Tag Archives: india

A trade body representing thousands of small Indian retailers is opposing a possible government move to allow companies such as Amazon to enter India, in the latest challenge for new Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s drive to spur growth. The Confederation of All India Traders, one of the country’s largest trade …

Air India has joined the Star Alliance group of carriers, a spokesman said on Tuesday, a move that could help boost revenues at the loss-making state-run airline. Executives at Star Alliance met with Air India officials in London on Monday and agreed for the airline, which has been in talks …

He may have retired more than six months ago but the accolades keep trickling in for Indian cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar. London-based luxury goods brand, the East India Company has issued an exclusive gold coin worth a staggering £12,000 in honour of the batsman’s storied 24-year career. “Only 210 gold …

Authorities in India have routinely shirked their responsibility to fight sex attacks in the country, a UN child rights watchdog said today, amid uproar over the horrific gang-rape and lynching of two girls. “There has been a dereliction of duty in relation to rape cases,” said Benyam Mezmur, deputy chairman …

Pakistan and India have increased their nuclear arsenals in the last four years, according to a new report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). The regional rivals have kept pace with each other’s increases with Pakistan maintaining an arsenal of 120 nuclear warheads to India’s 110; up from …

Mozilla, the company behind the Firefox web browser, will start selling a £25 smart phone in India, according to reports. A company official told the Wall Street Journal it would manufacture the handsets in India and begin marketing “within the next few months”. They will run Mozilla’s HTML5 web-based mobile …

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Wednesday that India should respect and protect its women, breaking his silence on a crime wave that included the rape and hanging of two girls two weeks ago. In his first speech to parliament since his landslide election victory last month, Mr Modi promised …

The first census in India to contain a third gender option has found nearly half a million trans people. The data from the census, conducted last year, found 490,000 people identified themselves as ‘third gender’, which is used to refer to trans and intersex people – known culturally as Hijras. …

United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon has become the latest international figure to weigh in on sexual violence against women in India, appealing to Indians to reject "destructive attitudes".

Mr Ban described continuing attacks against women in the country a "peace and security issue" as well as a human rights concern.

“In just the last two weeks, we have seen despicable attacks against women and girls around the world – from Nigeria to Pakistan and from California to India. I was especially appalled by the brutal rape and gruesome murder of two teenaged women in India who had ventured out because they did not have access to a toilet,” Ban told reporters in New York.

"We say no to the dismissive, destructive attitude of 'boys will be boys'", Mr Ban added, referring to comments made last month by politician Mulayam Singh Yadav who publicly opposed capital punishment for gang rapists saying, men make "mistakes" because "boys will be boys".

Mr Ban's comments come after a number of shocking attacks on young girls, including the gang rape and murder of two teenage sisters in Uttar Pradesh and the case of a 22-year-old woman who was gang raped and strangled to death before the attackers threw acid on her face in a bid to hide her identity.

The Secretary General is spearheading a new United Nations campaign which aims to raise awareness and advocate against violence against women around the world.

“I will be raising my voice – and I count on all of you to join our chorus demanding action around the world. 

“We must put an end to these unacceptable, intolerable acts”.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government could allow foreign direct investment in the country’s e-commerce sector as early as next month, paving the way for global online retailers such as Amazon to expand their business, according to a Reuters report. A more robust online retail sector will spur manufacturing and …