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With the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change inviting comments on the draft notification of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Dog Breeding and Marketing Rules), 2016, under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, India is all set to  frame rules for breeding, sale and purchase of dogs. 

India does not have such rules or guidelines at present, and once notified are expected to prevent cruelty to dogs as well and make registration of breeders and their establishments compulsory. Basic requirements by such breeders would also be laid down.

According to the government, dog breeding and their marketing trade has mushroomed all around making its regulation necessary.  At times, some cruelty has been caused in breeding and marketing of dogs, with little or no accountability.

All dog breeders and dog breeding establishments will have to register themselves with the State Animal Welfare Board. The Rules will define breeding requirements/conditions for sale. It defines the requirements to be met by the breeders and the establishments used for breeding, or housing dogs, such as health-related requirements, housing facilities, manner of housing dogs, conditions for sale, breeding, micro-chipping, and vaccination.

An inspector authorised by the State Board can inspect the establishment. It will be mandatory for dog breeders to maintain proper records of both male and female dogs, their breed, micro-chip number, number of litters, sale, purchase, death, and rehabilitation.

Every dog breeder will be required to submit yearly report to the State Board regarding animals sold, traded, bartered, brokered, given away, boarded or exhibited during previous year or any other information asked for by the State Board.

 Non-compliance of the proposed Rules will lead to cancellation of the registration of the dog breeder.”

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The tobacco industry and its products, which have the deadly impact on people’s lives, cost the world’s economies more than US$ 1 trillion annually in healthcare expenditures and lost productivity, according to findings published in “The Economies of Tobacco and Tobacco Control.’’ Around 6 million people die annually as a result of tobacco use, with most living in developing countries.

Policies to control tobacco use, including tobacco tax and price increases, can generate significant government revenues for health and development work, according to this new landmark global report from WHO and the National Cancer Institute of the United States of America. Such measures can also greatly reduce tobacco use and protect people’s health from the world’s leading killers, such as cancers and heart disease.

The almost 700-page monograph examines existing evidence on two broad areas of the economics of tobacco control, including tobacco use and growing, manufacturing and trade, taxes and prices, control policies and other interventions to reduce tobacco use and its consequences; and the economic implications of global tobacco control efforts.

Globally, there are 1.1 billion tobacco smokers aged 15 or older, with around 80% living in low- and middle-income countries. Approximately 226 million smokers live in poverty.

Citing a 2016 study, the monograph states that the annual excise revenues from cigarettes globally could increase by 47%, or US$ 140 billion, if all countries raised excise taxes by about US$ 0.80 per pack. Additionally, this tax increase would raise cigarette retail prices on average by 42%, leading to a 9% decline in smoking rates and up to 66 million fewer adult smokers.

“”The economic impact of tobacco on countries, and the general public, is huge, as this new report shows,”” says Dr Oleg Chestnov, WHO’s Assistant Director-General for Noncommunicable Diseases (NCDs) and mental health. “”The tobacco industry produces and markets products that kill millions of people prematurely, rob households of finances that could have been used for food and education, and impose immense healthcare costs on families, communities and countries.””

“”The research summarized in this monograph confirms that evidence-based tobacco control interventions make sense from an economic as well as a public health standpoint,”” says the monograph’s co-editor, Distinguished Professor Frank Chaloupka, of the Department of Economics at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

According to the report, the global health and economic burden of tobacco use is enormous and is increasingly borne by low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Around 80% of the world’s smokers live in LMICs.

Effective policy and programmatic interventions exist to reduce demand for tobacco products and the death, disease, and economic costs resulting from their use, but these interventions are underused. The WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) provides an evidence-based framework for government action to reduce tobacco use. Demand reduction policies and programmes for tobacco products are highly cost-effective. Such interventions include significant tobacco tax and price increases; bans on tobacco industry marketing activities; prominent pictorial health warning labels; smoke-free policies and population-wide tobacco cessation programmes to help people stop smoking. In 2013-2014, global tobacco excise taxes generated nearly US$ 269 billion in government revenues. Of this, less than US$ 1 billion was invested in tobacco control, it says.

