Page 45 - Parliament

Daily wages paid under MGNREGA not adequate, says Parliamentary panel

The daily wages paid under the flagship rural employment scheme - Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme - are inadequate and not in consonance with the rising cost of living, a parliamentary panel told government on Thursday. It said this may be one of the reasons for dearth of workers under the scheme. The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, in a report tabled in Lok Sabha, pointed out the high range of variations in MGNREGA wages across the states. "The committee finds the range of wages vary from as little as Rs 221 in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, Rs 224 in Arunachal Pradesh, Rs 228 in Bihar and Jharkhand to Rs 354 in the three gram panchayats of Sikkim (Gnathang, Lachung and Lachen), Rs 328 in Nicobar and Rs 311 in Andaman," it said. "Observing the quantum of wages since 2008, the committee finds the wages inadequate and not in consonance with the rising cost of living. At this juncture, the agricultural labourers an

Parliament approves interim Budget 2024-25, with RS returning Finance Bill

Parliament on Thursday completed the exercise of passing the interim Budget for 2024-25, with Rajya Sabha returning the Finance Bill 2024 and the relevant appropriation bills. The Upper House also returned the appropriation bills related to the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The bills were returned to Lok Sabha after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's reply on the discussion. On Wednesday, Lok Sabha passed these bills. Rajya Sabha returned the Appropriation (Vote on Account) Bill, 2024; The Appropriation Bill, 2024; The Jammu and Kashmir Appropriation (No.2) Bill, 2024; The Jammu and Kashmir Appropriation Bill, 2024; and The Finance Bill, 2024. With Rajya Sabha returning all these money bills to Lok Sabha, the Budget process has been completed.

Highlight of interim budget emphasis on capex: FM Sitharaman in RS

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said the highlight of interim budget is the emphasis given by the government on capital expenditure and sustaining pace of economic growth. She was replying to the general discussion on the Interim Union Budget 2024-25, Finance Bill 2024 and the Interim Budget of Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, 202425 in Rajya Sabha. The minister emphasised that capital expenditure for creation of public infrastructure is growing faster than real GDP growth. "With the capital expenditure being in the focus, in the last 3-4 years, we have made sure that our debt management is done in such a way that we honour the glide path for fiscal deficit that we had given in 2021," the minister said. She emphasised that money spent on capital expenditure gives return compared to revenue expenditure. "So public investment in infrastructure gives us greater returns," she said, and added the government is making sure that fiscal deficit is managed without hurt

FM Sitharaman moves Finance Bill 2024 for consideration in Rajya Sabha

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday moved the Finance Bill 2024 for consideration in the Rajya Sabha. The Finance Bill 2024 will be considered for returning to the Lok Sabha which passed the bill on Wednesday. The finance minister also moved a bill related to Jammu and Kashmir budget bill and appropriation Bill authorising the government to meet expenses for four months in the next financial year. "I move that the bill to continue the existing rates of income tax for the financial year 2024-25 and to provide for certain relief to taxpayers and to make amendments in certain enactments as passed by Lok sabha be taken into consideration," Sitharaman said while introducing the Finance Bill 2024-25. The minister moved the appropriation vote on Account Bill 2024 as passed by Lok Sabha as part of the discussion on the interim budget. The Appropriation Bill 2024 , The Jammu and Kashmir Appropriation 2 Bill, and the Jammu and Kashmir Appropriation Bill 2024 were also moved by t

FM Sitharaman tables 'White Paper', blames UPA for 'mountain of bad loans'

The 'White Paper' states that the UPA government failed miserably to facilitate economic activities and created hurdles that held back the economy

Railways lost Rs 25.5 cr due to injudicious procurement: Parl panel

Injudicious procurement of an additional CNC horizontal boring and milling machine by Patiala Locomotive Works cost a financial loss of Rs 25.43 crore to the Railways, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has said in its report in the Lok Sabha. The PAC, in its report tabled in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, carried out a detailed examination based on the CAG report, which was laid on the table of the House on December 21, 2022. Titled "Injudicious procurement of an additional CNC horizontal boring and milling machine: Patiala Locomotive Works", the report recommends the ministry to establish a mechanism for periodic review of procurement policies in line with evolving directives to prevent recurrence of such infructuous expenditure in future. The matter pertains to the manufacturing and rebuilding of Diesel Locomotives for Zonal Railways and Non-Railway Customers by the Patiala Locomotive Works (PLW) as the Railway Board assigns the work for manufacturing and rebuilding of various type

