Gold may reach $2,000 this year on developing countries' purchases

Central banks that were net sellers of gold a decade ago are buying the precious metal to reduce their reliance on the dollar as a reserve currency, signaling demand that may extend a record rally in prices.

As developing countries accelerate purchases, gold may reach $2,000 an ounce this year, compared with a record of $1,538.80 on Thursday in New York, said Robert McEwen, the chief executive officer of producer US Gold Corp.

Euro Pacific Capital's Michael Pento, who correctly predicted gold's highs for the past two years, forecast a 2011 high of $1,600. Prices reached a record 14 times this month on demand from investors seeking an alternative to the dollar after the currency slumped to the lowest since 2009, US debt widened, and the Federal Reserve signalled on April 27 that borrowing costs will remain near zero percent for an extended period.

The economy in China, the biggest foreign holder of US Treasuries , grew 9.7% in the first quarter. "China is out to have more gold than America, and Russia is aspiring to the same," McEwen said on Thursday in an interview in New York.

"When you have debt, you don't have a lot of flexibility. China wants to show its currency has more backing than the US." In 2010, central banks became net buyers for the first time in two decades, adding 87 tonne in official-sector purchases by countries including Bolivia, Sri Lanka and Mauritius, according to World Gold Council data.

China , with more than $3 trillion in foreign-currency reserves, plans to set up new funds to invest in precious metals, Century Weekly reported this week.

Russia purchased 8 tonne of gold in the first quarter. China, which has just 1.6% of its reserves in gold, may invest more than $1 trillion in bullion , Pento said. "China wants to be an international player , and they need to own more gold than they currently have."

The US Treasury Department projects the government could reach its debt ceiling of $14.3 trillion as soon as mid-May and run out of options for avoiding default by early July. The Fed has kept its benchmark rate between zero percent and 0.25% since December 2008 to help stimulate the economy, driving the dollar down 11% against a basket of six major currencies during the past year.

"Until monetary policy changes, you're going to continue to see gold go up," said Michael Cuggino , who helps manage $12 billion at Permanent Portfolio Funds in San Francisco. "Ultimately the best thing we can do to create strong fundamentals for the dollar in the medium term is first, keep inflation low, which maintains the buying power of the dollar, and second, create a stronger economy," Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said on April 27.

Source : ET

Some quick tips to filing your income-tax returns for FY11

Remember Scarlett O'Hara's immortal words in the novel 'Gone with the Wind? ".... After all, tomorrow is another day..." With the financial year (FY) 2010-11 behind us, one would probably be muttering these words while looking forward to FY12. While planning for FY12, one should remember that though FY11 is over, the return filing compliances required for the year are far from over. Compliance for FY11 can be laid to rest only after the due filing of income-tax returns (ITR) for the year is done, as required under the law.

There would be numerous questions with respect to tax filing by individual taxpayers; some of which have been addressed below.

Who should file an ITR?:

Every individual, whose total income exceeds the prescribed exemption limit (which is . 160,000 for male assesses, . 190,000 for female assesses and . 240,000 for those above 65 years of age [i.e. senior citizens]) , is required to file an ITR with the Indian revenue authorities on or before the prescribed due date. If you have agriculture income as well as non-agriculture income and your non-agriculture income is less than the minimum threshold limit, you will not be obliged to file an ITR. In case of a deceased person, his executor, administrator or other legal representative would be required to file an ITR for the deceased.

What is the due date?:

The prescribed due date is September 30, 2011 for FY11, if the individual , being a sole proprietor, has his accounts subjected to tax audit or is a partner of a partnership firm whose accounts are subject to tax audit. In all other cases, the due date is July 31, 2011.

Which form to fill?:

It may sound strange, but the fact is that the ITR form for FY11 is yet to be prescribed. So, the filing would have to wait till it is prescribed.

Who should sign the ITR?:

The ITR is required to be signed by the individual himself or herself. However, in case the individual is not physically present in India to sign the ITR or in case of a nonresident , a power of attorney holder could sign the ITR. In case of deceased assesses, the executor , administrator or other legal representative would be required to sign the ITR. A word of caution: An unsigned return is not a valid return.

