Consumer price inflation: provisional CPI and CFPI release shows moderate annual inflation and month on month variation.
Provisional Consumer Price Indices (CPI) and Consumer Food Price Indices (CFPI) on base 2012=100 were released for September 2018, presenting all India and State/UT level General, Group and Sub group indices, month on month changes and point to point annual inflation rates; data were collected by NSSO and Department of Posts and compiled as weighted State averages.

Online filing for industrial licences: electronic portal replaces prior channels and physical applications, centralising submission procedures.
A new dedicated online portal centralises submission of Industrial Entrepreneurs' Memorandum and Industrial Licence applications for industries and manufacture of defence items under the Arms regulatory framework, making electronic filing via the portal the exclusive method and discontinuing prior electronic gateway and physical submissions.

Regulatory fee obligation for insolvency professionals requires annual payment; delayed payment attracts interest and notification duties follow.
The amendments require insolvency professionals and insolvency professional entities to pay an annual fee based on preceding financial year earnings by 30th April, establish an application fee for recognition of entities, mandate seven-day notification of director or partner changes with a processing charge, and provide that delayed fee payments will bear simple interest at a prescribed annual rate; the amendments became effective on 11th October, 2018.

New Industrial Policy aligning India with fourth industrial revolution technologies to strengthen digital governance and supply chain integration.
Industrial Policy is reframed to align national regulatory and policy priorities with Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies-artificial intelligence, blockchain and drones-through cross government and stakeholder consultation to drive digital adoption in governance and integrate the country into global supply and value chains, supported by international collaboration via the World Economic Forum's Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution working with national policy bodies, industry, academia and start ups.

MPLADS contributions enable MPs to fund rehabilitation in calamity affected areas under streamlined administrative guidelines.
The Scheme permits MPs to contribute up to the prescribed maximum from their MPLADS entitlement for areas declared as affected by severe calamity, with streamlined guidelines allowing administrative approval at the State Chief Secretary level; the State Nodal Department must maintain work and expenditure details and furnish quarterly reports to the Ministry, and contributions are pooled into a designated state bank account for coordinated rehabilitation.

Special Category Status exclusion from Finance Commission remit; Commission will assess state needs within its TOR and constitutional limits.
Granting Special Category Status to states is outside the mandate of the Finance Commission because it is not included in the Terms of Reference; the Commission cannot consider Special Category Status without transgressing the Presidential Notification. The Fifteenth Finance Commission will, however, sympathetically assess Andhra Pradesh's needs within its constitutional remit, evaluate fiscal measures identified in its TOR (including population-based incentives), and consider requests for post-devolution revenue support and other grants arising from bifurcation.

Economic growth roadmap sets sectoral targets and policy priorities to achieve national growth target through targeted reforms.
A Working Group established by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion has prepared a roadmap targeting a USD 5 trillion economy by 2025, based on stakeholder consultations and sectoral analysis. The roadmap allocates major contributions across agriculture and allied activities, manufacturing and services, and aligns policy measures-notably an income-centric shift in agriculture, the proposed Industrial Policy 2018 as a sector-agnostic competitiveness agenda, and the Champion Services initiative-to drive expansion and meet the stated sectoral targets.

Industry-tailored internship programme combining emerging-technology training with workplace skills and teacher innovation coaching for students.
NITI Aayog's Atal Innovation Mission and IBM India launched an industry-tailored internship programme delivering short paid corporate internships for students from Atal Tinkering Labs and training select teachers as innovation coaches, combining hands-on exposure to emerging technologies and workplace skills with design-thinking and prototype development to address community issues.

Special package for footwear and leather sector boosts infrastructure and pollution-control funding to spur investment and jobs.
Approval of a central sector scheme, the Indian Footwear, Leather & Accessories Development Programme (IFLADP), to fund infrastructure and environmental remediation in the footwear and leather sector. The programme finances establishment, expansion and upgradation of CETPs, secure landfills, common recovery units and hazardous-waste management in leather clusters, offers central financial support to meet pollution-control norms, and has approved multiple CETP upgradation projects and cluster proposals with ongoing implementation and additional proposals under consideration.

International arbitration best practices promoted to strengthen dispute resolution and contract enforcement, encouraging investor confidence and ease of doing business.
The workshop promoted international arbitration to strengthen dispute resolution and contract enforcement by covering drafting of arbitration agreements; selection of seat, venue, institution and governing law; arbitrator selection; enforcement of arbitral awards; and the role of courts, aiming to equip senior officers to review, revise and draft arbitration-related contract provisions.

