Page 90 - India

Sapne sakar karna: US ambassador on realising potential of Indo-US ties

India and the US can work jointly in resisting "coercion" and deploy ships and air forces together in the Indo-Pacific to ensure freedom of the skies and the seas, US Ambassador Eric Garcetti said on Wednesday, explaining how the two largest democracies have the power to build a more peaceful world. In an address at an event in IIT-Delhi, the envoy said the two countries are poised to further deepen co-production of military equipment and cited the planned work in aero-engines, artillery and ground vehicles as just a few examples. Touching on the issues relating to human rights, Garcetti said the US will continue to engage with India on it "as we have always done, and as we do in all countries around the world." He also quoted Mahatma Gandhi: "Our ability to reach unity in diversity will be the beauty and test of our civilization." The US ambassador said India and the US together can build a bulwark against the "might makes right" mentality, in comments seen as an oblique reference

When India speaks on international platforms now, people listen: Rajnath

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday said India was earlier looked upon as "weak" and the "land of poor", while asserting that when the country speaks on international platforms now, people listen to it. Addressing a rally here, the senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader also said in the nine years of the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Centre, no one could level corruption charges against any of his cabinet colleagues. Singh also said a communal angle is being given when the government is trying to implement a Uniform Civil Code in the country. "Isn't there one country, one legislation?" he asked the gathering.

We want 'robust' defence partnership with India: Filipino foreign secretary

The Philippines wants to develop a "very robust" defence partnership with India and is looking forward to procuring military hardware from it, Filipino Foreign Secretary Enrique A Manalo said on Wednesday amid concerns in Manila over China's increasing military muscle-flexing in the South China Sea. Delivering a lecture at a leading think tank here a day ahead of his talks with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Manalo said his country has "repeatedly" challenged Chinese presence in the exclusive economic zones (EEZs) of the Philippines in the South China sea and will continue to do so. The Filipino foreign secretary, on a four-day visit to India, said the 10 ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries and China have been engaged to formulate a code of conduct (CoC) for the South China Sea, but he appeared unsure about a positive outcome. The code is envisioned to prevent any military conflict in the South China Sea, a region that has overlapping territorial claims

Nothing announces pre-order for Phone (2) ahead of launch: Details here

Nothing had previously said that the Phone (2) will be manufactured in India for Indian consumers

India produces 27 mn vehicles, valued at $108-bn in FY23: Report

The Indian automobile industry produced a whopping 2.7 crore vehicles across segments and types, worth around USD 108-billion (Rs 8.7-lakh crore) in FY23, with passenger vehicle segment accounting for 57 per cent at Rs 5-lakh crore in the total value, a report said on Wednesday. Also, in the total 2.7 lakh crore vehicles churned out last fiscal, the commercial vehicle segment, which includes small 4-wheel carrier with less than 2-ton capacity to large tractor trailers and specialty vehicles like tippers, share stood at 10-lakh vehicles, generating a value of Rs 1.7-lakh crore, management consulting services firm Primus Partners said in its report. The CV segment accounted for 4 per cent in the total volume and 19 per cent in value terms, it said. According to Primus Partners, the production of two-wheelers is closely matched by China, with 20-million two-wheelers coming out of the manufacturing facilities in the country, accounting for 77 per cent of the volume share. The overall .

India ranked 67th globally on Energy Transition Index, Sweden on top: WEF

The World Economic Forum on Wednesday ranked India at the 67th place globally on its Energy Transition Index and said it is the only major economy with energy transition momentum accelerating across all dimensions. Sweden topped the list and was followed by Denmark, Norway, Finland and Switzerland in the top five on the list of 120 countries. Releasing the report published in collaboration with Accenture, the WEF said the global energy transition has plateaued amid the global energy crisis and geopolitical volatilities, but India is among the countries that have made significant improvements. "India is the only major economy with energy transition momentum accelerating across the Energy Transition Index's equitable, secure and sustainable dimensions," the WEF said. "For example, despite continued economic growth, India has successfully reduced the energy intensity of its economy and the carbon intensity of its energy mix, while achieving universal energy access and effectively ...

Two official teams from India, EU to discuss carbon tax issues: Official

India and the European Union have constituted two teams to discuss issues pertaining to the EU's carbon tax, which will kick in from October this year, a government official said. The European Union (EU) is introducing the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) from October 1 this year. It would have an impact on seven carbon-intensive sectors, including steel, cement, fertiliser, aluminium and hydrocarbon products. India raised these issues in the Trade and Technology Council (TTC) meeting between the two regions in Brussels in May. In that meeting, the official said, India presented the problems which would be faced by domestic MSMEs due to this tax and also matters related to modalities to comply with that. "So now they have agreed that there will be a channel opened for discussions. So there will be a team from their side and our side discussing this. The two teams would discuss about the implications of the notification of the EU," the official, who did not wish to be named

Asian Kabaddi Championship 2023: India defeats Korea and Chinese Taipei

Asian Kabaddi Championship 2023 began yesterday, June 27, in Busan, Republic of Korea. India began their journey on a winning note defeating Korea and Chinese Taipei on day 1

'In-country renewal of H-1B visas by US to boost India's services exports'

The US announcement to introduce in-country renewable of H-1B visas will help swift movement of Indian IT professionals and promote services exports, SEPC said on Wednesday. Services Export Promotion Council (SEPC) said that the decision would allow easier on-site client engagement by domestic IT professionals. "When Indian IT professionals can quickly travel to client locations abroad, they can better understand client requirements, build stronger relationships, and deliver tailored solutions. This direct engagement can lead to increased client satisfaction, repeat business, and ultimately, higher IT exports," SEPC Chairman Sunil H Talati said. He said that as the US is the major market for India's IT exports, this development will have a significant positive impact on the export of IT services from India. "The earlier estimates for IT exports growth have been in the range of 8-12 per cent however with this particular push the exports growth in IT can further stride in the range o

Rupee gains 5 paise to 81.97 against US dollar on foreign fund inflows

The rupee strengthened by 5 paise to 81.97 against the US dollar in early trade on Wednesday on foreign fund inflows and gains in domestic equities. The currency opened higher by 2 paise at 82 at the interbank foreign exchange market and moved in a tight range of 82.01 to 81.97 in early trade. The rupee was trading at 81.97 against the US dollar at 9.35 am, registering a gain of 5 paise over the previous close of 82.02. Foreign portfolio investments into equities and overnight losses in the US dollar in global markets boosted the rupee sentiment in early trade, analysts said. The dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was almost flat at 102.58. Global crude oil benchmark Brent crude was trading 0.69 per cent higher USD 72.76 per barrel. In the domestic equity market, the 30-share BSE Sensex advanced by 199.06 points or 0.31 per cent to 63,615.09 points while the broader Nifty gained 62.75 points to 18,880.15 points. Foreign Portfo

Govt to not allow SL to be used as base for any threats against India: Prez

Assuring that Sri Lanka will not be utilised as a base for any threats against India, Wickremesinghe emphasised that his nation is a neutral one

Indian firm used toxic industrial-grade ingredient in cough syrups

The two sources said the syrup was made with industrial-grade PG, a toxic material widely used in liquid detergents, antifreeze, paints or coatings, and to enhance the effectiveness of pesticides

Muslim-dominated Arab countries have good relations with PM Modi: MoS

On Sunday, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also hit out at Obama and said that under his reign, the United States had bombed six Muslim-dominated countries

New Delhi Hall at SCO Secretariat in Beijing depicts 'mini India': EAM

Ahead of next month's SCO summit to be held for the first time under India's Presidency, India on Tuesday inaugurated an exquisitely designed 'New Delhi Hall' here at the headquarters of the eight-member grouping, which External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said depicted a mini-India. The Secretariat of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) comprising China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, India and Pakistan is located in the high-end diplomatic area in Beijing. While the six founding members China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan have their halls highlighting their cultures and unique features, India is the first to add its own 'New Delhi Hall' which is officially opened ahead of the July 4 SCO summit to be held in virtual format. Pakistan may have to await its turn to set up its hall. In his video address, Jaishankar said, I am delighted to inaugurate the New Delhi Hall at the SCO Secretariat today amidst the august presen

India has opportunity to leapfrog into AI, generative AI areas: Salesforce

India has the opportunity to leapfrog into areas of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and generative AI, cloud-based software provider Salesforce India's Chairperson and CEO Arundhati Bhattacharya said on Tuesday. She also sought to assuage general concerns around AI leading to mass job losses but added that the nature of jobs may change, requiring upskilling and reskilling of talent pools. "So, India does have the opportunity to leapfrog into AI and generative AI. Now, how far and how long it will take, it's anybody's guess... generative AI is something that's maturing... it's not something that's completely mature..." she said at a media briefing. The macro environment in India is "very supportive", Bhattacharya said underlining the India advantage of large talent pool as also the digital public infrastructure. "The India stack... Aadhaar, UPI and healthcare platforms... are not something available in most countries. The India public goods space is a huge enabler and most of the other

India's June heat wave deaths likely just a foretaste of what is to come

The World Bank has flagged India is likely to be one of the first places in the world where heat waves breach the human survivability threshold

Cooperation should not undermine regional peace: China on Indo-US deals

China on Monday said cooperation between countries should not undermine regional peace and stability and target any third party, as it reacted to a host of defence and commercial pacts recently signed between India and the US including joint production of jet engines in India to power military aircraft and a deal on armed drones. "It has been China's longstanding position that military cooperation between states should not undermine regional peace and stability, target any third party, or even harm the interests of any third party," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told media briefing here. She was responding to a question by a Russian state-run news agency seeking her reaction about a host of defence and commercial agreements during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit to Washington last week. "We hope relevant countries will act in ways conducive to mutual trust between regional countries in the field of security and stability in the region," she said. General

Economic offences pose serious threat to country's financial health: Court

A Delhi court has denied bail to a man accused of cheating people by inducing them to invest money in different schemes promising exceptionally high returns, saying economic offences were "posing serious threat to the financial health of the country". Vacation Judge Pawan Kumar dismissed the bail application of Priyesh Kumar Sinha and said the allegations against him were "grave and serious in nature". The judge said there was "strong" apprehension that he may influence or hamper the trial. According to the prosecution, Sinha was one of the directors of Bluefox Motion Pictures Pvt. Ltd. and used to cheat people by persuading them to invest money in different schemes with the promise of exponential returns on their investment. More than 200 complainants have come forward so far, it said. "The accused being the director of the company cheated a large number of people who invested small amounts of money in different schemes to the tune of Rs 8 crore... The allegations and accusation .

RBI slaps penalties on Standard Chartered Bank-India, other entities

The Reserve Bank of India on Monday said it has imposed penalties on Standard Chartered Bank-India, TransUnion CIBIL, Equifax Credit Information Services, and other entities for contravention of various norms. A monetary penalty of Rs 30 lakh has been imposed on Standard Chartered Bank-India for non-compliance with certain provisions of the 'Reserve Bank of India (Know Your Customer (KYC)) Directions, 2016'. Also, a penalty of Rs 26 lakh has been imposed on TransUnion CIBIL Limited, Mumbai for non-compliance with certain provisions of the Credit Information Companies (Regulation) Act, 2005 [CIC (R) Act], according to releases. RBI has slapped a penalty of Rs 24.25 lakh on Equifax Credit Information Services, Mumbai for non-compliance with certain provisions of the CIC Rules. Among other entities, a fine of Rs 24.75 lakh has been imposed on Experian Credit Information Company of India, Mumbai for non-compliance with certain provisions of the CIC (R) Act. Further, a penalty of Rs 25

Obama should think about how many Muslim countries he attacked: Rajnath

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday slammed former US president Barack Obama's statement about minority rights in India, saying he should first think about how many Muslim-majority countries were attacked during his tenure. In an interview with CNN on Thursday, Obama reportedly said if India does not protect the rights of ethnic minorities, there is a strong possibility at some point that the country starts pulling apart. Interacting with mediapersons at a national security conclave here, Singh said Obama should know that the people of India believe in the concept of 'vasudhaiva kutumbakam' and consider all people as members of one global family. "He (Obama) should also think about how many Muslim countries he has attacked (as US president)," Singh told reporters when asked to react to Obama's remarks. Singh said India has a secular character as people of different religions, including Hindus, Muslims, and Christians live together harmoniously. "I want to tell you with confid