Untitled

[newindianexpress-blog]

Government admits your Aadhaar data has been leaked

CHENNAI: If you have an Aadhaar Card and if your bank accounts and other sensitive information are linked to it, chances are that your data is no longer secure.

For the first time, the Modi government has officially acknowledged that personal identity of individuals, including Aadhaar number and other sensitive information, has been leaked to the public domain.

The government, in the recent past, had ignored all warnings and criticisms about the UID data being sensitive and has been aggressively pushing for its adoption across services and platforms. 

​ A letter written by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, accessed by Express, confirms the data, which the government has been cautiously guarding, has been leaked online.

“There have been instances wherein personal identity or information of residents, including Aadhaar number and demographic information and other sensitive personal data such as bank account details etc. collected by various Ministries/Departments... has been reportedly published online and is accessible through an easy online search,” Archana Dureja, a scientist in the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, wrote on March 25.

The official went on to add that the leak of data was a serious and punishable offence.

“Publishing information like Aadhaar number along with name, date of birth, address etc. is a clear contravention of provisions of the Aadhaar Act, 2016 and is punishable with imprisonment of up to three years,” the letter said.

Also Read: Aadhaar, an identity proof for every Indian: Finance Secretary

“The offending parties are liable to pay damages in the form of compensation to persons affected.” The official, through her letter, also directed ministries and states to discontinue any such content with immediate effect.

Ironically, the same Ministry of Electronics and IT issued a statement on March 5, assuring that personal data of individuals held by UIDAI is fully safe and secure. Issuing a clarification on ‘misinformation in some news items’ alleging breach of the UID data, misuse of biometrics, breach of privacy, and creation of parallel databases, UIDAI had said that it had gone through all the reports and emphasised that there was no leak of data. 

Read: Government cannot make Aadhaar mandatory for welfare schemes: Supreme Court

Incidentally, questions regarding the preparedness of the government in handling such a data leak was raised in Parliament on Wednesday by former Finance Minister P Chidambaram. “How do you propose to protect the privacy of individuals after transactions are linked to Aadhaar?” he asked.

Giving a celebrity touch to concerns regarding invasion of privacy, just days ago, cricketer MS Dhoni’s wife Sakshi Dhoni wrote on social media how her husband’s Aadhaar details were made public. The government, on the back foot, promised action against the agency tasked by UIDAI to generate Dhoni’s Aadhaar number.

The government had termed it as an isolated case while announcing that the agency concerned was blacklisted for 10 years. The letter, however, makes it clear that the leak could have been widespread. 

Adding to the concern is the government’s aggression in pushing for inclusion of the UID across platforms, from filing I-T returns to obtaining PAN cards, and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s assertion when asked if the scheme was being forced on people, saying “Yes, we are.”

[newindianexpress-blog]

Game of Thrones Season 7 trailer: Cersei seized the Iron Throne

NEW DELHI: Looks like the seventh season of Game of Thrones will have the new rulers taking their thrones, at least its latest promo says so. 

HBO has dropped a new promo called ‘Long Walk,’ which sees Jon Snow, Daenerys Targaryen and Cersei Lannister strolling towards different grand chairs as a cover version of James’s 90s hit Sit Down plays in the background.

The 80-second promo follows the end of series six, which saw Daenerys set sail for the Seven Kingdoms, while Jon Snow was dubbed King Of The North and Cersei seized the Iron Throne.

It sees Snow walking through the halls of Winterfell, Cersei strolls through King’s Landing, while Daenerys Targaryen is apparently in her ancestral home of Dragonstone.

Beginning on July 17, the seventh season7 will be the penultimate in the popular fantasy series, based on George RR Martin’s books. 

Watch trailer here:

[newindianexpress-blog]

Sachin Tendulkar starts digital innings; app launched

MUMBAI: Cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar today started his digital innings as a mobile phone app dedicated to him, `100 MB', was  launched here.

The app is conceptualised and developed by JetSynthesys and has been envisioned by Sachin himself.

A song sung by Sachin with the ace singer Sonu Nigam will feature on the app on Sunday at 10 PM.

Speaking on the occasion, Sachin said, "Many of you and my friends have asked me what are you going to do in your second innings of life. The first innings went on for 24 years. There are number of things which I am involved in, but something which I am looking forward to starting soon, in fact now, is the digital innings.

"It will allow me to get closer to my fans. My journey started as a 10-year-old who saw India win the World Cup in 1983, so in my song, what I have tried to do is thank all those cricketers who have helped me realise my dream, six World Cups that I have been," he added.

"I was fond of music, but never thought I will sing a song," he said.

 Among other things, all social media updates of Sachin will be available through the app

[newindianexpress-blog]

Railways to spend Rs 10,000 crore for track renewal: Suresh Prabhu

NEW DELHI: The Railways will spend about Rs 10,000 crore for renewal of tracks and adopt latest technology to detect rail fracture to reduce the accident rate to zero level, Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu said today.      

He also said that the Railways will install train protection warning system and eliminate all unmanned level crossings across the country by using Rs 1 lakh crore 'Railways Suraksha Kosh'.      

Replying to a debate on Appropriation (Railways) Bill in the Rajya Sabha which was approved later, Prabhu claimed that the rate of train accidents in India has come down, as per the "global index".      

"It does not mean I am happy with this. We would like to work towards zero accident," he said on a day a train derailed in Uttar Pradesh, in yet another mishap.      

Referring to the recent train mishap in Kanpur which is being probed by the NIA, he expressed concern about the "some of the causes of the accident".      

With the help of NIA and state agencies, the Minister said "We will be able to work out."      

In his almost 90-minute reply, the minister talked about a slew of initiatives planned for safety, technology upgradation and passenger amenities, like cleanliness.      

Prabhu said the government is changing rolling stock and making sure that tracks are properly renewed. The Rail safety fund will be used to eliminate unmanned level crossings.      

On renewal of tracks, the government has set a target of 3500 km at a cost of Rs 10,153 crore for the year 2017-18.      

Prabhu said the Railways is using and is in the process of using various modern technologies to avoid accidents caused by human errors.      

In this context, he listed out the new technologies like ultra sonic detection system, train protection warning system, train collision avoidance system, use of strong couplings.      

"Without using these technologies, we will not be able to avoid accidents," he said      

"Without using these technologies, we will not be able to avoid accidents," he said      

In order to improve the profitabilty of railways, Prabhu said the government is trying to maximise revenues from fares as well as non-fare methods besides reducing the cost of operations.      

Minister said it was a difficult year for railways as the cost increased due to Pay Commission and revenue did not increase.      To cut cost, Prabhu said the government will focus on reducing energy cost through electrification and use of alternate source of energy.      

He said the government plans to save Rs 41,000 crore in energy bill in the next 10 years. It is targeting generation of 1000 MWs of and 200 MWs of wind power besides energy mix, use of LED bulbs, waste to energy plant.    

On electrification, he said railways is targeting 4000 km route in the next fiscal and in the next five years it will be double.      

Referring to the congestion in rail lines, Prabhu said currently 16 per cent of the track is catering to the 60 per cent of the traffic, as a result of which major trunk routes are saturated.      

"That is why we are doing expansion of rail track through doubling and tripling."  Citing the paucity of space at stations for accommodating the increasing number of trains, the Railway Minister said he was wondering whether rail tracks could be constructed beneath and above the existing ones to docongest the platforms.      

Making a comprarison with the previous governments, he said "In the last two-and-a-half years, we have done 12,700 km long doubling of tracks whereas total doubling done since 1947 was 15,000 kms."       He emphasised that railways problem is not linked with the railway budget.      

He also said there is a significant increase in the capital expenditure. "Rs 1.31 lakh crore has been allocated in the Capex for the 2017-18 including Rs 55000 crore for Gross Budgetary Support."      

Highlighting decline in investment in the railways and increase in the road sector over the years, he said "The government has decided to go for more investment in the rail sector. Railways has earmarked Rs 8.5 lakh crore for the five years."      

Prabhu said the railways is trageting to generate Rs 17,500 crore as non-fare revenue in the next fiscal.       Non-fare revenue refers to branding of trains, advertising at stations and platforms.      

Prabhu said freight has declined but expressed confidence that loading will rise in the future as freight rate has been rationalised to attract more loadings.      

Prabhu said railways is targeting laying of 3500 km of line for the broad gauge purpose in a year, which means 10 km per day. This will be increased to 19 km per day in the next two years.      

Talking about the passenger amenities proposed, the Railway Minister said escalators will be provided at major stations. Wi-Fi facilities have been provided at about 150 stations and more stations will be covered soon.      

Referring to new services introduced for passengers, he said Mahamana Express, Antodaya Express and Humsafar Express have been introduced with many facilities. Tejas Express will be introduced in the next few months to be followed by double-decker Udaya Express.      

He said railways has introduced new catering policy separating cooking and distribution of food to improve catering.      

Highlighting transparency, he said now all procurement and tenders in railways are on e-platforms and auction of scraps are also conducted through online process.      

He said there is a special focus on maintaining cleanliness at rail premises. All coaches will be equipped with bio-toilets in the next three years.

[newindianexpress-blog]

Japan kills 333 whales in annual Antarctic hunt

TOKYO: A Japanese whaling fleet returned to port Friday after an annual Antarctic hunt that killed more than 300 of the mammals as Tokyo pursues the programme in defiance of global criticism.

The fleet set sail for the Southern Ocean in November, with plans to slaughter 333 minke whales, flouting a worldwide moratorium and opposition led by Australia and New Zealand.

The fleet consisted of five ships, three of which arrived in the morning at Shimonoseki port in western Japan, the country's Fisheries Agency said.

More than 200 people, including crew members and their families, gathered in the rain for a 30-minute ceremony in front of the Nisshin Maru, the fleet's main ship, according to an official of the Shimonoseki City government.

In a press release, the agency described the mission as "research for the purpose of studying the ecological system in the Antarctic Sea".

But environmentalists and the International Court of Justice (IJC) call that a fiction and say the real purpose is simply to hunt whales for their meat.

Anticipating the fleet's return, animal protection charity Humane Society International called for an end to Japanese whaling. 

"Each year that Japan persists with its discredited scientific whaling is another year where these wonderful animals are needlessly sacrificed," said Kitty Block, the group's executive vice president.

"It is an obscene cruelty in the name of science that must end," she said in a release.

 - Research claims -

 Japan also caught 333 minke whales in the previous season ending in 2016 after a one-year hiatus prompted by an IJC ruling, which said the hunt was a commercial venture masquerading as science and ordered Tokyo to end it.

Under the International Whaling Commission (IWC), to which Japan is a signatory, there has been a moratorium on hunting whales since 1986.

Tokyo exploits a loophole allowing whales to be killed for "scientific research" and claims it is trying to prove the population is large enough to sustain a return to commercial hunting.

But it also makes no secret of the fact that whale meat ends up on dinner tables and is served up in school lunches.

Japan has hunted whales for centuries, and their meat was a key source of protein in the immediate post-World War II years when the country was desperately poor.

But consumption has dramatically declined in recent decades, with significant proportions of the population saying they "never" or "rarely" eat whale meat.

In response to the ICJ ruling, Japan's 2014-15 mission carried out only "non-lethal research" such as taking skin samples and doing headcounts.

Past missions have been hampered by a confrontational campaign on the high seas by environmentalists Sea Shepherd, though Japan has won some relief from the group through the courts.

A fisheries agency official said that the whalers this time faced "no obstructive behaviour threatening safety of the fleet and crew members" by the group.

He attributed that partially to Japan having started dispatching fisheries agency patrol ships to protect the fleet. 

[newindianexpress-blog]

Twitter makes room for more characters in tweets

SAN FRANCISCO: Twitter has begun rolling out changes to let people pack more into tweets, subtracting from the character count names of those being replied to in posts.

The latest software modification at the one-to-many messaging service comes about a year after Twitter set out to relax a 140-character limit set due to mobile phone text messaging constraints in place when Twitter launched in 2006.

Twitter first announced plans to relax the limit a year ago, as part of an effort to bring in more members and make the platform easier to use.

"Remember how we told you we were working on ways to let you to express more with 140 characters?" Twitter product manager Sasank Reddy yesterday said in an online post.

"Now, when you reply to someone or a group, those @usernames won't count toward your tweet's 140 characters."

Providing more room in tweets is seen as a way to encourage more use and sharing of pictures, videos and links.

The move is part of a push by Twitter to increase its user base and engagement, which have sputtered to the chagrin of investors.

"Our work isn't finished," Reddy said.

"We'll continue to think about how we can improve conversations and make Twitter easier to use."

Twitter faces competition from Facebook and Instagram, and a trend of people opting to share content in video or picture formats instead of text.

[newindianexpress-blog]

Relax, there is no heat wave in Tamil Nadu

CHENNAI: You may be complaining about the hot summer. But the weathermen say Tamil Nadu has been enjoying a much pleasant weather compared to the central and northern states where a heat wave is breaching the 43 degree Celsius mark consistently.

In contrast, Chennai’s maximum temperature has not yet crossed even the 35-degree Celsius. Why? Meteorologists say the easterlies (wind blowing from east) bringing moisture and the cloud cover over Tamil Nadu are saving it from the harsh heat wave.

“The clouds and easterlies have saved Tamil Nadu and some of the other southern parts from heat wave,” says D S Pai, head, climate prediction, Climate Research Division of Indian Meteorological Department.

The only place in Tamil Nadu that has so far recorded a temperature more than 40 degree Celsius is Karur. On Thursday, the Nungambakkam weather station at Chennai recorded a maximum of 33.7 degrees.

Meteorologists explain that the cause of heat waves sweeping central and northwest parts was strong high pressure system. The INSAT-3D satellite imagery, which is used by the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) to forecast Outgoing Longwave Radiation (OLR) clearing, shows that the system is concentrated over central and northwestern parts and spared southern region, especially Tamil Nadu.

Pradeep John, a famous weather blogger, said the heat wave occurs when a system of high atmospheric pressure moves into an area. In such a high pressure system, air from upper levels of our atmosphere is pulled toward the ground, where it becomes compressed and increases temperature.

It also prevents clouds from entering the region; sunlight can become punishing, heating up the system even more. All of these factors come together to create the exceptionally hot temperature that we call a heat wave.

S Balachandran, director, Area Cyclone Warning Centre, told Express there is not just one factor that induces heat wave-like conditions.

“The wind direction, clear sky, moisture, geographical dynamics etc., have their influence. In terms of climatology, Tamil Nadu doesn’t fall in heat wave-prone regions. Only in April and May, temperatures briefly breach 40 degrees Celsius. Otherwise by and large they remain normal. Of course, there were instances in the past where heat wave-like conditions prevailed, but there is no such condition this year,” he said and added that till April first week, the climate will remain dry.

[newindianexpress-blog]

Sachin Tendulkar starts digital innings; app launched

MUMBAI: Cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar today started his digital innings as a mobile phone app dedicated to him, `100 MB', was  launched here.

The app is conceptualised and developed by JetSynthesys and has been envisioned by Sachin himself.

A song sung by Sachin with the ace singer Sonu Nigam will feature on the app on Sunday at 10 PM.

Speaking on the occasion, Sachin said, "Many of you and my friends have asked me what are you going to do in your second innings of life. The first innings went on for 24 years. There are number of things which I am involved in, but something which I am looking forward to starting soon, in fact now, is the digital innings.

"It will allow me to get closer to my fans. My journey started as a 10-year-old who saw India win the World Cup in 1983, so in my song, what I have tried to do is thank all those cricketers who have helped me realise my dream, six World Cups that I have been," he added.

"I was fond of music, but never thought I will sing a song," he said.

 Among other things, all social media updates of Sachin will be available through the app. 

[newindianexpress-blog]

US astronaut Peggy Whitson breaks record for most spacewalks by a woman

MIAMI: American astronaut Peggy Whitson made history when she floated outside the International Space Station today, breaking the record for the most spacewalks by a woman.     

Whitson, 57, is making her eighth career spacewalk, surpassing the record of seven previously held by American Suni Williams.     

The spacewalk formally began at 7:29 am (local time) when Whitson and Shane Kimbrough switched their spacesuits to battery power before venturing outside the airlock and into the vacuum of space.   

"Be safe and enjoy your time out," said French astronaut Thomas Pesquet as the hatch opened.     

"I will be waiting for you."     

The goal of the spacewalk is to continue upgrading the International Space Station for the arrival of commercial spaceships in the years to come.     

Today's walkabout is the second in a series of three spacewalks to outfit the exterior of the orbiting outpost with parking spots for a new generation of space taxis ferrying astronauts to the station.     

SpaceX and Boeing are currently designing crew vehicles that will begin flying people to the ISS as early as next year.

[newindianexpress-blog]

From April 1, libraries in Tamil Nadu will receive just two newspapers

COIMBATORE: In a move that is sure to earn the ire of scores of news junkies and competitive exam aspirants from poorer families across Tamil Nadu, the Directorate of Public Libraries has decided to drastically reduce the number of newspapers, magazines and other periodicals subscribed to by libraries in the State.

From April 1, libraries will buy only one daily each in English and Tamil, two Tamil weeklies and one English weekly, and one English and Tamil monthly each. This used to be five dailies each in English and Tamil, 23 weeklies and five magazines.

According to the recent circular issued by district library officers concerned, those in charge of each library should buy only one of the three listed Tamil newspapers and one of the two listed English dailies. They can also buy two Tamil weeklies, one English weekly, one monthly magazine each in English and Tamil, the order added.

“Till now, apart from the periodicals, libraries were permitted to buy from local newspaper agents; funds were also allotted to buy them through postal orders,” a library staff in Coimbatore said on condition of anonymity. “We were told that the decision was taken to minimise expenditure, but this will create anger among the readers,” the staff added.

Libraries, especially in the towns and villages of Tamil Nadu, are frequented by scores of competitive exam aspirants for whom it is not possible to subscribe to all these periodicals.

“The order was issued as a temporary measure for administrative reasons. But we have decided to revise it. We assure that the number of periodicals will not be reduced,” Coimbatore District Library Officer J Karthikeyan told Express.

[newindianexpress-blog]

Kotak Mahindra Bank Vice-chairman plays down acquisition buzz

MUMBAI: Kotak Mahindra Bank on Wednesday sought to play down reports of it planning to acquire a non-banking financial company as ‘speculative’, but hinted it’s interested in consolidation drive and termed the pile of stressed assets in the system as a growth area.

​Kotak Mahindra Bank vice-chairman Uday Kotak said that banks need $100 billion in fresh capital to come out of the present stressed balance-sheet as the bad loans have crossed Rs 14 lakh crore, or 9.3 per cent of the system.

Over time, there will be significant consolidation in different shapes and forms. “And at that time, you must be in a position to be a significant player of relevance,” Kotak replied to a question on acquisition plans.

He said the KMB board will be meeting on Thursday to consider capital-raising plans, but declined to spell out contours of the same. But, reports in a section of the media on Wednesday said the private lender was planning to raise close to $2 billion through a QIP issue.

He said for his bank, stressed asset management is a key growth opportunity.

“We’re seeing a significant opportunity coming with the challenges on the levels of stress that needs to be resolved. We believe the future is in significant consolidation,” Kotak said, without spelling out whether the bank will be pumping more money into its ARC arm or starting a new asset management company.

Kotak Mahindra has a subsidiary in the ARC space, a special situations fund, and also buys distressed assets directly onto its books.

Kotak said the banking system is saddled with Rs 14 lakh crore of dud loans which include net non-performing assets, restructured accounts, and SDR and S4A accounts, and is staring at providing a whopping Rs 4 lakh crore for these assets.

This is 50 per cent of the entire equity capital of the system - that is Rs 8 lakh crore, he added. The remaining Rs 10 lakh crore will need a capital infusion of Rs 2.5 lakh crore into the ARCs to resolve the stress, he said.

Clarifying on his recent remarks on takeovers, he said the reference to hostile buyouts was in reference to capital market reforms and protection of minority shareholders, and did not reflect his bank’s strategies.

[newindianexpress-blog]

Chennai police seize Rs 1.02 crore in demonetised notes, two held

This comes two days ahead of the deadline available for NRIs for exchanging defunct currencies of Rs 500 and Rs 1000.

CHENNAI: The city police on Wednesday caught two persons with demonetised currencies worth nearly one crore rupees.

This comes two days ahead of the deadline available for NRIs for exchanging defunct currencies of Rs 500 and Rs 1000.

It was a patrol team that noticed something amiss about a black car in which the duo was travelling up and down the first main road at Shenoy Nagar, Aminjikarai, on Wednesday evening. “They kept driving through the same stretch more than twice, raising suspicion. When asked to stop, they tried to speed away. After a brief chase, police nabbed the suspects,” said a senior police officer.

The police seized Rs 1.02 crore - Rs 86 lakh in Rs 1,000 currencies and Rs 16 lakh in Rs  500 denomination - in a black bag in the car’s rear seat.

During interrogation, the men, Ramesh and Vijaykumar, were said to have told police that the money belonged to a businessman of Tambaram. They were to meet a broker and exchange the currencies near a school at Shenoy Nagar. “Fearing they might get caught while waiting at one place, these two men were roaming around awaiting the broker’s arrival”, the officer said.

Interrogation revealed they were into sand and gravel business. Ramesh of Salem resides at Saligramam and Vijaykumar of  Pollachi, stays at Mogappair.

A case has been registered and police have launched a hunt for the broker and the businessman.

This is the latest in a series of such incidents, including the one on March 25 when two persons were detained while trying to exchange Rs 3.42 crore demonetised notes at Manapakkam near Nandambakkam.

It was later found the money belonged to a well-known doctor in the city.

In an earlier incident, three men were waiting in a van to meet a resident of JJ Nagar to exchange defunct notes when they were nabbed by a patrol team.

[newindianexpress-blog]

From April 1, libraries in Tamil Nadu will receive just two newspapers

COIMBATORE: In a move that is sure to earn the ire of scores of news junkies and competitive exam aspirants from poorer families across Tamil Nadu, the Directorate of Public Libraries has decided to drastically reduce the number of newspapers, magazines and other periodicals subscribed to by libraries in the State.

From April 1, libraries will buy only one daily each in English and Tamil, two Tamil weeklies and one English weekly, and one English and Tamil monthly each. This used to be five dailies each in English and Tamil, 23 weeklies and five magazines.

According to the recent circular issued by district library officers concerned, those in charge of each library should buy only one of the three listed Tamil newspapers and one of the two listed English dailies. They can also buy two Tamil weeklies, one English weekly, one monthly magazine each in English and Tamil, the order added.

“Till now, apart from the periodicals, libraries were permitted to buy from local newspaper agents; funds were also allotted to buy them through postal orders,” a library staff in Coimbatore said on condition of anonymity. “We were told that the decision was taken to minimise expenditure, but this will create anger among the readers,” the staff added.

Libraries, especially in the towns and villages of Tamil Nadu, are frequented by scores of competitive exam aspirants for whom it is not possible to subscribe to all these periodicals.

“The order was issued as a temporary measure for administrative reasons. But we have decided to revise it. We assure that the number of periodicals will not be reduced,” Coimbatore District Library Officer J Karthikeyan told Express.

[newindianexpress-blog]

Arrest teachers involved in Kerala exam paper leak row, says Ramesh Chennithala

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Accusing the government of protecting Left-affiliated teachers who were allegedly responsible for the SSLC and higher secondary question paper fiasco, Leader of the Opposition Ramesh Chennithala has demanded the arrest of the culprits.

​He was inaugurating a protest meeting near the Secretariat demanding a judicial inquiry into the fiasco.

Flaying the LDF government for pushing into uncertainty the fate of over 13 lakh students, Chennithala said Education Minister C Raveendranath should step down from his post to ensure a free and fair probe into the matter.  

The Opposition Leader wondered how a retired teacher, who headed the panel of teachers who prepared the question paper, could be suspended from service. He accused teachers affiliated to KSTA of having links with private tuition centres.

Chennnithala said instead of asking a panel from SCERT to set the question papers, the Education Department entrusted the entire task to KSTA members. Corruption involving lakhs of rupees has taken place by “leaking” the question papers to private institutions, he said.

Former Education Minister and Muslim League leader P K Abdu Rabb ridiculed the student and youth wings of CPM of “going into hiding” when such a big fiasco occurred.

“When the UDF was in power, the SFI and DYFI used to stage violent protests frequently citing flimsy reasons,” he said.  Earlier, inaugurating the protest, KPCC president M M Hassan said the UDF would launch a massive agitation if the government failed to order a judicial probe.

[newindianexpress-blog]

Shiv Sena hails revolutionary GST Bill

The Lok Sabha yesterday passed GST Bills rejecting amendments moved by the opposition.

NEW DELHI: Supporting the passage of Goods and Services tax (GST) supplementary bills in the Lower House, The Shiv Sena on Thursday called it a ‘revolutionary bill’

Talking to ANI, Shiv Sena leader Arvind Sawant said, “The bill has been passed, it’s a revolutionary bill. Let us experience and experiment it. There are some issues and some queries but unless you experience the implementation part of it, we will not be able to come to a conclusion.” 

“The most important part which I felt myself is the federal structure that all the states will have representation in the council…. Therefore it is a revolutionary bill,” he added.

The Lok Sabha yesterday passed GST Bills rejecting amendments moved by the opposition. The Bills are related to Central GST, Integrated GST, UT GST and GST Compensation.

The Central GST deals with taxation related to Centre, integrated GST deals in taxation of inter-state movement of goods and services while the Union Territory GST Bill covers taxation in Union Territories.

The compensation law has been prepared to give a legislative backing to the Centre's promise to compensate the states for five years for any revenue loss arising out of GST implementation.

Replying to around eight hour long debate, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said the GST will replace various indirect taxes with a new tax regime which will ensure free flow of goods and services across the country. He said the goods will become slightly cheaper after multiplicity of taxes is removed.

On criticism of making GST as money bill, the Finance Minister said it is taxation law and there has been no single legislation imposing taxes being passed as non- money bill since 1950.

[newindianexpress-blog]

Sensex rises 63 points on GST, derivatives expiry

Sentiments got a leg up after GST inched closer to its July 1 rollout date after Lok Sabha approved four supplementary legislations yesterday.

 MUMBAI: Continuing its rising streak, the benchmark BSE Sensex rose over 63 points to 29,594.84 in early trade today after the Lok Sabha approved four legislations to give shape to the historic GST amid short-covering in view of March series expiry.     

Sentiments got a leg up after the much-awaited tax reform -- Goods and Services Tax (GST) -- inched closer to its July 1 rollout date with the Lok Sabha approving four supplementary legislations yesterday, brokers said.     

The 30-share index was trading higher by 63.41 points, or 0.21 per cent, to 29,594.84. The gauge had gained 294.28 points in the previous two sessions.     

All the sectoral indices led by consumer durables, infrastructure, capital goods, PSU and realty were trading in the green, rising by up to 0.89 per cent.     

The NSE Nifty too rose 10.70 points, or 0.11 per cent, to 9,154.50 in early trade.     

Short-covering by participants with today being the last trading session of March series contracts in the derivatives segment supported the Sensex march, brokers said.     

Major gainers that supported the key indices were SBI, Adani Ports, Maruti Suzuki, Hero MotoCorp, RIL, L&T, Sun Pharma, ITC, TCS, Hind Unilever, Asian Paints and Bajaj Auto, gaining by up to 1.39 per cent.

However, other Asian markets were trading in the negative zone in early trade, taking weak cues from overnight losses on the US markets.     

Hong Kong's Hang Seng shed 0.37 per cent while Japan's Nikkei was down 0.25 per cent in early trade today. The Shanghai Composite Index too was down 0.80 per cent.     

The US Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 0.20 per cent lower yesterday.

[newindianexpress-blog]

Aadhaar, an identity proof for every Indian: Finance Secretary

NEW DELHI: Aadhaar becoming an identity proof for every Indian is now a distinct possibility, Finance Secretary Ashok Lavasa said on Wednesday.

Aadhaar – a unique 12-digit number is assigned to about 99 per cent of adult Indian residents – links some 84 government services and is used as an authenticating tool for giving pensions and money transfers.

Speaking at a seminar organised by Assocham, Lavasa said Aadhaar has brought efficiency in public spending and removed corruption.

“Aadhaar... is revolutionary... 105 crore people who have a unique identity,” he said.

Lavasa said the unique identity proof has a huge potential for changing many of the procedures for conducting business.

Aadhaar is already a critical document for many government initiatives such as direct benefit transfer of subsidies has achieved unprecedented success.

This unique card use has now been extended for filing income tax return, opening bank account and buying a mobile SIM card.