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INDEX

1. National news 1.1 President signs Bankrupcy ordinance

1.2 More seats for Sikkim Assembly

1.3 Centre to seek 20,000 MW of solar bids

1.4 Telecom regulator backs Net neutrality

1.5 Indus civilisation flourished without flowing river: Study

2. International News 2.1 Chabahar port ready next stage for India

2.2 U.S. now within range of N.Korea nuclear weapons

3. Polity and Governance 3.1 ISRO opens doors to private sector

3.2 Call to make clinical data public

3.3 TRAI’s new guidelines for Net Neutrality

4. Economy 4.1 National Anti-profiteering Authority: A fine balance

4.2 New direct tax law coming

4.3 Cabinet approves new finance panel

4.4 No compromise on India’s internets at WTO: Prabhu

4.5 Bharat22 ETF gains 3.78%

5. Science and Tech 5.1 In a first, air-launched Brahmos missile test fired

5.2 Can a healthy diet keep tuberculosis at bay?

5.3 TRAI backs free data in a non-discriminatory way

5.4 India unlikely to cut malaria burden half in 2020: WHO

6. Environment / Geography 6.1 India loses billion to air pollution: UN

7. Security 7.1 IAF banks on Teja’s, new fighter to bolster fleet


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8. India and World 8.1 Singapore offers India logistical base

9. Short News

9.1 IITs IISc find place in QS BRICS rankings


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Current Affairs (21 to 30 November, 2017)

1. National News

1.1 President signs Bankrupcy ordinance

President Ram Nath Kovind gave his assent to the ordinance approved by the Union Cabinet to

amend the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) to strengthen the regime.

The ordinance aims at putting in place safeguards by prohibiting wilful defaulters, those

associated with non-performing assets (NPAs), and the habitually non-compliant, from regaining

control of the defaulting company or stressed assets through the back door in the garb of being

a ‘resolution applicant’.

“The sale of property to a person who is ineligible to be a resolution applicant ... has been

barred,” an official statement said. Significantly, the amendments also provide for fine ranging

from Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 2 crore for those violating these norms.

Ineligible persons

According to the statement, a new section has been introduced in the IBC that makes certain

persons ineligible to be a ‘resolution applicant’. Those being made ineligible include “wilful

defaulters, those who have their accounts classified as NPAs for one year or more and are

unable to settle their overdue amounts including interest thereon.”

The ineligible persons also include those who have executed an enforceable guarantee in favour

of a creditor, in respect of a corporate debtor undergoing a Corporate Insolvency Resolution

Process or liquidation process under the IBC.

Also ineligible are those who are promoters or in management of control of the resolution

applicant, or will be promoters or in management of control of corporate debtor during the

implementation of the resolution plan, the holding company, subsidiary company, associate

company or related party of the above referred persons, the statement said.

To ensure that the norms are enforced effectively, a new section “provides for punishment...

[which] is fine, which shall not be less than Rs. 1 lakh but which may extend to Rs. 2 crore.”

The ordinance aims at putting in place safeguards to prevent unscrupulous, undesirable persons

from misusing the IBC, the statement said. Actions against defaulting companies to prevent

misuse of corporate structures for diversion of funds, as well as weeding out of unscrupulous

elements from the resolution process “would help strengthen the formal economy and

encourage honest businesses and budding entrepreneurs to work in a trustworthy, predictable

regulatory environment,” it added.

In addition to putting in place restrictions for such persons to participate in the resolution or

liquidation process, the amendment also provides such check by specifying that the Committee

of Creditors (CoC) should ensure the viability and feasibility of the resolution plan before

approving it.


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The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) has also been given additional powers.

1.2 More seats for Sikkim Assembly

The Home Ministry has proposed an increase in the number of seats in the Sikkim Assembly

from 32 to 40. The expansion will be the first since the State merged with India in 1975.

The seats are being increased to accommodate people from the Limboo and Tamang

communities, notified as the Scheduled

Tribes in Sikkim in January 2003. Of the

eight seats proposed to be increased, five

will be reserved for Limboo and Tamangs.

Now, Sikkim has 12 seats reserved for

Bhutias and Lepchas, two for the Scheduled

Castes, one seat for the Sanghas and 17

general seats. As per constitutional

provisions, the total number of seats for STs

should be in proportion to the population.

The seats for Bhutia and Lepchas are reserved not on the basis of them being a Scheduled Tribe,

but as a sequel to a political agreement in 1973 between the Government of India, ex-Chogyal

(King) of Sikkim and political parties.

A petition was moved in the Supreme Court that Limboo and Tamangs were not adequately

represented in the Assembly and the apex court on January 4, 2016 directed the Home Ministry

to take necessary action.

A senior government official said a proposal has been sent to the Ministry of Law and Justice to

amend the Representation of the People Act (RPA) for the purpose. As per the Delimitation Act,

2002, the number of seats in an Assembly of any State can only be readjusted on the basis of the

first census conducted after 2026.

The Law ministry also said that the final order made by the Delimitation Commission could not

have been challenged by any court but the special constitutional provision to Sikkim allows them

to make the changes.

