RTI AMENDMENT BILL 2013

• The government has introduced in the Lok Sabha the RTI Amendment Bill 2013 to nullify the June 3, 2013 order of the Central Information Commission which had ruled that national political parties (INC, BJP, CPIM, CPI, NCP and BSP) are public authorities under Section 2 (h) of the RTI Act.

 HIGHLIGHTS:

• Introduced by: V. Narayanasamy, MoS Personnel
• The Bill exempts political parties from the definition of “public authority” and hence from law itself.
• It justifies the exclusion saying, “Declaring a political party as public authority under the RTI Act would hamper its smooth internal working which is not the objective of the said Act and was not envisaged by Parliament under the RTI Act. Further, political rivals may misuse the provisions of the RTI Act thereby adversely affecting the functioning of political parties.”
• The Bill grants “retrospective” immunity from the RTI Act to political parties and says the amendment would take force from June 3, 2013, the date of CIC order.
• It amends Section 2 (h) of the RTI Act which defines a public authority and adds an explanation to this clause stating -- the expression “authority or body of institution of self government established or constituted by any law made by Parliament shall not include any association or body or individuals registered or recognized as a political party under the Representation of People Act, 1951.”

TELANGANA

• Telangana is all set to become the 29th state of India after government accepted the 57-year-old demand of the people of the region.
•  What sets Telangana apart from other regions witnessing statehood demand is that it was a separate state in the past, ruled by the Nizams, but was merged with the rest of the Telugu-speaking regions in 1956 to form Andhra Pradesh, the country’s first linguistic state.

 HIGHLIGHTS:

• Area- 1.14 lakh sq km
• Population- 3.52 crore; 41.6% of AP’s population
• Literacy rate- 65.5%
• Economically speaking- Contributes over 51% to the Gross State Domestic Product, a major chunk of which comes from Hyderabad
• The new Telangana state would comprise the 10 districts of Hyderabad, Medak, Adilabad, Khammam, Karimnagar, Mahbubnagar, Nalgonda, Nizamabad, Rangareddy and Warangal.
• Hyderabad will be joint capital of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana at least for 10 years.
• 20% of Indian coal reserves will come under Telangana and also of mica and bauxite.
• It will have 17 Lok Sabha seats and 119 state assembly seats.

 WHAT IT MEANS FOR ANDHRA:

• In absolute GDP size, Andhra region third among states
• Within AP, Coastal Andhra is superior economic entity-considered rice bowl
• Now loses control over rivers Krishna & Godavari
•  Loses control over mineral rich Telangana region
• Has to develop new capital
• Loses Telangana revenue that was 50% of state revenues.
• Possibility of Greater Rayalseema statehood demand.

NEXT STEP:

• Andhra Assembly to pass a resolution, Union Home Ministry will then submit a Cabinet note
• After Cabinet’s OK, a group of ministers will go into economic aspects
• Home Min. submits Cabinet note including all recommendations
• Home Min note through PM goes to President requesting him to refer the Bill to the State legislature
• Law Ministry to vet the Bill with recommendations
• After passage by both Houses of Parliament, Bill goes to President for his assent

DANGEROUS TREND:

• One immediate consequence is likely to be renewed demands from other parts of India for separate states, including in the Darjeeling hills and a further breakup of the most populous Uttar Pradesh state. The agitation for Bodoland may be revived in Assam. Demands for Bundelkhand (out of UP & MP) and Vidarbha (from Maharashtra) are also alive.
• Another fear is that leftist guerrillas who operate in parts of the proposed Telangana state will become further emboldened and take advantage as the new state comes into being.

 Smaller states are generally easier to administer, although this isn't a slam-dunk as the cases of Jharkhand — or more recently Uttarakhand which caved in entirely to floods — show. In certain cases larger states can mobilize more resources, as Andhra demonstrated by being the most successful among Indian states in tackling Maoism. Whatever might be the long-term advantages of the division of Andhra, it's clear that in the short term there will be many challenges. The additional funds for building social and physical infrastructure will burden the central government, adding to fiscal deficits which are already weighing down the economy. Business in coastal Andhra Pradesh will lose easy access to the large market in Hyderabad, while those in Telangana will be unable to easily access the large ports and tap the advantage of the huge gas reserves in Godavari basin.