Thursday, 16 July 2015
Expected date of submission (14.8.2015) of 7th Pay Commission Report and it's important recommendations - Sources
The sources close to the 7th Pay Commission, on the condition of anonymity told
that the 7th pay Commission Report is almost finalized and the Report
is expected to be submitted on or before 14th August 2015. The Leaders
representing one of the railway federations in the staff side also confirmed this news.
According to the Sources the important Points of the Pay Commission’s Recommendations are ..
1. There will be no running Pay band and Grade Pay System
2. The uniform multiplication factor for arriving revised pay will be 2.86
3. The Pay scales will be open ended to avoid stagnation in the scales
4. The Minimum Pay will be Rs. 21000
5. The CCA will be separated into two components as it was in the fifth CPC
6. Percentage of HRA will remain same.
7. The Criteria for retirement age will be either completion of 33 Years
of service or at the age of 60 Years whichever is earlier.
8. CGEGIS Insurance Coverage and Monthly premium will be increased
9. Classification of Posts will be Modified
10. The 7th Pay Commission recommendation will be implemented with effects from 1.1.2016.
Further ,the
sources told that the Committee of Secretaries will be appointed to
study the report and analyze the financial implications upon
implementation of 7th pay commission recommendation. An ally of NCJCM
Staff Side told that the Staff Side also will be invited by the third
week of September 2015 by this Committee before giving its final nod for approval for this Recommendation.
It appears that after three decades the Pay Commission
recommendations will come into force on the first day of its due date.
Retrospective effect will not be required for implementation of 7th Pay
Commission recommendation, since the notification for implementation of
7th Pay Commission recommendations might be issued on or before
1.1.2016. So there will be no financial burden for government on spending for payment of Arrears to this effect.
It is indeed very good news for entire central and some State government employees
community. There are expectations on its peak over 7th pay commission
recommendation. Whether the 7th Pay Commission’s recommendation fulfill
their expectations or not?. Let’s hope, by the time of next month,
everything that is concealed will be brought to light and made known to all.
Source: http://www.gservants.com
DoT releases net neutrality report, upholds key principles
The
Department of Telecom has released its report on net neutrality in
India. The report, which runs in over 100 pages, upholds the key
principles of of net neutrality.
The committee's report together will form the final basis of the government's policy on net neutrality, a principle that guarantees consumers equal and non-discriminatory access to all data, apps and services on internet, with no discrimination on the basis of tariffs or speed.
Set up in January this year, DoT committee met over 45 organisations including Facebook, Google, Flipkart, Amazon, Paytm, Viber and Skype and telecom service providers.
Below are the key recommendations of the report.
1) The Committee unhesitatingly recommends that "the core principles of Net Neutrality must be adhered to."
2) The international best practices along with core principles of Net Neutrality will help in formulating India specific Net Neutrality approach. India should take a rational approach and initiate action in making an objective policy, specific to the needs of our country. The timing for this is apt, taking into consideration the exponential growth of content and applications on the Internet.
3) Innovation and infrastructure have both to be promoted simultaneously and neither can spread without the other. The endeavor in policy approach should be to identify and eliminate actions that inhibit the innovation abilities inherent in an open Internet or severely inhibit investment in infrastructure.
4) The primary goals of public policy in the context of Net Neutrality should be directed towards achievement of developmental aims of the country by facilitating "Affordable Broadband", "Quality Broadband" and "Universal Broadband" for its citizens.
5) User rights on the Internet need to be ensured so that TSPs/ISPs do not restrict the ability of the user to send, receive, display, use, post any legal content, application or service on the Internet, or restrict any kind of lawful Internet activity or use.
6) OTT application services have been traditionally available in the market for some time and such services enhance consumer welfare and increase productivity. Therefore, such services should be actively encouraged and any impediments in expansion and growth of OTT application services should be removed.
7) There should be a separation of "application layer" from "network layer" as application services are delivered over a licensed network.
8) Specific OTT communication services dealing with messaging should not be interfered with through regulatory instruments.
9) In case of VoIP OTT communication services, there exists a regulatory arbitrage wherein such services also bypass the existing licensing and regulatory regime creating a non-level playing field between TSPs and OTT providers both competing for the same service provision. Public policy response requires that regulatory arbitrage does not dictate winners and losers in a competitive market for service provision.
10) The existence of a pricing arbitrage in VoIP OTT communication services requires a graduated and calibrated public policy response. In case of OTT VoIP international calling services, a liberal approach may be adopted. However, in case of domestic calls (local and national), communication services by TSPs and OTT communication services may be treated similarly from a regulatory angle for the present. The nature of regulatory similarity, the calibration of regulatory response and its phasing can be appropriately determined after public consultations and TRAI's recommendations to this effect.
11) For OTT application services, there is no case for prescribing regulatory oversight similar to conventional communication services.
12) Legitimate traffic management practices may be allowed but should be "tested" against the core principles of Net Neutrality.
a. General criteria against which these practices can be tested are as follows: a) TSPs/ISPs should make adequate disclosures to the users about their traffic management policies, tools and intervention practices to maintain transparency and allow users to make informed choices
b. Unreasonable traffic management, exploitative or anti-competitive in nature may not be permitted.
