Export promotion of plastics: policy incentives and trade facilitation expand market access while requiring environmental compliance.
Promotion of plastics exports combines policy, incentive and facilitation measures: Export Promotion Councils conduct market development and exporter assistance; the Foreign Trade Policy supplies duty reliefs, input schemes and refund mechanisms; and targeted incentive schemes and duty drawback improve competitiveness. Trade agreements and market access measures reduce tariff and non tariff barriers, while procedural simplification, digitalisation, export finance, technology upgradation, skill development and environmental compliance support exporters in meeting global standards. (AI Summary)

Port cargo capacity growth expands through infrastructure upgrades and enhanced hinterland connectivity to support trade.
Indian ports comprise central government-administered major ports and state-managed non-major ports that together handle growing volumes of liquid bulk, dry bulk and container cargo. Major ports serve as strategic gateways for large-scale bulk, container and petroleum movements; non-major ports provide specialised regional services and help decongest major hubs. Policy measures focus on berth and terminal construction, mechanisation, dredging, digitalisation and improved road-rail hinterland connectivity, supported by initiatives such as the Sagarmala Project and a Comprehensive Port Connectivity Plan to expand capacity and linkages. (AI Summary)

Waiver of interest and penalty: taxpayers can claim Section 128A relief despite departmental appeals limited to interest or penalty.
CBIC Instruction No. 02/2025 GST provides that where the principal tax has been paid, taxpayers remain eligible for waiver of interest and/or penalty under Section 128A even if the department has appealed solely on interest or penalty; officers must withdraw existing appeals limited to these heads or accept the adjudicating authority's order rather than pursue further appeals, thereby reducing unnecessary litigation and compliance costs. (AI Summary)

Polluter Pays principle pressures firms to internalize environmental costs, limiting greenwashing and incentivising remediation and compliance.
Greenwashing is the deceptive presentation of limited or unsubstantiated environmental claims that misleads consumers and undermines sustainability. The Polluter Pays principle requires responsible parties to finance remediation and prevention, internalising environmental costs. Greenwashing can be used to obscure noncompliance or evade the financial and regulatory burdens imposed by polluter-pays regimes; weak regulation and enforcement exacerbate this interaction while clear accountability and standards reduce it. (AI Summary)

Reverse Charge Mechanism requires registered recipients to self-assess and remit GST on metal scrap from unregistered suppliers.
Reverse Charge Mechanism requires registered recipients procuring metal scrap from unregistered suppliers to self-assess and remit GST; the recipient must pay the applicable tax rate for the scrap directly to the government and may claim Input Tax Credit. The provision applies only when the supplier is unregistered and does not apply to purchases from registered suppliers. (AI Summary)

Trademark protection preserves brand identity by exclusive rights for wordmarks, logos, service marks, certification marks and GIs.
Trademarks include wordmarks, logo marks, service marks, collective marks, certification marks and geographical indications; each category grants legal exclusivity to identify source, origin or standard. Wordmarks require renewals; logo and service marks prevent unauthorized use; collective marks restrict use to association members; certification marks limit use to those meeting standards; geographical indications protect region-linked product identity. Statutory intellectual property remedies and enforcement mechanisms apply to prevent confusingly similar use and preserve mark integrity. (AI Summary)

Greenwashing regulation: require verifiable environmental claims, transparency, and stronger enforcement to deter misleading sustainability marketing.
Greenwashing is the deceptive portrayal of products or corporate practices as more environmentally friendly than they are, using vague claims, false labels, selective disclosure, and misleading imagery. Regulatory responses require substantiation of environmental claims by independent certification or scientific evidence, avoidance of unsubstantiated generalities, transparency of supporting information, and oversight by advertising and consumer protection authorities; persistent challenges include inconsistent international standards, weak self-regulation, and undefined marketing terms. (AI Summary)

Notification in GST law requires publication in the Official Gazette to make regulatory changes effective and accessible.
A notification under the CGST framework is an instrument published in the Official Gazette; 'notify' and 'notified' follow that meaning. Publication and public availability are essential to bring a notification into force - mere printing without release is insufficient. The effective date requires the notification be duly published and made available to the public. Conditions in notifications must be capable of compliance, and curative notifications are construed liberally to mitigate hardship. (AI Summary)

Virtual place of business regulation advancing: compliance, data protection and legal recognition shape cross-border business operations.
Virtual places of business require legal recognition and clear rules on taxation, registration, and employer obligations where virtual addresses and cloud-based operations substitute for physical offices. Regulatory focus must include data protection and cybersecurity mandates-such as multi-factor authentication, encryption, continuous monitoring, and vendor governance for cloud services-and guidance on cross-border data transfers and AI-driven tools. Policymaking should adapt labour, corporate, and consumer protections for virtual workforces and establish administrable recordkeeping, disclosure, and audit standards to ensure enforceable compliance. (AI Summary)

Greenwashing: misleading environmental claims persist without stronger oversight and credible certification to ensure corporate transparency.
Greenwashing in India involves businesses making vague or unverified environmental claims-such as "eco friendly" or "natural"-or promoting limited sustainability initiatives while continuing environmentally harmful operations. Regulatory instruments like the Consumer Protection Act, BIS Eco Mark, Plastic Waste Management Rules, and EIAs exist but suffer from nonmandatory adoption and inconsistent enforcement. Effective mitigation requires stronger oversight of environmental claims, wider credible certification, improved corporate transparency and reporting, enhanced enforcement, and consumer education supported by media and civil society scrutiny. (AI Summary)

Ban on single-use plastics demands stronger enforcement and EPR compliance to expand affordable eco-friendly alternatives.
A nationwide regulatory regime establishes a phased ban on specified single-use plastic items, combining enumerated prohibitions with narrow exemptions and a timeline for prohibition. Enforcement is delegated to central and state pollution control authorities with penalties for non-compliance. The framework embeds Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) obligations requiring producers to arrange collection, recycling or safe disposal of plastic waste and promotes alternatives and awareness measures, while implementation faces gaps in enforcement, alternative availability, standards, and waste-management infrastructure. (AI Summary)

Regulation of acid sale mandates licensed vendors, buyer verification and e commerce controls to prevent misuse and protect survivors.
Regulation of acid sale requires licensed vendors, purchaser identity verification including an age threshold, documented purpose and maintainable sales registers; over the counter and unverified sales-including via e commerce-are restricted, with platforms obliged to verify buyers and remove noncompliant listings. Concurrent criminal provisions penalise causing or attempting acid harm, while statutory schemes and judicial directives oblige authorities to provide medical treatment, psychological counselling, legal aid, protection measures and state compensation and rehabilitation for survivors. (AI Summary)

TDS on metal scrap requires buyers to deduct tax when transactions cross the statutory threshold, with registration and filing obligations.
Notification No. 25/2024-Central Tax brings supplies of metal scrap under Section 51 GST TDS, requiring registered buyers to deduct tax at source at the prescribed rate when transaction value exceeds the statutory threshold. Buyers must obtain a separate GST TDS registration, deduct and deposit TDS on the taxable value excluding GST, file monthly TDS returns, and issue TDS certificates; deducted amounts are credited to the supplier's cash ledger monthly. The amendment covers metal scrap within Chapters 72-81 and is effective from the notified date. (AI Summary)

GST exemption for payment settlement clarified; penal charges non-taxable and several historic tax positions regularized.
CBIC clarified that penal charges levied by RBI regulated entities for breach of loan terms are non-taxable; RBI regulated Payment Aggregators qualify for the Notification No.12/2017 exemption only for the payment settlement function, excluding payment gateway services; GST on R&D services against government grants, skilling services by NSDC approved training partners, certain incidental electricity utility services, reverse charge on renting commercial property for composition taxpayers, facility management to MCD HQ, and services by Goethe Institutes have been regularized for specified past periods on an 'as is where is' basis. (AI Summary)

Entry tax revival: state attempts to reassess historic liabilities via removal of difficulty orders face legal validity challenges.
Challenges over historic Entry Tax focus on whether states can assess and recover taxes after subsumption under GST and repeal, given transitional provisions and statutory limitation periods. Assessments and reassessments must comply with original limitation timelines; prolonged delay typically bars recovery. The State's December Removal of Difficulty Order prescribing registration, assessment and payment procedures is criticised as exceeding limited extension powers by creating substantive obligations inconsistent with the repeal and GST framework, prompting reliance on factual defence in assessments, appellate remedies, or writ challenges. (AI Summary)

Food safety regulation curbs sale of cotton candy where hygiene lapses or non-food-grade dyes risk consumer health.
Regulatory responses focus on food safety regulation requiring hygienic preparation, use of permitted food-grade additives, vendor certification, enclosed equipment, and testing; localized bans or restrictions have been imposed where inspections or sample testing reveal contamination or the use of non-food-grade dyes, notably prompting intensified enforcement, routine testing, and public awareness to protect consumers, particularly children. (AI Summary)

Guarantor liability tightened as regulatory curbs on loan evergreening accelerate guarantee invocation in insolvency processes.
RBI's strengthened prudential and reporting measures curb loan evergreening by mandating timely default recognition, restricting opportunistic restructurings, and increasing scrutiny of guarantor linked transactions. These measures accelerate invocation of guarantees and reshape CIRP dynamics by narrowing informal restructuring options, exposing guarantors to earlier and greater liability, increasing administrative and litigation burdens, and prompting calls for clearer regulatory guidance and protective mechanisms for good faith guarantors. (AI Summary)

Unique identification marking mandated for specified goods to enable track-and-trace, with mandatory additional penalties for non-compliance.
Proposal adds a statutory scheme for a unique identification marking (UIM): defined as a unique, secure, non removable mark including digital stamps; empowers the Government, on recommendation, to notify goods and persons, prescribe UIM form and content, provide systems for affixation and electronic storage, require payments for the system, and impose obligations to affix marks, furnish information and machinery details and maintain records in prescribed manners; contraventions attract an additional mandatory penalty. (AI Summary)

HACCP certification ensures regulatory compliance and market access through documented hazard control and accredited audits.
HACCP certification requires organisations handling food to identify, evaluate and control biological, chemical and physical hazards through a documented HACCP plan with identified Critical Control Points, monitoring procedures, corrective-action plans and record-keeping. Certification involves initial assessment, gap analysis, staff training, implementation, and audits by an accredited certification body (documentation review and implementation audit), followed by ongoing surveillance audits to verify continued compliance; corrective-action, root-cause analysis and verification are required for non-conformities. (AI Summary)

Ban on calcium carbide for artificial ripening stresses food safety prohibition and promotes safer ethylene and chamber alternatives.
The article explains the regulatory prohibition on the use and sale of calcium carbide for ripening fruits and vegetables in India because it releases acetylene and is contaminated with toxic impurities, presents significant health risks, and is treated as a prohibited or adulterant substance under food safety regulations; it also summarises enforcement measures, penalties, awareness campaigns, and safer alternatives such as ethylene and ripening chambers. (AI Summary)