RBI GOVERNOR SHAKTIKANTA DAS TO MEET BANK HEADS ON FEBRUARY 21
Reserve Bank Governor
Shaktikanta Das on Monday said he will meet heads of public and private sector
banks this week to discuss transmission of interest rate cut to borrowers.
Speaking to reporters after Finance Minister Arun Jaitley addressed the board
of the central bank, he said transmission of monetary policy decisions is
important He said he will meet the heads of public and private sector banks on
February 21.
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PROJECT DELAYS TO DEFAULTS, BANKERS FLAG ISSUES ON REALTY
SECTOR EXPOSURES
Banks have highlighted
issues like delay in project completion, lack of fund sources, divergence of
money, governance and defaults as reasons for their hesitation to take up
additional exposure to the real estate sector This comes after Union cabinet
minister Piyush Goyal’s statement that bankers will meet real estate players in
a forthright. The sector has been hit hard by demonitisation and the Real
Estate Regulations (RERA). This is in addition to challenges like delays in
project completion, questionable sources of funds and divergence of money and
weak project management practices, bankers said. A few days ago, while
addressing a Confederation of Real Estate Developers' Associations of India
(CREDAI) event in Delhi, interim finance minister Piyush Goyal had said that
within the next 7-15 days, the Indian Banks' Association (IBA) will hold a
meeting with the real estate players to help increase funding to the sector.
The minister also assured that goods and services tax (GST) rates would be
brought down soon for the sector, which has been facing a demand slack. There
is a real problem (being faced by the realty sector), Goyal said. Rating agency
ICRA, in its outlook on the real estate sector, said the residential realty
segment has been increasingly relying on non-banking financial companies
(NBFCs) and housing finance companies (HFCs) to raise debt financing. This is
owing to the risk perception attached with the segment by banks. The liquidity
crunch faced by the NBFC and HFC segment towards the mid of FY2019 has impacted
fund availability to the real estate sector. If the current scenario persists
in FY2020, it may cause credit stress to developers who are reliant on
refinancing to support balance sheets on land assets or slow-moving inventory,
ICRA added.
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PROVIDENT FUND RATE MAY BE RETAINED AT 8.55%
The government is likely
to retain the provident fund interest rate at 8.55% despite the decline in
interest rates, benefitting over 60 million subscribers of the Employees’
Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO). The Central Board of Trustees (CBT) of the
EPFO will meet on Thursday to consider the return for the current year besides
an increase in the minimum pension for subscribers. The doubling of the minimum
pension under the Employee Pension Scheme (EPS) of the EPFO will benefit nearly
5 million subscribers. There is an FIAC (finance, investment and audit
committee) meet just before the CBT meet on Thursday in which we will get a
clear picture on the accounts of EPFO and the rate of interest that can be
offered. But we hope it will be retained at the existing level, said Prabhakar
Banasure. The CBT is a tripartite body with representatives from the
government, employers and trade unions headed by the labour minister. It is the
apex decision-making body of the EPFO. The 8.55% rate is higher than that
available on government small savings schemes, the return on which is
benchmarked to market rates.
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15 LAKH SALARIED EMPLOYEES WITH PF A/CS STUCK WITH TOXIC
IL&FS BONDS
A new threat looms large
for the government in an election year. A spanking new but restive community of
salaried employees is concerned about its money deposited with the Employees
Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO). At the cutting edge of the ever burgeoning
IL&FS crisis, these employees are exposed to toxic investments. Most of
these Employee Provident Funds and Employee Pension Funds have stated that the
IL&FS resolution plan must provide repayment before secured creditors as
the resolution framework proposed by the company doesn't provide for any
payment to secured creditors. A sense of panic has crept in. They have
collectively invested thousands of crores of rupees in IL&FS bonds. Many
say that the resolution framework must balance interest of all stakeholders. Others
have also challenged Sec 53 of the payment schedule distribution process as it
doesn't address public and social interest. Since these are tradeable
instruments, the exact quantum is not known, but investment bankers estimate it
to be in thousands of crores since the infrastructure company's bonds - which
were 'AAA' rated - were preferred by retirement funds that have a low-risk
appetite but still have to get assured returns even when interest rates are
low. The growing discontent is across some of the blue chip Indian corporates.
Some of these that have filed an intervening petition with the tribunal,
thereby impleading themselves in this gargantuan case on how to run a corporate
into the ground. As many as 15 lakh salaried employees across different sectors
are caught in this ticking time bomb and the number is only likely to go up as
the true extent of the malaise is known and understood. Till September last
year, Indian rating agencies, not realising that IL&FS was set to implode,
were giving Triple A rating to the bonds. With elections around the corner,
this new expose will further polarise debate. After all it is salaried
employees who are now staking claim to their hard-earned monies.
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SC DECLINES TO STAY TDSAT ORDER FAVOURING RCOM ON SPECTRUM ROW
In a relief to Reliance
Communications (RCom), the Supreme Court on Friday refused to stay a Telecom
Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) order that had upheld the
Anil Ambani-owned firm’s appeal in the One-Time Spectrum Charge (OTSC) petition
In its February 4 order, TDSAT had upheld RCom’s petition that challenged the
Department of Telecommunications’ (DoT) decision to impose OTSC on its
contracted CDMA and GSM spectrum resources. TDSAT held that the operator’s
spectrum holdings of up to 5 MHz of CDMA and up to 6.2 MHz of GSM spectrum were
exempt from OTSC levies TDSAT had set aside OTSC on RCom’s spectrum. The Anil
Ambani group filed an Intervention Application (IA) with the Supreme Court last
week, which was heard on Friday. The move comes as a breather for RCom, which
had earlier approached the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) with a debt
resolution plan. The company also continues to pursue the deals with Reliance
Jio Infocomm (RJio) outside the NCLT. The management had proposed a resolution
plan as part of the NCLT process which is similar to the one pursued outside. The
key elements of the process still remains the same, and the move will be
helpful to RCom, as under the majority rule, the NCLT needs 66 per cent
approval from minority lenders against 100 per cent outside.
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FERA CASE: SC STAYS TRIAL COURT PROCEEDINGS AGAINST TTV
DHINAKARAN
The Supreme Court on
February 18 stayed the proceedings of a Chennai court relating to the 1996
Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA) case lodged against AMMK leader TV
Dhinakaran. A bench headed by Chief Justice issued notice to Dhinakaran and
sought his reply on the petition filed by ED challenging the Madras High Court
order of June 25, 2018. The bench, also comprising Justice Sanjiv Khanna, was
not in agreement with the Enforcement Directorate that the trial should
continue during the pendency of the appeal before the apex court. The probe
agency had filed an appeal against the high court order by which lower court
was directed to order the ED to provide copies of the documents of the case to
Dhinakaran. The high court had also dispensed with the appearance of Dhinakaran
except when ordered by the trial court. The case against Dhinakaran was that he
allegedly acquired $1,04,93,313 in foreign exchange without obtaining
permission from the Reserve Bank of India and deposited it in the current
account of Dipper Investments Ltd., a company incorporated in the British
Virgin Islands, and having account with Barclays Bank in UK.
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NO YET APPRISED OF GOVERNMENT'S DECISION ON TELECOM OMBUDSMAN:
TRAI TO DOT
Regulator TRAI has written
to the telecom department that it has not yet been apprised of the government's
decision on the proposed grievance redressal mechanism or ombudsman for the
telecom sector despite a reminder, and that the position on the same should be
conveyed to it. In the letter addressed to Telecom Secretary Aruna
Sundararajan, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) noted that
officials of the Department of Telecom (DoT) informed the Parliamentary
Standing Committee in a recent meeting that the government has approved a
three-tier structure for resolution of consumer grievances in the telecom
sector through setting up of an ombudsman. However, TRAI has not received any
communication from the Government in this regard, the letter said. TRAI has
asked DoT to apprise it of the decision taken by the government on the said
recommendations. It is pertinent to mention that as per TRAI Act, the
Government needs to refer the matter back to the authority in case the
Government has taken any view other than the recommendations made by TRAI, the
regulator said. Telecom grievances mechanism till date has largely remained
within control of the service providers. Under present norms, telecom
subscribers can register a complaint with the call centre of their service
provider. It can be escalated to the nodal officer of the telecom operator in
case the complaint is not resolved, and thereafter the appellate authority
set-up by the service provider.
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GOVERNMENT-BACKED 5G TRIALS HIT A POLICY SNAG
Government-backed field
trials of fifth generation cellular mobile communications technology appear to
have hit a snag even before their start. The wireless planning wing of the
Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has said that free spectrum for 5G
trials can be allocated only for 90 days citing current rules. But mobile phone
operators and equipment vendors have said that at least a year is needed to run
complicated field trials. A senior government official said that current rules impose
a time limit of 90 days and that no decision has been taken yet on whether 5G
airwaves for trial purposes could be allocated for a year. Allocation of the
trial spectrum merely for 90 days is too short and will not serve the desired
purpose, said Rajan S Mathews, director general, Cellular Operators Association
of India (COAI). The industry body that represents Vodafone Idea, Bharti Airtel
and Reliance Jio said that a considerably longer period would be required by
the stakeholders to conduct major 5G trials including fine-tuning of
operations, troubleshooting of different applications and collection of
relevant data for more efficient full-scale deployments later. Telecom service
providers and gear companies fear that if the 90-day period lapses, then they
may be forced to pay commercial spectrum charges in addition to penalties.
There should not be any penal provisions in case suitable justification is
submitted for the extension of trial period, Mathews said. Otherwise, he said,
it would only serve as a deterrent to conduct 5G trials. The government has already
invited incumbent telecom operators – Vodafone Idea, Bharti Airtel, Reliance
Jio and Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL), in addition to network vendors such as
Cisco, Huawei, Samsung, Ericsson and Nokia to undertake 5G-based pilots and
showcase India-centric use cases by early 2019. The government expects
commercial 5G services to be rolled out in 2020.
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INDIA TO USE AI FOR GOOD GOVERNANCE – SURESH PRABHU
Suresh Prabhusaid that
Government will use Artificial Intelligence (AI) for good governance and proper
regulations and corrective action will be taken to protect citizen’s privacy
and ownership of data. India is transporting more data than US and China put
together and the top six companies in the world are using this data with value
addition and monetization. Suresh Prabhu added that India is strengthening its
legal system and regulatory framework to deal with this world of digital data.
The Minister said that AIis the technology of today and one who masters this
will rule the world. Every country is developing an AI strategy and India too
is working on developing a strategy for the use of AI for the common good. This
is the first time in human history that machines are taking decisions based on
data and experience and we have to learn to deal with this kind of decision
making. Government will have to put in place mechanisms on how data is used and
algorithms are written. As all the data being generated in world today is being
controlled by few companies, it is creating asymmetries as very few create,
understand and use this data. This has given rise to a very powerful elite who
are controlling millions of lives. Government will have to take massive efforts
in the fundamental education of every Indian from school level so that access
to mathematics and technology is available to each and every student. In the
present world those who can’t access technology will be on the other side as AI
is creating an ethical divide. Therefore, education at the foundation level has
to be upgraded urgently.
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TRADERS BODY CALLS FOR NATIONWIDE MARKET BANDH ON MONDAY
Traders' body CAIT has called
for a nationwide trade bandh on Monday to express solidarity with the families
of security personnel martyred in the Pulwama terror attack. In a statement,
the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) said commercial markets will
remain closed and there will be no business activity In Delhi, all wholesale
and retail markets will observe bandh on February 18. CAIT Secretary General
Praveen Khandelwal said during the bandh traders would observe a day long fast
and take out a tribute march in their respective states. He said the body is planning
to organise substantial financial assistance which will be directly given by
traders to the families of martyrs.
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JET AIRWAYS PLANS TO RAISE ABOUT RS 2,500 CRORE THROUGH RIGHTS
ISSUE
Cash-starved Jet Airways
plans to raise about Rs 2,500 crore through a rights issue. Its lenders are also
looking at a debt-to-equity conversion While lenders may convert Rs 1,000 crore
of debt into equity they will also participate in the equity infusion through a
rights issue as part of the deal. Additionally, promoter Naresh Goyal and
Etihad Airways, which owns a 24 per cent stake in the airline, will infuse
around Rs 2,000 crore into the airline, sources aware of the development said. Lenders
are expected to participate in a rights issue to raise capital.
Government-owned infrastructure fund National Infrastructure Investment Fund
(NIIF) is likely to buy a 19 per cent stake for Rs 1,500 crore. Along with the
NIIF, banks will own a 51 per cent stake in the company. The NIIF was
approached by lenders after Etihad Airways refused to increase its stake beyond
25 per cent without an exemption from open offer. The Securities and Exchange
Board of India (Sebi) did not agree to the idea. Sources said Etihad Airways
would infuse around Rs 1,450 crore to maintain its stake at 24 per cent,
promoter Naresh Goyal would bring in Rs 550 crore to hold around 21 to 22 per
cent. Goyal has already infused Rs 250 crore into the airline. On Thursday, the
company’s board approved a draft resolution plan, which comprises conversion of
debt into 110.4 million shares.
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TV18 WRITES TO TRAI REGARDING INCORRECT GENRE CATEGORIZATION
OF REPUBLIC BHARAT
Television company TV18
Broadcast Ltd has written to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai)
to complain against the incorrect genre categorization of the recently launched
channel Republic Bharat. The Hindi news channel owned by Arnab Goswami’s ARG
Outlier Asianet News, launched on 2 February, 2019, is being placed outside its
declared genre that is, Hindi news on several cable networks, TV18 says. We
verily believe that the said channel is being deliberately and mala fide,
placed outside its genre at the behest of broadcaster of Republic Bharat so as
to enable Republic Bharat to illegally garner higher BARC ratings and increase
viewership TV18 said in a statement dated 6 February, 2019. Republic Bharat
recorded a reach of 73 million in its opening week according to television
monitoring agency BARC (Broadcast Audience Research Council). A Trai
spokesperson admitted having received the complaint and said the regulator was
examining the issue. This so because genres where Republic Bharat is being
placed either have better viewership and ratings when compared with Hindi news
genre or ensure that Republic Bharat catches viewers’ attention and gets
sampled in non-Hindi news genre. As such, by placing Republic Bharat in
non-Hindi news genres, an unfair and undue advantage is being given to Republic
Bharat when compared with competing channels that continue to be listed in
correct/Hindi news genre, the statement added. About 100 cable networks across
the country including Omnero Media Pvt Ltd, Star Cable Network and Digitel
Cable Network in places like Hamirpur (Himachal Pradesh), Aklera (Rajasthan)
and Haridwar (Uttarakhand) are allegedly carrying incorrect genre
classification of Republic Bharat. The action, TV18 says, is a violation of
Trai’s broadcasting regulations especially sub-regulations 2 of regulations 18
of The Telecommunication (Broadcasting and Cable) Services and Interconnection
(Addressable Systems) Regulations, 2017.
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WOMEN CONTINUE TO ‘WAGE’ A DAILY BATTLE FOR PAY PARITY
Under the provisions of
the Minimum Wages Act, 1948, the wages fixed by the appropriate government are
payable equally to both male and female workers in all sectors, including
agriculture, and the Act does not discriminate on the basis of gender the
Government had told the Lok Sabha early this week. However, an analysis of
available data tells a different story. Even as daily wages of women have increased
more rapidly than those of men particularly in recent times (2004-05 to
2011-12), the gender gap still remains wide. The Labour Bureau in India has
been compiling and maintaining average daily wage rates in rural areas for
select agricultural and non-agricultural occupations on the basis of data
collected by the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO). Data based on a 2017
survey show that the average daily wage rates for general agricultural
labourers were ₹264.05 for men and ₹205.32 for women. It means
that women workers in the sector get 22.24 per cent less than men. For
non-agricultural labourers, the average daily wage rate for men is ₹271.17,
while for women it is ₹205.90, which is 24.06 per cent less. The International Labour
Organisation (ILO) estimates based on NSSO data show that female workers in India
are paid a lower wage rate than their male counterparts in each employment
category (casual and regular/salaried) and location (urban and rural), although
the differences are smaller — on average — in urban areas. The gender gap in
India remains very high by international standards, despite the raw gender wage
gap (the difference in average pay between men and women, as a proportion of
men’s wages) declining over time: it has fallen from 48 per cent in 1993–94 to
34 per cent in 2011–12. The gap can be observed among all types of workers. As
a result, of all worker groups, the average daily wages of casual rural female
workers is the lowest (₹104 per day). Globally, the gender wage gap has narrowed
significantly in the last two decades. In 2015, it was estimated to be about 23
per cent, with women earning 77 per cent of what men receive, on average. Data
from the ILO show that in 2011–12, the gender wage gap oscillated between 22
per cent and 39 per cent across different categories by location and status of
employment, and was lowest among regular urban employees (22 per cent). Over
time, the gender wage gap narrowed for all subgroups with the most recent
period (2004–05 to 2011–12) contrasting with a rather mixed picture in the
earlier period (1993–94 to 2004–05). To reduce the gender wage gap, the
government has enacted Equal Remuneration Act, 1976, which provides for payment
of equal remuneration to men and women workers for the same work or work of
similar nature without any discrimination. To enforce the Act, Central and
State governments conduct regular inspections. However, the rules and
regulations do not seem to have bridged the gender gap.
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ALL ARUNACHAL GOVERNMENT OFFICES WILL BECOME PAPERLESS BY
2021: CM PEMA KHANDU
All state government
offices in Arunachal Pradesh will become paperless e-office by 2021 Chief
Minister Pema Khandu has said. The state government is giving a big push to the
usage of information technology (IT) in governance and by 2021 all government
offices will become paperless e-office, Khandu said on Friday while launching
WiFi hotspots for Tawang and Dirang districts at Tawang. The chief minister
said the advantage of having paperless e-office is to stop manipulation, ensure
transparency and provide easy access of services to the people. Khandu said the
WiFi services have been rolled out as per the budget announcement and similar
hotspots were launched earlier in several educational institutions in the state
capital, a CMO release said here. The chief minister said 66 access points in
Tawang and 12 in Dirang would be installed, which would be capable of providing
WiFi service to 124 users at each access points. Khandu lauded the Tawang
district administration for carrying out the Sarkar Aapke Dwar (government at
your doorstep) programme effectively across the district.
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MORE SOPS FOR AP RYOTS, TOTAL AID PER ANNUM GOES UP TO RS 15K
In fresh sops to ryots
ahead of Lok Sabha polls, the Andhra Pradesh government Saturday further
modified the 'Annadaata Sukhibhava' scheme announcing an extra financial
assistance of Rs 5,000 per annum to small and marginal farmers taking the total
to Rs 15,000. The overall assistance includes Rs 6,000 announced by the Centre
in its interim budget on February 1. The state government, on its own, would
pay Rs 10,000 per annum to farmers with a landholding of over five acres, N
Chandrababu Naidu said Saturday evening. On February 13, the state Cabinet
decided to uniformly grant Rs 10,000, at the rate of Rs 5,000 per crop season,
to all farmers irrespective of the landholding. While the Central government
fixed a cap of five acres for the financial assistance, the state government
decided to make it open-ended. What the Centre is going to give is not
adequate. We have previously decided to give an additional Rs 4,000 but now we
have decided to make the state component Rs 9,000 per annum. Thus, farmers up
to a landholding of five acres will get Rs 15,000 per annum (Rs 6000 from
Centre and Rs 9,000 from state) for Kharif and Rabi seasons. Those holding more
than five acres will get Rs 10,000, which will be totally the state government
contribution, the Chief Minister said after laying the foundation-stone for the
Muktyala Lift Irrigation Scheme. According to state government estimates, there
are about 54 lakh farmers with a landholding of less than five acres and
another 10-15 lakh with over five acres each. The Telugu Desam Party government
is also working on guidelines for extending the scheme to tenant farmers as
well.
