Daily Current Affairs for UPSC – ForumIAS 9 PM Daily Brief

9 PM Daily Brief – 28th September 2016

 


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NATIONAL

 

[1]. Give 6,000 cusecs to T.N. for 3 days, Karnataka told

The Hindu

Context

Despite a unanimous resolution of Karnataka assembly, SC has directed the State to release 6,000 cusecs of water to neighbouring Tamil Nadu for the next three days

SC has directed State of Karnataka to release 6,000 cusecs of water from September 28, 2016 till 30th September 2016t

  • This release of water would be adjusted in the eventual adjudication of the inter-State dispute
  • The SC has entrusted Attorney-General Mukul Rohatgi to meanwhile facilitate talks between the “Executive Heads” of the two States in an effort to melt hostilities
  • The apex court further observed that a call for talks should not be interpreted by the States as the judiciary’s powerlessness

 

[2]. Mega Launchers for ISRO soon

The Hindu

Context

An advanced Indian mega space launcher that can deliver 10000 kg and heavier communication satellites to space and using a semi-cryogenic engine (SCE – 200) is likely to power ISRO’s launchers by around 2018

Current situation& future plans

  • GSLV, at present can lift upto 2000kg payloads
  • The agency is gearing up for first test flight of the GSLV Mark-III vehicle in December 2016 with a 4,000-kg payload. Semi-Cryogenic Engine (SCE) – 200 will increase the GSLV-Mk III’s capability from 4000 kg to 6000 kg
  • Two years thereafter, around 2020, this will be enhanced to 15,000 kg by putting strap-ons in clusters — the stage where major European and U.S. launch providers already are

Benefits of a mega launcher equipped with semi-cryogenic engine

  • Transportation capabilities increase: It will see India putting satellites of the class of 6,000 to 10,000 kilos — or with some variations, lift even 15,000-kg payloads — to geostationary transfer orbits (GTO) at 36,000 km. The engine is expected to triple or quadruple ISRO’s transportation ability

SCE – 200

  • The engine will use space-grade kerosene as fuel and liquid oxygen as oxidiser
  • Apart from powering rockets to lift heavier satellites, it will also effectively lower the cost per kilogram to reach orbits, which is the goal of all space-faring nations

Why we need heavy lifting vehicles?

ISRO plans on launching heavier satellites ranging above 5000 kg category. Its present capability is only 2000 kg. So, we need heavy lifting launch vehicles so that we do not have to depend on other countries for launching our satellites

 

EDITORIAL

 

[1]. A case for accepting the WTO ruling

 The Hindu

Context

World Trade Organization (WTO) has ruled against India in the solar dispute case

What is the dispute?

Under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM), government procures electricity from eligible Solar power developers (SPDs).

  • Eligible SPDs are assured a guaranteed price for 25 years by the government

Now, the word ‘eligible’ implies that there are certain eligibility conditions. One of them is the,

Domestic Content Requirement (DCR) – Under JNNSM only those SPDs are eligible to participate which source certain types of solar cells and modules domestically i.e. domestic content requirements have been imposed. In other words, unless a solar power producer satisfies this domestic content requirement, the government will not ‘guarantee’ the purchase of the energy produced.

It is this DCR measure against which US appealed in WTO

View of the US
In 2013, the U.S. brought a complaint before the WTO arguing that the domestic content requirement imposed under India’s national solar programme is in violation of the global trading rules. Specifically, it said, India has violated its “national treatment” obligation by unfavourably discriminating against imported solar cells and modules.

Author says that there are three dimensions in this case that need a closer look: the legal issues, environmental impact, and India-U.S. trade relations

Legal issues

Legal provisions in WTO: WTO treaty prohibits countries from discriminating against goods based on origin or destination

  • Domestic laws that make it necessary for an enterprise to purchase or use products of domestic origin to obtain an advantage violate the WTO treaty
  • India’s DCR measure in JNNSM violates this rule and the general prohibition against discrimination between imported and domestic products

India’s argument

India argued that its DCR measures should be excused because they fall under three exceptions

  1. Under Article III.8 of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) that renders the rule against discrimination inapplicable to government procurement.

WTO appellate body’s view – The Appellate Body rejected this. Relying on the previous WTO jurisprudence in Canada, the Renewable Energy/Canada — Feed-in Tariff Programme case, it held that for a measure to fall under Article III.8, the product procured should be in a competitive relationship with the product being discriminated against. Since the government procured electricity while the discrimination was against solar panels, this test of competitive relationship is not satisfied.

  1. Under Article XX(j) of GATT that allows a country to adopt measures ‘essential’ to the acquisition or distribution of products in general or local ‘short supply’.

India’s argument – India argued that since the domestic production of solar modules is limited, these products are in ‘short supply’.

Appellate body’s view – The Appellate Body disagreed and held that whether a product is in ‘short supply’ has to be determined by looking at supply from all sources, not just domestic. On this basis, the Appellate Body said there is no shortage of supply of solar panels.

  1. Under Article XX(d) of GATT, which allows countries to adopt measures ‘necessary to secure compliance with laws or regulations’ that are not inconsistent with GATT. However, India failed to show a domestic law or an international legal norm with direct application in India, compliance with which required the DCR.

 

Environmental Impact

 

Does this ruling stifle India’s efforts to move towards clean energy?

No, because the ruling is not against JNNSM but only against use of DCR measures. So, the government can continue with JNNSM by allowing the SPDs the free choice to either import solar cells and modules or buy from domestic industry

Does this ruling reflect WTO’s bias towards free trade over environment?

No, because Article XX of GATT clearly recognises a country’s sovereign right to regulate not just for environmental objectives but also for health, public morals, and so on. However, the WTO treaty limits the policy choices available to WTO members as to how to achieve these goals.

The fundamental principle is that the cost of pursuing these goals should not be transferred to other WTO member countries. So, for example, if multiple options are available to achieve an environmental purpose, the least trade restrictive one must be chosen.

Similarly, to pursue environmental objectives, a country cannot adopt measures that result in arbitrary or unjustified discrimination or constitute disguised restriction on trade.

India-US trade relations

Present situation: India-U.S. trade stands at over $100 billion annually

Future goals: Both countries aspire to increase this to $500 billion

How both countries intend to achieve above mentioned goal?

By “breaking down barriers to movement of goods and services”, as stated in the India-U.S. Joint Statement of June 2016

The WTO ruling goes against the very essence of the joint statement. Currently, in four ongoing disputes at the WTO, the two countries accuse each other of raising trade barriers

One – India has recently, similar to the US challenge, filed a case against the U.S. at the WTO challenging the DCRs and subsidies provided by eight U.S. states in the renewable energy sector. India should have done this when the U.S. challenged India’s DCR measures in 2013. That might have given India some scope to negotiate for a bilateral settlement.

Two – in March this year, India filed a case against the U.S. for its alleged violation of its WTO commitments by imposing increased fees on certain applicants for L-1 and H-1B categories of non-immigrant visas.

Three – the U.S. has requested the WTO to allow it to suspend concessions to the tune of $450 million annually against India for India’s alleged failure to comply with the WTO ruling in the poultry case. India’s ban on imports of poultry products from the U.S. on concerns related to Avian influenza was held illegal by the WTO in 2015.

Four – in another 2014 case related to imposing countervailing duty measures by the U.S. on certain hot rolled carbon steel flat products from India, India accuses the U.S. for not complying with the WTO ruling yet.

Conclusion

Author concludes by saying that India should comply with the WTO ruling else US will also erect trade barriers which will be against India’s interest. Moreover, mandatory domestic sourcing irrespective of costs might make solar power generation unfeasible, thus impairing India’s own objective. Further, India should not engage in providing subsidies to solar manufacturing companies because that is also prohibited by WTO. India need to make sure that its clean energy goals are separate from the interest of domestic solar companies.

For more info please refer to:http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/columns/why-the-wto-is-right-in-the-solar-panel-dispute/article8305405.ece

 

[2]. It is time for a uniform asylum law

 The Hindu

Context

Author presents a piece in delineating various issues before India with respect to granting asylum to refugees. The article comes at a time when Home Ministry is contemplating on the asylum application of exiled Baloch leader Brahamdagh Bugti

Author states that India has neither a domestic asylum law nor it has signed the UN Refugee convention of 1951, which means that an institutionalised framework for addressing the refugee inflow is non-existent in India

Legal issues involving Brahamdagh Bugti’s application

First – whether a person can apply for asylum in India from outside the country

International view: International refugee law only states that a person needs to be outside his/her own country to seek asylum; it is silent on whether the person needs to be physically present in the territory of the country where s/he hopes to receive asylum or whether s/he can make such an application from a third country.

Having allowed Mr. Bugti to seek asylum from Switzerland, it is unclear whether India has made an exception in this case or is now open to asylum applications without physical presence within its national borders.

Second – A fundamental principle of international refugee law is to not grant asylum to persons involved in illegal activities. The civilian character of a refugee populace is paramount, and active combatants are excluded from the same. As per Pakistan, Mr Bugti’s party is involved in terror activities and it has been placed under terror watchlist. Therefore, Mr. Bugti’s activities as a Baloch leader need to be thoroughly examined.

Third – India’s approach towards the larger Baloch refugee community in the future is yet to be addressed. Does India intend to grant asylum to Mr. Bugti alone, or to other Baloch asylum-seekers as well, or on a case-by-case basis? India will have to invest in setting up both a policy mechanism as well as the physical infrastructure for management of this refugee group

Fourth – Legal rights: Finally, if Mr. Bugti is granted asylum in India, what will his legal rights be?

Present legal situation in India wrt refugees

At present Indian law does not even mention the term ‘refugee’ and there are no clearly defined rights & duties for refugees. It has resulted in a widespread lack of access to even basic rights. For example, while Sri Lankans and Tibetans have government-issued IDs, the vast majority of Afghan and Burmese refugees have only the documentation given to them by the UN, which is not widely recognised.

Conclusion

Author concludes by saying that the most sensible and realistic way to address these legal issues would be for India to adopt a uniform asylum law for all refugee communities. A national asylum law would also reduce the need for parallel mechanisms, and put in place a structured system for asylum management in the future.

 

[3]. A lawless law

Indian Express

Context

Author states that the growing number of arrests under preventive detention law go against the very basis of the justice system.

What is preventive detention?

Preventive Detention is the most contentious part of the scheme fundamental rights in the Indian constitutions.  The Article 22 (3) of the Indian constitution provides that, if a person is arrested or detained under a law providing for preventive detention, then the protection against arrest and detention under Article 22 (1) and 22 (2) shall not be available

Grounds for Preventive detention

Preventive detention can however be made only on four grounds.

The grounds for Preventive detention are—

  • security of state,
  • maintenance of public order,
  • maintenance of supplies and essential services and defence,
  • foreign affairs or security of India

A person may be detained without trial only on any or some of the above grounds. A detainee under preventive detention can have no right of personal liberty guaranteed by Article 19 or Article 21.

Safeguards

To prevent reckless use of Preventive Detention, certain safeguards are provided in the constitution.

  1. Firstly, a person may be taken to preventive custody only for 3 months at the first instance. If the period of detention is extended beyond 3 months, the case must be referred to an Advisory Board consisting of persons with qualifications for appointment as judges of High Courts. It is implicit, that the period of detention may be extended beyond 3 months, only on approval by the Advisory Board.
  2. Secondly, the detainee is entitled to know the grounds of his detention. The state however may refuse to divulge the grounds of detention if it is in the public interest to do so. Needless to say, this power conferred on the state leaves scope for arbitrary action on the part of the authorities.
  3. Thirdly, the detaining authorities must give the detainee earliest opportunities for making representation against the detention. These safeguards are designed to minimize the misuse of preventive detention. It is because of these safeguards that preventive detention, basically a denial of liberty, finds a place on the chapter on fundamental rights. These safeguards are not available to enemy aliens.

Before independence, the British government took recourse to it to suppress nationalist movements. The first Preventive Detention Act during the British rule was Bengal Regulation III of 1918.

Why was preventive detention included in Indian constitution?

It was Sardar Patel who introduced and got India’s first preventive detention bill passed in 1950 as a safeguard against anti-social or, anti-state activities.

  • It was allowed to lapse after some years. In 1969 came the “Maintenance of Internal Security Act” popularly known as the MISA.

Other acts

  • In 1974 came the Conservation of Foreign Exchange and Prevention of Smuggling Activities Act—popularly known as the COFEPOSA. The COFEPOSA was directed against subversive political economic activities
  • Preventive detention powers of the government were further enhanced by National Security Act, popularly known as NASA of 1980
  • The Janata Government came to power with an electoral pledge that preventive detention laws shall be repealed. The Janata repealed the MISA but COFEPOSA continued. In 1980, the National Security Act or the N. S. A. was introduced

Who can pass preventive detention law?

