11th NOV, 2022

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FINANCE FOR CLIMATE ACTION: SCALING UP INVESTMENT FOR CLIMATE AND
DEVELOPMENT REPORT RELEASED

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Report was prepared by Independent High-Level Expert Group on Climate Finance
(CF). MAIN FUNDS OF CF:

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Group was launched in 2021 by COP26 together with COP27 presidencies and Green Climate Fund (set up by UNFCCC in
UN Climate Change High-Level Champions. 2010), Special Climate Change Fund
CF refers to local, national or transnational financing—drawn from public, private (administered by Global Environment
and alternative sources of financing—that seeks to support mitigation and Facility), Least Developed Countries Fund
adaptation actions. etc.

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Status of CF
90% of total CF is targeting mitigation activities.
Most CFs were raised as debt, of which only 16% was low-cost.
Most financing remains in its country of origin.

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Emerging markets and developing economies, except China, will need $2 trillion per year by 2030.

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Framework for CF
Finance from Multilateral Development Banks and Development Finance Instrument systems are to be triple within five years (to
$180 billion).
Expand pool of Special Drawing Rights through regular issuance and utilize it to enhance resilience and sustainability.

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Carbon markets could provide urgent finance for Nature-based solutions, Engineered removals e.g., Direct Air Carbon Capture and
Storage, etc.

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Carbon credits must not displace companies’ investment in reducing their own emissions.

WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION (WHO) RELEASES GLOBAL VACCINE MARKET REPORT 2022
This is the first report to capture the implications of COVID-19 on global vaccine markets.

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Key highlights:
Vaccine supply base remains highly concentrated- ten manufacturers alone provide 70% of vaccine doses (excluding COVID vaccine).
Lack of equitable distribution- African Region received just 3% of all COVID-19 vaccine doses.
Predictable country demand is key to guiding investments, thus efforts should be focused on enhancing its predictability.
Recommendations
For government:
Establish early, evidence-informed strategic goals.
Investing in new vaccine technologies and enabling regulatory harmonization.
Ensure transparency in terms of intellectual property rights and circulation of related inputs.
For industry:
R&D efforts focused on the WHO list of priority pathogens.
Ensure transparency along the vaccine value chain.
Allow equity-driven allocation of products.
For International Organizations
Prioritize global public health as per the Immunization Agenda 2030.
Support country-driven initiatives and avoid creation of duplicate efforts.
Continue to call for technology transfer and for application of resolutions on market transparency for health products.

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MINISTRY OF JAL SHAKTI RELEASES DYNAMIC GROUND WATER (GW) RESOURCE

ASSESSMENT 2022 REPORT
The Assessment is carried out at periodical intervals jointly by Central Ground Water Board and States/UTs.
Key highlights
India is largest user of GW with a fourth of total global withdrawal.
Recharge: Total annual GW recharge has increased (437.6 bcm) and rainfall contributes to nearly 61 % in this.

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Extraction: Stage of GW extraction (percentage of utilisation of groundwater
against recharge) saw a decline reaching at 60%. KEY TERMS
87% of the GW was extracted for irrigation. Overexploited: Ground water extraction
exceeding the annually replenishable ground
GW extraction is very high (100%) in Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Dadra &
water recharge.

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Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu.
Critical: ground water extraction is between
Categories: 67% GW units are safe and there was a decline in the number of 90-100 % of annual extractable resources

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over-exploited units. available.
14 % assessment units are ‘Overexploited’ and 4% are ‘Critical’. Safe: Ground water extraction is less than 70%.
Initiatives for Groundwater management
Atal Bhujal Yojana: Improve GW management through community
participation.
RESERVE BANK OF INDIA (RBI)
RELEASES REPORT ON

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Master Plan for Artificial Recharge to Groundwater 2020: Envisages
construction of rainwater harvesting and artificial recharge structures. MUNICIPAL FINANCES
Aquifer Mapping and Management Programme. Report is compilation and analysis of budget
data of 201 Municipal Corporations (MCs)
MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST & CLIMATE

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across all states and explores ‘Alternative

CHANGE ISSUES E-WASTE MANAGEMENT RULES 2022

Sources of Financing for MCs’.

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Key highlights
Government notified E-waste (management) Rules, 2022 that will come into
Municipal Finances (MF) are dominated by
force from 1st April 2023.
property tax collections and devolution of
These rules apply to every manufacturer, dismantler and recycler involved taxes and grants from upper tiers of
in manufacturing, sale, transfer, purchase, refurbishing etc. of e-waste. government, resulting in lack of financial

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Rules were notified under Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. autonomy.
Key highlights of new rules MCs’ expenditure of administrative costs and

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Increased the number of items to 106 from 21 that come under e-waste interest and finance charges is rising, but
category. capital expenditure is minimal.
Manufacturer, producer, refurbisher or recycler need to compulsorily register MFs, consisting of tax revenue, non-tax
under the Extended Producer Responsibility Framework. revenue, and transfers - are estimated at

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They may store the e-waste for a period not exceeding 180 and shall
maintain a record of e-wastes.
Manufacturer shall ensure that
end products are recyclable
and components made by
different manufacturer are
compatible with each other
Imports or placement in the
market for new equipment shall
be permitted only for those
which are compliant with
provisions.
Reduce the use of hazardous
substances like lead, mercury,
cadmium among others in the
manufacturing.
Central Pollution Control Board
shall monitor and verify the
compliance of reduction of
hazardous substance.
Challenges for E-waste Management in India
Recommendations
E-waste means electrical and electronic
equipment, whole or in part discarded as waste, as
well as rejects from manufacturing, refurbishment
and repair processes.
India is third-largest producer of e-waste
after China and United States.
0.61 percent of GDP in 2017-18.
Non-tax revenue, accounted for 30 % of
total revenue receipts of MF.
Property tax accounts for 50% of the total
tax collections of MF.
Create Pooled financing mechanism that
involves financing through the pooled
revenue stream.
Develop a Credit rating system that
incentivized municipal bodies to undergo
reforms.
Create a sub-sovereign/municipal debt
market for investors.
Develop Land-based financing
mechanisms such as vacant land tax, land
monetization, etc.
Municipalities must balance their budgets
by law, and any municipal borrowing needs
to be approved by State government.

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INTERNATIONAL SOLAR ALLIANCE (ISA) RELEASES ‘OUR SOLAR FUTURE: ROADMAP TO

MOBILISE $1 TRILLION BY 2030’
Released at CoP 27 in partnership with World Resources Institute (WRI) and Bloomberg Philanthropies.
It outlines priority actions by governments, development finance institutions, and other actors to rapidly scale solar investment.
Need for investment
Average annual investment in solar solutions needs to double from 2021 through 2030 to achieve the Paris climate goals and SDGs.

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Falling Costs for solar energy and battery energy storage have made solar technologies cost-competitive with fossil fuels.
Roadmap pertains to four solar market segments

Segment Solutions About ISA

ISA was launched jointly by India and

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Develop tariff policies, and solar incentives France at COP-21 in Paris in 2015 to provide a
Off-grid and decentralized and remove import restrictions.
solar dedicated platform for cooperation among

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Align the project with the mini-grid project. solar resource rich countries and the wider
Utility-scale and global community.
Create "fit-for-solar" regulatory frameworks.
grid-connected solar It is guided by its ‘Towards 1000’ strategy
which aims
Develop “renewable energy zones” for solar
and storage resources. To mobilise USD 1,000 billion of
Energy storage and grid investments in solar energy solutions by

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Grid integration of variable solar PV.
flexibility infra 2030,.
Increase regional power pool cooperation to
Delivering energy access to 1,000 million
enable economies of scale in grid management.
people using clean energy solutions.
Advanced solar and
Installation of 1,000 GW of solar energy
storage technologies Develop standards or certification programs.

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capacity.
(e.g.,) advanced chemistry
Provide blended finance support such as UN General Assembly conferred Observer
batteries, compressed air,
insurance and partial risk guarantees.

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and solar thermal energy Status to the ISA in 2021.
storage Headquarter: Gurugram, Haryana

ALSO IN NEWS

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Government amended Aadhaar rules.

