VARINDIA IT MAGAZINE

Banks retrieved over ₹5 lakh crore from stressed loans: PM Modi:  Prime Minister Narendra Modi   on steps taken to recover unpaid loans said, more than ₹5 lakh crore recovery has been made by banks from stressed loans. In a virtual address at the Sydney Dialogue, the Prime Minister said, reforms in the last 6-7 years have led to the banking sector in a strong position today and that the financial health of banks has improved.   ₹2 lakh cr of stressed assets likely to be resolved through  National Asset Reconstruction Company , Modi said, adding that his government has addressed the problem of  non performing assets (NPAs)  in banks, pumped in enough funds via recapitalisation, brought bankruptcy laws and strengthened debt recovery tribunal.   Modi said India is investing in developing indigenous capabilities in 5G and 6G telecom technologies besides focusing on manufacturing semi-conductors. The "greatest product" of technology today is data and that I...

Guruprasad Mohapatra DPIIT Secretary took his last breath:  Guruprasad Mohapatra , the Secretary in the   Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT)   died. He was being treated at   AIIMS, New Delhi   for covid-related complications.   PM Narendra Modi  tweeted, “Saddened by the demise of Dr. Guruprasad Mohapatra, DPIIT Secretary. I had worked with him extensively in Gujarat and at the Centre. He had a great understanding of administrative issues and was known for his innovative zeal. Condolences to his family and friends. Om Shanti."   Piyush Goyal  tweeted, “Extremely saddened to hear about the loss of Dr. Guruprasad Mohapatra, Secretary DPIIT. His long-standing service and dedication to the Nation have left a lasting impact. I convey my deepest sympathies to his family and friends."   At DPIIT, Guruprasad was instrumental in formulating the production linked incentive schemes. He was also actively working on redu...

P K Sinha, the Principal Advisor PM Narendra Modi, has resigned:  P K Sinha, a retired IAS officer of 1977 batch , was appointed as Principal Advisor to the   Prime Minister   in September 2019, after a brief stint as an officer on special duty (OSD).   Sinha was made OSD to the prime minister in August 2019, after he had served four years as cabinet secretary. Sinha had also served as Secretary in the Ministry of Power.   Sinha has resigned just after a year and a half after of the appointment. Sources said, there is a possibility that Sinha could be considered by the  Narendra Modi government  for a constitutional post, such as lieutenant governor of Delhi or Puducherry, sources said, adding that he resigned citing “personal reasons”.... Read More

WhatsApp CEO anxious about India's rush for homegrown apps like Koo:  WhatsApp CEO Will Cathcart   expressed his worry about the Indian government's push for homegrown apps like   Koo   because it could force a ‘splinternet', a characterization where instead of having a global internet, countries have their own regulations. "We already have a splinternet with Mainland China and the rest of the world," Cathcart said on the Big Technology Podcast last week adding that "people benefit a lot from products that work globally."   Koo is claimed to be India's answer to Twitter for non-English users. It has picked a lot of steam in the country in the wake of the  Narendra Modi  government's ongoing war with the US-based micro-blogging platform. Many big-ticket politicians and celebrities have joined Koo in the wake of the 'standoff' giving it a major shot in the arm, something that saw it cross over 40 lakh users within no time. Koo aims to draw ...

PM addresses NASSCOM Technology and Leadership Forum:  The   Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi   addressed the   NASSCOM Technology and Leadership Forum (NTLF)   today via video conferencing.   Speaking on the occasion, the  Prime Minister  lauded the IT industry for their resilience during the Corona period. “When the chips were down, your code kept things running” said the Prime Minister. He noted 2 percent growth in the sector and addition of 4 billion dollars in revenue amidst the apprehensions of de-growth.   The Prime Minister noted that today’s India is eager for progress and the Government understand this feeling. He said aspirations of 130 crore Indians inspire us to move forward with rapid speed. He emphasized that expectations related to the new India are there from the private sector also as they are from the government. He said that the Government is aware that restrictions are not conducive for the development of the future’s l...

