Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated, laid the foundation stone and dedicated to the nation development works worth Rs 5,400 crores in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.
Prime minister dedicated multiple railway projects worth over Rs 1,400 crore to the Nation.
It includes doubling of the 65 km Mahesana-Palanpur Rail Line worth over Rs 530 crore, gauge conversion of the 37 km Kalol-Kadi-Katosan Road Rail Line and 40 km Bechraji-Ranuj Rail Line worth over Rs 860 crore. With the addition of broad-gauge capacity, these projects will ensure smoother, safer and more seamless connectivity in the region.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla will lead a delegation of presiding officers from India to the Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference (CPC) in Barbados in October which will have a session on financial transparency in elections.
Birla chaired a meeting of Presiding Officers of Legislative Bodies from across India to brief them about various aspects of the conference.
The 68th CPC is scheduled to be held from October 5-12 at Bridgetown, according to a statement issued by the Lok Sabha Secretariat.
The Indian delegation will comprise Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh and presiding officers and secretaries of state and Union Territory legislatures from across the country.
Birla will address the General Assembly of the CPC on the theme of 'The Commonwealth: A Global Partner'.
In addition, members of Indian Parliamentary Delegation will be taking part in seven thematic workshops, including on,
'Strengthening our Institutions to Support Democracy', 'Leveraging Technology: Enhancing Democracy through Digital Transformations and Tackling the Digital Divide', 'A Look Ahead to CHOGM 2026: Championing the Human Factor from a Gender and Accessibility Lens', and 'Building Trust and Transparency in Democracy: Financial Transparency in Parliaments and Elections'.
In addition to the General Assembly and workshops, there will be a Youth Roundtable on the subject 'Staying Safe and Free to Thrive: Empowering Young People to Overcome Modern Challenges - From Gang Violence to Cyber-Bullying', the statement said.
India and Japan have been deepening their partnership in the energy sector under the Japan-India Clean Energy Partnership, with a focus on energy security, clean energy transition, and addressing climate change. Both sides have institutionalized this cooperation through the India-Japan Energy Dialogue and sectoral Joint Working Groups (JWGs).
A Ministerial-level India-Japan Energy Dialogue was held today (25th August 2025) through Video Conferencing, co-chaired by Shri Manohar Lal, Hon’ble Minister of Power and Housing & Urban Affairs, Government of India, and Mr. Muto Yoji, Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, Government of Japan.
India will provide training and equipment to upgrade Fiji’s maritime security, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said August 25, 2025.
In our cooperation with the Pacific island nations, we see Fiji as a hub. Both our countries strongly support a free, open, inclusive, secure, and prosperous Indo-Pacific.
We warmly welcome India’s Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative,” Mr. Modi said, announcing the collaboration between India and the Fijian military forces.
Prime Minister of Fiji- Sitiveni Ligamamada Rabuka.
The Government of India and the World Food Programme (WFP) announced a significant milestone in their collaboration aimed at addressing the global hunger crisis by signing a Letter of Intent (LoI).
Under this initiative, the Department of Food and Public Distribution (DFPD), Government of India, offers WFP the opportunity to supply fortified rice from India, aiding in fulfilling the food and nutritional requirements of the most vulnerable populations in crisis zones globally.
This collaboration underscores the strength of global partnerships.
By sourcing rice from India, WFP will utilise the resources of an agricultural surplus nation to deliver life-saving aid and make tangible progress against hunger.
The initiative signifies the culmination of the discussions at the February 2025 Executive Board side event in Rome, where representatives from the Indian government and WFP explored ways to collaborate.
Indian Navy is set to commission the latest state of the art Project 17A multi-mission stealth frigates Udaygiri and Himgiri at Naval Base, Visakhapatnam, on 26 Aug 2025. The ceremony will be presided over by the Hon’ble Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh.
This will be the first occasion when two frontline surface combatants, constructed at two different shipyards, will be commissioned simultaneously, underscoring the growing maritime importance of India’s eastern seaboard.
Udaygiri and Himgiri are follow on ships of the Project 17 (Shivalik) class frigates.
Both these vessels incorporate significant improvements in design, stealth, weapon and sensors systems and are capable of executing full spectrum of maritime missions in Blue Water conditions.
The Department of Animal Husbandry & Dairying (DAHD) under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying released the “Guidelines and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for Blood Transfusion and Blood Banks for Animals in India”.
Blood transfusion is globally recognized as a life-saving intervention, essential for managing trauma, severe anaemia, surgical blood loss, infectious diseases, and coagulation disorders in animals. Yet, until now, India lacked a comprehensive national framework for veterinary transfusion medicine.
Fitch Ratings (August 25, 2025) affirmed India's sovereign rating at 'BBB-', with a stable outlook, saying a strong record of delivering growth and improving fiscal credibility will drive improvements in structural metrics.
“India’s ratings are supported by its robust growth and solid external finances,” Fitch said, as it forecast GDP growth of 6.5% in the fiscal year ending March 2026 (FY26), unchanged from FY25, and well above the ‘BBB’ median of 2.5%.
It said India's economic outlook remains strong relative to peers, even as momentum has moderated in the past two years.
The Centre has proposed to the Group of Ministers on GST rate rationalisation a 2-tier rate structure of 5 and 18% for 'merit' and 'standard' goods and services, and a 40 per cent rate for about 5-7 goods. The proposal entails doing away with the current 12 and 28% tax slabs.
