1. Insolvency And Bankruptcy Code

Why is it a Code?

IBC consolidates various laws, regulations and rules concerning and classifies insolvency, bankruptcy and liquidation of non-financial entities, systematically and comprehensively. Since a ‘Code’ is a compendium of laws, thus, IBC becomes a code, than just being a law.
Insolvency: Inability of an entity to pay its bills as and when they become due and payable
Bankruptcy: Situation when an entity is declared incapable of paying their due and payable bills
Liquidation: Process of winding up a corporation or an incorporated entity.

Details of the report card

Out of 4,738 applications submitted, 2,750 cases were disposed of either because parties had settled these outside the process or because these lacked sufficient grounds for admission.
Of the remaining 1,988 cases, only 540 cases were admitted for resolution at the end of December 2017, and the rest remained pending – of these, only 1.9% were resolved by the end of December 2017; 5.9% cases went for liquidation
Corporate debtors initiated the proceedings in 20% of the admitted cases.

Hits and misses of IBC

One main objective of the maximum time limit of 270 days for resolution, was to enable banks to pressurize debtors for recovery or resolution – but it was found that out of 540 cases admitted, nearly only one-third were filed by financial creditors (banks and other financing institutions)
Operational creditors (vendors, supplies, employees etc.) are opting for IBC because: o It offers credible warning to the corporate debtors
These creditors, mostly small or mid-sized dealing with bigger enterprises, operate on a credit cycle and missed payments hurt them bad
Under IBC, creditors with the dues of INR 100,000 can trigger the insolvency process
In 11 out of 12 cases, referred to the NCLT (as expedited by the RBI), the deadline of 270-days has already passed with on action
Three mainstays to judge an insolvency process: fairness, collective resolution and equality o Since financial creditors have greater say in Resolution Plan, principle of equality suffers
The focus is more on recovery of dues, than revival of the company, thus collective resolution is hit
Given it is yet a new legislation, gradual evolution with amendments will surely decrease the misses and increase the hits of IBC.

Provisions of IBC (Amendment) Ordinance 2018

Home buyers would be treated as financial creditors and shall have the right to be represented in the Committee of Creditors (CoC)
‘Related party’ now defined in relation to the individual as well, in addition of the company only previously, to bar it from bidding under the resolution process
Vote share changes: CoC to decide on extension of insolvency process beyond 180 days to 270 days and for appointment of IP by 66% vote share (from earlier 75%); other decisions can be taken by 51% vote (it was 75% earlier). The process can be withdrawn altogether by 90% vote share
Promotors and guarantors of the MSMEs are exempted from disqualification from bidding; it further empowers the Centre to allow further exemptions or modifications w.r.t. the MSME sector
Moratorium from parallel proceedings will not be available to guarantors of the company
If a financial creditor or its authorised representative is a related party to the company facing insolvency, it shall not have any participation or voting during a meeting of the CoC
A company can file an insolvency application, provided it seeks shareholders’ approval and at least three-fourth of the stakeholders approve the proposal
Many of changes were made on the basis of the recommendations of the IBC review committee headed by Corporate Affairs Secretary Injeti Srinivas. The Ordinance is likely to be taken up in the monsoon session of the Parliament.

2. Amalgamation Of Regional Rural Banks

Background

The first round was in 2005 in which RRBs of the same sponsor bank within a State were consolidated.

Regional Rural Banks (RRB)

Regional Rural Banks (RRBs) are financial institutions which ensure adequate credit for agriculture and other rural sectors.
It was set up on the basis of the recommendations of the Narasimham Working Group (1975), and after the legislations of the Regional Rural Banks Act, 1976.
The equity of a regional rural bank is held by the Central Government, concerned State Government and the Sponsor Bank in the proportion of 50:15:35
The RRB’s have also been brought under the ambit of priority sector lending on par with the commercial bank
In the second phase of consolidation in 2012, RRBs, which were near each other (even if they belonged to different sponsor banks), were brought together.

Merits

The consolidation process would enable RRBs to minimise their overhead costs, optimise use of technology, enhance capital base and area of operation.
This will bring about better scale efficiency, higher productivity and robust financial health of RRBs
Improved financial inclusion and greater credit flow to rural areas.

Role of Regional Rural Banking for Rural Development:

Taking the banking services to the doorstep of rural masses, particularly in hitherto unbanked rural areas.
Making available institutional credit to the weaker section of the society who had by far little or no access to cheaper loans and had perforce been depending on the private money lenders.
Mobilize rural savings and channelize them for supporting productive activities in rural areas.
Provide finance to co-operative societies, Primary Credit societies, Agricultural marketing societies.
Generating employment opportunities in rural areas and bringing down the cost of providing credit to rural areas.

Challenges faced by RRBs

Difficulties in Deposit Mobilisation: On account of their restrictive lending policy which excludes richer sections of the village society, these potential depositors show least interest in depositing their money with these banks.
Slow Progress in Lending Activity:
It is always difficult to identify the potential small borrowers
Most of the small borrowers do not like the bank formalities and prefer to borrow from the informal sources of finance
Urban orientation of their staff which is rarely inclined to serve in rural areas
Procedural Rigidities: The RRBs follow the procedures of the scheduled commercial banks which are highly complicated and time-consuming from the villagers’ point of view.
Delay in decision making:
The RRBs are controlled by various agencies, i.e., the sponsoring bank, NABARD, RBI, besides Central Government. Thus, it takes long time to take decisions on some important issues.
The implementation of Core Banking Services involves huge cost for setting up of infrastructure

Way forward

Governance reform should start with making public sector institutions more accountable to market discipline.
Government stake should be reduced and state has to be ensure the presence of an interested single promoter-like shareholder. o Then shareholder could look at mergers, acquisitions and other aspects based on market conditions and merits.
Policy and procedure of financing o Simplification & Standardisation of Loan Application
Reduction in Processing Time
Increased attention towards financing of Non-Farm Activities
Recovery of loans
The number of Debt Recovery Tribunals (DRTs) should be increased to fasten the debt recovery
RBI should recommend a compromise and settlements scheme for the RRBs so that it may make compromise and settlement instead of resorting to the long drawn legal battle.
Organisation o Development of Human Resources (Staff Training)
Staff Compensation package for the staff of RRBs should be brought at par with the other banks.
Faster Branch Expansion

GOVERNMENT OWNED NBFCS

Background

The Reserve Bank has been given the powers under the RBI Act 1934 to register, lay down policy, issue directions, inspect, regulate, supervise and exercise surveillance over NBFCs.
The Reserve Bank can regulate and penalize NBFCs for violating the provisions of the RBI Act or the directions or orders issued by RBI under the RBI Act.
Earlier, only privately owned NBFCs had to maintain a minimum Capital to Risk Assets Ratio (CRAR) of 15

A Non-Banking Financial Company (NBFC)

It is a company engaged in the business of loans and advances, acquisition of shares/stocks/bonds/debentures/securities issued by Government or local authority.
Foreign Investment is allowed up to 100%.

Difference between NBFCs & Banks:

Provides Banking services to People without holding a Bank license,
An NBFC cannot accept Demand Deposits,
An NBFC is not a part of the payment and settlement system and as such,
An NBFC cannot issue Cheques drawn on itself, and
Deposit insurance facility of the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation is not available for NBFC depositors, unlike banks
An NBFC is not required to maintain Reserve Ratios (CRR, SLR etc.)
An NBFC cannot indulge Primarily in Agricultural, Industrial Activity, Sale-Purchase, Construction of Immovable Property. percent if Tier-1 capital is 10 percent.

Changes introduced

Now, the CRAR requirements same as that of private NBFCs have been made applicable to government NBFCs .
Government NBFCs have to achieve this by 2022.
Some of the other changes that government NBFCs would now have to comply with include the treatment of income recognition, besides full provisioning for all non-performing assets.
RBI has specified a roadmap, stretching till 2021-22, for these lenders to meet the norms on capital adequacy, provisioning, and corporate governance.
The recent ruling by the RBI will ensure both types of NBFCs stand on an equal footing on compliance with specific RBI rules and will also help in keeping a check on NPAs and bankruptcy.

3. Urban Cooperative Banks To Transition Into Small Finance Banks

Significance of the decision

Relaxation of dual control: UCBs currently face regulation by both the RBI and the respective State governments. By turning into SFBs, they will be regulated only by the RBI.
Risk posed to the system: Some UCBs have acquired the size akin to commercial banks and could pose a risk to the system due to their scale and complexity of business.
In case of commercial banks, the present regulatory and legal framework provides reasonable power to RBI for an early resolution which is not the case with UCBs given their weak regulation.
In view of this, the time was opportune to reflect on the appropriate size up to which a UCB may be allowed to grow without undue risk to the system.
Furthering financial inclusion: The move will help commercialisation of UCBs and bringing them into mainstream banking furthering the cause of financial inclusion.
Due to the limited capacity to raise capital, lack of corporate governance, lack of a level playing field in regulation and supervision at par with commercial banks, all products/lines of businesses undertaken by commercial banks were not permitted to UCBs.

4. Sebi To Integrate Departments For Efficiency

Rationale behind this decision

SEBI lacks coordination between the two departments. The merged department could take over all investigations, which will reduce overlapping and increase SEBI’s efficiency.
Currently, it takes around three months to check if the matter deserves further probe. Merger will reduce this time frame to 2 weeks.
It will improve coordination and monitoring in a more efficient manner.

Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)

SEBI was established on April 12, 1992 in accordance with the provisions of the Securities and Exchange Board of India Act, 1992.

Role of SEBI

To increase the efficiency of the financial system and securities market so that larger saving could be channelled for productive use in the public sector.
The Preamble of SEBI Act lays down that protection of the interest of investor is its basic and foremost aim which is to be achieved through its functions of regulation.
SEBI as the Capital Market Regulator has twin objectives of regulating as well as developing the market.
It creates discipline in the market and ensure high degree of fairness and market integrity.
It identifies and prohibits certain types of conduct in the markets and provides the Commission with disciplinary powers over regulated entities and persons associated with them.

5. Draft Of National Voluntary Guidelines On Social, Environmental And Economic Responsibilities Of Business

Background

NVGs were first issued by MCA in July 2011 in order to make business socially responsible, internationally relevant and partner in nation development through their expertise and efficiency.
Based on these guidelines, SEBI mandates top 500 companies to furnish annual Business Responsibility Report (BRR).
Several National and International developments in the domains of sustainability and business responsibility, for instance, adoption of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), debates on Climate Change and Paris Agreement and enhanced role of Business in engendering Human Rights required updating these NVGs.
To be used by all businesses, irrespective of their ownership, size, sector, or location. All businesses investing or operating in India, including foreign multi-national corporations (MNCs) will make efforts to follow the Guidelines. Correspondingly, these also provide a useful framework for guiding Indian MNCs in their overseas operations.

About the Draft of updated National Voluntary Guidelines

Comprising of nine interrelated and interconnected principles with their core elements, these represent a holistic approach to business responsibility. The 9 Principles expects business to:

Integrity, Ethics, Transparency and Accountability

Ensure ethical behavior in all the functions and processes of business
Emphasis on disclosures to all stakeholders
Timely payment of all taxes

Safe and Sustainable Goods and Services

Continuous improvement in processes and technologies to minimize adverse environmental and social impacts
Provide stakeholders with information about environmental and social issues associated with the product
Empower consumers to practice responsible consumption

Promote well being of employees

Compliance with all regulatory requirements; not to use forced or Child labour
Equal opportunities at recruitment and during course of employment; and continuous skill and competency upgradation of employees
Respect right to freedom of association and collective bargaining of workers
Ensure timely payment of fair living wage and support work life balance
Provide hygienic, safe and harassment free workplace

Respect and Responsiveness to all stakeholders

Acknowledge and undertake responsibilities about impacts of policies, decisions and products on stakeholders and natural environment
Enable stakeholders to fairly benefit from the values generated and resolve conflicts in a just, fair and equitable manner

Respect and Promote Human Rights

Business to have understanding of Human rights content of Indian Constitution, national laws and policies and international Bill of Human rights
Promote awareness and realization of human right across value chain
Ensure all individuals have access to effective Grievance Redressal Mechanism

