India's budget : Winners and Losers

India unveiled a fire-fighting budget on Monday that seeks to win back support among rural voters for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government and sustain growth against a grim global backdrop - all without borrowing more.
The following sectors/companies will benefit or be hurt by the budget proposals:

WINNERS:

* AGRICULTURE
Jaitley said 359.84 billion rupees ($5.3 billion) would be set aside for farmers' welfare for the year starting April 2016. The government will also launch aid schemes intended to help double farmers' incomes by 2022.
Jaitley also raised the agricultural credit target for 2016/17 to a record 9 trillion rupees, amid rising rural distress after a series of droughts in the country.
Companies such as Jain Irrigation (JAIR.NS), Mahindra and Mahindra (MAHM.NS), Monstanto India (MNSN.NS) that supply agricultural equipment and seeds are likely to benefit.
   
* ROADS AND INFRASTRUCTURE
Jaitley plans to allocate 550 billion rupees for developing roads and highways. Capital expenditure on development of roads, highways and railways has been set at 2.18 trillion rupees for the year.
The higher infrastructure spending bodes well for companies such as IRB Infrastructure Developers (IRBI.NS), Larsen and Toubro Ltd (LART.NS) and Gammon Infrastructure Projects Ltd (GAIN.NS).

* NEW MANUFACTURING COS
New manufacturing companies incorporated on or after March 1, 2016 will be given an option to be taxed at a reduced rate of 25 percent plus surcharge and cess, provided they do not claim profit-linked or investment-linked deductions and do not use the investment allowance and accelerated depreciation.


* REAL ESTATE
Dividends from a special purpose vehicle to a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) and an Infrastructure Investment Trust (InvIT) will not be subjected to the Dividend Distribution Tax, the budget said, resolving a major hurdle for listing of REITs.
That would help companies, including DLF Ltd (DLF.NS), Prestige Estates Projects Ltd (PREG.NS), and Sobha Ltd (SOBH.NS), which have been waiting to list REITs.
Jaitley's plans to provide tax incentives for affordable housing are likely to benefit builders of low-cost homes, including Mahindra Lifespace Developers (MALD.NS) and Housing Development and Infrastructure Ltd (HDIL.NS).

* ASSET RECONSTRUCTION COMPANIES

The government said it would allow so-called sponsors of asset reconstruction companies (ARCs), which buy bad loans from banks, to own 100 percent of the company. Foreign investors can fully own Indian ARCs without having to seek prior approval from the government.
The moves will help ARCs including Edelweiss ARC, JM Financial ARC and ARCIL raise more capital.

LOSERS:

* CARS
The budget proposed an infrastructure cess of 1 pct on small petrol, LPG, CNG cars, of 2.5 pct on diesel cars of certain capacity, and of 4 pct on other higher engine capacity vehicles and SUVs.
The budget also called for tax to be deducted at source at the rate of 1 percent for purchases of luxury cars exceeding a price of 1 million rupees.

India's largest automobile maker Maruti Suzuki Ltd (MRTI.NS) and SUV-makers Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd (MAHM.NS) and Tata Motors (TAMO.NS) are likely to be hurt.

* RETAIL and TEXTILE
Factory gate duty on readymade garments with a retail price of 1,000 rupees or more has been raised to 2 percent without input tax credit, or 12.5 percent with input tax credit.
Apparel retailers such as Aditya Birla Nuvo (ABRL.NS), Future Retail (FURE.NS), and Shopper's Stop (SHOP.NS) along with textile manufacturers such as Arvind Ltd (ARVN.NS) are likely to be hurt.

* TOBACCO
Excise duties on various tobacco products have been raised by about 10 percent to 15 percent. Cigarettte makers such as ITC Ltd (ITC.NS) and VST Industries (VSTI.NS) are likely to be affected.

* OIL EXPLORERS
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in his budget changed the so-called Oil Industries Development Cess on locally produced crude oil from 4,500 rupees per tonne to 20 pct of the value of the commodity. Industry had however expected a much lower tax rate, traders said. This affects companies such as Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC.NS), Cairn India (CAIL.NS) and Oil India Ltd (OILI.NS).
($1 = 68.4250 Indian rupees)

 

India’s representative Shri Dinesh Sharma, Additional Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs elected as the Chairperson of the Governing Council of International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD), Rome

Shri Dinesh Sharma, Additional Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance and India’s Governor to the International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD), Rome was unanimously elected as the Chairperson of the Governing Council of IFAD for a period of two years in its 39th Session held in Rome,Italy on 17th and 18th February, 2016. Speaking on the occasion, the Italian President Mr Sergio Mattarella said that hunger and poverty are insidious, and are at the root of conflict and instability and are the link in chain that we need to break first to deal with emergencies and humanitarian disasters.

IFAD was set-up in 1977 as the 13th Specialised Agency of the United Nations and works towards removing poverty and hunger in rural areas all over the world. India is a founder member of IFAD and a key contributor among the member countries.

IFAD is managed by the two main governing bodies i.e. the Governing Council and the Executive Board. The Governing Council is the highest decision making body and consists of 176 member countries.

The aforesaid Governing Council Session was marked by special focus on inclusive growth and on the investments required to meet the Sustainable Development Goals in the realm of eradicating poverty and hunger. India emphasised that economic growth must be inclusive and participatory; and should result in an enhanced access to opportunities to all. India further added that access to formal finance at an affordable cost and in a transparent manner, would be crucial for a meaningful financial inclusion. The Indian Delegation also apprised the gathering about the steps taken by the Government of India to promote financial Inclusion through the ‘Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY)’ and ‘Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT)’.

UK, EU leaders set to clash over financial regulation

BRUSSELS : The extent to which British regulators can write their own banking rules remains a stumbling block ahead of a summit of European Union leaders on Thursday that will try to thrash out a deal to keep Britain in the bloc.
The latest draft seen by Reuters of Britain's "new settlement" with the EU shows disagreement over the conditions for granting leeway to national regulators whose currencies are outside the euro zone.
Where negotiators had hoped to settle issues of economic governance before the summit, the final draft leaves a key section on financial regulation in square brackets, indicating it will be thrashed out at the top political level.
Britain plans to hold a referendum, probably in June, on whether to stay a member of the EU and the draft, which maps out a new deal with the EU, is aimed at persuading Britons to stay in the 28-country bloc.

