Important Reports Flashcards
According to the findings of the discussion paper on “Multidimensional Poverty in India since 2005-06” released by NITI Ayog in Jan, answer the following questions-
a) _____people escaped Multidimensional Poverty in India in the last 9 years?
b) Multidimensional Poverty in India declined from 29.17% in 2013-14 to ___% in 2022-23?
c) Which states registered the highest decline in Multidimensional Poverty in the last 9 years?
d) The Multidimensional Poverty Index which is released by the UNDP and the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI), is based on ____dimensions and _____number of indicators?
e) According to the index, a person is considered multidimensionally poor if he or she is deprived of at least ____fraction of the weighted indicators mentioned in the index?
Ans-
a) 24.82 crore people
b) To 11.28% in 2022-23
c) The highest decline in multidimensional poverty was in UP (5.94 crore) which was followed by Bihar (3.77 crore), Madhya Pradesh (2.3 crore) and Rajasthan
d) The Multidimensional Poverty Index is based on 3 dimensions which are Health, Education and Standard of Living which includes 12 indicators aligned with the SDGs and reflecting the overall well-being of people. The index is used in contrast to the common poverty index which is based on the income of the people. It evaluates non-monetary indicators related to Health, Education and Standard of Living to assess the overall well-being of people. Thus, enabling a holistic approach to measure poverty. The index is based on the globally recognized Alkire and Foster model developed by Sabina Alkire and James Foster of the OPHI (Oxford Policy and Human Development Initiative).
e) At least one-third fraction of the given weighted indicators
Answer the following based on the All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) 2021-22 published by the Ministry of Education in Jan 2024-
a) Total enrolment of students in Higher Education has increased from ___in 2020-21 to ____in 2021-22, and it has increased from ___ in 2014-15?
b) Female enrolment in Higher education has increased from ___in 2020-21 to ___in 2021-22 and an increase of about 50 lakh from ___in 2014-15?
c) About ___% of the total students are enrolled in undergraduate level courses and ___% are enrolled in Post Graduate courses?
d) Among Undergraduate level courses, the enrolment is highest in which discipline?
e) Among postgraduate streams, the Highest students are enrolled in?
Ans-
* a) From 4.14 crore in 2020-21 to 4.33 crore in 2021-22 and it has increased from 3.42 crore in 2014-15
- b) From 2.1 crore in 2020-21 to 2.7 crore in 2021-22 and an increase of about 50 lakhs from 1.57 crore in 2014-15
- c) Undergraduate 78.9% and Post Graduate 12.1%
- d) enrolment is highest in Arts, followed by Science, Commerce and Engineering & Technology
- e) In Social Science, followed by Science
Answer the following based on the Swacch Survekshan Survey 2023, the World’s largest survey on cleanliness, hygiene and sanitation hosted by the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA)-
a) What was the theme of the Swacch Survekshan Survey 2023?
b)Which two cities were ranked 1 and which city was ranked 3 with a population of more than 1 lakh?
c) Which were the top 3 cities in the population with less than 1 lakh?
d) Which was the cleanest cantonment board?
e) Best Safai Mitra Surakshit Sheher?
f) Which were the cleanest Ganga towns in rank 1 and rank 2 respectively?
g) Which were the top three states in terms of rankings?
Ans-
* a) “Waste to Wealth”
- b) Rank 1- Indore and Surat, Rank 3- Navi Mumbai. No city was given rank 2
- c) Rank 1- Sasvad (Maharashtra), Rank 2- Patan (Gujarat), Rank 3- Lonavala (Maharashtra)
- d) Mhow
Cantonment board, MP - e) Chandigarh
- f) Rank 1- Varanasi, Rank 2-Prayagraj
- g) Rank1 – Maharashtra, Rank 2-MP, Rank 3- Chattisgarh
A) The ___edition of the WTO Ministerial Conference, aimed to address critical issues affecting global trade and food security was held in _____place?
B) According to the G-33 Ministerial Statement on Agriculture Trade Negotiations, almost ______people will be chronically undernourished in 2030?
C) Despite previous oppositions by South Africa and India, the WTO members agreed to further extend the moratorium on imposing import duties on ______type of trade for two more years?