Pointing out that control of illicit trade in tobacco products is the key supply-side policy to reduce tobacco use and its health and economic consequences, the report says in many countries, high levels of corruption, lack of commitment to addressing illicit trade, and ineffective customs and tax administration, have an equal or greater role in driving tax evasion than do product tax and pricing. The WHO FCTC Protocol to Eliminate Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products applies tools, like an international tracking and tracing system, to secure the tobacco supply chain. Experience from many countries shows illicit trade can be successfully addressed, even when tobacco taxes and prices are raised, resulting in increased tax revenues and reduced tobacco use.

Suggesting that tobacco control does not harm economies, the report says the number of jobs dependent on tobacco has been falling in most countries, largely due to technological innovation and privatization of once state-owned manufacturing. Tobacco control measures will, therefore, have a modest impact on related employment, and not cause net job losses in the vast majority of countries. Programmes substituting tobacco for other crops offer growers alternative farming options. Importantly, tobacco control reduces the disproportionate health and economic burden that tobacco use imposes on the poor. Tobacco use is increasingly concentrated among the poor and other vulnerable groups.

Further it says, progress is being made in controlling the global tobacco epidemic, but concerted efforts are needed to ensure progress is maintained or accelerated. In most regions, tobacco use prevalence is stagnant or falling. But increasing tobacco use in some regions, and the potential for increase in others, threatens to undermine global progress in tobacco control.

Also, the market power of tobacco companies has increased in recent years, creating new challenges for tobacco control efforts. As of 2014, 5 tobacco companies accounted for 85% of the global cigarette market. Policies aimed at limiting the market power of tobacco companies are largely untested but hold promise for reducing tobacco use, the report says.

Tobacco control is a key component of WHO’s global response to the epidemic of NCDs, primarily cardiovascular disease, cancers, chronic obstructed pulmonary disease and diabetes. NCDs account for the deaths of around 16 million people prematurely (before their 70th birthdays) every year. Reducing tobacco use plays a major role in global efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal of reducing premature deaths from NCDs by one-third by 2030.”

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The countdown for the opening of the National Museum of Indian Cinema (NMIC) at the Films Division premises in Mumbai has begun with the Museum Advisory Committee chairperson, veteran film maker Shyam Benegal making a fervent appeal to the people associated with the film industry to donate rare artefacts, vintage instruments and other memorabilia for the Museum, which would chronicle the century old journey of cinema in India. When inaugurated, the NMIC will be the first of its kind national film museum in India. 

The Museum Advisory Committee, which met in Mumbai also gave its nod for the thematic display in the Phase II of the Museum. The National Council of Science Museums, Kolkata, under the Ministry of Culture, is curating the Museum.

 The NMIC is conceived in two phases. Phase I is housed in the heritage building- Gulshan Mahal, mostly displaying static artefacts and telling the story of Indian cinema in a chronological form while Phase II of the Museum, being housed in the modern building will sport over 40 interactive galleries devoted to cinema across India, journey of Indian cinema from silent era to talkies, technology and creativity in cinema as well as a children’s activity gallery. 

Chairing the meeting, Shyam Benegal said: ‘’ A visit to the film museum should be an engrossing experience and we should have a number of interactive sections, where viewers can watch clips from classics, listen to rare recordings or learn about how cinema was  made in the bygone era””.  

Veteran film makers Adoor Gopalakrishnan and Krishna Swamy, noted cinematographer A K Bir, former Director of National Film Archives of India, Suresh Chhabria, film conservationist Shivendra Dungarpur, film critic Sanjit Narvekar, DG, NCSM Anil Manekar and DG of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Vastu Sangrahalay, Mumbai Sabyasachi Mukherjee and film curator Amrit Gangar were among those who were present at the meeting, a statement by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting said.”

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Union Law, Justice and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Thursday said the government’s November 8 decision of demonetization had resulted in sharp decline in terror funding,  hawala trade, supari killings and human trafficking, particularly of young girls as sex slaves, mainly from Nepal and the North East.

Indicating that the government would not hesitate to take steps to widen the tax base, he said that development was not possible without enlarging the tax kitty. “”There is only about Rs.  Five lakh crore in the kitty of Finance Minister Arun Jaitley for development and it needs to grow,’’ he said.

Addressing a seminar, jointly organized by the Press Club of India, Indian Women Press Corps and the Supreme Court Lawyers’ Conference, he said that a new India, much stronger in its unity and integrity, was emerging, transcending the barriers of caste, creed and religion.

