The government has banned exports of onion till March next year to increase domestic availability and to keep prices in check.

Local vendors in the national capital are selling onions at Rs 70-Rs 80 per kg. Earlier, the Centre in October had decided to step up the sale of buffer onion stock at a subsidised rate of Rs 25 per kg in retail markets to provide relief to consumers.

To control prices, the government has earlier taken several steps.

It had imposed a minimum export price (MEP) of USD 800 per tonne on onion exports on October 28 till December 31 this year.

In August, India had imposed a 40 per cent export duty on onions up to December 31.

The DGFT also said that the exports of onion, however, will be allowed based on permission granted by the government to other countries based on their request.

It added that shipments of onion, whose loading had commenced before this notification, are allowed to be exported.

The period of exports for such consignments shall be up to January 5 next year.

Between April 1 and August 4 this fiscal, 9.75 lakh tonnes of onions have been exported from the country.

The top three importing countries in value terms are Bangladesh, Malaysia and the UAE. 

The RBI on Dec 8 decided to lock rate hikes tightly in the toolbox for the fifth time in a row. The benchmark repo rate stands pat at 6.5%.

Citing buoyancy in domestic economic activity, the central bank revised FY24 GDP forecasts by a generous 50 bps to 7% from 6.5%. Q3 growth is now pegged at 6.5%, and Q4 at 6%.

Further in an unusual move, for the next fiscal it provided real GDP projections for three quarters straight as against the tradition of forecasting Q1 estimates alone. FY25 Q1 growth is now pegged at 6.7%, Q2 at 6.5% and Q3 at 6.4%.

As for inflation, FY24 estimates remain unchanged at 5.4%, though Q3 estimates have been revised marginally lower to 5.4% from 5.6%. Q4 inflation is estimated at 5.2%.

Like growth, inflation estimates were given for three quarters of FY25 and it's this forecast that holds the biggest hint of inflation finally returning to RBI's 4% target. Q1 inflation is estimated at 5.2%, Q2 at 4% and Q3 at 4.7%.

The RBI's revised GDP estimate was an icing on the cake, with Nifty scaling the 21,000 mark for the first time.

The Standing Deposit Facility (SDF) remains unchanged at 6.25%, while Marginal Standing Facility (MSF) and bank rate are anchored at 6.75% each.

In August, Das surprised markets, by introducing the incremental cash reserve ratio (I-CRR) to suck out excess liquidity of over Rs 1 lakh crore from the banking system.

This weekend's top-level football matches in Greece have been postponed following serious clashes involving sports fans that left a police officer in critical condition after he was hit by a flare.

Greek league organizers said weekend matches would be rescheduled after it failed to fill referee positions for key matches.

The latest clashes occurred during a volleyball match between the city’s two largest clubs, Panathinaikos and Olympiakos — who are fierce rivals on the football field and in many other sports. Scores of fans attacked riot police outside the stadium, hurling flares, gasoline bombs and rocks, while police responded by firing tear gas.

The president of the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF), Ednaldo Rodrigues, one of the sport's most powerful figures in football-mad Brazil, was stripped of the job by a court ruling amid a messy legal battle.

Rodrigues, the first black president in CBF history, had been a key figure in negotiating with Real Madrid boss Carlo Ancelotti to take over coaching the Brazilian national team, and his departure opens new question marks over the future of the struggling five-time World Cup champions.

The Rio de Janeiro Court of Justice's 21st chamber said it had ordered the CBF to hold a new presidential election within 30 days. It appointed the head of Brazil's Superior Court of Justice for Sport as administrator of the football body in the interim.

The court threw out a 2022 deal between the CBF and Rio prosecutors that had paved the way for Rodrigues's election to lead the body until 2026.

It ruled prosecutors had overstepped their authority in making the deal.

The case dates back to 2017 when the CBF changed its election rules without consulting representatives of Brazil's top-flight clubs, whose voting power was 

Q1) Anumala Revanth Reddy was sworn in as the second Chief Minister of

1. Telangana
2. Karnataka
3. Andhra Pradesh
4. Kerala
5. None of These

Q2) Which has become the first country to confer diplomatic status to a Taliban-nominated official as Afghanistan's Ambassador, thereby formally recognising the Taliban-run administration as a legitimate government in Kabul?

1. Pakistan
2. Iran
3. China
4. Qatar
5. None of These

Q3) Name the country which has formally withdrawn from China's vast Belt and Road infrastructure initiative, more than four years after becoming the only G7 nation to sign up?

1. Canada
2. Italy
3. Germany
4. Japan
5. None of These

Q4) To increase domestic availability and to keep prices in check, the government has banned exports of onion till

1. Dec, 2023
2. Jan, 2024
3. Feb, 2024
4. Mar, 2024
5. None of These

Q5) The RBI on Dec 8 decided to lock rate hikes tightly in the toolbox for the fifth time in a row and the benchmark repo rate stands at

1. 4.5%.
2. 5.5%.
3. 6.5%.
4. 7.5%.
5. None of These

Answers

1---------------------1   Telangana

2---------------------3 China

3----------------------2   Italy

4----------------------4  Mar, 2024

5-----------------------3  6.5%.

India, on Dec 7 , confirmed that the Indian ambassador obtained consular access to meet the eight Indians sentenced to death in Qatar on December 3. The external affairs ministry spokesperson, Arindam Bagchi, stated that there have been two hearings, an appeal has been filed, and consular assistance is being provided. Bagchi emphasized that the government is closely monitoring the situation and will share information within the bounds of sensitivity.

In October, a Qatari court sentenced seven retired naval officers and a sailor to death. These individuals, employed by Al Dahra Global Technologies, a private firm providing training and services to Qatar’s armed forces and security agencies, had been detained since August the previous year on unspecified charges, with allegations of espionage.

Sukhdev Singh Gogamedi, the chief of right-wing group Shri Rashtriya Rajput Karni Sena, was shot dead at his Jaipur residence by three unidentified men.

Meanwhile, gangster Rohit Godara, who is believed to be in Canada and has links with the gangs of Goldie Brar and Lawrence Bishnoi, claimed responsibility for the murder through a Facebook post.

Gogamedi had tried to contest the 2018 Rajasthan elections as a BJP candidate, but the party denied him ticket.