Mandatory jute packaging requires reserved use for foodgrain and sugar with limited exemptions and contingent relaxations.
The policy mandates mandatory jute packaging for specified commodities in the Jute Year 2014-15, requiring initial indents for jute bags and permitting limited dilution if jute mills cannot meet requisitions, with targeted exemptions for export packaging, fortified sugar, small consumer packs, and bulk packaging; the Ministry of Textiles may further relax reservations in consultation with user Ministries in cases of supply disruption or exigency.

Services trade cooperation to be advanced through a global exhibition fostering partnerships and increased services exports and FDI.
The Global Exhibition on Services creates a platform to expand trade in services, enhance strategic cooperation, address barriers to services trade, and increase services exports and foreign direct investment. Participation will include governments, corporates, service providers and state bodies, and the event will feature sector seminars, dedicated B2B meetings and showcases across focus areas such as IT & telecom, tourism, media and healthcare, with the Government acting as a facilitator in standard-setting.

Non-adversarial tax administration must balance enforcement with taxpayer civility and ensure efficient customs facilitation for investment certainty.
Non-adversarial tax administration is urged to attract investment while retaining enforcement rigour: liable taxpayers must pay and evaders must be pursued, but officials must deal with taxpayers and investors civilly and predictably. Reforms should deliver quick decision-making and policy stability. Operationally, authorities must enhance transparency via data systems, improve interagency coordination to reduce paperwork and delays, implement continuous customs operations to facilitate trade, and curb unlawful cross-border economic activity while ensuring smooth movement of goods.

Bilateral trade target drives enhanced cooperation across textiles, pharmaceuticals, agriculture and investment after India-Vietnam sub commission meeting.
The India-Vietnam Joint Sub Commission on Trade's second meeting reviewed progress and implemented commitments to strengthen bilateral economic ties, aiming to expand trade by prioritising cooperation in textiles, pharmaceuticals, agriculture, leather, energy and oil and gas. The meeting emphasised promoting trade and investment, improving market access, and fostering sectoral collaboration, while institutionalising continued ministerial and commercial engagement and business to business linkages to translate strategic commitments into practical activities.

Trade Negotiations: India seeks balanced market access and protected developing country treatment under multilateral trade rules.
Discussions advanced bilateral and regional trade and investment frameworks, addressing market access barriers, regulatory and certification constraints, investment opportunities across targeted sectors, operational mechanisms like Joint Commissions and preferential schemes for LDCs, and sought multilateral protections including special and differential treatment and a permanent solution for public stockholding under the Doha agenda.

Trade facilitation: TFA aimed at lowering trade costs and boosting south-south trade while prioritising developing country needs.
WTO responsiveness to developing and least-developed countries should be strengthened, placing development at the centre; the Trade Facilitation Agreement is presented as a measure to reduce trade costs and bolster south-south trade, while remaining DDA issues-including food stockholding, subsidies, and non tariff barriers-require renewed multilateral negotiation focus to address legitimate developing country concerns.

Indirect tax revenue growth signals improved collections with customs and service tax aiding BE target progress.
Indirect tax revenue (provisional) collections increased 6.7% for April-December 2014 over the corresponding period in 2013, achieving 60.6% of the Budget Estimate for 2014-15. Customs rose 9.7% (68.6% of BE), Service Tax rose 8.7% (55.3% of BE), and Central Excise rose 1.6% (58.3% of BE); central excise totals exclude cess administered by other departments.

Foreign Direct Investment approvals expand sectoral FDI under route-specific conditions; a large proposal referred for higher-level clearance.
Government dispositions following FIPB recommendations approved twelve FDI proposals across pharma, banking, LLPs and manufacturing with varied transactional mechanisms (equity issuance, share transfer, loan-to-equity conversion, IPOs, company-to-LLP conversion) and conditions; twelve proposals were deferred for further scrutiny across telecom, broadcasting, trading, pharma, aviation and investment vehicles; three proposals were approved under the automatic route; four proposals were rejected, one withdrawn, and one large banking-sector proposal referred to the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs for higher-level consideration.

Dual use of non-processing area permits SEZ and DTA entities to share space under amended SEZ regulatory framework.
The Department of Commerce amended the SEZ regulatory framework to permit dual use of non-processing area within Special Economic Zones, allowing both SEZ entities and Domestic Tariff Area entities to occupy and use designated non-processing spaces. The amendment clarifies that non-processing areas are not exclusively reserved for SEZ units and establishes a regulated mechanism for their shared use by DTA participants under the SEZ regime.

MSME e-book outlines government programmes and schemes to support enterprise competitiveness and employment generation nationwide.
The Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises published an e-book detailing its priority programmes and action plans to support MSME competitiveness, including sectoral thrusts (Khadi, coir), e-governance, PMEGP, budget and governance highlights, and a Make in India action plan. It sets out facilitative measures for states and enterprises: access to finance, technology upgradation, infrastructure, testing and quality certification, management practices, entrepreneurship and skill training, product development, artisan welfare, market access, and cluster capacity building, alongside sectoral statistics and a mobile-friendly portal for stakeholder access.

Ease of doing business reforms and GST implementation aimed at improving tax transparency and facilitating investment and trade.
Priority objectives include reviving manufacturing, improving ease of doing business and implementing the Goods and Services Tax to enhance transparency and tax administration. Trade and industry proposed fiscal consolidation, investment incentives, PSU disinvestment and phased stake dilution, use of reverse BOT financing, creation of a National Asset Management Company to take NPAs off bank balance sheets, and measures for bank recapitalization. Tax and subsidy reforms were urged to create a predictable, non adversarial tax regime and targeted subsidy delivery, alongside export incentives and infrastructure financing tools.

Cooperative federalism enabled by a national policy think tank to craft shared development vision and monitor implementation.
NITI Aayog is constituted as a central policy Think Tank to replace the Planning Commission, charged with evolving a shared national development vision with State participation, fostering cooperative federalism, formulating village level plans and aggregating them, integrating national security into economic strategy when referred, and prioritising vulnerable groups. It will design long term policy frameworks, monitor and evaluate implementation, enable mid course corrections, maintain a resource centre of governance best practices, and facilitate partnerships with national and international research and policy institutions.