Railways mismanaged land purchase for Hajipur-Sagauli project: House panel

The Hajipur-Sagauli New Line project, sanctioned in 2003-04 at an estimated cost of Rs 24.66 crore, registered a huge cost escalation of Rs 2,066.78 crore in January 2019 due to indecisiveness of the Railway Administration, according to a Public Accounts Committee (PAC) report. Tabled in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, the report titled 'Loss due to indecision of Railway Administration in the matter of land acquisition: East Central Railway' was based on one of the findings of a Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report of 2021. After carrying out a detailed examination, the PAC observed that the railways' lack of prudent decision-making and timely payments resulted in avoidable extra expenditure, underscoring the importance of meticulous financial planning and adherence to land acquisition policies. "The Hajipur-Sagauli New Line project, sanctioned by the Ministry of Railways in 2003-04, underwent a series of financial oversights and lapses in land acquisition processes, leading to

LS passes Finance Bill, completes exercise for interim budget 2024-25

The Lok Sabha on Wednesday passed the Finance Bill, 2024, thus completing the exercise for passage of the interim budget 2024-25. The Finance Bill, 2024, does not propose any change in the tax structure as the final budget will be tabled in July after the new government assumes office post the general elections in April-May. Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said the Finance Bill, 2024, does not propose any change in tax structure. "We have focused on development despite presenting an interim budget ahead of elections, Chaudhary said replying to a discussion on the bill. Earlier in the day the Lok Sabha approved the Rs 47.66-lakh crore interim Budget 2024-25 of the Union Government and second batch of supplementary demands for grants. The House also approved the Appropriation Bill authorising government to meet expenses for four months in the next financial year. The lower house also approved the Rs 1.8 lakh crore budget of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

Highlights of the day: Bengal transferring money to 2.1 mn MGNREGA workers

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Govt sets up task force to resolve non-tariff barriers, says Piyush Goyal

The government has set up a task force under the Department of Commerce to identify, categorise and develop tailored strategies for the resolution of non-tariff barriers, Parliament was informed on Wednesday. Such barriers include prior registration requirements in the exporting country, cumbersome testing and certification requirements and unreasonable domestic standards/rules. Different countries enforce various regulatory measures to ensure the safety and quality of the products placed in their territory. These measures apply equally to domestic manufacturers and importers. However, such measures may sometimes act as trade barriers due to various reasons like gaps in the regulatory frameworks and quality compliance requirements of the trade partners, lack of transparency, arbitrariness or differing interpretation of the rules, and improper implementation. "Taking cognizance of the challenges involved in mapping the trade barriers, and to give increased focus, a task force has

PM Narendra Modi lashes out at Congress in Rajya Sabha; top 10 highlights

From jibes at Kharge's speech to accusation of dividing the country, Prime Minister launched a scathing attack against Congress ahead of the Lok Sabha 2024 elections

Budget session extended by a day till Feb 10: LS Speaker Om Birla

The Budget session of Parliament has been extended by a day till February 10, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla announced on Wednesday. The session, which began on January 31, was otherwise slated to end on February 9. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi had said on Tuesday that the government will table a 'white paper' comparing the state of the Indian economy before and after 2014, when the BJP came to power defeating the Congress. With the agenda items like the Finance Bill, budget discussion and demand for grants yet to be taken up by Parliament and the white paper also to be tabled, sources had said it was considered necessary to extend the session's duration by a day. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the 'white paper' to highlight the country's poor economic condition when the Congress-led UPA left power, as often charged by the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and how the incumbent dispensation brought the turn around. She will table it in b

Prime Minister Modi to reply on 'Motion of Thanks' in Rajya Sabha today

On Monday, the PM expressed his confidence in the NDA alliance securing 400 seats in the upcoming general election 2024

Strictly implement it once it becomes law: Gehlot on examinations Bill

With the Lok Sabha passing a bill that seeks to deal sternly with malpractices in competitive exams, former Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot on Tuesday said the central and state governments should coordinate and strictly implement it once it becomes a law. The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024, also has provisions for a maximum jail term of 10 years and a fine up to Rs 1 crore. "It was our long standing demand that the Government of India should make a strict law on paper leaks, on which a bill has now been introduced in the Parliament," Gehlot, a senior Congress leader, posted on 'X'. He said that "we made a law in Rajasthan providing life imprisonment and a fine of Rs 10 crore on paper leak". Now, the central government is making a law to impose 10 years imprisonment and a fine of Rs 1 crore, Gehlot said. He said, "The Government of India and all the state governments should coordinate and strictly implement the law against paper leaks so that just

Parliamentary panel for introduction of composite licence for insurers

A parliamentary panel on Tuesday suggested the introduction of composite licence for an insurer to undertake life, general, or health insurance under one entity to increase penetration of insurance in the country. The panel headed by BJP leader Jayant Sinha suggested the government to introduce a provision of composite licensing for insurance companies and make the related amendment in legislation at the earliest. As per the Insurance Act, 1938, and the regulations of the Insurance Regulatory Development Authority of India, composite licensing for an insurer to undertake life, general, or health insurance under one entity is not allowed. The panel also suggested a reduction in the GST rate on insurance products, especially health and term insurance, which is 18 per cent at present. The high rate of Goods and Services Tax (GST) results in a high premium burden, which acts as a deterrent to getting insurance policies. The committee, with a view to making insurance more affordable, .

Climate Change: Parliament panel unhappy over delay in submission of ATNs

A parliamentary committee has expressed displeasure over the "unprecedented" delay by the environment ministry in submitting action taken notes on the recommendations made in a report in 2018. In a report presented in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday, the 30-member Committee on Estimates chaired by BJP MP Sanjay Jaiswal said that ministries and departments concerned are required to furnish action take notes (ATNs) on the panel's recommendations within six months of the presentation of its report to Parliament. The committee presented its 30th report (16th Lok Sabha) on Performance of the National Action Plan on Climate Change to Parliament on December 13, 2018. While the ministry was expected to provide the ATNs by June 12, 2019, "the first set of requisite ATNs were received after a long delay" on September 13, 2021, the committee said. Subsequent sets of ATNs were received on October 28, 2021; and July 18 and August 24 last year, the committee said. "The committee takes serious note of

PM Narendra Modi gives 370 to BJP and 400 to NDA in Lok Sabha polls

Modi said he will continue to wage a battle against corruption, would not allow the looting of the country's resources and asserted that probe agencies were independent

SBI issues electoral bonds worth Rs 16,518 cr in 30 tranches since 2018

State Bank of India (SBI) has issued Electoral Bonds worth Rs 16,518 crore in 30 tranches since the inception of the scheme in 2018, Parliament was informed on Monday. The objective of the Electoral Bond Scheme is to ensure clean tax-paid money is coming into the system of political funding through proper banking channels, Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary said in a written reply in Lok Sabha. "The total value of Electoral Bonds purchased (Phase-I to Phase-XXX) from State Bank of India is about Rs 16,518 crore. No GST or any other taxes/cess are charged from the purchaser on the purchase of Electoral Bonds," he said. Sharing details, Chaudhary said, the commission paid to SBI by the Government of India for issuance and redemption of Electoral Bonds from Phase I to Phase XXV is about Rs 8.57 crore while the amount paid by the government to Security Printing & Minting Corporation of India Ltd (SPMCIL) till date is about Rs 1.90 crore. With regard to Rs 5,000 crore ...

344 antiquities returned to India since 2014: Govt tells Parliament

A total of 344 antiquities have been returned to India from other countries since 2014, the government informed the Parliament on Monday. Union Minister of Culture G Kishan Reddy said this in a written response to a query in Lok Sabha. Only one antiquity had been returned to India during 2004-13, according to the data shared by him in his response. A total of 115 antiquities were returned to India in 2023, and 344 antiquities have been returned since 2014, he said. On a query regarding smuggled antiquities, he replied that 314 antiquities have been repatriated during the last five years, and he also shared the country-wise data. From the US, 262 such items were repatriated in the last five years, 15 from the UK, 35 antiquities were returned from Australia and one from Italy in the same period. The issue of repatriation was attempted to be addressed in the Culture Working Group event during the G20 Summit. The subjects was "Re(ad)dress: Return of Treasures", he added. Reddy, in .

Budget session highlights: PM predicts at least 370 seats for BJP in LS

Parliament Budget Session 2024 Live Updates: Catch all the latest developments here