BANKING, ECONOMY AND FINANCE

In the latest RBI Monetary Policy update, the repo rate remains steady at 6.5%.

• On April 5, 2024, the Monetary Policy Committee of the RBI opted to maintain the repo rate at its current level.

• The Standing Deposit Facility rate remains unchanged at 6.25%, while both the Marginal Standing Facility rate and the Bank Rate stand firm at 6.75%.

• For the past six consecutive MPC meetings, the RBI has held the repo rate steady.

• RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das announced that India's foreign exchange reserves reached an unprecedented high of $645.6 billion as of March 29, 2024.

• He noted that headline inflation had eased to 5.1% in both January and February.

• The projected CPI Inflation for FY25 stands at 4.5%. In February, CPI inflation was forecasted at 5.4% for 2023-24.

• The Committee has estimated real GDP growth for FY25 to be 7%.

• What is the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC)?

• The Monetary Policy Committee was established under the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934.

• It consists of a six-member committee, comprising three members from the RBI, including Governor Shaktikanta Das, and three members appointed by the Central government.

Adani Green Energy becomes first Indian company with 10,000 MW renewable energy capacity

• According to a statement released by the company, they have successfully added 2,848 MW of renewable energy capacity in the fiscal year 2023-24.

• As a result, the company now boasts an operational portfolio totaling 10,934 MW, making it the largest in India.

• AGEL's operational portfolio comprises 7,393 MW of solar capacity, 1,401 MW of wind capacity, and 2,140 MW of wind-solar hybrid capacity.

• Looking ahead, the firm has set an ambitious target of achieving 45 GW of renewable energy capacity by the year 2030.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

SARAH: A Digital Health Promoter Prototype

• World Health Organization has launched S.A.R.A.H.

• It is a digital health promoter prototype. It has enhanced empathetic response, which is powered by generative artificial intelligence (AI).

• S.A.R.A.H. is a Smart AI Resource Assistant for Health. It is also known as Sarah.

• It engages users 24 hours a day in 8 languages on many health topics, on any device.

• It is trained to offer information on major health topics, which include mental health and healthy habits.

• It is an additional tool for people to realize their right to health.

• It can help people in having better understanding of risk factors for some leading causes of death in the world.

• These include cancer, heart disease, lung disease, and diabetes.

• It has the ability to support people in having access to latest information on eating a healthy diet, quitting tobacco, and being active.

• During the COVID-19 epidemic, earlier versions of S.A.R.A.H. were utilized to spread important public health information under the name Florence.

• S.A.R.A.H. has been launched ahead of World Health Day 2024 (7 April). The theme of World Health Day 2024 is ‘My Health, My Right’.

NATIONAL NEWS

The Delhi High Court has ruled that Haldiram is a well-known trademark

• The Delhi High Court has ruled that Haldiram is a well-known trademark, specifically in the context of eateries, restaurants, and food items.

• According to the court, Haldiram is recognized as a well-known trademark both within India and globally. The court noted that Haldiram's mark and logo have been in use in the food industry since the 1960s and have achieved the status of a well-known mark.

• The ruling came in response to a case filed by Haldiram India seeking protection for its mark, Haldiram, and its variations such as ‘Haldiram Bhujiawala’ under the Trade Marks Act, 1999.

• The company requested the court to permanently prohibit an imitator from Ambala City, Haryana, who was selling products under the mark ‘Haldiram Bhujiawala’.

• In its judgment, the High Court imposed a fine of ₹50 lakhs as damages and an additional fine of ₹2 lakhs as costs to be paid to Haldiram India.

• A trademark serves as a distinctive sign or indicator used by a business organization to differentiate its products or services from those of other entities.

The center will record the religion of the parents separately during the birth registration of the child.

• According to the model rules prepared by the Union Home Ministry, now parents will have to enter the religion of both the father and mother of the child separately while registering the birth of the child.

• These rules have to be adopted and notified by the state governments before they can be implemented.

• Previously, only the religion of the family was recorded in the birth register.

• The column requiring tick mark selection for “Religion” of the child in the proposed “Form No. 1-Birth Report” will be expanded to now also state “Religion of Father” and “Religion of Mother”.

• Similar changes have been made for parents of an adopted child.

• The births and deaths database will be maintained at the national level, as per the Registration of Births and Deaths (Amendment) Act, 2023, passed by Parliament on August 11, 2023.

• It can be used to update the National Population Register (NPR), voter list, Aadhaar numbers, ration cards, passports, driving licenses, property registration, and such other databases that may be notified.

• According to the law, which came into effect on October 1, 2023, all reported births and deaths in the country are to be registered digitally through the Centre's Civil Registration System (crsorgi.gov.in) portal.

• Under this system, the digital birth certificate issued will become a single document to prove the date of birth for various services including admission to educational institutions.

India to Establish First Privately Managed Strategic Petroleum Reserve by 2029-30

• India is moving forward with its plans to establish its first privately managed strategic petroleum reserve (SPR) by the fiscal year 2029-30.

• This initiative is aimed at granting the operator the flexibility to engage in trading all stored oil, mirroring models observed in countries like Japan and South Korea. India's existing SPR strategy involves partial commercialization, with intentions to further develop this approach through new SPR projects.

• The country intends to construct two additional SPRs, consisting of an 18.3 million barrels facility in Padur, Karnataka, and a 29.3 million barrels SPR in Odisha.

• These ventures will involve private partners who will be granted the authority to trade all stored oil domestically. However, the government will retain the primary right to the oil in the event of supply shortages.