Lok Sabha passes Consumer Protection Bill, 2019

GS PAPER - 02 POLITY - Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre and States and the performance of these schemes; mechanisms, laws, institutions and Bodies constituted for the protection and betterment of these vulnerable sections

Context :

The Lok Sabha passed the Consumer Protection Bill 2019 after due consideration and discussion.

Consumer Protection Bill 2019 :

Objective :

The bill aims at protecting the interests of consumers by establishing authorities for timely and effective administration and settlement of consumers’ dispute. The Bill aims to simplify a number of rules.

Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) :

Under the Bill, there is provision for central government to set up a Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) to promote, protect and enforce the rights of consumers and will be empowered to investigate, recall, refund and impose penalties.
It will regulate matters related to violation of consumer rights, unfair trade practices, and misleading advertisements.
The authority will have power to impose a penalty on a manufacturer or an endorser of up to 10 lakh rupees and imprisonment for up to two years for a false or misleading advertisement.

Benefits :

Presently Consumer only have a single point of access to justice, which is time consuming. Additional swift executive remedies are proposed in the bill through Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA)
Deterrent punishment to check misleading advertisements and adulteration of products
Product liability provision to deter manufacturers and service providers from delivering defective products or deficient services
Ease of approaching Consumer Commission and Simplification of Adjudication process
Scope for early disposal of cases through mediation
Provision for rules for new age consumer issues: e-commerce & direct selling.

Source :- PIB

Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill 2019

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre and States and the performance of these schemes; mechanisms, laws, institutions and Bodies constituted for the protection and betterment of these vulnerable sections.

Context :

Parliament has passed the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2019 criminalising triple talaq. After President Kovind signs the bill, it will become the law and will replace the 1986 Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act.

Key features of the Bill :

The Bill makes all declaration of talaq, including in written or electronic form, to be void (i.e. not enforceable in law) and illegal.
Definition:
- It defines talaq as talaq-e-biddat or any other similar form of talaq pronounced by a Muslim man resulting in instant and irrevocable divorce.
- Talaq-e-biddat refers to the practice under Muslim personal laws where pronouncement of the word ‘talaq’ thrice in one sitting by a Muslim man to his wife results in an instant and irrevocable divorce.
Offence and penalty:
- The Bill makes declaration of talaq a cognizable offence, attracting up to three years’ imprisonment with a fine. (A cognizable offence is one for which a police officer may arrest an accused person without warrant.)
The offence will be cognizable only if information relating to the offence is given by:
- the married woman (against whom talaq has been declared), or
- any person related to her by blood or marriage.
The Bill provides that the Magistrate may grant bail to the accused. The bail may be granted only after hearing the woman (against whom talaq has been pronounced), and if the Magistrate is satisfied that there are reasonable grounds for granting bail.
The offence may be compounded by the Magistrate upon the request of the woman (against whom talaq has been declared).
- Compounding refers to the procedure where the two sides agree to stop legal proceedings, and settle the dispute.
- The terms and conditions of the compounding of the offence will be determined by the Magistrate.
Allowance:
- A Muslim woman against whom talaq has been declared, is entitled to seek subsistence allowance from her husband for herself and for her dependent children. The amount of the allowance will be determined by the Magistrate.
Custody:
- A Muslim woman against whom such talaq has been declared, is entitled to seek custody of her minor children.
- The manner of custody will be determined by the Magistrate.

Source :- PIB

Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) to launch a new program

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - Government policies and intervention for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

Context :

Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), flagship initiative of NITI Aayog is all set to launch a new milestone program for community innovation

Programme for community innovation :

The new initiative aims to encourage the spirit of innovation in the country.
The purpose of this new initiative is to make innovation ecosystem socially inclusive as well as to ensure equitable distribution of infrastructure for innovation across the country.
The new program has been specifically designed for underserved, unserved regions of Tier 1 or Metro cities, Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, Smart Cities, Aspirational districts, North-East, Jammu and Kashmir as well as the rural and tribal regions of India.

Source :- PIB

Parliament passes Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Bill 2019

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

Context :

Parliament has passed the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Bill, 2019, which seeks to put in place a mechanism by which poor depositors will get back their hard-earned money.

