Current Affairs Quiz:31 December 2024

Current Affairs Quiz: 31 December 2024

As per the Household Consumption Expenditure Survey: 2023-24 (HCES: 2023-24) recently released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), the average Monthly Per Capita Consumption Expenditure (MPCE) in rural and urban India has been estimated to be Rs 4,122 and Rs 6,996, respectively.

Importance of the Survey

• The survey showed that the urban-rural gap in MPCE has decreased from 84% (in 2011-12) to 71% (in 2022-23), which has further decreased to 70% (in 2023-24) which reflects sustained momentum of consumption growth in rural areas.
• Non-food items continue to be the major contributor to average monthly expenditure of households in 2023-24 with about 53% and 60% share in MPCE in rural and urban areas respectively.

States with Highest Average MPCE

• States with highest average MPCE for urban areas in 2023-24: Telangana (Rs 8,978); Tamil Nadu (TN) (Rs 8,165); Karnataka (Rs 8,076); Maharashtra (Rs 7,363) and Andhra Pradesh (AP) (Rs 7,182).
• States with highest average MPCE for rural areas in 2023-24: Kerala (Rs 6,611); Punjab (Rs 5,817); TN (Rs 5,701) and Telangana (Rs 5,435).

Sikkim and Chandigarh

• Sikkim reported the highest MPCE among all the Indian states, with Rs 9,377 in rural areas and Rs 13,927 in urban areas for 2023-24.
• Chandigarh reported the highest MPCE among all the UTs, with Rs 8,857 in rural areas and Rs 13,425 in urban areas for 2023-24.

India's First Sustainable Road

In December 2024, India’s first sustainable road using lignin-based bio bitumen was inaugurated by Union Minister Nitin Gadkari, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) at the Nagpur-Mansar Bypass on NH (National Highway)-44.

Benefits of Bio-bitumen

• Bio-bitumen saves India Rs.4,000–Rs.4,500 crore annually in foreign exchange on imported bitumen and promotes sustainable road development.
• India consumed 88 lakh tons of fossil-based bitumen in 2023-24, with consumption expected to rise to 100 lakh tons by 2025-26.