General Affairs
BJP banks on Narendra Modi to swing Patidar votes in its favour
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Its going to pour rallies in Gujarat come this weekend. The BJP has charted out a gameplan to carpet-bomb Saurashtra and South Gujarat regions of the state that go to polls on December 9.
The saffron party today released a detailed plan of the top faces of the Union Cabinet, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who will be descending on Gujarat to give the party's campaign for the first phase a last-ditch push. Its expected to be a campaign blitzkrieg.
Bharatiya Janata Party's 50 star campaigners, including Unions Minister Arun Jaitley, Sushma Swaraj, Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari, Smriti Irani and Piyush Goyal will address rallies across the 89 constituencies of the state that vote on December 9. These rallies will be addressed simultaneously on November 26 and 27. However, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rallies across the region is expected to steal the show. Starting his campaign on November 27 from Bhuj, the Prime Minister will address 15 rallies and inaugurate a hospital in Ahmedabad over 4 days - November 26, 27 and December 3, 4. Each day the Prime Minister is expected to address 4 rallies.
This leg of the campaign is going to be extremely crucial for the BJP because the Saurashtra region, that covers roughly 60 of the 89 seats that go to polls in the first phase, is considered to be a Patidar stronghold.
Patidars have been known to be BJP supporters but since the rise of the Patidar agitation led by 24-year-old Hardik Patel's Patidar Anamat Aandolan Samiti (PAAS) in 2015, that support base has eroded slowly.
The death knell to this erstwhile association was sounded yesterday when Hardik announced that he has accepted the Congress' formula to provide reservation for Patidars in jobs and educational institutions, if voted to power.
Hardik said Congress assured they would introduce a bill in the Gujarat assembly to that effect and it would not disturb the current 49% reservation for SCs, STs and OBCs in Gujarat. How that would not overrule the Supreme Court's cap on reservations at 50% is not known.
Patidars account for roughly 12% of the population of Gujarat and BJP banked heavily on their support in previous elections. Saurashtra had favoured BJP strongly in 2012 when the party got 37 of the 58 seats in the region while Congress scooped up 16.
This latest arrangement between the Congress and PAAS could be the Prime Minister's target as he embarks on his campaign blitzkrieg ahead of December 9. The Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi has already canvassed around the region as part of his Navsarjan Yatra. But the BJP is optimistic that launching their biggest star in the final lap will erase away all the legwork that Rahul has put in.
The BJP has also significantly given several Patidar leaders tickets in the 134 seats where they have declared candidate names for so far. Contrary to popular speculation, the party has also repeated several sitting MLAs, including seniormost Patidar face in the party, state Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel. Congress rebel MLAs who defected to the party from the Congress at the time of Ahmed Patel's re-election to the Rajya Sabha, have also been accommodated.
It remains to be seen how this strategy coupled with the Prime Minister's popularity can dent any anti-incumbency wave that may have been created in the last year due to demonetisation and GST. Its the party's 22 year-old reign that is at stake, and the BJP is looking hopefully towards Prime Minister Modi.
The saffron party today released a detailed plan of the top faces of the Union Cabinet, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who will be descending on Gujarat to give the party's campaign for the first phase a last-ditch push. Its expected to be a campaign blitzkrieg.
Bharatiya Janata Party's 50 star campaigners, including Unions Minister Arun Jaitley, Sushma Swaraj, Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari, Smriti Irani and Piyush Goyal will address rallies across the 89 constituencies of the state that vote on December 9. These rallies will be addressed simultaneously on November 26 and 27. However, Prime Minister Narendra Modi's rallies across the region is expected to steal the show. Starting his campaign on November 27 from Bhuj, the Prime Minister will address 15 rallies and inaugurate a hospital in Ahmedabad over 4 days - November 26, 27 and December 3, 4. Each day the Prime Minister is expected to address 4 rallies.
This leg of the campaign is going to be extremely crucial for the BJP because the Saurashtra region, that covers roughly 60 of the 89 seats that go to polls in the first phase, is considered to be a Patidar stronghold.
Patidars have been known to be BJP supporters but since the rise of the Patidar agitation led by 24-year-old Hardik Patel's Patidar Anamat Aandolan Samiti (PAAS) in 2015, that support base has eroded slowly.
The death knell to this erstwhile association was sounded yesterday when Hardik announced that he has accepted the Congress' formula to provide reservation for Patidars in jobs and educational institutions, if voted to power.
Hardik said Congress assured they would introduce a bill in the Gujarat assembly to that effect and it would not disturb the current 49% reservation for SCs, STs and OBCs in Gujarat. How that would not overrule the Supreme Court's cap on reservations at 50% is not known.
Patidars account for roughly 12% of the population of Gujarat and BJP banked heavily on their support in previous elections. Saurashtra had favoured BJP strongly in 2012 when the party got 37 of the 58 seats in the region while Congress scooped up 16.
This latest arrangement between the Congress and PAAS could be the Prime Minister's target as he embarks on his campaign blitzkrieg ahead of December 9. The Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi has already canvassed around the region as part of his Navsarjan Yatra. But the BJP is optimistic that launching their biggest star in the final lap will erase away all the legwork that Rahul has put in.
The BJP has also significantly given several Patidar leaders tickets in the 134 seats where they have declared candidate names for so far. Contrary to popular speculation, the party has also repeated several sitting MLAs, including seniormost Patidar face in the party, state Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel. Congress rebel MLAs who defected to the party from the Congress at the time of Ahmed Patel's re-election to the Rajya Sabha, have also been accommodated.
It remains to be seen how this strategy coupled with the Prime Minister's popularity can dent any anti-incumbency wave that may have been created in the last year due to demonetisation and GST. Its the party's 22 year-old reign that is at stake, and the BJP is looking hopefully towards Prime Minister Modi.
IRCTC to pay Rs 25,000 for wrong text alert sent to a passenger
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One wrong message from IRCTC to the passengers of Mahabodhi Express proved dear for the railway ticket booking service provider after one of the passengers sued it for deficiency in service and causing physical and financial harassment.
