A State Bank of India report indicates a sharp increase in precautionary cash holding in India, with the gap between per capita currency in circulation and ATM withdrawals widening significantly, driven by global uncertainties despite record digital payment transactions.
India is home to more than 33 crore LPG users, yet consumption habits differ sharply from one region to the next. In metropolitan hubs such as Delhi, cooking gas is used far more frequently. In contrast, families in predominantly rural states like Bihar and Uttar Pradesh tend to make a cylinder last close to two months, as per PPAC estimates for 2025-26.
Under the TMC, Bengal has seen expansion of welfare, but not big-ticket private investment.
India ranked 116th out of 147 countries in 2025 with an average score of 4.536.
West Bengal Governor RN Ravi has called for collective efforts to restore the state's past glory, highlighting concerns over economic and educational indicators. His remarks coincided with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee criticising him for allegedly 'abusing' her instead of extending New Year greetings.
India's online retail market concluded 2025 with electronic retail (e-retail) gross merchandise value (GMV) reaching $65-66 billion, a 19-21 per cent increase, according to a report by Bain & Company and Flipkart. This growth is significantly driven by GenZ shoppers and the rapid expansion of quick commerce, which has emerged as a global leader.
The stats according to World Population Review's 2022 compilation.
'Our government is committed to addressing it firmly while protecting the rights of genuine citizens.'
China's latest defence budget surges to $275 billion, fueling its ambitious military modernisation program and intensifying geopolitical dynamics in the region.
'The AIADMK and DMK have 75% of the total votes. 25% of the voters do not support the two majors,' says DMK spokesperson Saravanan Annadurai.
'A breakout above 158,000 to 160,000 could trigger the next leg higher toward 165,000 to 170,000.'
Internet subscribers, income growth, literacy and dependency ratio are the biggest drivers of growth.
The "huge mountain of debt" in developed economies and the risk of a possible unravelling is a matter of concern for India, Union Minister for Railways, Information & Broadcasting, Electronics & Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Wednesday, pointing to the recent spike in Japanese bond yields.
'It is too early to conclude that there will be a bloodbath, that there will be no jobs, and that there will be civil unrest.' 'Let's calm down.' 'AI is a tool, it is not a weapon, it is not a virus.'
'It is best to remain vigilant. Tarique Rahman arranged arms smuggling to Indian insurgent groups.' 'He has criticised India for sheltering Sheikh Hasina, but has also sought India's support.'
CA Sumeet Mehta analyses the Union Budget 2026-2027, identifying key positives and negatives.
New data shows India's emissions rising faster than its 2030 targets.
According to World Population Review 2025 data, United States eats the most cheese in the world. It also the world largest cheese-producing country. In 2022 it manufactured 6.4 million tonnes of the world's output of 22.6 million tonnes of cheese in the same year.
The government on Wednesday put out the draft of a new policy that projects the country's power sector will need Rs 50 trillion in investments by 2032 and Rs 200 trillion by 2047, proposing ambitious reforms in generation, transmission and distribution.
In terms of MLA salaries, Odisha is followed by Telangana (about Rs 2.7 lakh), Maharashtra (Rs 2.6 lakh), Manipur (Rs 2.5 lakh), and Uttar Pradesh (Rs 2.4 lakh).
Kerala has overtaken more industrialised states in personal electric vehicle adoption, driven by strong middle-class uptake, policy support, and charging infrastructure.
The Congress party has strongly criticized the Union Budget, calling it 'lacklustre' and 'disappointing,' claiming it fails to address the needs of farmers, unemployed youth, and other key sectors.
Like the realisation on the failure of development, we have also internalised the failure on democracy, argues Aakar Patel.
Ketchup isn't just some chillar side condiment for your parathas or toast or chips. It's a global star.
The key question is how much of the latest growth record represents recovery from the 2020-2021 downturn, and what is the sustainable growth rate now, asks T N Ninan.
Asia takes the lead, boasting four Indian cities on the list, according to the 2024 Savills Growth Hubs Index.
'Given that the population is almost evenly split, the Indian economy cannot grow without women participating in the workforce.' 'While women's participation has increased, it is still well below 40 per cent,' says Kartik Narayan, CEO of the professional networking and jobs platform, Apna.
Growth rate in per capita income is projected to fall to the lowest in 21 years this financial year - except for the financial years 2019-20 (FY20) and 2020-21 (FY21) - according to the first advance estimates. During the last 21 years, the two periods - FY20 and FY21 - saw growth rates in per capita income lower than 7.9 per cent, seen during FY24. This was despite the real gross domestic product (GDP) being projected to grow by 7.3 per cent in the current financial year by the first advance estimates.
The share of services in gross value added (GVA) in 2023-24 was the highest in Chandigarh (88.8 per cent), followed by Delhi (84.1 per cent), said a NITI Aayog report released recently.
The power sector presents a puzzle. A fast-growing economy should be aligned to higher power demand but that hasn't been the case in the financial year 2026 till date (FY26TD).
Across the globe, drinking habits paint a fascinating picture. Which countries have the highest consumption of alcohol?
'A price of $6,600/oz is now a reasonable target for gold.'
The wife of an Indian-origin man who died after waiting over eight hours for treatment at a Canadian hospital is seeking accountability. The man, Prashant Sreekumar, died of suspected cardiac arrest after a prolonged wait, raising concerns about hospital bed shortages and potential negligence.
A larger part of India's population was in the middle 40 per cent of the national income share in 1980. Today almost all are in the bottom 50 per cent.
India needs to increase the investment rate to 34-35 per cent from 31-32 per cent currently to achieve a growth rate of 7 per cent and above, said S Mahendra Dev, chairman, economic advisory council (EAC) to the Prime Minister, on Wednesday.
The reduction in goods & services tax (GST) on individual life and health insurance premiums has been called a "landmark step" for making insurance affordable and inclusive. In a panel discussion at the Business Standard BFSI Insight Summit 2025, Anup Bagchi, managing director (MD) & chief executive officer (CEO) of ICICI Prudential Life Insurance; Mahesh Balasubramanian, MD & CEO of Kotak Life Insurance; Tarun Chugh, MD & CEO of Bajaj Life Insurance; and Ratnakar Patnaik, MD of Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), listed what else the industry needs to reach more people.
'We expect inbound numbers in 2025 to come close to pre-pandemic levels -- if not fully match them -- by early 2026.'
The demand growth in the low-income category is expected to be driven mainly by packaged branded sugar as well as traditionally consumed gur (jaggery) and khandsari.
The country's per capita income is likely to grow by close to 70 per cent to $4,000 by fiscal 2030 from $2,450 in fiscal 2023, helping it become a middle-income economy with $6-trillion GDP, more than half of which will be coming in from household consumption, says a research report. Per capita income/GDP has risen from $460 in fiscal 2001 to $1,413 in fiscal 2011 and further to $2,150 in fiscal 2021. The biggest growth driver will be external trade which may nearly double to $2.1 trillion by 2030 from $1.2 trillion in fiscal 2023 when the GDP printed in at $3.5 trillion, Standard Chartered Bank said in a weekend report which assumes a 10 per cent nominal GDP growth annually from now on.
If Xi Jinping is dethroned in the future, the instrument for that may well be embedded within the PLA, notes former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances