R Kavita Rao

GST reform in two steps: Short-term demand boost, long-term rate reset

Apart from policy initiatives targeting the export sector, it is also possible to conceive of more broad-based measures to stimulate domestic demand as an alternative to export demand

Slabs, cess, and trade-offs: India's GST faces a fork in the road

With rate slabs ripe for consolidation and the compensation cess at a crossroads, India's GST revamp must balance political economy, revenue stability, and taxpayer fairness

Rise in personal income tax collections encouraging, sustainability suspect

Sustained growth in PIT would depend on sustained expansion in taxable economic activity, one that generates employment to support salary income and contributes to business income as well

Mind the tax gap: India's is smaller than peers', but comparisons mislead

Many of the studies in the latter approach combine data from all types of countries to obtain an estimate of potential revenue

India's options amid uncertainty: Equity, skilling, and housing support

To exploit the opportunities from current crisis, a two-pronged strategy can be conceived - restructuring trade partnerships and developing a strategic industrial policy to benefit from these part

SDGs: Challenges beyond financing as progress lags in some states

A few states have been providing an SDG budget as part of their Budget papers. Haryana has been providing estimates from 2018-19 onwards, with other states like Odisha and Meghalaya joining later

Tax revamp: Incentives vs broader base amid revenue stability concerns

At the aggregate, the ratio of revenue foregone to total revenue collected has declined for corporate tax, especially in the last three years for which data is available

Budget: Govt faces choice between economic stimulus and structural reforms

The former could take the form of a tax cut, while the latter could involve a stimulus targeted at specific segments of the economy, particularly those linked to employment generation

GST reforms: A roadmap to rationalisation, revenue, and regime evolution

From rate rationalisation to cess management and expanding the GST base, India's evolving tax regime faces critical design and compliance challenges requiring balanced reforms

Are non-financial firms' financial investments here to stay, or at risk?

There are two ways of looking at this problem - first, has the composition of reported income changed? And second, has the composition of assets changed?

Rising passive incomes: Companies favour financial investments over assets

A shift in focus towards private investment is required to sustain the growth momentum. This should be a concern for policymakers

State-level integration under GST shows modest gains in post-Covid period

This change in the design of the tax regime was argued to shift the revenue to consuming states from producing states

Tax reform dilemmas: Taxing agri, adjusting exemptions key to fairness

Any proposed reforms, therefore, need to be analysed from this perspective as well

Capital gains tax reforms in context

The budgetary provisions on the taxation of capital gains could help foster change in trading behaviour and address inequality

Decentralisation: India's struggle with persistent challenges

To push the decentralisation project forward, the first step is to create and distribute information on the activities and finances of local bodies

Interim Budget 2024-25: A confident and optimistic report

In a Budget celebrating the achievements in the last decade, there are few announcements with any fiscal magnitude attached