Shrimi Choudhary &Amp; Indivjal Dhasmana

Stories by Shrimi Choudhary &Amp; Indivjal Dhasmana

'High-frequency indicators suggest recovery in economic activity'

'High-frequency indicators suggest recovery in economic activity'

Rediff.com   25 Oct 2021

International Monetary Fund Chief Economist Gita Gopinath tells Indivjal Dhasmana high-frequency indicators for the third quarter of 2021 indicate momentum in economic recovery in India.

Agencies may have to pay GST on service charges collected on govt's behalf

Agencies may have to pay GST on service charges collected on govt's behalf

Rediff.com   20 Oct 2021

Agencies, whether public sector or private sector, may have to pay goods and services tax on the charges they collect on behalf of the government from clients. The authority for advance rulings (AAR), Telangana, has ruled that e-procurement transaction fee collected by an agency on behalf of the government is chargeable to GST, said Rajat Mohan, senior partner at AMRG & Associates. The AAR also ruled that neither services provided by the agency to the government, nor services provided on behalf of the government to the business entities are exempt from GST, he informed about the case.

How Pandora Papers differs from Panama, Paradise leaks

How Pandora Papers differs from Panama, Paradise leaks

Rediff.com   14 Oct 2021

While Panama and Paradise Papers had majorly focused on foreign entities created by entities, corporates or individuals overseas, Pandora is about the new method adopted by wealthy elites by setting up multiple layered complex trust structures.

Bull Run: How Modi's Mantris Gained

Bull Run: How Modi's Mantris Gained

Rediff.com   8 Oct 2021

Amit Shah's net worth grew 32 per cent to Rs 37.91 crore, mainly due to 80 per cent appreciation in the market value of his securities.

Almost 200K jobs vacant in 9 sectors in Q1, says survey

Almost 200K jobs vacant in 9 sectors in Q1, says survey

Rediff.com   29 Sep 2021

Lack of skilled labour, among other factors, led to 187,062 vacancies in nine sectors during the first quarter of the current fiscal year, showed the new revamped quarterly employment survey (QES). This accounted for a little over 0.6 per cent of the total jobs given by these establishments till April-June 2021-22. The nine sectors - manufacturing, construction, trade, transport, education, health, accommodation and restaurants, IT/BPOs and financial services - employed 30.8 million people.

GST on ice cream parlours may lead to litigation, say experts

GST on ice cream parlours may lead to litigation, say experts

Rediff.com   28 Sep 2021

Certain clarifications by the GST Council, such as tax rates on ice cream parlours and royalty paid to state governments over mineral rights, may turn out to be contentious and lead to litigation, feel some experts. The council, at its meeting in Lucknow on Friday, had clarified that ice cream parlours will attract goods and services tax (GST). The clarification said these parlours sell already manufactured ice cream and such supply would draw 18 per cent tax.

FinMin to kick-start Budget 2022-23 exercise on October 12

FinMin to kick-start Budget 2022-23 exercise on October 12

Rediff.com   21 Sep 2021

The finance ministry will kick-start the exercise to prepare the Union Budget for financial year 2022-23 (FY23) from October 12, according to an official notification released on Monday. "The pre-Budget meetings as well as the meetings to discuss the revised estimates will start from October 12 and will continue till the second week of November," according to the Budget circular of the Department of Economic Affairs' Budget Division. The Union Budget is expected to be announced on February 1, as has been the practice of the past few years.

ITR filing extension: No relief to taxpayers on interest liability

ITR filing extension: No relief to taxpayers on interest liability

Rediff.com   20 Sep 2021

The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has extended various tax returns filing deadlines till December 31 this year but it will continue to levy interest on delayed payments made after July 31, the original due date. Officials say tax payment has to be done through net banking, and the assessee doesn't need to use the e-filing portal, which has been facing glitches. So, taxpayers have to bear the interest payment liability of 1 per cent per month on the outstanding tax for those who filed a return after July 31.

'V-Shaped Growth for Economy'

'V-Shaped Growth for Economy'

Rediff.com   14 Sep 2021

'When you plot the growth, -- 7.5 per cent for Q2, 0.4 per cent for Q3, 1.6 per cent for Q4 and 20.1 per cent for Q1 now -- all you see is a 'V'.' 'You don't see any other alphabet in the shape there.'

'18% GST on parathas, as they are not ready-to-eat'

'18% GST on parathas, as they are not ready-to-eat'

Rediff.com   9 Sep 2021

The controversy over the goods and services tax (GST) rate on food products refuses to die. Now, the Gujarat-based authority of advance rulings (AAR) has ruled that 'parathas' would attract 18 per cent GST. The applicant, Vadilal Industries, sought to know whether various kinds of 'parathas' supplied by them would attract five per cent GST in line with 'khakhra', plain chapati or 'roti'.

Tax portal 2.0 to integrate with bourses to track trade transactions

Tax portal 2.0 to integrate with bourses to track trade transactions

Rediff.com   8 Sep 2021

The income-tax (I-T) department is working on integrating the new e-filing portal with stock exchanges to help tax authorities track trade transactions, including futures and options. The integrated system will look at discrepancies between the data disclosed by an assessee and match it with data fetched from stock exchanges, using artificial intelligence, said two officials in the know. This will help detect and red-flag such matters, particularly those related to non-filers of income-tax return (ITR).

60-65 small- to mid-sized cos on I-T radar for TDS mismatch

60-65 small- to mid-sized cos on I-T radar for TDS mismatch

Rediff.com   7 Sep 2021

Ahead of the second instalment of advance tax, the revenue department is scrutinising entities that have registered negative growth in their tax deducted at source (TDS) payments, even when they reported healthy advance tax payments. According to sources, taxmen have observed a mismatch in TDS payments from at least 60-65 small to mid-sized companies. Officials said it is unusual for TDS to not increase, given the improved turnover and profits - if higher advance tax payments are any indication.

Faceless Assessment Scheme To CHANGE?

Faceless Assessment Scheme To CHANGE?

Rediff.com   23 Aug 2021

The finance ministry has initiated an internal survey of the faceless regime to examine its effectiveness.

Centre mulls an Ordinance as income-tax litigation mounts

Centre mulls an Ordinance as income-tax litigation mounts

Rediff.com   28 Jul 2021

The government is exploring legal options, including bringing an Ordinance, to tackle the problem of income-tax litigation on reassessment notices under old, time-barred norms, according to official sources. This has come in the wake of writ petitions filed by companies and individuals in recent weeks to challenge the validity of the notices issued by the tax department between April 1 and June 30 and under the old norms.

Govt may receive 30% more from infrastructure asset sale

Govt may receive 30% more from infrastructure asset sale

Rediff.com   23 Jul 2021

Now that almost 10 infrastructure ministries have submitted a fresh list of their core infrastructure assets, the government has realised it stands to make much more money from asset monetisation than previously thought. Two persons in the government said it stood to garner over 30 per cent more than the earlier estimates of Rs 2.5 trillion over the next four years under the National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP). The NMP, which is being prepared by Niti Aayog, is in the advanced stages of finalisation and is expected to be unveiled in August.

Govt set to introduce 17 new bills in monsoon session of Parliament

Govt set to introduce 17 new bills in monsoon session of Parliament

Rediff.com   13 Jul 2021

The much-anticipated cryptocurrency bill, however, is missing from the list, reports Shrimi Choudhary.

Ramping up vax cover key to restoring economic activity: FinMin

Ramping up vax cover key to restoring economic activity: FinMin

Rediff.com   10 Jul 2021

Maintaining a rapid pace of the vaccination drive and quickly bridging healthcare infrastructure gaps across both urban and rural areas would emerge as the most sustainable stimulus for durable recovery of the Indian economy, says a report by the department of economic affairs.

Samsung officials questioned by DRI over alleged duty evasion

Samsung officials questioned by DRI over alleged duty evasion

Rediff.com   10 Jul 2021

The probe agency is learnt to have taken possession of multiple physical and digital records during a search operation conducted on the premises of the South Korean firm in Delhi and Mumbai this week.

Finmin reimposes spending curbs on ministries, depts for Q2

Finmin reimposes spending curbs on ministries, depts for Q2

Rediff.com   1 Jul 2021

The finance ministry on Wednesday reimposed expenditure curbs on ministries and government departments for July-September quarter. There will be no spending restrictions on the ministries of health, rural development, agriculture, MSME (micro, small and medium enterprises) and railways as part of a two-pronged strategy. "The existing guidelines for expenditure control have been reviewed. "Keeping in view the evolving situation arising out of Covid-19 and anticipated cash position of the government, it is felt essential to regulate Quarterly Expenditure Plan (QEP)/Monthly Expenditure Plan (MEP) of specific ministries/departments for July-September, 2021," the Department of Economic Affairs in the finance ministry said in a notification.

Economists sceptical about Sitharaman's Covid stimulus

Economists sceptical about Sitharaman's Covid stimulus

Rediff.com   29 Jun 2021

Direct economic stimulus measures such as tax cuts for individuals and industry would have helped to prop up the Indian economy which was hit hard by the lockdowns across several states in India, say economists and corporate leaders. While the measures announced on Monday are focussed more on the supply side, these steps would take a lot of time to move the needle for the economy.