Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh held a telephonic conversation with the Minister of Defence of Japan Mr Taro Kono today. The two Defence Ministers had discussions on enhancing the bilateral security cooperation under the framework of the India-Japan Special Strategic and Global Partnership. They also exchanged views on regional security situation.

ABB/SS/Nampi/DK/Savvy/MTJ/ADA

The Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria PVSM AVSM VM ADC undertook a two day visit to Air Force Stations in Eastern Air Command (EAC). The CAS visited vital air bases and combat units operating at these locations on 08 & 09 Jan 2020.

Besides reviewing the operational  preparedness at these bases, the CAS met local Commanders and interacted with the station personnel. He urged all Air Warriors, NCs(E), DSC personnel and Civilian staff to continue discharging their duties with utmost sincerity and ensure a high state of readiness.

The visit to six flying bases of EAC enabled the CAS to share his vision personally with the men and women serving in frontline field units.

***

The Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria PVSM AVSM VM ADC undertook a two day visit to Air Force Stations in Eastern Air Command (EAC). The CAS visited vital air bases and combat units operating at these locations on 08 & 09 Jan 2020.

Besides reviewing the operational  preparedness at these bases, the CAS met local Commanders and interacted with the station personnel. He urged all Air Warriors, NCs(E), DSC personnel and Civilian staff to continue discharging their duties with utmost sincerity and ensure a high state of readiness.

The visit to six flying bases of EAC enabled the CAS to share his vision personally with the men and women serving in frontline field units.

***

The Schedule for holding General Election to the Legislative Assembly of NCT of Delhi, 2020 has been announced on 6th January, 2020.  Poll is scheduled to be held in single phase on 08.02.2020. Section 126 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 prohibits displaying any election matter by means, inter alia, of television or similar apparatus, during the period of 48 hours before the hour fixed for conclusion of poll in a constituency. The relevant portions of the said Section 126 are re-produced below:

(126. Prohibition of public meeting during period of forty-eight hours ending with hour fixed for conclusion of poll-

(1) No person shall-

(a)…………………

(b) Display to the public any election matter by means of cinematograph, television or other similar apparatus;

(c)……………………

In any polling area during the period of forty-eight hours ending with the  hour  fixed for the conclusion of the poll for any election in the polling area.

(2) Any person who contravenes the provisions of sub-section (1) shall be  punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to two  years,  or with fine, or with both.

(3) In this Section, the expression “election mater” means any.matter intended or  calculated to influence or affect the result of an election

2. During elections, there are sometimes allegations of violation of the provisions of the above Section 126 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 by TV channels in the telecast of their panel discussions/debates and other news and current affairs programmes. The Commission has clarified in the past that the said Section 126 prohibits displaying any election matter by means, inter alia, of television or similar apparatus, during the period of 48 hours ending with the hour fixed for conclusion of poll in a constituency. “Election matter” has been defined in that Section as any matter intended or calculated to influence or affect the result of an election. Violation of the aforesaid provisions of Section 126 is punishable with imprisonment up to a period of two years, or with fine or both.

3. The Commission once again reiterates that the TV/Radio channels and cable networks/internet website/social media platforms should ensure that the contents of the programmes telecast/broadcast/ displayed by them during the period of 48 hours referred to in Section 126 do not contain any material, including views/appeals by panelists/participants that may be construed as promoting/ prejudicing the prospect of any particular party or candidate(s) or influencing/ affecting the result of the election. This shall, among other things include display of any opinion poll and of standard debates, analysis, visuals and sound-bytes.

4.  In this connection, attention is also invited to Section 126A of the R.P. Act 1951, which prohibits conduct of Exit poll and dissemination of its results during the period mentioned therein, i.e. the hour fixed for commencement of poll and half an hour after the time fixed for close of poll.

5. During the period not covered by Section 126, concerned TV/Radio/Cable/FM channels/internet websites/Social Media platforms are free to approach the state/ district/ local authorities for necessary permission for conducting any broadcast/Telecast related events (other than exit polls) which must also conform to the provisions of the model code of conduct, the programme code laid down by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting under the Cable Network  (Regulation)  Act  with  regard to decency,  maintenance  of communal  harmony,  etc.  All Internet websites and Social Media platforms must also comply with the provisions of The Information      Technology      Act, 2000     and      ECI     guidelines No-491/SM/2013/Communication, dt 25th October, 2013, for all political content on their platform. As regards political advertisement, the same needs pre-certification by the Committees set up at State/District level as per the Commission’s order  No. 509/75/2004/JS-I, dt 15th April,2004.

6. Attention of all print media is also drawn to the following guidelines issued    by Press Council of India to follow for observance during the election:

1. It will be the duty of the Press to give objective reports about elections and the candidates.  The newspapers are not expected to indulge in unhealthy election campaigns, exaggerated reports about any candidate/party or incident during the elections.  In practice, two or three closely contesting candidates attract all the media attention. While reporting on the actual campaign, a newspaper may not leave out any important point raised by a candidate and make an attack on his or her opponent.
2. Election campaign along communal or caste lines is banned under the election rules. Hence, the Press should eschew reports, which tend to promote feelings of enmity or hatred between people on the ground of religion, race, caste, community or language.
3. The Press should refrain from publishing false or critical statements in regard to the personal character and conduct of any candidate or in relation to the candidature or withdrawal of any candidate or his candidature, to prejudice the prospects of that candidate in the elections. The Press shall not publish unverified allegations against any candidate/party.

iv. The Press shall not accept any kind of inducement, financial or otherwise,  to project a candidate/party. It shall not accept hospitality or other facilities  offered to them by or on behalf of any candidate/party.

v. The Press is not expected to indulge in canvassing of a particular  candidate/party. If it does, it shall allow the right of reply to the other  candidate/party.

vi. The Press shall not accept/publish any advertisement at the cost of public  exchequer regarding achievements of a party/ government in power.

vii. The Press shall observe all the directions/ orders/instructions of the  Election Commission/Returning Officers or Chief Electoral Officer issued  from time to time.

7. Attention of the electronic media is invited to the “Guidelines for Election  Broadcasts” issued by NBSA dt 3rd March, 2014.