Preventive detention laws may be passed by both the central and the state governments.

  • The union government enacts preventive detention acts when required for defence, foreign affairs or security of India.
  • State governments may pass such laws to maintain public order and to maintain essential supplies and services.
  • This concurrent powers: of the union and the state governments over preventive detention creates a confusing situation

Reference: http://www.importantindia.com/2019/preventive-detention-in-the-indian-constitution/

Author states that dealing with normal day to day public order problems like protest with heavy provisions like preventive detention results in perversion of justice. Moreover, as laws under preventive detention presume guilt until proven innocent the onus lies totally on the arrested to prove his innocence.

Conclusion

Author concludes that preventive detention should be used as an exceptional measure in circumstances desiring extraordinary action.

 

[4]. GST and Indian Trade

 Livemint

Context

GST Bill has been passed by both houses of the legislature and government is trying to roll out the entire regime by 1st April 2017. Article discusses about the impact of the GST on India’s international trade and on its trade strategy.

Present times and GST

GST is a development that comes at a challenging time in the external environment for India.

  • Global growth has slowed. Many major economies in the world face economic and political challenges with uncertain resolution
  • With the BREXIT, the EU now confronts the possibility of a disintegration
  • Japan is struggling to revive itself
  • China, after two decades of extraordinary growth, appears to be slowing down
  • The US is going through a divisive presidential election that has seen its candidates adopt threatening postures towards international trade, especially with lower-income countries, and towards the world trade system more generally.

Author says that to achieve improvements in trade performance in this environment will clearly be difficult.

Problems

Despite the liberalization reforms of 1991 many problems still remain in the Indian economic sector.

Author gives the example of electronics sector in India

  • Consider for instance, the electronics sector in which global trade is estimated to be around $1.5 trillion annually and which employs around 20 million people globally (more than any other manufacturing sector).
  • India’s contribution to the electronics sector has been depressingly low. It produces just 1.5% of global output, trailing far behind China, but also behind much smaller countries such as Vietnam and Indonesia
  • Low export share: India has also not been able to grow its export share, contributing merely 0.5% to global exports. In the electronics industry, electronics products pass through different states, making the journey from producer to consumer, and get taxed at each border, raising production costs. The warehousing requirements, red tape, delays and corruption involved has transformed India into an inefficient production platform.

Inverted duty structure: Indian producers have also complained about the problems created by an inverted duty structure where domestic producers pay high costs on taxed intermediate inputs made elsewhere in the country, making them under-competitive relative to imports which land at lower cost. Explanation: This means that the finished goods are taxed low as compared to intermediate goods thus discouraging domestic value addition to goods.

For more info: See this article

How GST will help?

GST is expectedto eliminate these distortions as it will eliminate the tax on tax regime.

 

INTERNATIONAL

 

[1]. India to invest $2 billion in Sri Lanka over 3-4 years

The Hindu

Context

In the light of the Commerce and Industry minister’s visit to Sri Lanka, India declared that it will invest $2 billion in Sri Lanka in the next three-four years

Purpose of the visit

Minister is on visit to Sri Lanka for talks on the Economic and Technological Cooperation Agreement (ETCA)

Background of ETCA

The ETCA initiative follows unfruitful negotiations, spanning nearly a decade, on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between the neighbors. India and Sri Lanka already have a Free Trade Agreement since 1998.

Opposition to ETCA

There is considerable opposition to it within Sri Lanka, coming both from a section of medical and IT professionals, and from trade unions. Sri Lankan businessmen too have raised concerns over the trade agreement

The second round of negotiations on the ETCA is scheduled to take place in New Delhi on September 29 and 30

For more info on ETCA: http://thewire.in/34948/why-indias-big-push-for-economic-cooperation-in-lanka-may-backfire/

 

[2]. Recalling agreements and disagreements: From buses to trains and ceasefire to trade, Indo-Pak pacts that hold

Indian Express

Context

In the aftermath of recent Uri attacks India is mulling over options to send a strong message to Pakistan. One of them is exploiting the untapped potential of western rivers as per Indus water treaty and second option on which a meeting is going to be held on 29th September 2016 is the Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status to Pakistan.

Article focusses on the pacts between India & Pakistan that still hold their ground.