D) Which two new members were added in the WTO?
E) What is the 3-Tier action plan proposed by India to revive WTO’s Dispute Resolution Body?
F) India’s proposal on reducing the cost of cross-border remittances garnered a significant support. The proposal highlighted the disparity between current global average remittance costs of ____% and the UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) target of less than ___%?
Ans-
A) The 13th edition of the WTO Ministerial Conference was held in Abu Dhabi, UAE
B) 600 million people
C) e-Commerce trade
D) Comoros and Timor-Leste. This brings the total number of WTO member countries to 166
E) 1. To transition the discussions on dispute settlement reforms to formal WTO bodies, preferably under the guidance of the Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) chair;
- To ensure that the transition is not just a mere formality but results in an effective multilateralisation of the process, which is member-driven, open, transparent and inclusive, taking into account the myriad capacity and technical challenges facing developing country members and LDCs;
- To prioritise the restoration of the Appellate Body.
F) 6.18%, 3%
Answer the following based on the report on “finances of Panchayati Raj institutions” released by the Division of Local Finances (DLF) of the Department of Economic and Policy Research (DEPR), RBI-
A) The report covered around __% of the total number of Rural Local Bodies (RLB)?
B) Which article states that “the State shall take measures to organise Gram Panchayats and empower them with the necessary authority and powers to function as self-governing units”?
C) In 1992, which amended act institutionalized the Panchayati raj institutions in India and which states were excluded from the act?
D) There are a total of ____ Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) in India, with ____ Gram Panchayats, ____ Mandal Panchayats and ____ Zila Parishads as end of October 2023?
E) There is a __% reservation of women in the Panchayati Raj Institutions?
F) Successive Central Finance Commissions (CFCs) have recommended a consistent increase in grants to PRIs - from ₹4,381 crore by the tenth CFC to ₹___by the fifteenth CFC?
G) What are the two concerns that exist for the delegation of taxing powers to Panchayats?
H) What are the measures taken to increase digitization and people’s participation in local governance?
I) The average number of panchayats reporting data on the e-Gram Swaraj portal during the last 3 years was?
J) What are the revenue sources of panchayats, and what is the status of their revenue sources?
K) What is the average revenue per Panchayat from all sources during 2020-21, 2021-22 and 2022-23 respectively?
L) The average expenditure per panchayat decreased from ₹____ in 2020-21 to ₹____ in 2022-23?
M) What is the ratio of revenue expenditure of panchayats to nominal GSDP?
N) Investment in capital projects constituted ___% of the total expenditure of panchayats in 2022-23?
O) What is the key conclusion of the report?
P) What are the challenges faced by Panchayats and what is the way forward?
Ans-
A) 75%
B) Article 40
C) - The 73rd Amendment to the Indian Constitution institutionalised the Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) at three levels in rural India: Gram Panchayats at the village level, Mandal Panchayats at the intermediate/block level and Zila Parishad at the district level.
- The States of Meghalaya, Mizoram and Nagaland have been specifically excluded from the operation of the 73rd Amendment Act.
- the 73rd Amendment specifies 29 subjects for which Panchayats were entrusted with the responsibility of devising and executing plans aimed at fostering local economic development and social justice.
