Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman tabled the first batch of Supplementary Demands for Grants for 2025-26 in the Lok Sabha, which seeks approval for a gross additional expenditure of Rs 1.32 lakh crore.
With less than six months left for this financial year and poor response from applicants, launching the scheme this year is unlikely.
The government hopes the latest action will lead to banks also lowering the cost of borrowing for corporate and individual borrowers.
The government is finalising a major GST overhaul with automated refunds, pre-filled returns, and analytics-based scrutiny to simplify compliance and boost liquidity for MSMEs.
The finance ministry is learnt to have raised a serious objection to the proposed relaxation in the foreign direct investment norms in restricted sectors such as telecom and insurance.According to sources in the government, in a meeting of a group of ministers on Tuesday, the finance ministry representatives argued that the proposed relaxation would effectively remove the current limits in the respective sectors. Sources said senior members of the GoM also objected.
People giving me unasked for advice of discipline and restraint don't realise that if I disregard discipline there would be a bloodbath.
Ahead of the Union Budget 2026-27, Indian business houses have urged the government to make demergers tax-neutral, particularly in cases involving transfer of investments in associate companies with 25 per cent or more shareholding, under the new Income Tax Act. This may possibly help some companies planning to go public, according to a source.
India's gems & jewellery exports witnessed 30.6 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) contraction in October to $2.17 million, amid the imposition of a steep 50 per cent tariff by the United States (US) on several Indian products.
Three key babus will make room for a new set of officers to carry the baton of Budget programmes.
The largest tranche came in July, in the wake of Operation Sindoor, with the DAC according acceptance of necessity -- or initial approval -- for 10 capital acquisition proposals amounting to approximately 1.05 trillion through indigenous sourcing.
The Unified Pension Scheme (UPS) adoption rate has risen to over 4.35 per cent, with more than 100,000 people out of 2.3 million eligible individuals opting for it, Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) chairman S Ramann said in an exclusive interview with Business Standard on Monday. He also said that six states had approached the PFRDA for help in adoption of the scheme.
Beginning next month, a bank customer can opt for up to four nominees in her or his account with a view to ensure uniformity, and efficiency in claim settlement across the banking system. The key provisions relating to Nomination under the Banking Laws (Amendment) Act, 2025 will come into effect from November 1, 2025, a finance ministry statement said on Thursday.
'The tools of warfare are changing. The MoD must deepen its engagement with technology thinkers that can present compelling visions of where warfare may be heading.'
India's consumer price index (CPI)-based inflation could ease in the coming months thanks to the arrival of kharif crops, lower international commodity prices, and a pass through of lower input costs to consumers, the finance ministry said in its Monthly Economic Review (MER) for October, which was released on Thursday. The MER, however, warned that the global macroeconomic situation remained precarious and a recession in many advanced economies would impact India's exports. "Easing international commodity prices and new Kharif arrival are set to dampen inflationary pressures in the coming months.
The National Stock Exchange, Bombay Stock Exchange, MCX Stock Exchange and United Stock Exchange have been invited for the August 6 meet.
The finance ministry on Friday said it has proposed a two-slab GST rate structure to the Group of Ministers (GoM), along with special rates for select items.
The row over the 2G note on Tuesday resonated in the Joint Parliamentary Committee meeting with members alleging that facts were being suppressed, prompting the Committee to summon two top finance ministry officials besides demanding affidavits from government that all relevant documents have been given.
The review will help all the banks find if there is any loophole.
Falling rupee, sluggish stock market is set to make his task more challenging.
The MPC states that the 4 external members will have a tenure of four years each.
While 28,141 applicants accepted internship in round one, in the second phase this was down to 24,638.
'LIC's investment decisions are taken independently, following strict due diligence, risk assessment and fiduciary compliance.'
The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has launched an integrated audit across 32 states and Union Territories to assess the ease of doing business for the micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) sector.
The instructions cite service rules that bar any government servant from making any adverse criticism of any policy or action of the government.
The change in the government's engagement with the economy's need for reforms is more nuanced than how analysts have so far perceived it, points out A K Bhattacharya.
'Neither SAI nor state departments have a dedicated sports administration service. Instead, roles are filled by generalist civil servants or contractual staff, often lacking sector-specific expertise.'
Set to file nomination papers for the Presidential poll, a sentimental Pranab Mukherjee on Tuesday resigned as finance minister to "embark on a new journey", leaving behind his four-decade stint as a political activist.
By enabling real-time data sharing, the platform will help prevent scams and ensure secure transactions.
The roll-out of 3G or third-generation mobile telephony services, scheduled for this year-end, may be delayed after the Ministry of Finance strongly criticised the Department of Telecommunications for announcing 3G guidelines without consulting it. In a communication with the DoT earlier this week, the finance ministry said the move was inappropriate and contrary to a 2003 cabinet decision.
Maharashtra minister Manikrao Kokate was stripped of his portfolios after being convicted in a 1995 cheating and forgery case. His ministries have been reassigned to Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar. Kokate has been admitted to Lilavati Hospital after complaining of chest pain.
The best course for the government at this time would be to tighten the seat belt a little more, without compromising on its investments in creating better infrastructure and giving a push to privatisation, points out A K Bhattacharya.
The government on Wednesday approved two schemes worth Rs 45,000 crore to help exporters tide over the impact of high tariffs imposed by the US on Indian shipments.
The Delhi High Court has asked the central government why it cannot reduce the GST on air purifiers, considering the poor air quality in Delhi. The court's concern is that the current 18% GST makes air purifiers unaffordable for the common man.
This was perhaps a missed opportunity for India to spotlight a core domestic challenge: The scale of workforce preparation required for a young, populous, rapidly growing country seeking to reach net zero, points out Radha Roy Biswas.
'If the near-term economic pain is absorbed more by those who have the ability and the financial strength to do so, then small and medium enterprises in downstream industries will emerge stronger from the trade imbroglio.'
'The real story of 2025 is that India officially stopped being a 'market of the future' and started acting as the world's primary economic engine.'
The ban has been in force since last Friday.
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