Former Chief Justice of India M. N. Venkatachaliah who presided over the seminar on Fundamental Duties and Economic and Judicial Reforms stressed upon social evolution and education of young minds who can build a better India.

“”Every government comes and goes. Our government is transformative government and tools of technology are actively aiding the good governance. There are 110 crore Aadhar cards and 104 crore mobile connections today. Digital governance means faster delivery and even poor and illiterate people in rural areas are showing a new confidence in embracing the digital technology which has given a new vision of hope,”” the Law and IT Minister said. He also cited examples of Imran Khan, a mathematics teacher from a school in Alwar, Rajasthan whose mobile apps had benefitted 40 lakh children and a woman  Satama Devi, a beedi worker from Telangana who had learnt how to use Skype to talk to her grandson in Dubai. “People like these are change agents. They believe in this new fast emerging India,’’ he said.

Mr. Ravi Shankar Prasad said that Aadhar enabled bank payments through smartphone would prove to be a “game changer’’ and a tool of empowerment. He said that out of 125 crore people only 3.7 crore pay taxes and 99 lakh file Income Tax returns but have no taxable income, two crore people show annual income of Rs. 6 lakh and only 24 lakh have an annual income of Rs. 10 lakh and above.

Mr. Prasad, himself an activist during JP movement, said the present government has leaders who were all student activists from the days of Emergency and reiterated that the commitment of the government for independence of judiciary is complete.

Admitting that there were issues of infrastructure and judicial appointments, he said that 126 appointments in the higher judiciary were made in the past two years which was the highest since 1999. He said that 131 High Court judges had also been confirmed. 

“”There is meaningful cooperation between the government and the new Chief Justice of India Justice Khehar and all concerns of judiciary will be addressed,’’ he added. The Minister asserted that independence of judiciary and media and individual liberty was sacrosanct for the government. He said that accountability of political establishment was a positive feature of the democracy. “”The strength of democracy lies in bringing in positive changes like eliminating poll violence from Bihar by the efforts of the Election Commission,’’ he said.

The Law and IT Minister said that a panel, led by Justice Sri Krishna, had been set up to give a report within three months on making India a hub of arbitration.

Veteran Congress leader Dr. Karan Singh, former Lok Sabha Secretary General Subhash Kashyap, former Chief Election Commissioner S Y Qureshi, former BSF chief Prakash Singh, former Governor A R Kohli and lawyer-activist Ashok Arora also participated in the seminar.  Think  Tank  for  Nation  Building  resolved  to request  authorities to create  awareness and  atmosphere for performance of Fundamental Duties. For  social  economic  political and  judicial reforms. “

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The All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA) and the Adivasi Adhikar Rashtriya Manch (AARM) has asked the National Human Rights Commission to initiate a process of district level hearings in the Naxal-affected Baster region of Chattisgarh where ordinary villagers can come and register their complaints and provide evidence on several instances of state repression and atrocities.

“”The NHRC is requested to take suo motu notice of the `state repression’ in Chhattisgarh and direct the government to disband and stop providing protection to illegal and unauthorised lumpen elements through organisations like the Samajik Ekta Manch and AGNI which has threatened to physically stop human rights activists from entering Bastar,’’ the AIDWA has said in a memorandum to the human rights panel.

While welcoming the National Human Rights Commission’s January 7, 2017 order regarding the rape cases of 16 women in Bijapur and Sukma, the AIDWA has also drawn the attention of the Commission towards several instances of assault by security forces and the SPOs which have gone unnoticed.

Some of these instances were recorded in the accompanying fact finding reports, which the AIDWA said, indepth investigation by the NHRC. The first report is by a fact finding team comprising of Prof Nandini Sundar, Prof Archana Prasad, CPI (M) Chhattisgarh Secretary Sanjay Parate, and Joshi-Adhikari Institute’s Vineet Tiwari entitled ‘Caught in an Irresponsible War: State and Maoists both Responsible’ which was released in May 2016. The second report is by All India Peoples Forum entitled ‘Bastar: Where the Constitution Stands Suspended’ released in August 2016.

The AIDWA and AARM have appealed to the NHRC to enquire into these cases and intervene to stop the atrocities of the security forces in Bastar.

