Endeavor Careers Choicest Blogs: Weekly Current Affairs: September 2021, Week 03

Welcome to the Endeavor Editors’ Weekly Current Affairs Choicest Blog series. Get a weekly roundup – on news from business, economy, markets, policy, and more. A quick capsule format news summary and update to keep you abreast with all the latest current affairs.

Current Affairs September 2021 – Week 3

1. Current Affairs – International News and Global Economy

Aukus: UK, US and Australia launch pact to counter China

The UK, US and Australia have announced a historic security pact in the Asia-Pacific, in what’s seen as an effort to counter China. It will let Australia build nuclear-powered submarines for the first time, using technology provided by the US. The Aukus pact, which will also cover AI and other technologies, is one of the countries’ biggest defence partnerships in decades, analysts say. China’s embassy in Washington accused the countries of a “Cold War mentality and ideological prejudice”. The pact also created a row with France, which has now lost a deal with Australia to build 12 submarines. The pact will focus on military capability, separating it from the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing alliance which also includes New Zealand and Canada. While Australia’s submarines is the big-ticket item, Aukus will also involve the sharing of cyber capabilities and other undersea technologies.

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Why the new US-Australia-UK alliance AUKUS translates into nuclear subs & why it’s got China furious

AUKUS — new strategic alliance of Australia, UK and USA — has left China furious. Shekhar Gupta untangles this new pact after NATO, QUAD and Five Eyes Alliance

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“Unacceptable”: France recalls US, Australia Envoys over Submarine row

France has recalled its ambassadors to the United States and Australia for consultations in a ferocious row over the scrapping of a submarine contract, an unprecedented step that revealed the extent of French anger against its allies. The abandonment of the ocean-class submarine project that Australia and France had been working on since 2016 constituted “unacceptable behaviour among allies and partners,” Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said. Withdrawing envoys is a last resort diplomatic step taken when relations between feuding countries are plunged into crisis but highly unusual between allies. A White House official expressed “regret” over the French envoy’s recall but added “we will continue to be engaged in the coming days to resolve our differences, as we have done at other points over the course of our long alliance.”

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France recalls ambassadors to US, Australia over AUKUS submarine deal | DW News

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World Bank kills ease of doing business report after probe cites undue pressure on rankings

The World Bank Group has ended publication of its “Doing Business” report on country investment climates after a probe of data irregularities cited “undue pressure” by top bank officials, including then-Chief Executive Kristalina Georgieva, to boost China’s ranking in 2017. The World Bank said in a statement said that the decision came after internal audit reports had raised “ethical matters, including the conduct of former Board officials as well as current and/or former Bank staff” and a board investigation conducted by the law firm Wilmer Hale. China’s ranking in the “Doing Business 2018” report published in October 2017, rose seven places to 78th after the data methodology changes were made, compared with the initial draft report.

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Did China manipulate World Bank business reports? Questions after probe forces ratings’ halt

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IMF suspends engagement with Afghanistan until clarity on recognition of Taliban govt

The International Monetary Fund has said its engagement with Afghanistan will remain suspended until there is clarity within the international community on the recognition of the government led by the Taliban. The IMF said it was deeply concerned with economic conditions in Afghanistan, urging the international community to take urgent steps to stall a “looming humanitarian crisis” in the country. Foreign donors have suspended aid to Afghanistan, saying disbursements are contingent on the behaviour of the new Taliban-led government, which has not been recognised by any country. Ordinary bank transfers to individuals in Afghanistan have also been blocked. That has left ordinary Afghans reeling from rocketing inflation, rising poverty, cash shortages, a plummeting currency, and rising unemployment.

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PM Modi at Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit: SCO should develop a template to fight radicalisation and extremism

Prime Minister Narendra Modi virtually addressed the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit where he called for developing a template by SCO to effectively deal with the challenges of extremism and radicalisation. He said that India is committed to increasing its connectivity with Central Asia. Asserting that there should be respect for the territorial integrity of all countries, PM Modi said, “We believe that landlocked Central Asian countries can benefit immensely by connecting with India’s vast market. Any connectivity initiative cannot be one-way. To ensure mutual trust, connectivity projects should be consultative, transparent and participatory. There should be respect for the territorial integrity of all countries,” he added.

