The real estate sector in India is the second-largest employer after the agriculture sector and the phenomenal growth with an 18.7 per cent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) makes the sector ripe to become the largest employment generating sector and a hub for young talent, industry leaders said on Saturday.

The Indian real estate industry is witnessing a boom in terms of value and volume with a well-established value chain of developers in residential and commercial real estate, contractors, consultants such as architects and engineers, investors and so on.

“Further, this 'mother industry' is boosting other ancillary sectors and also, new-age PropTech startups are also booming with over Rs 40,000 crore invested in them, the real estate sector is poised to create multiple career opportunities,” said Vikas Jain, President-Elect, NAREDCO Maharashtra Next-Gen.

Speaking at a seminar here, Rajesh Doshi, Secretary, NAREDCO Maharashtra, said this sector is not limited to engineers or architects anymore.

“Real estate is for smart, driven individuals who can turn possibilities into opportunities. With the integration of tech, big data, and 3D modelling, there is a rising demand for skilled professionals like data scientists to forecast industry trends and dynamics,” Doshi added.

Hezbollah said on Saturday that more than 20 Israelis were killed or injured during clashes from Friday midnight until Saturday morning between groups of the Islamic Resistance and Israeli forces trying to infiltrate a border town in Lebanon.

"Elite soldiers of the Israeli enemy army, supported by artillery and air cover, tried to advance from two axes towards the villages of Maroun al-Ras and Yaroun," Hezbollah said in a statement.

"Upon the forces' arrival at the previously prepared ambush points, the Islamic Resistance fighters detonated several explosive devices and clashed with the elite officers and soldiers with light and medium weapons, and rockets from close ranges," it added.

Hezbollah reported that the ambush resulted in several deaths and injuries among the Israeli forces. The movement added that survivors evacuated the dead and wounded under the cover of artillery fire from Israeli positions within the occupied territories,news agency reported.

Six troops including an officer and an equal number of terrorists were killed in a clash between security forces and militants in Pakistan's northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, the army said in a statement on Saturday.

The incident happened in the Waziristan district of the province where the two sides engaged in a gun battle, news agency reported quoting the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR),

A clearance operation is being conducted to eliminate any other terrorists found in the area.

Mongolia's gross domestic product (GDP) per capita is projected to reach 6,800 US dollars in 2025, the country's Prime Minister Luvsannamsrai Oyun-Erdene has said.

Oyun-Erdene made the remarks while presenting the draft state budget 2025 during a parliamentary session on Friday, according to the government's press office,

"After remaining stagnant at $4,000 for over a decade, Mongolia's per capita GDP surpassed $6,000 in 2023, driven by improvements in port access, the identification of hidden economy in the mineral sector, and growth in tourism. According to projected estimates, the per capita GDP of our country is expected to reach around $6,800 in 2025," he said.

Furthermore, the prime minister noted that if 14 mega projects are fully launched in 2026, there is a likelihood that per capita GDP could reach the milestone of $10,000 by 2028 for the Asian country

Eight tankers of alleged adulterated ghee which arrived at Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) in June and July this year for making laddu prasadam had not originated from the Tamil Nadu-based supplier who was given the contract, reveals a confidential document.

Records of the Commercial Taxes Department of Andhra Pradesh show that all eight trucks received from supplier A.R. Dairy Food Private Limited, Dindigul, Tamil Nadu did not originate in their dairy.

Based on e-invoices, e-way bills and tanker transport documents, the department found that all eight vehicles originated from Vaishnavi Dairy Speciality Private Limited, Tirupati, and travelled to Dindigul and then round-tripped to TTD. This was a violation of tender conditions as trading of ghee was not allowed.

The e-invoices indicate that the same vehicles from Vaishnavi to AR Diary were diverted to TTD.

For 429 panchayats in the district, 1604 nominations have been filed for sarpanches and 4718 for panches regarding panchayat elections. Sharing this information, Deputy Commissioner, Dr. Sona Thind, said that there are 98 panchayats in Sirhind block, 78 in Basi Pathana, 95 in Amloh, 72 in Khamano, and 86 in Khera block.Till October 4, 2024, which was the last date for the nominations, 387 nominations for sarpanches and 1215 for panches have been filed in Block Sirhind. 256 nominations for sarpanches and 723 for panches in Bassi Pathana, 382 for sarpanches and 1104 for panches in block Amloh, 255 for sarpanches and 776 for panches in block Khamano, and 324 for sarpanches and 900 for panches in block Khera.The last date for withdrawal of nominations is October 7, 2024, till 3:00 PM.

Veteran leg-spinner Poonam Yadav has said she is sure the Indian team will take a lot of learnings from their heavy 58-run defeat to New Zealand in the 2024 Women’s T20 World Cup and make a strong comeback in their clash against Pakistan on Sunday afternoon.

At the Dubai International Stadium on Friday, India were comprehensively outplayed in all departments in their defeat to New Zealand, resulting in their Net Run Rate (NRR) taking a severe hit. With an NRR of -2.99, India needs big victories in their remaining three Group A matches against Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Australia to have a chance at entering the semifinal stage.

"The Indian women's team will bounce back because, after a big loss in the first match, as an Indian, you always come back stronger. I believe the team will learn a lot from this first loss and make a strong comeback. The first match doesn't decide anything, but now it's important to maintain a good run rate in the remaining matches.”

“You have to win decisively and come back stronger. Your preparation needs to be solid, and the comeback must be impactful. You have to overcome all obstacles to stay competitive in this tournament," said Poonam on a Star Sports Press Room show episode ahead of the India-Pakistan clash in the tournament.

Bank credit grew by 15 per cent in August in India, maintaining steady levels compared to the same month last year (14.9 per cent) as agriculture and industry picked up, a report showed on Saturday.

The non-food credit demand has also grown by 15 per cent in August with broadly similar growth last year, according to the report by Bank of Baroda (BoB).

According to Jahnavi Prabhakar, economist, Bank of Baroda, the credit to agriculture sector rose at a steady pace of 17.7 per cent from 18.1 per cent in July and higher than 16.5 per cent growth in August last year.

The credit to the industry sector saw a moderate increase of 9.8 per cent YoY in August, compared to 5.3 per cent same month last year.

Notably, medium-sized firms saw robust growth in demand, rising 19.2 per cent YoY, while large industries witnessed a 7.7 per cent credit growth.

Ahead of India’s must-win Group A clash against Pakistan in the 2024 Women’s T20 World Cup, veteran leg-spinner Poonam Yadav said captain Harmanpreet Kaur has been a more successful batter at number four or five, instead of being at number three. In Friday’s campaign opener, where India suffered a heavy 58-run defeat, Harmanpreet could make only 15 runs as a No.3 batter, a move decided before leaving for the UAE, which brought mixed reactions.

In the practice matches against South Africa and the West Indies, Harmanpreet managed to make an 11-ball 10 and one off three balls respectively. Before Friday’s game at the Dubai International Stadium, Harmanpreet had just 18 games at No.3 – the last of which came in February 2023 against Ireland - scoring 298 runs overall at an average of 21.28.

“If we talk experience-wise, then Harmanpreet Kaur has loads of experience. But if she bats at number five, - like if you look at the game against New Zealand in 2018, where she played a knock of 103, it came from that position. So, the more successful position for her has been batting at number four and five, as she’s capable of smashing big hits needed for the team and finishes off the game well.”

Sanjay Bangar, the former India men’s batting coach, had a different take – saying Harmanpreet’s move to No.3 was necessary in the light of others like Sajana Sajeevan, Yastika Bhatia, Dayalan Hemalatha and Uma Chetry being tried there, but not making the spot theirs’.

As the agitation of Samsung employees enters the fourth week for pay hike and better facilities, the unyielding striking employees met Ministers of Tamil Nadu to discuss matters.

Ministers T. R. B. Rajaa, T. M. Anbarasan and C. V. Ganeshan met the striking workers of the Samsung plant and discussed with them the possibilities of ending the strike. The Tamil Nadu Labour Department has held five rounds of negotiations with them but to no avail.

The workers are striking for an increase in their wages and a reduction in work hours, also recognising the CPI-M-backed trade union CITU in the Samsung plant.

It may be noted that the Samsung plant in Kancheepuram, where the workers are striking for the fourth continuous week accounts for nearly a third of the company’s revenue from India.