounts than what had been provided by the

beneficiaries.

It is a prime cause for dissatisfaction among beneficiaries, which needs to be

addressed on an urgent basis

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66% of the direct benefit transfers were based on Aadhaar.

The report says a telephone survey of 5,525 beneficiaries, conducted by the

Ministry of Women and Child Development, revealed that only 60% were aware of

the receipt of the benefits and the bank accounts to which the money was

transferred.

PMMVY

Launch-2017

Implemented-Ministry of Women and Child Development.

Features-

It is a conditional cash transfer scheme for pregnant and lactating women of 19

years of age or above for the first live birth.

pregnant women and lactating mothers receive ₹5,000 for their first child in

three instalments.

Each tranche is released upon the beneficiaries meeting some conditions.

The money is meant to compensate women for loss of wages, and is aimed at

ensuring a healthy nutritional development of the newborn.

23. HDFC Bank launches co-branded credit card with IndiGo

HDFC Bank joined hands with the country's largest airline IndiGo to launch a co-branded

credit card, which will effectively work like a loyalty programme for the carrier. Labelled

Ka-ching, the card will offer many benefits like complimentary air tickets, lounge access,

5 per cent cashback or reward points on Indigo bookings, and 3 per cent cashback on

dining, grocery and entertainment.

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24. Haryana, Uttarakhand lead in Direct Benefit Transfer payouts

According to ratings prepared for the first time by Centre regarding Direct Benefit

Transfer (DBT) payouts, West Bengal has emerged as the worst while new Union

Territories (UTs) of Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) and Ladakh have notched up an

impressive show.

Keypoints-

In a surprise in the ratings chart pertaining to 2019-20, the UTs of J&K and Ladakh

clubbed together got the number eight spot among 36 states and UTs, reporting

DBT payouts worth Rs 1,190 crore through over 80 lakh transactions.

The ratings have ranked states according to DBT payouts compared to their

population. Many states like West Bengal do not implement several central

schemes in which subsidies are involved.

Uttar Pradesh which is double in terms of population but reported six times more

payout of Rs 42,000 crore through 36 crore transactions in this fiscal year. Small

states like Haryana & Uttarakhand emerged as the best states at 1st and second

positions, respectively.

25. Himachal Pradesh: First to achieve 100% LPG coverage

Himachal Pradesh had become the first state in the country to have “100% LPG gas

coverage.

26. ADB raises $118 million from rupee-linked bonds

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has raised Rs 850 crore (USD 118 million) from a

new issue of offshore Indian rupee-linked 10-year bonds. This represents ADB's first

new maturity raised in Indian rupees since 2017 and contributes to an established yield

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curve which stretches from 2021 through 2030 with Rs 7,240 crore (USD 1 billion) of

outstanding bonds, The bonds bear a semi-annual coupon of 6.15 per cent and priced

to yield 6.19 per cent. The bonds, which are denominated in Indian rupees, but settled

in US dollars, were underwritten by JP Morgan and primarily distributed to investors in

the Americas (21 per cent) and Europe (79 per cent). ADB will dual list its bonds on

the Global Securities Market of India International Exchange at GIFT IFSC and the

Luxembourg Stock Exchange.

27. IRDAI considers allowing life insurers to offer indemnity health insurance

plans

A committee has been set up by the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority

of India (IRDAI) to study the feasibility of allowing life insurers to offer indemnity-based

health insurance policies. Currently, IRDAI (Health Insurance) Regulations 2016 allow

life insurers to offer defined benefit-based health insurance products only. Indemnity-

based health plans are basically those insurance policies where the insured is

reimbursed the actual expense incurred during hospitalisation up to the total sum

insured under the insurance policy.

28. Government notifies 100% FDI for insurance intermediaries

The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has amended the

foreign direct investment (FDI) policy to allow 100% FDI for insurance intermediaries,

which includes insurance brooking, insurance companies, third party administrators,

surveyors and loss assessors. Insurance intermediaries are brokers or agents who liaise

between insurance companies and customers. Till now, FDI in the insurance sector was

capped at 49% under the automatic route. According to the policy, FDI for insurance

company is still capped at 49%. Besides, any non-insurance company, for instance, a

bank with more than 50% revenue from non-insurance business will have adhere to

respective FDI limit for that particular sector.

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29. RBI allows Bandhan Bank to open new branches without prior permission

The Reserve bank of India lifted the restrictions placed on Bandhan Bank, allowing it to

open new branches without prior permission. In a notice to the stock exchanges, the

private sector lender said that 25% of the new banking outlets should be opened in

unbanked rural centres. According to RBI’s new bank licensing guidelines, the bank’s

promoter, Bandhan Financial Holdings Ltd, has to reduce its stake from 82% to 40%

within three years of commencing the business.

Bandhan Bank

HQ-Kolkata

Tagline-Aapka Bhala, Sabki Bhalai

30. India 5th Most Polluted Country In The World: Report

According to the World Air Quality Report 2019 compiled by IQAir Air Visual, Ghaziabad

is the most polluted city in the world. India was the 5 most polluted country in 2019.

Keypoints-

On the whole, air pollution in India decreased in 2019 from 2018 though about half

of the 50 most polluted cities were in India.

India launched a National Clean Air Programme in 2019 that commits to reducing

air pollution in 102 most polluted cities by a maximum of 30% by 2024.

