Opposition MPs in India's Rajya Sabha raised concerns about US President Donald Trump's tariff threats, demanding the government clarify its response and engage in discussions with opposition parties. Leaders like P Chidambaram and Sagarika Ghose warned of potential economic repercussions, including depressed exports, lower FDI, and a significant tariff burden. The debate also touched on other issues such as the government's economic policies, demonetization, and the impact of GST on common citizens.
The take by the Economic Survey 2024-25 on work hour week had come weeks after Larsen & Toubro Ltd Chairman and Managing Director SN Subrahmanyan sparked off a raging debate on social media when he said employees should work 90-hour a week, including on Sundays rather than sit at home.
'No retaliatory tariffs now. You can retaliate after a few months.' 'Today, there is no need to retaliate because it is a question of long term benefits.'
Private sector banks in India are taking the lead in the adoption of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in areas like fraud detection, customer segmentation, and chat automation, according to a Reserve Bank of India (RBI) study. The asset size and capital adequacy ratio are influencing the rate of adoption.
rediffGURU Major Inderpaul Singh (retd) offers career guidance and helps students and individuals handle challenges in their professional lives.
Reinvent and innovate will be the key mantra for the Indian pharma industry in the New Year as the 'pharmacy of the world' looks to move from volume to value leadership, amid emerging challenges of inflation and pricing pressures in the global markets. While R&D investment, market competitiveness, regulatory scrutiny, and domestic price regulations are expected to shape the growth of generics and injectable products, concerns such as price control and customs duties on medical equipment will continue to bother the healthcare industry in 2023. The industry believes that in view of India's G20 Presidency, digital health innovation, achieving universal health coverage, improving healthcare infrastructure and delivery will continue to be the key driving factors in 2023.
The Food Safety & Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) on Tuesday asked e-commerce and quick-commerce food operators to ensure a minimum shelf life of 30 per cent or at least 45 days before products expire at the time of delivery. The order follows rising concerns over violations of food safety standards in quick-commerce and e-commerce.
With regulatory uncertainties clouding the future of online pharmacies, deals in the space are showing signs of slowdown, as also fresh investment from private-equity (PE) firms and venture capitalists (VCs). The data from Venture Intelligence shows so far in 2023 (as of June 13) there has been one deal with PE-VC funding. In 2022 there were four, a sharp fall from the 12, totalling $1,520 million, the sector had attracted in 2021.
Naib Subedar Chunni Lal is the only soldier awarded the Ashok Chakra, Vir Chakra and Sena Medal.
Employment in nine selected sectors, including construction, manufacturing and IT/BPO, was at 3.08 crore in the April-June quarter of 2021-22, reflecting a growth of 29 per cent compared to 2.37 crore reported in the Economic Census of 2013-14, according to a survey. Labour and Employment Minister Bhupender Yadav on Monday released the report of Quarterly Employment Survey (QES) part (April to June 2021), of the All-India Quarterly Establishment-based Employment Survey (AQEES) prepared by the Labour Bureau. Announcing the results, Yadav said the estimated total employment in the nine selected sectors from the first round of QES is 3 crore and 8 lakh approximately against a total of 2 crore and 37 lakhs in these sectors taken collectively, as reported in the sixth Economic Census (EC 2013-14) reflecting a growth rate of 29 per cent.
'Our attempt to honour the taxpayer has been since 2014 and more actively since 2019-2020 onwards.'
'They sell such ideas in the name of 'national interest'.' 'What national interest are they talking about?' 'There is no national interest in this. The only interest that is there is their profit.'
The calendar year 2024 is set to go down as the best year for initial public offerings (IPOs) in terms of funds raised. Following the IPOs of food delivery major Swiggy and two other companies slated for next week, this year's total will reach nearly Rs 1.2 trillion, going past 2021's record tally of Rs 1.19 trillion. Swiggy's Rs 11,327 crore IPO, the sixth-largest in India, and solar energy firm Acme Solar Holdings' Rs 2,900 crore IPO opened on Wednesday (Nov 6), while health-tech firm Sagility India's Rs 2,106 crore IPO opened a day earlier.
'The Budget must be pro-growth, focusing on infrastructure creation while also managing the fiscal deficit.'
'This agreement will help the Indian workforce to move to non-traditional sectors of employment like teaching, nursing, and manufacturing.'
The allocation for health ministry for 2017-18 is Rs 47,352.51 crore in comparison to allocation in 2016-17 of Rs 37,061.55 crore.
'If people want to work 90 hours, we should let them work.' 'If people want to work 30 hours, you should let them work 30 hours.' 'But they should not expect the same level of success and attention.'
'The overwhelming evidence from various studies and reports indicates that the current work culture in the IT sector, characterised by excessive hours, has severe consequences for health, productivity, and overall quality of life.'
Outlay for infra is also expected to see a significant increase in view of the government's Rs 111-trillion investment plan under the national infrastructure pipeline to develop social and economic infrastructure over five years.
Headline growth was quite weak heading into the Covid period but averaged 6.4 per cent and 6.7 per cent in the five years between FY16 and FY20 for GVA and GDP respectively, points out Abhishek Upadhyay.
