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Time of India
14-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
RBI pitches for email, phone numbers in bank A/c nomination
Reserve Bank of India wants to safeguard depositors' interests. It has asked banks for suggestions. The suggestions are about adding nominee contact details to bank forms. This includes email and phone numbers. The move aims to reduce unclaimed deposits. A new banking bill allows up to four nominees. The government will also give its view. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads New Delhi: To further safeguard depositors' interests, the Reserve Bank of India has sought suggestions from banks on adding nominees' email and phone numbers to existing bank nomination forms. With the passage of the Banking Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024, bank account holders can now have up to four suggestions were sought last month, and a view from the government will also be taken, as this will require updating the format for nomination forms prescribed under the Banking Cos. (Nomination) Rules, 1985, said two executives aware of the developments."The idea is to bring down the unclaimed deposits in the financial sector, especially banks. This may help in tracking claimants or their nominees in case of address change or contact details of the account holder," said one of the executives, adding that the current nomination format for deposits, safe deposit lockers, and safe custody articles lack fields for the nominee's mobile number and e-mail ID."The government has also recently amended the Banking Bill, and by updating the nomination form with contact details of nominees, it will further ensure that all such listed persons are informed and are able to claim their due," the above-quoted executive March, the Banking Laws (Amendment) Bill 2024 was passed by the parliament that amended sections 45ZA, 45ZC, and 45ZE of the Banking Regulation Act to allow for up to four nominees and includes provisions for simultaneous and successive nominations, offering greater flexibility and convenience for depositors and their legal heirs, especially concerning deposits, articles in safe custody, and safety Companies (Nomination) Rules 1985 permits banks to pay dues to nominees in the event of the death of depositor(s) without asking for a succession certificate or verifying claims of legal bank executive said that there may be consent issues in capturing details of nominees. "What if the nominee is not comfortable with sharing details and can bank without consent reach out to them?" he asked, adding that this may require more deliberations, including changes in the know your customer (KYC) lying in bank accounts that have not been operated for 10 or more years are transferred to the RBI 's Depositor Education and Awareness (DEA) Fund.
Indian Express
25-04-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
Opinion Have women been sidelined in parliamentary debates and decision-making?
One of the major achievements of the NDA government has been the passage of the 106th Constitutional Amendment Act, also known as the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, promising one-third reservation for women in both the Parliament and the state assemblies. Political parties often flaunt the number of women MPs, MLAs and local leaders, citing it as a measure of progress. However, true representation lies not only in occupying seats but also in shaping debates, leading committees, and influencing decisions. Our analysis of recent parliamentary activity, particularly in the 18th Lok Sabha, reveals a gap between presence and participation. The conversation on women's representation cannot end at numbers, it must be measured through the hours of their active participation. Participation of women MPs in legislative debates The Lok Sabha debate on the Waqf Bill, 2025, lasted nearly 14 hours, with 61 members participating. Of these, only five were women, making up just 8 per cent of the total speakers. In terms of time taken, the disparity was even more pronounced. Women MPs spoke for a combined total of only 32 minutes, amounting to just 3.5 per cent of the overall speaking time. This is notably lower than their 14 per cent representation in the House. The pattern becomes further clear when one looks at the party-wise data. The BJP, which has 31 women MPs, received a total of 145 minutes during the debate. But two women speakers of the party got only 14 minutes. The Congress, with 14 women MPs, was allotted 92 minutes, of which the only woman speaker got 4.5 minutes. Even when women are included in the list of speakers, the length of their speech is very short in comparison to their men counterparts. The Banking Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024, was discussed in the Lok Sabha on December 3, with the debate continuing for nearly five hours. Despite the significance of the legislation, only one woman MP, Supriya Sule, participated. She spoke for about nine minutes. Both the BJP and Congress, which have a considerable number of women MPs, chose to field only male members for this discussion. In a society that often stereotypes women as lacking financial acumen, parliamentary debates on the Union Budget provide a revealing perspective. While the BJP frequently highlights the fact that its finance minister is a woman, it is striking that no woman MP from the party spoke during the discussion on the Finance Bill, 2025. However, senior women leaders like Supriya Sule, Iqra Choudhary, and Harsimrat Kaur Badal contributed to the discussion. Collectively, all the women spoke for approximately one hour in a discussion that lasted for 8 hours and 43 minutes. A similar trend emerged during the debate on the demand for grants for the Railway Ministry in the Lok Sabha. Out of the 90 MPs who participated, only 10 per cent — 9 MPs — were women. They spoke for about 1 hour and 18 minutes in a discussion lasting 11 hours and 35 minutes in total. These numbers reveal a persistent structural bias. Barring a few parties, most don't give adequate speaking time to their women MPs. Use of parliamentary tools by women MPs Another key measure of women's participation in Parliament is the number of parliamentary interventions they file that are subsequently balloted. One of the most frequently used parliamentary interventions is the Question Hour. An analysis of the fourth session of the 18th Lok Sabha revealed that women MPs asked 17.2 per cent of the total starred questions. However, many of these inquiries were made in collaboration with other MPs, implying that only 7.5 per cent of the questions were asked independently by women MPs. Another crucial parliamentary intervention is bringing in Private Members' Bills. Out of a total of 628 bills filed by MPs for introduction, a striking 572 bills — over 90 per cent of the total — were filed by male MPs, leaving women with merely 56 bills, accounting for just 8.91 per cent of the total. Gender gap in Parliamentary Committees Even within the committees, women remain noticeably absent from leadership roles. Out of the 24 department-related Standing Committees, only two are currently chaired by women. The trend is similar in Joint Parliamentary Committees (JPCs), where even the most high-profile ones are led exclusively by men. The JPC on One Nation One Election is chaired by P P Chaudhary, and the JPC on the Waqf Act was chaired by Jagdambika Pal. Similarly, the JPCs on the Biological Diversity (Amendment) Bill, 2021, was chaired by Sanjay Jaiswal, the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill, 2022, again by Chaudhary, and the Multi-State Co-operative Societies (Amendment) Bill, 2022, by Chandra Prakash Joshi. All male MPs seem to be leading critical legislative deliberations. The absence of women is even more glaring in the three key finance committees: Public Accounts, Estimates, and Public Undertakings. In the last 16 years, not a single woman MP has chaired either the Public Accounts Committee or the Estimates Committee. Only one woman, Meenakshi Lekhi, has chaired the Public Undertakings Committee, and that too, just for a three-year term. This sustained absence from the most influential bodies points to the fact that women are routinely excluded from positions of institutional authority, even when they are present in the system. The role of women in politics remains an area of deep concern. Objectionable remarks targeting women are frequently made during political rallies and even during parliamentary debates. Moreover, infrastructure within parliamentary spaces has historically overlooked the needs of women. The older Parliament building lacked separate washrooms for women journalists. It wasn't until 2018 that a dedicated feeding room was established. Persistence of such gendered challenges further limits the parliamentary potential of women. It is only through intentional reform that we can hope to create a more inclusive and equitable political environment for women.
Times of Oman
30-01-2025
- Business
- Times of Oman
Budget Session will have several key economic and policy bills to shape India's fiscal landscape
New Delhi: Following the presentation of the Economic Survey on January 31 and the Union Budget on February 1, the Budget Session 2025 is poised to address a range of significant legislative matters. This year's session will not only include the introduction and passage of key bills but also crucial financial discussions that will shape India's fiscal landscape. A series of important bills are likely to be taken up during the session. These include the Banking Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024, aimed at strengthening banking regulations and oversight, and Another notable proposal is the Disaster Management (Amendment) Bill, 2024, which seeks to improve disaster response mechanisms across the country. Additionally, the Oilfields (Regulation and Development) Amendment Bill, 2024 will propose updates to the laws surrounding oil exploration and extraction, while the Boilers Bill, 2024 is set to introduce new safety and operational standards for boilers in industrial applications. Among other bills likely to be introduced is the Readjustment of Representation of Scheduled Tribes in Assembly Constituencies of the State of Goa Bill, 2024, which will address the reallocation of assembly constituencies to better represent scheduled tribes in the state. The Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024 and the Mussalman Wakf (Repeal) Bill, 2024 are also expected to bring reforms to the management of religious endowments. Maritime laws will see several updates, with the Bills of Lading Bill, 2024, Carriage of Goods by Sea Bill, 2024, Coastal Shipping Bill, 2024, and the Merchant Shipping Bill, 2024 all set to modernize shipping regulations. Above all, the Finance Bill, 2025 will be central to implementing the budgetary proposals and tax reforms which will be announced by the finance minister on February 1. Other key bills include the Protection of Interests in Aircraft Objects Bill, 2025, which will safeguard financial interests related to aviation, and the Immigration and Foreigners Bill, 2025, which will bring changes to immigration and foreigner regulations in India. In terms of financial business, the session will see the discussion and voting on Demands for Grants for 2025-26, followed by the introduction, consideration, and passage of the related Appropriation Bill. The Discussion and Voting on Demands for Grants for 2025-26 is an essential aspect of parliamentary procedures, allowing for the approval of government spending for the upcoming fiscal year while promoting accountability and transparency. Demands for Grants are essentially requests made by the government to Parliament, specifying the amount of money it needs to meet its expenses for a given year. These expenses cover a wide range of areas, such as infrastructure, healthcare, defence, education, welfare programs, and more. Each ministry or department submits its own Demands for Grants, detailing the specific amounts needed to fund its activities and programs. Additionally, the Second and Final Batch of Supplementary Demands for Grants for 2024-25 will be reviewed, along with the introduction and passage of the relevant Appropriation Bill. The Second and Final Batch of Supplementary Demands for Grants for 2024-25 refers to additional funds that the government seeks to allocate after the presentation of the annual budget for the fiscal year. These supplementary demands arise when there are changes in the government's spending needs, which were not anticipated during the initial budget preparation. The session will also address the Demands for Excess Grants for 2021-22, which will require discussion, voting, and the introduction of a related Appropriation Bill. Demands for Excess Grants for 2021-22 refer to additional funds that the government seeks to appropriate for the financial year 2021-22 when the expenditure incurred by various ministries or departments exceeded the amount originally approved by Parliament in the budget for that fiscal year.
