State Bank of India (SBI) Chairman Dinesh Kumar Khara has called for tax relief on interest income in the upcoming Budget. Khara believes that providing tax relief would enable banks to attract more savings, which could then be utilized for funding long-term infrastructure projects. Currently, banks are required to deduct tax when the interest income from deposits held across all branches exceeds ₹40,000 in a year. However, interest earned up to ₹10,000 in savings accounts is exempt from tax. The SBI chairman is also optimistic about the bank's loan growth, expecting it to reach 14-15% in the fiscal year 2024-25. In the previous year, deposits grew by 11%. SBI currently has an excess Statutory Liquidity Ratio (SLR) of ₹3.5 lakh crore to ₹4 lakh crore. Last month, the bank increased the fixed deposit rate on select short-term maturities by up to 75 basis points [c74b2941].
The Full Budget for the fiscal year 2024-25 is expected to be presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in Parliament next month. The SBI chairman's proposal for tax relief on interest income aligns with his vision of utilizing increased savings for long-term infrastructure projects. This suggestion comes as part of a broader discussion on the upcoming Budget, which aims to focus on capital expenditure, income support, and economic revival. The Budget is also expected to streamline schemes for job creation, boost micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), and provide incentives for manufacturers to procure from MSMEs under production-linked incentive (PLI) schemes. The government intends to ensure maximum reach and hassle-free claims by streamlining all MSME subsidy and credit-linked schemes. The Budget will be presented after consultations with leading economists, industry representatives, farmers associations, and other stakeholders [7c6738c1].
The 53rd meeting of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) council took place in New Delhi, chaired by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. The council made several decisions, including waiving interest and penalties for demand notices issued under Section 73 of the GST Act. The council also recommended the rolling out of biometric-based Aadhaar authentication on an all-India basis to combat fraudulent input tax credit claims. Additionally, services for hostel accommodation provided to students outside educational institutions will be exempt from GST for services valued up to ₹20,000 per person per month, provided these services are for a minimum continuous period of 90 days. GST will not be levied on services such as battery-operated vehicles and intra-railway services. Small and medium taxpayers, especially MSMEs, will benefit from an extended time limit for GSTR-4 filing to June 30, FY24-25 onwards. The time limit for availing input tax credit for invoices or debit notes under Section 16(4) of the CGST Act for financial years 2017-18 through 2020-21 will be deemed from 2011 to 2021, with retrospective effect from July 1, 2017. Interest and penalties for demand notices from 2017-18, 2018-19, and 2019-20 will be waived if the tax is paid by March 31, 2025. The Council recommended limits of Rs 1 crore for High Court appeals and Rs 2 crore for Supreme Court appeals. The maximum pre-deposit amount for filing appeals before the appellate authority will be reduced from Rs 25 crore CGST and Rs 25 crore SGST to Rs 20 crore CGST and Rs 20 crore SGST [4f1edf28] [a8e42e2e].
Ravi Agrawal, a 1988-batch IRS officer, has been appointed as the new chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), the administrative body for the Income Tax Department. He takes over from Nitin Gupta, a 1986-batch Indian Revenue Service officer, whose extended tenure as the chairman ends on June 30. The new CBDT chief is currently working as Member (Administration) in the Board at present. An official order said Agarwal will head the CBDT till June, 2025. His scheduled retirement is in September this year but his appointment order said he will be on "reappointment on contract basis" till June 30 next year. The CBDT is the apex policy making body for the Income-tax department. The CBDT is headed by a chairman and can have six members who are in the rank of special secretary. [125000db]