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THE COMING LOK SABHA POLLS WILL BRING GOOD RESULT, HOPES
AMARTYA SEN
Nobel laureate and
economist Amartya Sen has said primary education and healthcare have not
received the desired attention in India but sounded optimistic that the
upcoming Lok Sabha elections will bring some good results He claimed that
schemes such as Ayushman Bharat and Rashtriya Swastha Bima Yojana do not aim at
improving primary healthcare in the country. Just giving money will not help
primary healthcare and the schemes are guided by narrow thinking. only to take
credits, Sen said. He also alleged that the amount of money spent for
improvement of health and education is not enough in this country. Primary
healthcare is being neglected, the Nobel laureate said, adding those who can
afford it, go to private facilities as the condition of government primary
healthcare is not up to the mark. He, however, expressed hope that the
forthcoming general election would yield some good results. Everyone is excited
about the forthcoming (Lok Sabha) election and we hope that the result will be
good, the country will progress. I am not a pessimist. I believe in democracy,
Sen said. Improved primary healthcare and education have caused economic
progress in China. They can produce a lot of things. Because the people there
have basic education and they can maintain quality control, Sen said.
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SHIPS BUILT IN INDIA TO GET PRIORITY IN CHARTERING UNDER REVISED
GUIDELINES OF SHIPPING MINISTRY
In a big step to promote
the Make in India initiative and incentivize ship building activity in the
country, the Ministry of Shipping has revised its guidelines for chartering of
ships by providing Right of First Refusal (RoFR) to ships built in India.
Henceforth, whenever a tendering process is undertaken to charter a vessel, a
bidder offering a ship built in India will be given the first priority to match
the L1 quote. It is expected that this priority given to ships built in India
will raise the demand for such vessels, providing them with additional market
access and business support. Prior to the revision of the guidelines, the RoFR
was reserved for Indian flag vessels as per the relevant provisions of Merchant
Shipping Act, 1958. The existing licensing conditions have been reviewed in
consonance with the Government of India’s policy of promoting the Make in India
initiative and the Public Procurement and Make in India orders dated 15.6.2017
and 28.05.2018 issued by DIPP. The review is also in line with the need to give
a long term strategic boost to the domestic shipbuilding industry, the need to
encourage the domestic shipping industry to support the domestic shipbuilding
industry, and the need to develop self- reliance and a strong synergy between
these vital industries for the overall long term development and economic
growth of the country. The Ministry of Shipping has also laid down eligibility
conditions and rules for exercise of the RoFR. The RoFR would be exercised only
in case the vessel being offered for charter by the lowest bidder (L1) has been
built outside India. For any bidder to exercise RoFR, his bid should be within
the Margin of Purchase Preference, which will be 20% of L1. The two instances
under which the RoFR may be exercised are that the L1 bidder is a Foreigner or
Company registered outside India, offering a ship not built in India and the L1
bidder is a Citizen of India OR company registered in India OR Society
registered in India OR Indian Shipping company/organization with a vessel
registered/flagged in India, offering a ship not built in India. From amongst
the bidders eligible to exercise RoFR, the priority to exercise this Right
would lie in sequence from the lowest to the highest bidder within the margin
of purchase preference.
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UP PROCURES RECORD 4.65 MN TONNES PADDY, BARELY ENOUGH SPACE
TO STORE IT
The record paddy
procurement of 4.65 million tonnes (MT) so far in the current kharif marketing
season is testing the food grain storage capacity in Uttar Pradesh. According
to sources, the state currently has warehousing capacity of nearly 5.4 MT,
which has inhibited any procurement beyond a point, although the procurement
potential was much higher than the target of 5 MT for paddy this season.
Against the target of 5 MT, the 3,253 state run procurement centres have
already clocked nearly 4.65 MT of the cash crop, which corresponds to 93% of
the target and counting. In 2015-16, the state had registered the second
highest level of paddy procurement at a little more than 43 MT. The annual
procurement is projected to rise by 5% every year, so we have planned to ramp
up warehousing capacity to 8 MT over the next 5 years, a senior food department
official said. Fresh storage capacity of 1.2 MT is being created in the
government sector with additional 0.6 MT in the private sector under the
Private Entrepreneurs Guarantee (PEG) scheme, totalling 1.8 MT, which would be
available within the next 2 years. The state farmers had already been paid
about Rs 8,225 crore against the procurement. Ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha
elections, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) does not want to give any leeway
to opposition to corner the government over agricultural issues, including farm
distress or slow procurement. In 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons, the government
could achieve paddy procurement of only 3.5 MT and 4.3 MT respectively against
the target of 5 MT. The procurement process was slower in the initial months,
which had also attracted the ire of the chief minister. Later, the government
relaxed online verification for procurement of up to 10 tonnes, which boosted
the process. Procurement had started from October 1 in western UP and a few
central UP districts. It continued until the end of January 2019. The process
in eastern UP and the remaining central UP districts started from November 1
and will continue till the end of February 2019. This season, the state had
hiked the paddy minimum support price (MSP) by Rs 180 to Rs 200 per quintal
(100 kg). The price was revised from Rs 1,550 per quintal to Rs 1,750 per
quintal for the common variety, the corresponding figure for Grade-A paddy was
increased from Rs 1,590 per quintal to Rs 1,770 per quintal. For robust
procurement of paddy, the state announced bonus of Rs 20 per quintal over MSP,
up from the Rs 15 per quintal bonus last year. This year, UP paddy acreage is
estimated at 6 million hectares (MH). The state is among the top food grains
producers, including paddy, wheat, maize, apart from millets and coarse grains.
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PM-KISAN TO PROVIDE MULTIPLE BENEFITS TO FARMERS: CEA
Farm income support scheme
PM-KISAN will provide multiple benefits to farmers including improving their
credit worthiness, said K V Subramanian. The Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi
Yojana (PM-KISAN) was announced in the Interim Budget 2019-20, under which Rs
6,000 will be given in three instalments to 12 crore small and marginal farmers
holding cultivable land up to 2 hectare. Producer support in India is very low
compared to the other countries and the scheme will help in supplementing that,
he told. Across countries, producer support for farmers are quite high. The
recent OECD study which talks about producers support in India is quite low.
This section is the one which will be feeding 125 crore mouths and you have a
population which is growing at less than 1 per cent and food production is
growing at greater than 3 per cent, he said. Therefore, Subramanian said, there
will be surpluses leading to fall in prices impacting income of farmers
Moreover, he said, the reason farming is supported in a lot of countries is
that the risk-return trade-off is bad in the sector. Therefore, this
constituent required support. There is definitely a case for supporting in a
way that does not create distortion, he said. The average income of farmers in
2015-16 was about Rs 30,000 and, hence, Rs 6,000 would be 20 per cent,
Subramanian said. If you have assured cash flow, banker can collateralise that
and lend to the farmer up to Rs 24,000 in a year.
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FARM SECTOR DOLES 'DISTURBING TREND', WILL IMPACT GROWTH: Y V
REDDY
Former Reserve Bank of
India Governor Y V Reddy Sunday termed the recent trend of rolling out doles
for the farm sector including the Union Budget's basic income scheme, as a
disturbing trend which will impact fiscal stability, growth and also Centre-state
relations. He said such ideas can lead to irreversible fiscal deterioration and
conflicts between the Centre and the states, and pitched for alternatives like
having a agricultural distress fund contributed by both the states and Centre,
rather than the ongoing measure of arbitrary scheme announcements. Of late
there has been a disturbing competition to design schemes which are in the
nature of simple transfers to farmers. This is being done by some state
governments, by the Union government and major political parties, Reddy said. I
believe cumulatively these have the potential to seriously undermine fiscal
stability and growth of the country. We should, therefore, pause, think and
proceed on a new path. Ideally, a national consensus is needed on such a new
path with participation of the Union and states, he said. Reddy said the major
concern with a scheme like the income support, which will cost the exchequer Rs
70,000 crore in FY20, is the recurring nature and pointed out that this will
constrain the fiscal balances.
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PMO OKAYS MINISTRIES’ EV PROMOTION MEASURES
The Prime Minister’s
Office (PMO) has given its go-ahead to at least a dozen measures proposed by a
committee of secretaries to help achieve a 15% share of electric vehicles (EVs)
in total vehicle sales in the next five years. The government will, however, not
formulate a separate comprehensive policy on electric mobility, as was being
discussed earlier, said officials.This will hasten rollout of respective
decisions, a senior government official told. The approved proposals include
recent decisions by ministries to provide incentives to manufacturers, buyers
as well as electric mobility infrastructure creators. We are suggesting states
consider exempting e-vehicles from such taxes, opting for a sunset period for
exemptions or putting a cap on e-vehicles to be exempted from such taxes, the
official said. The government is seized of the fact that India needs to adopt
effective strategies to position itself as a key driver in the global mobility
revolution and this can be done only by large-scale domestic manufacturing of
electric vehicles, along with all their components including batteries.
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NOW, HYBRID VEHICLES TOO UNDER FAME II INCENTIVES UMBRELLA
Marking a reversal of its
earlier stance, the government plans to incentivise hybrid vehicles along with
electric vehicles to promote green mobility, curbing air pollution and oil
imports. The heavy industry department has firmed up a proposal to extend
incentives linked to battery size under phase II of the Faster Adoption and
Manufacturing of hybrid and Electric Vehicles (FAME) India to promote electric
mobility adoption across segments and vehicle technologies, said a senior
government official in the know. A uniform incentive of Rs 10,000 per kilowatt
hour (kWh) of battery pack capacity would be extended to all electric vehicles
including plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) and strong hybrids, except for buses, as the
cost of batteries is one of the main causes of difference in cost of
hybrid/electric vehicles and internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, the
official said. With this, it is estimated that the remaining extra cost of
electric vehicles compared to equivalent ICE vehicles would be recovered in
under three years by way of operational savings, the person told. The
government had withdrawn subsidies on hybrid vehicles and subsequently placed
them under the highest tax slab of 28% under GST in 2017. An additional cess of
15% is applicable on such vehicles, taking total levies to 43%. Electric
vehicles were taxed much lower at12% to encourage carmakers to go all-electric
by 2030. Electric two-wheelers with a speed of around 40-45 km per hour and a
range of 60-70 km (the most popular ones bought by masses) use only one lithium
battery of around 1kWh and get a subsidy of Rs 22,000, said a senior industry
executive who did not wish to be identified. With the proposed reduction of
subsidy in the FAME-II, these two-wheelers will become costlier by Rs 11,000 to
Rs 15,000 as the subsidy will reduce to around Rs 11,000. Electric scooters
operating at speeds of 60 kmph and upwards need two batteries for a similar
range. These bikes would continue to get the same subsidy as in FAME I. Only
high-end premium electric bikes with much larger batteries will get higher
subsidy. Such bikes will have a top speed of 70 kmph or more and range of 70-80
km.
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VODA IDEA IN TALKS TO SELL MOBILE TOWER STAKE, ASSETS FOR RS
20,000 CRORE
Vodafone Idea is likely to
mop up about Rs 20,000 crore from its proposed stake sale in mobile tower firm
Indus Tower and monetisation of optical fibre assets, sources said. The
country's largest telecom operator plans to use the funds for lowering its
debt, which stood at Rs 1,23,660 crore at the end of 2018. Vodafone Idea has received
combined valuation of around Rs 20,000 crore for mobile towers and optical
fibre assets that it is planning to sell. Discussions have started around it,
an industry source close to the development told PTI. The company had earlier
announced its plan to sell 11.15 per cent stake held by the Aditya Birla Group
in Indus Towers as well as 1.56 lakh kilometers of optical fibre assets. Indus
stake is worth about Rs 50 billion (Rs 5,000 crore) today. We have 156,000 kms
of fibre. We have not given any guidance on monetisable value, a Vodafone Idea
spokesperson said. The company is also planning to raise Rs 25,000 crore
through a rights issue to fund its capital expenditure and pare debt. The
promoter shareholders -- Vodafone Group and Aditya Birla Group -- have
reiterated to the board that they intend to contribute up to Rs 11,000 crore
and Rs 7,250 crore, respectively, as part of the rights issue.
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RUN SPECIAL DRIVE IN DISTRICTS THAT RECORDED LOW VOTER
TURNOUT: CEC SUNIL ARORA
Chief Election
Commissioner (CEC) Sunil Arora has instructed Rajasthan election officials to run
a special drive on voter awareness in the districts which recorded lower turn
out in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections. Arora was chairing a meeting with senior
officials of state election department at the secretariat on Friday. The
department should run a voters awareness drive in the districts where the lower
voter turn out was recorded in previous Lok Sabha elections. Also the drives
should be aimed to increase participations of youth and women in the coming
elections. Camps must be held in colleges to make youths aware about voting
right and the amenities at the polling booths must be ensured for convenience
of especially abled voters, Arora directed the officials. Rajasthan chief
electoral officer Anand Kumar present in the meeting gave feedback to the CEC
about the preparations of the LS elections due in April-May. Preparations for
FLC (first level checking) of EVMs and VVPAT machines are in full swing and the
training for poll officers will start soon. Also the department is continuously
monitoring the preparations by having regular video conferencing with
divisional commissioners and district collectors. As soon a the date of polls
is announced other preparations will be done simultaneously, told Kumar to the
CEC. After holding meeting with state election department officials he on
Saturday would chair a meeting on law and order with DGP Kapil Garg and chief
secretary DB Gupta. Transfer policy of poll duty officers, electoral offences,
deployment of personnels at critical polling booths and other law and order
issues are agenda of the proposed meeting. Sources add that the full commission
of Election Commission of India (ECI) is expected to hold a meeting with senior
officials on LS preparations again on March 12-13 after model code of conduct
is put in force for the LS elections. This meeting will be crucial in giving
final touch to the poll preparations. The state election department is all
geared up to conduct parliamentary elections. The department in January held
special camps for ratification of the electoral rolls, by adding eligible
voters. A special drive was also launched to remove double and multi entries of
the voters. The department is expected to release final draft of rolls on
February 22.
