Page 157 - India

India taking over G20 presidency watershed moment: PM's principal secy

The prime minister's principal secretary P K Mishra said that holding the meeting at 56 different locations in the country will ensure that the pan-India nature of event is truly showcased

Sanjay Malhotra takes charge as Revenue Secretary in Finance Ministry

Senior bureaucrat Sanjay Malhotra on Thursday took charge as the secretary in Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance. Malhotra replaced Tarun Bajaj, who superannuated on November 30. A 1990-batch IAS officer of the Rajasthan cadre, Malhotra was working as an officer on special duty (OSD) in the revenue department since October this year. Prior to that, he was serving as the secretary in Department of Financial Services (DFS). Malhotra takes over as the top bureaucrat in the revenue department at a time when the government is preparing for the Union Budget 2023-24 to be tabled in Parliament on February 1. He would be looking into various tax-related proposals for the Budget and would also be the ex-officio Secretary to the GST Council. Malhotra is an IIT-Kanpur alumnus and holds a master's degree in public policy from the Princeton University, US. Shri Sanjay Malhotra takes charge as Secretary, Department of Revenue @FinMinIndia, in North Block, New Delhi, today. Prior to his

FTAs and their discontents: Do free trade agreements benefit India?

India's balance of trade has worsened with countries with which it has signed free trade agreements

India assumes Presidency of UN Security Council for month of December

India on Thursday assumed the rotating Presidency of the 15-nation UN Security Council for the month of December, during which it will host signature events on countering terrorism and reformed multilateralism. India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Ruchira Kamboj will sit in the President's seat at the horse-shoe table. Days before India's Presidency, she met Secretary General Antonio Guterres as well as President of the General Assembly Csaba Korosi and discussed priorities during its presidency of the powerful body. "Today, delighted to call on Secretary General @antonioguterres. Discussed the priorities and programme of work ahead of India's December Presidency in the @UN Security Council," Kamboj tweeted on Tuesday. On Monday, Kamboj met Korosi, who tweeted, "Always a great pleasure to meet with India's PR @ruchirakamboj. Today's discussions focused on India's presidency of the Security Council, which begins on Thursday. I look forward to the month ahead." India

India to offer slew of incentives to boost shipbuilding industry: Report

The plans include subsidies so that at least 50 new vessels can be built as well as the granting of "infrastructure status" to the industry which would help with financing from banks, said the govt

India's electricity consumption grows 14% to 112.81 billion units in Nov

India's power consumption logged a double-digit growth of 13.6 per cent to 112.81 billion units in November 2022 compared to the year-ago period, according to the government data. The robust growth of power consumption in the month mainly indicates an increase in economic activities as generally it remains subdued in November. Experts say power consumption and demand will further increase in the coming months due to use of heating appliances, especially in the northern part of the country, and further improvement in economic activities on account of the beginning of the new rabi crop season. Farmers use electricity to run tubewells for irrigation for new crops. In November last year, power consumption was 99.32 billion units (BU), higher than 96.88 BU in the same month of 2020, the data showed. The peak power demand met, which is the highest supply in a day, last month rose to 187.38 gigawatt (GW). The peak power supply stood at 166.10 GW in November 2021 and 160.77 GW in November

Border Security Force celebrates 58th Foundation Day on December 1

The BSF is celebrating its 58th Foundation Day on Thursday. According to data, the para-military force seized more than 26,000 kilograms of drugs from the border areas till October 31 this year

Musk-led Twitter bans over 44,000 accounts for policy violations in India

Twitter banned 44,611 accounts promoting child sexual exploitation and non-consensual nudity in India between September 26 and October 25, as Elon Musk took over

President Murmu extends best wishes to team India for G20 presidency

President Droupadi Murmu on Thursday extended her best wishes to 'TeamIndia' for a successful G20 presidency under the theme 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam'. India formally assumed the G20 Presidency on December 1. "India assumes the Presidency of #G20 today. On this occasion, I extend my best wishes to #TeamIndia for a successful Presidency under the theme Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam. In the time-honoured tradition of Atithi Devo Bhava, I welcome all the delegates to India," Murmu tweeted. 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' means world is one family. India was handed over the presidency of the influential bloc at the end of the two-day G-20 summit in Bali, hosted by Indonesia last month. The next G20 Leaders' Summit at the Heads of State/Government level is scheduled to be held on September 9 and 10 in New Delhi. The G20 or Group of 20 is an intergovernmental forum of the world's major developed and developing economies. It comprises Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, .

Top Headlines: India's G20 presidency from today; GDP growth in Q2 and more

Here is our morning brief of today's top headlines

India to receive over record $100 bn in remittances in 2022: World Bank

Retaining its spot as the world's top recipient of remittances, migrant workers from India are set to send home a $100 billion in 2022, despite global headwinds like rising prices

Jiang Zemin, the first Chinese President to visit India, passes away

Jiang Zemin, China's first head of state to have visited India in 1996 and heralded a new era of constructive cooperation between the two countries by signing a crucial agreement to reduce the tensions along their disputed border, passed away on Wednesday. Jiang, who was China's president from 1993-2003, died due to leukemia and multiple organ failure in Shanghai at the age of 96, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. The announcement of Jiang's death was made by the top organs of the ruling Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) for which he was the leading light for over two decades. "Comrade Jiang Zemin was an outstanding leader enjoying high prestige acknowledged by the whole party, the entire military and the Chinese people of all ethnic groups, a great Marxist, a great proletarian revolutionary, statesman, military strategist and diplomat, a long-tested communist fighter, and an outstanding leader of the great cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics,"

WhatsApp bans over 2.3 mn malicious accounts in India in October 2022

Meta-owned WhatsApp on Wednesday said it banned over 23 lakh bad accounts in India in the month of October in compliance with the new IT Rules 2021

Samsung to hire 1,000 engineers for its research facilities in India

New employees will join the company in 2023 to work on AI, machine learning, other fields

Registration of properties in Mumbai rises 15% to 8,756 units in November

Registration of properties in Mumbai municipal region rose 15 per cent this month to 8,756 units on higher demand despite an increase in interest rates, according to Knight Frank India. In November 2021, the registration of properties stood at 7,582 units. Growth in property sale registrations in Mumbai continues to remain robust with some moderation recorded in the recent months, the consultant said. "Supported by strong consumer sentiment and supportive drivers, the Mumbai residential market has grown despite geopolitical headwinds," Shishir Baijal, Chairman and Managing Director of Knight Frank India, said. "As the festival season that drove market sentiment in the last month ends, November 2022 remains a beneficiary to the sustained momentum recording a YoY rise in property sales and government revenue collection," he added. However, Baijal said the growth rate appears to have moderated marginally due to the increased mortgage rates. Properties falling in the price bracket of

India now biggest smartwatch market globally, grew 171% in Q3 2022

Noise grew 218 per cent (year-over-year) to regain the top spot in the Indian market

Why this is India's decade

From being the 'office to the world', India is set to become its factory too

India to pitch for international biofuels alliance at G20, says Puri

India will at the upcoming G20 meeting plans to pitch for a global alliance on biofuels on lines of the highly-successful international solar alliance, Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on Tuesday. The International Solar Alliance (ISA) was conceived as a coalition of solar resource-rich countries to address their special energy needs and was launched on November 30, 2015 by India and France to implement the Paris Agreement. India, the world's third largest oil-consuming and importing nation, is now pushing for greater use of biofuels extracted from sugarcane, cereals and agri waste as a means to cut reliance on crude oil. "We will utilise our G20 presidency to try and set up an international biofuel alliance like the International Solar Alliance," Puri said KPMG's ENRich 2022 conference here. India is taking over the presidency of the group of 20 major economies, also called G20, and will host a meeting of the member nations in September next year. With nations from Brazil to

ESAF Small Finance Bank plans to set up Asset Hubs across India: Official

ESAF Small Finance Bank has planned to strengthen presence of its Asset Hubs across the country aimed at serving the small and medium enterprises and agriculture segments, a top official said on Tuesday. Asset Hub offered by ESAF Small Finance Bank is a specialised loan processing sanctioning unit and would act as one stop for all the loan needs of customers. "Asset Hub will enable the bank to de-centralise the decision-making process for the loan sanctioning, disbursement and maintenance which will enhance customer service across these locations," the bank's managing director and CEO K Paul Thomas said. "The unit will act as a one-stop for all the loan needs especially for the SMEs and agri segments," he said. ESAF Small Finance Bank plans to open Asset Hubs in Chennai, Bengaluru, Nagpur, Bhopal, Kolkata and New Delhi. The Bank's executive vice president Hemant Kumar Tamta inaugurated an Asset Hub in Coimbatore on Tuesday.

India hands $100 mn in assistance to Maldives to ease financial challenges

India on Tuesday handed over USD 100 million as assistance to the Maldives to ease the financial challenges faced by the strategically located archipelagic state in the Indian Ocean. A ceremony was held here at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs where Foreign Minister Abdulla Shahid and Finance Minister Ibrahim Ameer were also present. "Our special partnership, marked by genuine concern for each other's welfare and interests, delivers every single time and particularly in time of need," tweeted External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, who joined the ceremony via a video link. "The Government of India handed over financial assistance of USD 100 million to the Government of Maldives to ease the financial challenges. India remains reliable and steadfast in extending assistance to the Maldives," the Foreign Ministry of the Maldives said in a tweet. Foreign Minister Shahid thanked India for the timely and generous financial assistance of USD 100 million. "It is truly the strength of our tie