General Affairs
PM Modi Charms Silicon Valley With One-Liners
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SAN JOSE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today won over the Silicon Valley with his quotable one-liners on the digital revolution - originating from this part of the world - that is changing everyone's life-style globally.
Sharing examples from his own personal life-style and those from people across India, including rural women, PM Modi punched his maiden address to the Silicon Valley with one-liners that drew thunderous applause from the several hundred audiences that comprised of who's who of the corporate sector.
"I have met many of you in Delhi and New York, and on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram," PM Modi said.
These are the new neighborhoods of our new world, he said amidst applause from the audience. And then he went on to describe the iconic Silicon Valley companies in his own words.
"If Facebook were a country, it would be the third most populous one and the most connected," he said.
Google today has made teachers less awe-inspiring and grandparents more idle.
Twitter has turned everyone into a reporter. The traffic lights that need to work the best are on CISCO routers, PM Modi said amidst applause from the audience.
"The status that now matters is not whether you are awake or asleep, but whether you are online or offline. The most fundamental debate for our youth is the choice between Android, iOS or Windows," he said.
From computing to communication, entertainment to education, from printing documents to printing products, and, now to internet of things, it's been a long journey in a short time, the Prime Minister said.
From cleaner energy to better healthcare and safer transport, everything is converging around the work you do. In Africa, it's helping people transfer money on phone. It has made reaching small island states no longer a journey of adventure, but a convenient click of a mouse, he noted.
"In India, a mother in a distant hill village has a better chance to save her new born infant. A child in a remote village has better access to education," PM Modi said reflecting on the changes in one's life brought by digital revolution.
A small farmer is more confident about his land holding and getting better market price. A fisherman on the sea has a better catch. And, a young professional in San Francisco can Skype daily to comfort her sick grandmother in India, he observed.
An initiative by a father in Haryana for "Selfie with daughter" to draw attention to the girl child became an international movement, he said.
"All this is because of the work you people are doing," PM Modi said.
SAN JOSE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today won over the Silicon Valley with his quotable one-liners on the digital revolution - originating from this part of the world - that is changing everyone's life-style globally.Sharing examples from his own personal life-style and those from people across India, including rural women, PM Modi punched his maiden address to the Silicon Valley with one-liners that drew thunderous applause from the several hundred audiences that comprised of who's who of the corporate sector.
"I have met many of you in Delhi and New York, and on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram," PM Modi said.
"If Facebook were a country, it would be the third most populous one and the most connected," he said.
Google today has made teachers less awe-inspiring and grandparents more idle.
Twitter has turned everyone into a reporter. The traffic lights that need to work the best are on CISCO routers, PM Modi said amidst applause from the audience.
"The status that now matters is not whether you are awake or asleep, but whether you are online or offline. The most fundamental debate for our youth is the choice between Android, iOS or Windows," he said.
From computing to communication, entertainment to education, from printing documents to printing products, and, now to internet of things, it's been a long journey in a short time, the Prime Minister said.
From cleaner energy to better healthcare and safer transport, everything is converging around the work you do. In Africa, it's helping people transfer money on phone. It has made reaching small island states no longer a journey of adventure, but a convenient click of a mouse, he noted.
"In India, a mother in a distant hill village has a better chance to save her new born infant. A child in a remote village has better access to education," PM Modi said reflecting on the changes in one's life brought by digital revolution.
A small farmer is more confident about his land holding and getting better market price. A fisherman on the sea has a better catch. And, a young professional in San Francisco can Skype daily to comfort her sick grandmother in India, he observed.
An initiative by a father in Haryana for "Selfie with daughter" to draw attention to the girl child became an international movement, he said.
"All this is because of the work you people are doing," PM Modi said.
Call Drop Situation Improving, Says Ravi Shankar Prasad
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PATNA: Under attack from the Opposition on the call drop problem, Union Communications and Information Technology Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad today said that the situation was improving.
"There is a problem about call drops, but the situation is improving," he told reporters in Patna.
"All the telecom operators have been told to take steps to improve quality of services," Mr Prasad said, adding that the telecommunications department had reviewed the situation on weekly basis for the past two months to reduce call drops.
He said that all the operators had been asked to find out ways to improve the telephony service in the country and DoT Secretary Rakesh Garg had spoken to the owners/operators of the service providers at the highest level.
Identifying shortage of towers as the main problem for call drops, Mr Prasad said that a policy decision had been taken under which all buildings of Government of India must allow installation of towers, while the post offices too had been directed to allow towers on rent at its buildings throughout the country.
He said that he had also written letters to the chief ministers of states for installations of towers at the government buildings and noted that Kerala and Andhra Pradesh among states had done so, but regretted that Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar was yet to respond to the missive.
Referring to reluctance by people to allow installation of towers at their premises fearing that radiations from towers may lead to spread of cancer, the Union Minister said there was no truth in it citing reports by the World Health Orgnization (WHO) and judgements by various courts.
Regarding steps taken to improve call drop situation in Bihar, he said that his department had sanctioned installation of 1150 new 2G sites by the state-owned BSNL of which 620 had been installed, while 120 3G towers had been installed out of proposed 228 towers to improve 3G service in the state.
