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Trai Chief hits back at telcos; says allegations of bias uncalled for  Trai Chairman RS Sharma today slammed incumbent telecom operators for trying to dent the sectoral regulator's impartiality and credibility, saying that their allegations of bias or favour in regulation are absolutely "inappropriate and uncalled for".  He said the regulator has framed the rules including that on predatory pricing following the principles of fairness, transparency and consultation.  "We are in an unenviable position... We are not here running a popularity contest," he told PTI in an interview here.  His comments came just days after British telecom giant Vodafone termed Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai's) new rule on predatory pricing as "unfair", and said the company was fighting the competition "with hands tied at the back".  Sunil Mittal, who heads the country's biggest mobile phone firm Bharti Airtel had also recently stated th

SEBI to relax start-up net worth norms, allow listing on SME platform Move follows failure of ITP to attract start-ups; many have raised money from PE investors and have much higher networth to qualify for the platform Market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) is planning to allow start-ups to list on the small and medium enterprises (SME) platform of the stock exchanges. Sources say start-ups will be given special relaxations on the SME platform in terms of net worth requirements and profitability. The move comes after Indian stock exchanges in coordination with Sebi held several discussions with both the industry participants and to come up with a new framework for start-up listing. The move comes after Institutional trading platform (ITP), a special segment for listing of new-age companies, failed to take-off. Sources say the idea behind the move is to provide capital raising opportunities to small and mid level start-ups who cannot list on the main boar

SEBIputs more safeguards for FPI investors Sebi has also allowed category-II FPIs to act as participatory notes (p-notes) issuers Market regulator Sebi has further amended the “Easing of access norms for investment by FPIs” circular by providing further safeguards. In the new circular, Sebi has asked private banks who invest on behalf of their clients to collect proper KYC details from investors. The regulator has said this route cannot be used by Indian citizens or non-resident Indians. Also, the collective investment a private bank makes on behalf its clients should be broad-based.A collective investment by the bank should have more than 20 investors with no single one owning more than 49 per cent. Sebi has also allowed category-II FPIs to act as participatory notes (p-notes) issuers. But, such funds should apply for a separate registration and would also have to fulfil the broad-basing criteria along with the requirement of a common portfolio. This clarification from Sebi

  CBDT to conduct nationwide review of tax collection for FY18 today In December, the CBDT had revised the target for direct tax collection to Rs 10 trillion, which includes personal income tax and corporate tax, up from the budgeted Rs 9.8 trillion The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) will conduct on Wednesday a countrywide review of tax collection, especially for advance tax, tax deduction at source (TDS), arrears, and black money cases in a bid to shore up the direct tax revenue kitty for the financial year ending March 31. In December, the CBDT had revised the target for direct tax collection to Rs 10 trillion, which includes personal income tax and corporate tax, up from the budgeted Rs 9.8 trillion. Sources said the agency was confident of achieving the ambitious target as it was receiving a overwhelming response from India Inc. “We are looking at better advance tax collection for the January-March quarter. Up to December, Rs 3.8 trillion advance tax had been collecte

Fugitive Economic Offenders Bill to cover wide-ranging white-collar crimes   The provisions of the fugitives bill, introduced in the Lok Sabha on Monday, will apply to those involved in loan defaults, bank frauds, tax evasion, black money, benamy transactions and corruption   The government on Monday introduced a bill in the Lok Sabha seeking punitive powers to target fugitives who have committed white-collar crimes. Significantly, the brief of the proposed legislation is much wider than the initial draft that had been put out by the government last year.   The provisions of the Fugitive Economic Offenders Bill 2018 will extend to not only loan defaulters and fraudsters but also to those individuals who violate laws governing taxes, black money, benami properties, financial sector and corruption. Earlier this month, the cabinet had cleared a bill that seeks to give the government powers to attach assets of offenders who are outside the country and do not return to India t

Growth engine gets twin boost from IIP, CPI data  India’s industrial growth accelerated in January while inflation eased for the second month running in February, providing a twin boost to the economy and suggesting overall economic growth could accelerate further from the five-quarter high recorded in the October-December period.  Industrial production growth rose higher than expected to 7.5% in January from 7.1% in the previous month, data released by the government showed, on the back of strong manufacturing. The simultaneously released Consumer Price Index (CPI) showed a further decline in retail inflation to 4.44% in February from 5.1% in the previous month.  “This looks like an early sign of industrial revival,” said Devendra Kumar Pant, chief economist at India Ratings, a Fitch Group company. “It looks like post demonetisation and goods and services tax (GST) implementation, finally the industrial sector is gaining traction.” India reclaimed the title of fastestgrowing m

 Ease lender approval norms for resolution plans: Govt panel    In a move aimed at ensuring that small creditors do not disrupt the resolution process under the bankruptcy law, a governmentappointed panel has suggested that a revival plan can be approved if two-thirds of the creditors endorse it against the current requirement of three-fourths.    This is one of the key recommendations proposed by the 14-member panel looking at fine-tuning the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), two senior officials aware of the deliberations told ET.  Currently, the resolution professional needs the consent from 75 per cent of the creditors to act upon anything — from day-to-day operations to strategic decisions such as approving or rejecting a resolution plan.    The reduced approver threshold of 66 per cent of the lenders by loan value would apply, the proposal says, to key resolutions such  as appointing, replacing or dismissing a resolution professional, approving or rejecting a re