Ranks and Reports

· London-based property consultant Knight Frank has ranked New Delhi and Mumbai in 32nd and 36th positions respectively in the Global Prime Residential Index. While Bengaluru moved down by four places in Q1 2021 and is ranked 40; Delhi and Mumbai dipped one place each in the same period. Three Chinese cities – Shenzhen, Shanghai and Guangzhou lead the index this quarter. Shenzhen recorded the strongest performing world region with a growth of 18.9%, while New York was the weakest performing market with negative 5.8% growth. Some of the world’s top metropolises, New York, Dubai, London, Paris and Hong Kong are seeing prices soften. New York was the weakest-performing global city during the period.

· The NITI Aayog has released a report titled ‘Connected Commerce: Creating a Roadmap for a Digitally Inclusive Bharat’. NITI Aayog has released the report in collaboration with Mastercard. The report identifies the various challenges faced in accelerating digital financial inclusion in India and also provides recommendations for making digital services accessible to its 1.3 billion citizens.

· India was the largest recipient of remittances in 2020, as per the report, “Migration and Development Brief “ released by the World Bank. India has been the largest recipient of remittances since 2008. However, the remittance received by India in 2020 was over USD 83 billion, which is a drop of 0.2 per cent from 2019 (USD 83.3 billion). Globally, the remittance flow was USD 540 billion in 2020, which is 1.9% lower as compared to that of 2019, when it was USD 548 billion.

· New Zealand Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern has topped the ‘World’s 50 Greatest Leaders’ list for 2021, released by Fortune Magazine. The ‘World’s 50 Greatest Leaders’ list for 2021 is the eighth edition of the annual list which celebrates leaders, some well-known and others who aren’t so familiar, who made a difference amid the “truly unprecedented times” of the Covid-19 pandemic. From India, Adar Poonawalla, the chief executive officer (CEO) of Serum Institute of India (SII) is the only Indian among the top 10 names. He is placed in the 10th spot.

· India has moved a notch higher at the third spot on EY’s Renewable Energy Country Attractiveness Index due to exceptional performance on the solar photovoltaic (PV) front. India has moved one position above (3rd) from the previous index (4th), this is primarily because of the exceptional performance on the solar PV front.

· India is the second-largest insurance technology market in Asia-Pacific and accounts for 35 per cent of the $3.66 billion insurtech-focused venture capital invested in the region, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence data. The data showed that at least 335 private insurtechs are operating in Asia-Pacific, with about 122 of them disclosing $3.66 billion in aggregate capital raised via private placement deals.

· Karnataka has been ranked first in establishing Health and Wellness Centres under Ayushman Bharat Program to provide comprehensive primary health care in rural areas. Karnataka is leading in implementing the project for 2020-2021. While the Centre had set a target of establishing 2,263 centres, the State has upgraded 3,300 centres till March 31. With a score of 90 out of 95, the state ranks on top when it comes to the implementation of the project for the year 2020- 21 as per the health and family welfare department.

· Jharkhand has clinched the 1st Position among the 36 States & UTs of India based on the progress of implementation of Smart City projects, Rajasthan came second in the rankings. The rankings were released by the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs (MoHUA).

· The state-owned insurance behemoth ‘Life Insurance Corporation (LIC)’ has emerged as the third strongest and the tenth most valuable insurance brand globally, in Brand Finance Insurance 100 report for 2021. The annual report is released by London-based brand valuation consultancy firm Brand Finance, to identify the most valuable and strongest insurance brands globally.