In addition, a BSNL's expert's team had visited Bihar four times in the past two months to find out call drop problems in order to take corrective measures to improve the situation, he said.
He said that even the telecom regulator - TRAI had come up with a report proposing hefty penalty to the operators in the event of call drop problems sustaining in their respective services.
Charging the UPA government with messing up with the BSNL during its decade-long rule as a result the state-owned operator sustained an accumulated loss of Rs 8,000 crore in 2014 against a profit of Rs 10,000 crore that the preceding NDA government had left in 2004, the Minister hit out at the Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for holding him (Prasad) responsible for call drop problems.
"Nitish Kumar is in the company of those political leadership who had made BSNL suffer for a decade," Mr Prasad said.
The Union Minister said that taking serious note of call drop problems his department had carried out special audit of towers of private operators in Bihar-Jharkhand circle had found that out of 1,13,274 towers, the cells on 3037 towers were not found to be working.
Similarly, a leading operator had identified ten sites for towers in Patna and another 21 places for capacity addition in in order to improve its telephony service, Mr Prasad said.
The BSNL too had set up internet-based next generation network at nine places in Bihar, including Patna to improve mobile and other telephony services, he said.
On demand to improve mobile service in the Left-Wing Extremism (LWE) areas in Bihar, Mr Prasad said that 114 towers had been installed out of 184 proposed towers in LWE areas to improve policing.
PATNA: Under attack from the Opposition on the call drop problem, Union Communications and Information Technology Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad today said that the situation was improving."There is a problem about call drops, but the situation is improving," he told reporters in Patna.
"All the telecom operators have been told to take steps to improve quality of services," Mr Prasad said, adding that the telecommunications department had reviewed the situation on weekly basis for the past two months to reduce call drops.
He said that all the operators had been asked to find out ways to improve the telephony service in the country and DoT Secretary Rakesh Garg had spoken to the owners/operators of the service providers at the highest level.
Identifying shortage of towers as the main problem for call drops, Mr Prasad said that a policy decision had been taken under which all buildings of Government of India must allow installation of towers, while the post offices too had been directed to allow towers on rent at its buildings throughout the country.
He said that he had also written letters to the chief ministers of states for installations of towers at the government buildings and noted that Kerala and Andhra Pradesh among states had done so, but regretted that Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar was yet to respond to the missive.
Referring to reluctance by people to allow installation of towers at their premises fearing that radiations from towers may lead to spread of cancer, the Union Minister said there was no truth in it citing reports by the World Health Orgnization (WHO) and judgements by various courts.
Regarding steps taken to improve call drop situation in Bihar, he said that his department had sanctioned installation of 1150 new 2G sites by the state-owned BSNL of which 620 had been installed, while 120 3G towers had been installed out of proposed 228 towers to improve 3G service in the state.
In addition, a BSNL's expert's team had visited Bihar four times in the past two months to find out call drop problems in order to take corrective measures to improve the situation, he said.
He said that even the telecom regulator - TRAI had come up with a report proposing hefty penalty to the operators in the event of call drop problems sustaining in their respective services.
Charging the UPA government with messing up with the BSNL during its decade-long rule as a result the state-owned operator sustained an accumulated loss of Rs 8,000 crore in 2014 against a profit of Rs 10,000 crore that the preceding NDA government had left in 2004, the Minister hit out at the Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for holding him (Prasad) responsible for call drop problems.
"Nitish Kumar is in the company of those political leadership who had made BSNL suffer for a decade," Mr Prasad said.
The Union Minister said that taking serious note of call drop problems his department had carried out special audit of towers of private operators in Bihar-Jharkhand circle had found that out of 1,13,274 towers, the cells on 3037 towers were not found to be working.
Similarly, a leading operator had identified ten sites for towers in Patna and another 21 places for capacity addition in in order to improve its telephony service, Mr Prasad said.
The BSNL too had set up internet-based next generation network at nine places in Bihar, including Patna to improve mobile and other telephony services, he said.
On demand to improve mobile service in the Left-Wing Extremism (LWE) areas in Bihar, Mr Prasad said that 114 towers had been installed out of 184 proposed towers in LWE areas to improve policing.
How India Plans To Become More Friendly For Its Differently-Abled
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MUMBAI: By July next year at least 50 government buildings, 75 railway stations and all international airports will be made accessible to people with physical disabilities, the government has claimed as part of an ambitious drive to make India more accessible for the different-abled.
For a country with 2.68 crore people living with disabilities, according to the 2011 census, the proportion of universally accessible civic infrastructure is not enough, the government admits.
To change this under the Accessible India Campaign, expected to formally launch by the end of the year, the government is planning to launch an app, a universal card and recognise 12 more kinds of disabilities.
"The government is planning to bring in a law with a more inclusive definition of disability that will recognise as many as 19 disabilities as against just 7 right now," Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Thawarchand Gehlot told NDTV.
The government says it is also planning to use crowd sourcing to get more information on areas and structures that need to be made more accessible.
