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In a bid to accelerate self-employment opportunities, the finance ministry has decided to organise Mudra Promotion Camps across the country beginning September 27 from the Prime Minister's constituency Varanasi. As part of the special drive, 50 camps, including one each in state capitals, will be organised between September 27 and October 17, official sources said. Besides, the camps will facilitate various modes of digital payments enabling users to transact from anywhere and create awareness on various financial inclusion instruments, the sources said. The campaign will help promote not only Mudra loans but spread awareness about digital payment method, financial inclusion and social security schemes, the sources added. It is to be noted that banks have sanctioned Rs 74,601 crore to 1.59 crore beneficiaries across the country since April this year. Since the launch of Mudra Yojana by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in April 2015, banks have disbursed Rs 3.66...

The finance ministry is expected to initiate the process of consolidation of public sector banks (PSBs) once the first quarter results of the current fiscal have been announced, a senior official has said. There are various things including financial performance which have to be looked at before a merger decision is taken, said the official at the ministry. There are factors like regional balance, geographical reach, financial burden and smooth human resource transition that have to be looked into while taking a merger decision, the official said, adding that there should not be merger of a very weak bank with a strong one as it could pull the latter down. "So, it is going to be a complex exercise. Let the June- quarter numbers of all banks be finalised first, then there could be some action on this front," said the official, who did not want to be identified. The finance ministry had called few banks including Dena Bank some months ago to get a sense fro...

Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) on Monday said though Aadhar is not a mandatory requirement for Know Your Customer (KYC) in the insurance sector, it is the most simple form of KYC document. "Aadhar is not mandatory for the (insurance) sector but is the most simple one. On the government level they are creating a platform for all the KYC. "We are also working with the government for very simple KYC. But what can be simpler than a Aadhar," IRDAI Chairman T S Vijayan told reporters on the sidelines of CII's 19th Insurance Summit here. Talking about Life Insurance Corporation's (LIC) shareholdings in listed companies, Vijayan said regulation for investment is 15 per cent, in exceptional circumstances sometimes exemptions are given to invest more. "All the investment should be for the benefit of policy holders and investors and the companies should not be locking the money in and they should use the funds for the polic...

The process of resolution of bad loans will start shortly, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said on Thursday in the Lok Sabha as it passed a bill which gives RBI the power to direct banking companies to resolve the problem of stressed assets. Replying to a debate on the Banking Regulation (Amendment) Bill, 2017, Jaitley said the Reserve Bank has already identified top 12 loan defaulters and more cases will be taken up by them for resolution. "No one can claim the right of equality in not paying banks back. RBI has taken up some difficult cases... I am sure they will take up more," Jaitley said. The Banking Regulation (Amendment) Bill, 2017, seeks to amend the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 and replace the Banking Regulation (Amendment) Ordinance, 2017, which was promulgated in May this year. The bill was later passed by the Lok Sabha by a voice vote. Winding up the debate on the bill, Jaitley said some laws were outdated and were acting as "impediment...

The Chinese official media on Wednesday stepped up its attack on India with editorials asking Indian troops to move out of Dokalam area in Sikkim sector "with dignity or be kicked out" and describing the situation as "worryingly tense". While China's nationalistic tabloid Global Times said India should be taught a "bitter lesson", another official newspaper, China Daily, said India should look in the mirror. The Global Times said in its editorial that India will suffer "greater losses" than in 1962 if it "incites" border clashes with China. As the standoff in the Dokalam area continued for the third week, it said India should be taught a "bitter lesson". It also claimed that the Chinese public was infuriated by India's "provocation". "We believe the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) is powerful enough to expel Indian troops out of Chinese territory. The Indian military c...

India and China will account for almost half of all new mobile subscribers expected to be added globally by the end of 2020, a new study has found. According to the 2017 edition of 'Mobile Economy: Asia Pacific' report published recently at the 'Mobile World Congress Shanghai', forecasts that India will account for 27 per cent (206 million) and China 21 per cent (155 million) of the approximately 753 million new mobile subscribers by the end of the decade. The Asia-Pacific region as a whole is forecast to increase from 2.7 billion unique mobile subscribers at the end of 2016 to 3.1 billion in 2020, accounting for two-thirds of global growth. The report also highlights how the region's mobile industry will be a growing contributor to Asia's economy and social development over this period - and also play a pioneering role in 5G. "Led by India and China, Asia's mobile industry will be the main engine of global subscriber growth for the remaind...

