indian government

Mumbai “s CSI Airport New International Terminal is Ready to Welcome You This Year!!!!

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Mumbai airport's stunningTerminal 2

The Swanky New terminal is  all set to open this year !!!!

Departure - Gate lounge.

Retail space.

Retail space.

Mumbai airport's stunningTerminal 2

Mumbai airport's stunningTerminal 2

Departure kerb.

Immigration Hall.

Mumbai airport's stunningTerminal 2

Mumbai airport's stunningTerminal 2

The swanky Terminal 2 at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Mumbai is all set to open  this year.

With a vision of making the airport one of the best in the world, the Terminal 2, or T2 has been built with a state-of-the-art four-level terminal with an area of over 4,39,000 sq. mts.
The new terminal will have new taxiways and apron areas for aircraft parking designed to cater to 40 million passengers annually.
Photographs, courtesy: MIAL

The Mumbai International Airport Pvt. Ltd. (MIAL), a joint venture between the GVK led consortium (74%) and Airports Authority of India (26%), got the mandate to modernise and upgrade Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSIA) in February 2006.

The Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport  (CSIA) has been ranked as one of the top performing airports in the annual ACI Airport  Service Quality Awards for 2012.

It has been rated the third best airport worldwide for airports in the 25-40 million passengers per annum (mppa) category by the Airports Council International (ACI).

Terminal 2 has a retail space spread across 21,000 sq. mts and 5,000 sq. mts of landscape area.

With 41 travelators, people can easily move about in the airport.    The departure gate lounge has a seating capacity of 10,000.

A 6 lane elevated express way leading to the Terminal is another big highlight…

Making it easy for travellers, the T2 will have 188 check-in counters, 60 departure immigration counters and 76 arrival immigration counters.

Terminal 2 will also have 25 fixed link bridges and 52 passenger boarding bridges. The magnificent artworks adorning the walls will be an added attraction.

T2 will have 47 escalators and 73 elevators to make travel a pleasant experience.

The Terminal 2 will have 104 security check positions and 10 baggage carousels.

The new terminal will have a multi-level car park for 5,000 cars.

source::::input from a friend of mine …

Natarajan

Just For Laugh !!!!….A Lion”s Share of Joke!!!!!

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“Two lions escape from a zoo. One of the lions had been captured from the jungle, so he runs back to the jungle.
The other was born in the zoo itself – so is basically a city-slicker. He vanishes into the city.

Three days later the jungle-lion is recaptured – and returned to the zoo.

A month passes, then two, three….. but city-lion is not traceable!
Finally, after six months the city-lion is also recaptured and brought back to the zoo.

Jungle-lion is amazed to see his friend.

Jungle-lion: For God’s sake, how were you able to evade these guys for 6 whole months?!

City-lion: Kuchh nahi yaar! I just went to a government department, and hid behind a huge pile
of dusty files that they have there.

Jungle-lion: But what did you eat there?

City-lion: Arrey, there was an unlimited supply of government servants. Whenever I ate one,
they hired five more. Nobody did any work anyway, so nobody missed the ones I ate.

Jungle-lion: Wow! But, then how did you get caught?

City-lion: Galti kar gaya yaar…….
On the last day I ate the chai-walla. Now, everyone missed their chai-walla & their chai!
They launched a massive hunt. And I got caught!”
—
source:::::: input from a friend of mine ….
Natarajan

How to get an Aadhaar Card For You ?

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The queue of people waiting to lay their hands on the card seems to be getting longer and longer. Here’s a ready reckoner on how to get the card:

With the government making Aadhaar Card (unique identification card) mandatory in procuring LPG connections, issuing passports, sale or purchase of houses, opening a PF account or withdrawing your provident fund, opening a bank account, etc, the queue of people waiting to lay their hands on the card seems to be getting longer and longer.

Here’s a ready reckoner on how to get the card:

# Aadhaar card enrollment is free and you need to enroll only once as an individual is entitled for only one card.

# You can go to any authorized Aadhaar enrollment center anywhere in India with your identity and address proof.

# UIDAI process accepts Proof of Identity and 33 Proof of Address documents. Common proofs of identity and address are election photo ID card, Ration card, passport and driving license.

# Photo ID cards like PAN card and government ID cards are permissible for identity proof. Address proof documents also include water – electricity – telephone bills from the last three months.