"We are also going to launch an app where people can send in pictures of public spaces and buildings which they think need to be made more accessible. It will eventually help the government map all these places," Mukesh Jain, joint secretary in the ministry, said.
Recently, the archaeological survey of India made iconic tourist sites like the Taj Mahal and Fatehpur Sikri in Agra more access friendly.
Neha Trivedi, Xavier's Resource Centre for the Visually Challenged said this is the first effort on such a massive scale undertaken by the government.
"Making public spaces more accessible also involves a change in our mind-set. The challenge will be to ensure that after the initial targets are met on accessibility, there is a diligent follow-up," she said.
MUMBAI: By July next year at least 50 government buildings, 75 railway stations and all international airports will be made accessible to people with physical disabilities, the government has claimed as part of an ambitious drive to make India more accessible for the different-abled.For a country with 2.68 crore people living with disabilities, according to the 2011 census, the proportion of universally accessible civic infrastructure is not enough, the government admits.
To change this under the Accessible India Campaign, expected to formally launch by the end of the year, the government is planning to launch an app, a universal card and recognise 12 more kinds of disabilities.
The government says it is also planning to use crowd sourcing to get more information on areas and structures that need to be made more accessible.
"We are also going to launch an app where people can send in pictures of public spaces and buildings which they think need to be made more accessible. It will eventually help the government map all these places," Mukesh Jain, joint secretary in the ministry, said.
Recently, the archaeological survey of India made iconic tourist sites like the Taj Mahal and Fatehpur Sikri in Agra more access friendly.
Neha Trivedi, Xavier's Resource Centre for the Visually Challenged said this is the first effort on such a massive scale undertaken by the government.
"Making public spaces more accessible also involves a change in our mind-set. The challenge will be to ensure that after the initial targets are met on accessibility, there is a diligent follow-up," she said.
Govindacharya Endorses NDA Government's U-Turn on Land Bill
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INDORE: Former BJP general secretary KN Govindacharya today endorsed the NDA government's decision to beat a retreat over the controversial Land Acquisition Bill, saying the BJP-led alliance gained by the move.
"The government's image has grown taller by bowing down to the public pressure in a democracy," the RSS ideologue told PTI in an interview in Indore.
"Merely eight per cent of the industrial projects are stuck for want of land. After realising this, the government took a good step by retreating on the bill," he said to a question.
"We all had earlier asked the government to implement the Land Acquisition Bill, 2013, and review its pros and cons. After its review and introspection, its shortcomings should have been dealt with," he said.
Mr Govindacharya refused to comment on the debate on the need to reconsider the reservations policy. "Reservations are a sensitive and emotional issue. This isn't the right time to comment," he said.
To another question, he said there was no need for hullabaloo on the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) as it formed a very tiny part of the total investment in the country.
About the Narendra Modi government's performance, the outspoken RSS ideologue said it was too early to judge.
"The Union Government has got a mandate for full five years. I don't think it is necessary to evaluate it now in a hurry," he said.
However, he added, "People have high expectations from this government. I feel the intentions of the people running the government are right. As far as evaluation of policies and priorities is concerned, the government needs to be given some time."
He further said that farming, animal husbandry and cow-shelter home management should be linked with Skill India campaign for boosting domestic capital formation.
INDORE: Former BJP general secretary KN Govindacharya today endorsed the NDA government's decision to beat a retreat over the controversial Land Acquisition Bill, saying the BJP-led alliance gained by the move."The government's image has grown taller by bowing down to the public pressure in a democracy," the RSS ideologue told PTI in an interview in Indore.
"Merely eight per cent of the industrial projects are stuck for want of land. After realising this, the government took a good step by retreating on the bill," he said to a question.
"We all had earlier asked the government to implement the Land Acquisition Bill, 2013, and review its pros and cons. After its review and introspection, its shortcomings should have been dealt with," he said.
Mr Govindacharya refused to comment on the debate on the need to reconsider the reservations policy. "Reservations are a sensitive and emotional issue. This isn't the right time to comment," he said.
To another question, he said there was no need for hullabaloo on the Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) as it formed a very tiny part of the total investment in the country.
About the Narendra Modi government's performance, the outspoken RSS ideologue said it was too early to judge.
"The Union Government has got a mandate for full five years. I don't think it is necessary to evaluate it now in a hurry," he said.
However, he added, "People have high expectations from this government. I feel the intentions of the people running the government are right. As far as evaluation of policies and priorities is concerned, the government needs to be given some time."
He further said that farming, animal husbandry and cow-shelter home management should be linked with Skill India campaign for boosting domestic capital formation.
Gujarat Chief Minister Blasts Patel Leaders for Their 'Negative' Mindset
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AHMEDABAD: Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel lashed out against leaders of the Patel quota agitation here today, saying that they are interested purely in promoting their "negative" agenda.
"Those who have decided to think negatively, will always think that way. I don't wish to say anything about those who are not interested in any compromise and are interested purely in projecting their negative agenda in order to make headlines," Mr Patel told reporters at a function in Gandhinagar.
Her comments came after Patel quota agitation leader Hardik Patel rejected a Rs 1,000 crore package announced by the Gujarat government a few days ago for students from the Economically Backward Category (EBC), calling the package as nothing but a "lollipop", after which he announced state-wide protests.
When asked to comment about the suicide of 34-year-old youth Umesh Patel yesterday in Rajkot, the Gujarat Chief Minister stated that an inquiry is on.
"The local police is investigating the case to find out the reasons behind his suicide. The government will share the details with the media after the probe," she said.
The youth Umesh Patel, who was actively involved in Patel agitation for job reservation quota under the Other Backward Category, allegedly ended his life in support of the agitation.
In a related development, Umesh's family members, including his wife Nilam and his mother Vimlaben Patel, demanded compensation from the Gujarat government.
"We don't have anything to survive. We don't have land or our own house. Umesh was the only earning member of our family. This government must think about compensating us," Vimlaben Patel said.
AHMEDABAD: Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel lashed out against leaders of the Patel quota agitation here today, saying that they are interested purely in promoting their "negative" agenda."Those who have decided to think negatively, will always think that way. I don't wish to say anything about those who are not interested in any compromise and are interested purely in projecting their negative agenda in order to make headlines," Mr Patel told reporters at a function in Gandhinagar.
Her comments came after Patel quota agitation leader Hardik Patel rejected a Rs 1,000 crore package announced by the Gujarat government a few days ago for students from the Economically Backward Category (EBC), calling the package as nothing but a "lollipop", after which he announced state-wide protests.
When asked to comment about the suicide of 34-year-old youth Umesh Patel yesterday in Rajkot, the Gujarat Chief Minister stated that an inquiry is on.
The youth Umesh Patel, who was actively involved in Patel agitation for job reservation quota under the Other Backward Category, allegedly ended his life in support of the agitation.
In a related development, Umesh's family members, including his wife Nilam and his mother Vimlaben Patel, demanded compensation from the Gujarat government.
"We don't have anything to survive. We don't have land or our own house. Umesh was the only earning member of our family. This government must think about compensating us," Vimlaben Patel said.
Business Affairs
RBI may go for rate cut on September 29 to spur economy
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RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan may budge to government and industry pressure to cut interest rate with a view to spur economic recovery and mitigate the impact of slowing China on India.
Most of the bankers feel that benign inflation and status quo by US Fed has given room for the RBI to cut short-term lending (repo) rate by at least 0.25 per cent to 7 per cent. Even Finance Minister Arun Jaitley last week asserted that common sense says the interest rates should come down.
Jaitley had said inflation is very much under control and the country is better prepared than most emerging economies to weather the global economic turbulence.
Global turmoil triggered by devaluation of yuan and reports of slowing growth in China has impacted Indian currency and stock markets. As regards the price situation, the wholesale price index (WPI) remained in negative territory for 10 months in a row and stood at (-)4.95 per cent, while the retail inflation (CPI) eased to a record low of 3.66 per cent in August.
However, first quarter GDP number of 7 per cent was below the market expectation. These macro-economic details would be taken into account by the RBI during its fourth bi-monthly monetary policy review of this fiscal on September 29.
According to State Bank of India (SBI) Chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya, there is a space for rate cut as the possibility of food prices going up in coming months is negligible. "I do still believe that there is a space for rate cut in India. How much is difficult to state at this point of time", she said.
"There is a possibility of 0.25 per cent rate cut by the RBI", Union Bank of India Chairman & MD Arun Tiwari said. I see a 25 basis points rate cut on September 29. "But there will be no change in SLR and CRR as liquidity in the system is enough", Tiwari said.
Echoing similar views HSBC India country head Naina Lal Kidwai said there is a strong chance of RBI cutting interest rate by 0.25 per cent on September 29 as inflation has come under control.
"With decline in inflation and the US Fed handing emerging markets a lifeline by not raising interest rates, there is a favourable environment for monetary policy action by the RBI", Minister of State for Finance Jayant Sinha had said.
Earlier this month, the Fed heeded to calls from the World Bank and IMF by deciding not to go for first rate increase in almost a decade, stemming outflows from emerging economies.
On expectation from RBI policy review, Bank of Maharashtra executive director R K Gupta said: "With macroeconomic parameters improving, RBI is likely to cut repo rate. Also, there is pressure on RBI to support credit growth which has been muted for some time".
The RBI has cut interest rates by 0.75 per cent in three equal tranches so far this year, but maintained status quo in its last monetary policy review on August 4.
NITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India) Vice-Chairman Arvind Panagariya said that time is ripe for a 0.5 per cent to 1 per cent cut in interest rate by the RBI. "We need a rate cut of 50-100 basis points. I think time is ripe", he had said.
"Industry is also pitching for 0.50 per cent rate cut by the RBI as credit pick up is low and inflation is benign. Expectations are running high among India Inc from the RBI to be more accommodative and cut benchmark interest rate between 25-50 basis points in the wake of continued deflation", Assocham said in a statement.
"The RBI has been rather conservative and remained too much focused on inflation while growth in the industrial production, infrastructure and services is required for a real push to economy", it said.
RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan may budge to government and industry pressure to cut interest rate with a view to spur economic recovery and mitigate the impact of slowing China on India.
Most of the bankers feel that benign inflation and status quo by US Fed has given room for the RBI to cut short-term lending (repo) rate by at least 0.25 per cent to 7 per cent. Even Finance Minister Arun Jaitley last week asserted that common sense says the interest rates should come down.
Jaitley had said inflation is very much under control and the country is better prepared than most emerging economies to weather the global economic turbulence.
Global turmoil triggered by devaluation of yuan and reports of slowing growth in China has impacted Indian currency and stock markets. As regards the price situation, the wholesale price index (WPI) remained in negative territory for 10 months in a row and stood at (-)4.95 per cent, while the retail inflation (CPI) eased to a record low of 3.66 per cent in August.
However, first quarter GDP number of 7 per cent was below the market expectation. These macro-economic details would be taken into account by the RBI during its fourth bi-monthly monetary policy review of this fiscal on September 29.
According to State Bank of India (SBI) Chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya, there is a space for rate cut as the possibility of food prices going up in coming months is negligible. "I do still believe that there is a space for rate cut in India. How much is difficult to state at this point of time", she said.
"There is a possibility of 0.25 per cent rate cut by the RBI", Union Bank of India Chairman & MD Arun Tiwari said. I see a 25 basis points rate cut on September 29. "But there will be no change in SLR and CRR as liquidity in the system is enough", Tiwari said.
Echoing similar views HSBC India country head Naina Lal Kidwai said there is a strong chance of RBI cutting interest rate by 0.25 per cent on September 29 as inflation has come under control.
"With decline in inflation and the US Fed handing emerging markets a lifeline by not raising interest rates, there is a favourable environment for monetary policy action by the RBI", Minister of State for Finance Jayant Sinha had said.
Earlier this month, the Fed heeded to calls from the World Bank and IMF by deciding not to go for first rate increase in almost a decade, stemming outflows from emerging economies.
On expectation from RBI policy review, Bank of Maharashtra executive director R K Gupta said: "With macroeconomic parameters improving, RBI is likely to cut repo rate. Also, there is pressure on RBI to support credit growth which has been muted for some time".
The RBI has cut interest rates by 0.75 per cent in three equal tranches so far this year, but maintained status quo in its last monetary policy review on August 4.
NITI Aayog (National Institution for Transforming India) Vice-Chairman Arvind Panagariya said that time is ripe for a 0.5 per cent to 1 per cent cut in interest rate by the RBI. "We need a rate cut of 50-100 basis points. I think time is ripe", he had said.
"Industry is also pitching for 0.50 per cent rate cut by the RBI as credit pick up is low and inflation is benign. Expectations are running high among India Inc from the RBI to be more accommodative and cut benchmark interest rate between 25-50 basis points in the wake of continued deflation", Assocham said in a statement.
"The RBI has been rather conservative and remained too much focused on inflation while growth in the industrial production, infrastructure and services is required for a real push to economy", it said.
India will play a big part in driving technology forward, says Google CEO Sundar Pichai
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India will play a big part in driving technology forward in the future, Google CEO Sundar Pichai said on Sunday and praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for accelerating India's effort to become the next global hot bed of innovation and entrepreneurship.
"Driving technology forward would really improve people's lives in India and all around the world", Pichai said.
"I am not just excited because I grew up in India, I am excited because I deeply care about technology and know that India will play a big part in its future", he said, adding that a lot of that is becoming possible because Modi is driving it forward", Pichai said.
"He (Modi) has accelerated India's effort to become next global hot bed of innovation and entrepreneurship", Pichai told a gathering of top Silicon Valley CEOs at a dinner hosted in honour of the Prime Minister, who is on a two-day visit to the city of San Jose.
"More importantly, Modi understands that technology is an enabler to drive change at a massive scale, the kind of scale that India needs", he added.
The 43-year-old IIT alumnus said it is not just being on line, it is about what you get online. People are educating themselves, connecting with loved ones and creating and sharing videos.
"For example on You Tube, there are many home makers in India who make a living by posting videos on line", he said.
Pichai who was in India last year, praised the presence of what he described as hungry entrepreneurs, the same kind one would like in the Silicon Valley. "The presence of that, motivation and Indians coming online at an unprecedented scale, was very clear to me that this is a once in a life time opportunity", he said, adding that there is evidence of this all around.
"There are more than 3,000 start-ups in India. By many matrices, India is the fastest growing start-ups in the world. Companies like Flipkart, Hike, Zomato, Snapdeal these are all evidence of these are happening all around us. They are not just Indian success stories, they are global success stories and they create thousands of jobs"he said.
He said that Google is proud at what is happening in India and share Prime Minister's vision for a Digital India and want to play a part in it.
Observing that two main things computing and connectivity - are foundation for a digital India, Pichai said android today is available in many Indic languages.
Stating that in order to push digital literacy forward, it is very important for people to type in their native languages, Pichai announced that next month Google would make it possible for people to type in 10 different languages in India, including Gujarati.