The Group of Ministers (GoM) on goods and services tax (GST) rate rationalisation, which convened in Goa on Wednesday, reviewed the GST rates for over 100 items, including textiles, handloom goods, agricultural products, fertilisers, and educational materials. However, no consensus was reached on any of the items, with further discussions scheduled for next month in Delhi.
'Selling could further intensify and take the index towards 22,800-22,750 in the near-term.'
The alarming level of life insurance policy misselling has caught the attention of policymakers amid efforts by the insurance regulator to boost insurance penetration, a top official from the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) said on Tuesday. According to Satyajit Tripathy, member-distribution at Irdai, while life insurance grievances often relate to product issues, non-life insurance complaints typically concern claim payments and exclusions. Addressing these grievances is essential to increasing insurance penetration, he said.
'We are getting to understand the mind of this generation.' 'Minor tweaks are being made to ease the process as we go along.'
The GST Council on Saturday postponed a decision on cutting tax rate on life and health insurance premiums, officials said. The 55th meeting of the GST Council, chaired by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and comprising state counterparts, decided that some more technicalities needed to be ironed out and tasked the GoM for further deliberations.
'Don't get stressed if you are not able to do your work.' 'If you feel you do not have the skill or capacity to do some work, accept it.'
'Patients under the scheme may ultimately have to go to private hospitals.'
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present her 8th straight Budget and all eyes will be on the much-expected tax relief for the middle class. Sitharaman had in her first Budget in 2019 replaced the leather briefcase -- which had been in use for decades for carrying Budget documents -- with a traditional 'bahi-khata' wrapped in red cloth.
'Some of the astounding proposals, if translated into statutory provisions, would be suicidal.' 'This would not be a wonder cure for increasing insurance penetration and only result in mushrooming growth of players like paan kiosks with deleterious consequences.'
The Union Finance Ministry on Tuesday said that aggregate business of public sector banks (PSBs) has shown strong growth of 11 per cent in the first half of the financial year 2024-25 (H1FY25) to touch Rs 236 trillion. The operating and net profit were also robust. At Rs 1.5 trillion, operating profit grew by 14.4 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) while the net profit saw an impressive 25.6 per cent jump at Rs 85,520 crore in the first half of FY25.
The primary market will remain abuzz with more than half a dozen companies, including Hyundai Motor India, Swiggy, and NTPC Green Energy, lined up initial public offerings over the next two months to raise around Rs 60,000 crore, merchant bankers said. Apart from these three firms, Afcons Infrastructure, Waaree Energies, Niva Bupa Health Insurance, One Mobikwik Systems, and Garuda Construction are among the companies planning to launch initial public offerings (IPOs) during October-November, they added. Together, these firms are looking to raise Rs 60,000 crore through their IPOs.
'The BJP lacks a credible mass leader who matches Mamata Banerjee's popularity.' 'Given the division of votes among Opposition parties, the West Bengal government's dole-giving strategy, and the consolidation of the poor, significant sections of scheduled caste groups and Muslim minorities behind the ruling party, it will be difficult to dislodge the Trinamool from power.'
Two men were hospitalised after they set themselves afire on Friday amid a bandh call in Madhya Pradesh's Pithampur against the planned disposal of 337 tonnes of Union Carbide waste in the industrial town, an official said.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday commended Indian financial sector regulators for doing a "world-class job" and bringing greater transparency into the system. Underlining that she is not against questioning or critiquing regulators, Sitharaman said there is a need to be "extremely conscious" about contributions made by them as well. Speaking at the Financial Express Best Banks Awards, the finance minister said, "I strongly recommend that facts are taken on board before we discuss anything to do with the regulators, strictly speaking."
The Centre on Monday announced seven big programmes for the holistic growth of agriculture and allied sectors with a total outlay of nearly Rs 14,000 crore, as it aims to improve farmers' income. The Union Cabinet approved seven big-ticket programmes related to the farm sector, including a Rs 2,817-crore digital agriculture mission and a Rs 3,979-crore scheme for crop science. "The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved seven schemes to improve farmers' lives and increase their incomes at a total outlay of Rs 13,966 crore," an official statement said.
Housing sales rose 7 per cent annually in 2024 across eight major cities to reach 12-year high at 3,50,613 units on better demand for premium homes amid stable mortgage rates and strong economic growth, according to Knight Frank. Last month, real estate consultant Anarock, however, had reported that housing sales declined 4 per cent in 2024 to nearly 4.6 lakh units across seven major cities.
Research and development (R&D) spending by BSE 100 companies has grown steadily, rising from 0.89 per cent of revenue in FY20 to 1.32 per cent in FY24, averaging around 1 per cent over the period in-between, according to data compiled from Bloomberg and company annual reports. Also, these companies more than doubled their R&D spending in absolute terms over these five years: From Rs 25,041 crore to Rs 63,072 crore. While this reflects a prioritisation of innovation, corporate R&D investment remains relatively conservative.
Novice investors must understand that volatility is an inherent part of equity markets and learn to navigate through such phases.
The incident comes a day after the town was rocked by protests against the disposal plan amid a bandh call given by the Pithampur Bachao Samiti.
