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HDIL makes Rs 800 cr land sale to clear debt

Realty developer Housing Development and Infrastructure Ltd (HDIL) is learnt to have sold 10 million sq ft of land for approximately Rs 800 crore in Virar to repay a debt of Rs 3,300 crore. It owns about 70 million sq ft at Virar. Approximately 5 million sq ft was snapped up by three developers for about Rs 450 crore. Ashok Mohanani-led Ekta Housing Pvt Ltd purchased 2million sq ft (built-up area 18 lakh sq ft) for approximately Rs 200 crore, Vinay Unique bought 1.5 million sq ft for nearly Rs 150 crore while Bhoomi acquired a million sq ft for approximately Rs 100 crore. The rest has been picked up by three to four other developers for Rs 350 crore. 
HDIL managing director Sarang Wadhawan and vicepresident (finance) Hari Prakash Pandey refused to comment on the sale. The developer is close to selling a two-acre land parcel at Andheri for an estimated Rs 300 crore, sources said. This plot of land is part of a large parcel on which HDIL is constructing a residential project, Metropolis. 

Unitech demands $150 million from Telenor

Realty firm Unitech has sought about $150 million from Norway's Telenor to sell its 32.7% stake in their telecom joint venture and end the bitter dispute between two partners, an executive with direct knowledge of the development told. Unitech is learnt to have made this proposal to the Company Law Board. The realty firm's offer takes into account that it invested about $125 million as equity into its Unitech Wireless and spent another $25 million in the initial phase before divesting a majority stake in its mobile phone arm to Telenor. 
“Both parties have been asked by the CLB not to comment on the proceedings that took place within closed chambers. On our part, we will respect the directions of the CLB. What we have earlier stated it is that the partnership with Unitech is over, and it is our intention to form a new company to which Uninor's assets can be transferred. This company will form the platform with which we will approach the upcoming auction,” the Telenor spokesperson said in his reply to an query. 
Last month, Telenor's CEO told that the Norwegian telecom major was not interested in buying out the minority stake held by its estranged partner and wanted to make a fresh start with a new partner. He had also dismissed any possible deal with Unitech and said: “Without spectrum, there is nothing to buy. Everyone will be willing to be bought out if the price is sufficient. But after the licences were revoked, the JV no longer exists.” 
Telenor's Indian operation, with about 40 million customers, was one of the worst affected by the Supreme Court's February 2 orders to cancel 122 mobile licences issued in 2008. Following the apex court's decision, the ongoing differences between both partners over raising funds for their JV took a new twist, with Telenor serving Unitech a divorce notice and also seeking compensation from its Indian partner for damages. The Norwegian telecom major also announced that was forming a new company in India and plans to migrate its existing business, including customers and employees, to this entity. 
Executives aware of the development said that Unitech's latest offer was subject to several conditions. First, the realty firm will have to be exempted from any liability that Unitech Wireless faces in the future. Telenor must also bear total responsibility for the Rs 8,500-crore debt on the books of their JV and must withdraw legal proceedings seeking compensation from Unitech for all its investments, guarantees and damages caused by the apex court's decision. In return, Unitech will drop its objections to Telenor shifting its businesses and customers to a new company, executives aware of the development added.

Realty: MNC’s now prefer Noida over NCR

Noida has been seeing an increase in the number of multinationals setting up base here. This has resulted in a large-scale migration of skilled and unskilled workers to this place. Infrastructure has developed in tandem-wide roads, big commercial centres, and institutions-which have lifted the stock of this place among developers, end users and investors. Noida has obviously benefited from the urban stress being faced by Delhi, which is under pressure from a lack of space, sky-high property prices, and a large population . The prominent developers who have helped in the growth story of Noida include Amrapali, Prateek Group, TGB Infra Developers, ATS Developers, JM Housing Ltd, Earth Infrastructures Ltd, Ajnara India Ltd, etc. 
Noida excels in many features which the neighboring areas in Delhi lack. Some of these factors include planned townships , wide roads, congestion free connectivity with Delhi. These features have attracted MNCs, IT and ITeS companies, as well as big media houses to set up base in Noida. Anil Sharma, the Chairman & managing director of Amrapali Group, says: “Noida has been the high point in the last decade. Apart from its infrastructure and easy connectivity with Delhi, availability of land has also been a major factor that has helped in its rapid development. 
Gitamber Anand, the Managing Director of ATS Group, says that Noida's affordable to mid-segment and luxury residential projects, with high technology and world-class facilities within the premises, have encouraged people to move here. “Infrastructure has been a major boon in Noida . While big shopping malls and commercial centres have made it a business hub, flyovers, the DND Expressway and the Noida-Greater Noida Expressway, along with wide city roads, have made travelling and living better in Noida,” he says. 
Today, the boundaries of Noida have extended to new places. Noida Extension is a case in point, which has world-class projects lined up with most of the developers being the ones who have been active in Noida. Companies have started operations in Sector 137 and 143 in Yamuna Expressway . The connectivity of Noida and the expressway is encouraging for them. 

Cheques, drafts now will be valid for 3 months

From April 1 and cheques and bank drafts will be valid only for 3 months, a development that RBI thinks will help mitigate frauds related to such instruments.  The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has directed that with effect from April 1, 2012, banks should not make payments against cheques, drafts, pay orders or banker's cheques if they are presented after the period of three months from date of issue. 
It has been brought to its notice by the government that some persons were taking undue advantage of the six month validity of cheques, drafts, pay orders, banker's cheques by circulating them like cash for this period, RBI had said in a notification earlier. According to a senior banker, the three-month validity period is a good enough time period for instrument conciliation. It was reported to Central Economic Intelligence Bureau that some persons are taking undue advantage of the practice of banks of making payment of cheques or draft presented within a period of six months from the date of the instrument as these instruments are being circulated in the market like cash for six months. 

PFC to raise Rs 40K cr in 2012-13

Power Finance Corporation (PFC) plans to raise about Rs 40K crore in the next financial year. It aims to raise about Rs 3,000 crore through domestic corporate bonds. CMD Satnam Singh said, “We aim to raise a minimum of Rs 150 crore through this issue. However, we have kept a greenshoe option and should be able to garner up to Rs 3,000 crore. The response to the issue would decide whether or not we bring out more bond issuances this financial year.”
The company has raised about Rs 32,000 crore in the financial year 2011-12. The funds raised in the next financial year would help fund various power projects across the country. PFC is one of the biggest fund raisers in the country. It is likely to be allowed to issue tax-free bonds in the next financial year.
“The Budget has broadly said the power sector would be given an issuance limit of Rs 10,000 crore for tax-free bonds, and we are hopeful we would also get a substantial share of this limit,” Singh said. Corporate bond yields are expected to remain high in the coming months, and tax-free bonds may be able to provide some cost benefit to issuers.
PFC has also been planning its $1-billion medium term note issue. Singh said, “We had been waiting for the Budget to be announced, for the uncertainty to be over. Now that the Budget is out, we have revived our talks with merchant bankers.” However, with the financial year drawing to a close, the medium-term note issue may spill over to 2012-13, he added.

Allow 100% FDI in defence sector: Assocham

The government should allow 100 per cent FDI in defence sector so that the country can become self-reliant in production and encourage technology transfers, industry body Assocham has said. At present, India imports about 70 per cent of its defence requirements. “We must recognise that defence production is a capital and technology intensive-sector. To develop a strong industrial base in the country, we need foreign capital and technology,” Assocham said. 
Currently, 26 per cent Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is allowed in the sector. India can acquire self-reliance in defence production with raising FDI ceiling to 100 per cent, the chamber said. “The present cap on FDI in the sector has kept away both investments and technology transfer. There is no reason why we should not allow 100 per cent foreign investment in defence sector,” Assocham Secretary General D S Rawat. FDI along with usage of advanced technology is a better option for manufacturing defence equipment domestically rather than importing them from abroad, he added. 

Govt. clears guidelines for private participation in Defence sector

THE government has cleared guidelines for defence public sector undertakings (DPSUs) to set up joint ventures (JVs) with private companies. The guidelines were necessitated after a venture between government's Mumbai-based shipyard Mazgaon Dock Limited (MDL) and Pipavav, a private ship building entity, was put on hold following allegations of irregularities by rival firms.
The Union Cabinet has approved the new codes, which would drive the joint venture policy from now onwards. Even the MDL-Pipavav deal will have to be reviewed to see if it fulfilled requirements as per the new rules. The need to look for private partners in the defence sector was felt as the industry is expanding rapidly. Government companies did not have the capacity to absorb the growth and private base has been non-existent in the country.
The basic principle of a JV in the sensitive would be national security. It called for maintaining fairness and transparency in selecting the partner and ensuring a well-defined nature and scope. The affirmative right would be retained by the public sector undertaking for approving key JV decisions. The DPSUs would also have the exit provisions and there would be regular reporting and monitoring of the functioning of the JV company.
The DPSUs were allowed to look for private partners only last year to achieve self-reliance in defence production. India meets its defence requirements through substantial assistance from abroad. The Policy of 2011 called for greater stress on indigenous production.

China’s bank lending down 28%

Chinese bank lending fell 28 percent in January from a year earlier, official data showed, suggesting Beijing is reluctant to open the credit valves too quickly for fear of reigniting inflation. State-owned lenders issued 738.1 billion yuan ($117.26 billion) in new loans in January, down 288.2 billion yuan from the same month last year and well short of analyst forecasts for one trillion yuan, the central bank. Chinese banks typically ramp up lending at the beginning of the year to avoid losing quotas issued by regulators and the effects of changes in monetary policy. Analysts said the weaker-than-expected data partly reflected the earlier than usual Chinese Lunar New Year holiday, which fell in January, and the government's still tight restrictions on credit. 
Mark Williams, an economist at Capital Economics in London, said it was the lowest December to January increase since 2007. “It is hard to escape the feeling that the weakness of lending was at least partly a reflection of the slow pace at which policy is being eased,” he said. Late last year the central bank eased lending restrictions on banks and analysts expect similar moves this year as authorities try to spur economic activity and prevent a collapse in the property market.  There is growing evidence that the world's second largest economy is slowing as turmoil in eurozone countries and weakness in the US hurts demand for Chinese exports, a key driver of the Asian giant.  The IMF last week warned that an escalation of Europe's fiscal woes could slash China's economic growth by half this year, and it urged Beijing to prepare stimulus measures in response. But Chinese leaders, worried about reigniting politically sensitive inflation, have signalled their intention to move cautiously and fine-tune policy as needed. 

Powergrid CMD receives award for leadership

RN Nayak, chairman and managing director (CMD), Powergrid, has been conferred award for HR Leadership & Innovation at the Global HR Excellence Awards, 2012 for his outstanding contribution as a role model, believer in change and an iconic position in the change and an iconic position in the fraternity. The award marks his leadership. The award was presented at World HRD Congress 2012 held in Mumbai, recently.

BSE’s CEO Madhu Kannan to join Tata Sons

Madhu Kannan, MD and CEO of Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), is joining Tata Group's holding company, Tata Sons, to head the group's business development. Kannan, who has earlier worked with Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BofA ML) and the New York Stock Exchange ( NYSE), will report to Cyrus P Mistry, currently the group's deputy chairman. 
In a statement, BSE said that Kannan had expressed his intention not to seek a new term at the expiry of his current term, which is ending in May 2012. “Kannan will work with the BSE board to ensure that there is a seamless succession process,” the BSE statement added. 

Deepak Brara is Air India’s new commercial director

Deepak Brara, the head of Corporate Headquarters Department of Air India, has been appointed as the commercial director of the national carrier. Brara would look after the operations of the airline's Commercial Department and the Cargo Strategic Business Unit in his current assignment, an airline spokesperson said. 
He had joined the Commercial department of the erstwhile Indian Airlines in 1976.  Brara had served as the head of Commercial Department in Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata and also served as the Managing Director of Alliance Air from 2005 to 2007. At the time of the merger of erstwhile Air India and Indian Airlines, he was heading the Public Relations department. After the merger, he was appointed as Air India's Executive Director of the Americas- in charge of USA and Canada. 

Debabrata Sarkar takes charge as CMD of Union Bank of India

Debabrata Sarkar has assumed charge as the Chairman & Managing Director of the Union Bank of India. Sarkar has more than 30 years of banking experience. He started his banking career with Bank of Baroda and was later elevated as Executive Director of Allahabad Bank. 
He takes charge as Chairman of Union Bank of India, a bank statement said here. He has worked in various capacities with a specialisation in credit and was also served as an in-charge of specialised integrated treasury branch at Mumbai. Sarkar has also been director on the Board of Central Securities Depository Ltd and Bank of Baroda (Botswana) Ltd.

PepsiCo India appoints new CEOs for foods businesses

PepsiCo India, reeling under several senior- to mid-level exits, named two top officials within the company, to head its foods and beverages divisions. Praveen Someshwar, currently CEO beverages, will succeed Varun Berry who quit late last month in a sudden and unexpected move. 
Gautham Mukkavilli, senior VP (global nutrition group) for PepsiCo Asia, Middle East and Africa based in Dubai, has been named as CEO beverages, filling the position Someshwar is vacating. The changes will be effective June 1, '12. Both will report to company chairman Manu Anand. A statement issued by PepsiCo said Someshwar will also lead the India power of one (PO1) council which aims to collaborate the food and beverage businesses. While Someshwar has been with PepsiCo since 1994, Mukkavilli has been associated with the company for two decades.
Both Praveen and Gautham will be based out of PepsiCo India's Gurgaon headquarters and report directly to PepsiCo India Region Chairman Manu Anand, it added.

Govt may raise retirement age for sick PSUs’ employees

The Department of Public Sector Enterprises (DPE)  said it is formulating a policy to raise retirement age to 60 years for employees of sick units whose revival packages have been approved by the government. The Board for Reconstruction of Public Sector Enterprises (BRPSE) had recommended to the department for increasing the retirement age of employees of loss-making Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs). 
“...DPE is formulating a policy for enhancement of superannuation age from 58 years to 60 years for employees of sick CPSEs whose revival packages have been approved by the government,” Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises Minister Praful Patel said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.  Besides, he said, these PSUs would continue to be in public sector after implementation of the revival package. 

India world’s largest importer of arms

India is the world's largest recipient of arms while South Korea is second and Pakistan and China are tied in third place, says a report. The volume of worldwide arms transfers in 2007-11 was 24 percent higher than in 2002-06 and the five largest arms importers in 2007-11 were all Asian states, said a press communique. 
The data revealed that Asia and Oceania accounted for a whopping 44 percent of global arms imports, followed by Europe 19 percent, the Middle East 17 percent, the Americas 11 percent. Africa was the lowest with 9 percent. India was the world's largest recipient of arms, accounting for 10 percent of global arms imports. The other large recipients of arms in 2007-11 were South Korea (6 percent of arms transfers), Pakistan (5 percent), China (5 percent) and Singapore (4 percent).  “A large share of arms deliveries is due to licensed production.”
India's neighbour China was the largest recipient of arms exports in 2002-06, but it fell to fourth place in 2007-11. Between 2002-06 and 2007-11, the volume of Chinese arms exports increased by 95 percent and now China ranks as the sixth largest supplier of arms in the world. “While the volume of China's arms exports is increasing, this is largely a result of Pakistan importing more arms from China.” 
“China has not yet achieved a major breakthrough in any other significant market.” The study said that major suppliers continued to deliver weapons to countries affected by the events of the Arab Spring. Despite a review in 2011 of its arms transfer policies towards the region, the US remains a major supplier to both Tunisia and Egypt. In 2011, the US delivered 45 M-1A1 tanks to Egypt and agreed to deliver 125 more, the communique said.
“The transfer of arms to states affected by the Arab Spring has provoked public and parliamentary debate in a number of supplier states. However, the impact of these debates on states' arms export policies has, up to now, been limited,” said Mark Bromley, senior researcher with the SIPRI Arms Transfers Programme. The think-tank also noted that in 2011 Saudi Arabia placed an order with the US for 154 F-15SA combat aircraft, which was not only the most significant order placed by any state in 2011 but also the largest arms deal for at least two decades. 

BALLOONING OF TIGHT VALVES OF HEART

The heart has four valves. The function of these valves is to ensure that blood flows only in one direction i.e. forward and not backward. Diseases involving these valves are common and can be congenital (i.e. by birth) or acquired in origin. Commonly, diseases which involve heart valves lead to narrowing or tightening of these valves so that there is obstruction to smooth flow of blood across them. As a result pressure builds up in the heart chamber just before the affected valve which can lead to symptoms such as breathing difficulty, accumulation of flud (water) in different parts of the body such as lungs, abdomen and fact, blood in sputum, pain in abdomen, weakness, jaundice etc.
Till about 1980s, the only treatment of these tight valves was surgery wherein surgeon, at the time of open heart surgery, splits the narrow valve with a knife or, if the valve is too much distorted, replaces them with artificial valves. However, over last 15 years or so, these tight valves can be treated by heart specialists without surgery, a technique commonly called 'ballooning' of tight valves of heart. In this technique an appropriate sized balloon is positioned across the narrow valve. After making sure that the balloon is in adequate and correct position, it is inflated with the help of a syringe held in the hands of the operator. The balloon then inflated is kept across the tight valve for 5-10 seconds and is rapidly deflated followed by its removal. The inflated balloon causes splitting of the tight and narrow edges of affected valve thereby leading to its relaxation and opening; the latter then causes smoother blood flow across them with consequent fall in pressure in the chamber before the affected valve. For the ballooning procedure, the patient is admitted in the hospital for 2-3 days. A careful echocardiography (ultrasound) examination of the heart is mandatory before the procedure. Important point to be excluded is that there should be no significant leakage of the valve along with its narrowing, a common association with a tight valve; if more than moderate (or significant) leakage of the valve is associated with tightening, ballooning treatment is not advisable because in such situations leakage of valve may increase after ballooning. Other points to be looked for before taking a patient for ballooning are detail anatomy (or structure) of the affected valve including its movement, deposition of calcium, if any on the affected valve etc.
The ballooning technique, as described above, is performed in fully equipped catheterization laboratory which is a costly set-up and not readily available. In addition, equipments used for ballooning of tight valves are imported and hence costly. Unfortunately, diseases of these valve affect individuals belonging to lower and middle economic groups who can not afford these costly procedures easily. Efforts are being made to bring down the cost of the procedure without catheterization laboratory thus bringing down the cost of the procedure.

Taxing the Rich

The Indian rich class isn't paying its fair share of taxes. The time has now come to surprise them. 

