Here are the key highlights of the Interim Budget 2019-20 presented by Finance Minister Piyush Goyal in the Lok Sabha on Friday.
The new Chief Economic Advisor Krishnamurthy Subramanian believes that more than unemployment, it is the quality of employment which needs to be focused on. In an interview with Arup Roychoudhury and Indivjal Dhasmana, Subramanian said that controlling inflation was the Modi government's biggest achievement.
Experts say only three per cent individuals pay taxes.
Mutual fund analysts attribute this to the volatility in the debt markets over the last two months. Saurabh Nanavati, chief executive officer, Religare Asset Management Company, said, "In the last three months, many debt funds found themselves in trouble due to the rise in the 10-year government securities' yield. In such a scenario, the funds will not be in a position to distribute dividends on a regular basis as they are not generating income."
India's tax pie seems to have undergone a subtle change with a sharp drop in direct tax collections resulting from a disproportionate impact of the COVID-19 carnage on incomes. The share of indirect taxes, which mainly comprise of levy on goods and services as well as import duty, has risen while that of direct taxes - made up of corporate and personal income tax - has gone down in 2020. In an interview with PTI, finance secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey said in a pandemic like this where the economy has been impacted, any large scale changes impact direct taxes more severely, whereas indirect tax collection is mostly proportional to business turnover and compliance.
The due date for filing Income Tax returns for 2019-20 has already been extended till November 30, 2020.
Among the key demands of agitating farmers has been a legal guarantee on minimum support price (MSP). The protest reached a crescendo when thousands of farmers from Punjab and elsewhere marched towards Delhi late last year and decided to block the main entry points once they were denied entry. The Centre, on its part, held 11 rounds of discussions with the protesters and even offered to amend some of the provisions without much success. With now one of their chief demands met, farmers have now moved on to force the government to concede on MSP.
The I-T department will rely on data analytical tools and run models to separate black money holders and genuine taxpayers based on the large data base being shared by banks.
Budget announcements will come right before five states, with population of around 250 million, go to polls.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday declared that Aadhaar is constitutionally valid, but at the same time also ruled on who can seek your Aaadhaar details.
Under the Vivad se Vishwas scheme, the MNCs will have to bring in disputed amount to India, else, the entire money will be considered as loan from subsidiaries on which interest will have to be paid.
Clever wordplay does not change the fact that the government is going pretty easy on some tax offenders, says Arup Roychoudhury.
Between August and September Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman toured the length and breadth of India meeting traders, experts and entrepreneurs to gauge the pulse of the nation, reports Ruchika Chitravanshi.
You need not worry even if there is a mismatch between your income and deduction in Form 16/16A and Form 26AS, says Ashley Coutinho
A K Bhattacharya digs into the yet-to-be-public report on ways to curb black money and finds out that Modi's next moves could include action on dabba trading, hawala, and education.
Back of the envelope calculations put government expense on each of the new schemes promised by the DMK and the AIADMK at tens of thousands of crores. But then, neither party has said how they are going to also address the mounting debt burden either, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
'Modi had not discussed demonetization with me prior to his announcement on 8 November 2016. 'I learnt of it along with the rest of the country. 'I was not surprised when he did not discuss the issue with me prior to making the public announcement. 'It fitted in with his style of making dramatic announcements.' A fascinating excerpt from Pranab Mukherjee's The Presidential Years: 2012-2017.
The move is likely to help 4.59 lakh housing units across the country.
DroughtThe Centre is expected to discuss issues related to drought management and also review the progress of major central schemes like soil health cards, irrigation programmes
This race among parties to woo the farmers mainly stems from the analysis of political pundits that the peasant class played a crucial role in the defeat of the BJP in Rajasthan, MP and Chhattisgarh.
Tax Guru Anil Rego answers your personal income tax queries.
Cap on bank withdrawals to be reviewed after Dec 30, says finance secy.
A minimum of 50 per cent tax may be levied on unexplained bank deposits made using the banned currency notes up to December 30 along with a 4-year lock in period for half of the remaining amount under the amendments to tax law the government plans to bring in Parliament shortly.
Parekh says drafting new I-T law is hindered by the lack of experience.
The disclosures will enjoy immunity from wealth tax, civil and other taxation laws but there will be no immunity from FEMA, PMLA, narcotics and black money laws.
As much as 73% of total income of national political parties is unaccounted for, says Association for Democratic Rights.
If the real estate sector is properly managed, it could drive not just finance but demand for a range of products and services, observes T N Ninan.
The allegations of DDT evasion is connected to some transactions the Indian entity has made while buying shares of the company from the Mauritius and US companies of Cognizant.
Such schemes try to exploit an anomaly in taxation, but aren't in violation of laws, experts say.
The two central premier investigative agencies - Central Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement Directorate - have asked their officials to focus more on digital evidence, e-forums and social media to crack down on offenders. These are a crucial part of prosecution amid the second wave of the pandemic. The Income Tax Department is going full throttle on data analytics to issue notices in time-bound cases. Further, sleuths have been given electronic devices including laptops with secure connections, which keep data encrypted and inaccessible.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said political parties will be entitled to receive donations by cheque or digital mode from their donors.
'Many theories are doing the rounds on how to declare unaccounted income.'
'One of the more interesting ideas I have heard,' says Harsh Roongta, 'is that the tax payer can state that he found the currency notes in a bag on the street.'
Notification, FAQs likely after FM Jaitley returns from the US
A quick snapshot about the fundamentals of the concept of life insurance.
The top court granted two weeks to the Centre and RBI to file the affidavit and place before it the decisions taken in this regard.
The government has decided to provide the tax defaulters another chance to prove their loyalty to the IT department, by implementing a single time amnesty scheme.
Kejriwal's centralised way of governance might work in Delhi, but Punjab will call for delegation, observes Sanjeev Nayyar.
A stream of people, including those from Rajasthan and Karnataka, walked into the only designated office before the closure of the one-time compliance window.
'He is not looking at the interest of farmers. He only wants to do the politics of elections.' 'This Budget is for the new super India. It is exploiting the villages of Bharat.'
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