Cross-LoC bus

The “Karvan-e-Aman” rolled on April 7, 2005 as a fortnightly service on the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad route, now runs weekly, and has rarely been suspended. A similar service between Poonch in Jammu and Rawalakot in PoK was started on June 20, 2006 through the Chakan da Bagh crossing. It operates once a week

Cross-LoC trade

  • Launched on: 21st October 2008
  • It is a Kashmir-specific confidence building measure (CBM)which has remained unaffected by the Mumbai attacks. Trade is carried via barter system. The trade has been suspended at times during bouts of firing on the LoC, and when a truck from PoK was found carrying narcotics.
  • Trading across the LoC also takes place on the Poonch-Rawalakot route 4 days a week. A Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry has been formed among traders from Jammu, Kashmir and PoK.

Wagah border trade

In 2012, Pakistan moved from a positive list to a negative list for trade with India, with 1,209 items that could not be traded. Of the rest, 137 items could be traded through the land crossing at Wagah.

  • India imports: India imports mainly cement, gypsum, rock salt, dry dates and textiles;
  • Pakistan imports mainly vegetables and cotton
  • In April 2012, the Integrated Check Post at Attari was inaugurated with improved trade and travel infrastructure

Pakistani investment in India

Perhaps the most remarkable step India took was to notify, on August 1, 2012, a decision to allow investment from Pakistan. In September, RBI removed restrictions on investment in Pakistan from India. It is not clear if any Pakistani has made use of this provision.

Bus & Train services

Delhi-Lahore bus

  • Launched on: The “Sada-e-Sarhad” service was begun in 1999, with Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee travelling on its inaugural run. The bus continued through the Kargil war, was halted in the aftermath of the December 2001 Parliament attack, resumed in October 2003, and continued through the crisis of 2008. It now operates 6 days a week.

Amritsar-Lahore bus

  • Launched on: 20th January, 2006,
  • It is biweekly service whichcrosses over at Wagah. There is also a bus service from Amritsar to Nankana Sahib.

Samjhauta Express

  • The Delhi-Lahore train through Attari was discontinued after the Parliament attack, but restarted in January 2004.
  • The February 2007 bombing that killed 68 passengers, most of them Pakistani, did not lead Pakistani Foreign Minister Khurshid Kasuri to cancel his visit to New Delhi scheduled for the day after.

Thar Express

  • Launched on: February 2006 to connect Karachi to Jodhpur through Munabao on the Indian side. The train runs weekly from both sides.

2003 ceasefire

After intense global backchannel efforts to bring India and Pakistan back to the negotiating table after the Parliament attack, the ceasefire came into force on November 26, 2003.

  • It is not a written agreement.
  • In August 2005, some terms were spelt out in a joint statement:
    • Both sides agreed to upgrade the existing hotline between the DGMOs by that September
    • Holding of monthly flag meetings between local commanders
    • Not building any new posts and defence works along the LoC

The arrangement worked well until 2008, but after that, there have been dozens of violations each year, peaking in 2013. But the hotline still exists, and the DGMOs were in touch soon after the Uri attack.

Exchange of prisoners’ lists

  • Launched in: 2008
  • Every year on January 1 and July 1, India and Pakistan exchange lists of nationals of each country who are lodged in the prisons of the other. The list is meant to facilitate easier tracking of prisoners and verification of their nationalities and sentences. The exchange has taken place regularly except for a year when India did not submit its list.

Visas

The two sides agreed to a new visa regime in May 2012, relaxing some of the earlier controls for the first time since 1974.

  • It eased travel restrictions for businessmen, introduced a new category of “group tourism”, allowed visas on arrival to those over the age of 65, provided for a timeframe of 45 days to issue visas, and increased the earlier 3-city permissions to 5. But its implementation continues to be riddled in problems.

Protocol on Visits to Religious Shrines

A Protocol on Visits to Religious Shrines has existed since 1974.

  • In 2007, the government told Parliament that 15 religious shrines in Pakistan are covered under the agreement
  • In 2014, it told the House that Pakistan was yet to respond to a 2005 request to include a shrine in Balochistan in the list

What is MFN?

A most favored nation (MFN) clause is a level of status given to one country by another and enforced by the World Trade Organization (WTO). A country grants this clause to another nation if it is interested in increasing trade with that country. Countries achieving most favored nation status are given specific trade advantages, such as reduced tariffs on imported goods.

