Business
Punjab CM tries to woo corporate honchos in Mumbai
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Monday extended a red carpet welcome to top honchos of Indian industry, inviting them to invest in his state to give boost to the industrial growth and open doors of prosperity for the youth.
The Chief Minister had detailed parleys with Godrej, Hindustan Unilever, Mafatlal Group, Mahindra & Mahindra, Jindal Steels and others during his visit here.
He showcased the state as the most preferred destination to these industrial units and asked them to invest.
Mann also apprised them that the state government is making strenuous efforts to further strengthen the single-window system for facilitating the investors.
He said the pragmatic policies of the state government coupled with industrial peace and state-of-the-art infrastructure provides a conducive atmosphere for the industrial development in the state.
Mann claimed that earlier single-window service was merely a sham, devoid of any meaningful purpose, which not only demoralised the potential investors but also hampered the industrial development of the state.
During a meeting with the representatives of the Hindustan Unilever, the Chief Minister asked them to expand their existing plant for tomato ketchup manufacturing in Nabha.
He said the government will encourage the farmers of the state to sow tomatoes in Punjab, thereby improving their economic lot. The company assured Mann that they will explore the feasibility of setting up their unit in the state.
The Chief Minister also had a detailed meeting with a delegation of Thyrocare – an Indian multinational chain of diagnostic and preventive care laboratories.
During the meeting, he apprised the representatives of the company that the government is laying major thrust on imparting quality healthcare services to people. Mann also invited the company to set up a chain of laboratories in the state for the people’s benefit.
During a meeting with the Mafatlal group, the Chief Minister said the cotton belt of the state produces the finest cotton across the globe which can be used as raw material for producing premium fabric. He asked the company to invest in the state as there is a huge potential of growth in Punjab.
Taking part in a meeting with representatives of Mahindra & Mahindra, he said that there is a huge potential for the tourism sector in the state, especially around Ranjit Sagar Dam, Chohal Dam and others.
The company showed keen interest in setting up its chain of Club Mahindra resorts in the state. They also invited the Chief Minister for inauguration of the upgraded plant of Swaraj Tractors at Lalru.
During a meeting with the delegation of Kotak Mahindra bank, the Chief Minister discussed the possibilities of expansion of the banking sector in the state.
He assured the delegation that the state government will provide fulsome support and cooperation to them for setting their venture.
Meanwhile, during a meeting with a delegation of Hind Terminal, a logistics company, the Chief Minister said there is a huge scope for the growth of the sector in the state. He assured full support to the company for expansion of their unit in Quilla Raipur.
Mann said that the logistic park will be given a boost by the state government.
The Chief Minister also had detailed deliberations with the Godrej group officials, who called on him later in the day. Mann asked the group to invest in the agriculture sector for benefitting the farmers immensely. He also asked them to explore the possibility of expansion in the real sector too.
During a meeting with Jindal Steel, the Chief Minister said the state is heading towards becoming surplus in power production and this can help in accelerating the growth of industry.
The Chief Minister said the Invest Punjab Summit being organized in Mohali on February 23-24 will prove to be a milestone towards giving a major fillip to industrial growth of the state.
Business
Trump Victory Revives The Crypto Mania; Bitcoin Touches 81,000 Mark, Other Virtual Currencies Also Surge
The world of cryptocurrency, which was enduring its long-drawn-out winter since the end of the pandemic, appears all set to come out of its ‘haitus’.
And this new surge has been powered by the recent triumph of Donald Trump at the 2024 US election. The president-elect, Donald Trump, who once thought that crypto was a ‘scam’, has come a long way. Donald Trump, by all means, is the most crypto-friendly president that the US has had so far.
Bitcoin
As a result of this newborn optimism, major names in the crypto business. The biggest of them all, Bitcoin, saw the biggest jump. Bitcoin scaled the USD 80,000 mark for the first time.
In the past 5 days, the cryptocurrency has surged in value by 7.76 per cent or USD 5,865.47, taking the overall value to 81,456.88 for one USD. In the Indian context, one Bitcoin is worth Rs 68,72,585.50.