# In case you do not have above mentioned proofs, certificate of identify having photo issued by Gazetted Officer/Tehsildar on letterhead is also accepted as proof of identity.

# Certificate of address having photo issued by MP or MLA /Gazetted Officer/Tehsildar on letterhead or by Village Panchayat head or its equivalent authority (for rural areas) is accepted as valid proof of address.

# If someone in your family does not have individual valid documents, the resident can still enrol if his/her name exists in family entitlement document.

# Where there are no documents available, residents may also take the help of ‘Introducers’ at the enrolment centre. The Introducers are notified by the registrar.

# At the enrollment center, your photo, finger-prints and iris scan will also be taken as a part of the enrollment.

# You need to enrol only once. Enrolling again is a waste of your time as you will get only one Aadhaar number.

# Based on the information provided, your details will be verified and If the application is successful, an Aadhaar number will be generated and mailed to your address.

# The waiting time for Aadhaar may vary from 60-90 days after receipt of resident data packets.

# Click here for the list of documents that can be submitted as proof of identity and address.

# After enrolment, quality checks are done by the enrolment centre supervisors, followed by correction process (where required) and data packet consolidation.

# Subsequently, the Enrolment Agency sends the data to UIDAI data centre. The data undergoes various stages of screening and validations in CIDR. This ensures that the source of data is authenticated besides ensuring that no duplicate exists.

# Sample quality checks are done on demographic and biometric data collected from residents.

# Apart from that the operator/supervisor/introducer/enrolment agency and registrar, information in each packet is also validated. Only after passing the data quality checks and other validations, the packet goes for de-duplication and Aadhaar gets generated.

# In case of any errors, the packet goes on hold. For example, if the particulars of the operator who enrolled the resident are found to be inconsistent with database or there is a mismatch observed in photo and age/gender (e.g. a child’s photo with age mentioned as 50 years), then the packet is held for further enquiry.

# Corrective actions are taken on such packets, wherever possible, else a rejection letter guiding resident to re-enroll is dispatched to the resident.

# India Post is entrusted with the responsibility of printing and delivery of Aadhaar letters. Depending on backlog for generation, location of delivery etc.

# India Post may ordinarily take 3-5 weeks to print and deliver Aadhaar letters to the residents.

Benefits of an Aadhar card

# The unique identification or Aadhaar project would result in saving of about Rs 110,000 crore by 2020 (around 58 per cent of expenditure of major public welfare schemes), a Planning Commission study released said.

# By providing a clear proof of identity, Aadhaar will empower the underprivileged residents in accessing services such as the formal banking system and give them the opportunity to easily avail various other services provided by the government and the private sector. (With inputs from http://uidai.gov.in/aadhaar.html)

source:::::yahoo news net…..
Natarajan

Say ‘Cheese’….Your Face is Now on A Stamp!!!!!

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Say cheese: Your face is now on a stamp
This is the latest in a series of measures India Post has taken to survive in a world of instant messaging, where a letter by post is a thing of the past.

CHENNAI: Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru are among the greats whose portraits are used as stamps by India Post. Now, your picture could also be a stamp on the letter you send to your dear one. India Post will introduce “the facility of converting personal photographs as legally valid stamps” in Chennai in a couple of weeks.

The personalised stamp will have two parts – the currency part and the photograph – detachable from each other. You can choose these backgrounds: zodiac signs, flowers, Taj Mahal, Panchatantra tales, trains, wildlife and aeroplanes. You may submit your photograph or get photographed at the post office for no extra cost. You get a set of 12 stamps of 5 denomination for 300, but only after police verification that may take one week.

This is the latest in a series of measures India Post has taken to survive in a world of instant messaging, where a letter by post is a thing of the past. This scheme, called ‘My stamp’, allows photographs to be printed on a five-rupee stamp.

The concept, which has been popular in the US, Australia, New Zealand and Singapore, was launched in the country during the World Philatelic Exhibition in 2011 in Delhi. ‘My stamp’ was introduced in Maharashtra, Bihar, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh, but not many know about it. In Chennai, select post offices will offer the facility in a fortnight.

While the idea of one’s own photograph as stamp has excited many, some feel it would take away the sanctity of a postal stamp.

“A stamp is something like legal tender. I think this move may take away that identity,” said S Ulaganathan, a shopkeeper who sends money orders to his home in Tirunelveli every month.

