Cabinet approves Tax Tribunal Bill
New Delhi: The Union Cabinet has approved a Bill that would pave the way for setting up of a National Tax Tribunal (NTT) with 25 benches across the country. The tribunal would examine cases relating to both direct and indirect taxes.

Announcing the decision of the Cabinet, the Finance Minister, P. Chidambaram, told newspersons that the NTT was being set up for speedy disposal of tax cases that are pending before various High Courts of the country. Besides the fast disposal of cases, the NTT is also expected to bring about uniformity in the decision making process. There are about 28,000 cases that are pending in various high courts of the country.

An appeal issued from an order passed by Income-Tax Appellate Tribunal and Central Excise and Sales Tax Appellate Tribunal would come to the NTT only on substantial question of law
The chairperson of the proposed NTT would be a retired judge of the Supreme Court or a retired Chief Justice of high court and would hold office for five years or till 68 years. The retirement age for other members would be 65 years. Each bench will have two judicial members.

A selection committee consisting of Chief Justice of India or his nominee, Law Secretary and Revenue Secretary would select the chairperson and members.

A fresh Bill is to be introduced in Parliament for the setting up of NTT as the earlier Bill introduced by the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government had lapsed following the dissolution of the 13th Lok Sabha.
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McKinsey report: Auto component manufacturing could grow to $40 billion by 2015
New Delhi: The Indian auto component industry could see about $20 billion-$25 billion in exports and $13 billion-$15 billion in domestic consumption and indirect exports by the year 2015, according to a Vision 2015 study for the Indian auto component industry, prepared by McKinsey & Co. The findings of this were revealed here on Thursday at the 44th Annual Session and National Conference of the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India (ACMA).

According to the report, India-based automotive component manufacturing has the potential to grow from $6.7 billion in 2004 to $33 billion-$40 billion by 2015. This potential growth could create 2.5-3 million additional direct and indirect jobs and provide a significant employment opportunity for the rural/small town population.
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New scheme to replace duty entitlement passbook
New Delhi: The Union Commerce and Industry Minister, Kamal Nath, has said that the goal of pushing up the country's merchandise exports to 1.5 per cent of world trade by 2009 was challenging but not insurmountable.

During 2003-04, India's merchandise exports were valued at $63.45 billion, accounting for about 0.8 per cent of world exports. If this share were to be doubled to about 1.5 per cent, it would mean that the country's exports would have to touch around $195 billion by 2009, assuming a 10 per cent compounded annual growth rate in world trade.

On the duty entitlement passbook (DEPB) scheme, which is proposed to be discontinued with effect from April 1, 2005, the Commerce Minister assured exporters that it would be replaced by a new scheme, "which will be drawn up in consultation with exporters".

The DEPB scheme is a facility that provides credit to exporters, which can be used for the import of capital goods, raw materials, intermediates, components, parts and packaging material. The credit - fixed as a specified percentage of the free — on-board value of exports made in freely convertible currency — is intended to help exporters neutralise the incidence of customs duty on the import content of the export product.
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India and Thailand sign up for early harvest scheme
New Delhi: India and Thailand have signed a protocol to implement the early harvest scheme (EHS) under the framework agreement on free trade area (FTA).

The key elements of the framework agreement encompass FTA in goods, services and investment and areas of co-operation. It also provides for an EHS under which 82 items at a six-digit level of harmonised system of common list to both sides have been agreed for complete elimination of tariffs on a fast-track basis, over two years.

The list covers approximately seven per cent of the bilateral trade and the import of these items from each other will now enjoy 50 per cent duty relief for the first year beginning September 2004. The duty relief will be extended to 75 per cent of the existing duty on these items from September 2005. Imports of these items from both these countries will be free of all duties beginning September 2006. Though, as per the framework agreement, the EHS was to start from March 1, 2004, the interim rules of origin for implementing the EHS was delayed. With the 'rules of origin' having been firmed up to preclude third-country products taking undue advantage of preferential trading facility, both sides have resolved to begin the first phase of duty concession from September 1, 2004.

Total trade between India and Thailand almost doubled from $777.15 million in 1999-2000 to $1.4 billion last year.
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Cheap cochlear implants from AP naval laboratory
Visakhapatnam: The Naval Science and Technological Laboratory (NSTL) here and the Andhra University College of Engineering have undertaken a joint project to develop an inexpensive cochlear (ear) implant, which will appreciably improve the hearing capacity of even the born-deaf.

At present, the cochlear implant is being imported and grafted into the ear by ENT surgeons. But it is prohibitively expensive, ranging from Rs.5 lakh to Rs.10 lakh. Both are jointly working to reduce the cost to less than a lakh so that many can avail themselves of this technology.

It is interesting to note that the President, Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, is keen on the project. He worked on this project when he was with the Defence Research and Development Organisation and visited NSTL for this purpose.

Cochlear implant surgeries are being performed on 1,000 to 1,500 patients every year in India, with 200 of them in the South and about 20 in Hyderabad. The surgeries are being done in the hospitals in Hyderabad, Chennai, Bangalore, Manipal, Mumbai, Delhi and a few other places.
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