News in numbers | 2015 was the third warmest year since 1901 in India
India, France ink $15 billion in business deals; 18 million new voters registered last year, says Election Commission
$15 billion
What is it? The deal value of 30 agreements signed between India and France in the last two days.
Why is it important? Two major deals—$9 billion to purchase 36 Rafale fighter aircrafts and a shareholding agreement between Indian Railways and Alstom to produce 800 locomotives worth $ 3 billion locally—were taken forward and will help meet India’s priorities now. One to replace the ageing MiG fighter jets, and another to give boost to the Make in India program.
Tell me more: The financial details are yet to be agreed for the Rafale deal, in which an inter-governmental agreement has been signed. In the Alstom deal, a shareholder agreement was inked. French President François Hollande is on a three-day visit to India, and is the chief guest at India’s 67th Republic Day celebrations.
18 million
What is it? That’s the number of new voters added in one year. With this, India now has 850 million electors.
Why is it important? It shows the success of the Election Commission to enthuse teenagers who become eligible to vote to enroll. Half of the new voters enrolled are in the age bracket of 18-19 years, as compared to 10-15% in the previous enrolment drive.
Tell me more: Census data shows there are 4.8 million people in the age bracket of 18-19 years, but the enrolment numbers are double of that. The data doesn’t match, though Census is 2011 figures. Voter turnout in 2014 parliamentary elections was 66.4%, the highest ever.
+0.67 degree celsius
What is it? Increase in the annual mean temperature in 2015 in India, the third warmest year since 1901.
Why is it important? Twelve out of 15 warmest years were recorded in the last 15 years, indicating a secular trend of increase in temperature. In particular, October-December last year was the warmest period since 1901.
Tell me more: The World Meteorological Organization too declared 2015 the hottest year on record, with the temperature 1 degree Celsius above the pre-industrial era.
3.09 crore
What is it? The number of income-tax returns filed electronically between April and December 2015.
Why is it important? That’s a jump of 27.3% from 2.43 crore during the same period last year, and close to 3.41 crore filed during the full financial year. (There are about 5.16 crore tax payers in India, according to the income-tax department, based on returns filed and tax deducted at source). The jump underlines the advantages of digitising citizens to government interactions, and also the inefficiencies in physical movement of documents. There were complaints about delays in receiving filings earlier.
Tell me more: Data provided by the income-tax department hit headlines recently after economist Thomas Piketty, best known for his study on inequality published in his book Capital in the Twenty-First Century, complained that there was “an extreme lack of transparency in information about income-tax data".
1500-plus
What is it? The number of candidates vying for US presidency.
Why is it important? The final contest for White House often ends up between the Republican and Democratic nominees. (This time there could be a third, with Michael Bloomberg considering a presidential bid.) However, a large number of presidential hopefuls representing a range of parties (American Independent Party, American Freedom Party, Constitution Party, Green Party, Libertarian Party, Objectivist Party and so on) or as independents throw in their hats too. In 2012, the number of presidential hopefuls was 417.
Tell me more: While most of these candidates can be ignored, third-party performances have had an impact on elections. In in 1996, businessman Ross Perot, competing as an independent, won 18.6% of the popular vote.
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