News Analysis India

Tag: home ministry

  • Home Ministry recommends disciplinary action against former CBI director Alok Verma

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The Union home ministry has recommended disciplinary action against former CBI director Alok Verma for allegedly misusing his official position and violating the relevant service rules, officials said on Wednesday.

    They said the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has written to the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), the nodal ministry for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), to take necessary disciplinary action against Verma.

    The action, if approved, may include temporary or permanent forfeiture of Verma’s pension and retirement benefits, the officials said.

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    During his stint in the CBI, Verma, a 1979-batch (retired) Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, was engaged in a bitter fight with Gujarat-cadre IPS officer and his deputy Rakesh Asthana over corruption charges.

    Both Verma and Asthana had accused each other of corruption.

    Asthana is the Delhi Police Commissioner now.

    “Verma has been accused of misusing his official position and violating service rules. Necessary action has been recommended against him by the home ministry,” a senior official said, requesting anonymity.

    The home ministry is the cadre controlling authority for IPS officers.

    The DoPT has forwarded the MHA’s recommendation to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), the recruitment body for IPS officers, the officials said.

    The UPSC needs to be consulted before imposing penalty on IPS officers, they said.

    Verma took over as the CBI chief on February 1, 2017 for a fixed two-year tenure.

    However, he was removed from the post on January 10, 2019 and posted as the director general of Fire Services, Civil Defence and Home Guards — a less significant portfolio.

    Verma did not accept the offer and wrote to the government, saying he should be considered as deemed superannuated as he has completed 60 years age of superannuation on July 31, 2017.

  • MHA says ‘blatant violation’ of Covid norms in hill stations, markets; asks states to take action

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: The Union Home Ministry Wednesday said blatant violations of COVID-19 norms have been observed in several parts of the country, including hill stations, and asked states and union territories to take action against officials responsible for ensuring compliance to laid down guidelines.

    In a letter to all states and UTs, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla also said Covid-appreciate behaviour is not being adhered to in public transport and massive crowds are thronging marketplaces, violating social distancing norms.

    Bhalla emphasised the second wave of Covid is not yet over and everyone should remember there is no room for complacency and follow Covid-appropriate behaviour.

    He said that with the decline in the number of active cases, states and UTs have started reopening economic activities in a gradual manner but the process of relaxing restrictions should be carefully calibrated.

    “Blatant violations of COVID norms have been observed in several parts of the country, especially in public transport and at hill stations. Massive crowds are also thronging the market places, violating norms of social distancing,” he said.

  • Home Ministry awaiting telecom dept nod on continuing mobile tower services in Naxal-hit areas

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: As security forces battle to put an end to Naxal violence, the Home Ministry wants mobile phone towers installed in the affected region to remain operational irrespective of financial implications to give them the advantage of smooth communication and is awaiting the telecom department’s nod, officials said on Sunday.

    At a recent meeting chaired by Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla, it was conveyed to the telecom department in no uncertain terms that these mobile phone towers should remain active.

    Previously, a series of meetings were held on the matter.

    A letter has been sent to Universal Service Obligation Fund administrator Anshuli Arya conveying the decision of the Home Ministry to extend the operation of all these sites.

    USOF is the pool of funds generated by charging all telecom companies on their Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR).

    This fund, which is handled by the Department of Telecommunications, is used for providing funds for telecom connectivity in rural and such areas which are not commercially beneficial for telecom operators.

    Over 2,200 telecom towers were installed in Chhattishgarh and nine other Naxalism-affected states that form the ‘Red Corridor’ to ensure communication facility for security forces as well as state police agencies.

    The towers, which were funded by USOF for five years, could be extended by another two years under an ongoing tender of BSNL to help the security forces maintain an easy access to the communication facility.

    However, the silence of the telecom department for its extension has left everyone in despair, including the state-run BSNL which has been following up on it with USOF for almost 20 months.

    The BSNL CMD has shot off a letter asking for a clear-cut decision and whether they need to shut down the operations as BSNL is losing money every month to run these commercially unviable sites.

    BSNL wrote a letter to the telecom secretary asking for clear directions on whether the mobile towers have to be kept operational or not.

    It said that BSNL had installed 356 telecom sites in the Naxalism-affected areas from its own resources for which non-tendered OPEX (Operational Expenditure) was provided from the USOF from September 2014 to 2019.

    Further, BSNL has installed and commissioned in 1987 sites under the LWE (Left Wing Extremism) project for which USOF is providing OPEX subsidy.