D) There are a total of 2.62 lakh Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) in India, with 2.55 lakh Gram Panchayats, 6,707 Mandal Panchayats and 665 Zila Parishads as the end of October 2023 E) 33% F) ₹2.37 lakh crore by the 15th Finance Commission G) - First, none of the available tax sources is particularly substantial in revenue generation, except for the property tax. - Second, the challenges faced by PRIs in raising local tax revenue include a limited tax base, a shortage of administrative infrastructure and adequately trained staff for tax collection and a lack of clear guidelines for introducing new taxes. Consequently, some local bodies refrain from imposing and collecting taxes that they can levy. H) - In line with Article 243-G of the Constitution, Panchayats have been mandated to prepare a Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP) for economic development and social justice, it facilitates local-level planning and development by bringing together all the stakeholders, including citizens and Gram Panchayats, in the decentralised planning framework through the People’s Plan Campaign (PPC). - To enhance e-governance in PRIs, the eGramSwaraj platform was introduced in 2020 as a simplified, work-based accounting application to address various aspects of panchayat operations, such as planning, accounting, and budgeting. It is aimed at promoting digital governance and empowerment in rural areas, particularly through the digitization of Panchayati Raj - Facilitation of online payments through the eGramSwaraj- PFMS (Public Financial Management System) interface. It serves as a platform for more effective monitoring by higher authorities. - The Audit Online application by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj facilitates online audits of Panchayat accounts by maintaining comprehensive records of both internal and external audits, thereby strengthening financial management and transparency, and simplifying various audit procedures - The PRIASoft-PFMS interface enables Gram Panchayats to make online payments to vendors and service providers, a feature integrated into the eGramSwaraj application. - A mobile app called mActionSoft allows PRIs to upload geo-tagged photos of the works and assets created using CFC grants.I) - The number of Panchayats reporting data on the e-GramSwaraj portal during the last three years has averaged 2.43 lakh and 2.36 lakh for revenue receipts and expenditure, respectively, covering more than 90 per cent of total village Panchayats in the country. - The reporting of data is not consistent across the years, with instances of Panchayats reporting data for only two of the three years or not reporting data for some account heads for all three years. Therefore, the data were cleaned for such reporting issues, and a balanced panel was used for the analysis with the same number of village Panchayats across the three years. The data in the balanced panel cover 80.8 per cent and 69.1 per cent of total Panchayats for revenue receipts and expenditure, respectively.
- In terms of the reporting for the dataset, the top and bottom states were:
Top state- UP with 57709 Village Panchayats
Bottom State- Goa with 191 village panchayatsJ) The revenue receipts of the panchayats include: - Tax Revenue
- Non-Tax Revenue
- Grant-in-aid from the Central government
- Grant-in-aid from State government
Among these, the revenue receipts are dominated by grant-in-aid with a share of more than 95% of the total revenue receipts. This indicates that panchayats’ source of revenue is primarily from grant-in-aids and their source of revenue is less from Tax and Non-Tax revenues. - The own revenues of the Panchayats generated by imposing local taxes, fees, and charges on various activities, including land revenue, professional and trade taxes, and miscellaneous fees were only 1.1% of their total revenue during the study period.
- Non-tax revenue - primarily from Panchayati Raj programmes and interest earnings – is also modest, with a share of only 3.3% of their total revenue receipt
K) 2020-21: Rs.21.2 lakh in 2020-21
2021-22: Rs.23.2 lakh
2022-23: Rs.21.23 lakh
L) - The average expenditure per panchayat decreased from Rs.17.3 lakh in 2020-21 to Rs.12.5 lakh in 2022-23 due to higher-than-normal spending in the pandemic year 2020-21.
- Goa, Karnataka, Odisha, Sikkim, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu recorded the highest average expenditure at the Panchayat level.
- A significant share of the capital expenditure by PRIs is allocated to Panchayati Raj Programmes, transportation, water supply and sanitation, rural electrification, and rural housing.
M) The ratio of revenue expenditure of panchayats to nominal GSDP is less than 0.6 per cent for all the states, ranging from 0.001 per cent in Bihar to 0.56 per cent in Odisha
N) Investment in capital projects constituted 29.6% of the total expenditure of panchayats in 2022-23, on average across states.
O) There is a Heavy reliance on the central and state governments for financial resources and panchayats must reduce their heavy dependence on grants by deploying the tax and non-tax instruments available to them to raise resources.
P) Challenges:
- Inadequate Financial Resources
- Heavy reliance on grants from upper tiers of government
- Under-provision of basic human resources
- Weak infrastructure
Way Forward:
- Panchayats need to intensify their efforts to augment their own tax and non-tax revenue resources and improve their governance.
- PRIs, on their part, can use their limited resources more efficiently and effectively through measures such as:
a) Transparent budgeting and fiscal discipline
b) Active involvement of the local community to prioritise development needs
c) Staff training
d) Robust monitoring and evaluation processes
e) Prudent asset management
f) Raising public awareness
g) Adopting digital tools.
