-The Hindu It would be much easier for the government to provide relief to people if the tax base was wider, says Revenue Secretary Tarun Bajaj, noting that four crore people don’t file returns though the tax department gets some TDS collections on their account. With major customs duty rationalisation done and corporate tax settled, the government hopes to finish some pending reforms in personal income tax and GST, creating a...

-The Telegraph NREGA Watch finds low funds, delayed wage payment defeating spirit Ranchi: Frustrating budget allocation, delayed payment of wages and contractors-middlemen-official nexus, among other factors, are defeating the spirit of the rural job scheme under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act 2005 in Jharkhand. A report card released on Wednesday by NREGA Watch, an NGO monitoring the scheme in the state, on the occasion of the 16th anniversary of commencement...

-The Hindu Audits, transparency and citizen-centric accountability need to be a part of fund support and disbursement Every COVID-19 wave in India has brought us face to face with the dire precarity of life and livelihood for India’s vast numbers of unorganised workers, and the inadequate response of the state and society to their plight. The latest global OXFAM inequality report highlights how India’s billionaires have grown dramatically in numbers and wealth,...

-The Telegraph The Union Budget reveals glaring gaps in allocations for education Appearances can be deceptive. On the face of it, education has Been allotted Rs 1,04,278 crore — a rise of Rs 11,054 crore from 2021-2022 — in this year’s budget. However, this still amounts to just above 3 per cent of the gross domestic product, falling far short of the 6 per cent public investment recommended by the National Education...

-Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability (CBGA), February 4, 2022 Since 2006, Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability (CBGA) has Been bringing out an analysis of the Union Budget every year soon after its presentation in Parliament. This publication aims to facilitate an informed discussion on the Budget focusing both on revenue and expenditure aspects, particularly around the social sectors, agriculture, rural economy, climate actions and provisioning of budgetary support for...