    “The period of subsidy support of LWE sites is progressively expiring from July 2020 to March 2022.

    It said that the BSNL has not got any extension till date and may close these sites if an extension did not come from the telecom department,” an official said, adding that to shut the service, it has to inform subscribers 30 days in advance as required under rules.

    BSNL made it clear that either an extension is given to these projects or dates for final closure of the telecom sites is provided.

    This comes at a time when the security forces are establishing new camps inside the Naxal-dominated areas to ensure safety for people in these areas.

     

  • MHA asks states, UTs to conduct fire safety review of hospitals, nursing homes

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: The Home Ministry has asked states and union territories to conduct a detailed review of fire safety mechanisms at hospitals and nursing homes, a move that follows several instances of fires at healthcare facilities in various parts of the country, a spokesperson said on Wednesday.

    Taking note of the incidents at a time the healthcare system is battling the Covid pandemic, Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla has written to state chief secretaries and UT administrators to draw their attention to the fires caused by short-circuits in hospitals and nursing homes.

    Over a dozen fire incidents, claiming several lives, have been reported in the last two months, particularly from Maharashtra and Gujarat.

    The recent fire incidents indicate lack of maintenance or a high load on internal wirings within the facilities, leading to short-circuits and loss of life and damage to essential infrastructure, the Home secretary said.

    Bhalla said care should be taken to put in place a plan of action to ensure no fire incident occurs in any health facility (particularly COVID-19 dedicated facilities) both in the government and the private sector.

    “The States and UTs have been requested to conduct a detailed review with officials from the Health, Power and Fire Departments, and prepare a detailed plan of action to ensure that fire safety measures are in place in all hospitals and health facilities,” a Home ministry spokesperson said, quoting from the letter.

    The states and UTs have also been asked to issue directions to concerned officials at various levels.

    Heath facilities should be visited by field level officials to examine internal wirings and availability of functional safety equipment in accordance with fire safety guidelines within these facilities, and necessary remedial action be taken immediately in case any deficiencies are found, the ministry said.

    The communication points out that a large number of COVID-19 cases are under treatment in Covid-dedicated health facilities across the country.

    In most cases, oxygen supported beds, ICU beds, and ventilators are critical interventions, and therefore, it is important to ensure there is uninterrupted power supply 24×7 in all hospitals and medical facilities.

    It also draws attention to a recent advisory from the Director General (Fire Services, Civil Defence and Home Guards), MHA, on fire safety in hospitals and nursing homes.

    The communication further emphasises that saving every life is a priority, and it is critical to ensure that required support is provided to all health facilities managing COVID-19 by taking requisite actions in advance to avert any incident, which could hamper effective healthcare delivery to patients.

  • Enough oxygen stock at present, but transportation to states is a challenge: Centre

    By Express News Service
    NEW DELHI: The Centre on Monday reassured the country that despite the huge demand for medical oxygen for Covid patients, there is no problem of availability but conceded that its distribution and transportation to hospitals is a challenge.

    As of April 24, said Piyush Goyal, additional secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs at a government briefing on Covid situation, that against the existing capacity of about 7,500 MT lmo production, 9,103 MT lmo had been manufactured in the country. 

    The statement by the Centre comes a day after Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that all liquid oxygen being manufactured in the country will be used only for medical purposes under the present circumstances.

    The country, burdened with a huge number of active Covid cases — over 28 lakhs — is facing an enormous challenge of meeting the huge demand for medical oxygen as nearly 15% of all Covid cases require hospitalisation, the majority of them also needing supplemental oxygen.

    Goyal underlined that most of the oxygen production in the country is concentrated in the eastern parts and it takes time for the crucial supply to reach various states on time, adding that railways has pitched in to ferry it rapidly to places where the requirement is the highest.

    Authorities meanwhile also stressed the judicious use of oxygen amid an unprecedented situation.

    “We have to reduce the number of cases and use hospital resources optimally. The judicious use of oxygen is very important. Right now, there is an unnecessary panic,” said Randeep Guleria, Director, AIIMS (New Delhi).

    Officials underscored said that many people have been found to be occupying hospital beds out of panic and asked people to take admission only on doctors’ advice and also advised hospitals for judicious use of oxygen and to plug leakage.

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  • MHA cautions 4 Northeast states bordering Myanmar, says take action on influx as per law

    Express News Service
    NEW DELHI:  The home ministry on Friday directed four Northeastern states — Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland,  Arunachal Pradesh to “take action as per law to check illegal influx from Myanmar into India,” sources told this newspaper. 