-PRIs should report their finances in standardised formats to strengthen their fiscal transparency and accountability at the Panchayat Level.
-PRIs can also facilitate the adoption of climate-resilient farming methods, and promote renewable energy sources like solar panels and biogas plants, thus reducing reliance on fossil fuels and mitigating climate change.
- A part of the grants-in-aid from the upper tiers of the government could be linked to climate resilience efforts of PRIs.
- Raise citizens’ awareness about the functions and significance of PRIs by encouraging their increased participation in local governance processes and by enhancing people-centric administration and communication.
. Answer the following based on the recommendations of the 53rd GST Council Meeting-
A) What were the monetary limits set for filing appeals under the GST for the GST Appellate Tribunal, High Court and Supreme Court respectively?
B) The maximum amount for filing an appeal with the appellate authority is reduced to?
C) The Pre-deposit amount limit for the Appellate Tribunal is reduced to?
D) Recent amendment introduces a common time limit for issuing demand notices and orders, whether the case involves fraud, suppression, or willful misstatement. The recommended time limit for availing of this benefit has been increased from __days to ___ days by paying the tax demanded along with interest?
E) The TCS rate for TCS collection by the Electronic Commerce Operators (ECOs) was reduced from __% to __%?
A) – GST Appellate Tribunal: ₹20 lakh
- High Court: ₹1 crore
- Supreme Court: ₹2 crore
B) CGST- from ₹25 crore to ₹20 crore
IGST- from ₹25 crore to ₹20 crore
C) It was decreased from 20% up to ₹50 crore CGST and ₹50 SGST to 10% of up to ₹20 crore CGST and ₹20 crore SGST
D) From 30 days to 60 days
E) From 1% to 0.5%
Answer the following based on the first exclusive all-India survey on ‘Ayush’ conducted by the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) from July 2022 to June 2023-
A) The survey was conducted as a part of the ____ round of the National Sample Survey (NSS)?
B) The survey was conducted on a member of a household aged ___years or more?
C) Approximately ___% of rural and ___% of urban respondents are aware of the Ayush system of medicine?
D) Around ___% of rural and ___% of urban individuals used Ayush for the prevention or treatment of ailments in the past 365 days?
E) At least one member in about ___% of rural and ___% of urban households is aware of medicinal plants, home remedies, and local health traditions related to Ayush?
F) In around ___ households in rural India and around ___ households in urban India, at least one member of the household is found to practise yoga regularly?
A) - It was conducted as a part of the 79th round of the NSSO
- This survey covered the entire Indian Union, excluding a few inaccessible villages in the Andaman & Nicobar Islands. Information was collected from 1,81,298 households, including 1,04,195 in rural areas and 77,103 in urban areas.
B) 15 years or more
C) Approximately 95% of rural and 96% of urban respondents are aware of Ayush.
D) Around 46% of rural and 53% of urban individuals used Ayush for the prevention or treatment of ailments in the past 365 days
E) 85% of the Rural Households and 86% of the Urban Households
F) Rural India- 1.1 crore households, Urban India- 1.4 crore households
A) What is the full form of the ASUSE survey, released in June and it covers which sectors?
B) The Total no. of establishments grew by ___% annually?
C) The number of establishments in the other services sector grew annually by ___%
D) The number of manufacturing establishments increased by ___%
E) The unincorporated non-agricultural sector employed about ___workers?
F) What was the growth of employment observed in different sectors?
G) Gross Value Added (GVA) witnessed an annual growth of ____%?
H) The use of internet for entrepreneurial purposes increased at what rate?
i) Proportion of female workers to total workers has marginally increased
from ____% to _____%?
J) Percentage of registered establishments increased from ____% to _____%?
A) - The Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises (ASUS) provides the economic and operational characteristics of the “Unincorporated Non-Agricultural Establishments” in the Trade, Manufacturing and Other Services sectors, excluding the Construction sector.
- The ASUSE survey of this year covered the reference periods of April 2021 to March 2022 (ASUSE 2021-22) and October 2022 to September 2023 (ASUSE 2022-23).
