Business

New Delhi, March 25 Following a rebound in the stock market, investors' wealth has surged by ₹15.80 lakh crore in two days, driven by a sharp decline in crude oil prices and hopes of de-escalation in the West Asia conflict.Stock markets have been rallying for the past two trading days, with the BSE Sensex climbing 2,577.06 points or 3.54 percent. On Wednesday, the 30-share BSE benchmark jumped 1,205 points or 1.63 percent to close at 75,273.45.Thanks to optimism among investors, the market capitalization of BSE-listed companies rose to ₹4,31,01,834.74 crore (USD 4.59 trillion) from ₹4,31,01,834.74 crore in two days."Indian equities extended their recovery for the second consecutive session, supported by improving global cues and...

New Delhi, March 25 Jio Platforms is likely to file its Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) with Sebi in the coming days, paving the way for what could be India's largest-ever IPO.According to market sources, the offering will be structured as a sale offer, with several existing foreign investors preparing to reduce their stakes.In separate reports last year, Jefferies had estimated Jio's valuation at USD 180 billion, while JP Morgan had pegged the valuation of Jio Platforms – the entity that houses Reliance Industries' telecom and digital businesses – at USD 136 billion.The DRHP could be filed as early as the end of March, and discussions are ongoing with over a dozen foreign investors to reduce part of their stakes in the...

New Delhi, March 25 Network18, a major broadcast network, announced on Wednesday the appointment of Raj Jain as an Independent Director to its board for a period of five years, from March 25, 2026, to March 24, 2031.Jain, former Chief Executive Officer of Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. (The Times Group), brings extensive experience across various sectors.He has also previously served as CEO of Walmart India and Managing Director and CEO of Whirlpool India, giving him a blend of media and consumer business expertise.Commenting on the development, Adil Zainulbhai, Chairman, Network18, said, "We are delighted to welcome Raj Jain to the Board of Network18 as an independent Director. Raj brings a rare combination of media and consumer...

Mumbai, March 25 Odisha-based drone manufacturer BonV Aero has entered into a strategic alliance with ParaZero Technologies to bring the latter's counter-drone system to cater to defense and security agencies in the country.The partnership gives BonV Aero exclusive rights to deploy the system 'DefendAir', which primarily functions as a drone catcher, in the domestic market now and subsequently manufacture it locally, the company said.The collaboration is a significant addition to the country's counter-drone arsenal at a time when the threat landscape is evolving faster than existing measures can keep pace with, BonV Aero said.The alliance also covers DropAir, a platform designed for autonomous delivery in high-altitude and remote...

New Delhi, March 25 The Delhi government's excise department has directed all wholesale licensees to mandatorily submit samples of each IMFL (Indian Made Foreign Liquor) brand on a quarterly basis to ensure the quality of liquor sold in the city, officials said on Wednesday.All the IMFL brands approved in Delhi are required to undergo testing in the government's Excise Control Lab on a regular basis, every three months.A recent circular issued to all L-1 licensees by the excise department has directed strict compliance.The department's bond inspectors have also been instructed to ensure that samples are submitted to the excise department lab regularly for each quarter of the year."It is once again reiterated that all L-1...

New Delhi, March 25 Domestic technology firm HFCL Limited has consolidated its defence business under a new entity, HASPL, which will commence operations with a total order book of ₹1,680 crore, the company said on Wednesday.The company also announced its foray into aeronautics manufacturing with inorganic expansion to be executed through a newly acquired firm, Spiral EHL Engineering Private Limited."HFCL will implement this consolidation through its subsidiary, HFCL Advance Systems Private Limited (HASPL), which will act as the vehicle for multiple defence and aerospace business," the company said in a statement.HFCL said that the initiative brings together complementary capabilities across aerostructures, aeronautics, radar...

Mumbai, March 24 Only 52% of the works undertaken under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) in Maharashtra were completed between 2019-20 and 2023-24, the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has said.The CAG report, presented to the state legislature on Wednesday, stated that 25.72 lakh works were approved during this period, of which only 52.81% were completed.Authorities spent Rs 6,725.65 crore on completed works, while Rs 5,361.02 crore was spent on incomplete works.The report stated that approximately 7.10 lakh approved works had not even started as of March 2025, including 2.48 lakh works that remained pending for more than three years. Of the 5.03 lakh incomplete works, as many...

