Page 19 - India Economy

India's per capita FMCG consumption low compared to other economies: HUL MD

Premiumisation is bound to accelerate as Indians become more affluent and urban, says Jawa

PM sets 6 months target to ensure full saturation of govt's welfare schemes

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set a target of six months to ensure the full saturation of his government's welfare schemes, official sources said on Saturday. The government, they said, will launch a mega drive, Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra, across all 2.7 lakh panchayats in the country to reach out to beneficiaries and enrol them. The sources added that the exercise will begin after Diwali next month and continue for several weeks. Specially fitted 'raths' will reach the beneficiaries across the country, they said. In a recent Cabinet meeting, Modi exhorted his colleagues to work harder and ensure that deserving beneficiaries who have still not got the benefits of welfare schemes are reached out to faster, they said. During a meeting with top officials, he underlined the need to expedite the saturation of welfare schemes. "He said he wants all his schemes to reach full saturation in the next six months," a source said. The drive will ensure the saturation of schemes such as

Additional payments being approved for MGNREGS, no funds shortage: Minister

Additional allocations will be sanctioned for the Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and the finance ministry has assured there will be no shortage, Union Rural Development Minister Giriraj Singh has said, dismissing criticisms of the flagship programme not being given sufficient funds. In an interview with PTI, the minister also alleged large-scale corruption under the scheme in West Bengal. Asked if the Centre will undertake any probe, Singh replied in the affirmative but did not elaborate on the nature of the probe. "The MGNREGS is a demand-driven scheme, everyone knows that," he said, adding: "The Union finance ministry has sanctioned additional funds for it." Sources in the finance ministry have said additional funds of Rs 28,000 crore have been sanctioned for the MGNREGS which would be cleared in the next Parliament session. The allocation for the MGNREGS in the 2023-23 Budget was Rs 60,000 crore. Accusing the opposition of creating confusion over the flagship .

Weekend Bites: More trouble in IT paradise, RBI's plans, and taxing expats

In which we munch over the week's platter of news and views

Govt to ensure that debt burden not passed on to future generation: FM

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharman on Friday said the government is mindful of the fiscal deficit management and will ensure the burden of servicing debt is not passed on to next generation. Addressing the Kautilya Economic Conclave 2023 here, she said the government is looking at the ways in which it can bring down the overall debt. "We are conscious of matters related to macro economic stability of the country and responsibility with which we deal with our fiscal and also the fiscal management and so for every decisions that we take today, we are conscious of what burden is going to leave for the next generations," she said. It is very easy to be profligate and burden the coming generations with the debt that you will be sitting with, she said. "We are conscious of the debt of government of India. Compared to many others, it might not be as high as it is, but even then, we are consciously looking at experiments in different parts of the world," she said. She said the government

Govt hikes wheat MSP by Rs 150 per quintal to Rs 2,275 for 2024-25

Ahead of assembly polls in key wheat growing states, the government on Wednesday announced an increase in the minimum support price (MSP) of wheat by Rs 150 to Rs 2,275 per quintal for the 2024-25 marketing season. This is the highest increase by the Narendra Modi-led government since it came to power in 2014. A decision in this regard was taken in the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) chaired by Prime Minister Modi. Currently, the MSP on wheat stands at Rs 2,125 per quintal for the 2023-24 marketing season (April-March). Briefing media, I&B minister Anurag Thakur said the CCEA has approved the increase in the MSP for all mandated rabi crops for 2024-25 marketing season. "Based on the CACP recommendation, we have increased the MSP of six rabi crops. Wheat MSP has been increased by Rs 150 per quintal," he said. The support price of wheat has been increased to Rs 2,275 per cent quintal for 2024-25 marketing season, from Rs 2,125 per quintal in 2023-24, he

Haryana clears projects worth Rs 284 cr under rural augmentation programme

The Haryana government has decided to implement 13 new projects worth more than Rs 284 crore under rural augmentation programme and Mahagram Yojana in four districts, an official statement said on Tuesday. The districts that will be covered are Hisar, Jind, Sonipat and Rewari. Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Tuesday approved these projects that will be implemented by the Public Health Engineering Department with the loan assistance from NABARD (National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development), the statement said. The projects in different villages of these districts include works related to canal based water supply scheme, construction of additional storage and sedimentation tank for existing water supply scheme, augmentation of drinking water supply and providing sewerage system. The statement said that Haryana has already ensured the supply of functional Household Tap Connections (FHTCs) to every household under the Jal Jeevan Mission. The central government had set a

Russian oil freight rates jump by 50% as US boosts scrutiny of price cap

G7 imposed sanctions in last Dec prohibiting shippers or insurers domiciled in member countries from offering services to facilitate Russian oil exports when the price is above $60 a barrel

States on course to spend 29% more in capex this fiscal: ICRA report

States are on course to spend 29 per cent more on capital expenditure in the ongoing fiscal, aided by additional central grants and market borrowings, a report said on Tuesday. The increased capex spending will see their debt-level in relation to their gross domestic product rising to 30 per cent from 28.9 per cent in FY23, a report by Icra Ratings said. The combined capital spending of 13 major states will rise 29 per cent this fiscal to Rs 6.2 lakh crore from Rs 4.8 lakh crore in FY23, the report said. However, despite the year-on-year growth, the capex spending is likely to be Rs 50,000 crore lower than the FY24 Budget estimates of Rs 6.7 lakh crore, Icra said. The aggregate fiscal deficit of these states for FY24 is expected to go up by Rs 60,000 crore to Rs 8.3 lakh crore as against the budgeted estimate of Rs 7.7 lakh crore, the ratings agency said. With revenue likely to trail budgeted targets, revenue and fiscal deficits of these states are expected to be Rs 2.1 lakh crore

India to spend nearly Rs 143 trn on infra between FY24 and FY30: CRISIL

India will spend nearly Rs 143 lakh crore on infrastructure between fiscals 2024 and 2030, more than twice the Rs 67 lakh crore spent in the past seven financial years starting 2017, rating agency Crisil said on Tuesday. Of the total, Rs 36.6 lakh crore will be green investments, marking a five times rise compared with the amount spent during fiscals 2017-2023, it added. "India's infrastructure spending will double to Rs 143 lakh crore between fiscals 2024 and 2030, compared with 2017-2023," Crisil said in its Infrastructure Yearbook 2023. Crisil Ltd managing director and CEO Amish Mehta said the agency expects India's gross domestic product to grow at an average 6.7 per cent through fiscal 2031 to be the fastest-expanding large economy. "Per capita income is seen rising from USD 2,500 now to USD 4,500 by fiscal 2031, creating a middle-income country," he said, adding that this growth will be underpinned by massive all-round infrastructure development, with sharp focus on integrati

Rupee ends at record closing low on intensifying geopolitical worries

The rupee closed at 83.2775 against the U.S. dollar, little changed from its previous close of 83.2625. The currency hit its previous record closing low of 83.2675 on Sept. 18

Govt maintains basmati rice floor price as grain export curbs continue

India imposed a $1,200 per ton minimum export price (MEP) on basmati rice shipments in August to calm local prices ahead of key state elections

CM Adityanath launches fourth phase of Mission Shakti in Uttar Pradesh

Women are capable of achieving remarkable feats with will power and support from the government, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said on Saturday while launching the fourth phase of Mission Shakti in Uttar Pradesh. Adityanath also said a campaign would be launched from October 15 as part of the fourth phase to educate people about government initiatives concerning the protection and well-being of women and girls. He launched the fourth phase of Mission Shakti, an initiative focused on promoting women's safety and self-reliance, from his official residence by flagging off a women empowerment rally. The rally, which traversed several locations in the capital, aims to enhance public awareness regarding various government schemes for the welfare of women and daughters, an official release issued here said. Citing the various government schemes which have helped women , Adityanath emphasised that "with will power and backing from the government and administration, women have the potentia

Weekend Bites: Another war, trouble in IT paradise, carmakers, 'those guys'

In which we munch over the week's platter of news and views

Currency markets interventions not always 'black and white': RBI Governor

Reserve Bank of India Governor Shaktikanta Das was referring to the U.S. Treasury Department's regular foreign exchange report and similar research by the International Monetary Fund (IMF)

