Data exclusivity challenged as harmful to generics; government opposes TRIPS plus enforcement internationally and seeks safeguards.
The government opposes data exclusivity for pharmaceuticals and agro chemicals as beyond TRIPS obligations, arguing it would delay generics; India has pursued WTO consultations and bilateral talks with the EU over detention of Indian generics, raised concerns about TRIPS plus provisions in instruments like ACTA, and is coordinating inter departmental measures. Concurrently, the state is strengthening IPR administration through increased filings, funding and posts, international patent office access agreements, and a Traditional Knowledge Digital Library to protect and document indigenous formulations.

Access to medicines: India vows to protect affordable drug availability amid IPR challenges and expanding trade agreements.
India commits to preserve affordable access to life saving medicines by defending the role of generic manufacturers against multinational pressures within a robust intellectual property regime, while pursuing trade and development engagement with Africa-including Focus Africa, Team 9, preferential trade agreement negotiations, and the Pan Africa e network-to support health, education, and South-South economic cooperation.

Excise and customs tariff amendments change valuation, exemptions and compliance obligations after the budget.
Post-budget notifications dated 24 March 2011 amend customs and central excise law to adjust levy, valuation and compliance: customs exemptions from special CVD and revised effective duty rates; central excise tariff changes including reduced tariff value for branded readymade garments, expansion of MRP-based duty, effective excise rates across chapter ranges and duty on mobile handsets; administrative measures introducing centralized registration for certain miners, amendments to Cenvat Credit Rules, inclusion of labels as packing material for SSI relief, quarterly return obligations for concessional-duty units, and exemption for manufacturing waste when concessional notifications apply.

Budget bulletin errata: statutory citation and tariff entry corrections to ensure accurate notification text and numbering.
Errata to Budget Bulletins, 2011, prescribes precise textual and numeric corrections to Central Excise and Customs notifications: date and entry corrections, sequential code changes, replacement of an incorrect statutory reference with 'The Standards of Weights and Measures Act, 1976 (60 of 1976)', expansion of textile description to include articles under Chapters 61-63, tariff table code and percentage substitution corrections, an inserted serial entry renumbering, and deletion and renumbering of a S. No. for specified commodities; field formations are instructed to implement these editorial amendments.

Dividend tax concession extended to lower-ownership foreign subsidiaries, widening eligibility for overseas joint ventures to avail preferential treatment.
Direct tax proposals reduce the qualifying ownership threshold for a concessional dividend tax rate to allow Indian companies owning a smaller stake in foreign subsidiaries to qualify, amend section 40A(9) so employer contributions to employee pension schemes are not disallowed, and exclude export profit deductions from book profit for Minimum Alternate Tax computation. Indirect tax changes add an anti-circumvention power in the Customs Tariff Act, introduce valuation and procedural reliefs for branded garments to protect small manufacturers, and propose targeted customs and excise measures to promote domestic manufacturing. Point of taxation rules for service tax implementation are delayed for further consultation.

Hospital services exemption from the new levy until GST implementation, alongside GST enabling constitutional legislation.
The new levy will be exempted in its entirety for hospital services and diagnostic tests until GST is implemented. Abatement for SSI garment manufacturers is increased to fifty five percent of retail sale price for turnover calculation, and basic customs duty on raw silk (not thrown) is reduced substantially to augment domestic availability. A Constitution Amendment Bill to facilitate GST was introduced alongside further financial sector legislative proposals, with the Government committing to monitor import volumes and domestic prices for any adverse impacts on domestic producers.

Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement urged to be concluded early to deepen India-Nigeria investment and trade ties.
Early conclusion of a Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement with Nigeria is urged to deepen investment protection and harness complementarities between the economies; Indian investors are active and interested particularly in power and petroleum. Rapid bilateral trade growth in 2010 and significant Indian corporate presence across telecom, hydrocarbons, textiles, chemicals, electrical equipment, pharmaceuticals, plastics, IT and autos are cited, alongside principal export and import items, as the operational rationale for concluding the BIPPA to stabilise and promote further investment and trade.

Export growth signals significant trade expansion with forecasted higher annual exports and widening trade deficit prompting policy attention.
Export growth accelerated in February 2011 to US$ 23.6 billion (49.8%), bringing April-February exports to US$ 208.2 billion (31.4% growth); imports for April-February rose 18% to US$ 305.3 billion, producing a trade deficit of US$ 97.1 billion. The Commerce Secretary forecast higher annual exports near US$ 235 billion and highlighted strong SEZ performance. Sectoral data show significant export gains in engineering, POL, electronics and chemicals, while cotton yarn, iron ore and fruits & vegetables declined due to export bans; imports rose across POL, precious stones, metals, machinery and chemicals.

Tariff concessions under India ASEAN trade agreement extend preferential import duty treatment to qualifying ASEAN-origin goods.
Exemption of import duty and preferential tariff treatment have been extended by India to specified goods originating in ASEAN under the India ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement, with tariff concessions implemented between India and eight ASEAN members for items meeting the Agreement's eligibility conditions; details of the specific items and concessions are publicly available and administered through customs procedures.

Non-tariff barriers prompt a Common Compliance Code to secure market access and build factory compliance capacity for garment exports.
Regulatory obstacles such as labelling certification requirements and REACH are being raised through bilateral trade mechanisms to prevent denial of market access. To respond, a proposed Common Compliance Code would consolidate social and regulatory compliance by setting an internationally-endorsed code of conduct, establishing assessment, monitoring and evaluation systems, providing implementation guidelines, and facilitating factory capacity building and training so exporters can meet external technical and social standards.

Anti-dumping duties highlighted; call for bilateral trade facilitation and visa flexibility to strengthen commercial ties.
India and Brazil agreed to strengthen trade and economic cooperation across priority sectors, establish a CEOs Forum, and promote an "India Show" for business engagement. Ministers discussed regulatory facilitation including concerns about anti-dumping duties on certain Indian exports, noted India has not imposed such duties on Brazilian imports, sought greater visa flexibility for business travel, and welcomed an Air Service Agreement to enhance connectivity, with an expressed objective to expand bilateral trade.

Export incentive schemes expand market-specific benefits and condition support on destination and eligible products for diversification.
Under the Foreign Trade Policy, the Focus Market Scheme notifies groups of countries across regions for benefits on exports of most products subject to specified ineligible categories, while the Market Linked Focus Product Scheme designates specific non-traditional markets for incentives on a defined list of eligible products; both schemes use market notification and product eligibility to channel export incentives, with ongoing governmental monitoring and periodic adjustments to the policy framework.

Engineering exports projected to grow as buyer seller meet boosts international engagement and accelerates export expansion prospects.
Engineering exports from India are projected to expand substantially in the current fiscal, with organisers forecasting a target of US dollar fifty billion and reporting strong year on year growth. A Buyer Seller Meet organised by EEPC India in partnership with the Ministry of Commerce and Industry provided an international platform for engagement, hosting delegates from North America, CIS, ASEAN and South Asian markets and facilitating commercial interaction to deepen market access.

Government company mergers: Companies Bill 2009 proposes streamlining procedures, affecting multiple pending amalgamation cases reported by the minister.
A ministerial disclosure lists specific proposed mergers and amalgamations among government companies currently under consideration and indicates that the Companies Bill 2009 contains provisions to streamline mergers and amalgamations, signaling legislative intent to simplify procedures governing consolidation of public sector enterprises.

Concessional lines of credit: government-backed LoCs with sovereign guarantees and interest equalization support for development projects.
The IDEA Scheme continues for 2010-11 to 2014-15 to provide Government-supported concessional Lines of Credit (LoCs) through Exim Bank or other lending agencies for MEA recommended development projects, with lending agencies raising resources from international debt markets, LoCs backed by recipient sovereign guarantees (counter guaranteed by Government of India where applicable), and Interest Equalization Support funded from the central budget to enable concessional lending; detailed guidelines and review and extension provisions govern implementation.

Cenvat credit rules amended: eligibility, reversal and sectoral restrictions revised for credit availment and utilisation.
Amendments revise Cenvat Credit entitlement by redefining Inputs and Input Services, allowing credit on capital goods used off-premises for electricity generation, denying credit on goods/services covered by concessional or exempt categories and trading/abatement activities, extending entitlement to job workers and merchant traders, imposing sectoral caps and specific restrictions, and prescribing time limits, reversal mechanisms, separate record-keeping and shortened filing timelines for small-scale units.