-The Times of India NEW DELHI: With half the state legislatures expected to ratify the Constitution amendment bill to roll out goods and services tax (GST) by early September, the Centre is now moving to the next stage — deciding on the contentious issue of fixing the rates — so that the ambitious reform initiative is in place by April. Sources said the finance ministry is set to hold consultations on the...
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Bridging the skill gap -Santosh Mehrotra
-The Hindu A levy on firms, resources from which are earmarked for vocational training, is what could help the country bridge the skill gap in its workforce. Financing technical vocational education and training (VET) is costlier than general education due to its technical nature. Pre-service training requires the installation of equipment and trained instructors to train youth. This raises the cost of training, and remains a factor preventing pre-service training from expanding...
More »Rich Landowners Reap Billions From India Tax Loophole -Unni Krishnan
-Bloomberg.com Millionaire farmers are benefiting from measures intended to help poor farmers. Stuffed animal heads adorn the walls of Kunwar Vikram Jeet Singh’s mansion on the outskirts of Delhi, and he also owns a three-bedroom apartment in a gated condominium in the city. His children go to one of India’s most exclusive private schools. Yet Singh doesn’t pay income tax because he’s a farmer. Singh is one of thousands of rich landowners who...
More »Karnataka mulls higher tax for second car -Manu Aiyappa
-The Times of India Bengaluru: To reduce the growing traffic congestion and pollution in the city, the Karnataka government is toying with the idea of hiking the vehicle registration fee and other charges for those who want to own more than one four-wheeler. "We're working on this plan... Higher tax on the second vehicle would discourage citizens from owning too many vehicles, and also raise additional revenue for the government. Before we...
More »Agro-forestry: Poplar’s popularity dip, no takers for PM Modi’s timber farming call -Anju Agnihotri Chaba & Raakhi Jagga
-The Indian Express Punjab’s farmers are losing interest in planting new trees, with prices halving from their peaks. Jalandhar/ Ludhiana: Sandeep Singh Randhawa grew paddy and wheat on his 65-acre land at Talwandi Lal Singh village in Gurdaspur district’s Batala tehsil. That was till the late eighties, when he first planted poplar on the edges of his field. The returns encouraged him to expand the area under these trees — each...
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