Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment

(YEAR END REVIEW-2014 of Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities) Launch of Modern AIDS and Assistive Devices & Commencement of New Schemes

The Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment (Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disability) is entrusted with the empowerment of the Persons with Disabilities.  The main activity of the Department are: 1.      Scheme of Assistance to Disabled Persons for Purchase/Fitting of Aids/Appliances (ADIP) Scheme Under the ADIP Scheme, grant-in-aid is released to various implementing agencies (National Institutes/ Composite Regional Centres/Artificial Limbs Manufacturing Corporation of India(ALIMCO)/District Disability Rehabilitation Centres/State Handicapped Development Corporations/other local bodies/ NGOs) to assist the needy disabled persons in procuring durable, sophisticated and scientifically manufactured, modern, standard aids and appliances to promote  physical, social and psychological rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities by reducing the effects of disabilities and at the same time enhance their economic potential.   Revision of ADIP Scheme The ADIP scheme has been revised w.e.f. 1.4.2014. The salient features of the revised ADIP Scheme are as indicated below:-  (i)                 Enhancement of income eligibility ceiling for 100% concession from the existing Rs. 6,500/- per month to Rs. 15,000/- per month and for a 50% concession from Rs. 15001/- to Rs. 20,000/- per month. (ii)        To provide accessible mobile phone to visually impaired students of the age of 18 years and above only, once in five years and to provide laptop, Braille Note Taker and Brailler to school going disabled students (10th and above), once in 10 years. (iii)       Cost ceiling for aids/appliances revised from Rs. 6000/- to Rs. 10,000/- for single disability and from Rs. 8,000/- to Rs. 12,000/- for Students with Disabilities. (iv)       Ceiling of cost of medical/surgical correction which presently ranges from Rs. 500/- to Rs. 3,000/- revised as under:- (a)                From Rs.500/- to Rs.1,000/- for hearing and speech impaired. (b)               From Rs.1,000/- to Rs.2,000/- for visually disabled. (c)                From Rs.3,000/- to Rs.5,000/- for orthopedically disabled.  (v)        Enhancing  the extent of subsidy for motorized tricycles and wheelchairs from the present Rs. 6,000/- to Rs. 25,000/- for severely disabled and for locomotor disabilities such as Quadriplegic (SCI), Muscular Dystrophy, Stroke, Cerebral Palsy, Hemiplegia and any other person with similar conditions where either three/four limbs or one half of the body are severely impaired.  This will be provided to the persons of age of 18 years and above, once in 10 years. vi)        Provision for cochlear implant for 500 children per year with Hearing disability under the scheme, with a ceiling of Rs. 6.00 lakh per unit.   Income ceiling for the beneficiaries will be the same i.e., up to Rs. 15,000/- per month for 100% concession and from    Rs. 15001/- to Rs. 20,000/- per month for  50% concession. vii)       Implementing agencies shall use 5% of the grant-in-aid as administrative/overhead expenses for conducting awareness, assessment and follow-up camps. The Budget Allocation for the year 2014-15 is Rs. 110.00 crore. 2.                  Scheme for Implementation of Persons with Disabilities Act, 1995 (SIPDA) i)                    Financial assistance is provided under the Scheme to State Govt. and institutions/organisations run by the Central and State Governments for various activities for implementation of Persons with Disabilities Act, mainly for providing barrier free environment in Universities, Public Buildings, State Government Secretariat, office of State Commissioner for Disabilities etc.,  to make Government websites at the State and District levels accessible to PwDs, to establish early diagnostic and intervention centres at District Headquarters/other places having Government Medical Colleges, Skill development programmes for PwDs, construction of special recreation centres for PwDs where the appropriate Governments/local authorities have their own land.  The Budget Allocation for the year 2014-15 is Rs. 80.00 crore.  3.                  Setting up of National Institute for Inclusive and Universal Design Ministry propose to establish National Institute for Inclusive and Universal Design on the Inclusive Agenda of Universal Design which will focus on Environmental access by everyone, though assigning higher importance to access by people with Disabilities 4.                  Setting up of Indian Sign Language Research & Training Centre(ISLRTC) v  Ministry proposes to set up Indian Sign Language Research & Training Centre (ISLRTC) under the aegis of Department of Disability Affairs. v  The Institute will lead the way in academic development, training and propagation of Indian Sign Language. 5.                  State Spinal Injury Centres v Department is in process of formulation of a Scheme of setting up of State Spinal Injury Centre for which an outlay of Rs. 20 crore has been earmarked under the 12th Five Year Plan. v The focus of the State Spinal Injury Centres shall be mainly on the comprehensive management of Spinal Injuries.  6.         Establishment of Centre for Disability Sports v  Centre for Disability Sports is proposed to be established for which Rs. 20.00 crore is earmarked for 12th Plan period. v  Action has been initiated to engage a consultant for preparation of Detailed Project Report. v  Ministry also proposes to establish Regional Centres. 7.                  Directory of Aids & Assistive Devices The Department in collaboration with TIFAC, an autonomous body of the Department of Science and Technology, initiated a web portal for meeting the accessible needs relating  to aids and appliances for persons with disabilities.  The web portal has been launched by the Hon’ble President on 3rd December 2014. 8.                  