The report however notes that the reduction in pollution in 2019 couldn't be

attributed to the NCAP but rather was due to a “slowing of the market place.”

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Whilst cities in India, on average, exceed the World Health Organisation target for

annual PM2.5 exposure by 500%, national air pollution decreased by 20% from

2018 to 2019, with 98% of cities experiencing improvements.

Bangladesh was marked the most polluted country in 2019 with an average PM

2.5 concentration of 83 µg/m³. Pakistan came next with 65 µg/m³ and India

recorded an average of 58.1 µg/m

For the data, IQ Air relied on pollution recorded by sensors maintained by the

government bodies—for India these were mostly the ones maintained by the

Central and state pollution control boards—was well as monitoring stations

maintained by private organisations.

31. Capri Global Capital Ltd unveils new SME lending product UDAAN for women

entrepreneurs

Capri Global Capital Ltd (CGCL), the fast-growing NBFC focused on MSME and housing

finance, has announced an SME lending product "UDAAN" for women borrower. The

company through UDAAN aims to help women across the country gain access to the

credit system and encourage the entrepreneurial spirit among them. In order to benefit

the scheme, the women borrower has to be the primary applicant within the age group of

18-45 years and must not be more than 60 years of age at the end of their loan repayment

period. The newly launched product will be offering secured loans up to Rs 40 lakh

for business purpose only followed by due diligence. The repayment period will be as

short as ten years or long 15 years at a competitive interest rate.

32. Finance Secretary launches Baroda Startup Banking in 15 cities

Finance Secretary Rajiv Kumar inaugurated Baroda Startup Banking, an initiative aimed

at making the bank a preferred banking partner for the start-up community and

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establishing connect with at least 2,000 startups over the next two years. The initiative

was launched simultaneously across 15 cities in the country. It will include 15 Baroda

Startup branches that will offer a bouquet of tailor-made banking products and services

that have been designed keeping in mind the unique and specialized banking

requirements of startups. The products include customised current accounts, state-of-the-

art payments gateways, corporate credit cards, corporate salary accounts and credit

facilities apart from other existing products of the bank.

33. Food processing ministry approves Rs 162 cr under Operation Greens scheme

The government has approved Rs 162 crore under Operation Green scheme which has

an outlay of Rs 500 crore to stabilize the supply of tomato, onion and potato (TOP) crops

and to ensure their availability round the year without price volatility. The scheme

announced in 2018-19 budget aims to enhance value realisation for farmers by targeted

interventions to strengthen production clusters and the Farmer Producer Organisations

(FPO) and linking them with the market.

Keypoints-

More than 50,000 farmers will benefit with these upcoming projects and it will

create 10,000 jobs. Storage of over 90,000 tonnes and over 3.64 lakh tonne of

daily processing capacity will be created

National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India (NAFED) will be

the nodal agency to implement price stabilisation measures.

The pattern of assistance will comprise grants-in-aid at the rate of 50% of the

eligible project cost in all areas, subject to maximum Rs 50 crores per project. The

ministry will provide 50% subsidy on transportation of the crops from production to

storage and hiring of appropriate storage facilities.

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As part of the long term integrated value chain development projects, the

government will help in capacity building of FPOs, quality production, post-harvest

processing facilities, agri-logistics, development of markets and creation and

management of e-platform for demand and supply management of the crops.

34. Bharti AXA General uses WhatsApp to deliver policy and renewal documents

Bharti AXA General Insurance has started delivering policies and renewal premium to its

customers through messaging platform WhatsApp. It plans to sell private car, two-wheeler

and travel insurance through a WhatsApp chatbot soon, the insurer said in a statement.

35. RBI Releases Paper On Nowcasting Indian GDP growth Using Dynamic Factor

Model

Reserve Bank of India placed on its website a Working Paper titled "Nowcasting Indian

GDP growth using a Dynamic Factor Model" under the Reserve Bank of India Working

Paper Series. The paper aims to contribute to the existing literature by combining high

frequency indicators, which are useful proxies of economic activity, to nowcast GDP

growth of India.

Keypoints-

To provide an early estimate of the current quarter GDP growth, the RBI

researchers construct single-index dynamic factors using 6, 9 and 12 high-

frequency indicators. These indicators represent various sectors, display high

contemporaneous correlation with GDP, and co-move in line with the GDP turning

points.

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While DF-6 includes domestic economic activity indicators, DF-9 combines

indicators of trade and services and DF-12 adds financial indicators in the model.

In addition to conventional economic activity indicators, the paper includes a

financial block in DF-12 to reflect the growing influence of financial sector on

economic activity.

DFs are estimated using a dynamic factor model which extracts a common trend

underlying the high-frequency indicators.

The extracted trend provides a real time assessment of the state of the economy

and helps identify sectors contributing to economic fluctuations.

36. Govt to include non-scheduled urban, district co-op banks in 3 schemes for

MSMEs

The Centre has decided to include non-scheduled urban and district central cooperative

banks in three big ticket schemes to facilitate access to finance for the MSME sector.

These schemes include the credit guarantee fund trust for micro and small enterprises,

credit linked capital subsidy scheme and interest subvention. The initiative is expected to

expand the outreach of the schemes considerably which in turn shall help address the

crucial requirement of access to finance of the MSME sector. The NBFCs have about 13

per cent share in MSME lending, and extend hassle-free credit to MSME sector,

especially in the remote areas.