Rich in India are  so wealthy that the moniker  'filthy rich' would happily apply here. They are also in the news for all the wrong reasons. The Mallya's floundering Kingfisher Airlines will most probably fly for some time longer thanks to bailouts funded from tax payers' money. A Liquor mafia Ponti Chadha's enormous wealth comes from cornering the liquor distribution in Uttar Pradesh. A recent 'surprise' I-T raid on him yielded a piffling Rs 10 crore or so (Chadha reportedly has mock 'raids' regularly conducted on his residences to see how fast evidence can be removed).
So shouldn't these two gentlemen pay higher taxes than, say, the senior executives in their vast business empires? At a broader level, isn't it time that India's super-rich contribute a fair share to tax revenues (just last week finance minister Pranab Mukherjee admitted they needed to grow faster)? Two decades after liberalisation, this question is being asked with increasing frequency, within government, by economists, tax experts and social commentators. Many are convinced wealthy people and corporations need to be taxed more, plus several say they should also lose the big tax breaks.
Last year, former FM P. Chidambaram suggested that the wealthy be asked to shell out more. Some of our leading tax economists have made a case for reintroducing an estate tax. There's increasing talk of stepping up surveillance on goods and services consumed by the wealthy. These demands are backed by strong arguments, political, economic and moral ones. It's no coincidence that this sentiment comes after a wave of public anger at corruption driven by some large companies and, obviously, very wealthy people.
“Yes, there is a need for governments to tax the rich more than they do,” says Deepak Nayyar, economist and former chief economic advisor to the government. “Typically, tax rates on the super-rich are low. It's just as true in India as in the US. The growing wealth and power of India's richest is more than apparent. The top one per cent—a mere 12 million people or so—accounted for 5 per cent of the national income in 1980. In '05, this share went up to 12.5 per cent; and was pegged at about 15 per cent in 2010.
It's clear that a very small number of people have really enjoyed the fruits of economic reforms. The poor, meanwhile, climb over the poverty line at a snail's pace of one per cent a year. Prof Arun Kumar, an expert on India's 'black' or tax-free market, says “India's wealthy have grown both in size and prosperity. They can afford higher rates and do without exemptions”.
India's situation mirrors a similar rise in inequalities in many countries, from the US, UK, Germany, France, Mexico, China and so on. Many major economies—notably the US, France, and Spain—are looking at ways to tax the super-rich. Americans, for instance, are growing increasingly frustrated with their tax system. The increase in inequality the US and other countries have experienced during the last few decades spurs concern about fairness in taxation.” US President Barack Obama wants to raise taxes on those making more than $2,50,000 a year by letting the tax cuts instituted for them by George W. Bush expire. He opposes eliminating the estate tax, but would like to increase the exemption level to $5 million and lower the top rate to 35 per cent. And he wants to put in place the 'Buffett tax' to ensure that those who make more than $1 million pay their fair share.
But by what yardstick should India's elite class be taxed? Should it be a higher slab of income tax (say 40 per cent) for the super-rich? Or is there a case for an estate tax, which was discontinued in pre-liberalisation 1985 due to poor collections and loopholes? Some experts have also pointed at increasing the scope of the wealth tax (today's one per cent earned a measly Rs 635 crore in 2010) and the obvious issue of fewer tax exemptions to the wealthy and corporations.
It's not like there's a consensus on the prescriptions. In fact, taxes on the wealthy are so highly contested that debating points are added up even to identify just who the rich are. Besides, there's an implicit threat: what if you tax too much and entrepreneurs shut shop? Or what if a loophole—like charitable trusts, for instance—are employed to evade taxation? And then, of course, there's the fear of increasing black money in an economy that already has so much of it. Any change in the taxation policy would have to take all these concerns to mind. Increasing the rates would also run contrary to the core tenet of Manmohanomics: increase 'base' or number of taxpayers, reduce tax rates. This is what India has been doing since the '90s. Is it now time to relook this taxation tenet?
“So far, there's no evidence to show this (approach) hasn't worked,” says Dr Arvind Virmani, executive director, India, IMF, and ex-chief economic advisor in the finance ministry. “Often, there are demands for higher taxes on a section of people or industry, when really what you need is a policy intervention to sort out a more fundamental problem.” The argument here is that as the economy grows, the value of many things may increase, but if the value of some things (like land) spiral out of control, something must be wrong. But is tax the answer? “A tax in such situations will penalise people who did nothing to elevate the value of, say, the only home they own. That's not the way to go. The answer is to supply more land so that prices come down—a policy response, not a tax one,” Virmani says.
But experts find plenty on this front to fault with in India's taxation policies. Like many Indians pay a much higher average rate of tax on earned income than on unearned income. Several experts Outlook spoke to—including Thermax's Anu Aga, Biocon's Kiran Mazumdar and journalist P. Sainath—acknowledge that this must change. “For instance, why should capital gains on investments in equity, or dividend income, get a tax break at all? This is the government's way of encouraging speculation among the wealthy,” says Sainath.
The finance ministry's statement of 'revenue foregone', published with the budget since 2007, details all tax concessions. Last budget, it said corporate income-tax breaks were roughly Rs 88,000 crore. These should be tackled. Personal income-tax breaks were huge too—33 per cent of the said proceeds. Despite these exemptions, all the experts agree that a higher percentage of tax within the economy is the only way to wind up with a surplus down the line. 
The problem is those who don't pay (income) tax are everywhere. Only 3 per cent actually do, and that includes the self-employed, professionals and businessmen. Income from agriculture is constitutionally tax-free. Worse, there's no denying the system is unfair. Those who earn more than Rs 8 lakh a year are taxed at the highest rate—roughly 30 per cent—same as an ultra-rich Ambani. There are numerous opportunities to evade paying taxes. Businessmen can conceal income as 'cost' of doing business, cutting their personal tax liability. The salaried have no such luck. Their tax is deducted before the paycheck arrives.
One way, perhaps, to effectively tax the rich is to consider an estate tax, a topic that has been coming up among India's taxation experts in recent months. This tax-on the value of a person's estate, subject to a threshold limit—is present in many major economies the world over. In an interview to Outlook last year, leading tax economist Vijay Kelkar had advocated Rs 50 crore as a threshold limit—others feel even Rs 20 crore would be a good staring point. Dr Ajit Ranade, chief economist and head of research, Birla Group, agrees that estate tax is the “big one” India doesn't have.
But the worry, of course, is that any new tax means a new tax administration to track each transaction. And there are the potential 'loopholes'. “Now you're entering the zone where we ride into the cloak-and-dagger 1970s era,” cautions Surjit Singh Bhalla, managing director, Oxus Research and Investments. He says there is scope to raise tax revenue, but largely through indirect, professional and service taxes. On another front, factor in the massive exemptions—Rs 5.3 lakh crore last year—and the effective tax rate on wealthy companies distills to something like 22.2 per cent. Corporate watchers admit that concessions, though time-bound when introduced, tend to stick around forever. So, finally, if very few pay taxes, evasion is relatively easy and exemptions linger on, how can India tax the wealthy more? Well, whether the super-rich like it or not, the search for answers has begun.

Economy: Unfinished journey

Stalled reforms, slower growth, and a crop of aged, dithering politicians all bode ill for India's fortunes.

The Indians travelling on board, who are well- off enough for a long-distance train fare but  not rich enough to fly, are full of hope. They cheerfully point to signs of rising fortunes in the passing landscape: concrete houses in remote corners of West Bengal have new iron roofs and trail electricity wires; mobile-phone towers sprout near the rail track and give uninterrupted coverage; every other home seems to sport a dazzlingly garish mural that advertises lessons in English or computer use to legions of the aspirational.
On board, too, there is plenty of evidence of a rising middle class: college students who crowd around laptops to watch screechy Bollywood films; invalids paying to ride from northern Assam for treatment at a good hospital far south in Tamil Nadu; a soldier on leave texting eager messages home to Kerala on a new phone; an entrepreneur from Manipur who predicts his business running the train's kitchen will flourish, and India with it.
Long may their hopes be met. For many Indians, a decade-long boom has brought obvious gains. Some are physical: a study in the National Medical Journal of India last year, looking at children among India's wealthier population, found that at the age of 18 boys are 4.5cm taller and 4kg heavier than they were in 1992, when economic reforms had just got going. That seems to be down to better food and less disease.
The good that's been done: Poorer Indians are apparently doing better too. An official study published on March 19th assesses the desperately needy, defined as rural-dwellers who earn a pitifully low 22 rupees ($0.44) or less each day (29 rupees for those in cities). Their number fell by 52m over five years, from 407m in 2004 to 355m in 2009; that's a number lifted out of poverty equivalent to the entire population of South Africa (though still a fraction of China's achievement). Critics are right to say that for almost a third of the population to remain in such penury is a terrible thing, and to note that if the measure of poverty is raised to $1.25 day, the total swells by tens of millions. But on that measure, too, there have been gains.
Figures just released from last year's census give further cause for hope. The country's 247m households, two-thirds of them rural, have seen literacy rates rise to 74% from 65% in 2001; 63% now have phones, up from just 9%; nearly 60% have a bank account; 93% of those in towns and cities have at least some access to electricity, two-thirds cook on gas, and so on.
But for such progress to continue, and for India to achieve its ambition to become a great power, two things are necessary: a government that keeps its finances in order and consistently fast economic growth. Worryingly, both of these are now in serious doubt.
The ruling Congress party recently suffered in state elections. Its fortunes were mixed in four smaller states, losing in Goa and Punjab, but winning in Manipur and Uttarakhand. But in the most important of all, Uttar Pradesh (UP), which has a population of 200m, the size of Brazil, Congress came an ignominious fourth. Its haul of only 28 seats, out of 403 contested, was a particular defeat for Rahul Gandhi, the Congress scion who had campaigned hard there. Long touted as Congress's next leader, he risks becoming India's answer to Britain's Prince Charles: stuck in a dynastic holding pattern behind his powerful mother, Sonia.
The result in UP leaves Congress worried about its prospects in the national elections due in 2014—and many of its leaders desperate to buy popularity. It is supplementing an existing “right to work” scheme concentrated on rural areas with a new “right to food” scheme aimed especially at helping the two-fifths of infants still stunted by hunger.
The good that is left undone: Next may come the roll-out of direct cash transfers into the bank accounts of welfare recipients. This will be made a lot easier by a “unique identity” biometric scheme which aims to enroll 200m Indians by the end of the year. It looks like a more efficient way to get benefits to the needy, bypassing crooked officials; that is welcome. But giving politicians an easy way to funnel cash to voters could also be an invitation for the welfare bill to surge.
Welfare is not the only area where spending is climbing beyond the country's means. The military budget rose by more than 10% last year and is budgeted for a rise of 17% this year (see article). There is a $1 trillion plan for new infrastructure in the next five years, and much more besides.
But the growth to pay for all this is faltering. Over the five years to 2008, the economy raced forward by an average of 9% a year. By contrast the year just ending looks likely to notch up between 6% and 7%. Global difficulties, especially high oil prices, play a part. But the main causes are disappointing industrial investment, high inflation and interest rates, excessive public borrowing that crowds out the private sector and investors who have lost their faith that India's politicians can bring about economic reform. The fall in investment is especially stark (see chart).
Growth above 6% may not sound bad, but for big, poor India losing momentum is costly. Less investment now reduces the capacity to grow later. A lower growth trajectory means many millions stuck in poverty for years longer than otherwise. Though the census figures showed much progress, they also revealed how far India still has to go. Half of all Indians have no choice but to defecate in the open. Two-thirds still cook on open fires.
And even when it was at its raciest, India's economy struggled to create jobs. Low-paying casual jobs are all that are available for four-fifths of urban workers—a level hardly changed in years. A slowdown could easily reverse the gains that have been made.
Slower growth could be grim in the short term, too: if Indian farmers suffer a bad monsoon this year, expansion may dip under 6%. At that level the heavily indebted Indian government will struggle to pay its way, hard put to draw enough foreign funds to cover the 3.6% current-account deficit.
India's rulers predict that growth should recover to 7.5% or so next year. But some at least appear to understand the brooding risks that will persist even if that figure is met. In his budget on March 16th the finance minister, Pranab Mukherjee, offered a decent diagnosis of what is wrong. He fretted over wasteful and costly government spending (earlier he had said that soaring subsidies for fuel and fertilisers keep him awake at night), weaker industry and the lack of private, notably foreign, investment in recent years.
Speaking in his office on March 20th, he was more explicit. As he talks up the “resilience” of domestic demand he is preoccupied with getting the central fiscal deficit down to 5.1% of GDP. The government currently puts the deficit at 5.9%; include state deficits and off-balance-sheet items and you get a yet more daunting 8.5%, according to Chetan Ahya of Morgan Stanley (see chart 2).
The key to reducing the deficit is slashing a subsidy bill that gobbles 2.4% of GDP. Mr Mukherjee rules out any cuts in food subsidies as morally (not to mention politically) impossible, “but in other areas, including the oil sector, we have to reduce.”
Yet that, too, looks unlikely. The clearest way to save funds would be to end a subsidy on diesel fuel used for both transport and generators. In 2010 Congress said it wanted to do this. According to Morgan Stanley, overall fuel subsidies cost 0.8% of India's GDP over the past financial year. But Mr Mukherjee's budget failed to give any details on how cuts would be applied. In any case, the government struggled to impose its will. On March 20th it barely defeated a budget amendment that would in effect have been a no-confidence vote.
Mr Mukherjee's inability to cut spending undermines his hopes of persuading sceptics that India can “come back to the path of fiscal consolidation”. It reinforces the fears of many—including, it seems, the country's central bank— that India's period of fast growth is over. In the years running up to the economic crisis in the West, India had comparatively tight public finances, high and rising investment and a steady drip of reforms. Today the central bank all but admits that none of those conditions applies. Inflation has risen and remains high; the bank is loth to cut interest rates sharply until the government borrows less. So high interest rates will continue to squeeze industry, and growth will continue to be slow.
Mr Mukherjee talks bravely, but not convincingly, of fostering a cross-party consensus: “if a mandate is fractured you must carry other parties with you”. They must be persuaded of the benefits of reform, he warns, because otherwise slower growth and rotten public finances could provoke “long-term suffering…like what is happening in the euro zone and many countries.”
Leaders needed: Mr Mukherjee is not alone in feeling this way. The prime minister, Manmohan Singh, told parliament on March 19th that India could still get back to happy days of 9% growth, but only if “we can agree on a number of difficult decisions”. By that he means rolling out a goods and services tax, cutting subsidies, easing conditions for investors and more.
Yet the appetite for such reforms is meagre at best. India's politicians are keen on sharing out the benefits of growth, but scared of putting in place policies that would allow that growth to continue. Getting any economic reform or legislation passed has been beyond the wit of Congress since its re-election in 2009, when it managed to increase its number of seats but still fell short of getting a majority. Instead, in the years since, corruption scandals such as the one that blew up this week over coal allocations and a nastily divisive political climate have distracted everyone.
Deferential Mr Singh, who might once have been expected to spearhead any reform efforts, turns 80 this year. His authority, already limited, is waning further. He is so soft-spoken that a common joke at meetings is to ask for mobile phones to be put on “Manmohan Singh mode”—which is to say, rendered inaudible. Populist rivals increasingly push him around.
On March 18th his reformist minister for railways, Dinesh Trivedi, was forced to resign by a junior coalition ally. The minister's sin: raising passenger fares on India's vast railways for the first time in nine years. For a passenger riding 2nd class on the Vivek Express for the length of the country the rise would have added 212 rupees ($4) to the current fare of 673 rupees. Even the unions agreed to this, and Mr Singh praised the fare rise as “forward looking”. But he feebly acquiesced as Mr Trivedi was hounded out.
Nor does the 76-year-old Mr Mukherjee, though sprightly, make a convincing leader. India's stockmarkets slid in the days after his budget speech. Investors who were supposed to be cheered by talk of getting private capital back to India were instead puzzled by a plan for retrospectively levying tax on big firms. That seems aimed at Vodafone, a telecoms company. The Supreme Court recently rejected a tax case against the company.
But at least the finance minister talks of balancing books and reforms. Few others among India's increasingly gerontocratic political class bother even to try. Congress is divided. The cabinet surprisingly agreed, late in 2011, to let foreigners like Walmart and Tesco invest in Indian retailing—an opening-up that carried a lot of symbolic freight. Yet 71-year-old A.K. Antony (a leading Congress figure who sits in the cabinet as defence minister) let it be known he had in fact opposed it, and Sonia Gandhi, Congress's chief, gave only tepid, tardy support; her son Rahul was yet more timid. The decision has now been put on hold.
That was a victory for Congress's main coalition ally, the Trinamool Congress. The party's tough and ambitious leader, Mamata Banerjee, braved beatings and attempted murder by political rivals in West Bengal during her rise to political power. She has been chief minister of that state for nearly a year, and makes a sport of blocking any reforms she considers bad for the poor. “She is very clear, she does not want to tax the people,” says Mr Mukherjee.
In December she had Mr Singh “freeze” the decision on foreign investment in retail. Earlier she threatened to quit over rising petrol prices (though she backed down). It was she who elbowed Mr Trivedi—a member of her own party—out of the railways ministry. In the past few months alone she has also blocked a water-sharing deal with Bangladesh; Delhi's efforts to oversee anti-terrorism work; and a government anti-corruption bill.
If not now, when?: With Ms Banerjee as an ally, Congress looks stymied. Known familiarly as Didi, she is clearly campaigning for the next poll, when she may decide to dump Congress. The main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) occasionally stirs things up by suggesting that national polls could somehow be triggered early.
Whether or not that happens, important elections are looming. They always are, in India. Coming next, in late March, is a partial election for the upper house of parliament, the Rajya Sabha, where Congress is weak. After that, probably in July, is a vote among state and national assemblymen to elect a new president. Congress is anxious to get another compliant figure into the head of state's post. The haggling expected in these elections is likely to prove as contentious—and distracting—as any popular, public poll.
While the politicians are in election mode there is almost no chance of any consensus for reform. Nor would elections that turfed Congress out necessarily change things for the better. If the BJP were a more compelling alternative to the current government, more voters (and politicians) might be inclined to welcome an early election. But the BJP, too, is divided, and would be hard put to return to a liberal, coherent set of policies directed at growth. Once a liberalising champion, the party has taken against letting foreigners into Indian retailing, reversing a 2004 manifesto pledge in order to court urban traders afraid of Walmart. A leading BJP figure explained late last year that as a “nation first” party, “we don't succumb to the pressures of the West” in such matters.
BJP leaders of some individual states, such as Narendra Modi in Gujarat could make a credible pitch as business-minded economic reformers. Relatively young, with decent economic records in their states, they could stand as “pro-development” candidates if India's economy slows more. An opinion poll in January suggested Mr Modi, with 24%, is the country's most popular candidate to be prime minister. But he is also divisive, even within the BJP, and risks putting off Muslim and moderate Hindu voters furious over his handling of anti-Muslim pogroms in Gujarat ten years ago, when police failed to stop the murder of over 1,000 people. Divisions on both sides leave little chance for Mr Mukherjee to build cross-party agreement. And what chance there may be is dwindling; if politicians are unlikely to back reforms now, they will become ever more so as a general election comes closer. For reform to happen, someone needs to persuade the hope-filled voters on the Vivek Express that surging economic growth is not something India enjoys by right. It is something which depends on policies that encourage investment. Getting such a message across requires energetic, active leaders, plus politicians who are ready to compromise. Given the state of the parties, and elections that always seem to be looming, that seems too much to hope for.

