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LIST OF NEWSPAPERS COVERED ASIAN AGE BUSINESS LINE DECCAN HERALD ECONOMIC TIMES FINANCIAL EXPRESS HINDU HINDUSTAN TIMES INDIAN EXPRESS PIONEER STATESMAN TELEGRAPH TIMES OF INDIA 1
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Page 1: 1-7... · Web viewLIST OF NEWSPAPERS COVERED ASIAN AGE BUSINESS LINE DECCAN HERALD ECONOMIC TIMES FINANCIAL EXPRESS HINDU HINDUSTAN TIMES INDIAN EXPRESS PIONEER STATESMAN TELEGRAPH

LIST OF NEWSPAPERS COVERED

ASIAN AGE

BUSINESS LINE

DECCAN HERALD

ECONOMIC TIMES

FINANCIAL EXPRESS

HINDU

HINDUSTAN TIMES

INDIAN EXPRESS

PIONEER

STATESMAN

TELEGRAPH

TIMES OF INDIA

TRIBUNE

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CONTENTS

BLACK MONEY 3

CIVIL AVIATION 4

CIVIL SERVICE 5-10

CONSTITUTIONS 11-13

EDUCATION 14-25

ELDERLY 26-27

EMPLOYMENT 28-29

FINANCIAL MARKET 30-32

GOVERNMENT, CENTRAL 33

HEALTH SERVICES 34

HISTORY 35

HOUSING 36-37

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS 38-42

JUDICIARY 43-45

LABOUR 46

POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT 47

PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION 48

RAILWAYS 49-51

SOCIAL PROBLEMS 52

TAXATION 53-54

TERRORISM 55

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BLACK MONEY

DECCAN HERALD, APR 6, 2016Black money rot, Centre must act

The fresh cache of information about Indians who hold money in foreign accounts is yet another reminder of the task before the Indian state to unearth untaxed wealth and to bring to book those who stash their illicit wealth away in tax havens. Black money has been at the centre of political debates in the country for long. But the state has mostly failed in its task and even the government which came to power with the promise that all black money would be retrieved within 6 months has been looking for excuses and asking for time. Over 500 Indians have figured in the list of names contained in 11.5 million documents leaked from the Panama-based law firm Mossack Fonseca which provided facilities to companies and individuals all over the world to park their wealth in tax havens. More names are being revealed. They include industrialists, film stars and prominent persons in other fields. Mossack Fonseca is not the only firm that provides such services. There are many others and even bigger ones.

The disclosure does not mean that all the accounts contain illegal and untaxed wealth. There are legal ways of taking money out of the country, like the Liberalised Remittance Scheme, which allows Indian citizens to transfer up to USD 2,50,000 a year to foreign accounts. But there is confusion over the rules that govern the transfer. It is a fact that there has not been much regulatory supervision or monitoring by state agencies of such transactions. It is not known how many of the accounts which have now come to light are legal. Some of those who figure in the list have made denials and some others have maintained silence. The general inclination would only be to believe that most or many of the accounts which have now been revealed were created and are being held in violation of the letter and spirit of the law.

The government has appointed a multi-disciplinary team to investigate the revelations made in the Panama papers. But the record of such investigations does not inspire confidence. The Special Investigation Team on black money appointed by the Supreme Court has said that it did not get full cooperation from all government agencies in its investigations. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has again warned of strong action against those on the wrong side of the law. He has another opportunity to make good on his promise. The major journalistic effort to access the names and make them public deserves praise too, and it shows the need for global action in tackling the problem of black money without borders. 

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CIVIL AVIATION

ECONOMIC TIMES, APRIL 1, 2016Aviation ministry cuts down airport entry passes for staff of MPs and ministers

NEW DELHI: The next time you encounter a minister or parliamentarian at the airport, the posse that typically follows them everywhere will likely be missing. In a bid to secure airports further post the terror attack in Brussels, the civil aviation ministry has decided to cut down on the number of airport entry passes (AEPs) being provided to the staff of union ministers and MPs. Henceforth, only one member from the staff will have full access at the airports. Others, if sought, will get limited access till the security check area. Until now, there was no limit on the issue of such access cards. "There is no need for so many people to enter the airport to drop the minister or MP, as airlines and airport operators provide them with protocol officers to look after their requirements and drop them till the aircraft," said a senior civil aviation ministry official, who did not want to be named. The proposal has been approved by both civil aviation ministers — cabinet minister Ashok Gajapati Raju and minister of state Mahesh Sharma soon after the terrorist attack on the Brussels airport. A lot of AEPs issued to the officials of the civil aviation ministry will also be withdrawn, said the official. "The ministry has started rejecting requests for AEP and we have rejected a proposal for AEP from a union minister's personal secretary," said another civil aviation ministry official. Demand to curtail the number of these permits was always there, but it couldn't be implemented because of opposition from its beneficiaries. The ministry was until recently liberal in issuing the access cars and requests from any MP or minister was immediately process without asking any question. "There are lot of things that we want to do, but are unable to do," said a top ministry official. "The Brussels strike surely acted as an enabler in achieving this." Analysts say such permits should be completely abolished. "I do not understand the logic behind passes to receive ministers or MPs from inside the aircraft. This does not happen anywhere in the world," said Shakti Lumba, former head of operations at Air India and IndiGo. On the security point of view, Lumba said, a bigger worry is temporary airport employees involved in ground handling. "These people have access to baggage, aircraft and other sensitive installations at the airport. The government needs to ensure that such employees are not temporary because airlines, normally, outsource these services to contractors." The civil aviation ministry, along with the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security the aviation security wing of the government in a series of measures have also stopped sale of visitor tickets at all airports. "The ban on entry of visitors inside the airport was immediately put in place after the attack in Brussels," said one of the ministry officials cited earlier.

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CIVIL SERVICE

ASIAN AGE, APR 6, 2016Delhi government faces shortage of senior bureaucrats SANJAY KAW 

The AAP government is reportedly facing a shortage of senior bureaucrats as none of the IAS and Danics officials posted to their mother state cadre and other Union Territories want to join the city administration.

Chief secretary K.K. Sharma has reportedly taken up the matter not only with the Union home ministry, but also with Arunachal Pradesh, Goa, Mizoram Union Territories (AGMUT) with the request that officials who have already been transferred to Delhi be relieved forthwith. The worrying factor for the Delhi government is that some of the officials already in Delhi have proceeded on leave as they are looking for other avenues.

After senior bureaucrat Chetan B. Sanghi, a 1994 AGMUT cadre officer, Amar Nath, recently extended his leave for one-and-a-half months as he was reluctant to join the Delhi government after his powers were cut by the AAP government when he was its health secretary.

A highly-placed source said that the Union home ministry is in the process of writing to all the Union Territories to relieve all those officers who have been transferred to Delhi. The home ministry has taken up the issue after the Delhi government’s plea to direct other Union Territories to relieve those who have been transferred to Delhi as the state government has relieved all those who have been transferred.

It is reliably learnt that Mr Sharma has already taken up the issue with the MHA and he has also talked to his counterparts in Arunachal Pradesh, Puducherry and Andaman and Nicobar to get back officers who have been transferred to Delhi as the government has been facing shortage of officers.

There are over a dozen officials who have not joined the Delhi government despite their transfer orders. As a result, several departments are being handled by junior-level officers. There are no principal secretary rank officers in departments like transport, food and supplies, environment, PWD, health and power. Worried over the treatment being meted out to them by the AAP government, several bureaucrats are reluctant to join the state government. They have proceeded on leave and are lobbying to get Central postings.

ECONOMIC TIMES, APR 5, 2016Narendra Modi government relaxes leave norms for surrogate mothers

NEW DELHI: The is planning to extend the benefits of Maternity Leave and Child Care Leave (CCL) for surrogate as well as commissioning mothers who are in government service. Also,

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women employees who have disabled children would be allowed to take CCL of a total of two years at any stage of their service. A consensus on these proposals has been arrived at within the government and comments of the public have now been sought on the same. "There is no provision at present for any kind of Leave for surrogate or commissioning mothers. It is proposed that 180 days maternity leave may be granted to the surrogate as well as commissioning mothers, in case either or both of them are Government servants. The commissioning mother also requires time for bonding with her child and to take care of him or her and hence would also become eligible for CCL. Paternity Leave may also be granted in case of surrogacy," says the proposal. CCL is given to woman employees for a total of two years in service till a child is 18 years old. Also, it has been proposed that the age limit for CCL in case of disabled children needs to be done away with since the requirement of parental care may be more or stronger when the disabled child grows older. "It may be allowed to provide for CCL in case of disabled children without any age limit provided the maximum CCL that can be availed remains within the ceiling of 730 days," the proposal says. Woman employees may also be allowed to leave the Headquarter and avail LTC while on CCL. "The underlying intent of CCL is to allow care of up to 2 children whether for rearing or to look after any of their needs like examination, sickness etc. Thus, it is not restricted to exam and sickness alone. Taking care may also include ensuring their rest and recreation and towards that objective leaving headquarters or availing LTC can be allowed. It is thus proposed that employees may be permitted to leave headquarters or avail LTC while they are on CCL, provided clearances from appropriate competent authorities are taken while proceeding on foreign travel," the government proposal says. Employees can now avail CCL for at least 5 days, against a present requirement of minimum 15 days.

FINANCIAL EXPRESS, APR 5, 2016Compulsory Retirement: Cracking down on babus

Babus may get 3-4 times the salaries of their private sector counterparts, especially at the lower-

to-medium levels, but the security of tenure that they enjoyed is now under threat—a study for

the Seventh Pay Commission found a fresh government nurse earned 3.4 times her private sector

counterpart, a teacher 2.7 times and a driver 2.3 times.

Babus may get 3-4 times the salaries of their private sector counterparts, especially at the lower-

to-medium levels, but the security of tenure that they enjoyed is now under threat—a study for

the 7th Pay Commission found a fresh government nurse earned 3.4 times her private sector

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counterpart, a teacher 2.7 times and a driver 2.3 times. While there was always a rule to

compulsorily retire bureaucrats —sadly, the rule applies to only those who are at least 50 years

old—on grounds of either corruption or inefficiency, this has rarely been used. According to The

Economic Times that reported the use of an obscure Rule 56(j) to sack 15 customs and central

excise officials —including two at the level of commissioners—this was last invoked three

decades ago. Indeed, a few months before it demitted office in 2014, the UPA government

reiterated the rule, but it did precious little about it. The NDA reissued the order last September,

but made its intentions clear since, while doing so, the order excerpted various Supreme Court

judgments on this—in other words, babus were warned that the highest court in the land had

ruled in favour of this in the past.

In the case of State of Gujarat vs Umedbhai M Patel, the SC had ruled that “whenever the

services of a public servant are no longer useful to the general administration, the officer can be

compulsorily retired for the sake of public interest”. It then went on to say, according to the

DoPT circular, “For better administration, it is necessary to chop off dead wood, but the order of

compulsory retirement can be passed after having due regard to the entire service record of the

officer.” In another case—State of UP vs Vijay Kumar Jain—the court had said the government

could compulsorily retire an employee “if conduct of a government employee becomes

unbecoming … or obstructs the efficiency in public services”. There is the danger that the

circular can be misused and, in the case of S Ramachandra Raju vs State of Orissa, the Court had

said while “there may not be sufficient evidence to take punitive disciplinary action … but his

conduct and reputation is such that his continuance in service would be a menace to public

service and injurious to public interest”.

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While the possibility of abuse applies to every provision in the law, there are enough checks

since there will be review panels before the compulsory retirement and then there is the process

of appeal to the tribunal as well as to the courts. Since the exercise is believed to have been

kicked off at the instance of the Prime Minister’s Office, chances are that several more babus

may be shown the door. While some of those sacked in the first purge are reported to have been

of doubtful integrity, inefficiency is an even bigger danger—if government teachers get paid 2.7

times what their private sector counterparts do and are still found missing in class or not

delivering good results, they need to be sacked. The chalta hai attitude of the bureaucracy has to

go, and this may be just what was required—if the rule could be modified to tackle bureaucrats

who are younger, that would be even better.

