Page 22 - Finance Ministry

Nearly 80 mn tax returns filed till Dec 2: MoS Finance informs Parliament

As many as 7.76 crore tax returns for income earned in 2022-23 have been filed till December 2 and more are expected to be filed by this month end, Parliament was informed on Monday. In 2022-23 financial year, 10.09 crore PAN holders paid taxes for income earned in 2021-22. "For the corresponding period, 7.76 crore returns have been filed till December 2, 2023, and more returns are expected to be filed till the last date, i.e. December 31, 2023," Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said in a written reply in the Lok Sabha. The last date for filing income tax returns (ITRs) for income earned in 2022-23 was July 31, 2023. Assessees who wish to file return after the due date can do so by December 31 upon payment of a penalty. The total net direct tax collection during 2022-23 is Rs 16.63 lakh crore out of which income tax collection is Rs 8.08 lakh crore.

India to become $5 trillion economy early in Amrit Kaal: MoS Finance

India will become a USD 5 trillion economy early in the 'Amrit Kaal' on the path to achieve the goal of becoming an advanced economy by 2047, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said on Monday. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has projected India to become a USD 5 trillion economy with the third largest GDP in 2027-28. The USD 5 trillion milestone will be crossed with the help of a strong rupee which will result from macroeconomic stability, he said in a written reply in the Lok Sabha. "The government has set the goal of becoming an advanced economy by 2047. In the process, it will become a USD 5 trillion economy early in the Amrit Kaal," Chaudhary said. At the end of 2022-23, the Indian GDP stood at USD 3.7 trillion. In 1980-81, size of the Indian economy was USD 189 billion, which increased to USD 326 billion after a decade. In 2000-01, the size of the GDP rose to USD 476 billion. In 2010-11, India's GDP jumped to USD 1.71 trillion, and further increased to USD

GST collections jump 15% to Rs 1.68 trillion in Nov: Finance Ministry

GST collections jumped 15 per cent to nearly Rs 1.68 lakh crore in November, the finance ministry said on Friday. Goods and Services Tax (GST) mop-up was over Rs 1.45 lakh crore in November 2022. "The gross GST revenue collected in the month of November 2023 is Rs 1,67,929 crore, out of which CGST is Rs 30,420 crore, SGST is Rs 38,226 crore, IGST is Rs 87,009 crore (including Rs 39,198 crore collected on import of goods) and cess is Rs 12,274 crore (including Rs 1,036 crore collected on import of goods)," the ministry said in a statement. The November 2023 collections are, however, lower than Rs 1.72 lakh crore mopped up in October -- the second-highest collection ever since the GST rollout. Revenues for November 2023 are 15 per cent higher than the GST revenues in the same month last year and the highest for any month year-on-year during 2023-24, up to November 2023, the ministry said.

No legal bar on member's reappointment: Finance secy T V Somanathan

No further ToRs to come, says Somanathan

India's GDP expected to grow by 6.5% in FY24, says finance ministry

Growth projections for Financial Year 2024 indicate that India will grow by 6.5 per cent. Growth prospects appear bright, though external factors pose a downside risk, the Finance Ministry said

Finance Commission terms of reference takes a conservative stance

Press release on terms of reference doesn't name people who will be part of the commission

Sitharaman demands concrete action on climate funding, not words at COP 28

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday called for concrete action on climate funding and transfer of technology at the upcoming global climate summit, saying that India will be pushing forward to showcase what it has achieved with its own funds. The 28th round of the annual UN climate talks to be held from Nov 03 to December 12 in the UAE and is anticipated to involve intense negotiations on compensation from rich countries to developing ones for climate impacts, fossil fuel usage, methane emissions, and financial aid for reducing planet-warming emissions and adapting to climate change. Speaking during a virtual session at the inaugural event of India Global Forum Middle East and Africa 2023 (IGF ME&A), Sitharaman said that cOP 28 should show the direction to countries. "There is a need for concrete action on climate funding and transfer of technology at the upcoming global climate summit," she said. She said that India will certainly be pushing forward to showcase what it .

Railway capex budget rules encourage finance ministry to expand model

National transporter is managing its expenditure better after Ministry brought in a new model

FinMin calls meeting of bankers to deal with digital payment fraud

The Finance Ministry has called a meeting of senior bankers and RBI representatives on Tuesday to discuss steps to deal with increasing digital payment fraud and cyber security issue. The meeting to be chaired by Financial Services Secretary will discuss issues related to financial cyber security and increasing digital payment fraud, sources said. During the meeting Indian Cyber Crime Co-ordination Centre will make a presentation on the latest statistics of digital payment frauds as reported in National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal (NCRP), including challenges and issues faced in countering such issues. The meeting is expected to be attended by senior official of Department of Economic Affairs, Department of Revenue, Department of Telecom, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Telecom Regulatory Authority of India and National Payments Corporation of India. The meeting assumes significance in view of digital fraud witnessed by UCO Bank and Bank of Baroda in th

Govt may ask 16th Finance Commission to include HDI, SDG in formula

Article 280 of the Constitution says that the President of India can constitute a Finance Commission to make recommendations regarding the distribution of tax proceeds between the Centre and states

Rein in enthusiasm to lend: FM Sitharaman to NBFCs, small finance banks

RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das on Wednesday said the central bank's tougher stance on unsecured loans is a "preemptive" move aimed at ensuring financial stability

UCO fraud fallout: FinMin to meet PSB chiefs next week on cyber security

Sources said that such frauds occurred a couple of times before involving some other public sector banks but went largely unnoticed as the amount involved was small

89% individuals say income tax refund faster now, finds CII survey

As many as 89 per cent of individuals and 88 per cent of firms are of the view that there has been a greater reduction in waiting time to get an income tax refund in the last five years between 2018-2023, a CII survey has said. The CII Income Tax Refund Survey presented to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also found that 75.5 per cent of the individuals and 22.4 per cent of the firm-level respondents did not pay TDS over and above their estimated tax liability. The survey respondents (84 per cent of individuals and 77 per cent of firms) also felt the process of checking refund status was now smooth. "The extensive measures, which have been introduced by the government in the recent years to streamline, simplify and automate the taxation regime have borne rich dividends as is evident from the upbeat survey results on assessing speed and efficiency of income tax refunds conducted by CII," the industry body's President R Dinesh said. A staggering 87 per cent of the individuals and

FY24 to end with strong growth performance, macroeconomic stability: FinMin

The current financial year should conclude as projected with a strong growth performance and macroeconomic stability as more than half of this fiscal has witnessed positive developments in the economy, a finance ministry report said on Tuesday. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has projected a 6.5 per cent GDP growth in the current financial year ending March 2024. In the Monthly Economic Review for October, the ministry also said the downside risk will continue to be inflation that should keep both the government and the RBI on high alert. Financial flows in the external sector need constant monitoring as they impact the value of rupee and the balance of payments, the report said, adding that a fuller transmission of the monetary policy may also temper domestic demand. On the inflation front, it said the decline in international crude oil prices and continued moderation in core inflation are likely to control inflationary pressures going forward. Recognising this trend, the report

FY24 should conclude as projected with strong growth: Finance ministry

The government is also confident of achieving the budgeted deficit target for the current fiscal year

Finance ministry asks PSU banks to take measures to bolster cybersecurity

The Finance Ministry has asked state-owned banks to review systems and processes related to their digital operation in view of the recent UCO Bank incident. According to sources, the banks have been advised to check their cybersecurity robustness and take measures to strengthen them. Banks should keep a tight vigil, and there should be readiness for future cyber threats, sources said. The Finance Ministry and RBI have been sensitising banks on this aspect at regular intervals amid the growing digitisation in the financial sector. Last week, Kolkata-based public sector lender UCO Bank reported erroneous credit of Rs 820 crore to account holders of the bank via Immediate Payment Service (IMPS). During November 10-13, the bank had observed, due to technical issues in IMPS, certain transaction(s) initiated by holders of other banks have resulted in credit to the account holders in UCO Bank without actual receipt of money from these banks. IMPS is a real-time interbank electronic fund

FinMin organises workshop on PPP project structuring toolkit for highways

The Finance Ministry on Friday organised a two-day workshop to sensitise project sponsoring authorities (PSAs) of the roads and highways sector on how to structure PPP projects using a web-based toolkit. The workshop organised by the Infrastructure Finance Secretariat (IFS) in the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) was attended by more than 70 representatives of Centre and state/UT governments, the finance ministry said in a statement. Recognising the challenges inherent in PPP projects, IFS has developed the PPP Structuring Toolkits, offering web-based tools to assist project sponsoring authorities in evaluating project viability for PPP mode. The workshop, which is the first in a series of workshops for dissemination of the toolkits, was inaugurated by Economic Affairs Secretary Ajay Seth. He highlighted the importance of infrastructure and the need to create a shelf of viable infrastructure projects to take India on a higher growth trajectory. Seth further emphasised that PSA

Centre cuts windfall tax on crude oil to Rs 6,300/tonne, halves for diesel

Windfall tax: The levy on the export of jet fuel and petrol will continue to be zero

Rural housing construction may be driving up MGNREGS costs, says ministry

Rs 35,000-40,000 crore of MGNREGS wages have already gone towards the construction of houses under PMAY-Gramin since it was revamped in November 2016

FinMin directs ministries to adhere to mobile, laptop issuance guidelines

The finance ministry has asked various departments and ministries to follow the guidelines with regard to issuance of mobiles, laptops and similar devices to officers and withdraw any policy which is at variance with the Department of Expenditure's guidelines. The Department of Expenditure under the finance ministry had in July issued guidelines for issue of mobile, laptop, tablet, phablet, notebook, notepad, ultra-book, net-book or devices of similar categories to eligible officers of Government of India for official work. Issuing a fresh office memorandum, the Department of Expenditure said it has come to its notice that various ministries/departments have issued their own policies regarding this which are not in line with the spirit of the finance ministry's guidelines. "Ministries/Departments are hereby directed to stop/withdraw their own policies on the subject and strictly adhere to the instructions issued by this Department in letter and spirit," the Department of Expenditure