Control room monitoring for essential goods enables direct reporting and escalation to local authorities for logistical relief.
DPIIT has established a centralized control room to monitor in real time the transportation, manufacturing and delivery of essential commodities and to receive reports from manufacturers, transporters, distributors, wholesalers and e commerce companies about ground level difficulties; reported issues will be taken up with concerned state governments, district and police authorities and other agencies through provided telephone and email channels operating during stated functional hours.

MPLADS funds may be reallocated for COVID 19 medical equipment and related facility support under amended guidelines.
Use of MPLADS funds has been temporarily broadened to permit Members of Parliament to recommend expenditures for prevention, containment and treatment of COVID-19, including procurement of non contact infra red thermometers, PPE kits, thermal imaging scanners at points of entry, approved testing kits, ICU ventilators, isolation/quarantine wards, face masks, gloves, sanitizers and other health equipment recommended for disease control.

Business continuity platform provides real-time updates and around-the-clock redressal to support businesses facing COVID-19 disruptions.
Invest India's Business Immunity Platform centralizes real-time updates on government initiatives and special provisions, offers FAQs and mapped corporate response measures, and operates an around-the-clock issue-redressal service staffed by sector experts. It resolves queries via email and WhatsApp, facilitates supplier-demand matching and showcases solutions from startups and MSMEs, and includes a partnership with SIDBI to address MSME-specific continuity needs.

Company affirmation of readiness towards COVID 19: online form for companies/LLPs to confirm compliance via DIN/PAN and OTP verification.
An online post login form deployed 23 March 2020 enables Indian and foreign companies and LLPs to declare compliance with COVID 19 guidelines, including work from home. The process requires entering a valid entity identifier to prefill the name, selecting compliance status, providing an authorised signatory identifier (DIN/PAN/membership number), performing OTP verification on a mobile number (prefilled where available), and submitting; no fee, no DSC, no SRN, and system email acknowledgements are issued.

Ex-post approval for MSP reimbursement to support price-stabilising cotton operations and protect farmer interests.
Ex-post approval was granted to engage Maharashtra State Cooperative Cotton Growers Marketing Federation Ltd. as sub-agent of Cotton Corporation of India for MSP operations in Maharashtra for cotton years 2017-18 and 2018-19. The Cabinet authorised revenue expenditure to reimburse losses on sale of cotton procured under MSP operations for 2017-18 and 2018-19 and additionally for 2014-15 and 2015-16, with sums allocated between CCI and MSCCGMFL to support price-stabilising MSP operations and protect farmer interests.

Intellectual property rights modernization accelerates trademark and patent processing, improving registration and examination efficiency and international rankings.
Strengthening the Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Regime in India involves legislative and administrative reforms, IP office modernisation, expanded IT use for e filing and digital delivery, acceptance of electronic communications, expedited examination, and international cooperation, resulting in reduced examination and registration times, increased trademark registrations, higher volumes of patent examination and grants, and improved Global Innovation Index performance.

Government security repayment scheduled; holders must furnish bank details or tender discharged securities for payment.
Repayment of the outstanding balance under the 10.70% Government Security 2020 is payable on the effective date of repayment. If a State holiday under the Negotiable Instruments Act falls on that date, payment will be made on the previous working day. Under sub regulations 24(2) and 24(3) of the Government Securities Regulations, 2007, maturity proceeds shall be paid by pay order with bank particulars or by electronic credit; holders must submit bank account particulars in advance or, lacking those, tender duly discharged securities at designated paying offices at least 20 days before the due date.

Companies (Amendment) Bill 2020 decriminalises many technical defaults, replaces imprisonment with monetary penalties and creates a Producer Companies regime.
The Bill replaces imprisonment and criminal offences for numerous technical and procedural defaults under the Companies Act, 2013 with prescribed monetary penalties (including daily continuing penalties with ceilings), grants the Central Government powers to exempt classes of companies or persons and to prescribe rules, inserts a comprehensive Chapter XXIA creating a bespoke regime for Producer Companies (covering incorporation, governance, patronage-based returns, audit, transfers, mergers and conversion from inter-State co-operatives), and authorises direct/foreign listing mechanisms and Benches of the Appellate Tribunal.

Direct Tax Vivad se Vishwas Act allows settlement of disputed direct tax by declaration and specified payment for finality.
The Act creates a framework under which a taxpayer may file a declaration for specified tax arrear, have a designated authority determine the amount payable within fifteen days, and obtain deemed withdrawal of litigation upon payment; payment rates vary by category and by date of payment, the authority's determination is conclusive, amounts paid are generally non refundable, certain prosecutions and penalties are barred if conditions are met, and falsehood or breach of undertaking revives withdrawn proceedings.

Wholesale Price Index declines, reducing annual WPI inflation and reflecting mixed movements across primary, fuel and manufactured goods.
The Wholesale Price Index (base 2011-12=100) for February 2020 fell 0.6% month on month to a provisional 122.2; annual WPI inflation was 2.26% and build up inflation for the financial year was 1.92%. Primary Articles declined 2.8% (Food Articles down 3.7%), Minerals rose, Crude Petroleum & Natural Gas declined, Fuel & Power rose 1.2% (Mineral Oils down, Electricity up), and Manufactured Products rose 0.2% with mixed subgroup movements. The WPI Food Index declined from the prior month and December 2019 final WPI was revised slightly higher.

Insolvency amendments set joint-filing thresholds for creditors, protect licences during moratorium, and limit corporate prosecution post-plan.
The Act prescribes class-based joint-filing thresholds for financial creditors and real estate allottees, requires modification of pending applications to comply, expands recognised debts by notification, clarifies moratorium protections for licences and critical supplies provided dues are paid, continues resolution professional management until plan approval or liquidator appointment, and provides that post-plan approval a corporate debtor's liability for prior offences ceases where control changes to specified persons while preserving prosecution of designated partners and officers in default.

Anti-competitive practices: association and pharma firms required NOCs from stockists and must cease and undertake compliance outreach.
The Commission found Anti-competitive practices by BCDA and its District Committees-requiring SAI/NOC before supply, collecting monetary considerations for SAI, and requiring PAI from PCD agents after donations-and held pharmaceutical companies liable for conditioning supply on BCDA approvals. The Commission directed the entities and responsible officials to cease such practices, noted remedial steps and coercion pleas, did not impose monetary penalties, and required BCDA to undertake advocacy and outreach to ensure compliance with competition law.

Dearness Allowance increase approved, additional instalment extended to central employees and pensioners effective January implementation.
Approval was granted for release of an additional instalment of Dearness Allowance and Dearness Relief with effect from 1 January 2020, increasing rates to compensate for price rise for Central Government employees and pensioners, implemented pursuant to the accepted pay commission formula and producing a quantified annual exchequer impact for the specified financial period.

Port-led development boosts coastal shipping liberalisation and infrastructure initiatives to lower logistics costs under Sagarmala.
The Sagarmala Programme advances port-led development by implementing 500 identified projects across Port Modernization, Connectivity Enhancement, Port Led Industrialisation and Coastal Community Development, prioritising private sector and PPP implementation to lower logistics costs; significant project completion and implementation figures are reported and remaining projects are staged for delivery through 2035.

Local sourcing requirements mandate Indian procurement for retail investments, shaping domestic textile supply chains and MSME participation.
Promotion of domestic textile clusters emphasizes supply-chain strengthening and procurement-linked industrial policy: the Ministry proposes Mega Textiles Parks and implements schemes including Powertex, ATUFS (excluding spinning) and the Scheme for Integrated Textile Parks, while removal of anti-dumping duty on PTA supports man-made fibre manufacture. The consolidated FDI policy conditions retail investment on local sourcing obligations to channel procurement towards Indian MSMEs, village and cottage industries, artisans and craftsmen.

Merger approval: competition authority clears acquisition of equity stake in a hydro power special purpose vehicle, detailed order pending.
CCI approved Greenko Mauritius's acquisition of a significant minority equity stake in Teesta Urja Limited under Section 31(1) of the Competition Act, 2002; the target is a special purpose vehicle established to implement a hydro power project in North Sikkim and the acquirer is an investment holding subsidiary of Greenko Energy Holdings incorporated in Mauritius. A detailed order by the Commission will follow.

Varietal release enables cultivation of a disease resistant, high juice grape hybrid, expanding processing and reducing post harvest losses.
ARI-516, an interspecific grape hybrid combining Catawba and Beauty seedless genetics, has been identified for release by the Varietal Identification Committee under the national grape improvement programme. The variety offers fungal disease tolerance, early ripening, elongated bunches, musky-flavoured berries with high total soluble solids and substantial juice content, and suitability for juice, raisin, jam and wine production, yielding higher per area with lower plant protection costs and potential to reduce post harvest losses.

Bilateral science cooperation in astronomy expands Indo Thai joint research programmes and shared use of observational facilities, enhancing researcher training.
The Department of Science and Technology and the Kingdom of Thailand's Ministry of Science and Technology sanctioned two joint bilateral programmes enabling coordinated Indo Thai research in astronomy and astrophysics; Indian and Thai astronomers will collaborate on simulations and shared use of observational facilities to advance research, instrumentation cooperation, capacity building, and training of young researchers.

Intellectual property strengthening speeds prosecution and modernises IPR administration across sectors, improving registration and examination efficiency.
The Department implemented legislative, institutional and IT measures to strengthen Intellectual Property Rights, including e filing, digital certificate delivery, video conferencing for hearings, expedited examination and international cooperation such as WIPO accession and a pilot Patent Prosecution Highway, resulting in reduced prosecution timelines and increased trademark registrations and patent grants.

Repayment of Government Security due; holders must provide bank account details or tender securities for payment.
Repayment of 6.65% Government Security 2020 is due April 9, 2020; payment will be by pay order with bank account particulars or by electronic credit where facilities exist. Holders must supply bank account particulars in advance; absent such particulars, holders may tender duly discharged securities at Public Debt Offices, Treasuries/Sub Treasuries or designated bank branches twenty days before the due date. If a state holiday falls on the effective repayment date, payment in that State will be made on the previous working day.