Business
CarDekho raises $250 mn, becomes 31st Indian unicorn of 2021

Car search platform CarDekho on Wednesday said it has raised $250 million, taking its valuation to $1.2 billion and becoming the 31st unicorn of 2021 in the country.
The fresh round of funding included $200 million Series E equity and $50 million debt in its pre-IPO round. The funding round was led by LeapFrog Investments, a global impact investor focused on financial services and healthcare access.
The company said it plans to expand across India with retail hubs that will focus on both used car buying and certified pre-owned car retail transactions with customers.
The CarDekho team is currently present in India, Indonesia and Philippines and aims to use the funds to expand internationally. The company’s auto and non-auto products are currently used in more than 30 countries globally.
“The new fundraise will help us expand our Used Car transactions and Financial services businesses. The trust and conviction of our investors will help us to accelerate our growth plans,” said Amit Jain, Co-founder and CEO, CarDekho.
CarDekho currently buys cars from customers in more than 100 markets and has a catalogue of more than 3,000 certified pre-owned cars for online purchase.
The company will expand its used car retail transactions business geographically and is set to increase its catalogue to 10,000 cars in the near future.
As CarDekho Group continues to scale, LeapFrog will support the company’s plans to deliver quality and affordable vehicles, insurance, and finance to millions of new emerging consumers. Improved mobility remains a proven driver of access to healthcare, education, and employment opportunities.
Other new investors who participated in the new funding round included the US based Canyon Partners, Mirae Asset and Harbor Spring Capital, along with existing investors Sequoia Capital India and Sunley House.
“CarDekho is making vehicles more accessible, affordable and trustworthy for over three million emerging consumers,” said Stewart Langdon, Partner and Co-Head of South Asian Investments, LeapFrog Investments.
India is adding at least three ‘unicorns’ per month in 2021. India is the third in the list of countries having the most unicorns, trailing the US and China, but ahead of the UK and Germany, as per a report by Hurun India.
Business
Maharashtra presents deficit budget, new tax burden on citizens

Mumbai: Finance Minister and Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar presented the state budget in the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly today. The public has expressed confidence in us in the assembly elections, so Mahayuti is committed to maintaining their trust. In this budget, special concessions and facilities have been given to the middle class. An attempt has been made to solve the problems of the people. With this resolve, Ajit Pawar has presented the budget for 2025-26, which is the first annual budget presented by the Mahayuti government.
Presenting the budget in the Assembly, Ajit Pawar said in his speech that Maharashtra will not stop, development will not be delayed, he also claimed that large-scale projects will be completed in the state, which will increase employment opportunities and boost the economy.
The state has set a target of an economy of one lakh trillion. Work on the Bengaluru-Mumbai Industrial Corridor is underway. Along with better industrial facilities in the state, employment opportunities and a technical center in the state and establishment of Maharashtra Technical Textile Mission for development work have also been implemented. It has also been assured in the budget that electricity rates will be reduced in the state. Electricity rates in the state will be lower than the rates of other provinces.
Ajit Pawar has also promised to complete many facilities and projects in the state budget. The work of Navi Mumbai airport is 85 percent complete, while work has started on Nagpur airport. Establishment of markets for agriculture has been ensured. Rs 3610 crore has been allocated for the transport department, out of which work has started on a 41 km long metro route in Mumbai.
A special project has been included in the budget for Mumbai, in which Rs 64,783 crore has been allocated for Versova to Madha, Versova to Bhayander Coastal Road, Malind to Goregaon, Thane to Borivali and Orange Gate to Marine Drive underground road to eliminate traffic problems in suburban areas. Thane to Navi Mumbai International Airport will be connected to the international airports of Thane, Dombivali, Kalyan and other important cities.
The work of the missing link at Khapoli-Khandala Ghat on Mumbai-Pune Highway will be completed by August 2025. Mumbai, Navi Mumbai Global Market will be established as well as Taluka Market Committee will be established across the state. Housing Scheme: Financial assistance of Rs 50,000 will be given for the house. Implementation of Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana will be ensured in the state. Under this scheme, assistance of Rs 50,000 will be provided to each person. Under the Pradhan Mantri Surya Ghar Yojana, Rs 1.30 lakh has been allocated for domestic electricity and Rs 1,000 crore for power generation of more than 500 MW.
The state government has so far spent Rs 33,232 crore on Ladli Behan in the budget, while the Finance Ministry has allocated Rs 36,000 crore for it. A Hope Mall will be started in every district to establish savings banks and 10 malls will be set up in the first phase.
A 200-bed hospital will be built in Thane of Ratnagiri district, which will provide medical facilities to the citizens. The second phase of construction of metro route will be implemented in Pune. In the second phase, Rs 9894 crore has been allocated for two metro routes. Both the metro projects have been sent for approval from the Central Government. A statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj will be installed in Sangameshwar. Apart from this, Maratha Shaurya Smarak will be built in Panipat. A statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj will be built in Agra.
In this budget of the state government, a new tax has been imposed on the citizens. In this, a lump sum tax of 7% has been ensured on the purchase of cars. This tax has been imposed on electric cars and other things. This tax has been imposed on the purchase of cars worth more than 30 lakhs so that the common citizens do not face any problem. The state government has presented a budget of 7 lakh thousand crores. In this deficit budget, the burden of tax has been imposed on the citizens.
Business
Maharashtra Budget 2025: Dy CM Ajit Pawar Says Will Create 50 Lakh Jobs With ₹40 Lakh Crore Investment In 5 Years

Mumbai: The Maharashtra state budget for fiscal year 2025-26 is being presented by the state Deputy CM and Finance Minister Ajit Pawar in Maharashtra State Assembly in Mumbai.
Jobs In Maharashtra
During the speech, the FM Pawar said that his government intends to create 50 lakh jobs for citizens of Maharashtra through a Rs 40 lakh crore investment over the next 5 years.
Pawar added that Maharashtra’s new Industrial Policy 2025 will soon be announced.
Special polices will also be announced in space, defence, electronics, MSME and circular economy.
Pawar also spoke about the introduction of new labour laws in the richest state.
In the speech, the FM said that he intends to build new business corridors in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, or MMR, and make it a Growth Hub.
Mumbai-Bengaluru Corridor
Highlighting CM Fadnavis’s trip to the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Pawar said, MoUs signed with 63 companies at Davos Economic Summit, investment of a whopping Rs 15.72 lakh crores and estimated creation of 16 lakh jobs.”
The finance minister also updated the house on the status of the Bengaluru-Mumbai Industrial Corridor.
He said that land acquisition for the Bengaluru-Mumbai Industrial Corridor is underway and this project will help set up industries in drought-prone areas of the state.
Business
Mumbai Metropolitan Region To Be Developed As ‘Growth Hub’: Dy CM Ajit Pawar During Maharashtra Budget

Mumbai: Maharashtra state’s budget for the fiscal year 2025-26 is currently underway in the Maharashtra state assembly. The state’s finance and deputy chief minister, Ajit Pawar, while speaking in the budget, said that the Mumbai Metropolitan Region or MMR, will be developed as an international-class ‘Growth Hub’.
In order to achieve this, trade hubs will be set up in Bandra-Kurla, Kurla-Worli, Wadala, Goregaon, Navi Mumbai, Kharghar, Virar-Boisar.
The state government also aims to take the Maharashtra economy to USD 300 billion by 2030 and take it to new heights and reach the coveted trillion-dollar mark or USD 1.5 trillion by 2047.
The state of Maharashtra is the largest state economy within India.
The state FM also announced a major decision to exempt Port Development from property tax.
In his speech, Pawar said, “In the “Maharashtra Maritime Development Policy-2023”, port development has been exempted from property tax, non-agricultural tax, electricity duty, stamp duty, and industrial rates have been implemented for electricity. Passenger and port taxes have been exempted to promote passenger shipping and coastal tourism.”
At the beginning of the speech, Pawar highlighted the state election results. While speaking in the Maharashtra state assembly, he said, “The people gave an unprecedented majority to the Mahayuti in the November 2024 assembly elections. Heartfelt gratitude to all the people! This trust is a sense of responsibility and guarantees to uphold its honor.”
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