There is the problem of regions in the North East being theatre for power-play by nations with borders and influences converging in those parts, which in turn requires a sizable presence of the armed forces, notes Shyam G Menon.
In the midst of third wave of COVID-19, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has come up with an impactful Budget which is balanced, fiscally prudent and growth-oriented, the USA India Chamber of Commerce has said. President of the Boston-based USA India Chamber of Commerce (USAIC) Karun Rishi, however, said it is a matter of concern that the budget lacks tangible measures to increase revenue generation. "Opting to keep the fiscal deficit at 6.9 per cent and increase capital expenditure by 35 per cent is a masterstroke. "The annual budget estimates the effective capital expenditure of Rs 10.68 lakh crore in 2022-23, making up about 4.1 per cent of the GDP," he said. "A phenomenal increase in the government's capital expenditure is likely to facilitate the expenditures on infrastructure and create jobs.
The dinner Jill Biden and her husband US President Joe Biden hosted for Indian prime minister Narendra Modi, June 22, at the White House brought together, Indians and Americans from so many firmaments.
Pragmatism and flexibility is a virtue. An untethered and short-term approach to policymaking is a flaw, argues Mihir S Sharma.
A petition has been filed in the Supreme Court, seeking an independent probe by a special investigation team (SIT) into a recent hooch tragedy in Bihar, in which at least 30 people have lost their lives.
The PM gave a call for 'Sabka Prayas' (everyone's efforts) along with ''Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas'' for building a self-reliant India.
Modi is practical person... If he comes in, he will revive the economy and create jobs, says Sanjay Suri.
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Though the party's pre-poll promises include increasing the focus on technology, this isn't a new idea.
Power Minister Piyush Goyal on the government's manufacturing push and other key issues.
Retail inflation remained above the RBI's comfort level for the second consecutive month despite slipping slightly to 6.26 per cent in June while the factory output recorded a growth of 29.3 per cent in May, mainly on account of the base effect, the government data showed. The marginal slippage in the Consumer Price Index (CPI)-based inflation was noticed despite little firmness witnessed in the food inflation which inched up to 5.15 per cent in June from 5.01 per cent a month ago. Retail inflation based on Consumer Price Index (CPI) was 6.3 per cent in May 2021 and 6.23 per cent in June 2020.
GSOMIA does not cover the exchange of classified information with Indian private industry. Washington wanted this covered too, given New Delhi's emphasis on the proposed 'strategic partnership' model of procurement.
The World Bank has retained India's economic growth forecast for the current fiscal at 8.3 per cent as the recovery is yet to become broad-based. As per the first advanced estimates of the national income released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) last week, the economy is projected to grow at 9.2 per cent in 2021-22, surpassing pre-COVID level in actual terms, mainly on account of improved performance, especially in farm, mining and manufacturing sectors. "India's economy is expected to expand by 8.3 per cent in fiscal year 2021/22 (ending March 2022), unchanged from last June's forecast as the recovery is yet to become broad-based.
The Index of Industrial Production (IIP) grew by 1.4 per cent in November as most components like manufacturing, electricity, mining, primary goods, and consumer durables witnessed a slowdown, according to data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) on Wednesday. This is on the base of a decline of 1.7 per cent in November 2020 and before the new Covid variant started impacting economic activity. IIP growth was lower than the 4 per cent expansion recorded in the previous month but was better than a 1.6 per cent contraction seen in November 2020. Separately, rising prices of kitchen staples pushed retail inflation, or rate of price increase, to 5.59 per cent in December 2021, bringing it close to the upper band of Reserve Bank's comfort zone.
The American influential IT and telecom industry sought intervention of the Obama Administration against what they alleged are "discriminatory" Indian policies, which they claimed has resulted in several hundred millions of dollars of losses in the last quarter.
The central government had announced that the vaccination for those above 18 years will begin across the country from May 1 as part of the third phase of the inoculation drive.
'We will be hoisting the tiranga, but this kind of celebration is uncalled for when the farmers in this country are dying by suicides, their families are ravaged by poverty and farmers are not enjoying any freedom.'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi began his engagements in the US on Thursday by meeting with leading American CEOs from five different key sectors and highlighted the economic opportunities in India.
Jaishankar said the last few years have been a "period of serious challenge", both for the relationship and for the prospects of Asia, noting that continuation of the current impasse will not benefit either India or China.
