TAXATION UPDATES 07.05.2019

E-FILING OF INCOME TAX RETURNS REGISTERS AN INCREASE OF 19%

There have been some incorrect reports in media pertaining to reduction in numbers of Income Tax Returns (ITR) e-filed during Financial Year(F.Y.) 2018-19 as compared to F.Y. 2017-18. This is factually untrue, because the figures for F.Y. 2017-18 and F.Y. 2018-19 are not directly comparable. It is stated that during F.Y. 2017-18, out of a total of 6.74 crore ITRs which were e-filed, 5.47 crore ITRs were filed for Assessment Year (A.Y.) 2017-18 (the current year). In comparison, during F.Y. 2018-19, a total of 6.68 crore ITRs were e-filed which included 6.49 crore ITRs of current A.Y. 2018-19 marking an increase of almost 19%. This would imply that substantially larger number of taxpayers filed their ITRs electronically in the F.Y. 2018-19 as compared to F.Y. 2017-18. Furthermore, during F.Y. 2017-18, apart from the returns for the A.Y. 2017-18, nearly 1.21 crore ITRs were filed for A.Y. 2016-17. The balance number of ITRs filed for A.Y. 2015-16 and prior A.Ys is 0.06 crore. In comparison, during F.Y. 2018-19 only 0.14 crore ITRs for A.Y. 2017-18 were filed. Thus, the apparent decrease in the number of ITRs filed during F.Y. 2018-19 pertaining to earlier years was due to an amendment in Section 139(5) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 brought in vide Finance Act, 2017, w.e.f. 01.04.2018, which mandated that a revised return could be furnished only upto the end of the relevant Assessment Year. As a result, only 0.14 crore ITRs pertaining to A.Y. 2017-18 were filed during F.Y. 2018-19 as these were the revised ITRs for the relevant A.Y. which could only be filed due to change in law and no other ITR of any earlier A.Y. could be filed in view of the amended provisions of law. It is also stated that the number of paper ITRs for A.Y. 2017-18 was only 9.2 lakh (1.5% of total ITRs filed) and the number of paper ITRs for A.Y. 2018-19 is 4.8 lakh (0.6% of total ITRs filed). As per the above details, it is evident that most of the taxpayers have steadily switched to e-filing which is clear from the dwindling numbers of paper returns filed for A.Y. 2018-19 compared to earlier years.

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STATES WILL CONTINUE TO RUN LARGE DEFICITS EVEN AFTER INTRODUCTION OF GST: REPORT

Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime in India is not likely to reduce the deficits of state governments significantly, amid large and growing expenditure mandates for the social sector as well as capital spending, says a report. According to S&P Global Ratings the institutional framework for Indian states is evolving, but there is structural deficits due to persistent revenue expenditure mismatch YeeFarn Phua in the report titled Public Finance System Overview: Indian States noted that the passage of the GST bill in 2017 is a major overhaul of tax structure and will help to widen the tax base and improve revenues of state governments. However, states will continue to run large deficits because a significant part of this imbalance is from the expenditure side. States are unable to cut expenditures because of large and growing expenditure mandates for the social sector as well as capital spending. Therefore, the revenue-expenditure gap will remain large, said Phua. Further, policy implementation remains sub-par in India, the report noted. Another significant development in recent years has been the adoption of an amended Fiscal Responsibility Management (FRBM) Act, which forms the fiscal framework, in March 2018, the report noted. Under the amended FRBM Act, the government will target a debt-to-GDP ratio of 60 per cent with the split being 40:20 for central government and states. Further, the government will use fiscal deficit as the key operational target, the report said but added that the FRBM committee lacks the authority to mandate its core recommendations.

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WHY RECORD HIGH GST COLLECTION IS AN EXCEPTION AND NOT A NORM YET

India’s goods and services tax revenue touched the highest ever in April, but the spurt in collections is far from becoming the norm just yet. Collections from the nationwide sales tax rose 10 per cent to Rs 1.13 trillion ($16 billion) in April from a year ago, official data show. While that was the closest to the Rs 1.15 trillion monthly target set by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration, it’s still not enough to bridge the government’s budget gap say economists. If GST collections do not improve further and sustain, the pressure on the central government’s fiscal position will continue, economists Suvodeep Rakshit and Upasna Bhardwaj at Kotak Mahindra Bank wrote in a note. The targeted growth of 24 per cent in the financial year ending March 31 will be difficult to achieve. India let fiscal deficit widen for a second straight year as Modi, who’s seeking a second term in office in elections currently underway, tried to win over voters through cash handouts for farmers and tax cuts for the middle class. The government needs to more stringently implement programs to discourage tax evasion and boost compliance of direct and indirect taxes to alleviate the fiscal stress, said Ashray Ohri. The government had touted GST as a tool to increase tax compliance when it was introduced in July 2017. Collections under the new tax have crossed the 1 trillion rupee-mark in three of the first four months in 2019, suggesting it’s gaining traction. The jump in collections was expected to happen after transition period of adjustment is over, said Arvind Virmani. One data point doesn’t, however, make a new trend.

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GST ANTI-EVASION UNIT ASKS TATA SONS TO PAY RS 1,524 CRORE

The investigation arm of the finance ministry has asked Tata Sons, the holding company of Tata Group, to pay Rs 1,524 crore as the goods and services tax (GST) dues a senior official told. The Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI), the enforcement agency for checking indirect tax evasion, said Tata Sons is liable to pay 18 percent GST on payment of $1.17 billion to Japanese telecom firm NTT Docomo, the official said on condition of anonymity. Tatas settled a 3-year-old dispute with NTT Docomo last year, which enabled the Japanese company to exit its 26.5 percent stake in Indian telecom operator Tata Teleservices Ltd (TTSL). A DGGI official told that it was in talks with Tata Sons about the GST dues. The Mumbai unit of the DGGI booked a case in February 2019 following a detailed inspection. Tata Sons contesting claims; will send a show cause notice to the company in due course, the official said.

