Tag Archives: weather
Gold importers come under tax scanner in India
Gold importers come under tax scanner in India Issac John / 20 January 2014 Analysts said the latest move, which comes in the wake of a rise in the import tariff value of gold to $407 per 10 grams last week by India, is expected to incentivise the illegal transportation of gold into India. Financial details of Indians bringing in gold from abroad after duty payment will henceforth be shared by customs authorities with Income Tax department. The dramatic joint move by customs and tax authorities is aimed at curbing suspicious ferrying of gold into India by carriers — mostly low income expatriate workers in the Gulf — deployed by organised gang of ‘indirect’ importers. Analysts said the latest move, which comes in the wake of a rise in the import tariff value of gold to $407 per 10 grams last week by India, is expected to incentivise the illegal transportation of gold into India, the largest yellow metal consumer in the world with imports surging to 830 tonnes in 2012-13. Under the current rule, an Indian who has been living abroad for over six months can legally bring in a kilo of gold after payment of duty. The duty, which is charged at the rate of 10 per cent of the value, is payable in currency of the nation where the gold was bought. Besides, a man can also bring in gold jewellery worth Rs50,000 and women Rs100,000, without payment of any duty, provided they live abroad for more than a year. Indirect gold importers in India have been paying Rs50,000 to Rs75,000 and free air tickets to each carrier for importing one kilo of gold. A smuggler is able to make a profit of Rs75,000 on every kilo of gold even after paying the duty and the commission to the carriers. The smuggled gold is being sold to jewellery makers in Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. According to reports, gold that was brought in after paying the required duty totalled 80kg in a week last month at Kerala’s Calicut airport alone. However, the new move to put the person bringing the gold under the income tax net may deter many from acting as carriers. Officials in the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) said at least 3,000kg of gold has been legally brought into the country after payment of customs duty during 2013-14. “There is a possibility of an organised gang of hawala operatives who could be exploiting these people after paying money. The PAN card details of these flyers are being shared with Income Tax department to ascertain source of their income and avoid possibility of any wrongdoing,” a senior DRI official said. Informed source say that the carriers may have to pay wealth tax if they declare that the gold brought by them is for themselves. If they say the gold is sold they will be forced to pay the sales tax. In that case, they will also have to produce the documents for the sale. issacjohn@khaleejtimes.com For more news from Khaleej Times, follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/khaleejtimes , and on Twitter at @khaleejtimes Continue reading
RTA customer services now on fingertips
RTA customer services now on fingertips Lily B. Libo-on / 20 January 2014 The week-long event also highlights presentations of RTA’s different services daily with the department’s respective CEO leading the team. Ahmed Hashim Bahrozyan, (centre) at RTA’s Customer Service Week at The Dubai Mall on Sunday. — KT photo by Leslie Pableo The Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) is now online in all its services — from renewal of driving licence and vehicle registration to getting and paying Salik, NoL cards, and retrieving items left in taxis, buses and the Metro. Even for complaints against taxi and bus drivers or dissatisfaction over RTA services, customers only need to dial 8009090, the call centre of RTA, which is connected to all RTA departments online. Or they may choose their computers, laptops, iPhones, iPads, notebooks and tablets or smart phones to click on the RTA website, www.rta.ae and register their complaints or needs. RTA’s all online services are the focus of its one-week ‘Customer Service Week’, which started on Sunday. The campaign, now on at the Star Atrium at the lower ground floor of The Dubai Mall, will continue till January 23. Ahmed Hashem Bahrozyan, CEO of Licensing Agency and Head of Higher Committee, Customer Service, opened the ‘Customer Service Week’ launched by the RTA to drum up information and showcase its diverse services to the public. In attendance were various RTA officials and staff. The week-long event also highlights presentations of RTA’s different services daily with the department’s respective CEO leading the team. All queries