CURRENT AFFAIRS AUGUST 2014 - For IAS/PCS

PM launches Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today declared the beginning of the end of financial untouchability in India, with the opening of an estimated 1.5 crore bank accounts across the country, in an exercise unprecedented in scale in economic history. 

Formally launching the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) at a function broadcast across the nation from Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi, the Prime Minister described the occasion as a festival to celebrate the liberation of the poor from a poisonous cycle. (Vish-chakra se gareebon ki aazaadi ka parv)

Expressing satisfaction at a number of records being broken today, the Prime Minister said the nationwide success of the enrolment drive today would give confidence not just to the officials of the Department of Financial Services and banking sectors, but also to officers across the Union Government, that they can successfully achieve the goals that they set for themselves. "Never before would insurance companies have issued 1.5 crore accident insurance policies in a single day. Never before in economic history would 1.5 crore bank accounts have been opened in a single day. Never before has the Government of India organized a programme of such scale – over 77,000 locations – with the participation of so many Chief Ministers, Union Ministers, Government and bank officials." He said the success is an inspiration for achieving new heights. 

The Prime Minister said that though the initial target of PMJDY was to open bank accounts for 7.5 crore families in one year, he had exhorted the concerned officials to complete the task before the next Republic Day. 

Elaborating the benefits under PMJDY, the Prime Minister said this was not a mere bank account, but had other benefits including an RuPay debit card, Rs 1 lakh accident insurance cover, and an additional Rs. 30,000/- life insurance cover for those opening bank accounts before January 26th, 2015. He said the account performance would be monitored and overdraft facility would be given. The Prime Minister said he had sent 7.25 lakh bank employees, exhorting them to help reach the target of 7.5 crore bank accounts, and bring freedom from financial untouchability.

The Prime Minister referred to the five beneficiary couples who had received account opening kits in today's event at Vigyan Bhawan, and said the ladies appeared to have dressed for a festival. He said they knew that there could be no bigger festival than the opening of a bank account for empowering women. 

The Prime Minister said when banks were nationalized in 1969, it was done with the objective of bringing people into the economic mainstream. But that objective had not been achieved till date. After 68 years of independence, not even 68% of India's population had access to banking, he added. He said it is easy for the rich to get a loan at low interest rates. But the poor are forced to seek loans from money-lenders at five times the rate charged to the rich. Is it not the responsibility of the banking industry to provide banking access to the poor, the Prime Minister asked. 

The Prime Minister illustrated his point through the example of a mother saving money and being forced to hide it somewhere within the house. He said the bank officials who had opened an account for such a mother, had been blessed today.

He said a breakthrough was required to overcome the vicious cycle of poverty and debt, and that breakthrough had been achieved today. He said there were similarities between the poor getting access to mobile telephones, and getting access to debit cards. They both had the effect of instilling confidence and pride among the poor, he added. 

The Prime Minister referred to the ancient Sanskrit verse: Sukhasya Moolam Dharma, Dharmasya Moolam Artha, Arthasya Moolam Rajyam – which puts the onus on the state to involve people in economic activity. "This Government has accepted this responsibility," the Prime Minister said.

The Prime Minister said Indians had a habit of saving, and thinking about the future of their children. 

The Prime Minister also distributed awards to winners of the Name and Logo contest for this scheme. He observed that those who won prizes were predominantly from non-Hindi speaking states, but had won prizes for coining a name and slogan in Hindi. This is an example of national integration, he said. 

Speaking on the occasion, the Finance Minister said PMJDY would be taken forward in Mission Mode, and the first target of reaching 7.5 crore unbanked families would be achieved by January 26th, 2015.

The Minister of State for Finance, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman, said the lady of the house had been given priority in the PMJDY. She said this scheme would touch the lives of everyone in a positive and constructive way.

Centre to unveil home loan scheme for transgender

The Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation (HUPA) has proposed rolling out a loan assistance scheme that will for the first time help transgenders and economically weaker sections to secure home loans in urban areas.

The Ministry has tweaked the existing Rajiv Rinn Yojna (RRY), which was launched as an instrument to aid the EWS (economically weaker sections) and LIG (lower income group) segments in urban areas, through enhanced credit flow and replaced it with a new scheme that will make it easier for the economically weaker sections and minority groups to own homes.

The RRY launched by the UPA government with much fanfare failed to take off and funds earmarked for it lapsed. The Ministry has now not only given it a new name — HOMES (Home Owners Mortgage Equity Subvention Scheme) but has also made it more attractive by enhancing the loan amount and increasing the interest subsidy from 5 per cent to 5.5 per cent on loans granted to construct houses or extend the existing ones.

To begin with, applicants will no longer have to run from pillar to post to get an income certificate, in keeping with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s direction for allowing self attestation, the Ministry has decided to do away with seeking a certification from government officials.

“One of the major reasons why the scheme failed is because applicants had to secure an income certificate from local revenue officials, who were reluctant to do the job. This will now be replaced with self attestation as announced by the Prime Minister,” said an official, not wishing to be named.

The income slab has also been increased for eligible categories which include women, widows, SC/STs, persons with disabilities and transgenders; from the existing Rs. one lakh for EWS, the income group will now be extended to Rs. 2 lakh and for the LIG category it will be up by a lakh to Rs. 3 lakh per annum.

The size of the dwellings has been increased too for both the categories. The new scheme that will be sent for Cabinet’s approval soon, has enhanced the loan amount for the EWS category from the existing Rs. 5 lakh to Rs.10 lakh and for the LIG category from Rs. 8 lakh to Rs. 15 lakh for a period of 20 years.

Housing and Urban Development Corporation and National Housing Bank have been designated as the Central Nodal Agencies for the Scheme.

Unicef and IDBI joins hands for ‘wash in schools’ project

Unicef India has joined hands with IDBI to provide safe drinking water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) for school-going children in Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra. The project is part of the private sector bank’s corporate social responsibility programme worth Rs. 2.7 crore.

The Unicef’s “WASH in Schools” programme will directly impact 80,000 children in 400 schools and ‘anganwadi’ centres in Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra. An evaluation system will be established to monitor the progress in the two states and key learnings will be used to replicate the model across the country, an official release said.

UNICEF India is working closely with the Union Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation and the Ministry of Human Resource Development, to establish an institutionalised approach to ensure all children wash their hands before mid-day meals in schools.

Framework to boost exports

The new NDA government’s first annual Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) statement will be unveiled soon. Normally presented after the Union Budget, the FTP has usually concentrated on measures to boost exports and reduce transaction costs. It cannot explicitly reduce import or export duties — which are in the domain of the budget. However, the incentives for exporters have indirect implications for the exchequer. Employment generation in India through exports of manufactured goods has been a key objective of the FTP, which remains despite the change in nomenclature from the previous Exim Policy that was focussed on exports. A proactive policy on imports is equally necessary in a scenario where India is integrating with the rest of the world. Within the country there are minimal import restraints. A consistent policy framework is necessary to deal with items such as imports of gold and petroleum. Recently, the FTP has outlined ambitious plans for the diversification of exports, both in terms of the range of products and the destination countries. These commendable efforts have, however, not improved India’s export performance which, like world trade itself, remains below par.

The new government’s orientation to trade cannot be really different from that of its predecessor. The Prime Minister, while inaugurating a port-based special economic zone, urged manufacturers to join in export promotion. In his Independence Day speech he called for a “make in India” movement, which has the potential to turn India into a global manufacturing hub. The emphasis in the FTP will naturally vary depending on current circumstances. Multilateral trade as embodied by the WTO received a setback with India holding out against a previously agreed Trade Facilitation Agreement. While India has its own reasons — preserving the norms for domestic food security — the fact is that the failure in Geneva has spurred moves towards free trade agreements (FTAs), regional pacts, bilateral agreements and so on. These are inferior to rule-based multilateral trade, irrespective of any short-term gains they might confer. The Commerce Minister’s call for a comprehensive review of the performance of all FTAs is noteworthy. India already has 14 agreements in force, including one with the ASEAN grouping of 10 countries, and is negotiating several others. Both India and China have free trade agreements with ASEAN, and unless cumbersome procedures relating to country of origin are scrupulously followed, India might face a flood of duty-free Chinese goods. Besides, FTAs have not exactly delivered on their promise of larger trade between signatories. These factors will surely weigh, even as India prepares to renegotiate stalled issues of the Doha round.

