India's Ranking in Tourism and Travel Competitiveness

India's Ranking in Tourism and Travel Competitiveness

As per the Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index (TTCI) 2015, of the World Economic Forum, India ranks 35th in Air Transport Infrastructure and 50th in Ground & Port Infrastructure from 141 countries of the world. India ranks 136th in terms of airport density and 76th in terms of quality of roads according to TTCI Report 2015, while according to the 2013 Report, India ranked 136th in terms of airport density and 85th in terms of quality of roads.

The overall TTCI ranking of India has improved to 52nd in 2015 as compared to 65th in 2013.

The Ministry of Road Transport & Highways has formulated “Bharatmala” Pariyojana with a view to improve the road connectivity to coastal/border areas, backward areas, religious places, tourist places, construction/rehabilitation/widening of about 1,500 major bridges and 208 Railway Over Bridges (ROBs)/Railway Under Bridges (RUBs) on National Highways (NHs) and improvement of newly declared NHs providing connectivity to District Head Quarters. Development of road infrastructure enhances the overall development of the area besides giving boost to tourism in the country.

Domestic air transport services have been decontrolled & deregulated. Government has laid down route dispersal guidelines with a view to achieve better connectivity to remote areas and different regions of the country. It is, however, up to the airlines to provide air services to specific places depending upon the traffic demand and commercial viability. As such the airlines are free to operate anywhere in the country subject to compliance of route dispersal guidelines issued by the Government.

For improvement of connectivity, CFA is provided by Ministry of Tourism under the Schemes Swadesh Darshan and PRASAD for the components like last mile connectivity, heliports, helipads, airstrips, ropeways, procurement of equipment for eco-friendly modes of tourist transport, etc.

Product/Infrastructure Development for Destinations and Circuits (PIDDC) Scheme for States was delinked from Union Support -2015-16, pursuant to acceptance of the 14th Finance Commission’s recommendation for higher devolution of 42% to States from Union taxes and duties. Consequently, MoT has launched two Schemes namely- Swadesh Darshan Scheme for Integrated Development of Tourist Circuits around Specific Themes and National Mission on Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual Augmentation Drive (PRASAD) to beautify and improve amenities and infrastructure at major pilgrimage sites in the country.

NICDA

Setting up of NICDA

Government of India proposes to form a National Industrial Corridor Development Authority (NICDA). The proposed NICDA would facilitate integrated development of Industrial Corridors across the country. It will channelize central as well as institutional funds while ensuring that the various corridors are properly planned and implemented keeping in view the broad national perspectives regarding industrial and city development. It will also carry out project development activities, appraise and sanction projects, implement, coordinate and monitor all central efforts for the development of industrial corridor projects.

The Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) is being implemented at following four locations:

i. Ahmedabad-Dholera Special Investment Region in Gujarat.

ii. Shendra-Bidkin Industrial Park in Maharashtra.

iii. Integrated Industrial Township Project in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh.

iv. Integrated Industrial Township Project in Vikram Udyogpuri in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh.

Detection of Gravitational Waves

Detection of Gravitational Waves

Two Laser Interferometric Gravitational-wave Observatories (LIGO) in the USA have detected signals from two confirmed events involving merger of black holes in the distant universe. The first on September 14, 2015 and the second on December 24, 2015. The international LIGO Science collaboration consisting of about 1000 scientists from universities and research institutes from about 15 countries, including India, announced the first detection on February 05, 2016 and second one on June 15, 2016.

The Indian science community has hailed these discoveries and is proud of the significant contribution from India. There was a very significant presence of Indian scientists in this milestone scientific achievement. There are 37 authors from 9 Indian Institutions in the scientific publication presenting the first discovery of Gravitational waves published in the Physical Review letters by the LIGO Scientific Collaboration and Virgo Collaboration. There were 39 authors from the same 9 Indian institutions in the publication for the detection of the second black hole merger event. Currently, Indian participation in the international LIGO Science Collaboration (LSC), has over 60 researchers, constituting 5% of the members of the LSC, making us the fourth largest national participant. India has 5 members on the LIGO Science Collaboration Council.

