Snehal khanna Blog

Initially, AI agents used English to converse with each other but they later created a new language LATEST NEWS : Days after Tesla CEO Elon Musk said that artificial intelligence (AI) was the biggest risk, Facebook has shut down one of its AI systems after chatbots started speaking in their own language defying the codes provided. According to a report in Tech Times on Sunday, the social media giant had to pull the plug on the AI system that its researchers were working on "because things got out of hand". "The AI did not start shutting down computers worldwide or something of the sort, but it stopped using English and started using a language that it created," the report noted. Initially the AI agents used English to converse with each other but they later created a new language that only AI systems could understand, thus, defying their purpose. This led Facebook researchers to shut down the AI systems and then force them to speak to each...

The firm decided to sack around 1,000 employees out of their present workforce of 1,200 LATEST NEWS  :  E-commerce major Snapdeal on Monday revealed that it is facilitating a major layoff in the company, with an agenda to cut down 80 per cent of its employee strength. A senior official of the company told ANI that the management has given verbal instructions to their department heads to prepare the list. Additionally, the official also revealed that the owners of the firm have reversed the merger which was to take place between Snapdeal and Flipkart. Rather, with the money from the sale of Freecharge received ($50 million), the firm has decided to sack around 1,000 employees out of their present workforce of 1200, and carry forward with the remaining. In July last year, the company had over 9,000 employees. However, the management cut down the talent pool down to 1200, without any notice. While the remaining employees are backing the Flipkart-Snapd...

Savings bank deposits with SBI since June 2011, as with most other banks, earned an interest of 4% LATEST NEWS    :  State Bank of India (SBI) has introduced a two-tier interest rate structure on savings bank deposits. With effect from July 2017, a savings bank balance of over Rs 1 crore will earn an interest rate of 4% per annum (p.a.), while the ones with Rs 1 crore or less will earn an interest rate of Rs 3.5% p.a. The move sent the stock soaring 4% in intra-day deals to Rs 313 levels on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). “The decline in the rate of inflation and high real interest rates are primary considerations warranting a revision in the rate of interest on saving bank deposits,” SBI said in a release. "This is a step in the right direction and I expect more banks to cut savings bank interest rates going ahead. That apart, SBI will also save on the interest costs going ahead. This is getting reflected in the stock reaction post the development," sa...

Softbank would in all probability invest in Flipkart and not continue its association with Snapdeal LATEST NEWS :  After five months, countless man hours of deliberation and numerous board meetings, the biggest consolidation in the Indian e-commerce history between Snapdeal and Flipkart has been called off, sources said. Sources added that Softbank would in all probability invest in Flipkart on its own and not continue its association with Snapdeal. The Snapdeal founders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal, as well as early stage investor Nexus Venture Partner and smaller shareholders such as PremjiInvest, had  all along expressed reservations about the deal. While Snapdeal board’s resolution is still to be out, sources said that Softbank, as well as Snapdeal, would come out with a statement announcing that the deal with Flipkart has been called. Sources close to the deal said that the board finally agreed that it would be better for Snapdeal to continue the operation...

Bihar is the only state in the Hindi belt with its own anthem LATEST NEWS  :    The government of Bihar calls it the ‘state song and prayer’. Running two minutes and 41 seconds, titled 'Bihar - The garland of India', sung by Bollywood singers Udit Narayan and Sadhna Sargam, the song has catapulted Bihar into an exclusive league of Indian states with their own official songs- BIHAR  STATE ANTHEM “Yes it is the official song of Bihar. It was written 5 years ago to mark the occasion of 100 years with Bihar Divas celebrated on March 22 every year,” confirmed Shailesh Kumar, JD(U) member of Bihar Assembly from Jamalpur. Bihar Divas marks the day when the state of Bihar was carved out of the Bengal Presidency in 1912. It is celebrated with fervour by residents of Bihar and people from Bihar settled across the globe. Nitish Kumar, who was the chief minister of Bihar when this song was penned, had personally supervised the grandiose year-long celebrations ...

