Minimum export price for onions increased, exports permitted only against Letter of Credit and subject to higher FOB threshold.
Export of onion for the item description at Serial Number 51 & 52 of Chapter 7 of Schedule 2 of ITC (HS) classification shall be permitted only on Letter of Credit (LC) subject to a Minimum Export Price (MEP) of US$ 850 F.O.B per Metric Ton till further orders.

De-notification of Special Economic Zone rescinds prior SEZ notification after developer proposal, state no-objection and administrative recommendation.
The Central Government rescinds the sector specific Special Economic Zone for Gems and Jewellery at Ichhapor, Surat, following the developer's proposal for full denotification, the State government's no-objection, and the Development Commissioner's recommendation; the rescission is effected under the SEZ rules proviso and preserves actions done or omitted prior to rescission.

Public holiday: second and fourth Saturdays designated as monthly bank holidays under Negotiable Instruments Act, nationwide application.
The Central Government, invoking powers under the Negotiable Instruments Act, declares the second and fourth Saturday of every month as public holidays for banks in India, whether or not such banks are included in statutory schedules to banking legislation, and sets an operative commencement date for this monthly bank holiday regime.

Licensing authority for Calcium Carbide now vests in the District Magistrate, changing administrative licensing oversight.
The Calcium Carbide (Amendment) Rules, 2015 substitute the entry for Article 2 in the first Schedule of the Calcium Carbide Rules, 1987 by designating the District Magistrate as the authority empowered to grant licences. The amendment is made under the Petroleum Act, after publication of a draft and receipt of no public objections, and will take effect upon final publication in the Official Gazette.

Exchange Rate Determination sets official currency conversion rates for imports and exports effective from specified date.
The Central Board of Excise and Customs prescribes official rates of exchange for specified foreign currencies to be used for imported and export goods, effective from 21st August, 2015, set out in two schedules with separate entries for Imported Goods and Export Goods, and superseding the prior exchange rate notification; certain entries are noted as substituted by subsequent notifications.

Service of notice expanded to include electronic mail, fax, courier and newspaper publication where affixation is impracticable.
Amendment expands service of notice to include fax, electronic mail, courier and speed post with acknowledgement; fax must note transmission and page count for annexures; electronic mail must be digitally signed and bouncing will not amount to valid service. If notice cannot be affixed on the outer door, service may be effected by publishing the notice in at least two newspapers: an English national daily and a widely circulated regional language newspaper where the person was last known to reside, carry on business or personally work for gain.

Service of notices expanded to include fax, digitally signed email and courier, with newspaper publication where personal service fails.
Rule 7 is amended to allow notices to be sent by fax, electronic mail (digitally signed), courier, or speed post with acknowledgement due; a fax must note the number of pages where annexures exist and an emailed notice must be digitally signed, with bouncing of the email not constituting valid service. If notice cannot be affixed on the outer door, it may be published in at least two newspapers-one nationwide English daily and one regional language paper where the person was last known to reside or work.

Remuneration and service terms for tribunal members set pay, allowances, leave, pension and disclosure requirements.
These rules prescribe remuneration, allowances and service conditions for the President and Members of the National Company Law Tribunal, including fixed pay and pay scales, adjustment for pension drawn, pension and provident fund applicability, exclusion of additional gratuity, leave entitlements and encashment limits under central civil service rules, travel and medical facilities on par with equivalent Central Government grades, accommodation and conveyance benefits, oath and secrecy requirements, declaration of financial interests, and residuary applicability and relaxation powers vested in the Central Government.

Remuneration and service conditions set for appellate tribunal members, including allowances, leave, pension and conduct requirements.
Rules prescribe remuneration, allowances and service conditions for the Chairperson and Members of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal, including fixed pay scales with applicable Central Government allowances, reduction of pay by pension drawn, pension/provident fund treatment depending on prior service, prohibition of additional pension/gratuity, thirty days earned leave per year with encashment limits under Central Civil Services rules, travel and transfer entitlements aligned with equivalent Central Government grades, medical, accommodation and conveyance facilities, oath and secrecy requirements, declaration of financial interests, residuary provisions and Central Government's power to relax rules.

Appointment of probationers as Assistant Commissioner (Excise) for field training under Delhi Excise Act, temporary administrative posting.
The Lieutenant Governor, under the Delhi Excise Act, has temporarily appointed named DANICS probationers as Assistant Commissioner (Excise) to perform excise functions solely for the purpose of field training in the Excise Department, with the posting effective from 3 August to 21 August 2015 and administrative directions for gazette publication and departmental circulation.

Appointment as Entertainment and Betting Tax Officer to assist the Commissioner during probationary field training under the Act.
The Lieutenant Governor appoints specified DANICS probationers as Entertainment and Betting Tax Officers under the Delhi Entertainment and Betting Tax Act, 1996 to assist the Commissioner of Excise, Entertainment, Betting Tax and Luxury Tax during their field training in the Excise Department; the notification lists the named probationers and provides for publication and departmental circulation for implementation.

Appointment of Luxury Tax Officers: DANICS probationers assigned to assist the Commissioner during field training in luxury tax functions.
Eight DANICS probationers are appointed as Luxury Tax Officers to assist the Commissioner of Excise, Entertainment, Betting Tax and Luxury Tax in discharge of functions under the Delhi Tax on Luxuries Act during their field training in the Excise Department; the appointments are made under the Lieutenant Governor's powers and accompanied by directions for Gazette publication and departmental circulation.

Common adjudicating authority appointed to centralize adjudication of specified customs show cause notices across commissionerates.
The Commissioner of Customs (Nhava Sheva-II) is appointed as the common adjudicating authority under the Customs Act to exercise powers and discharge duties for adjudication of specified show cause notices listed in the table, transferring adjudicatory responsibility for those notices from the original issuing Commissioner or Principal Commissioner to the appointed authority.

Common adjudicating authority appointed to adjudicate specified show cause notices against a named company under the Customs Act.
The Central Board of Excise and Customs appoints the Commissioner of Customs (IV) Air Cargo Complex (Export), Sahar, Andheri (East), Mumbai as a common adjudicating authority empowered under sections 4(1) and 5(1) of the Customs Act to exercise the powers and discharge the duties of the authorities listed in the Table for adjudication of specified show cause notices issued against M/s. K. Sera Sera Ltd., as identified by notice numbers, original answerable authorities, company addresses, and issuing authorities.

Common adjudicating authority designated to Ahmedabad Customs to adjudicate show cause notices issued by the revenue intelligence zonal unit.
The Central Board of Excise and Customs appoints the Additional or Joint Commissioner of Customs, Custom House, Ahmedabad as a common adjudicating authority to exercise the powers and discharge the duties of the Additional or Joint Commissioner of Customs, Nhava Sheva-I, JNCH, Nhava Sheva, for adjudication of show cause notices issued by the revenue intelligence zonal unit at Ahmedabad against specified importers.

Common adjudicating authority appointed to centralize adjudication of specified customs show cause notices and reallocate jurisdiction.
The Central Board of Excise and Customs appoints the Commissioner of Customs (Nhava Sheva-IV) as a common adjudicating authority to adjudicate specified show cause notices listed in the Table, identifying the affected parties and the original issuing Joint Commissioners whose notices are reallocated for adjudication by the appointed Commissioner.

Customs duty free allowance revised and baggage declaration form updated to raise personal limits and add flat panel television field.
The notification amends Form 1 of the Customs Baggage Declaration Regulations, 2013 by increasing the monetary threshold in sl. no.10, inserting a new item for "Flat Panel (LCD/LED/Plasma) Television Yes/No," and revising the Duty Free Allowance table in the "IMPORTANT INFORMATION" section by increasing the stated duty free monetary allowance and substituting specified numerical quantities.

Rescission of anti-dumping duty notification rescinds earlier notification while preserving previously taken actions under customs law.
Notification 44/2015-Customs (ADD) rescinds notification 89/2009-Customs concerning anti-dumping duty, exercising powers under section 9A of the Customs Tariff Act and rules 18, 20 and 23 of the 1995 Anti-dumping Rules, while preserving actions taken or omissions committed before the rescission.

Anti-dumping duty extension: continuation on PVC flex films from China for a further year under statutory review.
An amendment to the existing anti-dumping notification extends the anti-dumping duty on PVC flex films originating in or exported from the People's Republic of China for a further one-year period, inserted pursuant to the statutory continuation-review mechanism and applicable Customs Tariff rules, and remains in force until the extended expiry unless revoked earlier.

Anti-dumping duty on caustic soda sustained with country- and exporter-specific rates and targeted producer exemptions.
Imposition of anti-dumping duty on Caustic Soda originating in or exported from the People's Republic of China and Korea Republic follows a review finding continued dumping by non-cooperative producers and significant dumping and injury margins. Duties are differentiated by country of origin, country of export and by named producers/exporters, with certain producer-exporter combinations exempted from duty and other imports subject to specified per-unit duties in US dollars per dry metric tonne. The duty is effective for five years from publication, payable in Indian currency, with exchange rate for calculation determined by separate notifications and the bill of entry date as the relevant date.