The draft says regulators outside the euro zone, such as the Bank of England in London, are responsible for supervision of their own banks and markets when it comes to preserving financial stability.
But this is subject to two conditions which lawmakers in Britain have said negates the freedom being offered.

The latest draft still says that a regulator such as the BoE must take into account the "requirements of group supervision" - a reference to the European Central Bank, which is the group supervisor for the euro zone's top lenders which have operations in London.
Secondly, "this is without prejudice to the development of the single rulebook" and to "the existing powers of the Union institutions and relevant Union bodies to take action that is necessary to respond to threats to financial stability," the draft text says.

The ECB would be included in a list of relevant union bodies, adding to concerns over the scope for the BoE to regulate its own markets.

(Reporting by Huw Jones; Editing by Keith Weir)

India launches website of Maritime India Summit 2016

Shri Nitin Gadkari,  Minister of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways launched the Website for Maritime India Summit 2016 www.maritimeinvest.in at the Ports and Shipping seminar at Make in India (MII) Summit today. The Maritime India Summit is scheduled to be  held in Mumbai in April this year.  The user friendly website launched today will facilitate investors and participants to access detailed information about the summit, including registrations. Launching the website Shri Gadkari said, “A strong maritime sector will create economic growth and jobs.  Realizing this potential is duty towards the nation. I am committed to bring the sector into focus; to achieve our goal of port led economic development”

Maritime India Summit 2016 (MIS 2016), is the maiden global summit being organised by the Ministry of Shipping in April,  to unleash the potential of Indian Maritime Sector. The summit will be inaugurated by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi on 14 April 2016 at the Bombay Convention and Exhibition Centre in Mumbai. MIS 2016 will comprise of an Investors’ Summit on 14–15 April 2016 , along with exhibition and demo sessions spread over three days. The Republic of Korea is the partner country for the MIS 2016 and will be represented by a high level ministerial and business delegation. More than 50 other maritime nations have also been invited to attend the Summit

 

 As a precursor to the MIS 2016 roadshows have been organised in Kolkata, Chennai and Hyderabad. The next roadshow is scheduled in Ahmedabad on 23 February 2016. The Ministry of Shipping showcased the potential of growth in the maritime sector at Make in India Week. The launch of the website at MII Summit witnessed an enthusiastic participation by policy-makers, industry experts, corporate captains and Ministry of Shipping officials. Shri Gadkari has urged the potential participants/exhibitors to register themselves online and avail the early bird discount till 10^th of March 2016.

 

About Maritime India Summit 2016:

 

 This flagship  initiative of the Shipping Ministry  aims to provide a unique platform for participants to explore potential business opportunities. It  will showcase exciting investment opportunities in the maritime sector including Shipbuilding, Ship Repair and Ship Recycling, Port Modernization and New Port Development, Port-based Industrial Development, Port-based Smart Cities and Maritime Cluster Development, Hinterland Connectivity Projects and Multi-Modal Logistics Hubs, Inland Waterways and Coastal Shipping for Cargo and Passenger movement, Dredging, Lighthouse Tourism and Cruise Shipping and Renewable Energy Projects in Ports. An exhibition along with exclusive demo sessions will showcase the latest technology, products and services as well as help disseminate knowledge about the latest development in Maritime Sector. It will provide a platform to interact closely with leading global Maritime oganisations to explore business opportunities and create awareness amongst stakeholders about the emerging trends and opportunities in Maritime Sector.

Agreement in the area of Traditional Medicine between Ministry of AYUSH and the World Health Organization

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has given its approval to the Agreement for collaborative activities to be signed in the area of Traditional Medicine between Ministry of AYUSH, Government of India and the World Health Organization, Geneva.

The long-term collaboration with WHO would help in improving International acceptability and branding of Ayush systems, facilitate awareness generation regarding AYUSH systems of Medicine by means of education, skill development, workshops, publications and exchange programs between AYUSH and WHO for capacity building, facilitate advocacy and dissemination of information on AYUSH systems amongst the Member States; collaboration with third Parties for creating synergies in implementation of WHO Traditional Medicine Strategy 2014-2023 particularly in the context of AYUSH systems.

The expenditure for carrying out collaborative activities will be met from the allocated budget under the existing plan schemes of Ministry of AYUSH.

The activities will start subsequent to the signing of agreements by the two parties as per terms of reference mutually decided. As a first step in the long-term collaboration, India would assign to WHO activities for development of the following WHO technical documents/publications which will help in better international acceptability of Indian Systems:

i. Benchmarks for training in Yoga;

ii. Benchmarks for practice in Ayurveda;

iii. Benchmarks for practice in Unani Medicine; and

iv. Benchmarks for practice in Panchakarma

Under the long-term collaboration, AYUSH and WHO would subsequently take up other mutually agreed activities and initiatives that could encompass multilateral collaboration for promotion of Traditional and Complementary Medicine/Systems (T&CM) including development of the WHO publication on the Basic terminologies for T&CM; establishment of a database for global T & CM practitioners; establishment of a network of international regulatory cooperation for T&CM practice.

The agreement between WHO and AYUSH is expected to benefit the practitioners of AYUSH systems.

Background

Ministry of AYUSH having the mandate to promote, propagate and globalize the recognized Traditional and Complementary Systems of Medicine (T&CM) including Ayurveda, Yoga, Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha, Sowa Rigpa and Homeopathy, proposes to collaborate and cooperate with the World Health Organization. Within the United Nations framework, World Health Organization is the directing and coordinating authority for health. It provides leadership on global health matters, shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence-based policy options, providing technical support to countries and monitoring and assessing health trends.

During the presentation of Ministry of AYUSH before the Hon’ble PM on 3rd July 2014, Hon’ble PM desired that the Ministry needs to seize the opportunities for taking a lead in the world at a time when holistic health care has gained currency. India should strive to compete with China, when it comes to export of herbal medicine. It was emphasized that roadmap be prepared to establish India’s credentials in holistic health-care, including preparation of authoritative and credible literature.

Given the strategic importance of collaboration between India and WHO for enhancing global positioning and acceptability of Traditional Systems of Medicine recognized in India (including Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha, Yoga & Naturopathy, Sowa-Rigpa and Homeopathy), Ministry of AYUSH and WHO should foster a long-term relationship.