India: World’s Biggest Arms Importer

India has emerged as the  world's largest weapons importer in the last five years, according to a Swedish research group. Early next month, India will induct a nuclear submarine into its navy. Leased from Russia for about $900 million, it will boost India's combat underwater capability. It will also make India the world's sixth country to operate such a platform. 
It is the purchase of sophisticated defense equipment such as warships and fighter aircraft that has propelled India to become the world's top arms importer.  According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, India accounted for 10 percent of the global arms market between 2007 and 2011, overtaking China as the world's biggest customer for weapons.
Rahul Bedi with Jane's Defense Weekly in New Delhi says India's buying spree is motivated partly by the need to modernize its armed forces and partly by its ambitions to be counted among major regional or even global powers. “Over the last 10 years, with its economic profile growing, it is seeking to project power outside not only its immediate area of concern, but to become a continental power rather than just a sub-continental power,” Bedi explained. “So the acquisitions it is making, like aircraft carriers, long-range maritime reconnaissance aircraft, heavy lift transport aircraft, attack helicopters, now these are all power-projection platforms, which go far from home base.” 
As India gets ready to spend an estimated $100 billion during the next 15 years to acquire new weapons systems, all major global armament companies have set up shop in India. Russia remains India's largest arms supplier, followed by Israel, the United States and France. Defense analysts say India also accounts for a huge chunk of global arms imports because it has failed to build a domestic defense industry. On the other hand, China has increased production of weapons during the past decade, lessening its dependence on imports.
But India still purchases more than three quarters of all its weapons overseas. Experts say recent efforts to nurture a domestic defense industry have made little headway because the private sector, widely seen as more efficient than the public sector, has largely been kept out of defense production. 
Rahul Bedi says India's defense industry needs to bridge a huge technological gap. “It basically has mediocre engineering skills, but no developmental skills as far as weapon systems are concerned. So it is going to take another at least 20 to 30 years for India to meet even moderately its weapon requirements,” Bedi said. India recently allocated $38 billion for its military budget this year - 17 percent higher than the previous year. That is far lower than China's more than $100 billion budget for military spending. In recent years, the biggest arms importers were all Asian countries - India, followed by South Korea, Pakistan, China and Singapore. 

DEFENCE: French Fighters

India opts for the French firm Dassault's Rafale jet fighters for the Indian Air Force. 

