Dr M Khalid's global village blog

Neither Telangana nor Andhra Pradesh will get any funds in the Budget for State-specific projects such as Mission Kakatiya, Mission Bhagiratha and Amaravati capital city the new Budget too will see several changes like dispensing with the age-old practice of plan and non-plan expenditure. This budget will be different from earlier ones as per new policies. The Centre got Rs 58,000 crore through the clean energy cess, but States could spend only around Rs 25,000 crore, leaving a huge amount with the Centre. Read full article: http://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/current-affairs/300117/states-must-perform-to-get-money.html

The lyrebird from Australia can mimic virtually any sound that it hears, including the calls of other animals!  https://t.co/179FYgCqCP ( https://twitter.com/GoogleFacts/status/825788216238280704?s=03 )

Vulnerabilities exist Vulnerabilities associated with payments systems exist and hence signal the need for caution. Examples follow. Compromised applications: The most plausible vulnerability with payment applications is the presence of other applications on a consumer's mobile phone. If a user has an alternative keyboard application, it could be a risk in terms of logging passwords and pins while performing bank transactions. It is also possible that a user inadvertently downloads an application while browsing the web that could compromise his/her phone data and transactions. With some payment wallets, anyone having casual access to a user's mobile phone could be a vulnerability as application PINs are not set up. Man-in-middle vulnerability: In this scenario, a hacker gets access to either the servers on the telecom network, the payment wallet or the bank's networks. Listening to the communication (despite being encrypted) could still be considered a risk. This type of vu...

1) Deduction on interest: If you are paying EMIs for a home loan you took to buy a house, the interest component in the EMI can be claimed as deduction. You must be both an owner and a co-borrower (in the loan) to claim tax benefits. This deduction can be claimed starting the year in which the construction of the house is completed. Suppose the construction of your house was completed on August 30, 2014, you can claim deduction for interest for the entire 12 months in financial year 2014-15. So every year a maximum of Rs. 2 lakh can be claimed for a house that you use for your own residence. If your house is rented, the entire interest for the year can be claimed as deduction. The interest payments for the year shall result in a loss under the head 'income from house property'. This loss can be adjusted against in the same year against other heads of income in your income tax return including salary. Therefore, it reduces your total taxable income and the tax you pay thereon. A...

The registration of properties saw a heavy decline in past months. In the process, developers are estimated to have incurred a revenue loss of Rs 22,600 crore because of the cash ban while state governments suffered a notional loss on stamp duty of Rs 1,200 crore, as per property consultant Knight Frank India. Top officials of several developers across the country — from Chennai to Kolkata, from Hyderabad to Pune and Mumbai to Bengaluru and entire national capital region — admitted that the market took a big hit post demonetisation though they foresee significant long-term gains, expecting all future deals to be through banking channels. However, many developers and property consultants also said it is too early to say tha t black money has been completely eliminated from the sector though it has become exceedingly difficult to execute cash transactions as of now. -- Ref:  http://www.firstpost.com/india/demonetisation-fallout-hit-hard-by-note-ban-realty-sector-awaits-white-money-buyers...

The Trump administration could make life more difficult for legal immigrants to the US who are on H-1B visas, a large chunk of which is used by the Indian information technology industry.  The order, if signed into law, will also reverse the Optional Practical Training (OPT) extension for STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) students that the earlier administration had mooted in late 2015. OPT extensions allowed graduates with STEM degrees to stay in the US for as much as three years after graduating from college. The new order will curtail that period, hurting the future plans of 165,918 Indian students in the US. Indians comprise the second largest ethnic group after the Chinese when it comes to international student enrolment in the US, according to the Institute of International Education. If implemented, the executive order could seriously hit the movement of students and skilled employees from India to the US. The H-1B visa programme, which allows highly skille...