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25% OF AHMEDABAD MUNICIPAL CORPORATION'S FUNDS REMAIN UNUTILISED
In the last 13 years, the
Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation has failed to utilise 25 per cent of the budget
grant From 2006-07 to 2018-19, the civic body announced Rs 58,995.04 crore as a
budget grant of which they couldn't utilise Rs 14,366 crore. This shows that
the civic body has failed in resource mobilisation over the years. When the
budget was estimated but not utilised as per the announcement, means there was
no fund. It is also true that the target of the tax collection was not
collected as per their target, said Mahendra Jethmalani.
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KERALA GOVT BIDS FOR THIRUVANANTHAPURAM AIRPORT THROUGH KSIDC
Seeking to stave off the
Centre’s plan to privatise Thiruvananthapuram airport under its watch, the
Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) government
in Kerala has applied on the tender through its Kerala State Industrial
Development Corporation Ltd (KSIDC). The Pinarayi Vijayan-led government has
picked KSIDC to apply on the tender to get the benefit of the right of first
refusal (RoFR) granted to state-owned entities in government auctions. It will also
help the government pass the eligibility criteria set by the Airports Authority
of India (AAI) for bidders by using the financial and technical muscle of a
broad range of state-owned entities under its control, Kerala government
officials told. The state government has hired KPMG and Amarchand Mangaldas to help
put in a bid for the airport in the state capital, the official said, asking
not to be named. The state government is in the process of forming a special
purpose vehicle (SPV) - ‘Trivandrum International Airport Ltd’- to comply with
the tender conditions. The SPV will be initially fully-owned by state
government entities. If successful in winning the tender, we will induct 1-2
strategic partners by diluting up to 49 per cent stake in the SPV, the official
said. Due to the extremely short timeline in submitting a bid, we are yet to
identify the strategic partners which, in any case, is a time-consuming
process, the official added. The Kerala government initially told the Centre of
its desire to take over and run the airport on nomination basis (without a
tender). The Centre rejected this proposal and instead suggested that the state
government could utilise the RoFR granted to state-owned agencies in government
tenders, which allows them to match and take over the airport if its bid came
within ten per cent of the price quoted by the highest bidder. Aside
Thiruvananthapuram, the other airports lined up by the Centre for privatisation
includes include those at Ahmedabad, Guwahati, Jaipur, Lucknow and Mangalore.
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CLARIFICATION
India’s first semi high
speed train Vande Bharat express train successfully completed its inaugural run
from Delhi to Varanasi on 15th Feb 2018. It is scheduled to start its
commercial run from 17th Feb from Delhi. During the transportation back from
Varanasi it was stopped at Chamraula station of National Capital Region, about
18 kms after crossing Tundla station. There was an issue of communication
between the last basic unit of 4 coaches and the rest of the train probably due
to some external hit. Thereafter, safety features in the train applied brakes
The train was checked for faults and moved to Delhi. The train has been
examined at New Delhi maintenance depot to rectify the defect in communication
that occurred enroute. All other systems of the train have also been thoroughly
examined. The train will be able to run as per schedule on 17th Feb. Indian
Railways looks forward to welcoming passengers in this historic journey.
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NATION STANDS UNITED WITH PEACE-LOVING PEOPLE OF KASHMIR IN
CONDEMNING CROSS BORDER TERRORISM AGAINST INDIA
The Nation is expressing
its deep anguish against the cowardly terrorist attack on our security forces
in Pulwama. We are fully geared to fight a decisive battle against the scourge
of terrorism against our country and our government is committed to take this
fight to its logical conclusion, said Narendra Singh Tomar while. Shri Tomar
said that, the supreme sacrifice of our brave soldiers shall not go in vain.
The Government has given a free hand to the security forces to deal with the
forces promoting terrorism against India. Government of India, from the very
beginning, has followed a policy of zero tolerance against terrorism and this
cowardly terrorist attack displays a sense of frustration in the terrorists due
to this policy only, the Minister added. The Government is standing strong with
the bereaved family members of these Jawans and will not leave any stone
unturned to help them. The Union Government has already requested all the State
Governments to provide requisite aid to these families, the Minister informed.
Tomar said that the Nation stands united with the peace-loving people of
Kashmir in condemning the forces encouraging cross border terrorism against
India. The Minister said that there are elements in the State of Jammu Kashmir
who are determined to unsettle the peace and are hand-in-glove with the
terrorist forces. Such people are enemies to the Kashmiri Youth and they do not
want that peace sustains in the State. Shri Tomar quoted the Home Minister and
said that the Government is committed to eliminate the evil of terrorism from
Jammu & Kashmir and return peace and tranquility to the State. Shri Tomar
also said that during the meeting all the political parties have, in one voice,
condemned the terror attack and observed a two minute silence for the martyred
soldiers. A resolution condemning this act of terrorism was also adopted during
the meeting, the Minister informed.
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MEETING ADOPTS UNANIMOUS RESOLUTION CONDEMNING SUPPORT TO
TERRORISM
Rajnath Singh chaired a
meeting of floor leaders of political parties in both the houses of parliament,
in the wake of Thursday’s Pulwama attack. The Union Home Minister briefed them
about his visit to Srinagar and said that the morale of the Security Forces is
high and they expressed resolve to continue the fight against terrorism till
its logical conclusion. He said the Government has given a freehand to the
Security Forces to deal with terrorists and their perpetrators. The Government
has followed a policy of zero tolerance against terrorism from the beginning.
Singh said a vast majority of people of Jammu and Kashmir are peace loving but
there are certain elements in the state who are in league with the terrorist
groups operating from across the border. The Union Home Minister said the
sacrifices made by our Security Forces will not go in vain and the country is
united in its fight against terrorism. The government is determined to root out
terrorism from our soil, he added. Shri Rajnath Singh said this meeting has
sent a message to the global community that the country, from Kashmir to
Kanyakumari, speaks in one voice on matters of national interest.
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'NEW INDIA' WON'T SPARE THOSE WHO TARGET ITS SOLDIERS: PM MODI
Prime Minister Narendra
Modi asserted Saturday that each drop of tear shed in the aftermath of the
Pulwama terror attack would be avenged. Continuing his tough talk in the wake
of the ghastly strike that claimed the lives of 40 CRPF jawans Thursday, Modi
said this is a new India which will not tolerate those who provide guns and
bombs to target security personnel He said anger over the horrific assault in
Jammu and Kashmir is palpable in the country and all eyes are moist. Apart from
the government, as citizens of the country, it is our responsibility to stand
by the families of those who sacrificed everything for the country. This is the
time for mourning and to show restrain and sensitivity, he said. I want to
assure each family who lost their loved one that each drop of tear will be
avenged (aasu ka pura pura jawab liya jayega), Modi declared.