    A top ministry functionary called up the four chief ministers to brief them about India’s position on the issue. The chief ministers were told that the states did not have any power to grant refugee status to foreigners since India is not a signatory to UN convention, government sources said. 

    The states were asked to maintain vigil and control at the borders with Myanmar in view of repeated incidents of people from the country attempting to cross over to India. “The chief ministers were told to examine the influx on a case to case basis and provide shelter to only those facing genuine persecution,” said a senior government official.

    Many are believed to be trying to cross over to India, with these four states sharing border with Myanmar. Mizoram, especially, has been seeing an influx following the military coup in the country.s

  • Home Ministry approves Rs 3,113 crore for five states as disaster relief

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: A high-level committee headed by Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday approved around Rs 3,113 crore to five states that faced natural disasters and pest attacks in 2020.

    The states and union territory that will get the additional central assistance from the National Disaster Risk Management Fund (NDRMF) are Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Madhya Pradesh, a home ministry statement said.

    The committee, under the chairmanship of the home minister, has approved the additional central assistance to the five states and UT, which were affected by floods, cyclones (Nivar and Burevi) and pest attack during 2020.

    Andhra Pradesh will get Rs 280.78 crore and Bihar Rs 1,255.27 crore for floods during the South-West monsoon.

    Tamil Nadu will get Rs 63.14 crore for cyclone ‘Nivar’ and Rs 223.77 crore for cyclone ‘Burevi’ — a total Rs 286.91 crore. The Union Territory of Puducherry will get Rs 9.91 crore for cyclone ‘Nivar’.

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    Madhya Pradesh will get Rs 1,280.18 crore for the pest attack during the Kharif season, the statement said.

    The central government had deputed Inter-Ministerial Central Teams (IMCTs) immediately after the calamities without waiting for the receipts of memorandum from the affected state governments.

    While approving the additional central assistance, the home minister said the union government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has resolved to help the people of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry and Madhya Pradesh who braved these natural disasters.

    In addition, during the financial year 2020-21, till date the central government has released Rs 19,036.43 crore to 28 states from the State Disaster Risk Management Fund (SDRMF) and Rs 4,409.71 crore to 11 states from NDRMF, the statement said.

  • Govt mulls policy to filter investment proposals

    In a move that is aimed at using economics as a tool for furthering diplomatic agenda, the Centre is working on a policy framework to screen threats emerging from big-ticket investments in strategic sectors by a host of countries including China.

    The Union Home Ministry is examining a proposal from the Intelligence Bureau (IB) to filter all sensitive investment proposals from foreign entities into three broad categories under “entities of concern”, “countries of concern” and “sectors of concern” to check any unwanted investments into strategically important sectors like telecommunication, power and infrastructure.

    As part of the policy level interventions to counter Chinese threat, the Union Home Ministry is mulling over the proposed scheme to examine proposals from the point of view of these three parameters. When approved, the scheme would cover threats from Chinese entities as well.

    Chinese firms have emerged as the lowest bidders in many infrastructural projects in India with active support of Chinese Government. Such Chinese footprints were increasingly being noticed in States like Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Haryana. “There is a large-scale presence of Chinese companies in States like Chhattisgarh where major investments were in the sectors of telecommunication, engineering and manufacturing,” a senior Intelligence official said.

    The Intelligence agencies have noted with concern the visit of Chinese business delegates to Betul Island in Goa near INS Khadamba to explore business opportunities. The other area of concern is the award of contracts to non-Chinese firms, which in turn employ Chinese firms/persons, as was the case in the Dhamra Port Company in Odisha, which is strategically located near APJ Kalam Island (Wheeler Island).

    Amid huge investment agenda of the Chinese Government under the ambitious Belt and Road Initiative, there is a significant uneasiness due to Chinese ascendency. The aggressive nature of the Chinese trade and culture promotion poses risks to economic engagement including the Indian Ocean Region.

    China is also aggressively using its soft power through the setting up of Confucius Institute to gather Intelligence in the host countries.

    According to Intelligence estimates, increased business and tourist activities besides Memorandums of Understanding with Indian universities and colleges for promoting Chinese language and culture through various student exchange programmes pose a threat to Indian interests. China is also attempting through is businessmen to gain access to decision making levels in Indian establishments.

    “As part of the existing policy formulations, the Chinese investment proposals are cleared by the Government in consultation with the security agencies on a case to case basis. The new framework will further help in better identification of threats and restricting investments that may harm the Indian economy in the longer run,” the official added.