Rights of Persons with Disabilities The Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995 has been in force for over 17 years. In order to harmonize the provisions of this Act in Line with the United Nation Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), the Act has been reviewed and a new Bill namely Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill, 2013 was finalized after extensive consultations with the Central Ministries/Departments, State Governments/UTs and various stakeholders. Accordingly, the Department moved a Cabinet Note on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill, 2013 to replace the existing Persons with Disabilities Act, 1995 on 11.12.2013. The Union Cabinet in its meeting held on 12.12.2013 approved the RPwD Bill. Subsequently, the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill, 2014 was introduced in the Rajya Sabha on 6th February 2014 and it was referred to Department Related Parliamentary Standing Committee for examination. The Parliamentary Standing Committee. 9.                  International Cooperation UNESCO organised an International Conference " From Exclusion to Empowerment: The Role of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) for Persons with Disabilities) in New Delhi from 24th - 26th  November, 2014 in association with this Department and Ministry of Human Resource Development. The Conference deliberated on various key issues such as challenges faced by persons with disabilities to access information and knowledge, technological solutions available to provide equitable access etc. The Department supported the conference not only from logistical point of view but also in the form of participation in exhibition, chairing/participating in different session of the conference 10.              District Disability Rehabilitation Centres (DDRCs)             To create infrastructure and capacity building at District level for providing comprehensive rehabilitation services to the persons with disabilities at the grass root level and for facilitating at the district level for awareness generation, training rehabilitation professionals theMinistry provides assistance for setting up District Disability Rehabilitation Centres (DDRCs)  in underserved districts of the country.  Until March, 2010, 199 DDRCs have been sanctioned.  Out of this 185 such DDRCs are functional as on date.             In the budget speech of the Finance Minister for 2010-11, it was announced that 100 new DDRCs would be opened during the remaining period of XI Five Year Plan.  Accordingly 100 under-served districts in 20 States were identified and concerned State Governments requested to send proposals for setting up new DDRCs.              The National Programme for prevention and control of Japanese Encephalitis (JE)/Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) in the country prepared by Ministry of Health and Family Welfare covers 60 priority districts of 5 States and inter alia approved setting up of 15 new DDRCs in the remaining high priority districts of 4 States.   Out of 15 new DDRCs 11 have been set up.  As on date 247 DDRCs have been set up.  11.              Main activities of National Institutes o Foundation stone laying of a building of Special Education and Disability Studies in premises of National Institute for the Visually Handicapped on 14.11.2014. o Foundation stone laying of a  New Girls Hostel in the National Institute for Rehabilitation Training & Research (NIRTAR), Cuttack (Odisha) on 25.08.2014 v  Foundation stone laying for Hydrotherapy pool and athletic track was held on 26.9.2014 at National Institute for Empowerment of Person with Multiple Disabilities, Chennai. v  Inauguration of 150 bed girls hostel at a cost of Rs.4.70 crores at SVNIRTAR, Cuttak on 25.08.2014 v  Foundation stone laying of new building of Rehabilitation  Centre (RC) at o Srinagar on 18.06.2014 at a cost of Rs.3.00 crore. v  Inauguration of Academic Block at National Institute for Mentally Handicapped (NIMH), Secunderabad at a cost of Rs.5.00 crore on 13.06.2014. v  Foundation Stone laying of Sensory park at NIMH, Secunderabad at a cost of Rs.15.00 lakh on 13.06.2014. v  Modernization of 10 existing and establishment of 15 new Braille Presses to augment production of Braille pages. v  A total of 2252 PwDs have been imparted vocational training through the o NHFDC and the National Institutes under the Department. v  National Institute for the Visually Handicapped, Dehradun successfully o accomplished the task of publishing “Doctor Baba Saheb Ambedkar: Writing and Speeches” in Braille assigned by Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment on 29.10.2014 in a function organized to release the four volumes of the series by the Hon’ble Cabinet Minister, Mr. Thawar Chand Gehlot, Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment. v  Department of Disabilities Affairs has approved the Dynamic Assured Career Progression Scheme (DACP) for the Medical Doctors working in the National Institutes. The implementation of the DACP Scheme will take effect from 21.10.2008. v  All National Institutes have been implementing Swatch Bharat Mission launched by Hon’ble Prime Minister on 2.10.2014 v  National Institute for Empowerment of Person with Multiple Disabilities, Chennai released book on Deaf Blindness on 26.9.2014 v  Hon’ble Minister inaugurated Disabled Friendly Website of SVNIRTAR in the National Institute for Rehabilitation Training & Research (NIRTAR), Cuttack (Odhisa) on 25.08.2014. v  National Institute for the Visually Handicapped, Dehradun has organized two Job Fairs – one at Sundernagar in Himachal Pradesh on 21.05.2014 and another at Dehradun in Uttrakhand on 28.06.2014. In this Job Fairs ten Private Companies participated. A total of 455 persons with Disabilities participated in the Job Fair and 74 persons with Disabilities got job with the Participating Companies. v  National Institute for the Visually Handicapped, Dehradun had developed Braille Course for Nepali, Garo and Khasi Languages under the North East Project. v  Pt. Deendayal Upadhayay Institue for the Physically Handicapped, New Delhi organized a job fair in collaboration with Sarthak, a Delhi based NGO on 19.6.2014 with a dual objective of sensitizing professionals about the capabilities of Persons with Disabilities and short listing eligible/potential persons with Disabilities for suitable placements. v  Prime Minister Skill Development Programme being implemented through 50 NGOs across country by National Institute for Empowerment of Person with Multiple Disabilities, Chennai. v  The