Marketing Management Tesco&Asda Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Marketing Management Tesco&Asda - Case Study Example It considers all the future cash flows of that customer arising from him consuming in the future. Customer relationship management should lead to increased CLV. When one thinks of maximizing CLV, one has to take a long term perspective and hence focus on customer retention rather than just making a sale. This, coupled with the concept of the Pareto principle - that 80% of a company's sales come from 20% of their customers - has made firms have realized that retaining that 20% is integral to their increased profitability (Jobber, Lancastor, 2006) Tesco is the UK's biggest retiler chin who sells everything to stisfy customers' needs such s books, grocery, household equipment, flowers, wine etc. (yhoo finnce 2003) Tesco hve stores in UK, republic of Irelnd, Frnce, Hungry, Polnd, Czech Republic, Thilnd, South Kore nd Tiwn. Through these stores they employ 260 000 people which 65,000 of these re employed overses tht giving them ccess to popultion of 280m cross 10 mrkets. Their gol is to crete 21 000 new jobs in the coming yer. Their min mrket is in the UK where 55 new Tesco stores where opened in 2002, which results in 729 stores now. Their profit in 2002 ws 1,221m before tx compred to previous yer when the result 1,070m. The Tesco group re lso offering non-food division nd retiling services. The non-food division consists of their own opticins. In order to mke it esier for customers for tht reson they cn buy both their grocery nd medicine t the sme time. Tesco re lso the owner of gs sttions. The retil services re offering personl finnce such s life insurnce nd generl insurnce (home, cr, pet, trvel), credit crds nd lons nd sving schemes nd their own webpge (yhoo finnce 2003). s of its 2006 yer end Tesco ws the fourth lrgest retiler in the world. The three lrgest re Wl-Mrt, Crrefour nd Home Depot. METRO ws only just behind nd might move hed gin if the euro strengthens ginst the pound, but METRO's sles include mny billions of wholesle turnover, nd its retil turnover is much less thn Tesco's. t 25 Februry 2006 Tesco operted 1,897 stores in the UK (25.9 million squre feet, 2.395 million m) nd 814 outside the UK (32.8 million squre feet, 3.02 million m). In the UK, there re 83 Tesco Extr stores; 447 Tesco superstores; 161 Tesco Metro stores; 277 Tesco Express stores nd 910 recently-cquired T&S stores still to be converted (see 'Moving in on the convenience ("c-store") sector', below. Tesco's mrket cpitlistion on 31 December 2005 ws 26.035 billion ($44.8 billion), which ws the lrgest of ny retiler bsed outside the United Sttes. Tesco is incresingly trget for people in the UK who dispprove of the effects supermrket chins cn hve on frmers, suppliers nd smller competitors. sd SD ws founded in 1965 when group of Yorkshire frmers decided to go together. SD's successes led to prtnership with the Wl-Mrt fmily from U.S. in 1999. The mission SD hs is to be "Britin's best vlue retiler, exceeding customers needs", (SD 2003) offering prices 10% lower thn min competitors on product such s fresh food, clothing, home, leisure nd entertinment goods etc. The compny lso offers hll lmb nd chicken to meet the demnd of Muslim customers, this long with rnge of ethnic foods, found in Hong Kong nd Jmic. SD ssures tht the "slughter process re crefully set nd monitored by SD's Product Development Tem". (SD 2003) SD hs currently 255 stores nd 19 storehouses throughout the UK nd is plnning to open 10 new stores

Your Lot in Life Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Your Lot in Life - Essay Example Research studies indicated that the period following divorce could result in serious disorders that could affect the child emotionally as well as psychologically. However, generally, a higher majority of adults do not exhibit such risks. Adult mental health was impacted upon by the negative effects of divorce because of lower levels of achievement at school, economic status of the family at 16 years of age and other problems related to the adolescent’s feelings and emotions. [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] Though the pain and trauma of divorce cannot be totally done away with, the use of the right interventions at the right time could help a great deal in minimizing this impact and encouraging good coping strategies. According to (Gardner, 1985) Guidance and support from other family members and developing skills that help us cope with life is of prime importance. Erik Erikson, (1902 – 1994) a great child psychologist explains that a child passes through 8 stages from an infant to an adult in relation to a divorce in the family and if guided in the right manner will help the child to adjust better in a shorter period of time. 2. Effects of Alcoholism A happy family is one where every member fulfills their duties to each other in the right manner. ... greatly impacts upon the growth and development of their children that leads them to early bouts of depression in their childhood which in turn grossly lowers their IQ and cognitive skills. Our contemporary society is faced with the scourge of one of the greatest menaces being Alcohol and Drug abuse. The addiction creeps upon them so insidiously that at most times people are not even aware of it. The adverse effects of Alcohol abuse are far reachable and deteriorating especially within families where children have to face the ugly brunt. Studies have shown that abused children of alcoholic parents suffer immensely with low confidence and self esteem and never seem to get over it even in their adulthood. While some research studies show that children of Alcoholics (COAs) do suffer a lot of negative consequences. Detecting such problems at an early stage would help to prevent them in the school and later on in life as the child matures which include depression, anxiety and in turn subs tance abuse. 3. Safety of children in unsafe communities The safety of children is of prime importance for any devoted parent and more so when they are aware that they live in an unsafe neighborhood or community. Such surroundings necessitate heightened vigilance by the parents because it poses a hindrance to their daily activities. According to the ((U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2000) families living in a large number of communities have neighborhoods that are rampant in violence and crime and both children and parents are exposed to robberies, murders and assaults either directly or indirectly. (Veenema, 2001) In trying to ensure the safety of their children many parents have taken an active part in the community and are trying to make it a much safer place for the

