economy, business and finance

State to form NRK investment company

Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala cabinet has decided to form an investment company ..

Defensive strokes, dropped catches, no balls in Budget: Shashi Tharoor

New Delhi: The Union Budget has "unnecessarily defensive strokes, dropped catches and quite a few no balls", Congress leader ..

Sharp increase in electricity charges in Kerala

Thiruvananthapuram: Electricity charges in Kerala have been increased sharply. The power tariff has been increased by 6.8 percent. ..

Interstate buses evade tax by shifting passengers to Kerala registration buses on border

Parassala: It has been found that interstate luxury buses conclude their service on the Kerala border for evading tax. The passengers ..

Sensex tanks over 400 pts on global selloff

Mumbai: Domestic equity benchmark BSE Sensex cracked over 400 points in early trade Monday dragged by losses in HDFC twins, L&T ..

Now take GoAir flights to Dubai, Kuwait from Kannur

New Delhi: Budget airline GoAir on Sunday announced a happy news for Kannur natives. The airline will operate two directs flights to ..

Revised electricity charges to be announced within 2 days

Thiruvananthapuram: Revised electricity charges will be announced on Monday or Tuesday. The Regulatory Commission has decided to increase ..

Haritha Finance scam: 2nd accused Shalini claims she was unaware of fraud

Nedumkandam: In connection with the financial fraud case in which Rajkumar was named first accused, the second accused Shalini stated ..

Gold from Gulf to be in high demand in coming days

Dubai: As the customs duty on gold was increased by 2.5 percent in the union budget, there will be huge difference in the market price ..

Union Budget ignored Kerala; CPM to observe July 9 as protest day

Thiruvananthapuram: The CPM will observe July 9 as a protest day against the Union Budget and anti-public policies of the union government ..

Kerala witnesses all-time record in paddy production after floods

Kerala witnessed a record breaking increase in the harvest of Puncha paddy farming this year. A total of 6.94 lakh metric ton paddy ..

Kollam woman wins Rs 22 crore in Abu Dhabi raffle

Abu Dhabi: A Keralite has won a jackpot of Rs 22 crore ($3.2 million) at the Big Ticket raffle in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) capital ..

UAE to give free mobile phone SIM cards to tourists

Dubai: Tourists visiting the United Arab Emirates will be given free mobile phone SIM cards with 20 MB data as a gift without providing ..

Scrap dealer wins Rs 60 lakh jackpot in Pathanamthitta

Pathanamthitta: Tamil Nadu native Subramaniam and wife Lakshmi never thought that they will get such a surprise from Kerala. Subramaniam ..

Union govt policy to reduce fuel consumption; Price hike won’t affect public: M.T. Ramesh

KochI: BJP state secretary M.T. Ramesh said the additional tax and cess imposed on petrol and diesel in the Union Budget will not affect ..

Union Budget completely disappointing for Kerala: Thomas Isaac

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Finance Minister Thomas Isaac said the Union Budget was completely disappointing for the state. “The ..

Petrol price to rise by Rs 2.5, diesel by Rs 2.3 after FM raises tax

New Delhi: Petrol price will be hiked by over Rs 2.5 per litre and diesel by more than Rs 2.3 after Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman ..

Pinarayi Vijayan flays Union Budget

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan Friday slammed the Union budget, saying the Centre did not heed the State's ..

Congress slams budget as 'old wine in a new bottle'

New Delhi: Describing the Union Budget as "insipid" and "old wine in a new bottle", the Congress on Friday alleged ..

Additional tax deduction of Rs 1.50 lakh on interest on home loans taken up to Mar 2020 proposed

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Friday said the government is proposing additional tax deduction of Rs 1.50 lakh on ..

Govt to soon put in circulation new series coins of up to Rs 20

New Delhi: The government Friday said it will soon make available for public use the new series coins of one, two, five, 10 and 20 ..

Jaitley, Rajnath Singh lauds union budget

New Delhi: Former union finance minister Arun Jaitley took to twitter to appreciate the Union Budget 2019. He congratulated Prime Minister ..

Cess on petrol, diesel hiked by Re 1/lt; customs duty on gold increased

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Friday raised cess on petrol and diesel by Re 1 per litre, while customs duty on gold ..

PAN, Aadhaar interchangeable for filing of IT returns: FM

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Friday said PAN and Aadhaar have been made interchangeable, allowing those who do not ..

Firms with turnover of Rs 400 cr to pay lower 25 pc corporate tax: FM

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Friday proposed to raise the annual turnover limit from Rs 250 crore to Rs 400 crore ..

Govt to infuse Rs 70,000 cr into state-owned banks

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Friday announced that the government will pump in 70,000 crore into public sector banks ..

Panel to be set up to evaluate ways to encourage women participation in economy: FM

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Friday said a committee will be set up to evaluate, suggest measures to encourage and ..

Scheme to modernize fishery sector: Sitharaman

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday announced a 'Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana to modernize the fishery ..

Govt aims to build 1.95 cr houses under PMAY-Gramin in 2 years

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Friday said the government will build 1.95 crore houses under the Pradhan Mantari Awas ..

Internet connectivity under BharatNet to be fast-tracked with USOF support: FM

New Delhi: The pace of providing internet connection in rural India under BharatNet project will be expedited with the support of universal ..

FM proposes starting exclusive channel for startups

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Friday said an exclusive television channel is proposed to be set up for startups that ..

Sitharaman's 'power' push: UDAY scheme to be improved, new package soon

New Delhi: The beleagured power sector may get some relief as Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharman on Friday said that the government ..

Sitharaman proposes increase of minimum public shareholding to 35 pc

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday said the time is right to consider increasing minimum public shareholding ..

India to become hub for higher education: Finance Minister

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said during the budget presentation that India can become hub for higher education. ..

Comprehensive restructuring of National Highways Programme on cards: FM

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Friday said there will be a comprehensive restructuring of National Highways Programme ..

Sitharaman announces creation of 'social stock exchange'

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday announced the setting up of a social stock exchange under the Securities and ..

100% FDI in insurance intermediaries, says Finance Minister

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman informed that India's FDI flow has grown 6 percent to $64.37 bn. She was presenting ..

Programmes will be accelerated, red tape reduced: FM

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Friday said the NDA government had set the ball rolling for a 'New India' in ..

Sitharaman highlights infra projects bridging rural urban divide in Budget 2019-20

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Friday announced a slew of steps to scale up India's infrastructure including augmenting ..

Nirmala Sitharaman only 2nd woman to present Union Budget

New Delhi: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Friday became only the second woman in the history of independent India to present the ..

Sitharaman dumps Budget briefcase for 'bahi khaata'

New Delhi: Setting a new precedent Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday was seen hugging the budget documents wrapped ..

Summer holidays in UAE, airports witness huge rush

Dubai: All schools in UAE have been closed for the two-month long summer holidays. With this, airports will witness huge rush of passengers ..

Sensex reclaims 40,000 mark ahead of Budget

Mumbai: Domestic equity benchmark BSE Sensex Friday reclaimed the 40,000 mark and the NSE Nifty inched closer to 12,000 level ahead ..

SpiceJet's stranded plane cleared from grass area at Mumbai airport

Mumbai: The SpiceJet Boeing 737 aircraft, which was stuck between the main runway and grass area after skidding off on arrival at the ..

Nirmala Sitharaman heads to Parliament after meeting President

New Delhi: The middle-class tax payers may have a lot to cheer about in the Budget proposals to be presented by Finance Minister Nirmala ..

KSRTC levies Rs 4000 for returning lost 1.5 sovereign gold anklet

Thiruvananthapuram: When a gold anklet that was lost and later found in a KSRTC bus was finally returned to its owner, KSRTC levied ..

10 per cent hike in power tariff; No load shedding till July 15: KSEB

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) chairman N. S. Pillai said load shedding will not be there in the state till ..

Economic Survey pegs economic growth at 7 pc for FY20

The government Thursday projected the country's GDP growth for 2019-20 at 7 per cent, up from five-year low of 6.8 per cent, on ..

Salman Khan plans to open 300 gyms across India by 2020

Mumbai: Bollywood superstar Salman Khan, who has been treating fans with a glimpse into his fitness regime, is set to launch a SK-27 ..

Kannur airport road development: CM directs to speed up land acquisition

Kannur: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan directed the officials to speed up the land acquisition procedures for the road development ..

Salary, pension for 2 lakh persons delayed in Kerala

Thiruvananthapuram: The disbursement of salary and pension for about two lakh persons in Kerala was affected following a server issue ..

