{DNN} Daily News Notes: 1st Nov, 2012

· The Union Cabinet decided to withdraw controversial draft amendments in the Right to Information Act, which had sought to restrict disclosure of file noting only to social and developmental issues. All file noting can be made public except those explicitly exempted, such as the ones related to national security, privacy and protection of commercial interest. Earlier, the Cabinet had approved the amendments in 2006 and did not make it to the Parliament because of the opposition.
· Speaking on the occasion of the 73rd anniversary of the CRPF Home Minister said that his Ministry will propose to the government to extend ex-servicemen facilities as in the Army, to the personnel of Central Armed Police forces. Terming Naxalism as the most serious challenge, he asked the common people, especially, in tribal areas to join hands with the government to tackle the menace and work towards development.
· In Madhya Pradesh, the state High Court has dismissed a petition challenging the closure report filed by Lokayukta in the dumper scam case involving chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and his wife. Petitioner had alleged that in order to benefit Shivraj Singh Chouhan and his wife Sadhna Singh, JP Associates purchased dumpers in the name of Mr. Chouhan's wife and deployed them in the services of their own company on rental basis. Calling the petition as baseless, a division bench of the High Court said the closure report had been filed after the approval of state Lokayukta and it was accepted by the special court. Therefore, it was not proper to demand CBI probe without solid grounds.
· Putting brakes on the Centre’s cable TV digitization plan, the Madras high court extended the deadline in Chennai from October 31 to November 5. In Chennai, where only 62 per cent of cable TV households have installed set top boxes, the Madras High Court has taken a more lenient view, accepting the Chennai Metro Cable Operators Association’s petition. The petition, noting that repeated requests for extension of the deadline was not acceded to by the Centre, claimed that in Chennai only 1.64 lakh homes had Set Top Boxes (STB) and more than 30 lakh homes would go blank from November 1 if the deadline was not extended. The petition also said that which said there was not enough Set Top Boxes (STB) to be distributed to all households. However, the petitioners wanted the court to stay total implementation of the digital access system (DAS) in Chennai until the corresponding infrastructure is made available. Under the Centre’s proposal, implementation of DAS was to be completed in Delhi, Kolkatta, Mumbai and Chennai by October 31. Ever since the policy was unveiled in January 2011, the deadline had been extended thrice. [click here for Infographic]
· Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh are celebrating its 57th Rajyotsava or State formation day today (1st Nov, 2012). The Karnataka State government announced Rajyotsava Awards for this year to 57 personalities and 7 organisations to recognise them for their contribution towards the growth of Kannada language and people.
· The Union Minister of Steel has said that the Per capita steel consumption in the country has risen from 38 kg to 59 kg. Chairing the meeting of the Parliamentary Consultative Committee attached to his Ministry, he said that India would soon become the second largest manufacturer of steel in the world. The Minister stressed on the importance of conserving raw material resources in the country and elaborated on the measures taken by the Government. He added that export duty on Iron Ore has been increased to 30% to curb exports of Iron Ore. He further elaborated that the Government is stressing on R&D in the areas of beneficiation, pelletization etc. He also informed that for promotion of steel sector ‘National Steel Vision’ is being finalized. The Minister also told the members that a Steel Innovation Committee has been formed in the Ministry for promotion of innovative ideas in the steel sector.
· The National Innovation Council will present its second Annual ‘Report to the People 2012’ to the President of India Shri Pranab Mukherjee at the Rashtrapati Bhavan tomorrow (November 2, 2012). The Report will be presented by the Chairman of the National Innovation Council and Adviser to the Prime Minister, Shri Sam Pitroda. Mr. Sam Pitroda will also host the first global press conference on Twitter to discuss ‘Global Innovation Roundtable’. The National Innovation Council was set up by the Prime Minister of India to lay a roadmap for transforming the country into an innovation nation, with a focus on inclusive growth in keeping with the Government’s commitment of turning the next decade into a ‘Decade of Innovation’. The National Innovation Council is focused on encouraging and facilitating the creation of an Indian Model of Innovation by looking at five key parameters: Platform, Inclusion, Eco-system, Drivers and Discourse. The core idea is to innovate to produce affordable and qualitative solutions that address the needs of people at the Bottom of the Pyramid, eliminate disparity and focus on an inclusive growth model. National Innovation Council's initiatives are also aimed at fostering an innovation ecosystem across domains and sectors to strengthen entrepreneurship and growth, to facilitate the birth of new ideas and enhance collaboration.
· The Union Cabinet approved the Amendment to the Building and Other Construction Workers (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996 [BOCW (RECS) Act] and Building and Other Construction Workers’ Welfare Cess Act, 1996 [BOCW (Welfare Cess) Act] and the introduction of the Building and Other Construction Workers Related Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2012 in Parliament in its ensuing session. This amendment will streamline the process of the registration of the construction workers. The State Welfare Boards will be able to consolidate their finances and incur expenditure on administrative and other purpose for smooth functioning of the Board. BOCW (RECS) Act, 1996 and BOCW (Welfare Cess) Act, 1996 were enacted with a view to regularizing the wages, working conditions, safety and for their health, welfare measures, etc. The Acts apply to every establishment which employs 10 or more workers. The major source of the fund to the Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board is the collection of cess at the rate of one percent of the const of construction incurred by the employer under the BOCW (Welfare Cess) Act, 1996. The fund has to be utilized for the welfare of such workers. Central Government is the implementing agency in the central sphere for the purpose of enforcement of various provisions of the Act, while States are the implementing authority under State sphere.