But use of that word -- privatisation -- is not encouraged. This seems to be a classic case of reforms through subtle signals, observes A K Bhattacharya.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday raised the personal income tax rebate limit, doled out sops on small savings and announced one of the biggest hikes in capital spending in the past decade as she did a tight rope walk in the Budget between staying fiscally prudent and meeting public expectations in the year before general elections.
''We want to make Vibrant Gujarat the global business hub,' says Gujarat Minister Saurabh Patel.
'Ensuring through diplomatic means and in conjunction with strategic partners that India will not be required to fight a simultaneous two-front war with China and Pakistan.' Brigadier Gurmeet Kanwal (retd) lists what India must have in its national security strategy.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said the passage of the amendment will strengthen India's national security and its global position.
Stock market investors are expecting a balanced Budget with a focus on job creation, increased spending on infrastructure, reigning in the deficit, and bringing the economy back on track, experts said on Wednesday. Stock markets have been subdued in the run-up to the Union Budget with BSE's benchmark Sensex is almost flat so far this month. Even the corporate earning season failed to excite the markets, while some indices like IT and bankex have seen some positive movements.
While she primed up spending on infrastructure to create jobs and boost economic activity, Sitharaman did not tinker with income tax slabs or tax rates. Her Budget for the fiscal year beginning April 2022 proposed a massive 35 per cent jump in capital expenditure to Rs 7.5 lakh crore, coupled with rationalisation of customs duty, an extension of time for setting up new manufacturing companies and plans for starting a digital currency and tax crypto assets.
Once the iconic red-brick building of British India Corporation (BICL), which manufactured the popular "Lal-Imli" brand of woollen products, made Cawnpore (now Kanpur) the Manchester of the East. In the 75th year of independence, the government may finally pull the curtains on the century-old, now defunct public sector enterprise. "The Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) has floated a draft cabinet note for closure of British India Corporation (BICL) along with National Textiles Corporation (NTC). "The Cabinet may soon tak
'What gives hope is that Modi's own leadership is vitally linked to his capacity to deliver on the economic front. Indeed, if he succeeds, India's foreign policies will have changed beyond recognition,' feels Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has said that the states were free to announce farm loan waivers if they had the fiscal space and that there would be no shortfall this year in divestment and non-tax revenues.
With EU, it is part of the FTA that we will need to negotiate.
The legislative amendment was passed on Thursday by voice vote as part of an en bloc (all together as a single unit) amendment during floor consideration of the National Defence Authorisation Act (NDAA).
In all likelihood, the next conventional Chinese attack on India would be preceded by a massive cyber attack designed to cripple Indian networks and interfere with our disaster-relief programmes.
'The government expects demand for electronic products to reach $400 billion by 2023-24. This would be a huge foreign exchange outflow, which may further widen our trade deficit with other nations. Hence, the government plans to push local electronics manufacturing to cut down on their import bill.'
India is investing in developing indigenous capabilities in 5G and 6G telecom technologies besides focusing on manufacturing semi-conductors, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday. In a virtual address at the Sydney Dialogue, the prime minister said the "greatest product" of technology today is data and that India has created a robust framework of data protection, privacy and security. "And, at the same time, we use data as a source of empowerment of people. India has unmatched experience in doing this in a democratic framework with strong guarantees of individual rights," he said.
India has the lowest labour force participation rate in South Asia and one of the lowest in the world, points out Aakar Patel.
Five cities -- Delhi, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Surat -- ceded their power of procurement and agreed to a different procurement model to operate state-run buses.
'Wherever in the world there is political instability, those countries are beset with severe crises today. But India is in a much better position than the rest of the world due to the decisions taken by my government in the national interest,' President Droupadi Murmu said in her address to both Houses of Parliament.
"Unfortunately, while homage was paid to the photos of Bapu, and he found mention in speeches for many years, Khadi, handicrafts, use of swabhasha and swadeshi were forgotten. After becoming the prime minister, Narendra Modi gave a new lease of life to all these ideas of Bapu," Shah said.
The government has unleashed a slew of reforms to attract greater investments including higher foreign direct investment in defence and opening up the railways infrastructure sector, relaxed labour laws, launched campaigns like the Make in India for re-invigorating manufacturing, Clean India and Digital India, among others.
As the FM said, this is a Budget that lays the foundation for the next 25 years, observes Kumar Mangalam Birla.
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