India can boast of three decades of research at Inter University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA), Pune and Raman Research Institute (RRI), Bengaluru, at the frontiers of theoretical modelling, and developing algorithms for signal extraction, in the quest for discovering gravitational waves. Some of these contributed directly to the detection and are prominently cited in these discovery publications. Specific contributions by Indian researchers include the development of a signal processing method called Matched Filtering – a key analysis technique needed for this detection, (pioneered at IUCAA) the estimation of black hole binary parameters, in improving the estimation accuracy of black hole spins, efficient methods for handling instrumental artefacts, and electromagnetic follow-up with X-ray instrument onboard AstroSat, which is a space borne facility launched by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). India is also committed to the mega science LIGO-India project, to build and operate an advanced gravitational wave observatory on Indian soil.

President proposes nine sutras to invigorate India’s march towards a more inclusive, diverse, sustainable and innovative society

President proposes nine sutras to invigorate India’s march towards a more inclusive, diverse, sustainable and innovative society

The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee addressed students and faculty of Higher Educational and Research Institutions and Officer Trainees at Civil Service Academies from Rashtrapati Bhavan today (August 10, 2016) using the National Knowledge Network. The topic of the address was ‘Innovation: A Way of Life’.

Addressing the students, faculty and officer trainees, the President proposed nine sutras to invigorate India’s march towards a more inclusive, diverse, sustainable and innovative society which include –(i) we should not snub children when they ask questions to which we have no answer; (ii) we should promote and reinforce a scientific temper by questioning our beliefs which are not compatible with scientific way of thinking; (iii) innovation clubs and tinkering labs should be set up in schools, colleges and research institutions; (iv) we should build viable and sustainable bridges between formal and informal knowledge systems; (v) we must give due recognition to cultural, technological and traditional skills while implementing our employment guarantee schemes and skill development programmes; (vi) we should bring our educational system in line with contemporary societal expectations; (vii) we need to overcome the deeply-embedded inertia in our psyche and constantly ask ourselves: how can I solve this problem? Can I still try, no matter if I fail a few times?; (viii) we must develop a sense of immediacy as time and tide waits for none; (ix) we must not tolerate inefficiency, shabbiness and poor quality work.

The President said India is the world’s largest youth-populated nation. Over 600 million people in India out of a total population of 1.28 billion are below the age of 25 years. We have an abundance of creative, restless and inquisitive minds. In the networked environment of today, we need the power of youth to realize the full potential of an aspirational India. For this, creative thinking and a desire for innovation must become a part of our day-to-day lives.

The President said India may have lagged behind in some high tech innovations but when it comes to developing solutions to everyday problems, we have made a difference. He stated that Rashtrapati Bhavan has been hosting innovation scholars as guests for the last three years under its ‘In-Residence’ programme where innovative minds come together to “recharge their creative batteries”. He called upon educationists, corporate leaders and community leaders to think of extending such recognition to creative and innovative people of our country.

Competitive federalism is working

Competitive federalism is working
Progress by states will have a much greater impact on India’s economic future than what happens in Delhi
The world constantly debates the question of whether the Narendra Modi government has met the high expectations for economic reforms. The passage of the goods and services tax bill certainly gave a boost to the government’s image. But in reality, India’s 29 states collectively have a much larger impact on India’s business competitiveness than the federal government. The Modi government’s moves to encourage states to strengthen their own business environment are helping create a new dynamic. States have an unprecedented level of understanding of their own competitiveness, and new tools to improve. And a few forward-leaning states are racing ahead.

The concept of getting states to compete for investment is not a novel idea. Some of my early work on US-India commercial ties was in organizing a series of conferences across India involving regional chief ministers. These included the “Emerging East” in Kolkata in 1997, the “Dynamic South” in Chennai in 1999, and the “Progressive West” in Mumbai, also in 1999. Around that time, with the explosive growth of India’s information technology services sector, we did see a few state leaders, primarily in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, actively pursuing investors to help build out their main technology hubs of Bengaluru and Hyderabad. But the departure of both Andhra Pradesh chief minister Chandrababu Naidu and Karnataka chief minister S.M. Krishna in 2004 seemed to have undercut this nascent competitive dynamic.

