Russia sent significantly more oil and coal to India and China over the summer compared with the start of the year, while European countries that long relied on Russian energy have cut back sharply in response to the war in Ukraine, said a report published on Sep 6.

The Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air said Russia received about 158 billion euros (USD 158 billion) in revenue for the sale of oil, natural gas and coal from February to August, more than half of which, some 85 billion euros worth, was exported to the European Union.

Within the EU, Germany was the biggest importer, buying 19 billion euros worth of fossil fuels from Russia during the six-month period.

The single biggest importer worldwide, however, was China, which bought 35 billion euros worth of Russian energy, the Helsinki-based group said.

While Russia's revenue rose, overall export volumes dropped by 18% compared with when the country invaded Ukraine, the report said.

The EU has cut its imports from Russia by 35% since the war began, with Russian coal now banned in the 27-nation bloc and a halt to oil sales due to take effect at the end of the year.

Germany's economy minister, Robert Habeck, said that his country doesn't expect gas imports from Russia to resume anymore.

Meanwhile, India and China imported significantly more coal and crude oil from Russia in July and August than in February and March, according to the report by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air.

While rating agency Moody’s on  Sep 6 retained India’s Baa3 (stable) credit rating with a stable outlook, it sees India’s low per capita income and high general government debt as major risks in the future.

The agency said in its latest rating update that India’s still low incomes limit households’ capacity to absorb domestic, external or weather related shocks. As per the rating agency, India’s per capita income increased to about $7,300 on a purchasing power parity-adjusted basis in 2021 from nearly $4,500 in 2011, but remains much lower than the Baa-rated median of more than $27,000 in 2021.

Moody’s also highlighted that India’s economy is highly exposed to climate change risks. It cites India’s excessive dependence on monsoon for agriculture, excessive use of groundwater and rising temperatures as key risks in near future.

On high government indebtedness, the rating agency said the country’s general government debt burden is higher and debt affordability is lower compared with Baa-rated peers.

Moody’s report in a nutshell

Moody’s estimates India’s real GDP growth at 7.6% in 2022

It holds low per capita income and high general government debt as major risks in the future

India's per capita income at $7,300 (PPP basis) much lower than $27,000 for similar-rated peers

India’s debt burden to stabilise around 80% of the GDP in 2022, 2023

India's economy is highly exposed to climate change risks

Newly appointed All India Football Federation president Kalyan Chaubey said that it is important to increase grassroots participation in the sport to find more talent in the country.

The All India Football Federation (AIFF)  has  announced the name of its president in its 85-year history with Kalyan Chaubey defeating the legendary Bhaichung Bhutia in the election for the top post. The 45-year-old Chaubey, an ex-goalkeeper with Mohun Bagan and East Bengal, prevailed 33-1 as former Indian football skipper Bhutia lost the election and got only 1 vote.

The president is happy that FIFA Under 17 Women's Football World Cup is happening in India for the first time.

The biennial youth tournament, scheduled to be held between October 11 and 30, 2022, will see the best young female footballers across the world showcase their talent in India and tickets for the same are now live.

Q1.  Name the state in which Kuno National Park (KNP) is situated ?

1. Madhya Pradesh
2. Uttar Pradesh
3. Arunachal Pradesh
4. Kerala
5. None of These

Q2. Name the state in which  30,401 people from Myanmar have crossed the international border and taken refuge after military ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February last year ?

1. Tripura
2. Mizoram
3. Manipur
4. Assam
5. None of These

Q3. Name the. former MD and CEO of National Stock Exchange who has been arrested by the  Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Sep 6 in a money laundering case related to alleged illegal phone tapping and snooping on stock exchange employees ?

1. Sanjay Pandey
2. Chitra Ramkrishna
3. Ravi Narain
4. Vedant Patel
5. None of These

Q4. Name the  country with which India has signed an water  sharing  accord of Kushiyara river recently  ?

1. Nepal
2. Bhutan
3. Pakistan
4. Bangladesh
5. None of These

Q5. Name the  Principal Deputy Spokesperson for the US Department of State who has scripted history by becoming the first Indian-American to hold the daily State Department press briefing ?

1. Hasan Minhaj
2. Kiran Desai
3. Vedant Patel
4. Fareed Zakaria
5. None of These

Answers

1----------------------------1   Madhya Pradesh

2----------------------------2  Mizoram

3----------------------------3  Ravi Narain

4----------------------------4  Bangladesh

5------------------------3 Vedant Patel

Even as Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Sep 5 announced a Teacher’s Day gift by implementing UGC’s pay scale as per the Seventh Pay Commission recommendations for all college teachers, about 13,200 school teachers make do with meagre monthly salaries ranging between Rs 6,000 and Rs 11,000.

While Mann said that the decision will come into force from October 1, he sought to strike an emotional chord with the teachers, adding that as a son of a teacher he was well aware of the problems faced by them. Asserting that the objective of imparting quality education to students would be achieved by the state government’s decision to recruit guest faculty, Mann said the honorarium for this category of teachers would be hiked. 

In a setback to the Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party, its founder member and national vice president Mahendra Rajbhar  has resigned from the party along with over two dozen members.

He claimed SBSP president Om Prakash Rajbhar has deviated from the party mission of working for the poor and deprived, and his only agenda is to collect money.

He also alleged that the party president maybe sheltering Mau MLA Abbas Ansari, who was recently declared an absconder in an arms license case by a court, at his home.

The Centre has decided to rename Rajpath and Centre Vista lawns stretching from the Rashtrapati Bhavan to India Gate  as 'Kartavya Path'

On Sep 8 evening, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the entire stretch, which has been renovated under his government's ambitious Central Vista redevelopment project.

Rajpath was known as Kingsway during British Rule.

The Hemant Soren government on  Sep 5 won the confidence vote in the Assembly by a comfortable margin – with 48 MLAs voting in favour in the 81-member Jharkhand House.

Uncertainty over the Soren government arose after the Election Commission reportedly sent a report recommending his disqualification over allegations that he allocated a mining lease to himself while holding the portfolio of Mines back in 2021.

Blaming the BJP for the current uncertainty in the state, Soren said that the BJP is yet to digest the fact that the public threw them out of power in 2019 after they did nothing for the poor except make elephants fly during their rule between 2014 and 2019.

The state government had to seek a vote of trust just to show BJP how strong they are inside the Assembly and give them a feel of how stronger we are outside it, he added.