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India says doesn’t believe in ‘clash of civilisations’ but China must end Ladakh conflict

India has reminded China that their bilateral relations will remain at a “low ebb” until their military confrontation in Ladakh is fully resolved and urged Beijing to avoid viewing its relations with New Delhi from the perspective of China’s relations with third countries. External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, who met Wang on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit at Dushanbe, Tajikistan, also said that while Indian and Chinese forces have been able to disengage themselves in the Gogra area of eastern Ladakh, some “outstanding issues” still need resolution. Both the ministers agreed that military and diplomatic officials of the two sides should meet again and continue their discussions to resolve the remaining issues at the earliest. Both ministers last met on 14 July and since then there had been “some progress in the resolution of the remaining issues along the LAC in Eastern Ladakh”.

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What is the Shanghai Cooperation Organization?

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Pentagon admits killing 10 civilians, including up to 7 children, in Kabul drone strike last month

The Pentagon has admitted that a U.S. drone strike in Kabul, Afghanistan last month killed as many as 10 civilians including up to seven children. The drone strike came on the heels of a suicide bomb attack by the terrorist group ISIS-K that resulted in the deaths of 13 U.S. service members and dozens of Afghans near Hamid Karzai International Airport, where colossal evacuation efforts were underway as the U.S. pulled out from Afghanistan. “As the combatant commander, I am fully responsible for this strike and its tragic outcome,” U.S. Marine Corps Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, commander of U.S. Central Command, told reporters.

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2. Current Affairs – India

COVID update

Covid vaccination: 80 cr doses administered in India so far; 5 cr jabs given in just 5 days

Achieving another great milestone, a total of 80 crore COVID-19 vaccine doses has been administered in the country so far. Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya congratulated the nation on this momentous feat. Using the hashtag “WorldsLargestVaccinationDrive”, Mandaviya took to Twitter to say, “Standing tall against COVID-19. India administers 80 crore vaccine doses. Congratulations to the nation on this momentous feat.”

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Covid may become more manageable in 6 months: Health Body Chief

Covid will start becoming endemic in India in the next six months, a top expert has said, asserting that a new variant can’t alone bring a third wave of infections. “This pandemic has defied most of our predictions but in the next six months, we will approach endemic status,” Sujeet Singh, the Director of the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) said. The expert warned that even after vaccination, people must follow Covid-appropriate behaviour like masks and distancing. Breakthrough infections, or fully-vaccinated people getting infected, is bound to happen in 20-30 per cent cases, Dr Singh said.

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Other updates

GST Council move to correct inverted duty structure to lessen tax burden of apparel industry, trade body says

The Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC) said the decision of the GST Council to correct inverted duty structure on textiles from January 1, 2022 will lessen the tax burden on manmade fibre (MMF) fabrics and garments. AEPC Chairman A Sakthivel said, the inverted duty structure has been an issue with the apparel industry and that the council had made recommendations to the government for the elimination of this anomaly that has been resulting in input tax credit accumulation blocking crucial working capital for businesses.

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“Wasn’t time to bring Petrol, Diesel under GST”: Nirmala Sitharaman

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman stated that the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council discussed the topic of inclusion of petrol and diesel under the tax structure after the Kerala High Court order. “On the direction of court it was brought on to table but members spoke very clearly they do not want it to be included in GST,” Ms Sitharaman said. “This will be reported to the high court as the GST Council felt it was not the time to bring petroleum products under the GST,” she added. In June, the Kerala High Court, based on a writ petition, had asked the GST Council to decide on bringing petrol and diesel within the GST ambit.

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3) Economy

RBI says prospects brightening for economy as second wave of COVID-19 wanes

Prospects are brightening for the economy achieving escape velocity from the pandemic as the second wave wanes and preparedness for the future remains on war-alert status, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) bulletin said. Aggregate demand is gaining firmer ground, while on the supply side, IIP (Index of industrial production) and core industries mirror improvement in industrial activity and services sector indicators point towards sustained recovery, the Bulletin said. The RBI deputy governor Michael Patra said the future course of monetary policy will be shaped by the evolution of growth and inflation. He was speaking at the Financial Markets Summit of the Confederation of Indian Industry, Mumbai.

