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Tag: finance minister nirmala sitharaman

  • FM Sitharaman launches Rs 6 lakh crore National Monetisation Pipeline

    Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday launched the National Monetisation Pipeline (NMP) price Rs 6 lakh crore. The NMP includes a four-year pipeline of the Centre’s brownfield infrastructure property from FY22-FY25. Apart from offering visibility to traders, NMP may even function a medium-term roadmap for the asset monetisation initiative of the federal government.
    Speaking on the launch, Sitharaman stated that the finances recognized infrastructure as the important thing focus for public expenditure. She added that there isn’t a land concerned in NMP solely brownfield property.
    The finance minister stated that public sector enterprises (PSEs) are ramping up capex regardless of the second wave, and added that she will probably be monitoring this additional. Sitharaman stated that NMP will discuss these brownfield property the place the funding is already being made and the place the property are both languishing or not totally monetized or under-utilized.

    Earlier this month, Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey had stated that the federal government is finalising infrastructure property, together with nationwide highways and energy grid pipelines, which might be monetised.
    The Budget 2021-22 laid a variety of emphasis on asset monetisation as a method to lift revolutionary and different financing for infrastructure, and included numerous key bulletins.
    More to observe

  • No plan to print foreign money notes to tide over disaster: FM

    The authorities has no plan to print foreign money notes to tide over the present financial disaster triggered by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman knowledgeable Parliament on Monday.
    To a query on whether or not there’s any plan to print foreign money to tide over the disaster, the Finance Minister mentioned, “No Sir”.
    Many economists and specialists have recommended the federal government resort to printing extra foreign money notes to help the economic system ravaged by the unfold of COVID-19, and defend jobs.

    India’s actual Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is estimated to have contracted by 7.3 per cent throughout 2020-21, Sitharaman mentioned in a written reply to Lok Sabha.
    This contraction displays the unparalleled impact of the pandemic and the containment measures that have been taken to manage the pandemic, she mentioned.
    “The fundamentals of the economy remain strong as gradual scaling back of lockdowns, along with the astute support of Atmanirbhar Bharat Mission has placed the economy firmly on the path of recovery from the second half of FY 2020-21,” she mentioned.
    The authorities had introduced a particular financial and complete package deal of Rs 29.87 lakh crore underneath AtmaNirbhar Bharat (ANB) to fight the influence of the pandemic, to revive financial development and to bolster employment throughout 2020-21, she mentioned.
    The Union Budget 2021-22 introduced plenty of measures to help broad-based and inclusive financial improvement together with a 34.5 per cent improve in capital expenditure and 137 per cent improve in well being expenditure, she mentioned, including, the federal government introduced a reduction package deal of Rs 6.29 lakh crore in June 2021, to strengthen public well being and supply the impetus for development and employment measures.
    Replying to a different query, Sitharaman mentioned, the influence of the second COVID-19 wave is anticipated to be muted given localised containment measures and fast upscaling of the vaccination drive.
    The Union Budget 2021-22, estimates India’s nominal GDP development at 14.4 per cent in the course of the present monetary yr ending March 2022.
    The Reserve Bank of India, in its newest Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) decision of June 4, 2021, has projected India’s actual GDP to develop at 9.5 per cent in 2021-22, after accounting for the influence of the second wave as in comparison with its earlier projection of 10.5 per cent, she mentioned.
    In reply to a different query, the Finance Minister mentioned the RBI has introduced Special three-year Long-Term Repo Operations (SLTRO) of Rs 10,000 crore at repo charge for the Small Finance Banks (SFBs), to be deployed for recent lending of as much as Rs 10 lakh per borrower to supply additional help to small enterprise models, micro and small industries, and different unorganised sector entities adversely affected in the course of the present wave of the pandemic.

    The first public sale underneath the SLTRO was carried out on May 17, 2021, she mentioned, including, the unutilised portion of notified Rs 10,000 crore is being carried ahead in every subsequent public sale, till absolutely utilised or until the final public sale to be carried out in October 2021, whichever is earlier.
    Three auctions underneath this scheme have been carried out up to now, and SFBs have availed a complete quantity of Rs 1,640 crore underneath the scheme, she added.

