News for 'Public Information Infrastructure and Innovations'

RBI set to launch UPI-like unified lending platform

RBI set to launch UPI-like unified lending platform

Rediff.com27 Aug 2024

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will launch the Unified Lending Interface (ULI) nationwide in due course, aiming to transform India's lending sector, similar to how the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) revolutionised the payments ecosystem, Governor Shaktikanta Das said on Monday.

'A well-balanced and logical Budget'

'A well-balanced and logical Budget'

Rediff.com28 Feb 2013

Sam Pitroda, who holds close to 100 worldwide patents and has published and lectured widely in the US, Europe, Latin America and Asia, answered our readers' questions on the Union Budget on February 28.

Telecom sector is undergoing transition: Pitroda

Telecom sector is undergoing transition: Pitroda

Rediff.com8 Apr 2013

Since the last few years, the telecom sector has been affected by regulatory uncertainty which has hurt the investor sentiment.

India ranks 48th in global innovation index

India ranks 48th in global innovation index

Rediff.com2 Sep 2020

India has become the third most innovative lower middle-income economy in the world.

Rs 11K crore IPO in sight, Swiggy projects quick commerce as the future

Rs 11K crore IPO in sight, Swiggy projects quick commerce as the future

Rediff.com4 Nov 2024

On the cusp of launching its Rs 11,327 crore initial public offering (IPO) next week, food and grocery delivery major Swiggy believes quick commerce to be its future growth engine and anticipates that it will outpace its core food delivery business over the next five years. Currently, the quick commerce business of Swiggy - backed by Prosus and SoftBank - is 40 per cent of the size of its food delivery revenues.

Pitroda urges America Inc to be patient with India

Pitroda urges America Inc to be patient with India

Rediff.com13 Jun 2012

A coalition government doesn't lend itself to the kinds of demands US companies are making.

Pitroda is new advisor on 'Resurgent Bengal'

Pitroda is new advisor on 'Resurgent Bengal'

Rediff.com19 Jul 2011

Paribartan in West Bengal has a new-found enthusiast. Sam Pitroda, advisor to the Prime Minister on public information infrastructure and innovations, will be advisor to the new government on 'Resurgent Bengal'.

A day in the life of Sam Pitroda

A day in the life of Sam Pitroda

Rediff.com23 Mar 2011

The prime minister's advisor offers proof that the government of working -- behind the scenes.

We have to create a new India: Sam Pitroda

We have to create a new India: Sam Pitroda

Rediff.com30 May 2012

There are lot of opportunities in India to innovate. We need their talent, their emotions and we need their connections.

The Menace Of Illegal Constructions

The Menace Of Illegal Constructions

Rediff.com25 Oct 2024

As we brace for unprecedented rates of urbanisation, it is crucial to ensure that illegal constructions and unauthorised land use are curbed, asserts Amit Kapoor.

'Want To Take Everybody's Ideas To Space'

'Want To Take Everybody's Ideas To Space'

Rediff.com8 Jan 2025

'To access our satellite, you don't need any IQ test, you don't need to write an examination.' 'You can be a Class 1 student, an engineering student, a 60-year-old person, anybody can access our satellite.'

How Government Is Making Use Of AI

How Government Is Making Use Of AI

Rediff.com9 Oct 2024

The National Informatics Centre uses AI to automate document analysis and detect fraud in government departments.

Borrowers will soon be able to switch to fixed-rate regime: RBI

Borrowers will soon be able to switch to fixed-rate regime: RBI

Rediff.com10 Aug 2023

The Reserve Bank on Thursday said it will come out with a framework allowing borrowers to switch to fixed interest rate from floating interest rate, a move that would provide relief to borrowers of home, auto and other loans reeling under the impact of high interest rate. Unveiling the bi-monthly monetary policy, Reserve Bank Governor Shaktikanta Das said under the framework, to be put in place shortly, the lenders will have to clearly communicate with the borrowers about tenor and EMI. "The supervisory reviews undertaken by the Reserve Bank and the feedback and references from members of public have revealed several instances of unreasonable elongation of tenor of floating rate loans by lenders without proper consent and communication to the borrowers," he said.

To push green mobility, 10K e-buses to be deployed in 169 cities

To push green mobility, 10K e-buses to be deployed in 169 cities

Rediff.com16 Aug 2023

Seeking to enhance green mobility, the Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the 'PM-eBus Sewa' scheme under which 10,000 electric buses will be provided to 169 cities under the public-private partnership (PPP) model.

India's growth journey will shape world's future: Chandrasekaran

India's growth journey will shape world's future: Chandrasekaran

Rediff.com25 Aug 2023

India is well positioned to lead the global transitions of digital and artificial intelligence, energy, value supply chains, and the country's growth journey will shape the world's future, B20 India chair N Chandrasekaran said on Friday. In his address to the B20 Summit India 2023, Chandrasekaran, who is also the chairman of Tata Sons, asserted that India stands as a beacon of growth and positively stands out in the global economy, which is facing strong headwinds, tightest rate cycle in decades and record levels of public debt. "The world is currently navigating through three important fundamental transitions.

Bill Gates lauds Digital India initiatives

Bill Gates lauds Digital India initiatives

Rediff.com1 Mar 2023

India's sprawling digital public infrastructure received a glowing endorsement from billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates on Wednesday as he praised the country's "great" digital network, reliable and low-cost connectivity, and said this will be the cheapest 5G market. Under the G20 presidency of India, a session on 'Building resilient and inclusive economies- the Promise of Digital Public Infrastructure' was held on Wednesday in New Delhi, where the Microsoft co-founder spoke of India's digital identity Aadhaar, its payment infrastructure, and rapid strides that the country has taken in bringing more people into formal banking system. "India in particular, by laying the groundwork for digital public infrastucture starting with identity system, allows people to build on top of that.

Sitharaman walks the tech talk with AI, data governance, digilocker in Budget

Sitharaman walks the tech talk with AI, data governance, digilocker in Budget

Rediff.com1 Feb 2023

The Union Budget on Wednesday outlined several initiatives to drive India's technology agenda and boost digital infrastructure, including new centres of excellence for artificial intelligence, National Data Governance Policy, and Entity DigiLocker.

Nations must ensure cryptocurrency does not end in wrong hands: PM

Nations must ensure cryptocurrency does not end in wrong hands: PM

Rediff.com18 Nov 2021

Modi cautioning that cryptocurrency can spoil the youth.

For 'Make in India', first 'Innovate in India'

For 'Make in India', first 'Innovate in India'

Rediff.com7 May 2015

The 'Make in India' vision cannot survive in the long-term without concrete measures to build a concurrent 'Create in India' movement.

IMF says India is likely to contribute more than 16% of global growth

IMF says India is likely to contribute more than 16% of global growth

Rediff.com19 Dec 2023

Growing at a robust rate due to economic reforms in key sectors like digitisation and infrastructure, India has emerged as a star performer and is projected to contribute more than 16 per cent of the global growth, the International Monetary Fund said on Monday. "What we have been observing for quite some time now is that India has been growing at a very robust rate. "It's one of the star performers when it comes to real growth when you look at peer countries.

The Power of Assured Indian Innovation

The Power of Assured Indian Innovation

Rediff.com25 May 2018

Can we make high speed 4G Internet available at 10 cents per GB, and make all voice calls free of cost -- that too in a large and diverse country like India? Can we make high-quality but simple breast cancer screening available to every woman, that too at the extremely affordable cost of $1 per scan? Can we make a portable, high-tech ECG machine which can provide reports immediately and that too at the cost of 8 cents a test? Can we make an eye imaging device that is portable, non-invasive and costs 3 times less that conventional devices? Can we make a robust test for mosquito-borne dengue, which can detect the disease on day 1, and that too at the cost of $2 per test? Amazingly, says Dr R A Mashelkar, the eminent scientist, all this has been achieved in India, not only by using technological innovation but also non-technological innovation.

Sights And Dazzle Of Japan

Sights And Dazzle Of Japan

Rediff.com25 Jun 2024

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.

Banks wrote off NPAs over 10 lakh crore in last 5 financial years: FM

Banks wrote off NPAs over 10 lakh crore in last 5 financial years: FM

Rediff.com13 Dec 2022

Banks have written off bad loans worth Rs 10,09,511 crore during the last five financial years, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman informed Parliament on Tuesday. The non-performing assets (NPAs), including those in respect of which full provisioning has been made on completion of four years, are removed from the balance sheet of the bank concerned by way of write-off, she said in a reply to Rajya Sabha. "Banks write off NPAs as part of their regular exercise to clean up their balance sheet, avail tax benefit and optimise capital, in accordance with RBI guidelines and policy approved by their boards.

How India's young innovators do well by doing good

How India's young innovators do well by doing good

Rediff.com25 May 2018

'Let me talk about young Indian startups with their hearts in the right place and how they are proving that innovations that represent 'affordable excellence' -- breaking the myth that 'affordability' and 'excellence' cannot go together -- is indeed possible!' says Dr R A Mashelkar, the eminent scientist, in this fascinating feature.

AWS to invest $4.4 bn in India by 2030 through new Hyderabad region service

AWS to invest $4.4 bn in India by 2030 through new Hyderabad region service

Rediff.com23 Nov 2022

Amazon Web Services (AWS) will invest nearly $4.4 billion (Rs 36,000 crore) in India by 2030 and support more than 48,000 jobs externally through a new regional service launched on Tuesday, said the on-demand Cloud computing company. AWS Asia Pacific (Hyderabad) is the company's second infrastructure region in India, six years after it opened its first Cloud region in Mumbai in 2016. The Hyderabad region will give customers access to AWS technologies for data analytics, security, machine learning, and artificial intelligence.

Pitroda on how Modi's Digital India dream can actually become true

Pitroda on how Modi's Digital India dream can actually become true

Rediff.com3 Oct 2016

If you really want to benefit from Digital India, you have to first change your mindset, says Sam Pitroda

Amid spike in Covid cases, India boosts health infrastructure

Amid spike in Covid cases, India boosts health infrastructure

Rediff.com28 Mar 2020

Even though the Health Ministry and Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) have been insisting that there is 'no solid evidence' of community transmission so far, the government has started scaling up health infrastructure to deal with any situation.

We attempt to be an informed, adaptive regulator: Rajan

We attempt to be an informed, adaptive regulator: Rajan

Rediff.com11 Apr 2016

The Governor said RBI does not limit itself too much when there is uncertainty.

At G7, India pledges to protect free speech

At G7, India pledges to protect free speech

Rediff.com28 Jun 2022

Leaders of the powerful G7 grouping and its five partner countries, including India, have said that they are committed to open public debate and the free flow of information online and offline while guarding the freedom, independence and diversity of civil society actors.

'This looks more like a terror attack'

'This looks more like a terror attack'

Rediff.com2 Dec 2022

'They (the ransomware attackers) are not after any VVIP data.' 'Had that been the case, they would have quietly installed a different malware.'

India sees sharp rise in cyber attacks as internet base continues to widen

India sees sharp rise in cyber attacks as internet base continues to widen

Rediff.com15 Aug 2022

Even as India's internet base continues to widen, with the country set to have over 900 internet users by 2025, a parallel rise in cyber threats has become a matter of huge concern. Experts say that the sudden surge in digital adoption left little time to develop a cybersecurity backbone for the country. This has put large amounts of data at risk.

The Remarkable Life And Legacy Of Oommen Chandy

The Remarkable Life And Legacy Of Oommen Chandy

Rediff.com22 Jul 2023

'Oommen Chandy always had time for his people and valued their voices.' 'There was no rest for him as long as the betterment of his fellow citizens was at stake.' Ambassador Venu Rajamony, who knew the former Kerala chief minister for half a century, salutes a beloved leader who worked tirelessly for the welfare of its people.

'BharatPe board is charting out path for listing'

'BharatPe board is charting out path for listing'

Rediff.com7 Apr 2022

'The company's transition from an individuals-driven private firm to a board-driven listed public one will be carried out in a well-thought-through and well-executed manner.'

'Amit Shah was told India has lost 26 of 65 patrolling points in Ladakh'

'Amit Shah was told India has lost 26 of 65 patrolling points in Ladakh'

Rediff.com13 Feb 2023

'Our villagers used to go up to Finger 4 and Finger 6, but today the Chinese are there.' 'Since April 2020, Chinese troops have blocked Indian troops from reaching at least ten patrolling points running from the Depsang plains in the north to Pangong Tso lake in the south.'

Who's The Indian Child With Mbappe?

Who's The Indian Child With Mbappe?

Rediff.com30 Dec 2022

'Historically, Qatar has done wonders as I don't think this will ever be possible with the new format of the World Cup.'

CoWIN portal in Hindi, other languages from next week: Govt

CoWIN portal in Hindi, other languages from next week: Govt

Rediff.com17 May 2021

The CoWIN portal will be made available in Hindi and 14 regional languages by next week, while 17 more laboratories will be added to the INSACOG network to monitor the variants of COVID-19, the health ministry said on Monday.

Nuclear Or Conventional Submarines: What Should India Pick?

Nuclear Or Conventional Submarines: What Should India Pick?

Rediff.com13 Jun 2023

The status of the current submarine force level is alarming and we need to address the threat perceptions expeditiously. Critical decisions pertaining to national security cannot be delayed any further due to the rapidly changing maritime threat perceptions and growing strategic importance of the Indian Ocean region, asserts Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).

Rahul to counter Modi's 'chai pe charcha' with Google Hangouts

Rahul to counter Modi's 'chai pe charcha' with Google Hangouts

Rediff.com11 Mar 2014

Just like Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi's 'chai pe charcha' where he connects with various sections while sipping tea over the internet, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi will take part in a 'Google Hangout' on March 15, where he will interact with block, district and Pradesh Congress Committee presidents to give them pep talk on the coming elections and to get their feedback on their states and their districts. Renu Mittal reports

5 ways India can create MORE jobs

5 ways India can create MORE jobs

Rediff.com21 Jan 2020

We must work in the direction of an innovation and technology driven economy which could boost up creation of jobs and open advanced and newer avenues of employment within the country.

Trump fires official who said election was most secure in US history

Trump fires official who said election was most secure in US history

Rediff.com18 Nov 2020

Trump, who has launched a slew of lawsuits in key states, but has not provided any evidence to back his claims of fraud, announced on Twitter on Tuesday that he has fired Christopher Krebs, director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) at the Department of Homeland Security.