Adani Enterprises Ltd (AEL) on Thursday reported a 29 per cent increase in consolidated EBITDA at Rs 12,377 crore in the first nine months of the current fiscal (FY25), driven by continued strong operational performance by Adani New Industries Ltd (ANIL) ecosystem and airports.

Consolidated profit before tax (PBT) increased by 21 per cent to Rs 5,220 crore in the same period, according to the flagship company of the Adani Group.

While revenue increased by 6 per cent to Rs 72,763 crore in the nine months of FY25, incubating businesses EBITDA rose by 77 per cent to Rs 7,674 crore.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won the Chandigarh mayoral election on Thursday, securing 19 votes in the 36-member House. Harpreet Kaur Babla, the BJP’s candidate, will serve as the new mayor. Meanwhile, Congress candidate from the INDIA alliance, Taruna Mehta, won the deputy mayor election.

According to the presiding poll officer, all 36 votes were polled, with no invalid ballots. Babla received 19 votes, while Prem Lata, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate backed by the Congress, received 17. Three councillors from the opposition alliance cross-voted in favour of the BJP, swinging the outcome.

The result is a setback for the AAP-Congress alliance, which had 19 councillors before the election. The alliance also expected support from its ex-officio member, Member of Parliament Manish Tewari, bringing its total to 20. The BJP, with 16 councillors, relied on defections to reach the majority mark of 19.

US-based home appliances company Whirlpool Corporation on Thursday announced plans to reduce its ownership in its Indian subsidiary, Whirlpool of India Limited, to around 20 per cent by mid to late 2025.

In the early trade, the shares of Whirlpool India dropped by 20 per cent to hit the lower circuit, trading at Rs 1,262.

The company, which currently holds a 51 per cent stake, said in a stock exchange filing that it would sell shares in one or more transactions but will remain the largest shareholder even after the sale.

Whirlpool expects to generate net cash proceeds of $550 million to $600 million from this planned stake reduction.

Apple iPhones registered 7 per cent India smartphone market share in 2024, rising on robust local production and growing premiumisation trend in smaller cities, a report showed on Thursday.

On year-on-year basis, iPhones registered 23 per cent growth and iPads an impressive 44 per cent growth in the country, according to data shared by CyberMedia Research (CMR) to IANS.

“Apple's strong growth momentum in CY2024, fuelled by double-digit expansion in both iPhones and iPads, was driven by favourable tailwinds from smartphone premiumisation, alongside a robust push by Apple in domestic manufacturing and retail expansion,” said Prabhu Ram, VP-Industry Research Group, CyberMedia Research (CMR).

India’s aspirational middle class is increasingly investing in premium devices, not only as lifestyle statements but also for their advanced technological capabilities.

Centre for Scientific Research and Innovation at Sri Guru Granth Sahib World University, Fatehgarh Sahib (CSRI-SGGSWU) organized one day workshop on 'Tech Startup Connect & Grow' in collaboration with Punjab State Council for Science and Technology (PSCST) on Jan 28, 2025. The aim of the workshop was to motivate and inspire girl students, female researchers and women entrepreneurs in Punjab and to make them aware of the funding schemes in this direction. Dr. Tejbir Singh, Chairman, CSRI-SGGSWU welcomed the dignitaries and participants. Dr. Dapinder Kaur Bakshi, Joint Director, Research Innovation and Startup Facilitation Division, PSCST, Chandigarh was the guest of honour for the workshop. She discussed the importance and success of previous Women Entrepreneurship Program under SHE (Startups’ Handholding and Empowerment) initiatives. She also told that this is the first workshop under SHE cohort 3.0 of PSCST in the region. Dr. Prit Pal Singh, Vice Chancellor of University presented presidential address during the workshop and emphasized that Women Entrepreneurship is the need of the time. Eminent speakers including  Paramjit Singh, Director, Regional Centre for Entrepreneurship Development (RCED),

A Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) jawan allegedly shot his wife dead before killing himself in his rented flat in Bhopal's Misrod area, police said on Thursday.

The incident occurred on Wednesday-Thursday intervening night at Green Park colony.

The CRPF jawan was identified as Ravikant Verma. The officials said that he dialled the police control room and informed them that he had shot his wife, Renu Verma around 1.30 a.m. on Wednesday.

Upon receiving information, a team from Misrod police station rushed to the spot and found the CRPF jawan and his wife lying in a pool of blood in their house.

The Rajasthan Police, under the state-wide Operation Cyber Shield initiated by the Police Headquarters, have arrested five accused who were working as a gang in a large-scale cyber fraud.

They created fake firms, opened fraudulent bank accounts in their names, and conducted transactions worth Rs 26 crore through these mule accounts.

Superintendent of Police (SP) Arshad Ali said that during the operation, authorities seized 60 passbooks and chequebooks from various banks, 32 ATM and debit cards, 11 mobile phones, eight SIM cards, seven fake rubber stamps, and multiple bank-related documents

Uganda on Wednesday strongly condemned an attack on the country's embassy in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), by rioters amid mass demonstrations.

John Mulimba, Uganda's Minister of State for foreign affairs in charge of regional cooperation, told the parliament that rioters had looted and burned embassy property, forcing the staff into hiding.

"The incident is a violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations (1961) and we condemn it in the strongest terms," Mulimba told lawmakers during a plenary.

The Cyber Crimes unit of Hyderabad city police have arrested 52 cyber fraudsters, including four bank officials, in an operation conducted in various parts of the country.

Seven teams had swept out across various states, including Gujarat, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Bihar, and Telangana to apprehend the accused.

Hyderabad Police Commissioner C. V. Anand said this operation resulted in the arrest of 52 accused persons, including three key masterminds. The operation led to the detection of 33 major cases by the Cybercrime Police Station. The total fraud amount involved in these cases was over Rs 88.32 crore.

Senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and Member of Parliament Raghav Chadha addressed a massive public gathering in Rohtas Nagar in support of AAP candidate Sarita Singh. The rally began with Chadha urging the crowd to observe two minutes of silence to pay tribute to the victims of the unfortunate tragedy at the Prayagraj Maha Kumbh. He stated, "It is our collective responsibility to express condolences to the bereaved families and extend all possible help." The entire gathering stood in silence, mourning the departed souls.

Massive Public Support for AAP in Rohtas Nagar
The public meeting witnessed overwhelming support from AAP workers and local residents. The entire area echoed with slogans of "Bring jhadu, bring change." During Chadha’s passionate speech, the crowd responded with great enthusiasm and applause.