June 15-22 Current Affairs

NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL UPDATES

India, South Korea to launch talks for civil nuclear pact

India and South Korea agreed to launch negotiations for a civil nuclear energy agreement, even as economic ties continued to expand after implementation of a comprehensive economic pact. This was discussed during a India-South Korea joint commission meeting in Seoul on Friday, which was chaired by Indian External Affairs minister S. M. Krishna and Korean Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Yu Myung-hwan. The negotiations are expected to pave the way for South Korea to export a nuclear power plant to India. South Korea was among the countries that had supported India in the Nuclear Suppliers Group lifting restrictions on civil nuclear trade. 

Apart from civilian nuclear cooperation, the two countries are looking at shoring up cooperation in various sectors. During the visit of President Lee Myung-bak to India in January 2010, the two countries had agreed to intensify bilateral ties and set a trade target of $ 30 billion by 2014. In 2009, trade between the two countries stood at $ 12.2 billion in 2009. The trade target is expected to be met considering the jump in trade between the two countries following the comprehensive economic partnership agreement, which came into force in January this year. 

Apart from civilian nuclear energy, Mr Krishna, who is on a three day visit to South Korea, also discussed the implementation of the MoU on cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer space. The MoU also includes the provision for launching Korean satellites from Indian launch vehicles.  Meanwhile, three MoUs were signed during the visit including an agreement between the ministry of micro, small and medium enterprises of India and the small and medium business administration of the RoK on cooperation in the field of Small and Medium Enterprises.

Kadapa district to be renamed as YSR 

The Andhra Pradesh government on Friday gave its nod for renaming Kadapa as 'YSR district' after former Andhra Pradesh CM Y S Rajasekhara Reddy. Mr Reddy, who was killed in a helicopter crash in the Nallamala forest range on September 2 last year, hailed from Kadapa district. 

Kishenganga Dam Dispute

India And Pakistan are gearing up for a legal battle over the Kishenganga dam project in the international court of arbitration. India announced its representatives in the upcoming legal battle, which was initiated by Pakistan, which has for long objected to the dam project in Jammu and Kashmir. The two persons are Peter Tomka, Vice President of the International Court of Justice and Professor Lucius Caflisch, an international Legal expert of repute and Member of the International Law Commission. Pakistan, which had nominated its representative, has sought arbitration by the international court under the 1960 Indus Water Treaty. Following Pakistan’s move, India has had little choice but to nominate its representatives.

Government of Pakistan has instituted arbitration proceedings on the Kishenganga Hydro-electric Project, being constructed on the River Kishenganga, in Jammu & Kashmir, in terms of paragraph 2 (b) and paragraph 6 of Annexure G to the Indus Waters Treaty 1960, by appointing H.E. Mr. Bruno Simma, Judge of the International Court of Justice and Mr. Jan Paulsson, an international legal consultant, as its arbitrators for the 7-member Court of Arbitration, which is being set up in accordance with the Treaty

BASIC meet in July-end

The BASIC (Brazil, South Africa, India and China) countries will meet in Rio de Janeiro in late July. This will be the third quarterly meeting of the four countries. It is expected that the other developing countries will be invited to take part in the deliberations. This is a part of the agreement that the four countries agreed to at their May meeting in Cape Town. In a departure from practice, the Rio meeting will have technical segment followed by the high-level ministerial segment. Sources said the technical segment would focus on three issues — equity, leveraging private finance, and science and possible scenarios. 

Each of the four countries is working on a model for equity in carbon space. India has prepared a paper on a burdensharing model based on the principle of per capita emission, South Africa is working on a study which is based on the global development rights framework, China is preparing a carbon budget as well. Brazil already has an equity study, which it prepared in 1997. 

The four countries have clarified that the BASIC is a forum for discussion and not a negotiating group. This could explain the reason behind a session on “science and possible scenarios”.

Garuda-IV Excercise

Six Indian Sukhoi-30MKI multi-role fighters, supported by IL-76 heavylift aircraft and IL-78 midair refuellers, tore into the skies over France to participate in the joint combat exercise with the French and Singaporean air forces.  In ‘Garuda-IV’ exercise, being held at the Istres airbase north of Marseille, France has deployed its Rafael and Mirage-2000 fighters, while Singapore is participating with F-16s.