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ITAT RULING ON ‘STOCK IN TRADE’ MAY LEAD TO SPATE OF LITIGATIONS

Does the intention of a company or an investor while making an investment determine the tax outgo? It does, as per a recent tax ruling. And experts say the ruling, which said the tax depended on whether the investment was for strategic purposes or merely a short-term one, could open a Pandora’s box of tax litigations. A recent Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) ruling has distinguished between ‘stock in trade’ and ‘controlling interest’, allowing higher deductions and lower taxable income if the stock held by the taxpayer was ‘stock in trade’. While the ruling could help several companies and investors, it would reopen a matter that was considered shut after a Supreme Court decision, tax experts said. This was one of the issues that had maximum litigation till about a year back until the SC decision, they said. As per the SC judgement, if a company or individual has a tax-free income then corresponding expenditure for such an income is not permitted as deduction. So, any company or individual receiving dividend income cannot deduct administrative expenses. ITAT, however, has interpreted the top court decision in a different way and said if the shares were acquired merely to be held as ‘stock in trade’ then deductions should be allowed. Many holding companies of business groups, corporates and MNCs with subsidiaries and even individuals investing in stocks may now litigate for a lower tax outgo, experts said. The investors treat the investment as capital asset or stock in trade and if it’s the latter then profit is taxed as business income as the intention is to trade and earning dividend is not the prime motive. ITAT decision will support the argument that corresponding expenses be allowed.

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TVS MOTOR EXPECTS GST RATE CUT, EASY CREDIT TO OFFSET BS VI IMPACT ON MOPED

TVS Motor Company, the only manufacturer of mopeds in India, is expecting that support from retail finance companies and a possible reduction in Goods and Services Tax (GST) rates for two wheelers might help reduce the impact of implementation of Bharat Stage VI (BS VI) norms on moped prices. Analysts say that the transition from BS IV to BS VI emission norms could push up the cost of mopeds. The increase -- due to smaller size and ticket size -- is expected to be steeper for mopeds compared to other two-wheelers. Mopeds may witness the highest cost increase post BS VI (as a percentage of price), said analysts from JM Financials. K N Radhakrishnan, said during an earnings call that the company's mopeds will continue to meet all regulations. Already, TVS mopeds have moved from 2-stroke engines to 4-stroke, and electric is on the anvil. Analysts said the impact of BS-VI on the price of mopeds can be significant as technology-related costs will be much more than that on scooters or motorcycles -- as a ratio of the retail price. Prices of TVS mopeds range between Rs 29,000 and Rs 38,000. BS-VI compliance will require the addition of a fuel-injection system, along with a three-way catalytic converter, an electronic control unit, an onboard diagnostic module and an O2 sensor, according to an auto expert. We have unique qualities which cater to the bottom of the pyramid and it will completely comply with BS VI, said Radhakrishnan. The company plans to tackle this problem with the help of TVS Credit Services, a financial services arm, and other retail finance companies. TVS Motor also expects the government to bring down GST on two-wheelers from 28 per cent to 18 per cent. I think it's a fair request (to reduce GST) from the two-wheeler association. It will be good for the industry.

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SC ALLOWS KARTI CHIDAMBARAM TO GO ABROAD IN MAY; ASKS TO FILE UNDERTAKING

The Supreme Court Tuesday allowed Karti Chidambaram, who is facing criminal cases being probed by the ED and CBI, to travel to the US, Germany and Spain this month. A bench comprising Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and Justices Deepak Gupta and Sanjiv Khanna said this nod to travel abroad was subject to compliance of conditions imposed earlier.

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WHY IS RAHUL SO DISTURBED IF INTEGRITY ISSUES OF RAJIV GANDHI GOVT ARE BEING QUESTIONED: ARUN JAITLEY

Arun Jaitley Sunday wondered why Congress President Rahul Gandhi gets disturbed when integrity issues of his late father Rajiv Gandhi-led government are raised and the ‘Q’ connection in the Bofors gun-deal is questioned. In a series of tweets, Jaitley said that Rahul Gandhi thinks that dynast does not have to answer any question even though he can attack Prime Minister Narendra Modi — a man of utmost integrity. Rajiv Gandhi’s life ended as bhrashtachari No 1, Rahul Gandhi had tweeted: Modi Ji, The battle is over. Your Karma awaits you. Projecting your inner beliefs about yourself onto my father won’t protect you. All my love and a huge hug. Jaitley said that even former prime minister Indira Gandhi was also assassinated and yet the Congress is questioned about the Emergency and the Operation Blue Star. The Dynast can attack the integrity of India’s Prime Minister – a man of utmost honesty. Does he believe that the dynasty does not have to answer any questions? the Minister said. The Bofors defence deal was believed to be one of the primary reasons for the Rajiv Gandhi-led Congress’s defeat in the 1989 Lok Sabha polls. On former prime minister Manmohan Singh accusing the Modi government of leaving the economy in dire straits, Jaitley said, When an economist turns into a politician, he loses sense of both economy and politics. Dr Manmohan Singh left behind in 2014 an economic slowdown, policy paralysis and corruption. He brought down his party to lowest ever strength in Parliament. India was a part of the fragile five. Today he regards the World’s the fastest growing major economy as disastrous, Jaitley said. Singh Sunday said India is headed for an economic slowdown and accused the Modi government of leaving the economy in dire straits due to its lack of economic vision. Singh also alleged that the lack of any vision or understanding of the country’s dynamics of the economy by the Narendra Modi-led government has led to disruptive decisions like demonetisation.

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INDIA WILL BECOME ‘SUPERPOWER’ IF MODI BECOMES PM AGAIN: AMIT SHAH

Amit Shah Sunday asserted that India will emerge as a superpower in the next five years if Narendra Modi becomes the prime minister again. Shah said the country was secure only under the Modi rule. I have come to say if you make Narendra Modi PM again, India will emerge as a superpower in the world in next five years, the BJP chief told the gathering here. He was campaigning for BJP nominee and sitting MP from Chandigarh, Kirron Kher. Dubbing the Congress-led opposition ‘Mahamilavati’ (highly adulterated) ‘Mahagathbandhan’ (grand alliance), Shah reiterated that only Narendra Modi can keep the country secure. On one side, BJP and its alliance partners, and on the other hand, there is ‘Mahamilavat Mahagathbandhan’ whose leader is Rahul (Gandhi). Can they secure the country? Can they work for welfare of poor? Can they give a strong reply to terrorism? Can they give a strong reply to Pakistan? he said.

