LIVE updates: India, France to expand cooperation in Indian Ocean Region

Bombay HC is hearing a plea which alleges that a media trial is being carried out by news channels under the garb of investigative journalism in Sushant's death case. Stay tuned for Latest LIVE news

3:18 AM

New hiring at RIL starts tapering, standalone employee count declines

Reliance Industries (RIL) crossed the $200-billion mark in Thursday’s trade. Though the growth in its market capitalisation (m-cap) came with an impressive rise in direct employment in an earlier phase, this might now taper off.

 

The firm’s m-cap stood at Rs 15.4 trillion as of Thursday’s close, which was 94 per cent higher than the Rs 7.96 trillion m-cap reported on September 10, 2018. However, at the stand-alone level, the number of RIL employees has, in fact, been declining for the past two years. Read more

3:17 AM

Reverie: Startup that helps firms connect with users in Indian languages

Almost every consumer-facing internet company is now pulling out all stops in acquiring capability to engage with its users and customers in vernacular languages.

 

This, in fact, is something this former Intel engineer had visualised more than a decade ago when he started his own entrepreneurial journey, quitting a cushy job at global chipmaker Intel in 2006. It was no surprise when Reliance decided to acquire majority stake in Reverie Language Technologies, which was co-founded by Arvind Pani. Read more

3:16 AM

Will take legal action against UK if it violates Withdrawal Agreement: EU

The European Union (EU) is ready to take legal action against the United Kingdom (UK) if the latter violates the letter or spirit of the Withdrawal Agreement it signed in January to begin exiting the EU. The UK has been given time until the end of this month to either abandon or suitably revise plans to introduce an Internal Market Bill in the British parliament to effectively renege on some of its obligations. Read more

9:10 PM

Union Bank of India to reduce MCLR by up to 5 bps across tenors

The Union Bank of India will reduce the marginal cost of funds-based lending rate (MCLR) by up to 5 basis points across tenors. The reduced MCLR would come into effect on Friday. This is the 15th consecutive rate cut announced by it since July 2019, the bank said in a statement.

 

The MCLR, the minimum lending rate below which a bank is not permitted to lend, is an internal reference rate for banks to determine the interest they can levy on loans.

8:55 PM

IRDAI allows insurers to obtain policy holders' consent through OTP

Regulator IRDAI has permitted health and general insurers to obtain consent of prospective policy holders through a duly validated One Time Password (OTP), thus dispensing with the practice of getting wet signature in view of the Covid-19 pandemic.

 

The regulator has also exempted the insurers from mandatorily sending hard copy of the document to policy holders. However, the policies will have to be sent through electronic mode on the registered e-mail.

8:48 PM

Overall jobs growth rate slips to 3.5% in FY20: Report

Reflecting the overall stress in the economy, the employment growth rate declined to 3.5 per cent in FY20 from 3.8 per cent in the previous fiscal year, but the total number of jobs increased to 5 million from 4.83 million , says a report.

 

In FY20, 17 million new jobs were added, while the net addition was 1..6 million in FY19, shows a CARE Ratings report.

 

But in FY20, as many as 321 companies reduced their headcounts by 11.3 million compared to 272 companies doing so by 11.8 million in the previous year.

 

In FY20, top 10 companies added 14.1 million to their headcounts of which four each were in IT and banks and two in the NBFC space.

8:43 PM

India, France decide to expand cooperation in Indian Ocean Region

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his French counterpart Florence Parly on Thursday held extensive talks during which they vowed to step up cooperation in the Indian Ocean, a region which is witnessing rising Chinese military posturing.

 

PTI reported that Singh also apprised Parly on India's four-month-long border row with China in eastern Ladakh.

 

Official sources said the two sides reviewed the entire gamut of bilateral cooperation and exchanged views on contemporary regional and global security issues of mutual interest.

 

The two ministers emphasised the need to work closely keeping in view the joint strategic vision of India-France cooperation in the Indian Ocean region, the sources said.

8:35 PM

Yes Bank repays entire Rs 50,000 cr SLF dues to RBI

Yes Bank has fully repaid the Rs 50,000 crore provided by RBI as a special liquidity facility (SLF) amid the crisis faced by the lender earlier this year, its Chairman Sunil Mehta said on Thursday.

 

He further said FY21 will be a year of transition for the bank, which has just come out of an unprecedented Rs 10,000 crore bailout led by SBI after setbacks received under the founding team.

8:26 PM

30% of Maharashtra population are Marathas, can't be compared to marginalized sections: SC

Maratha community comprises 30 per cent of the population in Maharashtra and it cannot be compared to marginalized sections of the society, the Supreme Court has said as it stayed the implementation of 2018 state law granting reservation to them in education and jobs.

 

The top court said it is of the prima facie opinion that Maharashtra government did not show any extraordinary situation for providing reservations to Marathas in excess of 50 per cent cap fixed by the apex court in its 1992 verdict also known as the 'Mandal verdict'.

8:20 PM

Preparations underway at Kolkata Metro stations ahead of reopening

8:15 PM

India takes on Chair of RIC process, says S Jaishankar

8:05 PM

Online fantasy sports' tax payout increased 2.6 times in FY20: IndiaTech

Tax payments from online fantasy sports platforms in the country increased 2.6 times in FY20 to about Rs 445 crore, according to a whitepaper released by non-profit IndiaTech on Thursday. It also said only 20 per cent subscribers pay to play the various games on these platforms.

 

Moreover, 98 per cent of the paid users have either won or lost less than Rs 10,000 net on a platform in the past three-four years.

8:04 PM

1.37 mn Indians returned from abroad under Vande Bharat Mission: MEA

7:55 PM

Watch: Partitioning in Parliament ahead of Monsoon Session

7:40 PM

States may cut FY21 capex by Rs 3 trillion due to GST shortfall: Icra

States may have to significantly cut their expenditure by as much as Rs 3.4 lakh crore in the current fiscal if they are not paid full compensation relating to Goods and Services Tax (GST), investment information agency ICRA has said.

 

"The fiscal deficit of states may rise up to 4.25 to 5.52 per cent of gross state domestic product in FY21, curtailing their capital spending by Rs 1 lakh crore to 3.4 lakh crore, considering shortfalls in GST and central tax devolution (CTD)," it said in an update on state government finances.

7:29 PM

Actor Paresh Rawal appointed chief of National School of Drama

Veteran actor and former BJP MP Paresh Rawal was Thursday appointed chairperson of the National School of Drama (NSD), India's premier theatre institute that has trained actors such as Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri and Irrfan Khan.

 

The post had been vacant since 2017.

7:16 PM

Indian Army occupies heights overlooking Chinese side along Pangong Tso

Indian Army has occupied heights overlooking the Chinese Army positions at Finger 4 along the Pangong Tso lake. These operations were carried out along with the preemptive actions to occupy heights near the Southern bank of Pangong Tso lake around August end, reported news agency ANI.

According to the sources, India and China armies today held interactions at Brigade Commander-level and Commanding Officer level in Eastern Ladakh. Interactions are aimed at keeping the communication lines open between the two sides.

7:08 PM

Zomato plans to file for IPO in first half of 2021

Online restaurant guide and food ordering platform Zomato plans to go for an initial public offering (IPO) in the first half of 2021, its founder and CEO Deepinder Goyal told employees on Thursday.

 

In an e-mail to them, accessed by PTI, Goyal said: "Our finance/legal teams are working hard to take us to IPO sometime in the first half of next year."

 

"The value of our business is going up dramatically, all thanks to the hard work and commitment of our team. We hope to create a lot of value for our current employees who have ESOPs sometime in the next year," he added.

 

The IPO is around the corner and waiting a little longer will result in significantly more value creation for all, he added.

6:59 PM

Jaishankar to meet China counterpart in Moscow amid border row

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will meet China counterpart shortly in Moscow on the sidelines of SCO, NDTV reported. The comes amid weeks long border row between the two countries.

6:48 PM

PM to inaugurate 175,000 houses for poor in Madhya Pradesh on Sept 12

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate 175,000 houses built under the Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana - Gramin (PMAY-G) in Madhya Pradesh on Saturday, his office said on Thursday.

 

The Prime Minister's Office said all these houses have been built or completed during the challenging Covid-19 period. He will also participate in "Grih Pravesham", a ceremony considered auspicious for a family's entry into its new house, the statement said. The event will be done through video conference, and state's Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan will also attend the ceremony.