Mr. Chamling also said that “the existing specific reservation of 12 seats for Bhutia and Lepcha

communities, and one seat for Sangha constituency, which are given to them on the basis of

being Scheduled Tribes should not be disturbed or tinkered with.”

A resolution passed by the Sikkim Assembly in 2009 had generated apprehension in the minds of

the indigenous Bhutia-Lepchas and the expansion of the assembly seats could dilute their

political rights until there was a “proportionate increase” of seats.

The proposal also said that Section 5A of the RP Act, 1951 will be amended to provide “that in

case of a seat reserved for Limboo and Tamang tribe, he is to be a member of Limboo and

Tamang tribe specified in the Representation of Sikkim Subjects Act, 1974 and elector or an

assembly constituency in the State.”


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1.3 Centre to seek 20,000 MW of solar bids

The government is planning bids for a total of 20,000 MW of solar energy plants projects in this

financial year, of which 3,600 MW have already been completed, the Ministry of New and

Renewable Energy said.

The Ministry is planning bids for 30,000 MW of solar projects in 2018-19 and 2019-20, each. In

wind energy, the Centre on Friday announced the third wind power auction of 2,000 MW, the

largest of its kind in India so far.

Power and New and Renewable Energy Minister R.K. Singh also said that the government would

soon invite expressions of interest for the setting up of end-to-end solar component

manufacturing in India of 20 GW capacity. “We need manufacturing in India in solar,” he said.

“There is no reason for imports, and so we will encourage manufacturing in India. We are

planning a 20 GW auction, but only for those who are willing to manufacture in India. We will

invite expressions of interest in the next four or five days.”

As per the Ministry’s plan, Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) will invite two separate bids

for 3,000 MW of solar projects in December 2017 and January 2018 each.

NTPC is to invite a bid for 5,000 MW of solar projects in February 2018, and another 6,000 MW

will be bid out in March 2018 by SECI and other Central PSUs.

‘50% of 2022 target met’

In wind energy, the Ministry said it had already received bids for 32 GW of projects, which is

more than 50% of the 60 GW target set for 2022. The government is expecting bids for a total of

8-9 GW this year, and 10 GW each in 2018-19 and 2019-20.

On problems faced by the sector, New and Renewable Energy Secretary Anand Kumar said.

“One demand had to do with customs duty [being charged] for solar components.” Earlier, they

wer exempt. “We have taken this up with the Finance Ministry... and the issue will be fixed in 10

days.”

1.4 Telecom regulator backs Net neutrality

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) came out in strong support of Net neutrality in

a series of recommendations following a long process of consultations on the issue.

“The licensing terms should be amplified to provide explicit restrictions on any sort of

discrimination in Internet access based on the content being accessed, the protocols being used

or the user equipment being deployed,” TRAI said in the recommendations.

Covers all

The content mentioned includes all content, applications, services and any other data, including

its end-point information, that can be accessed or transmitted over the Internet.

Warning against any “discriminatory treatment” including blocking, degrading, slowing down or

granting preferential speeds to any content, TRAI stated, “The scope of the proposed principles


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on non-discriminatory treatment apply specifically to ‘Internet Access Services’, which are

generally available to the public.”

These recommendations have been arrived at based on the pre-consultation paper issued in

May 2016 to identify key issues and a detailed consultation paper in January 2017 which

focussed on identifying the requirements, design, scope and implementation of Net neutrality

framework in India. Based on the responses received, open house discussions were held in three

cities.

No arrangement

In a clear message to service providers, one of the recommendations reads, “The service

providers should be restricted from entering into any arrangement, agreement or contract, by

whatever name called, with any person, natural or legal, that has the effect of discriminatory

treatment based on content, sender or receiver, protocols or user equipment.”

In February 2016, TRAI had barred telecom providers from charging differential rates for data

services in its Prohibition of Discriminatory Tariffs for Data Services Regulations, 2016,

effectively blocking such attempts by Facebook and Airtel.

Facebook had earlier rolled out its Free Basics service in partnership with Reliance

Communications as a “differential service” and lobbied hard for it on social media which put it at

loggerheads with the telecom regulator.

To monitor violations, TRAI has recommended the establishment of a collaborative mechanism

in the form of a multi-stakeholder body which would be responsible for developing technical

standards for monitoring and enforcement of the principles.

Mixed reactions

There were mixed reactions to TRAI’s recommendations on Net neutrality. The Cellular

Operators Association of India (COAI) observed that the recommendations were “principally” in

agreement with the industry submissions regarding the narrow issue of Net neutrality but were

disappointed that the authority did not adopt the industry recommendation to have a wider

approach.

“A committee to review and decide on network management violations is unnecessarily

bureaucratic, and not in keeping with light touch regulation or the ease of doing business,” COAI

stated.

In contrast, the Internet Association of India (IAMAI) called the recommendations “progressive

and in line with the debates” in the industry and user groups.

“The debate of Net neutrality was about the freedom and choice of access for end users,” the

IAMAI said and added that Internet in India, unlike possibly in the U.S. or China, is going to be

‘free and open’ upholding the democratic principles of the country.

