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FRONT PAGE / NATIONAL
[1]. Reporting of encounter killings mandatory: NHRC
Context
The NHRC, which issued notices to Madhya Pradesh authorities seeking reports on the gunning down of eight SIMI men, said in a statement that it had always been concerned about custodial deaths and deaths in police action.
Citing media reports, the NHRC said the prisoners had escaped after killing a guard.
2nd Prison Break: This was the second prison break for three of the alleged SIMI men, who had escaped from Khandwa Jail three years ago. They were caught again this year in Odisha. The prisoners had been charged with murder, sedition, jail break and robbing a bank.
Killed in encounter: The prisoners were killed in an encounter with police at about 11 a.m. the same day.
[2]. SIMI men had no guns: Witnesses
Context
‘Suspects threw stones, shouted curses and dared police to attack’
No firearms
Scores of people from about a dozen villages witnessed the alleged encounter between the police and the SIMI undertrials who “escaped” from Bhopal central jail, but eyewitnesses did not recall “seeing” the suspects use firearms against the police.
Source: The Hindu
The eyewitnesses are sure the suspects threw stones at the police and the public, shouted curses, chanted slogans and challenged them to attack. They also do not recollect spotting any pistols next to the bodies of the dead men, although many of them claimed that a knife-kind of object was lying near one of the slain persons
EDITORIAL / OPINION
[1]. Winking at the States
Context
Author through this article puts forward his criticism of the Central government’s attempt to dilute the land acquisition law by encouraging States to enact their own versions of the law.
Backdrop
In 2015, the government at the centre failed to amend the Right to Fair compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013. So it devised a new alternative under which it encouraged States to draft and pass their own laws for land acquisition and get them approved byit.
Following this, states of Tamil Nadu and Gujarat have moved ahead with their amendments, Rajasthan has a Bill ready and Telangana is working on its version.
Amendments proposed by states do not satisfy any of the safeguards enshrined in the 2013 central law such as the right to consent, social impact assessment and, in the case of Tamil Nadu, even rehabilitation and resettlement
Doctrine of occupied field
Doctrine of Occupied Field simply refers to those legislative entries of State List, which are expressly made ‘subject’ to a corresponding Entry in either the Union List or the Concurrent List.
For more info: http://www.desikanoon.co.in/2014/06/constitutional-law-doctrine-of-occupied.html
Jurisprudential concerns
Author states that, as per the doctrine of occupied field enshrined in Article 254(1) of the Constitution, if there exists a Central law on a concurrent subject, then a State law cannot override it. However, Article 254(2) provides that if a State law receives presidential assent after due consideration, then it can apply in contravention to the Central law in that particular State.
Use of this provision to permit States to pass land acquisition laws in conflict with the 2013 Act gives rise to three grave jurisprudential concerns
1st concern
Real purpose behind Article 254 (2): Author states that article 254(2) was never intended to weaken Central laws merely because they were found to be inconvenient. It was intended to bring in changes to Central laws if there was a genuine hurdle in implementing them in a particular State due to challenges peculiar to that region.
Abuse of power
Author further says that effort by the government to amend the 2013 law were met with constant resistance from general public and even Supreme Court refused to entertain challenges to its various provisions.
Thus, two things became clear: the law was constitutionally sound and the public mandate was overwhelmingly against such amendments
So, author surmises, to try to weaken a law by creatively subverting the constitution is merely an abuse of power.
2nd concern
Presidential assent not a formality
Author states that it is relevant to examine the nature of the presidential power envisaged under Article 254 (2)
Questions: Is the President required to act mechanically on the advice of the Council of Ministers or is he to apply his own mind?
Kaiser-I-Hind Pvt. Ltd. v. National Textile Corporation (2002)
The Supreme Court in a landmark Constitution Bench decision in Kaiser-I-Hind Pvt. Ltd. v. National Textile Corporation (2002) held, in relation to Article 254(2), that the words “reserved for consideration” would “definitely indicate that there should be active application of mind by the President to the repugnancy (inconsistency)
DD Basu’s view on Article 254 (2)
As per DD Basu, the words “reserved for consideration” used in Article 254(2) “cannot be an idle formality but would require serious consideration on the material placed before the President”.
Conclusion: Therefore it is clear that the President must act deliberately and consciously and not merely on the advice of the Council of Ministers. The newly enacted State laws on acquisition curtail and suspend the statutory right to give consent to acquisition and the need to carry out a social impact assessment. The President is required to examine if compelling reasons to sanction such a significant deviation exist.
Presidential assent liable to judicial review or not?
Question: Can the President’s exercise of his power under Article 254(2) be subject to judicial review?
Apex court’s view: Yes.
The Supreme Court in the Kaiser-i-Hind case, while relying on several precedents, held, “We further make it clear that granting of assent under Article 254(2) is not exercise of legislative power of President such as contemplated under Article 123 but is part of legislative procedure. Whether procedure prescribed by the Constitution before enacting the law is followed or not can always be looked into by the Court.”
In other words, the court may review whether the procedure which requires thorough reflection and conscious application of mind by the President was observed.
3rd concern
Undermining the Parliament
Central laws are pointless: Author, in this third case assumes that, presidential approval is merely a formality which can only be delayed, not denied, then he says that it leads to the worrying conclusion that Central laws on any subject contained in List III of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution (“Concurrent List”) like forests, electricity, family planning and education are, in effect, pointless.
Conceding the authority: Wherever a Central government lacks the numbers to pass a law (on a concurrent subject) in Parliament or is faced with public opposition, it will concede the authority to States to pass the laws as they see fit and get the President to approve them. This is happening not just for land acquisition but also for labour laws, with Rajasthan having shown the way.
Bypassing the law: Author states that instead of upholding sanctity of 2013 law which is an act of parliament (as required by the Constitution) the government wishes to undermine the role of Parliament by actively encouraging States to bypass the law. Therefore it is breaching the provisions of Article 254(1) which give supremacy to laws made by Parliament unless States have a genuine necessity to deviate.
Conclusion
Author concludes by saying that an act of parliament should be respected and not diluted by devising clever loopholes.
[2]. Questions about an ‘encounter’
Context
Article talks about the recent encounter of 8 undertrials belonging to Students’ Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), by police in Madhya Pradesh.
What happened?
8 undertrials belonging to SIMI escaped the Bhopal central jail after murdering a guard on duty.
The suspects allegedly used wooden logs and bed sheets to scale a 35-foot wall. They also formed human pyramids to scale a 10-foot wall after getting out of their cells.
That wall is joined by a 20-foot wall that serves to separate two wards of the prison. Some of them first climbed the short wall using their ladders before hauling up their associates
Fake encounter?
The State government and the police have failed to provide a cogent explanation for the events of the day.
The circulation of footage purportedly recording some moments before and after the encounter has invited charges that the encounter was ‘fake’.
Doubts have been raised whether the eight men were carrying any weapons or posed an imminent danger to the police party that closed in on them.
Were they about to surrender, having run out of options, when they were killed? One police officer’s claim that they had firearms and had attacked the police contradicts another officer’s version that they had no weapons
Only magisterial inquiry has been ordered while as per Supreme Court’s directive every police encounter has to be probed by the Criminal Investigation Department or any other independent police team
Conclusion
Author concludes by hoping that government will order a thorough probe of the incident and come clean of the allegations that are being levelled against it.
INTERNATIONAL
[1]. High expectations ahead of Indo-Sri Lanka fishermen talks
Context: Article details about the meeting that is going to be held in New Delhi amongst the fishermen from Tamil Nadu and northern Sri Lanka after a gap of nearly one and a half years.
The whole issue
- Sri Lankan fishermen, who are Tamils living in the war-torn northern province of the island, want Indian fishermen to stop engaging in bottom-trawling, a fishing practice known to harm the marine ecosystem. Nearly two lakh Tamils living in Jaffna, Mullaitivu, Kilinochchi and Mannar depend on the sea for a living.
