UPSC 2014 interview Transcript

Board Shri D.K. Diwan.
Date & Day: 22/05/2015 (Friday)
Session: Afternoon
Marks Obtained: 187/275

I was poised to enter the chamber of secrets at the very last. Damn, I thought. All of them would be in a hurry to call it a day. And the Dholpur house would more or like turn into a TGIF! But fortunately nothing of that sort came true! This time i had resolved not to be nervous as that is what screwed my last travel to Dholpur House.. But you know what, some things are just meant to be. I was nervous. Heart beats now giving sounds as if connected to a BOSE system. Can't help it, may be it is the stakes which are attached. Anyways, show time.

Chairman (C): Your Roll No?
Me: ****** (That's the roll no and not any expletive in case you are wondering!)

C: How do you spell your name? (He tries only in vain!)
Me: Sir, It is pronounced as "SWA-P-NIL TEM-BE".

C: What is the meaning of both these words?
Me: Sir, "Swapnil" means someone you see in your dreams. My mother told me that she was having these recurring dreams where she could see this face, my face, even before I was born.  And "Tembe" literally refers to this Brazilian tribe settled across the banks of amazon but I am sure there is no connection to that. (Everyone Laughs)

C: You have been involved with a lot of training phases in your life? Trained at Deloitte Consulting, then in the paramilitary and then currently you are being trained in IRS customs and centre excise? Don't you think you are losing out in terms of promotional avenues with respect to batchmates?
A. Sir, Training is phase which offers you myriad great opportunities to learn and discover many things. It is a tool to acquire that administrative acumen required to be efficient at the roles later assigned to you. I feel i have been very fortunate to get these amazing opportunities to train at Deloitte Consulting, the Indo-Tibetan Border Police Force and then at Indian Revenue Service (Customs and Central Excise). All have been very versatile roles which eventually helps to understand the generalist perspective of administration in a better way. I only see them as great learning opportunities.

C:Are you sure? Would not you feel bad when your younger counterparts would rise to higher ranks?
Me: No Sir, I perhaps have never seen them only as opportunities of hierarchical rise.I do not regret my decisions at all and all of these avenues have helped me a lot to understand public administration better. And I feel this would be of great help at the higher administrative positions.

C: At this age, of course you will see it as learning. Give it time.You are too young to understand this, you will eventually, when you come of my age! (laughs)

I attempted to smile.

C: You still don't believe me, don't you? (Laughs) ( meanwhile I am wondering what's up with him today?!) Okay, you have 3 minutes to describe to me all about China! The present, the future in 15 years and the current problems that China is facing today. You can take 30 seconds to jot down.
Me: (After taking those 30 seconds to scribble a few points down) China is the most populous country today with around 20% share in world population. It has just surpassed USA as the largest economy in the world. The growth that China has encountered has been essentially export led which was well supported by the Manufacturing revolution that they had. Their defence expenditure is among the largest in the world possibly to the tune of $200 billion dollars or more.

Talking of issues, they are involved in some conflicts of claim over islands of Hynan, Paracal etc in the South China Sea. Another issue of this region is the oil exploration rights and increasing competition. Talking of internal problems, some islamists radical in Xhinjian are creating problems plus the people's revolution in Hong Kong for more autonomy are some internal challenges.

In fifteen years, China would probably still be the largest economy. It would further strengthen its position it position in the financial sphere with the coming up of AIIB and BRICS bank. Recently it has diluted the strong One-Child norm that they had showing that they have room for some kind of flexibility rather than a absolute totalitarian approach. China is looking for new markets and in future it would have a great share in the world trade and also in other geo-political organizations.

C What was that revolution in Hong kong called as?
Me: Sir, it was called as Umbrella Revolution.

C Name some other such colour revolutions in the world?
Me: Sir, Orange revolution in Kiev, jasmine revolution in Tunisia. Rose revolution in...(Cuts me off and points to the first Member)

M1: Okay so you are from IRS customs? What all is being taught in the Customs module?
Me: We were initially given an overview of the Customs Act 1962 and then we had detailed classes and practical exposure over various sections and domains. We also had a law module and a foreign trade module. Apart from this we were sent on attachment to airport to have a practical exposure.

M1: So, you might be knowing more than other people about the GST? Tell me the need and the salient feature so GST?
Me: Gave a detailed answer covering the present scenario, the need and the proposed structure, the division of roles, the new categorization of taxes, the new authorities etc.. You can find all the points HERE!

M1: What are the fundamental differences when it comes to the input credit of the various taxes in GST?
Me: Sir, when it comes to the input credit, as per the provisions, one can only use the CGST credit in CGST and SGST credit in SGST. No interchanging is permissible for administrative convenience of the whole system.

M1: What are the various grievances of the states?
Me: Sir, as it is a consumption based tax, the producing states stand to lose a lot of revenue. And the consuming states will gain on this front. Plus, if things like Petroleum and alcohol also comes under GST then the States would lose to have a direct say in the tax rates.  Another worry is the abolition of CST.

M1: What are the things that states want out of GST and why?
Me: Sir, in light of the grievance just stated, things like Petroleum and alcohol have been kept out as demanded by the states.

M2: In your college, you have won accolades for direction? Which plays did you work on?
Me: Sir, majorly the dramatics team there wrote their own plays there. But we did enact some classics like Ghasiram Kotwal, Charandas Chor etc.

M2: Which play was your favorite one?
Me: Sir, we once did a play which was written by one of my seniors. It was titled " The last man". It was a satire on the greed of humanity that how it is gradually depleting the planet and how the human race would end because of this greed and ignorance of the environment. That carried a great message to the society and hence was my favorite one.

M2: There is this academy award wining movie that came in the 80s on this famous personality from India...can you guess?
Me: Sir, the movie was "Gandhi".

M2: Who played Gandhi in that movie?
Me: Ummmmmmm...Sorry Sir( I still cannot believe that I could not recollect this one.. :( )

M2: How many people got Oscars from India?
Me: Sir, A.R.Rehman  for Best Original score in Slumdog Millionaire.

M2: Just him? There are more....
Me: Sorry Sir, I am not aware. ( Meanwhile thinking that Satyajit Ray got some honorary thing there but was not sure at all)

M3: What is dumping? Can you lucidly define?
Me. Sir, when a country sells a commodity in a foreign market with a price lower that its price in the local market of the selling country, this is referred to as dumping.

M3: Now tell me what is the necessary condition for it or what is the sufficient condition for it?
Me: Sir, as mentioned selling at a lower price is the necessary condition and only that is not enough. It should bring distortion in the local market as well. Badly impacting the domestic producers of the importing nation- that would be the sufficient condition.

M3: Describe some other similar taxes.
Me: Gave a description of CVD, SAD, Safe Gaurding Duty again covered HERE!

M3: Why do you think it is compulsory to buy motor insurance for your vehicle? And is it fair to have the same rates irrespective of the usage? ( Where the hell did this come from?)
Me: Sir, In a country like India with such a population and the bad condition of roads, the number of deaths from road accidents is very high. Right now hence the first priority is to get more and more compliance to this directive to increase the base. In terms of audit I would like to say that this would not be the right time to go into propriety audit, perhaps a legal audit to start with would be more futile. (He seemed okay with it!)

M3: What is the science of Insurance sector called as ?
Me: Sorry Sir, I am not able to recall.


M4: Now, I happened to visit Kharagpur recently where I overheard the students talking to each other about the retrograde style of teaching which is there? Is that true?
Me: No Sir, this is an entirely cocky statement and no where close to reality. The four years that I spent in Kharagpur were truly enlightening and inspiring and the sole reason was the brilliant and erudite faculty we have there. The professors and other teaching staff are totally dedicated to the cause and have an amazing determination towards their research work. There are other problems like infrastructural issues and lack of funding in R&D, but no one can question of the quality of faculty there.

M4: Okay then what are the challenges there?
Me: Sir, for example, the laboratories are not promptly updated with the new equipments and hence the  research work sufferes. The incentives for R&D are very less, so people opt for MNC jobs.etc etc.

M4: Is the increase in number of IITs bad for the brand?
Me: Sir, what I personally feel is that number has to go up given the yound population we have today in India. A couple of IITs cannot cater to this huge demand. But here we need to upgrade the R&D infra of all the present and upcoming IITs. Without that, in the coming future, the brand may suffer.

M4 What is MOOC?
Me: Sorry Sir, I am not aware.

M4. Is has to do with open source learning!!! there something similar going on in India?
Me: Yes Sir, It is Open Online Course. In India, we have NPTL where Kharagpur has contributed a lot for lectures on Mechanical Engineering. ( Everyone smiles on the alma mater patriotism)

M4: What is ISIS and why is it able to influence so many youngsters?
Me: Explained the origins and the expansion. Created a Comparative Construct of Naxalsim to explain the origin of ISIS and the war agiaist the state. ISIS's use of social media platform to connect to psychophants and anti-state elements. Brainwashing and all that jazz.

C (Season Two begins) : Answer in brief now, tell me what the various boundary disputes of India?
Me: With Pak, Sir Creek Dispute, LOC issues, Siachen conflict.
        With China: Aksai chin, LAC issues, Arunachal border.
         With Bangladesh: The issue of enclaves of enclaves

C: What advantage China had in 1962 war over us?
Me: Sir, they had the advantage of terrain, Tibetan plateau provided for easy mobility and better functional coordination between various stakeholders at the border.  

C: What is LAC? Is there any other similar term which is used?
Me: Sir LAC with China  is more like a zone and not demarcated by the military properly unlike the other term LOC with Pakistan

C: Okay, your interview is over!

P.S. There were some very specific questions on ITBP which might be irrelevant to most. Hence ommitted.

[UPSC Interview Prep feed Vol.24] Euthanasia Debate in India

Topic Discussed - EUTHANASIA DEBATE IN INDIA

Some basics..

• Euthanasia is the act of allowing or permitting a person to end his life.
• Active euthanasia involves the administration some chemical or other methods to end the life of a terminally ill patient.
• Passive Euthanasia refers to removing the life support which has been keeping that patient alive in the first place.
• Ergo, the former is about "doing something" and the later is about "not doing something".
• There is another classification of Voluntary Euthanasia and Non-voluntary Euthanasia which is self explanatory. 
• USA does not allow active euthanasia but some some states like Oregon, Montana have legalized physician assisted dying.
• Belgium and Netherlands have provisions for active euthanasia as well.
• In India, the SC has allowed Passive euthanasia in the Aruna Shanbaug case.

Suicide law and the Right to Die

• It is very difficult to distinguish between the morality of suicide and right to die or the whole euthanasia debate. But in case of the later, we are dealing with a terminally ill patient who has exhausted all ways of medical recuperation.
• An attempt to suicide is a criminal offence in India as per the section 309 of the IPC, punishable with imprisonment upto to one year and a fine as well.
• But this sec 309 is a important tool when it comes to hunger strikes and self-immolation threats.
• Those who abet suicide can be imprisoned for up to 10 years under the Sec 306 of the IPC. For a long time, this was the only safeguard against the abetment of 'sati'.

The Aruna Shanbaug Case.

• Aruna Shanbaug was a nurse at KEM hospital, Mumbai. She was sodomised by a hospital sweeper, chained and left to suffer. 
• Lack of oxygen reaching her brain for long time resulted in a vegetative state for the rest of 42 year of her life.
• In 2009, a journalist on her behalf made a plea to the SC to allow her to exercise her Right to die.
• The SC refused to give her this right as the applicant could not be taken as the "next friend" of the Aruna. SC said only when the KEM hospital asks, it can allow.
• The KEM hospital gave reports that some evidence shows that she is not entirely brain dead and hence the hospital was against mercy killing in this case.
• But meanwhile SC allowed the concept of Passive Euthanasia and laid guidelines for the future so that pleas can be heard on a case by case basis.

