Page 50 - India

Taiwan's labour minister apologises for racist jibe against Indian workers

Taiwan's Labour Minister Hsu Ming-chun has apologised for her inappropriate comments on her government's plans to recruit Indian migrant workers from a particular region which drew sharp criticism for being racist. Taiwan plans to recruit Indian workers after signing an MOU with India on February 16 to bolster people-to-people exchanges between the two countries and help alleviate labour shortages in Taiwan's industries, according to a recent statement by Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Elaborating on the recruitment plan, Hsu in a talk show on Taiwan television said her ministry will first recruit Indian workers from the North-Eastern states of India because "their skin colour and dietary habits are closer to ours," Taiwan's Central News Agency (CNA) reported on Tuesday. In addition, Hsu reported to have said the Indians there are "mostly Christians" who are adept at manufacturing, construction, and farming. Significantly, Hsu said the recruitment strategy was based on Minis

India to become upper middle-income nation by 2031, to grow at 6.8%: CRISIL

Crisil Ratings on Wednesday projected India's GDP growth at 6.8 per cent in the next fiscal and said the country will become an upper middle-income nation by 2031 with the economy doubling to USD 7 trillion. In its India Outlook report, Crisil said the Indian economy will take support from domestic structural reforms and cyclical levers and can retain -- perhaps even improve -- its growth prospects to become the third largest economy by 2031. "After a better-than-expected 7.6 per cent this fiscal, India's real GDP growth will likely moderate to 6.8 per cent in fiscal 2025," said the Crisil India Outlook report. It said that the next seven fiscals (2025-2031) will see the Indian economy crossing the USD 5 trillion-mark and inching closer to USD 7 trillion. "A projected average expansion of 6.7 per cent in this period will make India the third-largest economy in the world and lift per capita income to the upper-middle income category by 2031," Crisil said. India, with a GDP size of

Expect India to be third largest market among 118 nations: Mercedes-Benz

The company also plans to tap smaller cities as it looks to establish sales outlets in 10 new locations ranging from Jammu to Kottayam to scale operations, Sardien stated

Bank holiday on Mahashivratri 2024: Banks to remain shut for March 8

Bank holiday on Mahashivratri 2024: Mahashivratri is a very auspicious occasion when the devotees offer prayers to Lord Shiva, and Shakti. Check the full March holiday list here

Anant-Radhika pre-wedding: Mukesh, Nita Ambani performed Bollywood act

Anant-Radhika pre-wedding: The final night of Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant belongs to Mukesh Ambani and Nita Ambani who performed Bollywood acts. Watch videos here

National Safety Day 2024: Know history, significance, theme and more

National Safety Day 2024: This day is celebrated every year on March 4, which aims to create safety awareness and take precautionary measures in all sectors

WTO meeting: India, SA oppose China-led investment facilitation proposal

Two developing countries say there is no consensus on proposal and it can't be included in outcome document of ministerial conference

India consensus builder at WTO, certain nations breaking that: Piyush Goyal

India is a consensus builder in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) by playing a key role in the process but some countries are breaking that, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Wednesday. He is here for the 13th ministerial conference (MC) of the WTO. The meeting started on February 26 to discuss issues such as agriculture and fisheries subsidies, dispute settlement and moratorium on customs duty levy on e-commerce trade. The minister's remarks came amid allegations by certain developed nations that India is blocking deals at the WTO. "Our stand is consistent... we have to see who are blocking the issues and who is responsible for not letting things of the WTO smoothly... It is proved that India in fact is a consensus builder and we are playing a key role in making consensus ...and certain countries are breaking that consensus on certain issues," Goyal told reporters here. He also said that India stands on strong principles of fair play, justice at the WTO and want

Solid foundation laid by Modi now a launch pad for India to jump: EAM

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday said the solid foundation laid by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the last ten years has now become a launching pad for the country to jump to the next level. When Modi became the Prime Minister in 2014, India was the 11th largest economy in the world and has now become the fifth, he said inaugurating a school of Karnataka Lingayat Education Society at Taluka headquarters town of Chikkodi in this district. It is "Modi ki guarantee" that India will be the third largest and the top economy in the years to come, he said. "To become the top economy, you need to work hard. In the last 10 years, so much work has been done, so much hard work has been put in. In the last 10 years, many programmes have been launched," Jaishankar said. He cited the Central government's 'Anna Yojana', 'Mudra Yojana' and 'Ujjwala Yojana' in this context. The number of beneficiaries of Mudra loan scheme were more than the population of Germany and those of

India calls China-backed IFD proposal at WTO as non-trade issue: Official

As per the WTO, the Investment Facilitation for Development (IFD) Initiative, was originally launched in the spring of 2017 by a group of developing and least-developed WTO members

