Discoms’ dues to gencos rise to Rs 88,177 cr

Total outstanding dues owed by distribution firms to power producers jumped nearly 50 per cent to Rs 88,177 crore in December 2019 over the same month in the previous year, reflecting stress in the sector. Distribution companies (discoms) owed a total of Rs 59,015 crore to power generation companies in December 2018, according to PRAAPTI (Payment Ratification And Analysis in Power procurement for bringing Transparency in Invoicing of generators) portal. The portal was launched in May 2018 to bring in transparency in power purchase transactions between the generators and discoms. In December 2019, the total overdue amount, which was not cleared even after 60 days of grace period offered by generators, stood at Rs 78,174 crore as against Rs 44,464 crore in December 2018.

‘Align RBI’s accounting year with fiscal year’

The Reserve Bank board has recommended aligning the central bank’s accounting year, beginning July, with the financial year from 2020-21. The board recommended aligning the financial year of RBI, currently July to June, with the government’s fiscal year (April to March) from 2020-21. It has approved forwarding a proposal to the government for its consideration, the RBI said. Addressing the board meeting, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman outlined the thinking behind the Union Budget 2020-21 and the focus areas of the government. She indicated increased complementarity in policy between the RBI and the government to address growth concerns, the statement said. Complimenting the finance minister on the Budget, the board members made various suggestions for consideration of the government, it added.

J&K set to get a separate theatre command

India is looking at setting up a separate theatre command for Jammu and Kashmir, said Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat. The air defence command is to be rolled out by the beginning of next year and the Peninsula command by the end of 2021, he said. The Indian Air Force will helm the air defence command and all long-range missiles as well as air defence assets will come under it, he said. Indian Navy’s Eastern and Western commands will be integrated into the Peninsula command, he said. India will also have a separate training and doctrinal command and logistics command, he said. General Rawat also favoured a policy of staggered procurement of big-ticket purchases, including the acquisition of 114 fighter jets.

India rejects UN chief’s offer of mediation

India has rejected UN chief Antonio Guterres’ offer of mediation on Kashmir and said the real issue that needed to be addressed is to vacate territories “illegally and forcibly” occupied by Pakistan. The assertion by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) came after Guterres said in Islamabad that he was concerned over the situation in Kashmir, and that he was ready to mediate between India and Pakistan to resolve the long-pending issue. MEA spokesman Raveesh Kumar said Jammu and Kashmir is and will continue to be an integral part of India and hoped that the UN secretary general would press Pakistan to take credible and irreversible action to stop cross-border terrorism. “Further issues, if any, would be discussed bilaterally. There is no role for third-party mediation,” he added.

First Arab nuclear power plant gets licence

The UAE has issued a licence for a reactor at its Barakah nuclear power plant, the first in the Arab world. The national nuclear regulator “has approved the issuance” of the operating licence for the first of four reactors at the plant, said Hamad al-Kaabi, the UAE representative to the International Atomic Energy Agency. “This is a historic moment for the UAE, making it the first Arab country in the region to operate a nuclear power plant,” Kaabi said. The Barakah plant, located on the Gulf coast west of the UAE’s capital, had been due to come online in late 2017 but faced a number of delays that officials attributed to safety and regulatory requirements. When fully operational, the four reactors have the capacity to generate 5,600 MW of electricity, around 25 per cent of the country’s needs.

World’s first yoga university outside India

The world’s first yoga university outside India will start its post-graduation course later this year in the US along with research in yoga. The Vivekananda Yoga University (VAYU) has established its initial campus in Los Angeles with a budget of $5 million. Sree Sreenath, a professor from Case Western University, has been named its president and Indian yoga guru H.R. Nagendra as its chairman, the university said. VAYU is said to be the brain child of Nagendra, a former scientist at NASA, who has been working on transforming the ancient practice into a socially relevant science for the past four decades. Having started the first Yoga University in India (S-VYASA) in 2002, Nagendra said he aspires to create a global university for yoga-based higher education.

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