F-16 jets

The US will start training Ukrainian pilots to fly U.S.-made F-16 fighter jets, beginning at an Air National Guard base in October, the Pentagon said Thursday.
The training is part of a U.S. and European effort to get the advanced fighter jets to Ukraine for its defense against invading Russian forces.
American military officials stress it takes years of training to be able to field F-16 squadrons, limiting the impact the aircraft will have on Ukraine's defense for the near future.
This is about the long-term support to Ukraine, the Pentagon spokesman, Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder, told reporters in Washington. This is not about the counteroffensive that they're conducting right now.
The training will take place at Morris Air National Guard base in Tucson, Arizona. The pilots will first undergo English instruction at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas, to bring their fluency up to the level needed to operate the aircraft, starting next month, Ryder said.
Ukraine has long presse

F-16 Falcon

Western countries are sticking to an escalation which carries "enormous risks" for them if they supply Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said

If India opts for the F-21, Lockheed Martin has announced it will transfer the F-16 production line from Texas to here

The U.S. has approved more arms sales to Taiwan, including $619 million worth of munitions for F-16 fighter jets, in a decision likely to be yet another point of friction between the U.S. and China, which claims the island as its own territory.
The State Department said in a statement Wednesday night it had approved sales of missiles to be used with the F-16s as well as equipment to support the missiles. That includes AGM-88 anti-radiation missiles, as well as air-to-air missiles and launchers.
Taiwan is unofficially supported by the U.S. and has a fleet of F-16s bought from the U.S. Tensions between China and the U.S. are at their highest level in years over American support for the self-governed island, including visits by high-ranking politicians, and a host of other issues, including a suspected Chinese spy balloon that crossed the U.S. before being shot down last month.
China considers Taiwan part of its territory to be brought under its control by force if necessary, and has .

The US State Department has said that the Pakistan F-16 programme was an important part of the broader bilateral relationship, as the American Senate did not object to the proposed $450 million deal

No proposal to buy F-16 fighters for IAF: MoS for Defence Subhash Bhamre

After Tata Group, Lockheed Martin signed a deal to jointly produce the F-16 fighter jets in India

Collection in H1 over 50% of BE of Rs 27,625 cr

Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia and Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw have been coordinating in recent months on these projects

PM Gatishakti: 3 upcoming airports on fast track to get rail connectivity

airport

India has told Canada that if any of these diplomats stay after October 10, their diplomatic immunity will be revoked

Justin Trudeau

The run-up in the markets in these last few months, analysts at HSBC said, has made investors nervous about the markets amid multiple headwinds

markets

What the data suggests, however, is that India's numbers are unsustainable. They're driven by debt-fueled household consumption and government investment

Rupee, Indian Rupee, Indian currency

The US is on the brink of a federal government shutdown after hard-right Republicans in Congress rejected a longshot effort to keep offices open as they fight for steep spending cuts and strict border security measures that Democrats and the White House say are too extreme.
Come midnight Saturday with no deal in place, federal workers will face furloughs, more than 2 million active duty and reserve military troops will work without pay and programs and services that Americans rely on from coast to coast will begin to face shutdown disruptions.
The Senate will be in for a rare Saturday session to advance its own bipartisan package that is supported by Democrats and Republicans and would fund the government for the short-term, through Nov. 17.
But even if the Senate can rush to wrap up its work this weekend to pass the bill, which also includes money for Ukraine aid and U.S. disaster assistance, it won't prevent an almost certain shutdown amid the chaos in the House. On Friday, a ...

US Fed Reserve, Fed Reserve

Indian shooters beating the Chinese in their own den at the ongoing Asian Games has enhanced their "self-belief" and given them the confidence that they can beat the "best in the world", said pistol coach Samaresh Jung following the country's marksmen's sizzling performance at the continental showpiece.
Jung, who is in Hangzhou with the Indian contingent, added that the success of the band of young shooters at the Asian Games was a significant "milestone" in their sporting journey.
"They (shooters) need to believe that they can do it, and now they have seen it. Beating a powerhouse like China in China is a big thing and it would certainly enhance their self-belief. This made them realise that they can beat the world," said Jung, who had won five gold medals at the 2006 Melbourne Commonwealth Games, earning him the sobriquet 'Goldfinger'.
"It is the beginning of their journey as they are just 18, 19 or 20-years-old. They have a long way to go but this Asian Games would be the milesto

India's Sarabjot and Divya win silver in Mixed Team 10m air pistol event. Photo: SAI

Asian Games 2023

The hike in prices is likely to hurt consumers as the gas distribution companies are expected to increase prices of CNG and PNG

natural gas pipeline

A groin strain has been troubling Neeraj Chopra for some time now but the Olympic champion does not want the thought of injury affect him as he gears up to defend his Asian Games title.
Chopra played most part of the season with a groin strain but still won the world championships title in August in Budapest and went on to finish second in the Diamond League finals on September 16.
"I have come back here after training and doing rehab in a relaxed manner in Switzerland. I hope to give my 100 per cent and defend my Asian Games title," Chopra told reporters here.
The 25-year-old javelin thrower has Olympic qualification in his mind.
"A little bit of groin issue is still there, it happened last year also. I was feeling better but it happened again. I have to take care of this very well and then prepare for the Paris Olympics. This kind of thing happens for athletes who compete at the top level."
He said the challenge throughout the season was how to keep his mind away from the injury

Neeraj Chopra

The four-month monsoon season has ended with India receiving "normal" rainfall -- 820 mm against a long-period average of 868.6 mm -- with positive factors countering the effect of El Nino conditions, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Saturday.
Rainfall between 94 per cent and 106 per cent of the long-period average (LPA) is considered normal.
However, normal cumulative rainfall over the country during the monsoon season doesn't mean even spatial and temporal spread of precipitation.
The Indian monsoon refers to inherent fluctuations and changes that occur over time due to various natural factors. This is called natural variability.
Research, however, shows climate change is making the monsoon more variable. Increased variability means more extreme weather and dry spells.
IMD Director General Mrutyunjay Mohapatra said with positive factors countering the effect of El Nino, the 2023 monsoon ended with 94.4 per cent cumulative rainfall, which is considered "normal".

