India's economic engine is revving up, but navigating the global headwinds requires sharp strategy. The rupee's recent volatility against the dollar underscores the complexities facing Indian businesses, impacting everything from import-export trade to domestic inflation. This week alone, we've seen significant shifts in the IT sector, with major players announcing restructuring and a renewed focus on AI-driven solutions. Meanwhile, the burgeoning startup ecosystem continues to attract substantial funding, despite a cautious global investor sentiment. The government's recent policy announcements on infrastructure development and digitalization are poised to further shape the business landscape, creating both opportunities and challenges for entrepreneurs and established corporations alike. Understanding these market dynamics is crucial for success in today's rapidly evolving Indian economy. Stay informed with Abtak.com for the latest insights and analysis on key sectors including finance, manufacturing, and technology – empowering your business decisions in a dynamic market. Explore the complete business news section now to stay ahead of the curve.
NEW DELHI: Set to consign the Congress-stamped MGNREGA to history, Modi govt will unveil a new law on guaranteed unskilled rural jobs, with a structure that will shift the Centre's financial burden to states, provide fixed budgets for states instead of the present practice of it being demand-driven, and annually pause the scheme for two months during the agricultural season - in tweaks that will rewrite the concept of job guarantee from what has been known for the last two decades.Titled 'Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) Bill, 2025', the bill will repeal MGNREGA, and put in place an implementation paraphernalia that is similar to the job scheme even as it diverges on consequential provisions. Also, it hikes the promised employment for a rural household from 100 days under MGNREGA to 125 days.The bill, set to draw protests from the opposition in Parliament, was not tabled Monday even though it was listed in the agenda.As per the proposed Act, the Centre will bear 60% of the cost, while states will bear the remaining 40%. In case of NE states and hill states of Uttarakhand, Himachal and J&K, the fund-sharing between the Centre and state will be 90:10. Unlike MGNREGA, demand won't drive new schemeThis fund-sharing formula is a major departure from MGNREGA, as it constitutes a flat division of costs on the lines of a "centrally sponsored scheme", without the distinctions of "labour cost" and "material cost" as prevalent under MGNREGA.Under MGNREGA, Centre bears the entire cost of labour budget (wages) and 75% of material cost, besides a big part of administrative expenditure.Moreover, the scheme will no longer be "demand-driven" as under MGNREGA in which budget for states is cleared according to "work plan" and "labour budget" -- anticipated work demand -- presented to Union rural development ministry by individual states at start of the year. In contrast, in new law, as per Sec 22, Centre will determine annual state-wise "normative allocation" based on parameters to be laid down. The "normative allocation" is defined as allocation of fund being made so far by Centre to state. Any expenditure above the "normative allocation" will be borne by the state.Most importantly, 'VB-G RAM G' will not be in operation for two months of a year, which would be notified as "peak agricultural seasons" -- 60 days to correspond with sowing & harvesting, and which states will announce in advance. As per Section 6, no work shall be commenced or executed during this period. The govt's rationale for the 60-day pause is "to facilitate adequate availability of agricultural labour during the said period". Essentially, the govt has agreed with the claims that MGNREGA is responsible for shortage of agricultural labour during peak seasons.In finer detail of the implementation framework, provisions of proposed bill mirror details of MGNREGA -- from fixation of wages to the role of panchayats to setting up of monitoring authorities like "central gramin rozgar guarantee council" and its state counterparts, audit, preparation of village and block development plans. A job-seeker will still be entitled to "unemployment allowance" to be paid by state, if s/he is not provided work within a fortnight of demand. The wages under the new scheme will be similar to the one under MGNREGA.The programme will now be a centrally-sponsored scheme, and every state govt will have to prepare a scheme within six months after the commencement of the Act.
nion Minister of State for Labour and Employment Shobha Karandlaje cited statistics in the Lok Sabha on Monday to show that youth unemployment rates in India were lower than global levels. The minister cited a report by the International Labour Organisation's (ILO) Institute for Human Development (IHD) which states that the worldwide youth unemployment rate was 15.6 per cent in 2021. Further, as per World Employment and Social Outlook Trends, 2024 by ILO, globally, in 2023, the youth unemployment rate was 13.3 per cent. On the other hand, the latest annual Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS ...Read More >
Bengaluru: Mysuru Dasara is set to run for 11 days this year -- a rare extension driven by celestial alignment and cultural planning -- with the inaugural ceremony on Sept 22 and the grand Jamboo Savari taking place on Oct 2, coinciding with Vijayadashami and Gandhi Jayanti.Chairing a high-level meeting at Vidhana Soudha Friday, chief minister Siddaramaiah said, "Mysuru Dasara in 2025 will be celebrated for 11 days, due to a unique astronomical occurrence -- the Panchami tithi (fifth lunar day) will appear on two consecutive days, Sept 26 and 27, a rare alignment that hasn't occurred in nearly ...Read More >
New Delhi: The Centre has asked the states and union territories to make any proposed changes in the boundaries of administrative jurisdictions before December 31, 2025, when they will freeze for the Census-2027 exercise and the first phase of the decadal population count will begin on April 1 next year, according to a communication sent by the registrar general and census commissioner of India, Mritunjay Kumar Narayan, on June 27. The freezing means the states/UTs won't be able to change the boundaries of districts, towns, villages and tehsils post December 31. The Census can be conducted on ...Read More >
Gandhinagar (Gujarat) [India], July 4 (ANI): Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel urged newly elected sarpanchs and gram panchayat members to ensure visible cleanliness in villages. He announced that under PM Narendra Modi's vision of "Swachhta Tya Prabhuta (Cleanliness is next to Godliness)," a mass movement for cleanliness has been launched across villages, towns, and cities. Also Read | PM Narendra Modi Conferred With 'The Order of the Republic of Trinidad & Tobago' During Ceremonial Event at President's House in Port of Spain (See Pics and Videos). In this context, the Chief Minister made a s ...Read More >
Hyderabad: In a significant boost for 'Make in India' and 'Atmanirbharta' in the aerospace and defence sector, and Hyderabad's growing stature as a global aerospace hub, the complete fuselage of the Rafale fighter jet will now be made in India at Hyderabad. This move marks the first time that these Rafale components will be manufactured outside France for the Indian as well as global markets.French aerospace major Dassault Aviation has signed four production transfer agreements with Tata Advanced Systems Ltd (TASL) for manufacturing key sections of the Rafale fighter jet, including the lateral ...Read More >
Itanagar, Jun 7 (PTI) The flood situation in Arunachal Pradesh improved on Saturday with water levels of most rivers receding, even as 33,000 people in 24 districts remained affected, officials said. Twelve people lost their lives and one person went missing in rain-related incidents, including landslides, after the monsoon set in, they said. In its daily report, the State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC) said 33,200 people in 215 villages remained affected due to floods and landslides in the state. The water levels of most major rivers and their tributaries were showing a receding trend o ...Read More >
NEW DELHI: The government on Saturday extended the term of the chairman of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) Ravi Agrawal by one year, an official notification said.The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet approved the re-appointment of Agrawal, an IRS officer of the 1988 batch, as CBDT chairman for one year from July 1 this year to June 30, 2026, on contract basis.Agrawal took over as the CBDT chairman from Nitin Gupta in June 2024 after Gupta's extended tenure ended. Agrawal has been a member of CBDT. He was member administration and had served as DG investigation in Delhi. The gover ...Read More >
Mumbai, June 29 (SocialNews.XYZ) Opposition parties in Maharashtra on Sunday decided to boycott the customary high tea event of the Fadnavis government on the eve of the Legislature's Monsoon Session, citing corruption, misuse of funds and the deterioration of the economic, social, administrative and moral situation. The opposition leaders alleged that not appointing the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the state Assembly was a murder of the Constitution, and efforts are underway to curb democracy. The opposition parties claimed that amid rising corruption, unemployment, crime against women, fa ...Read More >
To boost agroforestry and double farmers' income, the Centre has introduced model rules for tree felling on agricultural land. These rules aim to simplify permissions, promote sustainable land use, and align with climate goals. By registering on the National Timber Management System (NTMS), farmers can gain transparency and access better market prices for their timber, including international markets.The Centre has issued model rules for the felling of trees on agricultural land in a bid to promo ...Read More >
Chandigarh, Jul 4 (PTI) Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya on Friday said chairpersons and representatives of urban local bodies (ULBs) across the country should adopt a "waste to wealth" approach by leveraging advanced technologies in waste management. Dattatreya was addressing the closing ceremony of the two-day national conference of Urban Local Bodies of States and Union Territories in Manesar in Gurugram district. Also Read | Bihar Assembly Elections 2025: RJD MP Manoj Jha Says AIMIM Should Stay Away From Polls in State, Extend 'In-Principle' Support to Mahagatbandhan. The governor sa ...Read More >
Bhopal, Dec 11 (VOICE) Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav will launch 'Jan Kalyan Parv' on Wednesday on the completion of one year of his government. The BJP government in the state will organise a fortnight-long programme called 'Jan Kalyan Parv' to highlight the development works undertaken in the past year. Chief Minister Yadav has directed district administration to organise camps in blocks and gram panchayats to highlight the government's achievements. "The officers will meet people and make them aware of the state government's welfare schemes and ensure that those eligible get ...Read More >
New Delhi: Three Indian citizens vanished mysteriously in Tehran. Darkness closed in as hope seemed lost. A ruthless Pakistani gang with potential links to ISI snatched them away, casting a shadow of fear. But relentless Indian diplomats refused to back down. Against all odds, a daring rescue mission ignited. Now, the captives are free, and a chilling game of espionage comes to light. The Punjab-based trio - Amritpal Singh from Hoshiarpur, Jaspal Singh from SBS Nagar and Hushnapreet Singh from Sangrur - had landed in Iran on May 1. Promised a clandestine route to Australia via Dubai and Tehra ...Read More >
The Congress party plans to increase efforts to restore statehood in Jammu and Kashmir, criticizing the BJP-led central government for delays. Syed Naseer Hussain emphasizes grassroots strengthening ahead of elections, urging continued efforts for representation and readiness for overdue local polls. Amid growing political tensions, the Congress party is set to escalate its campaign for the restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir. In a pointed critique of the BJP-led government, Syed Nasee ...Read More >
Nagpur: NCP (Sharad Pawar) working president and MP Supriya Sule strongly opposed demands to remove the words "secular" and "socialist" from the Constitution's Preamble, asserting that the Constitution is supreme and cannot be altered by anyone.Speaking to the media during her visit to the city on Saturday, Sule said, "There is only one Constitution, and it will remain as it is. No one can change it, and no one will be allowed to change it. Discussions on amendments take place in Parliament. If anyone wants to express a view, they must do it on the floor of the House."Rashtriya Swayamsevak San ...Read More >
Srinagar- Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Saturday said foreign countries were told clearly during the post-Operation Sindoor diplomatic outreach that in case of a fresh provocation, India would repeat its action. Speaking at a discussion at the Ahmedabad Management Association, Tharoor said Indian delegations which visited foreign countries in the aftermath of Operation Sindoor managed to convey that India acted with restraint and responsibility. "In other places, we actually were able to get some very high-placed people to say not only that they respected and supported India's right of self- ...Read More >
Himachal Pradesh News: An NHAI engineer posted in Shimla has alleged that he and another officer were assaulted by Himachal Pradesh rural development and panchayati raj minister Anirudh Singh during a site inspection on Monday. Both the officers have been admitted to Indira Gandhi Medical College & Hospital (IGMC) in Shimla. The Central Engineering Services Officers' Association has urged Union road transport minister Nitin Gadkari "to take up this matter with the highest authorities in the country" to ensure that justice is delivered. The NHAI Engineers' Association has also demanded "immedia ...Read More >
SRINAGAR, July 2: Union Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying, Rajiv Ranjan Singh and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today jointly chaired a high-level review meeting of the Animal Husbandry and Fisheries sectors of Jammu & Kashmir. The meeting was attended by Minister for Agriculture Production & Panchayati Raj Javid Ahmad Dar, Advisor to the Chief Minister Nasir Aslam Wani, Secretary GoI Alka Upadhyay, Additional Chief Secretary Dheeraj Gupta, Additional Secretary (CDD/IT) and other senior officers from the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying. Principal Secretary ...Read More >
Chandigarh, July 4 (SocialNews.XYZ) The AAP government in Punjab on Thursday inducted newly-elected lawmaker from Ludhiana (West), Sanjeev Arora, in the 16-member Cabinet led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and allocated him Industry and NRI Affairs portfolios, but dropped one of the senior-most ministers Kuldeep Dhaliwal, who held the portfolio of NRI Affairs. In a Cabinet reshuffle, Tarunpreet Singh Sond was divested of the Industry portfolio, but he will continue with the Rural Development, Labour and Tourism Departments. Dhaliwal told the media that he submitted his resignation to the Ch ...Read More >
Bihar's infrastructure has seen a 15-fold increase in data consumption over the past five years. Road density is now the third highest in India, electricity generation has increased tenfold, and IT parks and data centers are being developed. Numerous bridges and expanded rail lines are improving connectivity and boosting trade.Bihar has seen a 15-fold jump in data consumption in the last five years as the state goes big on developing infrastructure, investing in connectivity and building rail and ...Read More >
Chennai: Over the past decade India has lifted 171 million people from extreme poverty. Those living on less than $2.15 per day fell from 16.2 percent in 2011- 12 to 2.3 percent in 2022-23, finds the World Bank. However, Wage disparity remains high, with the median earnings of the top 10 per cent being 13 times higher than the bottom 10 per cent in 2023-24. Rural extreme poverty dropped from 18.4 percent to 2.8 percent, and urban from 10.7 percent to 1.1 percent, narrowing the rural-urban gap from 7.7 to 1.7 percentage points -- a 16 percent annual decline. India also transitioned into the l ...Read More >
