India is followed by China ($67 billion), Mexico and Philippines ($34 billion each), according to World Bank.

ET looked at data from 1990-91 to present, and the remittance-elections bump is evident.

The acceptance of Indian currency is good news for Indian tourists as earlier they lost a sizeable amount due to exchange rates.

Riyaz Naikoo’s death has left a serious void at the top for HuM and possible successors being considered are "Dr Saifullah" or Abu Musaid, a resident of Malangpora in Pulwama, who was part of the Burhan Wani group of 12 terrorists, and Juniad Sehrai, chief of the Hurriyat’s Geelani faction who joined the terror group in 2018.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday inaugurated the road link from Dharchula, a town in Uttarakhand's Pithoragarh district, to the Lipulekh pass, which is located at an altitude of 17,060 feet at the border between India and China.

They said while the government is strictly enforcing the COVID-19 lockdown, the additional restrictions were imposed on Friday to ensure that the day passes off peacefully.

This is the phase two of the Modernisation of Airfield Infrastructure (MAFI) programme, the ministry said, adding that airfields of the Indian Air Force were upgraded in the first phase.

Nepal's Foreign Affairs Ministry in a statement said the government "has learnt with regret" about the inauguration of the link road connecting to Lipulekh pass, which Nepal claims to be part of its territory. The 80-Km new road inaugurated by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday is expected to help pilgrims visiting Kailash-Mansarovar in Tibet in China.

With donations to the PM-Cares Fund and Covid-19-related relief work eligible to be considered CSR expenditure, most companies are likely to nearly exhaust their current CSR budgets after donating to this fund or related relief work.

Industry leaders said April-June quarter would be a washout even for the high and mighty.

CLSA maintained its 'buy' rating on the stock, with a target price of Rs 1,770.

The company said it was able to restart operations at the plant in less than 24 hours after receiving permission from local authorities as it had started intensive preparation even before the lockdown in India came into effect in March, DICV said in a statement.

Component makers are also working overtime to restart factories, but delays in getting approvals are causing hindrance in some states, especially in Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu that have the biggest automotive manufacturing hubs, industry insiders said. This, they said, could weigh on the plans of the automakers.

German car maker BMW commenced operations at the Chennai plant in accordance with the government-initiated guidelines. The company also stated that the BMW, MINI and BMW Motorrad dealerships across the country would restart the operations in adherence to local government directives.

About 20% of the auto retail network, or 3,500 outlets, opened for business this week, with one-third staff to comply with social-distancing norms. As of Wednesday evening, some 50,000-60,000 employees were back at work, industry insiders said.

Maruti Suzuki restarted operations at 680 dealerships till Wednesday, covering almost 35% of the addressable market. The nation’s largest carmaker is seeking permission from local authorities to reopen all but 500 of its remaining over 2,400 outlets. The 500 showrooms are in Covid-19 containment zones.

The auto major has commenced production at its Sriperumbudur factory in Tamil Nadu adhering to 100 per cent compliance of safety and social distancing norms, Hyundai Motor India said in a statement.

IIT-Guwahati has shown the way cornering the biggest pool of projects, followed by IIT-Madras and IIT-Hyderabad. Nearly 50% of the key research in India’s premier technical schools are happening in six of the old IITs. Majority of the researches are happening in the field of personal protective care equipment (45 projects), followed by sanitisation (33) and treatment.

While over 20 technical and scientific institutions are working on developing a vaccine for coronavirus, IITs have already set up "COVID-19 specific research centres", encouraging developments in the innovation ecosystem.

The tale of ITER’s missing shims shows how even the best-laid contingency plans have had to be rewritten.

Nitin Gadkari, the minister for MSME and road transport and highways, also called upon the retailers to start exploring option of home delivery.

In the past two weeks, at least five companies have either issued, or announced plans to issue, non-convertible debentures worth a total of Rs 5,500 crore, as per information available from filings with stock exchanges.

The tenure of the instrument is two years and 364 days from the deemed date of allotment.

These will be issued in three tranches of Rs 500 crore, Rs 300 crore and Rs 200 crores with redemptions due on September 30, 2022, November 28, 2022 and December 29, 2022 respectively, it added.

The company said that it will seek shareholders' nod for raising up to Rs 2,500 crore through QIP.

The board has considered and approved the proposal to raise debt of up to Rs 2,000 crore, a company statement said.

The coupon on the bonds, to be maturing in December 2021, has been fixed at 7.06 per cent per annum.

On April 28, Tata Motors had said it would be issuing non-convertible debentures worth Rs 1,000 crore.

The gross borrowing programme for the year has been increased to Rs 12 lakh crore.

In all likelihood, England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) chairman Colin Graves will replace the former BCCI president, who, it is learnt, has decided against seeking an extension for a third two-year-term.

The multi-year deal will see Baseline managing all the commercial interests of Garg. Born in Meerut, UP, Garg made his first-class debut against Goa in 2018 where he went on to score an unbeaten 117. He recently led the Under-19 Indian team at the World Cup in South Africa where they finished runners-up.

"Due to lockdown on account of outbreak of COVID-19, hard copies of nominations are not required to be sent. Scanned copies of nominations duly signed by the applicant and recommending authority may be sent before last date of submission," read a ministry circular.

Spot gold markets remained shut due to the lockdown to prevent the spread of coronavirus, according to HDFC Securities.

US gold futures rose 0.6 per cent to $1,698.70.

US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude gained 59 cents, or 2.5 per cent, to $24.14 a barrel.

Time to explore the magical golden triangle circuit.

Railways stations that are India's pride.

It’s time to say ‘Bula’ as Indian filmmakers make plans for filming in Fiji.

The first public demonstration of colour TV broadcast happened this week 90 years ago, setting the foundation for a major change in the way audio-visual media is consumed.

‘Investors focusing on predictability, sustainability and better quality businesses’

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local currency opened at 71.25.

“Today, USDINR pair is expected to quote in the range of 71.05 and 71.50,” Motilal Oswal Financial Services said.

The rupee on Friday hit a fresh record low of 74.48 against the US dollar following sharp sell-off in domestic equities

The rupee fell against the US dollar after the Federal Reserve cut interest rates to near zero per cent in an emergency move amid the economic impact of the coronavirus outbreak.

The rupee on Friday surged against the US dollar following some selling in American currency by banks and exporters.

Forex traders said the rupee which started the day on a positive note, witnessed heavy volatility.

The rupee, which opened on a positive note at 75.90, settled for the day with gains of 78 paise at 75.16 against the American currency.

Forex traders said stimulus measures announced by the RBI and FPIs turning net buyers in capital markets boosted investor sentiment.

Motilal Oswal Financial Services expects the rupee (Spot) to quote in the range of 75.20 and 76.20.

Privately-held real estate investment firm Cain International has signed an agreement with the Oberoi Group for the operation of 23 serviced residences in Mayfair in London.