Ministry in collaboration with UNESCO through its National Institute for Empowerment of Persons with Multiple Disabilities, Chennai organized the International Conference on Role of ICT for Persons with Disabilities and Screening of Films related to Disability  at Vigyan Bhawan,N. Delhi from 24th –26th November, 2014. v  Hon’ble Minister SJ&E inaugurated the two days International Conference on Multiple Disabilities organized by National Institute for Empowerment of Persons with Multiple Disabilities, Chennai held at Vigyan Bhawan on 29.10.2014. Representatives of United Kingdom, Russia, United States of America, South Africa and Brazil  participated. v  A three day National Conference is proposed to be organized in the Month of January, 2015 for the North-Eastern States on “Cross Disability Management”,by Rehabilitation Council of India. ·         Swami Vivekanand National Institute for Rehabilitation Training and Research,(SVNIRTAR), Cuttack has initiated action to modernize the existing Operation Theatre to Modular Operation Theatre under Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funding from REC. ·         Skill development for 15000 PwDs have been targeted under vocational training to be conducted by NHFDC and National Institutes. 12.       Deendayal Disabled Rehabilitation Scheme (DDRS) The Department of Disability Affairs is implementing a flagship Scheme, namely, Deendayal Disabled Rehabilitation Scheme (DDRS) under which this Department has been providing grant-in-aid to non-governmental organizations (NGOs)   for projects relating to rehabilitation of persons with disabilities including Vocational Training aimed at enabling persons with disabilities to reach and maintain their optimal, physical, sensory, intellectual, psychiatric or social functional levels. There are 18 model projects under the Scheme. There are 66 manpower categories comprising 48 technical, 4 technical (part-time), and 14 non-technical categories. Following programmes are funded (upto 90% of the project cost) under DDRS for providing a wide range of services to children/persons with disability: (a) programmes for pre-school and early intervention (b) special education, (c) vocational training and placement  (d) community based rehabilitation  (e) manpower development  (f) psycho-social rehabilitation of persons with mental illness  (g) rehabilitation of leprosy-cured persons, etc. Under this Scheme in the year 2013-14 the total no. of Proposals sanctioned 978 for an amount of Rs. 63.64 crore. During the Current financial year 2014-15 a total of Rs. 27.05 crore has sanctioned as on 23.12.2014. 13.       Scholarship Schemes of the Department During the year 2014, the following three new scholarship schemes have been launched by Department of Disability Affairs for the benefit of the students with disabilities: 1)        National Overseas Scholarship for Students with Disabilities, 2)        & 3) Pre-Matric Scholarship and Post-Matric Scholarship for Students with Disabilities, The brief features of the schemes are given below: (1) National Overseas Scholarship for Students with Disabilities                         The scheme of National Overseas Scholarship for Students with Disabilities has been launched with the objectives of  providing  financial assistance to the students with disabilities for pursuing studies abroad at the level of Masters’ Degree and Ph.D. Twenty (20) scholarships are to be awarded every year out of which six are reserved for women candidates. The scholarship amount includes Maintenance Allowance, Contingency Allowance, Tuition Fees, and Cost of Air Passage etc. In addition to the above, there is a provision of “Passage Grants” to two Students with Disabilities every year.  Only those Students with Disabilities  who are in receipt of a merit scholarship for Post GraduateStudies, Research or Training abroad (excluding attending seminars, workshops, conferences), from aforeign government/ organization or under any other scheme, where the cost of passage is not provided,shall be eligible. The Passage Grant includes to-and-fro air-fare from home-station to the Institute abroad by economy class through Air India. Applications have been called for and the process of selection is under way.  (2)&(3) Pre-Matric Scholarship and Post-Matric Scholarship for Students with Disabilities This scheme has been launched by the Department of Disability Affairs in October, 2014. The objectives of the schemes are to provide financial assistance to the parents of students with disabilities for studying in the pre-matric level and post-matric level. The financial assistance includes scholarship, book grant, escort/reader allowance, etc. Number of scholarships to be granted every year is 46,000 for pre-matric level and 16,650 for post-matric level. Selection of the beneficiaries under these two scholarship schemes is on the basis of merit after the recommendation of the Governments of State or Union Territories.  These schemes will be implemented on-line basis through a web-portal which is yet to be ready. The web portal is being prepared by NIC and Deptt. of Electronics & Information Technology. 14.       Awareness Generation & Publicity Scheme  This scheme has been launched in September, 2014 and is operational from the current Financial Year 2014-15 onward. The scheme aims to give publicity to the schemes/programmes of the Government through electronic, print, film media etc., educate the PwDs and civil society about legal rights of PwDs, sensitize the employers on special needs of PwDs, promote awareness and sensitize society on causes leading to disability  etc.  2.         (A)   The following types of organization are eligible :- (i)       Self-help groups (ii)      Advocacy and self-advocacy organizations. (iii)     Parents & Community Organizations working for  mobilization and bring about change in social attitude (iv)     Psychological and emotional support service (v)      Community based rehabilitation organizations (vi)     Organizations working for stress management and social isolation eradication (vii)    Organizations working for labour market programmes,    vocational training, social insurance, providing support services to PwDs.             (B)     Organization seeking grant should be a not for profit organization with 3 years standing as a society or a Public Trust and with good track record. 