With this recent history in mind, I was sceptical of the Modi government’s ability to find appropriate measures to help stimulate such competition. States manage critical inputs like electricity, water, most land acquisition, and a majority of licences, among other factors. The central government has limited ability to directly intervene in these areas. But I have been pleasantly surprised at the types of lathis and ladoos the Modi government has created to drive competition among states.

Chief among the Modi government’s steps to increase states’ competitiveness is the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion’s (DIPP’s) 98-point Assessment of State Implementation of Business Reforms. This under-appreciated assessment is the best guidebook for those states that want to increase their relative competitiveness. And it will be improved when NITI Aayog releases a wider survey of the business environment of the states later this year. Of course, highlighting those states that are leading versus lagging does not automatically trigger action. Some states simply focus on short-term political gains, at the expense of improving their economy. But other states are taking advantage of this new set of policy tools.

Other key measures to help states become more competitive include initiating the power sector bailout programme Ujwal Discom Assurance Yojana (UDAY), and redesigning the operations of the former Planning Commission in the form of the NITI Aayog. The latter has engaged state leaders as a consultative body, and is now starting to develop model laws for Indian states to consider.

Of course, initiatives such as these are merely setting the table for states to move ahead. Ultimately, businesses need to see states take advantage of these opportunities. A few states have been taking the lead in reforming their own business environment. Examples of state reforms on land and labour from the past one year include:

Land

l Gujarat, 2016: Amended its Land Acquisition and Rehabilitation Act, eliminating the requirement of a social impact assessment and consent clauses for certain types of development projects.

l Maharashtra, 2016: Amended the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code, allowing the sale of certain publicly-owned lands that were previously slated only for leasing.

l Maharashtra, 2015: Amended its Gunthewari Act, allowing mid-size plots to be divided, and easing the process to sell such plots.

l Andhra Pradesh, 2015: The Andhra Pradesh legislature passed a bill extending land leases from the government to private entities from 33 years to 99 years.

l Rajasthan, 2016: Passed the Rajasthan Urban Land (Certification of Titles) Bill, 2016, which offers a state guarantee of title after a land purchase.

l Uttar Pradesh, 2016: Approved the Uttar Pradesh Information Technology & Start-Up Policy 2016. To encourage start-up growth, the policy waives taxes on land purchased for office use and on built-up offices, as well as electricity dues for five years.

l Uttar Pradesh, 2015: UP issued the UP Revenue Code (Amendment) Ordinance, allowing, among other things, Dalits with less than 3.5 acres to sell their land to non-Dalits.

Labour

l Gujarat, 2015: Passed a series of labour law reforms, making it more difficult for utility workers to go on strike, reducing the time employees have to seek redress for dismissal, and more.

l Karnataka, 2016: The government announced a new retail trade policy that allows establishments to be open longer, relaxes labour laws and stocking limits, and also allows women to work at night.

Competitive federalism is not yet embraced by every state. But a handful of states are clearly taking steps to strengthen their business environments, including initiating difficult reforms on land acquisition and labour flexibility, at a time that national reforms in these areas are politically stuck. Continued progress by such states over time will have a much greater impact on India’s economic future than what happens in Delhi.

RBI monetary policy: Raghuram Rajan explains the finer points

RBI monetary policy: Raghuram Rajan explains the finer points
Outgoing RBI governor Raghuram Rajan’s take on monetary policy and banking
n Tuesday, Raghuram Rajan presented his last monetary policy announcement as the governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). While Rajan maintained status quo on key policy rates in his policy, he also touched upon a number of things that concern India’s banking sector and monetary policy in the future.

Here are six points that Rajan discussed with reporters at the monetary policy announcement.

