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Mint.The country currently has about 300 seismometers at earthquake monitoring stations for detection, early warning capability and scientific understanding of seismic activity.Scientists and disaster management experts say this brief gap between the arrival of different seismic waves can be used to safeguard critical infrastructure such as metro rail systems, transmission lines, power plants and industrial facilities. While earthquakes cannot be predicted in advance, many countries operate Earthquake Early Warning (EEW) systems that provide a few seconds to about one minute of lead time before strong shake reaches a location.The development is significant given that 59% of India is vulnerable to earthquakes due to its unique geological and tectonic setting, particularly its location at the collision boundary of the Indian and Eurasian plates.Mint had earlier reported that India was developing a system to predict destructive S-waves during earthquakes.According to the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI), a New Delhi-based multilateral organization, India suffers losses of around $31.6 billion across nine infrastructure sectors—buildings, health, education, oil and gas, ports and airports, power, roads and railways, telecommunications, and water and wastewater—due to earthquakes, cyclones, floods, landslides and tsunamis every year.

Write to Ben Glickman at [email protected] all the Business News, Market News, Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.

As the U.S. and China move from a battle over economic principles to managing the status quo, who is winning? Write to me at [email protected].

₹2,000 crore stake sale in its battery arm, Ola Cell Technologies Private Ltd, after its board earlier approved a ₹1,500 crore fundraise through share or securities issuance.The push comes as falling scooter sales and a weakening balance sheet tighten liquidity, even as the company doubles down on its capital-intensive cell business.Mint looks at what is driving the company’s fundraising push.The urgency stems from a sharp deterioration in its core business.In 2025, Ola Electric’s sales more than halved to nearly 200,000 electric scooters, while rivals such as TVS Motor Co., Bajaj Auto and Ather Energy gained ground.In the October-December quarter, revenue fell to a record low of ₹504 crore, while losses stood at ₹487 crore, compared with ₹564 crore a year earlier.Analysts say the pressure is now visible on its balance sheet.“(A) turnaround would necessitate Ola to have a strong cash balance to survive this phase. However, as per our calculations, Ola has turned net debt as of 9MFY26 ( ₹670 crore) from net cash of ₹160 crore in H1FY26.

Toyota’s factory in Woodstock, Ontario, will soon deploy Digit, a humanoid robot from Agility Robotics, on its production floor. These bipedal machines will unload auto parts from warehouse tuggers and onto the production line—work that until now was performed by humans. Toyota chose humanoid robots because its factories are designed for people.

Business News, Market News, Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.

Business News, Market News, Breaking News Events and Latest News Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.

₹20,020 crore.In fact, Q3FY26 revenue growth was as high as 46%, led by a 54% jump in its mainstay wires and cables business that contributes 88% of the gross segment revenues.Like peers, supply chain uncertainties and demand disruptions following the Middle East conflict are expected to hurt Polycab too. “March so far has been weaker versus initial expectations, thereby impacting Q4 estimates, emanating from uncertainty from the ongoing Middle East conflict, and a high base,” wrote JM Financial Institutional Securities’ analysts after interacting with Polycab’s executives in a report on 15 March.Should the ongoing uncertainty persist, Q4 volumes could remain flat year-on-year, revenue growth relying on input cost appreciation (18-20%), it added.March usually accounts for 45-50% of Polycab’s fourth-quarter revenue, but demand has been slower this time owing to uncertainty around commodity prices and project visibility.

We have been here before. In the 1970s, US President Gerald Ford urged Americans to combat escalating energy costs in response to the Arab-Israeli war. His Whip Inflation Now (Win) initiative encouraged people to grow vegetables in their yards, car pool and use cold water in the laundry.

NEW DELHI: Consumers will soon be able to check whether a shop is compliant with weights and measures or pricing norms by simply scanning a QR code at the outlet.The Centre is preparing to make quick-response code (QR)-based digital certification of retail shops in the country mandatory to help protect consumers and push towards formalization of the retail sector, according to two government officials aware of the development.The plan is part of a push to strengthen enforcement of legal metrology rules for weights and measures and ensure that businesses comply with standards through a foolproof verification mechanism. The tamper-proof QR codes must be prominently displayed by all retail shops.Customers should be able to scan the codes using a smartphone to check whether an establishment has been certified for its weighing and measuring instruments and complies with the rules.The plan comes in the backdrop of the government’s focus on targeting violations related to weights and measures, packaged commodity declarations and pricing practices in retail trade.

investors undertake thorough research and build conviction in a company’s prospects, they must behave like its owners.Market volatility, relentless news flow and short-term noise should not dictate decisions. Instead, investors should stay focused on the long-term trajectory of the business.

India’s goods and services tax (GST) still struggles with a basic design problem: the integrity of its input tax credit (ITC) chain. The recent rate rationalization simplified slabs, but its merger of the 12% category with the 5% slab largely applies to supplies where ITC is restricted or unavailable. In such cases, the system resembles cascading turnover-style taxation and weakens the value-added tax (VAT) principle of seamless credit and tax neutrality.

Reliance Jio was waiting for the government's nod for 2.5% public shareholding norms, and will now move ahead with its plans to tap the capital markets.Last week, the finance ministry allowed large companies above a certain market cap to list with just 2.5% stake sale through public offers, as against the minimum 25% requirement earlier.The rules allow companies with a post-issue valuation of above ₹5 trillion ($54 billion) to dilute a minimum of 2.5% equity, a drop from the previous 5% limit. The easing will also help companies such as the National Stock Exchange (NSE) to successfully list on Indian exchanges, Mint reported earlier.Mint also reported this month that India has emerged as the second-largest IPO market globally by proceeds and the most active by number of deals in 2024, with companies raising about ₹1.6 trillion across more than 300 listings.

Buyers can avail a discount of ₹2-9 lakh on the purchase of a medium or heavy electric truck under the PM E-Drive scheme by providing scrapping certificates for multiple diesel trucks, the ministry of heavy industries has clarified.The scheme mandates that scrapping certificates, also known as certificates of deposit (CDs), must be provided before claiming incentives. Mint explains this quid pro quo to reduce India’s reliance on carbon-heavy road freight, which makes up a third of the country’s total transport sector greenhouse gas emissions.What is the clarification for vehicle scrapping under the PM E-Drive scheme?On 27 February, a statement from the ministry of heavy industries clarified that incentives for new trucks can be granted against one or more valid scrapping certificates for diesel trucks, provided the gross vehicle weight (GVW) of the diesel trucks is higher.The ministry also explained with examples.

NEW DELHI: The civil aviation ministry proposes to offer as much as ₹1,800 crore as incentives to manufacture drones in India, increase adoption across defence and civilian sectors and reduce reliance on component imports from China.The tentatively titled Mission Drone Shakti is expected to set aside ₹1,600 crore-1,800 crore over five years to fund and support research and development and local manufacturing of components including critical parts and incentivize drone sales and adoption, an official aware of the discussions said.The plan is to introduce the scheme in FY27, targeting private Indian companies. The details are being finalized and after the finance ministry’s approval, it will be presented for the consideration of the Cabinet.The proposed Mission Drone Shakti mirrors India’s production-linked incentive schemes across 14 sectors such as electronics, textiles, pharmaceuticals and automobiles, which had a cumulative outlay of ₹1.97 trillion.

₹29,845 crore in February, down 4% from ₹31,002 crore in January, according to data from the Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi).As markets fall, many investors are seeing negative returns and wondering whether to stop SIPs. The math suggests they shouldn’t.The core mechanism behind SIPs is rupee cost averaging. When markets fall, a fixed monthly investment buys more units.

₹50,000-55,000 per ft, implying a gross development value (GDV) or revenue potential of ₹9,000-10,000 crore, estimates JM Financial Institutional Securities.Last month, Oberoi emerged as the highest bidder for Railway Land Development Authority’s over 11.21-acre prime land parcel in Mumbai’s Bandra with a ₹5,400 crore bid. In Q3FY26, it inked an agreement to redevelop land at Nepean Sea Road with a potential free sale component of 1.18 lakh square feet carpet area.

The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) February 2026 amendments of its Credit Facilities Directions, together with the overhaul of its framework for external commercial borrowings (ECBs), has recast India’s acquisition finance regime and opened a regulated channel for bank-led acquisitions. RBI’s new directions allow banks in India to extend ‘acquisition finance’ to non-financial corporates in the country or their subsidiary or step-down special purpose vehicles (SPVs) so that they can acquire strategic ‘control’ through equity shares or compulsorily convertible debentures in a domestic or foreign target, where the transaction is a long-term strategic investment for value creation.

₹1,200 crore, with Stovekraft and TTK Prestige together accounting for about 36% as of FY25, according to Fadia.“Whatever channel inventory was already available has largely been sold out, and companies would not be in a position to quickly refill the channel as they would not have planned for such a sudden surge in demand,” said Fadia. “They will need time to order components and align the supply chain, which could take at least 20–30 days."Most consumer appliance companies source components from China and assemble them locally, while some traders and distributors directly import finished goods from China and Vietnam, limiting the benefit for domestic manufacturers, said Fadia.A major share of induction stoves sold in India are sourced from China, with companies procuring components or finished units and assembling them domestically before selling under local brands, said Trviesh D, chief operating officer at Tradejini, a stock broking company.And even if companies ramp up supply, the demand may fade once LPG availability improves.“While the disruption may lead some households to try induction cooking, we expect demand to normalize once LPG supply improves, limiting the likelihood of a sustained structural shift in the category,” said Manish Valecha, research analyst, Anand Rathi Institutional Equities.Investor enthusiasm has already cooled.

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The nationwide shortage of cooking gas over the past week should abate soon, given that import supplies are on their way to Indian shores even as domestic refiners have been asked to bump up production.The crippling shortage of this item of mass consumption that has proven to be the Achilles heel of our energy security calculus partly owes its origin to well-intentioned policy efforts to shift households from kerosene to liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), a cleaner fuel. While only half of India’s population had access to LPG in 2010, its coverage is nearly complete today.