The Hindu Business Line : Saturday, March 12, 2005

Easing ECBs
HOPEFULLY, THE REVIEW of the regime for corporate access to external commercial borrowings would lead to a more liberal framework as, by the Government's own admission, it is too restrictive. The extant policy, for instance, imposes what it calls ... More

FOREIGN TRADE

FTAs — adding to `spaghetti bowl of tariffs'
It is difficult to say whether or not FTAs promote global trade, but surely there are important issues that need to be sorted out in the quest for free trade. From the point of view of developing countries, these issues arise vis-à-visaccess t o the farm market of the developed world. Clearly, the world trading system is very complex and the FTAs may be just adding to the `spaghetti bowl of tariffs'. More

POLITICS

Guardians of our democracy
THE CONTROVERSY on the powers of the Judiciary vis-à-vis the Executive and the Legislature — focusing on the Supreme Court's recent directive to the Jharkhand Governor to bring forward the date to test the ... More

TAXATION

Progressing towards a flat tax?
The main argument against flat tax is that it is socially unjust. The solution to this problem, however, is not high tax rates because the rich pay less taxes despite that. The correct strategy is to impose heavier excise and import duties on consum ption goods, says Bharat Jhunjhunwala. More

What's lacking in the `black' fight
Budget proposals to check black money may not deliver, says T. N. Pandey More

VAT of States
D. K. Acharyya on areas that State VAT laws may not address More

Telephone is no `capital good' if you manufacture H{-2}O{-2}
CASES, they say, are of two types: funny and not-so-funny. To explain the difference, here's the story of Ginni, a company that manufactures cotton filament and yarn. I'm spinning no yarn, please note, because this ... More

INCOME TAX

Wages of compliance is inequity
T. C. A. Ramanujam on why the salaried should not have been denied the benefit of standard deduction More

Behind the fig leaf of fringe benefit
S. Murlidharan argues in favour of the FBT More

BOOKS

New deal for rural India, powered by panchayats
LOST in the din on withdrawal tax, and pushed to fringes by the FBT protests, is the `Bharat Nirman' that Chidambaram spoke of as a business plan "to give rural India a new deal fully involving the Panchayati Raj ... More

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