New Delhi, May 10 : Passenger car sales in India fell 10.43 percent in April as high interest rates and fuel costs dampened consumer sentiments, the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) said Friday.

Data furnished by SIAM showed a decline of 10.43 percent, as only 150,789 units were sold in the month from 168,354 units in April, 2012. The passenger car sales had fallen 6.7 percent in the year ended March 31, the first time in a decade.

New Delhi, May 10 : Ritesh Agarwal, who founded Oravel. com, a startup that provides an alternative to hotel stays in India, has bagged the $100,000 Thiel Fellowship for 2013.

Agarwal, 19, born in Odisha, is the only Indian who has made it to the Thiel list of "20 under 20 years of age globally".

"Being part of Thiel Fellowship is a humbling experience. I made it because of the sheer process and quality of execution achieved at Oravel. com," says Agarwal, who always wanted to solve large problems using cutting edge new-age technologies.

New Delhi, May 10 : Britain's biggest retailer Tesco Friday said it is waiting for more clarity on India's foreign direct investment (FDI) policy and would accordingly decide on opening stores in Asia's third largest economy.

Tesco chief executive officer Philip Clarke along with Tata International managing director Noel Tata met Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma to seek clarity on various conditions imposed on the global supermarket chains to invest in India.

New Delhi, May 10 : CPI-M leader Brinda Karat Friday wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, seeking his intervention in the appointment of the chairperson of the Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI), which she said plays a big role in advancing the interests of the disabled.

Karat said the post has not been filled despite the selection committee making its recommendations almost a year back and directions from the court.

New Delhi, May 9 : Actor-filmmaker Farhan Akhtar has been named the new face of smartphones brand Intex Technologies and he says the products are value-for-money.

"To me, Intex has been a long standing player that spells trust, credibility, innovation and evolves with the usage patterns of consumers like us," Farhan said in a statement.

"The products are versatile and offers value-for-money, I am looking forward to this association and the next line up of innovative offerings from the Intex stable," he added.

New Delhi, May 9 : Soumyajit Ghosh and Mouma Das made the mixed doubles final at the Commonwealth Table Tennis Championships here Thursday, a day on which India made sure of at least seven medals in the individual competitions.

Ghosh and Mouma beat top seeds from Singapore, Yang Zi and Yu Mengyu, 11-9, 11-6, 12-10, in the semifinals. They will meet another Singaporean pair, Zhan Jian and Zhou Yihan, in the title clash to be held later in the evening.

New Delhi, May 9 : Punjab National Bank's net profit dropped 20.6 percent during the fourth quarter (January to March) of fiscal 2012-13.

It posted net profit of Rs. 1,130.8 crore during the quarter compared to Rs. 1,424.06 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2012.

Total Income increased from Rs. 10,964.50 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2012 to Rs. 11,552.84 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2013.

It posted a net profit of Rs. 4,747.67 crore for the year ended March 31, 2013 as compared to Rs. 4,884.20 crore for the year ended March 31, 2012.(IANS)

New Delhi, May 9 : Prime Minister Manmohan Singh called on President Pranab Mukherjee Thursday amid speculation on the fate of Law Minister Ashwani Kumar following the apex court observations about the government's role in the CBI affidavit on the coal block allocation issue.

Official sources said the prime minister's meeting with the president lasted about half an hour. However, no details of the meeting were immediately available.

There has been speculation that the Congress leadership might decide to replace Ashwani Kumar following the apex court observations.

New Delhi, May 9 : National carrier Air India will resume commercial operations of the reinstated Boeing-787 Dreamliner from May 15. The first flights will be between Delhi and Bangalore and Delhi and Kolkata.

The airline will begin the 787 Dreamliner operation first on the Delhi-Bangalore sector in the early hours of May 15 and then on the Delhi-Kolkata route later in the day.

The airline received the aviation regulator, Directorate General of Civil Aviation's final airworthiness certificate Tuesday on one of the Dreamliners, which was modified by a Boeing team which is in India.

New Delhi, May 9 : Nokia Thursday unveiled a new smartphone named Asha 501 priced at $99 (Rs. 5,000), aiming to capitalise on the growing demands for low-cost smart device in the developing countries like India.

The new device, which has basic functions of smartphones, will be available in Indian and other markets from June. It offers 2G connectivity, Wi-Fi and access to internet and applications like Facebook, but it does not support 3G network.

Finland-headquartered Nokia announced the global launch of the new device here, giving clear indication of its positioning in the emerging markets.

New Delhi, May 9 : American automobile major General Motors Thursday launched its new multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) Enjoy.

The vehicles' petrol version is priced at Rs. 5.49-6.99 lakh and the diesel one at Rs. 6.99-7.99 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).

The GM's new MVP is expected to compete with the likes of Maruti Suzuki's Ertiga, Toyota's Innova and Mahindar's Xylo. However, Toyota's Innova and Mahindra's Xylo have a starting price of above Rs. 9 lakh.

According to the company, it was able to achieve attractive introductory price due to extensive localisation of the components.

New Delhi, May 9 : Public sector Union Bank posted a 2.07 percent rise in net profit to Rs. 789 crore for the last quarter (January-March) of the 2012-13 financial year from Rs. 773 crore clocked during the corresponding period in 2011-12.

The net interest margin (NIM) for the fourth quarter of 2012-13 was at 2.89 percent compared to 3.16 percent during the fourth quarter of 2011-12.

For the whole fiscal (2012-13), the bank's net profit went up by 20.76 percent to Rs. 2,158 crore from Rs. 1,787 crore in 2011-12.

New Delhi, May 9 : President Pranab Mukherjee Thursday paid tribute to litterateur, composer and artist Rabindranath Tagore on the ocassion of his 152nd birth anniversary.

Mukherjee paid floral tributes in front of a portrait of Tagore at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, officials said.

The 1861-born Tagore holds the unique distinction of having authored the national anthems of two sovereign nations -- India and Bangladesh.

The bard's rich, diverse and vast literary output is virtually unmatched in the world. He was also a painter and composer par excellence.

New Delhi, May 9 : As the Indian Cinema celebrates 100 years of its existence Bollywood actresses and fashionista Sonam Kapoor shared her love for classic look and said she copied legendary Madhubala's sari from a song for an event.

"There was a sari of Madhubala from 'Achcha ji main haari...', I actually copied that sari for Filmfare's press conference," Sonam told IANS.

"It was a very simple and elegant blue sari with black border. The blouse had three-fourth sleeves and the back had black buttons on the right," she added.

Madhubala wore the sari with a brooch and accessorised it with a small batua.

New Delhi, May 9 : India will send back the body of Pakistani prisoner Sanaullah, who succumbed to his injuries sustained in an attack in Jammu's Kot Bhalwal jail, Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said Thursday.

"The ministry of external affairs is coordinating with the Pakistani authorities to complete the formalities to send his body back home," Shinde told reporters here.

Asked about Pakistan's demand for an international probe, Shinde said: "I cannot comment on this now as no demand has come to us till now. When the demand comes, I will tell you."

New Delhi, May 8 : The government Wednesday directed national carrier Air India to stop the "companion free (travel) scheme" (CFS) which allowed its employees to take their spouse or any other family member for free on the fare of a single ticket.

The airline has also filed a police report against one of its officials who is alleged to have issued a large number of tickets based on this scheme.

New Delhi, May 8 : Around 7.5 lakh chemists across India will observe a one-day strike Friday against government policies and their impact on traders, a statement said Wednesday.

A statement by the Retailers and Distributors Chemist Association (RDCA) said that "7.5 Lakh chemists in the country will hold demonstrations and agitations in all parts of the country".

Contending that the new drug policy will reduce their profits and cause inconvenience, Sandeep Nangia, president of RDCA, Delhi, said they had four demands which, if met by the government, would end the standoff.

New Delhi, May 8 : Population stabilisation is a critical determinant of development and improvement in the quality of life, Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad said here Wednesday.

"During the last century, the population of India has increased from 23.8 crore in 1901 to 121 crore in 2011," Azad said at a meeting of the consultative committee of parliament attached to the ministry of health and family welfare.

New Delhi, May 8 : President Pranab Mukherjee Wednesday advised young parliamentarians to fulfil their responsibilities in terms of the people's expectations of them, saying pointedly that "it takes years to build institutions but they can be destroyed easily".

The young parliamentarians, from various parties, met him to present a copy of "India: The Future is Now" (Wisdom Tree). The book, edited by Minister of State for Human Resource Development Shashi Tharoor has contributions by these Lok Sabha members about their vision and road-map for the country.

New Delhi, May 8 : The Congress victory in Karnataka is a rejection of the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) ideology, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Wednesday.

"It is a clear result against the ideology of the BJP which has been ruling Karnataka. The people of the country know what's what and they will reject the BJP ideology as the result in Karnataka shows," Manmohan Singh told reporters here.

Lauding the efforts of Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi, Manmohan Singh said: "He took a leading role in the campaigning and worked hard. I congratulate the Congress workers of Karnataka."