Govt Wants To Remove All Tax Exemptions: P. Chidambaram

Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s budget for 2023–24 may have promised further momentum to the economy through a push on infrastructure, but, according to the opposition, it has failed to address the needs of the poor and the middle class. Congress leader and former finance minister P. Chidambaram tells Pragatti Oberoi how the government’s claims on allocations for infra projects could be exaggerated and the budget could push the middle class away from saving money. Edited excerpts:

Pragatti Oberoi - February 27, 2023

The Poverty & Politics Of Data In India

Before India can eradicate poverty, it needs to count the poor. But, its data collection machine is old, gives inconsistent results and sometimes disagrees with the government

Neeraj Thakur - June 29, 2022

India Has A Crypto Dilemma

As India emulates China in launching digital fiat currency, will the government’s attempts at controlling the crypto sector lead to stakeholder interests being caught in policy tangles?

Outlook Specials Team - February 27, 2022

Growing Agritech, Stagnant Farmer Income

Cross-border ventures are the next big thing in agriculture technology, but benefits of a high-growth sector are yet to reach farmers’ bank accounts

Rajiv Tikoo - February 27, 2022

Hassled Companies, Upset CAs

Every year, accounting professionals and e-filing portals for income tax play a cat-and-mouse game at the time of filing returns

Kamalika Ghosh - January 28, 2022

Budget 2022: Dealing With India’s Achilles’ Heel

Reforms in the health and education space have been a cause for concern for successive governments for decades now. Two years into the pandemic, will the Budget come bearing good news for the two sectors?

Kamalika Ghosh - December 31, 2021