Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, who is meeting state finance ministers on Thursday to garner support for the Constitution Amendment Bill for a goods & services tax (GST), is likely to immediately dole out about Rs 13,000 crore (Rs 130 billion) in Central Sales Tax (CST) compensation to states.

The Jan Dhan scheme restricts the scope of life insurance cover to bring down burden on the exchequer.

APAs are part of govt's aim to move to a non-adversarial tax regime.

Officials say telco still keen on process.

As the government submitted a list of 627 foreign account holders to the Supreme Court on Wednesday, the spotlight is on family of former Maharashtra chief minister, former minister in the UPA government, a Mumbai-based corporate among others. Vrishti Beniwal reports

Financial institutions at the risk of US sanctions as sharing of documents on SC directive amounts to violation of existing agreements.

States' demand for 5 years and Constitutional provision ruled out

All FIPB records will now be digitised; old and unnecessary files will be weeded out

Bureaucrats are finding it difficult to keep pace with Modi's working style -- from long work hours to faster clearance of files -- it is a telling tale in the corridors of power. Vrishti Beniwal finds out

Some experts had said the Budget did not have much in terms of big ideas.

The state has extended its full support, provided its revenues are protected.

Preparing legal framework to protect states from revenue loss.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leash on foreign junkets of his ministers and bureaucrats seems to have trickled down to states as well.

The first phase would comprise universal access to banking facilities. Under this, basic bank accounts with zero balance, RuPay debit card and financial literacy, will have to be completed in the next one year, officials said.

States' demand of compensation from Centre for loss of tax revenue not on agenda.

As many as 75 million households that do not have access to banking services will be covered and at least one bank account opened for each household, against the earlier proposal of two.

To get what it thinks are its dues, its brass have directed; construction, realty, renting of property, personnel supply, security & goods transport among those under lens

At a time when the asset quality of state-owned banks is deteriorating, the Reserve Bank of India is also planning harsher penalties for wealthy promoters of wilful defaulters.

This comes after the arrest of Syndicate Bank Chairman S K jain.

The government's disinvestment programme is set to get a boost this Diwali, with the finance ministry planning to hit the market to sell a five per cent stake in Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) by October.