1. Kirit Parekh panel suggest complete deregulation of Gas prices from 1 January 2026
Tags: committee Economy/Finance
The Kirit Parekh panel set up by the government of India to review the gas pricing formula in India has submitted its report to the Government of India on 30 November. It has made a host of recommendations to deregulate gas prices in India by January 1, 2026. Deregulation here means the price of the gasses shall be decided by the market not by the government.
In September, the government constituted the committee, led by energy expert and former Planning Commission (since renamed NITI Aayog) member Kirit Parikh, to review the gas pricing formula for gas produced in the country with the aim to ensure a fair price.
Background to the Issue
India is a major importer of gas in the world but there are certain gas fields in India which produce Natural Gases.
There are broadly two types of Gas field in India.
One is called a legacy gas field. They are those gas fields that were allotted to Government owned ONGC and Oil India Limited (OIL). The price of the gasses produced from these fields are decided by the government and they are provided to consumers at a highly subsidized price. Also ONGC and OIL neither give any royalty to the government nor share their profit with the government.
Such fields account for about 80 per cent of annual gas output of India.
Other Gas fields
The other gas fields are owned by private companies like Reliance, Vedanta. They have to give royalty to the government. In these gas fields there is pricing freedom but the maximum price is fixed by the government.
Recommendation of the Parekh Committee
- For the Legacy gas field it has recommended a minimum price of USD 4 per Metric Million British Thermal Unit (mmBTU) and the maximum price at USD 6.5/mmBTU.
- It has recommended increasing the upper limit by USD 0.5/mmBTU every year. The proposal is to implement this from 1 January 2027.
- For the other gas field it has recommended that the upper price limit shall be removed from 1 January 2026. This will give them full freedom to set prices and make marketing strategies.
- The committee has also recommended bringing natural gas under the ambit of Goods and Services Tax (GST) to bring transparency in the pricing of gas.
Gas price mechanism in India
The government sets the price of gas every six months, on April 1 and October 1 of each year, based on rates prevalent in gas-surplus nations such as the US, Canada and Russia in one year with a lag of one quarter.
2. SEBI forms a panel headed by Justice Shiavax Jal Vazifadar to review the Corporate Takeover rules
Tags: committee Economy/Finance
The Capital market regulator Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has formed a 20 member high level panel to review the extant corporate takeover rules.
The 20 member panel will be headed by the former chief justice of Punjab and Haryana High Court Justice Shiavax Jal Vazifadar.
The takeover code was last reviewed in 2009 by the Achutan committee.
Function of the Panel
The panel will review the existing corporate takeover rules and suggest changes in it keeping in mind the judicial pronouncement and best global practices.
It will suggest measures to facilitate ease of doing business in India.
Corporate takeover code in India
With the opening of the Indian economy to the private sector and foreign investors, a need was felt to make a rule which will promote transparency in the case of Merger and Acquisition (M&A) of companies.
SEBI made the first comprehensive code for M&A in 1994 called Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) (Substantial Acquisition of Shares and Takeovers) Regulations.
The code has amended significantly twice.
It was amended in 1997 on the recommendation of Justice P N Bhagwati committee.
The code was again amended in 2011 by SEBI on the recommendation of the 2009 Achutan committee on corporate takeover.
Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)
The Securities and Exchange Board of India was constituted as a non-statutory body on April 12, 1988 through a resolution of the Government of India.
The Securities and Exchange Board of India was established as a statutory body in the year 1992 and the provisions of the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act, 1992 (15 of 1992) came into force on January 30, 1992.
It is the regulator of the capital and commodities market in India.
Headquarters: Mumbai
Current Chairman: Madhabi Puri Buch
3. Centre forms panel to revamp MGNREGA job guarantee scheme
Tags: committee
The central government has constituted a committee to improve the MNREGA scheme. This committee will examine the efficacy of MGNREGA as a means of poverty alleviation.
Important facts
The first meeting of this committee, headed by former Rural Development Secretary Amarjit Sinha, was held on November 21.
It has been given three months to give its suggestions.
The committee has been asked to review the work demand in MGNREGA, spending patterns, variation in demand across states and the incremental cost of providing employment since inception of the scheme.
Also, this committee will suggest what changes can be made to make this scheme more effective.
The committee will also have to submit recommendations for better implementation of the scheme in poor areas.
This scheme was brought as a means of poverty alleviation in rural areas, but states like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, where the level of poverty is high, have not been able to get the proper benefits of this scheme.
Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme
MNREGA Act was passed by the Indian Parliament on 23rd August 2005 but it came into force on February 6, 2006.
