3D bioprinting collaboration urged to develop organs and scale clinical trials while addressing commercialization and funding needs.
A one day AMTZ workshop advanced 3D bioprinting through presentations on materials, bio ink formulation, prototyping and commercialization, promoted the BHARAT initiative to develop multiple bioprinted organs, and solicited national and international collaboration. Participants stressed the need for facilities and networks to conduct preclinical and large animal trials, clinician involvement in validation, and government financial support to address high procedure costs.

Dispute settlement integrity: restore the Appellate Body through constructive engagement to preserve the WTO's rule based system.
The statement reaffirms the WTO's central role and stresses the critical importance of the dispute settlement system, noting an impasse in filling Appellate Body vacancies that risks paralyzing appellate review and urging Members to engage constructively to restore its functioning. It mandates that WTO reform keep development and inclusivity central, preserve and strengthen Special and Differential Treatment for developing Members and LDCs, and calls for technical assistance, greater policy space in the Agreement on Agriculture, development sensitive fisheries subsidies disciplines, pragmatic notification approaches, and expedited accession of new Members.

Wholesale Price Index rose 0.8% in April 2019, with annual WPI inflation at 3.07% and food inflation higher.
The Wholesale Price Index for All Commodities rose 0.8% to 120.9 in April 2019, with annual WPI inflation at 3.07% and a build-up inflation of 0.75%. Primary Articles increased 3.3% led by Food Articles (up 3.4%) due to higher prices for tea, fruits & vegetables and various pulses; Fuel & Power fell 0.5% driven by lower electricity; Manufactured Products held at 118.3 with mixed subgroup movements. The WPI Food Index rose to 4.95%.

Consumer Price Index release indicates provisional rural, urban and combined inflation trends and food price movements.
The press release publishes provisional Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Consumer Food Price Index (CFPI) on base 2012=100 for Rural, Urban and Combined areas for April 2019, reporting point to point inflation rates and monthly changes, noting the base year revision to 2012=100, the provisional status of April indices, detailed group and State/UT breakdowns in annexures, and methodological notes on price data collection and index compilation.

WTO dispute settlement impasse threatens rule based trade; developing countries push inclusive reforms and special and differential treatment.
The document stresses that the paralysis of the WTO Appellate Body and rising unilateral measures threaten the rule based trading system and disproportionately harm developing countries and LDCs, calling for urgent constructive engagement. It urges that WTO reform keep development central, promote inclusiveness and non discrimination, correct asymmetries in agreements, and prioritize effective special and differential treatment, agriculture concerns, and a fair fisheries subsidy discipline that protects livelihoods and preserves policy space.

Asset quality improvement leads to SBI returning to profitability after prior-year loss, with reduced bad loans.
State Bank of India returned to standalone profitability in the March 2019 quarter with higher standalone income, and emphasised improved asset quality as gross NPAs and net NPA ratio fell; consolidated income and consolidated profit for the fiscal year also rose compared with the prior year.

Multilateral trading system reform: developing countries seek consensus to address dispute settlement impasse and unilateral measures.
A Ministerial meeting of developing countries and LDCs is convened to coordinate positions on the multilateral trading system's challenges, focusing on unilateral trade measures, negotiation deadlocks and the crisis in the WTO Dispute Settlement Mechanism; the two-day meeting pairs technical consultations with a ministerial session to build consensus on reform strategies and shape collective engagement ahead of the Twelfth Ministerial Conference.

Auditing standards for company secretaries set engagement terms, documentation, opinion formation, confidentiality and secretarial audit duties, including fraud reporting.
The standards require company secretaries to follow defined procedures for accepting Audit Engagements (engagement letters, conflict checks, predecessor notification), to plan and document audits with sufficient evidence and retention rules, to apply materiality and professional scepticism when forming opinions (including use of third-party reports and rules for modified or disclaimed opinions), and to conduct Secretarial Audits by identifying applicable laws, verifying compliance, assessing board and system processes, detecting and reporting fraud and major events.

Fiscal consolidation: coordinate consolidated public borrowings and reform devolution to incentivise equitable service delivery.
Economists urged a total view of consolidated public sector borrowings-including off budget transactions, PSUs' borrowings and contingent liabilities-to safeguard debt sustainability and policy coordination; they stressed divergent state debt positions, repayment pressure from the maturity profile of state development loans, the need for both expenditure adjustments and new revenue measures, and improvements in budgeting realism. They also recommended reassessing the horizontal devolution formula and grant design to incentivise human development, account for forest quality and intra state inequality, consider population composition incentives, reinstate specific purpose grants, and strengthen the national statistical system.

Trade cooperation: India and US agree regular engagement to resolve outstanding trade issues and deepen economic ties.
India and the United States reaffirmed bilateral trade cooperation in a co chaired meeting, noting recent trade growth and endorsing the US Trade Winds Indo Pacific Business Forum and a new US India SME Forum to foster B2B linkages. Both parties agreed to engage regularly at multiple levels to explore mutually beneficial solutions for outstanding trade issues and to deepen economic cooperation through enhanced collaboration among government, businesses and entrepreneurs.

Advisory Council membership expands policy input, adding the Chief Economic Advisor to advise on commission Terms of Reference.
Inclusion of the Chief Economic Advisor as a Member of the Advisory Council increases expertise available to the Commission to advise on matters within its Terms of Reference. The Council's operative functions are to advise on ToR-related issues, assist in preparing papers and research studies to enhance understanding, and broaden exposure to best national and international practices to improve the quality, reach, and enforceability of the Commission's recommendations on fiscal devolution and fiscal governance.

Index of Eight Core Industries shows annual growth driven by coal, cement and steel; crude oil contracted.
The combined Index of Eight Core Industries stood at 145.0 in March 2019, up year on year with a cumulative April-March growth of 4.3 percent. Coal, cement and steel registered the strongest contributions to the increase; refinery products, fertilizers and electricity rose modestly; crude oil declined year on year and cumulatively; natural gas showed marginal positive change. Data for January-March 2019 are provisional and industry weights are adjusted pro rata to yield a combined index weight of 100.

Fund devolution to Panchayats proposed expanded allocations and modality changes under constitutional finance commission framework.
Under Article 280(3)(bb), the Ministry proposed substantially increased devolution to Panchayats and revisions to allocation categories, performance grant modalities, inclusion of non Part IX areas and UT panchayats, SDG linked activities beyond construction, digital technology adoption, and state developed mechanisms to augment Panchayat own source revenue; the Commission agreed funds should flow to all three tiers within a proportional band and will review these proposals for inclusion in the Central Government's memorandum to inform final recommendations.

Ministerial Staff examinations 2019: timetable, eligibility categories, exclusion of unqualified provisional stenographers, and effective date rules.
Notification prescribes that the 2019 Ministerial Staff Departmental Examinations will be held under the Departmental Examination Rules (1998), sets the timetable, lists eligible categories (including T.A., Steno Grades I & II, Sr. T.A., LDC including Hindi Typist, Notice Server and MTS subject to computer test where specified), excludes provisionally appointed stenographers who have not passed the requisite proficiency test, and confirms that the effective date of passing for the MS Examination is the date of result declaration by the CCIT/CIT (In charge of Examination).

Repayment of Government Stock: maturity proceeds payable by electronic credit or pay order; submit bank details or tender securities early.
Repayment of 6.05% Government Stock 2019 is payable on the effective date; if a state holiday falls on that date repayment occurs on the previous working day. Maturity proceeds must be paid by pay order with bank particulars or by electronic credit to an account able to receive funds; holders must submit bank account details 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 to obtain the discharge value.

Repayment of government securities: holders must provide bank details for electronic credit or tender securities early for repayment.
Repayment of 7.28% Government Stock 2019 is payable on June 03, 2019; if a State holiday affects the effective date, payment will be made on the previous working day. Maturity proceeds to holders in Subsidiary General Ledger, Constituent Subsidiary General Ledger or Stock Certificate form will be paid by pay order with bank particulars or by electronic credit to a bank account; holders must submit bank account particulars in advance. Absent an electronic mandate, holders may tender discharged securities at Public Debt Offices, Treasuries/Sub Treasuries or designated bank branches 20 days prior to the due date.

Profit attribution to Permanent Establishments: rule 10 amendment proposes objective three factor apportionment and user factor for digital models.
The Committee recommends amending rule 10 to adopt an objective apportionment for profits attributable to Indian operations where separate accounts are unavailable: a three factor formula equally weighting sales, employees (manpower & wages) and assets applied to 'profits derived from India' (revenue from India x global operational profit margin), with a 2% deemed profit floor where global margins are negative or below 2%. For enterprises meeting SEP via user thresholds, a four factor formula including a user factor (10% weight for low/medium user intensity; 20% for high user intensity) is to be applied, with credits/deductions to avoid double taxation when Indian associated enterprises are already taxed.

Performance based grants to states proposed, urging indicator-driven transfers and balance with basic grant regimes.
Proposal for Performance Based Grants to states framing resource transfers on measurable indicators and sectoral outcomes, with suggested candidate indicators; recommendations to establish Innovation and Transformation Funds and adopt a Medium Term Expenditure Framework to align incentives and expenditure planning. The submission also urged inclusion of these recommendations in the Central Government memorandum to the Finance Commission and highlighted design issues including alignment of Centrally Sponsored Schemes with award periods and the balance between performance-linked and basic grants.

Creation of deputy audit post to coordinate state audits, telecommunication audit and IS initiatives within public audit department.
Creation of a Deputy Comptroller and Auditor General post to supervise coordination among State audit entities, oversee telecommunication audits, and coordinate Information Systems initiatives within the Indian Audit & Accounts Department, effected by abolishing one STS-level post and entailing associated expenditure.

Fiscal transfers tied to governance reforms: increased rural funding contingent on Panchayat capacity, IT/DBT and earmarked maintenance.
The Ministry asked the Finance Commission for increased fiscal transfers and extra budgetary borrowing to support flagship rural schemes and expanded SHG lending, coupled with conditional governance measures: Gram Panchayat led, data driven, convergent development plans; Panchayat and SHG capacity building; IT/DBT and geo tagging to reduce leakages; HR reforms; earmarked road maintenance; and transfer of certain schemes to states.