SC guidelines from the ARUNA SHANBAUG case

• On filing of any such 'non-voluntary' euthanasia application, the Chief Justice of the HC should constitute a bench of at least 2 judges to decide on the acceptance of the application. 
• They tehn should ask the opinion of a committee of three doctors. Preferably a neaurologist, psychiatrist and a physician.
• The court must send copies of the report to the relative or the "next friend" as soon as they are available.
• The HC should give it's decision at the earliest giving due weight to the opinion on relative and the committee of doctors.

But what about these facts?

• Jan Grzebski who regained consciousness after a 19-year coma caused by brain tumour.
• Terry Wallis who met with a car accident and regained consciousness after two decades.
• Dan Cassil who revived from a deep coma on hearing his favourite TV show Seinfield.

Final Analysis

• In a society so versatile, volatile and dynamic such as India, the advent of Right to die or Active Euthanasia is bound to be misused. And hence a case by case permission for Passive Euthanasia is the best way as of now at least.
• A liberal society embracing "Right to die" can have dangerous repurcussions. One of the greatest things that has kept this species going is "hope" and surely we would be diluting it's impact.
• "If a person is an a vegitative state, what use is he?" This is a very utilitarian view. Something which makes us less "human" i guess.
• On this note, it must be also mentioned that Sec 309 which criminalizes the attempt to suicide is also a blot on the whole reformative idea of our criminal justice system. Several law commissions have recommended its abolition.
• So lastly, unless the Parliament legislates on this issue, case by case consideration of only non-voluntary passive euthanasia application can be taken up by the courts.

[UPSC Interview prep feed Vol.23] Beef Ban

Topic: BEEF BAN

Why the sudden rise to lime light?

• So, recently the new govt. in Maharashtra has enacted a law (Maharashtra Animal Preservation Act) banning the slaughter of bulls and bullocks in the State. It got the Presidential assent.
• Couple of other states also contemplating similar laws on this line.

Let's get a historical perspective!

• Article 48 of Constitutions says that -Organisation of agriculture and animal husbandry The State shall endeavour to organise agriculture and animal husbandry on modern and scientific lines and shall, in particular, take steps for preserving and improving the breeds, and prohibiting the slaughter, of cows and calves and other milch and draught cattle.
• In 1976, Maharashtra enacted a law to ban the slaughter of cows in the State.
• In 1995, law was framed to ban the slaughter of bulls and bullocks on similar lines but it never got the Presidential assent. But then post the change in the govt. subsequently, the demand was never raised again.

Some Biology Basics

• What is Bull? An uncastrated male bovine animal.
• What is Bullock? A male domestic bovine animal that has been castrated and is raised for beef.
• What is Red Meat? Meat which is red when raw. For e.g. beef or lamb.
• Why is red meat bad? Hardens blood vessels, over use of meat glue in case of beef, threat of E.Coli, full of harmful hormones etc.

Provisions of the Act

• Act bans the slaughter of bulls and bullocks in the State.
• Act bans the import of beef from outside and makes it a criminal offence to possess such meat. In such cases the punishment can be upto 1 year.
• For slaughter cases, the FINE can be upto 10,000 INR and imprisonment upto 5 years.
• Act allows slaughter of water buffaloes which provide the carabeef. The quality is inferior and it comprises of 25% of the total share of the beef market.

Other side of the Beef Ban

• Beef trade largely controlled by the Muslims of Qureshi Caste in MH. It would render them jobless. So concrete steps as of now to rehabilitate them.
• It would lead to spiralling rise of prices of other meat products in the market.
• Beef is often seen as "Poor Man's Meat" as it cost approximately one-third of the price of mutton. How will they get that nutrition?
• Who will care for the old and infirm animals now?
• The farmers will also be at loss as they will not be able to sell the aged bulls and bullocks.
• Why ban even the import? Five States including UP, Punjab and Haryana permit the import of beef inspite the ban on slaughter.
• As per some reports, in the State there is already 61% fodder shortage. It might become worse with this ban as there will be more animals to feed.

Other First world problems!

• Restaurants would lose a lot of International tourists.
• They say that beef and beer (alcohol) go along really well!
• The Butchers are seeking permission to kill Jersey cows now as they are not at all related to the sentiments of sacredness.

Book List for UPSC Civil Services

Hi all,

Here is an attempt to consolidate a litany of books for CIvil Service preparation. Now this in entirely a personal viewpoint and not a marketting strategy or propaganda to promote certain specific books.

Before you go into specific books, I would recommend you the cliched point of reading some SCHOOL TEXTBOOKS

• All NCERTs for Class 6 to 10
• History, Economics, Sociology, Political Science and Public Administration NCERTs for Class 11 and 12.
• NIOS study material for Art and Culture.

POLITY

• Indian Polity by M. Laxmikant 
• Indian Constitution by Subhash Kashyap.
• Indian Parliament by Subhash Kashyap
• M.V.Pylee

HISTORY

• India's Struggle to Independence by Bipan Chandra
• India after independence.
• India after Gandhi
• Spectrum's Modern History.

GEOGRAPHY

• NCERTs are enough as books
• Detailed study of any good ATLAS.

ECONOMICS

• Dutt and Sundaram
• Indian Economy by Ramesh Singh
• Indian Economic Development (NCERT)

ART & CULTURE

• NCERT on Indian Art.
• Arihant's illustrative book on Indian Art and Culture.
• Spectrum's Indian Art and Culture.

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY.

• Majid Hussain.

CURRENT AFFAIRS

• Two newspapers. Suggested ones- The Hindu and The Indian Express
• Either one of these magazines: Yojna or Kurushetra
• Various Committee reports on PIB.
• The Recent Budget in detail.
• The Recent Economic Survey.
• Year Book for revision (Selective Readings)

Note: For other remaining topics of Science and Technology and Environment, one may either consult the GS Manual or any standard material from the coaching institutions.

