Citizenship for specified religious minorities from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan granted via amended naturalisation and residence rules.
The Act excludes from the definition of illegal migrant persons of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi or Christian communities from Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan who entered India on or before 31 December 2014 and were exempted from passport or foreigners law provisions; it enables the Central Government or a specified authority to grant certificates of registration or naturalisation to such persons, deems them citizens from their date of entry, abates pending illegal migration or citizenship proceedings on conferment, excludes certain tribal and Inner Line areas, and reduces the Third Schedule residence qualification to five years for these persons.

Taxation Laws (Amendment) Act, 2019 creates optional 22% and 15% corporate tax regimes with restricted deductions and conditions.
The Act inserts optional reduced corporate tax regimes: section 115BAA allows domestic companies to elect a 22% tax rate subject to disallowance of specified deductions, loss and depreciation set-off restrictions, prescribed depreciation computation and irrevocable election procedures; section 115BAB permits new manufacturing companies meeting setup and non use conditions to elect a 15% rate with similar disallowances, special provisos for non-manufacturing income and related-party excess profits, and binding Board guidelines; consequential amendments adjust MAT, advance tax surcharge and related provisions, and repeal the corresponding Ordinance.

Design Education Quality Mark established to benchmark institutions and signal minimum educational standards to stakeholders.
The India Design Council launched two initiatives-Design Education Quality Mark (DEQM) and Chartered Designs of India (CDI)-to benchmark and improve design education and professional standards. DEQM awards a trademark-protected Quality Mark to institutions that pass a third party review against a published Quality Code, signalling minimum quality to students, employers and the public. CDI will identify and uphold the status of the Professional Designer by setting standards of competence, ethics and service.

Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code amendments impose creditor filing thresholds, protect moratorium rights, and grant limited corporate immunity.
The Bill clarifies that the insolvency commencement date is the date of admission of a CIRP application, requires appointment of the interim resolution professional on that date, sets minimum joint-filing thresholds for certain classes of financial creditors and real-estate allottees, protects licences and critical supplies from suspension during the moratorium (subject to payment of current dues), extends the resolution professional's management role until plan approval or liquidation appointment, and creates limited immunity from prosecution and action against corporate property where an approved resolution plan effects change of control to an unaffiliated person while preserving liability for involved individuals.

Constitution amendment extends reservation periods by altering Article on reservation and sets commencement as 25 January 2020.
The Act is titled Constitution (One Hundred and Fourth Amendment) Act, 2019 and commences on 25 January 2020. It amends the Article on reservation by substituting the marginal heading and replacing the single reference to seventy years with eighty years in respect of clause (a) and seventy years in respect of clause (b), thereby extending the reservation period for the specified clause.

Consumer protection for e commerce: complaint mechanisms allow filing with consumer fora and advise police or cyber cell action.
The Consumer Protection Act, 1986 covers e commerce and provides a three tier quasi judicial Consumer Fora for complaints; the National Consumer Helpline runs a portal for registering online shopping frauds, partners voluntarily with companies for alternate grievance redressal, and advises lodging an FIR or approaching Cyber Cells when companies are untraceable.

Merger approval enables foreign logistics firm to acquire a minority stake in Indian supply chain provider after competition review.
Approval under the Competition Act was granted for a foreign subsidiary to acquire a minority equity interest in an Indian third-party supply chain and logistics services company; the target offers automated and IT-enabled warehousing, distribution, temperature-controlled logistics, contract and express logistics, and international freight forwarding, and the clearance was accorded under Section 31(1) of the Competition Act, 2002 with a detailed order to follow.

CEPA review to address trade imbalance and secure market access through a time bound bilateral action plan.
Discussion focused on CEPA, bilateral trade imbalance, and market access for Indian goods and services; ministers directed officials to prepare a time-bound action plan to operationalise commitments, improve market access, and strengthen bilateral trade relations, with senior commerce and foreign affairs officials and Japanese trade policy bodies engaged in follow-up and implementation.

Citizenship Amendment alters citizenship eligibility for certain non-Muslim migrants, deeming them citizens from date of entry.
The Bill excludes certain non-Muslim entrants from Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan (arriving on or before 31 December 2014) from being treated as illegal migrants and permits the Central Government or a specified authority to grant certificates of registration or naturalisation; recipients are deemed citizens from their date of entry. Pending proceedings on illegal migration or citizenship abate on conferment, applicants retain rights during application, and exclusions apply to specified tribal and Inner Line areas. The Bill shortens the Third Schedule residence qualification for these persons to five years and provides rulemaking authority and procedural safeguards for Overseas Citizen cardholders.

Technology and Innovation Support Centres expand IP awareness, provide search and training services, and support commercialization.
A Service Level Agreement between the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade and WIPO establishes a national Technology and Innovation Support Centre (TISC) network aligned with the National IPR Policy, 2016. The TISCs are mandated to create IPR awareness and capacity, provide search facilities to inventors, deliver staff training and tools, run IP training programs, manage IP assets, assist commercialization, and strengthen Technology Transfer Offices; six TISCs are established and nine more approved.

