June-2011-National

NATIONAL AFFAIRS

Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill
On June 30, 2011, India took a huge leap forward towards guaranteeing equality and non-discrimination to more than 70 million of its disabled as a government committee appointed to draft a new law for the sector submitted a ground-breaking disability legislation that provides legal mechanisms to enforce civil and political rights of the persons with disabilities.

The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill 2011 specifies, for the first time, criminal sanctions for acts of omission and commission against the disabled; bars discrimination on grounds of disability and proposes enhanced job quota for the disabled from 3 to 7 per cent in all establishments. The quota is to be distributed among seven listed categories of the disabled.

Twenty forms of disability, including intellectual disabilities, thalassemia, dwarfism and haemophilia, are covered by the new law (against seven currently covered). There is also a provision to create a National Disability Regulatory Authority to prescribe standards on accessibility and rules for service providers.

The law says no new building plan can be passed unless it meets accessibility norms; existing government buildings will have to become accessible in three years of the law’s enforcement and other public buildings will get five years. Non-compliance will result in suspension of water, electricity supply to buildings; cancellation or suspension of builders’ licence or fine up to 5 per cent of the building’s market value or a combination of all.

Separate chapters have been dedicated to the rights of disabled women and children and penalties prescribed for violation. All disabled children (0 to 18 years) will be entitled to the Right to Education though the RTE Act covers those from 6 to 14 years.

The Bill further replaces the existing concept of plenary guardianship with limited guardianship, which means all guardians of persons with disabilities will be legally obliged to consult them to arrive at legally binding decisions.

The law prescribes severe penalties—6 months to 8 years in prison and fine—for wilfully injuring a person with disability; up to seven years and fine for wrongful medical practises that cause infertility and up to 10 years for forceful termination of pregnancy. For general violations, a penalty of 6 months and Rs 50,000 fine is proposed.

The new law is in accordance with the UN Convention on Rights of Persons with Disability, which India ratified in 2007.

Draft Manufacturing Policy approved
The UPA government has unveiled a National Manufacturing Policy (NMP). The policy seeks to create 100 million industrial jobs by 2025.

The NMP has set a target of increasing manufacturing sector growth to 12-14 per cent over the medium term. The policy wants the sector to contribute at least 25 per cent to the GDP by 2025.

It will address issues of rationalisation and simplification of business regulations, simple and expeditious exit mechanism for closure of sick units and financial and institutional mechanisms for technology development.

Green technologies, industrial training and skill upgrade are also on the agenda. The government will take measures to make industrial land available through creation of land banks by States and utilization of lands locked under non-productive uses, including defunct or sick industries.

A comprehensive exit policy has been conceptualised which will promote productivity, while providing flexibility by removing rigidity in the labour market.

Home-grown technology will find favour and policies will be put in place for development of advanced indigenous , including tax concessions and government subsidies and preferential purchases by government agencies.

While India will continue with bilateral and regional free trade agreements, it will be ensured that such agreements do not have a detrimental effect on domestic manufacturing. The government will also consider use of public procurement in specified sectors, with stipulation of local value addition, in areas of critical technologies like solar energy equipment, electronic hardware, fuel efficient transport equipment and IT-based security systems.

Union Cabinet okays affordable housing project
In an effort to create a slum-free country by 2020, the Union government has approved the development of housing and basic facilities in slums across 250 cities in the country, under the Rajiv Awas Yojana.

The slum development projects would be undertaken in 250 cities that have a population of more than one lakh. The project will be undertaken across the country by the end of the 12th Five Year Plan (2012-2017). The scheme aims at helping re-development of slums, stopping proliferation and providing a dignified life, besides property rights to the dwellers.

The Union government will bear 50 per cent of the cost of the projects and Rs 1,000 crore will be provided as capital for mortgage guarantee facilities under the scheme. The Centre will provide financial assistance to States willing to assign property rights to slum-dwellers for provision of shelter and basic, civic and social services, besides creation of affordable housing stock.

Around 32.1 million people live in slums in Indian cities.

The foundation for the scheme was first laid by the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), which was launched on December 2005 and is the largest national urban initiative to encourage reforms and planned development of 63 identified cities.

