Dholera Special Investment Region
- The ‘Dholera Special Investment Region’ (DSIR) is envisaged to be a first “green city in the world”.
- It is located to the south-west of Ahmedabad.
- It is one of the several greenfield cities that have been planned on the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC).
- It will be the world's largest urban development project.
- The DSIR is slated to be bigger than Singapore.
- It will be connected to the city by a six-lane Expressway with a metrorail running through its centre.
- It has been well planned and is well connected through all modes of transport including rail, road, metro and port.
- The Dholera greenfield International Airport is a part of DSIR.
Odisha's Rasagola - GI Tag
- Odisha gets GI tag for its version of Rasagola
- The name of the geographical indication will be read as "Odisha Rasagola".
- West Bengal got GI tag for its ‘Banglara Rasagola’ which has been existing since 1863.
- Now both Odisha and West Bengal has GI Tag for their own version of Rasagola.
- The mention of the word ‘rasagola’ was found in the 15th Century Odia Dandi Ramayan written by the medieval poet ‘Balaram Das’.
- It is made with chhena (cottage cheese) cooked in sugar syrup, which is very soft, juicy and non‐chewy and can be swallowed without teeth pressure.
- In its 'Ajodhya Kanda', there is an elaborate descriptions of chhena and chhena‐based products including rasagola.
- Odisha is celebrating the ‘Rasagola Dibasa’ every year on the day of ‘Niladri Bije’ (Return of Lord Jagannath from Rath Yatra into the temple).
- The deities are offered Rasagola by servitors before entering the temple.
GI Tag
- A Geographical Indicator tag for a particular product, is a ‘legal right’, recognises it as distinctive to a particular locality or region or country.
- As a member of the WTO, India had enacted the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration & Protection) Act, 1999, which came into force from 2003.
- The tag conveys an assurance of quality and distinctiveness of the product.
Factors Affecting Crude Oil Prices
- The trend of crude oil prices mirrors the slightest of changes in geopolitics, apart from economic factors.
- The crude oil prices will move up when something causes the demand to rise or the supply to fall.
- Supply and demand, Market sentiment are the two primary factors that impact the price of oil.
- Other key factors likely to affect the movement of crude oil prices in the near future are,
- The new Iran Deal,
- The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action is better known as the Iran nuclear deal.
- US unilaterally pulled out of it in 2018.
- The US has threatened to launch airstrikes after Iran shot down US drones.
- The IAEA has alerted that Iran has breached by stockpiling more low-enriched uranium.
- Iran and the United Kingdom have impounded each other’s oil tankers.
- So the officials from Britain, France, Russia, Germany and China met Iranian counterparts in an emergency meeting hoping to defuse rising geopolitical tensions in West Asia.
- The fragile economic growth caused by the protectionist US trade policy is having a profound impact on oil demand and oil-demand growth.
- If the tussle carries on between the two economies, it will further slow down global growth and hence oil demand.
- Federal Reserve rate cut,
- The Fed is widely expected to cut interest rates for the first time since the 2008 financial crisis.
- The link between a cut in interest rates and oil prices is not clear.
- However, if the rate cut leads to higher demand, chances are oil prices will move up.
Rainfall and Food Inflation
- A deficient level of rainfall in this year’s south-west monsoon is proving to be a cause for concern.
- It can hit crop output as Indian farmers are primarily dependent on rains for irrigation.
- 60% of the 36 meteorological subdivision is experiencing deficient rainfall.
- The number of meteorological subdivisions recording “scanty or deficient” rainfall is at a five-year high.
- The highest level of deficient rainfall this monsoon has been recorded by Saurashtra, Kutch and Diu with deviation of -55%.
- This was followed by Gangetic West Bengal, where rainfall has been 54% lower than normal.
- All major Kharif crops except sugarcane and cotton have exhibited lower sowing.
- A negative deviation of 32.1 lakh hectares was recorded in the cultivation of rice.
- A deviation of -43.9 lakh hectares for cereals was recorded.
- Despite increases in MSP of crops from 50% up to 85%, sowing is much lower than the normal this year.
- The rate of food inflation is presently nearing 7%.
Source: PIB, The Indian Express
