Business

New Delhi, March 25 The Competition Commission of India approved the proposed merger of Coursera's subsidiary, Chess Merger Sub, with Udemy Inc., on Wednesday.US-based Coursera is a global education technology company that operates a leading online learning platform. Its operations in India are primarily through cross-border digital delivery (including its subsidiary, Coursera India Pvt Ltd)."The proposed combination involves the merger of Udemy Inc (Udemy) with Chess Merger Sub (Chess merger), a newly incorporated, wholly-owned subsidiary of Coursera Inc. (Coursera)," the regulator said in a statement.After the merger, Udemy will continue as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Coursera.Upon completion, existing Coursera shareholders...

Jaipur, March 25 The Rajasthan government has introduced the "Industrial Park Promotion Policy-2026" to boost investment, infrastructure, and generate employment, officials said on Wednesday.Under the leadership of Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma, the policy aims to develop world-class industrial parks and position the state as a reliable and future-ready industrial destination.According to an official statement, the policy seeks to strengthen the industrial ecosystem in line with national initiatives such as 'Make in India' and 'Atmanirbhar Bharat', while promoting balanced regional development.The policy envisages the development of industrial parks through four models, including fully private development, hybrid land-sharing...

New Delhi, March 25 India and Chile, a South American nation, discussed progress in negotiations for the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) between the two countries on Wednesday.The issue came up for discussion during a meeting between Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal and Chile's Vice-Minister of International Economic Relations Paula Estevez Weinstein in Yaounde, the capital city of Cameroon.The secretary is in Yaounde for the 14th ministerial conference of the World Trade Organisation (WTO). The four-day meet will begin on March 26."Discussed progress in India-Chile CEPA (comprehensive economic partnership agreement) negotiations, its early conclusion, and explored ways to further strengthen bilateral economic cooperation and...

Mumbai, March 25 Stock markets rallied for the second consecutive day on Wednesday, with benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty closing nearly 2 per cent higher, as crude oil prices dropped and global markets advanced amid hopes of de-escalation in the war in West Asia.The 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 1,205 points or 1.63 per cent to settle at 75,273.45. During the day, it soared 1,781.31 points or 2.40 per cent to 75,849.76.The 50-share NSE Nifty surged 394.05 points or 1.72 per cent to end at 23,306.45.Among the 30 Sensex companies, UltraTech Cement, Bajaj Finance, Larsen & Toubro, Titan, InterGlobe Aviation, and Trent were the biggest gainers.Tech Mahindra, Power Grid, Tata Consultancy Services, and Bharat Electronics were the...

Mumbai, March 25 The Reserve Bank rejected all bids for treasury bills offered at auction on Wednesday, as investors demanded yields that were 0.05-0.10 percentage points higher than those seen in previous auctions, amid tight liquidity conditions in the banking system, market participants said.The central bank did not accept any investor bids for 91-day, 182-day, and 364-day T-bills. The RBI announced the auction of short-term government securities on February 21."Tight liquidity in the banking system has prompted investors to bid for 0.05-0.10 per cent higher cut-off yields at the auction, which the RBI rejected," said Balasubramanian R, head of treasury at Dhanlaxmi Bank.The Government of India issues treasury bills (T-bills)...

Mumbai, March 25 NDR InvIT Trust announced on Wednesday that it has raised ₹410 crore through the issuance of bonds, primarily for acquiring a logistics and warehousing portfolio across key markets in the country.The issuance was led by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), with participation from India Infrastructure Finance Company Limited (IIFCL), which subscribed to ₹205 crore of the total issue, NDR InviT said.The bonds are secured, rated, listed, and redeemable non-convertible debentures with a tenor of 5 years and carry a coupon of 7.61%."NDR InviT announces the successful closure of its ₹410 crore bond issuance, which was fully subscribed, reflecting strong investor demand for high-quality infrastructure-backed...

