Jo DIKHTA Hai wo BIKTA HAI !!!

100% FDI in ECOMMERCE BUT BUT BUT NO DISCOUNTS FOR MARKETPLACES ??? Will Customers still BUY ONLINE ??

Convenience, COD, Easy returns and delivery to door-step are some factors which were underplayed when ECOMMERCE was launched to attract the EYEBALLS of Customers. DISCOUNTS were PUSHED and PRICES dropped.

Its a popular belief, provide a UNIQUE Service or PRODUCT and Customer is more than happy to pay extra for it. Well Prices can be REDUCED by anyone !!!

Lets understand Sources of Income for a Marketplace :-

1) Commission from Merchants

2) Advertisement and Promotions run by Merchants

Expenses for Marketplace Model :-

a) Print and Media Ads

b) Discounts to Customers

c) Lead Generation Commission to Cashback websites

As per new Policy "DISCOUNTS to CUSTOMERS" should NULLIFY and no SINGLE MERCHANT should be selling more than 25%

Factors which will continue Discounts and Growth of Ecommerce Market :-

1) Earlier Marketplaces were hunting for CUSTOMERS offering them DISCOUNTS. Current Scenario is Marketplaces hunting for SELLERS to sell on their website. So as it SELLER is KING.

2) Commission charged by Marketplace can be brought down  to SUB-ZERO levels. Since early 2016 reduction of COMMISSION in top-selling categories is clearly visible to drive sales. Transfer Price concept is another process where Seller just provides PAYOUT to be recovered from Marketplaces.

3) Jo DIKHTA Hai wo BIKTA HAI !!!
Marketplaces moving towards Advertisement Platforms asking and providing SELLERS options to Advertise and opt-in for discounts for Homepage & Lightning Deals (Flipkart & Amazon fall in this Category)

4) Point of Discounts - at Invoice level or future Cashback - no clear definition (Paytm will continue to take advantages of future Cashback directly to wallets). Don't understand why Shopclues is not ulitizing the 'Cluebucks' which they provide.

5) Cashback websites like CASHKARO.COM will see increase in COMMISSION rates to divert more traffic to MARKETPLACES. The Customer in turn will continue getting pass-backs from these affiliated websites.

6) Cloudtail and WS Retail have already slowed down and will even reduce down the line. However, immediate impact may be strong.

In the end, its a re-think and re-vamp of DIGITAL and PRINT MEDIA Ad's by BRAND & MARKETING MANAGERS. Now it needs to move from the CONCEPT of DISCOUNTS at BROAD Level to PRODUCT/CATEGORY oriented focus to ATTRACT EYES of the Indian ONLINE Customer.

Jo DIKHTA Hai wo BIKTA HAI !!!

Home Loan & HRA together - Don't think....CLAIM IT !!!!

Many of us are aware that interest on home loan enjoys tax benefits, but only few might know that House Rent 

Allowance, a component in your salary, could also be a big tax saver if it is combined with the home loan benefit.

House Rent Allowance (HRA) is explained u/s 10(13A) of the Income Tax Act while Interest on borrowed capital for acquisition or construction of house property is explained u/s 24(b) of the Income Tax Act. The deduction for payment of principal component of such home loan is granted under section 80C of Deduction under Chapter VI of the Income Tax Act. The above sections are all together different and has no interlink with each. One can claim both HRA and interest on home loan irrespective of the place of stay and office until and unless he satisfies the necessary conditions to claim such deduction or exemption.

HRA is given by the employer to the employee to meet the expenses in connection with the rent of the accommodation which the employee might have to take for the residential purpose. The House Rent Allowance so paid by the employer to his employees is taxable under the head “Income from Salaries” to the extent it is not exempt u/s 10(13A). The employee must not be the owner of the property.

In order to claim the deduction, the employee must

• Receive HRA as a part of his salary income subject to tax,
•  Actually pay rent for the premises he occupies, and
• Not be the owner of the premises he is paying rent for.