6:40 PM

PM Modi holds telephonic talks with Shinzo Abe; appreciates role in boosting Indo-Japan ties

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday held a telephonic conversation with his outgoing Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe and conveyed his gratitude for playing a key role in greatly strengthening ties between India and Japan. In the talks, Modi apprised Abe his intention to work closely with the new government of Japan and wished him the very best for the future, the Ministry of External Affairs said.

 

It said the two leaders expressed confidence that the strong momentum attained in partnership between the two countries in the last few years will continue unabated in the future. Last month, Abe decided to resign citing health issues.

6:31 PM

Times Internet targets to be $1 bn revenue company by 2025

Digital content and services firm Times Internet Limited, which owns platforms like Gaana, MX Player, Dineout, on Thursday said it aims to become a $1 billion revenue company by 2025.

 

The company said its revenue grew 24 per cent to Rs 1,625 crore in financial year 2020.

 

"Our aspiration is to reach 1 billion Indians, and become a $1 billion (about Rs 7,300 crore) revenue company by 2025, and we've built the foundation to help us get there," Times Internet Vice Chairman Satyan Gajwani said in a blog post.

6:19 PM

Govt's skill agenda is to create workforce to match global demands: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the government's skill agenda is to create a workforce that matches the global demands and several efforts have been undertaken to enable a strong skill development ecosystem.

 

He also observed that the whole nation has come together under the 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' mission and it is the need of the hour for every Indian to be self-reliant in these changing times, an official statement said.

6:11 PM

Alert along LoC after ISI uses drones to drop weapons for terrorists

A quadcopter used by Pakistani spy agency ISI in Jammu and Kashmir has necessitated alert along the Line of Control (LoC) in the valley as the Army believes it could be used for dropping weapons for terrorists.

 

Talking to PTI, General-Officer-in-Command of strategically located XV corps in Kashmir Lt Gen B S Raju said after an incident "across Peer Panjal", a reference to Jammu region in army parlance, "we have alerted all formations to keep a check on any flying object seen along the LoC". Read more

6:01 PM

Watch: Beirut port engulfed in black smoke

5:59 PM

Kolkata Metro to resume operations on 14th Sept from 8 am.

Total 110 trains will run at an interval of 10 minutes.
Only Smart card passengers allowed to travel.
Metro will operate on 13th September only for NEET aspirants and  their parents.

5:47 PM

India's fuel demand dips most since April

India's fuel demand in August posted its biggest decline since April as local lockdowns put brakes on economic activity and transportation, official data showed on Thursday.

 

Petroleum product sales fell to 14.39 million tonnes in August, down 7.5 per cent over the previous month and about 16 per cent from a year earlier, data from the oil ministry's Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell (PPAC) showed.

 

The decline in August was the sixth consecutive year-on-year slide.

5:39 PM

Puri to review ongoing development work at Darbhanga, Deoghar airports

Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri will visit the airports at Darbhanga and Deoghar on Saturday to review the ongoing development work, according to an official statement.

 

"AAI is developing these airports. With the operationalisation of these airports, air connectivity of the region will be improved," the statement by the Civil Aviation Ministry said on Thursday.

 

The AAI is developing the civil enclave at Darbhanga airport in Bihar for commencement of passenger flight operations with Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru under regional connectivity scheme 'Udan', the ministry noted.

5:35 PM

Hiring activities increase 12% m-o-m in August: Naukri JobSpeak Index

Hiring activities are steadily increasing in sync with the gradual unlock measures taken by the Centre and state governments, with a 12 per cent improvement in job postings at 1,413 in August as compared to the previous month, according to Naukri JobSpeak Index.

The month-on-month (m-o-m) improvement in job postings indicates that hiring activities are in sync with unlock measures that are aimed at reviving the economic activities.

5:27 PM

UP CM meets Puri on developing facilities for Ayodhya, Chitrakoot, Sonbhadra airports

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Thursday met Union Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri in connection with development works and infrastructure facilities for Ayodhya, Chitrakoot and Sonbhadra (Myorpur) airports.

In the last three-and-a-half years, development works are being done in 17 airports in Uttar Pradesh. Earlier, only two airports were operational here, but currently seven airports are functioning, Adityanath said while addressing the meeting via video conferencing.