On August 14, S&P Global Ratings upgraded India's sovereign rating by a notch to 'BBB', from 'BBB-', with a stable outlook — its first upgrade for India in over 18 years.
Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Limited (IREDA) signed a performance-based Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), Government of India, outlining strategic targets for the fiscal year 2025-26.
Under the MoU, the Government of India has set a Revenue from Operations target of ₹8,200 crores for FY 2025-26. IREDA had exceeded its Revenue from Operations target in FY 2024-25, achieving ₹6,743.32 crores against the target of ₹5,957 crores.
The MoU also includes key performance parameters such as Return on Net Worth, Return on Capital Employed, NPA to Total Loans, Asset Turnover Ratio, and EBTDA, among other targets.
The MoU also includes key performance parameters such as Return on Net Worth, Return on Capital Employed, NPA to Total Loans, Asset Turnover Ratio, and EBTDA, among other targets.
The board of governors of the New Development Bank (NDB) — a multilateral bank set up by BRICS nations has appointed Reserve Bank of India (RBI) executive director Rajiv Ranjan as vice president and chief risk officer for a five-year term.
Ranjan, a career central banker with over 35 years of experience, has been a member of the RBI’s rate-setting panel, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), since May 2022. He is likely to assume charge from September.
Previously, as head of the Monetary Policy Department and secretary to the MPC, Ranjan played a key role in monetary policy and liquidity-related functions.
Last week, the RBI board nominated Indranil Bhattacharyya as Ranjan’s replacement in the MPC.
Headquartered in Shanghai, the NDB was established by Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS) to mobilise resources for infrastructure and sustainable development projects in emerging markets and developing countries.
The Sultanate of Oman has established an ambitious target to attract one million Indian tourists annually, building on the strong performance of 2024 when the country welcomed 700,000 visitors from India.
This goal represents a significant expansion of Oman’s tourism strategy as it seeks to capitalize on deep cultural and economic ties with India while diversifying its tourism offerings to establish itself as a global travel hub. The initiative focuses on attracting high-value tourism segments including luxury travel, destination weddings, MICE events covering meetings.
The Ministry of Heritage and Tourism has identified India as a priority market, recognizing the substantial growth potential based on existing strong bilateral relationships. Last year’s visitor numbers from India already established the country as one of Oman’s key international markets, providing a solid foundation for achieving the ambitious one million tourist target.
Star Indian weightlifter Mirabai Chanu won a Gold medal at the 2025 Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships in Ahmedabad and marked a triumphant return to competitive action. The Tokyo Olympics silver medallist lifted a total of 193kg to set new Commonwealth Championship records in snatch, clean and jerk, and total, finishing atop the women’s 48kg podium.
This included 84kg in snatch and 109kg in clean and jerk, both setting new Commonwealth Championship records. The win also secured her direct qualification for the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games.
India’s Sharvari Somnath Shende won the U18 women’s individual recurve gold medal at the 2025 World Youth Archery Championships in Winnipeg, Canada. The 16-year-old defeated South Korea’s Kim Yewon 6-5 in a tense final. Shende led 4-1 after the first three sets, but Kim came back strong to tie the match and force a shoot-off.
In the deciding shot, Kim scored 9, while Shende hit a perfect 10 to clinch the gold. Shende is the second Indian woman to win gold at the ongoing tournament. Earlier, Chikitha Taniparthi won the U21 women’s compound individual title. She defeated Korea’s Yerin Park by 142-136 in the compound Under 21 women’s gold medal match.
India claimed all three gold medals in the mixed air rifle categories at the 16th Asian Shooting Championship in Shymkent, Kazakhstan.
Indian shooters excelled in the Senior, Junior, and Youth mixed team events, contributing to India’s top position on the medal tally.
In the Senior Mixed Team (10m Air Rifle) event, Elavenil Valarivan and Arjun Babuta defeated China’s Peng Xinlu and Lu Dingke 17-11 in the final to bag the Gold.
The Indian pair topped the qualification round with a score of 634.0. The mixed team gold was Elavenil Valarivan’s second gold of the championship, following her individual win in the women’s 10m air rifle event.
In the Junior Mixed Team (10m Air Rifle), Shambhavi Kshirsagar and Naraen Pranav triumphed over China’s Tang Huiqi and Han Yinan in the gold medal match.
In the Youth Mixed Team (10m Air Rifle), Ameerah Arshad and Ansh Dabas secured the top spot after beating Korea’s Kim Minseo and Shin Sungwoo in the final.
The government has enlisted Goldman Sachs as the transaction advisor for divesting its stake in Indian Overseas Bank (IOB), Central Bank of India, UCO Bank, and Punjab & Sind Bank, said a person aware of the details. The Centre currently holds more than 90% in each of the four banks.
The global investment banking firm will be tasked with identifying potential bidders for the government's stake in these banks and structuring suitable deals to ensure smooth execution.
The stake dilution exercise, apart from signalling the Centre's commitment to disinvestment, will also help state-run banks meet the mandatory minimum public float norm.
State-run listed companies, including banks, have been granted an exemption from the 25% minimum public shareholding requirement until August 1, 2026. These exemptions have been granted periodically but the latest move signals the government's seriousness about compliance, analysts said previously.
