9 PM Current Affairs Brief – April 16th, 2018

Mandate and allocations Context Conclave of Finance Ministers of the southern States to discuss contentious issues in the Terms of Reference (ToR) of 15th Finance Commission Finance Commission (Article 280) The President shall, within two years from the commencement of this Constitution and thereafter at the expiration of every fifth year or at such earlier… Continue reading Mandate and allocations

PMLA will need more changes Context Money laundering Author’s contention India should make money laundering a standalone offence keeping in mind the on-site mutual evaluation by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), which is due in November-December 2020 What is the legislation that deals with money laundering in India? Prevention of Money laundering Act (PMLA)… Continue reading PMLA will need more changes

Reimagining governance  What has happened? The 115 Aspirational Districts Programme (ADP) conceived by Prime Minister Narendra Modi is radical not because this is the first time that a government in India has focussed on India’s most backward districts but because the exercise envisages a serious re-imagination of government and governance, and deepens cooperative federalism. Target… Continue reading Reimagining governance 

‘NPAs, high debt level to ebb in 6-9 months’  Context Twin balance sheet problem refers to the stress on balance sheets of banks due to non-performing assets (NPAs) or bad loans on the one hand, and heavily indebted corporates on the other. “Our own assessment is that it would take another six to nine months… Continue reading ‘NPAs, high debt level to ebb in 6-9 months’

Modi’s visit could see pacts on migrants, Ayurveda centre Context CHOGM meeting & Indian PM’s bilateral visit to the U.K. Issues to be discussed at CHOGM Explore ways of raising intra-Commonwealth trade from around $525 billion in 2015 to around $700 billion by 2020 Bilateral visit A memorandum of understanding on the return of illegal… Continue reading Modi’s visit could see pacts on migrants, Ayurveda centre

What demonetisation did to tax collections Context Effect of Demonetisation Demonetisation’s effect on tax collections Net collections have increased by 17.1% in the just concluded fiscal year, to Rs. 9.95 lakh crore. In FY15 and FY16, India’s direct tax kitty witnessed growth of just 8.9% and 6.9%. But seen from a historical perspective, a 14%… Continue reading What demonetisation did to tax collections