B) 5.88%
C) 15.12 %
D) 2.22%
E) The unincorporated non-agricultural sector employed about 11 crore workers (10.96 crore) from October 2022 to September 2023, up from 9.8 crore in 2021-22, showing a healthy labour market growth. This 7.84%
annual growth demonstrates the sector’s capacity to generate employment.
- More than one-third of this labour force was engaged in the states of
Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and West Bengal.
F) The highest growth of employment was observed at 13.42% in the Services sector, followed by 6.34% in the Manufacturing sector.
G) - Gross Value Added (GVA) witnessed an annual growth of 9.83%
- While the manufacturing GVA increased by 19.14% annually, for other
services, GVA grew by 18.90%.
H) - There was an overall increase of 7.2% in the use of internet for entrepreneurial purposes.
- In rural areas, there was increase from 7.7% to 13.5% and in Urban areas the Internet use increased from 21.6% to 30.2% in the Urban sector.
i) From 25.2% to 25.63%
J) From 29.4% to 36.8%
Answer the following based on the SDG publications released by the MoSPI on the occasion of 18th Statistics Day on 29 June 2024-
A) ____ States/UTs have developed their State/UT level monitoring framework for SDGs to track the progress of SDGs at the sub-national level?
B) How many indicators are identified at a National level to measure and monitor the progress of targets under “SDG-1: No Poverty”?
There was a reduction in the proportion of people living in poverty in India from ___ % in 2015-16 to ____% in the period 2019-21?
C) There was an Increase in the number of Self-Help Groups (SHGs) providing bank credit linkage to ______?
D) Coverage of New Pension Scheme (NPS) is ________ in 2023- 24?
E) How many indicators are identified at a National level to measure and monitor the progress of targets under “SDG-2: Zero Hunger”?
What was the reduction in the percentage of children under the age of 5 who are stunted, from 2015-16 to 2019-21?
There was an increase in the percentage of net area under organic farming to ____ hectares?
Gross Value Added in agriculture per worker has increased to ₹______ in 2023-24?
F) How many indicators are identified at a National level to measure and monitor the progress of targets under “SDG-3: Good Health and Well Being”?
Budgetary allocation for the Department of Health Research is ₹______ in 2024-25?
Tuberculosis incidence per 1,00,000 population has reduced to ____ in 2022?
Neonatal mortality rate per 1000 live births has reduced to ____ in 2020?
The percentage of children aged 12-23 months who were fully vaccinated with BCG, measles, and three doses each of polio and DPT or Penta vaccine increased to ____% in 2019-21?
G) How many indicators are identified at a National level to measure and monitor the progress of targets under “SDG-4: Quality Education”?
The Gross Enrolment Ratio in higher secondary education has increased to ____% in 2021-22?
The proportion of schools with access to electricity is ____% in 2023- 24?
The proportion of schools with access to computers for pedagogical purposes is ___% in 2023-24?
Gross enrolment ratio for tertiary education is ___% in 2021- 22?
H) How many indicators are identified at a National level to measure and monitor the progress of targets under “SDG-5: Gender Equality”?
What were the wages of Women casual labourers and Men casual labourers during Oct-Dec 2022-23 respectively?
In the FY2023-24, ___% of the Self-Help Groups that were linked with banks were composed exclusively of women?
I) Answer the following based on “SDG-6: Clean Water and Sanitation”-
Percentage of population using an improved drinking water source in rural India has improved to ____% in 2023-24?
The percentage of Districts achieving open defecation-free has increased to ___% during 2019-20 to 2023-24?
Degree of integrated water resources management is __ in 2023?
J) Answer the following based on “SDG-7: Affordable and Clean Energy”-
___% of households are electrified in 2021-22?
Renewable energy share is ____% in the total installed electricity generation in 2022-23?
The total installed renewable energy generating capacity in the country is _____ watts per capita in 2023-24?
K) Answer the following based on ”SDG-8 Decent Work and Economic Growth”-
Total number of patents issued is ______ in 2023-24?
Outstanding credit to MSME is ₹_____ in 2022-23?