Why UNSC rendered ineffective in resolving Russia-Ukraine conflict: Kamboj

India has questioned why the UN Security Council has been rendered "completely ineffective" in resolving the Russia-Ukraine conflict that has continued unabated for two years, as New Delhi asserted that outdated structures need reform for multilateralism to be effective. India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador, Ruchira Kamboj, raised the question at a UN General Assembly plenary meeting held to mark two years since the beginning of the Ukraine conflict on February 24, 2022. As the conflict has continued for two years unabated, we, the comity of UN Member States, must pause and ask ourselves two pressing questions, Kamboj told the UN General Assembly meeting on the Ukraine conflict. Are we anywhere near a possible, acceptable solution? And if not, why is it that the UN system, particularly its principal organ, the United Nations Security Council, is mandated to primarily maintain international peace and security? Why is it rendered completely ineffective in the resoluti

Coalition at WTO to help India push for open payment systems adoption: GTRI

Building coalitions with other WTO members will help India push for the adoption of open and interoperable payment systems like UPI with a view to cut the cost of money transfers or remittances, a report by think tank GTRI said on Monday. The dominance of a few large players in the market contributes to these high costs, through complex and opaque fee structures, the GTRI said. It added that India's recommendations to tackle this include encouraging digital transfers, fostering interoperable systems, promoting competition, streamlining regulations, and enhancing pricing transparency. In the ongoing WTO's 13th Ministerial Conference (MC13) in Abu Dhabi, UAE and India will make a strong push for the adoption of open and interoperable payment systems, among WTO (World Trade Organisation) members. The Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said that this proposal is driven by India's belief that such systems can streamline global digital payments, and cut costs by fostering innovation

Quad a statement that others cannot have 'veto' on our choices: Jaishankar

The Quad is a statement that others cannot have a "veto" on choices of like-minded nations and the coalition is here to stay, grow and contribute to global prosperity, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Saturday, amid mounting global concerns over China's rising assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific. In an address at a think-tank forum, Jaishankar described the coalition of India, the US, Japan and Australia as an "overhead light" that is a "creative, flexible, nimble, responsive and open-minded" enterprise. The Quad has largely been focusing on bolstering cooperation to ensure a free and an open and inclusive Indo-Pacific in the face of Chinese belligerence. The external affairs minister said the Quad reflects the growth of a multipolar global order and its central approach is collaborative, and not unilateral. "All four governments have behaved differently from how they normally do. The Quad is an overhead light -- creative, flexible, nimble, responsive and open-minded ..

Raisina Dialogue 2024: S Jaishankar cautions world on China's 'mind game'

External affairs minister S Jaishankar on Friday cautioned China's mind game’ of a narrow focus solely on bilateral dynamics, saying India should not forgo its rights of harnessing

Magha Purnima 2024: Know date, history and significance of full moon day

Magha Purnima 2024: This day holds special significance for Hindu people as they observe Satyanarayan Vrat on this day and offer prayers to Lord Vishnu. Get to know more about Magha Purnima

Russia's disrupted oil trade squeezes profit margins for Indian refiners

Attacks in the Red Sea have driven up freight rates, while tougher US sanctions have stranded some Russian cargoes destined for India, adding to costs

India-Oman FTA may be reality soon; legal vetting of deal's text underway

India is keen to finalise the trade pact before the model code of conduct (MCC) kicks-in ahead of its general elections, making the timing of the finalisation of the proposed deal crucial

StanChart to continue focus on wealth management in India: Senior executive

Credit card 'core business' but will avoid competing with the country's private banks, says Kusal Roy

With 11.9 mn arrivals, India tops list for number of passengers in Dubai

India emerged at the top spot for the highest number of passengers flying through the Dubai International Airport, the world's busiest for international travel, with traffic totalling 11.9 million guests, the airport announced on Monday. According to a statement, the Dubai airport, known as DXB, surpassed not only its own yearly forecast but also pre-pandemic levels of traffic. In 2023, DXB witnessed a surge in passenger numbers, reaching 86.9 million passengers (86,994,365), an impressive year-on-year increase of 31.7 per cent. It was just under a per cent higher than the passenger numbers recorded in 2019 (86.4 million), the numbers were driven by robust growth in the second half of the year during which the airport recorded a total of 45.4 million guests. With 7.8 million guests, December was the busiest month in the fourth quarter during which the airport welcomed a total of 22.4 million guests, a year-on-year growth of 13.8 per cent compared to Q4 of last year. Q3 remained the

India-UAE relations: How friendship between the two countries has flourished since 1971

Since 1971, India-UAE ties have deepened across political, economic, and cultural spheres, with the UAE hosting 3.5 million Indians. Watch our video to know more.