WE NEED A PLATFORM WHERE ALL STAKEHOLDERS WORK TOGETHER: DPIIT
SECY
India needs a platform
where all stakeholders including businesses, centre, states and research
institutions sit and work together continuously to promote innovation and boost
manufacturing, an official said Friday. This platform would look at the steps
which need to be taken for industrial growth, Secretary in the Department for
Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) Ramesh Abhishek said. I think
we need to have a platform in which industry, business, government departments,
states, R&D institutions need to work together on a continuous basis on
what all needs, he said. He said that there is a need to sit down and make
specific action for the industry. A much more robust approach is required for
working together. We need a platform with large and smaller companies and
innovators, Abhishek added. Further, he added that use of smart technologies
can help bridge the gap of competitiveness. Competitiveness of our industries
is a problem in many areas whether it is cost of doing business or other, he
said. He added that the department has prepared a new industrial policy which
will be considered for approval by the next government
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INDUSTRIAL POLICY 3.0: THIS 21ST CENTURY PLAN WILL MODERNISE
INDUSTRY; 3 FOCUS AREAS
India will have its new
industrial policy, the third after the ones in 1956 and 1991, in the next
government’s term, Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu. The new government at the
centre would announce the proposed policy, he also said. We have finalised the
industry policy I am sure that the new government will announce that soon, news
agency reported. The upcoming industrial policy aims at promoting emerging
sectors and modernising existing industries, the Union Minister said. It will
also look to reduce regulatory hurdles, cut paper work and support emerging and
new sectors, he added. Even as the final proposal was sent to the current
Cabinet, it was not taken up for consideration, he noted. Elaborate machinery
has been planned to be formed by the ministry including a steering committee
for implementing the policy effectively. On increasing foreign direct
investment (FDI), new agency PTI reported Suresh Prabhu as saying, We are
trying to bring in more FDI. FDI will come either in greenfield area or it
could be through acquisition. So, we must prepare a strategy on both We should
target those companies that can invest because they have investable surplus and
same time, we must have a matching sectoral strategy wherein inbound
investments can be absorbed. Suresh Prabhu also said that in FY19, the exports
of Indian goods and services would hit nearly $540 billion. The exports by
country increased 8.85 per cent to $298.47 billion during the April-February
period of fiscal year 2019.
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RETAIL LOAN SECURITISATION VOLUME SEES TWO FOLD GROWTH IN FY19
Retail loan securitisation
volume increased over two-folds to Rs.1.9 lakh crore in FY19 from Rs.85000
crore in FY18 as per a report from CRISIL with most of the loans being sold by
NBFCs in the second half of the last fiscal. Almost 70% of the volume of
securitised assets that were sold by NBFCs were in the second half of the financial
year 2018-19, said Krishnan Sitaraman. There were some tailwinds in the sector
after investors and the lenders became more cautious in their lending to NBFCs
post defaults from IL&FS. Sitaraman said that while credit costs have come
down since the September-December quarter, the overall costs are still higher
and the NBFCs may still use route to raise funds but the volume may subside
next year on an YoY comparative basis. The Reserve Bank of India’s announcement
to create a committee to strengthen the securitisation for housing finance
companies may also see the industry adoption of this instrument to raise funds,
he said. The vehicle finance NBFC has raised Rs. 837 crore from securitisation
in FY19. Factors such as clarity on GST redemption for securitised assets and
RBI’s circular on easing norms on selling of securitised also had a bearing on
the surge of volume, CRISIL said. Three asset classes – mortgages, vehicle
loans and microfinance loans constituted 84% of the securitisation volume, the
report said. The direct assignments (DAs) continued to be the preferred route,
accounting for 64 per cent of the total securitisation volume. While DA
transactions rocketed 146%, pass-through certificates (PTCs) soared 95%. The
volume of PTCs reached Rs 69,000 crore. Mortgage-backed transactions originated
by housing finance companies and invested in primarily by public sector banks
accounted for a bulk of the DA volume as 92% of mortgage transactions are
happening through the DA route.
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GOVT ENROLLS 28-LAKH BENEFICIARIES UNDER PMSYM PENSION SCHEME
The government on Friday
said that it has enrolled more than 28 lakh beneficiaries in Pradhan Mantri Shram
Yogi Mandhan (PMSYM) Pension Yojana, through the Common Service Centres (CSCs).
It said more than 2,000 CSC Village Level Entrepreneurs have also promised to
begin ‘Donate PMSYM’ movement in their respective villages. The CSCs have also
enrolled 1.5 crore people in ‘Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyan’,
in which the government has allocated ₹400 crore for promoting
the digital scheme further. There are more than three-lakh CSCs making their
contribution in digital literacy, telemedicine, insurance, tele-law and skill
development programmes being implemented by the government in the country under
the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.
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SC REFUSES TO GRANT INTERIM STAY ON OPERATION OF ELECTORAL
BONDS, TO TAKE UP MATTER ON APRIL 10
The Supreme Court Friday
refused to grant interim stay on the electoral bonds scheme and asked the
petitioner NGO to file an appropriate application for it. A bench headed by
Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi said the issue requires detailed hearing and,
therefore, it will be taken up on April 10. Prashant Bhushan, appearing for NGO
Association of Democratic Reforms (ADR), alleged that thousands of crore are
anonymously being given to political parties. He alleged that 95 percent of
electoral bonds are being given to the ruling party. KK Venugopal, appearing
for the Centre, said the electoral bonds scheme was brought to check the flow
of black money into political funding. He said Bhushan was giving an election
speech that 95 percent of the electoral bonds have gone to ruling party. The
bench in lighter vein said: It's election time. We will hear on April 10. ADR's
application has sought stay on the Electoral Bond Scheme, 2018, which was
notified by the Centre in January last year.
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CAIT CLAIMS TO HAVE IMPACT ON 195 LOK SABHA SEATS
The votes of crores of
traders and the people dependent upon them for their livelihood will be
decisive in deciding the future of candidates in 195 Lok Sabha constituencies
in 19 States, Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) said here on Friday.
