Govt bans 43 more apps in India; check full list here MEITY issues orders for blocking apps under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act. Moneycontrol News

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEITY) November 24 issued an order blocking access to 43 mobile apps in India.

The order was issued under Section 69A of the Information Technology Act.

"This action was taken based on the inputs regarding these apps for engaging in activities which are prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India, defence of India, the security of the state and public order," MEITY said in a release.

The decision to ban these apps was based on the comprehensive reports received from Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Center, Ministry of Home Affairs.

Here's a list of the apps that have been banned

1. AliSuppliers Mobile App

2. Alibaba Workbench

3. AliExpress - Smarter Shopping, Better Living

4. Alipay Cashier

5. Lalamove India - Delivery App

6. Drive with Lalamove India

7. Snack Video

8. CamCard - Business Card Reader

9. CamCard - BCR (Western)

10. Soul- Follow the soul to find you

11. Chinese Social - Free Online Dating Video App & Chat

12. Date in Asia - Dating & Chat For Asian Singles

13. We Date-Dating App

14. Free dating app- Singol, start your date!

15. Adore App

16. TrulyChinese - Chinese Dating App

17. TrulyAsian - Asian Dating App

18. ChinaLove: dating app for Chinese singles

19. DateMyAge: Chat, Meet, Date Mature Singles Online

20. AsianDate: find Asian singles

21. FlirtWish: chat with singles

22. Guys Only Dating: Gay Chat

23. Tubit: Live Streams

24. We Work China

25. First Love Live- super hot live beauties live online

26. Rela - Lesbian Social Network

27. Cashier Wallet

28. MangoTV

29. MGTV- HunanTV official TV APP

30. WeTV - TV version

31. WeTV - Cdrama, Kdrama&More

32. WeTV Lite

33. Lucky Live- Live Video Streaming App

34. Taobao Live

35. DingTalk

36. Identity V

37. Isoland 2: Ashes of Time

38. BoxStar (Early Access)

39. Heroes Evolved

40. Happy Fish

41. Jellipop Match- Decorate your dream island！

42. Munchkin Match: magic home building

43. Conquista Online II

The government had blocked access to 59 mobile apps on June 29 and another 118 apps on September 2 this year. “Earlier on 29th June, 2020 the Government of India had blocked access to 59 mobile apps and on 2nd September, 2020 118 more apps were banned under section 69A of the Information Technology Act. Government is committed to protect the interests of citizens and sovereignty and integrity of India on all fronts and it shall take all possible steps to ensure that,” Center's press release stated.

The list of apps that were blocked included popular Chinese apps like TikTok, Shareit, Helo, Shein, Likee, PUBG MOBILE LITE, WeChat Work, UC Browser among others.

First Published on Nov 24, 2020 05:14 pm

New rules to sign up for GST:-livemint . Updated: 23 Nov 2020, 06:54 AM IST Gireesh Chandra Prasad

 

An overhaul of the goods and services tax (GST) registration process and suspension of the registration of businesses identified as risky are among the proposals of a panel of officials attached to the GST Council.

The proposals by the law committee of the GST Council, comprising central and state officials who advise its ministerial members, aim to tighten compliance measures and target restrictions on firms identified as risky, without affecting the ease of doing business in general, said a finance ministry official.

The recommendations include the use of Aadhaar or Aadhaar-like biometric identification for new registrations, steps to identify businesses that pose a risk of revenue loss to the exchequer, use of income tax returns to verify the credentials of entrepreneurs seeking GST registration, and restriction on using tax credits from the purchase of raw materials to meet the final tax liability.

Not filing GST returns for six months could cost a business its registration. At the moment, there are 600,000 dormant GST-registered firms among the 12 million entities with registration.

Entities seeking GST registration would be profiled on the basis of their credentials and classified into trustworthy and others.

Trustworthy entrepreneurs are those who have a credible income tax payment history and have their identity authenticated by Aadhaar and have no history of having their GST registration cancelled.

