Homebound India’s official entry for Oscars Filmmaker Neeraj Ghaywan’s Homebound was chosen as India’s official entry for the 2026 Academy Awards in the Best International Feature category on Friday. The film starring Ishaan Khatter, Vishal Jethwa and Janhvi Kapoor in lead roles, portrays the childhood friendship between a Muslim and Dalit who chase a police job | P11 chennai l saturday l september 20, 2025 l `9.00 l PAGES 22 l late city EDITION CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA ■ BENGALURU ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELAGAVI ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIVAMOgGA ■ MANGALURU ■ TIRUPATI ■ TIRUCHY ■ TIRUNELVELI ■ SAMBALPUR ■ HUBBALLI ■ DHARMAPURI ■ KOTTAYAM ■ KANNUR ■ VILLUPURAM ■ KOLLAM ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI Higher income tax exemption threshold brings down personal advance tax collections Corp tax mop-up rises, individual collections drop D i pak M o n d a l @ New Delhi Advance personal income tax collections for FY26 fell 7.3% to `96,784 crore as of September 17, compared to `1,04,411 crore in the same period last fiscal. The decline is attributed to the higher income tax exemption threshold—raised from `7 lakh to `12 lakh in this year’s Budget—and the revised tax slabs. In contrast, corporate advance tax collections grew 6.11% to `3,52,129 crore. Consequently total advance tax collec, tions registered a modest 2.9% growth to `4,48,913 crore. “The drop in advance tax collection is primarily because of slab changes, and due to lower tax liabilities for salaried individuals,” said Riyaz Thingna, tax partner, Grant Thornton Bharat. He noted that some of the shortfall could be made up by October-end, when individuals with business income file returns and pay self-assessment tax. Despite the dip in advance personal tax, overall direct tax mop-up remains buoyant. Net nsa-level talks K-point in India, Canada dialogue J aya n t h J a c o b @ New Delhi In a key step towards mending diplomatic ties, National Security Adviser Ajit Doval held bilateral security consultations with his Canadian counterpart Nathalie Drouin in New Delhi on Thursday . The high-level dialogue comes nearly two years after diplomatic relations between the two nations were rocked by Canadian allegations over the killing of Khalistani separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. The meeting also marked the first major engagement between the two countries’ security establishments since both sides appointed new High Commissioners in August, following months of diplomatic chill. Doval and Drouin’s meeting is also seen as a follow-up to the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Canadian PM Mark Carney on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Kananaskis this June. Responsibility to “This is part of the regular bilatensure security of eral security consultations that hapIndian diplomatic pen between the two countries,” Expremises lies ternal Affairs Ministry spokesperson with the host Randhir Jaiswal said at a media government briefing on Friday . Randhir Jaiswal The talks took place against the backdrop of renewed threats from the US-based Khalistani outfit Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), which announced a “siege” outside the Indian Consulate in Vancouver on September 18. The group circulated threatening posters targeting India’s new High Commissioner to Canada, Dinesh Patnaik. “As and when there is a concern, we do take it up with the concerned side to ensure there is adequate security for our diplomatic premises,” Jaiswal said. Zubeen garg dies in singapore Polymath musician was in Singapore for Northeast Festival, suffered injuries during a private scuba Zubeen Garg diving excursion Nov 18, 1972 - Sept 19, 2025 Mahindra joins Maruti to announce price cuts to pass on GST gains A r s h a d K h a n @ New Delhi Price wars among automakers have intensified following the government’s decision to slash GST rates. A day after Maruti Suzuki cut prices by up to 24%, Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) on Friday announced revised ex-showroom prices incorporating the GST reduction, along with additional benefits of up to `1.29 lakh on its petrol and diesel vehicles. The combined impact of the GST cut and additional benefits will allow customers to save up to `2.56 lakh on M&M’s Bolero Neo. The popular subcompact SUV the XUV3XO, follows , closely with total savings of `2.46 lakh. Among larger SUV models, the XUV700, Scorpio-N, and Scorpio Classic offer total benefits ranging between `1.96 lakh and `2.24 lakh. Meanwhile, the Thar and Thar ROXX receive total benefits of `1.55 lakh and `1.53 lakh, respectively . The price cut, over and above the GST benefit, is expected to boost competitiveness in the market, giving buyers a wider choice bracket. Advance Tax Collections Corporate tax *Noncorporate tax All figures in ` crore 3,31,844.88 6.11% 3,52,128.60 1,04,410.94 96,783.94 -7.3% FY 2024-25 (as on 17.09.2024) FY 2025-26 (as on 17.09.2025) *Includes advance tax paid by individuals, HUFs, firms, local authorities, etc direct tax collections (after refunds) rose 9.18% year-on-year to `10,82,579 crore. Net corporate tax mop-up rose 4.93% to `4,72,297 crore, while net personal income tax surged 13.67% to `5,83,685 crore. A key driver of this growth was a steep fall in refunds— down 24% to `1,60,527 crore from `2,10,858 crore last year— reflecting tighter scrutiny of claims and quicker assessments. “Non-corporate advance taxes have declined by around 7% due to massive tax reliefs in FY26,” said Vivek Jalan, partner, Tax Connect Advisory Services. “ the same time, stricter At monitoring of deductions and enhanced disclosures in ITRs led to refunds falling to nearly a third of last year’s level.” With nominal GDP growth slipping to 8.8% in Q1 from about 10% a year ago, analysts caution that weaker economic momentum could weigh on tax collections, the fiscal deficit, and corporate earnings in the coming quarters. sanitary staff stir HC allows probe panel to inquire into police excess Express News Service @ Chennai The Madras High Court on Friday refused to extend the interim stay on the order constituting a one-man commission headed by a retired judge to probe into the alleged police excess during the arrest of sanitary workers, who were protesting against the privatisation of solid waste management in two zones of Greater Chennai Corporation, on August 13. The first bench of Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava and Justice G Arul Murugan, while hearing the petitions seeking a probe by the State Human Rights Commission into the alleged excess and the habeas corpus petition (HCP) which was tagged, turned down the plea made by Additional Advocate General (AAG) J Ravindran to extend the interim stay on the order passed by a bench of Justices MS Ramesh and V Lakshminarayanan. The panel could proceed with the inquiry and any , materials that the state had could be placed before the commission, the bench said. The CJ also declined to accept the request of the AAG to appoint a judge from another state as head of the commission.  P7 stalin to launch Mobility app on monday Chennai One Mobility App will enable commuters to buy digital tickets, track services in real time and switch between buses, metro and suburban rail using a single QR code | P3