3.       The quantum of financial assistance and the content may be considered by the committee constituting of the following  (i) Joint Secretary (Awareness Generation & Publicity), Department of Disability Affairs(DDA) (ii)  Representative of Integrated Finance Division(DDA) (iii) Representative of DAVP (iv) A special invitee from amongst PwDs / representative groups/ organizations working in the field of disability (v)  Director / DS (Awareness Generation & Publicity) 4.         Components admissible for assistance under the scheme includes setting up of a help line for online counselling of the PwDs, content development, publications and new media, organizing national events, participation in the international initiatives or to support various schemes organized by NGOs or self-help groups, volunteer service / outreach programme for sensitizing commercial establishment and employers, recreation and tourism, participation in community radio, media activities.  5.         The budgetary provision during XII Five Year Plan for the scheme is  Rs. 50 crore. During current Financial Year, the budgetary provision under the Scheme is Rs. 3.00 crore.  So far, two meetings of the  Committee  for Grants under Awareness Generation and Publicity Scheme have been held where 43 proposals  have been considered under the scheme

PAHAL

inauguration of Mission Office for PAHAL at World Trade Centre

Honb’le Minister of State (Independent charge) Petroleum and natural gas Shri Dharmendra Pradhan has inaugurated the PAHAL office in World Trade Centre in New Delhi today. During the inauguration ceremony Shri Saurabh Chandra Secretary Petroleum and Natural Gas and other officers of Ministry and Oil Marketing Companies were also present. Speaking on the occasion, Minister said that PAHAL is one of the most ambitious project of Government of India, being the largest direct benefit transfer scheme in world. He said that ministry is rolling out the scheme in a mission mode and rollout of the scheme will happen in entire country on 1st January 2015. Creation of a separate mission office for PAHAL is one such step in this regard. Government has also approved creation of a separate PAHAL mission office comprising of a Director level officer assisted by one under secretary, one section officer, two assistant and consultants in view of the scale of the scheme. CMDs and all senior officers of Oil Marketing Companies and officers of the Ministry have been made the guardian officers of one district to monitor the implementation of the scheme. In this regard, the Minister has also taken charge of Palwal district in Haryana.PAHAL implementation has also been linked with the Annual performance Appraisal of the Oil Company’s officers who have been given the task of supervision and coordination at district level. Minister has interacted with District administrations of over 40 Districts, with a view to ensure there is coordination between various stakeholders and also for a seamless roll-out across the country. In this context, it is planned to cover another 10 Districts before the end of this year, as part of this exercise. In this regard it is important to mention that Ministry has already launched the scheme in 54 districts of the country on 15.11.2014 where the progress of the scheme has been quite satisfactory. The scheme will be extended to all districts of the country on 1st January 2015 covering approximately 15.34 Crore LPG consumers. So far 5.38 Crore LPG Consumers have already provided the details of Aadhaar / bank accounts and are eligible to receive the subsidy in their bank accounts. An amount of Rs.549 Crore has already been transferred into the bank account of 17.9 Lakh LPG consumers since 15.11.2014.

“Mission Indradhanush”

“Will achieve full immunization coverage for all children by 2020 through a Catch-Up campaign”

Shri J P Nadda, Health & Family Welfare Minister launched “Mission Indradhanush”, here today. The Mission Indradhanush, depicting seven colours of the rainbow, aims to cover all those children by 2020 who are either unvaccinated, or are partially vaccinated against seven vaccine preventable diseases which include diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, polio, tuberculosis, measles and hepatitis B. The Minister launched the Mission on Good Governance Day to mark the birth anniversary of Bharat Ratna Shri Madan Mohan Malaviya and birthday of Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Enumerating on the Mission, the Health Minister said, “We have identified 201 high focus districts in the country in the first phase which have nearly 50% of all unvaccinated or partially vaccinated children. These districts will be targeted by intensive efforts to improve the routine immunization coverage.” The Minister stated that of the 201 districts, 82 districts are in just four states of UP, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan and nearly 25% of the unvaccinated or partially vaccinated children of India are in these 82 districts of 4 states. Shri J P Nadda informed that between 2009-2013 immunization coverage has increased from 61% to 65%, indicating only 1% increase in coverage every year. To accelerate the process of immunization by covering 5% and more children every year, the Mission Mode has been adopted to achieve target of full coverage by 2020, he stated. The Minister said that the focused and systematic immunization drive will be through a “catch-up” campaign mode where the aim is to cover all the children who have been left out or missed out for immunization. Under Mission Indradhanush, four special vaccination campaigns will be conducted between January and June 2015 with intensive planning and monitoring of these campaigns. The learnings from the successful implementation of the polio programme will be applied in planning and implementation of the mission, he noted. While 201 districts will be covered in the first phase, 297 will be targeted for the second phase in the year 2015. The Ministry will be technically supported by WHO, UNICEF, Rotary International and other donor partners. Mass media, interpersonal communication, and sturdy mechanisms of monitoring and evaluating the scheme are crucial components of Mission Indradhanush, said the Minister.