Voluntary remedies now allowed after a Section 29(1) notice, enabling approval where competition concerns are addressed promptly.
Parties may now submit voluntary remedies in response to a notice under Section 29(1); if the remedies address perceived competition harm, the combination may be approved to expedite disposal. Parties may withdraw and refile notices with significant information gaps and, if refiling is within three months, the fee already paid will be adjusted against the fee for the new notice.

Closure of public sector company authorises VRS/VSS for staff and asset reuse after liabilities are discharged.
Approval for closure of Biecco Lawrie Limited includes provision of Voluntary Retirement/Voluntary Separation Scheme for employees; assets to be put to productive use after meeting liabilities in accordance with government guidelines. The decision follows unsuccessful revival efforts, persistent losses, negative net worth, and recognition that further operation is unviable due to competitive environment and significant capital requirements.

International arbitration best practices workshop strengthens drafting, arbitrator selection and award enforcement expertise for practitioners.
A workshop promoting international arbitration best practices will provide practical guidance on drafting arbitration agreements, arbitrator selection, and approaches to recognition and enforcement of arbitral awards, alongside comparative information-sharing by experienced international and domestic practitioners; it will also address judicial interaction with arbitration across the arbitration lifecycle to strengthen domestic dispute resolution capacity and practitioner capability.

International trade and development: India advances infrastructure and concessional finance partnerships with West Africa to boost investment.
India advanced trade and development partnerships at the India-West Africa Conclave, prioritizing B2G and B2B cooperation and bilateral projects in renewable energy, infrastructure, mobility, tourism and capacity building. The announcement underlines state-supported mechanisms - a grant-funded Mahatma Gandhi International Convention Centre in Niamey and existing lines of credit for transport, electrification, solar energy and potable water - as tools to deepen ties and diversify trade, and invites Indian private-sector and EXIM Bank engagement to identify priority projects and promote sustainable financing for regional investment.

Refinance limit increase expands liquidity access for housing finance companies and eligible institutions this fiscal year.
Increase of the refinance limit for July 2018-June 2019 expands NHB's capacity to provide refinancing to eligible Housing Finance Companies and other institutions, enhancing liquidity through NHB refinancing facilities; a portion of the limit has already been sanctioned to eligible entities under the current programme.

Memorandum of Understanding promotes Indo Russian student innovation cooperation and exchange to foster joint talent development.
A Memorandum of Understanding between Atal Innovation Mission and SIRIUS Educational Foundation establishes a framework for Indo Russian cooperation in student innovation and talent identification, aiming to remove cultural and language barriers, share best practices, and promote joint activities-such as boot camps and innovation festivals-to foster a knowledge driven innovation ecosystem and support pathways from school level tinkering labs to incubation and entrepreneurship.

Priority of operational creditors: amended regulations require payment under resolution plans ahead of financial creditors and preserve voting rights.
The amendment requires the resolution professional to circulate meeting minutes electronically to authorised representatives and committee members; authorised representatives must circulate minutes to financial creditors in a class, announce a voting window at least twenty-four hours before it opens, keep it open for at least twelve hours, and exercise class votes electronically per voting instructions received, permitting post-meeting voting. The amendment also provides that amounts due to operational creditors under the resolution plan shall be paid in priority over financial creditors and mandates preservation of physical and electronic records as per a record retention schedule.

Geographical Indication protection secures origin-linked quality and market advantage for regional products like Alphonso mango.
Geographical Indication protection was conferred on the Alphonso mango from Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg and adjoining areas, recognising that its distinctive qualities, reputation and assurance of origin-linked quality derive from its defined geographic origin. GI recognition is framed as strengthening rural livelihoods, preserving traditional skills, supplementing incomes of producers in informal sectors, and enhancing market and export access, supported by government promotion, a national GI logo and marketing initiatives to allocate intellectual property benefits to producers and places of origin.

Amendment to CECA strengthens bilateral trade ties and deepens economic cooperation by improving utilisation of the Agreement.
Approval was granted for a Second Protocol amending the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA), with ex-post facto Cabinet approval for the Protocol signed on 24 August 2018; the amendment is intended to deepen economic cooperation, enhance bilateral trade, and improve utilisation of the Agreement's operative provisions.

Financing working capital via long-term foreign currency loans allows phased borrowing with no mandatory hedging.
Arrangement to finance standing working capital of Oil Marketing Companies by facilitating access to long-term foreign currency loans through phased multi-tranche external borrowing with an overall multi-year maturity completed within one year, and expressly exempting OMCs from mandatory hedging of foreign currency exposure.