Concessional rate of duty amended: notification omits a specific table entry removing a concessional import duty provision.
Amendment deletes serial number 169 and its entries from the TABLE in Notification No. 10/2008-Customs, removing the specified concessional rate of duty for certain imports from Singapore. The Central Government exercises its power under section 25 of the Customs Act, 1962 to effect the change via Notification No. 17/2014-Customs as published in the Gazette.

Variance limits for duty-free re-importation of cut and polished diamonds set; dimensional and weight tolerances specified under customs notification amendment
Amendment to Notification No. 9/2012 Customs substitutes the proviso to condition (v) to allow tolerances for duty free re import of cut and polished diamonds: 0.05 mm in diameter for round shapes, 0.07 mm in length and breadth for other shapes, and 1 cent in weight, thereby defining variance limits that determine eligibility under the exemption.

Export duty rate on bauxite revised under customs notification, changing specified rates for the listed tariff entries.
Amendment revises the effective export duty rates on natural bauxite by substituting the column (4) entries for serial numbers 24A and 24B in the Table to Notification No.27/2011-Customs; Notification No.15/2014 effects this tariff modification under the statutory powers conferred by the Customs Act and records the antecedent publication and prior amendment history of the principal notification.

Customs amendment expands exemption to include goods for solar energy production alongside solar power generation.
Amendment broadens the customs exemption by inserting and substituting terms so that goods and components required for the initial setting up of a solar power generation project are expressly covered when used for solar energy production, thereby aligning the notification's permitted use to include both solar power generation and solar energy production.

Exemption for compressed bio gas projects expanded to include Bio CNG in initial project import exemptions under customs notification.
The notification amends Customs Notification No. 81/2005 to include compressed bio gas (Bio CNG) projects within the exemption for goods required for the initial setting up of a project for generation of power, revises condition (i) to mention Bio CNG explicitly, and substitutes condition (ii) so that the requirement that the importer proves applies specifically to projects for generation of power.

Customs tariff amendments expand specified import exemptions and impose certification and use-condition requirements for preferential duty treatment.
Amendments modify the customs tariff table by substituting, inserting and reclassifying numerous entries and adjusting duty rates and exemptions for specified imports-covering agricultural inputs, metallurgical minerals, coal and petrochemical feedstocks, LPG/LNG, inputs for soaps, oleochemicals, solar photovoltaic and display panel manufacture, security paper raw materials and various electronic goods. The changes add time-bound proviso language and new Annexure conditions requiring LNG export verification by Customs, Department of Electronics and Information Technology certification plus importer undertakings for certain exemptions, and a Ministry certificate for police/security imports used in bomb detection or disposal.

Exemption scope narrowed: finished telecom goods excluded while inputs for their manufacture qualify for concessional import on procedural compliance.
The notification excludes specified finished telecom and networking products from the general exemption and inserts a new entry exempting all goods imported for the manufacture of those listed telecom products, provided the importer follows the procedure set out in the Customs (Import of Goods at Concessional Rate of Duty for Manufacture of Excisable Goods) Rules, 1996.

Warehousing station designation under Section 9 enables establishment of a 100% Export Oriented Unit at Davni industrial area.
A warehousing station is designated at Plot No. 95 HPSIDC Industrial Area, Davni, Nalagarh, Distt. Solan, Himachal Pradesh to facilitate establishment of a 100% Export Oriented Unit; the designation is made under delegated powers pursuant to Section 9 of the Customs Act, 1962 and operates to classify the site as a customs-controlled warehousing location for EOU purposes.

Anti-dumping duty extension on steel and fibre glass tapes from China maintained pending completion of statutory review procedures.
Extension of an existing anti-dumping duty on imports of steel and fibre glass tapes and their parts and components from the People's Republic of China is ordered pending completion of a statutory review initiated under the Customs Tariff Act and the Customs Tariff Rules; the Central Government amended the principal notification to specify the continued period in force while the review proceeds.

Exchange Rate Determination: notification sets official foreign currency to rupee conversion rates for import and export purposes.
Determination under section 14 of the Customs Act, 1962 fixes official rupee conversion rates for specified foreign currencies to be applied for customs valuation of imported and export goods, prescribing separate figures for import and export purposes in two attached Schedules, and superseding the immediately preceding exchange rate notification except as to completed actions.

Common Adjudicating Authority assignment: show cause notice transferred to the designated Commissioner for adjudication proceedings.
Pursuant to the Notification issued under the Customs Act, the Board assigns the Show Cause Notice in the matter of M/s KY Enterprises and others to the Commissioner, Inland Container Depot (ICD), Tughlakabad, New Delhi, for the purpose of adjudication, thereby designating the Commissioner as the Common Adjudicating Authority and notifying relevant enforcement and customs offices of the transfer for coordination and service.

Common Adjudicating Authority assignment: customs show cause notice transferred for adjudication to Port Imports Commissioner at Nhava Sheva.
The Board assigns a Show Cause Notice issued by the investigative agency to the Commissioner of Customs (Port-Imports), Jawaharlal Nehru Custom House, Nhava Sheva for adjudication, effectuating formal transfer of the case against M/s Daikin Airconditioning India Pvt. Ltd. and directing transmission of the assignment to the issuing unit, relevant customs offices, and the designated electronic contact for information and further action.

Assignment of adjudication: Show cause notice transferred to the designated customs adjudicating authority for adjudication.
The Board assigns the show cause notice issued by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence in the case of M/s MS International and others to the Commissioner of Customs (Export), Air Cargo Complex, Sahar, Andheri (East), Mumbai for the purpose of adjudication, with copies sent to the originating DRI unit, the recipient Commissioner of Customs (Export), the Additional Commissioner at the inland container depot, and the departmental web administrator.

Assignment of adjudication under Customs Act: show cause notice reassigned to designated Commissioner for adjudication.
Under Notification No.15/2002-Customs (N.T.) issued under sub-section (1) of section 4 of the Customs Act, 1962, the Board assigns Show Cause Notice F. No. DRI/MZU/D/Inv-09/2013-14 issued by the Additional Director General, DRI Mumbai in the matter of M/s Hero Traders (taken over by M/s JKB Rightways Exim Pvt. Ltd.) and others to the Commissioner of Central Excise and Customs (in-charge: ICD, Loni), Ghaziabad for adjudication.

Common Adjudicating Authority appointed to adjudicate misuse of export incentive schemes following a DRI show cause notice.
The Board, under Notification No.15/2002 Customs (N.T.) read with section 4(1) of the Customs Act, assigns for adjudication the Show Cause Notice dated 16.05.2014 issued by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, Mumbai Zonal Unit, concerning alleged misuse of export incentive schemes by a group of firms in export of fabrics, and appoints the Commissioner of Customs (Export), Jawaharlal Nehru Custom House, Nhava Sheva, as the Common Adjudicating Authority, with notice circulated to relevant Customs formations for procedural follow up.

Common Adjudicating Authority appointment: Show Cause Notice assigned to Commissioner of Customs for adjudication under Customs Act.
A Show Cause Notice issued by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence is assigned for adjudication to the Commissioner of Customs (Import), Air Cargo Complex, Sahar, Andheri (East), Mumbai under the Notification issued under Customs (N.T.) and the Customs Act, effecting a jurisdictional transfer of the specified proceeding to that Commissioner as Proper Officer for adjudication.

Appointment of Common Adjudicating Authority assigns Commissioner to adjudicate show cause notice issued by revenue intelligence.
The Board designates the Commissioner of Customs, Hyderabad-II Commissionerate, as the Common Adjudicating Authority to adjudicate the Show Cause Notice issued by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence in relation to M/s Adroit Bio Science, transferring the adjudication file for processing, hearing and determination under applicable customs adjudication procedure.

Tariff value fixation updates substitute tables setting fixed US dollar reference values for specified imported commodities.
Substitutes TABLE 1, TABLE 2 and TABLE 3 of the principal customs notification with schedules fixing US dollar tariff values for specified imported commodities: crude and refined palm oil and palmolein, crude soybean oil, brass scrap, poppy seeds (per metric tonne), gold and silver when specified notification benefits are availed (per defined unit), and areca nuts (per metric tonne), to be used for customs valuation purposes under the Customs Act.

Customs notification amendment designates a government virtual jetty for loading and unloading liquid cargo for export, import and coastal trade.
Amendment substitutes the virtual jetty entry at New Mangalore Port Trust, describing the government-owned jetty's physical configuration including jetty head, breasting and mooring dolphins, a projecting trestle and shore-to-lagoon projection, cardinal boundaries adjacent to service platform and water basins, the recorded wharf measurement, and expressly permitting loading and unloading of any class of export, import and coastal goods of liquid cargo; issued by the Commissioner of Customs under section 8(a) of the Customs Act, 1962.

Exchange Rate Determination: new customs conversion rates take effect for import and export goods from June.
Central Board of Excise and Customs, exercising statutory authority under the Customs Act, determines rates of exchange for conversion of specified foreign currencies into Indian rupees and vice versa for customs purposes, effective 20th June, 2014; distinct rates are prescribed for imported goods and for export goods in Schedule I (per unit) and Schedule II (per 100 units), and the notification supersedes the earlier June 2014 notification except as to prior actions.