- Indian fishermen, who are often caught engaging in illegal fishing in Sri Lankan waters, have sought more time to phase out trawling. The Sri Lankan Navy has arrested 235 Indian fishermen until mid-October on charges of engaging in illegal fishing. Since 2014, Sri Lanka has refused to release over 100 seized trawlers, which has to an extent deterred Indian fishermen from venturing deep
High level meeting
The meeting between the fishermen would be followed by a high-level meeting in New Delhi on November 5, to discuss a possible solution to the lingering problem of Indian fishermen allegedly fishing in Sri Lankan waters, using the practice of bottom-trawling.
Foreign Ministers of India and Sri Lanks, along with Sri Lanka’s Minister of Fishries and the Minister of Agriculture and Farmers welfare – also in- charge of fisheries – will come together for the first time to possibly evolve a joint startegy to tackle the conflict.
ECONOMY
[1]. RCEP members worry over market access to China
Context: Article focusses on the concerns of Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) members at the upcoming ministerial meeting at Cebu in Philippines from 3rd to 4th November.
The concern
Member nations are concerned over agreeing to give greater market access to Chinese goods without gaining in return
- Dumping by China: Concerns of the RCEP nations also arise from fears of China dumping its excess capacity in several items including steel, as well as highly subsidised items, thereby harming the local industry of the importing countries and distorting trade.
Indian government sources said it was not just India, but all the other countries in the RCEP grouping are also worried about agreeing to eliminate tariffs altogether — a move that will mainly help China
What is RCEP?
RCEP is the proposed mega-regional Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between 16 Asia-Pacific countries including India, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand and the 10-member ASEAN bloc
- The proposed FTA, which aims to open up trade in goods and services as well as liberalise investment policies, will cover a market of over three billion people in these countries — whose total GDP is more than $17 trillion and account for 40 per cent of world trade.
[2]. Cess plan could mean 10 different GST rates
Context
Article talks about the possibility of government imposing differential cess rates over and above GST on products like cigarettes, tobacco products and luxury commodities
Why a differential cess system?
To ensure that the tax incidence on products like cigarettes, tobacco products and luxury commodities doesn’t decline under the GST regime. So, if the current rate of taxation on a product is higher than the GST rate, then the cess will make up the difference
- So, Cigarettes, currently taxed at 53 per cent, could attract a cess rate of more than 100 per cent to bring the total GST levy on them in line with present taxation levels.
Complicating GST
Differential cess system simply means that there will be a separate cess on each of such items, which will further complicate the GST tax structure under which the government has proposed six different tax rates ranging from zero to 26 per cent, including a four per cent tax on gold, to the GST Council.
- If government wants to have, say, six different cesses, it basically means 10 different rates of GST, which is not what it was meant to be. This will make GST very, very complicated
Present situation
At the moment, the government levies a different rate of tax on items such as luxury cars, high-end watches, and tobacco products such as cigarettes, even though all are taxed at above 26 per cent.
Supporting government’s move
Health expenditure: There are 1 million deaths a year in India due to smoking alone, not counting chewing tobacco related deaths. The government spends more than Rs.1 lakh crore a year on the treatment of tobacco-related health issues.
- In case of cigarettes if there is a cess equal to 100 per cent or lower it will render cigarettes — classified as ‘sin’ or demerit goods —cheaper under the GST structure than they are currently. Hence, government should impose cess which makes such goods costlier because making cigarettes and beedis cheaper would only worsen the health situation.
[3]. Data fraud: IRDAI readies cyber security shield
Context
Article talks about the cyber security framework which IRDAI is going to set up in the light of the recent data breach involving banking system.
The Framework
As per The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI),
- The security framework will be a comprehensive one for the sector.
- The watchdog will also put in place an appropriate mechanism to mitigate these risks
- In this connection, it has been decided to form two separate working groups for life and non-life sectors (including health) comprising CIOs of insurers to discuss and decide on the issues related to cyber security
[4]. India, Nepal to decide on open skies
Context
India is set to hold bilateral talks with its neighboring Nepal under its new civil aviation policy to allow unlimited flight services with SAARC countries.
