Amidst rising concerns over steep fluctuations in airfares, the government on Tuesday ruled out considering formulation of a mechanism to curb predatory pricing of air tickets. Minister of State for Civil Aviation Mahesh Sharma informed the Rajya Sabha that the government does not interfere in the commercial aspects of airlines. "Airfares are not regulated by the government as they are determined by the interplay of market forces," he said in a written reply. To a query on whether the government is considering formulation of a mechanism for the capping of economy and business class airfares to curb predatory pricing of passenger tickets by airlines, Sharma replied in the negative. "As per prevailing regulation, it is the prerogative of the individual airlines to establish their process of determination of airfare. As such government does not interfere in the commercial aspects of airlines," he said. The minister also noted that domestic airline pricing runs in multiple levels which are in line with the practice being followed globally. "The lower fare bucket offered by airlines is available for advance booking. These fares are highly discounted fares and that would entail travelling even during peak/festive season on low fares. As time lapses and date of journey approaches closer, the fare in higher side of fare bucket is made available as per the respective airline policy," he said. Concerns have been expressed in various quarters, including by parliamentarians, over steep fluctuations in airfares. The minister himself had recently indicated that mechanisms could be put in place to curb predatory pricing ways of airlines. Sharma in a written reply said that airlines remain compliant with Rule 135 "as long as the fare charged by them does not exceed the established fare and displayed on their website". Under this rule of Aircraft Rules, 1937, carriers are required to establish reasonable tariff having regard to all relevant factors, including cost of operation and characteristics of service. (PTI)
Read More
The Income Tax department has launched a e-filing link on its official website for declaring illegal foreign assets and black money using the one-time compliance window notified recently by government. "The link has been provided on the official e-filing portal of the department https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in. The relevant 'Form 6' can be used to declare undisclosed assets under the compliance window of the new anti-black money law," a senior official said. According to the scheme, such a declaration filed online by an individual or entity will have to mandatorily bear a "digital signature" for validation. A digital signature authenticates electronic documents in a similar manner as a handwritten signature validates printed or hand-written documents. It cannot be forged and it asserts that a named person wrote or otherwise agreed to the document to which the signature is attached. "The department has provided this facility as the compliance window is valid only till September 30 and the e-filing system provides the required secrecy and speed," the official said. The new two-page form brought out for this purpose has been categorised as 'Form 6' and has a three-page annexure for the "statement of undisclosed assets located outside India". Those who want to manually file such a declaration, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), apex policy making body of the tax department, has already notified a Commissioner of I-T in the national capital for the same. The government had notified the three-month compliance window beginning July 1. The tax and penalty on such declared assets or funds can be paid till December 31. Those availing the one-time 'compliance window' would be required to pay a tax of 30 per cent and a penalty of a similar amount. The compliance window is part of the new anti-black money law that was passed by Parliament in May. Those holding illegal foreign assets abroad and not disclosing it by September 30 will have to face action under stringent anti-money laundering laws, the taxman has warned. The department, in a public advertisement brought out yesterday in national dailies, had said people not disclosing illegal foreign assets will be "liable for tax and penalty totalling 120 per cent of the value of undisclosed asset, rigorous imprisonment up to 10 years and action under Prevention of Money Laundering Act." (PTI)
Read More
The digital age has empowered citizens, across all ages, to be more aware and expect more from their governments. Connected citizens are expecting their governments to be wired as well, delivering services in the medium of choice of their citizens. Governments, usually, are inherently process driven and usually risk averse, seldom moving as fast as the emerging technologies of the times. However, the new Government that took oath in May last year brought with it the right mindset of treating technology as an enabler and pushed for outcome oriented initiatives leveraging technology. Coal bidding using e-procurement was a prime example of this mindset. But what has taken the nation’s imagination by storm is a unique citizen engagement initiative, named MyGov, a programme for enhanced engagement of citizens – ‘participatory governance’ that brings citizens and governments together and gives citizens a say in governance matters of the country. MyGov was initiated in July 2014. Once word got around and the user base started climbing up, citizens, used to being controlled now got an opportunity to be in control; the Government opened itself to govern with the citizens instead of governing for citizens. The traditional ‘brokers’ of citizen opinions, such as NGOs, took a back seat because the microphones went straight to the citizens who became active MyGov users. While it is a long way to go before we call MyGov a truly groundbreaking work, it can safely be celebrated as one of the key quick wins of the new Government and for the country. At least 9 Lac users and 35 ministries can vouch for it! So far, the 9 Lac users have opined themselves straight to the Government on various policy matters and the Government has duly acted