(New Age, August 15, 2014): The central bank’s move to encourage foreign loans for the private sector under the monetary policy for July-December 2014 could affect the country’s financial sector, economists at a discussion meeting on Thursday observed. At the seminar, organised by Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies, they said the monetary policy was highly focused on tackling inflation which will again reduce private sector credit growth when the investment is sluggish. Bangladesh Bank officials, however, said allowing foreign loans will help to reduce the local interest rate and will also give competitive advantage to the local businessmen. ‘BB should not encourage foreign loans in private sector rather it should take initiative to lower interest rate in local market,’ former BB governor Salehuddin Ahmed said at the meeting held at the BIDS auditorium. He said that the local banks’ profitability could face a dent if the businessmen continue taking loans from foreign sources. He said the monetary policy was highly focused on tackling inflation which hinders the private sector credit flow. Former finance adviser to the caretaker government Mirza Azizul Islam said that in case of foreign loans to private sector, the BB should be very careful. ‘Only the export-oriented businesses could get facilities like this and the central bank should monitor those very carefully,’ he said. He said the BB can take contractionary monetary policy, but there is huge idle liquidity in the commercial banks. ‘Even having such excess liquidity the interest rates are not lowering. The monetary policy should also address the issue,’ he said. He also said that inflation target was not met because of the current depressed situation in the country caused by political uncertainty. World Bank’s lead economist Zahid Hussain said that monetary policy is not a foolproof tool to tackle all the issues. ‘It has its own limitation. But the private sector credit growth is a must for economic growth,’ he said. Centre for Policy Dialogue executive director Mustafizur Rahman said that the monetary policy should have put more emphasise on private sector credit growth. ‘There is a sluggish investment scenario and huge scams in the financial sector also made the market situation stagnant,’ he said. He said that although BB said that allowing new banks in the market would increase competition and lower interest rate, ‘but we have not seen any such sign yet.’ He also said non-performing loans are becoming serious concern for the banks. BIDS research director Zaid Bakht said that the BB move to increase the cash reserve ratio just before announcing the monetary policy was not a good idea. ‘It will not help. The banks may still go for reverse repo if the private sector dose not becomes vibrant,’ he said. He also said after the Hallmark scandal, banks are very sceptical about inland bills purchase which is creating another stagnancy. BIDS senior research fellow Monzur Hossain in his keynote presentation said that BB move to formulate monetary policy focusing on inflation could harm the private credit growth. ‘The previous monetary policy was also aimed to check inflation but that only got little success as food inflation, which is the major portion of the overall inflation, is still high,’ he said. He also said the broad money declined but inflation remained the same which indicated that the policy objective was unfulfilled. ‘The private sector credit growth will be affected if such policy continues,’ he said. BB governor Atiur Rahman, however, said allowing foreign loans in private sector will help the financial sector. ‘If our businessmen get loans at lower rate it will help them to become more competitive in the international market. We are now only allowing foreign loans in export or import subsidy sector,’ he said. He said that tackling inflation will solve the problem in other areas. ‘We are hoping that as the local banks have excess liquidity they will go for lending in SME sector and rural market which will make the real economy more vibrant,’ he said. He also said that BB will take tough action against the involved banks related to Hallmark scams which are creating problems in IBP.
