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PIB Compilation April 2017

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1

S.No. Content Pg. No.

1. Cabinet approves Collaboration Agreement to support the

Belmont Forum Secretariat

4

2. Release of the Central Government’s assistance fund from

National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) to State of Tamil

Nadu and Karnataka Drought Relief

5

3. African Development Bank to hold 52nd annual meet in

Gujarat 7

4. Cabinet approves closure of Mahatma Gandhi Pravasi

Suraksha Yojana – (Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs) 8

5. Cabinet approves Collaboration Agreement to support the

Belmont Forum Secretariat 9

6. Cabinet approves extension of implementation of Crime and

Criminal Tracking Network and Systems Project by one

year

10

7. India and the UK announce joint UK-India Fund, namely a

Green Growth Equity Fund 12

8. UK-India fund promoted under the NIIF framework- NIIF

as a quasi-sovereign wealth fund. 13

9. Geo-tagging of agriculture assets created under Rashtriya

Krishi Vikas Yojna (RKVY) 14

10. Development Activities along Ganga River 14

11. Outlines of PMKSY 15

12. Steps to Strengthen and Modernize Powerloom Sector 16

13. Maintenance of Registered Under Various Labour Laws and

Rules Made Easy 17

14. April 7: World Health Day 18

15. First NIMCARE World Health Day Summit 2017 19

16. Indo – Mongolian Joint Exercise : Nomadic Elephant 20

17. Web Portal “Bharat ke Veer” 21

18. Swachhagraha “Bapu Ko Karyanjali”

21

19. SAMPADA scheme for food processing 22

20. Parliament passes HIV and AIDS (Prevention and Control)

Bill, 2017 23



2

21. Central Processing Centre (CPC) gets new Pin Code 24

22. Cabinet approves setting up of a Special Purpose Vehicle to

be called Government e-Marketplace (GeM SPV) 25

23. Cabinet approves the Establishment of the BIMSTEC Grid

Interconnection

25

24. National Lok Adalat settles over 6 lakh cases in one day 26

25. Global interest in PSLV soars 28

26. Nation Pays Homage to Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar on his

127th Birth Anniversary 28

27. Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY) crosses the target

of Rs. 1.8 lakh crore for 2016-17 29

28. BHIM-Aadhaar platform 30

29. Sagarmatha Friendship-2017 31

30. Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan – Ministry of Human

Resource Development 32

31. Cabinet gives approval for introduction of Constitution

(One Hundred and Twenty-third Amendment) Bill 2017 and

(ii) National Commission for Backward Classes (Repeal)

Bill, 2017 in the Parliament

33

32. Cabinet approves permission to avail external assistance by

State Government entities from bilateral agencies 35

33. Legal Aid and Empowerment initiatives 36

34. Inter-Ministerial Delegation to Participate in Basel,

Rotterdam, Stockholm Conventions in Geneva 37

35. “Quality Mark” Award Scheme for Dairy Cooperatives

initiated by NDDB 39

36. India and Republic of Korea sign Inter-Governmental MOU

for Defence Industry Co-Operation in Shipbuilding

40

37. One Crore MGNREGA assets geotagged 40

38. Indian Navy test-fires land attack version of BrahMos

missile

41

39. Earth Day- April 22 42

40. Plenary Meeting of the Development Committee (DC) and

IMFC of the World Bank Group and the IMF

43



3

41. Government e-Marketplace (GeM) 44

42. Government e-Marketplace (GeM) 44

43. Online Statement Of Transaction (e-SOT) and the e-PRAN

card launched for Atal Pension Yojana (APY) subscribers 49

44. Launch of IPR Awareness Campaign for Schools 50

45. “SAMVAD” Programme 51

46. NITI Ayog praises selection of 100 smart cities without any

controversy 52

47. Urban Development and Housing schemes 54

48. PM launches UDAN – Regional Connectivity Scheme for

Civil Aviation

55

49. Legislation against Doping 56

50. EESL collaborates with NITI Aayog for energy efficiency 58

51. Health Ministry launches ‘Test and Treat Policy for HIV’ 59

52. Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) signs two Unilateral

Advance Pricing Agreements (APAs) 61

53. 4th National Standards Conclave 62



4

South Asia Sub Regional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) program of

Asian Development Bank (ADB)

GS PAPER – 2 {Global groupings} {International Relations}

Source: PIB

South Asia Sub regional Economic Cooperation (SASEC) program of Asian

Development Bank (ADB) is expanding towards the East with Myanmar formally

becoming the 7th member of SASEC in 2017.

Key facts:

• Myanmar is key to realizing greater connectivity and stronger trade and economic relations

between the SASEC sub-region and the countries of East and Southeast Asia and that

Myanmar’s membership in SASEC can offer a host of opportunities for realizing synergies

from economic cooperation in the sub-region.

• SASEC member countries recognize that most of SASEC’s multimodal connectivity initiatives

include Myanmar.

• Road corridors in Myanmar provide the key links between South Asia and Southeast Asia.

• Ports in Myanmar will provide additional gateways to the landlocked North Eastern region

of India.

• Development of multi-modal connectivity between North Eastern region of India,

Bangladesh and Myanmar has the potential of unleashing tremendous economic energy in

the sub-region.

• SASEC’s energy connectivity and energy trade prospects will be enhanced with the inclusion

of Myanmar, involving its substantial resources of hydropower and natural gas.

• Moreover, developmental impacts of economic corridor in the SASEC sub-region will be

maximized by exploring potential synergies with corridors in Myanmar that are linked to

those in other Southeast Asian countries.

SASEC:

• Myanmar was accorded an observer status of SASEC in 2013 when ADB’s annual meeting

was held in Noida, India. Myanmar has been participating in annual SASEC Nodal Officials’

meetings as an observer since 2014. It was invited by the participating countries of SASEC

countries to become a full member in 2015.



5

• The SASEC program was formed in 2001 in response to the request of the four countries of

South Asia – Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal – from ADB to assist in facilitating

economic cooperation among them. These four countries comprise the South Asia Growth

Quadrangle (SAGQ), formed in 1996, as a vehicle for accelerating sustainable economic

development through regional cooperation.

• As a project-based partnership, the SASEC program has been helping realize regional

prosperity by enhancing cross-border connectivity, facilitating faster and more efficient trade

and promoting cross-border power trade.

• Maldives and Sri Lanka joined SASEC in 2014, further expanding opportunities for enhancing

economic linkages in the sub-region.

SESEC which is members countries of Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Myanmar,

Nepal, and Sri Lanka in a project-based partnership that aims to promote regional

prosperity, improve economic opportunities, and build a better quality of life for the

people of the subregion.

Asian Development Bank

• Conceived in the 1960s, the ADB was established to foster economic growth and cooperation

across Asia and the Pacific. In 5 decades, ADB has mobilized more than $250 billion in

infrastructure, research, and knowledge sharing, thus creating opportunities and prosperity,

which contributed to the region’s historic global rise.

• ASIAN WATER DEVELOPMENT OUTLOOK 2016 RELEASED AT WORLD WATER

WEEK IN STOCKHOLM

• Water security in Asia and Pacific has progressed overall in the past 5 years, but major

challenges remain, including overexploited groundwater, demand from rising populations, and

climate variability, according to a new report from the ADB.

• Asian Development Bank/Headquarters: Mandaluyong, Philippines

SASEC countries share a common vision of boosting intraregional trade and

cooperation in South Asia, while also developing connectivity and trade with Southeast

Asia through Myanmar, to the People’s Republic of China, and the global market.

Release of the Central Government’s assistance fund from National

Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) to State of Tamil Nadu and



6

Karnataka Drought Relief

GS PAPER – 3 {Disaster Management}

Source: PIB

The Central Government is concerned at prevailing drought situation in the States of

Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.

• After the receipt of detailed memoranda from these States, Inter-Ministerial Central Teams

(IMCT) were deputed to visit the drought affected areas for the spot assessment of the

calamity.

• The High Level Committee (HLC) had recommended the quantum of assistance to the States

based on the extant norms of assistance and the report of the IMCT.

• This amount has been approved by the HLC on the basis of the report of the Inter-

Ministerial Central Team sent by the Central Government to assess the damage.

Key facts:

• Based on the approval of the High Level Committee (HLC), the Central Government has

sanctioned Rs.1793.63 crore to State of Tamil Nadu ‘Vardha cyclone’ and Drought relief and

Rs. 1,782.44 crore to State of Karnataka for drought relief from NDRF.

• Based on the above sanctions, a sum of Rs.1447.99 crore has been released to the State of

Tamil Nadu by the Central Government from NDRF after adjusting Rs.345.64 crore available

with the State as balance in the State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF).

• The HLC has also advised the State Governments to take utmost care and ensure that all the

individual beneficiary-oriented assistance are mandatorily disbursed through the bank account

of the beneficiaries.

Other than Drought relief funds:

• These releases are over and above the releases made to States as devolution of 42% of Central

Taxes as per the recommendation of the 14th Finance Commission. For the year 2016-17, a

sum of Rs.6.08 lakh crore has been released to all States as devolution of Central Taxes. Tamil

Nadu has received Rs. 24,538 crore and Karnataka has received Rs.28,750 crore under

devolution formula during 2016-17.



7

• During 2016-17, the Central Government has also provided Rs.48,869 crore to all the States as

grant for Rural and Urban Local Bodies to primarily meet the requirement of basic necessities

for people living in these areas.

• For the benefit of farmers, Rs.13,240 crore has been provided under Pradhan Mantri Fasal

Beema Yojana (PMFBY) in 2016-17.

• Also, Rs.2,45,435 crore has been provided under the Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS) for

transfer to the States from the Central Government during 2016-17. This includes Rs.47,499

crore for Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS)

which is used for employment generation and water conservation works.

• In view of onset of the summer season, the Prime Minister has instructed that in the next three

months, all the States should focus on water conservation related works by utilizing the funds

available under various Schemes such as Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana (PMKSY) and

MGNREGS etc.

African Development Bank to hold 52nd annual meet in Gujarat

GS PAPER – 3 {Economic Development}

Source: PIB

India is hosting 52nd annual meeting of the African Development Bank in Ahmedabad.

African Development Bank Group:

• The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) is a multilateral development finance

institution established to contribute to the economic development and social progress of

African countries.

• The AfDB was founded in 1964 and comprises three entities: The African Development Bank,

the African Development Fund and the Nigeria Trust Fund.

• The AfDB’s mission is to fight poverty and improve living conditions on the continent through

promoting the investment of public and private capital in projects and programs that are likely

to contribute to the economic and social development of the region.

• Governing: The AfDB is controlled by a Board of Executive Directors, made up of

representatives of its member countries.

• Voting: The voting power on the Board is split according to the size of each member’s share,

currently 60%-40% between African (or “regional”) countries and “non-regional” member



8

countries (“donors”). The largest African Development Bank shareholder is Nigeria with

nearly 9% of the vote.

• Representation: All member countries of the AfDB are represented on the AfDB Board of

Executive Directors. Member governments are officially represented at the AfDB by their

Minister of Finance, Planning or Cooperation who sits on the AfDB Board of Governors. The

AfDB Governors meet once a year to take major decisions about the institution’s leadership,

strategic directions and governing bodies.

• Unit of account: The African Development Bank is using a Unit of Account which is

registered as XUA as ISO 4217 standard currency code. It is not exchanged directly by

individuals, it is used for accounting between state members.

India and the African Development Bank:

India joined the African Development Bank in 1982. The country is a key member of the

institutions 24 Non-Regional Member Countries, which support the African Development

Fund (ADF), the concessional resource window of the Bank. In 2013, Delhi increased its

contribution to the 13th replenishment of the fund by 57.28% to USD 18.5 million,

among other investments.

Cabinet approves closure of Mahatma Gandhi Pravasi Suraksha

Yojana – (Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs)

GS PAPER – 2 {Indian diaspora}

Source: PIB

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved

closure of the Mahatma Gandhi Pravasi Suraksha Yojana (MGPSY) which was set up in

2012 to address the social security-related issues of the Emigration Check Required

(ECR)-category workers going abroad for employment to ECR countries.

The subscription under the MGPSY was very low and no new subscription was received

for more than a year. Closure of the scheme will, therefore, obviate the avoidable

recurring administrative and record-keeping expenditure.



