Another chopper was sent on Monday morning to bring back the ship’s master, who had stayed on board.

Late on Sunday night, the crew had sent a distress message about “extremely bad weather” and communicated that the ship, Jindal Kamakshi, was listing precariously to one side off the Mumbai coast.

“Information was received around midnight by the Indian Navy that a vessel in distress Jindal Kamakshi which was 40 nautical miles from Mumbai harbor and 25 nautical miles off Vasai coast had listed heavily,” a Defense spokesperson said.

“The distress message said the vessel listed heavily, with 20 persons on-board and requested assistance,” the official said.

The crew requested immediate evacuation. The navy sent a Sea King 42C helicopter to bring the men.

Mumbai, Jun 17 (PTI) Recovering from a 21-month low, the rupee strengthened 10 paise to 64.16 against the US dollar in early trade today at the Interbank Foreign Exchange on selling of the American currency by exporters and banks.

Forex dealers said a higher opening in the domestic equity markets and dollar’s weakness against other currencies overseas supported the rupee.

The rupee had lost 10 paise to close at 21-month low of 64.26 against the greenback in yesterday’s trade on sustained demand for the American currency from banks and exporters amid foreign capital outflows.

Meanwhile, the benchmark BSE Sensex rose 170.86 points, or 0.64 per cent, to 26,857.37 in early trade today.

Shri Raghav Chandra, Additional Secretary& Financial Advisor, Ministry of Agriculture andSerpilTimuray, Regional CEO, AMEAP, Vodafone, launch ‘Connected Farming in India’Report and Farmers’ Club initiative across 6 markets

• Mobile services have the potential to enhance income of 7 crore Indian farmers by over 56,000 crore a year
• Vodafone launches Farmers’ Club initiative in six countries, including ‘KisaanMitr’ in India to enhance smallholders’ productivity

26 May 2015

Chennai: Vodafone today published its Connected Farming in India report* which concludes that the introduction of simple mobile services designed to help small-scale farmers in emerging markets could boost the farm gate incomes of 7 crore Indian farmers by over Rs. 56,000 crore in 2020.

The Vodafone report, based on research commissioned from Accenture Strategy with support from the Vodafone Foundation, has found that the average farming household lives on less than Rs. 250 per day with many farmers struggle to feed and educate their families. Simple mobile services could enhance earnings of almost two thirds of such farmers by an average of Rs. 8,000/- per year, creating a positive impact in communities.

Addressing the gathering via a special message,Hon’ble Union Minister of State for Agriculture, Shri MohanbhaiKalyanjibhaiKundariya, said, “Agriculture is the principal source of livelihood for more than 58% of our population. So for India to prosper, it is vital that the sector prospers and the benefits reach the small and marginal farmers. This government is committed to connecting our farmer brothers on the information highway and bringing to them the advantages of latest technology advances right to their fields and in their hands. I am delighted that Vodafone is committing to leverage its massive reach in the country and its learning from other emerging markets to maximise the potential of the India agricultural sector.I would like to congratulate ASSOCHAM for enabling this platform and Vodafone for producing a special report highlighting the immense potential of India’s Agriculture sector and launching a multi country initiative to realise the inherent possibilities of this domain.”

The Connected Farming in India report report was released by Shri Raghav Chandra, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, at a conference organised by ASSOCHAM on the potential of mobile to transform agricultural value chains for enabling e-Kranti.

Releasing the report, Shri Raghav Chandra, Additional Secretary& Financial Advisor, Ministry of Agriculture, said,” Technology for farmers is one of the focus areas under e-Kranti, a key pillar for realising the Digital India vision.  The future of agriculture lies in bringing digital services to the farm as agriculture is increasingly becoming more and more knowledge intensive. The potential of mobile services in delivering this is unique as can be gauged by the success of the mKisan initiative that unleashes the power of the mobile in the hands of the farmers. The ‘Connected Farming in India’ report illustrates this in greater detail. It is indeed encouraging that ASSOCHAM and Vodafone have chosen to bring this important subject of enhancing value across the entire agriculture value chain to the forefront via this initiative.”

India is one of the world’s largest food producers with more than 20 crore people currently estimated to work in agriculture, around 10 crore of them farmers and the remainder working as agricultural labourers. Around 62% of farmers own less than one hectare of land, significantly increasing their exposure to the effects of crop failure, pests, disease and volatile market pricing

Vodafone also announced the expansion ofits Farmers’ Club initiative in six countries, including ‘KisaanMitr’ in India and its equivalents in other emerging markets –Ghana, Kenya, New Zealand and Tanzania-over the coming year and in Turkey where it has been operational since 2009 and has already benefitted 1.2 million farmers, helping them to enhance crop yields and increase farm gate incomes.The VodafoneFarmers’ Club is a social business model which offers a range of mobile services to help farmers boost productivity. Specific services offered under the Farmers’ Club  in each country will vary but will include information services, virtual marketplaces in which farmers can sell their produce and mobile money financial services and products.

Launching the Farmers’ Club proposition across multiple countries, Vodafone Group Regional Chief Executive for the Africa, Middle East and Asia Pacific region,SerpilTimuray, said, “One-third of humanity relies on food grown by 500 million smallholder farmers with less than two hectares of land. Mobile has a critically important role to play in increasing agricultural resilience and enhancing quality of life for some of the poorest people on earth. Our experience in Turkey has demonstrated how mobile services can transform farmers’ ability to increase crop yields, improve efficiency and grow farm gate incomes.

“As the global population continues to expand, farmers have an urgent need to produce ever-increasing amounts of food without destroying habitats or depleting resources in a way which is unsustainable. Smart and forward-looking initiatives such as the Vodafone Farmers’ Club concept can make a real difference in addressing the global challenge of food production and security.”

Speaking about the Vodafone KisaanMitrinitiativein India, Sunil Sood, MD & CEO, Vodafone India, said, “The basis for the next green revolution in India will be a “knowledge revolution”, and technology, particularly mobile, will play a key role in driving it. Today, 46% of people in rural areas have a mobile phone and access to mobile services among those yet unconnected is growing rapidly.  This offers a new channel for delivering agricultural services and an opportunity to engage rural communities in new ways. We are committed to leveraging our learning and reach to create and deliver newer business models that will benefit the entire agriculture value chain.  The launch of Kisan Mitra is our first step in addressing the needs of the farming community in India by providing access to timely information, markets and financial inclusion.”

Note to editors: *INSERT LINK TO CONNECTING FARMERS REPORT

About Vodafone
Vodafone is one of the world’s largest telecommunications companies and provides a range of services including voice, messaging, data and fixed communications. Vodafone has mobile operations in 26 countries, partners with mobile networks in 55 more, and fixed broadband operations in 17 markets. As of 31 December 2014, Vodafone had 444 million mobile customers and 11.8 million fixed broadband customers. For more information, please visit: www.vodafone.com.

