Author: Supriya Jena

  • Major Investments from Goldman Sachs & Citigroup in Amber Enterprises”

    Major Investments from Goldman Sachs & Citigroup in Amber Enterprises”

    On Friday, big names in finance, like Goldman Sachs and Citigroup, bought shares of a company called Amber Enterprises. They spent around Rs 210 crore in total. Other investors, including Axis Mutual Fund, Mahindra Manulife Mutual Fund, Tata AIA Life Insurance, and ICICI Prudential Life Insurance, also bought shares through separate deals on the stock market.

    Together, these companies purchased 3.45 lakh shares, which is about 1.02 percent of Amber Enterprises. They bought each share for an average price of Rs 6,075, making the total amount spent close to Rs 209.86 crore.

    Meanwhile, a company named Ascent Investment Holdings sold some of its shares at the same price. After all this trading, the price of Amber Enterprises’ shares went up slightly, ending the day at Rs 6,100 each.

  • Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Unite at Aaradhya’s School Event

    Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai Unite at Aaradhya’s School Event

    Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai, two famous Bollywood stars, came together to attend their daughter Aaradhya’s school event. This special day was all about celebrating the children’s hard work. Aishwarya looked stunning in a beautiful dress, while Abhishek wore a smart outfit. The couple smiled and waved at fans who spotted them. They were proud parents, cheering for Aaradhya as she performed on stage. It was a joyful moment for the family, showing how much they love and support their daughter. Fans were excited to see this lovely family enjoying a day 

  • PP Chaudhary Leads JPC Amid Opposition to One Nation, One Election

    PP Chaudhary Leads JPC Amid Opposition to One Nation, One Election

    On Friday, PP Chaudhary, a Member of Parliament from the BJP, was chosen to lead the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC). The committee will now have 27 members from the Lok Sabha (the lower house) and 12 from the Rajya Sabha (the upper house).

    The idea of ‘One Nation, One Election’ is facing a lot of pushback from opposition parties. They are worried that this plan could give too much power to the ruling party, making it hard for smaller regional parties to have a say.

    Two important Bills have been introduced: The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Amendment) Bill, 2024, and The Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024. These Bills aim to change the Constitution so that elections for the Lok Sabha and state assemblies can happen at the same time across India. The Cabinet approved these Bills last week.

    During the discussion, opposition members were very vocal against the proposal, which led to a vote in the House. In the end, 269 members voted in favor of the Bills’ introduction, while 196 voted against it.

  • U.S. Consumer Spending Rises: Economic Growth and Fed’s Rate Plans

    U.S. Consumer Spending Rises: Economic Growth and Fed’s Rate Plans

    Consumer spending in the U.S. went up by 0.4% in November, showing that the economy is still doing well. This increase led the Federal Reserve (the U.S. central bank) to expect fewer cuts to interest rates in 2025 compared to previous predictions. Spending makes up more than two-thirds of the economy, and even with a small slowdown expected in the coming months, the overall economy is staying strong.

    In the third quarter of the year, the economy grew at a rate of 3.1%, following a 3.0% growth from April to June. The Atlanta Federal Reserve predicts a 3.2% increase in the fourth quarter. Fed Chair Jerome Powell praised the economy, saying it’s performing exceptionally well.

    This week, the Federal Reserve lowered its key interest rate by 0.25% to the 4.25%-4.50% range. They now expect only two cuts to interest rates in 2025, instead of the four cuts they expected in September. This change is due to the economy remaining strong and inflation still being high.

    The job market is also doing well, with low layoffs and rising wages, which helps people spend more. Many families have healthy finances because of high stock market and home prices, leading to more spending. However, some lower-income families are still struggling.

    In November, monthly inflation cooled down slightly. The personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, which measures what people spend, rose by just 0.1% last month, following a 0.2% gain in October. Over the last year, prices rose by 2.4%, slightly up from 2.3% in October. Core inflation, which excludes food and energy prices, also went up by 2.8%.

    The Federal Reserve pays close attention to these price changes as they aim for a 2% inflation target. They had raised interest rates by a total of 5.25 percentage points from March 2022 to July 2023

  • Family Celebrates Grandmother’s Life with Joyful Funeral in Madurai

    Family Celebrates Grandmother’s Life with Joyful Funeral in Madurai

    In a touching story from Madurai, Tamil Nadu, a family honored the last wish of their beloved 96-year-old mother and grandmother, Nagammal, during her funeral. Nagammal, who was the wife of a temple priest, wanted her farewell to be a joyful celebration filled with songs and dances, not sadness.

