source:BBC
Saturday, October 8, 2011
GST and its benefits
Call it a double edged sword. The much awaited Goods and Services Tax (GST) that is expected to be introduced next fiscal year can become the much needed weapon in the government's armor. Saddled with the twin problems of high inflation and high fiscal deficit, the government can use the GST regime to improve India's economic statistics. As per industry body ASSOCHAM, GST will enhance India's tax to GDP ratio by nearly 1.6%. The same will have a benign impact on the economy's fiscal deficit. Moreover, GST will remove cascading taxes, leading to reduction in prices of most manufactured goods by about 10%. This will certainly come as a relief to the policymakers as well as the central bank both of which have been trying their best to rein inflation. Higher savings, improved tax compliance, economies of scale, and supply chain efficiencies are expected to be the icings on the cake. While the much awaited fiscal reform sounds very promising, we really hope that the impleme ntation is satisfactory enough to deliver the desired results.
By J Mulraj
By J Mulraj
Friday, October 7, 2011
FINISHING STRONG
by Dan Green
On August 1, 1914 Sir Ernest Shackleton set sail with a crew of 28 on an expedition to the Antarctic. The mission of their expedition was to cross the Antarctic on foot - something never done before. Shackleton was a successful and highly respected explorer known for his faith, determination, creativity and conviction. He was knighted for his successful expedition to Antarctica in 1907-09.
In order to recruit his crew of 28 he took applications from 5,000 men. Many believe that he placed the following ad in a London newspaper to attract the applicants. While there is no evidence that this ad actually ran, it does quite appropriately frame the environment that Shackleton was trying to recruit for.
Men Wanted: For hazardous journey. Small wages, bitter cold, long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe return doubtful. Honour and recognition in case of success.
This expedition was going to be different than any other one that Shackleton had led. Five months into the expedition their ship, the Endurance, became stuck in the heavy ice flows near Antarctica. It was not uncommon for ships to get stuck periodically in the ice flows and Shackleton believed that the ice would eventually recede and free the ship. His focus was on the expedition and he held fast on that course. However, over the next three weeks the ship became solidly frozen in the ice. Attempts to free the ship were futile. At the end of February, 1915, the crew prepared the ship to become their camp for the remainder of winter. At this point, Shackleton abandoned his primary goal for the expedition and turned his focus towards returning to England.
His expedition had become a rescue mission.
By October, eight months after being stuck, the pressure created by the ice finally took its toll on the Endurance. The ship began to come apart and sink; making it uninhabitable. The order to abandon ship was given and the entire crew began to salvage as many supplies as they could. They took the sled dogs, food, gear and three lifeboats and moved their camp to the ice flow next to their sinking ship.
The temperatures were brutal; reaching -15°F on average. For the next five months the expedition camped on the ice flow surviving on what little food they had left. In April the ice flow they were camped on began to break apart. Shackleton ordered the crew to take only essential supplies and board the life boats. They fled the disintegrating ice flow and traveled seven days by sea to Elephant Island. Elephant Island was a barren place to be stranded; made up mostly of rock covered snow with temperatures reaching -20°F.
For the next nine months, under Shackleton's leadership, the broken expedition remained loyal, optimistic, focused and faithful to their leader's belief that they would survive. Ultimately, Shackleton knew that their survival depended upon his ability to reach a whaling outpost that was more than 800 miles across the most treacherous ocean seas in the world.
Determined to save his crew, Shackleton set-out in one of the lifeboats with five crewmembers to make the journey. The odds of making it were 1 in 100. Nautical scholars consider this journey by lifeboat to be one of the greatest nautical accomplishments in maritime history. Shackleton successfully made it to the outpost and returned to Elephant Island with a rescue party four months later.
On August 30, 1916 after 22 months of being stranded on a barren rock in sub zero temperatures, the crew of the Endurance was rescued. All twenty eight crew members survived the ordeal and most were quick to credit the strong faith of their leader as the catalyst in their survival.
On August 1, 1914 Sir Ernest Shackleton set sail with a crew of 28 on an expedition to the Antarctic. The mission of their expedition was to cross the Antarctic on foot - something never done before. Shackleton was a successful and highly respected explorer known for his faith, determination, creativity and conviction. He was knighted for his successful expedition to Antarctica in 1907-09.
In order to recruit his crew of 28 he took applications from 5,000 men. Many believe that he placed the following ad in a London newspaper to attract the applicants. While there is no evidence that this ad actually ran, it does quite appropriately frame the environment that Shackleton was trying to recruit for.
Men Wanted: For hazardous journey. Small wages, bitter cold, long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe return doubtful. Honour and recognition in case of success.
