Tariff value fixation: substitution of tariff value tables fixing values for edible oils, metals and agricultural imports.
The Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs amends the principal customs tariff value notification by substituting TABLE 1, TABLE 2 and TABLE 3 to fix tariff values for specified imported goods, including edible oils, brass scrap, poppy seeds, areca nut, and specified forms of gold and silver, with explanatory notes delineating items excluded from the silver and gold entries.

RFID sealing extended to bonded warehouse movements, mandating RFID OTL use and real-time data reporting.
The Board mandates RFID One-Time-Bolt Lock (RFID OTL) use for goods deposited in or removed from Customs bonded warehouses, sourced from empanelled vendors. Readers must meet prescribed specifications and vendors must transmit specified data elements to DGARM in real time. Importers/owners obtain seals from warehouses (destination warehouse for transfers); licensees procure Readers; vendors activate seals only upon sale and create login credentials. Web-application entries are authenticated at sealing; seal treatment (Verified/Rejected/Tampered) procedures and trip reports will substitute for arrival acknowledgements. Exceptions apply where sealing is impractical or physical escort is required.

Instant PAN through Aadhaar e-KYC enables near real time paperless PAN allotment and free e PAN issuance.
The Instant PAN facility provides near real time, paperless PAN allotment through Aadhaar based e KYC for applicants with a valid Aadhaar and an Aadhaar registered mobile; OTP verification generates an acknowledgment number and, on successful completion, issues a free electronic PAN (e PAN) which can be downloaded or emailed if the email is Aadhaar registered.

Infrastructure financing enables upgrade of state highways with safety audits and performance-based maintenance obligations to improve connectivity.
A development loan will upgrade 450 kilometers of state highways and major district roads to two-lane standard across seven districts, enhancing connectivity to transport hubs and economic areas; the project establishes a road safety audit framework protecting vulnerable users and requires five-year performance-based maintenance obligations for contractors, alongside capacity building in climate-change adaptation and disaster-resilient road design for the state Public Works Department.

Debt Management Strategy guides central government borrowing plan and analyses debt sustainability indicators to enhance transparency.
The publication provides a transparent account of the Central Government's debt operations, noting reliance on market-linked borrowings and a prudent portfolio risk profile; it analyses conventional debt sustainability indicators (Debt/GDP, interest payments to receipts, composition by short-term/external/floating-rate debt) and sets out the Central Government's Debt Management Strategy that guides the multi-year borrowing plan.

Tax refunds acceleration: expedited issuance to income and corporate taxpayers improving liquidity and processing transparency.
Central tax administration has issued widespread tax refunds to income tax and corporate tax assessees, including trusts, MSMEs, proprietorships and partnerships, and has expedited the refund process following a recent policy announcement, reporting bulk weekly disbursements and separate accounting for income and corporate tax refunds.

Government assurance to industry: trust, credit guarantees and reforms to support MSME credit access and demand stimulation.
Government policy assurances emphasise trust-based engagement with industry and targeted economic support measures. The Finance Minister urged professional labour engagement and skilling, and affirmed measures to bolster MSME and NBFC credit access through bank guarantees and special purpose arrangements to address lending hesitation. She also noted fast-tracking liquidity support for the power sector, ongoing GST inflow discussions, circulation of three model Acts on agricultural reforms to States, and frontloading the National Infrastructure Pipeline to stimulate demand. The interaction recognised stress in certain large sectors and the need for dialogue on job protection and business survival.

Special Liquidity Scheme for NBFCs/HFCs creates an SPV issuing government-guaranteed securities purchasable by the central bank to fund NBFC debt.
The Special Liquidity Scheme establishes an SPV-managed Stressed Asset Fund that will issue interest-bearing, government-guaranteed special securities purchased solely by the Reserve Bank of India, with proceeds used to acquire short-term, investment-grade debt of eligible NBFCs/HFCs (residual maturity up to three months), administered by the Department of Financial Services under a government equity contribution and a government guarantee ceiling.

Social protection expansion to scale up cash and food transfers and create portable benefit delivery across states for vulnerable workers.
A multi-phase World Bank financing package will expand India's social protection by immediately scaling up cash transfers and food benefits through existing platforms such as PDS and DBT, protecting essential workers, and targeting migrants and informal workers. The second phase will deepen benefits via state-led, portable delivery systems, shift from fragmented schemes to an integrated national system with improved geographic portability and urban coverage, and will leverage national digital, banking, and identity infrastructure while preserving state implementation roles.

Loan agreement for irrigation and flood management will modernize irrigation services and strengthen flood protections under co-financing.
A loan agreement between the Government of India, the Government of West Bengal and an international development bank will fund irrigation and flood management investments in the Damodar Valley Command Area to improve irrigation services, strengthen embankments and desilting, promote conjunctive use of surface and groundwater, recruit performance based Irrigation Service Providers, and introduce a modern Management Information System to boost agricultural productivity and climate resilience.

