September.pdf

The Finance Ministry has issued the fifth set of FAQs for the Income Declaration Scheme, providing clarification on various aspects, including the disclosure of fictitious liabilities, declaration of income for earlier assessment years, and the valuation of immovable properties. The FAQs state that fictitious liabilities can be disclosed without linking them to specific assets, and income declared under the scheme can be used to explain related transactions. The Ministry has also clarified that adverse action will not be taken against declarants by the Financial Intelligence Unit solely on the basis of cash deposits made in banks consequent to declarations made under the scheme. Additionally, the period of holding of assets declared under the scheme will be taken on the basis of the actual date of acquisition, not June 1, 2016.

The RBI has proposed various measures, including the accreditation of credit counsellors for small businesses, a framework for peer-to-peer lending regulations, and the capping of banks' exposure to large borrowers. The RBI has also proposed that customers should have zero liability in case of third-party fraud on their accounts or cards, provided they notify the bank within three working days.

SEBI has increased the additional exposure limits for housing finance companies in debt-oriented mutual fund schemes from 5% to 10%. The Food regulator FSSAI has proposed new standards for frozen vegetables and processed fruit products. The RBI has also issued guidelines for the scheme for sustainable structuring of stressed assets (S4A), which allows banks to convert a portion of loans into equity.