The salaried class, reeling under the inflationary pressures, has suffered yet another setback this holiday season with the announcement of new perquisite valuation rules by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) on December 18. The new rules have come in the wake of the abolishment of fringe benefit tax (FBT) by finance minister Pranab Mukherjee in this year’s Budget and will be applicable retrospectively from April 1, 2009.
Applications are invited online from the firms of Chartered Accountants who intend to be empanelled with this office for the year 2010-2011 for appointment as auditors of Government Companies/Corporations.
For past sometime the Board has been concerned about the need for improving general quality of scrutiny assessments on a sustainable basis. In this connection, reference is invited to Board’s instruction No. 2/2006 dated 27.04.2006 which required monitoring of scrutiny assessments by Range Heads under the powers available to them under section 144A of Income tax Act. Instructions have also been issued from time to time for strengthening the machinery for review of assessments and inspection of assessment charges. However, it is felt that there is significant scope for improving the quality of scrutiny system.
I am directed to bring to your notice on the subject of issue of certificates under Section 197. Instruction No- 8/2006 dated 13.10.2006, was issued stating that 197 certificates for lower deduction or nil deduction of TDS u/s 197 are not to be issued indiscriminately and for issue of each certificate, approval of the JCI/Add. CIT concerned need to be taken by the Assessing Officer (AO). Further, a letter of even number dated 6.10.2008 was issued stating that power of issue of certificates under Section 197 would ordinarily be exercised by the officers manning TDS Administration. However, instances are being brought to the notice of Board that the AOs are issuing certificates for lower or non-deduction of tax at source under Section 197 indiscriminately, in contravention of relevant Income Tax Rules and Instructions.
The Union Cabinet today approved the proposal to introduce a Bill to amend the Copyright Act, 1957. The Ministry of Human Resource Development has proposed the amendments in order to gain clarity, remove operational difficulties and to address the newer issues that have emerged in the context of digital technology and the internet.
Shri Anand Sharma, Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, has released the first draft consolidation of all the aspects of FDI Policy and FDI Framework, here today, and also launched the same in the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion’s website (http://dipp./nic.in). Briefing the media on the occasion, Shri Sharma said that such consolidation would ensure the availability of all information on FDI policy at one place, and is expected to lead to: simplification of the policy; greater clarity of understanding of foreign investment rules among foreign investors and sectoral regulators, as also predictability of policy and added that having a single policy platform would also ease the regulatory burden for Government.
The Chairman of a Branch, after demitting office, should not seek re-election for or hold the said or any other post at Branch level in subsequent years. The Committee also decided that no member should hold two posts simultaneously and that in case, as a result, any difficulty was faced, the matter may be brought before the Institute for its consideration.
The Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 has been enacted by the Parliament to provide for free and compulsory education to all children of the age of six to fourteen years. After receiving the assent of the President, the aforesaid Act was published in the Gazette of India on 27th August, 2009.
When it comes to social security measures, India is still considered to be an evolving country even after more than sixty years of independence. Central Government has announced a new pension scheme (NPS) w.e.f. 1st May, 2009 established under Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority. The scheme has been in operation for government employees since 2004 but has been only now opened to Indian citizens which will benefit all citizens, particularly those in private sector employment and those who are self employed.
Savings are generally made from taxable income, which has already been subjected to tax provisions. There are certain savings which, if made enjoy exemption from taxation. Not only this, the income or returns arising from such savings or investments are also exempt from tax and when such savings are redeemed on maturity, they are not subjected to any income tax. Thus, such amounts of savings are never taxed at any pint of time. Such a situation works on a model of exempt- exempt-exempt (EEE). An investment in provident fund or public provident fund or national savings certificate are typical examples of EEE model, at present.
