India-Pak commerce ministers to meet in Sep

After a gap of over three years, commerce ministers of Pakistan and India will meet in New Delhi next month to discuss trade expansion and proposals to remove non-tariff barriers which hinder smooth trade between the two countries.

 The meeting has been convened at the initiative of Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma who has extended a formal invitation to his Pakistani counterpart Makhdoom Amin Fahim to discuss several issues, reviving hopes that the two countries would fully exploit the potential of bilateral trade.

 “Yes, we have received a formal invitation from the Indian commerce minister. He has invited Pakistani commerce minister to visit India to discuss several trade-related issues,” a source in the commerce ministry told Dawn.

 At a meeting in April this year commerce secretaries of the two countries expressed willingness to proceed further on issues like removing non-tariff barriers (NTBs) and Pakistan extending Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status to India.

 The source said it would be an important meeting and Pakistan would urge India to end its opposition to the European Union preferential trade package offered to Pakistan in the wake of last year’s devastating floods.

 In the April meeting, India agreed to remove Pakistan-specific non-tariff barriers (NTBs), and if it materialises it will be widely hailed by Pakistani businessmen who want access to Indian markets.

The issue regarding improving trade facilitation measures at the Wagha border would also be discussed during the meeting, the source said.

 To reciprocate the offer, Pakistan has offered to grant the MFN status to India, but it was conditional to removal of NTBs by India. It is expected that the MFN status to India may be considered in October, 2011.

 The source said Pakistan was optimistic of getting a positive response from India on the issue of EU trade package and the removal of NTBs. In case of a positive move, the source said, the case of granting India the MFN status would become easier.

 There is also an understanding to start a bilateral preferential trade agreement with India. There have been reports that the bilateral trade could increase to $6.5 billion from less than $2 billion.

Pakistan wanted India to remove NTBs such as insisting on lab tests for textiles and directing imports of specific goods through designated terminals.

 Indian officials deny any Pakistan-specific NTBs, claiming they were meant for all imported goods.

CAG: consultants selection for beautification project arbitrary

The Performance Audit Report of the Commonwealth Games 2010, released by the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India on Friday, has indicted Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and the Delhi government for causing losses running into hundreds of crores to the exchequer.

Addressing a press conference here, Deputy CAG Rekha Gupta said: “In our view, the street-scaping and beautification project was ill-conceived and ill-planned, without a broad overarching vision and perspective of how this would impact urban design and development. The project was largely a consultant-driven project, with the selection of consultants being arbitrary and non-transparent, and without any common design guidelines and targeted budgetary estimates.”

Ms. Gupta said, “This resulted in adoption of richer specifications in an arbitrary and inconsistent manner in different packages. We found the average awarded works for street-scaping and beautification works of Rs. 4.8 crore/km to be exorbitant with a total estimated wasteful expenditure of more than Rs. 100 crore.”

The CAG, while acknowledging the “marked improvement in illumination levels of Delhi roads brought about by the implementation of the street lighting project,” however, criticised the decision to use imported luminaries on selected ‘A' category of roads, saying it was “not based on technical parameters.” Noting that this decision was “taken with the active involvement of the CM,” the CAG said it “resulted in avoidable expenditure of more than Rs.30 crore.”

Further, “the procurement price of imported luminaries was far higher than the fair prices.” Also, Ms. Gupta said, “We found restrictive tendering conditions imposed by the Public Works Department, as well as a deficient ‘design-based' tendering approach followed by the New Delhi Municipal Council.”

In a similar vein, the CAG, while acknowledging the improvement brought to the look of Delhi by the consistent implementation of the road signage project, “found that restrictive tendering conditions were imposed, ensuring sharing of signage works between two major sheet manufacturers.” Subsequently, “designs for the signage were also revised, with several extra and substituted items of dubious utility.”

As for the infrastructure projects, Ms. Gupta said: “We reviewed seven key road and flyover projects linked to the Commonwealth Games. Adoption of a higher rate of profit and overhead charges led to higher cost baselines for potential bidders. We also found irregularities in award of some projects, including consideration of a separate letter quoting a lump sum amount and use of correction fluid in tender documents.”

The CAG was critical of the handling of the “project for renovation and restoration of Connaught Place in time for the Games” and said it was “plagued by undue delays.”

“The original estimated cost of Rs. 76 crore went up nearly nine-fold. The NDMC chose not to follow the approach of dividing the project into manageable packages, so organised as to minimise traffic disruption across the whole of CP. Instead, the project was divided into packages spanning the whole of CP, with all activities getting around the same time. Apart from a pilot project, this project remained incomplete till the time of the Games.”

Court bans disclosure of Kalmadi's medical condition

The Tihar Jail authorities as well various city hospitals, where sacked Commonwealth Games Organising Committee chief Suresh Kalmadi was medically examined recently, were asked by a Delhi court not to make public his medical condition.