India's target to import GMO-free corn

NEW DELHI/SINGAPORE | By Mayank Bhardwaj and Naveen Thukral : As India prepares to import corn for the first time in 16 years, at least one stipulation in its international tender has become much tougher to meet - that shipments of the crop are completely free of genetically modified organisms (GMOs).
The Asian country of 1.2 billion people does not allow cultivation of any genetically modified food, and has rules that are supposed to ensure that imports contain no trace of GMOs.But an explosion in the use of GM crops worldwide means that purity grade has become harder to attain and, with a growing risk of the supply chain being contaminated, underlines the vulnerabilities faced by countries trying to stay GM free.
Even a shipment containing a handful of genetically altered seeds could cross pollinate with local varieties and mean that in India's case farmers end up illegally growing GM crops.
"They can buy non-GMO corn, especially out of the Black sea region, but I doubt anybody can offer shipments with zero presence of GMOs," James Dunsterville, an agricultural commodities analyst at Geneva-based commodities information platform AgFlow.
South Korea's Daewoo International won the tender to ship 250,000 tonnes of non-GM corn to India from Ukraine, but two international traders in Singapore and an exporter in Kiev said Ukraine could at best guarantee 99.1 percent non-GM corn.
"The biggest risk of accepting anything less than 99, or 100, percent is that the imported GM corn may eventually get mixed with conventional seeds that farmers sow in India," said an Indian government scientist.
"If, God forbid, any GM seed gets mixed here, it'll spoil the entire Indian agriculture," added the scientist, who asked not to be named since he was not authorised to talk to media.
Daewoo declined to comment but two sources close to the company said it would be able to meet the requirements and that it was aware of the conditions in last month's tender issued by Indian state-run firm PEC.


RISKS OF CONTAMINATION
Shrinking arable land, volatile weather and a world population tipped to top 9 billion by 2050 are increasing pressures to plant GM crops to boost yields and protect from pests.
Much of the corn in major producers such as the United States, Brazil and Argentina is GM, helping production hit record levels in recent years and keeping a lid on food prices.
Global corn prices have recovered about 13 percent after hitting a 5-year low in 2014 but are still more than 50 percent below a record price of $8.49 a bushel in 2012.

Indicating the difficulty of keeping GM free, Greenpeace said that Chinese farmers were illegally growing GM corn, despite an official ban on cultivating GM varieties or other staple food crops.
The environmental group said almost all samples taken from cornfields in some parts of the north-east, China's breadbasket, tested positive for GMO. China has not directly commented on the report, though officials have issued warnings to seed dealers and farmers not to use unapproved GM seeds.
Some farm economists have said India should speed up efforts to embrace GM foods after China took a step towards this with its bid for Swiss transgenic seed developer Syngenta.
But public and political opposition in India remains strong amid fears they could compromise food safety and biodiversity. GM advocates say such fears are not scientifically proven.
"India must reject cargoes from suppliers who promise to provide corn that is only 99.1 percent free of GM organisms,” said Devinder Sharma, an independent food and trade policy analyst based in Chandigarh, highlighting a risk of contamination.

However, Sharma said that it had become standard global practice for GM-free buyers to settle for crops that were up to 99 percent GM free.
A source at trader PEC said India's condition that the imports were non-GM was sacrosanct.
PEC received 15 bids from global traders including Daewoo, Noble, Cargill and Agro Corp to supply corn mainly to be used as animal feed for India's poultry industry.
But Singapore-based traders said there could have been more participants in the tender but for the non-GM restriction.
Though Ukraine and growers in Europe, such as France, do produce non-GMO corn, suppliers may not be able to guarantee supplies are completely free of gene-altered grains because of common bulk handling systems, said a trading manager with an international trading company.
"It could be a dirty truck or a dirty conveyor belt. It only takes one seed to get a GMO positive result."

(Additional reporting by Pavel Polityuk in KIEV; Editing by Ed Davies)

NRDC inks MoA with Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS), Kolkatta on Technology Transfer

National Research Development Corporation, an Enterprise of Department of Scientific& Industrial Research, Ministry of Science & Technology, Govt. of India, New Delhi (NRDC) has entered into Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS), Kolkatta for commercialisation of technologies/ intellectual properties developed at IACS.  NRDC shall also provide its services in IP Evaluation/Valuation in terms of their commercial potential.

 

Chairman Managing Director of NRDC Dr. H. Purushotham and Director, IACS Professor Santanu Bhattacharya exchanged the Memorandum of Agreement.

 

 

NRDC has been working for more than six decades in development, promotion and commercialisation of technologies emanating from R&D organization and academia. It has so far licensed technologies to more than 4800 enterpreneurs/ companies in the country in almost all sector of industry.

 

The Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS) is an autonomous and oldest research institute in India. The institute is devoted to the pursuit of fundamental research in the frontier areas of Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Energy, Polymer and Materials. In each field, IACS nurtures young and innovative research fellows in their R&D programs. Professor Santanu Bhattacharya, Director, IACS, Kolkatta hoped that the partnership between IACS and NRDC would lead to successful commercialization of Technologies developed at IACS.

Tremendous Potential in NE States for Development of the Horticulture Sector says Radha Mohan Singh

Consultative Committee of Ministry of Agriculture on Horticulture Development

in India held in Shillong

Union Minister for Agriculture & Farmers Welfare Shri Radha Mohan Singh has said that there exists tremendous potential in NE states for development of the horticulture sector and we need to ensure focused attention for harnessing available potential through scaling up ongoing interventions under various schemes. Addressing the meeting of the Parliamentary Consultative Committee of Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare on Horticulture Development in India held in Shillong today he said the challenge is to complement the sector with food processing, agro logistics, agri-business, input related services and agricultural lending. Referring to the challenges faced by horticulture crops the Minister suggested that grower associations and farmer producer organisations should also be taken on board,from planting material to post harvest management and issues of logistics and price discovery.

The Minister said setting up of market infrastructure has been linked with reforms in APMC act for permitting direct marketing of horticulture produce. Shri Singh said,“ Although we have achieved a substantial breakthrough in production, the challenge lies in converting this into gains for farmer. We still have a long way to go in establishing a robust cold chain system from farm to fork. Creation of infrastructure for post harvest management and value addition therefore are a high priority area with focus on creating cold chain networks”. He said horticulture mechanization is being promoted to bring in efficiency in horticulture production and harvesting operations.

The meeting was also attended by Dr. Sanjeev Kumar Balyan, Union Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare and Shri MohanbhaiKundariya, Union Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare and six Members of Parliament besides the Director of ICAR NEH Region Dr.SV Ngachan.

