Bharti Airtel has launched a new speech recognition-based service that gives it’s users access to a host of voice based services like hello tunes, news, scores all through just one number instead of calling different numbers for different services (which happens to be the current scenario).

Meru Cabs has partnered with MTS Telecom to provide free internet services to all travellers using it’s cab services. As of now the service has been launched only in New Delhi and Mumbai. However Meru Cabs plans to launch this in other major cities soon – Chennai, Kolkata, Bangalore and Hyderabad.

As a part of it’s global philanthropic program, Google has announced that it will giving a grant of US$ 5 Million to Bharti Foundation in order to set up elementary education schools in India. Bharti Foundation happens to be the philanthropic unit of Bharti Enterprises Ltd which is the parent company of Bharti Airtel – One of India’s largest telecom companies.

In order to tap more out of the available potential on the IT testing sector, Wipro has launched a portal for Testing as a Service (TaaS) which will mainly cater to start-ups and small, medium businesses. With the launch of this service, Wipro feels that many new companies may now come under the Wipro fold.

The 3G rollout to various parts of India has gradually begun and users all over India can now finally start experiencing fast mobile Internet speeds via 3G. Airtel has announced it’s plans of launching 3G service for it’s users in less than a week and Tata DOCOMO, after jumping onto the 3G Bandwagon quite early, has now unveiled it’s 3G services in yet another Indian state – Karnataka.

Motorexchange.in – an online marketplace for used vehicles founded by a former chief executive of Mahindra First Choice just raised it’s second round of funding of $5 Million. In other news, Groupon has acquired Kolkata based local deals website SoSosasta.com

Research firm InMobi’s network research data shows that the volume of mobile ad impressions in India has grown by 22% in just three months making India the largest mobile ad market in the Asia-Pacific region.

Quickheal plans to build an extensive database of stolen or lost laptops in India using the data from trackmylaptop.net, which was recently launched by them to help users find their stolen laptops.

According to Internet Security Giant Symantec, this Windows-specific computer worm – Stuxnet, has already affected more than 10,000 Indian systems, across power units and petrochemical plants.

Google Maps has really made it easy for people who are new in a city to find out places and how to reach at their destinations. Google Maps already had transit info for Chennai, Delhi & Kolkata metro. Now two more cities – Pune & Bangalore have been added to that list.

Looks like the results of CAT 2010, one of the world’s most competitive exams that lead to the admission in to the Indian Institutes of Management, have been leaked. The results were supposed to be declared on Jan 12, 2011.

Intel has signed up with Croma retail in India to distribute it’s AppUp store for Netbook apps under the branding of “Croma Apps”.

Almost 30 per cent of Yahoo!’s intellectual property development around the world now comes from it’s Bangalore research center in India.

Microsoft Advertising recently conducted a study about how Indians are using the web to supplement their shopping decisions – both on the web and at shops nearby. One thing is clear, Indians are gradually taking to the web for getting help with shopping decisions.

Former Indian Cricket captain Kris Srikkanth tries his luck at e-ventures with online cricket based education and cricket coaching portals – Edustrokes.com & Cricketstrokes.com