Disqus Comments

Sid Harth • 9 years ago

BILLIONS OF DOLLARS SAVED

A successful overhaul would cut the waste and corruption that eat
into the country’s $50 billion budget for welfare, food and farm aid,
and ensure that a greater share of funds reaches its intended target.

Economists at brokerage CLSA estimate potential savings at $13-$15
billion, or 0.7-0.8 per cent of gross domestic product. That compares
with the country’s’s budget deficit target of 4.1 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) for this year.

Failure would saddle banks with the cost of setting up and
maintaining millions of accounts that could end up idle or even be
abandoned once holders have tapped a built-in overdraft facility of Rs
5,000 ($80).

“It’s a great vision… But execution is important,” said Uday Kotak,
the founder of Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd, one of India’s fastest-growing
commercial banks. “Financial inclusion cannot happen without the support
of society.”

Making the shift to cash payments of subsidies and benefits would also reduce the need to stockpile food.

Rice and wheat stocks at government warehouses stood at 57 million
tonnes at the start of August, against a mandatory minimum of 16
million. Other countries have accused the government of hoarding food,
leading to the collapse of a global trade deal.

(Reuters)

Source: Business Today

…and I am Sid Harth

Sid Harth • 9 years ago

STARTING SMALL

To begin with, the government plans to transfer subsidies of nearly
Rs 400 ($6.50) a month to the bank accounts of 140 million households to
pay towards the cost of cooking gas. These payments would replace a
cumbersome system of subsidies and losses borne by state energy firms to
provide affordable gas canisters to families.

In fact, P Chidambaram, the former finance minister, had already
launched similar payments in parts of the country and weeded out nearly
20 million “ghost” beneficiaries in the system.

It is not the only time the Prime Minister borrowed from his predecessors.

Before the election triumph of Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in
May, the 64-year-old premier had wanted to scrap the Aadhaar
(Foundation) biometric database launched by Congress that has registered
680 million people, or about half the population.

Linking bank accounts and welfare entitlements to the database would
make it harder to steal from the system, for example by creating fake
identities and using them to make fraudulent claims.

In an abrupt U-turn, Modi now wants to expand the database to cover 1
billion people, linking their fingerprint ID cards to the newly opened
bank accounts.

That led one political opponent to accuse Modi of putting “old wine
in a new bottle”, but sources familiar with the policy say that the
Prime Minister is determined to forge ahead.

“It is only a matter of time before cash payment of subsidies
begins,” said a finance ministry official, who requested anonymity
because he did not have permission to speak publicly. “You may see more
action in the next budget.”

Other schemes that could follow under PM Modi’s reforms are payment
of student stipends and wages under an employment scheme that guarantees
100 days’ work a year to the rural poor. Such payments are now
typically made cash-in-hand.

But the fate of big-ticket items, such as the $18 billion food aid
programme or a $10 billion scheme to subsidise the cost of fertiliser to
farmers, remains unclear.

“Modi and the BJP may have opposed Aadhaar before the elections, but
now I see a clear direction that the government will soon move most
subsidies to cash transfers,” said Surjit Bhalla, chairman of emerging
markets research and asset management firm Oxus Investments.

Bhalla, a prominent advocate of welfare reform, said it would be
difficult to dismantle India’s vast public food distribution system
quickly, but cash payments for kerosene, cooking gas and the rural jobs
scheme could come in the next three years.

Sid Harth • 9 years ago

Modi and I do not get along, a fact. That has nothing to do with my approach to India's Modi problem. If it were not for Modi, there would be another 'Dhondi,' in his place. Democracy works, when it really works, in favor of a leader of men (few women too).
Glory-talking Modi manages to get away with murder. Australia and India may help each other, so can Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and/or all the countries in the world. Provided, Modi presents each country a fair deal.
Modi is a prime minister, by accident. Not meant to be. He paints rosy pictures and his fans make a big noise about it. The fact remains, how good is Modi in solving India's biggest problem? Poverty? Zero %? You are absolutely right.

Modi Lies on Welfare Reforms

PM Narendra Modi’s welfare reforms may need to be bigger and bolder

Manoj Kumar New Delhi Last Updated: October 8, 2014 | 13:55 IST

Kamla Rani, a 50-year-old housewife living in a run-down area of the
national capital, baulks at the idea of having heavily subsidised food
benefits replaced by money deposited in a bank account.

“How can we believe the government will pay on time or increase the
amount when prices go up every month?” she asked, sitting in the doorway
of her modest home in Gulabi Bagh, a residential area in the north of
the capital where many people live in slums.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi
has launched an ambitious plan to streamline the welfare system, which
is mostly bloated and inefficient, by paying for everything from cooking
gas to university stipends via a bank account, in a bid to save
billions of dollars a year.

