Relaxation in return filing procedure for first two months of GST implementation

With the objective of ensuring smooth rollout of GST and taking into account the concerns expressed by the trade and industry regarding filing of the returns in GST regime, it has been decided that, for the first two months of GST implementation, the tax would be payable based on a simple return (Form GSTR-3B) containing summary of outward and inward supplies which will be submitted before 20^th of the succeeding month. However, the invoice-wise details in regular GSTR – 1 would have to be filed for the month of July and August, 2017 as per the timelines given below –

           

Month	GSTR – 3B	GSTR - 1	GSTR – 2 (auto populated from GSTR-1)
July, 2017	20th August	1st – 5th September*	6th – 10th September
August, 2017	20th September	16th – 20thSeptember	21st  – 25th September

* Facility for uploading of outward supplies for July, 2017 will be available from 15^th July, 2017.

No late fees and penalty would be levied for the interim period. This is intended to provide a sense of comfort to the taxpayers and give them an elbow room to attune themselves with the requirements of the changed system. This not only underlines the government’s commitment towards ensuring that all the stakeholders are on board but also provides an opportunity to the taxpayers to be ready for this historic reform.

Shah rules out resumption of Indo-Pak bilateral cricket ties

Mumbai, Jun 17 (PTI) Ruling out resumption of bilateral cricket ties between India and Pakistan anytime soon, BJP president Amit Shah today said the two countries would continue to play against each other in international tournaments.

"India and Pakistan will continue to play at international tournaments but neither India plays in Pakistan nor Pakistan plays in India," Shah, who heads the Gujarat Cricket Association, said, a day ahead of the clash between the arch rivals in the Champions Trophy final in England.

Shah, who is here on a three-day visit to strengthen the party organisation in the state, and is scheduled to meet Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray, said BJP would consult its allies before finalising the NDA's presidential candidate.

"We will consult all our allies and then reach a decision on the presidential poll nominee," Shah told a press conference.

He was responding to questions about ally Shiv Sena, which has often been critical of the BJP and the Modi government, suggesting the name of M S Swaminathan, known for steering India s Green Revolution, as its presidential choice.

The Shiv Sena had earlier said it may choose an "independent" path in the election to the highest constitutional office. It had backed Congress nominees-- Pratibha Patil and Pranab Mukherjee-- in the last two presidential elections.

When asked about Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis' remark that the BJP was prepared for snap assembly election, in an apparent reference to continued strain in ties with the Shiv Sena, Shah said, "What he meant was that if mid-term polls are forced on us, we are ready to fight."

Calling Narendra Modi the most popular leader since Independence, Shah said the prime minister was making all efforts to transform India into a world power by 2022, when the nation celebrates 75 years of freedom.

Under Modi, he said, India had become the world's fastest growing major economy.

The BJP chief said Modi had restored dignity to the prime minister's office.

"Every minister in the previous UPA government considered himself the PM, but nobody considered the PM as PM," he said.

Lauding Modi for enacting the Goods and Services Tax law, the BJP leader said nobody else had the "daring or capability" to do it.

"India has emerged as a global leader on the issue of climate change, as seen at the Paris deliberations," Shah said.

Shah said the Modi government brought an end to politics of appeasement and dynastic rule.

"Our biggest achievement is ending communalism, dynastic rule and appeasement (politics)," he said.

106th International Labour Conference, 2017

The Minister of State for Labour and Employment (Independent Charge), Shri Bandaru Dattatreya briefing the press about the key decisions taken in the International Labour Conference at ILO, in New Delhi on June 17, 2017. The Secretary, Ministry of Labour & Employment, Smt. M. Sathiyavathy is also seen.
The 106th Session of International Labour Conference (ILC) was held from 5-16th June 2017. An Indian Tripartite Delegation led by the Minister of State for Labour and Employment (Independent Charge), Shri Bandaru Dattatreya participated in the ILC. 