Chandigarh, March 25 – An FIR has been filed in connection with alleged discrepancies related to Fixed Deposit Receipts (FDRs) involving nearly ₹150 crore from the Panchkula Municipal Corporation, involving Kotak Mahindra Bank's branch.The Haryana State Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau (SVACB) filed the FIR on Tuesday night, accusing unnamed bank officials and others of cheating, conspiracy, and other offenses. The Haryana government decided to refer the case to the SVACB.The municipal corporation claims a significant mismatch between its official records and the records maintained by the Kotak Mahindra Bank branch in Panchkula.Vinay Kumar, Commissioner of the Panchkula Municipal Corporation (PMC), stated that the...

New Delhi, March 25 Ola Electric announced on Wednesday that it has received a strong initial response to its recently launched Ola Insiders Upgrade Program, with over 50,000 customers expressing strong interest within days of launch.Building on this momentum, the company is expanding the upgrade program to over 150 cities starting today, enabling 80 per cent of customers across the country to seamlessly upgrade to the latest Ola electric vehicles, it said in a statement.The Upgrade Program, part of the broader Ola Insiders community initiative, allows existing Gen 1 and Gen 2 customers to upgrade their current vehicles to the latest Gen 3 S1 portfolio and Roadster motorcycles with attractive benefits."The overwhelming response to...

New Delhi, March 25 Disconnecting from the internet does not guarantee safety from cyber threats, as nearly one in three computer users in India were targeted by local, on-device attacks in 2025, according to a report by cybersecurity major Kaspersky.The company stated that it detected and blocked over 6.46 crore local incidents in India between January and December 2025. These threats were primarily delivered through offline sources such as USB drives and other removable media, placing India among the top 80 most affected countries globally for local cyber threat exposure.According to data from Kaspersky Security Network (KSN), 29.8 per cent of users in the country encountered these offline threats, with worms and file viruses...

New Delhi, March 25 – The Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) announced on Wednesday that it had received a substantial tax demand from the Income Tax Department for the financial year 2021-22.In a statement filed with regulatory authorities, LIC said that the Income Tax Department's Assessment Unit had raised a demand of ₹61,46,71,18,015 as income tax, along with an additional interest amount of ₹9,53,25,87,935.The insurer clarified that it intends to challenge this order and will file an appeal before the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) through the available legal process.The tax demand has arisen due to several adjustments made by the tax authorities during the assessment.These include treating interim bonuses as...

Shimla, March 25 The Himachal Pradesh government will reduce the electricity tariff by one paisa per unit for all categories of electricity consumers in FY27, and the new rates will be effective from April 1, 2026.The Tariff Order for the Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board Limited (HPSEBL) was issued by the Himachal Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission (HPERC) here on Wednesday.The Commission estimated the Annual Revenue Requirement (ARR) of the HPSEBL for the financial year 2026-27 at Rs 8,636.16 crore, after adjusting for past periods, compared to Rs 8,403.25 crore for 2025-26.The average supply cost for HPSEBL, after adjustment, has been estimated to be Rs 6.75 per unit for FY27, compared to Rs 6.76 per unit for...

Chandigarh, March 25 The Haryana Electricity Regulatory Commission (HERC) on Wednesday decided to keep the power tariff unchanged for the 2026-27 financial year, providing relief to over 83.79 million consumers in the state.The revised tariff will come into effect from April 1, 2026.The decision was made after hearings on the Annual Revenue Requirement (ARR) petitions filed by Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (UHBVNL) and Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (DHBVNL), which had projected a revenue gap of about Rs 4,484.71 crore.Despite the projected gap, the Commission opted not to increase tariffs, citing strong opposition from consumers during public hearings.HERC said that the ARR has been kept revenue-neutral by improving...

Mumbai, March 25 Sebi Chairman Tuhin Kanta Pandey on Wednesday termed fake applications as a "serious threat" and urged technology firms like Google and Meta to work with financial regulators for investor protection.Pandey said that the next surge in investor participation is upon us, and underlined the need to protect the trust of all stakeholders in the market.The number of unique Indian investors has touched 140 million, and the overall market capitalization has crossed Rs 423 lakh crore, Pandey said, while speaking at an event to launch the verified app label initiative in association with Google here."Fake apps are now a serious threat and can cause irreparable financial harm," Pandey said, stressing that Sebi's approach has...

