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☆ How India is challenging China as Asia's tech powerhouse
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-05 | by ( Arjun Kharpal | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +30 min

New Delhi has sought to woo foreign tech companies and has been increasingly successful, with giants like Apple increasing their presence in the country. Tom Chitty: For years China has been Asia's tech powerhouse where the world's electronics and some of the biggest companies on the planet are located. And I think India is in the very early stages, to put it quite bluntly, of trying to do that. Tom Chitty: India have got an election this year as well, which is going to be interesting to see what happens there. You know, India has aligned itself slightly more to the countries that are currently a bit more anti-China, shall we say?

Persons: Tom Chitty, Arjun Kharpal, It's, Let's, I'm, Arjun, You'll, We're, we've, what's, gunning, Narendra Modi, it's, Tom, Modi, Trump, Apple, COVID, there's, Taiwan's, that's, Karen Tso, China's, Tim Cook, Raghuram Rajan, We've, feasibly, India's, let's, he's, you've, we'll, I've, We'll Organizations: Apple, CNBC, China, India's, Foxconn, Micron, Tata Electronics, Taiwan's Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp, Reserve Bank of India, CCP, Samsung, Bain, India, London Locations: China, Tencent, Asia, India, Delhi, Washington, Beijing, American, COVID, U.S, Brazil, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Taiwan, South Korea, Bangalore, Goa, Kolkata, Mumbai, Europe, Silicon, New York, Germany

☆ Tesla to explore locations in India for $3 billion EV factory, FT reports
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-04 | by ( Sheila Chiang | In Sheilachiang | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

An electric vehicle of the model Y is pictured during the start of the production at Tesla's "Gigafactory" on March 22, 2022 in Gruenheide, southeast of Berlin. The plant could be worth $2 billion to $3 billion, FT reported on Wednesday, citing two people with knowledge about the plans. The EV maker will focus on the states of Maharashtra, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu that already have automotive hubs, according to the report. India last month lowered import tariffs on certain EVs for automakers willing to invest at least $500 million and start domestic manufacturing in the country within three years. Modi met Tesla CEO Elon Musk in June and invited him to explore investment opportunities in India for electric vehicles.

Persons: Tesla, Patrick Pleul, PATRICK PLEUL, Narendra Modi's, Modi, Elon Musk Organizations: Getty, Financial Times Locations: Gruenheide, Berlin, Germany, India, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu

☆ India wants to become the top manufacturing alternative to China. But first it needs to beat Vietnam
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-02 | by ( Charmaine Jacob | In Charmainemariajacob | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

The Biden administration has encouraged American companies to move electronics and technology manufacturing operations out of China and into friendlier countries, particularly Vietnam and India in Asia-Pacific. Vietnam's head startIndia and Vietnam are attractive manufacturing alternatives for foreign investors and companies, due in part to low labor costs. Import taxes remain highOne hurdle for India's manufacturing hub ambitions is the country's 10% import duty for information and communication technologies. India's import taxes were intended to protect domestic manufacturers, but lowering those duties will be part of the government's efforts to attract foreign firms to manufacture goods within the country. For example, India in January lowered import taxes for certain metal and plastic parts used in manufacturing mobile phones from 15% to 10%.

Persons: Biden, Mukesh Aghi, Samir Kapadia, Narendra Modi's, Aghi, Nari Viswanathan, Viswanathan, Tim Cook, Narendra Modi, Andy Ho, Modi, Kapadia, Pankaj Mahindroo, VinaCapital's Ho, Ho Organizations: Hindustan Times, Getty, Republicans, U.S ., India Strategic Partnership, India Index, Vogel Group, U.S, White House, Washington, Financial Times, Apple, Indian, Google, Dixon Technologies, Samsung, Motorola, India Cellular and Electronics Association, CNBC, corporates Locations: Noida, India, Asia, China, Vietnam, The U.S, U.S, United States, Singapore

☆ India Court Effectively Bans Madrasas in Big State Before Election
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-23 | by ( March | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +4 min

India holds a general election between April and June that Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is widely expected to win. The BJP's Tripathi responded that Muslim BJP leaders had no reason to fear because their community equally benefits from various government welfare programmes. Friday's order applies to all madrasas in the state, whether funded privately or by the government, Javed said. The court did not give a timeline for its order, but Javed said madrasas are unlikely to be closed right away. The northeastern state of Assam, also ruled by the BJP, has been converting hundreds of madrasas into conventional schools.

