Page 23 - India

India fails to secure exemption from UK carbon tax in trade deal: GTRI

India was unable to secure an exemption from the UK's carbon tax in the free trade agreement, signed on Thursday, a move that will impact India's carbon-intensive exports to Britain, think tank GTRI said on Friday. The UK government in December 2023 decided to implement its Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) starting 2027. By not securing a carve-out or exemption clause on CBAM (carbon border adjustment mechanism), India lost a vital opportunity to protect its carbon-intensive exports, the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) Founder Ajay Srivastava said. "From January 2027, the UK can impose carbon taxes on Indian steel and aluminum, even as we grant UK goods duty-free access. That's a serious asymmetry. Expect the same treatment in India's trade agreement with the EU," he said. The GTRI in May stated that India's exports worth USD 775 million to the UK may be impacted due to Britain's decision to introduce a carbon tax on products such as iron and steel, aluminium, ...

India-UK FTA may restrict India's use of compulsory licensing: GTRI

India has accepted language in the intellectual property chapter of the free trade agreement with the UK that subtly curtails its ability to issue compulsory licences, a critical tool for accessing life-saving technologies during emergencies, think tank GTRI said on Thursday. It also said that India has agreed to "adequate remuneration" norms for compulsory licensing for the pharma sector in the agreement with the UK, thus risking delays in future access to affordable medicines and green tech. The Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said that in "a significant concession, India has accepted language in the Intellectual Property (IP) chapter of the agreement that subtly curtails its ability to issue compulsory licenses (CL), a critical tool for accessing life-saving technologies during emergencies". "For the first time" in any trade agreement, India has explicitly agreed to wording that stresses the need for 'adequate remuneration' to patent holders, GTRI founder Ajay Srivastava

India-UK FTA to cut spirit duties, but price drop may be limited: Experts

The India-UK free trade agreement will reduce duties on imported spirits, making premium international options more accessible to Indian consumers, according to industry players, but experts cautioned that the benefits may be limited as the maximum price reduction could be only up to Rs 300 per bottle. As per the FTA signed in London between the two governments, India is reducing duty on UK whisky and gin from 150 per cent to 75 per cent and further to 40 per cent in the tenth year of the deal. "Whisky producers will benefit from tariffs slashed in half, reduced immediately from 150 per cent to 75 per cent and then dropped even further to 40 per cent over the next ten years - giving the UK an advantage over international competitors in reaching the Indian market," as per an official statement of the UK government. Reacting to the development, the International Spirits and Wines Association of India (ISWAI), which represents premium alcoholic beverage companies in India (mostly MNCs)

India reopens doors to Chinese tourists, ends 5-year suspension | India-China relations

India will resume tourist visa issuance for Chinese nationals from today, July 24.This marks the first time since 2020 that Chinese tourists can apply to visit India. Watch the video for details.

Indo-UK deal to give Indian market access at lower tariff, says JLR

Jaguar Land Rover on Thursday said the India-UK free trade agreement would help the marquee automaker to access lower tariffs in India for its luxury models. Under the India-UK FTA, India will reduce tariffs on automotive imports from about 110 per cent to 10 per cent under quotas on both sides, benefiting companies such as Jaguar Land Rover (JLR). "We welcome this free trade agreement between the UK and India, which over time will deliver reduced tariff access to the Indian car market for JLR's luxury vehicles," a company spokesperson said in a statement. India is an important market for the company's British-built products and represents significant future growth opportunities, the spokesperson added. In a separate query regarding a change in pricing of imported products into the Indian market, a UK-based spokesperson said: "No decisions have been made on pricing." Around 60 per cent of the cars JLR sells in India, including popular models in the Range Rover portfolio Range Rov

India, China review border situation ahead of special representatives talks

India and China on Wednesday reviewed the overall situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and prepared ground for the Special Representatives dialogue on the boundary question. The review was carried out at a meeting of Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination (WMCC) that took place in Delhi. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the two sides also prepared for the next round of the Special Representatives' (SR) talks to be held in India later this year. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is expected to visit India for the SR talks. Wang and NSA Ajit Doval are the SRs for the talks. The MEA said the two sides reviewed the situation in the India-China border areas. They expressed "satisfaction with the "general prevalence of peace and tranquillity in the border areas, leading to gradual normalisation of bilateral relations," it said in a statement. The two sides "agreed to maintain regular exchanges and contacts on issues related to the boundary affairs at

Will retire in 2027: Jagdeep Dhankhar's 10-day-old video in focus after sudden exit

A recent video of Jagdeep Dhankhar stating that he would retire as Vice President in August 2027 resurfaced on social, a day after he stepped down from the post.