Bangladesh: BTRC again declines to pay income tax
Dhaka, July 18, 2014 (New Age): Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission has again declined to pay income tax to the National Board of Revenue claiming that it has no taxable income, officials said. Claiming itself as a non-taxable entity, the telecom regulator on Thursday demanded that the NBR should exempt it from paying taxes and withdraw the provision incorporated in the Income Tax Ordinance-1984 imposing the taxes on the income of the commission in the budget for the current fiscal year. In a letter sent to the NBR chairman, Ghulam Hussain, the BTRC said the commission had no income rather it just collected non-tax revenue on behalf of the government. Officials of the revenue board, however, told New Age that there was no scope of withdrawal of the provision and the BTRC must have to pay tax on its income as the provision was passed by parliament. The revenue board has already assigned the large taxpayer unit of the NBR to look after the tax issues of the BTRC, they said. The revenue board and the telecom regulator have been in dispute for more than three years over the latter’s refusal to pay taxes at the rate of 37.5 per cent on its income and other advance taxes. In the FY 2012-2013, the NBR claimed around Tk 2,400 crore from the BTRC for the previous fiscal year. The revenue board has been asking the BTRC for paying taxes terming the commission as taxable entity while the BTRC has been rejecting the idea that it has any taxable income. Finally in the budget for the FY 2014-2015, the government reduced the tax rate and set it at 25 per cent for the BTRC along with some other autonomous bodies. The government also incorporated a article (52V) under which mobile operators would also deduct advance income tax at the rate of 10 at the time of any payment on account of revenue sharing, licence fee, application fee, renewal fee or any other fees or charges, called by whatever name, to the BTRC under any licensing agreements and licensing guidelines between the BTRC and operators. In this context, the BTRC made the request to the NBR for withdrawal of the provision to exempt it from paying taxes. The letter stated that the commission had no income as it did not earn. Rather, the telecom regulator only collects revenue on behalf of the government and submits it to the government exchequer, so nothing taxable remains, the letter said. BTRC officials said that they submitted the collected revenue to Bangladesh Bank every six months. Prior to being submitted to the BB the collected revenue is kept in the commercial banks and the BTRC submits the money to the central bank with interest, they said. The Bangladesh Telecommunications Act 2001 also exempted the BTRC from payment of taxes, they said. ‘Parliament imposed the taxes on BTRC. So it will have to pay the taxes and there is no scope to avoid it,’ an NBR official told New Age. Only the parliament can withdraw the taxes, he said. Mobile operators has already started to deduct AIT on payment to the BTRC while income tax at the rate of 25 per cent will be calculated when the body will submit income tax returns, he said. The NBR does not see any reason for non-payment of tax by the BTRC even though the body collects the money on behalf of the government, NBR officials said. Paying tax will ensure the accountability and transparency in financial issues of the telecom watchdog, they said.
Bangladesh: 77 cos with Tk 289cr EEF loan traceless, reveals BIDS study
Dhaka, July 18, 2014 (New Age): There is no trace of at least 77 companies which borrowed capital amounting to Tk 289 crore from Equity and Entrepreneurship Fund of Bangladesh Bank, a recent survey of Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) revealed. Bangladesh Bank, however, on Thursday contested the BIDS survey saying only six companies were traceless after embezzling funds from the EEF. According to the BIDS report, the BB and the ICB sanctioned capital to 166 companies of which the BIDS survey team did not find any project offices of 77 companies at their referred places in accordance with their equity proposals submitted to the central bank and Investment Corporation of Bangladesh. Bangladesh Bank officials told New Age that the political activists patronised by the government siphoned out the money from the EEF having low interest rate. The fund was created in FY 2000-2001 to patronise them (political activities). The BIDS has recently conducted a field survey on the utilisation of the EEF and the research organisation feared that the disbursed fund for 77 companies might not be refunded. The BB and the ICB are jointly conducting the EEF operation. The BB has already taken legal action against the six companies to recover the fund, BB executive director Dasgupta Asim Kumar told reporters at a press briefing at the central bank headquarters in the capital. The six companies of Information and Communication Technology sector are Dreams Soft Ltd, Intersepts Software Services Ltd, Jupiter IT Ltd, Marphee Mccann Consulting Ltd, Information Technology Matrix Ltd and Resource Technology Ltd. The ICB and the BB disbursed Tk 3.25 crore against the sanctioned equity amounting to Tk 6.03 crore to the six companies, according to a BB report. The BIDS report said that the non-existing 64 out of the 77 companies had promised in their proposal papers that they would invest the fund in the agriculture sector and rest of the companies would make investment in the ICT sector. Asim Kumar, however, claimed that 77 companies except six companies under the ICT sector had actually changed their address resulting that the BIDS survey teams did not find them out. The agriculture-based companies have no scope to embezzle the money from the EEF as they have to register their lands with the land office against the projects, he said. When asked whether the EEF was sanctioned on the basis of political consideration, he said that a number of political leaders and activists had gained the fund, but the BB sanctioned the capital by scrutinising their proposals. BIDS research director Zaid Bakht told New Age that the companies, which took equity from the EEF, should have informed the BB about the relocation of their project offices. ‘The 66 companies did not inform the central bank about their office shifting. Besides, the BIDS survey teams also unearthed that some companies had no projects at their referred places’, he said. The government created the EEF in the FY2001 with an initial capital of Tk 100 crore. The government allocated Tk 2,700 crore between the FY 2000-01 and the FY 2013-14 of which Tk 1,825 crore was disbursed. The BB and the ICB has so far granted the fund to 1,443 projects. Investors of Agriculture and ICT sector can apply for the fund with zero interest rate from the EEF. The tenure of the repayment of the fund is eight years.