1.5 Indus civilisation flourished without flowing river: Study


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Contrary to current belief, it was the departure of a large river — not its arrival — that triggered

the growth of Indus urban centres that developed in what is now northwest India and Pakistan

some 5,300 years ago, says a new study.

The Indus civilisation developed at about the same time as urban civilisations developed in

Mesopotamia and Egypt. Archaeological evidence shows that many of the settlements in the

Indus civilisation developed along the banks of a river called the Ghaggar-Hakra.

But the new study, led by researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur and

Imperial College London, has now provided evidence that a major Himalayan river did not flow

at the same time as the development of Indus civilisation urban settlements.

“The findings challenge our current understanding of how urbanisation in many ancient

civilisations began and grew in relation to natural resources,” said lead author Sanjeev Gupta,

Professor at Imperial.

The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, showed that today’s Sutlej River

used to flow along the trace of the Ghaggar-Hakra river but rapidly changed course upstream

8,000 years ago.

This meant that 3,000 years later, when the Indus people settled the area, there was only an

abandoned large river valley occupied by seasonal monsoon river flow instead of a large

Himalayan river.

Time gap

The researchers said the time gap between the river shifting course and the Indus civilisation

settlements appearing rules out the existence of a Himalayan-fed river that nourished Indus

civilisation urban settlements along the river channel.

The team was also able to pinpoint what the original source of the river sediments had been,

showing that the Sutlej had once flowed along the Ghaggar-Hakra dried river channel, or

palaeochannel.


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2. International News

2.1 Chabahar port ready next stage for India

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani will inaugurate the first phase of the Chabahar port

development project, with senior Afghan and Indian Ministers travelling for the event,

diplomatic sources.

The External Affairs Ministry would not confirm who would represent India at the inaugration

ceremony, but Iranian officials said they expected Road Transport and Shipping Minister Nitin

Gadkari would travel to Chabahar for the event.

“The building of Phase 1 of the Chabahar port has been completed by the Iranian side,” an

official said. “President Rouhani will inaugurate the port with all regional beneficiaries and

neighbouring countries.”

Iranian media quoted President Rouhani as saying that the port “will enhance trade in the

region”, with a final aim to connect not just to Afghanistan via rail but also to the 7,200-km

International North-South Transport Corridor to Russia.

Iran’s parliament, or Majlis , recently ratified the trilateral trade agreement signed by Prime

Minister Narenda Modi, President Rouhani and Afghanistan President Ashraf Ghani in May

2016, officials said.

The inauguration of the port on Sunday will effectively pave the way for India to carry forward

the next phase of construction and development of two berths for its use, particularly for trade

with Afghanistan.

Next, the government, which has committed $500 million to the port project, will develop a

free-trade area around the port, and finally will complete the loop with a $1.6-billion railway line

to Zahedan.

India has already completed the Zaranj-Delaram highway in Afghanistan, which would facilitate

the trade to Kabul and eventually beyond to Central Asia. Mr. Gadkari, who visited Iran in

August, said the first part of India’s construction would be finished in 2018.

At present, India is using the port’s existing commercial route to transport more than 1.1 million

tonnes of wheat to Afghanistan, of which the first consignment of 15,000 tonnes from the

Kandla port came to Zaranj, via Chabahar, on November 11.

2.2 U.S. now within range of N.Korea nuclear weapons

North Korea said it successfully tested a new intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in a

“breakthrough” that puts the U.S. mainland within the range of its nuclear weapons whose

warheads could withstand re-entry to the Earth’s atmosphere.

The missile test came a week after U.S. President Donald Trump put North Korea back on a U.S.

list of countries it says support terrorism, allowing it to impose more sanctions.

North Korea, which also conducted its largest nuclear test in September, has tested dozens of

ballistic missiles under its leader, Kim Jong Un, in defiance of international sanctions.


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The latest was the highest and longest any North Korean missile had flown, landing in the sea

near Japan. North Korea said the new missile reached an altitude of about 4,475 km — more

than 10 times the height of the International Space Station — and flew 950 km during its 53-

minute flight.

The new Hwasong-15, named after planet Mars, was a more advanced version of an ICBM

tested twice in July, North Korea said. It was designed to carry a “super-large heavy warhead.”

Based on its trajectory and distance, the missile would have a range of over 13,000 km, more

than enough to reach Washington D.C. and the rest of the U.S., the U.S.-based Union of

Concerned Scientists said.

However, it was unclear how heavy a payload the missile was carrying, and it was uncertain if it

could carry a large nuclear warhead that far, the non-profit science advocacy group added.


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3. Polity and Governance

3.1 ISRO opens doors to private sector

In an attempt to increase the number of satellite launches and build the capacity of the private

sector, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) issued a tender to the private industry for

Assembly, Integration and Testing (AIT) of 30-35 satellites.

ISRO has issued a Request For Proposal (RFP) to the private industry to build 30-35 satellites

over three years. Under this, 4-5 companies would be selected after evaluation and awarded

parallel contracts. They would be responsible for the AIT of satellites at ISRO facilities.