The passengers, who were set to board the Mahabodhi Express going from Allahabad to Delhi on May 29, received an SMS from IRCTC that said the train had been cancelled and the passengers should cancel their tickets if they want a refund.
Later, it turned out that the message was sent by mistake and the train did depart for Delhi on that day.
Vaishali resident Vijay Pratap Singh, whose son Akshat also boarding the same train, decided to take the legal route after IRCTC allegedly did not respond to the requests for a refund.
"After receiving the message to cancel the tickets from IRCTC , I cancelled both the tickets. However, as it was important for my son to return to Delhi for some work, I booked a cab for him as no other train was available for the same day," Singh told Mail Today.
"But after my son reached Delhi, I was shocked to find that the train had not been cancelled and departed as per the schedule. I got the refund for just one ticket as the other one was booked on Tatkal. Although under such circumstances I was entitled to get the refund for that one as well," Singh added.
Singh approached Delhi district consumer forum through advocate Sanjeev Nirwani, seeking refund for the cab fare and the ticket price as the IRCTC had not paid heed to his requests.
The forum directed IRCTC to pay Rs 25,000 to Singh as compensation for causing stress, harassment and financial hardship.
IRCTC moved Delhi State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission against the order, saying they were not served notice and the order by the district forum was passed in haste.
The matter was heard by Member Anil Srivastava and OP Gupta who upheld the judgement of the district forum on the grounds of deficiency in service .
The court observed, "Assuming that the SMS (by Railways) was sent inadvertently, another SMS could have been sent, recalling the earlier message and intimating that the train would leave from Allahabad at the appointed date and time, which was not done. This itself shows and proves the deficiency significantly."
Counsel for the railway service provider told court that they are only agent of the Railways and direction, if any, is to be issued to the Railways for compliance and for taking steps for implementation of the order.
The court concluded that the argument that the corporation has nothing to do with the management of the Railways and the cancellation of train or otherwise and the refund of the tickets or otherwise are functions within the domain of the Railways, does not carry conviction.
"The corporation or the Railways, for the financial purpose, are one and the same as apparently source of finance in either case, as submitted by the counsel in consultation with an official of the Corporation present in the court, is the same," the court concluded.
One wrong message from IRCTC to the passengers of Mahabodhi Express proved dear for the railway ticket booking service provider after one of the passengers sued it for deficiency in service and causing physical and financial harassment.
The passengers, who were set to board the Mahabodhi Express going from Allahabad to Delhi on May 29, received an SMS from IRCTC that said the train had been cancelled and the passengers should cancel their tickets if they want a refund.
Later, it turned out that the message was sent by mistake and the train did depart for Delhi on that day.
Vaishali resident Vijay Pratap Singh, whose son Akshat also boarding the same train, decided to take the legal route after IRCTC allegedly did not respond to the requests for a refund.
"After receiving the message to cancel the tickets from IRCTC , I cancelled both the tickets. However, as it was important for my son to return to Delhi for some work, I booked a cab for him as no other train was available for the same day," Singh told Mail Today.
"But after my son reached Delhi, I was shocked to find that the train had not been cancelled and departed as per the schedule. I got the refund for just one ticket as the other one was booked on Tatkal. Although under such circumstances I was entitled to get the refund for that one as well," Singh added.
Singh approached Delhi district consumer forum through advocate Sanjeev Nirwani, seeking refund for the cab fare and the ticket price as the IRCTC had not paid heed to his requests.
The forum directed IRCTC to pay Rs 25,000 to Singh as compensation for causing stress, harassment and financial hardship.
IRCTC moved Delhi State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission against the order, saying they were not served notice and the order by the district forum was passed in haste.
The matter was heard by Member Anil Srivastava and OP Gupta who upheld the judgement of the district forum on the grounds of deficiency in service .
The court observed, "Assuming that the SMS (by Railways) was sent inadvertently, another SMS could have been sent, recalling the earlier message and intimating that the train would leave from Allahabad at the appointed date and time, which was not done. This itself shows and proves the deficiency significantly."
Counsel for the railway service provider told court that they are only agent of the Railways and direction, if any, is to be issued to the Railways for compliance and for taking steps for implementation of the order.
The court concluded that the argument that the corporation has nothing to do with the management of the Railways and the cancellation of train or otherwise and the refund of the tickets or otherwise are functions within the domain of the Railways, does not carry conviction.
"The corporation or the Railways, for the financial purpose, are one and the same as apparently source of finance in either case, as submitted by the counsel in consultation with an official of the Corporation present in the court, is the same," the court concluded.
Now OTC homeopathic drugs can be purchased from same allopathic chemist shops
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Now, homeopathic medicines can be purchases over the counter (OTC) from the common chemist shop selling allopathic drugs. Under the existing laws, the sale of homeopathy and allopathic drugs from the same shop was not allowed.
On the recommendation of the Drugs Technical Advisory Board (DTAB), the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has amended the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945. The DTAB had urged the government to strictly regulate sale of homeopathic medicines and take efforts to increase the availability of these drugs to needy patients.
According to the amended rules, the allopathic chemist shops are allowed to sell only over the counter (OTC) homeopathic products. Sources said that currently availability of homeopathic pharmacies is an issue in many parts of the country, particularly in remote villages. There are about 2.25 lakh homoeopathy doctors in India. Around 8,000 government homeopathy dispensaries and over 200 government hospitals are in the country. The organised homeopathy market in India is roughly estimated to be of Rs 3,000-crore value.
The new rules restrict loose sale of homeopathic medicines and mandates shops to sell only full bottle-sealed medications or dilutions. However, consultation of patients is not allowed from any of these pharmacies. Doctors, who dispense homeopathic drugs from their clinics, can continue to do so.
The amendment in the rules gains significance in the view of the allegations that many homeopathic pharmacies were doubling up as treatment centres by employing homeopathic doctors to boost their business.
Dr M Arulvanan, secretary general of the Indian Homeopathic Medical Association (IHMA) said that the amendments did not restrict homeopathic doctors from practising in their premises from dispensing medicines to their own patients.
"This amendment restricts only those doctors practicing in homeopathy pharmacy premises from selling medicines," Dr Arulvanan said.