Bangladesh: Production at Hameem Group unit suspended at Tejgaon
Dhaka, July 18, 2014 (New Age): The government-set review committee on Wednesday asked the authorities of Thats’ It Fashions Ltd, which is housed in a 10-storey building in the Tejgaon area in the capital, to suspend production immediately after the inspection teams of North American retailers’ group had found the factory unsafe. Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety, a platform of North American retailers group, detected serious structural faults in the factory building and on July 7 referred the findings to the review committee comprised of representatives from the government, Accord, Alliance, BUET, BGMEA and BKMEA recommending evacuation from the building. The review committee experts on Wednesday visited the factory, a concern of Hameem Group, and found that the factor of safety of the building was not adequate as the columns of the buildings were highly overstressed and one of the edge column experienced crack. The review committee also found differences between the permitted drawings and the current status of the building. ‘We have recommended factory authorities to evacuate the top six floor of the buildings immediately and also asked them to suspend production in ground to 5th floor within 6 weeks,’ Syed Ahmed, inspector general of the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishment, told New Age on Thursday. He said that the review committee also asked the factory authorities to conduct detail engineering assessment of the factory building within six months. A review committee source, however, said that the experts suggested removal of all storage and products from the building within October 15. AK Azad, managing director of Thats’ It Fashions Ltd, said that earlier they had retro fitted the building and was running production as engineers certified the building as safe. ‘Now the experts of the review committee raised questions over the structural safety of the building and we have decided to relocate the factory after Eid-ul-Fitr,’ he said. Azad said that the construction of own building for the factories have been completed and the production will be shifted there. Syed, also the chair of the review committee, said that 2,600 workers worked at the factory and already 1,000 workers have been provided with jobs in other factories of the same management. Quoting the factory authorities he said that 1,600 workers would remain jobless during the relocation period of the factory and latter on all of them would be given jobs in several factories of the company. After the Rana Plaza building collapse on April 24 last year that killed more than 1,100 workers, mostly women garment workers, North American apparel companies, retailers and brands formed Alliance and European Union retailers formed Accord on Fire and Building Safety to improve safety in Bangladeshi RMG factories. Both the initiative started inspection in over 2,200 garment factories in February this year. Alliance completed safety assessment of its listed 601 garment factories in Bangladesh and 4 factories were shut as per its recommendations. Accord has so far inspected over 800 factories of its listed over 1600 factories and 19 factories so far have been closed as per its recommendations.
Bangladesh: Banks’ remittance delivery time cut
Dhaka, July 18, 2014 (New Age): Bangladesh Bank has asked scheduled banks to deliver wage earners remittances by two working days to the beneficiaries. Currently it takes 72 hours to deliver the remittances. The BB issued a circular to the authorised dealer branches of all banks on Wednesday saying that the central bank had taken the initiative to step up the inflow of remittances. A BB official told New Age on Wednesday that the expatriate Bangladeshis would encourage more to send the remittances to their relatives as they (relatives) would collect the money in the quickest possible time from the banks. He said that the central bank had recently taken a number of initiatives to step up the inflow of remittances al though the inflow registered a negative growth in the financial year 2013-14 for the first time in last 14 years against the backdrop of downward manpower exports. The country received $ 14.22 billion in remittance in FY14, which was 1.61 per cent lower than the $14.46 billion in remittance received in FY13.
Bangladesh: RMG-related banks to remain open July 26
Dhaka, July 18, 2014 (New Age): All scheduled banks will keep open their readymade garment-related branches on Saturday (July 26) for the convenience of payment of salaries, Eid bonus and other allowances to the workers. Bangladesh Bank in response to the request of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association has asked the scheduled banks to keep open their branches in the capital, Ashulia, Tongi, Gazipur, Savar, Narayanganj and Chittagong ensuring sufficient security, said a BB release on Thursday.
Bangladesh: Stocks end flat as large cap cos lose steam
Dhaka, July 18, 2014 (New Age): Dhaka stocks finished flat on Thursday, last trading session of the week, despite increase in share prices of the two-third of the issues traded on the day as large capitalised stocks including multinational companies shed prices. The key index of Dhaka Stock Exchange, DSEX, finished at 4,392.15 points, adding 0.06 per cent or 2.79 points. Of the 299 shares and mutual funds traded on the day, 175 advanced, 87 declined and 37 remained unchanged. Market operators said the fall in the share prices of large capitalised companies including multinational ones was the main reason for the flat ending of the day. Pre-Eid share sell-offs were noticeable on the day which kept the market flat despite an increased participation by the institutional investors, they said. The market had suffered a straight nine trading session fall as the institutional investors remained on the sideline after the June 30 half-yearly closing, operators said. After the key index fell around 150 points, the institutional investors from this week increased their participation on the trading floor to avail the opportunity of buying cheap shares, they said. DS30, the blue-chip index of the DSE, however, fell by 0.13 per cent, or 2.19 points, to close at 1,602.93 points on Thursday. The Shariah index of the DSE, DSES, also declined by 0.26 per cent, or 2.65 points, to stand at 998.87 points. Turnover of the DSE stood at Tk 253.21 crore on Thursday while it was Tk 256.45 crore in the previous trading session. ‘An increased supply pressure at the later part of today’s [Thursday’s] trade netted opening upbeat vibe and left the bourse in flat territory,’ IDLC Investments said in its daily market commentary. ‘In the meantime, the market absorbed slight impact of macroeconomic data like wane of current account surplus and declined remittance flow,’ it said. BEXIMCO led the turnover leaders with its shares worth Tk 23.52 crore changing hands. Shahjibazar Power Company, Grameenphone, The Peninsula Chittagong, MJL Bangladesh, Far Chemical Industries, Square Pharmaceuticals, Envoy Textile, BSRM Steels and Olympic Industries were among the other turnover leaders. Shahjibazar Power Company gained the most with an 11.44-per cent increase in its share price, while Sandhani Life Insurance lost the most, shedding 22.89 per cent.
Bangladesh: Amu warns of cancelling plots at Jamdani industrial city
Dhaka, July 18, 2014 (New Age): Industries minister Amir Hossain Amu has warned that the government will cancel the allocation of the plot if the entrepreneurs would not set up their industries at the Jamdani industrial city within stipulated time. ‘The government will cancel the plot allocation and distribute among the new entrepreneurs, if the entrepreneurs would not set up their industries at the Jamdani Industrial city within the scheduled time’, the minister stated. Amu said as chief guest while he was opening the week-long Jamdani display programme at the national museum auditorium in Dhaka on Thursday. Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation organised the display. Cultural affairs minister Asaduzzaman Noor also attended the inaugural function as special guest. The government has set up the Jamdani industrial city and research centre on 20 acres of land at Noapara of Tarabo union under Narayanganj with a view to enhance the traditional Jamdani industries. As many as 409 industrial plots have already been set up at the industrial city with a cost of nearly Tk 5.86 crore. Out of the plots, so far 399 industrial plots have been distributed among industrial entrepreneurs for setting up their industries. Industries secretary Mainuddin Abdullah presided over the meeting. The meeting was also addressed, among others, by BSCIC chairman Shyam Sundar Sikder, director (design and marketing) Nurul Islam. The industries minister told at the function that ‘the government is fully aware of the traditional Jamdani industries of the country as about $1.58 lakh is being exported to abroad every year from this sector.’ The Jamdani of Bangladesh has already been acknowledged as part of the world heritage, said the cultural affairs minister Assaduzzaman Noor at the function. The weeklong fair will remain open for the people every day from 9:00am to 4:00pm.
Bangladesh, Bhutan sign MoU on anti-money laundering
Dhaka, July 18, 2014 (New Age): Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit and the Financial Intelligence Unit of Bhutan have recently signed a memorandum of understanding in Macau of China to exchange information relating to money laundering and terrorist financing. The MoU was signed by Eden Dema, deputy governor, Royal Monetary Authority of Bhutan, and M Mahfuzur Rahman, deputy head, Bangladesh Financial Intelligence Unit and executive director, Bangladesh Bank, on behalf of their own organisations. Both of them are attending The 17th Annual Meeting of The Asia/Pacific Group on Money Laundering now being held in Macau, said a news release on Wednesday.
Bangladesh: Mizanur Rahman Shelley becomes Premier Leasing chairman
Dhaka, July 18, 2014 (New Age): Mizanur Rahman Shelley has recently been elected as chairman of Premier Leasing and Finance Limited.
The election was held in the 128th meeting of the board of directors of Premier Leasing, said a news release.
In the same meeting, Md Mizanur Rahman Chowdhury, a sponsor and ex-director of Mercantile Bank, was elected as the vice-chairman of Premier Leasing.
Shelley, who was the founder chairman of the company from 2002 to 2011, obtained his Masters degree from University of Dhaka in 1963 and PhD from University of London in international politics in 1976. He was a former minister of government.
Shelley was awarded the highest Polish Order of Merit by Lech Walesa, a Nobel Laureate for peace in 1991. He also received the Michael Modhushudan Dutta award in 1999 for his contribution to creative literature and social service.
The election was held in the 128th meeting of the board of directors of Premier Leasing, said a news release.
In the same meeting, Md Mizanur Rahman Chowdhury, a sponsor and ex-director of Mercantile Bank, was elected as the vice-chairman of Premier Leasing.
Shelley, who was the founder chairman of the company from 2002 to 2011, obtained his Masters degree from University of Dhaka in 1963 and PhD from University of London in international politics in 1976. He was a former minister of government.
Shelley was awarded the highest Polish Order of Merit by Lech Walesa, a Nobel Laureate for peace in 1991. He also received the Michael Modhushudan Dutta award in 1999 for his contribution to creative literature and social service.
Bangladesh: Exports to India hit 4yr low, China boom
Dhaka, July 14, 2014 (New Age): Export earnings from India hit four-year low at $456.63 million in the just concluded financial year 2013-14 while the exports to China skyrocketed by 62.85 per cent in the fiscal year. Experts and exporters said that the export to India witnessed a decreasing trend due to non-tariff barriers and devaluation of the currency of the country. On the other hand the export to China is booming as the country is moving towards high-end products from basic products and extended zero-tariff excess to Bangladeshi products. According to the Export Promotion Bureau data, the export earnings from India posted a 19.03-per cent negative growth from $563.96 million of the FY 2012-2013. The export earnings from China increased to $746.19 million in the FY14 from $458.18 million reading on the incredible growth of exports of RMG and leather and leather products, the EPB data showed. Ahsan H Mansur, executive director of the Policy Research Institute, told New Age that the export to India had dropped due to the devaluation of the rupee against the US dollar. On the other hand, the exporters were not considering India as the prime export destination, he said. Mansur said that the export earnings from China were increasing gradually as garment products, the main export products of Bangladesh, penetrated in the market. The duty- and quota-free entry facility to the Chinese market was also an opportunity for Bangladesh, he added. The exports of readymade garment products to India increased to $96.25 million in the FY14 against $75.21 million in the FY13 but the export earnings from non-RMG products posted negative growth. Exports of jute and jute-related products decreased to $80.70 million in the FY14 from $133.85 million in the FY13 while exports of fruits and related items fell to $60.71 million from $67.53 million and fish to $4.01 million from $13.78 million. The export of RMG products to China grew by around 73 per cent to $241.37 million in the FY14 from $139.14 million in the FY13. Export earnings from leather and leather products grew by 251.40 per cent to $227.85 million in the FY14 from $64.84 million in the FY13. Exports of jute and jute products to China increased to $103.49 million in the FY14 from $88.37 million in the FY13. Nazneen Ahmed, senior research fellow of Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies, said that non-tariff barrier was the main reason for the export slowdown to India. ‘India removed tariff barriers for the Bangladeshi products including garments but non-tariff barriers still remain which discouraged exporters,’ she said. Nazneen said that China was decreasing the production of low-end products due to increasing labour cost and importing the items from other countries including Bangladesh as the country (China) is moving towards hi-tech industry. The export of basic garments and other products increased to China due to competitiveness of Bangladeshi products, she said. ‘There is a huge potential in the China market for the Bangladeshi garment products as the country [China] is shifting its production to hi-end products,’ Shahidullah Azim, vice-president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, told New Age. He said that the garment exporters were giving special emphasis on the market size of the country which was $338 billion. Azim also said that the exporters did not feel comfortable in exporting to India due to non-tariff barriers. The export earnings from India were $563.96 million in the FY 2012-2013, $498.4 million in the FY 2011-12, $512.50 million in the FY 2010-2011 and $304.62 million in the FY 2009-2010, according to the EPB data. Exports to China had stood at $178.63 million in the fiscal year 2009-10 and those shot up to $319.66 million in the FY 2010-11 as China extended duty-free access. In the FY 2011-12, the exports to China stood at $401.94 million and in the FY 2012-13, the exports stood at $458.11 million, according to the EPB data.
Bangladesh: GB gets tax waiver for Jan-June of 2011
Dhaka, July 14, 2014 (New Age): The National Board of Revenue has decided to grant Grameen Bank exemption from tax on its income for the period of six months with retrospective effect from January 2011 to June 2011, officials said.
They said that the NBR at a recent board meeting decided to provide the exemption in a bid to remove the complexities Grameen Bank was facing in preparing financial statements for the period.
Earlier, the revenue board had rejected a plea made by the Nobel-winning microfinance institution seeking exemption from tax on its income for the period.
Now, the revenue board has backtracked from its earlier decision in line with the government’s softened stance on the issue, officials said.
Officials said that Grameen Bank had enjoyed tax exemption facility from its inception in 1983 to December 2010.
But the decision of extending the facility to Grameen Bank was pending until June 2012 when the NBR had again provided tax exemption facility for four years and six months until December 2015 with retrospective effect from July 2011, they said.
In the process, the period from January 2011 to June 2011 had been left out of the exemption facility.
Grameen Bank earlier had paid Tk 10 crore in advance income tax in the fiscal year 2011-2012 amid uncertainty about getting exemption because of delay in decision of the government at that time.
Later the bank in several times sought the exemption for the period saying that it had already completed its annual financial statement for the year 2011 following January-December as financial year.
If the tax exemption is not provided, the bank will have to prepare half-yearly financial statement based on credit and deposit accounts of the 84 lakh members of the bank which is time-consuming, tough and problematic for the bank, Grameen Bank claimed.
