M M Sury – författare

Among the various indices of ability-to-pay taxes, income is regarded by far the most appropriate. Part I of this book examines various analytical and policy issues associated with the designing of an income tax system. Part II of the book describes in simple language the otherwise complex law of income tax in India. It traces, in brief, the history of income tax legislation in India and describes the existing constitutional provisions and legal framework of income tax. Besides, it states the main provisions of the Income Tax Act, 1961 and explains the law and procedure of assessment of taxable income. Finally, it critically evaluates the present system of income tax in India.

This book provides an exhaustive and critical account of the various aspects of the Indian tax system. It places current developments in the field of taxation in perspective. This work traces the structural evolution, explains the legal framework, and describes the present system of taxation. the book reproduces edited extracts from the reports on taxation published by the Government of India between 1925 and 2006. The book also contains time-series data (1950-51 to 2004-05) on tax revenues of Central and State Governments in India.

Fiscal policy is an important instrument of the general economic policy of a government. It is concerned with the use of a government's taxation and expenditure powers to influence economic activities in an economy at the aggregate level. Through the medium of budget, fiscal policy determines the level of taxation, public expenditure, borrowings and the issue of additional currency by a government. The external payments crisis of 1991 in India, which led to the initiation of economic reforms, was the result of deteriorating fiscal situation during the latter half of 1980s. Fiscal imbalance was identified as the underlying cause of the twin problems of inflation and the difficult balance of payments position. This book provides an exhaustive and analytical account of fiscal developments in India since Independence in 1947 with focus on post-1991 reforms. The book is organised into 10 parts, each part containing chapters/information dealing with some aspect of fiscal policy in India.

India's present fiscal structure is the result of a gradual evolution, dating back to December 14, 1870 when the resolution of Lord Mayo, Viceroy of India, was issued. The Mayo resolution explained the scheme by which the Government of India envisaged enlargement of the powers and responsibilities of the Provinces. The process of decentralisation of functions and finances in India will complete 140 years with the termination of the recommendations of the Twelfth Finance Commission in March 2010. This book traces the developments in the federal structure of India over this period. The work provides a detailed description and analysis of the evolution and the present nature of Centre-State financial relations in India and explains the existing constitutional arrangements for intergovernmental financial transfers and the role of the Finance Commission and the Planning Commission in effecting these transfers. The book consists of 27 chapters which explain different dimensions of fiscal federalism in India.

This book provides an exhaustive and analytical account of budgetary developments in India since Independence in 1947 with focus on post-1991 reforms. The work is organised into 8 parts, each part containing chapters/information dealing with some aspect of budgetary policy in India. Part I explains the economic role of modern governments, particularly in developing countries. It describes various reasons for state intervention in the working of an economic system with special reference to the provision of public goods. Part II of this work explains (a) constitutional provisions and parliamentary procedures and controls applicable to the budgetary exercise of the Government of India, (b) structure of the Central Government budget, (c) functional, economic and cross-classification of the budget and (d) recent budgetary reforms in India including gender budgeting. Part III is devoted to taxes, expenditure, subsidies and debt liabilities of the Central Government.

This book is all about current economic crisis, its origin, causes, impact, world response, world economic outlook and lessons to be learnt. The focus of the work, however, is on the impact of global economic crisis on India and the policy response by the Government of India, Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and other agencies. Financial turmoil which surfaced in August 2007 in the US financial system -- as a result of defaults of sub-prime mortgage loans -- has blown into an unprecedented financial crisis engulfing international money, credit, equity and foreign exchange markets.

Finance is the life blood of a government. Arrangements for finance are more complicated in a federal set up than in a unitary form of government. A federal system creates a multiple polity based on divided functions and powers among central, state and local governments. Fiscal federalism, as a branch of public finance, deals with financial arrangements and their working in a federal polity. Fiscal federalism is a subject of topical interest in India in view of some recent developments of historical importance. With the passage of the Constitution (Seventy-third Amendment) Act, 1992, a uniform structure of panchayats has emerged throughout the country. Similarly, the passage of the Constitution (Seventy-fourth Amendment) Act, 1992 was a landmark in the history of municipal administration in India. As a result of these amendments, panchayats and municipalities are now constitutional bodies forming the third tier of the federal polity of India. Furthermore, the Constitution (Eightieth Amendment) Act, 2000, significantly changed the manner of distribution of Central tax collections between the Central and State Governments. Prior to this Amendment, income tax and Union excise duties were the only taxes shared with the States. This Amendment altered the pattern of sharing of Central taxes between the Centre and the States by providing for the sharing of the net proceeds of all Union taxes and duties with the States. Still further, the Constitution (Eighty-eighth Amendment) Act, 2003 included taxes on services under entry 92C in the Union List (List I) in the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution. The Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act, 2003, requires rules to be made under the Act to specify the annual targets for reduction of fiscal deficit and revenue deficit, contingent liabilities and total liabilities. Spread over 30 chapters, this book provides a detailed description and analysis of the evolution and the present structure of fiscal federalism in India. In particular, it contains highlights and summary of each Finance Commission Report from First to Thirteenth Finance Commission. A detailed note on the National Level Goods and Services Tax (GST) -- scheduled to be introduced from April 1, 2011 -- also forms part of the book. Besides, it contains time-series data (1950-51 to 2010-11) on India's public finances. It also includes a glossary of fiscal terms.

The resource base of a country consists of (a) human resources, (b) non-renewable resources which are an endowment of nature and whose total size gets depleted with time and (c) renewable resources which can be continuously created and whose base can be expanded through human efforts. Economic planning is concerned with the effective and optimal utilisation of the potential resources of an economy. This is particularly so in the context of underdeveloped countries which are striving to raise the standard of living of the masses. In fact, planning is a process aiming not merely at the best utilisation of material resources but also at the development of human faculties and institutional framework suitable to the needs and aspirations of the people. The establishment of Planning Commission in 1950 heralded a new era in the economic history of India. It makes an assessment of the material, capital and human resources of the country, including technical personnel, and investigates the possibilities of augmenting such of these resources as are found to be deficient in relation to the nation's requirements. It, then, formulates a Plan for the most effective and balanced utilisation of the country's resources. India's First Five Year Plan was launched on April 1, 1951. Since then, ten Five Year Plans have been completed and the Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007-08 to 2011-12) is underway. Part I of the book deals with human and natural resources of India, principles of economic planning, institutional framework of economic planning in India, and assessment of India's experience with economic planning. Part II provides summary of each Five Year Plan (First Plan to Eleventh Plan) under the following 13 common theme headings: Plan at a Glance; Agriculture and Rural Development; Industry and Infrastructure; Mineral Resources; Electricity and Other Renewable Energy Sources; Urban Development and Housing; Transport and Communications; Employment and Labour Welfare; Health, Family Planning and Nutrition; Education, Training and Skill Formation; Science and Technology; Social Welfare; Balanced Regional Development; Part III contains sector-wise time-series statistics on the Indian economy from 1950-51 to 2009-10; Part IV of the book comprises glossary of economic planning and a list of English equivalents of select Hindi terms used in Plan Documents.

Economic planning is concerned with the effective and optimal utilisation of the potential resources of an economy. This is particularly so in the context of underdeveloped countries which are striving to raise the standard of living of the masses. In fact, planning is a process aiming not merely at the best utilisation of material resources but also at the development of human faculties and institutional framework suitable to the needs and aspirations of the people. The establishment of Planning Commission in 1950 heralded a new era in the economic history of India. It makes an assessment of the material, capital and human resources of the country, including technical personnel, and investigates the possibilities of augmenting such of these resources as are found to be deficient in relation to the requirements of the country. It, then, formulates a Plan for the most effective and balanced utilisation of these resources. India's First Five Year Plan was launched on 1 April 1951. Since then, eleven Five Year Plans have been completed and the Twelfth Five Year Plan (2012-13 to 2016-17) is underway. This book provides a comprehensive account of various aspects of economic planning in India. It traces the structural changes which have transformed India from a traditional agricultural economy to a technologically strong, industrially diversified and militarily powerful country. Part I of the book contains two chapters: Chapter 1 explains the determinants and constraints of economic development. Chapter 2 describes the principles of economic planning. Part II comprises of five chapters: Chapter 3 deals with human and natural resources of India. Chapter 4 discusses the problems and issues in India's development efforts. Chapter 5 explains the institutional framework for economic planning in India. Chapter 6 records achievements of Five Year Plans. Chapter 7 highlights the areas of concern and makes an overall assessment of the planning experience. Part III contains two chapters: Chapter 8 provides sector-wise account of economic reforms in India (1991 to 2013). Chapter 9 discusses future prospects and challenges before the Indian Economy. Parts IV to XV provide sector-wise summary of and sector-wise edited extracts from each of the Five Year Plans (I to XII) under the following 12 common theme headings: 1. Agriculture and Rural Development. 2. Industrial Policy and Public Sector. 3. Mineral Resources. 4. Electricity and Other Renewable Energy Sources. 5. Urban Development and Housing. 6. Transport and Communications. 7. Employment and Labour Welfare. 8. Health, Family Planning and Nutrition. 9. Education, Training and Skill Development. 10. Science and Technology. 11. Social Welfare.12. Balanced Regional Development. The 12 theme headings cover almost all the sectors of the Indian economy. Reader will find it easy to comprehend how a particular sector of the Indian economy was treated in terms of priority, strategy, and allocation of resources in the successive Plans. Part XVI contains sector-wise time-series data on the Indian economy from 1950-51 to 2011-12. The book would be useful for a cross-section of academic community and researchers, both in India and abroad. It will also serve the needs of legislators, business executives, entrepreneurs and investors, and others interested in the developments in the Indian economy.

In recent years, the issue of corruption and black money has come in the forefront after a series of financial scandals. Generation of black money -- and its stashing abroad in tax havens and offshore financial centres -- has dominated discussions and debate in public fora during the recent past. Members of Parliament, the Supreme Court of India and the public at large have unequivocally expressed concern on the issue, particularly after some reports suggested enormous estimates of such unaccounted wealth being held abroad. After uproar in Parliament, Government of India came out with a White Paper on Black Money in May 2012. The White Paper presented the different facets of black money and its complex relationship with policy and administrative regime in the country. It also reflected upon the policy options and strategies that the Government had been pursuing in the context of recent initiatives, to address the issue of black money and corruption in public life. To meet the deadline set by the Honourable Supreme Court for the previous Government, the new Government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT), soon after assuming office on May 26, 2014. Headed by Justice M B Shah, a former judge of the Supreme Court, SIT was notified on May 27, 2014 to look into the issue of black money. The objective of this book is to explain various facets and dimensions of black money and tax evasion and their complex relationship with the policy and administrative regime in the country. It describes the factors which lead to the generation of black money, and records various estimates of black money and tax evasion. It also presents the measures/strategies that the Government of India has been pursuing to tackle this issue, especially recent initiatives and developments. The work, using simple and non-technical language, is descriptive in nature and designed for a cross section of readers for easy understanding of this rather complex branch of fiscal economics.

