PM okays tax rebate rollback
New Delhi: Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee has given the green signal to a partial rollback of the withdrawal of benefits under Section 88 of the Income Tax Act.

The decision follows a meeting Vajpayee had with finance minister Yashwant Sinha.

Sinha is expected to announce the changes while moving the finance bill in the Lok Sabha.

The finance bill is expected to restore the 20 per cent tax exemption for investments made under Section 88 for all those with an annual income between Rs 1.5 lakh and Rs 5 lakh.

The proposal for no tax rebate for assessees with an income of above Rs 5 lakh will, however stay.

A calculation made by the finance ministry has shown that tax incidence goes up by almost 50 per cent on those with annual income of up to Rs 2 lakh as a result of the budget proposals.

The rollback is expected to benefit about 12.6 per cent of the 28.8 million tax assessees in the country.
Back to News Review index page  

DCA orders probe into 98 company accounts
New Delhi: The department of company affairs (DCA) has ordered the inspection of the books of accounts of 98 companies based on preliminary investigations by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) into the 2001 stock scam.

In a statement issued today, DCA said it had carried out inspection of the books of accounts of 199 companies during the nine months to December 2001 under Section 209 A of the Companies Act, 1956.

In its annual report, the department also said that during 2000-01, it inspected the books of 221 companies, as against 230 companies in 1999-2000 and 255 in 1998-99.

The inspections under Section 209 A were mainly ordered on the basis of complaints received, the release said.
Back to News Review index page  

SBI to sue IFCI over default
Mumbai: The state-owned Industrial Finance Corporation of India (IFCI) is facing legal action from State Bank of India (SBI) for defaulting on timely repayment of one of its bond issues.

IFCI has defaulted on principal and interest repayment on bonds worth around Rs 100 crore.

The bank is considering a proposal to start legal proceedings in the debt recovery tribunal.

IFCI had not redeemed the principal amount on an issue which matured on 10 March, carrying a coupon of 11 per cent.
Back to News Review index page