Nirmala Sitharaman News

Ashwini Vaishnaw, union minister for railways, IT and electronics, and information and broadcasting. He was speaking at The Economic Times Awards for Corporate Excellence on Saturday, where he received the Business Reformer of the Year award.

Waqf Amendment Bill passed, and the Opposition looking to raise the issue of US planning to impose reciprocal tariffs on India, and the political slugfest over language and the delimitation issues. The Finance Bill and Demands for Grants are the crucial items on the legislative agenda — approval for both is mandatory for completing the budgetary process. The discussion on the demand for grants for several ministries would be held in both houses of Parliament. President's Rule in Manipur

Waqf Amendment Bill. Home Minister Amit Shah is expected to move a statutory resolution seeking Parliament approval for the proclamation of President's Rule in Manipur. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is also scheduled to table the budget for Manipur on Monday. Manipur has been under President's Rule since February 13 after the resignation of Chief Minister N Biren Singh.

Nirmala Sitharaman said India is close to taking a final call on reducing goods and services tax (GST) rates further and reviewing the levy’s slabs. The revenue neutral rate had dropped from 15.8% when GST was introduced in 2017, to 11.4% by 2023, she said at the 25th ET Awards for Corporate Excellence on Saturday. “Let me dispel any (notion) that GST has made life costlier. Item by item, I would challenge anyone to tell me if there is any one item for which tax rate has gone up after introduction of GST… So, the clue is, it will come down even further,” she told an audience that represented the best of India Inc at the stately National Centre for the Performing Arts in Mumbai. A group of ministers on GST rationalisation has been set up under Bihar deputy CM Samrat Chaudhary.

Nirmala Sitharaman said at a fireside chat at the ET Awards event on March 8. Both sides should have an ambition for a good treaty, and for the sake of Viksit Bharat, India needs to have good traction on that front, the FM said, adding that it still needs to do a lot more to strengthen exports across the board. Each one of the problems that the world in general — and some countries in particular — are facing, such as deflation, tariff or lack of demand, is in fact an opportunity for India — the kind of opportunity the country was waiting for, Sitharaman said.

Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said the banking sector must continue to innovate and lead amid changing global landscape, and exuded confidence that the country's largest bank SBI will embrace technology, sustainability and inclusivity as its guiding principles. Speaking at the launch of Platinum Jubilee celebrations of Foundation Day of State Bank of India (SBI), the minister also said SBI has continuously evolved to meet the changing landscape and retained its position as a market leader despite regulatory tightening. «The world is changing rapidly, and the banking sector must continue to innovate and also to lead. I am confident that SBI will rise to the occasion embracing technology, sustainability and inclusivity as its guiding principles,» Sitharaman said. She said SBI is reinventing its personal distribution channels to align with evolving customer expectations.

Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said that Nari Shakti in India is breaking barriers, rewriting history and shaping a brighter future for the country. In a post on X, on the occasion of International Women's Day, Sitharaman's office said that under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's transformative policies and initiatives, women are being empowered with equal opportunities, financial independence, and a stronger role in nation-building. «Nari Shakti in India is breaking barriers, rewriting history and shaping a brighter future for the country,» the post on X reads.

tax loss harvesting. This strategy can help reduce tax liability, which may be higher this year due to the government's hike in both short-term and long-term capital gains taxes. In the July 2024 budget, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman revised the STCG and LTCG rates, increasing the short-term capital gains tax from 15% to 20%. Shares held for less than 12 months will be subject to STCG.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday said the government remains steadfast in reducing regulatory burdens, besides enhancing trust-based governance and taking steps to make India a «seamless, export-friendly» economy. A robust manufacturing sector free from unnecessary regulatory bottlenecks will further attract both domestic and foreign investments, driving economic growth, positioning India as a trusted global player, Sitharaman said while addressing a post-budget webinar on 'MSMEs as engine of growth, manufacturing, exports, regulatory, investment and EoDB Reforms'. «Our government remains steadfast in reducing regulatory burdens and enhancing trust-based governance to improve the ease of doing business. Through the budget announcements, we are taking various steps towards making India a seamless, export-friendly economy, one where businesses are free to focus on innovation and expansion, and not paperwork and penalties,» Sitharaman said.

On 13 February, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman introduced the much-awaited bill to replace the existing Income-Tax Act, 1961. Among the changes proposed in the Income-Tax Bill, 2025, a significant one that cannot be overlooked is the extensive power granted to tax authorities to carry out searches of tax evaders.

