Overview

• The draft amends 355 provisions across 16 central Acts covering 10 ministries, decriminalising 288 minor or technical offences and rationalising penalties in 67 more.
• Key features include advisories or warnings for 76 first‑instance contraventions, adjudication by designated officers, and an automatic 10% rise in fines every three years.
• Sectoral changes include Motor Vehicles proposals such as state‑wide vehicle registration and a 30‑day licence grace period, and an NDMC shift to a Unit Area Method for property tax.
• Amendments also span the RBI, Electricity, Drugs and Cosmetics, Legal Metrology, Tea and Apprentices Acts to move minor breaches toward administrative settlement rather than criminal process.
• Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal introduced the bill, and the Select Committee has been asked to submit its report by the first day of the next parliamentary session.