ECONOMIC TMES, APR 4, 201615 customs and central excise personnel fired: Sacking signals crackdown on laggards

NEW DELHI: The recent sacking of 15 customs and central excise personnel, including two at the level of commissioner, could mark a watershed in the annals of India's civil services. A little-used rule has been employed to send a signal that poor performance could be a firing offence. Rule 56J of the fundamental rules under the department of personnel and training was last used by the Central Board of Excise and Customs in 1985. The rule authorises the government to review the performance of an employee who is 50 years old or has completed 35 years of service. The government wanted to set an example and show that it will keep close tabs on performance and that any sloppiness won't be tolerated, said people aware of the matter. Indian government posts are generally regarded as jobs for life and the few civil servants who do get sacked are either whistle blowers or egregiously corrupt — nonperformance is almost never an issue. However, the latest decision was based on performance reviews and didn't from any specific vigilance action. A senior CBEC official said an elaborate review had been undertaken before the officials were sacked. The dismissals took place in the past few days. "Performance review was a twolayered process," he said. The reviews were conducted by panels at CBEC and department of revenue and they closely examined the track record of each official. The department of revenue panel was headed by the revenue secretary. The move may mark a step toward implementing a 'perform or perish' culture in government offices notorious for their inefficiency and propensity to harass citizens, although there are some exceptions to this rule. To be sure, such dismissals can be challenged in administrative tribunals.

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ECONOMIC TIMES, APR 1, 2016Lokpal Act: Babus to declare details of foreign accounts

NEW DELHI: All Central government employees have been asked to declare details of deposits in foreign bank accounts which includes those of their spouses and dependent children, as per the new rules under the Lokpal Act. Besides, they have to give details of paintings, antiques, furnitures and electronic equipments among others in case their total current value exceeds two months' basic pay or Rs one lakh. The declarations under the Lokpal Act are in addition to similar ones filed by the employees under various services rules. All Group A, B and C employees are supposed to file the declaration under the Lokpal law. The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) has written to all Central government ministries and Chief Secretaries of state governments to ensure that the employees working under them declare details of their assets and liabilities, along with that of their spouse and dependent children, by April 15. All employees have to file returns of two yearsi.e. for 2014 and 2015 by April 15and another return giving details of their assets and liabilities for 2016 by July 31, this year. "In this regard, it is stated that there shall be no further extension of the aforesaid last date i.e. April 15, 2016," it said in the communique. There are about 50 lakh Central government employees. The employees will also have to inform separately in case of any investments of over Rs 2 lakh made in movable assets, insurance, bonds, shares and mutual funds in the new form. Investment above Rs 2 lakh to be reported individually. Investments below Rs 2 lakh may be reported together, it said. "Details of deposits in foreign bank(s) to be given separately," the DoPT said. Employees have to give details of expensive furniture, fixtures, antiques, paintings and electronic equipment also if the total current value of any particular as

PIONEER, APRIL 1, 2016GOVT RESHUFFLES IAS OFFICERS

The Chhattisgarh Government on Thursday carried out a major administrative reshuffle effecting new postings of a dozen of officials of Indian Administrative Service (IAS).

As per the order released from General Administration Department (GAD), Raipur District Collector Thakur Ram Singh has been elevated as Commissioner, Durg and  Collector of Janjgir-Champa Om Prakash Choudhary had been made Raipur District Collector.

S Bharatidasan, Managing Director of Chhattisgarh State Marketing Federation (MARKFED) will be replacing Choudhary in Janjgir-Champa as Collector. Deputy Secretary of Information and Biotechnology Department and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of CHiPS Saurabh Kumar has been shifted as Dantewada District Collector while Kumar will be replaced in Raipur by Collector Balrampur-Ramanujganj Alex Paul Menon as CHiPS CEO.

Avinash Champavat, who is presently holding several responsiblites including Director of Horticulture Department, In-charge Joint Secretary of Agriculture Department, Commissioner of

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Health Services and Managing Director of Chhattisgarh Medical Services Corporation, has been given additional responsibility of Director of National Rural Health Mission, Raipur.

Similarly, Mungeli Collector Dr Sanjay Kumar Alang has been shifted as Director of Woman and Child Development Department. Moreover, Dr Alang has been entrusted with additional responsibility of Director of Social Welfare as well as Managing Director of Chhattisgarh Disabled Persons Finance and Development Corporation.

Dr Alang will be replaced by Kiran Kaushal as Collector of Mungeli. Chief Executive Officer of Chhattisgarh State Skill Development Authority and State Project Livelihood College Society Priyanka Shukla has been transferred as Collector Jashpur and Dantewada Collector K C Devsenapati will replace her.

 Besides, Jashpur Collector Himshikhar Gupta has been entrusted with the new responsibility of Managing Director of Chhattisgarh State Marketing Federation (MARKFED).

Bijapur Collector Yashwant Kumar has been shifted as Joint Secretary, Mantralaya while Dr Tamboli Ayyaj Fakirbhai, Director of National Rural Health Mission and Additional Secretary of Health Services has been posted as Collector of Bijapur district.

Chief Executive Officer of District Panchayat Raipur Avnish Kumar Sharan has been shifted as Collector of Balrampur-Ramanujganj and Sharan will be replaced by Nileshkumar Mahadev Kshirsagar, Additional Collector of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA), Raipur.

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CONSTITUTIONS

TELEGRAPH, APR 3, 2016

Totem and taboo - The nationalist as tattooist

Gopalkrishna Gandhi

In November 1948, a debate of some moment took place in our Constituent Assembly. It was on a name for the new India, the Republic of India, that was to come into being on January 26, 1950. The occasion for the debate was provided by the draft for the first article of our Constitution - Article 1(1), which defined India. B.R. Ambedkar, as chairman of the drafting committee had proposed, "India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States."

The erudite professor, Shibbanlal Saksena, suggested on November 15, 1948, that Part I should say, "The name of the Union shall be BHARAT." Meeting again almost a year later, on September 18, 1949, the Constituent Assembly took up H.V. Kamath's new amendment proposing that "Bharat or, in the English language, India, shall be a Union of States." "Is it necessary to have all this?" Ambedkar asked, "I do not understand the purpose of it..." Kamath's amendment putting 'Bharat' before 'India' was then put to vote. The assembly divided by a show of hands. Kamath's amendment was lost, 38 supporting Kamath, 51 supporting Ambedkar's formulation. A difference of 13 hands gave us "India, that is Bharat", rather than "Bharat, that is India".

The difference was vital. India was the reality that subsumed Bharat, its dream. We live in the real even as we conjure the ideal. lndia was about life where the common man and woman - Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Buddhist, Christian, agnostic - face inflation with poverty, extravagance with squalor, corruption with defeat and where he and she have to be hassled at each step, whether it is for an electric connection, a change of name in the electric metre, a birth certificate, a land-mutation, a driving licence by men with the authority to delay if not deny what is due and where men and women have to face cheats and con men posing as facilitators. That is where rage resides. Bharat is where the affluent and privileged - the two going together - open the doors of malls and multiplexes, where bullet trains link the rich with the richer, where spaceships are launched from, missiles tested, submarines built, and also where yogic asanas are taught, indigenous noodles made to substitute ones with 'foreign'-sounding names, where methods of attaining bliss and calm are prescribed.

Ambedkar's formulation adopted by the Constituent Assembly is being questioned today, nearly 70 years later, by those who want to rewire the reality of India and Hindustan using the leaden batteries of a spurious 'Bharat'. Saying or not saying " Vande Mataram" and "Bharat Mata Ki Jai" is being made a test of patriotism. Who is anyone to test anyone else's patriotism in a republic? " Agar Bharat mein rehna hoga to Vande Mataram kahna hoga" is a form of bullying alien to the spirit of our Constitution and wholly unworthy of the values of a republic.

"Bharat Mata Ki Jai!" intoned from the fullness of one's free heart is one thing, but when made to lobotomize Article 1 of the Constitution, drop 'India', banish 'Hind' it becomes menacing. No

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Indian can menace another Indian in India's name. No one can choreograph Bharat into a goddess figure with "fierce aspects" in order to turn the Republic of India into a theocratic nation-state.

Bharat resonates with every fibre of our being in Lata Mangeshkar's words: " Koyi Sikh koyi Jaat Maratha/ koyi Gurkha koyi Madaraasi/ Sarahad pe maranewala/ har veer thaa Bhaaratavaasi." Bharat Mata resonates no less in Atal Bihari Vajpayee's tribute to Nehru on the great leader's death: " Bharat Mata aaj shok magnaa hai - uskaa sabse laadlaa rajkumar so gayaa... surya ast ho gayaa, taaron kii chhayaa mein humen apna marg dhundhna hai".

But it does not, and should never, resonate with all Indians when some hate-filled goon demands that another Indian must say Bharat, not Hind or India and, foaming at his mouth, asks her or him to declaim "Bharat Mata Ki Jai" when she or he believes equally and interchangeably in " Jai Hind". It not only does not resonate with them, but it also positively raises the gall in them. They will not abandon Bharat, Bharat Mata or Vande Mataram to be abducted.

Nations, great and small, have anthems, emblems, mottos, flags. States that slip under a supremo's clawed clasp or the vice-like grip of a 'supremo ideology', a 'supremo-ism', a 'supremo cult' including a fake 'supremo goal' to be a superpower or a regional power or, if not even that, at the very least, an internal gas chamber, add to those symbols of State another - a national totem. We who have grown with Bharat and Bharat Mata alongside Hindustan Zindabad and Jai Hind cannot allow Bharat Mata to become a totem, cannot allow that golden heritage to be reduced to a blade of the cheapest tin. Our forebears could be slapped with sedition for saying " Bharat Mata Ki Jai". We cannot be slapped with sedition for not saying it.

Also, let us not forget that totems and taboos go together. When something prescribes, lays down at the cost of dire consequences, that 'something' also forbids. What do the Bol Bharat Mata Ki Jai prescribers taboo? They taboo sharing the spaces of democratic choice, republican optionality, national liberties. In the name of order, they prescribe conformism and taboo individuality. In the name of nationalism, they prescribe jingoism and taboo self-criticism. In the name of the nation, they prescribe allegiance and taboo thought. They are not nationalists, they are tattooists. They want to scald and brand humans into herds. In the name of statesmanship, they want helmsmanship. In the name of a leader, they want a herder.

If we look closely at the person wanting Bharat and Bharat Mata to become a pair of totems and tattoos, we will find, first of all, that the person is a he, a man singularly un-agonized about caste oppression, the grim future of India's politically organized but socially and economically discriminated Dalits, her politically orphaned and socially un-understood tribals, about human rights, civil liberties, the rule of law. The question does not even arise of the Bol Bharat Mata Ki Jai man worrying about global warming, about the fragility of our water aquifers and wetlands. But most important of all, the "Bol Bharat Mata Ki Jai Varnaa...Dekh..." man is not going to be concerned about the torments of "Bharat Mata Ki Beti". He would not want Manna Dey's " Ay merey pyare vatan" to be invoked because it sings not of 'his' kind of mata but the ma whose ocean heart clasps the nanhi si beti. He will not want Mehboob Khan's immortal

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film, Mother India, to be screened afresh because that is about a Mother India, played by someone named Nargis.

The game plan is simple: let the hired or wired hotheads put the fear of the bully into the dissenter, make her or him cower under the filth of abuse, the sludge of calumny, the scare of 'action'. And why? So that via the headiness of religious frenzy, a power cabal gets established in the nation state and a fanned-up fanaticism keeps age-old oppressions un-checked - caste oppression, religious oppression, class oppression and above all, male oppression of not just the female but of the dissenting Indian, female and male.

Making " Bharat Mata Ki Jai" a 'safety password' is about road-rolling diversity, opiating discontent, anaesthetizing misery. It is about robotizing a people that are, by instinct and temperament, open to charismatic leadership, so that they listen and obey, act and react to signals and slogans, signs and signage like so many digits. To make 'Bharat' an escutcheon and "Bharat Mata Ki Jai" a compulsory battle-cry is to make Bharat an eternal zone of combat where there is always 'the Other', that being of course the one who is discontented with the prevailing order, dissimilar and dissenting.

Bharat Mata is far too valuable a concept, too valuable, to be turned into something that excludes and threatens huge chunks, large glacial masses, massive tectons of her offspring, the Peoplehood of India. We cannot let a fatherland schemata of pernicious biases stage a coup in our motherland. We whose national motto has come from the Upanishads, whose emblem from Ashoka, whose anthem from Tagore and whose Constitution have risen, after careful labour, from the integrated will of a people, cannot be doped into becoming a totem raj.

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EDUCATION

ECONOMIC TIMES, APR 7, 2016Smriti Irani promises free education at IITs for SC/STs, dalits and disabledHimanshu Bhatt

"Besides a complete fee waiver for these students, those with a family income of less than Rs 5 lakh will be given a 66% concession in the fees," Irani said.

SURAT: Union human resource development minister Smriti Irani on Wednesday promised a

fee waiver for all SC/ST, Dalit and physically challenged students of the 23 branches of Indian

Institute of Technology (IIT). A formal announcement to this effect will be made soon. 

"Besides a complete fee waiver for these students, those with a family income of less than Rs 5

lakh will be given a 66% concession in the fees," Irani told TOI. 

Irani said the move will benefit nearly 50% of the 60,471 students enrolled in the country's

premier technology institutes. 

The decision follows an IIT panel clearing a proposal for a three-fold fee hike, from Rs 90,000 to

Rs 3 lakh per annum from the next academic session. The final decision on this rests with the

HRD minister. Irani, however, refused to comment on the hike and only said the fees had not

been increased yet. 

The minister was in Surat to participate in an event to mark BJP foundation day. 

Currently, the IITs have a 15% reservation for SCs, 7.5% for STs and 27% for OBCs. The 66%

concession in fee will benefit a much larger number of students from the middle-class and lower

middle-class segments. 

ECONOMIC TIMES, APR 7, 2016AICTE to reserve 10 seats for Jammu and Kashmir in all institutes

NEW DELHI: At a time when Kashmiri students are pitted against the nonKashmiris in NIT Srinagar, the All India Council of Technical Education has decided to rework the scholarship scheme for J&K students. Starting this academic session, the AICTE will allow up to 10 students — instead of just two — from the region to study at an institute outside the state. The move is aimed at ensuring that students do not feel "isolated" on a faroff campus. The AICTE is cautious

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that the upper ceiling must be 10 so that there is no "bunching" of students, or "incidents" like the cricketcheering controversy at a Meerut institute in 2014. "As of now, there are two seats per college or institute under the scholarship scheme. As agreed by the interministerial committee, from this year we will allow 10 J&K students on scholarship in the same institute. Students will then not feel isolated and have a support system when ill or when travelling back home," AICTE chairman Prof Anil Sahasrabudhe told ET. "Also, we will not exceed the ceiling of 10 as we do not want any bunching of students since they could lead to certain incidents as seen in reports of an institute earlier," the chairman said. As per the 'bunching' norms, only two students per institute are awarded this scholarship to "avoid bunching in any one particular institute and to have an even distribution of students among various institutes of the country". The ceiling was reviewed in a meeting of the interministerial committee in November 2015. In the last academic year, about 1,600 of the 5,000 available scholarships were taken. The panel decided there should be a "supernumerary quota of two seats in all universities/colleges/institutes, for all courses, for students hailing from J&K" and "the limit of two supernumerary seat may be increased by the regulators to 10 per institute". While AICTE has decided to increase seats, other regulators are yet to move on it.

DECCAN HERALD, APR 6, 2016Question paper leak to be made a criminal offence: Gove plans to amend Education Act for introducing punishment clause

The Education department has decided to invoke criminal procedure to penalise those indulging in acts like paper leaks, which will henceforth be considered a criminal offence. This decision follows the leakage of II PU Chemistry question paper twice. 

Primary and Secondary Education Minister Kimmane Ratnakar said on Tuesday that a decision has been taken to amend the Karnataka Education Act to introduce the punishment clause. “Supporting, copying or leak of question papers by officials, teachers, parents or students will be considered a criminal and non-bailable offence. The department will frame these new rules and send it for suitable amendments. We have to send out a tough message. This is the reason that I have asked the CID to probe the issue from 2012 onwards,” he said, while interacting with reporters in Bengaluru.

The minister said that the CID will be probing everybody concerned - from those who have set the papers to the printer. 

Seperate DPUE

There is also a proposal to separate the PU examination board from the administrative wing of the department. 

“The two are now merged and they need to be separated to curtail malpractices and irregularities,” he added.

The 3-member committee constituted to supervise the Chemistry re-exam, will compile recommendations for revamping the PU Board. The committee comprises PU Education Director

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Ramegowda, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan project Director P C Jaffer and Principal Secretary, Primary and Secondary Education, Ajay Seth. The committee has not been given a time frame to submit its recommendations. Asked if the department would invoke Essential Service Maintenance Act (ESMA) against lecturers who are boycotting evaluation of PU papers, Ratnakar said, “I am sure I will win the hearts of the lecturers. If they fail to pay heed, then we will put alternative measures in place.” 

He also said that there would be no delay in announcement of PU results. The results might be out before the CET examinations, in the first week of May. On rumours that WhatsApp services will be discontinued on the day before and on the day of Chemistry re-exam on April 12, Ratnakar said that he was not aware of the matter. “I have no information on this. I would not like to comment on the same,” he added.

TELEGRAPH, APR 7, 2016

Fundamentals first - The imagination is possibly a better teacher than gadgets

Devi Kar

The Board examinations have already begun and most schools are in the process of wrapping up the current session and preparing to herald the next academic year.

It is at this time that the educational fad du jour is introduced and I can quite understand the plight of teachers when they are told to adopt some bright new way of doing their work. An example is the 'colour mood design' approach which requires the use of 'calming' colours to reduce stress. Teachers were required to use a soothing green instead of red to correct. I am sure that in time green became the new red (no political message here) and ceased to be soothing. We should think hard and long before subjecting children and teachers to ridiculous methods just to appear innovative.

When we look around we see that there is a general obsession with the new and novel. We have a prime minister who wants India to emerge as the 'innovation hub' - driven by the power of technology. In school, we have trendy parents who ridicule 'old fashioned' ways of teaching and want teachers to get rid of the blackboard and the whiteboard and embrace the smartboard. "Stop your talk and put away your chalk" and "Out with the old and in with the bold" are the new age demands. Indeed, the wind that is blowing across our schools today is that of '21st century ideas and skills' - whatever that may mean. The question is that in our zeal to be innovative and contemporary are we neglecting our 'fundamentals' and failing to provide a sound educational foundation?

Students are taking up microbiology without having a sound knowledge of general biology. They are being taught applications of different disciplines without any foundation of the disciplines themselves. Mediums and styles of art are tried out without a knowledge of the fundamentals of drawing. People are forgetting that you simply cannot master music without practising scales and that you need to be doing some reading before attending all the lit fests on

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offer.

Sadly, in India we have a tendency to ignore our strengths and discard the meaningful practices of the past. Foreigners never failed to marvel at the way we recycled and reused our waste in India and at the way we ate every part of a vegetable. For example, in a typical Bengali household you could find delicious dishes made from the skin, stem, seeds, leaves and flowers of certain vegetables. "Back to Basics", I believe, is the new food trend in the West and people are being urged to 'eat local and seasonal'. The "Farm to Fork" movement is, of course, a luxury where for a price you get all you eat from a single farm. In India, we are doing exactly the opposite. We are taking great pride in eating unseasonal fruits and vegetables and serving processed and exotic food items which are imported from different countries.

Although we are trying to say 'no' to plastic now, we need not have embraced plastic with such gusto in the first place. We were already using newspaper packets and cloth or jute shopping bags and plates made of banana or saal leaves. Doi is now being sold in plastic tubs and - horror of horrors - rasogollas in polythene bags. The charm of drinking hot tea from wayside stalls and on trains has disappeared ever since the earthen bhaars were replaced by flimsy plastic thimbles masquerading as cups.

There is a lot of masquerading going on these days. Teachers with arm-long credentials apply for English teaching jobs but they are unable to speak or write correct English. Basic grammar is clearly neglected these days. Organizations offering workshops and training courses for teachers advertise their programmes with misspelt words and faulty language. Science teachers are unable to explain scientific principles in simple terms without using textbook jargon. History teachers are unaware of the worth of their subject. Surely, one of the basic tasks of the teacher is to explain to their students why they are being made to learn something, especially when they perceive it as irrelevant in their lives.

Memorization is bitterly condemned today, yet students are encouraged to memorize dictated notes and ready-made answers to questions in order to garner marks for their examinations. But surprisingly, memorization can serve as a means to an end. Apart from the admirable ability of being able to quote from great writers, the material memorized in the form of the alphabet, multiplication tables, mathematical and scientific formulae becomes the platform for higher level thinking. Certainly students should not memorize mathematical problems from standard textbooks to prepare for exams. The piece that The Telegraph carried on Mahan Maharaj, the winner of the Infosys mathematics prize, 2015, was indeed telling. "In India," said the monk, "mathematics is taught in a prehistoric way." A course is taught in the same way for years and years. The reason he gave was that "we love to be lazy". But it is important to remember that Mahan Maharaj became a monk because the monastic way of life helped him to focus on fundamental values such as truth and unselfishness. To draw a parallel, we are sure to lose sight of the basics in education if we have too many trappings and frills in our teaching-learning process.

This brings up the issue of the use and abuse of technology. Curiously, employees of Google, Yahoo and Apple have chosen to send their children to a school in the heart of Silicon Valley which does not have a single screen, smartphone or tablet inside it. Apparently they prefer "a

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more hands-on, experiential approach to learning that contrasts sharply with the rush to fill classrooms with the latest electronic devices". The pedagogy of the said school (Waldorf School of the Peninsula) emphasizes the role of imagination in learning.

However, we do not really know how a no-tech (or lo-tech or hi-tech) approach to education actually impacts a child's development. All we can say safely is that today's 'cutting edge' technology will be outdated tomorrow. The use of electronic gadgets has made young people skilled at sourcing information and adept at swiping, typing, texting, cutting and pasting. But many believe that overuse of electronic devices kills the imagination, disturbs interpersonal relations and reduces physical activity - excepting that of the fingers. Incidentally, teachers, too, tend to become lazy and passive simply because exciting, ready-made lessons are easily available and easy to 'switch on'. At the touch of a button, screens come alive with colourful images and interesting sound effects. It is a different story when teachers create their own audio-visual presentations.

We need to use caution before jumping to embrace everything new that comes our way. New or old, what matters is that it works. Therefore, at the outset, we need to distinguish between an efficacious teaching-learning strategy and a passing craze. Actually, the fads themselves are innocuous but they become harmful if they are adopted at the cost of basics. Educational fads come and go and old methods reappear in different forms or a different guise. We have greatly benefited from techniques such as peer mentoring, group learning and team teaching. The jury is still out on the efficacy of the 'flipped classroom' while Howard Gardner, a proponent of the theory of multiple intelligences, has expressed his reservations about lessons that are purely driven by 'learning styles'. Richard Feynman - physicist and a great teacher - believed that "the best teaching can be done only when there is a direct individual relationship between a student and a good teacher - a situation, in which the student discusses the ideas, thinks about the things, and talks about the things." But Feynman admitted that a substitute for the ideal had to be found to teach large numbers of students. So there is a need for a Khan Academy and for Sugato Mitra's School in the Cloud.