The exercise comes at a time when India and France are trying to finetune the around Rs 10,000 crore deal to upgrade the 56 Mirage-2000 fighter jets in IAF’s combat fleet. The first four to six Mirages will be upgraded in France, with the rest 50 or so being upgraded in India by Hindustan Aeronautics under transfer of technology.  India’s defence ties with France are quite broad-based, including as they do the over Rs 20,000 crore project to build six French Scorpene submarines currently underway at Mazagon Docks. France has also offered its multi-role Rafael fighter for the ongoing competition in the gigantic $10.4 billion project to supply 126 medium multi-role combat aircraft to IAF.

India to take grain storage lessons from China

India looses huge of grain each year due to not so efficient storage system. 

In a move towards bolstering food grain storage in the country, India and China—the world’s top two farm producing and consuming nations—are likely to work together to the benefit of New Delhi. Technical experts and engineers from India’s leading agriculture warehousing and storage agencies, including the Food Corporation of India (FCI), will visit China to study modern warehouse construction and preservation methods for food grain storage.  

Multi-crore Railways jobs exam scam unearthed

THECentral Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has unearthed a railway recruitment scam running into crores and arrested eight persons including the son of the Mumbai Railway Recruitment Board chairman S M Sharma for allegedly leaking and selling exam papers. This scam relates to the examinations of Assistant Loco Pilot and Assistant Station Master. It is estimated that the scam runs into several crores of rupees. This particular scam relates to examinations that were held on June 6 and June 13 this year for induction of staff in Group C category of the Indian Railways. According to the CBI, Jagannathan in connivance with the officials of RRB, Mumbai, allegedly obtained a copy of the question paper before the examination date and provided the paper to aspirants who were identified by agents. The CBI has warned aspirants against falling for such scams and bringing it to the attention of the nearest CBI branch. 

Mumbai RRB chief S M Sharma has been suspended

IAF women officers to get permanent commission

After winning a three-year-long court battle, women officers of the Indian Air Force (IAF) will now be accorded permanent commission, the exercise for which has already been initiated by IAF. The court orders came in March this year on a petition from 22 IAF and another 30-odd Army women officers, who accused the government of discriminating against them vis-a-vis their male counterparts. By the court verdict, All the 22 women officers, who had gone to the court, will be given permanent commission.

Govt looking at providing insurance to 62L teachers 

The Centre plans to provide 62 lakh school teachers life insurance and health insurance at highly subsidized rates. 

The HRD ministry has already held detailed discussions with LIC, with the public sector insurance giant coming up with an “indicative scheme” with two components. The first component on life insurance would be available for teachers in the age group of 18-59 or till retirement age, with the insured teachers having to pay a premium of Rs 840 per annum per member for an insurance cover of Rs 2 lakh payable in case of death. The ministry has proposed that the first component of Rs 840 per annum can be paid by the government on its own. Assuming the number of teachers to be 62 lakh, the ministry is looking at an annual expenditure of over Rs 500 crore as its contribution to the scheme.

The second component suggested by LIC would be a monthly contribution which would earn an interest of about 8% per annum on a compounding basis, with the entire amount payable at the time of retirement. According to LIC, a contribution of Rs 500 per month would generate Rs 4.76 lakh in 25 years and Rs 11.47 lakh in 35 years of service. However, the interest rate will vary from year to year.

Both the proposals will be discussed in the meeting of National Foundation for Teacher Welfare. Government will decide which of the two will be given the job. The health insurance would cover a family of six — the teacher himself or herself, the spouse, two kids and two parents. The maximum sum assured for family in a year could be Rs 1 lakh. There would also be a corporate buffer of about Rs 25 crore that would double the reimbursement in cases of need.

Kerala govt gets to run golf club for all 

The rich man’s sport, golf, will get a taste of socialism in Kerala. The Supreme Court allowed the Achuthanandan government to wrest control of the Trivandum Golf Club (TGC).

The state had justified its bid to acquire the control of the golf course by saying that private management had made it a ‘‘rich-only’’ affair, and the lawns were being used for marriages and film shootings.

BP agrees to $20 billion fund for spill claims

Under intense pressure from President Barack Obama, BP Plc agreed to set up a $20 billion fund for claims from its huge Gulf of Mexico oil spill and suspended dividend payments to its shareholders. 

An April 20 explosion on an offshore rig owned by the British energy giant killed 11 workers and ruptured a deep-sea well. The ensuing spill has fouled 120 miles (190 km) of U.S. coastline, imperiled multibillion-dollar fishing and tourism industries and killed birds, sea turtles and dolphins.

BP Chairman Carl-Henric Svanberg said after emerging from the meeting that the London-based company is canceling quarterly payments of its $10-billion-a-year dividend for the rest of the year. He also issued an apology to the American public for the spill from a BP well in the Gulf of Mexico, the biggest in U.S. history.

Iran approves $7 billion pipeline deal with Pak 

Iran finalised a $7 billion “peace pipeline” deal to export natural gas to Pakistan by 2015. For 25 years Iran will export one million cubic metres of natural gas to Pakistan per day. The pipeline will connect Iran's giant South Fars gas field with Pakistan's southern Baluchistan and Sindh provinces. pipeline was 1,000 km (620 miles) long, with about 907 km of it already built.

Iran has the world's second largest gas reserves after Russia but has struggled for years to develop its oil and gas resources. Iranian officials say the country needs $25 billion to develop its crucial energy industry. Sanctions by the West, political turmoil and construction delays have slowed Iran's development as an exporter.

ECONOMY, BANKING AND FINANCE

IRDA wins battle against SEBI

India’s insurance regulator—the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA)—has got a clear mandate from the government to regulate unit-linked insurance plans (ULIPs) and it will unveil new rules soon to raise the risk cover and to lower charges to make this product more attractive to investors. The government promulgated an ordinance to amend four major laws (the RBI Act, the Insurance Act, the Sebi Act and the Securities Contract Regulation Act) that could revive the sale of Ulips and force the mutual fund industry to look for new avenues to get investors. 

Irda and Sebi got into a legal battle over Ulips regulation after the markets regulator on April 9 banned 14 insurers from selling Ulips. Sebi withdrew the ban when bureaucrats brokered a truce, but only to revive it. Sebi moved the Supreme Court to club various public interest litigations against Ulips and resolve the issue of alleged mis-representation and the issue of jurisdiction. 

ULIPs can be set to offer guaranteed maturity benefits to protect policyholders even when markets crash. Insurers now offer guaranteed returns only on pension policies that are not sold on a unit-linked platform. 

According to IRDA , the guidelines for Ulips will be revised to make it attractive for investors. Insurers will also be given more time to redesign these products.

Pension plans will now have to be bundled with a life cover or health cover or annuities. Insurers can offer all three, but at least one will be mandatory. IRDA is also planning to prescribe a minimum health cover for policyholders. For pension plans, the insurer has to convert the accumulated fund value into an annuity at maturity. The policyholder or the insured will have the option to commute up to a maximum of one-third of the accumulated value as lump sum on maturity. If the policy is surrendered, the policyholder will get only a third of the surrender value. Further, the policyholder will have to buy an annuity for the remaining amount. GROUP products will continue to be on annually renewable basis. All top-up premiums paid during the tenure of the contract should have an insurance cover and will be treated as single premium. 

Important facts:

• Insurance Act to be amended to cover Ulips in life insurance business. Similarly, Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act will make it clear that 'securities' will not include Ulips
• The lock-in period will be five years against 3 years now. Partial withdrawals will be allowed only at the start of fifth year. Insurers have to mandatorily offer a life cover, health cover or annuities with the life cover. They can offer all three, but at least one will be mandatory
• If policyholders find it attractive to buy policies that are tax-free, insurers will have to re-design some products that lose tax cover post-DTC (Direct Tax Code)
• The government has also constituted a high-level committee chaired by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, which will sort out all issues of jurisdiction regarding hybrid products. And will also include the Finance Secretary, the Financial Services Secretary and heads of RBI, IRDA, SEBI and the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA). 

Irda proposes a fair deal to those who pull out their investments in Ulips by introducing a ceiling on the difference between gross yields (returns had there been no charges) and net yields (returns after factoring in charges) from the sixth year onwards. The charges will be close to 2.5-3.3% in the sixth year, which drops to 3% by the 10th year. Surrender charges will be capped at 20% for premiums ranging between Rs 15,000 and Rs 20,000. 