Speaking at the Plenary Session of the International Labour Conference on 14th June 2017, Labour and Employment Minister expressed his happiness over the growing coherence between the Sustainable Development Goals and the agenda of ILO and other UN forums. The Minister said that no development was complete unless it benefitted each and every person in the society. Shri Dattatreya further added that Poverty eradication, employment generation and reducing inequality formed the core of the development strategy of India. On ratification by India of two core ILO conventions on Child Labour, the Minister reiterated India’s commitment for a safe, healthy and happy future for children. Shri Dattatreya further added that the government is committed to provide social security for 450 million workforce in the informal sector. The Labour and Employment Minister informed about the amended Maternity Benefit Amendment Act, 2017 that provides for paid maternity leave of 26 weeks which would encourage women into employment. The Minister delivered his speech in Hindi and ended his speech by reaffirming India’s commitment for promoting the welfare of the workers in and outside the country including promoting their skill development and protecting their rights. 

Smt M. Sathiyavathy, Secretary, the Ministry of Labour and Employment, addressed the Plenary Session of the 106th ILC and placed on record India’s appreciation for a comprehensive and topical report of Director General, ILO, Mr Guy Ryder on ‘Work in a changing climate: The Green Initiative’. Smt. Sathiyavathy indicated that the Paris Agreement of 2015 had defined the global climate initiative in the changing context of globalization which recognized national contexts, yet respected the principles of shared responsibility and collective commitments. The fact that 195 countries have signed and 147 have recognized it, is a testimony of its importance. She reiterated India’s commitment to cleaner climate and energy transition. The Secretary mentioned about setting up of the international and inter-governmental organization- ‘International Solar Alliance headquartered at National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE) in India that is dedicated to promotion and for making solar energy a valuable source of affordable, reliable, green and clean energy in 121 member countries. She further added that India has initiated several measures towards achieving sustainable development through green pathway including increasing the forest cover, reducing carbon emissions, river conservation and tackling solid waste and air pollution. She expressed concern over the likely impact of the transition to green jobs in sectors such as agriculture which is the primary sector of many economies and therefore stressed on the need to build responses very carefully keeping in mind not only the limitations of the member states but also ensuring that their strengths are not compromised. 

In a historic step towards eradication of Child Labour from the country, India ratified International Labour Organizations Convention No 138 (minimum age for employment) and Convention No 182 (worst forms of child labour) to symbolise its commitment and initiatives for eradication of child labour and attainment of Sustainable Development Goal 8.7 related with curbing of child labour. The ratification of both conventions coincided with the International Day against Child Labour expressing country’s commitment along with global partners to fight the menace of child labour and providing the childhood back to them. Shri Bandaru Dattatreya handed the Instruments of Ratification to Mr. Guy Ryder, DG, ILO at the sideline event held in Geneva at the International Labour Conference, 2017 on 13th June 2017. 

With ratification of these two core ILO conventions, India has ratified 6 out of 8 core ILO conventions, with the other 4 core ILO conventions relating to abolition of forced labour, equal remuneration and no discrimination between men and women in employment and occupation, thus reaffirming its commitment for promoting and realizing fundamental principles and right at work. This action is in sync with the Government’s broader intent for social equality and growth for all. 

Several multilateral meetings were held on the sidelines of the ILC. At the NAM Ministerial Meeting held on 13th June 2017, Labour and Employment Minister, Shri Bandaru Dattatreya said “In India, we have leveraged the technological advancement. Technology forms the basis of many of our programmes, like Digital India, National Career Service (NCS) portal, 

extending social security benefits (DBT). NCS portal is our strengthened public employment services platform effectively using the Information technology. The Portal already hosts more than 38 million job seekers and around 1.5 million job providers. 



At the ASPAG Ministerial Meeting held on 13th June 2017, The Minister of Labour and Employment, Shri Bandaru Dattatreya said “India firmly believes that employment generation with assured social protection and greater gender parity are fundamental to create an inclusive society”. The Minister further added that “poverty alleviation strategy must be linked to robust employment generation policies and equally robust wage policies and social protection. Our challenge is to implementing these policies to the informal sector. In a recent massive drive we were successful in opening bank accounts for close to 5 million wage workers across the country in last 6 months. We amended the legislative provisions to enable the payment of wages through banking transactions thereby adding to the transition to formality”. 

