US-based retail giant Walmart is looking to source toys, shoes and bicycles from Indian suppliers as the company is targeting to increase its exports from India to USD 10 billion annually by 2027. The company also wants to develop new suppliers in categories such as food, pharmaceuticals, consumables, health and wellness, and apparel and home textiles, a company spokesperson told PTI. Officials from the Bentonville-headquartered firm recently held a virtual meeting with several domestic toy manufacturers in India.
In a move towards gender inclusion, Tamil Nadu has partnered Godrej Consumer Products (GCPL) to offer a 5 per cent job reservation for LGBTQAI+ and people with disabilities at GCPL's upcoming fast-moving consumer goods manufacturing unit in Thiruporur in Chengalpattu district. According to industry experts and activists, while companies acknowledge transgender communities, this is the first time the entire spectrum of gender minorities, including lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning (one's sexual or gender identity), asexual and intersex, is receiving such a notable share of job participation in the private sector while signing memoranda of understanding with states.
Regulators must learn from past mistakes and act swiftly to prevent Big Tech from monopolising the AI ecosystem, argue Payal Malik and Nikita Jain.
India on Thursday approved proposals for purchasing 26 Naval variant of Rafale jets from France and procuring three French-designed Scorpene class submarines, a day ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's wide-ranging talks with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris.
Auto component makers in India are bracing for a tough time. High absenteeism among workers owing to Covid-19, shortages of critical parts, and temporary closures of plants by automobile manufacturers have thrown a spanner in the works for the Rs 3.2-trillion sector, which derives 60 per cent of its revenues from automobile original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), with the balance split equally between replacement demand and exports. Car market leader Maruti Suzuki India on Saturday said it was extending the maintenance shutdown, which was from May 1 to 9, till May 16, "keeping in view the current pandemic situation". Some activities will continue in the plants.
While the tax holiday for the factory coming to an end might be a factor, many say the business model of Microsoft (which acquired Nokia's handset division last year), as well as freebies offered by the Vietnamese government, might also have played a role.
In the concluding article of a six-part series, Business Standard visits Ludhiana, one of the largest industrial towns in Punjab, to assess the effect of demonetisation.
Future Gaming and Hotel Services whose director is the lottery magnate Santiago Martin is the top purchaser of electoral bonds having purchased bonds worth Rs 1,368, according to data uploaded by the Election Commission of India on its website on Thursday.
NavIC consists of a constellation of seven satellites and a network of ground stations and is touted to be more accurate than GPS.
The Delhi youngster had had his fair share of struggles while transforming from a frail 15-year-old to a frighteningly quick fast bowler.
Tokyo -- the songs Japan, Love In Tokyo and Sayonara from the 1966 Hindi film automatically pop up in the mind -- is buzzing and crowded like any other metropolis, discovers Deepa Gahlot. The modern apartment blocks are built cheek by jowl, so close together that one can open the window and borrow sugar from the neighbour in the next building. One of the fears of the Indian traveller is the unavailability of vegetarian food. Every city and town in Japan has an array of Indian restaurants that serve every variety of cuisine, right from Gujarati to Punjabi to Andhra and Kerala meals.
In the 76 years since India gained independence, 53 recipients of the Bharat Ratna have been there. That's less than one every year, which is a healthy ratio given there is the sanctity of this gem of an award to preserve. But four recipients for the year were announced in a few days in addition to one announced earlier. That took the total number in 2024 to five in less than a month, the highest for any year, post-Independence, notes Shyam G Menon.
Senior Tesla executives including those from its supply chain are planning to come to India on Wednesday and Thursday for meetings with government officials, including those in the Prime Minister's Office, according to sources. Prashant R Menon, director of Tesla India, did not respond to a specific query on the meetings. Sources say that the executives are coming to see how they can expand and develop local sourcing of components from India for the Tesla car.
Sachin Tendulkar has decided to settle his lawsuit against bat-maker Spartan in the Federal Court of Australia after the company apologised for "breach of contract". In 2016, Tendulkar entered into a worldwide exclusive sponsorship agreement with Spartan to promote its sporting goods and sportswear.
Consumer goods firms and auto companies are witnessing an upturn in rural demand, which had been lagging for most of FY24. Expectations of a bumper rabi crop harvest have helped turn the tide. The Reserve Bank of India's (RBI's) Monetary Policy Committee kept the repo rate unchanged last week, noting that as rural demand catches up, consumption is expected to support economic growth in 2024-25.
Terming the judgement as a 'landmark judgement' in favour of poor patients, domestic drug manufacturer associations, including Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance and Indian Drug Manufacturers' Association, hailed the apex court's decision.
Tech Mahindra and United Spirits will replace them in the 50-share index of the National Stock Exchange with effect from March 28.
