Current affairs- May 7, 2016
Overseas investors continue to shun oil palm
industry
A recently released report has indicated that the government’s
decision to allow 100% foreign direct investment (FDI) in oil palm plantations
in November last year has failed to draw even a single investor.
What else needs to be done to attract
investors?
- Oil palm should be
declared as a plantation
crop. There should be relaxation of land ceiling
norms. This paves the way for large scale plantation of oil palm.
The current policies of the Centre do not allow companies to either
acquire or lease land beyond a specific acreage as defined by land ceiling
norms. Thus, there is no scope for the corporate sector for large scale
plantation of oil palm.
- Oil palm developers say that the potential of this crop could be realised effectively if there is a separate oil palm development board, a separate import policy for palm oil and a separate budget for oil palm industry development.
What has the government done to encourage oil
palm industry?
Oil palm is comparatively a new crop in India and is stated to be
the highest
vegetable oil yielding crop. In order to encourage its
cultivation in the country as a part of its effort to reduce imports and ensure
edible oil security, the government came out with a National
Mission on Oilseeds and Oil Palm (NMOOP).
About NMOOP:
NMOOP envisages bringing an additional 1.25 lakh hectares under
oil palm cultivation through area expansion approach in the States including
utilisation of wastelands.
Key facts:
- The States
currently engaged in oil palm cultivation are Andhra Pradesh,
Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Mizoram, Karnataka, Kerala,
Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Manipur, Meghalaya,
Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura and West Bengal.
- India’s edible
oil imports are rising steeply. In the past 13 years, import of crude and
refined oil was reported to have quadrupled and the import bill in this
regard is expected to touch $ 15 billion in 2016-17.
Steel firms may get NIIF funding support
The government is looking at creating a fund under India’s first
sovereign wealth fund, NIIF, which will address capital requirements of
domestic steel companies. Steel sector is capital-starved sector in the
country.
- The move is
aimed at bringing down capital costs for the steel industry, which could
see a staggering $190 billion in investment if the country has to reach a
300-mtpa target by 2025-26.
- The government
feels that though domestic demand has grown slower than anticipated in the
last couple of years, in the medium term demand would pick up, making room
for steel capacity expansion.
- India currently
has around 110 mtpa steel capacity. The country aims to create an
additional 190 mtpa capacity by 2025-26. Approximately $1 billion
investment is required to develop 1 mtpa steel capacity.
About National Investment and Infrastructure
Fund (NIIF):
The NIIF is being operationalised with an initial corpus of Rs
40,000 crore. The government would hold up to 49% in the NIIF, which is
expected to catalyse financing of infrastructure projects by leveraging the
same multiple times. The remaining stake would be offered to domestic as well
as foreign partners.
- It was created
as an investment vehicle for funding commercially viable greenfield,
brownfield and stalled projects.
- NIIF is set up
as a Fund of Funds (Category II Alternate Investment Fund) with a proposed
series of funds.
- The government
will seek participation from strategic investors such as sovereign fund,
quasi sovereign funds and multilateral or bilateral investors, which can
help leverage this fund to many times. Cash-rich PSUs, pension funds,
provident funds, National Small Saving Fund will be able to pick up stake
in the fund.
Sagarmala project to be completed in 5 years
The government has decided to halve the previously estimated
10-year timeframe to complete the Sagarmala port development project.
- The project targets to provide one crore employment. Port-led development has potential for direct employment generation for 40 lakh persons and for 60 lakh persons indirectly.
About Sagarmala:
The Sagarmala project seeks to develop a string of ports around
India’s coast. The objective of this initiative is to promote “Port-led
development” along India’s 7500 km long coastline.
- It aims to
develop access to new development regions with intermodal solutions and
promotion of the optimum modal split, enhanced connectivity with main
economic centres and beyond through expansion of rail, inland water,
coastal and road services.
- The Union Ministry of Shipping has been appointed as the nodal ministry for this initiative.
The Sagarmala initiative will address
challenges by focusing on three pillars of development, namely:
- Supporting and enabling
Port-led Development through appropriate policy and institutional
interventions and providing for an institutional framework for ensuring
inter-agency and ministries/departments/states’ collaboration for
integrated development.