Pichai said Google is working on many connectivity projects, which he would announce when Modi visits Google headquarters.
"More than anywhere else, India has the innovative spirit that lies in the DNA. It is doing great things with it. It's that spirit that drives everyone here", Pichai said.
India will play a big part in driving technology forward in the future, Google CEO Sundar Pichai said on Sunday and praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for accelerating India's effort to become the next global hot bed of innovation and entrepreneurship.
"Driving technology forward would really improve people's lives in India and all around the world", Pichai said.
"I am not just excited because I grew up in India, I am excited because I deeply care about technology and know that India will play a big part in its future", he said, adding that a lot of that is becoming possible because Modi is driving it forward", Pichai said.
"He (Modi) has accelerated India's effort to become next global hot bed of innovation and entrepreneurship", Pichai told a gathering of top Silicon Valley CEOs at a dinner hosted in honour of the Prime Minister, who is on a two-day visit to the city of San Jose.
"More importantly, Modi understands that technology is an enabler to drive change at a massive scale, the kind of scale that India needs", he added.
The 43-year-old IIT alumnus said it is not just being on line, it is about what you get online. People are educating themselves, connecting with loved ones and creating and sharing videos.
"For example on You Tube, there are many home makers in India who make a living by posting videos on line", he said.
Pichai who was in India last year, praised the presence of what he described as hungry entrepreneurs, the same kind one would like in the Silicon Valley. "The presence of that, motivation and Indians coming online at an unprecedented scale, was very clear to me that this is a once in a life time opportunity", he said, adding that there is evidence of this all around.
"There are more than 3,000 start-ups in India. By many matrices, India is the fastest growing start-ups in the world. Companies like Flipkart, Hike, Zomato, Snapdeal these are all evidence of these are happening all around us. They are not just Indian success stories, they are global success stories and they create thousands of jobs"he said.
He said that Google is proud at what is happening in India and share Prime Minister's vision for a Digital India and want to play a part in it.
Observing that two main things computing and connectivity - are foundation for a digital India, Pichai said android today is available in many Indic languages.
Stating that in order to push digital literacy forward, it is very important for people to type in their native languages, Pichai announced that next month Google would make it possible for people to type in 10 different languages in India, including Gujarati.
Pichai said Google is working on many connectivity projects, which he would announce when Modi visits Google headquarters.
"More than anywhere else, India has the innovative spirit that lies in the DNA. It is doing great things with it. It's that spirit that drives everyone here", Pichai said.
Nitin Gadkari to visit Iran, govt plans Rs 1 lakh cr investment
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A high-level delegation led by Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari will soon visit Iran with proposals to make big ticket investments that could be worth more than Rs 1 lakh crore.
The visit will take place amid negotiations between the two countries on gas price for a urea plant to be set up in Iran. While Iran is offering to supply natural gas at $2.95 for the plant that India proposes to set up at Chabahar port SEZ, India is insisting for lowering the rates to $1.5.
With the US and other western powers easing sanctions against Iran, India has been in talks with Tehran to set up a gas-based urea manufacturing plant at the Chabahar port, besides developing a gas discovery ONGC had made.
Projects pertaining to iron ore, steel, highways and railways are also in the pipeline.
The total investment in the projects could be more than Rs 1,00,000 crore and will depend on negotiations on oil pricing, Gadkari told PTI.
"All the departments concerned will give their reports by September 28 to our (Shipping) Secretary (Rajive Kumar) on the projects they are planning in Iran," said the Road Transport and Highways Minister.
"Guidance from Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be sought based on total investments proposed and we will go to Iran soon," he said.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif had called on Gadkari on August 14 during his visit to India.
"Their Foreign Minister had visited us. I had told him that I will come to you within a fortnight with proposals. I could not go because we want to go with a bigger proposal with investment plans of other Ministries too," he said.
India is negotiating to get gas from them at a price of $1.5 per million British thermal unit which will be economical, he said, adding that in 2013 they had offered it at less than a dollar - 82 cents.
He said if Iran agrees to it, India will see a significant decline in the country's Rs 80,000 crore subsidy for urea and also slash its prices by 50 per cent.
India has already pledged to invest about $85 million in developing the strategic port off Iran's south eastern coast, which would provide it a sea-land access route to Afghanistan, bypassing Pakistan.
Meanwhile, Ministries of Chemical & Fertiliser and Petroleum are working on the proposed 1.3 million tonnes per annum plant.
Gadkari had visited Tehran in May, and both the nations had inked a pact to develop the Chabahar port.
In August, Gadkari said Iran has given "very good offers" to India to develop the integrated Chabahar port, which has a special economic zone (SEZ).
A high-level delegation led by Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari will soon visit Iran with proposals to make big ticket investments that could be worth more than Rs 1 lakh crore.
The visit will take place amid negotiations between the two countries on gas price for a urea plant to be set up in Iran. While Iran is offering to supply natural gas at $2.95 for the plant that India proposes to set up at Chabahar port SEZ, India is insisting for lowering the rates to $1.5.