1.  News broadcasters should endeavour to inform the public in an objective manner, about relevant electoral matters, political parties, candidates, campaign issues and voting processes as per rules and regulations laid down under The Representation of the People Act 1951 and by the Election Commission of India.

ii. News channels shall disclose any political affiliations, either towards a party or candidate. Unless they publicly endorse or support a particular party or candidate, news broadcasters have a duty to be balanced and impartial, especially in their election reporting.

iii. News broadcasters must endeavour to avoid all forms of rumor, baseless  speculation and disinformation, particularly when these concern specific  political parties or candidates. Any candidate/political party, which has been  defamed or is a victim of misrepresentation, misinformation or other similar  injury by broadcast of information should be afforded prompt correction,  and where appropriate granted an opportunity of reply.

iv. News broadcasters must resist all political and financial pressures which  may affect coverage of elections and election related matters.

v. News broadcasters should maintain a clear distinction between editorial  and expert opinion carried on their news channels.

vi. News broadcasters that use video feed from political parties should disclose  it and appropriately tagged.

vii. Special care must be taken to ensure that every element of news/  programmes dealing with elections and election related matters is accurate on  all facts relating to events, dates, places and quotes. If by mistake or  inadvertence any inaccurate information is broadcast, the broadcaster must  correct it as soon as it comes to the broadcaster’s notice with the same  prominence as was given to the original broadcast.

viii. News broadcasters, their journalists and officials must not accept any  money, or valuable gifts, or any favour that could influence or appear to  influence, create a conflict of interest or damage the credibility of the  broadcaster or their personnel.

ix. News broadcasters must  not  broadcast  any  form  of  ‘hate  speech’ or  other obnoxious content  that may lead  to incitement  of violence or  promote public unrest or disorder as election campaigning based  on  communal or caste factors is prohibited under Election Rules. News  broadcasters should strictly avoid reports which tend to promote feelings of  enmity or hatred among people, on the ground of religion, race, caste,  community, region or language.

x. News broadcasters are required to scrupulously maintain a distinction  between news and paid content.  All paid content should be clearly marked  as “Paid Advertisement” or “Paid Content”: and paid content must be  carried in compliance with the “Norms & Guidelines on Paid News” dated  24.11.2011 issued by NBA.

xi Special care must be taken to report opinion polls accurately and fairly, by  disclosing to viewers as to who commissioned, conducted and paid for the  conduct of the opinion polls and the broadcast. If a news broadcaster  carries the results of an opinion poll or other election projection, it must  also explain the context, and the scope and limits of such polls with their  limitations. Broadcast of opinion polls should be accompanied by  information to assist viewers to understand the poll’s significance, such as   the methodology used, the sample size, the margin of error, the fieldwork  dates, and data used. Broadcasters should also disclose how vote shares   are converted to seat shares.

xii. The broadcasters shall not broadcast any “election matter” i.e. any matter  intended or calculated to influence or affect the result of an  election, during  the 48 hours ending with the hours fixed for the conclusion  of poll in   violation of Section 126(1)(b) of  the Representation of the People Act1951.

xiii. The Election Commission of India (ECI) will monitor the broadcasts made  by news broadcasters from the time elections are announced until the  conclusion and announcement of election results. Any violation by  member  broadcasters  reported to the News Broadcasting Standards  Authority  (NBSA) by the Election Commission will be dealt with by the NBSA under  its regulations.

xiv. Broadcasters should, to the extent possible, carry voter education  programmes to effectively inform voters about the voting process,  the  importance of voting, including how, when and where to vote, to register to  vote and the secrecy of the ballot.

xv. News broadcasters must not air any final, formal and definite results until  such results are formally announced by the Election Commission of India,  unless such results are carried with clear disclaimer that they are unofficial  or incomplete or partial results or projections which should not be taken as  final results.

8.  Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) has also developed a “Voluntary Code of Ethics” for all the participating social media platforms to ensure free, fair & ethical usage of their platforms to maintain integrity of electoral process during the General Elections to the Lok Sabha 2019. As agreed by IAMAI, vide letter dated 23.09.2019, the “Voluntary Code of Ethics” shall be observed during all elections. Accordingly, the Code is also applicable in Delhi Assembly Elections 2020. Attention of all concerned Social Media platforms is invited to the following text of “Voluntary Code of Ethics” dt 20th March, 2019:

i. Participants will endeavour to, where appropriate and keeping in mind  the principle of freedom of expression, deploy appropriate policies and  processes to facilitate access to information regarding electoral matters  on their products and/ or services.

ii. Participants will endeavour to voluntarily undertake information,  education and communication campaigns to build awareness including  electoral laws and other related instructions. Participants will also  endeavour to impart training to the nodal officer at ECI on their  products/ services, including mechanism for sending requests as per  procedure established by law.

iii. Participants and the Election Commission of India (ECI) have developed a  notification mechanism by which the ECI can notify the relevant  platforms of potential violations of Section 126 of the Representation of  the People Act, 1951 and other applicable electoral laws in accordance  with procedures established by law. These valid legal orders will be  acknowledged and/ or processed within 3 hours for violations reported  under Section 126 as per the Sinha Committee recommendations. All  other valid legal requests will be acted upon expeditiously by the  Participants, based on the nature of reported violation.

iv. Participants are creating/opening a high priority dedicated reporting  mechanism for the ECI and appoint dedicated person(s) / teams during  the period of General Elections to interface with and to exchange  feedback as may assist with taking expeditious action upon receipt of  such a lawful request, following due legal process, from the ECI.

v. Participants will provide a mechanism for relevant political advertisers, in accordance with their obligations under law, to submit pre-certificates issued by ECI and/or Media Certification & Monitoring Committee (MCMC) of the ECI in relation to election advertisements that feature names of political parties, candidates for the Haryana & Maharashtra Assembly Elections and the Bye-Elections to various Parliamentary Constituencies and Assembly Constituencies being held simultaneously. Further, Participants shall expeditiously process/action paid political advertisements lawfully notified to Participants by the ECI that do not feature such certification.

vi. Participants will commit to facilitating transparency in paid political  advertisements, including utilising their pre-existing labels/ disclosure  technology for such advertisements.

vii. Participants will, pursuant to a valid request received from the ECI, via  Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) provide an update on  the measures taken by them to prevent abuse of their respective  platforms.

viii. IAMAI will coordinate with the Participants on the steps carried out  under this Code and IAMAI as well as Participants will be in constant  communication with the ECI during the election period.

The above guidelines should be duly observed for compliance by all the concerned media.

 

**********

SBS

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi invited ideas and suggestions for the Union Budget 2020 on MyGov.

He said, “The Union Budget represents the aspirations of 130 crore Indians and lays out the path towards India’s development. I invite you all to share your ideas and suggestions for this year’s Budget on MyGov.”