Buddha, tears pouring down his cheeks. He takes out his phone and captures the massive sculpture, the Bodhisattvas flanking it and the small cells carved into the cave where his religious forbears must have lived. This is sanctum and sanctuary for him. About 100 km away, a group of Japanese tourists are gingerly making their way through a narrow, semi-circular path that is cut into the middle of a rocky cliff in Aurangabad, Maharashtra. They gaze—in the light of a torch and the night settings of their phone—at the eloquent arch of Bodhisattva Padmapani’s torso and his halfclosed eyes painted on Cave No. 1 of Ajanta. People who follow the Buddha’s Middle Path, or those who are enamoured of this apostle of compassion, or are simply enchanted by the historical spots, some of them dating back to before the Common Era, travel to the places that dot what is called the Buddhist circuit. It stretches from Bodh Gaya in Bihar to Nagarjunakonda in Andhra Pradesh.

Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday asked civil accounts services officials to work towards making the government's annual accounts more approachable and user-friendly. Addressing the 49th Civil Accounts Day event here, Sitharaman lauded the Indian Civil Accounts Service (ICAS) officers, led by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA) for the «silent technological revolution» in which states are finding a lot more ease of operation and ease of getting their government business done by adopting the public financial management system (PFMS). «I would also like you to examine, in consultation with the CAG, whether it would be possible to make the annual accounts more approachable and user-friendly and allow citizens to analyse easily and generate customisable and simpler reports,» Sitharaman said. She said that since a lot of digital integration has already taken place with the states, more research can be carried out based on the data set available with the CGA. «If you're able to make the report a lot more user-friendly, that itself can generate a lot of interest in the work that you do,» the Minister said.

Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said India needs to ramp up its bilateral relations for trade and investment, as the world is witnessing a churn, and bilateralism seems to be the new catalyst tool. Speaking at BS Manthan, the Finance Minister said these are very interesting yet challenging times and the government is making all efforts to make India move up the ladder and be an engine of global growth.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The Union government’s ambitious Asset Monetization Plan 2.0 (2025-2030) will likely focus on power transmission, mining, and petroleum, with high-value assets like transmission lines opened for private participation while aiming to increase its annual monetization target to ₹2-2.5 trillion in 2025-26, two people familiar with the matter told Mint. In the Budget 2025, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman unveiled the second Asset Monetization Plan (2025-30), targeting ₹10 trillion by monetizing government-owned assets and reinvesting the proceeds into new infrastructure projects. However, an annual target was not announced in the budget.

Finance Ministry on Monday briefed the members of a Select Committee of Lok Sabha on various aspects of the Income Tax Bill as the panel headed by BJP MP Baijayant 'Jay' Panda held its first meeting. Sources said the finance secretary told the parliamentarians that the Bill will simplify the existing Act, enacted over six decades back, and make it more user-friendly.

Irdai) has set up a seven-member committee headed by former chairman of State Bank of India (SBI) Dinesh Khara to examine proposed amendments to the Insurance Act, 1938 and suggest a framework for its implementation. The government has proposed amendment to insurance law to increase foreign direct investment to 100 per cent and other changes.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. In Union Budget 2025-26, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman raised the tax-rebate threshold under Section 87A of the Income Tax Act from ₹7 lakh to ₹12 lakh.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. New Delhi: The Union government plans to launch a Grameen Credit Score system within six months, mirroring the MSME credit framework, to boost formal lending to farmers, self-employed individuals, and self-help groups (SHGs), two people familiar with the matter toldMint.

Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday said action will be taken in case there are violations of well laid down processes for auctioning of gold by banks and NBFCs when a borrower fails to pay the gold loan. During Question Hour in Lok Sabha, she said Non Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) and Scheduled Commercial Banks (SCBs) are guided by similar rules.

new income tax bill is likely to be tabled in the Parliament this week. The new income tax bill has been cleared by the Union Cabinet on February 7, 2025. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced in Budget 2025 that she will table the new income tax bill in the Parliament. According to media reports, the new income tax bill will likely be sent to the Standing Committee on Finance once it is tabled in the Parliament.

Budget 2025-26, announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1, 2025, introduced a host of measures aimed at supporting India Inc., with an emphasis on tax reforms, export promotion, and ease of doing business being paramount. A revision in MSME classification, steps to boost India’s share in global trade, and improving the regulatory landscape got notable mentions, among other key highlights.