Respect, Protect and Restore the Environment

Business should understand Environmental risks and to address adverse impacts on environment it should have internal policies, procedures and structures
Monitor performance on environmental aspects and address climate change by developing mitigation and adaptation measures and building climate resilience
Adopt innovative technologies and best practices to promote reduction, reuse and recycle of resources

Responsible and Transparent Policy Advocacy

Policy advocacy must expand public goods and ensure fair competition
To the extent possible it should be taken through trade and industry chambers or other collective platforms

Promote Inclusive Growth and Equitable Development

Minimize any adverse impacts on societal, cultural and environmental aspects of society and be sensitive to the concerns of local communities
Minimize negative impacts of displacement and assure appropriate resettlement, compensation and rehabilitation of displaced communities
Respect all forms of Intellectual property and traditional knowledge

Provide Value to Consumer Responsibly

Ensure freedom of choice to consumers and free competition by disclosing all information accurately and objectively promoting and advertising the product without misleading the consumers
Manage consumer data without infringing upon Right to Privacy
Provide for effective Grievance redressal and feedback mechanisms

6. Power Asset Revival Through Warehousing And Rehabilitation (Pariwartan)

Rural Electrification Corporation

It is a Navratna company under the administrative control of the Ministry of Power,
It is the nodal agency by the Government of India for implementation of Saubhagya (Pradhanmantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana) and DDUGJY (Deendayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana).
It is the coordinating agency for rolling out UDAY (Ujwal Discom Assurance Yojana).
Power sector is under debt of Rs 11.7 trillion of which Rs 3.5 trillion is already under stress.
Of these, banks have the largest at 53 per cent of the total loans, followed by non-banking finance companies (NBFCs) at 35 per cent and the balance from the state.

The power sector NPAs have been rising due to various factors such as:

Paucity of funds due to lack of interest of promoters and state fiscal capacity
Lack of power purchase agreements by DISCOMS have led to revenue instability among power generators thereby adding to NPAs.
Fuel shortages in form of shortage of coal and reduced nuclear power generation have added to the problem.
Lack of Demand due to solar and wind alternatives in addition to slower industrial growth has led to NPA woes.
Transmission and Distribution (T&D) losses also referred to as Aggregate Technical & Commercial (AT&C) losses are above 20% (2015-16).
Under Insolvency and Bankruptcy code, stressed assets have drawn bids of Rs 1-2 crore which are much less than Rs 5 crore which is the minimum requirement to build them. As promoters lost interest, the value of these assets is deteriorating due to lack of operations and maintenance.

Pariwartan Scheme

Under the scheme government has planned to warehouse stressed power projects totalling 25,000 megawatts (MW) under an asset management and rehabilitation company (AMRC) jointly owned by the financial institutions (Power finance corporation and lending banks) to protect the value of the assets and prevent their distress sale under the insolvency and bankruptcy code till demand for power picks up.
These projects will be transferred to the AMRC at net book value, wherein it will own a 51 percent stake in the projects while the remaining 49 percent will be held by the lenders
REC has identified projects with total debt of around 1.8 trillion rupees to be part of the scheme.
The scheme is inspired by the Troubled Asset Relief Program, which was introduced in the US during the 2008 financial crisis.
The scheme is similar to SAMADHAN (Scheme of Asset Management and Debt Change Structure) under which the SBI led bankers' consortium took over unsustainable debt of stressed power plants to avoid their liquidation.

7. Status Of Power System Transformation 2018

Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM)

It is a high-level global forum to promote policies and programs that advance clean energy technology, to share lessons learned and best practices, and to encourage the transition to a global clean energy economy.

21st Century Power Partnership (21CPP)

It is a multilateral effort of the Clean Energy Ministerial and serves as a platform for public-private collaboration to advance integrated policy, regulatory, financial, and technical solutions for the large-scale deployment of renewable energy in combination with deep energy efficiency and smart grid solutions.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) published Status of power transformation 2018 report

Context

The report presents the findings of the Advanced Power Plant Flexibility (APPF) Campaign, which was supported by two Clean Energy Ministerial initiatives: the 21st Century Power Partnership (21CPP) and the Multilateral Wind and Solar Working Group.

What is Power System Flexibility?

It is defined as the ability of a power system to reliably and cost effectively manage the variability and uncertainty of demand and supply across all relevant timescales.
It includes ensuring instantaneous stability of the power system and supporting long-term security of supply.
A lack of system flexibility can reduce the resilience of power systems, or lead to the loss of substantial amounts of clean electricity through curtailment of VRE.

Power system flexibility can be conceptualised as having three “layers”:

The hardware and infrastructure, available to provide physical flexibility.
The policy, regulatory and market frameworks which incentivise the provision of flexibility.
The institutional roles and responsibilities of entities who provide, incentivise, or manage flexibility.

Significance

It is important topic while considering the increasing intensity and frequency of high-impact events, and a higher share of variable renewable energy (VRE).
It is one aspect of power system transformation (PST), which also includes incorporation of VRE generation, growth in distributed energy resources, and the application of demand response and other modern technologies.
PST is crucial for ensuring electricity security by providing uninterrupted availability of energy sources at an affordable price.

Present scenario of Power system flexibility:

Power plants are one option to provide system flexibility.
Flexible power plant operation can take many forms, like o Rapidly changing plant output
Starting and stopping more quickly
Turning plant output down to lower levels without triggering a shutdown.
Other technology sources of flexibility are strong and smart grids, demand response and storage.
Generators that were initially designed and operated as “inflexible” have been successfully engineered into highly flexible assets, often without major capital investment.
Smart contract structures for new or enhanced system assets allow for positive net benefits over time.
Designing contracts with sufficient flexibility leaves headroom for lower-cost energy sources such as VRE and energy efficiency.

Way forward

Incorporating regular flexibility assessments into planning and strategy dialogues is the key.
Established decision support tools can be used to assess flexibility requirements, understand the value of proposed changes, and plan for the future.
Policy makers can help facilitate a transparent and collaborative planning environment that employs global best practices.
Well-designed policy, market and regulatory frameworks are critical to unlock power plant flexibility
Mobilising technically available flexibility in practice may call for changes to operational practices, fuel and power purchase contracts, regulatory incentives and market design.
Often, no technical changes or capital investments are required to access this plant flexibility. Instead, modifications to system operational procedures or market and regulatory incentives can unlock power plant flexibility.

8. Three Year Action Plan: Agricultural Education

Recently, the cabinet has approved the continuation of the Three-Year Action Plan (2017-2020) of the scheme for Agricultural Education Division and ICAR Institutes.

Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR)

It is the apex body for co-ordinating, guiding and managing research and education in agriculture including horticulture, fisheries and animal sciences in the entire country.
Formerly known as Imperial Council of Agricultural Research established on 16 July 1929.
Presently, it is an autonomous organisation under the Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE), Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
With 101 ICAR institutes and 71 agricultural universities spread across the country this is one of the largest national agricultural systems in the world.
The Agricultural Education Division, ICAR is involved in strengthening and streamlining of higher agricultural education system to enhance the quality of human resources in agri-supply chain to meet future challenges in agriculture sector in the country.

About the Scheme

The scheme aims to reduce academic inbreeding and addressing faculty shortage, promotes green initiatives, international ranking, alumni involvement, promoting innovations, technology enabled learning, post-doctoral fellowships, agriculture education portal, and scientific social responsibility.
Moreover, it will facilitate research on gender issues in agriculture and allied fields, through policy and programme.

Need of Agricultural Education

Agricultural Productivity- Effective agricultural education (both for farmers as well as researchers) leads to better economic and technical decision making in agricultural processes, which is further reflected in increase in agricultural productivity.
Value Chain of Agriculture- The entire value chain of agriculture i.e. from farm input to market linkages, suffers from various bottlenecks which can well be addressed by agricultural education.
Employment- Agricultural education is needed in order to absorb the emerging labour force, especially with the emerging arenas of biotechnology, GM food, precision agriculture etc. which require detailed knowledge.
Labour value- Market value of individual in agricultural field in India is lower than many developing countries and agricultural education adds to an individual’s productivity and therefore increases the market value of his labour.

Challenges face by Agricultural Education

Finance- Agriculture is a state subject and the statutory responsibility for it vests with the state governments which lack in funds. Moreover, the establishment cost of agricultural universities has risen substantially while the operational budget has reduced which constrains institution for innovation.
Faculty- State Agricultural Universities (SAUs) are facing non-replacement of retired faculty and high inbreeding of faculty (nearly 51% of faculty members have their degrees from the same university in which they are teaching), which hampers the quality of academic and research programmes.
Lack Networking and quality- It has been noticed that most of the universities are lacking in association and integration with different national and international universities for academic activities.
Low quality- The quality provided in these universities is low which further affects their global ranking.
Not a first option- Negative attitude towards agricultural education due to low returns and limited career opportunities makes agricultural education not a preferred choice amongst students.

Way Forward

Public Private Partnership (PPP)- Government should harness the PPP modal with agricultural universities especially in agribusiness, biotechnology, nanotechnology and many frontier areas, where public sector institutions are weak and not responding to the changing demand.
Revisit Curriculum- Ashok Dalwai Commmitee on Doubling the farmer Income, highlighted that there is a need to revisit the current agriculture education curriculum to orient it to promote agriculture as a sustainable practise and profit generating enterprise.
Global Standard practices- Agricultural education is needed to be harmonized with existing and emerging issues related to WTO, ethics of IPR, standard trade practices.
Regional Specific Education- The criteria for new universities should be agro-ecoregion rather than one discipline, as agriculture-related issues are multidisciplinary.
Regulatory authority i.e. ICAR does not have statutory powers or the mandate to regulate agricultural education. Thus, it is important to create a central statutory authority for the regulation of higher agricultural education to make the agriculture sector science and technology (S&T) based.
Vocational Agricultural Education- Universities are concentrating mainly on formal education while there is also need for Vocational and non-formal education especially in respect of knowledge and technological empowerment for work force in rural areas.

9. Krishi Kalyan Abhiyan

More about the Abhiyan

It was launched with an aim to aid, assist and advice farmers to improve their farming techniques and raise their income.
It has been launched from 1st June 2018 till 31st July 2018 during which various activities to promote best practices and enhance agriculture income will be undertaken in accordance with an action plan formulated by including various departments of the Ministry such as Department of Agriculture, Cooperation & Farmers Welfare (DAC&FW), Animal Husbandry Dairying & Fisheries (DAHD&F) etc.
Various activities under the program are –
Distribution of soil health cards to all farmers
100% coverage of bovine vaccination for Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) in each village
100% coverage of Sheep and Goat for eradication of Peste des Petits ruminants (PPR )
Artificial insemination saturation
Demonstration programmes on Micro- irrigation and integrated cropping practice etc.
It will be undertaken in 25 villages with more than 1000 population each in Aspirational District as identified in consultation with the Ministry of Rural Development in accordance with the guidelines of NITI Aayog.
If the number of villages in a district is less than 25 with more than 1000 population then all the villages will be covered.
The overall coordination and implementation will be done by Krishi Vigyan Kendra.

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1. Insolvency And Bankruptcy Code

Details of the report card

Hits and misses of IBC

Provisions of IBC (Amendment) Ordinance 2018

Related news

2. Amalgamation Of Regional Rural Banks

Role of Regional Rural Banking for Rural Development:

Difference between NBFCs & Banks:

3. Urban Cooperative Banks To Transition Into Small Finance Banks

Significance of the decision

4. Sebi To Integrate Departments For Efficiency

5. Draft Of National Voluntary Guidelines On Social, Environmental And Economic Responsibilities Of Business

6. Power Asset Revival Through Warehousing And Rehabilitation (Pariwartan)

Pariwartan Scheme

7. Status Of Power System Transformation 2018

Power system flexibility can be conceptualised as having three “layers”:

Significance

8. Three Year Action Plan: Agricultural Education

Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR)

About the Scheme

Challenges face by Agricultural Education

9. Krishi Kalyan Abhiyan

10. First Freight Village

July Indian Economy