“All COVAXIN recipients to be tracked, monitored as if they’re in trial”: Health Minister answers to critics:  Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan   responded to opposition’s criticism on the   Drugs Controller General of India’s (DCGI)   approval for emergency use of the two Indian   COVID-19 vaccines - Covaxin   and   Covishield   through a tweet.   "For those spreading rumours let it be known that EUA (Emergency Use Approval) for COVAXIN is differently conditional – in clinical trial mode,” Dr Vardhan tweeted. He also added, "EUA for COVAXIN is different from COVISHIELD because its use will be in clinical trial mode. All COVAXIN recipients to be tracked, monitored as if they’re in trial.”   "COVAXIN approval is ‘Monitored Approval’ with strict follow-up & rolling review. This approval ensures India has an additional vaccine shield in its arsenal esp against potential mutant strains in a dynamic pandemic situation - A strategic d...

PM lays new foundation stone of AIIMS in Rajkot:  Prime Minister Narendra Modi   recently laid the foundation stone of   All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) at Rajkot, Gujarat , via video conferencing today.   "India has emerged as the nerve centre of global health. In the year 2021, we have to strengthen India's role in healthcare," he added.   In our country, rumours spread quickly, the Prime Minister said.   "Different people for their personal gains or due to irresponsible behaviour spread various rumours. Maybe rumours will be spread when vaccination begins, some have already begun," he added.   "I appeal to the people of the country that fight against COVID-19 is the one against an unknown enemy. Be careful about such rumours and as responsible citizens refrain from forwarding messages on social media without checking," said PM Modi.   "We are working on the mission to improve medical education in India. After the formation of th...

PM Cares Fund is not a so-called “public authority”:  The   Union Ministry of Corporate Affairs   has said in the Lok Sabha that the Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM CARES Fund), though set up by the Central Government, is not a 'public authority' under Section 2(h) of the Right to Information Act, 2005.   Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs, Anurag Thakur , said this as a reply to an unstarred question raised by Sunil Dattatray Tatkare, Member of Parliament from Maharashtra, belonging to the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).   The MP had asked: "Whether it is a fact that according to the Ministry the Fund was set up on March 27, 2020 by the Central Government thus making it a public authority under the ambit of Section 2 (h) of the RTI Act, 2005 and if so, the details thereof?"   To this, the MoS answered: 'No sir'.   The NCP MP further asked the "reasons for amending the Companies Act re...

Prime Minister Narendra Modi  is left to attend a mega event organised in  NRG Football Stadium, Huston, United States  on September 22. It is the largest gathering ever for an elected foreign leader visiting the U.S., other than the Pope.  US President Donald Trump  will be spending 100 minutes at the NRG Stadium where PM Modi is being hosted by the Indian diaspora. Houston being the hub of oil and gas ,organisers say more than 50,000 people - many from the  Indian-American diaspora  - have registered for the event, which the White House labelled "a great opportunity to emphasise the strong ties between the two countries" and "reaffirm the strategic partnership between the world's oldest and largest democracies". The rally, hosted by the Texas Indian Forum, is set to kick off around 8:45am local time (13:00 GMT) with cultural performances before Modi and Trump take the stage at NRG Stadium around 10:00am (15:00 GMT). He is scheduled to acce...

The Global Conference on Cyber Space (GCCS) 2017 is to be inaugurated by the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi on November 23, 2017. The event will see participation of ministers, officials, industry leaders and academia engaged in the global cyber ecosystem. Over 3,500 participants will take part in the week long event directly and millions virtually from India and abroad through video conference, webinars and webcast. For those who are not travelling to Delhi, about 800 locations around the world will be connected to GCCS 2017 (www.gccs2017.in) through video conference and 2,000 locations through webinars.... Read More

Former Kerala IAS officer Alphons Kannanthanam has been appointed as minister of state in the ministry of electronics and IT. In a major cabinet reshuffle, the Narendra Modi government elevated four junior ministers to the Cabinet rank and inducted nine new faces. The new inductions include four former civil servants with the 1979 batch, Kerala cadre officer being one of them.  The 65 year old Kannanthanam is a former DDA commissioner and popularly known as Delhi’s Demolition man for his activist stance that led to removal of around 15,000 illegal buildings in the national capital.... Read More

The Narendra Modi Government has decided to scrap the colonial tradition of presenting budget in the month of February.  Come 2019, the budget will be applicable from the first day of the new year. It is expected that the budget for 2019 will be presented latest by November 2018.  This also means that budget of the financial year 2018-2019, which will be presented on February 1, will be applicable only for nine months, up to December.  The government will also start realigning all the economic data with the.... Read More

