08 October 2022

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS ANALYSIS

1 – Indian Agricultural Research Institute:, GS II Topic Agriculture-related issues

Context:

• Even though it is still early, statistics from the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), which tracks such incidents by satellite, show that the frequency of crop fires reported out of Punjab is at a three-year low. The number of recorded fires this year is only 320, as opposed to 620 and 1,935 in 2021 and 2020, respectively.

About IARI:

• The Pusa Institute, commonly known as the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), set off on its journey in 1905 at Pusa with a stunning contribution of 30,000 pounds from an American benefactor named Mr. Henry Phipps (Bihar). The Agricultural Research Institute was the previous name of the organisation (ARI). Mycology, economic botany, chemistry, cattle breeding, and agriculture were its five departments. In 1907, the bacteriology section was added. Imperial Institute of Agricultural Research replaced ARI as the organization’s name in 1911, and Imperial Agricultural Research Institute replaced it in 1919. The institute was moved to Delhi on July 29, 1936, as a result of a severe earthquake that occurred on January 15, 1934. The organization’s new name following independence is Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI).
• IARI’s main mission in the 1950s was the development of scientific disciplines, which helped to pave the way for the organization’s spectacular expansion in the 1960s and 1970s. It received recognition as a Deemed University in 1958. The fields of IARI produced well-known wheat types that enhanced output by an estimated one billion tonnes, assisting in the green revolution that made millions of Indians happy. IARI continues to be the leading institution in the nation for agricultural research, teaching, and extension as the Mother of several ICAR institutions.
• The Institute’s current campus is a 500 hectare (or 1250 acres) sylvan tract that is completely enclosed. It is roughly 16 kilometres (10 miles) east of IGI Airport and 8 kilometres (5 miles) west of New Delhi Railway Station (Palam). The coordinates are 28.08 0N and 77.12 0E, and the elevation is 228.61 metres above mean sea level (750 feet). It’s not far from the hillside road.
• Currently, the Institute is made up of 20 divisions, five multidisciplinary centres with their headquarters in Delhi, eight regional stations, two off-season nurseries, three All India Coordinated Research Projects with IARI as their headquarters, and ten national centres that are actively involved in those programmes. 3540 of its authorised employees are technical, administrative, scientific, and support people.

Source The Hindu

 2 – Forex Reserves of India: GS III – Topic Indian Economy

Context:

• India’s foreign exchange reserves decreased to $532.66 billion in the week ending September 30 according to the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) weekly statistics supplement, the lowest level since July 2020.

What exactly are foreign exchange reserves?

• Significant assets held by the central bank in other currencies as reserves are known as foreign exchange reserves.
• They are frequently employed to decide on monetary policy and to maintain exchange rates.
• In addition to dollars and a certain number of IMF SDRs, gold makes up India’s foreign reserves.
• Due to the US dollar’s prominence in global trade and the financial system, the majority of reserves are frequently stored in this currency.
• In addition to holding reserves in US dollars, some central banks also hold reserves in British pounds, Japanese yen, and euros.

What makes these reserves so crucial?

• Due to the fact that all foreign transactions are settled in US dollars, India must finance its imports.
• More significantly, the general public must continue to trust and support the central bank’s actions, whether they include decisions on monetary policy or measures to stabilise the exchange rate.
• Furthermore, it helps to reduce any vulnerability brought on by unforeseen pauses in foreign money flows that can occur during a crisis.
• Holding liquid foreign currency provides insurance against such outcomes by guaranteeing that there will be enough foreign currency to cover the country’s imports in the case of external shocks.

Government programmes to increase foreign exchange:

• One of several efforts the Indian government has begun to boost foreign exchange reserves is AatmaNirbhar Bharat, which aims to make India self-sufficient so that it won’t need to import goods that it can make.
• In addition to Aatma Nirbhar Bharat, the government has launched a number of other initiatives, including the Nirvik (Niryat Rin Vikas Yojana) programme and the Remission of Duty or Taxes on Export Product (RoDTEP) programme.
• In addition to these initiatives, India is among the top nations that attracted the most foreign direct investment, growing its foreign exchange reserves.

Source The Hindu

 3 – Solomon Islands: GS II Topic International Relations

Context:

• Manasseh Sogavare, the prime minister of the Solomon Islands, said on Friday that his country has promised Australia that it will not let a Chinese military presence on its soil.

About:

• The Solomon Islands are a nation located in the western Pacific Ocean.
• It is made up of two chains of coral atolls and volcanic islands in Melanesia.
• The Solomon Islands are made up of 900 smaller coral atolls, reefs, and six large volcanic islands.
• the nation-archipelago to the southeast of Papua New Guinea made consists of a number of sizable volcanic islands.
• Before closing it in 1993, the US maintained an embassy in the Solomon Islands for five years.

Source The Hindu

4 – G 20: GS II – Topic International Relations

Context:

• India will have the opportunity to develop in the areas of debt sustainability, education, and climate change when it becomes leadership of the Group of Twenty (G20) in December of this year, according to World Bank President David Malpass.

About:

• A loose alliance of 19 nations, the European Union, and representatives of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund is known as the Group of Twenty (G20).
• The industrialised and developing economies that make up the G20 membership account for about two-thirds of the world’s population, 85% of its GDP, 80% of its investments, and more than 75% of its trade.

Origin:

• Asian Financial Crisis, 1997–1999: After inviting both developed and emerging economies to participate, the G7 organised a ministerial-level summit.
• In 1999, the first gathering of finance ministers and governors of central banks took place.
• Everyone realised that a new degree of political consensus was required during the financial crisis of 2008. The G20 leaders will henceforth convene once a year, it was decided.
• The G20 finance ministers and central bank governors continue to meet separately twice a year to assist in summit planning.
• They get together at the same time as the IMF and the World Bank.

Members:

• Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Russia, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the European Union make up the G20.
• The Spanish economy was in ruins following the 2008 financial crisis, which plunged the nation into a six-year financial disaster. Spain has been invited to take part in leader summits ever since as a permanent non-member.

G20 outcomes:

 The G20’s work is divided into two categories:

• The financial track includes all conversations between the G20 finance ministers, central bank governors, and their designees. They meet periodically throughout the year to go through money and budget-related matters as well as financial rules.
• The Sherpa track is more broad-based and covers subjects like development, energy, thwarting corruption, political participation, and so forth.
• Each G20 nation is represented by a sherpa who plans, directs, executes, etc. as the leader’s agent. (An Indian Sherpa by the name of Shaktikanta Das represented India at the G20 meeting in Argentina in 2018).

Structure:

• A system that guarantees regional balance over time sees the G20 Presidency swapped annually.
• To elect the president, the 19 nations are divided into five groups, each of which can have no more than four nations. As president, the various factions swap off.
• The G20 elects a different group as its president each year.
• Along with Russia, South Africa, and Turkey, Group 2 includes India. The G20 lacks a formal structure for its management or headquarters.
• The G20 president is in charge of coordinating the G20 agenda with other members and responding to situations that have an effect on the world economy.
• Each year, TROIKA is formed by the newly elected president of a country (in this case, Argentina in 2018) and the presidents of the two nations that came before and after (Germany in 2017 and Japan in 2019). By doing this, the group’s continuity and coherence are maintained.
• a G20 summit

Source The Hindu