FRANCE seems to be on  the verge of walking away  with one of the biggest defence deals in recent times. In early February, the Indian government announced that it had chosen the French firm Dassault Aviation as the sole bidder to supply 126 Rafale jet fighters for the Indian Air Force (IAF). Among the bidders, Dassault had quoted the lowest prices and had also agreed to provide technology of the Rafale to India. No details have emerged about the exact price tag, but reports suggest that the Rafale would cost around $5 million per unit.
The final cost will be announced only after the two sides complete the negotiations, taking into account the weapons and avionics that will be fitted in the planes. Many military experts say that the contract will be worth more than $20 billion.
The Defence Minister, A.K. Antony, announced on February 17 that the final series of negotiations with Dassault had begun. He said that the Contract Negotiations Committee (CNC) had started its work for the procurement of the multi-role combat aircraft. The Minister reiterated that complete transparency would be maintained during the negotiations, which would continue through the year. He said that the government would closely monitor all stages of the negotiations and “ensure that nobody corrupts the Indian system”. Dassault's rivals, while faulting the Indian government's choice of aircraft, have all said that the bidding process was transparent. Previous aviation deals have been clouded in controversy, with allegations of kickbacks being bandied about.
The IAF already flies around 50 French Mirages. The Indian government had signed a $2.5 billion deal with Dassault last year to upgrade the IAF's Mirage fleet. The only serious competition was from the Eurofighter Typhoon, manufactured by a consortium of German, British, Italian and Spanish companies, led by the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS). The British and German governments have already conveyed their unhappiness with the Indian government's decision to opt for the French plane. British Prime Minister David Cameron, while expressing surprise at the decision of the Indian government to opt for the Rafale, said that the Eurofighter was a “superior” plane. British and German officials were evidently under the impression that the Eurofighter was the clear front runner. EADS officials have sought an explanation on the criteria and cost estimation applied by Indian officials while deciding to choose the French planes.
The Europeans had sweetened their bid by offering India the status of the fifth partner in the prestigious EADS consortium. In a recent letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, German Chancellor Angela Merkel wrote that India would become the “fifth partner country” along with Germany, Britain, Spain and Italy. EADS had also offered India the opportunity to develop the aircraft jointly and make the country one of its production hubs for the sale of aircraft to third countries. Dassault, too, has offered similar terms. France has told the Indian government that if it wins the contract, the first 18 fighter jets will be delivered within 36 months and the remaining 108 will be assembled in India.
Other competitors for the contract were eliminated from the original shortlist last year, as the IAF concluded that they did not meet the technical requirements. The fighter planes in question were the American F-16 and F A-18, the Swedish Grippen and the Russian Mig-35. The United States attaches strings to the sale of high-tech weaponry. Countries like Iran and Venezuela, which have chosen to espouse an independent foreign policy, have been denied the much-needed spares for their U.S.-manufactured planes. After India tested nuclear weapons in 1998, Washington imposed sanctions on it. These sanctions, including on the sale of high-tech weapons, were lifted only after the two countries signed a military agreement in 2006.
Although the U.S. has lost out on the latest defence deal, India has gone in for defence purchases from the U.S. in a big way. The recent contract to buy 22 Apache Attack helicopters, overlooking a competitive Russian bid, is an illustration. India had earlier acquired a refurbished U.S. troop ship with logistics-support helicopters, C-130J Hercules heavy lift transport planes, advanced long-range naval reconnaissance aircraft, and weaponry worth several billions of dollars. Many other deals with the U.S. worth billions are in the pipeline. Russia may still be the single biggest arms supplier to India, but the Western powers, together with their ally Israel, provide most of the imported weaponry. This has led to a feeling of discrimination in Moscow.
For the past one year, EADS and Dassault were locked in a fierce competition to clinch the deal. For Dassault, it was virtually a make-or-break situation. France, despite hectic lobbying by President Nicolas Sarkozy, had failed to sell a single Rafale jet abroad. Among the countries that rejected the Rafale were the Netherlands, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland and Morocco. The late Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi was given an “exclusive offer” on Rafales after being wined and dined at the Elysee Palace by Sarkozy during his visit to Paris in 2007. But on his return, the Libyan leader decided that his country could do without the expensive French jets. It is another story that Libya was used as a testing ground for Rafales and Typhoons following the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO)-led invasion of the country last year. Both Dassault and EADS regularly put out bulletins detailing the prowess their planes displayed over Libya.
As recently as 2009, the Rafale and the Eurofighter were prominently displayed at an arms fair in Libya. After the regime change in Libya, there are reports that France is on the verge of clinching a deal with the interim government there for the sale of 14 to18 Rafale jets. Last year, the French had also failed to clinch a deal for the sale of 60 Rafale jets to the United Arab Emirates after negotiations had reached an advanced stage. The UAE government changed its mind at the eleventh hour and is now on the verge of inking a deal for the purchase of the Eurofighter. The Eurofighter, according to most aviation experts, is the superior air-to-air interceptor. Dassault was in deep financial trouble because of the huge costs incurred in the production of the Rafale. In December last year, French Defence Minister Gerard Longet warned that production of the jets would have to be stopped if foreign orders failed to materialise in the near future.
After the Indian government announced its decision, an elated Sarkozy said that “we were waiting for this day for 30 years”. It was good news for the French President, who is facing a difficult re-election later this year. The President said that the Indian government's decision should also be seen as “a signal of confidence in the French economy”. Sarkozy had earlier tried to convince the Brazilian government to go in for Rafale jets. In 2008, Sarkozy and President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva had announced that both countries had reached an agreement for the sale of 36 Rafales. But the Brazilian Defence Ministry was quick to issue a statement clarifying that no final decision had been taken. Now with a new President, Dina Roussef, in office, the Brazilian choice has narrowed down to the U.S. F/A 18 Super Hornet fighters and the Swedish Grippen.
India, in recent years, has emerged as the biggest buyer in the international arms bazaar, outspending even the petro-dollar-soaked monarchies of the Gulf. The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) has said that India accounted for 9 per cent of all the world's weapons imports in 2010. In early February, the Indian Navy took charge of a Russian-made nuclear submarine, INS Chakra-11. It will be on lease for 10 years at a cost of $1 billion. The much-delayed aircraft carrier, Admiral Gorshkov, is expected to join the Indian Navy by the end of this year. That deal was worth $2.33 billion. India has also signed a $30 billion deal with Russia for the purchase of 250-300 Sukhumi T-50 Stealth fighters. They are expected to be inducted into the IAF by 2018.
Many defence analysts interpret the defence acquisition spree by India as an attempt to match China's growing military strength. Washington is encouraging New Delhi to accelerate its costly defence procurement drive by playing up the so-called threat from China. James Clapper, the U.S. Director of National Intelligence, told the American Congress that the Indian military “is strengthening its forces in preparation to fight a limited conflict along the disputed border, and is working to balance Chinese power projection in the Indian Ocean”. However, the Indian Defence Minister has clarified that India's modernisation of its defence forces is not aimed at China but only to protect the territorial integrity of the country.

 

