'It's a changing world and the opening up doesn't mean that concerns with regards to security have gone away.'
As finance ministry officials remained glued to news flashes on the LCD screens in their rooms, others were constantly monitoring news on the web. The support staff got its share of the news feed by keeping a close watch on politicians visiting North Block, reports Vrishti Beniwal
Prime Minister Narendra Modi convened the Cabinet Committee on Security to address the impact of the West Asia conflict on Indian citizens, focusing on safeguarding them from the conflict's effects and ensuring the smooth flow of essential supplies.
The newly appointed Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee took charge of his new office in north block, returning to it after a gap of 24 years. The Finance Ministry office, which has been sealed off to outsiders and particularly prying journalists with the vote-on-account preparations in full swing, was on Thursday opened up at 4 p.m. when the media was invited in to cover the taking over ceremony.
India's privatisation push, once projected as a cornerstone of economic reform, has suffered another setback, with the Centre set to call off the IDBI Bank stake sale, highlighting the political and structural constraints shaping the country's disinvestment policy, experts say.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman stated that it is premature to comment on the tariff changes announced by the United States, adding that the commerce ministry is currently reviewing the situation.
The global financial crisis has empowered fiscal conservatives in India.
The Indian government has imposed penalties totalling nearly 20 crore on various companies for non-compliance with Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) norms over the past three financial years, as revealed in the Rajya Sabha.
DEA official writes to DIPP suggesting that govt needs to understand what has been left out, and why, in the revised application of the retailer.
The government has sharply reduced excise duty on petrol to 3 and diesel to zero, offering major relief to consumers. Here's how the price cut will impact fuel rates and inflation.
The department believes dividend from CPSUs is a return on investment made by the government.
Exit polls show the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance is set to form the government after votes are counted on Friday.
Interview with the Governor of Reserve Bank of India.
With the Iran war escalating sharply and crisis deepening in the global energy market, India on Monday unveiled a coordinated plan to support exporters and shippers caught in the fallout.
Tarun Bajaj, an old hand at the finance ministry, on Friday assumed charge as the economic affairs secretary. He comes back to North Block at a time when the economy is facing headwinds due to the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic.
'This Budget has a one-year agenda, which you can call the sprint, and the marathon is towards Viksit Bharat.'
The stress of dealing with the crisis, often with potentially conflicting objectives in front of them, appears to have brought the differences between the finance ministry and the RBI back to the surface.
Fino Payments Bank asserts its compliance with GST regulations following the arrest of its MD and CEO, Rishi Gupta, by the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI). The bank clarifies that the investigation pertains to program managers associated with multiple banks and not the bank's own GST compliance.
Central bank unhappy with North Block's EMI diktat to banks, asks for more provisioning.
The truck operators, who are on strike since Saturday to protest a new service tax, are likely to meet finance ministry officials on Thursday in a bid to end their agitation that has disrupted movement of goods and pushed up prices.\n\n\n\n
The Finance Ministry is evaluating options of conducting a special audit of scam-tainted IT firm Satyam Computer's accounts to ascertain the company's tax liability.
Capex, infrastructure development, and prudent fiscal management are the key focus areas in the Budget, says Nilesh Shah.
The controversial note, made by the finance ministry and sent to the Prime Minister's office on March 25, 2011, involved two Cabinet ministers -- finance minister Pranab Mukherjee and home minister P Chidambaram, who was the finance minister at the time of the 2G scam in 2007-08.
Delhi Police inform court that a BMW driver involved in a fatal accident last September is charged with culpable homicide for allegedly delaying medical assistance to the victim.
For decades, several key government offices and ministries functioned from fragmented and ageing infrastructure spread across multiple locations in the Central Vista area.
Delhi Police have detained a 41-year-old woman, Sonia, under the Prevention of Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (PIT-NDPS) Act for alleged drug trafficking.
Eases regulatory hurdles for Bharti-MTN deal.
Following the notification allowing 100 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) in the insurance sector, the Finance Ministry has revised norms to remove the requirement that a majority of directors and key management personnel in an insurance company with foreign investment be Indian residents.
The finance ministry is looking at a reworked proposal from mobile device makers on how to fight the rampant and growing smuggling of very high end phones. The proposal suggests reducing the basic customs duty (BCD) on phones which have a CIF (cost, insurance and freight or price at landing in the port) value of over Rs 35,000-Rs 40,000. The retail value of these phones is upwards of Rs 70,000.
Under the RFQ, companies had to initially participate in technical bids based on certain minimum criteria such as net worth, experience and so on. Only five or six companies that scored the highest on this basis were then permitted to put in financial bids.
On Agri Stack, Expenditure Secy V Vualnam says it's progressing well; using IT, farmers will be able to choose exact fertiliser quantities needed, reducing crowding at fertiliser outlets.
Sitharaman continues with the tradition she set in 2019, carrying the budget speech in a 'bahi-khata', which she used after dropping the briefcase tradition.
Customs regimes can lead to labyrinthine legal disputes. Budget 2026 must recognise that an excessively defensive Customs posture can itself become a trade barrier, point out Mukesh Butani and Shankey Agrawal.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday proposed a six-month foreign asset disclosure scheme for small taxpayers like students, tech professionals and relocated NRIs as she presented the Union Budget 2026-27.
Nirmala Sitharaman moved into her Kartavya Bhavan office on October 2, in time to get the work on the Budget 2026-2027 going.
The project is aimed at enabling faster movement of security forces and military equipment during exigencies, while also improving connectivity to Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and other north eastern states.
The FM also said the government has proposed a joint panel of Corporate Affairs Ministry and CBDT for incorporation of income computation and disclosure standards.
'This year's detection of frauds and probable recovery will be mainly driven by several compliance measures put in place, and amendments made to the GST regime to plug revenue leakages particularly in new-edge sectors.'
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