Earlier the Minister visited the ICAR Research Complex for NEH Region andinaugurated the FATE (Facility for Air Temperature Enhancement) and CTGC (Carbon dioxide Thermal Growth Chamber) at the Complex and also interacted with 250 farmers on the occasion.

Nifty ends 2.6 percent higher, led by banks

The NSE Nifty jumped more than 2.6 percent on Monday, its biggest daily percentage gain in more than a year, encouraged by strong trading in shares of banks and miners after a selloff last week.
The broader Nifty ended at 7,162.95, while the benchmark BSE Sensex gained 2.47 percent to close at 23,554.12.
Among gainers, State Bank of India (SBI.NS) soared 9 percent on value-buying after the stock fell as much last week. India's biggest lender on Friday reported the biggest fall in its quarterly profit in nearly five years as bad loan provisions jumped.

Construction and engineering stocks also surged. Industrial group Larsen & Toubro (LART.NS) jumped 9.1 percent.



(Reporting by Aastha Agnihotri; Editing by Anupama Dwivedi)

India's wholesale prices fall for 15th straight month in January

  

A vendor takes notes of a sale at a wholesale fruit market in Bengaluru, India, October 15, 2015.

Reuters/Abhishek N. Chinnappa/Files

NEW DELHI Wholesale prices fell for a 15th straight month in January, declining an annual 0.90 percent, driven down by tumbling oil prices, government data showed on Monday.
The pace of fall, however, was slower than a 0.15 percent annual decline forecast by economists in a Reuters poll. In December, the index fell a provisional 0.73 percent.
The wholesale fuel prices dropped 9.21 percent from a year ago in January, while prices of manufactured goods declined 1.17 percent year on year.

Food prices last month, however, gained 6.02 percent year-on-year, compared with a provisional 8.17 percent gain in December.



(Reporting by Manoj Kumar; Editing by Malini Menon)

SAG :Indian won Gold in Triathlon Mix Relay

In Triathlon Mix Relay, India won Gold in 12th SAG today. Indian team led by Pallavi Retiwala, Dilip Kumar, Sorojini Devi Thoudam and Dhiraj Sawant covered their destination in 1:24:31:00 hrs and won the Gold medal. Nepalese team comprising Yem Kumari Ghale, Himal Tamata, Roza K.C and Rudra Katuwal clinched the Silver medal in 1:31:35:00 hrs. Bronze medal won by Sri Lankan Team led by Gayani Dasanayake, Lakruwan Wijesiri, Dinusha De Silva and Nuwan Kumara in 1:32:05:00.

Indian Team won Gold in 50m Rifle 3 Positions Men shooting also. Chain Singh, Gagan Narang and Surendra Singh Rathod won Gold for India. W.K.Y. Krisantha, S.M.M. Samarkoon and H.D.P. Kumara of Sri Lanka won Silver medal while Golam Saifuddin Siplu, Md. Yusuf Ali and Md. Ramjan Ali of Bangladesh won the Bronze medal.

Afghanistan’s Mahmood Haidari won the Men under 58kg Taekwondo in Shillong. Gajendra Parihar of India won Silver medal and Sunil Poudel of Nepal won Bronze medal.

12th SAG: Indian Men & Women aim Gold in shooting

Indian men and women shooters Team won the 10m Air Pistol Men, 25m Pistol Women and 50m Rifle 3 Positions Women at 12th SAG in Guwahati today. Indian shooters Omker Singh, Gurpreet Singh and Jitendra Vibhute won Gold medal in the 10m Air Pistol Men Team. Kalimullah Khan, Kaleem Ullah and Muhammad Shehzad Akhtar of Pakistan won Silver Medal while Sri Lanka’s S. Fernandoo, M.P. Pathirana and D.M.S.M. Disanayake won Bronze medal.

In 25m Pistol Women Team, Rahi Sarnobat, Anisa Sayyed and Annuraj Singh of India won Gold medal and A.I.D.A. Kulathunga, K.S.C.G. Kendawala and W.A.N.M. Weerakkodi of Sri Lanka won Silver medal while Pakistan’s Lubina Amin, Farhat Nasreen and Tazeem Akhtar won Bronze medal.

Indian Women Team, Anjum Moudgil, Elizabeth Susan Koshy and Lajja Gauswami won Gold medal in 50m Rifle 3 Positions and W.M.S.Y. Perera, K.K.G. Perera and G.G.U.N. Ruparathna of Sri Lanka won Silver Medal. Pakistan’s Nazish Khan, Nadia Rashid and Nadira Raees won Bronze Medal.


SAG Triathlon: Gold and Silver for India


Indian athletes won gold medal Triathlon in 12th SAG here today. Indian Men squad comprising Dilip Kumar and Guru Datt bagged Gold and Silver medals respectively while Sri Lankan Nuwan Kumara could manage Bronze medal. In woman section, Pallavi Retiwala and Pooja Chaurushi were declared first and second while Nepal’s K. C. Roja bagged Bronze medal for her country.

Facebook India MD Kirthiga Reddy stepping down

Facebook Inc's India managing director, Kirthiga Reddy, said on Friday she is stepping down and returning to the United States to "explore new opportunities" at the company's headquarters in Menlo Park, California.
Reddy, who joined Facebook in 2010 as its first employee in India, said in a Facebook post she would be relocating in the next 6-12 months.
Reddy is working closely with William Easton, MD of emerging markets (Asia Pacific), and Dan Neary, vice president of Asia Pacific, to search for her successor.
The move comes days after India introduced rules to prevent Internet service providers from having different pricing policies for accessing different parts of the Web, in a setback to Facebook's plan to roll out a pared-back free Internet service.

The service, earlier known as internet.org, has also run into trouble in other countries that have accused Facebook of infringing the principle of net neutrality - the concept that all websites and data on the Internet be treated equally.

Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg was disappointed with the Indian ruling and said that the company was still "working to break down barriers to connectivity in India and around the world."
"As she had planned for some time, Kirthiga Reddy is moving back to the U.S. to work with the teams in Headquarters," a Facebook spokesperson said. "During her time in India, Kirthiga was not involved in our Free Basic Services efforts."


(Reporting by Kshitiz Goliya in Bengaluru; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty)

Supreme Court says Gandhis need to face trial in graft case

  

India’s main opposition Congress party president Sonia Gandhi (L) and her son and the party’s vice-president Rahul Gandhi, arrive at a court in New Delhi, India, December 19, 2015.