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4) Markets, Banking and Finance

Bad Bank plan gets Cabinet nod, credit flow to economy expected to improve

The cabinet has approved the establishment of a bad bank, another tool to resolve the bad debt dogging banks that has constrained the flow of credit to the economy. Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman had in the budget for FY22 announced a bad bank comprising an asset reconstruction company (ARC) and an asset management company (AMC) to consolidate and take over the stressed debt of banks. The government will provide guarantees to support the bad bank. Banks’ gross non-performing assets (GNPAs) are likely to exceed ?10 lakh crore by March 2022, according to a recent Assocham-Crisil joint study.

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All you need to know about India’s ‘bad bank | India Development Debate

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Explained | Challenges and benefits of having a bad bank

The idea of a bad bank has been there since the 1980s when the US and Sweden became their early adopters. Bad banks have been institutionalised and considered a success in several countries including the US, Sweden, Finland, Belgium and Indonesia. Former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Raghuram Rajan opposed the idea of a government-led bad bank and instead suggested that private sector asset reconstruction companies be strengthened to have adequate capital to make all-cash purchases of bad loans from banks. While there are 28 private ARCs, sales of bad loans have not picked up, as the banks and the reconstruction companies differ on the fair value of these assets, so the need was felt for government-backed security receipts. That is why bad banks move by the government is the need of the hour.

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Kotak Mahindra Group acquires vehicle financing portfolio of Volkswagen Finance

Kotak Mahindra Group and Volkswagen Finance Private Limited on September 16 announced that Kotak has acquired the vehicle financing loan portfolio of VWFPL, the Indian captive financing arm of Volkswagen Group. Kotak Mahindra Prime Limited (Kotak Prime) will acquire the passenger cars and two-wheelers portfolio, and Kotak Mahindra Bank Limited (KMBL) will acquire the commercial vehicles portfolio of VWFPL, a press release said. “The strategic intent behind this acquisition is to further strengthen Kotak’s vehicle financing loan portfolio and expand our market share,” said D Kannan, Group President – Commercial Banking, Kotak Mahindra Bank and Director of Kotak Mahindra Prime.

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Sachin Bansal’s Navi Mutual Fund plans to launch electric vehicles fund

After filing papers for over 10 new schemes with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) last month, Sachin Bansal-backed Navi Mutual Fund has filed draft documents for four more funds, including an electric vehicles fund. Most of the documents have been filed for passively managed funds as the fund house seems to be looking to make a place in this category. “The investment objective of the scheme is to provide long-term capital appreciation by investing in units of overseas ETFs (exchange-traded funds and/or index funds that invest in electric vehicles and driving technology,” the draft documents showed.

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India antitrust probe finds Google abused Android dominance, report shows

Google abused the dominant position of its Android operating system in India, using its “huge financial muscle” to illegally hurt competitors, the country’s antitrust authority found in a report on its two-year probe seen by Reuters. Alphabet Inc’s Google reduced “the ability and incentive of device manufacturers to develop and sell devices operating on alternative versions of Android,” says the June report by the Competition Commission of India’s (CCI) investigations unit. The U.S. tech giant told Reuters in a statement it looks forward to working with the CCI to “demonstrate how Android has led to more competition and innovation, not less.” CCI’s findings are the latest antitrust setback for Google in India, where it faces several probes in the payments app and smart television markets. The company has been investigated in Europe, the United States and elsewhere. This week, South Korea’s antitrust regulator fined Google $180 million for blocking customized versions of Android.

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5) Business

Govt clears telecom relief package; offers option to convert part of statutory dues into equity

The Union Cabinet has approved a telecom relief package to help maintain a three-private player market, offering telcos the option of converting a part of their dues into government’s equity now and some part after four years. The package likely includes a four-year moratorium on AGR and spectrum payments apart from a reduction in the spectrum usage charge (SUC) prospectively, among measures to improve the health of the debt-laden sector and retain a three-private player market. Other crucial proposals include a reduction in bank guarantees, redefining AGR to exclude ‘non-telecom’ items, again prospectively, and allowing telcos to surrender unused spectrum.

