Press Information Bureau

10.05.2018

Civil

Top 30 Innovations of the Atal Tinkering Marathon Showcased

MANU/PIBU/0812/2018

On the eve of the National Technology Day, ATL Marathon's Top 30 Innovations to be supported through industry partnerships.

In an effort to identify India's best student innovators, Atal Tinkering Labs of the Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) of NITI Aayog, organized an Atal Tinkering Marathon, a six month long nationwide challenge across six different thematic areas, namely, clean energy, water resources, waste management, healthcare, smart mobility and agri-tech.

On the eve of the National Technology Day, ATL Marathon's Top 30 Innovations were showcased through a booklet compiling the work done by the children, the mentors, teachers and schools. The booklet was released by the Dr Rajiv Kumar, Vice-Chairman of NITI Aayog, with Shri Ramanan Ramanathan, Mission Director, Atal Innovation Mission.

"This booklet is dedicated to Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who took oath for the first time as Prime Minister of India on May 16. He believed that the future of this country lies in the hands of its children and the Atal Innovation Mission, named after his legacy, translates his dreams into reality", said Dr Kumar. "A very new era is coming where we will become an innovative society rather than an imitative society."

The Top 30 teams are being awarded with several prizes including a three month-long ATL Student Innovator Program (ATL SIP) in partnership with industry and start-up incubator. The goal of the Student innovator program is to test the innovations in the community. Students will be trained on business and entrepreneurship skills, including intellectual property, effective communication, making an elevator pitch and so on. Additionally, ATL schools will be offered a participation voucher to World Robotics Olympiad (WRO), which is a global innovation challenge.

From over 650 innovations received, Top 100 were shortlisted based on novelty and prototype functionality. There 100 teams were then given a month to further refine their prototypes and rework their presentations. Following this, their innovations were judged by an esteemed panel of judges including industry and academia experts to select the Top 30 innovations. These top 30 innovations have been identified from 20 different States and Union territories from across India, full details of which are available on the AIM website.

Atal Tinkering Labs under the Atal Innovation Mission of NITI Aayog, is based on the philosophy that incentives and prize awards are a great beginning to create an exponential wave of innovation and entrepreneurship amongst school children. The ATL Student Innovator Program is an effort to institutionalize a mechanism, where high school students can work with university incubators to pursue their innovative and entrepreneurial ideas along with their education. Our goal is to drive extensive forward and backward linkages within the stakeholders in India, to create a paradigm shift in the student mindset and prepare them to become young innovators and entrepreneurs.

Tags : Innovations Atal Tinkering Marathon Showcased

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Press Information Bureau

09.05.2018

Civil

Central Government issues orders for extending assistance to clear the dues of sugarcane farmers

MANU/PIBU/0808/2018

1. Due to higher sugar production against the estimated consumption during the current sugar season 2017-18, the domestic sugar prices have remained depressed since the commencement of the season. As a result, accumulated dues of farmers have reached to over Rs. 20,000 crores.

2. In order to stabilize sugar prices at reasonable level and to improve liquidity position of mills thereby enabling them to clear cane price dues of farmers, Government has taken following steps in past three months:

(a) Increased customs duty on import of sugar from 50% to 100%.

(b) Imposed reverse stock holding limits on producers of sugar for the months of February and March, 2018 to stabilise sugar price.

(c) Government has also fully withdrawn the customs duty on export of sugar to encourage sugar industry to start exploring possibility of export of sugar.

(d) In view of the inventory levels with the sugar industry and to facilitate achievement of financial liquidity, mill-wise Minimum Indicative Export Quotas (MIEQ) totalling 20 Lakh MT have been fixed for sugar season 2017-18.

(e) Further, to facilitate and incentivize export of surplus sugar by sugar mills, Government has allowed Duty Free Import Authorization (DFIA) Scheme in respect of sugar.

3. In April, 2015, the cane price arrears of farmers reached to an alarming level of about Rs. 22,000 crores. The Central Government then notified, in December, 2015, a production subsidy scheme to offset the cost of cane to clear the dues of sugarcane farmers; a subsidy was provided @ Rs. 4.50/- per quintal of cane crushed. As a result of this measure, the sugar prices stabilized and arrears were reduced substantially.

4. In order to help sugar mills to clear cane dues of farmers, the Government has decided to provide financial assistance @ of Rs. 5.50 per quintal of cane crushed in sugar season 2017-18 to sugar mills to offset the cost of cane. The said assistance shall be paid directly to the farmers on behalf of the mills and be adjusted against the cane price payable due to the farmers against Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) including arrears relating to previous years.

5. Mills which fulfill the following conditions, will be eligible for the said assistance of Rs.5.50/qtl of cane crushed:

(a) Mills having ethanol production capacity and who have signed contracts with Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) for supply of ethanol, should have supplied at least 80% of indented quantity of ethanol under Ethanol Blended with Petrol Programme (EBP) to OMCs during 2017-18 ethanol season (December, 2017 - November, 2018).

(b) The mill should have filed updated online return in Proforma-II relating to data on crushing of cane, production of sugar, sale of sugar and by-products, etc as prescribed by Government under the provisions of Sugar (Control) Order, 1966.

(c) The mill should have fully complied with all the orders/directives of Department of Food and Public Distribution (DFPD) to the sugar mills during 2017-18 sugar season.

6. The said assistance of Rs. 5.50/qtl of cane crushed will be provided on the basis of actual cane crushed or inter se allocation of earlier estimated 2800 LMT of cane to be crushed during 2017-18 sugar season, whichever is lower.

7. The total assistance would be about Rs. 1540 crore which will directly benefit a large number of farmers and will help the sugar mills in a long way in discharging their liabilities on account of cane price dues of farmers.

Tags : Assistance extension Sugarcane farmers Dues

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Press Information Bureau

09.05.2018

Commercial

Creation of Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) in Department of Commerce

MANU/PIBU/0809/2018

The Government of India carried out an Amendment to the Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961 on May 7, 2018 substituting "Directorate General of Trade Remedies" in place of "Directorate General of Anti-Dumping and Allied Duties" in Department of Commerce. This has paved way for creation of an integrated single umbrella National Authority to be called the Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) for providing comprehensive and swift trade defence mechanism in India. The amendment of Allocation of Business Rules has also mandated Department of Commerce with work pertaining to recommendation of Safeguard measures.

2. Presently, the trade defence mechanism in India lacks optimality and takes more than a year to complete proceedings in cases pertaining to unfair trade practices. Currently, the Directorate General of Anti-dumping and Allied Duties (DGAD) deals with anti-dumping and CVD cases, Directorate General of Safeguards (DGS) deals with safeguard measures and DGFT deals with quantitative restriction (QR) safeguards. The DGTR will bring DGAD, DGS and Safeguards (QR) functions of DGFT into its fold by merging them into one single national entity. DGTR will deal with Anti-dumping, CVD and Safeguard measures. It will also provide trade defence support to our domestic industry and exporters in dealing with increasing instances of trade remedy investigations instituted against them by other countries. The creation of DGTR will provide a level playing field to the domestic industry. In the last three years, India initiated more than 130 anti-dumping/countervailing duty/safeguard cases to deal with the rising incidences of unfair trade practices and to provide a level playing field to the domestic industry.

3. The DGTR will function as an attached office of Department of Commerce. The recommendation of DGTR for imposition of Anti-dumping, countervailing & Safeguard duties would be considered by the Department of Revenue.

4. The DGTR will be a professionally integrated organisation with multi-spectrum skill sets emanating from officers drawn from different services and specialisations. The DGTR will also bring in substantial reduction of the time taken to provide relief to the domestic industry. The newly constituted body is in consonance with the goal of Minimum Government Maximum Governance of the Prime Minister of India.

5. The Commerce and Industry Minister Sh. Suresh Prabhu expressed his satisfaction over the fact that the proposal of creation of DGTR which was pending since 1997 has been approved under the leadership of the Prime Minister, making it an epochal event for the benefit of the domestic industry.

Tags : Creation Directorate Trade Remedies

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Press Information Bureau

09.05.2018

Civil

Dr. Jitendra Singh releases 'Indian Guidelines for Diabetes Management'

MANU/PIBU/0811/2018

The Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh, who is also a nationally renowned Diabetologist, released here a compilation of "Indian Guidelines for Management of Diabetes Mellitus", prepared by "Research Society for Study of Diabetes in India" (RSSDI).

