Sum received by 'Subrata Roy' from his firm can't be deemed as dividend even if such firm indebted t

IT: SLP dismissed against High Court's order wherein it was held that amount advanced to assessee-partner by firm could not be taxed as deemed dividend merely on ground that some amount lying in firm's account was collected by firm on behalf of company of which assessee was a MD-cum-shareholder

Acts done by a director or MD by misusing office couldn't be deemed as valid

CL : The benefit of Section 290 of the 1956 Act (section 176 of the 2013 Act) is generally available to third parties who enter into transactions with a company not knowing what the internal structure and mechanism of the company is

Order of TPO couldn't be used as basis to make reassessment when reference to TPO itself was void

IT/ILT: Reference under section 92CA made to TPO where there was no assessment pending was invalid and bad in law, hence, order of TPO pursuant to illegal reference could not be used in reassessment proceedings by Assessing Officer and therefore reassessment proceedings based on illegal reference were held to be void ab initio

Trusts claiming sec. 80G exemption should maintain proper accounts, says Karnataka HC

IT: Trusts or organizations, which claim exemption under section 80G and perform their duties to further their aims and objects, are duty bound to maintain proper accounts

CIT(A) can't make sec. 14A disallowance on ad-hoc basis without following method prescribed under ru

IT: When assessee itself admitted that a disallowance had to be made with regard to expenditure for earning of income which was exempted from taxation under Act, such expenditure had to be computed not on ad hoc basis by estimating same but as per method prescribed under rule 8D(2)

HC upheld additions as assessee failed to show that entries found in seized docs were recorded in re

IT: Where assessee failed to justify his stand that there was no unaccounted sale as indicated in seized documents, addition made on basis of seized documents was justified

Transport Ministry is Line Ministry to certify excise exemption on goods required for execution of h

EXCISE : Reference Regarding Proper Certificate Under Notification No.108/95-C.E., Dated 28-8-1995

Income-tax SetCom has no right to direct a special audit: Delhi High Court

IT : Income Tax Settlement Commission has no right to direct a special audit u/s 142(2A) in the course of settlement proceedings under Chapter XIX-A of the Act as assessment of the type contained in section 143(3) is outside the purview of settlement proceedings

Filament Yarns Export From India Falls

In November 2015, all types of filament yarns export aggregated 28 million kg worth US$46 million. Filament yarns include polyester, nylon, polypropylene and viscose filament yarns and were exported to 73 countries during the month. Around 88 per cent of filament yarns were of polyester, of which, DTYs were the largest at 72 per cent.

About 982,000 million kg of viscose filament yarns were exported in November to 24 countries from India valued at US$4 million. During the month, 230,000 kg of VFYs were exported to Japan. It was followed by Germany and Egypt.

26.7 million kg of polyester filament yarns were exported worth US$40 million. Brazil and Turkey continued to be the major importers of polyester filament yarns, followed by South Korea. The three together accounted for 40 per cent of polyester filament yarn exports. Brazil was also major importer of polyester DTYs and Turkey was major importer of PFYs.

Sri Lanka was the major importer of nylon filament yarn in November with volumes at 47,000 kg worth US$0.28 million. In value terms, USA and Italy were the other largest markets for nylon filament in November, worth US$0.23 million.

Polypropylene filament yarns were exported to 12 countries in November with volumes at 160,000 kg worth US$0.32 million. Spain was the major importer of PP yarns. Djibouti and Bangladesh were the other major importers of PP filament yarns in November.

 

Source :.yarnsandfibers.con

Poor Offtake From Iran, Nigeria To Dent India’S Rice Exports

 

India’s rice exports for the current financial year are headed for a decline, both in value and volume terms, over the previous year on reduced purchases by large buyers, such as Iran and Nigeria, and drop in realisations.

Latest export trends suggest that total rice shipments – basmati and non-basmati – have declined 7.3 per cent in volumes and 18 per cent in value terms for the April-November period over the corresponding period last year.

While basmati shipments were up 23 per cent in volume terms, realisations were down 13 per cent in rupee terms and 18.5 per cent in dollar terms, on account of decline in grain prices.

Non-basmati rice shipments dropped by a fifth in volume terms and by a fourth in rupee terms. This was largely on account of stoppage of imports of parboiled rice by Nigeria due to the foreign exchange issue in the African nation.

Exports drop

“Going by the current trend, our exports may see a decline. We may end up shipping 10.5-11 million tonnes (mt) of rice, both basmati and non-basmati put together this year,” said Rajen Sundaresan, Executive Director, All India Rice Exporters Association. India had exported a total of 11.92 mt rice in 2014-15.

Basmati shipments to Iran, the largest buyer of the Indian aromatic rice variety in recent years, have dropped 25 per cent to 3.9 lakh tonnes during the April-October period of the current financial year against 5.18 lakh tonnes in the corresponding period last year.

Iran, which had stopped issuing fresh import permits for basmati in November 2014, began issuing new permits from December 2015, Sundaresan said.

As a result, basmati shipments were likely to pick up in the coming months. However, the quantum of permits issued by Iran so far could not be ascertained.

“Our basmati shipments, in volume terms, may increase by about 10 per cent this year, while in value terms there could be a decline of 20-25 per cent on lower realisations,” said AK Gupta, Director, Basmati Export Development Foundation.

Competing countries

Non-basmati rice exporters, who rely mainly on the African markets, are not optimistic about the outlook for exports in the absence of demand from Nigeria and the firming trend in domestic prices. “The market is not very buoyant because of low prices in countries, such as Pakistan and Vietnam,” said BV Krishna Rao, Managing Director of Pattabhi Agro Foods Pvt Ltd, a large rice exporter in Kakinada.

Rao said Indian rice is not competitive in the global market compared to rice from Thailand and Pakistan. The Centre should provide some incentive to rice exporters to help maintain their market share, he added. Rao expects the overall non-basmati shipments to be in the region of around five million tonnes this year.

Tejinder Narang, a grains trade analyst, said a depreciating Thailand currency (baht) will pose a challenge to Indian exporters, who are already battling a firming trend in domestic rice prices. “Lack of demand from Nigeria is bound to impact Indian exports,” he added.

Source :.thehindubusinessline.com

Sitting fee of part-time members of SEBI increases from Rs 1,000 to. Rs 10,000 per board meeting

SEBI/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : SEBI (Terms and Conditions of Service of Chairman and Members) Amendment Rules, 2015 – Amendment in Rule 19B

Eia To Test Food Procured By Southern Naval Command

KOCHI: Henceforth the food and other products procured by Southern Naval Command will be tested by  Export Inspection Agency (EIA), Kochi under the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for Laboratory testing of Provisions was exchanged between S K Saxena, Director (Insp and QC) Export Inspection Agency (EIA), Kochi and Commander Kamalender Sharma, Base Victualling Officer, Naval Base at a function held here on Wednesday.