The amendment has also brought in stipulated qualifications for those who dispense homeopathic drugs. Now, homeopathic pharmacists should have a diploma in pharmacy or a diploma in homeopathy and surgery or diploma in homeopathic pharmacy or be a science graduate with minimum one year experience of dealing in homeopathic drugs.
Now, homeopathic medicines can be purchases over the counter (OTC) from the common chemist shop selling allopathic drugs. Under the existing laws, the sale of homeopathy and allopathic drugs from the same shop was not allowed.
On the recommendation of the Drugs Technical Advisory Board (DTAB), the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has amended the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945. The DTAB had urged the government to strictly regulate sale of homeopathic medicines and take efforts to increase the availability of these drugs to needy patients.
According to the amended rules, the allopathic chemist shops are allowed to sell only over the counter (OTC) homeopathic products. Sources said that currently availability of homeopathic pharmacies is an issue in many parts of the country, particularly in remote villages. There are about 2.25 lakh homoeopathy doctors in India. Around 8,000 government homeopathy dispensaries and over 200 government hospitals are in the country. The organised homeopathy market in India is roughly estimated to be of Rs 3,000-crore value.
The new rules restrict loose sale of homeopathic medicines and mandates shops to sell only full bottle-sealed medications or dilutions. However, consultation of patients is not allowed from any of these pharmacies. Doctors, who dispense homeopathic drugs from their clinics, can continue to do so.
The amendment in the rules gains significance in the view of the allegations that many homeopathic pharmacies were doubling up as treatment centres by employing homeopathic doctors to boost their business.
Dr M Arulvanan, secretary general of the Indian Homeopathic Medical Association (IHMA) said that the amendments did not restrict homeopathic doctors from practising in their premises from dispensing medicines to their own patients.
"This amendment restricts only those doctors practicing in homeopathy pharmacy premises from selling medicines," Dr Arulvanan said.
The amendment has also brought in stipulated qualifications for those who dispense homeopathic drugs. Now, homeopathic pharmacists should have a diploma in pharmacy or a diploma in homeopathy and surgery or diploma in homeopathic pharmacy or be a science graduate with minimum one year experience of dealing in homeopathic drugs.
Narendra Modi, Rahul Gandhi to carpet-bomb Gujarat with rallies as poll fever rises
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Gujarat is all set to witness carpet-bombing of election campaigners. With the process of nomination of candidates for the first phase of Assembly election complete, now it is the turn of the star campaigners to do their bit.
The first phase of the Gujarat poll will be held on December 9 while voting for the second phase will take place on December 14.
The result will be declared on December 18.
The last date for filing nominations for the first phase of election is November 24.
PM MODI'S CAMPAIGN SCHEDULE
On the same day Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi descend upon Gujarat to campaign for the party candidates. He will campaign also on November 25.
On the other hand, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will canvass for the BJP candidates on November 27 and 29.
Gujarat BJP in charge Bhupendra Yadav today announced Modi's campaign tour details here today.
Yadav said each public meeting of the Prime Minister will involve six or more nearby Assembly seats.
He said more dates and programmes of Modi's campaign will be shared when details are worked out.
On November 27, the prime minister will hold four public rallies. They are in Bhuj, Jasdan, Dhari in Amreli and Kamrej in Surat.
On November 29, Modi will be in Morbi, Prachi near Somnath, Palitana in Bhavnagar and Navsari in South Gujarat.
Besides the prime minister, about 20 Union ministers and several chief ministers of the BJP-ruled states will also make frequent visits to the poll-bound state.
Gujarat is all set to witness carpet-bombing of election campaigners. With the process of nomination of candidates for the first phase of Assembly election complete, now it is the turn of the star campaigners to do their bit.
The first phase of the Gujarat poll will be held on December 9 while voting for the second phase will take place on December 14.
The result will be declared on December 18.
The last date for filing nominations for the first phase of election is November 24.
PM MODI'S CAMPAIGN SCHEDULE
On the same day Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi descend upon Gujarat to campaign for the party candidates. He will campaign also on November 25.
On the other hand, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will canvass for the BJP candidates on November 27 and 29.
Gujarat BJP in charge Bhupendra Yadav today announced Modi's campaign tour details here today.
Yadav said each public meeting of the Prime Minister will involve six or more nearby Assembly seats.
He said more dates and programmes of Modi's campaign will be shared when details are worked out.
On November 27, the prime minister will hold four public rallies. They are in Bhuj, Jasdan, Dhari in Amreli and Kamrej in Surat.
On November 29, Modi will be in Morbi, Prachi near Somnath, Palitana in Bhavnagar and Navsari in South Gujarat.
Besides the prime minister, about 20 Union ministers and several chief ministers of the BJP-ruled states will also make frequent visits to the poll-bound state.
Kashmir interlocutor Sharma may meet parents of new militants who want sons to come home
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Dineshwar Sharma, the Centre's special representative in Kashmir, is keen to meet parents who've appealed to their newly-recruited children to leave militancy and return to the mainstream, sources say.
The details are being worked out, but the meeting will happen only if the parents want it to, according to sources.
Sharma is all set to embark on a second visit to the strife-torn Kashmir Valley. The interlocutor "will meet anyone who wants to address grievance(s), including parents of misguided youth or the ex-militant(s). But it will depend on their desire to meet him," a source said.
Sources also say Sharma is open to meeting Majid Khan - a footballer-turned-militant who recently surrendered - to understand him.
Separatist leaders may have given Dineshwar Sharma a cold shoulder. But sources close to the ex-Intelligence Bureau chief say he will focus on youth in the militancy-hit areas of Anantnag and Pulwama.
The interlocutor is going with an open mind to speak to youth who have led the stone-pelting movement, sources said.
DISSUADING YOUTH FROM BECOMING MILITANTS
Sharma will reach South Kashmir on November 26. His aims: finding the root cause of radicalisation in the Valley and dissuading youth from becoming militants.
A suggestion of his has already been put into pratice: Cases against first-time stone-pelters have been withdrawn.
Sources say he's open to listening to young peoples' grievances and making suggestions. He's likely to engage with the Jammu and Kashmir government to to provide employment to youth in Kashmir's tourism and horticulture sectors.