The regulator has also proposed curbs on direct marketing either through telephone or DTH television whereby marketers would have to obtain the consent of the prospect before proceeding with their marketing pitch. Telecallers will also have to follow a fixed script and insurance companies will need to maintain recordings of conversations with prospects.

** As per the revised DTC, which will replace the 50-year-old Income Tax Act, only six specified instruments (government provident fund, public provident fund, recognised provident fund, pension funds regulated by Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA), pure life insurance products and annuity scheme) will qualify for the EEE (exempt-exempt-exempt) taxation. Under the EEE mode, tax exemption is provided at all the levels of the instrument-- at the time of investment, at accrual and at the time of withdrawal.  

ULIP Vs. mutual fund

•          Ulips are hybrid products that combine elements of mutual funds and insurance and MFs are only investment products.
•         With the ban on entry load of MFs, upfront commission for mutual fund distributors slashed from about 2.5 per cent to 0.5 per cent whereas upfront commission for ULIPs remains 20-40 per cent even after the recent cap on charges. So the basic idea of SEBI move is to bring parity in commissions.
•           ULIPS were heavily used to mis-representation and mis-selling
•         In fiscal year 2009-10, Ulips accounted for collected insurance premium of around Rs 2.60 lakh crore whereas MFs only gathered 3000 crore for the same fiscal.

Some facts on Revised Direct Tax Code Proposal

The second version of the draft Direct Taxes Code (DTC) was released last week. New DTC will likely replace Income Tax act, 1961. DTC had been billed as the final effort to overhaul the current tax regime and bring it on par with the new-look Indian economy and best international practices. It seeks to enlarge the taxpayer base. Code is likely to be implemented from April 1, 2011. 

Some measures taken in the code:

• PF, life insurance and annuity schemes to get EEE treatment
• Retirement benefits (gratuity, leave encashment, etc) to get EEE benefit
• ULIPs and equity related MFs  to lose tax benefits at the time of maturity
• Capital gains to be treated as income from ordinary source
• Long-term (over one year) capital gains to be deducted by a percentage
• Entire short-term (less than one year) gains to be added as a part of income
• Investment in new ULIPS (post DTC) won't get EEE benefit
• Perquisites* to be taxed as per existing law
• Current Wealth Tax norms set to continue
• Minimum alternate tax (MAT) is to be levied on book profits of company, not on gross assets. 
• Controlled Foreign Corporation (CFC) provisions to be introduced to tax the income of foreign subsidiaries of Indian firms

Income Tax Slabs

In Details:

The earlier draft had also introduced a complex mechanism for taxation of rent income. To compute income from house property, the previous draft had proposed "a notional rent on presumptive basis" (at the rate of six per cent). The notional rent was considered at six per cent of either the market value of the house or the cost of construction/acquisition. "However, this method discriminates against recent owners as such cost is a function of inflation," said the new draft. The revised draft scrapped this method of computing notional rent.

Capital gains could become a part of the total income, after "allowing a deduction at a specific percentage of capital gains without any indexation". The effective rate of taxation, as a result, would be lower for capital gains after one year. In the short term (less than one year), the entire amount will be added as a part of the income and taxed as per the slab. For example, if the income of a person is Rs 12 lakh (Rs 1.2 million) and capital gains are Rs 500,000, the total income of the person would be Rs 17 lakh (Rs 1.7 million).

The revised proposal retained the existing threshold limit for wealth tax. Earlier, the wealth tax limit was proposed to be hiked to Rs 50 crore (Rs 500 million). The latest draft retained the definition of wealth as 'unproductive assets' such as plot of land, jewellery and cash in excess of Rs 50,000.

The government has dropped its plans to make the direct taxes code (DTC) override double taxation avoidance agreements (DTAAs). In the revised DTC draft, the finance ministry suggested that the DTC would be the basis for levying tax, if authorities invoked the provisions of either the General Anti-Avoidance Rule (GAAR) or those related to Controlled Foreign Corporations (CFCs). The third condition would be when branch profit tax is levied.