Backdrop
As a part of new civil aviation policy, the Centre had written to all countries with which India has a bilateral air services agreement informing them about the plans to open up our skies
- Under the new National Civil Aviation Policy, India has plans to enter into ‘open sky’ air service agreements (ASA) with SAARC countries and with countries beyond the 5,000-km radius from Delhi.
Present situation
Airlines from India and Nepal are allowed to operate 30,000 seats from each side at present. While airlines from Nepal have utilised only eight per cent of the seat entitlements as of June this year, Indian counterparts have used 23 per cent of the seat entitlements.
Netherlands and Sweden
Besides Nepal, India will also hold bilateral negotiations to open up the skies with two European countries — Netherlands and Sweden
Greece
Recently, India had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Greece for open skies, allowing airlines from Greece to operate unlimited flights to six Indian metropolitan airports.
Note: Countries sign ASAs through bilateral negotiations to decide on the number of flights that airlines can fly into each other’s countries.
INDIAN EXPRESS
[1]. The overrated urban spinoff
Context
Author, through this article, tries to contest the claims made by NITI Ayog chairman, Arvind Panagaria at 3rd BRICS urbanization forum in Vishakhapatnam that without cities we can’t grow rapidly and that urbanisation plays an important role in poverty alleviation.
Author feels that both the claims are exaggerated and somewhat misleading.
Let us see why he feels so.
New Climate Economy Report by the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate
He begins his reasoning by citing a report prepared for the UN. Few observations of the report,
- Increased Urbanisation: India’s urban population increased from 217 million to 377 million, and this is expected to reach 600 million by 2031 — 40 per cent of the country’s population
- Urbanisation at the Fringes: The current pattern of urbanisation is largely taking place on the fringe of cities, much of it is unplanned and outside the purview of city codes and bylaws
- Need to invest in urban development: The gap in urban infrastructure investment over the next 20 years is estimated at $827 billion; two-thirds of this is required for urban roads and traffic support. So the case for higher investment in urban development is compelling.
- Key question: Author says that a key question at this moment is that whether a substantial hike in urban infrastructure investment would imply a substantially lower increase in rural investment?
Rural transformation vs urban development
Author says that it is difficult to answer above question in a blatant yes or no. Instead he proposes to discuss the growth and poverty effects of rural transformation relative to those of urban development.
IMF Study
A recent IMF study was done using the NSS data over 1983-1984, 1993-1994 and 1999-2000.
What did it examine?
- It measured the impact of urbanisation on rural poverty in India meaning the reduction in rural poverty due to the change in residence — from rural areas to cities i.e. relation between location and economic conditions
- The impact of growth of the urban population on the rural poverty rate
Poverty reducing effect of urbanisation
Urbanisation has a significant poverty-reducing effect on the surrounding rural areas. Over the entire period in question, poverty reduced between 13 per cent and 25 per cent as a result of urbanisation
- But this reduction is not as substantial when compared to the reduction in rural poverty brought about by state-led rural bank branch expansion, which explains approximately half of the overall reduction of rural poverty between 1961 and 2000.
What is a multiplier effect?
It is an economic term referring to how an increase in one economic activity can cause an increase in throughout many other related economic activities
Flaw in the IMF study
As per author, IMF study suffers from a major flaw,
The IMF study examines the role of urbanisation in isolation of rural transformation. It fails to consider the multiplier effect and examines urbanisation only in terms of the impact it has on the rural transformation.
Following instances show various cases of the multiplier effect,
- As agriculture modernises, for example, it reduces rural poverty and overall poverty through greater demand for chemical fertilisers, pesticides, machine services, processed seeds or fuels, which promote non-agricultural production
- Higher incomes in rural areas promote demand for processed foods produced mainly in urban areas and generate employment
- Decrease in food prices due to agricultural growth results in better food security and overall poverty reduction in both rural and urban areas, while the reduction of food prices lowers the real product wage in the non-agricultural sector, thereby raising profitability and investment in that sector
So, author surmises, that without an understanding of the direct and multiplier effects of rural transformation and urbanisation, studying each one in isolation would be a mistake.
