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Karnataka government on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) to support defence startups. The partnership will promote cooperation with defence startups and grant them access to DRDO’s testing facilities. Director General for Electronics & Communication System at DRDO, BK Das on the sidelines of signing the MoU, said the organisation will offer all its testing facilities to startups, MSMEs and industries. «The other thing we will do is handhold the startups and act as mentors in terms of growing this business. We will also organise a visit to DRDO facilities for the startups,» he said. During his session, Das said India is transforming into a global superpower in defence technologies which will be a $138 billion opportunity in the next years.

festive consumption demand and farm sector recovery have helped the Indian economy to overcome a lull seen in the second quarter and put it back on track, the Reserve Bank of India's state of the economy report said. «Inflation is already biting into urban consumption demand and corporates’ earnings and capex. If allowed to run unchecked, it can undermine the prospects of the real economy, especially industry and exports,» said central bank researchers led by deputy governor Michael D Patra. They said that RBI remained consistent with the mandate of “price stability while keeping in mind the objective of growth”. The underlying mandate of

My role as Ficci president involved close engagement with GoI to discuss a range of topics related to economic growth. This was enabled by inputs from industry members, ranging from large companies to MSMEs, the in-depth analysis from a fantastic team at Ficci, and most importantly, a gov that is open to listening and working closely with industry. The year began with a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. We outlined priorities linked to GoI’s ‘Viksit Bharat’ goal. Key focus areas were: Make in India, women-led development, farm prosperity, and sustainability. A set of actions were outlined for Ficci committees, which comprised CEOs across a wide range of industries and companies. McKinsey provided support in developing the framework and enabling key outcomes.

Saira Banu, after nearly 30 years of marriage, drawing attention to his immense wealth. Recognized as one of India’s most influential and highest-earning musicians, Rahman has an estimated net worth of Rs 1,728 crore to Rs 2,000 crore, as reported by DNA and other outlets. Dubbed the country’s richest male singer, he charges a staggering Rs 3 crore per song and is considered the highest-paid music composer in India, earning up to Rs 10 crore per film. Rahman’s fortune stems from a diverse range of endeavors, including scoring films, creating original music, global concert tours, brand endorsements, and entrepreneurial ventures. This multifaceted career has secured his place as the wealthiest musician in India. Beyond his financial success, the Oscar-winning maestro is also among the most decorated artists, boasting accolades such as National Film Awards, Academy Awards, Grammy Awards, and the prestigious Padma Bhushan. As Rahman and Saira’s separation continues to make headlines, speculation has arisen about whether their divorce could rank among the costliest in the entertainment world. In an official statement, Saira’s lawyer, Vandana Shah, addressed the couple’s decision to part ways.

TRAI issued directives on 13th August 2024 mandating stringent actions against violators. Penalties include disconnection of telecom resources, blacklisting for up to two years, and bans on new resource allocations during this period.As per the regulatory body, these measures have shown promising results, with complaints about spam calls reducing steadily.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. A few months back, Prosus, one of the world’s largest technology investors, faced a debilitating condition in India. It wrote off its entire $500 million investment in Byju’s, six years after it first backed the edtech company once valued at $22 billion.

GNFC) on Wednesday said it will form a 50:50 joint venture with Britain's INEOS Acetyls International to build and operate a world-scale acetic acid facility in India. The joint venture will oversee both the plant's operations and coordinate marketing efforts for domestic distribution of acetic acid produced at the facility, the company said in a regulatory filing. The memorandum of understanding, signed on November 20, provides for equal representation on the board of directors and equivalent subscription rights in the new entity, the company said. A formal joint venture agreement is expected to be finalised at a later date.

Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal is looking for a chief of staff for himself. He shared a job posting for the role on his X account and wrote, "“Update: I am looking for a chief of staff for myself."

Lava International managing director Hari Om Rai who was arrested in October last year in a money laundering case involving Vivo Mobile Communication China, and its Indian group entities. Noting that Rai had been in custody since October 10, 2023 and the trial was at the stage of documents and charges were yet to be framed, Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri said: “...the trial is not expected to end anytime in the near future and the delay is not attributable to the accused, keeping the accused in custody by using Section 45 PMLA(Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002,) a tool for incarceration or as a shackle is not permissible,” the HC said, adding liberty of an accused cannot be curtailed by Section 45 of the 2002 Act without taking all other germane considerations into account. The case has 48 accused persons, 527 witnesses and 80,000 pages of documents, and the trial was not expected to end anytime in the near future, the judge said, adding that out of the seven accused persons who were arrested, the arrest of three persons had been declared illegal by the trial court and the other three have already been released on bail, said the court.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. As Indian households adopt smart TVs at a rapid rate, creators are racing to produce high-quality shows that cater to the growing demand for long-form content on the new ‘big screen’. However, a significant hurdle remains.

This new direct service between Chennai and Penang, caters to the growing demand for travel between the two cities, offering both business and leisure travelers a convenient and affordable option, IndiGo said in a statement.

Sanjay Dutt’s premium Scotch whisky brand, The Glenwalk, has achieved a significant milestone by selling over 50,000 cases (600,000 bottles) in the first seven months of the current financial year. The brand has established a strong presence in India’s spirits market, operating across 10 states. Maharashtra leads The Glenwalk’s sales, contributing over 45%, followed by Haryana at 25% and Uttar Pradesh at 20%. Currently available in Maharashtra, Haryana, Goa, Daman and Diu, Delhi, Punjab, Chandigarh, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and Madhya Pradesh, the brand plans to expand to five additional states by next month. Looking to capitalize on this growth, The Glenwalk aims to increase sales by 500%, targeting 300,000 cases while expanding to over 18 states and five countries. To cater to diverse consumer preferences, the brand introduced 1-litre bottles in October 2024 and plans to launch 200ml nips in November 2024, aiming to quadruple sales.

Sula Vineyards Ltd CEO Rajeev Samant hopes that the current slowdown in urban discretionary demand is «more of a temporary blip and not structural» one. In the second quarter of the fiscal year, the company's net revenue declined 1.2 per cent to Rs 142 crore as compared to Rs 143.7 crore in the year-ago period, while profit after tax dipped 37.3 per cent to Rs 14.5 crore as against Rs 23.1 crore in the same quarter last fiscal year. Samant told analysts that in the second quarter the company witnessed «a temporary slowdown in consumer demand across discretionary categories, including alcoholic beverages, particularly within urban India, which does represent more than 90 per cent of Sula's customer base». Post-Covid, he said, «We saw a surge in domestic wine consumption which lasted until last year, as the consumer did a bit of cocooning at home and splurged on creature comforts.»

India and Australia sealed an ambitious renewable energy partnership and set their eyes on a comprehensive economic cooperation agreement as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese vowed to significantly ramp up overall bilateral ties. A raft of issues including ways to boost ties in areas of defence and security ties, mobility, science and technology and education figured prominently at the second India-Australia annual conclave held on the sidelines of the G20 summit late on Tuesday. The two leaders also looked forward to a long-term vision of defence and security collaboration to enhance collective strength, contribute to both countries' security, and make an important contribution to regional peace and security, according to a joint statement. The Renewable Energy Partnership (REP) would provide the framework for practical cooperation in priority areas such as solar energy, green hydrogen, energy storage, investments in related projects and allied areas.

elevated corridor of approximately 34 kilometres in the Kaziranga National Park and that other stakeholders will provide full support to the wildlife-friendly measure. The Assam government informed the apex court that the elevated corridor was proposed for the National Park, which is famed for one-horned rhinoceros. It apprised a bench of Justices B R Gavai and K V Viswanathan that work on a detailed project report was in progress by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) has placed the project as a priority (category one).

Kapil Sharma and his show The Great Indian Kapil Show on OTT platform Netflix landed in legal trouble for allegedly disrepecting the legacy of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore. Multiple reports surfaced that Salman Khan's production house SKTV had been served a legal notice as well for its alleged association with the show.

The 63 countries, along with the European Union, assessed in the CCPI are responsible for 90 per cent of global emissions. India ranks 10th in this year's CCPI, remaining among the highest performers.

Datta Power Infra on Wednesday said it has signed an initial agreement with the Rajasthan government to invest around Rs 5,000 crore in the renewable energy sector. The memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between company representatives and officials of the state government in Jaipur, Datta Power Infra said in a statement. Datta Power Infra looks to set up 1,000 MW renewable energy capacity, including solar, wind and hybrid projects. The projects across across Bikaner, Jaisalmer, Barmer, Nagaur, Pratapgarh and Jodhpur districts would generate jobs for 500-750 people, the company said.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Last month’s Brics summit in Kazan, Russia, was, like all summits, heavy on photo ops. And it yielded a second act that was similarly heavier on symbolism than substance: the release of a report by the Russian finance ministry and central bank on “improvement of the international monetary and financial system," by which Russian officials obviously meant “finding an alternative to the weaponized dollar." Expressions of dissatisfaction with the dominance of the dollar over global money and finance go back at least to French finance minister Valéry Giscard d’Estaing in 1965, who famously lamented the greenback’s “exorbitant privilege." Indeed, the desire for an alternative played no small part in the creation of the euro 34 years later.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The Akshaya Patra Foundation plans to take its acclaimed midday meal scheme to Indonesia and Kenya, said two people aware of the development, as India seeks to use its soft power to deepen ties and trade. Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s largest economy, is launching a free meal programme for schoolchildren.

Yes Bank has announced a partnership with Vegapay, a technology innovator in the banking software industry, to launch a hyper-configurable platform called ‘Credit Line on UPI’, Vegapay said in a press release. Yes Bank, through the platform can create customised credit programmes that suit customers' needs. The bank can decide whether to offer interest-free or interest-bearing credit, whether or not allow customers to pay in installments (EMIs), and set up rules for different situations through an easy-to-use interface. The platform includes a user-friendly dashboard and a customisable app, making it simple for banks to integrate with their existing systems.