The ‘UPI One World’ wallet services will now be available to international visitors from over 40 countries attending India AI Impact Summit 2026, which will be held in New Delhi from February 16–20, according to a statement from the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).
This trial project will enable foreign visitors to India to make easy, safe, and instantaneous Person-to-Merchant (P2M) UPI payments. Using the ‘Made in India’ UPI technology, visitors may enjoy Indian food and culture without having an Indian bank account or mobile phone, as per the NPCI press release.
The ‘UPI One World’ wallet is available through authorised PPI (Prepaid Payment Instrument) issuers at New Delhi International Airport and at the NPCI Pavilion (Hall 14, Stall number 14.16) in Bharat Mandapam, as per the release.
Travellers can load the wallet using various payment methods and make transactions by scanning UPI QR codes via the PPI-UPI application.
This eliminates the need to carry cash or manage foreign exchange complexities. Any unused balance can be transferred back to the original payment source as per foreign exchange regulations.
Customers can load up to Rs 25,000 per transaction. A maximum of 2 wallet loadings are permitted per month, up to a total of Rs 50,000.
At the invitation of Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, President of the French Republic H.E. Mr. Emmanuel Macron paid an official visit to India from 17 to 19 February 2026 and participated in the Artificial Intelligence Impact Summit 2026.
During the visit, the two leaders held bilateral talks and jointly inaugurated the 2026 India-France Year of Innovation in Mumbai on 17 February. This is President Macron’s 4th visit to India and it follows Prime Minister Modi’s visit to France in February 2025.
Hon’ble Union Minister for Communications Shri Jyotiraditya Scindia led an Indian delegation in a bilateral meeting with H.E. Jack Chambers, Minister for Public Expenditure, Infrastructure, Public Service Reform, and Digitalisation of Ireland, at Sanchar Bhawan, New Delhi.
The meeting focused on deepening cooperation in telecommunications, digital infrastructure, emerging technologies, and regulatory collaboration, reaffirming the strong and friendly ties between the two countries.
Both sides agreed to work closely in the field of ICTs through structured engagement, exchange of best practices, capacity building, and industry linkages.
They reaffirmed their shared commitment to strengthening bilateral cooperation, fostering innovation, enhancing digital inclusion, and boosting trade and investment between India and Ireland.
Both sides expressed the need to work closely within the ITU framework and to exchange best practices in regulatory and technological domains.
Both sides agreed to work closely in the field of ICTs through structured engagement, exchange of best practices, capacity building, and industry linkages through G2G, G2B, and B2B dialogues.
The National Consumer Helpline (NCH) has facilitated refunds amounting to Rs. 52 crore across 31 sectors by addressing 79,521 consumer grievances related to refund claims during the period of last nine months (from 25 April to 31 January 2026).
The refunds were secured at the pre-litigation stage, enabling consumers to obtain timely relief without approaching Consumer Commissions.
This flagship initiative of the department, plays a pivotal role in providing effective, accessible, and time-bound grievance redressal under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.
The e-commerce sector recorded the highest number of grievances, with 47,743 complaints, resulting in refunds exceeding ₹36 crore. The Travel & Tourism sector followed, with refunds of more than ₹4 crore facilitated through the Helpline.
Yard 18003 (Krishna), the first of the three Cadet Training Ships (CTS) under construction at M/s L&T, Kattupalli (Chennai), has been launched on 16 Feb 2026. In keeping with the Naval traditions, Mrs Anupama Chauhan launched the ship in the presence of General Anil Chauhan, Chief of Defence Staff.
The ship is indigenously designed and built by M/s L&T. Formal Delivery of the ship to Indian Navy is planned in end 2026. These Cadet Training Ships will be utilised for training Officer Cadets, including women, at sea after their basic training ashore, and Cadets from Friendly Foreign Countries.
The India AI Impact Summit 2026 marked the launch of the AI Impact Casebooks – Health & Education, developed under the leadership of the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, and the IndiaAI Mission, with support from partners including the World Health Organisation and Central Square Foundation.
The thematic casebooks document real-world AI deployments that have moved beyond pilots to implementation across clinics, classrooms, and skilling ecosystems.
