SALARIED INCOME TAX

NO INCOME TAX RETURNS FOR SALARIED LESS THAN RS 5 LAKHS

Salary earners having an income of less than Rs 5 lakhs will not have to file tax returns from this year, a finance ministry official said. "Salaried people may be up to Rs 5 lakh. (Figure yet not confirmed) They need not file the (income tax) return," CBDT chairman told reporters at the customary post-Budget press conference.

The exemption from filing tax returns comes into effect from the assessment year 11-12.

In case such a salary earner has income from other sources like dividend, interest etc. and does not want to file returns, he will have to disclose such income to his employer for tax deduction, he said. The government, he said, is working out a scheme and will notify it "very soon". The Form 16 issued to salaried employees will be treated as Income Tax Return, he added. Read Memorandum on Budget clause in Finance Bill

Exemption to a class or classes of persons from furnishing a return of income under the existing provisions contained in section 139(1) of the Income-tax Act, every person, if his total income during the previous year exceeds the maximum amount which is not chargeable to income-tax, is required to furnish a return of his income. In the case of salaried tax payer, entire tax liability is discharged by the employer through deduction of tax at source. Complete details of such tax payers are also reported by the employer through Tax Deduction at Source (TDS) statements. Therefore, in cases where there is no other source of income, filing of a return is a duplication of existing information. In order to reduce the compliance burden on small tax payer, it is proposed to insert sub-section (1C) in section 139. This provision empowers the Central Government to exempt, by notification in the Official Gazette, any class or classes of persons from the requirement of furnishing a return of income, having regard to such conditions as may be specified in that notification. Consequential amendments are also proposed to be made to the provisions of section 296 to provide that any notification issued under section 139(1C) shall be laid before Parliament. 

THESE AMENDMENTS WILL TAKE EFFECT FROM 1ST JUNE, 2011.

Bill Gates, Buffet in India.

Their visits, though, have one common thread: Getting India's rich to pledge a decent portion of their wealth toward philanthropy on the lines of what they have themselves done. Last year, they had undertaken a visit with the same objective.

'We are not here to pressure anybody. Everybody has his or her own understanding of philanthropy,' Buffett had said in Bangalore Wednesday. 'We will be talking to Indian billionaires about our philanthropic activities and find out what they are doing.'

While Gates, along with his wife Melinda arrived here from Bihar, where they reviewed the progress of their non-profit foundation's health initiatives, their mentor Buffett, on his maiden visit to India, landed from Bangalore after a series of meetings.

The Forbes list has placed Gates, 55, the second on its list with a net worth of $56 billion, while Buffett, 80, was ranked next with $50 billion. Both arrived in the Indian capital Thursday to a packed schedule that mainly concentrates on their philanthropic efforts.

More Effective Chinese Medicine Against Severe Malaria

Severe malaria occurs when the disease affects the function of vital organs. It is associated with rarer cerebral malaria, which affects the brain and can lead to long-term disability. Artesunate was recommended as the preferred treatment for adults with severe malaria by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2006, but there was insufficient evidence at the time to recommend a change from the standard treatment of quinine in children. According to the results, taking artesunate reduces the risk of death by 39 percent in adults and 24percent in children compared to quinine. Scientists have found that antimalarial drug artesunate, which is derived from herbs used in Chinese medicine, is more effective than quinine at preventing death in patients with severe malaria.

India can meet Pakistan

In World Cup semifinals no World Cup is complete without an India-Pakistan clash and India's win over the West Indies may have just paved the way for this mother of contests in the semifinal. For that to happen, of course, India must first beat Australia in their quarterfinal match in Ahmedabad on March 24 while Pakistan will have to defeat the West Indies in Mirpur on March 23. In the other quarterfinals, Sri Lanka will take on England in Colombo while Mirpur will host the South Africa-New Zealand clash.


'Agar harenge to pata hain humein kya hone walah hain!' (If we lose we know what's in store). Yuvraj Singh was laughing when he said that. But he gave the impression along the course of a media conference after the match on Sunday that he was fighting a battle for the team against the Indian media.

"Don't you think you are not practising enough?" somebody asked him the question and that added fuel to the fire. "We know our bodies, we know how to go about it...It's the media that is saying we are not practising. It's your problem, not ours," it seemed that Yuvraj was carrying the mood of his batting to the press conference room.

The left-hander looked relieved that he has delivered the goods just when it mattered. This was his first international century after a gap of two years and he wants to take the good form into the quarterfinal against Australia. "Obviously, I am feeling good about it...Wickets, runs...I think it's all going well," Yuvi's answers were short, crisp and incisive.

Should We Laugh Or Cry??

Should we laugh or cry

The Wikileaks cables will not most probably be accepted by a court of law. But they will be accepted by large sections of the people of this country as indicating how rotten the State of India has become.

We have had instances of political bribery in the past too.

But those who committed bribery in the past to distort the democratic process understood they were committing a shameful act.

Those who have committed bribery under your watch as the Prime Minister of this great country, which held its head high as the land of Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, did not show the least sign of shame over what they were doing.

WikiLeaks disclosure

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday demanded resignation from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in the wake of the latest WikiLeaks revelations of leaked US diplomatic cables that payoffs had been made to MPs to win a crucial vote of confidence on the civil nuclear deal with the US in 2008. The Wiki revelations rocked both the Houses of Parliament soon after the session started as the main opposition party BJP and the Left sought an explanation from the government over the issue.

Raising the issue in the Lok Sabha, Leader of Opposition Sushma Swaraj sought Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s resignation. She said the UPA government had lost the moral right to rule the country. “The prime minister should come in the House and announce his resignation. This government has lost the moral right to govern,” she said.

BJP’s ally Shiv Sena also demanded the prime minister’s resignation. Party leader Manohar Joshi said, “The allegation has shamed the country. The prime minister must resign.” Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav said WikiLeaks exposure should be investigated thoroughly. Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley said the government had lost the right to stay in the office even for a minute.

The Congress members objected to the Opposition’s demand and started slogan shouting. Following an uproar, both the Houses were adjourned till 12 noon. WikiLeaks on Wednesday revealed that a 2008 cable from a US diplomat had said that they were told by an aide of Congress leader Satish Sharma that four MPs from Ajit Singh’s party Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) were paid Rs 10 crore each by the main ruling party. The prime minister had won his vote by a delicate margin.