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“Glad to know about Microsoft’s ambitious expansion and investment plans in India. It was also wonderful discussing various aspects of tech, innovation and AI in our meeting,” Narendra Modi said.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella Monday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and held a discussion on various aspects of tech innovation and artificial intelligence (AI) while committing to make India an AI-first nation.
After the interaction, Nadella took to X to hail Modi’s leadership and said: “Thank you, PM Narendra Modi ji for your leadership. Excited to build on our commitment to making India AI-first and work together on our continued expansion in the country to ensure every Indian benefits from this AI platform shift.”
In a reply to Nadella’s X post, PM Modi too appreciated Microsoft’s efforts in expanding and investing in India. “It was indeed a delight to meet you, Satya Nadella! Glad to know about Microsoft’s ambitious expansion and investment plans in India. It was also wonderful discussing various aspects of tech, innovation and AI in our meeting,” Modi wrote.
The institute claims that their researchers have focused on a technique that combines nanotechnology and molecular detection, which can further be translated into a point-of-care as device with an enhanced diagnostic precision.
Researchers at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Guwahati have developed an innovative approach to improve the detection of cholesterol and triglycerides by integrating Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS) on the nanoscale objects, officials said.
The findings of the research were recently published in the noted journal –Biosensors and Bioelectronics.
According to Dipankar Bandyopadhyay, Professor at Centre for Nanotechnology and Department of Chemical Engineering, IIT-Guwahati, the work utilises bimetallic nanostructures that are 10,000 times thinner than the width of a human hair for the high-fidelity detection of the biomarkers in the human blood.
“The metabolic biomolecules like cholesterol and triglycerides play pivotal role in maintaining a harmonious cardiovascular health of a human body. The high (HDL) and low (LDL) density lipoproteins transport cholesterol to the cellular sites for various metabolic activities,” he said.
Bandyopadhyay explained an imbalance of LDL and HDL causes arterial plaque formation leading to hypertension, formation of blood clots, or ischemia.
On the other hand, triglycerides (TGA) transform into fatty acids and glycerol during digestion which in turn is packaged inside lipoproteins namely very low-density lipoprotein (VLDL), for transportation to the cells. An elevated level of triglycerides leads to atherosclerosis and coronary artery disease, pancreatitis, type 2 diabetes, or fatty liver, he said.
“Therefore, the timely detection of any abnormality and a close monitoring of cholesterol and triglyceride levels in blood is highly sought for. While traditional lipid profile tests of blood are reliable, they often require laboratory settings, are not available as a point-of-care solution, and can take time to provide results,” he said.
IIT-Guwahati claimed that their researchers have focused on a technique that combines nanotechnology and molecular detection, which can further be translated into a point-of-care as device with an enhanced diagnostic precision.
“The researchers employ SERS active bimetallic nanostructures – the silver shelled gold nanorods, which enable a plasmonic resonance hybridisation of silver and gold to produce augmented spectral resolutions as compared to pristine silver or gold nanorods.
“Subsequently, these bimetallic nanorods are linked to two different Raman active receptors and immobilised with the enzymes cholesterol oxidase and lipase for concurrent detection of different concentrations of cholesterol and triglycerides. Such innovations help in the development of a platform for the ultrafast point-of-care detection kit with a higher level of the detection sensitivity,” Bandyopadhyay said.
Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Telegraph Online staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.
Out of these, Infosys took the lead with 8,140 beneficiaries, followed by TCS (5,274), and HCL America (2,953).
Indian-origin tech companies cornered a fifth of all H1B visas issued by the U.S. with Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services leading the pack, an analysis of data from the US immigration department showed.
According to data from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, in April-September 2024 period, out of the total 1.3 lakh H1B visas issued to different employers, about 24,766 visas were issued to Indian-origin companies.
Out of these, Infosys took the lead with 8,140 beneficiaries, followed by TCS (5,274), and HCL America (2,953).
Infosys came second to only Amazon Com Services LLC, which topped with 9,265 visas.
Cognizant, which was founded in Chennai but now has headquarters in New Jersey, ranked third in the list with 6,321 visas.
The H1B visa programme allows U.S. companies to temporarily employ foreign workers in specialty occupations. Indian companies have been significant beneficiaries of this programme, particularly in the technology sector.
Major Indian IT services firms such as Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Infosys, Wipro, and HCL Technologies have consistently ranked among the top employers for H1B visa holders. Wipro was lower down this time with 1,634 visa grants. Tech Mahindra stood close by, having been issued 1,199 visas.
While these companies continue to benefit from the programme, ongoing developments indicate a need for adaptation in response to regulatory changes and public sentiment. The future of the H1B visa will likely depend on balancing the needs of the US businesses for skilled labour with broader immigration policy reforms.
Elon Musk, a former H-1B visa holder whose company Tesla utilises this programme, has publicly supported the tech industry’s reliance on foreign workers.
In a post on X on December 28, Mr. Musk emphasised the importance of welcoming individuals from all backgrounds who contribute to the U.S. through hard work. He passionately advocated for preserving America as a land of freedom and opportunity.
Mr. Musk’s statement also received backing from President-elect Donald Trump whose first administration restricted the programme in 2020, arguing that it allows businesses to replace Americans with lower-paid foreign workers.
Woman Navy officers Lt Cdr Dilna K. and Lt Cdr Roopa A began the journey on October 2, 2024 from Lyttelton Port in New Zealand to Port Stanley in Falkland Islands, the longest leg of the expedition with a distance of approximately 10,400 km to cover.
Indian Naval Sailing Vessel (INSV) Tarini left Lyttelton Port in New Zealand on Saturday (January 4, 2025) morning at about 9. 30 a.m. local time for Port Stanley (Falkland Islands) in the third leg of the ongoing global circumnavigation journey by two woman Navy officers under Navika Sagar Parikrama-II.
This is the longest leg of the expedition with a distance of approximately 5,600 nm (approximately 10,400 km) to cover. This will also be the southernmost transit of Tarini at about 56 degrees South, the Navy said in a statement. “With the frontal weather systems of the Southern Ocean, Team Tarini can expect to experience challenging seas with up to 50-60 knots (90-110 kmph) winds.”
INSV Tarini had arrived in Lyttelton on December 22, completing the second leg of the double-handed circumnavigation, which is being undertaken by two Indian Navy women officers — Lt Cdr Dilna K. and Lt Cdr Roopa A.
“During the period in Lyttelton, the crew undertook repairs and maintenance of the boat with particular focus on the next leg where the vessel will cross the South Pacific, pass through the treacherous Drake Passage, and cross Cape Horn to reach Port Stanley,” the Navy said. “While in Lyttelton, the crew also interacted with the Indian community who were eager to visit the boat and query the crew about various aspects of ocean sailing.”
INSV Tarini was open to visitors at Lyttelton Port of Christchurch (LPC) on Thursday (January 2, 2025). People from different walks of life, including Victoria Henstock, the councillor of Christchurch City Council, visited the vessel and interacted with the crew.
Maori payers for the crew
Members of the Indian diaspora as well as Belfiore Bologna, Honorary Consul of Italy for the South Island of New Zealand and Sue McFarlane, Head of Christchurch Antarctic Office turned up for the Flag Off ceremony of the vessel. Traditional Maori prayers for the crew by members of the Maori community were also undertaken during the ceremony.
The expedition was flagged off from Goa on October 02, 2024 by Navy Chief Adm Dinesh K. Tripathi. After sailing across the Indian Ocean for 38 days, INSV Tarini halted at Fremantle, Australia, from November 9 to 24, and the second leg from Fremantle to Lyttelton was covered in 28 days.
The circumnavigation will cover around 23,000 nautical miles in around 240 days, across four continents through three oceans and three challenging Capes, unfolding in five legs with stopovers at four ports for replenishment and maintenance. The five legs are Goa to Fremantle, Australia; Fremantle to Lyttleton, New Zealand; Lyttleton to Port Stanley, Falkland Islands; Port Stanley to Cape Town, South Africa; and from Cape Town back to Goa.
INSV Tarini, a 56-foot sailing vessel built by Aquarius Shipyard Ltd, was inducted in the Indian Navy on February 18, 2017. The vessel has clocked more than 66,000 nautical miles (1,22,223 km) and participated in the first edition of Navika Sagar Parikrama in 2017, trans-oceanic expedition from Goa to Rio, Goa to Port Louis and other significant expeditions. Both the officers with a sailing experience of 38,000 nautical miles (70,376km) trained vigorously in the last three years.
This innovative hydrogel-based therapy delivers anti-cancer drugs directly to tumour sites, reducing side effects associated with cancer treatments.
Researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati and the Bose Institute Kolkata have developed an advanced injectable hydrogel for localised cancer treatment.
This innovative hydrogel-based therapy delivers anti-cancer drugs directly to tumour sites, significantly reducing side effects typically associated with conventional cancer treatments.
The findings have been published in the “Materials Horizons”, a journal of the Royal Society of Chemistry. The paper is co-authored by Prof Debapratim Das, along with research scholars Tanushree Das and Ritvika Kushwaha from IIT Guwahati. The collaborators are Dr Kuldip Jana, Satyajit Halder and Anup Kumar Misra from the Bose Institute Kolkata.
“Cancer continues to be a pressing global health challenge, with millions of patients affected worldwide. Current treatments, such as chemotherapy and surgical interventions, often have severe limitations. Surgical removal of tumors is sometimes not feasible, particularly for internal organs, while chemotherapy’s systemic delivery often results in harmful side effects by affecting both cancerous and healthy cells,” the IIT Guwahati said in a statement.
Prof Das from the Department of Chemistry and his team addressed these challenges by designing a hydrogel that delivers drugs precisely to the tumour site, ensuring localised action.
Hydrogels are water-based, three-dimensional polymer networks capable of absorbing and retaining fluids. Their unique structure mimics living tissues, making them suitable for biomedical applications. This newly developed hydrogel acts as a stable reservoir for anti-cancer drugs and releases them in a controlled manner, responding to specific conditions in the tumour microenvironment.
The hydrogel, composed of ultra-short peptides – biocompatible and biodegradable building blocks of proteins – is designed to remain insoluble in biological fluids, ensuring it stays localized at the injection site. It responds to elevated glutathione (GSH) levels, a molecule abundant in tumour cells. Upon encountering high GSH levels, the hydrogel triggers a controlled drug release directly into the tumour, minimizing its interaction with healthy tissues and reducing systemic side effects.
Speaking about the breakthrough, Prof Das said, “This work exemplifies how scientific innovation can directly address the pressing needs of cancer treatment. The hydrogel’s unique properties allow it to work in harmony with the biological environment, offering precision where it is needed most. We are excited by its potential to transform our thoughts about localized drug delivery.”
In pre-clinical trials on a murine model of breast cancer, the hydrogel showcased remarkable efficacy. A single injection of the hydrogel, loaded with the chemotherapy drug doxorubicin, resulted in a 75% reduction in tumour size within 18 days. Crucially, the hydrogel remained localized at the tumour site, steadily releasing the drug over time without causing detectable side effects on other organs, the IIT Guwahati said.
“This innovative delivery system enhances the drug’s effectiveness while reducing the required dosage, thus minimizing toxicity. Laboratory studies further demonstrated that the hydrogel improves drug uptake by cancer cells, induces cell cycle arrest, and promotes programmed cell death, thereby attacking tumours on multiple fronts,” the institute further stated.
“The awardees will receive their awards from the President of India at a specially organised function at Rashtrapati Bhavan on 17th January, 2025 (Friday) at 1100 hours,” the Sports Ministry said.
Double Olympic-medallist Manu Bhaker and chess world champion D Gukesh were among four winners of the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award announced by the Sports Ministry, which also named an unprecedented 17 para-athletes in the list of 32 Arjuna awardees to honour their resounding success at the Paris Paralympics.
The other two Khel Ratna winners unveiled by the ministry on Thursday for the year 2024 were men’s hockey captain Harmanpreet Singh and para-athlete Praveen Kumar.
The awards will be conferred on the athletes by President Droupadi Murmu at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on January 17.
22-year-old Manu Bhaker became independent India’s first athlete to win two medals in a single edition of the Olympics with her bronze-winning show in the 10m air pistol individual and 10m air pistol mixed team events in August.
In the same Games, Hamranpreet led the Indian hockey team to its second consecutive bronze medal.
18-year-old Gukesh , on the other hand, became the youngest ever World champion while also helping the Indian team win a historic gold in the Chess Olympiad last year.
The fourth recipient will be para high-jumper Praveen, who was crowned the T64 champion in the Paris Paralympics.
The T64 classification is for athletes who have one or both legs missing below the knee and rely on a prosthetic leg for running.
“The awardees will receive their awards from the President of India at a specially organised function at Rashtrapati Bhavan on 17th January, 2025 [Friday] at 1100 hours,” the Sports Ministry said in a press release.
The Khel ratna awardees receive a cash prize of Rs 25 lakh along with a citation and a medallion. The Arjuna awardees are given Rs 15 lakh as cash reward, a statuette of Arjuna and a citation.
The athletes selected for this year’s Arjuna award include Paris Olympics bronze medal-winning lot of wrestler Aman Sehrawat, shooters Swapnil Kusale and Sarabjot Singh and the men’s hockey team players Jarmanpreet Singh, Sukhjeet Singh, Sanjay and Abhishek.
The para-athletes outnumber the able-bodied ones in the list of Arjuna winners this time due to the magnificent Paris showing in which they returned with 29 medals, including seven gold and nine silver.
The official list also includes sprinter Jyothi Yarraji, javelin thrower Annu Rani, women’s hockey team captain Salima Tete, world champion boxers Nitu Ghangas and Saweety, veteran swimmer Sajan Prakash, Olympiad gold-winning chess player Vantika Agrawal and squash star Abhay Singh.
Among the para athletes, Paris Paralympics gold-medallists Dharambir (club throw), Navdeep Singh (javelin throw) and Nitesh Kumar (para badminton) are the prominent names in the record number of Arjuna winners.
Paris Olympics bronze-winning para-archer Rakesh Kumar, para-shooters Mona Agarwal and Rubina Francis also feature in the list among others.
The ministry also cleared three coaches for Dronacharya award in the regular category, including Olympic bronze-medallist Swapnil Kusale’s coach Deepali Deshpande.
The Dronacharya award in the lifetime category will be conferred on former India football manager Armando Colaco and badminton coach S Muralidharan.
The award is given to coaches to honour their outstanding work and for enabling athletes to achieve excellence in their chosen sport in top international competitions.
Glass bridge connecting Vivekananda memorial, Thiruvalluvar statue inaugurated in Tamil Nadu.
Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin on Monday inaugurated a glass bridge connecting the Vivekananda Rock Memorial and the 133-feet Thiruvalluvar statue in the Kanyakumari district.
The structure claimed to be the first such one in India, was inaugurated to mark the silver jubilee of the unveiling of the renowned Tamil poet Thiruvalluvar’s statue by late chief minister M Karunanidhi.
The glass bridge connecting the two monuments offers visitors a breathtaking view of the sea. “It provides a thrilling experience of walking above the sea,” a tourist official told news agency PTI.
Key details about Kanyakumari glass bridge
The glass bridge is 77-meter-long, 10-metre wide and 133-feet high.
According to the state government, the bowstring arch on the glass bridge has been designed to withstand the saline breeze from the sea and high humidity.
Tourists who used to travel between the two historical monuments on a ferry can now walk over the glass bridge and reach the other end quickly.
Politics over glass bridge
After the inauguration, Stalin walked over the bridge accompanied by deputy chief minister Udhayanidhi Stalin, state ministers, MP Kanimozhi, and senior officials. A laser light show was held at the Thiruvalluvar statue.
Stalin hailed the legacy of the Tamil poet and announced that last week of every December will be celebrated as “Thrirukkural week” to spread the poet’s teaching in his renowned work “Thirukkural”.
Meanwhile, opposition AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami said the project was sanctioned and granted environmental clearance during his tenure as the chief minister.
“Chief Minister M K Stalin who inaugurated the glass bridge in Kanyakumari on Monday evening did not bring the project. It was brought during the AIADMK regime when I was the Chief Minister,” Palaniswami told reporters here.
“Since Kanyakumari is a very popular tourist destination, I requested (union shipping minister) that a bridge be built to link Thiruvalluvar statue with the Vivekananda Rock Memorial,” he added.
China secured only 5.3% of global remittances in 2024, its lowest share in at least two decades.
In 2024, India received an estimated $129.1 billion worth of remittances, the highest ever for a country in any year. Moreover, India’s share in global remittances was 14.3% this year, the highest such share since the turn of the millennium for any country. The conclusions are based on a blog article published last week by the World Bank.
Remittances refer to the money that individuals working abroad send back to support their families in their home country. They are often a crucial source of income for households in developing countries and can contribute significantly to the economy of the recipient country.
Following India, Mexico and China received the largest remittances in 2024.
Chart 1 shows the top 10 receivers of remittances in $ million in 2024.
The Philippines, France, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Egypt, Guatemala, and Germany are the other countries on the list. While China was third on the list, past years’ numbers provide interesting insights.
Chart 2 shows the share of global remittances for the top 10 countries mentioned in Chart 1 in the 2000-2024 period.
China’s share of remittances grew from less than 1% in the early 2000s to over 10% by the late 2000s and early 2010s, matching India’s numbers, before gradually declining to below 10% in the late 2010s.
From 2020, the share declined rapidly reaching a two-decade low of 5.3% in 2024. According to the World Bank, China’s rising economic prosperity and an ageing population slowed the pace of emigration of less-skilled people, which contributed to this decline.
India’s share has remained above the 10% mark for most of the years since 2000, with few exceptions. In fact, in the post-pandemic years, there has been a rapid increase in its share. India’s share in global remittances was twice the share of Mexico’s in 2024 (7.5%); Mexico was a distant second.
Though India leads in absolute remittance inflows, in some economies, remittances play a more critical role in funding current account deficits and fiscal shortfalls.
To better understand this, Chart 3 depicts estimated remittances in 2024 as a share of a country’s GDP. Each circle is a country. The farther the circle is to the right, the higher the remittance in 2024 as a share of GDP. The bigger the circle, the higher the remittance in 2024 in absolute figures.
In Nepal, remittances formed over 25% of the GDP in 2024. In Tajikistan, Nicaragua, Lebanon, Samoa, Honduras, and Tonga, the share of remittances in 2024 formed over 25% of their respectives GDPs. In India, remittances formed 3.3% of the GDP this year.
For many low-and middle-income countries, remittances act as a major source of income. In 2024, these countries received $685 billion as remittances, the highest ever in a year. According to the blog, remittances to these countries have consistently outpaced other types of external financial flows.
In recent years, remittances have even surpassed Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in low-and middle-income countries put together. FDIs are investments by a foreign country to control or run a business in another country. Remittances are also much higher than the official development assistance (ODA) received by these countries. ODA is the aid from rich countries to help poorer ones develop, often through grants or cheap loans.
Chart 4 compares remittances, FDI, and ODA received by low-and middle-income countries between 2000 and 2024.
Over the past decade, remittances increased by 57% while FDI declined by 41% in low-and middle-income nations, the blog notes.
Source: The data for the charts were sourced from a blog article published by the World Bank on December authored by Dilip Ratha, Sonia Plaza and Eung Ju Kim
Lupin Ltd has announced the acquisition of Huminsulin in India from Eli Lilly and Company (Lilly) to further enhance its diabetes portfolio for an unspecified amount.
Lupin has been marketing the Huminsulin range of products comprising of Insulin Human, including Huminsulin R, Huminsulin NPH, Huminsulin 50/50, and Huminsulin 30/70, through existing Distribution and Promotion Agreements with Lilly, India.
“This acquisition is strategic to our ongoing efforts to expand our diabetes portfolio and provide high-quality, affordable health care to our patients. It reinforces our unwavering commitment to combating diabetes and providing comprehensive care,” said Nilesh Gupta, Managing Director, Lupin in a statement.
Rajeev Sibal, President – India Region Formulations, Lupin said, “Lupin has been at the forefront of providing holistic diabetes care to patients. This acquisition further strengthens our diabetes portfolio and enables us to offer a broad range of human insulin options to millions of patients, thereby helping them lead healthier lives.”
The BICC is a part of the Bahrain government’s “Team Bahrain” to enhance private sector investment in the country by providing a forum for dispute resolution between parties.
Retired Supreme Court judge Sanjay Kishan Kaul has been appointed a member of the Bahrain International Commercial Court by King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa.
He is among the nine members appointed to the newly established BICC. Leading arbitrator Jan Paulsson has been appointed as BICC president and former British judge Sir Christopher Greenwood as its vice president.
The BICC is a part of the Bahrain government’s “Team Bahrain” to enhance private sector investment in the country by providing a forum for dispute resolution between parties.
The BICC will have exclusive jurisdiction within the country to hear international commercial disputes and will also be empowered to hear arbitration-related matters.
Justice Kaul retired on December 25, 2023, after serving as a judge of the apex court for over six years. During his tenure he authored decisions in several important rulings, including a concurring opinion in the landmark nine-judge bench case recognising the right to privacy as a fundamental right in 2017.
In December 2023, he was a part of the seven-judge bench that ruled in favour of upholding the validity of an ‘unstamped’ arbitration agreement — where the parties had not paid the necessary stamp duty for the contract to be admissible before a court of law. The court held that the “defect” could be rectified at a later date, noting that the purpose of the Indian Arbitration Act was to provide “speedy and efficient resolution” to disputes.
In his final year as an SC judge, Justice Kaul authored decisions rejecting the Centre’s curative petition to enhance compensation for victims of the Bhopal gas tragedy and upheld the Bar Council of India’s power to conduct the All India Bar Examination.
Justice Kaul’s legal career began in 1982 after graduating from Campus Law Centre, Delhi University. He became an advocate-on-record in 1987 and was given the coveted senior advocate designation in 1999. He was appointed as senior counsel for the Delhi High Court and Delhi University, and served as additional senior standing counsel for Delhi Development Authority.
His career in the judiciary began in May 2001 when he was appointed as a judge of the Delhi High Court. In September 2012, he served a brief 2-day stint as Acting Chief Justice of the Delhi HC. In June 2013, he was appointed the Chief Justice of the Punjab & Haryana HC before being transferred to the Madras HC in July 2014, where he served as the Chief Justice until February 2017.