“E-Book” on “Good Governance: Ministry of Finance”

FOREWORD The Government attaches utmost importance to the need for improving Governance and service delivery to the common man. One of the important tenets in this direction is the effective use of IT based applications under e-Governance initiatives. In line with this, the Ministry of Finance has taken-up the initiative of raising an e-Book. This provides an easy access to various initiatives including good governance initiatives taken under the Ministry of Finance (MoF) and an IT enabled platform. MoF hopes this will be useful to the citizens and an important step in bringing the governance closer to the public. Ministry of Finance (MoF) is happy to launch this initiative on “Sushashan Diwas” (Good Governance Day). Ministry of Finance Team MINISTRY OF FINANCE DEPARTMENT OF EXPENDITURE (i) As part of the Government’s commitment to the principle of ‘Minimum Government and Maximum Governance’, Expenditure Management Commission was constituted on 5.9.2014 to review the allocative and operational efficiencies of Government expenditure. The Commission will submit its interim report before the Budget of 2015-16 and its final report before the Budget of 2016-17. (ii) In the wake of severe calamities like Cyclones, Floods and Droughts etc., an amount of Rs. 427.06 crore, Rs. 10.74 crore, Rs. 1.42 crore, Rs. 82.77 crore, Rs. 83.13 crore, Rs. 172.33 crore, Rs. 18.51 crore and Rs. 1000.00 crore has been released to the States of Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Telangana and J&K respectively for taking up immediate rescue, relief and restoration works. (iii) Department of Expenditure has enhanced the delegation of powers for appraisal and approval of Plan Schemes and Projects at all levels. All schemes and projects up to Rs.500 crore can now be approved by Central Ministries themselves, and only projects above Rs.1000 crore are now required to be sent to the Cabinet for approval. (iv) Swachh Bharat Kosh (SBK) has been set up to attract Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds from corporate sector and contributions from individuals and philanthropists in response to the call given by Hon’ble Prime Minister on 15th August, 2014 to achieve the objective of Clean India (Swachh Bharat) by the year 2019, the 150th year of the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi through Swachh Bharat Mission. (v) Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) : The vision of DBT is to transfer cash or benefits directly to the beneficiaries’ accounts, preferably Aadhar seeded, cutting down several layers of the intermediaries in order to achieve timely and more frequent payments, target intended beneficiaries more accurately, remove fake, ghost beneficiaries and de duplicate and improve efficiency in delivery system. This is also to create transparency and accountability in government delivery systems and empower beneficiaries. (vi) Central Pension Accounting Office (CPAO) has initiated process of issuing e-PPO to the pensioners. The CPAO has introduced the facility to see the first credit of pension in the pensioners/family pensioners bank account through its website. DEPARTMENT OF FINANCIAL SERVICES (vii) Financial Inclusion and Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY):To increase banking penetration and promoting financial inclusion and with the main objective of covering all households with at least one bank account per household across the country , a National Mission on Financial Inclusion named as Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) announced by Hon’ble Prime Minister in his Independence Day Speech on 15th August, 2014 was formally launched on 28th August, 2014 at National level by Hon’ble Prime Minister. (viii) Licensing small banks, payments banks and other differentiated banks: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) formulated and released guidelines for licensing of payments banks and small finance banks in the private sector on November 27, 2014. (ix) Varishta Pension Bima Yojana(VPBY): Government revived the 2003-04Varishta Pension BIma Yojana(VPBY) for one year for senior citizens over 60 years of age to enable a pension between Rs. 500 and Rs. 5000 per month against a stipulated purchase price, implying a monthly rate of return of 9%. Quarterly, biennual and annual options are also available. (x) Cabinet Approval for Revival of 23 District Central Cooperative Banks: The Cabinet approved the Scheme for revival of 23 unlicensed District Central Cooperative Banks (DCCBs) in four States, comprising 16 in Uttar Pradesh, 3 in Jammu & Kashmir, 3 in Maharashtra and 1 in West Bengal. Under the Scheme, the total capital infusion envisaged would be Rs. 2375.42 Crore, of which the commitment from the Central Government would be Rs. 673.29 Crore. State Governments would provide Rs. 1464.59 Crore and NABARD Rs.237.54 Crore. DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMIC AFFAIRS (xi) Several measures taken by the Government in the past seven months which augur well for the growth of Indian economy as evidenced in the following outcomes: ·         GDP growth which was below 5 percent in the last two years has grown at 5.5 per cent in the first half of the current year. ·         Inflation as measured by Consumer Price Index is at its lowest ever level in November 2014 (4.4 per cent) since the introduction of the new series in 2011-12. ·         Wholesale Price Index inflation is 0.0 per cent for November, 2014, lowest since 2009. This has been achieved largely due to constant monitoring and measures taken such as delisting of vegetables and perishables from APMC Act, release of food grains stocks, fixing of minimum export prices for key commodities. ·         India’s external sector is now far more resilient and robust than before. Current account deficit was 1.9 per cent of GDP in the first half of 2014-15 as against 3.1 percent of GDP in the first half of 2013-14. ·         Capital flows particularly investment flows have been buoyant in the first half of 2014-15 and there has been significant addition