Mumbai, March 25 The rupee plunged by 20 paise to close at a fresh record low of 93.96 against the US dollar on Wednesday as heavy outflows from foreign investors and rising tensions in the Middle East kept investors on edge.Even a decline in global crude oil prices, a weaker US dollar, and positive sentiment in the domestic stock markets could not provide any relief to the local currency, forex traders said.At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local currency opened at 93.94 against the US dollar and traded in the range of 93.86-94.13, before settling at an all-time low of 93.96, down 20 paise from its previous close.The rupee had fallen by 23 paise to close at 93.76 against the US dollar on Tuesday."The markets were in...

New Delhi, March 25 The market regulator, Sebi, on Wednesday deferred the implementation of guidelines allowing mutual funds to borrow intraday from financial institutions, including banks, to July 15.The framework was originally scheduled to come into effect on April 1."In order to address the operational challenges raised by asset management companies with respect to intraday borrowings by mutual funds, it has been decided that the applicability of guidelines related to the intraday borrowings... shall now come into effect from July 15, 2026," Sebi said in its circular.Under the new framework, the board of an asset management company (AMC), as well as the board of trustees, will be required to approve a policy governing the use...

New Delhi, March 25 The initial share sale of basmati rice exporter Amir Chand Jagdish Kumar (Exports) received 1.47 times subscription on the second day of bidding on Wednesday.The Rs 440-crore initial public offer (IPO) received bids for 2,77,21,680 shares against 1,89,05,270 shares on offer, according to NSE data.The quota for non-institutional investors attracted 5.24 times subscription. The category for Qualified Institutional Buyers (QIBs) received 78 per cent subscription, while the portion for Retail Individual Investors (RIIs) subscribed 56 per cent.Amir Chand Jagdish Kumar (Exports) Ltd raised Rs 60 crore from anchor investors on Monday.The company's initial public offering (IPO) will conclude on March 27. The price...

New Delhi, March 25 The government has mandated that the supply of cooking gas, LPG, to households will be discontinued if consumers fail to switch to piped natural gas where such connectivity is available, under a new order aimed at accelerating gas network expansion and reducing reliance on a single fuel.As India grapples with an LPG shortage due to the war in West Asia disrupting supplies from key sources, the government is pushing households and commercial users to switch to piped natural gas (PNG) – a more convenient alternative that is both domestically produced and sourced through diversified supply. PNG is continuously supplied to kitchen burners through pipelines, eliminating the need to book refills.The Ministry of...

New Delhi, March 25 Revamping the regional air connectivity initiative, the Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved a modified UDAN scheme with an outlay of ₹28,840 crore for ten years, which will provide funding for developing airports, related operations and maintenance activities, helipads, and support for the acquisition of India-made aircraft.Airlines will be provided Viability Gap Funding (VGF) for operating UDAN routes, and the estimated amount over the ten-year period starting from FY 2026-27 is ₹10,043 crore.Briefing media persons after the Cabinet meeting, Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said that under the modified scheme, 100 airports would be developed from existing unserved airstrips with the help of...

New Delhi, March 25 The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) warned hotels and restaurants on Wednesday not to levy additional charges, such as "LPG charges" and "fuel cost recovery", and said these are unfair trade practices, and strict action will be taken against them.The authority has termed this an unfair trade practice under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, pointing out that only applicable taxes can be added to the price mentioned in the menu.According to an official statement, the CCPA has "taken serious note of hotels and restaurants levying additional charges such as "LPG charges", "gas surcharge" and "fuel cost recovery" in consumer bills".The CCPA observed that such charges are being imposed to circumvent...

Shimla, March 25 A total of 2,411 new industrial units have been established in Himachal Pradesh in the past three years, while 88 industrial units have shut down during the period, Industries Minister Harshvardhan Chauhan said on Wednesday.He said that continuous efforts are being made to promote industrial activities within the state. The government's focus lies not only on establishing new units but also on strengthening the investment climate to facilitate the establishment of the maximum possible number of industries within the state.Responding to a question from BJP MLA Bikram Singh, the industries minister informed that under the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME) framework, Himachal Pradesh has received a total of...

