India invited foreign diplomats from 16 countries today to witness voting in Jammu & Kashmir for the first time. While the diplomats praised the polling process, NC leader Omar Abdullah criticised the invitation, labeling them as “guided tourists”.

Jammu and Kashmir held the second phase of polling today in 26 constituencies in 6 districts

India invited foreign diplomats from 16 countries today to witness voting in Jammu & Kashmir for the first time.

J&K Phase 2 polls, probe ordered into MUDA scam, Nifty hits record high

Fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya questions excess recovery claims, seeks relief from authorities

Airline opposes DGCA plan to extend 'night duty window'

Samsung Galaxy Unpacked in January. Realme 14x 5G launched. JioTag Go Android tracker. OnePlus 13 series launch event. Poco M7 Pro, C75 5g launched. Apple Maps

The firm's IoT-enabled machines are installed in offices and public places, including at Microsoft, Facebook, Rashtrapati Bhawan, and the iconic Deccan Queen train

Farmer leader Sarwan Singh Pandher on Wednesday said farmers have given a call for 'Punjab bandh' on December 30 as he slammed the Centre for not accepting the demands of protesting farmers.
Pandher said the decision to give the 'bandh' call was taken by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-political) and Kisan Mazdoor Morcha. "There will be a complete 'bandh' on December 30," said Pandher.
Addressing the media in Amritsar, Pandher said emergency services will remain operational during the 'bandh'.
He appealed to people, including traders, businessmen, transporters to make the 'bandh' successful.
"Like the 'Rail Roko' protest was a success. Similarly, the Punjab bandh should also be made successful," he said.
Train services in Punjab were affected as farmers squatted on rail tracks at more than 50 places on Wednesday as part of their three-hour 'Rail Roko' protest to press the Centre into accepting their various demands, including a legally binding minimum support price for crops.
Acco

The Punjab government on Wednesday informed the Supreme Court that though meetings were held with Jagjit Singh Dallewal, who is on an indefinite fast at the Khanauri border, and other farmers

IT giant Infosys on Wednesday inaugurated a development centre built at a cost of Rs 426 crore at New Town near here.
Inaugurating the development centre, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said, "This is a New Year gift to West Bengal".
"This centre of Infosys will help other IT companies to come to West Bengal. West Bengal is a leading IT state in the country. Nearly 2,200 IT companies have presence in the state, including big ones like TCS, Wipro, IBM and Accenture," she said.
The chief minister also said it is a historic day for the state.
Banerjee said, "We wanted Infosys in the state and the company fulfilled our dreams."
The chief minister said a new Silicon Valley is coming to New Town on 200 acres with the potential to create 75,000 jobs involving an investment of Rs 27,000 crore.
"Twenty-eight companies have already started work with 11 data centres coming up," she said.
The Infosys campus, built on 50 acres, will have an employment potential of 4,000 IT professionals.
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Inaugurating the development centre, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said this is a New Year gift to West Bengal

Stakeholders from the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) sought a reduction in GST, technology upgrade, and production-linked incentive scheme benefits for various segments in a pre-Budget meeting with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday.
The meeting aimed to seek inputs and suggestions for the Budget for 2025-26, expected to be presented on February 1.
Members from the Association of Women Entrepreneurs of Karnataka (AWAKE); Karnataka SC and ST Entrepreneurs' Association; Plant-Based Food Industry Association (PBFIA); Ambala Scientific Instruments Manufacturers' Association (ASIMA); Rajasthan Footwear Manufacturers' Association were among the participants at the meeting.
The All-India Plastics Manufacturers' Association; All India Manufacturers' Association; Gujarat Chamber of Small Industries Association; Federation of Associations of Cottage and Small Industries (based in West Bengal); Federation of Andhra Pradesh Small and Medium Association; and Laghu Udyog 

The meeting aimed to seek inputs and suggestions for the Budget for 2025-26, expected to be presented on February 1

Call for reining in food inflation and raising investment in pre-Budget  talks

Russia-Ukraine War

The year 2022 is coming to an end and a lot has happened that shaped the world in the year. Let's have a look at some of these significant events

In February 2022, Russia attacked Ukraine&amp;#39;s capital, Kyiv, from the north in an attempt to overthrow President Volodymyr Zelensky&amp;#39;s government. In the months following, artillery bombardment and street fighting continued, with Russia seizing multiple cities.

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After a slew of scandals in his term spanning three years, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson resigned from office in July. Johnson was succeeded by Liz Truss, who took over the office in September.
						
						But after 45 days in the office, she resigned, becoming the shortest-serving PM in UK history. Her budgetary plans, at the centre of which were tax cut plans, had crashed the markets, making her lose the confidence of almost all her own MPs.
						
						In the days that followed, Rishi Sunak took over as Britain&amp;#39;s 57th prime minister and vowed to fix the mistakes made by his predecessor, Liz Truss.

Russia Invades Ukraine

In April, protests began in the nation following a sharp rise in food and fuel costs. Thousands demanded the resignation of now-ousted President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. The people faced long power cuts daily and shortages of basics, including fuel and food. Sri Lanka&amp;#39;s doctors said they were nearly out of life-saving medicines.
						
						Rajapaksa&amp;#39;s government was being blamed for the chronic mismanagement of the country&amp;#39;s finances. In July, protestors stormed Rajapaksa&amp;#39;s home, pushing him to flee the nation before resigning from office.

UK&amp;#39;s political crisis

In September, 22-year-old Iranian girl Mahsa Amini died after being detained for allegedly violating Iran&amp;#39;s laws requiring women to wear a headscarf. Authorities said she died of illness, but her family claimed she fell into a coma after being mistreated by the police. Sources said the police beat Amini with a baton and banged her head against a vehicle. At her funeral on September 17 in Saqez, women protested by ripping off their hijabs. Protests sparked by her demise have since roped in ethnic minorities and even school children. Thousands of women since then have been showing solidarity by cutting their hair and burning their hijabs in public.
						
						Now, the unrest has spread beyond a women&amp;#39;s right to a movement that is calling for an end to theocratic rule. The protests are now the most broadly supported movement in Iran in over four decades.

Sri Lanka economic crisis

In October, Chinese President Xi Jinping was handed a historic third term in office. He became the first leader of the ruling Communist Party after party founder Mao Zedong to get a third term in power.
						
						This came as China&amp;#39;s economy was running out of steam after decades of high growth. Many expect Xi&amp;#39;s third term may see China revert to more old-school economic management, focusing on shoring up the heavy industry and continuing a crackdown on big tech.

Uprising mounts again in Iran

In a historic first, rich countries agreed to pay for losses and damages caused by climate change. For 30 years, developing nations have been calling for developed countries to compensate for the costs of climate disasters caused by climate change. And rich nations that caused the pollution resisted the demand. But this changed in 2022.

Chinese President Xi Jinping starts record third term in power

In 2022, inflation was rising worldwide, with food and energy prices hitting record highs. The hike was mainly driven by pent-up consumer demand after the pandemic and Russia&amp;#39;s invasion of Ukraine. As the pandemic waned, people wanted to return to normalcy and spend more. This led to companies demanding higher prices. Companies also hired more to serve the pent-up demand. They had to increase wages to attract workers and raise prices to compensate for that.

A landmark deal UN Climate Change Conference (COP27)

In September, Queen Elizabeth II, Britain&amp;#39;s longest-serving monarch, died at 96 after reigning for 70 years. Many said her death would mark a turning point for commonwealth nations as many may disassociate themselves.

The global economy at crossroads

In October, Brazil&amp;#39;s former president, Luiz In&amp;aacute;cio Lula da Silva beat Jair Bolsonaro in the country&amp;#39;s closest presidential race in history. Silva&amp;#39;s win marked Latin America&amp;#39;s shift to the left and pointed to an extraordinary comeback for a man in jail for corruption three years ago.

Queen Elizabeth II dies

In October, billionaire Elon Musk closed his $44 billion deal to buy Twitter after months of dilly-dallying, drama and a lawsuit. The Tesla owner&amp;#39;s Twitter takeover is also one of the biggest tech acquisitions of all time. May fear that Musk&amp;#39;s takeover may turn the social media giant into a hotbed of hate speech.
					
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Brazil elections

Google Messages

In January, Google rolled out end-to-end encryption in group chats for messages app users enrolled in the beta programme

Blend launches Blend Studio: AI tool for ecommerce photography

New Delhi [India], March 16 (ANI/PNN): Blend, an AI-powered design and photography application for DTC brands and ecommerce sellers, recently launched Blend Studio - the Chat GPT for product photos.

Celebrity and Travel Photographer Rahul Lokare from Flamingo Productions creates waves of change in the world of photography.

Xiaomi 13 Pro

Priced at Rs 79,999 for the 12GB RAM and 256GB on-board storage, the Xiaomi 13 Pro offers a novel imaging experience on top of a premium package

J&K Phase 2 polls, probe ordered into MUDA scam, Nifty hits record high

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