"Jail Superintendent and other officials of jail (Tihar), the Medical Superintendent of LNJP Hospital and the Director of AIIMS are directed not to divulge any detail of the medical condition or information regarding medical records of accused Suresh Kalmadi to any media, whether electronic or print," Special CBI Judge Talwant Singh said.
The judge also asked Kalmadi not to speak to the media. The court passed the order after Kalmadi`s counsel told the court that "the medical reports (of Kalmadi) are supposed to be confidential and even before they are submitted in the court or we get to see them, they are being spoken about by the jail authorities to the media."
The judge, while directing jail and hospital authorities to exercise restraint, also directed Kalmadi not to brief the media as he told his counsel that "they (jail and hospital authorities) are government officials and have no choice but to obey my orders but you make sure your client does not brief the media himself."
On his visit to the AIIMS on July 28, Kalmadi had dismissed all reports of his being unwell and had said his condition was "all right" and all that is being heard about him "is wrong".

Now exclusive phone network for officials

In a major policy decision, an inter-ministerial committee approved a proposal to set up a dedicated and fully secure network for defence and security use using broadband telephony. The pilot project would be started in Delhi by the year-end with 5,000 officials connected through Voice-over-Internet Protocol (VoIP).

After last month’s serial blasts in Mumbai, Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan had complained that he could not reach his top officers, including the police chief, for nearly 15 minutes due to “complete collapse” of the mobile phone network.

Sources said secure VoIP customer premise equipment (CPE) would be integrated with existing landline numbers and restricted exchange (RAX) which is a limited secure phone system exclusively for the Prime Minister, his Cabinet colleagues, senior secretaries and private secretaries of ministers.

Combative opposition to corner govt

As there is no let up in heat outside, it is expected that the parliament would also witness lot of fireworks. The issue of price rise is expected to generate heat in Lok Sabha today with the Left parties planning to move an adjournment motion and the BJP also seeking debate on the issue under a rule which entails voting.

  

"We will move an adjournment motion in the Lok Sabha tomorrow on the issue of price rise,"CPI Secretary D Raja told PTI. The announcement came close on the heels of the BJP stating it will demand a discussion on price rise under Rule 184 in Lok Sabha which entails voting.

  

In a clear signal that the Left and the Right are making a common cause on the crucial issue, former Finance Minister and BJP MP Yashwant Sinha will initiate the demand for this discussion in the Lower House.

   

JD (U) President and NDA Convenor Sharad Yadav will also demand discussion and voting on price rise in the Lok Sabha. Raja said that in the Rajya Sabha too the Left parties would demand a discussion on price rise under a rule which entails voting. However, the government appeared confident of finding a way out and ensure smooth functioning of the House.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal said he and Leader of the Lok Sabha Pranab Mukherjee were having"positive"talks with the opposition and"we will be able to have good, healthy, constructive discussions in the House.For a change."

Beware all those who take capitation fee

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on HRD has recommended imposition of maximum penalty of Rs one crore on those technical and medical institutions which charge capitation fees from students. The panel has, however, left it to the government to fix maximum and minimum penalty for violations in this regard.

The committee has also recommended that different penalties be imposed for different violations in proportion to the offence, and asked the Department to work out the quantum of penalty on a case-to-case basis and not on a uniform basis. "A major and minor violation cannot be treated as equal and a uniform amount of penalty for all types of offences is against the principle of natural justice," it observed.

The Committee, in its report on Prohibition of Unfair Practices in Technical Education Institutions, Medical Educational Institutions and Universities Bill, 2010, has held that smaller penalty on institutes charging capitation fee will not be considered an effective deterrent, going by the high rates of capitation fee charged by them for seats in medical colleges.

The panel also recognises the need for specifying a minimum penalty for violations, as it feels that all  violations under the Act be treated as serious, as they affectthe interests of students and may put their future at stake.

It has also felt the need for having more medical institutions in the country to help bridge the gap, as it felt the practice of charging capitation fee was directly related to the shortage of sets in medical institutions.

Lawmakers on the other side of lawl

Are the lawmakers abiding with law ? You all are mulling that as to why we have put the question before you. According to Delhi traffic police rules, the elected representatives of the parliament are not liable to put red light on their vehicle but several MPs have established themselves above this ruling.

When the team of News 24 channel interacted with some members in the parliament who are enjoying the facility in an unlawful manner, they had no answer. Senior Samajwadi party leader Revati Raman Singh and BJP leade Kalraj Mishra promised not to repeat the fault but they didn’t drop the sign of power which signifies them more than their status.

Well, the law says that such facility can only avail by the president, vice-president, prime minister, chief minister, governor, former prime ministers and chief of the armed forces.
Normally, the leaders never are red in the face over misdeed but it exhibits that they are very much passionate to put red on the top of their vehicles.