Economy

38 items tagged Economy.

• 2026-09-07

  57th GST Council meeting postponed to 7 October over BRICS Summit clash

  The 57th meeting of the GST Council, earlier notified for 12 September 2026 in New Delhi, has been postponed to 7 October 2026 because the capital will be hosting the BRICS Leaders' Summit on 12 and 13 September, making it impracticable to hold both events together. An officers' meeting will now be held on 5 and 6 October ahead of the Council meeting, which will be chaired as usual by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman along with state finance ministers. The rescheduled meeting is expected to take up simplification of GST registration for large businesses and other pending compliance issues.

• 2026-09-06

  Coal stock redistribution emerges as fuel management dilemma for thermal power plants

  India's thermal power sector is confronting a fuel management dilemma in which generators that maintain coal inventories at prescribed norms risk being disadvantaged when limited domestic coal is redirected to plants that have fallen below their stock requirements. Government data shows coal stocks at thermal power plants stood at about 34.55 million tonnes, with another 113 million tonnes at pitheads or in transit, even as overall coal dispatches rose about 6 percent year on year to 354.7 million tonnes in the current financial year through July. Industry executives argue that while emergency redistribution protects grid reliability, it needs a clearly defined corrective mechanism so that prudent fuel planning is not turned into a commercial disadvantage.

• 2026-09-04

  India will finalise US trade pact only after a preferential tariff edge, says Piyush Goyal

  Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on 3 September 2026 that India would finalise its proposed Bilateral Trade Agreement with the United States only once Washington offers Indian exporters a preferential tariff rate compared with competing countries such as Vietnam, Bangladesh, Thailand and Indonesia. Speaking at a National Workshop on Leveraging Free Trade Agreements in New Delhi, Goyal said India's nine existing free trade agreements already give it preferential access to economies representing about USD 60 trillion of global GDP, nearly two thirds of world trade. He is expected to travel to the United States in late September for the G20 Trade Ministerial in Milwaukee and bilateral talks with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.

• 2026-09-03

  Delhi Cabinet passes Ease of Doing Business Bill, 2026

  The Delhi Cabinet approved the Delhi Ease of Doing Business Bill, 2026, on 2 September 2026, aiming to make regulatory approvals for enterprises in the capital simpler, faster and less costly. The Bill creates a single window online system, with the Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation as the nodal agency, through which businesses can apply for approvals, registrations, licences and no objection certificates instead of visiting multiple offices. For low risk activities listed in Schedule 3 of the Bill, approvals will be granted instantly on self declaration, and registered enterprises will get relief from routine inspections for three years unless a serious complaint is received. The Bill will now be sent to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs for approval, since Delhi is a Union Territory with a legislature.

• 2026-09-03

  India Post Payments Bank marks 9th Foundation Day, launches DakPay Sound Box

  India Post Payments Bank marked its ninth Foundation Day on 1 September 2026 by launching the DakPay Sound Box, an audio confirmation device that lets merchants verify digital payments as they are received. The bank also introduced a Digital Insurance Technology Platform connecting customers to life, health and general insurance products, and a Digital Mutual Fund Platform for making investments digitally. IPPB, set up as a payments bank under the Department of Posts and launched on 1 September 2018, said it now serves about 13.25 crore customers across India, of whom 77 percent are in rural areas and 49 percent are women. The launches extend the postal network's role in delivering banking, insurance and investment services to underserved areas.

• 2026-09-03

  SEBI's modified nomination framework for demat accounts and MF folios takes effect

  A modified nomination framework from the Securities and Exchange Board of India, notified through a circular dated 29 May 2026, took effect on 1 September 2026. From this date, every new single holder demat account or mutual fund folio must carry either a nominee or a signed declaration opting out of nomination, while joint holdings remain exempt from the requirement. SEBI said the framework is intended to ease the transmission of investments to legal heirs and reduce the pool of unclaimed financial assets sitting in the securities market. The requirement applies to newly opened single holder accounts and folios rather than retrospectively freezing existing ones without a nominee.

