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Time of India
44 minutes ago
- Time of India
PhonePe's Indus Appstore to come preloaded on Alcatel smartphones as part of new partnership
French consumer technology brand Alcatel's smartphone will come pre-loaded with indigenously developed PhonePe's Indus Appstore under an agreement signed between the two companies, a joint statement said on Monday. PhonePe's Indus Appstore has a catalogue of verified mobile apps and games across 45 categories. It supports 12 Indian languages, enables voice search in 10 regional languages, and features a video-led app discovery experience that allows users to preview apps before downloading them. "Indus Appstore... announced a strategic OEM partnership with Alcatel, a French consumer technology brand. As part of this long-term partnership, Indus Appstore will come pre-installed as an app store on all Alcatel smartphones in India," the statement said. Alcatel is a trademark of Nokia used under licence by Chinese firm TCL Communication . NxtCell India holds exclusive brand authorisation from TCL to represent and operate the "Alcatel" brand in India and select international markets. "This collaboration enables Alcatel users to discover and experience apps through a homegrown platform that delivers true localisation and personalisation. This partnership also expands Indus Appstore's reach while providing developers and marketers opportunities to showcase their apps and connect with more users across India," Indus Appstore,Chief Business Officer, Priya M Narasimhan said. Alcatel has re-entered India's smartphone market after a seven-year hiatus and looks to become one of the top three smartphone brands in the country within the next three years. "As we prepare to reintroduce Alcatel smartphones to the Indian market, our focus is on creating meaningful differentiation through localized innovation. Partnering with PhonePe's Indus Appstore allows us to deliver a digital experience tailored to Indian preferences right from the first boot. They have been an integral part of our journey since the beginning, and we look forward to a long-term partnership," NxtCell India Chief Business Officer Atul Vivek said.
NDTV
an hour ago
- NDTV
Croatia Is Offering A Digital Nomad Visa Under Rs 10,000 To Work And Live There For A Year
If you want to live and work amidst the natural beauty of beaches, Croatia should be on your list. The country is known for its prettiest beaches in Europe, and you can live here for up to a year with a Digital Nomad Visa. What Is Croatia's Digital Nomad Visa? Croatia's Digital Nomad Visa is a temporary residence permit for digital nomads that allows non-EU/EEA/Swiss remote workers to legally live and work in Croatia. Designed to attract professionals who are not location-bound. With a Digital Nomad Visa Residence Permit, you will be allowed to live and work in Croatia as a digital nomad for six months to a year, and it functions more like a temporary resident permit than a visa. Although the standard temporary stay was originally capped (with up to 18 months and rules for reapplication after gaps), as of March 2025, amendments to the Aliens Act allow non-EU digital nomads to legally reside in Croatia for up to three years under the broader digital nomad framework, subject to updated regulatory implementation. Who Is Eligible? To qualify for the Croatia digital nomad temporary residence permit, applicants must meet the following eligibility criteria: Proof of remote work in the form of an agreement or contract. You should have a business registration if you are an independent worker. Monthly income of at least €3,295 per month (Rs 3,34,215 approximately). A valid private health insurance covering the entire intended stay in Croatia. No certificate of criminal conviction from your country of residence. Proof of accommodation. A valid passport valid for at least three months beyond the intended stay. How To Apply 1. Gather all documents, including: Proof of remote work Income proof Health insurance Clean criminal record Accommodation proof Ensure you have copies in both English and Croatian. 2. Apply online via the official website. You can submit your application to a Croatian embassy or in person at the local police station near your temporary residence in Croatia. The visa fee will be as follows: If applying at a diplomatic mission/consulate (abroad): Granting temporary stay: €55.74 (Rs 5,653 approx.) Long-term visa: €93 (Rs 9,433 approx.) If applying within Croatia at a police administration or a police station, the prices may vary: Granting temporary stay: €46.45 (Rs 4,711 approx.) Administrative fee for biometric residence permit: €9.29 (Rs 942 approx.) Biometric residence card: €31.85 (Rs 3,230 approx.) Accelerated procedure total for residence card: €59.73 (Rs 6,058 approx.) 3. Once approved, register your temporary residence address within the required window, which is typically within 30 days or six months, depending on entry visa rules. If you enter the country immediately, you must register your address within 3 days. 4. Obtain the biometric card in person, which involves submitting a photo/biometrics and paying associated fees.