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MODI DID NOT GET ‘SANSKAR’: MALLIKARJUNA KHARGE REPLIES TO PM ON RAJIV GANDHI TAUNT

Slamming the prime minister for his bhrashtachari no. 1 taunt at Rajiv Gandhi, Mallikarjuna Kharge said Monday Narendra Modi did not get sanskar (cultural grooming) as he had escaped from home at a young age. Kharge said Modi’s remark reflected his frustration. At a rally in Uttar Pradesh Saturday, Modi attacked Rahul Gandhi, saying, Your father was termed Mr Clean by his courtiers but his life ended as bhrashtachari no. 1 (Corrupt no. 1). Kalaburagi, Kharge said Modi lacked political and practical knowledge. He did not get sanskar at home as he had fled home at a young age. Where will he get it? People should have control over their tongue when speaking, the Congress leader said. Modi’s comment on Rajiv Gandhi has drawn widespread criticism from various opposition parties, which said he lowered the dignity of the office of the prime minister. The BJP has countered the charge saying every word Modi said about the former PM was true. It received support from ally Shiromani Akali Dal. Kharge alleged that Modi always tried to rake up emotional issues and spoke lies. Alleging that falsehood was a quality Modi has since birth, Kharge said he had insulted a martyr who sacrificed his life for the unity of the nation. When Modi speaks so low about a person who gave his life for the nation, it means that he has no heart, no patriotism and his only objective is to win the election. It is unfortunate that the prime minister lacks the wisdom of what to talk and what not to talk. Except for talking, his contribution to the nation is nil, he charged. The Congress leader predicted victory in Amethi, Rae Bareli and elsewhere in Uttar Pradesh. Rahul Gandhi is contesting from Amethi and his mother Sonia Gandhi from Rae Bareli.

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CONGRESS’ NYAY HAS POTENTIAL TO BOOST INDIA’S GROWTH

NYAY scheme would present a new model of social welfare which may help to boost economic growth Singh told. The scheme which aims to provide basic minimum income for poor is based on ‘prudent economics’ whose benefits may increas consumption across the country, leading to a faster pace of growth, he added. The two-time Prime Minister, who is credited for scripting economic reforms in the 1990s, said only the people who have no compassion for the poor can oppose such a scheme. It’s absolutely fair to spend 1.5 per cent of the GDP for 20 per cent of the poor, he noted. Rejecting the claims that the middle class will be burdened with fresh taxes, he said that there is no such need to put pressure on the middle class to finance the scheme. Congress is totally committed towards maintaining fiscal balance, he also told PTI. Coming down heavily on the ‘disruptive’ economic policies by the Narendra Modi government, the renowned economist said that the decisions such as demonetisation by the government are the result of limited understanding of the economy. The government lacks clear economic vision or understanding about the dynamics of the economy, he added. The government could have made the country grow much faster if they had used the extraordinary majority enjoyed by it to bring about the right set of economic reforms, he said. The government could have used the mandate to the right effect and eliminated poverty in the previous five years, he noted.

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MODI UNLEASHED 'TAX TERRORISM' ON TRADERS: KEJRIWAL

Arvind Kejriwal on Monday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of unleashing tax terrorism on traders and destroying the country's financial system. The BJP, which used to be traders' party, has broken the backbone of the community, he alleged, adding thousands notices are being sent to traders and all this is being done with the intention of extorting money from them. The Modi government has unleashed 'tax terrorism' on traders, Kejriwal told reporters. The policies of the Modi government have ruined traders. In a single stroke, demonetisation brought endless miseries to traders. When the traders' community had barely recovered from this rude shock, the Modi government hastily brought in the GST, which nobody could understand since it was implemented without any proper planning, he alleged. After note ban, the next jolt came in the form of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) which led to the closure of many shops and factories, causing loss of numerous jobs and heaped miseries on traders, the AAP leader claimed, adding under the Modi government, the traders' community is feeling orphaned. I want to appeal to the traders of Delhi that so far you were with Modi, what did you get? Now build a relationship with Kejriwal, he will honour the relationship with you till his last breath, he told.

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INDIA AND U.S. HOLD BILATERAL TRADE MEETING

Suresh Prabhuand and Mr. Wilbur Ross appreciated the strong, robust and growing bilateral ties between India and the U.S. across the entire spectrum of trade and commerce. Both sides expressed satisfaction over the progress during the year 2018, with bilateral trade in Goods and Services registering a growth of 12.6% from $ 126 billion in 2017 to $142 billion in 2018. India appreciated the US Trade Winds Indo-Pacific Business Forum and Mission initiative 2019, being held at New Delhi. The forum will bring together distributors, representatives and partners and enable them to increase sales by taking part in business-to-business meetings from 8-10^th May, 2019, across India. Both co-chairs also complimented the new bilateral private sector led Small Business Interaction initiative, the US - India SME Forum, held in the forenoon in New Delhi. This is the first event of its kind and would pave the way for collaboration and partnership between the U.S. and Indian small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the areas of manufacturing and services. Both sides agreed to engage regularly at various levels to resolve outstanding trade issues by exploring suitable solutions, which are mutually beneficial and promote economic development and prosperity in both countries.

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COURT RESERVES ORDER ON ATISHI'S COMPLAINT AGAINST GAUTAM GAMBHIR

A court on Monday reserved its order on East Delhi Lok Sabha seat candidate Atishi's plea seeking summoning of records from state election commission on her allegation that her BJP rival Gautam Gambhir holds two voter ID cards. Metropolitan Magistrate Viplav Dabas said that he will deliver order on May 13 whether to summon records and documents from the state poll panel. Atishi had filed the complaint at the Tis Hazari Court, seeking direction for police investigation into offences punishable under Sections 17 and 31 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950 and Section 125A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951. As per Section 17 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950, no person is entitled to be enrolled as a voter in more than one constituency. Section 31 makes false declaration in the matter of inclusion or exclusion of voter rolls punishable with up to one year in prison, she said. The concealment of information provided in an election affidavit is also punishable under Section 125A of the said Act, with up to six months in jail, she added.

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BJP MAY NEED ALLIES FOR A MAJORITY IN LOK SABHA POLLS 2019, SAYS RAM MADHAV

A senior leader of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling party forecasts it may fall just short of a clean majority the first time the prospect of a coalition has ben raised in the final two weeks of India’s marathon election campaign. The conservative forecast by Ram Madhav, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s national general secretary, is just short of a clear majority in the 543-seat parliament, and is far below what other party leaders including finance minister Arun Jaitley and party president Amit Shah have publicly claimed. If we get 271 seats on our own, we will be very happy, Madhav said. With NDA we will have a comfortable majority, he said referring to the National Democratic Alliance. The party will make up expected losses in the north Indian states it swept in 2014 with new gains in the country’s remote northeast, as well as in the eastern states of West Bengal and Odisha, Madhav said. It will pursue pro-growth policies if it returns to power, he added, and has not shifted from a focus on economic reforms to one based on populist cash handouts. The mood was more upbeat among the 50,000 people who packed into barren farmland covered in a huge tent near Bhadhoi -- the carpet manufacturing capital of India -- at one of Modi’s many election rallies. Before the prime minister spoke, the deputy chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, Keshav Prasad Maura. 2014 was a Modi wave. 2019 is a Modi tsunami, Maura said. Your vote on the lotus will mean dropping 1000 kilogram bombs on terrorist camps, he said, referring to the party’s symbol -- a lotus -- which is featured along with other party insignia on the buttons on electronic voting machine. Modi arrived in an India Air Force helicopter and was greeted like a rock star. Another significant development in India’s foreign policy had been the strengthening relationship between Modi and China’s President Xi Jinping. They have developed a very good personal rapport, Madhav said. On China’s vast and contentious Belt and Road infrastructure project, which India has refused to sign on to, Madhav said until the question of sovereignty was resolved there could be no compromise. India has long objected to the program because it funds $60 billion worth of infrastructure in Pakistan, including in parts of disputed Kashmir, which India claims as its own. We still have a view that the whole project is conceived unilaterally, Madhav said.

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CONGRESS WRITES TO EC, DEMANDS ACTION AGAINST PM MODI OVER 'BHRASHTACHARI NO.1' REMARK

Congress has written to Election Commission of India (ECI) demanding action against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for violating Model Code of Conduct (MCC) over his Bhrashtachari number 1 statement on former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. On Saturday, Modi while addressing an election rally in Uttar Pradesh had said, the life of Congress president Rahul Gandhi's father Rajiv Gandhi ended as 'Bhrashtachari number 1.' Your father was termed 'Mr Clean' by his courtiers, but his life ended as 'Bhrashtachari No 1,' Modi had said.

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INDIA POLITICISING FATF PROCEEDINGS AGAINST PAKISTAN: PAKISTAN FOREIGN OFFICE

India has been politicising the proceedings at the FATF against Pakistan, the Foreign Office claimed Friday, a day after the Indian government said it seeks downgrading of Pakistan on the global watch dog's terrorism financing list. Arun Jaitley said on Thursday that India will ask the global money laundering and terror finance watchdog to put Pakistan on a blacklist of countries that fail to meet international standards in stopping financial crime. Jaitley told, adding that the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force (FATF) was due to meet in mid-May and India would make its request then. The statement re-confirms Pakistan's longstanding concerns that this technical forum is being politicised by India against Pakistan, Pakistan Foreign Office said. India has made several efforts in the past as well to politicise the proceedings at FATF, it said in a statement. The last plenary of the FATF in February decided to continue to keep Pakistan in the grey list of countries whose domestic laws are considered weak to tackle the challenges of money laundering and terrorism financing. The Foreign Office claimed that prior to the FATF plenary meeting in February 2019, India circulated its own assessment of Pakistan's progress and solicited immediate support for blacklisting Islamabad. On several previous occasions, calculated leaks were made to the Indian media about the proceedings of the FATF, which are strictly confidential, it said. The Foreign Office said these instances of politicisation by India were brought to the attention of the President of FATF by the Finance Minister of Pakistan. India's attempts to politicise the proceedings in FATF against Pakistan call into question its credentials for co-chairing and being a member of the Asia Pacific Joint Group that reviews the progress made by Pakistan to implement the FATF Action Plan, it said.

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CAN'T ENSURE CHEAPER OIL SALES TO INDIA: US COMMERCE SECRETARY

The US government will not ensure sale of its oil to India at cheaper rates as the commodity is controlled by private companies, US commerce secretary Wilbur Ross said on Monday. Ross is in India to participate in a trade forum. The latest US sanctions against Iran has barred Asian buyers, including India, from importing oil from Tehran. Iran was shipping oil to India at discounted rates. Oil is owned by private people so the government cannot force people to make concessionary prices, Ross said, when asked if the United States is considering selling oil to India at a concessional rates to make for loss of Iranian barrels.

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SRI LANKA EXTENDS DEADLINE BY 48 HOURS FOR PUBLIC TO HAND OVER SWORDS, SHARP WEAPONS

Sri Lankan authorities Monday extended by 48 hours the deadline for the public to surrender swords, daggers, sharp weapons and clothing similar to that of military uniforms as part of a crackdown on suspects following the Easter Sunday bombings which killed over 250 people. On Saturday, the Sri Lankan police asked the public to hand over swords and large knives to the nearest police station after a large haul of weapons, including swords, and camouflaged materials were recovered during searches of mosques and houses. The time period granted to hand in swords, daggers, sharp weapons and clothing similar to that of military uniforms has been extended by 48 hours. The time period set to hand in such objects was to expire at midnight today (Monday), News 1st channel reported. The police Head Office has taken all necessary steps to inform the police stations across the country about the extension, police media spokesperson SP Ruwan Gunasekara said. According to the police, several people including politicians were arrested for possessing sharp-edged weapons like swords since the crackdown began to arrest the suspects and their network, following the April 21 blasts which killed 253 people and injured over 500 others. The Islamic State terror group claimed the attacks, but the government blamed local Islamist extremist group National Thowheeth Jamaath (NTJ). Sri Lanka banned the NTJ and arrested over 100 people in connection with the blasts. Sri Lanka has imposed a state of emergency since the attacks and given sweeping powers to soldiers and police to arrest and detain suspects for long periods. House-to-house searches are being carried out across the country looking for explosives and propaganda material of Islamic extremists.

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SRI LANKA MINISTER ASKS SECURITY FORCES TO AVOID INCIDENTS THAT MAY LEAD TO RADICALISATION OF MUSLIMS

Sri Lankan security forces should avoid the incidents that caused some people face social stigma during the search operations after the Easter Sunday blasts carried out by a cult within the community, as it may lead to radicalisation of moderate Muslims in the country, a Minister has warned. Rauff Hakeem said Muslims welcome and support the security forces and police to carry out search operations following the April 21 carnage in which over 250 people were killed. There have been few incidents of concern during these operations, which should be avoided as these could lead to radicalisation of moderate Muslims in the country, he was quoted as saying by the Daily Mirror on Monday. Some people have suffered social stigma as a result of some minor happenings during search operations being sensationalised. One must not get carried away if Islamic literature written in Arabic or in Tamil is found in a house. It may not be terrorist literature. There may be anti-(Osama) Bin Laden or anti-extremist literature with some people. The security forces could get help from the Department of Muslim Affairs to interpret such literature, the Minister told. Hakeem also said that the bombings had been carried out by a cult living among the Muslims which earlier attacked the mainstream mosques in certain Middle Eastern countries. We as Muslims had warned the authorities of certain activities such as speeches made by certain people promoting extremism, which is against Islam, by certain groups from time to time, he said.

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INDIAN SAILORS' ABDUCTION: SUSHMA SWARAJ ASKS HIGHEST LEVEL ACTION

Sushma Swaraj on Tuesday asked the Indian High Commissioner in Nigeria to take the abduction of five Indian sailors by pirates in the African nation two weeks ago, at the highest level. The Minister also asked Indian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Abhay Thakur, to prepare a report over the incident. I have seen news reports about abduction of five Indian sailors by pirates in Nigeria. I am asking Indian High Commissioner to take this up at the highest level with Government of Nigeria for their release. Abhay - Please take this up and send me a report. @india_nigeria, Sushma Swaraj said in a tweet. According to reports, it has been over two weeks since the sailors were abducted. Their families said that they have been unable to contact them for several days. The Indian mission in Nigeria wrote back to her saying the officials are in touch with the Nigerian Navy and police for the past 10 days. The High Commission also said that the concerned parties (the abductors) have made initial contact.

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ARMY TO INDUCT 460 RUSSIAN-ORIGIN TANKS TO ADD MUSCLE ON PAKISTAN FRONT

The Indian Army will induct an additional 464 Russian-origin upgraded T-90 'Bhishma' main-battle tanks at a cost of Rs 13,448 crore in the 2022-2026 time frame to bolster its shock and awe capabilities on the western front, even as Pakistan is also discussing a deal with Russia for acquiring about 360 such tanks. Defence ministry sources on Monday said the indent to produce the 464 T-90 tanks would soon be placed on the Avadi Heavy Vehicle Factory (HVF) under the Ordnance Factory Board after the cabinet committee on security cleared the licence acquisition from Russia over a month ago. The Army already has around 1,070 T-90 tanks as well as 124 'Arjun' and 2,400 older T-72 tanks in its 67 armoured regiments. After the first 657 T-90 tanks were imported for Rs 8,525 crore from Russia from 2001 onwards, another 1,000 are being progressively licenced and produced by HVF with Russian kits. There has been some delay in the indent for the remaining 464 tanks, which will also have night-fighting capabilities. Once it is done, the first 64 tanks should be delivered in 30-41 months, said a source. The move comes at a time when the 1.3-million strong Army is also re-formatting its entire war-fighting machinery and the Cold Start or Pro-Active Strategy, which envisages fast mobilisation to strike hard across the border with multiple offensive thrusts. This task will primarily be carried out by restructured and agile integrated battle groups (IBGs) centred around the T-90S tanks, along with a mix of infantry, artillery, air defence, signals and engineers, backed by attack helicopters. The Army's new Land Warfare Doctrine itself notes that the response along the western front will be sharp and swift, with the aim to destroy the adversary's centre of gravity and secure spatial gains. Army chief General Bipin Rawat in January had announced the new IBGs would be war-gamed in February and then tested in an exercise in May. But the ongoing tensions with Pakistan, in the aftermath of the Pulwama attack and the consequent Balakot air strikes, which led to precautionary deployments, have delayed execution of the plan.

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PAK MOVES A STEP CLOSER TO IMF BAILOUT PACKAGE AFTER IMRAN OVERHAULS TEAM

Pakistan moved a step closer to concluding a financial aid package with the International Monetary Fund after Prime Minister Imran Khan overhauled his economic team and chose a former official from the Washington-based lender as governor of the nation’s central bank. Reza Baqir -- who served in senior positions at the IMF in past 18 years, including as the fund’s resident representative in Egypt -- was named head of the State Bank of Pakistan at the weekend. His predecessor Tariq Bajwa was fired along with the chief of the tax-collecting agency, Mohammad Jehanzeb Khan. Pakistan needs the financial aid to ease a balance-of-payment crisis triggered by high fiscal and current-account deficits and dwindling foreign exchange reserves. The South Asian nation has already taken 12 IMF support packages since the 1980s. Shaikh is now negotiating what he called a reasonable loan package with the IMF’s team, led by mission chief Ernesto Ramirez Rigo, who is currently in Islamabad for talks with officials. Negotiations with the IMF have stalled twice in the past over various disagreements, such as the exchange rate policy. The IMF wants Pakistan to raise its tax-to-GDP ratio significantly and contain losses at public enterprises in order to plug financial gaps. Pakistan’s credit score was downgraded by S&P Global Ratings in February, which cited a weak economic outlook and the delay in securing an IMF bailout. The rupee weakened 18 percent in the past year, the worst-performing currency in Asia, while the benchmark KSE-100 Index of stocks lost 15 percent and closed Friday at the lowest level in almost three years. Despite seeking financial help from friendly nations like China, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, Khan’s economic worries aren’t over. The government is facing slower economic growth and weak revenue collection, limiting its ability to spend. The administration is due to unveil its first budget later this month or early in June. The funds secured so far still appear insufficient to place Pakistan’s external financing on a sound footing over the medium term, said Jeremy Zook. Reserves have continued to decline and gross financing needs remain elevated. An IMF agreement could attract more stable financing by opening options for budget support from multilateral lenders and improve access to bilateral sources and global capital markets, he said.

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LANKA NOW SAFE, ALL EXTREMISTS LINKED TO EASTER BOMBINGS KILLED OR ARRESTED: SECURITY AUTHORITIES

All the Islamic extremists involved in the Easter suicide bombings are either killed or arrested, Sri Lankan police and military chiefs have claimed, assuring that the country is now safe and can get back to normalcy. The tri-forces commanders and the police chief, addressing a press conference on Monday night, said the security of the country following the April 21 bombings that left 257 people dead has been ensured with adequate measures and steps have been taken to implement a special security plan. Acting Inspector General of Police (IGP) Chandana Wickremaratne said that all those directly linked to the attacks on three churches and three luxury hotels have been arrested or were killed. He also said that all the explosives believed to be linked to local Islamist outfit National Thowheeth Jama'ath (NTJ), blamed for the attacks, have been found. All explosives possessed by the terrorist group has been seized Almost everyone identified with the group have been arrested. Two of their bomb experts have died in the clashes. The police can happily announce that everyone with direct links have been either arrested or killed by now, Wickremaratne said. Wickramaratne did not say how many people have been arrested over the bombings, but police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekera on Monday said that 73 people, including nine women, were arrested and being questioned by the CID and the Terrorist Investigation Department (TID). The police spokesman also said the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) identified more than Rs 140 million cash and other assets worth over Rs 7 billion belonging to the NTJ. The Islamic State terror group claimed the attacks, the island nation's worst, but the government blamed ISIS linked local Islamist extremist group NTJ. Wickramaratne, who was named acting police chief last week after President Maithripala Sirisena suspended his predecessor over his failure to act on intellegence warnings about the attacks, said the country can now get back to normalcy with the lifting of curfews imposed after the attacks. Wickramaratne urged the public not to be misled by unverified reports. All security measures to ensure safety in the country has been taken. The security forces were empowered by the emergency regulations since the attacks, Lt Gen Senanayake said.

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US TO PROPOSE HIKE IN H-1B APPLICATION FEE: LABOUR SECRETARY

The Trump administration is proposing a hike in the H-1B visa application fee to increase funding for the expansion of an apprentice programme, which trains American youths in technology related activities, Labour Secretary Alexander Acosta told US lawmakers. Testifying before a Congressional committee on annual budget of the Department of Labour for the fiscal year 2020 beginning October 1, 2019, Acosta, however, did not give details of the proposed increase in H-1B filing fee and as to which categories of applicants it would be enforced on. But given past experience, the Indian IT companies, which account for a large number of H-1B applications, are likely to face the additional financial burden because of this proposed increase in H-1B filing fees. The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. The technology companies depend on it to hire tens of thousands of employees each year from countries like India and China. Arguing that foreigners hurt American workers by competing for jobs and driving down wages, the Trump administration has tighten the noose around the H-1B visa programme. The Seattle Times on Monday reported that last year immigration officials denied nearly one out of every four requests for new visas for skilled foreign workers. In FY 2020, the Department's budget includes USD 160 million to continue our expansion of apprenticeship programmes, along with a proposal to increase H-1B fee revenues to fund additional apprenticeship activities, Acosta said in his testimony on May 2 before the Senate Appropriations Committee — Subcommittee on Labour, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies. Acosta told lawmakers that last year the Department of Labour had launched the first-ever sector-based apprenticeship grant funding opportunity to invest USD 150 million to expand apprenticeships in those in-demand industry sectors most often filled by individuals on H-1B visas, such as information technology, health care and advanced manufacturing. This grant funding opportunity introduced an innovative approach: a 35 percent private-sector match requirement. This brings the total investment to USD 202.5 million, USD 57.7 million coming from the private sector, he said. As a result of this private sector match requirement, educators have a greater incentive to join with industry to ensure curricula address the needs of our ever-changing workplace, investing in the latest technologies and techniques, and providing more in-demand opportunities for Americans, Acosta said.

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US-CHINA TRADE WAR THREAT TO WORLD ECONOMY, MUST BE RESOLVED: IMF'S LAGARDE

International Monetary Fund (IMF) head Christine Lagarde said on Tuesday that China and the United States must resolve their trade tensions because they threaten the global economy. For us at the IMF, it's imperative that trade tensions are resolved in a way satisfying for everyone because clearly tensions between the United States and China are the threat to the global economy, said Lagarde, on the sidelines of a conference at France's finance ministry.

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US COURT STOPS ADVERSE VISA POLICY, GIVES RELIEF TO INDIANS

A US district court has issued a preliminary injunction that prevents the United States citizenship and immigration services (USCIS) from implementing an adverse policy under which unlawful presence of international students (including their dependents, such as spouses and children) is computed retroactively This action by the court, pending disposal of the lawsuit, is significant as unlawful presence can result in being barred from re-entering US for a certain period. It spells good news for the 2 lakh odd students from India currently studying in the US. An individual who accrues more than 180 days of unlawful presence before departing from the US can be barred from reentry for three years. An individual unlawfully present in the US for more than a year is barred for 10 years. The order, dated May 3, relates to a lawsuit filed by several colleges, such as Guilford College, The New School and others. Soon after the lawsuit was filed, Paul Hughes, partner at Mayer Brown, and co-counsel to the lawsuit had told, that the objective was to protect the rights of international students The new USCIS policy, which upsets more than two decades of consistent immigration practice, is unlawful, he had stated. The subject matter of the suit is a policy memorandum issued by USCIS (which the court has currently blocked from being enforced), that came into effect from August 9, 2018. Under the revised policy, international students automatically begin to accrue unlawful presence in the US the day after they violate their student status even if their granted tenure of stay has not expired.

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CHINA GIVES MODEST BOOST TO ECONOMY WITH RRR CUT AMID RENEWED TRADE TENSIONS

China’s central bank said on Monday it will cut reserve requirement ratios (RRRs) to release about 280 billion yuan ($41 billion) for some small and medium-sized banks, in a targeted move to help companies struggling amid an economic slowdown. The cut in the amount of cash that banks must hold as reserves would be the smallest since January 2018, when the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) started its latest round of policy easing to support the world’s second-largest economy. The cut, while widely expected at some point, was announced right before China’s stock market opened, and just hours after U.S. President Donald Trump sharply escalated trade tensions between the world’s two largest economies. The PBOC said in a statement that the reduction will come into effect on May 15. The funds will be used for loans to small and private companies. The central bank said it will cut the RRR for about 1,000 rural commercial banks operating in counties to 8 percent, equal to the RRR for smaller rural credit cooperatives. The move will help lower funding costs for small and micro firms, the PBOC said. Small and medium-sized banks currently have RRRs ranging from 10 percent to 11.5 percent. The PBOC has already delivered five RRR cuts since early 2018, lowering the ratio to 13.5 percent for big banks and 11.5 percent for small-to medium-sized lenders. The central bank pumped out 3.35 trillion yuan in net liquidity through the five reserve cuts, according to Reuters calculations based on PBOC data and analyst estimates. Previous policy announcements usually fell on non-trading times after the market closed, analysts from Citic Securities noted, making the timing of this announcement intriguing. Despite the policy boost, China’s major stock indexes still extended heavy losses.

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ALIBABA RE-EVALUATES INDIA STRATEGY, MAY FOCUS ON SMALLER DEALS

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd is reviewing its India investment strategy that could see the Jack Ma-led Chinese e-commerce giant take a more judicious approach by making more vertical e-commerce investments and smaller early-stage deals, three people aware of the matter said. The potential shift in strategy follows Alibaba’s disappointments at some of its large e-commerce bets such as online retailers Snapdeal and Paytm Mall, which have widely lagged behind the e-commerce market dominated by Flipkart and Amazon. To be sure, Alibaba has experienced some robust successes with its investments in India. The company is known for its early bet on Paytm, currently India’s most valuable startup. Alibaba’s other bets in India such as BigBasket and Zomato have also done well. Other key investments of Alibaba in India include e-commerce logistics firm Xpressbees. Alibaba’s experiences in India have made the Chinese firm reconsider its future investment areas and the size of investments, said the people cited earlier. In China as well as other countries, Alibaba has a three-pronged investment strategy of e-commerce, payments and logistics. Now, if e-commerce, the biggest of those, stumbles, it will look for different bets, said one of the three people aware of Alibaba’s plans. Alibaba truly believes that e-commerce can change the lives of millions of people. But after their experience in India, today if an e-commerce firm comes to them, they will be a lot more cautious to see how it will differentiate from every other existing game in town, said the second person aware of the matter. While Alibaba’s Indian investments are overseen by Raghav Bahl, who was appointed in August, it also launched a $100 million venture capital fund, BAce Capital, which is anchored by Ant Financial, the payments affiliate of Alibaba. Alibaba established a separate team for BAce because they needed an independent chain of command and independent valuation procedure to go fast on small deals, said the second person cited earlier. Such deals would range from $250,000 to $15 million across Series A and Series B, a departure from the much larger cheques it writes at later stages. Alibaba is also evaluating vertical e-commerce firms in India, which are seeing huge investor traction in segments such as baby-care, online pharmacies and furniture retailing. It had considered an investment of about $150 million in FirstCry, India’s largest online retailer of baby products, Mint reported in October. However, Japan’s SoftBank won the deal eventually and invested $400 million in FirstCry in January.

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END-USER IT SPENDING IN INDIA TO REACH $15 BILLION IN 2019: GARTNER

End-user information technology spends by Indian companies will jump by nearly 10 percent to $15 billion in 2019, a report said Monday. The fastest growth will be in the business process outsourcing sector, which is estimated to grow at over 14 percent to $1.9 billion, the estimate by the consultancy firm Gartner said. High GDP growth rates are driving local organisations to increase their investment in infrastructure, applications and digital initiatives, which are increasingly moving to the cloud, its vice president for research Arup Roy said. Non-traditional sectors like logistics, transportation and manufacturing are experiencing healthy growth rates as their business models get centered on investments in IT, he added. On the BPO front, the report said crowdsourcing, working at home (WAH) or teleworking, and the 'gig economy' will account for 40 percent of the customer management (CM) BPO workforce by 2021, up from 7 percent in 2017. By 2021, it will account for an estimated 900,000 people. Nearly two-thirds of this will be employed by CM BPO service providers, while the rest will be employed by end-user companies directly, Roy said.

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MICROSOFT UNVEILS ITS OWN BLOCKCHAIN-BASED SERVICE

Joining the Blockchain bandwagon, Microsoft has unveiled fully-managed Azure Blockchain Service that would simplify the formation, management and governance so that businesses can focus on workflow logic and application development Instead of supporting cryptocurrency transactions, Azure Blockchain Service will let businesses develop their applications on its Cloud-based platform. Microsoft has also announced a partnership with J.P. Morgan to make Quorum (an enterprise-focused version of open-sourced platform Ethereum) the first ledger available in Azure Blockchain Service. Because it's built on the popular Ethereum protocol, which has the world's largest Blockchain developer community, 'Quorum' is a natural choice, Mark Russinovich Chief Technology Officer, Microsoft Azure, said in a statement.