to the foreign exchange reserves. Total Investment Flows are placed at USD 43.4 billion in April-October, 2014 as against USD 9.4 billion in April-October, 2013. Foreign Exchange Reserves stood at US$ 314.7 billion as on December 5, 2014. (xii) Initiatives to promote savings rate in the economy: ·         Investment limit under Public Provident Fund increased from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1.5 lakh; ·         A scheme exclusively for the girl child has been notified. The scheme will provide funds at the stage of “Education” and “Marriage” of the girl child. (xiii) Initiatives taken by SEBI on Good Governance in past seven (7) months: ·         To strengthen regulatory framework dealing with the insider trading SEBI Board in its meeting held on 19.11 14 approved amendments to SEBI (Prohibition of Insider Trading) Regulations 1992. The amendments provide for strengthening the legal and enforcement framework, align insider trading norms with international practices, clarity in definitions and concepts and facilitate legitimate business transactions. ·         To address these concerns and to make the delisting process less cumbersome, SEBI Board in its meeting held on 19th November 2014 has approved certain proposals to review the existing regulatory framework on delisting for making it more effective by amending the SEBI (Delisting of Equity Shares) Regulations, 2009. The proposals approved, among others, includes conditions for the delisting to be successful, the process of the determination of offer price through reverse book building process, reducing timeline for completing the delisting process etc. ·         SEBI vide its circular dated 12.11.14 provided for a framework to enable a single consolidated view of all the investments of an investor in Mutual Funds (MF) and securities held in demat form with the Depositories. ·         SEBI vide circular dated13.10.2014 approved single registration for operating in all stock exchanges and / clearing corporations. This would simplify the registration requirements for stock brokers and clearing members. ·         SEBI has been taking various measures to create awareness among investors about grievance mechanisms available to them through workshops as well as through print and electronic media. Vide circular dated 28.8.14 provided that all Stock Brokers and Depository Participants shall prominently display basic information about the grievance redressal mechanism available to investors in their offices in a prescribed format. ·         SEBI vide its circular dated 8.8.2014 expanded the framework of the Offer for Sale of shares through Stock exchange mechanism which inter alia provided that a minimum of 10% of the offer size shall be reserved for retail investors. (xiv) ECB / trade credit permission has been digitalized using the on-line application tracking system (ATS) of the RBI. The ATS, which can be accessed via a web browser over the internet, allows applicants to submit and track the status of the submitted application. (xv) Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs)/Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvITs) -Government has announced REITs and InVITs – innovative financing instruments for financing real estate and infrastructure projects. REITs have been successfully used as instruments for pooling of investments in several countries. InvITs seeks to facilitate similar structure for infrastructure projects. This will allow original equity investor to exit their investments which is expected to give a fillip to both, cash strapped real estate projects and infrastructure projects. Guidelines/ Regulations issued by SEBI. DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) (xvi) While broadening the tax base and providing an equitable tax regime has been the underlying theme of the tax policy of the government, sustained economic growth continues to be the prime objective. Even in the limited fiscal space several important and path breaking initiatives for reviving the economy, promoting investment in manufacturing sector and measures of rationalising tax provisions so as to reduce litigation were introduced through the Finance (No.2) Act , 2014. (xvii) Tax clarity and Dispute Resolution: ·         Introduction of a “Roll Back” provision in the Advanced Pricing Agreement (APA) scheme so that an APA entered into for future transactions is also applicable to international transactions undertaken in previous four years in specified circumstances. ·         Introduction of range concept for determination of arm’s length price in transfer pricing regulations. ·         To allow use of multiple year data for comparability analysis under transfer pricing regulations. ·         Resident taxpayers enabled to obtain an advance ruling in respect of their income tax liability above a defined threshold. ·         The scope of the Income-tax Settlement Commission enlarged. ·         High Level Committee has been set up to interact with trade and industry on a regular basis and ascertain areas where clarity in tax laws is required and based on their recommendation the Central Boards of Direct and Indirect Taxes would issue appropriate clarifications in a time bound manner, wherever considered necessary. (xviii) Non-adversarial tax regime: In furtherance of its objective to improve the efficiency and equity of the tax system and to promote voluntary compliance, the emphasis of the government has been for providing a non-adversarial tax regime. Accordingly, the Central Board of Direct Taxes has issued detailed instructions to its field formations to ensure that the dignity of the taxpayers is respected while dealing with them, no frivolous demands are raised and no unnecessary litigation is continued. (xix) Measures to curb Black Money The Government is committed to take all possible measures to check the menace of black money in the country. These measures include putting in place robust legislative and administrative frameworks, systems and processes with due focus on capacity building and integration of information and its mining through increasing