The Hindu
an hour ago
- The Hindu
India's Forests Are Greener—but Storing Less Carbon: New Study Reveals a Sequestration Crisis
Published : Aug 04, 2025 17:30 IST - 5 MINS READ Through photosynthesis, trees and plants absorb carbon dioxide and turn it into energy needed for growing trunks and roots. This process of removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and storing it as biomass is called carbon sequestration. It is this ability of trees and plants that can help mitigate the impacts of climate change. The Indian government, much like many other governments and private companies around the world, is banking on forests and plantations to tackle climate change. As part of climate commitments under the Paris Agreement, the Indian government has pledged to create an additional carbon sink of 2.5 to 3 billion tonnes of CO2 (carbon dioxide) through additional forest and tree cover by 2030. There are ongoing efforts by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, such as the National Afforestation Programme (NAP) and the Green India Mission (GIM), aimed at afforestation and plantation activities. GIM is one of eight 'National Missions' under the National Action Plan on Climate Change. Also Read | 'Maladaptation' fears might end up blocking climate funds for poor nations Over the past few years, India has experienced significant greening, driven by irrigated agriculture and plantations. But to be an effective climate mitigation tool, the greening should translate to effective carbon sequestration. A new scientific study says this is not happening. Published in the journal Resources, Conservation & Recycling last month by two scientists from IIT-Kharagpur, the study shows that in the last decade (2010-2019), carbon stock capacity declined by 5 per cent compared to the decade before (2000-2009). In some regions like the eastern Himalaya and the Western Ghats, the decline in forest carbon stock is as high as 17-20 per cent. 'Green-ness is on the outside. It is structural. And carbon uptake is a functional quality,' said Rahul Kashyap, the lead author of the study and Prime Minister's Research Fellow (PMRF) at CORAL, IIT Kharagpur. 'For Indian forests, the outer green-ness is increasing, but functional health, of which a key aspect is the ability to act as carbon sinks, is declining,' he added. The study notes how greening is translating to biomass production at lower rates than before. And the reason is reduced soil moisture due to climate change-driven warming and activities like deforestation and plantations. And this trend is set to continue till 2100. Jayanarayanan Kuttippurath, the other author of the study and an Assistant Professor at IIT Kharagpur, said, 'The atmosphere is continuously warming. The mitigation action the world is taking [to reduce the usage of fossil fuels] is not enough. And we are continuously emitting carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. On top of this, we have forest fires and deforestation. This is why the translation from green-ness to biomass is also decreasing.' Plants under stress Temperatures are rising and soil moisture is decreasing, causing heat stress in plants, which are unable to produce biomass and sequester carbon dioxide at rates they used to earlier. 'There are forest-dwellers and their livelihood. We have a big forest economy, and this will also be compromised. In addition to this, we have a net-zero target by 2070. The declining carbon stock capacity is a big concern,' Kuttippurath said. The study is first-of-its-kind to estimate Ecosystem Photosynthetic Efficiency (EPE), which is a measure of translation of greenness to carbon uptake, across Indian forests. It finds that the largest declines in EPE are in the Eastern Himalaya, the Western Ghats, and the Indo-Gangetic Plain, which, interestingly, have the highest EPE in the country. 'We are losing quality forests' Over the last two decades, reports by the Forest Survey of India have shown how green cover and forest cover in India are increasing. But this includes lots of areas outside historical forests, such as plantations and agroforestry. 'Day by day, we are losing quality forests. We have different kinds of forests with different species and different kinds of disturbances like infrastructure development and invasive species. And climate change exacerbates the impacts of disturbances,' said Purabi Saikia, Associate Professor at the Department of Botany in Banaras Hindu University. As an ecologist, Saikia has conducted ground studies of forests across the country in States like Arunachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Tamil Nadu. 'Invasive species like lantana and parthenium are also part of the green cover, but they have low carbon sequestration compared to native trees,' Saikia explained. 'So, yes. We have increasing green cover but not in terms of forest productivity or ecosystem productivity,' she added. However, since the study is based purely on remote-sensing and predictions, Saikia called for more analysis based on ground-truthing. 'It is an important finding and the paper presents a good idea to carry forward with ground work in forests,' she added. Also Read | Are Giant Leatherback hatchlings from Galathea Bay being relocated? In the paper, too, the authors note that India needs more studies on forest carbon dynamics that integrate remote sensing observations and ground-based measurements. Declining forest sink capacity is a global issue, too. A study published last month showed that forest sink capacity in Europe, too, is 'rapidly declining'. And yet another study from July showed that tropical forests the world over are losing drought resilience. On the issue of declining forest carbon stock in India, the authors warn that it is 'imperative' not to misconstrue forest-based mitigation as a solution to climate change and that forest protection and afforestation measures should be done more scientifically to secure historical natural forests. Rishika Pardikar is an environment reporter based in Bengaluru who covers science, law, and policy.