These seats have dominance and influence of traders whose votes may decide who
gets elected in elections. It is estimated that in all these constituencies
traders constitute nearly 40 per cent of the total votes in each constituency
whereas there are about 40 seats in different states where traders can
influence the result of the elections having their presence from 15-20 per cent
votes. According to the traders' body, shops are the best venue for a whisper
campaign for or against any political party. Average footfall in each shop over
the Country is considered to be about 30 customers every day out of which about
40 per cent are new customers each day and 60 per cent are repeated customers. If
traders start whispering good or bad about any political party with their
respective customers it influence the mindset of consumer. B.C. Bhartia said
that there are about 7 crore traders across country and nearly 30 crore people
are dependent upon these traders for their livelihood and if their votes are
converted into a vote bank, the election scenario can be changed completely. He
said that trading community all over the country feel grossly neglected as
their core issues hanging fire since decades still remains unresolved. It is
sad that no party has ever taken traders on its priority and no efforts were
ever made to ensure systematic and structured growth of domestic trade in the
Country. Bhartia said that in Delhi sealing and Rent Act are major issues.
Whereas across the country issues like disadvantage to traders from e-commerce,
impact of FDI in Single Brand Retail and Cash & Carry stores, absence of
any specific ministry to oversee domestic trade, non availability of finance
from banks and financial institutions, harassment and victimisation of traders
at the hands of tax and other departments, facing acute corruption in
government departments especially from lower grade officials, series of acts,
laws and rules governing domestic trade, no betterment of commercial markets,
no proper security and safety of traders and markets where cash movement is
always large, no incentives to traders for collection of tax on behalf of the
government are some of the issues which always bother traders and hamper smooth
business activities.
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SP MANIFESTO PROMISES RS 3,000 MONTHLY PENSION TO POOR, HIGHER
TAX ON RICH
Samajwadi Party (SP) on
Friday released its manifesto for Lok Sabha elections 2019 promising to provide
a monthly pension of Rs 3,000 to women belonging to poor families. The party
promised it would expand the purview of its now-defunct Samajwadi Pension
Yojana to maximise its reach. The scheme was scrapped by the incumbent Yogi
Adityanath government after coming to power in March 2017. SP has also proposed
to impose an additional 2% tax on households having property worth more than Rs
2.5 crore (which it claimed numbered 0.1% of the total domestic households) for
redistribution. The party has proposed to impose a higher tax rate on affluent
sections and those evading taxes. The manifesto claimed such steps would help
in poverty alleviation and strengthen the economy for sustainable growth. Meanwhile,
Akhilesh alleged that the Modi government was concealing key socioeconomic data
- joblessness, farmers’ suicides etc - for vested interests. He also demanded
that the government make the caste census public for a better formulation of
policies in the country. Akhilesh said that barring a few businesses, the new
tax regime had virtually destroyed domestic trade. He noted that public sector
banks were running in losses, while demonetisation had only hurt the country’s
economy. The manifesto also talks about overhauling of the primary education
system and upgrading pedagogy for more job and market-oriented education, so
that youth could gain employment. The party has also promised to provide
100,000 new jobs every year. The party has promised to build playgrounds in
every village and Samajwadi hostels in all prominent educational institutions. Akhilesh
has demanded a full waiver of farm loans for sustainable improvement in
agriculture since 90% of farmers depended upon moneylenders. There have been
farm loan waiver announcements, however, it has been seen that eligibility
criteria is so tough that most farmers do not benefit. As far as national
security is concerned, the party has said that it will create an Ahir Armoured
Regiment and a Gujarat Infantry Regiment, and adopt a tough stance while
dealing with Pakistan and China.
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PANAGARIYA DISMISSES DATA CREDIBILITY DOUBTS
Arvind Panagariya has
dismissed doubts raised by economists over credibility of statistical data in
India. Some cynical economists are questioning credibility of data. I was in
government for three years and it was never an issue, Panagariya said. IMF,
World Bank and none of the international institutions in UN whose systems we
follow, are asking this question, Panagariya said but refused comment on the
role of Niti Aayog in the release of official statistics. Those who are asking
have to point out the specific problem If there is a genuine problem with
methodology, the government would itself be happy to (reply to) question on the
quality of data, he added.
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LESSORS TO JET PLAN TO DE-REGISTER MANY MORE PLANES IN COMING
DAYS
Lessors to India's Jet
Airways Ltd are planning to ask the country's aviation regulator to de-register
many more planes leased to the airline, three sources told Reuters, signalling
that a planned bailout of the troubled carrier is failing to assuage their
concerns. About six of Jet's lessors are likely to apply to the Directorate
General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to de-register up to 15 of the grounded
planes, over the next 10 days, said one of the sources with direct knowledge of
the situation. Once a plane is de-registered, the lessors are free to take them
out of the country and lease them to other airlines. While some lessors have
already taken a few planes out of India after a mutual agreement with Jet,
sources have told, the latest series of applications to the DGCA would be on a
non-consensual basis. Avolon, one of the world's biggest aircraft lessors, on
Thursday applied to the DGCA to take two of its planes placed with Jet outside
of India, making it the first to pull planes out on a non-consensual basis.
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NOW, IOC STOPS FUEL SUPPLY TO CASH-STARVED JET AIRWAYS
Indian Oil Corporation
(IOC) Friday stopped fuel supply to the struggling carrier Jet Airways for
non-payment. The public sector oil marketing firm stopped supplying fuel to the
cash-starved carrier from 12 noon Friday, sources told PTI. Jet Airways, in
which SBI-led consortium of lenders is set to take management control under a
debt-recast plan, has drastically curtailed operations with a fleet of 26
planes.
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INTERNET FREEDOM FOUNDATION, CONSTITUTIONAL CONDUCT, EX CECS
AMONG OTHERS APPEAL TO EC TO REIGN IN DIGITAL PLATFORMS
Entities like the Internet
Freedom Foundation, Free Software Movement of India, Common Cause, Association
for Democratic Reforms, Constitutional Conduct (a group of former civil
servants) and former chief election commissioners N Gopalaswami and SY Quraishi
have ‘made an urgent appeal’ to the Election Commission to reign in digital
platforms as they feel the voluntary code of ethics for social media platforms
is a case of too little too late. The group said the threat posed by digital
platforms to the integrity of the upcoming general elections has assumed
‘alarming proportions’ and that they have put forth recommendations to the EC
like closely monitoring the online spending of political parties for election
campaigns and not just spending by candidates and making it mandatory for
political parties to disclose details of all official political
party/individual handles on platforms like Twitter, Facebook, Sharechat, Tik
Tok etc. The group said it previously met the EC on the matter and was assured
careful consideration of its recommendations but there has been little progress
except for the adoption of a ‘virtually ineffectual’ voluntary code of ethics
mediated by the Internet & Mobile Association of India. They said the call
to action is an outcome of a collective reflection and a long consultative
process. Recommendations suggested by the group include the EC directing all
political parties to disclose the names of companies and paid consultants
looking after their social media, IT cell, digital marketing as well as nodal
digital officers, submitting details of all digital spending during the
election campaign process and making the details public, providing information
on all contracts signed by them with third party vendors for digital services,
initiating a process involving political parties and tech firms for evolving
common definitions of a political ad and the EC conducting an independent audit
of the declaration process of political ads. The group suggests the EC must
create a nodal department to address the growing threat of fake news besides
conducting outreach programmes educating social media users on ways to report
violations of electoral norms. Millions are accessing social media platforms
especially WhatsApp groups within minutes. WhatsApp groups are considered to be
one of the most dangerous. The potential consequence of social media platforms
are very strong, said Quraishi.
