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Sony Acquires Insomniac Games

Sony has added another acclaimed studio to its development family. Ahead of Gamescom 2019, the company announced today that it has acquired Insomniac Games, the developer behind the Ratchet and Clank series and, most recently, PS4's critically acclaimed Marvel's Spider-Man. Insomniac Games is joining PlayStation's Worldwide Studios!" the official PlayStation Twitter account announced. "We are honored and thrilled to join forces with this legend........

Southern Railway hit by severe cash crunch

Amid an unprecedented cash crunch, the Southern Railway has sent an SOS to the Ministry of Railways that if adequate funds are not allotted by August-end, it would have no option but to terminate onboard housekeeping services (OBHS), pest control and supply of linen contracts on all 110 long-distance trains. While officials prepare to face passenger complaints on dirty coaches, smelly toilets and non-supply of linen in air-conditioned compartments in the event of withdrawing the on board services, Southern Railway hopes to receive ........

Mahindra Cuts 1500 Jobs As Slowdown Crisis Worsens

One of India's largest automobile manufacturers, (M&M) Mahindra and Mahindra announced plans for deferring of investments, and also said they would be cutting 1,500 jobs this financial year, thanks to the auto industry's prolonged negative growth, according to the International Business Times. Pawan Goenka, Managing Director, Mahindra and Mahindra, said, "About 15%-20% of capex from our original capex plan could be deferred. Ho........

Delhi HC seeks Centre, J-K stand on Shah Faesal’s plea against his detention

The Delhi High Court on Monday sought to know the Centre’s and the Jammu and Kashmir administration’s stand on a plea by Shah Faesal, the IAS officer from J&K who resigned earlier this year to take up politics, alleging that he was detained illegally at the New Delhi airport and later sent to the Valley against his wishes. While seeking the court’s directions to the authorities to “immediately set him at liberty”, Faesal submitted th........

Corporate tax to be cut gradually to 25%: Nirmala Sitharaman

On a day when the direct tax code task force submitted its report with the government, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Monday the government would trim the corporate tax rate gradually to 25% for all companies, including the large ones with an annual turnover of over Rs 400 crore. She, however, didn’t give a time frame for this move. The government has, over the last five years, trimmed the rate to 25% from 30% in a phased manner for 99.3% of com........

Pakistan army chief gets three-year extension

Pakistan’s army chief, General Qamar Javed Bajwa, was handed a three-year extension on Monday as tension with neighbouring India flared this month over the disputed territory of Kashmir, the prime minister’s office said. The two nuclear-armed countries have exchanged fire along the disputed line of control (LoC) that separates Pakistani and Indian controlled Kashmir following India’s decision to revoke special status for its portion of Kashmir. “The decision has been taken in view of the regional security envi........

Jammu and Kashmir administration announces opening of middle-level schools across Valley from Wednesday

The Jammu and Kashmir administration on Monday announced that middle-level schools across Kashmir Valley will open from Wednesday. Jammu and Kashmir Director of Information and Public Relations Syed Sehrish Asgar spoke to the media in Srinagar on Monday. ANI The decision was stated during a joint press conference in Srinagar, addressed by Director Information and Public Relations, Dr Syed Sehrish Asgar, Deputy Inspector General of Police (CKR), VK Birdi and Director School Education Kashmir, Muhammad Younis ........

Article 370: After Row Over Its Stand in UNSC, UK Clarifies it Didn't Back China's Stand

The United Kingdom has ‘clarified’ that it did not back China or Pakistan during Friday’s ‘closed-door’ United Nations Security Council (UNSC) meeting over recent developments in Kashmir after India revoked Article 370 of its Constitution, thereby scrapping ‘special status’ of the now-former state. According to reports, several senior British diplomatic officials said that the country neither took sides in the meeting nor did it support China against India as their long-standing position is that Kashmir should be bilaterally resolved betw........

Obituary: RIP Khayyam, The Man of Melody, Soul, Indianness And Humanitarian Gestures

When living legend Lata Mangeshkar tweeted to describe music maestro Khayyam’s demise as the “end of an era”, she said it all. Khayyam’s music, soaked in the spirit of rich classical allure, represents the sort of melody unthinkable in Bollywood mainstream nowadays. He was one of the last bastions of an era of Hindi film music that has all but ended – one that was defined by inherently Indian melody that celebrated the sounds and culture of the soil. Come to think of it, even in the era wh........

Retirement age for Central Forces staff fixed at 60

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Monday fixed the retirement age for all Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF), irrespective of rank, at 60 years. According to an order by the MHA, the retirement age will be applicable to personnel of Central Reserve Police Forces (CRPF), Border Security Force (BSF), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and regular cadre of the Paramilitary component of the Assam Rifle........

Visa critical of India's move towards no-fee debit card transactions

Global card payments group Visa is critical of the Indian government’s decision to boost adoption of electronic payments by requiring banks and card payment networks to offer no-fee debit card transactions, a senior Visa executive said. Last month, India’s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that businesses with annual turnover of 500 million rupees will not have to pay a merchant discount rate on debit card and other digital modes of tran........

On dialogue with Pak, PM Modi conveys India’s clear stand to Donald Trump

Against the backdrop of the Pakistani leadership’s belligerent claims that India’s change of the status of Jammu and Kashmir could lead to war, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told US President Donald Trump on Monday that “extreme rhetoric and incitement to anti-India violence” wasn’t conducive to peace. Modi made the remarks during a 30-minute phone conversation with Trump, according to an Indian readout. The contact between the two leaders c........

"Not Proud As An Indian...": Amartya Sen's Critique Of Kashmir Move

Nobel laureate Dr Amartya Sen vehemently criticised the government's move on Kashmir, saying it not only emphasised majority rule "as opposed to it sustaining the rights of all human beings". "I don't think ultimately you will have any resolution in Kashmir without democracy," he told NDTV in an interview. "As an Indian, I am not proud of the fact that India, after having done so much to achieve a democratic norm in the world -- where India was the first non-Western country to go for democracy -- that we lose that reputation on the grounds of action that have been taken". The gove........

Tesla shows interest in building large e-battery plants in India

Major companies like Tesla and Amperex Technology Co. Ltd have shown interest in India's plan to build large factories to produce lithium-ion batteries.The Indian government had earlier announced an investment of Rs 50,000 crore to build battery manufacturing plants in the country. Narendra Modi-led BJP government's initiative to make India a global manufacturing hub for electric vehicles and their components has been luring the global investors. India is currently the world's third-largest crude oil importer. If India can slash crude consumption it can save precious foreign exchange, be........

Most Indians feel napping may improve work productivity

A new survey found that most Indians felt napping at work might improve productivity, adding that a nap room could contribute towards better workflow. For the results, Wakefit.co, an online sleep solutions start-up, conducted a nation-wide survey to emphasise the importance of sleep wellness in the workplace. The ‘Right to Work Naps’ survey, conducted with over 1,500 respondents, showed that a 70 per cent of people did not have a nap room at their workplaces and 86 per cent of the respondents confirmed that a nap room would definitely help improve overall productivity at work. The researc........

Multiple blasts in Afghanistan leave 66 injured

At least 66 civilians sustained injuries in multiple blasts in Afghanistan's Nangarhar province on Monday, state media reported. The incident took place on Monday morning in Jalalabad city on the 100th Independence Day of Afghanistan, reported Pajhwok Afghan News agency. Details regarding the nature of the blast are yet to be ascertained. The incident comes two days after the wedding hall suicide blast in Kabul that claimed the lives o........