opensansad/lok-sabha-qa huggingface dataset:
Lok Sabha Question No. 525 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-02-06
Subject: Seats in CDS
Ministry: DEFENCE
Asked by: SRINIVAS KESINENI

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF DEFENCE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENCE

## LOK  SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.525

TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 6 TH  FEBRUARY, 2019

## SEATS  IN  CDS

## 525. SHRI  KESINENI  NANI:

Will the Minister of DEFENCE j{kk ea=h be pleased to state:

- (a) whether about 400 seats in Combined Defence Service (CDS) examination are declared for  male  candidates  and  only  10-12  for  female  candidates  and  a  large  number  of  female candidates after being recommended fit for the services end up not making into the merit due to meagre number of seats for them;
- (b) if  so,  whether  the  Government  proposes  to  increase  women  participation  in  Armed Forces and if so, the details thereof;
- (c) if not, the reasons therefor;
- (d) whether Government is aware that a large number of male seats every year remain vacant through CDS entry; and
- (e) if  so,  whether  Government  is  planning  on  transferring  these  vacant  seats  to  female candidates and if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor?

## A    N    S    W    E    R

MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF DEFENCE

(DR. SUBHASH BHAMRE)

j{kk jkT; ea=h

## ¼Mk . lqHkk'k Hkkejs½

(a) to (c): Approximately  800  vacancies  are  released  annually  for  Combined Defence Service Exam (CDSE).  Out of these, about 30 vacancies are released for Short Service Commission (Women).  The induction of women is based on the organizational requirement, fighting efficiency, combat effectiveness and functionality of the force.

It has been the endeavour of the government to increase the role of women in Armed Forces.  Over the years, new branches / services / streams have been opened  up  for  recruiting  women  as  short  service  commission  (SSC)  officers. Recently, it has been decided to enrol 1700 women (below officer rank) in Corps of Military Police in a phased manner.

(d) & (e): Sometimes, seats remain vacant in Short Service Commission (Non Tech)  entry  because of  tough  selection procedures, difficult  service conditions coupled with perceived high degree of risk involved in the service career.

The policy in vogue precludes transfer of vacant seats to female candidates.

******
Lok Sabha Question No. 524 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-02-06
Subject: IDEX Scheme
Ministry: DEFENCE
Asked by: R. PARTHIPAN

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF DEFENCE

## DEPARTMENT OF DEFENCE PRODUCTION

## LOK  SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.524

TO BE ANSWERED ON THE 6 TH  FEBRUARY, 2019

## IDEX  SCHEME

## 524. SHRI  R. PARTHIPAN:

Will the Minister of DEFENCE j{kk ea=h be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  the  Government  has  any  mechanism  to  boost  innovations  under  the Innovations for Defence Excellence (IDEX) scheme;
- (b) if so, the details thereof;
- (c) whether the Government has any intention to support the shortlisted proposals for successful completion and if so, the details thereof;
- (d) whether the Government has selected any thrust areas under the scheme; and
- (e) if so, the details thereof?

## A    N    S    W    E    R

MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF DEFENCE

(DR. SUBHASH BHAMRE)

j{kk jkT; ea=h

¼Mk . lqHkk'k Hkkejs½

(a) to (e): A statement is attached.

******

## STATEMENT  REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO  PARTS  (a)  TO  (e)  OF  LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 524 FOR ANSWER ON 6.2.2019