  • India’s sturdy fundamentals, market dimension will proceed to draw overseas investments: FM Sitharaman

    India’s sturdy fundamentals and market dimension will proceed to draw market-seeking greenfield investments, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman stated in a written reply to Lok Sabha on Monday.
    Quoting the World Investment Report 2021, the Finance Minister stated FDI inflows into India rose by 25.4 per cent to succeed in USD 64 billion in 2020, from USD 51 billion in 2019, turning into fifth largest recipient on this planet in 2020, up from eighth place it held within the earlier yr.
    However, the introduced greenfield tasks in India contracted by 19 per cent in 2020, she stated including that this decline is considerably decrease than the 44 per cent decline in creating economies.
    “As has been witnessed in overall FDI inflows, India’s strong fundamentals and market size will continue to attract market-seeking greenfield investments,” she stated.
    With regard to India’s contraction in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 7.3 per cent in 2020-21, she stated this displays the unparalleled impact of the ‘once in a century’ COVID-19 pandemic and the containment measures that had been taken to manage the pandemic.
    The fundamentals of the economic system remained sturdy as gradual scaling again of lockdowns, together with the astute help of Aatmanirbhar Bharat Mission positioned the economic system firmly on the trail of restoration from the second half of FY 2020-21, she added.
    According to the World Bank’s Global Economic Prospects June 2021, she stated, world development for 2021 has been revised upward to five.6 per cent, largely because of the sharp rebound in main economies pushed by continued vaccination and substantial fiscal help.
    India is anticipated to develop at a considerably sooner charge in comparison with the worldwide common development.
    The authorities of India is dedicated to accelerating the tempo and increasing the scope of COVID-19 vaccination all through the nation, she stated, including, the typical each day vaccination charge has doubled to 41.3 lakh doses in June in comparison with 19.3 lakh in May, subsequent to implementation of the revised nationwide COVID Vaccination Policy since June 21, 2021.
    India has now crossed the 38-crore mark in its cumulative COVID vaccination protection with 23 per cent of the inhabitants coated beneath the primary dose and 5.6 per cent of the inhabitants totally vaccinated, she added.
    The authorities of India on June 28, 2021 introduced a stimulus package deal of Rs 6,28,993 crore, the Finance Minister stated in one other reply.
    The package deal goals to spice up numerous sectors of the economic system affected by COVID-19 pandemic, she stated, including, the federal government has introduced a complete of 17 measures in three broad classes — Economic Relief from the Pandemic, Strengthening Public Health and Impetus for Growth and Employment.
    The Finance Minister additional stated that the CPI- Combined inflation in June 2021 was 6.26 per cent, as in opposition to the typical CPI-Combined inflation of 6.16 per cent throughout 2020-21.
    The weight of fuels like petrol, diesel and different fuels within the complete CPI-Combined is just 2.52 per cent, she stated.
    Replying to a different starred query, Sitharaman stated wages of officers and different staff of the Life Insurance Corporation of India have been revised with impact from August 1, 2017.

  • Enhanced GST income collections ought to now be ‘new normal’: FM Sitharaman

    Commending taxmen for the enforcement measures in coping with GST fraud, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday stated the improved income assortment within the current months ought to now be the “new normal”.
    In a message to tax officers on the fourth anniversary of historic tax reform GST, she stated within the final 4 years the taxpayer base has virtually doubled from 66.25 lakh to 1.28 crore.
    She stated for eight months in a row, GST revenues have crossed Rs 1 lakh crore mark and we’ve seen document GST income assortment of Rs 1.41 lakh crore in April 2021.
    “Commendable work has been done in the year gone by both in the area of facilitation and enforcement with numerous cases of fraudulent dealers and ITC being registered. The enhanced revenue collection in recent months should now be the ‘new normal’,” Sitharaman stated.

    A nationwide GST, which subsumed 17 native levies like excise responsibility, service tax and VAT and 13 cesses, was rolled out on July 1, 2017.
    Expressing satisfaction on overcoming many of the GST implementation challenges, together with two waves of the COVID-19 pandemic, the minister additionally thanked taxpayers for his or her help in making the products and providers tax (GST) a actuality.
    “Its positive externalities such as unified market, removal of cascading and imp[roved competitiveness of goods and services has helped spur economic growth taking us further on the path to prosperity,” she stated whereas commending each the central and state tax officers for making GST successful.
    Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) might be issuing certificates of appreciation to 54,439 GST payers for well timed submitting of returns and money cost of GST within the final 4 years. More than 88 per cent of those taxpayers are from micro, small and medium enterprises.

