Page 9 - Budget Session

GST rate rejig panel due for another revamp ahead of full Budget

Council may meet before Budget presentation in the middle of next month

Gandhi, Ambedkar, Shivaji statues shifted within Parliament; Cong unhappy

Statues of Mahatma Gandhi, B R Ambedkar and Chhatrapati Shivaji, among others, have been relocated within the Parliament premises as part of a landscaping exercise, a move that drew sharp criticism from the Congress on Thursday. The statues of tribal leader Birsa Munda and Maharana Pratap have also been shifted to a lawn between old Parliament building and the Parliament library. All statues are now in the same place. Reacting to the development, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said on X, "Statues of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Mahatma Gandhi, and Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar have just been removed from their places of prominence in front of the Parliament House. This is atrocious." Attacking the BJP, Congress's media and publicity department head Pawan Khera said when Maharashtra voters did not vote for BJP, the statues of Shivaji and Ambedkar were removed from their original place in Parliament. When they did not get clean sweep in Gujarat, they removed the statue of Mahatma

Modi govt reshaped, transformed Budget in last decade: FM Sitharaman

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday said the Modi government has reshaped the Union budget in the last 10 years from a mere record of expenditures to a strategic blueprint for equitable distribution. The minister asserted that the government would continue to maximise the value of taxpayers' money by putting it to the best possible use. She said the Modi government has prioritised transparency in its budgeting practices and numbers. Countries with transparent budgets are often viewed more favourably by international bodies such as the IMF and World Bank. This can lead to improved global trust. "This starkly contrasts the @INCIndia-led UPA government's repetitive practice of hiding the deficits through off-budget borrowings and issuance of 'Oil Bonds', which somewhat covertly shifted the fiscal burden to future generations. Under UPA, standard fiscal practices were routinely changed to make Budget numbers look favourable," Sitharaman said in a series of posts on X. She sa

Decoding Annual Budget

Learn it from an economist on how to read the Annual Budget that the nation presents to its citizens every year. >

Atishi announces Rs 1,000 monthly assistance scheme for women aged above 18

Delhi Finance minister Atishi on Monday announced the 'Mukhyamantri Mahila Samman Yojana' under which Rs 1,000 will be given monthly to all women aged above 18 from the fiscal year 2024-25. Atishi announced the scheme in her maiden budget speech. "The Kejriwal government will give a monthly amount of Rs 1,000 to every woman aged 18 or above. Under the Mukyamnatri Mahila Samman Yojana, women will be given this benefit," she said. Atishi presented the budget for the financial year 2024-25 in the Delhi Assembly on Monday with an outlay of Rs 76,000 crore, and said the government is trying to realise the dream of 'Ram Rajya'.

Uttarakhand's Rs 89,000 cr Budget to focus on women's welfare & education

Dhami government has allocated Rs 574 crore specifically for women's welfare, with a strong focus on empowering women

Rs 89,230 cr budget for Uttarakhand's inclusive development: CM Dhami

The Uttarakhand government on Tuesday tabled the annual budget of more than Rs 89,000 crore for financial year 2024-25 in the state assembly. Presenting the budget in the House, state finance minister Premchand Agarwal said it was an inclusive budget aimed at building a developed Uttarakhand. The budget will be passed on March 1 after a debate in the house over the next few days.

Budget session: Maha govt tables supplementary demands of Rs 8,609 cr

The Maharashtra government on Monday tabled supplementary demands of Rs 8,609 crore on the first day of the Budget session of the state assembly. State finance minister Ajit Pawar tabled the supplementary demands, which are additional funds sought by the government over the budgetary allocation, in the legislative assembly, followed by the council. "I table the supplementary demands of Rs 8,609.17 crore before the House," Pawar said. As per the supplementary demand note, demands of Rs 2,210 crore were for financial assistance to farmers whose crops were destroyed due to the unseasonal showers, hailstorms and water scarcity. During the winter session in December last year, supplementary demands of Rs 55,520.77 crore were tabled in the state legislature and eventually cleared.

