India criticises United Nations over financial crisis
NEW YORK: India has sharply criticised the United Nations (UN) and its affiliated organisations for sitting on the sidelines as the current financial crisis unfolded, saying that the IMF remained helpless despite the economic meltdown impacting adversely on the developing nations. India called on the world body to use its universality to coordinate an international […]
India’s external debt rises $58.4 billion to $529.7 billion on commercial borrowings
NEW DELHI: India’s external debt stood at Rs 529.7 billion at the end of March 2018, recording an increase of Rs 58.4 billion year-on-year, primarily on account of a rise in commercial borrowings, short-term debt and non-resident Indian (NRI) deposits, the RBI said on Friday. The increase in the magnitude of external debt was partly […]
India’s fuel demand posts its first yearly increase since February
NEW DELHI: India’s fuel demand posted its first yearly increase since February as a spurt in diesel demand ahead of the festival season pushed consumption to pre-Covid-19 levels. Total demand for petroleum products rose 2.5 per cent in October to reach 17.77 million tonnes compared to 17.34 million tonnes a year back, according to provisional […]
India announces Rs 900 crore grant for coronavirus vaccine research
NEW DELHI: India’s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharman on Thursday announced a Rs 900 crore grant to the Department of Biotechnology for COVID-19 vaccine research. She said the grant does not cover the actual cost of vaccine and distribution expenses, which will be made separately as and when the vaccine is available. She also said that […]
India announces Rs 18,000 crore additional outlay for urban housing scheme
NEW DELHI: India’s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday announced a Rs 18,000 crore additonal outlay for the urban housing scheme to help complete real estate projects that would create jobs and boost the economy. She said the Rs 18,000 crore would be provided over and above the Budget Estimates for 2020-21 for the Prime […]
India loses 21% of brand value to $2 trillion due to Covid-19 pandemic: Report
NEW DELHI: Despite losing 20.8 per cent of its value to the disruptions caused by the pandemic, the country could hang to be the seventh most-valuable nation with a brand value of USD 2 trillion, according to a report. The US continues to lead the brand value league with USD 23.73 trillion after losing 14.5 […]
India launches its 5th Scorpene submarine in Mumbai
NEW DELHI: India’s Junior Defence Minister Shripad Y Naik on Thursday launched the fifth of the Indian Navy’s Kalvari Class submarines under the ongoing Project-75 Scorpene programme at the Mazagaon Dock Ltd (MDL), officials said here. The new submarine was named ‘Vagir’ by Naik’s wife Vijaya S Naik. The launch ceremony was conducted through videoconference […]
India okays PLI scheme for 10 sectors, including auto, telecom
NEW DELHI: To give an impetus to the manufacturing sector, the Indian Cabinet on Wednesday approved a mega production linked incentive (PLI) scheme for 10 sectors. The total outlay has been pegged at Rs 1,45,980 crore. Announcing the decision, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that the scheme would entail an expenditure of about Rs […]
India extends VGF support to PPP infrastructure projects in social sector
NEW DELHI:In a bid to push public-private partnership (PPP) in health, education and water supply projects, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on Wednesday decided to extend financial support in the form of viability gap funding (VGF) to the development of social infrastructure. The Centre currently provides VGF support of 20 per cent to […]
India allows flexibility in selection of power supplies under RTC bids
NEW DELHI: With the aim to drive bids for round-the-clock (RTC) power supply, the Ministry of Power has amended the guidelines for tariff-based competitive bidding for power procurement from such projects, allowing them bundling with any non-renewable source of energy rather than just coal-based thermal projects. The earlier guidelines for bundled projects required a bidder […]
India’s foreign exchange reserves rises over $560 billion
NEW DELHI: India’s foreign exchange reserves rose $183 million during the week ended October 30. According to the Reserve Bank of India’s weekly statistical supplement, the reserves increased to $560.715 billion from $560.532 billion reported for the week ended October 23. India’s forex reserves comprise of foreign currency assets (FCAs), gold reserves, special drawing rights […]
Problems between Nepal, India would be resolved through dialogue: PM K P Sharma Oli to Indian Army chief
By Shirish B Pradhan KATHMANDU: Problems between Nepal and India would be resolved through dialogue, Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli said on Friday during a meeting here with Indian Army chief Gen. M M Naravane who paid a courtesy call on him. Gen Naravane’s three-day visit to Nepal was largely aimed at resetting bilateral […]
Tata launches special-edition SUV Harrier CAMO in India at Rs 16.50 lakh
NEW DELHI: Tata Motors on Friday launched a special edition of its flagship SUV Harrier, at a starting price of Rs 16.50 lakh (ex-Delhi showroom) amid the ongoing festive season. The Harrier CAMO edition will be available in manual transmission from XT variant onwards, and in the automatic transmission from XZ variant onwards, the automaker […]
WhatsApp starts payment service in India
NEW DELHI: WhatsApp on Friday said it is rolling out its payments services in India after receiving nod from the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). In 2018, the Facebook-owned company had started testing its UPI-based payments service in India, which allows users to utilise the messaging platform to send and receive money. The testing […]
BMW launches Mini John Cooper Works Hatch in India at Rs 46.9 lakh
NEW DELHI: German luxury carmaker BMW on Thursday launched limited edition Mini John Cooper Works Hatch in India priced at Rs 46.9 lakh (ex-showroom). The limited edition model is inspired by the Mini John Cooper Works GP and is offered as a completely built-up unit (CBU) and only 15 units are available and can be […]
India asks OPEC to correct anomalies in crude price for different regions
NEW DELHI: India, the world’s third-largest oil importer, on Thursday pressed for assessing the impact of COVID-induced disruptions to global energy sector supply chains and said oil-cartel OPEC needs to address anomalies in the crude price differential for different regions. Speaking at the 4th high-level meeting of the India-OPEC Energy Dialogue, Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan […]