'I had to persuade him. I think he was a sceptic to begin with, but later on he was convinced that what we were doing was the right thing to do, that there was no other way out.'
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, along with her team of bureaucrats, delved into the fine print of the 2024-25 Budget documents in a press conference, detailing the government's road map on bringing down the debt-to-GDP ratio and bold tax measures.
She also holds the distinction of delivering the longest budget speech at two hours and forty minutes in 2020.
Feature for feature, bank FDs are indeed better than debt funds today, mainly thanks to Ms Sitharaman, notes Debashis Basu.
Sir Osborne Smith was the first governor of the Reserve Bank, serving from April 1, 1935, to June 30, 1937.
From the outcome of the general elections and then Union Budget to tepid corporate earnings in the September 2024 quarter (Q2-FY25), sticky inflation and Reserve Bank of India's stance on interest rates, extreme weather conditions, Indian stock markets have braved it all in calendar year 2024.
The government will provide Rs 11.11 lakh crore for capital expenditure for 2024-25 and introduce viability gap funding to spur private investment in infrastructure, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Tuesday. Presenting the Union Budget for FY2024-25, she said that the government will endeavour to maintain strong fiscal support for infrastructure over the next five years, in conjunction with imperatives of other priorities and fiscal consolidation.
The BJP has again fielded Prataprao Patil Chikhalikar who humbled Ashok Chavan in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls by over 40,000 votes.
Public sector banks (PSBs) have proposed the Finance Ministry their plan to raise Rs 54,800 crore through Additional Tier-1 (AT-1) and Tier-2 bonds in the current financial year (FY25), 37 per cent more than the Rs 39,880 crore raised in FY24
A freebie once granted can hardly be discontinued. All that can happen is to substitute it with a bigger freebie, notes A K Bhattacharya.
So tell us, does Sitharaman's 7th consecutive Budget deserve cheers or boos?
The BJP on Wednesday also named its in-charges for assembly bypolls to four seats in Tripura.
The government on Tuesday proposed to launch a mission to give fillip to the domestic output of critical minerals like copper and lithium, their recycling as well as acquisition of such assets abroad. Presenting Union Budget for 2024-25, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also said the government will launch the auction of the first round of offshore mining blocks.
A higher level of private sector financing and resource mobilisation from new sources will be crucial for India to build quality infrastructure, according to the Economic Survey 2023-24. The Economic Survey 2023-24 was tabled in Parliament by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday said the Union Budget strikes a fine balance between growth, employment, and fiscal consolidation, and promotes cooperative federalism. Replying to the discussion on the Union Budget 2024-25 and Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir Budget in Rajya Sabha, the minister said the government is on track to achieve the pre-announced fiscal deficit target of 4.5 per cent by 2025-26. Sitharaman, also a former defence minister, said the Agniveer Scheme to recruit people in the age group of 17.5 to 21 years, is aimed at keeping the armed forces fit, young and battle-ready.
Whether she will pare the fiscal deficit target of 5.1 per cent of GDP, using the record dividend received from the RBI, or expand flagship government programmes will be keenly watched.
From highways connecting once-remote regions to aviation networks carrying millions, India's infrastructure story is one of transformation.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday announced nine priorities in the Union Budget 2024-25 for generating ample opportunities in the economy. The nine priorities include productivity, jobs, social justice, urban development, energy security, infrastructure, innovation and reforms.
The government on Tuesday announced a new centrally-sponsored scheme for skilling 20 lakh youth over the next five years. The announcement was made by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the Union Budget 2024-25. The minister said that model skilling loan scheme will be revised to facilitate loans up to Rs 7.5 lakh.
The development comes a day after a government resolution (GR) was issued, in which the state administration ordered disbursal of Rs 10 crore funds for strengthening the state Waqf Board.
The government on Tuesday announced that it will undertake a comprehensive review of the Income Tax Act to make it easy to read. Presenting the Union Budget for 2024-25, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also said the government will come out with SoP (standard operating procedure) for TDS defaults and simplify and rationalise compounding of such offences.
Unprecedented bribery charges, farewells, separation, failed union, monumental mergers and record-breaking IPOs, along with a healthy dose of online happenings in the form of spat and lessons in customer care, corporate India saw it all in 2024.
'The global situation is not very good.'
Senior bankers anticipate discussions on issues related to technology, cyber security, and customer protection.
The government will come out with a credit guarantee scheme for MSMEs to facilitate term loans without collateral or third party guarantee, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Tuesday. Presenting her seventh straight Union Budget, she also said that public sector banks to build in-house capability for credit assessment of MSMEs.
Better protection for depositors and investors was one of the chief considerations in Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman introducing, on Friday, the Banking Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024, in the Lok Sabha to amend four pieces of legislation. This amendment is also to improve audit quality in public-sector banks (PSBs), offer consistency in reporting by banks to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), and provide for an increase in the tenure of directors in cooperative banks.
Your choice between the Old and New Tax Regimes should reflect your financial strategy and investment goals, says Ramalingam Kalirajan
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is set to create history when she presents her seventh straight Budget on Tuesday for the fiscal 2024-25, surpassing the record of former prime minister Morarji Desai. Sitharaman, who will turn 65 next month, was in 2019 appointed as India's first full-time woman finance minister when Prime Minister Narendra Modi won a decisive second term.
The sources claimed that one of those arrested is believed to be Arsh Dalla, who is associated with the banned Khalistan Tiger Force and ran terror modules on behalf of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a designated terrorist who was killed in June last year.
For every rupee in the government coffer, the biggest pie of 63 paise will come from direct and indirect taxes, according to the Union Budget 2024-25 documents.
The name of the Maharashtra chief minister will be announced on Wednesday, a day ahead of the swearing-in ceremony of the Mahayuti government, after the Bharatiya Janata Party elects its legislature party leader, a senior functionary said on Monday.
Ex-finance minister Madhu Dandavate dead
Union minister Nitin Gadkari has said the Maharashtra government's Ladki Bahin scheme, introduced to provide financial assistance to women, could affect the timely payment of subsidies in other sectors.
The National Pension System is applicable for government employees joining the service after April 1, 2004. It was based on the premise of contribution rather than defined benefit applicable for employees prior to the NPS.
Call for fiscal autonomy to Union Territories with Assemblies may get louder with 'special status' to J&K in the Finance Commission, say experts.
With 7 per cent economic growth, India is not creating enough jobs as reflected by the number of applicants for vacant posts in some states, Reserve Bank's former governor Raghuram Rajan said and suggested the government needs to focus on promoting labour-intensive industries to generate employment. Rajan further said some Indians, especially those at upper level, are comfortable and have high incomes, but consumption growth from the lower half of the country has still not recovered to pre-pandemic level.
The police said that the threat email was sent from the accused, Mohammed Arshil's ID.
In her Budget speech, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday underlined the need for collaboration between the Centre and states to take up the next-generation reforms covering land, labour, capital and entrepreneurship. As far as revenue share goes, the government has projected to give about 32.5 per cent of central taxes to states during FY25, against the 15th Finance Commission's recommendation of 41 per cent, according to the Union Budget estimate.
Few finance ministers announce any taxation measure that could upset the stock market. Ms Sitharaman decided to take that risk, observes A K Bhattacharya.
For promoting women-led development, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday said the Budget carries an allocation of more than Rs 3 lakh crore for schemes benefitting women and girls.
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