The Competition Commission of India has approved the 100% acquisition of Lanco Amarkantak Power by Adani Group's Adani Power. Earlier this month, Adani Power received the Committee of Creditors’ approval for resolution plan to acquire insolvent Lanco Amarkantak Power. The proposed combination relates to the acquisition of 100% equity share capital of the Target by Acquirer
Wipro GE Healthcare said it will invest over Rs 8,000 crore in India over the next 5 years to increase local manufacturing & research and development initiatives. The company, a leading global medical technology, pharmaceutical diagnostics, and digital solutions provider, said as a part of investment, its 'Made in India' PET CT Discovery IQ scanner exported to 15 countries.
Wipro GE Healthcare is a joint venture between GE Precision Healthcare LLC, USA, and Wipro Enterprises established in 1990. Its operations spread across India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Maldives, and Bhutan. Wipro GE Healthcare chairman: Azim Premj
India’s largest port operator Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) has expanded its presence on India’s coastline after buying 95 per cent in Odisha’s Gopalpur Port Ltd (GPL) at an enterprise value of Rs 3,080 crore. APSEZ has agreed to acquire the stake for an equity value of Rs 1,349 crore and an enterprise value of Rs 3,080 crore.
The port, located on India's east coast, can handle around 20 MMTPA. The Odisha government in 2006 awarded a 30-year concession to GPL, with the provision of two extensions of 10 years each. APSEZ develops and operates about 12 ports and terminals on the west and east coast of India.
Life Insurance Corporation of India is termed as the strongest insurance brand with a steady brand value of $9.8 bn, a brand strength index score of 88.3, and associated AAA brand strength rating, notes a report by Brand Finance Insurance 100 2024. According to the report, Cathay Life Insurance is the second strongest brand, with 9 per cent increase in brand value $4.9 bn.
NRMA Insurance stood 3rd which saw an 82 per cent rise in brand value to $1.3 billion. Chinese insurance brands maintain dominance in the global rankings of most valuable insurance brands, with Ping An leading with a 4 per cent increase in brand value to $33.6 billion followed by China Life Insurance and CPIC retaining their third and fifth positions respectively.
Allianz from Germany and AXA from France are holding on to their second and fourth positions in the top 5 rankings. Additionally, LIC achieved highest first-year premium collection of Rs 39,090cr in the financial year 2023, while SBI Life Insurance & HDFC Life Insurance led the private sector with new business premium collections of Rs 15,197cr and Rs 10,970cr respectively.
To boost India's aviation, space and defence ecosystem (ASD), French aerospace and defence firm Starburst Accelerator SARL is partnering with IIT-Madras to set up an innovative hub for start-ups with a funding support of €100 million (100 Million Euros). IIT-Madras will enable Starburst to set up accelerator programs to ASD ecosystem in India.
A key focus of this partnership will be on entrepreneurs, research parks, investors (public and private), Government, and corporate firms. The aim is to create innovative startups and help them grow rapidly to work in tandem with future aerospace and new space worldwide programmes.
Current account deficit (CAD) narrowed sequentially to $10.5 billion in the quarter ended December 2023 (Q3 FY24) — 1.2 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) — from $11.4 billion in Q2 FY24 (1.3 per cent of GDP).
The deficit was also down from $16.8 billion or 2 per cent of GDP in the year-ago period (Q3 FY23).
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data showed that the rise in net services receipts more than compensated for a slight rise in merchandise trade deficit in Q3 FY24. This helped cushion the CAD. Services exports grew by 5.2 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) on the back of rising exports of software, business and travel services.
The merchandise trade deficit was at $71.6 billion in Q3 FY24 compared to $71.3 billion a year ago.
Net services receipts rose to $45 billion in Q3 from $38.7 billion in Q3 of last year. Private transfer receipts, representing mainly remittances from Indians employed overseas, amounted to $31.4 billion, an increase of 2.1 per cent Y-o-Y, RBI said.
The Election Commission has always focused on Accessible Voting every time as it has the motto of no voter is left behind. The Commission has launched Saksham App to facilitate easier voting for Persons with Disabilities and to avail facilities at Polling Stations. Volunteers and wheelchairs will be available at every polling station.
Veteran table tennis player and reigning CWG champion Sharath Kamal will be India's flag bearer at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games while legendary boxer MC Mary Kom was on Thursday appointed the chef de mission of the country's contingent. Mary Kom and former hockey skipper Manpreet Singhwere India's flag bearers at the 2020 Tokyo Games.
The IOC, in 2020, had changed its protocol to allow one female and and one male athlete of each NOC to bear the flag jointly during the opening ceremony of the Summer Games. Hockey player Harmanpreet Singh and boxer Lovlina Borgohain were India's flag bearers at the Hangzhou Asian Games, last year.
Federal Bank has launched a RuPay smart key chain called ‘Flash Pay’ for contactless NCMC (National Common Mobility Card) payments at enabled metro stations and PoS terminals. Customers can make payments up to ₹5,000 without a PIN, whereas those over ₹5,000 will require PIN authentication. The per day limit at any PoS terminal has been capped at ₹1 lakh.
'Fool Bahadur', the first Magahi novel translated into English by Indian poet-diplomat, editor and translator Abhay K. was launched in Patna at the 4th edition of Grand Trunk Road Initiatives. First published in 1928 'Fool Bahadur' by Jayanath Pati from Nawada district of Bihar is the first Magahi novel to be translated into English.
Abhay K. from Nalanda, Bihar, is a poet, editor, translator, and the author of several poetry collections. His 'Earth Anthem' has been translated into over 150 languages. He received the SAARC Literary Award 2013 and was invited to record his poems at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC, in 2018.
The World Theatre Day was established by the the International Theatre Institute (ITI) in 1962, and the first ever World Theatre Day was celebrated in the same year on 27 March. This day is dedicated to the promotion of the art form of theatre across the world.
The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters has decided to award the Abel Prize for 2024 to Michel Talagrand of the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), Paris, France.
Michel Talagrand receives the prize for his work in probability theory and stochastic processes.
The common theme in Michel Talagrand's groundbreaking discoveries is working with and understanding the random processes we see all around us. It has now become apparent that a thorough understanding of random phenomena is essential in today's world. The Abel Prize is named after Niels Henrik Abel, Norway’s greatest mathematician throughout the times.
The Abel Prize was established by the Norwegian Parliament (The Storting) in 2002, on the occasion the 200-year anniversary of his birth. The Prize is 7,5 million Norwegian Kroner.
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) notified the PIB FCU under the provisions of the sub-clause (v) of sub-rule (1) of rule 3 of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021. MIB and MeitY have been working closely on the subject to address the challenge of fake news, especially on social media.
The Fact Check Unit under PIB was established in November 2019 with a stated objective of acting as a deterrent to creators and disseminators of fake news and misinformation. The FCU is mandated to counter misinformation on Government policies, initiatives and schemes either suo motu or under a reference via complaints.
