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Mumbai: Owners of around 20,000 bars in the state, including 8,000 from Mumbai region, under the banner of AHAR (Association of hotels and restaurants) have threatened to go on strike if the recent rise in taxes -- license fees (10-15%), Value Added Tax (10%) and the Excise (60%) -- are not withdrawn. "In less than a year's time span, the industry has faced back-to-back financial shocks. VAT on liquor has been increased from 5% to 10%. This was followed by a 15% hike in license fees for the financial year 2025-26. Now, the state has hiked excise duty by 60%. Together, these triple hard blows make the business unsustainable in light of the fact that the industry is still reeling from the economic aftershocks of the pandemic," said AHAR president Sudhakar Shetty.Terming it as nothing short of a "tsunami of unjust levies," Shetty warned that the recent policy decisions are pushing the industry to collapse. -- Chittaranjan TembhekarMumbai: Owners of around 20,000 bars in the state, including 8,000 from Mumbai region, under the banner of AHAR (Association of hotels and restaurants) have threatened to go on strike if the recent rise in taxes -- license fees (10-15%), Value Added Tax (10%) and the Excise (60%) -- are not withdrawn. "In less than a year's time span, the industry has faced back-to-back financial shocks. VAT on liquor has been increased from 5% to 10%. This was followed by a 15% hike in license fees for the financial year 2025-26. Now, the state has hiked excise duty by 60%. Together, these triple hard blows make the business unsustainable in light of the fact that the industry is still reeling from the economic aftershocks of the pandemic," said AHAR president Sudhakar Shetty.Terming it as nothing short of a "tsunami of unjust levies," Shetty warned that the recent policy decisions are pushing the industry to collapse. -- Chittaranjan Tembhekar
Vijayawada: Andhra Pradesh recorded highest net GST collections amounting to 78,860 crore, reflecting a growth of 3.40% in first quarter of financial year. Total tax collections in Q1 (including all sectors) stood at Rs 213,361 crore, compared to Rs 13,096 crore in FY 2024-25, showing a growth of 2.02%, which indicates a sustained and healthy growth trajectory over the same period, according to Commissioner of Commercial Taxes Babu A. For three consecutive months - April, May, and June 2025, the State has recorded the highest-ever net GST collections for each respective month when compared to ...Read More >
New Delhi, Jul 15 (PTI) YouTuber Samay Raina appeared before the National Commission for Women (NCW) in Delhi on Tuesday, months after he was summoned in connection with allegedly offensive and sexist content aired during his show "India's Got Latent", officials said. Raina was also among the five social media influencers who appeared before the Supreme Court in a case seeking action against them for ridiculing persons suffering from disabilities. Raina submitted his statement in response to the allegations to NCW officials. Officials said further steps will be considered after reviewing his ...Read More >
Union Home Minister Amit Shah stated that betraying India will have consequences. He referenced Operation Sindoor, which destroyed terrorist camps in Pakistan after the Pahalgam attack. Shah credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi with securing the country, contrasting it with frequent terrorist attacks during Congress rule. Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday said a strong message has gone out to the world that no one should mess with India's citizens, its borders or its defence forces, and ...Read More >
Hyderabad: The Telangana Excise Department on Tuesday, March 31, seized 71 bottles of non-duty paid liquor worth Rs 1.4 lakh, which were brought from Goa and Delhi to Hyderabad. The bottles were seized during vehicle checking at Pahadi Shareef by Special Task Force teams. The seized liquor bottle was handed over to the Meerpet Excise Station. Non-duty paid liquor is alcohol transported, sold or consumed within a state without paying the mandatory local excise duty and Value Added Tax (VAT). It is often brought from states with lower taxes or duty-free shops, making it cheaper and creating si ...Read More >
Bengaluru, Jul 8 (PTI) The Karnataka government has said that it has approved the release of Rs 244.10 crore to cover additional expenses such as wholesale and retail margins and transportation charges under the Annabhagya scheme for the months of February to May, 2025. This fund allocation comes in addition to a previously released grant of Rs 2,082.99 crore, which was meant for the purchase of an extra five kg of rice per beneficiary and other related costs for the four-month period, a government order issued on Monday said. The order was issued as the lorry owners transporting rice and ot ...Read More >
New Delhi, Jul 15 (PTI) Two people died and four others were injured after a fire broke out at a house in east Delhi's Old Govindpura area on Tuesday evening, an official said. Police have identified the deceased as Tanveer (28) and Nusrat. A call was received at Jagatpuri police station at 8.46 pm regarding a fire incident at Band Gali, Old Govindpura, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Shahdara) Prashant Gautam said. When a police team reached the spot, it found that 10 people were trapped inside a residential building that caught fire, the DCP said. With the help of police personnel and fir ...Read More >
Pune: The Indian Gig Workers' Front on Saturday evening suspended the ongoing strike of cabs and autorickshaws operating on applications till Tuesday, after leaving many commuters, including those arriving at the airport on Saturday morning, hassled. Keshav Kshirsagar, the president of the front, said, "We have a meeting on Tuesday with senior officials of the state transport department. If its decisions don't meet our expectations, the strike will resume." Several commuters had a harrowing experience on roads on Friday and in the early hours of Saturday. Cabs and autos were hard to come by. T ...Read More >
Hyderabad: Liquor sales in Telangana have touched record levels ahead of Dasara, with outlets lifting stocks worth over Rs 1,000 crore from the state government's liquor depots in just four days from September 26 to October 1. With the festival coinciding with Gandhi Jayanti, the day liquor shops are shut, shop owners and consumers bought liquor stock in advance for the festival. While outlets stocked up supplies to meet the festive rush, customers purchased liquor in bulk to avoid shortages. Dasara generally drives up liquor demand as people organise celebrations, gatherings and parties for ...Read More >
MUMBAI: Even as debt and fiscal deficit rose sharply in the last two years, Maharashtra's revenue in FY25-26 fell significantly across key heads -- Goods and Services Tax (GST), excise duty, motor vehicle tax, and stamp duty and registration of properties. This led to a revenue shortfall of around ₹41,000 crore against budget estimates, slowing capital expenditure and development projects. Provisional figures at the end of the financial year put total revenue receipts at ₹5.60 lakh crore, falling short of the revised estimate of ₹6.01 lakh crore from a budget estimate of ₹5.60 lakh crore, lar ...Read More >
New Delhi, July 1 (SocialNews.XYZ) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said that eight years have passed since GST was introduced, and it stands out as a landmark reform that has reshaped India's economic landscape. "By reducing the compliance burden, it has greatly improved the Ease of Doing Business, particularly for small and medium enterprises", PM Modi stated. "GST has also served as a powerful engine for economic growth, while fostering true cooperative federalism by making states equal partners in this journey to integrate India's market," the Prime Minister said in a statement on ...Read More >
NEW DELHI: Signalling the government's intent to move ahead with the impeachment motion of Allahabad High Court judge Justice Yashwant Varma, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju on Thursday said that main opposition parties have given their in-principle approval to support the motion in the upcoming monsoon session scheduled for July21-August 21. Rijiju said that the government is yet to decide whether the motion would be brought in the Lok Sabha or the Rajya Sabha. For the Lok Sabha, signatures of a minimum 100 MPs is required. The requirement is the support of at least 50 MPs in the Rajya Sabha. H ...Read More >
Lucknow, Jul 9 (PTI) Six states, including Punjab and Karnataka, sent teams to study the Uttar Pradesh's excise policy, which helped the state increase revenue every year, a state minister said on Wednesday. Speaking with PTI, Uttar Pradesh Excise and Prohibition Minister Nitin Agrawal said that teams from six states of Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Punjab visited the state to study the excise policy. Asked about the policy features that were liked by the states, the minister said that the states came to study the UP's revenue model which increased the st ...Read More >
New Delhi, Sep 13 (SocialNews.XYZ) Lower headline inflation and reduced interest rates are set to extend broader support to domestic demand in the economy amidst global headwinds, a report has said. The headline inflation is now projected at 3.2 per cent in fiscal 2026, down from the earlier estimate of 3.5 per cent. This results in a 140 basis points (1.4 percentage points) decline in CPI inflation for this fiscal year, according to the report from ratings agency Crisil. "This sharp moderation implies a sizeable 140 basis points (bps) decline in CPI inflation this fiscal, opening space for ...Read More >
New Delhi: Petrol and diesel are costliest in Andhra Pradesh largely because of the highest VAT the state charges, while smaller states and Union Territories such as Andaman & Nicobar Islands have the lowest fuel prices, according to information furnished in the Rajya Sabha on Monday. A litre of petrol in Amaravati - the capital city of Andhra Pradesh - costs Rs 109.74, while the same in Andaman & Nicobar Islands comes for Rs 82.46, according to a written reply by Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas Suresh Gopi in response to a question on disparities in fuel prices. "The final se ...Read More >
Noida: Excise department will add 25 new liquor shops in the new financial year, with an e-lottery scheduled for April 9. The move is expected to generate around Rs 30 crore in additional revenue.District excise officer Subodh Kumar said there will be 23 new country liquor shops and two composite liquor shops. "With the addition of these shops, the total number of liquor vends in the district will increase from 501 to 526," he said.At present, Gautam Budh Nagar has 501 retail liquor shops, comprising 234 country liquor shops, 239 composite liquor shops, one bhaang shop and 27 model shops.Offic ...Read More >
Mumbai: The Indian rupee appreciated 173 paise on Thursday, its best single-day gain in 13 years, after fresh steps by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) aimed at curbing speculative activity boosted sentiment in the currency market. The rupee's appreciation came even as crude oil prices rose over 5 per cent during the day after US President Donald Trump vowed to strike Iran very hard over the coming two to three weeks, renewing prolonged oil supply disruption risks. At the interbank foreign exchange bank, the domestic unit opened at 93.58 to a dollar and remained very volatile rallying to a pea ...Read More >
New Delhi: Starting July 2025, goods and services tax or GST compliance will undergo a shift with two key changes -- locking of GSTR-3B forms and a three-year deadline for filing returns. These changes, introduced by the GST Council, aim to improve accuracy and transparency in return filing, while reducing mismatches and fraudulent claims. The move is aimed at ensuring consistency between GSTR-1 (which records outward supplies) and GSTR-3B (used to pay tax), reducing revenue leakages due to mismatches. As per the GST rule, from the July 2025 return period, the GSTR-3B form will become non-edi ...Read More >
New Delhi: Was it the pitch? Was it the conditions? Was it the bowling? The questions doing the rounds after yet another strange show in good batting conditions by India were many. But with the exception of Shubman Gill, who became just the second Indian captain, after Mohammad Azharuddin, to score hundreds in consecutive matches in England, and Yashasvi Jaiswal, few India batters managed to answer them in a satisfactory manner. After being put into bat by England, India looked like they were in control at various points during the day but then somehow contrived to gift away wickets and end t ...Read More >
The Indian Hotel and Restaurant Association (AHAR) announced a nationwide liquor bandh to oppose Maharashtra's tax hikes, which it said are pushing the industry towards a collapse. More than 20,000 bars and permit rooms across Maharashtra will shut operations on July 14 (Monday) in protest against the state government's tax hikes on liquor, which they characterised as "draconian". The Indian Hotel and Restaurant Association (AHAR) said the nationwide bandh has been organised to oppose the state ...Read More >
Bareilly (UP), Jul 17 (PTI) A teacher from Bahedi district, who went viral recently after reciting a poem mentioning Kanwar Yatra, approached the police on Thursday stating a threat to his life from anti-social elements. A case has been registered at Bahedi police station based on a complaint from Dr Rajneesh Kumar Gangwar, a teacher at MGM Inter College in the district. According to Circle Officer Arun Kumar Singh, Gangwar's complaint says that ever since his recitation of the poem 'Tum Kanwad Lene Mat Jana, Gyaan Ka Deepak Jalaana' (You don't go get Kavad, light the lamp of knowledge inste ...Read More >
Jammu- Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday reviewed the ongoing restoration work of the historic Mubarak Mandi complex, which was the power centre of the Dogra kings in Jammu, and stressed on enhancing its heritage appeal. The Mubarak Mandi Complex is one of Jammu's most significant architectural heritage sites and is envisioned as a comprehensive cultural centre, housing museums, conference venues and heritage hospitality services. Accompanied by Advisor Nasir Aslam Wani and MLA Yudhvir Sethi during the visit, the chief minister was briefed in detail on the multi-phas ...Read More >
Ranchi: At least 84 liquor shops across the state, including the city, downed their shutters from Wednesday, citing losses due to a very high daily sales target fixed by the excise and prohibition department after implementation of the new excise policy in Sept last year.General secretary of Jharkhand Sharab Vyapari Sangh (liquor dealers' association), Subodh Kumar Jaiswal, said that under the new excise policy, all liquor shops across the state were given a daily sales target, based on their locations and business potential."But many shops could not meet the target and they have decided to cl ...Read More >
Patna, April 4 (UNI) Bihar has recorded a total revenue collection of Rs 43,324.79 crore in the financial year 2025-26, marking a significant achievement for the state's commercial taxes department. Bihar Finance minister Bijendra Prasad Yadav said the collection includes revenue from Goods and Services Tax (GST), VAT and other sources, reflecting a 4.09 per cent increase over the previous fiscal. The state had collected Rs 41,623.96 crore in 2024-25. Highlighting the performance, the minister said the department has maintained steady growth despite reductions in GST rates on several consume ...Read More >
Pune: The restaurant and hoteliers' association in the city said continuous hike in taxes on bars and restaurants has made it difficult for them to operate, forcing many small establishments to consider shutting down their business.Three tax hikes in a year on bars and restaurants in the state have already led to an increase in black market sales or smuggling of liquor from other states, Pune Restaurant and Hoteliers Association (PRAHA) said.The association has given a state-wide dry day call on Monday to protest the govt's taxation policy. More than 4,000 permit rooms and bars in Pune and Pim ...Read More >
Mumbai, Apr 2 (PTI) The rupee recovered 151 paise from its record low level to trade at 93.19 against the US dollar in early deals on Thursday, backed by the Reserve Bank's move to restrict banks' net open position in the onshore forward delivery market. The domestic unit, however, faced pressure due to unabated withdrawal of foreign capital, strengthening dollar and rising crude oil prices amid volatile geopolitical situation, forex analysts said. At the interbank foreign exchange, the rupee opened at 94.62 and rose sharply to 93.19 against the US dollar in early deals, registering a gain o ...Read More >
NEW DELHI: India's expected economic growth of 6.6% for fiscal 2027 could face significant risks as the Iran war fans inflation worries, but ample foreign exchange buffers and a well-capitalised banking system could help mitigate some of it, the World Bank said. Doubts lingered over a fragile two-week Middle East ceasefire, raising concerns that energy flows through the crucial Strait of Hormuz will remain restricted. India, which imports about 90% of its oil, is among economies most exposed to prolonged war-related energy supply disruptions. Retail inflation in the South Asian nation is pro ...Read More >
Over 20,000 bars and permit rooms in Maharashtra will close on July 14 due to the Indian Hotel and Restaurant Association's protest against the state government's increased taxes on liquor, including VAT and excise duty hikes. AHAR claims these tax increases are crippling the Rs 1.5 lakh-crore industry, leading to potential business closures, job losses, and increased liquor smuggling. Over 20,000 bars and permit rooms across Maharashtra will shut operations on July 14 to protest against the sta ...Read More >
New Delhi: India's strong fiscal position and robust foreign exchange reserves provide the Reserve Bank of India with more policy flexibility, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Monday. Addressing the golden jubilee celebrations of the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, the Finance Minister said: "India has fiscal space with room to maintain the government's capex programme, room for the RBI to cut rates and room to offer targeted support to affected sectors. This is the dividend of a decade of fiscal discipline that is paying dividends." Her statement comes ahead of t ...Read More >
NEW DELHI, April 9 (Reuters) - India's expected economic growth of 6.6% for fiscal 2027 could face significant risks as the Iran war fans inflation worries, but ample foreign exchange buffers and a well-capitalised banking system could help mitigate some of it, the World Bank said. Doubts lingered over a fragile two-week Middle East ceasefire, raising concerns that energy flows through the crucial Strait of Hormuz will remain restricted. India, which imports about 90% of its oil, is among economies most exposed to prolonged war-related energy supply disruptions. Retail inflation in the South ...Read More >
New Delhi, Mar 30 (PTI) The central government's fiscal deficit stood at Rs 12.52 lakh crore at the end of February, or 80.4 per cent of the annual budget target for 2025-26 compared to 85.8 per cent in the year-ago period, according to government data released on Monday. The Centre estimates the fiscal deficit (the gap between expenditure and revenue) during 2025-26 at 4.4 per cent of GDP, or Rs 15.58 lakh crore. According to monthly accounts released by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA), the Centre's total receipts stood at Rs 27.91 lakh crore, or 82 per cent of the budget target by ...Read More >