Central Bank's image has been dented post demonetisation: RBI staff

January 14, 2017

New Delhi, Jan 14: In a strongly worded letter addressed to Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Urjit Patel, the United Forum of Reserve Bank Officers and Employees has alleged that post the government's demonetisation move, the image of the Central bank has been dented beyond repair.

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"Commenting on the "mismanagement" since November 8 when demonetisation was announced and the criticism from different quarters followed, the letter said, "Its (RBI's) autonomy and image have been dented beyond repair," an official of the All India Reserve Bank officers Association said here.

"We request the Governor of the RBI, its highest functionary and protector of its autonomy and prestige, to do the needful urgently to do away with this unwarranted interference from the Finance Ministry and assure the staff accordingly as the staff feels humiliated," the letter added.

Various employee unions of the central bank have objected to the government "impinging on RBI autonomy" and have written to Patel to take action against the "unwarranted interference".

In a letter, they said the autonomy and image of the RBI has been "dented beyond repair" due to mismanagement and termed the appointment of a senior Finance Ministry official as a "blatant encroachment" of its exclusive turf of currency management.

"If true, this is most unfortunate and we take strong exception to this measure of the government as impinging on the RBI autonomy and its statutory as well as operational jurisdiction," the letter said.

The Association asserts that the RBI is fully capable to co-ordinate the central bank's currency chest operations which it has been performing over decades, and they do not need "any assistance" from anywhere.

The letter suggests that the union may assume that the RBI did not ask for deployment of a joint secretary of the Finance Ministry in its functions, rather it's the latter which has imposed itself on the central bank, which is absolutely unacceptable and deplorable.

The official of RBI officers association stated that there have been no review in pension issue for last 16 years has displayed hostilities on the employees.

The letter sought to draw attention to the RBI Act 1934, which stipulates that the central bank was constituted lo "regulate the issue of notes and keeping of reserves with a view to secure monetary stability in India" and generally to operate the currency and credit system of the country.

The association also urged the media to voice grievances associated with the RBI.

The letter comes days after concerns about RBI's functioning being raised by at least three former governors -- Manmohan Singh (former prime minister), Y. V. Reddy and Bimal Jalan. Former deputy governors including Usha Thorat and K. C. Chakrabarty have also voiced their concerns in this regard.

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Think Tank
 - 
Saturday, 14 Jan 2017

MODI has done it.....................Greed for name and fame.............by the cost of Common Man's Black(White)Money

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April 3,2020

New Delhi, April 3: With 478 cases reported in the last 24 hours, the highest spike so far, India's tally of positive coronavirus cases on Friday rose to 2,547 including 162 cured/discharged and 62 deaths, as per the latest data of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.

As many as 647 positive coronavirus cases have been reported so far from across 14 States whose linkage can be traced to the Tablighi Jamaat cluster at Nizamuddin, the Centre said on Friday.

"A total of 647 cases of positive coronavirus cases have been reported from across 14 States whose linkage can be traced to the Tablighi Jamaat cluster at Nizamuddin," Lav Aggarwal, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said.

"The cases can be traced in Andaman and Nicobar, Assam, Delhi, Himachal, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh," added Aggarwal.

The Tablighi Jamaat event in Delhi has emerged as a hotspot for COVID-19 after several positive cases from across India were linked to the gathering including deaths in Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Telangana.

An FIR was earlier registered against Tablighi Jamaat head Maulana Saad and others under the Epidemic Disease Act 1897, in the national capital.

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News Network
March 31,2020

New Delhi, Mar 31: The total number of coronavirus cases in India has risen to 1,397 after 146 new patients were reported in the last 24-hours, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said on Tuesday.

Of this little less than 1,400 cases, there are 1,238 active while 124 cured. The total figure also includes 35 fatalities.

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News Network
January 21,2020

Jan 21: Indian policymakers may make it easier for companies to tap foreign funding, as a prolonged cash squeeze makes it tough for firms to borrow at home.

Investors are speculating about potential steps Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman could unveil when she presents the nation’s budget on Feb. 1. These measures may include freeing up firms to borrow at higher rates and offering tax breaks to global funds.

“The government will need to relax local rules to make it easier for Indian companies to raise debt overseas and tide over the funding crunch in the onshore market,” said Raj Kothari, London-based head of trading at Jay Capital Ltd. “At the same time, they need to ensure that the borrowers tapping offshore markets abide with stricter corporate governance so as to avoid further defaults.”

A prolonged crisis in India’s shadow bank sector and a pile of bad loans at traditional lenders is making it expensive for Indian companies, other than the best-rated firms, to access funding. The government has tried a series of measures to spur domestic credit, including providing so-called credit enhancement and allowing tiny firms to restructure debt.

Here are some steps Sitharaman may consider to spur foreign borrowing:

• She could raise the cap of 450 basis points above Libor, which limits overall foreign debt costs for Indian companies

• This could help lower-rated firms sell bonds abroad. Indian companies rated BBB currently borrow at more than 10%, about 3.8 percentage points more than their top-rated peers;

• Sitharaman could waive the withholding tax foreign investors need to pay on holdings of rupee-denominated debt sold by Indian companies abroad

• The waiver was offered between September 2018 to March 2019, but wasn’t extended as the highest global interest rates since the financial crisis deterred Indian borrowers. Since then, the three-month Libor has dropped by about 1 percentage point

• She could permit Indian property developers and housing finance lenders to sell overseas bonds for reasons beyond affordable housing projects

• New funding lines to the real estate sector, arguably ground zero of India’s economic slowdown, could help kickstart consumption and investment as the industry is the nation’s biggest job-creator.

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