MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO 524 ANSWERED ON 24.02.2009 PAY SCALES (S.O-NFS) IN CSIR

Will the Minister of

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

be pleased to state:-

(a) whether the CSIR has been taken into consideration the modifications and clarifications made by the Government in the date of adoption of the scheme granting Non-functional pay scale of Rs. 8000-13500 to the Section Officers; (b) if so, the details of implementation of the scheme by CSIR; (c) whether the said scheme is not being implemented in accordance with the approvals granted by the Government; (d) if so, the reaction of the Government thereto and the steps being taken to ensure proper implementation of the scheme by CSIR; (e) whether any complaints have been received by the Government regarding tardy i mplementation of the Scheme and against the spirit of the Government approvals thereto; (f) if so, the details thereof; and (g) if not, the time by which the scheme is likely to be implemented ?

ANSWER

MINISTER OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AND MINISTER OF EARTH SCIENCES (KAPIL SIBAL) (a) No Sir, as the scheme formulated by Department of Personnel and Training was specific to Section Officers of Central Secretariat Services, Ministry of Finance, Department of Expenditure did not agree to extend it. (b) The Non Functional Scale of Rs 8000-13500 was implemented in respect of Section Officers w.e.f. 03.10.2003, based on the approval given by the Governing Body of CSIR in its 166th meeting held on 16.02.2006 and the decision dated 17.05.2007. (c) Ministry of Finance, Department of Expenditure, did not agree to extend Non Functional Scale to the CSIR as the scheme was specifically formulated by Department of Personnel and Training for Section Officers of Central Secretariat Services. (d) The issue regarding grant of Non Functional Scale to the Section Officers was taken up with Ministry of Finance, Department of Expenditure both formally and informally and it was not agreed to by the Government. (e & f) Yes Sir. Representations from the employees and references from Director Central Institute of Medicinal & Aromatic Plants (CIMAP), Lucknow and Hon’ble Members of Parliament were received for implementing the Non Functional Scale of Rs 8000-13500 notionally from 1.1.1996 with actual benefit from 3.10.2003. Details of same are given in Annexure I. (g) In view of the observations of Ministry of Finance, Department of Expenditure, Non Functional Scale of Rs 8000-13500 could not be extended notionally wef 01.01.1996.

Credit/Debit Card transactions-Security Issues and Risk mitigation measures -RBI

RBI/2008-2009/387
RBI / DPSS No. 1501 / 02.14.003 / 2008-2009	February 18, 2009
The Chairman and Managing Director / Chief Executive Officers All Scheduled Commercial Banks including RRBs / Urban Co-operative Banks / State Co-operative Banks /. District Central Co-operative Banks
Madam / Dear Sir
Credit/Debit Card transactions- Security Issues and Risk mitigation measures
The use of Credit/Debit Cards has been increasing in the country. We have been reviewing various options to enhance the security of online card transactions. After extensive consultations with banks/card companies, it has been decided as under: 2. It would be mandatory to put in place with effect from August 01, 2009: i) A system of providing for additional authentication/validation based on information not visible on the cards for all on-line card not present transactions except IVR transactions (for which separate instructions will follow). ii) A system of "Online Alerts" to the cardholder for all 'card not present' transactions of the value of Rs. 5,000/ and above. 3. Banks are advised to strictly adhere to the instructions and time discipline indicated in this circular. Non-adherence to the directives shall attract penalties prescribed under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act 2007 (Act 51 of 2007). 4. This directive is issued under section 18 of Payment and Settlement Systems Act 2007, (Act 51 of 2007). 5. Please acknowledge receipt.
Yours faithfully
(G. Padmanabhan)
Chief General Manager

Age limit for dependent children of government servants for avaling medical facilities- GoI OM Dt 25th Feb,2009

Advertisment of Vacancy by Autonomous Organisation

Deputation of Central Government Employees to ex-cadre posts under Central/State Governments and on Foreign Service to Central/State PSUs/AB

DAVP Advertisement Rates Hiked

The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting has enhanced the existing rates for the DAVP advertisements. The revision of advertisement rates was under consideration of the Ministry on the demand of captains of media industry. The Ministry had taken up the matter with the Ministry of Finance, which has now given its concurrence for the following fiscal stimulus package for the Print Media:

(i) Waiver of 15% Agency Commission on DAVP advertisements till 30th June, 2009.

(ii) 10% increase in the current DAVP rates (to be paid as a separate element and designated as ‘special relief’) subject to documentary proof of loss of revenue in non-governmental advertisements as compared with the same period last year. This would also be available only till 30th June 2009.

New Millennium Indian Technology Leadership Initiative (NMITLI) Scheme -PIB

As a part of New Millennium initiative, the Government mounted a farsighted R&D Programme named ‘New Millennium Indian Technology Leadership Initiative (NMITLI)’ in Public-Private Partnership mode in 2000-01. The programme was announced as part of the Union Budget in the year 2000. The responsibility of conceptualizing, evolving and implementing the programme has been assigned to the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR).

The trigger for NMITLI programme was:

• From incremental innovation to disruptive innovation;

• Tolerance for risk taking and failure;

• Best minds in India to take up the grand challenge for collaborative excellence; and

• Technology leadership.

