New rule 31D establishes retail sale price-based valuation for specified pan masala, tobacco and inhalation products. Supply value is deemed to be the declared retail sale price less applicable IGST, CGST, SGST or UTGST, determined under the prescribed formula. The highest of multiple declared package prices, any increased declared price, and relevant area-specific prices govern valuation. Registered persons other than manufacturers receive a limited rule 86B exemption only for covered goods where the supplier has paid tax on the retail sale price basis.

RBI's rejection of Tata Sons' application to surrender its NBFC registration retains the company within the regulatory framework associated with a stock-exchange listing requirement. A prospective listing would entail regular disclosure obligations, greater scrutiny of finances, capital allocation and investments, and increased public shareholder expectations. The listing issue intersects with chairman continuity and succession, while proceedings restraining the Sir Ratan Tata Trust from holding meetings may impede joint trustee nominations required to constitute the chairman selection committee.

Madhya Pradesh GST valuation framework is amended to include pan masala and specified tobacco, tobacco-substitute and nicotine-substitute products bearing a declared retail sale price. Retail sale price is the maximum packaged-goods price for the ultimate consumer, inclusive of taxes, duties, surcharge and cess. The highest of multiple declared prices applies, and any increased declared price is treated as the retail sale price. Area-specific declared prices apply to goods intended for sale in the relevant area.

India and China have commenced bilateral trade engagement to identify positions on trade-related concerns and pursue further meetings. Discussions are directed at structural trade imbalances, supply-chain issues, and trust in commercial relations. India's widening trade deficit with China is identified as a principal concern, while investment issues remain relevant because India has tightened its foreign direct investment policy for countries sharing land borders with it. Engagement is intended to explore approaches to more balanced commercial relations and supply-chain resilience.

Bank of India introduced integrated digital-banking capabilities covering UPI mandate management, transaction replay, contactless UPI payments, interoperable ticketing and bulk IMPS payments. Programmable Central Bank Digital Currency enables tokens to carry merchant, geographic, expiry and acceptance conditions, with real-time compliance checks for purpose-bound transfers. Additional measures include a self-service cash recycler proof of concept, automated compliance management, a fintech proposal portal, in-branch customer-engagement tools and voice-enabled conversational banking.

Madhya Pradesh revises State GST rate schedules by inserting biris in the 9% schedule and specified pan masala, tobacco, tobacco-substitute and inhalable tobacco or nicotine-substitute products in the 20% schedule. The separate 14% rate schedule is omitted. The revised rate-schedule treatment takes effect from 1 February 2026.

Eleven Delhi Gymkhana Club members challenge the Central Government's lease resumption and proposed eviction proceedings, alleging a colourable exercise of power and violation of constitutional property protections. They contend that no specific public-purpose project, supporting material, compensation or defence endorsement was disclosed. The dispute also concerns government-nominated management following supersession of the elected committee, delayed restoration of elected control, and an alleged conflict arising from governmental influence over both the lessor and the Club's management. Retrospective ground-rent revision is challenged separately.

Goa prescribes State tax at 6 per cent on intra-State supplies of specified brick and tile products, including fly ash bricks, fly ash aggregates, fly ash blocks, bricks of fossil meals or similar siliceous earths, building bricks, and earthen or roofing tiles. Classification follows the specified customs tariff headings and items, with customs tariff interpretation rules and relevant notes applying. Undefined expressions carry their meanings under the applicable goods and services tax enactments.

Goa SGST exemption-rate framework substitutes the schedule of specified handcrafted, handmade and artware goods eligible for concessional State tax treatment. Most listed goods, including handcrafted candles, handmade textiles, wood, stone, clay, glass and metal artware, handicraft furniture, toys, paintings and sculptures, carry a 2.5% rate. Silver filigree work and handmade imitation jewellery carry a 1.5% rate. The revised schedule takes effect on 22 September 2025.

Approval for scientific research is granted to the Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee, as a university, college or other institution for the donation-related tax purpose under the Income-tax Act, 2025. The approval applies for tax years 2026-27 through 2030-31, subject to compliance with rule 34 of the Income-tax Rules, 2026. The institution must prepare and deliver an annual Form 15 statement concerning donations by 31 May following each tax year and furnish donors with Form 16 certificates specifying donation amounts.

TRQ holders allocated raw sugar import quantities may surrender any unutilised allocation until 30 September 2026. Surrender remains subject to payment equal to 0.5% of the CIF value of the quantity surrendered, in accordance with existing modalities. The extension applies to the tariff-rate quota for import of raw sugar, while all other conditions governing the allocation and surrender process remain unchanged.