At the G20 Labour and Employment Ministerial Meeting held on 14th June 2017, Shri Bandaru Dattatreya, expressed his happiness that issues like technology transfers by businesses in the global supply chain and promotion of decent work through capacity building formed the part of the G20 Labour and Employment Ministerial Declaration adopted by G20 Labour and Employment Ministers in Bad Neuenahr, Germany in May 2017. He further urged the G20 countries to explore the possibility of signing bilateral agreements for providing social security cover to our workers and for promoting their skill development. 

Indian delegation led by Labour and Employment Minister also participated in bilateral meeting held with Iran and spoke about issues concerning MSMEs, rural employment and vocational training. 

BJP panel meets Gandhi, Yechury, Advani, but takes no names

New Delhi, Jun 16 (PTI) A BJP panel today met top leaders of the Congress and the Left and consulted party veteran L K Advani on the upcoming presidential election, but its reluctance to name candidates prompted the opposition to question the exercise aimed at evolving a broad consensus on the issue.

Union ministers Rajnath Singh and M Venkaiah Naidu, two members of the panel formed by BJP chief Amit Shah, met Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury and BJP veterans Advani and Murli Manohar Joshi.

A source said the two ministers informed Advani the panel had started talks with other leaders as directed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Shah, but did not refer to any likely candidates.

Criticising the BJP for not naming possible candidates, Yechury called the talks "more of a PR exercise" and reiterated the person occupying the president's post had to be an individual with "impeccable" secular credentials.

The BJP leaders did not propose a name but instead asked Congress leaders about their choices, party leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said after the ministers met Gandhi and other party leaders.

"We expected the BJP leaders to come up with some name, one or more, for the post of the president of India, so that the Congress could take a call on that. But nothing of that kind happened," he said.

Sources said Singh and Naidu -- the panel's third member, Arun Jaitley, is abroad -- told the opposition leaders that the party would like to finalise the name of the candidate for the post before Modi left on a foreign tour on June 24.

The BJP may finalise its nominee two or three days before the PM's departure.

A BJP leader played down the opposition criticism, saying the idea behind the consultation was to seek the views of leaders from different political parties. It also aimed at garnering support for a common candidate, he said.

The ministers also asked Yechury and other Left leaders at the meeting if they needed to put up an opposition candidate "just for the sake of it", the sources said.

The BJP ministers first met Gandhi at her 10 Janpath residence in the morning. Azad and Mallikarjun Kharge were also present during the 30-minute meeting.

This was the first meeting between the government and the opposition under the BJP's outreach to stitch a consensus on the official nominee for the post.

The ministers also declined to name possible candidate at their meeting with Yechury and other Left leaders.

"They told us they want our support. We said fine, tell us the basis for the support, who is the candidate. But that they did not convey; they will take some time to do that," Yechury said after their 30-minute meeting.

He said the opposition parties would wait till the BJP completed its discussions with them before they took a call on their candidate for the July 17 election.

Naidu explained the objectives of the consultation process to the opposition leaders, saying that the prime minister and the BJP chief wished for such discussions before the candidate was finalised and were keen to seek the views of the parties and their support.

Naidu also had a conversation on this with NCP Chief Sharad Pawar over the phone and met AIADMK leader Thambidurai.

The minister met SP veteran Mulayam Singh Yadav and the BSP's Satish Misra, who put him through to his leader, Mayawati, on the phone.

A top BJP leader said the party was ready with the formalities of filing nomination papers. It had identified the names of proposers and seconders in different sets of nominations to be filed in favour of their candidate.

The BJP has also called a meeting of those MPs and MLAs who would propose and second the official candidate in Delhi on June 20.

Asked if it meant the party would decide on its nominee by then, a senior leader said the two issues were not linked.

BJP allies -- Ramvilas Paswan's LJP, Upendra Kushwaha's RLSP and Chandrababu Naidu's TDP -- have already authorised Modi to take a decision on the presidential candidate, saying they would support it.