Administrative Reforms that changed India

1773 - Regulating Act
1793 - Cornwallis Code

1813 - Charter Act ( Abolition of Monopoly of trade)
1833 - Charter Act

1853 - Entrance Exam for Civil Service
1854 - Macaulay Committee.
1858 - Government of India Act ( Abolition of Court of Directors)
1860 - Indian Penal Code

1861 - Indian Police Act
1861 - Indian Councils Act ( Introduction of Portfolio System)

1882 - Lord Ripon's resolution - Magna Carta of Urban Governance)
1886 - Aitchison Commission (Abolition of covenanted and non-covenanted)

1909 - Morley Minto Reforms ( Communal Electorate)
1919 - Montagu Chelmsford ( Dyarchy)
1921 - Acworth Committee (Separation of railway budget)
1923 - Lee Commission ( Federal PSC)

1935 - Govt. of India Act (All India Federation)
1938 - National Planning Committee

1947 - All India Services (AIS)
1949 - Department of Organization and Methods (O&M)

1950 - Planning Commission
1951 - First Five Year Plan
1952 - National Development Council
1952 - Community Development Programme
1953 - National Extension Scheme.
1954 - Balwant Rai Mehta Committee (Democratic Decentralization)
1953 - Constitution of IIPA.
1956 - State Reorganization Act.

1963 - Constitution of Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)
1964 - Central Vigilance Commission (CVC)
1966 - First ARC (Chair - K. Hanumnthaiah)
1969 - Nationalization of Banks

1971 - Abolition of Privy Purses.
1976 - Departmentalization of Accounting Process.
1976 - The 42nd Amendment Act (Mini Constitution)
1978 - The 44th Amendment Act

1983 - Sarkaria Commission
1985 - Central Administrative Tribunal
1988 - Prevention of Corruption Act.

1991 - New Economic Policy
1993 - Election Commission made into a multi member body
1993 - The 73rd and 74th Amendment Act
1993 - National Human Rights Commission
1993 - Third Judges Case - Collegium System
1996 - Panchayat extension to Scheduled Areas

2003 - CVC Act.
2003 - Fiscal responsibility and budget management.
2005 - Right to Information
2005 - Disaster Management Act
2006 - Prakash Singh vs Union of India (Police Reforms)
2006 - National e-Governance Plan (NeGP)
2008 - 2nd Administrative Reforms Commisison (ARC)
2009 - Right to Education

2013 - TSR Subramanyam V Union of India on Civil Services Reforms
2013 - National Food Security Act.
2015 - NJAC

[UPSC Interview prep feed Vol.22] Goods and Services Tax Basics

Topic discussed: GST

THE GOODS AND SERVICES TAX (GST) BILL  [122nd AMENDMENT BILL]

The introduction of the GST would be a significant step in the field of indirect tax reforms in India.

WHY THERE IS NEED OF GST IN INDIA?

(1) By subsuming a large number of central and state taxes into a single tax, it would mitigate cascading effect or double taxation in a major way and

(2) Pave the way for a common national market.

(3)From the consumer’s point of view, the biggest advantage would be in terms of a reduction in the overall tax burden on goods, which is currently estimated at 25 per cent- 30 per cent. Although it might take some time to materialize as the initial rates of taxes are expected to be around 24-27%.

(4)Introduction of the GST is also expected to make Indian products competitive in domestic and international markets.

(5)Studies show that this would instantly spur economic growth. Because of its transparent character, it is expected that the GST would be easier to administer.

(6) Practical example, trucks waiting on inter-state borders, http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jan/31/india-economic-growth-new-national-tax

"Two-thirds of India’s freight travels by road. But only 40% of the travel time is consumed by driving, according to the World Bank. The rest is spent on waiting at state border checkpoints, paying state government levies and dealing with regulatory bureaucracies that vary from state to state."

(7) Another point may be added: Complexity due to multiplicity , Small scale industries, entrepreneurs face hard time dealing with about 20 different taxes collected by different authorities. GST will simplify this complexity, http://www.indiafilings.com/learn/gst-advantages-for-startups-and-small-businesses/

In simple words, GST will improve ease of doing business.

THE BROAD FEATURES 

(i)       GST would be applicable on supply of goods or services as against the present concept of tax on the manufacture or on sale of goods or on provision of services.

(ii)       GST would be a destination-based tax as against the present concept of origin-based tax.

(iii)      It would be a dual GST with the centre and the states simultaneously levying it on a common base. The GST to be levied by the centre would be called central GST (CGST) and that to be levied by the states would be called state GST (SGST).

(iv)      An integrated GST (IGST) would be levied on inter-state supply (including stock transfers) of goods or services. This would be collected by the centre so that the credit chain is not disrupted.

(v)       Import of goods or services would be treated as inter-state supplies and would be subject to IGST in addition to the applicable customs duties.

(vi)     A non-vatable additional tax, not exceeding 1 per cent on inter-state supply of goods would be levied by the centre and retained by the originating state at least for a period of two years. 

(vii)  CGST, SGST, and IGST would be levied at rates to be recommended by the Goods and Services Tax Council (GSTC) which will be chaired by the Union Finance Minister and will have Finance Ministers of states as its members.

(viii)    GST would apply to all goods and services except alcohol for human consumption.

(ix)      GST on petroleum products would be applicable from a date to be recommended by the GST Council.

(x)      Tobacco and tobacco products would be subject to the GST. In addition, the centre could continue to levy central excise duty.

(xi)       A common threshold exemption would apply to both CGST and SGST. Taxpayers with a turnover below it would be exempt from GST. A compounding option (i.e.to pay tax at a flat rate on turnover without credits) would be available to small taxpayers below a certain threshold. However, a taxable person falling within the limit of threshold or compounding could opt to pay tax at the normal rate in order to be part of the input tax credit chain.

(xii)    The list of exempted goods and services would be kept to a minimum and it would be harmonized for the centre and states as far as possible.

(xiii)    Exports would be zero-rated.

(xiv)   Credit of CGST paid on inputs may be used only for paying CGST on the output and the credit of SGST paid on inputs may be used only for paying SGST. In other words, the two streams of input tax credit (ITC) cannot be cross utilized, except in specified circumstances of inter-state supplies, for payment of IGST.

(xv)   It subsumes all the central indirect taxes ,levies and central sales tax and state value added tax and sales tax.

(xvi)   It brings petroleum crude,high speed diesel,motor spirit,natural gas,aviation turbine fuel and tobacco products within the purview of UNION LIST AND STATE LIST.

(xvii)    It proposes an additional tax on supply goods,not exceeding one percent ,in the course of inter state trade will be levied and collected by the UNION FOR A period of two years and apportioned to the states.

(xviii) Over the past four decades, the value added tax (VAT) has been an important instrument of indirect taxation, with 130 countries having adopted it, resulting in one-fifth of the world’s tax revenue. Tax reform in many of the developing countries has focused on moving to VAT. Federal countries like Canada, New Zealand, and Australia have successfully adopted the GST into their structure.

(xix)   Implementation of a comprehensive GST in India is expected, ceteris paribus, to lead to efficient allocation of factors of production thus bringing about gains in GDP and exports. This would translate into enhanced economic welfare and higher returns to the factors of production, viz. land, labour, and capital. However, in the near term, as GST replaces a number of state-level and central taxes, revenue gains may not be significant.

(xx)   And interestingly, a recent study by the Tax Force (headed by Vijay Kelkar) has estimated that the GST will provide gains to India’s GDP from 0.9% to 1.7%.

Changes in the Constitution

THE 122nd AMEnDMENT BILL seeks to inserts article 246 A,269A,279A and omits ARTICLE 268A which was inserted by the constitution (88 th amendment act), 2003. It also omits entry 92, 92C from the Union and entry 52 and 55 from the state list.

Besides ,it amends article 248,249,250,268,269,270,271,286,366,368,SIXTH SCHEDULE and the ENTRY 84 of the UNION LIST and ENTRY 54 and 62 of the state list of SEVENTH SCHEDULE  of the CONSTITUTION.

ARTICLE 246 A : empowers legislature of every state to make laws with respect to goods and services tax imposed by the union or by such state provided that these powers are subject to laws made by the parliament in accordance with the article 246A (2)

ARTICLE 246A(2) : Parliament has the exclusive power to make laws with respect to GST where the supply of goods ,or services ,or both take place in the course of inter state trade or commerce.

ARTICLE 269A: Provides that GST on supplies of the goods and services taking place in the course of interstate trade will be levied and collected by the union and apportioned between the UNION and the states  in the manner provided by the Parliament by law on the recommendations of the GST council.

ARTICLE 279A: Empowers president of INDIA to constitute a Goods and Service Tax (GST) Council within sixty days of the commencement of the 122 nd constitution amendment act.

GST COUNCIL

The GST council comprises of following members

Union finance minister: chairperson

Union minister of state in charge of Revenue or Finance :member

Minister in charge of finance of taxation  or any other minister nominated by each state government: members

The GST council should choose one amongst them to be the vice chairman of the council for such period as they may decide.

FUNCTIONS OF GST COUNCIL

(1)TO MAKE recommendations to union and state on the taxes,cesses and surcharges levied by UNION ,STATE or local bodies that can be subsumed in the GST.

(2)TO make recommendations on goods and services that may be subjected to,or exempted from the GST.

(3) TO propose a model GST laws, principles of levy ,apportionment of Integrated GST and the principles that govern the place of supply.

(4) Recommend the threshold limit of turnover below  which goods and services may be exempted from GST

(5) Recommend the rate including floor rates with bands of GST.

(6) Recommend any special rate or rates for a specified period to raise additional resources during any natural calamity or disaster.

(7) Recommend special provisions with respect to the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Jammu and Kashmir , Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim,Tripura,Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

(8) Every decision of the council shall be taken by a majority not less than three –fourth of the weighted votes of the members present and voting in accordance with the following principles.

(A) The vote of the union government shall have a weightage of one third of the total votes cast.

(B) The votes of all the states government taken together shall have a weightage of TWO_THIRD of the total votes cast in the meeting.

(c) One half of the total number of members of the GST council shall constitute the QUORUM as its meeting.

RESOLUTION OF DISPUTES

 The GST council may decide upon the modalities for the resolution of disputes arising out of it’s recommendations.

RESTRICTIONS ON IMPOSITION OF TAX

The constitution imposes certain restrictions on states on the imposition of tax on the sale or purchase of goods. The bill amends this provision to restrict the imposition of tax on the supply of goods and services and not on its sale.

ADDITIONAL TAX ON SUPPLY OF GOODS

 An additional tax(not to exceed 1%) on the supply of goods in the course of inter state trade or commerce would be  levied and collected by the centre, such additional tax shall be assigned to the states for two years  ,or as recommended by the GST council.

COMPENSATION TO STATES

The parliament may, by law , provide for compensation to states for revenue losses arising out of the implementation of the GST ,on the GST councils recommendations. This would be up to a five year period. FIRST THREE YEARS 100%,FOURTH 75 %,AND FIFTH YEAR 50 % COMPENSATION SHOUND BE PAID TO STATES.

GOODS EXEMPT

ALCOHOLIC LIQUOR for human consumption is exempted from the purview of the GST.FURTHER ,the GST council is to decide when GST would be levied on  (1) petroleum crude (2) high speed diesel (3) motor spirit (petrol) (4) natural gas (5) aviation turbine fuel.

ISSUES RELATED TO GST(CHALLENGES)

(1)    Fear of potential losses in tax

(2)    Apprehension of states generating high revenues from state vat

(3)    Threshold limits are not clear

(4)    Department of revenue in the ministry of finance and empowered committee of state finance ministers differ on certain proposals. common products in this issue are alcoholic items and petroleum products.

(5)    Lack of clarity on certain topics like

(a)    Effective date of implementation

(b)   Taxation of certain key services – hospitals, education sector, aviation sector,(which are not covered under current tax rules)

(c)    Taxation of real estate and housing,financial and information technology sector

(d)   Specification of the list of exempted goods and services.

