The World Bank has announced that it will stop all its programmes in Russia and Belarus with "immediate effect" in response to Moscow's military operations in Ukraine and "hostilities" against the people of the war-torn country. On February 24, Russian forces launched military operations in Ukraine, three days after Moscow recognised Ukraine's breakaway regions - Donetsk and Luhansk - as independent entities. The decision comes as a large number of countries, organisations and businesses are severing ties and have imposed sanctions on Russia over the country's invasion of Ukraine, and with Belarus for its support and cooperation with Moscow.
I got to know that every referred case for angiography and angioplasty got a kickback of Rs 5,000 and Rs 15,000 respectively. Seeing this trend, doctors started paying referring doctors Rs 1 lakh in advance and adjusting it as and when patients came in. This menace slowly spread its tentacles all over the medical field, including radiological diagnostics and biochemistry laboratories. For every test ordered, 20 per cent of the bill was given back to the referring doctor. This led to doctors recommending unnecessary tests. The pharmaceutical companies also saw burgeoning business. Acclaimed doctors were given televisions sets, refrigerators, air conditioners and cars depending upon the prescriptions. General practitioners would prescribe unnecessary drugs, and were given returns in cash. A fascinating excerpt from Dr Upendra Kaul's When The Heart Speaks.
Illustrious international thinkers met at the Milken Institute Global Conference 2021 and many discussions addressed the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the world at large.
Few people know Ratan Tata as well as R K Krishna Kumar does. Widely perceived to be among the managers closest to Tata, Krishna Kumar assesses Ratan Tata, the man and business leader, in this exclusive interview to Rediff.com's Vaihayasi Pande Daniel.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday pitched India as the most attractive investment destination for those looking to invest in urbanisation, mobility, innovation and sustainable solutions. Speaking at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum, he said India and some African nations will witness the biggest wave of urbanisation over the next two decades. The post pandemic world has to be rebuilt around people and cities will have to be made more liveable, he said adding post-Covid restart will not be possible without a reset of mindset, process and practices.
Ajit Balakrishnan on learning from past technology revolutions.
The Indian IT services sector is scrambling to retain talent since digitisation-led transformation has increased the demand for a digitally skilled workforce. As a result, the pull for jobs for tech professionals is also coming from non-IT sectors, leading to higher attrition among IT companies. The average number of tech jobs from non-IT sectors has seen a 41 per cent uptick in March-May'21 versus March-May'19, according to data from Naukri.com.
With elections elsewhere in India showing that multi-pronged contests usually work to the BJP's favour, the party can gain if it hangs on stubbornly. In the meantime, any additional support helps. That is why the archbishop's comment attracted political traction in Kerala, observes Shyam G Menon.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi alleged on Friday that China was preparing for war and the Indian government is sleeping over it and trying to ignore the threat.
The government may soon give the green light to bilateral trade between Russia and India in their national currencies to avoid any trade disruptions, multiple people aware of the matter said. While the Department of Commerce has recommended the proposal, an announcement is likely to be made by the finance ministry after further deliberations between the Department of Economic Affairs and Department of Financial Services. "The finance ministry will take a call on how to peg the two currencies," a senior government official told Business Standard. In the past, the two nations have had rupee-rouble trade, and when such an arrangement is implemented again, it will bypass the sanctions imposed on Russia by the West.
Join us for a chat with Vidhu Shekhar, country head - India, CFA Institute on Wednesday, June 1 between 3 pm and 4 pm IST.
'I'm 79 + now, and I've been doing all this since my late 20s.' 'Sometimes the ideological war extends to the home as well.' 'Many nights I couldn't sleep when someone close to me uttered the smallest insult.' 'It would cause me a lot of pain. But one has to be honest to oneself.'
A bit of economic reforms stalled and decisions delayed -- what Narayana Murthy spoke of -- don't hurt if a country's compassionate and inclusive social fabric has survived intact; if the country is happy, observes Shyam G Menon.
He said the society has become highly litigious and vouched for independent regulatory institutions that are free from political interference.
Will the next generation possess an even more internationalist outlook, and lose their Indian identities entirely? Will they continue to believe in a larger role for business in society and go beyond the boardroom to truly understand the Indian consumer, ask Geoffrey Jones & Vinay Sridhar of Harvard Business School.
Despite admitting to price pressures both from food items and input prices, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das on Wednesday hoped that a normal Southwest monsoon will have a "soothing impact" on inflation pressures and ruled out any wide variations in medium-term inflation forecast from what was given in April. In an unscheduled address earlier in the day amidst the raging pandemic, Das said the overall outlook for the economy is highly uncertain and is clouded with downside risks. He offered a slew of relief and liquidity measures to individuals and small businesses apart from a Rs 50,000 crore special liquidity window to the healthcare sector.
Deliver with that upmarket MBA tag, says Manmohan Singh.
Nirmala Sitharaman's messaging was clear when she presented a well-balanced Budget with an eye on state elections in nine states followed by a general election next year, observes Ramesh Menon.
'I saw an opportunity to provide people with employment, enabling them to sustain themselves and, in the process, help alleviate society's suffering.'
Don't look for a volunteering job for money, but as an investment for life, advises management consultant Virender Kapoor.
The president made a special mention of the threat to the environment and asked all citizens to take care of it for future generations.
'Facilitating conversion of well-run NBFCs into banks is urgently needed.'
Attacking the Modi government, Sonia said it has sought to erode our institutions.
Sukanya Verma applauds the man, the movies and the many, many, MANY memories he's created on big screen through 80 Amitabh Bachchan moments.
"The government has cleared seven names out of the 106 judges and one out of the nine for chief justices, so far. I expect that the government will clear the rest of the names very soon. These appointments will take care of pendency to some extent. I seek the cooperation and support of the Government to enable access to justice and to strengthen democracy," CJI N V Ramana said.
As many as 26 premises are being searched in these cities by the federal agency under the criminal sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, they said.
The promise of a less suspicious government is surprising. What about the disconnect between the new business stance and earlier push to dictate the narrative in politics and public life, wonders T N Ninan.
Ramesh Menon, the veteran journalist suggests Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi what he should do if he wants to win 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
To meet this week on representation to HRD ministry for degree granting power, autonomy.
Dr Uday Salunkhe, Group Director, Welingkar Institute Of Management Research And Development suggests nine key factors every student must take into consideration before deciding on a business school.
The Taliban have been known for using violence to force the people to accept their agenda and views, he added.
But there are challenges, observes Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
The action comes days after the CBI registered an FIR in the country's biggest alleged bank loan fraud case till date.
Define your North Star. Experiment in your 20s be adventurous and experiment and use these experiences to build your flywheel and compliment your IQ with EQ.
India and Pakistan must reform their institutions of governance to accelerate economic growth on a sustained basis for poverty reduction, lawmakers and experts from both the countries attending a meeting in Dubai said notwithstanding the chill in bilateral ties.
'Rahul Gandhi has shown courage to heal the heart of democracy.'
'We are not able to manufacture even low-end products as cheaply as China.' 'We are not buying Chinese goods today out of any love for China.'
ISB Dean Ajit Rangnekar discusses the Indian education system, the difficulties graduates face in the economic slowdown and why Indian business must be bold, but different.
'COVID-19 will not stop the expansion of China's 'infrastructure power'.'