Reuters/Adnan Abidi/Files

NEW DELHI India's Supreme Court said on Friday that opposition leaders Sonia Gandhi and her son, Rahul, will have to face trial in a case involving the alleged misuse of party funds, but exempted them from appearing in court.

The two members of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty had approached the top court to throw out the case which their Congress party says is a vendetta carried out by a member of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling group.
But the court said it saw no justification for interfering in the trial conducted by the lower court. However it granted them leave from attending regular hearings.
The Gandhis deny any wrongdoing.
Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party are bitterly opposed to the Congress party, leading to a gridlock in parliament where key legislation such as simplifying state taxes is stuck.

The Nehru-Gandhi dynasty ruled India for most of its post-independence era after 1947 and helped shape the country's institutions. Detractors accuse the family of holding back economic development with socialist policies.
The legal case, brought by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy against the Gandhis, has further poisoned ties and there are no signs of compromise, political analysts say.

"The main prayer for which they (Gandhis) came has been defeated," Swamy told reporters after the Supreme Court decision.
Congress leader Kapil Sibal said the party welcomed the court's decision to exempt the Gandhis from appearing in court and would continue to fight Swamy's "false allegations".

Swamy has accused the Gandhis of cheating and criminal breach of trust by setting up a shell company to illegally gain control of properties worth $300 million that belonged to a company that published the National Herald, a newspaper founded by Rahul's great grandfather.

(Reporting by Aditya Kalra and Suchitra Mohanty; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani and Nick Macfie)

Speech by the President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee on the occasion of call on by Ashoka Fellows for the year 2015

1. I am happy to meet this young, enterprising group of Ashoka Fellows for the year 2015. At the very beginning, I extend you and the representatives from the ‘Ashoka Innovators for the Public’ a warm welcome to the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

2. ‘Ashoka Innovators for the Public’ (ASHOKA) is a worldwide network of social entrepreneurs comprising people with innovative solutions to urgent social problems. It provides an enabling platform to social entrepreneurs to think and act as change agents. It is a matter of pride that this organization has over the last 35 years of its establishment, mentored and supported over three thousand Ashoka Fellows in eighty two countries, including over 380 Fellows elected from India.

3. I am told that ASHOKA applies a rigorous selection process to elect their Fellows. The candidates and their innovations have to fulfill criteria like system-changing idea, entrepreneurial quality, creativity, ethical fiber and social impact. It is heartening to know that the Ashoka Fellows for the year 2015 who are present here have devised innovative solutions in areas like education and skills training, healthcare and urban development.
Friends:

4. There are many social needs that public, private and civil society institutions are not able to meet fully. At the same time, there is tremendous ingenuity amongst the people, which if tapped, could address the necessities of the common men and women. Much as the blooming of the spring, innovations by students, professionals, common man and local communities can bring smiles on the faces of millions of people.

Friends:

5. The process of innovation converts knowledge into social good and economic wealth. It encourages the engagement of talent with the society to improve the quality of life. India has had a long tradition of innovation.From time to time, the common people in our country have ushered in novel solutions to overcome their day-to-day difficulties.The drivers that influence the pursuit of innovation are many – from basic survival to propulsion of growth.A healthy eco-system is needed to harness innovative potential of various segments in different sectors and at multiple levels in our society.

6. Creating an inclusive eco-system call for linkages between innovators on the one hand, and academic and research institutions and market forces, on the other. Countries successful in building such a network have become innovation leaders. As an attempt to bring educational institutions and innovators within the ambit of an inclusive innovation system, a programme for Innovation Scholars In-Residence was started in Rashtrapati Bhavan. I would like to inform you that two batches of innovation-scholars have come so far, one group of five scholars in the year 2014 and a second group of ten scholars in 2015. During their stay at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, they have been mentored and connected with relevant stakeholders to provide wings to their ideas.

Friends:

7. Educational institutions have a critical role to play in nurturing innovations in society. The large network of higher educational institutions of 712 universities and over 36,000 colleges in India is poised to play a leading part in developing an innovation eco-system. To catalyze the institutions of higher learning in this process, I have been urging the leaders of the higher education sector to establish a connection between their institutes and innovations in their hinterland, and to also set up Innovation Clubs. I am happy to state that in over sixty central higher educational institutions, innovation clubs have been set up. They provide a platform to encourage students tosense the unmet needs of the common men and women, and search, spread and celebrateinnovations.Once unmet needs are mapped, the pedagogy and research process can be reoriented suitably.

8. For the first time ever, a week-long ‘Festival of Innovations’ was organized at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in March 2015 in collaboration with the National Innovation Foundation. It demonstrated new technologies and products made by the grassroots innovators. TheGlobal Roundtables on Inclusive Innovation and Financing of Innovation in the Festival saw the participation of distinguished thinkers, policy-makers, academicians, entrepreneurs and financiers. The second ‘Festival of Innovations’ will be held at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in March this year. You may like to consider participating in this event. The presence of renowned participants from India and abroad will provide a global platform to all the innovators and participants of this Festival.

9. With these few words, I conclude. I wish you all the very best for your endeavours. Chase your dreams as you fulfill the dreams of your country and countrymen.

Thank you.

Mission incomplete: Rajan's overhaul of RBI

  

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Raghuram Rajan listens to a question during a news conference after the bi-monthly monetary policy review in Mumbai, India, February 2, 2016.

 
MUMBAI In a video conference in mid-2014, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Raghuram Rajan told employees that he wanted to hire talented external candidates and improve the quality of research at the 81-year-old central bank.
The proposals, described to Reuters by three officials who heard Rajan speak, would hardly seem out of place in any major institution on the planet.
But in the storied halls of the RBI, where staff have to pass comprehensive examinations to join public service and spend decades slowly moving through its ranks, Rajan's ideas were seen by some staff as controversial, the sources said.
"(The) entire process is being hurried up," a protest letter written United Forum of Reserve Bank Officers and Employees, the central bank’s staff union, read, according to a copy seen by Reuters at the time.
"There is a need for better clarity, communication – both internal and external, consensus and fairness to all stakeholders."
Rajan did not formally respond to the letter, according to several sources.
Since then, Rajan has only hired one permanent staff externally. It is not clear what role, if any, opposition from the rank-and-file RBI staff played in the low number of external hires.
The RBI declined to comment for this story.
Rajan's calls for out-of-the-box thinking were reiterated in a memo last month, seen by Reuters, which urged increased accountability and performance and was described by a half dozen mid-level officials as toughly worded, sparking similar misgivings among some in the bank's rank-and-file.
Such reactions highlight what has probably been one of the hardest fights of his tenure: transforming what many see as a slow-moving and bureaucratic RBI of 17,000 staff into a modern, nimble central bank.
Rajan said he also wants to improve training for staff, through initiatives such as sending them to other central banks for short stints, creating scholarships, and emphasising research, while also strategically bringing in outside expertise.
"In general, I am not trying to swamp the place," Rajan told reporters last week in response to questions about external hires at a press event following the RBI’s monetary policy announcement.