(e)   How to tax telecommunication sector? Because in this sector

(1)    Services are generated somewhere ,and they are purchased elsewhere and consumed in some is other location

(2)    The payment for the services  made in a different location.

  

   6) Issues of Manufacturing states like Gujarat,TN:

http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2014-12-26/news/57420384_1_gst-council-anti-dumping-duty-gst-regime
http://www.thehindu.com/business/Economy/gujarat-raises-red-flag-on-gst/article6342161.ece
"there would be permanent loss of revenue to manufacturing states due to destination principle in GST, while net consuming states would have permanent revenue gains with the introduction of GST regime."

7) Centre-state distrust, past record : delayed compensation due to lowering CST from 4 % to 2 % , http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/economy/macro-economy/states-paid-rs-32800-as-cst-compensation-sinha/article6990647.ece

8) It will rob State governments of their fiscal powers to decide on taxation issues and rates.

   

  STICKY ISSUES RELATED TO GST ON STATE LEVEL

(1)    Petroleum constitutes 26% of state revenue .It is easy to collect,Therefore state wants to keep it out of GST ambit.

(2)    Dual control may become cumbersome for small traders ;state wants legal control of traders with turnover below RS 1.5 crores.

(3)    Producing states fear losses due to destination based tax.States want provision to compensate for losses for five years.

(4)    Entry tax imposed by states on goods entering local areas-states want that entry tax in lieu of octroi should not be subsumed in GST.  

 5)The states expressed their disapproval over various issues: one major worry is the abolition of the CST, levied on inter-state sales, which is a major source of revenue for states.

[UPSC interview prep feed Vol.21] Anti Conversion Law

Topic Discussed: Law against conversion!

Why this debate again?

• Some time back there were these events of mass conversion organized by certain organizations which was seeking to convert back the christians and the muslims back to hinduism.
• This created a national debate on what is the legal stance on this matter and what can be done in the long run?
• There was debate in the Parliament regarding the steps proposed by the govt. and hence the talk on the possibility of an anti-conversion bill.

Legal standing as of now

• Prior to independence, the British did not enact any law. but many Princely States did. For e.g. Rajgarh State Conversion Act 1936, Patna Freedom of religion Act 1942 etc.
• Article 25-30 of our Constitution guarantee citizens freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion.
• They also guarantee freedom to manage religious affairs, monetarily contribute to promotion of any religion, and to set up and administer educational institutions.
• In 1954, the Parliament took up a bill in this regard, but was later dropped because of lack of support.
• But meanwhile various states like MP, Odisha, Arunachal Pradesh etc enacted State anti-conversion laws. These laws were intended to stop conversions by force.
• Some of the laws made it compulsory to seek permission from the proper authorities before the conversion.

Standing on offence and Punishment

• These laws mentioned earlier made forced conversion a cognisable offence under sections 295A and 298 of the IPC which pertain to malicious and deliberate intention to hurt the religious sentiments of others.
• They attract a prison term of up to three years and fine.

Related case laws

• In the Chandra Sekaran case (1963), the court observed that a person does not caese to be a HIndu merely because he declares that he has no faith in his religion or stops practicing the religion.
• In the Sarla Mudgal Case(1995), SC held that conversion to Islam was not valid if done only to practice polygamy.

Rev Stanislaus vs Madhya Pradesh, 1977 

• According to the law ministry's opinion forwarded recently to the home ministry, the SC had in a 1977 ruling made it clear that 'anti-conversion law' falls within the purview of 'public order', a 'state' subject as per the seventh Schedule of the Constitution. And hence the Union Govet. cannot legislate on the same.
• "We have no doubt that it is in this sense that the word `propagate' has been used in Article 25(1), for what the Article grants is not the right to convert another person to one's own religion, but to transmit or spread one's religion by an exposition of its tenets." 
• A distinction was made between the right to propagate and the right to convert. The former was allowed while the latter was seen as not a part of the fundamental rights. 
• The court prohibited in this rulling conversion by force, fraud or allurement.

Final Analysis

• As per the SC ruling, the states are empowered to have a law on this and hence those affected or having apprehensions should legislate on it.
• And ergo there would be no need to have a pan-India legislation on it which on the matter of fact is not possible as per the SC ruling.
• This issue should not be politicized and the simple fact needs to be understood by all is that the minorities need to be protected and hence this holds relevance.
• Enough safeguards must be drafted to ensure no misuse of these provisions.

[UPSC Interview prep feed Vol.20] Success Stories from North-East : Mizoram and Tripura

 Topic Discussed: Success Stories from North-East : Mizoram and Tripura

 The author of this post wishes to remain anonymous.

Mizoram

         It is interesting to note that Mizo society, at the time of independence, was perhaps one of the most progressive ones in North-East and an organisation by the name of Mizo Union was formed to end the rule of tribal chief, establishing democratic village society and joining the Union of India. Post- independence,Mizoram continued to be administered as “Lushai Hills” District within the state of Assam and there was considerable discontent due to Assamese domination. The breaking point came in the year 1959, when it faced cyclical “Mautam” famine. Mautam occurs cyclically after about 48 years and is accompanied by flowering of wild bamboo which leads to increase in rat population,famine and plague. The 1959 mautam,apart from causing increase in rat population, famine and plague, also caused emergence of Mizo insurgency. The actions of Government at that time turned out to be insufficient in dealing with the problem. It was during this period that  Mizo National Famine Front(MNFF) was established with an aim to provide famine relief  but transformed later(in 1962) to Mizo National Front(MNF), a secessionist movement. The opportunity was exploited by Pakistan, which provided arms and shelter to the insurgents through the then East Pakistan.