Can you file ITR electronically?:

Well, yes an ITR can be filed electronically with the income-tax department website (www.incometaxindia .gov.in) with or without a digital signature. In case an ITR is filed online without the digital signature, the acknowledgement generated is required to be signed and sent to the Central Processing Centre (till last year, only in Bengaluru, Karnataka ).

Are any documents needed?:

Currently , no documents can be submitted along with the ITR. However , the tax authorities sometimes ask for a copy of the PAN card or acknowledgement of previous ITR filed, to verify the tax jurisdiction. In case the ITR is signed by a legal representative, copy of the power of attorney is required to be filed.

What if you miss the due date?:

If the ITR is not filed before the prescribed due date and also if the taxes due are not deposited before the said date, the individual would be subject to penal interest at the rate of 1% per month of such taxes due, for the duration of the non-compliance . In addition , a penalty of Rs 5,000 could be levied by the authorities if the ITR is not filed before the end of the assessment year (i.e. March 31 following the year for which the tax return pertains).

Can you file IT later?:

An ITR can be filed after the prescribed due date but before the end of one year from the end of assessment year. So for FY11, ITR can be filed by March 31, 2013. But you should be aware of the fact that the belated return so filed cannot be revised under any circumstances. Also, if you have business loss and capital loss during the financial year, it cannot be carried forward to subsequent financial year, impacting your next year's planning. So, as Alan Lakein, the famous author of self-help books has advocated: 'Failing to plan is planning to fail' . The key is to plan ahead and comply on time. After all...... All's well that ends well, right?

Source : ET

RBI penalises 19 banks for mis-selling derivatives

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has fined 19 commercial banks, including the country’s largest, State Bank of India, for mis-selling derivatives products to clients.

RBI has imposed a fine of Rs 5-15 lakh on these banks for not complying with its instructions on derivative products.


Seven private sector banks that have been  penalised are ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Axis Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, ING Vysya Bank, Development Credit Bank and YES Bank.


The list includes 11 foreign banks, including prominent ones such as Citibank, Standard Chartered Bank, Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation and Deutsche Bank.

RBI said these banks failed to carry out its instructions on due diligence regarding the suitability of products and sale of derivatives to users not having the right risk management policies.

The banks also “did not verify the underlying or the adequacy of the underlying and the eligible limits under the past performance route,” RBI said.

Earlier, RBI had issued notices to these lenders. “In response, the banks submitted written replies. On careful examination of the replies and oral submissions during personal hearings, the Reserve Bank found that the violations were established,” it said.

According to analysts, the penalty will hurt private and foreign banks by strengthening the claims of clients who have accused them of mis-selling derivatives products.

“Most of these banks are under law suits from their clients who accused them of mis-selling derivative products. This will only strengthen the claims made by the clients,” said a banking analyst with a domestic brokerage.

In 2008, Bangalore-based textile firm Himatsingka Seide moved court against HDFC Bank after it incurred a mark-to-market loss of Rs 175 crore in a derivative deal.

Several other companies had also dragged some of these banks to courts on similar grounds.

Bankers were not immediately available for comments.


Source : Business Standard

42 Provident Fund trusts in trouble, only 12 in position to pay 9.5% interest rate

Provident fund trusts run by some of the country's leading firms have been earning lower interest rates than that declared by the Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) over the years, an examination of their accounts has revealed.

The EPFO had decided to study the accounts of 42 such trusts, including those run by Nicholas Piramal, Pfizer, Cipla , Mahindra & Mahindra and Godrej , after they expressed inability to match the 9.5% interest declared for 2010-11.

The EPFO had announced the higher interest after it found a surplus of Rs 1,731 core in its interest suspense account.

These trusts had said that their average yields in the past had been below 8.5%, the interest fixed by the EPFO in the previous five fiscals. They said that unlike the EPFO, they did not have surplus cash to pay the higher interest.

