graph

Farm labourers making bunches of paddy saplings to plant at a field on the outskirts of Guwahati | Photo: PTI

Prasanth Regy, Vijay Mahajan & Jagmeet Singh

The All India Rural Financial Inclusion Survey by Nabard shows while rural India is no longer predominantly agricultural, access to financial services remains weak

Financial inclusion: A long way to go

Business Standard

The new provisions in the Companies Act, 2013 are a good opportunity for corporate India to move beyond 'Just Public Relations'

Vijay Mahajan: The journey from 'ERR' to CSR

As someone who helped build the microfinance sector in India from scratch, it pains me to read all the negative publicity surrounding it these days. This article is an attempt to restore some balance.

Vijay Mahajan: Micro loans, macro returns

The Haryana government is dedicated to ensuring that the benefits of welfare schemes directly reach eligible individuals at their doorstep, Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini said on Sunday.
The government is committed to reaching out to every member of society, addressing their concerns and ensuring that no eligible person is left behind, he added.
The chief minister was interacting with party workers at the residence of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare Minister Shyam Singh Rana in Pehowa's Chanalheri village, according to an official statement.
Saini said the state government had made concerted efforts to fulfil its commitment of delivering the benefits of welfare schemes directly to eligible individuals at their homes.
He also expressed confidence that the government was effectively listening to the people's concerns and carrying out development work in line with their expectations.
The government is dedicated to the welfare of the last person in the queue, following the spirit o

Nayab Singh Saini, Nayab Singh, Nayab

The engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) contract includes the design, engineering, and installation of the balance-of-system (BoS) components

solar energy, solar, solar panel

Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday left for home after wrapping up his two-day "successful" visit to Kuwait during which the two countries elevated their relationship to a strategic partnership, marking a new era of bilateral cooperation and growth.
"A historic & successful visit to Kuwait concludes! PM @narendramodi emplanes for New Delhi," Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a post on X.
Modi's visit to Kuwait was the first by an Indian Prime Minister to the Gulf nation in 43 years.
During his visit, Modi held extensive talks with the country's top leadership, including Emir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, with whom he discussed boosting ties in information technology, pharmaceuticals, fintech, infrastructure and security.
"In line with the close ties between our nations, we have elevated our partnership to a strategic one and I am optimistic that our friendship will flourish even more in the times to come," Modi said in a post on X.
Modi

Modi Kuwait

The PTI welcomed the formation of the government committee for negotiations, calling it a "positive step"

Today, the almighty has saved Pakistan and the 22 crore people of the country. This is the first time when the vote of no-confidence motion was successfully passed. The people of this country will celebrate this day: Shehbaz Sharif

Shehbaz Sharif, Pakistan

Meghalaya lost over 84 sq km forest cover between 2021 and 2023, according to the latest India State of Forest Report (ISFR).
Except for Sikkim, which reported an increase of 2 sq km forest cover, all other states in the northeast region witnessed a reduction of the area under forests, it said.
The region, with 7.98 per cent of land area, collectively contributes 21.08 per cent of India's forest and tree cover, the ISFR, 2023, said.
Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Bhupendra Yadav, had launched the report at the Forest Research Institute in Dehradun on Saturday. It showed a nationwide increase of 1,445 sq km in total forest and tree cover recorded since 2021.
While the study did not specify what caused the loss of forest cover in Meghalaya, forest officials in the state said human activities, including agricultural expansion, increased settlement and infrastructure development are suspected to be the reasons.
The report also made mention about jhum ...

Assam, Assam forest

GST Council addresses disaster levy, clarifies tax exemptions, and revises ITC norms, while deferring insurance premium GST cut and key rate rationalisation decisions

GST council meeting

After two weeks of buying, FPIs turned net sellers in Indian equities this week, with a net withdrawal of Rs 976 crore amid a strengthening US dollar and steady rise in US 10-year bond yields, impacting investor sentiment.
Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) began the week on a positive note, investing Rs 3,126 crore in equities during the first two trading sessions (December 16-20).
However, the trend reversed in the latter half of the week, with FPIs offloading equities worth over Rs 4,102 crore in the subsequent three sessions. This resulted in an overall net outflow of Rs 976 crore during the week, data from National Securities Depository Limited showed.
Despite this short-term reversal, the broader December trend remains positive. FPIs have infused Rs 21,789 crore into Indian equities so far this month, reflecting continued confidence in India's economic growth potential and its resilient markets.
FPIs adopted a cautious approach due to the US Fed meeting and uncertainty about 

Foreign portfolio investor exodus: Financial sector bears the brunt, FPI

Fundraising via IPOs in India hit another landmark as economic growth, favourable market conditions and improvements in the regulatory framework helped companies raise a record Rs 1.6 lakh crore in 2024, while the pipeline for the next year holds out bigger promise.
This exceptional year not only reflected the confidence of issuers but also highlighted investors' eagerness to seize listing-day gains or back companies with strong long-term growth potential.
The year was marked by Hyundai Motor India's historic IPO, the largest in the country's history, which raised Rs 27,870 crore.
Companies of varying market capitalisations -- large, mid, and small -- tapped into the IPO route in 2024, with the average issue size rising significantly from Rs 867 crore in 2023 to over Rs 1,700 crore in 2024.
The exceptional vibrancy of the IPO market was evident, with December alone seeing at least 15 launches.
"Rising retail participation, strong domestic inflows and active participation by FPIs (

ipo market listing share market

The accumulated losses of state public sector enterprises (PSEs) rose from Rs 3,953.70 crore in 2020-21 to Rs 4,778.70 crore in 2022-23, while the profit earned by 13 SPSEs stood at Rs 20.21 crore as on September 30, 2023, according to a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) on finances tabled in the Assembly on Saturday.
The net worth of nine out of these 14 PSEs has been completely eroded by losses and their worth was (-) Rs 1,932 crore against an equity investment of Rs 2,085.59 crore, while three PSEs have outstanding government loans amounting Rs 3,132 crore, the report said.
Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board topped the list of loss making enterprises with accumulated losses of Rs 1,809.61 crore, followed by Himachal Pradesh Road Corporation at Rs 1707.12 crore, HP Power Corporation at Rs 552 crore, Himachal Pradesh Power Transmission Corporation at Rs 395.91 crore, HP Financial Corporation at Rs 180.97 crore, State Forest Corporation at Rs 113.04 crore, HPM

The Centre may overshoot the Rs 56,260 crore target for dividend receipts from central public-sector enterprises (CPSEs) set for FY25 and is likely to end up getting around Rs 65,000 crore this financial year, according to a senior government officia

A 50-year-old doctor from Saudi Arabia, who has been living in Germany since 2006, is the prime suspect in the Christmas market attack in Magdeburg, which killed five people

Germany police

India's foreign exchange reserves have declined by $50 billion this quarter as of December 13, according to the latest RBI data

rupee

A Reserve Bank report on Thursday sounded a note of caution saying sops like farm loan waiver, free power and transport, by states could crowd out their critical resources for social and economic infrastructure.
The RBI's 'State Finances: A Study of Budgets of 2024-25', however, said state governments have made commendable progress towards fiscal consolidation by containing their aggregate gross fiscal deficit within 3 per cent of GDP for three consecutive years (2021-22 to 2023-24), while restricting revenue deficit at 0.2 per cent of the GDP in 2022-23 and 2023-24.
"This has allowed states to scale up their capital spending and improve the quality of expenditure," the report said.
It further said several states have announced sops pertaining to farm loan waiver, free electricity to agriculture and households, free transport, allowances to unemployed youth and monetary assistance to women in their Budget for 2024-25.
"Such spending could crowd out the resources available with them

RBI, Reserve Bank of India

Market share gains in the B2C portfolio are visible and Tier III+ markets are likely to contribute to the patient volume growth guidance

Metropolis Healthcare

Road, Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on Thursday called upon the sugar industry to explore multiple avenues for diversification, including ethanol-diesel blending and green hydrogen production.
Addressing the annual general meeting of the Indian Sugar and Bio-Energy Manufacturers Association (ISMA) virtually, the minister emphasised the need for setting up ethanol and CNG pumps, including through private sector participation.
There is a huge potential for flex engines, ethanol-based engines, and bioCNG as alternatives to fossil fuels.
Five automakers including Tatas, Suzuki, and Toyota are set to launch flex engine fuel cars in the market, he said and urged the tractor makers to start manufacturing tractors on alternative fuels.
The minister suggested examining possibilities of exporting ethanol to neighbouring countries like Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and Sri Lanka to expand market opportunities.
Bio-bitumen production using lignin and biomass sources, along with gr

The oil marketing companies (OMCs) in their second tender for supply of 0.88 billion litres of ethanol in 2024-25 supply year have for the first time said that preference would be given to ethanol produced from cooperative sugar factories, officials

Saying the daily generation of 3,000 tonne of untreated solid waste was a "disastrous situation" and a "shocking state of affairs" in Delhi, the Supreme Court on Thursday pulled up the Delhi chief secretary and sought government's explanation.
A bench comprising Justices A S Oka and Augustine George Masih pulled up the Delhi chief secretary over the compliance of Solid Waste Management Rules 2016.
"The manner in which the chief secretary has dealt with the issue is surprising. He does not care about orders of this court. Does not bother to file compliance affidavit. Who says we are on same page. If there is a gap of 3,000 metric tonnes untreated solid waste daily, is it not necessary for Delhi government and municipal corporation to come together and put brakes on certain part of development activities? The explanation must come from the Delhi government. Fact of the matter is there is no compliance of 2016 rules. Have you complied with the timelines?" asked the bench.
The court ...

Supreme Court, SC

The I-T department probes Rs 7,500 crore spent on lavish weddings, targeting Jaipur planners and fake billing networks linked to foreign destination events and cash transactions

weddings, marriage

Congress calls FIR against Rahul Gandhi over Parliament scuffle a 'badge of honour', alleging BJP's vendetta and diversionary tactics to counter his protest against Amit Shah's Ambedkar remarks

Rahul Gandhi, Rahul, congress leader

The latest Economic Survey said, India has to find the right balance between importing goods from China and importing capital (FDI) from China

How policymakers are split over attracting Chinese investment into India

The Banning of Unregulated Lending Activities Bill calls for the CBI to handle probes in cases spanning multiple states or UTs

The Centre, in collaboration with states, has proposed to classify unregulated lending as a cognizable and non-bailable offence, with penalties including imprisonment of up to 10 years. The finance ministry has invited feedback by February 13 from st

Vijay Mahajan

Vijay Mahajan

Vijay Mahajan

Financial inclusion: A long way to go

Vijay Mahajan: The journey from 'ERR' to CSR

Vijay Mahajan: Micro loans, macro returns

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Will ensure that schemes' benefits reach eligible individuals: CM Saini

Sterling and Wilson bags Rs 1,200 crore solar EPC order in Gujarat

PM Modi heads home after wrapping up two-day 'successful' visit to Kuwait

Pak govt forms panel to negotiate with jailed ex-PM Imran Khan's party

Meghalaya sees 84 sq km decrease in forest cover between 2021-2023: ISFR

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55th GST Council takes key decisions, defers rate cuts on insurance premium

FPIs pull out Rs 976 crore from Indian equities amid rising dollar

IPO boom: Record Rs 1.6 trn raised in 2024; bigger gains expected in 2025

Losses of Himachal's 30 PSEs rose from Rs 3,953 cr to Rs 4,778 cr: CAG

Who is the Saudi-born suspect behind Germany Christmas market attack?