Export exemption to Bhutan: annual export limits for listed food commodities are measured by calendar year, clarifying application.
The notification exempts Bhutan from export bans on milk powder, wheat, edible oils, pulses and non-basmati rice subject to specified annual limits, and defines "annual" for those limits as the Calendar Year, running from 1 January to 31 December, so that the ceilings are applied and counted on a Calendar Year basis.

Subject amendment clarifies notification scope, renotifying an ITC(HS) entry to correct the description for wheat export.
Amendment revises the subject header of a prior notification under the Foreign Trade Act and Policy to read "Re-notification of Sl. No. 46 A of Chapter 10 of ITC(HS) Classification of export & import items" for export of wheat, replacing an inaccurate heading referencing exports through Land Custom Stations, thereby correcting the notification's description without changing its substantive provisions.

Export prohibition on cotton: exports halted until further orders; prior registration and transitional exemptions disapplied.
The Central Government has prohibited the export of cotton under ITC(HS) headings 5201 and 5203 until further orders, disapplied transitional arrangements under the Foreign Trade Policy, and forbade exports against previously issued registration certificates, with prior registration of contracts with DGFT set as the operative administrative requirement.

Amendment to notification subject clarifies re-notification under ITC(HS) for export of non-basmati rice.
The Government amended the "Subject" of Notification No. 98 (RE-2010)/2009-14 to replace an inaccurate reference to export permission through Land Custom Stations with the title Re-notification of Sl. No. 45 A of Chapter 10 of ITC(HS) Classification of export & import items for export of non-basmati rice, as a corrective measure to avoid misinterpretation and to align the heading with the notification's contents.

Common Adjudicating Authority appointed to adjudicate specified Customs show cause notices under statutory assignment.
The Central Board of Excise & Customs, relying on statutory adjudicatory powers and Notification No. 83/2004 Customs (N.T.), assigns specified Commissioners of Central Excise to act as Common Adjudicating Authority for the particular Show Cause Notices listed in the Table, mapping each notice number and noticee to a designated Commissioner to perform adjudication in respect of those notices.

SEZ area expansion for Gems and Jewellery approved, adding adjacent land and increasing total zone area.
The Central Government, exercising powers under the proviso to sub section (1) of section 4 of the SEZ Act and rule 8 of the SEZ Rules, notifies inclusion of an additional 0.944 hectares to the Gems and Jewellery SEZ at Bhamboriya (identified by survey/khasra numbers), following the proposal by M/s. Mahindra World City (Jaipur) Limited and Government approval conveyed on 27 December 2011, increasing the SEZ total area to 11.08 hectares.

Land customs stations designated for India-Nepal border: additional road routes added for bilateral import/export traffic.
Inserts two additional land border entries into the TABLE against serial number 6 of Notification No. 63/1994-Customs (N.T.) under section 7 of the Customs Act: Laukaha (Madhubani, Bihar) with the road link to Thadi (Nepal), and Thoothibari (Maharajganj, Uttar Pradesh) with the road link to Maheshpur (Nepal), thereby designating these routes as specified land customs stations and routes for import and export.

Customs port appointment: Dhamra authorised for unloading imports and loading exports with specified cargo exclusions.
Amendment under section 7(1)(a) of the Customs Act substitutes the TABLE entries for serial number 9 (Orissa) to appoint Dhamra as a customs location. Dhamra is authorised for unloading imported goods and loading export goods or any class of such goods, excluding containers, project imports, hazardous cargo and liquid cargo, while expressly permitting carbon black feed stock and edible oil.

Fixation of tariff values establishes commodity-specific import valuation rates for palm oils, soybean oil, brass scrap, gold and silver.
Amendment under section 14(2) of the Customs Act substitutes TABLE 1 and TABLE 2 of Notification No. 36/2001 Customs (N.T.), prescribing US dollar tariff values per metric tonne or unit for specified commodities, including various palm oil and palmolein grades, crude soyabean oil, brass scrap, poppy seeds, and unit values for gold and silver qualifying under a related notification benefit.

Anti-dumping duty: rescission of prior notification on phenol imports, under Customs Tariff Act authority, with savings provision.
The Central Government, under section 9A of the Customs Tariff Act and rule 23 of the Anti-dumping Rules, rescinds the earlier notification imposing anti-dumping duty on phenol imports from specified countries, subject to a savings provision preserving actions or omissions prior to rescission.

