NEW DELHI: A Kolkata-based businessman weaved a web of 60 shell companies with drivers, house-keeping staff, office boys, junior staff and relatives as directors and created a fictitious turnover of thousands of crores in iron & steel manufacturing, all on paper with no real business activity involved, and swindled a consortium of govt banks of more than Rs 6,200 crore, with the head of one of the lead banks playing accessory. The scam was scripted by Sanjay Sureka, who created dozens of shell entities and with the help of S K Goel, then CMD of Uco Bank, managed to get loans of Rs 6,200 crore. “Against loans of over Rs 6,200 crore, the company’s liquidation value barely reached Rs 600 crore, and assets sold so far have realised only Rs 434 crore,” ED has said in its investigation report. The entire operation was unearthed with Goel’s arrest by ED on May 16 at his residence in New Delhi. The agency later identified properties worth over Rs 106 crore associated with family members and aides and attached them. Sureka and his associates were arrested in Dec 2024, as the agency started probing money laundering based on a CBI FIR against them. According to an ED investigation report, at the centre of this scam was Concast Steel & Power Ltd (CSPL) – once a flagship iron & steel group with plants across West Bengal, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh – which was taken over by Sureka in 2008. Sureka conjured up the shell entities and with the help of Goel, who served as CMD of Uco Bank between 2007-2010, managed to get a total of Rs 6,200 crore in loans without interest and penalty. This money was laundered by the accused and quid pro quo to Goel was transferred in the name of shell companies that purchased properties on the bank CMD’s behalf with the ownership of these firms later being transferred to Goel’s family members. “It is a case study in how an entire financial ecosystem can be manipulated through fake turnover, circular transactions and system-wide blind spots, ultimately leaving public sector banks poorer by more than Rs 6,210.7 crore, excluding interest,” a senior official said. The official further said 60 shell companies sprang up under the directorship of drivers, office boys and junior staff to help Sureka justify massive flows of funds. ED’s investigation unearthed fake sales, purchases and transport billings where CSPL “pretended to buy and sell iron and steel products” with associated entities, backed by forged invoices, ledger entries, and transport documents. “Fake transportation receipts were prepared to show trucks carrying goods between factories and shell companies, even though no truck ever moved, no goods were loaded, and no delivery was made. Yet on paper, CSPL looked like a bustling, high-volume operation with continuous production and sales,” a source said. The probe further revealed that neither sale proceeds nor payments for purchases were made through banks, 99% of the transactions were merely book entries. Yet, during the entire operation lasting several years, it did not raise any alarm bells in the banks, which continued lending. “This meant Concast was essentially selling to itself and then realising these payments through accounting fiction. By 2017, the deception hit its peak – 99% of all sales to these entities were settled through book adjustments, not a single real rupee flowed in through the banking system,” sources said. Purchases tell the same story. Over 50% of all raw material sourcing came from the same web of related-party entities. And just like sales, almost 90% of payments to these “suppliers” were made through internal adjustments – no real cash outflow, no genuine material movement, just rotating entries to manufacture expenses, inflate working capital needs, and justify massive fund withdrawals, the probe report said.

SRINAGAR: The J&K high court set aside Wednesday the conviction of an elderly woman in a 1979 murder case from Uri near the LoC in Baramulla district of north Kashmir, citing 46 years of prolonged proceedings and her age-related infirmities.A single-judge bench of Justice Sanjay Parihar ruled that the sentence of Shameema Begam should be treated as already undergone, saying no useful purpose would be served by maintaining a substantive jail term after decades of litigation. The court ordered closure of the case, while saying that “the offence was committed in a heat of passion without premeditation.”The killing dates back to July 10, 1979, when Begam of Bijhama village struck her mother-in-law with an axe during a domestic quarrel. The older woman had intervened in an argument when Begam was repeatedly asked to irrigate maize fields and later died of head wounds four days later.Begam was arrested on July 21, 1979, and released on bail on Oct 25 that year. Police registered an FIR at Bijhama police station under sections 326 and 324 of Ranbir Penal Code, the criminal law then in force in J&K under Dogra-era statutes. After the victim died, the charge was converted to murder under section 302 RPC.The trial dragged on for three decades. On July 16, 2009, a trial court convicted Begam under section 304 RPC, holding that the act was culpable homicide not amounting to murder, and sentenced her to five years of rigorous imprisonment with a fine of Rs 2,000. She was arrested after conviction but released on bail within days — on July 28, 2009.Begam appealed the verdict. The appeal remained pending for more than 16 years before coming up for final hearing. Her lawyer Nida Nazir said extraordinary delay in both trial and appeal violated Begam’s right to a speedy trial and warranted a sympathetic approach.HC called the case “a testimony to the systemic delay in the disposal of criminal cases”. While delay cannot ordinarily benefit a convict, the court said, it cannot ignore the reality of accused people remaining trapped in the criminal justice system for decades. “The appeal is accordingly disposed of,” the court said, bringing an end to one of Kashmir’s longest-running criminal cases.