However, a source said "there is palpable anger against the security forces," and Sharma may face some of the brunt of it if he ventures into South Kashmir colleges.
Sharma's next trip will take him to North Kashmir. He will - eventually - also meet Kashmiri students studying in Delhi-NCR and neighbouring states, such as Rajasthan, Haryana, and UP.
Dineshwar Sharma, the Centre's special representative in Kashmir, is keen to meet parents who've appealed to their newly-recruited children to leave militancy and return to the mainstream, sources say.
The details are being worked out, but the meeting will happen only if the parents want it to, according to sources.
Sharma is all set to embark on a second visit to the strife-torn Kashmir Valley. The interlocutor "will meet anyone who wants to address grievance(s), including parents of misguided youth or the ex-militant(s). But it will depend on their desire to meet him," a source said.
Sources also say Sharma is open to meeting Majid Khan - a footballer-turned-militant who recently surrendered - to understand him.
Separatist leaders may have given Dineshwar Sharma a cold shoulder. But sources close to the ex-Intelligence Bureau chief say he will focus on youth in the militancy-hit areas of Anantnag and Pulwama.
The interlocutor is going with an open mind to speak to youth who have led the stone-pelting movement, sources said.
DISSUADING YOUTH FROM BECOMING MILITANTS
Sharma will reach South Kashmir on November 26. His aims: finding the root cause of radicalisation in the Valley and dissuading youth from becoming militants.
A suggestion of his has already been put into pratice: Cases against first-time stone-pelters have been withdrawn.
Sources say he's open to listening to young peoples' grievances and making suggestions. He's likely to engage with the Jammu and Kashmir government to to provide employment to youth in Kashmir's tourism and horticulture sectors.
However, a source said "there is palpable anger against the security forces," and Sharma may face some of the brunt of it if he ventures into South Kashmir colleges.
Sharma's next trip will take him to North Kashmir. He will - eventually - also meet Kashmiri students studying in Delhi-NCR and neighbouring states, such as Rajasthan, Haryana, and UP.
Business Affairs
EPF body approves proposal to credit exchange traded fund units to PF accounts
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The retirement fund body, EPFO, on Thursday approved a proposal for crediting exchange traded fund (ETF) units to provident fund accounts of its 4.5 crore members. The Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) subscribers would be able to see ETF units in their PF accounts by March-end next year. The EPFO's apex decision making body Central Board of Trustee (CBT) has approved an accounting policy for valuation and accounting of equity investments, which was prepared in consultancy with IIM Bangalore, Labour Minister Santosh Gangwar told reporters after trustees' meet here.
Gangwar, who also heads the CBT, said the observations of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) were also incorporated in the accounting policy. Asked about when the retirement fund body will start crediting ETF units to the PF accounts of its subscribers, EPFO's Central Provident Fund Commissioner said it would be possible by March-end this fiscal. Labour Secretary M Sathiyavathy told reporters that whenever the subscribers take advance or settle their PF accounts, the ETF units would be liquidated by EPFO.
Asked how the PF account would be different from demat account after crediting ETF units, she explained that the subscriber cannot do trading in this case and EPFO would liquidate the ETF units only when members apply for withdrawals. EPFO had started investing its funds in ETFs in August 2015.
"EPFO has invested around Rs 32,000 crore so far in the ETFs. The return on investment so far is 21.87 per cent. But this is notional because the EPFO would get this return only when it would liquidate this investment," the Labour Secretary explained. Gangwar added that the board also approved a proposal for centralised payment system for EPFO using National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) platform, which would not only reduce transaction charges but also bring more convenience.
He said the present decentralised system of the EPFO for making payment to its beneficiaries involves higher cost of transactions, delays in recredits in case of failed transaction and does not provide for Aadhaar-enabled payments. The new system would enable EPFO to transfer funds on same day to the beneficiaries through NPCI platform. Moreover, EPFO may reconcile the transaction status on T+0 basis (day of transaction plus zero days). This will result in early recredit in the accounts of beneficiaries in case of failed transactions. It will also have the facility of Aadhaar-enabled transfer of funds. The minister also told reporters that he along with the EPFO officials would hear the various issues related to pensioners next month. He said a meeting is scheduled on December 15, 2017 for the purpose.
The retirement fund body, EPFO, on Thursday approved a proposal for crediting exchange traded fund (ETF) units to provident fund accounts of its 4.5 crore members. The Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) subscribers would be able to see ETF units in their PF accounts by March-end next year. The EPFO's apex decision making body Central Board of Trustee (CBT) has approved an accounting policy for valuation and accounting of equity investments, which was prepared in consultancy with IIM Bangalore, Labour Minister Santosh Gangwar told reporters after trustees' meet here.
Gangwar, who also heads the CBT, said the observations of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) were also incorporated in the accounting policy. Asked about when the retirement fund body will start crediting ETF units to the PF accounts of its subscribers, EPFO's Central Provident Fund Commissioner said it would be possible by March-end this fiscal. Labour Secretary M Sathiyavathy told reporters that whenever the subscribers take advance or settle their PF accounts, the ETF units would be liquidated by EPFO.
Asked how the PF account would be different from demat account after crediting ETF units, she explained that the subscriber cannot do trading in this case and EPFO would liquidate the ETF units only when members apply for withdrawals. EPFO had started investing its funds in ETFs in August 2015.
"EPFO has invested around Rs 32,000 crore so far in the ETFs. The return on investment so far is 21.87 per cent. But this is notional because the EPFO would get this return only when it would liquidate this investment," the Labour Secretary explained. Gangwar added that the board also approved a proposal for centralised payment system for EPFO using National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) platform, which would not only reduce transaction charges but also bring more convenience.
He said the present decentralised system of the EPFO for making payment to its beneficiaries involves higher cost of transactions, delays in recredits in case of failed transaction and does not provide for Aadhaar-enabled payments. The new system would enable EPFO to transfer funds on same day to the beneficiaries through NPCI platform. Moreover, EPFO may reconcile the transaction status on T+0 basis (day of transaction plus zero days). This will result in early recredit in the accounts of beneficiaries in case of failed transactions. It will also have the facility of Aadhaar-enabled transfer of funds. The minister also told reporters that he along with the EPFO officials would hear the various issues related to pensioners next month. He said a meeting is scheduled on December 15, 2017 for the purpose.
