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India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth surged to a six-quarter high of 8.4% in October-December, pushing up the growth rate for 2023-24 to 7.6% as against the earlier estimate of 7.3%, data for third quarter GDP and second advance estimates for 2023-24 released by the National Statistical Office (NSO).
Even as agricultural growth is expected to remain subdued at 0.7%, FY24 GDP is seen gaining from a low base effect, and an over 8% growth in manufacturing, mining and financial services.
In the third quarter of the current financial year, among sectors, manufacturing posted the highest growth rate in double digits at 11.6%, while the construction sector grew 9.5%. Agriculture recorded a contraction of 0.8% in October-December.
Private final consumption expenditure, an indicator of consumption demand, rose by 3.5% year-on-year in October-December, while government final consumption expenditure decreased by 3.2%. Gross fixed capital formation, an indicator of investment, grew by 10.6% during the third quarter.
Big leap for chip mission : 3 plants, Rs 1.26 lakh crore investment get Govt nod (Page no. 1)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
THE UNION Cabinet approved three chip related projects worth about Rs 1.26 lakh crore, including what could be India’s first semiconductor fabrication plant, which will be set up by the Tata Group along with a Taiwanese technology partner.
The Tata Group will set up the foundry in partnership with Taiwan-based Powerchip (PSMC) at an estimated cost of Rs 91,000 crore in Gujarat’s Dholera.
The plant will have a capacity to produce 300 crore chips every year, which will cater to industries like high performance computing, electric vehicles, defence and consumer electronics, among other things. The construction of the facility will begin in less than 100 days.
PSMC is a major entity in the chip manufacturing space, and ranks among the top ten semiconductor companies in terms of global revenues.
Typically, a new fabrication plant — from the date of completion of construction — takes about 4-5 years to produce the first batch of chips. In a briefing, Vaishnaw said that time could be reduced in the case of Tata-PSMC since the land has already been identified and construction will begin soon.
India’s young sitting on rising obesity curve, shows Lancet study (Page no. 1)
(GS Paper 2, Health)
India could be facing an obesity epidemic with alarm bells ringing particularly for the young. A new global analysis, published by The Lancet, found that 12.5 million children (7.3 million boys and 5.2 million girls) in the country, aged between five and 19, were grossly overweight in 2022, up from 0.4 million in 1990.
The report showed more than three per cent prevalence among children and teens, an increase of over three percentage points from 1990.
Obesity is also a concern among adults, with female obesity prevalence increasing sharply — women had a 9.8 per cent prevalence, an increase of 8.6 percentage points from 1990.
For men, this number stood at 5.4 per cent, an increase of 4.9 percentage points. The new study reveals that 44 million women and 26 million men aged above 20 in India were found to be obese, this figure being 2.4 million women and 1.1 million men in 1990.
India ranks 182 among 197 countries for the prevalence of obesity in women and 180 for men in 2022. The country ranked 174 in the world for both girls and boys.
Obesity, as defined by the World Health Organisation (WHO), is an abnormal or excessive accumulation of fat that poses health risks. A body mass index (BMI) over 25 is considered overweight and over 30 is obese.
Govt & Politics
President approves Kerala Lokayukta bill withholds assent to 3 university law bills (Page no. 6)
(GS Paper 2, Governance)
In a setback for ruling CPI(M) in Kerala, the President has withheld the assent for three Bills passed by the State Legislative Assembly, including one envisaged to divest the governor from the position of chancellor of universities in Kerala.
But the President has cleared the Kerala Lokayukta Amendment Bill, 2022, which curtailed the powers of the anti-corruption watchdog, bringing relief for the government which gets power to either reject or accept the ombudsman’s report.
The Raj Bhavan, in an official communication, said, “Hon’ble President of India has withheld assent to the following Bills which Hon’ble Governor Shri Arif Mohammed Khan had referred to Rashtrapati Bhavan for consideration.
The bills withheld are Kerala University Laws [Amendment No.2] [Divesting Governor from the position of Chancellor of Universities] Bill 2022, University Law Amendment Bill 2022 [Expansion of Search Committee for the Appointment of Vice chancellor] and the University Law Amendment Bill 2021 [Appellate Tribunal issue and other amendments to Technological University and others].
Of the seven bills which Governor Arif Mohammed Khan referred to the Rashtrapati Bhavan in November last year, assent has been accorded to only one Bill, namely, Kerala Lokayukta Amendment Bill 2022. Decision on other three Bills is awaited.”
Express Network
No automatic vacation of stay orders after six months says SC (Page no. 9)
(GS Paper 2, Judiciary)
A Constitution bench of the Supreme Court overturned a 2018 ruling wherein a three-judge bench of the Court held that a stay granted in civil or criminal cases will automatically lapse upon expiry of six months unless extended by a court.
The bench presided by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud said that “there can’t be automatic vacation of stay”.
The bench also comprised Justices Abhay S Oka, J B Pardiwala, Pankaj Mithal, and Manoj Misra.
