Prior approval for new trading segments required, with exchanges to provide parameters and rationale and notify members.
Exchanges are required to seek prior approval for any new trading segment, submitting the segment's parameters and rationale; they must amend bye-laws and rules forthwith, notify member brokers and clearing members and publish the requirement on their websites, and report implementation in the Monthly Development Report.

Constitution of National Advisory Committee on Accounting Standards circulated alongside amendments to deposit rules and Competition Act effective dates.
Notification constituting a National Advisory Committee on Accounting Standards under company law is circulated, along with a corrigendum on effective dates of specified Competition Act sections, amendments to the Companies (Acceptance of Deposits) Rules, 2003, and an amendment to a prior notification, directed to Regional Directors and Registrars of Companies for information and action.

Exemption from registration procedure for drug imports under Advance Licensing Scheme permits licences with declaratory endorsements and compliance conditions.
Trade Notice No.05/2003 sets out procedures to implement Policy Circulars allowing an exemption from registration procedure for import of drugs under the Advance Licensing Scheme. Applicants seeking the exemption must submit Annexure A and receive licences with an endorsement referencing the policy circulars; applicants importing from registered sources must submit Annexure B and receive licences limited to registered sources. Revalidation, extension of Export Obligation or enhancement of quantities must be accompanied by Annexure C and will be endorsed to require adherence to the registration procedure under the Drugs & Cosmetics Act, except where only an E.O. extension is sought and no further imports remain.

Simplified Exit Scheme compliance: nil audited accounts and indemnity bonds required for strike-off, with defined exclusions and procedures.
Applicants under the Simplified Exit Scheme must submit nil audited accounts showing no assets or liabilities; all applicant directors must furnish indemnity bonds with at least two signatories, and paragraph 1(c) of the indemnity may be amended to reflect that the company has not carried on business since incorporation or for a specified period and does not intend to carry on its main objects. Section 25 companies and firms under inspection, investigation or implicated in market scams are excluded; prosecutions for minor offences may be withdrawn only after the final Gazette notice and ROC reports 45 days after scheme expiry.

Tariff classification: Aluminium foil laminated both sides with plastic film classified under chapter heading 7607 by board decision.
The Board has accepted the appellate determination that aluminium foil laminated on both sides with plastic film is to be classed under Chapter Heading 7607 rather than the plastic-film heading previously applied, and directs classification practice to follow the Chapter Heading 7607 treatment for this composition.

Input-output norms modification updates SION entries, adding and revising input lists and quantities under Annexures A-D.
The Director General of Foreign Trade, exercising powers under Paragraph 2.4 of the Export and Import Policy 2002-2007, issues a Public Notice substituting, deleting and adding Standard Input Output Norms in the Handbook of Procedures, Vol. II. The Notice supplies detailed replacement norms, alternative inputs, quantities and engineering table cross references in Annexure A, and adds new SION entries in Annexures B (A-3240-A-3256), C (C-1924-C-1927) and D (H-536), affecting Chemicals & Allied, Engineering, Plastics, Food and Textile product groups and modifying applicable General Notes and import conditions.

Duty drawback exclusion where input-stage relief has been claimed prevents simultaneous drawback; brand-rate letters must certify non availment.
Brand-rate fixation must exclude inputs for which input-stage duties have been relieved through alternative schemes such as Cenvat credit, rebate mechanisms, duty-free removal with approval, Advance Licence or DEPB exemptions; drawback may be allowed only where evidence shows no concurrent relief has been availed. Jurisdictional Central Excise authorities must issue brand-rate letters certifying non availment of other input-stage reliefs, and Customs will permit drawback only on the strength of those letters, except in limited situations expressly allowed (for example, CVD element under DFRC where Cenvat is not claimed).

Telegraphic Release Advice under DFCEC and EPCG schemes permits imports from notified ports subject to licence verification and importability checks.
Permits imports against Telegraphic Release Advice (TRA) under DFCEC for Status Holders, DFCEC for Service Providers, and the EPCG scheme from any place notified in Notifications Nos.53/2003, 54/2003 and 55/2003; TRA must be issued after the Custom House at the licence's port of registration verifies the genuineness of the certificate/licence and issues TRA on the basis of declared import value, and the port of import decides validity and importability under the Customs Act while recordkeeping and accountability for TRA use rests with the issuing Custom House authorities.

Movement of domestic courier bags on international flight domestic segments allowed under specified customs segregation and declaration safeguards.
Movement of domestic courier bags on domestic segments of international flights is permitted if the courier is registered with Customs, consignments are marked "DOMESTIC COURIER" and stowed separately on pallets and in marked domestic bins. A goods declaration stating bag and package counts and contents must be submitted at embarkation to the on-board courier or person-in-charge with a copy to the Escort Officer. At arrival the cargo manifest must be filed with the proper Customs officer by the person-in-charge or on-board courier, and the Escort Officer will hand the declaration copy to Customs for checks. On-board couriers may not carry courier bags as hand baggage.

Date of payment by cheque: treated as date of presentation for Central Excise and Service Tax, subject to realisation.
Specific provisions in the Central Excise and Service Tax rules override the general Government Accounts treatment: for Central Excise duty and Service Tax the date of payment by cheque is the date of presentation to the bank, subject to realisation, and therefore the general rule deeming payment upon cheque clearance does not apply to these taxes.

Consignment export of books: authorised dealers may approve extended realisation periods and permit abandonment of unsold stock.
Authorised dealers may approve export of books on consignment permitting extended realisation of export proceeds from the date of shipment; exporters may abandon unsold books at the expiry of the sale contract and show the value of unsold books as a deduction from export proceeds in the Account Sales. Authorised dealers should inform their constituents. Directions are issued under the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999.

Service tax liability and compliance: provider liability, registration, payment, returns and input credit rules govern taxable services.
Service tax is an indirect levy on specified services charged on the value of taxable service, normally payable by the service provider but payable by the Indian recipient when the provider is non-resident or has no Indian establishment; services rendered within India are taxable while services consumed abroad are not. Registrants must obtain Central Excise registration (Form ST-1) within thirty days, pay tax through prescribed challans to designated banks by statutory due dates, file half-yearly returns (Form ST-3/ST-3A) or e-file where eligible, maintain documentary evidence for input tax credit under the Service Tax Credit Scheme, and follow notification-specific exemptions and appeal/refund procedures.

Monetary limits for central excise adjudication revised to standardise officer competence and cover CENVAT credit and valuation cases.
The Board prescribed uniform monetary limits for adjudication under Sections 11A and 33 of the Central Excise Act, 1944, applicable irrespective of fraud, collusion, wilful mis-statement, suppression, contravention with intent to evade duty, or extended period; classification, valuation and CENVAT credit cases are included. Show cause notices must be approved and signed by the competent adjudicating officer; orders should normally be passed by the authority before whom personal hearing was held. Previous inconsistent circulars are rescinded or modified and transfers and reporting for implementation are required.

Nominated Agency Scheme: Letters of credit for gold imports must be opened only by the nominated agencies, not by third parties.
Only designated nominated agencies and permitted banks may open Letters of Credit for import of gold under the Nominated Agency Scheme; other entities must not establish such Letters of Credit even if they furnish a letter of authority from a nominated agency, and Authorised Dealers must ensure LCs are opened only on behalf of the nominated agencies themselves.

Risk Disclosure Document mandate ensures clients receive and sign standardized risk disclosures before trading, creating broker obligations.
A mandatory model Risk Disclosure Document is prescribed for stock exchanges to adopt and require members to disclose to constituents and obtain signed acknowledgement. The RDD enumerates market risks-higher volatility, lower liquidity, wider spreads, order execution limitations, news and rumours impact, and system/network risks-and prescribes constituent obligations including KYC, broker client agreement, contract notes, settlement timelines, trade verification and grievance procedures, with claims against defaulters subject to the Investors' Protection Fund scheme.

Secondary market transparency for privately placed corporate debt: exchange trading limited to qualified institutional and high net worth investors.
Listed companies issuing debt on private placement must provide initial and continuing disclosures under Schedule II, SEBI disclosure guidelines and the listing agreement (with web-only disclosure permitted for securities in a standard denomination); obtain an investment grade rating from a SEBI-registered agency; appoint a SEBI-registered debenture trustee; issue and trade securities in demat form; sign a separate listing agreement; and ensure all non-spot trades occur on exchange platforms with trading restricted to qualified institutional investors and high networth individuals. Intermediaries associating with such issuances are accountable and must furnish periodic reports to SEBI.

Utilisation of AED (GSI) credit: reassessment and protective action directed to safeguard revenue after prior concession.
Direction addressing utilisation of AED (GSI) credit for payment of CENVAT duty: Board highlights instances where manufacturers availed AED (GSI) credit after 1.3.2003 for inputs received prior to 1.3.2003 though finished goods did not attract AED (GSI). Board has sought legal opinion and instructs field formations to take protective revenue measures notwithstanding earlier circulars, collect detailed commodity-wise information on such availment, and submit reports to headquarters in line with TRU guidance.

EPCG nexus fixation revised: regional offices finalize below threshold cases while headquarters handles above threshold applications.
Amendments revise EPCG procedural allocation: RLAs grant licences on self declaration and fix nexus for below threshold cases, while headquarters fixes nexus for above threshold applications; committees must finalize nexus within two months based on Chartered Engineer certificates and EPCG nexus norms, failure to do so renders the applied nexus final, and RLAs must maintain sector/industry registers. Appendix 9 now requires a Chartered Engineer certificate detailing end use or essentiality of imported machinery/spares and specific registration or manufacturing licences where applicable.

In principle approval for listing: issuers must obtain it from nationwide trading exchanges before issuing further shares or securities.
A listed company must obtain in-principle approval from exchanges with nationwide trading terminals before issuing further shares or securities; if not listed on any such exchange, it must obtain in-principle approval from all exchanges where it is listed. Stock exchanges are required to amend listing agreements, notify stakeholders, publish the change for investors and report implementation to the regulator.

Import restriction on second hand personal computers: treated as second hand goods and excluded from EPCG eligibility.
Second hand personal computers and laptops are classified as second hand goods under Para 2.17 of the EXIM Policy, 2002-07 and are not covered by the definition of capital goods in Para 9.10 or Para 2.33 of the Handbook of Procedures. Consequently they are subject to import restrictions for second hand goods and are ineligible for import under the EPCG scheme under Para 5.1, including for service providers.