Persons: Saurabh Sharma, Krishna, Narendra Modi's, Iftikhar Ahmed Javed, Subhash Vidyarthi, Vivek Chaudhary, Anshuman Singh Rathore, Rathore, Modi, Ram, Babur, Rakesh Tripathi, madrasas, Sudhanshu Chauhan, Javed, Tripathi, Krishna N, William Mallard Organizations: Das NEW, Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, Pradesh BJP, madrasas, Das Locations: Das NEW DELHI, India, Uttar Pradesh, Allahabad, Pradesh, Assam, New Delhi

☆ India to hold the world's biggest election starting April in over a month-long exercise
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-18 | by ( Charmaine Jacob | In Charmainemariajacob | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Around 970 million registered voters are expected to cast their votes for India's next prime minister. India will hold the world's largest general elections starting April this year with nearly a billion voters set to exercise their franchise. The seven-stage election process will start from April 19 and last till June 1, 2024, according to the schedule announced by the Election Commission of India. The country has about 970 million registered voters. Since Modi won a second term in the 2019 general election, India has seen the economy strengthen, with Indian equity benchmarks hitting record highs.

Persons: India's, Narendra Modi's, Modi, Rajiv Kumar, Krishnamurthy Subramanian Organizations: India, India's, Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, WealthMills Securities, CNBC, BSE, International Monetary Fund, U.S, White House Locations: India, BJP, Hong Kong, China

☆ The Juggernaut promised to revolutionize South Asian news. But insiders say the company's founder misled investors, struggled to raise money, and left workers 'heartbroken.'
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-05 | by ( Katie Warren | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +33 min

They were gathered for the inaugural summit of The Juggernaut, a digital South Asian news startup that launched in 2019. The Juggernaut spokesperson told BI that "multiple employees have equity in the company," but BI was unable to identify any such employees. "Twenty years ago, you might've struggled to mention a South Asian actor that you've seen in a movie," he said. As of January, the site had about 10,500 subscribers, Sur told investors in an email viewed by BI. Some feel that the publication has strayed from its mission of delivering "untold, smart South Asian stories and news you won't find anywhere else."

Persons: —, Richa Moorjani, Manish Chandra, Anish Melwani, Sadiq Khan, Amitav Ghosh, Roy Rochlin, Jay Bhattacharya, didn't, Sur, Padma Lakshmi, Moorjani, Mira Nair, Oprah Winfrey, she'd, who've, Josh Benson, Bhattacharya, might've, you've, Dev Patel, Priyanka Chopra, Black millennials, Bhattacharya's, Adam Hansmann, Kevin Lin, Albert Ni, Charles Hudson, Steve Jennings, Sur's, Kyle Stanford, Axios, Stanford, Snigdha, Winfrey, MICHAEL TRAN, hadn't, wouldn't, Fariha Róisín, Meghna Rao, Róisín, Rao, Rao didn't, they'd, she's, it's, Hudson, who'd, Reetu Gupta, Aditi Shah, Sean Gupta, Steven Simione, would've, we're, Brian Morrissey, Morrissey, cofounders, Narendra Modi's, Sneha Mehta Organizations: Spring Studios, Netflix, Business, New Yorker, Harvard Business School, Guardian, American, Old Town Media, Athletic, BI, Indian, Yale, McKinsey, Precursor Ventures, Forbes, Getty, TechCrunch, YouTube's Sustainability, YouTube, Paramount Pictures Studios, Immigration Services, Stanford, Digiday, Gannett Locations: York City, chai, Jean's, hasn't, Sur, New York City, South, Asian, India, Madhya Pradesh, Queens, Sur texted, Indian American, AFP, Róisín, Los Angeles , California, South Asia, Silicon

