NEW DELHI:  India and Israel on Monday appeared well set to take their bilateral ties to newer heights in diverse sectors with a positive chemistry between the two Prime Ministers – Benjamin Netanyahu and Narendra Modi — being all too evident during their joint press conference.

While Mr. Netanyahu, on a six-day visit to India, dubbed Mr. Modi “a revolutionary leader’’,  Mr. Modi referred to Mr. Netanyahu as “my friend Bibi’’ and admitted sharing his “impatience for results’’ with his Israeli counterpart.

“You are a revolutionary leader. You have revolutionised India and catapulting this state to the future. Your visit to Israel was groundbreaking as it was the first time an Indian leader visited,” Mr. Netanyahu said during the press conference while referring to Mr Modi’s visit to Israel last July.

Mr. Modi said he had invited “Israeli companies to take advantage of the liberalised FDI regime to make more in India.” On his part, Mr. Netanyahu did not hide his excitement about the film production agreement, saying  “My wife and I are very happy that we are going to Bollywood.”  He is scheduled to visit the Taj Mahal and Mumbai where Bollywood celebrities will meet him and his wife.

At the end of delegation level talks, India and Israel inked nine agreements including in sectors like cyber security, agriculture and oil and gas.

The joint statement, issued after the talks, was comprehensive in nature, flagging concerns regarding terrorism as well as Israel-Palestine peace process. Both the countries vowed to fight the challenge of terrorism together.  

The two Prime Ministers addressed the India-Israel Business Summit as well as CEOs of leading companies of both the countries.

Mr. Netanyahu was accorded a ceremonial reception at the Rashtrapati Bhawan earlier in the day. Welcoming  the Israeli Prime Minister, the President Ram Nath Kovind said that his visit was a culmination of celebrations to mark the 25^th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

The President said that bilateral cooperation has expanded manifold. Political understanding, security cooperation and technology partnerships are key pillars of strategic engagement between India and Israel.  He emphasised that collaboration in newer areas such as space, cyber-security and innovation will add depth to the partnership. He lauded the presence of Israeli companies in India especially in the water, defence, technology and pharma sectors. 

NEW DELHI : After a quarter century of establishing diplomatic relations, India and Israel on Monday resolved to strive over the next 25 years to raise bilateral cooperation in diverse sectors to a qualitatively new level in consonance with their strategic partnership.

On the second day of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to India, the summit level meetings which began with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s historic visit to Israel in July last year have further cemented the bonds between the two governments and peoples and consolidated the strategic partnership.

A joint statement, issued after delegation level talks which were led by the two Prime Ministers, said both the leaders share a common vision for the relationship.

Both sides are working together on a Five Year Joint Work Plan for strategic cooperation in agriculture and water while agreeing to deepen cooperation in innovation, business and trade, space, homeland security and cyber, higher education and research, science and technology, tourism and culture.

The two prime ministers noted with satisfaction the implementation of India-Israel development cooperation – three-year work programme in Agriculture (2018-2020) under the stewardship of the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MASHAV) and the Ministry of Agriculture of India aimed at increasing farmers’ productivity and optimization of water use efficiency.

They were apprised of state of progress on the 28 Centres of Excellence that are being jointly established in different States of India. Seven more Centres of Excellence have become operational in the last six months since the visit of Mr. Modi to Israel. The two Prime Ministers will be visiting Centre of Excellence in Vadrad, Gujarat and will inaugurate the Centre of Excellence in Bhuj, Gujarat, during this visit.

The two leaders welcomed the completion of all formalities for the launch of the India-Israel Industrial R&D and Technological Innovation Fund that was announced during Mr. Modi’s visit to Israel.

They underscored the role of youth in enhancing future collaboration in innovation, and have decided to commence an annual exchange of visits of 100 youth from the science streams. The two respective Ministries of Science and Technology have decided to commence nine joint R&D projects in the areas of big data analytics in health care and security in cyber space.

Further, in order to build a strong network between the next generation of the best women scientists and technologists of the two countries, an India-Israel Women in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) Symposium will be organized in October in India.

The two Prime Ministers also noted the intention of Indian public sector companies and Israeli companies to begin collaboration in the areas of metal air batteries for stationary energy storage systems and in solar thermal technologies, and urge industry on both sides to explore business collaboration in new energy technologies.

While welcoming India’s initiative to establish the International Solar Alliance to promote renewable energy for sustainable development in the context of climate change, Israel declared its willingness to become a partner country.

