Start-up grievance redressal: dedicated CBDT cell to resolve income-tax administration issues and expedite tax-related complaints.
A dedicated Start-up Cell has been constituted under a Member-level officer to redress tax-related grievances of start-ups under the Income-tax Act, 1961; it consists of specified ex officio officials and provides postal, email and telephone channels for filing complaints to enable speedy resolution and ease compliance burdens for start-up entities.

Tax Deduction at Source on cash withdrawals applies after commencement if annual cash withdrawals exceed the statutory threshold.
Section 194N imposes TDS on cash payments by banking companies, cooperative banks, or post offices where aggregate cash withdrawals by a recipient exceed the annual threshold; the provision takes effect from 1 September 2019. Withdrawals before the effective date are not subject to TDS, but the annual threshold is measured from 1 April 2019, so cumulative withdrawals up to 31 August 2019 count toward triggering TDS on subsequent withdrawals once the section is in force.

Startup tax grievance redressal: a dedicated CBDT Startup Cell to address angel tax and related Income-tax Act issues.
Creation of a dedicated five-member Startup Cell within the Central Board of Direct Taxes, headed by the member for Income Tax and Computerisation, to redress grievances and mitigate tax-related issues for startup entities in the administration of the Income-tax Act, 1961, with particular reference to concerns arising from the angel tax and to implement measures announced to relieve startups from its effects.

Tariff value fixation updated for specified imports, redefining declared unit values and customs valuation application.
Customs Act powers are used to substitute revised tables of declared tariff values for specified imports, listing tariff items and updated unit values for edible oils, brass scrap, poppy seeds, areca nut, and declared unit values for gold and silver in defined forms and import modalities to be applied for customs valuation purposes.

Differential taxation of derivatives: FPIs taxed as capital gains while domestic investors face business income treatment.
Differential taxation applies to income from derivatives: FPIs' derivative income has been treated as capital gains under a special taxation regime, whereas domestic investors including AIF category III and non-FPI foreign investors have historically had derivative income treated as business income taxed at normal income rates; this distinction predated recent budget announcements.

Enhanced surcharge withdrawal on special-rate capital gains tax for equity and FPI derivatives, normal-rate derivatives remain surchargeable.
Withdrawal of enhanced surcharge applies from FY 2019-20 to tax payable at special rates on capital gains from transfers of equity shares, units of equity oriented funds and business trust units, and to gains on derivatives transferred by FPIs taxed under section 115AD. Transfers of derivatives treated as business income for non-FPI persons remain subject to normal-rate tax and continue to attract the enhanced surcharge on that tax.

Start-up tax holiday eligibility clarified: turnover limit set by income-tax law; DPIIT recognition alone insufficient.
CBDT clarifies that entitlement to the start-up deduction under Section 80-IAC is determined by the Act's conditions-incorporation date, statutory turnover ceiling in the year of deduction, and a certificate from the Inter Ministerial Board of Certification-and that DPIIT recognition alone does not make a start-up eligible; the DPIIT notification itself references compliance with Section 80-IAC, so it does not alter the statutory turnover threshold.

Bilateral trade cooperation expanded through sectoral partnerships, JWGs and technical accords to deepen commerce and investment ties.
The 9th India-Kenya Joint Trade Committee reaffirmed commitments to deepen trade and economic ties, pursue sectoral trade and investment opportunities, and consider technical cooperation through Joint Working Groups. Kenya tabled a draft SPS protocol and the proposal to recognise the Indian Pharmacopoeia for technical discussion. Both sides reviewed Lines of Credit, addressed implementation and local content issues, and agreed on follow-up actions including MoUs, capacity building, dispute mediation, and institutional linkages to implement agreed cooperation.

Direct Tax Code report submitted proposing replacement of the Income-Tax Act and modernization of tax law.
A government-appointed task force submitted a report proposing a new Direct Tax Code to replace the Income-Tax Act, 1961, with a mandate to draft a modern direct tax law aligned with international best practices and the country's economic needs; the panel, comprising tax officials, practitioners and consultants, completed its consultative drafting exercise after multiple government-ordered timeline extensions.

Document Identification Number introduced to validate tax communications; manual issuances require prior written approval and regularisation.
The CBDT mandates a computer-generated Document Identification Number (DIN) on almost all income-tax communications issued on or after 1 October 2019 to ensure an auditable electronic trail; communications not conforming to DIN guidelines are invalid. Manual issuance is permitted only in exceptional circumstances with written reasons and prior written approval of the Chief Commissioner/Director General, recorded in a specified format, and CBDT prescribes timelines and procedures to regularise such communications and to upload previously manually issued notices to the ITBA by 31 October 2019.

Tariff values updated for specified agricultural and metal imports, altering customs valuation benchmarks under customs notification.
An administrative notification substitutes TABLE 1, TABLE 2 and TABLE 3 of Notification No. 36/2001 Customs (N.T.) with updated tariff values, prescribing US dollar per metric tonne valuations for specified oils, brass scrap, poppy seeds and areca nuts, and unit valuations for gold and silver including specified inclusions and exclusions and references to benefits under entries of Notification No. 50/2017 Customs.

Partial credit guarantee enables banks to buy high-rated NBFC asset pools, providing liquidity support and first-loss cover.
The Scheme provides a one-time Partial Credit Guarantee enabling Public Sector Banks to purchase high-rated pooled assets from eligible NBFCs/HFCs at fair value to alleviate temporary asset-liability mismatches. The guarantee is limited in time and overall purchase ceiling, acts as first loss cover for the purchasing bank subject to invocation on defined delinquency, requires RBI/NHB accreditation and specified asset and issuer eligibility, mandates reporting and quick Government settlement of claims, charges a fee routed through the purchasing bank, and imposes ALM and capital maintenance obligations on originators.

TDS compliance prompted notices seeking contractors' TDS details and outreach to educate puja committees on withholding obligations.
The Department issued information notices under section 133(6) to about thirty puja committees to obtain details and TDS statements for payments to contractors and event managers after receiving information that some contractors were not paying due taxes; many committees complied by producing evidence of tax deducted at source and deposits, and an outreach session was held to explain TDS provisions to committees at their request.

Tax evasion detection leads to discovery of large undisclosed income after searches in liquor industry.
Income tax authorities executed intelligence led search and seizure operations at multiple premises of major liquor producers, uncovering a scheme of over invoicing of raw materials and bottles where suppliers received inflated payments by bank transfer and returned excess cash to company employees. Documentary and electronic evidence and interception of employees with concealed cash established supplier collusion and cash circulation, enabling recovery of unaccounted cash and detection of substantial suppression of taxable income for enforcement and assessment.

Benami property enforcement exposes petrol retail tax evasion using tribal exemptions, prompting targeted searches and asset seizure.
Enforcement action targeted alleged benami petrol retail operations in Meghalaya, conducted after prolonged surveillance and covert enquiries; searches uncovered incriminating documents and significant unaccounted cash concealed on premises, and exposed misuse of the tribal exemption as a front to suppress sales and avoid local tax deposits, highlighting coordinated search-and-seizure methods and evidence seizure to address collusive benami schemes.

Income-tax return reporting requirements clarified to guide disclosure of foreign directorships, overseas shares, unlisted shares and stock-in-trade.
Clarifications address reporting of directorships in foreign companies, equity shares listed outside India, unlisted shares previously listed, unlisted shares received by gift, will or amalgamation, and assets treated as stock-in-trade, and instruct taxpayers on the correct disclosure fields and characterisation for completion of the income-tax return forms; an administrative circular consolidates these instructions and is published on the official income-tax website for reference.

Monetary thresholds for government tax appeals increased, narrowing disputes eligible for appeal and focusing resources.
Revision of monetary limits for departmental filing of tax appeals increases thresholds for initiating appellate proceedings at successive tiers, narrowing the class of cases eligible for appeal and concentrating litigation resources on higher-value or legally complex matters as an eligibility criterion for departmental appeals.

Tariff value revisions update customs import values for specified oils, metals and agricultural goods under Customs Act authority.
Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs amends the principal import valuation notification by substituting TABLE-1, TABLE-2 and TABLE-3 to prescribe tariff values for specified goods, including vegetable oils, brass scrap, poppy seeds, areca nuts, and unit values for gold and silver in specified forms, with definitions and exclusions for precious metal entries preserved and the stated values indicated as unchanged.

Credit growth: banks commit to expand affordable digital and co-originated lending to support MSME, NBFC and auto sectors.
The Ministry reviewed measures to boost credit growth by expanding contactless digital lending to MSMEs and retail borrowers, leveraging bank-NBFC co-origination to combine banks' funding with NBFC reach, using government partial credit guarantees and pooled-asset purchases to address NBFC/HFC liquidity, and committing banks to increase sectoral credit support, expedite MSME restructuring, and improve interest-rate transmission and digital payment accessibility.

Tax evasion through 'on money' and bogus accommodation loans exposed; investigation into hawala entries and concealed income continues.
Search and seizure uncovered systemic tax evasion by a major real estate group through corroborated receipts of 'on money', accounting manipulations concealing income, bogus unsecured accommodation loans, and artificial long term capital gains entries routed via entry providers/hawala operators; significant unaccounted jewellery was also detected and verification and investigation continue.