Shimla, March 25 The central government has praised the Himachal Pradesh Jal Shakti Department for completing the first Major and Medium Irrigation (MMI) Census under the Irrigation Census 2023-2025, officials said on Wednesday.The award was recently presented to Jal Shakti Department Secretary Abhishek Jain by Union Jal Shakti Minister CR Patil in New Delhi in the presence of Union Jal Shakti Secretary VL Kantha Rao.The award was formally presented to Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu in Shimla today by Chief Secretary Sanjay Gupta and Jain.On the occasion, the chief minister lauded the dedicated efforts of the department's officers and officials, calling it a significant achievement.He said that irrigation is a critical...

In New Delhi, on March 25, a report by the government for February 2026 revealed that several infrastructure projects worth over ₹150 crore each had incurred a cumulative cost overrun of ₹5.66 trillion.The latest "Flash Report on Central Sector Infrastructure Projects" showed that the revised cost of all 1,948 projects, each valued at ₹150 crore or more, monitored by the Ministry of Statistics, stood at ₹41,98,684 crore, compared to their original cost of ₹36,32,088 crore.The report did not specify the exact number of projects facing cost overruns.The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) stated that, as of February 2026, 1,948 ongoing infrastructure projects, with a total revised cost of ₹41.98 lakh crore...

New Delhi, March 25 Swiggy announced a strategic collaboration with Sarvam on Wednesday to launch voice ordering, allowing users to place food and grocery orders and book tables to dine out in multiple Indian languages through Sarvam's AI assistant, "Indus".With the integration of Swiggy, Instamart, and DineOut with Sarvam's voice models, and RazorPay also joining, the entire process of discovery, ordering, and checkout will be handled seamlessly.Sarvam's voice models are trained on extensive Indian language data to enable voice interactions across 11 languages, including Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Bengali, and Marathi."By integrating Sarvam's multi-lingual technology, Swiggy will enable users to place food orders, book tables...

New Delhi, March 25 Precious metals rallied by up to 5%, with silver soaring by Rs 11,250 to Rs 2.41 lakh per kilogram, while gold climbed to Rs 1.49 lakh per 10 grams in the national capital on Wednesday amid strong global trends.According to the All India Sarafa Association, the white metal surged by Rs 11,250, or 4.89%, to Rs 2,41,250 per kg (inclusive of all taxes) from Tuesday's closing level of Rs 2,30,000 per kg.Gold of 99.9% purity also increased by Rs 4,900, or 3.38%, to Rs 1,49,700 per 10 grams (inclusive of all taxes). The yellow metal had settled at Rs 1,44,800 per 10 grams in the bullion market.Gold prices rose in the domestic markets on Wednesday, marking a strong recovery in recent sessions, bolstered by improved...

New Delhi, March 25 Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Wednesday that the nation must unite to address the challenges arising from the West Asia crisis.A joint attack launched by the US and Israel on Iran has disrupted the movement of ships and pushed oil prices in global markets."There is a war going on, and we have nothing to do with it. India is not involved in the war in any way. However, when there is a war, there will be collateral damage, and there will be difficulties. Perhaps Malabar is facing difficulties in exporting to Middle Eastern countries. But this is the time when the nation must come together to face these challenges," Goyal said.He also said that in the last few years, India has entered into...

New Delhi, March 25 The government on Wednesday asked the Reserve Bank to maintain retail inflation at 4 per cent with a margin of 2 per cent on either side for another five years ending March 2031.To control price increases, the government in 2016 gave the RBI a mandate to keep retail inflation at 4 per cent with a margin of 2 per cent on either side for five years ending March 31, 2021. Subsequently, in March 2021, the government maintained the same target. This is the second time the government has retained the inflation target.The central government, in consultation with the Reserve Bank, hereby notifies the inflation target for the period beginning April 1, 2026, and ending on March 31, 2031, a gazette notification issued by...