RAISINA HILL

In brief: Cabinet reshuffle on anvil, govt's GST pain and how to tackle AES

Will India get a new defence minister?

Namrata Biji Ahuja

jaitley-gst-reuters Finding someone, who can display as much acumen as Jaitley, to head the defence ministry will not be an easy task for government | Reuters

Will the country get a new defence minister? The buzz atop Raisina Hill is that search is on as to who should be given the important portfolio at a time when the China crisis is playing out in the Sikkim sector and recent skirmish at the Ladakh border is keeping the armed forces alert. 

Does defence ministry deserve to be an additional portfolio for Finance Minister Arun Jaitley? This is the question the government is trying to answer and address. If the buzz in the North Block corridors is to be believed, Jaitley is learnt to have indicated his willingness to relinquish charge of defence and continue with finance if the prime minister decides to reshuffle his cabinet.

But the task of finding someone who can display as much acumen as Jaitley is for now proving arduous for the government which is looking for a senior and experienced hand to take up such a sensitive ministry. Cabinet reshuffles have been effected recently but the defence continued to remain with Jaitley ever since Manohar Parrikar went to Goa. Now, with Venkaiah Naidu becoming Vice President (he was urban development and I&B minister ) and the need to expand the cabinet, keeping in mind the work that needs to be done ahead of 2019 polls, the government is once again keen that cabinet ministers who are presently holding additional portfolios should be divested of dual duties and new faces brought in to take up the responsibilities.

Meanwhile, sources disclosed that the government was keen on effecting a change anytime after August 15.

If this happens, even Smriti Irani, who is burdened with dual charge of textiles and information and broadcasting, may give up one portfolio. The buzz is that she may give up textiles.

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Govt addresses GST pain on a daily basis

Vijaya Pushkarana

gst-coins-blocks Luckily, the GST authorities in the states and in the national capital are not complaining over the daily changes

Like the demonetisation pains resulted in the government changing its mind constantly, based on people's experience, the GST pain, too, is being addressed almost on a daily basis. Sad, considering that the preparation for this mother of all reforms has been in the works for years.

The latest is the finance minister's response to concerns raised by manufacturers over the rise in input costs of petroleum products, as a consequence of the GST. The issue was that while the manufactured goods attracted GST,  the petroleum products used in it attracted VAT, leading to a cascading effect.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitely has directed the state governments to reduce the VAT on petroleum products that are used in manufacturing of goods, as the GST is now in force.

Just before that, the government extended the deadline for companies to file their first return under the GST to August 28. Earlier it was August 20. This was apparently done to let them claim credit for taxes paid before the GST. They would otherwise have had to pay these taxes in cash, and there was no provision for refund! The states and the Centre are hurriedly and simultaneously notifying this!

Luckily, since much of the work—barring the governments' notification—is online, the GST authorities in the states and in the national capital are not complaining over the daily changes.

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Holistic approach needed to tackle AES

Namita Kohli

INDIA-HOSPITALS/CASUALTIES Japanese Encephalitis is one of the most commonest causes of acute encephalitis syndrome | Reuters

Various reasons are being attributed to the death of over 70 children at the Baba Raghav Das Medical College in Gorakhpur last week. According to the Uttar Pradesh government, the infants who died, were suffering from acute encephalitis syndrome, pneumonia, and sepsis (blood infection) among a host of other diseases. A report by the district magistrate of Gorakhpur, however, delves into the issue of lack of oxygen, and holds two doctors responsible.

Among the diseases that the kids were suffering from is Japanese Encephalitis (JE), one of the most commonest causes of acute encephalitis syndrome. JE has been a huge problem for Uttar Pradesh, and has no cure. Despite the abundance of funds—according to former minister for health and family welfare, Ghulam Nabi Azad, in 2012, the cabinet had cleared a Rs 4,038 crore plan to tackle the JE/AES in five states including Uttar Pradesh—deaths due to AES could not be prevented. This plan was to be jointly implemented by different ministries such as health and family welfare, drinking water and sanitation, social justice and empowerment, housing and urban poverty alleviation, and women and child development. The contribution of the health ministry was fixed at Rs 1131.49 crore.   

Even as JE virus is considered to be the commonest cause of AES, it is now being said that scrub typhus bacterium could instead be the cause. This information could have huge implications for the control of encephalitis in the region. Confusion persists on this, though; a presser organised by the health ministry to discuss these issues in detail was cancelled at the last minute.

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Topics : #raisina | #Delhi

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