Indian airports now turn hot destinations for foreign investors

• ADP’s acquisition of a GMR stake makes it the second global airport operator to enter India in last three months
• Groupe ADP will buy 24.99% of GMR in the coming days, and will acquire an additional 24.01% stake later

SBI Card to pip JSW Steel, M&M in m-cap after listing

• Upper end of price band will give it a value of ₹70,000 cr, putting it among top 50
• The credit card company will open its initial public offering (IPO) on 2 March

Relief for Vodafone Idea as Infratel-Indus deal gets government nod

• This comes days after Voda Idea chairman KM Birla met top government officials
• The merger of Bharti Infratel and Indus Towers will create the world’s second largest tower company

Flipkart files separate plea challenging CCI probe, jurisdiction

• Flipkart’s petition, reviewed by Mint, comes just two weeks after Amazon's petition against a January order by the Competition Commission of India
• Flipkart, which has been a respondent in the Amazon-CCI case, has now filed a petition in Karnataka high court questioning CCI's investigation probe

Competition Commission of India to get more teeth to regulate tech M&As

• The Competition Amendment Bill, 2020, aims to give faster clearance to M&As and fill certain gaps in the statute
• The regulator may also see changes in its structure and functioning to ensure fair practices when it comes to scrutinising business processes

Trai moots reforms in merger norms for telecom licences

• Trai recommended that the guidelines on transfer/merger of licences should not 'hard-code' (that is, explicitly specify) the spectrum caps
• Trai's suggestions range from marketshare math to approval timelines, and other terms

Donald Trump fires fresh tariffs salvo ahead of India trip

• US president says India has been ‘hitting us very hard for many, many years’
• Trump told thousands of supporters at a Keep America Great rally in Colorado that he ’really likes’ Modi

Coronavirus enters worrying new phase as cases outside China rise

• Investors are wary of the impact of a wider regional outbreak on global growth and corporate earnings
• The epidemic that emerged in early December has yet to become a pandemic, which is defined as a situation where the virus is spreading across multiple continents

GMR-Groupe ADP deal for airport business gets Competition Commission nod

• GMR Infra Services is an operating and holding company. Its primary business is to hold shares in GAL, according to the notice
• A GMR group spokesperson confirmed that the deal with Tatas has been called off

Pakistan stays in grey list, warned of action if terror funding isn’t curbed

• India had said it would keep up pressure on Pakistan to cut finances to terrorist groups
• Prior to the Paris plenary, Pakistan sentenced LeT chief Hafiz Saeed to 11 years in prison

Jack Ma teams up with Columbia University to find cure for COVID-19

• The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the epidemic as a public health emergency
• The virus outbreak originated in China's Hubei province in December and has spread to more than 25 countries, including India

No one should have any fears on CAA: Uddhav Thackeray after meeting PM

• The chief minister's statements are significant as it comes in the backdrop of political differences between the Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party
• Thackeray led Shiv Sena is an erstwhile ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) but split ways post assembly elections last year due to differences over chief ministerial post

Efforts on to include G-Secs in global indices, says RBI chief Shaktikanta Das

• The development would attract higher foreign flows as many overseas funds are mandated to track global indices
• This was a long-pending suggestion of foreign investors that was addressed in the Budget this year

FATF sub-group recommends retaining Pakistan in ‘grey list’

• New Delhi said it will continue to keep up the pressure on Islamabad to cut finances to terrorist groups
• Pakistan is expected to show compliance on 16 of 27 parameters at the ongoing FATF meet

Three-tier security in place at hotel for Donald Trump's visit

• Donald Trump will stay at the 'Chanakya' suite of the ITC Maurya hotel, which has hosted the likes of former US presidents George Bush and Barack Obama
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will host a lunch for Trump, while President Ram Nath Kovind will host a banquet in honour of the visiting dignitary

Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan tackles issues on rainbow spectrum with confidence

Writer-director Hitesh Kewalya is not shying away from the same sex conversation. He’s not subtle about it either, but treats the relationship between the lead duo with respect and sensitivity

How this DRDO-made weapon will safeguard skies during Trump-Modi's roadshow

• To keep an eye on the skies, a domestically manufactured anti-drone system has deployed in Ahmedabad
• The DRDO system can detect and identify drone threats at a moment’s instance and terminate them

Wipro Digital acquires customer experience firm Rational Interaction

• The combined offerings from Wipro Digital and Rational Interaction are expected to help in driving long-term revenue growth and help CMOs scale for the future
• As it integrates with Wipro Digital, Rational Interaction will continue to grow and service its clients, with no plans to reduce its current staff

Rajnath Singh lays foundation stone for Thal Sena Bhavan

• The Army headquarters is currently housed in the iconic South Block at Raisina Hill in Lutyens' Delhi
• Christened 'Thal Sena Bhawan', the multi-storeyed complex is designed 'like a rising sun' and it will be spread over nearly 39 acres