A list of these cases and the memorandum was also submitted to the National Commission on Scheduled Tribes. The human rights panel on January 7 had come down heavily on the State Government and the security forces for as many as 16 sexual assaults on women by security forces.”

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Amid a global shortage of injectable inactivated polio vaccine (IPV), countries in the WHO South-East Asia Region are opting to use fractional doses of IPV, an evidence-based intervention that not only ensures continued protection of children against all types of polioviruses, but also helps save vaccine, the South East Regional Office of the World Health Organisation has said.

This move is bound to positively impact global vaccine supply in the coming years, it claimed.India became the first country globally to introduce fractional doses of IPV in childhood immunization programme in eight of its 36 states / union territories in early 2016. The initiative is now being scaled up nationwide. Sri Lanka followed suit in July 2016. Bangladesh has decided to introduce fractional IPV doses this year. Other countries in the Region are also considering a shift to the use of fractional IPV doses in their immunization schedule.Studies have confirmed that two fractional doses (one fractional dose is one-fifth of a full dose) of IPV, given twice to infants – first at the age of six weeks and then at 14 weeks – provide the same protection against all polioviruses as does one full dose of IPV.By using fractional IPV, countries are saving vaccine and vaccine cost, without compromising on the protection that the vaccine provides to children against polio, said Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, Regional Director of SEARO.Since polio-free certification on 27 March 2014, all countries in WHO South-East Asia Region have been working towards timely implementation of the global polio end game strategy to achieve a polio-free world.South-East Asia was the first WHO Region to complete the polio vaccine switch from the traditionally used trivalent oral polio vaccine (tOPV) to the bivalent vaccine (bOPV) to prevent any paralysis caused by type 2 poliovirus strain in tOPV.As a part of the global polio endgame strategy, countries in the Region have introduced IPV to supplement the oral polio vaccine (OPV), and ensure protection against all types of polioviruses, while the programme globally strives towards stopping poliovirus transmission and cessation of OPV use, Dr Khetrapal said. “The date – 13 January Ã¢Â€Â“ the last time that wild poliovirus crippled a child in WHO South-East Asia Region in the year 2011, should be a reminder to all countries of the continued need to reach every child with polio vaccines and to strengthen disease surveillance so that poliovirus does not return to cripple children in our Region’’, she said.

World Health Organization has commended countries in the Region for their continued efforts to protect children against this crippling virus and maintain the Region’s polio-free status, despite challenging conditions.”

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In a joint statement, the Central Trade Union Organisations (CTUOs) have reiterated their serious concern at the hardships and miseries imposed on the workers, particularly in the unorganised sector, farmers, agricultural labourers and rural poor, on small traders and street vendors by the Modi government due to the demonetization.

The statement is signed by leaders of Indian National Trade Union Congress (INTUC), All India Trade Union Congress (AITUC), Hind Mazdoor Sabha ( HMS), Central Indian Trade Unions (CITU), All India Union of Trade Unions Centre (AIUTUC), Trade Unions Coordination Centre (TUCC), Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA), All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU), United Trade Union Congress (UTUC) and Labour Progressive Federation (LPF).

The CTUOs took note of the ongoing spontaneous protests by various trade unions throughout the country against the miseries inflicted upon the workers, farmers, self-employed and small business by demonetisation process and stressed upon the need for carrying on the same initiative as a part of their united struggle against the anti-worker, anti-people authoritarian policies of the Government. Reports have been pouring in from all over the country, during the last two months, about closures of thousands of small and medium enterprises, lakhs of workers, particularly the migrant workers losing their jobs. Lakhs of migrant workers employed in construction, brick kiln, textile and garments, jewellery, leather, sports goods etc have lost their work.

Quoting a recent study by the All India Manufacturers’ Organisation, the statement said that in the first 34 days since demonetisation, micro small scale industries suffered 35 per cent job losses and a 50 per cent dip in their revenues. It is also projected 60 per cent drop in employment and 55 per cent loss in revenue by March 2017. There is large scale reverse migration to the rural areas. More than 100 people have died due the demonetisation onslaught and its impact on the people.

This exercise has resulted in the ruin of micro and small industries. It will further increase the already wide income inequalities. It is only intended to help finance capital by sucking in people’s money into the banks for their recapitalisation so that they can provide cheap credit to the big corporate and business houses. 

None of the objectives of this demonetisation, outlined by the government, – unearthing black money, curtailing corruption, stopping funds to terrorist activities and preventing counterfeiting have been fulfilled calling a bluff on the loud noises made by the Government through media. There was no attempt to bring back the huge amount of black money stashed in foreign countries despite the Government having the list of those big black money holders. Counterfeit money in the form of the new Rs 2000 notes are already being printed and brought into circulation. While old avenues of corruption continue unabated, new avenues have been opened in the form of exchanging old withdrawn notes for new notes.

The Government is refusing to take concrete action of even recovering black-money in domestic soil being generated by huge direct tax-default to the tune of Rs 5 lakh crore every year, speculation in the commodity market, under-invoicing and over-invoicing in foreign and domestic trade by the big traders, deliberate default of bank-loans etc. 

Poor unorganised workers having no bank accounts are being robbed of their meagre earnings by unscrupulous commission agents. Farmers are being compelled make distress sale of their produce, both grains and vegetables. The Nagrota terrorist attack clearly establishes the failure of this exercise in stopping terrorist funding and terrorist attacks. Now the government shifted the narrative to converting the country into cashless economy and digital economy, which is nothing but impossible at this juncture given the huge unbanked areas in rural India. 

In fact as the facts revealed by RBI and various other agencies, the demonetisation has resulted in making the black-money white and legitimising the counterfeit currency made clear by the data of demonetised currency received by the banking system to the tune of more than 98 per cent by the end of December 2016.

Instead of taking measures to mitigate the sufferings of the workers the government is branding those who voice their sufferings as black money holders, corrupt and anti national. This is nothing but a clear exhibition of authoritarian tendencies by the government and the BJP leaders.

The Central Trade Unions while seriously condemning this authoritarian attitude of the government  call upon the working people to organise at state capital and  district level joint demonstrations all over the country on 28 January, demanding that the government compensate the toiling people for the job losses, wage losses, crop losses and loss of livelihood.  

About the author: The author is a practicing hack, a cynic to core.”

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The coming together of the youthful Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav and Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi which appears to be on the cards can change the political dynamics in the country’s most populous state.

It can put the Samajwadi party-Congress combine in the driver’s seat as its patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav or Netaji as he is known is increasingly becoming irrelevant in the fast changing political landscape in UP. Once again the BJP is handicapped not having a chief ministerial face to project as evidenced two years back in Bihar. Banking solely on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to pull the chestnuts out of the fire as it were might not be easy. 

The lotus party seems to have alienated its supporters of small traders as well as the Brahmins. As the ideologue of the BJP, the RSS needs to realise the new realities on the ground and that 2014 is not 2017. Three years back in the general elections the BJP secured a majority on its own in the Lok Sabha for the first time since it was formed in 1980. Along with its allies the NDA crossed the rubicon of 300 finishing with a comfortable tally of 340 seats in the 543-member Lok Sabha.

Since the November 8 demonetisation the small trader vote bank of the BJP is keenly looking for an alternative having been badly hit. The other backward classes on whom the BJP strategists were placing their bets are also having second thoughts. 

The SP-Congress combine has the portends of holding the trump card in the February-March assembly elections in UP. If the Mahagatbandhan sent the BJP packing in2015 in Bihar, one of the battleground states in the Cow belt, the SP-Congress combine can disturb the apple cart.

This assumes significance as the Muslims in particular want to vote decisively against the BJP. Numerically it has the largest Vidhan Sabha in the country with 403 seats along with contributing the maximum number of 80 seats in the Lok Sabha.

It is a do or die battle for the Lotus party in UP which can set stage for the general elections two years later in 2019. The Modi government needs to increase its seats in the Rajya Sabha where it is handicapped being in a minority. This has compelled the BJP led NDA at the centre to resort to Ordinances which has been decried by constitutional experts. 

Important legislation pertaining to economic reforms has invariably come up against a wall and fallen by the wayside in the House of Elders. The politically conscious electorate in UP is acutely aware of the complexities of the caste and class combination. 

Having burnt its fingers in Bihar, BJP strategists have tried a new social engineering aimed at turning the Lotus party into a non-Yadav OBC party in a bid to woo the most backward castes. This is bound to alienate the Brahmins as they don’t vote in sync with the OBCs.