from expatriates, residents and visitors on the timing of the various modes of public transport, where and how to get Salik, NoL cards for daily and monthly usage, how to find personal items left in the taxis, Dubai Metro and buses, and where to complain against public transport drivers are all answered in the presentations. Motorists can now renew their driving licences and registration of their cars without going to RTA. They can either use their smart phones to download Salik application and wojhati application from App Store for iPhones and Play Store from other mobiles, register in the online form and send to RTA. Within 48 hours, if there is no problem with the car registration and driving licence like unpaid fines and penalties, the driving license and registration are renewed automatically. Then, RTA will send them to the applicants by either Aramex private courier or by Emirate Post. Lost items too can be reported without going to the RTA. The owner only has to call the call centre, and the person answering the call will ask about his or her NoL card number. With this information, the call centre will fan out the information to all Dubai Metro, taxi and bus departments to locate the lost or left personal items within 48 hours. If found, the customer has to claim the found items from the Lost and Found Department in Rashidiya by presenting his or her Emirates ID and by providing the PIN or password of his/her smart phones, laptops, notebooks and tablets. lily@khaleejtimes.com For more news from Khaleej Times, follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/khaleejtimes , and on Twitter at @khaleejtimes Continue reading
Sunanda’s autopsy reveals unnatural death and injury
Sunanda’s autopsy reveals unnatural death and injury Nithin Belle / 19 January 2014 The body of Shashi Tharoor’s wife cremated; doctors say it was a case of sudden, unnatural death. A day after her body was found in her hotel room, the mortal remains of Sunanda Pushkar Tharoor, wife of India’s junior minister for human resources Shashi Tharoor, were consigned to the flames at a crematorium in Delhi on Saturday evening. Tharoor, who was admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) following “a cardiac event” on Friday night, was present to perform the last rites. Earlier in the day, a team of AIIMS doctors who performed autopsy on Sunanda’s body, declared that it was “a case of sudden, unnatural death”. While they found some injury marks on her body, the doctors refused to reveal much about it. The final report of the autopsy, which also rules out poisoning as a cause of death, will be submitted in a couple of days. There was speculation on Saturday that Sunanda might have taken an overdose of sleeping pills the previous day. Top figures in the ruling Congress party rallied round Tharoor. Premier Manmohan Singh wrote he was with the minister “in this hour of grief”, while Congress President Sonia Gandhi paid him a condolence visit at his home. The police were expected to record a statement from the minister about the death. A sub-divisional magistrate has also launched a mandatory probe, as the woman died within seven years of her marriage. The Tharoors got married in 2010 and it was the third marriage for both of them. However, the marriage appeared to be on the rocks over the past few days, especially after a bitter feud occurred between the couple over the exchange of messages between the minister and Mehr Tarar, a Pakistani journalist. Sunanda confessed a few days earlier, both on social and mainstream media that she suspected her husband of having an affair with the journalist, a charge denied by Mehr. Just a day before her death, Tharoor had issued “a joint statement” with her, claiming that the two were happy and there were no problems in the marriage. But reports on Saturday mentioned that the two had fought on the flight from Thiruvananthapuram to Delhi and even at the Leela Palace Hotel in Delhi. nithin@khaleejtimes.com Also Read: Sunanda Pushkar’s death: Police gather CCTV footage Body of Sunanda Pushkar taken to hospital for autopsy Shashi Tharoor complains of chest pain, hospitalised Sunanda Pushkar found dead in south Delhi hotel Absolutely shocked: Mehr Tarar Security cover at Shashi Tharoor’s office, home Sunanda was seriously ill: Former diplomat Alleged affair threatens Indian minister’s poll prospects Angry wife outs Indian minister’s affair on Twitter Khaleej Times stands by report on Indian minister’s wife Sunanda Tharoor throws hissy fit in Dubai India’s Tharoor denies Swamy’s charges For more news from Khaleej Times, follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/khaleejtimes , and on Twitter at @khaleejtimes Continue reading
