
Big challenge for Blinkit, Swiggy, Zepto as Amazon launches new service with..., to start with THIS city and...
Amazon, the big American online shopping company, has now entered the quick delivery market in India. The service has started in Delhi, where people can now get items from Amazon Now delivered in just 10 minutes, just like other fast delivery apps such as Zepto, Instamart, Swiggy, and Blinkit. Before Delhi, Amazon tested this service in Bengaluru last month, and it was successful. Now, the company is slowly bringing this quick delivery feature to more cities, starting with West Delhi, and plans to expand across the whole city soon.
According to Bloomberg, Amazon expanded its 'Now' service to the national capital, New Delhi, making it only the second city in India to get access to the ultra-fast delivery feature after Bengaluru. Amazon's 10-minute delivery to cover all of Delhi Soon
In an interview with The Economic Times, Abhinav Singh, Vice President of Operations at Amazon India, said that the company has already started its quick delivery service in many parts of Delhi, and the network is expanding rapidly. He added that the service will soon be available in the entire city. Amazon plans big investment in India
Last month, Amazon announced it will invest USD 2 billion (around Rs. 16,000 crore) to make its delivery network stronger in India. As part of this plan, Amazon is setting up many new dark stores across the country.
These dark stores are small warehouses built inside cities so that orders can be packed and delivered faster to nearby customers. About Amazon deliveries
Until now, Amazon was known for delivering orders in one or two days. But now, because fast delivery in just 10 to 15 minutes is becoming very popular especially among young people and busy professionals Amazon has also decided to join this quick delivery race.
To make deliveries faster, Amazon has opened five new fulfilment centres in India. These centres will help the company deliver faster in smaller cities and towns (Tier 2 and Tier 3 areas). This move is also part of Amazon's bigger plan to reach more customers quickly, especially during busy times like festival shopping seasons.

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Indian Express
17 minutes ago
- Indian Express
For ‘creamy layer' exclusion, Govt looks at proposal on ‘equivalence' across govt organisations, pvt sector, universities
The government is learnt to be actively considering a proposal to apply the Other Backward Classes 'creamy layer' income exclusion yardstick to attain 'equivalence' among various Central and state government organisations, public sector enterprises, universities and private sector employees. It is learnt that the proposal has been prepared following consultations among the ministries of Social Justice and Empowerment, Education, Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), Legal Affairs, Labour and Employment, Public Enterprises, NITI Aayog and National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC). Following the landmark Indra Sawhney vs Union Of India ruling, also known as the Mandal verdict, by the Supreme Court in 1992, the concept of 'creamy layer' within the OBCs was introduced in the reservation policy. The 'creamy layer' criteria for those not in government jobs, set at Rs 1 lakh per annum in 1993, was revised in 2004, 2008, 2013. In 2017, the income ceiling was revised to Rs 8 lakh per annum and has remained so ever since. The 'creamy layer' specifies groups among OBCs such as persons occupying constitutional posts; Group-A/Class-I officers of All India Services, Central services and state services; Group-B/Class-II services of Centre and state; employees of PSUs; officers of armed forces; professionals and those from trade and industry; property owners; and an income/wealth test. While 'equivalence' in some Central PSUs was decided in 2017, it remained pending for the private sector as well as universities, educational institutions and different organisations of state governments. The OBCs of the 'non-creamy' layer are granted 27 per cent reservation in Central government recruitments as well as in admissions to educational institutions, based on the Mandal Commission recommendations. In state governments, this reservation percentage varies. In absence of such equivalence, there was difficulty in issuing caste certificates to OBCs. Sources said since the salary of teaching staff of universities, such as assistant professors, associate professors and professors, typically starts from Level 10 and above, which is equivalent to or higher than Group-A posts in the government, there is a proposal that these posts be categorised as 'creamy layer'. This means their children cannot avail benefits of OBC reservation. In the private sector, given the vast gamut of categories of posts and pay and perquisites, it has been noted that it is difficult to establish the equivalence. It is proposed that this can be determined based on the income/wealth criteria. For Central/state autonomous bodies and Central/state statutory organisations, sources said it is proposed to establish equivalence with the list of Central government officials, depending on their level/group/pay scale, as the case may be, because they also adopt the pay scales of respective categories in Central and state governments. Similarly, non-teaching staff of universities are proposed to be placed as creamy layer depending on their level/group/pay scale as the case may be. For state PSUs, it is proposed that as in the case of equivalence in Central PSUs in 2017, all executive level positions, including board-level executives as well as below board-level executives holding managerial positions, are to be treated as under the 'creamy layer' category. However, in their case, a rider has been proposed that those executives whose income is within Rs 8 lakh, which is presently the limit for private persons, will not be categorised as 'creamy layer'. For government-aided institutions, it is proposed that as they generally follow the service conditions and pay scales of the respective Central or state government, the staff in aided institutions may be placed under appropriate categories based on the equivalence of their post and service conditions and pay scales/level. Sources said a large number of cases are pending before the Supreme Court and various High Courts regarding the ambiguity and, therefore, clarity is a must. 'The proposal entails empowerment of OBCs by way of their coverage which will widen the employment opportunities for OBCs,' a top source said, adding that 'by widening the scope of opportunities for OBCs in employment, it will support Atmanirbhar Bharat.'


Indian Express
17 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Trump's 50% tariff: Beginning to get foothold in US market, Agra's leather belt takes a hit
US Tariffs Impact on Indians: In a sprawling shoe manufacturing unit in Agra, men in sweat-soaked vests move along the assembly lines in a choreography honed over the years — working in perfect rhythm, their hands following the machine's pace. As each shoe travels down the conveyor belt, it pauses briefly at each station dedicated to a specific task, such as removing wrinkles, cotton brushing, seat lasting, sole heat activation — a display of how a hundred small acts turn the raw leather into products destined for sale in international markets, including the US. However, US President Donald Trump's decision to raise tariffs on Indian goods — hiking duties on leather footwear from 5-8% to 25%, with a further 25% increase threatened by August 27 — has cast a shadow over the unit. India's leather exports across the world rose from $3,681 million in 2020-21 to $4,828 million in 2024-25 — a 31% rise. In the same period, exports to the US rose from $645 million to $1,045 million — a 62% jump. For manufacturers who had only recently begun gaining a foothold in the US market, the move has come as a significant setback. 'There will definitely be an impact. We only have three US-based customers, as most of Agra's exports have traditionally gone to Europe. But the US was a major market we were trying to enter. It's a huge consumer base, and any success there would have changed the scale of our business. This is going to slow that push down,' said Sushant Dhapodkar of Tej International Pvt Ltd. Agra is one of India's largest footwear manufacturing hubs, alongside Kolkata, Kanpur and Chennai. The city has around 10,000 micro-units apart from 150 small-, 30 medium-, and around 15 large-scale industries. Many use leather imported from Turkey, which takes 45–50 days to arrive via road, along with Indian leather sourced mainly from Kanpur and Chennai, and some from Jalandhar. While Europe remains the mainstay for Agra's leather shoe exporters, the US market, the largest consumer base in the world — accounting for 24% of global consumption despite just 4% of the population — has been developing fast. In the last quarter alone, nearly half of Agra's export business, worth about $594 million, went to the US. The growth was so sharp that many manufacturers had invested heavily in expanding production capacity. 'Those who were earlier working on six assembly lines are now running 14,' said Puran Dawar, chairman of the Development Council for Footwear and Leather Industry and president of the Agra Footwear Manufacturers and Exporters Chamber. 'We ourselves had set up a unit bigger than our existing one to tap into the US market. That's definitely out of the question now.' The tariff announcement has also come at the peak of production for autumn and winter collections — the busiest for Agra's export factories. Orders for leather boots, closed-toe shoes, and high-end formal wear are typically placed months in advance by American buyers. These are now in the final stage of production or ready for shipment — but buyers have been calling to put the stock on hold. According to manufacturers, some buyers are ready to look towards China for an alternative. Dawar said: 'This is the peak season for autumn and winter orders, and buyers are already telling us to hold shipments, even for goods ready to go. They want us to share the tariff loss. But the US is a price-sensitive market — nobody can afford to share even 12.5% of the burden, let alone 50%. Some buyers have already cancelled and are looking to China because their tariff is 30%, and to Vietnam, where it's just 20%. We can't compete at those rates.' Nazir Ahmed, owner of Park Exports, said the problem goes far beyond price competition. 'Now with the initial 25%, it's going to be a disaster unless Trump goes back to the original tariff,' he said. 'This won't just be a problem for India, but for the US as well… the higher the duty, the more expensive their product will be. In countries where lower tariffs are imposed, they will have the advantage, and we wouldn't be able to compete with them,' said Ahmed. He also highlighted the potential impact back home. 'If orders aren't placed, factories will be without work. And if factories are without work, workers will be without work. This industry is labour-intensive, so unemployment could run into millions if this continues. And I'm not just talking about manufacturing — textiles, tools, every industry linked to this process will take a hit,' he said. Manufacturers said the setback is particularly bitter because of the efforts they made to break into the US market. 'It's a setback to our plans to double or triple exports to the US,' Ahmed said. 'The government increases targets every year, and the American market has the potential to match our exports to Europe. Now all that planning is on hold.' Others, like Dawar, believe the hike is a 'pressure tactic' and will eventually be rolled back. 'The government is in touch with us to see how they can help. We were called to meet Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal last week to discuss relief. One idea discussed was that the government could bear a part of the hike, and the remaining could be between the manufacturer and the US importer.' The current uncertainty, meanwhile, is already triggering ripple effects beyond Agra. Naseem Khan, a Kanpur tannery owner whose leather is supplied to manufacturers linked to US exports, said clients have begun cancelling or freezing orders. 'Whatever the stage of production, they're saying stop immediately. Even though we don't directly export to the US, we are deeply connected; the leather we produce is approved by those who manufacture finished goods for the US,' Khan said. Meanwhile, exporters are brainstorming alternatives. Russia, once a major market for Agra, is being considered for revival. Others are looking inward to India's growing middle class — a customer base whose purchasing power has risen in recent years. Until now, much of the footwear sold domestically was made locally from scraps and leftovers of the export process. But with international orders in limbo, manufacturers are weighing whether to redirect their best designs and full-scale production to the home turf. Chairman, Council for Leather Export, Rajendra Kumar Jalan said, 'Currently, the dispatches have come to a standstill. All US buyers and Indian manufacturers exporting finished goods to the US have put their orders on pause because of the 50% tax. When the tax was raised to 25%, there was still some hope — we were still on par with competing nations like Bangladesh, Indonesia, Vietnam, and, to some extent, China. But now, we are completely out of the picture. China, in fact, is gaining an advantage because the additional Russian oil tariffs do not apply to them, and they also enjoy a 90-day moratorium.' 'That being said, the US purchases from us are in large volumes, and for these bulk buyers, getting an alternative source of production for these huge orders, and that too in a short period, will be extremely difficult,' said Jalan 'At present, the reaction is one of panic. But we remain hopeful of finding alternative markets. There will be competition from other leather manufacturing nations, but our focus will be on countries where India has signed or is about to sign an FTA — countries such as Chile, Peru, and some European nations,' he said. — With inputs from Nirbhay Thakur


Economic Times
17 minutes ago
- Economic Times
Regulatory gray area makes investing in LVMH, BP tough For Indian retail
The world's largest sovereign fund, Norges Bank, credited European stocks for the gains this year in a rare episode in recent years. But Indian retail investors, who on paper can invest lakhs of USD overseas, are missing the European bus as an unreasoned regulatory cap holds back mutual funds from launching schemes that could benefit from what appears to be a continental renaissance. The MSCI Europe Index has soared 22% since January, easily