He said ISRO currently launches 3-4 launches per year but the demand is for 16-18 satellites.

ISRO expects to get the responses to the RFP by December 5, complete selection of the

companies by January 5 and sign contracts by February5.

Gaining experience

Another ISRO official said it had tried this model on a pilot scale with two satellites. “Alpha

Design Technologies was allowed to build satellites at our facilities. We did the hand holding on

the first one and tried their staff. The second satellite was completely built by them at our

facility,” he said.

In the next step, the idea is to let the private industry build their own facilities after gaining

enough expertise, the official added. The private sector already supplies majority of the sub-

systems in satellite manufacturing.

Giving the reason for the push, he said in the next 3-4 years ISRO plans to launch 58 satellites.

“Our in-house capacity is limited. So we are looking to offload 30-40% of the work to the private

sector,”

To this end, ISRO has built a space technology park spread over 25 acres in Bengaluru where the entire

range of facilities have been set up for use by the industry.

3.2 Call to make clinical data public

From April, companies and organisations that have registered for clinical trials in India will have

to disclose the outcomes of their tests within a year of completing them.

“We never get to know about negative trial results … globally less than 60% of clinical trial

outcomes are disclosed,” said Soumya Swaminathan, Head, Indian Council of Medical Research.

Currently, all trials in India are registered on the Clinical Trials Registry — India (CTRI).

Of the trials registered with the CTRI (as on June 30, 2017), 3,318 are prospective and 5,604 are

retrospective registrations — which means details of these trials were uploaded after the

companies conducting them had begun recruiting patients.

India has had a mixed record with clinical trials, with reports, earlier in the decade, of

prospective drugs being tested on people who were not aware of what they had signed up for.


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In 2013, the Supreme Court of India forbade fresh applications for clinical trials following a

public interest litigation petition due to reports that there had been a high number of deaths

among those registered for trials.

Proper mechanism

The court asked the government to set in place a proper mechanism to regulate trials. This led

to measures which required that compensation be paid to patients affected by trials and that

there was audio-visual proof that participants had indeed consented to take part in a trial.

However, these requirements were later eased and a streamlined system is in place which,

according to clinical-trial companies, is much more conducive to organising trials.

“There have been instances in the past that threw up problems with trials but we can’t vilify the

process itself,” Dr. Swaminathan added.

Among the major trials expected is that of several prospective tuberculosis vaccines that will

begin to be tested in 20,000 patients and involve a recombinant vaccine as well as a killed

mycobacterium.

Dr. Swaminathan, who is set to take over as deputy director-general at the World Health

Organisation later this year, said the ICMR would also commission a study to look at the root

cause of deaths in children in Gorakhpur and surrounding regions.

3.3 TRAI’s new guidelines for Net Neutrality

The struggle to keep the Internet freely accessible to all got a welcome shot in the arm on

Tuesday. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) finally came out with clear guidelines

in favour of Net neutrality that are consistent with its earlier stand on Facebook’s Free Basics

proposal.

After consultation papers issued in May 2016 and this January, the regulator reiterated that

there cannot be discriminatory treatment of websites on the Internet by service providers. In

particular, TRAI warned providers against the practice of blocking certain websites and tinkering

with content speeds.

This, in a nutshell, means that service providers such as telecom companies cannot stand in the

way of a consumer’s access to content that would otherwise be provided to her without any

undue hindrance.

They cannot, for instance, charge consumers for access to certain content, or receive payment

from websites promising greater promotion of their product over the rest. Quite notably, TRAI’s

decision comes in the wake of international focus on the U.S. Federal Communications

Commission’s decision to scrap regulations on service providers imposed during the Obama

administration.

While batting for the right to an open Internet, however, TRAI has been careful to allow some

exceptions that allow companies to discriminate between content if it helps them regulate the

flow of traffic or offer “specialised services”.


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TRAI’s new guidelines impact

While TRAI’s new guidelines will help the cause of building the Internet as a public platform with

open access to all, the concerns of service providers should not be dismissed altogether. The

Internet has spread all over the world, so widely that many believe it is now an essential good.

But the infrastructure that serves as the backbone of the Internet has not come without huge

investments by private service providers. So any regulation that severely restricts the ability of

companies to earn sufficient returns on investment will only come at the cost of the welfare of

the public.

In this connection, TRAI has been open to adopting a nuanced view that differentiates between

various forms of content instead of imposing a blanket ban on all forms of price differentiation.

The new policy, for instance, will still allow companies to justify the costs incurred in providing

niche content to consumers.

At the same time, TRAI’s measured response is likely to effectively address the problem of anti-

competitive practices adopted by certain providers. Interestingly, it has left it, with important

caveats, to the government to decide on services that count as “specialised” and deserve

exceptional treatment by regulators.

To this end, a proper mechanism needs to be instituted to make sure that the exceptions are

not used as loopholes by the big Internet players. Policymakers will also need to think hard

about creating an appropriate legal framework to prevent the capture of regulation by special

interests.


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4. Economy

4.1 National Anti-profiteering Authority: A fine balance

Over four months into the troubled implementation of the goods and services tax, the Centre

has operationalised a provision in the GST law that has been worrying industry.

The National Anti-profiteering Authority, whose constitution was approved by the Cabinet, is

empowered to crack down on firms that fail to pass on the ‘benefits’ of the tax regime to

consumers.

The authority can order businesses to reduce product prices or refund to consumers ‘undue

benefits’; in extreme cases it can impose a penalty on errant firms and cancel their registration

as taxpayers.

Where the consumers are difficult to trace individually, the amount construed by the authority

to be the extent of undue benefit will be deposited in a consumer welfare fund.

The authority will have its own bureaucracy — including a screening committee in each State

that consumers can complain to; a standing committee in which profiteering allegations with an

‘all-India’ impact can be taken up; and an investigation wing that will vet complaints ‘with prima

facie’ merit and report its findings to the NAA.

More clarity is needed on how the government will ascertain the difference between undue

profit and fair play — or the discretionary space available to the NAA could enable rent-seeking.

Impact on Trade

The trigger for setting up the authority is clearly the recent large-scale reduction in tax rates on

more than 300 items, of which about 200 rate changes were to come into effect from November

15.

The government is keen on ensuring that consumers have a better perception of the GST’s

ground-level impact.

Union Finance Secretary Hasmukh Adhia has urged companies (especially those in the fast-

moving consumer goods segment) to ensure that new maximum retail prices are inscribed on

products from November 15, even on existing inventory in the market.

While wholesalers can still implement this, reaching every last retailer is a challenge. But firms

have been warned that the entire retail chain must reflect revised prices in order to avoid anti-

profiteering action; and the expectation is that there will be some exemplary action soon to

make industry fall in line.

Restaurant chains are also likely to face the heat for retaining price hikes; even though their tax

rate has dropped, they no longer get any credits for taxes paid on inputs.

Protecting consumer interest is important, but the prospect of the government monitoring

prices and asking businesses to justify pricing decisions instead of letting market forces play out

is unnerving.


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The NAA could take a cue from, if not partner, the Competition Commission of India in this, and

focus on firms raising prices indiscriminately in markets where they enjoy a dominant position,

or forming pricing cartels.

The government must ensure that the authority’s powers are used transparently and only

where there is genuine consumer/public interest at stake. Else, it runs the risk of making profit

itself a bad word.

4.2 New direct tax law coming

With the Goods and Services Tax (GST) in place, the government has now turned its attention

towards improving India’s direct tax regime by constituting a task force to review the country’s

56-year old Income Tax law and suggest a new law to replace it.

Finance Ministry formed a task force led by Central Board of Direct Taxes Member Arbind Modi

to review the Income Tax Act, 1961 and draft a new direct tax law in consonance with economic

needs of the country.

Terms of reference

“The terms of reference of the task force is to draft an appropriate direct tax legislation keeping

in view the direct tax system prevalent in various countries, international best practices, the

economic needs of the country and any other matter connected thereto,” the Ministry said in a

statement.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had sought a redrafting of the archaic Income Tax law to make it

simpler and raise India’s low direct tax base, at a meeting with tax administrators this

September.

The task force had been given six months to submit its report to the Centre. Hence, a decision

on the tax law overhaul is unlikely in the 2018-19 Union Budget.

Chief Economic Advisor Arvind Subramanian will be a permanent special invitee in the task force

that also includes academics, private sector tax experts and a retired Indian Revenue Service

officer.

4.3 Cabinet approves new finance panel

The Cabinet set the ball rolling for the constitution of the Fifteenth Finance Commission, which

will decide the devolution formula for revenue-sharing between the Centre and States from the

year 2020 till 2025.

The Commission, whose members and terms of reference will be notified soon, will have to

grapple with the significant changes in the taxation framework, such as the Goods and Services

Tax, which has replaced the earlier indirect taxation system.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said that the Cabinet had given an in-principle nod to constitute

the Commission and finalise its terms of reference.


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“The next step would be to decide on who its members would be and notify the same so that it

can begin its work,” he said.

The Fourteenth Finance Commission, whose recommendations were accepted by the

government and are effective till March 31, 2020, had mooted a ten percentage points jump in

States’ share of the central pool of taxes from 32% earlier to 42%.

Taxes shared

“India is a Union of States, the Union also has to survive,” Mr. Jaitley said in jest, hinting that the

Centre hoped the devolution of shareable taxes did not compromise on its own capacity to

spend.

“The Fifteenth Finance Commission’s recommendations have to be in place before April 1, 2020.

The normal experience is that a Finance Comission takes about two years to undertake

consultations and finalise its report,” said Mr. Jaitley, explaining the timing of the Cabinet

decision.

When asked about the terms of reference for the Commission, the Minister said: “Many

changes have taken place (since the previous Commission’s tenure). Both the Centre and States’

expenditure patterns need to be retained and the impact of the new distribution of taxes

system on States and the Centre has to be considered by the Commission.”

“It is natural that compared to the previous Finance Commissions, the exercise will be different

this time. Because, after the GST, it’s no longer the same pattern,” Mr. Jaitley pointed out.