        In the year 1966, MNF declared independence and carried out terrorist attacks against Government and other institutions through “Operation Jericho”. For eight days even the capital Aizawl was under control of MNF.  The situation deteriorated to the extent that Indian Air Force was called in and this is the only case in the history of independent India that Air Force was used in case of an internal disorder. Although the Pakistan, China aided “Operation Jericho” was a failure, yet the insurgents continued to survive due to support and shelter they received through the then East Pakistan. It is unfortunate that the government carried out relocation program for many Mizo villages with an attempt to weaken MNF. This British and American style relocation and segregation was opposed by locals and fortunately the government realised the futility of such relocations and the plan was abandoned. Within MNF, divisions became apparent as one group favoured negotiations while the other,favoured by Pakistan, pushed for violent actions. The 1971 war gave delivered a deadly blow to MNF.

        The Government took commendable a step towards reconciliation by separating Mizoram from Assam as a separate Union Territory in 1972. This step restored much of the lost confidence towards Mizo Union,which considerably lost popularity after the mautam famine and emergence of MNF, and the Government. However, some factions within MNF continued insurgency with help from China. Finally, MNF leaders realised futility of their insurgency which was causing undue hardships to the population and MNF's support base had drastically reduced in this period. In 1976, MNF leader Laldenga agreed for negotiations within the contours of the Indian constitution implying acceptance of Mizoram as a part of India.   

        However, some factions of MNF with  support from China continued insurgency. The discontent amongst certain sections of Mizos due to illegal migration from Bangladesh gave them a support base. Negotiations were not moving a positive direction and some factions MNF used ceasefire periods as breathing period for strengthening themselves and carrying out extortions. Finally in 1982, Government banned MNF and launched crackdown. The crackdown and Police action forced MNF to return back to negotiations, Government also took a step further by considering the demand of full statehood and carried out fencing of Bangladesh border to reduce illegal immigration. After multiple rounds of negotiations, finally an agreement was reached in 1986 with MNF wherein Full statehood was granted to Mizoram and MNF agreed to accept Indian Constitution.

        Since then, Mizoram is largely peaceful and shown tremendous progress in various socio-economic indicators, like literacy rate of more than 91% and Sherchhip and Aizawl becoming two most literate districts in India.

        Despite being a success story Mizoram is still not completely free of ethnic tensions. In 1997, more than 5,000 tribal  Bru families had to escape to Tripura and other parts. About 35,000 refugees are still living in refugee camps of Tripura. If Mizoram is to continue its success story then it needs peaceful settlement of Bru issue , otherwise another insurgency is perhaps waiting to emerge.

In opinion of the author, the following factors helped in achieving success in Mizoram:-

·         When it appeared that ceasefires and negotiations are being misused by MNF for strengthening itself,extortion,carrying out violence,etc. The response of government was crackdown,unlike in case of NSCN(IM) which is misusing negotiations and ceasefires since 1996 for carrying out criminal activities,extortion,blocking NH 39 to Manipur,drug trafficking,gun running. Sometimes crackdown against insurgent groups is a necessary evil.

·         Unlike Naga insurgent groups,which are plenty in numbers and factions,there was a greater degree of cohesion in Mizo insurgent groups (MNF being the primary). Thus, negotiation and settlement with one group was quite effective whereas in case of Nagas it is difficult to accommodate all conflicting groups simultaneously.

·         There is greater cohesion amongst Mizo tribes when compared with Nagas, who have at least 17 major tribes and many are in serious conflict with each other.

 

·         Most of top leaders of MNF were from the state of Mizoram or Lushai Hills district and hence the demand for “Greater Mizoram” was negotiable whereas in case of Naga groups top leadership is mostly from areas outside Nagaland state and hence their demand for “Greater Nagaland”/”Nagaland” is more persisting. Such demand is difficult to meet considering opposition from Manipur,Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. 

       

Tripura    

                Tripura, a former princely state, joined Indian Union by signing Instrument of Accession by the then Regent Queen who was governing on behalf of her minor son. Not many are aware that during the time of independence, a section of palace nobles,led by Durjoy Karta, entered into conspiracy with a local pro-Muslim League Party to make Tripura join Pakistan. But the conspiracy was foiled by popular sentiment in favour of joining Indian Union.

                Partition of India was accompanied by large-scale migration of Bengalis from the then East Pakistan to Tripura. Further, Tripura became more isolated from rest of the country as direct link to Calcutta was lost due to formation of East Pakistan  and the other way is through the narrow “chicken neck corridor”. The tribals of Tripura became a minority to due large-scale migration from East Pakistan and other parts of the country. Further, the end of monarchy and establishment of democracy, reduced political power of native tribals who were now a minority. There was  a feeling of discontent and neglect amongst the tribals. Organisations like “Tripura Upajati Juba Samiti” (TUJS) , “Tripura National Volunteers” (TNV) , “National Liberation Front of Tripura”(NLFT) were formed in 1971,1981 and 1989 respectively. These organisations claimed to represent interests of Tribals and demanded restoration of Tribal lands,deportation of what they called “illegal migrants” and even secession. It is unfortunate that successive Governments of Tripura formed during initial few decades after independence were not so sensitive to concerns to tribals and failed to carry out land reforms. These organisations took advantage of grievances of tribals to gain their support and porous border with Bangladesh helped them. Although these groups remained largely ineffective initially, but from about mid-1990s these groups got support from elements across the border in Bangladesh and violence increased considerably. In 1999, United Bengal Liberation Front was formed, which carried out counter-attacks on tribals and claimed to protect Bengalis from NLFT. This created a vicious cycle of attacks and counter-attacks.

        However, the Tripura launched an effective counter-insurgency strategy which involved:-

·         The counter-insurgency operations were mostly carried out by Central Armed Police Forces(CAPF) and State Police, unlike in other states where Army plays a significant role. This minimised any unintended losses to civilian population as CAPFs and State Police is better for low-intensity internal conflicts unlike army which is mostly trained for war-like situations.

·         Involvement of tribals as special police officers. Their knowledge of local train and social networks helped in gathering intelligence.

·         Actions of CAPF and State Police were closely monitored to minimise any chances of excesses and rights violation.

·         Governance in areas cleared by security forces were strengthened without much delay creating a positive image of the state by creation of health centres,schools,etc.(This is in sharp contrast to Saranda where area liberated from naxalites remained the same or even became worse)

·         Information campaign was launched by the Government exposing hypocrisy of Militant leadership which led a luxurious life and exploited lower ranks.

·         Village level grassroot democracy was strenghtened.

The result was that Tripura not only overcame insurgency but is a Model State of North-East India. Between 2004-05 and 2009-10 %age of BPL population reduced from 40% to 17.4 %. This is highly commendable considering that poverty rates increased in all North-Eastern states,except Tripura and Arunachal Pradesh,  during this period. As per its own survey, Tripura has even left behind Kerala in literacy by achieving 94.65 per cent rate beating Kerala's 93.91 per cent(although this is not as per 2011 census data but a subsequent survey reported  in Tripura in 2013,http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/education/news/Tripura-beats-Kerala-in-literacy/articleshow/22416019.cms) 

[UPSC Interview prep feed Vol.19] Smart Cities

Topic Discussed: Smart Cities

What is Smart City ? Some features please?

• Smart Cities are those who have smart physical, social, institutional and economic infrastructure.
• Street lights, Water Supply etcetra would be based on programmed logic that would turn off if no usage is detected.
• Parking lots, traffic congestion and traffic lights to use Artificial Intelligence and ICT.
• Automatic garbage disposal system working at high speeds to produce reusable entities and bio fuel.
• From the security point of view, the whole City would be covered by CCTV cameras and constant monitoring by the security personnel.
• Smart cities would have the Municipal Offices fully automated to facilitate better service delivery and increased public participation.
• Special emphasis on generating physical infrastructure for encouraging walking and cycling to nearby location.
• A good city would need lots of commodities. They need to be moved. And hence a good freight system is crucial for a smart city.
• A large bandwidth of internet and free wi-fi would also be quintessential as we move into the digital era of governance.
• An efficient garbage disposal system is a must given that we are running out of dumping grounds to fill our garbage with. Segregation of recyclable waste from the rest at the source of collection and use of latest technology of waste-to-energy converters.
• A smart water supply system which measures and observes the usage patterns on real time basis.
• Rain water harvesting must be deployed at all places. Drainage systems should be more intelligent and any amount of sudden rainfall should not result in waterlogging on the roads and other public places.
• A smart city must promote "off the grid" households running entirely on solar and other on-conventional sources. Plus, the present grid must be updated to "Smart Grid" which would optimize distribution, minimize loss and reduce the peak deficit.
• The Smart City should also have strong and enforceable building bylaws promoting green and earthquake resistant buildings. They should also address the common problems like parking issues and others.
• The city development plans are based on ICT, MIS and spatial planning.
• On the health front, it promotes the ideas of telemedicine to all nearby localities and the digitalization of health records.
• The cities would also be having incubator systems which would support to the tune of 1000 startups every year. This would prove very useful to engage our demographic dividend into entrepreneurship.

The selected cities India will need to have certain precursors to transform them into smart cities. They will need to undertake the following through a tripartite MoU between the Central Govt., State Govt., and the Urban Local Body:

1.  Have an existing master plan or one that is likely to be approved shortly and have such a validity of at least 10 years.

2.  Have digitized spatial and GIS maps

3.    Issue all clearances for projects in a collegiate manner using online processes and in a time bound manner

4.    Electronic/Online seeking and delivery of all Public Services.

5.    Transparent and time-bound procedure of granting free right of way for laying optic fibre networks, water supply lines, sewerage systems, draining systems and other utilities (Not more than 7 working days).

6.    Create an IT-based platform for effective communication with the citizens and keep them abreast of various activities and plans of the city.

7.    Adopt tariff structures that are affordable for the poor and yet enough to recover cost including Capital Expenditure. In doing so the State/Cities could use their own resources to bridge the gap between the revenue and expenses.

8.    Create Open Data Platforms that are regularly updated.

9.    Make all information and decisions taken available in the public domain

10.  Setup a regulatory body for all utility services such as water supply etc. so that a level playing field is made available to the private sector and tariffs are set in a manner that balances financial sustainability with quality.

11.  All project first will be offered to Private Sector (PPP etc) for implementation and O&M.

Ye sab to theek hai, paisa kaha se aayega???

• An expert committee has estimated the per capita cost to be some INR 43386 for the next 20 years.This translates to an annual requirement of about 35000 Crore.
• Most of this colossal estimate will be funded by way of the Public Private Partnership.
• The government would only be provided the bridge funds popularly known as the Viability Gap Support.

Why do we need them today?

• Urbanization is on the rise. Half of Indian population is expected to live in cities by 2030.
• As of today, urban population is about 31% of the whole and it contributes over 60% of India's GDP. It is projected that in the next 15 years, the contribution would go up to 75 %.
• It has been observed that the initial phases of urbanization are slow up to say 30-35 % but the next phase till it reached 60%, is probably the fastest of all phases. And hence we must be ready for the same.
• It also gives us an opportunity to create a conducive environment for generating and sustaining employment opportunities.

Advantages of such cities?

• Great enhancement of the Quality of living.
• Creates mindful employment and investment opportunities.
• Facilitates environmental and social sustainability.
• Affordable housing to different sections of the society.
• Cost efficient physical infrastructure such as 24X7 water supply, electricity, cooking gas etc.
• Simple and transparent online business and public service processes.
• Such cities have a Transit Oriented Development (TOD) model in which before approving any  infrastructural project, the requirements of the proposed transit models are confirmed to avoid tussle later on.
• The concept paper released by the government on this issue proposes a Medi-city spanning 50-100 acres in every upcoming Smart City to provide for a comprehensive medical cover.

Any cons?

• Some planners feel that these cities would be dystopic and inequitable. They would be more like social apartheid cities.
• The current template for smart cities only outlays the need to have infrastructure. It does not ensure that democratic ways of governance would prevail even in such privatized paradises.
• The challenge to rejuvenate the existing settlements is very complex and difficult in India.
• The emphasis of making these cities totally green in missing.
• The issue of creation of urban sprawl around the periphery must be resolved at the planning level itself. Let's not create Smart cities circled with slums.