Author: Liton Paul

Fintech startup EnKash has raised $20 million as a part of its Series B round led by Ascent Capital and joined by Baring India & Singapore-based White Ventures. The round also saw participation from existing investors, Mayfield India, and Axilor Ventures. Founded by Naveen Bindal, Hemant Vishnoi, and Yadvendra Tyagi, EnKash allows startups and SMBs to manage purchase orders, and invoices, and enable and track payments to suppliers or from buyers. The Mumbai-based startup had roughly 30 employees two years ago and now it is close to 120 employees. The startup tracks over  70K businesses and over 500K issued cards.…

Indian and Australian companies may be able to bid in each other’s central government tenders as the bilateral Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) provides for negotiations, in a chapter on government procurement, to begin in the next 75 days. Officials said India is likely to get access to about $10 billion worth of Australia’s official procurement, pegged at $60-65 billion annually. According to the trade pact signed on Friday, a chapter on digital trade will also be negotiated soon. The commerce and industry ministry will begin talks with other ministries on the issue, said officials. “Within 75 days after…

For the first time, government high schools are being set up in tea gardens with 97 of them scheduled to start academic sessions next month, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said on Saturday. To augment the academic environment in the tea gardens, the state government decided to set up 119 model high schools in these areas, Sarma said while addressing the teachers and principals of these newly-built schools at an orientation programme. Of these 119 schools, 97 have been completed and the academic session will start on May 10, he said. The remaining schools will be functional by the…

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati researchers have developed a technology that rates the motors and batteries of electric vehicles and suggests to Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) the best drivetrain components for the Indian conditions. “This is a unique method of its kind which standardises the electronic vehicles based on Indian drive-cycles,” the institute said. So far researchers have not been considering Indian drive-cycles and electric vehicles currently available in the market doesn’t take into account the different climatic conditions in India, it said. “Currently, no OEM uses this technology and they have been requesting the drive-cycle data of Indian…

Imran Khan has officially been denotified as the Prime Minister of Pakistan, according to the latest circular issued by the Pakistan government. However, Imran Khan will continue to hold the office of Pakistan PM until the appointment of a caretaker prime minister in accordance with Article 224 of the Constitution of Pakistan. “Consequent upon the dissolution of Pakistan Assembly by the President of Pakistan in terms of Article 58(1) read with Article 48(1) of the constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan vide Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs, dated 3rd April 2022, Mr Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi ceased to hold the…

Pixxel said in a Twitter update on Saturday that the hyperspectral imaging satellite, carried by a SpaceX Falcon-9 rocket off Cape Canaveral in the US on Friday, had successfully deployed solar panels and antennas, and made several ground passes. Weighing under 15 kg, the satellite can pack 10 m in a pixel, exceeding by a third the specificity of comparable launches by ISRO, NASA, and others, said Pixxel. The satellite can beam down data relating to deforestation, melting of ice caps, gas leakage, crop health and other data critical for climate change assessments. Co-founders Awais Ahmed and Kshitij Khandelwal said…

Guwahati airport, The Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport is set to operate 27 additional flights in Guwahati, increasing the total number of daily flights to 90. The additional flights are for the summer season and have begun as of last Sunday and will be operational until the last Sunday of October. On Saturday, the airport’s spokesperson said that if everything goes as planned, the number of daily flights from the airport will increase from 63 to 90 during the period. As per the spokesperson, new destinations are likely to be added to the list of flights, including Varanasi and Durgapur.…

Andhra Pradesh will double the number of its districts to 26, with the addition of 13 new districts. A meeting of the Council of Ministers will take place on April 7, which is expected to take key decisions on putting in place a new team to run the state. The process of forming new districts in Andhra Pradesh is complete, and Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy will inaugurate the 13 new districts tomorrow. The Chief Minister’s office said in a statement, “The Chief Minister will launch district portals and handbooks to make it possible for people to engage on this…

Qasim Khan Suri, the Deputy Speaker of the Pakistan National Assembly, on Sunday denied the no-confidence resolution against beleaguered Prime Minister Imran Khan, claiming that it violated Article 5 of the country’s constitution. Imran Khan was a former cricketer and is the current prime minister of Pakistan. Deputy Speaker Qasim Khan Suri presided over the important session after the filing of a no-confidence resolution against Speaker Asad Qaiser by opposition groups. As they made their way to Parliament House, members of the opposition, who had earlier expressed confidence in the outcome of the no-trust motion, demonstrated their displeasure with the…

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday held talks with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, a day after the US warned of consequences over attempts to “circumvent” American sanctions against Moscow. The high-level talks took place in the backdrop of indications that India could buy greater volumes of discounted Russian oil and both sides were keen on having a ruble-rupee arrangement for bilateral trade. In his opening remarks at the talks, Jaishankar, referring to the Russia-Ukraine conflict, said India is in favour of resolving differences and disputes through dialogue and diplomacy. “We have diversified our cooperation by expanding our agenda.…