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Union Budget 2017 The Election Commission has sought fresh details from the Cabinet Secretariat, including the procedure followed by the government to delay the presentation of the  Union Budget   in 2012. In another letter to the Cabinet Secretariat written yesterday, the Commission has asked for a response by tomorrow morning, sources said. The poll watchdog has also sought details on the process involved in preparing and presenting the Union Budget. When the opposition had objected in 2012 during the Assembly polls to Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Manipur, Goa, the then UPA government had accepted their stand and postponed presentation of the Union Budget from February 28 to March 16. On January 10, the government had replied to the Commission on the opposition complaint against presenting the Union Budget before Assembly elections, defending its decision to advance the budget session for the purpose. The Commission had asked the Cabinet Secretariat to...

Budget2017 Industry chamber  Assocham  on Sunday appealed to political parties to ensure that the Union Budget for fiscal 2017-18 to be presented to Parliament on February 1 aids the revival of economic sentiment at a time of depressed demand and investment. "The advancement to February 1 (of the Union Budget) would help the government to begin its capital and other expenditure right from April and revive the much needed economic growth," the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) said here in a statement. "The decision of the central government for advancing the date of the Budget is well thought out from the point of view of revival of the economic sentiment. As is evident, the consumer demands as also corporate investments have been rather subdued owing to a host of factors," Assocham Secretary General D.S. Rawat said. Rawat was referring to the central government's November 8 decision to demonetise high-value currency ...

A proposal has been made by a group of secretaries on health, sanitation and urban development to tax junk foodand sugar-sweetened beverages in the upcoming  Budget 2017  , reported Times of India. The 11-member group also suggested that the money collected with tax should go to the health services. "In our presentation to the PM, we suggested higher taxes on junk food and sugary beverages because consumption of such products is growing fast and fuelling several lifestyle diseases like obesity, diabetes and heart disorders. We have also suggested that revenue earned from such tax be invested in health schemes," said a member of the group. Such a proposal has been in the pipeline for aver a year now. Also, the government did form an inter-ministerial committee to discuss the proposal to impose strong measures like higher taxes and restrictions on endorsements and advertisements of such products on TV. The FSSAI (Food Safety and Standards Authority of India) is al...