Business News

Indian students from farming heartlands and urban centres alike are increasingly heading abroad to study agriculture and allied fields—a shift sparked by the global demand for sustainable farming practices, technological innovation in food production and immigration pathways this route offers. Interest in these programmes- —ranging from agronomy and precision agriculture to agritech and food sciences—has surged over the past few years, driven by the EU’s ‘Farm to Fork’ strategy and Canada’s Agri-Food Pilot. “Our data shows a 30% YoY increase in enquiries for agriculture and allied fields since 2020. In 2023, we saw a 75% YoY increase in enquiries about agricultural programmes,” said Nikhil Jain, co-founder of ForeignAdmits. “It’s a perfect storm of opportunities. These students are looking at agriculture through a new lens that combines technology, sustainability and global food security. The EU’s Farm to Fork strategy and similar initiatives worldwide have created a massive demand for agricultural experts. Moreover, countries like Canada and Germany are offering faster permanent residency pathways for individuals with expertise in modern agricultural practices,” he added. The student base pursuing these courses abroad has expanded beyond those with traditional agricultural backgrounds.115125721115125722 Citing examples of cities such as Darjeeling, Guntur, Meerut, Nagpur and Nashik, Akshay Chaturvedi, founder of Leverage.biz, said, “The students showing interest in agriculture and allied fields on the platform hail from diverse backgrounds, but primarily from tier-2/3 cities.Adarsh Khandelwal, co-founder of Collegify, said it’s not just students from India’s agricultural regions like Punjab, Haryana and Maharashtra but also engineering graduates that are interested. Covid-19, which exposed vulnerabilities in global food supply chains, accelerated the shift. “Students began to recognise that agriculture isn’t just about farming but is central to addressing climate and food security challenges,” said Khandelwal. From recent graduates to young professionals—either in family farming or small agri-tech ventures—are looking to build expertise they can practically apply. “Students are drawn to various agri-related fields, like agronomy, agricultural engineering, sustainable farming, and food sciences. And there’s growing excitement around cutting-edge areas like precision agriculture, plant genetics and soil science,” Khandelwal said. Piyush Kumar, regional director for South Asia at IDP Education, also pointed to growing demand from diverse regions across India. “In the US, apart from Punjab, students from Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, MP, Maharashtra and Haryana are looking for master’s programmes in agriculture,” he said. Canada, New Zealand and Australia too are popular options, with programmes in agribusiness, food safety and environmental sustainability attracting students.

India may soon play a role in the development of Apple’s new products, including research, design and testing. The Cupertino-based company has incorporated a wholly owned subsidiary in India, named Apple Operations India. A regulatory filing by the new entity listed procurement of engineering equipment, leasing of facilities, employing engineers for hardware development and providing failure analysis services to group companies, among its proposed activities. Apple Inc has given ‘a letter of comfort,’ assuring it will provide “operational and financial support” till the “foreseeable future,” Apple Operations India said in the filing with the Registrar of Companies (RoC) last week. Apple did not respond to an email seeking comment. If the iPhone maker undertakes hardware design and testing in the country, it will be a first for India. The company currently does R&D in the US, China, Germany and Israel. This is also the first time the Macintosh PC maker is setting up a direct subsidiary of the US parent in India.The holding company of its existing sales and marketing entity, Apple India, is part of the European operations — Ireland-based Apple Operations International owns Apple India, according to the RoC. Manufacturing of Apple products in India is outsourced and the new subsidiary will support third-party manufacturers and contractors by providing hardware, software and other services, said the filing. Apple Operations India is laying significant groundwork in India with capital work-in-progress worth Rs 38.2 crore and fixed assets of Rs 36.8 crore, according to the RoC filing, said Mohit Yadav, analyst and founder of business intelligence firm AltInfo. “While the subsidiary is currently in its investment phase, its charter focusing on manufacturing support, procurement management, and R&D capabilities signals Apple's strategic commitment to deepen its operational presence in India beyond just assembly and sales,” he added. EXPANDING R&D OPS At present, top global electronic brands such as Samsung, LG and Sony have research and development (R&D) operations in India, but these are mostly limited to hardware localisation of products and software development for global launches. Chinese phone manufacturers such as Oppo and Vivo have similar operations. Many American and European multinationals have set up global capability centres (GCCs) in India to insource tech and back office services, and conduct R&D. Apple is also setting up the new India entity amid the ongoing economic conflict between the United States and China, which is expected to worsen with Donald Trump winning the presidential election. Tarun Pathak, director of research at market tracker Counterpoint Research, however, said Apple setting up a R&D unit in India is to take advantage of India's technological skills rather than due to the US-China relations. “Apple has a strong app developer base in India, with over 17,000 developers and a developer centre in Bengaluru. The Apple R&D company is a testament to how India is an important market for it,” he said. RECORD SALES Apple Operations India’s memorandum of association filed with the RoC states it will engage in the business of procuring, developing, manufacturing, supporting and other related operations, such as “undertaking research and development and design relating to science, engineering, technology and applied technology, computer and information technology programming, research and systems, related technical support, technical testing and analysis.” It will also engage in providing all types of “equipment, instruments, components and systems, technical, electronic, mechanical, software or otherwise, by way of lease, hire, or otherwise, to thirdparty manufacturers and/or contractors,” the memorandum said. Apple has been setting a new sales record every quarter in India, as acknowledged by chief executive Tim Cook in all the company’s earnings calls for the past several years. Apple currently operates two companyowned stores in India and plans to soon open four more, as Cook said last month. The company undertakes development of maps for its products in India at Hyderabad. Apple has also expanded its manufacturing operations in the country through three partners, whereby it is now the country’s largest electronics exporter. PRODUCTION BOOST According to the recent Economic Survey, India contributes around 14% to the US tech giant’s overall production. Apple started assembling iPhones in India in 2017 through Wistron. The company accelerated local production after the Covid-19 pandemic. The government launched a production-linked incentive scheme, with Foxconn, Tata Electronics (which acquired the Wistron plant) and Pegatron undertaking the contract manufacturing.

The cryptocurrency industry spent about $135 million in the 2024 election cycle to back more than 50 candidates, including Democrats and Republicans, incumbents and challengers, shoo-ins and longshots. But they all now share something in common: Victory.In the Nov. 5 races, 48 out of 48 candidates backed by crypto’s biggest political action committees were declared winners as of midday Friday morning. In eight races where votes are still being counted, the PACs’ preferred candidate is ahead in all but three.Crypto made its biggest bet in Ohio, where it spent more than $40 million to lift Republican Bernie Moreno in his bid to unseat longtime Democratic senator and vocal crypto-skeptic Sherrod Brown. Moreno, who trailed in the polls as recently as late October, was declared the victor with 50.2% of the vote as of midday Thursday. “DC received a clear message that being anti-crypto is a good way to end your career,” Coinbase Global Inc. CEO Brian Armstrong crowed in an X post celebrating the election results.This may come as a surprise to voters — candidates and ads backed by crypto’s political action committees barely mentioned the industry or its pet issue, regulation. Yet, Fairshake, its primary vehicle for the campaign, has become the largest single-issue super PAC in history. Fairshake and two affiliated super PACs, Defend American Jobs and Protect Progress, are funded by Coinbase, Ripple Labs and Andreessen Horowitz, among other industry heavyweights.Its influence campaign dwarfed traditional corporate donors like Koch Industries and Chevron Corp. It now ranks second only to the fossil fuel industry in total money deployed since the landmark 2010 Supreme Court decision that lifted limits on companies’ political spending, according to consumer advocacy nonprofit Public Citizen.Now, the industry is touting the massive election spending — and the outcome — as evidence that it’s become a political force to be reckoned with, gathering momentum for the next legislative session and for the 2026 midterms.Hours after the Presidential election was called, a crypto-backed lobbying group, the Cedar Innovation Foundation, issued a statement celebrating “the most pro-blockchain and pro-crypto Congress in history,” and urging President-elect Donald Trump to dismiss Securities and Exchange Commission chair Gary Gensler immediately.The industry plans to keep pushing for favorable regulations. Coinbase and Ripple have been building their lobbying efforts, employing more registered lobbyists in 2024 than ever before, according to an OpenSecrets analysis of Senate Office of Public Records data. Andreessen Horowitz, a venture capital firm with large crypto investments, plans to open an office in Washington.Meanwhile, Fairshake is padding its coffers for the midterms. Last week, Coinbase committed $25 million, and Andreessen Horowitz pledged an additional $23 million, adding to $30 million leftover from this cycle. “Industry will double down on large support of Fairshake,” Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen said in an email hours after the election, which he characterized as an “enormous day for crypto.”It’s money the industry can currently easily afford. Digital asset prices have soared, driven in part by excitement about a pro-crypto president-elect and the likelihood of light-touch regulation. Bitcoin hit a fresh record in the hours after the election, and a rally in Coinbase shares added more than $2 billion to Armstrong’s personal wealth, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. 115090267As Armstrong suggested on X, Fairshake and its affiliates are willing to spend big, and spend early, to support allies and defeat opponents. In one high-profile example, it put $10 million into attack ads against Katie Porter, an early Democratic challenger for California’s empty Senate seat. She lost in the primary, and the industry would point to her defeat as evidence of its influence.It was also a preview of its strategy to avoid mentioning crypto. Polls consistently show that most Americans don’t care about the industry at all. In Ohio, one Fairshake ad argued that Moreno would support Trump’s economic agenda, drive gas and grocery bills down, and end illegal immigration. Another said he’d protect Social Security and energy independence. They touted Moreno’s business background, but not that he’d worked for a blockchain technology company.“They’re spending all this money,” said Rick Claypool, a research director at Public Citizen. “Their true message, trying to buy policies, is directed at the candidates themselves.”Protect Progress spent $10 million in support of Elissa Slotkin, who won Michigan’s Senate seat, and $10 million on Ruben Gallego, who is ahead in his campaign for Arizona’s Senate seat. As members of the House, both candidates voted for the industry’s pet bills earlier this year.Fairshake spent big in US House races as well. The super PAC contributed $1 million to support incumbent US Representativ. Zach Nunn’s win in a competitive Iowa district that includes the Des Moines metro area. Of the $135 million, a little more than 60% has been spent to support Republican candidates or to oppose Democrats. A handful of candidates that the super PACs supported lost in primaries earlier this year.Campaign spending is just the first step to building relationships on Capitol Hill, said Peter Loge, a media and public affairs professor at George Washington University and a former senior advisor in the Obama Administration. Spending will often get companies and interest groups meetings with lawmakers and staff, but it doesn’t guarantee they will achieve their policy priorities, he said.