Ethereum
And it is not just Bitcoin that has seen its value gallop. The second biggest name in the crypto world, Ethereum has observed a rise in its price since Trump’s victory. 8.71
In fact, this crypto has seen an even bigger jump of 17.00 per cent or USD 462.66, in the past 5 days, taking the overall value to USD 3,184.54.
Ripple
Another cryptocoin, Ripple, has also seen its prices rise. In the past 5 days alone, the value of this digital currency has jumped to USD 0.59.
This came to pass after an 8.71 per cent USD 0.05 rise in its value.
Dogecoin
The meme coin or a currency that was started as a joke, Dogecoin or ‘Dog Coin’ also saw a gargantuan rise in its prices. Just in the past 5 days, Dogecoin jumped in value by a substantial 49.76 per cent.
The price increased by USD 8.24, taking the overall value to USD 24.80. It is to be noted that Tesla boss Elon Musk, who is a close ally of Donald Trump, is a major proponent of this cryptocurrency.
One of the controversial policies that Trump has advocated throughout his campaign is weakening the US Dollar and loosening any scope of scrutiny on cryptocurrency. In fact, it is even reported that he would ‘fire’ the Security Exchange Commission chair, Gary Gensler. Gensler has been at the forefront of attempts to regulate cryptos.
Business
India Set To Lead The World In 6G, Says Telecom Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia
In a bold declaration at the inaugural address of the Indian Mobile Congress 2024 (IMC) on Tuesday, Union Telecom Minister Jyotiraditya M. Scindia has said that India will lead the world in the adoption of 6G.
In his address at the event, Scindia emphasized that India is now prepared to lead the world in the development of 6G technology.
India’s Technological Rise: From Following to Leading
“It is our belief and commitment that India, which followed the world in 4G and marched with it in 5G, will lead the world in 6G,” Scindia stated.
The minister highlighted India’s remarkable achievements in the telecommunications sector over the last ten years, the country has become a global leader in innovation and technology.
“It’s a fundamental change in approach towards technology development,” he said, attributing this transformation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership.
Telecom Sector Growth Under PM Modi’s Leadership
“Prime Minister who has always put people at the heart of progress Sabka Sath, Sabka Vikas Sabka Vishvas aur Sabka Prayas combined with his second motto, One Earth, One Family and One Future. It is combination of these two mottos that leads India under PM Narendra Modi leadership one of the leading sectors in the committee of Nations,” Scindia said.
Scindia underscored government’s initiatives to bridge the digital divide, particularly through the BharatNet program, the world’s largest rural broadband connectivity initiative to connect every panchayat of the nation. Over the past three years, the government has invested more than USD 10 billion and laid 7 lakh kilometres of fiber across rural India.
Digital Payments and UPI: Pillars of India’s Digital Economy
He cited staggering growth in mobile and broadband connectivity, with mobile connections rising from 94 million to 1.16 billion, and broadband users growing from 60 million to 924 million in just a decade. India’s optical fibre cable (OFC) networks has expanded from 11 million kilometers to 41 million kilometres over the last ten years, he added.
The minister further said that this growth is accompanied by the success of India’s digital payment systems, the 4G stack, and the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), which serve as pillars of India’s digital economy are expected to contribute significantly to the global digital infrastructure.
Scindia further noted that the government’s efforts to ensure that policy frameworks keep pace with the rapidly evolving digital landscape. “The recent changes to the Telecommunications act 2023 is a case in point. It has been drawing light upon hither to undressed areas such as a high potential sector of satellite communications, addressing the challenges of the digital leader. The most important being cyber security. The telecom sector much like other growth critical sectors in India is aggressive, is ambitioushe said.
“The telecom sector much like other growth critical sectors in India is aggressive, is ambitious and its outlook in our Journey from Amritkal to Shatabdikal is to lead the world,” Scindia said. By mid-next year, India will have achieved 100 per cent saturation of 4G across the entire country, covering even the most remote villages, the minister said.