Author says that the research in which he is presently engaged takes into account the above factors.
Non-agriculture & Agriculture
Overall growth and poverty effects of both agriculture and non-agriculture are examined, taking into account the linkages between them.
- As the non-agricultural sector includes both rural non-agricultural and urban activities, the rural areas are divided into agriculture and non-agriculture sub-sectors
- The urban areas are divided into small towns, secondary towns and metropolitan cities in order to compare their effects on poverty
Agricultural growth’s stronger poverty reduction effect
Author states that his analysis shows that effects from agricultural growth rate are twice as large as from non-agricultural growth.
- Besides, agricultural growth has a much stronger poverty-reducing effect than non-agricultural growth.
- Agriculture’s contribution to poverty reduction is five times more than that of metropolitan cities
Conclusion
Author concludes by stating that strengthening of extension services, rural infrastructure and skill formation will not only raise productivity and living standards but also curb rural-urban migration. Creating more remunerative opportunities in rural areas deserves greater emphasis.
LIVE MINT
[1]. Long road to ‘ease of undoing business
Context
Competition is about the free entry of new businesses. But it is also about free exit.
Global ranking in ease of doing business
India’s global rank in the World Bank’s annual Doing Business ranking came in at 130 out of 190 countries. It has moved up only one notch since last year.
Author asks, how should we assess our progress? Before exploring this question, several caveats (a warning or proviso [a condition or qualification attached to an agreement or statement] of specific stipulations, conditions, or limitations) are in order.
- Relative ranking: Author states that the ease of doing business ranking is a relative one meaning the ranking shows India’s place relative to other countries. Other countries like India are also trying to make themselves more business friendly, so if India has to improve it would have to outpace their progress.
- Sustained job creation: The desire to get a higher rank is not the ultimate goal, rather the main goal is sustained job creation on a large scale, which needs a business-friendly regime, measured by the ranking. For 10 million jobs per year, we need the creation of tens of thousands of new businesses. Hence we need a regime which is not only bereft of “inspection raj” and “permissions raj”, but also heavy on self-declarations and deemed approvals, more digitally enabled and less paperwork-driven.
- while India’s ease of doing business ranking has stalled, its ranking on three other global indices has jumped smartly.
- Competitiveness ranking: India’s competitiveness ranking is up 16 places according to the World Economic Forum.
- Innovation index: India’s innovation index is up 15 places as per the World Intellectual Property Organization.
- FDI is highest: Inbound foreign direct investment is the highest in the world, signaling the confidence of global investors.
So, author concludes that, despite of low ranking on Ease of Doing Business indicator, we should not overlook our improved performance on other important indices.
Author poses a question at this point that,
Question: How then to perform better on the EODB ranking?
Answer: It is by focusing on the 10 metrics that make up the rank
Specifically, on getting construction permits (rank 185), registering property (138), paying taxes (172), enforcing contracts (172) and resolving insolvency (136)
- The first two are mostly local issues dealt with either at the state or local government level.
- Taxation metric: With the rollout of the goods and services tax (GST) system, hopefully India’s rank in the taxation metric should improve substantially in the coming years.
- Enforcing contracts: As for enforcing contracts, it is an issue best addressed by judicial reforms. This calls for filling vacancies in various courts and greater encouragement to arbitration and out-of-court settlements
- Ease of undoing business: Author states that the ease of doing business is as much about free entry as it is about free exit. On this count, India’s rank has been abysmally low. It takes more than four years to wind up a business, and insolvency resolution is able to salvage barely 20% of the value. This is bound to change in a dramatic way with the rollout of the new Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code regime.
It is here that India can expect a big jump in its ranking. Ease of doing business also needs ease of undoing business, i.e. quick resolution of insolvencies
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