Renewable energy achievement report published under Make in India, summarising sector progress and policy initiatives.
Press release announcing publication of the Make in India New and Renewable Energy Sector achievement report dated 18-1-2017, providing an online link for stakeholders and the public to access the detailed report.

Make in India initiative: Gems and Jewellery sector achievement report announced summarising sector progress and policy measures.
Announcement of an achievement report concerning the Make in India initiative for the Gems and Jewellery sector, issued as a press release; it summarises sector progress, initiatives and measures taken under the programme and is informational rather than adjudicatory.

Manufacturing policy progress under Make in India highlights sector achievements and implementation milestones for chemicals and petrochemicals sectors.
Announcement of an achievement report summarizing implementation outcomes under the Make in India manufacturing initiative for the chemicals and petrochemicals sectors, serving as an official informational release that records and publicizes government actions, milestones, and sectoral performance tied to national industrial promotion policy.

Biotechnology sector achievement report published under Make in India, announcing progress and linking to the full report.
Announcement of the publication of an achievement report for the Biotechnology Sector under the Make in India initiative dated 18-01-2017; the notice notifies stakeholders of the report's availability and provides a link to the full press release but does not set out the report's substantive findings within the supplied text.

Domestic manufacturing policy in railways publicises achievements under the Make in India initiative.
Press release announcing the "Make in India: Railways Sector" achievement report, summarising accomplishments and progress under the Make in India initiative as applied to the railways sector and directing readers to the full report.

Retention of majority equity and management control directs the Alternative Mechanism to decide disinvestment quantum, expediting minority stake sales.
An Alternative Mechanism will determine the quantum of disinvestment for minority stake sales in Central Public Sector Undertakings on a case-by-case basis, subject to the Government retaining 51 percent equity and management control; this supplements prior Alternative Mechanism functions and aims to reduce speculation and expedite the disinvestment process.

Financing agreement secures World Bank support for a Nagaland health project to improve services and utilization.
A financing agreement between the Government of India and the World Bank, with a Project Agreement involving the State of Nagaland, establishes credit support for the Nagaland Health Project to improve health service delivery and increase community utilisation in targeted locations, complementing National Health Mission mechanisms and including provisions for project completion by the stated closing date.

Right of Way policy urged to unblock digital infrastructure deployment and enable last mile connectivity.
Infrastructure shortfalls and policy ambiguity impede Digital India: delayed rollout, spectrum scarcity, and a persistent digital divide require a uniform Right of Way policy with single window clearances, exploration of Public Private Partnership models, additional spectrum allocation, incentives for startups for last mile solutions, leveraging government assets for service delivery, and measures to address data security and localisation of services.

GST implementation will unify indirect taxes and boost digitization and transparency in the tax system.
Demonetization is presented as a bold decision with temporary pain aimed at cleansing the economy. The Finance Minister states that most GST implementation issues have been resolved, with remaining critical issues to be settled shortly. GST will merge multiple taxes into a unified regime, benefitting assessees through simplified compliance and a more digitized, efficient tax system. Together, GST and demonetization are said to enhance transparency, eliminate discretion, and improve tax administration.

Youth for Digital India advances digitalisation and skill development through exhibitions, workshops, cultural programmes and recruitment outreach.
The National Youth Festival, themed Youth for Digital India, convenes national and state leaders and thousands of delegates to promote digitalisation and skill development through a Skill Development Exhibition, lectures and workshops showcasing initiatives of skill and entrepreneurship agencies, alongside a defence exhibition, gender-sensitivity mascot initiative and a programme of cultural and youth convention events.

Trade and investment cooperation via expedited CEPA action and IPR training to reinforce bilateral commercial ties and attract investment.
Accelerating implementation of the CEPA to expand trade and investment, addressing transfer pricing and other compliance issues to attract Japanese investment, and advancing IPR cooperation including high-level meetings and examiner training in Japan, alongside sectoral collaboration on manufacturing, logistics, industrial townships and export promotion.

No additional levy on card payments at petrol stations; MDR cannot be passed to consumers and must be absorbed.
No additional charges will be imposed on card-based payments at petrol stations; the Government reaffirmed that the Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) must not be passed on to customers and that stakeholders are expected to absorb MDR costs. The petrol pump transaction fee is characterised as a commercial arrangement between banks and oil marketing companies to be resolved by those parties.

Jurisdiction for cheque dishonour offences narrowed to the bank branch where payee or drawer maintains the account, consolidating prosecutions.
The Act recognises cheques in electronic form authenticated by digital or electronic signatures and adopts IT Act definitions. It clarifies territorial jurisdiction for offences under section 138, prescribing trial in courts where the payee's or drawee's bank branch maintaining the relevant account is situated. It validates transfer of pending cases to courts with such jurisdiction, requires subsequent complaints against the same drawer to be filed before the same court, and directs transfer to a single court where multiple prosecutions by the same payee against the same drawer are pending. The earlier Ordinance is repealed with savings.

Budget scheduling: session set to start Jan 31 and railway estimates merged into the Union Budget to align fiscal start.
Parliament will convene its Budget session beginning January 31 with the President's address and tabling of the pre budget economic survey, followed the next day by the Union Budget so new financial provisions take effect from the April 1 fiscal start as recommended by the Cabinet Committee. The separate railway budget is abolished and merged into the Union Budget. Opposition objections to the Budget's timing before state polls have been raised via a petition, and the electoral regulator has sought the government's response through the Cabinet Secretary.

National income estimates show provisional real and nominal GDP trends and sectoral performance for the fiscal year.
First Advance national income estimates for 2016 17 present provisional real and nominal aggregates compiled by the benchmark indicator method using sectoral indicators (IIP, corporate financials, crop estimates, government accounts and trade data). The release reports GVA at basic prices and GDP at constant and current prices, outlines sectoral growth performance and methodological extrapolation rules for agriculture, mining, manufacturing, utilities, construction, trade and services, and provides per capita income and expenditure breakdowns with accompanying tabulated statements.

GDP projection signals slower growth, based on pre demonetisation data and excluding volatile November banking figures.
The First Advance Estimates project GDP growth of 7.1 per cent for 2016-17 based on sectoral data through October; the Central Statistics Office did not factor in the November demonetisation, excluding volatile November bank deposit and credit data, and attributes the slowdown primarily to weak manufacturing, mining, construction and the index of industrial production while flagging gross fixed capital formation as an area of concern.