Daily Current Affairs Quiz
12 August, 2025
National Affairs
1. Revised Income Tax Bill, 2025
Context:
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman tabled the Revised Income Tax Bill, 2025 in the Lok Sabha, incorporating most of the 566 recommendations from the Parliamentary Select Committee. The Bill aims to replace the six-decade-old Income Tax Act, 1961.
Key Features of the Revised Bill
- Single ‘Tax Year’ Concept
- Replaces “Previous Year” and “Assessment Year” with a single term Tax Year to simplify understanding and compliance.
- Income Tax Refunds
- Removal of clause denying refunds for late ITR filing, taxpayers can now claim refunds even after the due date.
- Corporate & MSME Relief
- ₹80 million deduction for inter-corporate dividends restored.
- MSME definition aligned with the MSME Act for uniformity across laws.
- Rationalised Property Taxation
- Notional rent on vacant property removed.
- Clear deductions for municipal taxes and interest on rented property.
- Compliance & Governance Reform
- Unnecessary provisions removed.
- CBDT empowered for framing digital-era rules.
- NIL-TDS option available for zero-liability taxpayers.
- Charitable Trust & LLP Relief
- Relaxation in transfer pricing rules.
- Alternate Minimum Tax (AMT) removed for LLPs.
- Enhanced Digital Alignment
- Structured section numbering, improved terminology, and better cross-referencing for easier navigation.
- Section 80M Deduction
- Retained deduction for intercorporate dividends for companies under special tax rate of Section 115BAA.
About MAT & AMT
- Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT):
- A tax levied on companies that show low or zero taxable income after availing various deductions and exemptions, ensuring they pay a minimum amount of tax.
- Alternate Minimum Tax (AMT):
- Similar to MAT but applicable to non-corporate taxpayers like LLPs, individuals, and firms claiming certain deductions, to ensure they pay a minimum level of tax.
What is Section 80M?
Section 80M allows a domestic company receiving dividends from another domestic company to claim deduction for the amount it distributes as dividends in the same financial year. This provision prevents taxation of the same income at multiple corporate levels.
2. Jal Jeevan Mission
Context:
The Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) has achieved a significant milestone with rural tap water coverage reaching 81% in 2025, up from 17% in 2019, benefiting over 15.68 crore households.
About Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM)
- Launch: August 2019 by the Government of India.
- Objective: Provide Functional Household Tap Connections (FHTCs) to every rural household.
- Key Features:
- Safe, adequate, and regular potable water supply.
- Use of Aadhaar-linked monitoring, geo-tagged assets, IoT-based sensors, and third-party inspections for transparency.
Banking/Finance
1. Minimum Alternate Tax & Alternate Minimum Tax
Context:
The Income Tax (No. 2) Bill, 2025, passed by the Lok Sabha, introduces a key structural change in India’s alternative tax regime. It now formally separates Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT) applicable to companies from Alternate Minimum Tax (AMT) applicable to certain non-corporate taxpayers.
Key Highlights of the Amendment:
1. Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT)
- Applicability: Only for companies (including foreign companies) that report low taxable income due to exemptions or deductions.
- Objective: Ensures companies pay a minimum tax even if their regular taxable income is reduced by incentives or exemptions.
2. Alternate Minimum Tax (AMT)
- Applicability: Only for non-corporate taxpayers, including LLPs, partnerships, and individuals, who claim specified deductions under sections such as 10AA or Chapter VI-A.
- Objective: Ensures these taxpayers also contribute a minimum level of tax despite deductions.
3. New Exemption for LLPs
- LLPs whose income consists only of capital gains and who do not claim any specified deductions will now be exempt from AMT.
- Significance: Resolves earlier ambiguity that unintentionally subjected investment-holding LLPs to AMT liability.
What is MAT (Minimum Alternate Tax)?
It ensures that companies paying minimal or no income tax due to exemptions still contribute a base level of tax, typically calculated on their book profits.
- Full Form: Minimum Alternate Tax
- Applicability: Companies (domestic & foreign)
- Purpose: Ensures companies that report low or zero taxable income (after using deductions) still pay a minimum percentage of book profits as tax.
- Current Rate: Around 15% of book profits plus surcharge & cess.
What is AMT (Alternate Minimum Tax)?
Applies to non-corporate taxpayers who claim significant deductions. It ensures they pay a minimum tax preventing complete erosion of their tax liability despite deductions and exemptions.
- Full Form: Alternate Minimum Tax
- Applicability: Non-corporate taxpayers (LLPs, partnerships, individuals, HUFs) who claim specified deductions under the Income Tax Act.
- Purpose: Prevents non-corporates from completely avoiding tax liability by claiming certain deductions; ensures they pay a minimum tax on adjusted total income.
- Current Rate: Around 18.5% plus surcharge & cess.
2. SEBI Proposes FPI Reforms to Boost Investment and Ease Compliance
Context:
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has issued two major proposals to enhance investment flows and simplify compliance in the Indian securities market. These aim to widen resident Indians’ participation in international investment schemes and streamline market entry for trusted foreign investors.
Key Highlights:
Expanding Resident Indian Participation in FPIs
- SEBI proposes allowing retail schemes based in International Financial Services Centres (IFSCs), sponsored or managed by resident Indian non-individuals or mutual funds, to register as Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs).
- Terminology Update:
- Replace “sponsor or manager” with Fund Management Entity (FME) or its associate.
- A Fund Management Entity (FME) is a legal entity registered with the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) to carry out fund management activities in an IFSC, such as GIFT City in India.
- Investment Limit:
- Resident Indian non-individual FMEs or their associates can contribute up to 10% of a retail scheme’s corpus.
- Constituent Expansion:
- Overseas mutual funds/unit trusts registered as FPIs can include Indian mutual funds as constituents.
