Kristalina Georgieva congratulated India on its strong economic performance in challenging global times and its role at the forefront of digitalisation of the economy, especially in the area of digital payments
The Economic Survey released on January 31st, highlighted the need for a common approach for the regulation of cryptocurrency, adding the underlying risks and high volatility of the sector
Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a reduction in custom duty charges for several products which will make smartphones cheaper. However, this might not have an immediate impact on prices or demand
As per Sitharaman's words, the vision for Amrit Kaal includes a technology-driven and knowledge-based economy with strong public finances and a robust financial sector
Sitharaman said that there is a cocktail of developments which encompasses the dark web and artificial intelligence, web3 and Meta, and also urged the officials to sit up and take note of these
As the adoption of new technology is necessary for a transparent accounting system, the minister said that the accounting fraternity must examine how new technologies such as blockchain, artificial intelligence, data analytics and cloud computing could be employed
This approval will further strengthen India's commitment towards its nationally determined contribution (NDCs) targets, adopted under the Paris Agreement
While pointing out the significance of digitalization that has been laid into medical services, education and software as a service (SaaS) sector, Sitharaman said there is immense potential to take it up further
The finance minister also added that, internationally, tax authorities are using IoT technology to automate the scanning of goods using e-seals, QR codes and X-ray scanners
The finance minister said that the word 'taming inflation' or the word 'keeping it within the tolerance limit', is an exercise of so many different activities and a majority of which is outside the monetary policy in today's circumstances
The Indian finance minister was hinting at the proposed cap on import of Russian oil and gas as proposed by the G7, which India fears will lead to rise in prices
The finance minister said that any legislation for regulation or for banning can be effective only after significant international collaboration on evaluation of the risks and benefits and evolution of common taxonomy and standards
To encourage consumer spending, Sitharaman announced two schemes- a leave travel concession (LTC) cash voucher and special festive advance-mainly aimed at benefitting central government employees
In the fourth tranche of measures, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced policy reforms that will help build Atmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliant India)
Named Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana, the stimulus package includes measures related to food security and direct cash transfer. It is expected to benefit urban and rural poor and migrant workers over the next three months.
At INR 69, 000 crore for FY21, the outlay for the health sector in Union Budget 2020 is a marginal improvement over INR 62,659 crore provided in the previous Budget
Rejigging of tax slabs appears a welcome move at first however, it is important to look closely into the implications of forgoing your deductions u/s 80C, 80D, 8024(b) etc