Reforms

Transporters welcome GST Council move to curb repeated checks on highways

Transport industry bodies say the GST Council's decision to limit highway inspections to intelligence-based checks will reduce unnecessary stoppages, delays and penalties

India's small businesses chase a new dawn amid reforms and financing push

With legislative reforms and improved financing, MSMEs are poised for a credit revolution despite lingering global headwinds

Rajiv Gauba calls for energy reforms, stronger regulation to boost security

The Niti Aayog member urged faster domestic exploration, a stronger gas value chain and regulatory reforms that keep pace with new technologies while protecting consumers

'Chintan Shivir' discusses Viksit Bharat priorities on first day

A two-day 'Chintan Shivir' of Union ministers will begin on Wednesday, where key aspects of governance and policymaking, with a special focus on reforms, are expected to be discussed. Official sources said the brainstorming session on September 23 and 24 will be held at 'Seva Teerth', which houses the Prime Minister's Office (PMO), and will be attended by the entire council of ministers. The conclave, to be chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is expected to discuss the progress of government schemes, policy implementation, time management, inter-ministerial coordination and public service delivery among others. Six groups comprising eight ministers each were constituted to brainstorm on issues like time-bound implementation of programmes and other governance issues. These groups have already held a number of meetings where they discussed the presentations to be made at the conclave. Some ministers are likely to make presentations on policies and measures undertaken by their .

Reforms to be focus of PM's two-day Chintan Shivir with Union ministers

The two-day conclave on September 23 and 24 will discuss reforms, government schemes, policy implementation, inter-ministerial coordination and public service delivery

'Reforms Utsav': Centre plans 1,639 events to celebrate 1,300 reforms

Centre plans a three-month 'Reforms Utsav' from October 2 to showcase more than 1,300 reforms through over 1,600 nationwide outreach events

GST Council to take up process reforms at October 7 meeting: FM Sitharaman

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman says the GST Council will discuss e-invoicing, input tax credit rules and other process reforms during its October 7 meeting

How liberalisation pushed power sector from persistent outages to surpluses

Three decades of reforms have taken India's power sector from chronic shortages to near-universal access and surplus capacity, but discom finances remain a key challenge

Nine years on, GST needs a more ambitious reform agenda starting now

The discussion on addressing its remaining shortcomings, including features adopted as compromises at the time of implementation, should start now policy pillars

Panel orders first comprehensive study to reform Delhi's cooperative sector

NABARD approves Delhi's first comprehensive cooperative sector study to identify reforms, strengthen governance, boost digitisation and revive financial performance

Beyond CJP, beyond Delhi: How movement took on a life of its own

Anushka Bhardwaj explains how the campaign became decentralised and spread across India, powered by students, satire, and shared outrage

Datanomics: ULCA repeal alone no guarantee of manufacturing, infra boost

Repealing the Urban Land Ceiling Act may improve land availability, but manufacturing and infrastructure growth also depend on ease of doing business and broader reforms

Britain's Farage quits parliament in protest, will stand for re-election

Nigel Farage quits as a UK lawmaker to trigger a by-election, saying he will seek a fresh mandate and continue Reform UK's political campaign

Datanomics: GST turns 9, collections see slower growth in recent years

GST enters its 10th year with slab reforms underway, but key sectors remain outside the tax net as revenue growth and tax-GDP gains trail expectations

Best of BS Opinion: India must push ahead on reforms agenda

Today's BS Opinion examines India's regulatory hurdles, the NEET-UG crisis, rising fiscal stress from welfare promises, corporate governance failures, and China under Xi Jinping

Reforms in India: From ease of doing business to ease of trusting systems

Trust is no longer just a matter of perception; it is a hard economic and governance variable

Streamline regulations: Jan Vishwas Bill is a step in the right direction

Notably, the Bill is not a standalone reform. It is part of a broader and consistent policy intervention over the past decade and is aimed at improving the business environment

India riding on reform express, reforms happening with clarity: Sitharaman

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday said India is riding on the reform express and reforms are happening with conviction and clarity. Replying to the debate on Finance Bill 2026 in the Lok Sabha, Sitharaman said, "Reform is not happening out of compulsion, but out of conviction, with clarity, confidence and commitment. India is riding on the reform express under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi." She further said there is a trust-based tax administration that is being improved by reducing unnecessary hardship for honest taxpayers. The government has taken various steps to empower MSMEs, farmers, and cooperatives because they are at the heart of creation of employment for production and for the overall development of India, she said. This Finance bill aims to support them with very many measures that improve liquidity but also reduce the compliance burden and give them the opportunity to have greater contribution towards the larger economy, she ...

Cuba emerges from another blackout and tries to woo exile investors

The precariousness of the island of 10 million people was on full display earlier, when it suffered another national blackout, at least the sixth such outage in the span of a year

Govt sets up 17-member committee for larger reforms in SEZ policy

The government has set up a 17-member committee to suggest larger reforms in the policy for special economic zones (SEZs), an official said. It will submit a concept paper recommending a roadmap for broad-based and comprehensive reforms to formulate a SEZ 2.0 policy. It will undertake a background study focused on the harmonisation of various prevalent export promotion schemes, including SEZs, export-oriented units (EoUs), MOOWR (Manufacturing and Other Operations in Warehouse), Advance Authorisation, EPCG (export promotion for capital goods), and Duty Free Import Authorisation (DFIA). The committee's composition includes representatives from commerce, customs, Niti Aayog, DPIIT, and CBIC. The terms of reference include examining the existing Special Economic Zones (SEZ) Act, 2005, with a view to assessing their effectiveness in the current global trade, investment environment and macro-economic landscape and harmonisation with other export promotion schemes so that policy distorti