Daily Excelsior

Prof M K Bhat drmkb1963@gmail.com Iran-America war has rattled the geopolitical and geo economic atmosphere of the world. The closure of Strait of Homruz by Iran is a big push to world economy towards Global recession. The economies of global south, Europe and Asia have started to feel the heat and the other nations of the world are going to feel its intensity quite soon. Protests against the continuation of war have erupted in many countries including America. Maritime insurance [] The post War

NEW DELHI, Apr 15: An official delegation will visit Washington next week to hold trade talks with US authorities, an official source said on Wednesday. The bilateral meeting between the trade officials of the two countries holds immense importance as India and the US have finalised the framework for an interim trade agreement. The team will visit the US next week, the source said. The pact was initially slated for signing in March, but changes in the tariff landscape following [] The post India

NEW DELHI, Apr 15: Wholesale price inflation rose for the fifth straight month, at 3.88 per cent in March, driven by a sharp spike in rates of fuel, power and manufactured items amid the West Asia crisis, government data showed on Wednesday. Wholesale Price Index (WPI)-based inflation was 2.13 per cent in the previous month and 2.25 per cent in March last year. Positive rate of inflation in March 2026 is primarily due to increase in prices of crude petroleum [] The post Wholesale price inflation

NEW DELHI, Apr 14: Losses on petrol have widened to Rs 18 per litre and to Rs 35 on diesel as state-owned fuel retailers continue to keep pump prices frozen despite a sharp rise in input costs, sources said. Despite prices being deregulated more than a decade back, state-owned Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) have not changed the retail petrol and diesel price since April 2022. Global crude oil prices [] The post

NEW DELHI, Apr 13: Realty firm Krisumi Corporation Ltd, a joint venture between Japans Sumitomo Corporation and Krishna Group, will further invest around Rs 4,500 crore over the next 6-7 years on its ongoing 33.5 acre luxury housing project in Gurugram. The company has already invested around Rs 2,500 crore since 2019 to develop this project Krisumi City, located along the Dwarka Expressway, comprising a total 2,772 units across various phases. Sumitomo Corporation, a member company of the Sumi

NEW DELHI, Apr 12: The India-UK free trade agreement, signed in July last year, is likely to come into force from the second week of May, according to an official. India and the UK, on July 24, 2025, signed the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), under which 99 per cent of Indian exports will enter the British market at zero duty, while tariffs on British products, such as cars and whisky, will be reduced in India. We are expecting [] The post India-UK free trade pact may come int

NEW DELHI, Apr 12: The ceasefire in West Asia is expected to help lift market sentiments in India, making luxury car customers who held back purchases to come back to showrooms to take deliveries, according to top officials of Mercedes-Benz, BMW Group and Audi in the country. Having resorted to stocking up of parts and kits, the luxury carmakers hope that the pressure on supply chain will be eased while looking forward to a return to normalcy at the earliest. [] The post Luxury carmakers hope We

MUMBAI, Apr 10: Hyatt Hotels, which has 55 properties and 10,500 keys in India, is actively looking at opportunities to introduce its The Standard and UrCove brands and is considering acquisitions in partnership with financial institutions and developers. We have 36 brands globally, of which we currently have 9 in India that will go up to 10 with the addition of The Destination in Jaipur expected this year. India is our top market presenting opportunities for all our brands. Over [] The post Hya

ISLAMABAD, Apr 9:Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has set up a special body to deal with the effects of the West Asia conflict on the economy and security of the country. The National Coordination and Management Council (NCMC) was constituted hours ahead of the two-week ceasefire achieved between the US and Iran. US President Donald Trump announced that he had agreed to a two-week ceasefire with Iran as proposed by Pakistan. The NCMC is jointly headed by Minister for Economic Affairs [] The post Pa

MUMBAI, Apr 8: The Reserve Bank of India kept its key policy rate unchanged on Wednesday, adopting a cautious wait-and-watch stance as policymakers assessed the fallout from the six-week Iran conflict on energy supplies, inflation and growth. The central banks six-member Monetary Policy Committee voted unanimously to keep the benchmark repurchase rate at 5.25 per cent, flagging heightened uncertainty after the West Asia conflict drove crude prices sharply higher, weakened the rupee and disrupted