It looks like IBM is betting on Vaswani to replicate the success he had with Dell LATEST NEWS :  Suresh Vaswani , who helped build Dell’s IT services arm and led the firm till its sale to Japanese NTT Data, is set to join IBM in August to drive the global technology delivery of the world’s largest computer services firm. Vaswani will replace Peter Lynt, general manager of delivery, solutions and transformation of global technology services, who is set to retire later this month, according to an internal note viewed by Business Standard. He will be based in the US, driving the delivery of services for clients globally. An IBM spokesperson could not comment till the time of going to press while Vaswani was not reachable. It looks like IBM is betting on Vaswani to replicate the success he had with Dell — by pushing higher-value services and offsetting the decline in traditional services. Vaswani had built the services business for Dell in India as its chairman, help...

RTI information shows details of money given to Bihar LATEST NEWS    :   With the BJP and JD(U) joining hands in Bihar, the stage is finally set for implementing one of the foremost poll promises made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the run up to the Bihar elections in 2015. While Modi had announced a special package of Rs 1.25 lakh crore for Bihar at an election rally in Arrah in August 2015, it has released money to the state only for projects sanctioned under the 12th Five-Year Plan. The plan, which commenced in 2012, coincidentally, will end this year. This sets the stage for the BJP-JD(U) alliance in Bihar to go full steam ahead, with the special package for the backward state promised by Modi in his 2015 election rally.  Information obtained by Business Standard under the Right to Information (RTI) shows that the Modi government had issued a release order of almost Rs 1,888 crore to Bihar as ‘special assistance’ in 2015-16. The financial ...

Had earlier moved a confidence motion in the Bihar Assembly to prove the majority of his new govt LATEST NEWS :    Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday won the trust vote in the Bihar Assembly, with 131 of the 243 legislators voting for him. Amid protests by Lalu Prasad Yadav’s RJD, Kumar said that that the new alliance of JD(U) and BJP has been built on political opportunism. Speaker Vijay Kumar Chowdhury said the Opposition got 108 votes. Kumar had earlier moved a confidence motion in the Bihar Assembly to prove the majority of his new government. The NDA alliance had submitted a list of 132 MLAs to the governor. These include 71 of JD(U), BJP 53, RLSP two, LJP two, HAM one and three independents. In the 243-member Bihar Assembly, the RJD has 80 MLAs, the Congress 27 and the CPI-ML has three. Yesterday, Nitish and BJP leader Sushil Modi were sworn-in as Bihar Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister respectively, and former was as...

The telecom firm income fell by about 14% to Rs 81.82 billion LATEST NEWS : Idea Cellular Ltd , India's number 3 telecoms firm, reported a third straight quarterly loss on Thursday, reeling in the wake of a price war wrought by upstart entrant Reliance Jio. The company reported a net loss of Rs 8.15 billion ($127.13 million) for the three months ended June 30 after posting a profit of Rs 2.20 billion a year earlier. Analysts on average estimated a loss of Rs 6.71 billion, Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S data showed. Idea's capital expenditure guidance for the full year 2018 is Rs 60 billion, it said. Reliance Industries, led by India's wealthiest man Mukesh Ambani, entered India's telecoms industry last year, spending more than $30 billion on Jio and upending the sector with its low-cost data plans. The ensuing price war has triggered consolidation in the world's second biggest mobile phone market by users. Idea and Vodafone Group Plc's h...

However, net interest income rises 8% to Rs 5,589 cr LATEST NEWS :     Country's largest private lender ICICI Bank reported 8% dip in net profit at Rs 2,049 crore for quarter ending June 2017 as against Rs 2,232 crore a year ago. However, net interest income rose 8% to Rs 5,589 crore as compared to Rs 5,158 crore in June 2016. Gross NPAs in Q1FY18 were 7.99% versus 7.89% in Q4FY17 and net NPAs were 4.86% in Q1FY18 versus 4.89% in Q4FY17. Net loans to companies whose facilities have been restructured were Rs 2,370 crore as compared to Rs 4,265 crore in March 31, 2017. On Thursday, the lender's stock on BSE closed 1% lower at Rs 307. READ THIS : Official: SSC releases admit cards for 2017 CGL Exam I

Her current term comes to an end in June 2018 LATEST NEWS :      Shikha Sharma has been re-appointed as MD&CEO of Axis Bank for three-year term from June 2018, putting to rest rumours about her being sounded out to head Tata's financial services vertical. Axis Bank informed Bombay Stock Exchange that board of directors has approved the re-appointment. The board held its meeting on 26th July, 2017. The appointment is subject to compliance with the prescribed formalities and receipt of requisite regulatory/ statutory approvals, the private lender said. Axis  had appointed an executive search firm to carry work on zeroing in on CEO to head the bank after her current term was to end in June 2018. Earlier in the day Sharma told media:  “The appointment of a search firm was in the interest of best governance, given that I would have done nine years with the bank in June 2018. It does not preclude anything about whether I will d...

