The coming financial year would be bad for Indian banks, but things could improve in 2014-15 as economic growth picks up and their condition would improve, ratings agency Standard & Poor’s said. It predicted a loan-growth of 16%-17% for 2013-14, in line with its projection for the current financial year ending next month. Indian banks […]
Olivea Travels, India’s first and only ultra-luxury bus service, is offering 24-hour a half-price sale on its Bangalore-Chennai bus route in association with US deals website Groupon. The Rs 1,400 ticket will fetch you an experience including a multi-cuisine and beverages service, an on-board “luxury” toilet, a 10-inch TV with live DTH service, and WiFi […]
Days after finance minister P Chidambaram took to the internet to address live questions from the people about the budget, it is the turn of Planning Commission Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia to face questions from the public. The event, to be held today at 5 pm, will also feature other top officials from the Planning […]
The telecom regulator has mooted the idea of having a single emergency number, like 911 in the USA, in India. In a new consultation paper, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has suggested bringing different emergency services like the police, ambulance, fire brigade, civil defense and disaster management under the same access number. Currently, […]
When Micromax Canvas HD A116 hit preorder last month, it ensured such a frenzy among the mobile-crazy that the phone is still out-of-stock on nearly all online stores and major retail outlets in India. Perhaps it was to be expected — after all, for nearly a year, the only quad-core smartphone in India, the Samsung […]
It is mistakenly called LG’s answer to the Samsung Galaxy S3, but the new LG Optimus G is clearly a superior phone to the Samsung model though it is priced Rs 2,000 more. LG said it is launching the Jelly Bean 4.7-inch Optimus G two days after the phone actually started showing up on retail […]
The tussle between the Centre and the DMK over the Sri Lanka Tamils issue is fast turning nasty, if one reads between the lines of home minister P Chidambaram’s response to DMK’s move to withdraw support to the central government late yesterday. In a statement that contained as many hints as information, Chidambaram today said […]
The Kerala High Court has also directed oil distribution companies like Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum Corporation and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation to supply diesel to the Kerala State Transport Corporation at subsidized rates. The Madras High Court had, yesterday, asked the companies to supply subsidized diesel to the local transport corporation. KSRTC is currently getting […]
GDP growth is unlikely to meet Government’s expectations for a 6.1-6.7% growth next financial year, Angel Broking has said, pegging the number at a more realistic 5.7%. The toned down expectation may be the result of previous experience. For example, last year’s Economic Survey had predicted a GDP growth of 7.6% this year, but the […]
An estimated 25 lakh foreign workers, including lakhs from India, will be forced to return to their home countries after Saudi Arabia decided to stop the practice of issuing ‘free visas’. “Free visas” allow subjects of Saudi Arabia to bring (or sponsor) workers from abroad under more relaxed rules, and often send them off to […]
The government has given more details of the ambitious Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor or DMIC, and the first phase will be complete by 2018, it said. The DMIC is India’s attempt to catch up with China in industrial development, especially manufacturing. The seven built-from-scratch are being developed with the co-operation and investment of global giants like […]
The international version of Samsung Galaxy S4, the first phone to feature the ‘Big.Little’ eight-core architecture from ARM, is likely to launch in India on May 1 and carry a price tag of Rs 45,000, according to indications from retailers taking pre-orders for the super phone. “Expected date of launch in India is 1st May […]
The association of telecom operators like Reliance Communications, Tata Teleservices etc has opposed the move to allow wireless broadband operators such as Reliance Industries’ Infotel from offering voice services. The Association of Unified Services Providers (AUSPI) said the Telecom Commission has decided to allow the holders of BWA (Broadband Wireless) spectrum to offer voice services. […]
Assocham, an industry chamber whose members include some of the biggest users of Indian Railways’ freight services, has called called for radical measures to protect the Railways from rising diesel prices. The association pointed out that even as the decision to raise diesel prices for bulk customers may allow the government to cut back on […]
The central government has rejected the request by the government of Kerala to set up the special court to try the Italian marines in Kerala, instead of in Delhi, to help the witnesses depose before the court easily. According to sources, the government has decided to set up special court to try the Italian Marines […]
British companies may join two new-age cities being planned near Bangalore, trade minister Anand Sharma said. The two cities are among the 12 being planned under India’s National Manufacturing and Investment Zones (NMIZ) policy. The zones will be a complete cities in themselves and will include large residential and entertainment areas, a large number of […]
Doordarshan is setting up a free high-definition (HD) broadcasting system in the four cities of Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai, the ministry of information and broadcasting said. Free terrestrial broadcasting of HD-quality TV channels is likely to be a novelty in a country where nearly 99% of the people watch low-definition (SD or standard definition) […]
It’s not just the youth, but also the labor class that Bharti Airtel wants to make life easy for with India’s first classifieds service for manual laborers and other blue collar workers. Called ‘saral rozgar’, the service allows “skilled, semi-skilled and un-skilled manual laborers” to register themselves on a voice-based service and get work. Workers […]
Stuxnet, widely believed to be a virus released by the Israeli government to neutralize the Iranian nuclear program, has been infecting computers in India, according to the ministry of IT and Communications. It however clarified that the virus — that hampers the functioning of Siemens industrial controllers used in the Iranian nuclear programe — has […]
There are some product launches that make you go, why? The India launch of Nexus 7 by Google is one such. Let’s see why it doesn’t make much sense in a market like India’s. First, why do people buy tablets? They buy them primarily as media consumption devices. In other words, to see videos, browse […]
