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Trai backs open access But exempts specialised services, critical IoT, content delivery networks Within days of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) proposingaplan to dismantle the existing net neutrality regulations in the US, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has recommended upholding the basic principle of keeping the internet free.The proposals of Trai, when accepted by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), would ensure that no service provider can restrict, discriminate or interfere in the treatment of content by blocking, slowing down, degrading or granting preferential speeds while providing internet access. “No one owns the internet.so, it should be open and accessible to everyone,” Trai Chairman RS Sharma said.Although Trai has addressed key concerns such as discriminatory treatment of content, zerorating etc, it has exempted specialised services, critical internet of things (IoT) services, and content delivery networks (CDN) of operators fr...

GST anti profiteering body set up The government has set up the National Anti-Profiteering Authority amid reports that some companies, particularly restaurants, are not passing on the benefit of the goods and services tax (GST) rate cuts to consumers.BN Sharma, additional secretary in the department of revenue, was on Tuesday appointed chairman of the authority.Now, guidelines on what exactly constitutes profiteering are awaited. The authority will exist for a period of two years from the date Sharma takes charge.The authority is mandated to ensure that the benefits of input credit and the reduction in GST rates on specified goods or services are passed on to the consumers by way of a commensurate reduction in prices. The government also named four senior officials as technical members of the authority.“With the chairman and technical members now having been appointed, the authority becomes functional thereby reassuring consumers of the government´s commitment that GST would result...

Govtwants RBI rate cut before March  Impatient for faster economic growth, government is lobbying forareduction in official interest rates in coming months, as it expects inflation to stay close toa 4 per cent target, finance ministry officials said. At its last meeting in October, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) left the repo rate at 6.0 per cent, near as even year low, and a Reuters poll found that economists expected the rate to stay there through to the second quarter of next year. The finance ministry, according to officials, wantsarate cut sooner than that, puttingafocus on the MPC meeting on December 56, or when it next convenes in February. “We expect the RBI to cut policy rates, if not in December then in its next policy review,” one ministry official said on condition of anonymity.After that, he said, higher oil prices could fuel inflation, making it more difficult to cut rates The Business Standard, New Delhi, 29th November 2017

Arun Jaitley defends IBC ordinance says no loan waiver for big defaulters Arun Jaitley says under the new Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, cases have been instituted in NCLT for time-bound recovery from 12 largest defaulters in 6-9 monthsFinance minister Arun Jaitley on Tuesday defended recent steps taken by the government to tackle bad loans in the Indian banking system and blamed aggressive lending during the years the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) was in power for the pile-up of toxic assets. In a blog, the finance minister also defended amendments to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) through an ordinance aimed at keeping wilful defaulters away from regaining control of their assets The government has been criticized by opposition parties for introducing amendments to IBC through an ordinance. The ordinance, which came into effect last week after receiving the President’s signature, bars errant promoters of defaulting companies as well as guarantors to the debtor, ...

Sebi framing algo trading rules for retail investors The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) plans to introduce rules on the participation of retail investors in algorithmic trading, a system widely regarded as giving its sophisticated institutional practitioners an edge.The capital markets regulator is in the process of determining the extent to which individual investors should be allowed to use this automated trading system. Algo trading uses advanced mathematical models and computer programmes to create nimble trading strategies. Decisions are made and executed in fractions of a second at magnitudes a human being couldn’t handle. This advantage over manual methods is a concern for regulators around the world.The thinking in Sebi is that domestic individual investors should also be given an opportunity to take advantage of algo trades. It has asked exchanges to gather feedback from brokers to firm up rules on the subject, said two people with knowledge of the matte...

Independent directors in a fix after SC order on asset transfer in Jaiprakash Associates case A recent Supreme Court judgement restraining independent directors of Jaiprakash Associates from transferring any personal assets over a group company’s insolvency issue has sent shock waves through the independent directors’ fraternity, with experts warning that there would be few takers for this role. Several independent directors on boards of companies are now seeking legal advice to find out to what extent they can be held liable for any operational issues in those firms.Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, chairperson of Biocon, said the country is moving from poor governance to extreme governance. “It is unfair to place the entire onus on independent directors who are only privy to the information shared with them by the management,” she said. “Instead of penalising independent directors, the management and promoters should be penalised.” A corporate veteran who is on the board of several blue c...