INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
The government is also likely to project a tax revenue increase of 18-20 per cent.Ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has promised a
game-changing budget to revive the pandemic-hit economy, but a mountain of debt may force the finance minister to make tough choices when
she delivers the package on Monday.Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is likely to increase spending by more than 15 per cent year-on-year
in 2021-22 with an emphasis on infrastructure and healthcare, say senior officials and advisers involved in budget preparation, as she looks
to reinvigorate an economy projected to contract 7.7 per cent in the current fiscal year.But the officials, who asked not to be named as the
budget discussions were private, said major subsidy programmes such as for food, fertiliser and fuel would likely be partly funded through
off-budget borrowing by state-owned firms.The sources said the government was also likely to project a tax revenue increase of 18-20 per
cent, aided by the lower base of the current year and an expected economic turnaround.On Thursday, Gopal Krishna Agarwal, a BJP spokesman,
Minister Narendra Modi's term for his push for India to be self-reliant.To mop up additional revenue and to support Hindu nationalist Modi's
self-sufficiency drive, the government is likely to hike import duties on a number of high-end goods in a bid to raise more than Rs 210
billion in revenue.Industry body, the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) on Sunday said it has urged the government to consider creation
of multiple bad banks to address the adverse impact of non-performing assets (NPAs) accumulated by public sector banks in the recent past,
that got further accentuated during the pandemic
The CII in its pre-budget memorandum recommended that the government consider enabling Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) and Alternative
Investment Funds (AIFs) to purchase NPAs.Industry body Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) on Sunday said it has urged the government to
consider creation of multiple bad banks to address the adverse impact of non-performing assets (NPAs) accumulated by public sector banks in
the recent past, that got further accentuated during the pandemic.Tax Cut HopeCorporates and industry chambers expect the finance minister
to unveil some tax relief measures for pandemic-hit sectors such as real estate, aviation, tourism and autos.And analysts say the government
would also have to consider providing tax relief to small businesses and consumers to boost consumer sentiment and revive economic
growth.But, with the economic contraction likely pushing India's fiscal deficit for the current financial year ending in March to more than
of minority stakes in large companies such as Life Insurance Corp to fund its expenditure programme.India could aim to raise Rs 2.5-3
trillion from stake- sales in 2021-22, after raising just about Rs 180 billion in the current year, well short of its Rs 2.1 trillion
is also expected to announce plans to fix the recurring problems in the banking sector, including the creation of a new infrastructure
an infrastructure development bank would be conducive to lending towards projects with long gestation without the asset-liability mismatch
that a commercial bank often faces, officials said.The government is also likely to announce Rs 200-250 billion of capital infusion into
