The country’s first ‘Writer’s village’ was jointly inaugurated by former President Ram Nath Kovind, Uttarakhand Governor Lt Gen Gurmeet Singh (retd) and Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami here on Friday.

Located in Thano village, about 24 km from Dehradun, the ‘Writer’s village’ is the brainchild of former chief minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank, a distinguished writer himself.

He claims that in this village, writers will get a calm and creative environment necessary for the creation of their works.

On this occasion, during the three-day International Literature, Culture and Art Festival ‘Sparsh Himalaya Mahotsav-2024’, the first work of Writer’s village, ‘Ram in the Himalayas’, written by Nishank, was also released.

State Bank of India (SBI) was recognised as the Best Bank in India for 2024 by Global Finance Magazine of the US at its 31st Annual Best Bank Awards event held during the sidelines of Annual Meetings of the IMF and the World Bank in Washington.

SBI Chairman CS Setty received the award in recognition of the bank's unwavering commitment to providing exceptional services and promoting financial inclusion nationwide by winning the trust of its customers, the bank said in a statement.

For decades, Global Finance's Best Bank Awards have set the trusted standard for evaluating the world's financial institutions, making them invaluable to corporate decision-makers, especially as the global economy faces significant challenges.

In a sweeping cyberattack that has compromised key telecommunications networks, a sophisticated breach, allegedly linked to the Chinese group "Salt Typhoon," has hit American infrastructure — even reaching the presidential campaigns of both major parties. National security experts are now racing to assess the scope and implications of this unprecedented hack.

"Salt Typhoon," a codename assigned by Microsoft for a group of Chinese cyber operatives, has reportedly infiltrated major American telecom companies, including Verizon, according to a report by The New York Times. The group is suspected of employing advanced techniques to access systems that may house valuable intelligence on high-profile targets, notably staff members connected to former President Donald J. Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. The breach has stirred alarm among national security officials as it posses potential vulnerabilities within critical US infrastructure.

The Indian Coast Guard (ICG) on Monday simultaneously launched two Fast Patrol Vessels (FPVs) 'Adamya' and 'Akshar', with over 60% indigenous content, built by Goa Shipyard Ltd. (GSL).

The ICG in a statement said, "These advanced FPVs will help ICG protect offshore assets and island territories, with their primary role of protection, monitoring, control and surveillance."

The vessels are part of the contract signed with GSL for eight such FPVs to be built at a cost of Rs 473 crore.

Bharti Airtel on Monday announced a top-level recast including a new chief executive officer (CEO). Chief Operating Officer (COO) Shashwat Sharma will take charge as the next managing director (MD) and CEO while incumbent Gopal Vittal has been named vice-chairman from January 1, 2026.

Vittal has been at the helm for the past 12 years.

“As part of a structured succession process, Gopal, in addition to being the Managing Director, is being appointed Vice Chairman of Bharti Airtel Ltd. Gopal will be appointed to the Board of Airtel Africa Plc as the Bharti nominee director to provide strategic guidance,” Airtel informed the exchanges after its board meeting on Monday.

India secured the runner-up position in the overall team standings at the 2024 Asian ArmWrestling Cup, hosted at Mumbai’s Aurika Skycity Hotel. The hosts finished second on the medal tally, surpassed only by Kazakhstan, the world’s top-ranked armwrestling nation. (More Sports News)

The competition drew participants from nine countries, competing across six divisions: para, masters, sub-junior, junior, youth, and senior categories, with various weight classes represented.

Notable Indian victories included Denic Lalruattluanga from Mizoram, who clinched gold in the Men’s Seniors 80kg Right category, and Yogesh Chaudhary from Haryana, who dominated with double golds in the Women’s Seniors 80kg+ Left and Right categories.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a USD 434.25 million loan to increase renewable energy capacity and improve energy security in the state of Assam.

The ADB on Thursday stated that the Assam Solar Project will construct a grid-connected solar photovoltaic (PV) facility in Karbi Anglong district with a capacity of 500 MW.

The project will support the development of a grid-connected battery energy storage system to ensure grid stability and meet peak power demand.

This storage system will be established through a joint venture between the Assam Power Distribution Company Limited (APDCL) and the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Ltd. Tripura Power Company Ltd.

Infrastructure major Larsen & Toubro (L&T) on Friday announced that it has secured a contract to deploy advanced welding technologies for the ITER Organisation's nuclear fusion project, the largest of its kind in the world. The project is located at Cadarache in Southern France.

The exact worth of the deal was not disclosed but the order was marked as ‘significant’, which the L&T uses to describe orders valued between Rs 1,000 crore and Rs 2,500 crore. L&T will be engaged in the deployment of critical advanced technologies for the assembly of ports and complex parts with the vacuum vessel at the site.

"L&T has won a new order from the France-headquartered intergovernmental body the ITER Organisation for the deployment of critical advanced technologies for assembly of ports and complex parts with the vacuum vessel at the world's largest nuclear fusion project at Cadarache in Southern France," L&T said in an exchange filing.

The government has doubled the loan limit under the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY) to Rs 20 lakh to promote entrepreneurship in the country.

This increase aspires to further the overall objective of the Mudra Scheme which is funding the unfunded, the finance ministry said in a statement on Friday.

A notification in this regard was issued on Thursday.

As announced by the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on July 23, 2024, in the Union Budget 2024-25, the limit under the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY) has been enhanced from the current Rs 10 lakh to Rs 20 lakh.

"The limit of Mudra loans will be enhanced to Rs 20 lakh from the current Rs 10 lakh for those entrepreneurs who have availed and successfully repaid previous loans under the 'Tarun category', Sitharaman said while presenting the Budget in the Lok Sabha.

Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel on Friday inaugurated the 17th Urban Mobility India Conference and Expo 2024 at Mahatma Mandir in Gandhinagar.

CM Patel while addressing the event said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has improved the Ease of Living for citizens by fostering sustainable urban development. He noted that cities are now adopting an urban well-being approach, featuring world-class infrastructure and efficient last-mile connectivity to enhance urban mobility.

This three-day conference is organized by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs. The conference brings together senior officials from the Urban Development Ministry, state departments, urban transport and mobility experts, and representatives from organizations nationwide, as per an official statement.