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Classification based on environment impact will bring uniformity in time frame for approvals The proposed new classification of industries based on environment impact will bring uniformity in time frame for approvals and will give boost to manufacturing in India. Manufacturing is important for India’s sustained high economic growth and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make In India’ programme. However, the latest industrial production data has not been encouraging as manufacturing growth has not been high. Industry experts believe that rationalisation of industries under red, orange and green categories and introduction of a new category white will end inspector raj in environmental regulation. As per the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), the new mechanism will complement tamper proof online submission of emission and effluent data. The government has made online submission mandatory for Red category or most polluting industries and subsequently it will be extended to Orange cate...

In a move that could add real bite to India’s war on black money, the Swiss Federal Council on Wednesday approved a bill that would allow the government to share “stolen data” with other countries. The council, Switzerland’s highest executive authority, said in a statement: “The Federal Council initiated the consultation proceedings on the revision of the Tax Administrative Assistance Act, which provides for an easing of Swiss practices with regard to stolen data. Partner countries find Switzerland’s current practice too restrictive… the most pertinent illustration is the case of India (HSBC list).” The statement said that it would now be possible to respond to requests if a foreign country has obtained the “stolen data” via normal administrative assistance channels or from public sources. Switzerland has for long maintained that its domestic laws don’t acknowledge leaked data that is considered “stolen”. This stance has thwarted New Delhi’s probe into a list of more than 600 account...

If the finance ministry has its way, you will soon be able to withdraw Rs. 5,000 through point of sale machines at shops, up from Rs. 2,000 now. This can potentially bring down the use of automated teller machines (ATMs) to just large-value transactions. ×Ads by CinemaPlus-4.2v A senior finance ministry told ET that the government is in discussions with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to increase the withdrawal amount from the current limit of . 2,000 per day Rs. The facility was made available in 2013 for all debit and prepaid card holders. “There is a case for increasing the amount, more so in Tier III and Tier IV cities where ATMs are less and also at a lot of distance,“ the official said, adding that the move will support the mission of providing universal banking access. Under the government's ambitious financial inclusion scheme, the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), banks have opened 17.74 crore accounts with deposits of more than Rs. 22,000 crore. “Ease of taking out...

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday gave its approval to an order issued by government on August 28, to extend the provisions of compensation, rehabilitation and resettlement available to farmers under the 2013 Land Acquisition Act to 13 other central laws as well. The controversial issue of land ordinance, which was allowed to lapse on August 31, was also briefly discussed at the meeting of the Cabinet chaired by prime minister Narendra Modi, during which views were exchanged on the feedback from grassroots after the lapse of the ordinance. Sources said the prime minister was keen to know the reaction of farmers to the two land ordinance- related decisions taken by government in the past one week. Some ministers, according to the sources, said the decision to allow the ordinance to lapse was the right move against the backdrop of the " misinformation campaign" by opposition parties and some non- governmental organisations, which was creating " perception problems" for ...

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India ( ICAI) has formed a ‘ prima facie’ opinion in the complaint against the auditor of National Spot Exchange ( NSEL) at the time of the latter’s payments scam. The institute said in a reply to a query under the Right to Information law) that its director (discipline) had formed the view and this had been sent to the (internal) ‘ competent authority’. The decision of the latter is to be reported in due course, it added. The reply did not indicate whether the said view confirmed the alleged misconduct or not. ICAI has been probing complaints against Mukesh P Shah &Co, the entity which audited NSEL in the run- up to its collapse, following a ? 5,600 crore payment crisis in July 2013. The first complaint was in September 2013 by one Uday Punj, followed by two more by investors. All these were combined. The auditor responded to these allegations in November 2013. After waiting for several months, the complainants moved the high court ...

The income tax department has extended the deadline for online filing of returns for the 2015- 16 assessment year by seven days ( till September 7), as e- filing services went slow on the earlier deadline of August 31. However, sources said servers at Bengalurus Central Processing Centre ( CPC), where the e- filing forms are being processed, were working fine that day. An official statement said, “ The Central Board of Direct Taxes ( CBDT) has extended the due date for e- filing of returns of the income tax from August 31 to September 7.” Some of those filing returns on August 31 said “ system error” was showing up on the screen of their computers when they tried to file the returns. The government has received representations from tax payers, saying they had faced difficulties in e- filing of returns due to slowing of certain e- services. Taking these complaints into account, CBDT has extended the deadline. Sources said the system had slowed down due to heavy traffic on the last day ...