News in Shorts: 27 July 2024

Asian Nations (ASEAN)

• Recently, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar stated that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is central to India’s Act East Policy and Indo-Pacific vision.

 Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN):

• About: The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a regional organisation designed to foster economic and security cooperation among its ten members: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
• Establishment: Founded on August 8, 1967, in Bangkok, Thailand, ASEAN was established with the signing of the ASEAN Declaration (Bangkok Declaration) by Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand.
• Aim: ASEAN’s motto is “One Vision, One Identity, One Community.”
• Secretariat: The ASEAN Secretariat is based in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Institutional Mechanism of ASEAN

• ASEAN Summit: An annual meeting to address regional issues and establish policy directions.
• ASEAN Coordinating Council (ACC): Manages the implementation of ASEAN agreements and decisions.
• ASEAN Secretariat: Assists and facilitates ASEAN activities and initiatives.
• ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF): A platform for dialogue and cooperation on political and security matters among ASEAN members and their partners.
• Decision Making: Achieved through consultation and consensus.

Capital Tax Gains

• The Union Budget 2024 has introduced significant modifications to the taxation of capital gains in India. 

Capital Gains Tax:

• About: Any profit or gain that arises from the sale of a ‘capital asset’ is known as ‘income from capital gains’. Such capital gains are taxable in the year in which the transfer of the capital asset takes place. This is called capital gains tax
• Holding Period: Earlier there were three holding periods for considering an asset to be a long- term capital asset. 
  • Now the holding period has been simplified. There are only two holding periods,- for listed securities, it is one year, for all other assets, it is two years.
  • The holding period of all listed assets will now be one year. 
  • Therefore, for listed units of business trusts (ReITs, InVITs) holding period is reduced from 36 months to 12 months. 
  • The holding period of gold, unlisted securities (other than unlisted shares) is also reduced from 36 months to 24 months.
• Rates: Rate for short-term STT paid listed equity, Equity oriented mutual fund and units of business trust (Section 111A) has increased from 15 to 20%. Similarly the rate for these assets for long-term (S. 112A) has increased from 10 to 12.5%.
• Exemption Limit: The exemption limit of 1 lakh for LTCG on these assets has also increased to Rs 1.25 lakh. This increased exemption limit will apply for FY 2024-25 and subsequent years.

Puberty blockers

• Elon Musk has alleged that his transgender child was figuratively “killed by the woke mind virus” after being “tricked” into using puberty blockers.

Puberty blockers:

• About: These are drugs that can delay the changes of puberty in transgender and gender-diverse teens. 
• Physical Changes: During puberty, a child’s body goes through physical changes in the process of becoming an adult capable of sexual reproduction. 
  • This is initiated by hormonal signals from the brain to the gonads: ovaries in a female, testicles in a male.
• Working: The medicines are gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) analogues, which inhibit the production of sex hormones. 
  • In people assigned male at birth, they slow facial and body hair growth, prevent voice deepening, and limit the growth of the penis, scrotum, and testicles. 
  • In people assigned female at birth, these drugs limit or stop breast development and menstruation.
• Applications: Puberty blockers are also used in cases of precocious puberty, a condition in which a child’s body begins changing too soon, before the age of eight for girls and before the age of nine in boys.
• Administering: A shot has to be given monthly, or every three months, or every six months. 
  • The medication may be given also through an implant placed under the skin of the upper arm. The implant usually needs to be replaced every 12 months