Indian Policy Updates:
- Bills Passed in Parliament: The Parliament in the first half of the Budget session passed the following bills, with the first five bills replacing their respective ordinances.
- The Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2015
- The Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Bill, 2015
- The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2015
- The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill
- The Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2015
- Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, 2015
- The Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorized Occupants) Amendment Bill, 2014
- Bills Pending in Parliament: The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Bill, 2015 was introduced in and passed by Lok Sabha but is presently pending in Rajya Sabha. The concerned ordinance was repromulgated by the cabinet. The other major pending bills in Rajya Sabha are The Warehousing Corporations (Amendment) Bill, 2015 and The Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets (Imposition of Tax) Bill, 2015, which was announced by the FM in the Budget Speech.
- Budget Session: The Budget session of Parliament began on February 23 and will continue until May 8, 2015. There will be a recess between March 21 and April 19. The session saw the presentation of the Union Budget, Railway Budget and the Economic Survey.
- RBI Role: The Monetary Policy Framework Agreement signed by the Government and the RBI in February 2015 will shape the stance of monetary policy in 2015-16 and succeeding years. The RBI will now stay focussed on ensuring that the economy disinflates gradually and durably, with CPI inflation targeted at 6% by January 2016 and at 4% by the end of 2017-18.
- Government establishes NITI Aayog: NITI (National Institution for Transforming India) Aayog, the body intended to replace the Planning Commission, was established on January 1, 2015. The proposed institution will provide strategic and technical advice to states regarding different aspects of policy.