Visit of New Zealand’s Prime Minister
New Zealand Prime Minister John Key arrived in India on June 26, 2011 for his first visit to India to meet his counterpart Manmohan Singh and discuss the free trade agreement between the two countries. Key was accompanied by a 26-member delegation that included Minister of Trade Tim Groser and Indian-origin MP Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi.

The delegation also visited Agra and Mumbai.

During his meeting, Mr Key promoted his government’s India strategy, which aims to position India as a core political, economic and trade partner for New Zealand by 2015. He said the strategy has been developed by government agencies in consultation with business houses, exporters and academics.

 “The trade potential of the India market is huge and we have set a target of growing two-way trade from 1.28 billion New Zealand dollars to three billion by 2014,” he added.

India, Pakistan agree to more Loc trade, travel
On June 24, 2011, India and Pakistan decided to initiate a series of nuclear and cross-LoC confidence building measures (CBMs) as the Foreign Secretaries of the two countries concluded their two-day talks in New Delhi on a positive note.

Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao and her Pakistani counterpart Salman Bashir said the two sides had agreed to carry forward the dialogue in a constructive and purposeful manner.

Rao made it clear to the Pakistani side that it would be difficult for the two countries to move forward on the J&K issue under the shadow of the gun and extremist violence. The Indian side also conveyed to Islamabad its concern over continuing infiltration in J&K.

Over the cross-LoC CBMs, Rao said the two sides agreed to convene a meeting of the working group in the matter for strengthening and streamlining the existing trade and travel arrangements and propose modalities for introducing additional cross-LoC CBMs.

The two countries have decided to increase the frequency of the Srinagar-Muzafarrabad bus service, open more trade routes along the LoC, increase number of trading days as well as the validity of travel permits to six months and provide banking facilities to businessmen.

They also decided to set up a group of experts on nuclear and conventional CBMs to discuss implementation and strengthening of existing arrangements and to consider additional measures to build trust and confidence and promote peace and security.

The Foreign also discussed an agreement to prevent any untoward situation at high seas as was witnessed recently in the Gulf of Aden when sailors of MV Suez were being taken to safety.

NATGRID gets in-principal approval
After the establishment of National Investigation Agency (NIA) to probe terror cases, the Union Home Ministry has got the in-principle approval for it's another show-case project — the National Intelligence Grid (NATGRID). The law enforcement and intelligence agencies would be able to share information real time once the NATGRID becomes fully operational.

NATGRID will have access to about 21 categories of databases like phone records, credit card transactions, travel details, bank accounts, income tax returns and visa and immigration records. The database will be available to 11 law enforcement and intelligence agencies. The ambitious "Crime and Criminal Tracking Network System (CCTNS) will lay the ground work for the NATGRID.

So far, there is no system under which one police station can talk to another directly. There is no record of crimes or criminals that can be accessed by a Station House Officer, except the manual records relating to the particular police station. Also, there is no system of data storage and data sharing. All these issues will be taken care of under CCTNS.

India gets first e-waste management rules
Putting the onus of re-cycling of electronic wastes (e-waste) on the producers, the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF) has for the first time notified e-waste management rules.

The e-waste (management and handling) Rules, 2011 would recognise the producers’ liability for recycling and reducing e-waste in the country. The rules will come into effect from May 1, 2012.

Personal Computer manufacturers, mobile handset makers and white goods makers will be required to come up with e-waste collection centres or introduce ‘take back’ systems.

India, at present, generates about 400,000 tonnes of e-wastes annually of which only 19,000 tonnes are getting recycled. Around 40 per cent of the unused and obsolete electronic products sit idle at homes and warehouses as one does not know what to do with it or there is no systematic mechanism to dispose it.

E-wastes are considered dangerous, as certain electronic components contain substances such as lead, cadmium, lead oxide (in cathode ray tubes), toxic gases, toxic metals, biologically active materials, acids, plastics and plastic additives. These substances are considered hazardous depending on their condition and density.

Under the new rules, producers will have to make consumers aware about the hazardous components present in the product. They will also have to give information booklets to prevent e-waste from being dropped in garbage bins.

However, according to the rules, bulk consumers such as enterprises and government will be responsible for recycling of the e-wastes generated by them. The bulk users have to ensure that the e-waste generated by them is channelized to authorised collection centres or is taken back by the producers. They also have to maintain records of e-wastes generated by them and make such records available with State Pollution Control Boards or the Pollution Control Committees.