🔆 SIDBI Survey: MSME Capacity Utilisation on the Rise

📍 What’s the Update?
✅ The SIDBI MSME Outlook Survey (Q1 2025–26) shows rising capacity utilisation among MSMEs in manufacturing & services
✅ Based on responses from 1,200 MSMEs across manufacturing, services, and trading

📍 Key Findings
✅ Nearly 20% of MSMEs reported above-normal utilisation
✅ Access to finance has also improved
✅ 29% of MSMEs expect higher capacity use in the coming year

📍 Why It Matters
✅ Indicates revival in demand, better credit flow, and production confidence
✅ Supports MSMEs’ role in job creation, exports, and GDP contribution

📝 Prelims Question
Q. The SIDBI MSME Outlook Survey provides insights into:
A. MSME technology adoption levels
B. MSME export competitiveness
C. MSME capacity utilisation and credit access ✅
D. MSME digital compliance levels

🖋️ Mains Question (GS3 – Economy)
Q. MSMEs are critical to India’s economic growth but face persistent structural challenges. Discuss the recent trends in MSME recovery and suggest measures to sustain their momentum in the post-pandemic economy.

#MSME #EconomicRecovery #SIDBI #UPSC2025 #economy

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🔆 Interrupted Growth: India’s Industrial Output Slows to 1.5% in June

📍 Key Highlights
✅ June IIP growth slowed to 1.5%, a 10-month low
✅ Major drag from:
• Mining activity: -8.7% (vs. +10.3% last June)
• Electricity output: -2.6% (vs. +8.6% last June)

📍 Primary Reason: Monsoon Disruptions
✅ Erratic rainfall caused waterlogging in Odisha, Jharkhand, and West Bengal
✅ Disrupted mining, electricity, and supply chains
✅ Jharkhand recorded 504.8 mm rainfall (vs. normal 307 mm)

📍 Sector-wise Contribution
✅ Mining + Power = 22.3% of IIP weightage
✅ Manufacturing showed moderate growth:
• Capital goods: +3.5%
• Intermediate goods: +5.5%
• Infrastructure goods: +7.2%
✅ Conclusion: Industrial growth still hinges on government infrastructure spending

📍 Why This Matters
❗ Climate-related disruptions are rarely acknowledged in IIP or GDP data
❗ India lacks a formal climate-risk framework in macroeconomic reporting
✅ RBI’s Financial Stability Reports now include climate risks
⚠️ But IIP and other growth metrics still don’t reflect climate attribution

📍 Way Forward
✅ India must systematically link climate risks to economic data
✅ Mapping climate disruption → output impact is key for future planning
✅ Shift needed from ad-hoc commentary to data-integrated policymaking

#IndustrialGrowth #ClimateEconomy #UPSC2025 #economy

🔆 India–US Trade Tensions Escalate

📍 Context
✅ The U.S. imposed a 25% tariff plus penalty on Indian goods under President Donald Trump, citing:
• India’s dealings with Russia (military & energy)
• India’s high tariff & non-tariff barriers
✅ This reflects a broader breakdown in mini-deal negotiations and worsening rhetoric — Trump even called the Indian economy “dead”.

📍 Key Developments
✅ No mini trade deal finalized before August 1, despite earlier optimism.
✅ The Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) now faces uncertainties due to strategic linkages made by the U.S.
✅ U.S. accounts for ~20% of India’s exports — the 25% tariff puts India at a relative disadvantage against peers like South Korea, Vietnam, Philippines, etc.

📍 India’s Position
✅ India insists trade is a sovereign matter, especially with countries like Russia.
✅ Ministry of Commerce has reaffirmed national interest, resisting U.S. pressure to reduce tariffs or open agriculture/dairy.

📍 Implications
✅ Domestic exporters are under strain.
✅ Indian negotiators now face a tough balancing act — safeguarding sovereignty while ensuring market access in the U.S.

📝 Prelims Question
Q. Which of the following countries has been cited as a competitor gaining advantage due to lower U.S. tariffs compared to India?
A) Bangladesh
B) China
C) South Korea
D) Japan
🟩 Ans: C

📝 Mains Question (GS2 – International Relations)
Q. Examine the factors contributing to recent tensions in India–U.S. trade relations. How should India balance its strategic autonomy with economic interests in bilateral trade negotiations?

#IndiaUSRelations #TradePolicy
#ir

🔆 Free Bus Schemes Help, But Rural India Still Pays More to Travel

📍 Key Insight
✅ Rural households spend 20.6% of their conveyance budget on bus services — vs 16.2% in urban India
✅ Despite free bus schemes for women, rural India continues to bear higher travel costs due to lower supply and dependence on public transport

📍 State Variations
✅ Tamil Nadu & Kerala: Bus travel forms 25% of rural conveyance spending
✅ UP, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Haryana: Below 20%
✅ States with free bus schemes (e.g. Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Telangana, etc.) saw:
• Increase in rural bus use
• Decrease in urban bus share (urban women benefited most)

📍 Transport Affordability Trends
✅ Rural households depend more on buses due to fewer alternatives
✅ Urban rich use buses less → spend lower share
✅ Workforce participation ≠ conveyance burden – higher bus spending not linked to employment rates

📍 Gaps in Bus Infrastructure
✅ India has only 11 buses per lakh people
✅ MoRTH recommends 60 per lakh
✅ States like Punjab, Odisha, UP have fewer buses per lakh than recommended
✅ Telangana, Karnataka, TN perform better but still lag targets

📍 Policy Suggestions
✅ Upgrade to electric buses
✅ Improve rural bus frequency & coverage
✅ Increase buses per capita based on population clusters
✅ Ensure last-mile access for rural poor
✅ Transport policies must be gender-sensitive & equity-based

📝 Prelims Question
Which of the following correctly reflects recent findings on conveyance expenditure in India?
1. Rural India spends a higher share of conveyance on buses than urban India.
2. Tamil Nadu and Kerala have the lowest per capita bus usage.
3. Free bus schemes have reduced rural bus dependency.

Select the correct answer:
A. 1 only
B. 1 and 2 only
C. 2 and 3 only
D. All of the above
✅ Answer: A

🖋️ Mains Question
Despite the rollout of free bus schemes in several states, rural India continues to bear a disproportionate transport burden. Analyse the structural causes and suggest policy reforms to improve rural mobility and equity in public transport. (250 words)

#Infrastructure #RuralDevelopment #UPSC2025 #TransportPolicy

🔆 Formalisation Key to Boosting Productivity

📍 Context
India’s formal manufacturing is increasingly contractualised – contract labour rose from 20% (1999–2000) to 40.7% (2022–23).
This shift, aimed at flexibility, is hurting long-term productivity and workers’ rights.

📍 Key Issues
✅ Contract workers earn ~14.5% less than regular employees
✅ Labour cost gap in some sectors is as high as 85%
✅ Leads to low skill investment, high attrition, and productivity losses
✅ 3% lower productivity in labour-intensive firms using contract labour
✅ Only 20% of firms benefit from high-skill contract-intensive setup

📍 Policy Recommendations
✅ Implement Labour Codes (2020) – allow direct fixed-term hiring
✅ Provide basic benefits & curb third-party contractor misuse
✅ Offer incentives for long-term contracts & job creation
✅ Revive schemes like PMRPY for formal sector employment

📍 Conclusion
Contractualisation ≠ Efficiency.
Formalisation = Long-term growth, equity & productivity.

#LabourReform #Manufacturing #InclusiveGrowth

🎯 UPSC Prelims Practice Q
Q. With reference to labour reforms and employment in India, consider the following statements:
1. The share of contract labour in India’s formal manufacturing sector has been steadily rising since 1999.
2. Contract workers are eligible for the same social security benefits as permanent workers under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947.
3. The Pradhan Mantri Rojgar Protsahan Yojana (PMRPY) was introduced to incentivise job creation in the formal sector.

Which of the above statements is/are correct?
A. 1 and 3 only ✅
B. 2 and 3 only
C. 1 and 2 only
D. 1, 2 and 3

👉 Correct Answer: A
Explanation:
• Statement 1 is correct: Share doubled from 20% to 40.7% (1999–2023).
• Statement 2 is incorrect: Contract workers lack full protection under ID Act.
• Statement 3 is correct: PMRPY subsidised employer PF contribution to create formal jobs.

📝 UPSC Mains Question (GS3 - Economy)
Q. “India’s increasing reliance on contract labour may offer operational flexibility but comes at a cost to productivity and equity.” Discuss with reference to recent trends and suggest a policy roadmap to encourage formalisation.

#economy

🔆 Why the Gini Index Misrepresents India’s Inequality

📍 Context
✅ India was ranked among the world’s most equal societies by the Gini Index (score: 25.5) – placing it in the “moderately low” inequality category.
✅ But ground realities contradict this – due to data limitations and hidden inequalities.

📍 Core Criticism of the Gini Index
✅ Fails to capture informal sector data – where a large share of India’s population works.
✅ Misses wealth inequality due to:
• High tax thresholds for non-salaried income
• Non-taxed informal incomes
• Concentration of wealth in the top 1%

📍 Forms of Inequality Ignored
✅ Gender inequality: Women form ~35.9% of workforce, but only 12.7% in senior roles (2024)
✅ Educational inequality:
• Only 52.7% schools have functional computers
• Only 53.9% have internet access
✅ Digital divide:
• Only 25% rural women have internet access vs 49% of rural men
✅ Intra-household inequality: Even broadband is unequally shared
✅ Cultural & social norms: Reinforce inequality in inheritance, spending, tech access

📍 Structural Issues
✅ Technology access = gateway to modern jobs, but opportunities remain skewed
✅ Students from poor families lack access to tools, further deepening inequality
✅ Inequality is multidimensional – not just economic

📍 Way Forward
✅ India must not celebrate statistical illusions
✅ True equality needs:
• Digital inclusion
• Educational equity
• Gender-balanced workforce
• Formalisation of economy

📝 Prelims Question
Which of the following limitations are associated with the Gini Index in assessing inequality in India?
1. Ignores informal sector incomes
2. Fails to consider digital and gender divides
3. Focuses only on wealth inequality, not income inequality

Select the correct answer:
A. 1 and 2 only
B. 2 and 3 only
C. 1 and 3 only
D. All of the above
✅ Answer: A

🖋️ Mains Question
The Gini Index ranks India among the most equal societies, yet deep inequalities persist. Critically evaluate the structural limitations of traditional inequality measures and suggest ways to build a more inclusive measurement framework. (250 words)

#Inequality #SocialJustice #UPSC2025 #economy

🔆 Altermagnets: New Frontier in Magnetism & Electronics

📍 What’s New?
✅ Scientists at S.N. Bose National Centre & IAS Kolkata discovered CrSb (Chromium Antimony) as the first altermagnet to show direction-dependent conduction polarity (DDCP).
✅ DDCP: Material conducts electrons in one direction and holes in another — enabling it to act as both n-type and p-type material.

📍 How CrSb behaves
✅ Researchers used chemical vapour transport to grow single crystals.
✅ Hall & Seebeck effects were tested:
• Along one plane → electrons dominated
• Along another axis → holes dominated
✅ When Cr was replaced with Vanadium → material turned purely p-type, confirming predictions.

📍 What are Altermagnets?
✅ New class of magnets with no net magnetism due to opposing atomic spins.
✅ However, electron spin still behaves differently — vital for spintronics.

📍 Why it matters
✅ Single material can replace two-crystal systems in circuits or thermoelectrics.
✅ Promising for next-gen technologies: spintronics, quantum materials, low-cost electronics.
✅ CrSb is inexpensive, abundant, and stable.

📝 Mains GS3 Question
Q. What is direction-dependent conduction polarity (DDCP)? How does the discovery of altermagnets advance future spintronic applications?

🎯 Prelims Practice
Q. With reference to altermagnets, consider the following:
1. They exhibit overall magnetism like ferromagnets.
2. They allow different c

harge carriers to dominate based on direction.
3. CrSb is the first discovered altermagnet.

Which are correct?
A. 1 and 2
B. 2 and 3 ✅
C. 1 and 3
D. All three

Correct Answer: ✅ B. 2 and 3

🔆 India–UK Trade Deal: A Template for Future Agreements

📍 Context
✅ India and the UK signed the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) — a “give and take” deal between two comparably sized economies.

📍 Key Features
✅ UK offers duty-free access to ~99% of tariff lines for Indian goods.
✅ India offers 90% tariff reduction for UK goods, but excludes sensitive items like dairy, apples, edible oils.
✅ UK agreed to just 1,800 visas/year for niche roles (yoga, music) — no concessions for IT/business professionals.
✅ India to cut auto import duties by 100 points, but phased over a decade.
✅ Not zero-sum: both gain but leave some demands unmet.

📍 Strategic Implications
✅ The UK may become a gateway to Europe for Indian exports.
✅ The deal is likely to set the benchmark for future FTA talks with EU and US — who may now demand more.
✅ Sectors like agriculture, leather, chemicals to benefit in short term; investment sentiment also expected to improve.

🎯 Prelims Question (UPSC 2025 format)
Q. Which of the following correctly describes the India–UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA)?
  1.  It grants duty-free access for all Indian goods into the UK.
  2.  India has committed to reduce auto import duties immediately.
  3.  The agreement includes provisions for IT professionals’ visas.

A. None

📝 Mains Question (GS2/GS3 – IR & Economy)
Q. Examine the significance of the India–UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) in the context of India’s broader trade negotiations. How can it shape future deals with the EU and the US? (250 words)

#IR #economy

🔆 Realities of Remote Work: A Global Reflection

📍 Once hailed as the future of labour, remote work now reveals deeper challenges:
✅ Managerial hesitation,
✅ Infrastructure gaps,
✅ Gendered burdens,
✅ Ergonomic and mental health risks

📍 Survey Findings:
• In Asia, remote work averages only 1.1 days/week
• Cultural norm of “presenteeism” persists in India, Japan, Korea
• Women face higher work-from-home challenges due to caregiving roles
• Remote workers suffer higher rates of backaches, stress, and isolation

📍 Lessons from Pandemic:
• Peak: 2.66 remote days/week (2023)
• Fall in 2024: 2.4 days/week
• Despite burnout, remote flexibility still valued for work-life balance, autonomy, and job satisfaction

📍 Way Forward:
• Promote hybrid work models
• Invest in ergonomic setups, broadband access, and mental health protocols
• Align with SDG Goal 8: Decent Work for All

🧾 Prelims Q
Q. ‘Presenteeism’, often in the context of workplace behaviour, refers to:
(a) Physical presence despite illness ✅
(b) Digital absenteeism
(c) Absence due to lack of infrastructure
(d) Policy to increase attendance

??️ Main

s Q (150 words)
Q. Remote work is not just a technological shift but a social reckoning. Examine in the context of equity, mental health,

and productivity.
#GS2 #GS3 #WorkCulture #RemoteWork #LabourReforms #DigitalDivide #WorkplaceEquity #UPSC2025 #WomenAndWork

India UK FTA

🔆 Plastic Industry & Green Policy Influence

📍 Context
✅ Activists and experts draw parallels between plastic and tobacco industry tactics, alleging profit-driven lobbying, public deception, and shifting responsibility to consumers.
✅ Plastic producers, backed by fossil fuel lobbies, push for recycling despite its impracticality at scale, especially in the Global South.

📍 Key Concerns
✅ Promotes ‘recyclability’ narrative while resisting real accountability
✅ Targets Global South as stricter regulations hit the Global North
✅ Weak global waste management systems exploited for sustained plastic consumption
✅ In India, over 70% of plastic is recycled by informal workers, often without social protection

📍 India’s Policy Measures
✅ National Action for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem (NAMASTE) (2024): aims to integrate informal waste workers into formal systems with access to safety, insurance, and social benefits

📍 Environmental Governance Challenge
✅ Fossil fuel, chemical, and packaging industries actively lobbying at global plastic treaty negotiations

📘 Prelims Practice (UPSC 2025)
Q. The National Action for Mechanised Sanitation Ecosystem (NAMASTE) scheme aims to:
(a) Promote automated sanitation machinery
(b) Integrate informal waste pickers into formal systems
(c) Enhance water conservation in urban areas
(d) Curb the use of single-use plastics in government offices
✅ Answer: (b)

??️ Mains Questi

on (GS3 – Environment)
Q. The plastic industry’s approach to sustainability has been criticized as mirroring that of the tobacco industry. Discuss this analogy and evaluate India’s efforts in managing plastic waste through both informal and formal m

echanisms.

#PlasticWaste #GreenPolicy #NAMASTE #Lobbying #GS3 #EnvironmentalGovernance #UPSC2025 #CircularEconomy #PlasticTreaty #economy #environment

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🔆 Centre’s Dividend Income from PSUs Doubles Since 2020

✅ The Centre’s dividend receipts from non-banking PSUs have risen from ₹39,558 crore (FY21) to ₹74,017 crore (FY25)—a near doubling in 5 years
✅ Source: Data from Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM)
✅ Excludes RBI and public sector bank dividends

📍 Key Drivers:
✅ 5 fuel-related PSUs—Coal India, ONGC, IOC, BPCL, GAIL—account for 42.3% (₹31,109 crore) of FY25 total
✅ BPCL & GAIL alone contributed ₹1.27 lakh crore (FY21–FY25)
✅ IOC & BPCL saw 255% dividend increase since FY22-23 despite 65% drop in oil prices

📍 Government Strategy:
✅ Approach seen as “calibrated” to balance disinvestment shortfalls with stronger dividend inflow
✅ Despite input cost fall, public saw only a 2% petrol price reduction, while OMCs paid higher dividends

📍 Implications:
✅ Shows Centre’s growing reliance on oil, gas & coal PSUs
✅ Raises questions on sustainability & pricing transparency
✅ Reflects post-COVID fiscal strategy for non-tax revenue generation

Prelims MCQ
Q. Which of the following companies contributed significantly to the Centre’s PSU dividend growth since FY21?
A. NTPC and NHPC
B. IOC and BPCL
C. SAIL and BHEL
D. LIC and SBI
✅ Answer: B
#GS3

Mains Question
(GS3 – 150 words)
The Centre’s growing reliance on PSU dividends raises questions on fiscal sustainability. Discu

ss the pros and cons of using PSU profits to fund government expenditure.
#GS3 #economy

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