BBC News - India schools get gift from billionaire Azim Premji

BBC News - India schools get gift from billionaire Azim Premji: "1 February 2011 Last updated at 13:01 ET
By Geeta Pandey
BBC News, Bangalore"

Draft Proceeding of the First Meeting of the State Level Task Force on Higher Education

Draft Proceeding of the First Meeting of the

State Level Task Force on Higher Education

Union Budget 2011 in 100 points - Business News - IBNLive

Union Budget 2011 in 100 points - Business News - IBNLive

New Delhi: Here are some of the points of Budget 2011:

1. * Development needs to be more inclusive

2. * Need to ensure more private investment
3. * Agriculture supply needs to ease
4. * Stronger fiscal consolidation needed
5. * Service sector continues to grow
6. * Taking steps to simplify tax procedures
7. * Corruption is a problem, we have to fight it collectively
8. * Government has to reconcile ecological concerns with development aspirations
9. * Agriculture growth at 5.4 per cent in FY 2011
10. * Current account deficit a concern
11. * Introduction of DTC, GST will improve compliance
12. * Economy to grow at 9 per cent, plus or minus 0.25 per cent in 2012
13. * Will introduce Goods and Service tax rollout (GST) bill in current Parliament session
14. * High current account deficit a cause of concern
15. * Considering new fertiliser policy for urea
16. * Public Debt Management Agency Bill to be introduced next financial year
17. * Will move to direct tax subsidy for kersoene and fertiliser
18. * Direct Tax Code Bill likely to be passed by Parliament next financial year after getting Standing Committee report
19. * FII's allowed to invest in Mutual fund schemes
20. * Discussions on to liberalise FDI policy
21. * FII investment in corporate bonds hiked to $40 billion
22. * RBI guidelines for banking license by year end
23. * Government to keep up tempo of disinvestment process
24. * 100 crore equity funds for microfinance companies
25. * Bill to allow RBI grant more banking licences
26. * Portfolio investment would be permitted in SEBI registered mutual funds from foreign subscriptions
27. * Housing loan limit raised to Rs 25 lakh for priority sector lending
28. * 1 per cent interest subvention on home laons upto Rs 15 lakh
29. * New companies' bill in current Parliament session
30. * Removal of supply bottlenecks in food sector in focus in 2011/12
31. * Economy back to pre-crisis trajectory
32. * Set pace for double digit growth
33. * Bills on insurance, pension funds, banking to be introduced
34. * Women's self-help development panel to be set up
35. * Mortgage risk guarantee fund to be created for economically weaker sections
36. * Rs 3000 crore to NABARD for more credit flow
37. * 3 per cent subsidy to farmers in FY 2012
38. * Increase in target credit flow to farmers
39. * Private investment in Agriculture investment to be increased
40. * 15 mega food parks to be set up
41. * 24 new cold storage project sanctioned
42. * 40 lakh tonnes storage capacity by FY 12
43. * Rs 6,000 cr to be given to public sector banks to maintain capital-to-risk assets ratio norms
44. * Rs 30,000 crore tax-free infrastructure bond for railways
45. * Financial assistance for ongoing metro projects
46. * Existing interest subvention scheme on short term farm oans at 7 per cent interest to continue
47. * Agriculture growth key to development: Green Revolution waiting to happen in eastern region
48. * Five-fold strategy on Black Money
49. * 10 existing double axation avoidance treaties devised
50. * A new scheme to be introduced for refund of service tax on lines of drawback of duties
51. * Increased outlay on social sector schemes
52. * NREGA wages to be indexed to inflation
53. * Rs 58,000 crore allocation for Bharat Nirman schemes
54. * 24 per cent increase in education outlay
55. * Scholarship for needy students of SC/ST for Class IX-X
56. * National knowledge network by March 2012
57. * State innovaation councils to be set up
58. * Rs 54 crore each for AMU centres
59. * Remuneration of anganwadi workers raised from Rs 1500 to Rs 3,000 per month. Helpers to get Rs 1,500 from Rs 750
60. * Rs 21,000 crore to Surva Shiksha Abhiyan
61. * Rs 10,000 crore to rural telephony
62. * National mission for Hybrid electric vehicles
63. * Relaxation in exit age for BPL pension scheme
64. * Special allocations for cleaning rivers other than Ganga
65. * Integrated development schemes for Naxal areas
66. * Rs nine lakh ex-gratia for disabled defence personnel
67. * Rs 25-30 crore to fight Naxal menace
68. * Budget allocation of Rs 100 crore for Ladakh and Rs 150 crore for Jammu for implementation of projects identified by task force
69. * Relaxation for e-filing norms for small tax payers
70. * GoM to deal with corruption cases of public servants
71. * G0M recommendations in a time-bound manner
72. * Healthcare budget increased by 20 per cent
73. * Proposal for Rs 1,000 crore fund for judicial
74. * Rs 300 crore to be provided as assistance to states for modernising and stamps and registration administration
75. * New series of coins with new Rupee symbol to be introduced
76. * 10 lakh new UID's per day from October 1, 2011
77. * Increase in tax exemption limit to Rs 1.8 lakh
78. * Senior citizens: Reduction in qualifying age to 60
79. * Corporate surcharge reduced to five per cent
80. * MAT increased to 18.5 per cent
81. * Tax sop on infrastructure bond investment extended by an year
82. * Fiscal deficit brought down from 5.5 per cent to 5.1 per cent in 2010-11. In 2011-12, it will be 4.6 per cent
83. * Total plan expenditure will go up 100 per cent in nominal terms in the next year
84. * Revenue deficit fixed at 2.3 per cent in revised estimates of 2010-11 and 1.8 per cent in 2011-12
85. * Very senior citizen category: 80 years and above
86. * No rollback in service tax, to stay at 10 per cent
87. * Minimum alternate tax raised from 18 per cent to 18.5 per cent of book profits
88. * Hike in Service Tax on local and international travel
89. * Service, excise duty to stay at 10 per cent
90. * No excise duty on basic food, fuel
91. * Peak rate of customs duty unchanged
92. * 10 per cent excise duty on branded garments
93. * Net loss from direct tax proposals estimated at Rs 11,500 crore
94. * Central government debt in proportion to GDP will be 44.2 per cent in 2011-12
95. * Standard rate of central exercise duty maintained at 10 per cent
96. * Cut in excise duty on hybrid fuel kits
97. * No new tax exemption limit for women
98. * Basic customs duty on raw silk reduced from 30 to 5 per cent
99. * Basic customs duty on agricultural machinery reduced to 4.5 per cent from 5 per cent
100. * Excise and customs duty proposals to result in the net gain of Rs 7,300 crore