Tariff value update sets import valuation benchmarks for specified goods, revising operative customs valuation tables.
The notification substitutes the prior operative tables with revised tariff values fixing US dollar import valuation benchmarks for listed commodities. It publishes three replacement tables: weight based tariff values for vegetable oils, brass scrap, poppy seeds and areca nuts, and unit valuations for specified forms of gold and silver with stated descriptions and exclusions. The substituted tables become the operative schedules to the principal customs notification and serve as the reference for customs import valuation purposes.

Vendor payment compliance: CPSEs required to prioritise timely clearance of MSME dues and use portal-based dispute resolution.
The Department of Expenditure implemented monthly monitoring and directives to ensure vendor payment compliance by 32 Maharatna and Navratna CPSEs, prioritising timely clearance of MSME dues and use of the SAMADHAN portal for dispute resolution; communications by the Secretary (Expenditure) reinforced departmental oversight, and reported March-April 2020 data show ongoing receipt, settlement, and a remaining balance of MSME bills largely under process.

Loan agreement for irrigation and flood management combines infrastructure finance with institutional reforms to improve water services.
A multilateral loan agreement was executed to finance modernization of irrigation and flood management in the Damodar Valley Command Area, rehabilitating infrastructure, strengthening flood protection, and optimizing surface and groundwater use. The project bundles capital investments with institutional reforms - a modern Management Information System, benchmarking, conjunctive water use, rational asset management, citizen engagement, and performance based Irrigation Service Providers - to improve irrigation service delivery, reduce flood damage, and enhance agricultural productivity and sustainability.

TDS and TCS rate reduction provides temporary withholding relief by lowering specified withholding and collection rates.
Temporary reductions of twenty-five percent have been applied to specified Tax Deduction at Source (TDS) rates on listed non-salaried payments to residents and to specified Tax Collection at Source (TCS) rates on enumerated receipts for amounts paid/credited or received/debited during the notified period, with separate rates for individuals/HUFs and others where relevant; higher statutory withholding due to non-furnishing of PAN/Aadhaar continues to apply, and legislative amendments will be proposed.

Emergency working capital facility: concessional term loans with full government guarantee to provide immediate MSME liquidity support.
Measures provide immediate liquidity and credit support to businesses, focusing on MSMEs via an Emergency Working Capital Facility of concessional term loans with full government guarantee, subordinate debt for stressed MSMEs, and an equity Fund of Funds; revise MSME eligibility by raising investment limits and adding turnover criteria; implement government guaranteed liquidity schemes for NBFCs/HFCs/MFIs and DISCOMs; temporarily reduce EPF contributions; and extend tax and contractual compliance deadlines while reducing TDS/TCS rates to improve cash flow.

Approval and registration procedure deferred; filing deadline extended and amended procedure to commence later due to COVID-19.
Implementation of the revised procedure for approval, registration and notification of entities under the Income-tax Act has been deferred to 1 October 2020; previously approved or registered entities must file intimation within three months from that date, and the amended procedure for new entities will apply from 1 October 2020, with legislative amendments to be proposed.

Residency status: COVID 19 related lockdown and quarantine periods excluded from stay-count to protect intended non resident status.
To prevent involuntary change of tax residence due to travel restrictions, specified periods of stay caused by the COVID 19 lockdown and quarantine are excluded from the computation of an individual's residential status for the previous year: the lockdown period for those unable to depart, the quarantine period until departure or year-end for those quarantined, and the lockdown-to-departure period for those on evacuation flights. A further circular will address exclusions up to resumption of normal international flight operations for the following year.

Health sector emergency financing supports national COVID-19 response and strengthens disease surveillance and healthcare capacity.
The agreement establishes an emergency health financing project to support India's national COVID-19 response by financing immediate public health measures-procurement of PPE, oxygen systems, medicines, and testing capacity-enhancing disease detection and patient management, and strengthening system resilience through upgrades to surveillance, hospitals, high-containment laboratories, zoonoses detection, and biomedical research. Primary beneficiaries include infected and at-risk populations, medical and emergency personnel, service providers, and public and animal health agencies. Implementation is assigned to the National Health Mission, the National Center for Disease Control, and the Indian Council of Medical Research under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, with joint financing from multilateral lenders.

Investor protection: mutual funds urged to prioritize returning investor funds amid risks from unlisted bespoke debt holdings.
SEBI directs Franklin Templeton to prioritize returning investor money due to concentrated exposures in opaque unlisted debt. Following credit events since September 2018, SEBI formed working groups and, via MFAC recommendations, approved phased prudential norms requiring fresh investments only in listed NCDs and listed CPs, while allowing limited unlisted NCD exposure subject to simple structure, rating, security and monthly coupon conditions. SEBI set compliance timelines, permitted grandfathering of existing unlisted holdings until maturity, extended dates for COVID disruptions, and criticized schemes that failed to rebalance high-risk unlisted concentrations.