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INDIA

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No better time to bet on India than now, says Gautam Adani
INDIA

No better time to bet on India than now, says Gautam Adani

NEW DELHI, 8th June 2020: The recent slump in economic growth notwithstanding, India will be one of the world's top consumption centers and a manufacturing and services hub for the next several decades, billionaire Gautam Adani has said, stressing there is no better time to bet on India than now. India's economic growth slipped to 4.2% in 2019-20 fiscal (April 2019 to March 2020) its slowest pace in more than a decade. International rating agencies as well as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) have forecast a contraction in GDP in the financial year that began in April 2020 on account of the coronavirus-induced slowdown. "What we must realize is that there are no absolute right or wrong ideas. What is required during an unprecedented, hard to model, a crisis like COVID-19, is a Governme...
Indian Govt blocks file sharing website WeTransfer
INDIA

Indian Govt blocks file sharing website WeTransfer

New Delhi, May 30: The Indian government has ordered internet service providers to block the computer file-sharing website WeTransfer due to security reasons. However, the security reason has not been disclosed but as per our analysis, the situation could be connected with the Pakistan agency spying case in India. The order issued by the Department of Telecom on May 18 directed all ISP to block two download links on the Dutch website WeTransfer and also the entire website. 'Delhi Police had requested the IT ministry to block two download links and the entire We Transfer website immediately. Following which orders were issued to the website and links suggested by the Delhi Police,' an official source said. Meity asked the DoT to direct internet service providers to block the web...
Google faces Antitrust case in India over payments app
INDIA

Google faces Antitrust case in India over payments app

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India’s antitrust body is looking into allegations that Alphabet Inc’s Google is abusing its market position to unfairly promote its mobile payments app in the country, five sources familiar with the case told Reuters. The complaint was filed in February and the Competition Commission of India (CCI) has kept the identity of the complainant confidential, the first source with direct knowledge of the case said. The complaint alleges the U.S. tech giant more prominently showcases its Google Pay app inside its Android app store in India, giving it an unfair advantage over apps of competitors which hurts consumers, the source added. Google did not respond to a request for comment. Two of the sources said the watchdog informed Google about the case being filed a fe...
JioMart Launched Operation in 200 Indian Cities
INDIA

JioMart Launched Operation in 200 Indian Cities

Mumbai, May 26, 2020: Reliance online grocery service JioMart launched its delivery services in nearly 200 cities of India. The delivery services of Jiomart was initially launched in Mumbai after receiving big funding from Facebook and four other investors. But as we have checked the website the service is not fully operated, most of the products are out of order. JioMart will use Facebook-owned Whatsapp to make the online retail experience accessible to many more Indians and towns for daily needs order. "Never waste a crisis, they say!" tweeted Damodar Mall, chief executive of grocery retail at the company. "A wise colleague mentioned today, 'Alibaba also flourished starting from the SARS crisis,'" he added. Now JioMart is the only active delivery service in Indian small c...
70% of Indian Startups are going to collapse says Nasscom Survey
INDIA

70% of Indian Startups are going to collapse says Nasscom Survey

70% of Indian startups have a cash runway of less than 3 months, with early stage and mid stage startups the worst affected, a report by Nasscom said. Revenues are squeezed for 90 per cent of over 250 startups surveyed by Nasscom in April this year. Over 250 startups with diverse profiles participated in the survey which included 45% mid-stage startups, 30% mature startups, and 25% early-stage startups.  The Indian tech startup ecosystem is the third largest in the world with over 9,300 tech startups, providing direct employment to over 4 lakh people. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has come as a jolt and put the brakes on the flourishing growth story.  As per the report, 28% of startups are hit by funding shortage which can affect long term sustainability, 21% startups are ...
German footwear brand shifts production from China to India
INDIA

German footwear brand shifts production from China to India

German Footwear company Casa Everz Gmbh which owns healthy footwear brand Von Wellx has decided to shift its entire production from China to India. The company took this decision on the basis of demonstrating a start to the Indian government's recent plans to bring foreign companies into the country. The production will now happen at Agra in Uttar Pradesh in collaboration with Iatric Industries Pvt Ltd. Von Wellx is a pioneer of healthy footwear with benefits like relieving feet, knees and back pain, protection of joints and muscles against shocks, and correct posture. The brand is sold in over 80 countries and has over 100 million customers across the globe. It was launched in India in 2019 and is available at over 500 top retail locations and online. "We are very happy to ...
Lava to shift operations from China to India, Invest $100 Million cr in 5 yrs
INDIA

