Parliament watch: From debt to GST to NPA, govt shares key data as Monsoon Session kicks off
In FY24, the Centre forwent ₹99,000 crore in corporate tax revenue due to incentives. India's external debt reached $736.3 billion, remaining sustainable at 19.1% of GDP. The PM Internship scheme saw 22,500 offers accepted, while the government issued ₹72,275 crore in sovereign gold bonds. PLI schemes drove ₹1.76 lakh crore in investments, creating over 12 lakh jobs.
PTI New Delhi: Security personnel atop the Parliament building, in New Delhi. Centre Gave up ₹99,000 cr Corporate Tax Revenue in FY24 on Account of Tax Incentives
The Finance Ministry Tuesday informed Parliament that the Centre has foregone ₹99,000 crore of corporate tax revenue in FY24 on account of tax incentives. The corporate tax revenue foregone in 2023-24 stood at ₹98,999 crore, followed by ₹88,109 crore and ₹96,892 crore in 2022-23 and 2021-22, respectively, MoS for finance Pankaj Chaudhary said in a written reply to Rajya Sabha. In 2020-21 and 2019-20, the total corporate tax revenue foregone was ₹75,218 crore and ₹8,043 crore, respectively. At $736.3 b, External Debt Hits 19.1% of GDPIndia's external debt stood at $736.3 billion as of March 2025, which was only 19.1% of gross domestic product and 90.8% of forex reserves, MoS for finance Pankaj Chaudhary told RS Tuesday. 'These debt vulnerability indicators are benign and indicate India's external debt remains sustainable and prudently managed,' he said. He added that external debt of nations rises over time as it is associated with increasing investment and productivity, which has also been the case with India. "India has managed its external debt prudently with the overarching objective of keeping the current account deficit within sustainable limits."
PM Internship Scheme: 22,500 Offers Accepted So Far About 71,000 offers were made by companies to the youth under the second round of the PM Internship scheme as of July 17 and about 22,500 were accepted by them, the Rajya Sabha was informed on Tuesday. In a written reply, minister of state for corporate affairs Harsh Malhotra said about 327 companies had posted over 118,000 internship opportunities against over 4,55,000 applications. No GST Compensation Pending, Except to Arunachal & Manipur
The Centre Tuesday informed Parliament that no amount is pending for release of the final GST compensation to states and Union Territories except Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur. In the case of these two states the Centre has not received the certificate of Auditor General, required to release the payment, MoS for finance Pankaj Chaudhary told Rajya Sabha in a written reply. ₹72,275 cr Sovereign Gold Bonds IssuedThe government issued sovereign gold bonds worth ₹72,275 crore–equivalent of 146.96 tonnes of the precious metal—between the scheme's launch in late 2015 and March 2025, minister of state for finance Pankaj Chaudhary said Tuesday. In a written reply in the Rajya Sabha, the minister also said the mopup under the gold monetisation scheme (through medium-and-long-term deposits) was to the tune of 37.81 tonnes during this period.This suggests the gold bond scheme was far more popular than the monetisation one. The government, however, would consider the cost of garnering funds via such gold bonds before issuing any fresh tranche, he added. The government hasn't budgeted any mopup through such bonds this fiscal due to high borrowing costs. 'The recent global geopolitical unrest has impacted gold prices significantly, increasing the cost of borrowing through sovereign gold bonds,' Chaudhary added.
PLI Scheme Drives ₹1.76 L crore Investments Actual investment of ₹1.76 lakh crore have been realised till March 2025 across 14 sectors covered under Production Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes, leading to incremental production/sales of over ₹16.5 lakh crore and employment generation of over 12 lakh. The production of mobiles in value terms has increased almost 146% to ₹5.25 lakh crore in 2024-25 from ₹2.13 lakh crore and their exports rose 775% to ₹2 lakh crore in FY25 from ₹22,870 crore in 2020-21. The pharmaceuticals sector has witnessed cumulative sales of ₹2.66 lakh crore which includes exports of ₹1.7 lakh crore achieved in the first three years of the scheme. The scheme has contributed to India becoming a net exporter of bulk drugs ( ₹2,280 crore) from a net importer of ₹1,930 crore. 'A number of foreign companies have established or expanded their operations in India under the PLI scheme. For example, Apple, a global smartphone company, has shifted its suppliers to India viz. Foxconn, Wistron and Pegatron,' the commerce and industry ministry told Lok Sabha.
Over ₹35,105cr Tax Demands Raised Under Black Money Law The finance ministry told Parliament Tuesday that the government has raised tax and penalty demands of over ₹35,105 crore from 1,021 assessments and filed 163 prosecution complaints till March 31 under the foreign black money law. The government has recovered ₹338 crore under the Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act, 2015, towards tax, penalty, interest between July 1, 2015 and March 31, 2025, MoS for finance Pankaj Chaudhary told Rajya Sabha in a written reply.
Renewables Sector Creates Over 600,000 Jobs in 5 Years An estimated 6.61 lakh jobs were created in the last five years from FY21 to FY25 in the renewable energy sector, minister of state for renewable energy Shripad Yesso Naik said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.
VGF Scheme Extended The power ministry has recently extended the Viability Gap Funding (VGF) scheme for battery energy storage systems for additional 30,000 MWh capacity through the Power System Development Fund, MoS for renewable energy Shripad Yesso Naik informed the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.
