Policy Pulse #1 | June 9, 2022
NEWS BYTES
Ethanol blending
India is reported to achieved 10% ethanol blending in petrol (up from 2% in 2014), five months ahead of the November 2022 deadline.
The move, which is part of concerted governmental response to climate change, is said to have reduced carbon emission by 27 lakh tons and saved Rs. 41,000 Cr forex reserves.
The Government now eyes a target of 20% ethanol blending. The ‘Expert Committee on Roadmap for Ethanol Blending in India by 2025’ in its report has mentioned that the 20% target could be a reality very soon. Read more
MoHUA launches “Clean and Green” campaign on World Environment Day
In the spirit of honouring India’s commitment to ban single-use plastic (SUP) by 30 June 2022, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has come out with a detailed advisory, issued to all States and UTs to carry out a series of activities aimed at reducing plastic waste. Read more
Govt’s AVGC talent hunt in rural India
The Government of India is putting in place a framework for scouting rural talent and for introducing scholarships in the animation, visual effects, gaming, and comics (AVGC) sector. This framework is being prepared in tandem with an overall policy to give the AVGC sector a boost.
The Government has set up four committees to focus on different aspects - skilling, industry and policy, education, and gaming. These committees will function under the aegis of a task force. According to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB), India has the potential to capture 5% of the global market share (around $40 billion) by the year 2025. Read more
India seeks re-election to ITU Council
India is contesting for re-election to the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) Council, for the term between 2023-2026. Further, India has forwarded the name of Ms. M. Revathi, Senior Deputy Wireless Advisor with the Department of Telecommunications, as India’s candidate for membership to the ITU’s Radio Regulations Board. Read more
MEITY proposes amendments to the IT Rules
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) on 6 June 2022 published a draft Amendment to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 for public consultation and comments within 30 days. Changes have been proposed with a view to “putting the interests of digital Indians first”.
Key features of the Amendment include creation of a new Grievance Appellate Committee, changes to the grievance redressal mechanism of social media intermediaries and additional rules mandating intermediaries to respect its user’s guaranteed rights under the Constitution of India and for general enforcement of the Rules.
To read the draft of the proposed Amendment, click here.
Online gaming regulations back in focus
On 7 June 2022, MeitY conducted its first landmark conference with stakeholders from the online gaming industry. The main agenda was “regulations”. Amidst the continuing debates on games of chance v. games of skill and on whether regulation should fall to the Centre or the States, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, the MeitY Minister of State acknowledged the dire need for regulations and asked operators to submit written proposals on a workable model for the industry. Read more
Civil Aviation Ministry releases National Air Sports Policy
The hon’ble Civil Aviation Minister, Shri Jyotiraditya M. Scindia, launched the ‘National Air Sport Policy, 2022’, which aims at making India one of the leading nations in the field of air sports by the year 2030. The policy encompasses various sports that use the air as a medium, such as air racing, paragliding and skydiving, among others, and seeks to make them safe, affordable and sustainable. The policy establishes a four-tier governance structure for air sports in India: (a) the Air Sports Federation of India as the apex body, (b) national associations for individual sports, (c) regional or state level units, and (c) district-level associations. Read more | Policy
Delhi Labour Department forms ‘Data Cell’
The Labour Department of the Delhi Government has formed a five-member ‘data cell’, intended to serve as a single point for information collection and dissemination. The data cell is intended to improve data collection by the department, collecting data from all district offices and branches of Delhi’s labour department. Such data shall be kept handy with the data cell and shall be made available on demand. Read more
Single Nodal Agency Dashboard launched by FinMin
The hon’ble Finance Minister, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman launched the ‘Single Nodal Agency’ (SNA) dashboard on Tuesday, June 7, which is aimed at enabling better tracking and utilisation of such funds, and improving the returns achieved from such funds.
The SNA procedure intends to change the manner in which funds for centrally sponsored schemes are released, disbursed and monitored. Under the SNA procedure, states are required to identify and designate a single account for each scheme, which shall be used to meet all expenses of every implementing agency of the scheme. This process allows timely disbursement of funds to states.
The dashboard, developed by the Public Financial Management System, gives stakeholders feedback and monitoring tools in the operation of schemes. It depicts releases of funds to states from the centre, from state treasuries to SNA accounts, expenditures by agencies and interests accrued to agencies, among others, in an accessible manner. Read more
First tranche of NPAs to be transferred to bad bank, announces FinMin
Over a series of tweets, the Ministry of Finance has announced that the first set of NPA accounts are expected to be transferred to the bad loan banks, National Asset Reconstruction Company Limited and Indian Debt Resolution Company Limited during July 2022. The remaining accounts are proposed to be taken over within the third quarter of the financial year. Read more
WTO looking for a fresh start
Ministers from WTO Member States are convening for four days in Geneva starting this Sunday, in the hopes that the organisation’s role in boosting international trade and commerce could be renewed.
This meeting is expected to be rife with tension, with many countries in confrontation mode due to the current situation in Ukraine. However, member States are “cautiously optimistic” about finding a way around established differences of opinion between member States to secure an agreement. The big issues on the table are fisheries subsidies, pharmaceuticals (related to Covid-19), agriculture, services, development, food security and issues faced by LDCs. Read more
MoEF rebuts the Environmental Performance Index 2022
India’s Ministry of Environment, forest and Climate Change said that the Environmental Performance Index 2022, which places India at the bottom of 180 countries, has several indicators based on unfounded assumptions and some of these indicators are based on unscientific methods. Read more
UPCOMING EVENTS
Webinars
VVGNLI | Online Training Programme on Gig and Platform Workers Social Security Issues
June 13-15, 2022 | Online
The VV Giri National Labour Institute, Noida is conducting an online training program on the social security concerns faced by gig and platform workers. For details, click here.
Nishith Desai Associates | Sustainable Mobility: Opportunities and Challenges
June 9, 2022 | Online
Nishith Desai Associates is hosting a webinar on trends on sustainability in the mobility sector. For details, click here.
Conferences
India International Logistics and Supply Chain Conference
June 9, 2022 | PHD House, New Delhi
The IILSCEXCON 2022, revolving around the theme “Indian Logistics Embracing the Multimodal Revolution with Gati Shakti”, will bring together members of the Indian logistics industry, users of logistics services, policy makers and other stakeholders, for discussions on the challenges and opportunities in the sector. For details, see here.
MISCELLANEOUS
NITI Aayog and MOEFCC invite solutions to drive climate-friendly behaviour
The Niti Aayog and the Ministry of Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change are inviting ideas for solutions that would drive climate-friendly behaviour. This initiative is part of the ‘Lifestyle for the Environment (LiFE) Movement’ launched by the Prime Minister. Authors of accepted ideas will be invited to present their work during an international conference, and several awards shall be granted to the top 5 ideas. For details, click here.