Mumbai : Currency circulation is likely to normalise by the end of February as nearly 70 per cent of the notes will be remonetised by then, a report said today.
“We are still maintaining that 70 per cent of the notes will be remonetised by February-end,” said the report brought out by SBI Research.
The report said with transactions at the fuel pumps amounting to Rs 4.5 trillion on an annualised basis, even a 20 per cent shift to digital would mean a saving of Rs 1 trillion. “Hence normalcy will return most likely by the end of February.”
As per the latest RBI data on currency in circulation, the newly-supplied currency till January 13 was around Rs 7 trillion, which means roughly 70 million pieces of notes of different denominations are being printed per day.
It translates into around 1.8 billion pieces a month by the currency printing presses, it said.
Till December 19, 2016, the RBI had said that around Rs 5.9 trillion notes were remonetised. Hence, during the intervening period of December 19 and January 13, about 1 trillion worth of notes have been printed.
The report said given the current printing press capacity, it is highly unlikely that the RBI has only printed Rs 500 banknotes in entirety. This would mean around 2.2 billion pieces of Rs 500 notes worth Rs 1.1 trillion, an unlikely event since the printing capacity is less than two billion pieces in a month, it seems going by the data.
Hence, the monetary authority has most likely also printed notes of varied smaller denominations as well as Rs 2,000 bills to optimise the printing capacity, the report said.
“Printing of new notes is going on at a pace keeping in mind the less-cash future and not the past, and we welcome this new normal. The future belongs to money as a medium of exchange and not as a store of value,” it added.
London, Jan 20 : The UK can neither “prescribe” a solution to the Kashmir issue nor act as a mediator, the British government has said, asserting that it is for India and Pakistan to find a lasting solution to the problem.
“India and Pakistan are both long-standing and important friends of the United Kingdom and we have significant links to both countries through Indian and Pakistani diaspora communities,” Alok Sharma, UK’s Foreign Office minister in charge of Asia, said during a debate on Kashmir in the Parliament.
“…The long-standing position of the British government is that it can neither prescribe a solution to the situation in Kashmir nor act as a mediator. It is for the governments of India and Pakistan to find a lasting resolution, taking of course into account the wishes of the Kashmiri people,” he said, stating Britain’s position on the issue.
“The UK will continue to encourage both India and Pakistan to ensure that channels of dialogue remain open as a means of resolving differences,” he said yesterday.
Sharma also confirmed that British Prime Minister Theresa May had discussed the subject of Kashmir with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during her visit to India last November.
The motion in House of Commons had called on the UK government to encourage India and Pakistan to commence peace negotiations to establish a long-term solution to the dispute.
The debate was organised by the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Kashmir and was conducted by the Commons’ Backbench Business Committee following an application from Conservative Party MP David Nuttall.
It was led by Nutall along with MPs Nusrat Ghani, Robert Flello and Fiona Mactaggart.
The motion for the debate read, “This House notes the escalation in violence and breaches of international human rights on the Indian side of the Line of Control in Kashmir; calls on the Government to raise the matter at the United Nations.”
“And further calls on the Government to encourage Pakistan and India to commence peace negotiations to establish a long-term solution on the future governance of Kashmir based on the right of the Kashmiri people to determine their own future in accordance with the provisions of UN Security Council resolutions,” it read.
Nuttall concluded the debate by calling on Sharma to “reflect on the very many positive suggestions for future action” before calling for a vote on the motion, which the deputy speaker of the House passed in favour, saying “the ayes have it”.
“It is not Britain’s role to intervene in the internal politics of any sovereign nation. But we stand ready to help facilitate and alleviate the suffering of the innocent people of Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir,” said Conservative party MP Bob Blackman, who has long campaigned for the rights of Kashmiri Pandits forced to flee the region.
New Delhi, Jan 20 : President Pranab Mukherjee has approved changes in government rules to allow merger of rail budget with the central budget.
The Department of Economic Affairs has been entrusted with the work relating to preparation of central budget including rail budget, as per a recent order issued by Cabinet Secretariat.
Earlier, the department was looking after the preparation of budget other than the railway.
The President has given nod to amend Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961 in this regard and the department will now prepare both the budgets.
The Union Cabinet had in September last year approved certain landmark budgetary reforms relating to the merger of railway budget with the general budget from 2017-18 onwards.
The presentation of separate railway budget started in 1924, and has continued after independence as a convention rather than under Constitutional provisions.
The Cabinet had also given nod for advancement of the date of budget presentation from the last day of February.
The government will present the Union budget 2017-18 on February 1.
New Delhi : The Supreme Court preferred to stay away from the pro-Jallikattu protests across Tamil Nadu and said the issue of protecting the agitating supporters of the bull-taming sport can be raised before the Madras High Court.
“Let the Madras High Court deal with it. You (petitioner) go there. Why do you come all the way to Supreme Court,” a bench of Chief Justice J S Khehar and Justice D Y Chandrachud told a petitioner advocate who mentioned his plea seeking protection to the protestors who have assembled in large numbers at the Marina beach in Chennai for the third day today.
Advocate N Rajaraman, who mentioned the plea before the bench, said the protestors should not be assaulted like the Ramlila Maidan incident of 2011 where Baba Ramdev supporters were lathicharged by police.
He said the court should take suo motu cognizance of the development and provide relief to the pro-Jallikattu agitators.
The bench, however, asked the petitioner to approach the High Court for relief.
The development came on a day Tamil Nadu Chief Minister O Panneerselvam met Prime Minister Narendra Modi to seek promulgation of an ordinance to allow Jallikattu amid widespread protests in the state against the ban on the sport.
The apex court had reserved its verdict on December 7 last year on a batch of petitions challenging the Centre’s notification allowing the sport.
On the next day, the Centre had issued a notification lifting the ban on Jallikattu in Tamil Nadu with certain restrictions, which was challenged in the apex court by Animal Welfare Board of India, People for Ethical Treatment of Animals India, a Bangalore-based NGO and others.
The Supreme Court had on January 21 last year refused to re-examine its 2014 judgement banning use of bulls for Jallikattu events or bullock-cart races across the country.
It had also stayed the January 8 notification of Centre and questioned the Centre over the notification allowing use of bulls in events like Jallikattu, saying that its 2014 verdict banning the use of the animals cannot be “negated”.
The court in its 2014 judgement had said that bulls cannot be used as performing animals, either for Jallikattu events or bullock-cart races in the states of Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra or elsewhere in the country, and had banned their use across the country.
The apex court had also earlier declared Tamil Nadu Regulation of Jallikattu Act, 2009 as constitutionally void, being violative of Article 254(1) of the Constitution.
New Delhi, Jan 19 (PTI) After the Indian flag incident, e-commerce retailer Amazon has been conveyed that while providing a platform for third party vendors, they should respect Indian sensitivities and sentiments, the External Affairs Ministry said today.
MEA Spokesperson Vikas Swarup also said Amazon has also removed “offending items” like flip-flops and dog tags with Mahatma Gandhi’s image.
“Our Ambassador in Washington had been instructed to convey to Amazon that while providing a platform for third party vendors, they should respect Indian sensitivities and sentiments. We have been in touch with Amazon both in Washington as well as in Delhi and we have had constructive conversations,” he said.
Asked about sale of flip-flops and dog tags with Mahatma Gandhi’s image on Amazon website, he added, “I am happy to report that the offending items have since been pulled by Amazon and we hope that our engagement will continue to be fruitful.”
Last week, after she received a complaint about Amazon Canada selling doormats depicting Indian flag on its site, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj reacted sharply and asked the e-retailer to withdraw the products and tender an unconditional apology, failing which no official of Amazon will be granted Indian visa and the ones issued earlier will also be rescinded.
Following the stern message, Amazon expressed regret for “offending” Indian sentiments and informed Swaraj about removal of the offensive product from its Canadian website.
London, Jan 19 : British MPs today held a debate on Kashmir in the UK Parliament, warning against “escalation” of violence in the region.
The motion before the House of Commons urges the UK government to encourage India and Pakistan to commence peace negotiations to establish a long-term solution to the dispute.
“It is not Britain’s role to intervene in the internal politics of any sovereign nation. But we stand ready to help facilitate and alleviate the suffering of the innocent people of Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir,” said Conservative party MP Bob Blackman, who has long campaigned for the rights of Kashmiri Pandits forced to flee the region.
“Today marks the terrible day back in 1990 when Kashmiri Hindus were forced from their homes. I have been speaking on this issue for 27 years. The whole of Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India and both India and Pakistan must abide by the UN resolution,” said Blackman, who was among the MPs speaking in the debate.
The debate has been organised by the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Kashmir and is being conducted by the Commons’ Backbench Business Committee following an application from Conservative Party MP David Nuttall.
It was led by Nuttall along with MPs Nusrat Ghani, Robert Flello and Fiona Mactaggart.
The Backbench Committee meets weekly on Tuesdays to consider requests for debates from any backbench MP on any subject.
The motion for today’s debate reads, “This House notes the escalation in violence and breaches of international human rights on the Indian side of the Line of Control in Kashmir; calls on the Government to raise the matter at the United Nations.”
“And further calls on the Government to encourage Pakistan and India to commence peace negotiations to establish a long-term solution on the future governance of Kashmir based on the right of the Kashmiri people to determine their own future in accordance with the provisions of UN Security Council resolutions,” it says.
The debate comes a day after a day of mourning was observed by the Kashmiri Pandits Cultural Society UK in a committee room of the House of Commons.
The group called for “justice” for the nearly 700,000 Kashmiri Pandits forced to flee their homes in the Kashmir Valley 1989 and 1990.
Mumbai : Rapidly becoming an influential market for mergers and acquisitions (M&As) in Asia-pacific region, India hit a record level in this space with 388 deals worth USD 64.5 billion during 2016, said a report.
Deal value surged 90.5 per cent, while deal count fell slightly to 388 from 421, during the last year compared to 2015, according to global deal tracking firm Mergermarket.
Significantly, the country’s market share in total M&A deals in Asia-Pacific stood at 8.8 per cent last year — the highest since 2007 (9.4%) and significantly more than the 3.6 per cent logged in 2015.
“India’s M&A activity in 2016 reached the highest annual value on Mergermarket record (since 2001) with 388 deals worth USD 64.5 billion,” the firm said in the report.
“The top three deals targeting India in 2016 amounted to USD 20.6 billion, accounting for 32 per cent of the total value of M&A in India,” the report said.
Sectoral analysis by Mergermarket for 2016 showed that energy, mining and utilities replaced financial services as the most active sector with deals totalling USD 17.1 billion – almost three times more compared to 2015.
The energy, mining and utilities sector account for 26.5 per cent share in total M&A deals which was largely fuelled by Essar Group selling a combined 98 per cent stake in Essar Oil to both Rosneft and Trafigura for a combined value of USD 12.7 billion.
Telecommunication deal value rose nearly 5 times to reach USD 13.6 billion from USD 2.5 billion in 2015.
Mergermarket noted that the upcoming spectrum auctions in telecom are expected to increase competition that could subsequently spark a pricing war involving new entrant, Reliance Jio, and could further fuel growth in the sector.
“Large industry players will need to prepare for the auction by selling non-core assets and deleveraging their balance sheets,” the report added.
Going forward, businesses related to cement, steel, power and toll roads are likely to contribute further in M&A space in 2017, depending on the upcoming Union Budget.
Technology accounted for just 56 deals, down from 89 in 2015 — the largest drop in deal count across all sectors.
However, the report said technology has the potential to improve in 2017 but is unlikely to reach the heights seen in 2015 when the sector was ranked the busiest sector by deal count and second most active by value (89 deals, USD 5.4 billion) as investors wait for a further easing towards more realistic multiples and valuations.
Total inbound activity in India’s M&A in 2016 reached record high with 176 deals amounting to USD 30.8 billion — 62.3 per cent jump over USD 19 billion in 2015.
New Delhi : The BJP today said performance of the party-led NDA government at the Centre will be an issue in the 2019 general elections, asserting that it will not deviate from the development plank in the future.
The BJP had presented a “positive” subject (development) before the people in 2014 elections which they accepted and voted for the party, BJP national general secretary Murli Dhar Rao said at an event organised by PHD Chamber here.
The mandate enjoyed by the present government on the basis of development will be compared in the Lok Sabha elections in 2019.
“BJP cannot escape (development) and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will also not go away from that. I believe performance (of the government) is going to next issue in 2019 (elections),” he said.
Speaking on the topic ‘achieving industrial goals through integral humanism’ Rao said, the “drive” created by industry cannot be “reversed” by any government or leader.
“It is impossible for any government or leader to look back because the kind of drive created by you (industry) is not going to allow any party or leader to stop it,” he said.
Elaborating the concept of ‘integral humanism’ pioneered in the country by party ideologue Deen Dayal Upadhyay, Rao said that the Indian society believed in the concept which was reflected in social, political and cultural spheres of life.
Jammu, Jan 18 : As many as 185 illegal constructions were detected in highly eco-sensitive and barred areas of three world famous tourist resorts of Kashmir Valley during the last three years, the state government said today.
During last three years, 185 illegal constructions were detected in highly eco-sensitive and barred areas of tourist resorts of Pahalgam, Sonamarg and Gulmarg in the Valley, MoS for Tourism Priya Sethi said in a written reply to the question of NC MLA Bashir Ahmed Veeri in state Legislative Council here.
Out of which, 179 illegal structures have been demolished and six such structures have been sealed, the minister said.
Besides, 18 number of illegal constructed shops and two houses were also detected and demolished during 2014-15 within jurisdiction of Sonamarg Development Authority, the minister said.
Replying to another question regarding permissions granted to new constructions, he said no new permission for construction of hotels, lodges, structures or buildings in highly eco sensitive and barred areas of Pahalgam, Gulmarg and Sonamarg have been granted in the last three years.
The High Court has completely banned any sort of construction within the jurisdiction of Pahalgam and Gulmarg Development Authorities, the minister said.
However, nine permissions were granted during 2014-15 in designated areas of the approved master plan of Sonamarg Development Authority.
Hyderabad, Jan 18 : The Telangana government would bring a bill for providing 12 per cent reservation to backward sections among Muslims in the Budget session of Legislative Assembly, Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao said today.
“We will put up the Muslim Reservation Bill in the coming Budget session itself,” he said in the Assembly during a debate on welfare of minorities.
The budget session is expected to begin next month.
The 12 per cent reservation to Muslims was a key election promise of the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS).
The state government had appointed a Commission for conducting a study of social and economic status of Muslims and the panel has submitted its report, Rao said in a statement on the issue.
The state government has forwarded the report to the Backward Classes Commission for its opinion.
The BC Commission is gathering views of different groups in the matter for expressing its opinion, Rao said.
“In order to provide 12 per cent reservation to Muslims, a relaxation should be given to the stipulation that the reservations should not exceed 50 per cent.
“The Government of Tamil Nadu introduced Act 45/94 and with the consent of Indian Parliament got incorporated the issue of enhancement of reservation in the 9th Schedule of the Indian Constitution. We will follow the same policy in our state also,” Rao said in his statement.
Expressing confidence that the Centre would act favourably on the state’s move to provide 12 per cent quota, he, however, said the state government would also take a legal recourse on the issue if the Centre does not respond positively.
BJP floor leader G Kishan Reddy said the high court had already held that reservations on the basis of religion is against the Constitution.
The issue is also sub-judice as the matter of four per cent quota (being given to backward sections among Muslims that began in undivided AP) is in the Supreme Court, he said.
Rao, however, clarified that the proposed quota is not for Muslim religion.
“I did not say reservation is for Muslim religion. I said clearly in my clarification. We said we will work for the welfare of poor in the group by that name and bring reservation.
“You (Kishan Reddy) said it is sub-judice. There is nothing that Legislative Assemby cannot discuss and pass a bill just because it is sub-judice. We are free to discuss,” he said.
A Nigerian Air Force fighter jet on a mission against Boko Haram extremists mistakenly bombed a refugee camp today, killing more than 100 refugees and wounding aid workers, a Borno state official said. The state government official was helping to coordinate the evacuation of wounded. The official spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to reporters. Military commander Maj Gen Lucky Irabor confirmed the accidental bombardment in northeast Rann, near the border with Cameroon. Among the wounded were two soldiers and Nigerians working for Doctors Without Borders and the International Committee of the Red Cross, he said.
This is believed to be the first time Nigeria’s military has admitted to making such a mistake. Villagers in the past have reported some civilian casualties in near-daily bombardments in northeastern Nigeria. Irabor said he ordered the mission based on information that Boko Haram insurgents were gathering, along with geographic coordinates. It was too early to say if a tactical error was made, he said. The general, who is the theater commander for counterinsurgency operations in northeast Nigeria, said the Air Force would not deliberately target civilians but there will be an investigation. Some of the nearly 300 Chibok schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram in 2014 and freed last year have said three of their classmates were killed by Air Force bombardments, according to the freed girls’ parents.