Fiscal deficit to be lower than 3.3% target: Piyush Goyal
New Delhi, July 2: Finance Minister Piyush Goyal on Monday expressed confidence that the government will not only meet the fiscal deficit target of 3.3 per cent, but it will do even better than that.
He said while there were perceptions that the target will not be met, he was hopeful that his government will not only meet the target but "will actually do better than our budgeted fiscal deficit".
Goyal said this would be achieved on the back of robust revenue collection under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) which, he said, would cross Rs 13 lakh crore for the whole year.
According to government data, India's budgetary fiscal deficit for the two month period of April and May stood at 55.3 per cent -- Rs 3.45 lakh crore -- of the full year's target of Rs 6.24 lakh crore.
Earlier, the Finance Minister had assured that the government was monitoring and working to ensure that fiscal deficit will be maintained at 3.3 per cent despite this being an election year.
"We will meet the fiscal deficit target despite this being a year when traditionally -- as you would find in history be it 2013-14 or 2007 to 2009 period -- fiscal deficit, macroeconomic stability, good governence all were thrown to the wind for political exigencies," he had said.
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Jio Studios has withdrawn its trademark application for 'Operation Sindoor': Reliance Industries
Mumbai: Reliance Industries has clarified that it has no intention of trademarking the term "Operation Sindoor", describing it as an evocative symbol of Indian bravery that belongs to the national consciousness. The company issued a statement on Friday, stating that its media arm, Jio Studios, had filed a trademark application inadvertently and without proper authorisation.
The statement read, "Jio Studios, a unit of Reliance Industries, has withdrawn its trademark application, which was filed inadvertently by a junior person without authorisation." It added that the company and all its stakeholders take immense pride in Operation Sindoor, which was launched by the Indian Armed Forces in response to a Pakistan-sponsored terrorist attack in Pahalgam. "Operation Sindoor is the proud achievement of our brave Armed Forces in India's uncompromising fight against the evil of terrorism," the company stated.
The clarification came after reports emerged that Reliance Industries, along with three other individuals, had submitted trademark applications for the term 'Operation Sindoor' under Class 41 of the Nice Classification. According to a report by Bar and Bench, the applications were filed between 10:42 am and 6:27 pm on May 7 by Reliance Industries, Mumbai resident Mukesh Chetram Agrawal, retired Group Captain Kamal Singh Oberh of the Indian Air Force, and Delhi-based lawyer Alok Kothari. All four had marked the term as “proposed to be used,” suggesting possible commercial use in the future.
Class 41 of the Nice Classification covers a wide range of services, including education and training, film and media production, live performances, digital content and publishing, and cultural or sporting events. It is a category commonly used by OTT platforms, broadcasters, production houses, and event organisers—leading to speculation that 'Operation Sindoor' might be used as a title for a film, documentary, or series.
The incident also sheds light on the lack of legal protection for the names of military operations in India. Currently, the Ministry of Defence does not register or treat such names as intellectual property, and they are not automatically safeguarded. This means that private individuals or companies can file trademark claims over such names unless specific legal steps are taken to prevent it.