If we wish to impart fundamentals to our children and reinforce them thereafter, it is necessary to wean very young children away from electronic gadgets. Great learning happens when little children play in the garden, paint and draw, make things with their hands, listen to and tell stories and quarrel and make up with their friends. The other day, a teacher was in our school garden watching the children at play. A tiny, bespectacled little girl had climbed the jungle gym and was happily perched on the topmost bar. Feeling somewhat nervous, the teacher summoned the little girl down and told her that she should not have climbed so high. The little girl listened to the teacher politely and then put her question, "Why is it there then?" While the teacher was fumbling for a suitable response, the little girl added, "I've been doing this for years." When this story was related to me, I realized that my admiration for this child's thought process far outstripped my appreciation of little children's skills at electronic games.

Every now and then I am reminded that life and nature are the greatest of teachers. And every now and then I realize the dangers of pursuing questionable '21st century skills' at the cost of a sound educational foundation.

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The author is director, Modern High School for Girls, Calcutta

ECONOMIC TIMES, APR 5, 2016Not in favour of minority tag for Aligarh Muslim University: Modi governmentSC was hearing appeals of the university and the Centre against an Allahabad high court ruling that AMU was a central university and not a minority institution.

NEW DELHI: The Modi government has told the Supreme Court that it does not support

minority status for Aligarh Muslim University but sought time to withdraw an appeal the Centre

filed when the UPA government was in power for retaining such status for AMU. The Supreme

Court was hearing appeals of the university and the Centre against an Allahabad high court

ruling that AMU was a central university and not a minority institution. 

A parliamentary legislation in 1981 had bestowed minority status on AMU. A minority

institution can reserve more than 50% seats for the community that has set up the institution. If

AMU is stripped of the status, it would also allow the government to have a say in its

functioning. 

Appearing for the Centre, attorney general Mukul Rohatgi told a three-judge bench of Justice JS

Khehar on Monday: "AMU is a central university established by a central act. We have taken a

conscious decision that AMU is not a minority institution." He, however, sought time to file an

application withdrawing the appeal and the court granted him eight weeks and AMU four weeks

to respond to the government's stand. 

Three intervention applications were also filed on behalf of the former AMU students in support

of the AMU claim for a minority tag. The AG suggested that the issue may well have to be

referred to a seven-judge bench eventually, but the court said it would take a call at the next

hearing. 

In another case, in which the high court decision to lay off the appointment of the AMU vice-

chancellor was challenged, Chief Justice TS Thakur asked whether a university could claim

minority status under the Constitution. 

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He said this when the vicechancellor's lawyer cited the varsity's minority tag to defend its

autonomy in appointments. "A college or an educational institution, yes, but can a university be

minority," the CJI wondered, as the V-C through senior advocate Salman Khurshidargued that

UGC guidelines on appointments or qualifications would not apply to AMU. The CJI then

sought the Modi government's stand on the issue.

ASIAN AGE, APR 4, 201622 out of 77 Delhi University colleges headless

At least 22 out of 77 Delhi University colleges are running without a permanent principal, which has enraged the university’s teacher association that has been demanding the streamlining of the appointment process.

Hindu college, Sri Ram College of Commerce, Kirorimal College and Kamla Nehru college are some of the prestigious colleges that are supervised either by acting principal or an officer on special duty (OSD). The post of principal in Hindu college has been vacant for past few years and even their website shows that the last permanent principal held the post till 2008.

Other colleges which are running under a temporary arrangement include Rajdhani college, Gargi college, Institute of Home Economics, Deshbandhu college, Bharti college, Aurobindo college and Shyama Prasad Mukherjee college, among others.

A member of Delhi University Teachers Association (Duta) said, “There are so many posts lying vacant in the university. The process of appointments has been completely halted. We have raised the issue many times. Some of the colleges do not have adequate faculty and permanent principal for years. Around 4,000 posts of teachers have also been lying vacant,”

DU’s SC-ST forum convenor Hansraj Suman also raised the issue of reservation rosters not being properly followed in recruitments by the university. “According to DU ordinances, appointment of OSD is only for a period of six months as it is a temporary arrangement. Further permission from the Vice Chancellor is needed if there has to be an extension of that period. How these colleges are running with OSD’s or acting principals for years is a matter of concern,” he said.

According to the Delhi University officials, the process of appointment of principals has been set in motion and the delay has been caused due to the “transition” following retirement of vice-chancellor Dinesh Singh and taking over by the new incumbent Yogesh Tyagi.DU spokesperson Malay Neerav said, “The HRD ministry had directed all the appointments to be stopped after July 31 last year, three months before Dinesh Singh’s tenure was to end as the vice-chancellor. He demitted office in October and the new V-C took charge last month. So this

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transition had halted the process of appointments, which has been resumed now. Positions have been advertised, interviews will be conducted soon”.

STATESMAN, APR 4, 2016Intellectual illiteracyAK Ghosh

Bertrand Russell had conveyed the hint long ago, but it is nevertheless relevant in this day and age.  Education today has become the chief obstacle to intelligence and freedom of thought. Considering the wreckage, the primary purpose of education -- the building of character -- has been lost. Fear psychosis has gripped the sensible guardians who fear that their wards will not develop into better human beings because most institutions are churning out intellectual adolescents .

One can see how the citadels and ramparts of education are being battered down, evil passions ignited and fanned, principles of plain living and high thinking being twisted into principles of crooked living and disastrous thinking; and the idea of personal sacrifice for the good of others being distorted into sacrifice of others for personal good. As a result, young men with university degrees, instead of becoming sanctified beings, have become savage; the tiger and the bear in them growing and grinning with renewed vigour at human society. What education aims at and purports to do is to minimise the evil propensities and maximise the good ones. Unfortunately, the process appears to have been reversed. Nay more, education has become responsible for making evil even fashionable.

Indian universities, of late, offer hardly any model to the young who perform in an anarchical democracy of competing visions. There seems to be no organisation of the streams or disciplines, no tree of knowledge. Out of chaos emerges dispiritedness. The student gets no particular intimation that great mysteries might be revealed to him, that new and higher motives of action might be discovered within him, that a different and more human way of life can be harmoniously constructed by what he is going to learn.

The university has ceased to be distinctive. The academic world purveys banality and caters to the career needs of a bunch of course-completing and degree-holding illiterates. Cultural relativism inculcated thus has resulted in stunted intellectual growth, verily in the closing of the Indian mind.

This mental clogging is symptomatic of ubiquitous nihilism that is perceived in the world of the Indian youth. Music, sexuality, youthful excesses exacerbated by the permissive society,

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legitimised by German philosophy from Nietzche to Heidegger and popularised by the mindless modernisers and cultural relativists have further contributed to this nihilism.

Well, just look at the cluster of buildings close by -- white, bright and imposing. Yes, it is a university with its offices, colleges, laboratories and libraries. But there is overwhelming commotion and agitation -- no atmosphere of study and meditation. Step into a college campus, and one can find colourful posters and banners of sorts. But the only aspect that is surprisingly missing is constructive suggestions regarding implementation of better education for making better human beings. Crowded canteens and empty classrooms are in no way related to the teaching-learning process in an academic institution.

Let us take a look at the teachers sitting comfortably in the staff room. One is sure to hear such terms as memorandum, delegation, expressions conveying resentment against authorities and the like. They are getting ready to teach the unwilling students entering the classrooms like lords. The students have just finished their main duty of organising a gherao against the authorities. Their demands for being declared “pass” with huge grace marks is totally unreasonable.

Are the educational institutions actually temples of learning to which we send our wards? The insistence on mere knowledge to the utter neglect of the inner, the higher and the imperceptible in man has landed us into this quagmire. To make things worse, our tradition of wise living, handed down to us from saint to saint has been most shamefully renounced and set aside as something hackneyed, unscientific and degrading. Notwithstanding the fundamental truth stated by Jesus Christ that “man does not live by bread alone”, today’s economics teaches us to clamour for bread and more bread. If the young students had been taught to listen to the faint, saintly voices, they would have got something more than bread -- grace, peace and a sense of fulfilment. The British at least attached great value to discipline, in whatever sense we may take it. They propagated religion in their own interests and in their own way. We, on the other hand, in the name of freedom and democracy, have quashed discipline and outlawed morality and religion.

The Education Commission of independent India came under the direct influence of the Westerners and ignored the rich tradition of the country. With an alluring but false ideal in front, with the ills of a democratic system splitting the university machinery from within and with a sinister vacuum created by our stupidity,  we have been pushed into a frightful abyss.

A project on “Defining the Meaning and Purpose of Baccalaureate Degrees” was set up by the American Association of Colleges. Its report entitled “Integrity in the College Curriculum: A Report to the Academic Community” published in the Chronicle of Higher Education for 13

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February 1985, put the blame for the decline in the quality of teaching squarely on the teachers. That unconcern is a consequence of new trends in an industrial society which necessarily creates new trends in the educational system.

The degree which ought to be a certificate of general intellectual competence has become a certificate of intellectual illiteracy because of the huge and unplanned expansion of the university system which is creating new knowledge but is not able to create a new humanity. We in India can at least offer our students a humane education which will refine their intellectual and moral qualities.

The writer is an Associate Professor, Dept. of English, Gurudas College, Kolkata.

INDIAN EXPRESS, APRIL 1, 2016Gujarat Assembly passes Bill to curb powers of V-Cs

Under the provisions of the Bill, the composition of the Council includes CM as president,

education minister as vice-president and minister of state for education as co-vice-president.

In a bid to take control of universities in the state, the BJP government in Gujarat Thursday got a

crucial Bill passed in the Assembly, which, if it’s cleared by the Governor, will give sweeping

powers to the state government and curtail the authority of vice-chancellors. The Bill — Gujarat

State Higher Education Council Bill, 2016 — is set to bring all the universities of the state under

the ambit of a Higher Education Council, to be chaired by the chief minister.

The Bill, introduced by the Minister for Higher and Technical Education Vasuben Trivedi, was

passed in the House unanimously in the absence of oppositionCongress members who were

suspended by the Speaker after they raised slogans in favour of quota for Patidars.

Under the provisions of the Bill, the composition of the Council includes CM as president,

education minister as vice-president and minister of state for education as co-vice-president.

Other members will include five vice-chancellors of state universities.

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One of the objectives of the Bill is “to carry out effective monitoring of the

academic/administrative/financial performance of the universities and affiliated colleges and to

recommend remedial measures for better performance.” The directives of the state government

will also override any existing laws governing universities.

Section 15 of the Bill reads, “On the recommendation of the Council, or suo-motu, the state

government may direct any university with such modification as may be necessary, to implement

the reforms in such manner as may be specified therein.”

“Notwithstanding anything contained in any law for the time being in force, it shall be obligatory

on the part of the university to implement the directions given by the state government and to

report the action taken to the state government and the Council accordingly. The Council shall

review from time to time the compliance by the universities, of the direction given by the state

government,” it adds.

The Bill also empowers the Council “to suggest criteria, rules regarding various promotions, for

college teachers, principals, university teachers in accordance with the regulations and guidelines

of the UGC, or the state government policy.”

The Bill has not gone down well with educationists. Former Executive Council Member of

Gujarat University and Congress leader Manish Doshi said, “This Bill is nothing but a pre-

planned strategy of Gujarat BJP to curtail autonomy of universities and control and monitor the

higher education system of the state.”

TIMES OF INDIA, APR 5, 201690 principals of Delhi govt school to visit Cambridge Univ

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New Delhi, Apr 4 () As part of its teachers training initiative, the Delhi government has decided

to send 90 principals of the government-run schools to the Cambridge University in the United

Kingdom for a leadership training exercise.

The decision came after two officers from Cambridge University -- Jaydeep Prabhu and Harold

Chi -- met Deputy Chief Minister and Education Minister Manish Sisodia at the Delhi Secretariat

here today.

Delhi government has allocated Rs 102 crore for international training of principals and teachers

in the budget for the current financial year.

