Rs.194 cr released to 96 cities under Smart City Mission for preparation of city plans

The Ministry of Urban Development has sanctioned Rs 194 crore (US$ 22.9 million) to prepare city plans for the 96 cities selected under the Smart City Mission.

305 cities and towns identified for building houses for urban poor under Housing for All scheme

The Government of India has announced the names of 305 cities and towns for construction of houses for the urban poor. These cities are from the nine states out of 15 which have signed Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with the Ministry of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation for implementing necessary reforms in the housing sector.

Public-Private Online Partnership to Scale up Skill Development in India

The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) has scheduled a Google+ Hangout on September 02, 2015, in association with The World Bank, for greater engagement of the Indian corporate sector towards India’s skill development initiatives.”

US$ 250 billion opportunity to invest in renewables: Piyush Goyal

Mr Piyush Goyal, Minister for Power, Coal and Renewable Energy, Government of India has outlined huge investment opportunity of US$ 250 billion in the renewable energy space in India, which includes peripheral transmission and generation segments.

Value of India’s top 30 software product start-ups crosses $10 bn

The top 30 software product start-ups in India are valued at US$ 10.25 billion, a 20 per cent increase from October 2014, according to iSPIRT's India Software Products Industry Index–B2B

Global funds eyeing infra assets, betting on govt push for growth

Global funds such as Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets (MIRA), I Squared Capital , Brookfield Asset Management Inc. are investing in Indian road construction and power projects as a result of government’s efforts to improve infrastructure and ease the operating environment for such projects.

India’s manufacturing PMI: best in Asia

Among all the emerging market Asian economies, apart from Vietnam, India was the only one to indicate expansion in manufacturing sector with its Nikkei Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) at 52.3 for August 2015, as compared to July 2015.

Services sector improves further on new business orders: PMI

The Nikkei India Services Business Activity Index rose to 51.8 in August 2015 from 50.8 in July 2015 as the pace of increase in new orders was the fastest in past five months

NITI Aayog to organize a workshop on Transforming Urban India

NITI Aayog is organizing a workshop to provide a platform for exchange of ideas and knowledge among key stakeholders with regard to the development of smart and sustainable cities.

MAT relief for foreign investors

Government of India has accepted the recommendation of A.P. Shah committee to not impose minimum alternate tax (MAT) on overseas portfolio investors retrospectively for the years prior to April 01, 2015, thereby providing significant relief to foreign institutional investors (FIIs).

Maritime sector to get investment promotion cell

The Indian Ports Association (IPA) is planning to set up an investment promotion and facilitation cell in association with Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and Ministry of Shipping in order to attract investments in the maritime sector.