BUDGET BASICS

A lot of People gather at the hall and discuss matters that mean most to the nation, followed by occasional 'booing' by the opposition and claps from the ruling party. So which side do you take? The following data gives a simple description of what the budget is all about and how to interpret it.

1. What is a Budget ?

Budget is Estimate of inflows and outflows of the Government during a year. Budget is presented for the ensuing Financial year.

2. What does Budget consist of?

Every budget consist of Actual figures for preceding years, Budget and revised figures for the current year, Budget estimates for the following years

So the Budget presented in March 2001 will be estimate of Inflows and outflows of the Funds for the period beginning from 1st April 2001 to 31st March 2002.

3. When is Budget presented?

Budget is to be presented in Lok Sabha on a day as the President directs. By convention, the Budget is presented in Parliament on the last working day of February.

4. Who draws the timetable for Budget?

Timetable is drawn by the Business Advisory Committee (BAC) of Parliament. In the schedule drawn up by the BAC, there is a fixed period of discussion for each ministry.

5. Who has the responsibility for Budget?

Budget Division in the Finance Ministry has the overall responsibility. It prepares the budget on basis of proposal received from various departments and ministries and the availability of funds. However, final approval is from the Prime Minister.

6. What if Budget is not approved by 1st April?

The Constitution empowers Lok Sabha to grant a Vote-on-Account (Article 116) so that the government can continue with the necessary expenditure into the new fiscal, before the Budget proposals actually get passed after necessary discussions. The vote-on-account normally covers the expenditure requirement of the government for two months.


7. Is it compulsory to have budget for every year?
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8. How to understand the Budget Document?
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9. What is the process of Budget approval?
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Courtesy: http://www.banknetindia.com

Good Morning North-East

It seems good days are back at the doorsteps of this once forgotten land of ours. Companies seem to have taken a new step in selecting MBA students from far fledged IIM-Shillong, located in Meghalaya, North-East India.

A delighted Director of the new IIM, Prof Ashoke K Dutta said, "When we approached the companies, initially they were hesitant. The challenge was to convince them as to how the products would be of help to them."

It seems being from IIM itself is not an advantage after all. The students as well as the administration have to also position themselves to grab the attention of the Corporates. Proper positioning must also be done to convince the biggies that the students have the basic skills in them to hold back major repercussions during the inverted curve period.

What the North-East needs is to make itself open for more opportunities pour in. Conditions like extremism are still prevalent and fresh in the minds of investors. Companies must convey their message to the people of the North-East that instead of feeling insecure, more opportunities would be coming at their doorsteps.

Let us hope this year ushers in a new spirit of hope to the region.

The New Curriculum

MBA aspirants joining this year & in the future may get to read a lot about the Satyam Scam & the fallen IT Czar Ramalinga Raju.

The question now being debated is whether fresh MBA grads ought to have their attention focussed on such a topic. There are some who feel that MBA's should know a thing or two about business ethics, and keeping that in mind is much more important than earning profits. Others say that such cases should be left to students doing CA courses and law firms as they are more involved directly in such cases.

According to me, a businessman needs to be aware of all his surroundings. People would think twice before they do something foolish or the other.

An MBA grad should know what has to be followed. There are many ways a company can earn its profits. Proper management happens when you take the right path of earning this profit. India is already dependent on FDI's & FII's on maintaining its stock market movement. Any similar mishap can make such investors loose their confidence in the Indian business environment, ultimately leading to more disaster.

Let us hope that there wont be another 'Enron' or 'Satyam' for us to study.

Eureka! That's Finance

Students like me from B.Sc background have had really hard times in and out of class coping with Finance subjects. Following are tips from a few lessons that I learnt-

1. Be in touch with your professor- Some are tough, I know, but they also know your weakness well. Ask them where you lack.

2. Get one good book & stick to it- Its true that in specializations, you have to read a lot, but often with so many books lying around, you might end up deciding which one to start. Understand it...then go for change.

3. The Job- Don't visualise yourself 2 years from now working on your PC doing some unknown research. Search the job postings available at different job sites like 'Naukri' & Monster.com. Find out what these jobs involve. Select your field of choice & work towards it. Believe me....you dont get to sit in the hot seat right away.

4. Everyday is a new day- So learn something new. There are analysis tools from excel. Dont wait for others to teeach you. The materials are available on net. And dont think you can get it done in a day.

5. Freelance- Get hold of a company of your choice. Dont just take the top ones. Take one that's faring very badly. Use your analytics that you learnt as Science Grads. Think what could have gone wrong. Do a short analysis and show it to your professors. This excercise would increase your confidence level and your proactiveness.

Do share any other tips or comments that you might have. Happy Calculating!!!