But the EPFO is not buying the argument. "Our message to the private trusts is clear," central provident fund commissioner Samirendra Chatterjee said. "You have to pay up the interest announced by us. If you cannot manage the fund, surrender it to the government." The law requires these trusts to match the rate declared by the EPFO. Employers' representatives on the central board of trustees, the top policy-making body of EPFO, had given a list of 42 private trusts, which they said did not have enough reserves to pay the higher interest.

Since private trusts follow the same investment norms as the EPFO, field offices were asked to examine the accounts to ascertain why there wasn't adequate surplus available with them.

"Many do not have enough as they have not been investing the money judiciously, and in some cases, not investing the entire amount," Chatterjee said.

The average yield of these 42 funds was between 7.5% and 8%.

The EPFO said that at least 12 of these private trusts have the surplus to pay 9.5% interest. "The results are surprising as we would expect corporates to earn higher returns since they are supposed to be less conservative than the EPFO in their investment choices within the laid down framework," said an officer with the EPFO.

It was also discovered that some trusts were not investing the entire fund.

"We found that of the 186 crore corpus being managed by the trusts that were surveyed, only 175 crore was invested," the official said, adding that it was illegal to withhold PF balance in cash.

Companies, however, are blaming the stringent investment norms laid down by the government for the lower yields.

"The PF trust has to invest in risk-free instruments, such as central/state government securities and AAA rated PSU bonds, which currently have an average yield of about 8%," said S Radhakrishnan, a director on the board of Cipla.

"Given the objective of the trust, safety of investments is of prime importance and it would not be advisable to invest in higher risk instruments, which yield more than 8-9%," he said. A Pfizer spokesperson said 63% of investments have been in the centre's Special Deposit Scheme and central and state government loans, which results in an annual earnings realization of less than 8.5%.

"The trust has incurred losses for last 2-3 years, which have been reimbursed by Pfizer Limited ," the spokesperson said. For the year-ended March, the loss will be even higher because of the 9.5% interest that the company has to credit to members' accounts, she added.

There are more than 2,000 establishments that manage their employees provident fund accounts and are exempt from the supervision of the EPFO.


Source : ET

Why are gold prices moving up despite a global economic recovery?

The investible potential of 'Gold' as an asset class has been a function of jewelry & industrial demand, inflation outlook, strength of the dominant currency, geo-political stability and the gold supply variable. Given the historical and contemporary pervasiveness of gold as a store of value, and to a certain extent, medium of exchange, gold has adopted a tendency of behaving like a natural currency. Therefore, the investment demand for gold tends to rise in the case of adverse economic condition, rising inflation, weakening dollar, or general socio-political instability.

The 16.26% cagr run-up in the gold prices since 2000 has largely been attributable to the surfeit liquidity in the early part of the decade, while in the latter half, the turbulent economic conditions post the sub-prime crisis, contributed to the gold rally. However, despite the teetered recovery in the global economic environment, the optimistic outlook on gold remains unchanged. And here's the reason why!

Today's geopolitical climate has become increasingly volatile. The pursuit of nuclear arms by autocratic regime(s) was already a driving force for gold investors. This uncertainty has increased further on account of domino effect in the Middle East and North African region, where long standing regimes stability has come into question.

All the more, the political instability in this vital region has also caused a sizeable spurt in a correlated commodity - Crude oil. The spot prices in crude brent have spiked by nearly 44% in the last 4 months and is showing no signs of respite. The inflation in one of the most essential commodities is expected to provide further fillip to price growth in gold.

Correspondingly, world's major economies continue to be burdened with extensive amounts of debt to keep their economies afloat. To add to that, the economic hardships of Western Europe haven't gone away either. Also, while the U.S economic performance has improved, the unemployment situation continues to remain difficult.

Consequently, while the global investor sentiment has improved, the relative risk perception remains. This in-turn is fueling the investment demand for gold.

Also, traditionally, the gold demand has a seasonal flavor to it. The onset of marriage season in India, the corresponding gold inventory expansion by US and European retailers, all provide demand push to gold. Besides, central bankers worldwide are also emerging as the net buyers of gold. The interplay of these factors provides a potent case for investment in gold.

