Current Affair 1:

Government Data Roundup

 

First report:

The Ministry of Finance releases data on the total direct taxes collected every month. However, the provisional figures are published on different dates every month through press release and the data provided is as on the date on which the data is published. In the month of October 2022, the data on direct tax collections up to 08 October 2022 was published on the 09 October 2022. 

Key Highlights

1. Direct Tax collections up to 08 October 2022 show that gross collections are at Rs. 8.98 lakh crore which is 23.8% higher than the gross collections for the corresponding period of last year.
2. The growth rate for Corporate Income Tax (CIT) is 16.73% while that for Personal Income Tax (PIT) (including STT) is 32.3% in terms of gross revenue collections. After adjustment of refunds, the net growth in CIT collections is 16.29% and that in PIT collections is 17.35% (PIT only)/16.25% (PIT including STT).

 

Second report:

Brief about the report

The monthly telecom statistics report provided by TRAI is the official source of data pertaining to subscription to telecom services in the country which helps keep track of the internet and phone network penetration in the country. This monthly report gives data on telephone subscriptions- overall, urban, and rural, broadband subscriptions, wireless and wireline subscriptions, tele-density, market share of various service providers, and mobile number porting. Data is available at circle level and for each service provider.

Key Highlights

1. As on 31 August 2022, there were 1175.08 million telephone subscribers in the country, including 1149.11 million wireless and 25.97 million wireline subscribers.
2. Over 1.08 million wireless subscribers and 0.34 million wireline subscribers were added in the month of August alone of which 0.73 million and 0.016 million new subscribers respectively were from rural areas.
3. The share of urban and rural subscribers in total number of telephone subscribers at the end of August 2022 was 55.41% and 44.59% respectively.
4. The overall Tele-density in India increased from 85.11% at the end of July 2022 to 85.15% at the end of August 2022. The Urban Tele-density decreased from 134.78% at the end of July 2022 to 134.71% at the end of August 2022 while the Rural Tele-density increased from 58.37% to 58.44% during the same period.
5. The total number of broadband subscribers was 813.94 million.

Third report:

Brief about the data

Every month, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) releases an analysis of air traffic data submitted by various domestic airlines. The report for the month of September 2022 was released in the previous fortnight. The report provides data on the number of passengers carried by domestic airlines, passenger load factor, number of cancellations and reasons behind them, market share of various airlines, complaints raised by passengers by reason and by airlines, among other things. 

Key Highlights

1. 8.74 crore passengers were carried by domestic airlines during the period from January-September 2022 as against 5.31 crore passengers during the corresponding period in 2021, thereby registering an annual growth of 64.6%.
2. Out of the 8.74 crore passengers who travelled in domestic airlines in the first nine months of 2022, 56.2% amounting to 4.95 crore passengers were carried by IndiGo.
3. In the third quarter from July to September 2022, IndiGo carried the most passengers (1.75 crores) followed by Vistara with 29.91 lakhs and Air India with 26.24 lakhs. Their market share was 58%, 9.9% and 8.7%, respectively.
4. During September 2022, a total of 517 passenger related complaints had been received by the scheduled domestic airlines of which 500 were addressed. About two-thirds of the complaints were about refund and flight problem.

 

Fourth report:

Brief about the report

Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) is a digital form of currency notes issued by a central bank which may be used in addition to the other forms of money already available. It is expected to be easier, cheaper, and faster. The concept note released by the RBI explains the objectives, choices, benefits, and risks of issuing a CBDC in India, referred to as e₹ (digital Rupee). The note also discusses key considerations such as technology and institutions design choices, possible uses of digital rupee, issuance mechanisms, etc. Further, it also assesses the implications of introduction of CBDC on the banking system, monetary policy, financial stability, and analyses privacy issues.

Key Highlights

1. RBI defined CBDC as the legal tender issued by a central bank in a digital form.
2. Two forms of CBDCs may be introduced- a CBDC which is retail oriented, which would be used by all for general retail transactions; and a CBDC which is wholesale oriented, which would be used by select financial intended for interbank settlement of transfers.
3. Two models have been proposed by the RBI for the issuance and management of the CBDCs. One is a single-tiered direct model which gives the central bank the entire responsibility of managing all aspects of the CBDC system and the second is a two-tiered indirect model where the central bank and other intermediaries (banks and similar service providers) play a role in managing the CBDC system.
4. RBI has also proposed structuring CBDC as ‘token-based’ or ‘account-based’. A token-based CBDC is a bearer instrument like banknotes, meaning whosoever holds the tokens at a given point in time would be presumed to own them. In contrast, an account-based system would require maintenance of record of balances and transactions of all holders of the CBDC and indicate the ownership of the monetary balances.
5. Ensuring anonymity would be a challenge for digital currency. But the degree of anonymity which can be achieved is what remains to be seen.

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