SIMRAN IAS ACADEMY

SCO 226, Sector 36-D, Chandigarh

Contact Number - +91-9779190222, +91-9988210461
S. No. Topic Name Prelims/Mains
1. GI Tag to be given to 177 Tribal Products Prelims & Mains
2. All about Input Tax Credit Prelims & Mains
3. Discussions held between India and Iran to curb drug trafficking Prelims & Mains
from Afghanistan
4. Prelims & Mains
About the Agriculture Infrastructure and Development Cess
5. Climate Resilience Information System and Planning Tool Prelims Specific

1. GI Tag to be given to 177 Tribal Products:

GS II

Topic → Policies and Interventions:

• Why in the News:

• In addition to marketing 56 GI products, TRIFED is working to obtain a GI tag of about 177

products identified in the lower operational states across the country.

• TRIFED GI intervention aims to:

• Protecting the interests of the original producers and those of the product and ensuring that the
manufacturer receives the appropriate cost of their premium goods or in a highly competitive
market environment.
• Ensuring the acceptance of indigenous products in India and the international market.
• Revitalizing the decline of art and craftsmanship from a particular ethnic group.

• About Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED):

• A national organization was formed in 1987

• Purpose: To provide a good price for 'Minor Forest Produce (MFP) collected by various tribes of
India
• It operates under the auspices of the Department of Tribal Affairs, Govt. of India.
• TRIFED has its headquarters in New Delhi and has a network of 13 regional offices located in
various parts of the country.

• Source → https://pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID=1763602
 SIMRAN IAS ACADEMY
SCO 226, Sector 36-D, Chandigarh
Contact Number - +91-9779190222, +91-9988210461

2. All about Input Tax Credit:

GS III

Topic → Economy related issues:

• Why in News:

• GST Network said it has withheld a total tax revenue (ITC) of Rs 14,000 for 66,000 businesses
registered under Goods and Service Tax.

• What is Input Tax Credit (ITC):

• ITC is a way to avoid tax cuts → Tax reduction, in simple language, 'tax deduction'.
• Input Tax Credit refers to a tax already paid by a person at the time of purchase of goods or
services and is available as a tax deduction.
• Simply put, it means that at the time of paying tax on the output, you can reduce the tax you have
already paid on the input and pay the remaining amount.
• The exception: A business under a composition scheme cannot incur an input tax liability.
• ITC cannot claim to be used for personal or free goods.

• Concerns about its misuse:

• There is currently a time gap between the ITC claim and compliance with supplier taxes.
• It could be an opportunity to misuse a business offer by making fake invoices just to claim a tax
credit.
• About 80% of GST total debt is settled by ITC and only 20% is deposited as cash.
• Under the current period, there is no provision for real-time comparisons of ITC claims and taxes
already paid by product suppliers.

• Source → https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/finance/gstn-blocks-rs-14000-
crore-input-tax-credits-of-66000-taxpayers/articleshow/86965100.cms
 SIMRAN IAS ACADEMY
SCO 226, Sector 36-D, Chandigarh
Contact Number - +91-9779190222, +91-9988210461

3. Discussions held between India and Iran to curb drug trafficking

from Afghanistan

GS II

Topic → International Relations:

• Why in the News:

• Indian and Iranian officials held virtual meeting after a heroin seizure at the Mundra port in
Gujarat, which was held by Adani Ports recently.

• Important discussions:

• This effort has led to the largest withheld of drugs in the history of the Directorate of Revenue
Intelligence (DRI).
• Initial reports indicated that the containers contained the material from the Iranian port Bandar
Abbas.
• Drug trafficking also affected Iran's trade as the Adani Group announced that containers from
Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan would not be held in the port from November 15.
• Both countries discuss and evaluate ways and means of cooperation in the fight against drug
trafficking that has led to positive results.
• It has been decades since drug production and organized drug trafficking from Afghanistan has
become a major threat to the world.

• Source → https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/iranian-indian-officials-discuss-narcotics-
from-afghanistan/article36992904.ece

4. About the Agriculture Infrastructure and Development Cess

GS II

Topic → Agriculture related issues:

• Why in News:

• In an effort to curb persistent inflation with respect to edible oil, the government has decided to
free crude oil, soybeans and sunflower oil from custom duty, and to cut down the Agriculture
 SIMRAN IAS ACADEMY
SCO 226, Sector 36-D, Chandigarh
Contact Number - +91-9779190222, +91-9988210461

Infrastructure and Development Cess (AIDC) which is been levied on their imports since October
14 2021 to March 31, 2022.

• Important takeaways:

• The import of crude palm oil, soya-bean and sunflower seed oil yields a custom tax of 2.5% and
AIDC of 20%.
• Custom duty has been reduced to zero, and prices have been reduced to 5% of crude soybean oil
and sunflower beans.
• In the case of crude palm oil, the AIDC has been reduced to 7.5% instead of the original 20%.

• Benefits: This decision will help reduce the price burden on end consumers among consumer oil
prices.

• All about Cess Infrastructure and Development Cess (AIDC):

• Agricultural Infrastructure and Development (AIDC) was proposed in budget 2021-22.

• Aim: To raise funds to finance the development of agricultural infrastructure aimed at not only
growing productivity but also helping to save and process farm produce efficiently.
• New fees will be levied on 29 products, most notably gold, silver, imported apple, imported
liquor (excluding beer), imported lumps, palm oil imported, imported urea, and petrol / diesel
products including branded products.
• It will lead to the reduction of taxes or duties and thus will not increase the incidence of taxes on
consumers.

• Source → https://www.thehindu.com/business/Economy/sticky-edible-oil-prices-prompt-fresh-
import-duty-cuts/article36992388.ece

5. Climate Resilience Information System and Planning Tool:

Prelims Specific Topic:

• Government. of India has introduced the Climate Resilience Information System and Planning
(CRISP-M) tool under Mahatma Gandhi NREGA initiative.
• It will lead to integration of climatic information with the Geographic Information System (GIS)
based watershed planning.
• It will also create new opportunities in our rural communities to address the challenges of climate
change - to address climate change and thus protect the rural areas from climate-related disasters.

https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1763668