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ELECTION COMMISSION URGED TO PUT CHECK ON DIGITAL PLATFORMS
A group of rights
organisations and citizens — including Internet Freedom Foundation, Common
Cause and former chief election commissioners N Gopalaswami and SY Quraishi —
have made an urgent appeal to the Election Commission to rein in digital
platforms to ensure integrity of the general elections. The group, which also
includes Free Software Movement of India, Association for Democratic Reforms,
and Constitutional Conduct, which is an entity of former civil servants, on
Friday said they met EC officials previously and was assured careful
consideration of its recommendations, but there has been little progress except
for the adoption of a ‘virtually ineffectual’ voluntary code of ethics mediated
by the Internet & Mobile Association of India. The group said the threat
posed by digital platforms to the integrity of the upcoming elections has
assumed alarming proportions. Their suggestions include closely monitoring the
online spending of political parties for election campaigns and not just
spending by candidates, and making it mandatory for political parties to
disclose details of all official party/individual handles on platforms such as
Twitter, Facebook, WhatsApp, Sharechat and TikTok. Its recommendations include
EC directing all political parties to disclose the names of companies and paid
consultants looking after their social media, IT cell, digital marketing as
well as nodal digital officers, submitting details of all digital spending
during the election campaign process and making the details public, providing
information on all contracts signed by them with third party vendors for
digital services, initiating a process involving political parties and tech
firms for evolving common definitions of a political ad and EC conducting an
independent audit of the declaration process of political ads. The group said
its recommendations have been endorsed by an array of citizens, civil society
members, academics, artists, and former constitutional office holders, besides
over 50 former civil servants including retired secretaries to the Indian
government and retired CECs. EC must create a nodal department to address the
growing threat of fake news besides conducting outreach programmes for social
media users on ways to report violations of electoral norms, it said. The
commission needs to take necessary action besides what has already been done as
there is no binding value of the voluntary code on entities like Facebook as
the code has been entered into between the IAMAI and EC and not directly
between EC and social media companies, said Apar Gupta, executive director of
Internet Freedom Foundation. We are not doing this with an adversarial intent.
There is every hope that the Election Commission upholds the constitutional
office, takes these recommended steps and walks towards solutions.
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SUGAR MILLS WILL HAVE TO PAY INTEREST TO FARMERS, SAYS UP
GOVERNMENT
In an important
development just days ahead of the Lok Sabha elections in the sugarcane belt of
Western Uttar Pradesh, the Yogi Adityanath government has reversed Akhilesh
Yadav cabinet’s decision to waive off interest payment by defaulting sugar
mills in three successive crushing seasons during 2012-15. Sanjay Bhoosreddy
filed an affidavit in the Allahabad High Court apprising the bench of the state
government’s decision, which would necessitate interest payment by mills. The
units running in losses are liable to pay interest at a rate of 7% per annum,
while those making profits would pay farmers at a rate of 12% interest. During
the 2012-13, 2013-14 and 2014-15 crushing seasons, the sugar mills in UP had
defaulted on payments of nearly Rs 2,000 crore including interest. On March 9,
2017, the HC had, after subsequent hearings, quashed the Akhilesh government’s
decision to waive interest liability of mills and termed it as arbitrary as
cane growers’ interest was not protected. Meanwhile, RKMS is preparing to file
an objection on the next date of hearing (April 26) against the two slabs of 7%
and 12% interest and plans to seek direction to mills to pay a flat 12%
interest rate.
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COOPERATION WITH ISRO REMAINS INTACT: NASA CHIEF
The cooperation of NASA
with ISRO remains intact, chief of the US space agency James Bridenstine has
said, days after he criticised India and termed its anti-satellite weapon test
a terrible thing for creating about 400 pieces of orbital debris. Bridenstine
said based on the guidance received from the White House, he looks forward
continuing to work with ISRO on a host of issues including human space flights.
As part of our partnership with you, we will continue to work on issues using
the NASA-ISRO Human Space Flight Working Group, Planetary Science Working
Group, US India Earth Science Working Group, and the Heliophysics Working
Group, Bridenstine said. Recently, we sent you a letter indicating a suspension
of activities under the NASA-ISRO Human Space Flight Working Group, he wrote.
From the April 4 letter, it appears that after the White House weighing in, the
cooperation remains intact. As we made clear, space debris is a serious issue
for the United States. As it is a growing threat, it is the responsibility of
all nations who operate in space, Bridenstine said. We will continue to monitor
the remaining debris from your test as it relates to the safety of our human
spaceflight activities especially at the International Space Station, wrote the
NASA Administration, according to the letter.
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RAILWAYS REGISTER ITS BEST SAFETY FIGURES IN ALMOST FOUR
DECADES
The Indian Railways has
registered its best safety figures in almost four decades in 2018-2019 till March,
data has shown. The number of consequential accidents has come down from 1,130
in 1980-81 to mere 59 (94.8 per cent reduction) in 2018-19. During the same
period, the fatality figure has come down from 658 in 1981-82 to 37 in 2018-19
(94.4 per cent reduction). Last year, 2017-18, accidents had come down to 73.