Reading out the operative part, Justice Oka said, “We have held that we don’t agree with the view” propounded by the three-judge bench in the case Asian Resurfacing of Road Agency Pvt Ltd & Anr vs. Central Bureau of Investigation.”
Editorial
The turbulent country (Page no. 10)
(GS Paper 2, International Relation)
Ravaged by the harmful policies of its army-led establishment, Pakistan is desperately in need of a new direction that could restore a modicum of internal stability and put its economy on an even keel.
However, its recent election has been a throwback to its past of widespread poll rigging and flawed mandates. It has resulted in a political muddle.
No political party has a simple majority in the National Assembly. The single largest group of PTI-backed independents — who have since got themselves a party tag by joining the little-known Sunni Ittehad Council — is anathema to the army.
Consequently, the second largest party, PML(N), is set to form the government with Shehbaz Sharif as Prime Minister. Following tough bargaining, PPP, the third-largest party in the assembly, has agreed to extend outside support to the government in return for Asif Ali Zardari being made president and some other constitutional posts.
The combined strength of PML(N) and PPP barely touches the halfway mark. Therefore, PML(N) is also looking for the support of 20 to 25 legislators of the smaller parties, notably 17 of MQM-Pakistan, that have served as instruments for the army’s political engineering in the past.
Ideas Page
Lure of the magic cure (Page no. 11)
(GS Paper 2, Judiciary)
There is something deeply disturbing about the way the marketing and sale of Ayurveda, Siddha and Unani (ASU) medicine is going on.
In November 2023, the Supreme Court had given directions to Patanjali Ayurveda to stop publishing misleading advertisements but a day later, to establish its credibility, the company issued a press release reporting that it has conducted preclinical and clinical trials on a database of more than one crore people, to test the efficacy of its products.
Earlier this week, the matter came up again before the apex court, which took umbrage at the continued issue of advertisements despite having been given an assurance. The next date is March 19.
Advertising drugs purported to treat or cure certain diseases is prohibited under DMR, that is, the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act 1954, which applies to all systems of medicine.
Promoting drugs intended for the treatment and cure of 54 specific medical conditions, which include cancer, diabetes, heart disease and blood pressure, is explicitly barred.
Explained
Mauritius, Maldives and India (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 2, Intrernational Relation)
Earlier this week, the first team of Indian “technical personnel” reached the Maldives to take charge of one of the three aviation platforms stationed in the country. They will replace Indian military personnel whose first batch is required to leave the islands by March 10.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth of Mauritius jointly inaugurated an airstrip and a jetty that India has built on Agaléga, a two-island Mauritian dependency 1,100 km to the north of Port Louis and 2,500 km southwest of Malé.
As Indian Ocean outposts, Mauritius and the Maldives have great strategic significance for India. New Delhi’s maritime security and strategic imperatives in the Indian Ocean are linked to the presence and increased activities of China in the region.
Economy
Cabinet OKs Rs 75k cr rooftop solar scheme, 1 cr households to get subsidy of up to 78K (Page no. 13)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
The Union Cabinet has cleared a `75,021-crore rooftop solar scheme under which one crore households in the country will get a subsidy for installation of such units.
Approved Thursday, the PM-Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana will offer a subsidy of up to `78,000 per household for the installation of solar plants, under which they will get 300 units of free power, the government said.
“The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved PM-Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana with a total outlay of `75,021 crore for installing rooftop solar and providing free electricity up to 300 units every month for one crore households,” Information & Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur told reporters after the Union Cabinet meeting. The PM had launched the scheme on February 13.
Through this scheme, households will be able to save electricity bills as well as earn additional income through sale of surplus power to DISCOMs. A 3-kW system will be able to generate more than 300 units a month on an average for a household.
No sign of breakthrough, WTO talks deadline extended again (Page no. 13)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
Negotiations at the World Trade Organisation ministerial meeting in Abu Dhabi were extended for another day, with the WTO announcing the closing session had been delayed, and no sign of a breakthrough in talks to set new global commerce rules.
The biennial conference is seeking deals on ending fishing subsidies and extending a moratorium on digital trade tariffs – a move that India and South Africa oppose.
Trade delegates were expecting negotiations to carry on throughout the night as officials sought to hammer out agreements on a cross section of changes to trade rules.
The scheduled announcement of a final agreement after four days of intergovernmental talks was pushed back for a fifth day in the Gulf state. The closing session was earlier delayed by four hours until midnight.
World
China slams UK US criticism of Hong Kong’s upcoming national security law (Page no. 14)
(GS Paper 2, International Relation)
China criticised British Foreign Secretary David Cameron and other foreign politicians for "smearing" an upcoming Hong Kong security law, as local authorities said feedback on the law had been largely positive.
The law, known as Article 23, will target crimes including treason, theft of state secrets, espionage, sabotage, sedition and "external interference", including from foreign governments.
A public consultation period on the proposed legislation ended this week, with the city's legislature, dominated by pro-Beijing lawmakers, expected to soon approve the draft laws.
The Hong Kong Office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued "to express their strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition" to British Foreign Secretary Cameron and other politicians' making "irresponsible remarks" on the legislation of Article 23.