- Port Infrastructure
Enhancement, including modernization and setting up of new ports.
- Efficient Evacuation to and from hinterland.
Other objectives:
- In addition to
strengthening port and evacuation infrastructure, it also aims at
simplifying procedures used at ports for cargo movement and promotes usage
of electronic channels for information exchange leading to quick,
efficient, hassle-free and seamless cargo movement.
- It also strives
to ensure sustainable development of the population living in the Coastal
Economic Zone (CEZ). This would be done by synergising and coordinating
with State Governments and line Ministries of Central Government through
their existing schemes and programmes such as those related to community
and rural development, tribal development and employment generation,
fisheries, skill development, tourism promotion etc.
Income Tax Dept. can reveal taxpayers’ details
According to an amendment in the Finance Bill, 2016, the taxman in
the country can reveal information related to taxpayers disclosing previously
concealed income under the Budget’s Income Declaration Scheme, if it is deemed to be in public interest.
- The amendment is
aimed to allay any misconceptions that the government would keep such
taxpayers’ details confidential under any circumstance.
Details:
The Income Declaration Scheme offers people with undisclosed
income to declare it by paying a penal tax rate of 45% on such income. The
Finance Bill has imported Section 138 of the Income Tax Act into the
declaration scheme’s ambit. Bringing in Section 138 to the Scheme brings in
objectivity on confidentiality of income tax information and the limitations
thereof.
- The aim behind bringing in
this section is to dispel the perception that the details disclosed under
the scheme are confidential under any circumstances — they can be
disclosed if it is deemed to be in public interest.
- However, the discretion has
been given to the Chief Commissioner who is a very senior authority and he
has to see if it is in public interest to share the information.
Most death row convicts first-time offenders
According to the recently released “Death Penalty India Report”,
most death row inmates in India are poor, uneducated and first-time offenders.
What else the report says?
- A total of 241 out of the
385 death row inmates in India are first-time offenders.
- Around 60% of the
prisoners did not complete secondary education and nearly 75% belonged to
economically vulnerable sections.
- Three-fourth of the
prisoners sentenced to death belong to backward classes and religious
minorities.
- Overall, ‘murder
simpliciter’ or accidental murder constitute most of the cases, followed
by ‘rape with murder’.
- Median duration of trials
and High Court proceedings in cases involving sexual offences is the
lowest as compared to other cases. State-wise analysis also shows that
trails were fastest in cases of sexual offence.
- Most prisoners who shared information didn’t have a lawyer during interrogation. Most of them claimed they had experienced custodial violence and were tortured in police custody.
Concerns:
- According to the report,
education levels affect the extent to which the death row prisoners are
able to understand details of the case filed against them; lack of which
results in alienation from the system. Alienation experienced by prisoners
through lack of awareness of proceedings increased as cases rise in the
appellate system.
- Pendency of legal proceedings
greater than five years is considered a grave violation of speedy justice
by the Supreme Court. While the median duration of trial for the death row
prisoners was around four years, trials went beyond five years for 127
prisoners. Though lengthy trials happen to be a concern in general, it has
more significance in the case of death penalty.
- Also, the seriousness of
charge often forces the families to hire a private lawyer than rely on
poor quality of free legal aid provided by the government. The report
finds that while the high fee of private lawyers – opted by more than 60%
of the prisoners during trial and high court – deepens the economic
vulnerability of the already poor families, it doesn’t ensure access to
competent legal representation. This makes it difficult for an accused to
“navigate through the various stages of the legal process without
sufficient socio-economic and political resources.”
Facts
Australia has decided to provide a three-year
multiple-entry visitor visa for Indians by July 2016 on a trial basis.
This is aimed at boosting Australia’s future tourism growth. This will allow entry into Australia multiple times on the
same visa and each stay will be valid up to three months. Apart from India, this will be implemented in three countries — Thailand,
Vietnam and Chile. The announcement of the trial was made as
part of the Australian government’s 2016-17 budget. It will be applicable to
eligible applicants on tourist and business visitor visa streams.