Officials said that that considering these problems, the revenue board took the decision of allowing the exemption for the period.
On the other hand, the institution enjoyed and is enjoying the tax exemption in pre and post period of the six months, they said.
The revenue board, however, will not give back the money paid as advance tax by Grameen Bank as the current exemption period is scheduled to expire in December 2015, officials said.
They said that the money would be adjusted with the payable tax of the institution if the revenue board would not extend the exemption period.
They said that the NBR at a recent board meeting decided to provide the exemption in a bid to remove the complexities Grameen Bank was facing in preparing financial statements for the period.
Earlier, the revenue board had rejected a plea made by the Nobel-winning microfinance institution seeking exemption from tax on its income for the period.
Now, the revenue board has backtracked from its earlier decision in line with the government’s softened stance on the issue, officials said.
Officials said that Grameen Bank had enjoyed tax exemption facility from its inception in 1983 to December 2010.
But the decision of extending the facility to Grameen Bank was pending until June 2012 when the NBR had again provided tax exemption facility for four years and six months until December 2015 with retrospective effect from July 2011, they said.
In the process, the period from January 2011 to June 2011 had been left out of the exemption facility.
Grameen Bank earlier had paid Tk 10 crore in advance income tax in the fiscal year 2011-2012 amid uncertainty about getting exemption because of delay in decision of the government at that time.
Later the bank in several times sought the exemption for the period saying that it had already completed its annual financial statement for the year 2011 following January-December as financial year.
If the tax exemption is not provided, the bank will have to prepare half-yearly financial statement based on credit and deposit accounts of the 84 lakh members of the bank which is time-consuming, tough and problematic for the bank, Grameen Bank claimed.
Officials said that that considering these problems, the revenue board took the decision of allowing the exemption for the period.
On the other hand, the institution enjoyed and is enjoying the tax exemption in pre and post period of the six months, they said.
The revenue board, however, will not give back the money paid as advance tax by Grameen Bank as the current exemption period is scheduled to expire in December 2015, officials said.
They said that the money would be adjusted with the payable tax of the institution if the revenue board would not extend the exemption period.
Bangladesh: Modi govt lowers grants for Bangladesh by 40pc
Dhaka, July 14, 2014 (New Age): India’s government of prime minister Narendra Modi has lowered the grants for Bangladesh in the current year’s national budget by 40 per cent to Rs 350 crore as against Rs 580 crore last year. Bangladesh is the only country in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation region for which the Indian budget has made lower provisions, reports Times of India. Comparatively, other countries of the SAARC have got marginal hikes in grants from the Indian government this year. Even Afghanistan, where India’s engagement has increased in recent years, has been allocated Rs 676 crore, not a big hike against last year’s Rs 525 crore. Nepal, with which the PM has expressed his desire to engage more, has not found as much prominence as Bhutan in monetary terms. Among grants and loans to foreign countries, Nepal has got Rs 450 crore as against Rs 380 crore in the previous year. In case of Sri Lanka, the allocation has been Rs 500 crore, an increase of Rs 90 crore from last year. Modi’s engagement with Bhutan has helped the Kingdom nation with the grants and loans allocated to the latter going up by nearly 50 per cent — from Rs 4,100 crore last year to Rs 6,000 crore this year. Bhutan has always been getting significant financial aid from India by way of grants, both under plan and non-plan expenditure heads. This year, particularly after Modi visited the neighbouring country soon after his swearing-in, the NDA government has significantly increased the financial package. Bhutan was Modi’s first foreign visit. PM Narendra Modi showed his special emphasis on neighbourhood diplomacy with his one-on-one meetings with all SAARC heads of government on his first day in office. He had invited all SAARC leaders for his swearing in ceremony. The next day, he met Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif, Afghanistan president Hamid Karzai, Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa and heads of governments from Maldives, Mauritius, Nepal and the speaker of Bangladesh parliament.
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