Offer for Sale oversubscription: EIL OFS saw strong retail reservation and institutional demand, reducing government shareholding.
An Offer for Sale (OFS) of ten percent of paid-up capital included a twenty percent retail reservation with a retail discount and a floor price; indicative bidding exceeded the floor, the OFS closed significantly oversubscribed with strong retail and institutional participation, and the Government's shareholding in the company was reduced to the stated post-offer level.

Cooperative federalism used to resolve intergovernmental implementation issues through ministry-state meetings, vice chairman facilitating negotiated solutions.
Cooperative federalism was operationalised through a structured intergovernmental meeting that brought state officials and multiple central ministries into direct, facilitated discussions to resolve outstanding administrative and implementation issues; most matters were resolved or substantially advanced, and the Aayog positioned the model as replicable for debottlenecking projects and assisting with ministry implementation needs.

PFRDA statutory status prompts NPS Service Week to boost subscriber awareness, data updation, IRA compliance and stakeholder outreach.
PFRDA is observing an NPS Service Week from February 1-6, 2016 to drive subscriber-oriented service, awareness and information dissemination. Intermediaries including nodal officers, POPs, aggregators and the CRA are tasked to promote scheme features, distribute subscriber brochures, update records via S2 forms, convert non-IRA accounts to IRA-compliant status, advise on PRAN updation, and provide transaction statements on request, supported by CRA assistance and wide points-of-interface outreach.

Gold Monetization Scheme licences granted - refinery approvals issued across regions enabling licensed refinery operations under scheme.
Grant of licences under the Gold Monetization Scheme: list of refineries and applicants granted licences as on 19.01.2016, organised by Western, Central and Northern regions with inspection/visit dates and operative status recorded as Licence Granted; notes that an entity already holding a licence for Gold Coin includes bullion within the scope of that licence.

Port capacity expansion to modernize major ports through new projects and dredging to handle larger vessels.
Ministry of Shipping will award 30 projects in 2015-16 involving investments of Rs. 14,225 crores to expand port capacity by 162 MTPA, continuing a program of berth and terminal construction, modernization and mechanization guided by an independent consultant's 101 recommendations. The Ministry is pursuing draft-deepening to at least 14 metres (and up to 17 metres where feasible) and is undertaking dredging to 18 metres at specified Major Ports to accommodate capesize vessels, with dredging investment estimated at Rs. 793 crores.

Joint venture companies for railway infrastructure enable state-majority ownership and long-term concessions to mobilize project funding.
Joint venture companies will be formed with State majority ownership and Ministry of Railways minority ownership to identify projects and financing; after funding is secured, project specific Special Purpose Vehicles will be established with the JV as a mandatory shareholder holding a minimum equity share. The Ministry will enter long term concession agreements with SPVs to govern operation, revenue sharing under existing apportionment formulae, and technical and marketing support. Project land ownership will vest with SPVs to permit commercial exploitation and improve project viability.

Hybrid annuity model revives nonviable highway projects by sharing financing and insulating developers from traffic and inflation risk.
The Hybrid Annuity Model combines government funding of a significant portion of construction costs with private design, build and maintenance obligations; the private developer partly finances the project and is remunerated through annuity payments after commissioning, while the Authority assumes traffic and inflation risks to improve lender and developer comfort and enable implementation of otherwise nonviable highway projects.

Procurement clarifications for IT application development: RfP scope, secure multi site hosting, DMS, mobile integration and support obligations reaffirmed.
Pre-bid clarifications require agencies to follow RfP evaluation criteria, propose end-to-end solutions for hosting with multiple geographically separated data centres, ensure secure handling of sensitive data, implement a Document Management System with archival and version control, integrate mobile applications with the web portal for registration and compliance functions, provide configurable workflow automation, support specified languages, deliver training and helpdesk support per SLA, and meet the RfP timelines and functional requirements; proposed solutions will be scored on suitability to the documented scope.

Financing agreement for flood recovery enables reconstruction and resilience measures under a multi-component loan with contingency response.
A Financing Agreement between the Government of India and the World Bank (IDA), together with a Subsidiary Agreement with the Government of Jammu & Kashmir, establishes a loan-funded Jhelum and Tawi Flood Recovery Project. The project aims to support recovery and enhance disaster resilience by restoring and strengthening critical infrastructure with resilient design, strengthening disaster risk management capacity, and providing a Contingency Emergency Response. It comprises seven components and is to be implemented over a five-year period with the Government of Jammu & Kashmir as implementing agency.

International financing agreement to strengthen flood resilience and boost agricultural productivity through targeted project components.
A Financing Agreement provides concessional external funding for a five year Bihar Kosi Basin Development Project, with the State government as implementing agency and a Contingent Emergency Response mechanism to enhance flood resilience and disaster response capacity. The project targets rural producers and households in the Kosi River Basin and is structured into five components: Flood Risk Management; Agricultural Productivity and Competitiveness; Connectivity; Contingent Emergency Response; and Implementation Support, aiming to increase agricultural production, expand irrigation access and improve transport connectivity.

Government co-contribution under Atal Pension Yojana extended to allow more eligible unorganised workers to qualify for central support.
Extension of availability of Government co-contribution under the Atal Pension Yojana to permit additional eligible unorganised sector workers to join and receive central co-contribution; the Central Government will contribute fifty percent of the subscriber's prescribed contribution subject to the existing per-subscriber contribution ceiling for the designated five-year co-contribution period while retaining the scheme's original eligibility criteria and co-contribution calculation method.

Board meetings: mandatory notice, agenda, quorum, electronic participation rules, and procedures for resolutions by circulation.
SS-1 mandates procedures for convening and conducting Board and Committee meetings: written Notice, serial numbering, Agenda and explanatory Notes at least seven days before meetings (subject to limited exceptions), secure Electronic Mode participation with roll call and recording, Quorum rules (one third of total strength or two directors), disclosure and exclusion of Interested Directors, delegation of powers by meeting resolution, and detailed rules for Resolutions by circulation including timelines, requisite majorities and requirement to record such Resolutions in subsequent Minutes.

General meetings: mandatory SS-2 rules govern notice, quorum, proxies and electronic voting to standardise meeting procedures.
SS-2, mandatory under Section 118(10) of the Companies Act, 2013, prescribes procedures for convening, noticing, conducting and recording General Meetings. Notices must state meeting particulars and accompany explanatory statements for special business; service may include prescribed electronic means and website hosting; minimum notice periods and short-notice consent rules apply. Quorum must be present throughout, Directors/Auditors/Secretarial Auditor have attendance obligations, proxies are governed by form, stamping and deposit rules, and voting may occur by show of hands, poll, ballot, postal ballot or mandatory e-voting where prescribed, with specified interactions between remote e-voting and in meeting voting.

Investment outreach invites international investors to leverage Indian reforms and expanded foreign direct investment opportunities.
Finance Minister will lead a six day visit combining investor outreach and bilateral economic dialogue to promote investment across infrastructure, manufacturing and services, highlighting policy measures such as tax rationalisation, regulatory simplification and expanded foreign direct investment avenues, and encouraging participation through the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund.

Sovereign Gold Bond issue price fixed on simple average of prior week's high-purity gold closing prices under Scheme rules.
Sovereign Gold Bond subscription for the tranche is opened for a defined window and the issue price is fixed per gram of high-purity gold by reference to the simple average of prior week's published closing prices. The price determination and issuance are authorised under the Scheme's implementing notification and a central bank circular.

Expedited income-tax refunds allow small claims to be issued without adjustment of outstanding arrears for minor amounts.
The Central Board of Direct Taxes directed CPC Bengaluru and field officers to expedite refunds below Rs. 50,000 and further instructed that refunds up to Rs. 5,000, and refunds where outstanding arrears are up to Rs. 5,000, may be issued without adjustment of outstanding arrears, as set out in an office memorandum dated 14 January 2016.

Fiscal consolidation secured through improved budget execution and reduced effective revenue shortfall, strengthening inclusive development outcomes.
Government commits to promoting inclusive and sustainable development while preserving fiscal consolidation by ensuring effective utilization of annual budget funds. Prudent 2015-16 policies improved the fiscal position by end-November 2015, reducing the fiscal deficit relative to the Budget Estimate and lowering the Effective Revenue Deficit. Plan Expenditure execution for capital asset creation rose to a higher share of the Budget Estimate than in the previous year, and total expenditure as a percentage of the Budget Estimate increased, indicating strengthened budget implementation and public expenditure management.

Uniform premium structure for crop insurance secures farmers' entitlement to full insured cover with government subsidy support.
The scheme establishes a uniform premium paid by farmers with the Government bearing the balance premium without any upper subsidy limit, removes prior premium capping so farmers receive full sum insured, mandates technology use (smartphone data capture and remote sensing) for faster claim settlement, and expands coverage to include on-account payments, prevented sowing and wider post-harvest loss protection under a unified national framework.

Empowered Committee of Secretaries to screen pay commission recommendations for holistic, expeditious administrative processing.
An Empowered Committee of Secretaries, chaired by the Cabinet Secretary, is constituted to act as a Screening Committee to process the recommendations of the seventh Central Pay Commission in an expeditious, detailed and holistic fashion, considering all relevant factors for further administrative action.

Social security measures for children, women and seniors sought to expand protections and funding across health, education and agriculture.
Inclusive growth is prioritized with measures to ensure social security for children, women and senior citizens. Recommendations include increased pensions and inclusion of grandparents in health insurance, strengthened funding and transparency for child protection and education, comprehensive universal crop insurance and expanded support for small and tenant farmers, creation of a National Social Security Board for informal workers, targeted use of the Nirbhaya Fund and higher allocations for maternal, child and adolescent health, nutrition and child welfare schemes.