Skip to main content

Excessive cash boosts parallel economy, says finance minister

NEWDELHI: Defending the demonetisation move and listing out several measures undertaken by the NDA government to fight corruption and black money circulation, finance minister Arun Jaitley said the usage of cash only boosts parallel economy and thus it must be curbed.

He said demonetisation was just a part of the several initiatives taken by the government to weed out black money.

The fight against corruption and black money should not be seen as a political fight, Jaitley said, adding that the demonetisation move was primarily aimed at weeding out the ills of society.

“It is no credit to any economy that you deal in cash… cash has a lot of vices,” he said in the Rajya Sabha, just before PM Narendra Modi’s address in the Upper House. Jaitley said most other countries are “less-cash” economies and people must be encouraged to adopt technology and move towards a digital economy.

Taking a dig at Congress leader Anand Sharma, who said the government was not throwing any light on the status of the H1B visa, Jaitley said the leader was blaming the NDA for the policies that the new US government was coming up with.

Speaking in the Rajya Sabha, Sharma said the demonetisation exercise had put the common man in utter distress and uncertainty since the Indian economy was largely cash-based. 

Just after assuming office, the government set up a Supreme Court monitored special investigation team (SIT) to address the menace of illegal money. The government also renegotiated tax treaties and automatic information exchange agreements with various tax havens, including Switzerland and Mauritius. The government negotiated an Automatic Information Exchange Agreement with Switzerland. It has renegotiated the Double Tax Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) with Mauritius. Besides, the government also launched the income disclosure scheme — a one-time window offered to those hoarding black money to come clean. Recently, it also initiated the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana as part of the demonetisation exercise. 

09TH FEBRUARY, 2017, HINDUSTAN TIMES, NEW-DELHI

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Govt’s gamble on GST cuts: What do the bond and currency markets signal?

  It’s not just humans who suffer from cognitive biases; markets do too. Interestingly, different financial markets exhibit distinct biases, each interpreting events through its own prism of prejudice. Take the recent announcements on GST reforms: equity markets have chosen to view them through the lens of growth, while bond and currency markets are focusing on potential macroeconomic risks—fiscal pressures and current account challenges. So, which lens captures the true pulse?Equity markets may be right in expecting GST reforms to revive consumption, which has remained lacklustre for a while. But the key question remains—will this revival come at the cost of broader macro stability?It is well known that consumption stocks have rallied since the GST rationalisation announcement. But what about bond markets? What signals are they sending since this rejig was announced from the ramparts of the Red Fort?The signs aren't encouraging. Bond prices have slumped and yields have surged sinc...

Luxury carmakers urge clarity on GST rates to boost festive season sales

  A clear picture regarding new GST rates at the earliest will help the overall auto industry, including the luxury car segment, to regain momentum in the ongoing quarter, which generally sees enhanced sales on account of the festive season.The high-powered GST Council, chaired by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, will meet on September 3-4 to discuss moving to a two-slab taxation.In an interaction with PTI, BMW Group India President and CEO Hardeep Singh Brar said the recent speculation about the change in GST rates has caused uncertainty in the minds of consumers.Consumer interest and demand is strong, but they (prospective buyers) have adopted a wait-and-watch approach, and this delayed decision-making is impacting new vehicle sales at a certain level, he noted."Expediting clarity on GST rates is essential to get back to speed and ensure the auto sector's contribution to economic growth during this quarter is robust," Brar stated.He also hoped that the sustainable p...

Sebi proposes tighter norms for green bond third-party reviewers

  Sebi on Friday said it has proposed to tighten the norms to appoint independent third-party reviewers or certifiers for green debt securities to align them with requirements for other ESG-linked bonds.In a draft circular, Sebi said that the current norms for green bonds, introduced in February 2023, lack detailed requirements around reviewer independence, conflict of interest mitigation, and disclosure standards that are now in place for other ESG-linked securities under a June 2025 circular.The regulator's latest proposal seeks public comments on a revised framework that would bring parity by incorporating comprehensive criteria for third-party certifiers of green bonds on non-convertible securities.Under the proposed norms, issuers of green debt securities will need to appoint reviewers who are independent of their management, directors, and key managerial personnel. These reviewers will be remunerated in a way that prevents any conflicts of interest and possess relevant expert...