Sitharaman is presenting the full Budget for 2019-20. She is carrying the Budget documents in a red silk bag with national emblem.
There appears to be a growing perception among the political class that faster growth will not create jobs fast enough and, therefore, welfare spending needs to be drastically increased, says T T Ram Mohan.
A high-level panel led by former RBI governor Bimal Jalan, set up to decide the appropriate capital reserves that the central bank should maintain, on Wednesday finalised its report.
There is talk of a fresh approach to a new labour code as well as reforming land acquisition laws in such a way as to be politically.
Mumbai collected Rs 17,174 crore of advance taxes against Rs 7,356 crore in the same period last year. The tax authorities believe that such a staggering growth rate is a positive sign for the economy.
'The government's projections for 2019-2020 will be disappointing big time.'
Economists have said if a stimulus is needed it should be different from what was provided in 2008-09, when the economy faced the ripple effects of a global meltdown following the Lehman Brothers collapse.
Jaitley, 66, has become 'very weak' as his health has deteriorated over the past few weeks, sources said, adding that he has developed some throat condition as well that prevents him from speaking for long.
'The Modi regime is not willing to use its huge political capital for taking any economic policy measure that it fears might undermine that political strength, says A K Bhattacharya.
The Defence Minister said it has been decided to give women permanent commission in the Army, Navy and the Air Force like their male counterparts.
The 30-share Sensex and the 50-share Nifty ended flat at the mark of 29,008 and 8,767 respectively.
After launching the ATM service at Thiyagaraya Nagar Head Post Office, Chidambaram said that Rs 4,909 crore had been allocated for the IT modernisation of Department of Posts in the interim budget for 2014-15.
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ITC, TCS and HDFC Bank emerged as the biggest gainers during the period.
Uttar Pradesh assembly session began on a stormy note on Wednesday as legislators raised anti-government slogans and two of them took off their shirts protesting over various issues.
Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu and suggested to convene an all party meeting and virtual meetings of Parliament Standing Committees to discuss the COVID-19 situation in the country.
Their favourite alternatives: Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines. Note, India is missing from that list. And this is despite an attractive financial incentive scheme for OSAT players. The reason, said a senior executive of a US chip company who had a meeting in Taiwan just a few weeks ago, is that "they want more predictability in government policy because they plan to put in big money."
Military veterans are finally set to get their dues following Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar's assertion that the 'One Rank One Pension' scheme is just weeks away from being implemented.
He accused the Congress of putting up obstacles to the temple's construction through 'its lawyers' in the Supreme Court.
Goyal also announced hiking of tax free gratuity to Rs 30 lakh from existing Rs 20 lakh for employees having service of more than five years.
He also said that a decision regarding reopening of pre-university and degree colleges will be taken after assessing the situation.
Specially designated global terrorist Sirajuddin Haqqani, who carries a reward of $10 million US bounty on his head, is the acting interior minister while his uncle -- Khalil Haqqani -- has been named as acting minister for refugees.
Higher disposable incomes, rural push and infra push to boost auto sector
In June, the new government led by Narendra Modi extended the excise duty concession by six months to December 31, which is not being further extended.
'In the case of an India-Pakistan confrontation, the Chinese may undertake more than just posturing, thereby constraining us from deploying adequate forces for decisive results,' warns Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd).
Dismissing the criticism of his interim budget by Narendra Modi, Finance Minister P Chidambaram said, "I don't want to take the level of this debate to a Class 8 school boys' debate."
There was hope in some quarters that the interim Budget would boost sentiment and lay the groundwork for kick-starting the investment cycle, while staying on a path of fiscal consolidation.
In the four-paragraph letter, Jaitley said he had orally informed Modi about his desire not to be a part of the new BJP government to enable him to concentrate on treatment and health.
'Reports in a section of media regarding Union Minister Shri Arun Jaitley's health condition are false and baseless. Media is advised to stay clear of rumour mongering,' Government Spokesman Sitanshu Kar tweeted.
NITI Aayog has been working on an action plan to relieve rural distress and energise the agricultural sector
The finance minister hiked the total defence expenditure from Rs 203,672 crore in FY 2013-2014 to Rs 229,000 crore for FY 2014-2015. Though the increase appears substantial, it is insufficient to undertake the military modernisation necessary to meet the emerging threats, feels Brigadier Gurmeet Kanwal (retd).
Consumer Electronics and Appliances Manufacturers Association Consumer has also welcomed the move saying the it would improve the sentiments and strengthen the growth.
While the likelihood of these states going the Lanka or Greece way may be an alarming assessment, the financial situation of some states such as Punjab and West Bengal is indeed quite weak.
The target announced is 13.6 per cent higher than that set last year and 145.4 per cent higher than the revised target for 2013-14.
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The Finance Ministry has filed the offer document with market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India for the Central Public Sector Enterprises ETF, which could fetch the exchequer about Rs 3,000 crore (Rs 30 billion).
Rumours in the bureaucracy on his successor include the names of Sajjid Chinoy of JP Morgan, Rathin Roy of the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, Neelkanth Mishra of Credit Suisse and the principal economic advisor, Sanjeev Sanyal.
Tharoor argued that the proposed bill represents a "grave chapter in the history of the Indian republic, seeking to ratify an ordinance that in many ways is an assault on our democratic heritage and the spirit of federalism."
The revised estimated expenditure for FY20 has been pegged at Rs 26.99 lakh crore and receipts at Rs 19.32 lakh crore, she said.
Expectations are that the government will use the Union Budget to create an environment, which is conducive for growth.
Tax incentives to have cascading effect on the capital goods industry.
'The target for next year is unlikely to be more than that of this year. The more you divest in any cycle, the less your potential pipeline for the next,' said an official. 'The first two issues we want to tackle and complete in FY20 are Air India and Hotel Ashok.'