☆ Elon Musk's X suspends some India accounts after order from Modi government
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-22 | by ( Charmaine Jacob | In Charmainemariajacob | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Elon Musk's social media platform X said Thursday it will block certain accounts and posts from India in response to executive orders by the government. X said it did not agree with the order but failure to comply would subject the company to "potential penalties including significant fines and imprisonment." Tens of thousands of Indian farmers — mostly from the northern state of Punjab — have been protesting since mid-February in renewed calls for better crop prices which were promised to them in 2021. In October, the Modi government warned Musk that X would have to comply to country's new and upcoming IT rules. However, it has written an appeal challenging the Indian government with accounts that are pending to be blocked, the company said.

Persons: Elon, X, Jack Dorsey —, Musk —, Narendra Modi's, Modi, Musk, Naman Tandon Organizations: Global Government Affairs, CNBC, country's Ministry of Information, Broadcasting, Reuters, Twitter Locations: Punjab, Haryana, Ambala, India, New Delhi, Delhi, Pakistan, Sri Lanka

☆ Indian State's Polygamy Ban Divides Some Muslim Women
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-11 | by ( Feb. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +4 min

For others like Jafar, Muslim politicians and Islamic scholars, it is an unwelcome stunt by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist party. A 2013 survey found 91.7% of Muslim women nationwide saying a Muslim man should not be allowed to have another wife while married to the first. The Supreme Court in 2017 found the Islamic instant divorce unconstitutional, but the order did not ban polygamy or some other practices that critics say violate equal rights for women. The All India Muslim Personal Law Board called the code impractical and a direct threat to a multi-religious Indian society. "Banning polygamy makes little sense because data shows very few Muslim men have more than one wife in India," said board official S.Q.R.

Persons: Bano, Sadaf Jafar, Jafar, Narendra Modi's, Modi's, Ilyas, Rupam Jain, William Mallard Organizations: DELHI, Reuters, Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, SOCIETY BJP, Islam Locations: Islam, Uttarakhand, India's, India, Uttar Pradesh

☆ India's moment has arrived — but many hurdles remain
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-04 | by ( Spriha Srivastava | Polly Thompson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

India's economy is expected to expand by 6.5% this year, according to IMF forecasts. The world's most populous nation was keen to talk up its prospects at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Advertisement"India has seized the moment," proclaimed housing minister Hardeep Singh Puri with confidence during a panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos last month. The 10-strong group of emerging market nations now accounts for 45% of the world's population and 28% of global GDP. AdvertisementSome economists have criticized the government's narrative as a "false growth story," highlighting discrepancies in the data and criticizing the methods used to calculate economic growth.

Persons: —, Hardeep Singh, Smriti Irani, BI's Spriha Srivastava, that's, Narendra Modi's, Cash, Modi, SAJJAD HUSSAIN, I've, Andy Baldwin, EY, Narendra Modi, Brazil's Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Dan Kitwood, Getty, ISRO Goldman Sachs, Ashoka Mody, Rajesh Kumar Singh, Vladimir Putin, Singh Organizations: Economic, Service, BI, IMF, Business, Apple, ISRO, Princeton University, World Bank, US, of, Hindustan Times, Harvard Business Locations: Davos, India, China, Japan, Brazil, China India, India's, Ukraine

MALE, Maldives (AP) — The Maldives government says it has asked for clarification of why Indian coast guard personnel boarded three Maldivian fishing vessels operating within its economic zone earlier this week without consultation. The Maldives military also found that Indian coast guard personnel had boarded two more boats, the statement said without explaining what they did on the boats . Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu was part of an “India Out” campaign as an opposition politician, demanding the removal of Indian military personnel stationed in some islands. The largest number of tourists visiting the Maldives come from India, making up 11% of the total last year. It is said there are at least 75 Indian military personnel in the Maldives and their known activities include transporting patients from remote islands and rescuing people at sea.