The NMITLI focus is to:

• identify niche areas where India can gain leadership in about 10-15 years;

• develop projects involving best brains of the country through a rigorous process;

• build knowledge network of partners from public funded institutions and private industries;

• develop new methods of working together for collaborative excellence;

• focus on proof-of-concept; and

• provide a pipeline of cutting edge Indian innovation for conventional technology financing bodies as against the ‘usual safe bets.

Today, the New Millennium Indian Technology Leadership Initiative (NMITLI) is the largest public-private-partnership effort within the R&D domain in the country. It looks beyond today’s technology and thus seeks to build, capture and retain for India a leadership position by synergising the best competencies of publicly funded R&D institutions, academia and private industry. The Government finances and plays a catalytic role. It is based on the premise of consciously and deliberately identifying, selecting and supporting potential winners. NMITLI has carved out a unique niche in the innovation space and enjoys an excellent reputation.

NMITLI has so far evolved 57 largely networked projects in diverse areas viz. Agriculture & Plant Biotechnology, General Biotechnology, Bioinformatics, Drugs & Pharmaceuticals, Chemicals, Materials, Information and Communication Technology and Energy. These projects involve 80 industry partners & 270 R&D groups from different institutions. Approximately 1700 researchers are engaged in these projects. These 57 projects cumulatively have had an outlay of approximately Rs. 500 crore.

NMITLI Achievements:

The programme has generated about 100 international patents and 150 publications in peer reviewed journals. The important achievements are:

• Paradigm shift in leather processing-From chemical to biochemical route

• Pilot plants for separating cellulose, hemi-cellulose and lignin from bagasse

• Pilot plants for producing lactic acid from sugarcane juice

• Bio-informatics software viz. Bio-Suite, GenoCluster, Bio-SuiteC and Darshee

• Developed three variants of SofComp (Simple office Computer) devices including Mobilis

• Anti-psoriasis formulation in Phase-III Clinical Trial

• Lysostaphin in Phase-II Clinical Trial

• Anti-tuberculosis molecule in Phase-II Clinical Trial

• poly herbal formulations for diabetes, arthritis and hepatic disorder

• Micro-PCR based immuno-diagnostics for detecting eye infections

• Development of new plant varieties of Mentha piperita

• Development of Triple-Play broadband technology

Key components of CCEA Note:

Enthused by the success of the programme and on the recommendations of several committees, Government has approved the expansion of NMITLI programme to experiment newer models of innovation development. The key components of the proposal are:

Funding along with industry (50:50 Initiative)

There are many Indian companies who are doing financially very well but do not have the necessary expertise and intellectual resources to develop focused network projects for development of technologies/products in their line of activities. Their efforts need complementation from suitable R&D institutions and guidance from recognized peers to develop and commercialize newer technologies/products. Therefore, NMITLI will leverage its experiential base to encourage and assist such companies for developing network projects for those companies in product/technology development through a specific scheme called ‘NMITLI 50:50 initiative’.

Co-financing with Venture Capital funds

Many venture capitals are limited in scope and risk taking, due to lack of domain knowledge within the organization. Venture Capitals are therefore interested in joining hands with NMITLI, which has strong domain knowledge base, to jointly finance projects. Such projects would be identified and evolved following the procedures established by NMITLI. The funding would be joint with pre-determined ratio, but not more than 50% contribution from NMITLI. These projects are envisaged to be monitored by a joint team of experts as per the NMITLI monitoring mechanism. The proposed funding would follow the venture funding norms. The successes and failures resulting from the projects will be shared on equitable basis.

Setting up of NMITLI innovation centres in selected areas for long term sustained efforts

Some areas need long term sustained support with requisite human resource as well as infrastructure, assembled at one place to cross the threshold of intellectual barrier in order to generate globally competitive technologies and products, IPR, and high quality publications. It is envisaged to set up ‘NMITLI Innovation Centres’ in PPP mode for sustained efforts in some selected areas for example, Photovoltaics, Fuel Cells, White LEDs, Industrial Enzymes, Medical Implants, Vaccine development, Seed Development etc.

Support to post NMITLI projects

Despite the excellent R&D and developments, the technologies and products developed in the laboratory do need market seeding, pilot plant studies to refine the development. The companies need CSIR’s hand holding to develop and package the technologies/products further. The concept of ‘Post-NMITLI’ will fulfill the objective of providing financial and technical assistance for pre-commercialization related activities such as scale up, pilot plants, field trials, market seeding of products, market surveys, etc.

Acquisition of early stage relevant knowledge / IP for portfolio building

External ideas / leads / IP acquisition are assuming greater significance in the chain of innovation and mind to market. The availability of a large number of unencumbered IP (being developed in several laboratories globally) is providing a fillip to this approach. Several countries across the globe are striving to take advantage of the diversity of creativity available in different parts of world and integrate with its own developments to bring out new products / processes for global competitiveness. Since NMITLI aims to provide the Technological Leadership to the Indian industry, it becomes imperative for NMITLI to adopt such practices to achieve its objectives. Such acquisitions shall be in chosen areas with a view to creating a portfolio where NMITLI projects are in operation.

Crossing the geographical boundaries

It is increasingly being felt that to achieve leadership in niche technology areas, relying totally on internal expertise and capabilities may not be adequate. To achieve the objective of global leadership, it would be helpful to broaden the programme by bringing in international expertise. The international expertise may be in the form of expert advise of international experts at various stages of project development and implementation, involving international companies for product/technology development and commercialization at global scale, and engaging research institutions and/or CROs across the globe where Indian expertise need outside complementation.

Joint development and support of projects with other departments of science and technology as well as economic ministries

Many government departments are engaged in research and development activities in areas of relevance to them. These activities often have considerable degree of overlap with other scientific departments. However, these departments’s expertise is limited to undertake multi-disciplinary projects in cutting edge areas requiring wide-spectrum of intellectual and infrastructural inputs. Such multi-disciplinary areas need expertise, inputs and concerted efforts from all concerned government departments to generate IPR, technologies and products besides high quality publications. Therefore, part of the NMITLI funds will be utilized to generate inter-departmental projects in the XI FY Plan. The proposed scheme apart from generating intellectual capital, technologies and products in cutting edge areas would act as a catalyst to bring better co-ordination among various departments of government in the R&D sphere.

Relaxing the condition of more than 50% shareholding by Indians/Non-resident Indians

Many oversees companies through their R&D efforts using local resources, produce goods for local as well as overseas consumption and are thus contributing to the growth of Indian economy. They also employ Indian workforce. In some areas, such companies are better equipped to upscale the technology/products and sell it under their brand name. Further, they can become a vehicle for taking Indian technologies and products into global market easily thereby contributing more to Indian economy. The provision permits relaxation of the condition of more than 50% shareholding by Indians/Non-resident Indians to become an industrial partner in NMITLI projects.

Flexibility to convert loan into equity

Launching a new product or setting a knowledge based new venture requires investment on many fronts particularly for capital-intensive infrastructure, manpower, technology costs, working capital etc. Governments all over the world, particularly in developed countries endeavor to support entrepreneurs in different ways to ease the burden of initial investment. The industrial partner under NMITLI has to invest for commercialization of technology/products and at the same time has to return the loan to CSIR albeit in installments. This burden of loan repayment can be further reduced by converting loan into equity. Therefore, with this provision and on the request of industrial partner, loan given to it may be converted into equity.

Advantages of NMITLI Expansion:

As others are emulating, NMITLI is endeavoring to position higher in the innovation development. The proposal will therefore:

 enable CSIR to experiment newer models of innovation development in Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) mode, which could later become models for others to emulate;

 encourage to develop products / processes based on innovation and thereby help Indian industry emerge as a technology leader in the identified domain;

 encourage venture capital funds to venture into more risky R&D areas;

 act as a catalyst to bring better co-ordination among various departments of government in the R&D sphere and avoid unnecessary duplication, apart from generating intellectual capital, technologies and products in cutting edge areas; and

 enhance national competitiveness.

New govt staff to get family, disability pension: Govt

23 Feb 2009, 2232 hrs IST, PTI NEW DELHI:
The government on Monday approved temporary measures to provide benefits like family and disability pension to staff recruited after January 1, 2004.

"The Cabinet has decided that on a provisional basis existing rules in respect of these special pensionary benefits, which apply to government servants prior to January 1, 2004 will also apply to those recruited after that date", Home Minister P Chidambaram told reporters after the meeting.

The government employees, except defence personnel, who have joined the service after January 1, 2004 are covered by the defined pension scheme which does not address situations like dying in harness, indirect pension, family pension and disability pension, the Minister said.

Pending report by the high level task force looking into the issue and formulation of new rules, the temporary provisions would continue, he said.

Bidding not an end in itself: Allow single bid projects

Government is considering a proposal to permit single-bid road projects to go through. Earlier, the railways had thought of seeking Central

Vigilance Commission (CVC) protection before awarding diesel and electric engine manufacturing projects to sole bidders, but eventually decided to do it in-house.

Clearly, these instances indicate the process of awarding projects seems to have become more important than getting the project started quickly. The basic idea behind competitive bidding for any project is to give an opportunity to everyone and, through a market mechanism, obtain the least cost solution.

Clearly, to the extent there is an open bidding the first purpose of giving an opportunity to everyone has been served. If only one bidder chooses to participate in such a bidding, then so be it. The second issue is more important. In a single-bidder situation, the lack of competition would mean the quoted price may not be the best from the perspective of the one inviting the bids or awarding the project.

In such an event, there are two choices, both entailing some costs. One, the entire process can be aborted and bids called again. There is direct calculable costs of this action, escalation in project cost through delay and the loss of opportunity; there is a also the lesser cost of the bid process itself. As opposed to this, if the project is awarded to the sole bidder, the only cost is the possibility of a better price discovery, if there were more bidders. However, there is no way of knowing if in a multiple bid situation the price discovered would have been lower.

Therefore, it makes sense to award a project even if there is only a single bidder. However, the government must make an internal assessment of costs or tariff, depending on the nature of the project, and set a sort of reserve price. If the single bid betters the reserve price then the projects should be awarded.

