CATEGORIES

PE/VC funding in new year picks up

The first week of 2025 saw startups gradually regain momentum after the New Year celebrations, with fundraising activity rebounding alongside steady mergers and acquisition (M&A) action, including a few high-value deals.

War, Climate, & AI: World's Three Big Challenges of '25

Trump's win could weaken the effort to tackle the climate change challenge

Nabard eyes new fund to add climate funding

After NabVentures Fund 1, the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard) now plans a second round focused on ventures that address hurdles created by climate change in the rural financial ecosystem, said Shaji K. V., chairman of Nabard.

Manufacturing compliance deadline to be extended for small drug firms

The Centre plans to extend the deadline for complying with good manufacturing practice (GMP), on a par with the World Health Organization (WHO) standards for small pharmaceutical companies with a revenue of ₹250 crore or less by one year till 31 December 2025.

EU polls may delay FTA talks

Most recently, the government change in the UK has delayed FTA talks. It's not yet clear when the talks will resume

Shipping to get infra status to push Indian shipbuilders

The status would allow shipping entities to secure funds on easier terms with low interest rate

EU to help MSMEs to cope with tech, sustainability reporting

The European Union (EU) has decided to help small Indian businesses cope with its looming tax on carbon-intensive exports by funding decarbonization technologies, two industry figures said.

Data rules draft: focus on minors, national security

A draft of rules for India's data protection law has proposed that parents mandatorily identify themselves before their children can join certain online platforms.

Cold wave in North India to boost wheat, mustard crops

The drop in temperature does not bode well for crops like chickpea and potatoes in the plains

States' Q4 borrowing to rise 18% after Q2 growth slump

Capex boost likely as West Bengal, Maharashtra, Karnataka lead ₹4.73 tn borrowing plan

Rupee closes at new record low vs dollar

Reports of the central bank selling US dollars supported the rupee at lower levels, traders said

Existing EV subsidies to stay, no new incentives

Commerce minister Piyush Goyal said on Friday existing subsidies for the electric vehicle (EV) ecosystem will continue for some time, citing broad consensus among the government, auto OEMs, and battery swapping companies that no new incentives or subsidies are required at this stage.

Govt cuts gas allocation for LPG, diverts to city retailers

The government has slashed allocation of natural gas used for liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) production, and diverted the low-priced fuel to city gas retailers like Indraprastha Gas Ltd and Adani-Total Gas Ltd to meet part of their requirement for compressed natural gas (CNG)/piped cooking gas supplies, said an official order.

PNG, CNG Consumers to Get Uniform Insurance Cover

Although CNG Users Report More Accidents, Instances of Pipeline Leaks at PNG Households Were Reported

India's market cap share globally dips from record highs

India's share in global market capitalization dipped to 4.2% in December from its August peak of 4.6%, as global equity markets faced turbulence, showed an analysis by Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd.

Pharma Teachers Faking Profiles to Be Blacklisted

Pharmacy Council of India Identified 45,355 Cases of Duplicate Profiles on Digi-Pharmed Portal Using Same Aadhaar and PAN

PM E-Drive e-bus subsidy to be rolled out from March

Govt to initiate bidding process after working out demand via state, city transport utilities

Angel Investment Expands to Actors, Star Athletes

Gupta and Thapar remained in the top three in 2024 as well, but their investments dropped to 20 from 33, and 14 from 35, respectively. Bansal invested in 10 startups in 2024, down from 32 in 2023, according to data from Tracxn.

Biden to Block Sale of US Steel to Nippon

President Joe Biden has decided to block the sale of United States Steel Corp. to Japan's Nippon Steel Corp., according to three people with knowledge of the matter, ending a $14.1 billion deal that has faced months of vocal opposition and raising questions over the future of a US industrial giant.

Boeing Institutes New Checks

The aviation giant has been under pressure from US regulators following several safety scares

Netbanking 2.0: NPCI's pilot to make mobile payments easier

The initiative, 'Netbanking 2.0', is being piloted with 10 banks, including large private and public sector banks

Tesla's car business isn't really in the driver's seat

The majority of the EV maker's market cap rides on hope for robotaxis, robots and AI

Training

Is war a debate, a dilemma or a drama? Or can it be a poem? A class contemplates its many meanings

Kukri

Happiness, innocence, abandon, it is all too much to sustain over a life

The many lives of a leaf

Do wild thoughts count as resistance? Is charting one's own path and travelling alone a rebellion that will be remembered?

Khalil

From being central to war and peace alike, the animal has become, for the most part, an object of figurative art

'Little potato' tourism heats up China's northeast

Social media, novels and dramas have helped draw attention to Harbin, a frigid city near the North Korea border

Bringing Past to the Present

A Mint guide to what's happening in and around your city

A luxury seven-seater gets a stylish makeover

The Audi Q7, a car popular among India's film stars, has long been a symbol of luxury and practicality. With its combination of reliability and solid build quality, it has been the go-to seven-seater SUV. I drove one from Germany to India when it was first launched, and it just munches the miles. However, since its debut, the Q7 has faced tough competition and to keep pace, Audi has recently updated it.

Three workplace trends have seen hype overtake the reality

Return-to-office, AI adoption and DEI dumping are all overhyped