These entrepreneurs will get GST registration within a week. The others will be given the registration within two months of physical verification of business premises, said the ministry official cited above.

Those that are not trustworthy may also be asked to pay a part of their tax liability in cash instead of adjusting it fully against the tax credit available to them.

The proposals put together by the law panel at a meeting held last week will be further discussed before they are placed before the council, the official said, requesting anonymity.

The move signals a major tightening of the three-year-old indirect tax system leveraging GST’s ability to track the entire supply chain using the system of input tax credits. Discrepancies will get flagged, as the system for filing GST returns becomes more automated with the use of e-invoices and auto-filled tax returns.

GST authorities have been on a nationwide compliance enforcement drive this month, which led to the busting of an invoice racket and the arrest of 48 people and three chartered accountants. As many as 648 cases have been registered so far this month.

The government is better armed to enforce greater compliance with deep digital capabilities for automatically detecting evasion, leakages, defaults and delays, according to Rishi Agrawal, co-founder and chief executive officer of Avantis Regtech Pvt. Ltd, a regulatory technology firm. “Sooner rather than later, India Inc. will need to focus on accurate and timely compliance. Ignorance of the law will not be an excuse for non-compliance," said Agrawal.

41 arrested in fake invoice case; three CAs face disciplinary action livemint . Updated: 20 Nov 2020, 09:19 PM IST Gireesh Chandra Prasad

 

DGGI will inform accounting rule maker and professional regulator The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) to take action against the three CAs for professional misconduct. Mint (MINT_PRINT)

New Delhi: Forty one people have been arrested in the last eight days in a fake invoice cartel busted by the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI) and three of them who are chartered accountants are facing disciplinary action, said a government official.

DGGI will inform accounting rule maker and professional regulator The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) to take action against the three CAs for professional misconduct, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Two of the CAs are from Hyderabad and one from Ludhiana. They are accused of having a role in arranging for fake invoices of fictitious firms and in wrongfully availing tax credits.

In the nationwide crackdown on people abusing the GST system using fake invoices, DGGI has booked 577 cases against 2,221 entities in the last eight days, said the official quoted above.

On Friday, GST authorities held searches and surveys in 20 cities including Chennai, Ahmedabad, Pune, Nagpur, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Delhi, Bengaluru, Mumbai and Kolkata.

Fake invoices are used to evade Goods and Services Tax (GST) and income tax and to divert funds from companies. These are also used for showing non-existent transactions to jack up figures on books to obtain loans from banks. These are also used to wrongfully claim GST refunds meant for exporters.

Direct and indirect authorities have been scaling up use of technology and data analysis to identify businesses with poor compliance track record. With the sharp reduction in tax revenues this year, the trend is expected to gain further momentum. On Friday, the Income Tax Department searched 16 premises of a cattle feed producer including in Kanpur, Gorakhpur, Noida, Delhi and Ludhiana, the department said in a statement.

GST authorities are now trying to tighten the procedure for new GST registration. As per the plan before the GST Council, businesses whose owners or promoters do not have commensurate income tax payment records will require physical and financial verification before their companies can be given GST registration, Mint had reported last Sunday.

WhatsApp OTP scam: Things you should know livemint . Updated: 23 Nov 2020, 10:58 AM IST Staff Writer A new form WhatsApp OTP scam is being reported where the hacker hacks into your friend's account and sends you personalised messages to access your account.

 

WhatsApp is currently one of the world's most popular multiplatform messaging app, and being famous it also is prone to various forms of manipulations with an aim to target various users of the app.

A new form of scam is surfacing where the hacker hacks into your friend's account and sends you personalised messages to access your account.

How this scam works?

In the WhatsApp OTP scam, the hacker sends you a message claiming to be your friend. To grab your immediate attention, the fraudster describes some kind of emergency.

After providing assurance of being your friend, the hacker will ask for an OTP, who the scamster describes as an accidental forward. The scammers will send multiple messages to lure you to forward the OTP.

The hacker wants to access your WhatsApp account through OTP validation. The moment you will share the OTP with the fraudster, you will be locked out of your WhatsApp account and the hacker will have the full access to your messages, contacts and groups.

The hacker may also request monetary help from your dear ones. The chain of event gets multiplied once the scammer hacks into your account.

Two-factor authentication on WhatsApp comes in handy for users who would want to prevent falling prey to these type of scams. The rule of thumb to prevent these type of frauds is to never share your OTP or personal information with anyone.

Source :-livemint Used here for educational purposes only and this blog is not commercial.

Pros and cons of banking licences for big businesses livemnt . Updated: 22 Nov 2020, 11:15 PM IST Vivek Kaul

 

An internal working group of the Reserve Bank of India has suggested that large corporates and industrial houses may be allowed to promote banks. Does this leap of faith make sense, given our central bank’s extremely cautious and conservative approach? Mint takes a look.

Why should large cos be allowed in banking?

RBI’s working group feels that allowing corporates to promote banks can be an important source of capital. In a capital-starved economy like India, this makes sense. Further, these corporates can bring “management expertise, experience, and strategic direction to banking". The group also noted that internationally, “there are very few jurisdictions which explicitly disallow large corporate houses". All these reasons make sense, but there are major drivers behind RBI not allowing corporate intrusion in the banking sector over the last five decades. At the heart of this is the conflict of interest it would create.

Why have corporates been kept away so far?

The RBI panel spoke to experts on the issue: “All the experts except one [said] that large industrial houses should not be allowed to promote a bank." The corporate governance in Indian companies isn’t up to international standards and “it will be difficult to ring-fence the non-financial activities of the promoters," the experts said. There will also be a risk of promoters giving loans to selves. Before the bank nationalization happened in 1969, some of the private banks were owned by large corporates. Prof. Amol Agrawal of Ahmedabad University points out that back then, big industrialists used to give loans to themselves.

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Key defaulter

What does the history of banking system reveal?

V.A. Pai Panandiker, an advisor in finance ministry, wrote in August 1967: “Internal procedures… vest large discretionary powers in the boards of directors who have often acted as sources of patronage in deciding credit matters." A survey also showed that 188 individuals served as directors on boards of 20 leading banks and held 1,452 directorships of other firms.

What did corp’s huge power lead to in 1966?

An October 1967 report commissioned by politician Chandrashekhar, the then secretary of the Congress Party found that of the total bank loans amounting to ₹2,432 crore in 1966, ₹292 crore was given to bank directors and their companies.

In fact, if indirect loans and advances were included, the actual amount owed by directors was ₹600-700 crore. With corporates in the scene, there is a danger of something similar happening much more now, given the weak corporate governance structures.

What does this mean in current scenario?

In March 2018, the domestic bad loans of Indian banks peaked at ₹9.62 trillion. Of this, around 73.2% or ₹7.04 trillion, were defaults made by the industry. Corporates have thus been responsible for a bulk of the mess in the Indian banking sector. In such a precarious circumstance, it’s apparent that the banking regulator will have to tread with a great deal of caution and oversight to execute this plan.

Vivek Kaul is the author of Bad Money.

Source Livemint:- used here for Educational purposes only and this blog is not commercial.

Vodafone Idea adds highest broadband users in August ET had reported that cash-strapped Vodafone Idea is planning to fundraise Rs 25,000 crore in the next 2-3 months. ETTelecom November 17, 2020, 13:07 IST

 

NEW DELHI: Struggling telco Vodafone Idea added 4.6 million broadband subscribers in August, the highest among all telcos. However, analysts believe this may not be enough to sustain the telco's long-term financial requirements, as per a Mint report.

As the economy reopened, 4G subscribers who did not recharge during the lockdown needed data for consumption. As per an Axis Capital report, the mobile broadband (MBB) market share was up by 42 bps on-month at 17.2% as the conversion of 2G subscribers to 4G picked up the pace.

Telecom analyst Mahesh Uppal told Mint that higher ARPU customers can help Vodafone Idea in improving its revenues vastly. He said that the telco may find it difficult to sustain in the medium-term and requires financial support from either the government or its investors.

ET had reported that the cash-strapped telco is planning to fundraise Rs 25,000 crore in the next 2-3 months.

“We are in discussions with several interested parties to raise funds through the debt and equity routes. The interest levels have been very good and the ongoing discussions are progressing well… we hope to conclude the fund-raise in two to three months at most… we are very optimistic on this score,” managing director Ravinder Takkar had said on a post-earnings call with analysts.

ET had reported that Vodafone Ideaa has reached out to credit funds such as Oak Hill Advisors, Marathon Asset Management, Spectrum Asset Management, Anchorage Capital and Providence Investment Management as well as private equity firms such as Blackstone and asset reconstruction companies for raising the funds that will be used to expand networks and pay adjusted gross revenue dues.

Indians' interest in Chinese-made products declines in this festive season, says survey

 Synopsis

Even among the 29 per cent respondents who bought China-made goods, 71 per cent said that they did not consciously purchase 'Made in China' products this festive season and 66 per cent consumers admitted to have purchased them because they offered higher value for money, the survey said.

Read more at:
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/indians-interest-in-chinese-made-products-declines-in-this-festive-season-says-survey/articleshow/79246663.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

GST-UPDATES

 

Notification No 82,83,84,85 and 86/2020:  Below updates are effective from 01.01.2021: GSTR-1 related: - Quarterly return filers can file their first and second month B2B invoices in Invoice Furnishing Facility (IFF) on or before 13th of 1st month in next qtr - Total value for such B2B invoices is capped to 50 lakhs per month - No need to report invoices again in GSTR-1 if already reported in IFF - Due date of GSTR-1 for quarterly filers is 13th of 1st month in next qtr - HSN/SAC codes shall be mentioned mandatorily in GSTR-1 ( <5Cr- 4 digit, >5Cr- 6 digit) GSTR-2 related: - The invoices reported in IFF shall be made available to recipient in their GSTR-2A/2B - Notified FORM GSTR-2B GSTR-3B related: - Rule 61(6) was inserted to provide due date for filing GSTR-3B for the months of Oct 2020 to Mar 2021 as 20th of next month if TO > 5 Crores - Quarterly return filers shall deposit tax in electronic cash ledger on or before 25th of next month for first and second months  87/2020:  - Due date for filing ITC-04 (Job worker return) for the period July 2020 to September 2020 is extended to 30th November 2020 88/2020: E-invoicing is mandatory from 01.01.2021 for every taxpayer (other than SEZ unit) whose aggregate TO in any of the FY from 17-18 exceeds 100 Crores

China declines to acknowledge Biden victory

 

China declined Monday to congratulate Joe Biden as the winner of the US presidential election, saying the outcome of the vote was still to be determined.

While incumbent Donald Trump has yet to concede and has launched several legal challenges, many world leaders congratulated Biden and running mate Kamala Harris after the Democrats were declared winners at the weekend and spontaneous celebrations erupted across American cities.

Read more at:
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/world-news/china-declines-to-acknowledge-biden-victory/articleshow/79126237.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

INDIAN ORIGIN KAMALA HARRIS MAKES HISTORY BY BECOMING FIRST WOMAN -US VICE PRESIDENT-HERE ARE 10 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT HER- moneycontrolnews.

 

Kamala Harris makes history by becoming first US woman V-P; here are 10 things to know about her

Kamala Harris, who will be sworn in as vice president in January, is also the first woman in the US to be on a successful ticket.

California senator Kamala Harris has made history by becoming the first woman Vice President of the United States and also the first woman of colour to be elected to the prestigious post. She is also the first person of Indian descent to be elected the vice president of the United States.

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Kamala Harris

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CONGRATULATIONS MR.JOE BIDEN

 

UAE announces relaxing of Islamic laws for personal freedoms

 

DUBAI: The United Arab Emirates announced on Saturday a major overhaul of the country's Islamic personal laws, allowing unmarried couples to cohabitate, loosening alcohol restrictions and criminalizing so-called "honor killings."

Read more at:
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/uae/uae-announces-relaxing-of-islamic-laws-for-personal-freedoms/articleshow/79098656.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

Isro’s PSLV-C49/EOS-01 mission successful; 10 satellites placed in orbit

 

India's PSLV-C49 carrying its latest earth observation satellite EOS-01 and nine customer satellites lifted off from the spaceport here on Saturday. The Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C49/EOS-01) blasted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre here at 3.12 pm at the end of a 26-hour countdown.

The lift off was originally scheduled for 3.02 pm, but was delayed by 10 minutes due to debris on the path of the vehicle, said the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). This is the first mission by ISRO this year.EOS-01 is intended for applications in agriculture, forestry and disaster management support, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said. The customer satellites are from Lithuania (1), Luxembourg (4) and USA (4).

This was India's first rocket launch since the Covid-19 pandemic broke out, imposing numerous restrictions to working and enforcing multiple lockdowns.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated ISRO and the country's space industry for the successful launch, saying the scientists overcame many constraints to meet the deadline during this COVID-19 time.

"I congratulate @ISRO and India's space industry for the successful launch of PSLV-C49/EOS-01 Mission today. In the time of COVID-19, our scientists overcame many constraints to meet the deadline," Modi tweeted. In another tweet, he noted that nine satellites, including four each from the US and Luxembourg and one from Lithuania, have also been launched in the mission.

Reliance CEO Mukesh Ambani loses billions as oil slump hits shares CNN Digital Rebranding 2013 By Michelle Toh, CNN Business Updated 0926 GMT (1726 HKT) November 3, 2020

 

Hong Kong (CNN Business)Mukesh Ambani has long been trying to reduce his company's reliance on oil. This week showed why.

The wealth of Asia's top billionaire fell by about $6.5 billion on Monday after shares in his conglomerate plunged as much as 8.6%, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires index, which tracks the world's wealthiest people.

Shares of Reliance Industries dropped in Mumbai after the company posted disappointing earnings late Friday, mainly due to a tough quarter for its giant oil refinery business. Earnings for that unit "were much weaker than our estimate," analysts at Nomura wrote in a research note following the report.

Pretax profit fell 30% over the three months through September compared to a year ago, although other parts of Reliance helped offset the slump in oil, including its retail and technology units, the analysts noted. Reliance stock was little changed Tuesday.Reliance is one of India's most valuable and recognizable companies. The powerhouse conglomerate — which spans oil, petrochemicals, telecommunications and retail — has been undergoing a shift in focus recently as Ambani, its chairman and CEO, tries to transform it into a global tech giant.

Ambani turned heads earlier this year after he raised more than $20 billion in just four months for the tech arm of his business, Jio Platforms. Half of that was secured in just one month, underscoring the executive's aggressive ambitions.

Analysts have said that the CEO is under pressure to prove out the technology his firm has developed and offset the massive declines he's experiencing in oil and other sectors. The coronavirus pandemic has ravaged global oil demand this year, due to steep drops in travel, transport, industrial and commercial activity.

Ambani's ambitions don't end with tech. Last month, the billionaire continued his fundraising spree, this time focusing his efforts on the company's shopping empire, Reliance Retail. And in recent weeks, Reliance has clashed with US juggernaut Amazon (AMZN) over a deal it struck with a local retail chain, underscoring the fierce battle the company is waging to improve its standing in the industry.

Ambani, who is still estimated to be worth $71 billion, became one of the world's 10 wealthiest people this year as he built up his group's massive war chest. Reliance Industries shares are up 25% for the year so far, helping boost Ambani's net worth by more than a fifth, or $12.5 billion, according to Bloomberg Billionaires.

— Sherisse Pham contributed to this report.\

Used here for educational purposes of Students

Story of Forest Man of India should be taught in Every School

 

US ELECTIONS AND STOCK MARKETS

 

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