16th February saw the unveiling of the much awaited Interim Budget presented by the outgoing UPA government. An interim budget which basically comprises of temporary fiscal guidelines given by the outgoing government for the proper

On February 17, Monday, India had her 952,231 crore interim Budget for the fiscal year ending 2009 with little smile and wide disappointments. Mainly because the expectations of some of the sectors particularly those who suffered the most of recessions were immensely high and the Budget deliverables were too low to even account for any possible reviving hopes for them....

Desperate times call for desperate measures. As the world is grappled by a slowdown, there is not a single economy which has escaped. India is no exception to this. The announcement of the interim budget was preceded by a huge pile of expectations

Claiming to fulfil the needs of the common man as per the Common Minimum Programme, Pranab Mukherjee announced the interim budget in the Parliament on 16th February 2009. This was established by a quantum hike in the National Rural

With the Indian General Elections just a few weeks away and the end of the financial year approaching, Mr. Pranab Mukherjee, the Interim Finance Minister of India presented the budget for 2009-2010, which was considered by many as a very

After much speculation, the interim budget was released on the February 16, 2009, and did lead to a lot of hue and cry. We have read about it all over the papers and it has been quoted by the experts as a lost opportunity to alleviate the current

A government budget is a legal document that is often passed by the legislature and approved by the chief executive. It consists of two basic elements i.e. revenues and expenses. In the case of the government, revenues are derived primarily from taxes. Government expenses include spending on current goods and services, which economists call government consumption; government...

Given the recent Global Financial Meltdown and its impact on the Indian economy, a great deal was expected from the budget 2009-2010. However, as Pranab Mukherjee presented the interim budget on the morning of February 16, 2009, many were less than satisfied. His speech was clearly a part of pre-election propaganda, focusing on the laurels achieved by the United Progressive...

A budget by definition refers to all planned revenue and expenses. Therefore, the foremost purpose of a budget is to forecast and enable a plan to face the forecast. The budget is by principle, the most important document that the government

There were so many quotes that were running through my mind when I first started writing this piece, but then I thought the following suited it the best- Politics is the guiding light of economics… I do not know who said this but I think it’s very correct. At the outset, I should also mention I have absolutely nothing against populism. In fact, swallowing two...

The dawn of a new year ushered in the two most revolutionary and inevitably debatable budgets, of all ages. First to sketch new dimensions for the Indian railways, the nation was witness to some of the most astounding offers in a long time. Shri Lalu Prasad Yadav has scripted yet another awe-inspiring and money-generating rail budget.

Indian policymakers, in 1950, began with two main objectives for the economic planning process, firstly, increasing productivity and secondly, reducing inequalities. These were reiterated a week ago when a bespectacled Palaniappan Chidambaram in his trademark veshti read out a not-so-trademark-Chidambaram budget for the next fiscal. Though termed an election stunt, it...

The wait for the Budget 2008-09 had been more anticipated than the Filmfare or the Oscars! From the corporate honchos to the “aam aadmi”, everybody hoped that they would get a fair deal, since the Government was looking at presenting a “populist” Budget. A lot has been written about how the new Budget will impact the households, investors, taxpayers and even the...

The Budget is back and yet again, it is one of the most anticipated events of the year. It is predicted that, this year, the Budget will give importance to various other spheres, which in the past have not been given much attention, but are among the top in the priority list this time. India is a land of diverse cultures which are rooted deep in everyone’s heart....

The “Budget” would mean “taxes” to an ordinary individual, “tax treatment and sops” to the Corporate. It would mean “many” to the commodity market participants and the ecosystem, as most budgetary announcements, in one way or the other, affect the commodities ecosystem in terms of trading or pricing of commodities. Let...

The Indian economy appears to have settled on a steady and high growth path in recent years. A boost in investment, strong industrial performance and modest inflation has helped not only in achieving growth, but also other associated business sentiments. The  growth of the Gross Domestic Product in excess of 8 percent has been achieved by the economy in only five years...

Being the most keenly anticipated time of the year, the Budget plays a decisive role in mapping the road of the following fiscal year of the country. Taking a rather amateur-ish stance we all have certain expectations and suggestions for the Budget. With due respect to the Budget ,to be presented by the Finance Minister, Mr  P. Chidambaram, and without much adieu let...

I hope you haven’t already started yawning on seeing the title of the article. I admit, the budget does not inspire much excitement among the youth mostly because of the complicated jargon used in it. But the Budget 2008-09 has got the whole nation debating about it. The main cause for this excitement is the fact that it could be the last Budget presented by the present...

It is that time of the year again. The time when the joy and the happiness of the festive season slowly fades away into restless pacing and poring over long ledgers of seemingly meaningless numbers and figures. The time when every businessman is wondering what the government will announce. It’s the time for the Annual Budget. And this year might just prove to be different....

The much-awaited National General Budget was presented on the desk of the Parliament by United Progressive Alliance’s Finance Minister Mr. P. Chidambaram. As ever, it left many people smiling but left the others drowning in sorrow. Being the last Budget of the present coalition government, it was under tremendous pressure due to the upcoming general elections and the...

“We have created an organization where every child in this country will say Chak-de Railways! Everybody is happy with the Railways.” Any guesses as to who could have said this? No doubt, it is none other than our beloved Railway Minister Mr. Lalu Prasad who has made this statement and wooed the “aam admi” with his extensive plans to modernize railways in a phenomenal...

The budget is the basic financial statement of India. It is comparable to a household budget, but in a larger sense. Like we decide how much we will spend for food, how much on eating out, how much will we need to pay the servants and how we will manage all this with our existing income? This is budget. Under article 112 of the Constitution, a statement of estimated...

Cement stocks hit rock bottom when finance minister P. Chidambaran announced the differential excise duty structure, despite the tight demand -supply ratio, which is not expected to change for the next one year.  Though market experts rated the budget effect on the cement sector as neutral, the top five cement stocks which control 50% of the manufacturing capacity, corrected...

It has been nearly sixty years since Independence, and agriculture continues to be the backbone of the Indian economy and the image reflection of India. Although the Green Revolution in the 60s brought about an immense and self-sustainable positive change in the agricultural sector of India, but the need to suit this to the changing times in the national and global scenario...

This Budget, we will be able to see a major ramp up in public expenditure in order to enhance physical infrastructure and increased social sector spending. A fiscal impetus can also be provided through a cut in indirect tax rates. The FRBM Act mandates the government to decrease the fiscal deficit to at least 3 per cent and reduce revenue deficit to zero by March 2009....

Yet another Union Budget is going to be launched this February 28th, 2008. One of the major highlight’s of the budget is the fact that it is the last budget the UPA government presents before the general elections of 2009. Hence, we expect a people friendly budget this year which aims at enriching the vote bank. I hope that this year the budget allocates special funds...

The Budget 2008, to be released on 29th February is already under great speculation. There are different demands from different sectors. Through this article I wish to talk about the corporate tax rates and how the Budget 2008 might affect them. Corporate Tax refers to the tax levied on the profits made by companies. Tax rates generally vary depending on whether the...

Gujarat elections have put down all chances of Congress calling for early polls. Elections in many states are due this year, so the undoubtedly, the Prime Minister and the Finance Minister must be in tremendous pressure to produce a populist budget keeping their political imperatives in mind. The Indian Government may raise the tax exemption limit to Rs. 1.25lacs this...

Its that time of the year when industry leaders, economists and business confederations are preparing their wish-list to be forwarded to the Finance Ministry. Pre-budget preparations have begun for the Annual Budget 2008-09 to be presented in the Parliament on 29th Feb 2008. Indian Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram preparing his fifth consecutive budget said that...