Business
No Free Power Obligation On Pumped Storage Projects: Centre To States
NEW DELHI: The Power Ministry has asked the State governments not to levy any free power requirement on pumped storage projects (PSPs). This is in contrast to the practice of allocating a percentage of the generated electricity to the home State free of cost, a senior government official said...
Steel Sector To Grow At 8%; Capacity To Rise By 20 MT By FY27: Report
The annual capacity of India’s steel industry will increase by 20 million tonne between the financial year (FY) 2025 to 2027, says Acuite Ratings and Research in its recent report. The report gives a positive outlook for the Indian steel industry in the medium to long term. Driven by...
DRDO Plans To Expand Pinaka Rocket System With Three Extended Range Variants Of 120 Km, 150 Km, And 200 Km
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) is advancing its Pinaka Rocket System by developing three new extended-range variants: 120 km, 150 km, and 200 km. This development marks a significant enhancement in India’s artillery capabilities, aiming to provide the Indian Army with more versatile and precise long-range strike...
New Guidelines Mooted To Ease Corporate Liquidation
NEW DELHI: The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) has recommended several changes in the liquidation process under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), in order to enhance overall efficiency, increase stakeholder confidence, and improve financial outcome for all parties involved. One key change is to allow the...
TRAI To Release Spectrum Recommendations For Satellite Broadband By December
NEW DELHI: The Telecom regulatory authority of India (Trai) is likely to come out with its recommendation for spectrum assignment to satellite broadband players and the related pricing of those airwaves by December, its chairman Anil Kumar Lahoti said. “After the open house discussion, we analyse all the comments,...
India, UK To Relaunch FTA Talks In 2025, ‘Address Remaining Issues’
NEW DELHI: India and the United Kingdom (UK) will ‘relaunch in the new year’ talks for a free trade agreement (FTA), following months of pause due to general elections in both countries, according to a statement from the UK government. “A new trade deal with India will support jobs...
SEBI Proposes Higher Lot Size, Longer Promoter Lock-In For SME IPOs
MUMBAI: The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on Tuesday proposed a slew of changes in the guidelines for listing of small and medium enterprises (SMEs), including an increase in the lot size to Rs 2 lakh or Rs 4 lakh, higher promoter lock-in of five years and...
No Commitment To Lowering Fiscal Deficit, Says Montek Singh Ahluwalia
NEW DELHI: Former Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia on Tuesday said there is no commitment at present in reducing the fiscal deficit which stood at around 7 per cent at combined level of the Centre and states. “Earlier, there was at least a clear focus on reducing...
India’s GDP Growth Likely To Slip At 6.5 Per Cent, Maintains 7 Per Cent Estimate For FY25: Icra
MUMBAI: Domestic rating agency Icra on Wednesday said India’s real GDP growth for the September quarter is likely to decline to 6.5 per cent due to heavy rains and weaker corporate performance. The agency, however, maintained its FY25 growth estimate at 7 per cent on expectations of a pick...
FICCI Reduces GST on EV Batteries, Charging Services To Boost Affordability
NEW DELHI: In order to keep EVs competitive there is a need to reduce GST on batteries and charging services, FICCI Electric Vehicle Committee Chair Sulajja Firodia Motwani said on Tuesday. Speaking at the sidelines of FICCI National Conference on EVs here, she also exhorted the need to enhance...
Government Addresses Steel Import Issues Amid Rising Concerns
NEW DELHI: The government is working to address the issues related to steel imports, Union Steel Minister H D Kumaraswamy said on Tuesday. The industry has apprised the ministry and it is aware of the issue, Kumaraswamy told PTI on the sidelines FICCI’s Conference on ‘Electric Vehicles – Accelerating...
CCPA To Bring Regulatory Framework For Diamond Industry To Protect Consumers Interest
NEW DELHI: The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) will soon release guidelines on diamond sector to ensure explicit labelling and certification of all diamonds and prohibit the use of misleading terms in trade. The CCPA has organised a stakeholder consultation on consumer protection in the diamond sector to deliberate...
China Trying To Improve Ties With India To Ease Off Us Pressure From Trump: Business Leader
WASHINGTON: China is trying to improve ties with India in an attempt to ease pressure from the incoming Trump administration, the head of a top India-centric US business advocacy and strategic group said on Tuesday. During his presidential election campaign, Trump proposed a 60 per cent tariff on goods...
Public Procurement Norms May Be Tweaked To Aid Makers Under PLI
NEW DELHI: The government is examining tweaking its public procurement norms to aid manufacturers under the production-linked incentive (PLI) schemes. The government is assessing the idea to offer the benefit of deemed local supplier status to a company that gets an item manufactured by its contract manufacturer, who is...
Finance Ministry Sets Minimum Annual Dividend Payout Norms For NBFC CPSEs
NEW DELHI: The Ministry of Finance on Monday brought in central public sector enterprises (CPSEs) classified as non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) under the minimum annual dividend payout norm of 30 per cent of profit after tax (PAT) or 4 per cent of the net worth, whichever is higher. Issuing...
Plan Afoot For SingTel, Mittals To Equalise Direct Stake In Bharti Airtel
KOLKATA: Singapore Telecommunications (Singtel) and the Mittal family — the promoters of Bharti Airtel — are preparing a plan for each of them to hold equal direct stakes in India’s second-largest telecom operator, said a top Singtel executive. Currently, Singtel directly owns 9.5% in Bharti Airtel through its affiliate,...
Banks Need To Make Loans More Affordable, Says FM Nirmala Sitharaman
MUMBAI: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday called on banks to make interest rates more affordable at a time when the government wants industries to build capacity. She described the current high cost of borrowing as “very stressful”. “…when you look at India’s growth requirements, you can have...
Indian Pharma Companies May Benefit Under Trump 2.0
NEW DELHI: The Trump 2.0 agenda, with its likely focus on China plus 1 strategy for pharmaceutical manufacturing and supply chain diversification, provides an incremental opportunity for Indian drug companies. Additionally, higher tariffs on Chinese goods could open new avenues for Indian pharma players to fill the supply gap...
