The Indian government has never known to be information-friendly and now it is tightening the lid over info-flow by putting its own officials in cages with wide-ranging gag orders. R
A chastened government has introduced simplified and shorter income tax return forms after dumping intrusively long ITRs. The government has also extended the last date for filing of returns by a m
With union budget in sight and calls for deferring fiscal consolidation becoming louder, the finance ministry today made it clear that the government is committed to promoting and strengthening inc
For the first time, the finance ministry has fired 72 tax officers, besides prematurely retiring another 33 for non-performance and on disciplinary grounds in the last two years. Th
The government has decided to end existing guidelines for establishing joint venture (JV) companies by defence public sector undertakings (PSUs). The cabinet’s decision will provide a l
How is the response to the IDS? The response has been good. A number of declarations have come and there have been a large number of inquiries too.
Black money is essentially a popular name for black economy. By now it has ‘evolved’ into a grey, that is an indistinguishable mixture of black (i.e., illegal-immoral) and white (i.e.,
Doing away with yet another long-standing tradition, the cabinet has decided to do away with the
What do the income disclosure or amnesty schemes reflect on the government? What it suggests is that the government under the normal schemes is not able to take care
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Friday said that the government is working on a target date of April 1, 2017 for the roll out of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) in the country. He
In May 2014, a committee headed by PJ Nayak, former chairman and CEO of Axis Bank, came out with a report that laid out a roadmap for setting public sector banks (PSBs) free from the government&rsq
Black money, since the colonial times, has been the elephant in the room: it is everywhere and yet rarely talked about. In recent years, however, the middle class has become more strident i
Reasons given for demonetisation To control counterfeit notes that could contribute to terrorism To undermine or eliminate black econom
After a long wait, the finance ministry has completed the interview process to select two managing directors of LIC and the heads of three general insurance companies, United India Insurance, Orien
The Reserve Bank of India on Wednesday withdrew its order of December 19 which had stipulated that the demonetised currency notes could be deposited only once in the quantum of Rs 5,000 or mo
The finance ministry may approach the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) to relax its August 21 deadline for PSUs to meet minimum 25 percent public shareholding requ
NDA has smartly appropriated a slew of UPA initiatives that it had opposed when in the opposition – from Aadhaar to DBT and financial inclusion. However, here is one initiative the government
Trying to make the most of the demonetisation drive, the government has taken yet another follow-up step and launched an Operation Clean Portal. Its aim is to “enable citizen engagement for c
Dr Pankaj Chaturvedi, a head and neck cancer surgeon at the Tata Memorial hospital in Mumbai, is a leading anti-tobacco activist. He joined hands with Sumitra Hooda Pednekar and others to file
If you want to learn more about the Indian economy, you can’t get a better chance than this. Arvind Subramanian, the chief economic advisor to the government of India and otherwise a teache
Some think there is only one way to score a bull’s eye, by hitting the bull’s eye. Then there are creative souls, who first shoot, and then draw a bull’s eye around the
In its bid to bring down energy consumption by old government buildings that consume huge amount of power, the ministry of finance has asked central government establishments to install energ
Cloaked in obsessive secrecy, our budget process is rooted in our colonial past. By a single document, the government tries to lay down the roadmap of the economy for the coming financial year. I
In India public sector accounts for only 30 percent of the total healthcare expenditure and investment in building and maintaining public health infrastructure needs priority in the upcoming budget
When finance minister Arun Jaitley rises to present the union budget 2018 in parliament on Thursday, most Indians will be hoping that he leaves them with more money in their pockets. &nbs
India’s first budget was presented by RK Shanmukham Chetty, minister of finance, on November 26, 1947. Here are the key highlights of the budget for the y
Ahead of the union budget 2018-19, Indian railways is hoping to get adequate funds to strengthen safety and introduce modern signaling system for its gigantic rail network of over 65,000 kms.
In the union budget for 2018-19, some big announcements have been made especially for the health sector but not supported by corresponding budgetary allocations. While, on the one hand, allocations
The ideas of ‘good governance’ and ‘budget transparency’ are intricately related where one practice often influences the other. Over the past few years, the importance of tr
There is a minor shortfall in central government’s revenue following the implementation of GST, finance minister Arun Jaitley informed parliament. He said that at
During his reply on the Motion of Thanks to the Address of the President of India, in the Lok Sabha on February 7, prime minister Narendra Modi compared his government`s efforts to curb corruption
Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) and National Buildings Construction Corporation Ltd (NBCC) have signed an agreement for the construction of housing project for Indian Economic Service (IES) of
The central government is set to present a complex and comprehensive report of its revenues and expenditures throughout the financial year in the budget address on February 1. Modi led NDA governme
Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman has announced what is described as ‘Big Bank’ reforms, consolidating the public sector banking by merging 10 banks into four. This will make Punjab N
Aiming to dispel the clouds of a slowdown, the government on Friday announced a series of measures including corporate tax breaks to revive economic activities. The stock market, depressed for a wh
The global rating agency Moody’s Investors Service has changed its outlook on India’s ratings from ‘stable’ to ‘negative’, but the finance ministry maintained th
The budget season is here, and the annual document has gone to print, beginning the lock-in period till its presentation in parliament on February 1. The Halwa ceremony, marking the
For more than three-fourths of known economic history, India has been the dominant financial power globally. During much of this dominance, the economy relied on the invisible hand of the market fo
The Economic Survey, tabled in parliament Friday by minister for finance and corporate affairs Nirmala Sitharaman, devotes a section on what it calls Thalinomics – an attempt to quantify what
Presenting the first union budget of the third decade of the century, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday unveiled a series of far-reaching reforms, aimed at energizing the Indian econo
Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the union budget for 2020-21 on Friday, providing significant relief in particular to middle-class taxpayers. Here are the main proposals related to ta
“Our prime minister has laid before us ‘Ease of Living’ as a goal to be achieved on behalf of all citizens,” said minister for finance Nirmala Sitharaman while presenting th
Genuine and bona fide default in business will no longer lead to the tag of criminality and punishment, as the government has decided to amend the company law. The union cabinet, chaired by prime m
Cryptocurrency is a digital currency that runs on blockchain technology. This essentially means that no person or entity can control it. Both nationals and internationals can transact with the curr
The World Bank has come to the aide of the government of India for an ‘Accelerating India’s COVID-19 Social Protection Response Programme’ that will support the country’s ef
To revive an economy badly hit by Covid-19 and the resulting long lockdown, the government has announced yet another stimulus package, putting more money in the hands of citizen just in time for th
Union minister for finance & corporate affairs Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday chaired the last of a series of pre-budget consultation meetings for the union budget 2021-22, interacting via vir
Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh have become the first group of states to complete three out of the four citizen-centric reforms stipulated by the department of expenditure, ministry of finance. T
With the clear intent of achieving fiscal targets and affirming the government’s commitment towards prudent fiscal management and boosting investments, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman pro
The Union Budget 2021-22 presented in Parliament on Monday by the finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman seeks to further simplify the tax administration, litigation management and ease the compliance
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday presented in Parliament the Union Budget 2021-22, the first budget of this new decade and also a digital one against the backdrop of unprecedented COVI
In the budget speech on Monday, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman drew the attention of the Parliament on the fact that the pandemic’s impact on the economy has resulted in a weak revenue i
Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her budget speech on Monday announced the total budget allocation Rs 54,873.66 crore for school education and Rs 38,325.15 crore for higher education in Budge
The Union Budget 2021 is aimed at restoring growth in the aftermath of heavy economic losses suffered by the country due to Covid-19 pandemic by enhancing the investment ecosystem in the country, s
The cabinet has cleared the formation of ‘National Asset Reconstruction Company Limited’ (NARCL) which will acquire “stressed assets” of about Rs. 2 Lakh crore in phases wit
After the recent announcement of the government guarantee for Security Receipts (SRs) to be issued by a public sector-owned National Asset Reconstruction Company Ltd (NARCL), there is a surge of in
The Indian economy is estimated to grow by 9.2 percent in real terms in 2021-22 (as per first advanced estimates) subsequent to a contraction of 7.3 percent in 2020-21. Next year, GDP is projected
The Union Budget, tabled in Parliament by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday, seeks to complement macro-economic level growth with a focus on micro-economic level all inclusive welfare.
The government aims to attain the vision of promoting energy transition and climate action during the “Amrit kaal”. While presenting the Union Budget 2022-23 in Parliament Tuesday, Fina
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Tuesday announced the introduction of Digital Rupee to be issued by the Reserve Bank of India starting 2022-23. Presenting the Union Budget 2022-23 in the Parlia
Calling the union budget merely a vision document and not a financial statement that is presented in parliament, Arvind Mayaram, former finance secretary, has said that the budget this year has lef
Union minister for finance and corporate affairs Nirmala Sitharaman has concluded the pre-budget consultation meetings for Budget 2023-24 that were held from November 21 to 28 in the virtual mode.
As the post-pandemic fallout and geopolitical uncertainty slows down global economies and sanctions against some nations, energy crisis and inflation are adding to the troubles, India is projected
Union Budget 2023-24, presented by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the Parliament on Wednesday, outlined the vision of Amrit Kaal which shall reflect an empowered and inclusive economy.
Union minister of finance and corporate affairs Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2023-24 in Parliament on Wednesday. The highlights of the Budget are as follows: PART A
On February 1, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced the Union Budget. As Dr. Rajiv Kumar, the Pahle India Foundation chairman and former NITI Aayog vice chairman, succinctly summed up, &ld
The gross Good & Services Tax (GST) revenue collected in the month of May, 2023 is ₹1,57,090 crore of which CGST is ₹28,411 crore, SGST is ₹35,828 crore, IGST is ₹81,363 crore (includin
FY24 marks the third successive year of 7% plus strong growth of the Indian economy even as the global economy struggles to grow at more than 3%, the finance ministry has said. At th
A Summary of the Interim Union Budget 2024-25 * CAPITAL EXPENDITURE OUTLAY FOR THE NEXT YEAR IS BEING INCREASED BY 11.1 PER CENT TO RS 11,11,111 CRORE, WHICH WOULD BE 3.4 PE
Despite uncertainty from adverse geopolitical developments and expansionary fiscal measures taken during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Indian economy has demonstrated resilience and maintained healthy
The provisional figures of direct tax collections for the financial year 2023-24 show that net collections are at Rs. 19.58 lakh crore, 17.70% more than Rs. 16.64 lakh crore in 2022-23.
