Initiatives to contain outbreak of Zika Virus

Technical guidelines and travel advisory were issued and disseminated and also made available on the website of the Ministry. States where Dengue transmission is prevalent, namely Maharashtra, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and UT of Puducherry have been alerted. National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), Delhi has been identified as the nodal agency for investigation of outbreak in any part of the country. Fifteen International Airports and nine major ports have displayed signages providing information for travelers on Zika virus disease and advising the travellers to report if they are returning from any of the affected countries and suffering from febrile illness. Immigration authorities at these Airports have been sensitized. Directorate General of Civil Aviation, Ministry of Civil Aviation has issued instruction to all international airlines to follow the recommended aircraft disinsection guidelines. Vector control measures have been implemented at International Airports and Ports. National Centre for Disease Control, Delhi and National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune, have established the capacity to provide laboratory diagnosis of Zika virus disease in acute febrile stage. National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme has alerted all its field units for enhanced vector ( Aedes mosquitoes) control. National AIDS Control Organization has issued advisory for blood banks and potential blood donors to prevent transmission of Zika virus infection by blood transfusion. A 24x7 control room cum Help Line has started functioning from Dte GHS. Public has been made aware about Zika virus disease through press releases issued by Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. The situation is being monitored regularly.

There is no specific treatment for Zika virus Disease. People sick with Zika virus are advised to take plenty of rest, drink enough fluids, and treat pain and fever with paracetamol. They are also advised to take personal protective measures against mosquito bite.

National Centre for Disease Control, Delhi and National Institute of Virology (NIV), Pune, are the identified laboratories to test clinical samples and to support the outbreak investigation. No special provision is required to admit and treat a Zika virus disease patient except for provision of mosquito net. However, severe forms of disease requiring hospitalization is uncommon and fatalities are rare.

The Health Minister, Shri J P Nadda stated this in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha here today.

Travel Advisory by Ima Regarding Zika Virus

Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India has issued travel advisory that pregnant women or women who are trying to become pregnant should defer/ cancel their travel to the affected areas.

All pregnant women travelling to the affected countries/ areas have been advised to strictly follow personal protective measures, especially during day time, to prevent mosquito bites and if they fall sick within two weeks of return from an affected country, they should report to the nearest health facility.

Advisory has also been issued that pregnant women who have travelled to areas with Zika virus transmission should mention about their travel during pregnancy check-up visits in order to be assessed and monitored appropriately at the health facility.

Guidelines for integrated vector management to prevent transmission by Aedes mosquito have been issued to all the States. These guidelines include vector surveillance, both for larva and adults; effective vector control through environmental management methods, personnel protection, biological control such as using larvivorous fish and using chemicals that kill adult and larval form of this mosquito. Vector surveillance and capacity building have also been done at International Airports and ports.

The Health Minister, Shri J P Nadda stated this in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha here today.

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.