Bahujan Samaj party’s supremo Mayawati seemed to have envisoned having the chance of becoming the chief minister for a record fifth time in Lucknow in the wake of the turmoil in the SP. Its chances of fructfying are receding with each passing day, thanks to a three cornered contest.

If the youthful Akhilesh and Rahul Gandhi coming together materialises, she realises she might have blown her chances. In a worst case scenario she is capable of transferring her Yadav votes to defeat the BJP.  

Realising she had lost the gambit in the 2014 general elections, her party’s votes got transferred to the BJP as people wanted a change of government at the centre. In the prevailing scenario, some analysts believe the saffron brigade and its strategists might well be committing harakiri.

At this juncture, Akhilesh and Rahul Gandhi want to throw up a fresh political alternative in UP the significance and importance of which cannot be undermined. Akhilesh has the support of more than 90 per cent of his party members. His clean image and being backed by the younger generation, he wants to concentrate on all round development direly needed in UP.

On his part Rahul Gandhi is endeavouring to recapture the Congress party’s vote bank of yore which had moved away to regional satraps. There are indications Rahul’s sister Priyanka Vadra Gandhi and Akhilesh’s wife Dimple might also be campaigning jointly in the state. 

The importance of Western UP having 77 seats in the assembly cannot be undermined. While the Muslims constitute 25 per cent of the population 73 per cent are Hindus. In 2012 the Muslims won 26 seats from this region. The Muzaffarnagar communal flare up in August 2013 claimed 46 lives and injured 93. It is a jat stronghold and the Ajit Singh factor of the RLD has been eroded over the years.

Polarising the votes in the 2014 general elections led to the Lotus party winning a mind boggling 71 seats out of 80, far beyond its own expectations and along with its allies finished with a tally of 73. The SP won five seats and the remaining two successful candidates were Congress President Sonia Gandhi from Rae Bareli and her son Rahul Gandhi from Amethi. 

For the BJP repeating that mind boggling performance in the ensuing assembly elections with Modi having completed half his five-year term might be both unrealistic and overestimating itself.

(T R Ramachandran is a senior journalist and commentator. The views are personal.)”

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President Pranab Mukherjee is anguished with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government viewing nationalism in a new perspective leading to increasing intolerance. Such a mismatch adversely affecting the country’s plurality is not new as it has been evidenced since the BJP led NDA government assumed power at the Centre in May 2014. 

In the present instance it is with regard to the November 8 high power demonetisation unleashed by Modi continuing to cause great distress to poor.  

The Head of State believes that in the short to medium term, demonetisation is unlikely to achieve its three pronged objective — eradicating the scourge of poverty, tackling black money along with dealing a crippling blow to the menace of terrorism. The poor encompassing the daily wage earner, farmers, the underprivileged as well as the oppressed and depressed cannot afford to wait for the long term. The copybook President has once again found it necessary to bring to the fore the core values of Indian civilisation.

These embrace tolerance and debate. Mukherjee underlined yet again the need to protect the virtues of democracy revolving around the “”freedom to doubt, express disagreement and discuss without fear and prejudice””. 

He was categorical that  the troubles of the poor cannot be brushed aside by a government on the promise of long-term dream of prosperity. A case in point is the widespread distress sale by farmers and lay offs underlying there is need for social security. 

Impartial observers believe as the protector of the Constitution, his efforts in outlining yet again the virtues of democracy could not have come at a more opportune moment. Making these observations while addressing Governors and Lt Governors in the new year through teleconferencing, Mukherjee said it is natural to love one’s country and take pride in its past glory. 

It should be remembered that patriotism puts blinkers on people’s eyes. The lens of patriotism can sometimes present or distort too one sided or too partisan a view of the past. The First Citizen was quick to say “”they bear reiteration, especially at the present conjunction in India when any criticism of India’s past or present is condemned as being anti-national””.  

The response to the Head of State’s observations by the Prime Minister has been tepid in the past. On one occasion while campaigning in the run up to the assembly elections in Bihar in 2015 Modi responded publicly exhorting the people to follow the President’s advice. 

In his message on New Year’s eve, Modi announced waiving bad loans wa well as cutting taxes and interest rates for businesses to soften the ruffled feathers of those badly affected by demonetisation. Providing these sops is one thing even as direly needed social security is nowhere in sight. The President emphasised those suffering “”need to get succour here and now””. 