NEW DELHI, Apr 7: Airline regulator DGCA has temporarily relaxed pilot flight duty time limitation (FDTL) for long-haul flights, a senior official said on Tuesday. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) move is aimed at ensuring pilot availability for smooth operations, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation, Asangba Chuba Ao, told reporters during a media briefing. (Agencies) The post DGCA Temporarily Relaxes Pilot Flight Duty Time Limitation For Long-Haul Services appeared first

NEW DELHI, Apr 6: Jindal Steel on Monday said it has deployed syngas in galvanising and colour coating line furnaces to counter the shortage of natural gas, LPG and propane, enabling the company to sustain operations amid supply disruptions. Syngas, or synthesis gas, is a clean-burning fuel that offers a way to convert waste and biomass into valuable energy, acting as a circular energy source. The innovative switch to syngas produced through gasification of coal has allowed the [] The post Jin

NEW DELHI, Apr 5: State-owned India Infrastructure Finance Company Ltd (IIFCL) is aiming to double its exposure in Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs) to Rs 6,000 crore during the ongoing fiscal year as part of its investment diversification strategy. IIFCL has exposure of Rs 3,000 crore across nine InvITs as of March 31, 2026. We hope to double our investment in InvITs during the current financial year. It should reach Rs 6,000 crore by the end of March 2027, IIFCL MD [] The post IIFCL to

NEW DELHI, Apr 3:The Government on Friday held discussions on measures to encourage companies to ramp up production of induction heaters and compatible utensils amid rising demand for these products due to concerns over LPG availability following the West Asia crisis, an official said. The crisis has disrupted the movement of ships carrying oil and gas through the Strait of Hormuz, raising concerns over cooking gas supplies and prompting people to rush to buy induction heaters and compatible ute

NEW DELHI, Apr 2: Raymond Realty Ltd on Thursday reported a more than two-fold jump in its sales bookings to Rs 1,519 crore for the quarter ended March, on better demand for its residential properties. Its sales bookings stood at Rs 636 crore in the year-ago period. In a regulatory filing, Raymond Realty said its sales bookings or pre-sales rose 31 per cent to Rs 3,023 crore during the full 2025-26, from Rs 2,314 crore in the preceding financial year. [] The post Raymond Realty Q4 pre-sales jump

NEW DELHI, Mar 31: Pharma major Lupin Ltd on Tuesday said it has received tentative approval from the US health regulator for its generic version of Sugammadex injection used for reversing the effects of muscle relaxants given during surgery. The tentative approval by the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) is for the abbreviated new drug application for Sugammadex Injection of strengths 200 mg/2 mL (100 mg/mL) and 500 mg/5 mL (100 mg/mL) single-dose vial, Lupin said in a regulatory [] The p

NEW DELHI, Mar 30: The Lok Sabha on Monday passed a bill to amend the insolvency law to provide for strict timelines, an out-of-court settlement option and enable the framework for cross-border insolvency processes. Piloting the bill in the Lok Sabha, Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that 12 amendments are being made in the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), which came into force in 2016, that would help maximise the value for stakeholders and improve the governi

MUMBAI, Mar 28: A Delhi-bound IndiGo flight from Visakhapatnam, carrying 160 passengers on board, made an emergency landing at Delhis Indira Gandhi International Airport on Saturday due to an engine failure, according to sources. Full emergency was declared at Indira Gandhi International Airport at 10.39 for IndiGo Visakhapatnam-Delhi flight 6E 579 due to one engine failure, a source said. There were 160 passengers on board the Boeing 737 aircraft, the source said. The flight landed at 10.59 am

JAMMU, Mar 27: The Jammu and Kashmir government on Friday said the Union Territory possesses an estimated hydropower potential of about 18,000 MW, of which nearly 15,000 MW has been identified, and that it is on a fast track to triple its installed capacity to around 11,000 MW by 2035. Replying to a question of MLA Javaid Iqbal in Jammu and Kashmir assembly on Friday, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said: J&K has an estimated hydropower potential of around 18,000 MW [] The post J&K Aims To Triple I

