The need for striking a safe balance

Currently an interesting debate has begun on the status of CBI and similar investigating agencies in this country.
What is the role and mandatory duty of institutions like CBI, CVC and Auditor General of India in the present context? Luckily the latter two have some legal or constitutional backing whereas the CBI hasn’t as evidently questioned by the Gauhati High Court.

The observations of the Prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh and the Finanace Minister Mr. P.Chidambaram convey some relevance to the context. The need and freedom to question a policy or procedure adopted to execute that policy arises only when there is a proven fact about illegal pecuniary advantage gained by the decision makers or the officials involved in execution. The persons manning these institutions should be above board in all aspects including the possibility of post retirement rehabilitation.

The Hindu editorial (November 14, 2013) too correctly emphasizes: “Protecting the honest civil servant who makes risky judgment calls is one thing; sweeping dishonest decisions under the carpet of policy-making is quite another”. It is easier said than done or executed without discrimination based on the perceived notions of probity by the Prime Minister or chief Ministers.
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Better late than never

Corporate Governance norms announced by the market regulator SEBI recently would require 97 people to resign from their independent directorship positions by October this year.

The new Companies Act has mandated that an independent director cannot serve on the Board of a company for more than two successive terms of five years each.

A good measure although taken very late in the manufacturing sector of this country. Better be late than never!

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Central universities in India.

Of the 15573 teaching faculty positions in 39 central universities across the country, close to 40 per cent remain vacant.

Shortfall in Odisha and Tamil Nadu stands at 88 and 81 per cent respectively. Who is to blame for this development? Central Government or somebody else? Who asked them to open so many institutions without proper planning and faculty for the purpose of teaching? God knows the quality of education the government is offering through these institutions.

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Paradox between 'child marriage' and 'honour killing'

Ref :  The Hindu, Chennai.  Sunday, October 6, 20113.

Age of marriage on dispute.

CHANDIGARH; Khap panchayats, which have for long been seeking a legal ban on “same gotra marriages, “have also been urging the Haryana  government to abolish the legal  minimum age for marriage.

            The dominant opinion at a recent meeting of Khap representatives in Rewari was that if a boy is married at 16 and the girl as soon as she attains puberty, it would contribute to preventing crimes such as honour killings and female foeticide.

In  2011, a division bench of the Supreme Court had declared Khap panchayats illegal and had directed State Governments to take harsh measures in preventing the illegal and barbaric orders by these councils.  The  apex court had also sought steps to prevent the “honour Killings”.

Coal Blocks

Private Cos gained at cost of CIL

(dated March 26, 2012 Monday in The Times of India)

The report observes that the proposal by Ratan  Tata on coal  allotments to commercial  entities was agreed upon by the Energy Co-ordination Committee under the chairmanship of P.M  Manmohan  Singh, in February  2006.

As early as July 28, 2006 the CAG draft notes, the department of legal affairs told the ministry that the government could if it wished, introduce competitive bidding by amending the “administrative instructions” .  If the government chose to do so, the allotments could be done under the Indian Contract Act of 1872.

COALGATE

According to the lists of allotment in the CAG’s draft report, 61 coal blocks were allotted to private companies in 2006. This is the highest number of allocations made between 2004 and 2009 in terms of how many blocks were given away in a single year.  However, in terms of reserves, 2009 stands out as the government gave away a reserve of 5,216 mt (million tonnes ) through 12 mines against 3,793 mt in 2006. Of this around 3,000 mt was given away to two private parties, a Tata group joint venture and a Jindal group unit, on a single day, February 27, 2009, barely a month before the Lok Sabha  elections that year.

Intimidating inflation

Intimidating Inflation

Food Inflation has a major role in impacting the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) of late in a realistic manner thanks to the due weightage given to food prices fluctuating rapidly and almost consistently for a couple of years now. Both the Central and State governments are groping in the dark as how to keep inflation and especially food inflation under check. Look at the concerns being expressed by the Union Finance Minister from time to time. The latest concern is towards a sudden surge in food inflation to double digit at 12.13% for the week ended December 11.  The Minister appears to have attributed the present rise to the sky-rocketing prices of the famous vegetable-spice namely the onion in the last few weeks which in turn was the result of excess rains and floods in some production centers of states like Karnataka and Maharashtra during this period.

Despite the concern expressed by the Minister and the Committee of Secretaries headed by the Cabinet Secretary in Government of India, the inflation continues to rise due to unrelenting trend in prices of onion, edible oil, milk, fruits and vegetables. The WPI inflation data reveals that the annualized increase in prices of onions worked out to 33.48 per cent, fruits 20.15 per cent, eggs, meat and fish 19.35 per cent, vegetables15.54 per cent and milk by 17.83 per cent. Onion seems to enjoy a pride of place in the market. Hence the necessity of a meeting of Committee of Secretaries on Thursday, December 23, 2010 to take stock of the situation while continuing to battle against onion prices that touched Rs 70-80 a kg in the last few days. Responsible people in the government and the trade unfortunately fail to set up a regular mechanism to study the situation, anticipate the factors responsible for fluctuations in the supply of those vulnerable goods and take timely remedial steps on a continuing basis. Fire-fighting exercises from year after year expose the hollow nature of understanding and awakening on such a burning issue.

Long-term planning and medium term strategy to thwart such a scenario is totally missing in the present scheme of things. And nobody is sure of finding a permanent solution to normal supply of agri-goods on a perennial basis without any hassles and excuses. Looking to the inelastic demand for such products in the short-run and medium term it should not pose any problem for the planner or administrator to estimate the actual demand of various food products at different times of the year under varying conditions and contingencies and once such an exercise is complete, the authorities should explore the possibility of meeting such sustained demand with the available self-correcting sources of production and systematic procurement by the private as well as public agencies. These calculations and arrangements for execution should ensure the availability of all those food products uninterruptedly in the market. It is easier said than done in the present scenario

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State faces 11% water deficit, stares at acute crisis: study

Julie Mariappan has opined in her article (Saturday April 6, 2013, Times of India Chennai) that Tamil Nadu is facing a deficit of 11%. This bad news, coming as it does at the beginning of a torrid 2013 summer. While the current total water demand in the state, for domestic, irrigation, livestock and industrial needs, is 1,867.85 TMCFT(thousand million cubic feet) per year, the total availability,  from all resources, ins only 1,681.78 TMCFT.    

This deficit will rise to 17% by 2045, said the report, jointly prepared by several central and state governmental agencies, including Tamil Nadu public works department and central water commission. 

Water experts say a 11% deficit at present means that the state is set for an acute water crisis in the coming years, and blame the situation on the lack of serious conservation efforts.

Tamil Nadu, which had three reservoirs, in the pre independent era, has added 82 reservoirs in the last six decades and boasts of 39,200 tanks now. At least 17, 879 of them, big and small, are on the coastal belt, and their status is either ‘good’ or ‘normal’. 

But an alarming 80% overflows for river is wasted, said the report based on the study on ‘Effective utilization of northeast monsoon’.   

What is the role of the State Planning Commission or for that matter the function of state water resources department in this regard? Nobody seems to be doing any perspective plan or engaging in any serious debate for taking a firm decision to implement the same in due course.

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