1. Piyush Goyal launched MAARG portal for startup mentorship
Tags: Economy/Finance National News
Commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal launched the MAARG platform (Mentorship, Advisory, Assistance, Resilience, and Growth) on 16 January.
An overview of the news
The portal would facilitate mentorship between startups and entrepreneurs across sectors, stages, and functions.
It will allow startups to connect with mentors and discuss their mentorship needs.
Startups can connect with academics, industry experts, successful founders, seasoned investors and others to receive personalised mentorship, clarity and practical advice on growth strategy.
Objectives of the MAARG Portal
To provide guidance and support to startups throughout their life cycle.
To establish a formal and structured platform that facilitates matchmaking between mentors and startups at large across diverse sectors.
Establishing a result-oriented mechanism that allows tracking of the progress of the mentor-startup engagement.
Key Functions of MAARG Portal
Tracking mentor and startup interactions to deliver impact.
Enabling video calls and communication through the platform.
Mobile friendly interface for ease of use.
Communicate recognition and benefits of mentor contributions.
Facilitate ecosystem supporters to host friendly events.
Providing feedback, query and complaint mechanism.
2. Startup India Innovation Week 2023
Tags: Economy/Finance Important Days National News
The 'Startup India Innovation Week' was organised by the 'Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade' (DPIIT) under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry from January 10 to 16, 2023. 'National Startup Day' is also celebrated on 16 January.
An Overview of the news
The main objective of organising the Startup India Innovation Week is to engage the stakeholders of the startup ecosystem in the country and to foster the spirit of entrepreneurship and innovation in India.
In this, knowledge sharing sessions are organised for entrepreneurs, aspiring entrepreneurs.
The sessions also included stakeholders from the startup ecosystem such as government officials, incubators, corporates and investors.
As a part of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav celebrations, various startup related events were organised at more than 75 locations across the country to foster the spirit of entrepreneurship and innovation by engaging the startup community across the country.
These include dedicated workshops for women entrepreneurs, training of incubators, mentoring workshops, capacity building workshops, startup pitching sessions, etc.
National Startup Awards
To celebrate the National Startup Day, DPIIT organised a felicitation ceremony for the winners of the National Startup Awards, 2022 on January 16.
The felicitation ceremony recognized and rewarded the excellence displayed by startups and ecosystem enablers across various sectors, sub-sectors and categories.
World's 3rd Startup Ecosystem in India
In the last few years, India has emerged as a 'hotspot' for startups. India has the third largest startup ecosystem in the world with 108 unicorns.
There were 471 startups in the country in 2016, which increased to 86,456 in 2023. There has been an astonishing growth of over 15,000% in the number of startups in India in 6 years.
There were more than 100 unicorns in the country as of 5 May 2022, with a total valuation of $332.7 billion.
Startup India Programme
The Startup India campaign was launched on 16 January 2016. DPIIT has recognized more than 75 thousand startups to coincide with the 75th year of independence.
DPIIT under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry recently launched the MAARG portal.
In this portal one can get an opportunity to connect with experts, industry experts, successful startup founders, investors as well as world class mentors and experts.
In addition, under India's G20 chairmanship, Startup20 Engagement Group has been established. The establishment of Startup20 Engagement Group will encourage innovations and recognize the role of startups in the changing global landscape.
3. Indian economy to grow at robust rate of 6.6% in FY24: World Bank
Tags: Economy/Finance National News
The World Bank projected the Indian economy to grow at a robust 6.6 per cent in 2023-24 (FY24), slowing down from an estimated 6.9 per cent in 2022-23 (FY23).
An overview of the News
According to the World Bank's latest “Global Economic Prospects” India's economic growth will slow to 6.6% in the next fiscal year from an expected 6.9% in the current year.
It said that the slowdown in the global economy and rising uncertainty will have an impact on export and investment growth.
After March 2024, India's potential growth rate is likely to return to above 6%.
According to the World Bank, India will be the fastest growing economy among the seven largest emerging markets and developing economies.
For the South Asian region, growth is expected to slow down to 3.6% and 4.6% in 2023 and 2024, respectively, due to weaker growth in Pakistan.
Global position
The World Bank has predicted a sharp, long-lasting recession globally, with global growth slowing to 1.7% in 2023 from 3% six months earlier.
Europe, which has long been a major exporter to China, will likely suffer from a weaker Chinese economy.
4. Centre approved ₹2,600 crore as incentive for banks to promote digital payments
Tags: Economy/Finance National News
The Union Cabinet on 11 January approved a ₹2,600 crore scheme for promoting RuPay debit cards and low-value BHIM-UPI transactions.