Persons: Mohamed Muizzu, Muizzu, Narendra Modi, Modi Organizations: —, Indian, Maldives ., Maldives Locations: Maldives, India, Maldivian, Dhivehi, China, Lakshadweep, New Delhi

☆ India's finance minister touts unlikely export growth in a world of uncertainty
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Shreyashi Sanyal | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman addresses the media after the interim budget on February 1, 2024 in New Delhi, India. So a lot of new people are accessing India," Sitharaman said, while touting that India was able to showcase its digital public infrastructure at the G20 summit it hosted in New Delhi last year. Sitharaman, when asked about what economic issues will define the vote, said "if economic issues are to dominate the election, it would be the recipients of the beneficiaries themselves coming out to say, 'I'm empowered now'." "If anything, for us it will be performance on the economic issues, good performance, inclusive growth that we've offered." The interim budget is typically a stop-gap financial plan during an election year, aimed at meeting immediate financial needs before a new government is formed.

Persons: Nirmala Sitharaman, Sitharaman, CNBC's, CNBC's Sri Jegarajah, Narendra Modi's, Pranjul Bhandari, Bhandari, Anantha Nageswaran Organizations: Hindustan Times, Getty, India's, CNBC's Sri, Mar, CNBC, India's Finance Locations: New Delhi, India, Europe, America, Brazil, Africa, Indonesia

☆ India set to clock up to 8% GDP growth as it boosts manufacturing capacity, minister says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Charmaine Jacob | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Workers assemble mobile phones at a Dixon Technologies factory in Noida, India, on Jan. 28, 2021. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesIndia could clock up to 8% annual GDP growth for several years as it focuses on boosting its manufacturing capabilities, a key government minister told CNBC on Thursday. watch nowHe spoke extensively about the country's mobile manufacturing ecosystem, claiming that 99% of the phones used in India were made within the country. The country exported $11 billion mobile phones last year, and they are likely to rise to between $13 billion and $15 billion in 2024, Vaishnaw said. Apple 's presence in India has grown exponentially since it first started manufacturing in the country in 2017.

Persons: Vaishnaw, Narendra Modi's, Nirmala Sitharaman, CNBC's, Apple, OnePoll, Joe Biden, India's Modi, Narendra Modi, Modi, Mandel Ngan Organizations: Dixon Technologies, Bloomberg, Getty, CNBC, Union, Railways, Communications, Electronics, Technology, CNBC's Sri, Deloitte, India, Apple, Samsung, Micron, U.S, India's, White, Afp Locations: Noida, India, Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, China, Washington ,

☆ Modi's Party Set to Bring Contentious Common Civil Laws in India Through States
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-31 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

Framing a national common law has been one of the three core, decades-old promises of Modi's Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP). The northern state of Uttarakhand, nestled in the Himalayan foothills, is expected to unveil a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) bill next week, officials said. A committee set up in Uttarakhand in 2022 to draft the code will submit its work to the state government on Friday. "Several state governments across India are looking at whether a uniform civil code could be implemented," Nalin Kohli, a national BJP spokesperson said. Personal laws can be legislated by both federal and state governments, and other BJP-ruled states have said they could use the Uttarakhand UCC draft as a template.

Persons: Krishn Kaushik, Rupam Jain, Saurabh Sharma, Narendra Modi's, Modi's, Asaduddin Owaisi, Nalin Kohli, Pushkar Singh Dhami, Ram, Biswa Sarma, Keshav Prasad Maurya, Sumit Khanna, Jatindra, Lincoln Organizations: Saurabh Sharma NEW DELHI, Janta Party, BJP, UCC, Kashmir, Uttarakhand UCC, Reuters Locations: Indian, Jammu, Kashmir, Uttarakhand, India, Assam, Uttar Pradesh, New Delhi, Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Bhubaneshwar

☆ Religious trips will fuel India’s tourism boom — airlines are gearing up with record aircraft orders
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-26 | by ( Charmaine Jacob | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

India's tourism sector is set for a boom as more travelers take trips around the country for religious purposes. "Religious tourism is still the biggest segment of tourism in India … the creation of a new religious tourist centre (Ayodhya) with improved connectivity and infrastructure can create a meaningfully large economic impact," Jefferies highlighted. Indian media reported that around half a million people visited the Ram temple on its opening day which was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The YouTube broadcast of the opening ceremony on Modi's channel alone received more than 11 million views. If it continues develop tourist destination including religious tourism, chances are that more and more people will come to visit India and it will even benefit on the foreign exchange side," said Nilesh Shah, managing director at Kotak Mahindra Asset Management.