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Experts decode Cabinet approving relief package for Telecom Sector | Newsmaker | CNBC TV18

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TVS Motors forays into Europe’s e-bike market, acquires majority stake in Swiss company EGO Movement

TVS Motor Company, a global manufacturer of two-wheeler and three-wheeler vehicles, announced a partnership with European e-bike, EGO Movement as a majority shareholder, in an all-cash deal through its Singapore Subsidiary TVS Motor (Singapore) Pte Ltd. TVS picked up 80% stake in EGO for $17.9 million, according to a report in Economic Times. Joint Managing Director Sudarshan Venu affirmed that the deal is progress towards delivering unique e- e-mobility solutions. Led by the co-founder’s Daniel Meyer and Marie So, EGO Movement is a Swiss technology company providing a wide range of mobility solutions through a portfolio of e-bikes, e-cargo bikes, and e-scooters. It is a profitable company with sales of about 3500 units in 2020 generating revenues of $6 million.

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Biocon unit plans 15% stake sale to Serum Institute for access to vaccines

Biocon Ltd said its biologics unit will sell a 15% stake to a Serum Institute of India (SII) subsidiary for access to 100 million doses of vaccines annually for 15 years, including COVID-19 shots. SII, which makes AstraZeneca’s COVID-19 shot, branded as Covishield in India, is the world’s largest vaccine maker. The deal with Serum Institute Life Sciences values Biocon Biologics at about $4.9 billion and will solely focus on COVID-19 vaccines in the initial years, the companies said. The 15% stake in the Biocon unit is valued at more than $730 million, Biocon’s Executive Chairperson Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw said. The unit, which makes pharmaceutical ingredients, will gain a foothold in the vaccine manufacturing space following the deal.

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Adar Poonawalla speaks on Serum Institute’s tie up with Biocon

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6) Technology

Byju’s buys US-based coding platform Tynker, its 9th acquisition this year

Byju’s, India’s most valued internet startup currently said it will acquire Tynker, a US-based coding platform for kids. This is the latest in a series of acquisitions by the ed-tech behemoth this year to consolidate its leadership in the K-12 (kindergarten to 12th grade) segment, even as it weighs plan to list on the public markets in the US. It has spent over $2 billion to buy nine companies this year. It is also reportedly in talks with investors to raise $1.5 billion, at a valuation of over $21 billion, after which it could look at the listing in the US. It is currently valued at $16.5 billion, making it the most valued unicorn in India. ?Tynker was founded by Krishna Vedati, Srinivas Mandyam and Kelvin Chong in 2012 in Mountain View, California. It teaches children aged between 5-18 how to develop coding skills. Its coding platform has been used by over 60 million kids and 100,000 schools in 150 countries.

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Shopee’s entry will send shockwaves among offline traders: CAIT

Even before the South Asian e-commerce behemoth, Shopee can put its foot in India, local traders have started raising red flags. The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) has asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to look into the entry of Shopee stating that it will send shock waves through the offline traders’ community which is yet to recover from the “unfair trade practices adopted by foreign-funded e-commerce companies”. Last month, a Reuters report stated that Singapore-headquartered Sea Ltd which runs Shopee has launched a recruitment campaign for sellers to sell on “Shopee India” and is ramping up hiring in the country. While the $172 billion South Asian Group has a team in India, it doesn’t offer its e-commerce service here. However, it runs gaming services in India.

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Apna becomes youngest startup to enter unicorn club in 21 months

Apna.co, a professional networking platform for blue- and grey-collar workers, has entered the coveted unicorn club, or those companies with a valuation of $1 billion or more, in just 21 months, the fastest Indian startup to do so. The company said it had raised $100 million in a new financing round, led by existing investor Tiger Global. After the latest funding round, Apna.co’s valuation has doubled from its previous round in June to $1.1 billion. The startup has raised $190 million so far this year, including the current round.

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7) Politics

New Gujarat Cabinet has no Minister who served in Rupani administration

In an unprecedented move as expected, the new Cabinet sworn in by Governor Acharya Devvrat in Gujarat on 16^th September has no Minister who served in the erstwhile Vijay Rupani administration as the ruling party has adopted “no repeat” formula in the Cabinet formation. Totally 24 Ministers have been sworn in that includes 10 Ministers of the Cabinet rank while 14 are of the rank of Ministers of State. With Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, there are 25 members in the new Cabinet.

