The all-new 2018 Maruti Suzuki Swift, which is perhaps the year's most awaited car is finally here. Bookings are open and the car will officially be launched at the Delhi Auto Expo next month Feb 7.
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This is the third coming of the Swift, which has been one of Maruti Suzuki's most popular offerings -- clocking a whopping 17 lakh units in sales till date. The first generation rolled out in India in 2005, and over a decade later India's largest carmaker has once again reincarnated the old soul - which seems to be in no hurry to achieve 'nirvana', any time soon. In fact, in its latest avatar, it feels more youthful and more peppy than ever before.

​The car will be available in 12 variants and for the first time, Maruti will offer automatic transmission on the hatchback. The waiting period is said to be ranging from 6 weeks to 8 weeks depending on the variants. Earlier, Mr RS Kali, senior executive director of sales and marketing said that the all-new Swift will sell more than 15,000 units per month, which is more than what the previous generation Swift used to sell.

The all-new Swift comes with a host of changes to attract the buyers. It is the third generation Swift and is built on the lightweight HEARTECT platform. The vehicle is available with unique features like LED projector headlamps with LED DRLs that adds a very sharp and premium look to the vehicle. The Swift has also become wider and has 20mm longer wheelbase than the current version that makes it roomier.

1. It’s more spacious

Based on the Heartect platform, the new Swift is 40mm wider and boasts a 20mm longer wheelbase, along with a claimed 24mm more headroom. The result is a more spacious cabin. Adding to the practicality is the boot which – at 265 litres – is a good 58 litres larger than that of its predecessor. In terms of exterior dimensions, the new Swift is 3,840mm in length, 1,735mm in width and 1,530mm in height with a wheelbase of 2,450mm and ground clearance of 163mm.

2. The engines are carried over as is

While the new Swift looks distinctly different, things are more or less the same in the engine bay. The car will continue to be powered by the same 1.2-litre, 83hp/113Nm petrol engine and 1.3-litre 75hp/190Nm diesel engine as the outgoing Swift.

3. Automatic gearboxes are finally available…and on both engines

In keeping with the growing popularity of automatic gearboxes, the new Swift will get Automated Manual Transmission (AMT) variants for both the petrol and diesel engines. The AMT gearboxes are five-speed units, like the manual gearboxes they are based on. There is a catch, however – the automatic versions are not available in the fully loaded Z+ trim and are offered in mid-spec VXi/VDi and ZXi/ZDi form, only.

4. It is feature-and-equipment-loaded

The new Swift will come generously equipped with features and equipment, especially in the top-spec variant – SmartPlay infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, projector headlamps with LED DRLs, two-tonne alloy wheels, navigation, reverse camera, push-button start and automatic headlamps. In terms of safety, two airbags and ABS will be standard, across the range.

5. Bookings are now open
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Maruti has not officially launched the car yet, so we don’t have a definitive price; Maruti has, however, started accepted bookings for the new Swift with an initial payment of Rs. 11,000. The Swift is bound to be very popular – we wouldn’t be surprised if the wait time for deliveries stretches into months.

THE STAR SAID THAT SUCH A CLASH IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN AND WILL BE AVERTED.

There have been enough speculations about Akshay Kumar’s Padman and 2.0releasing for the Republic Day next year. However, the star has said that such a clash is not going to happen and will be averted. While Padman is his home production produced by his wife Twinkle Khanna, 2.0 is a Shankar directorial that is being bankrolled by Lyca Productions. Incidentally, Akshay Kumar plays the baddie in 2.0 which has Rajinikanth playing the lead role.

On both his films heading for release around the same time, Akshay Kumar said that it wouldn’t be a good idea for such a clash to happen and it will be averted at any cost. The star went on to add that Padman’s release will depend on when 2.0 hits the screens. Being the producer of Padman, Akshay Kumar said that he can reschedule the release date but that can’t be done for 2.0 as the release plan depends on director Shankar and the producers.

It may be noted that Akshay Kumar plays the male lead in Padman while in 2.0,he will be seen as the antagonist. He will be appearing in 12 different get-ups for his role as an evil scientist in 2.0. 
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2.0, one of the most anticipated films in Indian cinema, is made on a budget of Rs. 450 crores by A Subashkaran of Lyca Productions. The film has Amy Jackson playing the female lead with Rajinikanth as the hero and Akshay Kumar as the villain. Scoring the music for this flick is AR Rahman with Nirav Shah being the cameraman and Anthony the editor. This magnum opus has some of the best technicians associated with it, which has raised the expectation levels. It may be recollected that 2.0 is the sequel to Endhiran, which was a blockbuster hit.

THE ACTOR CALLED DEMONETISATION THE 'BIGGEST BLUNDER OF OUR TIME'.

A year since the implementation of demonetisation, actor-filmmaker Prakash Raj on Wednesday demanded an apology from the central government for committing the "biggest blunder".

In a post titled "To whomsoever it may concern", Prakash wrote on Twitter: "While the rich found ways to convert their black money into shiny new notes, this disruptive impact made millions suffer helplessly and the unorganised sector workers went for spin. Would you mind saying sorry for the biggest blunder of our time?"