Action Taken Against 886 Entities Enforcement action has been taken against 886 entities between April 2024 and June 2025 for fraudulent or unfair trade practices relating to the stock market, minister of state for finance Pankaj Chaudhary told the Rajya Sabha Tuesday.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
States rally behind AP in fight for industrial alcohol regulation
Vijayawada: The state govt has sparked a debate over regulatory control of industrial alcohol following a high-profile seizure linked to illicit liquor production. Inspired by Andhra Pradesh 's decisive action, several states are preparing to push the Centre for jurisdiction over industrial alcohol — a domain traditionally under central authority. AP recently invoked a Supreme Court ruling to file criminal cases against individuals illegally transporting spirit intended for spurious liquor. In a major crackdown recently, excise and prohibition officials arrested 36 individuals and seized over 2,232 litres of diverted spirit, alongside counterfeit liquor bottles and packaging materials. Investigations unearthed a well-organised supply chain: spirit obtained under industrial pretenses like hand sanitizer production was rerouted for illegal liquor manufacture. Two repeat offenders confessed to sourcing ethanol via a Telangana-based pharma firm exploiting its RS-III license and pandemic-era permissions. The company—granted temporary sanitizer production rights during Covid-19 — allegedly misused them by diverting undenatured ethanol to operators in Andhra Pradesh. The network extended beyond Andhra Pradesh, with supporting materials like empty liquor bottles, brand labels, and caps being procured from Mumbai-based vendors— underscoring its scale and sophistication The Palakollu case prompted other states to seek input from AP authorities, who have since been approached for guidance and invited to lead a seminar on regulatory powers over industrial alcohol. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Clearance Sale: Exclusive handcrafted handbags - now 70% off Handmakers Report Read Now Undo However, the issue took a new twist after the arrival of GST regime. While the states continue to demand for control, the Centre made it clear that it has complete power to regulate, tax and penalise industrial alcohol. The states got the final relief with the latest Supreme Court judgement in Uttar Pradesh Vs Lalita Prasad and others case in 2024. A judgement by a nine-member judge (Constitutional bench) finally said that states would continue to have power on industrial alcohol to regulate the mechanism of supply of alcohol to industries and also potable alcohol.
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
Aqua Line extension till Boraki multi-modal hub gets Centre's nod
Noida: Centre has cleared the extension of Noida Metro's Aqua Line up to Boraki, less than an hour's drive from Jewar, which will take the city's transit network a step closer to the upcoming Noida International Airport. The 2.6-km-long elevated stretch will add two new stations—Junpat and Boraki—at a cost of Rs 416 crore. The project is expected to be ready in three years. The metro corridor extension is to take the Aqua Line to the proposed multi-modal transport hub at Boraki, where UP govt plans to integrate the Delhi-Howrah rail corridor with an inter-state bus terminal and rapid rail till Ghaziabad. The Greater Noida rail station at Boraki is being designed as NCR's gateway to the eastern part of the country. You Can Also Check: Noida AQI | Weather in Noida | Bank Holidays in Noida | Public Holidays in Noida Officials said the move is part of a broader strategy to ease pressure on road traffic and strengthen connectivity to the airport from parts of Noida and Delhi—a draft plan to extend Aqua Line's Sector 142 station till Botanical Garden is already being reviewed by the Centre. The existing Botanical Garden station in Noida already acts as an interchange metro station between the Blue Line and Magenta Line corridors of the Delhi Metro. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Awkward Family Photos For Brave Eyes Only Undo Mahendra Prasad, executive director of the Noida Metro Rail Corporation (NMRC), told TOI that a rapid rail corridor from Ghaziabad to Jewar via Boraki is also on the drawing boards. "Once both the corridors are operational, it will become easier for commuters from Noida and Greater Noida to reach the airport," he said. The funding for the new metro corridor will be shared by the Centre and UP govt (20% each), with the remaining 60% coming through a loan from the National Capital Region Planning Board. NMRC estimates that ridership on the new segment could reach 60,000 daily by 2031. The Aqua Line currently runs 29.7km between Sector 51 in Noida and Depot Station in Jaitpur. NMRC has also proposed a 17-km extension from Sector 51 to Knowledge Park V in Greater Noida, which awaits clearance from the Centre. Similarly, the 11.6km corridor linking Sector 142 station to Botanical Garden via eight new stations is pending approval from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. The current Aqua Line sees a daily average ridership of nearly 57,000 passengers, according to NMRC data.
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
Deal sealed, but Scotch to stay pricey till 2035
This is a representative AI image NEW DELHI: The much-anticipated duty cuts for Scotch and gin is not happening overnight. While import duty will come down from 150% to 75%, it is unlikely to happen until at least the second half of 2035. That's because the agreement will take at least a year to be ratified by the British Parliament and there is a gradual tariff reduction roadmap starting with duties in India dropping to 110% in the first year of implementation. The UK government said customs duty will reduce to 40% over the next decade. What's more, govt has got the UK to agree to a minimum import price which means, whisky, gin or any other drink that costs under $5 in a one litre bottle or $6 in a 750 ml bottle will get the tariff benefit and the MIP will be indexed to inflation. However, industry officials say that despite halving import duty, the actual reduction of consumer prices will not be more than 10%. "The share of customs duty to the overall structure of MRP is hardly 15-20%, depending on the category. The rest comprises state govrnment taxes, and distribution margins. So actual consumer prices will come down by only 8-10%," an official said. The reduction in import duty will be a benefit for manufacturers of Indian Made Foreign Liquor. Around 80% of imported scotch is in bulk form, which is used for bottling in India and for blending by local whisky brands. But the industry cheered the move. Sanjit Padhi, CEO of International Spirits and Wines Association of India (ISWAI), said the agreement paves the way for a more balanced and equitable trade environment, particularly as Indian alcohol exports to the UK have zero import duties. "We laud the Indian and British governments for formalising this historic treaty which will boost bilateral trade and positively impact the accessibility of premium Scotch whisky in India, reigniting growth and increased choice for Indian consumers," Praveen Someshwar, MD and CEO of Diageo India, said. Stay informed with the latest business news, updates on bank holidays and public holidays . AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
