Preferential tariff exemption extended by adding Lao People's Democratic Republic, enabling concessionary customs duty treatment for its imports.
Adds the Lao People's Democratic Republic to Appendix I of Notification No.153/2009-Customs, extending preferential tariff treatment so that goods imported from that country are exempt from customs duty to the extent it exceeds the prescribed rate, thereby aligning its imports with the concessionary duty treatment granted to other listed countries.

Presidential appreciation certificate awarded to customs personnel for meritorious and specially distinguished public service under the departmental awards scheme.
Presidential appreciation certificates are conferred on specified Customs & Central Excise and Enforcement personnel for two categories: exceptionally meritorious service at risk of life, and specially distinguished record of service; recipients are listed across ranks and functional units and the awards are made pursuant to the departmental awards scheme governing recognition of officers and staff.

National Advisory Committee on Accounting Standards established to advise on corporate accounting policies and standards; members appointed for fixed tenure.
Constitution of the National Advisory Committee on Accounting Standards under section 210A to advise the Central Government on formulation and laying down of accounting policies and accounting standards for adoption by companies or classes of companies. The notification specifies the committee's membership by institutional nomination and name, designates a Chairperson, prescribes a fixed term of office for appointees, and sets an effective date for the notification.

Special Economic Zone expansion: addition of land increases textile SEZ area and updates notified boundaries.
Notification under the Special Economic Zones Act and Rules adds 6.8290 hectares to the textile SEZ in Gurgaon, consolidating prior notified parcels and increasing the total notified area to 142.1031 hectares by specifying additional survey/khasra identifiers; the Central Government acted on the developer's proposal to amend the notified SEZ boundaries.

VAT exemption for Jan Ahaar meals sold by approved NGOs; departmental approval required, retroactive effect applied.
Amendment to the First Schedule under Section 103 inserts an entry treating food commonly known as Jan Ahaar sold in Delhi by Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) which are duly approved by the Department of Social Welfare and Women and Child Welfare, Government of NCT of Delhi for selling this food; the notification is effective from 1-6-2010.

Appointment of Value Added Tax Inspectors under statutory powers to assist the Commissioner in VAT administration.
The Lt. Governor, exercising powers under clause (a) of sub section (2) of Section 66 read with rule 47, appoints named Grade II (DASS) officials as Value Added Tax Inspectors to assist the Commissioner in administering the Delhi Value Added Tax Act; the appointments take effect from the date of assumption of charge and are communicated by official order.

Establishment of foreign branches or liaison offices: applications must go through authorised dealers, who may extend approvals.
The amendment inserts a definition of authorised dealer and requires applicants to establish a branch or liaison office to apply to the Reserve Bank through an Authorised Dealer using Form FNC. It establishes that authorised dealers may, subject to RBI directions, extend the validity period of liaison office approvals upon receiving applications. Form FNC prescribes corporate, financial and operational particulars, required supporting documents and a declaration limiting activities, consenting to enquiries and acknowledging that FEMA approval is distinct from other statutory clearances. The amendment is given retrospective effect with a non adverse clarification.

Remittance of winding-up proceeds: authorised dealers may permit transfers subject to regulatory directions and documentary compliance.
Regulation 7 requires that a foreign-resident person's branch or office seeking remittance of winding-up proceeds submit the Reserve Bank's permission for establishment; an auditors' certificate showing the remittable amount, assets and liabilities, asset disposal, confirmation that Indian liabilities and employee benefits are met or provided for, repatriation of foreign-source income, and regulatory compliance; a tax no-objection or clearance; confirmation of no pending legal impediment; and a Registrar of Companies compliance report where applicable, with the Authorised Dealer empowered to permit remittance subject to regulatory directions.

Quality Review Board constitution under the Chartered Accountants Act establishes membership, governance and procedural rules effective on gazette publication.
Constitution of a Quality Review Board under Section 28A of the Chartered Accountants Act, 1949, setting the Board's composition to include a Chairperson, government and regulator officials, legal and audit functionaries, and nominees of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India. Terms of service, meeting procedures and allowances for the Chairperson and Members are governed by the Procedures of Meetings and the Terms and Conditions Rules, 2006. The notification is effective on publication in the Official Gazette and subsequent substitutions of members are recorded by later notifications.

Research exemption under section 35(1) approved for institution, conditional on audit, separate accounts and reporting compliance.
Exemption under section 35(1) is approved for ARC-International as an Other Institution partly engaged in scientific research from AY 2009-10, conditional on use of sums for research and conducting research through faculty or enrolled students; maintenance of separate research books of account, audit by a qualified accountant with timely submission of the audit report, and provision of an auditor certified statement of donations and amounts applied for research. The Central Government may withdraw approval for failures in recordkeeping, reporting, genuineness of research activities, or non compliance with the governing statutory provisions and rules.