Taxes are as old as civilisations. Taxes are imposed so that a government may perform its traditional functions (defence, and maintenance of law and order), undertake welfare and developmental activities, and make provision for public goods to satisfy collective needs of the people. It has also to pay for its own administration. It needs financial resources for these purposes and taxation is one method of transferring money from private to public hands. Taxation is necessary because what the government gives it must first take away. The Indian tax system has undergone major structural changes since Independence in 1947. It has become comprehensive and complicated over the years. It has successfully mobilised resources to finance developmental, welfare and administrative activities of public authorities. Besides being the main source of revenue, both for the Central and State Governments, it is an effective instrument to realise various socio-economic objectives of national policies. However, the tax system has been relying heavily on indirect taxes and suffering extensively from fiscal malady called tax evasion. Restructuring of the tax system has constituted a major component of fiscal reforms initiated since 1991. The main focus of the tax reforms has been on simplification and rationalisation of both direct and indirect taxes with the objective of augmenting revenues and removing anomalies in the tax structure. Tax reforms in recent years have brought the tax system much closer to international tax practices. The post-1991 period has witnessed a sharp decline in the rates of income tax, excise duty and customs tariff. The theory that high rates of duty lead to higher revenue collection has been discarded in favour of lower rates with fewer exemptions and concessions. The strategy in respect of direct taxation is to minimise distortions in tax structure by expanding the tax base, moderating tax rates, improving efficiency of tax administration and increasing the deterrence level. The strategy in respect of indirect taxes is to move towards a fully integrated national level goods and services tax (GST). This book provides an exhaustive and analytical account of tax structure developments in India since Independence in 1947 with focus on post-1991 reforms. It places current developments in the field of taxation in perspective. Containing 25 chapters (divided into 7 theme parts), it explains and examines almost every aspect of the Indian tax system. Besides, it provides detailed time-series tax statistics of India for the period 1950-51 to 2013-14/2015-16. The overall approach to the subject is descriptive, and at places analytical. The book is designed to interest a cross-section of readers, viz. teachers and students of economics, commerce, law, public administration, business management, chartered accountancy and company secretaryship. It will also serve the needs of legislators, business executives, entrepreneurs and investors, and others interested in tax structure developments in India.

The Government of India constitutes, as a matter of convention, a pay commission after almost every 10 years to review and make recommendations on the wage structure of Central Government civilian and armed forces employees and pensioners. A pay commission, depending on the terms of reference, examines various aspects -- such as pay and allowances, retirement and death benefits, conditions of service, promotion policy and such other related matters -- of the wage structure of employees and submits its recommendations to the Government. The Government, in turn, takes the final decision as to the implementation of the recommendations, which may be full or partial or amended or modified. The chairman and members of the pay commission are nominated by the Government. A pay commission is not a constitutional body and therefore the Central Government has a lot of leeway about which part of the report to adopt and in what timeframe. Since India's Independence, 7 pay commissions have been set up, from time to time, to review and recommend wage structure for Central Government employees. Usually a pay commission is given 18 month's time to submit its report. A pay commission, before recommending the pay structure, analyses voluminous data relating, inter alia, to the general economic conditions in the country, financial resources of the government, strength of the work force, and pay structure in public sector and private sector undertakings. Clearly, review and determination of the pay structure of Central Government employees and pensioners is a stupendous and complicated task. Reports of pay commissions provide glimpses of the events, challenges and perceptions of labour leaders and policy makers during the post-Independence period. The present work provides highlights and summary of recommendations of each of the 7 pay commissions which have reported so far. The work is divided into two parts. Part I deals with the Reports of First to Sixth Pay Commission. Part II is exclusively devoted to the Report of the Seventh Central Pay Commission which was submitted to the Government on 19 November 2015.

After centuries of subjugation, India was a typically backward economy at the time of Independence in 1947. It exhibited the following features: (a) traditional and stagnant agriculture, (b) poor technological and scientific capabilities, (c) limited and lop-sided industrialisation, (d) underdeveloped means of transport and communications, (e) grossly inadequate health and educational facilities, and (f) virtually non-existent social security arrangements. In short, the country suffered from the twin problems of rampant poverty and widespread unemployment, both making for low general standard of living. During the formative years after Independence, the development pattern of India was characterised by strong centralised planning, government ownership of basic and key industries, excessive regulation and control of private enterprise, trade protectionism through tariff and non-tariff barriers and a cautious and selective approach towards foreign capital. It was quota, permit and license regime guided and controlled by a bureaucracy trained in colonial style. Indian economy grew at an average dismal rate of 3.5 percent per annum during the first 30 years (1950-80) of planned economic development. This so-called state-controlled inward-looking, and import substitution strategy of economic development began to be widely questioned with the beginning of 1980s. Policymakers started realising the drawbacks of this strategy which inhibited competitiveness and efficiency and produced a much lower rate of growth than expected. Consequently, economic reforms were set in motion -- though on a modest scale -- when controls on industries were reduced by the 1985 Industrial Policy. The economic reforms programme got a big boost when the Government announced a new industrial policy in the Indian Parliament on July 24, 1991. Since then, it is liberalisation, privatisation and globalisation all the way and the process is underway. In the new liberalised industrial and trade environment, the Government is progressively assuming the role of a promoter, facilitator and catalytic agent instead of a regulator and controller of economic activities. The liberalisation process which started in the early 1990s encompassed wide-ranging reform measures in the areas of industry, public finances, banking and insurance, foreign trade and exchange rate management. The purpose of these economic reforms was two-fold: (a) to restore macroeconomic stability on both domestic and external fronts, and (b) to place the economy on a higher growth path through enhanced levels of investment, and improvements in productivity, efficiency and competitiveness. After the reforms, the Indian economy has been growing faster than its historical growth rate. Tenth Five Year Plan (2002-07) recorded an annual growth rate of 7.2 percent and the Eleventh Five Year Plan (2007-12) achieved a 7.9 percent growth rate per annum. It is now widely agreed that the Indian economy is capable of achieving high growth rates in response to the implementation of appropriate and timely economic reforms. India is now Asias third largest economy and has the worlds fourth largest foreign exchange reserves. Indias gradual and cautious approach to economic reforms has proved well-founded and the country is placed on a firm footing for future forays into domestic and global economic activities. Presently, India is one of worlds fastest growing economies. Lately, it has emerged as a global economic power, a leading outsourcing destination and a favourite of international investors. The new Government at the Centre, which took charge in May 2014, under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has a vision to make India a modern and vibrant economy. Policies and programmes to rejuvenate the economy have already been announced in this regard. These have included, inter alia, Start-up India Initiative, 2016, eBiz Project, Make in India Campaign, Stand-Up India Scheme, Ease of Doing Business, India Aspiration Fund (IAF), Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), India Inclusive Innovation Fund (IIIF), Digital India, Smart Cities Mission, Atal Pension Yojana (APY) and permission to set up payment banks. This book provides a comprehensive account and assessment of economic reforms introduced in various sectors of the Indian economy during the last 25 years (1991-2016).

Finance is the life blood of a government. Arrangements for finance are more complicated in a federal set up than in a unitary form of government. A federal system creates a multiple polity based on divided functions and powers among central and state governments. Fiscal federalism, as a branch of public finance, deals with financial arrangements and their working in a federal polity. As a financial blueprint of a government, budget is an important instrument to carry out its policies and programmes. It is through the budget that a government arranges financial resources and allocates them among competing uses. The high level of administrative, welfare and developmental activities of the Central Government make for colossal amounts of both receipts and disbursements. Such large-scale public transactions through the budget affect the economy in various ways. The level and composition of taxes influence the allocation of resources among various sectors of the economy, distribution of income among different economic classes, and macro management of the economy. Similarly, the borrowing policy of the Central Government affects the amount of national savings available to the private sector for consumption and investment. No less important are the effects of massive public expenditure on production, distribution and economic stabilization. Budget is not merely a statement of government accounts. It reflects the governments vision and signals the policies to come in future. Budget is also the chief source of government finance statistics to facilitate research and decisions on fiscal and economic matters. In India, the Central Government budget is designed mainly to ensure Parliamentary control and accounting scrutiny. Each year the Government has to obtain the authority of the Parliament to raise revenues to meet its expenditure. Budget of the government is perhaps the most important annual item on the agenda of the Parliament. Budget papers of the Government of India provide glimpses of the events, challenges and perceptions of the leaders. They highlight contemporary problems of the Indian economy and policy measures taken by the government to solve them, making for a fascinating study of Indias march towards development. Fiscal federalism is a subject of topical interest in India in view of some recent developments of historical importance. The Constitution (Eightieth Amendment) Act, 2000, significantly changed the manner of distribution of Central tax collections between the Central and State Governments. Prior to this Amendment, income tax and Union excise duties were the only taxes shared with the States. This Amendment altered the pattern of sharing of Central taxes between the Centre and the States by providing for the sharing of the net proceeds of all Union taxes and duties with the States. Enactment of the Constitution (One Hundred and First Amendment) Act, 2016 and the subsequent introduction of Goods and Services Tax (GST) from July 1, 2017, marked a clear departure from the initial scheme of distribution of taxation powers between the Centre and the States envisaged in the Constitution. Prior to enactment of the said Act, taxation powers between the Centre and the States were clearly demarcated in the Constitution of India with no overlaps between their respective domains. With the introduction of GST, fiscal federalism in India has moved from mutually exclusive to concurrent powers of taxation for the Centre and the States. Recommendations of the Finance Commission constitute the core of fiscal federalism in India. Finance Commission is a unique feature of the Indian Constitution without parallel in the existing federal constitutions of the world. Reports of the Finance Commissions provide in-depth insights into problems and their solutions in the highly complex area of federal finance. These Reports examine in detail, contemporary issues in Centre-State financial relations and recommend measures to solve them. Spread over 29 chapters, the book is organized into 2 parts. Part I (chapters 1 to 7) is titled Government Budgeting Procedures in India. This part provides conceptual framework for budgetary techniques, phases of budgetary cycle of the Government of India, parliamentary controls over the budget, components and structure of the budget, budgetary reforms and other topics related to the subject. It also includes highlights of each Central Budget from 1947-48 to 2021-22. Part II (chapters 8 to 29) is titled Centre-State Financial Relations (Fiscal Federalism) in India. This part covers conceptual settings for fiscal federalism, nature and features of Indian federation, centralization of revenues and channels of transfers to states, role of the Finance Commission, vertical distribution of resources, horizontal distribution of resources, and Constitution (One Hundred and First Amendment) Act, 2016, and the changed landscape of fiscal federalism in India. It also includes highlights and summary of each Finance Commission Report from First Finance Commission to Fifteenth Finance Commission. This work would prove useful for the students of economics, commerce, public administration and business management. An understanding of the mechanics of governmental financial transactions will also serve the needs of legislators, administrators and those in industry and trade.

Taxes are imposed so that a government may perform its traditional functions (defence, and maintenance of law and order), undertake welfare and developmental activities, and make provision for public goods to satisfy collective needs of the people. It has also to pay for its own administration. After Independence in 1947, the Indian tax system has undergone major structural changes. It has become comprehensive and complicated over the years. A historic tax reform in the form of goods and services tax (GST) was introduced in India from July 1, 2017. This book provides an exhaustive and critical account of various aspects of the Indian tax system in historical settings. It places current developments in the field of taxation in perspective. The book contains 22 chapters which have been organized into 3 parts. Part I (chapters 1 and 2) is titled Taxes in Ancient and Medieval India. The detailed analysis given in Manu Smriti and Arthashastra on the subject shows the existence of a well-planned taxation system, even in ancient times. Taxes were paid in the form of gold coins, cattle, grains, raw materials and also by rendering personal services. Similarly, there were various types of taxes during the Sultanate period and the Mughal rule. Land revenue by far was the most important source of income for the Mughal rulers. The land revenue system adopted by Akbar has been greatly admired by historians. Part II (chapters 3 to 8) is titled Taxes during British Rule. It explains and examines the financial administration of the British rulers and the introduction of income tax, excise duties and sales tax by them. Rationalization of customs duties, and the working of federal-provincial financial relations are also discussed in this part. Part III (chapters 9 to 22) is titled Post-Independence History of Taxation. This part is further sub-divided into Part III (A) and Part III (B). Part III (A) (chapters 9 to 14) is titled Multiple and Punitive Taxation during Pre-reforms Period (1947 to 1990). It explains the policy of integrated direct tax system introduced soon after Independence in 1947. It also describes the structure of income tax, excise duties, customs duties and sales tax. Part III (B) (chapters 15 to 22) is titled Moderate and Rationalized Tax System in the Post-reforms Period (Since 1991). It deals with approach to tax reforms, rationalization and simplification of income tax, excise duties and customs tariff, introduction of service tax, and states switch over from sales tax to value added tax (VAT). It also discusses the main features of goods and services tax (GST) introduced from July 1, 2017. The book also contains an appendix which lays out current constitutional provisions pertaining to distribution of taxation powers between the Centre and the States.