Opposition leaders have said they will put up their own candidate if the BJP opted for a person with "strong Hindutva leanings".

Congress senior spokesperson Ajay Maken told reporters that it would be "good" if there was a consensus on the issue.

He, however, said the ruling party should first come out with its candidate to help bring about a consensus.

Speaking to reporters after his meeting with Singh and Naidu, CPI general secretary S Sudhakar Reddy said he appreciated the government's initiative to reach out to the opposition parties, but insisted that contenders for the post have "secular and democratic" credentials.

"We said if they can think of a democratic, secular candidate, we can consider it (the candidature)," Reddy said after the meeting that last almost 30 minutes.

CPI national secretary D Raja, who was with Reddy at the meet, said the Left party too did not propose any names during the talks.

"They (the government) wanted our suggestion. We said, please tell us your suggestions as the ruling party. Then we will see," Raja said.

Jadhav case: ICJ asks India to make submission by Sept 13, Pak by Dec 13

New Delhi/Islamabad, Jun 16 (PTI) The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has asked India to make its submission in the Kulbhushan Jadhav case by September 13, the Ministry of External Affairs said today and debunked Pakistan's claim that its request seeking more time in case had been rejected.

Pakistan has been asked by the court to complete its submission by December 13 this year, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Gopal Baglay said.

Asked about Pakistan's claim that India's request for more time in the case has been rejected by the ICJ, Baglay said it was not true as India had sought four months and had got that with the court fixing the deadline in September.

Earlier, Pakistan's Attorney General Ashtar Ausaf Ali was quoted by Dawn News as saying that, India had asked the ICJ to offer it time till December to file pleadings in the Jadhav case, however, "the court has dismissed their request".

"India had adopted the stance that the matter was one of life and death, but Pakistan had stated that the ICJ is not a court of appeals. The ICJ is supposed to conclude whether or not Jadhav can receive consular access, for which a time period of two to three months is more than enough to file a response," he said.

Baglay said the timelines had been decided in the June 8 meeting ICJ President Ronny Abraham had with agents of the two countries.

Asked if the hearing in the case would begin after the submissions of the two countries, Baglay said the court will decide if it needs more submissions and then take a call on the future course of action.

In a hearing of the case on May 18, a 10-member bench of the ICJ restrained Pakistan from executing 46-year-old Jadhav, a retired Indian Navy officer who has been awarded death sentence by a Pakistan army court for alleged "involvement in espionage and terrorist activities in Pakistan".

India moved the ICJ against the death sentence on May 8, describing the charges against Jadhav as "concocted" and his trial as "farcical".

Israel's prime minister: Med pipeline would be 'revolution'

Thessaloniki (Greece), Jun 15 (AP) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised today to promote plans for an ambitious Mediterranean undersea natural gas pipeline project, in a bid by his country to become a key European energy supplier.

Israel is hoping to export much of its newly discovered natural gas to Europe by a proposed 2,200-kilometer (1,350- mile) undersea pipeline to Cyprus and Greece.

"It's something we're very excited about," Netanyahu said in Thessaloniki, Greece's second-largest city.

"Of course the idea of the East Med pipeline would be a revolution. We've had preliminary studies of it. It seems promising and we're going to look further."

Netanyahu met with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades, after the three countries signed a joint declaration in Tel Aviv in April to promote construction of the pipeline.

Greece and Israel are also planning an undersea electricity cable link and are also considering a Mediterranean data cable.

Once frosty, Israel's ties with Greece and Cyprus have markedly improved in recent years, coinciding with a spat between Israel and regional rival Turkey.

"There's a simple fact with Cyprus, Greece and Israel that brings us very close together. We are all democracies real democracies," Netanyahu said.

"And when you look at our region ... that's not a common commodity."

The three countries now hold frequent joint military and civil protection exercises, including the recent "Kinyras- Saul" exercises that involved special forces from Cyprus and Israel.

More than 3,500 police officers were deployed around the city, which historically had a large Jewish community that was almost wiped out during the Nazi occupation in World War II.

While in Thessaloniki, Netanyahu was also visiting several Jewish sites, including the grounds of a planned Holocaust museum.