This expedition was going to be different than any other one that Shackleton had led. Five months into the expedition their ship, the Endurance, became stuck in the heavy ice flows near Antarctica. It was not uncommon for ships to get stuck periodically in the ice flows and Shackleton believed that the ice would eventually recede and free the ship. His focus was on the expedition and he held fast on that course. However, over the next three weeks the ship became solidly frozen in the ice. Attempts to free the ship were futile. At the end of February, 1915, the crew prepared the ship to become their camp for the remainder of winter. At this point, Shackleton abandoned his primary goal for the expedition and turned his focus towards returning to England.
His expedition had become a rescue mission.
By October, eight months after being stuck, the pressure created by the ice finally took its toll on the Endurance. The ship began to come apart and sink; making it uninhabitable. The order to abandon ship was given and the entire crew began to salvage as many supplies as they could. They took the sled dogs, food, gear and three lifeboats and moved their camp to the ice flow next to their sinking ship.
The temperatures were brutal; reaching -15°F on average. For the next five months the expedition camped on the ice flow surviving on what little food they had left. In April the ice flow they were camped on began to break apart. Shackleton ordered the crew to take only essential supplies and board the life boats. They fled the disintegrating ice flow and traveled seven days by sea to Elephant Island. Elephant Island was a barren place to be stranded; made up mostly of rock covered snow with temperatures reaching -20°F.
For the next nine months, under Shackleton's leadership, the broken expedition remained loyal, optimistic, focused and faithful to their leader's belief that they would survive. Ultimately, Shackleton knew that their survival depended upon his ability to reach a whaling outpost that was more than 800 miles across the most treacherous ocean seas in the world.
Determined to save his crew, Shackleton set-out in one of the lifeboats with five crewmembers to make the journey. The odds of making it were 1 in 100. Nautical scholars consider this journey by lifeboat to be one of the greatest nautical accomplishments in maritime history. Shackleton successfully made it to the outpost and returned to Elephant Island with a rescue party four months later.
On August 30, 1916 after 22 months of being stranded on a barren rock in sub zero temperatures, the crew of the Endurance was rescued. All twenty eight crew members survived the ordeal and most were quick to credit the strong faith of their leader as the catalyst in their survival.
Justice Permod Kohli elevated to Sikkim HC
06.10.2011 | 17:12
Chandigarh
by Lalit Kumar
Justice Permod Kohli of the Punjab and Haryana High Court has been elevated as the Chief Justice of the Sikkim High Court. The orders were officially conveyed to the High Court on Wednesday.
At the same time, the Supreme Court has also issued the transfer orders of other two judges being Justice Mahindra Pal Singh and Justice Ajay Lamba. Justice Mahindra Pal Singh has been transferred to Gujarat High Court and Justice Lamba is slated to be transferred to either to the Allahabad or Orissa High Court.
Justice Kohli joined the Bar at Jammu after enrollment on 12 October 1972. He was appointed Additional Advocate General of the state during Governor's rule in the year 1990 and took over as the Advocate General in December 1990. He continued as Advocate General till January 1992 and was designated a senior advocate in April 1991. He was later appointed Additional Judge of the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir on 07 January 2003 and as permanent Judge on 03 January 2005. He was later transferred to Jharkhand High Court, Ranchi and took oath on 04 May 2006. Thereafter, he was later transferred to Punjab and Haryana High Court and took oath on 10 May 2007.
06.10.2011 | 17:12
Chandigarh
by Lalit Kumar
Justice Permod Kohli of the Punjab and Haryana High Court has been elevated as the Chief Justice of the Sikkim High Court. The orders were officially conveyed to the High Court on Wednesday.
At the same time, the Supreme Court has also issued the transfer orders of other two judges being Justice Mahindra Pal Singh and Justice Ajay Lamba. Justice Mahindra Pal Singh has been transferred to Gujarat High Court and Justice Lamba is slated to be transferred to either to the Allahabad or Orissa High Court.
Justice Kohli joined the Bar at Jammu after enrollment on 12 October 1972. He was appointed Additional Advocate General of the state during Governor's rule in the year 1990 and took over as the Advocate General in December 1990. He continued as Advocate General till January 1992 and was designated a senior advocate in April 1991. He was later appointed Additional Judge of the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir on 07 January 2003 and as permanent Judge on 03 January 2005. He was later transferred to Jharkhand High Court, Ranchi and took oath on 04 May 2006. Thereafter, he was later transferred to Punjab and Haryana High Court and took oath on 10 May 2007.
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Timeless Wisdom
Timeless Wisdom
By Sanjay Kumar Singh
In most interviews that we do, we get an insight into what is happening in the markets. Rare is the interview where we come across simple, distilled, timeless wisdom. This is one of them. Here, Ajit Dayal, chairman, Quantum Mutual Fund, dwells on a wide range of market and economy-related subjects. Two points emerge very strongly. One, he says, if you shut out the day-to-day noise regarding what is happening in the markets and instead focus on a stock’s long-term fundamentals, it lends clarity to your investment approach. The second point that Dayal makes is that those in business must be guided by a strong moral compass. He advocates not paying bribes, fighting corruption, and highlighting the racketeering that is going on within one’s industry — even if its means paying a price. His views come like a gust of fresh air in this scam-tainted world that we live in. Read and savour them. This interview was conducted by Sanjay Kumar Singh and Anindya Bera.