Youngsters take a selfie during monsoon rain, near India Gate in New Delhi (Photo: PTI)

Rainfall, Delhi rain, IMD

The combined market valuation of five of the top 10 most valued firms declined by Rs 62,586.88 crore last week, with IT majors Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Infosys taking the biggest hit, amid an overall bearish trends in equities.
Last week, the BSE benchmark fell 180.74 points or 0.27 per cent, and the Nifty declined 35.95 points or 0.18 per cent.
The market valuation of TCS plunged Rs 26,308.58 crore to Rs 12,91,919.56 crore.
Infosys witnessed an erosion of Rs 25,296.43 crore from its valuation which was at Rs 5,95,597.10 crore.
The market valuation of Reliance Industries fell by Rs 5,108.05 crore to Rs 15,87,553.37 crore and that of Hindustan Unilever declined by Rs 3,865.08 crore to Rs 5,79,373.96 crore.
The market capitalisation (mcap) of HDFC Bank dipped Rs 2,008.74 crore to Rs 11,57,145.86 crore.
However, the mcap of Bajaj Finance jumped Rs 20,413.41 crore to Rs 4,73,186.41 crore.
Bharti Airtel added Rs 8,520.13 crore to Rs 5,19,279.14 crore in its valuation while

Even if generative artificial intelligence has been overhyped, it's safe to assume that ChatGPT-type bots will only get better at routine tasks like writing computer software

jobs, IT jobs, IT industry, AI

Half of India's population between the age of 30-55 years believes 59 years should be the age of retirement and thirty-two years is when one should ideally start retirement planning,

investment,saving, money, retirement, rupee

As the festival season approaches, followed by elections, state and national, there will be pressure on liquidity since cash with the public will rise

Banks credit growth

Bidhuri may be a small fry in the larger calculus of the party. Yet, in his blundering and uncultured way, he was voicing in Parliament what has already been normalised on the streets

Bidhuri

The Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Tuesday launched the 'Green war room' which is set up in Delhi to curb the persisting problem of air pollution in the city

A view of Rajpath road engulfed in haze, in New Delhi (Photo: PTI)

India Gate, Delhi pollution

India Inc's financial health measured by the credit ratio, or the proportion of rating upgrades to downgrades, moderated in the first half of current fiscal year and is set to dip marginally further in the second half, Crisil Ratings said on Tuesday.
Crisil, which rates 6,500 companies, however, made it clear that the credit ratio will stay above 1 going forward as well, which means the number of upgrades will outpace the downgrades.
In April-September FY24, there were 443 upgrades as compared to 232 downgrades, the agency said, adding that the credit ratio moderated to 1.91 from 2.19 in the preceding six months.
It said the upgrades are much higher than the decadal average, but the downgrades are inching up lately, largely due to difficulties faced by export-linked sectors due to slowing growth in the world.
Crisil's Managing Director Gurpreet Chhatwal said the moderation in the first half was along expected lines, and the government's infrastructure push and spending are helping 

India Inc credit quality

State-owned Power Finance Corporation (PFC) on Tuesday announced that it has sanctioned Rs 15,000 crore loans for various projects and also forayed into funding of airport projects.
"To reaffirm its commitment towards developing the power sector of the North Eastern Region, PFC held its recent board meeting in Shillong, Meghalaya," a BSE filing said.
PFC has sanctioned loans amounting to Rs 15,000 crore for various projects during its board meeting, it stated.
As part of its diversification strategy and funding for infrastructure projects, PFC sanctioned its maiden financing for a greenfield airport project in Andhra Pradesh, it added.
PFC's board of directors also reviewed strategic agendas pertaining to the company's business diversification strategy, including exploring avenues for expanding the business into new market segments and accelerating the funding in the renewable space, the current domestic and international market scenario and its impact on PFC's borrowing cost, and 

Greenfield Airport

Renaissance Solar and Electronic Materials on Tuesday announced its solar manufacturing venture and a plan of USD 300 million investment in India.
"Renaissance Solar and Electronic Materials (RSOLEC), an innovative solar enterprise with operations in India and the USA, today announced its official launch and establishment, accompanied by a significant planned investment of about USD 300 million," a company statement said.
With global reach and expertise in differentiated solar and electronic materials manufacturing, RSOLEC is set to revolutionise the industry with a strategic focus on Solar Crystal Growth and Wafering, it stated.
The launch of RSOLEC aligns with India's "Atmanirbhar Bharat" mission, showcasing the country's capabilities in the state-of-the-art solar value chain.
The company's primary focus for the next five years will be on crystal growth and wafering in India, contributing significantly to the country's strategic solar manufacturing capacity, it stated.
Over the 

Solar Energy, Renewable Energy, Green Energy

The product will be manufactured at Marksans Pharma's formulation manufacturing facility in Goa, India

F-16 fighters

US will start training Ukrainian pilots on F-16s at air base in Arizona

Russia warns of 'enormous risks' if West supplies F-16 jets to Ukraine

US approves F-16 fighters' munitions sale to Taiwan worth $619 million

Senate has no objections to F-16 deal with Pakistan: US State Dept

No proposal to buy F-16 fighters for IAF: MoS for Defence