Author: Legal Parivar

Indian Oil Corporation (IOCL) has scrapped its tender for establishing the first green hydrogen plant at the Panipat Refinery and Petrochemical Complex in Haryana due to a lack of interest and allegations of biased tender norms favoring a joint venture involving the state-run oil marketing company. The Independent Green Hydrogen Producers Association, representing private sector players, took legal action against the tender process. In response, IOCL issued a corrigendum last week, officially canceling the tender for the 10-kilo tonne per annum green hydrogen project. IOCL’s tender received only one bid in December from GH4India Pvt Ltd, a joint venture involving…

Bandhan Financial Holdings (BFHL) has completed the acquisition of Aegon Life Insurance on February 26, marking a strategic entry into the insurance market. The purchase from Aegon India Holding B.V. and Bennett, Coleman & Company Limited signifies a pivotal move for BFHL into the life insurance sector in India, complementing their existing presence in banking and mutual funds. According to Aegon Life Insurance, the transition to BFHL ensures the continuation of its legacy of innovation and customer-centric approaches. BFHL, as the promoter and associate company of Bandhan Bank Limited, will now become the key promoter of Aegon Life Insurance, emphasizing…

In the April-January period of the current fiscal year, the import of coal for blending purposes decreased by 36.69 percent to 19.36 Million Tonnes (MT), according to an official statement released on Monday. This marks a significant drop from 30.58 MT recorded during the same period in the previous financial year. Despite a surge in power demand, the notable decline in coal import for blending reflects the nation’s strong commitment to achieving self-sufficiency in coal production and reducing overall coal imports, stated the coal ministry. Power generation in the country witnessed a growth of 6.6 percent in the April-January period…

India advocated for increased flexibility for developing nations in exiting World Trade Organization (WTO) agreements to address challenges encountered in industrialization. India highlighted concerns regarding the merging of traditional development issues like industrial policy with newer topics under the umbrella of “Trade and Industrial policy”. The inclusion of non-trade issues in WTO discussions was cautioned against by India during the thirteenth Ministerial Conference (MC13) of the WTO in Abu Dhabi, led by Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal. Mixing non-trade topics with WTO rules could result in heightened trade fragmentation, Barthwal warned during the session on Trade and Inclusion. India’s stance aligns…

Pricol has been issued a show cause notice by the Directorate General of GST Intelligence, Gurugram Zonal Unit, potentially resulting in a tax demand of Rs 380 crore plus interest and penalty. A leading manufacturer of instrument clusters, Pricol disclosed in an exchange filing that the notice was received “as part of an industry-wide Goods and Services Tax (GST) investigation regarding the classification of instrument clusters”. While the company’s classification method implies a tax rate of 18 percent, the department’s approach would entail a tax rate of 28 percent. The filing revealed that Pricol is not the sole recipient of…

Vijay Shekhar Sharma’s resignation from the Board of Paytm Payments Bank Ltd (PPBL) was announced by One97 Communications (OCL) on February 26, with the aim of facilitating a board restructuring. OCL, the owner of the Paytm brand, stated that PPBL will begin the process of appointing a new chairman. In a press release from One97 Communications Ltd, it was disclosed that several new members have been appointed to the PPBL Board as independent directors. These include former Central Bank of India Chairman Srinivasan Sridhar, retired IAS officer Debendranath Sarangi, former Executive Director of Bank of Baroda Ashok Kumar Garg, and…

Sun Pharma, Lupin Laboratories, and Alkem Laboratories are recalling pharmaceutical products from the US market, as indicated in the US Food and Drug Administration’s (USFDA) weekly enforcement report. Sun Pharmaceutical Industries, headquartered in Mumbai, is recalling 54,960 bottles of Mesalamine Extended-Release Capsules used to treat ulcerative colitis. The recall is due to failed dissolution specifications. The product was manufactured at Sun Pharma’s Mohali unit, which has been under US FDA scrutiny. Ascend Laboratories, a subsidiary of Alkem Ltd., is recalling 71,244 units of Fosfomycin Tromethamine Granule sachets, an antibiotic for bladder infections, due to failed impurities/degradation specifications. This product was…

Currency in circulation saw a slowdown in growth, dropping to 3.7 percent for the week ending February 9 from 8.2 percent a year earlier, largely influenced by the Reserve Bank of India’s decision to phase out Rs 2,000 banknotes. Currency in circulation (CiC) encompasses notes and coins actively used, while currency with the public is calculated as notes and coins in circulation minus cash held by banks. The RBI noted that commercial banks experienced a surge in deposits in January, also attributed to the withdrawal of Rs 2,000 currency notes. Reserve Money (RM) growth, as per RBI data, decelerated to…

The Indian Paper Manufacturers Association (IPMA) revealed that imports of paper and paperboards have surged by 37 percent to approximately 1.47 million tonnes during April-December of the current fiscal year, significantly impacting local paper mills. In the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year, imports stood at around 1.07 million tonnes, according to data from the Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics (DGCI&S) cited by IPMA. The import volume for the entire fiscal year FY23 witnessed a 25 percent increase, reaching 1.44 million tonnes, and the April-December figures have already surpassed that mark, IPMA stated. Pawan Agarwal, President of…

The majority of G-33 nations, a coalition of developing countries within the World Trade Organization (WTO), have collectively called upon all WTO members to reach consensus and adopt a permanent resolution regarding the issue of public stockholding for food security objectives. In a ministerial statement on Agriculture Trade Negotiations issued on February 25, it was emphasized that the G-33 members recognize the crucial significance of public stockholding for food security, particularly for developing countries, including least developed countries (LDCs) and net food-importing developing countries (NFIDCs), in addressing food and livelihood security as well as rural development needs, including support for…