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BSNL deal expected over the next few quarters will aid TCS to expand profit margin, a senior company official has said. The country's largest software exporter is also looking at creating a capacity of over 25,000 seats in Bengaluru over the long term on a land parcel acquired recently, Chief Financial Officer Samir Seksaria told PTI here. «The same program (BSNL) as it tapers down at a portfolio level, at an overall level, there would be a benefit which would come in (on margins),» Seksaria said replying a specific question on the impact of BSNL deal's tapering down on margins. He, however, declined to share a number on the positive impact on the operating profit front. For the December quarter, it reported operating profit margin at 24.5 per cent for December quarter and made it clear that it aims to expand on it.

Viksit Bharat Young Leaders Dialogue here, he said some people may find the goal of India becoming developed difficult but it is not impossible. No power can stop India from becoming a developed country if the spirit of 'Viksit Bharat' guides its every step, policy and decision, he said, highlighting the strength and numbers of the country's young population. «Big targets have to be set for a country to march forward… This is what today's India is doing,» Modi said, adding that the country is accomplishing numerous goals in different sectors ahead of time.

Macrotech Developers has acquired nearly 20-acre land parcel in Bengaluru for development of a housing project worth Rs 2,800 crore, as part of its expansion plan. Mumbai-based Macrotech Developers, which markets its properties under the Lodha brand, has been acquiring land through outright purchases as well as forming partnerships with landowners for the joint development. Out of the total, nearly 20 acre land was acquired in Bengaluru, the company has outright purchased some portion of land, while entering into joint development agreement with the landowner for the remaining part, sources said. In its latest operational update for the December quarter, Macrotech Developers informed that the company has added one new project in Bengaluru with GDV (gross development value) of Rs 2,800 crore.

Ira Jadhav, a 14-year-old Mumbai opener, created history by becoming the first Indian to smash a triple hundred in U19 limited overs cricket on Sunday. She ended the innings at 346 not out off just 157 balls as Mumbai posted 563/3 in 50 overs against Meghalaya. Opening the batting in the Women’s One Day Trophy at Alur, Karnataka, Jadhav broke multiple records as she overtook Smriti Mandhana's record for the highest U19 score by an Indian. Jadhav's marathon innings included 42 fours and 16 sixes as she propelled Mumbai to the highest score by an Indian women’s domestic side across all tournaments and age groups.

human metapneumovirus (HMPV) in northern China is declining, a health official said Sunday, amid some international concern over a potential pandemic. HMPV, which belongs to the same family as the respiratory syncytial virus, causes flu or cold-like symptoms including fever, cough and nasal congestion. The symptoms often clear up by themselves, though they can cause lower respiratory tract infections among children, older adults and those immunocompromised. «The human metapneumovirus is not a new virus, and has been with humans for at least several decades,» said Wang Liping, a researcher at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, during a press briefing by China's National Health Commission.

Jemimah Rodrigues registered her maiden ODI century to propel India to its highest ODI score of 370/5 against Ireland in the second ODI at Rajkot. Batting at 4, Rodrigues scored 102 runs off just 91 balls to put India in a strong position at the end of the first innings. She walked to the crease while the team had got an impressive start as captain Smriti Mandhana scored 53 off 54 balls, including 10 fours and two sixes. The was the opener's 30th ODI half century. Mandhana's opening partner Pratika Rawal registered back-to-back half centuries and score 67 runs off 61 balls.

«The fire spread extremely fast after a gas heater was probably knocked over,» the local fire service posted on X. The fire occurred in a restaurant at a housing estate in the city of Most, about 70 kilometres (45 miles) northwest of the capital Prague.

Interpol 'Silver Notice' a «more effective» tool than the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties (MLATs) for gathering information on illicit assets parked offshore, CBI Director Praveen Sood has said it was Prime Minister Narendra Modi's idea, which has now been realised. In an exclusive interaction with PTI, he said Prime Minister Modi had proposed in 2015 a system under the Interpol to trace money laundered offshore, and it has now taken shape as the Silver Notice. The Notice, aimed at locating illicit assets laundered across borders, is the newest addition to the Interpol's suite of eight colour-coded Notices and Diffusions, which enable countries to share alerts and requests for information worldwide. Conventionally, the information on illicit assets is gathered through MLATs which are treaties between two countries whereby they cooperate to provide and obtain formal assistance in the prevention, suppression, investigation, and prosecution of crime.

India, they said, need to prioritise their AI (artificial intelligence) strategy as it promises to transform trade logistics and supply chain management and reshape traditional trade patterns. «AI is fast emerging as an important vehicle for future trade's journey. The AI-driven digital transformation is poised to boost not only services trade, but it may also create whole new categories of tradable AI-powered goods — from autonomous vehicles to robotics and beyond,» trade expert and Hi-Tech Gears Chairman Deep Kapuria said.

Godrej Properties has purchased a 24-acre land parcel in Indore for around Rs 200 crore to develop housing plots, as part of its strategy to expand business amid strong demand for residential properties. Godrej Properties, one of the leading real estate developers in the country, focuses on Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), Delhi-NCR, Pune and Bengaluru markets for group housing projects. For residential plotted development projects, the company has been buying land in tier II-III cities. Godrej Properties has acquired a 24-acres land parcel in Indore.

Amnesty Scheme for customs to foster ease of doing business. «The main asks of the industry would certainly be aligned with the objectives of the government and one objective of the government has been litigation reduction. On that front, having an amnesty scheme for customs especially covering pre-GST legacy taxes like additional duty, special additional duty has been one of the asks of the industry,» Price Waterhouse & Co LLP managing director Anurag Sehgal said. The government had in the past announced amnesty schemes for excise and service tax and even for the income tax but not for customs. There are estimates that over 40,000 cases were pending in various courts and tribunals pertaining to customs duty alone.

Adani Group has committed investments worth Rs 75,000 crore in Chhattisgarh in sectors ranging from power, cement, education, health, skill, and tourism, announced the state's Chief Minister's Office. This comes after Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai and Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani had a meeting. CMO Chhattisgarh in post on social media platform X said that the Chairman of the Adani Group announced a planned investment of Rs 60,000 crore to expand the group's power plants in Raipur, Korba, and Raigarh. This expansion is expected to enhance Chhattisgarh's total power generation capacity by an additional 6,120 MW.

ITC Ltd. has allotted 125.11 crore equity shares of ITC Hotels to its shareholders. The decision was finalized during a Board meeting on January 11, 2025, following a scheme of arrangement between ITC Ltd. and ITC Hotels (ITCHL). In an exchange filing, ITC stated, «The Board of Directors of ITCHL, at the meeting held today, January 11, 2025, has allotted 125,11,71,040 equity shares of Rs 1 each to the shareholders of the company as of the record date, January 6, 2025, pursuant to the Scheme of Arrangement among ITC Limited, ITCHL, and their respective shareholders and creditors.»

Narendra Modi on Sunday paid tribute to spiritual leader and social reformer Swami Vivekananda on the occasion of his birth anniversary. Modi said Vivekananda is an eternal inspiration for the youth. The spiritual leader was born in 1863 and founded the renowned Ramakrishna Mission.

Indian market closed in red on Friday, dragged lower by selling in heavyweight financial and energy stocks, as worries over corporate earnings dampened market sentiment, while IT stocks stood out as the only gainers after quarterly update from sector leader TCS suggested early signs of a demand recovery. The benchmark BSE Sensex lost 241.30 points or 0.31% to close at 77,378.91, while the broader Nifty 50 index closed at 23,431.50, lower by 95.00 points or 0.4%.

Union Budget: As India plans to work towards being a viksit nation by 2047, industry body Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has put forward a 10-point specific suggestion before Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government for the upcoming Budget 2025 to enable ease of doing business. As per the industry body, all regulatory approvals — central, state and local levels — must mandatorily be provided only through the National Single Window System (NSWS), which they believe will help bring about transparency and speed in the processes. In the first stage, CII suggested that it should be completed for all central ministries within the next six months, followed by bringing on the platform, states, in a phased manner. A dedicated central budget could be allocated for the purpose, especially from the point of view of incentivizing states to shift completely to the portal. Read More: Budget 2025 can position India as the world’s China Plus One hub with manufacturing prowess

National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) has dismissed a plea to stay the insolvency proceedings against debt-ridden thermal power producer Indrajit Power. The appellate tribunal said «no error has been committed» by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), while admitting the plea to initiate insolvency proceedings against the Maharashtra-based company on February 1, 2024, filed by Yes Bank. The said order passed by the Mumbai bench of NCLT was challenged by Rajiv Munjal, a director from the suspended board of Indrajit Power, before the NCLAT. However, NCLAT upheld the NCLT order observing that it admitted the insolvency plea after finding debt and default which is not even questioned in the appeal filed by the suspended board.

Sanjay Raut on Sunday said his party wants to go solo in the local bodies polls to strengthen its base and has never called for dissolution of the opposition INDIA bloc or the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA). Raut's remarks came a day after he cited the lack of opportunities for workers of respective parties in an alliance and the right to organisational growth as the major considerations for contesting solo, which raised a question mark over the opposition bloc's unity. Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Raut said, «The MVA was formed for the assembly polls and INDIA bloc for the Lok Sabha elections. The local body elections are meant to empower party workers and strengthen the organisation at the grassroots level.» «I or my party have never said that the INDIA bloc or the MVA should be dissolved,» the Rajya Sabha member added.

Indiabulls Real Estate (IBREL) and Embassy Group, the appellate tribunal NCLAT has sanctioned the scheme of amalgamation to merge both the real estate firms after setting aside the NCLT order stalling the process. «We set aside the impugned order of NCLT, Chandigarh and allow the prayer to sanction the scheme of amalgamation between the appellants (Indiabulls Real Estate, Embassy one & NAM Estates),» said a two-member NCLAT bench. The merger was on hold for the last 18 months, as the Chandigarh bench of the NCLT had withheld its permission in May 2023, despite all regulatory clearances from the CCI, bourses, RoC and approval from respective shareholders and creditors. The appellate tribunal said the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) should not have interfered in the valuation done by the experts using one of the standard prescribed valuation methods.

«The price gouging is going haywire, it's obscene,» the 50-year-old stylist told AFP. «I can't find anywhere for us to go.»

Viksit Bharat Young Leaders Dialogue 2025 at Bharat Mandapam. During his visit, PM Modi interacted with the participants and saw their projects. The Department of Youth Affairs successfully kicked off the two-day Viksit Bharat Young Leaders Dialogue at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi On Saturday. The event began with a grand inaugural session attended by Union Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, Union Minister of State for Youth Affairs & Sports Raksha Khadse, Anand Mahindra, Palki Sharma, S Somnath, Pawan Goenka, Amitabh Kant and Ronnie Screwvala. The ceremony opened with the traditional lighting of the lamp, followed by a floral tribute to Swami Vivekananda, whose enduring ideals continue to inspire the nation's youth.