MVA leaders stage protest, accuse Maha govt of misleading Marathas, OBCs

Legislators of the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi staged a protest on Monday before the start of the Budget session of the Maharashtra legislative assembly, accusing the government of misleading the Maratha and Other Backward Classes (OBC) communities. The week-long Budget session of the legislature began on Monday, during which the vote on account will be presented. Assembly elections are due in the state later this year. Leader of Opposition in Assembly Vijay Waddetiwar, Congress legislature party leader Balasaheb Thorat and other legislators gathered on the steps of the Vidhan Bhavan, displaying banners and shouting slogans against the Eknath Shinde-led government. The Opposition MLAs accused the state government of misleading the Maratha and OBC communities over the issue of quota. MVA comprises the Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) and Sharad Pawar faction of the NCP, while the ruling coalition has the BJP, Shinde-led Shiv Sena and NCP group under Ajit Pawar as partners. Last week, the

Highlights: Car securing route for CM Yogi's cavalcade meets with accident

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Delhi LG asks Kejriwal to table CAG reports in Assembly Budget session

Delhi LG V K Saxena has written a letter to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal regarding five CAG reports "pending" with Finance Minister Atishi since August, 2023. Saxena has requested the chief minister to advise the finance minister to "expeditiously process" the important reports concerning state finances so that they can be tabled in the ongoing budget session of the Delhi Assembly. The reports of Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) are constitutionally mandated independent and impartial assessment of the performance of the government and in many ways are a guidance document for assessment of its financial performance, said the LG in his letter. "It is an obligation of the government of the day to share with the people, through the House, an objective account of its performance - revenue and expenditure of public funds," he noted. The letter stated that the LG secretariat received copies of communications from controller of accounts to the finance minister's secretary,

Seven BJP MLAs move Delhi HC challenging suspension from Budget session

Seven BJP MLAs approached the Delhi High Court on Monday challenging their suspension for the remainder of the Budget session of the Delhi Assembly for interrupting the Lieutenant Governor's address. The plea was mentioned for urgent listing before a bench of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Manmeet PS Arora which allowed it to be heard during the day itself. The BJP MLAs had allegedly interrupted Lt Governor VK Saxena multiple times during his address on February 15 highlighting achievements of the AAP government, as they sought to attack the Arvind Kejriwal government on a range of issues. Senior Advocate Jayant Mehta mentioned the matter, saying the MLAs were suspended wrongly and their right to participate in the proceedings is being affected. He said the motion to suspend the MLAs is unconstitutional and contrary to the rules. He further said that at the most, the MLAs could be suspended for a period of three days but here the suspension is indefinite. AAP MLA Dili

Electoral Bond Scheme: Rs 16,518 crore collected till date, Centre told LS

Electoral Bonds scheme verdict: On Thursday, the Supreme Court struck down the scheme and called it 'unconstitutional'

White Paper presented by Centre exposed Congress, says Anurag Thakur

Anurag Thakur, during a visit to Dharamshala, said "The White Paper has exposed the Congress...Family was important for Congress. The policies of Congress have caused great harm to the country...

12 Bills passed by both Houses in 17th LS: Union Minister Pralhad Joshi

The minister informed further the productivity over 11 days of sittings was logged at approximately 148 per cent in the Lok Sabha and 137 per cent approximately in the Rajya Sabha

Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha adjourned sine die as Budget session concludes

House took decisions for which many generations waited for long: PM Modi

Cong issues whip to its MPs in LS to ensure their presence in House

The Congress has issued a whip to its MPs in the Lok Sabha to ensure their presence in the House on Saturday. The Lok Sabha will have a discussion on the construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya on Saturday, the last day of the budget session of Parliament. The parliamentary leaders of the constituents of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) will meet at Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge's office in the morning before the parliamentary proceedings start. The Congress has issued a three-line whip in the Lok Sabha, party sources said. The budget session of Parliament, the last of the 17th Lok Sabha, began on January 31 and will conclude on Saturday. The Lok Sabha polls are expected to be held in April-May.

Assam CM Sarma conducts preparatory meeting ahead of state budget

Assam Finance Minister Ajanta Neog, and senior government officials were present in the meeting

Budget Session: Govt to bring motion on Ram Temple in both houses on Jan 10

In Lok Sabha, under rule 193, BJP MPs Satya Pal Singh and Shrikant Shinde will raise a discussion on the construction of Ram Temple and Pran Pratistha of Ram Lalla

Parliament passes bill to curb malpractices in competitive examinations

Parliament on Friday passed a landmark bill that aims to curb malpractices and irregularities in competitive examinations by including stringent punitive provisions, with Union Minister Jitendra Singh asserting that the bill is meant to deter those who play with the future of the youth. The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024, passed in Rajya Sabha, has provisions for a maximum jail term of 10 years and a fine up to Rs 1 crore. The bill was passed through a voice vote in Rajya Sabha on Friday, after amendments proposed by some opposition members were rejected. The bill was passed by Lok Sabha on February 6. Replying to a discussion on the bill in Rajya Sabha, Singh, Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, said the youth power of the country is "vital" and made it clear that the bill is meant to deter those who are playing with their future. "We can't allow vital youth power of this country to be surrendered or sacrificed in the hands