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PULWAMA TERROR ATTACK: 'WE SUPPORT INDIA’S RIGHT TO
SELF-DEFENSE', SAYS US
The US has supported
India’s right to self defence against cross border terrorism, an Indian foreign
ministry statement said Saturday, that gave details of a telephone conversation
between US and Indian national security advisors overnight. The call was placed
by the US side to express condolences and outrage, the statement said, in the
wake of the Pulwama attack on Thursday. According to the Indian statement, US
National Security Advisor John Bolton offered all assistance to India to bring
the perpetrators and backers of the attack promptly to justice. The two vowed
to work together to ensure that Pakistan cease to be a safe haven for JeM and
terrorist groups that target India, the US and others in the region, the
statement said. They resolved to hold Pakistan to account for its obligations
under UN resolutions and to remove all obstacles to designating JeM leader
Masood Azhar as a global terrorist under the UN Security Council Resolution
1267 Committee process, it added. Expressions of support have poured in from
across the world in the aftermath of the Pulwama attack, seen as the worst in
Kashmir in decades. All countries have condemned the attack as a terrorist
incident with none calling for talks between India and Pakistan to resolve
outstanding issues — seen as code words for the dispute over Jammu and Kashmir.
Particularly strong were the statements from the US and France that placed
blame on Pakistan.
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27 MORE HOTELS TO SHUT OVER FIRE SAFETY VIOLATIONS, NOC
CANCELLED FOR TOTAL OF 57 IN 3 DAYS
Intensifying its drive
against errant hotels, the Delhi government has cancelled fire safety
certificates of 27 establishments for various violations in Karol Bagh area,
where a massive fire at a hotel killed 17 people earlier this week. In the last
three days, the fire department of government has cancelled no objection
certificate (NOC) of 57 hotels, ordering their closure as part of its drive in
the aftermath of the Karol Bagh fire incident. Another 27 hotels' NoC
cancelled. In all, NoC of 57 hotels out of 80 inspected are cancelled. All of
them will be closed (sic), Satyendar Jain tweeted on Saturday.
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ONLY LESS THAN HALF OF INDIA’S WOMEN KNOW WHAT THE INTERNET IS
ALL ABOUT
Harmeen Mehta, said that
one of the biggest challenges of the current world of technology is that all
the internet's latest offerings like YouTube, Facebook, Ola and Uber are
catering only the top 300 million people while the remaining one billion remain
unserved. Mehta highlighted that while India’s mobile penetration is close to
88 per cent, the smartphone penetration is only under 40 per cent. Half of the
country's population consists of women and within that only less than half of
them even know what the internet is all about, Mehta said. She added that only
one-third of the women even know that smartphones can be used for other
purposes besides making calls. Can we really leap forward into the future
without taking this 50 per cent population with us ? Mehta asked. She also
added that the latest disruptions like big data, artificial intelligence (AI),
internet of things (IoT) and blockchain will help technology companies to tap
the largely ‘impenetrable’ population. AI-based technologies like 'vernacular
voice bots' can break the literacy barrier and bring non-English speaking
people into its fold, Mehta added. Adrian Terron, said that 'consumers' are
currently driving all the technological changes and transformation and Indian
consumers in particular, is very different because they know their place in the
world. Terron listed out premiumisation, digitisation, silvers (people above 60
years), purpose and after-sales service as five megatrends that are shaping
consumer behaviour. He also added that people above 60 years of age are more
loyal to their brands than the younger generation. With India's elderly
population at 300 million, this gives big opportunities for businesses, Terron
said.
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HOUSE PANEL MAY SUMMON FACEBOOK AND WHATSAPP
The parliamentary standing
committee on information technology is expected to summon Facebook and WhatsApp
as part of its discussions over safeguarding citizen rights on social media,
people with direct knowledge of the matter said. They are likely to be called
in March, as the panel first wants to complete its postponed meeting with
Twitter, they said. The panel has asked Twitter’s top global executives to
appear before it on February 25, after the microblogging site’s chief executive
skipped an earlier meeting called by it. Summons are yet to be sent to Facebook
and WhatsApp, they said. Before that, it intends to focus extensively on
Twitter. Questions to be put to Facebook and WhatsApp would be slightly
different from those prepared for Twitter, a senior member of the panel told.
Although the queries to be put will be on similar lines, keeping in view the
audiences the two (Facebook and WhatsApp) cater to are different from those of
Twitter, and so is their reach, the questions will be tweaked accordingly, said
another member of the panel, also asking not to be named. Besides issues such
as bias and rights of citizens, the panel will underscore the need for data
privacy in its likely discussions with Facebook and WhatsApp, the people said.
The panel has prepared a set of questions to be put to Twitter, the second
panel member said. The fundamentals of understanding the company (Twitter) will
have to be addressed first before recommending anything, the panel needs to
understand the semantics, that is, whether it is a technology company or a
media house, its place of registration and what measures of control can be
effected, he said.
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UK LAWMAKERS SLAM FACEBOOK, RECOMMEND STIFFER REGULATION
British lawmakers issued a
scathing report Monday that accused Facebook of intentionally violating privacy
and anti-competition laws in the UK, and called for greater oversight of social
media companies. The report on fake news and disinformation on social media
sites followed an 18-month investigation. The parliamentary committee that
prepared the report says social media sites should have to follow a mandatory
code of ethics overseen by an independent regulator to better control harmful
or illegal content. The report called out Facebook in particular, saying that
the site's structure seems to be designed to conceal knowledge of and
responsibility for specific decisions. It is evident that Facebook
intentionally and knowingly violated both data privacy and anti-competition
laws, the report states. It also accuses CEO Mark Zuckerberg of showing
contempt for the U.K. Parliament by declining numerous invitations to appear
before the committee. The report by the Parliament's media committee echoes and
expands upon an interim report with similar findings issued by the committee in
July . And in December , a trove of documents released by the committee offered
evidence that the social network had used its enormous trove of user data as a
competitive weapon, often in ways designed to keep its users in the dark.