An overview of the news
Under the scheme, banks will be given financial incentives in the current financial year 2022-23 to promote 'Point of Sale' (PoS) i.e. payment machines and e-commerce transactions using RuPay and UPI.
The Cabinet has approved this incentive scheme to promote small amount transactions between individuals and merchants through RuPay Debit Cards and BHIM-UPI.
This will further strengthen India's progress in digital payments. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had said in the last budget, will continue to provide financial help to increase digital payments.
India has remained a cash-dependent economy since independence. India's Cash to GDP ratio is 13% while the global average is at most 8%.
Significance of the Incentive Scheme
The government had approved an incentive scheme in pursuance of the budget announcement for FY 2022 to promote digital transactions.
As a result, total digital payment transactions registered a year-on-year growth of 59 percent.
This increased from ₹5,554 crore in FY21 to ₹8,840 crore in FY22.
BHIM-UPI transactions registered a year-on-year growth of 106 per cent, from Rs 2,233 crore in FY21 to Rs 4,597 crore in FY22.
This incentive scheme will promote as a digital payment solution and enable further deepening of digital payments in the country.
5. 13th India-US Trade Policy Forum
Tags: Economy/Finance International News
Piyush Goyal was on an official visit to New York and Washington DC from January 9-11 to participate in the India-US Trade Policy Forum.
An overview of the news
The 13th Trade Policy Forum (TPF) meeting was hosted by US Trade Representative Catherine Tai in Washington on 11 January.
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal at the forum urged the US to expedite the issuance of business visas so that people can make short trips to pursue their trade and business interests.
After participating in the forum, he said that the issuance of business visas in India is taking a long time and needs to be expedited so that investments are not affected.
His visit included delegation-level talks and a meeting with US Trade Representative Ambassador Catherine Tai.
There is an increasing movement of professionals, students, skilled workers, investors and business travellers between the two countries.
According to the commerce ministry, in 2021-22, the bilateral trade between the US and India stood at USD 119.42 billion as against USD 80.51 billion in 2020-21.
About the India-US Trade Policy Forum
It is a platform for continued engagement between the two countries in the field of trade and to further enhance bilateral trade and investment ties.
The 12th TPF Ministerial Conference was held in New Delhi on 23 November 2021 after a gap of four years.
6. RBI to issue green bonds in two tranches of Rs 8,000 crore each
Tags: Economy/Finance National News
The Reserve Bank of India on 6 January said that maiden Sovereign Green Bonds (SGrBs) would be issued in two tranches of Rs 8,000 crore each on January 25 and February 9.
An overview of the news
The central government is issuing these sovereign green bonds as part of its total market borrowing. These bonds are being issued to promote green infrastructure.
The Central Government had released the framework of Sovereign Green Bond on 9 November 2022.
Sovereign green bonds worth Rs 8000 crore will be issued on January 25, 2023. In this, green bonds worth Rs 4000 crore will be issued for 5 years and sovereign green bonds worth Rs 4000 crore will be issued for 10 years.
Apart from this, Sovereign Green Bonds worth Rs 8000 crores will be issued as the next instalment on 9 February 2023. In which green bonds worth Rs 4000 crore will be issued for 5 years and sovereign green bonds worth Rs 4000 crore will be issued for 10 years.
What are Sovereign Green Bonds?
These are bonds that are used by the government to finance projects that have a positive impact on the environment.
The Green Bond was launched in 2007 by the European Investment Bank and the World Bank.
A Green Bond is an instrument that helps in raising funds for green projects.
Funds from these bonds will be invested in public sector projects that help reduce carbon intensity.
These bonds fall into 9 broad categories. Some of these are projects like renewable energy, energy efficiency, clean transportation, green building.
The government aims to attract foreign investors through these bonds.
Being asset linked, it becomes easier for the government to raise money through these bonds.
7. NGEL, HPCL sign an agreement to develop green energy projects
Tags: National Economy/Finance
NTPC Green Energy Ltd (NGEL) has signed an agreement with Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) for the development of renewable energy-based power projects for HPCL Refineries and other Business Units.
The agreement was signed on 3 January 2023 in New Delhi by Mr Neeraj Sharma, Head of Finance, NGEL and Shri Shuvendu Gupta, Executive Director- BioFuels & Renewables, HPCL.
Under the agreement NGEL which is a subsidiary of NTPC will supply 400 MW renewable power to the HPCL
This MoU marks the first step for NGEL and HPCL to collaborate and cooperate in the field of development of Renewable Energy projects which shall help HPCL in meeting its Clean Energy Commitments.
8. Norway’s Climate Investment Fund invests Rs 90 crore in ReNew Company’s Karnataka transmission project
Tags: Environment Economy/Finance
According to the Norwegian embassy in India “ Norway’s Climate Investment Fund, managed by Norfund, together with Norwegian pension fund KLP, will invest Rs 90 crore in a transmission project in Karnataka being developed by ReNew Power company. “
The Norwegian fund together will hold 49% stake in the ReNew’s transmission project in Koppel, Karnataka.
The Norwegian investment in Karnataka will connect 2.5 GW of renewable capacity to the national grid.
Climate Fund Investment in India
This will be the third investment of the Climate investment fund in India. The fund has already made two previous investments in India. It has invested in a large-scale solar park being developed by the Italian Enel company in Rajasthan. It has also invested in India's leading developer of distributed solar energy solutions, Fourth Partner Energy.
Norway's new Climate Investment Fund
Norway's new Climate Investment Fund which became operational in May 2022 has been set up by the Norway government to invest in developing countries to encourage the transition from fossil based fuels to renewable energy sources. This is expected to reduce the emission of greenhouse gasses and slow down global warming.
It is managed by Norfund. Norfund is a Norwegian Investment Fund owned by the government of Norway and it invests in developing countries.
ReNew Company
ReNew is one of the largest renewable energy independent power producers globally. ReNew develops, builds, owns and operates utility-scale wind energy, solar energy and hydro projects.
As of October 10, 2022, ReNew has a gross total portfolio of 13.4 GW of renewable energy projects across India, including commissioned and committed projects.
Founder Chairman and CEO of the Company: Sumant Sinha
9. ONGC top profit making public sector enterprises in 2021-22
Tags: Economy/Finance
According to the government of India’s Public Enterprise survey 2021-22, ONGC was the top profit making central public sector enterprises (CPSE) in 2021-22. After ONGC the other most profit making CPSE were Indian Oil Corporation, Power Grid, NTPC and SAIL.
Highlights of the Public Enterprises Survey 2021-22
- The net profit of operating public sector enterprises jumped 50.87 per cent to Rs 2.49 lakh crore during 2021-22. It was Rs 1.65 lakh crore in 2020-21.
- The net loss of loss-making CPSEs reduced to Rs 0.15 lakh crore in 2021-22 from Rs 0.23 lakh crore in 2020-21, showing a decrease of 37.82 per cent.
- Major loss-making CPSEs were Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL), Mahanagar Telecom Nigam Ltd (MTNL), Air India Assets Holding Ltd, and Eastern Coalfields Ltd.
- Total gross revenue from the operations of operating CPSEs during 2021-22 was Rs 31.95 lakh crore as against Rs 24.08 lakh crore in 2020-21, showing an increase of 32.65 per cent.
- Dividend declared by operating CPSEs in 2021-22 stood at Rs 1.15 lakh crore, as against Rs 0.73 lakh crore in 2020-21, an increase of 57.58 per cent.
- The survey attributed the revenue rise in 2021-22 to better performance by the petroleum (refinery and marketing), crude oil and transport, and logistics segments.
- Petroleum (refinery and marketing), trading and marketing, and power generation, together contributed 69.08 per cent to the gross revenues in 2021-22.
- The contribution of all CPSEs to the central exchequer by way of excise duty, custom duty, GST, corporate tax, interest on central government loans, dividend, and other duties and taxes stood at Rs 5.07 lakh crore in 2021-22, as against Rs 4.97 lakh crore in 2020-21, showing an increase of 2.14 per cent.
- The top five CPSEs contributing to the central exchequer were Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd, Bharat Oman Refineries Ltd and Chennai Petroleum Corporation Ltd.
- Besides, the corporate social responsibility (CSR) expenditure of all CSR eligible CPSEs (160) stood at Rs 4,600 crore in 2021-22 compared to Rs 4,483 crore in 2020-21, an increase of 2.61 per cent.
- The top five CPSEs contributing the highest under CSR were ONGC, NTPC, Indian Oil Corporation, NMDC and Power Grid.
10. ADB to provide $1.2 billion loan for infrastructure projects
Tags: Economy/Finance
The Manila based Asian Development Bank (ADB) has agreed to provide a $1.22 billion loan to the government of India for Infrastructure development in various states.
An agreement to this effect was signed between the Indian Government and ADB in New Delhi on 3 January 2023.India is the largest borrower of ADB.
The agreements would cover projects for improving the power sector and highways in the Northeastern states of Tripura and Assam, metro rail connectivity in the southern city of Chennai, and improvement of key economic areas in the western state of Maharashtra.
The Asian Development Bank was established in 1966. Its Headquarter is at Mandaluyong City, Manila, Philippines.
President of ADB: Masatsugu Asakawa
