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World 'turning the tide' after backslide on democracy, says Joe Biden

President Joe Biden on Wednesday offered an optimistic outlook on the health of democracy worldwide, declaring that leaders are turning the tide in stemming a yearslong backslide of democratic institutions. Opening his second democracy summit, Biden looked to spotlight hopeful advancements over the past year despite Russia's war in neighboring Ukraine and US tensions with China over its military and economic influence in the Indo-Pacific and beyond. The president cited signs of progress across the globe, from Angola's effort to create an independent judiciary, Croatia's move to boost government transparency and the Dominican Republic's anti-corruption steps. At home, Biden pointed to his stalled push for voting protections in Congress as evidence of his administration's commitment to support democracy. Today, we can say, with pride, democracies of the world are getting stronger, not weaker," Biden said. Autocracies of the world are getting weaker, not stronger. That's a direct resul

Here's how Utah's social media law could curb kids' access to social media

The state of Utah in the USA signed two bills last week restricting the usage of social media for minors. In the proposed Digital India Act, India's IT ministry hinted at similar rules

Waiting for US visa? Your approval time depends on your location in India

The wait time to get a visa from US Consulate General in Mumbai and Kolkata is less than a year, but the US Consulate General Chennai takes 680 days to give appointments

Fintech firm Roofstock lays off 27% of staff in second round of job cuts

US-based financial technology company Roofstock has laid off about 27 per cent of its workforce in its second round of job cuts

Fearing arrest, Trump calls for protest: A look back at hush-money case

The investigation is about how the $130,000 payment was made to Stormy Daniels over her alleged affair with Trump

Lupin gets approval for generic medicine for schizophrenia, depression

Pharmaceuticals firm Lupin Ltd on Tuesday said it has received approval from the US health regulator for its generic Brexpiprazole tablets used to treat the symptoms of schizophrenia and depression. The approval granted by the US Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) is for the abbreviated new drug application for Brexpiprazole tablets of strengths 0.25 mg, 0.5 mg, 1 mg, 2 mg, 3 mg, and 4 mg, the company said in a regulatory filing. These are generic equivalent of Rexulti tablets of Otsuka Pharmaceutical Company Ltd, it added. "This product would be manufactured at Lupin's Pithampur facility in India," the company said. Lupin said Brexpiprazole tablets 0.25 mg, 0.5 mg, 1 mg, 2 mg, 3 mg, and 4 mg, had an estimated annual sales of USD 1,575 million in the US, citing IQVIA MAT December 2022 data.

Silicon Valley Bank successor's auction extended by FDIC for potential deal

The bidding process for the successor of Silicon Valley Bank is being extended by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to give more time to work out a potential deal. The FDIC said Monday that there's been substantial interest from multiple parties for Silicon Valley Bridge Bank. The agency said it's going to allow parties to submit separate bids for Silicon Valley Bridge Bank and its subsidiary Silicon Valley Private Bank in order to simplify the bidding process and expand the pool of possible bidders. Qualified insured banks and qualified insured banks working with non-bank partners will be able to submit whole-bank bids or bids on the deposits or assets of the institutions. Bank and non-bank financial firms will be allowed to bid on asset portfolios. Bids for Silicon Valley Bridge Bank must be submitted by by 8:00 p.m. ET on Friday, while bids for Silicon Valley Private Bank are due by 8:00 p.m. ET on Wednesday. On Friday the parent of Silicon Valley Bank filed for Chapter 11 ..

Lost half my money to this banking thing, says Sharon Stone on SVB collapse

The American actress in an emotional speech appealed to the guests present at the fundraiser to donate more, while also sharing her financial troubles

400,000 gallons of radioactive water leaked from US nuclear power plant

About 400,000 gallons of radioactive water has leaked from a nuclear power plant in Monticello, the midwestern US state of Minnesota, regulators revealed recently

US President Joe Biden to host PM Modi for state dinner this summer

US President Joe Biden plans to host Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for a state dinner this summer, people familiar with the matter said, reported Bloomberg.The White House aims for the state dinner to take place in June but the timing could slip. However, a spokesman for the National Security Council declined to comment, reported Bloomberg.PM Modi's formal state visit is a sign of the deepening US-India relationship in various fields including defence, technology, space exploration, trade and investments.Moreover, the Biden administration advances policies and initiatives for a free and open Indo-Pacific to counter what it sees as a growing threat posed by China and India plays a key role in it.India is hosting the Group of 20 (G20) leaders summit in New Delhi in September, where Russia's invasion of Ukraine will be among the chief topics of discussion. It's unclear whether Russian President Vladimir Putin will attend the gathering, reported Bloomberg.Biden is also expected to ..

Delhi Capitals co-owners GMR group to run Major League Cricket franchise

The GMR Group (co-owners of Delhi Capitals) and Microsoft chairman & CEO Satya Nadella and GMR Group led consortium have bagged the rights to own and operate a team in Major League Cricket (MLC), a new T20 franchise league in the USA, which is scheduled to be launched this July.

Pentagon releases footage of Russian aircraft dumping fuel on US drone

The Pentagon has released footage of what it says is a Russian aircraft conducting an unsafe intercept of a US Air Force surveillance drone in international airspace over the Black Sea. The 42-second video, released Thursday, shows a Russian Su-27 approaching the back of the MQ-9 drone and beginning to release fuel as it passes, the Pentagon said. The US military said it ditched the MQ-9 Reaper in the sea Tuesday after the Russian fighter jet poured fuel on the unmanned aerial vehicle and then struck its propeller. Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Mark Milley have spoken to their Russian counterparts about the destruction of the US drone following the encounter with Russian fighter jets. The calls with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of Russian General Staff Gen. Valery Gerasimov on Wednesday were the first since October. While intercept attempts are not uncommon, the incident amid the war in Ukraine has raised concerns it cou

Russian fighter jet collides with US drone amid tensions over Ukraine war

According to reports, the drone was on a routine mission in international airspace when two Russian jets tried to intercept it

SVB fallout: US admin's statement positive outcome, says Nazara Tech CEO

Nazara Tech, whose two step-down subsidiaries have Rs 64 crore deposits in Silicon Valley Bank, on Monday said the US administration's statements on protecting depositors for the entire amount is a "positive outcome" and gives confidence about the recovery of money. The two subsidiaries have working capital to meet their requirements, including payroll, Nitish Mittersain, Founder and CEO of Nazara Technologies said as he categorically ruled out the possibility of layoffs within the company as a result of the Silicon Valley Bank crisis. In fact, the current environment yields "many opportunities", and Nazara Tech intends to double down on its efforts to look for "good companies to acquire and invest" given the attractive valuations. "The statement by Yellen (Treasury Secretary Janet L. Yellen) saying all depositors will be protected for the entire amount, is a very positive outcome and makes us more confident that we will recover all of this money," Mittersain told PTI. On Friday, t

Startups hoping for quick resolution of SVB crisis post FDIC intervention

The joint statement from the US Treasury, Federal Reserve and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) stating that depositors will have access to all of their money starting Monday, March 13 in connection with the Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) collapse has come as a relief to the startups who were exposed to the bank. Startups hope the crisis would now be resolved soon. "FDIC's communication yesterday saying all depositors will get access to their funds is a relief to the startup community, said Prabhu Ramachandran, CEO & Co-founder at Facilio, a property operations software provider. Facilio has significant exposure, as a major portion of the company's funds is with SVB. "But we expect the crisis to be resolved this week and we should get access to our funds. We have money outside SVB to cover 4-5 months of our operations. This gives us more than sufficient time for the crisis to be resolved, and for us to access our funds at SVB," Ramachandran said He added "while most SaaS

SVB chief pressed US lawmakers to weaken bank risk scrutiny 8 years ago

Eight years before the second-largest bank failure in American history occurred this week, the bank's president personally pressed Congress to reduce scrutiny of his financial institution

Telehealth startup Cerebral shares data of 3.1 mn patients with advertisers

US-based telehealth startup Cerebral has disclosed that it shared the private health information, including mental health assessments, of more than 3.1 mn patients in country

US commerce secretary Gina Raimondo had 'fruitful meeting' with PM Modi

US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo had a "fruitful meeting" with Prime Minister Narendra Modi here. The meeting took place on Friday, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said. Raimondo, who was on a four-day visit to India, also met several ministers besides holding meetings with Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal. Raimondo and Goyal also held the Commercial Dialogue on Friday. "US Secretary of Commerce @SecRaimondo had a fruitful meeting with PM @narendramodi yesterday," the PMO tweeted Saturday along with a photograph of the meeting.

India, US sign MoU to build resilient supply chain in semiconductor sector

India and the US on Friday inked an initial pact on increasing private sector cooperation in the area of semiconductors under which the two countries would facilitate business opportunities and develop an ecosystem with a view to reduce their dependency on China and Taiwan. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on establishing semiconductor supply chain and innovation partnership under the framework of IndiaUS Commercial Dialogue was signed by US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo and Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal during the Commercial Dialogue here. According to a joint statement, both sides have agreed to set up a semiconductor sub-committee, led by the Department of Commerce for the US side and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and Ministry of Commerce and Industry for the Indian side. The committee will convene its first engagement in mid-year to review recommendations from the joint industry-led task force launched in connection with

We see India as trusted technology partner: US Commerce Secy Gina Raimondo

America sees India as a trusted technology partner, and it wants to deepen this technological relationship between the two countries, US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo said on Friday. The Indian government has taken several steps in the last couple of years, which makes India an even more attractive place to do business, she added. Steps like promoting the digital economy and zero tolerance for corruption make India a more attractive partner, Raimondo told reporters here. She was addressing a joint media briefing with Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal after concluding the fifth IndiaUSA Commercial Dialogue, which was held after a gap of three years. "We see India as a trusted technology partner, and we want to continue to deepen our technological relationship with India...We hope to work more closely with India and the private sector here around those technologies," she said. Besides semiconductor, she said areas, where both countries can increase cooperation, inclu