Exchange rate notification: prescribed rupee conversion rates for foreign currencies to govern import and export customs calculations.
Determination of specific foreign currency conversion rates for customs purposes takes effect from 17 July 2015, superseding the earlier notification dated 2 July 2015; distinct rupee equivalents are prescribed for listed currencies for imported and export goods in Schedule I (per unit rates) and Schedule II (per 100 units) to be used for calculation and assessment under the Customs Act.

Foreign Direct Investment approvals: multiple cross sector transactions cleared, others deferred or refused under prevailing FDI policy.
The Government approved a set of FIPB-recommended foreign direct investment proposals across pharma, broadcasting, telecom, real estate, LLP and investment fund sectors, authorising acquisitions, downstream investments, fresh equity issues, transfers and post-facto regularisations where they complied with sectoral requirements. Several proposals involved non-cash consideration or share-swap mechanisms. A distinct group of proposals was deferred for further scrutiny due to issues such as sectoral caps, investor-identity changes, secondary market purchases, and conversions of preference shares, while a small number of proposals were refused or not considered for procedural or policy incompatibility.

Trade performance: merchandise exports and imports declined, narrowing the quarterly trade deficit and reducing oil import reliance.
Merchandise trade for June 2015 and April-June 2015-16 shows year on year declines in exports and imports in dollar and rupee terms, resulting in a reduced quarterly merchandise trade deficit. Crude oil imports fell sharply both in June and over the quarter, while non oil imports were slightly lower in June but rose modestly over April-June. Services trade for May 2015 registered a surplus, with receipts exceeding payments.

Indirect tax revenue growth signals improving nominal GDP and broader economic momentum after recent tax policy changes.
Provisional indirect tax collections for April-June 2015 rose 37.4% year on year and June collections rose 33.3%, with growth concentrated in customs, central excise and service tax. Part of the increase reflected specific fiscal measures (excise rises on diesel and petrol, higher clean energy cess, withdrawal of certain exemptions, and increased service tax rate). Excluding these measures, indirect tax growth was 10.8% for June and 14.5% for the quarter, indicating an underlying rise in collections consistent with improving nominal GDP and a broadened tax base.

Mandatory exporter registration digitised; MPEDA launches SMS price alerts and mobile app to aid aquaculture decisions.
MPEDA launched e governance measures: a free missed call SMS shrimp price information service sourcing indicative prices from INFOFISH to inform harvest decisions; mKRISHI, an Android app offering bookkeeping, advisory and weather information with graphical reports and computer viewing; an online exporter registration portal enabling application, scanned document upload, online fee payment via a payment gateway and digital certificate issuance in place of manual processes; and a revamped MPEDA portal consolidating public information on production, exports and services.

Online payment facility enables applicants to pay DGFT application fees electronically, with refunds and next day fund transfer.
The Directorate General of Foreign Trade launched an online payment facility for application fees via credit/debit cards and net banking, supported by an MOU with Central Bank of India to provide the payment gateway, e-challans, transaction IDs, reconciliation support, refunds for failed transactions within three days, and transfer of funds to government accounts on a T+1 working day basis. The release also sets out transaction processing charges for card and net-banking payments, with service tax extra, and lists the participating banks.

Marine products exports hit USD 5.51 billion in 2014-15, led by frozen shrimp despite falling unit prices.
Marine products exports reached USD 5,511.12 million in 2014-15 (10,51,243 MT; Rs. 33,441.61 crores), up 10.05% in USD and 6.86% in quantity. Frozen shrimp dominated exports-about 34% of quantity and over 67% of USD earnings-driven by cultured vannamei growth despite falling unit values late in the year. Frozen fish declined in value and unit price, while value added products and certain species gained. USA, South East Asia and the EU were principal markets; China recorded significant declines. MPEDA set a USD 6.6 billion export target for 2015-16, citing production increases, species diversification, quality controls and infrastructure expansion.

Exchange rate determination for customs: specified foreign currency rates set for import and export valuation, effective immediately.
The Central Board fixes exchange rates for specified foreign currencies for customs valuation, superseding a prior notification and applying from 3rd July, 2015; Schedule I provides per unit import and export rates, while Schedule II provides rates per one hundred units, with distinct figures for imported and export goods.

Participatory budgeting empowers citizens via Swaraj Fund to select local projects and condition payments on citizen approval.
The budget establishes Participatory Budgeting via the Swaraj Fund to allocate constituency funds selected and monitored by citizens, conditions contractor payments on citizen approval of completed works, and creates district-level DUDA to execute these and MLA-recommended projects while implementing digital governance, centralized procurement, and Direct Benefit Transfer for social assistance.

Standards assistance advances regulatory compliance through technical support to environmental and energy regulators and industry.
Central Pulp & Paper Research Institute (CPPRI) is a society-registered nodal R&D centre focused on raw material and product development, energy conservation and environmental management for the pulp and paper sector. It provides regulatory and compliance-oriented technical services-advising on wastewater discharge standards and energy norms, standardisation input, instrument calibration, environmental assessments, effluent and lignin system troubleshooting-and delivers training, consultancy and funded research projects while upgrading infrastructure and engaging in international cooperation.

Gold monetization: include jewellers as principal collection agents and enable Demat accounts to mobilize idle household gold.
The submission urges that jewellers be appointed as authorized Collection Centres to market, collect and perform preliminary testing of deposited gold at retail locations, with final assaying by nominated purity testing and refining agencies; it recommends permitting Demat gold accounts alongside bank gold savings accounts, offering attractive tiered interest and longer tenures, establishing operational manuals and audited processes, providing limited tax-immunity up to a reasonable per-person threshold, and forming an apex national industry body or joint committee with government representation to coordinate scheme implementation and outreach.

Export infrastructure consultation invites memoranda within a limited period; submission and oral evidence details available online.
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Commerce invites written memoranda and offers to receive oral evidence on Export Infrastructure in India, soliciting submissions within a limited period and directing interested parties to the Rajya Sabha website for procedural details; memoranda and correspondence are to be sent to the designated Secretariat contact with provided postal, telephone, fax and email information.

Infrastructure performance shows higher power generation and mixed sectoral target attainment for the 2014-15 year.
Review reports that overall power generation in 2014-15 exceeded the prior year and met or surpassed targets across thermal, nuclear, hydro and renewable sources, with airport passenger throughput above targets. It also notes shortfalls from targets in crude oil, natural gas and highway upgradation, and that several sectoral outputs-though higher year-on-year-remained below their set targets; the findings are published by the Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation.

Exchange rate determination for customs conversion fixes separate import and export currency rates effective from the notified date.
Determination of exchange rates under Customs Act authority, effective 19 June 2015, superseding the prior notification while preserving prior acts. Schedules fix rupee equivalents for specified foreign currencies with separate rates for imported and export goods; Schedule II records rates per 100 units for certain currencies. The listed rates govern conversion and valuation for customs purposes from the effective date.

Foreign direct investment approvals under FIPB processed across sectors, with approvals, deferrals and rejections reflecting sectoral compliance.
The Government, acting on FIPB recommendations, processed inbound proposals under the Foreign Direct Investment framework resulting in approvals, deferrals, rejections and non consideration based on sectoral eligibility, corporate form changes and compliance with conditionalities. Sixteen proposals across pharma, telecom, broadcasting, real estate, LLPs, print media and trading were approved via share transfers, fresh equity, convertible instruments, slump sale or LLP conversions. Many proposals were deferred for further scrutiny of downstream investments, changed investor identities, portfolio limits or scheme-of-arrangement issues, while several were rejected for non compliance with sectoral norms or gateway conditions.

Trade balance shows widened merchandise deficit despite lower imports as exports fell markedly in May 2015.
Merchandise exports fell sharply in May 2015 and for April-May 2015-16, while imports declined less steeply; oil imports dropped substantially year on year driving much of the import reduction, non oil imports were stable in May and rose modestly in April-May, and the period recorded a sustained merchandise trade deficit. Provisional April 2015 services data show a services trade surplus where receipts exceed payments.

Indirect tax collections rise significantly year on year, partly due to policy adjustments but still positive after adjustment.
Provisional indirect tax collections increased year on year in May 2015 and for April-May 2015, with central excise, customs and service tax all contributing; central excise recorded the largest percentage rise. The Finance Minister stated that some of the increase reflected Government measures (higher excise on diesel and petrol, higher clean energy cess, withdrawal of exemptions) and that adjusted growth excluding these measures remained positive for May and the two month period.

Exchange rate determination for foreign currencies specifies import and export rupee conversion rates for customs valuation.
The notification prescribes separate rupee conversion rates for specified foreign currencies to be used in valuation of imported and exported goods, with Schedule I quoting rates per single currency unit and Schedule II quoting rates per one hundred units, and distinct import and export equivalents for each listed currency.

Minimum import price increase for arecanuts restricts low-duty import routes and tightens origin checks and enforces quality screening.
Increase of the Minimum Import Price for arecanuts raises the import valuation floor and directs customs and food-safety agencies to enforce stringent quality checks and rigorous rules of origin verification to prevent routing through neighbouring countries under lower-duty arrangements, thereby addressing import circumvention and protecting domestic prices.

Monetary policy: repo rate cut 25 bps to 7.25% to support growth amid inflation risks.
The Reserve Bank cut the policy repo rate by 25 basis points to 7.25%, left the cash reserve ratio at 4.0%, and maintained a suite of liquidity operations (overnight repos, 14-day and longer-term repo auctions, and variable-rate repos and reverse repos) to smooth market liquidity. The reverse repo rate is 6.25% and the marginal standing facility and Bank Rate are 8.25%. The easing is front loaded to support growth amid mixed domestic and global risks, with emphasis on bank transmission, strong food management, and complementary public investment and targeted bank capitalisation.