But, from a retail investor point of view, the physical investment in Gold has a minor side-effect. Buying physical gold involves the risk of theft, misplacement and potential wrong-pricing. Additionally, when an investor needs to sell his physical gold, again at that point, the investor has to go through the inconvenient route of valuation, bargaining, transaction and delivery

All these angles involve risk, skill, and time - making the whole process inconvenient. But thankfully an alternative method to investing in Gold exists

US losing 'AAA-rating' sends out an overdue warning for all

Standard & Poor's decision to put the US on warning that it may lose its AAA debt rating is both deliciously absurd and genuinely earthshaking.

Absurd because S&P are some of the people who missed the real estate bubble and mortgage bond implosion; and earthshaking because not only has the US never held less than a AAA rating, much less been put on threat of downgrade, it thoroughly deserves the warning.

Standard & Poor's cited the risks of a lack of a credible plan to reduce the national debt and said the move flags a one-in-three chance of a downgrade over the coming two years.

The ratings agency said there was a material risk policymakers won't come to a meaningful and plausible budget agreement by the 2012 elections, leaving the US weaker than its AAA-rated peers.

Beyond the risk of a lack of political will to tame the budget, S&P also raised the fiscal threats coming from the financial sector, which it now puts as higher than before 2008. So much for financial reform, then. Net external debt, a measure of US dependence on foreign creditors, is now at 300% of current account receipts, among the highest of any sovereign, much less those that consider a AAA rating to be something akin to a birthright.

What is both said and not said in S&P's analysis is the fact that it is only the US's exorbitant privilege as the main global reserve currency that even allows it to have strayed this far without already being downgraded.

If Canada was in an analogous position to the US it would have long ago been kicked out of the AAA lounge, in much the same way that if I behaved like Charlie Sheen I would be homeless.

This is perhaps why the threatened downgrade is so hard to digest; the US and its supposedly risk-free Treasuries are at the heart of all global finance , and a system in which people will have to find alternatives, both as investments and yardsticks, is difficult to imagine.

That something is difficult to imagine, however, does not mean that it won't come to pass, only that if it only partly comes to pass the impact will be big. Firstly, if the US loses its AAA rating it could prove to be the turning point in a loss of confidence that starts a debilitating move out of not only Treasuries but dollar assets. After all, the US won't default on debts which it can erase with the flick of the switch on the printing press, but it may well inflate its way to making dollar holdings very bad investments.

Secondly, the lack of alternatives means that a move out of Treasuries, if it ever came, would be hugely distorting for the rest of the world's debt ecosystem. There simply aren't enough "safe" alternatives.

One argument advanced for why we shouldn't care about the threatened downgrade is S&P's (and other ratings agencies') track record of being spectacularly wrong, first in various emerging market sovereign crises and then during the housing bubble.

I'd argue the opposite; ratings agencies have a reputation of being timid and late, and are also beholden to government-granted status as Nationally Recognized Statistical Ratings Organizations for much of their business. That one of them steps up and threatens the US's rating is a sign that cannot be ignored.

The best, and perhaps the most likely, outcome is that the US enjoys a long, slow slide from being everyone's favorite debt issuer and owner of the main reserve currency to something a whole lot less. After all, being free to borrow cheaply and almost without limit has hardly been an unalloyed blessing. This implies losing the AAA-rating, but maybe only for long enough to teach itself and the rest of the world not to be so dependent upon it.

The transition from a uni-polar financial world to something with more checks and balances will be painful, but in the end beneficial.

 

 

Source : ET

Withdrawal from Provident Fund Account before Completion of Five years or Maturity may be taxable

Withdrawal of Provident Fund may attract Income Tax. The Income Tax Department recently told EPFO (Employees Provident Fund Organisation) to deduct Tax (TDS) from the withdrawal amount, if the withdrawal happened before completing five years of subscription. Tax officials have cited a rule in the 1961 Income-Tax Act that taxes PF withdrawals by employees before completing five years of contributions into the EPF is taxable.

In most cases, the accumulated PF balance is withdrawn at the time of retirement, and therefore, not taxable in the hands of the individual. However, in certain cases like change in employment, an individual may even withdraw the PF balance earlier. The point one needs to remember is that the amount received from such PF is not exempt from tax in all cases. Only under the circumstances listed below will the amount withdrawn from PF be eligible for such exemption from tax.

