NATIONAL

In- Principle approval accorded to nuclear powerplant

• The Union government has accorded the ‘In-Principle’ approval for 6 nuclear power reactors to be set up at the site of Jaitapur in Ratnagiri district of Maharastra.
• Each Nuclear power reactors are capable of generating 1650MW, the total power generating capacity of the site will be 9900MW, making it the largest nuclear power generating facility of India.
• The reactors are constructed along with the technical cooperation from France
• The Present installed nuclear power capacity in the country is 6780 MW and the share of nuclear power in the total electricity generation in the country is about 3.1% in 2020-21.
• The nuclear power plants have so far generated about 755 Billion Units of electricity saving about 650 Million Tons of CO₂ emission.
• The Government of India has also taken several other measures to improve nuclear power generating capacity, they are

1. Accord of administrative approval and financial sanction of - ten (10) indigenous 700 MW Pressurized Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs) to be set up in fleet mode with provision of equity support.
2. Resolution of issues related to Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage (CLND) Act & Creation of Indian Nuclear Insurance Pool (INIP).
3. Amendment of the Atomic Energy Act to enable Joint Ventures of Public Sector Companies to set up nuclear power projects.

Government has launched MIS portal

• Minister for Rural development and Panchayati Raj Giriraj Singh has launched Management Information Systems(MIS) portal for rankings of States/UTs in Land Acquisition Projects under Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013(RFCTLARR Act).
• The portal is developed in house by the NIC team of the department with zero cost, with the link to the portal is larr.dolr.gov.in
• The Department of Land Resources developed this MIS portal to capture information on various parameters of land acquisition, required for ranking of the State/UTs, which is a software-driven program to submit information by respective State/UTs on land acquisition for developmental projects.
• In the first phase, land acquisition under RFCTLARR Act, 2013 undertaken from 01.01.2014 onwards will be covered for ranking purposes and this will be a continuous process.
• Each State/UT will get marks out of a total of 140 marks. There is also the provision of the negative marking for delaying implementation.

New Chief of Staff committee head appointed

• Army Chief General M M Narvane has been appointed as the chairman of the Chief of Staffs Committee, which comprises the three forces service chief’s.
• The Old system is implemented for time being after the demise of General Bipin Rawat, to ensure the coordination of all three forces.

Report on State of Foundational Literacy and Numeracy in India released

• The Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM) released the report on the State of Foundational Literacy and Numeracy in India.
• The report is prepared by the Institute for Competitiveness highlights the importance of early education years in the overall development of a child.
• The report further highlights the role of well-planned early interventions like the National Education Policy (2020) and the NIPUN Bharat guidelines, leading to long-term improved learning outcomes.
• The Index includes five pillars comprising of 41 indicators, Namely the five pillars include_

1. Educational Infrastructure
2. Access to Education
3. Basic Health
4. Leaning Outcomes
5. Governance.

• West Bengal has topped in the Index under the category of large states with 59 points, followed by Tamil Nadu and Maharastra in second and third positions respectively.
• Under the Small states category Kerala topped the index with 68 points, followed by Himachal Pradesh and Punjab in second and third positions respectively.
• Lakshwadeep with 52.69 points topped in the UT’s Category and Mizoram with 51.64 points has topped at the North eastern states category.

INTERNATIONAL

3^rd Annual Defence dialog between India and France

• Defence Minister of India Rajnath Singh and French defence Minister Florence Parly are set to meet on the 3^rd annual Defence dialog at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi.
• The Talks are expected to cover aspects on Indo-French defence cooperation, Maritime security in Indo Pacific, Industrial and technological partnership in line with Make in India and Counter terrorism cooperation.

Letter of Intent on digital media inked

• Indian Minister of Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur and Vietnam’s Minister of Information and communication Nguyen Manh has signed the letter of Intent to establish partnership in Digital Media and Postal Sector.
• The letter of Intent expects sharing of information and experience in establishing policies and regulatory frameworks on digital media and social networks.
• It also envisages conducting capacity building and training programs for media professionals and officials in the two countries.

BANKING, FINANCE AND ECONOMICS

UBS predicts FDI of India

• The UBS Global has released a report which revealed that India’s Foreign Direct Investments may decline by 20%, close to $82 billion received by this Fiscal year.
• The Report Suggested that the net FDI inflows in India are not expected to fully offset the country’s current account deficit this year.
• FDI inflows in the first half of this year stood at about $31 billion.
• UBS economists expect FDI inflows into India to increase to about $85 billion by FY26 and rise to almost $100 billion over five years.

State Bank raises basis points

• The State Bank of India has hiked its base rate by 10 basis points from 6.70% previously to 6.80%.
• The new rates ranging from 5 to 10 basis points are applicable for deposits below Rs 1 crore.
• For Senior citizens the maturity has been raised from 7.20% to 7.30%.
• For Deposits maturing in less than two to three years the maturity has been increased from 6.75% to 6.80%.