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‘I feel humiliated,’ says Amarinder Singh after resigning as Punjab CM

Embattled Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh has stepped down from his post ahead of the scheduled meeting of party legislators in the faction-ridden state unit. The Chief Minister went to meet Governor Banwari Lal Purohit to hand over his resignation. After resigning, the Chief Minister expressed his unhappiness with the decision of the party leadership. The move came as factionalism again surfaced in the state unit with sections opposed to him requesting a meeting of Congress Legislature Party. Punjab is scheduled to go to the polls early next year.

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“Disillusioned in BJP, Not Ok with being benched”: Babul Supriyo

Former Union Minister Babul Supriyo on Saturday said he was disillusioned with the BJP, of which he was a member till recently, and quit because he was not okay with being benched. The Asansol MP said “everything happened in the past three days”. Nobody sent him any feelers, he clarified. The Trinamool Congress’s Derek O’Brien is the one who told him about the “exciting and challenging opportunity”, he said. Mr Supriyo is the fifth BJP leader, besides four MLAs, to join the West Bengal Chief Minister’s party after it won the assembly election in May and retained power.

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Congress Social Media Dept passes resolution to make Rahul Gandhi Party President

The Congress Social Media Department on Saturday passed a resolution asking Rahul Gandhi to take over as the President of the Congress party. The resolution was passed unanimously by the department after the conclusion of their two-day executive meeting titled “Drishti 2021”. Similar resolutions seeking Rahul Gandhi’s appointment as the Congress President have been passed over the last month. The post of the Congress President has been clouded in uncertainty ever since the resignation of Rahul Gandhi which came in the aftermath of the party dismal performance in the 2019 General Elections. After his resignation, Sonia Gandhi assumed charge as the interim President in August of the same year. Since then, there have been reports of Congress holding elections for the post.

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8) Sports

Virat Kohli confirms he will step down as India’s T20I captain after T20 World Cup in UAE

Virat Kohli has confirmed he will step down as India’s T20I captain after the T20 World Cup in the UAE in October-November. The star batsman said he will continue to lead India in Tests and ODI cricket. Kohli cited workload management as the reason to give up T20I captaincy. It remains to be seen who will take over as India’s T20I captain after the World Cup but Rohit Sharma is the frontrunner to be his successor. Virat Kohli has led India in 45 T20I internationals since taking over from MS Dhoni in 2017. He has a winning percentage of 64.44 with 29 victories and 14 defeats.

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Lasith Malinga, Sri Lanka pace veteran, announces retirement from all forms of cricket

Sri Lanka pace veteran Lasith Malinga, who terrorised the world’s best batsmen with his toe-crushing yorkers delivered from a low and sling-arm action, on Tuesday announced his retirement from all forms of cricket. Malinga had retired from Test and ODI cricket in January this year but was yet to call it quits from T20 internationals. Last year, he had expressed his desire to lead Sri Lanka in the T20 World Cup, which was originally scheduled to be held in Australia in October-November 2020 but will be held next month after a COVID-forced postponement. Malinga, who has played a staggering 122 IPL matches, has 170 wickets to his credit, the highest in the cash-rich league, with the best bowling figures of 5/13. He picked up 107 wickets in 84 T20 Internationals, 338 scalps in 226 ODIs and 101 wickets in 30 Tests.

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New Zealand call off tour: No way we could stay in Pakistan after receiving credible threat, says NZC CEO White

New Zealand Cricket chief executive David White said that the Blackcaps couldn’t have stayed in Pakistan after receiving a “specific and credible” threat against it. New Zealand had pulled out of the limited-overs tour on the day of the opening fixture in Rawalpindi on Friday citing a New Zealand government security alert. The New Zealand cricket squad reached Dubai after leaving Islamabad on a charter flight on Saturday night. The members of the contingent are undergoing their 24-hour period of self-isolation and 24 of them will return to New Zealand over the next week or so. New Zealand’s decision could also have adverse effects on the chances of England and Australian teams’ tour to Pakistan later this year.