• If the employee has rendered continuous service with the employer for five years or more. Again, if the balance includes amount transferred from the individual’s PF account maintained by previous employer(s), then the years of continuous service rendered to the former employer(s) would be included for the purpose of computing the five-year period.

• If the employee has not rendered continuous service of five years, but the service is terminated by reason of the employee’s ill health or discontinuance of the employer’s business or reasons beyond the control of the employee, the amount will be tax-exempt.

• Another tax-exempt case is when, on the cessation of the employment, the employee finds another job and the the accumulated PF balance is transferred to his individual PF account maintained by the new employer.

In short, where the PF amount is withdrawn before five years of continuous service, it may be taxable in the hands of the individual as if the fund was not recognised from the start of the contributions. In such a case, payment received by the individual in respect of the employer’s contribution along with the interest accrual thereon is taxed as “salary”. Interest on the employee’s contribution is taxable as “other income”. Payment received in respect of the employee’s own contribution is exempt from tax (to the extent not claimed as a deduction earlier).

I-T provisions provide that the trustees of a recognised PF or any person authorised by the regulations of the fund to make the payment of the accumulated balance to the employee should deduct tax at source while paying the amount. Further, the person liable to deduct tax has to issue the certificate of tax deducted at source (Form 16) within the specified time frame to the employee depicting the details of taxes withheld from the accumulated PF balance and also comply with other salary-related compliance necessities.

So the next time you think of withdrawing your PF, you must as an individual also assess whether the same is taxable or exempt.

No need to file tax returns for income up to Rs 5 lakh

Tax payers with annual income of up to Rs 5 lakhs will not be required to file returns, a move that will provide relief to about 70 to 80 lakh people.

"Assessees with income up to Rs 5 lakh will be exempted from filing returns. The provision (regarding not filing of returns) will be notified in the first week of June...", CBDT chairman Sudhir Chandra told reporters.

He said the new rule will apply from the current assessment year (2011-12) for the income earned in 2010-11.

However, people in this category (income up to Rs 5 lakh) will have to file return if they seek refund, he added.

The revenue department, meanwhile, has notified simpler income tax return forms ''Sahaj'' and ''Sugam'' aimed at reducing compliance burden on salaried persons and small businessmen.

Chandra said, "(These) are major steps towards simplification of income tax return filing".

He also said efforts were being made to facilitate electronic filing through Sahaj and Sugam I-T return forms.

The new return forms are in line with the government''s effort to make filing of returns simpler and user-friendly.

While Sahaj is for salaried people, Sugam return form is applicable for small businessmen and professionals covered under presumptive taxation.

Under India''s presumptive taxation, a person carrying on business will not be required to get his accounts audited if the annual total sales, turnover or gross receipts are less than Rs 60 lakh.

The limit was increased by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee in the 2010-11 Budget from Rs 40 lakh.

The presumptive tax limit in case of professionals was increased to Rs 15 lakh from Rs 10 lakh.

Chandra also said senior citizens (60 years and above) filing returns for incomes from pension, dividend, interest incomes and property will not be subjected to scrutiny.

"Such cases (of senior citizens) will not be picked up for scrutiny and the Government will trust senior citizens," he said.

The Government has reduced the age for the senior citizen category from 65 years to 60 years

Source :CBDT

File e-returns, get income-tax refunds in a month

There is an incentive for taxpayers who file their income-tax returns electronically - they will get their refunds within a month.

To speed up refunds and encourage electronic filing of tax returns, the Central Board of Direct Taxes has promised expeditious refunds.

The wait for refunds in the case of physical tax returns ranges between 5-10 months. "We want tax-payers to file electronically as that helps in faster processing of refunds," Sudhir Chandra, chairman, Central Board of Direct Taxes, told reporters.

As on December 31, 2010, there were about 40 lakh refund cases pending with the tax department. Last year, a Comptroller and Auditor General report had highlighted that it takes as much as 10 months for a taxpayer to get his refund.

Reports of widespread corruption and frauds in issue of refunds have also spurred a revamp of the refund system.

