India Financial News

CDPQ is set to acquire five build-operate-transfer (BOT) toll road assets of Ashoka Concessions, a subsidiary of highway builder Ashoka Buildcon, for an enterprise value of ₹4,500 crore, said people aware of the matter. The deal will be signed this week, the people said, adding the assets will be bought by CDPQ through its infrastructure trust-Indian Highway Concession Trust (IHCT).

Indian armed forces' surveillance capabilities. These deals involve acquiring 31 Predator drones and establishing a maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) facility in India. The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) approved the acquisition last week. Of the 31 drones, 15 will be allocated to the Indian Navy, while the Air Force and the Army will each receive eight. The Foreign Military Sales contract and the MRO agreement with the US will be signed on Tuesday, according to defense officials. A team of American military and corporate representatives is currently in India to finalize these contracts. Key Indian defense officials, including the Joint Secretary and Acquisition Manager for naval systems, will attend the signing ceremony.

Baba Siddique, a former Maharashtra minister and well-known leader of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), has sent shockwaves through the Indian film industry. Siddique had cultivated friendships with numerous Bollywood celebrities, including Salman Khan, Shah Rukh Khan, and Shilpa Shetty.

National Insurance Company, which is grappling with a severe solvency shortfall of ₹8,000 crore, with its solvency margin standing at a negative 0.49%, far below the regulatory minimum of 1.5%, has identified several key assets to address the gap, according to people familiar with the matter. Among these are its stake in Agriculture Insurance Company, a 20% stake in India International Insurance Singapore valued at about $500 million (about ₹4,000 crore) and a joint venture in Kenya, they said, adding that though the insurer has identified these assets, it is yet to start the process and seek necessary approvals to proceed with any sales. While the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) has granted the company forbearance and it has no immediate pressure to liquidate assets, the insurer is hopeful that the transition to a risk-based capital framework, expected in the coming few quarters, would provide relief by improving the valuation of its assets, according to the people.

vaccine doses manufactured and distributed across the world in the last one year alone, half of them were manufactured in India, said Union Health Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava. She said this while addressing the annual India Leadership Summit 2024, organised by the US-India Strategic Partnership Forum here today. Punya said India has emerged as a global leader in pharmaceuticals, being the third-largest producer and a key supplier of generic medicines. This sector's success has resulted in substantial savings for healthcare systems worldwide, including a notable contribution to the US healthcare system.

Bombay High Court has declared ank of India’s decision to declare Pune Buildtech Pvt Ltd ‘fraud’ as null and void and also the inclusion of the realty firm’s name in any such list/communication blacklisting the company from availing of institutionalised credit as null and void. In another separate order, the court has also directed the lender to remove the company’s name from the list of ‘wilful defaulters’ and has also directed the bank to recall any information sent by it to any Credit Information Company declaring Pune Buildtech as wilful defaulters. “It is not in dispute that the entire settlement amount as mentioned in the Consent Terms (Rs 703.35 Crores) has been paid by the petitioners to Bank of India sometime in June 2024,” observed the division bench of Justice BP Colabawalla and Justice Somasekhar Sundaresan in its order of October 8. “Despite this, and after receiving the entire amount, we fail to understand how Bank of India could continue with the proceedings initiated for declaring the Petitioners as wilful defaulters after issuing a ‘No Dues Certificate’ to the petitioners (Pune Buildtech).”

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. A rise in inflation in September was expected as the dissipating base effect would have reversed the comfort seen in the previous two months. However, inflation jumped to a nine-month high of 5.49%, higher than economists’ expectations, as vegetable prices surged sharply during the month.

Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday said the government is simultaneously “pushing all levers” to sustain the current high growth rate, and the country’s economic prospects for this fiscal have been recognised by multilateral bodies like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. India, the minister said, can be a leader in Industrial Revolution 4.0, which is guided by artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning and Big Data & Analytics, thanks to its large young population. Sitharaman was speaking at an event at St Teresa’s College in Ernakulam, Kerala, her office said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

«The Government of India has decided to expel the following six Canadian Diplomats: Mr. Stewart Ross Wheeler, Acting High Commissioner; Mr. Patrick Hebert, Deputy High Commissioner; Marie Catherine Joly, First Secretary; lan Ross David Trites, First Secretary; Adam James Chuipka, First Secretary; Paula Orjuela, First Secretary,» a Ministry of External Affairs release said. «They have been asked to leave India by or before 11:59 pm on Saturday, October 19, 2024,» the release added.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Class actions are gaining prominence in India following recent cases against Ola Electric Ltd and Jindal Poly Films Ltd. Earlier this year, minority shareholders of Jindal Poly Films filed a class action lawsuit – the first in India – against the company’s promoters, claiming fraudulent conduct.

Reliance Industries Limited (RIL)-owned Viacom18 and Walt Disney's Star India are expected to complete their merger by the third quarter of this financial year, pending additional approvals, according to a regulatory filing from Reliance Industries Limiter (RIL). In its quarterly report, RIL noted that Viacom18 and Star India have already received conditional approval from the Competition Commission of India (CCI) for their proposed merger. However, the CCI has yet to issue its detailed order regarding the Star-Viacom18 merger. The competition regulator approved the transaction on 28th August.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Kolkata-based Paayel Sengupta and Ankur Das have a ritual of taking a foreign holiday each year. Having travelled across Southeast Asia extensively, this year they set their sights on a different journey—one that would take them to the captivating crossroads of East and West, beginning with the rich history and stunning landscapes of Turkey.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. In the 100km category of the 10th Solang Sky Ultra (SSU) trail race held on 5-6 October, ultrarunning ace Shashwat Rao started as favourite. At the starting line on day one, the 38-year-old had already stamped his authority on the ultra trail race in Himachal Pradesh, having won four of five previous editions of the race.

Amazon India on Monday announced the launch of Amazon Smbhav Hackathon 2024, a nationwide competition to forge next-gen tech and AI-powered innovations for Indian small and medium businesses (SMBs) in e-commerce. The hackathon is part of the lead-up to Amazon Smbhav 2024, the fifth edition of the company’s flagship annual summit in India, and invites innovators across India to contribute to the growth of India’s digital economy. Amazon has partnered with Startup India, DPIIT, National Innovation Foundation (NIF) — India, and the NIF Incubation and Entrepreneurship Council (NIFientreC) to support the immense potential of innovators from the deepest pockets of the country.

Roopkund Lake, one of Uttarakhand's premier trekking destinations located 16,500 feet above sea level at the base of Mount Trishul, is facing the impacts of climate change, reported TOI. Forest officials have been alarmed by the lake’s shrinking size, which is approximately two acres with a depth of around 9 feet. A 2019 study by scientists from India, the US, and Germany challenged the belief that the skeletons belonged to a single group that perished in a single event, instead suggesting they were genetically diverse individuals who died over a span of up to 1,000 years. Known as the «lake of skeletons» for the hundreds of human remains, some with preserved flesh, that emerge when snow melts, the lake has captured global attention since forest official HK Madhwal discovered bones in its icy waters in 1942.

Amazon Great Indian Festival is still on! Buy best TVs for all budgets from top brands like Sony, Samsung: Over 65% offAmazon’s Great Indian Sale is offering more than 35% off on Samsung refrigerators. From sleek designs to advanced cooling technology, Samsung’s range offers something for every household.

Happy Dussehra 2024 Wishes: Dussehra is one of the most significant festivals for Hindus, celebrated annually at the end of Navratri. It typically falls on the tenth day of the Hindu month of Ashvin, corresponding to September or October in the Gregorian calendar. Known by various names such as Dasara, Dashain, and Vijayadashami, this year’s festivities are taking place today with great enthusiasm and joy.

Google Photos app includes hidden code strings that indicate the upcoming functionality. Although the feature is not yet live, clues found in the app's XML files point to the addition of an “ai_info" tag, which could reveal if an image was created using AI technology.

India’s investment landscape is witnessing a transformative shift with the Securities and Exchange Board of India’s recent approval of a new asset class called ‘investment strategies’. This asset class aims to bridge the gap between traditional mutual funds and portfolio management services by targeting investors having a high risk-return appetite. It seeks to enhance portfolio flexibility while addressing the rise of unregistered investment schemes that promise unrealistic returns. This product resembles liquid alternative investments that are flourishing in the US and Canadian markets.

Grandmaster at the age of 12 back in June 2021 but leading chess player D Harika feels the way the age barrier is being shattered in the sport, it's a matter of time the bar will be reset and probably by an Indian. Harika, one of only three Indian women players to become a Grandmaster, is currently playing in the Tech Mahindra Global Chess League (GCL) here and said that the momentum created by the Indian men's team in the Chess Olympiad in Budapest recently, helped the women too aim for the gold during the historic campaign. India made history by winning their first-ever gold medals in the Olympiad with both the men's and women's teams taking the top podium finishes. «The generation in general is getting smarter. My daughter is just two years old and she can already identify the chess pieces,» said Harika, the two-time Asian Games medallist and a member of the gold-winning Indian women's team in the Olympiad.

stock market broker Ketan Parekh's plea for the closure of a case initiated against by SEBI for not paying a penalty imposed by the markets regulator, noting the accused prima facie violated the norms «intentionally». The special judge for cases under the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) Act, RM Jadhav, in an order passed on October 4, ruled that Parekh's plea for compounding of the case against him «is unwarranted and uncalled for». SEBI initiated a criminal case against Parekh after he failed to pay the penalty for violating the board's regulation. In response, Parekh filed an application before the court for closure of the case by compounding.