1. Govt Approves Restructuring of Railway Board, Unification of Services
The 114-year-old Railway Board’s strength will be cut from eight to five, while the eight railway-related wings will be merged into a single central service called the Indian Railway Management Service (IRMS) within a year, according to reforms approved by the Union cabinet on Tuesday.
“This will end the culture of working in ‘silos’ and mark the beginning of a new and unified railway with a coherent vision for the future," the government said in statement.
(Source: Mint)
2. IMF Raises Questions Over Methodology to Calculate GDP Growth in India
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has raised questions over some part of the methodology to calculate gross domestic product (GDP) numbers in India. It said large revisions to historical series, the relatively short time span of the revised series, and major discrepancies between GDP by activity and GDP by expenditure complicate analysis.
There was a major controversy over the back series data on the base year of 2011-12. A committee set up by the National Statistical Commission (NSC) came out with its recommendations on the back series, which showed double-digit growth in some years of the UPA government. The recommendations were junked by the government after those were put on the public domain.
(Source: Business Standard)
3. Tatas to Get Full Control of AirAsia India After Licensing Deal Amendment
Tata Sons and AirAsia Berhad have agreed to amend a controversial brand licensing agreement that gave control of crucial functions to the Malaysian parent. The agreement signed between the two firms in 2013 — which gave the airline the right to use the AirAsia brand — has been mired in controversy as key decisions needed approval from the parent.
This raised concerns that the daily management was being handled by foreign nationals. India’s civil aviation regulations mandate the effective control of airlines jointly owned by Indian and foreign entities lie with the Indian firm.
(Source: Business Standard)
4. IBC Ordinance That Shields Buyers From Prior Lapses Passed
Days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised to decriminalise business failures, the Union cabinet on Tuesday cleared an ordinance to amend the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) that would ring-fence successful bidders from criminal proceedings against offences committed by previous promoters.
“The amendment will remove certain ambiguities in the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, and ensure smooth implementation of the Code," the cabinet said in a statement on Tuesday.
(Source: Mint)
5. 12.44 Lakh New Jobs Created in October: ESIC Payroll Data
Around 12.44 lakh jobs were created in October as compared with 12.23 lakh in the previous month, according to payroll data of Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC).
Gross enrolments of new subscribers with ESIC were 1.49 crore during the entire financial year 2018-19, the National Statistical Office (NSO) said in a report.
It also showed that during the September 2017-October 2019 period, around 3.22 crore new subscribers joined the ESIC scheme.
(Source: Hindu BusinessLine)
6. CBI Books Former Maruti Udyog MD Jagdish Khattar on Bank Fraud
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed a first information report (FIR) against Jagdish Khattar, former Managing Director of Maruti Udyog, for an alleged bank loan fraud of ₹110 crore by his company — Carnation Auto.
The FIR was filed recently, and the CBI named Khattar for allegedly causing a loss of Rs 110 crore to Punjab National Bank. The CBI also carried out searches at Carnation Auto India Ltd on Monday evening.
(Source: Hindu BusinessLine)
7. Government Seeks to Hire Three Directors for Divestment-Bound Air India
The civil aviation ministry is seeking to hire three directors for divestment-bound Air India Ltd.
The ministry has sought applications for the positions of a director each for the key verticals of operations, commercial and personnel. The step is in line with a cabinet decision last year to induct professionals from the private sector into top managerial positions in an effort to make the airline turn profitable.
The directors will report to Air India’s managing director Ashwani Lohani.
(Source: Mint)
8. Credit Growth, NPA Reduction to Depend on Pace of Economic Revival: RBI
Indian banks are getting a better grip on their bad debt situation and non-banking financial companies (NBFC) are expected to regain their niche after a turbulent one year, but further reduction in bad debts and credit growth depend upon how fast the economy recovers from the slowdown, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said on Tuesday.
In this slowdown, banks and non-banks are shrinking their credit to the commercial sector, while uncertain times could increase the spectre of default in retail loans as well, the RBI’s Report on Trend and Progress of Banking for 2018-19 warned.
(Source: Business Standard)
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