What are your expectations from Q1FY12 earnings?
Well, the research and investment process used by the teams at Quantum Long Term Equity Fund are focused on the direction of long term earnings over a two- to five-year period. We ignore quarterly numbers because they tend to tell us nothing about the long-term problems or opportunities facing any company. Additionally, they are not audited. But even if they were, they would still be a fairly useless data point for a long-term investor.
Year-to-date the Sensex is down (-) 8.72 per cent. Will the second half of the calendar year see a continuation of this trend or do you expect a turnaround in the markets? On what will this depend?
As long-term investors, we tend to buy into businesses run by capable and honest management that can guide their companies through good times or through difficult times. The past movement of the index, per se, does not tell us anything about what is likely to happen tomorrow. If the earnings of companies in the Indian stock market grow, then the share prices of those companies should trend upwards over time. The pace of that increase in share prices will be a function of how quickly — or slowly — investors wish to own that share.
The Indian stock market has daily volumes of some US$ 4 billion every day. On top of that there is the futures and options market that trades some US$ 15 billion a day. My gut feel is that 90 per cent of these trades are done by some 1,00,000 investors or punters. Financial theory tells us that higher liquidity is good for the market since these many trades reflect the varied opinions that comprise any market. This high activity, theory tells us, ensures that all asset classes are correctly priced at any point in time.
Well, I have a different take on this hyperactivity. I see it as gambling with little relation to the underlying or intrinsic value of a company. Take the examples of the overpriced tech stocks like Yahoo or AOL in the year 2000, or the beaten down cement stocks in India in the year 2003, or the hyped up real estate stocks like DLF in 2007, or the India-shining stocks like Pantaloon and Suzlon in 2007. They were all actively traded. They all had high volume — and they were all mis-priced. So, volumes do not determine the “correctness” of a share price. Volumes only tell you the popularity — or lack of popularity — of a specific share or a market.
On a macro level, volumes in India are down some (-)40 per cent from their Lehman peak. That does not mean that India is an unattractive place to invest. All it means is that volumes are down — that’s all.
And I would like to link this to your question on the outlook for the second half. Well, a sensible investor will not focus on volume or popularity, but on the underlying earnings power — or lack of it — of the companies they wish to invest in. I cannot tell you with any certainty where the index will be in the next few months. Having said that, I can make a case for an index at 29,000 by July 2012 based on the assumption that earnings of Indian companies are expected to grow by some 20 per cent for the year ended March 31, 2012 and a second assumption that India will be a favoured destination for foreign investors. As an aside, I could also make a case for the BSE-30 Index to be at 10,000 next week. If every foreign investor lines up to sell their shares in India, the market could collapse by 50 per cent in five weeks just as it did in the September-October 2008 period. Investors need to live with these tremendous price risks when investing in shares — just as we are learning to live with the random acts of terrorism as we go about our daily lives. Recognising the near-term uncertainty, we focus on long-term earnings and we believe that growth in earnings will determine the direction of movement of share price.
My statement of a 29,000 BSE-30 Index by July 2012 has earned me a lot of criticism because people are focused on the number. What they need to stay focused on is the direction of the earnings. That 29,000 index level is based on assumptions of earnings that are available in the public domain and a crucial assumption of the return of the foreign investor and the local, “front-running” speculators to hyperactivity. I am not suggesting that investors should buy with that level of index as a “target” because Ajit Dayal said that will be the index. Investors should buy because over long periods of time a growing economy gives them the opportunity to participate in the ownership of companies that will benefit from this growth.
Will India see relief from high inflation and an end to rate hikes in the second half of the year?
In the near term, the prices of food products will be influenced by the monsoons and whether we can import food from other parts of the world, if we were to run into a food production shortage. We have no food shortage today and the government has allowed the export of wheat. But prices of products can also surge due to middlemen. So, we have traders who can distort the price of food for periods of time. Or we can also have powerful distributors and CEOs of mutual fund houses who distort the cost of providing advice to investors in mutual funds! Over the past five years investors have paid an artificially high cost for investing in mutual funds. Instead of bearing an expense ratio of 2 per cent, investors have ended up paying 5 per cent in many cases! Inflation can be reduced by, one, increasing the supply of goods and services; two, making distribution more efficient and affordable; and three, by reducing demand.
The interest rate hikes only address the demand side. In some sense, I view these hikes as a warning from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to the government — a warning to get policies in place to improve supplies and reduce the high cost of distribution for food or for real estate. And, if the government fails to address these supply side issues, the RBI will be willing to raise interest rates to the extent that demand will collapse and then prices of products will fall again. The RBI has to balance growth, inflation, and debt levels in the economy and it must never sacrifice that mandate. The Indian industrialists who clamour for lower interest rates remind me of the Wall Street firms who clamoured for a rescue. They wish to protect themselves, not reform themselves. If RBI succumbs to pressure, we will end up being like the US: generating higher debt to support consumption of higher-priced goods and even higher income inequality. The supply side tools are in the hands of the state and central governments. It is up to governments to fix the corruption and the inefficiencies that are deeply embedded in the system and for us as individuals to stop supporting such practices.
Do you see oil and commodity prices moderating further in future?
I think the global economy will slow down. There is a Lehman-like financial crisis ready to hit the world again. This would suggest that commodity prices will decline — just as they did in October 2008. But there will be some economies, like India, that will still grow and provide a base level of demand for commodities to fuel that growth. But, no, I am not in the camp that says commodity prices will sustain at these higher levels
Source: Valueresearch
By Sanjay Kumar Singh
In most interviews that we do, we get an insight into what is happening in the markets. Rare is the interview where we come across simple, distilled, timeless wisdom. This is one of them. Here, Ajit Dayal, chairman, Quantum Mutual Fund, dwells on a wide range of market and economy-related subjects. Two points emerge very strongly. One, he says, if you shut out the day-to-day noise regarding what is happening in the markets and instead focus on a stock’s long-term fundamentals, it lends clarity to your investment approach. The second point that Dayal makes is that those in business must be guided by a strong moral compass. He advocates not paying bribes, fighting corruption, and highlighting the racketeering that is going on within one’s industry — even if its means paying a price. His views come like a gust of fresh air in this scam-tainted world that we live in. Read and savour them. This interview was conducted by Sanjay Kumar Singh and Anindya Bera.
What are your expectations from Q1FY12 earnings?
Well, the research and investment process used by the teams at Quantum Long Term Equity Fund are focused on the direction of long term earnings over a two- to five-year period. We ignore quarterly numbers because they tend to tell us nothing about the long-term problems or opportunities facing any company. Additionally, they are not audited. But even if they were, they would still be a fairly useless data point for a long-term investor.
Year-to-date the Sensex is down (-) 8.72 per cent. Will the second half of the calendar year see a continuation of this trend or do you expect a turnaround in the markets? On what will this depend?
As long-term investors, we tend to buy into businesses run by capable and honest management that can guide their companies through good times or through difficult times. The past movement of the index, per se, does not tell us anything about what is likely to happen tomorrow. If the earnings of companies in the Indian stock market grow, then the share prices of those companies should trend upwards over time. The pace of that increase in share prices will be a function of how quickly — or slowly — investors wish to own that share.
The Indian stock market has daily volumes of some US$ 4 billion every day. On top of that there is the futures and options market that trades some US$ 15 billion a day. My gut feel is that 90 per cent of these trades are done by some 1,00,000 investors or punters. Financial theory tells us that higher liquidity is good for the market since these many trades reflect the varied opinions that comprise any market. This high activity, theory tells us, ensures that all asset classes are correctly priced at any point in time.
Well, I have a different take on this hyperactivity. I see it as gambling with little relation to the underlying or intrinsic value of a company. Take the examples of the overpriced tech stocks like Yahoo or AOL in the year 2000, or the beaten down cement stocks in India in the year 2003, or the hyped up real estate stocks like DLF in 2007, or the India-shining stocks like Pantaloon and Suzlon in 2007. They were all actively traded. They all had high volume — and they were all mis-priced. So, volumes do not determine the “correctness” of a share price. Volumes only tell you the popularity — or lack of popularity — of a specific share or a market.
On a macro level, volumes in India are down some (-)40 per cent from their Lehman peak. That does not mean that India is an unattractive place to invest. All it means is that volumes are down — that’s all.
And I would like to link this to your question on the outlook for the second half. Well, a sensible investor will not focus on volume or popularity, but on the underlying earnings power — or lack of it — of the companies they wish to invest in. I cannot tell you with any certainty where the index will be in the next few months. Having said that, I can make a case for an index at 29,000 by July 2012 based on the assumption that earnings of Indian companies are expected to grow by some 20 per cent for the year ended March 31, 2012 and a second assumption that India will be a favoured destination for foreign investors. As an aside, I could also make a case for the BSE-30 Index to be at 10,000 next week. If every foreign investor lines up to sell their shares in India, the market could collapse by 50 per cent in five weeks just as it did in the September-October 2008 period. Investors need to live with these tremendous price risks when investing in shares — just as we are learning to live with the random acts of terrorism as we go about our daily lives. Recognising the near-term uncertainty, we focus on long-term earnings and we believe that growth in earnings will determine the direction of movement of share price.
