Will allowing business correspondents to hawk insurance products help in reviving 5-lakh strong field agents as a viable channel?
The Reserve Bank on Thursday proposed tighter norms for treatment of wilful defaulters under which banks and other lenders will be required to examine all accounts with outstanding amount of Rs 25 lakh and more to see if the borrower is deliberately not repaying the loan. The central bank has issued a 'Draft Master Direction on Treatment of Wilful Defaulters and Large Defaulters' on which comments have been invited till October 31. According to Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the draft Master Direction expands the scope for regulated entities which can classify borrowers as wilful defaulters and broadens the definition of wilful default.
Chinese President Xi Jinping's strict adherence to a 'zero COVID' policy had led to widespread civilian protests across the country.
Auditors seem to have developed a heightened sense of risk and are not content to tick the boxes and sign the papers.
Nimisha Priya, an Indian nurse sentenced to death in Yemen for the alleged murder of a Yemeni national, faces imminent execution despite the payment of blood money. Despite the lack of bilateral ties between India and war-torn Yemen, family members and human rights activists are clinging to hope for a last-minute pardon. The family has raised funds through a crowdfunding campaign to cover legal fees and negotiations, and is prepared to pay any additional amount required. However, the execution order received presidential approval despite ongoing proceedings, leaving little time for intervention. Priya's family is burdened by debt and seeks urgent support from the Indian government to save her life.
'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.'
Tasting success with the relaunch of Sensex derivatives in the onshore market, BSE is preparing for the 'offshore' debut of its 30-share index, which has become synonymous with the domestic markets. Sources in the know said that the India International Exchange (India INX), a subsidiary of BSE, received approval in July from the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) to launch Sensex 30 derivatives contracts.
'While the current pause offers temporary reprieve and alleviates any immediate legal pressure, the long-term implications remain uncertain.'
The United Kingdom extracted USD 64.82 trillion from India over a century of colonialism between 1765 and 1900 and USD 33.8 trillion of this went to the richest 10 per cent -- enough money to carpet London in notes of 50 British pound almost four times over.
IL&FS group has discharged debt of Rs 38,082 crore to its creditors as of September 30, 2024, according to the latest status report affidavit filed by the debt-ridden firm before insolvency appellate tribunal NCLAT. "As on September 30, 2024, the total debt discharged to creditors of the Respondent No 1 (IL&FS) Group aggregates to Rs 38,082 crore," the status report said. This includes Rs 20,289 crore from monetisation of assets, Rs 8,140 crore from auto-debits, green entity principal servicing, NFB release and Rs 9,653 crore from interim distribution.
Amid news of a fuel shortage in some parts of the country and wider unrest over fuel issues in the neighbourhood, an analysis of the data from international tracker globalpetrolprices.com shows that the per litre price of petrol is higher in India than in seven out of its nine neighbours.
Link your UPI app to a separate bank account or wallet that has only a limited sum.
Indian companies are generating more cash than ever. The net cash flow from listed firms' operations hit a new high of Rs 11.1 trillion in financial year 2023-24 (FY24), crossing the Rs 10-trillion mark for the first time, according to the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) data going back to 1990-91. The FY24 figure represents a 19.3 per cent jump over the previous year, even as quite a few companies are yet to release their numbers.
The Kerala unit of the Congress instantly gets a headache when Shashi Tharoor lets loose one of his observations showering flowers on enemy territory. With every such action triggering controversy within a nervous Congress party, some feel it is high time Tharoor showed a degree of solidarity with the ideals of his party, notes Shyam G Menon.
Health insurance claims are often denied due to exclusions in policy terms. Buyers frequently overlook the fine print or misinterpret clauses.
The observation was made by a bench headed by Justice UU Lalit which was hearing a plea seeking adequate infrastructure across the country for providing effective legal aid to women abused in matrimonial homes and creating shelter homes for them.
With its age-old fascination for education, southern states have done better than the North. Start-ups, IT hubs, and industry majors setting up shop have changed the face of the South. Nearly 79% of global offices set up by international conglomerates in India are in the South. Almost 46% of tech unicorns are from the South. The GDP per person in the South is 4.2 times higher than the North. None of these indicators can be ignored by any central government, whatever the political compulsions, notes Ramesh Menon.
Delhi faces a severe financial crunch and the deficit is largely due to numerous welfare schemes without adequate revenue flowing in. The success of welfare schemes and electoral promises will need careful financial planning and out of the box thinking to whip up additional revenue, notes Ramesh Menon.
'When so many young Baloch men and women are willingly volunteering as fighters and even suicide bombers.'
After oscillating over 486 points, the 30-share Sensex settled 38.44 points, or 0.10 per cent, lower at 39,020.39. It hit an intra-day low of 38,840.76 and a high of 39,327.15.