4.4 No compromise on India’s internets at WTO: Prabhu

At next month’s meeting of the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO) highest decision-making

body, India will not compromise on its interests including ensuring food security as well as

protecting its resource-poor and low-income farmers and fisher-folk, according to commerce

minister Suresh Prabhu.

Speaking to The Hindu, Mr. Prabhu also said India — at the December 10-13 (WTO’s) Ministerial

Conference in Buenos Aires, Argentina — will hold firm on its positionagainst the inclusion of

new issues such as ‘e-commerce’ and ‘investment facilitation’ into the ongoing round of

multilateral trade negotiations, without first resolving the outstanding ones including food

security.

Besides, he said India will make sure that the ‘development agenda’ (to improve the developing

countries’ trading prospects) of the talks, which began in Doha in 2001, is not subverted.

“India will stand firm on all the issues that it has raised so far, and will not make any

compromise or dilute its stand. We will not directly or indirectly reduce our ability to push our

own agenda forward.

Also, the Doha Development Agenda (DDA) is not dead. The DDA is as important as it was before

and it will be taken forward,” the Minister, who will be leading India at the talks, said.

‘Permanent solution’


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Currently, an interim mechanism called the ‘Peace Clause’ is available for developing nations

including India, according to which they cannot be challenged at the WTO Dispute Settlement

Mechanism (DSM) even if they breach the cap of the product-specific domestic support (10% of

the value of production).

However, Mr. Prabhu said India “will insist on a permanent solution that is much better than the

Peace Clause.” Since a country that wants to invoke the Peace Clause has to comply with several

stringent conditions (on notification and transparency and commitment on prohibition of

exports from public stockholding), India is keen that a ‘permanent solution’ does not have

onerous riders.

He also said meaningful reforms in agriculture can happen only when the disproportionately

large subsidies of the developed countries are reduced.

4.5 Bharat22 ETF gains 3.78%

Bharat 22, an exchange traded fund (ETF) that is part of the government's divestment

programme, gained almost 3.8% on its debut on a day when the benchmark Sensex declined

100 points or 0.31%.

On the BSE, the ETF opened at ₹36.30, higher than its issue price of ₹35.97. It touched an intra-

day high of ₹37.38 before closing a tad lower from the high at ₹37.33 — a premium of 3.78%

over its issue price. The first day of trading saw transactions worth close to ₹380 crore with

more than 10 crore units exchanging hands.

ICICI Prudential Asset Management Company Ltd. is managing the open-ended exchange traded

fund that is part of the government's overall disinvestment programme.

Disinvestment target

In a recent note, India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) had said that the successful subscription of

Bharat 22 ETF has helped the government move closer to its overall non-debt capital receipt

target of ₹72,500 crore for the financial year 2017-18.

As of November 24, the government had raised in excess of ₹52,300 crore, it said.

The new fund offer (NFO), which was open between November 14 and November 17, was

subscribed more than four times the initial amount of ₹8,000 crore. The government decided to

retain ₹14,500 crore of the total ₹32,000 crore worth of bids.

The ETF mirrors the S&P BSE Bharat 22 Index, which comprises government-owned firms, stakes

held under the Specified Undertaking of the Unit Trust of India and public sector banks.

The index has diversified representation from six BSE sectors including industrials, finance,

utilities, energy, FMCG and basic materials.

The total expense ratio of Bharat 22 ETF is up to 1 basis point (bps), the lowest in the Indian ETF

market.

A discount of 3% on the reference market price of underlying constituents was also offered to all

categories of investors.


18


5. Science and Tech

5.1 In a first, air-launched Brahmos missile test fired

In a milestone, a BrahMos supersonic cruise missile was on Wednesday fired succesfully for the

first time from a Sukhoi-30MKI fighter aircraft of the Indian Air Force.

“The successful maiden test-firing of Brahmos Air

Launched Cruise Missile (ALCM) from Su-30MKI

will significantly bolster the IAF’s air combat

operations capability from stand-off ranges,” the

Ministry of Defence said in a statement.

The missile was gravity dropped from the Su-

30MKI from its fuselage, and the two-stage missile’s engine fired up and was propelled towards

the intended target in the Bay of Bengal.

Brahmos ALCM, which weighs 2.5 tonnes, is the heaviest weapon to be deployed on India’s Su-

30 fighter aircraft. It has a range of 290 km.

Completes tactical cruise missile triad

“Brahmos, the world class weapon with multi-platform, multi-mission role is now capable of

being launched from land, sea and air, completing the tactical cruise missile triad for India,” the

statement noted.

The land and sea variants of Brahmos are already operational with the Army and the Navy.

Recently, the range variants were upgraded from 290 km to 450 km after India joined the

Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR).

BrahMos is a joint venture between India and Russia and named after the Brahmaputra and

Moscowa rivers.

5.2 Can a healthy diet keep tuberculosis at bay?

Can a healthy diet stave off tuberculosis? The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) will

monitor 2000 TB patients in Jharkhand and additionally ensure that they are well fed to

determine the extent to which a good diet can influence tuberculosis treatment.

