GRAFFITI #1

The Ministry of Labour and Employment, vide Notification S.O. 454(E) dated January 30, 2026 (“Notification”), has defined the wage threshold for supervisory staff under the Code on Wages, 2019 (“Wages Code”). As per this Notification the monthly wage limit for employees in a supervisory capacity is set at ₹18,000. It clarifies that any person employed in a supervisory role who earns more than ₹18,000 per month is now officially excluded from the definition of a “worker” as per Section 2(z) of the Wages Code. This clarification is crucial for industries and HR departments, as it stipulates which employees would fall under the protective umbrella of “worker” benefits and which are categorized as management / supervisory staff based on their earnings.

GRAFFITI #2

The Ministry of Labour and Employment, through a notification dated 2 February 2026, has formally clarified that the Trade Unions Act, 1926, the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946, and the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 stand repealed with effect from 21 November 2025, following the implementation of the Industrial Relations Code, 2020. This notification confirms that these legacy labour laws have been subsumed under the new Code, reinforcing the Government’s objective of consolidating and simplifying India’s labour law framework.

GRAFFITI #4

The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has taken suo motu action against 27 restaurants across India for mandatorily levying service charges, treating it as an unfair trade practice under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019. This follows the Delhi High Court’s judgment dated 28 March 2025, which upheld the CCPA’s 2022 Guidelines and held that compulsory service charges by restaurants are illegal.

The Court confirmed that service charge must be voluntary, cannot be added by default or under any other name, cannot be linked to denial of service, and cannot be subjected to GST. Investigations, triggered by consumer complaints on the National Consumer Helpline, found several restaurants automatically adding a 10% service charge to bills, in clear violation of law.

The Central Consumer Protection Authority is closely monitoring complaints received on the National Consumer Helpline regarding levy of service charge and will continue to take strict action against non-compliant restaurants to safeguard consumer rights and prevent unfair trade practices.

GRAFFITI #5

The Minister of State for Commerce & Industry and Electronics & Information Technology, Shri Jitin Prasada, has dedicated the new Aadhaar App to the nation. Developed by UIDAI, the next-generation mobile application enables Aadhaar holders to securely carry, share and verify their digital identity through a privacy-first and consent-based framework.

The app supports multiple real-world use cases such as hotel check-ins via QR-based offline verification, optional face verification, age verification for ticketing, hospital access, and verification of gig workers. Key features include selective credential sharing through customised QR codes, biometric lock/unlock, authentication history, management of up to five Aadhaar profiles on one device (“One Family – One App”), and the ability to update mobile numbers.

UIDAI has emphasised that the app promotes data minimisation by ensuring Aadhaar numbers are not stored by verifiers, aligning with the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023.

GRAFFITI #6

The Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has notified key amendments to the New Drugs and Clinical Trials (NDCT) Rules, 2019, aimed at reducing regulatory burden and promoting ease of doing business in the pharmaceutical sector.

Under the amendments, the requirement of obtaining a test licence from Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) for non-commercial manufacture of small quantities of drugs for research or analysis has been replaced with a prior online intimation mechanism, except for certain high-risk categories such as narcotic and psychotropic drugs. This reform is expected to save up to 90 days in the drug development cycle. For cases where test licences continue to apply, the processing timeline has been reduced from 90 days to 45 days.

Dedicated online modules will be enabled on the National Single Window System and SUGAM portals to facilitate seamless implementation.

These reforms are expected to significantly expedite clinical research, reduce procedural delays, and strengthen India’s pharmaceutical R&D ecosystem while maintaining public health safeguards.

GRAFFITI #7

The Government has revised the investment and turnover limits for MSME classification to enable enterprises to achieve greater economies of scale, adopt technology upgrades, access capital more easily, and enhance global competitiveness, while ensuring continued support through priority sector lending, public procurement preferences, and targeted schemes.

To improve access to finance, RBI has advised banks to decide loan applications of up to ₹25 lakh for micro and small enterprises within 14 working days, with higher-value loans governed by board-approved timelines. Credit guarantee cover under the Credit Guarantee Scheme (CGS) for MSEs has been enhanced from ₹5 crore to ₹10 crore (effective 1 April 2025), resulting in approvals of 1,778 guarantees amounting to ₹12,498 crore in FY 2025–26 (till 31 December 2025).

Further, Udyam-registered micro enterprises are being provided credit cards for faster working capital access and promotion of digital transactions. The scheme also aims to promote digital transactions among MSMEs, enabling the use of transaction data for assessing future credit needs and monitoring end-use of funds. The beneficiaries of the scheme shall be all Udyam-registered micro enterprises requiring working capital finance.

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