50 pc of Indian startups emerging from Tier 2, 3 cities; women lead inclusive growth

IANS | January 15, 2026 3:15 PM

New Delhi, Jan 15 (IANS) Startups are increasingly bridging India’s rural-urban divide by deploying solutions across agri-tech, telemedicine, microfinance, tourism, and ed-tech, directly addressing developmental gaps and supporting rural livelihoods, an official statement said on Thursday, ahead of the National Startup Day.

New household survey confirms rising poverty in Pakistan

IANS | January 14, 2026 6:42 PM

New Delhi, Jan 14 (IANS) Pakistan’s Household Integrated Economic Survey (HIES), published after a gap of six years, exposes the extreme level of poverty in the country with food-insecure households surging from 15.9 per cent in 2018 to 2019 to a staggering 24.4 per cent in 2024 to 2025, according to a report in the local media.