The two leaders urged the private sector to actively explore investment opportunities in both countries, including through the India’s flagship programmes such as Make in India, Start-Up India and Digital India. They also stressed on the importance of facilitating the movement of business persons through simplification of visa regulations, fast-tracking of visa applications, issuing of multiple entry visa, especially for the information technology and new technology sectors.

They also decided to expedite the conclusion of an Agreement on Maritime Transport that will encourage greater business between the shipping organizations of India and Israel, and create new opportunities in maritime services and training. They hoped that the agreement would also encourage wider cooperation in development of maritime business and Israel’s participation in the Sagarmala Project. Enhanced cooperation in the civil aviation sector is also on the cards.

An Indian Cultural Centre will open in Israel this year in pursuance of Mr. Modi’s desire to promote greater cultural understanding. Both sides have signed an MoU in Film Co-Production in recognition of the role that films play in promoting people-to-people contact, the joint statement said.

The two Prime Ministers agreed to holding Festivals of India and Israel in their respective countries in 2019 as a further step to solidify friendship between the peoples of both countries.

In another major decision, Israeli companies have expressed their readiness to enter into joint ventures with Indian companies in the defence sector under the Make in India initiative. They consider it important to set the direction for developing more business models and partnerships for the joint ventures and joint manufacturing, including transfer of technology as well as joint research and development in defence and security fields.

Recognizing the grave threat that terrorism poses to peace and security including from non-state actors, Mr Modi and Mr Netanyahu reiterated that there can be no justification for acts of terror on any grounds whatsoever and advocated strong measures against terrorists, terror organizations, those who sponsor, encourage or finance terrorism or provide sanctuary to terrorists and terror groups.

They also noted with satisfaction that the next meeting of the Joint Working Groups on Homeland and Public Security will be held in February.  They reiterated the importance of building comprehensive cooperation in counter-terrorism, including cyber-space, and welcomed the signing of the MoU on Cooperation in Cyber Security between India and Israel.

On the developments pertaining to the Israeli-Palestinian Peace Process, they reaffirmed their support for an early resumption of peace talks between Israelis and Palestinians for arriving at a comprehensive negotiated solution on all outstanding issues, based on mutual recognition and effective security arrangements, for establishing a just and durable peace in the region.

Opinion | The BJP led NDA government at the centre might be compelled to present a people oriented budget for 2018-19 even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi faces major challenges in the new year. 

For one there are no fewer than eight assembly elections scheduled for this year followed by the general elections in the first half of next year. With growth estimates lower than projected amid worrying data on agriculture, the RSS as the ideologue of the Lotus party has warned the political leadership that the twin issues of farm distress and galloping unemployment could be the main pressure points.

This comes at a time when the saffron brigade’s win for a sixth successive time in the Gujarat assembly elections recently was nothing much to rave about. While the BJP’s win was not in doubt in Modi as well as his confidant and party president Amit Shah’s home state, it failed to cross the three figure mark. They had to settle for 99 seats which was 16 fewer than its tally of 115 in 2012.

Shah had, however, pitched for 150 seats in the 182-member assembly which his own party leaders felt was being highly over ambitious.   

While the Lotus party enjoys a majority on its own in the Lok Sabha, it is handicapped in the Rajya Sabha as the NDA continues to be in a minority and its efforts to rummage the numbers has proved to be in vain. 

With less than five months remaining for the assembly poll in Karnataka, the party brass has already begun drawing up its strategy in this crucial southern state where the Congress is at the helm of affairs. It is the lone southern state where the saffron brigade has held the reins of power and is keen on enlarging its presence particularly in Tamil Nadu caught in the grip of political flux.  

The five southern states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Telengana along with the lone Union Territory of Puducherry account for 130 seats in the 543-member Lok Sabha. 

Assembly elections are also due this year in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chattisgarh among others where anti-incumbency against the ruling BJP can pose problems. 

It is in this context that the BJP wants to enlarge its poor arithmetic in the South to offset the possible losses in the North which facilitated Modi becoming the Prime Minister in May 2014. 

In the 43 months that Modi has been the Head of Government, the BJP has managed to remain several steps ahead of the Congress which has been found wanting because of its bane of infighting and the organisation being in a shambles. 

The Grand Old party lacks leaders having a mass base in the states. The all powerful Congress High Command must accept responsibility for its  peremptory style of functioning throwing the party in disarray.  

The baton of Congress president has passed on to the Nehru-Gandhi scion Rahul Gandhi after an extended apprenticeship. He has to enthuse the Congress rank and file to get it firing. The challenge is daunting. Delaying the dynastic accession might have been counter productive.

