Daily News - Thursday, 25 July 2024
New shipbuilding policy soon (Business Standard)
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's budget announcement includes a push for indigenous shipbuilding, with a new policy to position India among the top five shipbuilding nations by 2047. The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, led by Sarbananda Sonowal, is set to unveil this policy soon, featuring measures such as a mandatory Make In India clause for coastal vessels by 2030, GST and custom duty changes, and a shipbreaking credit note scheme. Additionally, the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) plans to start domestic cruises in India, bolstered by a simpler tax regime and initiatives to attract more investors in the cruise tourism industry, which is expected to generate significant employment.
FM’s green energy proposals fall short, plan for key reforms put in abeyance (Financial Express)
The Budget 2024-25 includes measures to boost energy storage and expedite renewable energy (RE) capacity but lacks some expected reforms like prioritizing RE sector lending and tax rationalization. Industry leaders expressed the need for competitive project finance rates, lower GST rates on turbines and modules, and exemptions for Corporate & Industrial projects. Despite these concerns, the government has significantly increased the capital outlay to the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy to ₹19,100 crore for FY25, reflecting its commitment to scaling up RE capacity and supporting energy transition goals.
AI Mission: IT ministry looks to procure up to 500 GPUs with fresh allocation (Financial Express)
The Indian IT ministry, following its first budgetary allocation for the IndiaAI Mission, plans to release a tender to procure 300 to 500 GPUs to bolster domestic AI computing capacity. The Union Budget 2024 allocated ₹551.75 crore to the Ministry of Electronics and IT for this mission, part of a broader ₹10,372 crore initiative to establish over 10,000 GPUs and develop AI models for key sectors. This initial step aims to support startups by providing access to crucial AI infrastructure, addressing the high costs and hardware limitations that small businesses face in developing AI systems.
Privatization not on hold but not a priority: DIPAM secy (mint)
The government has not halted the privatization of central public sector enterprises, but it is no longer a priority, focusing instead on value creation through disinvestment, dividends, and shareholder returns, according to Tuhin Kanta Pandey, secretary of the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM). This calibrated approach includes aligning PSUs' performance with shareholder interests to optimize, not maximize, dividend extraction and reinvest in growth. Although the government aims to identify a winning bidder for the IDBI Bank stake sale within this financial year, it is unlikely to sell its stake in Vodafone Idea soon, preferring to wait for an opportune time as part of its broader value creation strategy.
India creates legroom to sign UK, EU FTAs with Customs Act amendments (The Indian Express)
To facilitate free trade agreements (FTAs) with developed nations like the UK and EU, the Union Budget 2024 amends the Customs Act to liberalize compliance with value-addition norms, replacing "certificate of origin" with the broader "proof of origin". This amendment aims to align with global customs norms and includes both certificates and self-declarations, potentially boosting trade but also risking misuse and revenue loss without stringent implementation. The changes are crucial for future FTAs, as seen with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), and come amidst ongoing negotiations with the UK and anticipated talks with the EU.