Later Thursday, two pro-Palestinian rallies are planned.

A group of demonstrators held a separate protest inside the offices of state-run ET3 television, and a videotaped message was broadcast by the station.

"We would swap our prime minister for a Palestinian activist," protest organizer Petros Gotsis said. "(Tsipras) is no longer on our side.

Sensex closes higher, Nifty advances as inflation cools

Mumbai, Jun 14 (PTI) Stocks were restrained in their movement today ahead of the US Fed policy decision as the Sensex saw deep fluctuations, but managed to close with an upward bias taking cues from a falling inflation.

Banking stocks were in the spotlight as the RBI identified 12 major NPA accounts for insolvency proceedings, which will be referred to the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code for quicker resolution.

Inflation based on the wholesale price index fell to a five-month low of 2.17 per cent in May, which boosted investors' expectations that the RBI may finally snip rates.

But they decided not to go the whole hog as they waited for the US Federal Reserve's policy move later in the day.

The 30-share Sensex resumed higher before settling at 31,155.91, a gain of 52.42 points, or 0.17 per cent. The gauge had gained 7.79 points in the previous session.

The 50-share Nifty also ended higher by 11.25 points, or 0.12 per cent, at 9,618.15.

In the meantime, the Cabinet paved the way for a proposal to introduce a Bill in Parliament for setting up a Resolution Corporation to deal with bankruptcy in banks, giving the stocks more good news. The Nifty PSU Bank index jumped by 0.92 per cent.

"PSU banks exhibited a sharp surge taking cues from NPA resolution policies being formulated by RBI and bank consolidation plans from the central government," said Anand James, Chief Market Strategist, Geojit Financial Services.

RIL, L&T, Dr Reddy's and ICICI Bank ended higher.

In 30-share Sensex, RIL gained the most by 3.30 per cent on reports that its subsidiary Reliance Jio added 4 million new users to reach a consumer base of 112.55 million.

Sector-wise, the BSE realty rose by 1.50 per cent.

Capital goods, oil and gas and PSU counters provided support.

The broader market outperformed the key indices, with the small-cap index rising 0.46 per cent and the mid-cap 0.01 per cent.

Asia offered a mixed picture at the close. Key indices in Europe climbed.

Foreign funds sold shares net Rs 312.40 crore while domestic investors bought Rs 304.58 crore yesterday, as per provisional figures.

India successfully test fired ATGM Nag

Successful Flight Test of ATGM Nag

The Anti-Tank Guided Missile Nag was successfully flight tested today in the desert ranges of Rajasthan. The Fire and Forget 3rd generation ATGM Nag is incorporated with many advanced technologies including the Imaging Infrared Radar (IIR) Seeker with integrated avionics, a capability which is possessed by few nations in the world.

The capabilities of the top attack ATGM Nag is unique in nature and in today’s mission it successfully destroyed the target. The test has been carried out by DRDO Scientists of the Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Missile Complex at Hyderabad, DL Jodhpur, HEMRL and ARDE at Pune. Also the ground systems were developed by the Ordnance Factory, BEL and L&T. Senior officials from the Armed Forces participated in the tests.

SA to RM & Director General (Missiles and Strategic Systems) Dr. G. Satheesh Reddy witnessed the launch and said “The successful flight test of 3rd generation ATGM Nag further strengthens the country’s defence capabilities.”

Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and Chairman, DRDO Dr. S. Christopher congratulated all the team members and armed forces who have been part of the mission.

Sharif summoned to appear before Panama Papers probe panel on June 15

Islamabad, Jun 12 (PTI) Embattled Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif will become Pakistan's first sitting premier to depose before a Joint Investigation Team probing the high-profile Panamagate graft case when he appears before it on Thursday.

The unprecedented development will make Sharif the first incumbent to appear before such a panel, let alone one probing allegations of financial irregularities or fraud against nearly his entire family, going back three generations, Dawn newspaper reported.

Joint Investigation Team (JIT) chief Wajid Zia, in a letter dated Saturday, asked the prime minister to appear before the six-member probe team at 11:00 AM (11:30 IST) on June 15 with all documents relevant to the case.