National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has announced a first-of-its-kind initiative to develop pollinator or bee corridors along National Highways. Marking a shift from ornamental to ecological plantations, the ‘Bee Corridor’ will have a continuous linear stretch of bee-friendly vegetation comprising flowering trees and plants,
that will ensure the availability of nectar and pollen throughout the year. Plantations along National Highways present a unique opportunity to support pollinator conservation.
NHAI will align its plantation activities towards the creation of dedicated pollinator or ‘Bee Corridors’.
The unique initiative will include a mix of trees, shrubs, herbs, and grasses that will retain wild elements by planting nectar- and pollen-rich species, allowing flowering weeds to bloom, along with dead wood and hollow trunks that are beneficial to pollinators.
Selection of plant species will ensure staggered flowering across different seasons to maintain a near-continuous blooming cycle throughout the year. Native species of trees and plants, including Neem, Karanj, Mahua, Palash, Bottle Brush, Jamun, and Siris, will be planted along National Highways.
NHAI field offices across the country will identify National Highway sections where clusters of flowering trees can be planted at intervals of approximately 500 meters to 1 km, corresponding to the average foraging distance of honeybees and wild bees. NHAI field offices will also plan and develop at least three pollinator corridors during 2026–27.
NHAI field offices will also plan and develop at least three pollinator corridors during 2026–27. NHAI plans to plant around 40 lakh trees along National Highways during the year 2026–27, around 60 percent of which will be planted under the ‘Bee Corridor’ initiative.
Indian Overseas Bank (IOB) has launched the Online Death Claim Settlement Portal, providing a simplified and time-bound solution through digital mode for families and legal heirs.
On this portal claimants can initiate and complete the settlement process from their homes.
Claimant can conveniently enter their own details along with the deceased customer’s account information and upload all required documents directly through the portal. To ensure transparency the portal features a real-time tracking system, allowing claimants to monitor the progress of their application at every stage, the bank said.
The bank has implemented a simplified procedure for claims up to ₹15 lakh, which notably requires no third-party surety. Additionally, the bank has committed to ensuring that claims are processed well within a strict 15-day timeline.
Ajay Kumar Srivastava- MD & CEO, Indian Overseas Bank.
Jammu and Kashmir skipper Paras Dogra became the second player to cross the 10,000-run mark in the history of Ranji Trophy. The 41-year-old achieved the feat during the ongoing second semi-final of the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy season being played between Jammu and Kashmir and Bengal in Kalyani.
Dogra's 10,000th run in India's premier First Class competition came when he completed the 11th run of his innings. At the time of writing, Dogra was unbeaten on 55 off 105 balls with seven fours to his name.
Dogra made his First Class debut during the 2001/02 season. He represented the state of his birth Himachal Pradesh for over a decade. In 2024, he shifted base and started playing for Jammu and Kashmir. Soon after moving to J&K, he was made the state team's captain.
The right-handed batter has played 151 First Class games, amassing over 10,000 runs and has averaged 48.15. This includes 34 hundreds and 35 fifties. His highest score at this level is 253. The first player to achieve the feat was former Indian Test opener Wasim Jaffer. Dogra is the only current player in the top 10 Ranji Trophy run scorers' list.
Even as Currency in Circulation (CIC) touched an all-time high of around Rs. 40 trillion for the fortnight ended January 31, 2026, the cash-to-gross domestic product (GDP) ratio has been steadily declining, according to a report by State Bank of India (SBI).
World Cup-winning cricketer Smriti Mandhana has been named BBC Indian Sportswoman of the Year for 2025.
Mandhana, 29, was India's vice-captain as they won the 2025 ICC Women's World Cup, scoring 434 runs across the tournament.
Also nominated for the award were India captain Harmanpreet Kaur, chess champion Divya Deshukh, shooter Suruchi Singh and hurdler Jyothi Yarraji.
Mandhana was chosen by a distinguished grand jury comprising Grand Slam tennis champion Leander Paes, Paralympic medallist Deepa Malik and World Championship long-jump medallist Anju Bobby George.
Mandhana made her debut for India aged 16 and has scored 17 international centuries across the three formats of the game - a record she shares with Australia's Meg Lanning.
Five days after the parliamentary elections in Bangladesh, Tarique Rahman, chairman of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), was sworn in as the new Prime Minister of Bangladesh on February 17, 2026.