Proposed non-preferential Rules of Origin would require exported goods using imported inputs to undergo processing beyond specified minimal operations before being treated as Indian-origin. Exporters would apply online for non-preferential Certificates of Origin, while manufacturer exporters holding Status Holder recognition could self-certify qualifying goods. Back-to-back certificates could support re-exports, trans-shipment and merchanting trade for foreign-origin goods. For imports, agricultural goods would generally be origin-determined by wholly obtained or produced status, subject to a de-minimis tolerance, while other goods would require either a change in tariff heading or prescribed value addition. Importers would self-declare origin; separate origin documents would generally not be required, with risk-based verification permitted.

Sea Cargo Manifest and Transshipment Regulations, 2018 are fully operational on the Customs EDI system following the deployment of all remaining import and export message structures. The Import Trans-shipment message for re-working imported less-than-container-load cargo and the Stripping message for export CIM movement became available for live filing from 21 August 2026. With these additions, all SCMTR functional messages can be filed through the ICEGATE portal, completing the digital framework for cargo visibility and risk management. A local SCMTR Cell Nodal Officer will coordinate communications and address operational or live-filing difficulties reported by trade stakeholders.

Customs assayer and valuer empanelment is prescribed for gold, silver, jewellery, precious or synthetic stones, and other valuable articles involved in import, export, seizure or confiscation. Eligible applicants generally require relevant qualifications, valuation experience, supporting references, industry knowledge and a clean professional record, subject to selection-panel discretion. Appointed valuers must be available when required, assist with metal extraction, issue certificates and reports, maintain records, give evidence when called, and comply with prescribed fee limits. They must act independently, avoid conflicts of interest, preserve confidentiality and exercise due care. Wrong valuation, negligence, misconduct or non-disclosure may result in cancellation, removal from the panel and legal action.

Rupee depreciation against the US dollar was attributed to higher crude oil prices, increased dollar demand from oil importers, weak domestic equity markets, a stronger US dollar and concerns over rising global treasury yields. Higher oil-import payments raised inflation and external trade-balance concerns. Market expectations indicated continued pressure amid global risk-off conditions, although central bank intervention could support the rupee at lower exchange-rate levels.

Duty exemption for durable containers imported under the specified customs notification remains conditional on execution of a bond by the importer or shipping agent and re-export within six months from landing. Re-export extensions may be granted for three months by the Assistant/Deputy Commissioner, followed by two further six-month extensions at successively higher approval levels; any rejection requires written, case-specific reasons. Off-hiring is not a valid ground for extension. Where cargo is detained for examination or investigation, it should be destuffed and stored so containers can be re-exported; extensions for laden containers awaiting clearance or auction may be considered on a substantiated request. Manual document and statement submission requirements have been discontinued.

Schedule cross-references in the International Financial Services Centres Authority (Finance Company) Regulations, 2021 are corrected to align the Schedule's enabling citations with regulation 3(5)(i) and regulation 3(5)(ii), replacing references to regulation 3(4)(i) and regulation 3(4)(ii). The corrected bracketed citation retains the reference to regulation 3(1) and applies in both Hindi and English versions.

Section 74 permits extended GST limitation only where available material supports a rational prima facie view that a tax shortfall, erroneous refund or wrongful credit arose by reason of fraud, wilful misstatement or suppression of facts to evade tax. Final proof is not required at initiation, but suspicion or bare statutory labels are insufficient. Prior scrutiny, audit, inspection or pre-notice communications may provide the factual foundation if actually communicated and linked to the notice. The notice and final order must preserve fair opportunity, disclose the material basis, and remain within the grounds stated.

Portal-only GST service may be inadequate where it does not provide effective notice of the complete show cause notice or reasoned order and thereby denies a meaningful opportunity to respond. Section 169 permits Common Portal availability as a mode of service, but Rule 142 distinguishes FORM GST DRC-01 and DRC-07 electronic summaries from the underlying notice or order. Section 75 requires a hearing where an adverse decision is contemplated and reasons in the adjudication order. Retrospective expansion of Common Portal functions does not by itself cure deficient communication. For appellate limitation, proof of upload or dispatch may not establish effective communication where accessibility, actual or constructive knowledge, or retrieval of the complete communication remains unproven.

DBS MAX enables businesses to access multiple payment aggregators through a single integration, reducing the effort required for separate gateway connections or changes between supported aggregators. The platform supports merchant-defined intelligent routing and provides consolidated visibility across payment gateways and methods for transaction success rates, refunds and reconciliation. Gateway-agnostic card tokenisation supports movement between supported gateways, while the combined functionality is intended to improve payment resilience, optimise transaction flows and strengthen control over digital-payment collections.