Manojit Saha &Amp; Vrishti Beniwal

Stories by Manojit Saha &Amp; Vrishti Beniwal

Donors to pay full tax on holy grants

Donors to pay full tax on holy grants

Rediff.com   24 Jun 2010

The donations you make to religious bodies is not going to earn any tax exemptions, but the income of these entities will continue to get tax breaks, subject to certain exemptions.

Change in personal I-T rates unlikely

Change in personal I-T rates unlikely

Rediff.com   21 Jun 2010

Senior officials in the ministry told Business Standard the rate of taxation would remain the same in the final version of DTC.

GST: Centre, states may agree on common threshold

GST: Centre, states may agree on common threshold

Rediff.com   21 Jun 2010

At present, the threshold prescribed for imposition of Value Added Tax -- which will be abolished when GST comes into effect -- differs from state to state.

Govt tweaks bank chief selection rules again

Govt tweaks bank chief selection rules again

Rediff.com   15 Jun 2010

The government has once again tweaked the rules for selection of public sector banks chiefs.

'RBI shouldn't touch key rates now'

'RBI shouldn't touch key rates now'

Rediff.com   7 Jun 2010

CRR is the proportion of deposits each bank must keep in the form of cash.

FinMin flooded with comments on tax code

FinMin flooded with comments on tax code

Rediff.com   26 May 2010

Redrafting the Direct Taxes Code is proving to be an uphill task for the finance ministry, bombarded with comments from various stakeholders. The Central Board of Direct Taxes has received about 10,000 suggestions on the code, which seeks to replace the Income Tax Act of 1961.

SBI on cost-cutting drive

SBI on cost-cutting drive

Rediff.com   21 May 2010

The scaling down of the branch expansion plan is part of SBI's overall game plan to check costs.

FinMin suggests forming an FM-headed council

FinMin suggests forming an FM-headed council

Rediff.com   18 May 2010

The finance ministry has suggested forming a GST council, headed by the Union finance minister, to address disputes between the Centre and the states in the proposed GST regime.

States raising VAT to drive a hard bargain on GST

States raising VAT to drive a hard bargain on GST

Rediff.com   15 May 2010

With less than a year left for the scheduled introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), most states have increased their VAT (value-added tax) rates. The move is seen as an attempt to extract better compensation from the Centre for loss on account of GST rollout

SBI to reach 12,000 unbanked villages

SBI to reach 12,000 unbanked villages

Rediff.com   12 May 2010

State Bank of India (SBI) wants to extend its footprint to 11,943 unbanked villages, with a population of at least 2,000, this financial year. The country's largest lender recently submitted its plan to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

GST, code may lessen Finance Bill's fame

GST, code may lessen Finance Bill's fame

Rediff.com   12 May 2010

The annual Finance Bill may soon become far less exciting as the government plans to lift the veil of secrecy surrounding tax proposals in Budget. Once the Direct Taxes Code (DTC) and Goods and Services Tax (GST) are in place, the finance ministry will adopt a public discussion approach for most future decisions, while confining the annual exercise to a few procedural changes.

IPL sponsors contest service tax notices

IPL sponsors contest service tax notices

Rediff.com   4 May 2010

The Union finance ministry may have to battle it out in court with the sponsors of the Indian Premier League cricket tournament to make them comply with its service tax payment demands.

Reserve Bank rolls out HR reforms

Reserve Bank rolls out HR reforms

Rediff.com   3 May 2010

Winds of change are blowing across Mumbai's Mint Road.

Poor show forces govt to scale down PSU stake sale

Poor show forces govt to scale down PSU stake sale

Rediff.com   26 Apr 2010

With recent issues from state-run companies receiving lukewarm response from the markets, the government has downscaled its divestment programme this year, restricting it to a maximum of eight companies.

Petroleum to be kept out of GST

Petroleum to be kept out of GST

Rediff.com   14 Apr 2010

After failing to convince states to keep petroleum products within the ambit of the proposed goods and services tax (GST), the Centre has finally relented. It has agreed to the proposal of the empowered committee of state finance ministers to keep petroleum products like crude, motor spirit, aviation turbine fuel (ATF) and high-speed diesel out of GST.

Direct taxes code to get a makeover

Direct taxes code to get a makeover

Rediff.com   12 Apr 2010

A senior official in the finance ministry said the Central Board of Direct Taxes addressed the nine areas of concern in the Code identified by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee.

Government takes first step towards GST

Government takes first step towards GST

Rediff.com   6 Apr 2010

The government has taken the first concrete step towards the introduction of the goods and services tax.

Service tax on rail freight deferred till July 1

Service tax on rail freight deferred till July 1

Rediff.com   31 Mar 2010

The levy had to come into effect from April 1. It would now be in force from July 1.

Government to woo retail investors

Government to woo retail investors

Rediff.com   31 Mar 2010

Discounts for retail investors may become a part of the government's disinvestment policy, instead of being offered on a case-to-case basis. The discount offered could be up to 10 per cent of the issue price.

Govt divestment target falls short

Govt divestment target falls short

Rediff.com   30 Mar 2010

The government got Rs 9,930 crore from its follow-on offer of NMDC shares, leaving it short by Rs 1,448 crore for its year's disinvestment target of Rs 25,000 crore. In addition, it got about Rs 2.5 crore by way of interest income on the issue money from banks.