9

Mahatma Gandhi Pravasi Suraksha Yojana (MGPSY)

• The Ministry has introduced a Pension and Life Insurance fund scheme called Mahatma

Gandhi Pravasi Suraksha Yojana (MGPSY) for the Overseas Indian workers having

Emigration Check Required (ECR) passports.

The objective of MGPSY is to encourage and enable the overseas Indian workers by

giving government contribution to:

• Save for their Return and Resettlement (R&R)

• Save for their old age,

• Obtain a Life Insurance cover against natural death during the period of coverage.

• The government contribution available under the MGPSY is for a period of five years or till

the return of subscribed worker back to India, whichever is earlier.

Key attractions of MGPSY:

• Government contribution of Rs.1,000 per annum in line with Swavalamban platform for all

MGPSY subscriber who save between Rs.1,000 and Rs.12,000 per year in NPS-Lite.

• An additional government contribution of Rs.1,000 per annum by MOIA for the overseas

Indian women workers who save between Rs.1,000 to Rs.12,000 per year in NPS-Lite.

• A special government contribution of Rs.900 by MOIA towards Return and Resettlement

(R&R) of the overseas Indian workers who save Rs.4,000 or more per annum.

Cabinet approves Collaboration Agreement to support the Belmont

Forum Secretariat

GS PAPER – 2 {International Relations}

Source: PIB

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has given its

approval for signing of the Collaborative Agreement with French National Research

Agency (ANR), France for supporting the Belmont Forum Secretariat from January,

2015 to December, 2017 at a total estimated expenditure of Euro 40,000.

The Cabinet also approved continued financial support to Belmont Forum Secretariat

beyond 2017.



10

BELMONT FORUM:

• The Belmont Forum, created in 2009, is a high level group of the world’s major and emerging

funders of global environmental change research and international science councils.

• It provides an opportunity to identify study and deliver international environmental research

priorities, for the society, in an accelerated way through transnational research collaboration

between natural and social scientists and alignment of international resources

• India is a member of Belmont Forum, besides Australia, Brazil, Canada, European

Commission, France, Germany, Japan, Netherland, South Africa, UK and USA Ministry

of Earth Science (MoES), represents India in the Belmont Forum since 2012.

• In order to coordinate the activities of the Belmont, a Secretariat is hosted by one of the

Belmont forum member on rotational basis. ANR, France is hosting the Secretariat from

January, 2015 to December, 2017. Expenditure for hosting the Secretariat will be borne by

Belmont Forum member countries in kind or cash contribution.

Impact:

• The Agreement will help to maintain a certain degree of continuity in the operations of the

Forum and also help in smooth coordination of the activities of Belmont Forum.

• As India is already participating in 4 Collaborative Research Actions (CRAs) and Secretariat

will be coordinating the activities of Belmont Forum, Indian scientific community will

ultimately benefit from this agreement.

Cabinet approves extension of implementation of Crime and

Criminal Tracking Network and Systems Project by one year

GS PAPER – 3 {Security}

Source: PIB

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by the Prime has approved the

proposal of the Ministry of Home Affairs for extension of the implementation phase of

the Crime and Criminals Tracking Network and Systems (CCTNS) Project.



11

CCTNS Project:

• The Inter-operable Criminal Justice System (ICJS) aims to integrate the CCTNS project

with the e-courts and e-prisons databases in the first instance and with the other pillars of the

criminal justice system – Forensics, Prosecution, Juvenile homes and a nationwide Fingerprint

data base of criminals in a phased manner.

• The integration will be achieved by providing access to the Judiciary, Police and Prisons

through a desktop dashboard to facilitate expeditious and informed decisions and aid

investigations.

Impact of the CCTNS Project will lead to

• Citizen portals in all states and Centre that will facilitate transparency and speed in police

service delivery, online registration of complaints and reporting and search of missing persons

and stolen goods in self-service mode.

• Pan-India search on complete National Crime and Criminal database that is accessible to the

Investigating Officers throughout the country.

• Search facility will be available to Police in regional languages for improved inter-state

tracking of criminal movement.

• Reliable network connectivity to all Police Stations in the country.

• National level crime analytics that will be published at, increased frequency to help policy and

law makers in taking data backed timely actions and in making appropriate policy

interventions.

• Integration with various e-Governance projects such as Aadhaar, National Population Register,

Vaahan Project of the Ministry of Surface Transport, Passport Seva and National Emergency

Response System Project thus increasing the synergies and benefit accrued from these

individual systems. It will expedite various kinds of police verification requests and

investigation.

• Advanced features such as biometric based identification, trend and pattern analytics

etc. that will be incorporated to enhance hi-tech investigation capability.

• ICJS that will be available to all pillars of the criminal justice system helping improve its

service delivery.

Background:

Originally approved in 2009, the Project aims to:

• Deliver various web based police related services to citizens.



12

• Facilitate a pan-India search of crime and criminal records of individuals through a national

database.

• Generate crime and criminal reports at the state and central level to inform policy interventions

and

• Computerize police processes.

In 2015, an additional objective of establishing a basic platform for an Inter-operable

Criminal Justice System (ICJS) was added to the Project.

India and the UK announce joint UK-India Fund, namely a Green

Growth Equity Fund


Source: PIB

India and the UK announced the launch of an Early Market Engagement for the joint

UK-India Fund, namely a Green Growth Equity Fund which aims to leverage private

sector investment from the City of London to invest in green infrastructure projects in

India.

UK-India fund

• The Governments of UK and India have agreed in principle to anchor a private equity fund

(the “Fund”) which will increase the flow of funds to India’s infrastructure sector and provide

global, including UK investors, with an investment opportunity that matches their risk-return

preferences.

• The GoI (through NIIF) and the UK government will anchor-invest up to £120 million each in

the Fund which will target around £500 million initially, with the potential to unlock much

more in future.

• The purpose is to help India enhance inclusive growth by boosting investment into green

infrastructure on commercial terms. The success of the Fund will crowd in private investment

that will have a transformational impact on India’s development

Proposed concept: Green Growth Equity Fund (GGEF) The GoI (through NIIF) and the

UK government will anchor-invest up to £120 million each into the Green Growth Equity

Fund (GGEF) which will aim to raise around £500 million initially, and more in the future.

The Fund will invest in mid to large-sized companies in the green infrastructure space in

India.



13

Background

• The Green Growth Equity Fund, promoted jointly by India and the UK, aims to leverage

private sector investment to finance investments in the green infrastructure space in India.

• The Fund will invest in mid to large-sized companies in the green infrastructure space in India.

It will pursue a strategy of acquiring a mix of minority and majority stakes.

Sectors The Fund will target gross returns in the 14-16% INR range, investing primarily

in the following sectors:

1. Renewable energy

2. Energy distribution/transmission

3. Clean transportation, Water treatment, Waste management,

4. Any other fledgling sub-sectors/ themes in the clean energy/environment space like energy

storage/ fuel cells/ etc.

UK-India fund promoted under the NIIF framework- NIIF as a

quasi-sovereign wealth fund.


GS PAPER – 3 {Economic Development}

• The National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) has been created by the

Government of India (GoI) to catalyze capital from international and domestic investors into

infrastructure and allied sectors in India.

• The GoI has committed INR 20,000 crores (~USD 3 billion) to be managed by NIIF Limited,

the manager of NIIF, through one or more funds to be set up in partnership with non-GoI

investors.

• A component of NIIF’s investment strategy will be to anchor equity, quasi-equity and debt

funds in partnership with investors targeting investments in the relevant sectors in India.

• NIIF will operate on the basis of three principles in implementing this strategy: commercial,

additional and in partnership with others.

• NIIF will raise third party capital for the remaining Rs. 20,000 crore (US$ 3 billion), from

long term international investors, such as a Sovereign Wealth Funds, Insurance and Pension

Funds, endowments etc.

• National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) is formed as a trust (set up under the

provisions of Indian Trusts Act 1882) created by the Government of India. NIIF is registered



14

with Securities and Exchange Board of India (“SEBI”) as a Category II Alternate Investment

Fund (“AIF”) under the SEBI (Alternative Investments Funds) Regulations, 2012 (“AIF

Regulations”).

Geo-tagging of agriculture assets created under Rashtriya Krishi

Vikas Yojna (RKVY)

GS PAPER – 2 {Public Policy}

GS PAPER – 3 {Agriculture}

Source: PIB

Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) works for the development of Agriculture & allied

sectors

• More than 1.5 lakh infrastructure/assets develop under the scheme in horticulture, fisheries,

dairy and livestock breeding.

• Centre committed to transparency in governance and the initiative to list infrastructure/assets

with the help of technology

• Farmers to be able to utilise pesticide/residue testing labs, storage infrastructure and market-

related information on time

• It is imperative to formulate a national index of the assets to understand them, systemize them

and to reduce the gap between demand and supply.

• The space technology needs to be developed in the areas such as land resource mapping,

pesticides management, soil health mapping, crop yield estimation as well as the identification

and assessment of floods like calamities, inland fisheries, animal species identification and

sheep rearing and when the technology is developed, the farmers can enjoy quick and instant

benefits.

• Farmers would utilise the internet and mobile phones to obtain agriculture related information

such as fertility of soil, the quantity of fertiliser to be used, condition for sowing potential pests

aggression, estimation of yield, godowns, cold storage, agriculture markets as well as

identification and availabilities of animal species.

Development Activities along Ganga River

GS PAPER – 3 {Environment}



15

Source: PIB

The government has notified River Ganga (Rejuvenation, Protection and Management)

Authorities Order, 2016.

Under the order, the government has constituted National Council for Rejuvenation,

Protection and Management of River Ganga (referred to as National Ganga Council),

under the provisions of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.

As per para 42 of the notification, prior approval from National Mission for Clean Ganga

is required for following matters, relating to river Ganga and any area abutting river

Ganga or its tributaries, if required to implement the decision of National Ganga Council.

1. Engineered diversion and storage of water in River Ganga without affecting the flow of water

downstream of the River Ganga;

2. Construction of bridges and associated roads and embankments over the River Ganga or at its

River Bank or its flood plain area;

3. Construction of Ghats or extension of any existing Ghat;

4. Construction of jetties;

5. Construction of permanent hydraulic structures for storage or diversion or control of waters or

channelisation of River Ganga or its tributaries;

6. Deforestation of hill slopes and notified forest and other eco-sensitive areas.

7. The catchment area of river basin and its water shed has been demarcated and made available

in the River Basin Atlas, 2012 and is also available in public domain in Ganga Bhuvan portal.

Outlines of PMKSY


Source: PIB

Main suggestions of NITI Aayog as given in Road map of Pradhan Mantri Krishi

Sinchaayee Yojana (PMKSY)forwarded in January, 2017 are as under:

• Timely completion of 99 priority projects including their CADWM work.

• Formulation of a scheme for bridging the gap between irrigation potential created and

irrigation potential utilized.



16

• Minor irrigation schemes to be taken on priority in states getting less benefit with priority

projects under Accelerated Irrigation Benefits Programme (AIBP) and Command Area

Development & Water Management (CADWM).

• Repair, Renovation and Restoration (RRR) of existing water bodies should be given very high

priority for water management particularly in drought-prone areas.

• Covering additional area under Micro Irrigation.

• Completion of all the sanctioned 8,214 projects under Watershed Development component of

PMKSY.

• Regular monitoring of works under PMKSY at the district level, the State level and the

National level. On-line monitoring mechanism required.

• Assets created in the irrigation sector needs to be maintained properly for ensuring continuous

benefits from the projects.

• Active participation of the farmers, through Panchayati Raj Institutions or Water User

Associations (WUAs), may be encouraged for operation and maintenance of irrigation

projects.

• An area of 28.61 la. ha. is proposed to be irrigated during 2017-18, under PMKSY.

A budget allocation of 6872.22 cr. has been made for different components of the scheme.

In addition, funds are regularly released to States as per requirements through NABARD

based upon the proposals received from the States and their eligibility as per the guidelines

of the schemes.

Steps to Strengthen and Modernize Powerloom Sector

GS PAPER – 3 {Development and Employment}

Source: PIB

In order to strengthen and modernize the Powerloom Sector, Government has

launched PowerTex India, a Comprehensive Scheme for Powerloom Sector Development.