The internationally-recognised measure of safety namely Accidents Per Million
Train Kilometres has also shown remarkable improvement during this period. The
number of Accidents Per Million Train Kilometres came down from a high figure
of 2.20 in 1981-82 to an all-time low figure of 0.06 in 2018-19. This shows
that the Indian Railways is poised towards zero-accident mode, a senior
official said. The official said continuous safety measures adopted by the
national transporter has resulted in a steady dip in casualties and injuries
among passengers as well in the past five years. While between 1990-1995, an
average of more than 500 accidents took place every year over railways, with
around 2,400 deaths and 4,300 injured in those five years, a decade later
between 2013-2018, an average of around 110 accidents took place every year
which killed around 990 people and injured about 1,500 people, according to
data available with PTI. During 2018-2019, the number of accidents took at 59,
with 37 deaths and 108 injured.
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SURESH PRABHU SAYS INITIATIVES TAKEN DURING HIS 3-YEAR STINT
IN RAILWAYS ARE NOW YIELDING RESULTS
Commerce and Industry
Minister Suresh Prabhu, who quit railways portfolio in 2017 after two rail
accidents, said initiatives taken by him during his three-year stint are now
yielding results. Prabhu said measures were taken for increasing capital
investments, track renewal and improving passenger convenience. Railways spent
Rs 2.75 lakh crore in the first three years (2014-17) as opposed to Rs 3 lakh
crore cumulative in first 70 years. So that was the capital expenditure and now
you are seeing the results of that, he told. He said in the three years, when
he was the railways minister, all the backlog of track renewal was completed. We
almost covered the backlog (of track renewal). So now you are actually seeing
the result of that. There is hardly any derailment. We did things to ensure
safety, he added. He said before that railways had not done any track renewal
which is critical for avoiding derailments and due to that there was huge
backlog for track renewal. So all kinds of transformational agenda for railways
which we initiated at that time were actually complete. So I am happy that when
I left railways, everything was on stream, the minister said. He also said the
proposal to run Train 18, now called as Vande Bharat Express and billed as
India’s fastest train, was announced by him in his rail budget, which was the
last rail budget. After that it was merged with the general budget. Prabhu quit
the railways ministry in 2017 following two train derailments, taking moral
responsibility for the accidents. He took over the railways portfolio in
November 2014. Piyush Goyal is currently heading the railways ministry.
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INDIA INC LAYS STRESS ON FIGHTING MENTAL DISTRESS
It’s World Health Day on
Sunday, April 7 — a day when the World Health Organisation stresses the
importance of good health, of body and mind. And the message seems to be
catching up faster than ever before, going by Corporate India’s focus on mental
health of its employees. At a time when disruption across industries,
performance pressure, fear of job losses and personal problems are leading to
increasing levels of anxiety, panic attacks and nervous breakdowns at the
workplace, several companies, ranging from big firms such as Accenture and
American Express to startups such as Oyo and JetSynthesys, are investing in
improving the mental health of their people. The initiatives include
sensitisation programmes for senior management, training of managers,
workshops, campaigns, creating apps, launching anger-free zones, and even
exploring art therapy, HR experts said. That is because stress has become one
of the top concerns identified by Indian employers — according to 1to1help.net,
11% of all its counselling cases are at suicide risk. According to a recent
study by global advisory Willis Towers Watson, around 80% of organisations in
the country took at least one action towards improving the mental health of
their employees last year. More companies are adopting a top-down approach
where leadership is acknowledging the need to put time and money into health
and wellbeing programmes – and driving the same relentlessly, said Sudesh
Shetty. Accenture, for instance, conducts mental wellness workshops, and its
entire leadership team, including senior MD Rekha Menon, attended the workshop.
Last month, it launched an onsite counsellor support programme, whereby
counsellors visit eight offices across five cities in the country on a fortnightly
basis. The global management consulting firm is also encouraging employees to
sign up as mental wellness advocates, who support colleagues by directing them
to get the right help when needed. More than 500 employees have signed up so
far, said Rohit Thakur, lead of human resources at Accenture in India. At Oyo Hotels and Homes, employees can sign
up for an eight-week online behavioural therapy programme to help them cope
with stress and improve their mental health, through interactive video-based
learning. The programme is currently being rolled out across all geographies in
India, said CHRO Dinesh R. Others like American Express are actively driving
more conversations about workplace mental health. The financial services firm
has a happiness coach — a trained clinical psychologist who conducts group
sessions on stress management and work-life balance. In January, the company
also partnered with Thrive Global India to create a health and wellbeing portal
specially curated for employees. Technology consultants ThoughtWorks India is
investigating the effectiveness of art therapy by conducting workshops in a few
offices to gauge employees’ response, its people head Kaushik Ghosh told.
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JET LENDERS SEND DESPERATE FEELERS TO BUYERS, EYE REVIVAL PLAN
IF ALL FAILS
Private equity players
TPG, Indigo Partners and the government-anchored National Investment and
Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) are teaming up to submit an expression of interest
(EoI) for Jet Airways, said multiple sources, even as lenders explore an
alternative by way of an operational turnaround if the bidding evokes lukewarm
response. The distressed airline’s
lenders have also approached Delta Air Lines and Air France-KLM to gauge their
interest. One of the sources said teams from the two foreign airline companies
are in India, though it could not be independently verified if they will submit
a bid. Sources in the civil aviation ministry said they were unaware of the
global airlines being approached. State Bank of India, the lead lender to the
airline, had also approached PE funds such as Blackstone to evaluate if they would
be interested if Jet’s loyalty programme were to be monetised. But sources said
that would be possible only after the airline itself is stabilised. The SBI-led
consortium of lenders on Thursday asked interested parties to submit EoIs
between April 6 and April 9, advancing and shortening the time frame that had
earlier been announced. The TPG-led consortium will evaluate the EoI conditions
once they are made public over the weekend, said an official in the know. TPG
and Indigo Partners have been in the mix before, and were engaged with SBI.
They needed an Indian partner, and NIIF was the obvious vehicle, he added.
Sources said the Tatas and the Adani Group, which had been approached to bail
out Jet, are unlikely to participate at this juncture. The Adanis did spend
time with the airline’s management as recently as January before deciding to
bid aggressively for aviation-related infrastructure such as airports.