Persons: Jefferies, —, Narendra Modi, Nilesh Shah Organizations: YouTube, Mahindra Asset Management Locations: Ayodhya, India, Rome's Vatican, Mecca, Saudi Arabia, Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh, Temple, Jammu, Kashmir

☆ U.S. firms prefer India over China for supply chain needs despite risks
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-24 | by ( Charmaine Jacob | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

U.S. firms are increasingly viewing China as a risky bet for their supply chains — neighbor India is set to benefit as companies look elsewhere to set shop. As many as 61% of the 500 executive-level U.S. managers surveyed by UK market research OnePoll said they would pick India over China if both countries could manufacture the same materials, while 56% preferred India to serve their supply chain needs within the next five years over China. The survey showed that 59% of the respondents found it "somewhat risky" or "very risky" to source materials from China, compared with 39% for India. At least a quarter of the executives who participated in the independent, third party survey, commissioned by marketplace India Index in December, do not currently import from either China or India. "Companies are seeing India as a long-term investment strategy as opposed to a short-term pivot to avoid tariffs," said Samir Kapadia, CEO of India Index and managing principal at Vongel Group, in an exclusive interview with CNBC.

Persons: OnePoll, Samir Kapadia, Joe Biden, Narendra Modi Organizations: India Index, Vongel Group, CNBC, U.S, White House Locations: China, India

☆ Temple Tourism Set to Soar Under India's Modi
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-22 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

In comparison, about 9 million people visit Vatican City in a year and about 20 million Mecca. Since Modi inaugurated the Hindu pilgrimage site of Kashi Vishwanath Corridor on the banks of the Ganges in 2021 in his constituency of Varanasi, more than 130 million tourists have visited the area, according to government data. With nearly $200 billion in revenue, tourism contributes about 7% of India's economy, which is below most large emerging and developed economies by up to 5 percentage points. The new temple and renovations of many others are likely to greatly boost the electoral prospects of the Hindu nationalist party of Modi, who is widely expected to win a rare third straight term in general elections due by May. Muslims account for about 14% of India's population of 1.42 billion, most of them Hindus.

Persons: Krishna, Narendra Modi, Modi, Lord Ram, Monday's, Modi's, Sandeep Shastri, Krishn Kaushik, Ed Osmond Organizations: Das NEW, Indian, Monday, Jefferies, Analysts, Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, Ministry Locations: Das NEW DELHI, Ayodhya, Vatican, Kashi Vishwanath, Varanasi, India's, Uttar Pradesh, New Delhi

☆ India Counts Down to Opening of Grand Ram Temple in Ayodhya
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-22 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

"The construction of the Ram Temple is an instrument to unite the country," Modi said in a message published on newspaper front pages ahead of a spectacle that will be watched by millions of Indians at home and abroad. India's Hindus say the site is the birthplace of Lord Ram, and was holy to them long before Muslim Mughals razed a temple at the spot to build the Babri Masjid, or mosque, in 1528. Nearly 8,000 people are expected to attend the invitation-only ceremony, from top business leaders to movie stars and sportspersons. More than 10,000 police personnel have fanned out across the city of 3 million people to provide security and keep out gatecrashers. The temple opens to the public on Tuesday and its management expects at least 100,000 visitors a day for the first few months.

