Banking, Financial and Economic Awareness of 27, 28 and 29 August 2020

1. Dinesh Kumar Khara to be next SBI chairman

• The name of Dinesh Kumar Khara has been recommended by Bank Board Bureau for the post of SBI chairman.
• He will replace the current chairman of SBI, Rajnish Kumar. Rajnish Kumar’s three-year term will end on October 7.  
• Bank Board Bureau has kept Challa Sreenivasulu Setty (CS Shetty) as the candidate on the Reserve List for the post of SBI chairman.
• Dinesh Kumar Khara is currently Managing Director of SBI. Bank Board Bureau has interviewed three other MDs. Their names are Arijit Basu, CS Shetty and Ashwani Bhatia.
• Bank Board Bureau is an autonomous recommendatory body. It received approval from the government in February 2016 and became operational in April 2016. Bhanu Pratap Sharma as its current Chairperson.
• State Bank of India (SBI) was formed in 1955 from the Imperial Bank of India. It is headquartered in Mumbai. Its tagline is The Banker to Every Indian.

2. 40 crore beneficiaries recorded under PMJDY in six years

• The number of beneficiaries (account holders) under PMJDY has increased to 40 crore since the announcement of the scheme on August 15, 2014.
• Total balance and average balance kept in the PMJDY account has also increased. From April-August 2020, the balance has increased by about Rs 12, 000 crore.
• Demonetisation and Covid-19 pandemic has proved to be beneficial for the scheme. Covid-19 Atma Nirbhaar Package has led to growth in balance in accounts.
• As per the experts, the overdraft limit should be increased from current Rs 10,000 depending on the nature of the transaction in the accounts.
• Finance Ministry may also provide credit access to PMJDY beneficiaries on a pilot basis.
• Launched on 28 August 2014, Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) is the government’s National Mission for Financial Inclusion (NMFI).
• Eligible PMJDY account holders are provided an overdraft facility of Rs. 10,000.
• PMJDY account holders who began their bank account for the first time between 15.8.2014 to 31.1.2015 are also given a life insurance cover of RS. 30,000.
• PMJDY account holders are provided a RuPay debit card and a built-in accidental cover of Rs 1 lakh.

3. World Bank temporarily stops publication of ease of doing business report

• World Bank has temporarily stopped publication of ease of doing business report 2021, which was to be released in October.
• World Bank will carry out internal audits of reports for the past five years. It has paused the publication of the report by citing irregularities and manipulations in data of four nations in Doing Business 2018 and Doing Business 2020 reports.
• The names of nations are Azerbaijan, China, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
• Doing Business 2018 and Doing Business 2020 reports were published in October 2017 and October 2019, respectively.
• In the Doing Business 2020 report, India was ranked 63^rd among 190 countries. From 2014-19, India’s rank improved by 79 positions. India’s rank was 142 in 2014.
• World Bank aims to end extreme poverty and promote shared growth.
• International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and International Development Association (IDA) together make up the World Bank.
• Its headquarters are located in Washington, D.C. It has 189 member countries. Its President is David Malpass.

4. World Coconut Day to be celebrated on September 2

• World Coconut Day will be celebrated on September 2 by Coconut Development Board.
• It is an annual event celebrated in commemoration of the International Coconut Community’s foundation day.
• International Coconut Community is an intergovernmental organization. It was established under UNESCAP.
• Invest in coconut to save the world is the theme of World Coconut Day 2020.
• During 2019-20, India exported Rs 1,762.17 crores worth coconut products (excluding coir items).   India grows coconut on 2.15 million hectares.
• Activated carbon is the most exported coconut product. It is highly demanded in industries in US and Europe.

5. ITC Board to consider the proposal for merging of three subsidiaries

• The proposal for the merging of three subsidiaries of ITC Ltd. will be considered by its board.
• The names of subsidiaries are Sunrise Foods Private Ltd, Hobbits International Foods Private Ltd and Sunrise Sheetgrah Private Ltd.
• They are wholly owned subsidiaries of ITC Ltd and the proposal will be considered at a meeting on 4 September.
• ITC Ltd. is headquartered in Kolkata. It was formed in 1910 as Imperial Tobacco Company of India Ltd. Sanjiv Puri is its CEO.

6. RJio to sell units worth Rs 25,215 crore in Tower Infrastructure Trust

• Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has allowed Reliance Jio Infocomm (RJio) to sell units worth Rs 25,215 crore in Tower Infrastructure Trust to Brookfield Infrastructure Partners.
• On July 19, 2019, Rs 25,215 crore worth investment was agreed by Brookfield to take control of Reliance Jio Infocomm’s (RJio) tower infrastructure.
• Reliance Industrial Investments and Holdings (RIIH) was to sponsor and register a tower infrastructure trust. 
• DoT has also approved the foreign investment of Rs 105.35 crore to acquire the remaining 49% equity in Reliance Jio Infratel  Pvt Ltd (RJIPL). SEBI has also approved investment. Both approvals are subject to certain conditions.
• Reliance Jio Infocomm (RJio) is a completely owned subsidiary of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL). Brookfield Infrastructure Partners is a Canadian asset management firm. 

7. First ever Export Preparedness Index (EPI) 2020 released by NITI Aayog

• NITI Aayog has released the first-ever Export Preparedness Index (EPI) 2020 and Gujarat has topped the index.
• In the report, all the states and UTs were ranked on different parameters of export preparedness and competitiveness.  
• Earlier, Gujarat has topped the World Bank’s ease of doing business ranking.
• Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu occupy second and third rank in EPI 2020. Delhi is ranked as one among all UTs.
• The average score of most Indian states was above 50 % on sub-pillars of Exports Diversification, Transport Connectivity, and Infrastructure.
• Six of the eight coastal states appear in the top ten ranks in EPI. Among the landlocked countries, the top three performers are Rajasthan, Telangana and Haryana.
• Uttarakhand, Tripura and Himachal Pradesh are the top three states among Himalayan states.
• NITI Aayog’s EPI has four pillars and eleven sub-pillars.
• Four pillars are Policy, Business Ecosystem, Export Ecosystem and Export Performance. It examines export performance and preparedness of all states and UTs.

8. US Congressional Caucus on India and Indian Americans wants USTR to progress on limited trade deal with India

• The co-chair of US Congressional Caucus on India and Indian Americans, Robert Lighthizer, has written to USTR for progress on the limited trade deal with India.
• In 17 years from 2000 to 2017, bilateral trade between India and US has increased by 560% from $19.1 billion to $126.2 billion.
• However, there are certain pending issues between India and US.  Limited trade deal should restore the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) for Indian exports and remove India’s tariffs on 28 US products.
• Congressional Caucuses are group of members of the legislature of US, Congress. It consists of members from both houses of Congress, the lower house and upper house (Senate).
• Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) is a trade preference programme of US in which imports from certain countries are made duty-free.

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