• 2026-09-03

  Ahmedabad becomes third spoke airport under India's international Hub and Spoke framework

  The Ministry of Civil Aviation launched international hub and spoke flight operations from Ahmedabad on 1 September 2026, making it the third spoke airport after Varanasi and Amritsar under the framework that designates Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport as India's primary international hub. Under the arrangement, passengers travelling internationally from Ahmedabad complete check in, immigration and customs procedures at the spoke airport itself, with baggage transferred through so they do not need to clear immigration again at the Delhi hub. The government has cited Ahmedabad's role as a host city for the 2030 Commonwealth Games as one reason for prioritising it. The framework aims to make India a preferred hub for Indian travellers by 2030 and a leading global aviation hub by 2047, with the next phase expected to extend hub and spoke connectivity to 22 more airports including Surat.

• 2026-09-02

  India's GDP grows 7.8% in April to June quarter of 2026-27

  Government data released on 31 August 2026 showed India's real GDP grew 7.8 percent in the April to June quarter of 2026-27, up from 6.9 percent in the same quarter last year and above the Reserve Bank of India's own projection of 7 percent. Real GDP at constant prices was estimated at Rs 81.36 lakh crore, against Rs 75.46 lakh crore a year earlier, while nominal GDP rose 10.3 percent to Rs 88.27 lakh crore. Services grew 10 percent and gross capital formation rose 11.9 percent, with manufacturing up 9.2 percent, even as the economy absorbed the effects of the West Asia crisis. Prime Minister Narendra Modi described the growth as a collective national achievement.

• 2026-09-02

  Gross GST collections rise 14.8% to nearly Rs 2 lakh crore in August

  Government data released on 1 September 2026 showed India's gross GST collections rose 14.8 percent year on year to nearly Rs 1.99 lakh crore in August, lower than the Rs 2.11 lakh crore collected in July. Net GST revenue grew a more modest 8.3 percent to Rs 1.68 lakh crore, as refunds jumped nearly 68 percent to Rs 31,795 crore compared with the same month last year. Domestic transactions contributed about Rs 1.37 lakh crore of gross revenue, up 9.3 percent, while GST collected on imports rose 29 percent to Rs 62,604 crore. Cumulative gross GST collections for April to August of 2026-27 stood at Rs 10.43 lakh crore, up 11 percent over the same period last year.

• 2026-09-01

  Government notifies operational framework for Rs 1.27 lakh crore Semicon 2.0 scheme

  The Union government notified the operational framework for Semicon 2.0, an expanded Rs 1.27 lakh crore programme under the India Semiconductor Mission, on 31 August 2026. Unlike the first phase, the scheme widens eligibility to chip design startups, MSMEs, equipment and materials manufacturers, and research and training institutions, and puts semiconductor design and intellectual property at the centre of the strategy alongside fabrication, assembly and advanced packaging. Silicon wafer fabs can receive support of up to 40 percent of eligible capital expenditure, while chip design startups and MSMEs can access national electronic design automation tools and seed funding of up to Rs 15 crore.

• 2026-09-01

  India's fiscal deficit at 26.8% of FY27 target in April to July

  Government data released on 31 August 2026 showed India's fiscal deficit for April to July 2026 stood at Rs 4.55 lakh crore, or 26.8 percent of the full year target for 2026-27, an improvement from Rs 4.7 lakh crore in the same period last year. Net tax receipts rose to Rs 8.5 lakh crore from Rs 6.6 lakh crore a year earlier, while total government expenditure rose to Rs 17.6 lakh crore from Rs 15.6 lakh crore. The government has set its fiscal deficit target for 2026-27 at 4.3 percent of GDP, or Rs 16.96 lakh crore.

• 2026-08-30

  GST Council to hold 57th meeting on 12 September, first since last year's rate rationalisation

  The GST Council will hold its 57th meeting on 12 September 2026 in New Delhi, chaired by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, according to an office memorandum issued by the Council secretariat on 28 August. An officers' meeting will be held a day earlier, on 11 September, to prepare the agenda. This will be the Council's first formal meeting since it approved a major GST rate rationalisation in 2025, and the agenda is likely to include a proposal to simplify GST registration for large businesses that pass on more than Rs 2.5 lakh of tax credit a month.

• 2026-08-30

  Sitharaman pitches India as a manufacturing and innovation platform to Chicago investors

  Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, addressing a high level Business Roundtable with investors and business leaders in Chicago on Friday (28 August 2026), invited global investors to set up manufacturing bases and technology and innovation centres in India. She said India's investment proposition rested on the convergence of scale, growth, talent, infrastructure and sustained reform, and urged investors to treat India as a platform to build for the world rather than only a market to serve. Sitharaman highlighted GIFT City, which had 1,250 registered entities as of June 2026 offering banking, fund management, reinsurance, aircraft and ship leasing and sustainable finance services, as a gateway connecting global capital with Indian opportunities. She is on a six day visit to the United States that includes the G20 Finance Ministers' meeting in Asheville, North Carolina.

• 2026-08-29

  India and Canada reiterate commitment to conclude trade deal by end of 2026

  Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Canadian Minister of Finance and National Revenue Francois Philippe Champagne issued a joint statement on Friday (28 August 2026) reiterating both countries' commitment to conclude the India Canada Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) by the end of 2026. The statement, issued after the inaugural India Canada Finance Ministers' Economic and Financial Dialogue in Toronto, said India had expressed readiness to begin negotiations on a Bilateral Investment Treaty at the earliest. The dialogue built on the commitment made by Prime Minister Mark Carney and Prime Minister Narendra Modi during their meeting in New Delhi in March 2026 to strengthen bilateral economic and financial cooperation.

• 2026-08-29

  India's foreign exchange reserves rise to record USD 729.3 billion

  India's foreign exchange reserves rose by USD 12.42 billion to a record USD 729.3 billion in the week ended 21 August 2026, according to data released by the Reserve Bank of India on Friday (28 August 2026). The Reserve Bank attributed the sharp rise to strong inflows under its concessional FCNR(B) swap window, due to close on 31 August 2026, and to revaluation gains, with foreign currency assets alone increasing by USD 9.48 billion during the week. The milestone comes weeks after reserves first crossed USD 707 billion, reflecting the continued build up of India's external buffers even as the rupee has faced pressure through the year.

• 2026-08-29

  SEBI bars Trafiksol ITS Technologies and its promoters from securities market for a year

  The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on Friday (28 August 2026) barred Trafiksol ITS Technologies Limited and its promoters, Jitendra Narayan Das and Poonam Das, from accessing the securities market for one year and imposed penalties totalling Rs 1.05 crore, with Trafiksol fined Rs 30 lakh, Jitendra Das Rs 50 lakh and Poonam Das Rs 25 lakh. SEBI's investigation found that Trafiksol had inflated its 2023 to 24 revenue by Rs 22.01 crore through transactions routed via related entities, and identified fictitious purchases worth Rs 8.95 crore, in connection with the company's proposed Rs 44.87 crore SME initial public offering. The regulator directed the company and its promoters to pay the penalties within 45 days.

• 2026-08-28

  S&P affirms India's 'BBB' sovereign rating, flags fiscal slippage risk for FY27

  S&P Global Ratings on 27 August 2026 affirmed India's long term sovereign credit rating at 'BBB' with a stable outlook, about a year after upgrading India from 'BBB minus' to 'BBB' in August 2025, its first upgrade since 2007. The agency projected economic growth of around 6.6 per cent for the current financial year but flagged the risk of slippage in the Centre's fiscal deficit target for 2026 to 27, which is budgeted at 4.3 per cent of GDP. S&P said continued fiscal consolidation would be a key factor in any future upgrade to India's rating.

• 2026-08-28

  UPI completes 10 years, transaction volume up nearly 13,000 fold

  The Unified Payments Interface, launched by the National Payments Corporation of India on 25 August 2016, completed 10 years this week. The Union Finance Ministry said UPI's annual transaction volume rose from 1.78 crore in 2016 to 17 to more than 24,162 crore in 2025 to 26, a nearly 13,000 fold increase, while transaction value rose from about 0.07 lakh crore rupees to approximately 314 lakh crore rupees over the same period, a more than 4,000 fold rise. UPI is now operational in 11 countries, and the International Monetary Fund has recognised it as the world's largest real time payment system by transaction volume.

• 2026-08-27

  Piyush Goyal proposes India-Japan 'Shark Tank' style startup pitching series

  Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, addressing a startup roundtable in Tokyo on 26 August 2026, proposed an India-Japan startup pitching series modelled on the Shark Tank format to connect young startups from both countries with investors and business partners, suggesting such sessions could be organised virtually using digital connectivity. He proposed a Japan-India deeptech capital corridor to channel larger pools of patient capital, particularly early stage funding, into these startups, and invited Japan's patient capital and precision engineering to partner with Indian firms. He called for greater cooperation between universities, incubators and venture funds in both countries.

• 2026-08-27

  India paid 22.5 billion dollars extra for fossil fuel imports in Hormuz crisis: CREA

  The Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) found that fossil fuel importing countries paid more than 330 billion dollars in additional costs in the six months since the Strait of Hormuz crisis began on 28 February 2026. India was the second largest payer among the 170 countries analysed, incurring an additional 22.5 billion dollars in fossil fuel import costs between March and August 2026, behind China's 35.5 billion dollars and ahead of the United States' 16.5 billion dollars. Crude oil accounted for 164 billion dollars of the additional cost with prices averaging 35 per cent above pre war expectations, while diesel and gasoil prices rose 59 per cent, gasoline 43 per cent and liquefied natural gas 60 to 75 per cent depending on the market. CREA noted that low and lower middle income countries paid an additional 1 per cent of their 2024 GDP on higher fossil fuel costs, more than twice the 0.45 per cent burden faced by high income countries.

• 2026-08-27

  Indian oil refiners to avoid vessels on Iran's Strait of Hormuz blacklist

  Iran announced a blacklist of 45 ships it said had broken its rules for crossing the Strait of Hormuz, warning it would take action, including fines, detention and confiscation of cargo, against any vessel transferring loads with them, through a newly set up Persian Gulf Strait Authority. At least three Indian oil refiners and a global energy major plan to stop using the blacklisted vessels, including for ship to ship transfers, citing security concerns, six months into the United States and Israeli war on Iran. The blacklist appears designed to impede the shuttle tanker runs that Gulf producers such as the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia have used to move oil through Hormuz for ship to ship transfer in the Gulf of Oman.

• 2026-08-26

  Finance Minister Sitharaman begins nine day visit to Canada and the United States

  Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman began an official visit to Canada and the United States on 25 August 2026, running until 2 September. In Toronto, she is set to participate in the inaugural India Canada Economic and Financial Dialogue with her Canadian counterpart Francois Philippe Champagne, covering macroeconomic developments, financial sector cooperation and bilateral investment opportunities. From 28 August she travels to Chicago, Asheville and New York, including a roundtable with investors and business leaders in Chicago. From 31 August to 1 September she will lead the Indian delegation at the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting in Asheville, North Carolina, held under the United States G20 presidency, before concluding the visit in New York with investor engagements.

• 2026-08-26

  National Shipping Board proposes adding 100 ships to India's merchant fleet

  The National Shipping Board held its first Sagar Samvad in New Delhi on 24 August 2026, themed around the Maritime India Vision 2030 and the Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047. Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal said India plans to add 100 ships to its merchant fleet over the next five years, while Minister of State Shantanu Thakur noted that India currently pays close to 75 billion dollars a year in freight to foreign shipping lines to move cargo including crude oil, gas, coal and urea. The Board proposed a five point roadmap covering fiscal reforms, assured cargo support, access to competitive financing, regulatory streamlining and improved ease of doing business. The Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047 envisages investments of nearly Rs 80 lakh crore, with a goal of ranking India among the world's top five ship owning nations.

• 2026-08-26

  SEBI introduces an IT Resilience Index for stock exchanges and depositories

  The Securities and Exchange Board of India introduced an IT Resilience Index, called ITRI, for market infrastructure institutions such as stock exchanges, clearing corporations and depositories. The framework measures the robustness of critical IT systems on a 100 point scale across nine parameters, with availability and security carrying the highest weight at 20 points each, followed by integrity, governance, reliability and monitoring, business continuity, and modularity and flexibility at 10 points each, and scalability and incident handling at 5 points each. Market infrastructure institutions must develop an early warning system to detect possible deterioration in any parameter, and will compute the index on a half yearly basis, with the first computation covering the half year ending 31 March 2027, submitting a comparative analysis and corrective actions to their governing boards.

• 2026-08-25

  PMFME Conclave 2026 signs MoUs with APEDA, ONDC and NABKISAN

  Union Minister for Food Processing Industries Chirag Paswan inaugurated the PMFME Conclave 2026 and the PMFME Bazaar at the India Habitat Centre in New Delhi on Monday (24 August 2026), a two day event bringing together over 500 stakeholders under the Pradhan Mantri Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises (PMFME) Scheme. The Ministry of Food Processing Industries signed three memoranda of understanding, with the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) and NABKISAN Finance Limited, to widen export access, digital marketing and credit linkages for scheme beneficiaries. Over two lakh individual micro food processing enterprises have been credit linked under the scheme so far, about 80 per cent of them first generation entrepreneurs and 44 per cent women.

• 2026-08-25

  No shortage of sugar in India, retail prices to ease, says ISMA

  The Indian Sugar and Bio-Energy Manufacturers Association (ISMA) said on Monday (24 August 2026) that there is no shortage of sugar in the country and that retail prices, which had risen due to speculative buying and weather linked production losses, are expected to ease. Average all India retail sugar prices stood at Rs 63.05 per kilogram, about 29 per cent higher than a month earlier, before the government's decision to allow duty free imports of one million tonnes of raw sugar and impose stockholding limits on dealers and bulk consumers began taking effect. ISMA estimated net sugar production for 2025 to 2026 at around 27.9 million tonnes against domestic consumption of about 28 to 28.5 million tonnes, with closing stock projected at around 3.5 million tonnes by the end of September.

• 2026-08-23

  RBI's forex swap facility draws $72.85 billion in inflows

  Data released by the Reserve Bank of India on 22 August 2026 showed its special USD-INR forex swap facility, introduced on 8 June 2026, had attracted total inflows of $72.85 billion as of 21 August 2026. FCNR(B) deposits accounted for $65.40 billion, nearly 90 per cent of the total, while Overseas Foreign Currency Borrowings contributed $4.86 billion and External Commercial Borrowings $2.59 billion. The window for FCNR(B) deposits closes on 31 August 2026, while the facility remains open for ECBs and OFCBs until 31 December 2026.

• 2026-08-22

  India's core sector growth eases to 5.4% in July as index is rebased

  India's core infrastructure industries grew 5.4 per cent year on year in July 2026, easing from 6 per cent in June but well above the 3.2 per cent recorded in July 2025, provisional data released on 20 August 2026 showed. Growth was led by coal, refinery products, cement, electricity and iron ore, while output of crude oil, natural gas and fertiliser declined during the month. From June the index has been rebased to 2022-23 from 2011-12, and iron ore was added, taking the count of core sectors to nine. Cumulative growth for April to July 2026-27 stood at 4.3 per cent, against 1.5 per cent in the same period last year.

• 2026-08-21

  Centre approves 11.19 lakh PMAY houses for Bihar

  Union Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced the approval of 11,18,937 pucca houses for poor families in Bihar under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, with an allocation of Rs 13,427 crore, at a state-level programme in Patna on 20 August 2026. Over the preceding two years, 24,30,327 houses had already been approved for the state at a cost of Rs 29,164 crore. Chouhan also announced that the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana will now be implemented in Bihar, giving farmers cover against crop losses from floods, drought and excess rainfall.

• 2026-08-20

  Cabinet approves four railway multitracking projects worth Rs 9,450 crore

  The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved four railway multitracking projects worth around Rs 9,450 crore, covering eight districts across West Bengal, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. The projects include the 173 kilometre Kharagpur to Bhadrak fourth line, the 75 kilometre Bhadrak to Haridaspur fourth line, the 72 kilometre Cuttack to Paradeep third and fourth lines, and the 90 kilometre Gummidipundi to Gudur third and fourth lines, adding nearly 410 kilometres to the network by 2030 to 2031. The government said the expansion would improve connectivity for around 60 lakh people across 6,448 villages and support additional freight movement of about 76 million tonnes a year.

• 2026-08-20

  Cabinet approves four laning of NH-22 in Bihar at Rs 3,590 crore

  The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved the upgradation of the Muzaffarpur to Sitamarhi to Sonbarsa section of National Highway 22 in Bihar to a four lane standard, at a total capital cost of Rs 3,590.73 crore. The 82.578 kilometre stretch will be developed on the Hybrid Annuity Mode and serves as a key feeder corridor connecting the India Nepal border at Sonbarsa with Muzaffarpur on National Highway 27. The project includes seven major bridges, including a 340 metre bridge over the Bagmati river, three railway over bridges and two flyovers, and is meant to ease congestion in Muzaffarpur, Runni Saidpur and other towns along the route.

• 2026-08-20

  Gujarat permits 12 hour shifts at Micron's Sanand semiconductor plant

  The Gujarat government has permitted Micron Semiconductor Technology India's Sanand facility to operate 12 hour work shifts, the first such approval for an industrial unit in the state. The approval was granted under the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020, which allows state governments to exempt factories from certain provisions while ensuring employees do not exceed the statutory 48 hour weekly limit, with remaining days treated as paid leave, and applies only to workers who give voluntary written consent. Labour Minister Kunvarji Bavaliya said the move was meant to support ease of doing business and semiconductor investment, since chip assembly and testing run continuously in controlled cleanroom environments.

• 2026-08-19

  Government approves incentive scheme to speed up domestic PNG connections

  The government has approved an Incentive Scheme for Promotion of Domestic PNG Connections, effective from 1 September 2026 and rolled out in two tranches over six months. City Gas Distribution companies will receive an additional 200 standard cubic metres of cheaper, domestically produced APM gas for every incremental billed household piped natural gas connection above a threshold fixed for their area, replacing costlier imported LNG they currently use for CNG transport. The government said the resulting savings could cut the payback period on PNG connection capital spending from around ten years to about three, with India currently having roughly 1.74 crore domestic PNG connections.

• 2026-08-19

  Government approves 31 more electronics component projects worth Rs 7,877 crore

  The government approved 31 new projects worth Rs 7,877 crore under the Electronics Components Manufacturing Scheme, taking the total number of sanctioned projects to 106. The fresh approvals mark the first time the scheme has covered components such as filters, coils and speakers, along with raw materials like acetylene black and electrolyte additives, and are expected to generate production worth Rs 82,243 crore and create close to 10,000 jobs across ten states. Across all 106 sanctioned projects, ECMS now represents a total investment of Rs 69,548 crore, already exceeding its original target of Rs 59,350 crore, after its outlay was raised to Rs 40,000 crore in the 2026-27 Budget.

• 2026-08-18

  RBI advances FCNR(B) forex swap window deadline to 31 August

  The Reserve Bank of India has advanced the deadline for banks to raise Foreign Currency Non Resident (Bank) deposits under its special forex swap facility from 30 September to 31 August 2026, citing a strong response since the facility opened on 8 June. Banks may still enter into dollar rupee swaps with the RBI against these deposits until 11 September. The facility, which also covers External Commercial Borrowings and Overseas Foreign Currency Borrowings, had drawn total inflows of about USD 56.8 billion by 13 August, with FCNR(B) deposits alone accounting for USD 52.3 billion.

• 2026-08-18

  CBDT opens FAST-DS 2026 window for small taxpayers to disclose foreign assets

  The Central Board of Direct Taxes has notified the Foreign Assets of Small Taxpayers Disclosure Scheme (FAST-DS) 2026 under the Finance Act, 2026, giving eligible taxpayers a one time window from 16 August to 31 December 2026 to declare foreign assets or income not previously reported. A valid declaration brings immunity from further tax, penalty and prosecution under the Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act, 2015. The scheme is aimed chiefly at smaller cases where overseas holdings went unreported due to inadvertence or a change in residential status, not deliberate concealment, and it does not apply where Black Money Act assessment proceedings have already concluded.

• 2026-08-17

  Mines and Minerals Amendment Bill clears Parliament

  Parliament passed the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, with the Lok Sabha clearing it on 12 August and the Rajya Sabha on 13 August. It amends the parent 1957 Act, letting holders of existing mining leases add critical minerals such as lithium, nickel, cobalt and graphite without extra fees, and removes the 50 per cent ceiling on sales from captive mines. The National Mineral Exploration Trust's scope is widened to also fund mine development, not just exploration.

• 2026-08-17

  India's forex reserves cross USD 707 billion, RBI data shows

  Reserve Bank of India data showed the country's foreign exchange reserves jumped by USD 14.14 billion in the week ended 7 August 2026 to touch USD 707 billion, the sharpest weekly gain since January 2026. Foreign currency assets, the largest component, rose to USD 574.6 billion, while gold reserves climbed to USD 108.7 billion. Reserves remain below the record USD 728.5 billion touched in February 2026.