Persons: Saurabh Sharma, Rajesh AYODHYA, Lord Ram, Narenda, Modi, Pratap Bhanu Mehta, YP Rajesh, Clarence Fernandez Organizations: Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, Supreme Court, Indian Express, YP Locations: India, Ayodhya, Ram

He has ensured this with the Ram Temple,” said Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, an expert in Hindu nationalism and author of a book on Modi. Modi’s Hindu nationalist party is expected to once again exploit religion for political gain in the upcoming national elections in April or May and secure power for a third consecutive term. The mosque was demolished by Hindu mobs in December 1992, sparking nationwide riots that killed more than 2,000 people, mostly Muslims. That fraught history is still an open wound for many Muslims, and some say the temple is the biggest political testament yet to Hindu supremacy. Modi has released postage stamps on Ram Temple, and live screenings of the ceremony are planned across the country.

Persons: Narendra Modi, Lord Ram, Modi, ”, Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, Modi's, ” Mukhopadhyay, “ Modi, Ram, Salam, ” Salam, revivalism —, “ Organizations: DELHI, —, Indian, Modi, Bharatiya Janata Party, Ram, BJP Locations: India, Ayodhya —, Ayodhya, Babri, Gujarat, Babri Mosque, Hindu India

☆ Factbox-What Are the Contentious Events Behind India's New Ram Temple?
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-20 | by ( Jan. | At P.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

(Reuters) - Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lead a ceremony on Monday to consecrate a grand new temple to the Hindu god-king Ram, delivering on a campaign promise his political party made more than three decades ago. Legal battles ended in 2019 with the Supreme Court deciding to allow a Hindu temple to be built there, on condition that Muslims received another plot to build a mosque. In Dec. 1949, authorities seized the mosque after Hindu activists placed idols of Ram inside the disputed structure. Hindu and Muslim groups tried unsuccessfully to resolve the dispute through talks, before Modi's Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) launched a nationwide campaign in 1990 to build the temple. He rode to the office of prime minister in 2014 on a Hindu nationalist platform that included the promise to build the temple.

Persons: Narendra Modi, Ram, Modi, Modi's, Nripendra Misra, Lord Vishnu, Babur, India's, Lal Krishna Advani, Krishn Kaushik, Krishna Das, YP Rajesh, Clarence Fernandez Organizations: Reuters, Indian, Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, YP Locations: India, Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh, New Delhi, Gujarat

☆ New Mosque Construction in India's Ayodhya to Begin in May, Muslim Group Says
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-20 | by ( Jan. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +3 min

The dispute had scarred relations between the communities for decades and the destruction of the mosque sparked nationwide riots that killed 2,000 people, mostly Muslims. India's top court said in 2019 that the razing of the mosque was unlawful, but ruled that evidence showed there was a non-Islamic structure beneath it. It ordered that the site be given to Hindu groups to build a temple and Muslim community leaders be given land elsewhere in the city for constructing a mosque. While construction of the $180 million temple began within months and the first phase is set to open on Monday, Muslim groups have struggled to raise funds and begin work at a desolate site about 25 km (15 miles) away. A crowd-funding website is expected to be launched in the coming weeks, said Shaikh, who is also a BJP leader.

Persons: Shivam Patel, Haji Arfat Shaikh, Ram, Zufar Ahmad Faruqi, Narendra Modi's, Athar Hussain, Shaikh, Muhammed bin Abdullah, Prophet Mohammad, Babur, YP Rajesh, Raju Gopalakrishnan Organizations: DELHI, Islamic Cultural Foundation, Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party, BJP, YP Locations: Indian, Ayodhya, India's, India, Babri

The Ram Mandir's opening Monday would fulfill a decadeslong Hindu nationalist pledge that is expected to resonate with voters during the upcoming national election expected in April or May. The narrow roads have given way to four-lane pilgrim route, including the newly developed 13-kilometer (8-mile) Ram Path leading to the temple. At least two head priests from a Hindu sect have refused to go the opening ceremony, saying consecrating an unfinished temple goes against Hindu scriptures. And volunteers from Modi’s party and other Hindu nationalist groups are going door to door, distributing religious flags and pamphlets. Many others shared Bhatia's feelings about the temple's opening.

