Daily News Notes: 19th March, 2012

· The Prime Minister informed that he has received the resignation of Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi and will forward it to the President. Earlier, Opposition members gave a notice to suspend the question hour on the issue of Railway Minister's resignation. The Speaker rejected the notices and said that there is no such rule.
· Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Minister said that his Ministry has been implementing a number of schemes in the country in which holistic development of women are considered in all schemes. However, special dispensation is provided for women under the Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP), which is a credit linked subsidy programme for providing assistance including margin money subsidy to unemployed persons for setting up micro-enterprises in the non-farm sector. For general category the margin money subsidy is 25% and 15% in rural and urban areas respectively, but for women (and others in the special category) this is 35% and 25% respectively. Shri Virbhadra Singh explained that the Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP) is a major credit-linked subsidy programme being implemented by the Ministry of MSME aimed at generating self-employment opportunities through establishment of micro-enterprises in the non-farm sector.
· Commerce Minister said that in spite of the uncertainty in the global environment, the recovery from India was much faster than many other countries in the world. He admitted that global economic crisis, the sovereign debt crisis in Europe and the economic slowdown in developed economies, has adversely impacted demand for our exports. Further, the trade deficit during the current year has been the highest compared to the previous years as imports have been growing, both because of higher prices of importable and increased demand. The international prices of petroleum, fertilizers, gold and edible oil have increased. Their demand has also increased. These lead to a higher value of imports.
· The Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution have announced the annual awards and commendation certificates for the seventeenth prestigious Rajiv Gandhi National Quality Awards for the year 2010. The Best of All Awards has been won by Vikram Cement Works (A unit of Ultratech Cement Limited), Khor, Madhya Pradesh. The awards, given annually, were instituted by the Bureau of Indian Standards in the year 1991 with a view to encouraging Indian manufacturing and service organizations to strive for excellence and giving special recognition to those, who are considered to be the leaders of quality movement in India.
· The Reserve Bank of India, RBI today fixed the reference rate for the US dollar at 50.12 and the euro at 66, as against 50.31 per dollar and 65.82 per euro yesterday. The exchange rates for the pound and yen against the rupee were quoted at 79.37 per pound and 60.12 per 100 yen respectively, based on reference rates for the US dollar and cross-currency quotes at noon. A reference rate is a rate that determines pay-offs in a financial contract and that is outside the control of the parties to the contract.
· India’s missile power is set to get a boost with a surface-to-air missile unit ready to come up at a cost of Rs 30,000 crore (project cost would be allocated in the 12th and 13th Plan) at Ibrahimpatnam in Andhra Pradesh’s Rangareddy district. The project has been undertaken by Bharat Dynamics Ltd (BDL) and will be ready in three years. Once ready, an estimated 6,000 missiles are expected to be produced at the unit. Project developer BDL’s turnover is also expected to go up from Rs 1,000 crore to Rs 5,000 crore once production begins at the unit. The new unit will also help create 1,000 officer-level jobs. Manpower from educational institutions should be churned out as per industry requirements to enable the local population to benefit from the project and find employment at the unit.
· Minister of Defence Shri AK Antony informed that establishment and/or augmentation of military base in Union Territory of Lakshadweep is based on analysis and assessment of the threat perception to coastal security and merchant shipping, as well as requirement from strategic perspective. He said that this is an ongoing and continuous process and presently a naval detachment is operational at Kavarathi Island.
· Lok Sabha today congratulated Cricket player Sachin Tendulkar on his completion of 100th century in the International cricket. The House also extended its facilitation to Saina Nehwal on winning the Swiss Open Badminton Tournament in Basel (defeating Shixian Wang of China).
· Minister of State for Commerce and Industry informed that the Government has withdrawn Duty Entitlement Pass Book (DEPB) Scheme with effect from 1.10.2011. It was decided that revised duty drawback rates are extended to items which were in the DEPB Scheme. The Duty Drawback Scheme, which was announced for the year 2011-12 has 1096 new items. Government has received requests from various industries for extension of DEPB Scheme. The decision to phase out DEPB has not been reconsidered. He also informed that the Import of Melamine is free under Exim Code Classification. However, due to concerns regarding melamine contamination in milk and milk products from China, on the recommendation from Food Safety and Standard Authority of India, the Government has prohibited import of milk and milk products including chocolate and chocolate products and candies / confectionery / food preparations with milk or milk solids as ingredient, from China. Further, import of toys has been made subject to meeting the specified technical and safety standards.
· According to the survey conducted by the National Sample Survey Organization (NSSO) in 2004-05, the total employment in both the organized and the unorganized sectors in the country was 45.9 crore, of which 43.3 crore (about 94%) were in the unorganized sector. In Chhattisgarh State, the number of unorganised workers was 1.05 crore. Recognizing the need to provide social security to unorganised workers, the Government has enacted the Unorganised Workers’ Social Security Act 2008. The Act provides for constitution of National Social Security Board at the Central level which shall recommend formulation of social security schemes. Similar Social Security Boards shall be constituted at the State Level also. The Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY) was launched on 01.10.2007 to provide smart card based cashless health insurance cover of Rs. 30000 to BPL families (a unit of five) in the unorganized sector. The RSBY has received good response from the States as the Surveys conducted so far has indicated beneficiary satisfaction ratio ranging from 77% to 92%. The Government has launched the Aam Admi Bima Yojana (AABY) to provide insurance against death and disability to landless rural households. Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension scheme (IGNOAPS) was expanded by revising the eligibility criteria. The persons living below poverty line and above the age of 60 year are eligible for old age pension of Rs. 200 per month. For persons above the age of 80 years the amount of pension has been raised to Rs. 500 per month.
·Minister of Labour and Employment informed that the Government launched a National Skill Development Mission in the Eleventh Five Year Plan with a following three tier structure: (i) Prime Minister’s National Council on Skill Development under the chairmanship of Hon’ble Prime Minister, for policy direction and review of skill development efforts in the country. (ii) National Skill Development Coordination Board (NSDCB) under the chairmanship of Deputy Chairman Planning Commission to enumerate strategies to implement the decisions of PM’s council. (iii) National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC), a not-for-profit company under the Companies Act, 1956. The corporation is being funded by the trust “National Skill Development Fund”. Till 29^th February, 2012 NSDC has approved 52 proposals. He further informed that certain amendments to Child Labour (Prohibition & Regulation) Act, including the proposal to ban all form of child labour upto the age of 14 years are under consideration of the Government. Carpet weaving, handloom, zari etc. are already included in the list of 18 occupations and 65 processes where children below 14 years are prohibited from working.
· Minister of New and Renewable Energy informed that the total installed capacity of grid connected solar power in the country is reported to be 503.9 MW so far. The capacity addition during years 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2011-12 is 8.1 MW, 25.1 MW and 468.3 MW, respectively. The solar power projects are installed on build, own and operate basis, and the solar project developer is paid solar tariff for the power injected into the grid. On the issue of energy addition, he said that 11th Plan target of 78,700 MW was revised to 62,374 MW during Mid-term Appraisal of the plan by Planning Commission. The reasons for scaling down the target included delay in placement orders for main plant and civil works, contractual disputes between project developers and the contractors /vendors, delay in land acquisition, environmental concerns, flash flood and difficult climatic conditions. With this capacity addition target during 11th Plan the Installed Capacity of the country excluding renewable energy sources was expected to be about 2,00,000 MW. The present Installed Capacity of the country as on 29.02.2012 is 1,90,593 MW comprising 38,848 MW from Hydro, 1,24,731 MW from Thermal, 4780 MW from Nuclear and 22,233 MW from Renewable Energy Sources. As far as capacity addition through renewable energy, during current 11th plan period, the target of 12, 380 MW has been achieved. Meanwhile, Power Utilities have reported a generation loss of 8.7 Billion Unit due to shortage of coal during the period April, 2011 to February, 2012.
· Minister of State for Mines informed that the Geological Survey of India is proposing to undertake fresh surveys in the country to identify and tap the potential of new mineral rich areas for mineral commodities like gold, diamond & precious stones, base metal, Platinum Group of Elements, Rare Earth Elements, iron, manganese, chromite, molybdenum, tin, tungsten, bauxite and coal & lignite within the Obvious Geological Potential domain and in extension areas of identified mineral belts in freehold areas during the XII plan period (2012-17).
· The Government proposes to set up National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) and National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT). Provisions have been incorporated in the Companies Bill, 2011. The establishment of NCLT and NCLAT as specialized Quasi-Judicial Bodies with professional approach will have the following beneficial effects: (i) reduce pendency of winding up cases and shorten the period of winding-up process; (ii) avoid multiplicity and levels of litigation before High Courts and quasi-judicial Authorities like Company Law Board (CLB), Board for Industrial and Financial Reconstruction (BIFR) and Appellate Authority for Industrial and Financial Reconstruction (AAIFR) as all such matters will then be heard and decided by NCLT; (iii) the appellate procedure will be streamlined with an appeal against order of the NCLT lying before NCLAT and with further appeal against the order of NCLAT lying with the Supreme Court only on points of law, thereby reducing the delay in appeals; and (iv) the burden on High Courts will be reduced and BIFR and AAIFR will be dissolved.
· The government is holding discussions with state governments and other stakeholders on the National Food Security Bill, which aims at providing legal entitlements to food grains and meals to the targeted population. The Food Security Bill which was introduced in Parliament in December last year, has been referred to the Standing Committee on Food and Consumer Affairs, for examination. As per provisions of the Food Security Bill and using the 2011 census on population, the requirement of food grains for Targeted Public Distribution System and other welfare schemes prescribed in the Bill is estimated at 60.74 million tons. The stock of food grains available in the Central Pool as on 1st of March 2012, is 54.43 million tones.
· The Minister of State for Environment & Forests informed that wildlife Institute of India carried out a survey for identifying potential sites for relocation of Asiatic lions to alternative areas outside Gir, Gujarat. Three sites, namely Darrah Wildlife Sanctuary, JawaharSagar Sanctuary, and Sitamata Wildlife Sanctuary in Rajasthan and Kuno-Palpur Sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh were identified for lion introduction. Out of these four, Kuno-Palpur Sanctuary was found to be the most suitable site on account of its area, shape and vegetation. She further informed that the European Union (EU) has included emissions from international civil aviation in their emissions trading scheme with effect from January 1, 2012, following which all airlines including Indian Airlines, flying into and out of EU will be subject to a limit on emissions and will have to buy emissions permits up to a certain limit. India considers the step taken by EU as a unilateral measure and in violation of the Chicago Convention and the provisions of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). India is also a party to the joint declarations issued in Delhi and Moscow by a group of like-minded member states of International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) that are opposed to the EU’s decision.
· The government has said that a Group of Ministers (GoM) was constituted to examine the Press Council of India's report on Paid News. The GoM will also give views on a comprehensive policy to address the phenomenon of Paid News. Information and Broadcasting Minister informed that the major recommendations made by the PCI in its report include that the Press Council of India must be fully empowered to adjudicate the complaints of paid news, to give final judgment in the matter. She also said, Press council Act should be amended to make its recommendations binding and electronic media should be brought under its purview. The report has also suggested various other measures to curb the menace of paid news, which includes setting up of a special cell in Election Commission. The Minister informed that the Election Commission has also constituted a Committee at its own level to examine references from state level Media Certification and Monitoring Committees to look into issues related to paid news.