Lava to shift operations from China to India, Invest $100 Million cr in 5 yrs

Mobile devices maker Lava International said it is shifting its China operations to India following recent policy announcements by the Indian government. The company plans to invest around $100 million (800 crore) over the next five years to scale up its mobile phone development and manufacturing operations in the country. "We had around 600-650 employees in China for product design. Now we have shifted designing to India. Our sales requirements for India were met from our local plant. "We used to partially export mobile phones from China to the rest of the world, which will now happen from India," Lava International Chairman and Managing Director Hari Om Rai told PTI. During the lockdown period, Lava met its export demand from China. "My dream is to export mobile devices to...
India cancels orders for Chinese COVID-19 test kits
INDIA

India cancels orders for Chinese COVID-19 test kits

The Indian Council of Medical Research on Monday asked the states to stop using COVID-19 rapid testing kits procured from China due to their poor quality even as the government said not a single rupee will be lost in cancelling the orders as payments were not made to the Chinese suppliers. India procured around five lakh rapid antibody test kits from the two Chinese firms, Guongzhou Wondfo Biotech and Livzon Diagnostics, and they were distributed to several states reporting rising cases of the coronavirus infection. In a communication to chief secretaries of all states and union territories, the ICMR asked them to stop using the kits saying it found "wide variation" in the effectiveness of the equipment supplied by the two Chinese firms despite the promise of good performance. "Th...
4 cr Indian Users may be without Mobile Phones by May End
INDIA

4 cr Indian Users may be without Mobile Phones by May End

An estimated 4 crore Indian mobile phone users are expected to be without handsets due to faults and breakdowns by May-end if restrictions on the sale of handsets and spare parts continue, an industry body said on Friday. At present, more than 2.5 crore mobile customers are estimated to be with non-functional devices due to non availability of components in the supply chain and the restriction on sales of new handsets due to the lockdown to contain coronavirus infection, the India Cellular and Electronics Association (ICEA) claimed. The government has allowed sales of only essential goods and services during the lockdown which has entered into the fifth week. Operations of telecom, internet, broadcast and IT services are permitted but not for mobile devices that are pivotal for acces...
After Providing Hydroxychloroquine to World, India is working on Vaccine for COVID-19
INDIA

After Providing Hydroxychloroquine to World, India is working on Vaccine for COVID-19

Six Indian companies are working on a vaccine for COVID-19, joining global efforts to find a quick preventive for the deadly infection spreading rapidly across the world, says a top Indian scientist. Nearly 70 vaccine candidates' are being tested and at least three have moved to the human clinical trial stage, but a vaccine for the novel coronavirus is unlikely to be ready for mass use before 2021. As COVID-19 infects more than 1.9 million in the world and claims 1,26,000 lives, Indian scientists are also part of the global fight against the disease. While Zydus Cadila is working on two vaccines, Serum Institute, Biological E, Bharat Biotech, Indian Immunologicals, and Mynvax are developing one vaccine each. But it is a complicated process with many stages of testing and many c...
Indian Govt App become World’s fastest app to reach 50 mn download
INDIA

Indian Govt App become World’s fastest app to reach 50 mn download

Government's mobile app Aarogya Setu, developed for tracking coronavirus patients, has become the world's fastest app to reach 50 million downloads in just 13 days, Niti Aayog CEO said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his address to the nation on April 14 appealed to people to download the app. "Telephone took 75 years to reach 50 million users, radio 38 yrs, television 13 yrs, Internet 4 yrs, Facebook 19 months, Pokemon Go 19 days. AarogyaSetu, India's app to fight COVID-19 has reached 50 mn users in just 13 days-fastest ever globally for an App," Kant said in his tweet. The death toll due to coronavirus rose to 377 while the number of cases in the country climbed to 11,439. Aarogya Setu app alerts people if any known or person in their vicinity has tested positive. Distric...
Paytm collects Rs 100 cr contributions for PM-CARES Fund
INDIA

Paytm collects Rs 100 cr contributions for PM-CARES Fund

Digital payments platform Paytm said contributions for the PM-CARES Fund for the COVID-19 crisis have crossed Rs 100 crore on its platform. Paytm had earlier announced it aims to contribute Rs 500 crore to the PM-CARES Fund. It had said for every contribution or any other payment made on Paytm using the wallet, UPI or Paytm Bank debit card, it will contribute an extra up to Rs 10. "In a little over 10 days, contributions have crossed Rs 100 crores on the Paytm app and the initiative is still going strong," Paytm said in a statement on Saturday. The company said its employees have also come together and contributed their salaries for the fund."Over 1,200 employees have contributed their 15 days, one month, two months to even three months' salary for this noble cause," the statement...