on the suggestions. Needless to say, the platform has brought intellect of our country together for better policy formulation and planning. In a span of one year, MyGov has facilitated significant action items by Government, as few examples below entail: • 10-15 unique and feasible suggestions from MyGov users were accepted by the Finance and Railway ministries and found themselves incorporated as initiatives in the Finance budget and Railway budget announced February 2015• The New Education Policy formulation process is being driven on MyGov, with intra-government and citizen deliberations being undertaken on MyGov• MyGov gave the country the logo and tagline for one of the flagship initiatives of the new Government ‘Swachh Bharat’• Campaigns for Skill development, Incredible India, Swachh Bharat, Clean Ganga and Digital India have been held on MyGov• Parameters for a mobile app for the PMO finalised on MyGov• MyGov Samvaad – a government-citizen consultative group created for Digital India MyGov is not just a platform on the internet; it is a concept of new Government showcasing behavioural shifts in the way governance can be done. MyGov has a social media presence of its own where it pro-actively keeps citizens engaged and informed with announcements, acknowledgement on their contribution. Our Hon’ble Prime Minister leverages this platform for crowdsourcing ideas and to connect with the citizens through Mann Ki Baat. This platform has also given an opportunity for collaboration with corporates/ industry to exchange knowledge in the interest of the country’s progress. MyGov’s impact would evolve over time with more and more aware users and intellect of the country joining on-board. In spite of all the good things going for MyGov, it is yet to make its presence felt across the breadth and depth of the population. The 9 Lac MyGov users represent a largely urban inclination today and I am sure the Government would want it to be more inclusive - from the perspective of different demographic dimensions. It is imperative that a larger part of the population is brought into this fold and their views analysed for key decisions that the Government makes. In future and with a larger base of participants, snap polls could be taken on actions of the government, leveraging the same platform. While MyGov makes it clear on all forums that it is not a grievance redressal platform, MyGov may be explored to add a mandate as a coordinator or as a landing page for grievances. We can only imagine the large big data opportunities that lay ahead for the Government using MyGov with all such features and user base in place.MyGov needs to market / portray / prove a greater correlation between comments posted and the output achieved and help close the loop. Ministries and MyGov need to come together, more now than ever. Another area of improvement is the response interactivity and user experience. Today, we have discussion forums on MyGov with thousands of citizens posting their comments and waiting for 3-4 weeks before receiving a common feedback on the portal of the actions taken by the Government. Thriving businesses the importance of keeping their customers constantly engaged with information and activity. MyGov can take a leaf out of their books to learn how to keep bringing the traffic back on its portal. There is no doubt that the Government is innovating and seeking citizen participation in important matters of governance. It is not only seeking citizen feedback on important policy matters, but is also establishing joint government-citizen committees to prepare action plans aimed at improving public service outcomes. This is a welcome change for the country and can be an established form of our everyday lives if all stakeholders push for its cause in the next few months and continue to be relevant for the Government and the citizens it serves. The author, Neel Ratan, is Leader- Government and Public sector, PwC India
Read More
Facing resistance to labour reforms from within, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday (20 July) said changes in the laws will be made only after consensus and stressed that "obsolete and unnecessary" laws are being weeded out. Addressing the 46th Indian Labour Conference, he said there is a thin line that separates the interest of workers and their unions and the same should be respected. "Efforts would be made to modify labour laws through consensus," the Prime Minister said, adding that the consultation process with trade unions would continue. Modi further said that the "obsolete and unnecessary" laws were being weeded out as part of the government's objective to achieve "minimum government and maximum governance". The government has set up a high-level inter-ministerial committee under Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to evolve a consensus on labour reforms. The first meet, which was held yesterday, failed to make any substantive headway. Talking about different interest groups, Modi said that there was a thin line dividing the interest of industry and industrialists, government and nation, and labour and labour organisations. Often, one talks about saving the industry but ends up protecting industrialists, he said, adding that there is a need to recognise this thin line and adopt a balanced approach to the deal with the issues and change the environment. Jaitley in his address warned of a threat to job creation if investments were blocked and appealed to the trade unions not to persist with ideas that harm economic activity. "If we stop the fountain of investment, then employment will not increase, then economic activity will also not increase. And it becomes a threat to existing jobs," he said. Reflecting signs of discord, National President of the BJP-affiliate Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) B N Rai attacked government for pursuing "few wrong policies" and stressed the trade unions will not allow reforms "at the cost of labour". BMS, one of the biggest trade unions in the country, also demanded withdrawal of the industry-friendly factories Act enacted by BJP-ruled Rajasthan government as also the new labour laws by the Centre.
