Nitin Sethi And Kumar Akash

Stories by Nitin Sethi And Kumar Akash

CAG audit of GST reveals systemic flaws, not just glitches

CAG audit of GST reveals systemic flaws, not just glitches

Rediff.com   28 Aug 2019

The CAG audit and other data suggests it could be far from the efficient new alternative that was once conceptualised. A conclusive review remains elusive till the government begins to release more granular and comparable data on the complex backend of GST to a deeper scrutiny, by researchers, auditors and the public.

'Climate change could push up cereal prices by 29%'

'Climate change could push up cereal prices by 29%'

Rediff.com   16 Jul 2019

A report authored by UN's panel of scientists from across the world on climate change and sent to the governments of 197 countries has ominous news on the climate change front.

PAN cards not linked to Aadhaar will be cancelled from Sep 1

PAN cards not linked to Aadhaar will be cancelled from Sep 1

Rediff.com   11 Jul 2019

To validate and continue using the existing PAN cards, citizens will have to link them to Aadhaar. Or else, they will be permitted to use Aadhaar instead for filing returns and while making other high-value transactions, specified under the Income Tax Act.

Budget 2019 - Is the Rs 6.63 trillion GST target too ambitious?

Budget 2019 - Is the Rs 6.63 trillion GST target too ambitious?

Rediff.com   8 Jul 2019

A well-established tax system would have a predictable buoyancy - how fast the collections grow as a proportion to the growth of the economy. But that is not the case with GST. It is still undergoing substantial changes as the government responds to structural as well as administrative glitches.

How Haryana govt helped Patanjali to buy lands illegally

How Haryana govt helped Patanjali to buy lands illegally

Rediff.com   24 Jun 2019

When agricultural holdings get fragmented over years, the state government has the power to step in and help farmers pool their land parcels for improving land productivity, after which the pooled land is divided up into larger plots. Instead of the fragments they hold, a farmer gets a single contiguous patch of an equal size. But, it is done only for agricultural holdings. In Kot village, however, the consolidation has been ordered for the entire village land, including the hilly forested commons, which are already pooled. This is not the first time that the Haryana government has attempted such a consolidation of Kot common lands.

Patanjali's maze of firms that do shady land dealing in Haryana

Patanjali's maze of firms that do shady land dealing in Haryana

Rediff.com   21 Jun 2019

Restricted by state government orders, the ownership of such land could not be formally registered, so the advances made continued to be reflected in the accounts as 'advances against land'.

How Patanjali 'broke' laws to acquire land in Aravalli hills

How Patanjali 'broke' laws to acquire land in Aravalli hills

Rediff.com   19 Jun 2019

The land acquisition, the consolidation process in Kot and a slew of other decisions by the Haryana government to open the hills to privatisation and commercial activity run contrary to court orders, environmentalists' demand, and at times the Union government's measures to protect the Aravalli hills, say Nitin Sethi & Kumar Sambhav Shrivastava.

Reimagining environmental governance won't be easy

Reimagining environmental governance won't be easy

Rediff.com   30 May 2019

Successive governments focused on altering the clearance processes but largely gave a pass to the second, and essential, element of environmental regulations for monitoring pollution levels and how industries followed conditions laid down for clearances.

Realty hits green hurdle as NDA's reforms end up in court

Realty hits green hurdle as NDA's reforms end up in court

Rediff.com   16 May 2019

The ease with which city-level master plans are altered and land-use patterns changed without considering carrying capacities or the overall environmental footprint of urbanisation in different states has already created water and air pollution crises in several emerging and existing cities.

Caution: You are still being watched!

Caution: You are still being watched!

Rediff.com   24 Mar 2019

The government claims the existing safeguards under the law are adequate, lawful, towards a legitimate purpose and provide for a "proportionate interference" in citizens' right to privacy, reports Nitin Sethi.

Tribal eviction: 'SC order a setback for conservation in India'

Tribal eviction: 'SC order a setback for conservation in India'

Rediff.com   28 Feb 2019

Calling the Supreme Court order 'unjust' to the tribals as well as against the interest of wildlife conservation in India scientists have demanded cancellation of SC order

Tribal eviction: Even BJP-ruled states told to file petition against SC order

Tribal eviction: Even BJP-ruled states told to file petition against SC order

Rediff.com   26 Feb 2019

Party president Amit Shah tweeted that BJP-ruled states will soon be filing review petition against the SC order and care will be taken to safeguard the rights of the tribals and prevent eviction.

Will Rahul be able to help tribals facing eviction?

Will Rahul be able to help tribals facing eviction?

Rediff.com   25 Feb 2019

The Congress president has written to party chief ministers, asking them to file a review petition against an SC order regarding mass-scale evictions of tribals and other forest-dwellers.

How 'briefcase' firms are robbing the govt of GST tax

How 'briefcase' firms are robbing the govt of GST tax

Rediff.com   17 Jan 2019

A government report revealed that fake companies floated with fake addresses, issued fake GST invoices and generated fake e-way bills, with fake vehicle registration details without supplying any goods causing huge loss to the exchequer.

Major setback for Ramdev

Major setback for Ramdev

Rediff.com   28 Dec 2018

The judgment could impact not only Ramdev's widespread ayurveda and herbal products business, but also that of many other pharmaceutical, ayurveda, herbal and cosmetic product manufacturers.

Can Project Sashakt take off in time to prevent NPAs from moving to IBC?

Can Project Sashakt take off in time to prevent NPAs from moving to IBC?

Rediff.com   19 Jul 2018

The cut-off date the RBI chose was March 1, 2018. This meant that by the end of August if these accounts were not resolved, then they would have to proceed through insolvency.

How well is GST really doing?

How well is GST really doing?

Rediff.com   2 Jul 2018

Is the curated and limited data put out by the central government sufficient enough to pass a judgement on the trend in GST collections, particularly that of the Centre?

Weird case of a real estate company and IBC's debt recovery data

Weird case of a real estate company and IBC's debt recovery data

Rediff.com   14 Jun 2018

Of the Rs 4,405 crore unpaid debt of 12 companies, more than half was locked in just one Mumbai-based real estate company, Kohinoor CTNL Infrastructure.

Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code gets off to a slow start

Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code gets off to a slow start

Rediff.com   12 Jun 2018

The first of a two-part series explores how the proceedings under the IBC have taken off and whether the code is helping banks recover their unpaid loans

Does TN govt's decision to permanently close Sterlite hold water?

Does TN govt's decision to permanently close Sterlite hold water?

Rediff.com   5 Jun 2018

When it closed close down the copper plant at Thoothukudi in 2013. Its orders were held illegal by the NGT on procedural grounds