It was one of the toughest times in history to announce a budget, says Harsh Goenka, chairman of RPG Enterprises.
Pragmatism and flexibility is a virtue. An untethered and short-term approach to policymaking is a flaw, argues Mihir S Sharma.
For the first time, the government on Wednesday delegated financial powers for capital procurement projects worth up to Rs 200 crore to armed forces officials below the level of vice chiefs to help them meet emerging security challenges, officials said.
The government on Wednesday approved a Rs 12,195 crore production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for telecom gear manufacturing in India, a move that will position the nation as a global powerhouse for production of such equipment ahead of 5G roll-outs. The PLI scheme for telecom gear manufacturing will be operational from April 1, 2021.
Nokia said it was the first to manufacture the 5G New Radio in India, and it is now producing Nokia AirScale massive Multiple Input Multiple Output solution at the facility.
Modi said that violence, abuse and rude behaviour against frontline workers is not acceptable
'Visibly there is a posturing that everything is fine. That creates a bit of a problem.'
In his speech during the Army day parade, he also said that there has been 44 per cent increase in ceasefire violations that reflects Pakistan's sinister design.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced on Monday a record sum of Rs 1.10 lakh crore for the Railways, out of which Rs 1.07 lakh crore is for capital expenditure, and said the national transporter would monetise the dedicated freight corridors after its commissioning. Presenting the Union Budget 2021-22, Sitharaman also applauded the services provided by the Railways to transport essential goods across the country during the coronavirus lockdown.
20 defence ministry reforms 'is a reflection of the resolve of the government to make the defence sector stronger and more efficient.'
When the Indian brunost bravely ventured into the international cheese arena in Spain, along with 4,000 others from 45 countries, before 230 judges, its sterling desi pedigree spoke for itself, winning a silver in the brown cheese category and giving India a berth on the global cheese map.
The army, air force and navy will all benefit from the defence ministry's approval of 'Make in India' equipment.
KAPP-3, the country's 23rd nuclear power reactor, is a 700 MW Pressurised Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR) designed indigenously, the NPCIL said in a release. The components and equipment for the reactor have been manufactured by Indian industries, and its construction was undertaken by various Indian contractors, it said.
After contracting for six months in a row, the country's exports grew by 5.27 per cent to $27.4 billion in September, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Thursday.
Will the low cost Israeli Athos gun scuttle India's ATAGS gun?
5G networks in India can be deployed in three months but in limited areas as the optical fibre based infrastructure to support the technology is not ready yet, telecom industry players said on Tuesday. Nokia India head of marketing and corporate affairs Amit Marwah said that India has to take a call on deployment of 5G services otherwise it will miss to take advantage of the next generation technology that it can bring for the economy.
According to the sources, the vaccine will be much more affordable than existing ones manufactured by two foreign companies. India's drug regulator in July had granted market approval for the Pneumococcal Polysaccharide Conjugate vaccine, after reviewing the phase 1, 2 and 3 clinical trial data submitted by the Pune-based firm.
"We now realise that the so-called farmer agitation hardly remains a farmers' agitation. It has almost got infiltrated by Leftist and Maoist elements, a flavour of which we saw over the last two days when there were extraneous demands to release people who have been put behind bars for anti-national (and) who have been put behind bars for illegal activities," Goyal, the Minister for Railways, Commerce and Industry and Food and Consumers Affairs, said at FICCI's annual meeting.
HR Guru Mayank Rautela offers practical advice.
The home-grown revolver of Webley and Scott, the renowned British firearms company, is being manufactured in Hardoi town of Uttar Pradesh under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Make in India' initiative.
Facing accusations of delay in placing orders for vaccines, the government on Thursday defended its vaccine procurement policy saying it has been pursuing Pfizer, J&J and Moderna since mid-2020 for the earliest possible imports, and has even waived local trials for well-established foreign vaccine makers.
Just to promote govt's policy of Make in India, BSNL said, it cannot afford to procure sub-standard equipment from inexperienced companies, not having proven technology. BSNL complained that when competitors were procuring world-class 4G equipment from experienced vendors, why should BSNL be compelled to procure locally.
A steady decline in new COVID-19 cases has been recorded in India for the last 20 days, with 24 states witnessing a dip in active cases since the last week, the Union health ministry said.
The 'request for proposal' for the indigenous construction of the six submarines will be issued soon, they added.
The department for promotion of industry and internal trade has asked the telecom department and State-owned BSNL to put on hold the tender for setting up 4G network, valued at Rs 9,000 crore, after allegations emerged that the tender favoured foreign companies. The tender was floated by BSNL in March under the new management for setting up the 4G network.
Singh, who arrived in Moscow on Wednesday on a three-day visit to attend a crucial meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), pressed for expediting supply of a number of weapons systems, ammunition and spares to India by Russia under contracts which were concluded earlier.
Rather than going through the tedious, hit-or-miss process of physically designing hull forms and superstructures for warships and then determining how visible they are to radar, the company will simulate this process on supercomputers.
'We are having an outsize impact not only on the lives of the customers and livelihood, but also the economy of India.'
Automobile dealers' body FADA said the Budget lacked immediate demand boosters for the automobile industry.
Wistron, which earlier pegged the losses at Rs 437 crore, later notified the Taiwan stock exchange that the total losses were around Rs 50 crore.
Vagir is part of the six Kalvari-class submarines being built in India.
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.
A faltering economy may have led to a re-think on economic strategy. And Mr Modi might think he is politically strong enough to take some risks. But there could be a minefield ahead, observes T N Ninan.
'The JF-17 is the aircraft of today and the Tejas is the aircraft of tomorrow.'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said production linked incentive (PLI) scheme, which is aimed at boosting domestic manufacturing and exports, is expected to increase the country's production by $520 billion in the next five years. Addressing a webinar on PLI scheme, organised by Department of Industry and International Trade (DPIIT) and NITI Aayog, through video conference, Modi said the government is continuously carrying out reforms to boost domestic manufacturing. In this year's Budget, about Rs 2 lakh crore was earmarked for the PLI scheme for the next five years and "there is an expectation that the scheme would result in increasing the production by about $520 billion in the next five years", he said. He added that there is also an expectation that the current workforce in the sectors, which will avail the benefits of the PLI scheme, will be doubled and job creation will also increase.
'How does it matter to me if a foreigner comes, starts an industry and makes India a $5 trillion economy when I am dead?'
She also said there were no reports of shortage of medicines or medical equipment.
'Have you met anyone who said "I will not boycott Chinese products"?'
The BSE Midcap and the Small-cap Index have run up 25.3 per cent and 31.3 per cent respectively over the past year. Valuations are no longer cheap, notes Sanjay Kumar Singh.
He made a reference to the clash between Indian and Chinese troops in Ladakh's Galwan Valley in June this year. "What our jawans can do, what the country can do, the world has seen in Ladakh," he said.