Calling the agreement as ‘historic’,  S K Saxena said that EIA will ensure that the food products the Naval Base get is of national standard. The Navy has been sending samples to Laboratories in Mumbai and Chennai for quality checking. But the entire exercise used to take many weeks to get the final result. With the new arrangement the Naval Base hopes to get the test results in less than a week.

The Export Inspection Council of India (EIC) was set up in 1963 as an apex body to provide for sound development of export trade through quality control and pre-shipment inspection. The EIC is assisted in its functions by the Export Inspection Agencies (EIAs) located in  Chennai, Kochi, Kolkata, Delhi and Mumbai having a network of 37 sub-offices and laboratories to back up the pre-shipment inspection and certification activity. “Since 2009 we were on the lookout of testing laboratories to check the quality of our food items. Our aim was to make sure that the food is safe to eat. Earlier we used to send samples to many locations in the country. But all our search has finally been zeroed in on EIA Kochi. We have 70 dependent units in the country and our annual procurement comes to around Rs 50-60 crore. With the new association we hope to get test results soon and will be of mutual benefit,” said  Commander Kamalender Sharma, Base Victualling Officer, Naval Base.

Saxena said that the facility is exploring ways to associate with more institutions in the country. “Our mandate is to make sure quality control of products, especially food products. This is our first association with Armed Forces to provide testing services. The country imports products worth $410 billion and exports $310 billion. The country imports $45 billion worth food products and exports $32 billion. Seafood, Buffalo Meat and Basmati Rice are the major contributors in the export basket. The government now plans to increase exports hence quality control is very important,” said  Saxena.

 Jayapalan G, Deputy Director In-charge, EIA-Kochi and Lt Deepak Poonia, Naval Base, Kochi were also present.

Source :newindianexpress.com
 

Sea Demands Cut In Oilseeds Import Duty To 5-10%

NEW DELHI: Industry body SEA has sought slashing of import duty on oilseeds like mustard to 5-10 per cent from 30 per cent to boost edible oil supplies to local markets and oilmeal crushers.

A sharp decline in domestic oilseeds output and crushing has encouraged edible oil imports, while discouraging exports of oilmeal, it said.

In fact, export of oilmeal -- used as animal feed -- has dropped by 85 per cent to 59,818 tonnes in December 2015, as against 4,10,178 tonnes in the year-ago period, it added.

"The Association has pleaded with the central government for reducing the import duty to 5-10 per cent from the current 30 per cent on high oil content oilseeds like rapeseed/mustard and sunflower seed," Mumbai-based Solvent Extractors' Association of India (SEA) said in a statement.

The reduction in import duty on oilseeds will reduce import of edible oils, larger availability of oilmeals for local consumption by feed industry and export, it said.

Further, the oilseeds imports will not have any adverse impact on the farmers as they are protected with an assured minimum support price by the government, it added.

Stating that "alarming" decline in oilseeds production and crushing has hit India's oilmeal exports, SEA said the overseas sale of oilmeals has almost come to a "standstill".

As per the latest data, India's oilmeal exports declined by 48 per cent to 9,63,442 tonnes in the April-December of this fiscal from 18,62,283 tonnes in the year ago period.

"Soybean crushing is very much reduced due to continuous disparity and high price of domestic market affecting overall domestic availability of both oils and meals. The capacity utilization is at the lowest," SEA said.

The industry is passing through a very tough time and many plants are closed down or operating at very low capacity due to disparity in crushing and export, it said.

Consequently, SEA said soyabean meal exports has fallen to 61,556 tonnes in April-December period of this fiscal from 4,44,736 tonnes in the year-ago period.

Export of rapeseed meal has fallen to 3,12,148 tonnes from 8,95,585 tonnes, while the shipment of groundnut meal has dropped to 606 tonnes from 2,244 tonnes in the said period.

However, export of castor seed meal rose marginally to 3,70,522 from 3,30,082 and ricebran extraction shipments increased to 2,18,610 tonnes from 1,89,636 in the said period.

India exports oilmeal to countries including South Korea, Thailand, Vietnam, Taiwan, Indonesia, Iran and European nations.

 

Source :economictimes.indiatimes.com

Export Of Soybean Meal Decreases 97% In December Y-O-Y

KOLKATA: Export of soybean meal during December, 2015 was just 5,667 tons as compared to 1,94,012 tons in December, 2014 showing a decrease of 97% over the same period of last year, according to Soybean Processors Association (SOPA).

On a financial year basis, the export during April 2015 to December 2015 is 61,559 tons as compared to 4,31,368 tons in the same period of previous year showing a decrease of 85.73%. Soybean meal is used for livestock feed and India is a major supplier of this.

During current Oil year, (October - September), total exports during October 2015 to December, 2015 is 18,814 tons as against 3,34,508 tons last year, showing a decrease by 94.37%.

The data has been collected and compiled by SOPA based on the information received from the members, port authorities and other agencies.

 

 

Source :economictimes.indiatimes.com

India's Oil Imports From Iran Fall By A Quarter In 2015

NEW DELHI: India's oil imports from Iran fell by about a quarter in 2015 as refiners slowed purchases early in the year to keep imports within the limits of sanctions, preliminary tanker arrival data obtained by Reuters shows.

Western sanctions against Iran's controversial nuclear programme limit the Gulf country's oil exports to 1-1.1 million barrels per day (bpd), with buyers such as India curbing annual purchases to 220,000 bpd.

The annual decline came as imports in December surged nearly 70 per cent from the previous month to 233,100 barrels per day (bpd), but were still down by a third from a year ago, according to the data and a report compiled by Thomson Reuters Oil Research and Forecasts.

India's December oil imports from Iran were the highest in six months.

Asian imports of Iranian oil have fallen as most of Iran's biggest crude buyers held off from increasing purchases after a July agreement that would grant relief to Iran from sanctions early this year if it curbs its nuclear programme.

India, Iran's biggest oil client after China, shipped in 208,300 bpd of oil and condensate in calendar 2015 compared with 276,800 bpd in 2014, the data showed.

New Delhi's imports of oil from Iran are expected to rise in the next fiscal year, beginning in April, when western sanctions are expected to be eased against Tehran.

Tehran was India's seventh-biggest supplier of oil in the 2014/15 fiscal year, down from the No. 2 spot before sanctions.

A drop in purchases of Iranian oil helped boost exports to India by rival producers Saudi Arabia and Iraq.

Indian refiners, including Reliance Industries, have shown interest in raising imports from Iran, Mohsen Qamsari, director general for international affairs of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), told Reuters.

