Facts for Prelims (FFP)
Source: Multiple
| Reports | Description |
| India Gaming Report 2024 | Released by Interactive Entertainment and Innovation Council (IEIC) and WinZO
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| Key findings: India is the largest gaming market with 568 million users, accounting for 1 in 5 online gamers globally. The Indian gaming market is expected to reach $6 Billion by 2028. The number of Indian gaming companies surged from 25 in 2015 to over 1400 in 2023
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| Regulations: MeitY acts as the nodal agency for online gaming regulations and development; Draft National AVGC Policy, and National AVGC Centre of Excellence; 100% FDI allowed in the gaming sector utilizing automatic route within Electronic System and IT & BPM sectors
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| Food Waste Index (FWI) Report 2024 | Released by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The report co-authored with WRAP (Waste and Resources Action Programme) was published ahead of International Day of Zero Waste (observed annually on 30 March)
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| Key Findings: Households across all continents wasted over 1 billion meals a day in 2022, while 783 million people were affected by hunger and a third of humanity faced food insecurity. Food Waste generates an estimated 8–10% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
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| Issues: Due to the lack of robust cold chains, hotter countries generate more food waste per capita in households; Fragmented food system.
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| Suggestions: Systemic action through the Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) model. Example, Courtauld Commitment 2030 (UK), Australian Food Pact etc; Establish a roadmap or delivery plan, targeting priority areas or “hotspots” of waste
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| The report aligns with SDG 12.3, aiming to reduce food loss and waste by 2030. This includes reducing post-harvest losses (measured by the Food Loss Index (FLI) and managed by FAO) and halving per capita global food waste (measured by the Food Waste Index (FWI) and managed by UNEP)
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| About WRAP: It is a climate action NGO (established in the UK in 2000) working to tackle the causes of the climate crisis and give the planet a sustainable future
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| World Energy Transitions Outlook Brief 2024: Tracking CoP 28 outcomes | Released by IRENA ((founded 2009; HQ: UAE): The International Renewable Energy Agency is an intergovernmental organization mandated to facilitate cooperation, advance knowledge, and promote the adoption and sustainable use of renewable energy.
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| Key Findings: 2023 added 473 GW (73% contributed by Solar energy) additional Renewable to the global energy mix; However, annual additions are still insufficient and must reach almost 1100 GW to meet the tripling target; Asia was the leader in renewable deployment with a growth of over 20%, driven by China.
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| New EV models, financial incentives and improving charging infrastructure are key drivers for this
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| Challenges: Rising financing costs; Supply chain issues | |
| Recommendations to achieve tripling targets include reforming multilateral finance mechanisms, supporting infrastructure, and robust policy frameworks.
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| International Finance Corporation (IFC) Green and Social Bond Impact Report 2023 | About IFC: IFC (founded 1956; HQ: Washington DC, USA) is an international financial institution (part of the World Bank) that offers investment, advisory, and asset-management services to encourage private-sector development in less developed countries.
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| Key Findings: $2 billion raised through green bonds is expected to reduce over 3 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent per year; Over $1 billion raised through social bonds will cater for sectors like Agribusiness, Gender finance, Education, etc.
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| About Green Bonds: Debt securities designated to finance environment-friendly projects like Sustainable Water and Waste Management, Green Buildings, Pollution control etc. In 2022, the Ministry of Finance approved India’s First Sovereign Green Bonds (SGBs) Framework.
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| India’s First Green Bond was issued by Yes Bank Ltd in 2015. In 2023, India issued the first tranche of its first SGBs worth Rs. 80 billion
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| About Social Bonds: Financial instruments issued by governments; and corporations to raise funds for projects to address social issues like affordable housing, healthcare etc. | |
| In 2023, the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) raised more than Rs. 1000 crore via social bonds.
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| Western Ghat Regions (WGR) Soil Erosion Study by IIT-Bombay | Key findings: Portions of WGR in Tamil Nadu and Gujarat registered 121% and 119% increase in soil erosion respectively. Across the whole of WGR, the increase in erosion rate was 94%. In absolute terms, Maharashtra had the highest 79 tons per hectare per year soil loss in 2020, while Kerala had the lowest loss.
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| Protection Measures: Gadgil committee and Dr. K. Kasturirangan committee to assess WG’s ecology; Western Ghats Natural Heritage Management Committee under Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change
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