Ten Concerns on Ayushman Bharat
Indu Bhushan | CEO, Ayushman Bharat
The Times of India
In this piece, Bhushan mentions the ten common concerns which are raised about Ayushman Bharat, and then addresses them. For instance, he writes, that some people argue that the scheme will only benefit the insurance companies. He counters this concern by saying that most states have actually adopted a trust mode. Also, he adds, the states which are relying on insurance companies, they have “put a claw-back clause in their contracts such that insurance companies can keep only 15% of total premium”.
Some of the other concerns he addresses are: Ayushman Bharat is not affordable in the long run, states which have their own schemes don’t gain much by joining the scheme, and that the government should focus more on preventive and promotive care.
Pakistan recognises the Kargil war was a blunder
Nasim Zehra | Pakistani national security specialist, author and journalist
Hindustan Times
Zehra provides details of how the Kargil operation was planned on the Pakistani side. She writes that four generals, including the then Army chief Pervez Musharraf, were responsible for it. The operation was planned in complete secrecy and was initiated at the end of November 1998 before the Lahore summit. The idea behind the operation was that Pakistani troops would block NH-1 which would force India to seek international help. Since both the states are nuclear, the international community would have asked India to engage with Pakistan. Prime minister Nawaz Sharif was told about the operation months after it had been initiated. Despite some early success, she writes, the tide turned in India’s favour by mid-June 1999. The diplomatic approach adopted by India also greatly helped its cause, she writes.
Free Rein to Power
Kunal Ambasta | Assistant professor, National Law School of India University, Bengaluru
The Indian Express
Ambasta argues that the bill to amend the National Investigation Agency (NIA) Act, 2008 which has been passed by both Houses of Parliament is “neither sound on the principles of Indian federalism nor on the established principles of criminal law”. He writes that the NIA was created as an agency under the Union government which could investigate crimes affecting the national security of the country.
He further writes that the power to investigate and prosecute on ordinary criminal cases rests with the state governments. The recent amendment bill, he argues, encroaches on the rights of state governments to investigate cases which may affect public order but don’t have national implications.
Ambasta also writes that some of NIA’s recent prosecutions have been questioned “due to allegations of bias”.
The minutiae of Trump’s mediation claim
Chinmaya R. Gharekhan | Former Indian ambassador to UN, Special Envoy for West Asia in the Manmohan Singh government
The Hindu
Gharekhan writes that the main lesson for India after the Trump remark is that “we should not trust any foreign leader in such matters” as all “governments pursue their national interests single-mindedly without allowing sentiment to influence their judgement”. He argues that currently the US priority is to solve its Afghanistan problem, and Trump cares more about his country’s interest than India’s reaction.
Similarly, he argues that India needs to somewhat distance itself from the game that great powers are playing in the Indo-Pacific region as no other country will come to our help in the event of a major crisis with China.
Lastly, he writes that “neither country [India and Pakistan] has the political courage or the mandate” to solve the Kashmir issue and it is likely to “remain with us for a long, long time”.
Ganging Up On Multilateralism
Shreerupa Mitra | Executive Director, The Energy Forum
The Economic Times
Mitra describes how grievously injured the rules-based global regime has become. The current negotiations and deals around the US China trade war are being conducted either under a shroud of retaliatory sanctions or with an intention to bypass the WTO process, she writes, adding that both are disruptive to multilateralism.
WTO has been crumbling under its own weight due to structural and procedural logjams, she writes.
Mitra concludes that there is much space to reform multilateral structures including the need for it to better reflect the geopolitical realities of the day but does not favour an alternate system of dispute resolution.
The case for a new framework to ensure auditor independence
Ashok Haldia | Former secretary, Institute of Chartered Accountants of India
Mint
Haldia writes that auditors have been portrayed as the main culprits in the recent corporate frauds and failures even as regulators have so far shied away from addressing the underlying malaise that impacts the independence of auditors.
Appointment and remuneration of auditors has to be independent of the audited company’s management. For this, Haldia proposes that the Securities and Exchange Board of India should be made responsible for selection of auditors of public interest entities.
Audit fees should be commensurate to the true cost of a quality audit pointing out that prices have shrunk under competitive pressures, he adds.
Govt has a tough job at hand
Anil K. Kanungo | Professor, LBSIM and former senior faculty at IIFT Delhi
The Financial Express
Kanungo argues that the economic challenge facing the government is going to be at the centrestage for some time. With the slowdown in the economy, unemployment is going to “turn its ugly head once again”.
The unemployment data suggests that the challenges are humungous for the government and it needs to engage in serious introspection, he writes.
India is faced with investment and consumption slowdown and the second term of the Modi government will have to focus on jobs, investment and resurrection of the dislocated financial sector. Reviving the terms of trade in agriculture is also a priority, writes Kanungo.