About the Vodafone Foundation

The Vodafone Foundation’s Mobile for Good programme combines Vodafone’s charitable giving and technology to make a difference in the world. Globally, the Vodafone Foundation supports projects that are focused on delivering public benefit through the use of mobile technology across areas including health, education and disaster relief. The Vodafone Foundation invests in the communities in which Vodafone operates and is at the centre of a network of global and local social investment programmes. The Vodafone Foundation is a UK registered charity, registered charity number 10989625.

The Connected Farming in India report is part of a series of reports launched by the Vodafone Foundation looking at the potential social impact of mobile products and services on the communities in which Vodafone operates. Vodafone’s 2011 Connected Agriculture report showed that 12 different mobile services could boost agricultural income in 26 markets by 11% – an estimated $138 billion in 2020

For further information, please contact

Vodafone India | indiacorpcomm@vodafone.com

Key Findings of the Connected Farming in India Report

Vodafone and Accenture Strategy have identified six mobile services with the potential to transform the lives and livelihoods of Indian farmers’ and boost farm gate income by over Rs. 56,000 crore in 2020

1. Agricultural information services providing early warning of weather events, information on the best times to harvest and advice on crop techniques to enhance yields. These services could increase an estimated 60 million Indian farmers’ annual incomes by an average of US$89 a year in 2020.

2. Payments and loans enablingfarmers to access simple and secure financial products and services using mobile money payment systems such as Vodafone’s M-Pesa, launched in India in April 2013. Access to highly cost-effective micro-finance and quick and transparent electronic payment systems could provide an annual benefit of US$690 for some farmers in 2020, representing a 39% increase in their average farming income.

3. Receipt services to provide greater transparency in daily commodity supply chains, through use of registration and receipt services via the mobile, allowing farmers to raise their incomes by improving efficiency, reducing costs and eliminating fraud.

4. Field audit enabling auditors monitoring quality, sustainability and certification requirements to move away from paper records and adopt instead electronic reporting via tablets and mobile data, greatly enhancing efficiency and potentially increasing annual average income by US$612 for some farmers.

5. Local supply chain enabling small-scale producers to transact with local co-operatives through simple but robust information services and mobile money systems. These could boost some farmers’ annual incomes by US$271 in 2020; a 50% increase on current farming incomes.

6. Smartphone-enabled services to provide deeper functionality and richer sources of information than is possible using basic SMS and voicemail services. While smartphone penetration is currently low in rural areas in emerging market economies, average device prices continue to fall year-on-year. Advanced and affordable mobile services could lead to an increase in average annual farming incomes of US$675 for more than four million farmers in 2020.

HISTORY OF THE GST:

In 2000 the Vajpayee Government initiated the discussion on the prospect of having a composite Tax structure like the GST and set up an Empowered Committee designating the then Finance Minister of West Bengal Mr. Asim Dasgupta to head the same. The task assigned to him was to design a GST Model and overseeing the IT back-end preparedness for its rollout.

Considered a major improvement over the preexisting Excuse duty and Sales Tax at the National and State levels respectively; it was viewed as a significant and comprehensive Indirect Tax Reform for the Country.

Many years pursuant to the idea and discussion being originally mooted , the then Union Finance Minister Mr. P. Chidambaram in 2006 during his 2007-2008 Union Budget speech stated that their Government would introduce GST from April 1, 2010 keeping the objectives with which it was initiated by Mr. Vajpayee in mind. An Empowered Committee (EC) {comprising of State Finance Ministers} was formed to work with the Centre to prepare a road map for the Introduction of GST in India.

Following this a Joint Working Group (JWG) was set up in May 2007. The JWG consisted of the Advisor to the Union Finance Minister, Member Secretary of the Empowered Committee as Co-Convenors along with the Joint Secretary Revenue Ministry of Finance and State Finance Secretaries. The JWG worked closely with the experts and Industry Representatives before submitting their Report in November 2007.

The Final version after due modifications based on written observation from States was put before Government of India  (GOI) on 30th April 2008 and GOI’s comments thereafter were duly considered & incorporated by the JWG and EC on 16^th December 2008.

Although the Tax Rate under the GST was expected to come down the revenue to the exchequer would have increased on account of the increase in the number of Assessees GST would cover. An IT SPV called GSTN (Network) was contemplated for ensuring smooth implementation of the proposed tax. The three stakeholders being the Centre, States and NSDL as the Technology partner.

It was hoped that GST would roll out in April 2012 but soon became evident that it wouldn’t when then Chairman Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) said whilst addressing a National Conference on GST that “There is no need for alarm if GST does not roll out in April 2012”.

CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS:

The Constitution (115^th Amendment) Bill 2011 sought to introduce the Goods & Services Tax to give concurrent Taxing powers to Union and States. This Bill recommended setting up of a Goods & Services Tax Council and a Dispute settlement Authority.

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE BILL:

• To amend the Constitution to Provide for introduction of GST
• To allow both Parliament and State Legislatures to frame laws w.r.t. GST and for Parliament to have exclusive power to levy GST on imports and Interstate trade
• To create a council comprising of Union Finance Minister, Union Minister of State for Revenue, State Finance Ministers to make recommendations w.r.t. GST
• To provide for a Dispute Settlement Authority to settle disputes between Centre and States as well as for Appeals against such Authority to lie with the Supreme Court.
• To exempt certain items including petroleum products and alcohol

An examination of the highlights brought to light certain key issues. Those being:

• That the GST Council decides tax rates and disputes if any were to be adjudicated by the Dispute Settlement Authority. What would the impact of the Judicial and Executive arm‘s involvement have on the right of the Legislature?
• Although it provided to amend the Constitution for Parliament and State Legislatures to both frame laws w.r.t. GST; it overlooked to specifically provide for Parliamentary supremacy given that the Constitution overrides Parliament
• The recommendations of the 13^th Finance Commission were ignored whilst excluding certain commodities from GST (in fact were contrary to the recommendations of the Commission)
• Decisions of the Council had to be based on a Consensus. “Consensus” however was left undefined leaving it ambiguous as to whether “consensus” was meant to be taken as a unanimous decision with no “nays” or just a clear majority.
• The Bill constitutionally required a “Union Finance Minister” and “Union Minister of State in charge of Revenue” which indirectly or “accidentally” undermined the flexibility of the Prime Minister in forming a Council of Ministers.

The idea however has been pending since 2006 and its roll out delayed for lack of consensus among States on issues of the exemption list, revenue neutral rate, threshold & compensation.

The Bill was thereafter introduced in the Lower House of Parliament by the NDA Government’s Finance Minister Mr. Arun Jaitley in December 2014.

