Customs baggage rules clarified through mobile app to inform international passengers and improve compliance and entitlements.
Central Board of Excise and Customs launched a mobile app developed by Bengaluru Customs to inform international travellers, including traders/exporters/importers, about Customs Baggage Rules, 2016; the app is available on Android Play Store, Apple Store and Windows Store and serves as a ready reckoner of baggage rules and entitlements to promote clarity and compliance.

Taxpayer grievance redressal strengthened: dedicated TPS directorates and single-window ASKs improve monitoring and reduce old pendency.
A dedicated administrative structure for taxpayer services has been created, including two Taxpayer Services Directorates and oversight by Member (Revenue); field offices must replicate similar mechanisms. 250 Aayakar Seva Kendras operate as single-window grievance redressal units, and grievance redressal is a declared key result area under periodic performance review. Targeted efforts on CPGRAMS complaints have substantially reduced older pendency, including cases exceeding one year and six months.

Offshore asset investigation launched to probe undisclosed foreign holdings after media leaks, coordinated by a multi-agency group.
Investigation focuses on alleged illegal outward transfers using trade channels and offshore entities, including overvaluation in imports, undervaluation in exports, forged import documents and non-genuine payments; the Government formed a Multi-Agency Group comprising CBDT investigative divisions, ED, FIU and RBI to coordinate expedited inquiries into reported undisclosed foreign assets appearing in media leaks, with investigations at a preliminary stage and further action dependent on case-specific outcomes.

Tax exemption for urban development agencies refused modification after policy review favoring reduction of exemptions in budget exercise.
Tax exemption for Urban Development Agencies is conditioned on satisfying charitable-entity criteria: a charitable purpose, engagement in public-utility objects, registration under the applicable regime, and absence of trade or commercial activities above the prescribed commercial threshold. Government-constituted UDAs may claim a separate exemption provided they do not conduct commercial activities and fulfill other statutory conditions. A request for modifying UDA tax treatment was reviewed during the 2016 budget exercise and not adopted due to a policy to reduce exemptions.

Multilateral development loans: government reports outstanding borrowings and strengthens project readiness and monitoring to accelerate disbursements.
Disclosure of Government of India outstanding borrowings from multilateral development institutions as of 31 March 2016 and year wise loan inflows over the preceding three years, noting MDB financing supports socio economic development and technology and knowledge transfer; and description of measures to speed project disbursement, including a project readiness checklist, Tripartite Review Meetings, State Review Meetings, and Secretary level departmental letters to line ministries and state governments to address implementation issues.

Economic growth forecast warns of slower growth due to weaker external demand and constrained public investment.
ADB attributes a near-term moderation in growth to weaker external demand, constrained public investment due to fiscal consolidation and higher wage outlays, limited policy headroom amid inflation pressures, and impaired lending from weak public sector bank balance sheets; recovery depends on bank recapitalisation, corporate deleveraging, financing of stalled projects and an uptick in bank credit.

Reward entitlement for tax evasion informers preserves confidentiality and caps percentage of collected tax as reward.
Guidelines allow rewards for information leading to detection of undisclosed income or seizures that result in additional direct tax collection: the Competent Authority may grant up to ten percent of extra income-tax and wealth-tax realized attributable to the informant's information, subject to a group-level ceiling of fifteen lakh rupees. For indirect taxes, CBEC issued fresh reward guidelines encouraging information from government servants and informers. Informer identity is kept strictly confidential.

Financial inclusion expanded through targeted banking facility mandates leading to widespread household account coverage under national scheme.
Banks were directed under the Swabhimaan campaign to provide banking facilities to habitations above the 2000 population threshold by March 2012; banks identified about 74,000 habitations and reported coverage of 74,351 by March 31, 2012 via branches, Business Correspondents and mobile banking. Subsequently, the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana was launched to extend household account coverage, reporting substantial account openings and near-universal coverage among surveyed households.

Banks Board Bureau creates a structured selection framework for public sector bank heads using three sub panel interviews and weighted scoring.
An autonomous Banks Board Bureau has been established to search and select heads of public sector banks and financial institutions and to assist them with differentiated strategies and capital-raising plans. The Bureau combines ex officio government and central bank members with senior private-sector banking professionals. The appointments interview process is expanded to a six-member board arranged into three two-member sub-panels, each interviewing candidates separately and producing a weighted average score for the interview.

General Anti Avoidance Rule implementation announced, with statutory basis, notified rules and an administrative panel to be constituted.
Announcement that the General Anti Avoidance Rule (GAAR) will be implemented from the next financial year; GAAR provisions are located in Chapter XA and Section 144BA of the Income tax Act; implementing rules have been notified; a statutory panel will be constituted and practical implementation guidelines will be issued.

