Exchange rate notification establishes specified foreign currency conversion rates for exports, superseding the prior notification and taking effect soon.
The Board, exercising powers under the Customs Act, notifies specified foreign currency conversion rates for export goods effective 1 August 2006, superseding the prior June notification. Schedule I lists rupee equivalents for one unit of multiple major currencies and Schedule II lists the rupee equivalent for one hundred units of Japanese Yen for use in export-related customs conversion.

Exchange rate determination for imports set effective August, establishing specified foreign currency-to-rupee conversion rates and superseding earlier notification.
Determination fixes foreign currency-to-Indian-rupee conversion rates for imported goods effective 1st August, 2006, exercising the Board's Customs Act powers and superseding the immediately prior notification; rates are set by reference to entries in two appended schedules, with Schedule I listing single-unit currency equivalents and Schedule II listing a multi-unit currency equivalent for customs valuation purposes.

Concessional customs duty changes: tariff entry for hatchery machines inserted under section 25, concessional rate applied.
The Central Government amends the principal customs exemption notification by inserting a new table entry for specified hatchery-related goods, applying a concessional customs duty rate to those goods and thereby modifying the Schedule of the original notification.

Anti dumping duty on EPDM: duty equals difference between reference price and landed value, payable in local currency.
Definitive anti dumping duty is imposed on EPDM (tariff item 4002 70 00) where dumped imports from listed origins and exporters entered below normal value and caused material injury; the duty equals the difference between specified reference prices per kilogram and the landed value of imports, duties are payable in Indian currency, "landed value" follows assessable value under the Customs Act, and the rate of exchange is the Finance Ministry rate on the bill of entry date.

Anti-dumping duty extension on 2-MNI continues pending review, keeping the duty in force under amended notification.
The Central Government amends the principal notification to extend the existing anti-dumping duty on 2-Methyl (5) Nitro Imidazole (2-MNI) so that the duty remains effective up to and inclusive of 17th July, 2007, payable in Indian currency, pending the outcome of the review investigation initiated by the designated authority.

Tariff value revision updates customs valuation for specified edible oils and brass scrap under Customs Act amendment.
The Board, exercising powers under sub-section (2) of Section 14 of the Customs Act, 1962, amends Notification No.36/2001-Cus (N.T.) by substituting the existing Table with a new Table that specifies tariff values in US dollars per metric tonne for listed goods, identified by chapter headings and descriptions, including crude and refined palm oil and palmolein, crude soybean oil, and brass scrap.

Drawback rates and eligibility clarified: procedural compliance and Cenvat status determine allowable export drawback.
Determines export drawback rates and caps for listed tariff items aligned with the Customs Tariff First Schedule, specifying that rates are expressed ad valorem on free on board value or as unit rates, that totals differ depending on whether Cenvat has not been availed, and that procedural compliance and specified exclusions (bonded manufacture, preferential schemes, export oriented units and duty relief beneficiaries) govern admissibility; classification, definitions for textiles, leather and footwear, inclusion of packing, and composite article valuation by net content are prescribed.

Drawback now covers input services and service tax; electronic shipping bills can serve as drawback claims, timelines shortened.
The rules extend drawback to cover service tax by treating input services as allowable inputs, amend definitions to include rebate of duty or tax on imported materials, excisable materials and taxable services used as input services, and align references to the Finance Act and CENVAT rules. Drawback payable must be reduced where duties or taxes on materials or input services were unpaid, rebated, refunded or credited; average tax on taxable input services may be used for calculation. Electronic shipping bills filed in EDI shall serve as drawback claims and specified processing time limits are shortened.

All Industry Rate of drawback amended to add tariff entries and specified drawback rates for listed consumer goods.
Amendment revises the All Industry Rate of drawback Schedule by inserting new tariff items with product descriptions, units and specified drawback rate columns into Chapters 42, 65 and 96 of Notification No.36/2005-CUSTOMS(N.T.), substituting prior entries for combs and adding entries for cotton hand-bags and certain headgear, thereby modifying entitlement calculations under the drawback framework.

Duty exemption for imports under Target Plus Scheme allows customs and additional duty relief against duty credit certificates.
Exempts specified goods imported against a Duty Credit Certificate issued under the Target Plus Scheme to Star Export Houses from customs duty and specified additional duty, subject to conditions: certificate must be issued for incremental export growth, produced at clearance with sufficient credit, non transferability (with supporting manufacturer exception), installation/use certification for capital and equipment within six months, permitted ports/airports/ICDs/SEZs for import, and rules governing treatment of additional duty and entitlement calculations.

Anti-dumping duty on caustic soda amended to impose country-specific duties and maintain measures after mid-term review.
The Central Government, relying on the designated authority's preliminary, final and mid term review findings that caustic soda imports were dumped and caused or threatened material injury, amended the prior notification by substituting a new table prescribing definitive anti dumping duties on caustic soda (sub headings 2815 11 and 2815 12). Duties are set by country of origin and country of export (including distinctions for Chinese Taipei, Indonesia and the European Union excluding France), apply to any producer and exporter, and are stated per Dry Metric Tonne in US Dollar terms.

Tariff exemption for naphtha imports by designated power plant for electricity generation permitted with nil duties.
The amendment inserts a new proviso clause and Table entry 74A in Notification No.21/2002-Customs, permitting naphtha imports for use in generation of electricity at the designated power plant to attract nil customs duty and related nil levies, effective from the stated operative date, as a conditional exemption under the principal notification.

Customs airport designation: Shamshabad notified for import unloading and export loading of goods and related classes of goods.
The Central Board of Excise and Customs has amended the principal customs notification to designate Shamshabad (village), Ranga Reddy District near Hyderabad, as a customs airport authorised for unloading of imported goods and loading of export goods, including any class of such goods, thereby adding Shamshabad to the schedule of locations recognised for customs import and export handling.

Customs exemption amendment adds Sherathang-Nathula land route to permitted entry points under existing exemption notification.
Amendment to notification No. 38/96 Customs substitutes the item (g) route description to add the Sherathang land route through Nathula Pass between Sherathang in East Sikkim (India) and Renqinggang in the Tibet Autonomous Region (China), alongside the existing Uttaranchal Gunji Pulan route and the Namgaya-Shipkila-Shilpi Jui Jiuba land route in Kinnaur.

Appointment of special adjudicators to centralize adjudication of DRI show cause notices involving specified importers.
Authorises the Commissioner of Central Excise (Adjudication), New Customs House, New Delhi, to exercise the powers and discharge the duties of specified Commissioners of Customs for adjudicating show cause notices issued by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence in relation to named importers, effecting a delegation of authority and centralisation of adjudication for those matters.

Baggage rules amendment designates a new entry in Annexure IV, adding a specified baggage point and taking effect immediately.
Amendment inserts Chakan-da-bagh as a specified baggage point in Annexure IV to the Baggage Rules, 1998 for Poonch District, effected by Notification No. 76/2006 and coming into force on 30 June 2006.

Rules of origin determine SAFTA preferential tariff eligibility based on origin tests and Certificate of Origin procedures.
Rules prescribe when goods qualify for SAFTA preferential treatment: products are originating if wholly produced in the exporting Contracting State or if, when not wholly produced, they meet prescribed working/processing and value content or tariff classification changes, or qualify under regional cumulation or product specific rules in Annex A. The valuation of non originating materials is by CIF or earliest ascertainable price. Direct consignment, packing treatment and specific non qualifying minimal operations are defined. Annex B governs issuance, verification, validity, retrospective issuance and retention of Certificates of Origin and mandates inter State cooperation against circumvention and fraud.

Tariff value fixation updated for specified imported oils and brass scrap under Customs Act powers.
Amendment substitutes the tariff-value Table in Notification No.36/2001 Cus (N.T.) under Section 14(2) of the Customs Act, 1962, prescribing tariff values per metric tonne for specified imported goods for customs valuation, including categories of vegetable oils and brass scrap, and thereby updating the valuation schedule in the principal notification.

SAFTA concessions implementation amends customs exemption notifications to update cross references from earlier notifications.
Gives effect to SAFTA concessions by directing that specified customs miscellaneous exemption notifications be amended under section 25(1) of the Customs Act, 1962, substituting updated lists of earlier notifications in the preambles and Explanations to harmonise and consolidate cross references; the amendments operate prospectively and take effect from the stated commencement date.

SAFTA tariff concessionary exemption reduces customs duty for qualifying imports from SAFTA countries upon origin proof.
Exempts imports from specified SAFTA countries from that portion of customs duty exceeding the ad valorem rates set in the Table, with column (4) rates applying to APPENDIX I countries and column (5) rates to APPENDIX II countries, contingent on the importer proving origin under the SAFTA Rules of Determination of Origin to the satisfaction of the Deputy or Assistant Commissioner of Customs; rates are ad valorem unless otherwise stated and specified tariff headings and descriptions are listed in the schedule.