New Delhi, Oct 31: India’s fiscal deficit for the first six months of the current financial year (April-September) stood at Rs 5.73 lakh crore, which constitutes 36.5 per cent of the annual estimate in the budget, government data released on Friday showed.

The figures show that the fiscal deficit is well under control, which paves the way for stable growth of the economy.

Total receipts stood at Rs 17.30 lakh crore, while overall expenditure during April to September was at 23.03 lakh crore rupees. These comprised 49.5 per cent and 45.5 per cent, respectively, of the target set in the budget for 2025-26.

Revenue receipts stood at Rs 16.95 lakh crore, of which tax revenue comprised Rs 12.29 lakh crore and non-tax revenue worked out to Rs 4.66 lakh crore.

Non-tax revenue jumped as the Reserve Bank of India approved a dividend of Rs 2.69 lakh crore to the central government, up from Rs 2.11 lakh crore transferred last year. This will help the central government reduce its fiscal deficit further.

The total government expenditure during the April-Sept period went up to Rs 23 lakh crore compared with Rs 21.1 lakh crore during the same period of the previous year.

This reflects higher Government expenditure on big-ticket infrastructure projects in the highways, ports and railways sectors, which play a key role in spurring economic growth in the country amid increasing economic uncertainties triggered by geopolitical developments and the US tariff turmoil.

The central government has pegged its fiscal deficit target at 4.9 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP) in its latest budget for FY25, compared with 5.6 per cent in the last fiscal year, which was lower than the revised estimates of 5.8 per cent.

A declining fiscal deficit reflects the strengthening of the fundamentals of the economy and paves the way for growth with price stability. It leads to a reduction in borrowing by the government, thus leaving more funds in the banking sector for lending to corporates and consumers, which leads to higher economic growth.

With the strong emerging fiscal position in 2025-26, the government is likely to have some additional headroom to meet unforeseen expenditure on account of defence, according to a recent Bank of Baroda report.

The observation assumes importance in the backdrop of the tensions with Pakistan following the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor.

New Delhi, Oct 31: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached shares worth Rs 127.3 crore linked to two hospitals – Alchemist Hospital and Ojas Hospital in Panchkula – as part of an ongoing money laundering probe involving the Alchemist Group, the agency said on Friday.

The properties are beneficially owned by businessman Karan Deep Singh. The order was issued by the ED’s Delhi Zonal Office under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, on October 30, 2025.

The action is connected to a probe into alleged large-scale financial fraud and misappropriation of public funds by the group’s promoters and associated companies.

The ED initiated its investigation based on an FIR registered by Kolkata Police, which was later taken up by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), ACB Lucknow, under Sections 120-B and 420 of the IPC against Alchemist Township Pvt. Ltd., Alchemist Infra Realty Pvt. Ltd., their directors, and former Rajya Sabha MP and group chairman Kanwar Deep Singh.

“The case pertains to a large-scale criminal conspiracy to defraud investors by illegally raising funds through fraudulent Collective Investment Schemes (CIS), offering unusually high returns, and/ or making false promises of allotting plots, flats, and villas,” ED said in its press note.

The agency claims that Alchemist Holdings Ltd. and Alchemist Township India Ltd. raised approximately Rs 1,848 crore through these schemes, siphoning the money for unauthorised use.

“ED investigation revealed that the misappropriated funds were systematically layered through complex financial transactions involving group entities of the Alchemist Group, with the intent to conceal the illicit origin of the funds,” the agency said.

“These tainted proceeds were ultimately used for the acquisition of shares and the subsequent construction of Alchemist Hospital and Ojas Hospital. The transactions were deliberately structured to project these assets as legitimate, thereby disguising the Proceeds of Crime (POC),” it further added.

According to the ED, the shares of Alchemist Hospital and Ojas Hospital are held to the extent of 40.93 per cent and 37.23 per cent, respectively, by M/s Placid Estate Pvt. Ltd., a company beneficially owned by Kanwar Deep Singh.

“The assets of Alchemist Hospital and Ojas Hospital as held by M/s. Placid Estate Pvt. Ltd, valued at Rs 127.3 crore, has been attached in the current provisional attachment order,” it said.

In addition, the ED noted that it had previously arrested Kanwar Deep Singh on January 12, 2021.

A prosecution complaint was filed on March 2, 2021, followed by two supplementary complaints in July 2024 and September 2025. So far, assets worth Rs 365.42 crore have been attached in the case through earlier orders, including shares held by Sorus Agritech Pvt. Ltd. in the same hospitals.

Further investigation is underway.

Mumbai: In a major step toward transforming one of Mumbai’s oldest and most congested neighbourhoods, the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) has selected AATK Constructions for the long-pending redevelopment of Kamathipura in South Central Mumbai. The project, spread over 34 acres, has now moved to the state government’s high-power committee (HPC) for approval before it goes to the state cabinet for final clearance.

MHADA’s Mumbai Building Repairs and Reconstruction Board (MBRRB) had received two bids, one from AATK Constructions and another from J Kumar Infraprojects. After a detailed evaluation of technical and financial aspects, MHADA declared AATK the successful bidder and forwarded the proposal to the HPC for consideration.

“This urban renewal project will be a historic one,” said MLA Amin Patel, who has been advocating for Kamathipura’s redevelopment for more than a decade. “Bringing landlords, tenants and the government to a consensus was not easy, but this plan will finally offer a dignified living space to thousands.

The Kamathipura Redevelopment Project covers 8,001 tenements, including 6,625 residential and 1,376 commercial units, spread across 943 cessed buildings and involving 800 landowners. Most of these structures are over a century old and beyond repair, with many plots measuring only 50 sq metres, making independent redevelopment unfeasible.

Under the proposed plan, eligible residential occupants will receive 500 sq ft carpet area flats in new towers up to 57 storeys high, while non-residential tenants will get 225 sq ft spaces. Sale buildings will rise to 78 storeys, creating a mixed-use skyline that combines residential, commercial and sale components.

The redevelopment is expected to replace dilapidated tenements with modern high-rise structures equipped with amenities and better infrastructure. Landowners will also benefit from additional entitlements based on plot sizes, with larger plots earning proportionally higher returns.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, while addressing the Assembly earlier, acknowledged the significance of the project, noting that he had worked ‘for the people of Kamathipura.’ The state government had earlier entrusted the redevelopment responsibility to MHADA’s MBRRB under the Construction and Development (C&D) format after private developers expressed disinterest due to the complex ownership patterns.

Once approved by the HPC and cabinet, the long-awaited transformation of Kamathipura is expected to finally take off, turning one of Mumbai’s most dilapidated localities into a modern, livable urban zone.