Common Adjudicating Authority appointment allows a Commissioner to adjudicate DRI-issued show cause notices under customs authority.
The Central Board of Excise and Customs has appointed the Commissioner of Customs (Exports), IGI Airport, New Delhi to act as Commissioner of Customs for specified Mumbai, Mangalore and Tughlakabad jurisdictions to adjudicate Show Cause Notices issued to M/s K.S. Traders and others by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), under Notification No. 39/2004 - Custom (N.T), recorded under file F.NO.437/4/2004-CUS.IV.

Appointment of Adjudicating Authority: Commissioner designated to adjudicate specific DRI show cause notices under Customs Act.
The Central Board of Excise and Customs appoints the Commissioner of Customs, Inland Container Depot, Tughlakabad, New Delhi, to act as Commissioner of Customs (Port), Kolkata to adjudicate show cause notices issued by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence in relation to M/s Intrade Impex Pvt. Ltd. and M/s Akay Cones Pvt. Ltd., under Section 4(1) of the Customs Act, 1962.

Customs exchange rate determination sets official currency conversion rates for exported goods under statutory authority.
The Board, exercising powers under the Customs Act, supersedes the earlier notification and fixes official exchange rates for conversion between specified foreign currencies and Indian rupees for purposes relating to exported goods, effective from 1st April, 2004, as set out in two appended schedules identifying rates per unit and per 100 units where applicable.

Exchange rate determination for import valuation fixes prescribed currency conversion rates for customs purposes.
The Board, under the authority of section 14(3)(a)(i) of the Customs Act, 1962, supersedes the prior notification and determines, effective 1 April 2004, the rupee conversion rates for specified foreign currencies for imported goods as set out in two appended schedules: Schedule I (rate per one unit for listed currencies) and Schedule II (rate per 100 units for Japanese Yen).

Supersession of governing board extended, Administrator to continue exercising board powers pending reconstitution and demutualisation process.
Extension of supersession of the Governing Board of the Ahmedabad Stock Exchange is ordered for a further six months to allow continuation of corrective measures, completion of election and constitution of a new Governing Board, and to advance demutualisation and corporatisation. Shri P.K. Ghosh, IAS (Retd.) shall continue as the Administrator and exercise and perform all powers and duties of the Governing Board during the extended period under the authority of the Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act.

Disclosure exemption for overseas IT employees permits omission from Board's report while requiring ROC filing and AGM access on request.
The amendment permits omission from the Board's report of particulars of overseas employees in the Information Technology sector who are not directors or relatives and who exceed specified remuneration thresholds, provided those particulars are furnished to the Registrar of Companies and made available to any shareholder who specifically requests them during the annual general meeting; Information Technology is defined by reference to clause (iii) to Explanation 2 to para 2.2.2 of the SEBI (Disclosure and Investor Protection) Guidelines, 2000.

Approval under section 10(23G) granted subject to compliance with rule 2E, books maintenance and audit requirements.
Approval is granted to M/s PPN Power Generating Company Limited under section 10(23G), read with rule 2E, effective for the assessment year 2002-03, for its Combined Cycle Gas Turbine power project at Pillaiperumalnallur, Tamil Nadu. The approval is conditional on compliance with section 10(23G) and rule 2E, and may be withdrawn if the enterprise ceases the eligible business, fails to maintain books and obtain an audit as required by sub rule (6) of rule 2E, or fails to furnish the requisite audit report.

Customs notification amendment revises the effective date for S. No. 17 exemptions, moving it to 1 December 2005.
Under the authority of sub-section (1) of section 25 of the Customs Act, 1962, the Central Government substitutes "the 1st day of April, 2004" with "the 1st day of December, 2005" in column (3) against S. No. 17 of the Table in Notification No. 39/96-Customs by Notification No. 49/2004-Customs dated 23 March 2004.

Excise exemption extension for SAMYUKTA Defence Programme: expiry date moved to 1st December 2005 by notification
The excise exemption for goods under the SAMYUKTA Defence Programme is extended by substituting the earlier expiry date in the Table of the principal notification with a later expiry date, thereby continuing the temporal operation of the exemption as a further amendment to the original notification.

Export restriction: Maldives shipments of stone aggregates and river sand allowed only with NOC and monitored ceilings.
Exports of Stone Aggregates and River Sand to the Maldives under Code No. 2505 are restricted and permitted only subject to a No Objection Certificate issued within the annual ceiling by the Chemical and Allied Product Export Promotion Council (CAPEXIL), which shall monitor the ceiling and send quarterly reports to Policy Cell-III in DGFT.

Section 35AC eligibility extended for hospital project; project period extended and maximum project cost increased.
The Central Government, on the National Committee's recommendation and under the Explanation to section 35AC, specifies Karuna Setu Trust's hospital maintenance, equipment purchase and welfare scheme at Vadnagar, Mehsana District, Gujarat as an eligible project for a further three years beginning financial year 2004-2005, and amends the original notification by increasing the maximum allowable project cost to a revised total that expressly includes a corpus fund.

Section 35AC eligible project designation extended for high school construction after committee recommendation, preserving tax-benefit eligibility.
Specification under section 35AC designates the construction of a high school at Block No. 138/A, Village Dioli, Taluk Idar, District Sabarkantha, Gujarat, carried out by Shri Navchetan Education Trust, as an eligible project or scheme for income-tax exemption; following a committee recommendation that execution was satisfactory and that the project would extend beyond six years, the Central Government specified the scheme for a further three-year period commencing with the financial year 2002-2003.

Specification of eligible project under section 35AC extends tax-incentive eligibility for rural health services operated by a charity.
The Central Government specifies the project carried out by Thirumalai Charity Trust for construction, procurement of office equipment, medicines and vehicles, furnishing, training of volunteers and health workers, research, health camps and operation of rural health services in specified taluks of Vellore District as an eligible project or scheme under the Explanation to section 35AC, on the recommendation of the National Committee, for a further period commencing with the stated financial year.

Tax exemption eligibility under section 35AC extended for a hospital project, enabling continued preferential treatment for contributions.
The Central Government, exercising powers under section 35AC, specifies the Hospital and Research Centre project at Hojai by Haji Abdul Majid Memorial Public Trust as an eligible project or scheme for a further three years commencing from the financial year 2003 2004, following a recommendation by the National Committee for Promotion of Social and Economic Welfare that the project is being executed properly.

Exemption under section 35AC: eligible hospital maintenance project extended and maximum project cost amended.
Exemption under section 35AC: the Central Government specified the maintenance project of S.J. Patel Sarvajanik Hospital by Gramya Vikas Mandal as an eligible scheme and extended that specification for a further three year period beginning with financial year 2004-2005. The National Committee recommended continued specification after finding proper execution and an increase in the maximum allowable project cost; the Government amended the earlier notification to substitute the higher cost in the table at the relevant serial entry.

Exemption under section 35AC: primary health project reaffirmed as eligible, extending tax benefit eligibility for a further period.
The Central Government, under sub section (1) read with clause (b) of the Explanation to section 35AC, specifies the Primary Health Project at 30 Villages of Sundergarh District carried out by Dalmia Bharat Seva Trust as an eligible project for a further three year period commencing with the financial year 2003-2004, following a recommendation by the National Committee under sub rule (5) of rule 11M of the Income tax Rules, 1962, and noting prior notifications and an enhanced estimated project cost.

Tax exemption under Income tax framework: Sri Sathya Sai Gramin Jagriti Seva Sadan specified as eligible project for a further three year period.
Central Government specifies the Sri Sathya Sai Gramin Jagriti Seva Sadan rural welfare project, covering health care, education, sports, spiritual activities and vocational training at Village Darwa, Haryana, as an eligible project or scheme for tax exemption under the Income tax framework for a further three years commencing financial year 2004 2005, following prior notifications and a National Committee recommendation; the notification records an estimated cost allocation including corpus fund, recurring expenses and vehicle purchase.

Tax exemption under section 35AC extended, allowing continued eligibility for the rural development project deductions via notification.
The Central Government specifies continued eligibility for tax exemption under Section 35AC for the rural development project at Vinayapuram carried out by Anuvrat Gram Bharti Sansthan, extending its status as an eligible project for a further three-year period commencing from the financial year 2003-2004 at an estimated cost of sixty lakhs, following an administrative recommendation that the project is being properly executed.

Exemption under section 35AC: Central approval of institutions and projects with specified deductible costs and compliance conditions.
Section 35AC exemption approval: the Central Government approves specified institutions and their eligible projects, setting estimated project costs and maximum deductible portions under section 35AC, subject to time limits and conditions. Conditions include public notice of free benefits to economically weaker sections and annual Chartered Accountant certification that at least 50% of beneficiaries are from those sections and received full free benefits. One approval requires a resolution reserving freeship for at least half the beneficiaries; one proposed corpus was not approved.

Tax exemption approval requires institutional research accounting, annual scientific return, and audited accounts filed by specified deadlines.
Institutional approval under section 35(1)(iii) is granted subject to compliance: maintain separate research books (subject to a saving for entities categorized as "Institution"), file an annual research return to the designated scientific department by 31 May, and submit audited annual accounts and audited income & expenditure statements for exempt research to specified government recipients and the designated tax officer by 31 October; renewal applications should be filed in triplicate and copies sent to the scientific department.