The GST Bill or the Constitution (122^nd Amendment) Bill 2014 would be a Value Added Tax (VAT) which the Government hopes to implement from April 2016. It is meant to be a comprehensive indirect tax levy on manufacture, sale & consumption of goods as well as services on a pan India basis. It will thus replace all indirect taxes levied on goods and services by Central & State governments.

GST will be implemented concurrently by Central and State Governments as Central GST & State GST respectively. Exports will be zero rated and taxes on imports will be the same as levied on domestic goods & services based on the “destination principle”

Government has introduced the Revised GST Bill trying to accommodate the key demands of the States. One of them being to keep petrol and petroleum products and alcohol out of the purview of GST. Government has met these demands partially as the Revised Bill keeps petrol and petroleum products within its ambit but has kept alcohol outside its purview as they feel “this arrangement will be more GST and business friendly”.

The product will be taxed at Zero rate and both States as well as the Centre would continue to levy Sales tax, VAT & Excise duty respectively as per a government spokesperson.

“The proposal to drop the Dispute Settlement Authority as demanded by States has been dropped in the Revised Amendment Bill and a floor rate with bands to allow States the freedom to have a high or low rate has been included”  as per an official’s statement.

The Revised Bill will also include Entry tax in lieu of Octroi which was earlier kept out. This they believe will mitigate distortions to a large extent.

Ultimately the aim of GST is to virtually subsume most of the Indirect taxes at the Central and State level.

A brief look at the possible reasons why Mr. Arun Jaitley has hailed GST as the Biggest Tax Reform since Independence.

• GST will cut down the number of taxes imposed by Centre and the States leading to a unified market condition thus facilitating seamless movement of goods across States. This will also help in reducing transaction costs of Businesses.
• The existing Central taxes include excise duty, service tax& additional customs duties. State taxes consist of entertainment tax, luxury tax, lottery taxes, electricity duty, CST Octroi & VAT. GST will amalgamate all taxes into one unified tax making India a single unified national market.
• Whilst introducing the Bill in the Lok Sabha the FM said that Implementation of GST can lead to  a 2% increase in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP); a claim backed by Economists and Analysts alike
• GST will simplify taxation, reduce incidence of double taxation and burdens of tax compliance. It is expected to improve transparency & efficiency thus hopefully serve to curb corruption while making India a more competitive and market oriented economy.
• Consumers will pay one single tax and prices of goods and services as well will reduce in the long run simultaneously increasing the efficiency in delivery of the same.
• Liqour has been completely kept out of GST, petroleum products like petrol & diesel will be part of the Bill from a date yet to be decided by the GST Council. (2/3^rd of the Council Members representing States)
• The Bill provides for an additional 1% tax over GST leviable by States where the goods originate from to compensate for any loss of revenue for the first two years.
• A Revenue Neutral Rate (RNR) has been worked out and pegged at 27% RNR is the rate at which there will be no loss of revenue to States after GST implementation.

* RNR has as of now not taken the inclusion of petroleum products into account.

Despite the efforts to push the Bill through in the Rajya Sabha on the May 11^,2015 (after having passed it in the Lok Sabha the earlier week) the BJP led NDA have had to accept and contend with the fact that both the GST as well as the Land Acquisition Bill will have to wait for the monsoon session of Parliament to see them through. On May 12, 2015 Government agreed to refer the GST Bill to a Select Committee of the Rajya Sabha as they also acceded to the demand of setting up a 30 member Joint committee of Parliament to look into the Land Bill.

The NDA government has been successful on many fronts notably the Land Boundary Constitutional Amendment, unprecedented foreign investments especially in Insurance,

and Prime Minister Modi’s exceptionally positive visit 3 Nation tour. On May 15, 2015 he marked his one year in office in China by inking 21 MOU’s to bring in $22 billion, a visit described by businessmen there “as  a green light has been switched on”. Not to mention his Mongolian visit; the first by any Indian Premier where ties were upgraded to “strategic partnership” to deepen Defence cooperation and potential tie-ups in the future in sensitive areas like the civil nuclear sector. South Korea has agreed to upgrade their bilateral relationship with India to “Special Strategic Partnership” and have entered into a mutual understanding to review the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement by June 2016, ensure India is a member of all four multilateral export control regimes and to formalise consultations between National Security councils of the two nations. Notwithstanding any of this somehow GST transcends all of these achievements as many seem to judge the success and effectiveness of this government with the passing of the GST Bill.

The Congress along with other Opposition Parties have tried to stress this as the inability of the NDA Government although the NDA managed to push it through the Lok Sabha and in all likelihood would have seen it through the Rajya Sabha too but for lack of numbers in the Upper House and the stalling tactics and walk out of the Opposition.

Having said that there have been some Members of the BJP led NDA who have conveyed their preference that the GST Bill be forwarded to a Select Committee of the Rajya Sabha.

NDA has to hope that the States ratify the Constitutional Amendment in the Monsoon session come August to be in a position to roll out the Bill by April 2016.

WHY DOES IPLEMENTATION OF GST ASSUME SUCH IMPORTANCE?

An argument in favour of GST can be drawn from the parallel one can draw from the Federal manufacturers’ Sales tax in Canada which was replaced by GST and which was similar to the CENVAT in India. The estimated increase in GDP with the introduction of GST was 24% with a substantial increase in National Income from greater productivity and elimination of tax cascading (tax on tax).

This example is suggestive of the potential and enormous benefits to the Indian economy which is anticipated at $US 15 Billion per annum. Indeed a staggering statistic and no surprise then why most analysts are of the opinion that it should be implemented at the earliest.

Nevertheless the rate of GST is equally important and though it has been proposed at 27% the Council may peg it down to 18%.

The rate contemplated at 27% is higher than the rate prevalent in all countries including Pakistan where it is 18%. Singapore and New Zealand tax everything under one single rate (7% &15% respectively). Other Countries do have various ways of applicability and only Sweden and Denmark are at 25% which is closest to our proposed rate of 27%.The system proposed to be adopted in India is the dual GST model which some Critics feel may not be as effective as the single GST system followed across the world as they feel CGST, SGST, IGST are nothing but replacements for Central Excise/Service tax, VAT & CST.

VAT has never been used for levy of Service tax and the CENVAT Credit Rules 2014 are ambiguous on Input Credits. It is bound to lead to anomalies between the definition of manufacture & value additions vis-à-vis Excise and Service tax with respect to GST.

As per the existing Rules Input Credit is not available for “any goods which have no relationship whatsoever with the manufacture of the final product” Under excise laws there has to be a change in the ultimate form of a product to fall under manufacture and “services used primarily for personal use or consumption of any employee”.

Therefore it is absolutely essential that the GST Act read with the Rules and their complexities should be juxtaposed with the complexities and intricacies of the existing laws that GST will subsume for the optimal effectiveness and efficiency of the same.

On the NDA Government completing one year, Finance Minister Mr. Arun Jaitley on May 17, 2015 outlining the economic Road map for the second year reiterated their intent in making taxation more reasonable. He further stressed on the Governments’ priority being their commitment to improve the ease of doing business and maintaining the pace of Reforms.

Both these foregoing statements reinforce the need for the GST Bill being passed and implemented and also obliquely suggests that resistance against passing of the Bill based on legitimate grounds and justifiable reasons will be considered and appropriate steps taken to resolve the same before being taken up in the next session of Parliament.

Author

Sumana Vyas : Sumana has been a senior level executive with large consulting firms, focused on corporate strategy &development with a strong orientation in Finance, Law and Operations. She has consistently delivered mission critical results and has specialized in Growth Management and Business Development interacting with Government departments both at the central and state levels. In her last assignment, she was the CEO of CREDAI, Chennai & Credai Tamil Nadu

]]> https://a2zmedia.in/goods-and-services-tax-bill-gst/feed/ 0 https://a2zmedia.in/real-estate-finance-markets/ https://a2zmedia.in/real-estate-finance-markets/#comments Tue, 19 May 2015 06:36:06 +0000 https://a2zmedia.in/?p=463 REAL ESTATE FINANCE MARKETS

 Principles of Real Estate Finance, embody aspects of both primary markets (direct investment in property) and secondary markets (investments derived from property).  Property level finance covering capital markets, mortgage backed securities and REITs are essential aspects.

The term primary market is used in Real Estate whilst referring to new projects in the residential and commercial space. Even projects recently announced are considered part of the primary market.

It becomes secondary when the first buyer of a unit in a new project becomes the “primary” buyer of that unit. He buys at the primary rate the developer offers. The moment the primary buyer sells off this unit to another buyer, the property becomes part of the secondary market. For subsequent transfers of title and sale, the term secondary is used.

Advantages of a primary market

A lot of times, developers give promotional discounts to primary buyers, especially if the apartment complex is coming up in a distant suburb. However, the pricing would naturally depend upon the location and the surrounding infrastructure.

Nevertheless should you miss the initial discounts and if there be a good response to the project, one may end up having to buy at higher rates in the primary market itself. Often, developers do not sell all the apartments in the first phase. So, late entrants have an extra cost to bear.

Another aspect is of property (ies) lying locked in dispute which thus remains unoccupied for several years resulting in huge loss(es) to single or multiple owners. That risk gets mitigated in the primary market as Investing in the primary market usually ensures clear titles.

Furthermore, there is an expected transparency in the transaction. There could be a component over and above the advertised price in these deals which is a huge source of concern and relief on occasion for most especially those belonging to the salaried class. Hence the

Drawbacks of the primary market

Transactions in the primary market may come at a cost. In case your developer delays the project for whatever unforeseen reason you may have to wait for possession. This may mean expending rent for that much time apart from your equated monthly instalments.

Also if the project is coming up in a faraway suburb, you may have to wait for the surrounding areas to develop before you can actually move in your new house. Lack of infrastructure may inhibit other homebuyers from moving into the complex leaving vacancies.

The two markets viz. Primary and Secondary supply funds for Real Estate loans. In addition to using monetary policy and interest rates  to control the money supply, government can help moderate the severity of the impact of Real Estate cycles by establishing a strong secondary market which can limit the adverse effects of local economic considerations and circumstances on Real Estate lending.

Primary markets serve as the local mortgage finance market made up of the various lending Institutions in a community. Anybody wanting to borrow monies to finance the purchase of a home will seek a loan in the primary market perhaps from a bank like a savings loan.

The traditional source of funds for the Primary market is savings of Individuals and businesses in the concerned local area. Community savings, loan associations, money lenders.hundis, PO’s etc are typical forms of lenders in the Primary market. It gets its funds from the saving deposits of the Members of a community. These savings/funds are used to fund Real estate loans to members of that community.

The local economy has a significant effect on the amount of funds which the local lender has available. When employment is high, consumers are more likely to borrow money for cars, vacations and homes and the like.

Businesses borrow to expand and finance their growth. Banks and other lending institutions increase their lending activities to meet the existing and growing demand. Simultaneously however fewer people are saving today for various reasons. Primarily or perhaps due to a paradigm shift in the mind set of todays’ youth, easier availability of credit and many such factors. Decrease in deposits and corresponding increase in the demand for loans steadily deplete the funds available for lending. If local lenders cannot attract monies from other parts of the country to help meet the demand, their funds would be exhausted and the communitys’ economy severely disrupted. The Reverse also holds true.

When the economy is in a slump consumers are more inclined to save than borrow. Businesses suspend growth plans resulting in a drop in demand for money and lending Institutions deposits grow.

From a lenders point of view too little and too much money in deposits are both causes for concern. In the first case lenders primary source of income being the interest on loaned funds is depleted and in the second the lender loses money hence affecting his ability to reinvest the funds as he is paying interest to his depositors.

To get additional funds for Real Estate lending a local lender may sell mortgage loans he has already made. To do so however he will in all probability have to turn to the Secondary market.

The availability of funds in the Primary market depends a great deal on the existence of the secondary market which has a stabilizing effect on local mortgage markets.

Lenders are usually open to committing themselves to long term real estate loans even when local funds are scarce because they can raise more funds by liquidating their loans in the secondary market.

There is a dependency in the Residential Real Estate market between price categories being the offer and transaction price in both the primary and secondary market. If so what and how does the co-relation affect the dynamics in each category, how does it function in tandem and/or have a linear co-relation w.r.t. different cities—what are the many reasons and variables for their convergence or divergence. The influencing factors are myriad and would entail an entirely different analytical study based on financial, political demographic and geographical issues.

There is a feeling that Primary markets will be hit hardest as opposed to the 2-3 tier and tertiary markets. The low addition to supply of new inventory especially commercial should in all probability be a factor for sustained increase in returns there relative to primary markets.

Yield starved investors have driven up property prices to unsustainable levels in Primary markets and cities creating the most risk for steep declines in values especially if interest rates rise.

Given the slump in Real Estate in the recent past a slew of probable questions come to the fore vis-à-vis the Housing Industry.

• Will prices rise ,Slowdown…plateau or drop?
• Affordability… in all segments
• Government at the Centre as well as State levels are spewing Affordable Housing but with the prevailing land prices how is that attainable?
• Sustainable Inclination to buy… continued interest and inclination to invest in land and property
• Mortgage interest rates … should they increase… and what will its impact be on the ultimate price leading to the same question of affordability
• next and its members as the new group of home buyers are looking at different specs…
• How does all of the above affect Rent and rental properties
• Back to old joint family concepts/multi family system?
• Will Developers focus on cheaper /affordable homes/housing? How does the cost of raw materials beginning with soaring cement prices, prohibitive sand prices, coupled with the scarcity of the same sum up to affordability?
• Alternative solutions— innovations to reduce the cost of construction
• Is it a fundamentals driven market…. Job growth, incomes, household formation more than by macro economic factors

Small budgets for buying offices in premium complexes has been somehow addressed as developers are applying the `smaller configuration’ strategy in the commercial segment, a move that has worked well for them in residential markets. Residential property markets having been sluggish in many cities and given those circumstances giving individuals the option of investing in commercial properties such as offices or retail units Some of which are available at competitive prices; on occasion even as low as half the residential property rates seems to be a viable and feasible option. Lower entry barrier, both in terms of configuration and ticket size, is allowing end users as well as investors to access grade A offices. So, not just small business owners, professionals…and various segments appear to be looking in that direction.

Where is Real Estate headed…..?

 The market seems to be at an all time low and there are many who concede that they have never faced such dismal market conditions in their many years in the Industry. Many however also believe or even hope that a correction is round the corner. Developers at least in Tamil Nadu and Kerala  are slashing rates and still find stocks piling, land owners are still hoping the market will correct and are holding on to unrealistic prices and looking more at outright sales than JV’s which in the current scenario do not interest or attract the developer. There seems no economic viability in it given the FSI available , the Development Regulations, and the rise in construction costs, [increase in raw material costs (cement become almost prohibitive), shortage of sand, transportation or import restrictions etc} and the selling price to be achieved for developers to break even is becoming increasingly difficult to achieve. They are hurting on the huge funds borrowed and their monthly EMI’s. Buyers have gained considerable bargaining power on completed homes as well as in booking the home itself. Where the booking amount and the first instalment would upon a time cover the cost of construction; buyers are willing to put down only 30% of the same today. Forget the huge profits that were upon a time a given in this industry with all the constraints survival and subsistence is becoming more and more difficult. That has unfortunately led to a compromise in quality, unspeakable violations with corners cut leading to a “Moulivakkam “situation. Credible Developers of course will resist but many smaller lesser known entrants who came in during the slump expecting or hoping to make a killing once the market looks up are jeopardizing the already fragile situation further.

Land Owners fear the time of conclusion and completion of a project hence prefer outright sales instead of joint development also because they are not sure if prices will dip and become more realistic so want to make notionally higher profits when the going seems good . Which is a high probability as Sales are at an all time low for the last year and a half. Some small & unfortunately unethical builders offer unbelievable ratios with advances and share in the building to take over properties which are dismal in quality and invariably built on violations and against approved plans.

The recent spate of changes and increase in the certifications and undertakings required by (Architects in particular) CMDA has seen a fair amount of resistance on various counts. Nevertheless the authority is left with little choice but to do that as it is logistically and physically impossible for them to monitor quality of structure and  the safety of construction i And/or micro manage the same which is in itself not their field of expertise or responsibility.

Further the Direct  and Indirect Tax changes and proposals in the latest Union Budget would undoubtedly have an impact. E.g. Service tax rate increase, receiver of services liable to pay, excise and other duties increased on rail transport…..have the cascading effect.

For now all eyes on the fate of Land Acquisition Bill and the GST Bill….

Author

Sumana Vyas : Sumana has been a senior level executive with large consulting firms, focused on corporate strategy &development with a strong orientation in Finance, Law and Operations. She has consistently delivered mission critical results and has specialized in Growth Management and Business Development interacting with Government departments both at the central and state levels. In her last assignment, she was the CEO of CREDAI, Chennai & Credai Tamil Nadu

New Delhi, May 5 (PTI)

The Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi met this morning to clear the Bill that is likely to come up in Rajya Sabha tomorrow.

Highly placed sources said government has already talked to various parties in the Upper House, where an earlier bill in this regard is pending since December 2013.

Government had earlier proposed to bring the bill in Lok Sabha, but faced stiff opposition from the opposition that wanted that territories in Assam be included in it.

The inclusion of Assam territories in the Bill indicates government’s resolve to get the legislation cleared after bringing all parties on board.

Government will bring the Constitutional Amendment Bill for ratification of the Land Boundary Agreement with Bangladesh. It would require ratification of at least 50 per cent of the state legislatures before it comes into effect.

The clearing of the Bill by Union Cabinet comes a day after the top leadership of BJP and RSS discussed the bill with its Assam leaders and decided to include the territories pertaining to the state.

The meeting, attended by Home Minister Rajnath Singh, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu, along with RSS joint general secretary Krishna Gopal, held at the residence of BJP chief Amit Shah yesterday lasted a few hours.

Sources said the top BJP RSS leadership discussed the Assam Assembly elections slated for next year and the party’s strategy for it as also the political ramifications of delinking Assam from the land boundary bill.

The BJP leaders from the state had earlier demanded that Assam should be delinked from the Bill as exchange of territories to Bangladesh had become an “emotive issue” in the state.

Congress had demanded that Assam should not be delinked from the Bill and its territories be included in it and had opposed tooth and nail the exclusion of Assam from its ambit.

LAND ACQUISITION BILL (AMENDMENT) BILL 2015 (LAB)

Industrialization and Urbanization both have to grow and expand concurrently to provide the economic impetus and thrust to a nation and Land is a mandatory constituent of such acceleration and growth.

As essential is the inevitable need for various public causes and purposes for which govt. needs land. As Urbanization extends and cities expand inducting the borders of villages and two tier cities and towns into their fold; land acquisition becomes that much more crucial and in many ways unavoidable.

Having said that interests of land owners cannot be overlooked, their alternate source of livelihood, housing etc. needs to be and should be protected.

Land, albeit a State subject in India the basic law governing the Land Acquisition process has been the Land Acquisition Act of 1894. Despite being amended several times, the Principal Act undoubtedly outdated remained unchanged leading to the existence of an archaic Law.

Land is a highly emotional subject in India and there is a huge disparity in the balance of power as well as intent and information between the acquirer and the land owner, hence making it that much more pertinent and necessary to have Laws in place to drive such transactions to facilitate and ensure facile and fair enforcement of the laid down Rules and Regulations.

It is essential if not mandatory for Rehabilitation and Resettlement to immediately follow acquisition of land. Compensation- monetary or otherwise in terms of alternate housing, jobs depending on relocation, loss of livelihood in the interim etc. cannot be delayed. The time lapse between the two has to be minimized to the maximum preferably happen simultaneously.  Unfortunately as reported it is far from what happens in actuality as has been the experience till date.

Land Acquisition in India comes under the purview of and is governed by the Right to Fair compensation and transparency in Land acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 which came into force in January 2014.

 Prior to 2013 the Land Acquisition Act of 1894 was the governing Law. The UPA govt. passed an amendment bill in 2007.

It had also introduced the Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill for people displaced on account of such displacement. Both bills lapsed in 2009 and in may 2011 the National Security council suggested a Slew of measures to address the conceived road blocks pertaining to land acquisition.

A major issue in India is the verification of land records as it cannot be easily verified thus opening up avenues for litigation after purchase or acquisition. To try and address this problem The Land Titling Bill was drafted by the Ministry of Rural Development in July 2011.

It was however the thought that the 2013 Act could be further improved upon to benefit all concerned and essentially with the overwhelming need felt to indeed have in place a holistic tool by which the right to fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and thus Resettlement of the displaced and affected persons/families be implemented whilst concurrently focusing on nation building and development that led to the Land Acquisition Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Bill 2015 commonly known as the LAB.

On 31.12.14 the NDA govt. passed an ordinance which sought to “meet the twin objectives of farmer welfare along with expeditiously meeting the strategic and developmental needs of the country”.

The Draft Bill sought to Balance the two irrespective of who acquires the Land Private or Govt. Further the issue sought to be addressed was the Total compensation based on various criteria taking into account not just changes in market value of the land, impasse of time, availability of alternate land in the prevalent market scenario, ability to purchase equivalent land parcels given current market conditions, value of any asset on the said land, reestablishment, construction, developmental costs, cost of living depending on where the shift has to be made to, cost of appreciation, Infrastructural amenities in the new place any many such…. There were innumerable considerations which we believe were taken into consideration.

Compliance with relevant and applicable laws such as Panchayat Acts and tribal and Forests rights, social impact, dispute resolutions safeguards against indiscriminate acquisitions are also factors which need grave consideration. What is equally important is the definition of “Public purpose”

The Amendment Bill was passed in the Lok Sabha on March 10, 2015.

 Some of the salient features of the Bill to be noted are:

• The Right to fair compensation and Transparency in Land acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Bill seeks to amend the LARR Act of 2013.
• The Bill encapsulates the special categories for land use. The categories being Defence, Rural Infrastructure, Affordable housing, Industrial Corridors, Infrastructure projects including Public private partnership projects (PPP) where land ownership vests with Government.
• The Bill seeks to exempt the above categories from the provision of 80% consent from land owners for private projects and 70% land owners’ consent for PPP projects as required by LARR 2013.
• These projects are further exempted from having to have a Social Impact Assessment (SIA) carried out in order to identify those affected and also from the restrictions imposed on the acquisition of irrigated multi cropped land imposed under LARR 2013
• The Bill looks at bringing in compensation, rehabilitation and resettlement under other related Acts for e.g. National Highways Act & Railways Act in line with and in consonance with the LARR Act
• The term “Private Companies” as referred to in LARR 2013 has been changed to widen the ambit and is now referred to as “ Private entities”

Land Acquisition in India is the process by which the Central and/or State governments acquire/take over lands for developmental projects be it for Infrastructure or other growth initiatives. (Road widening, Bridges etc)

The Act was contemplated since there have been a plethora of complaints and controversies over very many years by land owners alleging poor and inadequate compensation vis-a-vis prevailing market prices. The unrealistic and continuously rising land prices make it prohibitive for the land owners to find satisfactory resettlement options in keeping with what they must have had in mind whilst purchasing/investing in the land in question. All These concerns and parameters have largely been ignored or bypassed in the past.

UNDERSTANDING THE LAB:

Having taken a brief look at the Land Act since 2013 of the UPA what could be considered the main strength of the 2015 Land Bill?

What stands out foremost is that it looks at improving on the existing Act.

It revolves around the 5 categories being exempted in the Bill from 70% consent of communities and Social Impact Assessment requirement in Projects which are considered to be in “public interest”:

Projects vital to national security, rural infrastructure including electrification, affordable housing, Industrial corridors, Infrastructure projects including PPP where ownership of land continues to vest with govt.

This undoubtedly gives rise to fear and concerns in the minds of the land owners particularly the humble farmer as the definition and interpretation of all the above categories can be wide.

The major plus point & strength of the 2015 Bill has to be the implied veto of the outdated Land Acquisition Act of 1894. In that, “public interest” could have been interpreted with govt. having a right over all lands potentially serving as a means to displace millions without adequate, little or no compensation with its concept of preeminent domain. Herein the colonial claim that the state has the preeminent right to decide what constitutes ‘public interest’ served as a draconian loophole. .

As many in cities too have been known to have been displaced for Property Development as have been in Villages and Tribal areas for Infrastructure, dams, factories, mines etc.

The unfair circumstances, drastic changes in living standards for many following such acquisition and having no forum to take their grievances to have been attempted to be addressed by instituting the Free Prior Informed Consent (FPIC). It’s at least a beginning. The Land Bill promises control over decision making through local Gram Sabhas. It also assures a process of Social Impact Assessments.

The PM has voiced his belief that Adivasis too can have a hand in and contribute to the Development of and building of the nation, the starting point being now; provided citizens pay heed to the collective bargaining prospects of a common agenda of values involving fair sharing of resources and safeguarding biodiversity with the objective to live in harmony for and in a sustainable environment in the future.

Farmers’ reactions have been taken as a democratic weapon for govt. to learn and amend laws to improve and safeguard growth, resources, Development and democracy.

The Ordinance was therefore introduced with the changes made to the existing Act. These changes may be viewed as made with the intention and attempt to correct the Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act 2013 which was considered by many as restrictive.

The current Amendment Bill does leave some apprehensions for those who cultivate but do not own these lands they cultivate on—-for want of clarity as to how they will be compensated since the Bill only talks about land owners specifically.

The govt. has amended section 10(A) of the Act to expand sectors where Assessment and consent will not be required. The consent clause and Social Impact Assessment has been removed. Hence govt. or private Individuals/Companies as in “Private entities” will no longer need the mandatory 80% consent for land acquisition in those 5 sectors.  Mr. Arun Jaitley has stated that the mandatory “consent” clause and the Social Impact Assessment (SIA) will not be applicable should the land be acquired for the said 5 sectors viz. National Security, defence, rural infrastructure including electrification, industrial corridors and Affordable Housing for the poor including PPP where ownership of land continues to be vested with the govt.

Rehabilitation and Resettlement packages will be available as per the New Act. How those apart from the Land Owner dependent on such acquired lands will be compensated is however as mentioned above is nevertheless ambiguous. Another aspect that will not be considered for these sectors is the fertility of land.

The govt. has included 13 Acts in the proposed Act /Bill which were not part of the Act thus far. This has been seen by govt. and viewed by many as a pro farmer move as rehabilitation and compensation will be applicable for 13 additional Legislation as till now land acquired under these acts did not have any central policy or compensation provisions thereby widening the net for the landowners’ eligibility for compensation.

The 13 Acts being brought under its purview to provide a wider ambit for compensation to farmers/persons whose lands are acquired are: Coal bearing Areas Acquisition& Development Act 1957, The National Highways Act 1956, Land Acquisition (Mines) Act 1885, Atomic Energy Act 1962, The Indian Tramways Act 1886, The Railways Act 1989,The Ancient Monuments & Archaeological Sites & Remains Act 1958, The Petroleum & Minerals Pipelines (Acquisition of Right of User in Land) Act 1962, The Damodar Valley Corporation Act 1948, The Electricity Act 2003, Requisitioning and Acquisition of Immovable Property Act 1952, The Resettlement of Displaced person (Land Acquisition) Act 1948, and Metro Railways (Construction of works) Act 1978.

Although the scope for compensation has been widened, the Compensation package remains unchanged at four times the market price for Rural and two times for Urban land despite pressure to increase the quantum of the compensation package.

The Ordinance may have been passed for more clarity on provisions as well as to send out a message that the present govt. is trying to minimize unnecessary Red tape and procedural bottlenecks to pave the way for an Investor friendly atmosphere and to try and work towards boosting the manufacturing sector the ultimate aim being the ‘’Made in India” project.

Opposition has flayed these amendments. According to various reports some States did not want the consent clause removed for PPP’s or reduced to 50%. Similarly some States wanted the SIA restricted only to large projects.

Minister for Rural Development Birendra Singh said that Obtaining  consent was apparently removed after a high level meeting of Chief Ministers and Chief Secretaries wherein they said that obtaining the consent to adhere to the said clause was a challenge and was holding back development as it has proved impossible in some cases.

The Land Bill was passed in the Lok Sabha with a broad consensus on the Revised ordinance along with its nine Amendments by a voice vote amid a walk out by the Trinamool Congress, BJD, AAP, Left NCP & SP. Shiv Sena an ally of the NDA abstained from voting, SAD Voted saying their party however would not acquire land without the consent of the farmers. AIDMK voted with the NDA.

Whilst moving these amendment the Rural Development Minister Birendra Singh assured the House that land would not be acquired for the private sector by the govt.

 Despite the Ruling Partys’ majority in the lower house and having cleared it there it has to be cleared by the Rajya Sabha(RS) to become a Law and it promises to be an uphill task as a similar majority is not enjoyed in the Upper House. One cannot at this juncture completely rule out the possibility of further amendments before being presented to the RS as there are still some clauses that the Shiv Sena and BJD are opposing.

It is also left to be seen what impact this will have in bringing in fresh investments to boost development and the Manufacturing sector in particular by keeping the interest and rights of the poor in mind.

Notable Provisions under the Bill are:

• Farmers’ consent not required for acquisitions for specified sectors
• Land cannot be acquired for private purposes
• Allows for appeal in Court against erring govt. officials guilty of malafide action and Courts can take cognizance of offences under this Act by govt. servants under section 197 of Criminal Procedure Code
• Industrial corridor restricted to 1 km on both sides of the Corridor/Highways and only Industrial corridors set up by Central or State governments would be covered by the Act
• Compulsory employment to at least one member of the affected family of farm labourers
• to ensure that only the bare minimum land required for projects will be acquired
• No exemption to “Social Infrastructure” Projects
• Private Educational Institutions and Private hospitals will not be covered under the Act
• Land acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement authority to hold hearings in districts where land acquisition takes place

 With the recent Farmers’ suicide at the AAP Rally and a bleak monsoon foretasted  discontent, anxiety and fears of the Indian Farmer may be at the optimum right now. In light of these developments the timing of the Bill may not be the most opportune however will there ever be an opportune time?

 How can one predict unforeseen events, incidents, natural calamities in spite of all the technology at hand, monsoons too as seen this year as the basis of the unfortunate suicides is a glaring eye opener that none of it can be predicted with certainty. Bills cannot be passed and changed overnight on the basis of incidents and predictions however unfortunate as the larger picture cannot be ignored and is what needs to be focused upon.

Is this new LAB really against farmers?

The 2013 Act exempted land acquisition for govt. projects and by bringing those 13 under its purview it actually benefits farmers.

 The majority of India’s population is engaged in Agriculture but a mere  15% (approximately) of India’s’ GDP is generated by Agriculture.

Surveys conducted reveal that one of the reasons for this is the non- viability of small land holdings. This in turn leads to the urgency of developing and generating non – agricultural related jobs and alternate means of employment. It then follows that land be acquired and other economically viable Industries and factories are set up on such lands in order to generate employment to millions. It isn’t an ideal situation as compensation for lands also increases the cost of setting up the Industries. However provisions like mandatory employment of at least one member tries to balance out the already tenuous and fragile structure and circumstances and a job in such factories may prove beneficial in the longer run than small parcels of land for farming and agricultural produce which are economically non-viable and dependent on nature over which one has no control.

 There undoubtedly is resistance from certain quarters w.r.t. the proposed waiver of the  80% consent and SIA. However as pointed out earlier that had apparently become untenable as more than 1/3 of projects never took off due to land acquisition issues.

Meaningful employment, Industrialization and rapid development of infrastructure is a must to alleviate the masses out of poverty which cannot become a reality without the LAB becoming a law and getting rid of the draconian Law of 1894 and other such limiting Laws.

The NDA believes that these key changes to the LAB are fundamental to the overall growth and Development of the country as a whole without losing sight of the well-being of and benefits to  the  villagers, farmers and laborers.

Points for thought:

Definition of Social Infrastructure

PPP

Timing of compensation and completion of projects

Author

Sumana Vyas : Sumana has been a senior level executive with large consulting firms, focused on corporate strategy &development with a strong orientation in Finance, Law and Operations. She has consistently delivered mission critical results and has specialized in Growth Management and Business Development interacting with Government departments both at the central and state levels. In her last assignment, she was the CEO of CREDAI, Chennai & Credai Tamil Nadu

DR. K ROSAIAH INAUGURATES

THE 

• State-of-the-art conference organised by Dr. G Vijayakumar, Organising Secretary, Diabetes India 2015, Chennai aims to promote and educate evidence based scientific care for diabetes
• Theme “Towards better Diabetes Control & Prevention”
• Led by Dr. Shaukat Sadikot, President, Diabetes India 2015 and President-Elect, International Diabetes Federation
• Exclusive opportunity to understand the dreaded complications of diabetes in India

Chennai, April 09, 2015: National Organising Committee Diabetes India 2015 today announced the inauguration of India’s most comprehensive scientific conference “6^th World Congress of Diabetes India” at ITC Grand Chola Convention Centre, Guindy, Chennai, April 9 – 12, 2015. This conference was inaugurated by Dr. K Rosaiah, His Excellency The Governor of Tamil Nadu in the esteemed presence of Dr. G Vijayakumar, Organising Secretary, Diabetes India 2015, Dr. Shaukat Sadikot, President, Diabetes India 2015, Dr. Banshi Saboo, Congress Chairman, Diabetes India 2015, Dr. Krishna Seshadri, Scientific Chairman, Diabetes India 2015, Dr. S R Aravind, Hon. Secretary, Diabetes India 2015, renowned medical practitioners from across globe and other senior government officials from the centre and state.

This four day scientific conference is organised by Dr. G Vijayakumar, Organising Secretary, Diabetes India 2015 and led by Dr. Shaukat Sadikot, President, Diabetes India 2015 with the primary objective of promoting and educating evidence based scientific care for diabetes. The theme of the conference is “Towards better Diabetes Control & Prevention”.

6^th World Congress of DiabetesIndia at ITC will witness more than 200 National and 50 International speakers in the field of diabetes, 3000 plus participants from across countries. The conference packs with various programmes such as CME, Orations, scientific sessions, debates, symposium, workshops, clinical case discussion and networking with experts which will be very informative and useful to all the doctors having interest in various issues on Diabetes.

Dr. G Vijayakumar, Organising Secretary, Diabetes Medicare Centre, Chennai, said, “On behalf of the organising committee, I would like to thank Hon’ble Governor of Tamil Nadu, Dr. K Rosaiah for honouring us with his presence, this conference will not only showcase an in-depth knowledge of the young researchers but also demonstrate our focused approach, innovation, constant commitment towards diabetes patients through every initiative we undertake”.

He added, “More than 63 million diabetes in our country to treat them, we do not have the sufficient number of specialists and doctors. Around 95% of patients have been treated by family physicians and primary care doctors. Our philosophy is to educate and train those practicing doctors so that they are well equipped to deliver appropriate healthcare to our diabetic people”.

Commenting on the inauguration, Dr. Shaukhat Sadikot, said, “We are proud to host this conference for the first time in Chennai which bring most of the experts under one roof to exchange their views, experience and dreaded complications of diabetes in India”.

He added, “This analytical scientific conference not only benefit the doctors and clinicians but also influence and equip the young researchers about the medical advancement in the field of diabetes”.

In this fast paced world, most of them do not pay much attention to their health which led them to un-control diabetes complications such as eye, kidney, nerves, heart etc. which not only affects the quality of life of the person but also the productivity. Once people develop complications it becomes an economic burden not only for the family but also for the country.

Dr. Banshi Saboo, Congress Chairman, Diabetes India 2015, said, “We are extremely happy with the overwhelming response from the participants and the overall goal of the conference is to take a multidisciplinary approach towards diabetes in India”.

He added, “This conference aims to increase awareness, promote and educate evidence based scientific care for diabetes and also, feature prominent speakers from the health and wellness arena”.

India is a vast population of 70 million subjects with diabetes is gradually heading to a Tsunami of costly and dreaded complications. To address the issue, Diabetes India join hands with the group of like-minded doctors in India comprising of Diabetologists, Endocrinologists and other physicians interested in diabetes along with renowned medical practitioners from across globe organised this innovative scientific conference with the aim of providing affordable, accessible and most importantly accountable treatment to diabetes patients. This conference will also be an ideal platform for the young researchers and experienced clinicians to present their research/clinical papers which progressively move our country towards a hassle-free and healthiertomorrow.

This 6^th World Congress of Diabetes India was a massive success in the past editions and the current edition will be a tremendous success, make a revolutionary change in Diabetes in India and concludes with a valediction on the 12^th April 2015. For more information, please visit www.diabetesindia2015.com, all the lectures will be webcast live.

Chennai, 27 March 2015

Sahitya Akademi is planning to update its National Register of Translators comprising the details of translators who can translate from one Indian Language to any other Indian language. Akademi is planning to distribute this Register after the completion of compilation to governments, embassies, newspapers, magazines and journals, academic and research institutions and translation services centers among others. Anyone who is good at translation can register themselves with Sahitya Akademi for this purpose. Registration is free. Age, gender and subject of expertise are no bar for registering. Registration can either be done by post or through e-mail. The postal address for registration is Guna Complex Main Building, 2nd floor (Rear Side), 443 (Old No, 304), Anna Salai, Teynampet, Chennai – 600018. Phone: 2435 4815, 2431 1740. The Curriculum Vitae can also be mailed to nationalregistertranslators@gmail.com.

Chennai, 25 March 2015 Union Minister for Earth Sciences, Dr Harsh Vardhan unveiled an indigenously developed vehicle for deployment in the extremely harsh Polar Regions and dedicated it to the nation NIOT in Chennai today. “It will go where no human being can dare to venture. It will be remotely operated by our scientists at our base in Antarctica.The results of its findings will contribute vastly to mankind’s understanding of climate besides enhancing our capability to predict the Monsoon,” the Minister said after a visit to the National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), a part of the Earth System Sciences Organization (ESSO) of the Union Ministry of Earth Sciences. Dr Harsh Vardhan said, “We have taken the polar plunge. PROVe and its subsequent versions will enable us to understand the Polar influence on ocean currents affecting the movement of Monsoon winds on which much of our economy depends. Monsoon prediction and reading of pattern will become easier in the future thanks to PROVe. It will measure parameters like ocean currents, temperature and salinity in the Arctic. A moored ocean observatory has been set up in the Arctic in collaboration with the National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research (NCAOR) in 2014.” The Minister also said, “The ESSO-NIOT team that participated in the 34th Indian Scientific Expedition to Antarctica (ISEA) successfully deployed PROVe in the Priadarshini Lake located on the Schirmacher Oasis in Antarctica which is the source of water for Maitri, India’s second base in the icy continent.” He further added that PROVe’s systems have been integrated with Conductivity, Temperature, Dissoved Oxygen sensors and Irradiance meter. PROVe was later deployed near ice shelf from the ship at the India Bay in Antarctica at a depth of 62 metres. Further explorations and data analysis are in progress. The country is on track with the objective of developing reliable technology to solve the varied technology problems associated with harvesting living and non-living resources in the Indian Exclusive Economic Zone which makes up about two-thirds of the land area of India. Union Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan interacted with scientists and technicians of ESSO-NIOT and he urged them to keep in mind environmental concerns. Dr.Sailesh Nayak, Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences and Dr.M.A.Atmanand, Director, NIOT, also participated in the event.