At a function held here today and attended by RSSDI National President-Elect Dr. Rajeev Chawla, National Secretary Dr. B.M. Makkar and all the National Executive Members, MoS Dr. Jitendra Singh, while releasing the book, congratulated the RSSDI office bearers for having come out with a comprehensive updated version of Indian guidelines for management of Diabetes Mellitus. He recalled his nearly three-decade long association with RSSDI, which he served in different capacities as Executive Member as well as Scientific Chairman, and said that the set of Indian guidelines released today is a befitting tribute to the legacy which we had inherited from the founding fathers of RSSDI including Prof. V. Vishwanathan, Prof. Sam G.P. Moses, Prof. B. B. Tripathi, Prof. H.B. Chandalia, Prof. M.M.S. Ahuja and Prof. V. Seshiah.

Dr. Jitendra Singh recalled that possibly the first set of Indian guidelines for management of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus was prepared way back in 1990s by a team of medicos, of which he himself was also a member and the team was headed by Prof. B.K. Sahay of Usmania Medical College, Hyderabad. These guidelines, he said, were published in a special issue of "Journal of Association of Physicians of India" (JAPI).

In one of the RSSDI Annual meets nearly two decades ago, Dr. Jitendra Singh recalled, the theme was "Screening for complications at the time of diagnosis of Diabetes Mellitus" and expressed satisfaction that the new guidelines released today have devoted sufficient emphasis and elaboration to this aspect. He also recalled a paper published by him and others under the title "Economic Burden of Diabetes" which too was published in JAPI over a decade ago and said, he was happy to note that the issue of cost effectiveness in the management of Diabetes had also been discussed in the guidelines released today.

Referring to the Government's sensitive approach towards the healthcare in contemporary India, Dr. Jitendra Singh made a special mention of the decision taken under Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi to have a country-wide setting up of Kidney Dialysis Units in Government set-up and also provide health insurance cover under Ayushman Bharat. He said, it was Prime Minister who realized the importance of Yoga in the management of widely prevalent diseases like Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and successfully persuaded the United Nations Organization (UNO) to observe the International Day of Yoga annually.

With more than 70% of India's population below the age of 40 years, Dr. Jitendra Singh said, a tight management of Diabetes Mellitus, particularly in the young, has become a national priority.

Tags : Guidelines Diabetes Management Release

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Press Information Bureau

07.05.2018

Civil

India signs 200 million US Dollar Loan Deal with World Bank for National Nutrition Mission (POSHAN Abhiyaan) for 315 districts across all states/UTs

MANU/PIBU/0798/2018

The Government of India signed a loan deal worth $ 200 million with the World Bank today for the National Nutrition Mission (POSHAN Abhiyaan). The loan would help the Government of India in achieving its goal of reducing stunting in children 0-6 years of age from 38.4% to 25% by the year 2022.

The POSHAN (PM's Overarching Scheme for Holistic Nourishment) Abhiyaan was launched by the Prime Minister on 8th March 2018 at Jhunjhunu, Rajasthan.

A large component of POSHAN Abhiyaan involves gradual scaling-up of the interventions supported by the ongoing World Bank assisted Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Systems Strengthening and Nutrition Improvement Project (ISSNIP) to all districts in the country over a 3-year period. The loan approved today will support the first phase scale up to 315 districts across all states and union territories (UTs).

With a focus on improving the coverage and quality of ICDS nutrition services to pregnant and lactating women and children under 3 years of age, the project will include investments in improving the skills and capacities of ICDS staff and community nutrition workers, instituting mechanisms of community mobilization and behavior change communication, strengthening systems of citizen engagement and grievance redress and establishing mobile technology based tools for improved monitoring and management of services for better outreach to beneficiaries during the critical 1,000 day window for nutrition impact. The project will additionally ensure convergence of all nutrition related schemes and provide performance based incentives to states and community nutrition and health workers, facilitating a focus on results.

Tags : Loan Deal World Bank POSHAN Abhiyaan

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Press Information Bureau

07.05.2018

Direct Taxation

CBDT notifies the Protocol amending the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) between India and Kuwait

MANU/PIBU/0803/2018

A Protocol to amend the existing Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) between India and Kuwait signed on 15.06.2006 for the avoidance of double taxation and for the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income was signed on 15.01.2017. The said Protocol has entered into force on 26.03.2018 and is notified in Official Gazette on 04.05.2018.

The Protocol updates the provisions in the DTAA for exchange of information as per international standards. Further, the Protocol enables sharing of the information received from Kuwait for tax purposes with other law enforcement agencies with authorisation of the competent authority of Kuwait and vice versa.

Tags : Protocol Amendment DTAA

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Telecom Regulatory Authority of India

07.05.2018

Media and Communication

Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) releases 'Report on Activities for the year 2017'

MANU/TRAI/0056/2018

Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has today released a Report on Activities for the period 1st January, 2017 to 31st December, 2017. The Report presents an abstract of the activities of the Authority, during the calendar year 2017. All the Recommendations, Regulations, Orders and Directions referred to in the report are available on the TRAI's website. and can be referred to for detailed information. It is hoped that this report gives the stakeholders a broader view and better understanding of the initiatives taken by the Authority to enhance the growth of telecom and broadcasting sectors.

The Report on Activities has been placed on TRAI's website for information of the stakeholders. For any clarification on the above Report, contact Shri Sanjeev Kumar Sharma Advisor (Administration), Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, Mahanagar Doorsanchar Bhawan, Jawahar Lal Nehru Marg, New Delhi-110002, Tel.No.23236119, email id: advadmn@trai.gov.in.

Tags : Report Release Activities 2017

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Ministry of Finance 

07.05.2018

Customs

Imposition of anti-dumping duty on subject goods

MANU/CUSA/0024/2018

Whereas, in the matter of import of 'Jute Products' namely, Jute Yarn/Twine (multiple folded/cabled and single), Hessian fabric, and Jute sacking bags (hereinafter referred to as the subject goods) falling under Tariff Headings 5307, 5310, 5607 or 6305 of the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act, 1975 (51 of 1975) (hereinafter referred to as the Customs Tariff Act), originating in, or exported from Bangladesh and Nepal (hereinafter referred to as subject countries) and imported into India, the designated authority, vide its final findings in notification No. 14/19/2015-DGAD, dated the 20th October, 2016, published in the Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part I, Section 1, dated the 20th October, 2016 had come to the conclusion that-

(i) there is dumping of subject goods from the subject countries;

(ii) imports from subject countries are undercutting and suppressing the prices of the domestic industry;

(iii) performance of domestic industry has deteriorated in the terms of profitability return on investments and cash flow;

(iv) injury to domestic industry has been caused by dumped imports;

and had recommended continued imposition of definitive anti-dumping duty on imports of the subject goods originating in, or exported from, the subject countries;

And whereas, on the basis of the aforesaid findings of the designated authority, the Central Government had imposed an anti-dumping duty on the subject goods, vide, notification of the Government of India in the Ministry of Finance (Department of Revenue), No. 01/2017- Customs (ADD), dated the 5th January, 2017, published vide number G.S.R. 11(E) in the Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part II, Section 3, Sub-section (i), dated the 5th January, 2017;

And whereas, M/s. Roman Jute Mills Ltd. (Producer/Exporter) and M/s SMP International, LLC, USA (Exporter/ Trader) have requested for review in terms of rule 22 of the Customs Tariff (Identification, Assessment and Collection of Anti-dumping Duty on Dumped Articles and for Determination of Injury) Rules, 1995, in respect of exports of the subject goods made by them, and the designated authority, vide new shipper review notification No. 7/7/2018- DGAD dated the 27th March 2018, published in the Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Part I, Section I, dated the 27th March, 2018, has recommended provisional assessment of all exports of the subject goods made by the above stated parties till the completion of the review by it.

Now, therefore, in exercise of the powers conferred by sub-rule (2) of rule 22 of the Customs Tariff (Identification, Assessment and Collection of Anti-dumping Duty on Dumped Articles and for Determination of Injury) Rules, 1995, the Central Government, after considering the aforesaid recommendation of the designated authority, hereby orders that pending the outcome of the said review by the designated authority, the subject goods, when originating in or exported from Bangladesh by M/s. Roman Jute Mills Ltd. (Producer/Exporter) and M/s SMP International, LLC, USA (Exporter/ Trader) and imported into India, shall be subjected to provisional assessment till the review is completed.

2. The provisional assessment may be subject to such security or guarantee as the proper officer of customs deems fit for payment of the deficiency, if any, in case a definitive antidumping duty is imposed retrospectively, on completion of investigation by the designated authority.

3. In case of recommendation of anti-dumping duty after completion of the said review by the designated authority, the importer shall be liable to pay the amount of such anti-dumping duty recommended on review and imposed on all imports of subject goods when originating in or exported from Bangladesh by M/s. Roman Jute Mills Ltd. (Producer/Exporter) and M/s SMP International, LLC, USA (Exporter/ Trader) and imported into India, from the date of initiation of the said review.

Tags : Anti-dumping duty Goods Imposition

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