Govt sets up high-level panel to check money laundering activities

News:Government has set up a 19-member Inter-Ministerial Coordination Committee for better cooperation among government departments to curb money laundering.

Facts:

About the committee:

• The committee will be chaired by the revenue secretary.
• It will have four other government secretaries of the departments of financial services, economic affairs, corporate affairs and external affairs who will be members of the group.It will also have representation from intelligence and regulatory agencies.
• The committee will be tasked with operational cooperation between the government, law enforcement agencies, the Financial Intelligence Unit and other regulators. 
• It will also ensure policy cooperation and consultations across authorities, and will develop policies to counter money laundering and terror funding.

Additional information:

About Money laundering:

• Money laundering is the process by which large amounts of illegally received money is given the appearance of having originated from a legitimate source.
• In India,the money laundering is regulated by the Prevention of Money Laundering Act 2002(PMLA) which came into force in 2005.
• The act defines money laundering offence and provides for the freezing, seizure and confiscation of the proceeds of crime.
• The provisions of this act are applicable to all financial institutions like banks, mutual funds, insurance companies, and their financial intermediaries.
• The act was amended thrice, first in 2005, then in 2009 and 2012. PMLA(Amendment) Act, 2012 has enlarged the definition of money laundering by including activities such as concealment, acquisition, possession and use of proceeds of crime as criminal activities.