Read More
Amidst opposition from central trade unions, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is likely to hold a review meeting this week on disinvestment plans for the fiscal. Sources said the meeting with Disinvestment Secretary Aradhana Johri would focus on the PSU stake sale schedule of the fiscal. “It is a review meeting and strategic sales would be discussed. It is basically a strategy meeting,” an official said. The government plans to raise Rs 69,500 crore through PSU stake sale in current fiscal. Of this, Rs 41,500 crore is to come from minority stake sale and another Rs 28,000 crore from strategic sale. So far this fiscal, government has been able to disinvest stake in only one PSU, Rural Electrification Corporation (REC), due to volatile market conditions. The Disinvestment Department already has cabinet approvals for Rs 50,000 crore worth PSU stake sale, but volatility in stock markets is delaying the plans. As regards strategic stake sale on PSU, Jaitley had earlier indicated that the first such sale could come from PSUs under tourism ministry. The tourism ministry is also considering selling eight loss making hotels of ITDC. On Sunday, trade unions had expressed their disagreement on government’s disinvestment plan during the meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC) General Secretary Gurudas Dasgupta had said unions would oppose disinvestment and the government’s move to change labour laws as it would hurt the interest of workers.
Read More
The whole debate over subsidised food in Parliament canteen for the MPs, sparked by BJD MP Baijayant “Jay” Panda’s recent assertion (that “MPs should give up subsidised food”) reeks of hypocrisy. The moment Panda made the demand, social media was outraged. The refrain was that “Panda was a billionaire industrialist-MP”, and “rather than raising ‘frivolous’ issues, his companies should pay bank dues in time. Some of the bank tweets called him a bank defaulter. Businessworld could not reach him for comments. Panda may not be the best person to raise the issue, but is the issue of highly subsidised food to our MPs, a frivolous issue? And can the practice be allowed to go on when half of India faces problems like malnourishment? According to RTI queries, reported recently by New Indian Express, the subsidy on Parliament canteen ran up to a whopping Rs 14 crore in 2013-14. So, why don’t the MPs discontinue the practice themselves? Actually, there is a system in place. There’s a Committee on Food Management in Parliament House Complex that routinely deliberates upon such issues. Fifteen members, drawn from both Houses of Parliament, are its members. Their recommendations are then okayed by the Lok Sabha Speaker. Businessworld spoke to three members of the 15-member committee to understand how and why Parliament should have this practice (in place since 1952) in the first place. Listen in: A P Jithender Reddy, the TRS MP from Telangana, is the committee’s chairman. When asked about the rationale of the practice, he told Businessworld: “Please try to understand that more than the 800 MPs, the Parliament food is consumed by 4,000 Class IV employees of Parliament. Why do you want to deprive them of subsidized food?” There are six canteens on the Parliament premises – two of them exclusively for the MPs. This food is consumed by staffers of Lok Sabha secretariat, Rajya Sabha secretariat, and members of the media. Pravesh Sahib Singh, a young BJP MP from Delhi, also a member of the food committee member, saw no problems whatsoever with the subsidised food. He told BW|Businessworld: “There’s not much difference between the food products’ market prices and the rates in Parliament House. The rates here are lower because building rental charges, electricity charges and other miscellaneous costs are not included”. This, however, is far from the truth. Fact is that the subsidised food bills in Parliament at times charge one-tenth of the raw material cost. Janardan Dwivedi, veteran Congress leader, also a member of the Committee, when reached for comments, said: “I would normally not make a comment on this, but for a perspective, it should be borne in mind that the practice was put in place when MPs used to come with modest means. Also, one should make a list of the institutions where such subsidized food is served. If need be, all such subsidies can be done away with”. With salary hike the latest war-cry among a large section of our MPs, does it surprise anyone that our much-pampered MPs would not let go of any privilege, no matter how small or inconsequential it is.