    She stated any reform of this scale, in a big and various nation like India, could be extremely difficult.
    “The GST Council has shown immense sagacity and wisdom in redressing legitimate concerns of taxpayers and citizens by course correction whenever needed. This has manifested itself not just in measures to ease the compliance burden on taxpayers, especially MSMEs, but also reducing the tax burden on the common man,” Sitharaman added.
    Under GST, companies with an annual turnover of as much as Rs 40 lakh are exempt from GST. Additionally, these with a turnover as much as Rs 1.5 crore can go for the Composition Scheme and pay only one per cent tax.
    For providers, companies with turnover as much as Rs 20 lakh in a 12 months are GST exempt. A service supplier having turnover as much as Rs 50 lakh in a 12 months can go for composition scheme for providers and pay solely 6 per cent tax.

    Under GST a four-rate construction that exempts or imposes a low price of tax 5 per cent on important objects and high price of 28 per cent on vehicles is levied. The different slabs of tax are 12 and 18 per cent. In the pre-GST period, the overall of VAT, excise, CST and their cascading impact led to 31 per cent as tax payable, on a mean, for a shopper.
    GST additionally represents an unprecedented train in fiscal federalism. The GST Council, that brings collectively the central and state governments, has met 44 instances to thrash out how the tax will work.

  • FM stresses on quicker declare disposal for Covid employees

    Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday reviewed the progress made underneath an insurance coverage scheme for well being employees preventing Covid-19 and requested insurers to speed up the disbursement of pending claims underneath the Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY).
    During a digital assembly with high officers of insurance coverage corporations, she burdened on the significance of streamlining the method and documentation necessities underneath the schemes in order that the claims are disbursed speedily, the Finance Ministry stated in an announcement. Insurers highlighted steps being taken for quicker settlement of claims together with decreasing declare processing time to 7 days from 30, end-to-end digitisation of the declare settlement course of, declare paperwork transmission by way of electronic mail/App amongst others.
    The Finance Minister noticed that underneath the insurance coverage scheme for well being employees launched underneath the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package (PMGKP) scheme, a complete of 419 claims have been paid as on date, amounting to Rs 209.5 crore disbursed within the account of their nominees. To handle the difficulty of delays arising out of states sending paperwork, Sitharaman stated {that a} new system has been put in place whereby a easy certificates from the district Justice of the Peace (DM) and endorsed by the nodal state well being authority shall be ample to course of these claims.
    Claims made underneath Covid medical insurance have shot as much as Rs 22,955 crore with 14.82 lakh prospects submitting their hospital payments as on May 14, with the variety of infections rising quickly throughout the nation.
    While insurance coverage corporations have settled solely claims of 12.33 lakh prospects for about Rs 11,794 crore, they’re but to settle the claims of over 2.5 lakh prospects and quantity involving Rs 11,161 crore amid complaints about refusal by insurers to supply or renew well being insurance policies.
    “… under PMJJBY, a total of 4.65 lakh claims have been paid of value Rs 9,307 crore and since the beginning of the pandemic i.e., 1st April 2020 onwards till date, 1.2 lakh claims have been paid amounting to Rs 2,403 crore, at a disposal rate of 99 per cent,” the federal government stated.

  • GST Council to satisfy on May 28; compensation shortfall, charges on COVID necessities on agenda