To sell his idea, he has promised a bank account for every household – a mammoth and expensive task in a country where two in five people had lacked access to one.

But resistance among more than 800 million people entitled to subsidised food is high.

Years of double-digit inflation make them wary, the previous
government’s pilot schemes floundered and, with so many people
unfamiliar with basic banking, benefits like accident insurance offered
under the scheme may not be fully utilised.

That may explain why the Prime Minister, in his biggest attempt at
fiscal change since he swept to power in May, has been less bold than
some would wish, steering clear of reforming the most sensitive and
costly benefits – food and fertilisers.

“The new bank accounts will not be viable if they aren’t used for
transfers,” said one participant at a meeting where senior officials
spelled out their concerns to Modi.

To prepare the ground for his reforms, Modi has set a target of
opening 75 million new bank accounts by January, a target which experts
believe his nationalist government can reach.
Ensuring those accounts are used to funnel all state benefits, and so
reduce corruption and wastage, will be much harder, raising questions
about the fate of the People’s Wealth Scheme that Modi promised would
end “financial untouchability

Sid Harth • 9 years ago

My dear 'sampadak sahibji,' I provided few dots. Your editorial and artistic talents may be used to draw me a nice picture. Modi must be in the center of 'Hindu Vishva' and Abbott guy at the very end of the world. I could have done a better job but I have better things to do than pen a silly editorial.

...and I am Sid Harth

Sid Harth • 9 years ago

Energy and power

Main article: Electricity sector in India

As of 2010, India imported about 70% of its crude oil requirements.[144] Shown here is an ONGC platform at Mumbai High in the Arabian Sea, one of the sites of domestic production.

As of 2009, India is the fourth largest producer of electricity and
oil products and the fourth largest importer of coal and crude-oil in
the world.[145] Coal and oil together account for 66% of the energy consumption of India.[146]

India's oil reserves meet 25% of the country's domestic oil demand.[147][148]
As of 2012, India's total proven oil reserves of 5.5 million barrels
(870 million litres), while gas reserves stood at 43,800 million cubic
feet (1,240 million cubic metres).[149] Oil and natural gas fields are located offshore at Mumbai High, Krishna Godavari Basin and the Cauvery Delta, and onshore mainly in the states of Assam, Gujarat and Rajasthan.[150] India is the fourth largest consumer of oil in the world and imported 726386 crore (US$120 billion) worth of oil in 2011-12,[151] which had an adverse effect on its current account deficit. The petroleum industry in India mostly consists of public sector companies such as Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) and Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL). There are some major private Indian companies in the oil sector such as Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) which operates the world's largest oil refining complex.[152]

Sid Harth • 9 years ago

Industry

Industry accounts for 26% of GDP and employs 22% of the total workforce.[107]
According to the World Bank, India's industrial manufacturing GDP
output in 2012 was 10th largest in the world on current US dollar basis
($239.5 billion),[108] and 9th largest on inflation adjusted constant 2005 US dollar basis ($197.1 billion).[109]
The Indian industrial sector underwent significant changes as a result
of the economic liberalisation in India economic reforms of 1991, which
removed import restrictions, brought in foreign competition, led to the
privatisation of certain government owned public sector industries,
liberalised the FDI regime, improved infrastructure and led to an expansion in the production of fast moving consumer goods.[110]
Post-liberalisation, the Indian private sector was faced with
increasing domestic as well as foreign competition, including the threat
of cheaper Chinese imports. It has since handled the change by
squeezing costs, revamping management, and relying on cheap labour and
new technology. However, this has also reduced employment generation
even by smaller manufacturers who earlier relied on relatively
labour-intensive processes.[111]

Sid Harth • 9 years ago

India ranks second
worldwide in farm output. Agriculture and allied sectors like forestry,
logging and fishing accounted for 17% of the GDP and employed 51% of
the total workforce in 2012. As Indian economy has diversified and
grown, agriculture's contribution to GDP has steadily declined from 1951
to 2011, yet it is still the largest employment source and a
significant piece of the overall socio-economic development of India.[100]
Crop yield per unit area of all crops have grown since 1950, due to the
special emphasis placed on agriculture in the five-year plans and
steady improvements in irrigation, technology, application of modern
agricultural practices and provision of agricultural credit and
subsidies since the Green Revolution in India. However, international
comparisons reveal the average yield in India is generally 30% to 50% of
the highest average yield in the world.[101]
Indian states Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra
Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Gujarat and Maharashtra are key
agricultural contributing states of India.

