PERIYAR IAS CURRENT AFFAIRS,18-SEPTEMBER-2017
Topic: Role of women and women’s
organization, population and associated issues, poverty and developmental
issues, urbanization, their problems and their remedies.
Review
of FSI/FAR norms in mega cities
The government has
ordered the review of Floor Space Index (FSI) and Floor
Area Ratio (FAR) norms in mega cities of the country. The time bound review of these norms will be
taken up in all the 53 cities with a population of one million and above each.
A similar review for State Capitals with less than million population will also
be taken up each in due course. The review to be taken up in consultation
with States and cities is to cover an assessment of the existing norms and to
what extent it could be enhanced.
What is FSI?
FSI is the
ratio of a building’s total floor area to the size of the piece of the land on
which it is built. In Indian cities, it is generally about 1.50, which is said to
be on the lower side given the needs of rapid urbanization.
Need for review:
NITI Ayog in their report noted
that a comparison of Mumbai and Shanghai illustrates the deleterious effects of
restrictive FSI. In 1984, Shanghai had only 3.65 sq.mt of space per person.
Through liberal use of FSI, despite increase in population since 1984, the city
had increased the available space to 34 sq.mt per person. In contrast, in 2009,
Mumbai on average had just 4.50 sq.mt of space per person.
Therefore, review is necessary
to give a properly planned push to the urban development in the country. Besides,
increasing the availability of land in urban areas is critical to meet the
demand for affordable housing under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban).
Sources: pib.
Paper
2:
Topic: Development processes and the
development industry the role of NGOs, SHGs, various groups and associations,
donors, charities, institutional and other stakeholders.
Northeast
Venture Fund
In a bid to make Northeast a
favourite destination for young Startups, the government has invited young
start-ups to avail the benefits of Northeast Venture Fund. With its vast
unexplored avenues, those looking for livelihood will soon find a potential enterprise
in the Northeast, particularly in fruit, food, handicraft and tourism industry.
About Northeast Venture Fund:
In addition to the provisions
of tax holiday and exit period available in the Government of India’s “Standup
India, Startup India” programme, the Ministry of DoNER
has also rolled out “Venture Fund” for anybody who wishes to Startup in the
Northeast region, which would provide a huge financial relief particularly to
young entrepreneurs.
§ Northeast Venture Fund is the
first dedicated venture capital fund for North-Eastern region and the initiative to set
it up began in April this year.
§ It has been set up by North
Eastern Development Finance Corporation Ltd (NEDFi), which already has the mandate
to encourage entrepreneurship in the region, primarily by offering support to
the first-generation entrepreneurs. In addition, the NEDFi also performs the
role of hand-holding and capacity building.
Sources: pib.
Topic: Important aspects of
governance, transparency and accountability, e-governance- applications,
models, successes, limitations, and potential; citizens charters, transparency
& accountability and institutional and other measures.
Private
member’s bill proposes MPs also declare assets after term ends
A bill for parliamentarians to
declare their assets at the end of their tenure has been proposed. The
Representation of The People Act (Amendment) Bill, 2017, will be presented in the
Winter Session of Parliament this year. This bill aims to ensure accountability
and transparency.
Highlights of the Bill:
§ The bill proposes that Members
of Parliament declare their assets within 90 days after their tenure ends. This
provision is to be inserted as sub section 75B(1) in
the ‘Representation of People Act, 1951’.
§ The proposed amendment in the
parent act will help in maintaining transparency and accountability of people’s
representatives at the apex level. It will also help in creating a positive atmosphere
of corruption-free status of MPs.
Present scenario:
At present, elected candidate
of the two Houses of Parliament have to declare their assets and liabilities
within ninety days from the date on which they take their seat. However, there
are no such provisions for declaration of assets and liabilities after the
expiry of the term.
Background:
The bill comes in the wake of
Supreme Court observations earlier this month on the issue, after it was irked
over the non-disclosure of action on jumps in politicians’ assets. The Supreme
Court took strong exception to the Centre’s attitude of not disclosing
information on action taken by it against politicians, some of whose assets had
seen a massive jump of up to 500% between two elections, and had directed the
government to place the necessary information in this regard before the court.
Sources: the hindu.
Topic: Important aspects of
governance, transparency and accountability, e-governance- applications,
models, successes, limitations, and potential; citizens charters, transparency &
accountability and institutional and other measures.
State-funding
of polls
Former Chief Election
Commissioner (CEC) T S Krishnamurthy has pitched for state-funding of
elections, and banning the use of funds by political parties for polls, as part
of electoral reforms. He has also mooted creation of a national election fund
to which companies and individuals can contribute. This is mainly aimed at
ensuring that there is no connection between political parties and corporate.
What is state or public funding
of elections?
This means that government
gives funds to political parties or candidates for contesting elections. Its
main purpose is to make it unnecessary for contestants to take money from
powerful moneyed interests so that they can remain clean. In some countries,
state funding is extended to meeting some specific forms of spending by
political parties, not confined to electioneering alone. Countries keep
changing laws relating to state funding depending on experience and financial
condition.
Why public funding is good?
§ Political parties and
candidates need money for their electoral campaigns, to keep contacts with
their constituencies, to prepare policy decisions and to pay professional
staff. Therefore, public funding is a natural and necessary cost of democracy.
§ Public funding can limit
the influence of interested money and thereby help curb corruption.
§ Public funding can increase
transparency in party and candidate finance and thereby help curb
corruption. If parties and candidates are financed with only private funds,
economical inequalities in the society might translate into political
inequalities in government.
§ In societies where many
citizens are under or just above the poverty line, they cannot be expected to
donate large amounts of money to political parties or candidates. If parties
and candidates receive at least a basic amount of money from the State the
country could have a functioning multi-party system without people having to
give up their scarce resources.
Arguments against state
funding:
There are divergent views on
the efficacy of state funding of elections. Some have been dismissive of the
idea. Those against this idea wonder how a Government that is grappling with
deficit budgets, can provide money to political parties to contest elections.
§ They also warn that state
funding would encourage every second outfit to get into the political arena
merely to avail of state funds.
§ Also, given that state
expenditure on key social sectors such as primary healthcare is “pitifully
small”, the very idea of the Government giving away money to political parties
to contest polls, is revolting. Therefore, opponents ask the government to
channelize public resources towards and not diverted from such essential
services.
Way ahead:
Poll funding has been a source
of funnelling black money and cleaning up the poll process is necessary.
Looking at the number of parties in India, it is easy to suspect that some of
them have been floated by national or state parties to park their income from
dubious sources, because such parties are not subject to the Election
Commission’s scrutiny. The current form of political funding has become a
burden on the economy. Many parliamentarians have raised concerns over the use
of excessive money in election campaigns. This presents the government with the
best chance to carry out significant anti-corruption reforms in the history of
independent India.
Sources: et.
Topic: Bilateral, regional and
global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s
interests.
INDO-USA
Joint Exercise Yudh Abhyas – 2017
Exercise Yudh Abhyas – 2017, a
joint military exercise between Indian and US armies has commenced at Joint
Base Lewis McChord, Washington, USA.
Key facts:
§ During the two week long
exercise soldiers from both countries will hone their tactical skills in
counter insurgency and counter terrorist operations under a joint brigade
headquarter.
§ Both sides will jointly train,
plan and execute a series of well-developed tactical drills for neutralization
of likely threats that may be encountered in UN peace keeping operations.
§ Experts from both sides will
hold detailed discussions to share their experience and expertise on varied
operational topics.
Sources: pib.
Paper
3:
Topic: Indian Economy and issues
relating to planning, mobilization of resources, growth, development and
employment.
GSTN
reopens window for composition scheme
The GST Network (GSTN) has
reopened the facility for small taxpayers with a turnover of up to Rs 75 lakh
to opt for composition scheme. Such small taxpayers will have time till
September 30 to opt for the scheme, which offers easy compliance for business as
returns are to be filed only quarterly.
What you need to know about the
Composition scheme?
The
composition scheme is an alternative method of levy of tax designed for small
taxpayers whose turnover is up to Rs 75 lakh — Rs 50 lakh in the case of eight
north-eastern states and the hilly state of Himachal Pradesh. The objective behind it is to
bring simplicity and reduce the compliance cost for small taxpayers.
§ The
scheme is optional under which manufacturers other than those of ice cream, pan
masala and tobacco products have to pay a 2% tax on their annual turnover. The
tax rate is 5% for restaurant services and 1% for traders.
§ As per the Central GST Act,
businesses are eligible to opt for the composition scheme if a person is not
engaged in any inter-state outward supplies of goods and not into making any
supply of goods through an electronic commerce operator who is required to
collect tax at source.
§ While a regular taxpayer has to
pay taxes on a monthly basis, a composition supplier is required to file only
one return and pay taxes on a quarterly basis. Also, a composition taxpayer is
not required to keep detailed records that a normal taxpayer is supposed to
maintain.
Sources: the hindu.
Topic: Major crops cropping
patterns in various parts of the country, different types of irrigation and
irrigation systems storage, transport and marketing of agricultural produce and
issues and related constraints; e-technology in the aid of farmers.
Sardar
Sarovar Dam
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
has inaugurated world’s second biggest dam Sardar Sarovar, 56 years after its
foundation stone was laid by former PM Jawaharlal Nehru.
Key facts:
§ Sardar Sarovar project is the
second biggest dam in the world after the Grand Coulee Dam in the United
States.
§ The Sardar Sarovar Dam has two
power houses – river bed power house and canal head powerhouse. The two
powerhouses have the installed capacity of 1,200 MW and 250 MW respectively.
§ Sardar Sarovar Dam is also the
most controversial development project of the nation. Activists have been long
demanding that the filling of the reservoir with water be stopped immediately.
They want the dam gates to be open to reduce the water level.
§ As per the arrangement, the
power generated from the Sardar Sarovar Dam will be shared among Maharashtra,
Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. About 57% of the electricity produced from the
Sardar Sarovar Dam would go to Maharashtra while Madhya Pradesh will get 27%
and Gujarat 16%.
Sources: the hindu.
Topic: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation,
environmental impact assessment.
30th
Anniversary of Montreal protocol and 23rd World Ozone Day Celebrated
30th Anniversary of Montreal
protocol and 23rd World Ozone Day was celebrated on September 16thacross the country.
Theme
– “Caring for all life
under the Sun”.
World Ozone Day:
Every year, on September 16,
the World celebrates the International day for the preservation of Ozone layer
as the World Ozone Day. During the United Nations convention in Vienna for the
Montreal Protocol, the General Assembly declared September 16 as the World
Ozone day in order to remind the world of the depleting ozone layer. The first
ozone hole was discovered 30 years ago in May 1985 over Antarctica.
What you need to know about the
Ozone layer:
The ozone layer absorbs most of
the Sun’s ultraviolet light which is harmful to human life and other life
forms. The layer absorbs about 97 to 99% of ultraviolet rays and maintain the
ozone-oxygen cycle. Dobson unit is a unit which is used to measure the ozone in
the atmosphere at a standard temperature and pressure.
MONTREAL PROTOCOL:
The Montreal Protocol is one of
the most successful global environmental treaties, the implementation of which
has not only led to the phase-out of around 98% of ozone depleting chemicals,
but also averted more than 135 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent
emissions. Nearly 2 million cases of skin cancer per year have been averted
globally. The Montreal Protocol is the only environmental treaty which enjoys
universal ratification of 197 UN member countries.
Sources: pib.
Topic: Challenges to internal
security through communication networks, role of media and social networking
sites in internal security challenges, basics of cyber security;
money-laundering and its prevention.
Decoding
shell companies
The Centre has initiated action
against more than two lakh shell companies as part of Operation Clean Money.
Separately, the market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India has
identified 331 companies and initiated action against them.
What are shell companies?
The Companies Act, 2013 has not
defined what a ‘shell company’ is and as to what kind of activities would lead
to a company being termed a ‘shell’.
Shell companies are typically
corporate entities which do not have any active business operations or
significant assets in their possession. The government views them with
suspicion as some of them could be used for money laundering, tax evasion and
other illegal activities.
Is there a law governing shell
companies?
In India, there is no specific
law relating to “shell companies.” However, some laws help, to an extent, in
curbing illegal activities such as money laundering and can indirectly be used
to target shell companies — Benami Transaction (Prohibition) Amendment Act
2016; The Prevention of Money Laundering Act 2002 and The Companies Act, 2013.
Sources: the hindu.
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