Indian rupee to be accepted in Dubai Duty-Free shops

Dubai: A good news for the Indians who visit Dubai. From now on, Indian currency will be accepted in the duty-free shops at the airports ..

See how 'Karimeen' helped a farmer overcome flood losses

When the flood devastated the state last year, Karumalloor Pudukkad native Shibu Thaithara could only silently watch his fish being ..

Power crisis: Kerala to suffer load shedding soon

Kochi: If no rainfall occurs within 2-3 days, load shedding is likely to be implemented in the state. The KSEB (Kerala State Electricity ..

Kerala ropes in Cisco to build smart farming ecosystem

Kochi: Networking giant Cisco on Monday said it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Kerala State IT Mission (KSITM) ..

Emirates launches world's shortest flight on an Airbus A380

Abu Dhabi: The UAE-based Emirates airline on Monday launched the world's shortest A380 flight between Dubai and Muscat. "The ..

Salary hike for college lecturers from 2016 retrospective

Thiruvananthapuram: The government has issued an order increasing the salary of college lecturers in the state as recommended by the ..

KSRTC suffers staff shortage; Move to make temporary appointment

Thiruvananthapuram: After 2107 empanelled drivers were dismissed as per the court order, the KSRTC has started attempts to overcome ..

Kerala to get German aid of Rs 1400 cr for post-flood rebuilding

Thiruvananthapuram: The Ministry of Finance has given nod to accept loan from the German financial institution KfW for post-flood rebuilding ..

Dismissal of temporary drivers likely to hit KSRTC services

Thiruvananthapuram: The dismissal of temporary drivers (empanelled employees) by Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) is ..

UAE embassy attestation through Norka-Roots

Thiruvananthapuram: The UAE embassy attestation of trade certificates will be held through Norka-Roots from July 1. The facility can ..

With 150 plus medicinal plants, Herbal Museum at Eruthempathy farm pulls crowd

The herbal museum at Eruthempathy agriculture farm in Palakkad has become a crowd puller. Students and research fellows flock to see ..

10 lakh electric vehicles to be launched within 2022: CM

Kochi: With the aim to popularise the use of electric vehicles, E-mobility Conference and Expo 2019 (EVOLVE) started here as part of ..

Centre gives 1-yr deadline to states for rolling out ‘one nation, one ration card'

New Delhi: The Centre has given states and Union Territories time till June 30, 2020 to roll out the 'one nation, one ration card' ..

Sridevi's daughters Janhvi and Khushi celebrate summer in Manali; Pics go viral

Stars actors of Bollywood usually choose foreign destinations for their holiday trips. But when budding star Janhvi Kapoor decided ..

Interstate private bus strike: KSRTC gets Rs 9 cr profit daily; Alternate services arranged

Thiruvananthapuram: The ongoing strike by the interstate private buses have benefitted the KSRTC (Kerala State Road Transport Corporation) ..

Floods: Rs 1750 crore World Bank loan for rebuilding Kerala

New Delhi: The Government of India, Government of Kerala and the World Bank on Friday signed a loan agreement of USD 250 million for ..

Trains stopped 489 times by chain pulling in 2 years

Kannur: In the last two years, a total of 489 incidents of pulling the alarm chain (emergency brake chain) in trains were reported ..

No kerosene for those who have power, cooking gas connections

Alappuzha: The centre has again curbed ration allocation for Kerala. The Union Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas gave a letter ..

Try a mini pineapple plant for indoor-outdoor gardens

Pineapple can be grown in high ranges, villages and orchards. If we could plant a little pineapple plant in a flowerpot, it would definitely ..

Tata salt 'safe for consumption', says company

Mumbai: Tata Chemicals, which manufactures the Tata Salt brands, on Wednesday assured that its salt is "safe and harmless" ..

Congress to prepare 'white paper' on Kerala's financial status

Thiruvananthapuram: The Opposition Congress in Kerala will prepare a 'white paper' on the financial status of the state. A ..

Finally, BSNL Kerala circle also nosedives into loss

Thrissur: The BSNL circle in Kerala, which was the only profit-making BSNL circle in the country, also has nosedived into huge loss ..

PM Kissan scheme gets 30 lakh applications from Kerala; probe on

The PM Kissan Kissan Samman Nidhi which provides Rs 6000 per year to underprivileged farmers has attracted 30 lakh applications from ..

Cardamom price skyrockets; sets new record of Rs 5734 per kg

Cardamom price has hit new heights breaking records yet again. The spice fetched Rs 5,734 per kg in an e-auction held by Vandanmedu ..

Will curtail powers vested with panchayat and municipality secretaries: CM

Thiruvananthapuram: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that the government was pondering to curtail the powers vested with panchayat ..

Register case against muncipality chairperson for suicide of expat businessman: Ramesh Chennithala

Kannur: The opposition UDF Sunday demanded that the LDF government register a case against the chairperson of a local muncipality for ..

Govt to object banks' recovery procedures on farmer loans

Thiruvananthapuram: An advertisement from the State Level Banker's Committee (SLBC) that appeared in leading dailies in Kerala ..

Delay in extending moratorium; banks to proceed with attachment of property over agri loans

Thiruvananthapuram: The banks have warned that they will initiate proceedings to attach property over loans as the Reserve Bank of ..

PM-economists meet: 'Single-minded pursuit' for growth, FDI in banking, divestment discussed

New Delhi: Further opening of banking and insurance sectors for FDI, speeding up disinvestment process and management of water resources ..

Modi interacts with economists, industry experts ahead of Budget

New Delhi: Ahead of the next month's Union Budget, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Saturday interacted with economists and industry ..

Indian airlines to avoid 'affected part of' Iranian airspace, will re-route flights: DGCA

New Delhi: Amid rising geopolitical tensions between the US and Iran, India's aviation regulator DGCA Saturday said Indian airlines ..

Two men successfully finish 27,000 km bike ride covering 3 countries in 80 days

Vaikom: After travelling through all states in India and through Nepal and Bhutan on two wheelers, two wanderlusts have returned home ..

Kannur airport gets new 'spider boom lift'

Mattannur: A spider articulated boom lift has been made operational at Kannur International Airport. The equipment is used for cleaning ..

Politics no bar; PJ Joseph earns Rs 4500 every day from dairy farming

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Congress (M) leader P. J. Joseph clarified in a speech in the Assembly that he is a dedicated dairy farmer ..

Washington apples, 27 other US products to be dearer as India hikes tax

New York: The export-dependent Washington state apple industry is a worried lot after India hiked duties on the fruit, saying it is ..

Issue of smart card driving license to be delayed further

Malappuram: The procedure for changing driving licenses into smart cards is likely to be delayed further. With this, the distribution ..

From July, salary of govt employees to be disbursed only via treasury

Thiruvananthapuram: The salary of all government employees will be disbursed only through treasury from July onwards. The finance department ..

Ministership is not about state car and police escort: Ganesh Kumar slams Saseendran

Thiruvananthapuram: Pathanapuram MLA K B Ganesh Kumar raised sharp criticism against Transport Minister A. K. Saseendran in the assembly ..

HC rejects plea questioning constitutional validity of masala bond

Kochi: The Kerala High Court on Wednesday rejected a petition filed questioning the constitutional validity of masala bond. The petition ..

Now, Saudi Arabian citizens can avail e-visas to India

Riyadh: Formalities for Saudi Arabian citizens to visit India have been simplified. From now, Saudi Arabian citizens can register online ..

Foreign airlines to operate service from Kannur

Kannur: Numerous foreign airlines from Gulf countries, Malaysia and Singapore have come forward to operate service from Kannur International ..

Govt to declare bottled water as essential commodity, price to be fixed at Rs 11

Thiruvananthapuram: Minister for food and civil supplies P Thilothaman informed that bottled water will be listed as essential commodity ..

Expert team led by E Sreedharan inspects Palarivattom overbridge

Kochi: A team headed by Metro Man E Sreedharan is carrying out an inspection at the Palarivattom overbridge which is closed for maintenance ..

Kochi Metro turns 2 today with huge increase in number of passengers

Kochi: The pride project of the state Kochi Metro is turning two on Monday. Kochi Metro is celebrating its second birthday with 2.58 ..

Kinaloor Estate land scam: POA issued on stamp paper worth Rs 300; Govt loses Rs 50 crore

Teacher loses Rs 9 lakh after responding to call from ‘bank manager’ in Kannur