Movement against Corruption

In India, the movement against corruption at tracted lakhs, forced the government's hand on the Lokpal Bill, pressurised a pre- emptive resolution from Parliament on August 28, 2011, and survived strong arm tactics against Anna Hazare and Baba Ramdev and smear campaigns against others. The year has ended with Anna giving up another fast. The UPA outsmarted itself by promising reservations to women, SC, ST, OBC and minorities and Lokayuktas in the states. This khichree proved to be its undoing. It produced an awkward majority in the Lok Sabha and a chaotic carry over to the next year in the Rajya Sabha. The Bill produced an unwieldy Lokpal, testing boiling water with the patently unconstitutional provisions on minority representation and forcing Lokayuktas on the states.
The constitutional challenge is whether popular democracy, elite populism or rabble rousing will destabilise institution based parliamentary democracy? The right to strong protest can never be denied. In December 2011, the Bombay High Court was wholly wrong to say that parallel protest could not take place when Parliament was in session. This is 19th century stuff. Equally the maidan fee should be minimal for non- commercial protest by the poor and well- off alike. To lose the right to aggressive protest is to lose democracy. But, blackmailing democratic institutions into submission and denying discourse is to join the chaos of South and South- East Asia. In rigidly ousting alternative discourse, Anna went overboard. Anti- corruption cases reached the Supreme Court. The Black Money case set up a powerful monitoring committee of Justices Jeevan Reddy and M. B. Shah to oversee the investigation. The government's attempt to recall the decision led to a divided court. Ambiguity lives on. The 2G case led to dramatic arrests of the high and mighty. Raja lost his ministership. Many, including Kanimozhi, were held in jail for inordinate, unjustified months until the Supreme Court realised that its own norm was “ bail not jail”. While the government protested that the so called loss to the exchequer by the scam was to keep ' teleprices' low, the case requires examining the Swan Bid, the first- come- first- get system and other machinations. In the Supreme Court cash- for- votes case, Amar Singh was in the soup — but others escaped the net.
Foreign companies were upset when India's tax authorities commenced investigation against the Vodafone- Hutch deal as a scam. The judgment is awaited. Santosh Hegde, Karnataka's Lokayukta who nearly tearfully resigned in July 2010, exposed the CM's mining lobby to show what an ombudsman can do. But the Karnataka High Court ruled out the Lokayukta's choice of prosecutor to strengthen demands for an independent investigation, inquiry and prosecution wing for the Lokpal. Rahul Gandhi had proposed a constitutional amendment to incorporate the Lokpal which was produced in record time by law minister Salman Khurshid to be inevitably defeated in the Lok Sabha.
Supreme Court proceedings resulting in removing P. J. Thomas as CVC exposed selection procedures for important appointments being far from foolproof or immune from political patronage. Attempts to impeach high court judges failed. P. D. Dinakaran simply resigned — taking the high ground that the procedure was all wrong. Soumitra Sen got an adverse result from the Rajya Sabha but resigned before he had to face the Lok Sabha. Meanwhile, the government's Judicial Accountability Bill 2010 has transited through the parliamentary standing committee and was re- tabled by Khurshid on December 21. Judicial corruption exists abundantly. So do increasing levels of judicial incompetence — requiring legislation for proper judicial selection. Over 2011- 12. Chief Justice Kapadia will be responsible for replacing 10 judges of the Supreme Court. Retiring judges rush through one year long backlogs of judgments, which suffer from lack of memory and bad note- taking. Judges are over- worked. But judicial standards are falling. Institutions with bad renewal of good people sell their future short.
The Supreme Court's direct continuing control over forest and environment has gone on for 15 years and must stop. It has helped the green cover and stopped some slaughter mining. But it must give up this magnum control in favour of what Chief Justice Kapadia calls a proper regulatory authority. Even though the Supreme Court has not been equitable on rehabilitation and resettlement ( R& R) in the Omkareshwar dam case ( 2011), over the years the court has taken a lead on equitable land acquisition. This year it was through Justice Singhvi, in the UP and other cases. The government took a historic decision to draft the Land Acquisition and Relief and Rehabilitation Bill 2011 ( LA and RR) which is a step forward, but full of flaws relating to tribal areas, R& R deficiencies, facilitative acquisition for the private sector and too many exclusions. Chairman of the standing committee, Sumitra Mahajan, has rightly taken the view not to rush through the Bill. The new Mines and Minerals Bill, approved by the standing committee in 2008, underwent changes by the Cabinet on September 30, 2011. Compensation to ' tribals' etc will be limited, without the proposed 26 per cent share in the mines to make them exploited labour.
A fantastic Planning Commission ( PC) affidavit to the Supreme Court in September 2011 on food entitlements fixed the ' 25 per person per day in rural areas which “ ensures the adequacy of actual private expenditure… on food, education and health”. An embarrassed government backtracked on October 3, 2011 — clarifying that the PC's view will not be the bases of price fixation or distribution. It seems odd that after so many years we do not know how to identify beneficiaries.
The Supreme Court heard the challenges to the Right to Education Act; and judgment is awaited on whether unaided private and minority institutions can be forced to admit poor students in the neighbourhood. Socio- economic rights are inadequate. With cold wave deaths and people dying in hospitals, India has a lot to think on socio- economic fronts. Meanwhile, Mullaperiyar signifies that our water disputes are not being solved. Water- man Rajendra Singh persuaded ex- Justice Jeevan Reddy to have a meeting to address pollution and conservation of water through social action because legal action failed. The Supreme Court's Uphaar decision lowering the damages to victims is all wrong — confusing unjust enrichment and principles of ordinary and exemplary damages.
India's dichotomous approach to poverty, development and growth emerged at the global environment meet in Durban. The “ North” countries want to cap India's growth because the BRIC countries are economic competitors. When will India put forward a convincing case that with more than 50 per cent of a vulnerable population ( larger than most nations) she is still in the process of development? Although India was the benign ' deal breaker' to send the Kyoto protocol into another phase, negotiating global multilateral treaties has not been India's strong point. The Supreme Court declared the State guerilla Salwa Judum ( including children) unconstitutional. The right to display cinema has been thwarted by state governments and public reactions as in the case of Dam 999 about Mullaperiyar. Free speech remains threatened by civil society intolerance.

Anant Goenka elevated as Ceat MD

RPG Group company Ceat Tyre said it has elevated Anant Goenka as its managing director effective April 1. The incumbent managing director Paras K Chowdhary will continue to be a whole-time director, the company said in a statement. Earlier, Goenka was deputy managing director. “Anant will add lot of value to the business due to his academic background and skills he acquired working with other group firms and international companies. We are happy to have him taking charge,” RPG Enterprises chairman emeritus RP Goenka said. 

Amrapali CMD gets the ‘Most Inspiring Entrepreneur Award’

Celebrating consecutive successes in a row, Amrapali Group CMD and CREDAI (NCR) VP Dr. Anil Kumar Sharma received the Star Reality Award of the 'Most Inspiring Entrepreneur in Real Estate' from Kamal Nath, union minister of urban development. The Award was conferred in recognistion of his contribution of his contribution to the industry and the impact that his projects have achieved in a short span of time. Kamal Nath said “I hope the Group will add another feather in the cap of Noida and will take it to greater heights of living.” The 'Star Realty Awards 2011-12' were organised by Planman Media at Hotel Taj Palace on February 22, 2012 to felicitate real estate players for their excellence and mammoth contribution to the growth of realty sector.

Glenmark Pharma appoints Sandeep Gupta as COO

Pharma major Glenmark Pharmaceuticals today said it has appointed Sandeep Gupta as Chief Operating Officer ( COO) and Michael Buschle as Chief Scientific Officer (CSO). Gupta will be based at Glenmark's Corporate Headquarters in Mumbai and will be responsible for the company's branded generics business and operational aspects including quality, projects, distribution and supply chain for Glenmark pharmaceuticals, the company said in a statement. Buschle will provide strategic and scientific oversight to Glenmark's global drug discovery programmes and pharmaceutical development. Both Gupta and Buschle will report to Chairman and Managing Director Glenn Saldanha.

Ada Ratnam appointed as president of Philips India consumer lifestyle business

Dutch electronics major, Philips announced the appointment of Ada Ratnam as the president of its consumer lifestyle business in India. Mr Ratnam, who was earlier the head of the lighting systems and controls business of Philips India, will take over charge from Anjan Bose who will retire on March 31, 2012. Mr Ratnam joined Philips in November 2004. Commenting on the appointment, Philips India vice chairman & MD Rajeev Chopra said: “”We are pleased that Mr Ratnam has accepted the appointment to lead the consumer lifestyle business. I am confident that his extensive knowledge of the Philips organisation and his proven track record will take the consumer lifestyle business to newer heights.”

Govt appoints B K Batra as deputy MD of IDBI Bank

The government has appointed B K Batra as Deputy Managing Director of IDBI Bank. He was working as Executive Director looking after the corporate banking function and formulation of corporate level policies and processes. 
In addition, he was also discharging responsibility as chairman of credit committee and systems and procedures and several other committees, IDBI Bank said in a statement. Batra has served IDBI Bank in various positions from 1983 till date, it said.