"As a first step, 90 principals will be sent to the Cambridge University in three batches. This

training or education leadership programme will span over 10 days.

"Apart from visiting the Cambridge University, principals and teachers will also be sent to other

top institutions and universities like Oxford, Harvard, IITs and IIMs," said a senior government

official.

During the meeting with the deputy CM, Cambridge officials said the principals going for

training would also be visiting the local schools to understand the education system of UK.

In addition, they will also have an opportunity to interact with the teachers of government

schools there.

"It has been agreed that the teachers conducting leadership training exercise in Cambridge

University would also be visiting Delhi and would interact with the principals of Government

schools to formulate the next steps of training programme," the official said.

During the interaction with the officials of Cambridge University, Sisodia said "our principals

and teachers are very talented but we need to impart them with the necessary leadership skills."

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ELDERLY

INDIAN EXPRESS, APRIL 1, 2016Senior Citizens Welfare Fund: FinMin clears way for transfer of unclaimed deposits in small savings

In a notification dated March 18, the finance ministry has stated the Fund shall be an interest bearing account, administered by a Committee consisting of nine members.

The Ministry of Finance has notified the rules pertaining to establishment of Senior Citizens

Welfare Fund, clearing the way for transfer of unclaimed deposits in small savings schemes

including Post Office Savings Accounts, Public Provident Fund and Employees’ Provident Fund

to the newly created Fund within one year.

The fund shall be utilised for such schemes for the promotion of the welfare of Senior citizens in

line with the National Policy on Older Persons and the National Policy on Senior Citizens. In a

notification dated March 18, the finance ministry has stated the Fund shall be an interest bearing

account, administered by a Committee consisting of nine members.

The committee will be headed by Secretary in the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment

who shall be the ex-officio Chairperson along with officials from Department of Financial

Services, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Ministry of Rural Development and Ministry

of Labour and Employment among others.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in his Budget speech last year had proposed the creation of Senior

Citizens Welfare Fund saying, “there are unclaimed deposits of about Rs 3,000 crore in the PPF,

and approximately Rs 6,000 crore in the EPF corpus.

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“I have proposed the creation of a Senior Citizen Welfare Fund, in the Finance Bill, for

appropriation of these amounts to a corpus which will be used to subsidize the premiums of

vulnerable groups such as old age pensioners, BPL card-holders, small and marginal farmers and

others.”

Every institution which has the unclaimed deposits in their small savings accounts shall prepare

list of unclaimed deposits in the accounts and notify to the public. “The Institution shall identify

the unclaimed amounts on annual basis and make transfers to the Fund on or before the 1st day

of March, each year. The transfers by the Institutions shall be made on a net basis, namely, the

unclaimed deposits minus the claims accepted in accordance with the law for the time being in

force, of the accounts whose balances have already been transferred to the Fund,” the notification

said.

The nodal ninistry for the administration of the Fund shall be the Ministry of Social Justice and

Empowerment. The rate of interest for the money lying in the Fund shall be determined and

notified by the Central Government in the Ministry of Finance on an annual basis, the

notification said.

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EMPLOYMENT

INDIAN EXPRESS, APRIL 1, 2016Employment Data: New jobs generation falls in first 9 months of 2015

In January-September 2013, direct employment had risen by over 3 lakh, while contractual

employment had increased by 30,000.

Employment of contractual workers sharply decreased by 21,000 in January-September 2015, as

against an increase of 1.20 lakh in the corresponding period a year ago. Employment of direct

workers increased by 1.76 lakh in January-September 2015, lower than the increase of 1.84 lakh

recorded a year ago, data released by Labour Bureau showed.

The trend seen in contractual employment is in contrast to the overall new job creation, which

recorded a decline in the first nine months of 2015 with a rise of 1.55 lakh jobs as against an

increase of over 3 lakh jobs in the same period in 2014. Usually, contractual jobs increase when

overall jobs show a declining trend, while direct employment takes a hit.

In January-September 2013, direct employment had risen by over 3 lakh, while contractual

employment had increased by 30,000.

Contractual employment, however, increased by 3,000 during July-September 2015, with the

increase in employment seen in metal sector by 14,000, IT/BPOs & textiles sector by 8,000 each

and handloom sector by 1,000.

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The overall jobs increased by 1.34 lakhs in July-September, with the highest increase in

employment seen in the IT/BPO sector by 58,000, followed by 48,000 in metal, 28,000 in

textiles including apparels, 3,000 in automobile and 1,000 in transport sector.

Employment in the exporting units increased by 78,000 in January-September 2015, while

employment in non-exporting units increased by 77,000. In July-September 2015, employment

in the exporting units increased by 31,000 whereas in the non-exporting units, the same increased

by 1.03 lakhs.

The Labour Bureau released the Quarterly Report on Changes in Employment in Selected

Sectors, the 27th in the series which the Bureau had started in January 2009 to assess the changes

in employment in eight sectors — textiles, leather, metal, automobiles, gems and jewellery,

transport, information technology and handloom.

A total of 1932 sample units have been covered during the survey, field work for which was

conducted in January-February 2016.

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FINANCIAL MARKET

ECONOMIC TIMES, APR 5, 2016Panama Papers: Multiagency group set up to track 500 Indians on list

NEW DELHI: The government has constituted a multiagency group to continuously monitor

information arising out of disclosures of more than 500 Indian names that used Panama law firm

Mossack Fonseca to set up offshore entities, promising action against unlawful accounts.

"The multiagency group will comprise various government agencies — the CBDT (Central

Board of Direct Taxes), FIU (Financial Intelligence Unit), FT&TR (Foreign Tax and Tax

Research) and RBI (Reserve Bank of India). They will continuously monitor these (accounts)

and whichever accounts are found to be unlawful, strict action as per existing laws will be

taken," finance minister Arun Jaitley told reporters.

The Special Investigation Team (SIT) on black money also said it will investigate the latest

disclosures.

Jaitley said PM Narendra Modi had discussed the issue with him and the group had been set up

on his advice.

According to a news report in the Indian Express, the Panama Papers show the list includes film

actors, industrialists and politicians who have used the law firm to set up firms in the British

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Virgin Islands and the Bahamas.The report said the list included foundations and trusts and

passport details of 234 Indians.

German daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung had obtained more than 11.5 million documents from an

anonymous source that was shared with media worldwide through the International Consortium

of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ). The ICIJ said there could be "legitimate uses for offshore

companies" in some cases.

The global list includes political leaders, celebrities and prominent sportspersons. Many

countries, including Australia and New Zealand, have also announced probe.

"I welcome this investigation. It is a healthy step that these kind of exposes are being made. I

have been repeatedly saying that the world is now going to increasingly become more

transparent, countries are cooperating with each other and slowly all this information is going to

come out as a result of various global initiatives which have been launched," Jaitley said. SIT

chairman MB Shah said it will look into the reports. "Investigations are being carried out. We are

going to investigate it (the list) thoroughly."

Jaitley said this was the fourth batch of names revealed while listing the action taken. "The first

related to Liechtenstein accounts against all persons involved in that prosecutions have already

been launched," he said. "Assessment orders have been passed. Then details came in 2011with

regard to HSBC account holders — 569 out of those account holders have been traced, 390 were

illegal and already 154 sets of prosecutions have been filed." He said assessment orders have led

to the discovery of illegal assets worth around Rs 6,500 crore.

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In 2013, the ICIJ issued a list of 700 persons. Out of these, 434 Indian entities have been traced.

Out of these, 184 admitted their relationship with the accounts and the process of passing

assessment and prosecuting them is now on, the finance ministry said in a statement.

The government had last year passed a stringent black money law that prescribes 10year

imprisonment and effective confiscation of any undeclared foreign assets. It offered a one time

three month window for past pffenders to come clean. A total of 644 declarations involving

undisclosed foreign assets worth Rs 4,164 crore were made under the law.

INFORMATION FLOW

The government has already been receiving information from many countries including the

British Virgin Islands under the information exchange agreement it has with them.The British

Virgin Islands has been popular with Indians looking to park their black money overseas.

Information flow from the tax haven has increased after an Indian delegation visited the country

last year in January.

It may already have information on some cases under the agreement signed between the two

countries last year. The government is negotiating a tax information exchange agreement with

Panama.

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GOVERNMENT, CENTRAL

PIONEER, APRIL 1, 2016MP TO SET UP ‘MINISTRY OF HAPPINESS’

Taking a cue from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan here on Thursday announced that a new ministry of happiness and joy would be constituted in the State. Madhya Pradesh would perhaps be the first state of the country that would do so.

He was addressing the concluding session of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state executive. Chouhan said, “For bringing all-out prosperity at every level in the life of people, the  happiness ministry would be constituted in the state. Only physical well being and prosperity could not make life joyous.”

Chouhan further said that Bhutan's 4th King Jigme Singe Wangchuck had coined the term Gross National Happiness Index in the seventies. Work towards this is going on in several countries and reports prepared at various levels. In year 2015, World Happiness Report was prepared by Sustainable Development Solutions Network, which is an initiative of the United Nations Organisation, he added.

The concept of happiness index include that a person is healthy right from childhood and remains healthy throughout life.

It also envisages to create an atmosphere of harmony and mutual goodwill where people can expect and get help from each other in times of crisis. Besides, freedom of choice of lifestyle is also included in happiness concept.

It is also assessed as part of happiness index as to how far people in the society are liberal, helpful and benevolent. Happiness index also seeks to include better education, good atmosphere in educational institutions and emotional development of people in such a way that they do not lose heart in adverse conditions.

Earlier, BJP national vice president and state organizational in-charge Vinay Sahasrabuddhe while inaugurating the state executive of the party while terming the state party organization

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splendid in the country said that here good governance and good organizational structure have become identity.

State party President and MP Nandkumar Singh Chouhan while welcoming the guests said that workers should indulge to expand the atmosphere of social harmony in the state.  

 

HEALTH SERVICES

STATESMAN, APRIL 1, 2016Centre selects 6 states for AYUSH project

Six states, including Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat, have been selected by the Centre for a pilot project to offer treatment for non-communicable diseases under the Indian medicine systems, Union Minister of State for AYUSH Shripad Yasso Naik said here on Thursday.

Under the project facilities would be set up in every district of select states to take up screening for identifying people suffering from non-communicable diseases such as diabetes, cancer etc and provide treatment under AYUSH (Aurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy), he said.

Inaugurating 'Kasyapa Ayurvedic and Therapeutic Yoga Research Centre' here, Naik said the proposed facility would have all Indian traditional medicinal systems for providing an integrated treatment in which Yoga will be common along with any one of Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha or Homeopathy suitable for curing the disease.

Besides, these facilities would also take up treatment of select chronic diseases. For diseases not covered by them, the patients would be referred to Primary Health Centres (PHCs).Naik said his ministry has requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi Rs.2,500 crore in addition to the budgetary allocation this year to improve AYUSH facilities in a big way to cope with the increased demand for traditional Indian medicine systems and also expand facilities in rural areas.

There was good demand from people abroad for traditional medicine system, he said pointing that about 30-35 per cent of the spas offering these facilities were occupied by foreigners."We have MoUs with 20 countries for promoting AYUSH while 25 Chairs are functioning worldwide taking various activities related to ancient Hindu traditional medicinal systems," he said.

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Fifteen researchers from the US had also come to the country for research on treatment for cancer through Ayurveda, he said explaining the growing demand for AYUSH across the globe.To cope with demand for AYUSH, the government decided to provide financial support to those including individuals, institutions and NGOs, taking up herbs and medicinal plants cultivation.

