Page 33 - Finance Minister

FinMin asks IBA to finalise wage revision of bankers of PSU banks by Dec 1

The government has asked the Indian Banks' Association (IBA) to initiate the process of negotiations for the 12th Bi-partite settlement in a time-bound manner and to finalise it by December 1, 2023, said a senior official. The wage revision for employees and officers of the public sector banks is due from November 1, 2022. The early wage revision would help improve working conditions and incentivise the banking sector employees, the official said. Further, the official said, the finance ministry has asked IBA to ensure that all future wage negotiations should be finalised before the beginning of the subsequent period so that the wage revision could be implemented from the due date itself. As a part of the settlement, the IBA is expected to engage in dialogues with the employees' Unions/ Associations and work out to arrive at a mutually agreeable wage settlement. The government has stressed the importance of fairness and equity in the revision, ensuring that the compensation struct

FM nudges PSU banks to take swift action against frauds, wilful defaulters

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has asked public sector banks (PSBs) to take swift action in cases concerning fraud and wilful defaults to reduce bad loans and take steps to accelerate growth momentum, sources said. Banks have written off Rs 11.17 lakh crore bad loans from their books in the last six years till the financial year 2021-22. The non-performing assets (NPAs), including those in respect of which full provisioning has been made on completion of four years, are removed from the balance sheet of the bank concerned by way of write-off. In a recent meeting with heads of PSBs, the finance minister urged them to focus on having robust risk management practices and mitigating Cyber Security risks. During the meeting, it was also emphasised that banks should follow a strong internal audit framework and adherence to caveats of internal policies, sources said. Some of the challenges highlighted during the meeting included the declining share of market share in terms of advanc

PSBs should follow transparent NPA recognition norms, pursue risk mgmt: FM

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday asked heads of public sector banks (PSBs) to ensure fair and transparent recognition of bad loans and pursue robust risk management practices so as to maintain the momentum of growth and profitability. PSBs earned a record aggregate net profit of around Rs 1.05 lakh crore in FY2022-23, almost triple from net profits earned in 2013-14. In the review meeting with the top management of PSBs, discussions were held on the positive macro trends, improved business sentiments, Twin balance sheet advantage' and performance of the state-run banks. All the major financial parameters viz., credit deployment, profitability, asset quality, capital adequacy etc. indicate that the performance of PSBs has significantly improved. They're adequately capitalised, resilient, and have sound financial health. It was noted that the asset quality of PSBs has improved significantly with gross NPAs at 4.97 per cent and net NPAs at 1.24 per cent in March 2023, t

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PRAHAR writes to FinMin over violation of advertisement norms by brokers

Civil society organisation PRAHAR has written a letter to finance ministry expressing concern over misleading advertisements by some insurance broking firms. Public Response Against Helplessness and Action for Redressal (PRAHAR) in a letter written to finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman alleged that some of the new-age insurance broking firms selling policies online are alluring customers by indicating Rs 1 crore amount by investing a small amount for certain number of years. Insurers and insurer intermediaries are bound by the guidelines outlined in the Master Circular on Insurance Advertisements (2019). Specifically, Clause 3.4.1.3 of the Master Circular strictly prohibits insurers from projecting future performance based on past financial results. "Where attention is drawn to insurer's past financial performance, it should indicate that the past performance is not necessarily an indication of future performance," as per the Master Circular. The organisation requested the finance

Finance Minister reviews progress of implementation of Budget schemes

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday reviewed progress of implementation of Budget schemes with secretaries of finance ministry and Corporate Affairs Secretary. The meeting was attended by Economic Affairs Secretary Ajay Seth, Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey, Financial Services Secretary Vivek Joshi, Corporate Affairs Secretary Manoj Govil and other senior officials. "Union Finance Minister Smt. @nsitharaman chaired a review meeting on the implementation of various Union Budget announcements with Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, @SecyDIPAM, Secretary @DFS_India, Secretary @MCA21India and senior officials of the @FinMinIndia, New Delhi, today," a finance ministry tweet said. Besides the review of implementation of various schemes of Union Budget, the minister underlined the importance of continuous assessment of progress to ensure that the schemes are implemented in a time bound manner.

