THE HINDU EDITORIAL- MARCH, 31, 2022

 

THE HINDU EDITORIAL- MARCH, 31, 2022

 

Identity and privacy Prisoners’ identification Bill, which raises privacy, data safety concerns, requires scrutiny The Union government’s latest proposal to enable the collection of biometric and biological data from prisoners, besides the usual physical measurements, photographs and finger-prints, raises serious questions about its legal validity. Such questions are inevitable in an era in which people look at official efforts to gather personal data with suspicion. The practice of recording the photographs and fingerprints of prisoners is more than a century old in the country, backed by a colonial law dating back to 1920. The Union government now proposes to expand the idea of talking “measurements” to cover “finger-impressions, palmprint impressions, foot-print impressions … physical, biological samples and their analysis”, besides “behavioral attributes including signatures [and] handwriting”. The Criminal Procedure (Identification) Bill, 2022, which embodies this goal, has been introduced in the Lok Sabha. Some Members have argued that the Bill went against the Supreme Court’s landmark judgment declaring privacy as a fundamental right in K.S. Puttaswamy. Some contended that the Bill enabled coercive drawing of samples and possibly involved a violation of Article 20(3), which protects the right against self-incrimination. There are other concerns too, such as the means by which the data collected will be preserved, share, disseminated, and destroyed. The Bill allows the records to be preserved for 75 years, and to be destroyed earlier if the person is discharged or acquitted.    The concern over privacy and the safety of the data is undoubtedly significant. Such practices that involve the collection, storage and destruction of vital details of a personal nature ought to be introduced only after a strong data protection law, with stringent punishment for breaches, is in place. The 1920 law enabled the taking of measurements from convicts sentenced to a prison term of one year and above, and anyone arrested on a charge that attracts such a prison term; and thirdly, one who has furnished a bond for good behavior and peace. However, the present Bill includes all convicts, and anyone arrested under any law in force or detained under any preventive detention law. There is a provision by which an arrested person, not accused of an offence against a woman or a child, or one that attracts a prison term of seven years or more, may disallow the taking of samples. Not all detainees may know that they can indeed decline to let biological samples to be taken. And it may be easy for the police to ignore such refusal and later claim that they did get the detainee’s consent. The Bill is controversial, as the tendency to arrest activists, protesters and even innocent people and invoke grave charges is on the rise. It would be in the fitness of things if it is referred to a standing committee for deeper scrutiny before it is enacted into law.   Shifting sands Arab countries and the U.S. should seek détente with Iran A conference in Israel of the top diplomats from the U.S. and four Arab countries would have been unthinkable a few years ago. But on Monday, in Israel’s Negev desert, officials from the U.S., the UAE, Bahrain, Morocco, Egypt and Israel gathered to discuss security partnerships, Iran and other issues, signaling a decisive shift in West Asian geopolitics. Ahead of the summit, Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett went to Egypt to meet President Abdel Fattah al-Si-si and Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince Moammed bin Zayed. The UAE and Israel, which normalized relations as part of the Abraham Accords in 2020, have stepped up their economic and security cooperation ever since. The Abraham Accords signaled that Israel’s continuing occupation of the Palestinian territories was no longer an Arab-Israel problem. Now, Arab-Israeli relations have gained a new dimension, with Mr. Bennett reportedly proposing a “Middle East defensive envelope” featuring Israel’s advanced missile defense systems. The Negev conference signals a new era of security partnership between these erstwhile foes that are brought together by regional and global developments.     America’s allies in the region face two challenges. One is the shrinking U.S. security umbrella. The bedrock of the partnership between the U.S. and its Gulf allies was America’s security guarantees in return for the seamless flow of oil. But the U.S. security promises took a hit when Saudi Arabia’s oil installations came under attack in 2019, for which the Saudis and the Americans blame Iran. Oil production was hit but the Trump administration chose to do nothing. Since then, Saudi Arabia and the UAE have come under multiple attacks by Yemen’s Houthis and the U.S has offered little help. Second, the Gulf kingdoms and Israel look at the Iran nuclear deal differently from the U.S. While Washington sees the revival of the nuclear deal – which would impose curbs on Iran’s nuclear programme in return for lifting sanctions, the Gulf kingdoms as well as Israel believe removing sanctions would eventually strengthen Tehran’s standing in the region. Their worry is that if Iran is allowed to reach its natural economic potential, it would translate that economic might into conventional military capabilities and step up support for its proxies, from the Hezbollah to the Houthis. Faced with the U.S.’s declining security role and the possibility of a stronger Iran, these countries are coming together to write a new collective security model. There is nothing wrong in building partnerships based on pragmatic realism. But that alone might not bring peace. If lasting peace and security are their primary goals, Israel, West Asian counties and the U.S. should also seek some kind of détente with Iran.

India’s food response as ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ Its journey from chronic food shortage to surplus producer partnering the WFP has lessons for the developing world BISHOW PARAJULI Global hunger is on the rise, driven by the climate crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic shocks, conflicts, poverty, and inequality. Millions are living in hunger and many more do not have access to adequate food. More people are living in hunger than in 2015 when the member states of the United Nations, including India, agreed to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that provide a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future.     In 2019, 650 million people around the world suffered from chronic hunger – 43 million more than in 2014. Since the onset of the pandemic, the numbers of people on the brink of starvation have doubled from 135 million people, pre-COVID, and a year ago to 270 million. India’s outreach The title invokes the concept of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, ‘Earth is One Family’, from India’s traditional philosophical outlook that has gained huge relevance over the past 75 years since being cited in the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to underline the collective nature of the crises and a matching response that is needed.     At the core of the concept is ‘Vasudha’, which means the planet earth, and describes how different nations form one collective and cannot escape the common connection of concern and humanity.     In his 2014 UN General Assembly address, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, “India’s traditional  outlook sees the world as one family and that is linked to its Vedic tradition of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” – underlining its relevance not just for global peace, cooperation, environment protection but also for humanitarian response including rising global hunger and leaving no on behind.      The number of people in need of urgent food assistance – estimated at 270 million in 2021 – because of the pandemic will grow significantly with the crisis in Afghanistan and the ongoing war in Ukraine. The fallout of the war is driving food and fuel prices that will add to the burden to the millions (especially the poor and marginalized) who are struggling.      Sadly, the global burden of malnutrition remains enormous, with almost 150 million children stunted, nearly 50 million wasted, and every other child – as well as two billion adults – suffering from micronutrient deficiencies. Helping Afghanistan India’s recent and ongoing humanitarian food assistance to the people of Afghanistan, through the United Nations Food Programme (where half of the population needs urgent food assistance to avert a famine) is an example of its commitment and commendable steps towards humanitarian crises.     The 50,000 Metric Tonnes (MT) of food assistance in the form of wheat committed by India is being sent in installments to Jalalabad, Afghanistan, through Pakistan. The first consignment, part of India’s in-kind contribution to the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), was flagged-off on February 22 in a ceremony at Amritsar’s Attari border crossing, by India’s Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla and Afghanistan’s Ambassador to India Farid Mamundzay. I was honored to be a part of the historic and timely support by India.      It is important to put this assistance in the context of the need in Afghanistan. Over 22.8 million people – half of the population – are projected to be acutely food insecure in 2022; this includes 8.7 million at risk of famine-like conditions. Nearly 4.7 million children, pregnant and lactating women are at risk of acute malnutrition in 2022. All 34 provinces are facing a crisis or emergency levels of acute food insecurity.      The WFP in Afghanistan has in place a massive supply chain and logistics infrastructure, with hundreds of trucks and staff ensuring that food assistance reaches those who need it the most and no one is excluded. This makes each contribution and partnership with the Government of India, a lifesaving one for children, women and men in need.      India has been a strong ally of the Afghan people, traditionally, and has extended over a million metric tonnes in the past, including 75,000 metric tonnes last year in partnership with the WFP.      In the past two years, India has provided aid to several countries in Africa and the Middle East/West Asia to overcome natural calamities and the COVID-19 pandemic. I have been a party to India’s support to Yemen and Zimbabwe in the past. From sufficiency to assistance India has made enormous progress in food production over the years, with an inspiring journey towards self-sufficiency in food production, marked by the Green Revolution. In 2020, India produced over 300 million tones of cereals and had built up a food stock of 100 million tones. The country has registered record harvests over the last few years, with several enabling policies and incentives to farmers. In 2021, India exported a record 20 million tonnes of rice and wheat.      As India’s food grain surplus continues to grow, along with its footprint as a key humanitarian food assistance player, underlining its partnership with the WFP, it is also important to highlight the story of is transition from receiving food aid to now providing food aid to those in need.      The long journey from chronic food shortage to surplus food producer offers several valuable lessons for other developing counties in Asia, Africa, and Latin America in land reforms, public investments, institutional infrastructure, new regulatory systems, public support, and intervention in agri markets and prices and agri research. I witnessed some of this transformation as an agronomy student at the Punjab Agricultural University around four decades ago. We also saw this aspect being highlighted through the UN Food Systems Summit 2021 process. Safety nets One of India’s greatest contributions to equity in food is its National Food Security Act (NFSA) 2013 that anchors the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS), the Mid-Day meals (MDM), and the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS). Today, India’s food safety nets collectively reach over a billion people.     Food safety nets and inclusion are linked with public procurement and buffer stock policy. This was visible during the global food crises of 2008-12, and more recently during the COVID-19 pandemic fallout, whereby vulnerable and marginalized families in India continued to be buffered by TPDS which became a lifeline with a robust stock of food grains.     The Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) introduced in 2020 to provide relief to 800 million beneficiaries covered under the NFSA from COVID-19 induced economic hardships has been extended by another six months up to September 2022. The total PMGKAY outlay so far add up to 2.6 trillion rupees.     India’s support to its neighbors and other counties that struggle with food emergencies and food insecurity must continue its growth trajectory.     For instance, in Afghanistan itself the need is immense. Over half of all Afghan people – 23 million – now need emergency food assistance. The latest WFP food security data show that 95% of Afghans consume insufficient food, with the number rising to almost 100% among households headed by women. Two-thirds – 66% - are resorting to desperate coping measures such as borrowing money or skipping meals to feed their families, a six-fold increase since August last year.     Humanitarian food assistance and partnerships that help create robust policy innovations by way of food safety nets and resilient livelihoods, will contribute towards global peace.     It is not just important to respond to the hunger and the food security needs of communities affected by conflicts but also to consider addressing them as a global community to avoid human suffering and the massive humanitarian assistance needs that it creates. A peace catalyst Research undertaken by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) points to WFP programmes contributing to creating conditions for peace in four areas including ‘bolstering social cohesion, strengthening the link between citizen and state, and resolving grievances within and between communities’.     The Nobel Peace Prize to the WFP in 2020 cited the WFP’s role and the importance of access to food in maintaining peace.     India has made major progress in addressing hunger and malnutrition, but a lot needs to be done and we must continue this path as the trailblazer in access and inclusion through public policies and systems. For over five decades the WFP has been partnering with India and seen its transition from being a recipient to a donor.     However, we must take note of the fact that India can do more and is doing more on delivering the goal of Zero Hunger and equity globally.     As the World’s largest humanitarian agency, the WFP, and India, as the largest democracy, can leverage this partnership to contribute to addressing food emergencies and strengthening humanitarian response, embodying the spirit of ‘leave no one behind’ and Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam.     A parliamentary Bill the ICAI needs to take note of If done well, the changes proposed will strengthen the ICAI’s accountability, governance, and administration R. NARAYANASWAMY The Lok Sabha on Wednesday approved a Bill to amend the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949, the law that governs the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI). It also amends the Cost and Works Accountants Act, 1959 and the Company Secretaries Act 1980. Introduced in the Lok Sabha on December 17, 2021, and titled and Chartered Accountants, the Cost and Works Accountants and the Company Secretaries (Amendment) Bill, 2021, the key changes it proposes are: Discipline: the ICAI’s disciplinary committee and board of discipline will be chaired by non-chartered accountants (CA), and its elected council members will no longer be in a majority in them. And then, governance and administration: the term of the ICAI’s Council will be raised from three to four years, and the maximum number of consecutive terms for its elected members will be reduced to two from the current three; the ICAI’s Secretary will replace the ICAI’s president as its chief executive and perform the functions to be specified; the ICAI will appoint its auditor from the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India’s panel of CA firms; and the Government will form a coordination committee for the ICAI and the Institutes of Cost Accountants and Company Secretaries of India.    If done well, these changes should strengthen the ICAI’s accountability, governance, and administration. The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance has endorsed these changes and has further recommended an end to the ICAI’s monopoly in certification. Training, disciplinary record Exams and Articleship are the rites of passage for CA aspirants. The examinations are reputedly hard to crack. The three-year Articleship gives hands-on training. That said, senior industry managers be-moan that many CAs do not have what it takes to succeed in the corporate world, i.e., analytical ability, critical thinking, appreciation of the business context, grasp of technology, and communication and presentation skills. CA students do not have in-class interaction. Also, the coaching is focused on cracking examinations rather than facilitating understanding and application. Of course, the unpredictability of examination outcomes does not help. Further, today’s school leaver thinks about ‘cool’ careers such as pursuing an MBA, law, AI/ML, (artificial intelligence and machine learning), data science and web design. So, it is no surprise that CA student enrolment in 2021 was a third lower than in 2010.     The ICAI’s record in disciplining its members is even more problematic. There have been persistent complaints that the ICAI is lax in acting against errant members. On the occasion of Chartered Accountants Day on July 1, 2017, the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, was critical of the CA community for its lack of quality and integrity. It was a serious indictment of the ICAI’s self-regulation. In 2018, the Government had set up the National Financial Reporting Authority as India’s first independent regulator of accounting and audit. The proposed changes in the composition of the ICAI’s disciplinary arms will further limit its role. As a result, the ICAI will be effectively reduced to an examination board. Historical baggage               Chartered accountancy is an odd fusion of medieval, colonial and license raj institutions and practices. Articleship is a source of cheap and time labour for some practitioners. The idea of training by members of a trade association goes back to medieval guilds. Much of the work that CAs does and clamours for is a remnant of the license raj. Many businesses and professions have changed beyond recognition as a result of the economic reforms initiated in 1991. The demutualised and technology-driven National Stock Exchange of India has transformed stockbroking. Indian IT and pharma companies now compete successfully with the best in the world. India’s entertainment industry has a worldwide audience. Even in a licensed profession such as law, the five-year degree has become a sought –after qualification.    In contrast, CA has not kept pace with the changes in India’s dynamic economy and changing society. The ICAI was set up in 1949, largely as the Indian version of the U.K. institute. Its evolution since then has mirrored the rise of the license raj that was characterized by uncompetitive capital, product and labour markets, worthless for-filling and box-ticking, and incredibly high tax rates. The focus of Indian business back then was on how to make money by improving efficiency, relevance and competitiveness. CAs greatly benefited from that system. They kept beseeching the government for mandatory work such as issuing import utilization certificates, tax audit, public sector bank branch audit, concurrent audit, and so on. Most of such work is of dubious value. Ironically, among CAs, “professional development” does not mean skill up-gradation but is a code for getting low-value work from government entities. Elected council members have no reason to rock the boat. This is not sustainable. AI/ML is already playing a significant role in medical diagnosis and legal drafting and case analysis. Accounting and auditing are more amenable to the replacement of humans by technology. AI, robotics, and other technological advances are likely to reduce the need for human intervention in accounting. Also, recent administrative reforms aimed at enabling ease of doing business and ease of living, such as faceless tax assessment, easy filing of tax returns, prompt refunds, rising threshold for tax audit, and abolition of Goods and Services Tax audit have greatly reduced the availability of captive, government-mandated, make-work business for CAs. Puzzlingly (or perhaps not), overseas accountancy qualifications such as the Association f Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) and Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) are gaining popularity in India, perhaps because they are recognized worldwide, are more relevant to current and future needs, and are accepted even in India by global companies and global accounting firms. Having Has                The Parliamentary Committee’s suggestion to set up a string of Indian Institutes of Accounting (IIAs) on the lines of the Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) and the Indian Institutes of Management (IIM) is innovative. The IIAs will offer a five-year full-time and broad-based degree in accounting, auditing and related areas and heir graduates. At one level, they will end the ICAI’s statutory monopoly over certification. More competition should result in better quality and higher standards of conduct. Thought the ICAI and the IIAs are different, they have to compete for the same talent pool. At another level, the IIAs can greatly enhance the quality of education with a wholesome curriculum. BY broadening access, they can make the accounting community more inclusive and socially diverse.     Accounting institutes in other countries including the United Kingdom have changed. The Bill and the Parliamentary Committee’s report can be seen as efforts to drag the ICAI to the contemporary world, kicking and screaming if needed. The ICAI’s leadership needs to ponder and explain the reforms to its membership. It would be wise to read the proposed changes as a warning and respond maturely.