Ten Terms You Should Know To Understand Budget 2018

Union Budget is the most comprehensive report of government's finances in which revenues from all sources and outlays for all activities are consolidated.

Fiscal consolidation was first proposed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government in its maiden budget in fiscal year 2014/15, aiming to break a long line of governments that preferred to borrow and spend.

Growth improved to 6.3% in September quarter, but is still below the rate needed to generate employment for one million people entering the workforce every month.

A day after the government released the Economic Survey, reactions to the survey continue to come in. Shedding the impact of the GST and demonetisation, India's economy is "picking up quite nicely", and will expand by 7-7.5 per cent in 2018-19 to again become the world's fastest growing major economy, the Economic Survey said. The economic survey was tabled ahead of t...

On a day when Finance Minister Arun Jaitley tabled the Economic Survey in parliament, Chief Economic Adviser Arvind Subramanian talks to NDTV's Prannoy Roy about economic growth, the impact of demonetisation, Goods and Services Tax (GST) and much more

A majority of respondents placed high weighting on tax rate reduction by at least 5 per cent across all categories (54 per cent), followed by raising the exemption limit by at least Rs 250,000 (33 per cent) and by bringing back the standard deduction (10 per cent).

"A pause would imply a fiscal deficit target similar to last year, that is 3.5% of GDP," said Sonal Varma, chief India economist at Nomura Holdings Inc.

The Economic Survey projects a growth rate of 6.75 per cent for the current fiscal year, higher than the Central Statistics Office's outlook of 6.5 per cent.

Since agriculture is a state subject and an open political economy question, the Economic Survey strongly advocated a mechanism similar to the GST Council to bring more reforms in the agriculture sector and boost farmers income.

"The new Indian Bankruptcy Code has provided a resolution framework that will help corporates clean up their balance sheets and reduce their debts," it said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government will be trying to woo back rural voters and small businesses when it announces the 2018/19 budget on Thursday and pick up economic momentum as it heads into a season of elections, officials said.

The Centre may dole out incentives to promote electric vehicles in the country by considering lower GST and extending tax benefit for buyers in this week's Budget for 2018-19, say sources. The announcement is expected in view of the government's aim to have 100 per cent electric vehicles for public mobility and 40 per cent for personal mobility by 2030.

Ahead of the Union Budget, corporate America has urged Finance Minister Arun Jaitley for further reduction in tax uncertainty for multinational companies and institutional investors, a step which it said would help attract more foreign direct investments to India

At present, the GST has four rates of 5 per cent, 12 per cent, 18 per cent and 28 per cent.