Government approved resolution plan for Jaypee homebuyers soon; NBCC to build the project
KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)
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In a fresh ray of hope for thousands of stuck Jaypee home buyers, government sources indicated that soon, a government-approved resolution plan will be submitted to the Supreme Court and government-owned NBCC will build the project.
In a fresh ray of hope for thousands of stuck Jaypee home buyers, government sources indicated that soon, a government-approved resolution plan will be submitted to the Supreme Court and state-run NBCC will build the project. “After seeing that it is becoming tough to find a suitable bidder, the government has yet again stepped in to facilitate a robust resolution for Jaypee home-buyers,” a senior government official told CNBC-TV18.
Prime minister’s office (PMO), finance ministry, ministry of corporate affairs and ministry of housing and urban affairs have together asked NBCC to put out a fresh resolution proposal to the Supreme Court soon, the official added, saying the proposal was again approved by PMO and Finance ministry.
Interestingly, during the last apex court proceedings, the Jaypee Group had told the court that it should also be given a chance to revive Jaypee Infratech and was willing to pay back its banks. It also promised to complete all the 27 projects within three years.
The court, however, said it would first look at what NBCC had to offer and may then look at Jaypee’s fresh proposal.
Government official quoted above says, “The government is clear that NBCC will build the project to give relief to home-buyers with all government backing.”
Adani group had also in the past also shown interest in completing stuck Jaypee project but it never made a formal proposal.
A group of homebuyers moved the apex court in 2017, saying around 23,000 people had booked flats and were paying installments, but their homes were not ready.
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Celebrating Mahatma Gandhi’s 150th birth anniversary by keeping the light shining
KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)
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This October, while India hosts grand celebrations to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, over a million students from over 100 countries across five continents will pay tribute to the Father of our Nation – in a way he would have probably truly appreciated. They are expected to assemble their solar study lamps.
This October, while India hosts grand celebrations to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, over a million students from over 100 countries across five continents will pay tribute to the Father of our Nation – in a way he would have probably truly appreciated. They are expected to assemble their solar study lamps.
Chetan Singh Solanki, an associate professor at the Department of Energy Science and Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, is spearheading a unique campaign that involves children from across the world making solar-charged study lamps in their schools and taking a pledge of “non-violence to environment” as a tribute to Gandhi and his teachings.
The components of the lamp, which has an illuminance of 150 lux for four hours, cost around Rs. 500 and will be procured by the schools from open source (physical or online shops).
“The message these young minds will take home through this activity can make a bigger impact than all save-the-environment campaign,” says Solanki.
Over 6 million children in over a dozen states including Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya have been provided with this lamp on subsidised rate, thanks to Solanki’s initiative “Right to Light” started in 2013 with the Centrally funded project-Million SoUL (One million Solar Urja Lamps).
The project, worth Rs. 5.5 billion (550 crores), aims to empower the school going students with localised assembly, sale and usage of one million solar lamps in rural India. It reinforces Sustainable Development Goals 7 (ensure access to affordable and clean energy) and 13 (take urgent action to combat climate change) by creating a local solar ecosystem to power communities with affordable and alternate energy.
“The SOuL project aims to meet the power needs of children in rural India, improve learning outcomes and curb school dropout rates. The project also hopes to generate employment for village youth and women involved in assembly and repair of these lamps,” says Solanki.
He aims to reach 300 million children, aged below 14, across the world with this lamp over the next 10 years.
To make this happen, he planned and proceeded on the Gandhi Global Solar Yatra in three phases early this year covering 30 countries across five continents – Asia, South America, North America, Africa and Europe. This includes Brazil, United States of America, Cambodia, Ethiopia and Middle East countries and all major cities of India as well.
Solanki says, “The school children of these countries who I met personally or digitally during this journey will be the ambassadors of solar energy and Energy Swaraj (self-reliance of communities and institutions on energy).”
Why India needs solar energy?
Although the Union government claims that all rural and urban households across the country had been electrified by March 31, 2019, under Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana (Saubhagya), media reports say otherwise. Over 140,000 households in Rajasthan and 40,000-odd households in Chhattisgarh were yet to be electrified as on July 1, 2019.
The government’s next target – 24/7 power supply – appears to be a distant dream, say industry experts. As per the government figures, India’s energy requirement in 2018-19, stood at 1,274 billion units while its availability was 1,267 billion units.
“Many villages, especially the hamlets in remote hilly and forest regions, still lack power connection, the electrified ones also get a few hours supply only. In such a scenario, solar lamp comes as a great support for school going children,” says Solanki who now hopes to reach 300 million children of the world aged below 14 with this lamp in the next 10 years.
Lauding Solanki’s efforts, Ravi Sinha, professor and head of the Civil Engineering Department, IIT Bombay, says, “This project aims to meet the electricity needs of rural kids with cleaner options, improve learning outcomes, curb dropout and generate employment for village youths and women for assembly and repair of these lamps.”
Over 400 children enrolled in the Government Primary School, Neemhar, Bodhgaya in Bihar are among those beneficiaries. School teacher Vijay Kumar tells Mongabay-India, “While most households in the village have power connection, prolonged power cut affected the residents, especially students. Since they have got Rs. 100 solar lamp last year, they are able to study in the evening.”
While women self-help group of the village assembled the lamps as per the IIT-B guidance, a few men were trained in repair.
“Over 1.8 million children from six districts of Bihar have been covered under the scheme so far using the same strategy,” says Abhilasha, project manager of the SouL.
Over 6 million children in over a dozen Indian states have already been given solar lamps at a subsidised rate of Rs 200 each under the Million SoUL initiative. Photo from SoULS Initiative and IIT-Bombay.
The SoUL team identifies the needy villages with the help of National Rural Livelihood Mission and then approach the state-run schools. Villages dominated by scheduled castes and scheduled tribes are given priority.
Solanki says, “Apart from the rising gap between supply and consumption in India, depletion of conventional energy sources has changed the entire focus on renewable energy. India’s recent status of the lowest-cost producer of solar power further reflects an ongoing shift towards renewable power.”
India has invested huge money in the solar energy field. In 2010, the total installed solar capacity was 10 MW which touched 30 GW by March 2019, accounting for the five-fold rise in three years.
The fresh target is to produce 100 GW solar energy by 2022 which will contribute 40% to the renewable energy folder.
A senior official associated with Ministry of News and Renewable Energy told Mongabay-India, “The efforts are on to reduce the burden on conventional energy through a combination of renewable energy-based projects such as solar, wind, biomass, small hydro, waste to energy. Hence, solar parks, solar campuses, solar agriculture pumps and waste to energy projects are being promoted.”
The Kochi International Airport already has fully solar-powered operations, bagging the tag of world’s first power neutral airport in august 2015. Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to the airport had said it should be an inspiring model for energy guzzlers.
Confident by the growth rate in clean energy sector, the government in its submission to the United Nations Frame Work Convention on Climate Change on Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) has stated that India will achieve 40% electricity from non-fossil resources by 2030.
Abhishek Jain, who runs “Bijli Bachao” movement, said, “Renewable energy also has significant environmental benefits making it the single biggest driver to help us meet our carbon emission reduction targets in our fight against climate change. With India being a growing economy, power consumption is only going to rise, so the adoption of alternate forms of energy is the ideal way forward to manage the balance between economic growth and a sustainable environment.”
The man behind the mission
Like his idol Mahatma Gandhi, Solanki believes in practicing what he preaches.
His laboratory is in stark contrast to the other swanky laboratories on the IIT campus. On the ground is a large mattress, some pillows, and a chowki (wooden bench) with sunlight streaming in from large open windows. Tube-lights and fans are all strictly turned off unless needed – whether in his lab, office or home. “I have stopped using air conditioner, refrigerator, oven and geyser at my apartment (on campus). Only low energy bulbs, DC fans and TV are used.” His students too often cook staples like rice and dal on solar hotplates at the lab even as they work on developing a solar rice cooker.
Solanki, who hails from Khargone district in Madhya Pradesh, has just completed his six-month-long Gandhi Global Solar Yatra to sensitise school children in over 30 countries across five continents about the need to cut down carbon footprint and switch to solar energy. “Only government efforts are not enough to stop climate change. People, especially children, can bring real change. We will have to sacrifice many comforts to save our planet,” said the professor, who also leads two government-sponsored projects – the National Center for Photovoltaic Research and Education(NCPRE) and the SoULS initiative, which reinforces Sustainable Development Goals 7 and 13 by creating a local solar ecosystem to power rural lives across the country.
Chetan Singh Solanki, at Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai, demonstrates the solar lamp made by the SoULS Initiative. Photo by Kanchan Srivastava.
His next goal is to roll out a ‘Surrender Electricity Connection’ campaign, on the lines of the Centre’s Surrender Gas Subsidy initiative, for conservation of fossil fuel and curbing of carbon emission. “I hope at least 1 lakh families will relinquish their power connection and switch to solar energy within a year,” says Solanki, who is in the process of wrapping up his book, My Experiments with Solar Truths.
On 15th August, Independence Day, this year, Solanki launched a non-governmental organization (NGO), Energy Swaraj Foundation, Mahatma Gandhi’s Sabarmati Ashram in Gujarat. “The NGO seeks to usher in ‘Energy Swaraj’ in villages by making them energy self-sufficient by generating clean energy for their needs,” said Solanki, who also teaches Yoga and meditation occasionally.
While research grants have shrunk over the years, Solanki faces a different challenge. “I got the Central grants of Rs 550 crore. My institution expressed inability to handle such huge amount as entire IITB budget is Rs 350 crore. Hence, other organisations have been roped in.”
A serial innovator
An intrepid man of science, Solanki has led several other projects that have resulted in cutting-edge innovations.
Under his leadership, IIT-Bombay students developed a direct current-based solar photovoltaic cookstove, which bagged top honours at the National Solar Chulha Challenge organized by Oil and Natural Gas Corporation in 2018. The initiative aimed at developing a cost-effective and efficient solar-powered stove system for clean household cooking. The winning cookstove is powered by 1 kW of solar power and a 7 kWh capacity battery to operate at night. It costs around Rs 20,000 and can cook three meals daily for a five-member family. The cookstove is currently being tested in Bancha village of Betul district, Madhya Pradesh.
It has two 1000 W induction cooktops and a 500 W cooker. It provides the convenience of cooking at night as well, powered by the battery, thus coping with the challenge that the solar cookers have faced for many years.
Another IIT Bombay team, led by Solanki, has developed a solar tea cart, which costs around Rs 65,000 as a means to address employment needs of young people in the country.
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Government to raise Rs 2.68 lakh crore in borrowing during second half of current fiscal
KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)
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The government will borrow Rs 2.68 lakh crore in the second half of current fiscal, Economic Affairs Secretary Atanu Chakraborty said on Monday. Out of the gross borrowing for Rs 7.10 lakh crore budgeted for 2019-20 fiscal, as much as 62.5 percent has already been borrowed during April-September, he told reporters. The government, he said, …
The government will borrow Rs 2.68 lakh crore in the second half of current fiscal, Economic Affairs Secretary Atanu Chakraborty said on Monday.
Out of the gross borrowing for Rs 7.10 lakh crore budgeted for 2019-20 fiscal, as much as 62.5 percent has already been borrowed during April-September, he told reporters.
The government, he said, is maintaining guide path for maintaining 3.3 percent fiscal deficit target for 2019-20.
During the first half, the government has raised Rs 4.42 lakh crore, about 62 percent of the total borrowing
(With agency inputs)
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Coffee is often the jumpstart one needs in the morning. Some say coffee is the second most traded commodity in the world after oil.
It’s International Coffee Day on October 01 and so we decided to find out how much exactly a cup of regular cappuccino costs across the world. Where does Mumbai and Delhi figure in the list? Find out here!
Slowdown blues: Output from 8 core sectors down 0.5% in August
KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)
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The Indian economy has been on a shaky wicket in August, according to government data released on Monday. The eight core industries recorded a 0.5 percent decline in output in August, against 2.7 percent growth recorded in July, and 4.7 percent growth in August last year.
The Indian economy has been on a shaky wicket in August, according to government data released on Monday. The eight core industries recorded a 0.5 percent decline in output in August, against 2.7 percent growth recorded in July, and 4.7 percent growth in August last year.
Of these 8 core sectors, coal saw the biggest contraction in output, at 8.6 percent. This sector’s output had contracted 1.6 percent in July. Through August, crude oil growth declined 5.4 percent, natural gas 3.9 percent, cement output was down 4.9 percent, and electricity output fell 2.9 percent. The silver lining came from the fertiliser sector, where output grew 2.9 percent, higher than the 1.5 percent growth in July. The cement sector’s performance is a little worrisome, as it highlights the slowdown in the construction and real estate sector when read against a 7.9 percent expansion in July.
Refinery Products grew 2.6 percent, a robust reversal from the 0.9 percent contraction recorded in July. The steel sector’s output also grew 5 percent in August, and while this is the sector that has seen the biggest spike in August, the number is lower than the 8.9 percent growth seen in July – another sign of persisting weakness in steel and allied sectors like auto and construction.
For the April-August period, growth in these eight core industries grew 2.4 percent, lower than that 5.7 percent growth recorded a year ago.
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Single-use plastic: India’s food regulator set to review packaging guidelines
KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)
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India’s food regulator the food safety and standards authority of India plans to review packaging guidelines to help food and beverage companies migrate to single-use plastic alternatives. These revised regulations will be based on feedback from recent meetings with the industry.
India’s food regulator the food safety and standards authority of India plans to review packaging guidelines to help food and beverage companies migrate to single-use plastic alternatives. These revised regulations will be based on feedback from recent meetings with the industry.
Sources told CNBC-TV18 that the FSSAI will explore allowing alternative forms of packaging for certain foods. For instance, the regulator may allow the use of bamboo and glass as packaging for certain food products. “There were certain forms of packaging which were prohibited in the past. These will now be allowed if there is no food safety issue,” said a food safety official in the know of the developments.
While the industry has been suggesting the use of compostable plastic as an alternate form of packaging, the regulator is of the view that there are certain challenges. “Compostable plastic needs to be segregated and recycled in a certain environment. There needs to be a mechanism in place before it is included in the packaging regulations,” said a food safety official. Sources say that these are some reasons why the authority will not allow the use of compostable plastic just yet.
These changes will reflect as amendments to the packaging norms that the FSSAI notified in January 2019. The regulation defines standards for different materials used for packaging of food products. For instance, these regulations prohibit the use of newspaper and other such materials for packing or wrapping of food articles and includes respective Indian standard for printing inks for use on food packages.
In a response to CNBC-TV18, the FSSAI said that it is participating in ‘Swachhata Hi Seva’ campaign through various programs. They are also looking into regulations to make packaging more environment friendly.
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Flipkart’s Big Billion Day sale is witnessing strong demand from tier-II and III cities for products such as mobile phones and large appliances in its ongoing festive sales, said CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy. As consumers from these cities upgrade, they are coming at par with the metros showcasing unique needs and spending patterns across these categories. So, if you are looking for a sub-Rs 10,000 smartphone set, there are some good deals available on Flipkart’s Big Billion sale, which ends on October 4.
Nokia 6.1 Plus 64 GB | Current price: Rs 17,600 | Price after discount on Flipkart: Rs 8,999 | Offered price at Amazon: Rs 9,999
Redmi Note 7S 64 GB | Existing market price: Rs 13,999 | Price after discount on Flipkart: Rs 9,999 | Offered price at Amazon: Rs 11,821 onwards
Realme 5 64 GB | Existing market price: Rs 11,999 | Price after discount on Flipkart: Rs 9,999 | Offered price at Amazon: Rs 10,999 for 32 GB modelSamsung Galaxy A10 32 GB| Existing market price: Rs 8,700 | Price after discount on Flipkart: Rs 7,990Redmi Note 5 64 GB | Existing market price: Rs 9,999 | Price after discount on Flipkart: Rs 8,390 | Offered price at Amazon: Rs 8,290Gionee F9 32 GB | Existing market price: Rs 7,999 | Price after discount: Rs 5,990
Delhi Metro Grey Line: Dwarka-Najafgarh corridor to open on October 4
KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)
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The corridor consists of three stations — Dwarka (interchange with Blue Line), Nangli and Najafgarh.
The over 4.2 km-long Grey Line of the Delhi Metro, which will connect urban village area of Najafgarh to the rapid transit network, will be opened for services on October 4, officials said on Monday.
The corridor consists of three stations — Dwarka (interchange with Blue Line), Nangli and Najafgarh.
“The Dwarka Najafgarh corridor of Delhi Metro will be formally flagged off on October 4 by MoS (Independent) for Housing & Urban Affairs and Civil Aviation Hardeep Singh Puri and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal,” a senior DMRC official said.
The flagging-off ceremony is slated to take place at Metro Bhawan at 12.15 pm and passenger services on the section shall commence from 5 pm on the same day, said Anuj Dayal, the executive director, corporate communication of the DMRC.
With the opening of this section, the Delhi Metro network will expand to 377 km with 274 stations, including the Noida-Greater Noida Aqua Line.
“The Grey Line is a standard-gauge section and out of the 4.295 km, 2.57 km is elevated and 1.5 km underground. With the opening of this section, the Dwarka metro station is all set to emerge as an interchange facility that will connect the sub-city with the locality of Najafgarh,” Dayal had said.
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Suppressing criticism can lead to policy mistakes, warns Raghuram Rajan
KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)
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People in authority have to tolerate criticism for a failure to do so will lead to policymaking mistakes, Raghuram Rajan, the former governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), has said.
People in authority have to tolerate criticism for a failure to do so will lead to policymaking mistakes, Raghuram Rajan, the former governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), has said.
Rajan, who served as the RBI governor from September 2013 until the end of his tenure three years later, has taken to LinkedIn to post a five-page document on the current state of affairs in the country through the story of eminent jurist and economist Nani Palkhivala.
On the current state of affairs in the country, Rajan wrote that the tendency to look back into past for evidence of greatness is a sign of insecurity and is counterproductive to development.
“I worry about three emerging developments, however. The first is a tendency to look back into our past to find evidence of our greatness. Understanding our history is, obviously, a good thing, but using history to thump our own chest reflects great insecurity and can even be counterproductive. It does nothing for enhancing our current capabilities.”
Rajan added that despite an insular approach and nascent research systems, organisations like Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR) and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) have done exceedingly well to overcome all handicaps on way to historic achievements.
“It was our poverty in the past and continuing shortcomings in our still-developing academic, corporate, and government research systems that keep us from the frontier. Even so, a number of our institutions like ISRO and TIFR have overcome even these handicaps.
“While we should be proud of the very real achievements of an Aryabhatt, pride in the past should not divert us from the enormous effort that is needed today to improve our current systems. Indeed, an excess focus on the past makes us its prisoners. Let us find the strength to move on.”
Rajan touched upon the works of Nobel laureate Robert Sokolow, legendary physicist Richard Feynman, industrial revolution in Britain, rulers of ancient India and post-war protests in the United States to illustrate his points in his post.
He urged authorities to be tolerant to opposing points of views, positing that an aversion to criticism is a surefire way to make policy mistakes.
“Finally, people in authority have to tolerate criticism. Undoubtedly, some of the criticism, including in the press, is ill-informed, motivated, and descends into ad-hominem personal attacks. I have certainly had my share of those in past jobs. However, suppressing criticism is a sure fire recipe for policy mistakes.”
In what can be construed as a veiled attack on the ruling dispensation in the country, the economist said that troll attacks on criticism may silence critical vices but the government will not be wiser for it.
“If every critic gets a phone call from a government functionary asking them to back off, or gets targeted by the ruling party’s troll army, many will tone down their criticism. The government will then live in a pleasant make-believe environment, until the harsh truth can no longer be denied.
“Constant criticism allows periodic course corrections to policy — indeed public criticism gives government bureaucrats the room to speak truth to their political masters. After all, they are not screaming the loudest in the room.
“Conversely, fulsome public praise crowds out the possibility that the government can be self-critical — even a whisper of dissent stands out. Governments that suppress public criticism do themselves a gross disservice.”
Rajan is the Katherine Dusak Miller Distinguished Service Professor of Finance at Chicago Booth. Apart from the RBI governorship, he held the post of chief economist and director of research at the International Monetary Fund between 2003 and 2006.
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