Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday said the government is planning to extend the suspension of fresh insolvency proceedings for another three months, a move which will provide major relief to corporate borrowers hit by the coronavirus pandemic. Addressing the Bangalore Chamber Of Industry And Commerce (BCIC), she said the government has taken several measures, including deferment of tax payment date, to help businesses and people.
The levy of retrospective tax on the UK's Cairn Energy Plc is a tale of bizarre twists and turns that saw its attached shares being sold in May 2018 amid the passing of the baton from a full-time finance minister to interim one and the talks at the highest level to resolve the dispute, to claims that levy of back taxes was a result of an investigation into Panama Papers leak. The government late last month refunded about Rs 7,900 crore it had collected from selling residual shares of the British firm in its erstwhile India unit, seizing dividend and withholding tax refunds, to settle an eight-year-old dispute that had tarred the country's reputation as an investment destination. But, this did not come about easily. For seven years, the establishment vehemently justified in courts and outside seeking of Rs 10,247 crore in back taxes plus interest and penalty from a firm that gave India its biggest onshore oil discovery.
India's biggest car maker Maruti Suzuki said on Tuesday that its vehicle production in September will tumble by 60 per cent due to chip shortage. The company, which had earlier cut down production at its Gujarat plant, said the chip shortage will hit production in Gurugram and Manesar plants, effectively forcing the automaker to cut production by 60 per cent. Owing to a supply constraint of electronic components due to semiconductor shortage, the company is expecting an adverse impact on vehicle production in September in both Haryana and its contract manufacturing company, Suzuki Motor Gujarat Pvt Ltd. (SMG) in Gujarat.
With the amended rules, companies can now have up to 74 per cent Differential Voting Rights shares of the total post issue paid up share capital.
The Supreme Court (SC) on Monday slapped a fine of Rs 2000 ($25) and a four-month jail sentence on fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya. In addition, the former liquor baron has been asked to deposit $40 million with 8 per cent interest within a month, failing which his properties would be attached to recover the amount. The court held Mallya guilty of contempt after it was brought to its notice that he had transferred $40 million to his children in the US.
A new Section prohibits banks to lend money to smaller subsidiaries companies despite Corporate Guarantee from the parent.
While the main building of the National Archives will remain intact, its annexe will be demolished and a new building will be constructed, officials said.
The proposed amendments to the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020, that are envisioned to protect consumer interests, may further compound the impact of multiplicity of regulations on the e-commerce sector, the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce (IACC) had told the ministry of consumer affairs. IACC, the apex bilateral chamber for Indo-US business, had told the government that the proposed amendments would increase compliance liabilities that risk severely impairing the growth of the sector.
50 lakh doses of 'Covishield' vaccine earmarked by the Serum Institute for export to the United Kingdom have now been made available for the inoculation of 18-44 age group in 21 states/UTs in India, amid a surge in COVID-19 cases, official sources said.
The Delhi policewoman was standing in front of the dais at Vigyan Bhawan during the first National CSR Awards function. She fell and sat on the carpet when the national anthem was being played, according to a PTI photographer who was present.
The combativeness reflects her insistence not to meekly acquiesce to what has been going on in Raisina Hill for years or decades, observes Kartikeya Tanna.
All four societies were under common management of the Sahara group and had collectively garnered Rs 86,673 crore, including more than Rs 47,000 crore collected by Sahara Credit Cooperative Society Ltd from nearly 4 crore depositors.
With his appointment as AG, the many constitutional law matters that are pending before the Supreme Court will receive specialised attention.
Fortis Healthcare has also come under the lens of Sebi, which launched an investigation into alleged regulatory lapses
Since December 2018, monetary policy has been eased substantially by RBI with policy rates being cut by 75 bps and policy outlook being changed to 'accommodative'.
'It was felt that the counter-insurgency and counter-terrorist grid is intact in the UT and these additional units that were sent in last year can be de-inducted giving them the much required rest, recuperation and training'
The criteria for allowing companies to avail of this provision will include profitability, networth, paid-up capital, and turnover.
Uber Technologies said it is doing a fresh round of recruitment for its India tech centres and is planning to hire 500 more tech employees by December. The app-based mobility and delivery company has a 1,000-member tech team across its centres in Hyderabad and Bengaluru. The firm said the hiring plan is a testament to Uber's commitment to India, and its recognition of the engineering talent in the country. Uber hired 250 engineers to its India teams in 2021.
When shares in the electronic form are available with the depositories, it acts as primary evidence for those who hold the shares.
Easier dilution norms for mega initial public offerings (IPOs) have come into effect. Companies with post-listing market capitalisation (m-cap) of more than Rs 1 trillion will not be required to dilute a minimum of 10 per cent. The move to relax dilution norms is seen as a precursor to Life Insurance Corporation's IPO. The central government has said companies with an m-cap exceeding Rs 1 trillion will have to dilute Rs 5,000 crore and at least 5 per cent of their m-cap. Experts said the earlier framework discouraged large companies from listing since they were forced to offload a large volume of shares during the time of their IPO.
Amid concerns over minorities being targeted in India, former Reserve Bank governor Raghuram Rajan on Thursday cautioned that an 'anti-minority' image for the country can lead to loss of market for Indian products and may also result in foreign governments perceiving the nation as an unreliable partner. India enters the perception battle from a position of strength, the professor at Chicago's Booth School of Business said, alluding to credentials like democracy and secularism, but warned that this battle is "ours to lose". The comments came a day after bulldozers tore down several concrete and temporary structures close to a mosque in Jahangirpuri as part of an anti-encroachment drive, days after the northwest Delhi neighbourhood was rocked by communal violence.
'The government is using the Intelligence Bureau to go after NGOs.' 'It is not only the NDA, the UPA also didn't like NGOs.' 'NGOs predominantly work with the poor. So, when you cancel an NGO, the affected are the poor, the Dalits, the tribals, the street children and the marginalised.'
'Our athletes, coaches and support staff, will wear unbranded apparel.'
Prices of food items like cereals, pulses, and edible oils rose or remained steady in May, a Reserve Bank of India (RBI) report said, indicating there could be another higher inflation print. However, it observed that the Monetary Policy Committee's (MPC's) surprise move to increase interest rates bodes well for its credibility. The RBI's monthly State of the Economy report, released on Tuesday, citing high frequency food price data from the Ministry of Consumer Affairs for the period May 1-12, said the increase in the prices of cereals was primarily because of the surge in wheat prices.
The ministry of corporate affairs (MCA) has launched a probe into the books of Edelweiss Asset Reconstruction Company (EARC) following allegations by a whistleblower of fund diversion and irregularities. The whistleblower, Paras Kuhad, a former additional solicitor general of India, had written to the Prime Minister's Office and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Kuhad has alleged that Edelweiss Group and Caisse de depot et placement du Qubec (CDPQ), a Canadian institutional investor, which hold stakes in the ARC, diverted funds and did not adhere to norms while making investments in EARC's instruments. Sources have indicated that a probe has been initiated, but the MCA did not comment on the issue.
The Union health ministry on Tuesday said that aid received from other countries has been distributed in different states to help deal with the rising number of COVID-19 cases.
The foreign envoys were taken to Hyderabad over a month after the ministry of external affairs briefed over 190 heads of diplomatic missions and representatives of leading international organisations on COVID-19 related issues.
The proposed e-commerce rule book issued recently by the ministry of consumer affairs does not mention foreign companies or foreign direct investment (FDI) at any place, unlike most other government guidelines for the sector so far. That is a heartening development since the latest proposals could be fine-tuned as e-commerce policy.
Merely bringing down the government stake below 51% may not find any taker for the PSBs. The government must bring down its holding to at least 26%, recommends Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
The Centre on Tuesday said it will not seek disclosure of flash sales from e-commerce players to regulate the fraudulent sale of goods and services but will take appropriate action as per the law on consumer complaints. Discount sales that benefit maximum to consumers will continue, but not fraudulent flash sales on the e-commerce platforms, the government said, adding that the e-tailers need not be "anxious" about the draft rules. Ban on fraudulent flash sales, mis-selling and appointment of chief compliance officer/grievance redressal officer -- are among key amendments proposed to the Consumer Protection (e-commerce) Rules, 2020, on which the government has sought public comments by July 6.
Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), the nation's largest oil firm, has renewed a deal to buy up to 2 million tonnes of crude oil in 2022 from Russia's Rosneft, the Russian oil producer said. IOC had in February 2020 signed a deal with Rosneft Oil Company to import up to 2 million tonnes of oil via the port of Novorossiysk. In 2021, the deal envisaged supply of up to 1.7 million tonnes of crude oil but IOC bought just on parcel or shipload as the cost of transporting the oil made it uneconomical, when compared to alternatives. For 2022, the deal is for the supply of up to 2 million tonnes of oil from the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk.
PSBs have been requested to reach out to MSMEs to provide bill discounting to them against their dues since they suffer the most from shortage of cash.
When the IAF veterans' bail petition came up for hearing, in an unprecedented move, senior serving and retired Air Marshals and Air Vice Marshals rallied behind the accused officers and appeared before the court to give sureties for each, something that has never happened ever before.
The tax authorities may tell banks and crypto exchanges to report transactions of virtual digital assets (VDAs) as the government begins taxing gains from cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens from April 1. So far, the tax department has relied on voluntary disclosures on transactions of VDAs. Once implemented, the sale and purchase of digital assets will reflect in the Annual Information Statement (AIS). The AIS contains details of at least 46 of the financial transactions done by a taxpayer in a financial year.
The Ministry of Corporate Affairs had taken various steps to protect small investors.
Ministry of home affairs and the IT ministry are planning to have a series of discussions with representatives from Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter, and Google on issues around national security and the problem of fake news. Asking for decryption keys from WhatsApp to track conversations on the chat app is also part of the agenda.
According to the sources, there are limited prospects of J&J exporting its vaccine from the US to other countries in the near future and the "entire production" at the BE facilities in India, beginning July/August, will be handed over to the pharma giant under a contract between the companies.
The ministry has also made Udayen Sen of Deloitte, and Kalpesh Mehta and Sampath Ganesh of BSR as respondents as they were the signatories of the audit reports of the company.
This is also because Johnson's visit will follow at the end of Modi's three-day visit to Gujarat for inaugurating projects, reports Vinay Umarji.
The NHRC said that it has received several complaints regarding the ongoing farmers' protest.