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Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) will not have any impact on the commitments signed in a trade agreement between India and the EFTA bloc, a top government official said on Monday. The Swiss government has suspended the most favoured nation (MFN), which could potentially impact Swiss investments in India and lead to higher taxes on Indian companies operating in the European nation. India and the four-nation European Free Trade Association (EFTA) signed the agreement in March. Its members are Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland.

Delhi High Court has directed the chief operating officer and chief executive officer of SpiceJet to appear before it in a plea seeking compliance of over USD 6.03 lakh in payment to the aircraft engines lessors. Justice Manmeet PS Arora «specifically denied» the request of the counsel for judgement debtor, SpiceJet, for the appearance of the two senior officers before the court through video conferencing. «The chief operating officer (COO) and chief executive officer (CEO) of the judgement debtor are directed to remain present in court on the next date of hearing, that is, January 16, 2025,» the court said in its order on December 10. The court was hearing an application by the decree holder and aircraft engine lessor Team France 01 SAS and another, seeking a direction for the compliance of the consent order passed on May 29 wherein the airline was directed to make the payment of USD 6,03,870.82 to the decree holders.

Delhi airport operator DIAL on Monday said the airport now provides connectivity to 150 destinations. On Sunday, Thai AirAsia X launched direct flights between Delhi and Bangkok-Don Mueang (DMK), marking the 150th destination connected to Delhi airport, according to a release. Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL) also said it has become the first airport in the country to connect 150 destinations. «Of all the long-haul destinations from India, 88 per cent of destinations are connected from Delhi and 56 per cent of all long-haul weekly flights departing from India, operate from Delhi.

Godavari Biorefineries on Monday announced a Rs 130-crore investment to enhance ethanol production. The investment will be in a corn/grain-based distillery to further strengthen its ethanol production capabilities, the company said in a statement. The Rs 130 crore investment will be done in a new 200 KLPD corn/grain-based distillery to add to its existing operations, enhancing flexibility through dual-feedstock capability, it said. The new facility will be commissioned by March 2026, the statement said, adding that the capital expenditure will be financed through internal accruals and debt.

Magenta Mobility on Monday said it plans to add 10,000 electric vehicles — both three and four-wheelers — over the next financial year and is also looking at expanding into new cities such as Nashik, Nagpur, Vijayawada, Indore and Kolkata, among others. The company also said that after establishing a strong presence in the electric three-wheeler space, it is now aggressively expanding into the four-wheeler category. With a fleet exceeding 500 electric cargo four-wheelers, Magenta Mobility is transforming urban and intercity logistics, it said. Building on its leadership in the three-wheeler EV segment, where it serves major clients in the e-commerce space, Magenta Mobility is now aggressively expanding into the four-wheeler category, the company said.

Indian commercial banks wrote off ₹12.3 lakh crore in loans between the 2014-15 and 2023-24 financial years, according to government data presented in Parliament. Public sector banks accounted for ₹6.5 lakh crore of these write-offs in the last five years (FY20-24), a ToI report said on December 16. Write-offs peaked at ₹2.4 lakh crore in FY19 following an asset quality review. They dropped to ₹1.7 lakh crore in FY24, representing 1% of the total outstanding bank credit. Public sector banks hold a 51% share of new loans, down from 54% in FY23. As of September 30, 2024, gross non-performing assets (NPAs) for public sector banks were ₹3,16,331 crore (3.01% of outstanding loans), and ₹1,34,339 crore (1.86% of outstanding loans) for private sector banks. State Bank of India wrote off ₹2 lakh crore during the ten-year period, while Punjab National Bank wrote off ₹94,702 crore. Public sector banks wrote off ₹42,000 crore in the first half of the current fiscal year.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Recent charges of bribery by a US government agency against the Adani Group and its leadership have cast an unexpected spotlight on the Solar Energy Corporation of India—until now a relatively unknown company run by the central government. SECI was set up as an ‘implementing’ agency under the National Solar Mission.

Brady Corbet’s historical drama The Brutalist has unveiled its full trailer, shared by A24. The film explores the journey of an immigrant architect in post-World War II America and has emerged as a significant awards contender.

UltraTech Cement Limited is leveraging inland waterways to transport a large consignment of mineral gypsum via National Waterway 1 (Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly river system) in a pilot project that was flagged off by the Minister of Shipping, Ports, and Waterways, Sarbananda Sonowal at G.R. Jetty, Kolkata today. UltraTech is the first cement company in India to leverage National Waterway 1 for gypsum transport at scale. The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) and Inland & Coastal Shipping Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Shipping Corporation of India (SCI), supported UltraTech's participation in the pilot. The consignment is being shipped from Haldia port in West Bengal to the Gaighat terminal in Patna, Bihar, and transported to Pataliputra Cement Works, UltraTech’s cement grinding unit in Patna district, Bihar. The use of inland waterways over roadways and railways will result in significant carbon emissions reductions and help decongest roads and rail routes. UltraTech’s participation in the pilot provides a boost to the Central government's efforts to promote the use of inland waterways in the country.

Karur Vysya Bank has inaugurated four new branches in Tamil Nadu, under its plan to strengthen presence, taking the overall branch network to 862, the bank said on Sunday. The Tamil Nadu headquartered bank had inaugurated 24 new branches in the current financial year. The four new branches were inaugurated in Madurai, Tiruppur, Krishnagiri and Chennai, a press release said here. The new branches would cater to provide all basic banking transactions and also to specific needs of customers and would also offer the entire spectrum of banking and financial services.

Hinduja Group company IIHL is expecting to complete the acquisition of debt-ridden Reliance Capital (RCAP) by next month and aims to ramp up banking, financial services, and insurance (BFSI) business more than three-fold to USD 50 billion in the next five years. «Most of the approvals and procedures related to the resolution process of Reliance Capital are complete. Couple of the procedures at the end of the administrator and CoC are to be completed. We hope that all these will be over in the next 4-6 weeks and RCAP should come into the fold of Hinduja Group by the end of January,» IIHL Chairman Ashok P Hinduja said. With the acquisition of RCAP, he said IndusInd International Holdings Ltd (IIHL) is targeting a valuation of USD 50 billion by 2030 as against the current valuation of USD 15 billion (as on September 30, 2024).

IREL) has signed an agreement with a Kazakhstan-based company to develop the titanium value chain in India by harnessing the potential of rare-earth minerals in the coastal parts of the country. The joint venture between IREL (India) Limited and Ust-Kamenogorsk Titanium and Magnesium Plant JSC (UKTMP JSC) proposes to convert low titanium oxide (TiO2) ilmenite produced in Odisha to titanium slag, which is in great demand in the aerospace and defence sectors. «The setting up of this JV plant is expected to catalyse the establishment of chloride pigment/Ti Slag/sponge manufacturing industry, which has been hindered by non-availability of high TiO2 feedstock,» Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) Jitendra Singh told the Rajya Sabha in a written reply to a question.

«NCL touched the lives of around 10 lakh people and spent more than Rs 1,000 crore on various CSR initiatives in the previous 10 years,» it said in a statement. The company's CSR expenditure in the previous fiscal year was Rs 157 crore.

Coal India Ltd (CIL) has spent Rs 5,570 crore in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives over the past decade, a top official said on Sunday. Coal India Chairman P M Prasad said the PSU has been focusing on education, healthcare, skill development, sports, and women empowerment. Inaugurating the 3rd CIL CSR Conclave 2024 on Sunday, West Bengal Governor C V Ananda Bose underscored the transformative power of CSR initiatives in improving the lives of communities, particularly in tribal belts of coal-bearing areas. He lauded CIL's contributions, including its efforts to support cancer patients, stating that such initiatives contribute to the holistic development of the nation.

Vijay Khare passed away at 4 AM today, December 15. Known widely for his iconic portrayal of Gabbar Singh, Khare was a well-known and respected name in the Bhojpuri film industry. His demise comes after a period of health struggles, during which he was receiving treatment at Cauvery Hospital in Bangalore. Although his condition had reportedly stabilised, his health took a sudden downturn, leading to his untimely passing. Fans and colleagues across the industry mourned the loss of a versatile actor who made his mark in over 200 Bhojpuri films throughout his illustrious career. Originally hailing from Muzaffarpur, Bihar, Vijay Khare later moved to Mumbai, where he founded the Vijay Khare Academy, a prominent acting school. Khare’s remarkable career spanned decades, with memorable performances in films like Raijzada (1976), Ganga Kinare Mora Gaon (1983), and Hamra Se Biyaah Karba (2003). His powerful on-screen presence and nuanced acting won him widespread acclaim from both fans and the film fraternity.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday said the Centre and the Chhattisgarh government were committed to end the menace of Naxalism from the state before March 31, 2026. When Chhattisgarh becomes free of Naxalism, the entire country will get rid of the menace, Shah said addressing the President's Police Colour Award function at the police parade ground here. He said the Chhattisgarh police have made a significant achievement in the fight against Naxalism in the last one year. Shah also hailed the Chhattisgarh government's rehabilitation policy for Naxalites and appealed to them to quit violence and join the mainstream.

orthopaedic surgeries at AIIMS, Delhi has increased significantly from six months to 12 months. This dire situation is attributed to the alarmingly low functionality of the operation theatres, leaving countless patients in a state of despair and uncertainty, reported TOI. Officials said that only four or five of the seven OTs are functional due anaesthesia department's inability to man all the OTs. The number of surgeries per day has gone down from 30 to 20, leading to a backlog and longer wait times. Urgent cases like tumour operations and cauda equina in the spine receive emergency classification. The substantial delays in scheduled procedures particularly affect disadvantaged patients who travel from distant areas. Accoring to surgeons, the situation is because of the inability to maintain routine surgical schedules.

Bentley Systems, the Nasdaq-listed infrastructure engineering software company, does not see any slowdown in India's infrastructure spending which will help its India business grow faster than the average of the company, said a senior company official. Bentley Systems develops, sells, and supports software for the design, construction, and operation of infrastructure. Their software is used in the building, plant, civil, and geospatial markets. «Even though a lot of infrastructure work is done by engineering firms and private companies, it is tied to public funding, and there's no slowdown in public funding for infrastructure. Infrastructure investments are going to be needed, to stimulate the economy,» Nicholas Cumins, CEO, of Bentley Systems, told ET.

Shuchi Talati's Girls Will Be Girls shook me up. When I got to an unnerving scene of extreme intimidation in Talati's debut feature, I was suddenly not a journalist watching an award-winning film, but a woman who had once been a teenaged girl, minding my own business, walking up a deserted flight of stairs in an unfamiliar school where I was attending an inter-school contest, when two older boys materialised from the opposite direction, crowded me towards the banister, casually groped me, and walked away with grins on their faces without pausing for a moment, as though it was all in a day's work for them. It was neither the first nor the last time I was molested. And I cannot quite tell why this particular scene in this particular film brought up that particular memory. I guess it was because here, too, there was a teenaged girl, there was a school, and there were boys who got away with it.

The woman claims she was driven from Rochester, New York, to New York City for the awards show and then to an after-party in Combs' limousine. She alleges the assault occurred at the party and that her father later picked her up. However, representatives for musicians Benji and Joel Madden, whom the woman claimed to have spoken with at the party, confirmed they were touring elsewhere at the time. The woman's father also stated he doesn't recall the drive home. A friend who allegedly drove her to the awards is deceased.