    Before she passed away due to age-related health issues, Nagammal told her family that she wanted to be remembered with happiness. She had two sons, four daughters, and a large number of grandchildren and great-grandchildren—78 in total!

    To celebrate her life, the family organized a lively ceremony with music and dance performances. Younger family members and local kids showcased their talents, performing folk dances like Kummi, a traditional dance from Tamil Nadu.

    What began as a funeral quickly transformed into a joyous gathering that felt like a village fair. The family joyfully said goodbye to Nagammal, just as she wished, while some traditional mourning songs were played at the end to honor her.

    The community loved how the family turned a typically sad event into a celebration of life. It became a powerful reminder that death is a natural part of life that can be celebrated instead of mourned. Photos and videos of the celebration have gone viral on social media, sparking conversations around celebrating life during natural deaths.

  • 11 Dead in Jaipur-Ajmer Highway LPG Tanker Fire: Eyewitness Horror Stories

    11 Dead in Jaipur-Ajmer Highway LPG Tanker Fire: Eyewitness Horror Stories

    On Friday, the death toll from a serious accident involving an LPG tanker on the Jaipur-Ajmer highway rose to 11. Many of the injured people are in critical condition. The crash caused a massive fire, destroying 37 vehicles and nearby buildings.

    Dr. Deepak Maheshwari, the head of SMS Medical College, reported that 11 people lost their lives. Five were dead when they reached the hospital, five others died during treatment, and one person died at Jaipuria hospital.

    Jaipur Police Commissioner Biju George Joseph explained that the fire started when the LPG tanker’s nozzle was damaged during an accident, causing a dangerous gas leak. The crash happened around 5:30 a.m. near a school, and flames quickly spread to vehicles behind the tanker and coming traffic.

    In total, 43 people were taken to hospitals, with seven of them needing ventilators. Rajasthan’s health minister, Gajendra Singh Khimsar, said many of the injured were in “very critical” condition.

    Eyewitnesses shared shocking stories. A passenger from a burning bus reported hearing a loud blast just before flames enveloped the bus. “We broke the window and jumped out as the fire raged around us,” they said.

    The driver of a school van described seeing flames from a distance and the panic that followed as people ran for safety. “I saw a man on fire. It was terrifying,” he said.

    Another eyewitness recalled how the fire spread quickly, engulfing a whole lane of 100-200 meters. Those who managed to escape survived while others suffered severe burns.

    In response, the Rajasthan government has promised ₹5 lakh (about $6,000) to the families of those who died and ₹1 lakh ($1,200) for the injured.

  • Nitish Kumar to Lead NDA in Bihar Assembly Elections 2025!

    Nitish Kumar to Lead NDA in Bihar Assembly Elections 2025!

    On Friday, the ruling party alliance in Bihar, known as NDA, put to rest rumors about Chief Minister Nitish Kumar not being their leader for the upcoming assembly elections next year. After a meeting aimed at improving teamwork, leaders from the NDA, including the BJP and Nitish Kumar’s party (JD(U)), dismissed doubts raised by a recent statement from Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

    State BJP President Dilip Jaiswal explained that Amit Shah was just emphasizing that big decisions are made by the party’s parliamentary board, not that they are changing leadership. Kumar has been a steady leader for many years, and there’s no plan to change that, Jaiswal assured everyone.

    This clarification came after Amit Shah suggested in an interview that the NDA might decide differently about projecting a chief ministerial candidate for the 2025 polls, similar to what happened in Maharashtra. Shah responded to the question about whether they could go into the polls without announcing a candidate, saying they would discuss things together before making any announcements.

    State leaders quickly jumped in to say that there would be no doubt: the NDA would contest the elections under Nitish Kumar’s leadership. Raju Tiwari, from the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas), shared this view, stating that BJP President Shah confirmed this leadership.

    JD(U) leader Umesh Singh Kushwaha was thrilled with this support for Kumar, expressing optimism about their plans for 2025 and saying they are focused on improving teamwork across the state.

  • Tesla Recalls: Fixing Tire Pressure Warning Light Issues!”

    Tesla Recalls: Fixing Tire Pressure Warning Light Issues!”

    Tesla is fixing an important problem with some of its cars, including the Model 3, Model Y, and Cybertruck. The tire pressure warning light may not always stay on, so drivers might not know when their tires are low on air. This is serious because driving on under-inflated tires can lead to accidents.

    To solve this issue, Tesla will send an over-the-air software update to fix the warning system. In the first three quarters of the year, Tesla’s cars made up 21% of all recalls in the U.S., according to BizzyCar, a company that helps manage recalls. Thankfully, most of these problems can be fixed with software updates instead of going to a repair shop.

    In the third quarter alone, Tesla recalled 1,858,774 vehicles, which is the most in the U.S. this year, but all these issues can be resolved with software updates. Plus, in November, Tesla recalled 2,400 Cybertruck units because a faulty part could cause power loss, which is dangerous. This was the sixth recall for the Cybertruck this year!

  • Telangana Court Halts KTR’s Arrest in Formula-E Investigation”

    Telangana Court Halts KTR’s Arrest in Formula-E Investigation”

    Recently, the Telangana High Court has given some good news to KTR (KT Rama Rao), a leader of the BRS party. The court has told the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) not to arrest him until December 30 in a case related to the Formula-E race in Hyderabad.

    While listening to KTR’s request to drop the case against him, Judge Shravan Kumar Venkat of the High Court said KTR needs to help with the investigation. The case will be looked into again next week. The court also asked the government to respond to KTR’s claims.

    The ACB filed a case against KTR after the governor allowed it, claiming he made some money transfers (some in foreign currency) without proper approval to host the Formula-E race while in office. KTR is named as the main person in this case, with two others, senior IAS officer Arvind Kumar and retired bureaucrat BLN Reddy, also being accused.

    KTR defended himself by saying, “We paid Rs 55 crore for this, and Formula-E accepted the payment. This is all clear and accounted for.” Earlier this year, the government wanted to know why Arvind Kumar signed a deal about the race without proper approval and how Rs 55 crore was paid.

    Also, there was a problem when Formula-E announced that it was canceling the Hyderabad race, saying the new Telangana government broke the contract. This race was supposed to happen on February 10

  • Bombay High Court Backs Adani Group in Dharavi Project Dispute

    Bombay High Court Backs Adani Group in Dharavi Project Dispute

    The Bombay High Court has rejected a challenge from a Dubai-based company, Seclink Technologies Corp, against the Maharashtra government’s decision to give the big Dharavi redevelopment project to the Adani Group. This project, which aims to improve one of Mumbai’s most crowded areas, is known as Asia’s largest urban renewal effort.

    The court’s judges, Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Amit Borkar, explained that their role isn’t to second-guess the decisions made by the authorities about who should get the project. They stated that the government, which issued the bids, knows what it needs best, so the court should interfere only a little bit.

    Seclink Technologies argued that their original bid was higher than the one made by the Adani Group. They claimed they deserved the contract because they were the “rightful highest bidder” from a tender process that began in 2018. However, in November 2022, Adani Properties, part of the Adani Group led by Gautam Adani, won the bidding.

    In this partnership, Adani Group has 80% ownership in the Dharavi Redevelopment Project Pvt Ltd, while the Maharashtra government holds the remaining 20%. Most of the redevelopment will happen on 296 acres, excluding areas like parks and fishing villages.

    Dharavi has over 850,000 residents, and with the temporary population included, that number goes over 1 million. It has an extremely high density of people, making it the most crowded zone in Mumbai, which is itself the sixth most crowded city in the world.

    Seclink also accused the government of making the new tender in October 2022 in a way that purposely kept them out. However, the state’s lawyer, Milind Sathe, explained that things changed because railway land was added to the project, which adjusted the business plan enough to cancel the previous tender.

    Sathe pointed out that Seclink was just one out of eight groups that bid before. He noted that Seclink cannot challenge the tender alone without the other members of its group joining in. If they had concerns about the new bid conditions, they should have raised them earlier. Thus, the High Court dismissed their petition.

    The project is located close to the Bandra Kurla Complex, Mumbai’s main financial area, which houses important banks, stock exchanges, and corporate offices.