Key Dwarka Expressway section, Urban Extension Road-II open; PM Modi inaugurates at Rohini
According to the Prime Minister's office, the projects — the Delhi section of the Dwarka Expressway and the Urban Extension Road-II (UER-II) — have been developed under a comprehensive decongestion plan for Delhi. The ceremony was scheduled for around 12:30 pm in Rohini, and is expected to begin shortly.
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Mint
18 minutes ago
- Mint
India may crack open the gates to Chinese inflows
New Delhi: Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit, India is weighing easier rules for Chinese investments in select sectors in another step to restore ties as New Delhi seeks to bolster trade amid US tariff uncertainty, said two people aware of the matter. The proposal under consideration is to identify non-sensitive areas such as specific segments of manufacturing, renewable energy, and consumer goods, where investment proposals from Chinese companies could be cleared through a faster and simplified approval process, said the first of the two people cited above. 'Talks are underway at the diplomatic level to find a workable solution, keeping sensitive sectors such as defence and telecom, and critical digital infrastructure to ensure that national security is not compromised even as economic benefits are realized," said the second person. Both spoke on the condition of anonymity. 'As there is no plan to review Press Note 3, investments from China will be considered through the government approval route and not via the automatic route," this person said. Under Press Note 3, investments from countries sharing a land border with India must be approved by the government first. India restricted Chinese investments after the deadly clash between the soldiers of the two nations in Ladakh's Galwan Valley in trade continued to grow as India relies on its neighbour for imports of pharmaceutical raw materials to electronic imports from China increased from $94.57 billion in FY22 to $113.45 billion in FY25. In contrast, exports to China declined from $21.26 billion in FY22 to $14.25 billion in FY25. Inbound shipments from China during April–July 2025 stood at $40.66 billion, up 13.1% from a year earlier. Exports to China jumped 20% to $5.76 billion during the period. On its part, China has also exerted pressure on India by leveraging its dominance in critical sectors. Its near-monopoly on rare earth magnets gives it significant leverage against India, which is heavily reliant on imports. China has also strategically controlled the supply of tunnel-boring machines (TBMs) used in major infrastructure projects, causing delays and increasing costs. This is compounded by the withdrawal of Chinese tech professionals from Indian manufacturing units, potentially disrupting operations. As Trump announced tariffs on its trading partners, New Delhi started easing some of the curbs to improve strained ties. India has resumed issuing tourist visas to Chinese nationals after a five-year gap. In a parallel move, New Delhi is preparing to restart direct flights to Beijing from next month, restoring air connectivity that has remained suspended since the Covid-19 pandemic. Modi will also visit China for the upcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit. Queries sent to the ministries of commerce and external affairs remained unanswered till press time. Need to boost FDI Trump, meanwhile, imposed the highest 50% tariffs on India, including a 25% penalty for buying Russian oil. The first set of 25% duty came into effect on 7 August, while another 25% will come into force on 27 August, giving India time to negotiate. However, the sixth round of talks for the India-US Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA), which was scheduled for 25 August, has been cancelled, and no fresh dates have been announced, leaving the negotiations in limbo. 'As India aims to achieve developed nation status by 2047, building a stronger manufacturing ecosystem and attracting greater investment(from China)without jeopardising the domestic sector will be the key drivers of this ambition," said Dr Amit Singh, associate professor, Special Centre for National Security Studies at JNU. India attracted foreign direct investment (FDI) worth $81.04 billion in FY25, up 14% from the previous year, data from the commerce ministry showed. The services sector emerged as the top recipient of FDI equity inflows, accounting for 19% of the total, with investments rising nearly 41% to $9.35 billion in FY25. However, FDI inflows into India had peaked at $84.83 billion in FY22, according to data shared by minister of state for finance Pankaj Chaudhary in the Lok Sabha on 10 March. FDI slipped to $71.35 billion in FY23 and $71.27 billion in FY24, amid concerns over a potential global recession, economic crises triggered by geopolitical conflicts, and rising protectionist measures worldwide. Attracting Chinese investments is 'important as it could help replenish investment and address the recent decline in FDI flows", said Biswajit Dhar, a trade policy expert from the Delhi-based think tank, Council for Social Development. 'If India is able to attract more export-oriented investments—what is often referred to as investment-led trade—it could also have a positive effect on the country's rising trade deficit." The government targets to attract $100 billion in FDI in FY26. Modi's first visit since 2019 Meanwhile, Modi is scheduled to travel to Tianjin, China, to attend the SCO summit from 31 August to 1 September. This will mark his first visit to China since the Galwan Valley clash in 2020. He last visited that country in 2019. Ahead of the summit, the Prime Minister will visit Japan on 30 August to participate in the annual India-Japan Summit with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, after which he will head to China, according to media reports. In the run-up to Modi's visit, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will be in New Delhi from 18–19 August for the 24th round of special representatives' talks on the India-China boundary question with National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, according to a statement from the ministry of external affairs.
Time of India
18 minutes ago
- Time of India
Big GST cut may rev up demand for small cars, hatchbacks likely to attract 18% tax against 28% now
Small cars are likely to be placed in the 18% tax slab, substantially reducing the tax burden on them, people familiar with the matter said. Small cars of 4 metres and less in length and engine capacity up to 1,200 cc (petrol, CNG and LPG) now attract 28% GST and 1% cess. Large cars and SUVs are likely to face the special rate of 40%, they said. Currently, these vehicles attract 43-50% tax, which includes GST and cess. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads NEW DELHI: The proposed goods and services tax (GST) recast could perk up the small passenger car market, which has been under pressure for some time amid a growing preference for larger vehicles such as SUVs. Small cars are likely to be placed in the 18% tax slab, substantially reducing the tax burden on them, people familiar with the matter said. Small cars of 4 metres and less in length and engine capacity up to 1,200 cc (petrol, CNG and LPG) now attract 28% GST and 1% cess. Large cars and SUVs are likely to face the special rate of 40%, they said. Currently, these vehicles attract 43-50% tax, which includes GST and will likely be no change in the GST rate for electric vehicles, currently at 5%, the people Minister Narendra Modi announced an overhaul of the eight-year-old indirect tax in his Independence Day speech on Friday. 'We are bringing next-generation GST reforms. This will reduce the tax burden across the country. This will be a gift ahead of Diwali,' he had said in his said the Centre has proposed a two-slab structure, retaining the 5% and 18% rates and scrapping the 12% and 28% levies. A 40% special rate has been proposed for six-seven items, they to the proposal sent to the group of ministers (GoM) on rate rationalisation set up by the GST Council ahead of Modi's speech, daily-use items are likely to be placed in the 5% bracket, while aspirational consumption items for the middle class and industrial goods are likely to face 18% GoM will take up the proposal this week, the officials said. A final decision on the proposal will be taken by the GST Council, likely in the third week of September, ET reported Sunday. White goods such as dishwashers and large televisions are also expected to be placed in the 18% bracket, down from 28%, which could boost consumption demand further.'If there is an 11% reduction in GST, the ex-showroom price of small cars will come down by 12-12.5%,' said VG Ramakrishnan, managing partner at Avanteum Advisors . 'Even if the absolute cut is in the range of Rs 20,000-25,000, it will be a huge positive on consumer sentiments.'The tax reset is likely to spur demand at the more affordable end of the market. But with compact SUVs like Hyundai Exter and Tata Punch in the sub-4-metre fray, this uptick may not remain limited to the hatchback segment.'Car buyers today are aspirational and have access to financing solutions. And some of them are preferring to jump directly from a two-wheeler to compact SUVs rather than a small hatchback,' said the head of a major automobile dealership based in Delhi-NCR. Total levies on small cars stand at 41-42%, he said. This includes GST, registration tax levied by state authorities and of compact cars and hatchbacks fell 13% to about one million units in FY25 from the year before, less than half that of SUVs at about 2.35 million, industry data accessed by ET sales rose 10.2% in FY25. The share of small cars in the overall passenger vehicle market fell for the fifth straight year to a low of 23.4% in FY25. It dropped further to 21% in the first four months of the fiscal year, which has seen an overall slowdown in car veterans attributed the drop to a 30-40% jump in small car prices over the past five-six years due to tighter safety and emission norms.'Entry-level consumers are not able to afford cars because of high prices,' said Partho Banerjee, senior executive officer, marketing and sales, at market leader Maruti Suzuki , in an interaction earlier this month.
Hindustan Times
2 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Previous govts repeatedly deceived Delhi: CM Rekha Gupta
Chief minister Rekha Gupta on Sunday slammed the 'previous' Delhi government for obstructing the city's development by preventing central government benefits from reaching people. Gupta was speaking at a public gathering after Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Delhi sections of Dwarka Expressway and Urban Extension Road-II on Sunday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi being felicitated by Delhi CM Rekha Gupta during the inauguration of the Delhi section of the Dwarka Expressway and the Urban Extension Road-II (UER-II), in New Delhi on Sunday. 'The previous governments repeatedly deceived Delhi, and due to petty politics, prevented the benefits of central government schemes and support from reaching people. Schemes such as Ayushman Bharat, Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana and Swachh Bharat Mission never reached the citizens of Delhi. Previous governments, driven by narrow self-interest, turned their back on the people and deliberately stalled development. However, PM Shri Modi Ji never turned his back on Delhi, never discriminated, nor bowed to pressure,' CM Gupta said. In response, the AAP leaders have accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of misusing government machinery by forcing sanitation workers and teachers to attend PM Modi's rally under the pretext of official duty. 'On Sunday morning, our poor Dalit sanitation workers in Delhi were called in the name of duty. Now they are being packed into buses and taken to PM Modi's rally. This is the real face of the BJP,' former Delhi chief minister and AAP leader Atishi said in a post on X. The CM said that under the leadership of PM Modi, Delhi has received support in the form of various schemes over the last decade. 'These schemes and this assistance were never fully implemented by the previous government, but even so, the Centre's contribution continues to play a historic role in strengthening Delhi's infrastructure,' she said. 'The inauguration of the Dwarka Expressway and UER-II will give new wings to Delhi's speed. Who would have thought that the journey from Singhu Border to the airport could be completed in just 40 minutes? Who would have imagined that the dreaded traffic jams of Mukarba Chowk, Dhaula Kuan and NH-8 could be overcome so smoothly?,' she added. Slamming the BJP for 'cheap politics', Atishi said, 'BJP is openly insulting Dalit sanitation workers. Forcing them under the guise of work and sending them to rallies is illegal and inhuman. MCD commissioner Ashwini Kumar should also face action. BJP has deceived the people of Delhi as well.'