The committee's report together will form the final basis of the government's policy on net neutrality, a principle that guarantees consumers equal and non-discriminatory access to all data, apps and services on internet, with no discrimination on the basis of tariffs or speed.
Set up in January this year, DoT committee met over 45 organisations including Facebook, Google, Flipkart, Amazon, Paytm, Viber and Skype and telecom service providers.
Below are the key recommendations of the report.
1) The Committee unhesitatingly recommends that "the core principles of Net Neutrality must be adhered to."
2) The international best practices along with core principles of Net Neutrality will help in formulating India specific Net Neutrality approach. India should take a rational approach and initiate action in making an objective policy, specific to the needs of our country. The timing for this is apt, taking into consideration the exponential growth of content and applications on the Internet.
3) Innovation and infrastructure have both to be promoted simultaneously and neither can spread without the other. The endeavor in policy approach should be to identify and eliminate actions that inhibit the innovation abilities inherent in an open Internet or severely inhibit investment in infrastructure.
4) The primary goals of public policy in the context of Net Neutrality should be directed towards achievement of developmental aims of the country by facilitating "Affordable Broadband", "Quality Broadband" and "Universal Broadband" for its citizens.
5) User rights on the Internet need to be ensured so that TSPs/ISPs do not restrict the ability of the user to send, receive, display, use, post any legal content, application or service on the Internet, or restrict any kind of lawful Internet activity or use.
6) OTT application services have been traditionally available in the market for some time and such services enhance consumer welfare and increase productivity. Therefore, such services should be actively encouraged and any impediments in expansion and growth of OTT application services should be removed.
7) There should be a separation of "application layer" from "network layer" as application services are delivered over a licensed network.
8) Specific OTT communication services dealing with messaging should not be interfered with through regulatory instruments.
9) In case of VoIP OTT communication services, there exists a regulatory arbitrage wherein such services also bypass the existing licensing and regulatory regime creating a non-level playing field between TSPs and OTT providers both competing for the same service provision. Public policy response requires that regulatory arbitrage does not dictate winners and losers in a competitive market for service provision.
10) The existence of a pricing arbitrage in VoIP OTT communication services requires a graduated and calibrated public policy response. In case of OTT VoIP international calling services, a liberal approach may be adopted. However, in case of domestic calls (local and national), communication services by TSPs and OTT communication services may be treated similarly from a regulatory angle for the present. The nature of regulatory similarity, the calibration of regulatory response and its phasing can be appropriately determined after public consultations and TRAI's recommendations to this effect.
11) For OTT application services, there is no case for prescribing regulatory oversight similar to conventional communication services.
12) Legitimate traffic management practices may be allowed but should be "tested" against the core principles of Net Neutrality.
a. General criteria against which these practices can be tested are as follows: a) TSPs/ISPs should make adequate disclosures to the users about their traffic management policies, tools and intervention practices to maintain transparency and allow users to make informed choices
b. Unreasonable traffic management, exploitative or anti-competitive in nature may not be permitted.
c.
In general, for legitimate network management, application-agnostic
control may be used. However, application-specific control withinthe "Internet traffic" class may not be permitted.
d. Traffic management practices like DPI should not be used for unlawful access to the type and contents of an application in an IP packet.
e. Improper (Paid or otherwise) Prioritization may not be permitted
f. Application-agnostic congestion control being a legitimate requirementcannot be considered to be against Net Neutrality. However application-specific control within the "Internet traffic" class may be against the principles of Net Neutrality.
g. Mechanism to minimize frivolous complaints will be desirable.
13) Traffic management is complex and specialized field and enough capacity building is needed before undertaking such an exercise.
14) CDN is an arrangement of management of content as a business strategy and does not interfere with others business. Making available one provider's CDN to others on commercial terms is a normal commercial activity. It should at best be covered under law related to unfair trade practice.
15) Managed services are a necessary requirement for businesses and enterprises, and suitable exceptions may be made for the treatment of such services in the Net Neutrality context.
16) This Committee refrains from making any specific recommendation on search-neutrality, however, flags this issue as a concern for public policy.
17) Tariff plans offered by TSPs/ISPs must conform to the principles of Net Neutrality set forth in guidelines issued by the Government as Licensor. TRAI may examine the tariff filings made by TSPs/ISPs to determine whether the tariff plan conforms to the principles of Net Neutrality.
18) Content and application providers cannot be permitted to act as gatekeepers and use network operations to extract value in violation of core principles of Net Neutrality, even if it is for an ostensible public purpose.
19) A clause, requiring licensee to adhere to the core principles of Net Neutrality, as specified by guidelines issued by the licensor from time to time, should be incorporated in the license conditions of TSP/ISPs. The guidelines can describe the principles and conditions of Net Neutrality in detail and provide applicable criteria to test any violation of the principles of Net Neutrality.
20) New legislation, whenever planned for replacing the existing legal framework, must incorporate principles of Net Neutrality. Till such time as an appropriate legal framework is enacted, interim provisions enforceable through licensing conditions as suggested by the Committee may be the way forward.
21) National security is paramount, regardless of treatment of Net Neutrality. The measures to ensure compliance of security related requirements from OTT service providers, need to be worked out through inter-ministerial consultations.
22) Suggested enforcement process is as follows: (i) Core principles of Net Neutrality may be made part of License conditions and the Licensor may issue guidelines from time to time as learning process matures. (ii) Since Net Neutrality related cases would require specialized expertise, a cell in the DoT HQ may be set up to deal with such cases. In case of violations, the existing prescribed procedure may be followed. This would involve two stage process of review and appeal to ensure that decisions are objective, transparent and just. (iii) Tariff shall be regulated by TRAI as at present. Whenever a new tariff is introduced it should be tested against the principles of Net Neutrality. Post implementation, complaint regarding a tariff violating principle of Net Neutrality may be dealt with by DoT. (iv) Net Neutrality issues arising out of traffic management would have reporting and auditing requirements, which may be performed and enforced by DoT. (v) QoS issues fall within the jurisdiction of TRAI. Similarly reporting related to transparency requirements will need to be dealt with by TRAI. TRAI may take steps as deemed fit.
23) Enforcing Net Neutrality principle is a new idea and may throw up many questions and problems as we go along. For this purpose, an oversight process may be set up by the government to advise on policies and processes, review guidelines, reporting and auditing procedures and enforcement of rules.
24) Capacity building through training, institution building and active engagement with stakeholders is essential. In order to deal with the complexities of the new digital world, a think-tank with best talent may also be set up.
d. Traffic management practices like DPI should not be used for unlawful access to the type and contents of an application in an IP packet.
e. Improper (Paid or otherwise) Prioritization may not be permitted
f. Application-agnostic congestion control being a legitimate requirementcannot be considered to be against Net Neutrality. However application-specific control within the "Internet traffic" class may be against the principles of Net Neutrality.
g. Mechanism to minimize frivolous complaints will be desirable.
13) Traffic management is complex and specialized field and enough capacity building is needed before undertaking such an exercise.
14) CDN is an arrangement of management of content as a business strategy and does not interfere with others business. Making available one provider's CDN to others on commercial terms is a normal commercial activity. It should at best be covered under law related to unfair trade practice.
15) Managed services are a necessary requirement for businesses and enterprises, and suitable exceptions may be made for the treatment of such services in the Net Neutrality context.
16) This Committee refrains from making any specific recommendation on search-neutrality, however, flags this issue as a concern for public policy.
17) Tariff plans offered by TSPs/ISPs must conform to the principles of Net Neutrality set forth in guidelines issued by the Government as Licensor. TRAI may examine the tariff filings made by TSPs/ISPs to determine whether the tariff plan conforms to the principles of Net Neutrality.
18) Content and application providers cannot be permitted to act as gatekeepers and use network operations to extract value in violation of core principles of Net Neutrality, even if it is for an ostensible public purpose.
19) A clause, requiring licensee to adhere to the core principles of Net Neutrality, as specified by guidelines issued by the licensor from time to time, should be incorporated in the license conditions of TSP/ISPs. The guidelines can describe the principles and conditions of Net Neutrality in detail and provide applicable criteria to test any violation of the principles of Net Neutrality.
20) New legislation, whenever planned for replacing the existing legal framework, must incorporate principles of Net Neutrality. Till such time as an appropriate legal framework is enacted, interim provisions enforceable through licensing conditions as suggested by the Committee may be the way forward.
21) National security is paramount, regardless of treatment of Net Neutrality. The measures to ensure compliance of security related requirements from OTT service providers, need to be worked out through inter-ministerial consultations.
22) Suggested enforcement process is as follows: (i) Core principles of Net Neutrality may be made part of License conditions and the Licensor may issue guidelines from time to time as learning process matures. (ii) Since Net Neutrality related cases would require specialized expertise, a cell in the DoT HQ may be set up to deal with such cases. In case of violations, the existing prescribed procedure may be followed. This would involve two stage process of review and appeal to ensure that decisions are objective, transparent and just. (iii) Tariff shall be regulated by TRAI as at present. Whenever a new tariff is introduced it should be tested against the principles of Net Neutrality. Post implementation, complaint regarding a tariff violating principle of Net Neutrality may be dealt with by DoT. (iv) Net Neutrality issues arising out of traffic management would have reporting and auditing requirements, which may be performed and enforced by DoT. (v) QoS issues fall within the jurisdiction of TRAI. Similarly reporting related to transparency requirements will need to be dealt with by TRAI. TRAI may take steps as deemed fit.
23) Enforcing Net Neutrality principle is a new idea and may throw up many questions and problems as we go along. For this purpose, an oversight process may be set up by the government to advise on policies and processes, review guidelines, reporting and auditing procedures and enforcement of rules.
24) Capacity building through training, institution building and active engagement with stakeholders is essential. In order to deal with the complexities of the new digital world, a think-tank with best talent may also be set up.
Source:-The Times of India
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