Policy Pulse #6 | Remembering Shinzo Abe
Policy Pulse #6 | Remembering Shinzo Abe
In Focus: Shinzo Abe passes away
This week brings the sad news of the death of Shinzo Abe, former Prime Minister of Japan, who was assassinated on 8 July 2022 whilst addressing a press conference at Nara, Kyoto. He is credited with being the chief architect behind reviving the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (commonly known as the Quad), a strategic alliance between Australia, India, Japan and the United States of America to bolster stability and economic co-operation in the Indo-Pacific to counter China’s growing military influence in the region.
In addition to his outstanding statesmanship abroad, Abe was also greatly respected in Japan for his transformative policies. He was Japan’s longest serving Prime Minister till date. His economic strategy, commonly referred to as “Abenomics”, was a three-pronged action plan aimed at reviving Japan’s long-stagnant economy through a liberal monetary policy, fiscal stimulus and structural reforms. Under Abe’s leadership, Japan enjoyed a sustained economic growth and rise in exports, with unemployment levels at their lowest in decades.
Quad members expressed shock and grief at his assassination of in a joint statement. Their pledge to honour his memory by redoubling efforts to bring peace and prosperity to the Indo-Pacific region is a testament to the late former Prime Minister’s legacy. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who shared a close personal friendship with Abe and fondly referred to him as ‘Abe-san’ (a Japanese honorific), has expressed his grief at the loss of “an outstanding leader of Japan, a towering global statesman and a great champion of India-Japan friendship”.
The Government of India observed a day of national mourning on 9 July 2022 as a mark of respect for Abe. The late former Prime Minister was also a recipient of the Padma Vibhushan, one of India’s highest civilian honours, in 2021.
Top Stories of the Week
Renewable Energy Ministry releases strategy paper to kickstart Offshore Wind Energy industry in India
The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has released a strategy paper on the establishment of offshore wind energy projects in the country. The Ministry aims to auction over 37 GW of offshore wind capacity by the year 2030, with most projects expected to be developed off the coast of Gujarat and Tamil Nadu. The first round of auctions for lease areas with a wind energy potential of over 4 GW is expected to take place in September 2022. The lease areas for this round are located in the Gulf of Munnar, off the Tamil Nadu coast.
Viability Gap Funding (VGF), a mechanism to provide financial support to PPP projects that would otherwise not be financially viable, has been a long standing demand of the Offshore Wind industry. Per the paper, VGF will not be available for the first round of auctions. The balance of plant will begin from the offshore substation onwards, with the government providing power evacuation infrastructure from that point on. Other incentives such as waiver of transmission charges, Renewable Energy Credits with Multipliers, and Carbon Credits will also be available for developers.
RBI allows foreign trade settlement in INR
In a revolutionary move, the Reserve Bank of India has permitted international trade to be settled in Indian rupees. With this step, someone in another country can purchase Indian goods for Indian rupees, while Indians can import foreign goods by paying in Indian rupees.
Previously, international trade involving Indians was primarily settled in US dollars, or other prominent international currencies. However, in the aftermath of Russia being frozen out of the SWIFT payment system, the primary messaging network that underlies international payments, various countries have started to explore alternatives.
Countries such as Venezuela and Iran, which have been subject to widespread international sanctions, have reportedly shown interest in trading with India in Indian rupees. The measure may reportedly save India up to $30-36 billion in dollar outflows, easing pressure on the Rupee-Dollar exchange rate.
Health Ministry introduces draft of New Drug, Medical Devices, and Cosmetic bills, 2022
In an effort to keep up with the changing needs, times, and technology in the field of new laws, medical devices, and cosmetic, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India has introduced a draft New Drug, Medical Devices and Cosmetics Bill, 2022. The Drug and Cosmetic Rules are the rules which the government of India established through Drug and cosmetics act. These rules classify drugs under given schedules and present guidelines for the storage, sale display, and prescription of each schedule.
The new bill seeks to regulate e-pharmacies and medical devices and provide for penalties including imprisonment for failing to pay compensation for injury or death during clinical trials for both drugs and medical devices. In the draft bill, provision have been incorporated to designate and establish medical device testing center by central government for testing and evaluation of medical devices for regulators and industry.
This Week in Policy
Labour
As per the CMIE, India lost a whopping 13 million jobs in the month of June, 2022, reaching 390 million jobs.
After a parliamentary panel questioned the government on its failure to combat child labour, 14 union ministries are coming together with a series of measures to put an end to the practice.
Agriculture and FMCG
Govt puts in a new approval framework for wheat flour exports to curb price rise.
With the decline in International agriculture prices, the domestic cost of Food commodities in India are stating to fall.
The Union Government plans to link every Indian occupational farmer with a cooperative at panchayat level in the country.
Healthcare
Health Ministry reduces the gap between COVID-19 precautionary jabs to six months, from the previously prescribed period of nine months.
India’s drug regulator approves country’s first indigenously HPV vaccine for treatment of cervical cancer in women
Foreign affairs
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met Chinese Foreign Minister and State Councillor Wang Yi in Bali, calling for “early resolution” of LAC issues.
First-ever ‘I2U2’ virtual summit comprising leaders of Israel, India, the UAE and the US to be held on 14 July 2022.
Indian-origin Rishi Sunak tops first round of voting in the race to become UK’s next Prime Minister
Technology, Media and Telecommunications
Data protection: JPC Member hints that non-personal data will be dropped from draft Bill.
Centre bans Chinese telecom equipment ahead of 5G rollout.
BARC CEO Partho Dasgupta advocates self-regulatory standards for OTT platforms
International trade and commerce
Chartered container shipping services between Russia and India for transfer of critical raw materials launched by Russian firms.
India-China trade goes up to over US$ 67bn in first half of 2022 amid surge in Chinese exports
Boris Johnson’s exit puts Diwali deadline for India-UK FTA on shaky ground
Banking, Finance and Insurance
Centre should privatise all Public Sector Banks (PSBs) except for SBI, says a new report by National Council of Applied Economic Research.
Manufacturing
Defence Minister unveils 75 AI-enabled military products to make India a global hub for artificial intelligence.
Retail and e-commerce
As per NSO data, retail inflation has eased slightly for the second consecutive month, with the Consumer Price Index inching down to 7.01% for the month of June 2022, from 7.04% in May.
The Ministry of Consumer Affairs has directed e-commerce platforms to withdraw all non-ISI marked products or products with fake ISI marks from their portals.
Four new cities, including Chennai, Thrissur and Kannur, shall reportedly be added to the Open Network for Digital Commerce by the end of this week.
Logistics
The DPIIT and MeitY are expected to make the PM GatiShakti Master Plan portal, a comprehensive database of current and upcoming infrastructure projects, available to the public in August.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has directed the Niti Aayog to map industrial projects such as industrial corridors, freight corridors and logistics parks, for inclusion under the PM GatiShakti initiative.
Sustainability
Commission for Air Quality Management releases a comprehensive policy to curb air pollution in Delhi-NCR.
MNRE releases strategy paper for establishment of Offshore Wind Energy Projects.
Haryana Government approves EV Policy 2022, which shall be in effect for a period of 5 years.
Upcoming Events
India@75-US-India Economic Partnership: From Here to Where in Next 25 Years
July 19-20 | Virtual
FICCI, in partnership with Embassy of India in Washington D.C, is organizing discussions on the theme of 'India@75-US-India Economic Partnership: From Here to Where in Next 25 Years’. A virtual conference on ‘Co-operation for Green Finance for a Better, Greener Future’ will be held on 19th July followed by “Showcasing of Profitable ESG Investment Opportunities in Indian Corporates” on the 20th. Details | Registration Link
National Conference on Warehousing Leasing, Investment and Development
July 21 | Le Meridien, New Delhi
ASSOCHAM is organising a one day ‘Conference-cum-Excellence Awards’ on Warehousing Leasing, Investment, and Development on July 21 at Hotel Le Meridien, New Delhi. There has been rapid increase in demand for warehousing capacity, largely driven by the rise in international business and E-retailers, however, the industry lags behind global counterparts and remains largely unorganised. The conference aims to bring together all stakeholders to promote growth of the sector. Details | Registration Link
Lecture on Economic Reforms and Prospects for the Indian Economy
July 20 | India International Centre, New Delhi
Columbia School of International and Public Affairs (in collaboration with the Columbia Global Centre) is organising a one-hour lecture on ‘Economic Reforms and Prospects for the Indian Economy’ on 20th July from 6:00pm to 7:00pm at the India International Centre, New Delhi. The lecture will be delivered by Arvind Panagariya, Professor of Economics at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs and Jagdish Bhagwati Professor of Indian Political Economy. Register here
ICMR Health Communication Conclave: Connect and Collaborate
July 15 | India International Center, New Delhi
Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) is organising a one-day conclave on July 15 at India International Center, New Delhi. The conclave aims to bring together policy makers, public health practitioners, scientists and communications professionals to examine the expanding role of communications in bettering health outcomes, raising awareness around public health issues and building people-centric health systems. Opening remarks will be given by Prof. (Dr.) Balram Bhargava, Secretary, Department of Health Research, GoI and Director General, ICMR. More Details | Registration Link
A Few Good Reads
Vitalik Buterin’s take on Balaji Srinivasan’s vision of network states.
Bhuvana Anand and Sarvnipun Kaur of Trayas have authored the excellent State of Discrimination Report, which highlights state-level laws which impact the ability of women to participate in the workforce.
V Sridhar and Rohit Prasad write about network intermediaries and their role as neutral hosts in transforming the 5G landscape.
Read Shashi Tharoor’s piece in The Hindu about the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and how India is in a position to help resolve it.
Noah Smith explores the possibility of disinflation, and the early signs to look out for.
Tweets of the Week
Gniewomir Flis covers recent and anticipated technological changes which make Hydrogen fuel cells viable in this twitter thread:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expresses his grief at the passing of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in this thread:
Saloni Dattani traces the eradication of the Guinea worm disease worldwide:
Key Notifications
Ministry of Health and Family Welfare proposes a draft New Drug, Medical Devices, and Cosmetic Bills, 2022 and invited suggestions/comments/objections within 45 days from the date of issue of the Notice by email to drugdivmohfw@gov.in or by post to Undersecretary (Drug Regulation), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Room No 434, C Wing, Nirman Bhawan, New Delhi, 110011.
The Department of Telecommunications has released the list of applicants for the rights to 5G spectrum in 600 MHz, 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz, 2500 MHz, 3300 MHz and 26 GHz Bands. Read the notification