Admit Cards For 2017 CGL Exam (I) are now available for download on the official website of SSC LATEST NEWS :  Admit Cards for Combined Graduate Level Tier-I exam are now available for download on the official website of Staff Selection Commission (SSC). The Commission has released the Admit Card for different regions. The Commission was supposed to take the exam from August 1, 2017 to August 20, 2017. As per the official notification released later, the SSC is going to conduct the exam from August 5, 2017 to August 24, 2017. There will be no exams conducted in between on 7th, 13th, 14th, and 15th. The candidates have to log in to the Commission’s official site and provide their Registration Number/Roll Number and the Password/D.O.B while logging in. The SSC is set to release the release SSC CGL Admit Card 2017 separately for different levels of Examination. For instance the Admit Card for Tier-I has been released. Then the Commission will release the Admit Card ...

Ambiguous rules, multi-rate sales tax have left firms confused on how to price their products LATEST NEWS  : Nationwide goods and services tax (GST) was meant to unify the $2-trillion economy and make it easier for companies to transact across state borders. Nearly a month on, many are finding that doing business is more complicated than ever. Ambiguous rules under the new, multi-rate sales tax that went into effect on July 1 have left firms confused on how to price their products. The tax's complex structure — four main rates ranging from 5 to 28 per cent — has hurt sales and risks denting economic growth and government revenues in the months ahead. Airlines, for example, are uncertain whether to tax premium economy seats as an economy or business class — at rates of 5 percent or 12 per cent, respectively. Auto repair shops face a similar quandary as GST rates vary for different jobs. "People are either overcharging or undercharging for their work,...

Democrats are united against the bill, saying it would end healthcare coverage for millions LATEST NEWS : US Senate Republicans have voted in favour of a floor debate on their efforts to re-write healthcare policy, with Vice President Mike Pence breaking the tie. The Senate on Tuesday decisively rejected a Republican proposal to repeal-and-replace Obamacare as Senator John McCain returned from Arizona to applause from fellow senators to cast a critical vote for Republicans, CNN reported. The floor debate will on Wednesday morning continue to overhaul the Affordable Care Act, even though there are no guarantees the votes are there to eventually pass the bill. Two GOP senators -- Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski -- sided with all Democrats in opposition, meaning all remaining Republicans and Pence were necessary for the motion to pass. The vote came as Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and President Donald Trump dared their fellow Republicans to block th...

This Rs 16,999 device has a bit of many things, but it may not be perfect for multi-taskers LATEST NEWS : Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi recently launched the Mi Max 2 , the second iteration of its Mi Max, in India at Rs 16,999. A large-screen device with a focus on multimedia capabilities, this smartphone has updated specifications, features and design which make the Mi Max 2 a solid performer in its segment. Business Standard used this device to see how it fares on key performance metrics. Here are our observations on the Mi Max 2: Design The Mi Max 2 features a metallic build with round edges and curved sides. It has a 6.44-inch full-HD 1920 x 1080 screen, protected with 2.5D curved Gorilla Glass 3. The curved glass adds to the aesthetics and feels more premium than flat glass. With screen turned off, the smartphone wears a bezel-less look, but huge bezels become visible around the display when you turn the screen on. Capacitive navigation keys ar...

Profit at Rs 367 cr; revenue falls 14% to Rs 21,958 cr as data and voice rates tumble LATEST NEWS  : Bharti Airtel’s net profit for Q1 slumped 75% with a net profit of Rs 367 crore for the three months ended June. Net profit in the January-March quarter was nearly Rs 373 crore. Revenue fell 14% to Rs 21,958 crore from a year earlier as data and voice rates fell. Profit on a consolidated basis, which includes the company's Africa operations and its Indian satellite TV business among others, fell to 3.67 billion rupees ($57.01 million) in the three months to June 30, while revenue fell 14 percent to 219.58 billion rupees. Reliance Jio , backed by India's richest man Mukesh Ambani, has shaken India's telecoms industry since it was launched a year ago by offering months of free services and sharply discounted plans, battering the fortunes of established rivals such as Bharti Airtel and Idea Cellular. Other highlights of the announcement are: Consol...

