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Ashtavakra Gita is not very well known; most Indians have heard of only one: the Bhagavad Gita, a part of the Mahabharata. Most don't know that there are some 60 Gitas in the Mahabharata, besides others that are not part of larger treatises. The Ashtavakra Gita is one of the most profound and yet most esoteric of those standalones, whose most recent English translation is, appropriately, by Bibek Debroy, who has also written about the Mahabharata's other Gitas. In New Delhi last week, Nirmala Sitharaman launched Life, Death and the Ashtavakra Gita by Bibek Debroy and Hindol Sengupta not as finance minister (as Debroy also did not translate it as chairman of the PM's Economic Advisory Council!) and «not even as Nirmala Sitharaman», as she put it. And the portions she read out from the ancient treatise, which is a conversation between Ashtavakra and King Janaka, explained her seemingly cryptic assertion. Chapter 5, Verse 4 of the Ashtavakra Gita, as translated by Debroy avers: «You are not the body. The body is not yours. You are not the enjoyer, or the doer. Your form is that of pure consciousness. You are the constant witness, indifferent. Roam around happy.» The gentle smile on Sitharaman's face indicated that she has indeed internalised this wisdom, perhaps because she had been already introduced to Ashtavakra Gita's wisdom as a child by her grandmother.

Ed Gein. Following the success of Dahmer and The Menendez Brothers, series creator Ryan Murphy has announced that Monsters season 3 will bring Gein’s gruesome crimes to the screen, with actor Charlie Hunnam confirmed to play the lead role. With production set to begin in September 2024, fans are eagerly awaiting more details about the upcoming season.

Quad summit this weekend, Australian PM Anthony Albanese appears to have broken ranks with the US and Canada, co-members of the Five Eyes intelligence alliance, on the issue of Indian «spies» in Australia by pointing out that such matters are raised privately. Responding to media queries during his ongoing US trip on the «nest of Indian spies» in Australia, Albanese said, «Well, what I do is act diplomatically and have those discussions, and that will, no doubt, be something that is raised.

Public sector net debt «was provisionally estimated at 100% of gross domestic product at the end of August», the Office for National Statistics said in a release. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has warned Britons that the budget announcement on October 30 will be «painful», with tax rises and spending cuts expected.

Arijit Singh made headlines during his recent concert in the UK by declining to perform his protest song "Aar Kobe," which he wrote in response to the tragic rape-murder of a doctor in Kolkata. The song has become a rallying cry for protests following the incident at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital last month.

The GfK Consumer Confidence index fell -20 in September, down from -13 in August, the lowest level since March 2024. The greatest decline came from concerns regarding the general economic situation over the next 12 months, with the index falling by 12 points from -15 in August to -27 in September. Similarly, the major purchase section recorded a large decline, with a ten-point fall from -13 to -23. The savings section, which is not used in the overall score of the index by GfK, also marked a ten-point decline to 23 this month, down from 33 in August. UK consumer confidence stalls ...

In a speech at the Central Bank Research Association in Lithuania today (20 September), the MPC member shared her case for the BoE to adopt an «activist policy strategy». This would entail maintaining a restrictive approach to monetary policy until «tail risks» to the inflation process have subsided, allowing the central bank to then «cut more aggressively» once it is certain the inflation target of 2% has been achieved «sustainably in the medium term». Mann explained the UK has a greater need for such an approach than the US and eurozone because, being a «small, open economy», it is ...

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) on Friday announced the launch of its new delivery centre in Warsaw, Poland, expanding its operations in the country. “With the new delivery centre, TCS expects to double its workforce to 1200-plus in a year to support its further growth in the region. Located in the heart of the city, the new delivery centre showcases TCS’ capabilities across industries and technologies,” the Tata subsidiary said in a statement. Poland is home to one of the largest European technology talent pools and the centre will tap into the growing Polish Information and Communication Technology (ICT) talent pool to support the needs of customers in niche technology skills and cognitive business and domain processes, the statement added.

Channels monthly. In India alone, some of the most followed channels include Bollywood stars like Kareena Kapoor Khan and Katrina Kaif, as well as the Indian Cricket Team, Diljit Dosanjh, Vijay Deverakonda, and Netflix India.

The figures, released today (20 September) by the Office for National Statistics, followed a revised 0.7% increase in July and significantly surpassed the 0.4% forecast by economists. Sales volumes jumped 2.5% in the year to August, the largest annual increase since February 2022, driven by strong performances in the food and clothing sectors. Warm weather boosts retail sales in August as focus turns towards Autumn Budget Food stores sales volumes rose by 1.8% last month, following a rise of 0.3% in July. Sales volumes increased by 0.6% year-on-year, marking the largest annual rise...

wealthy individuals warning that the change will cause an exodus of the super-rich. A survey this month showed that abolition could cost the country almost £1 billion ($1.3 billion) in lost revenue rather than the £3 billion boost initially predicted. Anecdotal evidence suggests some financiers are already heading to the more tax-friendly climes of Dubai, Switzerland or Italy. Even so, the concerns may prove overstated. People who live in the UK but who can plausibly claim somewhere else is their permanent home, or domicile, may opt for a special tax treatment known as the “remittance basis,” which exempts them from paying anything on foreign income or capital gains unless these are brought into the country. Until now, non-domiciled individuals have also been exempt from inheritance tax on their overseas wealth, whereas UK-domiciled residents are liable to pay a rate of 40% (after allowances) on their worldwide assets. It’s a system that confers significant tax benefits, which become more lucrative the wealthier you are. It’s also an anachronism that should have been scrapped long ago. The origins of the non-dom regime stretch back to 1799, when Prime Minister William Pitt the Younger imposed the first income tax to finance the Napoleonic Wars. It was intended as a deferral for colonial plantation owners, who would be taxed on the income from sugar, tobacco and cotton shipments only when they received the funds. That evolved later into an exemption.

The Bank of England is keeping its main interest rate unchanged at 5% despite a big cut from the U.S. Federal Reserve, its first since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic more than four years ago

Apple is giving more people the chance to test a software update that will implant artificial intelligence into its virtual assistant Siri and automate a variety of tedious tasks on the latest iPhone coming out Friday

«We feel that the opportunities are large. It is a beginning and we should look at growing from where we start. It is a modest beginning, but hopefully it will be an aggressive growth as we move along,» says Sanjiv Goenka, Chairman, RPSG Group. Well, the latest announcement coming in wherein Firstsource has deepened its presence when it comes to Australia. Could you talk to me about the strategic intent behind this? Sanjiv Goenka: Well, we have already got a very major presence in US and UK and this is the third big market that we are targeting. It has a presence of large corporates and so there is a business opportunity. The whole administration of the Victoria State and Melbourne City has been extremely supportive and enthusiastic. And we feel that the opportunities are large. It is a beginning and we should look at growing from where we start. It is a modest beginning, but hopefully it will be an aggressive growth as we move along.

Tim Alper is a British journalist and features writer who has worked at Cryptonews.com since 2018. He has written for media outlets such as the BBC, the Guardian, and Chosun Ilbo. He has also worked...

Tim Alper is a British journalist and features writer who has worked at Cryptonews.com since 2018. He has written for media outlets such as the BBC, the Guardian, and Chosun Ilbo. He has also worked...

Adani Group has emerged as frontrunner in the race to acquire the promoter’s 46.64% stake in ITD Cementation India to bolster its in-house civil engineering capabilities, said people aware of the matter. At current market value, a successful deal would be pegged at 5,888.57 crore ($700 million), inclusive of a fully subscribed open offer that will follow a promoter stake purchase. The infrastructure conglomerate led by Gautam Adani is ramping up its expansive portfolio spanning airports, highways, ports, power plants and real estate projects. Both sides came to an agreement earlier this week and a formal announcement is due soon, said one of the persons.

Swati Dhingra was the only member who did not want to keep rates at 5%, voting instead for a second 25 basis point cut. This follows the first rate cut from the BoE since August, which had been an incredibly close, split decision with five to four members in favour. Additionally, the MPC unanimously voted to reduce the stock of UK government bond purchases by £100bn over the next 12 months, bringing the total to £558bn. UK inflation holds firm at 2.2% as Bank of England decision beckons Andrew Bailey, governor of the Bank of England, said: «Inflationary pressures have continued ...

Kathryn Hahn’s character, Agatha Harkness, in WandaVision, where she became an instant fan favorite. Now, more than three years later, the powerful witch returns with her own series, Agatha All Along. The Disney Plus series reveals Agatha’s attempts to regain her former powers, with a star-studded cast that includes Aubrey Plaza, Patti LuPone, and Joe Locke. For those wondering when Episode 3 will drop, or if there are ways to catch the show, we have all the details.

The Bank of Nova Scotia has created a new executive position to increase its focus on Quebec, a region where the Toronto-headquartered bank feels it needs “more boots on the ground to generate more business.”

The six-year-old criminal case of Greg Kelly, an American ensnared in the scandal of Nissan’s former boss Carlos Ghosn has turned a page in a Japanese court, with the judge promising a verdict in February