Page 10 - Finance Minister

Budget is by the people, for the people, says FM Nirmala Sitharaman

Paraphrasing Abraham Lincoln, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday described the Union Budget as "by the people, for the people, of the people", and said Prime Minister Narendra Modi was fully behind the idea to cut taxes for middle class but it took time to convince the bureaucrats. "We have heard the voice of the middle class" who had been complaining about their aspirations not being met despite being honest taxpayers, she told PTI in an interview. With the honest and proud taxpayers wanting the government to do more to limit the impact of factors like inflation, the prime minister was quick to task Sitharaman to look at ways to give relief. While Modi was quick to agree to tax relief, it took a bit of convincing to get on board the officials in the finance ministry and the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) - who are tasked to ensure revenue collection to meet welfare and other schemes, she said. Presenting her eighth straight budget, Sitharaman on Saturday announced

FM cites India's fiscal discipline as key to Moody's unchanged ratings

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday flaunted India's unblemished track record of not faltering on any of its fiscal consolidation or debt reduction targets as she seemed to shrug off the passiveness of agencies like Moody's which have not upgraded India's ratings. Sitharaman in her budget for fiscal year beginning April treaded a fine line between fiscal prudence and providing a thrust to growth as she not only gave the middle class the biggest-ever tax relief but also unveiled a glide path for reducing fiscal deficit next year and debt as percentage of GDP by 2031. India, she said, had to borrow more during the pandemic to meet the fiscal needs of the economy amid global challenges, supply chain disruptions and geopolitical conflicts in two theatres. "Despite all these we have shown a commitment and following the commitment to the last word as regards fiscal deficit and the glide path that we should follow," she told PTI in an interview. "We have, not one year have we ...

Rupee not depreciating against any currency other than $: FM Sitharaman

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday rejected criticism over the slide of the Indian rupee, saying it has depreciated only against a strengthening US dollar but remained stable against all other currencies because of the strong macroeconomic fundamentals. In an interview with PTI, she said a 3 per cent depreciation in the rupee against the US dollar in past few months is a matter of concern as it makes imports costlier, but she rejected criticism that the local currency has seen all-round weakness. "I am concerned but I will not accept the criticism that 'Oh Rupee is weakening!' Our macroeconomic fundamentals are strong. Rupee wouldn't be stable against all the currencies if the fundamentals were weak," she said. The Indian rupee has been under pressure in the last few months but it continues to be the least volatile currency against the US dollar among its Asian and global peers. The reasons for the rupee hitting record lows almost on a daily basis against the US dollar ..

Budget updates: Diya Kumari terms Union Budget as 'game changer,' Gehlot criticises lack of relief

New tax regime updates: Under the new system, taxpayers will not have to pay any income tax on earnings up to Rs 12 lakh per annum

More disposable income in hands: TDS threshold for senior citizens doubled

Taxpayers can now file updated returns for four years instead of the previous two

Budget 2025: Rs 20,000 cr allocated to DPT for starting Rs 1 trn R-D fund

Signalling a commitment to research and development, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday allocated Rs 20,000 crore to the Department of Science and Technology as a corpus for a fund to promote private sector-driven innovation. Sitharaman had announced setting up of a Rs 1 lakh crore research and development fund in the budget last July. The allocation in Saturday's budget will kickstart the fund aimed at supporting research and development in deep tech and sunrise sectors. "To implement the private sector-driven Research, Development and Innovation initiative announced in the July budget, I am now allocating Rs 20,000 crore," Sitharaman said. Presenting the Union Budget for the 2025-26 fiscal, the finance minister also said a Deep Tech Fund of Funds would be explored to catalyse the next generation start-ups as part of this initiative. "The allocation this year will kickstart the fund and be a major boost to support research and development in the private sector

Budget 2025: Govt to table new income tax bill next week, says FM

The government will introduce a new Income Tax bill in Parliament next week, replacing the six-decade old income tax act of 1961. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in her 2025-26 Budget speech, said the new I-T Bill will carry forward the spirit of "Nyaya" (justice) based on the concept of "trust first, scrutinise later". "The new bill will be clear and direct in text with close to half of the present law, in terms of both chapters and words. It will be simple to understand for taxpayers and tax administration, leading to tax certainty and reduced litigation," Sitharaman said. She said the government has implemented several taxpayer reforms in last 10 years and the new income-tax bill will be introduced next week. Addressing a post budget press conference, Sitharaman said, "I hope it (the Bill) will get passed without much of a difficulty". The new income tax bill will go to the Standing Committee of Parliament, she added. Sitharaman had in July last year announced a comprehen

Rahul Gandhi slams Union Budget 2025, calls it 'band-aid for bullet wounds'

The Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati criticised the Budget calling it 'politically motivated'

Fiscally prudent, reforms-driven Budget paves way for future growth

The focus on uplifting 17 million farmers in 100 weakest farming districts is a step towards ensuring equitable development across the country

Budget 2025: New presumptive tax scheme for non-residents in electronics

Announced by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, this initiative is part of India's strategy to position itself as a global hub for electronics system design and manufacturing

Budget FY26: Govt increases KCC loan limit to Rs 5 lakh from Rs 3 lakh

Kisan Credit Cards (KCC) facilitate short-term loans for 7.7 crore farmers, fishermen, and dairy farmers

Hospital stocks rally up to 7% post FM's 10,000 new medical seats plan

The uptick in hospital stocks came after the Finance Minister announced the government's plan to increase the number of medical colleges and hospital seats by 10,000 in the coming year

Tax relief for middle-class and big gifts for Bihar: Budget 2025 highlights

Budget 2025 revises FY25 capex, promises incentives for EVs, social security for gig workers, and major infrastructure projects in Bihar, including a greenfield airport and a Makhana Board

We see next 5 yrs as unique opportunity to realise Sabka Vikas: Sitharaman

Finance Minister remarked that India's development track record for the past 10 years and structural reforms have drawn global attention

President offers dahi-cheeni to FM Sitharaman before presenting Budget FY25

This marks Nirmala Sitharaman's eighth consecutive Budget, making her the first Finance Minister of India to achieve this feat, surpassing former Prime Minister Morarji Desai's six consecutive Budgets

Union Budget 2025: Will Nirmala Sitharaman give tax relief to middle class?

Union Budget 20025: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the first full Budget of Modi 3.0 government. It comes at a time of significant global challenges and hopes of tax relief

Budget 2025: Nirmala Sitharaman's sari honours Bihar's Madhubani artists

On Budget day 2025, Finance Minister wore a white kasavu saree with a golden border, which was gifted to her by Padma Shri awardee and Madhubani artist Dulari Devi

Epochal Budget to Dream Budget: 5 speeches that left an indelible mark

Since the independence of India, several finance ministers have presented Budgets that determined the course of the country's progress. Here are the five Budgets that left an indelible mark on economy

Union Budget 2025: A look at poetic touches in finance ministers' speeches

Union Budget 2025: Here's a look at how finance ministers have infused poetic and cultural references/ quotes in their speeches

Market Today: Budget 2025; Fiscal Deficit; Trump tariffs; Gold; SMID stocks

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present her eighth consecutive budget today. This will also be the second budget under the third term of the Modi administration