Govt to issue third tranche of gold bond scheme soon

The scheme aims at reducing demand for gold in physical form and buy the commodity in demat or the paper form

Having raised nearly Rs 1,050 crore in the first two tranches, the government will "shortly" issue the third tranche of sovereign gold bond for the fiscal, Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das said Thursday.

"It will come very shortly. I can't say the exact time as then there will be speculations on gold prices," Das said.

The government had launched the first tranche of sovereign gold bond scheme in November for which it got subscription for 915.95 kg of gold worth Rs 246 crore. In January, it came out with the second tranche and received subscription for 3,071 kg gold amounting to Rs 798 crore.

"We would do maximum publicity, maximum advertising to make the third tranche a success," Das said, without disclosing the amount it is expecting to raise.

Further, Budget 2016-17 has proposed redemption of sovereign gold bonds by an individual exempt from capital gains tax.

Further it also provided that long-term capital gains arising to any person on transfer of sovereign gold bonds shall be eligible for indexation benefits.

Under the scheme, gold bonds are issued in denominations of 5 grams, 10 grams, 50 grams and 100 grams for a term of 5-7 years with a rate of interest to be calculated on the value of the metal at the time of investment. The scheme has an annual cap of 500 grams per person.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 5 had launched the scheme to wean investors away from physical gold.

India imports about 1,000 tonnes of gold every year and the precious metal is the second-biggest constituent of the import bill after crude oil.

The scheme is aimed at reducing demand for gold in physical form by encouraging people to buy the commodity in demat or the paper form.

During April-January, gold imports increased to $29.36 billion as against $27.42 billion in the first 10 months of 2014-15.