Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday proposed to reduce the tax collection at source (TCS) rate to 2 per cent for education and medical purposes under Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) as well as on sale of overseas tour program package.
The Union Budget 2025-26 had allocated Rs 2,33,210.68 crore (BE) to the ministry helmed by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
India's state-level fiscal rules have improved headline deficits, but the gains are fragile and uneven with major states still grappling with high debt levels, a World Bank report submitted to the 16th Finance Commission (FC) said. According to the report, despite nearly two decades of adoption of fiscal responsibility laws (FRLs), debt levels have not converged.
'Grassroots-level corruption, which disrupts the last-mile work, cannot be ignored in your enthusiasm and drive to get going to complete the project.' 'Like it was in MGNREGA, in some states, it is the case with the Jal Jeevan mission.' 'The last minute levels of corruption can ruin the intent of the project itself.' 'When you see that people can game a particular well-intended and well-crafted project, you need to correct that.'
The Union Budget allocates Rs 1,492 crore for the functioning of both Houses of Parliament, with specific provisions for Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, and related secretariats.
Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) remained in a selling mode in January, withdrawing nearly Rs 36,000 crore (about $3.97 billion) as global uncertainties persisted. Meanwhile, a higher securities transaction tax (STT) proposed in the Union Budget may weigh on overseas investor participation in the near future.
Sunetra Pawar, wife of the late Ajit Pawar, has been unanimously elected as the leader of the NCP legislature party in Maharashtra and is set to become the state's first woman Deputy Chief Minister.
Sitharaman in her budget speech said that the customs proposal "aim to further simplify the tariff structure, support domestic manufacturing, promote export competitiveness, and correct inversion in duty".
'In the last one year, we have added more than Rs 1.7 trillion, and we are on track.'
Highlights of the Economic Survey 2025-26
India's high cost of capital due to relatively shallow corporate bond markets, limited institutional investor depth, sovereign risk premia, and regulatory restrictions on capital flows, is a constraint on private investment and long-run growth, the Economic Survey, authored by Chief Economic Advisor (CEA) V Anantha Nageswaran, said.
The country's largest lender SBI is open to collaborating with foreign banks once the Reserve Bank makes it possible for local banks to do acquisition finance, its chairman CS Setty said on Tuesday. Speaking to reporters, weeks after the central bank announced its intent to allow Indian banks to fund companies for executing domestic acquisitions, Setty acknowledged that the "MNC (multinational companies) banks" are dominant in the space.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's remarks come ahead of a high-level summit where India and the European Union are expected to formally announce the conclusion of negotiations on a comprehensive free trade agreement.
Rising automobile exports are reflective of the increasing acceptance of India-manufactured vehicles across global markets, according to Economic Survey 2025-26.
Nirmala Sitharaman moved into her Kartavya Bhavan office on October 2, in time to get the work on the Budget 2026-2027 going.
Bharat Electronics, Reliance Industries, Mahindra & Mahindra, Larsen & Toubro, InterGlobe Aviation, ICICI Bank and UltraTech Cement were among the other major gainers. Axis Bank, Infosys, Tata Consultancy Services, Trent and Titan were the laggards.
The Budget allocation includes the construction of new lines and the purchase of locomotives, wagons, and coaches, among other works.
'If you go by the capital expenditure, this is a good defence budget. But we will have to see if the government can keep defence spending at 2 per cent or higher in 2027-2028.'
It is learnt that India was mulling various options relating to the project after Trump administration threatened a 25 per cent additional tariff on countries doing business with Tehran.
The total expenditure on the MGNREGA programme, as per the revised estimates from 2025-26, was Rs 88,000 crore, while initially, a sum of Rs 86,000 crore was allocated.
The market capitalisation of BSE-listed companies eroded by Rs 9,40,581.75 crore to Rs 4,50,61,658.60 crore (USD 4.90 trillion) in a single day.
Popularly known as 'Ajit Dada', he was known to say things as they were, without couching it in any soft padding.
'For those in for the long haul, this is a God-given opportunity.' 'Your market is falling despite strong fundamentals, and such a clear roadmap has been announced.'
Ajit Pawar became a ray of hope for Muslims, the only man in power who could resolve their grievances.
Ajit Pawar, who was the finance and planning minister, would have tabled his budget for 2026-27 next month when the state legislature's budget session begins in Mumbai on February 23.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the general budget in Parliament on February 1. The Budget session of Parliament begins on January 28 with President Droupadi Murmu addressing both houses.
Home loan demand is moving away from core metropolitan markets, with Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities emerging as the dominant contributors to growth in 2025, a report said.
In the 15 Union Budget presentation days of the Narendra Modi government since it came to power in 2014, the BSE benchmark Sensex has ended in negative territory eight times.
The forthcoming Budget could think of maintaining public capital expenditure at 3 per cent so that domestic resources are available for private investments, points out N R Bhanumurthy.
From the 30-Sensex firms, Eternal declined by 4.02 per cent, followed by Bajaj Finance (3.88 per cent), Sun Pharma, InterGlobe Aviation, Trent, Asian Paints, Mahindra & Mahindra and Bajaj Finserv. HDFC Bank emerged as the only gainer from the pack.
The government's Budget announcements providing tax holiday for data centres, setting up of city economic regions (CERs) and funding to improve infrastructure in Tier-II and -III cities may give an indirect boost to India's realty sector, said industry executives.
Delhi Police inform court that a BMW driver involved in a fatal accident last September is charged with culpable homicide for allegedly delaying medical assistance to the victim.
From the 30-Sensex firms, Bharat Electronics surged nearly 9 per cent post its December quarter earnings. Eternal, Bajaj Finance, Power Grid, Trent, Mahindra & Mahindra and UltraTech Cement were the other major gainers. Maruti, Sun Pharma, Infosys and Bharti Airtel were among the other laggards.
Budget 2026 sticks to fiscal discipline, shuns populist measures despite five key state elections coming up, but ends up rattling stock markets with a higher transaction tax on derivatives trading.
Ambareesh Baliga's quick take on the markets after the increase in STT on futures and options trading...
Market sentiment is likely to remain cautious as investors position themselves for the upcoming Union Budget and the US Fed's interest rate decision, where expectations are muted.
The Union Budget on Sunday proposed a tax holiday till 2047 for foreign companies that provide cloud services to customers globally using data centres located in India, signalling the government's push to make the country a major hub for AI and digital infrastructure.
The Union Budget on Sunday proposed a tax holiday till 2047 for foreign companies that provide cloud services to customers globally using data centres located in India, signalling the government's push to make the country a major hub for AI and digital infrastructure.
The value of the rupee, which has slipped to the 92 per dollar mark, does not accurately reflect India's stellar economic fundamentals, the Economic Survey said on Thursday.
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