Thomas Isaac has been in and out of the national news in his role as Kerala's finance minister since 2018 for various path-breaking tax initiatives. But it is 2020 that he has become more prominent, principally in the GST council.
The Reserve Bank on Friday retained the GDP forecast for the current financial year at 9.5 per cent and flagged global semiconductor shortages, elevated commodity prices and potential global financial market volatility as downside risks to economic growth. In his address after the three-day meeting of the rate-setting panel, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said recovery in aggregate demand gathered pace in August-September, and it is reflected in high-frequency indicators, like railway freight traffic; port cargo; cement production; electricity demand; e-way bills; GST and toll collections. "The ebbing of infections, together with improving consumer confidence, has been supporting private consumption," he said, and added the pent-up demand and the festival season should give further fillip to urban demand in the second half of the financial year.
The sky is literally the limit for the Drone Awards competition that has unveiled the stunning winning photos for 2019. From cross-country skiers that look like fish, voted Photo Of The Year, to human giants, this year's aerial art winning submissions demonstrate the diversity and artistry of the craft. The winning images will have their public display at the "Sky's the Limit" exhibition which will be held in Siena throughout November 2019, during the "Siena Awards" Photo Festival.
While festive season spends by consumers did contribute to the uptick seen in Q3, experts said greater aggression displayed by retailers to corner a larger share of the shopper's wallet also worked.
Indians who live away from home tells us how they are celebrating the winter harvest festival.
With pricing power of producers unlikely to strengthen and commodities ex-crude oil likely to remain sluggish in the immediate term, the core-WPI inflation may remain sub-zero in the rest of this calendar year.
These eight odd photos prove it's a mad, mad world!
'There was hardly any recruitment after the second wave.' 'Now, there is a huge demand for manpower.'
If the Puja as a brand can be marketed more effectively outside Bengal, even overseas, it might do wonders for the economy, says Atanu Biswas.
The Sardar Patel Motera Stadium in Ahmedabad is spread over 63 acres, with a seating capacity of 1.10 lakh people. It overtakes Melbourne Cricket Ground, which can accommodate 90,000 people.
Sunita Roy Chowdhury lets you know how you can stay healthy this festive season.
As Melania Trump arrives in Ahmedabad, Sheela Bhatt offers the First Lady Of The United States a primer on one of India's oldest, and historic, cities.
Follow these tips if you want to control your diabetes during Navratri.
Ten photos that prove we live in an odd, odd world!
Aseem Chhabra lists 10 of his favourite films that played in various sections at the 74th Cannes Film Festival.
'In our ICUs, the majority are unvaccinated people.' 'Out of the hospital, in the community, we see that -- whether you are vaccinated or whether you're not vaccinated -- the symptoms are more or less the same.'
It is about prayers and piety, but also about food and festivity.
Oscar-winning Bosnian filmmaker Danis Tanovic's Tigers' screening stood out in a sea of acclaimed films being screened at the Canadian Film Festival.
'The more you love yourself, the prettier you feel inside and the prettier you will be.'
'At this stage, you should distribute money and food.' 'Like you queue up to vote, let people queue up to collect this.' 'This will arrest the decline in demand which will have a multiplier effect on the demand side for the economy as a whole.' 'The government should earmark about 2% of the GDP for this.' 'And this should be the first step to revive the economy.'
'Till the foreseeable future, our evenings are chock-a-block with nuptial festivities and merrymaking,' sighs Kishore Singh.
The new-age traveler is no longer into ticking a checklist of must-see spots on his holiday. He is ready to pay a premium to experience culture, crafts and culinary delights of the local populace
Tell us how you're celebrating Navratri this year.
We invited readers to share their festive recipes with us. Here is the next set of responses.
'When you go under a flyover in Mumbai at night, you will see many underprivileged people sleeping there. You get the best smiles when you distribute gifts, food packets or blankets.' Actor Karan Wahi's noble cause.
Celebrating the poet-saint's legacy in our times.
A slew of Indian firms, including Flipkart, Byju's and Zomato, is building a path to profitability and diversifying into newer business segments ahead of mega-IPO plans.
The Disciple is an ode to music and a salute to Mumbai. The city can be harsh, but it also lets the voices of struggling classical musicians exist, although often they live on the edge of society, observes Aseem Chhabra.
It's truly a wonderfully weird world around us.
The government on Monday exempted importers of pulses from stock limits, and also relaxed the norms for millers and wholesalers, in view of softening of prices of the key pulses in the country. Now, the stock limits will be applicable only on tur, urad, gram and masoor for a period up to October 31, it said. However, these entities will continue to declare their stocks on the web portal of the Department of Consumer Affairs, it added. A revised order in this regard has been notified.
'The people who stay with us were not born orphans; they have been abandoned.'
'We will see footfall returning to pre-COVID levels by January.'
Between hectic shows, make ups, rehearsals and fittings Jasmeen Johal, who was born in Punjab, but is now a model from Vancouver, Canada, fends off a few quick posers.
India's industrial production contracted by 3.6 per cent in February, official data showed on Monday. According to the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) data released by the National Statistical Office (NSO), manufacturing sector output declined by 3.7 per cent in February 2021. Retail inflation rose to 5.52 per cent in March, mainly on account of higher food prices, government data showed on Monday. The consumer price index (CPI) based retail inflation stood at 5.03 per cent in February.
India is ready, after battling the pandemic for two years, to travel once again.
With 20 lakh tulips of 46 varieties in its lap, Asia's largest Tulip garden overlooking the world famous Dal Lake in Srinagar was on Saturday thrown open to visitors, marking the beginning of new tourism season in the valley.
As ferry services increase and remote working becomes the norm, the rural beach town has turned into a sought-after refuge for city slickers from Mumbai and Pune.
By Thursday, 830 confirmed cases of pneumonia, caused by the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV), had been reported in 29 provincial-level regions in the country.
"Our tableau will be showcased for the first time on Rajpath in the grand parade. We had struggled to get a separate UT status and that aspiration was fulfilled in 2019 and we had celebrated it in Ladakh. And, now as an independent UT, with our own identity, we will be taking part in the ceremonial event. We feel very happy," said Diksit Palmo, who hails from Leh.
Popular sweetmeats are costing a staggering 35% more on spike in sugar prices, veggies are up due to intermittent rainfall the past one week