The Supreme Court on Monday granted the last opportunity to the Maharashtra government to remove illegal encroachments on 908 square metre area on the approach road and near the historic Haji Ali Dargah Shrine in south Mumbai. A bench comprising Chief Justice J S Khehar and Justice D Y Chandrachud granted two weeks to the concerned authorities to remove these encroachments and asked the deputy collector to ensure that its order is complied with. The direction came after the Haji Ali Dargah Trust, which had earlier volunteered to remove the encroachments, expressed inability in completing the task. The court made it clear to the deputy collector of Colaba zone of south Mumbai that "serious consequences" would follow if its order for removing encroachments is not complied within two weeks from today. On May 9, the apex court had lauded the efforts of the Dargah Trust in its attempts to remove encroachments. More News: Financial News Latest Financial News ...

FMCG companies are revising prices of their products after the implementation of GST and are extending the tax benefits to the consumers under the new tax regime. The companies such as Patanjali, ITC, HUL and Marico are either slashing the prices of goods or increasing the grammage of the product on dispatches made from July 1 onwards. "The company is committed to pass on the benefits of reduction in effective tax rate to its consumers wherever applicable and has firmed up the price reductions," Marico CFO Vivek Karve told PTI. He further added:"The new prices will hit the market eventually". "Effective steps are being taken to pass on the benefits to the consumer, wherever such benefits accrue due to the recently announced GST rates," an ITC spokesperson said. Yesterday, HUL had reduced prices of some of its detergents and soaps, extending the tax benefits to consumers under the GST regime. The company had slashed the price of its detergen...

Bandhan Bank is targetting to open another 160 branches to reach the 1000-mark by the end of this financial year, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Bandhan bank Chandra Shekhar Ghosh said on Sunday. "We are planning to open more branches at different locations and reach the 1000-mark by the end of this financial year (2017-18)," Ghosh told reporters here on Sunday. The bank currently has 840 branches spread across different states in the country. The bank is also planning to introduce mutual fund and insurance service by this September, Ghosh said. Meanwhile, Bandhan-Konnagar, a not-for-profit organization which is working in the sphere of education, health and women empowerment, today celebrated "Development Day" on completion of 17 years of its existence. More News: Financial News Latest Financial News Financial News India Financial News Today Current Financial News

Hollywood superstar  Brad Pitt  is in India to promote his latest film, the Netflix satire "War Machine". Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan will be moderating a special chat session here with Pitt, in which the two actors will discuss the project. In the movie, the 53-year-old actor plays a US General posted in Afghanistan. Directed by David Michod, of "Animal Kingdom" fame, the Netflix Original film is inspired by the book "The Operators: The Wild & Terrifying Inside Story of America's War in Afghanistan" by late journalist Michael Hastings. An investment in the range of $60 million also makes it Netflix's biggest-budget feature to date. Pitt's character is loosely based on General Stanley A McChrystal, a retired United States Army general best-known for his command of Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC). His last assignment was as Commander, International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and Commander, US Forces Afghanista...

Actor Tarun Khanna has said " Baahubali " writer KV Vijayendra Prasad's decision to write a story for television shows that the small screen has a big reach now and he is proud to be a part of the project. The 33-year-old actor said after penning a blockbuster like the "Baahubali" the veteran writer chose TV to present a fantasy epic like "Aarambh", because he wanted to do justice to the story. "The biggest selling point of the show is Vijayendra sir... Someone who has made the biggest film in the history of India... If he's choosing to make a TV show, it tells a lot about the small screen. He showed faith in us to do something of this scale on TV. It makes us want to give our best," Tarun said at the launch of the show at Modhera's Sun Temple. Tarun said TV has become a lot more progressive. "Television is breaking stereotypes. Earlier, a demon was supposed to be fat and used to have a typical laugh. It's not the...

Social platforms like  Facebook  may help fight government corruption, especially in countries where press freedom is curbed, say researchers who studied the impact of social media during the 2012 anti-corruption protests in India. Sudipta Sarangi of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) in the US said his cross- country analysis using data from more than 150 countries shows the more Facebook penetrates public usage, the higher the likelihood of government corruption meeting protest. In short, social media serves as peer of the press, Sarangi said. "This study underscores the importance of freedom on the internet that is under threat in many countries of the world," Sarangi said. Facebook helps lessen corruption in governments where press freedom is low.  Read More

Noted Bollywood actress   Deepika Padukone   today visited the Parmartha Niketan Ashram along the banks of the Ganga here. She also took part in the Ganga Aarti along with her relatives and friends. Deepika Padukone has jutted off to the North, Rishikesh to be specific, along with the banks of river Ganga. The actress, who will soon be starting shooting of her upcoming film, Padmavati, was spotted at Parmarth Niketan Ashram. Pictures of the diva performing the Ganga aarti have been floating about on social media. According to a PTI report, Swami Chidananda Saraswati, who heads the ashram, gifted her a Rudraksha sapling. He further added that if the saints, singers and actors worked together for cleanliness the mission will easily achieve its objective. Deepika was accompanied by her mother Ujjala also, as they offered their prayers. We believe before she starts shooting for Padmavati, perhaps the actress wants to pray and hope for no more perils for   Padmavati . ...