Failure to honour summons leads to arrest under non-bailable warrant in SFIO demonetisation probe and subsequent production before court
SFIO arrested a Chartered Accountant for failure to honour summons issued in connection with prosecution arising from an SFIO investigation into a company's conduct during the demonetisation period. The arrest was effected pursuant to a non-bailable arrest warrant issued by the Special Court; the individual was produced before that court and remanded to judicial custody.

Business Responsibility and Sustainability Reporting mandates ESG disclosures by top listed companies; workshop advanced implementation and digital reporting tools.
The BRSR framework is a mandatory ESG disclosure regime requiring the largest listed companies to report performance under the nine principles of the National Guidelines for Responsible Business Conduct; it serves as a compliance, transparency and investor information mechanism. A collaborative IICA-UNICEF workshop focused on practical implementation: effective disclosures, digital reporting tools and portals, integrating CSR/ESG into brand and risk management, and operational policies such as family friendly measures to enable consistent BRSR compliance.

Regulatory convergence promotes cross-sector collaboration to align performance standards, shared infrastructure and cooperative regulation for interdependencies.
Cross-sectoral regulatory convergence is advanced to address interdependencies by aligning regulatory objectives, sharing knowledge, and adopting cooperative governance practices. The colloquium promoted collaborative regulation through infrastructure co-creation and co-sharing, national and international cooperation, and harmonisation of performance standards. Operational measures discussed included Open Access, Power Purchase Agreements and Competitive Bidding in electricity, and implementation methods for Environmental and Social Impact Assessment. The FOIR Centre at IICA was identified as a capacity-building and advocacy partner to sustain ongoing collaboration and institutionalise convergent regulatory strategies.

Certified ESG Professional programme expands impact leadership certification and creates a membership association for ESG professionals.
The IICA conducted a two-day workshop under its IICA Certified ESG Professional: Impact Leader Programme to train senior corporate officials and IICA-trained professionals in ESG investing, climate-risk accounting and GHG inventorisation, material risk identification and KPI development, sustainability strategy integration, and human-rights-focused operations, and announced a membership-based National Association of Impact Leaders (NAIL) to formalize a professional community for certified ESG practitioners.

Independent director professionalisation strengthens corporate governance by enhancing independence, role clarity and board effectiveness.
Professionalisation of Independent Directors is advanced via a two day familiarisation programme focused on strengthening director independence, role clarity, board effectiveness and continuous learning. The initiative promotes cross sector knowledge exchange between public and private boards and delivers multi disciplinary governance, regulatory, fiduciary and forensic insights to improve board oversight, compliance and ongoing professional development for non executive directors.

Economic and Financial Dialogue establishes a bilateral platform for policy coordination and fintech cooperation to boost financial inclusion.
Launch of the India-Indonesia Economic and Financial Dialogue creates a bilateral platform for policymakers and financial regulators to address macroeconomic challenges, global economic prospects, and bilateral investment relations, and to coordinate on G20 and ASEAN matters. The Dialogue also prioritises cooperation in the digital economy and fintech to support financial inclusion, serving as a mechanism for policy exchange and mutual learning rather than a binding regulatory instrument.

Decriminalisation of compoundable offences eases corporate litigation and promotes ease of doing business by withdrawing pending prosecutions and unclogging courts.
Ministry of Corporate Affairs approved withdrawal of long-pending, compoundable prosecutions identified under the Special Arrears Clearance Drive-II to advance decriminalisation and ease of doing business, excluding serious non-compoundable offences such as cheating, fraud and acceptance of deposits after review by an MCA-constituted committee.

Extended Producer Responsibility pushed to mainstream ESG and include green credits in corporate ESG reporting.
The Ministry emphasized resource efficiency through the mandate of Extended Producer Responsibility and advocated inclusion of green credits in ESG reporting to mainstream ESG across economic activities and advance circular economy practices; simultaneously, IICA launched its Certified ESG Professional: Impact Leader Programme to build professional capacity and formed a membership-based National Association of Impact Leaders to support governance, standards and professional advancement in the ESG field.

Insolvency and bankruptcy education expands with a joint LL.M programme combining coursework, internships and dual campus delivery.
The LL.M in Insolvency and Bankruptcy Laws is a two year full time residential degree jointly offered by IICA and NALSAR, carrying 51 credits over four semesters with at least 24 weeks of academic activity per semester and four mandatory internship periods. Course content covers insolvency matters under the IBC and allied legislation. Initial intake is 60 students per batch, with selection split between CLAT scores and a written examination cum interview process and delivery evenly divided between the two campuses.

Project coordination and land commitments: enforceable state obligations to allot contiguous land and fast track clearances for corridor projects.
The Apex meeting mandated coordinated central-state implementation of NICDIT projects, requiring states to provide contiguous litigation free land, early environmental clearances, and executed Shareholders and State Support Agreements; it directed NICDC to foreclose projects where committed land is not delivered in a time bound manner and to reallocate development to states prepared to offer land, while promoting PM GatiShakti adoption, investor outreach, and measures to ensure financial viability through reasonable land rates, package incentives, and consistent electricity pricing.

