Phicomm challenges Xiaomi, Gionee and Meizu in India with Passion 660 4G smartphone

Tech News - Phicomm Passion 660 dual-sim smartphone will go on sale from June 9 for Rs 10,999 on e-commerce website Amazon India.

Passion 660 sports a 5-inch HD display with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection. The smartphone runs Android KitKat 4.4 and is powered by 64-bit 1.5GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 (MSM8939) processor coupled with 2GB RAM.

The phone comes with 16GB of internal storage which can be expanded upto 64 GB via microSD cards. Passion 660 packs 13MP rear camera with LED flash and a 5MP front shooter for selfie lovers.

The smartphone gets its power from a 2300mAh battery. On connectivity front, Passion 660 supports 4G, 3G, GPRS/EDGE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth v 4.0 and a micro-USB slot.

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Maruti to invest Rs 4,000 crore in FY16 on new models, marketing

The company, which reported its highest ever annual profit and sales in the fiscal concluded March 31, 2015, said the amount would be utilised on enhancing marketing infrastructure, launching new products and on R&D.

Maruti is looking to set up new display centres where its different models are displayed like it does at the brand centre at its headquarter here.
  
In the ongoing fiscal MSI is expected to launch its crossover vehicle SX4 S Cross and premium hatchback code named YRA.
  
Apart from urban markets, the company has also decided to intensify efforts to expand in the rural markets.  "We are at present in 1.25 lakh villages, we would like to add another 25,000 villages this year," Maruti Suzuki India Chairman R C Bhargava told reporters.
   
He said at present demand is strong in the rural markets but how it would be in the year ahead was hard to predict because of unseasonal rain and prediction of low monsoon.
   
Out of the total capex planned for the fiscal, the company on Monday released Rs 845 crore for the upcoming plant at Gujarat.

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India to become third largest auto manufacturer by 2020: Ford

Auto News - The automotive sector has a direct bearing on the economy with a near 7 per cent contribution to the GDP, playing an important role in the development of other crucial sectors as well, David Dubensky, President and Managing Director, Ford Motor Private Ltd, said here today.

Addressing the students at the graduation function of the Kumaraguru College of Technology, Dubensky said India is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world and as the country moves towards this milestone, the opportunities to build a career in the automotive sector are tremendous.   

He said by working together as one global team over the last 110 years, Ford been able to fully leverage the resources around the world.

"We are building great products, creating strong business, and contributing to a better world", he added.

Advising students to be open, flexible and willing to learn, even if the lesson is a hard one, Dubensky said, "Bring people together, and work together, for something bigger than yourself."

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India to have 651 million smartphones, 18.7 million tablets by 2019

The country also considered one of the world’s fastest growing Internet market, is expected to see the number of tablets hit more than 18 million by 2019, according to the US-based firm’s Visual Networking Index (VNI) global mobile data traffic forecast for 2014 to 2019.
  
According to the report: “In India, the number of smartphones grew 54 percent during 2014, reaching 140 million in number and the number of smartphones will grow 4.7-fold between 2014 and 2019, reaching 651 million in number.”

The number of tablets grew 1.7-fold during 2014, reaching 2. million in number and is expected to grow 9.2-fold between 2014 and 2019, reaching 18.7 million, it added.
  
Speaking about the VNI report, Cisco Managing Director Service Provider Sales (India & SAARC) Sanjay Kaul said “Apart from smart connections driven by the IoE (Internet of Everything), the trend of low-cost smartphones will also bring critical mass to the sector and further drive user growth and data traffic in India.”
  
Cisco’s latest VNI Report gives us an insight into the exponential growth of mobile data in India as a result of increasing adoption of smart mobile devices and machine-to-machine (M2M) connections as the IoE takes shape in the country, he added.

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Here is the mother temple in the desert

भारत-पाक के रिश्ते भले ही मधुर न हों लेकिन घन्टयाली देवी के चरणों में नतमस्तक होने दोनों देशों के भक्त मां के इस मंदिर में आते हैं।

पश्चिमी राजस्थान में थार मरुस्थल के अंतिम जिले जैसलमेर से करीब 110 कि.मी. दूर यह मंदिर पाकिस्तानी सीमा से सटे तनोट क्षेत्र स्थित 'घन्टयाली माता' मंदिर के नाम से जाना जाता है।

कहते हैं कि प्राचीन काल में कुछ अपराधी प्रवृत्ति के लोगों ने सीमावर्ती गांवों के पास रहने वालों पर अत्याचार किये व इस दौरान एक परिवार के सभी सदस्यों को मौत के घाट उतार दिया गया। उस समय मात्र परिवार की एक गर्भवती महिला ही बची, जो अपने गांव को छोड़कर दूसरे स्थान पर चली गई।

कुछ समय के बाद उसने एक पुत्र को जन्म दिया। बड़ा होने के बाद जब उसने अपने परिवार के बारे में पूछा तो उसकी मां ने उसे सारी घटना के बारे में बताया। इस घटना को सुनकर उसने अपराधियों से बदला लेने की ठानी व एक दिन तलवार लेकर घन्टयाली गांव में आया जहां एक छोटा-सा मंदिर था।

यहां उसने माता को बालरूप में देखा। मां ने उसे अपने हाथों से जल पिलाकर उसकी प्यास बुझाकर आशीर्वाद दिया कि तुम्हारी मनोकामना पूर्ण होगी। मां ने कहा कि तुम केवल एक व्यक्ति को मारना, बाद में सभी एक-दूसरे पर हमला कर मारे जाएंगे। माता की बात सुनकर लड़के ने कहा कि यदि यह चमत्कार हो गया तो मैं यहां आकर अपना शीश आपके चरणों में चढ़ा दूंगा।

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Kohli's aggression can be counter-productive: Gavaskar

Australia have taken a massive 326-run lead at the end of the fourth day in Melbourne and look the more likely winners on Tuesday.

A dash of drama has been added to the match due to the constant exchange of words between the hosts and most prominently Kohli, who lambasted Steve Smith's men in a press conference as well.

Asked if Kohli was merely returning fire with fire, Gavaskar felt the feisty batsman could well have done without it.
   
"I thought the press conference should have been about cricket rather than what went on the field. Generally, what happens on the field stays on the field. I am not too sure it was the wisest thing to do," Gavaskar said.

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Honda set for record car sales in India this year

"2014 was a very successful year for Honda as it continued its growth journey for the third consecutive year," Honda Cars India Ltd (HCIL) Senior Vice President, Sales & Marketing, Jnaneswar Sen said in a statement.

During the January-November period, the company sold 1.65 lakh units, up 61.8 percent, from 1.02 lakh units in the same period of previous year. Sen said Honda is set to end 2014 with a record sale of 1.8 lakh units.
   
In line with business expansion, the company made strong progress in expanding its dealership network during the year and crossed the milestone of 200 dealers in the country in November 2014.

"The company plans to rope in another 100 dealers by the end of the next fiscal and take the total tally to 300 facilities by March 2016," Sen said. Elaborating on the launches during the year, he said that new generation City, which was launched in January, has gone on to sell more than 71,000 units till November 2014.

Source: Automotive News 2015

India likely to have 10-15 million 4G subscribers by December 2015: PwC

"We expect 4G LTE subscribers to reach 10-15 million by December 2015 driven by competitive pricing, superior network experience and affordable smartphones," PwC India said in a forecast of key trends for Indian telecom sector in 2015.

The LTE will become mainstream in India as well, it said."In 2015, we will witness multiple Indian players launching 4G on a more efficient 1800 MHz spectrum and Indians subscribers will adopt 4G wholeheartedly to satiate their need for mobile data," PwC Leader Telecom Arpita Pal Agrawal said.

Bharti Airtel and Aircel have started 4G services in select areas. BSNL, Tikona and Augere too need to launch their services in 2015.
   
Reliance Jio Infocomm, the only pan-India 4G spectrum holder, has plans to launch its 4G services by mid 2015.Reliance Industries has already announced that it will launch commercial 4G telecom service of RJio in 2015 entailing investment of Rs 70,000 crore.

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Karbonn will launch New Android One Smartphone in Q1 2015: Report

Karbonn is set to collaborate with new hardware partners for it's Android One phone, which will include Alcatel Onetouch, Asus, HTC, Intex, Lava, Lenovo, Panasonic, Xolo, and Qualcomm.

The new device is expected to come in affordable prices, with high-quality, variegated colours and sizes will incorporated, customized hardware configuration and software enability.

Karbonn, Micromax and Spice first launched Android One program in India. Sparkle V, Canvas A1,  and Dream Uno were launched when the Android One program was introduced.

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Renault India to launch two models next year

"Renault's focus in 2015 will be on introducing two new products in very exciting segments-the MPV (multi-purpose vehicle) and the A-entry segment, which is the heart of the Indian automotive industry," Sumit Sawhney, the country CEO and managing director of Renault Operations in India, said.

"We are taking major steps to increase our presence in India and will be entering the volume and growth segments to strengthen our position in India,"

"We have a long-term focus on the market and are working towards achieving a five per cent market share in the medium period, within the next three years. This will be done both by launching new vehicles as well as expanding our dealer network," he added.

According to Sawhney, Renault India will further expand its facilities next year, which will be one of the fastest ramp ups by an automobile manufacturer in India.

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Tragic build-up but India, Australia ready for tough Tests

More than two weeks after landing here, India will finally get down to serious competition with Virat Kohli leading the side in place of Mahendra Singh Dhoni,who is still recovering from a hairline fracture in his right thumb.

Indians are also dealing with uncertainty surrounding medium-pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar even as Australian skipper Michael Clarke was declared fit for the game. The visitors will be hoping to reverse their last Test series' result in this country, when under Dhoni they had lost 4-0 in 2011-12. However, that thought will not be at the forefront when the match begins on Tuesday.

Instead, it will be a emotion-laden atmosphere that will welcome both teams, and for good reason. Adelaide is the adopted home of Hughes and there will be an intense outpouring of emotion before play gets underway. Cricket Australia and South Australia Cricket Association have quite a few plans about honouring the cricketer, who was hit by a bouncer on November 24 in a Sheffield Shield game in Sydney and died two days later.

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New HIV cases down by 57 percent, India now aims for zero infection

On World AIDS Day, Union Health Minister J P Nadda on Monday sought people's involvement to make the mission success, saying governments or NGOs alone cannot deal with the challenge successfully.

Launching the helpline number - 1097, a digital resource centre and a supply chain management system for HIV patients, Nadda said, "It's the work of every individual to come out and fight it (HIV) out. There should be zero discrimination against people with HIV. This should be our commitment."

Stressing on the importance of "restraint" and "precaution", he said it was time for people to consider their lifestyle, noting that preventive health care has become important after an era when it was considered that antibiotics can "cure everything". "We should be working on two fronts. We should be aware and put special emphasis on prevention and help those living with HIV and AIDS so that they face no discrimination," he said in his address.

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Pakistan not a friend, but neighbour: V K Singh

"Pakistan is not a friend but a neighbouring country.India wants good relationships with all neighbouring countries, but not at the cost of security," the MoS in the Ministry of External Affairs said while talking to reporters here.

He said Pakistan should also think what type of relationship it wants with its neighbour.

The Minister said India is on its way to have a cordial relationship with Pakistan, but the outcome will be clear in the future.

To a question on the 39 Indians held captive by ISIS in Iraq, the Minister said there is no negative news so far.

On BJP supporting FDI, Singh said the party opposed it in retail business, but it will be better in larger trade.

The former Army Chief was here to attend an Army event.

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India should not have cancelled talks: Nawaz Sharif

"We had been talking to the Kashmiri leaders in the past whenever Pakistan-India talks are held. This is nothing new as we have to seek the opinion of the Kashmiri leaders on an issue that concerns them the most," Sharif told media on board his aircraft while returning home from the 18th SAARC Summit on Thursday.
  
Consultations held by Pakistan High Commissioner in New Delhi with Kashmiri separatists led to the cancellation by India of Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh's visit to Islamabad in September.

Since then both countries have maintained that they are willing to engage in a meaningful dialogue provided the other side takes the initiative.

Sharif said that India should not have cancelled the Foreign Secretary-level talks as was agreed upon during his meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi following his swearing in at New Delhi, media reported.

He said Pakistan wishes to pursue the dialogue process from a position of dignity, honour and self-respect. "We believe in it and will maintain it at all costs," he said.
  
Sharif said Pakistan desires a "meaningful" dialogue to resolve all issues including the Kashmir dispute. His remarks come after frosty Indo-Pak ties briefly gave way to some warmth on Thursday when a smiling Prime Minister Modi and Sharif shook hands and exchanged pleasantries, but India cautioned against reading too much into such "courtesies".
  
Moments before the SAARC Summit concluded after two days of deliberations in Kathmandu, Modi and Sharif shook hands and exchanged a few sentences to loud applause of other leaders and their delegations which were witness to the cold vibes between the two Prime Ministers at the opening session when they ignored each other.
  
Sharif said he twice shook hands with his Indian counterpart and exchanged pleasantries at the SAARC Summit. He said Pakistan has always desired a meaningful dialogue with India with  sincerity and wants it to be reciprocated from the other side.
  
When asked how the ice between the two leaders was broken, Sharif said when he arrived at the retreat, Prime Minister Modi along with other leaders was already there.
  
He met others and also shook hands with Prime Minister Modi. Sharif also categorically stated that if India wants to restore ties, the Kashmir issue must be discussed and "that too seriously with full sincerity".

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40 Indian prisoners released from Karachi jail

The release of the prisoners from Karachi's district jail Malir comes a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif warmly shook hands and exchanged pleasantries at the 18th SAARC Summit in Nepal.

The released Indian prisoners included 36 fishermen and four others, Anwar Kazmi, told a spokesman of Edhi Foundation charity,

"Our organization is providing transport to take them to Wagah border with a packet containing clothes for their families and Rs 10,000 in cash to each of the released prisoners," Kazmi said.
  
They will be taken to Lahore and handed over to Indian authorities at the Wagah border.
  
It was not officially known when the fishermen were arrested but a local channel reported that they were held about a year ago.

The government so far has not commented on the release but an official said on anonymity that it was a goodwill gesture and the arrested Indians were set free on humanitarian grounds.

"When Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif visited India in May, we released 151 prisoners," the official said.
  
He said India should also release Pakistani prisoners and fishermen. India and Pakistan regularly arrest fishermen who venture into unmarked territorial waters of the two countries.

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'India well-positioned to attract international investments'

"The development priorities and economic agenda of the new Indian Government (also) present interesting possibilities for partnership with Singapore," said S Iswaran, the Second  Minister for Trade and Industry at a symposium on business prospects in India.

While it is still early days, the new government has announced several key initiatives, such as 'Make in India', Swachh Bharat and smart cities, he said.

He highlighted growing confidence in India underlining Prime Minister Narendra Modi's strong leadership ushering in "an era of political stability, certainty and growth in India". Iswaran pointed out the five decades of good diplomatic relations between Singapore and India.
  
"We look forward to elevating the Singapore-India relationship to greater heights and through different modalities of collaboration at the Centre and also in the states."
  
Singapore and India will celebrate five decades of bilateral diplomatic relations next year, which also marks the country's 50 years of independence. Addressing around 300 delegates at the Singapore-India Business Symposium, Iswaran re-emphasized Singapore's interest in contributing to India's mission to develop smart and sustainable cities.
  
"We have been requested by the Indian Government to share our experience in urbanization and city development," he said, adding, Singapore's public and private sectors could make a meaningful contribution from the experience gained over the five decades in developing the city state.
  
"We are, therefore, actively considering how best to work with the central government on its 'Smart Cities' initiative, and also with states like the new Andhra Pradesh on its Capital City project.

"This engagement will also enable Singapore businesses to participate in downstream needs and opportunities in areas such as township development, industrial and IT parks, as well  as utilities such as water and power," he said.

Australia out of step with new climate momentum

Abbott tried and failed to keep the issue off the agenda of the annual G-20 summit of wealthy and emerging countries that was hosted by the Australian city of Brisbane in mid-November. An agreement between Washington and Beijing to curb emissions, announced days before the summit, suggests he had misjudged the international mood on the issue.
  
Next week, attention turns to the next round of international climate change negotiations in Lima, Peru. For a nation of just 23 million, Australia has played a significant  role in past talks, but this time it's unclear what kind of role its delegation, led by Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, will play.
  
Abbott's conservative coalition won a landslide election victory last year over the Labor Party, which had grown unpopular in part because it had approved one of the world's highest taxes on major carbon gas polluters. Abbott not only ended that tax but years earlier helped scuttle an effort by his own Liberal Party to reach a bipartisan deal on a carbon-trading scheme, intended to encourage industries to produce less emissions.

G-20 heavyweights including the United States and Europe steamrolled Australia's efforts as summit host to keep climate change off the agenda in Brisbane. In the end, the G-20 agreed to work together toward a global agreement on reducing carbon gas emissions at a major UN climate change conference in Paris in September 2015.

The Lima meeting is the final high-level ministerial summit in which countries will aim to work toward a draft agreement to be presented in Paris. A European Union official described getting Australia to agree to the wording of a paragraph on climate change in the G-20 summit communique as slow-moving "trench warfare."

In arguing for keeping climate change off the G-20 agenda, Australia said it was not strictly an economic issue and would distract from goals including a plan to boost global  GDP by more than USD 2 trillion over five years. President Barack Obama miffed some in Abbott's administration when he said that among Asia-Pacific nations, "nobody has more at stake when it comes to thinking about and then acting on climate change" than Australia. "Here in Australia it means longer droughts, more wildfires. The incredible natural glory of the Great Barrier Reef is threatened," he said.

India votes against UNGA resolution on death penalty

The draft resolution on 'Moratorium on the use of the death penalty' was approved last week in the General Assembly's Third Committee, which deals with social, humanitarian and cultural issues.   

India was among the 36 nations that voted against the resolution, which got 114 votes in favour and 34 abstentions.

By the terms of the resolution, the General Assembly would urge Member States to progressively restrict the use of the death penalty and not impose capital punishment for offences committed by persons below 18 years of age, on pregnant women and on persons with mental or intellectual disabilities.
  
In its explanation of vote, India said the resolution seeks to promote a moratorium on executions with a view to abolishing the death penalty.
  
India voted against the resolution as it goes "against our statutory law, First Secretary in the Indian Mission to the UN Mayank Joshi said.

"The resolution fails to recognise the basic principle that each State has the sovereign right to determine its legal system and to punish criminals as per its laws," he said.   

Joshi said in India the death penalty is exercised in the "rarest of rare" cases, where the crime committed is "so heinous as to shock the conscience of society."
  
He said Indian law provides for all requisite procedural safeguards, including the right to a fair hearing by an independent court, the presumption of innocence, the minimum guarantees for the defence and the right to review by a higher court.

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G20 committed to global response to deal with cross border tax evasion: India

Tax evasion will be a key issue at G20's upcoming summit in Brisbane which is expected to deliberate on a timeline for implementing the common reporting standards for automatic exchange of tax information by 2017. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be among other world leaders to attend the two-day summit starting on November 15.
    
Former Union Minister Suresh Prabhu, who will be Modi's 'sherpa' at the summit, said there will be a particular focus on steps to deal with Base Erosion and Profit Sharing(BEPS), where globally operating firms shift profits to low or no-tax jurisdictions.
    
"There will be a new platform, a new regime and common reporting standrds," Prabhu said, giving a broad overview on the G20 priorities at the summit.
    
An action plan to tackle BEPS to make sure companies pay their fair share of tax is expected to be finalized in 2015. The BEPS initiative would ensure that tax is paid where profits are made.
    
India last month failed to attend an OECD meeting in Berlin where a multilateral agreement requiring a commitment to follow international standards of confidentiality for information received relating to black money was signed.
    
Official sources said that India was not able to attend the Berlin meeting where it was to sign a multilateral competent authority agreement and intended first information exchange date.
    
The Government of India had to give an international commitment that it would follow international standards on information received.
    
At the meeting of the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), 51 countries signed the agreement to share financial data and boost efforts to crack down on tax evasion.
    
The transparency drive, which will launch the automatic exchange of tax information between countries, was hailed by finance ministers as a watershed in the battle against tax dodgers.
    
Prabhu also said that taxation issues relating to ecommerce required consideration of the G20 countries.
    
"There is some progress but lot needs to be done," he added.

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India-Bhutan ties a "model relationship": Mukherjee

In an interview to Bhutan Broadcasting Service on the eve of his two-day visit to the Himalayan state, Mukherjee said India will continue to assist it in its economic development as Bhutan was "special to India".

He said India has given Rs 300 crore to Bhutan last year and another Rs 900 crore has already been disbursed this year for development purposes and more aid will also be disbursed in the course of time.

Asked about bureaucratic hurdles coming in the way of disbursement, he said "we have to follow certain financial rules and regulations. These rules and regulations are meant to ensure that money is being properly disbursed and disbursed money properly used so that there is no delay in implementing the projects in time."

"India-Bhutan relations is a model relationship amongst neighbours," the President said, adding "mutual trust and confidence have helped build close relations between India and Bhutan." Mukherjee noted that democracy has taken deep roots in Bhutan and almost 3/4th of Bhutanese student population are studying in India.

Talking about joint developmental projects, the President said these projects, including those in hydroelectric power sector, "have brought us closer".

"I am fortunate to have personal relationship with the royal family of Bhutan...We have a relationship with Bhutan which cannot be compared with any other. Bhutan is special to India," Mukherjee, who leaves for Bhutan tomorrow, told the Broadcasting service.

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