Author: News Desk
The GST collection in January increased to over Rs 1.55 lakh crore, the second-highest mop-up ever, next only to the Rs.1.68 lakh crore gross collection in April 2022. The revenues in the current financial year up to January 2023 are 24 percent higher than the GST revenues during the same period last year.This is for the third time, in the current financial year that GST collection has crossed Rs 1.50 trillion mark. In the October-December 2022 quarter, a total of 2.42 crore GST returns were filed till the end of the next month compared to 2.19 crore in the same…
The Faast F4, Freedom, and ClassicIQ are some of Okaya’s other electric scooters. Dual 72V 30Ah LFP batteries are included with the Faast F4. The Okaya Fast F4 is priced at Rs. 1,09,000. (ex-showroom) With a single 48V 30Ah lithium battery, Freedom is the second electric scooter manufactured by the company. Its reported riding range is between 70 and 75 kilometres, and charging takes between 5 and 6 hours. It does feature halogen headlamps with LED daytime running lights, however it does not have a riding mode. It is a scooter that moves slowly. The top speed is therefore 25…
The government has blocked 232 apps operated by overseas entities, including Chinese for being involved in betting, gambling and unauthorised loan service, according to an official source. Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY) has issued orders to block these apps following instructions from Ministry of Home Affairs. The government has issued orders to block 138 betting and gambling apps and 94 quick loan-providing apps on an “urgent” and “emergency” basis for “improper data storage and transfer” to other countries as well as money laundering. The ban was taken under Section 69A of the IT Act as the apps contained material that was seen as prejudicial to the sovereignty and integrity of the country. There had…
Lab grown Diamonds (LGD) is a technology and innovation-driven emerging sector with high employment potential. These environment-friendly diamonds have optically and chemically the same properties as natural diamonds. To encourage indigenous production of LGD seeds and machines and to reduce import dependency, a research grant of Rs.242 crore over a period of five years to IIT Madras has been approved.Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, while announcing the allocation for lab-grown diamonds in the 2023 Budget, had called it an ‘emerging sector with high employment potential’. IIT Madras has a rich history of undertaking cutting-edge and translational research with significant applications in…
Kawasaki has unveiled a new 400cc race machine. Kawasaki is renowned for producing some of the best sports bikes. The entry-level Ninja 400 has been replaced by the new Ninja ZX-4R series from the Japanese manufacturer, which features an entirely different powertrain and underpinnings. Prices for the ZX-4R in the US start at $9,699 (about Rs 7.95 lakh), and there are three different models to choose from: regular, SE, and RR. The purpose of the new ZX-4R line is to fill the space between the Ninja ZX-25R and Ninja ZX-6R. The ZX-4R shares many design cues with its other sport…
Magna and Yulu set up joint venture ‘battery-as-a-service’ company Yuma Energy. Yulu bikes, one of India’s pioneering micro-mobility electric two-wheeler players, and Magna, a significant global automotive component supplier, have gotten into a joint venture to launch Yuma Energy. This company offers ‘battery-as-a-service’ or, in other words, a swappable battery ecosystem for electric two-wheelers. Magna put in a total investment of $77 million to set up this joint venture in September 2022 and the service was launched on February 2, 2023.A part of Magna’s investment in the joint venture will be used for setting up a battery-swapping infrastructure that is…
SAMEER, the Ministry of Electronics and IT’s (MeitY) R&D laboratory, and Siemens Healthineers have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) that will help advance healthcare and diagnostics access in India. The MoU will be focused towards making available low-cost MRIs as part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of providing quality, and affordable healthcare and diagnostic access for every Indian. The MoU was signed in the presence of Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar. MRI tests are usually costly. In India the price ranges between Rs 1500 to thousands of Rupees depending on the body part…
Ending the long wait, the talks between Vodafone Idea and the central government over the equity conversion have come to an end. The government ordered Vodafone Idea Ltd to issue equity shares in exchange for deferred adjusted gross revenue (AGR) and spectrum obligations totaling 16,133 crore. With this, the Center will become the largest shareholder in the telecom joint venture involving Vodafone and the Aditya Birla Group. The central government will have 33 percent stake in this joint venture. The Center had brought reform measures for the telecom sector in 2021 to bring Vodafone Idea out of bankruptcy. Markets regulator Sebi had already approved the conversion of the company’s dues into…
During the company’s Q4 earnings call, Google CEO Sundar Pichai reportedly disclosed the company’s plans to introduce a ChatGPT rival. Pichai stated that Google has been working on its artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot since the beginning of 2022 and that it has “huge ambitions” for it. These plans are anticipated to be unveiled over the coming months. Additionally, he emphasised how Google’s AI would enable customers to “interact directly” with the company’s “newest, most potent language models as a companion to search.” Google’s AI chatbot LaMDA will be among the first tools to be made available to the general public.…
According to Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Som Parkash, as of December 31, 2022, incubators under the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS) had received approval for more than 477 crore of a 945 crore corpus fund. Startup India’s flagship programmes, including the Credit Guarantee Scheme for Startups (CGSS), the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS), and the Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS), provide assistance to businesses at various phases of their life cycles. The firms can then seek loans from commercial banks or other financial institutions, or obtain funds from angel investors or venture capitalists. With…