Economy: RBI's Central Board approved a record transfer of Rs 2,10,874 crore as surplus to the central government for FY2023-24, more than double the previous year.
International: The BIMSTEC Charter entered into force on 20 May 2024, giving BIMSTEC legal personality for the first time.
IP: The WIPO Diplomatic Conference concluded with adoption of the first-ever treaty on intellectual property, genetic resources, and traditional knowledge.
Minerals: India was in discussions with Sri Lanka to acquire graphite mining rights, as graphite is essential for lithium-ion battery anodes.
1. RBI Transfers Record Surplus of Rs 2,10,874 Crore
GS area: Economy (Monetary Policy, Fiscal)
The Reserve Bank of India's Central Board approved a transfer of Rs 2,10,874 crore (approximately USD 25 billion) from RBI's surplus earnings to the central government for FY2023-24. This was the highest ever RBI surplus transfer.
Legal basis: Section 47 of the Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934 governs the distribution of RBI's surplus. After meeting all provisions, the remaining profit is transferred to the central government.
Previous year comparison: The FY2022-23 surplus transfer was Rs 87,416 crore. The FY2023-24 transfer is approximately 2.4 times larger.
Contingent Risk Buffer (CRB): The CRB is the risk provisioning maintained by the RBI out of its earnings. The board raised the CRB to 6.5 per cent of the RBI's balance sheet, the upper end of the 5.5-6.5 per cent target range prescribed by the Bimal Jalan Committee (2019).
Economic Capital Framework (ECF): Developed by the Bimal Jalan Committee. The ECF defines the total economic capital RBI needs to hold against financial risks, and the CRB is the main component.
Fiscal impact: A larger-than-budgeted RBI dividend can reduce the government's net market borrowing, as the government needs to borrow less to meet its fiscal deficit target.
Bond market impact: 10-year government bond yields fell to approximately 6.978 per cent (their lowest since mid-2023) following the announcement, as lower borrowing needs reduce G-Sec supply.
GS area: International Relations (South/Southeast Asia)
The BIMSTEC Charter entered into force on 20 May 2024, covered extensively from 24 May onwards. This gives BIMSTEC legal personality for the first time in its 27-year history.
BIMSTEC: Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation. Seven member states: Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Nepal, and Bhutan.
Established: 6 June 1997 in Bangkok. Originally known as BIST-EC (Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand Economic Cooperation).
Secretariat: Based in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Legal personality: Previously, BIMSTEC could not enter into treaties or agreements with other international organisations in its own name. The charter now grants this legal capacity, enabling BIMSTEC to formally engage with the UN, ASEAN, and others.
Membership expansion: The charter enables future membership expansion, not possible under the old framework.
India's interest: BIMSTEC overlaps with India's Act East Policy and Neighbourhood First Policy. It includes all SAARC members except Pakistan and Afghanistan, plus Myanmar and Thailand from ASEAN.
14 sectors: BIMSTEC covers connectivity, trade, technology, tourism, fisheries, energy, environment, agriculture, cultural cooperation, people-to-people contact, disaster management, security, climate change, and public health.
Static linkage: BIMSTEC, India's multilateral diplomacy, Bay of Bengal.
3. WIPO Treaty: Genetic Resources and Traditional Knowledge Adopted
GS area: International Relations (IP)
The WIPO Diplomatic Conference concluded on 24 May 2024 with the adoption of the Treaty on Intellectual Property, Genetic Resources and Traditional Knowledge.
27th WIPO treaty: This is WIPO's 27th treaty and the first in a decade. It is also the first WIPO treaty explicitly recognising the rights of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities.
Mandatory disclosure: Patent applicants using genetic resources or associated traditional knowledge in their inventions must disclose the country of origin or source. Non-compliance can lead to sanctions or patent challenges (but not automatic patent invalidation; exact consequences are left to national law).
India's position: India played an active role in negotiations. India's Biological Diversity Act, 2002 (Section 6) already requires prior approval from the National Biodiversity Authority before applying for patents using biological resources accessed in India.
TKDL: India's Traditional Knowledge Digital Library provides prior art evidence to international patent offices, countering biopiracy. The turmeric and neem patent controversies are landmark examples India cited in negotiations.
Entry into force: Requires ratification by 15 parties.
India entered discussions with Sri Lanka for acquisition of graphite mining rights in Sri Lanka, as part of India's broader critical minerals strategy.
Why graphite: Graphite is the primary material for anodes in lithium-ion batteries used in EVs, smartphones, and grid storage. Its strategic importance is on par with lithium and cobalt.
China's dominance: China controls approximately 65-70 per cent of global graphite supply and production. It is also the dominant processor and refiner.
India's critical minerals list: India announced a critical minerals list in 2023 covering 30 minerals. Graphite is among them, alongside lithium, cobalt, nickel, rare earth elements, and titanium.
KABIL: Khanij Bidesh India Limited is India's overseas critical minerals acquisition agency. It is a joint venture of NALCO (National Aluminium Company Limited), HCL (Hindustan Copper Limited), and MECL (Mineral Exploration Corporation Limited).
Sri Lanka's graphite: Sri Lanka has high-quality vein graphite deposits, some of the world's purest. It is currently produced by artisanal miners in smaller quantities.
A wildlife census of Blue Sheep (Bharal) and Himalayan Ibex commenced in Lahaul and Spiti district, Himachal Pradesh.
Blue Sheep (Bharal): Pseudois nayaur. Despite the name, it is more closely related to wild goats than to sheep. Found in the Himalayan region from India to China. IUCN: Least Concern. Listed under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act 1972.
Himalayan Ibex: Capra sibirica. A wild goat found at high altitudes in the Himalayas. IUCN: Least Concern locally but faces hunting pressure.
Survey method: The Double Observer Survey technique was used, where two independent teams count the same area simultaneously to reduce undercounting errors.
Lahaul and Spiti: A high-altitude cold desert district in Himachal Pradesh. It is a critical habitat for snow leopards (which prey on Bharal and Ibex), as well as Tibetan wolves and other high-altitude species.
Snow leopard: The Census is part of a broader Snow Leopard Prey Base Survey. Snow leopards (IUCN: Vulnerable) depend on Bharal and Ibex as their primary prey.
RBI launches PRAVAAH portal: RBI launched PRAVAAH (Platform for Regulatory Application, Validation and Authorisation) on the same day as the surplus announcement. PRAVAAH is a centralised web portal for entities to apply for regulatory approvals, licences, and authorisations from RBI, reducing paperwork and tracking applications electronically.
Cyclone season monitoring: IMD began tracking a low-pressure area in the Bay of Bengal that would later intensify into Cyclone Remal (landfall 26 May). IMD's role as RSMC for the North Indian Ocean includes early tracking and naming.
Ireland, Norway, Spain to recognise Palestine: These three European nations announced they would formally recognise Palestine as an independent state effective 28 May 2024. Of 193 UN member states, 143 had recognised Palestine. India recognised Palestine in 1988.
Practice MCQs
Check yourself
With reference to the RBI's Economic Capital Framework (ECF), the Contingent Risk Buffer (CRB) target range as defined by the Bimal Jalan Committee is:
Check yourself
BIMSTEC, whose charter entered into force in May 2024, consists of which seven member states?
Check yourself
KABIL (Khanij Bidesh India Limited), India's critical mineral acquisition company, is a joint venture of which three PSUs?
Check yourself
Blue Sheep (Bharal, Pseudois nayaur), found in the Himalayas, is significant to the snow leopard's conservation because:
Check yourself
The WIPO Treaty on Intellectual Property, Genetic Resources and Traditional Knowledge (2024) primarily addresses which problem?