CIRCULAR HO/17/11/24(8)2026-DDHS-POD1/I/23125/2026 October 07, 2026 To, Issuers of listed debt securities; All Stock Exchanges; All Depositories Sub: 1. Chapter VIII of SEBI Master Circular for Issue and Listing of Non-Convertible Securities, Securitised Debt Instruments, Security Receipts, Municipal Debt Securities and Commercial Paper dated October 15, 2025 ("NCS Master Circular") deals with specifications related to ISIN for debt securities. 2. Based on the feedbac... ... ...

Credit Risk-o-Meter is introduced as a mandatory, colour-coded disclosure mechanism for debt securities. It must be included in offer documents, abridged prospectuses, private placement memoranda, issuer and Online Bond Platform Provider advertisements, and Online Bond Platform web and mobile platforms. Minimum disclosures for securities offered through Online Bond Platforms must include the prescribed Credit Risk-o-Meter. Stock exchanges and depositories must establish implementation systems, amend applicable rules, inform issuers, and disseminate the requirements. The requirements take effect 45 days after issuance.

Eligible issuers may omit merchant banker appointment for private placements of debt securities only if they are regulated by an Indian financial-sector regulator, have been listed for at least one year without pending listing-compliance fines or penalties, and have made no specified payment defaults during the preceding three financial years and current financial year. Statutory-auditor certification is required. The debt must be senior or unsubordinated and secured by a first or pari passu charge, subject to the stated public-sector exception, and must carry a rating of at least AA-.

National Land Monetization Corporation is facilitating a two-phase e-tender-cum-e-auction of 459 encumbrance-free land parcels of Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited through the RailTel E-Nivida e-Procurement Platform. Participation requires registration, fulfilment of prescribed requirements and submission of earnest money deposit within the applicable deadlines. Physical and online mock e-auction training familiarises prospective bidders with the bidding interface and participation procedure. Investor outreach provides information on plot details, eligibility requirements, registration and bidding conditions.

TDS applicability to electricity-bill payments made to a state electricity distribution company is questioned where aggregate payments during a financial year exceed the stated threshold. The issue is whether such payments fall within the scope of withholding under section 194Q.

THE HONOURABLE DR. JUSTICE ANITA SUMANTH For the Petitioner : Mr. Kamal Sawhney, Senior Counsel for Mr. S. Muthuvenkatraman For the Respondents : Ms. Hema Muralikrishnan, Senior Standing Counsel ORDER The petitioner, an assessee on the file of the Deputy Commissioner of Income Tax/R1, challenges a final assessment order dated 29.10.2010 passed in terms of Section 143 (3) r/w 144C (13) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (in short 'Act') for Assessment Year (A.Y.) 2006-07 in consequence of an... ... ...

Madhya Pradesh SGST exemption notification is amended to replace its reference to Schedule IV of the earlier rate notification with Schedule II of the notification dated 19 September 2025. Made under the State Government's exemption power under the Madhya Pradesh Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, on the Council's recommendations, the amendment takes effect from 22 September 2025.

The Data Protection Board of India is established under the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, effective from publication in the Official Gazette. It is constituted to exercise powers conferred on it and perform functions assigned under that Act, with its head office situated in the National Capital Region of India.

Registered persons whose aggregate turnover in any financial year does not exceed two crore rupees are exempted from furnishing the annual return under the first proviso to section 44(1) of the Madhya Pradesh Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017. Coverage begins with financial year 2024-25 and subsequent financial years, and the measure is deemed effective from 17 September 2025.

Suspension of registration prevents a registered person from issuing tax invoices or charging tax on supplies, while revocation restores applicable invoicing and return obligations for the suspension period. Input tax credit on invoices or debit notes not uploaded by suppliers is restricted to 20 per cent of eligible credit relating to uploaded documents. Before issuing a tax-demand notice, the proper officer must communicate the ascertained tax, interest and penalty liability through FORM GST DRC-01A, allowing the person to make partial payment or submit objections.

The Data Protection Board of India's composition is specified under section 19(1) of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023. In exercise of the statutory power to determine the Board's membership, the Central Government fixes the Board at four members. The Board's membership strength is therefore set for its constitution and functioning under the statutory framework governing digital personal data protection.