· The High Level Committee constituted by the Planning Commission has recommended that PSUs of the Central and State Governments be treated at par with private sector companies in grant of mineral concessions, and reservation provisions for PSUs for exploration and mining should be modified so as to limit the scope of such reservation to meet the requirements of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) for raw material. The Government has introduced a draft Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Bill 2011 in Lok Sabha on 12th December 2011, presently referred to the Standing committee on Coal and Steel, which provides for reservation of mineral bearing areas for purpose of conservation, and giving weightage in grant of prospecting licence or mining lease in notified area to such applicants who have committed ore linkage through long term agreements with domestic industry (including SMEs).
· The Centre has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with four more states to strengthen state statistical systems by providing adequate technical and financial support. These states include Jharkhand, Mizoram, Sikkim and Lakshadweep. The agreement has been signed under the Indian Statistical Strengthening Project, ISSP, for the states. ISSP is necessary for collecting and disseminating reliable official statistics to meet the increasing data requirements for policy and programme formulation and implementation at the state level. It has also aimed to improve the management and coordination of statistical activities, conducting surveys and studies and improving statistical operations in the country.
· Minister of State for Water Resources has informed that the Ministry of Water Resources had formulated a National Perspective Plan (NPP) for Water Resources Development as early as 1980 envisaging inter-basin transfer of water from surplus basins to deficit basins/areas which comprises two components, namely, Himalayan Rivers Development Component and Peninsular Rivers Development Component. The National Water Development Agency (NWDA) was set up under the Ministry of Irrigation in 1982 for carrying out various technical studies to establish the feasibility of the proposals of NPP and to give concrete shape to it. Five Peninsular links namely (i) Ken – Betwa, (ii) Parbati – Kalisindh – Chambal, (iii) Damanganga – Pinjal, (iv) Par – Tapi – Narmada & (v) Godavari (Polavaram) - Krishna (Vijayawada) have been identified as priority links for taking up their Detailed Project Reports (DPRs).
· Two officials of External Affairs Ministry are likely to go to Norway on the directions of External Affairs Minister ahead of the hearing on the custody row involving two NRI children in that country. The Norwegian agency claimed emotional disconnect with the parents, and placed children in foster parental care. Under an agreement arrived at last month following an eight month-long custody row, Abhigyan and his sister Aishwarya will be given to their uncle so that they could return to India and be brought up in an extended family.
· Confidential details of “millions” of Britons are being “stolen” by “corrupt” staff at call centres in India and sold to fraudsters for a “tuppence,” a British newspaper has claimed. The information allegedly included names, addresses, phone numbers and credit card details down to the “start and expiry dates” and three-digit security verification numbers. Details relating to mortgages, loans, insurance, and mobile phone contracts were also on offer, according to the newspaper. This is not the first time that such an allegation has been made. Several British companies have stopped outsourcing customer services to India and proudly advertise, “All our call centres are based in the U.K.” The Indian authorities, it said, claimed that their efforts to investigate were “stymied” as companies – anxious to avoid negative publicity — did not report data theft.
· Britain is preparing to end its aid programme to a booming India and is unlikely to renew its commitment after 2015, a media report said. Andrew Mitchell, the international development secretary, has made it clear that his department’s £1.6 billion programme for the former colony is in its final phases and will be wound up as the Indian economy booms and its own efforts to alleviate poverty become increasingly effective, according to the British press. At present the government has publicly committed to funding aid programmes in India until 2015.
· A group of anti-nuclear activists from across Asia (such as Japan, Thailand and Taiwan) gathered in Seoul today to voice their opposition to the Nuclear Security Summit to be held there on 26th and 27th of this month and thus calls for a nuclear free world. The upcoming Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul is expected to draw about 50 world leaders, including U.S. President Barack Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao.
· Switzerland’s Roger Federer has bagged the Men’s Singles (defeated John Isner of the United States) and Victoria Azarenka of Belarus has won the Women’s Singles title (defeated Russia’s Maria Sharapova) in the BNP Paribas Open tennis tournament at the Indian Wells in California. Meanwhile, the Spanish duo of Rafael Nadal and Marz Lopez has claimed the Men’s Doubles title.