Special Courts designation ensures speedy trials for specified companies offences through listed subordinate courts in affected jurisdictions.
The Central Government, under section 435 of the Companies Act, 2013 and with concurrence of the Chief Justices of the Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir High Courts, designates specified subordinate courts as Special Courts to ensure speedy trial of company law offences. For offences punishable with imprisonment of two years or more the Court of IV Additional District and Sessions Judge, Dehradun and the Principal Sessions Judge, Leh are designated. For other offences the II Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Dehradun; Sub Judge/Special Mobile Magistrates at Jammu and Srinagar; and Chief Judicial Magistrate, Leh are designated.

Special Court designation under Companies Act assigns anti corruption jurisdiction to designated Additional Sessions Judges for corporate offences.
The Central Government amends a prior notification to substitute the first table entry, designating the Courts of Additional Sessions Judges, Anti corruption at Jammu and Srinagar as the Special Court for the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir under the Companies Act, issued with the concurrence of the High Court and published in the Gazette of India.

Departmental Promotion Committee: corrigendum reclassifies the selection body for Senior Assistant Director (Forensic Audit), membership unchanged.
The corrigendum replaces the designation of the selection body for the Senior Assistant Director (Forensic Audit) in G.S.R. 382(E) with a Group 'B' Departmental Promotion Committee for considering promotion, retaining the listed membership: Director, Serious Fraud Investigation Office (Chairman); Additional Director, Serious Fraud Investigation Office (Member); and Deputy Secretary, Ministry of Corporate Affairs (Member).

Appointments to National Company Law Appellate Tribunal: Judicial and Technical members appointed for fixed term under Companies Act.
Central Government appoints two Judicial Members and two Technical Members to the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal under statutory authority, with posts, dates of joining, specified pay matrix level and fixed remuneration, for a term of three years or until attaining age sixty-seven years or until further orders.

Notification corrigendum: inclusion of Department of Biotechnology alongside Defence Research and Development Organisation in company's law notification.
Corrigendum directs that in the earlier Gazette notification the phrase "Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO)" be read as "Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Department of Biotechnology (DBT)", thereby adding the Department of Biotechnology to the notified entry; issued by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs as a textual correction with the stated file reference.

Thresholds for board approvals revised: monetary caps removed and a turnover based percentage test adopted for applicability.
The 2019 amendment to the Companies (Meetings of Board and its Powers) Rules revises rule 15(3)(a) by removing specified monetary caps from sub clauses (i), (ii) and (iv) and substituting sub clause (iii)'s mixed net worth/turnover/monetary test with a sole turnover based percentage test; it is titled the Second Amendment Rules, 2019 and takes effect on publication in the Official Gazette under the Companies Act rule making provisions.

Designation of Registrar of Companies cum Official Liquidator clarifies territorial jurisdiction and administration for specified union territories.
The ministerial amendment substitutes Table entry 5 to designate the Registrar of Companies cum Official Liquidator, Jammu as responsible for the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir and the Union territory of Ladakh, effected under the Companies Act read with the Companies (Adjudication of Penalties) Rules, with the amendment taking effect from the notified commencement date.

Territorial applicability amended to specify named jurisdictions, altering the scope of the company law notification.
An amendment substitutes the territorial entry for serial number (1), column (2) of the cited company-law notification with a specified list of States and Union Territories-Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Chandigarh, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh and the National Capital Territory of Delhi-thereby redefining the notification's territorial applicability; the amendment takes effect on 31st October, 2019.

Jurisdiction allocation for company registration empowers Registrar of Companies to register companies and perform statutory functions in newly constituted territories.
The Registrar of Companies is designated as the authority with jurisdiction to register companies and discharge all functions under the Companies Act within the Union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, effective from 31 October 2019.

Independent director databank registration required for appointment; proficiency test and renewal conditions apply to maintain eligibility.
Independent directors must be included in the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs databank to be eligible for appointment, with inclusion periods available for one year, five years or lifetime and lifetime fees exempting renewal. Failure to renew within thirty days of expiry leads to removal. Included individuals must declare compliance to the board and must pass an online proficiency self-assessment test within one year of inclusion unless exempted by ten years' qualifying service; passing requires an aggregate score of sixty percent and there is no limit on attempts.

Databank of independent directors established to centralise candidate details and provide fee based access for appointing companies.
The rules require the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs to create and maintain an online databank of persons willing and eligible to be appointed as independent directors, containing specified identity, contact, qualification, professional and directorship details, disclosure of pending criminal proceedings, and historic LLP and company roles. Access is limited to companies required to appoint independent directors for a reasonable fee; individuals may restrict disclosure and must update changes within thirty days. The institute must provide proficiency tests and study material at no separate charge and share daily cumulative lists of inclusions, rejections and removals with the Central Government.

Board statement on independent director proficiency required; opinion on integrity, expertise and assessment-based proficiency must be disclosed.
Companies must include a board statement on the integrity, expertise, experience and proficiency of independent directors appointed during the year, where "proficiency" is ascertained from an online proficiency self-assessment test conducted by the institute notified under the relevant statutory provision governing director proficiency.

Independent director databank: IICA to maintain registry of eligible directors for companies to use in appointments.
Notification designates an institute to create and maintain a data bank of persons eligible and willing to act as independent directors, containing names, addresses and qualifications for use by companies when making such appointments, and fixes the commencement of the institute's operation as authorised by the Central Government.

Change-of-director filing rules updated: DIR-12 exceptions clarified and Regional Director timelines plus INC-28 filing obligations established.
Amendments narrow rule 8A(1)(b) by removing reference to an applicant for registration; limit Form DIR 12 filings by specifying exceptions for cessation, restoration of minimum director strength due to disqualification, deactivated DINs, and court/tribunal ordered appointments; and add to rule 28 that the Regional Director may decide applications without hearing within fifteen days and that approved orders for intra State registered office transfer must be filed in Form INC 28 with the Registrar within thirty days.

Companies XBRL filing rules amended: Annexure III substituted to prescribe detailed XBRL taxonomy for cost audit CRA 3 filings.
The Central Government amends the Companies (Filing of Documents and Forms in Extensible Business Reporting Language) Rules, 2015 by substituting Annexure III, effective on publication, to provide a comprehensive XBRL taxonomy and structured element list for cost records and audit disclosures (including CRA 3 related abstracts, tables, axes, domain members, data types and explanatory text) to standardise electronic filing of prescribed cost and related financial information.

Cost audit amendments clarify overhead classification, leased asset treatment, GST reconciliation and revised CRA forms.
The amendment updates cost audit rules to require functional classification of overheads (works, administration, selling and distribution), specific lease rental treatment distinguishing operating and finance leases, amortisation of long benefit selling and distribution overheads, and exclusion of demurrage/detention charges from selling and distribution overheads. It mandates separate transportation cost records for exempted and exported taxable goods and requires cost statements to include quantitative production/sales details and reconciliation of indirect taxes showing taxes paid and input tax credit utilised.

Delegation of powers to tribunal enables Presidents and Chairpersons to provide officers and employees subject to recruitment rules.
Delegation of powers authorises transfer of the Central Government's authority to provide officers and other employees to the Tribunal and the Appellate Tribunal to their respective President and Chairperson, subject to the conditions in the recruitment rules of the respective posts as approved and notified by the Central Government.

Business of financing industrial enterprises clarified: Rule now replaces broader financing-of-companies reference, altering board-power scope.
The amendment replaces the phrase "business of financing of companies" with "business of financing industrial enterprises" in rule 11(2) of the Companies (Meetings of Board and its Powers) Rules, 2014, thereby narrowing the provision's described financing activity; it is made under the Companies Act and takes effect on publication in the Official Gazette.

Corporate social responsibility: inclusion of contributions to government-funded incubators and research institutions for SDG-focused R&D.
Amendment to Schedule VII substitutes item (ix) to allow contribution to incubators funded by Central or State Governments, agencies or Public Sector Undertakings and contributions to public funded universities, Indian Institutes of Technology, national laboratories and autonomous bodies established under designated research councils and departments, where such institutions conduct research in science, technology, engineering and medicine aimed at promoting Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Recruitment amendments: Assistant General Manager posts permitted on deputation including short-term contract, with specified eligibility and desirable experience.
The amendment authorizes deputation including short-term contract as the mode of recruitment for the Assistant General Manager post and substitutes Schedule entries to permit officers from government departments, recognized research institutes, public undertakings and related organisations to be appointed if they hold an analogous post on regular basis or possess the prescribed period of regular service in the equivalent pay level; regular experience in administration or establishment is listed as desirable.