Economists at the state-run State Bank Wednesday hit out the defenders of the central bank autonomy, saying the RBI's independence has been "misunderstood by the intelligentsia".

In a note prepared in the context of the Bimal Jalan committee report which cleared transfer of Rs 1.76 trillion of its surpluses to the government, the economists said fears of "heavens falling" stoked by the "scholars" have been given a burial by the panel's recommendations.

India captain Virat Kohli maintained his slender six-point lead over Steve Smith while speedster Jasprit Bumrah made his maiden entry into the top-10 of the latest ICC Test rankings released on Tuesday.

The biggest gainer, however, was all-rounder Ben Stokes following his stupendous effort in the third Test against Australia at Headingley. It has helped him reach career-best positions among batsmen and all-rounders. He is now 13th among batsmen and second among all-rounders.

Over 200 cases have been filed in Uttar Pradesh by Muslim women since the enactment of a law that makes the practice of instant triple talaq a punishable offence.

Of the 216 FIRs, 26 have been registered in Meerut followed by Saharanpur and Shamli where 17 and 10 cases have been lodged respectively, a senior police official told PTI on Tuesday.

Mumbai: Domestic equity benchmark BSE Sensex started on a choppy note on Wednesday tracking weakness in metal and banking stocks amid tepid cues from global markets.

After opening slightly higher than its previous close, the 30-share index slipped into the red to trade 12.46 points, or 0.03 per cent, lower at 37,628.81 at 0930 hours, while the broader Nifty fell 7.30 points, or 0.06 per cent, to 11,098.05 in early trade.

NEW DELHI : Public sector banks Punjab National Bank (PNB) and Allahabad Bank on Tuesday launched retail loan products that are linked to the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) repo rate. Linking of loans with the repo rate will make them cheaper.

Under the Punjab National Bank’s PNB Advantage scheme, effective from 27 August, the interest rate will be 0.25% less than the existing rates based on MCLR (marginal cost of funds-based lending rate).

BENGALURU : Digital payments company Paytm, valued at about $15 billion, is set to enter the healthcare payments space to widen its customer base.

Last month, Paytm had said it was expanding its educational services from fee payments, application forms and career counselling, to education insurance, loans and job applications.

Shares of India’s major private sector lender Yes Bank slumped on Wednesday morning, despite media reports that the bank’s board is mulling a $1.2 billion fund raiser. According to a report by ET Now, Yes Bank’s board of directors are likely to meet soon on Friday to discuss a mega fund raiser, CNBC TV18 reported citing sources. The equity infusion will be subject to shareholder approval. The development comes after Yes Bank raised Rs 1,930 crore through Qualified Institutions Placement (QIP) route last week.

Maruti Suzuki has not renewed the contracts of 3,000 temporary employees across its manufacturing plants, chairman RC Bhargava said on Tuesday, as the company has been cutting production since February this year to control inventory pile-up amid a slowdown in demand.

Bhargava said over the past year, multiple factors led to an increase in final cost of cars, affecting their affordability.

Markets regulator Sebi has told the mutual fund industry that safety of investment cannot be compromised for higher yields.

Speaking at the Association of Mutual in India (Amfi) members summit in Mumbai on Tuesday, Securities and Exchange Board of India chairman Ajay Tyagi also added that, the industry as a whole needs to do its own analysis on a regular basis to avoid such situations in future.

Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday issued clarification regarding his stance about the situation in Jammu and Kashmir. Gandhi said that Jammu and Kashmir is India's integral matter and no one including Pakistan has any right to infringe upon it. He also said that the violence in Kashmir is due to instigation and support from Pakistan.

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