“You need to be there campaign after campaign, cycle after cycle. You need to keep showing up,” Loge said. “It’s not write a check, get a bill.”Still, crypto is taking a victory lap, even for races that weren’t particularly competitive. Protect Progress spent $1 million to back Michigan Democratic incumbent Representative Shri Thanedar, who won with more than 68% of the vote reported so far. Defend American Jobs spent $3 million in support of Republican Jim Justice’s Senate campaign in deep-red West Virginia.And its playbook could inspire other industries to mimic a strategy that flexes deep pockets and downplays actual corporate interests, said Claypool, calling it an “intimidation tool,” that seeks to “discipline” candidates and lawmakers to fall in line.“They’ve gone out of their way to avoid being ideological in terms of explaining what the mission of their super PACs is,” he said. “This is a huge ‘corporate money in politics’ problem that the crypto sector is exploiting in ways we haven’t seen before.”Some signs suggest it’s working. In the Nevada Senate race, the Republican candidate, Sam Brown, added cryptocurrency and blockchain innovation to his list of campaign priorities in late February, after Fairshake and its affiliates spent more than $14 million on advertising in other races ahead of Super Tuesday. His Democratic opponent, Jacky Rosen, also nods to the industry on her campaign page.Votes in that race are still being counted. Neither Fairshake nor its affiliates supported either candidate — this time.

Carbon emissions from private airplanes could have increased by 46 per cent between 2019 and 2023, with regular private jet flyers possibly emitting 500 times more in a year than people using commercial flights, according to a study. Researchers from Sweden's Linnaeus University also found that significant peaks in emissions are seen around specific international events, such as COP28 and 2022 FIFA World Cup, as a big volume of private jets are operated. Those regularly flying in private jets could be contributing about 500 times more carbon dioxide -- a major greenhouse gas -- in a year than an average individual, the study said. Six countries accounted for more than 80 per cent of private aircrafts around the world -- the US where nearly 70 per cent of all private aircrafts are registered, followed by Brazil (3.5 per cent), Canada (2.9 per cent), Germany (2.4 per cent), Mexico (two per cent) and the UK (two per cent), according to the study published in the journal Communications Earth and Environment. Cutting down greenhouse gas emissions is considered critical for limiting global warming to 1.5-2 degrees Celsius, as outlined in the Paris Agreement. Private aviation is known to be highly energy-intensive, emitting significantly more carbon dioxide per traveller, compared to commercial flights. However, only 0.003 per cent of the world's adults could be flying in private jets, according to the study's authors. For the study, the researchers used flight tracker data of over 18.6 million private flights that operated between 2019 and 2023, which they said represented the vast majority of private aviation. Carbon dioxide emitted by each flight was calculated using data of fuel consumed -- as advertised for the aircraft model -- and flight duration and route. The authors found that overall, the private flights produced 15.6 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions in 2023 -- an average of about 3.6 tonnes emissions per flight. "In total numbers, private aviation numbers grew by 28.4 per cent, distances flown by 53.5 per cent, and emissions by 46 per cent (for the period 2019-2023)," the authors wrote. Major international events, attracting visitors from the world over, were found to be related with a heavy volume of private flights. While COP28 involved 644 private flights -- producing 4,800 tonnes of carbon dioxide, the FIFA World Cup of 2022 was associated with 1,846 private aircrafts, estimated to have produced 14,700 tonnes of carbon dioxide, the researchers said. Further, the highest emitting individuals each produced 2,400 tonnes of carbon dioxide in 2023, a result which the researchers based on the flight tracker data of their plane's unique tail numbers. This was almost 500 times more than the average amount of emissions produced per person in 2020, the authors said. "Emissions increased by 46 per cent between 2019-2023, with industry expectations of continued strong growth. Regulation is needed to address the sector's growing climate impact," they wrote.