5G to boost healthcare in India

Question: I have learnt from media reports that introduction of 5G in India will be a tremendous boon for healthcare. While I understand the 5G advantage for the economy in general, I want to know how it will make healthcare more affordable for the common man.

ANSWER: Transmission of data is critical in providing medical services to patients. That is why hospital beds and equipment have scores of wires around them which transmit patient data almost instantly. The 5G introduction will ensure reliability and speed of data transmission. In fact, many of the wires may become dispensable without impinging upon the security and reliability of the equipment. One of the largest healthcare companies in the world has recently established its first global 5G innovation lab at its R&D centre in India. A substantial investment is being made which would make the scanning machine much simpler and cheaper. In short, MRI and CT machines would be available at affordable prices for hospitals in rural areas and at remote locations. With the advantage of massive bandwidth, high data speeds and low latency, 5G has the potential to dramatically improve patient care continuum comprising of diagnosis, therapy and prognosis. Data on the cloud in combination with 5G will enable doctors to easily access medical information of their patients from anywhere in the world. Video consultations and remote patient monitoring will become enormously more effective.

Question: Is the European Securities and Markets Authority proposing to derecognise certain intermediaries like Clearing Corporation of India, etc.? Will this affect the equity and other securities markets?

ANSWER: ESMA requires agreements to be signed with Indian regulators like the Securities & Exchange Board of India. The deadline for entering into this agreement with the regulators is April 30, 2023. The agreement requires the regulators to set up a mechanism for exchange of information. The draft co-operation agreement between SEBI and ESMA is currently pending for approval with the Government. If no agreement is signed and any of the clearing houses are derecognised after April 2023, it may lead to disruptions in the foreign exchange and interest rate swap market. ESMA recognition is mandatory for European banks which have branches in India because transactions in the forwards market in foreign exchange take place through a central clearing entity. Foreign equity brokerages which are in the Eurozone can operate in India but will have to assign a higher risk weight to their trade transactions in India. However, the equity market in India will remain unaffected even if ESMA withdraws the recognition to certain clearing houses after April 2023. This is not likely to happen as co-operation agreements between ESMA and the Indian regulators is expected to be entered into by this time.

Question: Almost all companies in India give maternity leave. However, paternity leave to the father is not common. Is this gender bias likely to change?

ANSWER: More and more Indian companies are taking positive steps towards making work cultures inclusive and progressive by increasing the number of days for parental leave. Childcare leave is now generally given for upto 26 weeks. Some companies allow employees who have put in more than one year of service to avail of childcare leave for twelve weeks and a further period of unpaid leave. This is given to both parents including adoptive parents. A few companies have announced that their existing maternity and paternity policy of six months leave would cover non-binary parents. Therefore, employees who are opting for parenthood through natural birth, surrogacy or adoption will be eligible to avail of the parental break regardless of their gender. Flexible working models are also offered after the leave period.

H. P. Ranina is a practicing lawyer, specializing in tax and exchange management laws of India.

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