Milind Deora, who took charge as Minister of State for IT and Communication on Wednesday, said he looked forward to doing "something new...with fresh ideas" in coordination with his young colleague Sachin Pilot in the ministry. A two-time Congress MP from South Mumbai, the 34-year old Deora said there is scope for improvement in the ministry, while emphasising o
Mobile payment services, which is estimated to be USD 350 billion of payments and banking transactions by 2015, could generate about Rs 20,250 crore as fee income for banks and telecoms, according to a report by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). "It is far less costly to offer banking and payments services using mobile technology than to build new branches," BCG India
The Haryana government has implemented a project for digitising and updating the entire revenue record of the state by using high resolution satellite imageries. The main objective of the project was to develop a modern, comprehensive and transparent land records management system in the state to implement the conclusive land titling system with title guarantee based on four basi
Devotees of Saibaba can now book online slots for darshan, reserve rooms and pay donations, thanks to a hi-tech project being developed by Pune-based Cognizant Technology Solutions, chairman of the temple trust said. The Rs 22-crore `Sai Tech Project` will be inaugurated on Friday by Maharashtra Speaker Dilip Valse Patil and state Agriculture Minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, ch
Al-Qaeda is increasingly using online technology, including the popular social networking sites, to launch a "cyber-jihad" against the West, the British government has warned, citing terror attacks like the 26/11 Mumbai strikes. The UK`s updated counter-terrorism strategy released on Tuesday suggests that terrorists` use of social media to disseminate information and ra
The government on Wednesday made it clear that social networking sites must comply with the security agencies` requirement for a real-time monitoring of their user data to ensure that national security is not compromised. In the backdrop of a raging controversy over BlackBerry posing security concerns, security agencies have asked the Telecom Ministry to provide real-time monitor
The government on Wednesday asked the Nandan Nilekani headed panel on direct transfer of subsidies to suggest measures for modernising the public distribution system (PDS), which has been plagued by large scale leakages. "It has been decided to extend the terms of reference of the task force (under UIDAI Nilekani) to the reforms of PDS," Finance Ministry said in
Extending its partnership with IBM, telecom major Bharti airtel has now awarded a 10-year contract to the technology giant for providing IT solutions to its employees across 16 African countries. Under the new agreement, IBM will provide end-user services to airtel employees across Africa in French and English. It will provide a standard operating environment, `help desk` and `de
A new generation politician, Milind Deora, who has inherited his father`s legacy, makes a debut in the Union Council of Ministers and is one of its youngest members. The 34 years old, modern, dynamic and suave, Milind is a two-term Member of Lok Sabha from South Mumbai, a constituency nurtured by his father and former Corporate Affairs Minister Murli Deora who resigned just days
Telecom services provider Bharti Airtel is mulling to list its tower unit, Bharti Infratel, by selling 10 per cent stake to raise around USD 1 billion (nearly Rs 4,500 crore) to fund expansion. According to industry sources, "Since the company had raised USD 1.25 billion in 2007-08 from PE firms, it needs to give them (investors) an exit option." They sai
UAE telecom giant Etisalat has hit back at DB Group for filing legal proceedings over alleged mismanagement of their Indian joint venture, Etilsalat DB, this week, terming it "baseless". The DB group had moved the Mumbai bench of the Company Law Board against Etisalat, accusing it of operational mismanagement and delays in rolling out services. The complaint was filed b
Early stage venture capital fund, Indian Angel Network (IAN), has invested around USD one million in a Mumbai-based real estate portal GrOffr.com for a minority stake. The real estate group-buying portal, co-founded by Sandeep Reddy and Vikhyat Srivastava, helps customers get attractive deals on their planned purchases of real estate, cars and other high value assets.
Prices of mobile handsets are likely to increase in Tamil Nadu as the state has hiked value-added tax (VAT) to 14.5 per cent from 4 per cent, a development that may promote grey market. The state government, yesterday, announced that it would increase VAT from the present 4 per cent tax to 14.5 per cent on electronic goods like LCD panels, DVDs, mobile phones, iphones and ipods a
The Department of Information Technology (DIT) on Tuesday set December as deadline to complete the development of a platform that would enable government-to- citizen services on mobile phones. "We should have a completely developed mobile service delivery platform by December," Shankar Aggarwal, additional secretary, DIT said during consultations with stakeholde
Sony India aims to double its VAIO brand sales in India to 5 lakh laptops and is eyeing 20 per cent market share in the country`s notebooks market in the current year, a top company official said on Tuesday. "We are targeting 20 per cent market share in notebooks market in India in current year, as compared to our 15 per cent market share last year," Sony India Managing
Yash Birla Group company Mansycom Consultants on Tuesday said it has partnered with Google to market and distribute the search engine giant`s premium 3-dimensional modeling software package `Google SketchUp Pro` in India. "The tie-up to distribute and market Google SketchUp Pro is synergetic with our company operations, as we are into 3D, 4D and 5D simulation services field
Pushing ahead with his campaign for a more consumer-friendly approach, State Power Minister Ajay Singh Yadav on Tuesday directed power utilities in the state to set up a special cell where people can reach him directly through e-mail for redressal of grievances. The Power Minister, who was presiding over a review meeting of senior officers of the Haryana Power Utilities in Chandi
IT bellwether Infosys on Tuesday said it expected this year to be a normal year for the IT industry but was concerned about when the IT budgets would be spent. On the macro environment, Infosys CEO and Managing Director S Gopalakrishnan said, "we have given our guidance 18-20 per cent for the full year which we have not revised. From a calibration perpsective, the bu
The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) is believed to have turned down the request of Mahindra Satyam to fully adjust taxes paid by its erstwhile owner Ramalinga Raju on fictitious income. Tech Mahindra had acquired Satyam Computer, after a multi-crore accounting fraud in the company came to light in January 2009. After acquisition, the company was re-branded as Mahindra Satya
Private sector insurance company Royal Sundaram Alliance has integrated with Insurance Regulator Development Authority s centralised grievance redressal mechanism --Integrated Grievances Management System. The integration of Royal Sundaram in IGMS, would allow policy holders to register and track their complaints online with the company or with the regulator, a statement said.