Reliance, which operates the world's biggest refining complex in India, halted imports of Iranian oil in 2010 under pressure from sanctions.

 

Source :economictimes.indiatimes.com

Revenue directed to furnish cash security to get cash and silver seizure by Police

IT : Where department filed an application under section 132A for handing over of silver bullion seized by police from assessee, in view of fact that neither police nor department had gathered any information regarding ownership of silver bullion, Trial Court was justified in passing order of handing over of goods to department subject to payment of cash security

Margin earned by franchisees on sale of SIM cards/vouchers of BSNL wasn't liable to service-tax

Service Tax: Where assessee-franchisee was only engaged in trading of SIM cards/recharge coupons of BSNL and his relationship with BSNL was on principal-to-principal basis and assessee was not acting as agent of BSNL and BSNL had already paid service tax on full MRP, no service tax could be demanded from assessee

Car couldn't be confiscated from buyer once it was released on payment of redemption fine by importe

Excise & Customs : Once goods were confiscated in hands of importer and allowed to be redeemed on payment of redemption fine and penalty, same cannot be re-confiscated in hands of bona fide purchaser of said goods

Sum paid to sisters to acquire absolute title to property held as exp. in connection with transfer

IT : Where assessee received a property with clause in his mother's will providing overriding title in favour of his three sisters, payment made by assessee to his sisters for acquiring absolute title in property would be reduced as expenditure while computing capital gain on sale of said property

HC's judgment continued to be binding even if it wasn't not challenged by revenue due to monetary li

Excise & Customs : Judgment passed by co-ordinate Bench of High Court is binding on another bench of High Court even if earlier judgment of High Court has not been appealed against by Revenue owing to monetary limits

Edu. Cess and surcharge aren't leviable on tax rates provided in DTTAs, says Kolkata ITAT

IT/ILT: Surcharge and education cess is not leviable when tax rate is prescribed under DTAA

Refundable deposits collected by Club from its members isn't liable to service-tax

Service Tax : Provision of a facility by club to its members is an 'activity' for consideration and since clubs and members are deemed to be separate persons under Explanation 3(a) to section 65B(44), Membership fee/Entrance fee for provision of such facilities is liable to service tax

Higher stock valuation given to bank to avail of credit limit couldn't be said to be unexplained inv

IT : Where there was no material to show that assessee had received any consideration in excess of amount shown in sale deed, merely because valuation given to bank to avail higher bank limit, no addition could be made

Delivery of export or import consignments booked by other courier agencies also amounts to courier s

Service Tax : Activity of collection/delivery of export/import consignments booked by other Indian/foreign courier agencies, also amounts to courier services, as it also involves time-sensitive transport of document/things; it cannot be classified as Business Support Services. Where such delivery/collection is performed in India, courier services cannot be regarded as exported, even if consideration is received in foreign currency

Govt. received 2,428 crore under compliance window of Black Money Act

IT/ILT : Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act, 2015 – Declarations and Payments made Under Said Act

@IncomeTaxIndia is now on twitter

IT/ILT : Official Twitter Account of Income-Tax India

4 year's period to rectify an amended order would begin from date of amended order and not from date

IT: Once an order is amended to give effect to appellate order, period of limitation under section 154 would commence from amended order and not from original order

No tax on foreign co. if services rendered by its PE were compensated at ALP and PE had paid taxes i

IT/ILT: Where assessee's branch office, which was considered as assessee's PE in India, was compensated at arm's length for performing services in respect of direct sales made by assessee in India, no part of assessee's profit could be taxed in India as profit attributable to Indian PE

Jewellery Exports May Decline To Six-Year Low

 India’s jewellery exports are likely to decline 10 per cent in 2015-16 to a six-year low due to weak demand in the US and the European Union.

Jewellery exports declined  13 per cent in April-November 2015 to $21.45 billion from $24.70 billion in the corresponding period a year ago. With hardly any occasion left for fresh jewellery purchases in the West, chances of an export recovery are slim. Sentiment was upbeat in the US during the year-end season. The country consumes 38 per cent of the world’s jewellery production  and the 45-day season ending in February contributes 40 per cent of annual sales in developed countries.

“A marginal recovery in exports cannot be ruled out. But, given that exports were 13 per cent lower in the first eight months, the financial year may end with a 10 per cent decline,” said Vipul Shah, managing director and chief executive officer, Asian Star, a city-based jewellery exporter.

Praveen Shankar Pandya, chairman of the Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), had forecast a 25 per cent decline in exports this season. “But, the season has been much better,” he said.

Diamond De Beers, Alrosa and Rio Tinto have lowered their production targets for 2015. However, they are yet to announce actual cuts.

Indian importers of rough diamonds have cut purchases to reduce inventory.  The GJEPC estimates India’s rough diamond imports to have declined 27.15 per cent to $8.65 billion during April-November 2015 from $11.87 billion in the corresponding period a year ago.

Jewellery exports may decline to six-year low
Imports of polished diamonds plunged 62 per cent to $18.52 billion during the period from $48.78 billion in the comparable period a year ago.

"India diamond processors have reduced their import of raw material in commensuration with global demand. As a consequence, overall inventory level has declined to the manageable level of 4.5 months as compared to over 6 months a recently," said Shah.

Interestingly, according to reports, Chinese government has strengthen regulations to discourage spends on luxuries in order to bring its economy back on growth path.

 

Source :business-standard.com

Jute Products' Exports Take A Hit On High Costs

 Rising prices of jute goods, triggered by steep raw jute prices, have shrunk the export market for domestic manufacturers. A squeeze in export orders could wipe out profitability of the mills with major export orders.

Jute goods exports have logged almost flat growth from 2010-11 (0.19 million tonne) to 2013-14 (0.21 million tonne). However, jute goods exports declined sharply in 2014-15 to 0.15 million tonne, a fall of 27 %.

Raw jute prices have touched an all-time high of Rs 53,000 a tonne, double the level of Rs 26,000 per tonne in the year-ago period. This has escalated prices of jute goods as well. B Twill sacking prices are now ruling at Rs 74,000 a tonne whereas Hessian has moved beyond Rs 100,000 per tonne.

"Rising prices of jute goods has both a short-term and long-term impact on the export market. While exports may not be impacted in a big way in value terms, the decline would be felt in volume terms. We have already lost major export markets like Egypt and Syria. Also, there is no incentive from the Government of India on exports unlike Bangladesh which continues to incentivise jute exports", Manish Poddar, chairman, Indian Jute Mills Association (IJMA) told Business Standard.

A report by the Jute Commissioner Subrata Gupta says jute mills with substantial export orders have been adversely impacted as several had contracted orders with foreign buyers without expecting such huge jump in raw jute prices.

