Eye on the Economy

Updated : Apr 25, 2013

The Budget war: How Chidambaram and Pranab added to economy's woes

The UPA's 10 budgets have been presented by two finance ministers, P. Chidambaram and Pranab Mukherjee. Despite being from the same political party, Chidambaram and Mukherjee have tried to undo each other's work, adding to the economy's problems.

Updated : Mar 21, 2013

Budget 2013/14 assumes the economy will perform better

Budget 2013/14 assumes the economy will perform better than in the previous year and tax administration will be much more efficient.

Updated : Mar 19, 2013

Budget 2013: Why India needs a bank for women

A bank exclusively for women, as announced in the Budget, is a good idea. The government hopes to launch the bank in October with an initial capital of Rs 1,000 crore. But how effective the bank is will depend on the business model it adopts and how it innovates to best cater to women's needs.

Updated : Mar 1, 2013

Little cheer for IT industry in Chidambaram's Budget 2013

Finance Minister P. Chidambaram has ignored most of the IT sector's direct tax requests in his budget for 2013/14.

Updated : Mar 1, 2013

Votebank on Chidambaram's mind as he woos all with budget 2013

The Congress, in its efforts to camouflage the potholes in the economy, has clearly joined the race to captivate the minds of an aspirational India in its last ditch attempt to corner the vote before the next year general elections.

Updated : Feb 28, 2013

Budget 2013: Spotlight on basics of education

The finance minister has announced a 17 per cent increase over the previous year in resource expenditure, to Rs 65,867 crore.

Updated : Feb 28, 2013

Not much for real estate sector in Budget

Finance Minister P. Chidambaram announced a series of measures for the real estate sector in the 2013/14 Budget, but failed to lift the spirits of prospective buyers bearing the brunt of high property prices.

Updated : Feb 28, 2013

Pricey connectivity

Budget 2013/14 looks to raise Rs 40,847 crore from spectrum sale - a stiff target considering that the government earned less than a fourth of what it had estimated for 2G auctions of cancelled licences.

Updated : Feb 28, 2013

Budget high on rhetoric, low on funds for food security

For all the talk of the United Progressive Alliance government about the seminal step the proposed National Food Security Bill will be in eradicating hunger and malnutrition, Finance Minister P Chidambaram's budgetary allocation for it is paltry.

Updated : Feb 28, 2013

Budget fails to signal stable, friendly tax regime

Tax experts say Chidambaram has failed to take any major steps to improve India's tax regime in keeping with global best practices.

Updated : Feb 28, 2013

Union Budget 2013-14: Taxing the super rich will make little difference

It was perhaps one of the easiest taxes to levy to increase government revenues - the 10 per cent surcharge on individual incomes of over Rs 1 crore that Finance Minister P. Chidambaram proposed in his Budget speech. 

Updated : Feb 28, 2013

Union Budget 2013: FM radio could be on the road to profitability

Finance Minister P. Chidambaram has announced auctions for 839 frequencies and has promised that every town with a population of more than 100,000 people would have at least three radio channels.

Updated : Feb 28, 2013

Sweet and sour budget for angel investors

Budget 2013 specifies that Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) would "register angel investors under 'category I AIF' (Alternative Investment Fund Regulations) which has tax pass through status".

Updated : Feb 28, 2013

Union Budget 2013-14: Mobile phones will become costlier

Finance Minister P. Chidambaram announced a hike in excise duty to six per cent on mobile phones costing Rs 2,000 and above in his Budget 2013/14 speech.

Updated : Feb 28, 2013

Budget 2013: Hike in duty on set-top boxes could have a positive long-term impact

Though the hike in import duty in set-top boxes from four per cent to 10 per cent will put pressure on cable and DTH companies in the short-term, the long-term could see the emergence of a bunch of new entrepreneurs investing in set-top box business.

Updated : Feb 28, 2013

Will inflation-indexed bonds check rising gold demand?

To curb the appetite for gold, Finance Minister P Chidambaram in Budget 2013 has proposed the introduction of inflation-indexed bonds or national security certificates.

Updated : Feb 28, 2013

Shot in the arm for SIDBI

The budget has increased allocation to SIDBI, from Rs 5,000 crore to Rs 10, 000 crore, which will now empower the organization to reach out to more SMEs through commercial banks.

Updated : Feb 28, 2013

Budget 2013: Chidambaram introduces CTT on non-agri commodities

For the first time, a CTT of 0.01 per cent has been levied on all non agri-commodities futures, which account for more than 80 per cent of the trading volumes on the exchanges.

Updated : Feb 28, 2013

Budget 2013: Rs 14,000 crore to PSU banks, no word on holding company

Given the current environment with gross domestic product growth slowing to  5-5.5 per cent,  it will be very difficult for the government to infuse huge sums into public sector banks.

Updated : Feb 28, 2013

No case for a women's bank

The government can easily achieve its objective of encouraging women entrepreneurs through the 26 existing public sector banks, which have branches across the country.

Updated : Feb 28, 2013

Union Budget 2013 offers little to the roads sector

The finance minister said that while the roads sector has reached a level of maturity, it is plagued by problems such as financial stress, enhanced construction risk and contractual management issues.