Taxation
The Achilles heel
Ken Traill on why there is little progress in Australia's international tax competitiveness

Dead ship
EXCISE officials are known to pursue their targets even if they be sunken ships on seabeds, as the New Pasta Traders case would show. About 15 years back, M. V. Shanta Bhibani came into Sikka jetty, after discharging cargo at Kandla. It suffered engine t rouble, caught fire, collided against another ship, and got grounded. When the Gujarat Maritime Board auctioned her, to recover port dues, Pasta purchased it for breaking up.

Missing mutuality
Going by judicial interpretation, the term mutual fund is a misnomer, says S. Murlidharan

Gaps in reform agenda
THE ADVISORY Group set up by the Planning Commission in July 2000 submitted its report recently on the reforms of tax policy and tax administration at different levels of Government. Earlier, the group had submitted the interim report for consideration i n the 20001-02 Budget exercise. Indeed, some of the changes made in the Budget -- such as abolition of surcharge, reduction of dividend tax, withdrawal of exemption of interest in ECB, reduction of Section 80L benefits, and so on -- essentially reflect t he recommendations of the group. Hence, its final report assumes much significance as it sets out the road map for tax reforms for the next five years.

Re-laying the MAT
T. C. A. Ramanujam says that minimum alternate tax is on the threshold of change

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