Key Features :

Deposit: The Bill defines a deposit as an amount of money received through an advance, a loan, or in any other form, with a promise to be returned with or without interest.
- It also defines certain amounts which shall not be included in the definition of deposits such as amounts received in the form of loans from relatives and contributions towards capital by partners in any partnership firm.
Unregulated Deposit Scheme: The Bill bans unregulated deposit schemes. A deposit-taking scheme is defined as unregulated if it is taken for a business purpose and is not registered with the regulators.
Designated Courts: The Bill provides for the constitution of one or more Designated Courts in specified areas. This Court will be headed by a judge not below the rank of a district and sessions judge, or additional district and sessions judge.
Central Database: The Bill provides for the central government to designate an authority to create an online central database for information on deposit takers. All deposit takers will be required to inform the database authority about their business.
Competent Authority: The Bill provides for the appointment of one or more government officers, not below the rank of Secretary to the state or central government, as the Competent Authority. The Competent Authority will have powers similar to those vested in a civil court.The Competent Authority may:
- provisionally attach the property of the deposit taker, as well as all deposits received
- summon and examine any person it considers necessary for the purpose of obtaining evidence
- orders the production of records and evidence
Offences and penalties: The Bill defines three types of offences, and penalties which are as follows:
- running (advertising, promoting, operating or accepting money for) unregulated deposit schemes. It will be punishable with imprisonment between two and seven years, along with a fine ranging from three to 10 lakh rupees.
- fraudulently defaulting on regulated deposit schemes. It will be punishable with imprisonment between three and 10 years, and a fine ranging from five lakh rupees to twice the amount collected from depositors.
- wrongfully inducing depositors to invest in unregulated deposit schemes by willingly falsifying facts.
- The repeated offenders under the Bill will be punishable with imprisonment between five to 10 years, along with a fine ranging from Rs 10 lakh to five crore rupees.

Source :- PIB

IRDAI to give green signal to sandbox experiment soon

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

Context :

Recently, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has allowed the use of regulatory sandbox (RS) to promote new, innovative products and processes in the Fintech industry.

Regulatory sandbox (RS) :

RS is an infrastructure that helps Fintech players to live test their products or solutions, before getting the necessary regulatory approvals for a mass launch, saving start-ups time and cost.
It allows the regulator, the innovators, the financial service providers and the customers to conduct field tests to collect evidence on the benefits and risks of new financial innovations.
For instance, Data analytics(a part of Fintech) is an area which insurance industry can take benefit to serve their customers as India accounts for around only 6% of insurance premium in Asia and around 2% of the global premium volume.
- Using RS the viability of data analytics in the insurance sector can be found out before its application on a mass scale.
The Reserve Bank of India is also planning to provide similar infrastructure in the banking sector.

IRDAI :

Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India or the IRDAI is the apex body responsible for regulating and developing the insurance industry in India.
It is an autonomous body.
It was established by an act of Parliament known as the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Act, 1999.
IRDAI is headquartered in Hyderabad in Telangana.
The organization fought for an increase in the FDI limit in the insurance sector to 49% from the previous 26%.

Objective :

Its primary purpose is to protect the rights of the policyholders in India.
It gives the registration certificate to insurance companies in the country.
It also engages in the renewal, modification, cancellation, etc. of this registration.
It also creates regulations to protect policyholders’ interests in India.

Source :- Indain Express

DoT releases guidelines for 5G trials across all available spectrum bands

GS PAPER - 03 SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY - Awareness in the fields of IT, Space, Computers, robotics, nano-technology, bio-technology

Context :

Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has issued guidelines for 5G trials across all available spectrum bands and is likely to allocate up to 400 MHz of radio waves for the trials.

Guidelines :

It provides for a uniform fee of Rs 5,000 for the trial licence.
The period for trial licence may be between 3 months to 2 years depending on the purpose.
- Indian entities involved in research and development (R&D), manufacturing, telecom operators and involved academia can be issued licence for a period of up to 2 years.
The DoT is obliged to grant permit for the trails between 4 to 8 weeks. In case of no response by DoT within the said period, the applicant can send notice for trials. Again if the applicant does not receive any reply within 2 weeks, it will be deemed as approval.

Source :- Business Standard

GI Tag for Odisha Rasgulla

GS PAPER - 03 ECONOMY - Awareness in the fields of IT, Space, Computers, robotics, nano-technology, bio-technology and issues relating to intellectual property rights.

Context :

Odisha has bagged the geographical indication (GI) tag for its local version of “Rasgulla”.

