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From automated farm tractors to exam paper grading, AI boosts efficiency for some in India

KARNAL, India, February 18, 2026 (AP) — Farmer Bir Virk tapped the iPad mounted beside his tractor’s steering wheel and switched the vehicle to automatic mode. The machine moved forward and began harvesting potatoes on its own in the fields of Karnal, a city in northern India. Some 145 kilometers (90 miles) away in the country’s capital of New Delhi, educator Swetank Pandey employed similar automation at his coaching academy. He used algorithms to scan and grade handwritten exam papers from candidates for India’s competitive civil services. In both cases, the same invisible hand was at work: artificial intelligence. From

Stock markets open lower amid weakness in IT, Services shares

Mumbai, Feb 18 (PTI) Equity benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty began the trade on a negative territory on Wednesday, tracking losses in IT and Services stocks in a volatile session. After a bearish start, the 30-share BSE Sensex further declined 247.92 points, or 0.30 per cent, to 83,203.04. The 50-share NSE Nifty dropped 70.25 points, or 0.27 per cent, to 25,655.15. Among the Sensex constituents, Infosys, Tech Mahindra, Adani Ports, HCL Technologies, Tata Consultancy Services, Eternal, Maruti Suzuki India, Asian Paints, Trent, HDFC Bank, IndiGo, Kotak Mahindra Bank and ICICI Bank were the major laggards. On the other hand, ITC,

Rupee rises 5 paise to 90.67 against US dollar in early trade

Mumbai, Feb 18 (PTI) The rupee rose 5 paise to 90.67 against the US dollar on Wednesday on the back of a drop in global crude oil prices and FII inflows. However, a stronger greenback and a weak start to day at the domestic equity markets capped sharp gains in the local unit, forex traders said. At the interbank foreign exchange, rupee opened at 90.60 but lost some ground to trade at 90.67 against the US dollar, higher by 5 paise from its previous close. The rupee gained 2 paise to settle at 90.72 against the US dollar on Tuesday.

Silver, gold prices decline up to 2 pc on muted demand, weak global cues

New Delhi, Feb 17 (PTI) Precious metal prices declined 2 per cent in the national capital on Tuesday, with silver slipping to Rs 2.45 lakh per kilogram and gold dropping to Rs 1.57 lakh per 10 grams due to subdued demand amid weak global cues. According to the All India Sarafa Association, the price of white metal decreased Rs 5,000, or 2 per cent, to Rs 2,45,000 per kilogram (inclusive of all taxes) from Monday’s closing level of Rs 2,50,000 per kg. In the bullion market, gold of 99.9 per cent purity depreciated Rs 2,200, or 1.4 per cent, to

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