Manufacturing policy target to increase sectoral GDP share and expand employment, prioritizing green and low carbon growth.
The Government proposes a draft Manufacturing Policy to increase the manufacturing sector's share of GDP and substantially expand employment, supported by significant investment, while integrating a Green Manufacturing and low carbon growth strategy that promotes eco innovation and participation in the market for environmental goods and services.

Foreign direct investment policy allows automatic approvals in most sectors, supported by a consolidated policy circular and active promotion.
India's FDI regime permits broad foreign ownership in most sectors through an automatic route and is maintained under an investor friendly policy subject to ongoing consultative review. The policy was consolidated in Circular 2 of 2010, providing a publicly accessible statement of entry and approval mechanisms. The Government also promotes investment by disseminating information, advising prospective investors, and establishing joint commissions, working groups and business fora to foster cooperation and stimulate FDI.

Patent examination backlog persists; recruitment of examiners underway, no new office branches proposed, list of grants published.
A significant patent examination backlog exists due to increased examination requests and examiner shortages; 200 examiner posts were created and a recruitment exam for 257 examiners was held, there is no proposal to open additional patent office branches, and a list of pharmaceutical product patents granted between 2005-06 and 2009-10 has been published on the Indian Patent Office website.

Broad based Trade and Investment agreement negotiations advancing to deepen trade and investment and address services and professional mobility.
Negotiations on a Broad based Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA) between India and the EU are advancing with multiple rounds completed; institutional mechanisms such as the Joint Economic & Trade Committee (JETCO) and an India-UK CEOs Forum are tasked with coordinating government and business inputs to enhance bilateral trade and investment, while identified principal export and import sectors (garments, transport equipment, machinery, pharmaceuticals, gems and jewellery, and industrial inputs) inform negotiation and policy priorities including movement of professionals and services liberalisation.

Wholesale Price Index update shows marginal monthly rise, varied sectoral movements and elevated annual inflation pressures.
Wholesale Price Index for February 2011 shows all commodities WPI at 146.0 with annual inflation at 8.31% and financial year build up 7.51%. Primary Articles fell 2.9% month on month due mainly to lower food article prices; Fuel & Power rose 0.7% led by higher petroleum and aviation turbine fuel costs; Manufactured Products rose 1.3% with mixed subgroup movements including increases in edible oils, textiles, chemicals and metals and declines in leather and selected food items. The release includes detailed item level variations and revised December 2010 final index.

Cluster Development Programme expands infrastructure support; approvals granted for multiple infrastructure proposals to upgrade MSE clusters.
Implementation of the Micro and Small Enterprises - Cluster Development Programme (MSE-CDP) to develop MSEs through cluster interventions establishing Common Facility Centers and infrastructure upgradation; under the scheme's infrastructure component, 130 proposals have been approved for infrastructure development.

Promotion of Small Enterprises: financial support under MSE-CDP and PMEGP expands infrastructure and assisted units across states.
The Government is promoting small enterprise creation through financial support under the Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises- Cluster Development Programme and the Prime Minister's Employment Generation Programme. Nine infrastructure development projects were sanctioned in 2008-10 to establish or upgrade centres and estates, resulting in sixty-one small and micro enterprises established. PMEGP assistance is reported statewise for 2008-09 and 2009-10, with a table of units assisted by State/UT and aggregated totals showing an overall increase in assisted units.

Mail Network Optimization: KPI-driven upgrades and expanded Speed Post centres to bolster service competitiveness.
The Department has initiated a Mail Network Optimization project emphasising deployment of date-based Key Performance Indicators and enhancement of the Speed Net Track and Trace system to measure service delivery, together with KPI-driven monitoring of operations in twenty-eight major cities, technological upgradation of Speed Post Centres, establishment of premium delivery centres, and creation of additional Speed Post Centres to improve competitiveness and quality of Speed Post Service.

Wholesale price index movement shows easing in primary articles while fuel and power inflation moderates year-on-year.
Wholesale Price Index for the week ended 26 February 2011 shows the Primary Articles major group declined week on week with lower point to point annual inflation than the prior week, driven by decreases in Food Articles, Non Food Articles and Minerals for specified commodities, while Fuel & Power remained unchanged week on week though its year on year inflation moderated; the release supplies detailed subgroup indices, build up statistics and a commodity table.

