News Broadcasting
BBC’s ‘Business Bites’ returns with a new series from 9 January
MUMBAI: BBC World business programme – Business Bites, has come back with a new series featuring two top competing industry leaders each week, discussing the key issues and challenges facing their sectors. The new series will begin from 9 January and will be aired at 11 am and 10 pm.
This weekend’s episode focuses on the core infrastructure sector of power with Tata Power managing director Firdose Vandrewalla and Maharashtra State Electricity Board chairman Jayant Kawale. The programme sees them discussing the need for reforms, the concept of free power and the lack of private investment in the sector.
Vandrewalla believes the biggest challenge facing the sector is that of commercial issues getting mixed with development issues at the cost of the utilities. Says he, “The power sector should be treated as a service sector. Any utility that does not perform up to the mark should be penalised.”
On the issue of free power, Kawale feels that the concept of free power is a political reality in India, while Vandrewalla quotes a recent study by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), saying, “Farmers don’t want free power, they actually want available, accessible, affordable power,” and hence emphasises the need for innovative packaging of services by both the SEBs and the private players.
Hosted by Ronnie Screwvala, Business Bites is part of the channel’s India Business Report strand. The programme provides an insight into the men and women who shape the Indian economy, and their perspective on where their respective industries are headed.
In the following week, Business Bites will feature Mahindra and Mahindra COO Dr Pawan Goenka and Toyota Kirloskar managing director Atsushi Toyoshima, sharing their views on neck-to-neck competition in the automobile sector and the potential of the SUV segment.
Corporate bigwigs like Nandan Nilekani, Vivek Paul, Uday Kotak, Vijay Mallya and others from the information technology, pharmaceuticals, banking, insurance, and FMCG industries, who featured in the first series of Business Bites broadcast last year, will also be seen on the show.
The programme is produced for BBC World by UTV and sponsored by Tata, HP Gas and the Aditya Birla Group.
News Broadcasting
Rising Bharat Summit 2026 spotlights India’s global ascent
PM Modi keynotes two-day event with ministers, diplomats and icons in New Delhi.
MUMBAI: India didn’t just host a summit, it threw a coming-out party for a nation ready to own the global stage. The News18 Rising Bharat Summit 2026, held on 27–28 February in New Delhi, emerged as a high-octane platform for ideas, vision and strategic dialogue, uniting national leadership, global policymakers, industry titans, defence strategists and cultural icons under the theme “Strength Within”.
Prime minister Narendra Modi set the tone with a keynote that framed India’s resurgence as a reclaiming of lost potential built over generations. “In previous industrial revolutions, India and the Global South were merely followers,” he said. “But in the era of Artificial Intelligence, India is a partner in decisions and shaping them.” He highlighted the country’s thriving AI startup ecosystem and the recent AI Impact Summit attended by over 100 nations.
Union minister Piyush Goyal (Commerce & Industry) stressed India’s readiness to scale exports and deepen manufacturing, while Ashwini Vaishnaw (Railways, I&B, Electronics & IT) positioned technology and infrastructure as twin engines of growth, especially in AI and digital trust. Jyotiraditya Scindia (Communications & North East Development) revealed India’s ambition to lead in 6G through the Bharat 6G Alliance and partnerships with over 30 countries.
Global voices added depth: former Singapore Foreign Minister George Yeo called India’s development “self-sustaining” and strategically vital; ex-UK Chief of Defence Staff General Sir Nick Carter asserted India deserves a seat at the great powers’ table; and former US Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez joined ambassadors from Norway, Germany and Sweden in discussions on geopolitical realignment, sustainability and defence preparedness.
Other speakers included veteran investor Ramesh Damani, World Gold Council CEO David Tait, Vianai Systems founder Dr Vishal Sikka, DeepTech Bharat Foundation co-founder Shashi Shekhar Vempati, defence experts Rajesh Kumar Singh, Sunil Ambekar, Patrick McGee, Tom Cooper and Adrian Fontanellaz, plus cultural and sporting icons Kangana Ranaut, Saina Nehwal, PR Sreejesh, Mohammed Shami, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mithali Raj, Anil Kapoor and Yami Gautam.
The summit was supported by Jio Financial Services (Presenting Partner), Phonepe and DS Group (Co-Presenting Partners), Pernod Ricard India and Kia Seltos (Powered By & Driven By), state governments of Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Uttarakhand (State Partners), and associate partners including NSE, M3M Foundation and Reliance Industries.
Broadcast live across News18 Network, CNBC-TV18 and CNBC Awaaz, the event reinforced India’s image as a confident democracy and emerging global power proving that when strength comes from within, the world can’t help but watch.