Ministry of Finance junks reports on scrapping of cheque book facility
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Junking reports in a section of media about cheque books being the next casualty in the Narendra Modi-led government's agenda of digital push, the Ministry of Finance on Thursday clarified that there was no such proposal to withdraw the bank cheque book facility. The reports emerged when Secretary General of Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) said on Wednesday that "in all probability, the Centre may withdraw the cheque book facility in the near future to encourage digital transactions."
Talking to the reporters at the launch of 'Digital Rath', a joint initiative of the CAIT and Mastercard, Khandelwal said the government needed to encourage the use of debit and credit cards. "The government spends Rs 25,000 crore on the printing of currency notes and another Rs 6,000 crore on their security and logistics. Moreover, banks charge 1 per cent on payments through debit and 2 per cent through credit cards. The government needs to incentivise this process by providing subsidy directly to the banks so these charges can be waived."
"The Government of India has reaffirmed that there is no proposal under consideration to withdraw the bank Cheque Book facility," said Finance ministry tweeted.
Post demonetisation, the government has been pushing digital transaction with an aim to move towards less cash society. Following demonetisation digital wallets, quick response (QR) codes, near field communication (NFC) technology, sound wave systems, virtual cards, unified payment interface (UPI) and Aadhaar Pay have given much needed push to cashless transactions. However, more than 95% transactions happen via cash and cheques. In fact, most of the business transactions are carried out through cheques. The latter is used by businesses against the delivery of goods where the supplier secures payments due in future from its customer by a cheque. It is also common in dealing with the purchasing and selling of land. Landlords too prefer taking rent from tenants via cheque. But cash usage is still strong. "Only 5 per cent of the total 80-crore ATM-cum-debit cards are used for cashless transactions, while 95 per cent of them are used for cash withdrawals," added Khandelwal.
Junking reports in a section of media about cheque books being the next casualty in the Narendra Modi-led government's agenda of digital push, the Ministry of Finance on Thursday clarified that there was no such proposal to withdraw the bank cheque book facility. The reports emerged when Secretary General of Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) said on Wednesday that "in all probability, the Centre may withdraw the cheque book facility in the near future to encourage digital transactions."
Talking to the reporters at the launch of 'Digital Rath', a joint initiative of the CAIT and Mastercard, Khandelwal said the government needed to encourage the use of debit and credit cards. "The government spends Rs 25,000 crore on the printing of currency notes and another Rs 6,000 crore on their security and logistics. Moreover, banks charge 1 per cent on payments through debit and 2 per cent through credit cards. The government needs to incentivise this process by providing subsidy directly to the banks so these charges can be waived."
"The Government of India has reaffirmed that there is no proposal under consideration to withdraw the bank Cheque Book facility," said Finance ministry tweeted.
Post demonetisation, the government has been pushing digital transaction with an aim to move towards less cash society. Following demonetisation digital wallets, quick response (QR) codes, near field communication (NFC) technology, sound wave systems, virtual cards, unified payment interface (UPI) and Aadhaar Pay have given much needed push to cashless transactions. However, more than 95% transactions happen via cash and cheques. In fact, most of the business transactions are carried out through cheques. The latter is used by businesses against the delivery of goods where the supplier secures payments due in future from its customer by a cheque. It is also common in dealing with the purchasing and selling of land. Landlords too prefer taking rent from tenants via cheque. But cash usage is still strong. "Only 5 per cent of the total 80-crore ATM-cum-debit cards are used for cashless transactions, while 95 per cent of them are used for cash withdrawals," added Khandelwal.
Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code Ordinance will not affect valuation of assets under resolution, says SBI Chairman
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While the President Ram Nath Kovind has given the green flag to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code Ordinance, that debars promoters who have been tagged as willful defaulters from bidding for such assets, State Bank of IndiaChairman Rajnish Kumar stated that valuation of stressed assets awaiting resolution is not going to be impacted by the ordinance.
"The changes in the law will not bring down the valuation of the assets under resolution because there is lot of interest in these assets. Valuation has nothing to do whether the existing promoters are allowed to bid or not. Assets will go only on the fair value of the enterprise," Kumar said.
The IBC Ordinance does not allow promoters who have willfully defaulted on their debt obligations or are habitually non-compliant from participating in resolution of the stressed asset. This has been doen considering chances that such promoters will jeopardise successful resolution of the insolvent company. The new law will also make ineligible those who have their accounts classified as non-performing assets for one year or more and are unable to settle their overdue amounts with interest and penal charges before the submission of the insolvency resolution plan.
On the question of whether he is satisfied with the current amendments, Kumar said, "I will be happy when the resolution happens. I don't mind some haircut but I don't want to be bald."
The Ordinance comes on the back of doubts expressed by a few lenders and some bidders over the promoters bidding for their own stressed assets.
Kumar also clarified that keeping certain promoters from the insolvency resolution process will not lower the numbers of bidders who want to participate in the bidding process for such stressed assets. He said the interest from bidders for a stressed account will be driven by the outlook for that industry and the quality of the asset.
"This presumption that there would be a few bidders is itself not correct. If there is value in any asset then we believe bidders will be very much interested. If you look at the expression of interest for many of the companies that are under NCLT, there is a good interest," Kumar was quoted in a PTI report.
Kumar said certain criteria such as credibility of the bidders and a sound resolution plan will be checked before selecting a final bidder.
"We will be careful about a couple of things. The first thing is that resolution has to be very credible because the idea is that if we can save the asset from liquidation and we should save it. Secondly, when we are talking about resolution, the credibility of those who are bidding would also be examined," Kumar said.
The decision on the final bidder will not be taken by one person or one committee, he said, adding, "the committee of creditors will be critical but multiple parties will be involved like insolvency professional and the courts. So, there should be no doubt on the valuation processes."
