External commercial borrowings for civil aviation: working capital facility period extended and policy conditions unchanged; banks must notify customers.
The scheme permitting External Commercial Borrowings for working capital in the civil aviation sector is extended so eligible borrowers may continue to avail ECBs for working capital until December 31, 2013; all other ECB policy aspects remain unchanged. Authorised Dealer Category I banks must notify their constituents and customers of the circular, and the directions are issued under statutory powers without prejudice to permissions or approvals under other laws.

Buyback of FCCBs under approval route extended temporarily; banks must notify constituents and ensure compliance with FEMA directions.
Continuation of the buyback and prepayment scheme for Foreign Currency Convertible Bonds (FCCBs) under the approval route is authorized temporarily, with the existing approval-route mechanism extended and a firm discontinuation stipulated after the extension period; Authorized Dealer Category I banks must notify their constituents and customers. The directions are issued under Sections 10(4) and 11(1) of the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 and do not affect other statutory permissions or approvals.

ECB window extension permits refinancing of outstanding 3G spectrum rupee loans under the approval route, subject to existing conditions.
The circular affirms that initial payments for 3G spectrum may be met from Rupee resources and refinanced with long term External Commercial Borrowings under the approval route within the stipulated period; it further decides that the ECB window for refinancing outstanding 3G spectrum Rupee loans on telecom operators' books will remain open until a specified cutoff, with all other ECB policy aspects unchanged and AD Category I banks required to inform constituents.

Notification requirement for exemption under Section 10(46): standardized application and filing process with prescribed format and enclosures.
Section 10(46) exemption covers income of specified public-regulatory or administrative entities not engaged in commercial activity and requires Central Government notification in the Official Gazette. Applicants must file a standardized application with the jurisdictional Commissioner/Director of Income-tax and send a copy with acknowledgement to the Under Secretary (ITA 1), CBDT, attaching prescribed evidence of establishment, objects, activities, revenue streams, accounts and any prior registrations or adverse orders.

Risk Management System in exports enables clearance of low-risk consignments by self-assessment, guiding verification and audits.
The Risk Management System (RMS) for exports will process Shipping Bills filed through ICES to enable clearance of low risk consignments on self assessment, while selecting higher risk consignments for verification, physical examination, drawback scrutiny or Post Clearance Audit. RMS outputs shall direct Appraising, Examining and Audit officers; deviations from RMS instructions require prior Commissioner level authorization and recording of reasons. Implementation is phased, will modify existing assessment norms where RMS output is received, and necessitates staff reorganisation and creation of a PCA function.

External Commercial Borrowings for affordable housing: revised eligibility and operational conditions permit ECB under approval route with capped allocation.
Revision permits ECB for low cost affordable housing under the approval route with modified eligibility and operational conditions: developers must have three years' experience and a good track record; the paid-up capital requirement for HFCs is withdrawn while a Net Owned Funds threshold for HFCs of Rs. 300 crore for the past three years remains. Aggregate annual ECB allocation under the scheme is capped and ECB must be swapped into rupees on a fully hedged basis. NHB shall fix reasonable on lending spreads and certify that ECB proceeds finance prospective owners under prescribed unit cost, loan amount, and carpet area limits.

Duty free shop operations at Visakhapatnam Port: bonded warehousing, escorted transfers, restricted foreign currency sales and audit controls.
Operation of the Duty Free Shop requires a Private Bonded Warehouse licence and a registered General Bond; all imported non-duty-paid goods must be received, transferred and warehoused only under Customs supervision with prescribed Into-Bond Bills of Entry or transfer bonds, endorsed duplicate/triplicate documentation, space certification, escort of goods, and detailed bond-register and stock-card entries. Removals to the DFS require quadruplicate transfer applications and Bond Officer escort; sales are limited to eligible international passengers and crew for payment in freely convertible foreign currency, supported by triplicate sale vouchers counter signed by the Bond Officer. Monthly statements, internal audit reconciliation, recovery of differential duty for unaccounted goods, and audit clearance for bond closure are mandated.

Duty free shop licensing and bonded procedures require supervised receipt, stock control, restricted sales and audit compliance.
Licensees must hold a Private Bonded Warehouse (PBWH) licence covering the Duty Free Shop and Main Bonded Warehouse, register a General Bond, pay cost recovery charges, and operate all receipts, transfers and sales of imported non-duty paid goods under Customs supervision. Receipts require into-bond Bills of Entry or prescribed transfer applications, escorted movement, inventorying and entries by Bond Officers. Transfers from MBWH to DFS use multi-copy applications and escorted removal; sales only to eligible international passengers/crew in approved foreign currency require serial triplicate sale vouchers and Bond Officer certification. Monthly statements, audits, register maintenance, double-locking and recovery of differential duty are mandatory; final closure follows audit clearance.

Appellate Authority designation centralises appeals from regional adjudication orders under the foreign trade regulatory framework.
The Additional Director General of Foreign Trade, Chennai, is appointed as the Appellate Authority for adjudication orders issued by Regional Authorities of the South Zone, consolidating appellate jurisdiction for those orders under the administrative instruction referenced in the Office file and the O&M instruction dated 13.6.2013.