use of information technology. Certain major recent initiatives include the following: ·         Constitution of a Special Investigation Team (SIT), in May 2014, with two former judges of the Hon`ble Supreme Court as Chairman and Vice-Chairman, inter alia, to deal with issues relating to black money stashed abroad; ·         While focusing upon non-intrusive measures, due emphasis on intrusive enforcement measures in high impact cases with a view to prosecute the offenders at the earliest possible, for creating effective deterrence against tax evasion; ·         Joining the global efforts to combat tax evasion, including supporting implementation of a uniform global standard on Automatic Exchange of Information on a fully reciprocal basis, facilitating exchange of information regarding persons hiding money in offshore centres; ·         Legislative measures, wherever required, including amendment to section 285BA of the Income-tax Act, 1961 vide Finance (No.2) Act, 2014 facilitating the Automatic Exchange of Information; Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) (xx) Measures to boost domestic manufacturing sector: A number of changes in the customs and excise duty structure including rectification of inverted duty structure have been made to promote domestic manufacture, attract new investment, increase capacity utilization & enable domestic value addition in sectors, such as electronics & IT, steel, chemicals & petrochemicals, and renewable energy. (xxi) Rationalization of customs duty structure: ·         on non-agglomerated coal of various types at 2.5% BCD and 2% CVD ·         reduction in customs duty from 5% to 2.5% on ships imported for breaking up ·         increase in customs duty on half-cut or broken diamonds from NIL to 2.5% and on cut & on polished diamonds and colored gemstones from 2% to 2.5% (xxii) Relief Measures: ·         Life micro-insurance schemes for the poor exempted from service tax ·         Transport of organic manure by vessel, rail or road (by GTA) exempted from service tax ·         Loading, unloading, packing, storage or warehousing, transport by vessel, rail, road(GTA), of cotton, ginned or baled, exempted from service tax ·         Services provided by common bio-medical waste treatment facility operators for safe disposal of waste exempted from service tax (xxiii) Clean Environment Initiative: ·         Rate of Clean Energy Cess, levied on coal, lignite and peat, increased from Rs. 50 per tonne to Rs. 100 per tonne so as to replenish the National Clean Energy Fund for clean environment and energy purposes. ·         Services provided by common bio-medical waste treatment facility operators for safe disposal of waste exempted from service tax. (xxiv) Trade Facilitation: ·         24X7 Customs clearance facility is being established in 17 airports and 18 seaports by 31.12.2014. This would cover all exports in the 17 airports and exports involving free shipping bills and factory stuffed exports in the 18 sea ports. ·         Customs Single Window Clearance Project for faster Customs clearance has been initiated and to begin with will be implemented with Plant Quarantine and Food Safety Standards Authority of India. ·         Customs Accredited Client Programme (ACP) has been reviewed with a view to allow a graded re-entry to disqualified ACP clients. This will greatly facilitate major importers. ·         Guidelines for establishing Air Freight Stations have been approved in consultation with M/o Civil Aviation with a view to encourage international air cargo. ·         An integrated Customs EDI – SEZ Online system would be implemented w.e.f. 31.12.2014 for expediting the paper-less movement of export and import goods between SEZs and Gateway ports. ·         The dual use of infrastructure created by developers of SEZs in the non-processing areas has been allowed. Thus, such infrastructure can now cater to both SEZ and domestic entities, which will ensure optimum utilization of existing infrastructure as well as incentivize development of new infrastructure. ·         An automated risk management system (Advance Passenger Information System) has been initiated to facilitate genuine passengers at international airports by identifying suspect passengers in a scientific manner. ·         E-payment of service tax and central excise has been made mandatory for all assessees/taxpayers in order to reduce the cost of compliance for the trade and industry DEPARTMENT OF DISINVESTMENT (xxv) Actual disinvestment: Government has disinvested 5% equity in SAIL and realized Rs.1,720 crore. This Offer for Sale (OFS) of Shares through Stock Exchange Mechanism was one of the best ever by the Government in terms of high percent subscription and low discount offered. (xxvi) Operationalizing the Action Plan on Disinvestment: CCEA approved the disinvestment proposals of Coal India Ltd (10% equity), ONGC (5%), NHPC (11.36%), PFC (5%) and REC (5%). Government sees disinvestment of CPSEs as a tool for realizing their productive potential, while improving corporate governance, public accountability, participation of the people and raising resources for priority Government social and economic programs. (xxvii) Making the disinvestment program more inclusive: Earlier there was no reservation for retail investors in OFS. However, on 8 August, 2014, SEBI has mandated that minimum 10% of the offer size shall be reserved for retail investors in OFS and a discount has also been made admissible to them. Subsequent to this amendment in OFS Guidelines, Government has approved upto 20% of the offer size being reserved for retail investors. Further, retail investors may be allocated shares at a discount. This is likely to improve public participation in the disinvestment program. (xxviii) Minimum Public Shareholding norms: In August 2014, SEBI has amended the minimum public shareholding norms for every listed CPSE. After this amendment, every listed CPSE has to increase its public shareholding to at least 25%, within a period of 3 years. This is likely to give further impetus to disinvestment of CPSEs with attendant benefits.