The revised discussion paper on the Direct Taxes Code (DTC) has proposed to tax the income of foreign subsidiaries of Indian companies. A company incorporated outside India will be taxed only when its management is taking decisions in India. As an anti-avoidance measure, in line with internationally-accepted practices, it also proposed to introduce Controlled Foreign Corporation (CFC) provisions to ensure that passive income earned by a foreign company controlled directly or indirectly by a resident in India is taxed by authorities here.

*perquisite is any casual emolument, fee or profit attached to an office or position in addition to the salary or wages. In other words, perquisites are the benefits in addition to normal salary to which the employee has a right by virtue of his employment.

Indirect tax mopup rises 49% in Apr-May

Indirect tax revenues, which include Customs duty, central excise and service tax, increased by 49% in April and May to about Rs 35,000 crore from a year ago. The improvement in fiscal situation of the government due to higher tax collections and better-than-anticipated revenues from the auction of wireless spectrum is happening in the backdrop of unexpectedly high inflation in May. Wholesale price inflation rose to 10.16%.

The government has set a fiscal deficit target of 5.5% for this fiscal. The Rs 1.06 lakh crore it is getting from the wireless spectrum fee will cut budgeted fiscal deficit to 4.5% of the nominal GDP assumed in Budget 2010 if tax collection grows at the projected rate and disinvestment through the year fetches Rs 40,000 crore. 

FOR 2010-11, the government has targeted a 29% increase in indirect tax collection at Rs 3.15 lakh crore.

CIL, Hindustan Copper divestment gets okay

The government on Tuesday announced the sale of a 10% stake each in two state-owned companies as part of a plan to raise Rs40,000 crore from the disposal of state assets this fiscal year as finance minister Pranab Mukherjee strives to curb the fiscal deficit. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) cleared the divestment of equity in Coal India Ltd (CIL), the country’s largest coal mining firm. It also approved the sale of shares in Hindustan Copper Ltd along with the issue of fresh equity of an equivalent amount. The firm is involved in mining, smelting, refining and casting of refined copper. The government holds 100% equity in the coal major, which has a total paid up capital Rs 6,316.36 crore.  After disinvestment, the government holding in CIL will come down to 90 per cent and in Hindustan Copper to 81.44 per cent.

The government plans to sell its stake in at least 10 state-run companies this fiscal, including MMTC Ltd, Steel Authority of India Ltd and Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Ltd. It raised Rs25,000 crore through sale of stakes in Oil India Ltd, NMDC Ltd, Rural Electrification Corp. Ltd and NTPC Ltd last year.

Book building is the process of determining the price of a public offer of shares, based on demand from investors.

India has a known coal resource base of 264,000 mt, the fourth largest in the world, of which proven reserves are around 101,000 mt.

Oil ministry approves 10% disinvestment in EIL 

The oil ministry has approved the sale of 10% government holding in consultancy firm Engineers India (EIL). The government holds 90.4% stake in EIL, which provides design and engineering services for petroleum, power and fertiliser companies. At the current market price, the government is expected to raise about Rs 1,100-1,200 crore through the sale of 10% stake in EIL. 

Inflation at 10.16% spreads to non-food items

Overall inflation surged into double digits at 10.16% in May, the highest in the last 19 months, adding to the woes of the common man. One of the key factors for such a situation is food inflation, which has remained at the enhanced level of 16.49%, though it declined marginally from 16.87% in the previous month. The essential items which have become expensive, directly hitting the pocket of the common man, include pulses, vegetables and sugar. Furthermore, the prices of metal, textiles and plywood prices have also gone up, as inflation has spread to non-food items. 

The data further revealed that the final inflation figure during March was 11.04 per cent, up from the provisional figure of 9.90 per cent. The data for May, too, will be revised later. 

Inflation, measured by the WPI, has been driven primarily by high food prices, leading analysts to predict that prices are likely to fall once the winter agricultural output starts to boost supplies from April.

Ministry gets ready to rewrite NMDP plans

Shipping ministry is understood to revisit the National Maritime Development Programme (NMDP) and rewrite it with a new perspective plan for major ports. A committee is going to be formed to rewrite the programme and come up with a new plan for ports. According to them, the new plan will have a deadline of 2020. It would not only replace the NMDP but also will have new targets and new projects while giving full liberty to port chairmen. 

