WHO Certifies India as Polio Free

India has been awarded a ‘Polio Free’ status by way of an official certification presented by the World Health Organisation (WHO). India is among other countries in its South East Asian region which have been certified as being free of the wild polio virus. India has been polio free since January 2011, as per Mr Ghulam Nabi Azad, Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.

3G growth in India beats world average

Data traffic powered by third-generation (3G) services grew at 146 per cent in India during 2013, according to an MBit Index study by Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN). The data consumed per subscriber for 3G is 532 megabytes (MB), against 146 MB for 2G.

RBI opens the field wider for foreign investments

To attract more investments into the equity and debt markets, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has decided to put in place a framework for investments which allows foreign portfolio investors to participate in open offers, buyback of securities and disinvestment of shares by Central or State Governments.

Indian solar installations are forecast to be approximately 1,000 MW

Indian solar installations are forecast to be approximately 1,000 megawatt (MW) in 2014, according to Mercom Capital Group, a global clean energy communications and consulting firm.

Spices exports up 27 per cent in volume terms

India’s spice exports registered a 27 per cent growth both in terms of volume and dollar terms of value during April-December 2013. The steady growth of spice exports reiterates the unshaken global demand for Indian spices.

Lupin buys Mexican firm

Lupin has acquired Mexico’s speciality pharmaceutical company Laboratorios Grin for an undisclosed sum. "The acquisition reflects Lupin’s commitment to expand into the Latin American market and build its global specialty business," said Ms Vinita Gupta, Chief Executive Officer, Lupin Ltd.

IIM-A joins hands with Harvard, MIT and Berkeley for research

The Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad (IIMA) will be a convener for research projects to be executed in association with US universities like Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), University of California, Berkeley and Harvard University. The projects will begin in June 2014 and would result in student and faculty exchange.

Online hiring activity in India improves

Online hiring across India has increased for the fifth month and registered a growth of 7.4 per cent during February 2014 as compared to the previous month, according to the Monster Employment Index.

Online platforms could contribute Rs 2.49 lakh cr to Internet economy by 2015

Online platforms that support user-generated content can become an important part of India’s internet economy and contribute around Rs 2.49 trillion (US$ 41.33 billion) by 2015, according to Global Network Initiative (GNI) report titled ‘Closing the Gap: Indian Online Intermediaries and a Liability System Not Yet Fit for Purpose’.

Swiss firm Galderma eyes India skincare, beauty market

Galderma, a Switzerland-based pharmaceutical company, owned by food and beverage giant Nestle, plans to tap the Rs 30,000 crore (US$ 4.94 billion) skincare and beauty market in India.

Cipla bets big on cell therapy

Stem cells are set to be a major branch of medical treatment, as per Dr Y K Hamied, Chairman, Cipla. Regenerative medicine, or cell therapy, is a rapidly emerging area of biomedical research and would be an ideal supplement for existing medical treatments. In India, the stem cell business is expected to touch US$ 8 billion by 2015.