UPSC CSE Key – February 2, 2022: What you need to read today

Budget’s big push: Govt capital expenditure up 27% over last year

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development

Main Examination: General Studies III: Government Budgeting

Key Points to Ponder:

• Annual Financial Statement (AFS) or Union Budget and Article 112 of the Indian Constitution

• Department of Economic Affairs-Role, Under which Ministry?

• What are the three major components of Budget?

• The budget consists of two types of expenditure—the expenditure ‘charged’ upon the Consolidated Fund of India and
the expenditure ‘made’ from the Consolidated Fund of India, what are the ‘Charged’ and ‘made’ Expenditure?

• The budget goes through six stages in the Parliament-what are they?

• Union Budget and Passing of Appropriation Bill

• Union Budget and Rajya Sabha

• What is Keynesian Economics?

• Know the terms- ‘Fiscal Rectitude’, ‘Capital Expenditure’, ‘Grants in Aid’, Capital Investments, Capital Assets,
‘Revenue Buoyancy’, Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme

• Budget and key new economy sectors- Cryptocurrencies (30 per cent tax on transfer of digital assets and 1 per cent TDS on transfer of payment) and Battery Swapping Policy

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍 What Is Keynesian Economics?

📍 THE BUDGETARY PROCESS

Out of the shadow: 30% tax on crypto, RBI to issue its digital currency

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development

Main Examination: General Studies III: Government Budgeting, Indian Economy, and Awareness in the fields of IT

Key Points to Ponder:

• Cryptocurrencies (30 per cent tax on transfer of digital assets and 1 per cent TDS on transfer of payment)

• What is the Importance of the 30 per cent tax on transfer of digital assets? (Hint: First formal recognition by
the Government of increasingly popular financial instruments)

• Definition of “virtual digital asset” and non-fungible token given in the Budget

• What is crypto investment?

• Can crypto then be considered an asset?

• Cryptocurrency or Virtual Currency-what do you understand by this term?

• What is Bitcoin?

• What is Blockchain Technology and why it is associated with Bitcoin?

• The Cryptocurrency and Regulation of Official Digital Currency Bill, 2021-Highlights

• What are the issues involving Cryptocurrency in mainstream financial Markets or simply market?

• Central bank digital currency (CBDC)-Meaning, Issues and Challenges

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍 Explained: Digital currencies and how they work

📍 Explained: What is the Digital Rupee announced by Sitharaman in Budget?

📍 Budget 2022 Explained: How will tax on crypto work

📍 Tax on digital assets, but cryptos see hope

Amid deep standoff between Centre and states, Budget bid to bridge divide

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development

Main Examination: General Studies III: Government Budgeting.

Key Points to Ponder:

• what are important Features under the ‘Scheme for Financial Assistance to States for Capital Investment’?

• PM GatiShakti National Master Plan-Major Highlights

• Prime Minister’s Development Initiative for NorthEast (PM-DevINE)-Key Highlights

• Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana-Key Features

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍 Explained: What is Gati Shakti Master Plan that PM Modi announced on Independence Day?

📍 Rs. 15,000 CRORE OUTLAY FOR THE “SCHEME FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE TO STATES FOR CAPITAL INVESTMENT” IN RE 2021-22

Divestment numbers missed, Budget dials down target

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development

Main Examination: General Studies III: Government Budgeting.

Key Points to Ponder:

• Shift from Privatisation and asset monetisation in previous year’s Budget to Disinvestment in current Budget-Why?

• What is Disinvestment?

• Difference between Privatisation and Disinvestment?

• Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM), Role and under which Ministry?

• National Monetization Pipeline (NMP)-Key Proposals

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍 Explained: Asset sale targets and revenue generation

THE FISC UNION BUDGET 2022- 23

Interest rates to rise as govt borrows more to spend more

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development

Main Examination: General Studies III: Government Budgeting.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What do you understand by term ‘Fiscal Consolidation’ and Fiscal Deficit?

• Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management (FRBM) Act- Key Highlights

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍 Lower subsidy bills, but silent on reform

📍 A large chunk of spending — `51,971 cr just to settle Air India debt before sale

THE MACRO UNION BUDGET 2022- 23

Betting on growth, wary of ‘disruptions’

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development

Main Examination: General Studies III: Government Budgeting.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What is Gross domestic product (GDP)?

• GDP-How it is Calculated? (Indian Context)

• Gross domestic product (GDP) and Gross National Product (GNP)-Key Differences

• ‘Nominal’ GDP and ‘Real’ GDP-What is the difference?

• Meaning of “Double Deflation” in the context of GDP Calculation?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍 ECLGS extended till next fiscal, guarantee cover raised to `5L cr

📍 1-year extensions: Concessional 15% corporate tax rate for new manufacturing cos, startup sops

CAPEX PUSH 2022- 23

Surety bonds replace bank guarantees, free up capital

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development

Main Examination: General Studies III: Government Budgeting and Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways etc.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What are Surety Bonds?

• Surety bonds to substitute for bank guarantees-Pros and Cons

• The National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP)-Key Proposal

• Har Ghar, Nal se Jal scheme-Key Features

• Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority-Role and Mandate

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍 Budget 2022 Explained: Why FM is pushing for enhanced capex allocation

📍 Working capital crisis: Can surety bonds assure MSMEs freedom from hassle of expensive bank guarantees

NEW ECONOMY 2022- 23

In digital banking push, industry eyes rural gains

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development

Main Examination: General Studies III: Government Budgeting.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What is a ‘digital banking unit’?

• How Banks will benefit from Digital Banking Unit?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍 Budget 2022: Integrating 1.5 lakh post offices with core banking a big push to digital economy, say experts

RURAL 2022- 23

Outlays for PM-Kisan and Fasal Bima schemes flat

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development

Main Examination: General Studies III: Government Budgeting.

Key Points to Ponder:

• PPP for farm start-ups and public-private partnership (PPP) mode for delivery of digital and hi-tech services to
farmers

• Use of ‘Kisan Drones’ for crop assessment, digitization of land records, spraying of insecticides, and nutrients

• Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-Kisan)-Key Highlights

• Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY)-Key Highlights

• Market Intervention Scheme and Price Support Scheme (MIS-PSS)-Key Highights

• Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana (PMKSY)- Per Drop More Crop

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍 In demand, but MGNREGS gets no hike

📍 Farmers cold to natural farming plan, say not viable

EXPLAINED

Five questions: The Budget big picture

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development

Main Examination: General Studies III: Government Budgeting.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What were the challenges facing the economy?

• standout feature of Budget 2022-23-what are they?

• How is this strategy different from what has been done by countries such as the US?

• Will the capex push in the Budget succeed?

• Is there a pattern emerging in Union Budget?

Other Important Article/Video Covering the same topic:

📍 BUDGET 2022: What the Recommendations Mean To The Economy And You

Other Important Articles to be Read in today’s Budget Special

• Rs 48k cr for universal housing; focus on EWS and urban middle class

• In a year, 25,000 km in highways; ropeways on public-private mode

• Rs 1,400 cr to implement Ken-Betwa river linking

• Fighting Covid stress, mental health strain on priority list

• Combating loss in education a priority,but digital learning outlay sees a dip

• For Atmanirbhar defence, quarter of research budget goes to private players

• 400 Vande Bharat trains lined up on tracks

• New panel to prepare cities for India at 100

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