Under Ground Water Level
A paper on ‘Satellite-based estimates of groundwater depletion in India’ was published in August, 2009–Issue, of scientific journal ‘Nature’ by American Scientists from National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and University of California, United States of America. In that study, an area of about 4.4 lakh sq.km covering the States of Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana and Delhi, was taken up as a single unit without actual field mapping of ground water levels. The scientists have made an attempt to estimate ground water depletion in north-western India using Terrestrial Water Storage (TWS) change observations from NASA Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellite data for the period from August, 2002 to October, 2008. The study has indicated that ground water is depleting in the aforementioned four States at a mean rate of 4.0±1.0 cm/year equivalent height of water (17.7±4.5 cubic km/year). On review of the paper by the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB), it was observed that the GRACE mission’s ground water storage studies are satellite based estimates and coarse resolution of GRACE data limits its applicability to study ground water dynamics. CGWB estimations are, however, based on field data and bring out smaller scale variations in the ground water storage pattern over a vast region.
Excessive withdrawal of ground water for various purposes including irrigation, domestic and industrialize are some of the factors responsible for decline in ground water levels and in many areas ground water recharge is reduced due to varied & erratic rainfall pattern as well as change in land use. Central Government has taken several steps to manage ground water level in the Country including: –
• As per Schedule-I of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), the water conservation and water harvesting structures to augment ground water constitute a special focus area for MGNREGA works.
• During XI Plan, Demonstrative Artificial Recharge Projects were taken up under Central Sector Scheme “Ground Water Management & Regulation”. The scheme on Artificial Recharge project under Ground Water Management & Regulation Scheme has been discontinued during the XII Plan period.
• A conceptual document entitled “Master Plan for Artificial Recharge to Ground Water in India” has been prepared during the year 2013, which envisages construction of different types of Artificial Recharge and Rainwater Harvesting structures in the Country in an area of 9,41,541 sq.km for harnessing surplus monsoon runoff to augment ground water resources.The Master Plan has been circulated to all State Governments for implementation.
• Ministry of Urban Development in its Draft Model Building Bye-Laws (2015) has incorporated a Chapter on Provision of Rain Water Harvesting.
• Central Ground Water Authority (CGWA) constituted under ‘The Environment (Protection) Act, 1986’ for the purpose of regulation and control of ground water development and management has issued advisory to States/ Union Territories and Ministry of Urban Development to take necessary measures for adopting rain water harvesting/ artificial recharge in all the Government buildings. Besides, 30 States/UTs have made rainwater harvesting mandatory by enacting laws / formulating rules & regulations / by including provisions in building bye-laws / through suitable Government Orders etc.
• CGWB has been organizing mass awareness programmes in the Country to promote rain water harvesting and artificial recharge to ground water.
• This information was given by Union Minister of State for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Prof. Sanwar Lal Jat in a written reply in Rajya Sabha today.
CBDT releases data
Dear All,
CBDT releases data on direct taxes
CBDT has released time series data on direct tax collections, state and U.T. wise break-up of collection, contribution of direct taxes to total tax revenue, direct-tax GDP Ratio, among others. Direct tax collections have increased from about Rs. 68,305 crore in 2000-01 to around Rs. 6,95,792 crore in 2014-15 and estimated to reach at Rs. 7,42,295 crore in 2015-16 (provisional).
Direct Tax Collection (Rs. in crore)
Source: Union Finance Accounts of respective years and reports of C&AG.* Provisional/ Unaudited
@ Figures under Personal Income Tax include collections of Securities Transaction Tax.
Contribution of Direct Taxes to Total Tax Revenue has increased from around 36% in 2000-01 to more than 56% in 2014-15. The Contribution of Direct Taxes to Total Tax Revenue is estimated to reach at 51% in 2015-16 (provisional)
Contribution of Direct Taxes to Total Tax Revenue (Rs. in crore)
Source: CBDT
* Provisional
Direct-Tax GDP Ratio has scaled up from 3.25% in 2000-01 to more than 5% in 2014-15. However, tax growth rate has declined from about 18% to about 9% during the same period.
Direct-Tax GDP Ratio (Rs. in crore)
Source: CBDT
* Provisional
The total direct tax collection by states increased from Rs. 3,29,262 crore in 2008-09 to about Rs. 6,83,781 crore in 2014-15. While, Union Territories’ direct tax collections also increased from Rs. 1,166 crore in 2008-09 to Rs. 2,884 crore in 2014-15.
State and U.T. Wise Break-Up of Collection (Rs. in crore)
Source: CBDT
Warm regards,
ADR Report Phase 6 Candidates WB Assembly polls
West Bengal Election Watch and Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) have analysed the self-sworn affidavits of 169 candidates out of 170 candidates who are contesting inPhase 6 of the West Bengal Assembly Elections to be held on 5th, May2016.Please find below a brief summary of the same.
Candidate who was not analysed*
S.No
|
Name
|
Party
|
District
|
Constituency
|
1
|
AITC
|
PURBO MEDINIPUR
|
MAHISADAL
|
* Affidavit badly scanned, not readable.
Criminal Background
Candidates with criminal cases: Out of the169 candidates analysed, 33(20%) candidateshave declared criminal cases against themselves.
· Candidates with serious criminal cases: 27 (16%) candidates have declared serious criminal cases including cases related to murder, attempt to murder, theft, crimes against women etc.
· Candidates with cases related to Murder: 4 candidates have declared charges related to Murder (Indian Penal Code Section-302).
· Candidates with cases related to attempt to murder: 6candidates have declared cases of attempt to murder (IPC Section-307).
· Candidates with cases related to crimes against women: 5candidates have declared cases related to crimes against women.
· Party wise candidates with criminal cases: 6 (24%) out of 25 candidates from BJP, 9 (38%) out of 24 candidates from AITC, 3 (38%)out of 8 candidates from CPI (M), 2 (50%)out of 4 candidates of AIFB, 1 (25%) out of 4 candidates fielded by INC, and 2 (8%) out of 24Independent candidates have declared criminal cases against themselves in their affidavits.
· Party wise Candidates with serious criminal cases: 6 (24%) out of 25 candidates from BJP, 7 (29%)out of 24 candidates from AITC, 2 (25%) out of 8 candidates from CPI (M), 2 (50%) out of 4 candidates ofAIFB, 1 (25%) out of 4 candidates fielded by INC, and2 (8%) out of 24Independent candidates have declared serious criminal cases against themselves in their affidavits.
· Red Alert constituencies*: 2 constituencies Panskura Paschim and Panskura Purba in Phase 6 of West Bengal assembly elections have 3 or more candidates with declared criminal cases.
*Red Alert Constituencies are those which have 3 or more candidates with criminal cases contesting elections.
Financial Background
· Share of wealth among candidates : The share of wealth amongst the candidates contesting in Phase 6 of assembly elections in West Bengal is as follows:
Value of assets (Rs.)
|
No of candidates
|
Percentage of Candidates
|
5crores and above
|
3
|
2%
|
1 crores to 5 crores
|
12
|
7%
|
20 lakhs 1 crores)
|
65
|
38%
|
less than 20 lakhs)
|
89
|
53%
|
Table: Share of wealth amongst contesting candidates
· High asset candidates*: The 3 richest candidates contesting in Phase 6 of the West Bengal 2016 Assembly Elections are given below:
S.No.
|
Name
|
District
|
Constituency
|
Party Name
|
Movable Assets (Rs)
|
Immovable Assets (Rs)
|
Total Assets (Rs)
|
PAN Given
|
1
|
Hemangshu Shekhar Mahapatra
|
Purbo Medinipur
|
Bhagabanpur
|
INC
|
57,98,642
|
17,58,85,500
|
18,16,84,142
18 Crore+ |
Y
|
2
|
Siraj Khan
|
Purbo Medinipur
|
Nandakumar
|
IND
|
13,07,37,979
|
3,99,00,000
|
17,06,37,979
17 Crore+ |
Y
|
3
|
Rabindra Nath Ghosh
|
Coochbehar
|
Natabari
|
AITC
|
1,66,73,333
|
3,88,31,000
|
5,55,04,333
5 Crore+ |
Y
|
Table: Top three candidates with highest declared assets
· Crorepati Candidates: Out of the 169 candidates analysed, 15 (9%) are crorepatis.
· Party wise crorepati candidates: 8 (33%) out of 24 fielded byAITC, 1 (4%) out of 25 candidates fromBJP, 1 (25%) out of4 candidates from INC, 1 (25%) out of 4 candidates fielded by AIFB, 1 (13%) out of 8 candidates of CPI (M) and 2 (8%) out of 24 Independentcandidates have declared assets worth more than Rs. 1 crore.
· Average assets: The average of assets per candidate contesting inPhase 6 of the West Bengal Assembly Electionsis Rs 57.24 Lakhs.
· Party wise average assets: Among major parties, the average assets per candidate for 25 BJP candidates is Rs 29.65 Lakhs, 24 AITCcandidates have average assets of Rs 1. 02 crores, 24 SUCI (C)candidates have average assets worth Rs 21.25 Lakhs, 4 INC candidates have average assets worth Rs 4.81crore, average assets of 8 CPI (M) candidates is Rs 45.86 Lakhs, 8 BSP candidates have average assets ofRs 2.44 Lakhs and 24 Independentcandidates have average assets ofRs. 92.43 Lakhs.
· Low asset candidates: The three candidates with lowest assets are as follows :
S.No.
|
Name
|
District
|
Constituency
|
Party Name
|
Movable Assets (Rs)
|
Immovable Assets (Rs)
|
Total Assets (Rs)
|
PAN Given
|
1
|
Anil Chandra Barman Roy
|
Coochbehar
|
Sitai (SC)
|
SUCI(C)
|
6,668
|
0
|
6,668
6 Thou+ |
Y
|
2
|
Sushil Barman
|
Coochbehar
|
Mathabhanga (SC)
|
BJP
|
12,000
|
0
|
12,000
12 Thou+ |
Y
|
3
|
Babla Deb
|
Coochbehar
|
Natabari
|
Amra Bangalee
|
15,500
|
0
|
15,500
15 Thou+ |
Y
|
Table: Candidates with declared lowest assets
· Candidates with high liabilities: The top three candidates with highest liabilities are as given below:
S.No.
|
Name
|
District
|
Constituency
|
Party Name
|
Total Assets(Rs)
|
Liabilities (Rs)
|
PAN Given
|
1
|
Siraj Khan
|
Purbo Medinipur
|
Nandakumar
|
IND
|
17,06,37,979
17 Crore+ |
13,06,72,404
13 Crore+ |
Y
|
2
|
Hemangshu Shekhar Mahapatra
|
Purbo Medinipur
|
Bhagabanpur
|
INC
|
18,16,84,142
18 Crore+ |
1,56,34,476
1 Crore+ |
Y
|
3
|
Abhimanyu Mondal
|
Purbo Medinipur
|
Haldia (SC)
|
Bharat Nirman Party
|
1,32,48,556
1 Crore+ |
49,00,000
49 Lacs+ |
Y
|
Table: Top three candidates with high liabilities
· Undeclared PAN: A total of 32 (19%) out of the 169 candidates analysed have not declared their PAN details.
· Candidates with high income as declared in the ITR*: 3candidates have declared total annual income of more than Rs 20 Lakhs. These candidates are as given below:
S.No.
|
Name
|
Party Name
|
Constituency
|
District Name
|
Total Asset (Rs)
|
The financial year for which the last income tax return has been filed by candidate
|
Total income shown by candidate in ITR (Self+Spouse+Dependent) (Rs)
|
Self income shown by candidate in ITR (Rs)
|
1
|
Dibyendu Adhikari
|
AITC
|
KANTHI DAKSHIN
|
PURBO MEDINIPUR
|
1,82,24,378
1 Crore+
|
2014-2015
|
25,42,332
25 Lacs+
|
9,01,224
9 Lacs+
|
2
|
Udayan Guha
|
AITC
|
DINHATA
|
COOCHBEHAR
|
3,17,59,056
3 Crore+
|
2015-2016
|
25,42,266
25 Lacs+
|
11,92,226
11 Lacs+
|
3
|
Suvendu Adhikari
|
AITC
|
NANDIGRAM
|
PURBO MEDINIPUR
|
62,60,742
62 Lacs+
|
2014-2015
|
22,93,218
22 Lacs+
|
22,93,218
22 Lacs+
|
Table: Candidates with high income as declared in ITR
*Total income includes income of self, spouse and dependents
· Candidates who have not declared Income Tax Details*: 93 (55%) out of 169 candidates analysedhave not declared income tax details.
* Some candidates may be exempted from filing Income Tax Returns
· Candidates with high Assets who have not declared Income Tax Details*: 8 candidates with assets worth more than Rs. 50 Lakhs have not declared Income Tax details. The top three candidates with highest assets who have not declared their IT returns are as given below:
S.No.
|
Name
|
District
|
Constituency
|
Party Name
|
Total Income (Rs)
|
Total Assets (Rs)
|
PAN Given
|
Self Income
|
1
|
Akshay Thakur
|
Coochbehar
|
Dinhata
|
AIFB
|
0
|
98,80,748
98 Lacs+
|
Y
|
ITR not filed
|
2
|
Ranjan Malakar
|
Purbo Medinipur
|
Tamluk
|
Bharat Nirman Party
|
0
|
69,26,286
69 Lacs+
|
Y
|
ITR not filed
|
3
|
Narayan Kinkar Mishra
|
Purbo Medinipur
|
Panskura Paschim
|
BJP
|
0
|
67,34,164
67 Lacs+
|
N
|
ITR not filed
|
Table: Top three candidates with highest assets who have not declared ITR details
* Some candidates may be exempted from filing Income Tax Returns
Other Background Details
· Education details of candidates: 71 (42%) candidates have declared their education qualification to be between 5th pass and 12thpass, while 58 (34%) candidates have declared having an educational qualification ofgraduate or graduate professional.34 (20%) candidates have declared themselves to be postgraduates while 2 (1%)candidates have declared they are Doctorates and 2 (1%) candidates have declared they are just literate.
· Age details of candidates: 84 (50%) candidates have declared their age to be between 25 and 50 years while80 (47%) candidates have declared their age to be between 51 and 70 years. 5 (3%) candidates have declared they aremore than 70 years old.
· Gender details of candidates: 18 (11%) women candidates are contesting in Phase 6 of the West Bengal assembly election this year.
Analysis of Asset Comparison of Re contesting MLAs
West Bengal Election Watch (WBEW) and Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) have analyzed the affidavits of 245 outgoing MLAs who are contesting again in the 2016 West Bengal Assembly Elections.
Please find below a brief summary of the same.
- Average Assets in 2011 Elections: The average assets of these 245 re-contesting MLAs fielded by various parties including independents in 2011 were Rs 60.11 lakhs (Rs. 60, 11,270).
- Average Assets in 2016 Elections: The average assets of these 245 re-contesting MLAs in 2016 is Rs 1.27 crores (Rs. 1, 27, 27,880).
- Average Asset change from 2011 to 2016: The average assets ofthese 245 re- contesting MLAs, between the West Bengal Elections of 2011 and 2016increased by Rs. 67.16 lakhs (67, 16,610).
- Percentage change in assets from 2011 to 2016 Average percentage increase in assets for these 245 re-contesting MLAs is112%.
For a consolidated analysis of the West Bengal 2016 Elections (Phase 1 to Phase 6), please see the following link: http://goo.gl/cGFEsr
Media and Journalist Helpline
+91 80103 94248
Email:adr@adrindia.org
|
Maj.Gen. Anil Verma (Retd)
Head
National Election Watch,
Association for Democratic Reforms
011 4165 4200,
+91 88264 79910
adr@adrIndia.org,
|
Prof Jagdeep Chhokar
IIM Ahmedabad (Retd.)
Founder Member,
National Election Watch, Association for Democratic
Reforms
+91 99996 20944
|
Prof Trilochan Sastry
IIM Bangalore
Founder Member,
National Election Watch,
Association for Democratic Reforms
+91 94483 53285
|
—
Association for Democratic Reforms
T-95A, C.L. House, 1st Floor,
(Near Gulmohar Commercial Complex)
Gautam Nagar
New Delhi-110 049
(Near Gulmohar Commercial Complex)
Gautam Nagar
New Delhi-110 049
No comments:
Post a Comment