State governments have requested the Centre for export incentives, lifting of import duty in the case of cotton for the textile sector and GST exemptions.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has said the 'wholesale attack on the democratic system' currently underway in India is the single biggest risk the country is facing, and asserted that allowing different traditions to thrive is very important as 'we cannot do what China does, which is to run an authoritarian system'. IMAGE: Kindly note that this image has been posted for representational purposes only. Photograph: / Rediff.com Speaking at a seminar titled 'The Future is Today' at the EIA University in Medellin, Colombia, Gandhi also alleged that there are 'huge amounts of corruption at a centralised level' in India now. "In India, we have huge amounts of corruption now at a very centralised level. So, three or four businesses taking over the whole economy, having a direct relationship with the prime minister, is rampant in India," the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha said. "But I believe decentralising power, making things more transparent, bringing people into conversations, and bringing people into processes is the best way forward," Gandhi said while addressing the seminar on Wednesday. Hitting back at the Congress leader for his remarks, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday accused Gandhi of insulting and degrading India on foreign soil. Posting a video clip of Gandhi's speech on X, BJP national spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia said, 'Rahul Gandhi does it again, degrades India on foreign soil. From defaming our democracy in London, to mocking our institutions in the US, now in Colombia he spares no chance to insult Bharat globally.' 'This isn't dissent. It's disgrace to the fake Gandhi. Criticising BJP may be your right but dare you malign Mother India for your cheap and petty politics,' Bhatia said. Speaking at the seminar, Gandhi said India has a much more complex system as compared to China and its strengths are very different from that of the neighbouring country. India also has a very old spiritual tradition and a thought system with profound ideas that are useful in today's world, he said, adding that there is a lot that the country can offer in terms of tradition and way of thinking. "I am very optimistic about India, but at the same time, there are fault lines within the Indian structure. There are risks that India has to overcome. The single-biggest risk is the attack on democracy that is taking place in India," the Leader of Opposition said. "India has multiple religions, traditions and languages. India is actually a conversation between all its people. Different ideas, religions and traditions require space. The best method for creating that space is the democratic system," he said. "Currently, there is a wholesale attack on the democratic system in India, so that is a risk. The other big risk is different conceptions -- some 16-17 different languages, different religions... So, allowing these different traditions to thrive, and giving them space to express themselves is very important for a country like India.
The average Indian worker must labour for an extraordinary 160 full working days to afford Apple's latest iPhone 17 Pro.
'Today, we have 2 million active drivers earning through our platform every month.'
Do home prices really never fall? Ramalingam Kalirajan begs to differ.
Since the legal changes in the draft laws would take some time, it was decided to postpone the November 25 meeting
K M Mani was appointed the chairman of the panel in March this year.
He said the multi-party committee formed by the Speaker in Himachal Pradesh would discuss all issues about street vending on October 3. Singh's remarks came a day after the Congress top brass chided him over his remarks on mandatory display of names by the street vendors and told him that no one was allowed to go against the party's policies and ideologies.
'The quality of justice is directly linked to the quality of judges -- if that suffers, justice delivery suffers.'
The share of EVs in the luxury segment rose from 7 per cent in January-May 2024 to 11 per cent during the same period in 2025, marking a 66 per cent growth in the electric luxury segment.
GST is a landmark reform considering the sweeping changes it brings about in the indirect tax regime in India.
The sentence could go up to three years if the evasion exceeds Rs 50 lakh (5 million).
As the Centre tried to build consensus on its proposal on constitution amendment bill, required for the rollout of GST, and even floated revised draft to please states, some states came out with alternative model that would not require the amendment of constitution.
'...hesitate to support the risk-taking it requires.'
Revised draft model Bill clearly says an agriculturist for the purpose of agriculture won't be liable for registration under GST.
The Indian insurance industry is set to focus on customer-centric technological adoption and expansion into rural areas to drive growth in 2025.
'The time has come to have a relook at the Constitution as every document has a shelf life.'
18% cent GST on iPhones continues to weigh heavily on the final cost to Indian consumers, limiting the impact of price cuts.
High frequency indicators, like vehicles sales, air traffic, steel consumption and GST E-way bills, point towards a sequential pickup in momentum of economic activity during the second half of the fiscal 2024-25 and sustain moving forward, RBI Bulletin said on Wednesday. However, a strong dollar, driven by US economic resilience and trade policy pivots, could exacerbate capital outflows from emerging economies, push risk premiums higher, and intensify external vulnerabilities, said an article on 'State of the Economy' published in RBI's February bulletin.
As auto major Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) became the number two player in the retail passenger vehicle segment for the first time in February, powered by its new launches, the company is setting its sights on technology upgrades.
Businesses across the country may soon be required to issue electronic invoices, or e-invoices, directly to consumers for the sale of goods and services. The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council, in its forthcoming meeting on Monday, is expected to discuss extending the e-invoicing mandate to cover business-to-consumer (B2C) transactions. Currently, e-invoicing is compulsory for businesses with a turnover of Rs 5 crore and above, but only for their business-to-business (B2B) transactions.
Companies feel higher rates in India would not be justified.
Proliferation of home chargers of around 7 KWh and above, which take six to seven hours to fully charge a car depending on the model, bring running costs down by a third or so. That, coupled with the increasing range of modern electric cars, can lead to a massive increase in sales.
Once the GST is passed, the centre and states will have to adopt their own law.
Only after its recommendations will the central GST, integrated GST and state GST Bills be taken up
The passage of the bill will pave the way for setting up of a GST council that will decide the tax rate, cess and surcharges.
A GST roll-out by April 1 looks difficult, giving the companies some succour.
'The low tax to GDP ratio of the country will go up, helping the government to adhere to fiscal discipline and keep inflation in check.'
Traversing from being just vehicle manufacturers to mobility solutions providers amid a raging debate over which eco-friendly technology must be incentivised, the Indian automobile industry is driving in the new year under the shadow of a slowdown in sales with the post-pandemic pent-up demand in distant memory. The shift in the auto industry -- where advanced technologies like autonomous driving, vehicle intelligence, connected features and electrification are quickly gaining traction -- will be reflected in the upcoming Bharat Mobility Global Expo in which India's flagship Auto Expo has been clubbed to be held from January 17-22, 2025 in Delhi-NCR.
Petroleum being out of the goods and services tax initially will create some anomaly as tax credit on some of the inputs to oil industry may not be given, said revenue secretary Hasmukh Adhia.
Kharge's remarks came after Modi on Friday said the Congress stands "badly exposed" in front of people for promising to them what the party knows it will never be able to deliver.
The implementation of the GST will indeed be a landmark reform.
The Rajya Sabha on Wednesday approved the biggest tax reform since Independence.
Maruti Suzuki chairman RC Bhargava has said that reducing carbon emissions does not require making a choice between hybrid and electric cars, and that both can play key and complementary roles if the government wants to achieve its aggressive emissions target. Responding to the fact that the sales numbers of hybrid cars have been higher than electric cars in the last quarter of 2024, Bhargava pointed out: "It has never been about electric versus hybrid. "Both have a clear role to play. By 2030 we expect electric car penetration to be around 20 per cent.
Construction costs would be reduced to some extent and this benefit can be passed on to the customers, thereby spurring home buying
Tax collection at source would lock in Rs 400 crore of seller money, say Flipkart, Amazon, Snapdeal.
The FAQ also clarified that companies, including Titan, which supplies watches and jewels through their own websites will not be considered as e-commerce operators
The government has extended the deadline for filing GST annual return and audit report for the 2018-19 fiscal year by a month, till October 31.
The stock of the country's largest passenger vehicle maker, Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL), has been hitting successive all-time highs over the past three trading sessions. The rally in the scrip has helped it notch over a 21 per cent gain since the start of February, outperforming the National Stock Exchange Nifty Auto Index. The gains for the leader of small passenger cars have been more recent, as the company still trails the Nifty Auto over one- and two-year periods.
Grains, non-mineral water might be on the list; biscuits, butter and cheese might attract GST
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