Close to half of women soccer fans in England and Wales have personally experienced sexist or misogynistic abuse at matches but most have never reported it to authorities, a new study by anti-discrimination charity Kick It Out revealed on Wednesday.
Deloitte India would not provide non-audit services to all listed companies and other entities where public money is involved such as banks and insurance companies, if they are its audit clients.
Road awards were muted in Q1FY25. But the pace will accelerate with a bidding pipeline of Rs 1.1 trillion (September 2024), mostly dominated by HAM (Hybrid Annuity Model) projects, which contribute 47 per cent and engineering procurement and construction or EPC projects, which have about 36 per cent share. Hence, infrastructure companies mostly reported revenue decline on a year-on-year (Y-o-Y) basis in Q1FY25.
Government announcements for the building of new roads, railways, and other capital expenditure (capex) projects may have hit an all-time low, according to numbers for the December quarter.
In recent times, more and more audit firms have challenged company managements, some going to the extent of resigning on the ground of incompatibility with what the management wanted or was doing. This, said Ajay Bhushan Pandey, chairman of the National Financial Regulatory Authority (NFRA), in a media interview, was a good sign. Now, the national accounting watchdog has turned the spotlight on audit firms themselves.
The government has received requests for facilitation of early discharge of some Indian nationals purportedly recruited into the Russian armed forces in unclear circumstances, he said.
'Not disclosing information to the public indicates that there is something wrong with Project Cheetah.'
Buch, under a cloud over allegations of conflict of interest levelled by United States-based short-seller Hindenburg, was asked to appear before the PAC, which is reviewing the performance of the market regulator.
The World Bank on Tuesday raised the growth forecast for the Indian economy to 7 per cent for the current fiscal year on the back of recovery in agri sector and rural demand. World Bank had in June projected India to grow at 6.6 per cent for FY24. According to the World Bank Report released on Tuesday, India's growth continues to be strong despite a challenging global environment.
Tata Sons will likely choose Singapore as a "key partner" for its semiconductor plans, a senior minister from the city-state said on Friday. Speaking to reporters after a meeting with Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran earlier in the day, Singapore's minister for home affairs and law K Shanmugam said semiconductors was a "big discussion" point during the meeting. "If they (Tatas) want to, they can do business with anybody in the world.
Here stood a man who embodied the legacy of whatever Brand Tata stood for, embellished it, and departed into the long night, leaving the brand legacy for others to further enrich, notes R Gopalakrishnan.
Over 100 Indian immigrants, including 33 each from Haryana and Gujarat, 30 from Punjab, and several from other states, were deported from the US after undertaking perilous journeys filled with extortion and hardship. The returnees landed in Amritsar in a US military plane and are now back home, facing huge debts and emotional trauma. Many of them were lured by promises of a better life in the US but fell victim to human trafficking and extortion rings. The families of the deportees are demanding strict action against the travel agents who facilitated their illegal journeys.
If the policy is extended to NBFCs and co-operative banks, they will have to disclose divergence in asset classification and provisioning during RBI inspections in their audited financial reports. Till now, these entities have been exempted from this. At present, there are more than 98,000 co-operative banks and 10,000 NBFCs. Sources said the RBI would concentrate on the top 50 co-operative banks and NBFCs.
Do not underestimate the ingenuity of the Deep State in America to have its way. Keeping the guard down will be a catastrophic mistake on the part of the Delhi establishment. We could get hit when least expected. That's what happened in Bangladesh and Syria, warns Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
US-based Schall Law Firm has said it will file a class action lawsuit against Infosys Ltd to recover losses suffered by investors in the wake of allegations of "unethical practices" at the Indian IT major. In October, Infosys had informed the stock exchanges of having received anonymous whistleblower complaints alleging certain unethical practices by the top management.
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.
The details that have been shared include identification, account and financial information, including name, address, country of residence and tax identification number, as well as information concerning the reporting financial institution, account balance and capital income.
ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) and Sony Pictures Networks India on Tuesday said they have settled their six-month-long dispute related to the failed $10-billion merger and have agreed to withdraw all claims against each other. As part of the "comprehensive non-cash settlement" between ZEEL and Culver Max Entertainment Pvt Ltd (CMEPL), both "have mutually agreed to withdraw all respective claims against each other, in the ongoing arbitration at the SIAC and all related legal proceedings initiated in the NCLT and other forums," said a joint statement.
Workplaces of 2025 will be defined by a deep focus on people-first values, inclusivity, and sustainable growth, foresees Sonica Aron, founder of Marching Sheep.
'If a citizen of ours has done anything good or bad, we are ready to look into it. Our commitment is to the rule of law.'