1. The  'Innovations  for Defence  Excellence  (iDEX)'  initiative  was launched by the Hon'ble Prime Minister during Defexpo 2018 in April 2018 to  leverage  India's  startup  ecosystem  to innovate for  the defence  sector. iDEX framework is administered through the Defence Innovation Organisation (DIO), a Section 8 company.  DIO has launched Defence India Startup Challenge, under which Individuals, MSMEs, Startups and innovators  are  invited  to  participate  in  the  challenges  for  resolution  of specific  Problem  Statements  put  forth  in  consultation  with  the  Service Headquarters / Defence Public Sector Units / Ordnance Factory Board. 2. Funding and mentoring support to the shortlisted candidates in the Defence  India  Startup  Challenge  to  take  their  proposal  from  Proof  of Concept (PoC) stage to successful prototyping and possible
2. commercialization is the mandate of DIO. 3. The iDEX scheme envisages following activities:(i) Setting  up  and  managing  of  the  iDEX  network  in  the  form  of Independent Defence Innovation Hubs. (ii) Communicate  with  innovators  /  start-ups  through  the  Defence Innovation Hubs regarding defence and aerospace needs. (iii) Organizing various challenges / hackathons to shortlist potential technologies for defence and aerospace use. (iv) Evaluate  technologies  and  products  coming  from  innovators  / start-ups in terms of their utility and impact on the Indian defence and aerospace setup. (v) Enable and fund pilots, using innovation funds dedicated to the purpose. (vi) Interface with the military (Army / Navy / Airforce) top brass about key  innovative  technologies  and  encourage  their  adoption  into the  defence  establishment  with  suitable  assistance  (financial  if required). in
3. (vii) Facilitate scale-up, indigenization and integration manufacturing facilities for successfully piloted technologies.
4. *******
Lok Sabha Question No. 523 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-02-06
Subject: Telecom Service Providers
Ministry: COMMUNICATIONS
Asked by: LAXMI NARAYAN YADAV, RAM TAHAL CHOUDHARY

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS

## LOK  SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.523 TO BE ANSWERED ON 6 TH  FEBRUARY, 2019

## TELECOM SERVICE PROVIDERS

- †523.  SHRI LAXMI NARAYAN YADAV: SHRI RAM TAHAL CHOUDHARY:

Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the amount of 55 thousand crore rupees of the Government is due on telecom service providers and out of this 44 thousand crore rupees is stuck in litigation;
- (b) if so, the reasons due to which the Government has not been able to recover the said amount;
- (c) the reasons for not delicensing those service providers who owe more than 500 crore rupees;
- (d) the reaction of the Government thereto; and
- (e) the reformative measures taken in this regard?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE (IC) OF THE MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS & MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS (SHRI MANOJ SINHA)

(a) to (e) The total demands raised by the Department of Telecom for the License Fee and Spectrum Usage Charges based on Adjusted Gross Revenue as on date are of Rs. 88,233.41 Cr. The entire amount is under litigation because of the dispute regarding the definition of what constitutes  as  'Adjusted  Gross  Revenue'  before  the  Hon'ble  Supreme  Court  since  2015. Department of Telecom has challenged the order of Ld. TDSAT (Telecom Disputes Settlement Appellate Tribunal) dated 23.04.2015 in Telecom Petition No 7 of 2003 be fore the Hon'ble Supreme  Court  vide  Civil  Appeal  No.  6183-6255  of  2015  and  connected  petitions.The Government may not be able to initiate any coercive action in the matter since it is sub-judice.

However, to further securitize the dues of the Government, Department of Telecom has filed four (4) Interlocutory Applications in the same matter with a prayer to direct the TSPs to submit additional Bank Guarantees worth Rs. 88,233.41 Cr.

************
Lok Sabha Question No. 522 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-02-06
Subject: Decrease in Passengers due to High Fares
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: K. GOPAL

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 522 TO BE ANSWERED ON 06.02.2019

## DECREASE IN PASSENGERS DUE TO HIGH FARES

522. DR. K. GOPAL:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

- (a) whether it is a fact that there was degrowth of 2.7% in the number  of  passengers  during  September,  2016  to  July,  2017 despite availability of higher number of berths/seats;
- (b)  if so, the reasons therefor;
- (c)  whether it is also true that airfares were cheaper than the fares of a large number of railway routes and if so, the details thereof;
- (d) whether there was a suggestion for review and fine tuning of various fare related schemes, so that not only more revenue is earned but also the number of passengers is increased; and
- (e) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

(SHRI RAJEN GOHAIN)

(a) to (e): A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

*****

STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) TO (e) OF UNSTARRED  QUESTION  NO.  522  BY  DR.  K.  GOPAL  TO  BE ANSWERED IN LOK SABHA ON 06.02.2019 REGARDING DECREASE IN PASSENGERS DUE TO HIGH FARES (a):  No,  Madam.  There  has  been  an  increase  of  1.55%  in  total number of passengers booked during the period from September 2016 to July 2017 as compared to the corresponding period of last year. (b): Does not arise. (c):  Railways  and  Airlines  are  different  modes  of  transport system, which are not comparable in terms of volume as well as convenience.  The  air  fares  may  or  may  not  be  cheaper  than some  of  the  selected  trains'  fare.  There  is  difference  even  in fares  for  different  airlines  and  also  for  the  same  airline  for different  services  at  different  timings.  Hence,  fares  of  Indian Railways are not comparable with the fares of Airlines. (d)  &  (e):  Based  on  the  feedback  from  different  quarters,  a committee  was  constituted  to  review  the  Flexi  Fare  scheme. Further based on the committee's recommendations, the matter has been examined and it has been decided to rationalise flexi fare as under:Discontinuation of Flexi Fare scheme from 15 trains for full  year  and  from  32  trains  during  pre  defined  lean

- (i) period of 3 months (February, March & August)

- (ii) Maximum cap of Flexi Fare scheme has been reduced to 1.4 times in all Flexi Fare applicable classes
- (iii) Graded  discount  has  been  introduced  in  Flexi  Fare trains and Humsafar trains, where class-wise occupancy is less than 60%, 4 days prior to scheduled departure of the train as under:-

| Occupancy   | Discount         |
|-------------|------------------|
| Up to 70%   | 20% on last fare |
| 70 to 80%   | 10% on last fare |
| Above 80%   | Nil              |

The above have been implemented for the journey commencing on or after 15.03.2019.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 520 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-02-06
Subject: National Research Development Corporation
Ministry: SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Asked by: GOPALAKRISHNAN CHINNARAJ

- (a)

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY DEPARTMENT OF SCIENTIFIC AND INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 520

(TO BE ANSWERED ON 06.02.2019)

## NATIONAL RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION

## 520.  DR. C. GOPALAKRISHNAN:

Will the Minister of SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Union Government has decided to revive National Research Development Corporation (NRDC); and
- (b) if  so,  the  details  thereof  along  with  reasons  and  purpose  to  revive  the NRDC?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AND EARTH SCIENCES (Dr Harsh Vardhan)

- Yes, Madam.
- (b) The Niti Aayog reviewed NRDC in its meeting dated 20.02.2017 chaired by CEO, Niti Aayog and noted that NRDC may be serving a public purpose by assisting in commercialization of R&D and decided as under:

'Given that the CPSE is serving a public purpose, it may be allowed to continue  operations  and  not  be  closed.  However  it  must  be  able  to survive and prosper, preferably without Government financial support or minimal  one  time  assistance  subject  to  proof  of  re-structuring  and improved performance.'

Further,  in  a  meeting  held  at  Niti  Aayog  on  28.05.2018  under  the chairmanship of Member, Niti Aayog, it was suggested as follows:

'There  is  a  dire  need  of  the  organization  like  NRDC  in  the  country  for commercialization  of  indigenously  developed  technologies.  However, keeping  in  view  the  weaknesses  developed  over  the  year  by  the organization, there is need to recast function, finance, management and linkages of NRDC.  Accordingly, Expert Group to be constituted under the chairmanship  of  PSA  to  GOI  and  submit  a  report  on  restructuring  of NRDC.'

The Expert Group under the chairmanship of PSA to GOI held its meeting on  19.07.2018  and  decided  that  NRDC  fills  in  the  critical  gap  area between  development  of  technology  and  development  of  a  commercial market around the said technology and a restructuring strategy on NRDC

should be developed. A restructuring report on NRDC concluded as follows: 'NRDC  is  entrusted  with  the  critical  responsibility  of  commercializing home grown technologies  and  the  need  for  its  existence  is  even  more pressing today than before.'

- *****
Lok Sabha Question No. 519 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-02-06
Subject: Freightage Policy
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: BALASUBRAMANIAM SENGUTTUVAN

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.519 TO BE ANSWERED ON 06.02.2019

## FREIGHTAGE POLICY

## 519. SHRI B. SENGUTTUVAN:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

- (a)   whether  the  Railways  follow  a  Dual  Freightage  Policy  offering concessional  tariff  for  transportation  of  goods  for  domestic consumption  and  non-concessional  tariff  for  transportation  of goods meant for export and if so, the details thereof;
- (b)  whether the non-concessional tariff for transportation of goods is three times higher than the concessional tariff and if so, the details thereof;
- (c)    whether  CAG  has  noted  in  its  report  that  iron  ore  meant  for export was transported at concessional tariff causing a loss of Rs. 29,000 crore to the Railways and if so, the details thereof; and
- (d) the  proactive  steps  taken  to  plug  the  loopholes  in  the  tariff rules in order to prevent the unscrupulous exploitation leading to huge loss for the Railways?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

## (SHRI RAJEN GOHAIN)

(a)&(b): No, Madam. Dual Freight policy applicable for transportation of Iron Ore and Iron Ore Pellets meant for domestic and other than domestic  consumption  has  been  discontinued  with  effect  from 10.05.2016.

(c):  CAG  in  Report  14  of  2015  had  reported  that  Railways  had suffered a loss of ` 29,236.78 crore for transportation of Iron Ore due to  partial  submission/non  submission  of  documents/submission  of invalid documents for transportation of Iron Ore.

(d):  Dual  Freight  Policy  for  Iron  Ore  has  been  withdrawn  since 10.05.2016.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 518 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-02-06
Subject: Public Procurement Policy
Ministry: ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Asked by: K. ASHOK KUMAR

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 518

TO BE ANSWERED ON:

06.02.2019

## PUBLIC PROCUREMENT POLICY

## 518.    SHRI K. ASHOK KUMAR:

Will the Minister of Electronics & Information Technology be pleased to state:-

- (a)  whether  it  is  true  that  the  Government  has  mandated  giving  preference  in  all  public procurement  policies  to  locally  produced  cyber  security  products  where  intellectual property rights are owned by companies or start-ups incorporated in India;
- (b)  if so, the details thereof;
- (c)   whether it is also true that though intellectual property registration is not mandatory in India,  a  firm  claiming  benefit  should  have  the  right  to  use  and  commercialise  the product without third party consents, distribute and modify it; and
- (d)  if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI S.S. AHLUWALIA)

(a)  and  (b): Yes,  Sir.  Government  has  issued  a  notification  on  2.7.2018  entiled  'Public Procurement  (Make in  India)  Order  2018  for  Cyber  Security  Products'.  The  notification defines local supplier as :

'A  company  incorporated  and  registered  in  India  as  governed  by  the  applicable  Act (Companies  Act,  LLP  Act,  Partnership  Act  etc.)  or  startup  that  meet  the  definition  as prescribed  by  Department  of  Industrial  Promotion  and  Policy  (DIPP),  Ministry  of Commerce and Industry Government of India under the notification G.S.R. 364 (E) dated 11th April 2018 and recognized under Startup India initiative of DIPP.

and

Revenue from the product(s) in the India and revenue from Intellectual Property (IP) licensing  should  accrue to  the  aforesaid  company/Startup  in  India. The entity  claiming benefits  under  the  Public  Procurement  Order  2017  in  addition  to  being  an  Indian registered/ incorporated entity, and supplying products should satisfy the conditions of IP ownership .'

(c) and (d): Yes, Sir, intellectual property registration is not a compulsory criteria as it is not  necessary  to  register  to  exercise  copyright  in  India.  In  this  case,  IP  ownership  rights would need to be substantiated by adequate proof, such as:

(i) adequate documentation evidencing ownership (evidenced by supporting proof such as documentation  related  to  development  but  not  limited  to  IP  assignments,  shrink  wraps, license agreements, click wraps); or

(ii) IP registrations.

- *********
Lok Sabha Question No. 517 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-02-06
Subject: Vacancies of Doctors
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: RAM CHARITRA, UDIT RAJ

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 517 TO BE ANSWERED ON 06.02.2019

## VACANCIES OF DOCTORS

## 517. SHRI RAM CHARITRA NISHAD:

DR. UDIT RAJ:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

- (a)  whether  it  is  true  that  there  are  around  2,000  doctors  in  the railways with a vacancy of around 550;
- (b) if so, the details thereof;
- (c)  whether  it  is  also  true  that  during  emergency  on  account  of  rail accidents, doctors from Railways reached to the spot of accident very late and if so, the details thereof; and
- (d)  the  action  taken  by  the  Railways  to  fill  up  the  vacancies  of doctors?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS (SHRI RAJEN GOHAIN)

(a)&(b): The sanctioned strength of doctors in Indian Railway Medical Service (IRMS) Group 'A' is 2624, out of which there are 416 vacancies as  on  01.02.2019.    These  vacancies  are  filled  by  engaging  Contract

Medical Practitioners (CMPs) as a stop gap arrangement till regularly selected Assistant Divisional Medical Officers (ADMOs) join Railways.

(c): No, Madam.

(d): In view of low joining rate of Assistant Divisional Medical Officers (ADMOs), the indents for the Combined Medical Services Examination (CMSE) conducted by UPSC had been increased substantially from 250 to  600  in  2013, 650  in 2014, 600 in 2015 and 600 in 2016.  This has improved the joining rate of doctors on Indian Railways.  Action has also  been  taken  to  fill  up  the  posts  of  Specialist  Divisional  Medical Officers  (DMOs)  in  Senior  Scale  in  different  specialities  by  placing indents with UPSC and about 55 such DMOs have already joined.  Offer letters have also been issued to another 24 candidates recommended by  UPSC  for  the  post  of  DMO  (General  Medicine).    Further,  Zonal Railways  are  also  empowered  and  are  regularly  engaging  Contract Medical Practitioners as per requirement.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 516 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-02-06
Subject: Data Privacy Threat by Public Wi-Fi
Ministry: COMMUNICATIONS
Asked by: G. HARI

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS

## LOK  SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.516 TO BE ANSWERED ON 6 TH  FEBRUARY, 2019

## DATA PRIVACY THREAT BY PUBLIC WI-FI

516. SHRI G. HARI:

Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state:

- (a) whether it is a fact that according to the Cellular Operators Association of India the public Wi-Fi without license may threaten data privacy;
- (b) if so, the details thereof;
- (c) whether  it  is  also  true  that  Cellular  Operators  Association  of  India  (COAI)  has written a letter to the Government in this regard; and
- (d) if so, the steps taken by the Government thereon?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE (IC) OF THE MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS & MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS (SHRI MANOJ SINHA)

(a) to (d) Certain submissions have been received by Department of Telecommunications from Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), inter-alia, on data privacy in relation to recommendations made by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on the subject 'Proliferation of Broadband through Public Wi-Fi Networks'.

This  matter,  including  the  submissions  received,  is  under  consideration  and decisions, as appropriate, will be taken in due course of time.

************
Lok Sabha Question No. 515 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-02-06
Subject: Space Agencies
Ministry: SPACE
Asked by: RAJESHBHAI NARANBHAI CHUDASAMA

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## DEPARTMENT OF SPACE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.515

## TO BE ANSWERED ON WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 06, 2019

## SPACE AGENCIES

515. SHRI RAJESHBHAI CHUDASAMA:

Will the PRIME MINISTER be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  the  Asia  Pacific  Regional  Space  Agency  Forum  has recommended  that  the  established  space  agencies  in  the region  should  promote  space  applications  including  rice  crop monitoring, global rainfall monitoring, fire hotspot, haze monitoring and disaster management;
- (b)
- if so, the details thereof; and
- (c) the  areas  ISRO  has  been  concentrating  as  far  as  the  above said  areas  mentioned by Asia Pacific Regional Space Agency are concerned?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF PERSONNEL, PG & PENSIONS AND IN THE PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE (DR. JITENDRA SINGH):

(a) & (b)

Space  Applications  Working  Group,  one  of  the  four  Working Groups of Asia Pacific Regional Space Agency Forum (APRSAF), has recommended to further promote space applications,  including  rice  crop  monitoring,  global  rainfall monitoring, fire hotspot, haze monitoring and disaster management, at the 24 th  session of APRSAF held at Bengaluru in November 2017.

(c) Indian  Space  Reseach  Organisation  (ISRO)  is  carrying  out studies in the above said areas.

*****