Can Rahul articulate a vision with a catchy slogan that hits the bulls eye as evidenced in the past like Indira Gandhi’s “garibi hatao”. He might come across being earnest and sincere but lacks Modi’s guile of imparting a shrewd political spin. 

Evolving an understanding with credible regional leaders for a non-BJP Front assumes importance. Working out this arrangement cannot be left to the last minute. The outcome of the assembly elections in Gujarat was a pointer to the Prime Minister’s honeymoon with the people taking a hit. In the last two to three decades it has been invariably seen that the Head of Government’s popularity begins taking a dip sharply on completing 36-42 months in office. 

There is no doubt that the Modi-Amit Shah duo have worked in tandem and blazed a winning trail with few parallels. The BJP is in power in 19 states with the India map splashed with saffron across it.   

The Congress has been in the dumps over the last three and a half years. It is in power only in Punjab and Karnataka. Rahul needs to think out of the box in revitalising the party organisation as well as catching the people’s imagination. 

The focus should be on evolving policies why the Modi government’s much touted “aache din aane wale hain” has bombed so far. 

The RSS has drawn attention to the twin issues of farm distress and galloping unemployment as the main pressure points. It emphasised the BJP was in trouble in Gujarat because of the simmering anger in rural areas particularly the disgruntlement among the educated youth. It attributed the current state of affairs to the ruling party’s faulty economic policies warning that without expeditious corrective measures the situation could worsen. 

The RSS also warned that matters could get worse in the ensuing assembly elections besides casting its shadow in next year’s general elections. That is some food for thought for the Prime Minister who has charted a remarkable winning streak so far. It is widely believed a second term as the Prime Minister is in Modi’s grasp as the opposition is nowhere near getting its act together at this juncture.     

NEW DELHI: U.S. State Department has issued a travel advisory to its citizens, asking them to exercise increased caution while travelling to India due to crime and terrorism. The advisory placed India in Level 2, asking American citizens to exercise increased caution while travelling to India.

The U.S. government has advised its citizens to not travel to Jammu and Kashmir (except the eastern Ladakh region and its capital, Leh) due to terrorism and civil unrest as well as within 10 km of the India-Pakistan border due to the potential for armed conflict.

“Indian authorities report rape is one of the fastest growing crimes in India.  Violent crime, such as sexual assault, has occurred at tourist sites and in other locations,’’ it said.  

Further, on terror threat, the State Department cautioned that “terrorist or armed groups are active in East Central India, primarily in rural areas.  Terrorists may attack with little or no warning, targeting tourist locations, transportation hubs, markets/shopping malls, and local government facilities.’’

The U.S. government has limited ability to provide emergency services to U.S. citizens in rural areas from eastern Maharashtra and northern Telangana through western West Bengal as U.S. government employees must obtain special authorization to travel to these areas.

On safety and security norms to be observed, it advised  those deciding to travel to India to not  travel alone, particularly a woman  and asked them to review their  personal security plans, and remain alert to surroundings.

Referring to situation in Jammu  and Kashmir, the travel advisory said that terrorist attacks and violent civil unrest are possible in the border State and asked American citizens to avoid all travel to this state (with the exception of visits to the eastern Ladakh region and its capital, Leh).

The US State department cautioned that sporadic violence occurs particularly along the Line of Control (LOC) separating India and Pakistan, and in tourist destinations in the Kashmir Valley: Srinagar, Gulmarg, and Pahalgam. The Indian government prohibits foreign tourists from visiting certain areas along the LOC, it pointed out.

Referring to situation on the Indo-Pak border, the advisory said that both the countries maintain a strong military presence on both sides of the border. The only official India-Pakistan border crossing point for persons who are not citizens of India or Pakistan is in the state of Punjab between Atari, India, and Wagah, Pakistan.

On North-Eastern States, it said incidents of violence by ethnic insurgent groups, including bombings of buses, trains, rail lines, and markets, occur occasionally in the northeast.  U.S. government employees are prohibited from traveling to the states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Manipur without special authorization from the U.S. Consulate General in Kolkata.

Referring to the situation in East Central and Southern India, the travel advisory said that Maoist extremist groups, or “Naxalites,” are active in a large swath of India from eastern Maharashtra and northern Telangana through western West Bengal, particularly in rural parts of Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand and on the borders of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, and Odisha. The Naxalites have conducted frequent terrorist attacks on local police, paramilitary forces, and government officials.

“Due to the fluid nature of the threat, all U.S. government travelers to states with Naxalite activity must receive special authorization from the U.S. consulate responsible for the area to be visited. U.S. officials traveling only to the capital cities in these states do not need prior authorization,’’ the advisory said.  

Opinion | The Supreme Court is facing an unprecedented turmoil in the wake of four senior most judges taking exception to the Chief Justice of India Dipak Mishra’s style of functioning. Some damage has already been done to the highest judiciary and these brother judges are trying to contain it. 

Eminent jurists believe the developments over the past one year have undermined the confidence of the people in the judiciary. 

The senior most judges after the CJI — Justices J Chalemeswar, Rajan Gogoi, Madan Lokur and Kurian Joseph — went public on Friday taking exception to the manner in which cases were assigned selectively disregarding conventions on allocation of judicial work. 

At the same time the well settled principle is that the CJI is the master of the roster. However, the four judges allege that Justice Misra is not following conventions which can lead to serious consequences casting doubts about the integrity of the institution. 

Being an internal matter of the judiciary, it is best settled at a meeting of all the Supreme Court judges. 

While exceptions appear to have been made, the judges seem  perturbed about the petition seeking an inquiry into the death of special CBI judge B H Loya in 2014 being posted before a particular Bench. 

As a delicate situation has arisen in this country’s democracy, it is also a moment of reckoning for other institutions in the democratic system encompassing the Executive and the Legislature. 

It may be recalled that former President of the Supreme Court Bar association Dushyant Dave had expressed concern about the manner in which benches were being constituted and certain cases being assigned to particular benches, often ignoring the obvious choice of judges and benches to hear those cases. This has inevitably raised questions about the integrity of the judiciary. 

The institutions have to respond to the crisis without seeking to brush the matter under the carpet. This assumes importance as the detailed letter of the judges draws attention to the undue interference in the finalisation of the Memorandum of Procedure (MOP) pertaining to the appointment of judges. 

The Narendra Modi government appears to have been caught on the back-foot and decided not to join issues as it would amount to taking sides because the CJI’s term ends in October. It observed “any statement from their side was uncalled for.” 

This assumes significance as none of the four judges had spoken a word against the government. It pertains to the administrative and other issues of the judiciary. 

The opposition Congress said the issues raised by the judges are “extremely disturbing and have far reaching consequences” for safeguarding democracy and preserving the independence of the judiciary. This is the worst judicial crisis that the country has seen since independence. It might be best for the CJI to take the initiative and try to resolve the matter with all the brother judges. 

It also provides an opportunity to the BJP led NDA government and the Supreme Court to put in place a transparent process for appointing judges. The four judges warned if their efforts failed then democracy will not survive in this country. “The hallmark of a good democracy is having an independent judiciary with impartial judges,” emphasised Justice Chalemeswar.   

There is no doubt that the press conference by the judges has seriously dented the institutional as well as the moral authority of the Supreme Court. It is important to resolve such critical  matters with statesmanship for restoring public confidence in the courts.

(Views are personal.)

From the award-winning investigative stories blowing the cover on sexual abuse in the Catholic Church by The Boston Globe’s Spotlight team to the only writer to have ever gone under cover in North Korea, from the dangers involved in reporting live at the frontline during wars to discussions with leading Indian media personalities, the 11^th edition of ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival 2018 will have it all for those who wish to get a firsthand knowledge of journalistic and reportage writing.

Spotlight: The Hunt for Truthbrings forth the renowned Portuguese-American journalist Michael Rezendes who is a Pulitzer Prize award-winner for his investigative work as a member of The Boston Globe’s legendary Spotlight Team in conversation with Sreenivasan Jain where he speaks of the power of traditional and local reporting, the values, veracity and commitment required for investigative journalism as well as the changing definitions of news in the current media landscape.

In Undercover in North Korea: Facts and Fictions, Suki Kim, the South Korean author of the award-winning novel The Interpreter and the bestselling Without You There Is No Us: My Time with the Sons of North Korea’s Elite, speaks of her six-month undercover investigation embedded within North Korea in conversation with Michael Breen author of TheNew Koreans: The Story of a Nation, and talks of her rare encounter with the world’s most dangerous and unknowable country and of the privileged young men she calls ‘soldiers and slaves’.

The Frontline Club is a compelling session where Adrian Levy, Carlo Pizzati, Jeffrey Gettleman, Peter Bergen and Suki Kim in conversation with SuhasiniHaidar talk about how Hollywood has long glamourised the war journalist as a hard drinking chancer, taking extreme risks to get the big Pulitzer-winning front page spread. Witness some of the world’s most celebrated foreign correspondents lift the lid on one of the dangerous jobs in journalism, parsing myth from reality.

In Among the Insurgents with Cathy Scott-Clark, Michael Vatikiotis and Peter Bergen are in conversation with Charlie English as they discuss how in this age of terrorism and insurgency, it has never been more important to report accurately on the actions of those who take up arms against established governments. At the same time, never have journalists been in greater danger doing so, and how exactly does one report on resistance fighters who do this without acting as amplifiers for terrorists? The panel, who have studied and spent time with insurgent groups, will give their perspective on the practical and moral conundrums of covering insurgencies.

Manhunt: Pakistan and the Search for Bin Ladenwith Adrian Levy, Cathy Scott-Clark, Peter Bergen and T.C.A. Raghavan in conversation with Suhasini Haidar unpacks the extraordinary inside story of Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda in the years after 9/11. Following the attacks on the Twin Towers, bin Laden, the most wanted man in the world, eluded intelligence services and Special Forces units for almost a decade. Using remarkable, first-person testimony from his family and closest military aides, this session chronicles an astonishing tale of evasion, collusion and isolation by bringing together three of the world’s greatest experts on Bin Laden: Peter Bergen, author of Manhunt, who met and interviewed the man and later was the only journalist to gain access to bin Laden’s Abbottabad compound before the Pakistani government demolished it. In conversation with him are Adrian Levy and Cathy Scott-Clark, authors of The Exile, a landmark work of investigation and reportage and essential reading for anyone concerned with history, security and future relations with the Islamic world.

Closer to home, Rajasthan: BadalteMahaul Mein Media with FalguniBansal, L.P. Pant, Rajendra Bora, Vinod Bhardwaj and Yash Goyal discuss how the media in Rajasthan have always balanced a local and regional approach with a larger understanding of national and international issues. Rajasthan is India’s largest state in terms of size with an area that comprises approximately 10 percent of India’s landmass and borders with Pakistani Punjab and Sindh. The rich culture and vibrant tourism, the mix of cosmopolitan and traditional culture and the inhospitable terrain and remote rural populations are all a part of its living reality. A key session with Rajasthani media on the social, economic and political issues they report upon, across print and digital, television and radio channels.

Around the world, the media is seeking a balance between neutrality, objectivity, commitment and the search for truth. How does a post-truth era seek perspective and equivalence then? Is inherent bias inevitable? Can the media ever be truly impartial or is it only possible to ‘obtain the best attainable version of the truth’? On Balance: Journalistic Objectivity features Aditi Maheshwari Goyal, Rajeev Punnoli, Sudhir Chaudhary and Vineet Kumar in conversation with Shoma Chaudhury, a crucial session with journalists and editors across ideologies on the search for balance.

NEW DELHI: In an unprecedented move, four senior judges of the Supreme Court on Friday went public, saying the administration of the apex court is 

“sometimes not in order” and “less than desirable things” have occurred.

The second senior most judge of the top court Justice J Chelameswar held a press conference at his Tughlaq Road residence where three other senior judges were also present and addressed the media on various issues relating to the apex court judiciary.The other judges were Justices Ranjan Gogoi, M B Lokur and Kurian Joseph.

Justice Chelameswar said: “It is an extraordinary event in the history of Indian judiciary. The administration of the Supreme Court is not in order. Anything that is less than desirable has happened. Time and again the senior members of the courts have tried to persuade the CJI that pertains things are not in order, they need remedial measures but nothing happened. We wrote a letter to the CJI but we received no response. We were left with no choice but to address the nation about it. All four of us are convinced that unless the institutions are not preserved, democracy cannot survive.”

Justice Chelameswar further said, “We have spotted things in the last few months. Tried to intervene but to no avail. Twenty years from now, the nation should not say we sold our souls. The integrity of the SC is at stake. The survival of independent institutions, be it any, must be strengthened. We owe a responsibility to the institution and the nation. Our efforts have failed in convincing the Chief Justice to take steps to protect the institution.’’

First 4 Pages Of The Letter To CJI:

Dear Chief Justice, 

it is with great anguish and concern that we have thought it proper to address this letter to you so as to highlight certain judicial order passed by this court because adversely affected the overall functioning of the justice delivery system and the independence of the high courts besides impacting the administrative functioning of the efforts of the Honourable the Chief Justice of India. 

From the date of establishment of the three Chartered high courts of Calcutta, Bombay and Madras, certain traditions and conventions in the judicial administration have been well established. The traditions were embraced by this court which came into existence almost a century of the above mentioned chartered high courts. These traditions have their roots in the anglo-saxon jurisprudence and practices.  

Of the well settled principles is that the chief justice is the master of the roaster with a privilege to determine the Roaster necessity in multi-number courts for an orderly transaction of business and appropriate arrangements with respect to matter with which number bunch of this court, as the case say be, is required to deal with which case or class of cases is to be made. The convention of recognising the privilege of the Chief Justice to form the roaster and assign cases to different members/benches of the court is a convention devised for a disciplined and efficient transaction of business of the court but not a recognition of any superior authority, legal of actual of the chief justice over his colleagues. 

It is too well settled in the jurisprudence of this country that the chief justice is not only the first amongst the equals- nothing more or nothing less. In the matter of determination of the roaster, there are well-settled and time-honored conventions guiding the chief justice, dealing with the strength of the bench which is required to deal with the particular case or composition thereof. 

A necessary corollary to the above-mentioned principle is the member of any multi-numbered judicial body, including this court would not arrogate to themselves, the authority to deal with the pronounce upon a matter which ought to be heard by a appropriate benches, both composition wise and strength why is due to regard to the roast of fixed. 

Any departures from the above two rules would not only lead to unpleasant and undesirable consequences of creating doubt in the body politic about the integrity of the institution. Not to talk about the chaos that would result from such departure. 

We are sorry to say that off late the twin rules mentioned above have not been strictly adhere to. There have been instances where case having for reaching consequences for the nation and the institution have been assigned by the Chief Justice of this court selectively to the ‘benches of their preference’ without any rational basis for such assignment. This must be guarded against at all costs.

We are not mentioning details only to avoid embarrassing the institution but note that such departures have already damaged the image of this institutions to some extent. 

In the above context, we deem it proper to address you presently with regard to the order dated 27th October, 2017 in ‘Arti Luthra vs Union of India to the effect that there should be no for the delay in finalising the Memorandum of procedure in the larger public interest. When the Memorandum of procedure was the subject matter of decision of the Constitution bench of this court in  Supreme Court advocates on record association and ANR vs. Union of India2016. It is difficult to understand as to how any other bench could have dealt with the matter.

New Delhi:  Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday declared India does not eye any one’s territory nor it has intentions to exploit resources of any other nation.

Mr. Modi asserted that India’s focus has always been capacity building and resource development be it on bilateral or multilateral platforms like Commonwealth, India-Africa Summit or Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation. “On each of these forums, we have made efforts to take every one along,’’ he said.

Addressing the First PIO Parliamentarian Conference here, the Prime Minister said India’s development aid model was not based on “give and take’’ but on the needs and priorities of the recipient nations.

He said that India has always played a positive and constructive role on the global arena. “We have not seen our relations with any country on the scale of profit and loss but viewed them through the prism of humanitarian values,’’ he said amid applause from 134 PIO lawmakers and mayors from 24 countries.   

“Our strong relations with ASEAN countries have been further strengthened and these will be showcased to the entire world in a few days from now on the occasion of India’s Republic Day,’’ he said. As many as 10 leaders from ASEAN countries will be guests of honour on January 26 Republic Day celebrations in the Capital.

Mr. Modi said that 21^st Century is being described as Asian Century and India has definitely played an important role in it. “You will feel this influence of India’s growing stature across the world. India’s growing economy and power will certainly make you proud and it will inspire us to work even harder,’’ he said. The Prime Minister said the world is facing many challenges which can be met by the ideology of non-violence and peaceful protest as enunciated by Gandhiji. “Extremism and radicalization can be countered only through the ideology of Mahatma Gandhi,’’ he said.

Terming members of Indian diaspora as partners in development and progress of India, Mr. Modi said the government wants to establish lasting ties with PIOs.  In his 45-minute inaugural address, Mr. Modi dwelt at length on India moving up by 42 places in the ranking of ease of doing business in the past three years, attracting FDI worth 60 billion dollars in 2016-17, and going up in the World Economic Forum’s Global Competitiveness Index by 32 ranks. “Today bodies like World Bank, IMF and Moody’s are looking at India in a positive way,’’ he said.

He attributed these developments to far-reaching policy reforms brought in the economy by his government over the past three years. “Reform to Transform is our guiding principle. Our aim is to make the entire system accountable, transparent  and completely eradicate corruption,’’ he said.

The PM said that more than half the investment made till now in sectors like construction, air transport, mining, computer software, hardware, electrical equipment has come in the last three years.

Describing the gathering of PIOs as a ‘mini world Parliament’ , the PM said:  ”When there is news about how you all are influencing the geo-politics of where you live and how you are making policies, we feel proud. No matter where they are, I can imagine how happy your ancestors must be on seeing you all here.”

He said India’s relations with countries of the world was governed by spirit of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ (Entire World Is One Family ).

