Utkal Divas or Utakala Dibasha is celebrated on April 1 every year to remember the formation of the Odisha state after a struggle to be recognised as an independent state. Under the British rule, Odisha was part of the Bengal presidency, which consisted of the present-day Bihar, West Bengal, and Odisha.
The state celebrates the day with a restricted holiday.
The new province of Odisha was formed after people’s continued struggle, which finally paid off on April 1, 1936. Sir John Hubbak was the first governor of the state.
Notable leaders from that movement are Utkala Gouraba, Madhusudan Das, Utkala Mani, Gopabandhu Das, Fakir Mohan Senapati, Pandita Nilakantha Das, and many others.
The Andhra Pradesh government announced that renowned historian and archaeologist MyNaa Swamy will be honoured with the prestigious Ugadi Award for his outstanding contributions to historical research and social service.
The award, which includes the ‘Kalaratna’ title, ‘Hamsa’ medal, a certificate of appreciation, and a cash prize, will be presented by Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu at the Ugadi Awards ceremony, at Tummalapalli Kalakshetram in Vijayawada.
Meanwhile, MyNaa Swamy has made significant contributions to epigraphic research, particularly on the Vijayanagara Empire and the Lepakshi Veerabhadra temple complex. His efforts have brought over 100 previously unknown inscriptions to public attention, deciphering them in Telugu, Kannada, and Sanskrit.
Nidhi Tewari has been appointed as the Private Secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. According to an official order issued by the government, Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer Nidhi Tiwari has been appointed as PM Modi’s private secretary.
Nidhi Tewari has previously worked in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) as the Deputy Secretary since November 2022.
Earlier she was working as the Under Secretary at Ministry of External Affairs’ Disarmament and International Security Affairs Division.
According to the memorandum issued by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) on March 29, the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved Tewari’s appointment with immediate effect.
India's women's number one squash player Anahat Singh brushed aside Helen Tang of Hong Kong in the final to clinch the JSW Indian Open title. This is the 17-year-old Anahat's sixth title on the bounce, and 11th in total, and she won it quite easily 3-0 (11-9, 11-5, 11-8). The win gave Anahat 300 ranking points.
In the men's singles final, India's Abhay Singh fought well against Egyptian Kareem El Torkey but went down 1-3 (10-12, 4-11, 11-7, 10-12).
Kareem clinched a tight first set after which he rattled off the next with relative ease.
The victory gave Kareem 500 ranking points.
The Government of India (GoI), in collaboration with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), has announced the re-issuance of two Government Securities (G-Secs) through a price-based auction scheduled for April 4, 2025. This move reflects the government’s ongoing efforts to manage public debt efficiently while promoting transparency in the financial markets.
The auction will include the “6.64% Government Security 2027” for a notified amount of Rs. 6,000 crore and the “6.79% Government Security 2034” for Rs. 30,000 crore. Additionally, the government can accept up to Rs. 2,000 crore in extra subscriptions for each security, underscoring its flexibility in meeting funding requirements.
The auction will be conducted electronically via RBI’s Core Banking Solution platform, E-Kuber.
These securities will also be eligible for “When Issued” trading under RBI guidelines, enabling market participants to trade them before their issuance date. This mechanism enhances liquidity and provides investors with greater flexibility.
Challa Sreenivasulu Setty, Chairman of the State Bank of India (SBI), has been elected as the new Chairman of the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA). The decision was made during the IBA’s managing committee meeting held on March 28, 2025. Setty will lead the association until the next Annual General Meeting (AGM), representing the interests of India’s banking sector.
Setty replaces Sunil Mehta in this critical function, with more than 35 years of banking experience under his belt. Beginning as a probationary officer at SBI in 1988, Setty assumed several leadership positions across the bank, such as leading international banking, global markets, and technology verticals.
The IBA also elected three deputy chairmen to assist Setty in his role. A Manimekhalai, Union Bank of India’s Managing Director and CEO; Swarup Kumar Saha, MD and CEO of Punjab & Sind Bank; and Madhav Nair, Country Head and India CEO of Bank of Bahrain & Kuwait, were elected as deputy chairmen.
Besides, B Ramesh Babu, MD and CEO, Karur Vysya Bank, was appointed as the honorary secretary to offer administrative assistance to the association.
The IBA plays a crucial role in advocating for policy changes, ensuring bank coordination, and solving essential issues like digital transformation and financial inclusion.
Manappuram Finance has declared a major fundraising program. The board of the company has sanctioned a proposal to raise up to Rs. 5,500 crore by issuing redeemable non-convertible debentures (NCDs). This was decided in a board meeting conducted on March 29, 2025, which is a strategic initiative to increase its capital base and aid future growth.
The approved NCD issue can be carried out through private placements or public issues in one or more tranches during the financial year 2025-26. This provides Manappuram Finance with the flexibility to tailor its fund-raising approach based on market conditions and investor interest.
Established in 1949, Manappuram Finance has emerged as prominent player in the gold loan industry, providing a variety of financial products and services such as microfinance, vehicle finance, and housing finance. With more than 5,357 branches spread throughout India and over 6.59 million customers, the organization has established a strong presence in the financial market.
India’s Axis Bank has partnered with J.P. Morgan to offer real-time U.S. dollar payment capabilities to commercial clients in the country, facilitated by Kinexys, the U.S-based lender’s blockchain and digital assets unit.
This is the first instance where an Indian company will have the flexibility to make or receive dollar payments at any time, J.P. Morgan said.
Axis Bank will deliver the 24/7 dollar clearing capability for clients out of Gujarat International Finance Tec-City, or GIFT city, an international financial services center.
The collaboration with Kinexys will offer “significant value” to clients by streamlining payments, unlocking liquidity and adding further optionality on cross-border payments.
Currently, companies can make cross-border payments that are settled on the same day.
Naveen Mallela, global co-head at Kinexys, illustrated the anytime payment capability by saying that Indian companies can now make dollar payments to Middle Eastern clients on Sundays, which are standard working days in that region.
Defence exports have surged to a record high of Rs 23,622 crore (approx. US$ 2.76 Billion) in the Financial Year (FY) 2024-25. A growth of Rs 2,539 crore or 12.04% has been registered in the just-concluded FY over the defence exports figures of FY 2023-24, which were Rs 21,083 crore.
The Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSUs) have shown a significant increase of 42.85% in their exports in the FY 2024-25 reflecting the growing acceptability of Indian products in the global market and the ability of the Indian defence industry to be a part of the global supply chain.
The Banking Regulation Act, 1949 has been amended to provide additional powers to RBI for more effective regulation of Co-operative banks vide Banking Regulation (Amendment) Act, 2020. The major amendments pertain to areas such as management, audit, capital, reconstruction/ amalgamation, etc.
The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance, has introduced electronic processing of Bill of Entry/ Shipping Bill pertaining to gems and jewellery/samples/prototypes through personal carriage by air passengers from 01.05.2025 onwards at specified airports.
The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) achieved historic milestone in the renewable energy sector for the financial year 2024-25. Under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, the country has added an unprecedented 25 GW of renewable energy capacity, marking an increase of nearly 35% over the previous year’s addition of 18.57 GW.
