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PM Modi may launch second phase of Digital India programme on June 15 The programme was launched by Modi in 2015 with an aim to make all government services available to citizens electronically Keeping an eye at the target of a Rs 1 trillion digital economy by 2022, the government could soon announce the second phase of its Digital India programme, with about 30 policy initiatives. According to sources, this is likely to be launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi around June 15. The electronics and information technology ministry is working on the boost to the existing programme, the sources added. The programme was launched by Modi in 2015 with an aim to make all government services available to citizens electronically. "The proposal is to launch the programme immediately after the Modi government completes four years in office,” an official in the ministry said. The focus would be on services such as health, education, rural development, agriculture, energy and next-gen...

 Intra-state e-way bill rolled out in five states from Sunday From midnight till 5 pm on Sunday, about 0.24 million e-way bill (both inter state and intra-state) was generated on the portal, an official said E-way bill requirement for intra-state movement of goods has been rolled out in five states from Sunday. The bill for inter-state movement of goods valued over Rs 50,000 was rolled out on April 1. The Goods and Services Council had decided on a staggered roll out of intra-state e-way bill starting with five states — Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Kerala. From midnight till 5 pm on Sunday, about 0.24 million e-way bill (both inter state and intra-state) was generated on the portal, an official said. The official said there was not much increase in the generation of bill on Sunday on account of intra-state roll out. On the day of inter-state roll out of e-way bill on April 1, about 0.28 million such bills were generated in 24 hours The official sa...

Cos may have to Rework salary Packages to reduce GST Impact The next tweak to GST could end up pinching your pockets on salary day  India Inc may have to start restructuring compensation packages or human resource benefits of their employees to ensure they don’t face taxing times under the goods and services tax (GST).  Reimbursements on home rentals, telephone charges beyond a certain limit, medical premiums for extra coverage, health check-ups, transportation, gym use, uniforms or even re-issue of identity cards could face GST.  Tax experts have started advising companies to ask HR departments to examine these issues closely, especially in the wake of a recent decision by the Authority for Advance Rulings in a case concerning canteen charges. Though AAR rulings are case specific, they can be taken as precedent. AAR had ruled that canteen charges recovered from an employee would be liable to GST. GST on employer to-employee supplies could cause employers to sto...

RBI may loosen NPA norms to let banks breathe easy  The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) may relax some of the stringent norms for treatment of bad loans that it announced in February without diluting their spirit, said two officials aware of the development.  The finance ministry has made a case for providing some relief, especially for small and medium enterprises, given that the tighter rules could force defaulters into rapid bankruptcy, which could dent jobs generation, they said.  The one-day, non-performing asset (NPA) classification norm may be extended to 30 days and the requirement that a resolution plan has to be approved by all lenders could be lowered to 75%, they said. This will mean that only if any amount is due for more than 30 days will it be considered a default.  Under new rules announced by RBI in February, even a one-day delay would be considered a default. “The RBI is having a relook — we expect some relief without diluting the spirit of the ...