Rasagola :

Odisha Rasgulla is a sweet made of chhena (cottage cheese) cooked in sugar syrup using the principle of caramelisation of sugar (caramelization is the browning of sugar, a process used extensively in cooking for the resulting sweet nutty flavor and brown colour).
Odisha Rasgulla is associated with world famous Puri Jagannath Temple.
Both Odisha and West Bengal have been contesting the origin of the rasagola.
- West Bengal received GI tag for its variety of rasgulla in November 2017.
The reference of rasgulla is found in the late 15th-century Odia Ramayana written by Balaram Das.
- Balaram Das’s Ramayana is known as Dandi Ramayana or Jagamohana Ramayana as it was composed and sung at the Jagamohana of the Puri Temple.
A religious script named “Ajodhya Kanda” gives elaborate descriptions of chhena and chhena‐based products including Rasagola.
Famous Odia writer Fakir Mohan Senapati, in his writing Utkal Bhramanam (published on August 27, 1892 ) mentioned about the plentiful use of rasgulla in Odisha during those days.
‘Bali Jatra’ a poem written by Damodar Pattanayak is an eye‐witness of Cuttack’s famous, historic fair, Bali Jatra (Journey to Bali Island of Indonesia) and mentioned that sweets shops were looking attractive in presence of Rasgulla and other sweets.
The first Odia product to receive a GI tag was Kandhamal Haldi, a type of turmeric produced by tribal farmers in the state's Kandhamal district.

Source :-The Times of India

Amphibious ship LCU L-56 commissioned into Navy

GS PAPER - 03 SECURITY - Various Security forces and agencies and their mandate

Context :

IN LCU L-56, the sixth indigenously built Landing Craft Utility (LCU) MK IV class ship was commissioned into the Indian Navy

IN LCU L-56 :

LCU 56 is an amphibious ship. Its primary role is transportation and deployment of Main Battle Tanks, Armoured Vehicles, Troops and Equipment from ship to shore.
It has a displacement of 900 tonnes. It measures 62 metres in length. It is fitted with two MTU diesel engines, which provide a sustainable speed of over 15 knots. The ship is equipped with the state-of-art equipment and is armed with two 30 mm CRN-91 guns.
The ship has been indigenously designed and built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd (GRSE), Kolkata
The ship would be administered and based in Port Blair under the Naval Component Commander (NAVCC) in Andaman and Nicobar Command (ANC).

Objective :

The LCU L-56 will boost the maritime and HADR capability of Andaman and Nicobar Command (ANC), as the ship will be useful in conducting multiple operations.
The ship can be deployed for search and rescue missions, disaster relief operations, beaching operations, surveillance operations and coastal patrol along the Andaman and Nicobar Group of Islands.

Source :- The Hindu ; PIB

Display of ‘trans-fat free’ logo on food items voluntary: FSSAI

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.

Context :

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has put forward new norms for trans-fat free status.

Steps taken by India :

India is committed to eliminate industrial trans-fats in fats or oils and in foods containing fats or oils in a phased manner
It has already limited trans-fat content in fats and oils to 5 per cent and the notification to further reduce it to 3 per cent by 2021 and to 2 per cent by 2022 is under process.

Trans Fat :

Trans-fat are made by adding hydrogen to liquid vegetable oils to make them more solid. It is used to increase the shelf life of foods.
They are present in hydrogenated fats such as margarine and bakery shortenings, used in preparation of bakery products

30th JULY 2019 DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS

Lok Sabha passes Consumer Protection Bill, 2019

GS PAPER - 02 POLITY - Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre and States and the performance of these schemes; mechanisms, laws, institutions and Bodies constituted for the protection and betterment of these vulnerable sections

Context :

The Lok Sabha passed the Consumer Protection Bill 2019 after due consideration and discussion.

Consumer Protection Bill 2019 :

Objective :

The bill aims at protecting the interests of consumers by establishing authorities for timely and effective administration and settlement of consumers’ dispute. The Bill aims to simplify a number of rules.

Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) :

Under the Bill, there is provision for central government to set up a Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) to promote, protect and enforce the rights of consumers and will be empowered to investigate, recall, refund and impose penalties.

It will regulate matters related to violation of consumer rights, unfair trade practices, and misleading advertisements.

The authority will have power to impose a penalty on a manufacturer or an endorser of up to 10 lakh rupees and imprisonment for up to two years for a false or misleading advertisement.

Benefits :

Presently Consumer only have a single point of access to justice, which is time consuming. Additional swift executive remedies are proposed in the bill through Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA)

Deterrent punishment to check misleading advertisements and adulteration of products

Product liability provision to deter manufacturers and service providers from delivering defective products or deficient services

Ease of approaching Consumer Commission and Simplification of Adjudication process

Scope for early disposal of cases through mediation

Provision for rules for new age consumer issues: e-commerce & direct selling.

Source :- PIB

Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill 2019

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre and States and the performance of these schemes; mechanisms, laws, institutions and Bodies constituted for the protection and betterment of these vulnerable sections.

Context :

Parliament has passed the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2019 criminalising triple talaq. After President Kovind signs the bill, it will become the law and will replace the 1986 Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Divorce) Act.

Key features of the Bill :

The Bill makes all declaration of talaq, including in written or electronic form, to be void (i.e. not enforceable in law) and illegal.

