Sealing the deal: Wooed by Modi, Japan aims to double investments in India

September 1, 2014

Kyoto, Sep 1: With India and Japan now talking of a new chapter in their global and strategic ties, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today begins the second leg of his five-day Japan visit - to convince the country to 'make in India and invest in India'.

Modi in JapanAccording to the Nikkei business daily, Japan aims to double its direct investment in India in five years from around $2 billion last year.

India and Japan are already in talks for the high speed train between Mumbai and Ahmedabad, and Japan has already invested in the Delhi-Mumbai industrial corridor and the western freight corridor.

On Monday, Modi will be accorded a ceremonial welcome followed by summit-level talks in which the two sides will seek to take their strategic partnership to a new level. Agreements are expected to be signed in defence and the two sides will discuss cooperation in infrastructure, civil nuclear energy and production of rare earth materials.

Commerce minister Nirmala Sitharaman told The Telegraph: “We are asking for greater access to their market so that Indian goods such as gems and jewellery, pharmaceuticals and textiles can be exported.”

According to the report, the Indian pharma industry, whose growth has slowed down to 1.2 percent at $14.84 billion last financial year, has been trying to prise open the tightly controlled Japanese drug market.

The two countries will also agree to jointly produce mixed rare earth, with Japan set to start importing from India in 2015 as it tries to wean itself of its reliance on China.

Indian Rare Earths, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Department of Atomic Energy, and Japanese trading house Toyota Tsusho will sign a contract on joint production as early as September, according to the Nikkei Business Daily.

Annual production will be about 2,000 tonnes to 2,300 tonnes, equal to around 15 percent of Japan's demand, and roughly 2,000 tonnes a year could be exported to Japan starting as early as February, it added.

The Indian company will make mixed rare earth materials from uranium and thorium ores, which Toyota Tsusho will use to produce neodymium for electric and hybrid cars, as well as lanthanum, cerium and praseodymium

Modi is also likely to lobby for Abe to back a nuclear energy pact, although hopes of striking a similar accord to one reached with the United States in 2008 had faded in the run-up to the visit.

Japan wants explicit guarantees from India, which has not signed the nuclear non-proliferation treaty, to limit atomic tests and allow closer inspection of its facilities to ensure that spent fuel is not used to make bombs.

Modi will also seek to drum up the inward investment he needs to bring to life the appeal to "Come, make in India" he made in a speech this month to mark India's independence day.

Also under discussion will be a proposal to formalise a 'Two Plus Two' format for talks bringing together the foreign and defence ministers of both countries, reflecting shared concerns about an increasingly assertive China.

Other items on the agenda include negotiations for the US-2 amphibious rescue and reconnaissance plane, investments in desalination plants and the Japanese bullet train.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who, in a special gesture, received Modi in Kyoto, tweeted Sunday: “"Looking forward to seeing PM Modi again in Tokyo tomorrow."

"Will begin the day tomorrow (Monday) with a visit to Taimei elementary school followed by meetings, address at a Business Luncheon and tea ceremony," Modi tweeted on his part.

On Sunday, the first full day of his five-day trip to Japan, Modi also exchanged notes on heritage conservation with Kyoto Mayor Daisaku Kadokawa, showing him a detailed map of Varanasi, the Hindu holy city he represents in the Lok Sabha.

Modi, who arrived in Kyoto Saturday, began Sunday by visiting the Toji and Kinkaku-ji temples. Dressed in a white kurta pyjama and bandhgala, Modi first went to the Toji temple with Abe.

Abe guided Modi around the Toji temple to take a look at its Buddhist statues and five-storied pagoda, which is a national treasure, Kyodo news agency reported. Modi also walked through the temple premises.

Modi and Abe then met for about 90 minutes. The meeting was described by Indian officials as "exceptionally warm and friendly". Within hours of Modi's arrival, a partnership accord was signed between Varanasi and Kyoto.

This is Modi's first bilateral sojourn outside South Asia since taking office in May. On Tuesday, he will call on Japanese Emperor Akihito.

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News Network
January 31,2020

New Delhi, Jan 31: Slamming the BJP over the Jamia firing incident, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Friday said such incidents were possible with the ruling party's leaders inciting people to shoot, and asked Prime minister Narendra Modi to answer whether he stands with violence or non-violence.   

Her attack on the government comes a day after tensions in the Jamia area spiralled on Thursday after a man fired a pistol at a group of anti-CAA protesters, injuring a student, before walking away while waving the firearm above his head and shouting "Yeh lo aazadi" amid heavy police presence in the area.

"When the BJP government ministers and party leaders incite people to shoot, give provocative speeches, then all this becomes possible. The Prime Minister should answer what kind of a Delhi he wants to build?" Priyanka Gandhi said in a tweet in Hindi.

Does the PM stand with violence or non-violence, she asked.

"Does he stand with development or with anarchy?" the Congress general secretary said.

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Agencies
January 20,2020

New Delhi, Jan 20: The BJP has got a brand new President in the form of JP Nadda. At around 2.30 pm, the announcement was made, bringing an end to the Amit Shah era in BJP. The party's Working President Jagat Prakash Nadda won unopposed, sparking celebrations outside the BJP headquarters here on Monday. 

Amit Shah himself was among the people who proposed Nadda's name along with Nitin Gadkari and Rajnath Singh. Soon after his annointment, BJP election returning officer Radha Mohan Singh told the media, "I announce JP Nadda as the new BJP President." Shah was also seen hugging Nadda.

The nomination process for the post of the BJP President began at 10 am and went on till 12.30 pm. For the next hour, the filed nomination paper, which was just one, was examined. Party members waitied till 2.30 pm for the candidate to withdraw if he wished to. It was after this that Nadda was declared as the man who would step into the shoes of Amit Shah.