My statement of a 29,000 BSE-30 Index by July 2012 has earned me a lot of criticism because people are focused on the number. What they need to stay focused on is the direction of the earnings. That 29,000 index level is based on assumptions of earnings that are available in the public domain and a crucial assumption of the return of the foreign investor and the local, “front-running” speculators to hyperactivity. I am not suggesting that investors should buy with that level of index as a “target” because Ajit Dayal said that will be the index. Investors should buy because over long periods of time a growing economy gives them the opportunity to participate in the ownership of companies that will benefit from this growth.
Will India see relief from high inflation and an end to rate hikes in the second half of the year?
In the near term, the prices of food products will be influenced by the monsoons and whether we can import food from other parts of the world, if we were to run into a food production shortage. We have no food shortage today and the government has allowed the export of wheat. But prices of products can also surge due to middlemen. So, we have traders who can distort the price of food for periods of time. Or we can also have powerful distributors and CEOs of mutual fund houses who distort the cost of providing advice to investors in mutual funds! Over the past five years investors have paid an artificially high cost for investing in mutual funds. Instead of bearing an expense ratio of 2 per cent, investors have ended up paying 5 per cent in many cases! Inflation can be reduced by, one, increasing the supply of goods and services; two, making distribution more efficient and affordable; and three, by reducing demand.
The interest rate hikes only address the demand side. In some sense, I view these hikes as a warning from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to the government — a warning to get policies in place to improve supplies and reduce the high cost of distribution for food or for real estate. And, if the government fails to address these supply side issues, the RBI will be willing to raise interest rates to the extent that demand will collapse and then prices of products will fall again. The RBI has to balance growth, inflation, and debt levels in the economy and it must never sacrifice that mandate. The Indian industrialists who clamour for lower interest rates remind me of the Wall Street firms who clamoured for a rescue. They wish to protect themselves, not reform themselves. If RBI succumbs to pressure, we will end up being like the US: generating higher debt to support consumption of higher-priced goods and even higher income inequality. The supply side tools are in the hands of the state and central governments. It is up to governments to fix the corruption and the inefficiencies that are deeply embedded in the system and for us as individuals to stop supporting such practices.
Do you see oil and commodity prices moderating further in future?
I think the global economy will slow down. There is a Lehman-like financial crisis ready to hit the world again. This would suggest that commodity prices will decline — just as they did in October 2008. But there will be some economies, like India, that will still grow and provide a base level of demand for commodities to fuel that growth. But, no, I am not in the camp that says commodity prices will sustain at these higher levels
Source: Valueresearch
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Date for filing of I-T return extended till Oct 31 in Sikkim
PTI | Oct 4, 2011, 07.27PM IST
DELHI: In view of recent earthquake and subsequent heavy loss of life and property in Sikkim, the government on Tuesday decided to extend the timeline for filing of income-tax returns by a month, till October 31, for the residents of the state.
"On consideration of the reports of disturbance of general life caused due to earthquake in the State of Sikkim, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT)... has extended the due date of filing of returns of income for the Assessment Year 2011-12, from September 30, 2011, to October 31, 2011, in respect of assesses assessed at Sikkim," an official statement said.
It added that the specified date for Tax audit report has also been extended to October 31.
PTI | Oct 4, 2011, 07.27PM IST
DELHI: In view of recent earthquake and subsequent heavy loss of life and property in Sikkim, the government on Tuesday decided to extend the timeline for filing of income-tax returns by a month, till October 31, for the residents of the state.
"On consideration of the reports of disturbance of general life caused due to earthquake in the State of Sikkim, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT)... has extended the due date of filing of returns of income for the Assessment Year 2011-12, from September 30, 2011, to October 31, 2011, in respect of assesses assessed at Sikkim," an official statement said.
It added that the specified date for Tax audit report has also been extended to October 31.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Sikkim Chamber of Commerce take up relief and rehabilitation
October 3, 2011
source:Sikkim Mail
The Sikkim Chamber of Commerce in coordination with State Government of Sikkim is carrying out the relief and rescue operations to overcome the hard time being faced by Sikkim. “The Chamber would like use this platform to inform everyone that the entire business community under the Banner of Sikkim Chamber of
Commerce is working independently and associating itself with various social organizations for better solutions to the problem we are facing at this very moment of relief and rehabilitation works” said the Secretary Kailash Rawat.
The chamber associated itself with the officials of State Government of Sikkim on September 19, being the first organization in the state to come forward and offer help in the Control Room situated at M.G. Marg, Gangtok from where rescue operations are planned and being executed.
The Chamber was informed about many victims from East District asking for help and relief camp, the chamber under its capacity voluntarily took the responsibility and is running the Relief Camp successfully at Palzor Stadium in Gangtok where sufficient lodging facilities and nutritious food are being provided
to them.
There was duplicity, non co-operation with each other within the NGOs and other social organizations therefore it took major responsibility in formation of the Helping Hands Sikkim. The president took the responsibility of treasurer of the umbrella Organization and General Secretary of the Chamber.