Sid Harth • 9 years ago

India Balance of Trade 1957-2014 | Data | Chart | Calendar | Forecast

India
recorded a trade deficit of 13350 USD Million in October of 2014.
Balance of Trade in India averaged -1910.26 USD Million from 1957 until
2014, reaching an all time high of 258.90 USD Million in March of 1977
and a record low of -20210.90 USD Million in October of 2012. Balance of
Trade in India is reported by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry,
India.

Forecast

Actual
Previous
Highest
Lowest

Dates
Unit
Frequency

-13350.00
-14247.42
258.90
-20210.90

1957 - 2014
USD Million
Monthly

India
has been recording sustained trade deficits since 1980 mainly due to
the high growth of imports, particularly of crude oil, gold and silver.
In recent years, the biggest trade deficits were recorded with China,
Saudi Arab, Iraq, Switzerland and Kuwait. India records trade surpluses
with US, Singapore, Germany, Netherlands and United Kingdom. This page
provides - India Balance of Trade - actual values, historical data,
forecast, chart, statistics, economic calendar and news. Content for -
India Balance of Trade - was last refreshed on Friday, November 21,
2014.

Calendar
GMT

Event

Actual

Consensus

Forecast

2014-09-15
12:45 PM

Balance of Trade
Aug 2014

$ -10.84B

$ -12.23B

$-11.90B

$ -11.9B

2014-10-14
01:45 PM

Balance of Trade
Sep 2014

$ -14.25B

$ -10.84B

$ -11.2B

2014-11-17
09:00 AM

Balance of Trade
Oct 2014

$ -13.35B

$ -14.25B

$ -12.9B

2014-12-15
08:00 AM

Balance of Trade
Nov 2014

$ -13.35B

$ -13.3B

India Trade

Last

Highest

Lowest

Unit

Balance of Trade

-13350.00
-14247.42
258.90
-20210.90

USD Million

[+]

Exports

26100.00
28903.28
30541.44
59.01

USD Million

[+]

Imports

39400.00
43150.70
45281.90
117.40

USD Million

[+]

Current Account

-7.80
-1.20
7.36
-31.86

USD Billion

[+]

Current Account to GDP

-1.70
-4.70
1.50
-4.70

percent

[+]

External Debt

440614.00
390048.00
440614.00
75858.00

USD Million

[+]

Terms of Trade

60.20
61.90
100.00
60.20

Index Points

[+]

Foreign Direct Investment

3577.00
2514.00
5670.00
-60.00

USD Million

[+]

Remittances

8812.42
9574.31
10010.16
5999.10

USD Million

[+]

Tourist Arrivals

656000.00
495000.00
800000.00
129286.00

[+]

Gold Reserves

557.75
557.75
557.75
357.75

Tonnes

[+]

Crude Oil Production

757.00
778.00
813.00
526.00

BBL/D/1K

[+]

Sid Harth • 9 years ago

Australia's trade in goods and services 2013

On this page

Australia's trade in goods and services by top ten partners, 2013

Australia's top 25 imports, goods and services, 2013

Australia's top 25 exports, goods and services, 2013

Australia's trade in goods and services by top ten partners, 2013 (a)

Australia's top 10 export markets (b) (A$ million)

Goods
Services
Total
% share
Rank

China
94,655
6,881
101,536
31.9
1

Japan
47,501
1,991
49,492
15.5
2

Republic of Korea
19,610
1,675
21,285
6.7
3

United States
9,580
5,951
15,531
4.9
4

India
9,517
1,921
11,438
3.6
5

New Zealand
7,399
3,626
11,025
3.5
6

Singapore
5,659
3,549
9,208
2.9
7

Taiwan
7,356
704
8,060
2.5
8

United Kingdom
3,859
3,982
7,841
2.5
9

Malaysia
5,561
1,664
7,225
2.3
10

Total exports
263,467
55,175
318,642
100.0

of which:

APEC
218,976
33,265
252,241
79.2

ASEAN 10
25,022
8,932
33,954
10.7

European Union 28 (c)
13,009
9,069
22,078
6.9

OECD
101,163
24,510
125,673
39.4

Australia's top 10 import sources (d)

Goods
Services
Total
% share
Rank

China
47,250
2,079
49,329
15.0
1

United States (e)
26,681
12,430
39,181
11.9
2

Japan
18,914
2,307
21,221
6.5
3

Singapore
12,933
4,943
17,878
5.4
4

Thailand
11,393
2,439
13,832
4.2
5

Germany
11,428
1,665
13,099
4.0
6

United Kingdom
6,195
5,848
12,044
3.7
7

Malaysia
9,480
1,464
10,944
3.3
8

Republic of Korea
10,168
646
10,813
3.3
9

New Zealand
7,401
3,131
10,532
3.2
10

Total imports
258,936
69,870
328,806
100.0

of which:

APEC (e)
170,654
38,348
209,002
63.6

ASEAN 10
45,405
13,207
58,612
17.8

European Union 28 (c)
42,437
14,824
57,261
17.4

OECD (e)
115,170
36,602
151,772
46.2

Australia's top 10 two-way trading partners (b) (d)

Goods
Services
Total
% share
Rank

China
141,905
8,960
150,865
23.3
1

Japan
66,415
4,298
70,713
10.9
2

United States (e)
36,261
18,381
54,642
8.4
3

Republic of Korea
29,778
2,321
32,099
5.0
4

Singapore
18,591
8,492
27,083
4.2
5

New Zealand
14,800
6,757
21,557
3.3
6

United Kingdom
10,054
9,830
19,884
3.1
7

Thailand
16,301
3,243
19,544
3.0
8

Malaysia
15,042
3,128
18,170
2.8
9

Germany
13,361
2,759
16,120
2.5
10

Total two-way trade
522,403
125,045
647,448
100.0

of which:

APEC (e)
389,514
71,613
461,127
71.2

ASEAN 10
70,158
22,139
92,297
14.3

European Union 28 (c)
55,445
23,893
79,338
12.3

OECD (e)
216,437
61,112
277,549
42.9

Notes

(a) All data is on a balance of payments basis, except for goods by country which are on a recorded trade basis.

(b) Excludes
selected confidential export commodities from June 2013 onwards for Singapore as well as for the country groups.

(d) Excludes selected confidential import commodities (mainly aircraft imports) from Sep 2008
onwards except for the United States (see footnote (e)). This affects import totals for France and EU28.

(e) Based on
unpublished ABS data and includes actual imports for the United States only.
Actual export/import data based on unpublished ABS data.
Based on DFAT STARS database, ABS catalogues 5368.0 (Jun 2014) & 5368.0.55.004 and unpublished ABS data.

Last updated 7 August 2014.

Download Australia's trade in goods and services by top ten partners, 2013 [PDF 135 KB]

Australia's top 25 imports, goods and services, 2013

Australia's top 25 imports, goods and services (A$ million) (a) (b)

% growth

Rank
Commodity
2011
2012
2013
2012 to 2013
5 year trend

Total (c)
301,423
324,026
328,806
1.5
4.0

1
Personal travel (excl education) services
22,550
22,437
24,725
10.2
5.6

2
Crude petroleum
20,827
21,567
20,227
-6.2
7.6

3
Passenger motor vehicles
14,159
16,919
18,290
8.1
6.1

4
Refined petroleum
14,306
15,871
18,229
14.9
7.8

5
Freight transport services
8,363
9,228
9,348
1.3
0.3

6
Telecom equipment & parts
8,323
8,746
9,068
3.7
6.0

7
Medicaments (incl veterinary)
8,530
8,201
7,831
-4.5
2.9

8
Computers
6,634
6,777
6,943
2.4
4.3

9
Passenger transport services (d)
6,389
6,901
6,839
-0.9
3.0

10
Goods vehicles
6,153
8,562
6,436
-24.8
5.7

11
Technical & other business services
4,733
5,107
6,182
21.0
4.9

12
Professional services
2,678
3,631
5,050
39.1
10.3

13
Gold
6,396
5,841
4,796
-17.9
-13.3

14
Charges for intellectual property
3,982
4,044
3,992
-1.3
3.1

15
Business travel services
2,992
3,493
3,574
2.3
0.9

16
Civil engineering equipment & parts
4,264
6,822
3,464
-49.2
6.9

17
Heating & cooling equipment & parts
2,173
2,265
3,212
41.8
6.5

18
Furniture, mattresses & cushions
2,780
2,905
3,176
9.3
2.8

19
Pumps (excl liquid pumps) & parts
1,726
2,418
3,172
31.2
2.2

20
Vehicle parts & accessories
2,648
2,932
2,797
-4.6
2.9

21
Measuring & analysing instruments
2,635
2,950
2,774
-6.0
0.3

22
Rubber tyres, treads & tubes
2,672
3,053
2,748
-10.0
10.4

23
Electrical machinery & parts, nes
2,509
2,608
2,725
4.5
2.7

24
Iron, steel, aluminium structures
1,550
1,889
2,647
40.1
33.0

25
Mechanical handling equip & parts
1,987
2,541
2,579
1.5
6.8

Analytical industry series

% growth

2011
2012
2013
2012 to 2013
5 year trend

Education (e)
1,041
1,218
1,189
-2.4
6.4

2010-11
2011-12
2012-13
2011-12 to 2012-13
5 year trend

Tourism (f)
30,561
32,157
32,122
-0.1
4.4

Notes

(a) Goods trade are on a recorded trade basis, Services trade are on a balance of payments basis.