DAE exploring rare earth elements in key areas across India: G Kishan Reddy

The exploration and augmentation of rare earth group elements in many potential geological areas in the country is being carried out by a unit of the Department of Atomic Energy, the Parliament was informed on Monday. China's restrictions on the export of rare earth elements and related magnets are affecting the domestic auto and white goods sectors. Replying to a question in Rajya Sabha, coal and mines minister G Kishan Reddy said, "Atomic Minerals Directorate for Exploration and Research (AMD), a constituent unit of Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), is carrying out exploration and augmentation of rare earth group elements along coastal/ inland/ riverine placer sands, as well as in hard rock terrains in several potential geological domains in the country." The minister further said that as on date, AMD has estimated approximately 7.23 million tonnes (MT) of in-situ Rare Earth Elements Oxide (REO) contained in 13.15 MT of monazite in coastal beach, teri/red sand and inland alluvium

Rosneft calls EU sanctions on Nayara Energy unjustified and illegal

Russian oil giant Rosneft on Sunday termed as unjustified and illegal the sanctions that the EU has slapped on its Indian unit, Nayara Energy. "Rosneft Oil Company considers the European Union's decision to impose restrictive measures on the Indian refinery of Nayara Energy as unjustified and illegal," it said in a statement. "These sanctions are yet another example of extraterritorial implementation of politically motivated restrictions that blatantly violate international law and infringe on the economic interests of a sovereign state." The European Union on Friday imposed sanctions on the Indian oil refinery of Rosneft and lowered the oil price cap, as part of a new raft of measures against Russia over its war in Ukraine. The fresh sanctions package on Russia included new banking restrictions and curbs on fuels made from Russian crude oil. The lowered oil price cap - currently set at USD 60 per barrel - means Russia will be forced to sell its crude at reduced rates to buyers li

EU curbs on Russian oil may hit India's $15 bn fuel exports: GTRI

India's petroleum product exports worth USD 15 billion to the European Union (EU) may be at risk as Brussels moves to restrict imports of Russian crude oil refined in third countries, economic think tank GTRI said. The 18th package of sanctions by the 27-nation EU included a set of measures largely aimed at curbing the revenues of Russia's oil and energy sector, such as an import ban on refined petroleum products made from Russian crude oil and coming from any third country. The Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said that a central component of the package is a ban on the import of refined petroleum products made from Russian crude and exported via third countries, excluding only a select few allies like the US, UK, Canada, and Switzerland. This measure will hurt nations such as India, Turkey, and the UAE, which have been refining Russian crude and selling diesel, petrol, and jet fuel to Europe, it said. "India's USD 5 billion exports of petroleum products to the EU are at ri

Income of unrecognised political parties jumps 223% in FY23: ADR report

The declared incomes of registered unrecognised political parties witnessed a 223 per cent spike in 2022-23 and more than 73 per cent of these parties failed to publicly disclose their financial records, according to poll rights body the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR). Its report analysed the status of submission of annual reports of a total of 739 (26.74 per cent) registered unrecognised parties across 22 states in India, whose either audit or contribution reports were available on the websites of respective state CEOs for the 2022-23 financial year. The analysis showed that both annual audit and contribution reports of a significant 73.26 per cent or 2025 of the total registered unrecognised parties are not available in the public domain for FY 2022-23. The maximum number of registered unrecognised parties, whose statements are available are in Uttar Pradesh, followed by Delhi and Bihar, given that these states have the highest number of registered unrecognised political

India needs to be careful, clever in trade talks with US: Raghuram Rajan

India needs to be 'very careful and clever' while negotiating trade agreements with the US, especially with regard to the agriculture sector, which is heavily subsidised by developed countries, former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan said on Friday. In an interview with PTI Videos, Rajan said India's economic growth has sort of settled in the range of 6-7 per cent, and a fraction of percentage point may be affected by the global trade uncertainties. "I think where it is much more sort of difficult (trade negotiations) is in areas such as agriculture, where every country subsidises its producers, and our producers may be relatively smaller, may have somewhat lower subsidies... the kind of harm that unconstrained flow of agricultural products into the country may create problems for them," he said. Earlier this week, the Indian team was in Washington for the fifth round of negotiations for the proposed Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA). "For example, can we encourage more foreign direct ...

Prada’s Sandal & the Kolhapuri Original: How Global Fashion Rebrands Craft

When Prada launched its ₹1.2 lakh “toe-ring sandal,” many in India saw something familiar — the traditional Kolhapuri chappal. But this isn’t an isolated case.

India, France to collaborate on ₹61,000 cr deal for fighter engines

The ₹61,000 crore initiative seeks to develop a 120 kilonewton engine for future platforms, with French company Safran offering full technology transfer as part of the collaboration

US Solar firms file trade petition against India over cheap imports

The new anti-dumping and countervailing duty petitions were filed by the Alliance for American Solar Manufacturing and Trade, which includes First Solar Inc, Mission Solar Energy and Qcells

India should continue buying Russian oil; must reject US pressure: GTRI

India should resist the US pressure to stop purchasing oil from Russia and continue buying the commodity from Moscow as it has helped India manage inflation and maintain economic stability in a volatile global environment, economic think tank GTRI said on Thursday. US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose a 100 per cent tariffs on Russian oil buyers. "India must reject this pressure and stay firm on its Russia strategy. Buying discounted Russian oil has helped India manage inflation and maintain economic stability in a volatile global environment," the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) Founder Ajay Srivastava said. Altering that policy will not stop US threats and it will only invite more, he said, adding this isn't an isolated demand, Trump regularly issues tariff threats for various reasons. "Given this pattern, India sees no value in giving in to US pressure on Russian oil. It won't resolve the larger issue of future unpredictable US demands. Even a trade deal wi

'Cautions against double standards': MEA hits back at Nato chief's warning

Addressing a press conference in the national capital, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, 'We have seen reports on the subject and are closely following the developments'

India's goods exports may face pressure in fiscal 2026 amid tariffs: Crisil

Ratings firm CRISIL said that India's goods exports are likely to face some headwinds in fiscal 2026, as reciprocal tariffs imposed by the US are seen to aggravate this. With the tariff hikes expected to come into effect from August, India and the US are negotiating on a bilateral trade agreement and a key monitorable, the report said. The World Trade Organisation forecasts a 0.2 per cent decline in the volume of merchandise trade in 2025 compared to 2.9 per cent in 2024. The report said global growth is expected to slow down to 2.9 per cent in 2025 from 3.3 per cent. Growth in the US, India's largest export destination, is projected to slow to 1.7 per cent from 2.8 per cent. Accordingly, India's merchandise trade is expected to come under pressure this fiscal. However, the current account deficit (CAD) is expected to stay in the safe zone at 1.3 per cent of the GDP in the current financial year. The surplus in services trade, a robust flow of remittances is expected to cushion

Russia to bring in 1 million skilled Indian workers to fill labour gap

Russia will import up to 1 million workforce by the end of this year to address labour shortage in the country's highly industrialised areas, a business leader said. "As far as I know, by the end of the year, 1 million specialists from India will come to Russia, including the Sverdlovsk region. A new Consulate General is opening in Yekaterinburg, which will deal with these issues," Andrey Besedin, the head of the Ural Chamber of Commerce and Industry, told the RosBusinessConsulting (RBC) news agency. Besedin said the migration of Indians would fill the shortage of a highly qualified workforce in the Sverdlovsk region. Sverdlovsk, with the capital Yekaterinburg, is situated in the Ural mountains and is home to Russian heavy industry and military-industrial complex, including world-famous Uralmash and T-90 series tank maker Ural Wagon Zavod. Besedin stressed that industrial enterprises needed to increase production volumes, but the region faced a shortage of skilled workers. Some ..

India reaches 50% non-fossil power milestone ahead of 2030 target

India has achieved 50 per cent non-fossil fuel-based power generation capacity of 242.8 GW out of the total 484.8 GW installed capacity, five years ahead of its 2030 target, Union New & Renewable Energy Minister Pralhad Joshi said on Monday. This assumes significance in view of India's commitment at international fora to increased non-fossil fuel-based power generation in the country. India has set an ambitious target of having 500 GW of renewable energy-based electricity generation by 2030. "Under the visionary leadership of Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri @narendrmodi ji, a major climate commitment has been fulfilled. India's total installed power capacity now stands at 484.8 GW, with 242.8 GW coming from non-fossil fuel sources -- a powerful testament to our green progress. This is not just a milestone -- it's a giant stride towards a greener, cleaner Bharat by 2047," Joshi said on X. "Historic Green Leap for India! India achieves 50 per cent on non-fossil fuel capacity -- 5 years .