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THRUST REVERSER ‘NOT WORKING’ ON FLORIDA PLANE THAT CRASHED IN RIVER

A feature that helps aircraft slow down on landing was broken on a Boeing 737 that skidded into a river in Florida, a top transportation safety official said on Sunday. The plane carrying 143 people slid off the runway after a hard landing on Saturday at a naval air station in Jacksonville during a lightning storm. Police said 21 people were taken to hospital with minor injuries but no fatalities or critical injuries were reported. Transport safety officials said the thrust reverser which are supposed to help to slow the aircraft down was not working. The aircraft had been in maintenance and the log noted that the left-hand thrust reverser was inoperative, Bruce Landsberg, told. He said investigators would be examining the maintenance of the aircraft in the weeks prior to the accident and the condition of the thrust reversers will obviously be of interest. The pilot also requested a change of runway, landing on one air traffic control advised had naval equipment on it, reducing the available runway length by 1,200 feet, Landsberg said. We don’t know what they were thinking or why they made that choice. That will be one of the things we look to find out, as we go through the cockpit voice recorder, he said. The plane involved was a Boeing 737-800, in operation for 18 years, according to the FlightRadar24 website. US aerospace giant Boeing is under scrutiny following two crashes that killed a total of 346 passengers and crew and grounded its newer 737 MAX planes worldwide. Both a Lion Air crash in Indonesia in October and March’s Ethiopian Airlines crash outside Addis Ababa occurred shortly after takeoff.

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UNICHEM LABS ALLERGIC RHINITIS DRUG GETS TENTATIVE APPROVAL FROM USFDA

Unichem Laboratories Tuesday said it has received tentative approval from the US health regulator for its generic copy of allergic rhinitis Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc's Zyrtec-D 12 Hour used for treating allergic rhinitis. The tentative nod by the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) is for the company's Cetirizine Hydrochloride and Pseudoephedrine Hydrochloride extended-release tablets, 5 mg/120 mg, Unichem Laboratories said in a regulatory filing.

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US-CHINA TRADE WAR: BEIJING CONSIDERING CANCELLING HIGH-LEVEL TALKS WITH AMERICA, SAY MEDIA REPORTS

China is considering to cancel the high-level trade talks with the US, multiple media reports have said, hours after President Donald Trump threatened to impose more punishing tariffs on USD 200 billion worth of Chinese products. President Trump’s remarks came on Sunday as the two countries locked in a longstanding trade war seemed near to striking a trade deal. A high-level Chinese delegation led by Vice Premier Liu He was scheduled to be in Washington this week to resume talks aimed at resolving the trade war that has cast gloom over the world economy. Chinese Vice Premier will likely cancel the trip he had planned for himself and a 100-person delegation for the final round of talks. The US officials had previously said that a deal could be reached by Friday. But Trump’s tweets surprised many and appear to reflect on the difficulties in the US-China trade negotiations that have been going on since December when the US president and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping agreed to work on a trade deal within a time frame of 100 days. For 10 months, China has been paying tariffs to the USA of 25 per cent on 50 billion dollars of High Tech, and 10 per cent on 200 billion dollars of other goods, Trump said in a series of tweets on Sunday. These payments are partially responsible for America’s great economic results, he said. The 10 per cent will go up to 25 per cent on Friday. 325 billions dollars of additional goods sent to us by China remain untaxed, but will be shortly, at a rate of 25 per cent, he said. Trump said the tariffs paid to the US have had little impact on product cost, mostly borne by China. The Trade Deal with China continues, but too slowly, as they attempt to renegotiate. No! he tweeted. The Wall Street Journal report said that Trump’s tweet had taken Beijing by surprise. China shouldn’t negotiate with a gun pointed to its head, an unnamed Chinese person was quoted as saying in the report. A decision on whether to go ahead with the talks this week has not been made, the report said. Trump’s latest move will raise duties on more than 5,000 products made by Chinese producers, ranging from chemicals to textiles and consumer goods. The US president originally imposed a 10 per cent tariff on these goods in September that was due to rise in January, but postponed this as negotiations advanced.

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FACEBOOK 'LABELS' POSTS BY HAND, POSING PRIVACY QUESTIONS

Over the past year, a team of as many as 260 contract workers in Hyderabad, India has ploughed through millions of Facebook Inc photos, status updates and other content posted since 2014. The workers categorize items according to five dimensions, as Facebook calls them. These include the subject of the post - is it food, for example, or a selfie or an animal? What is the occasion - an everyday activity or major life event? And what is the author's intention - to plan an event, to inspire, to make a joke? The work is aimed at understanding how the types of things users post on its services are changing, Facebook said. That can help the company develop new features, potentially increasing usage and ad revenue. Details of the effort were provided by multiple employees at outsourcing firm Wipro Ltd over several months. The workers spoke on condition of anonymity due to fear of retaliation by the Indian firm. Facebook later confirmed many details of the project. Wipro declined to comment and referred all questions to Facebook. The Wipro work is among about 200 content labeling projects that Facebook has at any time, employing thousands of people globally, company officials told Reuters. Many projects are aimed at training the software that determines what appears in users' news feeds and powers the artificial intelligence underlying many other features. The labeling efforts have not previously been reported. The company said its legal and privacy teams must sign off on all labeling efforts, adding that it recently introduced an auditing system to ensure that privacy expectations are being followed and parameters in place are working as expected. But one former Facebook privacy manager, speaking on condition of anonymity, expressed unease about users' posts being scrutinized without their explicit permission. The European Union's year-old General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has strict rules about how companies gather and use personal data and in many cases requires specific consent. It remains unclear exactly how GDPR will be interpreted and whether regulators and consumers would see Facebook's internal labeling practices as problematic. Europe's top data privacy official declined to comment on possible concerns. A Facebook spokeswoman said: We make it clear in our data policy that we use the information people provide to Facebook to improve their experience and that we might work with service providers to help in this process. Facebook users are not offered the chance to opt out of their data being labeled. At Wipro, the posts being examined include not only public posts but also those that are shared privately to a limited set of a user's friends. That ensures the sample reflects the range of activity on Facebook and Instagram, said Karen Courington, director of product support operations at Facebook.

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CS Meetesh Shiroya