Amid all this the BJP leaders are singing paeans of Modi about the second surgical strike pertaining to demonetisation is bound to turn the tide. They are emphatic that Modi is determined to transform this country by leap frogging to a cashless world.  

The economy is expected to grow at 7.1 during the current fiscal far slower than 7.6 per cent in 2015-16. The negative impact of demonetisation is far greater in the rural areas. The country faces an extraordinary situation due to demonetisation. It has become imperative to reach new notes to areas which continues to be affected by the liquidity crisis. 

The Central Statistics Office forecast does not take into account the adverse impact of demonetisation which by some accounts is a daring step. The CSO’s prediction is based on data for the first seven months till the end of October last year. The CSO chief T C A Anant conceded that the latest projection may have to be reworked once data for the remaining period becomes available. 

An alarming trend discernible in the country since the Modi government assumed office having completed half its term of two-and-a-half years, is to take nationalism to a new level particularly by the BJP’s ideologue and mentor, the RSS. 

This in turn has shown nationalism in a different perspective of indulging in violence and whipping up a fear psychosis leading to increasing intolerance. Inevitably dissent and debate are becoming the casualty. 

The Prime Minister has rarely ever intervened in curbing such aberrations. His silence has been stoic and on the odd occasion mild mannered. In October 2015, the President was categoric that coexistence of opposition forces, different opinions, strengthen ties along with increasing society’s capacity to move forward. 

The President wondered aloud “”if acceptance of dissent is on the wane? Humanism and pluralism should not be abandoned,”” he emphasised. Another disturbing trend has been the propensity to use the Ordinance route for political expediency. This has been deprecated by superior courts as well as constitutional functionaries. There is the fear of defeat in the Rajya Sabha where the BJP led NDA government is in a minority. 

There is no doubt that people in rural areas have borne a disproportionate burden due to demonetisation. The government must pay attention to the President’s warning of a looming crises in rural India rather than seeking to brush it under the carpet. The Modi government’s efforts in rendering assistance to the poor has to be direct and focussed. 

(T R Ramachandran is a senior journalist and commentator. The views are personal.)”

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To tap the fast-growing Indian car market, Japanese carmaker Nissan has adopted two-pronged strategy – target smaller cities and towns across India by opening new dealerships and develop a robust network of modern workshops. The second-fastest growing car company in India plans to open 20-30 new dealerships every year to cover 250 districts pan India within next three to four years.
“We now have 150 dealerships…We are now focusing on major districts and towns across India so that our products are within reach of our potential customers. Every year we will open 20-30 new dealerships that will have a fully equipped, state-of-the-art workshops. We are the only car company that offers two distinct brands – Nissan and Datsun – to our customers. From current two per cent market share we will capture five per cent by 2020…To meet this demand we are fully prepared,” said Arun Malhotra, Managing Director, Nissan Motor India Pvt. Ltd. Mr. Malhotra, who opened a new Nissan dealership at Kangra in Himachal Pradesh last week, said small towns and cities offer good growth possibilities for the Japanese carmaker. Ã¢Â€ÂœWe are offering best after-sales service to our customers which is boosting our growth. We have improved considerably over the years in the annual J.D. Power India Sales Satisfaction Index (SSI) Study…Last year we stood second which shows people’s affinity towards our brand. For better customer experience, we are opening highway service centres so that those driving Nissan cars are never far away from our service engineers. We have opened 20 highway service centres and plan to add more covering all major highways across India,” he added.

Mr. Malhotra said Nissan plans to introduce eight new Make-in-India models by 2020 – four each from Nissan and Datsun stable – that will be exported across the globe. Ã¢Â€ÂœNissan is betting big on Indian market. Apart from Japan and US, Nissan has opened its R&D Centre in India. We have also set up 600-acre state-of-the-art manufacturing plant in Chennai to cater to Indian and global markets. India is turning out to be a major export hub for the Nissan Group,” Mr. Malhotra added. Incidentally, Nissan along with its Datsun brand has emerged as a real challenger to the market leader — Maruti Suzuki — by offering a range of products from entry-level to mid-level cars.

(Sandeep Joshi is a Delhi-based independent journalist)”