LIVE: 'NSA Doval monitoring border situation; issue to be resolved soon'

India and China have pulled back troops by at least 1 kilometer in the tense Galwan river valley in eastern Ladakh. Stay tuned with Business Standard for latest news of today

9:45 PM

Adani Electricity Mumbai says resolved 96 per cent of power bill complaints

9:45 PM

Saudi, Russian suspects on UK's new global sanctions list

A new UK-only post-Brexit global sanctions list released on Monday includes 20 suspected killers of Saudi journalist Jamal Kashoggi and 25 Russian nationals among 49 people designated for action such as travel bans and asset freezes.

 

UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab told the House of Commons that the new ground-breaking global regime means the UK has new powers to stop those involved in serious human rights abuses and violations from entering the country, channelling money through UK banks, or profiting from the UK economy.

 

"Today we're designating 49 people and organisations for responsibility in some of the worst human rights abuses in recent memory, said Raab.

 

This is a demonstration of Global Britain's commitment to acting as a force for good in the world, he said.

9:44 PM

Wall Street gains on strong US services sector data

Wall Street's major indexes climbed on Monday as data showing unexpected growth in the US services sector last month and optimism over China's economic revival helped investors look past a surge in new cases of Covid-19 at home. Read on...

9:28 PM

NSA Ajit Doval monitoring border situation: Report

National Security Advisor Ajit Doval is monitoring the India and China border situation continuously with the Indian Army and the standoff between the troops of two countries is expected to be resolved amicably soon, government sources said.

 

The Special Representatives of India and China on the Boundary Question-- Ajit Doval and Chinese State Councillor and Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi--- had a 'frank and in-depth exchange' during a telephone conversation on Sunday during which they agreed that both sides should complete the ongoing disengagement process along the LAC expeditiously, the External Affairs Ministry said in a statement on Monday.

 

The government sources said that Doval talked to Chinese counterpart make the Chinese agree to begin the process of disengagement.

8:59 PM

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani thanked PM Modi for Covid-19 assistance and providing regional leadership

8:53 PM

India is engaging with China through diplomatic and military channels: Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla

8:43 PM

MHA permits conduct of examinations by universities and institutions during Unlock period

8:42 PM

Latest News LIVE update: Sebi orders to disgorge Rs 2.3 crore in insider trading case

Markets regulator Sebi on Monday asked Fourth Dimension Solutions Managing Director Amalendu Mukherjee to disgorge an amount worth over Rs 2.3 crore for insider trading in the scrip of Ricoh India Ltd, according to a PTI report.

 

The amount has to be paid along with 12 per cent interest within 45 days, the regulator said in its final order. In addition, Mukherjee has been restrained from accessing securities markets for a period of seven years, Sebi said in its order. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) had conducted an investigation between August 2014 and November 2015 in the scrip of Ricoh India.

 

During the probe, it was found that Mukherjee, while in possession of UPSI (unpublished price-sensitive information) was involved in manipulating the buy and sale orders in the shares of Ricoh as the authorised person on behalf of Fourth Dimension Solutions Ltd (FDSL) and made ill-gotten gains out of it.

8:35 PM

IOC, ONGC implementing projects worth Rs 3.57 trn to boost economy: Govt

Oil PSUs such as IOC and ONGC are implementing about Rs 3.57 trillion worth of projects across the entire hydrocarbon value chain that will further enhance energy accessibility, create jobs and boost the economy, the Petroleum Ministry said on Monday.

 

In Twitter posts, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas said out of Rs 3.57 trillion being spenton 859 projects, over Rs 60,000 crore will be invested during fiscal 2020-21.

 

Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and other senior officials of the ministry "reviewed the ongoing oil and gas projects started by PSUs since the resumption of economic activities from April 20, 2020". READ MORE...

8:26 PM

India engaging with China through diplomatic, military channels: Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla

India is engaging with China through diplomatic and military channels, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said on Monday, asserting that if there is no communication with that country, then the Sino-India border situation would be much worse, news agency PTI reported.

 

He made the remarks while talking about diplomacy in times of the COVID-19 pandemic at a webinar organised by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India. Shringla said that diplomacy is looking at a very changed scenario in terms of how statecraft and relations between countries work in the wake of the pandemic.

 

"Countries do need to communicate. You cannot stop communications because otherwise the other alternative is greater frictions, tensions and problems, and probably conflict also," he said.

 

"For example the increased tension on our border with China. I mean, if there is no communication with that country then we would have a much worse situation, but yesterday our National Security Adviser (Ajit Doval) spoke to his counterpart. Earlier our Foreign Minister (S Jaishankar) had spoken to the foreign minister of China," he said.

 

There are other diplomatic and military channels that India is engaging in, he said.

 

"So we are talking to them and if you stop talking then you can imagine what the consequences (would be). So diplomacy has adapted to this new situation and gone strongly digital," Shringla said during the webinar titled 'Implementing the vision of Aatma Nirbhar Bharat'.

8:17 PM

India's coal imports decline 29.7% to 48.84 MT in April-June of FY21

The country's coal imports registered a drop of 29.7 per cent to 48.84 million tonnes (MT) in the April-June period of the ongoing financial year, according to industry data.

 

India had imported 69.54 MT of coal in the April-June period of 2019-20, according to provisional compilation by mjunction, a joint venture between Tata Steel and SAIL, is a B2B e-commerce company that also publishes research reports on coal and steel verticals.

 

The drop in imports assumes significance in the wake of government mandating state-owned Coal India Ltd (CIL) to replace at least 100 million tonne (MT) of imports with domestically-produced coal in 2020-21. The country's coal imports also dropped 22.5 per cent to 15.22 MT last month, against 19.64 MT of coal imported in June last fiscal, it said. READ MORE...

8:10 PM

Airtel customers paying over Rs 499/month to get preference on network

Bharti Airtel on Monday said it will givepreference to platinum mobile customers, who pay Rs 499 and above per month for post paid connection, on its 4G network. The platinum customers will get better 4G speed on Bharti Airtel network compared to other customers, news agency PTI reported.

 

"Airtel has deployed advanced technologies that give its Platinum mobile customers preference on the network. As a result all Platinum customers will experience faster 4G speeds.As part of the Airtel Thanks program, all postpaid mobile customers on Rs 499 and above plans are designated as Platinum," the company said in a statement.

 

In addition, Airtel Platinum customers will get "red carpet customer care" with preferential service at call centres and retail stores.

8:08 PM

Maharashtra Covid-19 tally rises to 2,11,987 with 5,368 fresh cases; 204 new deaths take toll to 9,206

8:04 PM

India reviewing around 50 investment proposals from Chinese firms: Report

The government is reviewing around 50 investment proposals involving Chinese companies under a new screening policy, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

 

Under new rules announced by India in April, all investments by entities based in neighbouring countries need to be approved by the Indian government, whether for new or additional funding. China is the biggest of these investors and the rules drew criticism from Chinese investors and Beijing, which called the policy discriminatory.

 

The new investment rules were aimed at curbing opportunistic takeovers during the coronavirus outbreak. However, industry executives say a deterioration in bilateral relations since a clash along the countries' contested border last month, in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed, could further delay approvals. READ MORE...

7:55 PM

Bharti Airtel, VIL mobile revenues to fall in Q1 due to lockdown: Report

Wireless revenues of telecom companies Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea Ltd (VIL) are expected to fall during the first quarter of current fiscal on account of the nationwide lockdown, according to a report by Emkay Global.

 

The lockdown, imposed to combat the coronavirus pandemic, led to delayed recharges, fewer subscriber additions, and absence of international roaming revenues for telcos, news agency PTI reported.

 

"Wireless revenues for Bharti and VIL shall fall in Q1FY21 due to the nationwide lockdown, which resulted in delayed recharges by low ARPU (Average Revenue Per User) prepaid subscribers on account of the reverse labour migration and impact on income levels, minimal subscriber additions, SIM consolidation, and absence of international roaming revenues," Emkay Global said in its sector update.

 

APRU is expected to decline sequentially in Q1 of 2020-21 after healthy growth in the preceding quarter (Q4FY20), it added.