Cabinet Approval on January 16, 2019

On 16^th January 2019, the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi cleared proposals from various ministries. The details of cabinet decisions are as follows:

Cabinet approves regularisation of Pay Scales of below Board Level Executives in NHPC Ltd., North East Electric Power Corporation, THDC India Ltd. and SJVN Ltd. w.e.f. 1.1.97
On 16^th January 2019, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi chaired the Union Cabinet meeting which has given its approval for regularization of Pay scales of 5,254 executives in four state-run hydro power companies: National Hydroelectric Power Corporation Ltd. (NHPC), North East Electric Power Corporation (NEEPCO), THDC India Ltd. (formerly Tehri Hydro Development Corporation Ltd.) and Satluj Jal Vidhyut Nigam Ltd. (SJVN).

Key Points:

• The decision to regularize the pay scale came in order to remove the anomalies that existed in the pay scales of executives of the four PSUs since 1^st January 1997 due to revision of pay scales of unionized category of workmen/non-executives in line with the NTPC/oil sector within the organizations.
• Due to this the pay scales of workmen and supervisors were higher than the pay scales of executives in the E-1 grade.
• With this approval, the order of the power ministry regarding pay scales to be adopted by the hydro unit and dated April 4, 2006 and September 1, 2006, would be regularised.
• Executives of the power units enrolled before January 1, 2007 will benefit by this approval.
• The total expenditure to the tune of Rs. 323 crore will be incurred for the regularization of pay scales.

About Ministry of Power:
♦ Minister: R.K. Singh, (MOS independent charge)
♦ Headquarters: New Delhi

Cabinet approves Revised Cost of Estimates (RCE) for 13 new Central Universities in the States of Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir (Two), Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Orissa, Punjab, Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu, set up under Central Universities Act, 2009
Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi chaired Union Cabinet has given its approval for an expenditure of Rs.3639.32 core for setting up of the 13 new Central Universities the work of which will be completed within a period of 36 months.

Key Points:

• Besides the Cabinet has also given ex-post facto approval for an amount of Rs.1474.65 crore, being the amount spent over and above the earlier Cabinet approval of Rs.3000 crore for these Central Universities.
• The total estimated cost of the construction of these universities would be Rs 8,113 crore. 
• The decision will increase access to higher education besides minimizing the regional imbalances in educational facilities. It will also encourage other Universities to improve their standards.
• The new Central Universities which were established under Central Universities Act, 2009 are located in in the States of Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir (Two), Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Orissa, Punjab, Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu.

About Ministry Of Human Resource Development:
♦ Union Minister: Prakash Javadekar
♦ Minister of State: Dr. Satya Pal Singh

Cabinet approves expenditure sanction for Integrated E-filing and Centralized Processing Centre 2.0 Project
On 16^th January 2019, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi chaired Union Cabinet has given its approval for development of the next generation income tax filing and processing centre i.e., Integrated E-filing &Centralized Processing Center 2.0 Projectof the Income Tax Department.

Key Points:

• The total cost of the project will be Rs 4,241.97crore and will be implemented by IT major Infosys which has been selected after the bidding process.
• The project is expected to be completed in 18 months and will be launched after 3 months of testing.
• The new system will help in improving tax payers’ awareness and education through continuous engagement besides accelerating the process of returns and issue of refunds to the tax payers’ bank account directly. This will ensures the continuation of the Department’s goal towards business transformation through technology.
• The processing time for Income Tax Return (ITR) which at present is 63 days will come down to 1 day after implementation of the project.
• .Furthermore the Cabinet also sanctioned a consolidated cost of Rs 1,482.44 crore for the existing CPC-ITR 1.0 project up to 2018-19.

About Ministry of Finance:
♦ Union Minister: Arun Jaitley
♦ Minister of State: P. Radhakrishnan, Shiv Pratap Shukla

About Central Board of Direct Taxes:
♦ Chairman: Sushil Chandra
♦ Headquarters: New Delhi

Cabinet approves recapitalisation of Export-Import Bank of India
On 16^th January 2019, the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi approved recapitalization of Export-Import Bank of India (EXIM Bank) to the tune of 6,000 crore rupees to expand its business.

Key Points:

• The bank will be infused with Rs 4,500 crore before March 2019 and Rs 1,500 crore in the next fiscal by Issuance of Recapitalization Bonds by Government of India which will be in line with those issued to Public Sector Banks.
• The cabinet has also approved to increase in the authorized capital of Exim Bank from 10,000 crore to 20,000 crore rupees.
• The infusion of capital into Exim Bank which is the principal export credit agency for India will enable it to augment capital adequacy and support Indian exports with enhanced ability.
• Besides it will also support Indian textile industries and give thrust to initiatives like changes in Concessional Finance Scheme (CFS) and likelihood of new letters of credit (LoCs) to be issued in future in view of India’s active foreign policy and strategic intent.

About Export-Import Bank of India (EXIM Bank):
♦ Exim Bank of India (Exim Bank) was established in 1982 under an Act of Parliament as the apex financial institution for financing, facilitating and promoting India’s international trade. The Bank primarily lends for exports from India including supporting overseas buyers and Indian suppliers for export of developmental and infrastructure projects, equipment, goods and services from India. It is regulated by RBI.
♦ Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra
♦ Managing Director: Shri David Rasquinha

Cabinet approves setting up of crude oil pipeline from Paradip to Numaligarh and Product pipeline from Numaligarh to Siliguri
On 16^th January 2019, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, approved a capacity expansion plan for Numaligarh Refinery (NRL) in Assam from the existing 3 million metric tonne per annum (MMTPA) to 9 MMTPA.

Key Points:

• Besides the Cabinet has also approved setting up of a crude oil pipeline from Paradip to Numaligarh and a product pipeline from Numaligarh to Siliguri.
• The total project cost is estimated at Rs. 22,594 crore and it will be financed by a mix of debt, equity and a Viability Gap Fund (VGF).
• A debt of Rs. 15,102 crore will be raised by NRL which will also deploy Rs. 2,307 crore via internal accruals. The promoters, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd, Oil India Ltd and Government of Assam will contribute to equity.
• Besides the central government will provide Rs 1,020 crore viability gap funding for the project.
• The project is to be completed within 48 months, after approval and receipt of statutory clearances.
• The expansion of the refinery will meet the deficit of petroleum products in the North-East.

About Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas:
♦ Minister: Dharmendra Pradhan
♦ Headquarters: New Delhi
About Assam:
♦ Chief Minister: Sarbananda Sonowal
♦ Governor: Jagdish Mukhi
♦ Capital: Dispur