    The GST Council will meet on May 28 and is more likely to focus on tax charges on COVID-related medication, oxygen gear and vaccines.
    The assembly amongst different issues can also be more likely to focus on the compensation mechanism for states’ GST income shortfall for the continued fiscal which started on April 1.
    Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will chair the forty third GST Council assembly through video conferencing on May 28, 2021.
    The assembly might be attended by MOS Shri @ianuragthakur in addition to Finance Ministers of States & UTs and Senior officers from Union Government & States, Office of Nirmala Sitharaman tweeted.
    <p “width=420″ lang=”en” dir=”ltr”>Smt @nsitharaman will chair the forty third GST Council assembly through video conferencing at 11 AM in New Delhi on twenty eighth May 2021. The assembly might be attended by MOS Shri @ianuragthakur in addition to Finance Ministers of States & UTs and Senior officers from Union Government & States.— NSitharamanOffice (@nsitharamanoffc) May 15, 2021
    Earlier this month, West Bengal Finance Minister Amit Mitra and Punjab Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal had demanded {that a} digital GST Council assembly be held.
    The assembly of the Council is meant to happen at the least as soon as each quarter of a monetary 12 months. However, the panel has not met since October 5 final 12 months.
    Congress working president Sonia Gandhi had final month demanded that each one life-saving medication, gear and devices required to deal with COVID-19 sufferers should be exempted from GST. Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress has additionally made the same demand.
    Sitharaman had, nevertheless, dominated out exempting COVID vaccines, medicines and oxygen concentrators from GST saying such an exemption will make the lifesaving objects costlier for customers as producers won’t be able to offset the taxes paid on inputs.
    Currently, home provides and business imports of vaccines entice 5 per cent Goods and Services Tax (GST), whereas COVID medication and oxygen concentrators entice 12 per cent levy.
    The Centre had final fiscal 12 months launched Rs 70,000 crore to states on account of GST compensation. This is over and above the Rs 1.10 lakh crore launched to states underneath the particular borrowing mechanism to compensate them for shortfall within the GST assortment this monetary 12 months.
    As a lot as Rs 63,000 crore price compensation continues to be because of be paid for 2020-21 fiscal 12 months which ended March 31, 2021.

    The affect of second wave of the pandemic on GST income is more likely to be taken into consideration within the forthcoming GST Council assembly on May 28.

  • Govt working to avoid wasting lives, livelihood: FM Sitharaman tells India Inc amid COVID surge

    Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday mentioned she has taken inputs from varied business chambers on issues of India Inc with regard to the administration of COVID pandemic and the centre would proceed to work with state governments to avoid wasting lives and livelihood.
    She sought suggestions from companies to take care of the impression of the second COVID-19 wave on the nation’s economic system.
    It is to be famous that the economic system contracted by a whopping 23.9 per cent within the first quarter (April-June) of the earlier monetary yr as a result of outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

    “Spoke on telephone with each of the following business/Chamber leaders. Took their inputs on industry/Association related matters. Informed them that GoI at various levels from @PMOIndia is responding to #Covid management. Working together with states for lives and livelihoods,” she mentioned in a tweet.
    The Finance Minister had interactions with heads of business chambers together with CII president Uday Kotak, Uday Shankar, president Ficci, and Vineet Agarwal president Assocham.
    She additionally spoke to many enterprise leaders like Tata Steel managing director T V Narendran, L&T chairman A M Naik, TCS managing director Rajesh Gopinathan, Maruti Suzuki chairman R C Bhargava, TVS Group chairman Venu Srinivasan and Hero Moto Corp managing director Pawan Munjal to take their suggestions on state of affairs arising out of surging COVID-19 instances and native containments.
    Last week, the Finance Minister made it clear that the federal government wouldn’t go for lockdowns in a giant manner and solely resort to native containment to interrupt the COVID-19 chain.

    “Even with the second wave, we are very clear that we are not going in for lockdowns in a big way. We don’t want to totally arrest the economy. The local level isolation of patients, or households which have people in quarantines are the methods through which the crisis will be handled, the second wave will be handled. There shall not be lockdown,” Sitharaman had mentioned.
    Daily common COVID-19 instances throughout the nation crossed 1.7 lakh on Sunday. India’s whole tally of COVID-19 instances crossed 1.50 crore with a document single-day rise of two,73,810 new coronavirus infections, whereas the energetic instances surpassed the 19-lakh mark, based on the Union Health Ministry information up to date on Monday.

  • Cabinet approves formation of Development Finance Institution

    The Union Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday accepted the establishing of Development Finance Institution (DFI) which was introduced within the Union Budget 2021-22, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman stated.
    Briefing the media after the cabinet assembly, Sitharaman stated that the DFI Bill which has been cleared by the cabinet will likely be now be tabled in parliament.
    She stated that the federal government expects the DFI to lift upto 3 lakh crore with the preliminary Rs 20,000 crore cap infusion.

    The new DFI could have sure tax advantages for 10 years.
    More to observe

  • Want to see personal sector unleash its animal spirits: Nirmala Sitharaman

    Image Source : PTI Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman
    Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday mentioned that the Union Budget 2021-22 has assured readability and certainty on coverage, taxation, infrastructure capex, and privatization, and now it’s totally as much as the personal sector to speculate and increase capability for long-term and sustainable financial progress.
    “I have been waiting for investment and expansion and I want to see the private sector show its animal spirits,” Sitharaman mentioned throughout her tackle on the All India Management Association’s sixty fifth Foundation Day celebrations.
    Sitharaman mentioned that she has supplied long-term certainty with the short-term stimulus in her funds. She urged AIMA to nudge Indian enterprise into investing and increasing capability.
    Sitaraman emphasised that the federal government was dedicated to multi-year stimulus spending to help sustained financial restoration.
    She asserted that this 12 months’s funds was about charting a transparent and sure path for the following decade. “Each word of this budget is full of meaning, so make the best use of it,” she advised the administration management of the nation.

    The FM defined that the divestment coverage introduced within the funds was to maneuver from incremental change to financial transformation. “I want a more meaningful and purposeful spending of the taxpayers’ money,” Sitaraman mentioned, including that the federal government didn’t need to use taxpayers’ cash to run establishments that it couldn’t, and as a substitute it needs to present public sector corporations to those that can.
    The divestment coverage isn’t about closing down PSUs, the FM clarified. She mentioned that Indian economic system had nice demand for metal, copper, coal and many others and the PSUs wanted to be run extra effectively and productively to fulfill that demand. “We are not selling PSUs for closure. We want them to be run better,” she mentioned.
    Assuring Indian enterprise concerning the authorities’s huge fiscal deficit and big borrowing programme, the Finance Minister mentioned that the capex and infrastructure intensive funds will enhance demand at each the business and the patron ranges.
    “This spending will ensure sustained growth over the next decade,” she mentioned.
    Uday Kotak, Executive Vice Chairman & Managing Director, Kotak Mahindra Bank, who additionally addressed the administration management of the nation on the event, requested his friends to do extra than simply applaud the federal government. “Time has come for Indian business leaders to walk the talk,” he mentioned.
    ALSO READ | Govt to amend two Acts to allow privatisation of PSU banks
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  • FM Sitharaman addresses RBI board, explains priorities of presidency

    Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday defined the federal government’s priorities to the Reserve Bank of India’s central board throughout their first assembly after presentation of the Union Budget 2021-22.
    As per the custom, the finance minister holds customary assembly with the board members of the RBI and the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) after Budget presentation yearly.
    The finance minister addressed the 587th RBI central board assembly and knowledgeable the members about the important thing initiatives within the Budget and the priorities of the federal government, RBI stated in an announcement.

    “Complimenting the finance minister on the budget, the board members made various suggestions for consideration of the government,” it added.
    At its first assembly after the presentation of the Budget for 2021-22, the central board of administrators additionally reviewed the present financial scenario.
    “The board in its meeting reviewed the current economic situation, global and domestic challenges and various areas of operations of the Reserve Bank, including ways for strengthening of grievance redress mechanism in banks,” it stated.
    The assembly on Tuesday was chaired by RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das by way of video conferencing.
    The authorities’s nominee administrators on the board — Financial Services Secretary Debasish Panda and Economic Affairs Secretary Tarun Bajaj — additionally attended the assembly.
    Apart from Sitharaman, Minister of State for Finance Anurag Singh Thakur, Finance Secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey and Department of Investment and Public Asset Management Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey had been additionally current.
    Earlier this month, the finance minister offered a Rs 34.5 lakh crore-budget for 2021-22 within the backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic.
    The funds has laid emphasis on growing capital expenditure, elevating allocation for healthcare capability constructing and growth of agriculture infrastructure, amongst others, that are anticipated to have a multiplier impact on the economic system.
    Hit arduous by the pandemic, fiscal deficit — the surplus of presidency expenditure over its revenues — is estimated to hit a report excessive of 9.5 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) within the present fiscal ending March 31.
    For the following 2021-22 fiscal, the deficit has been pegged at 6.8 per cent of GDP, which shall be additional lowered to 4.5 per cent by the fiscal ending March 31, 2026.

    Earlier this month, Das stated the central financial institution will capable of handle the excessive quantum of presidency borrowings at Rs 12 lakh crore for the following fiscal in a “non-disruptive” method.