"While on one hand, this could wipe out profit for these mills, on the other, the increase in prices of these goods could also shrink the demand from foreign buyers. Further, the sharp increase in price of some products such as jute felt and Hessian can also adversely impact the opening up of new markets, such as those for geo-textiles and jute composites. These developments do not augur well for the health of the jute sector in the long term", the report adds.

 

Source :business-standard.com

Robusta Saves The Day For Indian Coffee Exports In 2015

KOCHI: Even as Arabica exports plunged, higher robusta shipments have pulled up the Indian coffee exports for 2015 marginally over the previous year.

Plagued with production woes from pest attacks and fluctuating prices, arabica is fast losing out to the sturdier robusta in coffee estates. The shift to robusta cultivation that started about four years ago has gained momentum of late.

In 2015, coffee exports stood at 307,726 tonnes, a rise of about 3.5% from a year ago. While the robusta shipments increased 23%, exports of arabica fell 26%. The re-exports of robusta by instant coffee makers increased 22%.

"Very few are selling arabica coffee which has been freshly harvested. Given the current prices it is not remunerative for the growers,'' said Ramesh Rajah, president of Coffee Exporters Association of India. The 2% reduction in export incentive was also a dampener for exports, he said. The average yield of arabica coffee has come down in India because of white stem borer attacks and the existing price doesn't cover the cost of production. Almost 70% of India's coffee output is exported. The March futures of arabica on ICE New York stood at $1.23 per pound on Tuesday. The prices have been hovering around this figure for some time.

It seems the prices are not likely to improve in the immediate future as coffee from other sources is compensating for the output fall in Brazil. As per the latest report of USDA, the global coffee output in 2015-16 is slated to touch 150.1 million bags (each bag of 60 kg), up 6 lakh bags as record output in Indonesia and Honduras, and better recovery in Vietnam more than offset the shortfall in Brazil, the largest producer.

 

Source :economictimes.indiatimes.com

Sodexo meal vouchers are not goods; not liable to octroi/duty: SC

Maharashtra Municipal Corporation Act : Where appellant was conducting business of providing pre-printed meal vouchers, i.e., Sodexo Meal Vouchers, to its customers, said vouchers were not goods within meaning of section 2(15) of Maharashtra Municipal Corporation Act and, therefore, not liable for either octroi or local body tax

Indian Sugar Export Prospects Fade As Domestic Prices Soar

LONDON/MUMBAI: Indian domestic sugar prices have surged, boosting incentives for production of low-quality white sugar for the local market and giving Brazil a competitive edge in the export market.

Sugar prices in India have risen more than 15 percent in a month on concerns over lower than expected output because of drought, making exports less attractive for mills even after export incentives, dealers said.

The government in India, the world's second-biggest sugar producer behind Brazil, has approved plans to pay farmers 45 rupees per tonne of cane produced, provided that mills manage to export their quota.

"The Indian (export) sugar that people were expecting isn't there," one senior European trader said.

Dealers quoted Indian low-quality white sugar at $415 a tonne FOB, equivalent to about $4 below ICE London front-month futures.

Offers of Indian sugar would need to be at discounts of about $30 a tonne to futures to compete against Brazilian supplies in key export markets.

One trader quoted Brazilian low-quality white sugar in containers at about $18 below London ICE futures.

"The traditional destinations for Indian sugar in Africa and the Middle East are not being taken," the European trader said.

"Indian sugar will stay in the Far East and Brazilian sugar will stay in West Africa."

Indian mills have contracted to export about 850,000 tonnes of sugar so far in the season that began on Oct. 1 and nearly 400,000 tonnes have already been dispatched, dealers said.

A Mumbai-based dealer with a global trading firm said: "The difference between local and overseas prices has been widening. Until last week mills were able to sign export deals at around $400 a tonne to Myanmar. Now sellers are quoting $430, which buyers are refusing to pay."

European and Indian traders said they see little prospect of Indian raw sugar exports in the near term because world prices are too low.

"Some mills are now waiting for an improvement in prices in the world market," said Sanjeev Babar, managing director of Maharashtra State Co-operative Sugar Factories Federation.

A New Delhi-based dealer with an Indian trading firm said that many mills think prices could jump sharply after the crushing season because of lower production. "Now mills don't want to sell sugar at a discount for export," the dealer added.

The first back-to-back drought in three decades is expected to cut Indian sugar production drastically this year, with a risk that output could drop below consumption for the first time in seven years in the 2016/17 season.

 

Source :economictimes.indiatimes.com

Govt To Import Rice From India, Pakistan

The government is sounding out the possibility of importing rice from India and Pakistan amid low rice stocks following a prolonged dry season.

“We are still negotiating imports with India and Pakistan,” said Trade Minister Thomas Lembong in Jakarta on Wednesday.

The government, Thomas said, was still preparing a government-to-government Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on rice imports with the Pakistani government. The State Logistics Agency (Bulog) was studying the technical details of Pakistan’s rice stocks, he went on.

“We are also proposing an MoU with India, as it has for years been the world’s largest exporter of rice. They export between US$3 billion and $4 billion worth of white rice a year,” said Thomas.

Earlier, Coordinating Economic Minister Darmin Nasution said that because of last year’s prolonged El Niño, the rice planting season had been put back from October to November. As a result, harvest time in several areas across Indonesia suffered delays, leading to depleted rice stocks in the first quarter of 2016.

"We have calculated that we still have only 1.35 million tons of rice in March. Normally, we have 1.5 million tons. To fulfill the shortage of rice, we’re looking at signing MoUs with Myanmar and Pakistan,” Darmin told a press conference last week.

He further explained that the agreements were a precaution measure to anticipate reduced rice stocks, which could in turn lead to surging prices of basic commodities.

"The estimated domestic production of rice at the end of March this year will be 1.35 million tons From the end of March to April, our rice production will improve as the effects of El Niño gradually lessen,"

 

Source :thejakartapost.com

India's Coal Imports Fall For Sixth Straight Month In December

India's coal imports fell for a sixth month in December, a government official said Wednesday, as the world's third-biggest buyer of the fuel expands domestic mines to boost output and expand power generation.

India shipped in 12.35 million tonnes of coal last month, a 34.3 percent decline from the same month a year ago. Imports slipped thanks to a jump in production by state-run Coal India (COAL.NS), the world's biggest miner of the fuel that is opening one new mine a month as the government fast-tracks environmental clearances.

"Record coal production by Coal India leads to further reduction in imports," Coal Secretary Anil Swarup tweeted.

Coal India's April-December production grew by a record 9 percent, keeping the country on course to reduce annual imports for the first time in five years.

 

Source :reuters.com

Sodexo meal vouchers neither are goods nor liable to octroi/duty: SC

Maharashtra Municipal Corporation Act : Where appellant was conducting business of providing pre-printed meal vouchers, i.e., Sodexo Meal Vouchers, to its customers, said vouchers were not goods within meaning of section 2(15) of Maharashtra Municipal Corporation Act and, therefore, not liable for either octroi or local body tax

CIT couldn't disallow lease rental of car if AO had allowed deduction on directions of DRP

IT/ILT: Where Assessing Officer granted deduction on account of lease rentals to assessee in pursuance of directions of DRP, but Commissioner revised said order without recording as to how assessment order was erroneous, revision was unjustified

Adjudicating order violating principles of natural justice can be set aside in writ despite appeal r

Excise & Customs : Where adjudication order has been passed without giving reasons, same violates principles of natural justice and, therefore, same can be set aside in writ jurisdiction despite alternate appeal remedy

Only RBI can decide whether a co-operating society is a bank for sec. 80P relief

IT : In event of dispute as to primary object or principal business of co-operative society referred to in clauses (cciv), (ccv) and (ccvi) of section 56 of Banking Regulation Act, determination thereof by RBI shall be final before revenue authorities can term said society as a co-operative bank for purpose of section 80P

Assessee can exercise option under rule 6(3) of CCR even for prior periods

CENVAT: There is no bar for making as per prescribed percentage payment on value of exempted services for prior period where it may not be feasible to segregate quantum of input services pertaining to dutiable & exempted services

Writ against Magistrate's order quashed as petitioner already availed of statutory remedy of appeal

SARFAESI: Where efficacious statutory remedy of appeal under section 17 was available to appellant-purchaser of property, against notice under section 13(4) and he had already availed same, instant writ petition before High Court against order of Chief Judicial Magistrate appointing receiver to take possession of property in question under section 14 would not be maintainable

ITAT unhappy with AO and CIT(A) for making additions on proposal of TPO without referring to TP repo

IT/ILT : Where in transfer pricing proceedings, Assessing Officer as well as Commissioner (Appeals) failed to apply their mind to TP report filed by assessee, or to any other material or information or document furnished, impugned addition made to assessee's ALP merely on basis of proposal made by TPO was not sustainable

Issuance of false certificate by CA doesn't attract any penalty under Excise: HC

Excise & Customs : Issuance of false certificate by a Chartered Accountant in relation to huge cash found with manufacturer, may attract penalty for money laundering or giving false evidence; however, same cannot attract penalty under rule 26 or 27 of Central Excise Rules, 2002

No disallowance of commission paid to directors for extra efforts considering it as tool to avoid di

IT: When directors of assessee company had given services and in recognition thereof, there was payment of commission to them, it could not be questioned merely on basis of speculation by revenue that same was to avoid payment of dividend tax and, consequently, impugned disallowance made under section 36(1)(ii) deserved to be deleted

Appeals below monetary limit can't be accepted if revenue fails to produce docs related to audit obj

IT: Where tax effect of appeal filed by revenue before Tribunal was below prescribed monetary limit but revenue could not produce document regarding audit objection about relevant transaction, exceptions provided in clause 8(c) of Instruction No. 3, could not be invoke so as to maintain appeal

CIT(A) gets flak from ITAT for enhancing income of assessee without providing hearing opportunity to

IT: In terms of section 251(2), issuance of show cause notice to assessee stating defects, allegation and manner of determining amount of enhancement and then fixing date of hearing after affording reasonable time to assessee to rebut allegations and then passing a speaking order making enhancement of income is mandatory

No embargo on assessee for treating any co. as incomparable after including it mistakenly in TP anal

IT/ILT : Matter was sent back to file of TPO/Assessing Officer when there was a specific challenge to calculation of OP/TC of relevant segment of comparable and TPO had not mentioned how he determined its percentage of profit

SLP granted to decide whether deduction of bad debts was available if same was written off after clo

IT : SLP granted against High Court's ruling that where accounts of assessee were open and subject to correction by auditors, bad debts could be written off even after closure of accounting period and same was to be allowed under section 36(1)(vii)

Taking over management of business doesn't amount to 'Business Support Services'

Service Tax : Taking over management/running of business and bearing profit/loss on own account does not amount to 'business support services' and, therefore, profit so earned cannot be charged to service tax

RBI issues master directions for banks to adhere with FEMA compliances

FEMA/ILT : Master Direction – Opening And Maintenance Of Rupee/Foreign Currency Vostro Accounts Of Non-Resident Exchange Houses

Insurers to empanel with more hospitals to provide cashless facility widespread geographically: IRDA

INSURANCE : Agreements with Adequate Number of Service Providers Widespread Geographically

No denial of sec. 54F relief just because part of investment was made out of housing loan

IT : Where assessee had fulfilled all conditions of investment of equivalent amount of capital gain in purchase of residential house qualifying for relief under section 54F, she would be entitled to exemption under section 54F for total investment irrespective of fact that part of such investment came from borrowed money

Two manufacturing units can't be treated as single unit for SSI exemption even if common facilities

Excise & Customs : Where factory of Saron was established in year 1994, same could not be regarded as dummy of Jagat established in 2001

SC to decide whether trust's registration could be cancelled if its commercial receipts exceed chari

IT: SLP granted against High Court's ruling that in absence of any finding that activities of trust are not genuine or they are not being carried out in accordance with objects of trust, registration granted to trust under section 12A cannot be cancelled on ground that receipts from commercial activities are more compared to overall receipts of charitable organization

Reduced penalty under service tax laws must be paid within 30 days of 'adjudication order' and not '

Service Tax : Adjudicating authority imposing penalty under section 78 need not spell out option to pay reduced penalty in adjudication order itself and adjudication order cannot be regarded as invalid.

HP didn't abuse dominance in market of laptops as there were other prominent brands available in rel

Competition Act: Where there were other prominent brands of laptops available in India, it appeared that consumers in India had adequate choice and OP-computer manufacturer/seller did not enjoy a position of strength, hence no contravention of provisions of section 4 was made out against OP

No disallowance of actual exp. for computing MAT just because it was shown as deferred revenue exp.

IT: SLP dismissed against High Court's ruling that no disallowance of actual expenditure for computing MAT just because it was shown as deferred revenue expenditure for shareholders

Revised monetary limits for filing appeal also applicable on all pending appeals before HC/CESTAT: C

EXCISE : Reduction of Government Litigation – Providing Monetary Limits for Filing Appeals by Department Before CESTAT/High Courts and Supreme Court – Clarification

Methyl parathion and cartap hydrochloride are covered under Entry No. 38B of Schedule B of Haryana V

CST & VAT: Haryana VAT - Methyl parathion, cartap hydrochloride, acephate, acetamiprid, imidacloprid, pretilachlor, paraquat dichloride and carbendazim sold by assessee were covered under Entry No. 38B of Schedule B of Haryana VAT Act

Co. rendering marketing support services to its AE can't be compared with a Co. involved in marketin

IT/ILT: In case of assessee rendering marketing support services to its AE, a company involved in marketing could not be accepted as valid comparable while determining ALP

President clears new Juvenile Justice Act, 2015

CORPORATE LAWS/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : JUVENILE JUSTICE (CARE AND PROTECTION OF CHILDREN) ACT, 2015 [2 OF 2016]

President clears amended Act enforcing stringent action against persons involved in crime against SC

CORPORATE LAWS/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : Scheduled Castes And The Scheduled Tribes (Prevention Of Atrocities) Amendment Act, 2015 [NO.1 OF 2016]

Sweden Can Provide Clean Tech To India: Swedish Consul General

With deteriorating air quality becoming an area of concern, Sweden said it is keen to provide clean technology solutions to the country.

"Sweden has many years of experience in the field of clean technology. The much debated air quality, for example, could benefit from Swedish solutions," Consul General of Sweden Fredrika Ornbrant told here.

Sustainable transport, an important part of the 'Smart City' concept, is another area where Swedish companies are strong, she said.

The Scandinavian country also has experience in decreasing emissions from coal-based thermal power plants, she added.

She said the disease profile is changing in India and many other countries, as they grow richer.

"Swedish companies have good technologies and know-how to meet the changing demand in health care," she said.

However, hurdles like import regulations, restrictions and customs duty impact companies negatively, especially in the life sciences, health care, automotive and heavy vehicles sectors, she said.

"A survey conducted by the Swedish Chamber of Commerce India found that 60 per cent of the respondent companies consider cost structure to be a competitive disadvantage, as regulations, inverted duty structure and trade barriers contribute to additional cost of operations," she said.

Exports and imports of goods between India and Sweden amounted to slightly over USD 2 billion in 2014.

Ornbrant said the trade between the two countries gained momentum last year after two years of decline.

In fact, Indian exports to Sweden has picked up more than vice-versa, as there was an increase of 11 per cent in Indian exports of goods to Sweden between January to September in 2015, while the increase of Swedish exports to India during the same period was 6 per cent, she said.

"However, services are not included in this figure. Indian export of services like information technology to Sweden is strong. We have around 20 Indian IT companies in our country," she said.

Swedish industry body Business Sweden estimates that around 10,000 people in India are supporting Swedish companies with IT services, the Consul General said.

On the other hand, Sweden exports engineering products, automotive and telecom equipment, pulp and paper and chemicals to India.

"Swedish high voltage equipment, for example, is contributing in electrifying India. The main Indian exports of goods are apparel and garments, machineries, vehicle parts, metal works and pharmaceuticals," she added.

Source:- auto.economictimes.indiatimes.com

India’S Auto Exports Take A Hit In December

India’s automobile exports seem to have been facing the heat of the global slowdown as the growth rate in the overseas sales has witnessed a sharp reduction in the past two months.

During April- November 2015, the country’s auto exports grew by just 2.61%, much less than the growth rate of 5.78% witnessed during April-October period.

Analysts say that the steep fall in the export of commercial vehicles and two-wheelers seems to have led to the negative growth trend of the sector in the past two months.

“Passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles, three wheelers and two wheelers registered a growth at 4.30%, 15.22%, 10.46 % and 0.52% respectively in April- November 2015 over April- November 2014,” said the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM).

During April-March 2015, the country’s overall automobile exports grew by 14.89% over 2014 when the overseas sales in the commercial vehicle category went up by 11.33% but three-wheelers and two-wheeler sales grew by 15.44% and 17.93% respectively.

On Monday, Bajaj Auto released its December sales data for motocycles and commercial vehicles, according to which, the exports of these two segments fell by 12% last month as compared to the figure of December 2014.

The company’s overall global shipment of motorcycles and commercial vehicles during April-December 2015 saw a fall of 3% with the export of 14,07,082 units against 14,51,474 exported during the same period in 2014.

Tata Motors, on the other hand, said that its exports last month stood at 4,557 units, up 15% from 3,958 units exported in December 2014.

“The company’s sales from exports were 4,557 nos., in December 2015, higher by 15% compared to 3,958 vehicles in December 2014. The cumulative sales from exports for the fiscal are at 40,901 nos., were higher by 12%, over 36,626 nos., sold last year,” Tata Motors said in a statement on Monday.

Source:- thedollarbusiness.com

Oil And Gas | India’S Energy Sector Looks Sturdy In 2016

India’s energy sector has a lot going for it as it powers into 2016.

The country’s robust economic growth coupled with oil prices languishing at more than 40% below the previous year’s average, has boosted refined products demand by nearly 9% in the January-October period. That’s a growth rate unmatched in the past 15 years.

While that rate of increase might moderate, India’s oil products demand is expected to remain firmly on an upward trajectory, rising two-and-a-half-fold to 10 million barrels per day (b/d) by 2040, the biggest rise projected for any country, according to the International Energy Agency.

The Paris-based energy policy advisor to the OECD countries cites the 100 Smart Cities mission and the manufacturing boost expected from the Make in India campaign as factors that will drive the country’s oil appetite in the coming years.

The state-owned players in India’s refining sector, apart from benefiting from the captive and fast-growing domestic market, have also been freed of the yoke of diesel subsidies since October 2014, and are on their way to phasing out liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) subsidies too.

Shedding the LPG subsidy burden is crucial as the oil marketing companies push the cleaner burning cooking fuel into rural India, looking to boost the country’s household penetration to 85% from the current 65% over the next five years. The concurrent decline in kerosene use by households would also whittle down the subsidy burden.

Meanwhile, protecting the export markets in an environment of rising competition from overseas suppliers and anemic demand growth will likely be an uphill task for refiners like Reliance and Essar.

India’s oil product exports declined 7.4% from a year ago in the first 10 months of 2015 to around 1.25 million b/d, setting it on course for the first annual decline since 2008-09.

In the coming months, as India’s refiners and marketers profit from burgeoning gasoline demand on the back of strong car and two-wheeler sales and an expected resurgence in energy consumption growth led by manufacturing, they do need to become more environmentally responsible.

Air pollution in Delhi, world’s most polluted city according to the World Health Organization, has gone off the charts this winter. While some of the components of the pollution, such as dust, and smoke from the burning of agricultural stubble in farms, might be harder to tackle, India’s emission standards can be fast-tracked.

India’s private refiners currently export the cleanest of their fuel, which meets Euro 5 standards, while selling lower quality product at home. The major public sector refiners, Indian Oil Corp. Ltd, Hindustan Petroleum Corp. Ltd and Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd, will need to upgrade their refineries to accelerate the transition to cleaner fuels.

The outlook for the upstream sector is bleaker in comparison, given the depressed oil and gas prices, and expectations of “lower for longer,” though the state-owned producers do get reprieve from the fuel subsidy sharing burden.

However, producers such as state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp. and private-owned Cairn India are being weighed down by a fixed $10/barrel cess they need to pay on top of royalty and other taxes, which is severely crimping their revenues and drying up funds available for upstream investment even faster.

The government, in the process of overhauling the exploration and production contract regime in a bid to attract foreign investment, needs to heed its upstream players’ request to switch to an ad valorem tax, which would be a percentage of the sales price.

India’s decision to adopt a world markets-linked formula to price domestic gas from November 2014, just as the rates were tanking globally, was an ironic twist of fate for its producers, who were forced to accept a cap of $4.20/mmBtu through years that saw US benchmark Henry Hub touch $13/mmBtu and spot LNG prices in North Asia spike to $20/mmBtu, as assessed by Platts.

If ONGC is reluctant to develop its substantial reserves in the Krishna Godavari basin deep waters owing to doubts on the commercial viability at current gas prices, how can one hope for foreign explorers to dive in, especially as a major new rival upstream frontier opens up in the geologically more lucrative Iran?

Several upstream reforms are underway, such as the move to a uniform licensing policy, which enables companies to explore and produce all kinds of hydrocarbons from a single block; an open acreage system, which allows companies to bid for blocks throughout the year instead of waiting for licensing rounds; and clearing the way for ONGC and Oil India to surrender marginal fields for open bidding that they deem uneconomical because of the fuel subsidy sharing mechanism, are all encouraging, provided they are managed smoothly, communicated clearly, and implemented consistently.

On balance, though, in the current price environment, India’s biggest selling point when it comes to exploration dollars is the access to a sizeable and fast-growing end-user demand. When it comes to gas, which is what India seems to have in its reservoirs, aside from the price, developing the downstream market and having the distribution infrastructure in place are equally critical ingredients.

Source:- livemint.com

India Cuts Import Tariff Value On Gold

The Indian Government today has announced cut in import tariff value for gold . However, import tariff value on silver has been increased.

The import tariff value of gold has been reduced marginally by nearly over 0.5%, in accordance with prices of precious metals in the international market. Meantime, tariff value on imported silver has been increased marginally by less than 1.0% for the first fortnight period of the current month.

The Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) issued notification in this regard lowering the gold import tariff value to $345 per 10 grams. The import tariffs are being reduced from the existing $347 per 10 grams. Meanwhile the import tariff value of Silver has been raised from $448 per kilogram to $452 per kilogram.

The government move to cut the import tariff value is in primarily on account of declining gold prices in the global and domestic markets. The precious metal has been trading in a narrow range for the past one week.

Meanwhile, gold prices rose marginally by 0.2% in Singapore to $1,070 per Oz. It must be noted that gold prices had plunged by nearly 10% during the entire year 2015, ending the year with a third straight annual loss. The sharp fall in yellow metal prices was mainly attributed to the US monetary policy decisions and rising strength in dollar.

Meantime, gold in India rebounded on the first trading day of 2016. The prices were up by Rs 120 per 10 grams to Rs 25,510 per 10 grams on revival of demand from retail buyers and jewellers. However, Silver held steady at Rs 33,300 per kg on static demand from industrial users and coin makers.

Tariff value is the base price on which the customs duty on imported gold or silver is calculated and it further helps prevent under-invoicing.

Source:- metal.com

Rupee Falls Most In 9 Weeks To Trade At 66.57 Against Us Dollar

The Indian rupee on Monday weakened 0.7%, its steepest fall in nine weeks, against the US dollar, tracking losses in the local equity and Asian currencies.

At 2.20pm, the rupee was trading at 66.57 a dollar, down 0.66% from its previous close of 66.14. The local currency opened at 66.27 dollar and touched a low of 66.58, a level last seen on 17 December.

India’s benchmark equity index, BSE Sensex, was trading at 25,607.52 points, down 2.12% or 553.38 points.

Most Asian currencies fell after Chinese factory data disappointed investors, while tension in the Middle-east sent crude oil higher. South Korean won was down 1.3%, Malaysian ringgit 1.02%, Singapore dollar 0.72%, China offshore spot 0.71%, Taiwan dollar 0.68%, Indonesian rupiah 0.65%, Philippines peso 0.4%, China renminbi 0.39% and Thai baht 0.26%.

Data showing that manufacturing activity worsened in both China and India dragged the rupee down.

Indian manufacturing activity contracted in December for the first time in more than two years, hurt by softening domestic demand, adding pressure on the central bank to ease policy, a business survey showed on Monday. Nikkei’s Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI), compiled by Markit, fell to a 28-month low of 49.1 in December from November’s 50.3.

The Caixin China Manufacturing PMI index decreased to 48.2 last month, below economist estimates for 48.9. That followed official figures released Friday which showed the PMI edging up to 49.7, also below estimates for 49.8. Numbers below 50 indicate deterioration.

Since 1 April till date, foreign institutional investors have sold $2.73 billion from local equity markets and bought $657.65 million from debt markets.

Meanwhile, the yield on India’s 10-year benchmark bond stood at 7.773% compared to 7.73% from its previous close. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions.

The dollar index, which measures the US currency’s strength against major currencies, was trading at 98.087, down 0.6% from its previous close of 98.683.

Source:- livemint.com

No disallowance of interest unless AO proves that interest free loan is given from borrowed funds

IT: Where in respect of refund of fees by assessee coaching institute in cash, additions were reduced by both appellate authorities after considering various materials, same was not to be interfered

Now forex can be bought in form of postal orders or money orders

FEMA/ILT : Post Office (Postal Orders/Money Orders) – Supersession Of Notification No.FEMA 18/2000-RB, Dated 3-5-2000

Debit cards and ATM cards notified as currency under FEMA

FEMA/ILT : Definition Of Currency – Supersession Of Notification No.FEMA 15/2000-RB, Dated 3-5-2000

A Japanese Sogo Shosha entity can't be compared with a trader to make TP adjustment

IT/ILT : Where assessee earned commission from its AE for co-ordinating buyers and sellers in capacity of agent, TPO could not make addition to assessee's income by adjusting financial result of said service segment and thereupon comparing it with trading segment

President gives nod to the Atomic Energy (Amendment) Act, 2015

CORPORATE LAWS/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : Atomic Energy (Amendment) Act, 2015 [NO.5 OF 2016]

Employee with salary upto 21,000 is entitled to bonus; President clears amended Payment of Bonus Act

CORPORATE LAWS/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : Payment Of Bonus (Amendment) Act, 2015 [NO.6 OF 2016]

RBI issues new regulation for life and general insurance policies issued by foreign insurers

FEMA/ILT/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : FEM (Insurance) Regulations, 2015

Domestic manufacturers can’t be forced to comply with conditions meant for importers

Excise & Customs: If 'excise exemption' is conditional upon 'customs exemption', conditions specific to customs exemption and meant for compliance by importers, cannot be forced upon domestic manufacturers; hence, excise exemption cannot be denied to domestic manufacturers for 'not complying conditions specific to importers'

“Govt. unveils draft guidelines for public issue of units of REITs”

SEBI : Consultation Paper For Guidelines For Public Issue Of Units Of Real Estate Investment Trusts

Govt. notifies the Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Act, 2015

CORPORATE LAWS/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : Arbitration And Conciliation (Amendment) Act, 2015 [NO.3 OF 2016]

Until reassessment on basis of first notice is completed, fresh reassessment notice can't be issued

IT : Where Assessing Officer initiated reassessment proceedings by issuing a notice under section 148, said proceedings should have been completed within time stipulated and till such time there was no occasion to initiate fresh reassessment proceedings by issuing another notice under section 148

President clears Commercial Court Act; empowers State Govt. to constitute Commercial Courts at Distr

CORPORATE LAWS/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : Commercial Courts, Commercial Division And Commercial Appellate Division Of High Courts Act, 2015 [NO.4 OF 2016]

RBI notifies regulations for export or import of currency

FEMA/ILT/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : FEM (Export And Import Of Currency) Regulations, 2015

RBI notifies regulations for reliasation, repatriation and surrender of foreign exchange

FEMA/ILT/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : FEM (Realisation, Repatriation And Surrender Of Foreign Exchange) Regulations, 2015

Govt. unveils draft guidelines for public issue of REITs

SEBI : Consultation Paper For Guidelines For Public Issue Of Units Of Real Estate Investment Trusts

If enhanced income declared in revised return was accepted then deduction claimed thereon should als

IT: Where assessee claimed deduction under section 80-IAB but failed to maintain separate books of account for eligible units, Assessing Officer shall compute deduction on reasonable basis

Sale value of scrap generated during job work is includible in assessable value of goods manufacture

Excise & Customs: In hands of job worker, sum of cost of raw material, job work charges and sale proceeds of scrap would be assessable value for purpose of charging of excise duty

Govt. further extends due date for filing of DVAT Form DP-1 to Jan 31, 2016

VAT : Submission of Form DP-1 by all Dealers Latest by 31-1-2016

SC admits SLP to decide whether a person could be said to be involved in treaty shopping if income i

IT/ILT: SLP granted against High Court's ruling that where shares of Indian company were listed, income arising from any future transfer of those shares would itself be exempt by virtue of section 10(38) and, hence, no treaty shopping to be alleged on transfer of shareholding in it by company of one foreign country to its 100 per cent subsidiary company of another foreign country

Govt. issues updated guidance note on FATCA

IT/ILT : Guidance Note on Implementation of Reporting Requirements under Rules 114F to 114H of Income-Tax Act, 1961

Provision debarring AO from making reassessment due to non-registration of trust in earlier years ha

IT : As long as objects a society were charitable in nature in years earlier to year in which registration under section 12AA was granted, and no adverse findings were given with regard to existence of assessee-society for charitable purposes benefit of exemption under section 11 was to be given

TDS Scheme is faulty as it doesn't allow more than 4 changes in character of PAN in revised return

IT : System of processing TDS statements gives an option to assessee-deductor to correct invalid/No PAN entries in TDS statement through a correction statement without any restriction of correcting particular PAN with regard to number of characters

Sec. 292B couldn't be invoked to cure a mistake where penalty order was passed under a different sec

IT: Where notice for initiation of penalty proceedings against assessee had not been issued under section 221 and penalty order had also not been passed under section 221 but under section 140A(3), this mistake was not covered under umbrella of provisions of section 292B

SEBI provides an option to avoid penalty on private placement of upto 200 investors for cases prior

SEBI : PROCEDURE TO DEAL WITH CASES PRIOR TO 1-4-2014 INVOLVING OFFER/ALLOTMENT OF SECURITIES TO MORE THAN 49 UP TO 200 INVESTORS IN A FINANCIAL YEAR

SEBI revises Application-Cum-Bidding Form

SEBI : REVISED CONTENTS OF APPLICATION-CUM-BIDDING FORM AND MANNER OF DISCLOSURE

RBI revises criteria to extend credit facilities to step-down subsidiaries of Indian Companies

BANKING : EXTENSION OF CREDIT FACILITIES TO OVERSEAS STEP-DOWN SUBSIDIARIES OF INDIAN CORPORATES

Assessee can't claim lower depreciation due to under-utilization of asset for working out PLI under

IT/ILT : Where comparables had debtors, inventories and creditors, while assessee was not having any debtors and was entirely funded by advance received from AE against supplies, then in order to bring parity between results of selected comparables and that of assessee, it was essential that adjustment for working capital was made on results of such comparables

SEBI issues procedure to ensure compliance with securities contract regulations, 2012 by Listed Stoc

SEBI : PROCEDURE FOR ENSURING COMPLIANCE WITH SECURITIES CONTRACTS (REGULATION) (STOCK EXCHANGES AND CLEARING CORPORATIONS) REGULATIONS, 2012 (SECC REGULATIONS) BY LISTED STOCK EXCHANGES

Now 'Gold Exchange Traded Funds' can invest in Gold Monetisation Scheme

SEBI : INVESTMENT BY GOLD ETFs IN GOLD MONETISATION SCHEME OF BANKS

IRDA enables online system for registration or renewal of broking licenses

INSURANCE : ONLINE SYSTEM FOR REGISTRATION/RENEWAL OF BROKING LICENSES

Regional directors to receive report from ROC on violation of offences with imprisonment below 2 yea

COMPANIES ACT, 2013 : SECTION 458, READ WITH SECTION 208, OF THE COMPANIES ACT, 2013 - DELEGATION BY CENTRAL GOVERNMENT OF ITS POWERS AND FUNCTIONS - DELEGATION OF POWERS TO SPECIFIED REGIONAL DIRECTORS UNDER SECTION 208

HC slams revenue for filing condonation application signed by clerk of counsel

Excise & Customs: In case of delay in filing of appeal by department, condonation of delay application must be signed by department's officials and signing of said application/affidavit by clerk of department's counsel is highly condemnable

Seized docs containing only name of parties and amount can't be said to be maintained in normal cour

IT: Where document said to be maintained by assessee for invoking section 158BA(3) was very vague, without having details of dates and proof of transaction with parties except parties names and amount, this document would not be considered as 'other documents' maintained in normal course to exclude relevant amount from block period