"When outsiders come in they have to show that they can actually deliver as advertised. It shouldn't be seen as a privileged position just because they got a foreign degree."
At stake are both Rajan's legacy and wider confidence in India's ambitious reform agenda, which seeks to make its economy and markets more robust and globally integrated. His tenure expires in September and central bank watchers say he may only be able to finish the job if he is appointed to a second term.
Domenico Lombardi, an economist who has served on the boards of both the World Bank and the IMF, said it is vital for Rajan to persuade sceptics within the RBI and the government to integrate India into the world economy.
"Central banks are very conservative environments, and it takes far more than a three-year stint to change their culture," Lombardi said.
Since taking over as governor in 2013 in the midst of India's worst currency turmoil in two decades, Rajan, 53, has overcome several challenges to steer some of the biggest changes in the central bank's history.
These include introducing inflation targeting, tackling crony capitalism and successfully asserting the RBI's independence with New Delhi. Government sources say he has struck a personal relationship with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, even though he was appointed by a rival administration.


The former International Monetary Fund chief economist has also become a source of confidence for those investing in India and a leading voice for emerging markets on global economic policy issues.
"There is no alternative to officials like Rajan if India wants to signal that it is serious in its reform process," said Lombardi.
QUICK CHANGES
Rajan, who likes to start his day with an 8:30 breakfast, early by Indian government standards, is seen by many RBI employees as fast and decisive.
On his very first day at work in September 2013 and as the rupee INR=D2 was still near record lows, Rajan announced a slew of initiatives to stabilise markets.
Barely four months later, he set about reshaping monetary policy, shifting the bank's inflation target to consumer prices away from wholesale prices, the biggest central bank change since the country began economic liberalisation in 1991.


Rajan also streamlined operations, scaling back scheduled policy reviews to six from eight per year. One RBI official said he ended dated practices, such as an RBI official hand-delivering copies of monetary policy statements to government officials. Statements are now directly uploaded to the web site.
Such rapid change, however, has brushed against the bank's slow and deliberative style, one that prizes consensus-building among stakeholders, though some changes have been welcomed.
EASY GOING
Unlike most previous RBI governors who have come from civil servant backgrounds, Rajan himself was an external hire, previously working as the chief economic adviser to the Congress-led government that was voted out in 2014.
People who work closely with Rajan describe him as genial and easy-going, compared with the more formal interactions favoured by past governors.
Upon his arrival, for example, four officials said Rajan reached out to younger staff, especially researchers, to hear their views and have lunch with them, stepping away from the 18th floor executive dining area with its expansive view of Mumbai.
At the same time, Rajan remains an exacting boss.
One senior official described a recent initiative to research the direct impact interest rates have on inflation and growth using econometric models, a much more demanding level of economic analysis than was requested by previous governors.
As Rajan put it in a speech in July last year: "The kind of economics we need is based on rigorous fundamentals – blood, sweat, tears, and toil."

(Writing by Rafael Nam; Editing by Douglas Busvine and Sam Holmes)

Government to support Ethanol blending of Petrol in a big way: Petroleum Minister

The Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Shri Dharmendra Pradhan has expressed the Government’s commitment for time bound execution of initiatives to introduce Ethanol blended Petrol and Bio diesel in the country. Inaugurating a National Seminar on “Lignocellulose to Ethanol- Roadmap for India” in New Delhi today, he said that Oil Marketing companies have already invited bids for 120 crore litre of Ethanol for blending in petrol for sugar year 2015-16 which would be 5% (approx) of the country’s total petrol consumption.

Listing out the benefits of using Ethanol blended petrol, Shri Pradhan said that it will not only help in value addition for the farmer’s produce but will also reduce foreign exchange expenditure. He said that added benefits of blended petrol would be in the form of employment generation, entrepreneurship promotion and environment protection. He said that Ethanol blended petrol was introduced in 2003 but the process got impetus only in 2014-15 when new government took policy decisions to incentivize petrol blending.

Shri Pradhan said that there is a demand for Ethanol for blending with petrol but there are technological and financial challenges which needs to be overcome. The Petroleum Minister called upon various departments of Government, State Governments, Academic and Research Institutions to work together to find solution to these challenges. Shri Pradhan said that molasses to Ethanol conversion is already going on and the Government has taken up second generation of lignocelluloses to Ethanol production to utilize agricultural residues/wastes, and achieve the target of 10% Ethanol blending.

The National Seminar was aimed at accelerating the EBP programme in the country and to draw up a roadmap for establishing ethanol industry from lignocellulosic route thus reducing the foreign exchange outflow, generate rural employment and protect environment

India, Singapore scientists race to make Zika test kit, but lack of live sample a challenge

NEW DELHI/SINGAPORE | By Aditya Kalra and Rujun Shen: Scientists in Asia are racing to put together detection kits for the Zika virus, with China on Thursday confirming its first case, but the researchers are challenged by the lack of a crucial element - a live sample of the virus.
Zika, suspected of causing brain defects in more than 4,000 newborns in Brazil after spreading through much of the Americas, is a particular worry in South and Southeast Asia, where mosquito-borne tropical diseases such as dengue fever are a constant threat.
India is working on diagnostic kits for the virus, as there is no testing kit commercially available in the world's second populous country, but the lack of a live virus sample is hindering its efforts.
A strain from 1950 was found dead and not suitable for research, said Soumya Swaminathan, director general of the state-run Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), which spearheads biomedical research.
"We want it for our research," Swaminathan said, referring to live samples of the virus. "In a big country like India, we need it."

India has written to international agencies, the World Health Organisation among them, seeking a sample of live Zika virus, the council says.
"If we get it, we can develop a kit and testing procedures within a month," said a council official, who declined to be identified because of lack of authorisation to speak to the media.
In the affluent city state of Singapore, scientists are working on a diagnostic kit to simultaneously detect Zika, dengue and chikungunya viruses, which are transmitted by the same type of mosquitoes and cause similar symptoms.

Singapore, which is just north of the equator, has suffered a spike in cases of dengue fever this year, and has taken precautions against a Zika outbreak.
"Every country and major city needs to be prepared," said Sebastian Maurer-Stroh, director of the infectious diseases programme at the Bioinformatics Institute of A*Star, Singapore's public sector research agency.

The new kit developed by Maurer-Stroh's team would save two thirds of the cost and time needed to test for the three viruses individually, and can be run on standard hospital equipment.
The new kit is expected to be distributed to hospitals by the end of March, where it will undergo final testing on real viruses, if Zika eventually hits the shores of Singapore.
"It is a challenge to get the information as well as access to all samples and sequences, and that's a challenge that everyone in the world faces," said Maurer-Stroh.

(Reporting by Rujun Shen; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)

Exclusive: U.S. and India consider joint patrols in South China Sea - U.S. official

The United States and India have held talks about conducting joint naval patrols that a U.S. defense official said could include the disputed South China Sea, a move that would likely anger Beijing, which claims most of the waterway.
Washington wants its regional allies and other Asian nations to take a more united stance against China over the South China Sea, where tensions have spiked in the wake of Beijing's construction of seven man-made islands in the Spratly archipelago.
India and the United States have ramped up military ties in recent years, holding naval exercises in the Indian Ocean that last year involved the Japanese navy.
But the Indian navy has never carried out joint patrols with another country and a naval spokesman told Reuters there was no change in the government's policy of only joining an international military effort under the United Nations flag.
He pointed to India's refusal to be part of anti-piracy missions involving dozens of countries in the Gulf of Aden and instead carrying out its own operations there since 2008.
The U.S. defense official said the two sides had discussed joint patrols, adding that both were hopeful of launching them within the year. The patrols would likely be in the Indian Ocean where the Indian navy is a major player as well as the South China Sea, the official told Reuters in New Delhi on condition of anonymity.
The official gave no details on the scale of the proposed patrols.
There was no immediate comment from China, which is on a week-long holiday for Chinese New Year.

China accused Washington this month of seeking maritime hegemony in the name of freedom of navigation after a U.S. Navy destroyer sailed within 12 nautical miles of a disputed island in the Paracel chain of the South China Sea in late January.
The U.S. Navy conducted a similar exercise in October near one of China's artificial islands in the Spratlys.

MARITIME COOPERATION

Neither India nor the United States has claims to the South China Sea, but both said they backed freedom of navigation and overflight in the waterway when U.S. President Barack Obama visited New Delhi in January 2015.
    Obama and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi also agreed at the time to "identify specific areas for expanding maritime cooperation".
More than $5 trillion in world trade moves through the South China Sea each year. Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines and Taiwan also claim parts of the waterway.
In December, the issue of joint patrols came up when Indian Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar visited the U.S. Pacific Command in Hawaii, an Indian government source said.

    "It was a broad discussion, it was about the potential for joint patrols," said the source, who declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of the matter.
    India has a long-running land border dispute with China and has been careful not to antagonize its more powerful neighbor, instead focusing on building economic ties.
    But it has stepped up its naval presence far beyond the Indian Ocean, deploying a ship to the South China Sea almost constantly, an Indian navy commander said, noting this wasn't the practice a few years ago.
The commander added that the largest number of Indian naval ship visits in the South China Sea region was to Vietnam, a country rapidly building military muscle for potential conflict with China over the waterway.
Still, the idea of joining the United States in patrols in the region was a long shot, the officer added.
The Philippines has asked the United States to do joint naval patrols in the South China Sea, something a U.S. diplomat said this month was a possibility.

(Additional reporting by Matt Spetalnick in Washington; and Megha Rajagopalan in Beijing; Editing by Dean Yates)

Science & Technology and Earth Sciences Minister, Dr Harsh Vardhan said 'Start-Up India' and 'Make In India’ Should Impel CSIR-Tech pvt ltd

Union Minister of Science& Technology and Earth Sciences, Dr Harsh Vardhan recently met with leaders and team members of CSIR-Tech Pvt Ltd at CSIR-NCL's campus in the city of Pune.  CSIR-Tech's leadership present at the said meeting included its Chairman, Padma Vibhushan Dr Vijay Kelkar and the Executive Director and CEO, Amitabh Shrivastava.

 

In a highly interactive session Dr Harsh Vardhan keenly asked questions about the successful work of technology commercialization that CSIR-Tech was involved with for the last 3 years. Dr Vijay Kelkar talked about the yeoman service that CSIR-Tech was doing which directly aligns with the government of India's programs like 'Start-up India' and 'Make in India'.  Amitabh Shrivastava, as the CEO of CSIR-Tech talked about how technology and intellectual property being developed at government funded institutions like CSIR, BARC, IITs, DST labs, DRDO, etc. is finding its way to touch common lives through CSIR-Tech Pvt Ltd. 

 

Dr Harsh Vardhan was pleased with the approach that CSIR-Tech had taken to not only do technology transfer to small and medium enterprises in India, but also to invest in science based start-ups and laboratory spin-offs.  CSIR-Tech invests in science based start ups and spin off businesses through its 'India Science Venture Fund', a SEBI registered fund which includes SIDBI as a lead partner. Amitabh Shrivastava apprised the minister about global best practices to increase relationship between the Industry and the R&D institutions in North America, Europe and Asia.  Dr Harsh Vardhan is keen to support business initiatives like CSIR-Tech that are self funded autonomous companies that are sure to give impetus, at the ground level, to realize the dream of the Prime Minister of India to create more jobs through the science and technology led manufacturing businesses.  

 

CSIR-Tech's board of directors includes 4 Padma awardees and industry veterans like Mohan Das Pai, Saurabh Srivastava, Luis Miranda, Dr S. Sivaram, Dr Vijay Mohanan and Chief General Manager of the State Bank of India Venkat Nageswar. 

 

One may visit www.csirtech.com if you are a seeker or a providers of technology, or are an entrepreneur looking to get funding for a science based enterprise.    

