Agra has long been known for the Taj Mahal, but it is also a manufacturing hub filled with micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) that make everything from electronic components to metal products, from paints and chemicals to footwear. And five years after the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST), the MSMEs here complain that while the indirect tax regime has been transformative, cutting out the need to file multiple taxes, its biggest drawback has been the delay in credit refunds. Whoever you speak to - MSME owners, tax lawyers, or industry bodies like the National Chambers of Industries and Commerce (NCIC), Agra Footwear Manufacturers and Exporters Chamber (AFMEC) and Agra Shoe Manufacturers Association (ASMA) - they all emphasise that the GST continues to face some key challenges.
Noted banker Uday Kotak said the country's financial system is currently in a Darwinian mode as only the fittest lenders are able to survive. Kotak also said that historically, whenever there has been a problem with a private sector lender, it has been merged with a state-run bank.
The Delhi Police later said they detained AAP MP Bhagwant Mann and over a hundred protesting workers after 'they started getting agitated'. Addressing his party workers from Punjab at the protest, Kejriwal said the AAP has a very clear stance on the farm laws.
Emotions ran high as the farmers performed ardas (prayers) and havan to thank the almighty and started their 'victory march' from Singhu, Tikri and Ghazipur protest sites to Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh in convoys of tractors, bedecked with colourful flowers and lights and blaring songs of jubilation.
A security guard in Mumbai tells Rediff.com's A Ganesh Nadar what he would like to see in Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman's Budget.
Meanwhile, Kamra has refused to retract his controversial tweets against the Supreme Court or apologise for them, saying he believes they "speak for themselves".
The monsoon session of Parliament got off to a stormy start on Monday leading to adjournment of the two Houses without transacting much business following an opposition uproar over issues ranging from price rise to the Agnipath scheme.
'I criticise the interference of the army in politics.' 'But the people know I am not anti-Pakistan.' 'Public support is my biggest strength.'
The Tamil Nadu Assembly on Saturday adopted a resolution urging the Centre to withdraw three contentious farm laws, against which farmers have been holding protests outside Delhi for months.
V Singh said that "actual farmers are very happy with what has been done in last six months."
Capitals were the best team in the league and their 20-point finish at the group stage was an indication of their consistent performances which didn't dip due to the COVID-19 forced break. CSK, over the years, have been in final eight times and won on three occasions which speak volumes of the team's ability to lift their game just when it's required most.
'India should start leveraging rather than banning crypto.'
'This kind of love from our audience shows that our music is working.'
There's enough time for Mamata Banerjee to change her mind, Alva said.
"I will have to remove the mask of chief minister to respond to politics. I don't speak doesn't mean I don't have answers," Thackeray said.
Ugly scenes were witnessed in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday as opposition MPs climbed on the officials' table, waved black cloth and threw files when the House began a discussion on farmers' protest against new reform laws.
He announced his 24-hour fast in a letter to President Ram Nath Kovind and Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu, speaking at length about his anguish over the ruckus in the House during the passage of two farm bills on Sunday.
'They will not get more than two seats in Haryana if elections are held now.'
On his 90th birth anniversary, Sukanya Verma lists 20 of her favourite scenes that reiterate his extraordinary grasp on the language of cinema and connect with the viewer.
The Congress on Thursday attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his "silence" on the Lalit Modi controversy, saying he should come out of his 'meditation' and answer the nation as he too is "liable".
Taking a dig at UPA government's ambitious food security programme, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi has said that the Centre was under the impression that merely bringing in the Bill would lead to food reaching the needy.
'We were among the first organisations to voice our opposition to the three Acts long before anyone else and had sent memorandums collected from 3,000 tehsils across the country to the agriculture ministry to amend the Bills, but nothing was accepted,' says BKS general secretary Badri Narayan Chaudhary.
India, the world's third-largest energy consumer and importer, on Wednesday warned of high oil prices hurting the nascent and fragile global economic recovery and floated an idea of long-term supply contracts that provide predictable and stable pricing. Speaking at the India Energy Forum by CERAWeek, Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said there was a mismatch between demand for oil and the supplies producers such as OPEC+ were making and there was a case for raising the production. The world, he said, needs "predictable, stable and affordable" prices for it to recover back to pre-pandemic levels.
In his address at the 28th foundation day of the NHRC in New Delhi, the former judge also underlined that 'external forces' levelling 'false' allegations of human rights violations against India has become very common, 'which should be opposed'.
'In 2021, assembly elections are going to be held in Assam. The BJP, sitting in Delhi, is thinking everything is hunky-dory in Assam. But that is not the case.' 'People of Assam are no longer with the BJP.'
"Features of the Bill are anti-people and anti-Constitution...it is a very dangerous act," the fiery TMC MP said.
The proceedings were washed out over various issues including the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill and roster system for reservation in educational institutions.
'The auctions were necessary up to a point, but now the time has come where continuity is very, very, important.'
The allegations against her are baseless. Nothing against her or Swami Aseemanad have been proved, Shah said.
'I will not say that the AIMIM is a 'B' team of the BJP. But due to the AIMIM, the BJP benefits for sure'
Indian American Ashwath Nityanandan recollects a particularly cold winter that cost him a job interview.
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh's highest decision-making body Akhil Bharatiya Pratinidhi Sabha (ABPS) will meet in Bengaluru on March 19 and 20 to review the functioning of the Sangh, discuss expanding its work in the country and to elect its Sarkaryavah (general secretary).
'We are only going to the Supreme Court to protect the rights (of Muslims) which are given by the Constitution. Nothing more,' says Indian Union Muslim League MP P V Abdul Wahab, explaining why the IUML has challenged the Citizenship Amendment Bill in the Supreme Court.
The Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of the agitating unions, is meeting on Sunday to decide on the next course of action, including on the MSP issue and the proposed daily tractor march to Parliament during the upcoming Winter Session, SKM core committee member Darshan Pal said.
'We want to protect our history, we want to protect our people from getting overwhelmed by the influx from Bangladesh, that is why the people of Assam are out in the streets,' says former Assam chief minister and Asom Gana Parishad leader Prafulla Kumar Mahanta.
The Union home minister said he firmly believed that Article 370 that gave the special status to Jammu and Kashmir should be removed as it was not beneficial to the country.
Expect Modi to speak about internal security, terrorism, agriculture, the Triple Talaq Bill, the SC/ST Bill and, of course, the controversial NRC.
The government assured the Opposition that reservation to Anglo-Indians will be considered later.
Kejriwal said it is his government's basic commitment to provide electricity to all, even those who are poor and cannot afford to pay.
Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge, speaking on the Motion of Thanks on the President's address, charged the government with not delivering on its various promises, including generating two crore jobs per year.
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