Banking Awareness of 4 and 5 October 2024

Topic: Taxation

1. Supreme Court ruled that 90,000 I-T reassessment notices sent out after April 1, 2021, are lawful.

• Nearly 90,000 reassessment notices that the revenue department sent out under old regulations after April 1, 2021, have been upheld by the Supreme Court.
• The Supreme Court overturned several high courts' (HCs') rulings.
• The HCs had ruled that the deadline for releasing reassessment letters under the Income Tax Act will not be extended by the Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provisions) Act (TOLA) of 2021.
• In order to extend the deadline for income tax compliance, TOLA was implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud, together with Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, comprised the bench.
• The bench addressed two legal concerns pertaining to interactions of the Income Tax Act, the TOLA, and the Finance Act.
• The time constraints for "completion or compliance of actions under the specified Acts till June 20, 2020" were extended by the Centre with the TOLA Act of 2021, which has retrospective effect.
• Later, on June 24, 2020, the Centre published a notification pursuant to the TOLA extending until March 31, 2021, the deadline for completing or complying with measures taken under the relevant Acts.
• The IT department sent out reassessment notices for assessment years from 2013–14 to 2017–18.
• The SC was tasked with deciding whether the IT department can, in accordance with the pre-amended provisions of the IT Act, reopen evaluations after April 1, 2021.
• The bench was required to ascertain if the time period for evaluation would be determined by the benefit of the TOLA, which granted relaxation of time constraints under certain legislation during the pandemic.

Topic: Miscellaneous

2. The Textiles Ministry has extended until December 31 the requirement to use jute bags for packaging.

• The Ministry of Textiles has extended the mandate for foodgrains and sugar producers to use jute packaging.
• The mandatory use of 100% jute packaging for foodgrains and 20% of the total sugar production has been extended by the Ministry of Textiles until December 31, 2024.
• The ministry further clarified that procurement of jute bags for packaging of initially 10 per cent of the foodgrains through reverse auction on the Government e-Marketplace (GeM) platform will continue.
• In a notice dated December 26, 2023, the ministry stipulated that until June 30, 2024, foodgrains must be packaged entirely in jute, and 20% of all sugar output must be packaged in this manner.
• Additionally, it introduced the reverse auction system for purchasing jute bags through the GeM.
• But farmers and workers of jute mills have criticized the reverse auction mechanism.
• The single-judge bench of the Karnataka High Court stopped the government notification dated December 26, 2023, in an interim ruling.

Topic: Indian Economy/Financial Market

3. India became the fourth country to have 700 billion dollars in Forex reserves.

• India has become the fourth country to surpass 700 billion US dollars in foreign exchange reserves.
• China, Japan, and Switzerland are the other countries having more than 700 billion dollars in Forex reserves.
• India’s foreign exchange reserves touched a new all-time high of 704.885 billion dollars for the week ending September 27.
• India’s forex reserves increased $12.58 billion on week, breaching $700 billion mark for the first time.
• The sharp increase in forex reserves will strengthen India’s ability to tackle global economic uncertainties.
• It will also provide greater stability to its currency in the volatile international markets.
• India’s gold reserves rose 2.184 billion to 65.796 billion dollars.

Topic: RBI

4. Aviral Jain has been appointed as Executive Director (ED) by RBI.

• Aviral Jain has been appointed with effect from October 01, 2024.
• As ED, Aviral Jain will look after the Legal Department, the Premises Department and the Right to Information Act (First Appellate Authority).
• Before being promoted to ED, Jain was serving as Regional Director for Maharashtra.
• Jain has experience of over three decades in areas of supervision, currency management, foreign exchange regulation and human resource management.

Topic: Reports and Indices

5. The HSBC India Services PMI shows that the growth of the country's services sector has slowed to its lowest level since November 2023.

• According to the survey, the sector's performance is still historically good, but its growth pace has slowed. S&P Global compiles the survey.
• The index value decreased to 57.7 in September from 60.9 in August.
• The PMI values are in the range of 0 to 100.
• A figure that is higher than 50 denotes a rise from the previous month, while one that is lower than 50 denotes a fall.
• A slower rate of growth in new export orders was one issue impeding overall sales growth.
• In 2024, new export orders experienced the slowest rate of growth to date.
• The manufacturing sector in India declined in September for a second consecutive month, according to earlier PMI data. 

Topic: Banking/Financial/Govt Schemes

6. National Mission on Edible Oils - Oilseeds (NMEO - Oilseeds) approved by the Cabinet for the period 2024-25 to 2030-31.

• This is a landmark initiative aimed at boosting domestic oilseeds production and achieving self-reliance (Atmanirbhar Bharat) in edible oils.
• The mission will be implemented over a seven-year period from 2024-25 to 2030-31 with a financial outlay of Rs 10,103 crore.
• NMEO-Oilseeds aims to promote the production of major oilseed crops like mustard, groundnut, soybean, sunflower and sesame,
• Along with this, the efficiency of collection and extraction from secondary sources like cotton seeds, rice bran and tree derived oils also has to be increased.
• The mission aims to increase primary oilseeds production from 39 million tonnes (2022-23) to 69.7 million tonnes by 2030-31.
• With NMEO-OP (oil palm), the mission aims to increase domestic edible oil production to 25.45 million tonnes by 2030-31, meeting about 72% of our estimated domestic requirement.
• To ensure timely availability of quality seeds, the Mission will launch an online 5-year seed plan through the ‘Seed Authentication, Traceability & Holistic Inventory (SATHI)’ Portal.
• This will help states to establish advance tie-ups with seed producing agencies including cooperatives, Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) and government or private seed corporations.
• Additionally, over 600 value chain clusters will be developed in 347 specific districts, covering over 10 lakh hectares of area annually.
• The mission aims to increase the area under oilseed cultivation by an additional 40 lakh hectares.
• For this, rice and potato fallow lands will be targeted, inter-cropping will be promoted and crop diversification will be encouraged.

Topic: Miscellaneous

7. Telangana has become the first state to get NITI Aayog’s Women Entrepreneurship Platform chapter.

• NITI Aayog launched the first State Chapter of Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP).
• NITI Aayog in association with WE Hub and the Telangana government, launched the first State Chapter of Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP).
• The platform aims to promote and support women entrepreneurs across sectors.
• The Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) Hub will be the nodal agency for all WEP activities in the State.
• It will provide those resources, tools, and a robust network to enhance their business growth.
• WEP will provide customized support like digital skills, access to financial services, mentorship and market linkages.
• WE Hub is a first-of-its-kind incubation centre in India exclusively for women entrepreneurs.

Topic: Banking/Financial/Govt Schemes

8. PM E-DRIVE Scheme has been launched by Union Minister H. D. Kumaraswamy.

• This initiative will accelerate electric vehicle (EV) adoption and boost domestic innovation.
• This scheme has been launched with a financial outlay of ten thousand nine hundred crore rupees for two years.
• 3680 crore rupees have been allocated for e-two-wheelers, e-three-wheelers, e-ambulances, e-trucks, and emerging EVs.
• 2000 crore has been allocated for installing fast chargers, including various other allocations for electric vehicles.
• Union Cabinet made the decision to merge all Central schemes in the agriculture sector into two new schemes.
• The new schemes are Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (PM-RKVY) and Krishonnati Yojana (KY).
• The projected cost of new schemes is ₹ 1,01,321.61 crore.
• The States will be required to contribute the remaining ₹32,232.63 crore to the schemes, with the Central Government contributing ₹69,088.98 crore.
• For PM-RKVY, ₹57,074.72 crore has been set aside. The goal is to advance sustainable farming practices.
• KY has allocated ₹44,246.89 crore for addressing food security and agricultural self-sufficiency.
• State governments will carry out the implementation of both programs.
• The two new schemes would combine programs like Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana, Rainfed Area Development, Agroforestry, and Soil Health Management.
• The centre has made the decision to streamline different programs in order to prevent duplication, guarantee convergence, and give States flexibility.
• Value chain development and private sector involvement are also planned under two schemes.

Topic: Banking/Financial/Govt Schemes

9. Government launched the Prime Minister’s Internship scheme to provide 1.25 lakh internships in FY 2024-25.

• The government launched the pilot phase of the Prime Minister’s Internship Scheme to provide 1.25 lakh internship opportunities during the fiscal year 2024-25.
• The top 500 companies in India are participating in this scheme. This scheme was announced in the Budget 2024-25.
• Its main aim is to create 1 crore internship opportunities for young people in top companies over the next five years.
• This initiative will be managed through an online portal developed by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA).
• To qualify for the scheme, candidates must meet the following criteria:
  • Age range: 21 to 24 years
  • Should not be engaged in full-time employment
  • Individuals from families with government employees are not eligible
  • Graduates from prestigious institutions like IITs, IIMs, or those with qualifications such as CA or CMA are excluded
• The internship program will be rolled out in two phases, aiming to train 10 million youth over five years.

Topic: Reports and Indices

10. Kerala ranked first in the urban governance index.

• Praja Foundation conducted a two year-long study across several Indian cities, in which Kerala topped the Urban Governance Index (UGI).
• The study said that although the state ranked high in terms of financial empowerment, it still has a long way to go in empowering urban governance.
• Kerala's top ranking in the Urban Governance Index is an acknowledgement of its achievements in decentralised planning.
• The state scored 59.31 out of a possible 100 on various parameters, while Odisha stood second with 55.10 marks.
• In fiscal empowerment, Kerala managed to score 23.22 out of 30 points, while Maharashtra stood second with 21.15 points.
• However, it ranks only 20th in empowerment of municipal administration.
• The report said that Kerala is the only state that has given the power to the mayor to write the 'annual confidential report' of the commissioner.
• Only four states (Chhattisgarh, Kerala, Mizoram and Odisha) mandate that every councillor be part of at least one deliberative committee.

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