Trends in Fiscal Policy of India Essay Example for Free

Trends in Fiscal Policy of India Essay ABSTRACT This essay traces the major developments in India’s fiscal policy from the early stages of planned development in the 1950s, through the country’s balance of payments crisis of 1991, the subsequent economic liberalisation and rapid growth phase, the response to the global financial crisis of 2008 and the recent post-crisis moves to return to a path of fiscal consolidation. The initial years of India’s planned Development strategy were characterised by a conservative fiscal policy whereby deficits were kept under control. The tax system was geared to transfer resources from the private sector to fund the large public sector driven industrialization process and also cover social welfare schemes. However, growth was anaemic and the system was prone to inefficiencies. In the 1980s some attempts were made to reform particular sectors. But the public debt increased, as did the fiscal deficit. India’s balance of payments crisis of 1991 led to economic liberalisation. The reform of the tax system commenced. The fiscal deficit was brought under control. When the deficit and debt situation again threatened to go out of control in the early 2000s, fiscal discipline legalisations were instituted. The deficit was brought under control and by 2007-08 a benign macro-fiscal situation with high growth and moderate inflation prevailed. During the global financial crisis fiscal policy responded with counter-cyclical measures including tax cuts and increases in expenditures. The post-crisis recovery of the Indian economy is witnessing a correction of the fiscal policy path towards a regime of prudence. In the future, the focus would probably be on bringing in new tax reforms and better targeting of social expenditures. INTRODUCTION Fiscal policy is the means by which a government adjusts its levels of spending in order to monitor and influence a nations economy. It is the sister strategy to monetary policy with which a central bank influences a nations money supply. These two policies are used in various combinations in an effort to direct a countrys economic goals. Here we take a look at how fiscal policy works, how it must be monitored and how its implementation may affect different people in an economy. Fiscal policy deals with the taxation and expenditure decisions of the government.Monetary policy, deals with the supply of money in the economy and the rate of interest.These are the main policy approaches used by economic managers to steer the broad aspects of the economy. In most modern economies, the government deals with fiscal policy while the central bank is responsible for monetary policy. Fiscal policy is composed of several parts. These include, tax policy, expenditure policy, investment or disinvestment strategies and debt or surplus management. Fiscal policy is an important constituent of the overall economic framework of a country and is therefore intimately linked with its general economic policy strategy. For example, if taxes were to increase, consumers would have less disposable income and in turn would have less money to spend on goods and services. This difference in disposable income would go to the government instead of going to consumers, who would pass the money onto companies. Or, the government could choose to increase government spending by directly purchasing goods and services from private companies. This would increase the flow of money through the economy and would eventually increase the disposable income available to consumers. Unfortunately, this process takes time, as the money needs to wind its way through the economy, creating a significant lag between the implementation of fiscal pol icy and its effect on the economy. In broad term fiscal policy refers to that segment of national economic policy which is primarily concerned with the receipts and expenditure of central government. The importance of fiscal policy is high in underdeveloped countries. The state has to play active and important role. In a democratic society direct methods are not approved. So, the government has to depend on indirect methods of regulations. In this way, fiscal policy is a powerful weapon in the hands of government by means of which it can achieve the objectives of development. BASIC CONCEPTS : A spending item is a capital expenditure if it relates to the creation of an asset that is likely to last for a considerable period of time and includes loan disbursements. Such expenditures are generally not routine in nature. By the same logic a capital receipt arises from the liquidation of an asset including the sale of government shares in public sector companies (disinvestments), the return of funds given on loan or the receipt of a loan. This again usually arises from a comparatively irregular event and is not routine. In contrast, revenue expenditures are fairly regular and generally intended to meet certain routine requirements like salaries, pensions, subsidies, interest payments, and the like. Revenue receipts represent regular earnings for instance tax receipts and non-tax revenues including from sale of telecom spectrums. There are various ways to represent and interpret a government’s deficit. The simplest is the revenue deficit which is just the difference between revenue receipts and revenue expenditures. Revenue Deficit = Revenue Expenditure – Revenue Receipts (that is Tax + Non-tax Revenue) A more comprehensive indicator of the government’s deficit is the fiscal deficit. This is the sum of revenue and capital expenditure less all revenue and capital receipts other than 6loans taken. This gives a more holistic view of the government’s funding situation since it gives the difference between all receipts and expenditures other than loans taken to meet such expenditures. Fiscal Deficit = Total Expenditure (that is Revenue Expenditure + Capital Expenditure) –(Revenue Receipts + Recoveries of Loans + Other Capital Receipts (that is all Revenue and Capital Receipts other than loans taken)) â€Å"The gross fiscal deficit (GFD) of government is the excess of its total expenditure, current and capital, including loans net of recovery, over revenue receipts (including external grants) and non-debt capital receipts.† The net fiscal deficit is the gross fiscal deficit reduced by net lending by government (Dasgupta and De, 2011). The gross primary deficit is the GFD less interest payments while the primary revenue deficit is the revenue deficit less interest payments. ARCHITECTURE: The Indian Constitution provides the overarching framework for the country’s fiscal policy. India has a federal form of government with taxing powers and spending responsibilities being divided between the central and the state governments according to the Constitution. There is also a third tier of government at the local level. Since the taxing abilities of the states are not necessarily commensurate with their spending responsibilities, some of the centre’s revenues need to be assigned to the state governments. To provide the basis for this assignment and give medium term guidance on fiscal matters, the Constitution provides for the formation of a Finance Commission (FC) every five years. Based on the report of the FC the central taxes are devolved to the state governments. The Constitution also provides that for every financial year, the government shall place before the legislature a statement of its proposed taxing and spending provisions for legislative debate an d approval. This is referred to as the Budget. The central and the state governments each have their own budgets. The central government is responsible for issues that usually concern the country as a whole like national defense, foreign policy, railways, national highways, shipping, airways, post and telegraphs, foreign trade and banking. The state governments are responsible for other items including, law and order, agriculture, fisheries, water supply and irrigation, and public health. Some items for which responsibility vests in both the Centre and the states include forests, economic and social planning, education, trade unions and industrial disputes, price control and electricity. There is now increasing devolution of some powers to local governments at the city, town and village levels. The taxing powers of the central government encompass taxes on income (except agricultural income), excise on goods produced (other than alcohol), customs duties, and inter-state sale of goods. The state governments are vested with the power to tax agricultural income, land and buildings, sale of goods (other than inter-state), and excise on alcohol. Besides the annual budgetary process, since 1950, India has followed a system of five-year plans for ensuring long-term economic objectives. This process is steered by the Planning Commission for which there is no specific provision in the Constitution. The main fiscal impact of the planning process is the division of expenditures into plan and non-plan components. The plan components relate to items dealing with long-term socioeconomic goals as determined by the ongoing plan process. They often relate to specific schemes and projects. Furthermore, they are usually routed through central ministries to state governments for achieving certain desired objectives. These funds are generally in addition to the assignment of central taxes as determined by the Finance Commissions. In some cases, the state governments also contribute their own funds to the schemes. Non-plan expenditures broadly relate to routine expenditures of the government for administration, salaries, and the like. While these institutional arrangements initially appeared adequate for driving the development agenda, the sharp deterioration of the fiscal situation in the 1980s resulted in the balance of payments crisis of 1991, which would be discussed later. Following economic liberalization in 1991, when the fiscal deficit and debt situation again seemed to head towards unsustainable levels around 2000, a new fiscal discipline framework was instituted. At the central level this framework was initiated in 2003 when the Parliament passed the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act (FRBMA). Taxes are the main source of government revenues. Direct taxes are so named since they are charged upon and collected directly from the person or organization that ultimately pays the tax (in a leg al sense).Taxes on personal and corporate incomes, personal wealth and professions are direct taxes. In India the main direct taxes at the central level are the personal and corporate income tax. Both are till date levied through the same piece of legislation, the Income Tax Act of 1961. Income taxes are levied on various head of income, namely, incomes from business and professions, salaries, house property, capital gains and other sources (like interest and dividends).Other direct taxes include the wealth tax and the securities transactions tax. Some other forms of direct taxation that existed in India from time to time but were removed as part of various reforms include the estate duty, gift tax, expenditure tax and fringe benefits tax. The estate duty was levied on the estate of a deceased person. The fringe benefits tax was charged on employers on the value of in-kind non-cash benefits or perquisites received by employees from their employers. Such perquisites are now largely taxed directly in the hands of employees and added to their personal income tax. Some states charge a tax on professions. Most local governments also charge property owners a tax on land and buildings. Indirect taxes are charged and collected from persons other than those who finally end up paying the tax (again in a legal sense). For instance, a tax on sale of goods is collected by the seller from the buyer. The legal responsibility of paying the tax to government lies with the seller, but the tax is paid by the buyer. The current central level indirect taxes are the central excise (a tax on manufactured goods), the service tax, the customs duty (a tax on imports) and the central sales tax on inter-state sale of goods. The main state level indirect tax is the post-manufacturing (that is wholesale and retail levels) sales tax (now largely a value added tax with intra-state tax credit). The complications and economic inefficiencies of this multiple cascading taxation across the economic value chain (necessitated by the constitutional assignment of taxing powers) are discussed later in the context of the proposed Goods and Services Tax (GST). EVOLUTION (TILL 1991) India commenced on the path of planned development with the setting up of the Planning Commission in 1950. That was also the year when the country adopted a federal Constitution with strong unitary features giving the central government primacy in terms of planning for economic development (Singh and Srinivasan, 2004). The subsequent planning process laid emphasis on strengthening public sector enterprises as a means to achieve economic growth and industrial development. The resulting economic framework imposed administrative controls on various industries and a system of licensing and quotas for private industries. Consequently, the main role of fiscal policy was to transfer private savings to cater to the growing consumption and investment needs of the public sector. Other goals included the reduction of income and wealth inequalities through taxes and transfers, encouraging balanced regional development, fostering small scale industries and sometimes influencing the trends in econ omic activities towards desired goals (Rao and Rao, 2006). In terms of tax policy, this meant that both direct and indirect taxes were focussed on extracting revenues from the private sector to fund the public sector and achieve redistributive goals. The combined centre and state tax revenue to GDP ratio increased from 6.3 percent in 1950-51 to 16.1 percent in 1987-88.For the central government this ratio was 4.1 percent of GDP in 1950-51 with the larger share coming from indirect taxes at 2.3 percent of GDP and direct taxes at 1.8 percent of GDP. Given their low direct tax levers, the states had 0.6 percent of GDP as direct taxes and 1.7 percent of GDP as indirect taxes in 1950-51. The government authorised a comprehensive review of the tax system culminating in the Taxation Enquiry Commission Report of 1953. However, the government then invited the British economist Nicholas Kaldor to examine the possibility of reforming the tax system. Kaldor found the system inefficient and inequitable given the narrow tax base and inadequate reporting o f property income and taxation. He also found the maximum marginal income tax rate at 92 percent to be too high and suggested it be reduced to 45 percent. In view of his recommendations, the government revived capital gains taxation, brought in a gift tax, a wealth tax and an expenditure tax (which was not continued due to administrative complexities) (Herd and Leibfritz, 2008). Despite Kaldor’s recommendations income and corporate taxes at the highest marginal rate continued to be extraordinarily high. In 1973-74, the maximum rate taking in to account the surcharge was 97.5 percent for personal income above Rs. 0.2 million. The system was also complex with as many as eleven tax brackets. The corporate income tax was differential for widely held and closely held companies with the tax rate varying from 45 to 65 percent for some widely held companies. Though the statutory tax rates were high, given a large number of special allowances and depreciation, effective tax rates were much lower. The Direct Taxes Enquiry Committee of 1971 found that the high tax rates encouraged tax evasion. Following its recommendations in 1974-75 the personal income tax rate was brought down to 77 percent but the wealth tax rate was increased. The next major simplification was in 1985-86 when the number of tax brackets was reduced from eight to four and the highest income tax rate was brought down to 50 percent. In indirect taxes, a major component was the central excise duty. This was initially used to tax raw materials and intermediate goods and not final consumer goods. But by 1975-76 it was extended to cover all manufactured goods. The excise duty structure at this time was complicated and tended to distort economic decisions. Some commodities had specific duties while others had ad valorem rates. The tax also had a major †cascading effect‟ since it was imposed not just on final consumer goods but also on inputs and capital goods. In effect, the tax on the input was again ta xed at the next point of manufacture resulting in double taxation of the input. Considering that the states were separately imposing sales tax at the post-manufacturing wholesale and retail levels, this cascading impact was considerable. The Indirect Tax Enquiry Report of 1977 recommended introduction of input tax credits to convert the cascading manufacturing tax into a manufacturing value added tax (MANVAT). Instead, the modified value added tax (MODVAT) was introduced in a phased manner from 1986 covering only selected commodities. The other main central indirect tax is the customs duty. Given that imports into India were restricted, this was not a very large source of revenue. The tariffs were high and differentiated. Items at later stages of production like finished goods were taxed at higher rates than those at earlier stages, like raw materials. Rates also differed on the basis of perceived income elasticities with necessities taxed at lower rates than luxury goods. In 1985-86 the government presented its Long-Term Fiscal Policy stressing on the need to reduce tariffs, have fewer rates and eventually remove quantitative limits on imports. Some reforms were attempted but due to revenue raising considerations the tariffs in terms of the weighted average rate increased from 38 percent in 1980-81 to 87 percent in 1989-90. By 1990-91 the tariff structure had a range of 0 to 400 percent with over 10 percent of imports subjected to tariffs of 120 percent or more. Further complications arose from exemptions granted outside the budgetary process.In 1970-71, direct taxes contributed to around 16 percent of the central government’s revenues, indirect taxes about 58 percent and the remaining 26 percent came from nontax revenues. By 1990-91, the share of indirect taxes had increased to 65 percent, direct taxes shrank to 13 percent and non-tax revenues were at 22 percent. COMPOSITION OF CENTRAL GOVERNMENT REVENUES (1970-71): SOURCE: , http://dbie.rbi.org.in (Reserve Bank of India, 2011) COMPOSTION OF CENTRAL GOVERNMENT REVENUES(1990-91): SOURCE: , http://dbie.rbi.org.in (Reserve Bank of India, 2011) India’s expenditure norms remained conservative till the 1980s. From 1973-74 to 1978-79 the central government continuously ran revenue surpluses. Its gross fiscal deficit also showed a slow growth with certain episodes of downward movements.The state governments also ran revenue surpluses from 1974-75 to 1986-87, barring only 1984-85. Thereafter, limited reforms in specific areas including trade liberalisation, export promotion and investment in modern technologies were accompanied by increased expenditures financed by domestic and foreign borrowing (Singh and Srinivasan, 2004). The central revenue deficit climbed from 1.4 percent of GDP in 1980-81 to 2.44 percent of GDP by 1989-90. Across the same period the centre‟s gross fiscal deficit (GFD) climbed from 5.71 percent to 7.31 percent of GDP. Though the external liabilities of the centre fell from 7.16 percent of GDP in 1982-83 to 5.53 percent of GDP by 1990-91, in absolute terms the liabilities were large. Across the same period the total liabilities of the centre and the states increased from 51.43 percent of GDP to 64.75 percent of GDP. This came at the cost of social and capital expenditures. The interest component of aggregate central and state government disbursements reflects this quite clearly. The capital disbursements decreased from around 30 percent in 1980-81 to about 20 percent by 1990-91. In contrast, the interest component increased from around 8 percent to about 15 percent across the same period.Within revenue expenditures, in 1970-71, defence expenditures had the highest share of 34 percent; interest component was 19 percent while subsidies were only 3 percent. However, by 1990-91, the largest component was the interest share of 29 percent with subsidies constituting 17 percent and defence only 15 percent. Therefore, besides the burden of servicing the public debt, the subsidy burden was also quite great. While India‟s external debt and expenditure patterns were heading for unsustainable levels, the proximate causes of the balance of payments crisis came from certain unforeseen external and domestic political events. The First Gulf War caused a spike in oil prices leading to a sharp increase in the government‟s fuel subsidy burden. Furthermore, the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi increased political uncertainties leading to the withdrawal of some foreign funds. The subsequent economic reforms changed the Indian economy forever. LIBERALIZATION ,GROWTH ,INCLUSION AND FISCAL CONSOLIDATION (1991-2008): Following the balance of payments crisis of 1991, the government commenced on a path of economic liberalisation whereby the economy was opened up to foreign investment and trade, the private sector was encouraged and the system of quotas and licences was dismantled. Fiscal policy was re-oriented to cohere with these changes. The Tax Reforms Committee provided a blue print for reforming both direct and indirect taxes. Its main strategy was to reduce the proportion of trade taxes in total tax revenue, increase the share of domestic consumption taxes by converting the excise into a VAT and enhance the contribution of direct taxes to total revenue. It recommended reducing the rates of all major taxes, minimizing exemptions and deductions, simplifying laws and procedures, improving tax administration and increasing computerisation and information system modernisation. As a part of the subsequent direct tax reforms, the personal income tax brackets were reduced to three with rates of 20, 30 and 40 percent in 1992-93. Financial assets were removed from the imposition of wealth tax and the maximum rate of wealth tax was reduced to 1 percent. Personal income tax rates were reduced again to 10, 20, and 30 percent in 1997-98. The rates have largely remained the same since with the exemption limit being increased and slab structure raised from time to time. A subsequent 2 percent surcharge to fund education was later made applicable to all taxes. The basic corporate tax rate was reduced to 50 percent and the rates for different closely held companies made uniform at 55 percent. In 1993-94, the distinction between the closely held and the widely held companies was removed and the uniform tax rate was brought down to 40 percent. The rate was further reduced to 35 percent with a 10 percent tax on distributed dividends in 1997-98 (Rao and Rao, 2006). Despite these reforms, the tax system continued to have preferential exemptions and deductions as tax incentives for various socio-economic goals including location of industries in backward areas, export promotion and technology development. This led to the phenomenon of „zero-tax companies‟ whereby imaginative arrangements were use to leverage all these tax incentives with an intent to minimise tax liabilities. To counter this trend,the Minimum Alternative Tax (MAT) was introduced in 1996-97. It required a company to pay a minimum of 30 percent of book profits as tax. Further attempts to expand the tax base and increase revenues were the introduction of the securities transaction tax (STT) in 2004 and the fringe benefit tax (FBT) in the budget of 2005-06 In indirect taxes, the MODVAT credit system for excise was expanded to cover most commodities and provide a comprehensive credit system by 1996-97. The eleven rates were merged into three with a few luxury items subject to additional non-rebatable tax in 1999-2000. In 2000-01, the three rates were merged in to a single rate and renamed as central VAT (CENVAT). There remained three additional excises of 8, 16 and 24 percent. In case of custom duties, in 1991-92 all duties on non-agriculture goods that were above 150 percent were brought down to this rate. The „peak rate‟ was brought down to 40 percent in 1997-98, 30 percent in 2002-03, 25 percent in 2003-04, and 15 percent in 2005-06. The number of major duty rates was also brought down from 22 in 1990-91 to 4 in 2003-04. These four rates covered almost 90 percent of customs collected from items. This period also saw the introduction of the service tax in 1994-95, which was subsequently expanded to cover more and more services. Given that the Indian economy was having an increasingly large service component this increasingly became a major source of revenue. Eventually, provisions were made for allowing input tax credits for both goods and services at the central indirect tax level. Despite the reforms in central taxes, even after the economic reforms of 1991, state government tax reforms were inadequate and sporadic. A major move in this direction was the coordinated simplification of the state sales tax system in 1999. This eventually led to the introduction of a VAT in 21 states in 2005. The value added tax gives credit to taxes paid on inputs and provides relief from cascading. Implemented at the retail level this replaced the cascading sales tax providing great relief to consumers and traders alike while enhancing the revenues of the state government. The administrative design of the VAT ensures reporting of inputs and outputs resulting in substantial reduction in tax evasion. The basic features of the tax include two rates of 4 percent for common consumption commodities and inputs and 12.5 percent for the others. Some essential items are exempted and precious metals are taxed at 1 percent. The credit system covers inputs and purchases as also capital goods for manufacturers as well as dealers. Credit for capital goods taxes can be availed over three years of sales. The tax credit operates fully only for intra-state sales (Rao and Rao, 2006). This is a major hindrance to the formation of a smooth nationwide market and is to be addressed by the proposed Goods and Services Tax (GST). In consonance with the tax reform plans, the sources of central government revenue shifted from indirect taxes towards direct taxes. In 1995-96, about 54 percent of revenues came from indirect taxes while around 20 percent were from direct taxes (Figure 8). In 2000-01, the share of indirect taxes had gone down dramatically to around 45 percent while the contribution from direct taxes had increased to about 26 percent (Figure 9). By 2005-06, indirect taxes accounted for approximately 43 percent while the direct taxes share was about 35 percent.

Review Caught Between The Dog And The Fireplug Politics Essay

Review Caught Between The Dog And The Fireplug Politics Essay Ashworth in discussing working with politicians stated that the most important job of a legislator is to craft bills and pass them into law. He further stated that they are so many bad bills introduced throughout the nation each year by politicians. This happens both in congress and at the state legislative level. To prevent bad bills from becoming law, the founding fathers in their wisdom drafted the constitution to ensure that before any legislators idea become law, such an idea must garner enough support from other legislators, pass both houses, before signed into law by the governor or president. The president or governor has a veto right. He can refuse to sign a bill into law. To override a veto, the two branches of congress or state legislator must gather extraordinary support. It takes two third majority votes by members of congress or state legislative body to override a governor or presidential veto. Ashworth went further to point out that because it takes a lot of support f rom other legislators to pass a bill into law, politicians in strategic positions device various means to prevent certain bills from seeing the light of the day, especially when they oppose such a bill. The various subcommittees are one of such strategic powerful legislative body. Ashworth describes how he so often gets derided by members of a legislative subcommittee who disagree with his testimony. He describes how powerless he often feels in the face of legislators who seem to have all the powers and can vote on decisions that can directly impact his life. In one instance, a legislator voted to have his salary cut, because he testified against the legislators bill. After reading Ashworths letter about politicians, I immediately started rethinking my own personal decision to study public policy, especially if I find myself occupying the same portfolio as Ashworth. But in retrospect, I retorted to myself. In every profession, there are positives and negatives. We have to view Ashworths letter critically. Ashworth lamented when he wrote that if politicians are determined to embarrass you, they may show little or no regard to facts, figures or circumstances. In response to that I will say this. Unless the bill being discussed has an overwhelming support from members on both sides of the aisle. I believe that legislators on Mr. Ashworth side of the issue will stand up to defend him, speak up for him in order to make their case. They wont seat still and observe a testimony that supports their cause lampooned and lambasted. If certain groups of legislators are accusing Mr. Ashworth of being wasteful, and they resort to intimidation and falsification o f figures to make their point, one wonders where politicians on the other side of the issue were during this testimony. In this letter, Ashworth dwelt so much on the opposition. Of course the opposition will be fiery in order to make its case. I am hopeful that politicians who stood for programs Ashworth was implementing will counter with force to ensure that such a program does not cease to exist. Ashworth never stated that his program was closed. I am sure the power of his testimony alone did not save the programs he implemented for the many years he served in public service. He did not have a vote, all he did was testify and showcase how beneficial the programs he implemented will be to the citizenry. The ultimate decision rested with the politicians who had the vote. One will logically conclude that the politicians that voted to continue to fund his program must have spoken in defense of their votes during such hearings. But he benignly mentioned such utterances in his letter. H e dwelt so much on the views of the opposition. He failed to understand that the opposing view in politics is not always there to forestall growth, but rather to prevent excess and abuse. However, it is important to acknowledge some of the issues raised in Ashworths letter. Sometimes the relationship between bureaucrats and politicians can be rocky and full of unnecessary retaliation. I was particularly irked by the actions of the legislator who resorted to reducing Ashworths salary as a payback for his testimony against his bill. I wonder why one legislator will have so much power to make a decision that is unfair to a public servant, who did not break any laws or flouted any policies. I will definitely question where the other legislators where, especially proponents of Ashworths programs when the decision to reduce his salary in the line item budget was made. If I had the opportunity to question Mr. Ashworth, I will put the following questions to him: Did he Mr. Ashworth take up the issue of his salary reduction with the appropriate authorities including key members in the senate who oversaw the reduction? I will also want to know what type of response he got back from them. 2. Explain the metaphor in the title and briefly explain how this is central to understanding how to work with the press, unpleasant people, leaders, governing boards, and bureaucracies. The Metaphor Caught between the dog and the fireplug means that in the midst of the demands and inevitable inefficiencies associated with public policymaking and program implementation, a savvy public servant can shape policy, have fun and a successful career. That metaphor can be better described in the words of the philosopher, theologian Thomas Aquinas who once said: virtues in medio stat virtue stands in the middle. A policy maker should be able to find a reasonable middle ground in dealing with the media, governing boards, leaders and unpleasant people. To be an effective policy maker, one cannot be on the extreme. One has to find balance, but firm in making the right decisions, which may sometimes be unpopular. The press Ashworth begins by stating that the media has an integral role to play in a democracy vis a vis policy making and program implementation. He further advised that it is the duty of the media to keep the public informed as to what is going on in the polity. If any government decides to keep all of its action a secret from the media, the ability of the people to control that government will cease to exist. But however, he advised that there should be a limit and timing as to what can be disseminated to the media. If the media has prior knowledge of governmental negotiation and reported such freely, such a report can hamper or even cripple a government project. An effective negotiation is one conducted behind closed door, after which the contents of such negotiation is then given to media. This will help protect the integrity of negotiation. A policy maker will be doing themselves a disservice if they choose not to inform the press of the outcome of a negotiation. It is important to unde rstand as Ashworth states, that the media has a job to fulfill, and it is the job of the policy maker to make sure that the press gets all the information they want at the right time. This is if the policy maker has the answers to the question. The policy maker should be very candid with the media. If he cannot give the answers to the questions posed, he should state thus. Ashworth advised that it makes for better relation with the press if they know that the policy maker in question is always candid. A policy maker may take the semblance of an extremist or even a dictator if he knowingly chooses to keep pertinent information that is for public consumption from the press. There has to be abalance. The information has to be given at the right time, and not withheld out rightly. The metaphor used in the title of the book is also very evident in what Ashworth calls humility. Ashworth asserts that as a policy maker, a little humility helps. For one to be an effective policy maker and program manager, one has to be open to criticism. Thus, a fair and accurate criticism from the media should not be seen as an attack, but rather as a time to rethink and re address the issues one is being criticized for. No one is perfect. Ashworth also mentions that another strategy used in courting the media is to be responsible with ones criticisms of the media. If a policy maker finds out that a story was in accurately written by a reporter, it is always prudent to approach the writer first, before his or her bosses. By so doing, the reporter will be more accurate, and even check in with the said policy maker for accuracy in the future. Unpleasant People Ashworth in his letter to his niece about unpleasant people states that in public service one does not have the luxury to state exactly how one feels in the face of difficult and sometimes abusive circumstance. As a public servant one has to always find that balance not to come across as insulting or known to talk down on people. One has to be careful not to be branded an elitist. This brings to mind the metaphorical title of the book being reviewed. Ashworth states that an acceptable behavior is one set from the top to the bottom. Thus, a policy maker who is at the helm of a governmental agency sets the standard of behavior which invariably rubs off on his subordinates. Ashworth stated that rather than attack an unreasonable person who is propagating an implausible idea, it is sometimes wise to take a step back and let the situation unravel itself. He gave a shocking example of an entrepreneur who was trying to float a university at a low level of quality and performance. At a heari ng designed to ensure that the state does not close the university, even the entrepreneurs lawyer was startled as to the level of his clients unpreparedness. The entrepreneurs lawyer knew that his client did not have a case against the government. One can resolve unreasonable circumstances in public service by allowing those circumstances to expose themselves. Leaders In dealing with those placed above you, one has to speculate or even find out what ones leaders or bosses want. It is important to bear in mind that those in key leadership positions have their own wants and desires they will like to see accomplished. Most of them represent constituencies, and they search for ways to look good and gather support and votes among their constituents. According to Ashworth, a wise policy maker will try to craft policies that leaders can use and look good among their constituents. Of course the policy in question has to be legal and can be operable within acceptable practices. It is by so doing that one can motivate these leaders to support the ideas or policy issues he or she is looking to accomplish. In a lay mans parlance it can be called scratch my back, and I scratch yours. Ashworth also discuss what he describes as subordinate leadership. Leading from the background or leading anonymously. Subordinate leadership can be used as a tool to make ones se lf appear valuable in the sight of leaders. Thus, coming up with introspective ideas that will attract universal opprobrium is always commendable. First, it will make the leader look strong, insightful and attractive. This is exactly what happened with the Texas minority integration policy. One will assume that a policy maker, who has such attractive ideas, will continue to enjoy job security if not some form of promotion, which unfortunately comes with more responsibility. Governing Boards Ashworths advice on how to deal with persons appointed to governing boards is the plain truth and is his advice is ad rem with everyday reality. Like everything else in life, it is always important to respect as well as gain ones trust before you can convince them to support your idea or policy. Building trust and respecting members of a governing board means that they will almost always return the favor. Respect they say is reciprocal. Ashworth rightly pointed out that because of the respect he had among board members, they seldom disrespected him or his staff. On occasions when one a board member stepped out of line to insult him, other members stepped in to defend him. They stepped in to defend him because he had built a reputation of respect, candor, straightforwardness and discipline. Ashworth also hinted on how to deal with board members he labeled as turkeys. These are misfits. They tend to believe that they know more than anyone else including fellow board members. These are members who alienate other members. His advice on turkeys is to be polite. Let the counseling and admonition come from fellow board members and not you the policy maker. I cant disagree any further. Dealing with bureaucracies In dealing with bureaucracy Ashworth advised that policy makers should use every tact with their wit to avoid any type of foot dragging that come with bureaucratic positions. Often times in bureaucratic positions one is confronted with preserving the status quo. Ashworth states that if the status quo results in bottle necks and unnecessary foot dragging, then the status quo has to be set aside to get your policy implemented in an orderly time and manner. The less bureaucratic an agency is, the more interesting the work place will be. 3. This books impact on your view of public administration as a career. Would you recommend the book to others? Why or why not? The book is an expose of what public life is all about. Ashworth uses practical on the job experiences to illustrate the ups and downs of working in the public sector. Some aspects of his letters were pessimistic and scary. His letters about working with politicians and difficult people were the most disturbing to me. I did honestly ponder if employment in the public sector was worth the sacrifice given what he had gone through. I was particularly shocked that at the unethical behavior of the politician who went out of his way to cut the salary of a public servant who opposed his bill. But like I stated earlier, every profession has its ups and downs. It is up to the individual to make the best out of the situation. Some of the advice offered here can go a long way to sooth the pains, calm nerves and provide solutions on how to deal with specific subject matters. One can also take consolation in the fact that one is called to provide good service. It is important to note that if we b elieve that our government is not meeting our needs, we have the obligation to go into government and help rectify the anomaly. We cannot sit on the fence and expect the problem to fix itself. Despite the hurdles and difficulties of working in public service, there is also a reward. The reward that you are providing good service, that you are helping to change someones life. It is logical to state that public service from Ashworths perspective is not for the faint hearted no matter how you look at it. I can unequivocally add that it is indeed a calling, given the meager remuneration. Yes. I will most definitely recommend this book to anyone seeking to serve in the public sector. It is always good to know firsthand what one is getting into. The book can also serve as a handbook in the face of difficult and precarious situation. Will situations similar to what Ashworth detailed in his letters arise? Yes they will definitely arise. If they do, Caught Between the Dog and the Fireplug can serve as a veritable tool to help wiggle one out of difficult situations. Citations Ashworth, K., Caught Between the Dog and the Fireplug. Georgetown University Press. (2007)

A Worn Path Essay -- essays research papers

In the modern short story, Eudora Welty clearly develops Phoenix Jackson as a main character who indirectly manipulates other people. Phoenix, as the speaker in â€Å"A Worn Path† holds the status of an old Negro woman who continues the everyday cycle of life. Although, in reality Phoenix is an average human being, who feels she must be rewarded for living. Phoenix believes that humanity owes her something for the troubles she encounters throughout her lifetime. When Phoenix says to the hunter, â€Å"that’s as far as I walk when I come out myself, and I get something for my trouble† (paragraph 46). Incidentally, Phoenix replies to the old hunter’s question it is quite clear that she undoubtedly is expecting compensation; whether it is a pity party or a monetary gift to settle the score. Because Phoenix feels like she must abuse other people, she appears to have the power to be in control of any situation that might come her way. Throughout Welty’s â€Å"A Worn Path,† Phoenix Jackson and her actions symbolize her to be a selfish and manipulative woman. Phoenix’s obsession with power, is the basis of her idea to manipulate other people; which is clearly explained through her dialogue with the persons she comes in contact with on her journey into town. Along with Phoenix’s obsession with being pitied upon by the hunter, she also feels like she never plans to succumb to defeat. When Phoenix replies to the old man’s question concerning why she was laying in the bushes; she said, â€Å" Lying on my ...

The Cussing Trend :: essays research papers

Cussing Trend Present generation is rolling over cussing trend. Wherever you see from daily lexicon, whether on television, stored in kids? iPod?s or packed into soccer carpool, you will find them brimming with borderline expletives. In today?s generation there?s not list, but an entire volume touch the boundary or goes up to infinity. None is unabashed about cussing trend. Well, we?re light years away from 1950?s and 1960?s. During 50?s and 60?s it was so hard to write or describe borderline expletives. Back in 1953 the writers for ?I love Lucy? couldn?t describe Lucille ball?s pregnancy by using the word ?pregnancy?. Even though it was not allowed by TV censors or in book or in Newspaper. If I compare my personal experience with 50?s and 60?s, it will cross the boundary. Well, this is about my 12 years old cousin, he was playing Xbox all the time instead of studying. So in order to push him back to study my uncle took his Xbox and hide at the good place that he could not find it. And my cousin couldn?t find it, so he started cussing on everyone that who took his Xbox. Well, when I went to his house and I ask him that what happen? And he was like that basted hide it and I was like who? He said his dad. I got shocked when he said basted to his dad. I was thinking in my mind like why this new generation is cussing and using borderline expletives. After all I ask him that where did u hear that word? And he answered that he heard on TV. With that experience I could figure out that this

Early Christian Architecture Essay

Early Christian Architecture We have spoken of how one style of architecture develops from another, and we are now to look briefly at a form which is chiefly important as being a link in the chain of styles. There are not many important buildings of the Early Christian style. It came into being at a time when not much building was going on that is, during the early centuries of Christianity, and what good examples there are, are nearly all churches. During the first three centuries of the Christian era Christianity was under the ban of persecution, and there was not much chance for it to manifest itself in great architecture. But, early in the fourth century, Constantine became Emperor and was converted to Christianity. He made Christianity the State religion. Constantine founded three large basilicas in Rome, all of which have been buried or destroyed. The chief objects to be thought of in these churches was to build without too much cost, to do it quickly, and to accommodate large congregations. A great structural principle which they used in roofing, or spanning spaces, is the truss. This is a frame of beams, or of beams and rods, so disposed and fastened as to make a continuous support or bridge across an open space. The truss was used by the Romans in roofing their basilicas. CHIEF FEATURES As the great Romanesque style grew out of this early Christian architecture, let us look at the main features of the earlier and simpler style. Some of the most important of these features are preserved also in the Gothic church and we shall wish to see, as we very easily can see, how they grew out of this first early Christian style. The buildings of this style were simple in form, but of noble proportions, and, though very plain without, they were often gorgeous within. A notable circumstance about the early Christian work is the fact that its monuments were built largely from ruins and fragments quarried from earlier Roman work. No doubt much beauty was ruthlessly destroyed in this way. Before the Christian era Cato borrowed from the Greeks their hall of justice; the first one being erected in Rome about 190 years before Christ. These basilicas usually had a large hall connected with a portico, and encircling galleries often enclosed the whole. When Christianity became a State religion these buildings came to be used for religious purposes. The basilica always had a central aisle; and this nave or central portion was usually separated from the side aisles by rows of columns. At the further end of the nave was the sanctuary or apse, in front of which stood the altar. In front of the whole was usually an atrium or fore-court, surrounded by a covered arcade. The exterior was extremely plain, and the interior resplendent with marbles and mosaics. A wooden roof covered the edifice. Figure 29 is the ground plan of a basilica which will show us the general arrangement, although this basilica does not happen to be an old Roman example. Above the columns that surrounded the nave there usually arose another story called the clerestory (clear story), the walls of which were pierced with windows. This is a feature which persists through later styles, and it is interesting to see its simple and plain beginning. Some of the Egyptian temples had clerestories, but the European examples date back only to early Christian architecture.