 

***

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi called for a focussed effort from all stakeholders in order to achieve the target  of 5 Trillion Dollar Economy in India.

Prime Minister was interacting with various senior Economists, Private Equity/Venture Capitalists, Business Leaders from  Manufacturing, Travel & Tourism, Apparel & FMCG, Analytics, subject experts in the fields of Agriculture, Science & Technology and Finance.

The meeting was held at NITI AAYOG in New Delhi today as part of the pre-budget exercise.

Prime Minister said that he was happy that the two hour open discussion has brought to forefront the experience of people on the ground and those working in their respective fields.

He said that this would enhance the synergy between policy makers and various stakeholders.

Prime Minister said that the idea of 5 Trillion Dollar Economy is not a sudden development and that it is based on a deep understanding of the strengths of the country.

He said that the strong absorbent capacity of Indian economy shows the strength of basic fundamentals of the Indian economy and its capacity to bounce back.

Prime Minister said that the sectors like Tourism, Urban Development, Infrastructure and Agri based Industry have a great potential to taking forward the economy and for employment generation.

He said that open discussions and brainstorming in such forums lead to a healthy debate and understanding of the issues.

Prime Minister said that this would also foster a positive mood and “can do” spirit in the society.

Stating that India is land with unlimited possibilities he requested all stakeholders to do their bit to bridge the gap between reality and perception.

He said, “We must all work together and start to think like a nation”

 

Economists like Shri Shankar Acharya, Shri R Nagaraj, Ms. Farzana Afridi, Venture Capitalist Shri Pradip Shah, Industrialists Shri Apparao Mallavarapu, Shri Deep Kalra, Shri Patanjali Govind Keswani, Shri Deepak Seth, Shri Srikumar Misra, Subject Experts Shri Ashish Dhawan and Shri Shiv Sarin were among the 38 delegates who participated in the discussions.

Minister for Home Affairs Shri Amit Shah, Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways and MSME Shri Nitin Gadkari, Minister for Railways and Commerce Shri Piyush Goyal and Minister for Agriculture & Farmers Welfare and Rural Development, Panchayati Raj Shri Narendra Tomar, Secretaries from various Ministries, Vice Chairman of NITI Aayog Shri Rajiv Kumar and CEO of NITI Aayog Shri Amitabh Kant attended the meeting.

****

Expressing serious concern over rising money power eroding the credibility of the country’s democratic polity, Vice President of India and Chairman of Rajya Sabha, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu has called for effective laws of Parliament in quick time and simultaneous polls to check the menace. Speaking at a conference on ‘Money Power in Politics’ organized by the Foundation for Democratic Reforms, Bharat Institute of Public Policy and the University of Hyderabad, in Hyderabad today, Shri Naidu spoke at length on the causes and consequences of unbridled use of money by both the governments and political parties to lure the voters.

Shri Naidu noted that it is a reality that a millionaire has much better chances of becoming an MP or an MLA at the cost of the honest and more deserving low income Indians and referred to the assets of 475 members of the present Lok Sabha accounting for 88% of the 533 members whose declared assets were examined being in several crores.

The Vice President   said; “Two glaring distortions (in democratic polity) need to be addressed by the political system with a sense of urgency and unity. The first is the use of enormous money power-often unaccounted for and illegal- in politics and elections. The second is the increasing attempts to entice the voters (by the governments) with short term benefits at the cost of long term goals of ensuring basic amenities, infrastructure, quality education and healthcare and growth and job opportunities.”

Shri Naidu lamented that “Unregulated higher election expenses foster corruption and threaten quality of governance through compromised policy making and administration besides undermining the fairness of the election process.” Referring to the entry barriers and denial of level playing field to the more capable and public spirited by the rich, he has pitched for a strict code of conduct for the political parties with regard to the source of funding, expenditure on political training and mobilization of cadres and other political activities, funding of elections and candidates etc.

Urging the political parties of the world’s largest democracy not to shy away from being financially accountable in the interest of transparency of the country’s democratic polity, Shri Naidu said; “I suggest that Parliament should think of making a law for ensuring transparency in the polity through appropriate and actionable regulatory measures to make accounts of political parties public.” He further said that several other democracies have systems in place under which finances of political parties are regularly audited.

The Vice President observed that short term benefits offered by the governments in the form of populist schemes for electoral advantage are at the cost of their ability to perform main functions besides adversely impacting the long term interests of the poor and the middle class. He urged the economists, social scientists, media and civil society to evolve mechanisms to find a reasonable balance between short term income boosting and long term development and poverty eradication objectives. Shri Naidu said; “Perhaps, time has come to consider a suitable legislation on the lines of FRBM (Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act that puts a cap on Fiscal Deficit). If a cap is introduced on the proportion of budgetary resources that can be deployed for short term benefits by law, then perhaps, all political parties will have a level playing field and reckless and unsustainable populist measures can be kept under check.”

Referring to the proposals of state funding of elections and simultaneous polls in the public domain as part of electoral reforms and the experience of too frequent elections since 1967, Shri Venkaiah Naidu noted that “Time has come for the idea of simultaneous polls to be seriously considered for its many advantages including reducing the costs of holding polls and spending by political parties.” He urged the political parties to deeply consider this proposal and evolve a consensus.

On the issue of simultaneous polls, Shri Naidu further said; “There are certain apprehensions in some political parties that simultaneous polls may benefit some parties with larger support base and charismatic leadership to the detriment of others. This apprehension does not seem to be well founded as the Indian voter has demonstrated his maturity in voting.”

Shri Naidu noted that state funding of elections is fraught with too many issues of implementation to be resolved besides being a double edged weapon as it could adversely impact mass political engagement by the parties as opined by some commentators.

Stating that democracy has stabilized in the country by taking deep roots over the last 70 years, Shri Naidu said that it is however, afflicted by ‘quality deficit’ which needs to be addressed by eradicating identity based voting and voting for cash. He called for educating voters to wean away from voting for money as it amounts to the highest form of moral compromise besides eroding the sanctity of electoral process. Shri Naidu noted that voting for cash and other allurements results in forfeiting the right to take the government voted for to task for its failure to deliver on the promises made.

Shri Naidu hoped that some effective measures would be put in place before the country begins to celebrate the 75^th anniversary of independence in 2022, to checkmate the role of money power in the polity of the country.

He urged the citizens to chose their representatives based on ‘Character, Conduct, Calibre and Capacity’ and not to be guided by ‘Cash, Caste, Community and Criminal prowess’ of the candidates.

