Tourism Minister Ambika Soni Monday left for Madrid to attend the meeting of the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) during which the impact of global meltdown on tourism would be dicussed.

State-run telecom operators Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) will roll out third generation (3G) mobile services in the national capital by December, Telecommunications Minister A. Raja said here Monday.

Private lender Axis Bank Monday said it may enter into a joint venture agreement with the Geneva-based private banking group LCF Rothschild to form an asset management company.

After suffering a blood bath last week, Indian equities markets staged a smart recovery Monday on strong global cues from both European and Asia-Pacific markets as well as a pep talk from Finance Minister P. Chidambaram just before markets opened.

After suffering a loss of 16 percent last week, Indian equities markets rallied smartly Monday and by close of trading a key index recovered nearly 40 percent of last week's losses.

The government has set up a sub-committee to resolve the 'problem' of second generation (2G) and third generation (3G) mobile services revenue segregation, Telecommunications Minister A. Raja said here Monday.

Following is the text of Finance Minister P. Chidambaram's statement here Monday, minutes ahead of the opening bell for stock markets, that sent key indices soaring after the gloom last week:

After a week of utter mayhem, Indian equities markets were back in the green Monday following strong global cues as well as a pep talk from Finance Minister P. Chidambaram.

An expert panel under Finance Secretary Arun Ramanathan meets here later Monday to find solutions to help India weather the impact of the global financial storm that has sent stocks crashing and industrial growth dip to the lowest in a decade.

Brokerage house Geojit Financial Services will strengthen its Middle East operations by forming a joint venture in the Sultanate Of Oman, a top official said here.

Hundreds of armed policemen were Monday deployed in parts of Orissa's Jagatsinghpur district after the arrest of an anti-Posco leader triggered tension in the area, police said.

Indian equities opened strong and moved up further on global cues, as Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said the fundamentals of the Indian economy remained strong, minutes before the opening bell.

As a Kerala state player, George Koshy used to shoot the ball into the basket during his college days. Today, as a rocket scientist with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the tall, 58-year-old M.Tech from IIT-Bombay is the project director for Chandrayaan-1, India's maiden unmanned moon mission, and on his broad shoulders rests the venture's success.

At a time when most Indian designers draw inspiration from the West, stylist Sabyasachi Mukherjee warns that if they do not hold on to Indian heritage, it will soon be lost for ever.

Director Madhur Bhandarkar's attempt to probe the dark side of the style industry in his upcoming movie 'Fashion' has fashionistas worried that it might generate negative vibes about the industry.