 

ECONOMY

 [1]. WEF ranks India as 39th most competitive economy

 The Hindu

Context

India as climbed to 39th position in the World Economic Forum’s Global competitive index

According to the World Economic Forum’s (WEF) latest Global Competitiveness Report for 2016-17 this marks the biggest scale of improvement in competitiveness among all countries and is the second year in a row India has gone up 16 ranks in the WEF index.

Observations in the report

  • Improvements in institutions and infrastructure have increased overall competitiveness along with recent reforms such as opening the economy to foreign investors and increasing transparency in the financial system
  • Lower oil prices and improved monetary and fiscal policies have made Indian economy the fastest among G20
  • Labour market rigidities and the presence of large, public enterprises especially in the utilities and financial sector make the economy less efficient
  • further investment is necessary to connect rural areas and ensure they equally benefit from and contribute to India’s development
  • Amongst the South Asian countries India ranks behind Sri Lanka in terms of technological readiness

Most problematic factors for doing business in India

  • India’s tax regulations
  • Corruption
  • Tax rates
  • Poor public health
  • Lack of infrastructure and ICT use (where India is ranked 120th in the world)

 

[2]. Joblessness rises to 5-year high

The Hindu

Context

Article focusses its attention on the latest annual household survey on employment conducted by Labour Bureau

Observations

  • Joblessness has risen to a 5 year high of 5% in 2015-16
  • Female job seekers were the worst hit as the pace of unemployment rose sharply to 8.7 per cent in 2015-16 compared to 7.7 per cent in 2013-14, data from the Fifth Annual Employment-Unemployment Survey showed
  • 8 per cent of the surveyed population was reported to be employed in 2015-16 compared with 49.9 per cent (also known as worker population ratio) two years earlier when the previous survey was conducted by the Labour Bureau, under the Ministry of Labour and Employment
  • The pattern of employment in the corporate sector is changing. Companies are looking to hire productive workers so there is a reduction in absorption of labor
  • the construction sector, which is the most labour-intensive sector following agriculture, is not growing, leading to slow growth in job creation
  • The survey showed a decline in the proportion of self-employed and salaried workers and a rise in contractual employment
  • Graduates and post-graduates have cited non-availability of jobs that matched their education or skill and experience, as the main reason for unemployment

Critique of the survey

  • Labour Bureau survey did not pick up the state-level trends
  • The sample size was too low

 

[3]. Govt to implement Khan panel views in 6 months

Business Standard

Context

The government would implement the recommendations of the H R Khan committee on corporate bond market development in six to eight months

HR Khan Committee

The Financial Stability and Development Council Sub-committee (FSDCSC) in its meeting held on September 10, 2015 decided to constitute a Working Group on Corporate Bonds. Accordingly a working group was constituted under HR Khan

[4]. Jan-Dhan to offer banking on internet-less phones

Business Standard

Context

Government is planning to introduce banking platform to internet-less phones as a next big step in its financial inclusion programme

Why such a system?

  • Limited by technology: Jan-Dhan Yojana offers a bank account to potentially adult Indians. But if the account holders want to do their banking business via their mobiles, it is only possible if they have a smartphone or at least a feature phone else they need to use a SMS service, which, too, costs money and is difficult and limited in its scope in rural areas. For them, the practical options are to either visit a banking correspondent, who provides connectivity, or use their RuPay card, where an ATM is available to withdraw money

Main motive

The option is to make banking services via the Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) technology to take off. At present only government-run operators BSNL & MTNL offer these services

How USSD works?

For those who have just a 2G phone offering only voice communications, the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) runs this common platform for all banks. When a customer dials a short code like *99# from her mobile, the service is activated. The service prompts the customer to dial another code. It is like a postal pincode that identifies her with the bank. It then prompts her to enter her four-digit mobile personal identification number, or PIN, which connects her with her account. The format is akin to how customers check balance on prepaid mobile services or load caller tunes

 

Problem with USSD

The three-stage authentication makes it difficult for typically those who are the poorest. They need to keep note of these numbers for their transactions. It is what switches them off from the benefits that the Jan-Dhan project offers. Since there is a cost involved from telecom companies, this, too, acts as a disincentive.

Government’s plan

Government wants to reduce the number of stages to two by using Aadhaar

  • Once operational, it will allow customers with mobile phones to check their balance, their past three transactions and pay money for any purpose.

 


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