Income-tax amendment rules add an acknowledgment before the return form under Section 295 of the Act.
The Income-tax (Ninth Amendment) Rules, 2000, made under Section 295 of the Income-tax Act, amend the Income-tax Rules, 1962 by inserting an acknowledgment provision in Appendix II immediately before the return of income form; the rules are to be called the Income-tax (Ninth Amendment) Rules, 2000 and commence on publication in the Official Gazette.

Form amendment: insertion of bank account fields to enable refund credit and correction of the form verification.
Amendment to the Expenditure-tax Rules revises Form No. 3 by inserting additional boxes beside Permanent Account No. and Assessment Year, adds a new field to collect bank account details (bank name, branch address, account number and selection for refund credit), and removes the figures "19" from the form's verification clause; the rules take effect on publication in the Official Gazette.

Licensing note deletions remove licensing requirements for multiple tariff chapters, changing coverage of import-export classifications.
Licensing note no.2 appended to chapters 84, 86, 87, 88, 89, 90, 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96 and 98 of the ITC(HS) Classifications, 1997-2002 is deleted, and Public Notice No. 290(PN) incorporated as licensing note no.3 to chapter 85 is withdrawn and that licensing note deleted, thereby removing those licensing annotations from the specified tariff chapters.

Approval under section 10(23G) enables specified industrial undertakings to obtain tax-exempt status subject to compliance and audit conditions.
Central Government approval is granted to specified undertakings for the purpose of section 10(23G) read with rule 2E, subject to compliance with those statutory provisions and the annexure conditions issued by the Central Board of Direct Taxes; approval is liable to withdrawal if an enterprise ceases to carry on an infrastructure facility, fails to maintain and audit books of account as required by sub rule (7) of rule 2E, or fails to furnish the prescribed audit report.

Income tax exemption under section 10(23G) approved for Nathpa Jhakri project, conditional on compliance and audit requirements.
Approval is granted to the Nathpa Jhakri Hydroelectric Power Project by M/s Nathpa Jhakri Power Corporation Ltd. under section 10(23G) of the Income-tax Act read with rule 2E for the assessment years 1999-2000 to 2001-2002. The approval is conditional on compliance with the cited statutory provisions, maintaining books of account, obtaining and furnishing the required audit report; the Central Government may withdraw approval if the undertaking ceases to operate as an infrastructure facility or fails the accounting and audit obligations.

Approval under section 10(23G) grants tax-exempt status to specified industrial undertakings subject to compliance and audit conditions.
Approval is granted to specified undertakings under section 10(23G), read with rule 2E, for assessment years 2000-2001 to 2002-2003, conditional on compliance with those provisions and the annexure terms notified by the Central Board of Direct Taxes. The Central Government may withdraw approval if the enterprise ceases to carry on the infrastructure facility, fails to maintain books and obtain the audit required by sub rule (7) of rule 2E, or fails to furnish the required audit report. The notification lists two named industrial park undertakings as approved.

Tax exemption approval under section 10(23G) granted with compliance, audit and infrastructure-continuity conditions for a hydroelectric project.
Approval is granted to the Nathpa Jhakri Hydroelectric Power Project as an enterprise eligible under the Income-tax Act for specified assessment years, conditional on compliance with the Act and Rules governing infrastructure undertakings. The approval will be withdrawn if the undertaking ceases to operate as an infrastructure facility, fails to maintain books of account and obtain the required audit by a qualified accountant, or fails to furnish the prescribed audit report.

Appointment of customs officers: DGCEI officers vested with customs powers and rank-equivalent authority under the Customs Act.
The notification, under Section 4(1) of the Customs Act, 1962, appoints officers of the Directorate General of Central Excise Intelligence as officers of customs and vests them with the powers exercisable by officers of customs of the corresponding ranks by reference to a specified table, thereby equipping those DGCEI posts with equivalent customs authority for enforcement purposes.

ITC(HS) classification amendment updates numeric thresholds and corrects wording in a key import export item.
Amendment to ITC(HS) Appendix 3 substitutes the numeric value appearing in item 7C001 and its explanatory notes with a higher figure, replaces the parenthetical marker in item 7C001(ii) with a corrected marker, and amends the participle in the last line of item 7C001(ii), issued under the Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act and FTP provisions.

Customs duty exemption for quarrying goods subject to approval, bonds, usage verification and export oriented unit compliance.
The notification exempts specified goods from customs duty when imported or procured for use in granite quarries by approved export oriented units or units in designated Free Trade/Export Processing Zones, subject to approval, exclusive use for quarrying and further processing for export, execution of a bond securing export obligations and duty recovery with interest where conditions are unmet, maintenance of detailed accounts and site records, and customs oversight over removal, re export, repairs, transfers and duty payment in cases of clearance to other places.

Customs duty exemption for precious metals imported under export-linked schemes, subject to policy compliance and export obligations.
Customs duty exemption is granted for gold, silver and platinum imported under specified Foreign Trade Policy schemes, including replenishment imports for export through exhibitions, export promotion tours and branded jewellery, and imports under the Export Against Supply by Nominated Agencies scheme. The exemption covers the customs duty specified in the table and the whole of the additional duty, subject to compliance with Foreign Trade Policy and Handbook of Procedures conditions, prescribed documentation, proof of exports where relevant, and execution of a bond undertaking the required export obligation within the stipulated period.

Excise duty exemption for quarrying goods enables duty-free procurement for EOUs and EPZ units subject to conditions.
Exemption of excise duty on specified quarrying goods is granted to approved hundred percent EOUs and units in designated EPZs when goods are directly procured for quarrying granite for further processing or manufacture for export, subject to prior approval, execution of a bond to use goods only for approved export units, compliance with NFEP/EP export obligations, timely installation or usage timelines for capital and non-capital goods, maintenance and submission of site accounts, restrictions on transfers and removals, and payment of duty with interest if conditions are breached.

Customs duty exemption for imported gold and related metals tied to export obligations and security requirements.
Exemption from customs duty and additional duty is granted for gold, silver and platinum goods imported by nominated agencies, status holders, or qualifying exporters under the Export Against Supply by Foreign Buyer scheme, conditional on execution of bonds and, for certain importers, bank guarantees to secure export of equivalent metal content within stipulated timeframes and compliance with the Foreign Trade Policy and Handbook of Procedures, with duty and interest payable on non fulfilment.

Customs exemption amendments reclassify jewellery mountings and medallions and expand permitted exporters' inputs under tariff notifications.
The notification amends four customs exemption notifications to reclassify mountings used in studded jewellery and add gold/silver/platinum medallions and coins to the TABLEs, revise the Explanation to include Mangal Sutra and jewellery studded with imitation, cubic zirconia and semi precious stones subject to a per gram value proviso, delete the word "plain" from specified ANNEXURE entries, and expand ANNEXURE I and II with an extensive list of additional exempted inputs and tools for exporters of gems, jewellery and cut and polished diamonds.

Tariff classification amendment revises two customs notifications to expand and specify covered imported goods entries.
The Government amends two customs exemption notifications to change tariff references and item descriptions: in Notification No.25/99 Customs, List A at S. No.87 column (2) "73" is replaced by "72 or 73" to broaden tariff coverage; in Notification No.19/2000 Customs, the Table at S. No.33 is amended to substitute a specific entry describing populated printed circuit boards and accessories of machines, clarifying their inclusion under the notification.

Customs exemption amendments expand listed magnesia items and revise entry descriptions altering import tariff classification.
Amendment uses the Central Government's power under the Customs Act to insert a new tariff entry for specified magnesia products defined by composition and physical criteria, and to revise existing schedule entries: widening a pharmaceutical input description, redefining parts coverage for certain machines to include specific ink cartridge components while excluding populated circuit boards, altering a numeric code entry, and specifying stepper motors for use in manufacture of goods under the referenced machine heading.

Excise duty exemptions updated: specified foodstuffs, silicon and IV fluids now nil-rated; retail biscuit packs partially taxed.
The notification inserts nil-duty entries for Tapioca Starch, Compounded Asafoetida, Silicon in all forms and Intravenous fluids; it creates a special duty treatment for retail-packed Biscuits not exceeding 100g and the stipulated retail sale price by subjecting such packs to fifty percent of the duty specified in the First Schedule and defining "retail sale price." It raises an Annexure threshold from 2500 Metric Tonnes to 3500 Metric Tonnes and clarifies no refund of duty for clearances exceeding the lower threshold during the specified early-April-to-May period, and adds E-MAL (Alpha-beta Arteether) to LIST 1.

Customs amendment: substitution clarifies unloading of imported and loading of export goods at specified location.
Amendment under powers of clause (a) of section 7 of the Customs Act substitutes, in the Table to Notification No. 52/94 Customs(NT), the column (4) entry for item (2) relating to Gopalpur with the provision authorising unloading of imported goods and loading of export goods or any class of such goods at the designated location.

CENVAT credit expansion: additional tobacco subheadings and modified capital goods and transitional provisions allow reclaimed input credits.
Rules amend Central Excise provisions to add two tobacco sub-headings to the CENVAT-eligible list, modify the capital goods proviso to exclude specified components and refractory goods, and insert a transitional rule allowing manufacturers who previously debited a fixed percentage on removed inputs to claim CENVAT credit for that debited amount upon return of the inputs and to utilize the credit under the amended rules.

Foreign exchange derivative contracts regulation promotes orderly development and maintenance of the foreign exchange market under FEMA powers.
The Reserve Bank of India, under clause (h) of sub section (2) of Section 47 of the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999, notified the Foreign Exchange Management (Foreign exchange derivative contracts) Regulations, 2000 to promote the orderly development and maintenance of the foreign exchange market in India; the regulation was published in the Official Gazette as G.S.R. No. 411(E).