Page 12 - Finance Ministry

Economic recovery strong, but inflation fears persist: Finance ministry

The monthly economic report stated that rupee depreciated by 5.4% against the dollar in the first six months of FY23, less than the depreciation of 8.9% of six major currencies in the DXY Index

Fiscal, monetary authorities should be watchful amid global gloom: Finmin

"Inflation trajectory remains dependent on geopolitical developments," the report stated, adding risks to inflation were amplified by an appreciating U.S. dollar," the ministry said

Sanjay Malhotra succeeds Bajaj as revenue secy; Giridhar named defence secy

Road Transport and Highways Secretary Aramane Giridhar has been named the new defence secretary as part of a top-level bureaucratic reshuffle effected by the Centre on Wednesday. Giridhar, a 1988-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the Andhra Pradesh cadre, has been appointed as Officer on Special Duty in the Department of Defence. He will take over as secretary of the Department of Defence after the retirement of Ajay Kumar on October 31, a personnel ministry order said. National Highways Authority of India chairperson Alka Upadhyaya will be the new road and transport secretary replacing Giridhar. Secretary in the Department of Financial Services Sanjay Malhotra will be the new revenue secretary. He has been appointed as Officer on Special Duty in the Department of Revenue. The officer will take over as secretary, Department of Revenue, after Tarun Bajaj completes his term on November 30. Registrar General of India and Census Commissioner, Ministry of Home Affa

PSU dividend targets may be missed due to impact on oil industry

The budget estimate for dividends from PSUs is Rs 40,000 crore. So far, the centre has garnered Rs 15,766 crore. Even with such healthy receipts so far, a shortfall is expected

Finance ministry releases Rs 1,764-cr grant to four states for MPC/UAs

The finance ministry on Wednesday released Rs 1,764 crore grant to four states. The states to which grants were released are Andhra Pradesh (Rs 136 crore), Chhattisgarh (Rs 109 crore), Maharashtra (Rs 799 crore) and Uttar Pradesh (Rs 720 crore). "The Department of Expenditure today released an amount of Rs 1,764 crore to 4 states for providing grants to million plus cities/urban agglomerations," the ministry said in a statement. The grants released are meant for Million Plus Cities/ Urban Agglomerations (MPC/UAs) of Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh; Durg Bhilainagar and Raipur in Chhattisgarh; Aurangabad, Greater Mumbai, Nagpur, Nashik, Pune and Vasai-Virar City in Maharashtra. It is also meant for Agra, Allahabad, Ghaziabad, Kanpur, Lucknow, Meerut and Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh. The 15th Finance Commission in its report for the period from 2021-22 to 2025-26 has divided the urban local bodies into two categories: (a) Million-Plus urban agglomerations/cities (excludi

FinMin seeks trade, industry suggestions on taxes for 2023-24 Budget

Kickstarting stakehoder consultation for 2023-24 Budget, the finance ministry has sought suggestions from industry and trade associations regarding direct and indirect taxes. Along with the suggestions, the industry has to submit justification for their demand which, if found with merit, could become part of the Union Budget for 2023-24 (April-March), to be tabled in Parliament on February 1, 2023. The deadline for sending suggestions for changes in the duty structure, rates and broadening of tax base on both direct and indirect taxes is November 5. "In the context of formulating the proposals for the Union Budget for 2023-24, the Ministry of Finance would like to be benefited by the suggestions and views of your association," the ministry said. It said that since the government is working to phase out tax incentives, deductions and exemptions while simultaneously rationalising direct tax rates, the industry should point out 'positive externalities' arising out of the ...

Centre to infuse Rs 5,000 crore in state-run general insurers: Report

On October 14, the finance ministry notified the wage revision plan for officers and employees of state-run insurers which is expected to cost Rs 8,000 crore to these companies

Importers still wait for clarity on expanded scope of IGCRS Rules

The new rules now say they come into play even in situations where the notifications prescribe end use of imported goods but do not specifically prescribe application of the new rules.

Opposition slams FM Sitharaman's remark that rupee has not weakened

Opposition parties on Sunday slammed Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's remark that rupee has not weakened but it is the dollar that has strengthened, saying she cannot hide the failure of her government in handling the economy. The ruling BJP defended the finance minister's statement, noting that the dollar has appreciated against most currencies. It also said that if rupee depreciates against all currencies "like it happened during UPA in 2013", it is called rupee getting weaker, which is not the case now. The Congress alleged that the people were paying the price for the government's "incompetence and wrong policies". For how long will RSS-BJP work to weaken India by misleading the public from reality? Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said. Referring to India being ranked 107 out of 121 countries in the Global Hunger Index 2022, Gandhi tweeted: Now the Prime Minister and his ministers will say, 'Hunger is not increasing in India, but people are not feeling hungry in other ...

Many roads lead to GST

The solution to many difficulties that we see today lies in a sound indirect tax system

State-owned NBFCs looking to tap into India's first sovereign green bonds

The finance ministry is yet to confirm their participation and draw broad contours of the bond issuance

Coal to be back again as gas becoming unaffordable: FM Nirmala Sitharaman

Given the global energy crisis, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said that coal is going to be back again as gas has become unaffordable. Sitharaman, who attended the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, said the western world has seen countries moving to coal. The Western world has seen countries moving to coal. Austria has already said, and todaythey are going back to coal, Sitharaman told a group of reporters from India during an interaction on Saturday. Russia has sharply curtailed natural gas shipments to Europe in retaliation for sanctions that the West put in place after its invasion of Ukraine. In late April, Russia cut off gas supplies to Bulgaria and Poland after they refused Moscow's demand to pay for the deliveries in rubles, Russia's currency. Also, apart from that many countries in the West are moving away from coal to generate electricity as it contributes to climate change and air pollution. Responding to a question on her

Govt not to procure fresh Covid vaccines; surrenders Rs 4k cr from budget

The government's Covid vaccination programme is in its final leg with the Health Ministry deciding against procuring more vaccines as of now and surrendering Rs 4,237 crore, or nearly 85 per cent of the 2022-23 budget allocation for inoculation purposes, to the Finance Ministry. Official sources told PTI that more than 1.8 crore doses are still available with the governments at the Centre and in states and the stock is sufficient to continue the vaccination drive for around six months, given the low uptake of vaccines among people due to declining Covid case burden. Even if the government's stock gets exhausted, Covid vaccines will be available in the market. "Any decision on whether to procure Covid vaccine doses through the government channel or get (fresh) budget allocations for the purpose after six months will depend on the coronavirus situation prevailing in the country at that time," an official source told PTI. As part of the nationwide vaccination drive which began on Janu

Govt notifies 12% wage hike for employees of PSU general insurers

The Finance Ministry has notified an average 12 per cent wage hike for employees of four public sector general insurance companies effective from August 2017. "This Scheme may be called the General Insurance (Rationalisation of Pay Scales and other Conditions of Service of Officers) Amendment Scheme, 2022," a gazette notification dated October 14, 2022 said. This wage revision is effective from August 1, 2017 and applicable to those who were in the service of these companies, it said, adding that officers and employees will get arrears for five years. The next revision due from August 2022 will be in the form of a variable pay based on the performance of the company and the employee, it added. Unions are not happy with imposition of pay linked to performance of the company and their performance. "We are having strong reservations against the way the wage revision has been done after the wait of 64 months. Linking wages with performance seems to be illogical as we employees underta

India briefs G20 FMs, central bank governors on its 2023 presidency agenda

India on Thursday briefed the finance ministers and central bank governors of G-20 countries about its agenda for the next year when it assumes the rotating annual presidency of the grouping. India will take over the G20 Presidency in 2023, including the finance track. The ministers and governors have been briefed about the proposed main priority agendas from the 2023 India Presidency, Indonesian Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati told reporters during a press conference held here on the sidelines of the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. Indonesia currently holds the presidency of G-20 countries. On Thursday Indrawati chaired meetings of finance ministers and central bank governors of G-20 countries, which among others was attended by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das. It is during this meeting and the breakfast meeting hosted by Sitharaman earlier in the day for the finance minister

India has set global benchmarks; economic revival on sustained path: FM

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that India is setting the global benchmarks on the digital front and that it will be able to face geopolitical and economic uncertainties

India's public goods are available for countries in need: FM Sitharaman

Observing digitalisation has become the biggest advantage in India in the last two years, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said that India's public goods are available for countries that need them. Sitharaman said the open-source network that the government of India has created as a public good is helping small and medium industries to scale up their operations. Standing here I want to reiterate that India's public goods are available for countries which so they need it, Sitharaman told students of the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) during an interactive session on India's unique Digital Public Goods. The minister asserted that India has a digital stack that other countries can use. So if India today can talk of a digital stack, it's not talking of just payment where UPI, which is today acceptable in Singapore, UAE, and many other countries, she said. We are not talking of just Rupay cards, we are not talking of credit cards, we'

India's 5G indigenous; can reach other countries as well: FM Sitharaman

India has launched its indigenously developed 5G infrastructure and is ready to share it with other countries as well, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Thursday. The story (of India's 5G) is yet to reach the public, Sitharaman said in her interaction with students at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS). The 5G that we've launched in our country is completely standalone, she said in response to a question. There could be some parts coming from, say, countries like (South) Korea, but (not) coming from somebody else. So complete indigenous technology that we can now provide 5G (to any country) who wants it, she said. So, our 5G is not imported from somewhere else. It's our own product, Sitharaman said. The 5G services were recently launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in select Indian cities and are likely to cover the entire nation by 2024, she said. On 5G, I think, we can be immensely proud of India's achievements, Sitharaman said

FM Sitharaman calls for effective tax reporting regime on crypto assets

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday called for an effective tax reporting regime and information exchange between jurisdictions for crypto assets to combat offshore tax evasions. Participating in the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting here on the sidelines of the annual meetings of the IMF and the World Bank, Sitharaman intervened on a number of critical issues, including infrastructure, investments and international taxation. On scaling up sustainable and digital infrastructure investments, she highlighted the need to leverage private sector participation. She also spoke on mobilising finance at sub-national level for inclusive and quality infrastructure. The last session of the ongoing G20 meeting saw discussions on the progress made on the agenda of international taxation during this year. On the two-pillar solution, the finance minister called for participative engagement of all jurisdictions in negotiations and prioritising capacity building.

India calls for collective prevention of aggravating risks: FM Sitharaman

: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday called for collective responsibility to prevent the risks from aggravating. Sitharaman said that India's efforts will be to encourage conversations that recognise our inter-dependencies, our shared wisdom, and our collective aspiration for a safe, peaceful and prosperous world. Today's global economy faces a confluence of challenges and it is our collective responsibility to prevent the risks from aggravating, the finance minister said in her speech during the closing session of the G-20 finance ministers and central bank governors here being held on the sidelines of the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. India will head the annual rotating presidency of G-20 next year. In her remarks, the finance minister said that India views the hosting of the G20 Presidency as an opportunity as well as a responsibility. Rebuilding trust in multilateralism is at the core of India's thinking, she told her