Special Leave Petition access preserved against IPAB orders; petitioners may directly challenge IPAB and seek writ remedies.
Holders of intellectual property rights may directly file a Special Leave Petition against Appellate Board orders or pursue a writ petition under Article 226 against Appellate Board and IP office decisions; the Ministry of Law and Justice only vets departmental amendment proposals and no amendment to alter these remedies is presently proposed.

Finance Commission report submission requirement: mandatory delivery of annual and final reports under constitutional mandate.
The Commission, constituted under Article 280 of the Constitution with wide-ranging Terms of Reference, submitted its report for the financial year 2020-21 to the President; a Gazette Notification had prescribed deadlines for that submission and for the Commission's final multi-year report.

Public procurement reform expanding e marketplace access to unify government buying and include contractors, tenders, and citizen purchases.
Expansion and refinement of the Government e Marketplace (GeM) aim to unify procurement across central, state and local bodies, broaden the platform to include work contracts and tenders, enable contractors and sub contractors to procure via GeM, and open the platform to citizens; these changes rest on principles of openness, fairness and inclusiveness and are coupled with stringent quality validation mechanisms and improved onboarding to promote MSME and women entrepreneur participation.

Mobilize global venture capital: summit to showcase India opportunity and connect investors with high quality startups.
Organization of the second Startup India Global Venture Capital Summit to mobilize global capital for Indian innovation by connecting leading global venture capital representatives, investors, corporates and select startups; showcasing market opportunity while identifying investment barriers and promoting Ease of Doing Business through best practice exchanges and sectoral presentations in areas such as E Mobility, FinTech, MedTech, Enterprise Software, EdTech, Genomics and Life Sciences.

Land monetisation: transfer of Pragati Maidan land on long term lease to an SPV for hotel development via competitive bidding.
Approval authorises transfer of 3.7 acres at Pragati Maidan on a 99 year fixed leasehold to a Special Purpose Vehicle formed by India Tourism Development Corporation and Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation for development and long term operation of a five star hotel. The SPV will select a developer and operator through a transparent competitive bidding process to construct, run and manage the hotel (directly or through a professional brand), enabling public asset monetisation to fast track the hotel component within the International Exhibition and Convention Centre redevelopment.

Corporate Bond ETF launch expands funding channel for government enterprises and improves retail access, liquidity, and tax efficiency.
Cabinet approval establishes the Bharat Bond Exchange Traded Fund as a corporate bond ETF of portfolios of high quality bonds issued by government entities, tradable on exchange with small unit size, transparent NAV and portfolio disclosure, low cost, and fixed maturity series that track independent indices by matching credit quality and average maturity.

Sovereign credit rating reaffirmation maintains stable outlook as growth and external position expected to remain strong.
The publication records reaffirmation of India's Sovereign Credit Rating at the existing investment grade level with a stable outlook, premised on sustained long term growth despite a recent cyclical slowdown, rising domestic demand and favorable demographics. The stable outlook is conditioned on growth remaining strong over the next two years, maintenance of a sound net external position, and a fiscal deficit that stays broadly in line with the agency's forecast.

Public procurement summit highlights GeM marketplace enabling seller registration, MSME/startup inclusion, live support and procurement transparency.
The conclave advances public procurement accessibility via GeM by convening stakeholders for panels on MSME, startup and women supplier integration, a service procurement session, and a live GeM clinic to facilitate on the spot buyer and seller registration and query resolution, underpinned by online verification and exhibitions showcasing GeM products and awards recognising top platform participants.

Corporate tax changes: optional 22% and 15% regimes for domestic and new manufacturing companies with specified conditions.
Creates two optional tax regimes: section 115BAA (22% for domestic companies) and section 115BAB (15% for eligible new manufacturers), effective for assessment years beginning on or after 1 April 2020, each excluding specified deductions and disallowing set off of related past losses or unabsorbed depreciation; options must be timely exercised and are generally irrevocable, with invalidation on non compliance. The Bill amends related provisions including section 115BA, inserts a clause in section 92BA for specified domestic transactions, empowers assessing officer adjustments for connected parties, revises advance tax and surcharge rules, and repeals the corresponding Ordinance.

Tonnage capacity increase through regulatory and fiscal measures expands Indian shipping competitiveness and domestic flagging options.
Measures to increase national shipping tonnage focus on regulatory liberalisation, fiscal incentives, and operational facilitation to strengthen the Indian-flag fleet. Policy actions include cargo preference through Right of First Refusal, reduced GST on bunker fuel for Indian-flag vessels, permission to carry coastal cargo via specified foreign ports, removal of licensing for chartering foreign-registered ships by Indian entities, tax parity for seafarers, permission for overseas ship acquisition and foreign flagging, and allowance for imported and ISO-conformant local containers for cargo transport.