-The Hindu The relaxation has been granted for payments received in cash between April 1 and May 31, provided such healthcare providers obtain the PAN or Aadhaar of the patient and the payee. The government has notified changes to the Income Tax Act to allow cash payments of over ₹2 lakh for COVID-19 patients’ treatment at hospitals, dispensaries, nursing homes, COVID care centres or other similar medical facilities. The relaxation has been granted...

-The Hindu 12 Republican lawmakers write a seven-page letter to U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai on the issue U.S. President Joe Biden said on Tuesday that he had not made a decision on whether the U.S. would support an Indian and South African initiative at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) to waive Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) to facilitate the production of COVID-19 related vaccines and therapeutics around the world. “Well, we’re...

-The Telegraph The Centre had last November announced a Rs 900-crore project but none of this money went to either Covishield or Covaxin India’s shortage of Covid-19 vaccines that precludes immediate inoculation for all adults is rooted in the Narendra Modi government’s lack of funding for key vaccines under development and evaluation, experts have said. The experts, who have tracked global vaccine efforts, said the Indian government’s lack of investments contrasted with the...

-The Hindu It is critical that the Supreme Court immediately adjudicates on the electoral bonds scheme The Election Commission of India has announced dates for elections to five Legislative Assemblies. It is a matter of grave concern that the petition challenging the electoral bonds scheme, which deals with the vexed issue of election funding, continues to languish in the Supreme Court. The delay in adjudicating on the case filed in September 2017...

When a massive sum of public money is spent on a programme like Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Programme (MGNREGA)--a demand-driven programme, there is likelihood of financial misappropriations and mismanagement. Thankfully there are checks and balances in the rural employment guarantee legislation to counter such malpractices. It is worth noting that the total allocation under the Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Programme (MGNREGA) for 2020-21 was Rs. 1,11,500.00 crore (R.E.), up...