'We have informed the government multiple times that the situation in the US and India are different.' 'Here, there will be a 500 MHz gap in the frequencies which will safely allow aviation without interference.'
A Delhi court on Friday dismissed the bail application of Aam Aadmi Party leader Sanjay Singh in a money laundering case related to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam.
'Business families like the Godrej group are increasingly realising that an amicable settlement is better.' 'Else, the wealth of all shareholders gets destroyed.'
At a time when climate change poses significant challenges and the need for sustainable and efficient farming practices has never been more critical, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) allow farmers to gain a bird's-eye view of their crops from ground level. Drones have become a new force in precision agriculture, helping increase productivity while prioritising sustainability and resilience. Fertiliser major IFFCO is exploring this very transformative power of technology in agriculture.
The group has called for a retaliatory tariff action against India, if New Delhi does not roll back the 'unilateral and discriminatory' equalisation levy or Google Tax.
The bench also cautioned Patanjali Ayurved and its officers from making any statements adverse to any system of medicine in the media, both print and electronic, in any form as they said in their undertaking before the court earlier.
Although the BJP has never been ballistic about the BJD and Narendra Modi has avoided being critical of Naveen Patnaik, the BJP is optimistic that the party can improve its electoral fortunes in Odisha on its own, notes Rup Narayan Das.
The government on Friday put on hold the preferential market access (PMA) policy that provided for sourcing of sensitive telecom and electronic equipments and technology from domestic manufacturers over security concerns.
Modi's hopeful rhetoric has not yet turned into concrete policy reform
The tourism industry expects a short-term impact, as it is counting on the state's proven expertise in managing such crises.
At Prestige Polygon Towers in Chennai's Teynampet, hectic preparations are on for a mega global investors' meet under the aegis of Guidance Tamil Nadu (the state investment promotion agency) scheduled for January 2024. Asked about the key focus areas of the meet, the agency's managing director and chief executive officer, V Vishnu, said the state was betting big on electric mobility. This is no surprise, given that the state has signed electric vehicle (EV)-related memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with several companies in the recent past that may bring in investments worth around Rs 33,000 crore with the potential to create over 43,000 job opportunities.
Over the past year, Amul has undergone a transformative journey, evolving from a dairy-centric entity to a comprehensive foods company. Since 2022, PepsiCo India, too, has embarked on extensive launches in the food category. Not to be left behind, ITC, which has been introducing an average of 100 fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) products across categories every year, has also launched a number of packaged food items.
India's manufacturing sector activity moderated in January amid slower increase in total sales, and headcounts were broadly unchanged amid sufficient staff numbers to cope with current requirements, according to a monthly survey. The seasonally adjusted S&P Global India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) fell from December's recent high of 57.8 to 55.4 in January, as factory orders and production rose at sharp, albeit slower, rate. The January PMI data pointed to an improvement in overall operating conditions for the 19th straight month.
"I took some time to explore the contours of this initiative. I don't use the term 'game-changer' too often but it's apt in this case. For me, what's much more important than the mechanics of the scheme is the dramatic shift it signals in the attitude towards industry," Mahindra said in a tweet.
With the Indo-Pak dialogue in tatters and the respective armies exchanging fire across the Line of Control, an unexpected opportunity has presented itself for boosting trade between the two countries.
The way video is being watched and monetised is changing. This is the first thing that stands out as the penetration of smart TVs continues to rise.
With intermittent disruptions in the supply chain of raw materials from China, the Indian pharma industry has braced itself with bigger inventory. Even smaller drug makers are now carrying a month of buffer stock of key raw materials, said industry insiders. The lockdown in various Chinese provinces, including Shanghai, is likely to delay shipments by two weeks to a month, said domestic players. Shipments are critical for the Indian drug industry, which imports 70 per cent of its raw material from China.
Justices G S Sandhawalia and Harpreet Kaur Jeewan also held the Haryana State Employment of Local Candidates Act, 2020 "ultravires" and said it will become "ineffective from the date it came into force".
'The aim is also to probe how the ministry and testing agencies made negligence in examining these OEMs, so that such negligence is avoided in the future.'
Rescue officials confirmed casualties in the incident, claiming to have already recovered 5 bodies from the heap of debris where the cracker manufacturing unit once stood.
Apart from the 10 persons arrested so far, those found guilty of negligence in the Special Investigation Team (SIT) report should also be arrested and punished, said a man who lost his 10-year-old daughter in the tragedy.
Expressing deep concerns over India's policy of preferring domestically manufactured information and communication technology goods, the apex body of US telecom industry has told lawmakers that this will have negative impact on exports and economic competitiveness.
Amid a slowdown in the automotive industry, the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India asked the government to continue providing export incentives to domestic manufacturers, while expressing concern over India's growing number of free trade agreements.
