Page 18 - India

G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting: Guests welcomed with dance performance

The G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting will be held at Rashtrapati Bhavan Cultural Centre and nearly 40 delegations are expected to participate

India logs 268 Covid cases, active tally at 2,439; recovery rate at 98.8%

India logged 268 new coronavirus infections, while the active cases increased to 2,439, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Thursday. The death toll stands at 5,30,772, the data updated at 8 am stated. The Covid case tally stood at 4.46 crore (4,46,86,879) and the national recovery rate has been recorded at 98.80 per cent, the ministry said. The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,41,53,668, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.19 per cent. According to the ministry's website, 220.63 crore doses of Covid vaccine have been administered in the country so far under the nationwide vaccination drive.

Top headlines: Philanthropy by India's rich falls, airlines step up hiring

Business Standard brings you top headlines at this hour

G20 meet: Foreign Ministers of Spain, China, other nations arrive in India

Foreign Ministers of Saudi Arabia, China, Indonesia, Spain and Croatia on Thursday arrived in India to participate in the G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting being held in New Delhi from March 1-2.Saudi Arabia's Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Faisal bin Farhan, Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang, Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi, Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs Jose Manuel Albares Bueno, and Croatian Foreign Minister Gordan Grlic Radman on Thursday arrived in India for the meeting.The Director General of World Trade Organisation (WTO) Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, also arrived for the foreign minister' meeting on Thursday."Greetings to FM Qin Gang of China, FM @Menlu_RI of Indonesia @Kemlu_RI, FM @FaisalbinFarhan of Saudi Arabia @KSAmofaEN and DG @wto @NOIweala on their arrival in India for the G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting. FMs of Indonesia & Saudi Arabia will also join #Raisina2023," Ministry of External Affairs Official Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi tweeted on Thursday.UAE's

UPI, PayNow tie-up: In payments, like geopolitics, India seeks a third way

Indian policy makers believe that the UPI and allied elements of what it calls "digital public infrastructure" are one of their biggest recent innovations

India-UK FTA can deliver practical biz benefits in both countries: Cleverly

UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said that UK and India, must work closely together to contribute to the world's economic security and prosperity

India feeling 'little challenged' about EU's carbon tax: Official

India on Wednesday said it is concerned about the European Union's announcement of imposing carbon tax, saying such measures require New Delhi to recalibrate its approach towards a free trade agreement. In January last year, India and the EU resumed negotiations for a free trade agreement, investment protection and Geographical Indications (GI). "Apart from the sustainability and all other issues, we are also a bit, I would not say perturbed but we are feeling little challenged with the announcement of CBAM recently and it is going to cover 5-6 sectors which are key to Indian industry and supply chains," Joint Secretary in the Department of Commerce Nidhi Mani Tripathi said. The EU is introducing the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) from October 1 this year. CBAM will translate into a 20-35 per cent tax on select imports into the EU starting January 1, 2026. Speaking at an event organised by industry body CII, she said there is also another regulation which is to come up -

India, Oman hold discussions on issues related to bilateral air services

Officials from India and Oman on Wednesday discussed various issues related to bilateral air services. In a series of tweets, the civil aviation ministry said a bilateral air services meeting was held between the Omani and the Indian delegations in the national capital. While the Indian delegation was led by civil aviation secretary Rajiv Bansal, the Omani side was led by Naif Ali Al-Abri, the President of Civil Aviation Authority Oman. "The delegations included specialists in air transport and air navigation to address issues related to updating of the air transport agreement, development of air routes and space, & expanding the number of flights between the two nations," the ministry said in a tweet. Details about the bilateral air services agreement could not be immediately ascertained.

Nepal welcomes over 120,000 tourists in 2023, Indians top the list in Feb

Nepal has welcomed more than 1,20,000 tourists in the first two months of this year, the Himalayan nation's tourism department said on Wednesday, with Indians accounting for the highest numbers of arrivals in February. Nepal has witnessed a dramatic surge in tourist arrivals with many countries easing their travel restrictions since the Covid-19 pandemic broke out more than three years ago. It has welcomed 128,329 tourists by air during the first two months of 2023, according to the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB). In February alone, the country welcomed 73,255 foreign tourists, a whopping 270.6 per cent rise compared to the same month last year, the NTB said. The highest number of tourists last month were from India, with 18,401 arrivals, according to the NTB. The US is the second highest tourist-generating market for Nepal as 7,887 tourists visited the country in February 2023, the NTB said. With China allowing its citizens to travel abroad, its effect has been seen in Nepal's touris

Petronas clean energy arm sees India, Australia as key market for growth

The state-owned company has said it would allocate 20% of its overall capital expenditure for decarbonisation projects and cleaner energy solutions from 2023 to 2026

World inspired by India's efforts in water conservation: Shekhawat

India has emerged as a leading country with a holistic and comprehensive water resources management and the world, in particular the developing countries, is inspired by this and is seeking New Delhi's help in addressing such issues, Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat has said. They (the world community) are amazed to see (the steps being taken by India in water conservation and resources management), Shekhawat, the Union Jal Shakti Minister, told PTI in an interview. The Bharatiya Janata Party MP from Jodhpur is here to attend the World Water Week event being held in person by the World Bank after a gap of three years and attended by more than 400 global experts on water-related issues. In his keynote address at the event, the minister presented some of the crucial steps taken by India in this field in the last few years. In a bilateral meeting, Minister of Sanitation and Water Resources from Ghana, Cecilia Abnea Dapaah, sought assistance from India in addressing the challeng

India ranks 2nd in total number of data breaches exposed in 2022: Report

In comparison, organisations in North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa accounted for a combined 31 per cent of records exposed

Kia India YoY sales increases by 36% in February at 24,600 units

Automaker Kia India on Wednesday reported a 36 per cent year-on-year increase in domestic wholesales at 24,600 units in February. The company had sold 18,121 units in the year-ago period. "With continued support from our esteemed customers, Kia has recorded another successful sales run in the month of February," Kia India National Head Sales & Marketing Hardeep Singh Brar said in a statement. Achieving 35.8 per cent growth against the industry's growth of 10 per cent shows the love and confidence the Indian consumers have for the brand, he added.

Well-planned cities will determine fate of country: PM Modi at webinar

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said that well-panned Indian cities will determine the fate of the country. Addressing a post-Budget webinar on 'Urban Planning, Development and Sanitation', he said with India urbanising rapidly, it is important to build infrastructure that is futuristic. "The well-planned cities of India will only determine the fate of India. When planning is better, our cities will become climate resilient and water secure," the prime minister said. He also listed three focus areas for urban planning and development - How to strengthen urban planning ecosystem in states, how to better utilise expertise available in private sector for urban planning and how to develop such Centres of Excellence which take urban planning to the new level. The government has organised a series of post-budget webinars to seek ideas and suggestions for the effective implementation of the initiatives announced in the Union Budget 2023.

India logs 240 new Covid-19 cases, active infections rise to 2,335

India logged 240 new coronavirus infections, while the active cases climbed to 2,335, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Wednesday. The death toll stands at 5,30,772 with one fatality reported by Rajasthan, the data updated at 8 am stated. The Covid case tally was recorded at 4.46 crore (4,46,86,611), while the national COVID-19 recovery rate stood at 98.80 per cent, the ministry said. The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,41,53,504 and the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.19 per cent. According to the ministry's website, 220.63 crore doses of Covid vaccine have been administered in the country so far under the nationwide vaccination drive.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov arrives in India for G20 meeting

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Tuesday arrived in India for the G20 Foreign Ministers' Meeting (G20 FMM). Lavrov will also attend Raisina Dialogue 2023

India to withdraw licenses for oil tankers, bulk carriers older than 25 yrs

"Age norms will assist in ensuring gradual phasing out of fossil fuel ships and ushering in of alternate/low carbon energy efficient ships," the order said

India defies US curbs: Russian oil imports at record high in February

American shipments to India plummeted 58% from a year earlier

Use of technology will help India become developed nation by 2047: PM Modi

Technology will help India achieve the target of becoming a developed nation by 2047, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday, as he outlined the massive and modern digital infrastructure being created to ensure that benefits of digital revolution reach all citizens. Addressing a post-Budget webinar on 'Unleashing the Potential: Ease of Living Using Technology', Modi said the government wants to reduce the cost of compliance of small businesses, and asked the industry to formulate a list of compliances that can be pruned. "We want to reduce the compliance cost of small businesses. Can you (industry) formulate a list of unnecessary compliances that can be pruned. We have finished 40,000 compliances," Modi said. India is creating a modern digital infrastructure, and ensuring that benefits of digital revolution reach everyone, he noted. Technology is being used to make tax system faceless to address problems faced by taxpayers. "We used technology to make the tax system faceless

Apple supplier Foxlink unlikely to resume full India ops for 2 mths: Report

The facility in India's Andhra Pradesh state, where Foxlink makes charging cables for iPhones, was engulfed in a massive fire on Monday that led part of the building to collapse to the ground