From Army chief appointment to blast at Yemen military base: 5 key developments

In other news, EPFO likely to retain 8.8% interest on EPF for FY17

Business Standard brings to you a list of five key developments across the country.

Army chief appointment

An inevitable controversy has erupted after the government’s announcement of Lieutenant General Bipin Rawat as the general who will succeed General Dalbir Singh Suhag on December 31 to the post of chief of army staff (COAS), or army chief. Opposition parties have accused the government of politicising the appointment by abandoning the traditional criterion of seniority. More worryingly, there is sharp resentment within sections of the army on the sidelining of two high-calibre officers who Rawat will supersede — Lt Gen Praveen Bakshi, currently commanding the eastern army in Kolkata, senior-most after Suhag, and Lt Gen P M Hariz, also senior to Rawat, who commands the southern army from his headquarters in Pune.

Fiscal deficit target

Even as the cash crunch following demonetisation hit advance tax collections for the quarter ending December, economists say the fiscal deficit target of 3.5 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) for this financial year (FY17) is not a difficult one. Economists believe the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana or the income declaration scheme-2 (IDS-2), in popular parlance, and raids on various entities to unearth black money may offset the shortfall in tax collections. They are optimistic despite the fact that IDS-1, which was expected to fetch the government Rs 7,500 crore by November 30, managed only Rs 6,800 crore.

EPFO likely to retain 8.8% interest rate

Retirement fund body EPFO is likely to take a decision on the rate of interest on PF deposits for 2016-17 fiscal in its trustees' meet on Monday. Sources said that the interest rate could be at least 8.8 per cent which was fixed for the last fiscal. Besides, the EPFO will also consider a proposal to reduce the administrative charges to 0.65 per cent of total wage on which contributions are payable from 0.85 per cent at present. This will result in total annual savings of Rs 1,000 crore for around six lakh employers covered by the EPFO. 

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Laurus Labs set for stock trading debut 

Drugmaker Laurus Lab, which raised about Rs 1,332 crore through its initial public offer, is all set to make a debut on the stock exchanges on Monday. The IPO, which opened to public subscription on December 6-8, was subscribed 4.54 times at a price band of Rs 426-428 per share. The portion set aside for qualified institutional buyers (QIBs) was subscribed 10.54 times while the HNI quota received 3.58 times of subscription. The quota for retail investors was subscribed 1.61 times.

Yemen explosion

A suicide bomber blew himself up outside a military camp in the southern Yemeni city of Aden on Sunday, killing at least 52 soldiers, a security official said. The Islamic State group's Yemen-based affiliate claimed responsibility. Abdel-Rahman al-Naqeeb told The Associated Press that 63 people were also injured in the blast.