• Himachal Pradesh has emerged among the nine best-performing states and UTs in the Social Progress Index (SPI),2022 for remarkable performance across components like personal freedom and choice, shelter, water and sanitation.
• Aizawl, Solan and Shimla are the top three social progress districts.
• The categorisation is part of the SPI for states and districts prepared by the Institute for Competitiveness and Social Progress Imperative.
• It was released by Bibek Debroy, Chairman, Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister.
• The SPI assesses states and districts based on 12 components across three critical dimensions of social progress — basic human needs, foundations of wellbeing and opportunity.
• According to the report, Puducherry has the highest SPI score of 65.99, followed by Lakshadweep (65.89), Goa (65.53), Sikkim (65.10), Mizoram (64.19), Tamil Nadu (63.33), Himachal (63.28), Chandigarh (62.37) and Kerala (62.05). Jharkhand and Bihar scored the lowest, 43.95 and 44.47, respectively.
• Himachal Pradesh has been ranked 7th in the List.
• Mizoram, HP, Ladakh, and Goa emerged top performers for the foundations of wellbeing.

• Arnala, the first ship of the ASW SWC Project, being built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers, GRSE for the Indian Navy was launched on December 20 at Kattupalli, Chennai.
• The Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft (ASW-SWC)corvettes, are a class anti-submarine warfare vessels currently being built for the Indian Navy, by Cochin Shipyard (CSL) and Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE).
• She made her first contact with the water of the Bay of Bengal at 1040 hrs at the launch ceremony graced by Rasika Chaube, Financial Adviser, Ministry of Defence.
• In keeping with the Naval maritime tradition, Ms Chaube launched the ship to the chanting of invocation from Atharva Veda.
• The ship has been named Arnala to signify the strategic maritime importance accorded to the island of Arnala located about 13 Km north of Vasai, Maharashtra by the great Maratha warrior, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
• The contract for building eight ASW SWC ships was signed between Defence Ministry and GRSE, Kolkata in April 2019.
• Arnala class of ships will replace the Abhay class ASW Ships of the Indian Navy and are designed to undertake anti-submarine operations in coastal waters and Low Intensity Maritime Operations including subsurface surveillance in littoral waters.
• The ASW SWC ships will have over 80 per cent indigenous content, ensuring that large-scale defence production is executed by Indian manufacturing units. It will generate employment and capability build up within the country.

• The Economic Advisory Council to Prime Minister (EAC-PM) along with Institute for Competitiveness and Social Progress Imperative today released the Social Progress Index (SPI) for States and Districts of India as mandated by the EAC-PM.
• Puducherry, Lakshadweep, and Goa stand out as the best-performing States in the index. The top three performing districts are Shimla in Himachal Pradesh, Solan in Himachal Pradesh, and Aizawl in Mizoram.
• Puducherry has the highest SPI score of 65.99 in the country, attributable to its remarkable performance across components like Personal Freedom and Choice, Shelter, and Water and Sanitation. Lakshadweep scored 65.89 and Goa closely follow with 65.53. Jharkhand and Bihar scored the lowest.
• For the dimension of Basic Human Needs, Goa, Puducherry, Lakshadweep, and Chandigarh are the top four States with the best performance in Water and Sanitation and Shelter as compared to the other States and Union Territories. Mizoram, Himachal Pradesh, Ladakh, and Goa have emerged as the best-performing States for the Foundations of Wellbeing.
• The index assesses States and districts based on 12 components across three critical dimensions of social progress – Basic Human Needs, Foundations of well-being, and Opportunity.
• The index uses an extensive framework comprising 89 indicators at the State level and 49 at the district level.
• SPI is a comprehensive tool that can serve as a holistic measure of a country’s social progress at the national and sub-national levels.

• The Smart Cities Mission, Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs has won the Platinum Icon in the Digital India Awards 2022 for their initiative “DataSmart Cities: Empowering Cities through Data”. 
• The award was announced under the ‘Data Sharing and Use for Socio-Economic Development’
• The DataSmart Cities Initiative is a key step in creating a robust data ecosystem that enables evidence-based decision-making in cities. It aims to harness the power of data for better governance in India’s 100 Smart Cities.
• Digital India Awards presents an opportunity to bring to the fore digital initiatives being adopted to transform India into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy.
• It is a prestigious National competition that seeks to encourage and honour innovative digital solutions by government entities in realising the Digital India vision.

• The Ministry of Rural Development has organised a Corporate Social Responsibility, CSR Conclave on PPP mode of development of Lighthouse Saansad Adarsh Gram Yojana (SAGY) Gram Panchayat.
• Rural Development Secretary Shailesh Kumar Singh on December 20, 2022 inaugurated the CSR conclave in collaboration with Transform Rural India Foundation (TRIF).
• It aims to mobilize the resources from CSR, Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs), and other private voluntary sectors.
• SAGY is focused on the holistic development of villages in tune with local potentials and aspirations of people through the convergence of resources allocated under existing Central/ State Government schemes as well as pooling of resources from private voluntary and cooperative organizations.
• Member of Parliaments, Corporates, and other SAGY stakeholders have participated in this conclave to get their support for the rapid transformation of SAGY Gram Panchayats.

About Saansad Adarsh Gram Yojana

• The scheme was launched by the Prime Minister of India on 11^th October, 2014 on the birth anniversary of Jai Prakash Narayan.
• Goal
  • Under the Yojana, Members of Parliament (MPs) are responsible for developing the socio-economic and physical infrastructure of three villages each by 2019, and a total of eight villages each by 2024. The first Adarsh Gram (Model Village) was to be developed by 2016, and two more by 2019.
  • From 2019 to 2024, five more Adarsh Grams must be developed by each MP, one each year. This implies that a total of 6,433 Adarsh Grams, of the 2,65,000 gram panchayats, will be created by 2024.

Why in News

• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has announced the Sovereign Gold Bond Scheme 2022-23 – Series III.

What are Gold Bonds?

• Gold bonds are government securities denominated in grams of gold.
• They are substitutes for holding physical gold. Investors have to pay the issue price in cash and the bonds will be redeemed in cash on maturity.
• The bond is issued by the RBI on behalf of the government.
  • While the tenor of bonds is eight years, it can be redeemed after five years.

Benefits 

• These bonds offer a superior alternative to holding gold in physical form.
• The risks and costs of storage are eliminated.
• Investors are assured of the market value of gold at the time of maturity and periodical interest.
• It’s free from issues like making charges and purity in the case of gold in jewellery form.
• The bonds are held in the books of the RBI or in Demat form eliminating the risk of loss.

Why in News?

• The fifth Scorpène submarine, Vagir of Project – 75 Kalvari Class submarines has been delivered to the Indian Navy by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) Mumbai.

About Project 75:

• Project-75 includes the indigenous construction of six submarines of Scorpene design. These submarines are being constructed at Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) Mumbai, under collaboration with Naval Group, France.
• INS Kalvari, the first of the Scorpene-design submarines built by MDL in collaboration with the French Naval Group (earlier DCNS), was commissioned in December 2017. Khanderi, Karanj and Vela – the 2nd, 3rd and 4th boats under this project – were commissioned in September 2019, December 2020 and December 2021 respectively.
• The delivery of the Vagir also starts the countdown to the conclusion of Project 75. Vagsheer, the sixth and final boat under this programme to build a new line of diesel-electric submarines, is under sea trials and is expected to be handed over to the Indian Navy within a year.

More About submarines:

• A 30-year submarine building plan for the Indian Navy was approved in 1999 to build 24 submarines under two production lines. This programme is running way behind schedule. Issuance of an estimated Rs 42,000 Crore tender for the second line of six submarines to be produced under Project 75 (I) has undergone repeated delays. India aims to build the Project 75(I) submarines under the ambitious Strategic Partnership Programme, in which Indian shipyards will bid for the contract in technical collaboration with a foreign partner.
• The Indian Navy submarine arm is now equipped with seven Russian-origin Kilo class submarines (Sindhughosh class), four German-designed HDW submarines (Shishumar class) and five of the French-designed Scorpenes (Kalvari class), besides one Arihant class nuclear deterrence submarine (SSBN).
• The Chinese PLA Navy is reported to operate at least 60 submarines while the Pakistan Navy has a fleet of eight submarines.

Why in News

• Recently, the Members of the European Union agreed in principle to implement a minimum tax of 15% on big businesses.
  • The global corporate minimum tax was approved at the G20 Leaders Summit in Rome in 2021.

Background

• 136 countries had agreed on a plan to redistribute tax rights across jurisdictions and enforce a minimum tax rate of 15% on large multinational corporations in 2021.

What is Global Minimum Tax?

• Meaning: It is a proposal to impose a minimum rate of taxation on corporate income in most countries of the world by international agreement.
  • The agreement established a two-pillar solution revising tax rules to address profit shifting and tax base erosion caused by tax avoidance practices.
• OECD’s Plan: EU members have agreed to implement a minimum tax rate of 15% on big businesses in accordance with Pillar 2 of the global tax agreement framed by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
  • Pillar 1 of the OECD’s tax plan, on the other hand, tries to address the question of taxing rights.
• Governments will be equipped to impose additional taxes in case companies are found to be paying taxes that are considered too low.

What is the need for a global minimum tax?

• Decreasing taxes: Corporate tax rates across the world have been dropping over the last few decades because of competition between governments to spur economic growth through greater private investments.
  • Global corporate tax rates have fallen from over 40% in the 1980s to under 25% in 2020.
• Race to the bottom: The OECD’s tax plan tries to put an end to this race to the bottom which has made it harder for governments to shore up the revenues required to fund their rising spending budgets.
• Deteriorating Fiscal Health: The minimum tax proposal is particularly relevant at a time when the fiscal state of governments across the world has deteriorated as seen in the worsening of public debt metrics.

Significance of the move

• Boost global tax revenues: It is estimated that the minimum tax rate would boost global tax revenues by $150 billion annually.
• Ending tax havens: This is to ensure that big businesses with global operations do not benefit by domiciling themselves in tax havens to save on taxes.
  • Large multinational companies have traditionally paid taxes in their home countries even though they did most of their business in foreign countries.
• Taxing rights: The OECD plan tries to give more taxing rights to the governments of countries where large businesses conduct a substantial amount of their business.
• Countries both within and outside the cartel will have the incentive to boost investments and economic growth within their respective jurisdictions by offering lower tax rates to businesses.

Why in News?

• NITI Aayog approves incentives for Foxconn India & Padget Electronics for mobile manufacturing
• These incentives have been approved under Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes for the Large-Scale Electronics Manufacturing sector.

What is the Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme?

• About:
  • The PLI scheme was conceived to scale up domestic manufacturing capability, accompanied by higher import substitution and employment generation.
  • The government has set aside Rs 1.97 lakh crore under the PLI schemes for various sectors and an additional allocation of Rs 19,500 crore was made towards PLI for solar PV modules in Budget 2022-23.
  • Launched in March 2020, the scheme initially targeted three industries:
    • Mobile and allied Component Manufacturing
    • Electrical Component Manufacturing and
    • Medical Devices
  • Incentives Under the Scheme:
    • The incentives, calculated on the basis of incremental sales, range from as low as 1% for the electronics and technology products to as high as 20% for the manufacturing of critical key starting drugs and certain drug intermediaries.
    • In some sectors such as advanced chemistry cell batteries, textile products and the drone industry, the incentive to be given will be calculated on the basis of sales, performance and local value addition done over the period of five years.

• Sectors for the which PLI Scheme has been Announced:
  • So far, the government has announced PLI schemes for 14 sectors including automobile and auto components, electronics and IT hardware, telecom, pharmaceuticals, solar modules, metals and mining, textiles and apparel, white goods, drones, and advanced chemistry cell batteries.

• The production of mobile phones has risen from about six crore in 2014-15 to approximately 31 crore in 2021-22.  The export of mobile phones has also seen a sharp increase.

About Foxconn India

• Foxconn India is the first global company that has been approved under the target segment ‘Mobile Phones’ to receive incentives for the period 1 August 2021 to 31 March 2022.
• The incentive amount approved is 357.17 crore rupees. Foxconn India is part of the Foxconn Group, which is the world’s No. 1 manufacturer and assembler of mobile phones. Foxconn India is a Taiwanese multinational electronics contract manufacturer with its headquarters in Tucheng, New Taipei City.

About Padget Electronics Pvt. Ltd

• Padget Electronics Pvt. Ltd, a domestic company, has been approved by the Empowered Committee to receive incentives under mobile manufacturing for the quarter January-March 2022.
• The incentive amount approved is 58.29 crore rupees. Padget Electronics Pvt. Ltd is a 100 percent subsidiary of Dixon Technologies Pvt. Ltd and has manufacturing facilities in Noida, and Uttar Pradesh. Padget Electronics has already received an amount of 53.28 crore rupees under the PLI scheme for the period August-December 2021.

• Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri said that efforts would be made to bring about a radical change in the transport sector and gradually switch over to electric vehicles to reduce pollution in Himachal.
• He said that a new electric vehicle policy was being implemented in the state and the Transport Department would soon get a fleet of electric vehicles.
• Initially, the use of electric vehicles will be promoted in the Secretariat. Thereafter, their use in public transport services will also be encouraged.
• The government would take appropriate steps for setting up of charging stations for electric vehicles.
• In the initial phase, the charging facilities will be provided in various government institutions, including the Secretariat and Himachal sadans and bhavans outside the state.
• The Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) has about 1,000 vehicles of zero book value and these will be replaced with electric vehicles in a phased manner.
• Electric buses will also be included in the HRTC fleet. The electric vehicle policy will prove fruitful in reducing financial losses, besides reducing the daily expenditure of about Rs 1.5 crore.

Himachal Pradesh EV Policy 2021                                     

• Himachal Pradesh EV Policy 2021 Notification Date: December 2021 (Cabinet Approval on 30-11-2021)
• Validity: HP EV Policy 2021 is valid for a period of FIVE years from the date of issue Gazette Notification of this
• As per the Himachal EV Policy 2021, the subsidies & incentives offered by Himachal Pradesh Government will be in addition to incentives available in FAME II incentives of Government of India
• As per Himachal Electric Vehicle Policy 2021, Registration fees & Green Tax will be exempted.
• Annual Permit fee for Electric Commercial Vehicles will be waived-off.
• Electric Vehicles registered in the state of Himachal Pradesh (HP) will be exempted from State Toll Taxes.