Spousal continuation rights: option to continue contributions to APY and receive the same pension entitlement.
Amendment grants the option for the spouse to continue contributing to the deceased subscriber's APY account if death occurs before age 60; the account can be maintained in the spouse's name for the remaining vesting period until the original subscriber would have reached 60, and the spouse shall be entitled to receive the same pension amount as that of the subscriber until the spouse's death.

Equity capital raising authorized for bank permits multiple issuance modes to bolster capital and support credit growth.
Government authorization permits State Bank of India to raise equity capital by various issuance mechanisms, with shareholder approval obtained on 26 February 2016. The bank reported a Capital Adequacy Ratio of 12.45% as of 31 December 2015 against the Basel III transitional benchmark of 12.10% as of 31 March 2019, and the additional equity is stated to support credit growth.

Multi-agency investigation into offshore entities initiated to coordinate cross-border tax and financial probes and regular reporting.
A Multi-Agency Group was constituted to coordinate and expedite probes into Indian persons named in the Panama Papers, convened by the Member (Investigation), CBDT, and comprising officers from CBDT investigation and tax research divisions, the Enforcement Directorate, the Financial Intelligence Unit, and the Reserve Bank of India; the Group is tasked to monitor and regularly report progress of investigations, while the Government pursues enhanced international cooperation and notes that inclusion in the leaks is not conclusive of tax wrongdoing.

Tax enforcement: investigations and cross-border cooperation proceed for offshore disclosures with assessments, taxes, interest, penalties and prosecutions as applicable.
Panama Papers disclosures concerning Indian-linked offshore entities have led to expedited investigations and enhanced international cooperation; where non-compliance under direct tax laws is found, authorities will pursue income assessment, levy tax, interest and penalty, and file prosecutions where applicable, with other enforcement agencies acting under their statutes, while aggregate amounts remain subject to ongoing investigation and are not maintained centrally.

Multi-agency investigation of offshore asset disclosures initiated, with coordinated inquiries and international cooperation to determine next steps.
A Multi-Agency Group has been constituted to coordinate and expedite inquiries into Indian persons allegedly holding undisclosed foreign assets appearing in the Panama Papers leaks. The Group, led by the tax investigation convenor, is tasked to conduct a time-bound inquiry, report progress regularly, and pursue further action based on investigative outcomes, with measures including enhanced international cooperation and recognition that presence in the disclosures alone does not establish wrongdoing.

Black money legislation expanded to target undisclosed foreign assets, boost information exchange and strengthen enforcement measures.
Legislative and institutional measures target undisclosed foreign assets and benami property through the Black Money Act and Benami amendment, supported by a Special Investigation Team and a Multi Agency Group to prioritise investigations and prosecutions. International cooperation through enhanced tax information exchange, automatic exchange arrangements and FATCA complements domestic enforcement by Income Tax, ED and CBI; banks face action if implicated. There is no centralised data or official estimate of funds remitted abroad, and government commissioned studies are under examination.

NPA resolution measures: combined sectoral revival, bank recapitalisation and strengthened enforcement against wilful default.
Government measures addressing NPAs combine sectoral revival, bank recapitalisation and governance reforms with legal and enforcement changes. For stressed accounts emphasis is on reviving key sectors, recapitalising public sector banks and granting managerial autonomy. To deter wilful default the Government has advanced the Insolvency Law for Parliament, amended the SARFAESI and DRT statutes to expedite recovery, and directed banks to pursue guarantors and statutory remedies where creditor action was insufficient.

SEZ fiscal concessions and tax exemption changes reshape incentives and permit dual use of non processing area facilities.
Fiscal incentives for SEZs function as uniform export promotion exemptions; key tax changes include withdrawal of MAT exemption for SEZ developers and units and withdrawal of DDT exemption for SEZ developers for dividends after specified dates. Government permitted dual use of Non Processing Area facilities by SEZ and non SEZ entities. The administration undertakes periodic policy reviews and engages stakeholders, with reported export statistics by year, sector and State to inform policy monitoring and implementation.

Appeal filing thresholds raised, prompting systematic withdrawals and mandatory pre notice consultations for high value tax matters.
CBEC raised appeal filing thresholds and directed identification and withdrawal of cases governed by higher court precedent, with field formations filing many withdrawal applications and a proportion allowed. It mandated pre Show Cause Notice consultation in high value matters, issued detailed instructions on SCN issuance, hearings and speaking adjudication orders, required sample verification of records by Chief Commissioners, and initiated training to improve SCN quality, adjudication and advocacy to reduce disputes.

Public Private Partnership approval: PPPAC endorses road projects under BOT (Toll) and Hybrid Annuity procurement frameworks.
The Public Private Partnership Appraisal Committee (PPPAC) approved institutional clearances for central government road projects, endorsing procurement under BOT (Toll) and Hybrid Annuity Model frameworks, identifying sponsoring authorities and enabling them to proceed with downstream procurement, contract structuring, and implementation in accordance with PPP policy.