SBI cuts savings interest rate from 4% to 3.5% up to Rs 1 cr | LPG cylinder to cost Rs 4 more every month

New Delhi, July 31

In a last-minute decision, the government today extended the deadline for filing income tax returns (ITRs) till August 5, while taxpayers can now link Aadhaar with Permanent Account Number (PAN) by August 31.The Central Board of Direct Taxes said the dates were extended following complaints from “some taxpayers” that they were unable to log on to the Income Tax Department’s e-filing website. The CBDT said there were also complaints that the assessees were unable to link Aadhaar with PAN as their names were mentioned differently in the database.(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)The government had made the linking of the two databases mandatory for filing ITRs from July this year.The Income Tax Department till yesterday had maintained that no extension would be given as already over two crore returns had been received and no major glitches had been detected. Meanwhile, the State Bank of India (SBI) today cut from 4 per cent to 3.5 per cent the interest rate on savings account on balance up to Rs 1 crore. Those having balance above Rs 1 crore would continue to earn interest at 4 per cent per annum.Rajnish Kumar, Managing Director, National Banking Group, SBI, said the reduction was an important aspect as it was difficult to maintain MCLR (marginal cost of fund-based lending) rates at the current level.In the Lok Sabha, Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan today said that state-run oil companies had been ordered to raise subsidised cooking gas (LPG) prices by Rs 4 per cylinder every month to eliminate all the subsidies by March next year.The government had previously asked IOC, BPCL and HPCL to raise rates of subsidised domestic LPG by Rs 2 per 14.2-kg cylinder per month (excluding VAT).Now, the quantum had been doubled so as to bring down the subsidy to nil, he said.Every household is entitled to 12 cylinders of 14.2-kg each at subsidised rates in a year. Any extra requirement is to be bought at market price.“The companies were authorised to hike the price of subsidised domestic LPG cylinder by Rs 2 per cylinder per month (excluding VAT) with effect from July 1, 2016,” he said. Oil companies had hiked LPG rates on 10 occasions since that go-ahead.“The government has again authorised them to continue to increase the effective price of subsidised domestic LPG by Rs 4 per cylinder effective from June 1, 2017, per month (excluding VAT) till the reduction of government subsidy to ‘nil’, or till March 2018, or till further orders,” he said.Oil companies have raised rates twice since, the last being on July 1 when rates were up by a steep Rs 32.  — TNS/PTI