Exchange rate update for Swiss Franc under customs notification revises import and export conversion rates effective immediately.
Amendment to a customs notification substitutes the Schedule-I entry for Serial No. 15 to update the customs exchange rate for the Swiss Franc, specifying separate conversion rates for imported and exported goods and stating the date from which the revised rates will be effective, issued under powers conferred by Section 14 of the Customs Act, 1962.

Statement of income distributed by business trust must be furnished to tax authorities and unit holders electronically, using prescribed forms.
Rule 12CA mandates that a business trust furnish a statement of income distributed to the Principal Commissioner or Commissioner and to unit holders, using prescribed Forms No. 64A (filed electronically under digital signature and verified by an accountant) and No. 64B (provided to unit holders and verified by the distributor). The forms require trust registration and deed copies, audited accounts, an aggregate income breakdown by category, per-unit-holder distribution details, and verification declarations. The Director General of Income-tax (Systems) will specify filing procedure and security, archival and retrieval policies.

Notice of books of account address required; new Form AOC-5 prescribes board resolution and jurisdiction details for maintenance location.
Amendment inserts Rule 2A requiring notice of the address where books of account are to be maintained, to be furnished in Form AOC-5, and adds a proviso to rule 6 limiting the temporal application of consolidation requirements for companies with subsidiaries incorporated outside India; Form AOC-5 is added to the Annexure as the prescribed template.

Import prohibition on mobile handsets lacking valid IMEI or ESN/MEID restricts entry of devices with duplicate or fake identifiers.
The notification amends import policy under ITC (HS) code 8517 to declare import of GSM handsets without valid IMEI (including all-zero, duplicate, or fake IMEIs) and CDMA handsets without valid ESN/MEID (including all-zero, duplicate, or fake ESN/MEID) as Prohibited, thereby adding such devices to the list of prohibited imports and making device identifier authenticity a condition for import eligibility.

Excise tariff amendment updates per litre duty entries for specified table items, taking effect in mid January.
Amends Notification No.12/2012 Central Excise by substituting revised per litre entries in column (4) for items (i) and (ii) of serial numbers 70 and 71 in the Table, thereby altering the recorded excise tariff rates; the amendment is effective from 17 January 2015.

Insider trading prohibition framework established to strengthen controls, define offences, and require compliance and internal safeguards.
The Regulations establish a regulatory framework to prohibit insider trading in securities and strengthen the legal architecture for preventing and addressing insider dealing by creating enforceable obligations, defining the regulatory scope for market participants, and underpinning measures for prevention and control of misuse of unpublished price-sensitive information.

Fixation of tariff values replaces prior tables with new US-dollar valuation benchmarks for listed imported commodities.
Central Board of Excise & Customs amends Notification No. 36/2001-Customs (N.T.) by substituting TABLE-1, TABLE-2 and TABLE-3 to fix tariff values in US dollars for specified imported goods, including edible oils, brass scrap, poppy seeds, precious metals (gold and silver) and areca nuts, establishing per-weight valuation benchmarks for customs valuation and related non-tariff administration.

Exchange Rate Determination sets customs conversion rates for foreign currencies, governing valuation for imports and exports.
The Central Board of Excise and Customs, under section 14 of the Customs Act, prescribes exchange conversion rates for specified foreign currencies for valuation of imported and export goods, set out in Schedule I (unit rates) and Schedule II (rates per 100 units), and supersedes the prior notification except as to prior acts or omissions.

Authorisation of officers to file complaints under section 159 for offences under section 155 enables delegated prosecutorial authority.
The Central Government, under sub-section (2) of section 439 of the Companies Act, 2013, authorises specified officers in the office of the Regional Director (Northern Region), Noida, to file complaints under section 159 in respect of offences under section 155, listing the named Joint Directors and an Assistant Director as authorised signatories.

FDI in pharmaceuticals: full automatic-route for greenfield, brownfield subject to government approval and conditions.
Amendments distinguish greenfield and brownfield pharmaceutical FDI: greenfield manufacturing permitted full FDI under the automatic route; brownfield requires government approval and may attract conditions at approval. Non-compete clauses are disallowed except with FIPB approval and applicants must provide a certificate with FIPB application. Medical devices manufacturing is exempt from brownfield conditions and allowed full automatic route FDI, with a detailed definition of medical device subject to amendment under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act.

Customs amendment: Srinagar added as a land customs station on the Bangladesh frontier, with specific location markers.
Amendment to Notification No.63/1994-CUSTOMS (NT) substitutes the fourth proviso to add Srinagar and inserts a table entry designating Srinagar (Tripura) as a land customs station on the Bangladesh frontier, described by its midpoint between Purbamadhugram and Choygharia and by Border Pillar references, effected under clauses (b) and (c) of section 7 of the Customs Act, 1962.

Common Adjudicating Authority appointment to adjudicate DRI show cause notices under Customs Act powers for specified importers.
The Central Board of Excise and Customs, under section 4(1) and section 5(1) of the Customs Act, appoints the Joint/Additional Commissioner of Customs, Custom House, Kandla as Common Adjudicating Authority to exercise the powers and discharge the duties of the Joint/Additional Commissioners of Customs at Kandla and Mundra for adjudicating matters arising from the show cause notice concerning M/s Jain Plywood House and others (F.No.DRI/CZU/VIC/26/ENQ-03(INT-NIL)/2014 dated 27th October, 2014).

Common Adjudicating Authority appointed to adjudicate specified customs show cause notices under Customs Act powers.
The Central Board of Excise and Customs, invoking sub section (1) of section 4 and sub section (1) of section 5 of the Customs Act, appoints the Joint or Additional Commissioner of Customs in the office of the Principal Commissioner of Customs (General), Mumbai Zone I, as Common Adjudicating Authority to exercise the powers and duties of the Joint or Additional Commissioners in specified offices for adjudicating show cause notices issued by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence concerning three named firms.

Common Adjudicating Authority appointment under the Customs Act empowering adjudication of specified show cause notices.
The Principal Commissioner of Customs, Nhava Sheva-I, Mumbai Zone-II is appointed as Common Adjudicating Authority under sections 4(1) and 5(1) of the Customs Act, 1962 to exercise the powers and discharge duties for adjudicating show cause notices issued by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence dated 17th November 2014 concerning M/s Dynalog Micro Systems, M/s MAP Enterprises and others.

Common adjudicating authority appointed to adjudicate a show cause notice under the Customs Act against an importer.
The Central Board of Excise and Customs appoints the Principal Commissioner of Customs (III), Air Cargo Complex Import, Sahar, Mumbai as the common adjudicating authority to exercise the powers and discharge duties of the Principal Commissioner (III) and the Joint/Additional Commissioner, Nhava Sheva 1, for adjudicating a show cause notice issued to the specified importer.

Common adjudicating authority appointed to centralize customs adjudication for specified show cause notices under the Customs Act.
The Central Board of Excise and Customs appoints the Principal Commissioner of Customs, Tughlakabad (Import), ICD Tughlakabad, New Delhi, as a common adjudicating authority empowered to exercise the powers and duties of specified Principal, Joint/Additional, and Assistant/Deputy Commissioners of Customs at listed ports and air cargo complexes for adjudicating show cause notices issued in the referenced intelligence file against M/s Italian Lifestyle Pvt. Ltd. and others under the Customs Act, 1962.

Appointment of Common Adjudicating Authority centralises adjudication of a specified customs show cause notice into a single officer.
The Central Board of Excise and Customs appoints the Commissioner of Customs, Jawaharlal Nehru Customs House, as a Common Adjudicating Authority authorised to exercise the powers and discharge the duties of multiple specified customs officers for the purpose of adjudicating a show cause notice issued in respect of M/s Sara Sae Private Limited, thereby centralising adjudicatory jurisdiction for that particular matter.

Industrial park deduction eligibility: notification grants section 80 IA benefits to a specified undertaking subject to occupancy and compliance conditions.
Notification under clause (iii) of sub section (4) of section 80 IA designates Eldeco SIDCUL Industrial Park Ltd.'s Rudrapur industrial park as eligible for industrial park tax benefits from the stated commencement date, subject to annexed conditions: minimum constructed area, specified allocable area percentages for industrial and commercial use, a prescribed minimum number of units and occupancy thresholds before benefits apply, limits on unit area concentration, activity restrictions to the Industrial Park Scheme, 2008, separate accounting and reporting obligations, and verification and withdrawal provisions for non compliance or misstatement.

Amendment to customs notification removes a proviso clause and its exemption entries, narrowing the scope of that exemption.
Amendment excises from the principal customs exemption notification, after the Table, the proviso's clause (bd) and all entries relating thereto, removing the exemptions or conditions previously established by that clause and effectuating the change through formal departmental gazette notification.

Anti-dumping duty extension preserves duty on melamine from specified origin through renewed notification period.
The Central Government amended Notification No.10/2010-Customs to insert a provision that, notwithstanding paragraph 2, the notification imposing anti-dumping duty on Melamine originating in, or exported from, the People's Republic of China shall remain in force up to and inclusive of 18th February, 2016, unless revoked earlier, thereby extending the temporal operation of the principal notification to permit the continuation review under the Customs Tariff Act and applicable rules.