Exchange rate notification updates customs valuation rates for specified foreign currencies, substituting previous schedule and taking effect from mid-January.
Amendment to the customs exchange rate schedule substitutes specified Schedule-I entries for certain foreign currencies, altering the rate of exchange used for customs valuation of imported goods. Issued under statutory delegation, the notification replaces listed schedule lines with updated currency rate entries and specifies the date from which the new exchange rates will apply for customs purposes.

Related party investment controls tightened: new caps, reporting and independent trustee oversight requiring disclosure and de materialised settlement.
SEBI amended the Mutual Funds Regulations to strengthen governance and related party controls: ''group'' is defined; applicants and asset management companies must be "fit and proper"; two thirds of trustees must be independent and must comment on sponsor group investments. Limits and reporting obligations restrict dealings through sponsor associated brokers, cap investments in group companies across schemes, prohibit unlisted and privately placed associate securities, require quarterly trustee reports and enhanced scheme disclosures, mandate de materialised settlement for large funds, and permit securities lending under the Board's scheme.

Export permission for value-added herbal formulations allowed under prior export policy, subject to usual conditions and CITES compliance.
Permission is granted for export of value-added herbal formulations from seventeen plant species listed in Schedule 2 Appendix 2 of the ITC(HS) Classifications, to be allowed in accordance with the Export Policy prevailing prior to 25th March, 1996, subject to usual conditions and CITES regulations, for a limited period ending 31st March, 1998.

Customs amendment shortens the statutory time period under section 75A from three months to two months.
The Customs (Amendment) Act, 1998 amends section 75A of the Customs Act, 1962 by substituting the period of three months with two months in sub-section (1) and by replacing "three months" with "two months" in sub-section (2). The amendment shortens the time period prescribed under section 75A for the relevant statutory action, while leaving the rest of the provision unchanged.

Exchange rate determination: U.S. dollar rate prescribed for customs valuation, with specified effective date under statutory authority.
Amendment prescribes the rate of exchange for the U.S. dollar for customs purposes by substituting the entry at serial No. 14 in Schedule I of Notification No. 73/97-Cus. (N.T.), under powers conferred by the Indian Stamp Act and the Customs Act, with the prescribed rate becoming effective on a specified date in January 1998.

Fit and proper person standard introduced for underwriter eligibility, expanding regulatory criteria upon Gazette commencement.
The 1998 amendment to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Underwriters) Regulations adds a new clause to regulation 6 specifying that an underwriter "is a fit and proper person." Promulgated under the Board's powers in the SEBI Act, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Underwriters) Amendment Regulations, 1998 take effect on publication in the Official Gazette and thus expand the eligibility criteria for underwriters to include the fit and proper standard.

Fit and proper person requirement added for portfolio manager applicants, making applicant suitability a formal condition for registration.
The amendment to the Portfolio Managers Regulations, 1993 inserts clause (gg) into regulation 6, making the applicant's status as a fit and proper person an explicit condition for registration as a portfolio manager; the amendment is made under the SEBI Act and takes effect on publication in the Official Gazette.

Fit and proper person requirement added to Venture Capital Funds regulations, making fitness and propriety a condition of applicant eligibility.
Amendment adds a fitness and propriety threshold to regulation 4 by inserting new sub clause (v) in clause (a): "it is a fit and proper person," and a matching sub clause (v) in clause (b): "the applicant is a fit and proper person," making fitness and propriety a condition of eligibility; the amendment takes effect on publication in the Official Gazette.

Fit and proper person requirement added to depository participant eligibility, making applicant suitability a formal condition for registration.
Addition of a fit and proper person requirement as an explicit eligibility criterion in the Depositories and Participants regulations, inserting new clauses in regulation 6 and regulation 19 so that applicants must satisfy a suitability standard of integrity, competence and reliability as a predicate to registration.

Fit and proper requirement added to custodian of securities regulations, tightening applicant eligibility upon Gazette notification.
SEBI inserts a new clause (gg) into sub regulation (1) of regulation 6 of the Custodian of Securities Regulations, requiring that the applicant is a fit and proper person; the amendment is made under the Board's statutory authority and comes into force on publication in the Official Gazette.

Fit and proper person requirement for debenture trustees introduced, making suitability a statutory condition upon Gazette notification.
The amendment inserts a new clause requiring debenture trustees to be fit and proper persons, thereby adding an explicit eligibility condition to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Debenture Trustees) Regulations; the change is made by notification under the Board's rule-making power and takes effect on publication in the Official Gazette.

Fit and proper person requirement added for bankers to an issue, mandating applicant suitability for registration.
The amendment adds clause (cc) to regulation 6 of the SEBI (Bankers to an Issue) Regulations, 1994, requiring that the applicant "is a fit and proper person," thereby making applicant suitability a formal prerequisite for bankers to an issue.

Fit and proper person requirement introduced for registrars and share transfer agents, affecting registration eligibility.
Amendment inserts clause (g) into regulation 6 of the principal Regulations, requiring that a registrar to an issue and a share transfer agent "is a fit and proper person," thereby making that suitability requirement an express eligibility criterion; the notification is made under section 30(1) of the enabling Act and comes into force upon publication in the Official Gazette.

Fit and proper person requirement added to broker and sub broker registration rules, conditioning eligibility for licensing.
The amendment inserts an explicit fit and proper person requirement into the registration rules: a new clause in regulation 5 and a new sub clause in clause (i) of sub regulation 5 of regulation 11 require that applicants be fit and proper persons as a condition of registration.

Long term specified securities designated for reinvestment relief; issuance and a multi year lock in condition govern eligibility and transferability.
Central Board of Direct Taxes designates shares to be issued by Tata Petrodyne Limited as long term specified securities under the relevant income tax provision, applicable to shares allotted within one year from the notification; such shares shall not be transferable before a three year lock in from allotment, and the specification limits the aggregate amount of shares issuable under the notification.

Exemption from capital gains: specified new-issue shares qualify for reinvestment relief when subject to prescribed non-transferability lock-in.
Specification under section 54EB designates newly issued shares of Tata Petrodyne Limited as long-term specified assets for capital gains reinvestment exemption when issued within the prescribed issuance period and subject to the prescribed non-transferability lock-in.

Specified assets under section 54EB designate long-term debentures and bonds by Koshika Telecom as qualifying reinvestment options.
Section 54EB designates certain securities issued by M/s. Koshika Telecom Limited as long term specified assets: debentures and bonds issued within one year of the notification and transferable or convertible only after seven years, each subject to the issuer- and time-specific conditions set out in the notification.

Specified securities under Section 54EA: conditions for issuance, transferability and convertibility of company debentures and bonds.
Specification under Section 54EA designates debentures and bonds issued by M/s. Koshika Telecom Limited as specified securities if issued within one year of the notification, each subject to an aggregate issuance ceiling, and provided they are transferable or convertible only after a three year period from issuance.

Exemption for technical service fees: such fees are excluded from total income while spare parts supply remains taxable.
Fees for technical services received by Rolls Royce Military Aero Engines Limited under the 27 March 1996 agreement for projects connected with security of India are excluded from the company's total income under clause (6C) of section 10, while income from supply of spare parts under that agreement is not exempt and must be included in computing total income.

Long term specified assets under section: shares and debentures issued by a company qualify subject to issuance and transfer conditions
The notification designates equity shares issued by Ushdev International Ltd. within one year and non-transferable for seven years, and debentures issued within one year and transferable or convertible only after seven years, as long term specified assets for the reinvestment tax provision, establishing issuance timing and post-issuance transferability/convertibility conditions that determine eligibility for the specified tax treatment.