Assurant Financial News

Russia will keep compulsory military service for 18-year-olds, state media reported on Friday, permanently increasing the number of young men liable to conscription, after lawmakers dropped a proposal not to start before the age of 21. All men in Russia are currently required to do a year's military service between the ages of 18 and 27, or equivalent training while in higher education.Andrei Kartapolov, a former general who chairs the defence committee of the lower house of parliament, or State Duma, had proposed that the conscription period be pushed back in stages to ages 21-30.

audit committees and empowering independent directors, NFRA chief Ajay Bhushan Prasad Pandey said on Friday as he mentioned about the trend of companies setting up advisory boards for governance. The Chairperson of the National Financial Reporting Authority (NFRA) also emphasised that he was not saying that an advisory board for a company should not be there as that always adds to the value.

international schools in Hyderabad experience an overwhelming surge in applications, with long queues forming outside their doors despite the steep fees. Across the country, the trend is similar, indicating a rising preference for these schools due to their holistic approach to education. Parents in Hyderabad, like in other parts of India, acknowledge that the substantial fees are offset by the assurance of overall development that these international schools offer.

ULIPs are basically life insurance policies and enjoy exemption under Section 10(10D) on maturity proceeds provided the premium paid did not exceed 10% of the sum assured for any of the premium paying terms.

Joint committee on the draft Forest Conservation (Amendment) Act 2023 on Thursday has accepted every single amendment proposed by the Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change and recommended it entirely unchanged, as per its report tabled in Parliament on Thursday. Four Opposition party Members of Parliament- who were on the panel- Congress MPs Pradyut Bordoloi and Phulodevi Netam, Trinamool Congress’ Jawahar Sircar and DMK’s R Girirajan – have expressed their dissent in writing to provisions in the draft Bill.

UTI Mutual Fund has launched UTI Balanced Advantage Fund, an open-ended dynamic asset allocation fund, investing in a diversified portfolio of equity and fixed income. The portfolio of the scheme will be dynamically managed, based on valuation and fundamentals driven by in-house proprietary asset allocation model. The New Fund Offer opens for subscription today and it will close on August 4. The scheme aims to provide long-term capital appreciation and income by investing in a dynamically managed portfolio of equity and debt instruments. However, there can be no assurance that the investment objective of the scheme will be achieved. The scheme does not guarantee/ indicate any returns.

Azure Power Global's CFOs Sugata Sarkar and Pawan Kumar Agrawal assured bond holders in Singapore that the company should be able to publish its long-delayed results within 14 weeks and avoid a technical default. The company, majority-owned by Canadian pension funds CDPQ and OMERS Infrastructure, has until the end of this month to appeal the NYSE's delisting order, with the final decision expected after a potential three-month process.

Gurgaon, July 19, 2023: Indian engineering colleges churn out a large number of students every year, however, over 80% of graduates every year remain unemployed. In order to overcome this challenge, FunctionUp School of Technology (FST) has launched a four-year offline B-Tech degree taught by IIT alumni.

Sebi has decided to introduce a separate sub-category for ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) investments under thematic category of equity schemes. Any scheme under the ESG category can be launched with one of the strategies such as Exclusion, Integration, Best-in-class & Positive Screening, Impact investing, Sustainable objectives, and Transition or transition related investments. Presently, mutual funds are permitted to launch only one ESG scheme under the thematic category for equity schemes. In view of the industry representations for allowing multiple schemes with different ESG strategies and considering the increasing need for green financing, Sebi has decided to permit launch of multiple ESG schemes with different strategies by mutual funds. Mutual funds should ensure that the schemes launched are clearly distinct in terms of asset allocation, investment strategy etc.

New Delhi: India and Sri Lanka are expected to discuss economic connectivity and China during the visit of president Ranil Wickremesinghe, who arrives in New Delhi today. This is Wickremesinghe’s first visit to India since taking office after his predecessor, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, was swept from power after mass protests in 2022. The visit comes even as Sri Lanka continues to grapple with a protracted economic crisis.

Insurance plays a crucial role in securing the financial future of you and your loved ones. However, while taking a life cover, it becomes important to make sure that you know the difference between life insurance and term insurance so that you can get full advantages of the product you are purchasing.

Best-performing Small Cap Mutual Funds in 3 years (till July 19 2023): Most of the small-cap funds have given high returns to investors in three years. While the direct plan of the top-performing Small Cap scheme has given over 58% annualised returns in this duration, some low-performing small cap funds have also given over 34% annualised returns in 3 years.

The recent order of the Bombay High Court emphasises that granting a decree for specific performance is a discretionary decision that considers numerous factors, including the equitable principles of The Specific Relief Act.

As per ToI report, the issue of overcharging has long been a complaint from customers, with an elaborate system in place to siphon off extra cash that doesn't make its way into Tasmac's coffers. Now, as per ToI report, Tasmac's managing director, S Visagan, has sent a circular to all senior regional managers, instructing them to take action against supervisors and salesmen if MRP violations are reported. Failure to do so will result in penalties for the managers themselves.

ANI citing government sources, “It is imperative for social media platforms to adhere to Indian laws as the matter is currently under investigation." The shocking incident of two women being stripped and paraded on a village road came to light only on Wednesday in a viral video. Eyewitnesses to the incident express their disillusionment, stating that neither the state nor the central government seems equipped or motivated to effectively address the situation, leading to a sense of hopelessness among the people.

New Delhi mandates a non-GMO and GM-free status certificate from exporting countries for 24 food products, including apples, wheat, rice, tomato and potato. In a submission to the WTO on Tuesday, it asked India to revoke the measure.

Trinamool Congress MPs visited ethnic strife-ravaged Manipur on Wednesday. The delegation comprised Rajya Sabha leader Derek O'Brien, Rajya Sabha MPs Dola Sen and Sushmita Dev, and Lok Sabha MPs Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar and Kalyan Banerjee. They visited Lamka.

schools shut on 20 July owing to the heavy rains in the state and the warning by the weather department that the rains may continue on Thursday. "In view of the continuous rains in Mumbai, considering the safety of the students, the Municipal Corporation has declared a holiday for tomorrow, 20th July, for primary, secondary, and higher secondary schools (Nursery to Class 12) of all management in the Mumbai Metropolis," said Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). The State Disaster Management Unit of Thane, Palghar, Raigad, Ratnagiri, and Sindhudurg districts have also decided to keep the schools shut on Thursday.

macroeconomic outlook and highlights the need for further financial support to address the country's cash-strapped situation, PTI reported this citing The Dawn newspaper. The report is founded on the Memorandum of Economic and Fiscal Policies (MEFP), which was signed by Pakistan's Finance Minister Ishaq Dar and State Bank Governor Jameel Ahmed. The fund said, “Resolving Pakistan’s structural challenges, including long-term BOP [balance of payments] pressures, will require continued adjustment and creditor support beyond the current programme period." Last week, the IMF approved the USD 3 billion bailout program for Pakistan.

OpenAI's CEO Sam Altman has publicly responded to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) investigation into the company's AI chatbot, ChatGPT. The FTC's probe was examining whether OpenAI has breached consumer protection laws, potentially putting users' personal data and reputations at risk.

CRCS Sahara refund portal: The Centre has started the process to refund ₹5,000 crore of depositors whose funds are struck in four cooperative societies of Sahara Group. Launching a 'CRCS-Sahara Refund Portal' to facilitate the refund, Cooperation Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday said: "The process of returning the amount of ₹5,000 crore to the investors is starting today in a transparent manner on a trial basis. This is the beginning of the refund of monies to the depositors (of Sahara Group)".