Hawaii's Big Island declares emergency over dengue fever infections

  

Hawaii's Waikiki Beach in a file photo.   Reuters/Marco Garcia

The mayor of Hawaii's Big Island declared a state of emergency on Monday to deal with a growing outbreak of dengue fever, spread by infected mosquitoes, with 250 cases confirmed over the past four months.
As a result of Hawaii County Mayor Billy Kenoi's order people on the Big Island will be allowed to resume disposing of old tires in landfills, since tires which are left lying around are a known breeding spot for mosquitoes.
There have been 250 confirmed cases of dengue fever on the island since Oct. 29, making it the largest outbreak in the state since the 1940s, according to the mayor's declaration and Hawaii health officials.
Dengue fever causes flu-like symptoms and can develop into the deadly dengue hemorrhagic fever.

Hawaii Governor David Ige said in a statement he supported the efforts on the Big Island but would not issue a statewide emergency declaration unless the outbreak spread to other islands or expanded to include other diseases, such as the Zika virus.
Zika is spreading rapidly in South and Central America and the Caribbean and has been linked to severe birth defects in Brazil.

Last month, a baby born with brain damage at a hospital in Oahu, Hawaii, was apparently the first case of the mosquito-borne Zika virus in a birth on U.S. soil, health officials said.

Dengue is not endemic to Hawaii but has occasionally spread after being imported by infected travelers. The outbreak on the Big Island is the first cluster of locally-acquired dengue fever since a 2011 outbreak on Oahu, the Hawaii Department of Health said.

(Reporting by Victoria Cavaliere in Los Angeles; Editing by Dominic Evans)

Health Secretary reviews preparedness on Zika Virus Disease

10 new lab diagnosis facilities to soon become operational

 

The Health Secretary Shri B P Sharma reviewed the preparedness regarding Zika Virus Disease at a high level meeting, here today. Also present at the meeting were senior officers from the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR), Airports Authority of India (AAI), Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Shipping and Ministry of Civil Aviation in addition to representatives from State governments of Puducherry, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu. WHO India representative Dr. Henk Bekedam and other representatives from WHO also participated in the meeting.  

 

In addition to the two diagnostic facilities at NCDC and National Institute of Virology (NIV) Pune, 10 new facilities will become operational by end of February, 2016. These are located in the states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Puducherry, Karnataka, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Assam. It was also informed that another ten will be operational in phase-2.

 

A 24*7 Control Room for providing information on Zika Virus Disease is now operational at the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare. The numbers of the Control Room are 23061469 and 23063205.

 

It was informed that a travel advisory against non-essential travel has been issued some days back by the Government. Some of the salient points in the advisory are:  

 

·         Non-essential travel to the affected countries to be deferred/ cancelled.

·         Pregnant women or women who are trying to become pregnant should defer/ cancel their travel to the affected areas.

·         All travelers to the affected countries/ areas should strictly follow individual protective measures, especially during day time, to prevent mosquito bites (use of mosquito repellant cream, electronic mosquito repellants, use of bed-nets, and dress that appropriately covers most of the body parts).

·         Persons with co-morbid conditions (diabetes, hypertension, chronic respiratory illness, Immune disorders etc.) should seek advice from the nearest health facility, prior to travel to an affected country.

·         Travelers having febrile illness within two weeks of return from an affected country should report to the nearest health facility.

·         Pregnant women who have travelled to areas with Zika virus transmission should mention about their travel during ante-natal visits in order to be assessed and monitored appropriately.

 

Officials informed that signages informing about the Zika Virus Disease are being placed at 18 international airports. Informative pamphlets on the disease have been prepared for immigrating passengers. The surveillance activities have been activated through the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) network. Rapid Response Teams (RRTs) have also been formed in the States. Instructions and guidelines have been issued and the members have been oriented towards Zika. A video conference has also been conducted with the states for disseminating the guidelines to them.

 

It was reiterated that one of the key control measures is the vector control of Aedes mosquito which also transmits Dengue. Mosquito control is being taken up on priority at the premises of airports and seaports, it was informed. All the aircrafts are being dis-insected as per the WHO guidelines. In addition, vector breeding in containers at the seaports is also being taken up and National Vector Borne Diseases Control Programme (NVBDCP) and National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) are checking for control of vector densities.

 

It was also decided during the meeting to engage with communities for vector control measures in a decentralized manner which was agreed to be more effective. Measures are being taken in this direction, it was informed. 

India introduces net neutrality rules barring Facebook's free Internet

•   

Motorists ride past a billboard displaying Facebook's Free Basics initiative in Mumbai, India, December 30, 2015.

Reuters/Danish Siddiqui/Files

NEW DELHI/MUMBAI India introduced rules on Monday to prevent Internet service providers from having different pricing policies for accessing different parts of the Web, in a setback to Facebook Inc's plan to roll out a pared-back free Internet service to the masses.

The new rules came after a two-month long consultation process that saw Facebook launching a big advertisement campaign in support of its Free Basics programme, which runs in more than 35 developing countries.
The programme offers pared-down Internet services on mobile phones, along with access to the company's own social network and messaging services, without charge.
The service, earlier known as internet.org, has also run into trouble in other countries that have accused Facebook of infringing the principle of net neutrality - the concept that all websites and data on the Internet are treated equally.
Critics and Internet activists argue that allowing access to a select few apps and Web services for free would put small content providers and start-ups that don't participate at a disadvantage.

"While disappointed with the outcome, we will continue our efforts to eliminate barriers and give the unconnected an easier path to the Internet and the opportunities it brings," Facebook said in an emailed statement.
On Monday, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), which had suspended the free Facebook service pending a policy decision, said Internet service providers would not be allowed to discriminate on pricing for different Web services.

"Essentially everything on the Internet is agnostic in the sense that it cannot be priced differently," TRAI chairman Ram Sevak Sharma said at a news conference.
Although the new rules will also have implications for plans by Indian telecom operators to make money from rapidly surging Web traffic through differential pricing, Facebook's campaign turned the spotlight on the social networking giant.
Free Basics is part Facebook's ambition to expand in its largest market outside the United States. Only 252 million out of India's 1.3 billion people have Internet access.

"We are delighted by the regulator's recognition of the irreversible damage that stands to be done to the open Internet by allowing differential pricing," said Mishi Choudhary, a New York-based lawyer who led an online campaign against Facebook.
Facebook shares were down 2.7 percent at $101.30 in early trading on the Nasdaq amid broad weakness in U.S. markets.

(Reporting by Sankalp Phartiyal; Writing by Himank Sharma; Editing by Sumeet Chatterjee, Mark Potter and Ted Kerr)