General Secretary of the Foundation for Democratic Reforms, Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan, representatives of Bharat Institute of  Public Policy and the University of Hyderabad were among the dignitaries who attended the event.

 

Following is the full text of the speech –

“General Secretary of the Foundation for Democratic Reforms  Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan, representatives of  Bharat Institute of  Public Policy and the University of Hyderabad, distinguished invitees including political scientists, analysts and experts and friends from the media!

At the outset, I would like to compliment the Foundation for Democratic Reforms, Bharat Institute of Public Policy and the University of Hyderabad for organizing this first annual conference on ‘Indian Democracy at Work’ with the theme of ‘Money Power in Politics’.

Indian democracy has proved to be a miracle by the way it has expanded and consolidated in our country during the last seven decades defying the doomsayers.  It has also proved to be a theoretical surprise defying the traditional theory that democracy succeeds only in high income societies and have bleak prospects in poor and diverse societies.

At the stroke of independence, India was both poor and illiterate besides a diverse society which was not amenable for the survival of democracy. But the saga of the journey of democracy in our country has disproved all such assumptions. In the first General Elections held in 1952, 10.59 crore voters accounting for 61.14% of the eligible voters exercised their franchise. In the last General Elections held in 2019, 73.64 core voters accounting for 67.09% of the eligible voters went to the  voting booths in the highest ever voter turnout so far. This ever increasing voter turnout and enthusiastic participation holding mirror to the durability of our democracy is nothing short of miracle.

The democracy at work in India is marked by staggering complexity and surprising efficiency of holding elections. We need to briefly reflect on the reasons for consolidation of democracy in our country. Democratic form of governance is not new to India. Ancient India has the glorious traditions of democratic republics prior to 6th Century BC.  Vaishali in Bihar has been acknowledged by many historians as the World’s First Republic.  During the times of the Rig-Veda, democratic institutions called ‘Sabha’ and ‘Samiti’ existed. Even during the days of Gowtama Budha, 2500 years ago, India had many self-governing republics in the form of Janapadas. Licchavis were a well-known republic. During the Chola period, around 1000AD, local governance and democracy flourished.

These ancient republics were destroyed due to wars among the kings but the democratic ideas continued to flourish.  These historical facts emphasize that democratic mindset is inherent to our ethos and culture.

During the colonial era under British rule, India came under centralized control of alien rulers and there was no self-governance.

Our Constitution-makers embarked on an unprecedented, extraordinary journey when they decided on creating a democratic republic based on individual liberty, fundamental rights, and universal adult franchise.

The Election Commission of India has been playing an effective role in conducting elections in the country and deserves compliments.  Indian democracy has shown refreshing capacity to adapt to changing conditions, and uphold democratic institutions and practices.

Brothers and Sisters!

In terms of sheer numbers and the extent of participation of masses, not only did democracy and liberty endure in India, but the nation also achieved several notable successes.  The largely peaceful integration of over 500 princely states of every conceivable form of diversity into the Indian Union is an unmatched accomplishment in human history.  In a world in which most nation-states are struggling with multi-lingual societies, India built a stable framework for coexistence of twenty two languages, and linguistic reorganization of states proved to be a great triumph of common sense and pragmatism. While India was only quasi-federal in the early years of the republic, a true federal republic has been built over the past two decades, with states coming into their own. But the question that we need to ponder is whether we are the best democracy in the World.  It is the quality of democracy in terms of free and fair political and electoral processes and the quality of governance that really matter.  Nevertheless, there are many increasingly evident distortions in our electoral process which are undermining our accomplishments and impeding the twin national goals of poverty eradication and rapid economic growth.

Two glaring distortions need to be addressed by the political system with a sense of urgency and unity. The first is the use of enormous money power – often unaccounted and illegal – in politics and elections. The second is the increasing attempts to entice the voters with short term benefits at the cost of the long-term goals of basic amenities, infrastructure, quality education and healthcare and growth and job opportunities

Before I focus on money power in politics, let me briefly address the issue of short term benefits at the cost of long term goals of eradication of poverty and enhancement of incomes. In every democracy there is clash between the short term political expediency to entice the voters, and the long term public good the elected legislatures and governments are sworn to promote. Poverty can only be eradicated by enhancing real incomes and creating economic opportunities to all, particularly to the poor and deprived. Basic amenities like drinking water, storm water drainage, sewerage, pollution control, mosquito control, protection from vagaries of nature are the very purposes for which people pay taxes.  If governments fail in delivering them, the rich will fend for themselves, but the poor suffer disproportionately.  Quality infrastructure – in particular an efficient, reliable transport system and electricity – is critical for economic activity, job creation and prosperity.

Quality school education for every single child is a vital necessity to enhance human capabilities and fulfill the potential.   Poverty can be ended only when every child gets good education; skills are improved, jobs are created and incomes rise.

Quality healthcare for every person is critical to eliminate pain and suffering, and to enhance productivity.

Short term benefits offered for electoral advantage are at the cost of the government’s ability to perform its main functions.  The poor and middle classes will be most affected and growth will be retarded if there is failure of government in maintenance of rule of law, basic amenities, infrastructure, education and healthcare.

Economists, social scientists, media and civil society need to come together to evolve mechanisms to find a reasonable balance between the short term poverty alleviation and long term poverty eradication. Perhaps a time has come to consider a suitable legislation on the lines of FRBM Act.  If a cap is introduced on the proportion of budgetary resources that can be deployed for short term benefits by law, then perhaps all parties will have a level playing field, and reckless and unsustainable populist promises can be kept under check.  Ultimately transparent budgeting, local empowerment to enable people to see how tax money is translating into tangible services, and better service delivery are critical to help citizens make informed political choices.

The issue needs urgent attention.  A combination of wise political leadership, enlightened public opinion and practical legislative measures with broad national consensus is needed to address this great political and fiscal challenge.

 

Let me now address the issue of growing role of money power in our political life. Political process in a democracy costs money.  Parties are necessary vehicles for political participation of citizens and mobilization of people and public opinion.  Parties need money to run their offices and legitimate activities.  Elections cost money for the parties and candidates to convey their message to voters, and for the people to make informed choices.

It is usually said that money speaks in many ways, but the problem arises if the money comes to influence the political activities and electoral processes thereby eroding the credibility of the polity and the elections.  Elections and electoral processes are the fountainhead of the sanctity of parliamentary democracy.  The purity or the impurity of these processes determines the quality and the sanctity of our polity. The expanding role of money in politics and the elections over the years have given rise to serious concerns which need to be addressed immediately.  In the process, it has emerged that if you are a millionaire, you have better chances of becoming an MP or an MLA at the cost of a more qualified candidate who is poor.  The money power is placing entry barriers to the more deserving but who are less endowed in terms of resources.

If 543 is a reasonably good sample for any survey from which certain conclusions and inferences can be drawn, India qualifies to be among the richest in the world, going by the rising number of wealthy parliamentarians.

According to a report, of the 533 candidates elected to the 17th Lok Sabha last year and whose declared assets were examined, 475 accounting for 88% of the total are ‘crorepatis’.  This paradox of poor India with rich parliamentarians is raising concerns about growing role of money power in politics.

It has been reported that money power influences election processes in 40 wide ranging ways.  These include selecting a candidate, setting up dummy candidates, financing weaker candidates of other parties, hiring vehicles, buying space in media, bribing voters through money, biryani, alcohol and consumer goods etc.   Abuse of money in politics chokes democracy besides compromising with its integrity.

The most troublesome feature of our elections in recent decades is the rise of illegitimate expenditure for vote buying.  While the picture varies, in several states an expenditure of Rs 5-10 crore by a candidate for State Assembly constituency is no longer regarded as unusual.  While the legal ceiling of expenditure currently stands at Rs 28 lakh for an assembly constituency in major States and Rs 70 lakh for a Lok Sabha seat, the actual expenditure in several states is 20 times that ceiling or more.  I understand that most of that money is spent for distribution of money or gifts to voters. We should not allow the integrity of our democracy to buckle under the weight of money.

During the last year’s general elections, the Election Commission has seized Rs.839 cr in cash, drugs and narcotics worth Rs.1300 cr, liquor worth Rs.249 cr, gold and silver with a value of Rs.986 cr and other freebies and items meant for distribution to voters worth Rs.58 cr. Despite the best efforts of the Election Commission, we all know that these seizures worth a total of Rs.3,500 cr were only a tip of the iceberg. Where does all this money come from? It was all unaccounted black money.

This distribution of money to entice voters obviously has grave consequences to our democracy and electoral process.  Corruption becomes endemic as political activity is fueled by abuse of power.  Huge entry barriers are being created in politics, and most honest, public spirited, competent citizens cannot enter the political arena.  The parties are forced to opt for wealthy candidates who can spend vast sums of money, disregarding the requirements of clean politics and good governance. As a result of this vast, illegitimate expenditure the whole democratic process is undermined and the legitimacy of the system is getting eroded. It is also corroding faith in democracy and promoting cynicism.

Higher election expenses foster corruption and threaten quality of governance through compromised policy making and administration besides undermining the  fairness of the election process.  It also fosters collusive deal making among the politicians, elected wealthy representatives and the executive, with winners expecting to be compensated for the huge expenditure incurred to make it to the legislatures

The money power in politics is also a concern in other democracies.  The British Justice Ministry in 2008 while expressing concern about the ‘Commercialization of Elections’ brought out a report on party finance and expenditure. It was stated in the report that while elections should be contests of ideas and visions but recently they have been over shadowed by a chase to raise vast sums of money.

Supreme Court of India also reaffirmed that money is bound to play an important part in the successful pursuit of an election campaign in Kanwar Lal Gupta Vs Amarnath Chawla case.  Voters get influenced by the visibility of a candidate and party and huge election spending thus impacts voter’s choice.

Mere expenditure ceilings and exhortations are not enough.  Nor will blaming parties and politicians help. Good sense and wisdom lie in applying correctives to address the problem rather than throwing blame. If vast, unaccounted, illegitimate expenditure has become a growing, near nation-wide problem, then we should realize that it is a result of a systemic problem that we failed to correct over time. The former Prime Minister Late Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee voiced his concern over abuse of money power and said and I quote “Every Legislator starts his career with the lie of false election return he files”.  This, in effect means that a law maker becomes a law maker by flouting the laws right at the start.

Brothers and Sisters!

Over the years, several Committees have examined some of the major challenges and issues affecting India’s electoral system and have made some recommendations.  The Law Commission of India in its 170th Report on “Reform of the Electoral Laws” in 1999 and the Election Commission of India in its Report in 2004 on “Proposed Electoral Reforms” have addressed some of the issues.  The Goswami Committee on Electoral Reforms in 1990, the Vohra Committee Report in 1993, the Indrajeet Gupta Committee on State Funding of Elections in 1998, the National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution in 2001 and the Second Administrative Reforms Commission in 2008 have also examined these issues.   Recently, the Law Commission in its 255th Report has also made several recommendations on electoral reforms under 3 categories namely viz., limits on political contribution and party candidate expenditure, disclosure norms and requirements and state funding of elections.  These recommendations of the Law Commission are under consideration of the government.

In the context of the rising money power in politics, some prominent ideas engaging the public attention are  state funding of elections and simultaneous polls.

Implementation of state funding of elections in our context is fraught with too many issues of implementation. These include;  the quantum of funds to be made available to each party, basis of such allocation, funding of independent candidates, such funding either before or after elections, implications of such funding for regional and national parties, it’s impact on engaging masses in political activities, provisioning such funding etc.  Moreover, state funding of elections would meet the purpose only if no other source of funding is tapped by the political parties and candidates.  According to some commentators, state funding of elections is a double edged weapon, which while seeking to curb the money power would also impact the political parties in engaging with the masses and this in turn will impact their political participation.  The much required political consensus in this regard is in any case still elusive.

On the other hand, holding simultaneous polls is an idea worth considering.  The Department Related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice has examined this subject ‘Feasibility of holding simultaneous elections to the House of People (Lok Sabha) and State Legislative Assemblies’ and presented its report to the Parliament on 17th December 2015. The Committee while underscoring the need to evolve national consensus on the issue felt that and I quote “…in the larger context of economic development and implementation of election promises without creation of the impediments due to enforcement of Model Code of Conduct as a result of frequent elections, the prospects of holding simultaneous elections need to be weighed and deeply considered by all political parties”.  The committee expressed the hope that a solution will be found to reduce frequency of elections which relieve people and government machinery of frequent elections.

In the light of the experience of frequent elections since 1967 and the consequences, I feel that time has come for the idea of simultaneous polls to be seriously considered.  The Law Commission of India in its 170th Report in June 1999 also favoured holding simultaneous elections. There are certain apprehensions in some political quarters that simultaneous polls may benefit some parties with larger support base and charismatic leadership to the detriment of others.  This apprehension does not seem to be well founded as the Indian voter has demonstrated his maturity in voting differently for the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections.  Simultaneous polls could also significantly bring down the cost of holding elections by the Election Commission of India and also the expenditure by the political parties besides other advantages.  Hence, I urge upon the political parties to seriously consider the option of simultaneous polls and evolve a consensus.

 

I strongly feel that there is a need for a strict code of conduct to be adhered to by the political parties with regard to their source of funding, expenditure on political training of cadres and their mobilization and other political activities, funding of elections and candidates etc. Political parties of the world’s largest democracy should not shy away from being financially accountable as it would enhance the transparency of our democratic polity.  Several other democracies have systems in place under which finances of political parties are regularly audited.

Campaign finance needs should be met by the society honestly and transparently, and the existing mechanisms need to be strengthened.  Service delivery should become predictable and assured to citizens. The governance system must be transformed into a fair, transparent, rule-based, equitable and predictable system.

I suggest that Parliament should think of making a law for ensuring transparency in the polity through appropriate and actionable regulatory measures to make accounts of political parties public.

We can’t afford this trend to go unchecked as it taints the integrity of our parliamentary democracy. The societal norms where money power and muscle power dominate over moral power and spirit of service make this change a little difficult.

Paid news is a manifestation of the rising money power in politics.  Paid news is obviously fake news as it seeks to promote an unworthy candidate at the cost of the worthy in the elections.  Election Commission has been acting against paid news but much more needs to be done to eliminate this electoral abuse.  Media as the fourth pillar of democracy should rise to the occasion and not fall prey to the lure of paid news.

At times, we are witnessing systematic spread of fake news through social media by vested interests to polarize society which can even affect fair election process. The Face book- Cambridge Analytica data scandal is just an example of this. Elaborate discussions should be held by all stakeholders to suggest adequate larger measures to promote positive aspects of social media and curb the negative effects.

Brothers and Sisters!

Money power in politics cannot be controlled by the election commission alone. Besides political parties, civil society, the corporate and organizations working for electoral reforms have a larger role to play in countering this.  More importantly, it is the citizen-voter who should take the lead in preventing the abuse of money power. Voters should realize that selling vote for a few thousand is the highest form of moral compromise that militates against democratic ethics.  If a citizen sells his vote, he forfeits the right to take the government he voted for to task in case of the failure to deliver on the promises. We need to fix the governance system along with bold electoral reforms in order to break the vicious cycle of corruption and erosion of the quality of our democratic polity. Effective campaigns need to be undertaken to educate the voters about the virtue and the power of their votes and the adverse implications of compromised voting.

Citizens should vote in the elections based on four Cs namely, Character, Conduct, Caliber, and Capability and not based on the adverse set of four Cs namely Cash, Cast, Community and Criminal prowess. That’s the ultimate solution.

To sum up, democracy has stabilized in our country by taking deep roots over the last seven decades but it is afflicted by ‘quality deficit’.  For democracy to succeed in our country, the ill-effects of identity-based voting and voting for money should be eradicated at the earliest.  Holding simultaneous polls and an act of parliament for ‘effective regulation of political finance’, besides transformation of voters to shun money for vote are critical to enhance the quality of our democracy.  Our society and political leadership have the ability to resolve our problems.  Indian people are hungry for clean politics and good governance. But they must vote in a more mature and responsible manner and political parties must be made accountable to their promises and performance.

I fondly hope that before we begin to celebrate the 75th anniversary of our Independence in 2022, some effective measures would be put in place to checkmate the role of money power in our polity.

I compliment Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan for his sustained efforts for generating public awareness about clean politics and its merits.

I am indeed happy to have got this opportunity of sharing my thoughts on the causes and consequences of ‘Money power in politics.’ I compliment all of you for your participation in this conference on such an important and topical issue.

Jai Hind!”

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Eminent Agricultural Scientist Dr M S Swaminathan and well-known social worker, Dr. Gutta Muniratnam were respectively chosen as the first recipients of ‘Muppavarapu Venkaiah Naidu National Award for Excellence’ and ‘Muppavarapu National Award for Social Service’’

The National Award for Excellence was instituted by the Muppavarapu Foundation, while the one for Social Service was launched by the Swarna Bharat Trust, in Hyderabad today.

Prof. M.S. Swaminathan was awarded for his distinguished contributions to the field of agriculture while Dr G Muniratnam, was awarded for his extraordinary contribution in improving quality of people’s lives through social service.

A plant geneticist by training, Professor Swaminathan’s contributions to the agricultural renaissance of India have led to his being widely referred to as the scientific leader of the green revolution movement.

Dr Muniratnam is Founder Secretary of Tirupati -based Rashtriya Seva Samiti and an exemplary social worker. He dedicated his life to the cause of transforming rural India by empowering people.

The announcement on the awards was made during the 10^th Anniversary Celebrations of Muppavarapu Foundation and Sankranthi Sambaralu (festivities) organized in Hyderabad today.

Dr Swaminathan could not attend the function, while Dr. Muniratnam was present and received the award from the Vice President, Shri M. Venkaiah Naidu.

Each award carries a cash prize of Rupees Five Lakh and citation.

Addressing the gathering, the Vice President said that respecting and recognizing talent and knowledge was inherent to Indian culture. He said awards were meant to inspire others to emulate the awardees.

Referring to the importance of mother tongue in the promotion of culture and traditions, Shri Naidu wanted the medium of instruction up to the primary school to be in the mother tongue.

Shri Naidu said that festivals like Makara Sankranti were occasions to rekindle people’s association with nature and its relationship with Indian culture. Shri Naidu said that it was also the time to remember and pay respects to elders.

The Governor of Telangana, Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan, the Governor of Himachal Pradesh, Sri Bandaru Dattatreya, the acting Chief Justice of Telangana High Court, Raghavendra Singh Chauhan, the Minister of State for Home Affairs Government of India, Sri. G Kishan Reddy and the Minister for Tourism & Culture and Archaeology, Govt of Telangana Shri Virusanolla Srinivas Goud were present on stage.

Several other prominent people from different walks of life including Telugu film actors Shri Venkatesh, Shri Mahesh Babu and film director, Shri Raghavendra Rao were among those present.

The Spouse of the Vice President, Smt. Ushamma, the Managing Trustee, Muppavarapu Foundation, Shri Harshavardhan, and the Managing Trustee, Swarna Bharat Trust, Smt Deepa Venkat were also present.

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Countdown has begun for the third edition of the Khelo India Youth Games, scheduled to be held in Guwahati from January 10-22, 2020. The opening ceremony, which will be held at the Indira Gandhi Stadium on 10th January, will witness the presence of Chief Minister of Assam Shri Sarbananda Sonowal and the Minister of State (I/C) for Youth Affairs and Sports Shri Kiren Rijiju, along with a host of star athletes, among them is Assam’s pride Hima Das.

Talking about third edition of the Khelo India Youth Games, Chief Minister of Assam Shri Sarbanada Sonowal said, “We are extremely delighted to host the third edition of the Khelo India Youth Games. The competition has started a sporting revolution in India and we couldn’t be more proud of the fact that the tournament is being held in Assam. I wish the athletes all the very best,”.  Shri Kiren Rijiju said that the Khelo India Youth Games has certainly inspired the youth of this country to take up sports. He also stated that the third edition of the competition will have a huge impact on the youth of the North East, who can witness a competition of international standards.

Around 6,800 athletes across 37 (states and union territories) teams will compete in a total of 20 sports events, including new additions – lawn bowls and cycling, in eight venues across Guwahati, during the competition. The total strength of participation at the games is 10,000 people, including athletes, officials, volunteers and support staff.

The Opening Ceremony scheduled on January 10th, will be a world class affair, with a larger-than-life show featuring 400+ cast members, 400+ technical and support staff working on ground. A state-of-the-art show created with the innovative use of lighting and technology, will be the centre piece of the Opening Ceremony. Special acts have been devised to celebrate the natural beauty and cultural wealth of Assam along with heroes of the state. Performances by ethnic communities from across Assam, is also part of the grand show. An act to champion the Fit India movement, encouraging all Indians to integrate fitness into their daily routine, is also an important aspect of the show.

The third edition of the Khelo India Youth Games has seen several first time initiatives by the government, including having aircrafts dedicated to ferry athlete from Kolkata and Delhi to Guwahati and a go-green programme that will see electric cars at the venues. Besides the Khelo India scholarships that winners of the tournament will get, the Assam Government has also announced cash awards for the winners.

The host state is fully geared up to conduct the multi -sport event with world class infrastructure in place and equipment for games shipped in from all over the world.

A dedicated hospitality team has been put in place to ensure the best sporting experience for athletes and officials from various states, with over 100 hotels booked in the city, dedicated welcome desks set up at railway stations, bus terminals and airports.

 

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The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has been apprised of information about the amendments moved to the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2019 as passed by the Rajya Sabha.

Amendments will ensure concurrence of the State Governments while formulating National Transport Policy and making schemes for national, multimodal and inter-state transportation of goods and passengers by the Central Government.

Background

The Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2019 was approved by the Cabinet in its meeting held on 24^th June, 2019 for re-introduction in the Lok Sabha. The Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2019 was passed in the Lok Sabha on 23^rd July, 2019.  Later, the Bill was taken into consideration in Rajya Sabha on 31^st July, 2019.  The Bill with the official amendments was passed by the Rajya Sabha on 31^st July, 2019.  Further, the amendments were placed before the Lok Sabha and were passed in the Lok Sabha on 5^th August, 2019.

 

 

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The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has given its approval forsigning a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Department for International Development (Government of United Kingdom) on 02.12.2019 for Enabling Energy Self-Sufficiency for Indian Railways.

 

Implementation Strategy and targets

 

The   MoU   signed   by   Ministry   of   Railways   with   Department for   International Development (Government of United Kingdom) for Enabling Energy Self-Sufficiency for Indian Railways with the following understanding: –

 

a.  The Parties agree on the scope of activities to be undertaken as a part of the endeavor for enabling energy efficiency and energy self-sufficiency for the Indian Railways.

 

b.   Each Participant will, subject to the laws, rules, regulations and national policies fromtime to time in force  governing  the  subject  matter  in  their  respective  countries, endeavour to take  necessary steps to enable energy efficiency and  energy  self-sufficiency for Indian Railways.

 

c.   The parties agree for Energy planning for Indian Railways i.e. Solar & Wind Energysector, Adopting energy efficiency practices, Enabling Fuel efficiency, Electric Vehiclecharging infrastructure deployment, Battery operated Shunting Locomotives. Capacitydevelopment like training programmes, industrial visits, field visits etc. or any other form co-operation may be approved in writing by the Participants.

 

d.  The Participants will coordinate the activities, as appropriate, under this MoU. Nothing in this MoU will be construed to prejudice existing or future arrangements for co­operation between the participants.

 

e.   Blither participant may request in writing a revision, modification or amendment to all or any part of this MoU. Any revision, modification or amendment approved by the Participants will form part of the revised MoU. Such revision, modification or amendment will come into effect on such date as may be determined by the Participants.

 

f.   This Memorandum of Understanding shall come into force on its signing by the duly authorized representatives of the Parties and any of the Party may terminate this MoU by written communication addressed to the other, in which case, termination of MoU shall take effect six months after receipt of such written communication.

 

g.  The termination of this MoU will not affect the implementation of ongoing projects and / or programmes which have been agreed before the date of the termination of this MoU. Necessarily, areas of cooperation and forms of cooperation will continue to be enforced for ongoing projects and programmes which have been agreed before the date of the termination of this MoU.

 

h.  Any dispute or difference between the Parties shall be settled through mutual consultations and negotiations between the participants.

 

Background:

 

Ministry of Railways have signed MoUs/ MoCs for co-operation covering technical, policy, research & commercial aspects in field of development of energy sector. The objective of the programme is to support structural reforms and the integration of renewable energy into the electricity grid. To be more specific, it aims to achieve more sustainable and inclusive economic growth, better energy security and reduced carbon emissions.

 

The MoUs/ MoCs provide a platform for Indian Railways to interact and share the latest developments and knowledge in the railway sector. The MoUs/ MoCs facilitate exchange of technical experts, reports and technical documents, training and seminars/workshops focusing on specific technology areas like Renewable Energy and other interactions for knowledge sharing.

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VRRK/SC

In order to enhance security at Railway stations which are major hubs of transportation, Indian Railways is in the process of installing Internet Protocol (IP) based Video Surveillance System (VSS) at stations, that is, waiting halls, reservation counters, parking areas, main entrance/ exit, platforms, foot over bridges, booking offices etc. Railway Board has approved works for provision of Video Surveillance System covering 983 stations over Indian Railways under Nirbhaya funds. This year a budget of Rs. 250 crore was allotted to Indian Railways from Nirbhaya fund for installation of video surveillance system.

RailTel, a Miniratna PSU under Ministry of Railways, has been entrusted with the work of providing IP based VSS with video analytics and facial recognition system. To have a better coverage and clearer image, four types of Full HD Cameras – Dome type (for indoor areas), Bullet type (for platforms), Pan Tilt Zoom type (for parking areas) and Ultra HD- 4k cameras (for crucial locations) are being provided. CCTV camera live feeds are displayed on multiple screens at the Railway Protection Force (RPF) control room for monitoring. Each HD camera at the station consumes approximately 1TB of data and 4k camera consumes 4 TB data per month. The recording of the video feeds from CCTV cameras will be stored for 30 days for playback, post event analysis and for investigation purposes. Important videos can be stored for longer duration.

Talking about the project of providing Video Surveillance System, Shri Puneet Chawla, Chairman and Managing Director, RailTel said that in the first phase, VSS is being installed at 200 stations Pan India and as on date work has been completed at 81 stations across India. The Video Surveillance System will be extended to other stations and coaches soon. The work is being done utilizing the Nirbhaya fund for ensuring better safety for women.

In phase-I that is targeted for this year, South Western Railway (SWR) has recently commissioned Video Surveillance system (CCTV) at 6 major stations – Ballari by providing 33 Cameras, Belagavi with 36 Cameras, Vasco-Da Gama with 36 Cameras, Bengaluru Cantt with 21 Cameras, Bangarpet with 36 Cameras, Hassan with 36 Camera and at 3 Stations at Hassan, Shivamogga Town & Sathya Sai Prasanthi Nilayam, work is under progress and will be commissioned shortly. Integrated security systems comprising CCTV have already been installed at 11 stations including Bengaluru with 71 Cameras, Yesvantpur with 35 Cameras, and Mysuru with 34 Cameras. With this SWR has functional CCTV at 17 locations and will complete the work in Phase-I by having CCTV functional at total 20 railway stations by end of January 2020. Security personnel can monitor these cameras not only from station control rooms but also from Central Security Control Rooms located at Divisional HQ, i.e, Hubballi, Mysuru and Bengaluru.

Internet Protocol (IP) based Video Surveillance System (VSS) has also been installed at 10 Railway stations of Western Railway namely  Bhavnagar Terminus, Udhna, Valsad, Veraval, Nagda, Navsari, Vapi, Viragam, Rajkot, Gandhidham. This Video Surveillance System is expected to ensure better security of passengers at railway stations and railway property.

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The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has given its approval as under:

• The North East Gas Grid project of Indradhanush Gas Grid Limited with viability Gap Funding/ Capital Grant at 60% of the estimated cost of Rs 9265 crore (Including interest during construction). Quantum of VGF would be capped at 60% of estimated project cost and would not be linked with upward capital cost variation.

· MoPNG shall identify milestones for major activities for this project and link the same for releases of capital grant of the project.

• For effective monitoring of the project implementation, a Committee comprising of officials from Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas, Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Development of North East Region, Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change, and Department of Fertilizers, may be formed, which would periodically review the progress in implementation of the project and take steps to smoothen out any issues in execution.

Total length of pipeline is 1656 KM and tentative project cost is Rs 9265 crore.As per the plan, Gas Pipeline Grid would be developed in the eight states of the North-Eastern region i.e. Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura.

The Capital Grant will provide natural gas supplies to various types of consumers viz. Industrial, PNG(Domestic),  CNG  (Transport)   etc.   and   would   immensely help   in substituting the liquid fuels. The pipeline grid would ensure reliability and uninterrupted natural gas supplies to the consumers which otherwise gets severely affected due to various reasons in this part of the country.

Availability of Natural gas across the region is expected to boost industrial growth without impacting the environment and would offer better quality of life to the people in general due to use of cleaner and green fuel.

Socio-Economic and Environmental Benefits

• Development of industrial climate in eight states of the north-eastern region i.e. Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura.

· Reduction in the usage of kerosene, wood etc. due to increased usage of environment friendly fuel natural gas thereby improving the environment in the region.

· Improvement in the standard of living of peoples living in the region.

· It will boost Exploration & Production activities and connect regional gas sources with pipeline network for early monetisation of natural resources in the region.

• Possibility of installing bottling plants for LPG can be explored for reducing transportation cost. Uninterrupted supply of LPG and other valueadded products can be ensured in the region which will bring energy security to the people in the area.

Background:

To usher in Gas based economy and to increase the share of natural gas in country’s primary energy mix, Government is taking focused steps viz. enhancing domestic gas production, expeditious development of gas infrastructure including pipelines, City Gas Distribution (CGD) networks and Re-gasified Liquefied Natural Gas (R-LNG) Terminals as well as development of Gas market by providing open access to gas infrastructure.

Indradhanush Gas Grid Limited (IGGL), a joint venture company of five CPSEs (IOCL, ONGC, GAIL, OIL and NRL) has been incorporated on 10.08.2018 to develop and operate Natural gas pipeline grid in North-East region. Petroleum & Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) has also issued provisional authorization to IGGL on 14.09.2018 for the development of North-East Gas pipeline grid.

 

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Vice-Chancellor, JNU Prof. Mamidala Jagadesh Kumar along with Rector-II Prof. Satish Chandra Garkoti met Secretary, MHRD todaymorning and apprised that the situation in the campus is presentlypeaceful. They also informed that the Communication andInformation System has been repaired and is now functional. Thelast date for student registration for the Winter Semester 2020without fine has also been extended up to 12th January, 2020. As partof this registration process about 3300 students have since depositedfee for online registration. University administration has appealedto all the stakeholders to maintain peace in the campus and not toget provoked by any misinformation.

University authorities were advised by the Ministry to make all outefforts for restoration of the normal functioning of the University atthe earliest.

 

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Vice-Chancellor, JNU Prof. Mamidala Jagadesh Kumar along with Rector-II Prof. Satish Chandra Garkoti met Secretary, MHRD todaymorning and apprised that the situation in the campus is presentlypeaceful. They also informed that the Communication andInformation System has been repaired and is now functional. Thelast date for student registration for the Winter Semester 2020without fine has also been extended up to 12th January, 2020. As partof this registration process about 3300 students have since depositedfee for online registration. University administration has appealedto all the stakeholders to maintain peace in the campus and not toget provoked by any misinformation.

University authorities were advised by the Ministry to make all outefforts for restoration of the normal functioning of the University atthe earliest.

 

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