· In the interest of common consumer, from today onwards 19 commodities of day- to-day use, like bread biscuits, tea etc. can be sold in specified standard packs only. Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution had issued a notice on June 5, 2012 in this regard by amending Legal Metrological (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 2011. Manufacture, packing or import of these 19 commodities in non-standard packs will invite penal action. However non-standard packs which have already been manufactured and packed on or before 31st October, 2012 and are ready for sale in different retail outlets, have been exempted from penal action. These 19 commodities and their specified packaging standards are as follows: [1.] Baby food; [2.] Weaning food; [3.] Biscuits; [4.] Bread including brown bread but excluding bun; [5.] Un-canned packages of butter and margarine; [6.] Cereals and Pulses; [7.] Coffee; [8.] Tea; [9.] Materials which may be constituted or reconstituted as beverages; [10.] Edible Oils Vanaspati, ghee, butter oil; [11.] Milk Powder; [12.] Non-soapy detergents (powder); [13.] Rice(powdered), flour, atta, rawa and suji; [14.] Salt; [15.] Soaps; [16.] Aerated soft drinks, non-alcoholic beverages; [17.] Mineral water and drinking water; [18.] Cement in bags; [19.] Paint varnish etc.
· Once an exemplar of financial soundness, Maharashtra now has the dubious distinction of being the most debt-ridden state in the country. Maharashtra, which has a total debt burden of Rs 2,530.85 billion (or Rs 2.53 lakh crore) is followed by Uttar Pradesh Rs 2,445.1 billion, West Bengal Rs 2,115.0 billion, Andhra Pradesh Rs 1,538 billion, Tamil Nadu Rs 1,325 billion and Karnataka Rs 1,017 billion. A bureaucrat felt it was high time the state government took immediate measures to reduce its massive expenditure on the salaries of 20 lakh-odd employees (Rs 48,000 crore), pension (Rs 1,10,00 crore) and interest on loans (Rs 1,8000 crore). Significantly, senior Congress and NCP cabinet members have always blamed the five year Sena-BJP rule between 1995 and 1999 for the mounting state debt. The debt burden in 1995 was Rs 21,000 crore, which increased to Rs 44,200 crore in a brief span of four years. Now 13 years later, it appears that instead of taking corrective measures, the policies and plans drafted by the Congress-NCP government have resulted in the highest-ever debt burden. [Click here for Infographic]
· Reflecting an apparent disconnect with the government, the Reserve Bank continued its cautious stance, refusing to lower interest rates, disappointing finance minister P Chidambaram and the industry, while it brought down the cash reserve ratio by 0.25% to inject Rs 17,500 crore. “Managing inflation and inflationary expectations remains the primary focus of the monetary policy,” RBI governor D Subbarao said while unveiling the second quarter policy review. He said that persistently high inflation remained a “key challenge” and growth had slid. A disappointed Chidambaram said, “Growth is as much a challenge as inflation. If the government has to walk alone to face the challenge of growth, then we will walk alone. Sometimes, it is best to speak. Sometimes, it is best to be silent. This is the time for silence,” he said. [Click here for Infographic]
· After a month-long impasse, riddled with complaints of violence, cargo handling firm Haldia Bulk Terminals (HBT) announced that it was quitting Haldia port because of unsafe work conditions. The immediate trigger for the pullout seems to have been the alleged abduction of three of its officials around midnight on Monday. “The economy of Bengal has once again been denied the opportunity of growth, modernisation and development. Indian and foreign investors will succeed in finding other locations which are investor-friendly and conducive for business. Sooner rather than later, Bengal will have to choose to make itself attractive and viable for investors, otherwise progress will continue to elude the state.”
· The Union Minister of Commerce Industry and Textiles (Anand Sharma) has said that India and Germany will achieve the trade target of Euro 20 billion (USD 26.16 billion) this year. The trade between the two countries stood at USD 23.566 in 2011. Both the Commerce Ministers of their respective country have also reviewed the progress of India EU BTIA and expressed the desire that it a balanced and ambitious agreement be reached soon. The Chief negotiators are meeting in Brussels on 8th November and a delegation is coming to this month to pursue the issue of declaring India Data Secure which is an important demand from Indian side. Dr Roseler (German Minister) underlined the concerns of their Pharmaceutical industry in the wake of granting of compulsory licence of a cancer medicine to NATCO recently. Shri Sharma assured the visiting Minister that India’s action was well within the parameters of TRIPS commitments and the flexibility of compulsory licensing has been used more than 50 times by the developed countries while this was the first time India resorted to this. In 2011 Indian export to Germany stood at USD 8.25 billion and import were USD 15.31 billion. FDI inflows from Germany into India is around US$ 4.9 billion and it ranks 8th among investors in India. FDI flow from India into Germany is US $ 5.9 billion in 2011.