(b) Please note – imports of aircraft were made confidential
by the ABS from Sep-08 onwards. Imports of aircraft would rank in
Australia's top 25 imports. DFAT estimates that aircraft imports were
valued at around $3.8 billion in 2013.

(d) Includes Related agency fees &commissions.

(e) Educationincludes Education-related travel services, Royalties on education services and Other education services.

(f) Tourism is based on the ABS Tourism Satellite Account (TSA) and is only available on a financial year basis.

Based on ABS trade data on DFAT STARS database and ABS catalogue 5368.0 (June 2014).

Last updated 11/08/2014

Download Australia's top 25 imports, goods and services, 2013 [PDF 131 KB]

Australia's top 25 exports, goods and services, 2013 (a)

Australia's top 25 exports, goods and services, (A$ million) – (a)

% growth

Rank
Commodity
2011
2012
2013
2012 to 2013
5 year trend

Total (b)
313,078
300,436
318,539
6.1
4.1

1
Iron ores & concentrates
64,097
54,447
69,492
27.6
19.4

2
Coal
46,691
41,273
39,805
-3.6
-1.6

3
Education-related travel services (c)
15,144
14,467
15,020
3.8
0.1

4
Natural gas
11,084
13,416
14,602
8.8
12.6

5
Gold
15,077
15,526
13,898
-10.5
-0.0

6
Personal travel (excl education) services
11,661
12,148
13,115
8.0
1.6

7
Crude petroleum
11,451
10,988
9,016
-17.9
2.0

8
Wheat
6,076
6,531
6,085
-6.8
11.1

9
Aluminium ores & conc (incl alumina)
5,443
5,273
5,904
12.0
-0.4

10
Beef f.c.f.
4,684
4,754
5,695
19.8
3.0

11
Copper ores & concentrates
5,437
5,255
5,192
-1.2
6.9

12
Professional services
3,259
3,836
4,562
18.9
4.6

13
Other ores & concentrates (d)
4,544
4,217
4,486
6.4
4.2

14
Business travel services
3,573
4,031
3,954
-1.9
9.6

15
Technical & other business services
3,452
3,555
3,877
9.1
1.2

16
Aluminium
4,657
3,774
3,675
-2.6
-6.7

17
Copper
3,861
3,349
3,373
0.7
3.0

18
Medicaments (incl veterinary)
3,278
3,849
3,085
-19.8
-1.9

19
Meat (excl beef), f.c.f.
2,375
2,370
2,884
21.7
5.0

20
Refined petroleum
2,938
3,271
2,743
-16.1
-0.1

21
Wool & other animal hair (incl tops)
2,837
2,524
2,608
3.3
5.4

22
Cotton
2,537
2,626
2,604
-0.8
51.0

23
Oil-seeds & oleaginous fruits, soft
1,287
1,780
2,516
41.3
44.6

24
Financial services
1,289
1,627
2,468
51.7
9.1

25
Other transport services (e)
2,233
2,268
2,367
4.4
1.1

Analytical industry series

% growth

2011
2012
2013
2012 to 2013
5 year trend

Education (e)
15,723
15,018
15,591
3.8
0.2

2010-11
2011-12
2012-13
2011-12 to 2012-13
5 year trend

Tourism (f)
25,085
25,511
26,962
5.7
3.5

Notes

(a) Goods trade are on a recorded trade basis, Services trade are on a balance of payments basis.

(b) Balance of payments basis.

(d) Other ores & concentrates consists mainly of Lead, Zinc
and Manganese ores & concentrates.

(e) Other transport services exp orts covers a range of
services provided in Australian airports
and ports, including Cargo & baggage handling services,
Agents fees associated with freight transportation and Airport &
port charges.

(f) Education includes Education-related travel services, Royalties on education services and Other education services.

(g) Tourism is based on the ABS Tourism Satellite Account (TSA) and is only available on a financial year basis.

Based on ABS trade data on DFAT STARS database and ABS catalogue 5368.0 (June 2014).

Last updated 11/08/2014

Download Australia's top 25 exports, goods and services, 2013 [PDF 131 KB]