Key facts:

• Under the scheme there are several interventions.

• Under In-situ upgradation of plain powerloom scheme the subsidy amount has been enhanced

from Rs. 15,000/- to Rs. 20,000(GEN- 50%), Rs. 30,000 (SC -75%), Rs 36,000 (ST-90%) –

per loom;



17

• Under Group Workshed Scheme the GOI assistance for construction of workshed has been

enhanced from Rs. 300/- to Rs.400/- per sqft; and

• Under Yarn Bank component, the government share of Corpus limit has been enhanced from

Rs.1.00 crore to Rs.2.00 crores per project.

Two new components namely

1. (PMCS)Pradhan Credit Scheme: Pradhan Mantri Mudra Scheme, under which Margin Money

Subsidy and Interest Subvention are provided to the decentralised power loom units; and

2. (SEC)Solar Energy Scheme under which financial assistance is provided to the tune of 50%,

75% and 90% to the Gen, SC/ST category workers respectively; have been introduced.

State Governments have been requested to provide additional benefits to powerloom

units in their States in addition to the subsidy /benefits given by Govt. of India.

The details of additional subsidy provided by Govt. of Maharashtra, Telengana, Bihar

and Karnataka under In-situ upgradation scheme.

The comprehensive scheme has the following components:

• In-situ Upgradation of Plain Powerlooms

• Group Workshed Scheme (GWS)

• Yarn Bank Scheme

• Common Facility Centre (CFC)

• Pradhan Mantri Credit Scheme for Powerloom Weavers

• Solar Energy Scheme for Powerlooms

• Facilitation, IT, Awareness, Market Development and Publicity for Powerloom Schemes

• Tex Venture Capital Fund

• Grant-in-Aid and Modernisation & Upgradation of Powerloom Service Centres (PSCs)

Maintenance of Registered Under Various Labour Laws and Rules

Made Easy


Source: PIB



18

The Ministry of Labour & Employment has notified “Ease of Compliance to maintain

Registers under various Labour Laws Rules, 2017 which has in effect replaced the 56

Registers/Forms prescribed under 9 Central Laws and Rules made there under into 5

common Registers/Forms.

Such exercise has reduced the number of data fields from about 933 to about 144. This

will save efforts, costs and lessen the compliance burden by various establishments.

Key facts:

• Reforms in labour laws are an ongoing process to update legislative system to address the need

of the hour and to make them more effective and contemporary to the emerging economic and

industrial scenario.

• The Second National Commission on Labour has recommended that the existing Labour

Laws should be broadly grouped into four or five Labour Codes on functional basis.

• Accordingly, the Ministry has taken steps for drafting four Labour Codes on

Wages; Industrial Relations; Social Security & Welfare; and Safety and Working

Conditionsrespectively, by simplifying, amalgamating and rationalizing the relevant

provisions of the existing Central Labour Laws. Further, amendments in individual Labour Act

viz.

• Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act 1986, Payment of Wages Act 1936, Payment

of Bonus Act 1965, Maternity Benefit Act 1961 have also been carried out.

• These legislative initiatives will improve the wage security, job security and social security of

the workers.

April 7: World Health Day

GS PAPER – 3 {Health issue}

Source: PIB

• The World Health Day (WHD) is observed every year on 7 April to mark the anniversary of

the founding of the World Health Organization (WHO).

• Observance of the day focuses on disseminating knowledge and awareness about human

health, increasing life expectancy by adding good health to the lives of people and promoting

healthier living habits across the globe.



19

• The day also provides with a unique opportunity to mobilize action around a specific health

topic of concern to people all over the world.

• 2017 theme: “Depression: Let’s talk”. It seeks to encourage people to come forward for

treatment.

• Under it, WHO will be leading a one-year global campaign on depression which is the leading

cause of ill health and disability worldwide. The goal of the campaign is that people with

depression get help.

• More than 300 million people around the world are now living with depression, an increase of

more than 18% between 2005 and 2015.

• It affects people of all ages, from all walks of life, in all countries. At worst, depression can

lead to suicide, which is now the second leading cause of death among 15-29-year olds.

Background:

The World Health Organisation (WHO) annually marks World Health Day on 7 April to

celebrate its founding in 1948. It is one of eight official global public health campaigns

marked by WHO On this day in 1948, the first World Health Assembly was held Geneva,

Switzerland. Since then the World Health Assembly decided to celebrate 7 April of each

year with effect from 1950 as the World Health Day.

First NIMCARE World Health Day Summit 2017

Source: PIB

The President of India inaugurated the first NIMCARE World Health Day Summit 2017.

The slogan of the first NIMCARE World Health Day Summit is, ‘Unite for a Healthy

Mind’.

Mental well-being:

• He stated that lack of mental well-being contributes significantly to the total disability and

morbidity burden across the world

• Productivity of human beings, whether in workforce or in family situations, gets reduced

significantly if one has any mental disorder

• Mental health disorders span a very wide range from simple disorders to very complex

situations

• It is often seen that simpler disorders, if not managed in time, tend to become more complex

putting the patient at higher risk of morbidity



20

Depression in India:

• Depression affects people of all ages from all walks of life and in all countries

• As per the National Mental Health Survey 2015-16 conducted by NIMHANS, 5.2% of the

Indian adult population suffers from depression in some form or the other

• The problem of depression often gets ignored due to lack of understanding on the part of

family members

Solutions to such problems:

• The social stigma attached to a mental disorder, even if it is easily treatable, is also a major

problem in India

• However, people have now started talking about this issue leading to greater awareness in this

respect

• He pointed out that traditional Indian values along with our family system, can be good

mechanisms to support those who suffer from mental health disorders

• He urged medical practitioners to focus on the social support systems, spiritual beliefs and

practices as well as the system of Yoga in their quest for providing well-being to all

• The President said that there is a severe shortage of mental health professionals in India and

this service gap can be bridged effectively by telemedicine.

Indo – Mongolian Joint Exercise : Nomadic Elephant

{International Relations}

Source: PIB

• Twelfth iteration of Indo – Mongolian Joint Military Exercise Nomadic Elephant is

presently underway at Vairengte from 05 April 2017 till 18 April 2017.

• Mongolian Army is represented by nine officers and 36 soldiers of the elite 084 Special Forces

Task Battalion while Indian Army is represented by a contingent comprising of three officers,

four JCOs and 39 soldiers of the Jammu & Kashmir Rifles.

• Nomadic Elephant is aimed at training the troops in Counter Insurgency & Counter

Terrorism Operations under the United Nations mandate.



21

• The joint training will also lay emphasis on conducting operations by a joint subunit,

comprising of troops from both the armies, in adverse operational conditions aimed at

enhancing the interoperability between the two armies.

Web Portal “Bharat ke Veer”

{Security}, {Science and Technology}, {Governance}

Source: PIB

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs has launched web portal and mobile application

named “Bharat ke Veer” to enable people to contribute towards family of martyrs from

central paramilitary forces.

It was launched by Union Home Minister on the occasion of Valour Day of Central

Reserve Police Force (CRPF).

Key facts

• The portal and application is an IT based platform to enable willing donors to contribute

towards the family of a brave heart who have sacrificed their life in line of duty or towards the

‘Bharat Ke Veer’ corpus.

• This online donation platform is technically supported by National Informatics Centre (NIC)

and powered by State Bank of India (SBI).

• The amount so donated through it will be credited to the account of ‘Next of Kin’ of those

Central Armed Police Force or Central Para Military Force soldiers.

• To ensure maximum coverage, a cap of Rs. 15 lakh is imposed on donation and donors will be

alerted if amount exceeds, so they can choose to divert part of the donation to another account

or the corpus.

• Bharat Ke Veer corpus will be managed by a committee made up of eminent persons of

repute and senior Government officials. The committee will decide to disbursement of fund

equitably to braveheart’s family on need basis.

Swachhagraha “Bapu Ko Karyanjali”

{Social issue}



22

Source: PIB

‘‘Swachhagraha “Bapu Ko Karyanjali”-A Mission, An Exhibition’ to mark 100th

Anniversary of Champaran Satyagrah at the National Archives of India (NAI)

Key facts:

• Addressing the gathering on the occasion, the Prime Minister said that 100 years ago,

Mahatma Gandhi reached Champaran and witnessed the hardships of people living there.

• Gandhi Ji showed them the path to and power of peaceful Satyagrah.

• Champaran Satyagraha catapulted Gandhi Ji to the forefront of India’s freedom struggle.

• Gandhi ji was basically a Swachhagrahi and was awakening the thought process of the people

of India.

• Champaran be described as the place of origin of Swachhata Andolan and Champaran

Satyagrah gave a new impetus to the freedom struggle and Gandhi ji accorded equal regard to

women.

• ‘Champaran played an important role in the development of Khadi.

Background:

• Gandhi Ji was initially reluctant to visit Champaran.

• Rather, he had hardly knew where Champaran was and was unaware of the conditions of the

farmers who cultivated Indigo. Upon his arrival in Patna on 10th April 1917 and thence to in

Motihari on 15th April, he immediately realized that his stay there would be a long haul.

• During his stay, Gandhi Ji delved in detail with the problems of people.

• Social practices of scavenging, illiteracy, issues covering women and health were found to be

the main impediments. These obstacles were common to the political issues that Gandhi Ji

confronted. Satyagraha was the weapon he employed to overcome hurdles on both these

fronts.

The Champaran Satyagraha changed the dynamics of Indian politics, catapulting

Gandhi Ji to the forefront of India’s freedom struggle. For the first time, people of India

realized the power of non-violence and passive resistance, based on action.

SAMPADA scheme for food processing

{Public Policy}



23

Source: PIB

The Union Ministry of Food Processing is going to launch Scheme for Agro-Marine

Produce Processing and Development of Agro-Processing Clusters (SAMPADA) for food

processing sector. The scheme will integrate current and new schemes aimed at

reducing food wastage and doubling farmers’ income by 2022. It will help to create

infrastructure for linkage of entire supply chain.

• SAMPADA is an umbrella scheme that will include ongoing schemes like mega food

parks and cold chain projects and new schemes. It has an outlay of Rs. 6000 crore and will

be implemented by 2019-20.

• The ministry will also launch three new schemes to create infrastructure for improving the

entire food supply chain. These three schemes are ‘Creation/ Expansion of Food Processing

and Preservation Capacities’, ‘New Agro-Processing Clusters‘ and ‘Backward and

Forward Linkages’.

• Moreover, government is taking steps to boost food processing sector to bring down post-

harvest losses preferably to zero level, provide quality food to consumers at cheaper price and

double of farmers’ income.

Parliament passes HIV and AIDS (Prevention and Control) Bill,

2017

{Public Policy}, {Health issue}

Source: PIB

Parliament has passed the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune

Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) (Prevention and Control) Bill, 2017. It is the first national

HIV law in South Asia. The Bill seeks to safeguard the rights of people living with HIV

and affected by HIV. It aims to prevent social stigma and discrimination against people

living with HIV (PLHIV).

• Privacy of PLHIV: No person will be compelled to disclose his HIV status except with his

informed consent, and if required by a court order.

• Establishments keeping records of information of PLHIV must adopt data protection

measures.

• Prohibits any individual from publishing information or advocating feelings of hatred against

HIV positive persons and PLHIV.



24

• Safeguarding Rights: Obligations on establishments to safeguard rights of persons living

with HIV arid create mechanisms for redressing complaints.

• Strengthen legal accountability and establish formal mechanisms for inquiring into complaints

and redressing grievances to probe discrimination complaints against those who discriminate

against PLHIV.

• It ensures that no HIV test, medical treatment or research is conducted on a person without his

informed consent.

• Grounds of discrimination: Lists various grounds on which discrimination against HIV-

positive persons and those living with them is prohibited.

• These include the denial, discontinuation, termination or unfair treatment with regard to

employment, educational establishments, health care services, renting property etc.

• Bans unfair treatment of people living with and affected by HIV with regard to accessing

public facilities, such as shops, hotels, restaurants, public entertainment venues, public

facilities and burial grounds.

• Pre-requisite HIV testing: Prohibits, requirement for HIV testing as a pre-requisite for

obtaining employment or accessing health care or education.

There are approximately 21 lakh persons estimated to be living with HIV in India. The

prevalence of HIV in India is decreasing since last decade but percentage of PLHIV

receiving Anti-Retroviral therapy (ART) treatment is merely 28.82% against global

percentage of 41%. The Bill will provide essential support to National AIDS Control

Programme (NACP) in arresting new spread of HIV infections and thereby achieving the

target of “Ending the epidemic by 2030” to meet goal Sustainable Development Goals.

Central Processing Centre (CPC) gets new Pin Code

{Indian Economy}

I-T CPC in Bengaluru gets new pin code for taxpayers benefit

Source: PIB

The Department of Post has allotted a unique pin code for the Income Tax

Department’s Central Processing Centre (CPC) based in Bengaluru so as to ensure that



25

the letters and mails sent by taxpayers to the CPC are not lost or reach the centre

late. The new pin code given to CPC is 560500.

Earlier, the CPC was using the pin code 560100 which was marked for the entire city

area of Bengaluru. The new pin code will cater exclusively to the CPC of the Income Tax

department and will help in addressing the grievances of the taxpayers with respect to

the issues of non-reaching of postal mails.

Cabinet approves setting up of a Special Purpose Vehicle to be

called Government e-Marketplace (GeM SPV)

{Governance}

Source: PIB

Setting up of a Special Purpose Vehicle to be called Government e-Marketplace (GeM

SPV) as the National Public Procurement Portal as Section 8 Company registered

under the Companies Act, 2013, for providing procurement of goods & services required

by Central & State Government organizations. GeM SPV shall provide an end-to-end

online Marketplace for Central and State Government Ministries / Departments, Central

& State Public Sector Undertakings (CPSUs & SPSUs), Autonomous institutions and

Local bodies, for procurement of common use goods & services in a transparent and

efficient manner.

Cabinet approves the Establishment of the BIMSTEC Grid

Interconnection


Source: PIB

The Union Cabinet has approved the proposal of the Ministry of Power for signing a

Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with member states of BIMSTEC for establishing

BIMSTEC grid interconnections. The MoU will be signed at the 3rd BIMSTEC Energy

Ministers’ Meeting that will be held in Nepal shortly.



26

The MoU provides a broad framework of cooperation for the implementation of grid

interconnections for the purpose of carrying out trade in electricity. Its objective is to

promote rational and optimal power transmission in the BIMSTEC region.

The MoU for the establishment of the BIMSTEC grid interconnection facilitates:

• Optimization of energy resources in the BIMSTEC region for mutual benefits on non-

discriminatory basis subject to laws, rules and regulations of the respective Parties;

• Promotion of efficient, economic, and secure operation of power system by developing

regional electricity networks;

• Necessity of optimization of capital investment for additional capacity generation across the

region;

• Power exchange through cross-border interconnections.

In 2005, during the first BIMSTEC Energy Ministers’ Conference held in New Delhi, a

Plan of Action for Energy Cooperation in BIMSTEC was formulated. As a part of the

plan, under the BIMSTEC Trans-Power Exchange and Development Project, a task

force under the leadership of Thailand was formed comprising the representatives of

member countries to come up with a report on draft MoU for grid interconnections. After

a total of five meetings, the draft MoU for the establishment of the BIMSTEC grid

interconnection was finalised on March 16, 2015. The leaders reached a consensus to

expedite the signing of the MoU on BIMSTEC grid interconnection during the BIMSTEC

Leaders’ Retreat, 2016 held in Goa. In the fourth meeting of BIMSTEC held in January

2017, the MoU was discussed and finalised.

National Lok Adalat settles over 6 lakh cases in one day

{Judicial System}

Source: PIB

The Second National Lok Adalat for 2017, conducted throughout the country from taluk

level courts to High Courts, has settled nearly 6.6 lakh cases .Out of this, 3.68 lakh

cases have been reduced from court pendency and about 2.92 lakh cases were settled

even before they could be filed in courts .



27

The cases ranged from matrimonial disputes, partition suits, civil matters, cheque

bounce cases, motor accident claims, revenue disputes pending in courts, criminal

compoundable cases and service matters pertaining to pension, retrial benefits, etc.

The NALSA, under Justice Misra, has decided to organise bi-monthly National Lok

Adalats for both pending and pre-litigative cases .

Culture of settlement: Lok Adalats are setting up a “culture of settlement”

Lok Adalats:

• NALSA along with other Legal Services Institutions conducts Lok Adalats

• Lok Adalat is one of the alternative dispute redressal mechanisms

• It is a forum where disputes/cases pending in the court of law or at pre-litigation stage are

settled/ compromised amicably

• The Lok Adalat is presided over by a sitting or retired judicial officer as the chairman, with

two other members, usually a lawyer and a social worker

• Statutory: Lok Adalats have been given statutory status under the Legal Services Authorities

Act, 1987

• Final award: Under the said Act, the award (decision) made by the Lok Adalats is deemed to

be a decree of a civil court and is final and binding on all parties and no appeal against such an

award lies before any court of law

• No appeal: If the parties are not satisfied with the award of the Lok Adalat though there is no

provision for an appeal against such an award, but they are free to initiate litigation by

approaching the court of appropriate jurisdiction by filing a case by following the required

procedure, in exercise of their right to litigate

• No fee: There is no court fee payable when a matter is filed in a Lok Adalat

• If a matter pending in the court of law is referred to the Lok Adalat and is settled subsequently,

the court fee originally paid in the court on the complaints/petition is also refunded back to the

parties

• Members: The persons deciding the cases in the Lok Adalats are called the Members of the

Lok Adalats

• They have the role of statutory conciliators only and do not have any judicial role

• Persuasion: Therefore they can only persuade the parties to come to a conclusion for settling

the dispute outside the court in the Lok Adalat and shall not pressurize or coerce any of the

parties to compromise or settle cases or matters either directly or indirectly



28

• Amicable resolution: The Lok Adalat shall not decide the matter so referred at its own

instance, instead the same would be decided on the basis of the compromise or settlement

between the parties

• The members shall assist the parties in an independent and impartial manner in their attempt to

reach amicable settlement of their dispute

Global interest in PSLV soars

{Science and Technology}

Source: PIB

• The PSLV (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle) space vehicle has received more than double the

volume of inquiries from prospective customers ever since it launched a record 104 satellites

on a single flight in February

• A world best, 101 small foreign commercial spacecraft were taken up at once in the feat,

catapulting the PSLV’s overall commercial tally to 180

Globally, 500 satellites are expected to come up for launch every year from 2018

onwards

• The PSLV, with a near impeccable 37 successes in 39 flights, he said, is a clear leader in the

category of rockets that lift small satellites to low earth orbits or LEOs

• These satellites weigh up to 500 kg and must be placed in polar orbits 500 km from the earth

Nation Pays Homage to Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar on his 127th Birth

Anniversary

{Indian history}

Source : PIB

127th birth anniversary of Dr. B.R.Ambedkar was celebrated at the Parliament House

complex. The President, Vice President and Prime Minister paid floral tributes to the

statue of Ambedkar present in the Parliament House Lawns. The celebrations were

organized by Dr. Ambedkar Foundation, Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment.

About Dr.Bhimrao Ambedkar :

• B R Ambedkar was born on 14 April 1891 at Mhow in Madhya Pradesh.



29

• Ambedkar was elected as the Chairman of the Drafting Committee of the Constituent

Assembly.

• He is called as the father of the Indian Constitution.

• Bahishkrit Hitakarini Sabha was the first organization formed by Dr. Ambedkar in

1924.

• Ambedkar was appointed as the first Law Minister of Independent India, but he resigned

from the Cabinet on September 1951 due to differences with Nehru on the Hindu Code Bill.

Ambedkar got himself converted to Buddhism on October 14, 1956.

• He died on December 6, 1956 at Delhi due to severe diabetic neurosis.

• After his death, his political party Scheduled Caste Federation was renamed as

Republican Party of India in 1957 by his followers.

Some of his famous books are:

1. ‘The Untouchable: Who are They and Why They Have Become Untouchables’;

2. ‘Buddha and His Dhamma’;

3. ‘The Rise and Fall of Hindu Women‘,

4. ‘Emancipation of Untouchables’,

5. ‘The Evolution of Provincial Finance in British India’;

6. ‘Pakistan or Partition of India‘,

7. ‘Thoughts on Linguistic States’, etc.

Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY) crosses the target of Rs.

1.8 lakh crore for 2016-17

{Public Policy}

Source : PIB

Loans extended under the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY) during 2016-17 have

crossed the target of Rs. 1,80,000 crore for 2016-17. Sanctions currently stand at Rs.

1,80,087 crore with final data still awaited from some of the smaller non-banking

lenders. Of this amount, Rs. 1,23,000 crore was lent by banks while non-banking

institutions lent about Rs. 57,000 crore. Data compiled so far indicates that the number

of borrowers this year were over 4 crore, of which over 70% were women borrowers.

About 20% of the borrowers were from the Scheduled Caste Category, 5% from the



30

Scheduled Tribe Category, while Other Backward Classes accounted for almost 35% of the

borrowers.

Robust growth in bank loans to unfunded and underfunded segments of the society

indicates that this category of borrowers has emerged as a key driver of demand for

credit. Non-insistence of collateral/guarantor, simple documentation and quick

processing are the three praiseworthy attributes of the MUDRA loans.

Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY):

The objective of this scheme to launch a Micro Units Development and Refinance

Agency (MUDRA) Bank to support the entrepreneurs of Scheduled castes, scheduled tribes

and other backward classes entrepreneurs in the MSME sector. The scheme was

launched on April 8, 2015. MUDRA cards are the unique feature of this scheme. The

card permits access to working capital through ATMs and card machines. MUDRA

loans can be availed for non-agricultural activities upto Rs 10 lakh and for activities allied

to agriculture such as dairy, poultry bee keeping etc.

The scheme provides loans to micro units in three categories ranging from Rs. 50,000

to Rs. 10 lakh.

Shishu: Loan up to Rs 50,000

Kishore: Loan ranging from Rs 50,000 to Rs 5 lakh

Tarun: Loan ranging from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 10 lakh.

BHIM-Aadhaar platform

{Digitalization}, {Governance}

Source: PIB

Prime Minister has launched BHIM-Aadhaar platform from Nagpur. BHIM-Aadhaar

platform is the merchant interface of the BHIM App that has been launched for making

digital payments using the Aadhaar platform. BHIM App was launched in December

2016 to provide a one-stop solution for all digital payments. The App created a new world

record by registering 1.9 crore downloads within four months since its launch.



31

The newly launched BHIM-Aadhaar platform will help people to pay digitally using their

biometric data like thumb imprint on a merchant’s biometric enabled device like a smart

phone or a biometric reader. The App needs to be installed only by merchants and they

need to connect their smartphones to the biometric scan machine to accept the

payments from customers. The customers who want to pay using this app needs to link

Aadhaar number and biometic fingerprint to complete a transaction.

Prime Minister has also launched two new offers rewarding BHIM users. Both the

schemes will beadministered by Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology

(MeitY) and implemented by National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).

BHIM – Referral Bonus Scheme

Under this scheme, both the existing BHIM users and the new users will get a cash

bonus credited directly to their account. This scheme incentivizes the existing BHIM

users to refer new users to BHIM. Upon completion of minimum 3 unique successful

transactions amounting to Rs 50 to any 3 unique users, the bonus will be paid to both

the referrer and the referee.

BHIM – Cash back Scheme

Under this scheme, merchants will get cash back on every transaction using BHIM. The

merchants can get cashback of up to Rs 300 per month, with each merchant eligible to

win up to Rs 1800 in 6 months.

Sagarmatha Friendship-2017


Source : PIB

Nepal and China is all set to hold their first ever joint military exercise

named ‘Sagarmatha Friendship-2017’from April 17 to April 26. The 10 day long joint

exercise will focus on combating terror and disaster management. Although, Nepal

conducts joint exercises with other countries like India and United States, this is the first

time it is holding a joint exercise with China. The joint exercise comes at the backdrop of

Nepal’s proposal of such exercise having focus on disaster management during Chinese

Defence Minister, General Chang Wanquan’s official visit to Nepal on March 24.

Sagarmatha is the Nepali name for Mt Everest, which stands in between both the

countries. Even though the bilateral military engagement between Nepal and China

does not violate India-Nepal treaty of peace and friendship (1950), the exercise does

appear unconventional as Nepal has conducted exercises with India earlier. Nepal can



32

have military exercises with other countries without violating the pact with India, but at

the same time, military engagement with China is worrisome as China’s definition of

terrorism includes Tibetan agitators as well.

Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan – Ministry of Human

Resource Development

{Education}

Source: PIB

The Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA), under the aegis of the Ministry of

Human Resource Development, is going to launch its own portal and mobile app by

Union HRD Minister.

The portal is a one-stop for States’ Higher Education Plans, decision of the States’

Higher Education Councils and details of the resources under this scheme. Also, the

gallery is a rich repository of the projects initiated under RUSA.

Key facts:

1. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved the Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha

Abhiyan (RUSA), a Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) for reforming the state higher

education system.

2. During the 12th Plan period, new universities would be created by converting autonomous

colleges/colleges in a cluster to State universities

3. RUSA will be a new Centrally Sponsored Scheme spread over two plan periods, for improving

access, equity and quality in the state higher education system. With over 96 percent of

students enrolled in the state higher education system, there is a need for State colleges and

universities to be strengthened through strategic Central funding and implementing certain

much needed reforms. RUSA also aims to incentivize States to step up plan investments in

higher education.

The important objectives of the scheme are:

• Improving the overall quality of existing state higher educational institutions by ensuring

conformity to prescribed norms and standards and adoption of accreditation as a mandatory

quality assurance framework.



33

• Correct regional imbalances in access to higher education through high quality institutions in

rural and semi urban areas as well as creating opportunities for students from rural areas to get

access to better quality institutions.

• Setting up of higher education institutions in unserved and underserved areas.

• Improve equity in higher education by providing adequate opportunities to socially deprived

communities; promote inclusion of women, minorities, SC/ST and OBCs as well as differently

abled persons.

• Ensure adequate availability of quality faculty in all higher educational institutions and ensure

capacity building at all levels.

• Create an enabling atmosphere in higher educational institutions to devote themselves to

research and innovation.

• Integrate skill developments efforts of the government with the conventional higher education

system through optimum interventions.

• All funding under RUSA would be norm based and future grants would be performance based

and outcome dependent. Commitment by States and institutions to certain academic,

administrative and governance reforms will be a precondition for receiving funding.

Background:

The National Development Council (NDC) approved RUSA as part of the 12th Plan. It

was subsequently included in the list of 66 schemes approved by the Cabinet on 20th

June 2013, as part of the restructured CSSs for implementation in the 12th Plan.

Cabinet gives approval for introduction of Constitution (One

Hundred and Twenty-third Amendment) Bill 2017 and (ii) National

Commission for Backward Classes (Repeal) Bill, 2017 in the

Parliament

{Rights Issues}

Source: PIB

Approval also granted for retention of posts and office premises for the proposed new

National Commission for Backward Classes

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister



34

• Ex-post facto approval for introduction of (i) Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-third

Amendment) Bill 2017 and (ii) National Commission for Backward Classes (Repeal) Bill,

2017 in the Parliament; and

• Approval for retention of posts/incumbents and office premises held by the existing National

Commission for Backward Classes by the proposed new National Commission for Backward

Classes.

The approval is for the proposal to bring about a Constitutional Amendment namely the

Constitution (One Hundred Twenty-third Amendment) Bill, 2017 by

1. (a) Constitution of a Commission under Article 338B for socially and educationally backward

classes by name of National Commission for Backward Classes; and

(b) Insertion of Clause (26C) under Article 366 with modified definition viz. “socially and

educationally backward classes” means such backward classes as are so deemed

under Article 342A for the purpose, this Constitution and

2.Introduce a Bill for:

(a) Repeal of the National Commission for Backward Classes Act, 1993 along with

Savings Clause for namely the National Commission for Backward Classes (Repeal)

Bill, 2017; and

(b) Dissolution of the National Commission for Backward Classes with effect from such

date as the Central Government may appoint in this behalf and the National

Commission for Backward Classes constituted under sub-section (1) of Section 3 of the

said Act shall stand dissolved.

3. (a) Appropriation of the sanctioned 52 posts, along with incumbents wherever filled of the

existing National Commission for Backward Classes in the proposed National Commission for

Backward Classes to be constituted under Article 338B; and

(b) Retention of the office premises of the existing National Commission for Backward

Classes at Trikut-1, Bhikaiji Cama Place, New Delhi-110066, by the National

Commission for Backward Classes to be constituted under Article 338B.

• The above decisions will lead to overall welfare of socially and educationally backward

classes.

• The proposed Act of repeal is necessary in view of setting up of the National Commission for

Backward Classes by insertion of Article 338B of the Constitution.



35

• The decision will also enable effecting continuity in the functioning of the National

Commission for Backward Classes under Article 338B.

Cabinet approves permission to avail external assistance by State

Government entities from bilateral agencies

{Public Policy}

Source: PIB

The Union Cabinet has approved the policy guidelines to allow financially sound State

Government entities to borrow directly from bilateral ODA (Official development

Assistance) partners for implementation of vital infrastructure projects.

Key facts:

• The guidelines will facilitate the State Government entities to directly borrow from the

external bilateral funding agencies subject to fulfilment of certain conditions and all

repayments of loans and interests to the funding agencies will be directly remitted by the

concerned borrower.

• The concerned State Government will furnish guarantee for the Loan. The Government of

India will provide counter guarantee for the loan.

Significance of this move:

• Several State agencies are implementing major infrastructure projects of national importance.

These projects, even if viable and sound, have huge funding requirements and borrowing by

the State Governments for such projects may exhaust their respective borrowing limits.

• Therefore, in order to accelerate the pace of investment in major infrastructure projects in the

country without compromising the need for external assistance for other sectors, this enabling

provision in the existing guidelines was considered necessary to facilitate direct borrowing by

the State Government entities from bilateral external agencies.

Presently, external development assistance from bilateral and multilateral sources is

received by the Government of India:

• For projects/programmes in the Central sector.

• For projects executed by Central Public Sector Undertakings.

• On behalf of the State Governments for State sector projects/programmes to be implemented

by the State Governments and/or local bodies and public sector undertakings.



36

• The existing guidelines do not allow direct borrowings by the State Government entities from

external agencies.

Legal Aid and Empowerment initiatives

{Social Justice}

Source: PIB

Three key legal aid and empowerment initiatives of the Department of Justice were

recently launched. These initiatives are aimed at fulfilling the department’s core

mandate of enhancing ‘access to justice’ for the poor and vulnerable communities,

including making accessible quality and effective legal aid for them.

Pro bono legal Services:

• The ‘Pro bono legal services’ initiative is a web based platform, through which interested

lawyers can register themselves to volunteer pro bono services for the underprivileged

litigants, who are unable to afford it.

• The Department of Justice has launched the online application for this initiative on its website

doj.gov.in. Through this online portal, litigants from marginalised communities (including

members of scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, women, children, senior citizens, persons

with low income and persons with disabilities) can also apply for legal aid and advice from the

pro bono lawyers.

• This is aimed at fulfilling the mandate of quality legal aid for all.

Tele Law: Mainstreaming Legal Aid through Common Service Centre:

• Through this initiative, the Department of Justice and NALSA are partnering with CSC- E-

Governance Service Limited for mainstreaming legal aid to the marginalized communities

through the Common Service Centers (CSCs).

• This initiative is aimed at facilitating delivery of legal advice through an expert panel of

lawyers – stationed at the State Legal Services Authorities (SLSA). The project would connect

lawyers with clients through video conferencing facilities at CSCs, operated by para legal

volunteers. For this purpose, this initiative would also play a pivotal role in empowering 1000

women para legal volunteers.



37

• Using CSCs for mainstreaming legal aid services for the marginalized at the panchayat levels

would ensure that legal aid reaches populations which remained untouched due to

geographical challenges and/or lack of infrastructure.

• The project would be launched across 1800 panchayats in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, North Eastern

States and Jammu & Kashmir.

District Facilitation Centre to reduce pendency: Engagement of Nyaya Mitra:

• Nyaya Mitra scheme is aimed at reducing pendency of cases across selected districts, with

special focus on those pending for more than 10 years.

• Functionalized through a retired judicial or executive officer (with legal experience)

designated as the ‘Nyaya Mitra’, the project would be operated out of District Facilitation

Centres, housed in CSCs.

• Nyaya Mitra’s responsibilities would include among others assistance to litigants who are

suffering due to delay in investigations or trial, by actively identifying such cases through the

National Judicial Data Grid, providing legal advice and connecting litigants to DLSA, CSC

Tele Law, other government agencies and civil society organisations. He/she shall also refer

the marginalized applicants to Lok Adalats for dispute resolution and render assistance

towards prison reforms within the district, in coordination with the district judiciary and other

stakeholders.

• This initiative would be launched in 227 districts including 27 districts from North East and

Jammu & Kashmir and 200 districts from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, Rajasthan,

Odisha, Gujarat, West Bengal etc. and would be operated out of CSCs.

Inter-Ministerial Delegation to Participate in Basel, Rotterdam,

Stockholm Conventions in Geneva

{Climate Change}

Source: PIB

An inter-ministerial Indian delegation headed by the Secretary, Ministry of Environment,

Forest and Climate Change, has left to participate in the 2017 Conference of Parties

(COPs) to the Basel, Rotterdam, Stockholm (BRS) Conventions.

• The theme of the meetings and the high-level segment will be – “A future detoxified: sound

management of chemicals and waste “.

• Meetings of the COPs of BRS Conventions are generally held every alternate year. India has

participated in the earlier meetings of the COPs of the BRS Conventions. Previously, COP 12



38

of Basel Convention and COP 7 meetings of Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions were held

in Geneva, Switzerland in May 2015.

Key facts:

• Conference of Parties (COPs) to the BRS Convention include – the 13th meeting of the

Conference of Parties to “Basel Convention (BC COP 13); the 8th meeting of the Conference

of Parties to “Rotterdam Convention (RC COP 8) and 8th meeting of the Conference of Parties

to “Stockholm Convention (SC COP 8).

• While the Basel Convention will discuss the control of transboundary movements of

hazardous wastes and their disposal, the Rotterdam Convention will deliberate on the prior

informed consent procedure for certain hazardous chemicals and pesticides in international

trade” and the Stockholm Convention is on persistent organic pollutants (POPs)”.

• The most important matters to be deliberated during COPs include – listing of chemicals under

Rotterdam and Stockholm Convention may have an impact on industrial growth. The inclusion

of chemicals under Rotterdam Convention does not ban the chemical. However, importing

countries need to follow the PIC procedure.

Agenda of the meetings:

• The agenda of the 2017 BRS COPs meetings cover a wide gamut of issues including –

technical guidelines on transboundary movements of electrical and electronic waste and used

electrical and electronic equipment;

• Technical guidelines for environmentally sound management of wastes, consisting of,

containing or contaminated with low persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in Basel Convention,

national reporting, capacity building and technical assistance;

• Listing of chemicals viz chrysotile asbestos, paraquat dichloride, fenthion, trichlorfon,

short chain chlorinated paraffins, tributyltin compounds, carbofuran and

carbosulfan under Annex III to the Rotterdam Convention and listing of chemicals viz short

chain chlorinated paraffins, decabromodiphenyl ether and Hexachlorobutadiene under Annex

A, B, and C to the Stockholm Convention.

BRS Conventions – Brief Background:

• The Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm (BRS) Conventions are multilateral environmental

agreements, which share the common objective of protecting human health and the

environment from hazardous chemicals and wastes.

• To enhance cooperation and coordination among the BRS Conventions, their respective

conferences of the Parties have taken a series of decisions. This “synergies process” aims to

strengthen the implementation of the three conventions at the national, regional and global



39

levels by providing coherent policy guidance, enhancing efficiency in the provision of support

to Parties to the Conventions, reducing their administrative burden and maximising the

effective and efficient use of resources at all levels, while maintaining the legal autonomy of

these three multilateral environmental agreements.

• In addition to initiating reforms to the secretariats of the three Conventions on an

administrative as well as operational level, this process is changing the way in which the

implementation of the Conventions are undertaken at the national and regional levels.

• Parties to the Conventions and entities supporting countries in the implementation of the

Conventions, such as regional centres, intergovernmental organizations and non-governmental

organizations, also undertake efforts to increase coherence in the implementation of the

Conventions.

“Quality Mark” Award Scheme for Dairy Cooperatives initiated by

NDDB

{Development and Employment}

Source: PIB

As part of the innovative initiatives under the “White Revolution” umbrella Schemes, the

Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries has supported the National

Dairy Development Board(NDDB) developed initiative of “Quality Mark” Award Scheme

for dairy Cooperatives to promote and encourage enhancement ofsafety, quality and

hygiene of milk and milk products manufactured by dairy cooperatives.

Aim of the scheme: It is aimed at bringing about process improvement in the entire value

chain from producer to the consumer to ensure availability of safe and quality of milk

and products both for the domestic and foreign market.

Key facts:

• The Quality Mark” Award Scheme for dairy Cooperatives in the country has been initiated to

instill confidence in the consumers for the quality of milk being marketed by them by ensuring

availability of safe and good quality milk and milk products.

• The initiative does not propose any new/ additional system for Food Safety and Quality

Management but lays down minimum standards against each link of the processes required for

ensuring quality and safety



40

India and Republic of Korea sign Inter-Governmental MOU for

Defence Industry Co-Operation in Shipbuilding


Source: PIB

India and the Republic of Korea (RoK) have signed an Inter-governmental

Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for Defence Industry Co-operation in

Shipbuilding.

The Inter-Governmental MoU, was conceived under the overall umbrella of the ‘Special

Strategic Partnership’ between both sides as declared in the Joint Statement of the

Prime Minister of India and the President of RoK in May 2015.

Important points

• Develop and strengthen defence industry co-operation between Republic of India and the

Republic of Korea.

• The two sides will recommend the organisations for collaborating in the implementation of

specific projects.

• The organisations recommended for co-operative projects may conclude separate agreements

(contracts) between them to implement the specific projects.

• The MoU will come into effect from the date of signature by both sides and will be initially

valid for a period of five years and would be automatically extendable for further successive

five year at a time.

One Crore MGNREGA assets geotagged

{Public Policy}

Source: PIB

Mahatma Gandhi NREGS has reached a new milestone by geotagging one Crore

assets and putting them in public domain.



41

The geotagging exercise started from 1st September, 2016. One Crore assets have

been geotagged and put in public domain in the last seven months. It is expected that

the exercise will lead to greater transparency and ensure accountability at field level.

Key facts:

• The scale of rural assets created under MGNREGA is very large.

• Since the inception of the programme in financial year 2006-07, about 2.82 Crore assets have

been created under the programme.

• On an average, about 30 Lakh Assets are created annually which includes a variety of works

such as water harvesting structures, plantations, rural infrastructure, flood control

measures, individual assets for sustainable livelihood, community infrastructure and so on.

Geotagging

Geotagging is the process of adding geographical information to various media in the

form of metadata. The data usually consists of coordinates like latitude and longitude,

but may even include bearing, altitude, distance and place names.

Background:

• GeoMGNREGA is a unique endeavor of the Ministry of Rural Development in association

with National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC), ISRO and National Informatics Centre.

• A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed by Ministry of Rural Development with

NRSC in June 2016 for geo-tagging the assets created under MGNREGS in each gram

panchayat. Strength of Space technology has been leveraged.

• Pursuant to the signing of MoU, training manuals were developed in consultation with NRSC.

Training was imparted to around 2.76 Lakh personnel across the country with the help of

National Institute of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj (NIRD&PR).

Indian Navy test-fires land attack version of BrahMos missile

{Science and Technology}

Source: PIB

Indian Navy recently successfully test fired BrahMos Land Attack Supersonic Cruise

Missile from a ship.



42

This variant of Long Range BrahMos Missile was fired from Indian Naval Ship Teg, a

Guided Missile Frigate, on a target on land.

Key facts:

• BrahMos Missile has been jointly developed by India and Russia, and its Anti Ship variant has

already been inducted into Indian Navy.

• Land Attack variant of BrahMos Missile provides Indian Naval Ships the capability to

precisely neutralise selected targets deep inland, far away from coast, from stand-off ranges at

sea.

• The missile has a range of 400km.

Background:

The technology upgrade to the extended range BrahMos has come after India gained

entry into the 34-nation Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) in June 2016,

which “removed the caps” on the missile’s range. The MTCR basically prevents the

proliferation of missiles and UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) over the range of 300-km.

Earth Day- April 22

{Environment}

Source: PIB

Earth Day 2017 is being celebrated around the world today (April 22).

• This year’s campaign is dedicated to an ambitious goal – to achieve global climate and

environmental literacy in the space of three years, by Earth Day 2020.

• Earth Day was first celebrated in 1970. The idea for it was first proposed at a UNESCO

conference a year earlier, when activist John McConnell suggested a day to honour the planet

and the idea of peace. US senator Gaylord Nelson founded Earth Day in the US. It was made

into an international day in 1990 and now is celebrated by over 193 countries every year.

The aim of the day is to bring attention to environmental issues to spark changes that

will result in a healthy, sustainable environment. This includes addressing climate

change and finding ways to protect the planet for future generations.



43

Plenary Meeting of the Development Committee (DC) and IMFC of

the World Bank Group and the IMF

{Economic Development}

Source: PIB

Plenary Meeting of the Development Committee (DC) of the World Bank Group and the

IMF and the Restricted Session of the International Monetary and Finance Committee

(IMFC) were recently held in Washington D.C.

• The meetings comprised of discussion sessions on the ‘Forward Look’ exercise carried-out by

the World Bank focusing on ‘A Vision for the World Bank Group in 2030 – Progress and

Challenges’, Progress Report on the Shareholding Review and a paper on ‘A Stronger World

Bank Group for All’.

• The discussions also centred on the global economic outlook, the resource base and

governance framework of IMF and the importance of inclusiveness in terms of distribution of

the benefits from global integration.

• Indian finance minister participated in the meetings. He called for renewing the commitment

to reach a decision on Selective Capital Increase (SCI) and General Capital Increase

(GCI) by Annual Meetings 2017 in line with the 2015 Lima roadmap.

Ministerial Committees:

The IMF Board of Governors is advised by two ministerial committees, the International

Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC) and the Development Committee.

IMFC:

• The IMFC has 24 members, drawn from the pool of 187 governors. Its structure mirrors that of

the Executive Board and its 24 constituencies. As such, the IMFC represents all the member

countries of the Fund.

• The IMFC meets twice a year, during the Spring and Annual Meetings. The Committee

discusses matters of common concern affecting the global economy and also advises the IMF

on the direction its work.

• At the end of the Meetings, the Committee issues a joint communiqué summarizing its views.

These communiqués provide guidance for the IMF’s work program during the six months



44

leading up to the next Spring or Annual Meetings. There is no formal voting at the IMFC,

which operates by consensus.

Government e-Marketplace (GeM)

{Governance}

Source: PIB

In the light of alleged irregularities, the government has reiterated that GeM is the most

transparent, accountable and efficient public procurement portal and has already

resulted in savings of crores of Rupees to the Government.

• The government noted that the processes on GeM are completely transparent and GeM is the

first Government portal that places all the procurements- big or small- by Government

organizations in public domain, with details about the buyer, seller, item, quantity and price.

• The government has also assured that there are adequate checks and balances in place on GeM

which do not allow suppliers to get away with supplying at a higher price to the Government,

than the prevailing market or Last Procurement Price (LPP).

GeM:

• Government e-Marketplace (GeM) aims to transform the way in which procurement of goods

and services is done by the Government Ministries/Departments, PSUs, autonomous bodies

etc.

• DGS&D with technical support of NeGD (MeitY) has developed GeM portal for procurement

of both Products & Services.

• GeM is a completely paperless, cashless and system driven e-market place that enables

procurement of common use goods and services with minimal human interface.

An overview of GST


Source: PIB

GOODS AND SERVICES TAX (GST)- CENTRAL BOARD OF EXCISE & CUSTOMS



45

Benefits:-

1. It brings benefits to all the stakeholders of industry, government and the consumer. It will

lower the cost of goods and services, give a boost to the economy and make the products and

services globally competitive.

• GST aims to make India a common market with common tax rates and procedures and

remove the economic barriers thus paving the way for an integrated economy at the national

level. By subsuming most of the Central and State taxes into a single tax , it would mitigate

the ill effects of cascading, improve competitiveness and improve liquidity of the

businesses.

2. GST is largely technology driven. It will reduce the human interface to a great extent and this

would lead to speedy decisions.

3. GST will give a major boost to the ‘Make in India’ initiative of the Government of India by

making goods and services produced in India competitive in the National as well as

International market.

• Also all imported goods will be charged integrated tax (IGST) which is equivalent to Central

GST + State GST. This will bring equality with taxation on local products.



46

4. Under the GST regime, exports will be zero-rated in entirety unlike the present system where

refund of some taxes may not take place due to fragmented nature of indirect taxes between

the Centre and the States.

• This will boost Indian exports in the international market thus improving the balance of

payments position.

5. GST is expected to bring buoyancy to the Government Revenue by widening the tax base and

improving the taxpayer compliance. GST is likely improve India’s ranking in the Ease of

Doing Business Index and is estimated to increase the GDP growth by 1.5 to 2%.

6. GST will bring more transparency to indirect tax laws. Since the whole supply chain will

be taxed at every stage with credit of taxes paid at the previous stage being available for set off

at the next stage of supply, the economics and tax value of supplies will be easily

distinguishable. This will help the industry to take credit and the government to verify the

correctness of taxes paid and the consumer to know the exact amount of taxes paid.

7. The taxpayers would not be required to maintain records and show compliance with a

myriad of indirect tax laws of the Central Government and the State Governments like

Central Excise, Service Tax, VAT, Central Sales Tax, Octroi, Entry Tax, Luxury Tax,

Entertainment Tax, etc.

• They would only need to maintain records and show compliance in respect of Central Goods

and Services Tax Act and State (or Union Territory) Goods and Services Tax Act for all intra-

State supplies (which are almost identical laws) and with Integrated Goods and Services Tax

for all inter-State supplies (which also has most of its basic features derived from the CGST

and the SGST Act).

Salient Features of GST

1. The GST would be applicable on the supply of goods or servicesas against the present

concept of tax on the manufacture or sale of goods or provision of services. It would be

a destination based consumption tax. This means that tax would accrue to the State or the

Union Territory where the consumption takes place. It would be a dual GST with the Centre

and States simultaneously levying tax on a common tax base.

2. The GST to be levied by the Centre on intra-State supply of goods or services would be called

the Central tax (CGST) and that to be levied by the States including Union territories with

legislature/Union Territories without legislature would be called the State tax (SGST)/ Union

territory tax (UTGST) respectively.

3. The GST would apply to all goods other than alcoholic liquor for human consumption

and five petroleum products, viz. petroleum crude, motor spirit (petrol), high speed diesel,



47

natural gas and aviation turbine fuel. It would apply to all services barring a few to be

specified.

4. Threshold Exemption: Taxpayers with an aggregate turnover in a financial year up to Rs.20

lakhs would be exempt from ta

5. Composition levy: Small taxpayers with an aggregate turnover in a financial year up to Rest.

50 lakhs shall be eligible for composition levy

GST Council

• The mechanism of GST Council would ensure harmonization on different aspects of GST

between the Centre and the States as well as among States.

• It has been specifically provided that the GST Council, in its discharge of various functions,

shall be guided by the need for a harmonized structure of GST and for the development of a

harmonized national market for goods and services.

• The GST Council shall establish a mechanism to adjudicate disputes arising out of its

recommendation or implementation thereof.



https://i0.wp.com/www.vinobaiasacademy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/GST.jpg

48

Alternate Dispute Resolution mechanism – Advance Rulings

• Advance ruling mechanism has been continued under the GST law.

The salient features are as under:

• Advance ruling can be sought in respect of more subjects than allowed at present. The subjects

are: classification of goods/or services, time and value of supply, rate of tax, admissibility of

input tax credit, liability to pay tax, liability to take registration and whether a particular

transaction amounts to a supply under GST law.

• Advance ruling can be sought not only for new activities but also for existing activities. The

facility of appeal, which is not there under the Central law, has been provided in the GST

Law.

• The applicants or the Department, if aggrieved by the advance ruling, would henceforth get the

opportunity to file an appeal before the Appellate Authority for revision of the ruling. Advance

Ruling can be obtained more easily as there will be one Advance Ruling Authority (as also the

Appellate Authority) in every State.

IT preparedness

Putting in place a robust IT network is an absolute must for implementation of GST.

• A Special Purpose Vehicle called the GSTN has been set up to cater to the needs of GST.

• The GSTN shall provide a shared IT infrastructure and services to Central and State

Governments, taxpayers and other stakeholders for implementation of GST.

The functions of the GSTN would, inter alia, include:

• Facilitating registration;

• Forwarding the returns to Central and State authorities;

• Computation and settlement of IGST;

• Matching of tax payment details with banking network;

• Providing various MIS reports to the Central and the State Governments based on the taxpayer

return information;

An anti-profiteering measure has been incorporated in the GST law to ensure that any

benefits on account of reduction in tax rates results in commensurate reduction in prices

of such goods/services.



49

GST Council – Constitution

• Chairperson – Union FM

• Vice Chairperson – to be chosen amongst the Ministers of State Government

• Members – MOS (Finance) and all Ministers of Finance / Taxation of each State

• Quorum is 50% of total members

• States – 2/3 weightage and Centre – 1/3 weightage

• Decision by 75% majority

• Council to make recommendations on everything related to GST including laws, rules and

rates etc.

Online Statement Of Transaction (e-SOT) and the e-PRAN card

launched for Atal Pension Yojana (APY) subscribers

{Public Policy}

Source: PIB

With a view to digitally empower the Atal Pension Yojana (APY) subscribers and

improve the quality of service, the facility of online viewing of the statement of

transaction(e-SOT) and also the e-PRAN card have been launched.

Atal Pension Yojana (APY)

• APY is available for all citizens of India in the age group of 18-40 years.

• Under the APY, the subscribers would receive a minimum guaranteed pension of Rs. 1000 to

Rs. 5000 per month from the age of 60 years, depending on their contributions, which depends

on the age of the subscriber at the time of joining the APY.

• In completion of 60 years of age, will get the guaranteed minimum monthly pension, or higher

monthly pension, if the investment returns are higher than the assumed returns for minimum

guaranteed pension, over the period of contribution.

• After the subscriber’s death, the spouse of the subscriber shall be entitled to receive the same

pension amount as that of the subscriber until the death of the spouse. After the death of both

the subscriber and the spouse, the nominee of the subscriber shall be entitled to receive the

pension wealth, as accumulated till age of 60 years of the subscriber.



50

• In exceptional circumstances, that is, in the event of the death of beneficiary or specified

illness, as mentioned in the PFRDA (Exit and withdrawals under the National Pension System)

Regulations, 2015, before the age of 60 years, the accumulated pension wealth till date would

be given to the nominee or the subscriber as the case may be.

Launch of IPR Awareness Campaign for Schools

{Public Policy}

Source: PIB

The Cell for IPR Promotion and Management (CIPAM)in collaboration with the

International Trademark Association (INTA) kicked off the IPR Awareness campaign for

schools across the country.

Background:

The National Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Policy, which was approved by the Union

Cabinet in May 2016, is a significant move forward to encourage creativity and stimulate

innovation in the country. Outreach and Promotion is the first and foremost objective of

the National IPR Policy and is critical to shaping an IP environment that is conducive to

fostering creativity & innovation in the country.

Highlights of the new IPR policy:

• The new policy seeks to encourage innovation and improve access to healthcare, food security

and environmental protection.

• The Policy will allow compulsory licensing with restrictions in case of a public health

emergency such as epidemics and it is compliant with the World Trade Organization’s

guidelines.

• The policy seeks to put in place a legal framework that will encourage the IPR regime and

reduce the time taken by the government to approve a trademark to a month by 2017.

Currently, the process takes more than a year.

• The policy makes the department of industrial policy and promotion (DIPP) the nodal

agency for regulating IP rights in the country.

• The Policy states “India shall remain committed to the (World Trade Organisation’s)

Doha Declaration on Trade Related IPR Agreement (TRIPS) and Public Health.”



51

• It also says “India will continue to utilise the legislative space and flexibilities available in

international treaties and the TRIPS Agreement.” These flexibilities include the sovereign

right of countries to use provisions such as Section 3(d) and CLs for ensuring the

availability of essential and life-saving drugs at affordable prices.

• To ensure strong and effective IPR laws, the Policy states India will engage constructively in

the negotiation of international treaties and agreements in consultation with stakeholders.

CIPAM:

• Cell for IPR Promotion and Management (CIPAM) has been created as a professional

body under the aegis of DIPP to take forward the implementation of the National IPR

Policy that was approved by the Government in May 2016, with the slogan – “Creative India;

Innovative India

• CIPAM is working towards creating public awareness about IPRs in the country, promoting

the filing of IPRsthrough facilitation, providing inventors with a platform to

commercialize their IP assets and coordinating the implementation of the National IPR

Policy in collaboration with Government Ministries/Departments and other stakeholders.

“SAMVAD” Programme

{Public Policy}

Source: PIB

Union Minister of Youth Affairs & Sports interacted with youngsters from Jammu and

Kashmir in a programme named “Samvad”.

The objective of the interactive session was to initiate a conversation on a host of issues

ranging from culture, sports, youth affairs, to various other social issues.

• The students got a unique platform to share their thoughts and ideas directly with the Youth

Affairs & Sports Minister.

• Minister said, the youngsters of the Valley are multi-talented and must use their skills to gain

maximum exposure to gather knowledge and work for nation-building.

The students shared various issues in terms of social problems, issues pertaining to

sports and education. Minister promised them full support and said that the government

under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi believes in the mantra of “Sabka

Saath Sabka Vikas”

Sabha Saath Sabka Vikas: Collective Efforts Inclusive Growth



52

• This model is unique & worth emulating as it focuses on removing fault-lines of

discrimination & prejudice. Once everyone is placed on an equal footing & given equal

opportunities, it can only result in the creation of a truly equal & healthy society.

• The interactive programme had been organized by the Nehru Yuva Kendra under the aegis of

the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports.

Nehru Yuva Kendra

• Nehru Yuva Kendras (NYKs) are set up at District level, with the primary objective of

developing the personality and leadership qualities of the youth and to involve them in nation-

building activities.

• The Scheme of setting up of Nehru Yuva Kendras was introduced in 1972.

• In the year 1987, an autonomous body called Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan (NYKS) was

established for effective implementation of the Scheme and all the NYKs were placed under

this autonomous body. NYKs have been set up in various Districts in a phased manner.

NITI Ayog praises selection of 100 smart cities without any

controversy


Source: PIB

Implementation of Smart City Mission is certainly changing the way the city governments

are addressing issues of urban planning and execution.

Smart Cities and Informed Urbanisation’ here organized by NITI Ayog and University of

New South Wales, Australia.

Key facts:

• Stating that Smart City Mission aims at improving livability in cities,

• The broad objectives of the Mission are: Sustainable urban planning and development,

Management of urban affairs with citizens’ participation, Area based development, Resilience

to climate change, natural disasters etc and Technology based solutions for better governance

and infrastructure management.

• All new urban sector missions launched over the last two years aim at inclusive urban

development benefitting all sections.

• The Government has selected 100 cities for smart city development based on competition

without any iota of controversy and was highly laudable. Basic features of a smart city



53

include slum free city environment, proper delivery of city services including clean water

and quality and assured power, affordable housing and meeting the needs of children,

women and the aged. stressed on the need for optimal use of scarce urban land through

vertical development.

• Smart City Mission is not aimed at disbursing public money but to recast urban landscape

through other means of resource mobilization and promoting best urban practices.

• “Smart City Mission is not a typical project oriented programme but a process driven by the

ambition of the citizens for better living and is not limited by time”. The first batch of 20 smart

cities have come out with projects with potential for visible impact on ground.

• Special Purpose Vehicle being constituted for implementation of smart city plans are not

parallel power structures but are accountable execution tools with the involvement of Mayors

and elected Representatives of People in advisory bodies.

Smart city mission implementation seeks to ensure core services of high quality,

transformation of old and neglected neighborhoods and adoption of technology based

solutions.

Smart cities mission:

The 27 cities selected in the latest round of ‘Smart City Challenge’ competition in order

of the marks scored by them are: Amritsar tops the list of 27 new smart cities.

S.No City State

1 Amritsar Punjab

2 Kalyan-Dombivili Maharashtra

3 Ujjain Madhya Pradesh

4 Tirupati Andhra Pradesh

5 Nagpur Maharashtra

6 Managaluru Karnataka

7 Vellore Tamil Nadu

8 Thane Maharashtra

9 Gwalior MP

10 Agra Uttar Pradesh

The 27 smart cities announced are from 12 States including 5 from Maharashtra, 4 each

from Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, 3 from Uttar Pradesh and 2 each from Punjab and

Rajasthan.



54

Nagaland and Sikkim have made it to the smart city list for the first time.

Urban Development and Housing schemes

{Public Policy}

Source: PIB

Implementation and progress of various new urban development and housing missions

launched by the central government in Haryana will be reviewed at a high level meeting.

Union Minister of Urban Development and Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation will chair

the review meeting in Chandigarh.

Review under Central Government Schemes

The central government launched Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban), Atal Mission for

Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT), Smart City Mission and Pradhan

Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban) to enable inclusive and sustainable urban development

and to address infrastructure deficit in urban areas of the country.

ATAL MISSION FOR REJUVENATION AND URBAN TRANSFORMATION(AMRUT)-

Ministry of Urban Development:

Providing basic services (e.g. water supply, sewerage, urban transport) to households

and build amenities in cities which will improve the quality of life for all, especially the

poor and the disadvantaged is a national priority.

The purpose of Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) is to

• Ensure that every household has access to a tap with assured supply of water and a sewerage

connection;

• Increase the amenity value of cities by developing greenery and well maintained open spaces

(e.g. parks); and

• Reduce pollution by switching to public transport or constructing facilities for non-motorized

transport (e.g. walking and cycling).

All these outcomes are valued by citizens, particularly women, and indicators and

standards have been prescribed by the Ministry of Urban Development (MoUD) in the

form of Service Level Benchmarks (SLBs).



55

Project:

• AMRUT this has been replaced by approval of the State Annual Action Plan once a year by

the MoUD and the States have to give project sanctions and approval at their end.

• The AMRUT makes States equal partners in planning and implementation of projects, thus

actualizing the spirit of cooperative federalism.

• Capacity Building and a set of Reforms have been included in the Mission.

• Reforms will lead to improvement in service delivery, mobilization of resources and making

municipal functioning more transparent and functionaries more accountable, while Capacity

Building will empower municipal functionaries and lead to timely completion of projects.

PM launches UDAN – Regional Connectivity Scheme for Civil

Aviation

{Transport}

Source: PIB

UDAN – the Regional Connectivity Scheme for civil aviation, from Shimla Airport.

Under this scheme, flights have begun from Shimla, Nanded and Kadapa Airports.

All you need to know about the UDAN scheme for low-cost, regional connectivity

UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik) scheme, an endeavour to make regional

connectivity easy.

Key features of the scheme:

1. The UDAN scheme aims to stimulate regional connectivity with flights covering distances up

to 800 km through amarket-based mechanism.

2. 43 cities are expected to be mainstreamed on India’s flight connectivity grid. A dozen airports

where limited but irregular flights operate will be connected. As many as 31 destinations that

are not operational despite the existence of airports will become active.

3. Air India’s subsidiary Alliance Air will be the first airline to start operating flights

between Delhi and Shimla under the Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS). Alliance Air

will operate regular flights using a 48-seater ATR-42 all-economy class aircraft from April 28.



56

4. Due to the short runway length, height and temperature restrictions, the aircraft will not be

able to fly the total capacity of 48 passengers. In the Delhi-Shimla leg, the flight will carry 35

passengers while on the return only 15 passengers will be able to fly. The government is

expected to compensate for the loss with a Viability Gap Funding (VGF) of about Rs.

3,000 per seat.

5. The VGF will be used to bridge the gap between the cost of airline operations and expected

revenue.