In the current environment when investment sentiment is extremely poor, the priority should be to facilitate projects and not get too caught up in procedures. The bid documents should provide for the possibility of projects going to a single bidder and the CVC would do well to ensure that such awards do not become controversial.
Courtesy: Economic Times

Vacany at Department of Biotechnology, last Date 1/4/2009

VIRTUAL ISSUE

Hosts liable only for own content on Net
Manoj Mitta | TNN

New Delhi: While internet users may face libel for what they write themselves, the “intermediaries” who host such content are liable only if they are consciously complicit to the offence or fail to remove the offending material immediately after it is brought to their notice by the authorities.
This is evident from the amended Information Technology Act, which came into effect barely 20 days ago. Hence, when the Supreme Court rebuffed this week an internet user’s plea to quash criminal action, it steered clear of making any observations about the corresponding liability of intermediaries.
The new Indian law is in keeping with the international trend of limiting the liability of intermediaries to situations where they act as “publishers” (with scope to moderate or edit the content) rather than as “distributors” (aggregators of information like libraries and book shops).
Accordingly, the amended section 79, which was in the Bill that was passed by Parliament in December 2008, says that where the intermediary in effect acts as no more than a distributor, he “shall not be liable for any third party information, data or communication link made available or hosted by him.”
Section 79 provides that the intermediary is exempt from liability in all cases where:
the function of the intermediary is limited to providing access to a communication system over which information made available by third parties is transmitted or temporarily stored or hosted;
the intermediary does not (i) initiate the transmission, (ii) select the
receiver of the transmission, and (iii) select or modify the information contained in the transmission;
the intermediary observes due diligence while discharging his duties under this Act and also observes such other guidelines as the Central Government may prescribe in this behalf.
An ‘‘intermediary’’ has been defined in the amended law as “any person who on behalf of another person receives, stores or transmits that record or provides any service with respect to that record and includes telecom service providers, network service providers, internet service providers, web-hosting service providers, search engines, online payment sites, online auction sites, online market places and cyber cafes.”
The elaborate safeguards for intermediaries contained were drafted in the wake of the industrywide scare spread by the 2004 DPS-MMS scandal, which led to the arrest of the CEO of auction site baazee.com where a CD containing the salacious clip was offered on sale by a user.
Conversely, section 79 says that the immunity against criminal liability shall not apply in cases where “the intermediary has conspired or abetted or aided or induced whether by threats or promise or otherwise in the commission of the unlawful act.”
But the police had sought to justify the CEO’s arrest by accusing him of taking too long to remove the CD from the auction site. Now the amended section 79 stipulates that the intermediary is liable to criminal action where “upon receiving actual knowledge, or on being notified by the appropriate government or its agency that any information ... the intermediary fails to expeditiously remove ... that material’’.
Courtesy: TOI

Vacancy at NIFT , Last date 12/03/2009

Important Instructions

Candidates should read the instructions and conditions carefully, before applying.

For posts to be filled up on Deputation basis :

Candidates working in Government Ministries/Departments/Organizations/PSUs/Autonomous Bodies/Universities/Research Organizations should apply through proper channel alongwith ACRs and Vigilance/Cadre Clearance for consideration. No fee is required to be paid. Appointments will be on standard deputation terms and condition as issued by DOPT from time to time. The maximum age limit for applying on deputation for all posts is 56 years as on last date of receipt of applications.

Candidates should ensure that they fulfill the qualification/experience requirements given below, for applying on deputation basis.

How to apply:-

Application forms can be downloaded from the NIFT website (www.nift.ac.in). Applications in the prescribed proforma should be addressed to Registrar (Establishment), National Institute of Fashion Technology, NIFT Campus, Hauz Khas, Near Gulmohar Park, New Delhi-110016. The last date of receipt of the applications is 12th March, 2009.

Eligibility requirements for posts on Deputation basis

S. No.	Name of the Post	Pay Band + Grade Pay	Centres	Eligibility Criteria
1.	Director	PB 4 - Rs. 37400-67000 + 8700 (GP)	Patna, Delhi, Kolkata, Rae Bareli, Head Office, Kannur, Kangra.	Officers of the rank of Dy. Secretary/Director or in Senior Scale in Govt. of India from All India Services, Other Central Services and State Civil Services
2.	Registrar	PB 3 – Rs. 15600-39100 + 7600 (GP)	Kolkata, Patna, Kannur, Bangalore, Kangra	Officers of the Central Govt. / State Govt. / UT/ Autonomous Organization / PSUs holding analogous post on regular basis in their service / department or with atleast 5 years of service in the scale of Rs. 10000-325-15200 with relevant experience in dealing with Establishment & Administrative matters.
3.	Deputy Registrar	PB 3 – Rs. 15600-39100 + 6600 (GP)	Head Office	Officers of the Central Govt. / State Govt. / UT/ Autonomous Organization / PSUs holding analogous post on regular basis in their service / department or with atleast 5 years of service in the scale of Rs. 8000-275-13500 with relevant experience in dealing with Establishment & Administrative matters
4.	Deputy Registrar (Finance & Accounts)	PB 3 – Rs. 15600-39100 + 6600 (GP)	Bhopal, Patna, Kannur, Shillong, Gandhinagar, Kangra.	Officers of the Central Govt. / State Govt. / UT/ Autonomous Organization / PSUs holding analogous post on regular basis in their service / department or with atleast 5 years of service in the scale of Rs. 8000-275-15200 with relevant experience in dealing with Finance and Accounts matters.
5.	Executive Engineer	PB 3 – Rs. 15600-39100 + 6600 (GP)	Delhi, Kolkata, Rae Bareli, Chennai	Must have atleast 3 years experience as Assistant Executive Engineer (Civil) in CPWD / PWD or related Government organizations/ autonomous bodies/ PSUs/ reputed private industries holding analogous post on regular basis in their service / department.
6.	Deputy Director	PB 3 – Rs. 15600-39100 + 6600 (GP)	Head Office	Officers of the Central Govt. Services holding analogous post or with at least 3 years of service in the pay scale of Rs.8000-275-13500 or 5 years in Rs.6500-200-10500 with relevant experience in dealing with Administration, Establishment, Vigilance & Legal matters
7.	Head Resource Centre	PB 3 – Rs. 15600-39100 + 5400 (GP)	Kolkata, Rae Bareli, Gandhinagar	Officers of the Central Govt. / State Govt. / UT/ Autonomous Organization / PSUs holding analogous post on regular basis in their service / department or with at least 5 years of service in the pay scale of Rs. 6500-200-10500 with relevant experience in Library Management holding analogous post on regular basis in their service / department.
8.	Accounts Officer	PB 3 – Rs. 15600-39100 + 5400 (GP)	Kolkata, Patna, Delhi, Rae Bareli, Bhopal, Kannur, Kangra	Officers of the Central Govt. / State Govt./UT/Autonomous Organization / PSUs holding analogous post on regular basis in their service / department or with at least 3 years of service in the scale of Rs. 6500-200-10500/- (pre revised) with the relevant experience in Accounts, Purchases and Finance.

Vacancy of Deputy Chief Accounts Officer at DDA , Last Date with in 45 Days

Cancellation charges under Tatkal Ticket System

A flat refund of 25% of total fare charged on the ticket, excluding Tatkal charges is granted on cancellation of confirmed Tatkal ticket, which are presented for cancellation upto 24 hours before the schedule departure of the train. Thereafter, no refund is granted on cancellation of confirmed Tatkal tickets.

However, full refund of fare and Tatkal Charges is granted on the tickets booked under Tatkal Scheme in the following circumstances:-

1. If the train is delayed by more than 3 hours at the journey originating point of the passenger & not the boarding point if the passenger’s journey originating point and boarding point are different;

2. If the train is to run on a diverted route and the passenger is not willing to travel;

3. If the train is to run on diverted route and boarding station or the destination station or both the stations are not on the diverted route;

4. In case of non-attachment of coach in which Tatkal Accommodation has been earmarked and the passenger has not been provided accommodation in the same class;

5. If the party has been accommodated in lower class and does not want to travel. In case the party travels in lower class, the passenger will be given refund of difference of fare and also the difference of Tatkal charges, if any;

In case of wait list/partially confirmed Tatkal tickets, refund rules of normal tickets are applicable.

This information was given by the Minister of State for Ministry of Railways, Dr. R. Velu in a written reply in Lok Sabha today.

Don’t compel customers to drop cheques in boxes: RBI to banks

Banks have further been asked to create customer awareness by displaying on the cheque drop box itself that “customers can also tender the cheques at the counter and obtain acknowledgment on the pay-in-slips”

PTI

New Delhi: With a number of incidents of cheque theft from the drop boxes coming to light, the Reserve Bank has asked the banks not to force their customers to drop the cheques in the boxes only, Parliament was informed on Wednesday.
“(The) Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has informed that a few such incidents have been reported by the complainants to the offices of the banking ombudsman,” minister of state for finance P.K. Bansal said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.
RBI has further reported that the details of such cases are not compiled separately as they are categorised as 8(1)(a) of the Banking Ombudsman Scheme, 2006, i.e. non-payment or inordinate delay in the payment of collection of cheques, he said.
“RBI has advised the banks that they should ensure that customers are not compelled to drop the cheques in the drop box,” the minister said.
Banks have further been asked to create customer awareness by displaying on the cheque drop box itself that “customers can also tender the cheques at the counter and obtain acknowledgment on the pay-in-slips”.
The banks have also been advised to make absolutely full proof arrangements accounting for the number of instruments each time the box is opened so that there are no disputes and the customer’s interest are not compromised.

Minimum Wages in the NCT w.e.f 1/2/2009

Additional Monetary incentive to All India Service officers beloning to the NE Cadre : GoI OM Dt 10th feb 2009

Upgradation of 45 posts of PPS of the CS Stenographers’ Service to the level of Senior PPS: PIB release Dt Feb 23rd

The Union Cabinet today gave its approval to the proposal of Department of Personnel & Training for upgradation of 45 posts of Principal Private Secretary (PPS) of Central Secretariat Stenographers’ Service (CSSS) in PB-3 ( Rs. 15,600 – 39,100 + Grade Pay Rs. 6600) to the level of Senior Principal Private Secretary ( Sr. PPS) of CSSS in PB-3 ( Rs. 15,600 – 39,100 + Grade Pay Rs. 7600) so as to provide Secretarial / Stenographic assistance, on equal footing, at the level of Sr. PPS to all Secretary / equivalent officers, working in the Ministries / Departments of the Government participating in the Central Secretariat Stenographers’ Service.