HISTORY

ECONOMIC TIMES, APR 1, 2016Foreigners must pay Rs 1,000 to visit Taj Mahal

AGRA: ASI on Thursday issued a final notification on the entrance fee hike at India's monuments, doubling it for visitors from abroad at the Taj Mahal from Rs 250 to Rs 500. With another Rs 500 as toll tax, the total money they now need to shell out is a prohibitive Rs 1,000. Domestic tourists will now have to pay Rs 30 (after adding toll tax collected by Agra Development Authority it will be Rs 40) instead of Rs 10 to visit `A' category monuments, which include the Taj Mahal and Qutub Minar. For category `B' monuments, the rates have been increased from Rs 5 to Rs 15 for Indians and from Rs 100 to Rs 200 for foreigners. Interestingly , ASI has introduced a new class for foreigners visiting `A' and `B' category monuments and for this they will have to pay Rs 750 and Rs 300 respectively. For this, they will be provided with additional facilities specified by the directorgeneral. Citizens of Saarc and Bay of Bengal Initiative for MultiSectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation countries will be charged domestic rates.

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HOUSING

STATESMAN, APR 4, 2016Housing needs

Public housing is largely an ignored concept in India, both in political discourse and in public policy. Hardly any state or the Central government acknowledges its importance for citizens. Public housing or social housing, as it is referred to in social science literature, is a cost-effective way of providing housing to many in need. Half of the world’s population already resides in cities; and this number will continue to grow in coming decades. It is expected that in the next fifteen years over 70 per cent of the world’s population will live in cities; or have a distinct residential footprint in at least one city if not full-time occupancy.

Thus it is essential that the Centre and state governments begin to act on public housing for it is a practical way of providing decent housing to poor and low-income families, and if required to senior citizens and persons with disabilities. Rather than focusing only on providing mortgages and low interest rates, governments should finance and build for the public. China has an enviable record of building public infrastructure for its citizens; even a small nation-state like Singapore has over 80 per cent of its residents living in houses built by the government. Thus a responsible government must cater to the housing needs of its citizens.

The affluent can buy real estate at any price whilst the majority of city-dwellers live in unplanned shanties that are regularised for political reasons from time to time. This is a poor reflection on the state of the majority. High gross domestic product must translate into better and higher quality of life for citizens; otherwise growth will tend to remain merely on paper. With increases in revenue, governments are obligated to think about the housing needs.

Public housing should be strictly need-based and therefore ought not to be packaged as reward for the politically faithful or as political inducements. Higher standards of living can become a

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living truth if the government implements housing plans based on Indian weather conditions and seasonal changes.

If planned and executed with environmental concerns, even the ordinary can live a life of satisfaction. If public housing continues to be ignored, as has been done by successive governments, the problem of spontaneous settlement will increase and become unmanageable in a decade.

With high population growths, unplanned cities will be unable to absorb new economic migrants. The development model that is being followed will prompt such migration. Unless public housing is taken up as a policy initiative, development could become another source of social unrest.

ASIAN AGE, APR 1, 2016New housing policy for IAS, Danics cadre

Continuing its tirade against IAS and Danics officers, the AAP government is in the process of adopting a new policy for the allotment of houses to its officials. The government has reportedly decided to approach the Union government to provide houses equivalent in number of same category which are being retained by those who have been transferred to the Centre or other states.

This decision was reportedly taken at a Cabinet meeting held on March 22. The Delhi government now wants to vacate all houses which have been retained by IAS and Danics officers who are not posted in the city administration. This means IAS and Danics officers posted at Centre or other Union Territories will have to vacate their house if they are not posted with the AAP government.

A highly placed source said that the AAP government has decided to approach the Centre to provide it with equivalent number of same category of government houses in lieu of the Delhi government houses occupied by IAS and Danics posted with the Union government or any other state or Union Territory by June 30,2016, failing which the same rules shall apply to the officers posted out of Delhi as they apply to ministers of Delhi when they remit office. A copy of the minutes of the city Cabinet accessed by this newspaper said : “The Cabinet noted with the concern that while Delhi government has limited housing stock for its officers and employees, there are many officers posted outside Delhi who are retaining government houses in Delhi. Since Delhi government is facing an acute shortage of houses and since Central government is cadre controlling authority of IAS and Danics officers, it was decided that matter be taken up with the Government of India to provide equivalent number of same category of government houses to it in lieu of the Delhi government house occupied by IAS and Danics posted in Government of Indian or other States/Union Territories by June 30,2016 failing which the same

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rules shall apply to the officers posted out of Delhi as they apply to ministers of Delhi when they remit office.”

A senior Delhi government officer, who has recently been transferred, said that the decision reflects that Delhi government was still angry with IAS and Danics officers as many of them have been at loggerheads with it over a host of contentious issues.

“This is just another way the government of Delhi is going to adopt to harass officers who refused to toe their line of politics,” he added.

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

TELEGRAPH, APR 6, 2016Beyond naysaying - The full potential of India-US relations is yet to be realized

DIPLOMACY - K.P. NAYAR

In spite of Narendra Modi's desire for change and notwithstanding the clarity of purpose of the foreign secretary, S. Jaishankar, the prime minister's visit to Washington, just concluded, showed that the National Democratic Alliance government is institutionally incapable of realizing the full potential of relations between India and the United State of America. Visits by NDA ministers to Washington often bring less good to the relationship than what such visits are supposed to engender. At any rate, so far such visits have mostly left in their wake a palpable sense of disappointment in the ability of the Modi government to deliver in the specific sectors these ministers have sworn to promote.

In Washington, recently, the primary interest of the defence minister, Manohar Parrikar, was in scoring debating points against the criticism of intolerance in India under the present government. He went the extra mile to rationalize actions by so-called fringe elements in his party by comparing them to the views of the Republican presidential front runner, Donald Trump, on Muslims and the global Islamic fringe. At the most critical of his meetings in Washington, with his US counterpart, Ashton Carter, Indian officials squirmed as it became apparent that Carter knew much more than Parrikar about most aspects of Indian defence, which the two sides were discussing. This, in itself, is not surprising because Carter has been dealing with the Indian defence establishment longer than Parrikar.

In an earlier incarnation at the Pentagon, as deputy secretary of defence, Carter was the point person for almost four years for the former national security adviser, Shivshankar Menon, on a defence technology and trade initiative to "strengthen India's defense industrial base by moving... towards a more collaborative approach" with the US. During his visit, Parrikar acknowledged Carter's expertise on Indian defence by saying that "we deeply appreciate the personal commitment of Secretary Carter in shaping up this initiative".

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By the time Nirmala Sitharaman, the minister of state for commerce and industry, ended her stay in Washington last October, Americans were left more confused about India's trade policies than before her arrival in the US although the main reason for her trip was to bring clarity to such policies in an American context through a meeting of the US-India Trade Policy Forum.

A remarkable exception to such lacklustre ministerial visits was one by Suresh Prabhu, the railway minister, in January. Next week, there will be another ministerial visit to Washington that will also be refreshingly different from those by the average NDA minister. The Americans have found Arun Jaitley to be a clear and concise interlocutor not only now as finance minister but also, earlier, as leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha. One Narendra Modi, one Arun Jaitley or one Suresh Prabhu cannot, however, remake a complex bilateral relationship.

The full potential of Indo-US relations will only be realized when there is a genuine two-way engagement: with targets, aims and progress being monitored and fine-tuned by people at all levels of the Indian government living the dream of a strong Indo-US partnership. It is an impediment to relations between countries when those involved in transforming that relationship treat their role as another job and cannot identify themselves with a vision. This is why everything positive in relations between Washington and New Delhi in the last 10 or 15 years has originated with the Americans. Take the Indo-US nuclear deal for example. When Manmohan Singh was in Washington in the summer of 2005, it was the Americans who sprang the deal on the Indians who were taken totally by surprise.

Singh's delegation to the White House talks in 2005 had hoped at best for a upgraded version of the "Next Steps in Strategic Partnership", which was originally announced between the president, George W. Bush, and the prime minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee. The Indians had written off the idea of any nuclear collaboration with the US beyond what was permitted by the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, although India is not a signatory to it. But when the deal was offered to him, the then prime minister decided to grab it.

On the other hand, most things that are negative in Indo-US relations are synonymous with the Indian side. The Indians identify themselves as the naysayers in this bilateral engagement, the people who only say no. They said no to foundational agreements in defence, they said no to a bilateral investment treaty, they said no to the proliferation security initiative, they said no to joining the "coalition of the willing" to invade Iraq in 2003. Some of the defiance and opposition to saying yes to America, as in the invasion of Iraq, has been commendable though.

On many matters involving the US, China is in a very similar position to India's. Yet, they are not viewed as naysayers in Washington. Unlike India, China does not aspire to be an ally of America. Therefore, its opposition to US policies has a ring of pride to it, it is credited with individuality and is even associated with China's obsession with strategic autonomy. Indian opposition, on the other hand, is merely viewed as obstructionist and unreasonable.

The latest example of this was the Nuclear Security Summit hosted by the US president, Barack Obama, last week. China planned its events connected with the summit with great deliberation and imagination, hogging the limelight in the run up to the large, two-day gathering of heads of

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state and of government in Washington. Although an agreement between China and the US to establish a Centre of Excellence in China to promote effective nuclear security and safeguards was signed in 2011, Beijing dragged its feet in the knowledge that a final Nuclear Security Summit would be hosted by Obama before he demits office, somewhere around now, before the US goes into full election mode and the incumbent US president is reduced to a lame duck. This centre was only inaugurated two weeks before the Washington conclave: the timing of its launch made it the talking point on nuclear matters everywhere giving China greater credit on matters of nuclear security than was its due. It now aims to be a hub for training personnel from the Asia-Pacific region. The centre is capable of training up to 2,000 people a year. Beijing also engineered the launch of a bilateral nuclear security dialogue with the US, shrewdly choosing its timing: a month before the summit in Washington.

China's record on nuclear proliferation has long been viewed as dodgy. It needed an enhanced profile, which came with the Sino-US nuclear security dialogue, launched with great fanfare. Organizations like the Washington-based non-governmental Nuclear Threat Initiative, which have been critical of Beijing's proliferation record, are now singing China's praises and insisting that it is "a responsible player in the global nuclear system."

India's record on matters of nuclear security is commendable, far superior by any yardstick to China's. Soon after the first Nuclear Security Summit six years ago, it promptly set up a Global Centre for Nuclear Energy Partnership in Haryana as committed to by the then prime minister during the first Nuclear Security Summit. India passed the necessary legislation towards tightening nuclear security long before any US president even considered the idea of a global meeting on this issue. Its export control rules have long been consistent with the guidelines of the nuclear suppliers group even as the group has not yet admitted India as a member. Yet, unlike China, India has been unable to capitalize on its achievements. A sense of timing and a penchant for public relations are lacking.

On India's part, the next big step is going to be a strengthening of nuclear security institutional structures. Its existing atomic energy regulatory board will soon become a full-fledged nuclear safety and regulatory authority on the US model. India has behaved like a responsible nuclear weapons state at summits on nuclear security unconcerned about publicity. In the long run, such a strategy is likely to be better appreciated globally than China's gimmicks.

STATESMAN, APRIL 1, 2016The Saarc conundrum and sub-regionalismSaurabh Kaushik

With the conclusion of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) mini-summit recently in Pokhara, one can make three separate but interrelated arguments about the three-decade-old regional organisation. First, the 37th session of the Saarc Council of Ministers in the lake city did not lead to any serious implementable programmes or policy actions. Though a couple of organisations got the nod to be set up and a few expressions of intent towards

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tackling the menaces of terrorism and poverty were made, there was nothing to signify that the regional grouping has really hit the ground running.

Second, the four day extravaganza that unfolded seemed nothing more than ritualistic and did not do much to allay the doubts of critics that Saarc is nothing more than a magnificent paper tiger or a ‘club of tongues’. This was certified by the slow progress on important issues of regional connectivity and implementation of past agreements. Third, it became evident, if it was not already so, that Saarc as a regional grouping has important lessons to learn from smaller yet more robust and efficient groupings like the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean). 