Donald Trump's '2018 Beast' to be on Delhi roads

• Motorcades escorting the US presidential state car constitute around 50 vehicles maintained by White House Military Office and helicopters of Marine One
• The Presidential Cadillac is actually a giant Chevrolet SUV platform underneath a body designed to look like a cadillac

India's IT industry braces for coronavirus impact

• India's top IT firms have a large presence in China, the epicenter of the epidemic
• China has placed stringent curbs on travel and movement, disrupting global supply chains

US Air Force updates dress code to accommodates Sikhs

• To date, the Sikh Coalition has helped more than 20 Sikh-Americans secure accommodations to serve in the US military
• The Air Force's clarification closely resembles US Army's landmark 2017 policy adjustment, which similarly clarified terms and process for soldiers requesting religious accommodations

Indian Railways to launch Delhi-Dehradun Tejas Express via Haridwar

• Piyush Goyal said work on the project will begin as soon as a pathway is available
• An agreement in principle to start a Tejas Express train between Delhi-Haridwar-Dehradun has been given on a request by the Uttarakhand chief minister

Delhi Police says only criminal records retained from use of facial recognition

• The Delhi Police had earlier started using its facial recognition software, acquired in 2017 to track missing children and persons, to screen crowds
• The software, made by Delhi-based Innefu Labs is capable of screening faces from social media as well, as founder Tarun Wig had explained to Mint in an earlier interaction

Harley Davidson bikes set to get cheaper; Modi's 'Namaste Trump' gift on tariffs

• The Indian officials have apparently promised to lower tariffs to 'a single digit' for the bikes with displacement above 1600cc
• The cuts will not only boost the Harley Davidson but also American motorcycle brands like Indian Motorcycle, Honda and Triumph

Fire at Varroc’s Pune plant may put supplies to key automakers on the line

• The plant is used to manufacture headlamps and tail lamps for passenger and commercial vehicles
• The facility housed a design and research and development (R&D) unit

Post RBI policy, no immediate gains for borrowers, but depositors to suffer

• RBI adopted unconventional measures to bring down the cost of funds for banks
• If lending rates come down, auto and realty sectors could witness a pick-up in sales

New-age streaming starlets make a splash on big screen

• Wide and convenient reach of the web responsible for filmmakers scouting for talent from streaming platforms
• India’s total internet subscriber base stands at 637 million, up 29% year-on-year

Indian Railways: Do 30 squats for free ticket at this railway station

• The Indian Railways has installed a squat machine at the Anand Vihar station and 30 squats in 180 seconds in front of the machine will generate a free platform ticket
• Railway Minister Piyush Goyal posted a video clip of young man doing squats on Twitter

US to sign deal with the Taliban to end America’s longest war

• After months of negotiations, the US will sign a peace pact with the Taliban on 29 February in Doha
• The Taliban have refused to talk to Ghani's government and also denounced the election results

Ashok Leyland to work on one ‘modular platform’ to cut costs

• The company is testing the new modular platform through vehicles with certain fleet owners
• Prevailing slowdown has impacted freight from manufacturing and infrastructure sectors

Nirav Modi's Rolls-Royce, Porsche cars to be auctioned online

• The live sale will feature several branded handbags, including the iconic Birkin and Kelly lines by French luxury goods manufacturer Hermes
• Nirav Modi's Rolls-Royce Ghost, estimated at ₹75-95 lakh, will also be auctioned on February 27

Coronavirus live update: Death toll hits 2,200; China to re-tally virus count

• WHO chief says window of opportunity to stem virus 'narrowing'
• China's Hubei province, epicentre of coronavirus outbreak, says revises feb. 19 new cases to 775 from 349 previously

Zero UPI interchange, PSP fees may hurt PhonePe, Google Pay

• The same is not applicable to services like mandates, EMI, overdraft account and business-to-business (B2B) collections and payments
• The move to do away with these transactions fees comes after the abolishment of the Merchant Discount Rate (MDR)

The return of Zeenat Aman

• The actor is headlining her first stage production in 16 years.
• Zeenat Aman plays Kasturba Gandhi in ‘Dearest Bapu, Love Kasturba’

After Amazon, Flipkart challenges antitrust probe

• The filing comes days ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump's visit to India, and amid U.S. concerns about India's tightening of foreign investment rules for the e-commerce sector

Apple CEO Tim Cook has a stalker named Rakesh 'Rocky' Sharma

• Apple has got the temporary restraining order against Sharma
• Sharma carried a bottle of champagne and flowers and showed up at Cook's home

Kashi Mahakal Express begins commercial run from Indore

• The Kashi-Mahakal Express was flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to his parliamentary constituency Varanasi
• The train connects the three Jyotirlingas of Lord Shiva - Omkareshwar (located near Indore), Mahakaleshwar (Ujjain) and Kashi Vishwanath (Varanasi) in the country