Definition:

It defines talaq as talaq-e-biddat or any other similar form of talaq pronounced by a Muslim man resulting in instant and irrevocable divorce.

Talaq-e-biddat refers to the practice under Muslim personal laws where pronouncement of the word ‘talaq’ thrice in one sitting by a Muslim man to his wife results in an instant and irrevocable divorce.

Offence and penalty:

The Bill makes declaration of talaq a cognizable offence, attracting up to three years’ imprisonment with a fine. (A cognizable offence is one for which a police officer may arrest an accused person without warrant.)

The offence will be cognizable only if information relating to the offence is given by:

the married woman (against whom talaq has been declared), or

any person related to her by blood or marriage.

The Bill provides that the Magistrate may grant bail to the accused. The bail may be granted only after hearing the woman (against whom talaq has been pronounced), and if the Magistrate is satisfied that there are reasonable grounds for granting bail.

The offence may be compounded by the Magistrate upon the request of the woman (against whom talaq has been declared).

Compounding refers to the procedure where the two sides agree to stop legal proceedings, and settle the dispute.

The terms and conditions of the compounding of the offence will be determined by the Magistrate.

Allowance:

A Muslim woman against whom talaq has been declared, is entitled to seek subsistence allowance from her husband for herself and for her dependent children. The amount of the allowance will be determined by the Magistrate.

Custody:

A Muslim woman against whom such talaq has been declared, is entitled to seek custody of her minor children.

The manner of custody will be determined by the Magistrate.

Source :- PIB

Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) to launch a new program

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - Government policies and intervention for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

Context :

Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), flagship initiative of NITI Aayog is all set to launch a new milestone program for community innovation

Programme for community innovation :

The new initiative aims to encourage the spirit of innovation in the country.

The purpose of this new initiative is to make innovation ecosystem socially inclusive as well as to ensure equitable distribution of infrastructure for innovation across the country.

The new program has been specifically designed for underserved, unserved regions of Tier 1 or Metro cities, Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, Smart Cities, Aspirational districts, North-East, Jammu and Kashmir as well as the rural and tribal regions of India.

Source :- PIB

Parliament passes Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Bill 2019

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

Context :

Parliament has passed the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Bill, 2019, which seeks to put in place a mechanism by which poor depositors will get back their hard-earned money.

Key Features :

Deposit: The Bill defines a deposit as an amount of money received through an advance, a loan, or in any other form, with a promise to be returned with or without interest.

It also defines certain amounts which shall not be included in the definition of deposits such as amounts received in the form of loans from relatives and contributions towards capital by partners in any partnership firm.

Unregulated Deposit Scheme: The Bill bans unregulated deposit schemes. A deposit-taking scheme is defined as unregulated if it is taken for a business purpose and is not registered with the regulators.

Designated Courts: The Bill provides for the constitution of one or more Designated Courts in specified areas. This Court will be headed by a judge not below the rank of a district and sessions judge, or additional district and sessions judge.

Central Database: The Bill provides for the central government to designate an authority to create an online central database for information on deposit takers. All deposit takers will be required to inform the database authority about their business.

provisionally attach the property of the deposit taker, as well as all deposits received

summon and examine any person it considers necessary for the purpose of obtaining evidence

orders the production of records and evidence

Offences and penalties: The Bill defines three types of offences, and penalties which are as follows:

running (advertising, promoting, operating or accepting money for) unregulated deposit schemes. It will be punishable with imprisonment between two and seven years, along with a fine ranging from three to 10 lakh rupees.

fraudulently defaulting on regulated deposit schemes. It will be punishable with imprisonment between three and 10 years, and a fine ranging from five lakh rupees to twice the amount collected from depositors.

wrongfully inducing depositors to invest in unregulated deposit schemes by willingly falsifying facts.

The repeated offenders under the Bill will be punishable with imprisonment between five to 10 years, along with a fine ranging from Rs 10 lakh to five crore rupees.

Source :- PIB

IRDAI to give green signal to sandbox experiment soon

GS PAPER - 02 GOVERNANCE - Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

Context :

Recently, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has allowed the use of regulatory sandbox (RS) to promote new, innovative products and processes in the Fintech industry.

Regulatory sandbox (RS) :

RS is an infrastructure that helps Fintech players to live test their products or solutions, before getting the necessary regulatory approvals for a mass launch, saving start-ups time and cost.

It allows the regulator, the innovators, the financial service providers and the customers to conduct field tests to collect evidence on the benefits and risks of new financial innovations.

For instance, Data analytics(a part of Fintech) is an area which insurance industry can take benefit to serve their customers as India accounts for around only 6% of insurance premium in Asia and around 2% of the global premium volume.

30^th JULY 2019 DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS