Page 82 - India

Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe to visit India this week

The visit will reinforce the longstanding friendship between the two countries and explore avenues for enhanced connectivity and mutually beneficial cooperation across sectors

India, France to develop new generation military equipment: French envoy

India and France agreed to develop new generation military equipment as part of a long-term roadmap during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Paris, French Ambassador Emmanuel Lenain said on Tuesday. The envoy also said that there is "real" political consensus in France on enhancing ties with India as he cited Modi's meetings with President of the French Senate Grard Larcher, President of French National Assembly Yal Braun-Pivet and Prime Minister lisabeth Borne. "It shows that when it comes to India in France, there is real consensus. There is no difference. Everybody is so supportive and that is one of the trademarks of this partnership,"Lenain said at a media briefing. Prime Minister Modi visited Paris on July 13 and 14 during which both sides reaffirmed their commitment to expand overall strategic cooperation including in defence. "Defence cooperation has always been very important for the two countries as we feel that in order to be independent, we have to be secure. And

UP ATS questions Pak citizen Seema, Indian partner Sachin for second day

Pakistani citizen Seema Haider, who entered India illegally in May, was picked up by Uttar Pradesh Police's Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) for questioning for a second day on Tuesday, an official said. Her Indian partner, Sachin Meena, with whom Hiader is currently staying in Greater Noida, has also been taken for questioning by the agency, the local police official said. The cross-border couple were first interrogated by the UP ATS on Monday at its office in Noida and the duo was released late in the night. Haider, 30, and Meena, 22, were first arrested by the local police in Greater Noida on July 4 but were granted bail by a court on July 7.

Contingent that participated in Bastille Day made India proud: Army chief

Army Chief General Manoj Pande on Monday felicitated members of the tri-services contingent which participated in the Bastille Day Parade in France last week, and said they have made the armed forces and India proud. At an event held at the Manekshaw Centre here, the Army chief also said the Indian contingent who went to France has played a significant role in boosting the image of the country. "You have not only made the three services -- army, air force and navy -- proud but also made the whole nation proud," he said in his address. The sending of a tri-services contingent from the army, the air force and the navy, was in itself very significant, Gen Pande said. He also mentioned that some members of the Punjab Regiment got to visit the war memorial at Neuve-Chapelle, a World War I memorial in France built in memory of Indian soldiers who laid down their lives, and pay their respects there. The Indian tri-services contingent participated in the Bastille Day celebrations in Franc

Need to grow at 7.6% to be a developed nation by 2047-48, says RBI

Sustainable path to development requires investment in physical capital & comprehensive reforms across sectors covering education, infrastructure, healthcare & technology to raise productivity: Study

More optimistic about India now than 'in a long time': WB chief Ajay Banga

World Bank president Ajay Banga on Monday said amid global challenges, he is more optimistic about India and its economy now than he has been "in a long time". Talking to the media on the sidelines of the third G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting here, the first-ever Indian-American to head the top global financial institution said the world economy is in a difficult place. Banga (63) showered praises on India for its digital infrastructure, saying he is a "big fan" of such initiatives taken by the world's fifth largest economy. "I am more optimistic about India, as a whole, economically, than I have been for a long time. The fact is that the world economy is in a difficult place. It has outperformed what everybody thought. But it does not mean that it won't be more challenging. The IMF forecast, the World Bank forecast are that the world will get a little challenging over the next year or so," he said at the Mahatma Mandir Convention Centre, where the G20 ...

India's infrastructure was in poor shape before 2014: CM Adityanath

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday alleged the government at the Centre before 2014 was characterised by indecision and corruption which affected the growth of the country's infrastructure. "There is a noticeable difference. India's infrastructure was in poor shape prior to 2014. The four-lane, six-lane, and eight-lane roads built during the time of Atal ji (former PM Atal Behari Vajpayee) were doing well, but no new projects were pursued (by the UPA government)," he said after the inauguration of two national highway projects worth Rs 3,300 crore here. Criticising the government at the helm before 2014, he said, "The government was suffering from indecision, and corruption was rampant." "In the last nine years, you must have seen that India is becoming self-reliant in the field of security. Today, the enemy cannot look at India with evil intentions. The Defence Corridor of Lucknow is realising the vision of Make in India in Uttar Pradesh itself," the CM said. H

India, US mutually resolve all 6 trade disputes at WTO following PM's visit

India and the US have mutually resolved all six trade disputes pending at the World Trade Organisation (WTO), in line with the commitment made by the two countries during the US visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi last month, an official said. The official said that both countries have informed the WTO's dispute settlement body (DSB) about the resolution of all the pending disputes. The WTO has already issued a communication with regard to one of the disputes related to the imposition of additional customs duties by India on 28 US products. The official added that the remaining five communications would also be issued by the WTO. "The United States and India are pleased to notify the DSB (dispute settlement body), in accordance with Article 3.6 of the Understanding on Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes, that the parties have reached a mutually agreed solution to the matter raised in this dispute," according to a communication of the WTO dated July 17. The

India contributes $1 mn to UN for promoting use of Hindi language

India has contributed USD 1 million as part of a voluntary contribution to the United Nations to promote the use of the Hindi language in the world organisation and to foster inclusive dialogue and understanding, India's Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Ruchira Kamboj said on Monday. Kamboj handed over the cheque of USD 1 million to Under Secretary General of the United Nations Department of Global Communications Melissa Fleming. The Indian Government is delighted to make a substantial voluntary contribution to the @UN, with a focus on promoting the usage of Hindi. A step towards fostering inclusive dialogue and understanding, Kamboj tweeted. Efforts of the United Nations to mainstream and consolidate news and multimedia content in the Hindi language have been appreciated in India and in countries where a Hindi-speaking population resides, she said. She said the Indian government will continue to promote the use of the Hindi language in the United Nations. For this ..

India's gasoline demand likely to recover from late August: HPCL official

The local sale of diesel by private refiners is also denting sales by state-run companies, the official said

135 mn people moved out of poverty in India in 5 years: Niti Aayog

As many as 13.5 crore people in five years ended March 2021 moved out of multidimensional poverty, measured by improvement in health, education and standard of living, with Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh registering the fastest reduction, said a Niti Aayog report on Monday. India has registered a significant decline of 9.89 percentage points in the number of India's multidimensionally poor from 24.85 per cent in 2015-16 to 14.96 per cent in 2019-2021, according to the second edition of the National Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI). While rural areas witnessed the fastest decline in poverty from 32.59 per cent to 19.28 per cent, urban areas saw a reduction in poverty from 8.65 per cent to 5.27 per cent. "A record 13.5 crore people moved out of multidimensional poverty between 2015-16 and 2019-21," said the report 'National Multidimensional Poverty Index: A Progress Review 2023' released by Suman Bery, Vice-Chairman, Niti Aayog. The National MPI measures simultaneous ...

Manufacturing sentiments in India remain positive for first quarter: Ficci

Manufacturing sentiments in India remained positive during June quarter FY24 notwithstanding global headwinds, according to a Ficci survey released on Monday. The latest quarterly survey on manufacturing outlook by the industry body observed that after a revival in the Indian economy in FY22, momentum of growth has continued in the subsequent quarters as well. The survey assessed the sentiments of manufacturers for April-June (2023-24) for nine major sectors namely automotive & auto components, capital goods & construction equipment, cement, chemicals fertilizers and pharmaceuticals, electronics & white goods, machine tools, metal & metal products, textiles, apparels & technical textiles, toys & handicraft. Responses have been drawn from over 400 manufacturing units from both large and SME segments with a combined annual turnover of over Rs 7.70 lakh crore. In March quarter FY23, 55 per cent of the respondents reported higher production levels. Further, over 57

Zee Entertainment forms interim committee to run operations; shares up 6.3%

SAT directed SEBI to pass a final order by the middle of next month and asked Chandra and Goenka to defend themselves before the regulator

Air India writes off Rs 7,000 crore but turns Ebitdar positive in FY23

Air India and its former joint venture partner AirAsia Bhd shared the cost of writing off AirAsia India, with Air India accounting for a significant proportion of the write-off

Isro successfully performs second orbit-raising manoeuvre of Chandrayaan-3

The Indian Space Research Organisation has successfully performed the second orbit-raising manoeuvre (Earth-bound apogee firing) of the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft. "The spacecraft is now in 41603 km X 226 km orbit", the national space agency headquartered here said on Monday. The next firing is planned for Tuesday between 2 pm and 3 pm. it said. The Chandrayaan-3 mission to the Moon was launched on July 14.

Luxury car market poised for record sales in 2023 after stellar H1 numbers

Indian luxury car segment is driving towards an all-time high sales this year with the big three, Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Audi, posting record numbers in the first half of 2023. In the January-June period this year, German luxury carmaker Mercedes-Benz posted its best-ever half-yearly sales in India at 8,528 units, a growth of 13 per cent over 7,573 units in the year-ago period. Similarly, compatriot BMW Group also posted record sales of 5,867 units of luxury cars across its BMW and MINI brands during the period, its best half-yearly sales in India. Another German luxury carmaker, Audi, posted a 97 per cent jump in retail sales in India at 3,474 units in the first half of 2023 as compared to 1,765 units in the January to June period in 2022. "Our estimate is that in the first six months (of the year) about 21,000 cars have been sold in the luxury space and normally H2 (second half) is better than H1. So, our estimate is that the whole luxury cars segment should be close to about ...

When India speaks today, whole world listens: Rajnath Singh on int'l forums

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Sunday earlier India's words were not taken seriously at international forums, but today when it speaks the whole world listens. India's prestige has increased internationally under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he said at an event as part of his three-day visit to his parliamentary constituency Lucknow. "Earlier, India's words were not taken seriously at international forums, today when India speaks, the whole world listens carefully. When our prime minister visits other countries, you must have seen on TV how he is welcomed there," he said after inaugurating an open gym at Mrityunjay Park in Nirala Nagar, according to a press statement issued by the local BJP unit. "The prime minister of Australia calls him (Modi) Boss. The President of America tells Modiji 'you are globally powerful', and expresses desire to take his autograph. Muslim countries are also giving him the highest respect. The Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea

India global bright spot with strong desire to grow more: PM Modi

India is a global bright spot with a strong desire to grow even more, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday as he shared on social media a recent Capital Group report which stated that the country is poised for a period of secular growth, fuelled by significant expansion in direct and fixed asset investment. Sharing the report on Twitter, Modi said, "Youngsters and entrepreneurs will find these 9 points interesting." "And yes, India is a global bright spot with a strong desire to grow even more!" he said. The Capital Group, in a recent report, said India is poised to rise among emerging markets in this decade. The country has had political stability over the last 10 years allowing economic development to be a top priority. "While political instability and market volatility may increase in advance of general elections next year, we believe that India is poised for a period of secular growth, fueled by significant expansion in direct and fixed asset investment," the Capital Gr

Developmental goals central at 3rd G20 Sherpa meet under India's presidency

India's G20 presidency intends to preserve the grouping's identity and ethos as a forum for growth that brings together developed and emerging economies on a common platform. This is stated in an official statement released on Sunday at the end of a three-day Sherpas' meeting that was chaired by India's G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant in the historic city of Hampi. The deliberations at the meeting focused on a draft communique that is set to take the shape of the leaders' joint declaration to be adopted at the G20 Summit on September 9 and 10 in New Delhi. The draft text covers the six priorities including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), green development, reform of multilateral development banks (MDBs), digital public infrastructure and gender equality, and incorporates the outcomes from the various working groups. The G20 members engaged in hard negotiations with the aim to foster transformative, action-oriented initiatives, that is holistic and imbibes the spirit of one world

India's defence relationship with Thailand grown after 2014: Jaishankar

He said that the trade between India and Thailand is close to $ 18 billion annually and it was the highest in the last year. Jaishankar was addressing the Indian diaspora while his visit to Thailand