June 25th Current Affairs

1. Maritime State Development Council (MSDC)

IN NEWS:

Union Minister of State (I/C) for Port, Shipping and Waterways Shri Mansukh Mandaviya chaired the 18th meeting of the Maritime State Development Council (MSDC) through a video conference organized by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways.

KEY POINTS:

• MSDC is an apex advisory body for the development of the Maritime sector and aims to ensure integrated development of Major and non-Major Ports.
• The MSDC was constituted in May 1997 to assess in consultation with State Governments, the future development of existing and new Minor Ports by the respective Maritime States either directly or through captive users and private participation.
• Further, MSDC also monitors the development of minor ports, captive ports and private ports in the Maritime States with a view to ensure their integrated development with Major Ports and to assess the requirements of other infrastructure requirements like roads/rail/IWT and make suitable recommendations to the concerned Ministers.
• MSDC will advise on the planning of all ports including Major Ports.
• In addition, several conventions pertaining to safety, security and prevention of pollution are incorporated in IP Bill 2021 for implementation of all requirements stipulated in such conventions by all ports.

SOURCE:PIB

2. E-launch of NAFED Fortified Rice Bran Oil

IN NEWS:

Department of Food and Public Distribution recently E-launched “NAFED Fortified Rice Bran Oil”.

KEY POINTS:

About Rice bran oil

• Rice bran oil is the oil extracted from the hard outer brown layer of rice called chaff (rice husk).
• It is known for its high smoke point of 232 °C (450 °F) making it suitable for high-temperature cooking methods such as stir frying and deep frying.
• Rice bran oil has a composition similar to that of peanut oil.

Health benefits

• Lowering cholesterol level due to its low trans-fat content and high monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fat contents.
• It also acts as a booster and reduces the risk of cancer due to the high amount of Vitamin E it contains.
• It is recommended by the WHO as one of the best substitutes for other edible oils.

Important Information:

About NAFED

• National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd (NAFED) is an apex organization of marketing cooperatives for agricultural produce in India.
• It was founded on 2 October 1958.
• It is registered under Multi State Co-operative Societies Act.
• Headquarters: New Delhi.
• Ministry: Ministry of Agriculture

SOURCE:IE

3. Regulation of Microfinance by RBI.

IN NEWS:

• RBI has released a Consultative Document on Regulation of Microfinance.
• It is released for harmonising the regulatory frameworks for various regulated lenders in the microfinance space.
• It also said that all micro loans should be regulated by a common set of guidelines irrespective of who gives them.

KEY POINTS:

• A common definition of microfinance loans for all regulated entities.
• RBI has mooted capping the payment of interest and repayment of principal for all outstanding loan obligations of the household as a percentage of the household income, subject to a limit of maximum 50%.
• A Board approved policy for household income assessment.
• There would be no ceiling prescribed for the interest rate. There would be no collateral allowed for micro loans.
• There can be no prepayment penalty, while all entities have to permit the borrowers to repay weekly, fortnightly or monthly instalments as per their choice.
• Alignment of pricing guidelines for NBFC-MFIs with guidelines for NBFCs.
• Introduction of a standard simplified fact sheet on pricing of microfinance loans for better transparency.
• Display of minimum, maximum and average interest rates charged on microfinance loans on the websites of regulated entities.

Important Information:

About MicroFinance Institution (MFI)

• Microfinance is a form of financial service which provides small loans and other financial services to poor and low-income households.
• MFIs are financial companies that provide small loans to people who do not have any access to banking facilities.
• In India, all loans that are below Rs. 1 lakh can be considered as microloans.
• The difference between an NBFC-MFI and other NBFC is that while other NBFCs can operate at a very high level, MFIs cater to only the smaller level of social strata, with need of smaller amounts as loans.

SOURCE:MINT

4. USISPF-Global Investors Meet

IN NEWS:

Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, addressed the Global Investors Roundtable organised by US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF).

KEY POINTS:

• While addressing the investor’s meet she asserted that; continuous reforms make India a great place to do business.
• She also invited global investors to take advantage of recent FDI reforms, privatisation policy and performance linked incentive (PLI) scheme in India.
• She further highlighted, fiscal situation is under control and is expected to improve in coming days and emphasised the strong fundamental of economy.
• According to her, COVID-19 and its aftermath has shown Indian economy’s resilience. Highest ever Goods and Services Tax (GST) were collected amid the pandemic. It signifies the bright spot and indicates greater formalisation of economy and tax compliance.
• Fiscal deficit was at 9.3 per cent of the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) for fiscal year 2020-2021. It was lower than 9.5 per cent estimated by finance ministry in revised Budget estimates.

Important Information:

US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF)

• USISPF is a non-profit organization which was set up in 2017 with the objective of strengthening USA-India bilateral and strategic partnership.
• It aims to strengthen economic and commercial ties between both the countries by policy advocacy.
• It will lead to boosting economic growth, entrepreneurship, employment-generation, and innovation in order to establish a more inclusive society.

SOURCE:PIB