Earlier this year in June, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had directed lenders to refer 12 largest NPA accounts to the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) for resolution under the bankruptcy code. These corporate defaulters include names like Bhushan Steel, Essar Steel, Bhushan Power, Lanco Infra, Amtek Auto among others. The combined debt of these accounts is Rs 2.4 trillion.
Out of the 12 largest NPAs, 11 are already at various NCLTs and interim resolution professional (IRPs) have been appointed. These resolution professionals have invited expressions of interest for a resolution plan from prospective investors.
Then in August the RBI again tagged 28 more large accounts for resolution through NCLT, which have to be resolved by December 13.
While the President Ram Nath Kovind has given the green flag to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code Ordinance, that debars promoters who have been tagged as willful defaulters from bidding for such assets, State Bank of IndiaChairman Rajnish Kumar stated that valuation of stressed assets awaiting resolution is not going to be impacted by the ordinance.
"The changes in the law will not bring down the valuation of the assets under resolution because there is lot of interest in these assets. Valuation has nothing to do whether the existing promoters are allowed to bid or not. Assets will go only on the fair value of the enterprise," Kumar said.
The IBC Ordinance does not allow promoters who have willfully defaulted on their debt obligations or are habitually non-compliant from participating in resolution of the stressed asset. This has been doen considering chances that such promoters will jeopardise successful resolution of the insolvent company. The new law will also make ineligible those who have their accounts classified as non-performing assets for one year or more and are unable to settle their overdue amounts with interest and penal charges before the submission of the insolvency resolution plan.
On the question of whether he is satisfied with the current amendments, Kumar said, "I will be happy when the resolution happens. I don't mind some haircut but I don't want to be bald."
The Ordinance comes on the back of doubts expressed by a few lenders and some bidders over the promoters bidding for their own stressed assets.
Kumar also clarified that keeping certain promoters from the insolvency resolution process will not lower the numbers of bidders who want to participate in the bidding process for such stressed assets. He said the interest from bidders for a stressed account will be driven by the outlook for that industry and the quality of the asset.
"This presumption that there would be a few bidders is itself not correct. If there is value in any asset then we believe bidders will be very much interested. If you look at the expression of interest for many of the companies that are under NCLT, there is a good interest," Kumar was quoted in a PTI report.
Kumar said certain criteria such as credibility of the bidders and a sound resolution plan will be checked before selecting a final bidder.
"We will be careful about a couple of things. The first thing is that resolution has to be very credible because the idea is that if we can save the asset from liquidation and we should save it. Secondly, when we are talking about resolution, the credibility of those who are bidding would also be examined," Kumar said.
The decision on the final bidder will not be taken by one person or one committee, he said, adding, "the committee of creditors will be critical but multiple parties will be involved like insolvency professional and the courts. So, there should be no doubt on the valuation processes."
Earlier this year in June, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had directed lenders to refer 12 largest NPA accounts to the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) for resolution under the bankruptcy code. These corporate defaulters include names like Bhushan Steel, Essar Steel, Bhushan Power, Lanco Infra, Amtek Auto among others. The combined debt of these accounts is Rs 2.4 trillion.
Out of the 12 largest NPAs, 11 are already at various NCLTs and interim resolution professional (IRPs) have been appointed. These resolution professionals have invited expressions of interest for a resolution plan from prospective investors.
Then in August the RBI again tagged 28 more large accounts for resolution through NCLT, which have to be resolved by December 13.
Top five IPOs which delivered up to 282% returns in 2017
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The year 2017 saw a flurry of Initial Public Offers (IPO) which created a lot of buzz on the Dalal Street. While some stocks listed at discounts over their issue price, others made blockbuster debuts and reaped huge gains for their investors. We look at top five IPOs of 2017 which have delivered maximum returns over their issue price.
Salasar Techno Engineering: Salasar Techno Engineering on July 25 made a stellar stock market debut, as the stock got listed at Rs 259.15 on BSE, a 139.95 per cent premium to its issue price of Rs 108 per share. The IPO was open from July 12 to July 17 2017. The IPO price per share was Rs 108. The initial public offer of Salasar Techno Engineering was oversubscribed a staggering 272.93 times in July. The IPO was of 33.21 lakh equity shares at a price of Rs 108 per equity share aggregating to Rs 35.86 crore.
Proceeds from the issue will be utilised for meeting working capital requirements and general corporate purposes. Rajasthan-based Salasar Techno provides customised steel fabrication solutions in the domestic market.
Currently, the stock is trading 160% higher compared to its issue price of 108 on the BSE.
Avenue Supermarts: Avenue Supermarts, the parent firm of D-Mart, which is among the most profitable food and grocery retail chains in India, listed at a 102 percent premium to its issue price on March 22.
The stock rose to Rs 615 level, more than 100 percent premium of its issue price of Rs 299 on the BSE. The IPO was carried out from March 8 to March 10, 2017.
D-Mart is among the most profitable food and grocery retail chains in India. The firm clocked a profit of Rs 300.21 crore in fiscal 2016 on a revenue of nearly Rs 8,600 crore. Its profit after tax (PAT) rose 50 per cent year-on-year.
The price band for the IPO was set at Rs 295-299. Avenue Supermarts planned to raise Rs 1,870 crore through the IPO and the proceeds would be utilised for various purposes, including loan repayment.
Nine merchant bankers-Kotak Mahindra Capital, Axis Capital, Edelweiss Financial Services, HDFC Bank, ICICI Securities, JM Financial Institutional Securities, Inga Capital, SBI Capital Markets and Motilal Oswal Investment Advisors-are managing the offer.
Currently, the stock is trading 282 percent higher than its issue price of Rs 299.
CDSL: The CDSL initial public offer saw a bumper subscription on the last day of the three-day bidding on June 21. The IPO was the most subscribed maiden issue in a decade with an oversubscription of 169.91 times.
The price band for the issue was Rs 145 -149 per share.
CDSL is one of the two securities depositories in India, the other being National Securities Depository Ltd (NDSL). The firm came out with an IPO almost 20 years after its incorporation. The IPO was held from June 19 - June 21, 2017. CDSL is not listed on the BSE.
Currently, the stock is trading 137 percent higher than its issue price of Rs 149.