Special Economic Zone boundary amendment: de notification and additional land notified, increasing SEZ area for IT/ITES at Behrampur
The Central Government, exercising powers under the Special Economic Zones statute and rules, has de notified 2.1601 hectares and notified an additional 4.8817 hectares in the sector specific IT/ITES SEZ at Village Behrampur, District Gurgaon, thereby revising the SEZ area to 21.59023 hectares; the notification is supported by a parcel schedule listing originally notified, de notified and newly notified areas and records satisfaction with statutory requirements for the variation.

Duty Credit Scrip eligibility narrowed to services in Appendix 41 and tied to current year foreign exchange thresholds.
Amendments to SFIS limit eligible services to those in Appendix 41 of HBPv1 and restrict eligibility to free foreign exchange earned in the current financial year. Indian service providers must meet prescribed minimum free foreign exchange thresholds, with a lower threshold for individuals. Only services listed in Appendix 41 qualify for Duty Credit Scrips, and eligible providers receive a Duty Credit Scrip equal to a fixed proportion of current-year free foreign exchange earnings.

Inclusion in controlled newsprint schedule requires documentary certifications and verified newsprint-specific capacity and quality assurances.
Inclusion in Schedule-I requires documentary evidence and technical certifications showing supply to registered newspapers, purchaser quality attestations, chartered engineer certification of investment in plant and machinery for newsprint production, disclosure of raw materials and manufacturing process, distinct capacity figures for newsprint and kraft paper, relevant licence or registration, and the date since manufacture of newsprint-grade paper commenced.

Tariff value fixation for specified edible oils and brass scrap updated under Customs Act notification, affecting import valuation.
Substitution of the original notification table under section 14(2) of the Customs Act, 1962, to fix tariff values (US$ per metric tonne) for specified goods including crude palm oil, palmolein variants, crude soyabean oil, brass scrap (all grades) and poppy seeds, establishing reference values for customs valuation and non tariff compliance.

Customs corrigendum: amended preferential tariff table entry adjusting the published rate for specified imports under the trade arrangement.
Corrigendum to Notification No. 135/2010 Customs directs that in the Table against S.No. 264, column (4) the entry be read as "6.0", amending the published tariff table entry related to exemptions under the preferential trade framework for goods from countries listed in Appendix I.

Avoidance of double taxation advances regional tax cooperation and information exchange under the SAARC multilateral agreement.
The SAARC Limited Multilateral Agreement mandates regional cooperation to avoid double taxation and provide mutual administrative assistance, applying to residents of Member States and to taxes on income as listed in Schedule II. It prescribes residency tie breaker rules for individuals and place of effective management for entities, establishes exchange of information and confidentiality safeguards, authorises assistance in collection of revenue claims subject to domestic law and proportionality limits, and provides specific short term tax exemptions for visiting academics and students. Competent Authorities are to consult, implement, review and amend the Agreement by consensus.

Customs exemption for sugar imports conditioned on refinery use, APEDA-registered contracts, or certified bulk-consumer status.
Amendment inserts S.Nos. 37C-37E providing customs exemption for raw and refined sugar, subject to Annexure conditions 5D-5F. Condition 5D allows exemption for imports by sugar factories or refineries, and for other importers requires a contract with a factory/refinery, a bond that the raw sugar will be refined, and bond discharge upon a Central Excise certificate within three months proving refinement, failing which differential duty is payable. Condition 5E requires APEDA-registered import contracts; Condition 5F requires a Chartered Accountant certificate verifying bulk-consumer status based on prior twelve-month consumption.

Rescission of Special Economic Zone status reverses prior SEZ designation for an IT/ITES zone, subject to prior actions.
The Central Government rescinds the notification designating 12.81 hectares at Kharadpada, Naroli as a sector specific SEZ for information technology and IT enabled services, following the promoter's proposal and approval to denotify the entire area; the rescission is subject to a savings provision preserving acts or omissions done prior to rescission.

Renewal of recognition for a stock exchange contingent on full compliance with regulatory requirements before trading begins.
Renewal of recognition is granted to Jaipur Stock Exchange Limited for a one year term on the statutory basis that renewal serves the interests of trade and the public, subject to the condition that the exchange may commence trading in securities only after complying with all regulatory requirements imposed by the Securities and Exchange Board of India.

E-payment facility expanded to include Punjab National Bank, enabling dealers to remit VAT dues online with CIN proof.
Inclusion of Punjab National Bank in the Delhi VAT e-payment scheme permits dealers with accounts at that bank to remit tax, penalty, interest or other dues online; Part 'C' challan with a 19 digit Challan Identification Number, when signed, stamped and enclosed with the return, is accepted as proof of payment, and the bank will provide a signed Part 'D' for records. Amounts are credited after Reserve Bank of India confirmation, and the bank must comply with the Information Technology Act security requirements.