New Delhi: Alleging "blatant misuse" of agencies to defame its leaders, AAP on Thursday questioned why the first information report filed against former Delhi ministers Saurabh Bharadwaj and Satyendar Jain was being kept under wraps and "selective" press notes were being leaked to the media.Bharadwaj, who is Delhi AAP convener, alleged that only two former ministers were named in the case without any reasonable cause while all the officers of the health and public works departments, who were actually responsible for executing the hospital projects, were spared. "Is the FIR so baseless that BJP ...Read More >
Ahmedabad, June 27: Union Home Minister Amit Shah began his Gujarat visit on a spiritual note early Friday morning by participating in the Mangala Aarti at the historic Shri Jagannathji Temple in Jamalpur, Ahmedabad. The visit coincides with the auspicious occasion of the annual Shri Jagannath Rath Yatra, a major religious event that draws thousands of devotees every year. Arriving at the temple at 3:15 a.m., HM Shah joined in the sacred rituals and offered prayers to Mahaprabhu Jagannath. Sharing his experience on social media platform X, he posted, "On the sacred occasion of Rath Yatra, par ...Read More >
Digha: A day after Rath Yatra, the festive fervour continues in Digha as the seaside town is now gearing up to host Ulta Rath or the return journey of the deities from the 'Masir Bari' or the old Jagannath temple. On July 5 -- the Ulta Rath day -- hotels are hoping for fresh tourist influx. Though the deities are currently in Masir Bari, a large queue of devotees visited the newly-constructed Jagannath temple on Saturday. They offered prayers to the stone idol permanently installed there. It is the wooden idols of Jagannath, Balaram and Subhadra that have taken the chairot rides. Bipradash Cha ...Read More >
Silchar: Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday visited the flood-ravaged districts of Hailakandi and Sribhumi in the Barak Valley. He assured affected residents of providing timely disbursement of rehabilitation grants and swift repair of damaged infrastructure.This marks Sarma's second visit to the flood-hit region within four days, underscoring the gravity of the situation. Speaking to the media in Sribhumi after inspecting multiple relief camps, the CM said, "Flood-related problems may persist till July. I will return before Durga Puja to ensure that roads and infrastructure ar ...Read More >
New Delhi, January 31: The unveiling of the Economic Survey on Friday sets the stage for Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman to present the Union Budget for 2025-26 in Parliament on Saturday (February 1), which is expected to continue the government's policy of giving a big push to economic growth with equity. The government has prioritised improving the quality of life in rural areas to ensure equitable and inclusive development, according to the Economic Survey 2024-25. The survey highlights financial inclusion as a key focus, with rural households and small businesses getting easier access ...Read More >
Bengaluru: The Karnataka government on Thursday took strong action against the police officers allegedly responsible for the Bengaluru stampede, suspending several high-ranking officials, including the city's police commissioner. Addressing a press conference, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah also announced a one-man commission to probe the lapses that triggered the deadly stampede. "Cubbon Park Police Station police inspector, station house master, station house officer, ACP, Central Division DCP, cricket stadium in-charge, additional commissioner of police, commissioner of police have been susp ...Read More >
Agartala (Tripura) [India], June 27 (ANI): Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha on Friday said that the present state government is working to fill up the vacant posts. He also said, the government is opening special coaching centres for students. CM Saha said this while addressing an event- distribution of offers of appointment under Education (School) and Health and Family Welfare departments at Muktadhara Auditorium today. Also Read | Europe: Scorching Heat Grips the Continent. "222 appointment letters were given. We have appointed them through transparency and in the coming days also we wi ...Read More >
VARANASI (UP): Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Friday said "there is no need for socialism in India", adding "secularism is not the core of our culture". Chouhan's remarks assume significance as the RSS on Thursday called for reviewing the words 'socialist' and 'secular' in the preamble of the Constitution, saying they were included during the Emergency and were never part of the Constitution drafted by B R Ambedkar. Addressing an event organised at New Delhi on 50 years of the Emergency, RSS general secretary Dattatreya Hosabale said, "The preamble of the Constitution Ba ...Read More >
New Delhi, Dec 4 (PTI) With funds under the flagship MGNREGS stalled for West Bengal for more than two years now, Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Wednesday said the Centre is not discriminating against the state, which he blamed for not complying with the Union government's directives. The funds for West Bengal under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) have been stopped since March 2022 due to non-compliance of directives of the Central government, according to the Ministry of Rural Development. Asked what is the way forward, Chouhan sa ...Read More >
Hyderabad, June 7 (UNI) BRS Working President K T Rama Rao (KTR) and former Minister and MLA T Harish Rao launched a scathing attack on the Congress and BJP over the alleged misinformation campaign surrounding the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project. The remarks came during a PowerPoint presentation by Harish Rao titled "Disinformation on Kaleshwaram Project - Facts" at Telangana Bhavan on Saturday. Addressing party leaders and media, Harish Rao said that the Congress and BJP were colluding to malign the BRS and the legacy of former Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao (KCR), who envisioned th ...Read More >