The Enforcement Directorate has reported a staggering 170 per cent surge in asset attachments, reaching 81,422 crore in the last financial year (FY26), underscoring its intensified efforts against financial crimes and its significant role in restituting funds to victims.
The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has urged the Indian government to gradually restore the Rs 10-per-litre cut in special additional excise duty on petrol and diesel over six to nine months. This move aims to relieve pressure on government finances as crude oil prices stabilise, without significantly impacting consumer sentiment.
Haryana recorded the fastest growth in unincorporated non-agricultural employment among major Indian states in 2025, with a 29.8 per cent increase to 3.1 million workers, while Gujarat experienced the sharpest contraction, declining by 12.6 per cent to 8 million.
India's unincorporated non-agricultural sector, excluding construction and corporate enterprises, added approximately 7.5 million workers in a single year, reaching 128.1 million employed in 2025, according to the NSO's ASUSE 2025 report.
India's like-for-like gross Goods and Services Tax (GST) revenue growth slowed to a five-year low of 5.57 per cent in FY26, reaching Rs 23.32 trillion, primarily driven by a significant surge in import revenues.
India's foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows are projected to surpass $90 billion in 2025-26 (FY26), driven by robust policy reforms, free trade agreements, and strong economic growth, according to DPIIT Secretary Amardeep Singh Bhatia.
A growing conflict between India's insolvency law and tax rules is creating fresh uncertainty for companies undergoing resolution, with tax authorities increasingly denying the benefit of carrying forward past losses even after resolution plans have been approved by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT).
'In practical terms, a Master Circular is not merely desirable; it is a necessary transition tool to ensure that the promise of simplification under the Income-Tax Act, 2025, is fully realised.'
'The West Asia or the Gulf crisis has shown that what we develop as national infrastructure when things are not as bad as they could be, we forget to plan for adversities.'
All services on the income-tax e-filing portal -- both pre-login and post-login -- are expected to be updated by April 1 to reflect the new legal framework.
Revenue collection next financial year may be affected, and, along with this, subsidies on food and fertilisers can go up if the war in West Asia drags for long, according to experts.
However, from April 1, 2026, transactional forms such as tax deducted at source statements, remittances, Form 60, and Form 15G/15H would operate under the new simplified framework.
India Ratings & Research (Ind-Ra) has projected the aggregate fiscal deficit of states to rise to 3 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2026-27 (FY27), from an estimated 2.8 per cent in 2025-26 (FY26), citing higher revenue expenditure amid election-related pressures and scheme cost-sharing requirements.
India's main inflation measure, the Consumer Price Index (CPI), is set for another major update, even though it has been in its current form for only about 15 years.
Governments should move away from universal subsidies towards tightly targeted transfers, backed by stricter eligibility norms, sunset clauses and periodic audits to curb leakages and improve spending efficiency, a joint study by Asian Development Bank and PwC has recommended.
'Among corporates, about 60% of income is now reported under the new tax regime.'
Building on last year's clearance of 172K cases, I-T department is pushing for faster appeal disposals, penalty reforms and system-driven processes to curb litigation and boost tax certainty.
India's state-level fiscal rules have improved headline deficits, but the gains are fragile and uneven with major states still grappling with high debt levels, a World Bank report submitted to the 16th Finance Commission (FC) said. According to the report, despite nearly two decades of adoption of fiscal responsibility laws (FRLs), debt levels have not converged.
'Global uncertainty is something which definitely occupies the minds of officials when we are preparing for the Budget.'
2027's housing census trims questions but adds digital-age indicators like Internet and smartphones.
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