Read More
Food safety watchdog FSSAI is planning to set new quality standards for ice-cream and flavoured milk besides tightening the existing safety norms for milk and other dairy products. The proposal comes after ban on import of Chinese milk and milk products last month due to presence of melamine for one year till June, 2016, following a recommendation from FSSAI. At present, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has norms for milk, paneer, ghee and butter, among others. In the latest proposal, the regulator is working on setting more specific and stringent standards for fat content in milk. "There is need to further broaden the quality standards for milk and its products. We are working on that and it is likely that in next one month, will come up with draft of these standards," a source said. The source further said that the authority is working on comprehensive norms for milk and milk products which will now also include ice-cream and flavoured milk, among others. At present, FSSAI has ceiling on presence of insecticides and metal contaminants in milk and milk products. Melamine LimitsLast month, the regulator had imposed limits for melamine in domestic milk products. Melamine is used in plastic and fertiliser industry. The regulator has stepped surveillance on processed food items after the Maggi controversy. It is reviewing safety standards and holding several consultations with stakeholders to strengthen it. It had also asked states to increase surveillance and act against entities selling contaminated packaged drinking water as well as adulterated milk and edible oils. Earlier this year, in a meeting with state food safety commissioners, the FSSAI CEO had shared concerns raised by the Parliamentary Panel on Consumer Affairs regarding widespread incidences of milk adulteration. The food safety watchdog has also formed an 11-member panel for regulating salt, sugar and fat in food products sold or served at eating joints in the country. On June 5, FSSAI had banned Nestle's Maggi, saying it was 'unsafe and hazardous' after tests found presence of lead and monosodium glutamate above permissible limits. While Nestle India had withdrawn the instant noodles brand from the market, it challenged the FSSAI order in Bombay High Court. (PTI)
Read More
In a move aimed at boosting India's defence sector, 200 helicopters will be manufactured in the country with Russian collaboration as part of intensification and diversification of their strategic ties. The agreement, reached recently, is one of the several new defence projects on which the two countries are working on, including under the ambit of 'Make in India' programme, Indian Ambassador to Russia P S Raghavan told PTI here. He underlined that the decades-old defence cooperation with Russia remains vibrant despite India purchasing military equipment from other countries, like the recent decision to buy 36 Rafale fighter aircraft from France. "This (India-Russia ties) is a huge, broad based relationship, getting broader every day," he said. "Recently, we have agreed to joint manufacture of helicopters in India... Joint manufacture of 200 helicopters in India is big bang. If two countries decide to manufacture 200 helicopters in India with transfer of technology, and licence production, this is big bang," he said. He said this could possibly be the first defence project under 'Make in India' initiative. Raghavan was responding when asked to comment on the perception that the defence relations between India and Russia are getting diluted as New Delhi has been looking at other countries for military purchases. Maintaining that India-Russia defence ties remain vibrant, he said, "people notice few things we do which are non-Russian... There are newer and newer products and newer and newer projects which don't get noticed and attention gets diverted to few things that we do outside Russia." He said a number of projects are under active discussions and "sooner or later, they will come out in the open." He, however, refused to give details about these, saying there can be no disclosure till the decisions are firmed up. While dismissing the perception that the vibrancy of India-Russia ties in defence sector are getting eroded, the Ambassador said, "some impressions get formed on the basis of inaccurate or incomplete information." Acknowledging that India is diversifying its defence purchases "as many countries do" to take advantage of opportunities, he said, "But our armed forces are 60-70 per cent dependent on Russian supplies. That is a reality that cannot change overnight." Quoting Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Raghavan said Russia continues to remain India's primary defence supplier. "In fact, he (PM) has said that Russia has been and will remain primary defence supplier (of India)," he added.(PTI)
Read More