6. Among the commitments of the States are those to make sufficient land available; ensure

adequate security; and provide essential services at concessional rates for the airports or

air strips. The Centre would like the States to provide minimum land, free of cost, for

development of the RCS airports. More importantly, the States will have to bear 20% towards

VGF. The share will be 10% for North Eastern States and Union Territories.

7. The government aims at making flying affordable by capping fares at Rs. 2500 per seat per

hour.

8. The scheme is a component of the National Civil Aviation Policy (NCAP).

Legislation against Doping

{Sports}

Source: PIB

Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Youth Affairs and Sports has said that there

is Zero Tolerance for doping and there is a need to encourage clean sports.

• The Consultative Committee meeting was convened by National Anti Doping Agency

(NADA). NADA has an ambitious plan to significantly increase the number of tests during the

current year.

• NADA has taken a number of steps to increase education and awareness against doping, not

only in Sports Authority of India (SAI) SAI training centres, but also at various university

games and events conducted above state-level by various federations.

• In all national competitions, an undertaking is being taken from the athletes that they know the

ill-effects of doping and will not indulge in doping.

NADA:



57

• National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) was set up as registered society under the Societies

Registration Act of 1890 on November 24, 2005 with a mandate for Dope free sports in India.

• The primary objectives are to implement anti-doping rules as per WADA code, regulate dope

control programme, to promote education and research and creating awareness about doping

and its ill effects.

International Convention against Doping in Sport

• By adopting the Convention on 19 October 2005, UNESCO responded to the calls from the

international community.

• At the Third International Conference of Ministers and Senior Officials Responsible for

Physical Education and Sport (MINEPS III) in Punta del Este, Uruguay, in December 1999,

consideration was given to ethical values in sport. Ministers expressed concern over unethical

behavior, in particular doping in sport, and urged all countries to take concerted action.

• The Convention represents the first time that governments around the world have agreed to

apply the force of international law to anti-doping. This is important because there are specific

areas where only governments possess the means to take the fight against doping forward.

• The Convention also helps to ensure the effectiveness of the World Anti-Doping Code (the

Code). As the Code is a non-government document that applies only to members of sports

organizations, the Convention provides the legal framework under which governments can

address specific areas of the doping problem that are outside the domain of the sports

movement. As such, the Convention helps to formalize global anti-doping rules, policies and

guidelines in order to provide an honest and equitable playing environment for all athletes.

There is a degree of flexibility as to how governments can give effect to the Convention,

either by way of legislation, regulation, policies or administrative practices. However,

signatory governments (States Parties) are required to take specific action to:

• Restrict the availability of prohibited substances or methods to athletes (except for legitimate

medical purposes) including measures against trafficking;

• Facilitate doping controls and support national testing programmes;

• Withhold financial support from athletes and athlete support personnel who commit an anti-

doping rule violation, or from sporting organizations that are not in compliance with the Code;

• Encourage producers and distributors of nutritional supplements to establish ‘best practice’ in

the labelling, marketing and distribution of products which might contain prohibited

substances.



58

• Support the provision of anti-doping education to athletes and the wider sporting community.

Entered into force on 1 February 2007 – becoming the most successful convention in

the history of UNESCO in terms of rhythm of ratification after adoption –, the

Convention is now the second most ratified of all UNESCO treaties.

The Convention also provides a mechanism to assist States Parties to develop anti-doping

education and prevention programmes through the Fund for the Elimination of Doping in

Sport managed by UNESCO.

EESL collaborates with NITI Aayog for energy efficiency


Source: PIB

Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) collaborated with NITI Aayog to retrofit LED

lights, energy efficient ACs, Ceiling fans, Energy saver ACs, energy efficient Water Pumps

and also installed chiller system in the NITI Aayog premises.

This has resulted in an annual energy savings of 11.4 lakh kVAh, an annual monetary

savings of Rs 1.02 crore and led to an annual CO2 reduction of 966 tons.

Key facts:

• NITI Aayog initiated the energy efficiency interventions in March 2014 in consultation with

EESL. EESL analysed the connected load of NITI Aayog building and based on the highest

components of energy utilization, target areas for interventions were identified.

• Additionally, monitoring and verification of the interventions was also carried out through

physical verification of the replaced energy systems with wattage and operating hours by

EESL.

EESL:

• Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), a public sector entity under Ministry of Power,

has taken up the project of distributing LED bulbs under its flagship initiative, theDomestic

Efficient Lighting Programme (DELP).

• The Prime Minister launched the DELP scheme on 5th January 2015.



59

• The scheme is presently running in nineteen states & union territories in India and is rapidly

expanding across all other

• The target of the DELP is to replace all the 77 crore incandescent bulbs sold in India by LEDs.

• This will result in reduction of 20,000 MW load, energy savings of 100 billion KWh and

Green House Gas (GHG) emissions savings of 80 million tons every year. The annual saving

in electricity bills of consumers will be Rs. 40,000 crore, considering average tariff of Rs. 4

per kWh.

Domestic Efficient Lighting Programme(DELP): It was launched as “Unnat Jyoti by

Affordable LEDs for All(UJALA)”. The scheme was announced as “Domestic Efficient

Lighting Programme (DELP)”, urging the people to use LED bulbs in place of

incandescent bulbs, tube lights and CFL bulbs as they are more efficient, long lasting

and economical in their life cycle duration. The scheme was implemented by Energy

Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) (under the Ministry of Power).

Target: The government’s target is to replace 77 crore incandescent bulbs in India with

LEDs by 2019 leading to an expected reduction in installed load of 20,000 MW with an

annual estimated savings of over 100 million kwh and an annual reduction of Rs.400

billion (US$5.9 billion) in electricity bills.

Health Ministry launches ‘Test and Treat Policy for HIV’

{Health issue}

Source: PIB

Ending stigma is of paramount importance to enable persons infected and affected with

HIV access health services

• As soon as a person is tested and found to be positive, he will be provided with ART

irrespective of his CD count or clinical stage.” This was stated by the Union Minister for

Health & Family Welfare,.

• This will be for all men, women, adolescents and children who have been diagnosed as a HIV

+ case. This will improve longevity, improve quality of life of those infected and will save

them from many opportunistic infections, especially TB.

National Strategic Plan for HIV – Test and Treat Policy for HIV;

• The Health Minister also announced that India will soon develop a National Strategic Plan for

HIV for next seven years and these seven years will be crucial for ending AIDS.



60

• To facilitate reduction in stigma and discrimination, the long pending HIV/AIDS Act has been

passed very recently, which is an historical step. Very few countries globally have such a law

to protect rights of people infected with HIV.

• The Health Minister further informed that the key provisions of HIV/AIDS Bill are

prohibition of discrimination, informed consent, non-disclosure of HIV status, anti-

retroviral therapy & opportunistic infection management, protection of property of

affected children, safe working environment and appointment of ombudsman in every

State.

Analysis

• All those who are positive should get treatment and for that the Health Ministry is constantly

expanding treatment delivery sites.

• “We have nearly 1600 ART and Link ART sites where treatment is provided across the

country and recently we crossed the 1 million people on ART, second country in world to have

such large numbers on free lifelong treatment. We have been able to avert 1.5 lakh deaths due

to ART and we will be able to avert 4.5 lakh more deaths by expanding provision of ART.

• The 90:90:90 strategy that the Ministry has adopted will help to identify 90% of those

infected, place 90% of these on treatment and ensure 90% have their virus under control. “This

strategy will offer us an opportunity to work towards our commitment during HLM and WHA

on “ending AIDS by 2030” as a part of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG)

Bill and its provisions:

1. It aims to end the epidemic by 2030 in accordance with the Sustainable Development Goals

set by the United Nations. There are approximately 21 lakh persons living with HIV in India.

2. The Bill has been drafted to safeguard the rights of people living with HIV and affected by

HIV. The provisions of the Bill seek to address HIV-related discrimination, strengthen

the existing programme by bringing in legal accountability and establish formal

mechanisms for inquiring into complaints and redressing grievances.

3. A person living with AIDS cannot be treated unfairly at employment, educational

establishments, renting a property, standing for public or private office or providing healthcare

and insurance services.

4. The Bill also aims to enhance access to healthcare services by ensuring informed consent and

confidentiality for HIV-related testing, treatment and clinical research.

5. Every HIV infected or affected person below the age of 18 years has the right to reside in a

shared household and enjoy the facilities of the household.



61

6. The Bill also prohibits any individual from publishing information or advocating feelings of

hatred against HIV positive persons and those living with them.

7. No person shall be compelled to disclose his/her HIV status except with their informed

consent, and if required by a court order.

8. The State and Central government should ensure prevention of the spread of HIV and AIDS,

provide anti-retroviral therapy, and facilitate access to welfare schemes especially for women

and children.

9. Every person in the care and custody of the State shall have right to HIV prevention, testing,

treatment and counseling services.

10. The Bill suggest that cases relating to HIV positive persons shall be disposed’ off by the court

on a priority basis and duly ensuring the confidentiality.

Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) signs two Unilateral

Advance Pricing Agreements (APAs)

{Indian Economy}

Source: PIB

Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) signs two Unilateral Advance Pricing Agreements

(APAs) with Indian taxpayers, strengthening the Government’s commitment to foster a

non-adversarial tax regime.

The CBDT expects more APAs to be concluded and signed in the near future. The

approach and functioning of the officers in the APA teams have been appreciated and

acknowledged by the industry in India and abroad.

Advance pricing agreements

• The Advance Pricing Agreement (APA) program allows the taxpayer and the tax authority to

avoid future transfer pricing disputes by entering into a prospective agreement, generally

covering at least five tax years, regarding the taxpayer’s transfer prices.

Bilateral vs. unilateral APAs

• Taxpayers may enter into APAs with more than one tax authority – i.e., bilateral or

multilateral APAs – through the mutual agreement procedure (MAP) included in most income

tax treaties. Unilateral APAs involve agreements between only the taxpayer and one

government.



62

Background:

• The APA Scheme was introduced in the Income-tax Act in 2012 and the Rollback provisions

were introduced in 2014.

• The scheme endeavours to provide certainty to taxpayers in the domain of transfer pricing

by specifying the methods of pricing and determining the arm’s length price of

international transactions in advance for the maximum of five future years.

• Further, the taxpayer has the option to rollback the APA for four preceding years. Since its

inception, the APA scheme has attracted tremendous interest among Multi National

Enterprises (MNEs) and that has resulted in more than 800 applications (both unilateral and

bilateral) having been filed in just five years.

4th National Standards Conclave


Source: PIB

Department of Commerce, Government of India in collaboration with Confederation of

Indian Industry (CII), Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) and the National Accreditation

Board for Certification Bodies (NABCB) and other knowledge partners is organizing the

4th National Standards Conclave at New Delhi.

The objective of the two day Conclave is to bring awareness and prepare Industries,

Central Government Ministries, State Governments, regulatory/standards setting and

conformity assessment bodies on the growing importance of “Standards” in the changing

scenario of global trade.

Key facts:

• The Standards Conclave is being held in the backdrop of diminishing importance of tariffs

and rising influence of standards and regulation both in goods and services trade.

• It must be recognized that the days of differential standards – low for domestic market and

high for exports– are over and if the Indian industry has to survive and thrive, it has to adopt

global standards.

• The Ministries/regulators/state governments have to also realize that their initiatives and

schemes have to be built around global standards if they have to succeed in their objectives.



63

A good standards regime shall fulfill the vision of Hon’ble Prime Minister for “Make in

India” campaign. It would also help in preventing flooding of domestic market with

unsafe/sub-standard imports at the expense of our domestic industry as well as

consumers.

The Conclave would also aim at preparing an Indian National Strategy for

Standardization (INSS) document to enable the development of a harmonized, dynamic,

and mature standards ecosystem in India.

The National Standards Body of India

The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), the National Standards Body of India is a

statutory organization under the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 1986.

Vision

The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), the National Standards Body of India, resolves to

be the leader in all matters concerning Standardization, Certification and Quality. In

order to attain this, the Bureau would strive:

• To provide efficient timely service.

• To satisfy the customers needs for quality of goods and services.

• To work and act in such a way that each task performed as individuals or as a corporate entity,

leads to excellence and enhances the credibility and image of the Organization.



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