Governance Community

Nirmala Sitharaman, the finance minister, began the presentation of the last full budget of the Modi government with the statement “This is the first Budget of Amrit Kaal.” According to the FM, the Indian economy is recognized as a bright spot worldwide. India’s growth in the current fiscal year was the highest among major economies at 7%. Sitharaman stated in her budget address that the Indian economy is on the right track and is poised for a bright future. She said that the Budget adopts the following seven priorities. They complement each other and act as the ‘Saptarishi’ guiding us through the Amrit Kaal. 1) Inclusive Development 2) Reaching the Last Mile 3) Infrastructure and Investment 4) Unleashing the Potential 5) Green Growth 6) Youth Power 7) Financial Sector The per capita income has climbed to Rs 1.97 lakh. During the same period, India’s GDP increased from 10th to 5th largest in the world, according to Sitharaman’s speech during the Union Budget. The introduction of Budget 2023 coincides with the crippling slowdown and potential recession that affect the world’s major advanced economies. For the first time ever, Indian Railways has received a capital outlay of Rs. 2.40 lakh crore. According to Sitharaman, this is the railways’ highest capital outlay. Nirmala Sitharaman, disclosed a significant increase in capital expenditure. The amount allocated for capital expenditures has increased by 33% to Rs 10 lakh crore in the Union Budget. This equates to 3.3% of the GDP. The FM also disclosed a significant expansion of the PM Awaas Yojana. Sithraman mentioned the continuance of the food security programme for another year in her statement on the budget. She also announced actions for agri startups, fisheries, and launched a programme for primitive, vulnerable tribal groups. Major announcements for Income Tax payers: No changes in the old tax regime New tax regime to become the default tax regime No tax on income up to Rs 7.5 lakh a year in new tax regime Govt proposes to reduce highest surcharge rate from 37% to 25% in new tax regime New slabs under new tax regimes Rs 0-3 lakhs: Nil Rs 3-6 lakhs: 5% Rs 6-9 lakhs: 10% Rs 9-12 lakhs: 15% Rs 12-15 lakhs: 20% Rs Over 15 lakhs: 30% Govt proposes to cap deductions from capital gains on investments in residential houses to Rs 10 crore An individual with annual income of Rs 9 lakh will have to pay only Rs 45,000 in taxes: FM Sitharaman Income of Rs 15 lakh will fetch Rs 1.5 lakh tax, down from Rs 1.87 lakh A Rs 50,000 standard deduction to taxpayers has been introduced under the new regime Payment received from Agniveer Corpus Fund by Agniveers to be exempted For online games, govt proposes to provide for TDS and taxability on net winnings at the time of withdrawal or at the end of fiscal Fully imported luxury cars and EVs to cost more as govt raises custom duty from 60% to 70% in Budget. Tax exemption on leave encashment on retirement of non-government salaried employees hiked to Rs 25 lakh from Rs 3 lakh  

According to Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Minister of State for Electronics and IT, India’s export of electronics could reach Rs. 1.28 lakh crore in the upcoming fiscal year. In an interview with a news agency, he stated that the government would strengthen the manufacturing ecosystem by introducing a new production-linked incentive scheme for companies that produce IT devices, hearing aids, and other wearables. To promote the production of electronic components and critical modules other than semiconductors, the industry body for manufacturers of electronic components, ELCINA, has asked for $10 billion (about Rs 80,000 crore) over an eight-year period. The Scheme for Promotion of Manufacturing of Electronic Components and Semiconductors (SPECS) has been requested to be extended for an additional four years with an increased investment of Rs 16,000 crore in the Union Budget for 2023–2024. With a targeted output of USD 24 billion (about Rs 1.95 lakh crore), ELCINA believes that the enhanced PLI will draw investments totalling around Rs 64,000 crore. Semiconductors are the only component that is not included in this production. The industry body has also asked for the reintroduction of income tax deductions for investments made in R&D. Additionally, a PLI scheme with an emphasis on domestic electronics manufacturing services companies has been requested. In order to promote domestic manufacturing, the India Electronics and Semiconductor Association (IESA) has asked the government to change the PLI scheme into a design-led manufacturing programme and impose a 10% import duty on any imported electronics equipment and assembled printed circuit boards (PCB).

