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government in Chhattisgarh had pushed the state on the verge of bankruptcy but the BJP government has set a goal of doubling the GDP in five years, Finance Minister O P Choudhary has said. Choudhary, who presented a budget of Rs 1,47,446 crore for 2024-25 in the state assembly on Friday, said that in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision to make India a five-trillion-dollar economy and a developed nation by 2047, the state budget has paved the way for inclusive development and economic growth. «At a time when the country is marching ahead with zeal and enthusiasm to achieve the single goal of becoming a developed India. Chhattisgarh too has set a vision of transforming into a developed state in the Amrit Kaal,» he said in a write-up after presenting the budget. Through its annual budget, Chhattisgarh has laid the foundation of this new era with a focus on the prosperity of GYAN, stimulating infrastructural growth by increasing capital expenditure, and employment and livelihood promotion for youths of the state, he said.

BLive, a startup that offers a wide range of EVs and related services through a digital platform. In his response to our questionnaire, Kholkar said that India's EV market has great potential. He also discussed EV subsidies, BLive's financials, and business plans. Edited excerpts: Tell us something about BLive At BLive, we are on a mission to drive the adoption of sustainable mobility. My co-founder Sandeep and I, come from corporate backgrounds and always had the vision of creating something that could drive positive and meaningful impact and we chose electric vehicles as they are a perfect fit to addressing the current growing transport need of our country.

Read more The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) on Thursday decided to keep its key policy rates unchanged for a sixth straight meeting. Shaktikanta Das-headed six-member MPC maintained the repo rate at 6.5% with five out of six members voting in favour of the rate decision. Read more The RBI projects a 7% real GDP growth for the upcoming financial year 2024–25 from the previous projection of 6.6%.

Manipur government on Friday approved to increase the allowance of Manipur Police Commandos and other state forces in vulnerable areas. The new session of the Manipur assembly will commence from February 28, the government said. Manipur chief minister N Biren Singh announced the same on X, “The state Cabinet approved to increase the allowance for our brave Manipur Police Commando and other state forces in vulnerable areas. Effective immediately, the allowance for Manipur Police Commando will be increased by Rs 5,000, while the state forces in vulnerable areas will receive an increment of Rs 3,000.” The cabinet meeting held on Friday also addressed the issue of providing ex-gratia to victims of violence, particularly focusing on individuals from central armed forces but who are not residing in the state. A new scheme was discussed to extend support to such individuals.

defence ministry said on Saturday it had detected eight Chinese balloons crossing the Taiwan Strait in the previous 24 hours, two of which flew across the island, in an uptick of activity at the start of the Lunar New Year holiday. Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory despite the strong objections of the government in Taipei, has complained since December about the balloons, saying they are a threat to aviation safety and attempt at psychological warfare.

Chinese New Year 2024: The global celebration of Chinese New Year 2024 commenced on February 10 with joy and cultural reverence, marking the advent of the ‘Year of the Dragon’. This cherished festival, deeply rooted in Chinese culture, unites people of Chinese heritage in festivities that symbolize fresh beginnings and familial bonds. The occasion signals the beginning of the lunar calendar, inviting vibrant parades, dragon dances, and feasts amid fireworks and reunion dinners.

Vijay Shekhar Sharma, founder of Paytm and part-time chairman of Paytm Payments Bank, considered resigning from the latter’s board and removing ‘Paytm’ from its name to quell mounting regulatory and compliance pressures on the fintech firm, said people aware of the matter. Sharma, however, did not carry out his plan and remains on the board of Paytm Payments Bank.

Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is looking to unlock about ₹5.45 lakh crore worth of spectrum for 5G and 6G needs through refarming or repurposing of existing frequencies, particularly in the mid-band or 3-6 GHz range, said officials familiar with the matter. «We are looking to make available additional spectrum for mobile use in the coming five years,» said one of the officials, who did not wish to be identified. The DoT believes there is a need to provide more airwaves, especially in mid-band, for upgradation of 5G technology and introduction of 6G, which is expected to be launched by 2030. Most of the spectrum is currently being utilised by domestic legacy users such as defence forces and satellites, which may be shifted to different frequencies.

Legislation that would raise the limit on state and local tax deductions for some taxpayers chips away at a frustrating SALT block but would come with some drawbacks, financial advisors say.

Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie concerning their French winery, Chateau Miraval, has taken a decisive turn in Pitt's favor. Recent court filings reveal a significant victory for the actor as a judge ruled against Jolie's attempt to sell her business share to a competitor. This development sheds light on the ongoing complexities of their post-divorce relationship, providing insight into the challenges they face in dividing their multimillion-dollar assets.

UBS Private Wealth Management has expanded its ultra-high-net-worth presence with the addition of a multibillion-dollar advisory team.

It’s been years since insurance companies dangled buyout offers or contract exchanges to annuity owners – but MetLife is planning to do just that.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says that Bell’s most recent round of layoffs is a “garbage decision” in response to a question about the company laying off nine per cent of its staff on Thursday.

The director of the main U.N. aid agency for Palestinians says Israeli restrictions are preventing food for 1.1 million people from reaching war-battered Gaza

₹1,073 crore in the third quarter, mirroring the lift in profits and volumes seen by listed peers Bajaj Auto & TVS Motor Company. The company also reported a 21% increase in revenue from operations to ₹9,723.73 crore in Q3FY24, versus ₹8,030.98 crore in Q3FY23. The company said it retailed 1.4 million units during the 32-day festive period during the quarter, its highest for any festive period so far.

health ministry has strengthened the Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP), which allows for a decentralised system of response to institute requisite public health control and containment measures, the government informed Parliament on Friday. In a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said prevention of and preparedness against pandemics is a shared global responsibility. In order to better prepare against future pandemics and public health emergencies in the country, the Ministry of Health provides the requisite support to the states and Union territories to enhance their capabilities, Mandaviya said. As reported by the states, a total of 1,802 disease outbreaks, including acute diarrheal diseases, chicken pox and cholera etc, were reported last year (till December 17), he said.

Raymond James has taken a significant step forward in supporting advisors’ ability to deliver comprehensive planning with the addition of a new service. Through its new paraplanning services offering, the firm is providing on-demand, in-house support from experienced paraplanning professionals, enabling them to further integrate financial planning into their practice.

Congress in August 2022 approved the landmark Chips and Science Act. The law provides $52.7 billion, including $39 billion in subsidies for semiconductor production and $11 billion research and development. It also creates a 25% investment tax credit for building chip plants, estimated to be worth $24 billion.

Bitcoin advanced past $46,000 to a one-month high, supported by signs of steady inflows into a batch of US funds for the token as well as growing attention on the so-called halving due in April.

CERT-In has pinpointed vulnerabilities in Google Chrome OS that could potentially be exploited by remote attackers, allowing them to execute arbitrary code, attain elevated privileges, circumvent security restrictions, or induce denial of service conditions on impacted systems. The root causes of these vulnerabilities lie in a "use after free" flaw within the Side Panel Search feature and inadequate data validation in extensions.

parliamentary standing committee on communications and information technology said it will engage in constructive discussions with the information and broadcasting ministry on the proposed Broadcasting Services Regulation Bill, 2023, which has created a furore in the TV broadcasting and over-the-top (OTT) segments. In its 56th report titled 'Regulation of Cable Television in India', the committee, headed by Shiv Sena MP Prataprao Jadhav, also asked the ministry to apprise it about the timeline when the ministry would introduce the draft Bill in Parliament. «The committee would further like to engage in constructive discussions regarding the proposed draft legislation at a more mature stage of its formulation,» the report said. The Bill, which seeks to replace the Cable Television Networks Regulation Act, 1995, aims to bring TV, OTT, radio, cable, DTH, IPTV and HITS under a common regulatory framework. It was released for public consultation on November 10, 2023, and the last date for furnishing comments was January 15 this year.