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VODAFONE IDEA, AIRTEL MAY POST FIRST MOBILE REVENUE GROWTH IN
3 YEARS
Vodafone Idea (VIL) and
Bharti Airtel’s mobile service revenue in India likely grew sequentially for
the first time in 11 quarters in the three months ended March, driven by
minimum recharge plans and as more users opted for higher-priced voice and data
packs, analysts Vodafone Idea, Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio Infocomm, price war,
minimum recharge planssaid. Reliance Jio Infocomm, which disrupted the sector
when it started in September 2016, though, is likely to continue to outclass
both its rivals, posting strong net profit and revenue growth, propelled by
heavy customer addition. The price war triggered by Jio’s entry appears to be
winding down, possibly signalling the return of stability in the sector. Growth
is set to return for Airtel and VIL as tariffs have largely stabilised,
brokerage BNP Paribas said It said the introduction of minimum recharge plans —
to keep services active — will likely be revenue accretive and result in
improved monetisation. Bank of America-Merrill Lynch estimates Airtel’s India
mobile revenue in the fiscal fourth quarter will increase 4% over the previous
three months, while BNP predicts VIL’s mobile revenue will grow 1%. Jio’s entry
with free voice calls and dirt-cheap data had forced operators to match tariffs
to protect their user base, which hurt their revenue and earnings.
Consequently, smaller telcos shut down and Vodafone India merged with Idea
Cellular, reducing the field to three private operators — Jio, Airtel and VIL.
Bank of America-Merrill Lynch expects Airtel’s average revenue per user (ARPU)
— a key performance metric — to jump over 21% to Rs 126. BNP estimates VIL’s
ARPU will increase 19% to Rs 106. Both telcos introduced their minimum recharge
plans in October, aiming to weed out non-revenue generating customers and boost
ARPU. Airtel is expected to report a net consolidated loss in the range of Rs
599 crore to Rs 1,300 crore — its first in almost 16 years — with still-low
pricing, higher costs and its non-mobile businesses shrinking. CLSA estimates
Airtel’s home broadband and DTH business will see 3% on-quarter revenue
declines due to competition and a new regulatory order that allows consumers to
select and pay only for channels they want to watch.
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NAMO TV IS AD PLATFORM LAUNCHED BY DTH SERVICE PROVIDERS:
I&B MIN TO EC
The Information and
Broadcasting Ministry is learnt to have responded to an Election Commission
notice on NaMo TV Friday, saying it is an advertisement platform launched by
DTH service providers which does not require government nod The ministry is
also said that NaMo TV is not a regular channel and it does not figure in the
official list of approved channels, a source said. The Information and
Broadcasting ministry told the poll panel that as per the existing norms, no
approval is required from the it to run such advertising platforms, the source
said. On Tuesday, the EC had issued a notice seeking a report from the ministry
on NaMo TV, launched just weeks ahead of the general election, after opposition
parties, including the Congress, asked the poll body to direct the ministry to
suspend the channel as it was violative of the Model Code of Conduct. The EC
will take a call on whether it violated the model code after going through the
documents the ministry files.
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EC ASKS YOGI TO BE 'MORE CAREFUL', EXPRESSES DISPLEASURE AT
NITI V-C REMARK
The Election Commission
(EC) said on Friday that Niti Aayog Vice-Chairman Rajiv Kumar violated the
model code of conduct when he made comments against the Congress’ proposed NYAY
scheme. However, the EC expressed displeasure over his remarks and did not take
any further action. In a communication sent to Kumar, the EC asked him to be
cautious in future while making statements. The Commission has come to the
conclusion that your above-mentioned comments violate the said MCC norms. The
Commission has therefore, decided to convey it's displeasure to you and expects
that you shall excercise caution in future the EC said in the letter sent to
Kumar.
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'PM NARENDRA MODI' SET FOR RELEASE ON APRIL 11 WITH THE
BEGINNING OF THE LOK SABHA ELECTIONS
The release date of 'PM
Narendra Modi' has been set for April 11, when the Lok Sabha elections begin,
the makers announced on Friday. 'PM Narendra Modi' is officially releasing on
April 11, 2019, tweeted producer Sandip Ssingh, along with the film's poster.
The announcement comes just a day after the film's makers deferred its release
from April 5, following the Supreme Court's decision to set the date to hear a
plea seeking to block the movie's release, for April 8.
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NEW FAME 2 SPECIFICATIONS PUT ALL EVS OUT OF SUBSIDY RANGE
The latest FAME2
notifications — with clarifications issued on March 28 — will be available for
electric/hybrid cars only if they are less than Rs 15 lakh in price and used as
taxis will not cover any electric car available in India right now — either
mass market or premium. The specifications not only give a price cut off of Rs
15 lakh but also a battery power (15 kilowatt hour/100 km), a range cut off
(140 km) and a top speed specification of 70km/hour. This effectively keeps out
not only mass market electric cars but even luxury/ premium vehicles being
planned for the Indian market. FAME 2 doesn’t offer any demand incentive for
EVs in the personal mobility space or the luxury segment in specific, and we do
not see any demand emerging for the luxury segment. We believe that for an
optimal push for EV penetration in the personal mobility space, demand
incentives should be extended irrespective of any price bracket or size of the
vehicle, as that would stimulate demand from the private car owners and
encourage a faster adoption of EVs in this market, said Martin Schwenk. Others
like MG Motor, which has announced an EV launch in India this year, are forging
product plans irrespective of FAME 2 incentives. Our second car (after the
Hector) is an EV called E-ZS. In FAME the limit is 15 lakh so our first EV,
which we will launch this year, is not going to qualify for FAME incentive. We
do not depend on FAME incentive to launch our car Irrespective or independent
of that we are going to launch it. This EV should be very competitive and we’re
trying to find different ownership possibilities also, said Rajiv Chaba. The
incentive specs-sheet would mean vehicles lined up by companies like Toyota
Kirloskar Motor and Maruti Suzuki, who are planning a big e-mobility push, will
also not get any tax benefits. Subsidies and lower taxes encourage faster adoption
of environment friendly vehicles and support in achieving government’s
electrification mission in the country. The new notification, said that the
government would offer subsidy to a total number of 35,000 electric and plug-in
electric vehicles and 20,000 hybrid vehicles provided their ex-factory price is
not more than Rs 15 lakh and they are used as taxis for public mobility. World
over, electric and hybrid vehicles attract government subsidy to make them
affordable options for buyers. Currently the electric passenger car market is a
minuscule part of the overall e-vehicle market and fleet usage contributes over
80% of electric four wheeler sales.
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NITI AAYOG & RMI RELEASE TECHNICAL ANALYSIS OF FAME II
SCHEME
The NITI Aayog and the
Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) released a report on opportunities for the
automobile sector and government under the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of
Electric Vehicles II (FAME II) scheme. FAME II and other measures could have on
the overall Electric Vehicle(EV) market. According to the analysis, if FAME II
and other measures – in public and private space - are successful, India could
realize EV sales penetration of 30% of private cars, 70% of commercial cars,
40% of buses and 80% of two and three-wheelers by 2030. Extrapolating from the
same, the lifetime cumulative oil and carbon savings of all electric vehicles
deployed through 2030 could be many-fold larger than the direct savings from
FAME II. For example, achieving these levels of market share by 2030 could
generate cumulative savings of 846 million tonnes of CO2 over the total
deployed vehicles’ lifetime. The FAME II scheme, which was notified by the
Union Cabinet in February 2019, aims to further accelerate the government of
India’s commitment to a clean mobility future, sees the electrification of
transportation as a primary focus area. FAME II intends to catalyze the market
for faster adoption of EVs to ensure durable economic growth and global
competitiveness for India’s automotive industry.
KEY HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE REPORT
·
Effects of FAME II will go
beyond the vehicles that are eligible under the FAME II
·
There is considerable
energy and CO2 savings associated with the two, three, and four-wheeled
vehicles and buses covered by FAME II over their lifetime, as well as the
potential savings associated with greater adoption levels by 2030
·
The electric buses covered
under FAME II will account for 3.8 billion vehicle kilometers travelled (e-vkt)
over their lifetime
·
In order to capture the
potential opportunity in 2030, batteries must remain a key focal point as they
will continue to be the key cost driver of EVs.
·
Vehicles eligible under
FAME II scheme can cumulatively save 5.4 million tonnes of oil equivalent over
their lifetime worth Rs 17.2 thousand crores.
·
EVs sold through 2030
could cumulatively save 474 million tonnes of oil equivalent (Mtoe) worth INR
15 lakh crore and generate net CO2 savings of 846 million tonnes over their
operational lifetime.
·
India needs auto
industry's active participation to ease electric mobility transition. The auto
and battery industries could collaborate to enhance customer awareness, promote
domestic manufacturing, promote new business models, conduct R&D for EVs
and components, consider new business models to promote EVs
·
Government should focus on
a phased manufacturing plan to promote EVs, provide fiscal and non-fiscal
incentives for phased manufacturing of EVs and batteries. Different government
departments can consider a bouquet of potential policies, such as congestion
pricing, ZEV credits, low emission/exclusion zones, parking policies, etc. to
drive adoption of EVs.
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VIRTUAL TROLLS MAY NOT STAY ANONYMOUS FOR LONG
The government is looking
at ways to curb trolls on social media platforms such as Twitter, including
mandatory verification of accounts by linking them to mobile phone numbers or
official IDs, senior officials said. This will apply both to existing as well
as new users. The general perception is that I can remain anonymous in the
internet space and say and do things without any fear, an official told. However,
we need to maintain the balance between an individual’s need for privacy while
ensuring we don’t encourage negative things on the internet. Trolls and
propagators of fake news operate with impunity because of their anonymity. (There
is need for) Some sort of mandatory verification, such as linking accounts to
mobile phones and hence verification through a one-time password, like Twitter
is already offering to users, or linking it to Aadhaar, the passport or any new
foolproof methodology — (it’s) completely up to the intermediary (to decide),
said a second official. A Twitter account can be opened with a mobile phone
number or an email ID. But fake email IDs can be set up to open an account,
which means it’s not an infallible verification mechanism, the person said. The
government wants to balance the need to uphold privacy while ensuring
accountability. This doesn’t mean my name or picture has to necessarily be
linked to my account, said one of the persons. These details needn’t pop up each
time with my account, but there should be some way for law enforcement agencies
or at least for the platform to verify that I am who I claim to be. To
safeguard privacy, the data will stay with the intermediary, and law
enforcement agencies will seek account details only when a cybercrime takes
place or if there is a complaint of harassment. The officials said account
verification won’t be part of the intermediary guidelines that the government
aims to issue later this year. These guidelines seek to tighten accountability
rules for social media apps through proposed measures such as penalties and
jail terms for company executives for violations. The guidelines are likely to
include traceability of messages to pinpoint their origin, and securing consent
of users before they are added to chat groups. WhatsApp introduced a new
privacy feature on Wednesday that will require a user’s assent before he is
added to a chat group — a step that aligns with the latter requirement.
Mandatory verification will help check unacceptable behaviour and deter
needless trolling, said the first official. With the upcoming elections, we are
working with Indian political parties to verify candidates, elected officials,
and relevant party officials whose accounts will be active in the public
conversation, Twitter said. To be clear, the parties themselves select the
accounts for verification and then we review these accounts to ensure they meet
our verification standards. Twitter said the idea was to verify the accounts to
empower a healthy engagement during elections and ensure that public figures
are indeed who they claim to be.
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HIGHER LABOUR EXPENSES HIT MARGINS OF BULK TEA PRODUCERS IN
FY19: ICRA
Profit margins for bulk
tea players are estimated to be negatively impacted during FY2019, particularly
for the north Indian (Assam and West Bengal) tea producers, given the
significant increase in labour expenses, which has not been adequately
compensated by the increase in tea realisation, according to an ICRA report
released on Thursday. After the decline in NI production by around 20 million
kg (mkg) in December 2018, given the Tea Board of India’s directive to stop plucking
post mid-December, NI auction prices again witnessed an uptrend in recent
months. However, the impact of such a movement on cumulative average prices for
the entire FY2019 is going to be limited, owing to lower volumes in the last
quarter of the financial year. As a result, ICRA estimates the average NI
auction prices to be around Rs. 9/kg higher over the previous fiscal,
substantially lower than the estimated increase in the cost of production by
almost Rs 17/kg, following the wage rate increase announced in July 2018. Also,
while average auction prices in FY2019 are expected to increase by ~Rs. 9/kg,
the increase is not consistent across all categories of teas. Hence, the extent
of deterioration in operating profitability of individual players would depend
on factors like the quality segment that it operates in and its scale of bought
leaf operations. On the production front, the overall global tea production
witnessed an increase of 1.8% during CY2018, primarily because of a 12% growth
in Kenyan tea production. Given the huge increase in supplies, Kenyan auction
prices were negatively impacted, correcting by almost 13% during the year.
While in dollar terms, Indian export realisations remained muted, depreciation
of the rupee resulted in a 4% increase in the value of exports from India in
rupee terms to reach Rs. 51.3 billion in CY2018. Going forward, the ability to
increase export volumes at remunerative prices would be a key factor in
determining the overall supply-demand balance in the domestic tea industry.
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INDIA ALLOWS 650,000 T OF PULSE IMPORTS IN FY2020
India has issued a
combined 6,50,000 tonne import quota for pulses for the fiscal year to March
2020, a government order said, allowing overseas purchases of protein-rich
pulse varieties that are a staple of Indian cuisine. Two straight years of
drought pushed up pulse prices in 2015 and forced New Delhi to allow duty-free
imports. But record imports of 6.6 million tonnes in the 2016-17 fiscal year
led to a crash in local prices. As part of its efforts to curb imports, the
government started fixing import quotas in 2018. India is the world's biggest
producer and consumer of pulses, and mainly consumes varieties such as yellow
peas, green gram and chickpeas. Farmers in Russia, Canada, Australia and
Myanmar mainly rely on Indian demand.
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DELHI GOVT SAYS FEE HIKE BY PRIVATE SCHOOLS 'UNJUSTIFIED', NOT
RELATED TO 7TH PAY COMMISSION
The Delhi government made
it clear Thursday that unjustified fee hike by some private schools was not
related to the implementation of the seventh Pay Commission recommendations for
the teachers. Manish Sisodia said attempts are being made to create a false
impression by vested interests that the AAP government is against the
implementation of the Commission's recommendation, which is completely
baseless. On Wednesday, the Delhi High Court stayed the interim hike in fees by
private unaided schools in the city till April 8. The Delhi government had in 2017
allowed recognised unaided private schools on Delhi Development Authority (DDA)
land to increase their fees by 15 per cent as an interim measure to comply with
the seventh central pay commission (CPC) recommendations. There are 325 private
schools situated in the government land allotted by the DDA. Out of these, 260
schools had applied for fees hike, but 32 schools withdrew their applications. During
audit of accounts, it was found that nearly 150 schools had sufficient surplus
to implement seventh Pay Commission and were therefore denied permission to
hike the fees. Rest of the applications are under the process, he said. Sisodia
said the Delhi government recognises the important role of the private schools
in education in the city. The government is against extortion from the parents
by the private schools in the name of fees, he said. He also pointed out the
irony in hiring extremely expensive lawyers using the fees collected from the
students to fight against the legitimate interests of the students.
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VERIZON LAUNCHES 5G IN CHICAGO, MINNEAPOLIS AT $10 EXTRA COST
Verizon Communications Inc
beat rivals AT&T and Sprint in the race to launch the first
fifth-generation mobile services in two cities in the United States at an
additional cost of $10 for customers with existing unlimited plans. Users in
Chicago and Minneapolis will be able to avail the 5G wireless network from
April 11 by using a Motorola Z3 mobile and a 5G Moto Mod, a physical
magnet-like attachment for the phone, the telecommunications company said.
AT&T Corp and Sprint Corp are also building their 5G networks and plan to
release 5G smartphones with Samsung Electronics later this year.
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PM NARENDRA MODI MOST-SEARCHED POLITICIAN ON THE INTERNET,
RAHUL GANDHI FOLLOWS AT NUMBER 2
Prime Minister Narendra
Modi is the most popular politician in India in terms of online search with
7.24 million and 1.82 million searches for the year 2018 and 2019 respectively,
according to a new study. But the Indian National Congress (INC) managed to
steal the limelight after two years as the most searched political party during
December 2018, said the study by the US-based online visibility management
platform SEMrush. The results showed that Congress President Rahul Gandhi
emerged as the second most searched Indian politician on online platforms with
1.5 million searches in 2019. However, it is Congress General Secretary
Priyanka Gandhi who gained popularity most rapidly between 2018 and 2019.
Priyanka Gandhi registered a search volume of 1.22 million in 2019 in
comparison with a search volume of 701,000 in 2018. The results also revealed
Modi as the most active politician on Facebook with a record profile growth of
68.22 per cent between February 2019 and March 2019.
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SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT BY OPTIMAL HARNESSING OF SCARCE
RESOURCES
Green Urban Areas play an
important role in the social and natural sustainability and improve quality of
life. Durga Shanker Mishra stated that sustainable development by optimal
harnessing of scarce resources of water, air, energy, land, biodiversity and
use of new technologies, renewable energy, conservation of water, reuse of the
waste water, rainwater harvesting etc. are the need of the hour. He appreciated
CPWD for taking a lead role in adoption and dissemination of sustainable
development measures in its works in particular and in construction sector in
general. Prabhakar Singh, spoke about the achievements of CPWD in the recent
past, in terms of adoption of the sustainable development measures human
resource management, speedier and quality construction, adoption of new
technologies, completion of projects on time with quality and economy, adding
new clients, signing new MoUs and implementation of new policy initiatives for
the growth of Department with the support and guidance of the Ministry of
Housing and Urban Affairs.
FOLLOWING RECOMMENDATIONS
• Green Urban Areas play
an important role in the social and natural sustainability and improve quality
of life.
• Greenery and Dense
plantation have a major impact on the conservation of energy, and reduce the
energy requirement of the building.
• In order to maintain
sustainable environment, pollution free clean air, it is essential to take up
the plantation work.
• Cost of land has
increased manifold and high rise buildings are coming up, people are getting
hardly any area for the greenery. Keeping in view the same, plantation,
greenery and other environment friendly applications should be planned around
the building by way of dwarf trees, small shrubs, ground covers, hanging
baskets, creepers, etc.
• There is need to adopt
wood alternative in building construction. Use of alternate materials like
Bamboo needs to be encouraged.
• Orientation and proper
training should be imparted to the persons engaged in landscaping and
Horticulture, for implementation of the new technologies in this field to save
the labour and cost of the project in long run.
• Emphasis should be given
for conserving and transplanting indigenous and grown up trees.
• Herbal and medicinal
plants need to be encourage. Herbal plants are useful for keeping the life
healthy.
• Application of Organic
Manure needs to be adopted for healthy and nutritious food.
• Water conserving irrigation
method like drip irrigation, Sprinkler irrigation and pop up system needs to be
adopted.
• Plants and greenery help
in reducing adverse effects of climate change. Therefore every individual
should adopt minimum one tree.
• Green initiative needs to
be taken up on a mission mode by every nation, every city, every society and
every individual so that future generations may lead happy and healthy life.
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TEA EXPORTS FALL DURING JAN-FEB 2019
Country-wise tea exports
during the months of January and February this year fell to 41.60 million
kilograms from 44.72 million kilograms during the same period last year,
according to Tea Board data. Exports to CIS countries during the first two
month period of 2019 fell to 9.20 million kilograms from 11.36 million
kilograms in same period of 2018. Exports to Iran during the period touched
11.37 million kilograms during the first two months of 2019, a rise from 5.13
million kilograms in the same period of 2018, it said. Exports to Pakistan fell
marginally to 2.35 million kilograms during the period in 2019, from 2.68
million kilograms in the same period of 2018. Value of exports during the
two-month period of 2019 increased to Rs 934.08 crore, as compared to Rs 858.47
crore in the same period of 2018. Unit price per kilogram during the period
increased to Rs 224.34 per kilogram in 2019 as compared to Rs 191.97 per
kilogram in the same period 2018. During the 11-month period from April 2018 to
February 2019, country-wise exports stood at Rs 231.75 million kilograms, as
compared to 236.07 million kilograms in the same period from April 2017 to
February 2018. Value of exports during the 11-month period from April 2018 to
February 2019 stood at Rs 4993.07 crore, lower from Rs 4676.03 crore in the
similar period from April 2017 to February 2018. Unit price per kilogram during
the 11-month period from April 2018 to February 2019 was higher at Rs 215.45
from Rs 198.08 in the similar period from April 2017 to February 2018.
__ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
SHARAD PAWAR DELIVERS A STERN WARNING: DON'T MESS WITH ME
In a veiled attack on
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, NCP chief Sharad Pawar Thursday said he does not
mess with anyone on his own, but shows the place to someone who does so. Pawar
also accused Modi of seeking political mileage out of the valour shown by
security forces post the Pulwama terror attack as the recrimination between the
two leaders continued in the amidst of Lok Sabha election campaign marked by
bitterness and acrimony. Modi had alleged Nationalist Congress Party (NCP)
leaders were unable to sleep as their sleep was jailed in Delhi's Tihar. At
another public meeting at Wardha Monday, the prime minister had attacked Pawar,
saying the veteran leader has lost grip over his party and that a family feud
had struck it. Pawar sought to return fire, making uncharacteristically strong
remarks apparently targeted at Modi. We hail from the soil where Chhatrapati
Shivaji Maharaj was born. We don't mess with anyone on our own, but show the
place if someone does so, Pawar said. Pawar said Modi asks what he had done
during his tenure as the Defence Minister. The present prime minister uses
valour shown by security forces for his campaigning. This government has been
unable to ensure even the release of Kulbhushan Jadhav. Where has the 56-inch
chest gone? asked Pawar.
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VEDANTA WORKING WITH AUTHORITIES ON LANJIGARH INCIDENT, SAYS
CEO
Vedanta Ltd has said it is
working with authorities that are investigating the incident at its Lanjigarh
alumina refinery in Odisha in which two persons were killed during a protest
outside the facility A security person was burnt to death by a mob and a
protestor was killed in clashes near the Vedanta alumina refinery after locals
demanding jobs tried to storm its premises last month. The mining major has
also urged protestors to engage with the company on the issues that they are
concerned about through existing channels. We are saddened by the recent
unfortunate incident at Lanjigarh, following a protest outside the plant, in
which a protestor and a member of the Odisha Industrial Security Force were
fatally injured. We have extended our sincere condolences and support to their
families and are working with the authorities who are investigating the
incident, company's CEO Srinivasan Venkatakrishnan said. We have appealed to
the protestors to engage with the company on the issues that they are concerned
about through channels that already exist, and we have committed our full
participation through these channels, the CEO said. The incident took place
when locals were staging a demonstration near the refinery demanding jobs and
other facilities, according to the police.
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EU ACCUSES BMW, DAIMLER AND VW OF BREAKING ANTITRUST RULES
The European Union warned
German car giants BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen on Friday that a preliminary
inquiry has concluded they colluded to avoid competing on emission control
technology. Already reeling in the wake of the devastating dieselgate emissions
cheating scandal that broke in 2015, the German carmakers will have to respond
to the EU's findings which could result in stiff penalties if the European
Commission decides to pursue a cartel case against them. Volkswagen's admission
to manipulating 11 million vehicles worldwide to appear less polluting
unleashed a wave of anger at the auto industry, and the Commission launched an
in-depth cartel investigation into the three companies. On Thursday the
Commission said it has concluded that BMW, Daimler and the VW group --
Volkswagen, Audi and Porsche -- held so-called circle of five meetings to rig
competition in emissions technology. As a result, European consumers may have
been denied the opportunity to buy cars with the best available technology. The
three manufacturers now have an opportunity to respond to our findings, EU
competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager said. if the Commission finds there
is sufficient evidence of an infringement, it can adopt a decision prohibiting
the conduct and imposing a fine of up to 10 percent of a company's annual
worldwide turnover. The Commission's statement said the investigation was
limited to an alleged violation of competition law and is not about possible
breaches of environmental legislation. The Commission can impose heavy fine on
companies that make agreements among themselves to the detriment of customers,
while those that come forward and disclose cartels often get off without a
fine. Its biggest-ever fine of 2.93 billion euros was handed to Europe's top
truckmakers -- including Daimler -- in 2016 for colluding over 14 years to fix
prices and dodge the costs of stricter pollution rules.
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UK TO HOLD SOCIAL MEDIA BOSSES LIABLE FOR HARMFUL CONTENT:
REPORT
Britain will make social
media executives personally liable for harmful content published on their
platforms, a leaked government proposal said Friday. The UK government is due
to unveil as early as Monday a policy paper outlining ways to fight everything
from online hate speech to election interference and manipulation attempts. The
issue gained added urgency with Facebook's failure to immediately halt
livestreams of a March 15 attack by a self-avowed white supremacist on two
mosques in New Zealand that killed 50 people. The Guardian newspaper said the
UK government's white paper outlining its social media oversight proposals
would be published Monday after months of delays. The initial implementation
phase would probably be overseen by Britain's Ofcom media regulator, with a
separate independent oversight body created down the line, The Guardian said.
The report added that the regulator would have the power to impose substantial
fines.
#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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