The Finance Ministry will soon unveil the simpler income tax return form 'Sugam', which is aimed at reducing compliance burden on small businessmen and professionals.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is expected to meet United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi again on Sunday to discuss matters related to Monday's expected Cabinet reshuffle. Dr Singh had met Sonia Gandhi in this regard earlier on Saturday. Dr Singh also met Kapil Sibal, who is presently holding the telecommunications and human resources development ministerial portfolios. It is likely that he may be relieved of some responsibility in the reshuffle.
The decision to finance these districts for rapid improvement in schooling, health care and drinking water comes nine months after Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee listed the drive in his Union Budget to ensure the poor and the tribals do not head to the Naxals for help.
The government has replied to Vodafone's notice that threatened international arbitration, saying there was no cause of action. It may send a reply and a tax notice to the company after the Finance Act is notified in the official gazette.
On Saturday, Telangana was the buzzword in New Delhi with Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy and Governor ESL Narasimhan flocking to the capital. But after a series of meetings held with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee and Home Minister P Chidamabram, a conclusive decision still eludes the issue.
Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh summoned Governor of Andhra Pradesh ESL Narasimhan to New Delhi on Saturday to discuss the political situation in Andhra Pradesh, including the ongoing agitation on Telangana.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee attributed the 4.78 per cent spurt in inflation in November to rising prices of food articles. "Inflation has risen high mainly because prices of food articles have gone up," Mukherjee said.
A day ahead of Mexican Central Bank Governor Agustin Carstens' visit here to seek support for his candidature for the top IMF post, the Finance Ministry on Thursday said the decision on India's vote will be taken by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
As the finance ministry gives the final touches to the country's biggest financial planning exercise, there is widespread criticism over the government's inability to tackle inflation, bring back black money stashed overseas and keep fiscal deficit in check.
Some persons with accounts in a Swiss bank have paid taxes amounting to about Rs 180 crore so far, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee has said in Parliament. He did not disclose any name.
The meeting of the GoM, according to sources, will be attended by several senior ministers, including Home Minister P Chidambaram, Defence Minister A K Antony, Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee and Telecommunication Minister Kapil Sibal.
The finance ministry on Wednesday provided relief to the Rs 18,000-crore (Rs 180-billion) software industry by replacing a multi-level structure of tax deducted at source (TDS) on distributors with a single TDS. This would be deducted by the first distributor -- one who directly purchases packaged software from a developer.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Tuesday admitted the Reserve Bank of India's move to hike short-term lending and borrowing rates will hurt growth in the near-term, but exuded confidence that economic expansion will gather pace later as a consequence.
In an exclusive interview with CNN-IBN Editor-in-Chief Rajdeep Sardesai, Coal Minister Sriprakash Jaiswal assures to begin the process of de-allocation of coal blocks against the errant companies from September 16 while strongly defending the government policy.
Highly-placed sources in the government say that Congress President Sonia Gandhi had asked Pranab to make the second statement, rolling back the Telangana announcement. However, Mukherjee is learnt to have the told her that the second statement should come from the person who made the first statement, for better credibility. He also advised the Congress president that the prime minister should be kept out of the picture.
Factory output growth, as measured by the Index of Industrial Production, fell sharply to 1.8 per cent in December 2011, from 8.1 per cent a year ago, mainly on account of contraction in mining, capital goods and poor growth in manufacturing sector.
In view of the severe drought and growing prices of essential commodities, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has constituted a crisis management group of Ministers (GoM) for monitoring the situation on a day-to-day basis.
The main Opposition party suggested that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and former Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee were not on the same page with regard to the retrospective amendment to tax laws against the backdrop of Vodafone case, leading to the current precarious situation.
While Baba Ramdev walks the red carpet laid out by the government, we ask you our readers for your views on the issue.
A brief overview of North Bengal districts' constituencies
Besides, Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry secretary general Amit Mitra, L Suresh, vice president of Film Federation of India, UTV Group chief financial officer Rajeev Waghle, chief financial officer of Reliance Big Films Subhashish Sarkar and Zee Tele films chief executive officer Puneet Goenka, among others, were also part of the delegation.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi will not be attending the swearing-in of Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee as West Bengal Chief Minister in Kolkata on Friday.
A new Lokpal Bill will be introduced in the Lok Sabha on Thursday and the existing one withdrawn.
The manual, released by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, details various aspects about the Budget, including the constitutional provisions, structure of government accounts and budget preparation.
India's economic revival also depends on the government's capacity to push through some critical policy reforms in the coming months, says the Economic Survey 2008-09, which was\npresented by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee in Parliament on Thursday.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee arrived in Delhi on Tuesday night for consultations with United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday on the issue of the Presidential poll nominee of the UPA, amid intense speculation on Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee's candidature for the post.
Union Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee said banks have positively responded to his suggestion to reduce credit interest\nrates.
The TERC, which comprises, among others Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma and External Affairs Minister S M Krishna, will also review the state of play in the Doha Round of talks for a multilateral trade agreement under the aegis of World Trade Organization, sources said.
That was the compromise formula, said Mukherjee.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee has said food inflation, which stands at over 16 per cent, will begin to come down after the middle of next month on the back of good monsoon.
Most of the Budget work is done; only some "final touches" remain. For those, he will soon sit with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh--who was governor of the Reserve Bank during Mukherjee's stint in North Block in the 80s--before his draft speech goes to print.
The finance minister attributed the rising prices to demand-supply mismatch, depreciating rupee, global commodity prices and easy monetary policy followed by some countries.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said India would have to develop a rupee-denominated long-term bond market to help fund the infrastructure sector, which would require $459-500 billion by 2012.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee presented the Economic Survey for 2010-11 in the Lok Sabha.
Amid rupee's free fall and slowdown in western markets, the government is likely to announce incentives in the foreign trade policy (FTP), scheduled for June 5, to boost exports.
The issue of controversial cartoons in textbooks generated heat in the Lok Sabha with members demanding immediate action in the matter saying the sketch has hurt sentiments of a section of the society.
Grappling with the situation arising out of Anna Hazare's fast, the government on Tuesday held hectic consultations to find a way out of the logjam with Team Anna demanding that it mandate somebody officially for opening a political dialogue on the Lokpal issue.
The government has identified nine areas of concern in the Direct Taxes Code (DTC) draft, and they would be taken into consideration while it is being redrafted.
Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar will head the Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) on the effective management of issues related to drought.
Hints at taking support from Opposition if allies continue to show reservations