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It specifies that supporting documents may be updated “at least once” by Aadhaar holders on
completion of 10 years from enrolment date.
Updation would ensure continued accuracy of Aadhaar-related information in CIDR.
Central Identities Data Repository (CIDR) is centralised database containing:

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all Aadhaar numbers issued to Aadhaar holders along with
Aadhaar rules updated
corresponding demographic and biometric information of such individuals etc.

Ministry of Electronics & IT (MeitY) has enabled DigiLocker to store and access health records of
individuals pertaining to Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission.
DigiLocker is a flagship initiative of MeitY under Digital India program.
It is a platform to issue/store and digitally verify government documents and certificates.
Documents in DigiLocker system are deemed to be at par with original physical documents
DigiLocker as per Rule 9A of the Information Technology Rules, 2016.
Benefits: Secure document gateway, reduced administrative overhead, real-time verification, etc.

ASCI plans to extend the ethics code to, ‘dark patterns’ in online advertising to protect Indian
consumers from misleading online messaging.
Proposed Dark patterns under 4 heads:
Drip Pricing- only part of a product's price and reveal other charges later as customer goes
through buying process.
Bait and Switch- advertised goods with low prices to substitute with inferior alternatives at the
Advertising Standards time of purchase.
Council of India (ASCI)
False Urgency- implying that quantities of a particular product are more limited than they are.
extends online ads code
Disguised Advertising- e.g., fake reviews, influencer posts, etc.

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World Justice Project released RoL Index 2022.

Key highlights
RoL has declined globally for fifth year in a row.
India has ranked 77 out of 140 countries.
Rule of Law (RoL) Index
2022 Topped by Denmark.

Report is published by UN Women and the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs.

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Key findings
World is not on track to achieve gender equality by 2030.
380 million women and girls live in extreme poverty.
Progress on the Nearly 1 in 3 women face food insecurity.

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Sustainable Development Unsafe abortion is a leading but preventable cause of maternal mortality.
Goals: The gender
In India, in a quarter of rural households’ women and girls devote more than 50 minutes per
snapshot 2022

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day to collecting water.
It is a report by Global Carbon Project (GCP).
Established in 2001, GCP is shared partnership between
International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme,
International Human Dimensions Programme on Global Environmental Change,

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World Climate Research Programme and Diversitas.
Aim is to develop complete picture of global carbon cycle.
Key highlights of the Report
Global Carbon Budget
2022 report Global CO2 concentrations set new record of 417.2 parts per million.

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Atmospheric CO2 concentrations are now 51% above pre-industrial levels.
Projected CO2 emissions decrease in China and European Union, but increase in US, India (6%),

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and rest of world.
Ministry of Science & Technology launched India’s first national repository for life science data
IBDC at Faridabad.
IBDC is mandated to archive all life science data generated from publicly funded research in India.

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IBDC is committed to spirit of data sharing as per FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and
Reusable) principles.

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It has data storage capacity of about 4 petabytes and houses ‘Brahm’ High Performance
Indian Biological Data Computing facility.
Center (IBDC)
It hosts an online ‘Dashboard’ for genomic surveillance data generated by Indian SARS-CoV-2
Genomics Consortium labs.

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Stop TB Partnership applauded the Pradhan Mantri TB Mukt Bharat Abhiyaan.
About Stop TB Partnership
It is a United Nations hosted organization with a mission to ensures that high-quality
diagnosis, treatment and care is available to all.
Its secretariat is hosted by United Nations Office for Project Services.
Stop TB Partnership group Founded in 2001.
Minister of Health and Family Welfare is chair of its board till 2024.

Central African Republic (Capital: Bangui)

Central African Republic seeks Indian investments to mine gold, uranium.
It is a Landlocked country located in centre of Africa.
Bordered by Chad, Sudan and South Sudan, Democratic
Republic of Congo (Kinshasa) and Republic of the Congo
(Brazzaville), and Cameroon.
Geographical features
Major basins: Lake Chad basin and Congo River basin.
Places in News Highest point: Mount Ngaoui
Country lies largely in savanna zone of Africa.
Gold, uranium, iron ore, copper, and manganese are mined in
smaller quantities.

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