With the US and other western powers easing sanctions against Iran, India has been in talks with Tehran to set up a gas-based urea manufacturing plant at the Chabahar port, besides developing a gas discovery ONGC had made.
Projects pertaining to iron ore, steel, highways and railways are also in the pipeline.
The total investment in the projects could be more than Rs 1,00,000 crore and will depend on negotiations on oil pricing, Gadkari told PTI.
"All the departments concerned will give their reports by September 28 to our (Shipping) Secretary (Rajive Kumar) on the projects they are planning in Iran," said the Road Transport and Highways Minister.
"Guidance from Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be sought based on total investments proposed and we will go to Iran soon," he said.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif had called on Gadkari on August 14 during his visit to India.
"Their Foreign Minister had visited us. I had told him that I will come to you within a fortnight with proposals. I could not go because we want to go with a bigger proposal with investment plans of other Ministries too," he said.
India is negotiating to get gas from them at a price of $1.5 per million British thermal unit which will be economical, he said, adding that in 2013 they had offered it at less than a dollar - 82 cents.
He said if Iran agrees to it, India will see a significant decline in the country's Rs 80,000 crore subsidy for urea and also slash its prices by 50 per cent.
India has already pledged to invest about $85 million in developing the strategic port off Iran's south eastern coast, which would provide it a sea-land access route to Afghanistan, bypassing Pakistan.
Meanwhile, Ministries of Chemical & Fertiliser and Petroleum are working on the proposed 1.3 million tonnes per annum plant.
Gadkari had visited Tehran in May, and both the nations had inked a pact to develop the Chabahar port.
In August, Gadkari said Iran has given "very good offers" to India to develop the integrated Chabahar port, which has a special economic zone (SEZ).
Four SME IPOs to hit capital markets this week
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As many as four companies will come out with their initial share sale this week to raise a total of close to Rs 15 crore and eventually get listed on small and medium enterprises platform of the exchanges.
Vaksons Automobiles, Bella Casa Fashion & Retail and Vishal Bearings will launch their respective initial public offerings (IPO) tomorrow (September 28), while Cawasji Behramji Catering Services' public issue will open for subscription on Tuesday.
Shares of all these companies would get listed on BSE's dedicated SME platform, as per the prospectus of the companies filed with capital market regulator Sebi.
The public issue of Vishal Bearings and Bella Casa would close on September 30, while IPO of Vaksons Automobiles and Cawasji Behramji would close on October 1 and October 5 respectively.
As per the draft papers, Vaksons Automobiles plans to raise Rs 6.24 crore, Bella Casa would mop up Rs 3.43 crore, Vishal Bearings would rake in Rs 3.24 crore and Cawasji Behramji intends to garner Rs 1.86 crore.
Ahimsa Industries' IPO, which is already open for subscription, will close on October 1. The company is aiming to mobilise Rs 3.79 crore. The proceed of the issues would be utilised for working capital requirements and other general corporate purposes.
During April-July period of the current fiscal, 14 SMEs got listed on capital markets with public issues worth Rs 113 crore.
In comparison, nine SMEs had launched their IPOs and raised a total of Rs 90 crore during the April-July period of 2014-15.
Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and the National Stock Exchange (NSE) had launched SME platforms in March 2012, becoming the only two bourses to offer such a segment in the country.
The platforms provide opportunity to SME entrepreneurs to raise equity capital for growth and expansion.
As many as four companies will come out with their initial share sale this week to raise a total of close to Rs 15 crore and eventually get listed on small and medium enterprises platform of the exchanges.
Vaksons Automobiles, Bella Casa Fashion & Retail and Vishal Bearings will launch their respective initial public offerings (IPO) tomorrow (September 28), while Cawasji Behramji Catering Services' public issue will open for subscription on Tuesday.
Shares of all these companies would get listed on BSE's dedicated SME platform, as per the prospectus of the companies filed with capital market regulator Sebi.
The public issue of Vishal Bearings and Bella Casa would close on September 30, while IPO of Vaksons Automobiles and Cawasji Behramji would close on October 1 and October 5 respectively.
As per the draft papers, Vaksons Automobiles plans to raise Rs 6.24 crore, Bella Casa would mop up Rs 3.43 crore, Vishal Bearings would rake in Rs 3.24 crore and Cawasji Behramji intends to garner Rs 1.86 crore.
Ahimsa Industries' IPO, which is already open for subscription, will close on October 1. The company is aiming to mobilise Rs 3.79 crore. The proceed of the issues would be utilised for working capital requirements and other general corporate purposes.
During April-July period of the current fiscal, 14 SMEs got listed on capital markets with public issues worth Rs 113 crore.
In comparison, nine SMEs had launched their IPOs and raised a total of Rs 90 crore during the April-July period of 2014-15.
Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) and the National Stock Exchange (NSE) had launched SME platforms in March 2012, becoming the only two bourses to offer such a segment in the country.
The platforms provide opportunity to SME entrepreneurs to raise equity capital for growth and expansion.