Data Security Council of India (DSCI) , in partnership with Google , has launched “ Internet Safety Program “. The Workshops aim at enhancing trust in the cyberspace by empowering MSMEs with knowledge and understanding to deal with cyber security challenges to stay safe and secure while operating online. Under the program, DSCI and Google will organize a series of workshops in various cities, to help inculcate safe and responsible behaviour in cyber space by sharing best practices and guidance with the audience, equipping them with necessary guidance, instructions and techniques to address cyber security challenges, and spreading awareness on legal and regulatory obligations. The program was inaugurated by Shri Amitabh Kant , CEO, Niti Aayog and Former Secretary, Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India... Read more

The new financial year is about to get started and budget expectations of industrialists from the government has risen up,as compared to last year.Reasons could be for implementation of goods and services(GST) tax, supporting business for economic growth, manufacturing in India and other promises made by the government for supporting the economy and business expansions. Moreover, in the telecom industry, the need for better connectivity as in introduction of 4G services in different circles can be seen as one of the major concerns in the coming fiscal.  “Make in India”, “Digital India” and “Smart city” initiatives by government has also increased the demand for IT infrastructure. So, it is expected that the government will bring in better budget reforms for the IT industry, enabling quality output, advancement in technology, etc. without any disruptiveness. It is expected that the government addresses the needs of IT/ITES which fosters business and ... R...

Touted as the first-ever visit by an Indian Prime Minster to the Facebook Headquarters, Modi’s visit has raised quite an eyebrow. The fact that top tech bosses of the Silicon Valley are taking keen interest in meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi and discussing about his Digital India initiative is something that is being talked about. The key Indian entrepreneurs and academicians from the USA cite several reasons as to why this sudden spotlight on Modi has garnered so much interest. One of the entrepreneurs warned that the Indian telecom companies might be staring at trouble if companies such as Google and Facebook succeed in their ambitious projects to provide Internet access all over the world, including India. The tech industry has learned from mistakes made by taxi-hailing company Uber and wants to make sure governments don’t turn in adversaries when traditional industries are disrupted, ... Read more

While addressing a gathering which was adorned by top Silicon Valley CEOs, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced his plans to create more Wi-Fi hotspots. This plan includes 500 railway stations across India. It will be done in collaboration with Google. The Indian Railways brings more than 13 million riders a day to more than 7,000 stations spread across 67,000 miles (108,000 km) of track. And that the lifeline is about to get a small digital upgrade that should help keep people connected. While announcing the plan, Prime Minister Modi also said that schools and colleges will also be connected with broadband. To him, building I-ways are equally important as highways. He is also looking forward for an aggressive expansion of the National Optical-Fibre Network to take broadband to 600,000 villages... Read more

Satya Nadella, Microsoft CEO, has announced that his company is planning to partner with the Indian Government to take low-cost broadband technology to around five lakh villages across the country. He also said that Microsoft believes that lost-cost broadband connectivity coupled with the scale of cloud computing intelligence can help drive creativity, efficiency and productivity across governments and businesses of all sizes. This, in turn, will drive more affordable products and services and access to opportunity to all of India. He has also announced that, at the end of next week, Microsoft would announce availability of its cloud services operating out ... Read more

Maintaining his image of a People’s leader, Prime Minister Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) has used Twitter’s platform for live, public conversations to effectively reach out to his audience in India and worldwide, including world leaders, corporate honchos, political colleagues and Indian citizens. He zoomed by the 15-million follower milestone on Twitter just days after his 65th birthday celebrations, a testimony to his strong engagement on the platform. PM Modi is known as India’s first and most digital-savvy leader, using Twitter to enhance digital diplomacy and digital governance in his administration. PM Modi has lit up Twitter with engaging milestones and moments. Since he was sworn in as Prime Minister last May 26, 2014, Modi has added 10.8 million followers, more than doubling his follower base before he won the Lok Sabha election... Read more

Cyrus Mistry, Chairman of Tata Group, addressing the session, expressed his views, “I congratulate PM for setting up Digital India to provide governance in real time and digitally- empowering citizens.” Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) planned to hire 60,000 IT professionals this year, and has partnered with the Government for various projects like Passport Seva and income tax e-filing, as well ... See more

Anil Ambani of Reliance Group said in his visionary speech, “The company will invest Rs.10, 000 crore in tech projects as part of Digital India. The company’s investment in data centers will continue and upcoming five fully operational Cloud Xchange points that will help government departments access 240 times the amount of compute power currently available in government data centers, and over six times the high-speed storage currently available in India.”   See more