But the younger lot is happy. “It would be fun having my stamp on the cover of my birthday invite,” said 16-year-old R Vinay, who has never posted “snail mail”.

It is people like Vinay that India Post is targeting.

“The internet has taken away from people the habit of writing letters. We hope ‘My stamp’ will bring youngsters back to us,” said an India Post official.

“I would like to send a love letter with my stamp on the cover,” said a college student. His friend cautioned him: “But what if her dad receives the letter?”

In a land of political cut-outs and graffiti, ‘My stamp’ may find takers in political parties to send party communique with the leader’s stamp on the cover. Those planning to gain commercial mileage, however, may be put off as India Post has clarified that only individuals, not businesses can make use of the ‘My stamp’ scheme.

 

 source::: Times Of India..
 Natarajan

Learn From Singapore !!!!!

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source:::::: T.N. Ninan iN Business Standard…
Natarajan

A friend with a business base in Singapore once got a call from the island-state’s tax authorities; they wanted to pay him a visit. Being an Indian, he was naturally alarmed at the prospect, so he got his assistant to say he was not in the office. The next day the call came again; among the thoughts that now crossed his mind was to catch the first flight out of Singapore, for fear of the local taxman. It eventually turned out to be a taxwoman, smartly dressed in a business suit and armed with a briefcase. After the initial introductions, they sat down and the lady told the businessman that the Singapore tax authorities were very happy with his record as a corporate citizen who paid his taxes. She had come to express the tax department’s appreciation. She then snapped open her briefcase, pulled out a Montblanc pen, reached across and offered it to the businessman as a gift from the tax authorities. “I could have fainted,” he recalled. She also left behind her business card; “Call me if you have any problems on taxes,” she said as a parting word !!!!

” Ugly Indian ” Look Projected by Indian Companies Abroad….Why ?

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Article by T N Ninan: The ‘Ugly Indian’? IN Business Standard…

Natarajan

Companies get into all manner of scrapes in the crony-capitalist business environment at home, but continue doing business, whereas the consequences in another country are quite different

Most people in India have assumed that the Maldives is guilty of breach of contract in the case of the Malé airport, and GMR the victim. But is there another side to the story? The contract was a revenue-sharing arrangement (one per cent till 2014, 10 per cent after that; also 15 per cent and 27 per cent revenue share on fuel). The contract allowed GMR to charge an airport development fee (users of Delhi airport, also run by GMR, will be familiar with this issue). The issue went to court in Malé, which in late 2011 struck down the fee as illegal. The Maldives then allowed GMR to set off its revenue share against the fee that might have been collected. The consequences became clear in the first quarter of 2012, when a revenue share for the Maldives of $8.7 million was reduced to $0.5 million after setting off the airport fee. By the second quarter, the Maldives instead of receiving revenue share was asked to pay $1.5 million; the bill climbed further in the third quarter, totalling $3.5 million. The new Maldives government feared that, far from receiving an expected $1 billion, it might end up paying massive sums to GMR over the 25-year period of the contract, extendable by 10 years. Abrogation of the agreement followed. Readers will see parallels with the Enron/Dabhol case, where Maharashtra was in the position of the Maldives government: stuck with a contract that would ruin the state, but faced with severe penalties if it walked away. India eventually paid a price for throwing out Enron, and that may well be the fate awaiting the Maldives. Where should our sympathies lie?

Cut to another case. Back in 2011, Pankaj Oswal was riding high; his company inWestern Australia was supremely profitable, and he and his wife set up an extravagant home outside Perth that got a lot of press attention. Soon, however, the headlines became negative; there were allegations of money being siphoned out of Burrup Fertiliser to privately held firms in Singapore, and Burrup went into receivership. Mr Oswal and his wife left Australia and their fancy home outside Perth, and are said to be in Dubai or Singapore.
The question to be asked, as more and more Indian businessmen invest overseas, is whether we are risking the birth of the “ Ugly Indian”. Lakshmi Mittal’s problems in France, where the French government has threatened to nationalise a unit of ArcelorMittal, would seem to have more to do with the vagaries of French politics. But there is also the case of Jindal Steel and Power(JSP), which had to exit Bolivia in May. JSP had made headlines in 2007 by bagging the world’s largest untapped iron ore mine, and agreeing to set up a steel plant in Bolivia. Amid a welter of charges and counter-charges, a new Bolivian government said the company had not fulfilled its investment targets, while it said the government had not provided it with the required natural gas for fuel. End of project, no steel plant and no iron ore.
In both Bolivia and the Maldives, there was a change of government before contracts were cancelled. France too has seen a change of tune after the François Hollande government assumed office. India has its own history of throwing out companies after a change of government — Coca-Cola and IBMafter the Janata came to power in 1977; Enron after the Shiv Sena government took charge in Maharashtra in 1995. Now the boot is on the other foot, and poses tricky challenges for Indian diplomacy (should the government automatically back Indian companies?), as well as for India’s entrepreneurs. Companies get into all manner of scrapes in the crony-capitalist business environment at home (Jindal in the coalgate affair, GMR over the Delhi airport), but continue doing business; the consequences in another country are quite different, and also on a wider plane.

Why U.S.A. Can”t Get $20 Tablets Like India?!!!

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Aakash, India’s low cost tablets made recent headlines by being the cheapest one available in market. Students were in store for a big surprise, as Datawind, the makers of Aakash 2 offered the tablets to them at just RS. 1,132, which hardly touched the $20 mark, after a government subsidy. For others, it’s made available for $45 retail, yet retaining the tag of cheapest tablet in India, probably the world too.

The price of these gadgets, along with almost all the “smart” functions similar to high end devices, will bring a lot of people to computing world, a sure excitement for the people of developing nations like India and china.

But the people of developed countries just can’t get the tablets with same functionality as of Aakash 2 at its price. Though the tablets are cheap, the distance from supply chains or the manufacturing base of these devices to the countries where they are marketed, will add 100 percent to the cost of tablets, and then it’s not cheaper any more.

We can take the example of iPhone 5, which was recently released in India. The device follows a stiff route till it gets into the hands of users. There are shipping charges, import duties, margin for the importer, the new warranty charges, as its original warranty isn’t valid in the country of import. And in India there are three levels of distributors—the importers, who brings the goods into the country, then he sells it to super stockiest, like wholesaler, then wholesaler sells it to distributers, who in turn sells it to retailers, and finally retailer sells it to customers, each levels have their cuts in turn shooting up device prices.

Aakash was able to overcome all this and reach the customer carrying the tag of “cheapest tablet.” But how? According to Suneet Tuli, CEO of Datawind, who spoke to Mashable about strategy the company follows to bring the tablets at amazing lower costs, “the Micromax Funbook, which has approximately same specifications as that of Aakash 2, costs around Rs 6,500 or about $120, which is about twice the prize of their device. The reason is that Datawind assembles the tablet in India upon importing parts from South Korea, china and U.S., which is cheaper than importing completely assembled devices.” Then the company markets the products online or by couriers, saving the commission on distributers and retailers.

In China, it’s a similar story, says Jay Goldberg, a financial analyst. Functional 7-inch tablets can be had at Shenzhen malls devoted to electronics for as little as $45. That’s because the supply chains required to build these devices are located in the city and in nearby provinces.

Many of China’s cheap tablet manufacturers hit on the idea accidentally, says Goldberg, and it all started with the manufacturing cell phones which were cheap too.

“Not quite 10 years ago, Mediatek of Taiwan entered the cell phone market,” says Goldberg. MediaTek Inc, a fabless semiconductor company, designing and selling components for wireless communication and other electronic gadgets, found contract manufacturers in mainland China that had machines to put chips on circuit boards, and they were mostly doing this as subcontractors, churning out parts for larger electronics companies with recognizable brands.

Later the company figured out it could save money by handing these manufacturers both the chips required to build a phone and a complete blueprint for assembling them into basic phones. That transformed thousands of small manufacturers from subcontractors into factories for completed products. This same strategy led to development of cheaper Smartphones and tablets too.

source:::: silicon india net…

Natarajan

Do we have answers for these questions?

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SOURCE:::: Input from one of my friends….Each Question is a very valid question….Do we have answer for them ?….or Will we be in a position to find out answers one day???…..It is not a joke… Let us be serious about the questions raised and try to find out the answers in our life time!!!!….. then only next generation will not have any such questions before them….. Let us hope for the best…..

Natarajan

I wish I could have answers to any of the questions below …

It’s not about me, it’s not about you. It’s about the place we stay in, the society we live in, the systems we have!

*I often wonder* when a mosquito bites us why do I think of a repellant, or coil or HIT….why don’t I have the courage to question my municipality?

*Why do I buy* water in a bottle? Why do I purify water at my home? Does the water bill say that the tap water is only for washing clothes or having a bath?
*Why don’t I get drinking water in my tap?

*Why should I pay* a toll tax on every single black, nice looking road? Why a basic road is not my right?

*Why do I buy* an inverter or generator? Why don’t I get current in my wires?

*Why do we call* the private schools as public schools.. I always thought schools run by the government should be called public schools!!

*Why- the cricketers* who sold the ethics of game sit in parliament or come as experts on channels?

*Why someone known* for beating his wife and had charges of holding drugs is a celebrity to judge dance shows and all of us watch and clap too.

*Why is it that the* so called high profile tainted journalists still run public shows and we all watch it..

*Why don’t I know* the fine on jumping red light or for not wearing a helmet but am very well aware of power of 100 rupees, the cost of duty of most of the traffic guys across the country..

*Why is a girl raped* in a roaming car in the capital of the country almost every month and all that the government says is that girls should be careful..

*Why does the trial* and judgment of social activists just takes a few weeks but Rajas, Rajus, Reddys roam around !!

*Why even after killing hundreds* of people on road the blue line buses remaine on roads? Do you know any city apart from the capital of your country where the city buses crushed people on a daily basis?

*Why didn’t we come on the roads* when someone made elephants of stones for thousands of crores rupees in U.P. where people still dig pits to sleep or die of hunger?

*Why a tainted, corrupt minister* is called to IIM and Academy for IAS and applauded – unstopped on his desi style?

*Its so easy to call someone corrupt but have you ever thought; *The act of bribe starts by giving not by taking* … it starts from me not from him or her … so why don’t I look at myself first ?

*I strongly believe that the *Logic is always for NOT doing something … Doing does not need logic,* *doers don’t believe in logic!*

*Just a couple of years back some people came and played with us, killed our pride and people. We were angry … some people thought that the attack in Mumbai was on rich people and therefore something would change …

*Nothing happened … we all go to Gateway of India on every anniversary in November, burn some wax, sing some songs and come back. Nothing changes – the government is back, Z security is back and people are back at the Gateway of India …

*It’s time to come out, stand up*… move … do something … Sitting in drawing rooms or discussing over a mug of beer will not solve anything..

*Please remember this country does not need thinkers any more, enough of them … what you need is action …*

DO Not Undermine the Auditor…..

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SOURCE:::::: ARTICLE BY ERA SEZHIYAN…in ‘THE HINDU” ON SEP 4 2012….AN eye opener for all our political leaders …must read…

Natarajan

The Prime Minister is out of line in asserting that the Public Accounts Committee “will” challenge the findings of the CAG. It is akin to issuing a whip to the committee
When the draft provisions relating to the Comptroller and Auditor General were under consideration in the Constituent Assembly, Dr. B.R Ambedkar, Chairman of the Drafting Committee, said: “I am of the opinion that this dignitary or officer is probably the most important officer in the Constitution of India. He is the one man who is going to see that the expenses voted by Parliament are not exceeded, or varied from what has been laid down by Parliament in the Appropriation Act. If this functionary is to carry out the duties — and his duties, I submit, are far more important than the duties even of the Judiciary — he should have been certainly as independent as the Judiciary. But, comparing the Articles about the Supreme Court and those relating to the Auditor General, I cannot help saying that we have not given him the same independence which we have given to the Judiciary, although I personally feel that he ought to have far greater independence than the Judiciary itself” (May 30, 1949)

‘WITHOUT FEAR OR FAVOUR’

While laying the foundation stone of the CAG office building in New Delhi in July 1954, President Rajendra Prasad said: “… At the present moment when the Government is incurring a huge expenditure on so many welfare projects … it is essential that every rupee that we spend is properly accounted for. This important task — I am afraid, a task not always very pleasant — devolves upon the Comptroller and Auditor General and his office. In accordance with the powers vested in him, he has to carry on these functions without fear or favour in the larger interests of the nation.”

At a similar function in Madras in June 1954, Vice President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan stated: “Ours is a poor country, its resources are limited and we cannot afford to risk any kind of waste and the Audit and Accounts Department will have to look upon their functions as the functions of the greatest public utility …” In conclusion, he asserted: “If I have one advice to give and if I am presumptuous enough to give any advice to the officers of the audit and accounts, it is this: ‘Do not shrink from the truth for fear of offending men in high places’.”

At the time President Prasad spoke about “huge expenditure of government projects,” the combined budgetary transactions of the Centre and the States were Rs.1,354 crore (1954-55). In 2010-2011, the total had zoomed to Rs.22, 92,510 crore according to the Economic Survey 2011-12.

When there was some criticism of the CAG’s reports in December 1952, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru chastised the Member: “He [the CAG] is not responsible to the Government and it is open for him to criticise the Government in reports. For him to be criticised on the floor of the House would tend to undermine the special position that has been granted to him to discharge his duties without fear or favour.”

Against the audit’s findings on deficiencies in defence preparedness on May 31, 1962, during the debate on Demands for Grants, Defence Minister Krishna Menon flared up: “Criticism offered by Audit to Parliament must be limited to financial question based on accounts. It is not the function of Auditor General to range over the field of administration and offer suggestion as to how the Government could be better conducted.” Immediately there were points of order and Speaker Sardar Hukam Singh pacified both sides. On June 18, the matter was again raised and the Speaker accepted the suggestion of the Finance Minister to seek elucidation from the Public Accounts Committee on the role of the CAG on the points raised.

In the 1950s and 1960s, with Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru as its leader, the Congress had more than 70 per cent strength in both Houses, which naturally gave the ruling party a sufficient majority in all Committees, including the PAC. In 1962, the PAC chairman was Mahavir Tyagi, a senior Congress leader, bold and free in his views.

The PAC made an extensive study of the objectives and practices in the United Kingdom, and of explanations and documents offered by CAG A.K. Roy. Then, Tyagi submitted the PAC report with the following recommendations: “The Committee is definitely of the view that it is the function of the CAG to satisfy himself not only that every expenditure has been incurred as per prescribed rules, regulations and laws, but also that it has been incurred with ‘faithfulness, wisdom and economy.’ If, in the course of the audit, the CAG becomes aware of facts which appear to him to indicate an improper expenditure or waste of money, it is his duty to call the attention of Parliament to them through his Audit Reports. At the present time when there is heavy taxation and heavy expenditure, the Committee hopes that the CAG will pay even greater attention than in the past to this aspect of his duties and that the government will give him every facility to perform them.”

Four months later, in October 1962, the Chinese aggression on India proved the validity of the points raised in the Audit Report. The debacle forced Krishna Menon to resign.

Now scam after scam comes to be reported about the bewildering loss of public funds, counted in lakhs of crores. But at every revelation, the Manmohan Singh government, noted for its zero administrative capacity, maintains there is zero loss.

Can we expect the President and the Vice-President to follow in the footsteps of Rajendra Prasad and Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, and ask the CAG to carry on his functions “without fear or favour” or advise the Audit officers “not to shrink from truth for fear of offending men in high places?”

On August 27, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh submitted to both Houses his report refuting many points raised in the CAG Report on the allocation of coal blocks. I am not going to analyse the contents of the report.

HORRIFYING

I am horrified at the remarks he made to the media before going to the Lok Sabha with his report. His message to the media in Parliament House on August 27 was released by the Prime Minister’s Office. The fourth paragraph of the news release said: “I wish to assure the country that we have a very strong and credible case, the observations of the CAG are disputable, and they will be challenged when the matter comes before the Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee.”

I am not concerned here with the Prime Minster’s affirmations about the strong case of the government or the disputable observations of the CAG. What I am strongly against is this sentence in his statement: “…they [observations of the CAG] will be challenged when the matter comes before the Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee.”

How can the Prime Minister say now that the observations of the CAG ‘will’ be challenged when the matter comes before the PAC?

The PAC is set up by Parliament and its proceedings cannot be passed on to others until its report is submitted to Parliament. The Prime minister, however high his position, should not take the PAC for granted. He cannot issue a whip now that the observations of the CAG are to be challenged. He may as well abolish the entire Committee system.

When Hitler came to power in Germany, he proscribed all political parties excepting the Nazi Party; then he amended the law to end all forms of accountability through audit of finance. It is to be hoped that Manmohan Singh and his ministers are not trying to adopt this method to avoid struggling with the cumbersome parliamentary system of a functioning democracy.

(Era Sezhiyan is an eminent parliamentarian and author. He was chairman of the Public Accounts Committee from 1971 to 1973.)

Keywords: Comptroller and Auditor-General of India