The Chamber also sent its 06 member’s team to North Sikkim along with two trucks of food items, tarpaulins, blankets and other necessary relief materials.The Chamber distributed drinking water for two days during scarcity of water. The Chamber also sent relief materials to BDO, Rhenock for providing support to
the victims. The Chamber has readied a team comprising of blood donors which will be
delivering their services as and when required.
The Chamber also informed that entire business community has come forward at this depressing moment for the relief works and are doing the needful through various banners as CMs Relief Fund, Sikkim Chamber of Commerce, Lion Club, Rotary Club, Sikkim Bihari Jagran Manch and other local NGOs
October 3, 2011
source:Sikkim Mail
The Sikkim Chamber of Commerce in coordination with State Government of Sikkim is carrying out the relief and rescue operations to overcome the hard time being faced by Sikkim. “The Chamber would like use this platform to inform everyone that the entire business community under the Banner of Sikkim Chamber of
Commerce is working independently and associating itself with various social organizations for better solutions to the problem we are facing at this very moment of relief and rehabilitation works” said the Secretary Kailash Rawat.
The chamber associated itself with the officials of State Government of Sikkim on September 19, being the first organization in the state to come forward and offer help in the Control Room situated at M.G. Marg, Gangtok from where rescue operations are planned and being executed.
The Chamber was informed about many victims from East District asking for help and relief camp, the chamber under its capacity voluntarily took the responsibility and is running the Relief Camp successfully at Palzor Stadium in Gangtok where sufficient lodging facilities and nutritious food are being provided
to them.
There was duplicity, non co-operation with each other within the NGOs and other social organizations therefore it took major responsibility in formation of the Helping Hands Sikkim. The president took the responsibility of treasurer of the umbrella Organization and General Secretary of the Chamber.
The Chamber also sent its 06 member’s team to North Sikkim along with two trucks of food items, tarpaulins, blankets and other necessary relief materials.The Chamber distributed drinking water for two days during scarcity of water. The Chamber also sent relief materials to BDO, Rhenock for providing support to
the victims. The Chamber has readied a team comprising of blood donors which will be
delivering their services as and when required.
The Chamber also informed that entire business community has come forward at this depressing moment for the relief works and are doing the needful through various banners as CMs Relief Fund, Sikkim Chamber of Commerce, Lion Club, Rotary Club, Sikkim Bihari Jagran Manch and other local NGOs
Monday, October 3, 2011
Aishwarya recovers .At Sikkim at Quake time
Aishwarya had to change her plans and complete her vacation at another destination. “This trip was planned months in advance and I hardly get time off, so my family suggested we go to Darjeeling instead,” said the actress. A narrow escape for Aishwarya, who says, “I’ll never forget the experience.”
Neha Marda turns 24
Neha Marda, best known as Gehna of Balika Vadhu, recently celebrated her birthday. The actress got a big surprise when Aayushman, her fiancé who was in Patna, suddenly turned up for the D-day. And he was loaded with gifts — 24 to be precise, as Neha turns 24. There were perfumes, clothes, jewellery and much more. The first cake that she cut was also very special because it was a home-made cake made by her sister-in-law. We hear the party went on till 3 in the morning. A memorable 24th birthday for Neha.
Before the quake, a Sikkim in hiding Published: Sunday, Oct 2, 2011, 10:00 IST By Kareena N Gianani | Place: Gangtok | Agency: DNA | |||||||||||||
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Renting and service tax
Renting and service tax
by MOHAN R. LAVI
The plenary power of Parliament to legislate in determining relevance of service tax is subject to the Constitution.
In Budget 2010, the Government used its Brahmastra and amended the Finance Act, 1994, levying service tax on renting of property. To ensure that the weapon was truly effective, the levy was made retrospective, with effect from June 1, 2007.
This measure was to counter the opinion — given twice — of the Delhi High Court, in Home Solution Retail, that the pure act of renting wouldn't amount to a taxable service, since there is no value-addition involved.
It also sent signals to the Supreme Court, before whom a petition on that issue was pending, that the power of the Government to levy a tax under the Constitution is extremely wide. A bevy of petitions before the Mumbai High Court were disposed off recently, disagreeing with the opinion of the Delhi High Court.
MUMBAI HIGH COURT DECISION
In Retailers Association of India Vs Union of India and Ors, the Mumbai High Court reconsidered the constitutional validity of a service tax on rentals.
It noticed that the Supreme Court had an occasion to consider similar petitions in four landmark cases against the Union of India — Tamil Nadu Kalyana Mandapam, Gujarat Ambuja Cement, All India Federation of Tax Practitioners and Association of Leasing and Financial Services Companies. Considering a plethora of other Apex Court decisions, the Mumbai High Court held that the legislative basis that has been adopted by the Parliament in subjecting taxable services involved in the renting of property to the charge of service tax cannot be questioned.
The assumption by a legislative body, that an element of service is involved in the renting of immovable property is certainly not an assumption which can be regarded by the Court as being so manifestly perverse as to lead to an inference that the Parliament had treated as a service, an item which in no rational sense could be regarded as involving service.