While the link between a healthy diet and effectiveness of drugs used to treat TB may appear

obvious, previous attempts at supplementing patients’ diets with micronutrients alone have not

led to significant health improvements.

“What we plan to do so is ensure that a cohort group gets wholesome nutrition and ideal care

and then quantify its benefits,” said Soumya Swaminathan, Head, ICMR. Given the infectious

nature of tuberculosis, the study is also designed to test if — beyond the patients under scrutiny

— the villages where they reside also show a decline in disease incidence.

The department is drawing inspiration from an experiment in the early 20th century in England,

where tuberculosis patients — in the absence of viable drugs — were given a nutritious diet. It


19


turned out, said Dr. Swaminathan, that overall health in the community vastly improved as the

patients got better and spread less disease.

The outcomes of the study, which is expected to last over a year, will influence an ongoing

government proposal to provide cash assistance to tuberculosis patients to help them with

adequate nutrition.

Under the Revised National Tuberculosis Control Programme , the Health Ministry is mooting a

proposal to provide Rs. 5,000 to those affected by TB. Several States offer cash assistance to

Below Poverty Line families afflicted by TB.

“If malnutrition emerges as a key factor in tuberculosis, that would mean funds have to be

accordingly provisioned to address it,” she added.

5.3 TRAI backs free data in a non-discriminatory way

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has stuck to its recommendation of allowing

free data to consumers in a non-discriminatory manner by third-party aggregators while

agreeing with the telecom department’s views that government money can be used for

connectivity rather than supporting free data scheme to rural subscribers.

The regulator noted that data had become affordable due to a tariff war in the telecom sector,

and that “concern with regard to availability of affordable data services has been mitigated.”

“The authority tends to agree with the views of DoT (Department of Telecom) that a larger focus

is required on connectivity, content availability in local language and digital literacy. The

resources could therefore be effectively utilised to address the said issues,” TRAI said

responding to the telecom department’s views on its free data recommendations.

In December last year, Trai had recommended that a “reasonable” amount of free data access

— say a 100 MB per month — be provided to rural subscribers and the scheme could be funded

from the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF).

However, the DoT subsequently pointed out that cost of an Internet enabled mobile handset

was a bigger “obstacle” than the tariff of Internet access, and that the latter had already been

addressed to an extent through market competition.

DoT questioned whether it would be worthwhile to provide a subsidy to those rural subscribers

who already owned smartphones. It opined that the applicability of the proposed scheme was

“limited”, thus undermining its tenability.

5.4 India unlikely to cut malaria burden half in 2020: WHO

India accounted for 6% of global malaria cases and 7% of deaths caused by it in 2016, according

to a report released by the World Health Organisation (WHO). This is in the same ballpark as last

year, though the WHO figures also suggest that India is unlikely to reduce its case burden

beyond 40% by 2020.

In contrast, Maldives, Sri Lanka and Kyrgyzstan achieved malaria-free status in 2015 and 2016

respectively.


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There were an estimated 445,000 deaths from malaria globally in 2016, compared with 446,000

estimated deaths in 2015. About 80% of the deaths were accounted for by 15 countries, namely,

India and 14 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa.

A key impediment to eliminating malaria is a weak surveillance system. India and Nigeria, two

major contributors to the global burden of malaria, were able to detect only 8% and 16% of

cases, respectively, via the system.

Moreover, 51% of plasmodium vivax cases — the milder cousin of the p. falciparum — were

traced in India. This could at least be partially explained by resistance to chloroquine, the first

line treatment to p. vivax infections that has been detected in pockets of the country earlier this

decade.

For a long time, p falciparum dominated India’s case burden and, though its share has

decreased, there is a slight increase in malaria cases by other parasites.

Bhutan, Nepal, Thailand, Bangladesh, Myanmar and Indonesia, says the WHO, are among the

countries poised to reduce malaria incidence by over 40% by 2020. India — due to low funding

per person at risk and resistance to certain frontline insecticides — is only expected to achieve a

20%-40% reduction.

In 2016, an estimated ₹13,000 crore was invested in malaria control and elimination efforts

globally by governments of malaria endemic countries and their international partners.

The majority (74%) of investments in 2016 were spent in the WHO’s Africa region, followed by

the WHO regions of Southeast Asia (7%), the Eastern Mediterranean and the Americas (each

6%), and the Western Pacific (4%).


21


6. Environment / Geography

6.1 India loses billion to air pollution: UN

India had the highest share of welfare costs (or a loss of income from labour), of about $220

billion (about ₹1.4 trillion), in South and South-East Asia — of a combined total of $380 billion

from mortality due to air pollution, according to a report by the United Nations Environment

Programme (UNEP).

The global mortality costs from outdoor air pollution are projected to rise to about $25 trillion

by 2060 in the absence of more stringent measures.

At regional and national scale, China’s welfare costs from mortality were the highest at nearly

$1 trillion followed by the Organisation for Economic Corporation and Development (OECD)

countries with a combined total of $730 billion, the report added quoting a 2016 projection by

the OECD.