On 2nd October 2009 an amendment was made in the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act 2005, to change the nomenclature of the Act from NREGA to MGNREGA
The mandate of the MGNREGA is to provide at least 100 days of guaranteed wage employment in a financial year to every rural household whose adult members volunteer to do unskilled manual work.
The scheme is under the administrative control of the Union Ministry of Rural Development.
Union Minister for Rural Development and Panchayati Raj - Giriraj Singh
4. Government constitute 22nd Law Commission with Justice (retd.) Rituraj Awasthi as the Chairperson
Tags: committee Person in news
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The Union ministry of Law and Justice constituted the 22nd Law Commission on 7 November 2022 and appointed former Karnataka High court chief justice Rituraj Awasthi as the chairperson of the Law Commission.
The five member 22nd Law Commission will have a term of three years.
Justice Rituraj Awasthi was recently in the spotlight as the judge who headed the Karnataka High Court bench which delivered the hijab verdict.
Other members of the Law Commission
Former Kerala High Court judge Justice KT Sankaran, Prof. Anand Paliwal, Prof. DP Verma, Prof.(Dr) Raka Arya and M Karunanithi have been appointed members of the Law Commission.
Justice BS Chauhan was the chairman of the 21st Law Commission whose term expired in August 2018.
Law Commission in India
Law commission is a non-statutory body which is set up by the Union Ministry of Law and Justice for suggesting reform in laws in India.
Its recommendations are not binding on the government.
The provision for the Law commission was made in the Charter act 1833 and the first Law commission was set up in 1834 under the chairmanship of Lord Thomas Babington Macaulay.
The Indian Penal Code 1860 is based on the recommendation of the Macaulay commission.
The First Law commission in Independent India was set up in 1955 and M.C Setalvad who was also the first Attorney General of India was the chairman of the Law Commission.
5. Government set up Radhakrishnan committee for strengthening the Assessment & Accreditation of Higher Educational Institutions
Tags: committee Person in news
The Government of India has set up a four member high level committee for strengthening the Assessment & Accreditation of Higher Educational Institutions under the chairmanship of Dr. K. Radhakrishnan on 4 November 2022.
The Committee will suggest measures to the government to strengthen the Assessment & Accreditation processes for the Higher Educational Institutions and prepare a road map for the National Accreditation Council envisioned in the National Education Policy, 2020.
Members of the committee
The chairperson of the committee is Dr. K. Radhakrishnan who is the Chairperson, Board of Governors, IIT Kanpur & Chairperson, and Standing Committee of IIT Council. The other members are Prof. Mridul Hazarika, Vice-Chancellor, Mahapurusha Srimanta Sankaradeva Viswavidyalaya, Assam; Prof. Bharat Bhasker, Professor, IIM, Lucknow and the Joint Secretary, Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education, Government of India.
What is the role of accreditation in Higher Educational Institution?
Accreditation plays a vital role in making quality assurance an integral part of the functioning of Higher Educational Institutions.
Accreditation status of any Higher Educational Institution serves as a source of reliable information for the students, employers and the society regarding the quality of education being offered in the Institution.
Union Minister of Education and Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship : Dharmendra Pradhan
6. 4 member committee to probe WHO report on contaminated syrup supplied by Maiden Pharma
The Government of India on 12 October 2022 has set up a four-member expert committee to investigate the report sent by the World Health Organisation (WHO) on the deaths of 66 children in Gambia due to consumption of cough syrups from Sonipat-based Company Maiden Pharmaceuticals Limited.
The government has already suspended the production of cough syrup by Maiden Pharmaceuticals Ltd after the report of the WHO.
The committee consists of Dr YK Gupta, Vice Chairperson, Standing National Committee on Medicines ; Dr Pragya Yadav, ICMR -National Institute of Virology(NIV), Pune; Dr Arti Bahl, Division of epidemiology, National Center for Disease Control(NCDC), New Delhi and AK Pradhan, JDC(I), CDSCO(Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation).
According to the reports, an American company Atlantic Pharmaceuticals Company Ltd which has permission to export medicines to Gambia, ordered combined syrup from Maiden Pharmaceuticals limited.
The cough syrup was subsequently found contaminated by the WHO leading to the death of children in Gambia.
Republic of Gambia
It is a West African situated along the Atlantic Ocean.
The country derives its name from the river Gambia.
Capital: Banjul
Currency: Dalasi
President: Adama Barrow
World Health Organisation (WHO)
- The World Health Organisation is a specialised agency of the United Nations which was founded on 7 April, 1948.
- Headquarters of WHO : Geneva, Switzerland
- Director General of WHO: Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus of Ethiopia.
7. Centre set up a committee to consider ‘Scheduled Caste’ status for converted dalits
Tags: committee Person in news National News
Center has set up a committee to consider SC status for Converted Dalits new persons who have historically belonged to the Scheduled Castes’’ but have converted to religions other than Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism”. The committee has been set up by the Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
Head of the committee
The three member committee will be headed by former Chief Justice of India K G Balakrishnan. It includes retired IAS officer Dr Ravinder Kumar Jain and UGC member Prof (Dr) Sushma Yadav as members.
The commission will have to submit its report to the Ministry in two years.
What is the issue?
The Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950, stipulates that no person professing a religion different from Hinduism, Sikhism or Buddhism can be deemed to be a member of a Scheduled Caste. The original order under which only Hindus were classified was later amended to include Sikhs and Buddhists.
However many Scheduled caste persons who converted to Islam and Christianity are demanding that they should also be included in the list as they continue to face discrimination.
A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has been filed in the Supreme Court by the National Council of Dalit Christians (NCDC), demanding the status of Scheduled Caste for converted dalits. In August 2022, the Supreme Court had directed the Centre to submit its current position on the issue.
The new commission has been set up by the government so that it can present its view on the matter before the court.
Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment: Virendra Kumar
8. Union Environment Ministry has set up Cheetah Task force headed by Alok Kumar
Tags: committee Person in news
The Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has constituted a 9 member task force on 7 October 2022 to monitor cheetah introduction in Kuno National Park, Madhya Pradesh. It will be headed by Alok Kumar, Retd. Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) & Chief Wildlife Warden, Madhya Pradesh,
According to the ministry the task force has been constituted for a period of 2 years and will “review, progress and monitor the health status of Cheetah, upkeep of the quarantine & soft release enclosures, protection status of entire area, adherence to the defined protocols by forest & veterinary officials and advice on Cheetah introduction in India to the Madhya Pradesh Forest Department and NTCA on status of Cheetah with respect to overall health, behaviour and their upkeep.”
The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) would facilitate the working of the Cheetah Task Force and render all necessary help.
On 17 September 2022 the Prime Minister Narendra Modi released 8 wild cheetahs of Namibia in the Kuno National Park in an ambitious effort to repopulate the Indian wildlife with cheetahs. Cheetah was officially declared extinct in India in 1952.
Union Minister for Environment Forest and Climate Change: Bhupendra Yadav
9. C K MIshra “Committee of Experts on Sustainable Finance” submits its report to IFSCA
Tags: committee Economy/Finance Person in news
A ‘Committee of Experts on Sustainable Finance’, constituted by International Financial Services Centers Authority (IFSCA) submitted its final report to the Chairperson, IFSCA on October 03, 2022. The committee was chaired by C.K. Mishra, Former Secretary to Government of India, Ministry of Environment, and Forest & Climate Change.
The main focus areas of the committee were directed towards aligning the IFSC regulations with the international best practices, exploring ways in which capital flows through IFSC can be enhanced and also supporting development of innovative financial products in the area of green and sustainable finance.
Some important recommendations include developing a voluntary carbon market, framework for transition bonds, enabling de-risking mechanisms, promoting regulatory sandbox for green fintech and facilitating the creation of a global climate alliance among others.
IFSC (International Financial Service Center)
- India’s first International Financial Service Center (IFSC) has been set up at GIFT city.
- It deals with customers who are outside India. It provides financial products and services like banking, insurance, etc to foreign customers.
- It has a well developed Capital market including stock exchanges.
- It is regulated by the International Financial Service Centers Authority (IFSCA).
Chairman of IFSCA: Injeti Srinivas
10. Govt constitutes M Damodaran committee to suggest ways to attract VC/PE investments
Tags: committee Economy/Finance
The Union Ministry of Finance on 13 September 2022 has set up a committee to suggest ways to attract venture capital and private equity (VC/PE) investments in India.
IMPORTANT FACTS -
- The Committee will be headed by the former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), M Damodaran.
- The Finance minister in her Budget speech for the fiscal year 2022-23 had stated that the government was considering forming a committee that will encourage Private Equity and Venture Capital investment in India.
- According to the Ministry the committee will "comprehensively study, using a systems approach, the end-to-end frictions and potential accelerants from regulatory policy and taxation to facilitate ease of investing, as well as to encourage investments in India".
Venture Capital Fund and Private Equity are regulated by SEBI in India.