India, Brazil target over 3-fold rise in trade to $50 bn: Commerce secy

India and Brazil are looking at an "aspirational" target of increasing the two-way trade by over three-fold to USD 50 billion by 2030, Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal said on Friday. He was in Brasilia from October 1 to 4 to discuss ways to promote trade between the two countries. He chaired the sixth meeting of the India-Brazil Trade Monitoring Mechanism (TMM). At present, the bilateral trade stood at USD 15.2 billion. "We are looking at USD 30 billion in the next 3-4 years and by 2030, we are looking at an aspirational target of USD 50 billion. There is a huge potential for trade growth," he told reporters here. He added that during his visit, the two sides also discussed market access issues as well as new areas of cooperation. Two working groups have been formed - market access issues and sectors of cooperation. "Biofuels and renewables are important sectors which we will be looking at...Ethanol and biofuel blending is another area of cooperation," he said. Brazil has adva

India Inc revenues to rise 8-10% in Q2, profit margins to expand: Crisil

India Inc is all set to report an 8-10 per cent jump in revenues for the September quarter while profit margins will also witness an expansion, an arm of rating agency Crisil said on Friday. This will be the first time in four quarters that the revenue growth will see an increase, it said. Automobiles, construction (which benefitted from truant monsoons) and information technology services sectors will be driving the revenue growth in the quarter, the rating agency said, adding that the year-on-year revenue growth in the preceding June quarter had stood at 7 per cent. The agency said its expectations are based on an analysis of 300 companies excluding ones in banking and oil sectors. "Growth in revenue was largely skewed towards consumer discretionary products and services, where automobiles and the retail sector led the pack, and construction-linked sectors, where companies accrued benefits from an early deployment of capital expenditure by the roads and railways ministries, Direc

Forex reserves further drop by $2.17 billion to $584.74 billion: RBI

The country's forex reserves dropped by a further USD 2.166 billion to USD 584.742 billion for the week ended October 6, the RBI said on Friday. India's forex kitty had gone down by USD 3.794 billion to USD 586.908 billion in the previous week. It can be noted that in October 2021, the country's forex kitty had reached an all-time high of USD 645 billion. The reserves took a hit as the central bank deployed the kitty to defend the rupee amid pressures caused majorly by global developments since last year. For the week ended October 6, the foreign currency assets, a major component of the reserves, decreased by USD 707 million to USD 519.529 billion, according to the Weekly Statistical Supplement released by the RBI. Expressed in dollar terms, the foreign currency assets include the effect of appreciation or depreciation of non-US units like the euro, pound and yen held in the foreign exchange reserves. Gold reserves were down by a sharp USD 1.425 billion to USD 42.306 billion, the

FTA talks between India and UK at advanced stage, says Commerce Secy

The negotiations for the proposed free trade agreement between India and the UK are at an advanced stage, and both sides are working to iron out differences on the remaining issues, a top government official said on Friday. Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal said that negotiations on tough issues are underway. "These negotiations are in the advance stage. These are going on, and we are ironing out the differences. We should wait till these negotiations are over because the 13th round is going on," he told reporters here. These remarks assume significance as both sides are expected to conclude the talks this month and may sign the deal in the last week. A majority of the 26 chapters are closed and for the remaining issues, high-level engagements at various levels are ongoing. An official delegation from the UK is here for the negotiations. A team led by Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal was in London recently to give an impetus to the talks. The UK team dealing with investment-rela

AI programme will enable to achieve $1 trn digital economy: Chandrasekhar

The government on Friday unveiled a report on the country's artificial intelligence programme, which it believes will be a kinetic enabler for India to achieve the goal of USD 1 trillion digital economy by 2026. Minister of Electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar said that the draft National Strategy on Robotics will be part of the multi-year India AI programme. "This is a deep, multi-year roadmap to make Indian AI work for being a kinetic enabler of the trillion dollar digital economy," Chandrasekhar said. The minister had earlier said the government plans to make India a USD 1-trillion digital economy by 2026. He said that apart from supporting the startup ecosystem, India's AI programme will focus on comprehensive skills in the country, building computer infrastructure etc. The report recommends creation of India data sets platform to be used by domestic startups and researchers, building GPU (graphical processing unit)-based computer infrastructure to provide resources for ...