· The Union Minister for Commerce, Industry and Textiles expressed confidence that a target of USD 7 billion for bilateral trade between India and Vietnam can be achieved by 2015, if the present rates of growth of trade are maintained. “With the implementation of India-ASEAN FTA by India and Vietnam since 1st June 2010, bilateral trade would maintain the present growth momentum and would achieve the target.” The bilateral trade between India and Vietnam was USD 3.451 billion in 2010, which rose to USD 5.017 billion in 2011. Highlighting the fact that the signing of the India-ASEAN Free Trade Agreement is a landmark in the bilateral relations with the ASEAN countries and the ‘Look East’ policy, Shri Sharma was confident that FTA will further strengthen the bilateral relationship between the two countries. Shri Sharma also expressed the keenness of the Indian banks to open their branches in Vietnam, which in turn will facilitate increased trade and investment between both the countries. Shri Sharma also raised problems related to land acquisition issues in Vietnam, which is hampering the pace with which manufacturing industry can set up their bases in Vietnam. Shri Sharma also highlighted that the renewal of licenses in the pharmaceutical industry is lengthy, as the renewal can only be done when the old one expires.
· India, along with Spain and Benin will review the Human Rights record of Sri Lanka under the Universal Periodic Review at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. Ninety-nine Member States are set to speak under the Chairmanship of India under the mechanism. The Universal Periodic review process may be a routine affair for most countries, but is of great significance for Sri Lanka. The United States, which led a UNHRC resolution against Sri Lanka in March this year, has put forward a question on delays in holding Northern Provincial Council elections. Other countries, including United Kingdom, Canada and Australia have submitted questions on witness protection legislation, status of war crime investigations and independence of the judiciary and the press in the country. UN Human Rights Commissioner, Navi Pillay is expected to make recommendations to Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka’s delegation to answer the questions at the review is led by Presidential Special Envoy on Human Rights, Mahinda Samarasinghe. The proceedings will be formulated into a report by a committee of three countries chaired by India, who will then present it before the UNHRC Working Group on November 5 for scrutiny.
· In Tunisia, the state of national emergency has been extended, by the President Moncef Marzouki, for another three months from today till January next year amidst fresh outbreak of violence. The emergency provisions grant special intervention powers for the police and army. The move comes in the wake of wake of a spurt in attacks by the Islamist extremists in the capital in recent weeks. Normally emergency provisions have been in place every 30 days since the ouster of Ben Ali’s regime. But this time on the recommendation of security agencies and the military, emergency has been imposed for three months.
· The trend of retired bureaucrats grabbing high-valued contracts has become a problem in Canada. The Canadian government has now said, any contract worth Canadian dollar of 10,000 or more, or roughly Rs 5.4 lakh, have to be publicly disclosed. The issue cropped up when auditors spotted an instance when a retired public servant, also a pensioner, received a contract of whopping. In the 2011 ranking of corruption watchdog, Transparency International, Canada’s position as a clean country slipped from sixth to tenth in the world. New Zealand, Denmark and Finland are three most non-corrupt countries in the world. India’s rank is way below at 95 among 183 countries in the world for which corruption perception index is brought out annually. Similarly in Japan, Amakudari, a practice where Japanese senior bureaucrats retire to high-profile positions in the private and public sectors, has been a challenge for years.
· Britain’s first fourth generation (4G) mobile service was launched in 11 cities by the operator EE (Everything Everywhere). Tuesday’s launch is reportedly the first phase of its 4G services. The network will expand by 2,000 square miles every month, both into new cities as well as providing denser coverage in existing areas. 4G technology can deliver internet download speeds up to 10 times faster than 3G which helped bring the internet to mobile phones a few years ago.
· In the first inventory of minerals on another planet, NASA's Mars rover Curiosity found Martian sand grains have crystals similar to basaltic soils found in volcanic regions on Earth, like Hawaii. The rover uses an X-ray imager to reveal the atomic structures of crystals in the Martian soil, the first time the technology, known as X-ray diffraction, has been used to analyze soil beyond Earth. Scientists plan to use the information about Mars' minerals to figure out if the planet most like Earth in the solar system could have supported and preserved microbial life. Soils on planets' surfaces are a reflection of surface exposure processes and history, with information on present and past climates. Specifically, scientists want to understand what conditions existed to allow the particular minerals to form. The first Martian soil scoop is mineralogically similar to basaltic materials and comprised primarily of feldspar, pyroxene and olivine. About half the soil is non-crystalline materials, like volcanic glass, that form from the breakdown of rocks. Several processes can account for this weathering, including interaction with water or oxygen, similar to how rust forms on iron-metal surfaces. Brute force, such as sandstorms or meteorite impacts, also could account for the soil's weathered components. The Curiosity rover landed inside a giant impact crater near the Martian equator in August for a two-year, $2.5-billion mission, NASA's first astrobiology expedition since the 1970s-era Viking probes. The rover is scouting a site where three types of rock intersect. Next year, scientists plan to drive it over to a three-mile (5-km) mound of sediment, named Mount Sharp, rising from the floor of the crater.