The Indian rupee is set to face sharp and persistent volatility through 2026 as capital outflows, tariff-related trade disruptions and weak foreign investment flows continue to outweigh the country’s strong macroeconomic fundamentals, analysts and official data indicate, PTI reported.Despite steady growth and moderate inflation at home, the currency is unlikely to find a durable floor until uncertainty around tariffs eases, with market participants cautioning that a trade agreement with the US, while helpful, may not be sufficient on its own to stabilise the rupee.The rupee has weakened nearly 5% since crossing the 85-per-dollar level in January and has slipped past the historic low of 91 against the US dollar. Over the year, it has depreciated more than 19% against the euro, about 14% versus the British pound and over 5% against the Japanese yen, making it the worst-performing currency among Asian peers even as the dollar index fell over 10% and global crude oil prices remained weak.The slide accelerated after sweeping reciprocal tariffs announced by US President Donald Trump in April triggered sustained foreign portfolio outflows, as global investors shifted capital to other emerging markets offering better risk-adjusted returns.The pressure is evident in investment flows. On a net basis, foreign direct investment between January and October this year turned negative, while total investment inflows declined to minus $0.010 billion during the period, compared with inflows of $23 billion in the year-ago period. Net FDI stood at $6.567 billion, while net portfolio investment remained negative at minus $6.575 billion.“FDI acts as the anchor flow for the balance of payments. When that anchor weakens, the currency becomes more dependent on portfolio flows; forex markets turn more sensitive to global risk sentiment; and central bank intervention requirements increase,” said Anindya Banerjee, head of currency and commodity research at Kotak Securities, PTI quoted.The rupee’s fall gathered pace in the last quarter of the year. It dropped more than 1% in a single session on November 21 to 89.66 per dollar, breached the 90 level on December 2 and crossed the 91 mark on December 16.The government has attributed the depreciation to a widening trade deficit and delays in finalising a trade pact with the US amid weak support from the capital account. Minister of state for finance Pankaj Chaudhary told the Rajya Sabha on December 16 that the rupee’s slide had been influenced by the increase in the trade gap and developments related to the India-US trade agreement.RBI governor Sanjay Malhotra has said the central bank does not target any specific exchange rate level, while analysts note that recent rate cuts aimed at supporting domestic growth have reduced the rupee’s relative attractiveness.Dilip Parmar, research analyst at HDFC Securities, described the situation as a capital account-driven crisis, noting that shrinking inflows, rather than trade alone, are driving the decline. The RBI has also shifted towards a more flexible exchange rate regime, which the IMF classifies as a “crawl-like” arrangement.The depletion in net foreign investment inflows has further amplified volatility. “A sharp decline in FDI has reduced long-term dollar inflows, making the rupee more dependent on volatile portfolio flows,” said Jateen Trivedi, VP research analyst, commodity and currency, LKP Securities, PTI quoted.“Higher commodity prices and elevated risk on US trade deals kept FDI away and impacted the rupee majority due to lack of intent in inflows and going elsewhere, which are our competitors,” Trivedi added.RBI data also shows a depletion of $10.9 billion in foreign exchange reserves during July–September FY26, compared with an accretion of $18.6 billion in the same period a year earlier. The record $17.5-billion exit by foreign institutional investors in 2025 has added to dollar demand, intensifying pressure on the rupee.Analysts expect the current account deficit to widen to around 2% or more in 2026 as the full impact of US penalty tariffs feeds into exports, increasing structural demand for dollars. “A trade pact with the US would help, but it is not a silver bullet,” Banerjee said.Despite near-term stress, analysts say India’s growth trajectory and inflation profile provide a long-term anchor for the currency. Banerjee expects the rupee to test the 92–93 levels amid global volatility over the next three to four months, before potentially entering a phase of appreciation from April as capital flows realign and dollar weakness becomes more evident, with levels of 83–84 seen by the end of FY27.

AI generated image for representation

This year, or in February 2025 to be precise, Andrej Karpathy, the former director of AI at Tesla and a founding member of OpenAI, gave the technology world a new word — Vibe Coding. Karpathy came up with the word to represent how AI can let some programmers “forget that the code even exists” and “give in to the vibes” while making a computer program. The word became an overnight buzzword in Silicon Valley. And as the year ended, UK’s Collins Dictionary picked it up as the word of the year. It was one of 10 words on a shortlist to reflect the mood, language and preoccupations of 2025.As to how Andrej Karpathy described the word, here’s the definition Karpathy shared on Twitter, “I’ve never felt this much behind as a programmer. The profession is being dramatically refactored as the bits contributed by the programmer are increasingly sparse and between. I have a sense that I could be 10X more powerful if I just properly string together what has become available over the last ~year and a failure to claim the boost feels decidedly like a skill issue. There’s a new programmable layer of abstraction to master (in addition to the usual layers below) involving agents, subagents, their prompts, contexts, memory, modes, permissions, tools, plugins, skills, hooks, MCP, LSP, slash commands, workflows, IDE integrations, and a need to build an all-encompassing mental model for strengths and pitfalls of fundamentally stochastic, fallible, unintelligible and changing entities suddenly intermingled with what used to be good old fashioned engineering. Clearly some powerful alien tool was handed around except it comes with no manual and everyone has to figure out how to hold it and operate it, while the resulting magnitude 9 earthquake is rocking the profession. Roll up your sleeves to not fall behind.”

Will Vibe Coding take away tech jobs

Is Vibe Coding and advanced capabilities of AI just the nail in the coffin when it comes to the traditional views of computer programming and software development skills? The debate is ongoing, with strong voices on both sides. Y Combinator CEO Garry Tan told CNBC earlier this year that app developers can now offload or automate more repetitive tasks, and they can generate new code using Large Language Models (LLMs). The ability for AI to subsidize an otherwise heavy workload has allowed these companies to build with fewer people.” Tan said. “That sounds a little scary, but on the other hand, what that means for founders is that you don’t need a team of 50 or 100 engineers. You know, maybe it’s that engineer who couldn’t get a job at Meta or Google, who actually can build a standalone business making 10 or 100 million dollars a year with 10 people,” Tan says. “Like that’s such a powerful moment in software.” Tan tweeted another not-so-happy stat for engineers: 25% of the current crop of Y Combinator startups used LLMs (AI large language models) to write 95% of their lines of code.Cursor CEO Michael Truell recently warned that Vibe coding builds ‘shaky foundations’ and eventually ‘things start to crumble’. Truell reportedly likened it to building a house by putting up four walls and a roof without knowing what’s going on under the floorboards or with the wiring. This coding method may be perfect for AI users looking to quickly mock up a game or website, but when it comes to more advanced programming, things have the potential to go wrong, he warned, as per a report in Fortune. “If you close your eyes and you don’t look at the code and you have AIs build things with shaky foundations as you add another floor, and another floor, and another floor, and another floor, things start to kind of crumble,” he said.

How Collins Dictionary defines Vibe Coding

Alex Beecroft, managing director of Collins, said, “The selection of ‘vibe coding’ as Collins’ Word of the Year perfectly captures how language is evolving alongside technology.” Collins’ definition of Vibe Coding states, “vibe coding” is “the use of artificial intelligence prompted by natural language to assist with the writing of computer code.” Or, as a blog post on the dictionary’s website explains: “Basically, telling a machine what you want rather than painstakingly coding it yourself.”

The government on Wednesday launched a Rs 4,531-crore Market Access Support (MAS) scheme to help Indian exporters participate in international fairs, exhibitions and buyer-seller meets, offering a boost at a time when shipments face headwinds from steep US tariffs, PTI reported.The MAS is the first component to be operationalised under the Rs 25,060-crore export promotion mission aimed at enhancing the competitiveness of Indian exporters. The remaining components will be rolled out by the end of January, Director General of Foreign Trade Ajay Badhoo said.Under the MAS, Rs 4,531 crore has been allocated for the six-year period from 2025 to 2031. For 2025-26, Rs 500 crore has been earmarked, given that only three months remain in the current fiscal year. Of this, Rs 330 crore will be used to clear pending dues of the earlier Market Access Initiative (MAI) scheme, which functioned as a standalone programme until the last financial year.The scheme will provide structured financial and institutional support for activities such as Buyer-Seller Meets (BSMs), participation in international trade fairs and exhibitions, and Mega Reverse Buyer-Seller Meets (RBSMs) organised in India. Assistance for BSMs has been capped at Rs 5 crore per event, while support for RBSMs can go up to Rs 10 crore. For trade delegations, the cap has been set at Rs 5 crore.For each approved event, the government will bear 60 per cent of the cost, with the remaining 40 per cent to be met by the private sector. For priority areas, government support can rise to 80 per cent, Badhoo said, adding that 35 per cent of participation slots in BSMs and trade delegations have been reserved for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).Priority sectors identified under the MAS include agriculture and allied industries, handicrafts, handlooms, leather, sports goods, telecom, defence, tourism, medical, logistics, legal, audio-visual, communications, construction and environment-related services.The DGFT said a new component for proofs-of-concept and product demonstrations to potential overseas buyers, particularly in technology-intensive, emerging and sunrise sectors, will be notified shortly. This has been introduced at the request of the ministries of telecom, IT and electronics.“Mandatory online feedback mechanisms will be instituted for exporters participating in each supported event, covering parameters such as buyer quality, business leads generated and market relevance,” Badhoo said, adding that the MAS guidelines will be progressively refined based on feedback and implementation experience.A forward-looking three-to-five-year calendar of major market access events will also be prepared and approved in advance, allowing exporters and organising agencies to plan participation well ahead of time and ensuring continuity in market development efforts.The export promotion mission approved by the Cabinet in November has two broad components — Niryat Protsahan and Niryat Disha. Of the total outlay, Rs 10,401 crore has been allocated for Niryat Protsahan and Rs 14,659 crore for Niryat Disha.Niryat Protsahan focuses on reducing the cost of credit and includes measures such as interest subvention for MSME exporters, which alone is expected to cost about Rs 5,000 crore. It will also provide collateral guarantees, support for export factoring, credit enhancement to improve borrowers’ credit profiles, and credit cards.India’s exports rebounded 19.37 per cent to a six-month high of $38.13 billion in November after contracting in October, driven by higher shipments of engineering and electronics goods. This helped narrow the trade deficit to a five-month low of $24.53 billion, according to official data.

Ukraine marks its fourth year New Year since Russia’s offensive. Wishing peace at the commencement of 2026, Ukrainians express the “hell” their life has become due to attacks and power cuts.Strikes on energy grids in Ukraine intensified during the winter of 2025, leaving over 2,600 residences without power in the sub-zero temperatures in the Kyiv region alone. AFP reported in the Kyiv suburb of Vyshhorod, a four-day blackout ended just in time before the new year. The residents shared how they wanted the war to end “as soon as possible.”“What else can we wish for? At a time like this, nothing else comes to mind,” said Kostiantyn Biden, a local ceiling fitter. He shares that his building was left without power and water during the blackout.Strikes from Russia have pounded Ukraine almost daily. Drones and missile attacks have been falling on Russia’s neighbouring country since the full-scale invasion in February 2022.A local beauty salon staff in Vyshhorod shared the “hell” she is going through with her staff working in a shelter amid the power outages. Daria Lushchyk, the manager at the salon, shares that the clients are still coming in regardless of the unstable conditions.“Everyone has somehow adapted and understands that stopping is absolutely not an option,” she said. “Nothing can stop our Ukrainian girls from coming in and getting themselves glam,” she added, sharing the great spirit she had witnessed.She further goes on to share her wish for the New Year 2026, “Of course, peace,” she said, adding she does not find it wise to say wishes out loud, “or they might not come true.”Pensioner Neonila said Ukrainians had learned to live with recurring power outages, relying on candlelight and mobile phone flashlights. Yet, she admitted the New Year brought her little sense of celebration.“We’ll mark it quietly at home, without any extravagance,” she said.In Vyshgorod, authorities established so-called “resilience centres” during the blackout, allowing residents to charge their phones and access basic services.The town has also endured heavy bombardment. Longtime resident Ivan Oleksiiovych described the attacks to AFP as senseless, calling them “stupid.”Neonila said she was reluctant to make plans for 2026. She had few wishes for next year.“That there be light,” she said. “Everything else will follow.”Russia, however, has denied targeting civilians. It has called its invasion a “special military operation” aimed at preventing the expansion of NATO. Kyiv and its allies have called the war aim a lie.