”During earthquake in Nepal, flood in Sri Lanka, water problems in the Maldives; India was the first to respond. When crisis struck Yemen, we saved our 4,500 people as well as 2000 from other countries.  India’s humanity even in grave situations like these is a part of  ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’,”  he said.

Earlier, in her opening remarks External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj described the day-long conference of PIO Parliamentarians and Mayors as a “unique’’ event. She said that Pravasi Bharatiya Divas was launched in 2003 when Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s government was in power and January 9 was chosen as it marked the day when Mahatma Gandhi, the most celebrated Pravasi, had returned to India from South Africa.

She said that as many as 270 PIOs from 28 countries were MPs and 11 countries have more than a million Indians living there and all of them have emotional and cultural links with India.

The inaugural session was also attended by Deputy Speaker of the Lok Sabha M. Thambi Durai, Rajya Sabha Vice Chairman P.J. Kurien and the two Ministers of State for External Affairs M.J. Akbar and General (Retd.) V.K. Singh. The biggest delegation of 20 MPs has come from Guyana. 

New Delhi : Questioning Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s claim that the electoral bond scheme would bring in transparency in election funding, CPIM General Secretary Sitaram Yechury today said it would rather make the funding more opaque.

”It is an anti-democratic move,” Mr Yechury said  responding to  Mr Jaitley’s views on the issue posted on his Facebook page two days back. If this system was adopted, nobody would know who was buying and who was redeeming the bond, and it would be like legalising money laundering, he said in an interaction with member of the Indian Women’s Press Corps here.

The political parties which depend on people’s collection of funds would find it very difficult to finance their electoral expenses, he said. The CPI(M) leader said he had written a letter to the Finance accepting his  invitation to join debate  on the electoral bond scheme.

Mr Yechury was of the view that if the Government was really serious about cleansing the system, it should first ban corporate funding of elections and put a ceiling on the expenditure of political parties, as today there was a ceiling only on the candidate’s expenditure.

He wanted the government to bring  in a legislation to address the issue in a comprehensive manner.

In his Sunday’s Facebook post, Mr Jaitley had said that electoral bond scheme was a substantial improvement in transparency over the present system of political funding,  and the government was open to suggestions to further cleanse the system.

The CPI(M) Leader, who answered a range of questions during the interaction, condemned the government for denying permission to Gujarat dalit leader Jignesh Mevani to hold a rally in the capital today, and said that the government was trying to persecute dissent by all means and denial of permission was a political message.

Mr Yechury did not agree with a questioner that the adverse impact of the economic moves like the note ban and the GST did not have any electoral cost for the BJP as it won Gujarat despite that. He pointed out that the BJP lost both in terms of percentage and seats, and the marginal victory it secured was only due to the communal divide it created

”The BJP sought to dilute much of discontent over its bad economy through communal polarisation,” he said.

On whether he saw any hope for Opposition unity and what would be its basis to take on the BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the CPIM) leader said  the basis of Opposition unity should be an alternative vision for India, alternative policies– not only  economic, but encompassing social fabric of the country.

On a question about Mr Rahul Gandhi’s succeeding his mother as Congress president, Mr Yechury,” We will have to wait and see what will be his policies.”

Replying to a question on India’s foreign policy under the Modi government, Mr Yechury said,” I am really worried about it.” he saw a definite shift in the foreign policy in which India had become a just a supplicant of the US’s global strategic interest, which was wholly detrimental to India’s interest.

He also criticised the Modi Government’s ”flip flop” on the Pakistan policy. ”At one time, you yourself go to Pakistan, and at other time you accuse Dr Manmohan Singh of conspiring with Pakistan, and also have your NSA and Pakistan NSA talking. This flip flop will not work,” he said.

On the issue of Aadhar, he said he totally disagreed with the Government contention that the Aadhar was necessary for delivery of services to the people. ”it does not require complete surveillance of people . It’s violation of personal liberty.”

NEW DELHI : The Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) has the responsibility of taking mobile connectivity to the unconnected. But it seems USOF believes in furthering the interests of corporate sector first and is least bothered with the welfare and development of regions deprived of proper mobile connectivity. It is high time to scrap USOF which has failed miserably to live up to its mission of serving the deprived regions of the country.

We present to you yet another case of gross apathy of USOF while dealing with the Northeast mobile connectivity project. This time it is Meghalaya state which has to have mobile towers funded by USOF. Yet again USOF dilly dallying tactics has stalled implementation of the project. Moreover, the entire modus operandi of USOF in dealing with Meghalaya reeks of favourtism. USOF is not only neglecting state-run BSNL but also openly violating laid government guidelines by going ahead with important financial decisions without any feasibility study or proper evaluation. Moreover, it is taking dubious decisions despite clear instructions from the PMO…

In 2014 the Union Cabinet approved the proposal to implement a comprehensive telecom development plan for the North-Eastern 

region covering eight states with an estimate of Rs.5,336 crores with funds coming from USOF. Cabinet approved 2G coverage for uncovered areas of Assam and Arunanchal Pradesh to be given to BSNL while other states, including Meghalaya, were to be connected through a tender process by USOF.

It took USOF three years to complete its tender process which ironically had just one bidder — Bharti Airtel. But later Meghalaya tender comprising 2,173 towers was cancelled as USOF found that tender rates were 70% higher (Rs.2,351 crore instead of Rs.1,374 crore as estimated total outgo). USOF suggested re-tendering with technology upgradation, from 2G plus Edge to 2G puls 4G, and increased it costs to Rs.4,302 crores without conducting any financial viability of the project.

This development led to severe criticism from the PMO with Principal Secretary to PM writing Â“even after the delay in finalisation of tender, the works in Meghalaya have not been awarded as yet. Noting that the process of bidding would further delay the project, the proposal for awarding the project to BSNL on cast plus basis should be examined“.

But this too was conveniently ignored by USOF despite the fact that BSNL has been instrumental in completing mobile tower project in Naxalism-affected states which is considered one of toughest task in the telecom sector and where no private player dared to venture. Moreover, BSNL is currently implementing mobile tower project in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh after undergoing a successful tender process. It was on this basis that the PMO had suggested BSNL’s name. But the top echelons of DoT led by USOF ganged up to disallow BSNL a chance to participate in the project.

Surprisingly, DoT and USOF decided to change the technology part from 2G plus Edge as implemented in entire Northeast to 2G plus 4G just for Meghalaya without taking consent from Union Cabinet. It increased the cost of project for Meghalaya to a whopping Rs.4,302 crores without going for any financial viability, technical studies and ROI (return of investment) studies.

The way USOF is implementing the ambitious project, Meghalaya project is also a major setback for Prime Minister’s ‘Make In India’ initiative. BSNL is bound to implement preferential market access (PMA) policy allowing only domestic equipment manufacturer to bid in its project, but private operators are not bound by PMA. In Northeast, which shares crucial borders with China, foreign players including Chinese telecom equipment-makers are being allowed to put up their equipment in gross negligence of national security interests.

Now there are several questions which USOF and DoT need to answer before going ahead with Meghalaya project…

1. Was any financial viability study conducted before voluntarily deciding 2G plus 4G technology for Meghalaya? Whether it is financially prudent to invest Rs.4,302 crores in Meghalaya alone when other regions of the Northeast and remote locations of India await technology upgradation for mobile and broadband services?
   
2. Was Union Cabinet kept in loop before Telecom Commission and USOF spent months in making a case for 2G plus 4G technology leading to massive cost escalation and further delay in the project?
   
3. Why such a huge amount be given to a private operator for setting up tower network which it will use to its advantage? Why was BSNL, being a government-run company and which is struggling financially, deprived the first right to use public funds? 
   
4. Why other seven states not given same treatment of getting 2G plus 4G technology? Why other people of North-eastern states deprived of advanced technology?
   
5. Why BSNL not given a chance to upgrade its technology? Will it not weaken BSNL and deprive its customers of better services?
   
6. What happens to Prime Minister’s ‘Make In India’ initiative? Why PMA guidelines just for BSNL and why private players are kept out of it?
   
7. Is it not comprising national security by allowing foreign players to put up telecom gear in the Northeast which shares border with China?
   
8. USOF allowed single bid in Northeast and even awarded tender which is against violation of government guidelines and against the rules of fair competition. When BSNL can attract three Indian bidders for its Northeast project, why USOF allowed just one company? Why did USOF not ask BSNL to take the project to attract more players?
   

These are some unanswered questions which Telecom Commission and USOF will have to deal with. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visits to the Northeast have been promising better telecom connectivity for the region before 2019. But this tasks is highly unachievable, thanks to poor planning and gross apathy on part of USOF. It is due to its indecision and absurd decision making that none of the Northeast project is likely to completed on time.

While BSNL is running late in completing its share of the Northeast project as USOF has failed to take timely decisions on tendering process and release money, in other states also the 2019 deadline is unlikely to be met.

The Prime Minister needs to understand, it is not the USOF or the top bureaucrats in the Telecom Commission who have to face the public; but it is the political leadership, it is you the leader of the government who is answerable to the people.