Special currency basket value revised under FEMA; authorised dealer banks must apply the new rupee conversion rate for settlements.
Revision of the rupee value of the special currency basket for settlement under the Deferred Payment Protocols is fixed and must be applied by Category I Authorised Dealer banks from the stated operative date; banks are to notify constituents and implement the revised rate. The directions are issued under the Foreign Exchange Management Act and without prejudice to other statutory permissions or approvals.

Cadre restructuring implementation overseen by a core committee coordinating sub committees, DPCs, and HR policy recommendations.
A Core Committee is constituted to oversee implementation of the cadre restructuring, process and approve Sub-committees, coordinate their work, secure necessary clearances, and ensure timely progress. The Committee will facilitate DPCs for Apex grade grants, prepare analyses and policy recommendations on promotions/up-gradations and inductions, and assist Sub-committees addressing recruitment modalities, allocation of posts, directorate restructuring, amendments to recruitment rules and infrastructure needs. The Directorate of HRD will serve as Secretariat, providing coordination, data and specialist inputs, with weekly reviews and periodic briefings to the Board.

Recovery of penalties: no uniform waiver for deceased individuals; field formations to pursue arrears per law and case law.
Recovery of penalties imposed on deceased individuals is subject to conflicting High Court rulings; applicability depends on the facts of each case. No new central instruction will be issued; field formations should realise arrears in accordance with statutory provisions and relevant judicial pronouncements.

Transfer and posting of income-tax deputies: immediate reassignments ordered; compliance, APAR submission, and RSA token de-linking required.
Transfer and posting of Deputy/Assistant Commissioners of Income-tax ordered with immediate effect, listing officers and postings, approved by the Local Placement Committee and effective until further orders. Compliance must be reported by the deadline. Under Transfer and Posting policy (clause xiii), certain postings are for a particular charge with assignment of specific circle/posting by the concerned CCIT/DGIT. Relieving officers must submit resume/self-assessment, ensure APARs are reviewed and forwarded, and provide a written compliance certificate. Transferred officers must notify FMS Helpdesk/ADIT to de-link RSA tokens from old designations.

Recredit of SAD extended to allow use of re credited duty credit scrips for DEPB scrip utilisation under specified procedures.
Extension permits use of re credited SAD amounts in DEPB/Reward Scheme scrips until 30 September 2013; freely transferable duty credit scrips (including DEPB) are deemed revalidated for this purpose without further RA endorsement, and consolidated certificates issued by Customs within the cutoff are deemed to effect re crediting. Importers are advised to pay SAD in cash for expeditious refund because no re crediting will be allowed where payment is made by scrips.

Round-the-clock customs operation corrections: designated location amended to Kolkata and the commencement date revised accordingly.
Corrigendum to the Board Instruction on 24x7 Customs Operation at major ports and airports: paragraph 2(iii) is amended to read Kolkata instead of Bangalore, and paragraph 3's commencement date is revised; all other contents of the instruction remain unchanged and administrative officers are directed to note and implement these corrections.

Appointment of Chairperson: Sudha Sharma appointed to head CBDT with status of Special Secretary and fixed pay.
Ms. Sudha Sharma, Member of the Central Board of Direct Taxes, is appointed Chairperson of the Central Board of Direct Taxes in the Department of Revenue with the status of Special Secretary, effective from the date she takes charge and continuing until further orders or superannuation; the appointment carries a specified fixed pay scale and is issued as an office order with directions for administrative circulation and website update.

Storage period in public warehouse limited to 30 days, extendable by the Commissioner in 30-day increments.
The amendment replaces the permission to store imported goods in a public warehouse with a limit that such storage shall be "for a period not exceeding thirty days in a public warehouse" and adds a proviso that the Commissioner of Customs may extend the period for further periods not exceeding thirty days at a time; stakeholders are informed for compliance and to report difficulties.

Customs Broker liability expanded: brokers now equally liable for authorised acts or omissions, increasing compliance obligations.
Amendments adopt the nomenclature Customs Brokers and make Customs Brokers equally liable for acts or omissions when expressly or impliedly authorised by an owner, importer or exporter in respect of goods for purposes of the Customs law; brokers must act professionally and negligence, deliberate mis-declaration or collusion will attract stringent action.

Direct movement of imports to CFS permitted under interim SMTP and bond procedure to reduce dwell time.
An interim procedure allows direct movement of goods from a Gateway Port to a CFS of another Customs Station pending ICES modification. Gateway Port Customs will transmit a consolidated CFS wise SMTP list electronically; goods move under a bond with duplicate SMTP hard copies to the CFS. The CFS custodian must prepare a daily arrival list and a Landing Certificate, obtain Customs endorsements, forward documents to the ICD and Gateway Port to enable re crediting the bond, verify consignments with surveyor/Customs, endorse SMTPs and send them to the ICD, where local IGM filing and B/E processing and clearance take place.

Appointment on deputation for Director General post: selection via committee with eligibility, documentation, and fixed deputation tenure.
Appointment to the Director General post at the Export Promotion Council for EOUs & SEZs will proceed by selection on deputation, promotion, or direct recruitment with the Chairman selecting candidates based on Selection Committee recommendations. Applicants must meet prescribed educational and experience criteria, submit applications through proper channel with confidential reports, integrity and vigilance clearances and penalty history, and accept deputation terms ordinarily of three years with salary fixed per parent organisation rules; incomplete or late applications will be rejected.