Single-Window Framework for Low-Risk Foreign Investors (SWAGAT-FI)
- The SWAGAT-FI framework will offer a single-window, unified registration process for eligible foreign investors, enabling them to invest through multiple routes without having to undergo separate compliance procedures for each.
- Introduction of SWAGAT-FI:
- Single Window Automatic & Generalised Access for Trusted Foreign Investors.
- Target Investors:
- Sovereign wealth funds, pension funds, central banks, multilateral agencies, highly regulated public retail funds, regulated insurance companies.
- Proposed Changes:
- Single Registration: Automatic FPI + FVCI status without extra documentation.
- Longer Validity: KYC and registration review extended from 3–5 years to 10 years.
- Single Demat Account: Option to hold all securities in one account with regulatory tagging.
- Cap Removal: No 50% contribution cap for NRIs/OCIs/RIs in SWAGAT-FI entities.
- Impact: Faster market entry, reduced costs, and improved investment flexibility for large institutional investors.
3. Large Value Funds (LVFs)
Context:
The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has released a consultation paper proposing major reforms to Large Value Funds (LVFs) under the Alternative Investment Fund (AIF) framework to widen participation and ease compliance. Public comments are open until 29 August 2025.
What Are Large Value Funds (LVFs)?
Large Value Funds are a special category of Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) in India where the minimum investment per investor is ₹70 crore. They are designed for sophisticated and ultra-high-net-worth investors who can commit substantial capital.
Key Features
- Minimum Investment Ticket Size: ₹70 crore per investor.
- Lower Diversification Norms: LVFs can invest more capital in a single investee company compared to standard AIFs.
- Reduced Regulatory Overhead: Fewer restrictions on investment limits and related-party transactions.
- Eligible Investors: Typically institutions, large family offices, sovereign wealth funds, and ultra-HNIs.
Key SEBI Proposals:
- Lower Entry Threshold
- Minimum investment cut from ₹70 crore → ₹25 crore per investor.
- Rationale: ₹70 crore was too high for many domestic institutions; ₹25 crore keeps sophistication but broadens access.
- Scrapping Certain Compliance Rules
- No need to follow SEBI’s standard Private Placement Memorandum (PPM) template.
- No NISM certification needed for managers’ key investment teams (if running only LVFs).
- Removing Investor Cap
- Current 1,000-investor limit for AIF schemes removed for LVFs.
- Justification: High ticket size & accredited status are already safeguards.
- Conversion Option
- Existing AIFs can convert into LVFs if all investors meet criteria and give unanimous consent.
- Categorical Exemptions
- Automatic relief from certain disclosure & audit requirements — no need for individual waivers.
- Accredited investors already sign risk acknowledgments.
- Committee Member Liability Relief
- Investment committee members in LVFs not personally responsible for compliance; accountability remains with fund & managers.
Private Placement Memorandum (PPM): A detailed disclosure document outlining a fund’s strategy, risks, fees, and governance, usually in SEBI’s standard format.
NISM Certification: A professional credential validating the investment team’s market knowledge and compliance expertise.
Agriculture
1. NABARD Marks National Handloom Day
Context:
The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) celebrated National Handloom Day on 7 August 2025 in Guwahati under the theme “Handloom for Reinvigorating the Rural Economy of Assam”. The event aimed to highlight the role of the handloom sector in driving rural development and women’s empowerment.
Key Highlights:
- Significance of Assam’s Handloom Sector:
- Assam has 12.83 lakh weavers, over 90% of whom are women.
- Known for products like the Assamese phulam gamosa.
- Key initiatives include Swanirbhar Naari portal, Integrated Handloom Park at Kaziranga, and Silk Tourism projects in Sualkuchi.
- NABARD’s Contribution:
- Over 8,000 weavers benefited from skill training, enterprise promotion, marketing support, and formation of Weavers Producer Organisations (WPOs).
- GI registration support for handloom products.
- Focus Areas Discussed:
- Eco-friendly weaving practices.
- Enhanced access to institutional credit.
- Convergence with government schemes.
- Marketing and export opportunities.
Weavers Producer Organisations (WPOs)
Weavers Producer Organisations are collective entities formed by handloom weavers to pool resources, improve bargaining power, access finance, and market their products collectively. They function similarly to Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) but are dedicated to the handloom and weaving sector.
Objectives
- Strengthen the collective capacity of weavers.
- Enable direct market linkages to reduce dependence on middlemen.
- Facilitate bulk procurement of raw materials at lower costs.
- Provide access to government schemes, credit, and training.
Facts To Remember
1. PM inaugurates new housing complex for parliamentarians
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday inaugurated a complex of multi-storey flats for parliamentarians in New Delhi.
2. Australia ‘will recognise’ Palestinian state at UNGA
Australia will recognise a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly in September, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese
3. India’s bid to host 2036 Olympics in ‘continuous dialogue’ phase
India’s bid to host the 2036 Olympics is in the “continuous dialogue” phase with the International Olympic Committee’s Future Host Commission, Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya told the Lok Sabha.
4. Banks free to set minimum balance
RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra said banks are free to decide the minimum balance for savings accounts and that it does not fall under the regulatory domain of the RBI.
5. Operation Falcon saves Assam rhinos, says CM Himanta Biswa Sarma
The Assam government has achieved a significant success in protecting the one-horned rhinos – the pride of the state – from poachers since it launched ‘Operation Falcon.
6. IIST–KAU Post-Flight Seed Study after ISS Mission
The Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST) and Kerala Agricultural University (KAU) have initiated research on crop seeds sent to the International Space Station (ISS) during the Axiom-4 mission. The study aims to assess the effects of space exposure on seed germination, growth, and productivity.