The summon was issued to Sharif, 67, after he returned from his Kazakhstan visit where he attended the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit.

The JIT s summons also reminded Sharif to "kindly bring along relevant record/documents/material" related to the Panama Papers case. This will entail nearly all the documents and evidence submitted before the Supreme Court by the Prime Minister's counsel, Makhdoom Ali Khan.

The report also said that Finance Minister Ishaq Dar may also be questioned by the team before Sharif's appearance.

In its judgement of April 20 in the Panama Papers case, the Supreme Court had constituted a JIT and empowered it to summon the prime minister, his sons and any other person necessary, to investigate allegations of money-laundering, through which the four apartments in London's posh Park Lane area were purchased.

Sharif had met with his close aides yesterday in Lahore to discuss the issue. After consulting with them, the prime minister has decided to honour the summons and appear before the JIT on Thursday.

Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Heritage Marriyum Aurangzeb, talking to some TV channels, said that the prime minister had received the JIT summons and in pursuance of the Supreme Court's order of April 20, he would ensure his presence accordingly.

The Joint Investigation Team had questioned Sharif's sons -- Hussain and Hasan -- last month over the family's alleged improper business dealings.

His eldest son Hussain was questioned five times while Hasan, the younger son, was summoned twice.

The court last year took up the case and issued a split decision over allegations of money laundering when Sharif was prime minister in 1990s.

On May 5, the Supreme Court set up a high-level six- member JIT to probe Sharif and his sons' alleged corruption in the Panama Papers case.

The JIT is bound to complete the probe in 60 days unless it is granted additional time.

It is for the first time that a sitting prime minister would appear before a high-level probe team traditionally constituted to investigate high-profile criminal cases.

It is not yet clear that Sharif will be questioned for once or would be called again like his two sons.

Trump intervenes in Gulf rift, pointing at Qatar over militant funding

U.S. President Donald Trump sits down to a meeting with of Gulf Cooperation Council leaders, including Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud (R), during their summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia May 21, 2017. 

U.S. President Donald Trump, wading into the worst split between powerful Arab states in decades, said on Tuesday his trip to the Middle East was "already paying off" with leaders there taking a hard new line in accusing Qatar of funding of militant groups.

His blunt remarks cast the anti-Islamist speech he gave at a Riyadh summit in May as the inspiration for a decision by leading Arab powers to sever ties and transport links to Qatar in protest at what they say is its support for terrorism.

In fact, U.S. officials were blindsided by Saudi Arabia's decision to sever diplomatic ties with Qatar in a coordinated move with Egypt, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, current and former officials in Washington told Reuters.

"So good to see the Saudi Arabia visit with the King and 50 countries already paying off. They said they would take a hard line on funding extremism, and all reference was pointing to Qatar. Perhaps this will be the beginning of the end to the horror of terrorism!" Trump on Twitter.

The comments -- Trump's first about the rift between Qatar and major Arab nations over its alleged support of Iran and Islamist groups -- emerged at a delicate moment in the crisis as the leader of Kuwait was to meet in Saudi Arabia to try to mediate the dispute.

Qatar vehemently denies the accusations against it, calling them baseless. Ordinary Qataris, however, were to be found crowding into supermarkets to stock up on goods against the crisis.

Trump said, in apparent reference to top Gulf Arab powers Saudi Arabia and the UAE, that leaders he met on his trip had warned him Qatar was funding "radical ideology" after he had demanded they take action to stop financing militants.

It was not immediately clear what effect Trump's high profile intervention in the crisis would have.

U.S. officials had said on Monday that the United States would quietly try to calm the waters between Saudi Arabia and Qatar, arguing that the small Gulf state was too important to U.S. military and diplomatic interests to be isolated.

Qatar hosts 8,000 U.S. military personnel at al Udeid, the largest U.S. air base in the Middle East and a staging ground for U.S.-led strikes on the Islamic State militant group that has seized parts of Syria and Iraq.



There are also deep financial and business links between the two based on Qatar's leading world role in gas.