As on March 31, 2010 only 50 projects out of 276 projects envisaged under NMDP. While work is reportedly progressing with 74 projects, 16 projects are stated as approved and 29 firmed up and under process of approval. A majority of 82 projects are under preliminary/planning stage even as 25 projects stand cancelled. About NMDP:

When it was conceived for the first time under BJP government and was launched by the former prime minister AB Vajpayee, on August 14, 2003, it was known as Sagarmala project. However, with change in government in Delhi, the Sagarmala project was later renamed National Maritime Development Programme (NMDP) in August 2004. 

LIC wishes to enter into reverse mortgage foray

THE country’s largest insurer, Life Insurance Corporation (LIC), plans to enter the reverse mortgage space. LIC is in initial discussion with the housing finance regulator, National Housing Bank (NHB). 

Reverse mortgage is a financial product that enables senior citizens (60 plus) to mortgage their real assets with a lender and convert part of the equity into taxfree regular income. This saves them from selling assets in their life-time. 

NHB’s reverse mortgage loan-enabled annuity scheme (RMLeA) has only sanctioned 40 loans estimated at Rs 100 crore. The scheme, without the life-long payment benefit was launched in 2007 and according to NHB around 7,029 loans amounting around Rs 1,408 crore have been sanctioned till March 31, 2010.

Process of Reverse Mortgage 

• All citizens above 60 years, owning a property stand eligible Loan amount to be determined on value of borrower’s property

• Bank will give this amount to insurance company 

• Insurance company to make annuity payments till borrower dies 

• Borrower and spouse stay at their property as owners during their lifetime

Exports jump 35% to $16.1 bn in May

Improving demand in western markets propelled India’s export figures to $16.1 billion in May, up 35.1% year-on-year. Imports rose to $27.4 billion in May, jumping 30.8% as compared to the corresponding period last year, widening the country’s trade deficit to $11.3 billion. 

India is targeting a 15% growth in exports in the current fiscal. 

During April-May 2010, Indian exports stood at $33 billion, up 35.7% year-on-year. 

 May’s robust performance was mainly on back of a 31.24% increase in gems and jewellery, which touched $2.46 billion in May. Gems and jewellery is the largest contributor (around 16%) to the country’s total export basket, and was one of the worst hit during the slowdown. 

Life insurers may get to invest in infra bonds

LIFE insurers may be allowed to invest in long-term infrastructure bonds proposed by the India Infrastructure Finance Co for refinancing greenfield infrastructure projects. Insurance Regulatory & Development Authority (IRDA) has decided to allow insurers to invest in India Infrastructure Debt Fund bonds. Deepak Parekh Committee recommendations has been seen favourable for insurers.

This committee has recommended setting up an India Infrastructure Debt Fund with a corpus of Rs 50,000 crore by the year end through issuance of negotiable bonds to various investors including insurers and pension funds, multi-lateral funding institutions, as well as NBFCs. The committee said Rs 20,000 crore could come from domestic insurance and pension funds, while foreign insurance and pension funds may provide another Rs 10,000 crore. Rest would come from other sectors. 

PSUs may sell 50% of hydel power locally

THE government is considering allowing state-owned power companies such as NHPC and Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVNL) to sell up to 50% electricity generated from their hydel power plants to respective home states where the projects are located.  Local allocation could go up to 100% in exceptional circumstances with the approval of the minister of power

The move aims at providing level playing field to government companies so that they are able to compete with private hydel project developers who bag several hydel projects from state governments offering higher power allocations locally. Most of the states are energy hungry and need assured supply from local power producers. 

 Under the present regulations, central public sector enterprises (CPSEs) in hydel sector can only allocate a maximum of 30% of power from single project to home state. This includes 13% (including 1% for local area development) of power, which the home state gets as free power and balance from its share decided on the basis the central plan assistance given to the state during previous five years based on consumption of electricity. 

Panel to aim for 10% growth in 12th Plan 

Planning Commission has initiated the exercise to formulate the 12th Five-Year Plan (2012-17), aiming to accelerate the economic growth to 10% against 8.1% expected in the current Plan.

The impact of global economic slowdown forced the Plan panel to scale down the average annual growth target for the 11th Plan to 8.1% from 9%. The growth rate during 2008-09 slipped to 6.7% from over 9% in the preceding three years. The economy grew by 7.4% during 2009-10 and is expected to go up to 8.5% in the current fiscal.   

Govt okays 10,000 tonnes white sugar exports to EU

With production outlook improving and prices stabilising, the government has allowed export of 10,000 tonnes of refined sugar to the European Union (EU) despite restrictions. The relaxation has been given by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) and the exports will be undertaken by trading firm Indian Sugar Exim Corporation during 2009-10 season ending September.

In February, the government was forced to withdraw its decision to permit exports to EU due to strong objection from the opposition parties as sugar was selling at about Rs50 per kg.

Though sugar prices have dropped significantly to Rs32 a kg, the exports to EU would be matched by equivalent quantity of imports from anywhere in the world to ensure that domestic supply is not disturbed. 

India enjoys duty-free exports to EU up to a fixed quantity under a 'preferential quota' arrangement. 

India's sugar production is estimated at nearly 19 million tonnes in 2009-10 season against the earlier forecast of 16 million tonnes.

Cibil to launch mortgage & fraud repositories next month

CREDIT Information Bureau (India) or Cibil said it will launch the much-awaited mortgage repository and the fraud repository next month. Once banks and lenders have access to the data, they will have the weapon to fight mortgage-linked home loan frauds. The new repositories will help banks access more holistic data on equitable mortgage and avoid incidence of multiple loans against same property.

Cibil has records of 160 million consumers’ credit history. It has records of another 4.5 million commercial loan customers. As demand for credit grows exponentially in the expanding economy, Cibil holds a key for banks keeping credit delinquencies in check. Cibil data helps banks in risk assessment. 

GDP likely to grow 9.2% this fiscal: CMIE 

Centre for Indian Monitoring Economy (CMIE) has forecast that the domestic economy would grow at 9.2% this fiscal.

APPOINTMENTS

S K Srivastava is new director general of DGH 

Over seven months after controversial oil regulator V K Sibal demitted office, the government has appointed S K Srivastava as the new director general of the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH). Srivastava’s appointment was cleared by the Cabinet Committee on Appointments (ACC) for a period of five years or till his superannuation, whichever is earlier. 

SPORTS

Saina Nehwal Wins Singapore Open 

Saina Nehwal celebrates after beating Taiwan’s Tzu Ying Tai 21-18, 21-15 to claim the Singapore Open Super Series title. Following her victory in the Indian Open last week, Saina is the first Indian woman to win back-to-back titles and two Super Series events (the first came exactly a year ago in Indonesia). The Indian ace is now is set to enter the world top 5 rankings. 

Pak pacer Aamer in mobile controversy 

Pakistani cricket team and controversy go hand in hand. The team almost got involved in a controversy when during their opening Asia Cup tie against Sri Lanka, television footage showed pacer Mohammad Aamer ‘talking on the mobile phone’ in the dressing room minutes before he went to bat. According to ICC rules, mobiles are not allowed in dressing rooms.  Aamer scored five runs off 14 deliveries in the game which Pakistan lost by 16 runs. However, the matter was closed after the Pakistani team management explained the issue to the ICC.

BOOKS

1) The Rediscovery of India- By Meghnad Desai

2) The Difficulty of Being Good: On The Subtle Art of Dharma – By Gurcharan Das

3) Super Freakonomics- By Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

4) Nine Lives: In Search of the Sacred in Modern India – By William Dalrymple

5) The Hindus: An Alternative History- By Wendy Doniger

6) India and The United States in the 21st Century: Reinventing Partnership- By 

        Teresita C. Schaffer

7) Chasing The Dragon: Will India Catch up with China? – By Mohan Guruswamy

8) Too Big To Fail: Inside The Battle to Save Wall Street- By Andrew Ross Sorkin

9) Shah Jahan: The Rise and Fall of the Mughal Emperor - By  Fergus Nicoll

10) The Arabs: A History - By Eugene Rogan

11) Wolf Hall – By  Hilary Mantel

12) The Palace of Illusions - By Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni