The government has asked the finance ministry to take action against former Narcotics Control Bureau officer Sameer Wankhede for his alleged "shoddy work" while probing a 'drugs-on-cruise' case in which film star Shah Rukh Khan's son Aryan was arrested last year, official sources said.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday unveiled 'transformative' tax reforms that ranged from a simpler income tax law to higher TCS threshold for remittances and income tax benefits for middle class.
One has the impression that dictates of political accommodation rather than dictates of professional management of internal security have influenced his appointment as the home minister, says B Raman
In a bid to bring down the cost of air operations, Aviation and Petroleum ministries will meet FM to get ATF notified as 'declared good'.
The identity of the informant shall be kept a secret, it said.
Over the past six months Rajasthan has introduced some of India's most radical free-market labour, land and welfare reform.
The government has exhausted only 39 per cent of its fiscal deficit target in the first half of FY24.
The Indian government has increased the salaries of Members of Parliament (MPs) by 24 percent, effective April 1, 2023. This increase was based on the Cost Inflation Index and brings their monthly salary to Rs 1.24 lakh. The notification also included increases in daily allowances for sitting members, pension, and additional pension for former MPs. While some MPs welcomed the increase, others expressed dissatisfaction and instead advocated for a rise in the MP Local Area Development Fund (MPLADS). The increase has been implemented based on the Salary, Allowances and Pension of Members of Parliament Act and the Cost Inflation Index specified in the Income Tax Act of 1961.
Retirement fund body EPFO added 16.05 lakh net new members in December, which is 9.69 per cent higher compared to November 2024, as per the payroll data released on Tuesday. Further, a labour ministry statement said there was a growth of 2.74 per cent in net payroll additions compared to December 2023.
Lok Sabha passed the Finance Bill, after approving more than two dozen official amendments, by voice vote, thus completing the Budgetary exercise for 2019-20 in the Lower House.
The finance ministry is resisting pressure from other departments to cap foreign ownership of domestic drugmakers, fearing such a move would discourage potential investors, a senior ministry source said.
To tap Indian civil aviation market's growth potential, the government on Saturday announced a modified regional air connectivity scheme UDAN (Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik) to connect 120 new destinations, airport projects in Bihar and upgradation of infrastructure for air cargo in the Union Budget.
Thrust on infrastructure and capital expenditure is expected to continue in the Union Budget for FY25.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday met top officials of the finance and corporate affairs ministries to review the implementation of various announcements of the Union Budget FY24. "The finance minister underlined the importance of continuous assessment of progress to ensure that various announcements are implemented in a time-bound manner," the finance ministry said in a tweet. Sitharaman also discussed in detail various issues on the digital competition laws with Rajeev Chandrashekhar, the minister of state for entrepreneurship, skill development, electronics and technology.
The Reserve Bank of India is in favour of a cautious and gradual approach to financial sector reforms rather than a big-bang approach, as advocated by the Percy Mistry Committee report on making Mumbai an international financial centre.
Farmer representatives and agricultural stakeholders urged the government to provide cheaper long-term credit, implement lower taxes, and double the PM-KISAN income support during a comprehensive pre-budget consultation with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday. The two-hour meeting saw a detailed discussion of proposals, aimed at addressing multiple challenges in the agricultural sector, with key demands focusing on financial relief, market reforms, and strategic investments.
'I think today RBI supervision is much sharper than what it was earlier.'
Real estate developers are hoping that the slew of tax concessions announced in Union Budget 2025, set to take effect this financial year, will spur demand for affordable and mid-segment housing, even as the broader housing market shows signs of fatigue.
The Petroleum Ministry has asked for Rs 26,000 crore (Rs 260 billion) as fuel subsidy for the third quarter of this financial year, but the finance ministry is inclined to provide only Rs 10,000 crore (Rs 100 billion) cash support.
In a continued push to spiritual tourism, there will be a focus on destinations related to the life and times of Lord Buddha.
The commerce ministry has recommended the continuation of anti-dumping duty on a Chinese chemical used in food and pharma industry with a view to guard domestic players from cheap imports. In a notification, the ministry's investigation arm, the Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR), has said there is a "positive" evidence of likelihood of dumping of Sodium Citrate and injury to the domestic industry if the existing anti-dumping duty were to be removed.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday pitched for front loading of capital expenditure, saying it is critical for revitalisting the economy post the coronavirus pandemic. During a virtual meeting with senior government officials to discuss the infrastructure roadmap ahead, she also asked ministries to aim to achieve more than their capital expenditure (capex) targets. The Union Budget 2021-22 provided a capital outlay of Rs.5.54 lakh crore, a sharp increase of 34.5 per cent over the Budget Estimate of 2020-21.
The government is looking to give Bharat Global Ports a certain amount of domestic exposure after it set up the state-owned consortium to increase India's global maritime heft, officials aware of the development said. The intended domestic exposure is meant to give the consortium experience and build its credentials for international projects.
Anticipating US action on tariffs, India seems to have made the first move by revamping its tariff structure by reducing the slabs to eight rates, points out Mukesh Butani.
In a move to deepen manufacturing in electronics in India, the Centre is targeting 35-40 per cent value-addition through the yet-to-be launched production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for electronics components, sources in the government
Prospects of a bumper kharif harvest are expected to lower food inflation in the coming months, making the country's inflation outlook benign, the Union Ministry of Finance (FinMin) said in its monthly economic report for October released on Monday.
'It may take some time for them to get down to the details, such as the location and capacity.'
Other ministers who have presented five straight annual financial statements include Arun Jaitley, P Chidambaram, Yashwant Sinha, Manmohan Singh and Morarji Desai.
The Union government could target a fiscal deficit of 5.8-6 per cent of nominal GDP for 2023-24, and it should continue its capital expenditure push and look to simplify the personal income tax regime, economists recommended Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and her team during their pre-Budget interaction on Monday. Starting last week, Sitharaman had eight pre-Budget consultations this time. More than 110 invitees representing seven stakeholder groups participated in these meetings, the finance ministry said in a statement. The stakeholder groups included representatives and experts from agriculture and agro-processing industry; industry, infrastructure & climate change; financial sector and capital markets; services and trade; social sector; trade unions and labour organisations; and economists.
A senior finance ministry source said making the use of debit cards and e-wallets compulsory across the board is legally untenable, but banks have been asked to insist their account holders use these instruments
The RBI added roughly 3 tonnes in 2025, taking its gold reserves to 879 tonnes as of January 31, 2025.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said India is looking for a "good" trade agreement with the US to promote economic growth and ensure smooth supply chains. She also said that amid a growing global tariff war, India will have to move "smartly" to guard against possible dumping of goods from countries that are facing higher US tariffs.
The year 2015 has seen eight accidents because of derailments.
Donald Trump is catering to the basest fears and prejudice of unenlightened Americans -- yes, there are those too, in sizeable enough numbers to elect one of their own as president. That would most certainly not Make America Great Again, asserts Shreekant Sambrani.
From the Sensex basket, Power Grid, Asian Paints, Tata Motors, Tata Steel, NTPC, Sun Pharma, Mahindra & Mahindra, HDFC Bank, Tata Consultancy Services and JSW Steel were among the major gainers. Kotak Mahindra Bank, Bharti Airtel, Axis Bank, Wipro, ICICI Bank and IndusInd Bank were among the laggards.
The finance ministry has directed the Central Board of Direct Taxes to put in place a framework for an Advance Pricing Agreement mechanism, two officials familiar with the development said.
