Heena Sharma Blog

We came to know about Fingers with its TWS pods (Review), the Bluetooth earbuds were spot on with the sound quality. The brand recently brought Chic Dual.D Bluetooth neckband to up the ante in the already cluttered wireless earphones category. Fingers Chic Dual.D derives its name from the dual drivers that are also the highlight of the neckband-style earphones. Fingers Chic Dual.D has matte finish with black and cherry colour combination. The earbuds are not too small or big and you can see the drivers nestled under them and can be seen through the transparent plastic portion. The earbuds does slip off from ears if you're doing any activity while wearing them. So, if you plan to workout using the earphones, you might have to adjust them repeatedly. Read More

The police in Aligarh has issued prohibitory notices to 4,000 people, restricting their movement and warning them of action if there was any trouble in the Uttar Pradesh town on Friday. The police have issued notices to 200 people with a criminal background under Section 110 (G) of the CrPc and initiated process of the Goonda Act against 50 persons. Besides, around 100 arms license holders, who are residents of Shahjamal, Jamalpur and Jeevangarh areas, where protests are going on, have been issued warning notices, threatening cancellations of their licenses, if they were seen at the protest sites. Aligarh SSP, Muniraj G, said that 'red notices' had been issued to 2,000 anti-social elements, informing them about restrictions on their movement and 2,000 others were issued notices under section 107/116 of the CrPC asking them to sign bonds wherein they would undertake not to breach peace. Read More

Benchmark indices were trading extremely weak, down over 2 per cent, on Friday in line with a coronavirus -led sell-off in global markets. Global share prices are headed for the worst week since the darkest days of the world financial crisis in 2008 as investors braced for the coronavirus to become a pandemic and rapidly spread around the world. The S&P BSE Sensex was down 1,1111 points, or 2.8 per cent, at 38,630 levels after opening at over five-month low. Tech Mahindra (down 5%), Tata Steel, Tata Finance, and HCL Tech (all down 4%) were the top losers in the Sensex pack. All the constituents of the 30-pack index were in the red. The broader Nifty50 index plunged 325 points, or 2.8 per cent, to 11,308 levels. All the Nifty sectoral indices were painted red. Nifty Metal, Nifty IT, and Nifty Realty indexes were trading with over 3 per cent cut each. In the broader market, the S&P BSE MidCap index slid 426 per cent, and the S&P BSE SmallCap index was down 408 ...

Goldman Sachs Group boosted its gold forecast to $1,800 an ounce as the coronavirus , depressed real rates and increased focus on the US election continue to drive demand for the metal as a haven. The bank raised its 12-month projection by $200, and said “in the event that the virus effect spreads to Q2, we could see gold top $1800/oz already on a 3-month basis.”

Vistara took the delivery of its first wide-body Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner plane on Friday, making it the first Indian airline to fly this aircraft. The plane, which has the registration number VT-TSD, will depart from the Boeing facility here at 2 pm (local time) on Friday and land in Delhi at 2 pm (local time) on Saturday, Vistara officials said here. The new aircraft is the first of the six that Vistara has purchased from Boeing. The second Dreamliner aircraft is currently on the production line and will be delivered soon. Vistara's Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft comes with 299 seats in a three-class cabin configuration, giving customers a choice of business, premium economy and economy cabins. The aircraft features lie-flat business class seats in a 1-2-1 configuration that gives a direct aisle access to each business class passenger and a separate premium economy cabin that offers seats in a 2-3-2 configuration. Read More

Despite being launched in September, iPhone 11 raced to become the second-best selling model globally with 2.1 per cent share in 2019, a new report said on Thursday. According to Counterpoint Research's 'Market Pulse', out of the top 10 models, Apple captured six places with iPhone XR being the top-selling model globally in 2019, capturing 3 per cent market share. iPhone XR was also the only model to capture double-digit market share in any region (NAM region -- US and Canada). Apple is followed by Samsung with three models, all from its A series, among the top 10. The mid-range A series with features like OLED display, multiple cameras, in-display fingerprint sensor, coupled with the brand power of Samsung created an excellent value proposition for buyers. "The revamp of A series has paved the way for a successful mid-tier strategy for Samsung," said the report. The first iPhone with multiple cameras was launched at a lower price than its predecesso...

Microsoft on Wednesday lowered its revenue estimates for the current quarter, saying it will feel the impact of the coronavirus epidemic with lower sales of Windows software and Surface devices. The US tech giant became the latest global firm to warn of a financial hit from the global outbreak of the disease which has killed thousands worldwide. "Although we see strong Windows demand in line with our expectations, the supply chain is returning to normal operations at a slower pace than anticipated," Microsoft said in a statement. As a result, Microsoft said that in the current fiscal quarter its revenues will fall short of earlier forecasts, with Windows and Surface "more negatively impacted than previously anticipated. Read More

ICSE class 10 board exam , conducted by the council for the Indian School Certificate Examination, is set to commence from today and will end on March 30. The students will be appearing for the English paper on the first day of examinations. Nearly 200,000 students are set to appear for the ICSE Board Exam this year. ICSE Board Exam 2020: Instructions for ICSE class 10 students 1. Reach the exam centre 30 minutes before the exam schedule 2. Don't forget to carry admit card to the exam center 3. Utilise 15 minutes of reading time properly 4. Try to attempt all questions ICSE Class 10 Exam Timetable

iQOO is the latest player in the Indian smartphone market, and it has started with a bang with its 5G smartphone iQoo 3 that sports a combination of powerful specifications and notable features that brings it in direct competition with OnePlus smartphones and Realme X50 Pro 5G. We got our hands on the device and here are the first impressions: Specifications The 5G version of iQoo 3 comes with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. The key highlight of the phone is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 chipset. This is an octa-core SoC manufactured using a 7nm process with Kryo 585 cores backed by Adreno 650 GPU. The smartphone also supports the latest UFS3.1 storage and LPDDR5 RAM. A simple glance at the specifications makes it clear that iQOO plans to make it big and better right from the start rather than aiming at the already cluttered mid-range segment. Read More

Seven more fatalities have been recorded at three hospitals, taking the total death toll in the northeast Delhi communal violence over the amended citizenship law to 34 on Thursday, according to senior officials. Till Wednesday night, the total count of casualties had stood at 27, 25 of those at GTB Hospital in Dilshad Garden. "Five more deaths recorded at GTB Hospital, and one more death at LNJP Hospital. One fatality was reported at Jag Pravesh Chandra Hospital on Thursday, taking the total death toll to 34," a senior official of the Delhi Health Department told PTI. One person was declared brought dead by doctors, while another had died during treatment at the LNJP Hospital on Wednesday. Over 50 patients have been provided treatment at the LNJP Hospital since the violence broke out on Sunday in various parts of northeast Delhi, officials at the hospital said. Read More

An Indian Air Force aircraft on Thursday evacuated 76 Indians and 36 foreign nationals from the coronavirus -hit Chinese city of Wuhan. The C-17 Globemaster III transport aircraft was sent to Wuhan on Wednesday and it carried 15 tonnes of medical supplies for coronavirus-affected people in China. On its return, the aircraft brought back 112 people including 23 citizens from Bangladesh, six from China, two each from Myanmar and the Maldives and one each from South Africa, the US and Madagascar. Earlier, India had evacuated around 650 Indians from Wuhan in two Air India flights. "In all 723 Indian nationals and 43 foreign nationals have been evacuated from Wuhan, China in these three flights," the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said. Read More

CBSE exam 2020 : CBSE has postponed Class 12 exam in northeast Delhi scheduled today while exams will be held in remaining areas as per schedule, Central Board of Examination said in a statement. The exams scheduled for February 27, 2020 are now postponed and the new dates will be notified shortly, CBSE said. "Considering request of Delhi government and to avoid inconvenience to students, staff and parents, the board has decided to postpone the exam for Class 12 in northeast part of Delhi," Central Board of Secondary Education Secretary Anurag Tripathi said. The exam has been postponed at 73 centres in northeast Delhi and seven centres in the eastern part. Taking note of the "worsening situation" in violence-hit areas, the Delhi High Court said it was doubtful that board exams could be held there and directed the CBSE to come up with a plan to reschedule them or change the affected centres. Read More

In his first reaction to incidents of violence in Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday appealed for peace and brotherhood, and said he has held an extensive review of the prevailing situation in various parts of the national capital. He also said it was important that calm and normalcy was restored at the earliest. "Had an extensive review on the situation prevailing in various parts of Delhi. Police and other agencies are working on the ground to ensure peace and normalcy," Modi tweeted. "Peace and harmony are central to our ethos. I appeal to my sisters and brothers of Delhi to maintain peace and brotherhood at all times," he added. At least 20 people have been killed in communal violence in north east Delhi for the last few days. Read More

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Wednesday said that GSLV-F10 will launch geo imaging satellite, GISAT-1 , from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota on March 5. The launch is scheduled to take place at 5.43 pm. "Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV-F10) will launch geo imaging satellite (GISAT-1) from the second launch pad of the SDSC SHAR, Sriharikota. The launch is tentatively scheduled at 1743 Hrs IST on March 05, 2020, subject to weather conditions," ISRO said. Weighing about 2,275 kg, GISAT-1 is a state-of-the-art agile Earth observation satellite that will be placed in a 'geosynchronous transfer orbit' by GSLV-F10. Subsequently, the satellite will reach the final geostationary orbit using its onboard propulsion system. A four metre-diameter ogive shaped payload fairing is being flown for the first time in this GSLV flight. This is the fourteenth flight of the GSLV, the space organisation said. Read More

CBSE exam 2020 : CBSE has postponed Class 10, 12 exams in northeast Delhi scheduled today while exams will be held in remaining areas as per schedule, Central Board of Examination said in a statement. The exams scheduled for February 26, 2020 are now postponed and the new dates will be notified shortly, CBSE said. The decision comes after the Delhi High Court on Tuesday had asked the CBSE to decide at the earliest on rescheduling Wednesday's board exam at one of the centres in the north-east Delhi where violence related to the Citizenship (Amendment) Act have claimed 13 lives. "Based on the request of the Directorate of Education and the government of Delhi and to avoid inconvenience to the students, staff and parents, the board has decided to postpone the exams scheduled for February 26, 2020 in northeast Delhi," CBSE said in a statement. Read More

At least 20 people have been killed in the Delhi during violent clashes between Hindu and Muslim groups over Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), according to GTB Hospital authorities, although there was an eerie calm on Wednesday in the riot-torn areas. "There are 15 patients in critical condition," the hospital official from the Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital said, adding a total of 20 people had now died at the facility. Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal the situation has become "alarming" and asked the Centre to bring in the Army. Meanwhile, the high court has directed police to respond by 12:30 pm on Wednesday to a plea seeking lodging of FIRs and arrests of those involved in the ongoing communal violence in parts of northeast Delhi over CAA. The Supreme court is scheduled to hear pleas claiming BJP's Kapil Mishra incited violence later in the day. Read More

Smartphone and smart TV brand Xiaomi on Tuesday announced it would bring ISROs Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System NavIC technology to its smartphones. Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC) is the regional geo-positioning system designed in the country by the city-headquartered Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to provide accurate positioning in India and 1500 km around the Indian mainland. The capability has been currently enabled by Qualcomm Technologies Inc on several of their Qualcomm Snapdragon Mobile Platforms and will be made available across multiple Xiaomi smartphones in India, Xiaomi said in a statement. In 2020, several Xiaomi smartphones across multiple price points will support NavIC initially supported by some Snapdragon chipsets. The implementation was possible after R&D efforts from Xiaomi for software along with ISRO's (Indian Space Research Organisation) and Qualcomms efforts, it said. Read More

After launching several smartphones last year, Chinese smartphone brand Realme is continuing to bring more smartphones to the Indian market. After the Realme 5i, the company has brought the Realme C3, aimed at those who love to binge-watch movies and web series. The Realme C3 comes with some notable software and hardware upgrades over the Realme C2, including MediaTek's Helio G70 Processor chipset and a 5,000-mAh battery. In the first impression, we felt the smartphone was worthy of some praise but we couldn't just do that at its face value, so we used the phone for a few days and here is what we found: Design and display The phone's textured back panel is a deviation from the usual gradient design we see in most smartphones these days. Apart from that, the phone is lightweight, despite a 5, 000mAh battery. The power and volume buttons are on the right and left sides, respectively. But they are very sleek, hence a bit difficult to locate. The phone has a tra...

A viral outbreak that began in China has infected more than 80,000 people globally. The World Health Organization has named the illness COVID-19, referring to its origin late last year and the coronavirus that causes it. The latest figures reported by each government's health authority as of Tuesday in Beijing: Mainland China: 2,663 deaths among 77,658 cases, mostly in the central province of Hubei Hong Kong: 81 cases, 2 deaths Macao: 10 cases Japan: 850 cases, including 691 from a cruise ship docked in Yokohama, 4 deaths South Korea: 893 cases, 8 deaths Italy: 229 cases, 7 deaths Singapore: 89 cases Iran: 61 cases, 12 deaths United States: 35 cases; separately, 1 US. Read More

The White House is readying an urgent budget request to address the deadly coronavirus outbreak whose rapid spread is spooking financial markets and restricting international travel. The request is still being developed but is likely to come this week, a senior administration official confirmed Monday. The Department of Health and Human Services has already tapped into an emergency infectious disease rapid response fund and is seeking to transfer more than $130 million from other HHS accounts to combat the virus but is pressing for more. Among the needs is funding to reimburse the Pentagon, which is housing evacuees from China — who are required to undergo 14-day quarantines — at several military bases in California. Democrats controlling the House wrote HHS Secretary Alex Azar earlier this month to request funds to help speed development of a coronavirus vaccine, expand laboratory capacity, and beef up screening efforts at US entry points. Azar is slated to testify before ...

Chinese behemoth BBK Group's smartphone brand iQOO on Tuesday launched its first flagship smartphone iQOO 3 with 5G capabilities in India, starting from Rs 36,990. The smartphone will be available in three colour options and three variants -- Rs 36,990 (8+128GB 4G), Rs 39,990 (8+256GB 4G) and Rs 44,990 (12+256GB 5G). The device will go on sale starting from March 4 at 12 noon on Flipkart and iqoo.com, said the company. 'With iQOO 3, we have introduced industry's latest innovations like 5G enabled Snapdragon 865 processor for tech-savvy buyers. iQOO 3 offers highly personalized, cutting-edge and innovative solutions that make it easy for users to get the most out of their device,' said Gagan Arora, Director-Marketing, iQOO India. The smartphone is equipped with 6.44-inch Super AMOLED display with HDR 10+ standard certification which supports HDR high-dynamic range video-content playback. Read More

Samsung brought its second foldable phone Galaxy Z Flip in India. The pre-orders started today and the deliveries will begin from February 26, 2020. Samsung Galaxy Z Flip is priced at Rs 109,999. The phone features a 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED display with a 22:9:9 aspect ratio, 425 ppi, and 1080 x 2636 pixels resolution. It also has a secondary 1.1-inch Super AMOLED screen positioned on the back cover that displays notifications. The phone is covered with Gorilla Glass 6 on the outside as well as the inside. The Galaxy Z Flip is also the first foldable smartphone to use ultra-thin glass to cover the display rather than the plastic. The smartphone has a Flex Mode that lets you use two apps in split-screen mode. It is powered by a Snapdragon 855+ SoC paired with 8GB of RAM and 256GB storage. The phone runs on Android 10 with the One UI 2.0 skin out of the box. It packs a 3,300mAh battery with 15W wired charging support. The phone is not too heavy, it weighs 183 grams. T...

Coronavirus LIVE updates : The number of coronavirus-related fatalities in China rose to 2,592 on Monday, after the National Health Commission reported 150 more deaths. Monday's death toll was a jump on the 97 deaths reported Sunday. The total number of confirmed coronavirus cases in mainland China is now 77,150. The World Health Organization on Monday said the new coronavirus epidemic had "peaked" in China but warned that a surge in cases elsewhere was "deeply concerning" and all countries should prepare for a "potential pandemic". WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the peak in China occurred between January 23 and February 2 and the number of new cases there "has been declining steadily since then. "This virus can be contained," he told reporters in Geneva, praising China for helping to prevent an even bigger spread of the disease through unprecedented lockdowns and quarantines in or near the outbreak's epicentr...

The Supreme Court on Tuesday will hear a petition, filed by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), seeking a direction to execute the death row convicts in the 2012 Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder case separately. A three-judge bench, headed by Justice R Banumathi and also comprising Justices Ashok Bhushan and Navin Sinha, will hear the plea today. The Centre moved the apex court after the Delhi High Court had rejected its petition. Delhi High Court had on February 5, stated that that death warrant of all convicts in the Nirbhaya case should be executed together. The High Court had observed that Delhi prison rules do not state whether when the mercy petition of one convict is pending, the execution of the other convicts can take place and from the trial court to Supreme Court all convicts have been held by a common order and a common judgment. Read More

Sony likes a good mess. It wants you to abandon the idea that 5.1-channel surround sound can be delivered without getting tangled in wires (unless you spend a fortune on it). On the contrary, affordable TVs can be made to sound better with cheap single-unit soundbars. The bargain starts at as low as Rs 1,000. Add some credibility to it and you get the Mi Soundbar 8 for Rs 4,999 (Mi Store), the Samsung HW-N300 for Rs 5,899 (Flipkart) and the JBL Bar 2.0 for Rs 6,999 (Amazon). These time-tested 2.1-channel soundbars can do with the minimum space designated in front of a TV and can light up a small room with loud music and clear vocals. But the output usually maxes out at around 150W and the virtual surround sound is not absolute. The stubborn Japanese techies at Sony are unconvinced. The next league of soundbars comes with an additional subwoofer. And we must now scramble to find space for a boxy unit that usually weighs above 5 kg. The price-friendly Boat has the Aavante Bar 1...

Google wants to restrict apps, which are always accessing your location in the background with the Android 11 update . In an official Android Developers Blog, the company notes that with the upcoming Android update, users will have an option to grant a temporary 'one-time' permission to sensitive data like location, after which, the app will have to request permission again for the next access. Google will also update its Google Play policy by the end of the year to require that developers get approval if they want to access location data in the background, which will be based on relevance and necessity. For example, an emergency or safety alert app would have more chances of getting approval compared to an app with a store locator feature. Read More

Imagine how difficult it would be for a company to survive after a huge chunk of its staff decides to leave. Well, in the case of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited — the state-run telecom behemoths — the percentage is around 55 and 75 after the introduction of Voluntary Retirement Scheme (VRS). So, if your landline connection is going dead, or you are unable to browse the internet at a high speed, despite paying for 4G, you are not the only one! Here's how things went wrong with BSNL and MTNL after the introduction of voluntary retirement scheme. The voluntary retirement scheme was introduced to help companies get rid of the surplus staff. This came into action to help companies facing debt crisis or slowdown since the labour laws do not permit direct retrenchment of unionized employees. But, VRS applies to only those employees who have been working for 10 years or more and are above the age of 40 years, which may vary from company to...

International concern about the spread of coronavirus outside China grew on Sunday with sharp rises in infections in South Korea, Italy and Iran. The government in Seoul put the country on high alert after the number of infections surged over 600 with six deaths. A focal point was a church in the southeastern city of Daegu, where a 61-year-old member of the congregation with no recent record of overseas travel tested positive for the virus. In Italy, the number of cases jumped to above 130 from just three before Friday. Authorities sealed off the worst affected towns and banned public gatherings in much of the north, including halting the carnival in Venice, where there were two cases, to try to contain the biggest outbreak in Europe. Italian health authorities were struggling to find out how the virus started. “If we cannot find ‘patient zero’ then it means the virus is even more ubiquitous than we thought,” said Luca Zaia, the regional governor of the wealthy Veneto regio...

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said India awaits the arrival of US President Donald Trump , asserting that his visit will further strengthen the friendship between the two countries. "India awaits your arrival @POTUS @realDonaldTrump! Your visit is definitely going to further strengthen the friendship between our nations," Modi tweeted. "See you very soon in Ahmedabad," he said, responding to a tweet by Trump that he was leaving for India with the US First Lady. Trump will reach Ahmedabad around noon on Monday. Read More

Four Indian crew members who underwent tests for coronavirus on board the Diamond Princess moored off the Japan coast, have tested positive, taking the number of Indians infected with the virus on the vessel to 12, the Indian embassy said on Sunday. “Unfortunately, the results received include four Indian crew members having tested positive,” the Indian embassy tweeted. “All 12 Indians are responding well to treatment.” Passengers showing no signs of the deadly disease started deboarding the ship after the quarantine period ended last week. The death toll from China’s coronavirus epidemic has shot to 2,442, while confirmed cases rose to 76,936, officials said on Sunday. Aviation regulator DGCA has ordered screening of passengers from four more countries — Nepal, Vietnam, Indonesia and Malaysia — as part of efforts to prevent spreading of coronavirus. Now, fliers from as many as 10 countries would be screened. Read More

Mumbai Indians (MI), the defending champion, would like to continue its glorious run of last season in Indian Premier League 2020 (IPL 2020), too. The Rohit Sharma-led team would be eyeing a record fifth IPL title in the 13th season. The Mumbai-based franchise will kick off its IPL 2020 campaign against 2019 runner-up Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the tournament opener at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium on March 29. MI has made some strategic changes to its IPL 2020 squad by bringing in Australian Chris Lynn at the top of the batting order. With Hardik Pandya facing intermittent fitness issues, Australian bowling all-rounder Nathan Coulter-Nile should prove handy for Mumbai. In IPL 2020, the Rohit Sharma-led side will play its only afternoon match (4 pm start) at home against Royal Challengers Bangalore on April 5. Read More

Eating a big breakfast rather than a large dinner may prevent obesity and high blood sugar, according to study which may lead to better clinical dietary recommendations to reduce body weight and prevent metabolic diseases . The study, published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, assessed 16 men who consumed a low-calorie breakfast and high-calorie dinner -- and vice versa in a second round -- over the course of three days. "Our results show that a meal eaten for breakfast, regardless of the amount of calories it contains, creates twice as high diet-induced thermogenesis as the same meal consumed for dinner," said the study's corresponding author, Juliane Richter from the University of Lubeck in Germany. "This finding is significant for all people as it underlines the value of eating enough at breakfast," Richter said. Read More

The Supreme Court on Thursday questioned the issuance of black warrants for execution of death penalty by trial courts even before the expiry of 60-day time period for filing of appeal by convicts in the apex court. A bench headed by Chief Justice S A Bobde referred to the 2015 verdict of the apex court in which it was held that the death warrant cannot be issued before the expiry of 60-day mandatory period available to a convict for filing the appeal in the Supreme Court against the high court's judgement. "We want to know as to how such orders issuing black warrants are being passed by the trial court despite a reported judgement in this regard. "Someone has to explain this. The judicial process cannot be allowed to happen like this," the bench said. It also stayed the death warrant issued by a Gujarat sessions court against a convict Anil Surendra Singh Yadav in a rape and murder case. Read More

Unveiling its most premium smartphone in the A series, Samsung on Wednesday launched its Galaxy A71 model that comes with a quad-camera set up for Rs 29,999. The Samsung Galaxy A71 was initially launched in Vietnam in two configurations. However, the smartphone launched in India just comes in just a single variant. The India version also includes a few features specifically for local users. The Samsung phone competes with peers like of the Vivo V17 Pro, Oppo Reno, Redmi K20 Pro, and OnePlus 7. Features: A. Camera The main camera features 64MP lens with F1.8 aperture for stunning low-light photography. Together with 12MP Ultra Wide camera and its 123 degree field of view, the camera is designed to let people see as much as a human eye can. It also features a 5MP Macro Cam and a 5MP Depth Cam. The phone also packs camera innovations such as segment-first "Slow-MoSelfie" that allows users to to express their moods and experiences more creatively. It has a 32MP selfie...

Financial firms operating in Singapore and Hong Kong are delaying hiring as the coronavirus outbreak disrupts their businesses. Both domestic and foreign institutions have slowed recruitment, according to headhunters in the financial hubs. They’ve been impacted by quarantines, restrictions on travel to and from China, remote working arrangements and decisions not to conduct face-to-face interviews. It’s another aspect of the fallout from the virus, which has also caused factory closures, disrupted supply chains and initiated the world’s largest work-from-home experiment. Recruiting has become less of a priority as firms including DBS Group Holdings Ltd. have highlighted the revenue impact of worsening business conditions. “ Everybody is distracted,” said Gurj Sandhu, a managing director at Morgan McKinley Group Ltd. in Singapore. Hiring is falling down the “pecking order,” he said, while adding that nobody is canceling roles yet. Read More

Shares of Vodafone Idea jumped 48 per cent to Rs 4.49 on the BSE on Wednesday on the back of heavy volumes on report that the government is unlikely to invoke bank guarantees for now. Till 12:29 pm, a combined 355 million shares changed hands on the counter on the NSE and BSE. In the past seven trading days, the stock has tanked 42 per cent after the Supreme Court dismissed the petitions of telcos seeking a staggered option to pay their Adjusted Gross Revenue (AGR) related dues. According to a report by The Economic Times, the government is unlikely to invoke Vodafone Idea’s bank guarantees for now, even as the officials of the telecom and finance ministries met Cabinet secretary Rajiv Gauba to discuss ways to ensure that the sector retains three private players, officials said. The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has sought legal opinion including that of Solicitor General Tushar Mehta on whether to invoke bank guarantees of companies in case they fail to pay their ...

The economic slowdown is beginning to reflect in the salary hikes of India Inc. The average salary increase in 2020 is projected to be 9.1 per cent, the lowest in a decade, according to the 24th edition of Aon Plc’s annual salary increase survey. In 2018 and 2019, companies increased average salary by 9.5 per cent and 9.3 per cent, respectively. After the financial crisis of 2008, the average hike had slumped to 6.6 per cent. The projected increase for 2020 is lower than the average salary hike that graduates of top Business schools have managed at around 12 per cent. The good news, however, is that despite gross domestic product (GDP) growth estimates getting revised downward, the average salary increase for 2020 will be only 20 basis points lower than that of the previous year. Moreover, double-digit salary increments have not vanished entirely. While the average for the country has come down, 39 per cent of the companies are still willing to give double-digit salary incr...