Srinagar, Mar 27: Flight operations at Srinagar International Airport will be restricted between April and July for carrying out runway works, Airport Authority of India (AAI) said on Friday. According to a NOTAM (Notice to Airmen) issued by the Indian Air Force, runway works commencing in the first week of April will temporarily restrict operational hours for scheduled flights until 5 pm from April 6, to July 31, the AAI Srinagar posted on its officials X handle. It said at [] The post Flight O

NEW DELHI, Mar 27: Around 1,068 hectares of land owned by Indian Railways is under encroachment across the country, which is only 0.21 per cent of the total 4.99 lakh hectares of land, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw informed the Rajya Sabha on Friday. Replying to supplementary queries during Question Hour, the minister said that if one sees the utilisation of all railway land, nearly 80 per cent of the land is near the tracks, 5 per cent around it, while [] The post Around 1,068 hectares of r

New Delhi, Mar 25: From frozen marathons at Pangong Lake in Ladakh to underwater adventures like snorkeling and scuba diving in Lakshadweep, the Centre is promoting a wide range of niche tourism segments across Union Territories to boost the local economy, the Rajya Sabha was informed on Wednesday. Responding to a question, Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai said the government is actively promoting various new types of tourism like astro-tourism, eco-tourism, nature/biodiversity t

NEW DELHI, Mar 24: Jindal Steel on Tuesday said it has doubled the steel making capacity of its Angul facility to 12 million tonnes per annum. With this expansion, Angul has become one the largest single-location steel plants in India, taking Jindal Steels overall capacity to 15.6 million tonnes per annum (MTPA). In an exchange filing, the company said it has fully operationalised the expansion of its Angul plant capacity from 6 MTPA to 12 MTPA within the planned timeframe. [] The post Jindal St

Prof. D. Mukherjee mukhopadhyay.dinabandhu@gmail.com The Middle East has long been a geopolitical crossroads where energy resources, global trade routes, and strategic rivalries intersect. When conflict erupts in this region, its consequences rarely remain local. The ongoing war has once again demonstrated how rapidly geopolitical instability can spread through the arteries of the global economy. Energy markets are particularly vulnerable. The Middle East accounts for roughly one-third of global

NEW DELHI, Mar 21 : Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science & Technology, Earth Sciences, and MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh said that India is steadily emerging as a robust pharma economy, which will not only accelerate future growth but also emerge as a significant contributor to the countrys overall GDP. The minister emphasised that the growing strength of Indias pharmaceutical, medtech and manufacturing ecosystem

SRINAGAR, Mar 20: National Conference president Farooq Abdullah on Friday said that the war between Iran and the US-Israel coalition needs to come to an end quickly, as it could have massive repercussions for the global economy. It (war) will have severe consequences not only for the Indian economy but for the world economy, Abdullah told reporters after offering Friday prayers at Hazratbal shrine here. The former chief minister highlighted the importance of ending the war due to the loss [] The

New Delhi, Mar 20: The Centre on Friday informed the Supreme Court that it had constituted an expert committee comprising two former apex court judges and an ex-attorney general to review the class 8 NCERT book with a chapter on corruption in the judiciary. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told a bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi that the committee comprises senior advocate and former Attorney General KK Venugopal, former top court judge [] The pos

New Delhi, Mar 20: Central Board of Direct Taxes on Friday notified the rules for Income-tax Act, 2025 which provided enhanced tax benefit for HRA to salary earner but makes disclosure of landlord-tenant relationship mandatory. The Income-tax Rules, 2026 will operationalise the simplified direct tax legislation that was approved by Parliament last year and will come into effect from April 1. These rules may be called the Income-tax Rules, 2026. They shall come into force on the April 1, 2026, []

Excelsior Correspondent NEW DELHI, Mar 19: Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science & Technology, Earth Sciences, and MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh today said that Indias bioeconomy has expanded from about USD 10 billion in 2014 to over USD 195 billion in 2025, reflecting a massive growth trajectory over the past decade. He said the sector has recorded an annual growth of around 17-18 percent in the last year alone, []

NEW DELHI, Mar 16: Over 13,000 teaching positions are vacant in Kendriya Vidyalayas (KVs) and Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNVs) across the country, the Ministry of Education informed the Lok Sabha on Monday. The information was shared by Union Minister of State for Education Jayant Chaudhary in response to a written question. A total of 8,618 and 5,083 teaching posts are lying vacant in KVs and JNVs, respectively. Vacancies keep on arising due to opening of new schools, retirement, resignation,

