The Government of India has decided to launch a massive rural public works scheme, 'Garib Kalyan Rojgar Abhiyaan', to "empower and provide livelihood opportunities to the returnee migrant workers and rural citizens". Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch this scheme on June 20 through video conference in the presence of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi.
'The plan is to secure nod of the Union Cabinet and other relevant regulatory approvals within the next three months,' a senior finance ministry official said, requesting anonymity.
After keeping the appointments of some of the senior level officers on special duty/private secretary on hold for months, Prime Minister Narendra Modi finally cleared some of them.
While Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee is aiming for a return to the path of fiscal prudence, various departments of the central government appear to be out of sync.
Shalini Gupta, a freelance writer from Pudicherry, tells Rediff.com's A Ganesh Nadar what she would like to see in Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's Budget.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on March 17 had announced that State Bank of India (SBI) would extend a term loan of $1 billion to Sri Lanka, fully guaranteed by the Indian government, and this was part of India's financial aid to the troubled island nation. Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi was quoted saying by news agency PTI that the loan would be used for importing food, medicines, and other essential items. "India has always stood with the people of Sri Lanka and we will continue to extend all possible support at this juncture.
The Budget oration of the finance minister and the confidence with which she delivered it, along with the measures and the recent upsurge in the economy would all contribute to unleashing the storied 'animal spirits' and help the economy run on the growth path quite smoothly. Or so the government hopes, notes Shreekant Sambrani.
In the case of the killing of the IAF personnel in a terror attack in Srinagar in 1990, the court had summoned two witnesses for identification, but they could not appear citing medical reasons, Bhat said, adding that both of them had to come from outside.
Dissenting states including Chhattisgarh and Kerala, have made it clear they are in no mood to relent. They want the Centre to borrow the entire Rs 2.35 trillion this fiscal citing bleak fiscal position.
With the fall of Congress, Chidambaram's political graph too started moving southwards.
Last year, Sitharaman had ditched the long-standing tradition of carrying budget documents in a leather briefcase and went swadeshi with a 'bahi-khata'.
The Union civil aviation ministry would take up the issue with the finance ministry, Patel said, expressing the hope that the latter would respond favourably to the civil aviation ministry's representation.
The opposition parties will meet on Monday morning to evolve their strategy in both Houses of Parliament after protests by them on the Hindenburg-Adani issue overshadowed most of the first half of the Budget session.
Strengthening the portfolios of the home minister and the finance minister is a message that should not be missed, points out A K Bhattacharya.
Sitharaman, who became the first full-time woman defence minister in the first tenure of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance government -- will also head the Corporate Affairs ministry in the new cabinet.
'I have serious doubts about the longevity of the NDA government and the longevity of the 18th Lok Sabha itself.'
It further said that the loan application form should be suitably modified to incorporate passport details of borrowers.
Later, Sitharaman's office clarified that the FM had already met the industrialists, experts, and economists during the pre-budget consultations.
The EPFO, which has 50 million subscribers, provides annual interest of 8.75 per cent on provident fund deposits.
Only three or four tonnes is estimated to have been mobilised under the scheme.
The two major railway unions have proposed to the government an unprecedented alternative to privatisation or inviting foreign investment, to help raise funds and improve revenue.
With Raghuram Rajan not 'really there', the FinMin has decided to keep a watch on market developments this week with all key officials on the job.
India plans to phase in cash transfers of food and kerosene subsidies from September, saving 10-15 per cent of the $21 billion in annual outlays on the benefits by eliminating fraud, a senior finance ministry official said on Thursday.
Many PSU banks had recently cut interest rate on loans for two-wheelers and consumer durables.
The Finance Ministry has been pitching for EPFO funds to be invested in the equity markets to maximise their yields.
Anticipating a sudden and huge crowd in bank branches following the announcement of various measures by the government on Friday, the AIBEA said since the number of employees in bank branches are very few, the crowds can pose a big risk for the bank staff as well as for the customers who might be visiting in large numbers.
Seven electric two-wheeler companies have suffered a cumulative loss of over Rs 9,000 crore on account of unpaid dues and loss of market after their subsidies were stopped last year, the Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles (SMEV) said on Wednesday. These companies have also been directed by the govt to refund the subsidies availed by them. The audit by SMEV's chartered accountants indicates the total, cumulative damages to affected companies could account for over Rs 9,000 crore on a conservative basis, it noted.
This is the fourth such recruitment drive proposed to be undertaken by the Narendra Modi government which had in 2018 initiated lateral entry.
7 states account for over 80 per cent of the total direct tax collections by the Union government.
Rather than talking endlessly about lost and marginal opportunities, India's climate envoys need to start thinking bigger, says Mihir S Sharma.
Suresh said the ministry had received several representations from the EPF pensioners Association, pointing to the meagre pension amount, which in some cases was about Rs 50 to Rs 300.
When Nirmala Sitharaman announced her new privatisation policy, there were serious doubts if the move had the BJP's full political backing. All those doubts were dispelled when her initiatives were endorsed by Modi in Parliament, observes A K Bhattacharya.
With an aim to safeguard the investors from possible frauds involving collective investment schemes, the government has proposed a high-level committee of members from Reserve Bank, Sebi, Corporate Affairs Ministry and Economic Office Wing of state police departments.
However, independent economists are not as gung-ho as the finance ministry over the likelihood of deficit target being met this time around, says Indivjal Dhasmana.
In 2009, FinMin proposed to move regulators' reserves into public account. These accounts were finally opened in 2013-14. However, no funds have been deposited in it so far.
The largest challenge for the gigantic exercise between the Centre and the 29 states was to keep the latter interested over the years.
Accordingly, West Bengal can borrow Rs 20,362 crore, Maharashtra (Rs 46,182 crore), Uttar Pradesh (Rs 29,108 crore), Karnataka (Rs 27,054 crore), Gujarat (Rs 26,112 crore) and Rajasthan (Rs 16,387 crore).
The Lower House of Parliament took up the Demands for Grants and Appropriation Bills after two adjournments as the ruling and Opposition MPs engaged in a matching duet over demands for an apology by Rahul Gandhi and the Adani issue.
The Ministry of Finance may seek the Union Cabinet's approval for the proposed 10 per cent stake sale in state-owned Coal India Ltd by the end of this month, a senior Coal Ministry official said
Issuance of new bank licences proves that the apex bank wants the financial sector to flourish.