TDS credit in domestic deductor-default cases depends on verified actual deduction from the taxpayer's income, not solely on deposit, TDS statements, Form 16 or Form 16A, or Form 26AS reflection. Section 205 bars direct or indirect recovery, including refund adjustment, to the extent tax was deducted. The taxpayer must provide reliable payment-specific evidence, and the Assessing Officer must verify the claim while the Department proceeds against the defaulting deductor.

Section 119(2)(b) may permit admission of a delayed revised-return claim where expiry of the Section 139(5) period causes genuine hardship. Condonation removes only the procedural bar and does not establish exemption, refund, or interest entitlement. Genuine hardship requires assessment of bona fides, the nature of the omission, promptness after discovery, legal plausibility, and the consequence of refusal. Circular No. 9/2015 permits prima facie verification and inquiry, but substantive taxability and refund entitlement remain for merits examination.

Provisional refunds are unavailable to registered persons who have not undergone Aadhaar authentication under rule 10B and to persons supplying areca nuts, pan masala, tobacco and manufactured tobacco substitutes, or essential oils. Coverage of the specified goods is determined using the relevant Customs Tariff classifications and the interpretive rules, Section and Chapter Notes, and General Explanatory Notes applicable to the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act, 1975. The restriction takes effect on 1 October 2025.

Section 9(1) is corrected to clarify that a Data Fiduciary must obtain verifiable consent before processing personal data of a child or of a person with disability having a lawful guardian. Section 10(2)(c)(ii) replaces "audit" with "data audit," aligning periodic audit terminology for Significant Data Fiduciaries with the independent data auditor requirement and clarifying the intended data protection audit obligation.

Reserved High Court judgments are subject to a three-month framework for a reasoned pronouncement, supported by monthly monitoring, status disclosures, date-recorded certified copies, and automated notice to advocates. Urgent matters may receive an operative-part pronouncement, but reasons must be uploaded within seven days or, where practical difficulties exist, within fifteen days. Parties may seek early pronouncement after the specified period and, after further delay, request withdrawal and assignment for a fresh hearing.

Refund of accumulated ITC under an inverted duty structure depends on whether higher-rated input goods cause credit accumulation relative to output supplies, not solely on whether the principal raw material and output carry the same rate. Section 54(3)(ii) permits the claim subject to notified exclusions, credit eligibility, and proof of a causal nexus between qualifying inputs and accumulation. Input services and capital goods are excluded from Net ITC for the Rule 89(5) calculation. Rule 89(5) limits refundable quantum, while the prescribed process requires electronic filing, invoice details, ledger debit and verification. Administrative circulars cannot add a principal-input condition beyond the statutory test; claimants must substantiate rate inversion, manufacturing nexus, computation and procedural compliance.

Section 129(3) of the CGST Act imposes separate mandatory deadlines: the penalty notice must be issued within seven days of detention or seizure, and the penalty order must follow within seven days after service of that notice. The latter period runs from service, not from a reply, valuation exercise or other intervening event. Because detention and seizure are coercive restraints on goods and conveyances, administrative difficulty, minimal delay and inspection-stage timelines cannot extend either deadline; a delayed Section 129 order is invalid. The affected person must receive an opportunity of hearing. Invalidity of Section 129 proceedings does not preclude separately lawful action under other GST provisions.

Section 16(2)(c) of the CGST Act constitutionally requires tax charged on a supply to be actually paid to the Government before input tax credit is available; invoice possession, receipt of supply and recipient payment do not substitute for this cumulative condition. The Supreme Court affirmed that a bona fide-purchaser exception cannot be read into the provision by relying on the distinct Delhi VAT framework. Section 41 and Rule 37A require reversal where supplier tax payment conditions are unmet, while permitting re-availment after subsequent compliance. Constitutional validity does not permit mechanical denial of credit: authorities must establish the relevant statutory facts, consider transaction-specific evidence, provide a hearing and issue reasoned findings.

Preventive outreach in Malana village promoted drug awareness, youth engagement, community participation and alternative development in an area associated with illicit cannabis cultivation. Residents were sensitised to the harmful effects of cannabis, charas and hashish oil consumption and encouraged to pursue sustainable alternatives, including apiculture, animal husbandry, dairy activities and tourism. Community discussions addressed livelihood barriers, ecological concerns, and commitments to refrain from drug consumption and discourage illicit cannabis cultivation.