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9) Opinion

With PLI booster, India can be an auto manufacturing hub

India can capitalise on plans announced by multinational corporations to become an integrated manufacturing hub for automotive global supply chains, senior government officials and industry said a day after the government approved the ?25,938 crore production-linked incentive scheme to promote the transition to advanced technologies. The scheme, approved on 15^th September, is aimed at helping to hasten the move to electric and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, which are expected to become popular in the coming years. Arun Goel, secretary, Department of Heavy Industries said PLI scheme for the automobile sector, along with manufacturing advanced chemistry cells (?18,100 crore), announced earlier, and subsidies under the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles in India (FAME) II initiative worth ?10,000 crore, will make India attractive for setting up production hubs for advanced automotive technologies.

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Drone industry in India will have turnover of around Rs 15,000 crore by 2026, Scindia says

The Indian drone industry will have a total turnover of up to Rs 15,000 crore by 2026 as the government has given a major boost to the sector with the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme announced and liberalised rules implemented last month, Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said. In the press briefing, Scindia said, “With Drone Policy (Rules) and Drone PLI scheme, we have an aim that drone manufacturing companies in India should reach a turnover of Rs 900 crore in the coming three years.” Currently, Indian drone manufacturing companies have a turnover of approximately Rs 80 crore, he mentioned. He said the three parts of the entire value chain in the drone sector are hardware (drone manufacturer), software and service delivery. “If you combine turnover of all three parts of the drone sector, it is our estimate that by 2026, it will stand at USD 1.8 billion. This means that this industry will have a turnover of approximately Rs 12,000-Rs 15,000 crore by then,” he stated.

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Seven challenges before the Indian economy fully recovers

The latest available macro data indicates that the Indian economy may be standing at an inflection point. It may have survived a major accident in the form of COVID-19; scraping through with couple of broken bones and some bruises. The economy has recuperated well, and is ready for discharge from the hospital. The bill to be paid would mostly be known in the next six months. For the next few quarters the economy may still need to use the crutches of government spending, before it could walk on its own. The challenges before the government are, however, multi-fold; so are the opportunities. A successful resolution of challenges could trigger a virtuous cycle of growth, and catapult the economy to the higher orbit. A failure could though bring a disaster of unfathomable proportion.

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Why sodium-ion battery could be the next best electric car battery

There’s no shortage of excitement for electric vehicle battery startups or multibillion-dollar investments in the industry, as companies, backers, and scientists look for the winning play. China, though, is already moving on to the next leg in the race — one that isn’t dependent on a big, bold breakthrough — with sodium-ion batteries. Done right, this technology could lead to widespread adoption in a market largely dependent on subsidies and where EV sales are still a fraction of all cars. China’s Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., or CATL, the world’s largest battery manufacturer, unveiled its latest product in July — a sodium-ion battery. The sodium-based batteries aren’t going to take electric cars any further than lithium can. Not anytime soon, at least. However, the materials needed to make them are widely available. The content of sodium in earth reserves is around 2.5% to 3%, or 300 times more than lithium, and is more evenly distributed, according to Jefferies Group LLC analysts. That means it has a major cost advantage: These power packs could cost almost 30% to 50% less than the cheapest electric car battery options currently available. In addition, the price of sodium is less sensitive to market gyrations compared with lithium, increasingly a sentiment gauge for the world’s green ambitions.

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10) Weekly special

Meet Sanjay Mehta, India’s only angel investor with four unicorns under his belt

Technology investor and venture capitalist Sanjay Mehta, 50, has become somewhat of a star in the investing firmament thanks to some of the huge successes he has seen in his decade-long investing career. The most notable among them was the 280x return he pocketed when he exited the Ritesh Agarwal-founded OYO, after having been an early investor in the hotels aggregator which is currently headed for an initial public offer (IPO). As a private investor, he has invested in over 150 global start-ups and has seen as many as four of his investments turn unicorns, the only angel investor to do so. OYO apart, these unicorns are crypto exchange CoinDCX, blockchain company Block.One and American space infrastructure developer AXIOM Space. Mehta’s portfolio performance has seen a 103 per cent internal rate of return on all funded start-ups, versus the industry average of around 30 per cent.

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With that, we come to an end for our Weekly Current Affairs September 2021 -Week 3. Hope you have liked it. Write your feedback in the comments below and let us know if there is anything else you would like us to cover.

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