05.07.22 Daily [Andhra Pradesh] APPSC Current Affairs

Despite the new technologies, programmes and alerts, lightning continues to kill at least 100 people every year in the state.Coastalareas usually witness maximum lighting strikes, owing to its proximity to the sea. Lightning has remained one of the largest causes of deaths due to natural disasters every year in the country for two decades.

As many as 276 people were killed due to lightning strikes between 2018 and 2020 inAndhra Pradesh, according toNCRBdata on accidental deaths. The large proportion of these deaths were in rural pockets, with only 5 to 6 per cent in urban settings.

The lighting strikes also kill wild animals and , cause substantial damage to property and injuries to people and livestock trapped in damaged properties. Experts said that the spate of fatalities every year due to lighting strikes before and during the monsoon months are mostly preventable.

Indians stands at 11%. In a research study published in ‘Scientific Reports’ journal ofNaturegroup, it was revealed that around 89% were willing to be vaccinated.

Various sections of people like those who are delaying taking the Covid-19 vaccine, those undecided and those who would reject the vaccine even if it is provided for free are included. Respondents for the vaccine study are mostly fromTelangana(7.1%),Karnataka(32%), Nadu(15.5%) andAndhra Pradesh(8.7%).

The study was aimed at identifying vaccine hesitancy behaviour among Indian Population. The researchers collected data from 1,006 participants. The study found a prevalence rate of vaccine hesitancy in the population.

Concerned over the countrys rising food subsidy bill, the Centre has asked states to reduce their statutory and overhead charges on the minimum support price (MSP) of foodgrains, which include mandi fees, arathia commission and development fees, to 2% or less.

WhilePunjaband Haryana add a maximum charge of 6% and 4% on theMSPrespectively, four other states Uttar Pradesh,Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh and levy charges more than 2%.

According to the 2020-21 annual report of Food Corporation of India (Fci), it paid Rs 5,550 crore to the states. Making a detailed presentation before food ministers and secretaries from states, the food ministry has urged them to reduce such charges to help lower the subsidy burden.

The ministry urged the state governments to float tenders for getting short-term cash credit loans (CCl) to get a lower interest rate. It cited how the FCI has got short-term loans at an interest rate of less than 5%. The Centre has also asked states to transport paddy from mandis to mills directly and thereby avoiding storage expenses.

The pandemic seems to have put India’s national accounting system in disarray with the combined GSDP (gross state domestic product) at 2011-12 prices of 26 large states and UTs exceeding the national GDP by Rs 4.7 lakh crore, shows data collated from the RBI and state governments. And this is despite the fact that four north-eastern states and the smaller UTs are not part of the total.

For the financial year 2020-21, the combined total of GSDP (constant prices) of these 26 states and UTs, for which data is available, works out to Rs 140.3 lakh crore. But the country’s GDP for the same year at constant prices was Rs 135.6 lakh crore, according to estimates put out on May 31.

Analysis of data since 2011-12, the year from which state GSDP data for the base 2011-12 is available, shows that in the past, the combined GSDP of 26 large states and UTs ranged between 97% and 99% of the country’s GDP. In 2019-20, this increased to 99.9% of the national GDP but for 2020-21 it was 104% of India’s GDP. This means the aggregate of these state economies is larger than the economy of the country, clearly not possible.

Kerala seems to have suffered the most as the state’s economy shrunk by 9.2%. The figures were 7.6% for Maharashtra, the country’s largest state economy with nearly 14% of national GDP for 2020-21.

Other states whose economies shrunk by 6% or higher were Haryana, Delhi, HP, UP,Rajasthanand Punjab. Among smaller states, Meghalaya was the worst hit as its economy shrunk by 7.5%. The data for 2020-21 was not available for , AP, Chandigarh, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland and Puducherry.

The BTIA was proposed to encompass trade in goods, Services and investments

Recently,India and theEuropean Unionconcluded the first round of negotiations for India-EU Trade and Agreements in New Delhi.