Special Economic Zone expansion notified: additional engineering sector area added, raising total SEZ land under statutory approval.
The Central Government, under the Special Economic Zones Act and SEZ Rules, approves M/s. Mahindra World City (Jaipur) Limited's proposal to include an additional 119.4955 hectares into the sector specific SEZ for engineering and related industries at villages Kalwara, Bhamboriya, Bagru Khurd and Jhai, Tehsil Sanganer, thereby making the SEZ total area 222.6730 hectares, and notifies the specific survey/khasra parcels comprising the additional area.

Exemption under section 10(46): Competition Commission's specified income exempt subject to unchanged activities and return filing.
The Central Government notifies the Competition Commission of India as a statutory body whose specified income-Government grants, fees under the Competition Act, and interest on those receipts-is exempt under clause (46) of section 10 for financial years 2011-12 to 2015-16, subject to the conditions that the activities and nature of the specified income remain unchanged throughout the year and that the Commission files its return in accordance with clause (g) of sub-section (4C) of section 139.

Tax exemption for National Skill Development Corporation: specified income exempt subject to unchanged activities and prescribed return filing.
The Central Government notifies the National Skill Development Corporation as a notified statutory body for tax exemption of specified income: capital gains from investments in skill development organisations; dividend and royalty from supported skill development ventures; interest on loans to institutions for skill development; interest on fixed deposits; and Government grants, applicable for financial years 2011-12 to 2015-16, subject to unchanged activities/income during the year and compliance with the prescribed return filing requirement.

Duty exemption on re-import of certified cut and polished diamonds allowed for eligible exporters subject to guidelines.
Zero duty re-import is allowed for cut and polished diamonds (0.25 carat or more) sent abroad for certification/grading to specified authorized laboratories, provided the exporter has an annual export turnover meeting the Rs 5 crores threshold for each of the last three years and re-import occurs within three months; the facility is subject to procedural guidelines issued by the customs authority.

Exchange Rate Determination sets rupee conversion rates for specified foreign currencies for import and export customs valuation.
Determines rates of exchange for specified foreign currencies into Indian rupees for customs valuation of imported and exported goods, effective from 1st March, 2012, superseding the earlier notification; Schedule I sets unit rates for listed currencies for import and export purposes and Schedule II sets the rate for 100 units of Japanese Yen.

Common Adjudicating Authority appointed to centralize adjudication of a linked customs show cause proceeding.
Appointment of a Common Adjudicating Authority under the Customs Act to consolidate adjudication of linked show cause proceedings. The Central Board of Excise and Customs, exercising powers under section 4(1) and section 5(1) of the Customs Act, appoints the Joint Commissioner or Additional Commissioner of Customs at CFS, ICD, G.T. Road, Sahnewal, Ludhiana to perform the functions and discharge the duties of three specified Joint Commissioners of Customs for adjudication of the DRI show cause notice concerning M/s A & N Impex.

Customs notification amendment adds Thimmapur as authorised unloading and loading point for imported and exported goods.
The notification amendment inserts Thimmapur Village, District Mahbubnagar, into the schedule for Andhra Pradesh, authorising the unloading of imported goods and the loading of export goods at that location under the customs non-tariff notification framework.

Merger filing thresholds updated; optional detailed form for higher market positions, timelines, fees and disclosure obligations adjusted.
Notices shall ordinarily be filed in Form I; parties may optionally file Form II in transactions involving overlapping or vertically related activities where combined market positions exceed specified thresholds, and statutory timelines for scrutiny begin from receipt of Form II. Asset transfers in related step transactions require attribution of the transferor's assets and turnover to the transferee for reportability. Specified acquisitions by financial investors may be filed without fee in a separate form and late filings may be admitted. The fee schedule is increased and a non confidential summary of the combination must be supplied with the notice.

Wheat export via land custom stations permitted when quantity is registered with DGFT and designated RAs oversee registration.
Export of specified wheat tariff items is permitted through non-EDI Land Custom Stations on the Indo-Bangladesh and Indo-Nepal borders in addition to Custom EDI ports, provided quantities are registered with the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT); designated Regional Authorities (RAs) such as Kolkata and Patna, and others as notified, will handle such registrations.

Export permission for non-basmati rice allows land custom station shipments subject to DGFT quantity registration and entity eligibility.
Export of non-basmati rice is authorised as a free export from privately held stocks by private parties and specified State Trading Enterprises. Exports must be through Custom EDI ports or, alternatively, through non-EDI Land Custom Stations on the Indo-Bangladesh and Indo-Nepal borders subject to registration of the export quantity with the Directorate General of Foreign Trade, with designated Regional Authorities handling registration. Exports under food aid programmes and bilateral arrangements with the Maldives are also permitted.