New Millennium Indian Technology Leadership Initiative scheme expanded : PIB press Release Feb 13th

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs today gave its approval to the expansion of CSIR managed New Millennium Indian Technology Leadership Initiative (NMITLI) programme with a budget outlay of Rs.700 crore in the XI Five Year Plan. The programme will now experiment newer ways of doing R&D in Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) mode for innovation.

Various newer mechanisms which would be operationalized under NMITLI include : funding R&D projects along with industry on equal sharing (50:50 initiative); co-financing of projects with Venture Capital Funds; setting up of NMITLI innovation centers in selected areas for long term sustained efforts; support to post NMITLI projects; acquisition of early stage relevant knowledge / IP for portfolio building etc.

The flexibility to convert loan into equity and involving international companies selectively in the R&D projects has also been permitted under NMITLI in order to push the programme to the next level.

India has entered into a new era of R&D activities and innovation led development, it is earnestly hoped that expanded NMITLI approaches would further spur public-private partnership lead innovation and development in the country and would help create desired technological niches for Indian industry.

Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) has been managing the NMLTLI programme on behalf of Government of India. NMITLI has carved out a niche for itself and is regarded as a flagship R&D support programme in PPP mode to help Indian industry emerge a technology leader in the identified domain.

Nostrum Pharmaceuticals Obtains Worldwide Licensing Rights From IMTECH for Clinical Development of the Small Molecule Caerulomycin and Its Proprietary

EDISON, N.J., Feb. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- Nostrum Pharmaceuticals, LLC ("Nostrum"), a privately-held company based in Edison, New Jersey, announced today that it has obtained a worldwide license to develop and commercialize Caerulomycin A, and its proprietary derivatives and analogues ("Caerulomycin") for their novel indication of immunosuppression. The license was obtained from Institute of Microbial Technology ("IMTECH"), Chandigarh, India, one of India's preeminent research institutes, governed by the national government's Council of Scientific and Industrial Research ("CSIR").

Nostrum's President and founder, Dr. Nirmal Mulye, Ph.D., expressed his appreciation for the continued efforts by IMTECH and Nostrum's Symmetrix subsidiaries to pursue development of novel biopharmaceutical therapeutic protein drugs, including Caerulomycin and a clot busting protein known as Clot Specific Streptokinase obtained earlier pursuant to license from IMTECH. Dr. Mulye stated that, "our collaborative work with IMTECH in the clinical development of these therapeutic proteins has been ongoing since 2006 and offers a substantial commercial potential for these products in the market worldwide."

Dr. Yatindra Prashar, Ph.D., President and CEO of Nostrum's subsidiary Symmetrix Pharmaceuticals, LLC, based in Edison, NJ, and parent of Singapore-based Symmetrix Biotech Pvt. Ltd. (collectively "Symmetrix"), was principally responsible for reaching the new license agreement with IMTECH. Dr. Prashar emphasized that, "This novel bioactivity of Caerulomycin has shown remarkable promise in immunosuppression of both T-cells and B-cells in both in-vitro experiments and in rodent animal model studies. In addition, preliminary studies carried out by IMTECH also show a lack of toxicity in the rodent experiments. Based on these observations made by IMTECH's scientists, Caerulomycin has a potential to develop into a blockbuster drug to be used to prevent organ transplant rejection and diseases such as certain autoimmune disorders where immunosuppression is the key to the mitigation of the disease symptoms."

Dr. Girish Sahni, Ph.D., Director, IMTECH, added, "Licensing of Caerulomycin to Nostrum is a proud achievement for IMTECH, especially for the scientific teams led by Dr. Javed Agrewala, Ph.D., Dr. R. M. Vohra, Ph.D., Dr. Arvind Singla, Ph.D. and Dr. R. S. Jolly, Ph.D., that developed Caerulomycin over several years of meticulous research which led to the filing of patent applications for the technology. Moreover, this is the second molecule that IMTECH has under license with Nostrum, the first being a novel thrombolytic clot-buster protein known as SMRX11. While SMRX11 was the first patented recombinant DNA based biopharmaceutical molecule licensed to a foreign pharmaceutical company by any institution in India, Caerulomycin is the first small molecule being licensed by IMTECH to a foreign company, and it is a proud achievement for IMTECH and CSIR."

Earlier today in New Delhi, Dr. Mulye and Dr. Sahni signed the licensing agreement at CSIR headquarters at a function that was attended by the Honorable Mr. Kapil Sibal, Minister of Science and Technology, Government of India, and Professor Samir K. Brahmachari, Director General, CSIR. The function was also attended by various dignitaries within the Indian scientific establishment, and the signing event was covered by the press and television media. Terms of the licensing agreement were not disclosed.

Mr. Sibal, the Minister of Science and Technology, acknowledged that the "Caerulomycin agreement was once again a new first whereby IMTECH and CSIR have been able to license for clinical development a small molecule for therapeutic purposes." Mr. Sibal praised and congratulated Dr. Sahni, Director IMTECH and the scientific teams at IMTECH that developed the Caerulomycin compound, and he also congratulated Dr. Mulye and Dr. Prashar for their prior commitment to take forward the collaboration between Nostrum and IMTECH for SMRX11 and expressed confidence that the same commitment would be shown by Nostrum to carry forward this new collaboration on Caerulomycin. He expressed "hope and confidence that Nostrum and its Symmetrix subsidiaries will nurture the Caerulomycin project well and develop it into a blockbuster drug."

Prof. Brahmachari, Director General, CSIR, also congratulated Dr. Mulye and Dr. Sahni for the growing partnership between Nostrum and CSIR and cited the relationship as an outstanding example of public-private partnership that will help an organization like CSIR achieve its basic mandate to carry out research that ultimately benefits mankind. Prof. Brahmachari also complimented the scientific teams at IMTECH for developing the immunosuppressant Caerulomycin molecule.

Nostrum is involved in the development and commercialization of products using novel drug delivery systems for generic and innovative pharmaceutical products in the United States and abroad. Relatedly, Symmetrix's core capability aims at establishing a pipeline of novel, patented biopharmaceutical therapeutic protein drugs by identifying emerging technologies worldwide. Located on a 25 acre campus in Chandigarh, India, IMTECH is a research institute for basic and applied biomedical and microbiological research.

Transport Allowance to Directors of CSIR Lab/Int CSIR OM Dt 27/01/2009

Relaxation of Procedure to be followed in considering requests for medical reimbursements GoI OM Dated 20/2/2009

Payment/ Reimbursment of Medical Expanses- from two Sources (Insurence agencies and GoI) GoI OM Dated 19/2/2009

GoI Clarification regarding commutation of pension Dt 16/2/2009

Implementation of Government’s decision on the recommendation of the Sixth CPC – Revision of provisions regulating gratuity

No.7/7/2008-P&PW (F)

Government of India

Ministry of Personnel Public Grievances and Pensions

Department of Pension and Pensioners Welfare

*******

Lok Nayak Bhawan,

Khan Market, New Delhi-110 003

dated 13^th February, 2009

OFFICE MEMORANDUM

Subject : Implementation of Government’s decision on the recommendation of the Sixth CPC – Revision of provisions regulating gratuity .

The undersigned is directed to say that in terms of para 7.1 of this Department’s O.M. No.38/37/2008-P&PW(A) dated the 2^nd September, 2008 issued in implementation of the decision taken on the recommendation of the Sixth Central Pay Commission, the benefit of adding years of qualifying service for the purpose of computation of pension shall stand withdrawn with effect from the date of issue of the O.M.

2. Sixth Central Pay Commission in Para 5.1.33 of its Report made the following recommendation:

“Linkage of full pension with 33 years of qualifying service should be dispensed with. Once an employee renders the minimum pensionable service of 20 years, pension should be paid at 50% of the average emoluments received during the past 10 months or the pay last drawn, whichever is more beneficial to the retiring employee. Simultaneously, the extant benefit of adding years of qualifying service for purposes of computing pension/related benefits should be withdrawn as it would no longer be relevant.”

This recommendation was accepted by Government of India vide Resolution No.38/37/2008-P&PW (A) dated 29^th August, 2008.

3. It is clear from the above recommendations/decisions, that the benefit of adding years of qualifying service is withdrawn for the purpose of computing pension as well as other related benefits such as gratuity.

4. This issues with the concurrence of the Ministry of Finance, Department of Expenditure U.O. No.4.2/40/2009-IC dated 12.2.2009

5. Ministry of Agriculture etc. are requested to take into consideration the above position while computing pension and gratuity of government servants who have retired since 2.9.2008.

Sd/-

(M.P. Singh)

Director (PP)

Tele:24624802

CSIR lab in second licensing deal with US pharma company

Bangalore: Chandigarh-based Institute of Microbial Technology, or Imtech, a constituent laboratory of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, or CSIR, has licensed a new drug molecule to the US’ Nostrum Pharmaceuticals Inc. for $3 million (about Rs15 crore).

Imtech will make a formal announcement on Monday, disclosing the terms of the deal, but its director Girish Sahni finds it’s creditworthy that his lab could strike the deal in an economic slowdown and in an environment where pharma companies “do not want to pick up molecules from Indian laboratories”.
The CSIR lab and New Jersey-based Nostrum have an association going back to July 2006 when the US firm obtained worldwide technology licensing rights from Imtech for a clot-busting therapeutic protein for $20 million.
Considered as signalling a paradigm change in the way government labs worked, that agreement also led, for the first time for any Indian lab, to the “incubation of that molecule” in Imtech. “We have learnt a lot working with Nostrum on that molecule which is progressing well and is being tested on monkeys in the US,” said Sahni.
This time, the discovery is about a novel bioactivity of Caerulomycin A, a known compound with antibiotic properties. In the new form, which is derived from a microbe, Caerulomycin has shown promise in so-called immunosuppression of T and B cells in both lab studies and in animal (rodent) models. The white blood cells called T and B cells are the protective cells that attack any foreign entity entering the human body.
This property of the compound, says Sahni, makes it a potentially good candidate for drugs that prevent organ transplant rejection as well as those used in autoimmune disorders. Autoimmune disorders, including type I diabetes and rheumatoid arthritis, are diseases where the body reacts against some of its own tissue and produces antibodies to attack itself.
While the clot-busting protein was the first proprietary recombinant DNA-based biopharmaceutical molecule licensed to an overseas company by any government institution, Caerulomycin is the first “small” molecule (used in regular drugs) to be licensed, say Imtech scientists.
The new molecule will be developed through traditional chemical synthesis. Imtech has a pipeline of 15-20 other molecules, which it is trying to improve to get advance derivatives in areas such as oncology and human antibodies.
“We are also looking for new compounds in the microbial diversity,” says Sahni, who thinks this deal would encourage other labs to commercialize their discoveries.
In recent past, CSIR has been making a serious attempt to derive monetary value out of its intellectual property. Director general Samir K. Brahmachari says even though CSIR is ahead of many public-funded institutions in the world in terms of the percentage of technology transferred to industry, it still has to achieve more in the area. “The amount of money realization is low but we are working on that.”
Courtesy : Livemint.com

Speed Clearing – Frequently Asked Questions(RBI)

Question 1	What is Speed Clearing ?
Answer	Speed Clearing refers to collection of outstation cheques through the local clearing. It facilitates collection of cheques drawn on outstation core-banking-enabled branches of banks, if they have a net-worked branch locally.
Question 2	Why Speed Clearing ?
Answer	As of now, outstation cheques are paid through two channels viz. on Collection basis or through National Clearing (Inter-city Clearing). This requires movement of cheques from the Presentation centre (city where the cheque is presented) to Drawee centre (city where the cheque is payable) which elongates the realisation time for cheques. Speed Clearing aims to reduce the time taken for realisation of outstation cheques.
Question 3	What is “Collection basis” ?
Answer	A person who has an outstation cheque with him deposits it with his bank’s branch. It is called Presenting branch. This cheque is sent for collection to the city where it is payable / drawn called Destination centre or Drawee centre. The branch providing the collection service at the Destination centre is called Collecting branch. On receipt of the cheque, the Collecting branch presents it in local clearing to the Drawee branch or the Destination branch. Once the cheque is paid the Collecting branch remits the proceeds to the Presenting branch. On receipt of realisation advice of the cheque from the Collecting branch, the customer’s account is credited. This, in short, is the process of Collection. When a cheque is taken on Collection basis by a bank, it credits the customer’s account after realisation. Alternatively, in the absence of a collection arrangement at the Destination centre, the Presenting branch will send the cheque directly to the Destination branch for payment.
Question 4	How long does it take for getting credit of an outstation cheque sent (i) on Collection basis and through (ii) National Clearing (Inter-city Clearing) ?
Answer	Generally, it takes around a week to three weeks time to get outstation cheques realised through Collection basis. In case of National Clearing, it takes around a week's time. National Clearing is an arrangement under which the Clearing Houses managed by RBI provide inter-city cheque collection service to member banks of those Clearing Houses.
Question 5	Is National Clearing available in all cities ?
Answer	No. It is available at fifteen cities viz. Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Bhopal, Bhubaneshwar, Chennai, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kanpur, Kolkata, Mumbai, Nagpur, New Delhi, Patna and Thiruvananthapuram.
Question 6	How does the Local Cheque Clearing work ?
Answer	In Local Cheque Clearing in 61 major centres, cheques are processed at the Clearing Houses on mechanical sorters, using Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR) technology. Local Clearing handles only those cheques that are drawn on branches within the jurisdiction of the local Clearing House. Generally, the distance between the Clearing House and the participating branches is defined, taking into account the local transportation and communication facilities as the cheques have to physically move to and from the Clearing House. For example, for a cheque to be processed in Local Clearing in Mumbai, both the presenting and drawee branches should be within the jurisdiction of the Clearing House in Mumbai.
Question 7	How does the Speed Clearing work ?
Answer	Banks have networked their branches by implementing Core Banking Solutions (CBS). In CBS environment, cheques can be paid at any location obviating the need for their physical movement to the Drawee branch. The concept Speed Clearing combines the advantages of MICR clearing with CBS. Cheques drawn on outstation CBS branches of a Drawee bank can be processed in the Local Clearing under the Speed Clearing arrangement if the Drawee bank has a branch presence at the local centre.
Question 8	When will the beneficiary get funds under Speed Clearing ?
Answer	As on date, the local cheques are processed on T+1 working day basis and customers get the benefit of withdrawal of funds on a T+1 or 2 basis. 'T' denotes transaction day viz. date of presentation of cheque at the Clearing House. So, the outstation cheques under Speed Clearing will also be paid on T+1 or 2 basis.
Question 9	How is Speed Clearing an improvement over National Clearing ?
Answer	In case of National Clearing the cheque is realised in around a week's time. Under the Speed Clearing, it would be realised on T+1 or 2 basis viz. within 48 hours. National Clearing is restricted to cheques drawn on the specified locations. Speed Clearing has no geographical limitation. Cheques drawn on any location may be cleared as long as the branch is in CBS. National Clearing necessitates movement of the cheque to the Drawee centre. Speed Clearing facilitates the clearing of such cheques locally without the need to move the cheques to the Drawee centre.
Question 10	Which are the centres where Speed Clearing is presently available ?
Answer	Speed Clearing is currently available in 41 MICR centres.
Question 11	What about charges for cheques cleared through Speed Clearing ?
Answer	Presenting branches are currently permitted to levy charges at a rate not exceeding Rs.150 per cheque (inclusive of all charges other than Service Tax) for cheques of above Rs. 1 lakh presented through Speed Clearing.