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an organization that intends to supervise and liberalize international trade. The organization officially commenced on 1 January 1995 under the Marrakech Agreement, replacing the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which commenced in 1948. The organization deals with regulation of trade between participating countries by providing a framework for negotiating and formalizing trade agreements and a dispute resolution process aimed at enforcing participant's adherence to WTO agreements, which are signed by representatives of member governments and ratified by their parliaments. Most of the issues that the WTO focuses on derive from previous trade negotiations, especially from the Uruguay Round (1986–1994). The organization is attempting to complete negotiations on the Doha Development Round, which was launched in 2001 with an explicit focus on addressing the needs of developing countries. As of June 2012, the future of the Doha Round remained uncertain: the work programme lists 21 subjects in which the original deadline of 1 January 2005 was missed, and the round is still incomplete. The conflict between free trade on industrial goods and services but retention of protectionism on farm subsidies to domestic agricultural sector (requested by developed countries) and the substantiation of the international liberalization of fair trade on agricultural products (requested by developing countries) remain the major obstacles. These points of contention have hindered any progress to launch new WTO negotiations beyond the Doha Development Round. As a result of this impasse, there has been an increasing number of bilateral free trade agreements signed. As of July 2012, there were various negotiation groups in the WTO system for the current agricultural trade negotiation which is in the condition of stalemate. WTO's current Director-General is Roberto Azevêdo, who leads a staff of over 600 people in Geneva, Switzerland. A trade facilitation agreement known as the Bali Package was reached by all members on 7 December 2013, the first comprehensive agreement in the organization's history.

Needed, a Growth Commission

There is a need to evaluate and restructure every organisation as circumstances change and the Planning Commission is no exception. Restructuring an organisation can be of two types. One approach takes the functions of the organisation as a given and proceeds to restructure it to make it more effective to fulfil those functions. The second approach is more fundamental. It questions the very basis of the organisation and focusses on the relevance of the basic functions it has been performing. It is the second type of restructuring that we are talking about in relation to the Planning Commission.

The Planning Commission has a distinguished past. Many eminent men and women have adorned the position of Deputy Chairman and Member. The question that is posed now is about its relevance in the current circumstances. The Planning Commission now performs three types of functions. First and foremost, it draws a blueprint for the country’s economic development over a five-year period. It also outlines a detailed strategy for achieving the goals and objectives enshrined in the blueprint which we call the Plan. The plan exercise outlines not only how the broad macroeconomic parameters are expected to move, but also a sector wise analysis of what needs to be done. After approval of the Five Year Plan, the Planning Commission in consultation with the Finance Ministry also determines the annual plan. The determination of the “size” of the annual plan of each State is a major exercise and has been a cause of much irritation.

Second, flowing from its function of determining the size of plans for States, the Planning Commission allocates funds to States, the distribution of which has again been a contentious issue.

Third, the Planning Commission has a key role in the formulation of various policies and programmes. It critically assesses the individual programmes of Ministries. Major projects are also assessed and approved by it. It is this function which resulted in a parallel unit corresponding to every Ministry being established in the Planning Commission. It would be useful to analyse which of these functions remain relevant and which of them can be discarded or transferred to other authorities within the government.

Planning was perceived in the 1950s as the most appropriate tool for ushering in faster economic growth. The strategy for achieving this was discussed at great length, particularly at the time of the formulation of the Second Five Year Plan. This was consistent with the thinking at that time that the state must have control over the “commanding heights.”

Times have changed. In the post-liberalisation period, the concept of planning itself has undergone a change. We have moved, at best, to an era of indicative planning. The blend of public and private investment has tilted in favour of the private sector. While planning of the type we had in the first five decades after Independence has no relevance, an organisation to look at the basic issues confronting the economy, and preparing a broad framework on how long-term issues can be resolved, is still a necessity. If there is an acceptable framework on what the critical issues are and how they should be tackled, it will provide a suitable basis for policy formulation.

While the state may play a diminishing role, it still plays a critical role in the economy. In the infrastructure sector, it still has a dominant role. If the Centre and States agree on a broad framework through discussions, it would facilitate the adoption of better policies. Such an organisation will be something more than a think tank. Through a broad range of discussions, it should prepare a road map which will be acceptable to both the Centre and the States. Thus, the task of preparing a blueprint for the country over a certain period is essential and should continue to be performed. Also, there are issues which cut across Ministries, such as energy, transport, water or environment. In terms of policy formulation, this commission can take a holistic view and offer advice.

The second function of allocating resources among States is somewhat debatable. There is a strong view that the Finance Commission is the appropriate constitutional authority for allocating resources. Of course, the Planning Commission has also been following a formula for allotting funds among States but the quantum of transfer of funds through this mechanism has been diminishing. Much larger funds from the Centre flowed through the centrally sponsored schemes and this was performance-based. Given the States’ aversion, it may be best that this function is fully entrusted to the Finance Commission.

The third function of evaluating projects and giving approval has also raised many controversies. The Ministries regard the implementation of projects as their prime responsibility and very often consider the Planning Commission as a hindrance.

While having a ‘second look’ is always an advantage, leaving this task entirely to the Ministry seems appropriate. The Planning Commission has been looking at restructuring itself. In fact, the Committee on Public Expenditure Management, of which I was the Chairman, had made the point that the distinction between plan expenditure and non-plan expenditure should go, and the Planning Commission should take a comprehensive look at public expenditure in the key sectors. The result of making a distinction between plan and non-plan expenditures has been that we have had situations of hospitals without doctors and schools without teachers because one is treated as plan and the other as non-plan. In fact, within the present structure of the Planning Commission, the federal element could have been enhanced, if, besides Central Ministers, some Chief Ministers were also included as members. This would have given it a national character.

The current practice of “approval” by the National Development Council has also not been satisfactory. Even when some Chief Ministers differed on the strategy, very few changes were made. At the end of a long day of discussions, the plan is taken as approved.

As we move ahead, there are critical problems facing the economy. Ensuring a faster rate of economic growth with equity is not an easy task. Environmental considerations have emerged as a serious concern. Therefore, an integrated look at the problems faced by the country over a five-year period is very much required. Thus, the need for an organisation for formulating ideas on how to shape the economy over a certain time frame will be helpful. This was the task which the Planning Commission was performing with some success and this must continue.

If the word “planning” is reminiscent of an earlier period, it may be substituted by “development” or “growth.” The other two functions performed by the Planning Commission now can be delegated to other authorities in the government. The allocation function can go to the Finance Commission and project evaluation can be taken care of by strengthening the Ministries. Thus, a National Development Commission or Growth Commission, which is charged with a mandate to prepare a blueprint with goals and objectives to be achieved over a defined period, may still be the need of the hour. This document can then be discussed by the National Development Council, a political body.

Court cannot add new disqualification for Ministers

The Supreme Court refused to add a new disqualification in the Constitution for appointment as Ministers, saying it was the prerogative of the Prime Minister or the Chief Minister of a State to appoint Ministers of his/her choice.

A five-judge Constitution Bench headed by Justice R.M. Lodha, in its 123-page judgment on a public interest litigation petition filed in 2005 seeking the removal of tainted Ministers from the Cabinet, said, “We are of the convinced opinion that when there is no disqualification for a person against whom charges have been framed in respect of heinous or serious offences or offences relating to corruption to contest the election, by interpretative process, it is difficult to read the prohibition into Article 75(1) or, for that matter, into Article 164(1) to the powers of the Prime Minister or the Chief Minister in such a manner.”

However, the Bench said having regard to the role of a Minister and keeping in view the sanctity of oath he takes, the Prime Minister would consider not choosing a person against whom charges have been framed for heinous or serious criminal offences or charges of corruption. “In a controlled Constitution like ours, the Prime Minister is expected to act with constitutional responsibility,” the Bench said.

Justice Dipak Misra, writing the main judgment for himself, the CJI, Justice Bobde, Madan B. Lokur and Kurian Joseph, said “criminalisation of politics is anathema to the sacredness of democracy. It is worth saying that systemic corruption and sponsored criminalisation can corrode the fundamental core of elective democracy and, consequently, the constitutional governance.”

It said: “A democratic republic polity hopes and aspires to be governed by a Government which is run by the elected representatives who do not have any involvement in serious criminal offences or offences relating to corruption, casteism, societal problems, affecting the sovereignty of the nation and many other offences. Corruption has the potentiality to destroy many a progressive aspect and it has acted as the formidable enemy of the nation.”

“The framers of the Constitution left many a thing unwritten. They also expected that the Prime Minster would act in the interest of the national polity of the nation-state. He [PM] has to bear in mind that unwarranted elements or persons who are facing charge in certain category of offences may thwart or hinder the canons of constitutional morality or principles of good governance and eventually diminish the constitutional trust.”

ARTICLE 75. (1) The Prime Minister shall be appointed by the President and the other Ministers shall be appointed by the President on the advice of the Prime Minister. 1[(1A) The total number of Ministers, including the Prime Minister, in the Council of Ministers shall not exceed fifteen per cent. of the total number of members of the House of the People. (1B) A member of either House of Parliament belonging to any political party who is disqualified for being a member of that House under paragraph 2 of the Tenth Schedule shall also be disqualified to be appointed as a Minister under clause (1) for duration of the period commencing from the date of his disqualification till the date on which the term of his office as such member would expire or where he contests any election to either House of Parliament before the expiry of such period, till the date on which he is declared elected, whichever is earlier.] (2) The Ministers shall hold office during the pleasure of the President. (3) The Council of Ministers shall be collectively responsible to the House of the People. (4) Before a Minister enters upon his office, the President shall administer to him the oaths of office and of secrecy according to the forms set out for the purpose in the Third Schedule. (5) A Minister who for any period of six consecutive months is not a member of either House of Parliament shall at the expiration of that period cease to be a Minister. (6) The salaries and allowances of Ministers shall be such as Parliament may from time to time by law determine and, until Parliament so determines, shall be as specified in the Second Schedule.

By sending a strong message that politicians facing criminal charges framed by a court should be disqualified from becoming Ministers, the Supreme Court has stepped away from the age-old principle that a “person is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.”

Framing of charges in a criminal trial is a “judicial act”, Justice Dipak Misra, who wrote the lead judgment for Chief Justice of India R.M. Lodha’s Constitution Bench, disposing of a PIL. He said the framing of charges by a judge was not the same as the lodging of an FIR by a probe agency. Charges are framed in a criminal trial after the judge is satisfied there is prima facie evidence against the accused after perusal of the final charge sheet.

“Framing of charge is a judicial act by an experienced judicial mind,” Justice Misra said. Besides, a tainted Minister heading a “high-integrity institution” cannot take refuge with only a mere presumption of innocence to defend him, Justice Misra said. “There can be no dispute over the proposition that unless a person is convicted, he is presumed to be innocent, but the presumption of innocence in criminal jurisprudence is something all together different, and not to be considered for being chosen as a Minister,” Justice Misra said.

He added that at the heart of the court’s message to Parliament was its concern about the “rampant criminalisation of politics.” To this extent, the court brushed aside the 1948 Constituent Assembly Debates of the Constitution framers, who had then dismissed even criminal conviction as a disqualification for being appointed Ministers, choosing instead to repose faith in the Prime Minister’s advice. But 66 years later, Supreme Court differed, saying times had changed. “With the change of time, the entire complexion in the political arena as well as in other areas has changed. This court, on a number of occasions, has taken note of the prevalence and continuous growth of criminalisation in politics,” Justice Misra observed.

Justice Kurian Joseph on the Bench, in his separate judgment, said a person charged with a criminal offence was presumed to be in “conflict with the law.” “Is it not that his integrity is already under question?” Justice Joseph asked. “If so, is it desirable in a country governed by the rule of law to entrust executive power with such a person who is already in conflict with the law?” Justice Madan B. Lokur, the third judge who wrote a separate verdict, referred to the 244th Report of the Law Commission on Electoral Disqualification on February 2014 to show that “one-third of the elected candidates at Parliament and State Assembly levels in India have some form of criminal taint.” To prove his point, Justice Lokur cited the government’s own documents such as the 18th Report of the Department-Related Parliamentary Standing Committee on disqualification of persons charged with criminal offences from contesting elections. “The Report acknowledges the criminalisation of our polity and necessity of cleansing the political climate,” he observed.

The time has come for Parliament to prescribe some minimum qualifications for Parliamentarians/Legislators as prescribed in other fields, the Supreme Court observe. Justice Madan Lokur, in his separate but concurring judgment on the PIL filed in 2005 seeking removal of tainted Ministers, recalled the words of the first President, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, in the Constituent Assembly that he would have liked to have some qualifications laid down for Members of Legislatures.

“The offences and the sentence to be awarded for the purpose of disqualifying a person from being elected to a Legislature are matters that Parliament may like to debate and consider, if at all it is felt necessary. Until then, we must trust the watchful eye of the people of the country that the elected representative of the people is worthy of being a legislator. Thereafter, we must trust the wisdom of the Prime Minister and Parliament that the elected representative is worthy of being a Minister in the Central Government,” the court said.

Justice Kurian Joseph, in his concurring judgment, wondered whether it would be desirable in a country governed by the rule of law to entrust the executive power with a person who was already in conflict with law. He asked, “Will any reasonably prudent master leave the keys of his chest with a servant whose integrity is doubted? It may not be altogether irrelevant to note that a person even of doubtful integrity is not appointed in the important organ of the State which interprets law and administers justice, then why to speak of questioned integrity! What to say more, a candidate involved in any criminal case and facing trial, is not appointed in any civil service because of the alleged criminal antecedents, until acquitted.”

“No doubt, it is not for the court to issue any direction to the Prime Minister or the Chief Minister, as the case may be, as to the manner in which they should exercise their power while selecting the colleagues in the Council of Ministers,” Justice Joseph said.

Ministry dumps Gadgil report on Western Ghats

After being directed to take a clear stand, the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) informed the National Green Tribunal (NGT) that it was “not processing” Madhav Gadgil’s Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP) report for any further action.

In an affidavit filed in response to a petition by the Goa Foundation, the Ministry said all future activity would be based on the report of the high-level working group (HLWG) headed by K. Kasturirangan, the then member of the Planning Commission. The HLWG report was a subsequent one to the WGEEP report and the Ministry was examining and further processing the HLWG report, the affidavit said.

The Ministry filed the affidavit in response to an August 25 NGT order where it was asked to explain its position vis-à-vis the Gadgil report. The affidavit said the Ministry had constituted the HLWG on August 17, 2012 to examine the WGEEP report in a holistic fashion keeping in view comments received from the State governments concerned, Central ministries and stakeholders. The HLWG submitted its report on April 15, 2013 and the Ministry issued a direction under Section 5 of the Environment Protection Act on November 13, 2013 to provide immediate protection to the Western Ghats. A draft notification was also published on March 10, 2014, declaring ecologically sensitive areas in the Western Ghats to which objections have been invited.

The High Level Working Group has identified about 37 per cent of the Western Ghats as ecologically sensitive. Raj Panjwani, counsel for the Goa Foundation, said the area which was declared ecologically sensitive came down from 1.29 lakh sq km in the Gadgil report to 56,825 sq km in the draft notification.

He contended that the area which was left out also needed protection. The tribunal asked him to file objections to the draft notification delineating the eco sensitive zones as per the Kasturirangan report. Mr. Panjwani said he had no objections to file the same. He said he had no grievance against the draft notification. The concern was over protection for the large area which had been left out. Counsel for the Ministry said the Centre was open to considering extension of areas to be declared eco-sensitive and sought time to get back on this aspect. The next hearing will be held on September 9. A Ministry of Environment official later said the Gadgil report was not jettisoned and it was the basis for the Kasturirangan report.

80% in informal employment have no written contract

Nearly three out of four people working in the non-agricultural sector in India are in informal jobs, new data from the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) shows. Eighty per cent of these informal sector employees have no written contract and 72 per cent get no social security benefits, according to this data.  The NSSO’s 68th round looked at the ‘Informal Sector and Conditions of Employment in India’ for 2011-12, by conducting a nationally representative household-level sample survey. It looked at both rural and urban areas, but excluded crop-based farming, covering just over half of India’s workforce as a result.

 In 2013, Credit Suisse economists Neelkanth Mishra and Ravi Shankar estimated India’s informal economy at 90 per cent of all employment and half of total GDP. They estimated informal employment in the non-farm sector at 84 per cent, substantially higher than the NSSO’s estimate. Only sub-Saharan Africa had a comparable extent of informalisation.  The NSSO characterises the informal sector as consisting of units operating at a low level of organisation with little division between labour and capital, and labour relations based on family, social relations or casual employment.  Seventy-two per cent of this workforce was in the informal sector, the NSSO found, with the proportion being higher in rural than urban India. Nearly all of the self-employed — the largest component of the workforce — are in informal jobs, while over 40 per cent of those in regular or salaried jobs are also in informal work arrangements.

In real terms, informal jobs mean vulnerability, the numbers indicate. Of those in the informal sector, 42 per cent were in temporarily employment. Wages were lower in the informal sector; while regular/ salaried employees earned Rs 401 per day, those in the informal sector earned Rs 225 per day. Nearly 80 per cent of all informal sector workers had no written contracts, 70 per cent got no paid leave and 72 per cent got no social security benefits. Eighty per cent were not members of any union or association.

 Informalisation — the proportion of informal workers to total workers — has fallen significantly since 2004-5 though the 2009-10 data showed a slight rise, the NSSO says. Manufacturing, construction, wholesale and retail trade, transportation and storage were the main sectors employing informal workers, the NSSO found. Most enterprises hiring informal workers are tiny; three-quarters of all informal workers are in enterprises of less than six persons, the data shows.  Among the States, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal had the highest proportion of informal workers, and the north-eastern States, Himachal Pradesh and Goa the lowest.  

Loss of immune cells reduces malarial fevers in children

Children who live in places where malaria is rampant often suffer repeated bouts of infection with the mosquito-borne parasite but are less likely to become feverish in later episodes of the disease. This happens not because their immune system becomes more adept at protecting them from the parasite but appears to result from certain immune cells being lost and turning dysfunctional, according to research that has just been published.

A team of American and Ugandan researchers monitored a group of 78 children in a rural part of south-eastern Uganda where malaria is widespread. These children were followed from their infancy, with regular check-ups to look for malaria.

In this group, the incidence of symptomatic malaria, where the child developed fever, peaked at about two and a half years of age and then declined, with a corresponding increase in asymptomatic infections without fever. By the time the children were four years old, the ones who caught malaria repeatedly had lower levels of certain immune cells, the ‘Vδ2{++}γδ T cells,’ in their blood.

The Vδ2{++}cells are capable of secreting a substance that is toxic to the malaria parasite when they pick up signs of its presence. These cells, which are innately reactive to the parasite even without prior exposure, “may help protect infants and young children from malaria but at the cost of creating excessive inflammation which results in fevers and other symptoms,” said Margaret Feeney of the University of California at San Francisco, the paper's corresponding author, in an email.

The Vδ2{++}cells also release molecular alarm signals, known as cytokines. The researchers found that such cells from children with numerous prior malaria episodes were less responsive to an infection. Children with lower levels of cytokine-producing Vδ2{++}cells had a higher risk of harbouring more parasites in their blood, but nevertheless were more likely to be asymptomatic. The progressive loss and dysfunction of those immune cells could conceivably interfere with effective clearance of the infection, the paper noted. However, it is likely that other immune mechanisms, such as antibodies and conventional T cells, play a role in keeping parasite numbers in check, according to Dr. Feeney. Adults who live in malaria endemic regions too have asymptomatic episodes of the disease, observed V. Arun Nagaraj, a researcher at the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore who studies the malaria parasite. It needed to be checked whether the immune mechanism identified in the paper was involved in adults as well.

IS, Frankenstein’s monster unleashed

It is beyond dispute that the Islamic State militia — formerly the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant — emerged from the Syrian civil war, which began indigenously as a localised revolt against state brutality under Syrian President Bashar al-Assad before being fuelled with externally supplied funds and weapons. From Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)-training centres in Turkey and Jordan, the rebels set up a Free Syrian Army (FSA), launching attacks on government forces, as a U.S.-backed information war demonised Mr. Assad and encouraged military officers and soldiers to switch sides.

But the members of the U.S.-led coalition were never on the same page because some allies had dual agendas. While the three spearheads of the anti-Assad crusade — the U.S., Britain and France — focussed on aiding the FSA, the radical Islamist sheikhdoms such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates as well as the Islamist-leaning government in Turkey channelled their weapons and funds to more overtly Islamist groups. This splintered the Syrian opposition, marginalising the FSA and paving the way for the Islamic State’s rise.

The anti-Assad coalition indeed started off on the wrong foot by trying to speciously distinguish between “moderate” and “radical” jihadists . The line separating the two is just too blurred. Indeed, the term “moderate jihadists ” is an oxymoron: Those waging jihad by the gun can never be moderate.

The U.S. and its allies made a more fundamental mistake by infusing the spirit of jihad in their campaign against Mr. Assad so as to help trigger a popular uprising in Syria. The decision to instil the spirit of jihad through television and radio broadcasts beamed to Syrians was deliberate — to provoke Syria’s majority Sunni population to rise against their secular government.

This ignored the lesson from Afghanistan (where the CIA in the 1980s ran, via Pakistan, the largest covert operation in its history) — that inciting jihad and arming “holy warriors” creates a deadly cocktail, with far-reaching and long-lasting impacts on international security. The Reagan administration openly used Islam as an ideological tool to spur armed resistance to Soviet forces in Afghanistan.

In 1985, at a White House ceremony in honour of several Afghan mujahideen — the jihadists out of which al-Qaeda evolved — President Ronald Reagan declared, “These gentlemen are the moral equivalent of America’s Founding Fathers.” Earlier in 1982, Reagan dedicated the space shuttle ‘Columbia’ to the Afghan resistance. He declared, “Just as the Columbia, we think, represents man’s finest aspirations in the field of science and technology, so too does the struggle of the Afghan people represent man’s highest aspirations for freedom. I am dedicating, on behalf of the American people, the March 22 launch of the Columbia to the people of Afghanistan.”

The Afghan war veterans came to haunt the security of many countries. Less known is the fact that the Islamic State’s self-declared caliph, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi — like Libyan militia leader Abdelhakim Belhadj (whom the CIA abducted and subjected to “extraordinary rendition”) and Chechen terrorist leader Airat Vakhitov — become radicalised while under U.S. detention. As torture chambers, U.S. detention centres have served as pressure cookers for extremism.

Mr. Obama’s Syria strategy took a page out of Reagan’s Afghan playbook. Not surprisingly, his strategy backfired. It took just two years for Syria to descend into a Somalia-style failed state under the weight of the international jihad against Mr. Assad. This helped the Islamic State not only to rise but also to use its control over northeastern Syria to stage a surprise blitzkrieg deep into Iraq this summer.

Had the U.S. and its allies refrained from arming jihadists to topple Mr. Assad, would the Islamic State have emerged as a lethal, marauding force? And would large swaths of upstream territory along the Euphrates and the Tigris rivers in Syria and Iraq have fallen into this monster’s control? The exigencies of the topple-Assad campaign also prompted the Obama administration to turn a blind eye to the flow of Gulf and Turkish aid to the Islamic State.

In fact, the Obama team, until recently, viewed the Islamic State as a “good” terrorist organisation in Syria but a “bad” one in Iraq, especially when it threatened to overrun the Kurdish regional capital, Erbil. In January, Mr. Obama famously dismissed the Islamic State as a local “JV team” trying to imitate al-Qaeda but without the capacity to be a threat to America. It was only after the public outrage in the U.S. over the video-recorded execution of American journalist James Foley and the flight of Iraqi Christians and Yazidis that the White House re-evaluated the threat posed by the Islamic State.

Many had cautioned against the topple-Assad campaign, fearing that extremist forces would gain control in the vacuum. Those still wedded to overthrowing Mr. Assad’s rule, however, contend that Mr. Obama’s failure to provide greater aid, including surface-to-air missiles, to the Syrian rebels created a vacuum that produced the Islamic State. In truth, more CIA arms to the increasingly ineffectual FSA would have meant a stronger and more deadly Islamic State.

As part of his strategic calculus to oust Mr. Assad, Mr. Obama failed to capitalise on the Arab Spring, which was then in full bloom. By seeking to topple a secular autocracy in Syria while simultaneously working to shield jihad -bankrolling monarchies from the Arab Spring, he ended up strengthening Islamist forces — a development reinforced by the U.S.-led overthrow of another secular Arab dictator, Muammar Qadhafi, which has turned Libya into another failed state and created a lawlessjihadist citadel at Europe’s southern doorstep.

In fact, no sooner had Qadhafi been killed than Libya’s new rulers established a theocracy, with no opposition from the western powers that brought about the regime change. Indeed, the cloak of Islam helps to protect the credibility of leaders who might otherwise be seen as foreign puppets. For the same reason, the U.S. has condoned the Arab monarchs for their long-standing alliance with Islamists. It has failed to stop these cloistered royals from continuing to fund Muslim extremist groups and madrasas in other countries. The American interest in maintaining pliant regimes in oil-rich countries has trumped all other considerations.

Today, Mr. Obama’s Syria policy is coming full circle. Having portrayed Mr. Assad as a bloodthirsty monster, Washington must now accept Mr. Assad as the lesser of the two evils and work with him to defeat the larger threat of the Islamic State.

The fact that the Islamic State’s heartland remains in northern Syria means that it cannot be stopped unless the U.S. extends air strikes into Syria. As the U.S. mulls that option — for which it would need at least tacit permission from Syria, which still maintains good air defences — it is fearful of being pulled into the middle of the horrendous civil war there. It is thus discreetly urging Mr. Assad to prioritise defeating the Islamic State.

Make no mistake: like al-Qaeda, the Islamic State is a monster inadvertently spawned by the policies of those now in the lead to combat it. The question is whether anything substantive will be learned from this experience, unlike the forgotten lessons of America’s anti-Soviet struggle in Afghanistan.

At a time when jihadist groups are gaining ground from Mali to Malaysia, Mr. Obama’s current effort to strike a Faustian bargain with the Afghan Taliban, for example, gives little hope that any lesson will be learned. U.S.-led policies toward the Islamic world have prevented a clash between civilisations by fostering a clash within a civilisation, but at serious cost to regional and international security.

Don’t close the door on NJAC as yet

The Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha have passed the National Judicial Appointments Commission Act, 2014 (NJAC Act), and the Constitution (99th Amendment) Act, to give constitutional status to the National Judicial Appointments Commission (JAC) to appoint judges to the Supreme Court and High Courts. Rarely has a legislation of such importance been approved by the two Houses of Parliament unanimously. This is the clearest endorsement of consensus of public opinion in the country: that the judicially created collegium system of appointing judges requires replacement by a new system of appointment.

The JAC is to be composed of six members — the ex-officio Chief Justice of India, two senior-most judges of the Supreme Court, the Law Minister, and two “eminent persons” nominated by a committee comprising the Prime Minister, the Chief Justice of India and the Leader of the Opposition. There is nothing to suggest that the two “eminent persons” will be the nominees of the government.

Critics have faulted the new JAC principally on the ground that the three judicial members of the commission will not have a predominant vote in the selection of a judge. They criticise the provision in the NJAC Act which states that the JAC cannot recommend a person for appointment as a judge if any two members of the commission do not agree for such a recommendation. It is suggested that this provision takes away the power of the three ex-officio judges of the Supreme Court to recommend a judge, and gives a veto to two non-judicial members. This is a speculative assumption to condemn the new system. The judicial members may themselves be the opposing two members of the recommendation made by others, which would allow the views of the judicial members to prevail. If the basis of the new legislation is to take away the supremacy of the previous collegium to appoint judges, there surely cannot be a provision in the new law to retain that power by giving a decisive vote to the judicial members of the commission.

The government was anxious to avoid an impression that it would overrule the commission. The JAC Bill was therefore amended in the course of the debate in the Lok Sabha to delete the requirement of a unanimous reiteration by the commission if the President required it to reconsider its recommendation. Thereby, the Bill took away the power of the President or the executive to overrule the recommendation of the JAC, which was not unanimous.

The insistence that the judicial members of the commission must have the predominant vote in the commission is founded on a theory that the judiciary must have the right to appoint judges. This is not the constitutional requirement in any jurisdiction. The U.K. Judicial Appointments Commission, a body doing excellent work, consists of 15 members: two from the legal profession, five judges, one tribunal member, one lay justice (magistrate), and six lay people including the Chairman. One of the chairpersons was, till recently, a lay person of Indian origin, Baronnes Usha Prashar. There is no predominance of judges in the U.K. Commission.

The argument that the independence of the judiciary is jeopardised by the creation of a JAC is superficial. Even prior to the collegium system, for over 23 years, judges of the Supreme Court, including some outstanding judges, were appointed by the President after consultation with the Chief Justice of India and other judges of the Court. It was only during the Emergency period that this system was misused by the government, which led to the judgment in the Second Judges Act in 1993. In Australia and Canada, judicial appointments of the superior courts are made by the executive after wide consultation, including with the judiciary. There is therefore no basis for the theory that the judiciary must always have a controlling voice in judicial appointments to secure judicial independence.

The JAC will become functional only after a long time. The Constitutional (99th Amendment) Act has to be ratified first by half the States which will take several months. A permanent secretariat to back up the functioning of the JAC has to be created. Regulations have to be formulated for its functioning, particularly for the criteria of suitability for judicial appointments. There are many shortcomings in the JAC as formulated in the statute, but much will depend on how it will function in practice. The collegium system was allowed to function for over 20 years before its unsatisfactory working was acknowledged, even by judges. Instead of condemning the JAC straightaway on the recondite theory of it prejudicing judicial independence, and on the speculation of judicial members of the commission being side-tracked and outvoted by two non-judicial members, why can’t the commission be allowed to function for sometime so it can reveal its merits? As Justice Powell of the U.S. Supreme Court said, “Democratic institutions are weakened and confidence in the Court is impaired when we appear unnecessarily to decide sensitive issues at the very time they are under consideration within a prescribed constitutional process.”

Already petitions have been filed against the JAC in the Supreme Court, and eminent lawyers have said they will move the Court to declare the commission illegal. Whether they will succeed or not, it is unfortunate that such a challenge in the Court will throw the system of appointing judges in a cloud of uncertainty.

Dalai Lama in talks to return, says Chinese official

China’s government in Tibet claims that the Dalai Lama is in talks with Beijing through “personal envoys”, but the talks are only about the possibility of his return to Tibet.

Wu Yingjie, the Deputy Secretary of the Communist Party Committee for Tibet, told a group of Indian journalists in Lhasa on Sunday that the talks with the Dalai were “ongoing and always smooth, but we are discussing only his future, not Tibet’s.”

Mr. Wu said many Tibetan leaders had chosen to return to Tibet in recent years, giving the example of a senior Lama in Chengdu who returned from Switzerland.

“All Tibetans, including the Dalai Lama and the people around him, can return if they accept Tibet and Taiwan as part of China, and give up ‘splittist’ efforts,” he said.

When asked about the political talks with envoys from Dharamsala, that broke down after nine rounds in 2010, he termed their demands unacceptable. “How can the Dalai Lama demand that China withdraw its army from Tibet?” asked Mr. Wu. “The army is a symbol of our state. Will India agree to withdraw its Army from Arunachal Pradesh?” he said.

Mr. Wu also rejected the proposal by the Prime Minister of the self-styled “Tibetan government in exile”, Lobsang Sangay, for a larger region to be included in the Tibetan Autonomous Region.

Tibetan official allays India’s concerns on rail line

Rejecting concerns in India over the newly-inaugurated 250-kilometre rail-line from Lhasa to Shigatse that runs close to the Indian border in Sikkim, a senior Tibetan official said India, Nepal and China should cooperate on “letting railways cross over borders as they do in Europe.”

Wu Yingjie, a top functionary of the Communist Party of Tibet, was speaking to a group of Indian journalists in Lhasa. Responding to a question from The Hindu , he said, “Rest assured however many railway lines China builds, it will abide by the Panchsheel principles of coexistence.”

India has twin worries over the new constructions in Tibet, which will run close to Sikkim on the western line to Shigatse, and on the eastern line to Nyngchi, close to the Arunachal border, which are due to be completed by 2016. To begin with, the high-speed trains will facilitate quicker movement of military personnel and hardware to the Chinese side compared to India’s abilities at its border. Also, the Nepal government had asked for the Shigatse line to be extended to Kathmandu to ease travel from Nepal, Mr. Wu revealed.

The rail lines are part of China’s mission to build infrastructure on a large-scale in Tibet by 2020, indenting for 1,300 km of railway tracks, 1,10,000 km of roadways and several airports, with an investment of more than $13 billion in the last two decades.

Environmentalists have pointed out that the barrelling of tunnels through mountains will lead to soil erosion and have other ecological impact as well. Tibet’s Director General of Environmental Protection Jiang Bai, however, has said the construction process goes through “strict” environmental checks. “In the past too, if we are advised against disturbing one part of a mountain, we take a detour,” he said.

The Tibetan sovereignty debate refers to two political debates. The first is whether the various territories within the People's Republic of China (PRC) that are claimed as political Tibet should separate and become a new sovereign state. Many of the points in the debate rest on a second debate, about whether Tibet was independent or subordinate to China in certain parts of its recent history. It is generally agreed that China and Tibet were independent prior to the Yuan Dynasty (1271–1368), and that Tibet has been ruled by the People's Republic of China (PRC) since 1959. The nature of Tibet’s relationship to China in the intervening time is a matter of debate. The PRC claims that Tibet has been a part of China since the Yuan Dynasty. The Republic of China (1912–1949) (ROC) claimed that "Tibet was placed under the sovereignty of China" when the Qing Dynasty (1644–1912) expelled Nepal from Tibet in c. 1793. The Tibetan Government in Exile claims that Tibet was an independent state until the PRC invaded Tibet in 1949/50. Western scholars claim that Tibet and China were ruled by the Mongols during the Yuan Dynasty, that Tibet was independent during the Chinese Ming Dynasty (1368–1644).[ and that Tibet was ruled by China or subordinate to the Qing[ during much of the Qing Dynasty. Western scholars also claim that Tibet was independent from c. 1912 to 1950, although it had extremely limited international recognition.

The challenge of financial inclusion

Financial inclusion and financial literacy have been important policy goals for quite some time. The Finance Minister has emphasised inclusion in the budget speech. At various fora, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and senior government officials had been hinting at a “big-bang” action plan for financial inclusion to be announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his Independence Day address to the nation. There were reports of the authorities getting ready with a Comprehensive Financial Inclusion Plan (CFIP) or Sampoorn Vittiya Samaveshan in Hindi, which will be breathtaking in scope and extremely ambitious.

The Prime Minister did not disappoint. The Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana, which figured prominently in his speech, heralded the new plan of action. It will be based substantially on the CFIP. Details are, however, awaited.

There is a long history of financial inclusion in India. It has traditionally been understood to mean opening new bank branches in rural and unbanked areas. Nowadays, however, financial inclusion is seen to be something more than opening bank branches in unbanked areas to take formal financial services across the length and breadth of the country. In the context of the various shortcomings in delivering subsidies, direct transfers using technology have been thought of. The beneficiary needs to have at least one bank account. Since in a logistics point of view it is impossible to open that many physical branches — the brick and mortar type — the accent will be on opening electronic accounts. Technology adaptation would be a key feature in this scheme for financial inclusion.

The RBI has, in the recent past, taken several steps to further inclusion. Very recently, it circulated for public comment two sets of draft guidelines for issuing licences to payment banks and small banks.

These niche banks with lower entry-level norms than for normal commercial banks are meant to further inclusion. While it will take a while for these banks to come up, it is obvious that the RBI is betting on them to provide banking services to those who remain outside the purview of formal banking.

Recently, the RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan outlined, in conceptual terms, what inclusion should be. “Simplicity and reliability in financial inclusion in India, though not a cure all, can be a way of liberating the poor from dependence on indifferently delivered public services and from venal politicians,” he said. Further, “in order to draw in the poor, the products should address their needs — a safe place to save, a reliable way to send and receive money, a quick way to borrow in times of need or to escape the clutches of the money lender, easy to understand life and health insurance and an avenue to engage in savings for the old age.”

The RBI will accordingly nudge banks to offer a basic suite of services.

While over the years the government has taken several steps to spread the banking habit, formidable tasks lie ahead. Of the 24.67 crore households in the country, 10.19 crore do not have access to banking services. In rural areas, 44 per cent households and in urban areas 33 per cent still do not have a bank account.

The government’s latest plan of action, as envisaged in the CFIP or Sampoorn Vittiya Samaveshan, hopes to extend coverage of basic financial services all excluded households. In the first phase, the CFIP will endeavour to provide universal access to all the beneficiaries through sub-service areas (SSAs). Each SSA will consist of 100-1,500 families in a cluster of villages and each SSA will be serviced by a BC agent (BCA) whose task it will be to facilitate account opening and smooth banking operation.

The latest inclusion plan will have as its focus households rather than geographical areas. After satisfactory conduct of accounts it is proposed to offer reasonable need-based credit facilities for which overdraft facilities will be sanctioned. A smart card (RuPay card) will be issued to enable customers to operate their accounts even without BCs. Simultaneously suitable awareness will be created among the financially excluded.

In the second phase, there is a proposal to make available a pension scheme for identified individuals in the unorganised sector and offer microfinance products through government-owned insurance companies.

For the Jan-Dhan Yojana to succeed the following steps are indicated:

(1) The business correspondent model should be extended to include entities such as kirana shops, corporates and others. It is obvious that BCs need to be properly remunerated and have the full support of banks. Banks have tied up with common service centres (CSCs) as BCs.

(2) Insistence on KYC (know your customer) norms has hindered the opening of new accounts even in urban areas. Great significance is, therefore, attached to e-KYCs. The Aadhaar can play an extremely useful role.

(3) Since mobile banking through phones is to play an increasingly important role in a scenario where physical bank branches will be few, greater co-ordination between mobile telephone companies and banks will be necessary.

(4) It goes without saying that State governments’ support will be crucial.

(5) Commercial viability will be the key to the programme’s success. Past experience suggests that without proper incentives, the facilities on offer will not be used by the really needy. Banks will be saddled with a large number of dormant accounts.

By far the biggest challenge is one of altering the mindset — of banks, policy makers and bank customers, both potential and existing.

Hasina for quick signing of Teesta treaty

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has urged India to sign the Teesta water sharing treaty and implement the Land Boundary Agreement “as soon as possible.” She told an Indian delegation on Saturday that the Teesta deal should be inked at the earliest as Bangladesh needed more water in the lean period. The delegation was led by General (retd) V.K. Singh, Union Minister of State for Development of Northeastern Region, External Affairs and Overseas Indian Affairs.

Ms. Hasina hoped that all pending issues with India would be solved mutually. The official BSS news agency reported that the Prime Minister had requested India to give Bangladesh transit to Nepal and Bhutan through Indian soil. General (retd) V.K. Singh said India would act positively in this regard, adding that a rail line should be built connecting Bangladesh with Nepal and Bhutan.

He expressed gratitude to Bangladesh for allowing the use of the Ashuganj river port for transporting rice to Tripura. He said the government of India would soon construct an 11-km road from Akhaura to Agartala for goods transportation. He told Ms. Hasina that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was keen on visiting Bangladesh. The Indian delegation included Meghalaya Chief Minister Mukul Sangma, Minister of Industry of Tripura Tapan Chakravarty, Indian High Commissioner Pankaj Saran and the president of India-Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Matlub Ahmad.

India and Bangladesh share 54 rivers between them. Despite setting up a Joint River Commission for water management as early as 1972, tensions between the countries on how to share resources recently came to a head in a dispute over the Teesta River. At stake are the lives of countless people from West Bengal and Bangladesh who depend upon the river for survival. To date, only one comprehensive river pact has been signed by India and Bangladesh – a 1996 bilateral treaty that established a 30-year water-sharing arrangement between the two countries. This was set to change in September 2011 when India’s Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, was due to sign a pact with his Bangladeshi counterpart regarding access and use of the Teesta River. The Teesta – which has its source in Sikkim – flows through the northern part of West Bengal in India before entering Bangladesh, where after coursing through about 45km of irrigable land, merges with the Brahmaputra River (or Jamuna when it enters Bangladesh). In 1983, an ad-hoc water sharing agreement was reached between India and Bangladesh, whereby both countries were allocated 39% and 36% of the water flow respectively. The new bilateral treaty expands upon this agreement by proposing an equal allocation of the Teesta River. However, the deal fell through when the then newly elected Chief Minister of West Bengal, Ms. Mamata Banerjee, refused to approve the treaty, fearing that the loss of higher volume of water to the lower riparian would cause problems in the northern region of state, especially during drier months. Given that water is a state subject in India, and that Banerjee’s political party, the All India Trinamool Congress, was a key coalition partner of the ruling central government, the deal could not go through without her approval. While a large section of the Bangladeshi populace as well as the Indian media vilified her rigid stance, her opposition to the terms of the treaty was not without its share of support. In May 2012, during a visit to India, the Bangladesh Foreign Minister, Ms. Dipu Moni, warned that bilateral relations would be complicated if India fails to deliver on the Teesta water-sharing agreement. Bangladesh also wants a quick resolution to the issue, and may even be willing to soften their stance because of mounting pressure at home to get the deal done. According to a 2010 report ‘Water Security for India: The External Dynamics’ published by the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA): India is facing a serious water resource problem and as trends suggest, it is expected to become ‘water stressed’ by 2025 and ‘water scarce’ by 2050 Both countries, therefore, need to develop a well thought out, balanced treaty that will enable equitable sharing of the waters of the Teesta, thereby enhancing bilateral ties and reducing the possibility of water conflict.

INDIA – BANGLADESH RELATIONS

Following the Liberation War of 1971, Bangladesh gained its independence and established relations with India. The political relationship between India and Bangladesh has passed through cycles of hiccups. However, both countries today recognise the importance of good relations, regional security and South Asian economic integration.  Relations have improved significantly since Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's state visit to India in January 2010, which sought to revive Indo-Bangla relations in the emerging Asian economic order. India has a high commission in Dhaka and assistant high commissions in Chittagong and Rajshahi. Bangladesh has a high commission in New Delhi and deputy high commissions in Mumbai and Kolkata. In May, 2014 Bangladesh Prime Minister was one of the invitees to swearing in ceremony of the new Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj made Bangladesh her destination for first official overseas visit in June, 2014.

Areas of contention

1.     A major area of contention has been the construction and operation of the Farakka Barrage by India to increase water supply in the river Hoogly. Bangladesh insists that it does not receive a fair share of the Ganges waters during the drier seasons, and gets flooded during the monsoons when India releases excess waters. See also Sharing of Ganges Waters.

2.     There have also been disputes regarding the transfer of Teen Bigha Corridor to Bangladesh. Part of Bangladesh is surrounded by the Indian state of West Bengal. On 26 June 1992, India leased three bigha land to Bangladesh to connect this enclave with mainland Bangladesh. There was dispute regarding the indefinite nature of the lease. The dispute was resolved by an mutual agreement between India and Bangladesh in 2011.

3.     Terrorist activities carried out by outfits based in both countries, like Banga Sena and Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami. Recently India and Bangladesh had agreed jointly to fight terrorism.

4.     Bangladesh has consistently denied India transit facility to the landlocked North Eastern Regions of India. Although India has a narrow land link to this North eastern region, which is famously known as the Siliguri Corridor or "India's Chicken Neck"

5.     Illegal Bangladeshi immigration into India. The border is porous and migrants are able to cross illegally, though sometimes only in return for financial or other incentives to border security personnel. Bangladeshi officials have denied the existence of Bangladeshis living in India and those illegal migrants found are described as having been trafficked. This has considerable repercussions for those involved, as they are stigmatised for having been involved in prostitution, whether or not this has actually been the case. Cross border migrants are also at far higher risk of HIV/Aids infection.

6.     Continuous border killing of Indian and Bangladeshi people, aiding illegal immigrants, helping in armed decoity, fake money transfer and illegal drug trades by both Indian and Bangladeshi people are the major problems between Bangladesh and India.

7.     Both Bangladesh and India make claims over the same seawater at the Bay of Bengal.

8.     There was a minor glitch in their relation when former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh accidentally mentioned that 25% of Bangladeshis are anti-Indian, during an informal press meet.

Border killings of Bangladeshi civilians-Deaths of Bangladeshi citizens in the Indo-Bangladesh border became one of the embarrassments between the two nation’s bilateral relations in recent years. The so-called ‘shoot-to-kill’ policy by the India’s Border Security Forces (BSF) that according to Human Rights Watch killed nearly 1,000 Bangladeshis between 2001 and 2011 has remained at the core of the talks between Bangladeshi and Indian officials visiting each other.

Indian officials visiting Bangladesh, including the Indian foreign ministers and BSF chiefs numerously vowed to stop BSF shootings, but Bangladeshi nationals, comprising both illicit border crossers and innocents, have continued to be shot dead by the Indian troops.

While anger grew in Bangladesh because of the continued BSF shootings and subsequent deaths, Indian officials argue that heightened security has followed the increasing flow of illegal migrations into India as well as continued misuse of the border by illicit traders. Indian officials, vowing to cut down the number of casualties at border, showed statistics that the number of Bangladeshi deaths was in a steady decline in recent years.

The Bangladeshi deaths caused by BSF shootings at the border became subject to a so-called cyber war between the hackers of the two countries that took the websites of BSF, National Informatics Centre and Trinamool Congress as victims. The government of Bangladesh was found to comment on the issue condemning the cyber attacks on Indian websites.

Recent Developments

In September 2011, the two countries signed a major accord on border demarcation to end the 4-decade old disputes over boundaries.This came to be known as the tin bigha corridor. India also granted 24-hour access to Bangladeshi citizens in the Tin Bigha Corridor. The agreement included exchange of adversely held enclaves, involving 51,000 people spread over 111 Indian enclaves in Bangladesh and 51 Bangladesh enclaves in India. The total land involved is reportedly 7000 acres.

On 9 October 2011, Indian and Bangladeshi armies participated in Sampriti-II (Unity-II), a 14 day long Joint military exercise at Sylhet to increase synergy between their forces.

In 2012, Bangladesh allowed India’s Oil and Natural Gas Corporation to ferry heavy machinery, turbines and cargo through Ashuganj for Palatana Power project in southern Tripura.

From October 2013, India started exporting 500 megawatts of electricity a day to Bangladesh over a period of 35 years. A 125-kilometre Baharampur-Bheramara transmission line, 40 km of it in Bangladesh, connects the two substations. Bangladesh officials believe the export would greatly ease the national shortage once 500 MW flows into the national grid. The two country's Prime Ministers also unveiled the plaque of the 1,320-MW coal-fired Rampal power plant, a joint venture between the two countries. The link is being seen as a major milestone in strengthening the bilateral relationship and comes at a time when India is desperate to make up for its inability to deliver on two key pacts with Bangladesh: one on Teesta waters and the land boundary pact.

From November 2013, Wagah Border like ceremony is being organised at Petrapole (in West Bengal, India) - Benapole (Bangladesh) border checkpoint.The ceremony which includes parades, march-past and lowering of the national flag of both the countries is now a daily routine, at sundown, on the eastern border. The relations between the countries are definitely moving in positive direction.

In June 2014, during her first official overseas visit, Foreign Minister of India, Sushma Swaraj concluded various agreements to boost ties. They include:

·         Easing of Visa regime to provide 5 year multiple entry visas to minors below 13 and elderly above 65

·         Proposal of a special economic zone in Bangladesh

·         Agreement to send back a fugitive murder accused from India

·         Provide an additional 100 MW power from Tripura

·         Increase the frequency of Maitreyee Express and start buses between Dhaka and Guwahati and Shillong

·         Bangladesh allowed India to ferry foodgrains to the landlocked North East India using its territory and infrastructure.

High noon for India in Africa

From August 4 to 6, US President Obama hosted the first ever ‘U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit’ in which over 45 of Africa’s heads of states participated. In his welcome address, President Obama leveraged his own African lineage by telling them that apart from being a proud American, he also stood before them “as the son of a man from Africa.”

The summit had an unambiguous economic focus. During its three days of deliberations, U.S. ‘commitments to Africa’ worth $33 billion were announced. These included: $14 billion in investment by U.S. companies; $7 billion to finance U.S. exports; and $12 billion for a ‘Power Africa’ initiative to boost electricity availability. Over

Because of its vast natural resources, acute infrastructure deficit, high population growth and growing middle class, Africa has long been a cynosure of many eyes. Countries such as China, India, Japan, Brazil, Turkey and South Korea, as well as organisations such as the European Union (EU), the Commonwealth and La Francophonie, have been regularly hosting Africa-focussed summits. The U.S. is the latest to join this Africa rush.

It would, however, be incorrect to consider Washington a latecomer to the ‘Africa Party.’ Historically, the slave trade provided an umbilical cord between the U.S. and Africa. Bilateral landmarks include American Friendship Treaty with Tunisia in 1799 and establishment of Liberia in 1821. They also include American support for Apartheid regime in South Africa and for right wing dictatorships in countries from Morocco to Congo to Angola during the Cold War. Subsequently, the U.S. did help in the dismantling of Apartheid and getting Namibia its freedom.

In 2007, the U.S. Army created the Africa Command (Africom), which has been steadily expanding its presence in the continent. Lately, however, Pentagon has been alarmed, in the aftermath of the Arab Spring, at the spread of Islamic terrorism across large swathes of Africa: Maghreb, Sahel, Nigeria, the Central African Republic and Somalia.

Economically, the American presence in Africa has been large but is currently declining. Till 2008, the U.S. was Africa’s largest trading partner. This was spurred by import of African oil worth over $100 billion — part of U.S.’ strategy to reduce dependence on the Gulf. However, thanks to a shale revolution, the U.S. has become the world’s largest oil producer and its oil imports from Africa are set to plummet to a mere $15 billion for the year 2014. This has dramatically reduced U.S.-Africa trade to around $60 billion in 2013, nearly a third of China’s trade with Africa. If this trend continues, India may well overtake the U.S. as Africa’s second-largest trading partner this year. However, the U.S. still remains Africa’s largest aid provider and a major investor.

Against this backdrop, many observers see the Washington Summit as a U.S. bid to find new economic paradigms for its Africa profile to catch up with China and other stakeholders on Africa. The sceptics, however, point out that with U.S. economy still in recovery mode, no early surge in American demand for African raw materials is likely.

Further, the U.S. products, services and technology are often either unsuitable or too expensive for Africans. Its Asian competitors have an edge here, in industries ranging from mobiles to medicines. The U.S. niche areas for Africa include: export of commodities (foodstuff, refined products); supply of equipment (for power, aviation, construction etc); and projects for mineral exploitation, hotels and hospitals.

A closer look at the Washington Summit’s outcome also reveals that the U.S. intends to follow the Chinese strategy of long-term soft funding for Africa. Beijing has for long provided concessional loans to African countries to cushion them from the lower quality (and higher costs) of its products and projects; the U.S. and American MNCs would possibly do the same. For most African governments facing a serious capital crunch, such long-term soft loans are often irresistible. Second, with many African states facing serious security challenges, the U.S. may also leverage its Africom umbrella to gain an economic advantage.

As New Delhi plans to host the third India-Africa Forum Summit (IAFS-3) in December 2014, what are the implications of the Washington event for us? First, forceful re-entry of the U.S. and its deep-pocketed MNCs may lead to a more intense and potentially unfair competition in Africa. Second, greater U.S. engagement in infrastructure building may release synergies in Africa that we can leverage. For example, better roads can mean more Indian vehicles being sold. Third, if American MNCs increase production of primary commodities in Africa, it may benefit India as their end-user. Fourth, Indian subsidiaries of the U.S. MNCs stand to gain. Finally, over the past 15 years, India has successfully created some key interfaces in Africa in areas such as power, Information and Communications Technology, and healthcare. A U.S. entry into these may affect market access for us. Africans, who have often played the China card with us, could now play the U.S. card as well.

India would do well to prepare IAFS-3 with a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT) review of the past six years of the IAFS process. The following domains suggest themselves:

(i) Being a developing country with income level comparable to most African nations, India cannot sustain the IAFS process on the basis of freebies alone. Instead, African countries should be invited to become co-stakeholders in the process.

(ii) While the African Union Commission can be a political umbrella for the IAFS process, India should, on its own, choose both the recipients for our developmental cooperation and the manner in which we plan to extend it. We must not abdicate this important task to the African Union (AU) bureaucracy.

(iii) There is a need to revamp the Line of Credit approach to projects as it has rarely delivered the intended results. Instead, greater support should be given to private sector-driven projects through initiatives like lower interest rates, risk mitigation, etc.

(iv) We should harness our assets in Africa, such as the Indian diaspora there; a growing acceptance of the quality of our healthcare and educational facilities; relevance of our developmental model; and the greater willingness of our private sector to engage the continent.

The India–Africa Forum Summit is the official platform for the African-Indian relations. It was first held from April 4 to April 8, 2008 in New Delhi, India. It was the first such meeting between the heads of state and government of India and 14 countries of Africa chosen by the African Union. Libya and Egypt's heads of state did not attend.

 

Activists call for stringent regulations for surrogacy

The ‘rent a womb’ industry in India is witnessing a boom with infertility affecting about one of every six couples. Commercial surrogacy, of which Delhi is a known hub, was legalised in India in 2002 and now according to the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), it is predicted to generate US$ 2.3 billion annually.

In India while the exact numbers are not recorded, guess estimates put the number of children born to surrogates at 25,000 with 50 per cent of clients coming from the West. What works for India is the cheap medical facilities, advanced reproductive technological know-how, coupled with poor socio-economic conditions, and lack of regulatory laws.

Accepting that India is fast being recognised as an “attractive option” for commercial surrogacy, human rights activists say while commercial surrogacy in itself is welcome “where persons unable to have children are aided by willing surrogates to have their biological children, problems come in due to the exploitative nature of the business and lack of regulation in the industry’’.

“No fixed compensation structure, no laws that cater to the health and number of births that a surrogate can support, and usually incomplete advertisements of the services by medical establishments work against the interest of the women involved in the case,’’ said Ranjana Kumari, director, Centre for Social Research.

A report on “Surrogacy Motherhood: ethical or commercial?” supported by the Ministry of Women and Child Development said that 46 per cent of respondents in Delhi and 44 per cent in Mumbai said they received Rs. 3 lakh to Rs. 3.99 lakh for being a surrogate mother.

Among those interviewed, 68 per cent in Delhi and 78 per cent in Mumbai said that they were employed mostly as domestic helps earning more than Rs. 3,000 a month. “This clearly points to the exploitative nature of business,” said Dr. Kumari.

There are two types of surrogacy — gestational and traditional — and in India it can be arranged through an agency or independently.

“With the country becoming a hub of surrogacy, there is an urgent need for a stringent legal framework to regulate it. The unregulated reproductive tourism industry of ‘procreating’ through surrogacy is rapidly increasing in India, while there is still no legal provision to safeguard the interests of all the major stakeholders involved in the surrogacy arrangement i.e. the surrogate mother, the child, or the commissioning parents,’’ said Dr. Kumari.

NASA to launch SMAP satellite in November 2014

August 26, 2014

American space agency NASA has planned to launch Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) satellite in November 2014. It is part of the first tier of missions recommended for NASA by the Earth Science Decadal Survey.

Utility of SMAP

The satellite will gather the local data of agricultural and water managers that are needed worldwide. SMAP uses two microwave instruments to monitor the top 2 inches of soil on Earth’s surface. In sync, these instruments will generate soil moisture estimates with a resolution of about 9 kilometers, mapping the entire globe every 2-3 days.

SMAP surface measurements will be combined with hydrologic models to conclude soil moisture situations in the root zone. These measurements will allow science applications users to:

·    Comprehend processes that link the terrestrial water, energy, and carbon cycles.

·    Evaluate global water and energy fluxes at the land surface.

·    Compute net carbon flux in boreal landscapes.

·    Improve weather and climate forecast skill.

·    Develop improved flood prediction and drought monitoring competence

‘Coal block allocations from 1993 to 2010 illegal, done arbitrarily’: Supreme Court

August 26, 2014

The Supreme Court declared illegal all coal block allocations between 1993 and 2010, saying these were done in an unfair, arbitrary and non-transparent manner without following any objective criteria. The court, however, said that further hearing was required to decide whether there is a need for cancelling around 200 coal block allocations.

The petitions were based on the Comptroller and Auditor General’s (CAG) report that the exchequer suffered a loss of Rs. 1.64 lakh crore due to the arbitrary allocations of coal blocks. The coal blocks allocated to private companies between 2004 to March 2010 are situated in Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh,Maharashtra, West Bengal, Odisha and Madhya Pradesh.

“The Green Bus project”: India‘s first ethanol-run public bus launched in Nagpur

August 26, 2014

India launched “The Green Bus project” in Nagpur with the launch of its firstethanol-run, environment-friendly public bus. The bus will emit carbon dioxide as low as 15% to 90% and its emissions will be monitored by the Union government,Maharashtra state government and Nagpur Municipal Corporation.

The buses are manufactured by Swedish company Scania Commercial Vehicle India Ltd. Scania has additionally introduced an engine in consonance with Bharat Stage 5 Norms, a step toward further reducing the emissions.

Oscar-winning director and actor Richard Attenborough passed away

August 26, 2014

Eminent Oscar-winning British director and actor Richard Attenborough (90) passed away.

In his six-decade long career, he appeared in movies including Brighton Rock, World War Two prisoner of war thriller The Great Escape and later in dinosaur blockbuster Jurassic Park. As a director he was best known for Gandhi, which won him two Oscars.

General Prayuth Chan-ocha is new PM of Thailand

August 25, 2014

Thailand’s military’s top official, General Prayuth Chan-ocha (60), has been named the new Prime Minister of the country. Gen Prayuth was nominated in a legislature chosen by the junta and consisting mostly military and police figures. The general was the head of the army when he led a coup in May 2014. The coupled to the ouster of Yingluck Shinawatra’s civilian government. The General had claimed that military intervention was needed to restore stability to the nation.

Hanuman Akhara selected for Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar

August 23, 2014

Guru Hanuman Akhara, a wrestling academy based in Delhi, has been chosen forRashtriya Khel Protsahan Puraskar (RKPP) for year 2014. As per Sports Ministry, Guru Hanuman Akhara has been chosen for ‘establishment and management of sports academies of excellence.’ President Pranab Mukherjee will honor the RKPP awardees along with Arjuna, Dronacharya and Dhyan Chand award winners at the National Sports Awards function in Delhi on August 29, 2014. Other RKPP awardees:

·   Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC): Chosen for employment of sports persons and sports welfare measures

·   Jindal Steel Works (JSW): Chosen for its contribution in identification and nurturing of budding/young talent

Child Link Foundation of India: Chosen for its ‘Magic Bus’

Overseas payment gateway for credit card transactions within India is now closed: RBI

August 23, 2014

The RBI has shut the overseas payment gateway for credit card transactions within India, saying that the rules need to be followed with respect to e-commerce credit card transactions “essentially taking place between two residents in India”. This means that firms such as Uber will have to follow the two-step authentication procedure that it was able to evade by virtue of having an overseas payment gateway. Its competitors welcomed the move. The apex bank asked banks to make sure that payments should be in rupees in cases when the credit card is not presented physically.

The move from RBI will have an immediate impact on the much contended taxibusiness, especially Uber, which has swiftly attracted users in India. The San Francisco based company has so far been able to charge credit cards of users without authentication. The users of Uber are automatically charged at the end of their ride based on card details furnished at the time of enrollment. They are able to do so because authentication is not needed when someone buys from websites based overseas. This loophole has now been closed by the central bank.

The RBI has clarified that “such camouflaging and flouting of extant instructions on card security, which has been made possible by merchant transactions (for underlying sale of goods / services within India) being acquired by banks located overseas resulting in an outflow of foreign exchange in the settlement of transactions, is not acceptable as this is in violation of directives issued under the Payment & Settlement Systems Act 2007 besides the requirements under the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999”.

In order to prevent fraudulent activities the central bank had made it mandatory for banks to put in place additional authentication based on information not visible on the cards for all online transactions.

 

Noted Kanada writer U.R. Ananthamurthy passes away

August 22, 2014

Eminent Kannada writer and one of the most heralded public intellectuals in the country, U.R. Ananthamurthy (82) passed away.

He was a contemporary writer and critic in the Kannada language and is considered as one of the path-breakers of the Navya movement.

Awards and Honors:

He was conferred Jnanpith Award- the highest literary honor in India- for the Kannada language. He is the sixth person among eight recipients of the Jnanpith Award for the Kannada language. In 1998, he was honored with the Padma Bhushan award from the Government of India.

Navya Movement

In the 1950s, a new modernist school of writing called Navya evolved even as the Pragatishila merged back into the Navodaya mainstream. A new (Navya) movement, the Navya Movement (Modernist Movement) was born around 1950. Though formally introduced by V. K. Gokak with his Navya Kavitegalu (“Modern Poems”, 1950), it was Gopalakrishna Adiga who best illustrated the spirit of the movement. Gopalakrishna Adiga is known as the father of this form of expression with his Nadedu Banda Dari (“The Path Traversed”, 1952).

The most effective vehicles of the movement were Poetry and short story. The Navya authors questioned the time-honoured standards of plot of the Navodaya; life was seen not as a pursuit of already existing values, but as an introspective search for them, at times narrated in stream of consciousness technique.

The study of Kannada literature is divided into 3 movements:

1.   Navodaya (1926-47)

2.   Pragatisheela (1945-55)

3.   Navya (1950-75)