Country Financial News

India's power consumption grew nearly 10 per cent year-on-year to 70.66 billion units (BU) in the first half of April this year, showing improvement in economic activities and consumption patterns, according to the power ministry data. According to the data, power consumption in the country rose to 70.66 BU during April 1-15 this year from 64.24 MU in the year-ago period. The peak power demand met or the highest supply in a day rose to about 218 GW in the first half of April compared to 206 GW in the same period a year ago. The highest supply in a day during the entire month of April last year was about 216 GW.

80 Naxalites have been killed in Chhattisgarh, 125 were arrested while more than 150 have surrendered. In the very limited span of time, we will be able to root out Naxal terror from the country under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi," the Union Home Minister said. The BJP ousted the Congress and rose to power in Chhattisgarh after winning the state assembly polls last year.

Heatwave in India: Telangana road transportation scales down bus operations As per IMD’s forecast, the temperature is expected to cross the 45 degrees Celsius mark in a few places in Odisha from April 18 to 20. Baripada town in Mayurbhanj district was the hottest place in the entire country on Tuesday with a temperature of 43.6 degrees Celsius, weather scientist Umashankar Das said.

Aap ka Ram Rajya" to showcase the party's work in Delhi and Punjab. The AAP leaders said the website will showcase AAP's concept of "Ram Rajya" as well as the work done by the party's governments in areas like education, electricity, water connection, etc. The launch of the website coincides with Hindu festival Ram Navami.

Also Read: Iran's crude oil output up 20% in 2 years at 3.3% of global supply: What does this mean for the Iran-Israel proxy war? The region comprises five of the top ten oil-producing countries. Saudi Arabia holds the top position as the largest producer in the region and ranks as the world's second-largest oil producer, contributing over 12% of the global crude output. Iran is another major producer in the region with a global share of 3.3% and home to vast oil resources.

India Today. Vikrant said he will also travel to China for the film's promotion. “After a long time, something like this happened.

Maruti Suzuki on Wednesday announced that it has received a ₹2.5 crore tax demand from the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT), Chandigarh. The carmaker said that it would be contesting the demand in the country's apex court. «Even on revised total demand of Rs. 25 million, the company will be filing appeal against the order before the Supreme Court. As per the company's view, the order will have no major impact on the financial, operation or other activities of the Company,» Maruti Suzuki said in an exchange filing.

Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and and his Chinese counterpart Dong Jun held talks in nearly 18 months and discussed US-China defence relations and regional and global security issues, the Pentagon said. In the meeting held via videoconference on Tuesday, Austin stressed the importance of keeping military-to-military communication lines between the US and China open, it said. It is the first time since November 2022 that Austin has held talks with his Chinese counterpart when he spoke with the then defence minister of China Wei Fenghe in Cambodia. Dong was appointed China's Defence minister in December. China then named General Li Shangfu as its defence minister.

Iran's attack on Israel, an immense barrage that included hundreds of ballistic missiles and exploding drones, changed the unspoken rules in the archrivals' long-running shadow war. In that conflict, major airstrikes from one country's territory directly against the other had been avoided. Given that change in precedent, the calculus by which Israel decides its next move has also changed, said the Israeli officials who requested anonymity to discuss Iran.

Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday claimed that BJP will be wiped out from Uttar Pradesh. «BJP is going to be wiped out in UP from Ghaziabad to Ghazipur. Everything said by BJP turned out to be false,» said Akhilesh Yadav. Continuing his attack on BJP, the SP Chief commented, ' people who came in 2014 will be gone in 2024.'

Prime Minister Narendra Modi for diverting attention from the real issues in the run up to Lok Sabha Elections 2024, and said he will follow the Congress decision on whether he should contest in Amethi. Gandhi, who addressed a joint press conference with Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav in Ghaziabad, termed the Prime Minister “champion of corruption." “The Prime Minister gave a scripted interview recently. He said Electoral Bonds were brought in to ensure transparency in poll funding.

Lok Sabha Polls 2024 Live Updates He later said in another post, "I stand corrected. This Ambassador is actually a career diplomat which makes his comments even more shameful, disgraceful, and completely unacceptable.

Raghuram Rajan said, adding that it is important for the country to enhance its human capital and skillsets, PTI reported. Speaking at a conference titled "Making India an Advanced Economy by 2047: What Will it Take" at George Washington University in the United States, Rajan expressed concern over India's current growth rate. "I think we are in the midst of it (demographic dividend), but the problem is we are not reaping the benefits," he stated.

After bringing a warmer, drier winter to much of Canada, the El Niño weather event that has gripped the Pacific Ocean and subsequently the world may at last be over.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in a joint press conference with INDIA bloc partner, Samajwadi Party, launched an attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi by calling the BJP's leader's recent interview 'scripted and flop show.' «A few days ago, the Prime Minister gave a very long interview to ANI. It was scripted, but it was a flop show. The Prime Minister tried to explain electoral bonds in it. The Prime Minister says that the system of electoral bonds was brought for transparency, to clean politics,» said Rahul Gandhi. Continuing his comments on PM Modi, the Congress leader remaked that if this is true then why was that system cancelled by the Supreme Court. «And secondly, if you wanted to bring transparency then why did you hide the names of those who gave money to BJP. And why did you hide the dates on which they gave you the money?.. This is the biggest extortion scheme in the world. All the businessmen of India understand and know this and no matter how much clarification the Prime Minister wants to give, it will not make any difference. Because the entire country knows that the Prime Minister is the champion of corruption,» said Rahul Gandhi.

Australia will boost defence spending by A$50.3 billion ($32 billion) over the next decade and reshuffle its weapons programs to emphasise missiles, drones and warships as it looks to the possibility of a Pacific conflict between China and the U.S. The bulk of the new spending, part of a A$330 billion decade-long budget, will only kick in after five years, and ultimately take defence spending to 2.4% of GDP by 2034 from just over 2% today. Announced by Defence Minister Richard Marles on Wednesday, the new funding reflects new priorities, such as long-range missiles, that Australia believes are necessary in a world where a potential conflict between China and the United States could upend the region.

Ram Navami celebrations on Wednesday after the 'Pran Pratistha' ceremony at the Ram temple, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that after waiting for five centuries, the people have gotten the privilege of celebrating the festival in this manner. «This is the first Ram Navami when our Ram Lalla has been enthroned in the grand Ram temple of Ayodhya. Today, Ayodhya is in unparalleled joy in this celebration of Rama Navami. After waiting for 5 centuries, today we have the privilege of celebrating this Rama Navami in Ayodhya in this manner. This is the reward of so many years of hard penance and sacrifice by the countrymen,» PM Modi posted on X. Extending his wishes to the countrymen on the occasion of Ram Navami, the Prime Minister said that the memories of the Pran Pratistha ceremony in Ayodhya still pulsate in his mind with the same energy.

Army Training Command (ARTRAC), Lt Gen Manjinder Singh, has said that the war between Russia-Ukraine and Israel-Hamas has been a learning experience for India, as it may face similar warfare practices from terror-hit regions on Pakistan's borders. He said this at the Army Training Command (ARTRAC) investiture ceremony held at the Army Training Command in Shimla on Tuesday. Lt Gen Singh, awarded ARTRAC Unit awards to the Army officials for their noteworthy performance in the year 2022-23.

Every small business owner knows how difficult it can be to access affordable capital. But for many women in the Global South, it’s not just difficult, it’s often impossible. A few years ago in Senegal, I met a woman who decided to do something about that problem.