New Delhi, March 25 Consumer health and wellness firm Fullife Healthcare announced on Wednesday that it has raised ₹300 crore in a Series D funding round, led by Elev8 Venture Partners and its limited partners (LPs), marking Elev8's first investment in the direct-to-consumer space.The fresh capital will be used to accelerate growth for brands, including Fast&Up, Chicnutrix, and NightOut, which currently offer over 100 stock-keeping units (SKUs) across hydration, metabolic health, sports nutrition, and beauty wellness.Fullife Healthcare said the investment "will support its next phase of growth" in the rapidly expanding health and wellness category.Currently present in over 40 countries through Fast&Up and Chicnutrix, Fullife said...

New Delhi, March 25 The Central Consumer Protection Authority directed hotels and restaurants on Wednesday not to levy additional charges, such as 'LPG charges' and 'fuel cost recovery', on consumers, as these constitute unfair trade practices, and strict action will be taken in case of violation.The authority clarified that only applicable taxes can be added to the price mentioned in the menus of restaurants and hotels. All input costs should be factored into the prices displayed in the menus.The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) said it is closely monitoring such practices across the country, and any violation will be dealt with appropriately, and necessary action will be taken to safeguard the interests of consumers...

Mumbai, March 25 Stock markets rallied for the second consecutive day on Wednesday, with benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty closing nearly 2 per cent higher, as crude oil prices dropped and global markets advanced amid hopes of de-escalation in the war in West Asia.The 30-share BSE Sensex jumped 1,205 points or 1.63 per cent to settle at 75,273.45. During the day, it soared 1,781.31 points or 2.40 per cent to 75,849.76.The 50-share NSE Nifty surged 394.05 points or 1.72 per cent to end at 23,306.45.Among the 30 Sensex companies, UltraTech Cement, Bajaj Finance, Larsen & Toubro, Titan, InterGlobe Aviation, and Trent were the biggest gainers.Tech Mahindra, Power Grid, Tata Consultancy Services, and Bharat Electronics were the...

New Delhi, March 25 – In a major effort to support tribal artisans and promote indigenous products, the Department of Posts, under the Ministry of Communications, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED) on Wednesday. TRIFED operates under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs.The partnership aims to create a robust and cost-effective delivery system for products sold through TRIFED’s online platforms, including the Tribes India e-marketplace.This move is expected to make it easier for tribal products to reach customers across the country.Under the agreement, the Department of Posts will handle all aspects of logistics for online orders.With its extensive...

New Delhi, March 25 – The Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) announced on Wednesday that it had received a substantial tax demand from the Income Tax Department for the financial year 2021-22.In a disclosure in a regulatory filing, LIC stated that the assessment unit of the tax department has raised a demand of ₹61,46,71,18,015 as income tax, along with an additional interest amount of ₹9,53,25,87,935.The insurer clarified that it plans to challenge this order and will file an appeal before the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) through the legal process available.The tax demand has arisen due to several adjustments made by the tax authorities during the assessment.These include treating interim bonuses as income...

New Delhi, March 25 The India Energy Storage Alliance and industry experts have called for a unified framework to close the 60 GWh supply gap in domestic cell manufacturing, with the aim of boosting energy storage capacity addition in the country.A unified framework is seen as crucial to unlock large-scale investments and accelerate domestic innovation, according to an IESA statement.This view emerged at the recently concluded Stationary Energy Storage India (SESI) 2026 conference, where industry leaders made a unified call for swift government action to close India's energy storage supply gap.The sector's future now depends on bold policy moves to boost domestic manufacturing, secure critical materials, and position India as a...

Bengaluru, March 25 The two southern tech hubs—Bengaluru and Hyderabad—now account for over half of India's urban growth momentum, reshaping jobs, consumption, mobility, and the future of Indian cities, according to a data report released on Wednesday.Together, the two cities accounted for about 53 per cent of all Grade A office space added across India's top cities in the last five years, the report said.The findings are part of "WeAreCity 2026", the second edition of UnboxingBLR's flagship data report on Indian cities, unveiled at the Indiaspora Global AI Summit 2026 here.Titled "A Tale of Two Cities", UnboxingBLR said in a statement that the report presents a data-led comparison of Bengaluru and Hyderabad, India's two...