The most significant achievement of the Pokhara summit, as pointed out by many newspapers, is the declaration of holding biennial Saarc Summits in the month of November starting from this year in Pakistan which is both startling and significant, given that this has not been done for the past three decades. The next Secretary General for the grouping was proposed by Pakistan in Mr Amjad Hussain B Sial of the Pakistani Foreign Service and he got the endorsement from the Saarc Council of Ministers. There was an uncharacteristically concordant decision made between India and Pakistan to split the Disaster Management and Environment Centres amongst themselves after a round of negotiations. However, the event was overshadowed by a conspicuous yet customary absence of consensus between the countries in the grouping on a slew of measures and agreements ranging from regional integration, connectivity, signing the Saarc Youth Charter and projects approval for nine observer nations among others. The Saarc Railway and Motor Vehicles Agreements could not garner consensus yet again.

Apart from the above, four reports were forwarded by Saarc Specialised Agencies at the 52nd Programming Committee meeting; they were submitted by the chiefs of Saarc University, Saarc Development Fund (SDF), Saarc Arbitration Council (SARCO) and Saarc Regional Standard Organisation (SARSO). It is not surprising to note that SARCO given the task of adopting Alternative Dispute Resolution Mechanisms (ADR) to settle disputes through arbitration and conciliation has neither resolved a single dispute nor undertaken any arbitration as the existing International Arbitration Centres in different countries have not harmonised their procedures for the use of ADR through SARCO.

Only three projects have been proposed by the Saarc Secretariat under the SDF and 10 in total with an outlay of merely $70 million. SARSO became operationalised and got its first director general only in April 2014. It has formed six Sectoral Technical Committees on harmonising standards across different commodity segments, but they remain ineffective due to the relatively small product basket as compared to the large sensitive lists that countries of Saarc still have under the South Asian Free Trade Area. The Saarc Food Bank too has never been operationalised

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even during the worst humanitarian crises despite having 241,580 tonnes in reserve (where this is located is anyone’s guess).

Having pointed to the paltry achievements and a bag full of failures, it is imperative to understand that Saarc largely remains a geopolitical grouping that has historically given less attention to economic integration. It is also important to realise that in the changing global order where globalisation has made the world ever more economically integrated and geo-economics has taken centre stage in foreign policy actions, there needs to be growing emphasis in this regard in South Asia which fares abysmally in terms of intra-regional connectivity and trade. One of the very few reasons to be optimistic about the future of Saarc is the slew of initiatives that are being taken at national and sub-regional level with the aim of making them regional after proving their effectiveness. 

The BBIN (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal) initiatives that were kick-started a couple of years back can prove to be an oasis in the desert of opportunity when actual benefits start trickling down to the larger populace. Given that the BBIN Motor Vehicles Agreement is in the last stretch of having the protocols to the agreement finalised and there is a consistent engagement with regard to other sectors such as power and water management, this might prove to be a trendsetter for the rest of the countries in the grouping to follow.

In the Saarc Council of Ministers meet last week, Nepal expressed willingness to join the India-initiated SAARC Satellite Project, which has been backed by Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and the Maldives. The Saarc satellite will be used for meteorological purpose as well as to strengthen information and communication sharing capabilities. Saarc has important lessons to learn from Asean which has an intra-regional trade of 29 per cent as compared to Saarc’s five percent. Asean has put in place a very efficient Asean Strategic Transport Plan, which is already functional on some fronts. The countries that have ratified a particular agreement to ensure that it becomes functional at the sub-regional level in order to not just test its efficacy on the ground but also to convince other member states of its benefits. The Asean Framework Agreement on Facilitation of Inter-State Transport and the Asean Framework Agreement on Multimodal Transport are in force in Cambodia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam pending ratification to some specific protocols from other countries in the grouping. This approach can be the only viable option at present for Saarc, given the obstinacy shown in negotiations by traditional foes in reaching agreement on the transport, trade and transit front. The successful implementation of transit and trade arrangements between the BBIN countries would send out a positive signal to other members to either sail together for their own benefits or sink separately. 

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JUDICIARY

TIMES OF INDIA, APR 4, 2016In 66 years, only six women judges in SC out of 229Dhananjay Mahapatra 

Shani Shingnapur village in Maharashtra is the latest battlefield for women's equality. Several

attempts by women to enter the Shani temple to break the custom that bars their entry have met

with resistance. Ironically, the ancient temple is dedicated to Saturn, a planet that astrologically

governs the character and well-being of people without discriminating between man and woman.

It is difficult to say whether women's entry into a temple will usher in equality in a country that

has for centuries discriminated among human beings on the basis of gender, caste, colour, creed,

lineage and money. For example, will it force khaps to respect a woman's right to choose a life

partner?

Women have periodically stormed many male bastions. I will not cite greats like Lata

Mangeshkar or M S Subbulakshmi to drive home the point. But Indra Nooyi, Kiran Mazumdar

Shaw, Chanda Kochar, Mary Kom, Saina Nehwal, Ekta Kapoor, Shahnaz Hussain are only a few

among the many successful women who have done exceedingly well in a male-dominated world.

We all know Bachendri Pal, the first Indian woman to climb Mount Everest in 1984. We also

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know Santosh Yadav, the first woman in the world to climb Mount Everest twice. But do we

know who Arunima Sinha is?

At the age of 24 in 2011, Sinha preferred to fight a gang of thugs in a moving train than

surrender her gold chain. They threw her out of the train. One of her legs was amputated. Three

years later, she scaled Mount Everest to become the world's first woman amputee to achieve the

feat. Such stories never get eyeballs on social media. Absence of glamour? In the world of

Nooyis, Shaws and Kochars, how many of us know Jyoti J Naik.

In 1973, at the age of 12, she joined Shri Mahila Griha Udyog Lijjat Papad, an organisation

which was started in 1959 by seven women with a modest loan of Rs 80. From storekeeper, she

worked hard and gradually climbed the ladder to become the president of the organisation, which

is today a symbol of women's empowerment, employing over 30,000 women.

Lijjat Papad, despite providing employment and honour to women, could not compete with the

glamour quotient of banking, finance, sports or the celluloid world. We and our inherent notions

have created this barrier for women, who now want to notionally break it by storming into the

Shani temple. The Shani temple doors will surely open for women. If not today, tomorrow. But

despite the doors of the temples of justice — the courts — being open to women for decades,

why have so few women entered it as judges?

After striking down the National Judicial Appointments Commission, a five-judge Supreme

Court bench headed by Justice J S Khehar was examining the nature of reforms required to be

infused into the process of selection of judges. Women lawyers made a vociferous plea — the

collegium which selects judges must shed its inhibition to choose woman lawyers as judges.

"Look at their numbers. There are just 62 women judges compared to 611 male judges (in high

courts) in the entire country," was their refrain. Justice Khehar replied, "What is the ratio of

female advocates to male advocates? Ratio of female judges to male judges must be in the same

ratio."

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Justice Khehar's response made them present statistics and plead that the collegium must not

resort to ratio-based selection of woman judges.

They said women were allowed to practice only in 1922. At present, of the 24 high courts, nine

do not have a single woman judge. Three have just one. Since 1950, when the Supreme Court

was established, only six of its 229 judges have been women.

In the judgment striking down NJAC, the SC had quoted an exchange between the then President

and the Chief Justice of India regarding selection of judges.

President: "I would like to record my views that while recommending the appointment of

Supreme Court judges, it would be consonant with constitutional principles and the nation's

social objectives if persons belonging to weaker sections of society like SCs and STs, who

comprise 25% of the population, and women are given due consideration. Eligible persons from

these categories are available and their under-representation or non- representation would not be

justifiable."

Top Comment

Throw MERIT out of the window and keep demanding QUOTA. Then say the country isn't

progressing.Concerned Citizen

CJI: "I would like to assert that merit alone has been the criterion for selection of judges and no

discrimination has been done while making appointments. All eligible candidates, including

those belonging to the Scheduled Castes and Tribes, are considered by us while recommending

names for appointment as Supreme Court judges. Our Constitution envisages that merit alone is

the criterion for all appointments to the Supreme Court and high courts. And we are scrupulously

adhering to these provisions. An unfilled vacancy may not cause as much harm as a wrongly

filled vacancy."

Under no circumstance can only 6 women judges out of the total 229 in 66 years be a fair

outcome of any "merit-alone" selection process. If women can climb Everest, head huge banks

and financial institutions, run successful business houses, surely they can be good judges. The

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need of the hour is a change of mindset, both for the collegium headed by the CJI and the

tradition bound Shani temple management.

LABOUR

ECONOMIC TIMES, APR 5, 2016Increase in minimum wages of workers, Delhi government hikes DA

NEW DELHI: Delhi government has raised the dearness allowance adjusting it with the increase

in prices of goods and services. The minimum wages for unskilled workers such as security

guards, peons will rise to Rs 9,568 from Rs 9,178 per month, which translates to Rs 368 per day.

In case of semiskilled workers like welders, the posthike wage will be Rs 10,140 per month, Rs

407 a day. It was Rs 10,140 till March. Skilled workers like masons or drivers will be now

entitled to Rs 11,622 per month as opposed to Rs 11,154 earlier. Rs 447 will be the per day rate.

"These rates will be applicable in respect of unskilled, semiskilled and skilled categories in all

scheduled employments except employment in the establishments where the workers are given

facilities of meals or lodging or both by the employees," the government order said. Rates were

also hiked for clerical and supervisory staffs in all scheduled employments including nonmatric,

matric and graduates. Nonmatric staff will now get Rs 10,582 amounting to Rs 407 a day. Matric

but nongraduates stand to earn a minimum of Rs 447 per day or Rs 11,622 per month while for

graduates the rate is Rs 12,662 per month, or Rs 487 a day. "The government after adjustment of

the average consumer price index of the period from July 2015 to December 2015 which is

266.83, an increase of 10.83 points, hereby declares the following DA which shall be payable for

all categories from April 1," the order said. The DA for employments, who are given lodging and

meals twice a day or both, would be Rs 390, Rs 442 and Rs 468 respectively. The government

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had passed the Minimum Wages (Delhi) Amendment Bill, 2015 during the winter session of the

Assembly, which stipulates stringent punishment like higher fines and imprisonment for

violation of labour norms. Under the proposed amendments to the Act, companies will have to

upload the data of their employees on website or web portal in the manner as may be prescribed

by Delhi government. Stay on top of business news with The Economic Times App. Down

POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

HINDUSTAN TIMES, APR 4, 2016Mehbooba Mufti sworn in as 13th chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir

PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti on Monday took over as the first woman chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir with her party.

Governor NN Vohra administered oath of office and secrecy to 56-year-old Mehbooba at the Raj Bhawan in Jammu at 11am, who became the 13th chief minister of the state.

On Saturday, Governor NN Vohra had invited the PDP president to form and lead the PDP-BJP coalition government in the state.

“The governor’s invitation to (Mehbooba) Mufti follows the earlier discussions with the PDP and BJP presidents regarding formation of government in the state and the subsequent communications received from her and Sat Sharma, president, J&K BJP in regard to this matter,” an official spokesman said.

Political observers expect Mehbooba to chart out a new course of governance different from her father Mufti Mohammad Sayeed’s legacy — more in style than in substance.

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PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

BUSINESS LINE, APR 4, 2016Haryana to hire achievers for good governance

The Haryana government is looking to infuse some fresh blood in its machinery by inducting 21 high-calibre youngsters into the office of the State Chief Minister.

Under the Chief Minister's Good Governance Associates (CMGGA) programme, 21 chosen associates will be posted for a year to the 21 districts of Haryana, representing the Chief Minister's office.

“The initiative will help the government become more responsive, transparent, and accountable,” said Rakesh Gupta, Additional Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Haryana.

Functions

CMGGAs will work with the Deputy Commissioners and other district officials to execute various government schemes and bring about transformational changes within their districts.

The knowledge and implementation partner for the one-year programme is Sonepat-based Ashoka University.

“It is not only an opportunity for us to get directly involved and contribute to the development of the State but we also see this in an academic context," said Vineet Gupta, Pro Vice-Chancellor and founder and trustee of Ashoka University.