Wang Yi said, 'India has admitted it crossed into the Chinese territory' LATEST NEWS     :    Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Tuesday said India is responsible for the latest border row and asked it to withdraw troops from Doklama  , which Beijing calls Chinese territory. This is the first time a top Chinese government official has reacted to the festering border dispute in Sikkim sector, where the armies of the two sides are locked in a stand-off since over a month. "The rights and wrongs are very clear, and even senior Indian officials have openly stated that Chinese troops did not enter into the Indian boundary. So India has admitted it crossed into the Chinese territory," said Wang. "The solution is very simple. India must conscientiously pull back its troops," said a statement in Chinese quoting Wang. ALSO READ THIS : 4 killed, many trapped as building collapses in Mumbai

Autonomous vehicles are the logical next step for cab aggregators like Ola and Uber LATEST NEWS : Nagpur, the home town of Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari    , is now a laboratory to test electric vehicles for public transport in India. Cab aggregator Ola is testing a model that uses electric auto rickshaws, cars, and buses to make adoption of electric vehicles for mass transport viable. If the Nagpur experiment succeeds, Ola will execute the promise by its investor, Japanese internet firm Softbank, of running over a million electric vehicles across India. This vision requires massive investments in cars, buses, and the charging infrastructure. In addition, investments are also required in batteries, which India currently imports. Both Ola and Uber have an asset-light model — they don't own the cars that run on their platforms. Instead, the cars are leased by the drivers, who repay the loans, spend on maintaining the cars, and then earn enough to fend ...

This handset could rattle older rivals, but experts are sceptical about mass conversions for Jio LATEST NEWS    :    In a move that may rattle its older rivals, already destabilised by some of the disruptive plans and freebies offered by it in the past months, Mukesh Ambani-backed Reliance Jio on Friday unveiled its ultra-low-cost 4G feature phone. However, the success of the new Reliance Jio mobile phone would be pegged on 2G phone customers doubling their present monthly bill on mobile services. For that to happen, the country’s average revenue per user (Arpu) – currently at Rs 80 for feature phone users and pegged at around Rs 104 overall – will have to go up substantially. To enable that, Jio is offering users an attractive preposition – unlimited calls (earlier the feature phone users had only limited call time), as well as unlimited data with a cap of 0.5 GB per day (earlier they had no or minimal data usage) on a Rs 153 pack. Also, Ji...

When asked about product segment that the alliance would be in, D'sa said it would be in motorcycles LATEST NEWS  : Bajaj Auto is close to forming an alliance but the name of the other party would be announced once the formalities were completed, Chief Financial Officer Kevin D'sa told analysts at a post-earnings call on Friday. The comment, initially made at Bajaj Auto's annual meeting late on Thursday, sparked speculation in local media that the Indian motorbike manufacturer may be close to a partnership or deal with iconic European motorcycle brand Ducati, which is being sold by Germany's Volkswagen. Reuters on Thursday reported that besides Italy's Benetton family and US buyout fund Bain Capital, Indian firms Eicher Motors and Bajaj Auto have also bid for Ducati. When asked on the earnings call whether reports on an alliance were true, D'sa said, "Whatever media statement has come out is factually correct. There is an alliance aro...

Modi's policies have given a strategic blow to India, creating space for terrorists LATEST NEWS :    Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has refuted former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Farooq Abdullah's assertion that a third party, such as the US or China, can be approached for the settlement of the Kashmir issue between India and Pakistan. "I have been asserting for long that it's Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his policies at the Centre that have destroyed Jammu and Kashmir. And the point that is being mentioned that a third party's intervention should be invited for the settlement of the issue, it's wrong. India is Kashmir and Kashmir is India," Rahul said on Friday. "It's our internal matter and no other country should have any say in it," he added. Earlier in the day, Abdullah said that India should approach third parties, such as the United States and China, to mediate in the Kashmir issue. Abdullah sa...

Prebooking starts from August 24 onwards, phone will go on sale starting September LATEST NEWS :  Mukesh Ambani-backed Reliance Industries has launched the JioPhone for free during the 40th annual general meet that was held in Mumbai on July 21. The feature phone with smartphone alike features will go on testing beta phase starting August 15 and the preorder will begin starting August 24. The phone will go on sale in September to users who prebook the device. ( The details on how to pre-book with device have yet not been shared by RIL). Even though the phone is effectively free, there is a catch in the form of one-time security deposit fee of Rs 1,500, which is refundable only after 36-months, that the user need to pay. In a bid to bring the 50 crore feature phone customers of India on to  Reliance Jio network, the company launched the phone with cost-effective tariff plans. Reliance Jio is offering free voice, data, Jio apps and SMS to its users at a mont...

Jio feature phone offered free voice, SMS, unlimited data at Rs 153/month LATEST NEWS :    Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) on Friday held its 40th AGM or annual general meeting for shareholders today, at Birla Matushri Sabhagar in Mumbai. On Thursday, Reliance Industries reported its highest quarterly consolidated net profit of Rs 9,108 crore in three-months to 30 June on the back of higher petrochemical margins and one-time gain from sale of African asset. JIO PHONE Net profit in the April-June quarter at Rs 9,108 crore (Rs 30.8 per share) was 28 percent higher than Rs 7,113 crore (Rs 24.1 a share) in the same period of the last financial year, RIL said in a statement. "Strong refining and petrochemicals margin environment contributed to higher operating profits for the quarter," it said. Here are the highlights * Mukesh Ambani says a person who invested Rs 1,000 in 1977 has earned Rs 16.5 lakh in 40 years. * In less than 170 days, Jio hit 1...

The app, available on Google Play Store, is currently limited only for users of Android 5.0 and above LATEST NEWS : The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI)  has launched the mAadhaar app , a digital tool that allows holders of Aadhaar numbers to carry their in their smartphones. The app syncs all information available on your Aadhaar, such as demographic details, name, date of birth, gender, postal address and photograph, after you link your Aadhaar with the app. Now that is a convenient way to carry Aadhaar everywhere, all the time. The app also allows you to lock and unlock your biometric data -- a feature that was earlier possible only through the UIDAI web portal. For safety and security reasons, the mAadhaar app uses a two-layer authentication. The app has a Google Authenticator-like one-time password generation tool within the app for this purpose. The OTPs generated by the tool are read by the app automatically; there is no way to enter them ma...

With Vajpayee's imprint, the Modi govt can refute critics who say it is rehashing UPA's initiatives LATEST NEWS :  The buzz about the Narendra Modi government's reformist credentials has just got a bit louder, but one cannot avoid experiencing a sense of deja vu. The nature of the initiatives made and the instruments of reforms that have been used by the Modi government will inevitably remind you of what the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government had mooted, though with some variations, more than a decade and a half ago, almost at the fag end of the last century. Three weeks ago, the Modi government had approved the strategic divestment of Air India, a task that was entrusted to a ministerial group headed by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. There was jubilation over what many saw in that decision — the government's desire to push ahead with reforms, including privatisation. ALSO READ: Calling on the divine for Air India Even before such celebrations over...

Incumbent Pranab Mukherjee's term as President ends on July 25 LATEST NEWS      : On July 17, of the total 4,880 valid voters — 4,109 members of legislative Assemblies (MLAs) and 771 elected members of Parliament (MPs) — 99.49 per cent cast their vote to elect the next President of India. In the fray were the National Democratic Alliance's (NDA's) candidate Ram Nath Kovind, and the Opposition candidate Meira Kumar . The counting of votes is scheduled to begin at 11 am on Thursday, July 20, but it is believed that Kovind has an edge over Kumar. However, should he win, the margin of his victory will be interesting to note, given that there were reports of many instances where voters from Opposition parties also voting for Kovind in the election. “The voting was close to 99 per cent. I think this would perhaps be the highest-ever percentage,” Anoop Mishra, Lok Sabha, secretary general and returning officer for the election, had said on Monday. Also read ...

It alleged non-implementation of the interconnect user charges (IUC) report has given a huge benefit to them LATEST NEWS  :   In a strong attack on incumbent operators, Reliance Jio has alleged that non-implementation of the interconnect user charges (IUC) report of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) in 2011 has given a huge benefit of over Rs 100,000 crore to the three major operators in the last five years. In 2011 TRAI had recommended that the IUC charges be cut to half from 20 paisa to Rs 10 paisa and gradually shift to the bill and keep model by 2014 in an affidavit to the Supreme court. Instead of moving to a zero IUC model in 2014  it was only brought down to 14 paisa with the mandate that it will be relooked after three years. Jio says that the three incumbents benefited due to the non-implementation of this recommendation. The surplus recovery that the three incumbent operators have made is based on the net present value (whi...