Policy

India and Australia conduct another round of FTA talks to iron out disagreements

Officials said talks are progressing smoothly, given the expedited timeframe and both parties remain confident of finalizing the deal by later this year.

What is behind RBI’s sense of comfort on inflation?

The RBI estimates headline retail inflation to average 4.5 percent in financial year 2023, compared to forecasts of 5 percent or above by private economists. Moneycontrol dissects the likely reasons for the central bank’s sanguinity.

RBI Monetary Policy: Key takeaways from the MPC meeting

The Monetary Policy Committee has kept the benchmark interest rate unchanged at 4 percent and decided to continue with its accommodative stance in the backdrop of elevated level of inflation

DPIIT to soon begin nationwide consultations on ease of doing business 2.0, officials say

EoDB 2.0 is aimed at accelerating making factory production, improving logistics, and strengthening value chains. It would also carry forward the overall government endeavor to digitise manual processes and interventions, and integrate central and state-level portals through Information technology.

Centre's FY23 capex challenge: Realistic, a mirage, or a tall order?

On the face of it, the sum of the Centre's gross budgetary support and internal and extra-budgetary resources, less a Rs 1 lakh crore interest-free loan to States, results in capex of Rs 11.20 lakh crore for FY23 — 2.7 percent higher than the revised estimate but 0.7 percent lower than the budget estimate for FY22. But there's less when you read between the lines.

FM Nirmala Sitharaman reiterates commitment to establish digital university

In her budget speech, the FM has said that a Digital University will be established to provide access to students across the country for world-class quality universal education with personalised learning experience at their doorsteps.

January exports rise 23% Y-o-Y led by continuing strong global orders

Official statistics show exports of all major revenue earners such as engineering goods, petroleum, gems and jewellery, continued rising in October. Overall exports had risen by 22.6 percent in the previous month of October.

We are conscious of inflation, it does affect planning: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman

India's capacities have still not grown in oilseed production; neither are we producing enough pulses for the country’s consumption needs, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has said.

The trouble with budget assumptions and what that means, explained

Economists are puzzled with the budget numbers—from nominal GDP assumption to estimates in revenue receipts to disinvestment figures to capex numbers.

Budget 2022 allocates Rs 1 lakh to set up 200 TV channels; education ministry to seek clarity

PM e-Vidya scheme unifies all efforts related to digital/online/on-air education and provisioning of digital devices to enable multi-mode access to education, according to Budget 2022 documents.

Budget 2022 | Foreign universities allowed to operate in GIFT City, free from regulatory glare

Budget 2022 | Move divides industry as some hail step while others lament skewing of the playing field

Budget 2022 | In election year, subsidies slashed 27% to Rs 3.18 lakh crore

Budget 2022 | Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s fourth budget has instituted broad cuts in subsidies for food, fertiliser and petroleum, just weeks before Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and Goa go to the polls. Experts expected subsidies to rise as the economic churn and inflation continued two years into the pandemic.

Union Budget 2022 | Government hopes to mop up Rs 73,948 crore as dividend from RBI, PSU banks

At Rs 73,948 crore, the budgeted dividend revenue for FY23 from the central bank and PSU banks is 27.0 percent lower than the revised estimate.

Union Budget 2022 | A breakdown of the key numbers for FY23

Budget 2022: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman wants to retain the Centre's focus on reviving the economy. But what do the Budget numbers say?

Union Budget 2022 | Government brings customs duties further in line with Aatmanirbhar Bharat goals

Union Budget 2022: For electronics, customs duty rates will also be calibrated to provide a graded rate structure to facilitate domestic manufacturing

Budget 2022 will boost farmer-agritech synergy, will make agriculture sustainable

Putting climate action as one of the focus areas of the Budget is a major move, since the Budget should not only focus on economic development but also on sustainable development for securing the future of generations to come 

Economic Survey 2022 | FY23 growth expectations based on resilience of economy: Sanjeev Sanyal

Sanyal has said the 8-8.5 percent GDP growth forecast for the next financial year is based on the assumption that 'there will no more debilitating pandemic related economic disruption, a normal monsoon, and average global oil prices in the range of $70-75,'. The government has also factored in a significant withdrawal of global liquidity, and global supply chain disruptions easing over time into the calculations.

Economic Survey 2022 says equip govt schools to handle migration from private schools

The coronavirus pandemic has had a significant impact on the education system, affecting lakhs of schools and colleges across India, the survey has said

Economic Survey 2022 | PLI scheme to attract Rs 19,000 crore investment in textile industry in 5 years

Further in a major support to enhance the competitiveness of the sector, the government notified the setting up of 7 PM mega integrated textiles region and apparel park (MITRA) parks in October 2021 with a total outlay of Rs. 4,445 crore.

Demand for work under MGNREGS remains elevated; rural housing target missed

The budgetary allocation for MGNREGS in FY22 increased to Rs 73,000 crore from Rs 61,500 crore in FY21 and further to Rs 98,000 crore (so far). Since the allocation has not even reached the Rs 1 lakh crore mark, it is unlikely that the outlay will be tripled in FY23, as sought by activists.

Economic Survey 2022: Govt trims down survey from "unwieldy" to 413 pages

At 413 pages, the latest edition of the Economic Survey is significantly smaller than last year's.

Economic Survey 2022 : Private consumption lags the most, as exports and imports see highest growth

While government consumption has crossed pre-pandemic levels by 10 percent, private consumption continues to be at 97 percent of what it was before the pandemic hit. Investment to GDP ratio hit its highest point in 7 years.

Economic Survey 2022 | No space for farmer protests, farm sector reforms

The government had promised to double farmers’ income by 2022. However, it finds no mention in the survey. It exhorts farmers to focus more on allied activities, like animal husbandry and fishing, than on crop cultivation to boost income. While this is good advice, it is neither new nor path-breaking.