“Some of the work these associates will do can also be used and put together as a premise for research, and State-level case studies,” he said.

The programme will kick-off with a two-week induction training by Ashoka followed by their district appointments.

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In the districts, associates will be responsible to ensure success of the flagship government initiatives like Beti Bachao Beti Padhao, Digital India, and Swachh Bharat.

(This article was published in the Business Line print edition dated April 4, 2016)

RAILWAYS

ECONOMIC TIMES, APRIL 1, 2016Suresh Prabhu kicks off revamp of rail bureaucracy to resurrect railways

NEW DELHI: Union railway minister Suresh Prabhu kicked off the process to overhaul rail bureaucracy as part of the Modi government's strategy to put in place the official machinery to fasttack revamp of decaying infrastructure of the national transporter. Prabhu's restructuring plan seems to be aimed at organising the railways on business lines by assigning functional roles to members of the Railway Board, the apex decisionmaking body. An official indicated that there could soon be a member dealing with fixed infrastructure, another with rolling stock and a third one incharge of traction. At later stage, a member can look after passenger services with another overseeing freight. To begin, the orders were issued last week asking signal and tele com departments, unS til now under member (electrical) to report to member (engineering) who heads civil engineering department. "The move hints at the plan to create a new post of member (fixed infrastructure)," said an official.However, the knives were out soon after with electrical engineers' association saying any move to merge electrical and mechanical cadres would be a retrograde step. The letter came amid indications that the post of member (rolling stock) and member (traction) can be created by merging electrical and mechanical departments. The current system of organising the railways along departmental lines electrical, mechanical, traffic, engineering, finance has failed to deliver, but the vested interests derailed several attempts at reforming the apex bureaucracy . Over the years, interdepartmental rivalry has often resulted in hold up of key projects, slowing down the government's attempt to modernize the transporter. Gatiman Express to oll out on April 5? Gatiman Express, touted as India's fastest train, is likely to be flagged off by railway minister Suresh Prabhu on April 5. The first semihigh speed train will run between Delhi and Agra and is expected to cover the 200 km distance in 110 minutes.Gatiman Express is expected to hit a maximum speed of 160 kmph. The railways plans to roll out such trains on nine more routes, including KanpurDelhi, ChandigarhDelhi, HyderabadChennai, NagpurBilaspur, GoaMumbai and NagpurSecunderabad.

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TRIBUNE, APR 6, 2016Country gets its fastest train: At 160 kmph, Gatimaan Express travels from Delhi to Agra in 100 minutes

True to its billing, the Gatimaan Express, which was flagged off by Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu today, emerged as the country’s fastest train. Touching a speed of 160 kmph, it traversed around 188-km Hazrat Nizamuddin railway station-Agra Cantonment railway station stretch in 100 minutes on its inaugural run.

It did an encore on its return journey from Agra to Nizamuddin. It has been primarily rolled out to boost tourism, keeping in view the large tourist footfall in Agra.

A large number of people had gathered to have a glimpse of the train at Nizamuddin station. Similar was the case when it reached Agra.

“It is a happy occasion for us as the first semi-high speed train Gatimaan starts today. We want to increase speed of all trains whether ordinary or express as part of our ‘raftar’ mission. It is not an easy task. It will take time, but we have made a plan,” Prabhu said.

Painted in royal blue and grey colour combination with a yellow strip in between, the train has another first—train hostesses to welcome passengers and Indian and continental food.

Equipped with a 5,500 HP electric locomotive, two Executive AC Chair Cars and eight AC Chair Car coaches, the train has a high-power emergency braking system, automatic fire alarm, GPS-based passenger information system and sliding doors in the coaches.

The passenger amenities have been enhanced by providing better catering service, improved coach interiors with wide windows, bio-toilets besides free multimedia services enabling passengers to view movies, news and cartoons during their journey. Photographs of tourist spots in and around Agra adorn the coaches.

Hotspot devices have been installed in coaches to enable passengers to access multimedia services free of cost directly on their smartphones, tablets or laptops. (with PTI inputs)

HINDU, APR 7, 2016Metro trains with no drivers soonSWETA GOSWAMI

The country’s wait for the first-ever driverless metro ride is soon going to end. The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) will roll out its swanky new metro trains as soon as October this year.

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The DMRC on Wednesday unveiled its new age metro trains which have been shipped to the capital from South Korea. The most attractive feature of these trains is that they can function without any operator as they are inbuilt with a technology called an Unattended Train Operation (UTO) system.

However, DMRC chief Mangu Singh said that for safety purposes, trains would run with an operator for at least a year after the opening of a new corridor. “For unattended operation, stringent trials will be held. Internationally, such trials generally take about one to one-and-a half years. So initially, the trains will be operated by train operators. By end of 2017 we expect to run completely on UTO system,” he said.

As fresh corridors open under the Phase-III project, passengers will also have a more comfortable journey with features like extra leg and holding space, better air-conditioning, LCD displays and faster speed.

Denying that the projects are running behind schedule, Mr Singh gave a status report of all the projects under construction. “The construction work of Phase-III is progressing satisfactorily and we should be able to complete the civil construction work and commence signalling trials on most of the stretches within this year,” he added.

Apart from the swanky trains, the DMRC has also shifted to a completely new signalling system in Phase-III, known as the Communication Based Train Control (CBTC).

It is because of this new system that trial runs will take a little longer than usual. Metro officials said trial runs could go up to three months after which approvals shall be sought from the Commissioner of Metro Rail Safety (CMRS) among others and then the lines would be opened to the public.

Trail runs for the final stretch of the heritage line from ITO to Kashmere Gate along with two sections of the Majenta Line ( Janakpuri West-Botanical Garden) will begin from July this year. Trial runs for the Pink Line (Majlis Park to Shiv Vihar) are scheduled for September, October and December.

“For safety purposes, trainswill run with an operator for at least a year”

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SOCIAL PROBLEMS

PIONEER, APR 6, 2016BIHAR IMPOSES COMPLETE BAN ON SALE OF LIQUOR

The Bihar government on Tuesday imposed a complete ban on sale of any kind of liquor in the state.

 “Liquor will not be sold in any bar, pub or hotel from now onwards. We are placing a complete ban on its sale in the state. Women and kids have created an environment in favour of this ban,” Chief Minister Nitish Kumar told reporters here.

 The state assembly last week passed a law banning sale of country-made liquor, but the chief minister announced that a ban would be in place on sale of Indian-made foreign liquor too. 

 “Only the army cantonments which are run with their own rules will continue to have liquor served,” the chief minister added. 

 “The ban will be in place with immediate effect, and the government will issue a notification in this regard in some time,” Kumar said. 

 He said the government will provide better employment opportunities to those who are rendered jobless due to the liquor ban.

 The chief minister added that the government will create other avenues of income for sectors that are likely to get affected after imposition of the ban. 

 With the move, Bihar becomes the fourth state after Nagaland, Manipur and Gujarat where sale of any kind liquor is completely banned. 

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TAXATION

TRIBUNE, APR 4, 2016I-T Dept notifies new forms; taxman eyeing those earning over Rs 50 lakh

Taxpayers can file their ITRs till thestipulated deadline of July 31 People with an income of over Rs 50 lakh per annum and owning a yacht, aircraftor valuable

jewellery will now have todisclose these costly assets A new column ‘Asset and Liability at the end of the year’ has been introduced in the ITR-2 and

2A Nine ITRs have been notified which include the Sahaj (ITR-1), ITR-2, ITR-2A, ITR-3, Sugam

(ITR-4S), ITR-4, ITR-5, ITR-6, ITR-7 and an acknowledgement form called the ITR-V The ITR-1 (Sahaj) for individuals having income from salaries now features anadditional

column to mention the Tax Collected at Source and the form now hasseven pages as compared to the earlier five

People with an income of over Rs 50 lakh per annum and owning a yacht, aircraft or valuable jewellery will now have to disclose these costly assets with the I-T department notifying a new set of Income Tax Return (ITR) forms for assessment year 2016-17.

Filing for the new forms begins with the onset of the new financial year today.

The Finance Ministry published a gazette order in this regard on March 30 and taxpayers can file their ITRs till the stipulated deadline of July 31.

The department has introduced a fresh reporting column in the new ITRs (ITR-2 and 2A) called ‘Asset and Liability at the end of the year’ which is applicable in cases where the total income exceeds Rs 50 lakh. Individuals and entities coming under this income bracket will also have to mention the total cost of such assets.

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So, while immovable assets like land and building have to be furnished under the new ITR regime, movable assets like cash in hand, jewellery, bullion, vehicles, yachts, boats and aircraft will also have to be disclosed to the taxman. The entity reporting these high-value possessions will also have to describe their “Liability in relation” to these items.

“The new reporting mechanisms for people earning over Rs 50 lakh per annum are made to check tax evasion by high-net worth individuals and entities. While their income returns used to cover this in a way till now, a new exclusive column was essential to keep the taxman informed,” a senior official said.

For the first time, the ITRs, keeping in spirit the government’s flagship agenda of promoting startup businesses has brought out a separate column for earnings made from this sector.

The ITR-2A, to be filled by those individuals and HUFs who do not have income from either business, profession or by way of capital gains and do not hold foreign assets, has the new column called Pass Through Income (PTI) and seeks details from business trust or investment fund as per Section 115UA and 115UB of the Income Tax Act (investments made in a venture capital company) which pertains to emerging companies or startup firms.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had announced in the recent Budget that startups will get 100% tax exemption for three years. The respective form, for this year, has hence gone up to eight pages (including annexures) as compared to the same document of 7 pages last fiscal.

A total of nine such ITRs have been notified which include the Sahaj (ITR-1), ITR-2, ITR-2A, ITR-3, Sugam (ITR-4S), ITR-4, ITR-5, ITR-6, ITR-7 and an acknowledgement form called the ITR-V.

The simplest ITR-1 (Sahaj) for individuals having income from salaries, one house property or other sources, now features an additional column to mention the Tax Collected at Source (TCS) and the form now has 7 pages as compared to the earlier five. — PTI

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TERRORISM

ASIAN AGE, APRIL 1, 2016'Drop notion that his terrorist is not my terrorist': Modi at Nuclear Summit

Taking a hard stand on terrorism in the international arena, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that there could be no deterrence against nuclear terrorism without prevention and prosecution of acts of terrorism.Intervening on nuclear terrorism threat at the Nuclear Security Summit dinner at the White House hosted by US President Barack Obama, the Prime Minister called to focus on three contemporary features of terrorism.

"First, today's terrorism uses extreme violence as theatre. Second, we are no longer looking for a man in a cave, but we are hunting for a terrorist in a city with a computer or a smart phone. Third, State actors working with nuclear traffickers and terrorists present the greatest risk," Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) official spokesperson Vikas Swarup quoted the Prime Minister as saying.

Lauding President Obama for putting the spotlight on Nuclear Security and for his service to the global community, Prime Minister Modi said that the deadly Brussels attack was the prime example of how real and immediate is the threat to nuclear security from terrorism.

"Terror has evolved. Terrorists are using 21st century technology. But our responses are rooted in the past. Drop the notion that terrorism is someone else's problem and that ‘his’ terrorist is not ‘my’ terrorist. Nuclear security must remain an abiding national priority," he said.

The Prime Minister added that the reach and supply chains of terrorism are global but the genuine cooperation between nation states is not.

Emphasising on terrorism being globally networked, the Prime Minister called on all nations to endure Obama's legacy of abiding by international obligations to counter this threat.

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The Prime Minister, who is in Washington to take part in the fourth Nuclear Security Summit, earlier held bilateral talks with his New Zealand counterpart John Key.

Both leaders discussed ways and means to enhance bilateral cooperation between the two countries.Prime Minister Modi later met a team of scientists from the Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO). A memorandum of understanding on setting up LIGO facility in India was also signed between India and the United States on the occasion.

The Prime Minister prior to beginning his official engagements earlier greeted members from the Indian community who came to see him.

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