L) Answer the following based on “SDG-9 Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure”-
Total CO2 emissions of the power sector per unit of GDP (in Tonne/Rupees crore) have reduced to ___ in 2022-23?
Researchers per million population have increased to ____ in 2020- 21.?
The proportion of the population covered by a mobile network is ____% in the Mobile-cellular network category in 2022?
M) Answer the following based on “SDG-10 Reduced Inequality”-
Labour share is ___ % of the total GDP?
____% of the total budget was allocated for the welfare of SCs and STs in 2023-24?
N) Answer the following based on “SDG-11 Sustainable Cities and Communities”-
___% of the wards have 100% door-to-door waste collection in 2024?
____% of the total waste is processed in 2024?
O) Answer the following based on “SDG-12 Responsible Consumption and Production”-
Per capita, food availability has increased to ____ kg per year per person?
Total installed renewable energy generating capacity has increased to ____ watts per capita in 2023-24?
P) How many indicators are identified at a National level to measure and monitor the progress of targets under “SDG-13: Climate Action”?
There was a ____% of the reduction in emission intensity of GDP over the 2005 level?
Q) As per the key data facts on “SDG-14: Life Below Water”, _____ million Tonnes/Year is the maximum sustainable yield in fishing?
R) Answer the following based on “SDG 15: Life on Land”-
____% of the total geographical area is covered by forest (Forest Cover) in 2021?
____% of the total geographical area is protected area in 2023?
____% of government spending is on environmental protection in 2022-23?
____ % of the total wetland area is covered by Ramsar Sites in 2023?
S) Answer the following based on “SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions”
____ government services were being provided online to citizens in 2021-22?
There are only ___judges per lakh population in 2023?
T) According to key data facts on SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals, Indian merchandise export contributes ___ % in Global Exports and Indian commercial services export contributes ____% in Global exports?
A) 28
B) ** At the global level, SDG-1 has 7 targets to measure the progress of a nation in eradicating poverty in all its forms everywhere. A total of 18 indicators have been identified at the national level to measure and monitor the progress of these targets.
** From 24.85% in 2015-16 to 14.96% in 2019-21
C) 44.15 lakhs
D) 1,80,43,920
E) ** Under SDG-2 “Zero Hunger”, there are 8 targets identified at a global level to measure the availability of food, improvement in nutrition and promotion of sustainable agriculture, and 19 indicators are identified at the National Level in India to measure and monitor the progress of these targets.
** From 38.4% in 2015-16 to 35.5% in 2019-21
** To 4.4293 million hectares.
** Rs.87,609
F) ** There are a total of 13 targets to measure healthy lives and promote well-being for all and 38 indicators have been identified at the national level to measure and monitor the progress of these targets.
** ₹3001 crore
** 199
** 20
** 76.6% in 2019-21
G) ** This goal encompasses 10 targets aimed at measuring inclusive and equitable quality education and promoting lifelong learning opportunities. To monitor the progress of these targets, 19 indicators have been identified at the national level
** 57.6%
** 89.3%
** 47.5%
** 28.4%
H) ** This goal includes 9 targets to monitor gender equality and ensure the empowerment of women and girls. At the national level, 31 indicators have been identified to track the progress of these targets.
** Women Casual Labourers: ₹276 per day, Male Casual Labourers: ₹428 per day
** 97.53%
I) ** 99.29%
** 100%
** 75
J) ** 100%
** 22.51%
** 136.56 Watts per capita
K) ** 1,03,057
** ₹22.60 lakh crore
L) ** 44.52
** 262
** 99.2%
M) ** 33.14%
** 6.19% of the total budget
N) ** 97%
** 78.46%
O) ** 207.6 kg per capita per year
** 136.56 watts per capita
P) ** Goal 13 has 5 targets to measure the changing impacts of climate-related hazards. A total of 7 indicators have been identified at the national level to measure and monitor the progress of these targets.
** 24%
Q) 5.311 million tonnes/Year
R) ** 21.71%
** 5.43%
** 0.08%
** 8.73%
S) ** 4671
** 1.53 Judges per lakh population
T) Indian merchandise export contributes 1.8% to Global Exports and Indian commercial services export contributes 4.4% to Global exports.
