Mumbai: The Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Mumbai Police continues to uncover shocking details in the ₹122 crore scam at New India Cooperative Bank. The latest investigation has revealed that the main accused, Hitesh Mehta, illegally disbursed bank funds as high-interest loans to depositors during the Covid-19 period in 2020.

According to EOW sources, many small traders suffered severe financial losses during the pandemic and were in urgent need of funds. Exploiting their vulnerability, Mehta provided them loans worth crores at exorbitant interest rates, bypassing legal banking procedures.

The EOW is now investigating the exact number of traders who received these unauthorized loans and the total amount disbursed. A senior EOW official stated that Mehta, a commerce graduate, joined the bank in 1987 and was later promoted to General Manager and Chief Accountant in 2002. He was set to retire in October this year, but his massive fraud was exposed beforehand.

Sources reveal that an EOW team will soon visit the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to meet with senior officials. The purpose of the meeting is to understand why the RBI conducted a sudden inspection at the bank on February 12 and what triggered the surprise audit.

Additionally, EOW officials will seek a detailed report from the RBI and question why no action was taken earlier, despite financial irregularities occurring since 2019. The investigation is ongoing, and further revelations are expected in the coming days.

New Delhi, March 14: Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday on Friday said that he “had a forward-looking discussion with US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on a mutually beneficial Bilateral Trade Agreement” between India and the US.

“Our approach will be guided by ‘India First’, ‘Viksit Bharat’ and our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership,” Goyal posted on X along with a photo of his meeting Greer.

Goyal had previously met Greer and US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick during his visit to the US last week. This followed US President Donald Trump and PM Narendra Modi’s talks on negotiating the first tranche of a mutually beneficial, multi-sector Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) by the fall of 2025.

The two leaders resolved to deepen the US-India trade relationship to promote growth that ensures fairness, national security, and job creation. To this end, the leaders set a bold new goal for bilateral trade – “Mission 500” – aiming to more than double total bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030.

US Trade Secretary Lutnick said recently that he was keen to negotiate a broad-based trade agreement with India, taking into account the entire trade relationship rather than individual products.

Meanwhile, the government has informed the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs that India has not made any commitment to reduce tariffs on goods imported from the USA.

In a briefing on the issue, Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal told the Parliamentary committee that negotiations between India and the US were still ongoing and that no trade agreement had been finalised.

The Commerce Secretary’s clarification came in the wake of US President Trump’s statement that India has agreed to bring “way down” its tariffs on US goods.

Barthwal said: “One cannot go by the US President’s claims and on media reports as the bilateral trade agreement talks between the two nations are still on. India has not committed to anything on trade tariffs to the US.”

He also made it clear that India’s interests were of paramount importance and would be taken care of during the trade negotiations.

Barthwal said that India was in favour of increasing bilateral trade with the USA but would not indiscriminately lower tariffs, especially in sectors crucial to its domestic economy.

“India prefers to negotiate tariff reductions bilaterally rather than multilaterally to ensure national interests are upheld,” Barthwal told the committee.

Trump’s ‘America First’ policy has the potential to disrupt world trade as the US President has accused trading partners of unfair practices and threatened to impose punitive tariffs on a large scale. He has accused India of levying massive tariffs on US goods.

New Delhi, March 14: Elon Musk-led Tesla Inc. has initiated the process for the certification and homologation of two of its electric cars in India, which is an essential requirement for all vehicles before they can be sold in the country.

Tesla India Motor & Energy Pvt. Ltd., the local unit of Musk’s firm, has submitted two new applications for homologation of the Model Y and Model 3 cars in India, according to industry sources.

Homologation is the process of certifying that a vehicle is roadworthy and meets the norms laid out for all vehicles manufactured in India or imported into the country. The tests ensure that the vehicle matches the requirements of the Indian market in terms of emission and safety and roadworthiness in accordance with the Central Motor Vehicle Rules.

The company had earlier submitted seven applications for homologation in India earlier which were meant for test cars. An eighth application was approved recently.

The move comes amid talks with the US and India on a free trade agreement under which tariffs are expected to be lowered by both countries to enhance bilateral trade.

Musk has been keen to enter India as he is looking for a foothold in the world’s third-largest car market as an alternative to China, after the communist country came under strict US sanctions.

While the Indian government is keen that Musk set up a plant in India to make Tesla for the local market, the billionaire wants to export the car to the country without any immediate manufacturing plans.

Electric car sales in India recorded a 20 per cent jump to 99,165 units in 2024, from 82,688 units in 2023. Tata Motors and JSW MG Motors are currently the market leaders.

In addition, the luxury electric vehicle market also posted an increase in sales during the year, with 2,809 EVs sold by BMW, Mercedes Benz India, Volvo Cars India, Audi, and Porsche in 2024, up from 2,633 units in 2023.

According to the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA), the electric passenger vehicle retail sales in India grew by nearly 20 per cent.

The EV market is expected to continue growing, with industry forecasts predicting a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 43 per cent.

Government initiatives and subsidies under the PM E-Drive scheme are also contributing to the growth of the EV market in India, as the country transitions to green energy in the fight against climate change.

The electric two-wheeler segment recorded significant growth, with 1.13 million units sold in 2024, up from 860,000 units in 2023.

The overall EV penetration in the country increased to 7.46 per cent in 2024, up from 6.39 per cent in 2023.