04.08.2007

• Indo-Japanese currency swap agreement and Chiang Mai Initiative
• I am sure you remember our covering about this sometime back in our blog.
• We have something more coming our way about this. Under this agreement, Japan will provide up to $3 bn out of its foreign currency reserves to India if the country faces a foreign exchange crisis. India similarly will do the rescue act if Japan faces a similar crisis. Japan would provide dollars against rupee payment from India if the situation requires such a swap.
• The deal is on the lines of the currency swap agreement that ASEAN nations have put together to insulate themselves against any currency crisis. The web of currency swap deals shaped by these countries amount to about $85 bn. Dubbed as the Chiang Mai Initiative and considered a key aspect of Asean cooperation, the deal followed the South East Asian crisis in 1997-98.
• Are you aware of any social security schemes for the aged in India?
• When we are asked such a question, we usually draw a blank. This is because of the fact that we are unaware of the existing or proposed schemes. It is a different story that many of the schemes may not be getting implemented on the ground satisfactorily.
• Proposed:
• Government is considering to provide Rs. 400 per month to all senior citizens over 65 falling in the BPL (below poverty line) category. Once implemented the scheme would benefit over 1.57 crore individuals. The scheme will be implemented based on 50:50 contribution from the Centre and States. This is expected to cost the centre about Rs. 3,768 crores per year.
• Towards providing for social security for unorganized workers, a pension of Rs. 600 for widows and Rs. 400 for disabled category is also being considered. This will be on 75:25 basis between the Centre and the States. Centre’s bill: Rs. 7,400 crores.
• Maternity benefits to the women of BPL families at the rate of Rs. 3000 in six installments – three months before delivery and three months after delivery.
• Existing
• At present the old age pension scheme covers only destitutes.
• In how many companies can you be a Director?
• A maximum of 15 companies according to the Company Law.
• A little about gold standard
• Though we have covered about it off and on; it is time for a recap.
• Gold standard was one of the decisions of the meeting of the representatives of the Allies held at Bretton Woods, New Hampshire in 1944 to revive the international monetary order after the Word War II.
• The system went on well for almost 25 years. However, with troubles arising out of the Vietnam war of the s1960’s and certain measures initiated by the then US President Richard Nixon, the gold standard or the Bretton Woods agreement ultimately collapsed in 1971.
• This lead to the onset of the floating currency regime, where countries started linking their currencies to the dollar or a basket of currencies.
• Insurance capital norms
• Just as banks have the Basel norms for capital adequacy, insurance sector also has some norms.
• “Solvency II” is a framework that assesses the capital requirement of a company based on the underlying risk and volatility of its business.
• NR Madhava Menon Committee
• It has come out with a draft national policy on the criminal justice system. This envisages re-classification of the IPC crimes into four different but comprehensive codes on the basis of their severity.
• While arguing strongly in favour of the committee proposed policy, today’s ET has made a statement: “The government should also simultaneously consider scrapping laws that criminalize activities such as gambling and prostitution.” What is your take on this?
• Is there a law on protecting privacy of individuals in India?
• Take a look what Madhavi Goradia Divan said on this subject in today’s ET.
• There is no specific law on the statute book. The Supreme Court has, by some creative judicial pronouncements, carved out a right to privacy from the right to life and liberty guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution. In the landmark Autoshankar case concerning the right of a publisher to publish the autobiography of a prisoner, the Court held that a citizen has the right to safeguard his own privacy, that of his family, marriage, procreation, parenthood, child bearing and the like and that no person has the right to publish anything relating to such personal matters without the consent of the person concerned. The Court carved out two exceptions to this rule:
• First, where the matter has become a matter of public record, the right to privacy no longer subsists.
• Second, public officials cannot claim privacy when the conduct in question relates to the discharge of official duties.