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foreign investment, the recent launch of the Investment Friendliness Index in the Union Budget 2025 marks a pivotal shift in the country’s economic framework. This initiative aims to enhance both competitive and cooperative federalism, making states more attractive to domestic and international investors. The Investment Friendliness Index is more than just a ratings system—it evaluates and ranks Indian states based on their investment potential. By fostering healthy competition, it encourages states to reassess and refine their regulatory frameworks, spurring an influx of private investment. For financial institutions like HDFC Securities, the index serves as a valuable guide for navigating the investment landscape and identifying promising regions.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Apple is clashing with Elon Musk in its push to eliminate cellphone dead spots with satellite technology. The iPhone maker is investing heavily in satellite-based communications that keep users connected in places where traditional wireless signals aren’t available.

We look at banks as safekeepers of our money, which they are. The banking system in India is generally robust. As long as you keep your money with a leading bank, your money is safe. However, on paper, your money is safe up to ₹5 lakh per bank, which is known as deposit insurance. This insurance is taken care of by Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC). With the latest cooperative bank failure, there are talks of increasing the coverage from ₹5 lakh to, say, ₹10 lakh.

During the meeting, Shah told party leaders that they should work to increase voter percentage on the lines of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. Quoting specific examples, he said the BJP never had more than 23% votes in some regions of MP and around 21% votes in some areas of Maharashtra.

preferential trade agreement (PTA) into a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), making Chile the first Latin American country to have such a deal with New Delhi. Discussions on CEPA are expected to take place during Chilean President Gabriel Boric Font’s State Visit to India from April 1-5. He will be accompanied by a high-level delegation, including ministers, MPs, senior officials, business associations, media, and cultural representatives. The PTA between India and Chile was signed in 2006 and expanded in 2017. Officials are now looking at tariff and non-tariff barriers to boost trade between the two regions. The target is to double two-way commerce to $100 billion in the coming years. Key sectors for cooperation include automobiles, medical devices, and pharmaceuticals. Chile is India’s fifth-largest trading partner in Latin America. From April to December in FY25, India’s exports to Chile amounted to $860.26 million, mainly consisting of pharmaceuticals and vehicles. Imports were $2.07 billion, with ores, slag, ash, and copper being the primary inbound shipments. Indian trade organizations have been actively engaging with Chile through business summits and trade fairs in sectors such as pharma, apparel, handicrafts, and chemicals. An Indian mining delegation also visited Chile in April 2024 to explore collaboration opportunities in the mining sector.

Shivalik, the only small finance bank to have transformed from an urban cooperative bank, is looking to acquire a non-banking finance company (NBFC) with focus on secured business. three people familiar with the development said. Secured advances include collateralized assets, like a home-loan financed house that can be used as a security when instalments go unpaid.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar was on Sunday flayed by the RJD for placing his arm around the shoulders of a woman at a public function where Union Home Minister Amit Shah was also present. The opposition party shared a video clip of the event held at the sprawling Bapu Sabhagar auditorium in the city where the two leaders launched central and state projects worth more than Rs 800 crore. Shah also gave away «dummy cheques» to beneficiaries of schemes under the Union Ministry for Cooperation, another portfolio that he holds. One such recipient, a middle-aged rural woman, apparently failed to understand that Shah was requesting her to pose for a photograph. At this juncture, the 74-year-old chief minister tugged at her arm and made her stand facing the posse of journalists and photographers, with his arm around her shoulders. The RJD wrote on its X handle, in Hindi, «Just see how Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is pulling towards himself a woman in an objectionable manner with Home Minister Amit Shah looking on».

The countries' three trade ministers agreed to «closely cooperate for a comprehensive and high-level» talks on a South Korea-Japan-China free trade agreement deal to promote «regional and global trade», according to a statement released after the meeting. «It is necessary to strengthen the implementation of RCEP, in which all three countries have participated, and to create a framework for expanding trade cooperation among the three countries through Korea-China-Japan FTA negotiations,» said South Korean Trade Minister Ahn Duk-geun, referring to the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership. The ministers met ahead of Trump's announcement on Wednesday of more tariffs in what he calls «liberation day», as he upends Washington's trading partnerships. Seoul, Beijing and Tokyo are major U.S. major trading partners, although they have been at loggerheads among themselves over issues including territorial disputes and Japan's release of wastewater from the wrecked Fukushima nuclear power plant.

BIMSTEC Secretary General Indra Mani Pandey unveiled key outcomes, including the Bangkok Vision 2030 and underlined that the grouping is set to grow stronger by partnering with other external partners such as Indian Ocean Rim Association and ASEAN. In an online conference organised by Centre for Global India Insights (CGII), a think tank focused on global affairs, Pandey underscored the growing political will and commitment of member states to strengthening BIMSTEC, enhancing its effectiveness, and ensuring time-bound implementation of decisions. The conference, titled “Bolstering BIMSTEC: Mapping the Next Steps,” was held ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Bangkok to attend BIMSTEC summit and featured eminent diplomats and experts from India, Thailand Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh. Diplomats from other BIMSTEC countries also attended the conference. Besides BIMSTEC Secretary General Pandey, Sumith Nakandala, First Secretary General, BIMSTEC Secretariat; Amb. (Retd.) Riva Ganguly Das, India’s Former High Commissioner to Bangladesh; Prof Mustafizur Rahman, Distinguished Fellow, Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), Dhaka; Dr. Piyanat Soikham, Director, India Studies Centre, Ubon Ratchathani University, Thailand; Prabir De, Professor, RIS; and Yash Pal Sachar, Vice-President, Ashok Leyland participated in the panel discussion. The conference was moderated by Manish Chand, CEO, Centre for Global India Insights. “Our leaders will adopt a joint declaration. They will also adopt a BIMSTEC Bangkok Vision 2030. This is for the first time that BIMSTEC will adopt its own vision document,” said Pandey.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. When Norman Borlaug moved to Mexico in 1944, 60% of the wheat consumed in the country was imported. The government wanted to produce enough of the staple domestically to meet demand, so with money from the Rockefeller Foundation it had started the Cooperative Wheat Research and Production Programme, and asked Borlaug to lead it.

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday reiterated that individuals working for online news portals are not officially recognized as journalists under state government rules. His statement followed the arrest of a Guwahati-based journalist, Dilwar Hussain Mozumder, who was detained under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. A Guwahati court granted Mozumder bail on Wednesday, but he was arrested again in another case the next day. The Chief Judicial Magistrate’s Court (Kamrup) confirmed that multiple cases were registered against him. Sarma, in a statement on X, clarified, “It has come to my notice that some media houses have reported the arrest of a journalist by Assam Police. I would like to clarify that Assam Police has not arrested any journalist in recent times.” He emphasized that the Directorate of Information and Public Relations (DIPR) does not recognize individuals from online news portals as journalists. “He works for a portal, and we do not recognize people working for portals as journalists. In Assam, no individual employed by a portal is recognized as a journalist. I believe he is just an individual, and there are speculations that he is a businessman. He owns dumpers and operates as a part-time journalist for a portal. The portal in question is a politician-promoted,” Sarma said. The journalist had gone to the Assam Cooperative Apex Bank (ACAB) to cover a protest regarding alleged irregularities in recruitment. A video shared on social media showed him questioning the bank’s managing director, Dambaru Saikia, who refused to respond.

Tribhuvan Sahkari University' in Gujarat's Anand with an aim to create a qualified manpower for co-operative societies. The university has been named after Tribhuvandas Kishibhai Patel, who was one of the pioneers of cooperative movement in India and instrumental in laying foundation of Amul, Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah said during a debate on the «Tribhuvan» Sahkari University Bill, 2025.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. President Trump’s trade war is forcing America’s closest allies to choose between fighting back, or acquiescing. The trouble is, nobody has figured out which is the best way to get Trump to do what they want.

Reserve Bank of India governor Sanjay Malhotra while addressing Private Sector Collaborator Forum 2025 in Mumbai asserted that the measures taken to combat money laundering should not overzealous which can stifle legitimate activities and investments. «While we continue to keep our financial systems safe from money laundering and terrorist financing, policymakers must ensure that our measures are not overzealous and do not stifle legitimate activities and investments,» Malhotra said on Wednesday.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Ukraine has navigated a turbulent political landscape since Russia’s 2022 invasion. Its strategy has shifted among direct negotiations, military offensives and increasingly complex diplomatic back channels.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. India’s defence majors such as Ideaforge Technology Ltd and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd took a beating at the bourses during the recent market sell-off.

Singapore on Tuesday signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) for Green and Digital Shipping Corridor (GDSC), with a focus on digitalisation and decarbonisation. The Singapore-India GDSC, when established, will enhance collaboration from both countries and help accelerate the development and uptake of zero or near-zero GHG emission technologies and the adoption of digital solutions, a joint release from Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore and Ministry of Ports, Shipping said. The minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal said his visit to Singapore with a high-level marine sector delegation will strengthen the long-standing relationship. Moreover, the «Comprehensive Strategic Partnership» will deepen and broaden cooperation between the two countries, he noted.

Donald Trump on Monday doubled down on his suggestion that the U.S. should take over Greenland as leaders from the semi-autonomous Danish territory criticized a planned trip there this week by a high-profile U.S. delegation. «I think Greenland is going to be something that maybe is in our future,» Trump told reporters after a meeting with officials in his cabinet, saying it was important for U.S. national security. Greenland's outgoing Prime Minister Mute Egede called plans by the U.S. delegation to visit an American military base and attend a dog sled race a «provocation», and said his caretaker government would not meet with the group. Trump said his administration was working with «people in Greenland» who want something to happen, but did not elaborate. «They're calling us,» he said. «We're not calling them.»

Araku Coffee, the world's first terroir-mapped coffee was launched in the canteens of both houses of the Parliament on Monday afternoon. The coffee was launched in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha in the presence of Union Minister Ram Mohan Naidu, Kiren Rijiju, Piyush Goyal and TDP MPs. After the launch of the coffee, Union Minister Piyush Goyal said, «It is a matter of pride for me that the government of Andhra Pradesh has taken up the Araku Valley coffee, a GI product, as an important product for every Indian to taste.» «With the collective efforts of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu, this double-engine government will take Araku to new heights; we will make it a premium product,» he added. Union Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu also spoke about the coffee and said, «We are inaugurating the Araku Valley coffee which is a very prestigious coffee from the hills of Araku in Andhra Pradesh. For years, the tribal farmers from Andhra, especially Araku, have been growing this distinctive coffee. Now, it is a world-renowned product.»

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Indian trade officials are pushing their American counterparts to stitch their recent critical minerals deal into an upcoming trade agreement, two people aware of the discussions said, a tweak that may unlock US tax benefits for electric vehicles and batteries using these scarce resources.