1) Bvlgari appoints Priyanka Chopra as its global brand ambassador

Italian luxury brand Bvlgari on Monday said it has appointed actor Priyanka Chopra Jonas as
global brand ambassador.

In her new role, the company said Chopra Jonas will support the Roman high jewellery house
in amplifying the brand around the world, with a particular focus on themes of women
empowerment, diversity and inclusion. Bvlgari is known for its gemstone jewellery, watches,
fragrances, accessories and leather goods.

"India holds a special place in our hearts at Bvlgari, since it doesn’t only offer us a continuous
source of inspiration, but this rich, incredible land provides us with some of the most precious
gems of nature to craft our creations, from jewellery to fragrances," said Bvlgari chief
executive Jean-Christophe Babin. “I’m beyond excited that Priyanka is joining our family. I’m
sure that together we will develop exciting projects, with a significant social impact."

2) Hero MotoCorp expands Harley-Davidson dealership, service network in India

Hero Motocorp and Harley-Davidson have expanded the touch points for present and
prospective buyers of the American heritage motorcycle brand. Hero MotoCorp now has an
expanded network of 14 full-fledged dealerships and seven authorised service centers across
the country, exclusively for Harley-Davidson customers, the Indian two-wheeler giant said in
a statement on Sunday.

With the network of Harley-Davidson dealerships and services expanding comfortably, Hero
MotoCorp is now planning to bring back the famed H.O.G. rallies. “With the Harley-Davidson
India dealer network now fully operational, our next objective is to resume the H.O.G. (Harley
Owners Group) events. We are gearing up for the next annual rally to be held in Goa between
February 3-5, 2022," said Ravi Avalur, Head - Premium Segment Business Unit, Hero
MotoCorp.

Back in September 2020, Harley-Davidson had shut down its manufacturing and sales
operations in India and similar smaller markets as part of its ‘Rewire’ programme, in light of
low sales numbers and the Covid-19 pandemic. It had then joined hands with Hero MotoCorp
to sell its motorcycles in the Indian market. The Harley-Davidson Sportster S will be the next
model to be launched in India by the American company towards the end of the year. Bookings
for all the 13 existing models and the Sportster S are currently open.

3) Govt procures record 890 lakh tonnes of paddy for Rs 1.68 lakh crore so far this
marketing year.

The government has so far procured nearly 890 lakh tonnes of paddy, an all-time high, at
MSP in the current marketing year ending September for around Rs 1.68 lakh crore. This
comes amid the ongoing farmers' protest at Delhi's borders. Thousands of farmers, mainly
from Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh, have been protesting for more than nine
months over their demand for repeal of three new farm laws and a legal guarantee for
minimum support price (MSP).

In a statement, the food ministry said the Centre has purchased 889.62 lakh tonnes of paddy
till September 5 in the ongoing 2020-21 Kharif Marketing Season (KMS). Food Corporation of
India, the government's nodal agency for procurement and distribution of foodgrains, had
purchased 764.39 lakh tonnes of paddy in the corresponding period of the previous marketing
season.

This year's procurement includes 718.09 lakh tonnes of paddy grown in kharif (summer sown)
season and 171.53 lakh tonnes in rabi (winter sown) season. Paddy is a major kharif crop,
but it is also grown in rabi season. "This (procurement) has benefitted about 130.47 lakh
farmers from the ongoing KMS procurement operations with MSP value of Rs 1,67,960.77
crore," the statement said.

4) Apple Inc is manufacturing 70% of iphones in India, in value terms, that it sells
in the domestic market.

In a major push towards ‘Make in India’, Apple Inc is manufacturing 70 per cent of the mobile
phones, in value terms, that it sells in the domestic market, in India, according to sources
aware of the development.

This is a sharp rise from the figure of 30 per cent just two years ago and marks a major shift
in Apple’s strategy following the government’s Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme that
kicked off in FY’21. One of Apple’s three vendors here, Foxconn, is currently manufacturing
the best-selling model, the Apple 11, along with the Apple 10.

5) ED issues lookout notice against former Maharashtra minister Anil Deshmukh

Enforcement Directorate (ED) has issued a lookout notice against former Home Minister of
Maharashtra and NCP leader Anil Deshmukh. The notice was issued in connection with a 100
crore rupees-money laundering case that forced him to resign as a minister. The lookout
circular was issued to prevent Deshmukh from fleeing the country. He has skipped numerous
summons issued by the investigation agency.

The Supreme Court had refused to give him interim respite from coercive action in the lawsuit
last month. The ED’s case against Deshmukh and others was registered after the CBI filed a
corruption case against him based on an accusation of a 100 crore rupees bribe accumulated
by him. Former Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh had levelled the charge.

Based on a Bombay High Court ruling, the CBI launched an FIR against Deshmukh on April
21. Deshmukh, who resigned in April in the wake of the allegations, has repeatedly denied
any misconduct. The ED had arrested Anil Deshmukh’s personal secretary and personal
assistant following raids in Mumbai and Nagpur on them and the NCP leader. His son-in-law
was previously questioned by the CBI regarding the leak of an inquiry report.

6) Centre to increase farmers database from 5.5 cr to 8 cr by Dec: Agri Minister

Tomar

The central government will increase the database of farmers from current 5.5 crore to 8 crore
by December, 2021 with the help of state governments, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra
Singh Tomar said. He said agriculture has to be linked with digital technology, scientific
research and knowledge.
The Central government and state governments must work together for agriculture to give a
boost to the economy, Tomar said at the Chief Ministers’ conference on initiatives and schemes
of Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare.

Talking about digital agriculture, Tomar urged all states to study the Karnataka model. He told
the states to create a database for the State using the federated farmer database prepared
by Government of India and allow linkage to state land record database.

“MoAFW (Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare) has created database of 5.5 crore
farmers and it will be increased to 8 crore farmers by December, 2021 with the help of State
governments," he said. The minister further said that with the establishment of Agriculture
Infrastructure Fund, FPOs, PACS, Mandis and start-ups will get loans easily.

7) DGTR recommends anti-dumping duty on Vitamin C from China for 5 yrs.

The Union finance ministry is likely to impose an anti-dumping duty on vitamin C imported
from China to provide a level playing field for domestic industry vis-a-vis foreign manufacturers
and exporters. Vitamin-C is primarily used by the pharmaceutical's companies for production
of various medicines. vitamin C is one of the basic and preliminary medicines against Covid as
prescribed by Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) and is widely used in Covid.

Vitamin C is an essential nutrient involved in the repair of tissue and the enzymatic production
of certain neurotransmitters found in various foods. It is required for the functioning of several
enzymes and is important for immune system function. It also functions as an antioxidant.
India and China are the only manufacturers of vitamin C bulk rug. Other countries in the world
purchase vitamin C bulk drug from India and China and sell the formulation.

The Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR), an investigation arm of Union ministry of
commerce and industry, had initiated anti-dumping probe into import of vitamin C API from
China on September 4, 2020 following a complaint filed by Bajaj Healthcare which has a 46
per cent share in total domestic production of vitamin C. The complaint was supported by
three other producers of vitamin C API in India-- Amoli Organics Pvt Ltd, Reckon Diagnostics
Pvt. Ltd. and SR Biochem.

8) US billionaire unveils plans for a new $400-billion city in American desert.

Telosa is a proposed utopian planned city conceived by American billionaire Marc Lore. The
project has a target population of 5 million people by 2050, with the first phase of construction
expected to house 50,000. The project's planners intend for the city to be built on cheap
desert land, with Utah, Idaho, Nevada, Arizona, Texas, and Appalachia proposed as potential
locations. The name Telosa is derived from the Ancient Greek word telos, meaning "higher
purpose".

Mr Lore, who was chief executive of Walmart's eCommerce from 2016-2021, has said Telosa
is based on the concept of “equitism” -- an economic system in which citizens have a stake in
the city’s land. “Cities that have been built to date from scratch are more like real estate
projects,” Mr Lore said in a promotional video for the project. “They don't start with people at
the centre. Because if you started with people at the centre, you would immediately think,
'OK, what's the mission and what are the values?'"
The new project will allow residents to “participate in the decision-making and budgeting
process” for the city and project organisers promise complete transparency in governance.
The city's website says the aim is to create an “open, fair, inclusive” and sustainable city of
the future. City parks will be home to native flora and also act as water storage areas while
streets will “prioritise bikes and pedestrians” and also feature automated cars.

An image released by organisers depicts a proposed skyscraper, Equitism Tower, which will
feature elevated water storage, aeroponic farms and an energy-producing photovoltaic roof
that will allow it to “share and distribute all it produces”, CNN reported.

9) Chinese star cuts ties with watch brand Piguet after CEO calls Taiwan a country.

Chinese singer and former EXO member Lu Han has cut ties with Swiss watchmaker Audemars
Piguet after the luxury brand’s CEO referred to Taiwan as a country in an interview.

The 31-year-old star, who had been a brand ambassador of Audemars Piguet since 2018,
issued a statement on Sunday (Sep 5) via his work studio saying that the faux pas had
“seriously violated the one China policy” and that he was terminating his partnership with the
brand.

National interests are above all else. Mr Lu Han and Lu Han Studio will resolutely defend
national sovereignty and territorial integrity, read the statement.

10) Balaji Telefilm's Shareholders reject Ekta, Shobha Kapoor’s salary proposals.

Ekta Kapoor and her mother Shobha Kapoor's salary hike resolutions were rejected by Balaji
Telefilms' shareholders. Ekta serves as the Joint Managing Director whereas Shobha is the
Managing Director.

The shareholders of Balaji Telefilms have reportedly rejected the proposal to raise Ekta Kapoor
and her mother, Shobha Kapoor's salaries for the upcoming year. Ekta serves as the Joint
Managing Director of the company whereas Shobha is the Managing Director.

According to Bloomberg Quint, the general meeting took place on August 31 and the results
were declared on September 2. While 55.4% votes were against Ekta's remuneration proposal,
56.7% votes were against Shobha's proposal.

Strangely, only a small group of public shareholders participated in the voting. According to
Business Standard, the promoter group, that holds 34.34 % stake in the company, withheld
from the voting. The publication also reported that Reliance Industries, which has 24.92%
stake in the company, also did not participate in the special resolution voting.

11) Cairn accepts $1 billion refund offer, to drop cases against India within days.

UK-based Cairn Energy PLC on Tuesday said it will drop litigations to seize Indian properties
in countries ranging from France to the US, within a couple of days of getting a $1-billion
refund resulting from the scrapping of a retrospective tax law.
The firm termed “bold” the legislation passed last month to cancel a 2012 policy that gave the
tax department power to go back 50 years and slap capital gains levies wherever ownership
had changed hands overseas but business assets were in India.

The offer to return money seized to enforce retrospective tax demand in lieu of dropping all
litigations against the government “is acceptable to us,” Cairn CEO Simon Thomson said in an
interview from London.

Cairn will drop cases to seize diplomatic apartments in Paris and Air India airplanes in the US
in “a matter of a couple of days” after the refund, he said adding Cairn’s shareholders are in
agreement with accepting the offer and moving on.

12) India's first luxury cruise services to begin from 18 Sept. IRCTC has partnered
with Cordelia Cruises for its marketing.

The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) will start India's first indigenous
cruise liner from September 18. The railway arm has partnered with Cordelia Cruises for
promotion and marketing of the indigenous luxury cruise in the country.

Later, from May 2022, the cruise will be shifted to Chennai and set sail to destinations in Sri
Lanka like Colombo, Galle, Trincomalee and Jaffna. Among the popular tour itineraries of
Cordelia Cruises are: Mumbai-Goa-Mumbai, Mumbai-Diu-Mumbai, Mumbai-At sea-Mumbai,
Kochi-Lakshadweep – At sea – Mumbai, and Mumbai–At sea–Lakshadweep– At sea –Mumbai.

13) Indian Defence ministry to procure 56 transport aircraft for $2.6 billion from
Airbus

The Cabinet Committee on Security on Wednesday gave its go ahead for the procurement of
56 C-295MW transport aircraft from Airbus Defence and Space S.A., Spain for the Indian Air
Force (IAF). The C-295MW aircraft is a transport aircraft of 5-10 tonne capacity with
contemporary technology that will replace the ageing Avro aircraft of IAF. The aircraft has a
rear ramp door for quick reaction and para dropping of troops and cargo, a defence ministry
statement said.

While 16 aircraft will be procured in a flyaway condition from Spain within 48 months of signing
of the contract, the remaining 40 aircraft will be manufactured in India by a TATA led
consortium within ten years of signing of the contract, it said.

“This is the first project of its kind in which a military aircraft will be manufactured in India
by a private company. All fifty six aircraft will be installed with indigenously developed
electronic warfare suites. The project will give a boost to aerospace ecosystem in India
wherein several MSMEs (micro, medium and small enterprises) spread over the country will
be involved in manufacturing of parts of the aircraft," the defence ministry statement said.

“The programme will provide major boost to the `Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan’ of the
Government as it offers a unique opportunity for the Indian Private Sector to enter into
technology intensive and highly competitive aviation Industry. The project will augment
domestic aviation manufacturing resulting in reduced import dependence and expected to
increase exports," it said.
14) Citizens come on streets to protest against Bitcoin adoption in El Salvador.

More than 1,000 people marched in El Salvador's capital on Tuesday to protest the adoption
of bitcoin as legal tender, amid a bumpy initial rollout of systems to support the digital
currency. The protesters burned a tire and set off fireworks in front of the Supreme Court
building around noon local time, as the government deployed heavily militarized police to the
site of the protest.

"This is a currency that's not going to work for pupusa vendors, bus drivers or shopkeepers,"
said a San Salvador resident who opposed the adoption of the cryptocurrency. Pupusas are a
traditional Salvadoran corn-based food. "This is a currency that's ideal for big investors who
want to speculate with their economic resources."

The protest came as El Salvador's government was rushing to iron out technological snags in
bitcoin's first-day rollout. Earlier on Tuesday, Salvadorans trying to download the Chivo digital
wallet found it was unavailable on popular app stores. Then Bukele tweeted that the
government had temporarily unplugged it, in order to connect more servers to deal with
demand.

15) Ford will stop manufacturing vehicles at its two plants in India. 4000 jobs lost.

After nearly three decades of struggling to make a mark in India, US auto major Ford Motor
Co on Thursday said it will stop vehicle production at its two plants in the country and will sell
only imported vehicles going ahead as part of a restructuring exercise.

The company, which invested about USD 2.5 billion at its Chennai (Tamil Nadu) and Sanand
(Gujarat) plants, has accumulated operating losses of around USD 2 billion in India in the last
ten years. Its decision will impact over 4,000 employees and 150 dealer principals who operate
over 300 outlets.

It will, however, continue to manufacture engines from its Sanand plant which will be exported
to the company's global operations.

With shutting down of the vehicle manufacturing operations, the automaker will stop selling
vehicles such as the EcoSport, Figo, Endeavour, Freestyle and Aspire, which are produced
from these plants.