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SUPPLY, DISTRIBUTION COULD NOT MATCH FAST GROWTH AT PATANJALI:
ACHARYA BALKRISHNA
Patanjali Ayurved chief
executive Acharya Balkrishna has said the firm’s sales have slowed down because
its supply chain and distribution network could not keep pace with its growth
in addition to internal restructuring. We were growing very fast but servicing
the trade channels, infrastructure and the goods and services tax (GST) rollout
impacted us, Balkrishna said. To expand the business to the next level of
growth, we needed a little time to work on supply chain and distribution, he
told. We are strengthening our distribution network now and most of the work is
done, and results will be visible in the coming year, Balkrishna said. The Baba
Ramdev-led company has also restructured its businesses, with key categories such
as biscuits and noodles not being included under Patanjali Ayurved, and instead
being classified under different group companies, he said. Patanjali’s revenues
for the year ended March 2018 dropped 10% to Rs 8,135 crore from Rs 9,030 crore
in FY17 after five years of impressive growth, according to data from research
platform Tofler. Its net profit fell by over a half at Rs 529 crore in FY18
against Rs 1,190 crore a year earlier, according to a report by CARE Ratings.
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IOC GETS ENVIRONMENTAL NOD FOR TELANGANA STORAGE AND
DISTRIBUTION TERMINAL
The Expert Appraisal
Committee under the Environment Ministry has given green signal to Indian Oil
Corporation Ltd for setting up a grass root petroleum storage and distribution
terminal in Telangana. According to the minutes of the meeting held recently,
the proposal involves setting up petroleum storage and distribution terminal
comprising 28 tanks with combined capacity of nearly 165 million litres with an
investment outlay of Rs 570 crore at Malkapur village, Yadadri district. The
EAC, after deliberations, recommended the project for grant of environmental
clearance, subject to the terms and conditions as under, the EAC said. At least
2 per cent of the total project cost shall be allocated for Corporate
Environment Responsibility (CER) and item-wise details along with time bound
action plan shall be prepared and submitted to the Ministrys Regional Office,
it said as one of the conditions for EC. The total area available for the
project is over three lakh sqm, of which greenbelt will be developed in an area
of over one lakh sqm covering 33 per cent of the total project area. The
estimated project cost is Rs 570 crore. Total capital cost earmarked towards
environmental pollution control measures is Rs 35 crore and the recurring cost
(operation and maintenance) will be about Rs 3.06 crore per annum. Total
employment opportunity will be for 35 people directly and 460 people
indirectly, the minutes said.
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RAHUL GANDHI INSULTED INDIA'S INTELLIGENCE AND HARDWORKING
RAILWAY ENGINEERS: PIYUSH GOYAL
Hitting back at Rahul
Gandhi over his dig at the Make in India programme after Vande Bharat train
experienced trouble during its initial run, Piyush Goyal said the Congress
president has insulted India's intelligence and hardwork by mocking the
initiative After the semi-high speed train ran into trouble early Saturday,
Gandhi tweeted, Modi ji, I think Make in India needs a serious rethink. Most
people feel it has failed. I assure you we in the Congress are thinking very
deeply about how it will be done. In a quick response, Goyal tweeted, Such a
shame that you choose to attack the hard work and ingenuity of Indian
engineers, technicians and labourers. It is this mindset which needs a reset.
'Make In India' is a success and a part of crores of Indian lives. Your family
had 6 decades to think, wasn't that enough? In a Facebook post Sunday, Goyal
further said Gandhi has insulted India's intelligence and the hardworking
engineers of railways who have put in backbreaking effort to build the
country's first indigenous semi-high speed train, the Vande Bharat Express.
Somebody who was unable to explain why Engineers Day is celebrated, he insulted
the hardworking engineers of railways who have put in backbreaking effort to
build India's first indigenous semi-high speed train, the Vande Bharat Express.
Rather than encouraging them, he has taunted them, he said.
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AS PATIENTS CHALLENGE PATENT, J&J COMMITS TO TACKLING
DRUG-RESISTANT TB
Johnson & Johnson has tripled
its commitment on tuberculosis drug Bedaquiline by offering 90,000 doseages to
its global donation programme that ends in March, Paul Stoffels, Chief Scientific
Officer, said. Stoffels’ statement reiterating J&J’s commitment to tackling
TB in India comes less than a week after two TB patients filed a patent
challenge on a salt form of Bedaquiline at the Mumbai Patent Office to prevent
J&J from pursuing a secondary claim on the drug. While the patent is being
contested on grounds of not being novel or innovative, health advocacy
representatives explain that a patent on the salt would extend J&J’s
monopoly on the drug from 2023 (when the compound patent expires) to 2027. And
this would further delay generic drugmakers from being able to make less
expensive versions of the drug, they say. J&J, however, refutes this.
Generic producers will be able to make versions of the drug’s active
pharmaceutical ingredient, post 2023, it clarifies. Responding to this
developing situation, Stoffels said that ensuring access to bedaquiline in
India was a top priority for J&J, given the country’s high burden of
mutli-drug resistant TB (at more than a quarter of the world’s cases). We’ve
worked to expand access to bedaquiline, and we are collaborating with partners
to build health systems capacity and ensure appropriate use of our antibiotic
to protect its efficacy for the future.
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COGNIZANT CASE: EXECUTIVES CAN BE TRIED IN INDIA
Cognizant Technology has settled
bribery charges with the US authorities, but the company and the government
officials of Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra, who took the bribe remain, liable for
wrongdoing under Indian law, say legal experts and anti-corruption activists.
Last Friday, Cognizant announced that it had struck a deal with the US
Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) and Department of Justice (DoJ) to cough
up a penalty of $28 million (over Rs 200 crore) for paying bribes of $3.6
million (Rs 26 crore) to Indian officials via third parties. This was for
construction-related permits and operating licenses for its campuses in Chennai
and Pune. Irrespective of resolution in US courts, the issue qualifies for a probe
in India as it falls under the purview of the Prevention of Corruption Act, the
Indian Penal Code and the Companies Act, lawyers told. If what is narrated in
the order passed by the US commission is true, then an FIR has to be registered
by the CBI suo motu under the Prevention of Corruption Act, and the case has to
be investigated, said P Wilson, senior advocate and former additional solicitor
general of India. He said the order made it evident that state officials were
involved. Former Tamil Nadu DGP SK Dogra said that even without a complaint,
the US court's ruling is sufficient for the Directorate of Vigilance and
Anti-Corruption (DVAC) to initiate a preliminary inquiry against state
government officials. The DVAC would then have to send a report to the state
government, based on which further action can be taken, he said.
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DELHI'S AIR QUALITY IMPROVES TO 'POOR' CATEGORY AFTER RAIN,
SAYS CPCB DATA
The air quality in the
national capital improved on Friday and was recorded in the poor category due
to rain in various parts of the city that washed out suspended particulate
matter (PM), authorities said. According to data provided by the Central
Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the overall air quality index (AQI) of Delhi
was at 249. The CPCB said 26 areas in the national capital recorded 'poor' air
quality, while only in one area it was 'severe'. Authorities said the overall
air quality is likely to improve to 'moderate' by Saturday.
#For Source of Information copy and paste the heading in google.
Thanks & Regards,
CS Meetesh Shiroya
Thanks & Regards,
CS Meetesh Shiroya
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