SEBI struck its claws again by banning 3 entities from the market. The said order was passed in violation to the provision of the Prohibition of Insider Trading Regulation as the three entities were found to be in hold of unpublished price sensitive information. It is pertinent to note that the order was rightly passed upon the presumption that the securities were traded based upon the knowledge and information possessed in lieu of the unpublished price sensitive information. The watchdog has passed similar orders in the past, thereby, time and again it can be observed to be upholding transparency in the trading market.
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“The Covid-19 pandemic paved way for a more dynamic and flexible work culture. Adoption of a 4-day workweek would certainly be a major next step and a significant leap forward in the same direction. From an employer’s perspective assessing the feasibility and its impact on the output would be immediate concerns to be addressed. Further, there are other ancillary challenges such as dual employment, as employees may tend to use the extra free time to take up other jobs during the 3 off-work days. From an employee’s perspective, working for 12 hours a day for 4 days at a stretch may increase stress levels and cause burnout in the long run, which will affect their productivity. Finally, a multitude of factors such as job role, nature of the industry, etc. would also play a vital role in the viability of 4 work-days a week and a blanket approach for all may not be a viable option. Also, a 4 day work week may just be the game-changer for enhancing the participation of women in India’s workforce. Most importantly, the recognition of a 4-day workweek by law would send an extremely strong signal to both employers and employees on the need for a better work-life balance. It would not be incorrect to say that working beyond normal working hours is a tacit norm and part of minimum expectations in India today, at least in the private sector - which certainly needs to change.” Minu Dwivedi, Partner, J Sagar Associates
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With immense competition from Chinese mobile manufacturers, LG has not been able to reclaim its lost market share in India. Despite its recent stance of looking to tap into the growing anti-Chinese sentiments and manufacture affordable India specific mobile phones under the PLI scheme, LG seems to have not actioned it. Given the low market share that LG had, the impact of LG pulling out of the smartphone business should not be substantial. Moreover, since LG did not have a dedicated factory for manufacturing mobiles in India, disruption in the labour market is also expected to be minimal. We have seen Nokia, Blackberry and other brands come back to India through a licensing route and LG may also go that way in case it indeed pulls out of the smartphone business.
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The FM's speech briefly touched upon aspects of MSME, entrepreneurship and innovation. The allocation of funds for MSMEs has doubled to INR 15,700 and the incorporation of small companies and one-person companies will be aided by the amendments in the requirement of paid-up capital and turnover. This will provide a boost to innovators, entrepreneurs and MSMEs. The budget did not specifically talk about strengthening aspects of technology, communication, financial inclusion, AI/ML etc. - but these will definitely be positively impacted by some of the other announcements made today. Increasing the FDI cap in the insurance sector from 49% to 74% will make it more lucrative for foreign companies to setup shop and also have ownership of the business. This will provide a boost to the insurance tech sector in the country. The allocation of INR 3000 crore for the country's first "digital census" will generate goodwill among those who are betting big on digitalization and tech. The consolidation of provisions of the SEBI Act, Depositories Act, Securities Contracts Regulation Act and other similar acts will also impact the ease of doing business positively - making it more lucrative for businesses to open up and aim towards going public.
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“The announcements, when viewed in a holistic manner, are clearly focused on creating short term employment and encouraging long term infrastructure and manufacturing. These will boost both the formal and informal sectors. While the stressed sectors benefit from credit schemes, businesses that rely on close human interactions, such as travel & hospitality, are likely to remain depressed till Covid19 situation improves.”
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The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (Ministry of I&B) is a ministerial-level agency of the Government of India responsible for the formulation and administration of rules, regulations and laws in the areas of information, broadcasting, the press and the Cinema of India. Generally, Press and Films enjoy the same constitutional freedom related to expression, with Article 19(1) of the Constitution of India guaranteeing freedom of speech and expression. Such a right is not absolute and has certain limitations, including matters that are against foreign relations, public policy, integrity and sovereignty of the State, decency and morality, public order, etc., as mentioned in the Article 19(2). COVID-19 has come at a time where digitisation was rising in India and the common man was getting greater access to affordable internet. In the last 8 months, OTT or digital media and entertainment platforms, have all but replaced television. Yes, digital content is not subject to censor certification applicable to films and television programs. Other than a Universal Self-Regulation Code for OCCPs, OTT platforms enjoy ample creative freedom. The Self-Regulatory Code is yet to become fully functional (August 15, 2021) and its application is based on a best-effort basis. The Ministry of I&B realised the minimal regulation and uncensored content, being freely made available on OTT platforms, to take this step. Jurisprudence on pre-censorship of films in India has historically been tested on the basis of freedom of speech and expression. The rationale being that such freedom was at the heart of any artistic expression. Censorship of films in India is undertaken by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) set up under the Cinematographic Act, 1952 (Act). The Act along with the Cinematographic (Certification) Rules, 1983 and the Central Government's guidelines dated December 6, 1991, issued pursuant to Section 5B of the Act (Censorship Laws), set out the manner in which films are to be certified for exhibition in India. On the other hand, television networks, television broadcasters and related matters are governed by the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995 and Cable Television Networks Rules, 1994, which among other things, restrict transmission through a cable service, of any program that is not in conformity with the program code, and of any advertisement that is not in conformity with the advertising code set out in the Cable Television Networks Rules, 1994. There was debate that OTT platforms were intermediaries under the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines) Rules, 2011. Thus, they were required to create a due diligence framework with respect to the information being hosted or published by the intermediary. Now with this move, curated content on OTT platforms will also warrant a level of certification, censorship and care that other avenues for content consumption attract. If self-censorship under the Self-Regulatory Code is unacceptable to the Ministry of I&B, then our hope is that the Ministry of I&B will also consider the recommendations made by the expert committee, chaired by Mr. Shyam Benegal, while trying to formulating guidelines and procedure for certification of content on OTT platforms. One key differentiator of this digital medium is the lack of public exhibition of content; rather, a pull factor wherein the consumer decides what content s/he wants to consume, at what time and after paying a transaction value for the same. Thus, the impact risk may be at variance from that of motion pictures which were available in theatres for public exhibition. In any event, it is imperative that the industry is allowed to flourish and grow in a uniform, non–discriminatory and non–discretionary manner
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“The Government is constantly making efforts towards ease of doing business and the labour codes are another step in this direction and a welcome one. The labour codes provide for fixed-term employment which will generate employment with better provisions such as payment of applicable gratuity and at same time impart flexibility to industry, introduction of concept of “Negotiating Trade Union” or “Negotiating Trade Councils which will assist the employees to voice their concerns and the industry dealing with a single trade union or trade council for negotiation which may lead to speedy resolution, making necessary changes in wage structure so as to bring uniformity as well as capping the exclusions and increasing the social security net for employees. Bearing in mind the requirements, the threshold for layoff and retrenchment provisions has been appropriately increased. The rules as well as the manner in which implementation is done, will be equally important. The codes strive to achieve a balancing act to protect the interests of both employers and employees and to encourage investments in India.”
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The discussions in the 43rd GST Council meeting were focussed on borrowing by the states and extension of compensation cess beyond the year 2022 to make up for the shortfall in collections. The Finance minister candidly accepted that even after three meetings on the issue there was no consensus reached, however, she described the situation as a “difference of opinion” rather than a “dispute between centre and states”. Ruling out the possibility of borrowing by the Centre due to adverse ramifications on cost of borrowing for states and private sector, it was discussed that the states who have opted for option I and are willing to borrow under the special window facilitated by the RBI, should not be stopped by other member states just because a unanimous decision is not reached. After this third consecutive meeting on the issue, taxpayers sincerely hope that the next meeting focuses on issues which directly affect them.
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