"The whole idea is that small taxpayers should not face any hardship in his interface with the department," Chandra added. Though the e-filing of tax returns is rising in absolute terms every year, its level has stagnated at about a quater of the total retuns filed.

The verification of the paper tax returns filed is a tedious process that also delays tax refunds. This has become a bigger issue with the rising refunds. In 2010-11, the government had refund extra tax of Rs 78,000 crore.

"E-filing ensures that tax payers' information on income, taxes and refunds are uploaded in the tax system instantly and tax computations are processed on a real-time basis," said Vikas Vasal, executive director, KPMG.

The income-tax department has been trying to make refund process faster and efficient through the use of technology interface.

"A refund banker scheme is already in place in the whole of country to ensure that taxpayers get refunds well in time," said an income-tax department official.

Income-tax authorities send data to State Bank of India which in turn issues refund it directly to tax-payers under the refund banker scheme.

"We issued the highest-ever refunds in 2010-11," says Chandra, who had instructed his officials to clear all pending refunds before March 31.

To ensure that his directions were followed, in letter and spirit, any pendency was to be reflected in their ACRs.
This will also help the department begin with a clean slate when the new direct tax code comes into effect from the next financial year.

Chandra said the CBDT will, by June, notify guidelines for small salaried tax-payers having annual income of Rs 5 lakh who will not be required to file tax returns if they do not have refund claims.

Such tax-payers will not be required to file return even if they have small interest income. "Any step to help tax-payers would help increase compliance levels," he said.

Chandra says the strategy to have a tax-payer friendly system has paid off as they have managed to collect the higher revised collection target of Rs 4.46 lakh crore in 2010-11.

E-filing, which was formally launched on October 13, 2006, is mandatory for companies but remains optional for individuals.


Source : ET

Citi's wealth management service banned

US banking major Citigroup has been barred from selling wealth management services to new clients in Indonesia following allegations that one of its long-time employees stole money from customers, says a media report.

The barring of Citi, amid allegations that a long-time employee stole millions of dollars from customers of its premium retail bank, was announced by Indonesia's central bank Governor Darmin Nasution, the Financial Times has reported.

Citibank had witnessed a similar kind of scam or fraud perpetrated by a senior employee at a branch in India, wherein customers were duped of wealth worth about USD 100 million by its manager Shivraj Puri.

According to the daily, Nasution told legislators that Citi had been instructed to "temporarily suspend" recruitment of new clients to Citigold, the US entity's flagship service for wealthy customers.

"Citi's run-in with the Indonesian authorities also highlights some of the risks of the US bank's global strategy, which is predicated on tapping into fast-growing emerging markets," the report noted.

Quoting Citi, the daily said the banking major is seeking clarification on the comments made.

"We understand it was said to be a temporary measure and has no impact on the services we offer our existing Citigold customers.

"Our focus is on cooperating fully with all authorities to bring the investigation to a conclusion and resolve the matter," Citi was quoted as saying.

As per the report, the ban on recruitment of new Citigold customers follows two scandals that have thrust the US financial group into the local media spotlight.

"Malinda Dee, a customer relations manager, was arrested last week after Citi uncovered alleged illegal transactions of about USD 2 million. A teller is also being investigated," it said.

The daily said authorities are investigating the mysterious death last week of a client who was questioned by three of the bank's external debt collectors at another Citi branch in the Indonesian capital.

"The men are in police custody and face possible murder charges



Source : Financial Express

Govt plans to issue Biometric PAN cards

The government has decided to issue biometric PAN cards to taxpayers across the country to weed out the problem of duplicate and fake ones.

The decision was taken recently by the finance ministry and it comes in the wake of a Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report that asked the Income Tax department to ensure that a single taxpayer is not issued multiple cards.

The proposed new biometric Permanent Account Number (PAN) cards would bear the I-T assessee's fingerprints. There could be an option to existing PAN card holders to opt for the biometric cards, but it may not be mandatory, a senior official in the I-T department said.

The finance ministry and the I-T department had put on hold the biometric PAN card project last year to avoid duplication with the UID numbers to be issued by Nandan Nilekani's Unique Identity Authority of India (UIDAI). "The bioemetric PAN card project is on again. The step will be very important when it comes to stopping the misuse of this vital identity document," top sources in the finance ministry said.

The biometric PAN card was proposed by the then finance minister P Chidambaram in 2006 to counter the problem of duplicate PAN cards which were uncovered during I-T searches and raids by police and other enforcement agencies.

The CAG report for 2010-11 on direct taxes, tabled in Parliament recently, has revealed that 958 lakh (95.8 million) PANs were issued up to March 2010 but I-T returns filed in the last fiscal were only 340.9 lakh (34.09 million). The gap between PAN holders and the number of returns filed was 617.1 lakh (61.7 million), the CAG has said.

Suggesting the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) to identify the reasons for the gap and use the information to enhance the assessee base, the CAG has said it may be due to issuance of multiple PAN cards and death of some PAN card holders.

"The (I-T) department needs to put in place appropriate controls to weed out the duplicate PANs and also update the position in respect of deceased assessees," the report has said. The plan has been set rolling for issuance of biometric PAN cards, according to sources.

It is expected that the first such cards could be issued by late this year, they said. Biometrics uses biological method to identify physical features of an individual.

 

 

Source: ET

BRICS' bigger and better hope

BRIC, the grouping of the four countries thought to radiate the largest lessons in developing an economy – Brazil, Russia, India and China – is going to transform itself to BRICS, with the much-awaited induction of South Africa into the cohort, making it more representative.

Started in year 2009, this year the summit would enter its third phase, with heads of government from these five countries getting together and preparing a road map to keep pace with the paradigm shifts in the world.


The coming summit, to be held in Sanya on south China's tropical island of Hainan on April 13-15, will be the first one for South Africa, to be welcomed as the new member. Chinese president Hu Jintao will chair the meet. Present will be Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff, Russian president Dmitry Medvedev, Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh and South African president Jacob Zuma.

“Bringing South Africa makes the grouping more representative of the emerging powers from all the developing regions. All of them are members of the G20, the high table of global economic policy coordination. This gives them a significant clout. If they can coordinate their positions in G20 Summits, they will be more effective. They should raise the issues of common interest to them. These include long-pending reform of international financial architecture. As a part of this, they could seek greater representation and voice in international financial institutions for emerging economies,” said Nagesh Kumar, chief economist and director, macroeconomic policy and development division, UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific.
What next?
According to Vishnu Prakash, joint Secretary and spokesperson of the ministry of external affairs, the grouping is in a nascent stage but has been able to emerge as an important voice.

“BRICS represent the world’s fastest growing market, comprising 44 per cent of the world population. All of them are members of the UN, of which two are permanent. It is a process which will evolve with the passage of time. It has emerged as a forum for policy coordination and exchange of ideas,” he underlined.

Experts say all the member-countries must take advantage of the moment and come out with a clear map for long-term sustenance. And, that the grouping should take a leadership role in closing the Doha round of multilateral trade deals under World Trade Organisation (WTO).

“It needs to be seen and analysed what BRIC, soon going to be BRICS, has been able to achieve since the forum came into being. It has to now take a firm stand on WTO. It needs to be also seen that it does not become a forum where only China dominates and the others remain silent,” said Biswajit Dhar, director general, Research and Information System for Developing Countries.
Abhijit Das, head, Centre for WTO Studies, Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, says a comparison of the per capita GDP of BRICS with those of developed countries makes the extent of the latter’s lag clear.

“It is important for BRICS to realise and also to convince developed countries that fast rate of GDP growth tells an incomplete story. This reality of such low per capita income, compared to that of developed countries, cannot be ignored. While this may deflate some of the hype associated with BRICS, this reality check is important for BRICS themselves and also for the rest of the world,” he said.

According to one estimate, the total volume of trade among BRICS countries reached $230 billion in 2010.

Besides, focusing on financial cooperation and an effective mechanism for global development, the leaders this year would also dwell on some of the recent events around the world, such as the unrest in West Asia, turmoil in North Africa and the disaster in Japan.

Source : Business Standard