The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved four multitracking projects covering 13 districts across Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, and Jharkhand, increasing the existing network of Indian Railways by about 574 k.m.
“The total estimated cost of the projects is approximately ₹11,169 crore and the multitracking will be completed by 2028-29,” a spokesperson of the Indian Railways said.
These projects include Itarsi–Nagpur 4th Line, Aurangabad (Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar)-Parbhani Doubling, Aluabari Road-New Jalpaiguri 3rd and 4th Line as well as Dangoaposi-Jaroli 3rd and 4th Line.
The proposed multi-tracking project will enhance connectivity to approx. 2,309 villages, which are having a population of about 43.60 lakh.
The capacity augmentation works will result in additional freight traffic of magnitude 95.91 MTPA (Million Tonnes Per Annum).
The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with HDFC Capital Advisors Limited to foster innovation and support startups in the affordable housing and PropTech sectors.
A key element of the partnership is the H@ART Programme (HDFC Affordable Real Estate and Technology Programme), an initiative launched by HDFC Capital to enhance efficiency and reduce costs across the residential real estate development cycle.
The programme aims to facilitate growth opportunities through linkages with the affordable housing developer ecosystem, strategic investments in emerging PropTech companies, and mentorship in collaboration with accelerators, academic institutions, and investors.
The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Roche Products (India) Pvt. Ltd. to bolster DPIIT-recognized startups working in critical therapeutic areas such as oncology, neurology, ophthalmology, haematology, and rare diseases.
Under the MoU, Roche India will provide mentorship from global experts, support pilot and validation studies, and offer access to cutting-edge technologies, infrastructure, and international platforms to help scale promising innovations.
Lieutenant General NS Raja Subramani superannuated today, marking the conclusion of an illustrious military career spanning thirty-nine years. On this occasion, he also relinquished the appointment of the Vice Chief of the Army Staff (VCOAS).
The General Officer's distinguished journey in uniform began at the National Defence Academy and was commissioned into The Garhwal Rifles in December 1985. An officer of exceptional academic calibre, he holds a Master of Arts degree from King’s College, London, and an M.Phil. in Defence Studies from the University of Madras.
Lord Meghnad Desai, a “multifaceted personality”, eminent economist, holder of India’s third-highest civilian honour, and a member of the United Kingdom’s House of Lords has passed away, at the age of 85.
Desai’s early works certainly were focused on the Marxian way of thought, including his first book Marxian Economic Theory (1973),
which was relatively quickly followed up by Applied Econometrics (1976), and Marxian Economics (1979), which was a revised edition of his 1973. He then wrote a critique on monetarism — the economic theory that focuses on the role of money supply in influencing economic activity and price levels — in 1981.
In total, Desai wrote or edited more than 20 books and over 200 articles for academic journals.
Among them was the book ‘Who Wrote The Bhagavadgita?’, published in January 2014.
Desai was awarded the Padma Bhushan, India’s third-highest civilian honour, in 2008.
Senior scientist of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) A. Rajarajan will take over as the new director of the Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) from August 1.
He was serving as the Director of the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota (SDSC-SHAR). Mr. Rajarajan succeeds S. Unnikrishnan Nair, who is superannuating on July 31, as the VSSC director.
During a career spanning nearly four decades, Mr. Rajarajan has held several positions of leadership at the VSSC, including Deputy Director of three major entities. During this period, he specialised in the design and development of launch vehicles and spacecraft composites systems, the VSSC said. He joined the VSSC in January 1987.
The Lok Sabha passed a Statutory Resolution to extend President’s Rule in Manipur for six more months, with Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai asserting that peace and normalcy was returning to the State and that it was found necessary to extend President’s Rule to ensure that this continues.
Article 356 Summary (President’s Rule):
Trigger for Action:
If the President, based on the Governor’s report or otherwise, is satisfied that the state government cannot function according to constitutional provisions, he can issue a Proclamation (popularly known as President’s Rule).
World Breastfeeding Week is celebrated every year in the first week of August (1 to 7 August 2025), championed by WHO, UNICEF, Ministries of Health and civil society partners around the globe. It’s a time to recognize breastfeeding as a powerful foundation for lifelong health, development, and equity.
Under the banner of WHO’s ongoing Healthy Beginnings, Hopeful Futures campaign, World Breastfeeding Week will shine a particular spotlight on the ongoing support women and babies need from the healthcare system through their breastfeeding journey.
The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi today has approved the Central Sector Scheme “Grant in aid to National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC)” with an outlay of Rs.2000 crore for a period of four years from 2025-26 to 2028- 29 (Rs.500 crore each year from FY 2025-26).
On the basis of grant in aid of Rs.2000 crore to NCDC from FY 2025-26 to FY 2028-29, NCDC will be able to raise Rs.20,000 crore from open market over a span of four years. These funds will be utilized by NCDC for granting loans to Cooperatives for setting up new projects / expansion of plants and loan for meeting the working capital requirements.
Vice Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, AVSM, VSM assumed charge as the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Naval Command on 31 Jul 2025. He succeeds Vice Admiral Sanjay J Singh, PVSM, AVSM, NM who superannuated after four decades of distinguished service in the Indian Navy.
On assuming charge, VAdm Swaminathan paid homage to the bravehearts who made the supreme sacrifice in service of the Nation at the Gaurav Stambh, Naval Dockyard, Mumbai.
The Flag Officer was commissioned into the Indian Navy on 01 Jul 1987 and is a specialist in Communication and Electronic Warfare.
A recipient of Ati Vishisht Seva Medal and Vishisht Seva Medal, the Flag Officer has held several key operational, staff and training appointments in his naval career including the command of missile vessels Vidyut and Vinash, the missile corvette Kulish, the guided missile destroyer Mysore and the aircraft carrier Vikramaditya.
The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has rolled out new guidelines to enhance the efficiency and reliability of UPI transactions. These include measures such as capping balance enquiry requests and streamlining the use of key APIs like Autopay Mandate Execution and Validate Address, which UPI ecosystem participants must now follow.
As per the new NPCI guidelines, each customer can make up to 50 balance enquiries per app per day within a rolling 24-hour period. These requests must be initiated only by the customer and not by the app or system automatically. To reduce system load during peak hours, UPI apps should have the ability to limit or stop balance enquiry requests when needed.
Additionally, issuer banks are required to include the available account balance in the confirmation message after every successful UPI transaction.
Khalid Jamil head coach of indian national football team: Former India player Khalid Jamil has been appointed the head coach of the Indian national football team, becoming the first Indian in 13 years to claim the position.
Jamil, who famously guided the unheralded Aizawl Football Club to the I-League title in 2017, is currently in charge of Indian Super League (ISL) team Jamshedpur FC. He was selected for India's top post by the All India Football Federation's (AIFF) executive committee from a three-man shortlist.
India's international trade in services showed notable momentum in June 2025, with both exports and imports registering year-on-year growth, according to data released by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
The value of services exports (receipts) stood at USD 32.11 billion in June 2025, reflecting a 12.0 per cent growth compared to the same month last year (2024).
Meanwhile, services' imports (payments) reached USD 15.90 billion, marking a 5.0 per cent rise over June 2024.
The export growth in June also follows a consistent trend observed over previous months. In April and May 2025, services exports were recorded at USD 32.84 billion and USD 32.45 billion, registering growth rates of 8.8 per cent and 9.6 per cent, respectively.
On the imports side, the pace of increase accelerated slightly in June. While imports fell by 1.1 per cent year-on-year in May 2025, they rose by 5.0 per cent in June, indicating a possible rebound in demand for foreign professional and technical services.
India's fiscal deficit for April-June was Rs 2,80,000 crore ($31.96 billion) or 17.9% of the estimate for the financial year ending March 31, government data showed.
Total receipts stood at Rs 94.14 lakh crore i.e. 26.9% of this fiscal year's budget target.
Revenue receipts stood at Rs 9.13 lakh crore, of which tax revenue was Rs 5.40 lakh crore and non-tax revenue was Rs 3.73 lakh crore. Tax and non-tax revenues were 19% and 64% of the budgeted estimate.
Non-tax revenue jumped as the Reserve Bank of India approved a dividend of Rs 2.69 lakh crore to the central government, up from Rs 2.11 lakh crore transferred last year.
This will help the central government reduce its fiscal deficit.
Revenue expenditure stood at Rs 9.47 lakh crore by the end of June.
While announcing the federal budget for this fiscal year that started April 1, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman set the fiscal deficit target for 2025-26 at 4.4%, in line with the Indian government’s commitment to narrow the budget gap,
to below 4.5% by fiscal 2026. India’s fiscal deficit for FY25 stood at 4.8% of GDP, meeting the revised estimate.
On the expenditure side, New Delhi spent 51,252 crore rupees on major subsidies such as food, fertilisers and petroleum. This was 13% of the revised annual aim, marginally narrower than 14% of budgeted expenditure in the comparable period last year.
A major milestone in achieving self-reliance in warship design and construction, Himgiri (Yard 3022), the third ship of Nilgiri Class (Project 17A) and the first of the class built at Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE), was delivered to the Indian Navy on 31 Jul 2025 at GRSE, Kolkata.
Project 17A frigates are versatile multi-mission platforms, designed to address current and future challenges in the maritime domain.
Himgiri is a reincarnation of the erstwhile INS Himgiri, a Leander-class frigate, that was decommissioned on 06 May 2005 after 30 years of glorious service to the nation.
Designed by the Warship Design Bureau (WDB) and overseen by the Warship Overseeing Team (Kolkata), P17A frigates reflect a generational leap in indigenous ship design, stealth, survivability, and combat capability. Driven by the philosophy of ‘Integrated Construction’, the ship is modular and ergonomic and has been built within the built timelines envisaged.