Dixon Technologies: Consumer electronics manufacturer Dixon Technologies listed with a 54 per cent premium on the September 18, 2017. The firm made a stellar listing at Rs 2725, compared to the issue price of Rs 1766. The IPO received huge response from the investors starting September 6 to September 8. Earlier, Dixon Technologies raised nearly Rs 180 crore from anchor investors. The company fixed the price band at Rs 1,760-1,766.
The offer comprised fresh issue aggregating up to Rs 60 crore shares besides an offer for sale of up to 30,53,675 shares by certain existing shareholders.
The firm raised Rs 179.8 crore by allotting 10.18 lakh shares to anchor investors at the higher end of IPO price band of Rs 1760 to Rs 1766 per share.
Currently, the stock is trading 80 percent higher than its issue price.
AU Small Finance Bank: AU Small Finance Bank on July 10 made its debut in the stock market after its initial public offering received 29 times subscription. The stock rose 47 percent over the issue price and listed at Rs 528 on the BSE.
Jaipur-based bank's IPO which was open from June 28-June 30 was subscribed 53.60 times on strong response from qualified institutional buyers and HN1s.The bank raised Rs 1912 crore via the IPO, including Rs 563 crore from 34 anchor investors.
The book running lead managers to the offer were ICICI Securities, HDFC Bank (Investment Banking Group), Motilal Oswal Investment Advisors and Citigroup Global Markets India. Currently, the stock is trading 83 percent higher than its issue price of Rs 358.
The year 2017 saw a flurry of Initial Public Offers (IPO) which created a lot of buzz on the Dalal Street. While some stocks listed at discounts over their issue price, others made blockbuster debuts and reaped huge gains for their investors. We look at top five IPOs of 2017 which have delivered maximum returns over their issue price.
Salasar Techno Engineering: Salasar Techno Engineering on July 25 made a stellar stock market debut, as the stock got listed at Rs 259.15 on BSE, a 139.95 per cent premium to its issue price of Rs 108 per share. The IPO was open from July 12 to July 17 2017. The IPO price per share was Rs 108. The initial public offer of Salasar Techno Engineering was oversubscribed a staggering 272.93 times in July. The IPO was of 33.21 lakh equity shares at a price of Rs 108 per equity share aggregating to Rs 35.86 crore.
Proceeds from the issue will be utilised for meeting working capital requirements and general corporate purposes. Rajasthan-based Salasar Techno provides customised steel fabrication solutions in the domestic market.
Currently, the stock is trading 160% higher compared to its issue price of 108 on the BSE.
Avenue Supermarts: Avenue Supermarts, the parent firm of D-Mart, which is among the most profitable food and grocery retail chains in India, listed at a 102 percent premium to its issue price on March 22.
The stock rose to Rs 615 level, more than 100 percent premium of its issue price of Rs 299 on the BSE. The IPO was carried out from March 8 to March 10, 2017.
D-Mart is among the most profitable food and grocery retail chains in India. The firm clocked a profit of Rs 300.21 crore in fiscal 2016 on a revenue of nearly Rs 8,600 crore. Its profit after tax (PAT) rose 50 per cent year-on-year.
The price band for the IPO was set at Rs 295-299. Avenue Supermarts planned to raise Rs 1,870 crore through the IPO and the proceeds would be utilised for various purposes, including loan repayment.
Nine merchant bankers-Kotak Mahindra Capital, Axis Capital, Edelweiss Financial Services, HDFC Bank, ICICI Securities, JM Financial Institutional Securities, Inga Capital, SBI Capital Markets and Motilal Oswal Investment Advisors-are managing the offer.
Currently, the stock is trading 282 percent higher than its issue price of Rs 299.
CDSL: The CDSL initial public offer saw a bumper subscription on the last day of the three-day bidding on June 21. The IPO was the most subscribed maiden issue in a decade with an oversubscription of 169.91 times.
The price band for the issue was Rs 145 -149 per share.
CDSL is one of the two securities depositories in India, the other being National Securities Depository Ltd (NDSL). The firm came out with an IPO almost 20 years after its incorporation. The IPO was held from June 19 - June 21, 2017. CDSL is not listed on the BSE.
Currently, the stock is trading 137 percent higher than its issue price of Rs 149.
Dixon Technologies: Consumer electronics manufacturer Dixon Technologies listed with a 54 per cent premium on the September 18, 2017. The firm made a stellar listing at Rs 2725, compared to the issue price of Rs 1766. The IPO received huge response from the investors starting September 6 to September 8. Earlier, Dixon Technologies raised nearly Rs 180 crore from anchor investors. The company fixed the price band at Rs 1,760-1,766.
The offer comprised fresh issue aggregating up to Rs 60 crore shares besides an offer for sale of up to 30,53,675 shares by certain existing shareholders.
The firm raised Rs 179.8 crore by allotting 10.18 lakh shares to anchor investors at the higher end of IPO price band of Rs 1760 to Rs 1766 per share.
Currently, the stock is trading 80 percent higher than its issue price.
AU Small Finance Bank: AU Small Finance Bank on July 10 made its debut in the stock market after its initial public offering received 29 times subscription. The stock rose 47 percent over the issue price and listed at Rs 528 on the BSE.
Jaipur-based bank's IPO which was open from June 28-June 30 was subscribed 53.60 times on strong response from qualified institutional buyers and HN1s.The bank raised Rs 1912 crore via the IPO, including Rs 563 crore from 34 anchor investors.
The book running lead managers to the offer were ICICI Securities, HDFC Bank (Investment Banking Group), Motilal Oswal Investment Advisors and Citigroup Global Markets India. Currently, the stock is trading 83 percent higher than its issue price of Rs 358.
Govt to examine Rs 5 lakh tax exemption proposal for pensioners
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The Finance Ministry has informed Congress MP Shashi Tharoor that his suggestion to increase the tax exemption limit for pension up to Rs 5 lakh would be examined during the ongoing preparations for the Union Budget 2018, according to a communication.
Responding to a letter written by Tharoor in late September, Minister of State for Finance Shiv Pratap Shukla said the suggestion that pension up to Rs 5 lakh per annum should be exempted from income tax in all cases was examined.
"The proposal would be examined during the exercise for the ensuing Union Budget 2018 and the outcome would be reflected in the Finance Bill, 2018," said the letter, which was tweeted by Tharoor.
The letter, dated November 14, said that a pensioner who is above 80 years is not required to pay tax if the total income, including pension, does not exceed Rs 5 lakh.
"The suggestion that pension up to Rs 5 lakh per annum should be exempt in all cases would require amendment to the existing provisions of the Income Tax Act, 1961," the letter said.
A pensioner, who is a senior citizen -- aged 60 to 80 years -- is exempt from income tax if the income, including from pension, does not exceed Rs 3 lakh.
About the letter, Tharoor tweeted, "Govt's semi- encouraging reply to my request to exempt pensioners from tax on the first 5 lakhs of income. Hope @arunjaitley will include this in his next budget".
The work for preparation of the General Budget has already commenced and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is likely to present it to Parliament in the first week of February.
The Finance Ministry has informed Congress MP Shashi Tharoor that his suggestion to increase the tax exemption limit for pension up to Rs 5 lakh would be examined during the ongoing preparations for the Union Budget 2018, according to a communication.
Responding to a letter written by Tharoor in late September, Minister of State for Finance Shiv Pratap Shukla said the suggestion that pension up to Rs 5 lakh per annum should be exempted from income tax in all cases was examined.
"The proposal would be examined during the exercise for the ensuing Union Budget 2018 and the outcome would be reflected in the Finance Bill, 2018," said the letter, which was tweeted by Tharoor.
The letter, dated November 14, said that a pensioner who is above 80 years is not required to pay tax if the total income, including pension, does not exceed Rs 5 lakh.
"The suggestion that pension up to Rs 5 lakh per annum should be exempt in all cases would require amendment to the existing provisions of the Income Tax Act, 1961," the letter said.
A pensioner, who is a senior citizen -- aged 60 to 80 years -- is exempt from income tax if the income, including from pension, does not exceed Rs 3 lakh.
About the letter, Tharoor tweeted, "Govt's semi- encouraging reply to my request to exempt pensioners from tax on the first 5 lakhs of income. Hope @arunjaitley will include this in his next budget".
The work for preparation of the General Budget has already commenced and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is likely to present it to Parliament in the first week of February.
General Awareness
PM Modi inaugurates largest-ever Global Conference On Cyber Space in New Delhi
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On November 23, 2017, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated 5th Global Conference on Cyber Space (GCCS) in New Delhi. India is hosting the Global Conference on Cyber Space (GCCS) for the first time. This two-day event is one of the world’s largest conferences in the field of Cyber Space and related issues.
Highlights of 5th Global Conference on Cyber Space (GCCS):
Theme of the 5th GCCS was ‘Cyber4All: A Secure and Inclusive Cyberspace for Sustainable Development’.
- 6 oldest Indian Institute of Technology (IITs) and Indian Institute of Science (IISc) were among academic partners of 5th GCCS and Indian public sector banks, State Bank of India (SBI) and Punjab National Bank (PNB) were among the sponsors of this event.
- Goal of 5th GCCS: “to promote an inclusive Cyber Spacewith focus on policies and frameworks for inclusivity, sustainability, development, security, safety & freedom, technology and partnerships for upholding digital democracy, maximizing collaboration for strengthening security and safety and advocating dialogue for digital diplomacy”.
- International leaders, policymakers, industry experts, think tanks and cyber experts from 123 countries participated in this conference.
- Various sessions focusing on different aspects of cyber space were held during the course of this two-day event which were addressed by eminent speakers including Secretary General, International Telecommunication Union, Houlin Zhao, Chairman and MD of Reliance Industries, Mr. Mukesh Ambani and Founder and Chairman of Bharti Enterprises, Mr. Sunil Bharti Mittal.
- Union External Affairs Minister, Sushma Swaraj delivered the keynote address in the Valedictory function on November 24, 2017.
Global Conference on Cyber Space (GCCS):
GCCS Conference Year Held in 1st (Inception) 2011 London, UK 2nd 2012 Budapest, Hungary 3rd 2013 Seoul, South Korea 4th 2014 Hague, Netherlands 5th 2017 New Delhi, India
On November 23, 2017, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated 5th Global Conference on Cyber Space (GCCS) in New Delhi. India is hosting the Global Conference on Cyber Space (GCCS) for the first time. This two-day event is one of the world’s largest conferences in the field of Cyber Space and related issues.
Highlights of 5th Global Conference on Cyber Space (GCCS):
Theme of the 5th GCCS was ‘Cyber4All: A Secure and Inclusive Cyberspace for Sustainable Development’.
- 6 oldest Indian Institute of Technology (IITs) and Indian Institute of Science (IISc) were among academic partners of 5th GCCS and Indian public sector banks, State Bank of India (SBI) and Punjab National Bank (PNB) were among the sponsors of this event.
- Goal of 5th GCCS: “to promote an inclusive Cyber Spacewith focus on policies and frameworks for inclusivity, sustainability, development, security, safety & freedom, technology and partnerships for upholding digital democracy, maximizing collaboration for strengthening security and safety and advocating dialogue for digital diplomacy”.
- International leaders, policymakers, industry experts, think tanks and cyber experts from 123 countries participated in this conference.
- Various sessions focusing on different aspects of cyber space were held during the course of this two-day event which were addressed by eminent speakers including Secretary General, International Telecommunication Union, Houlin Zhao, Chairman and MD of Reliance Industries, Mr. Mukesh Ambani and Founder and Chairman of Bharti Enterprises, Mr. Sunil Bharti Mittal.
- Union External Affairs Minister, Sushma Swaraj delivered the keynote address in the Valedictory function on November 24, 2017.
Global Conference on Cyber Space (GCCS):
| GCCS Conference | Year | Held in |
| 1st (Inception) | 2011 | London, UK |
| 2nd | 2012 | Budapest, Hungary |
| 3rd | 2013 | Seoul, South Korea |
| 4th | 2014 | Hague, Netherlands |
| 5th | 2017 | New Delhi, India |
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