NEW DELHI, Mar 16: Ola Electric has kicked off a plan to raise up to Rs 2,000 crore by selling a stake in its battery arm, Ola Cell Technologies (OCT), according to the sources. OCT owns the Tamil Nadu-based lithium-ion cell manufacturing plant with 1.5 GWh of operational capacity and plans to scale to 6 GWh by the end of this financial year. Investment bank Avendus and Motilal Oswal are mandated to run the fundraising process, sources said. The development [] The post Ola Electric plans Rs 2,00

NEW DELHI, Mar 15: Adani Total Gas Ltd has cut the price of excess natural gas supplied to certain industrial customers to Rs 82.95 per standard cubic metre (SCM) from Rs 119.90 per SCM, effective 0600 hours on March 16, as upstream gas prices softened amid ongoing supply disruptions. The city gas joint venture of Adani Group and Frances Total Energies said the revision aims to pass on the benefit of lower upstream prices to customers while maintaining system stability [] The post Adani-Total Ga

NEW DELHI, Mar 15:Industry body SAF Association (SAFA) on Sunday called for the use of Used Cooking Oil (UCO) for the production of Sustainable Aviation Fuel. SAFA, a leading industry platform dedicated to accelerating the production and deployment of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), emphasised the need to develop all technology pathways and feedstock routes to decarbonise aviation, a sector responsible for approximately 2-3 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to a statement.

NEW DELHI, Mar 13: In a move to bolster its services in the Northeast, Amazon India has added a new route connecting Guwahati and Kolkata to its dedicated air cargo fleet, Amazon Air. Launched in 2023, the freighter service initially served Hyderabad, Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru. The expansion, expected to speed up shipments by 5x, will support deliveries across all seven sister states Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, and Tripura the company said in a statement

NEW DELHI, March 11 : Union Minister of Textiles, Giriraj Singh, on Wednesday stressed the need for the countrys textile sector to expand its global presence and move towards higher-scale and higher-value manufacturing to achieve the governments target of building a USD 350 billion textile economy and USD 100 billion in exports by 2030-31. Speaking at an interaction organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) with senior officials from the Ministry of Textiles and industry leaders ac

NEW DELHI, Mar 6: Electric passenger vehicle retail sales rose 44 per cent year-on-year in February, dealers body FADA said on Friday. The overall sales rose to 13,733 units last month as against 9,505 units in the year-ago period. Tata Motors led the space with registrations of 5,568 units, up 38.5 per cent as compared with 4,020 units in February last year. JSW MG Motor India retailed 3,312 units in February as against 3,490 units in the year-ago period, a [] The post Electric passenger vehicl

NEW DELHI, Mar 6: The Government will use all policy tools and support measures to help domestic exporters deal with the ongoing West Asian crisis, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said on Friday. He said that the government has set up an inter-ministerial group to look into the issues on a daily basis. And the government will use every policy tool and the export promotion mission to support our exporters, Goyal told reporters here on the sidelines of IIFTs [] The post Govt will use e

SYDNEY, Mar 5 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi is very focused on delivery of welfare programmes to the common people and has been successful in bringing hundreds of millions of them into the formal economy through financial reforms in India, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has said. Carney was speaking on Wednesday during an interaction at the Lowy Institute, Australias leading think tank, where he was asked to speak about his assessment of Prime Minister Modi, days after the two [] The post

MUMBAI, Mar 4: IndiGo on Wednesday said it cancelled over 500 flights to the Middle East and select international destinations from February 28 to March 3 due to the evolving airspace restrictions over Iran and other Gulf countries. In a regulatory filing, the airline said that it will continue to closely monitor the revenue environment arising from this situation. With airspace curbs in the Middle East due to the conflict involving the US, Israel and Iran, flight services have been [] The post

New Delhi, Mar 3: As many as 80 international flights were cancelled at the Delhi airport on Tuesday morning due to operational disruptions for airlines amid the escalating Middle East conflict. Some airlines, including Emirates, have partially started operations to and from the Middle East. An official said 36 departures and 44 arrivals were cancelled at the Delhi airport. Meanwhile, an Emirates flight EK513 enroute to Dubai returned to the national capital due to airspace restrictions, as per