Centralised strike-off processing streamlines company name removal and enforces process-bound, timely disposal of strike-off applications.
The Ministry of Corporate Affairs established the Centre for Processing Accelerated Corporate Exit (C-PACE) under section 396(1) to centralise and expedite removal of company names from the register, operating through Registrars of Companies under the Director General of Corporate Affairs to process and dispose of strike-off applications in a timely, process-bound manner.

Debt restructuring coordination launched to create a multilateral, transparent negotiation process led by three co-chairs.
Launch of a coordinated debt restructuring negotiation process for Sri Lanka was announced, establishing a multilateral framework led by three co-chairs to guide creditor engagement. The mechanism emphasises collaboration, transparency, and equality of treatment for all creditors, with India, Japan, and France designated as co-chairs to lead and coordinate negotiations alongside Sri Lankan authorities.

Business and human rights professionalisation drives corporate integration of human rights into policies and compliance frameworks.
Creation of a formal cadre of Business and Human Rights (BHR) Professionals aims to embed human rights into corporate policies and operations through capacity building and training, integrating BHR across HR, procurement, supply chain and ethics functions. The initiative aligns corporate practice with the National Action Plan on Business and Human Rights, the National Guidelines for Responsible Business Conduct and international reporting frameworks, emphasising human rights due diligence, risk mitigation and enhanced disclosures to meet stakeholder expectations and operationalise obligations.

Economic Census data shared with government and non-government agencies to inform development and employment policy design.
Economic Census is a comprehensive count of all non-farm economic establishments and the sixth census updated the national register of such establishments. The census data are disseminated to government and non-government user agencies for research, analysis and policy formulation to inform developmental strategies and employment-generation measures.

Stand-Up India Scheme promotes entrepreneurship among SC, ST and women by facilitating targeted bank credit and handholding support.
Stand-Up India Scheme facilitates loans and support to promote entrepreneurship among SC, ST and women for first-time greenfield enterprises in manufacturing, services, trading and allied agricultural activities. Beneficiaries must be adult first-time entrepreneurs, with non-individual enterprises majority-controlled by eligible persons and not in default to lenders. The scheme requires borrower contribution while allowing margin money convergence with eligible schemes, and provides multiple access routes-bank branches, an online portal and Lead District Managers-supplemented by an extensive handholding network for training and mentorship.

Market manipulation investigations target securities dealings under fraudulent and unfair trade rules; regulator says it does not identify shell companies.
SEBI is investigating dealings in the shares of multiple companies for alleged violations of the Prohibition of Fraudulent and Unfair Trade Practices relating to the securities market, including market manipulation and attendant unfair trade practices; the regulator reports that it does not identify shell companies.

Merger approval: CCI clearance for acquisition of infrastructure concession and transmission companies by an AIF-backed platform.
CCI approved the acquisition of the entire equity of two infrastructure companies by entities within an infrastructure investment platform: Epic Concesiones Private Limited acquiring L&T Infrastructure Development Projects Limited shareholding and Infrastructure Yield Plus II acquiring Kudgi Transmission Limited. ECPL is wholly owned by IYP II. The target companies operate under long-term public private partnership and concession arrangements for infrastructure development, operation and maintenance, and KTL develops power transmission assets. A detailed CCI order will follow.

Corporate affairs education expands with Executive MBA emphasizing governance, regulatory compliance and leadership for mid-career professionals.
A jointly offered Executive MBA in Corporate Affairs and Management targets mid-career professionals and entrepreneurs, requiring at least three years' experience and delivered in a blended mode. The programme focuses on corporate affairs, corporate governance, regulatory compliance, management and corporate social responsibility, aiming to develop leadership, organisational capabilities and responsible, sustainable business practices to address challenges in volatile and uncertain business environments.

Internship programme in investor education: applications open for short-term placements with selection by academics and interview.
The Authority invites applications for a short-term internship programme to involve students and scholars in investor awareness, research, and related activities; successful interns receive an Internship Certificate. Selection is by academic performance and personal interview, Phase I has a limited intake with possible extensions, applications are submitted via the Authority's website and a contact point is provided for further information.

Extension of filing deadline allows specified MCA forms to be filed without additional fees to ease MCA21 migration.
Filing timelines are extended to permit stakeholders to submit specified MCA21 Version 3 forms without additional fees until 31 March 2023; Form PAS-03 filings with due dates between 20 January 2023 and 28 February 2023 are similarly covered. Additionally, the name reservation period under section 4(5) is extended by 20 days and the re submission period under rule 9 of the Companies (Incorporation) Rules, 2014 is extended by 15 days to facilitate migration to MCA21 Version 3.