BSNL employees today called an indefinite country-wide strike from February 3 next year to press its demand for proactive steps by the government to revitalise the limping telecom giant.

Since 2007 roadblocks created by the government have dragged BSNL to losses and are giving way to private sector (telecom companies) to flourish. Forum of BSNL unions and associations have decided to go for indefinite strike from February 3, 2015 demanding government measures for revamping the company, BSNL Employees Union general secretary P Abhimanyu told PTI.

The government of Karnataka rushed into a series of decisions on Thursday to get Infosys, the information technology (IT) giant, to retract its decision to withdraw from the upcoming Devanahalli IT Park near the international airport.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah chaired a meeting at his home office and directed urgent taking up of the required infrastructure work, including development of four-lane roads, water pipelines and supply of 200 Mw electricity to the project.

Trading segments including Indian equity, forex, money and commodity markets are shut today on account of Guru Nanak Jayanti, which commemorates the birth of the founder of the Sikh faith.

On Wednesday, markets ended at record closing highs and the Sensex topped 28,000 mark intra-day for the first time as foreign institutional investors remained aggressive buyers in equities.

An associate professor of Andhra University has been arrested for suspected links with the Maoists, Andhra Pradesh Police said on Thursday. His family has, however, complained that he was kidnapped from his home.

Police in Visakhapatnam arrested J. Appa Rao on receiving information that he has links with the Maoists. Visakhapatnam rural police said Rao was suspected to be involved in supplying explosives to the extremists.

Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar on Thursday distanced himself from the speculation which has been going on in media circles, over his possible elevation as country's next Defence Minister.

Yesterday I did not have a word on this, so why put the horse before cart, Parrikar told when asked about the speculation that he may be inducted into the Cabinet.

Among the 124 global companies evaluated on various aspects of transparency, two Indian firms, Reliance Industries and Oil & Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), were in the top 30 positions.

Transparency International, a non-profit organisation fighting against corruption and malpractices, gave Reliance Industries and ONGC ninth and 26th positions, respectively, in its latest report Transparency in Corporate Reporting. The report was released on Wednesday.

Infosys, India's second-largest information technology (IT) services company, has launched a major recruitment drive in the US, where it plans to hire about 2,100 people - both experienced and freshers, over the next 12 months.

The company said it would add 1,500 professionals in its largest market across consulting, sales and delivery functions by March 2015, while it would bring on board close to 600 graduates and postgraduates from US universities over the next one year.

Competition is never kind to incumbents. The entry of new entities, hungry for growth, changes the rules of the game. By the time the older ones ready themselves for the new game, the goalpost has moved.

This is what happened to state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam (MTNL) in early 2000, when mobile telephony began to boom in the country. They failed to capitalise on this generational shift and now run the risk of becoming irrelevant to consumers. Predictably, both are struggling with mounting losses.

Reliance Industries said it planned to sell its share in the Eagle Ford Shale Midstream business in the US, which it has with a partner, Pioneer Natural Resources.

Reliance Holding USA, Inc owns 49.9 per cent of the EFS Midstream business and Pioneer holds 50.1 per cent.

A group of women employees at Infosys, India's second largest information technology (IT) services company, has brought charges of sexual harassment against a senior executive of the company. In a mail sent from an unidentified email ID, they said the board of directors was "hushing up the whole case", though the charges are serious.

Inviting Real Estate Agents, Job Placements Agents, Educational Institutes, Software Service Providers, Real Estate Builders, Marriage Bureaus, Travel Agents, Restaurant Owners, Health & Fitness Centers and other Local Businesses to Post a FREE Classified Advertisement on Cootera.com Classifieds Website.