The amount of allowance is the lowest of the following three limits:

• Rent paid less 10 per cent of salary.
• An amount equal to 50% of the Salary (where the residential house is situated in Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, Chennai) (or) 40% of the salary where the residential house is situated in any other place.
• The actual amount of allowance received in the relevant period during which the rental accommodation was occupied by the employee during the previous year.

Home Loan

If a person takes a loan for acquisition or construction of a house property then he can claim tax benefits. Housing loan consists of two components one is interest portion and other principal amount. The interest paid towards home loan is treated as an ‘expense’ under ‘Income from house property’ and can be claimed u/s 24(b) irrespective of the house being self occupied or let-out.

·      

• If the house is self occupied, he maximum limit under this section is Rs.1,50,000 and assessee don’t have to actually live in the house to claim this benefit.
• If the house is let-out, there is no such maximum limit that can be claimed.

The interest payment is deducted from the assesses taxable income thus reducing tax liability. There is no limit on the number of houses as well as the location of the houses that assessee can claim. One can even claim deductions for interest on housing loan for both let-out and self occupied.

Maximum tax deduction for repayment principal component of home loan can’t exceed Rs.1, 00,000 under section 80C. One should keep in mind that other investments/contributions are also allowed as a deduction under section 80C, and this limit of Rs.1, 00,000 applies to all of them put together

Analysis of below scenarios points out the possibilities of taking maximum advantage of HRA and home loan.

Situation 1: Self-Occupied House – If you reside in the same house for which you have taken the loan, then HRA cannot be claimed for it, but, principal repayment and interest payment under Sections 80C and 24 can be claimed respectively.

Situation 2: House owned in another city – It is common in India, people take home loan for home owned in their native city while they continue to reside in rental accommodation in a different city, due to work or other similar factors. Here, a person is eligible to claim HRA as well as principal and interest repayment.

Situation 3: House owned in a city where you work- If the home loan is taken for a property owned in a city where you work then still you can claim HRA in these possible conditions.

a) Home under-construction- If you are compelled to live in a rental home as the home for which you have taken loan is still under-construction, then you are eligible to claim HRA and principal repayment before completion of the house. However, Interest repayment can only be claimed in five equal instalments in the financial year in which construction is complete and house is ready to use. HRA could not be claimed post-construction of the house.

b) House ready to use but cannot be occupied due to genuine reasons - House brought in the same city as  work but cannot be occupied due to valid reasons like house being very far from work place, etc. then Income tax act permits one to claim HRA as well as home loan benefits.

However, the tax liability will arise on notional rent even if the house remains vacant.

c) Rented own house and residing in a rented house - If a ready to use home for which home loan is taken is rented out to someone else, while you continue to reside in a rental accommodation then HRA along with the home loan benefits could be claimed.

On the other hand, since you are recipient of rental income, then the tax would be applicable to the rental income received.

Hence, in specific cases an individual can claim both HRA and home loan benefits together. Also, employers do have regulations in this regard, therefore, it is wise and advisable to cross check with the employer before you claim HRA and home loan benefits together. I hope this would clarify some your doubts regarding HRA combined with Home loan.

"7 Ways Income Tax Department Is Getting Information About You !!!!!"

1. Payments of Rs 2 lakhs in aggregate in a year made through your credit cards.

2. You have deposited Rs 10 lakhs in aggregate in a savings account with a bank.


3. Bought Mutual Fund units for Rs 2 lakhs from a mutual fund company.


4. Invested Rs 5 lakhs in bonds or debentures issued by the company or institution.


5. Applied for shares in IPOs for Rs 1 lakhs or more.


6. Purchased or sold immovable property valued at 30 lakh rupees or more. 


7. Applied for RBI bonds for 5 lakh rupees or more in a year




First posted in FIRST BIG LEAP on Friday, 24 February 2012

Chartered Accountant of God !!!!

This one is not Kolaveri di but a nice one:::))

Chartered Accountant of God !!! 
-----------------------------------------
When you were born.....It’s the opening of the financial year.....

Your everyday routine......Is like Journal Entry....

When you meet someone........It’s a transaction.....

When you make someone smile....Or someone makes you smile....It’s a contra entry....

When you help someone and.....Your help is acknowledged.....It’s like cash sales....

When you help someone.....Without any acknowledgement.....It’s a credit sale.....

When someone helped you and....You are thankful to them......It’s like cash purchase...
 
When someone helped you and..... You are not thankful for it.... It’s credit purchase....
 
When you hurt someone....It’s like abnormal loss... 

Making apologies for the same....It’s like Insurance claim recovered....
 
When someone hurts you....It’s like bad debts....

Forgiving their mistakes....It’s like bad debts recovery....
 
When you got married.....It’s like amalgamation....
 
Becoming Parents....Is like conversion of Firm into a Company !!!

When your children start to take their own decisions.....You are subsidiary and they
are your holding company.....

When your children leave you....It’s like Demerger.....
 
When you will die..... It’s the end of Financial Year.....
 
What after your death ???.... The Assessment year starts.....
 
All your files are posted to....God’s Chartered Accountant.... Chitragupt Maharaj....
 
He will vouch and prepare....Your Balance Sheet !!!

Hum log KHAATE-PEETE ghar ke log hai - Barista Lavazza now offers FREE INTERNET at its outlets !!!!

The post first appeared in FIRSTBIGLEAP on December 06, 2011.

Food & Beverages is the next BIG thing after Movies and Social Networking among the Gen-next ( After all Hum log KHAATE-PEETE ghar ke log hai ).  

Coffee ( Pronounced Caafee – south Indian Accent), obviously  takes the top-spot, especially with a number of Coffee outlets like Cafe Coffee Day, Barista etc. offering great ambience wherein you can  meet clients or just sit and work on your laptop without much worry over Just a Cup of Coffee. Their staff never bothers you !!!

So why should the Companies operating in this sector not Cash-in the spending Power of the so-called Gen-next…..!!!!

Even brands like Nescafe who already have a established market had to rope in actors like Deepika Padukone and Purab Kohli….the obvious thing only Karan Johar could play “UNCLE” to Deepika…

The most recent marketing strategy, probably to attract the growing number of Internet users in India (the last time I checked it was 100 million) is by Barista Lavazza….Barista Lavazza in association with Spectranet is all set to enable Wi-Fi connectivity across all its cafe’s and connect the fast moving consumer to the virtual world for free.

This is indeed a GREAT move and a perfect way to engage and attract more customers.

Mr. R. Shivshankar- Director, South Asia, Barista Lavazza said "The idea behind introducing Wi-Fi is to provide a value-added service to our customers by enabling them to relax and surf the net while they enjoy their coffee. The intent is to provide a truly enriching experience. Barista Lavazza is aggressively tapping into the social media space. Provision of Wi-Fi services at our cafés is part of the larger strategy that Barista Lavazza wishes to follow with an aim to achieve greater customer delight. We intend to bring synergy in the manner we operate not just in the traditional space but the digital medium as well"

Mr. Udit Mehrotra, Managing Director, Spectranet said "The web is now a routine part of everyday life. New Wi-Fi enabled portable devices are hitting the shops every day. Spectranet is taking the lead in enabling Wi-Fi hotspots across public places like Cafes, Malls, Airports etc. We are extremely pleased to partner with the leading global café chain in India, Barista Lavazza, enabling them to deliver hi-speed Wi-Fi to their customers. The service provides a simple and secure user experience, and of course comes FREE to the customer”

In 2008, CCD’s in some of their Cafe’s were offering Internet Access but it was chargeable. At that time it looked out of the world but later when I thought I realized that it was a nice idea, though CCD had discarded this initiative after some time

This new initiative by Barista Lavazza offering free internet would surely attract the younger crowd, especially because most of them now-a-days carry Smartphones which can carry out multitude of tasks on Internet. This will also be a boon to professionals who need to work from outside office. Working professionals and businessmen alike are increasingly using Wi-Fi connectivity at commercial places making it the latest buzz among food chains while gaining popularity among students.

It is going to be interesting to see how other Cafe Chains like CCD’s react to this.  
But before that, the next time you happen to stop by for a cup of coffee at Barista Lavazza, switch on your Wi-Fi and experience high speed internet connection to get on with your work for FREE.

Finally, the growing Internet Population has made Companies offer “Internet in a MUG” courtesy Barista Lavazza….

Have fun guys……Do share your opinions ….

Why go to the Temple ???

 If you're spiritually alive, you're going to love this !!!

If you're spiritually dead, you won't want to read it !!!

If  you're spiritually curious, there is still hope !!!
             

 

Why Go To The Temple ???

A 'devotee' wrote a letter to the editor of an Indian newspaper and complained that it made no sense to go to the Temple . 'I've gone for 30 years now, he wrote, and in that time I have heard something like 3,000 mantras.

But for the life of me, I can't remember a single one of them.So, I think I'm wasting my time and the Gurus are wasting theirs by giving services at all.

This started a real controversy in the 'Letters to the Editor' column, much to the delight of the editor. It went on for weeks until someone wrote this clincher: I've been married for 30 years now. In that time my wife has cooked some 32,000 meals.
 
But, for the life of me, I cannot recall the entire menu for a single one of those meals. But I do know this... They all nourished me and gave me the strength I needed to do my work.
 
If my wife had not given me these meals, I would be physically dead today. Likewise, if I had not gone to the Temple for nourishment, I would be spiritually dead today!

When you are DOWN to nothing.... God is UP to something! 

Faith sees the invisible, believes the incredible and receives the impossible!

Thank God for our physical AND our spiritual nourishment !!! 

Om Vighneswaraya Namah !
You gave me strength to carry on,
When my body was so torn.
And lifted me on wings of love,
When my spirit was so worn.

Through all the times when in despair,
When I hung my head in shame.
You came to me when I knelt down,
As I called upon your name.

And when my heart was troubled,
With more heartache than I could bear.
You caught each and every tear I shed,
In a bottle you have up there.

And when I get to heaven,
I'll kneel before your feet.
You'll wipe away all my tears,
For my soul is yours to keep.

May YOU & your family be blessed. 

 

21 Amazing Interesting Facts !!!!!!

1) Chewing on gum while cutting onions can help a person from stop producing tears. Try it next time you chop these bulbs.

2) Until babies are six months old, they can breathe and swallow at the same time. Indeed convenient!

3) Offered a new pen to write with, 97% of all people will write their own name!

4) Male mosquitoes are vegetarians. Only females bite and savour blood.

5) The average person’s field of vision encompasses a 200-degree wide angle.

6) To find out if a watermelon is ripe, knock it, and if it sounds hollow then it is ripe.

7) Canadians can send letters with personalized postage stamps showing their own photos on each stamp.

8) Babies’ eyes do not produce tears until the baby is approximately six to eight weeks old.

9) It actually snowed in the Sahara Desert in February of 1979. Can you beat that!!

10) Plants watered with warm water grow larger and more quickly than plants watered with cold water.

11) Wearing headphones for just an hour will increase the bacteria in your ear by 700 times.

12) Grapes explode when you put them in the microwave.

13) Those stars and colours you see when you rub your eyes are called phosphenes.

14) Our eyes are always the same size from birth, but our nose and ears never stop growing.

15) Everyone’s tongue print is different, like fingerprints.

16) Contrary to popular belief, a swallowed chewing gum doesn’t stay in the gut. It will pass through the   system  and be excreted.

17) At 40 degrees centigrade a person loses about 14.4 calories per hour by breathing.

18) There is a hotel in Sweden built entirely out of ice; it is rebuilt every year.

19) Cats, camels and giraffes are the only animals in the world that walk right foot, right foot, left foot, left foot, rather than right foot, left foot .

20) Onions help reduce cholesterol if eaten after fatty meals.

21) The sound you hear when you crack your knuckles is actually the sound of nitrogen gas bubbles bursting.