On the basis of the most recent amendment to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 (IT Rules 2021), the Centre created three Grievance Appellate Committees (GACs) on Saturday. This notification has been made public today. Three Grievance Appellate Committees, each with three members, have been established, according to the notification. By establishing new accountability criteria for SSMIs, the IT rules 2021 ensure that no BigTech platform violates the constitutional rights of Indian citizens and create options for grievance redressal outside of the legal system. Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Minister of State for Electronics & Information Technology and Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, articulated the government’s position during the extensive public consultations on the IT Rules, saying that the government’s unambiguous goal was to ensure the safety and trust of every Digital Nagrik and the accountability of all internet platforms offering a service or product. He also stated that all complaints must be adequately addressed. The Ministry of Electronics & IT stated in a statement that the Grievance Appellate Committee is a crucial part of the overall policy and legislative framework to ensuring that internet in India is Open, Safe & Trusted and Accountable. Numerous complaints that were unresolved or handled insufficiently by online intermediaries led to the necessity for GAC. The GAC is supposed to foster a culture of consumer responsiveness among all internet platforms and intermediaries. The GAC will be a virtual platform that solely functions online and digitally; all aspects of the appeals process, from filing an appeal to receiving a ruling, will take place online. The website https://www.gac.gov.in  which will be soon online, is where the aggrieved individuals can lodge their appeals. Before this new appellate body, users will have the option to appeal a decision made by the grievance officer of social media intermediaries and other internet intermediaries. The committee will try to respond to the user’s appeal within 30 days. The government had already communicated with significant social media intermediaries. The online platform will be available one month after this notification of the Grievance Appellate Committee — on March 1, 2023 — taking into consideration the transition period needed for the intermediaries in accordance with their demands and technological requirements. The ministry also said that there will be regular evaluations of GACs, as well as reporting and disclosures of its orders.

The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) directed all “entities” using Aadhaar authentications to obtain residents’ informed consent before beginning any such process. The Union ministry of electronics & IT (MeitY) highlighted the new UIDAI guidelines for Requesting Entities (REs) and stated that all REs that conduct online authentications will be required to ensure that residents understand the type of data being collected and the purpose of Aadhaar authentications. “It has underlined that logs of authentication transactions including the consent taken are kept only for the period as prescribed in the Aadhaar Regulations. And purging of such logs after the expiry of the said time period shall also be done as per the Aadhaar Act and its regulations,” MeitY said.  The new regulations apply to REs who assist residents with Aadhaar authentication. For authentication, REs are responsible for providing the Central Identities Data Repository with the Aadhaar number and demographic, and biometric OTP information. REs should be courteous to residents and reassure them of the security and confidentiality of the Aadhaar numbers, which are being used for authentication transactions, according to UIDAI, which has made this point clear. The Authority has also advised REs to report the UIDAI right once if they notice any suspicious activity related to authentications, such as possible resident impersonation or any compromise with or fraud by any authentication operator. In general, REs shouldn’t store Aadhaar in either physical or electronic form without masking or redacting the initial 8 digits of the Aadhaar number. The UIDAI has instructed REs only to store an Aadhaar number if they have been given permission to do so and, in the manner, specified by the UIDAI. The identifying authority has also requested that REs work with UIDAI and other organisations it has authorized for any security audits in accordance with the law and regulations, as well as establish appropriate grievance-handling mechanisms for residents.  

After External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar expressed India’s commitment to increase investment flows to hasten the debt-ridden island nation’s economic recovery, Sri Lanka expressed gratitude to India for its generous support of a $3.9 billion credit line last year and the assurances given to the IMF to restructure the country’s debt. Jaishankar, who is in town on a two-day visit, met President Ranil Wickremesinghe and his counterpart Ali Sabry from Sri Lanka on Thursday. “It was my privilege to welcome my friend Hon EAM of India Dr S. Jaishankar in Colombo. I thank him for the generous support of the USD 3.9B credit line last year and the assurances given to the IMF to restructure the debt. Sri Lanka is fortunate to have caring and considerate friends!” Sabry tweeted on Friday. It should be mentioned that India provided $3.9 billion in aid to Sri Lanka to help it meet its urgent needs for things like food, cooking gas, and oil as well as sustain itself in the face of a serious economic and financial crisis. In order to help Sri Lanka, fill its fuel shortage, India and the Indian Oil Company earlier agreed to a credit line under which the Indian Oil Company would send petroleum products worth $500 million.

Alkesh Kumar Sharma, MeitY’s Secretary, has unveiled the Technology for Air Quality Monitoring System (AI-AQMS v1.0) that was developed as part of initiatives with MeitY support. Under the “National programme on Electronics and ICT applications in Agriculture and Environment (AgriEnIcs),” the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC), Kolkata, in collaboration with TeXMIN, ISM, Dhanbad, has developed an outdoor air quality monitoring station to monitor environmental pollutants, including parameters like PM 1.0, PM 2.5, PM 10.0, SO2, NO2, CO, O2, ambient temperature, relative humidity, etc., for continuous air quality analysis of the environment. The Air Quality Monitoring System (AI-AQMS v1.0) was also given to the selected company, J.M. EnviroLab Private Limited, for further commercialization and implementation of the same technology in various mines and cement industries. The transfer of technology (ToT) was carried out at MeitY, New Delhi, where a ToT agreement was signed by Dr. Deepa Taneja, CEO of J.M.EnviroLab Private Limited, and Senior Director & Centre Head, C-DAC, Kolkata, in the presence of Alkesh Kumar Sharma, Secretary, Bhuvnesh Kumar, Additional Secretary, MeitY, Sunita Verma, Group Coordinator, MeitY, Naveen Kumar Vidyarthi, Director  (IT), MoEFCC, Dr. Basanta Kumar Das, Director, ICAR-CIFRI, Debasis Mazumdar, Senior Director & Centre Head, C-DAC, Kolkata, Om Krishan Singh, Scientist ‘D’, MeitY, other industry partners, project team members and other respected dignitaries representing various users and ministry.

