Worldwide: Government, Public Sector

The Indian government is currently evaluating a landmark policy shift that could allow Foreign Direct Investment (“FDI”) in inventory led e-commerce models, specifically for export purposes.

In April 2020, amid the economic disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Indian government introduced Press Note 3 (“PN3”) through the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (“DPIIT”). The policy was a considered response to a specific and legitimate concern: that investors from land-border countries, China in particular, might exploit the economic distress of the pandemic to acquire stakes in Indian companies at depressed valuations. India was not alone in this assessment. Australia, France, Canada introduced comparable investment screening measures around the same time.

The Maharashtra Land Revenue Code (Second Amendment) Act, 2026 (L. A. BILL No. XXVIII OF 2026) represents a significant reform in the regulation of government land transactions in Maharashtra. Introduced in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly on 24th March 2026, it focuses primarily on amending Section 37A of the Maharashtra Land Revenue Code, 1966, a provision that governs the sale, transfer, redevelopment, use of additional Floor Space Index (“FSI”), transfer of Transferable Development Rights (“TDR”), and change in use of government land.