Draft University Grants Commission (Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions) Regulations, 2025
The core objective of these new regulations is to eradicate discrimination within higher educational institutions (HEIs) based on caste, religion, sex, and other identity markers. This is particularly aimed at marginalized groups such as Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), and economically disadvantaged sections of society. The regulations envision a campus environment where every individual has an equal opportunity to thrive, regardless of their background.
Flow of credit to MSME: RBI discussion
During the meeting, the SAC reviewed the flow of credit to MSMEs and deliberated on ways to address the issues related to credit gap in the sector, cash flow based lending and digital solutions for improved credit linkage, accelerating adoption of TReDS, enhancing the usage of credit guarantee schemes and proactive revival and rehabilitation of MSMEs in financial distress, among others.
SEBI Relaxation in timeline for reporting of differential rights issued by AIFs
A one time reporting requirement has been mandated for AIFs/schemes of AIFs whose PPMs were filed with SEBI on or after March 01, 2020, and have issued differential right(s) which do not fall under the implementation standards formulated by Standard Setting Forum for AIFs. Such information
was to be submitted to SEBI in the prescribed format, on or before February 28, 2025. Based on representation received from the AIF industry requesting additional time to meet the reporting requirement, it has been decided to extend the timeline to March 31, 2025, for ease of compliance.
Draft SOP For Setting Up & Operation of Secondary Storage & Transportation Facilities For Municipal Solid Waste
The government has released a proposed Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to address the growing issue of poorly managed secondary storage and transportation facilities (SSTF) for solid waste in urban areas. The SOP highlights the severe environmental and health risks associated with current practices and outlines new guidelines for setting up and operating these facilities.
FSSAI Proposes New Export Certification Form To Vegan Foods
“Form I,” for vegan food compliance certificates provides a detailed template for certifying that exported vegan food products meet the requirements of the FSSAI’s vegan food regulations. The draft regulations will be considered after May 2, 2025.
When Spain Gives You Oranges: India Imposes Conditions of Import
The amendment removes specific import conditions previously applied to all citrus fruits (lemon, lime, orange, grapefruit, mandarins, etc.) from Spain, specifically regarding the Mediterranean fruit fly (Ceratitis capitata). This removes the previous options of specific cold treatments or methyl bromide fumigation for all citrus and specifically imposes them only on oranges.
