Category: India LIVE

India has overtaken most markets to become the world’s second-largest 5G network by user base, crossing an estimated 400 million subscribers as operators expand coverage and devices become more affordable. The scale of adoption places the country behind only China, underscoring the pace at which fifth-generation services have spread across cities, towns and large rural corridors.

Official tallies compiled from industry disclosures and regulatory filings show nationwide 5G availability across all states and union

A landmark judicial ruling on the taxation of foreign investments routed through Mauritius has sent ripples across global financial markets, unsettling investors who have long relied on the island nation as a preferred gateway into India. The decision, delivered by the Supreme Court of India, upholds the government’s right to tax certain capital gains arising from indirect transfers and treaty-based structures, reinforcing a tougher stance on what authorities describe as aggressive tax planning.

India’s

National Stock Exchange of India has set its sights on filing draft initial public offering documents by the end of March, signalling a decisive step towards a long-anticipated market listing after years of regulatory uncertainty and governance resets.

People familiar with the matter say preparatory work is advancing, with internal approvals and compliance checks being aligned to meet the timeline. The exchange, which dominates equity and derivatives trading in the country, has been seeking

Germany’s opposition leader Friedrich Merz has suggested that a long-stalled trade agreement between the European Union and India could be clinched by the end of January, injecting momentum into negotiations that Brussels and New Delhi have struggled to close for more than a decade as global supply chains remain under strain from geopolitical frictions.

Speaking at a policy forum, Friedrich Merz said the bloc and India were “closer than many assume” to resolving

Bengaluru | Banking-as-a-Platform is moving from concept to commercial backbone across the country’s financial system, as lenders open their digital rails to fintech partners and reposition themselves as infrastructure providers rather than closed institutions. The model allows banks to expose core capabilities—accounts, payments, lending, compliance and data—through secure application programming interfaces, enabling third parties to build, distribute and monetise financial products at speed.

This shift has gathered momentum as regulatory

Government authorities are moving to compel smartphone manufacturers to submit portions of their operating system source code for mandatory security audits, escalating a standoff with global technology companies that warn such a requirement could undermine intellectual property protections and user privacy. The proposal, under discussion within policy circles in New Delhi, reflects mounting concern about cyber intrusions, supply-chain vulnerabilities and the growing role of mobile devices in payments, governance and national security.

Officials

Shares of ITC Ltd. have come under sustained pressure after a sharp shift in analyst sentiment, with about a third of brokerage houses cutting their buy recommendations following higher taxes on cigarettes that have altered earnings expectations for the diversified consumer goods group.

The change in outlook has been swift. Until the latest tax measures, ITC had ranked among the most favoured large-cap stocks on domestic brokerage lists, supported by steady cash flows from cigarettes and growing contributions from fast-moving consumer

Government approval for 22 proposals under the third tranche of the Electronics Component Manufacturing Scheme marks another step in the effort to deepen domestic supply chains and reduce reliance on imported parts. The cleared projects are expected to draw investment of ₹41,863 crore and generate projected production worth ₹2,58,152 crore over their implementation period, according to official disclosures tied to the decision.

The proposals, cleared by the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra

Air India Express has unveiled a limited-period initiative offering discounted rates for pre-booked excess baggage on flights from the Middle East to destinations across the country, a move aimed at easing travel costs for migrant workers, families and long-haul passengers who routinely carry more than the standard allowance.

The airline said passengers travelling on eligible routes can now pre-book either 5 kg or 10 kg of additional baggage at reduced prices when purchasing

Plans to turn India into a major semiconductor manufacturing hub are moving from policy to execution, with four companies scheduled to begin chip production during 2026 and the government setting its sights on becoming one of the world’s leading producers by 2035. The transition marks a decisive phase for a country long dependent on imported chips but now seeking to embed itself in global electronics supply chains amid geopolitical realignments and rising

A wave of AI-generated videos circulating on social platforms has drawn regulatory and public attention after Meta removed a cluster of manipulated clips tied to public discourse in India, underscoring the accelerating threat posed by deepfakes and the strain on existing cybersecurity defences. The action has reignited debate over platform accountability, election integrity, and the pace at which safeguards are keeping up with generative tools.

Meta said the videos breached its policies on manipulated

Google has committed USD 8 million to support a network of artificial intelligence Centres of Excellence in India, signalling a deeper push into applied AI for public services, health care and local-language technologies while tying the investment to a parallel clean-energy partnership aimed at powering digital infrastructure sustainably.

The funding, announced by Google, is designed to accelerate research, product development and deployment across priority areas that include healthcare delivery, Indic language models and urban

IBM has set out an ambitious plan to equip five million people across India with skills in artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and quantum computing by 2030, deepening its long-running SkillsBuild programme and expanding partnerships with governments, universities and employers to address widening technology talent gaps.

The initiative, led by IBM, centres on scaling IBM SkillsBuild, a free digital learning platform that blends online courses, project-based learning and industry-recognised credentials. The

Veteran Malayalam actor, screenwriter, director and producer Sreenivasan died on Saturday morning at the age of 69, leaving the Indian film industry mourning the loss of one of its most versatile and influential creative voices. He passed away at the Government Taluk Hospital in Thrippunithura, Kochi, after developing severe health complications while being taken for dialysis, hospital officials confirmed. His body has been kept at the facility, and

Apple is evaluating the assembly and packaging of iPhone chips in India as part of a broader effort to rebalance its global supply chain, with CG Semi emerging as a potential partner, according to people familiar with the matter and public disclosures by companies involved in India’s semiconductor push. The move would mark a deeper localisation step beyond final device assembly and signal confidence in India’s ability to

Prime Minister Narendra Modi began a three-nation diplomatic tour covering Jordan, Ethiopia and Oman, signalling a calibrated push to deepen political engagement, economic cooperation and people-to-people ties across West Asia and Africa. The visit places emphasis on long-standing partnerships while marking diplomatic milestones that officials describe as pivotal to a wider strategy linking the Gulf, the Horn of Africa and South Asia.

The tour opened in Jordan, where Modi

Cognizant has opened a new AI Lab and a Moment Studio in Bengaluru, signalling a deeper push into enterprise-focused artificial intelligence, multi-agent systems and immersive digital experiences as global clients accelerate adoption of advanced automation and data-driven platforms.

The facilities, located in the city’s technology corridor, are designed to function as integrated hubs where research, product engineering and client co-creation converge. Cognizant said the AI Lab will concentrate on

Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk has launched its blockbuster diabetes and weight-related therapy Ozempic in India, making the semaglutide-based injectable available across the country with a starting cost of about ₹2,200 per week for the lowest 0.25 mg dose. The move positions Ozempic as a key element in the fast-evolving metabolic health market, where type 2 diabetes and obesity rates are among the highest globally.

Available in pre-filled

Google has unveiled its most affordable artificial intelligence subscription in India, aiming to challenge OpenAI’s popular ChatGPT Go service and expand the reach of its AI ecosystem. The new Google AI Plus plan is priced at ₹399 per month, with a special introductory offer of ₹199 for the first six months for new subscribers, a strategy clearly designed to attract price-sensitive users in one of the world’s

Shares of the national carrier InterGlobe Aviation — operator of IndiGo — have tumbled over the last week after the airline cancelled thousands of flights following implementation of stricter pilot-duty regulations. Regulatory pressure and mounting costs have weighed on sentiment, yet several brokerages are urging investors to stay the course, citing the airline’s cost advantages and long-term dominance in the domestic market.

The aviation watchdog Directorate General of

Amazon has pledged to invest more than $35 billion in India by 2030, targeting a significant expansion of its technology, logistics, and export operations across the country. The announcement, delivered on 10 December at the Amazon Smbhav Summit in New Delhi, follows previous investments totalling about $40 billion since 2010 — including a $26 billion commitment in 2023.

The funding will be channelled along three strategic pillars identified

Microsoft has committed $17.5 billion — roughly Rs 1.5 lakh crore — to expand cloud and artificial-intelligence infrastructure in India, marking its largest investment ever in Asia. The announcement came after a meeting between Microsoft chief executive Satya Nadella and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi. The funds will flow over the next four years, aimed at building data-centre capacity, upskilling the workforce and strengthening what the

India stands out among emerging economies for its high adoption of generative artificial intelligence, according to a new report by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development together with Cisco. The study shows that India, along with a few other emerging markets, leads global usage and trust metrics — even as sharp generational and geographical divides become evident.

Under-35s represent the bulk of this surge, with more than

AceVector Ltd, the parent company of the e-commerce marketplace Snapdeal, has submitted an updated draft red herring prospectus to the Securities and Exchange Board of India, signalling that the company is advancing toward an initial public offering. The filing proposes a fresh issue of shares worth ₹300 crore, accompanied by an offer-for-sale of up to 6.38 crore equity shares held by existing investors.

The IPO proceeds