Communication Technologies for Good Governance

The foundation of a strong, prosperous nation is built on the quality of governance that it provides to its citizens. Information and Communications Technology is an important tool through which Good Governance can be structured. The power of Information Technology can be harnessed to deliver a wide range of services to citizens at their doorstep. The vision of Digital India is to employ its strengths in the I.T. field through its youth to lead India towards an era of Good Governance. Today, while celebrating Good Governance Day, the Minister of Communications & IT Shri Ravi Shanker Prasad renewed the commitment of the Department of Telecommunications to deliver good governance through the vision of Digital India. He launched new products and technologies by different agencies of Department of Telecommunications such as Gyansetu – an internet based real time Information and Communications Technology (ICT) system designed by C-DoT primarily to provide e-services to the under-privileged rural population of India, C-DOT‘s Next Generation Solution “MAX-NG”- a cost effective and smooth migration path to Internet Protocol Multimedia Systems (IMS), and new plans of MTNL for its customers. MAX NG will enable smooth transition from Plain Old Telephone System to Voice over Internet protocol, enabling consumers to enjoy voice, data and video services on existing landlines at affordable cost. The focus of the Department of Telecommunications is to create the communication infrastructure for enabling e-services like e-banking, e-commerce, e-education, e-governance, e-entertainment, e-health etc. across the country which is expected to give a new fillip to the inclusive growth of Indian economy. Presently, the telecom sector’s growth is on the upswing. This growth has to be carried forward with renewed vigour in a sustainable way. Government is committed to improve tele-density, voice and broadband penetration and ensure quality of services to both rural and urban areas to achieve the vision of Digital India. To bridge the rural coverage gap both for voice and broadband penetration, Government has planned to make significant investment for establishing the National Optical Fibre Network (NOFN) and Government User Network (GUN) to overlay NOFN. The project will connect 2,50,000 Gram Panchayats with 100 mbps speed, provide broadband connectivity to Gram Panchayats, primary schools and health centres and provide community Wi-Fi services at Gram Panchayat level. NOFN will support e-governance services, telemedicine, tele-education, financial services, e-commerce and e-entertainment. Tenders for trenching and pipe laying have been finalized in more than 25% Blocks and Gram Panchayats. About 4,300 Gram Panchayats have been connected and the pace of implementation has been accelerated in recent months. Government has planned to cover about 55,669 villages as yet uncovered by mobile connectivity all over India in a phased manner by March 2019. The major focus of the new Government is to reach remote areas such as North-Eastern States, Himalayan States, Border States and Islands and more importantly the Left Wing Extremism affected Areas in the country. A comprehensive plan to provide mobile connectivity in the North Eastern Region has been approved by the Government on 10th September, 2014 at a cost of Rs.5336.18 crore. Government has also decided to install and operate 2199 mobile towers to connect key locations in the States affected by Left Wing Extremism (LWE) with voice connectivity, at a project cost of Rs.3567.58 crore by September 2015. Provision of secure, reliable, robust, and affordable telecom facilities in Andaman and Nicobar Islands (ANI) and Lakshadweep is of utmost importance for the people living in these islands and from a strategic point of view to the whole country. Telecom Commission has given ‘in principle’ approval on 07.11.2014 for Comprehensive Telecom Development Plan for Andaman & Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep Islands with the total estimated investment of Rs. 221.05 crore. Government is committed to expeditiously facilitate provision of Wi-Fi hotspots in all the cities with a population of more than 1 million, important tourist and pilgrimage places in the country. While Government is making efforts to bridge the urban rural divide for broadband penetration, it is conscious of the low penetration and poor quality of services of broadband in the urban areas as well and is also taking a comprehensive review of regulatory aspects to take care of these concerns. Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) play an important role in the growth of telecom sector since their outreach is to the remotest areas across the length and breadth of the country. Conscious of the strategic national importance of BSNL, Government is committed to the revival of BSNL and is drawing a plan for its revival that would aim to restore its position as a national telecommunications solutions provider in the years ahead. Similarly, the financial position of MTNL has suffered in recent years impinging on its capacity to invest and consequent impact on quality of service delivered. Government is committed to improving the financial position of MTNL and is taking several steps for its revival. Government has decided to extend mobile number portability across States. Service providers has been given time till Apr-May 2015 to implement Full Mobile Number Portability, which will benefit the consumers of telecom services by allowing them freedom to change their operator without changing their mobile numbers throughout the length and breadth of the country. To create a level playing field for the domestic manufacturers, who suffer severe disability due to poor infrastructure and inverted duty structure and to give fillip to domestic telecom electronic manufacturing, the Government has imposed a basic Customs Duty of 10% on these products which are not covered under Information Technology Agreement-1 (ITA-1) of World Trade Organisation (WTO) in the Union Budget 2014-15. Government is considering several policy initiatives in the telecommunications sector with the aim of creating a stable, growth-oriented policy structure. The Government is confident that these initiatives will lead to transformation of India as a modern technology driven nation through Good Governance initiatives.