Politically, it will not be easy for Modi to take hard decisions such as raising fuel prices in the first budget, given the risk of higher inflation.
In absolute terms, fiscal deficit went up by 33.6 per cent in April-December 2017 and the revenue deficit by as much as 40.7 per cent compared to the same period the previous year, said Sudipto Mundle.
Shortage of ICU beds, oxygen, ventilators, vaccines, doctors, nurses and crematorium space in India has dominated headlines around the world in the past few weeks with Covid-19 cases surging beyond control and the government failing to deliver. Yes, election rallies, Kumbh Mela, blatant flouting of social distancing and mask protocols coupled with a messy vaccination process are said to be responsible for the health crisis of colossal proportions that India is facing today. But an analysis of Budget speeches made by finance ministers over 75 years also offers a glimpse of how low on the priority list healthcare has featured for the political class and policy-makers, which is a significant reason for the current situation.
'We have to stop thinking about GDP and look at the impact on output and unemployment.' 'And that is not going to be insignificant.'
Stepped up public expenditure must be accompanied by focused policies, advises Vinayak Chatterjee.
We are in this mess as the machinery of the government in a market economy is broken. We need technically sound banking regulation, so that capital is not misallocated, and the landscape does not get littered with zombie firms kept alive through evergreening, says Ajay Shah.
'There are many things we need to work on.' 'At the heart of it is, one, the extent of inequality, which is not good for democracy and nation; two, a structural decline on how a country ought to function, how people should be held accountable, whose role is what.'
A Parliamentary Standing Committee praised the government for the wrestling and boxing facilities at the Sports Authority of India's Sonepat Center but pointed out that "excellence needs to be replicated for other sports disciplines".
'Look at the number of billionaires, the number of new billionaires in India.' 'Adani and Ambani are not the only ones.' 'What's wrong with people making money as long as it benefits us?'
Insurance companies are seeking a separate deduction limit of Rs 1 lakh for insurance premium payment under Section 80C of the Income Tax Act in the upcoming Union Budget to bring in more people under the ambit of insurance. The insurers also want reduction in the goods and services tax (GST) rate of 18 per cent currently applied on health insurance products to 5 per cent to make such products more affordable to common people. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Union Budget for 2022-23 on February 1.
The panel will also recommend a fiscal consolidation road map for the central and state governments, study the impact of GST on the divisible pool, and propose performance-based incentives for states.
NITI Aayog had been asking for Rs 7,500 crore for three years to set up an AI framework.
'We are looking at the Budget with the hope that it will address all issues even at the cost of exceeding the fiscal deficit target.'
'The idea is to have a separate and independent consultation on non-personal data, and decide the contours of how it should be regulated, whether as guidelines, rules, or a separate policy,' said a senior official at MeitY.
Poor predictability, credibility and effectiveness of fiscal performance have been key reasons for successive governments failing to deliver on their promises.
''Even without major reforms, with a business as usual scenario, and with current inflation trends, we should be clocking around 11 to 12 per cent nominal growth.' 'That is not happening and is a source of worry,' Rathin Roy tells Arup Roychoudhury.
There is money to buy the central public sector enterprises, but buyers will need a firm assurance that the disvestment programme will keep environment issues front and centre of their corporate plans.
The Finance Commission has substantially increased the allocation of funds to panchayats, but a large part of it is apportioned by state governments.
According to the draft, in the northeastern states the threshold is at Rs 500,000.
Govt to chalk out entry of sovereign funds from Abu Dhabi, Qatar into such projects.
'The coronavirus epidemic highlights the need to start thinking more actively about multilateral coordination, including, but not confined to, health emergencies and climate uncertainties,' says Rathin Roy.
Officials said Sebi first proposed to the FinMin to amend the relevant provisions in the Sebi Act to discontinue RBI's representation on its board, as it already has adequate presence of government nominees and in its over 25 years of existence the regulator has evolved as an "effective and one of the best in the world".
According to the NIPFP, there is the possibility that even if the banking system matures over time, some transactions could bypass the system so as not to pay the BTT.
Has the Modi government been more at odds with institutions than other governments? There is no doubt that there have been more run-ins. While the RBI and CBI cases have drawn attention, there have been others, less publicised, Subhomoy Bhattacharjee points out.
'We are all in a tizzy about NBFCs in the aftermath of the IL&FS default.' 'We tend to jump to the notion that an NBFC is like a bank. But banks make a promise that deposits are liquid and have an assured return.' 'NBFCs make no such promises,' points out Ajay Shah.
The 39-year-old was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate from Ranchi after the agency conducted multi-city raids against him, Singhal, her businessman husband Abhishek Jha and others, on May 6.
The implementation of the NEP and four-year undergraduate programme were approved by the Standing Committee on Academic Matters and the Academic Council last week.
'When we say we want to increase pension participation, do we want to increase participation through the savings route?' 'Or do we want people to save in specific pension products?' asks Renuka Sane.
Tamil Nadu's latest budget offers path-breaking initiatives and major boost for social infrastructure, which other state governments are sure to follow in the coming years, predicts N Sathiya Moorthy.
He said his 'Rashtra Manch', a political action group, would start a movement against the policies of the Centre.
India will welcome two trade missions in 2015 focused on meeting its infrastructure needs with US technology and services.
'The quick fixes have failed; there is now no alternative to deeper reforms,' says Ajay Shah.
21st century may have witnessed expansion of higher educational institutions, but who can afford it? Sushree Panigrahi & Jeet Singh look at the numbers.
The Budget sets out a comprehensive vision.
Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit won't be afraid to tangle with the toughest of them.
Here's the full text of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address to a joint session of the United States Congress, delivered on Thursday.
The list in 2018 contained about 7,600 names. It has been reduced to under 3,800 in the past 18 months, according to Castellum.AI, a New York-based regulatory technology company. About 1,800 of the names have been removed since the beginning of March, according to data collected by Castellum.
'India resembles not just the more turbulent bits of its own past, but other 'managed' democracies, where all institutional strength and independence have been hollowed out to serve political power,' notes Mihir S Sharma.
We import from China not because we love China, but because they sell us these things at cheap prices, points out Rathin Roy.
'What does the nation get out of the CBI's fabulous infrastructure? Very little that is useful.'