Geographical indication registration secures regional tea identity while coupled IP and market support boost product quality and branding.
Promotion combines intellectual property protection and industry support: the geographical indication registration of "Assam orthodox" and a copyrighted Assam logo, plus the India Tea Logo, protect regional tea identity while recognition of agro climatic driven flavour distinctions informs quality differentiation; parallel Rubber Board assistance targets planting, productivity, quality and marketing in Karbi Anglong.

Equity support for public sector banks to preserve capital adequacy and restore minimum government ownership levels.
Decision to provide equity support to public sector banks to preserve Tier One CRAR at 8% and to raise Government of India shareholding in banks where it is below 58%, with modalities and implementation mechanisms to be worked out by the administration.

Income eligibility limits for minority matric scholarships set; no single unified income ceiling proposed.
Eligibility for minority scholarships is governed by separate family income ceilings for pre-matric and post-matric awards, determined for the Eleventh Five Year Plan period and functioning as administrative criteria; no proposal exists to establish a single unified income ceiling for all minority scholarship schemes.

FDI in power sector shows sustained year on year growth, with official figures reporting rising inflows over the period.
Foreign direct investment in the power sector showed a sustained year on year increase from 2003-04 to 2009-10, with annual rupee figures and corresponding US dollar amounts presented in brackets in an official press release summarising sectoral FDI inflows.

Audit-linked fund release: compliance with labour budget projections and certified utilization required before subsequent instalments are released.
Disbursement is structured in instalments with conditionality for subsequent releases: an initial instalment is released early in the financial year subject to a prescribed minimum of the agreed labour budget after adjustment for opening balances, and later instalments require States to submit prescribed release proposals with a Chartered Accountant audit report and a Utilization Certificate demonstrating prescribed minimum utilisation of available funds.

FDI in defence: proposal to raise investment cap under interministerial review to promote indigenous production.
A departmental Discussion Paper proposes raising the FDI cap in defence manufacturing and is under inter ministerial consultations pending a Government decision, framed as part of policy to enhance self reliance by encouraging indigenous research, design and development of defence equipment.

Tax administration reform: focus on treating taxpayers as clients and adapting systems through creativity and humility.
Guidance to IRS probationers emphasizes leadership, vision and expertise as core human elements; it urges cultivation of creativity, humility and a continuous willingness to learn to acquire effective skills. Tax administration should adapt to technological and global changes, moving from adversarial enforcement toward treating compliant taxpayers as important clients while penalising deliberate evasion. Probationers are directed to innovate systems, adopt best practices, and manage the public-private interface productively to meet rising expectations and support national growth and regulatory efficiency.

Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement advancing to deepen India ASEAN economic integration and broaden trade and investment ties.
A Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between India and ASEAN is expected by year end, building on the implemented India ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement and ongoing Services and Investment negotiations; institutional arrangements and political commitment are being pursued to deepen regional economic integration and expand trade, while a Business Fair and Conclave facilitate policymaker and business engagement to capitalise on the resulting market opportunities.

Foreign direct investment in cold storage allowed under automatic route; aims to improve supply chains and reduce agricultural wastage.
The policy permits 100% FDI under the automatic route in storage and warehousing including cold storage; single-brand retail FDI remains permitted subject to conditions, and proposals to allow multi-brand retail FDI have prompted a Discussion Paper by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion to solicit stakeholder views and address objectives such as improving back-end infrastructure and reducing agricultural supply-chain wastage.

Fuel subsidy continuation: government maintains PDS kerosene and domestic LPG subsidies plus freight support to ensure affordable household fuels.
The Government reaffirms a policy commitment to maintain affordable household fuels by continuing subsidies for PDS kerosene and domestic LPG and by retaining freight subsidy support for remote areas; the PDS Kerosene and Domestic LPG Subsidy Scheme and the Freight Subsidy Scheme have been extended through the prescribed period and administrative measures will be taken to implement these subsidy schemes to protect household access to essential fuels.

Trade balance narrows as exports outpace imports, reducing the cumulative trade deficit for the April-January period.
India's exports rose substantially in January 2011 and cumulatively for April-January 2010-11 versus the prior year, while imports increased at lower rates, yielding a modest reduction in the cumulative trade deficit. Oil imports fell in January but rose cumulatively for April-January, whereas non-oil imports increased in both January and the cumulative period; figures are presented on a provisional basis in US dollar and rupee terms with percentage growth rates.