Many in the BJP believe that although Nadda is the BJP chief now, Shah would still make all macro-level decisions like pre poll alliances or top organisational appointments. Nadda would be in charge of monitoring the day-to-day needs of the organisation. BJP sources say that Amit Shah himself wanted an arrangement like this one and personally wanted Nadda to take over. as he helped Shah formulate legislations like Triple Talaq and Citizenship Amendment Act.

The party constitution mandates completion of election of at least 50 per cent of state Presidents for the election of national President to happen. In the last few days, the BJP has completed the election of a slew of state Presidents like in West Bengal, Nagaland among others.

The process of election of the national BJP President is quite elaborate and has been described in detail in the party constitution, which says that the national president shall be elected by an electoral college, comprising members of the national council and the state councils.

"Any 20 members of the electoral college of a state can jointly propose the name of a person, who has been an active member for four terms and has 15 years of membership, for the post of national president. Such joint proposal should come from not less than five states where elections have been completed for the national council. The consent of the candidate is necessary," it says.

Who is JP Nadda?

Jagat Prakash Nadda, 59, who has his roots in the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and its affiliates, was appointed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national President on Monday, replacing his 'mentor' and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

Former environment, health and law minister from Himachal Pradesh, which has just four of the Lok Sabha's 543 seats, Nadda has tried to carve out his own space in national politics with his low profile and astute organisational skills, believe his party leaders.

He rose through the ranks from the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the student wing of the RSS, from where he has managed to build inroads from university to the state politics.

Nadda has been active on the national political scene since 2010 when he was picked by then BJP chief Nitin Gadkari to join his new team. He was made the party's national general secretary.

Born on December 2, 1960, Nadda did his graduation from Patna and holds a post-graduate degree in political science and Bachelor of Legislative Law (LL.B) from Himachal Pradesh University in Shimla.

Starting his political career as a student leader of the ABVP in 1978, Nadda had also worked both with Gadkari and Shah even in the party's youth wing -- the Bharatiya Yuva Morcha -- from 1991 to 1994.

His wife Mallika Nadda, who teaches history at the Himachal Pradesh University and is currently posted in university's campus in Delhi, was an ABVP activist too, and its national general secretary from 1988 to 1999.

In the previous BJP government (2007-12) in the state, Nadda was forced to resign as Forest Minister in 2010 owing to differences between him and then chief minister Prem Kumar Dhumal.

He was elected to the Rajya Sabha in 2012.

Nadda won his first Assembly election from Bilaspur (Sadar) in Himachal in 1993. In 1998, he again won from that seat and became the state Health Minister.

He lost the Assembly elections in 2003, but again won in 2007 and was appointed the Forest Minister in the Himachal Pradesh.

Nadda, as a forest minister, was the brain behind opening forest police stations to check forest crimes, launching community-driven plantation, setting up forest ponds and the massive plantation of deodars to boost the depleting green cover of the 'Queen of Hills', as Shimla was fondly called by the British.

A close confidant of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Nadda was among those who were mentioned as likely aspirants to the BJP top post after Rajnath Singh was inducted into the Central government as the Home Minister in 2014.

Later, Nadda was inducted into the union cabinet in its first expansion in 2014 as the Health Minister.

Hailing Nadda's appointment, Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur told IANS it is a proud moment that a leader belonging to a small state in the national politics is today the leader of the country's biggest national party.

His father N.L. Nadda, who was a Vice-Chancellor of the Ranchi University, resides in Bilaspur town.

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Agencies
January 11,2020

Those owning a single house in joint names would continue to file their income tax returns (ITRs) in much simpler ITR-1 (Sahaj) and ITR-4 forms (Sugam) for assessment year 2020-21 with the government issuing a clarification in this regard.

The clarification has come days after the government modified the eligibility for filing the returns in ITR-1 and ITR-4, stating that those owning a property jointly, spending Rs 2 lakh on foreign travel and paying electricity bill of Rs 1 lakh in a year would not be able to file returns in the simpler forms.

They would have to file their returns with much more detailed information in other specified forms.

Following the changes in the eligibility for filing returns in the two forms, concerns were raised over it with taxpayers claiming that it will cause huge hardship for them.

"The matter has been examined and it has been decided to allow a person, who jointly owns a single house property, to file his/her return of income in ITR-1 or ITR-4 Form, as may be applicable, if he/she meets the other conditions," a Finance Ministry statement said.

"It has also been decided to allow a person, who is required to file return due to fulfilment of one or more conditions specified in the seventh proviso to section 139(1) of the Act, to file his/her return in ITR-1 Form," it added.

Tax practitioners welcomed the government’s move of going back to the previous position.

"This is a welcome clarification allowing middle class taxpayers owning a single house property to file simpler ITR forms, 1 and 4, and not the detailed ITR forms even if they own house property in joint names," said Shailesh Kumar, Director, Nangia Andersen Consulting.

It may be noted that taxpayers holding multiple house properties would have to file more detailed return forms.

In the major changes notified earlier this month by the Income-Tax department, individual taxpayers were disallowed to file return either in ITR-1 or ITR 4 if he or she was a joint-owner in house property.

In another change, those who deposited more than Rs 1 crore in bank account or spent Rs 2 lakh on foreign travel or paid Rs 1 lakh on electricity bill in a financial year were also barred from using the easy-to-fill return forms.

"By today's clarification, the government has maintained status quo. Now, the taxpayers can continue filing their returns in the same fashion in which they did last year," said Naveen Wadhwa, Deputy General Manager (DGM), Taxmann.

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