He emphasised PM Modi’s vision of India as a first mover in 6G technology, underscoring the nation’s resolve to lead the world in future telecom innovations.
“The attitude put forward by the prime minister of not just embracing, but raising ourselves to becoming the first mover in the 6G technology,” he added.
Business
Indian Markets Gave Better Returns Than China In Last 5 Years, Says Sebi Member
Sebi Whole-time Member Ananth Narayan G on Monday reminded investors that Indian equities have consistently delivered 15 per cent returns over the last 5 years whereas the same has been zero or even negative in China.
Terming the Indian markets “sone pe suhaga” for delivering higher returns for lower risks, Narayan also flagged a few areas of caution for investors and asked them to be conscious of the risks.
“There’s a lot of talk about China markets over the last few days. But over the last five years, while Indian markets have given around 15 per cent compound annual growth rate consistently, Chinese markets are nowhere close to that. It’s almost zero. In fact, in some cases, like in Hong Kong, it’s actually negative,” Narayan said.
Speaking at an event marking the start of the Investor Awareness Week at NSE, Narayan said FY24 was a “remarkable” year for India, with the benchmark indices returning 28 per cent and the volatility just 10 per cent.
“That’s like ‘sone pe suhaga’. It’s like the best of all worlds: low risk and very high return,” Narayan said, underlining that there are side effects of this as well.
Making it clear that it will not be the same going forward and investors should not assume it to be a one-way street, Narayan said such handsome returns can lead to complacency and pointed to a lot of youngsters opening up demat accounts to join the bandwagon.
Educating people about risks is very important, Narayan said, giving the analogy of driving a car. “There has to be a light push on the accelerator to get more investors to provide risk capital for the economic growth, we also need to be aware of risks and use the brakes if need be.” He said that 40 per cent of the small and midcap scrips have shot up by 5 times in the last five years, because of an imbalance between inflow of investor money and supply of new paper.
On its part, the capital markets regulator is trying hard to ensure that fund-raising clearances are done early so that there is a steady stream of quality paper supply in the market.
From a broader, longer-term perspective, Indian markets will only go north from here given the economic growth prospects in the country, Narayan said, issuing specific advice to investors.
Investors need to have the right intermediaries to capitalise on this opportunity presented by India, and not fall for the unregistered and fly-by-night ‘finfluencers’ who might be driven by vested interests, he said.
Using the oft-repeated idiom of “all roads lead to Rome”, Narayan remarked that Rome is not a traveller-friendly place and one may get scammed there as well. Therefore, it is important to seek advice from the right people for the investors, he said.
He also said that it is in investors’ interests to trade less and stay invested for longer for higher returns, and added that studies prove the same.
Sebi, which has flagged certain areas like derivatives recently, is not against speculation or participants taking short-term trades, but it would want investors to understand the risks, Narayan said.
-
Maharashtra1 month ago
Mumbai Local Train Update: Central Railway’s New Timetable Comes Into Effect; Check Full List Of Revised Timings & Stations
-
Crime2 years ago
Class 10 student jumps to death in Jaipur
-
Maharashtra2 months ago
False photo of Imtiaz Jaleel’s rally, exposing the fooling conspiracy
-
National News1 month ago
Ministry of Railways rolls out Special Drive 4.0 with focus on digitisation, cleanliness, inclusiveness and grievance redressal
-
Maharashtra4 weeks ago
Mumbai To Go Toll-Free Tonight! Maharashtra Govt Announces Complete Toll Waiver For Light Motor Vehicles At All 5 Entry Points Of City
-
Crime4 weeks ago
Baba Siddique Murder: Mumbai Police Unable To Get Lawrence Bishnoi Custody Due To Home Ministry Order, Says Report
-
National News2 months ago
J&K: 4 Jawans Killed, 28 Injured After Bus Carrying BSF Personnel For Poll Duty Falls Into Gorge In Budgam; Terrifying Visuals Surface
-
Bollywood2 months ago
Aditya Roy Kapur, Anil Kapoor’s The Night Manager Gets Nominated In Emmys 2024