Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi attended the 57th National Day celebrations of the Republic of Mauritius as the Chief Guest.
During the celebrations, President of the Republic of Mauritius H.E. Mr. Dharambeer Gokhool conferred the Grand Commander of the Order of the Star and Key of the Indian Ocean (G.C.S.K) award, the highest civilian award of Mauritius, on PM Modi.
This is the first time that an Indian leader is receiving this honour.
Prime Minister Modi dedicated this award to the special friendship between India and Mauritius and to the 1.4 billion people of India and their 1.3 million brothers and sisters in Mauritius.
During the National Day celebrations, an Indian Navy marching contingent participated in the parade. An Indian Naval Ship also made a Port Call to coincide with the National Day celebrations.
The Department of Biotechnology (DBT) and the Government of Assam signed a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) under the BioE3 (Biotechnology for Economy, Environment, and Employment) Policy. This Centre-State partnership is the first of its kind under the BioE3 framework and aims to accelerate high-performance biomanufacturing,
while fostering a sustainable biotechnology ecosystem in Assam.
The MoU signing is a culmination of extensive consultations, high-level meetings, and collaborative efforts made by the DBT and the Government of Assam. A landmark step in this journey was the Centre-State Partnership Conclave held under the chairpersonship of Union Minister of Dr. Jitendra Singh.
The BioE3 Policy, approved by the Union Cabinet on 24th August 2024, envisages to establish India as a global leader in bio-based innovations, emphasizing sustainable biomanufacturing across various thematic areas including bio-based chemicals, APIs, biopolymers, enzymes, climate-resilient agriculture, functional foods, smart proteins, carbon capture& utilization,
precision biotherapeutics (cell & gene therapy, mRNA therapeutics & monoclonal antibody), as well as futuristic marine and space research. By integrating these diverse fields, the Policy seeks to drive both economic growth and environmental sustainability. These Sectors will be augmented by BioEnablers (setting up of Biofoundries, Biomanufacturing and BioAI Hubs).
A delegation of the Government of India led by Smt. Annpurna Devi, Union Minister, Women and Child Development (WCD), participated in the 69th session of the Commission on the Status of Women, which started on 10th March 2025 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.
The session witnessed large-scale participation from all UN member states, intergovernmental organizations, the private sector, philanthropists, academia, civil society, women’s collectives, and UN agencies.
At the 69th CSW session, the Minister held bilateral meetings with leaders including Ms. Melrose Karminty (Sierra Leone), Mr. Sodyq S. Safoev (Uzbekistan),
Dr. Vindhya Persaud (Guyana), and Ms. Antonia Orellana Guarello (Chile) to strengthen cooperation on gender equality and social welfare.
CSW is the principal global intergovernmental body exclusively dedicated to the promotion of gender equality, the rights and the empowerment of women.
A functional commission of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), the forthcoming session of the Commission will be held from 10th to 21st March, 2025.
As per a secondary market research analysis published by Bain and Company in the year 2025, Indian pharmaceutical exports ranked 11th globally in value terms in the year 2023 and accounted for 3% of the total pharmaceutical exports.
The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) showcased India’s agricultural and processed food excellence at the 39th edition of AAHAR 2025, organized by the India Trade Promotion Organization (ITPO) from 4th to 8th March 2025 at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi.
APEDA facilitated the participation of 95 exhibitors, including Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs), Farmer Producer Companies (FPCs), entrepreneurs, and manufacturing companies from 17 States, including Gujarat, Punjab, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Hyderabad, Kerala, Telangana, and Tamil Nadu,
as well as Union Territories such as Delhi, Haryana, Chandigarh, and Jammu & Kashmir. Their participation showcased India's strength in agriculture and processed food sectors while highlighting the collaborative spirit driving innovation and growth within the industry.
Addressing the ‘India Plant-Based Foods Show’ organized by the Plant-Based Food Industry Association at AAHAR 2025, APEDA Chairman Shri Abhishek Dev underscored India’s expanding footprint in agricultural and processed food exports. He also emphasized the need to explore plant-based exports as a sustainable alternative to meet global environmental goals.
Department of Posts has undertaken an initiative namely “Digital Address Code” aimed at establishing a digital public infrastructure for a standardized, geo-coded addressing system in India ensuring simplified addressing solutions for citizen-centric delivery of public and private services to establish ―Address as a Service‖ (AaaS) in India.
As a part of this initiative, the Department of Posts (DoP), under the Ministry of Communications, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Foundation for Science Innovation and Development (FSID), Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru,
for designing and documenting the technology architecture for the Digital Address Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI).
The collaboration between the Department of Posts and FSID, IISc marks a significant step towards a seamless, efficient, and technology-driven addressing system, reinforcing India’s leadership in digital innovation.
The International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards has completed 25 years this year. Its Silver Jubilee edition was celebrated this year in Jaipur on March 8, 2025.
The celebration began by recognizing the best talents in the field of OTT cinemas and series. The best film awards were given on March 9, where Kiran Rao's social dramedy Laapataa Ladies,
emerged victorious, clinching 10 trophies.
The movie bagged awards like Best Performance In A Leading Role (Female), Best Picture, Best Performance In A Supporting Role (Male), Best Direction and many other awards.
Currently, the 6G technology is under development phase at international level and is expected to be available by 2030. Hon'ble Prime Minister has released India's 6G vision "Bharat 6G Vision" document on March 23, 2023 which envisaged India to be a frontline contributor in design, development and deployment of 6G technology by 2030.
Bharat 6G Vision is based on principles of affordability, sustainability and ubiquity. Also, Department of Telecom has facilitated setting up of 'Bharat 6G Alliance' which is an alliance of domestic industry, academia, national research institutions and standards organisations to develop action plan according to the Bharat 6G Vision.
As part of the Government’s efforts to strengthen indigenous defence capabilities of the country, Ministry of Defence has inked a capital acquisition contract with Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), Ghaziabad for the procurement of Low-level Transportable Radar, LLTR (Ashwini) at a cost of Rs 2,906 crore.
The radar is indigenously designed and developed by Electronics & Radar Development Establishment, DRDO. The contract was signed in the presence of Defence Secretary Shri Rajesh Kumar Singh in New Delhi on March 12, 2025.
LLTR (Ashwini) is an active electronically scanned phased array radar based on state-of-the-art solid state technology.
The radar is capable of tracking aerial targets from high-speed fighter aircraft to slow moving targets such as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and helicopters. Its acquisition will significantly enhance the operational preparedness of the Indian Air Force.
Governor, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) inaugurated the 5th Digital Payments Awareness Week (DPAW). DPAW is an initiative to highlight the impact and importance of digital payments and to create awareness about safe usage of digital payment products. During the week, RBI, along with payment system operators, banks and other stakeholders,
conducts nationwide awareness activities, including multimedia campaigns, on-ground educational programs and social media-based outreach.
2. The DPAW shall be observed from March 10 to 16, 2025. Under the mission ‘Har Payment Digital’, the theme for the current year is ‘India Pays Digitally’.
This theme reflects India’s transformative journey toward a digitally empowered citizenry, with the ubiquity and convenience of digital payments.
3. In his address Governor commended the efforts made so far for increased adoption of digital payments and observed that there is still significant potential for expansion of digital payments in the country.
He urged members of the payment industry, banks, media and users to encourage the use of digital payments.
4. As part of the awareness initiative, RBI is also pleased to announce two competitions which are open for public participation:
(a) Har Payment Digital Short Video Contest
(b) Har Payment Digital Comic Strip Contest
CISF Raising Day is marked every year on March 10 to acknowledge and honour the Central Industrial Security forces of India. The paramilitary police force plays a crucial role in providing security to critical government and private sectors.
The Central Industrial Security Force was created under the CISF Act of 1968 and established in 1969.
According to the official website of the CISF, the force provides security to the Department of Space, the Department of Atomic Energy, the Airports, the Delhi Metro, the ports, the historical monuments and the basic areas of the Indian economy such as petroleum and natural gas, electricity, coal, steel and mining.
The National Archives of India (NAI) celebrated its 135th Foundation Day on 11th March 2025 with an exhibition titled “Indian Heritage through Architecture.” Union Minister of Culture & Tourism, Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat inaugurated the exhibition.
The exhibition showcased India’s rich cultural heritage as reflected in its diverse architectural marvels,
spanning thousands of years and encompassing a variety of styles, influences, and historical periods. From the ancient Indus Valley Civilization to medieval temples, Mughal monuments, and colonial-era structures, Indian architecture narrates the nation’s spiritual, cultural, and historical evolution.
On this occasion, the National Archives of India also launched a book titled ‘Thumb Printed: Champaran, Indigo Peasants Speak to Gandhi Volume III.’ This volume contains 423 testimonies, including 143 principal testators, among whom five were women, 11 were minors, 76 signed the documents, and four had no signature or thumb impression.
This third volume in the series focuses on the historic Champaran Satyagraha.
The National Archives of India, an attached office under the Ministry of Culture, was originally established as the Imperial Record Department on 11 March 1891 in Kolkata (Calcutta).
Following the transfer of the capital to Delhi in 1911, the present NAI building, designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens, was completed in 1926. The complete transfer of records from Calcutta to New Delhi was finalized in 1937. The National Archives of India also serves as the nodal agency for implementing the Public Records Act, 1993, and the Public Record Rules, 1997.