As the new Prime Minister Mr. Rahman will lead a team of twenty-five cabinet ministers and twenty-four ministers of state who were all administered the oath by the President of Bangladesh, Mohammed Shahabuddin.
Tarique Rahman is the eldest son of the late President Ziaur Rahman, who led the country during a turbulent time from November 1975 to May 1981. After the assassination of President Rahman, who had set up the BNP in 1978, the party was led by his widow Khaleda Zia who led the party to two terms during 1991-’96 and 2001-’06.
Indian Navy inaugurated the MILAN Village on 15 Feb 2026 at the Eastern Naval Command, as part of its flagship international naval exercise, MILAN 2026. The inauguration ceremony was presided over by Vice Admiral Sanjay Bhalla, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Naval Command, who formally opened the village for the participating navies.
A central feature of the MILAN village is its emphasis on cultural exchange, offering a rich and immersive glimpse into India's diverse heritage and tradition. The village will host live performances by vocal artists, traditional folk-dance performances and cultural ensembles reflecting the vibrant artistic legacy of India.
The opening of the MILAN Village also marks the beginning of a broader sequence of engagements and events being conducted at Visakhapatnam by the Indian Navy. Exercise MILAN 2026, to be held at Visakhapatnam from 15 to 25 Feb 2026, will form a key pillar of India's historic maritime convergence alongside International Fleet Review (IFR) 2026 and the IONS Conclave of Chiefs.
As one of the largest multilateral naval exercises in the Indo-Pacific, MILAN 2026 will bring together navies from across the globe to strengthen interoperability, maritime domain awareness, and collective response capabilities.
Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda launched two digital health initiatives—SAHI (Secure AI for Health Initiative) and BODH (Benchmarking Open Data Platform for Health AI)—during the India AI Impact Summit 2026.
The Minister said that AI does not operate in isolation, but thrives on strong digital infrastructure and high-quality data. He noted that the National Health Policy, 2017, envisaged the creation of a comprehensive digital health ecosystem that would be interoperable, inclusive, and scalable.
Additionally, collaboration between the government and academia has led to the development of BODH, which provides a structured mechanism to test and validate AI solutions before large-scale deployment.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has proposed allowing authorised dealers commercial banks and primary dealers to undertake foreign exchange and currency interest rate derivative transactions on electronic trading platforms (ETPs) located outside India,
subject to defined regulatory safeguards, according to draft directions on Foreign Exchange Dealings of Authorised Persons released.
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi resigned with her cabinet. Cabinet ministers of the Takaichi administration submitted letters of resignation en masse at a cabinet meeting, as parliament is set to convene for a new session this afternoon to elect a new prime minister.
Takaichi, president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, is expected to be reinstated as prime minister, given that her party currently holds more than two-thirds of the seats in the powerful lower house after the ruling coalition won the February 2026 general election.
The Department of Posts issued a set of 8 Commemorative Postage Stamps on “Puppets of India” on 13th February 2026 at the Indian Habitat Centre, New Delhi. The stamps were formally released by Ms. Vandita Kaul, Secretary (Posts), in the presence of distinguished guests, artists, and members of the cultural fraternity
Puppetry in India is among the nation’s oldest and most vibrant storytelling traditions, embodying its rich cultural diversity and artistic ingenuity. For centuries, master puppeteers have brought to life epics, folklore, moral teachings and social narratives through captivating performances that blend music, narration and visual artistry.
India’s traditional puppetry is broadly classified into four forms — string, glove, rod and shadow puppets — each with its own distinctive style and regional character.
This commemorative issue comprises a set of eight stamps, each depicting a distinctive traditional puppetry form from different regions of India, namely Kathputli (Rajasthan), Yakshagana Sutrada Gombeyatta (Karnataka), Daanger Putul (West Bengal), Kathi Kundhei (Odisha), Benir Putul (West Bengal), Pavakathakali (Kerala), Ravanachhaya (Odisha) and Tolu Bommalatta (AP).
The stamp, First Day Cover, Brochure, Miniature Sheet, Sheetlets and Special Cancellation have been designed by Shri Sankha Samanta. The artistic references and text for the issue was provided by Sangeet Natak Akademi; Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts; Daricha Foundation; and Shri Dadi Pudumjee, Founder, The Ishara Puppet Theatre Trust.