On Liquidity: The liquidity management framework announced in the April policy is being implemented. We have reduced some of the structural liquidity deficit, however, the current surplus is partly because of seasonal factors and not because we have eliminated the structural deficit completely. To emphasize this point, we announced an open market purchase today. The RBI will proceed in a calibrated way of eliminating the structural deficit. When we have done so, episodes of systemic surplus and systemic deficit should be evenly balanced.

Broadly speaking, we were at a deficit of about 1% of NDTL (net demand and time liabilities) and we are moving to eliminate that over time. The answer is, we are probably about 40% of the way at this point. There are seasonalities, like the government has also spent quite a bit and the tax revenues haven’t come back yet. The point is to not look at this as balance, because this is going to dissipate over time as the tax collections come in. The point is to have neutrality over the entire year.

Also Read: RBI keeps repo rate unchanged at 6.50%

On Transmission: Despite easy liquidity, banks have passed past rate cuts into lending rates only modestly. Earlier, some bankers had said that it was the lack of liquidity that was holding rates high, now I hear from some that it is the fear of FCNR (Foreign Currency Non-residental account) (B) redemption that is making them reluctant to cut rates. I have a suspicion that some new concern will crop up once the FCNR (B) redemption is behind us. We would be happy if there was more transmission. I do understand some of the difficulty that banks have. On our side, having examined our experience with the MCLR (marginal cost lending rate) framework, we will shortly be suggesting some revisions. However, substantial pass through will only happen when corporate credit demand picks up and as public sector banks, strengthened by clean balance sheets compete for corporate business.

On Bad loans: Broadly speaking, we are comfortable with the recognition process that banks have undertaken. Some banks have taken more steps that we required them to take. So the culture of cleaning up seems to be well embedded. As well as, the culture of recovery on some of the loans. What remains is for some of these large stressed projects to figure out a way to restructure them in a way that ensures the long term health of the system and the project. There are a number of RBI schemes available, the latest one being the S4A (scheme for sustainable structuring of stressed assets). Early days still. The attitude is also changing, the earlier attitude was that this is a way to postpone recognition. That is no longer there.

The question now is if this is a way to effect resolutions. The schemes are now being looked at with new eyes. The hope is that as the recovery in the economy also starts taking place, some of the stressed assets will be put back on track and there will also be more buying interest in some assets which have the possibility of new ownership. At this point, banks have enough tools, the real issue is to use them. I think we are working with them to ensure that we are working with them to ensure that any impediments are rectified. Again and again, we emphasize that we do not want to go back to the era of forbearance.

On FCNR (B): Let’s say the entire $26 billion (the amount that is estimated to be in FCNR (B) accounts across banks) goes out, we would have covered about 80% of it in forward markets and we have about $365 billion as of last count in our reserves. So even if it all goes out, we can completely pay for it. The real question is if there will be short term disruptions in the market, because say some banks who have sold us forward contracts find that they are not able to source dollars from elsewhere. We will be monitoring the markets. We do not want to give any blanket guarantee that there will be no volatility. We want banks to be prepared to deliver to us. But if there is volatility, we will do what is necessary.

On GST: It is not wise to assume that GST implementation will necessarily add to inflation. Whatever inflation happens, whether it will be long term or short term is something we need to think about. Even if there is inflation, it could be a one time adjustment of prices. What the monetary policy setters have to be worried about is whether this will pass to more generalized inflation and that is what the RBI will be worrying about, going forward.

On His Term: I have nothing to say, critics are there all the time. There are also people who send me anonymous messages in the plane saying thank you for what you are doing. So, you get both sides. I think the most important thing is that at the end of the day you feel that you have made a useful contribution and that some people are better off as a result of it. From that perspective, I think this has been a fantastic jump. I have enjoyed every minute of it, partly because everyday when my fellow colleagues at the RBI and I sit together and work, we manage to move the needle forward a little bit.

You leave the office saying, you did something and there are few places in the world where you can have that sense of satisfaction. So, I think this has been a fantastic experience and I hope there is some value added.

IAS mains TEST SERIES AND CLASSES IN DEHRADUN

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