FM Sitharaman's meet with PSBs on July 6 to focus on performance review

Sitharaman on Saturday at an event said the performance of PSBs had improved on account of various initiatives taken by the Modi government since 2014

During UPA money was given to not-so-worthy customers resulting in NPAs: FM

Net profits of the Public Sector Banks (PSBs) have almost tripled, increasing from Rs 36,270 crore in FY2014 to Rs 1.04 lakh crore in FY 2022-23, she informed

GST increased states' revenue buoyancy, benefit stands out as exemplary: FM

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said Goods and Services Tax (GST) has increased revenue buoyancy of states, and the all-round benefit stands out as "exemplary". The multiplicity of taxes in the pre-GST regime resulted in a "tax-on-tax" effect, causing the same product to be taxed multiple times and hence becoming costlier for the consumers, she said at the GST Day 2023. Giving a comparison of the tax rates pre and post-GST, Sitharaman said, "GST has done justice to the consumers by bringing the rates down compared to the previous regime". Before GST was introduced, India's indirect tax system was fragmented, where every state was effectively a distinct market for the industry as well as the consumer. "Whether it is common consumer, whether it is the state government, a matter of tax buoyancy, whether it is making it digital and simpler, GST stands out as an exemplar," Sitharaman said. State revenue buoyancy pre-GST was 0.72, while post-GST, it is 1.22. "GST has br

PSBs profit tripled to Rs 1.04 trn in 9 yrs; need to continue momentum: FM

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said the public sector banks' profit in the last nine years has tripled to Rs 1.04 lakh crore due to initiatives taken by the government and underlined the need for continuing the momentum to fuel economy. The net profit of public sector banks (PSBs) has almost tripled to Rs 1.04 lakh crore in FY23 from Rs 36,270 crore in FY2014. Inaugurating the corporate office of Punjab and Sind Bank here, the minister said that banks need to "build on laurels" by following the best corporate governance principles. "Banks should not sit back and revel in success. They should follow best corporate governance practices, adhere to regulatory norms, ensure prudent liquidity management and continue to focus on having robust asset-liability and risk management," she said, stressing that the Indian economy has moved away from the 'twin balance sheet problem' to 'twin balance sheet advantage'. The finance minister said that there was a time when the Indian

Economy has moved from twin-balance sheet problem, banks now profitable: FM

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Saturday that the Indian economy has moved away from the twin-balance sheet problem of banks and corporates to twin-balance sheet advantage because of the concerted efforts of the Modi government. Profit of public sector banks increased to Rs 1.04 lakh crore in 2022-23, tripling from what it was in 2014, the minister said while inaugurating the corporate office of Punjab & Sind Bank here. The twin-balance sheet problem refers to deterioration in financial health of banks and corporates at the same time. "As a result (of various initiatives of the government) I'm glad to say the problems of twin-balance sheets have gone away like the Reserve Bank observing it is a twin-balance sheet advantage that the Indian economy is benefiting from,", Sitharaman said. The minister said the term twin-balance sheet was heard after a long time and according to the Reserve Bank, the Indian economy is now benefiting from the twin-balance sheet ...

FM Sitharaman interacts with under Rozgar Mela scheme recruits in Chennai

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday met the new recruits who received job offers in various departments under the Government of India's Rozgar Mela. Sitharaman, on a brief visit to the state's capital, along with senior government officials interacted with the appointees at the Indian Bank Management Academy for Growth and Excellence (IMAGE) here. The appointees were recruited for various roles including probationary officer at the public sector Indian Bank, inspector of Income Tax, and preventive officers at the Customs department, among others. Since the launch of the scheme in 2022, six installments of the Rozgar Mela have been organised across the country and around 4.3 lakh appointment letters have been distributed under it. The National Skill Development Corporation under the Union Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship has been organising Rozgar Melas across the country to provide suitable job opportunities to unemployed youth. In May, the financ

Kerala Gov justifies withdrawing pleasure from state FM Balagopal last year

Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan on Friday justified withdrawing his pleasure from state Finance Minister K N Balagopal last year over his remarks on people from other states, and said withdrawal of pleasure does not mean his dismissal. Khan said he still strongly holds the view that if a person who has taken the oath to uphold the unity and integrity of India says publicly that those who hailing from a particular region of the country cannot have understanding of the education system of another state of the country, it is a violation of the oath. "So, expression of displeasure is different...in that sense it was. Because in my opinion it was. (But) Chief Minister did not consider it violation of oath, he is continuing," he told reporters here. He was responding to the queries of reporters regarding the incident in October last in the wake of the ongoing tussle between the Governor and the government in Tamil Nadu. On Thursday, hours after dismissing minister V Senthil Balaji fro

IMF deal expected in next 24 hours: Pakistan Finance Minister Ishaq Dar

The agreement, which would be subject to approval by the IMF board, has faced an eight-month delay

Odisha CM Patnaik urges FM Sitharaman to withdraw 18% GST on Kendu leaves

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has urged Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to completely waive the 18 per cent GST tax on Kendu leaves as it would adversely affect the livelihood of the poorest of the poor section of the society. Patnaik in a letter written to Sitharaman on Monday said that 18 per cent GST on Kendu leaves should be waived in the larger interest of poor and tribal people associated with Kendu leaves trade in the state. "Imposition of GST (18%) on Kendu leaves is adversely affecting the Kendu leaves trade. This in turn affects the livelihoods of Kendu leaves pluckers, binders and seasonal workers and implementation of social security and welfare schemes for them," Patnaik wrote in the letter. Stating that the Kendu (Tendu) leaf, which is a minor forest produce, is the financial backbone of 8 lakh kendu leaf pluckers, binders and seasonal workers of Odisha, Patnaik said the people engaged in the trade are mostly tribal and women belonging to the poorest o

Cleartax forays into crypto tax segment, expects 1 mn filings this year

The online tax filing company has integrated with over 100 crypto exchanges, including Coinbase, CoinDCX, Binance, and WazirX, to provide taxation services at one common platform 'CryptoTax'

Govt to launch portal for unclaimed shares, dividends by February 2024

Currently, investors have to produce about 24 documents for refunds. As a part of the refund process, these documents are checked multiple times at various stages of the process

Pak FM Dar allegedly harasses journalist over question on elusive IMF deal

Pakistan's Finance Minister Ishaq Dar has found himself at the centre of a controversy for engaging in a heated exchange with a journalist, who accused the politician of slapping him over a question about the stalled IMF deal. The incident occurred on Thursday when Dar was leaving the parliament premises after addressing a National Assembly session when he was approached by journalist Shahid Qureshi, the Dawn newspaper reported. In a video that has gone viral on social media, the reporter can be seen asking Dar if he would be willing to talk and the minister responded he had just finished speaking. Qureshi then inquired about the progress of the stalled International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme and referred to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's recent meeting with IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva. While Dar, 73, did not reply to the questions, the journalist persisted and questioned the government's failure to secure the USD 1.1 billion deal from the Washington-based globa

Pakistan Finance Minister Dar meets US envoy; discusses stalled IMF loan

Pakistan Finance Minister Ishaq Dar met US Ambassador Donald Blome on Wednesday as the cash-strapped country scrambled to get a stalled loan from the IMF to push back the threat of a looming default. Islamabad had inked a deal with the Fund in 2019 to get a USD 6.5 billion package, but at least USD 2.4 billion has not been released as the Fund says Pakistan has been unable to meet important prerequisites. The programme is set to lapse on June 30, leaving Pakistan more vulnerable than ever to meet external payments. Dar informed the US envoy about the progress on talks with the Washington-based global lender while expressing his government's commitment to complete the programme, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Finance. Dar also informed the ambassador about his government's budgetary measures to reduce the fiscal gap to meet its national as well as international financial obligations, the statement said. He shared the economic policies and priorities of the ...

FM seeks spotting of credit-deficient districts for financial inclusion

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday suggested identification of credit-deficient districts in each state and carrying out special credit outreach camps there