As a sequel to recommendations of Sub-Group on Urban Transport for Ninth Plan, the Ministry of Urban Affairs and Employment has advised the States with million plus cities to set up Directorate of Urban Transport to handle the integrated urban transport subject. This Directorate should be staffed with transport professionals like transport planners, transport economists, bus and rail specialists and supporting staff. These Directorates would be strengthened gradually as the work increases for the particular states having a number of million plus cities.

    A provision of Rs.5 crores towards Central share during the Ninth plan to meet the cost of establishment on such directorates has been proposed. A matching amount of Rs. 5 crores is proposed to be provided by the State Governments having million plus cities.

    Multi-modal integrated urban transport has assumed significance with life in the million plus cities almost choked. There is a need for a faster mode of bulk transportation in the form of light rail rapid transit system.

    Since 1986, the subject of urban transport is the concern of Ministry of Urban Affairs and Employment. This Ministry is very keen that a dedicated separate urban transport directorate in States with million plus cities is set up.
 
 

    Shri P.C. Jain, the Chairman of the Commission on Review of Administrative Laws presented the Report to Cabinet Secretary, Shri Prabhat Kumar, here today. The other members of the Commission Shri H.D. Shourie, Director, Common Cause and Shri S. Ramaiah, Retired Legislative Secretary, Government of India were also present on the occasion.

    Shri Kumar appreciated the magnitude and quality of the efforts made by the Commission for finalising the report in such a short time. He assured the Commission that the Government would examine its recommendations for expeditious decision.

    The important recommendations of the Commission are:

* Repeal of over 1300 Central Laws of different categories out of about 2500 Laws in force. These include 115 Central Acts relating to State subjects for repeal by State Governments. In this context, review of all the pre-Constitution Laws should be taken up to bring them in line with present-day requirements. Sunset provisions similar to the USA should be introduced in laws wherever possible.

* Expeditious amendments should be considered in respect of a critical list of about 110 laws including those regarding which action has been initiated.

* All the Ministries/Departments should compile upto date information about rules, regulations, orders and procedures under different Central Laws administered by them including manuals in respect of areas which are important from the point of view of the general public. These should be disseminated to the Electronic media with periodical updating. Similar efforts should be made by the State Governments also, since the regulatory framework in the States has an impact on the working of economic and social sectors.

* There is a need to study the entire complex of laws, regulations and procedures affecting the quality of life of the poor and disadvantaged sectors of the society in a focussed manner.

* There is a need also for unification and harmonisation of statutes, laws and regulations with reference to the perspective of domestic and foreign investors, trade and industry, consumers, builders, exporters and importers. In this process, the Government should simplify the language used in all regulations, rules and orders. The unification exercise should also address Centre-State interface and the issues can be remitted to the Inter-State Council.

* Specific proposals have been formulated on the regulatory frameworks relating to 13 sectors, including housing and Urban Development, Land Acquisition, Sick industrial companies, Company Law, Non-Banking Financial Companies, Foreign Investment, Essential Commodities Act, Health Sector, Environment, Industry, Labour Laws, Direct and Indirect Taxation, Consumer Protection, Import and Export, the Administration of Justice and Alternate Disputes Resolution. In these recommendations, the effort has been to keep in front the problems and needs of the user groups, apart from the administrative requirements of efficiency, coordination and economy.

*     The Commission has drawn attention to the accumulation of a huge back-log of cases estimated to be about 28 million. Apart from the improvement of judicial Administration, the recommendation is for expanding the system of alternate disputes resolution, more effective use extending the establishment of legal services authority to all the states and districts, and use of self-regulatory mechanism by industry and trade. The Commission was set up on 8th May, 1998.
 
 

    When a sectoral analysis of India's exports is undertaken, it is observed that the different sectors, apart from facing some common problems/difficulties such as high cost of credit, procedural problems, also face certain problems intrinsic only to a single sector. The Commerce Ministry has tried to identify these sector-wise problems and has also taken steps to remedy these problems.

    As regards the marine products sector, a major problem area has been identified as the restrictions imposed by the European Union (for a short period) on Indian marine products on account of poor hygiene and health standards. The Commerce Ministry, in order to deal with this problem, has introduced a certification process to help quality control. Around 30 units have already received approval under this certification process. The major problem being faced by the leather and leather products sector has been the closure of tanneries in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal following the Supreme Court order, thus affecting the availability of leather for export production. The Commerce Ministry, to help this sector, has lowered the threshold limit under the Export Promotion Capital Goods scheme for this sector. Pollution control measures have also been implemented under a centrally sponsored scheme along with active participation of the concerned state governments.

    The Engineering Exports sector has been hit by the East Asian crisis, by problems related with market access to the developed countries, and infrastructure problems also. The measures taken to help this sector include market diversification to the Latin American, African and CIS markets as also the formulation of improved marketing strategies. The Gems and Jewellery sector apart from problems related with the import of gold has also had to deal with demand recession in Japan and South-East Asia. Thus, gold import has been liberalised and simplified. This sector is also being restructured with the focus on gold jewellery, keeping in mind the potential for gold jewellery exports in world trade. Textile exports were seen to be facing problems due to the reduction in drawback rates. The rates were restored in 1997. The threshold limit for Export Promotion Capital Goods zero duty scheme has also been reduced for the garments sector.
 
 

    The Minister of State for Railways, Shri Ram Naik, will flag off the Kurla-Varanasi Express from Kurla on October 2, 1998. The train will leave Kurla at 1220 hours and after 31 hours reach Varanasi at 1920 hours the following day. The train will provide a direct service for Mumbai and Varanasi (1638 kms) via Bina-Sagar-Damoh-Katni.

    This daily train will meet the long standing demand of the people of the area. Provision was made in the Railway budget-98 for the introduction of this train. The train will have 17 bogies with one AC 3 tier, one AC II tier and 9 Sleeper Class.

    The stoppages for this trains will be at - Thane, Kalyan, Igatpuri, Nasik, Manmad, Bhusawal, Burhanpur, Khandwa, Itarsi, Habibganj, Bhopal, Bina, Sagar, Damoh, Katni, Satna, Manikpur, Allahabad, Phulpur, Janghai and Badohi.
 
 

    The Government has announced Kabir Puraskar, Grade III for the year, 1998. Smt. Santanu Deb Barma of Khowai, Distt. Tripura West, Tripura for her active part in preventing violence in and around Samtai Padmabil, Hatbatta and North Padmabil during ethnic riots of February, 1997. She mobilised the local public to prevent the agitated tribal youths from attacking non-tribal villagers.

    Kabir Puraskar is a National Award instituted by the Government of India in April, 1990, for recognising the acts of physical/moral courage displayed by member of one caste, community or ethnic group in saving the life and property of member(s) of another caste, community or ethnic group during caste, community or ethnic violence. The Award is given annually in three grades - Grade I, II and III carrying cash amount of Rs.1,00,000/-, Rs.50,000/- and Rs.25,000/- respectively.
 
 

    Union Public Service Commission will hold the Combined Defence Services Examination on 4th October, 1998 as scheduled. There is no change in the schedule of the examination.
 
 

    The Government of India has constituted a 70-Member National Committee under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister to celebrate in a befitting manner the 300 th Anniversary of Khalsa Panth. 13th April, 1999 will mark the completion of 300 years of the Birth of Khalsa. The National Committee includes Shri Chandra Shekhar and Shri I.K.Gujaral, former Prime Ministers of India, Union Minister of Home Affairs,Shri L.K.Advani; Minister of HRD Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi, Minister of Defence,Shri George Fernandes; Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Tourism,Shri M.L.Khurana,Minister of Commerce, Shri R.K.Hedge, Chief Minister of Punjab, Shri Prakash Singh Badal and Chief Minister of J&K, Shri Farooq Abdullah, Chief Minister of UP, Shri Kalyan Singh , Chief Minister of Delhi, Shri Sahib Singh, Dy. Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Shri Gopinath Munde, former Chief Minister of Haryana Shri Bansi Lal.

    A number of other eminent Personalities : President,Shree Gurudwara Prabhandak Committee Shri Gurcharan Singh Tohra; former Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Shri Sharad Pawar, former Chief Minister of Tamilnadu, Miss Jayalalita, former Defence Minister, Shri Mulayam Singh Yadav, General Secretary of CPM,Shri Hari Kishan Singh Surjeet,  and Chairman, Gurudwara Board, Takhat Shri Abohal Nagar are also included in the Committee. Personalities like Film Director Gulzar and Actress Shabana Azmi, noted writer Amrita Pritam and Kushwant Singh , are also among the Committee Members. Renouned Journalist and M.P.Shri Narandra Mohan,Editor of Hindustan Times, Shri V.N.Narayanan, Editor , Hind Samachar Group, Shri Vijay Chopra, Editor , Times of India, Shri Raminder Singh are also on the Committee.

    The National Committee would be meeting shortly to finalise the programmes for Tricentenary Celebration of the Birth of Khalsa. At the international level, on the initiative of the Government of India to get declared 1999 as the Year of "Human Faith", the UNESCO has adopted the Resolution for including theme "Human Spirit" in the International Year for the Culture of Peace.

    Government of India has received a number of proposals from the Punjab Government which include the assistance for establishment of multi-faceted Khalsa Complex, Release of Commemorative Stamp and Commemorative Coins and Declaration of Year 1999 as 'The Year of Human Spirit' which would be placed before the National Committee along with other proposals.

    Guru Nanak (1469-1539) had preached a gospel of love and faith. Guru Nanak's chief doctrines were 'the unity of God, brotherhood of man, rejection of caste and futality of idol worship'.

    On Baisakhi day 29th March 1676 Guru Gobind Singh was formally installed Guru. Guru Gobind Singh was the 10th Guru. The Sikhs came in large numbers from all parts of the country to join the gathering and participate in the ceremonies.

    In 1699 - on the first day of Vaisakh, mid-spring, and the beginning of the Hindu new Year, Guru Gobind Singh, after a great thought, decided finally to evolve a new Order Picking up five from congregation after testing them, Guru Gobind Singh instructed the five Beloved ones to sit around it alongwith himself and to stir the water by turns with a double-edged dagger, riciting five compositions, one by one, composed by himself or the earlier Gurus. The Gurus administered what he called "Amrit" (or nectar) to his Beloved five, one by one and then entered them to administer the "Amrit" to him likewise. Replying to the query raised by his disciples in surprise, Guru said: "It's a new order I have evolved from this day, where there'll be no high and no low. I want to establish this fraternity on the basis of utter equality by asking  to become your disciple now". The Guru was administered "Amrit" the same way, much to the wonder of his devout followers. It electrified the atmosphere as nothing else could. It is said many thousand persons were baptised thus on that day at their request, their number rising to eighty thousand in two weeks'time. The Guru called them the Khalsa, the pure and his every own. Addressing the gathering, the Guru said ".....In your new order, the lowest will rank with the highest and each other will be to the other a Bhai (Brother). Women shall be the equal of men in every way.