Exemption for resin bonded bamboomat board: Nil central excise duty now prescribed by amendment to the tariff notification.
Inserts a new Table entry to notification No. 4/2006-Central Excise exempting resin bonded bamboomat board, with or without veneer in between by prescribing a Nil effective rate of duty and no specified conditions.

Reduced import duty on palm oils extended, deferring the prior expiry and continuing concessional tariff treatment under customs authority.
Notification No.111/2006-Customs amends Notification No.21/2002-Customs by substituting the earlier expiry date in the proviso to clause (j), thereby extending the period during which reduced import duty rates on palm oils apply, effected under the authority of section 25(1) of the Customs Act, 1962 on public interest grounds.

Customs exemption for Project ASTRA permits specified imports when authorised and certified for exclusive project use.
Amendment inserts an exemption allowing specified machinery, equipment, components, software, raw materials and consumables to be imported duty free for Project ASTRA where imports are by authorised works centres designated by a Deputy Secretary level officer and accompanied at import by a list certified by the Project Director, ASTRA (DRDL Hyderabad) confirming necessity for Project ASTRA, non availability in India, and Ministry of Defence authorization for exclusive Project use; the exemption ceases to have effect on and after 1 September 2012.

Excise exemption for Project ASTRA equipment: conditional on pre-clearance and post-clearance certification, subject to sunset.
The notification inserts an exemption for equipment and stores for Project ASTRA contingent on (i) a pre-clearance certificate from the Project Director produced to the proper officer, and (ii) a post-clearance certificate from the Project Director-produced by the manufacturer within five months of clearance or such extended period as allowed-confirming receipt and actual use when goods are used outside the factory of production; the exemption is made under section 5A and is subject to a specified sunset date.

Delegation of powers enables regional officials to allot Director Identification Numbers through the Northern Region office.
Central Government delegates its authority to allot Director Identification Numbers under sections 266A and 266B of the Companies Act to the Regional Director, Joint Director, Deputy Director and Assistant Director posted in the office of the Regional Director, Northern Region, exercising powers under clause (b) of sub-section (1) of section 637 of the Companies Act, 1956.

Director Identification Number requirement - centralized electronic allotment, lifetime identifier and filing duties for directors and companies.
The Rules mandate that every existing and prospective individual director apply electronically in Form DIN-1 to obtain a Director Identification Number; an on-line Provisional DIN is generated which must be regularised by submitting a physically signed Form DIN-1 with certified proof of identity and residence within the prescribed period. The Central Government processes applications, communicates approval or rejection, and all allotted DINs are unique and valid for the life time of the individual. Directors must notify companies of their DIN and must inform the Registrar via company filings; directors must also notify any changes in particulars using Form DIN-4 with supporting certified evidence.

Commencement of sections 2 and 3 appointed under Companies (Amendment) Act, 2006 to take effect on 1 November 2006.
The Central Government, under subsection (2) of section 1 of the Companies (Amendment) Act, 2006, by GSR 648(E) notified that the provisions of sections 2 and 3 of the Amendment Act shall come into force on 1-11-2006; the notification was issued by the Ministry of Company Affairs with file reference F. No. 1/4/2006-CL-V.

Income-tax Rules amendment updates form references and adds subsection 4D references, renumbering the audit report form.
Amendment to the Income-tax Rules substitutes Form No. 3B with Form No. 3AE, renumbers the audit report form accordingly, replaces Form No. 3A in Appendix II, and amends rule 12(1) to add references to sub-section (4D) of section 139 alongside existing references to sub-section (4C), with the rules coming into force on publication in the Official Gazette.

Payment of Wages Act inspections: central labour officers appointed as inspectors with region-wise territorial jurisdiction.
Appointment of specified Central labour officers as Inspectors for the purposes of the Payment of Wages Act, 1936 in respect of mines, oilfields and air transport services to which the Act applies. The notification is issued under sub-section (3) of section 14 read with section 24 and supersedes the earlier notification of 26 December 2005. It assigns territorial jurisdiction to the listed officers for exercise of inspection functions within the local limits specified against each regional office.

Avoidance of double taxation: India-Saudi DTAA sets PE, residence tie breaker, withholding limits and information exchange rules.
The Convention provides a bilateral framework for the avoidance of double taxation and prevention of tax evasion between India and Saudi Arabia, to be applied in India under section 90 of the Income tax Act. It defines persons and taxes covered, residence and tie breaker rules, a detailed permanent establishment regime (including inclusions, exclusions and agency rules), allocation and limitation rules for categories of income (business profits, dividends, interest, royalties, capital gains, employment income, artistes, pensions), methods to eliminate double taxation, a Mutual Agreement Procedure and Exchange of Information safeguards, anti abuse provisions, and entry into force, application and termination mechanics; the Protocol clarifies Zakat treatment and other interpretive points.

Special Economic Zone notification designates specified land parcels for information technology and IT-enabled services use.
A Special Economic Zone is notified at Kundalahalli Village, Krishnarajapuram Hobli, Bangalore East Taluk, Bangalore District, Karnataka under the Special Economic Zones Act, 2005 and the Special Economic Zones Rules, 2006, after approval had been granted for setting up a zone for information technology and information technology enabled services. The Central Government declares the specified land parcels in the survey numbers listed in the notification as a Special Economic Zone, comprising an aggregate area of 21.76 hectares.

Special Economic Zone notification establishes an IT/ITES SEZ at Hi tech City Madhapur, designating specified land for SEZ use.
Special Economic Zone notified at survey number 64 (Part), Hi tech City, Madhapur, Ranga Reddy district, Hyderabad, comprising 16.29 hectares for information technology and information technology enabled services; the Central Government, invoking the Special Economic Zones Act and Rules after grant of letters of approval to M/s. K. Raheja IT Park (Hyderabad) Private Limited, satisfied statutory eligibility requirements and designated the land as an SEZ, with a later note recording partial de-notification by a subsequent notification.

Rescission of customs notification under Customs Tariff Act revokes earlier notification while preserving actions taken before rescission.
The Central Government rescinds a prior customs exemption notification under powers conferred by the Customs Tariff Act and the anti dumping procedural rules, withdrawing the earlier exemption while expressly preserving the legal effect of anything done or omitted to be done before the rescission.

Tariff values notification: prescribed US$ per metric tonne valuations for edible oils and brass scrap, governing customs valuation.
The Board amends the principal Customs (N.T.) notification by substituting the tariff-value Table to fix US dollar per metric tonne values for specified imports: Crude Palm Oil, RBD Palm Oil, Other Palm Oil, Crude Palmolein, RBD Palmolein, Other Palmolein, Crude Soyabean Oil and Brass Scrap (all grades), largely maintaining prior figures and thereby establishing the valuation baseline for customs assessment of those goods.

Anti-dumping duty continuation on sodium hydrosulphite to offset dumping and protect domestic industry from injury.
Continuation of anti-dumping duty is imposed on imports of Sodium Hydrosulphite under headings 2831 and 2832 to address dumping from the People's Republic of China and prevent continued dumping if measures are withdrawn. The duty equals the difference between a specified monetary amount per unit (in US dollars) and the landed value of imported goods; the notification specifies covered descriptions, origins, exporters and producers, method of calculation, the definition of "landed value" under the Customs Act, and the exchange rate determination. The measure is effective for five years and payable in Indian currency.

Exemption scope expanded: capital goods including spares added to hotels and stand alone restaurants under Served from India Scheme.
Amendment expands the Served from India Scheme exemption by inserting the phrase capital goods including spares after "stand alone restaurant" in clause (i) of Notification No.34/2006-Central Excise, thereby modifying the operative text to include capital goods and spares within the scope of the exemption under the existing notification.

Cenvat credit compliance: introduction of new ER 1 and ER 3 monthly return forms for production, removal and credit reporting.
The Central Board of Excise and Customs, under rule 12 of the Central Excise Rules, 2002 and sub rule (7) of rule 9 of the CENVAT Credit Rules, 2004, prescribes the use of Forms ER 1 and ER 3 for monthly returns concerning production, removal of goods and the reporting of CENVAT credit, superseding the earlier notification of May 2005 and specifying the date from which these forms are to be used.

Tax exemption for donations to religious institution: amounts received on its behalf excluded from donor's taxable income subject to conditions.
Notification excludes amounts received by any person on behalf of the Nanded Sikh Gurudwara from that person's total income for assessment years 2003-04 to 2005-06, conditioned on the institution applying or accumulating income exclusively for its objects, limiting accumulations above fifteen percent to five years, investing funds only in permitted forms under section 11(5) (with limited exceptions for certain voluntary contributions), treating business receipts as taxable unless incidental and separately accounted, requiring regular return filing, and directing surplus assets on dissolution to a like-minded organization.

Concurrent exercise of assessment powers: authorisation for assessing officers to issue intimations, refunds and rectifications.
Authorisation empowers senior tax officials to issue written orders permitting Assessing Officers to exercise powers and perform functions concurrently in relation to issuance of intimation and refund and the rectification of such intimation under the Income-tax Act, enabling subordinate Assessing Officers to act jointly or interchangeably with other Assessing Officers.

Rescission of Customs Notification withdraws an earlier anti-dumping exemption, preserving actions completed before rescission.
The Central Government, exercising powers under the Customs Tariff Act and the anti-dumping rules, rescinds Notification No.68/2005-Customs as published in the Gazette, while preserving validity of acts or omissions done before the rescission.