Qualcomm to invest $150 million in Indian start-ups
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US-based chip maker Qualcomm on Sunday said it would invest up to $150 million (Rs 9.8 billion) in Indian start-ups via a venture fund after Prime Minister Narendra Modi met top tech honchos in the Silicon Valley during his US visit.
The San Diego based chip-maker made the announcement after its executive chairman Paul Jacobs met the Indian prime minister at the Digital Economy event in San Jose and said the venture fund was in support of the government's Digital India and Make-in-India initiatives.
"We share Modi's vision to transform India into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy. India is at the cusp of a technology revolution and mobile technologies will lay the foundation for Digital India," said Paul Jacobs.
"We are committed to providing local innovative start-ups with the support needed to help India's IOE ecosystem grow, increasing consumer choice and availability," he added.
The new venture fund, which will be advised by Qualcomm Ventures - an investment arm of the group - is expected to fuel innovation and foster promising Indian startups which are contributing to the Mobile and Internet of Everything ecosystem. It will also aim to provide startups with financial, marketing, technology and business support to help propel them forward in the competitive Indian market.
"Since Qualcomm's first India investment in 2007 and with full-fledged presence starting in early 2008, we continue to invest broadly to strengthen India's overall economy," said Nagraj Kashyap, senior vice president of Qualcomm.
"We are committed to providing these companies with the support needed to help propel them forward in the competitive Indian region. We're excited about the new prospects in India and look forward to growing our portfolio," he added.
Qualcomm, which claims to invest in firms boosting the local ecosystem, has a portfolio of 20 Indian companies. Its direct investments includes companies like Yourstory, a media tech platform for entrepreneurs, Portea Medical, an in-home healthcare provider, and MapMyIndia, a provider of digital map, navigation, and tracking products and services.
The chip-maker has been heavily investing in making wireless and mobile communication cheaper in India by working with smartphone vendors, it said.
The company announced a Design-in-India competition and initiative which it hopes will encourage the creation of a local product design ecosystem, help make India a hub for design capabilities that drive the manufacturing value chain for 3G/4G smartphones, tablets and Internet of Everything (IoE) and leverage India's engineering talent to scale innovation for both local consumption, and the rest of the world.
"An innovation lab will be set up in Bengaluru to provide technical and engineering support to Indian companies, and we will support multiple Indian mobile device design companies," the company said.
"Through a design challenge, innovative product and hardware companies will be identified who will receive technical and engineering support in the Qualcomm innovation lab," it added.
US-based chip maker Qualcomm on Sunday said it would invest up to $150 million (Rs 9.8 billion) in Indian start-ups via a venture fund after Prime Minister Narendra Modi met top tech honchos in the Silicon Valley during his US visit.
The San Diego based chip-maker made the announcement after its executive chairman Paul Jacobs met the Indian prime minister at the Digital Economy event in San Jose and said the venture fund was in support of the government's Digital India and Make-in-India initiatives.
"We share Modi's vision to transform India into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy. India is at the cusp of a technology revolution and mobile technologies will lay the foundation for Digital India," said Paul Jacobs.
"We are committed to providing local innovative start-ups with the support needed to help India's IOE ecosystem grow, increasing consumer choice and availability," he added.
The new venture fund, which will be advised by Qualcomm Ventures - an investment arm of the group - is expected to fuel innovation and foster promising Indian startups which are contributing to the Mobile and Internet of Everything ecosystem. It will also aim to provide startups with financial, marketing, technology and business support to help propel them forward in the competitive Indian market.
"Since Qualcomm's first India investment in 2007 and with full-fledged presence starting in early 2008, we continue to invest broadly to strengthen India's overall economy," said Nagraj Kashyap, senior vice president of Qualcomm.
"We are committed to providing these companies with the support needed to help propel them forward in the competitive Indian region. We're excited about the new prospects in India and look forward to growing our portfolio," he added.
Qualcomm, which claims to invest in firms boosting the local ecosystem, has a portfolio of 20 Indian companies. Its direct investments includes companies like Yourstory, a media tech platform for entrepreneurs, Portea Medical, an in-home healthcare provider, and MapMyIndia, a provider of digital map, navigation, and tracking products and services.
The chip-maker has been heavily investing in making wireless and mobile communication cheaper in India by working with smartphone vendors, it said.
The company announced a Design-in-India competition and initiative which it hopes will encourage the creation of a local product design ecosystem, help make India a hub for design capabilities that drive the manufacturing value chain for 3G/4G smartphones, tablets and Internet of Everything (IoE) and leverage India's engineering talent to scale innovation for both local consumption, and the rest of the world.
"An innovation lab will be set up in Bengaluru to provide technical and engineering support to Indian companies, and we will support multiple Indian mobile device design companies," the company said.
"Through a design challenge, innovative product and hardware companies will be identified who will receive technical and engineering support in the Qualcomm innovation lab," it added.
General Awareness
List of Finance and Prime Ministers of India
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Dear Readers,
we have compiled the List of Finance and Prime Ministers of India. We hope, it will help you in Competitive exams.
- Dear Readers,
we have compiled the List of Finance and Prime Ministers of India. We hope, it will help you in Competitive exams.
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