The MAARG platform (Mentorship, Advisory, Assistance, Resilience, and Growth) was established by Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal to promote mentorship between startups and entrepreneurs across industries, stages, and functions. Startups will be able to interact with mentors and discuss their mentorship requirements throughout the portal’s matchmaking phase. Additionally, the minister will announce the National Startup Awards 2022 winners. A cash prize of Rs 5 lakh will be presented to each of the winning startups. A cash prize of Rs 15 lakh will also be given to one exceptional incubator and one accelerator, respectively. The winning and finalist startups will benefit from the support provided for their business growth, mentorship, funding, partnerships, and market access opportunities, the ministry stated. This will further enable them to serve as an example for other entrepreneurs. The National Startup Awards 2022 invited applications from 17 sectors, 50 sub-sectors, and 7 special categories. These industries included Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, Construction, Drinking Water, Education & Skill Development, Energy, Enterprise Technology, Environment, Fintech, Food Processing, Health & Wellness, Media and Entertainment, Industry 4.0, Security, Space, Transport and Travel.

The budget session of Parliament will begin on January 31, 2023. It will run till April 6. There will be a break from February 14 to March 12. “Amid Amrit Kaal, looking forward to discussions on Motion of Thanks on the President’s Address, Union Budget & other items,” tweeted Union Minister Pralhad Joshi while announcing the budget session dates. The winter session of Parliament saw numerous adjournments and interruptions on a variety of concerns. Political experts believe that the budget session will be disrupted in the same way, particularly on subjects such as the impending recession, the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war, rising prices, and so on. “During the Budget Session, 2023 the recess time is there to enable the department related Parliamentary Standing Committees to examine the Demands for Grants and make reports relating to their Ministries/ Departments,” added the Union Minister. There will be 27 sittings over the course of 66 days.

According to Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, India’s economy is now more transparent, and citizens are becoming accustomed to paying taxes. He said that recent tax revenues were very robust and that any reforms implemented by the government in the previous eight years, such as the good and services tax (GST), had a big influence on the economy. “India has been evolving. A lot of structural changes that took place in the last eight years have had a significant impact on the way the Indian economy is poised to take off in the next 25 years,” added Goyal. On Saturday, the Union Minister virtually addressed the attendees during the 27th Wharton India Economic Forum via videoconference. India’s leading innovation in the age of uncertainty served as the event’s theme. According to Piyush Goyal, the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) was another crucial reform step that helped India develop strong financial systems. He claimed that these banks have been able to collectively offer resources for industry and infrastructure to grow. According to the ministry of commerce, measures including privatisation, economic digitization, legal decriminalisation, and compliance simplification will enable doing business easier.  “These reforms prepared India for the next 25 years and we hope to see the Indian economy among the top three economies in the world,” Piyush Goyal said. In response to a query on the government’s strategic priorities, Goyal listed infrastructure, semiconductors, and domestic manufacturing as some of the top industries. The prime minister is focusing on developing a strong infrastructure in India, according to the commerce minister, who listed semiconductors, domestic manufacturing, and infrastructure as some of the priority sectors for the Indian economy. He continued, “Private sector is also contributing to India’s infrastructure story.” Additionally, he discussed the Atmanirbhar Bharat scheme’s PLI initiatives. As part of its Atmanirbhar Bharat scheme, the government introduced production-linked incentive (PLI) schemes in a number of industries to increase exports, boost investments, make Indian manufacturing more competitive abroad, and decrease reliance on imports. In spite of the country’s struggles during the Covid-19 outbreak, he claimed, Indian industry stepped up to the plate and started producing personal protective equipment.

In the recently released proposal of online gaming regulations, the government has suggested a self-regulatory framework, player verification requirements, and physical Indian addresses for online gaming companies. “Self-regulatory bodies will be registered with the ministry (Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology) and may register online games of such online gaming intermediaries who are its members and which meet certain criteria,” the notice stated. These organisations will also handle concerns through a grievance resolution process. The proposed revisions are intended to meet the aforementioned need and promote responsible expansion of the online gambling industry. The revised version assumes that any intermediary for online gaming will exercise the due diligence required by the rules, including making reasonable efforts to prevent its users from hosting, displaying, uploading, publishing, transmitting, or sharing any online game that is in violation of Indian law, including any gambling or betting laws. By placing a registration mark on all online games registered by a self-regulatory body and informing users of its withdrawal or refund of deposit policy, method of calculating and distributing winnings, fees and other costs due, and KYC procedure for user account registration, the proposed regulations mandate additional due diligence for companies.