Persons: Lord Ram, Hinduism’s, Ram, Narendra Modi's, Modi, Ananya Sharma, ” Sharma, Om Prakash Bhatia, —, marigold, “ Lord Ram, ” Bhatia, “ Jai Sri Ram, ”, “, Gaurav Shourey, ” ___ Banerjee, Piyush Nagpal Organizations: DELHI, Bharatiya Janata Party, Associated Press Locations: India's, Ayodhya, homestays, India, Modi, Indian, New Delhi, vermillion, Lucknow

☆ Indian markets are ‘priced to perfection'— unlikely to rise much ahead of elections
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-16 | by ( Charmaine Jacob | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Indian equity benchmarks the Nifty 50 and BSE Sensex have rallied by more than 6% since the state elections. The Indian stock markets rallied to new highs in 2023 on the back of bullish investors and stronger domestic participation. But analysts warn that the level of optimism seen last year will not be replicated before the general election concludes. Both the Nifty and Sensex hit record highs of 22,081.95 and 73,000, respectively, during Asia's Monday afternoon trading session. In the past five general elections, Indian markets have climbed an average 18% six months prior, 8% three months before, 2% in the months after the results, and 10% half a year later, said Shantanu Bhargava, managing director and head of listed investments at Waterfield Advisors.

Persons: Narendra Modi's, Sensex, Peeyush Mittal, Mittal, Shantanu Bhargava Organizations: BSE Sensex, Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata, BJP, Matthews Asia, CNBC, Waterfield Advisors

☆ Netflix removed an Indian film after religious viewers criticized meat-eating characters
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-15 | by ( Yoonji Han | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Read previewNetflix pulled an Indian film from its platform just days after it began streaming after backlash from right-wing Hindu groups, reports say. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. The phrase "love jihad" refers to an Islamaphobic conspiracy theory purporting that Muslim men are seducing Hindu women to convert them to Islam. 'Fanaticism won, creativity lost'It's not the first time Netflix and other streaming platforms have faced pressure from religious Hindu groups. AdvertisementNetflix did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

Persons: —, Narendra Modi's, Shri Ram, Annapoorani, — Ramesh Solanki 🇮🇳 ( Organizations: Service, Netflix, Business, Hindu Parishad, Zee Studios Locations: Tamil Nadu

☆ Social media uproar may cost the Maldives millions, as feud with India intensifies
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-10 | by ( Monica Pitrelli | Jonathan Delise | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Social media posts by Maldivian officials may cost the country millions in tourism revenue, as calls by Indian travelers to boycott the island nation intensify. Travel bookings to the Maldives tumbled following a diplomatic row that erupted last week after a series of posts appeared on X, formerly known as Twitter, on India Prime Minister Narendra Modi's account. Amid reports that thousands of Indian travelers have canceled trips to the Maldives, one prominent Indian travel booking website, EaseMyTrip, announced it is suspending flight bookings from India to the Maldives. The Maldives, located some 340 miles to the south, is the preferred playground for India, however. In 2023, more than one in 10 arrivals were from India, making it the country's largest source market, followed by Russia and China, according to Maldives tourism statistics.

Persons: Ankit Chaturvedi, Narendra Modi's, EaseMyTrip, — Organizations: CNBC Travel, India, India Express Locations: India, Maldives, Lakshadweep, Andaman, Sri Lanka, Russia, China

☆ India to be world's third-largest economy by 2030 -S&P Global Ratings
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BENGALURU, Dec 5 (Reuters) - India will remain the fastest-growing major economy for at least the next three years, setting it on course to become the world's third-largest economy by 2030, S&P Global Ratings said in a report. S&P expects India, currently the world's fifth-largest economy, to grow at 6.4% this fiscal and estimates growth will pick up to 7% by fiscal 2027. However, S&P, which had raised its forecast even before the latest data, said India's growth will depend on its successful transition to a manufacturing-dominated economy from a services-dominated one. "A paramount test will be whether India can become the next big global manufacturing hub, an immense opportunity," S&P said in its Global Credit Outlook 2024 report, dated Dec. 4. India has one of the youngest working populations in the world, with nearly 53% of its citizens under the age of 30.

Persons: Narendra Modi's, Nandan Mandayam, Savio D'Souza Organizations: India, Global, Thomson Locations: BENGALURU, India, Bengaluru

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