Daily News Notes: 12th March, 2012

· Shri Anand Sharma, the union Minister of Commerce, Industry & Textiles inaugurated the 27th edition of AAHAR International Food & Hospitality Fair. He said that “India’s food market is estimated at over US $ 182 billion, accounting for about two third of the total retail market. The per capita packaged snack food consumption may be low in India presently but is growing, hence there is a huge market waiting to be tapped.” He informed the gathering that, Basmati Rice is the single largest export product in our agri-export basket and it has an acknowledged brand value in the world. AAHAR offers two independent platforms -- Food India and Hospitality India. Being the biggest food industry exposition in the South-Asian region, AAHAR now has also emerged as an important destination on the itinerary of businesspersons and trade visitors of this sector. India has the second largest area of arable land in the world, the world’s second largest producer of food (after China), ranks 1st in production of milk (accounting for over 15% of global milk production), third in food grains production.
· More than one-third of the candidates elected (35%) in the just concluded Assembly polls in five States have criminal cases registered against them (a rise of 8% from 2007), with Uttar Pradesh topping the list. Also, 66 per cent of the newly elected MLAs are ‘crorepatis' (a rise of 32%), according to an analysis of affidavits the candidates had submitted to the Election Commission. According to the analysis, 47 per cent new MLAs in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly have declared criminal cases against them, compared to 34 per cent in the 2007 Assembly. Manipur is the only State where not a single elected candidate declared any pending criminal cases against him or her. However, the new Assembly witnessed a sharp rise among wealthy MLAs, with 16 have declared assets worth more than Rs. 1 crore. In 2007 Assembly, there was only one MLA who was a crorepati.
· Union Minister for Rural Development, Drinking Water and Sanitation Jairam Ramesh announced a national award for sanitation and water in the name of Maharashtrian saint Sant Gadge Baba, who strove towards service to society through cleanliness. Maharashtra's Sant Gadge Baba Swachta Abhiyan (cleanliness scheme) encourages villages to be open defecation-free, and such villages are awarded through the Nirmal Gram Yojana. Mr. Ramesh said: “Out of the 25 lakh villages in India, 25,000 are open defecation-free”.
· The hot new financial payments services, such as mobile wallets and e-wallets, could be completely opened to foreign investors but with stiff riders to safeguard stability of country’s financial markets. Telecom major Bharti and handset maker Nokia and a number of retailers have already launched stored value cards. A user can load cash on these cards that can be used to make various payments, obviating the need to carry large amount of cash. The Reserve Bank of India has already given its conditional nod to the finance ministry’s proposal to allow 100% foreign direct investment (FDI) through the automatic route in these payment services, but experts say the conditions are cumbersome. The department of industrial policy and promotion will operationalise the policy by creating a separate category of financial services, payment system activities by non-banks, under the list of activities allowed to NBFCs that have FDI, the official said. These services will include prepaid payment instruments, mobile wallet, e-wallet and technology infrastructure for supporting retail payment systems for credit or debit cards and prepaid payment instruments. These services do not require huge capital and the RBI guidelines under Payment and Settlements Act, 2007 does not mandate it either.
· West Bengal Chief minister laid the foundation stone of the international financial hub in New Town, Rajarhat. Once fully operational, the facility will connect to other financial hubs at London, Singapore and Dubai. Incidentally, this is the second time that a financial hub has been proposed. In October 2010, Pranab Mukherjee had laid the foundation stone for the project in the presence of then chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee. But the entire project was dropped when the new government was sworn in. Pointing to the hub’s new strategic location, given its proximity to both the airport and the IT hub at Salt Lake Sector, CM said the facility comprising financial institutions, bourses and insurance companies would generate employment for around 2 lakh professionals when completed. The CM also said New Town had the potential to attract investments of over Rs 1,60,000 crore in residential and commercial projects. Only big financial houses with annual turnover in excess of Rs 500 crore are invited to set up offices here. If the financial hub does come up as projected, it will become the second such facility in the country after Bandra Kurla in Mumbai.
· The Government today lifted the ban on export of cotton. Mr. Anand Sharma’s ministry had to reverse its stand in less than a week following intense behind-the-scene pressure from the Congress itself and public outbursts by agriculture minister Sharad Pawar and Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi (China factor).
· India and Colombia here today signed a Cultural Exchange Programme (CEP) for the Years 2012-2016. The CEP was signed in conformity with the provision established in the Cultural Agreement between the Government of the Republic of India and the Government of the Republic of Colombia, signed in Bogota on 22 May 1974. The CEP covers areas such as Cultural Heritage, Museums, Archives, Exhibitions, Scenic Arts, Visual Arts, Cinematography, Radio and Television, Music, Libraries, Book and Literature, Creative Industries and Editorial Industry for cooperation.
· The wait for 40 Indian prisoners in a Colombo jail continues, even as some fellow foreigners in prison, notably from Pakistan, could head home in the next few weeks. The fate of the Indian prisoners is caught up in procedure in New Delhi, whereas the case of the 20 Pakistani prisoners is being processed by its Interior Ministry in Islamabad. There is a legal framework too, for this: the Agreement on Transfer of Sentenced Prisoners. This was signed between the Indian and Sri Lankan governments in 2010. Ever since, the Indian High Commission in Sri Lanka has been working on prisoner swap on a priority basis.
· International Glaucoma Day is being observed across the world today to raise awareness about the prevalence of glaucoma, often referred to as a silent eye disease. This year the theme is- "Don't let glaucoma darken your life! .Glaucoma, the second most common cause of blindness in the world, is an eye disease that causes progressive damage to the optic nerve at the point where it leaves the eye to deliver information to the brain.