Dr. C. P. Joshi Inaugurates India Infrastructure Summit - 2012

The Engineering, Procurement and Construction(EPC) mode of execution shall ensure implementation of the road projects to specified standards with a fair degree of certainty relating to costs and time while transferring the design & construction risks to the contractors. This was stated by Dr. C.P. Joshi, the Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways while delivering inaugural address at the “India Infrastructure Summit-2012: Accelerating Implementation of Infrastructure Projects” organized by FICCI here today. The Summit was attended by the representatives from Industry, Developers, Concessionaires, Bankers, Lenders and Financial Institutions. He said that his Ministry is planning to award 4,000 Kilometres of Highway projects under the EPC mode contract this year. These projects will primarily aim at two-laning of single-laned roads on existing right of way thus not involving much Land Acquisition. He said that with the active participation of Planning Commission and Ministry of Finance, his Ministry has evolved and formulated the EPC Agreement document to enable the contractual framework for construction of highways in an efficient, economical and competitive environment. The Cabinet Committee on Infrastructure has recently accorded its approval to the EPC Contract document. It will minimize, if not eliminate, the time and cost over-runs characteristic of the extant Item Rate Contracts. Further, this will enable a faster roll-out of projects with least cost and greater efficiency & flexibility encouraging Contractors to participate in such projects. Referring to the impact of impact of the serious and concerted efforts made by the Government post recession which led to continuous improvement of awards of projects from 639 Kilometres in 2008-09 to 3360 Kilometres in 2009-10 followed by 5082 Kilometres in 2010-11, he informed the participants that the financial year 2011-12 has been an outstanding year for the Indian Road Sector. A record length of 7957 Kilometres of National Highways were awarded for strengthening/upgradation and improvement and over 2200 Kilometres were completed during the year 2011-12. Applauding the highest ever achievement so far for the nation since independence, Dr. Joshi complimented the role played by the Infrastructure Industry in effecting the same. The targets that the Government has set for this sector are ambitious but it has in the recent past surpassed earlier performance emphatically. This inspires his Ministry to fulfill the challenging targets in the days ahead. This year the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways has planned to award 9,500 Kilometres of National Highways for widening and upgradation. This can only be achieved when we synergize our efforts in a positive and pro-active manner. He informed the participants that his Ministry has recently got the approval of Cabinet Committee on Infrastructure for awarding the already completed projects in the NHAI domain on Operate-Maintain-Transfer or OMT basis. It has also planned to award road projects covering around 4,000 kilometers for better maintenance primarily under OMT mode through the Public Private Partnership route. This would not only help improve the existing roads with better maintenance, leading to higher level of users’ satisfaction but also open a new line of business for OMT Concessionaires. The Minister said that for PPP projects, tolling has been a bone of contention between different stakeholders in the sector. While several issues related to the quantum of tolling have been sorted out, his Ministry is trying to resolve the left over issues as well. To infuse efficiency, electronic toll collection (ETC) is being encouraged and facilitated by the Government. In this regard, the country’s first RFID Technology Based Electronic Toll collection Plaza at Chandimandir near Panchkula in Haryana had been inaugurated earlier this year. The Ministry is committed to make all toll plazas, RFID compliant by January 2014. Referring to the related disputes in the sector, he said that around Rupees Eleven Thousand Crores have been stuck up in disputes in the roads and highway sector. This is a cause for concern and the Government has taken serious measures to resolve these issues at the earliest by conforming to the report of the BK Chaturvedi Committee for faster resolution of pending disputes pertaining to National Highways Development Project (NHDP) works. Further, an Independent Expert Group has also been constituted comprising former Chief Justice of High Court as Head and former Deputy Comptroller & Auditor General, former Vigilance Commissioner among others. Highlighting the National Road Safety Policy, he said that it has approved promoting awareness, establishing road safety information data base, encouraging safer road infrastructure including application of intelligent transport systems, enforcement of safety laws, setting up of state road safety councils and district road safety committees etc. Besides these, road safety has been made an integral part of road design at planning stage, safety audits of selected stretches of National Highways/ Expressways are being conducted, safety standards of vehicles are being enforced categorically, and publicity campaigns on road safety awareness are being taken up among others. Dr. Joshi said that in order to enhance the road safety on national highways, his Ministry directed that project designs, while meeting safety standards, provide for various measures to enhance the Road Safety like segregation of local and through traffic by constructing flyovers, underpasses, bypasses, service roads etc. Safety features like road markings, adequate and all weather visible signages, crash barriers, raised pavement markers etc are provided. Safety of pedestrian is of great importance and pedestrian facilities like zebra crossings, pedestrian underpasses, foot over bridges, pedestrian guardrails etc have to be necessarily provided. Ambulances are being provided at an average stretch of 50 km on National Highways entrusted to NHAI and tow away cranes are available at every toll plaza. New locations have been identified for development of wayside amenities.

World’s Highest Railway Bridge Over Chenab River

            The Railway bridge being constructed over the Chenab River in Jammu & Kashmir is planned to have a height of 359 meters from river bed level which, as per available information, is the highest railway bridge in the world.

            The railway bridge over river Chenab is a part of Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla new line project which, on completion, is expected to connect Anantnag, Pulwama, Sopian, Badgam,Srinagar and Baramulla districts of Jammu & Kashmir State to the Railway network.

            Special quality structural steel is being used in the construction of the bridge involving very high degree of precision and latest welding technology.  Special painting scheme is being used for arch portion which is designed considering a number of additional parameters such as fatigue, seismic effect, blast load, global stability and composite action.  Various latest safety measures like measuring wind velocity, ground acceleration in case of earthquake, temperature monitor etc. are also being planned.

            The estimated cost of the bridge as per the contract agreement of 2004 is Rs. 512.74 crore.  The bridge falls in the Katra-Banihal section of the project which is targeted to be completed by December 2017.

            This information was given by the Minister of State for Railways, Shri Bharatsinh Solanki in written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today

Increasing Speed of Passenger Trains

The Indian Railway Vision 2020 envisages increasing speed of passenger trains to 160-200 kilometres per hour on the routes where freight traffic has been segregated by construction of Dedicated Freight Corridor. A feasibility study for increasing the speed on Delhi-Mumbai route is being carried out with assistance from Government of Japan. Increasing of speed will involve strengthening of track & bridges, modification in signalling and overhead electric traction and other safety measures. Further action by the ministry of Railways will be taken on completion of the study and its examination thereof. This information was given by the Minister of State for Railways, Shri Bharatsinh Solanki in written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha today.

State Coordination-Cum-Empowered-Committee (SCEC)

The Central Government has reiterated its advice conveyed to the State Governments to constitute State Level Empowered Committees vide D.O. 7/69/2011-M.IV dated 17.11.2011 to coordinate efforts at State level among various Departments for dealing with matters relating to mineral development and regulation, including measures to curb illegal mining. So far, thirteen State Governments including all mineral-rich States viz. Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Mizoram, Orissa, Rajasthan and West Bengal have set up State Level Empowered Committees. The Central Government is reviewing the position regarding constitution of State Level Empowered Committees and their functioning in the meetings of Central Coordination cum Empowered Committee held regularly. This information was given by the Minister of State for Mines (Independent Charge) Shri Dinsha Patel in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha today.

Consumer Price Index Numbers for Industrial Workers (CPI-IW) July 2012

The All-India CPI-IW rose by 4 points and pegged at 212 (two hundred and twelve). On 1-month percentage change, it increased by 1.92 per cent between June and July compared with 2.12 per cent between the same two months a year ago. The largest upward contributions to the change in current index came from food prices which rose by 2.38 per cent, contributing 2.44 percentage points to the total change. The largest upward pressure came from Rice, Arhar Dal, Green-chilly, Onion, vegetables, mainly Potato and Tomato, and Sugar. This was, however, partially offset by downward contributions from French Bean, Brinjal, and Poultry (Chicken). House rent which increased by 2.96 per cent, contributed 1.05 percentage points to the overall change. The change was reported during the 21st round of Repeat House Rent Survey conducted from January to June, 2012 to capture the change in expenditure incurred on rent by industrial workers. The increase in the current round was mainly on account of annual increment awarded to the salaried persons under centre/state sphere as well as the rise in rent reported from private dwellings. The largest downward contributions to the change in current index came from Transport and Communication with a decline of 0.99 per cent, contributing 0.09 percentage points to the total change. The main downward pressure came from Petrol as an effect of fall in price notified w.e.f. July 24, 2012. The year-on-year inflation measured by monthly CPI-IW stood at 9.84 per cent for July, 2012 (over July, 2011) as compared to 10.05 per cent for the previous month and 8.43 per cent during the corresponding month of the previous year. Similarly, the Food inflation stood at 11.27 per cent against 10.45 per cent of the previous month and 6.25 per cent during the corresponding month of the previous year. At centre level, largest increase of 18 points has been recorded in Durgapur followed by Ranchi-Hatia (10 points), Vijaywada and Jabalpur (9 points each), Goa and Faridabad (8 points each), Bhilai (7 points) and Hubli-Dharwar, H.P., Tiruchirapally and Delhi (6 points each). Among others, 18 centres have recorded rise of 5 points followed by 4 points in 15 centres, 3 points in 13 centres, 2 points in another 13 centres and 1 point in 4 centres. Howrah was the only centre which reported decline in index of 1 point. Rest of 3 centre’s indices remained stationary. There are in all 26 centres whose indices are at par or above All-India Index and rest of 52 centres have indices lower than national average. The next index of CPI-IW for the month of August, 2012 will be released on Friday, September 28, 2012.

Stringent Mobile Radiation Standards Come into Force from tomorrow New Mobile Handsets to comply with SAR Value of 1.6W/KG Penalty, Random Checks Introduced for Enforcement

Beginning tomorrow (1st September 2012) India will be among the select few countries in the world to have stringent EMF( Electromagnetic Frequency)  Radiation Standards, established in the interest of public health, for mobile towers and mobile handsets. Indian standards would now be 10 times more stringent than more than 90% countries in the world. The following are the highlights of the Standards : Mobile Towers (EMF Radiation Norms) Ø EMF ( Electromagnetic Frequency) exposure limit (Base Station Emissions) has been lowered to 1/10th of the existing ICNIRP exposure level, effective 1st Sept. 2012. Ø Telecom Enforcement Resource & Monitoring (TERM) Cells have been entrusted with the job of conducting audit on the self certification furnished by the Service Providers. TERM Cell will carry out test audit of 10% of the BTS site on random basis and on all cases where there is a public complaint.  Ø Telecom Engineering Centre (TEC) has revised the Test Procedure for measurement of EMF for verification of EMF compliance for BTS towers in accordance with new standards. Ø For non-compliance of EMF standards, a penalty of Rs. 5 lakhs is liable to be levied per BTS per Service Provider. Ø The BTS site details i.e. self certification, registration with TERM Cell, test results etc. is proposed to be provided on DoT web site for General Public information. Mobile Handsets Ø All the new design of mobile handsets shall comply with the Specific Absorption Rate (SAR)   values of 1.6 W/kg averaged over 1 gram of human tissue w.e.f. 1st Sept. 2012. Ø The mobile handsets with existing designs which are compliant with 2.0 W/kg averaged over 10 gram of human tissue, will continue to co-exist up to 31st August 2013. From 1st Sept. 2013, only the mobile handsets with revised SAR value of 1.6 W/kg would be permitted to be manufactured or imported in India. Ø SAR value information display on the mobile handsets like IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) display. The information on SAR values to be made available to the consumer at the point of sale. Ø Mobile hand set manufactured and sold in India or imported from other countries shall be checked on random basis for compliance of SAR limit after TEC SAR Laboratory is set up by end of 2012. Test results from international accredited labs will be acceptable in the interim period. Ø The manufacturers in India will provide self declaration of SAR value of the handset. Ø Suitable amendments in the Indian Telegraph Rule under Indian Telegraph Act 1985 are being enacted in support of ensuring compliance of new SAR values for handsets. Ø Manufacturer’s mobile handset booklet will contain safety precautions.  Ø All cell phone handsets sold in the market in India will comply with relevant standards and shall be available in hand free mode. SAR Test Laboratory: Ø  SAR Test Laboratory is being set up in Telecom Engineering Centre for testing of SAR value of mobile handsets imported/ manufactured in India.  New National SAR Standards from Telecom Engineering Centre Ø  National SAR standards from Telecom Engineering Centre are being finalized.  Measuring Instruments: Ø DoT is procuring EMF radiation measuring instruments for TERM cell units.  Ø Outsourcing for EMF radiation measurement for BTS towers is also being considered. Expert  Group Study: Ø  A scientific study in India-specific context is being undertaken jointly by Dept. of Telecom and Dept. of Science & Technology in collaboration with ICMR, MOEF & Min of Science & Technology to derive norms based on credible scientific evidence taking into account diversity of Indian social context. Guidelines to State Government Ø  Department of Telecommunication has released Guidelines covering BTS Towers so that some consistency gets evolved on setting up of BTS towers. Guidelines have been placed on DoT website. Guidelines for Consumers Guidelines for consumers on Mobile handset usage have been issued and hosted on DoT Web site (http://www.gov.dot.in) for general public awareness. Some of them are : 1.    Keep distance – Hold the cell phone away from body to the extent possible. 2.    Use a headset (wired or Bluetooth) to keep the handset away from your head. 3.    Do not press the phone handset against your head. Radio Frequency (RF) energy is inversely proportional to the square of the distance from the source -- being very close increases energy absorption much more.  Limit the length of mobile calls. 5.    Use text as compared to voice wherever possible. 6.    Put the cell phone on speaker mode. When your phone is ON, don`t carry it in chest/breast or pants pocket. When a mobile phone is ON, it automatically transmits at high power every one or two minutes to check (poll) the network.  Radiation Booklet Ø  A booklet addressing possible queries from mobile telecom users on radiation-related issues along with other informative inputs is also being placed on DoT website. TEC Test Procedures Document for Service Providers and Term Cell Units Ø  TEC has revised the Test Procedure for measurement of EMF elaborating the methodology, calculations, measurements and report formats for verification of EMF compliance for BTS towers in accordance with new standards effective from 1st Sept. 2012. This will be applicable for all Mobile Service Providers and Term Cell Units to verify compliance. Department of Telecommunications, Ministry of Communications & IT has  ensured that the new EMF Radiation standards get implemented through close co-ordination with the industry. The guidelines underline the Government’s efforts at providing the best possible Telecom services across the country without compromising on public safety and /human health. ...

Index of Eight Core Industries (Base: 2004-05=100), July 2012

PRESS INFORMATION BUREAU GOVERNMENT OF INDIA *** Index of Eight Core Industries (Base: 2004-05=100), July 2012 1.         The summarized Index of Eight Core Industries with 2004-05 base is given at the Annexure. 2.         The   Eight core industries have a combined weight of 37.90 per cent in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP).  The combined Index was 147.3 in July 2012 with a growth rate of 1.8% compared to their 8.2% growth in July 2011.  The moderation in growth was on account of the negative growth in the production of  Crude Oil, Natural Gas and Fertilizers, besides sharp decline in the growth rates of Steel, Cement and Electricity production. During April-July 2012-13, the cumulative growth rate of the Core industries was 3.2 % as against their growth at 6.0% during the corresponding period in 2011-12. Coal 3.         Coal production (weight: 4.38%) registered a growth of 2.1% in July 2012 compared to its growth at 2.5% in July 2011. However, in cumulative terms Coal production had a growth of 5.3% during April-July 2012-13 compared to its growth at 0.8% during the same period of 2011-12.  Crude Oil 4.         Crude Oil production (weight: 5.22%) had a negative growth of (-) 0.7% in July2012 compared to its growth at 1.4% in July 2011. Cumulatively also, Crude Oil production had a negative growth of (-) 0.6% during April-July 2012-13 compared to its growth at 7.3% during the same period of 2011-12. Natural Gas 5.         The growth rates of Natural Gas production (weight: 1.71%) was negative both in July, 2012, at (-) 13.5% and in July 2011 at (-) 8.2%. Cumulatively, Natural Gas production registered a negative growth of (-) 11.7% during April-July 2012-13 and (-) 9.7% during the same period of 2011-12. Petroleum Refinery Products (0.93% of Crude Throughput)* 6.         Petroleum refinery production (weight: 5.94%) had a growth of 3.6% in July2012 compared to its growth at 3.7% in July 2011.  In cumulative terms, Petroleum refinery production registered a growth of 3.3% during April-July 2012-13 compared to its 4.8% growth during the same period of 2011-12. Fertilizers 7.         Fertilizer production (weight: 1.25%) registered a negative growth of (-) 2.2% inJuly 2012 against its growth at (-) 1.6% in July 2011. Cumulatively Fertilizer production had a growth of (-) 9.5% during April-July 2012-13 compared to 0.4% growth during the same period of 2011-12.  Steel (Alloy + Non-Alloy) 8.         Steel production (weight: 6.68%) had a growth rate of 4.5% in July 2012 against its 16.5% growth in July 2011. Cumulatively, Steel production had a 3.8% growth during April-July 2012-13 compared to its 10.4% growth during the same period of 2011-12. Cement 9.         Cement production (weight: 2.41%) registered a growth of 3.8% in July 2012 against its 13.0% growth in July 2011. The cumulative growth of Cement Production was 8.5% during April-July 2012-13 compared to its    3.1% growth during the same period of 2011-12. Electricity 10.       Electricity generation (weight: 10.32%) had a 2.2% growth in July 2012 compared to its 13.0% growth in July 2011. The cumulative growth of Electricity generation was 5.5% during April-July 2012-13 compared to 9.4% growth during the same period of 2011-12. * RPL (SEZ) with refining capacity 29MMT was commissioned on 25.12.2008 but crude throughput not reported by the refinery and not included in production for entire period.  N.B: Data are provisional. Revision has been made based on revised data obtained.