NEW DELHI, Mar 2: Apparel exporters on Monday urged the government to waive demurrage charges on export cargo at airports, as flight disruptions arising from ongoing West Asian crisis may impact movement of consignments. In a communication to the civil aviation ministry, Apparel Export Promotion Council (AEPC) said the prevailing situation has significantly disrupted international flight operations, resulting in route restrictions, airspace closures, flight diversions, schedule irregularities, a

New Delhi, Mar 1: Power consumption in the country grew marginally by 1.86 per cent to 132.99 billion units in February from 130.56 BU a year ago, as the use of heating appliances like geysers and blowers slowed down due to higher-than usual temperature. According to the government data, the peak power demand met or the highest supply during February, also rose slightly to 243.15 GW from 238.06 GW recorded in February 2025. The peak power demand touched an all-time [] The post Power Consumption

NEW DELHI, Feb 28: Zydus Lifesciences on Saturday said it has received approval from the US health regulator to market generic anti-parasitic and leprosy medications. The company has received final approvals from the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) for Ivermectin Tablets (3 mg) and Dapsone Tablets ( 25 mg and 100 mg), the Ahmedabad-based drug said in a statement. Ivermectin tablets are prescription anti-parasitic medications primarily indicated for treating parasitic worm infections in h

New Delhi, Feb 28: IndiGo on Saturday temporarily suspended flights to and from the Middle East in view of the evolving situation in Iran. In view of evolving airspace restrictions around Iran and the Middle East, all flights to and from the Middle East are cancelled till 0000 hrs, it said in a post on X. The suspension is till 0000 hours IST. Services have been suspended to and from Dubai, Jeddah, Doha, Abu Dhabi, Dammam, Bahrain, Sharjah, Kuwait and [] The post IndiGo Temporarily Suspends Flig

New Delhi, Feb 27: Indias economy grew by 7.8 per cent during the October-December quarter of 2025-26, up from 7.4 per cent a year ago, according to the new series of national accounts with 2022-23 as the base year. The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) on Friday released the New Series of Annual and Quarterly National Accounts Estimates with the base year 202223. It replaces the previous series with a base year of 201112. According to the new [] The post Economy Grew B

Software as a service has long been synonymous with modern business infrastructure. From customer management to finance, from collaboration to analytics, SaaS platforms underpin daily operations across industries. Yet the confidence that once surrounded the category has been replaced by questions. Can SaaS adapt to artificial intelligence? Can subscription models sustain growth in tighter markets? Has the category reached saturation? Rupon Anandanadarajah approaches these questions from a strate

NEW DELHI, Feb 23: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday said it was too early to assess the US tariff impact on the Indian economy, and Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal is reviewing the situation. It is too soon to comment on the impact on the Indian economy from US tariff changes. The Commerce Minister is reviewing the situation, Sitharaman said after addressing the presser here after customary post-Budget meeting of the Central Board of Directors of the Reserve Bank of [] The post Too e

WASHINGTON, Feb 20: Americas gross domestic product the nations output of goods and services increased at an 1.4 per cent annual rate in the fourth quarter, the Commerce Department reported Friday, down from 4.4 per cent in the July-September quarter and 3.8 per cent in the quarter before that. A downturn in government and consumer spending contributed to the slowdown in fourth-quarter growth, the government said. Consumer spending rose just 2.2 per cent, a significant slowdown from the [] The

United Nations, Feb 15: India is a very successful emerging economy with a bigger influence in global affairs, and is the right place to host the AI summit, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said. In an exclusive interview with news agency at the UN Headquarters ahead of the IndiaAI Impact Summit 2026, Guterres underscored that Artificial Intelligence should benefit the entire world and not just be a privilege reserved for developed nations or two superpowers. I strongly congratulate Ind

Digitalization has changed the way Indians spend their free time and disposable income. The smartphone has evolved from a mere communication device into the primary gateway for entertainment, travel planning, and social interaction. This transformation is not limited to metropolitan hubs like Delhi or Mumbai; it has permeated Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, creating a unified digital leisure economy that was unimaginable just a few years ago. The convergence of affordable data plans and widespread har