On November 8, 2016, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes which, he said, was aimed at "eradicating black money and terror funding".
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Last week, Prakash -- a popular name in the Kannada, Telugu and Tamil film industries -- supported actor Kamal Haasan's views on "Hindu extremists". A month ago, Prakash had also condemned the "silence" of Modi on certain sections "celebrating" the murder of journalist Gauri Lankesh in Bengaluru on social media. He had said Modi's silence was "chilling".

A multi-lingual actor and producer with a fan base across south India, Prakash Raj was a close friend of journalist Gauri Lankesh for over three decades.

“Gauri’s father, Mr Lankesh, was our mentor, our teacher. We have been his students, and I knew Gauri for the last 35 years,” he told Republic TV soon after Gauri’s death.

Prakash had also said that though there were many vocal voices in the past such as Lankesh, DR Nagaraj and UR Ananthamurthy, intolerance for such voices had grown more recently. “I am really wondering where are we going towards?” Prakash had asked.

Prakash Raj has won 5 National Awards for films across industries in his long career. These are Best Supporting Actor for Iruvar (1997, Tamil), Special Jury Award for Anthapuram (1999,Telugu), Special Jury Award for various movies (2003, multiple languages), Best Actor for Kanchivaram (2007, Tamil), and Best Film for Puttakkana Highway (2010, Kannada).

Wellington: The International Cricket Council (ICC) is set to approve plans for its long-awaited World Test Championship at a meeting in New Zealand this week, it was reported Monday.

The sport's governing body has argued for years that a Test championship is needed to boost the five-day format's popularity as crowds and television viewers flock to the big-hitting Twenty20 version of the game.

But squabbling over formats and fears that some nations will be disadvantaged have twice stymied efforts to launch a league structure since 2010.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that plans for a nine-nation Test championship were now well advanced and the ICC was set to give the concept a green light on Friday at a meeting in Auckland.

It said the first edition of the competition would run over a two-year cycle beginning in 2019, culminating in a final between the top two teams at Lord's.

Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland said the league competition would give Test series a broader international "context", making them more than stand-alone bilateral contests.

"You're also creating structure in such a way that you no longer have games without meaning. They are all part of a league championship," he told the Herald.

Purists view Test cricket as the pinnacle of the sport but it has struggled, particularly in Asia, as lucrative T20 competitions such as the Indian Premier League have caught the public's imagination.

A recent innovation designed to reverse the trend is the introduction of day-night Test matches, which moves playing sessions to more spectator-friendly hours.

The idea of four-day Test matches has also been floated, although traditionalists oppose the move.
The Herald reported that the ICC will also look at a major shake-up of one-day international fixtures at the Auckland meeting.

It said a 13-nation ODI league was being considered, which would operate on a three-year cycle with results affecting World Cup qualification.
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Under the plans, the number of ODIs in a series would be capped at three, ending the lengthy five-match series that are currently part of the international fixture list.

Railway tickets are likely to get cheaper as the government is trying to do away with MDR or merchant discount rates levied on e-tickets. MDR charges are applied on tickets that passengers book online through the IRCTC website. The MDR charges are imposed by banks on the merchant for providing debit and credit card services. Railway Minister Piyush Goyal mentioned that talks are underway with banks to resolve this issue of MDR.
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In an interview to CNBC-TV18, Goyal said, "Railways used to charge a service charge. Post demonetisation they removed that service charge and we saw digital transactions really shoot up. Now the only charge that is charges is the merchant discount rate (MDR). I am now engaged with bankers to see what we can do about that MDR also."

Once the MDR charges are done away with, ticket prices would automatically fall for passengers booking though the online portal.

Goyal, who spoke at the India Economic Summit of the World Economic Forum on Thursday also mentioned that a million jobs can be created in the railways ecosystem in less than 12 months. He further added that if they use the amount of investment in the pipeline, they can create 2 to 2.5 lakh jobs in the existing projects alone.
The minister further added that the government is trying to change the growth narrative by making it more technologically driven. Goyal further added that a change can only be brought about by empowering people and cutting through bureaucracy.

The Goods and Services Tax council, apart from letting small businesses pay taxes on a quarterly basis rather than monthly, had also slashed taxes on 27 items including Khakra, a crispy snack in Gujarat.
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​DWARKA: On a two-day visit to Gujarat that heads for elections later this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said the changes made to the Goods and Services Tax that eases compliance rules was a cause for celebration.

"Diwali has come early for our citizens due to decisions taken in the Goods and Services Tax council," said PM Modi, who has called steps taken to simplify the GST regime a reflection of the government's constant endeavour to safeguard citizens' interest and ensure the economy grows.

The GST Council had carried out major changes to the national tax regime introduced in July on Saturday following complaints from businesses and amid criticism from the opposition over the way GST has been implemented.

The council, apart from letting small businesses pay taxes on a quarterly basis rather than monthly, had also slashed taxes on 27 items including Khakra, a crispy snack in Gujarat.

PM Modi, speaking at a function to lay the foundation stone of a bridge in Dwarka, said Saturday's review was in line with the government's promise when GST was rolled out in July. "We had said we will study all aspects relating to GST for 3 months, including the shortcomings," he said.

PM's Modi's two-day visit comes just days before the Election Commission is expected to announce the election schedule for elections in Gujarat, kicking in the model code of conduct that will restrict the government from starting any new work in the state or even make any promises.

This is PM Modi's fourth visit this year to the state