Although certain forms of pollution have been reduced as “technologies and management

strategies have advanced,” approximately 19 million premature deaths are estimated to occur

annually as a result of the way societies use natural resources and impact the environment to

support production and consumption, it notes.

Serious burden

“If consumption and production patterns continue as they are, the linear economic model of

‘take-make-dispose’ will seriously burden an already-polluted planet, affecting current and

future generations,” the report’s foreword concludes.

To curb pollution in various forms, the UNEP called for strong high-level political commitment

and engagement of the local government, civil society and other stakeholders. “Pollution is a

universal challenge [but] the good news is that we already know what we need to do to prevent

and reduce it,”

UNEP Executive Director Erik Solheim said in a statement, stressing that “now the responsibility

is on governments, businesses, cities and local authorities, civil society and individuals around

the world to commit to act to beat pollution in all its forms.”

To achieve high level political commitment in key economic sectors, there is a need to go

beyond the environmental ministries and include other relevant ministries such as finance,

agriculture, industry, urban, transport, energy and health.

There is also a need to engage the local government, civil society organisations, business

leaders, industries, trade unions and citizens at large. Reporting on the progress that comes

from acting on pollution – whether through voluntary measures or formal laws – is a crucial step

in this transition.

The report, ‘Towards a pollution-free planet’, was launched during the first Conference of

Parties for the Minamata Convention, which addresses mercury issues, and ahead of the annual

U.N. Environment Assembly, to be held in early December.


22


7. Security

7.1 IAF banks on Teja’s, new fighter to bolster fleet

The Indian Air Force (IAF) is looking at the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas and the

soon-to-be-procured single-engine fighter jet to arrest a dramatic fall in its squadron strength as

the deal for 36 Rafale jets lands in the middle of political maelstrom.

“The rate of decommissioning is way higher than the planned and even proposed inductions.

Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas is a good aircraft and 123 LCAs will be inducted in the force as

planned. But the numbers are not coming fast enough and the requirement is much beyond that

in other categories,” a Defence Ministry source said.

The IAF has a sanctioned strength of 42 squadrons and a projected requirement of 45 to face

the anticipated threat of a two-front war. As on date the IAF has 33 squadrons and by the end of

next month it will be down to 31 squadrons.

With the planned induction of 36 Rafales between 2019 and 2022, the remaining Sukhoi-30MKIs

and some LCAs (Tejas) the strength will hover at 30 till 2027 and in the subsequent five-year

term will fall to 27 squadrons. If there are no newer inductions it will slide further to 19

squadrons by 2042.

“IAF is upgrading most of the aircraft in its inventory. But from 2025 onwards most of those

aircraft such as the Jaguars and the MiG-29s will start going out,” the source said.

In a month, the IAF is expected to issue the Request for Information (RFI) for over a 100 single-

engine fighter aircraft under the Strategic Partnership model. Lockheed F-16 and Saab Gripen

are in the race for the order and have already tied up with Tata and Adani, respectively, to build

the jets locally with technology transfer.

The IAF has placed orders for 40 jets in two batches of which the first 20 are in the Initial

Operational Configuration (IOC) while the remaining 20 are in the Final Operational

Configuration (FOC).


23


8. India and World

8.1 Singapore offers India logistical base

India and Singapore agreed on greater cooperation and activity in the Strait of Malacca and the

Andaman Sea even as the two countries concluded a wide ranging naval agreement for

maritime cooperation including logistical support.

The two countries concluded a bilateral agreement for naval cooperation, which includes

maritime security, joint exercises and temporary deployments from the naval facilities of each

other and mutual logistical support.

Early this year, the Indian Navy permanently deployed a frontline warship at the mouth of the

strait to keep an eye on the increasing Chinese movements in the Indian Ocean as part of its

mission-based deployment.

The agreement would give the Navy the ability for extended deployments in the region.

Dr. Ng said it made sense for countries to cooperate not only to establish maritime security but

also to maintain freedom of navigation because “we know it is a lifeline for economies”.

“We will conduct exercises and patrols in your waters as you do in ours. We try to economise

and support each other,” he said.

Key choke point

The comments assume significance as the strait is considered a critical choke point for global

commerce and is seen by China as a vulnerability for its energy security. The development is

likely to be followed closely by Beijing.

Ms. Sitharaman said Singapore had accepted India’s proposal to institutionalise naval

engagements in the shared maritime space, including setting up maritime exercises with like-

minded countries and other ASEAN partners.

The two countries also agreed to explore joints projects in research and development.


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9. Short News

9.1 IITs IISc find place in QS BRICS rankings

Some Indian institutions have made it to the top 20 in the QS University rankings: BRICS 2018.

However, the top three slots are with Chinese universities. Tsinghua University, Peking

University and Fudan University of China are at the top of the rankings.

Four Indian institutions — IIT Bombay, Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, IIT Delhi, and IIT

Madras — feature in the top 20, with IIT Bombay at the ninth position.

IIT Roorkee is ranked 51, IIT Gauhati 52 and Calcutta University 64.

UGC Chairman V.S. Chauhan said the rankings for all their complexities had given the Indian

universities the opportunity to collate the good work done by them.


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