Topic: Taxation
1. Quasi-judicial adjudication pertaining to indirect taxes and appeals must be heard in virtual mode.
- The AATO (Aggregate Annual Turnover) for reporting e-invoices on IRP portals within 30 days has been reduced from ₹100 crore and above to ₹10 crore and above through an advisory posted on the GST portal.
- The government has announced that starting in April of next year, GST assessees with yearly turnover of ₹10 crores and above will not be permitted to submit electronic invoices that are more than 30 days old.
- When the relevant authorities receive a special request from the party in question, they may make an exception to permit a personal hearing in physical mode.
- An earlier directive revising the August 2020 instruction was published on July 28, 2022.
- It was stated that only at the assessee's request will the adjudicating or appellate authority conduct a personal hearing virtually. It will not be required to use the virtual hearing mode.
Topic: Indian Economy/Financial Market
2. The timing of the release of CPI and IIP data has been revised by the Ministry of Statistics and Program Implementation (MoSPI).
- The revised release time coincides with the hours at which India's main financial markets close.
- According to MoSPI, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Index of Industrial Production (IIP) will now be released approximately ninety minutes earlier.
- The timing of the financial markets' operations is taken into consideration when doing this.
- MoSPI has agreed to change the CPI and IIP release time from 5:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. on the 12th of each month.
- In the event that the 12th falls on a holiday for CPI, the release time will be the next working day; for IIP, it will be the day before the holiday.
Topic: Reports and Indices
3. India’s Services PMI reached 58.5 in October.
- India’s services sector witnessed a robust performance in October.
- The Services PMI climbed to 58.5 up from a ten-month low of 57.7 in September
- This shows a sharp acceleration in business activity.
- As per the report, input costs increased in October. It has grown at its fastest pace in three months.
- In October, the Indian services sector registered strong expansions in output and consumer demand.
- The October PMI results indicate strong momentum in India’s service sector.
- Employment generation hit a 26-month high in the service sector.
- Around 13 percent of panellists reported job creation, compared to 9 percent in September.
Topic: Taxation
4. The three-layered financial limit for interest reduction or waiver on unpaid taxes has been established by the Income Tax Department.
- This will assist assessors in approaching the precise hierarchy in order to receive relief.
- Either the Principal Commissioner or the Commissioner may waive or reduce interest up to ₹50 lakhs.
- The Chief Commissioner or Director General of Income Tax (DGIT) has the authority to offer relief for amounts between ₹50 lakhs and less than ₹1.5 crore.
- The Principal Chief Commissioner may reduce or waive any amount beyond ₹1.5 crore.
- The requirements for reduction or waiver have not changed. To receive relief, an assessee must meet all three requirements.
- First, the assessee has experienced or would experience actual hardship as a result of the payment of such a sum.
- Second, due to events outside the assessee's control, the amount on which interest has been paid or was due was not paid.
- Third, the assessee has cooperated in any investigation concerning the assessment or any action taken to recover any money owed to him.
Topic: Banking System
5. e-bank guarantee facility has been launched by Punjab & Sind Bank.
- Punjab & Sind Bank has launched this facility in partnership with National e-Governance Services Ltd (NeSL).
- e-Bank Guarantee (e-BG) facility replaces paper-based BG issuance process with stamping and signatures.
- This step will reduce the TAT (turnaround time) and increase ease of business for applicants and beneficiaries.
- NeSL’s e-BG is paperless. It is available in a digital form to the beneficiary of an e-BG on registration on the portal of NeSL.
Topic: MoUs/Agreements
6. Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Government of India signed $200 million loan agreement.
- The purpose of loan agreement is to help upgrade water supply, sanitation, urban mobility and other urban services in Uttarakhand.
- The signatories to the loan agreement for the Uttarakhand Livability Improvement Project were Joint Secretary, Ministry of Finance and Ms. Mio Oka, Country Director of India Resident Mission, for ADB.
- The project aims to create urban infrastructure that is resilient to climate and environmental risks.
- The project will enhance transportation, urban mobility, and overall public services in Haldwani.
- It will improve water supply delivery in Champawat, Kichha, Kotdwar, and Vikasnagar.
Topic: Appointments
7. Yamaha India has appointed Itaru Otani as the new Chairman.
- Otani brings more than three decades of experience with Yamaha Motor Company.
- Before this role, he served as Chief General Manager and led the Land Mobility Business Operations based out of Japan.
- Dr. Jacqueline d’Arros Hughes has been appointed as Secretary General of the World Agriculture Forum.
- Dr. Jacqueline d’Arros Hughes is the outgoing Director General of the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT).
Topic: Appointments
8. IFCI's current deputy MD Rahul Bhave has been recommended by FSIB for MD, CEO post of IFCI Ltd.
- Palash Srivastava has been recommended by FSIB for the position of Deputy Managing Director in IIFCL.
- At present, Srivastava is the Chief Executive Officer of IIFCL Projects Limited, a subsidiary of IIFCL.
- The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi will take final decision on both recommendations of FSIB.
- Financial Services Institutions Bureau (FSIB) is headed by former secretary, Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), Bhanu Pratap Sharma.
- Its other members are Animesh Chauhan, former chairman and MD of erstwhile Oriental Bank of Commerce, RBI's ex-executive director Deepak Singhal, and Shailendra Bhandari, former MD of erstwhile ING Vysya Bank.
Topic: Banking System
9. Real-time tracking for international money transfers has been launched by IDFC FIRST Bank.
- With this, IDFC FIRST Bank has become the first Indian bank which is offering real-time tracking for money sent abroad.
- This service is developed in partnership with Swift.
- This service is accessible though the mobile app and internet banking platforms of the bank.
- With real-time tracking, the bank has empowered customers to monitor their cross-border transactions.
- The Swift GPI plugin provides customers a way to track their overseas money transfers.
- The tracker provides real-time updates on the status of funds.
- It shows whether funds are in transit or have been credited to the recipient bank.
Topic: Banking/Financial/Govt Schemes
10. On November 6, a 15-day Jal Utsav launched by NITI Aayog.
- A 15-day 'Jal Utsav' has been launched by NITI Aayog to create awareness and sensitivity towards water management, conservation and sustainability from 6th November.
- The campaign follows the vision of PM Modi, who mooted the idea of 'Jal Utsav' on the lines of 'Nadi Utsav' during the 3rd Chief Secretaries Conference held in December 2023.
- Jal Utsav is being implemented in 20 Aspirational Districts and Blocks from 6th to 24th November.
- Jal Utsav is being celebrated in partnership with National Jal Jeevan Mission, Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation and Ministry of Jal Shakti.
- Being organized in 20 states, the festival envisages community participation in conservation and protection of water resources.
- It aims to promote efficient use of water in households and instill a sense of responsibility towards water management among utilities and agencies.
- The initiative enrolls school students in water management activities, empowering them to act as catalysts of change in their families and communities.
- The fortnight-long celebrations began with a ‘Jal Bandhan’ – in which eminent personalities and local leaders tied a sacred thread on water resources.
- They also launched “Fact Sheets on Jal Sampada” of their blocks and districts.
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