UPS Financial News

Approximately 1 million taxpayers will automatically receive special payments.

movieplex snacks counters, but for all who get the munchies this winter. Popping popcorn makes for a universal experience, whether bought from the diversified namkeen chap outside your building, or prepared in your trusty microwave after a 3-min twirl. So, it comes as little surprise that Government-ji, who likes you to pass the bowl of any good stuff you're having, wants to have a say on how you pay for your popcorn. At Saturday's GST Council powwow in Jaisalmer, it was decided that there will be no change in the tax rate for popcorn.

RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat for his «politically convenient» position on restoring temples. Avimukteshwaranand said a list of temples destroyed in the past by invaders be prepared and archaeological surveys of the structures be carried out to «restore Hindu pride». «When he wanted power, he went around speaking about temples. Now that he has power, he is advising not to look for temples,» he said on Bhagwat's remarks. Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Bhagwat recently said that it was not acceptable that new temple-mosque disputes are raked up after the construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya.

Cleanup continues in the Kerch Strait near Russian-occupied Crimea, a week after at least 3,700 tons of low-grade fuel oil spilled out of two storm-stricken Russian tankers

The benchmark S&P 500 is up more than 24 per cent for 2024, even after a major stumble this week, and Wall Street has historically often enjoyed a strong annual close, according to the Reuters report. Since 1969, the last five trading days of the year combined with the first two of the following year have yielded an average S&P 500 gain of 1.3 per cent, a period known as the «Santa Claus Rally», according to the Stock Trader's Almanac. But this year, there are signs Santa Claus may disappoint, Reuters reported.

BJP national president JP nadda for nationwide commemorations of 'Good Governance Day' and 'Veer Bal Diwas', the party's Himachal Pradesh unit shared the detailed outline for the events scheduled on December 25 and 26. BJP State General Secretary Trilok Kapoor, during a press conference in Dharamshala on Sunday, said to commemorate the birth anniversary of Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee, homage will be paid in Delhi by President Droupadi Mumu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and other dignitaries. Regarding BJP National President JP Nadda's directives, he said events will also be organized at the booth level nationwide.

India and Kuwait signed four Memorandum of Understandings in the areas of defence, sports and cultural cooperation during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the Gulf nation, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Sunday. MEA Secretary CPV and OIA, Arun Kumar Chatterjee during a special briefing today, said the MoUs are expected to deepen the multifaceted bilateral relationship as well as open avenues for newer areas of cooperation. «Following the delegation level talks today, four bilateral documents were signed during the visit. The first one is a Memorandum of Understanding on defence cooperation, the second one is a Cultural Exchange program for the years 2025-2029, the third is an executive program on cooperation in the field of sports for the period 2025- 2028. We also had Kuwait joining as a member of the International Solar Alliance (ISA),» he said.

Firhad Hakim on Sunday said that the Centre should be held responsible for unabated illegal migration from Bangladesh. His assertion came in the wake of the BJP attacking the West Bengal government following the arrest of suspected Ansar-al-Islam Bangladesh members who were allegedly trying to spread the terror outfit's network in the eastern state. He was asked about reports that two of the eight arrested terrorists were working to set up a sleeper cell in Murshidabad district and one of them, a Bangladeshi national, had even procured fake identity card and passport to carry on subversive activities. «The onus lies with the Union Home Ministry which is helmed by Amit Shah. Why is he not taking steps to strengthen security along the Bangladesh border? Why is the Border Security Force not succeeding to stop infiltration of Bangladeshi nationals?

Renuka Thakur Singh's five-wicket haul powered India Women to a commanding 211-run victory over West Indies Women in the first ODI of the series at the Kotambi Stadium in Vadodara on Sunday. Having secured a 2-1 win in the preceding T20I series, India Women extended their dominance in white-ball cricket. The emphatic win on Tuesday gave the Women in Blue an early lead in the ODI series. West Indies, led by Hayley Matthews, won the toss and opted to field. However, Harmanpreet Kaur's team set a daunting target for the visitors in the first innings.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Accenture Plc’s renewed hiring—it added 49,000 people globally in the last six months—suggests technology services companies expect a much better growth in the coming months, according to analysts. The Dublin-headquartered company’s hiring spree paints a sanguine outlook for homegrown IT services companies that are expected to record better growth in the coming quarters, the analysts said.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. New Delhi: "If everything on earth were rational, nothing would happen."—Fyodor Dostoevsky Time: 5.30 pm, early May Place: Pitampura, north-west Delhi People wait anxiously in front of a roadside food cart. The long, long queue spills over from the pavement onto the street, leaving bikes, cars, cows and canines jostling for space on the narrow road.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The Uttar Pradesh government is working to unveil a new export policy for 2025-30, aiming to significantly enhance the state’s contribution to India’s overall exports. In an interview, UP’s minister for industrial development and export promotion Nand Gopal Gupta said the proposed policy targets increasing the state's share in India’s total exports to 7.5%, up from the current share of about 5%, by focusing on key sectors, including agricultural products.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The U.S. and China are in a high-stakes race, with the energy security of America and its allies hanging in the balance.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. India recently surpassed 5 million electric vehicles (EVs) on its roads. As 2024 draws to a close, we have a milestone to celebrate and a better growth trajectory to anticipate in 2025.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Private prisons and other companies that provide detention services are getting ready to cash in on what President-elect Donald Trump has billed as “the largest domestic deportation operation in American history." That includes scouring for as many detention beds as possible in their networks of facilities, and scouting sites for new buildings to house migrants. Some executives are considering whether to take up the controversial work of detaining families or unaccompanied children.

Sobha group, plans to set up homes under Devi Home in Moolamcode, Palakkad. This philanthropic initiative is designed to provide a safe housing facility for orphaned girls aged 10 years and below and elderly women aged 50 years and above. Spread over 26,000 sq ft of land, the facility of 42,000 sq ft of built-up area will provide necessities like food, clothing, and shelter. In addition, it will offer educational support for young girls and skill-training workshops for elderly women, enhancing their productivity and overall well-being. PNC Menon, Founder & Chairman Emeritus of Sobha Limited said, «The name ‘Devi’ stands for resilience, care, and the nurturing spirit, which is the very foundation of this project. Devi Home is our endeavour to provide a safe and compassionate philanthropic home for young girls and elderly women who are often overlooked by society. At Sobha, we believe in creating meaningful opportunities for those in need, and this initiative embodies our vision of fostering dignity, respect, and a sense of belonging.»

In absolute terms, the jump to 1.78 million from 1.16 million active companies is the highest for any five-year period, with officials and analysts attributing the surge to the country’s robust economic growth prospects over the medium-to-long term and greater ease of doing business. The decriminalisation of dozens of minor offences under the Companies Act since 2019 also helped, they added.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Last month a 33-year-old woman in Xi’an, in central China, posted a video on social media that showed snowflakes falling on the ancient city. It was early in the year for such weather, so netizens shared the video widely.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Christmas came early for energy nerds with the arrival of a dense 136-page document detailing how the UK government plans to decarbonize the nation’s electricity supply by 2030.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Indian farmers get only one-third of the final selling price, with the rest being enjoyed by the traders, wholesalers and retailers among themselves." Having worked closely with the agrarian economy for over two decades now, I found the conclusions of this research paper published by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to be an affirmation of my frequent observations and pre-suppositions about general practices in the country’s agriculture sector. Creating essential market linkages and consolidating farmers under umbrella bodies should have helped solve much of that problem.

Arguing that current Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) like SIDBI and NaBFID (National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development) have their roles cut out as they have earmarked sectors to finance, the chamber also suggested setting up of a high level committee to look at the revision of PSL norms and explore the need for any new DFIs to cater to some of the new and emerging sectors. Priority Sector Lending is a policy tool aimed at ensuring that key sectors crucial to the nation's development receive adequate financial support. Mandated by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), PSL obligates banks to allocate a specified proportion of their loans to sectors such as agriculture, education, housing, and small industries.