But more significantly, even if the Court were to proceed on the basis, suggested by the petitioners, that no element of service is involved, that would not make the legislation beyond the legislative competence of Parliament.
As long as the legislation doesn't trench upon a field which has been reserved to the State legislatures, the only conclusion that can be drawn is that the law must be treated as valid and within the purview of the field set apart for Parliament.
The petitioners were also irked by the retrospective application of the law. The Mumbai High Court was of the opinion that Parliament has the plenary power to enact legislation on the fields, which are set out in List I and List III of the Seventh Schedule.
RETROSPECTIVE APPLICATION
The plenary power of Parliament to legislate can extend to enacting legislation both with prospective and with retrospective effect. That, however, is subject to the mandate of Article 14 of the Constitution, which states that the State shall not deny to any person equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws within the territory of India.
The Mumbai High Court agreed with the decision of the Supreme Court held in Bakhtawar Trust Vs M. D. Narayan, wherein it was held that it is open to the legislature to alter the law retrospectively, provided the alteration is made in such a manner that it would be no more possible for the Court to arrive at the same verdict.
BEFORE THE SUPREME COURT
The decision of the Mumbai High Court follows the pattern of a host of High Courts, agreeing to disagree with the logic of the Delhi High Court in Home Solution Retail — the Punjab and Haryana High Court in Shubh Timb Steels, Orissa High Court in Utkal Builders and the Ahmedabad High Court in Cinemax India.
These decisions, along with the fact that renting of immovable property is not in the initial list of negative services, would be food for thought for the Supreme Court.
While all the developments post-Home India point to validating the levy, the Supreme Court could think of constitutional precedents and judicial cases to rule that the tax is applicable only from 2010 onwards, and not 2007.
(The author is a Bangalore-based chartered accountant.)
source:The Hindu
by MOHAN R. LAVI
The plenary power of Parliament to legislate in determining relevance of service tax is subject to the Constitution.
In Budget 2010, the Government used its Brahmastra and amended the Finance Act, 1994, levying service tax on renting of property. To ensure that the weapon was truly effective, the levy was made retrospective, with effect from June 1, 2007.
This measure was to counter the opinion — given twice — of the Delhi High Court, in Home Solution Retail, that the pure act of renting wouldn't amount to a taxable service, since there is no value-addition involved.
It also sent signals to the Supreme Court, before whom a petition on that issue was pending, that the power of the Government to levy a tax under the Constitution is extremely wide. A bevy of petitions before the Mumbai High Court were disposed off recently, disagreeing with the opinion of the Delhi High Court.
MUMBAI HIGH COURT DECISION
In Retailers Association of India Vs Union of India and Ors, the Mumbai High Court reconsidered the constitutional validity of a service tax on rentals.
It noticed that the Supreme Court had an occasion to consider similar petitions in four landmark cases against the Union of India — Tamil Nadu Kalyana Mandapam, Gujarat Ambuja Cement, All India Federation of Tax Practitioners and Association of Leasing and Financial Services Companies. Considering a plethora of other Apex Court decisions, the Mumbai High Court held that the legislative basis that has been adopted by the Parliament in subjecting taxable services involved in the renting of property to the charge of service tax cannot be questioned.
The assumption by a legislative body, that an element of service is involved in the renting of immovable property is certainly not an assumption which can be regarded by the Court as being so manifestly perverse as to lead to an inference that the Parliament had treated as a service, an item which in no rational sense could be regarded as involving service.
But more significantly, even if the Court were to proceed on the basis, suggested by the petitioners, that no element of service is involved, that would not make the legislation beyond the legislative competence of Parliament.
As long as the legislation doesn't trench upon a field which has been reserved to the State legislatures, the only conclusion that can be drawn is that the law must be treated as valid and within the purview of the field set apart for Parliament.
The petitioners were also irked by the retrospective application of the law. The Mumbai High Court was of the opinion that Parliament has the plenary power to enact legislation on the fields, which are set out in List I and List III of the Seventh Schedule.
RETROSPECTIVE APPLICATION
The plenary power of Parliament to legislate can extend to enacting legislation both with prospective and with retrospective effect. That, however, is subject to the mandate of Article 14 of the Constitution, which states that the State shall not deny to any person equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws within the territory of India.
The Mumbai High Court agreed with the decision of the Supreme Court held in Bakhtawar Trust Vs M. D. Narayan, wherein it was held that it is open to the legislature to alter the law retrospectively, provided the alteration is made in such a manner that it would be no more possible for the Court to arrive at the same verdict.
BEFORE THE SUPREME COURT
The decision of the Mumbai High Court follows the pattern of a host of High Courts, agreeing to disagree with the logic of the Delhi High Court in Home Solution Retail — the Punjab and Haryana High Court in Shubh Timb Steels, Orissa High Court in Utkal Builders and the Ahmedabad High Court in Cinemax India.
These decisions, along with the fact that renting of immovable property is not in the initial list of negative services, would be food for thought for the Supreme Court.
While all the developments post-Home India point to validating the levy, the Supreme Court could think of constitutional precedents and judicial cases to rule that the tax is applicable only from 2010 onwards, and not 2007.
(The author is a Bangalore-based chartered accountant.)
source:The Hindu
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Is India in the throes of 'distress migration'?
Millions of villagers are migrating to cities in search of work Are millions of Indians being forced to leave their villages for cities and towns because there aren't enough jobs at home and farm incomes are drying up? Is this "distress migration" unprecedented in India's history?
Award-winning journalist P Sainath thinks so. Examining the latest census data, he finds that India's urban population has risen more (91 million more than in the 2001 census) than the rural population (90.6 million more than in the 2001 census). Nearly half the people in states like Tamil Nadu already live in urban settlements. The last time, writes Mr Sainath, the rise in India's urban population exceeded the rise of the rural population was 90 years ago and reflected in the 1921 census. The decline in rural population then could be possibly linked to the 1918 flu pandemic that killed several million people.
This time around, Mr Sainath says, the increase in migration is driven by the "collapse of millions of livelihoods in agriculture and its related occupations". He writes that massive migrations "have gone hand-in-hand with a deepening agrarian crisis": more than 240,000 farmers, mostly broken by debt, committed suicide in India between 1995 and 2009.
'Despair-driven'
Mr Sainath has spent a lifetime reporting on distressed farmers and how the poor live in India. He admits that the census is not equipped to examine the complexity of migration in India. In a fast urbanising country, rising migration from villages to cities and towns is natural. Also, newer "urban areas" are being added all the time. The big picture is also not strikingly unusual. According to the census, 31.16% of Indians live in urban areas, up from 27.81% in 2001 - a rate which is actually significantly lower than the rate in many developing countries with similar income levels.
But, argues Mr Sainath, these "natural" factors which triggered migration from villages to cities have been valid in the earlier decades too when additions to the village population actually outstripped those to the cities. So why is the last decade throwing up a radically different result?
Many say the jobs for work programme has checked migration Many economists believe that it may be a little too early to conclude that the rising migration from villages to cities is being triggered by economic distress at home.
For one, they point to the fact that 90% of the increase in urban settlements - 7935 in 2011, up from 5161 in 2001 - is from the rise in the number of new "census towns". A settlement is declared such a town when its population exceeds 5,000; when the number of male farm workers falls to less than 25% of the total; and where population density is at least 4,000 people per sq km. "It is also likely that a very significant part of the 'urbanisation' that is being talked about is actually a reflection of this reclassification of settlements rather than of rural to urban migration," says renowned economist Jayati Ghosh.
Many economists believe that India's landmark multi-billion dollar jobs guarantee scheme scheme has checked migration of workers from villages to cities. Thanks to guaranteed wages and days of work, many villagers prefer to stay back and work. Others believe that India's big cities are becoming more and more uninviting to rural migrants: they are offered very few and appalling amenities, including housing and sanitation, have to pay bribes even for a basic vending business, and cough up steep rents. All this should slow down the rate of migration from rural to urban areas, economists like Amitabh Kundu of Jawaharlal Nehru University say.
There may be other pressing questions to ponder. How does India cope with its increasing urban population? Its cities are choking under power cuts, scarcity of water and polluted air. Also the increase of new urban settlements with poor amenities and limited access to jobs could easily lead to massive social unrest among the migrants in the new "cities". Which could actually end up wrecking India's cities faster than its villages.
source:BBC NEWS
Bhutan seeks Indian investment for socio-economic development
Sep 30, 8:23 PM AIR
Thimpu has sought Indian investment for socio economic development in Bhutan. Addressing a press conference in Kolkata this evening, the Bhutanese Prime Minister Mr. Jigny Y. Thinley said that his country need investment in the field of education, health, tourism and IT sectors from India.
Describing Indo - Bhutan relation as an exemplary one to promote friendship and mutual trust, Mr. Thinley opined that both sides are committed to maintain it. The Bhutanese Prime Minister arrived in Kolkata today on a day's visit to attend the annual general meeting of the Maha Bodhi society of India.
Sep 30, 8:23 PM AIR
Thimpu has sought Indian investment for socio economic development in Bhutan. Addressing a press conference in Kolkata this evening, the Bhutanese Prime Minister Mr. Jigny Y. Thinley said that his country need investment in the field of education, health, tourism and IT sectors from India.
Describing Indo - Bhutan relation as an exemplary one to promote friendship and mutual trust, Mr. Thinley opined that both sides are committed to maintain it. The Bhutanese Prime Minister arrived in Kolkata today on a day's visit to attend the annual general meeting of the Maha Bodhi society of India.
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