The Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill, 2026 has been passed by Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha marking a significant step towards further enhancing Ease of Doing Business and Ease of Living in the country.
The Bill reflects the Government’s commitment to fostering a trust-based governance framework and ensuring proportionate regulation.
As per the provisions of the Bill, 784 provisions across 79 Central Acts administered by 23 Ministries have been amended. Of these, 717 provisions have been decriminalised to promote Ease of Doing Business, while 67 provisions have been amended to facilitate Ease of Living.
Overall, the Bill seeks to rationalise more than 1,000 offences by removing minor offences, thereby improving the overall regulatory environment and enabling a more conducive ecosystem for businesses and citizens alike.
The Bill was initially introduced in the Lok Sabha on 18 August 2025 as the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill, 2025.
It proposed amendments to 355 provisions across 16 Central Acts administered by 10 Ministries/Departments and was subsequently referred to a Select Committee of the Lok Sabha. The Select Committee, chaired by Shri Tejasvi Surya, held 49 sittings and submitted its report on 13 March 2026.
In a significant step towards strengthening port-led development in the country, the Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW), Sarbananda Sonowal, has approved the construction of a Road Over Bridge (ROB) at LC-235 at Deendayal Port Authority. The project is estimated at a cost of Rs. 132.51 crore.
The project forms an integral part of the Government of India’s flagship Sagarmala Programme and aligns with the objectives of the PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan, aimed at enhancing multi-modal connectivity and logistics efficiency across the country. The construction is currently being undertaken by Western Railway on a deposit basis.
The proposal was recently appraised by the Delegated Investment Board (DIB) in a meeting chaired by the Secretary, Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways. The revised cost of the project was examined to ensure compliance with modern safety standards and technical specifications.
The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways (MoPSW), Government of India, has signed a Plan of Implementation with the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) on 02 April 2026 for a landmark project on skill development in the Indian shipbuilding sector.
Under this collaboration, KOICA, with the support of the Korea Research Institute for Vocational Education and Training and other stakeholders, will undertake comprehensive research on India’s shipbuilding and marine engineering industries.
Further strengthening this partnership, discussions between MoPSW and KOICA are in the final stages for the establishment of a ‘Shipbuilding Workforce Development and Technology Cooperation Center’ in India.
The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has signed an agreement with MapmyIndia to enable the display of authorised Aadhaar centres on their Mappls App. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has stated that the facility will be available in the coming months.
It will help people locate the nearest authorised Aadhaar Centres and check available services, based on the nature of services offered, like adult enrollment, child enrollment or only address and mobile updates. It added that once the feature is operational, users’ searches on the Mappls App will be directed to authorised Aadhaar centres.
Additionally, MapmyIndia will integrate UIDAI-provided Aadhaar Centre information into the Mappls platform to ensure accurate representation, digital mapping and distinct listing of Aadhaar centres.
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has designated Life Insurance Corporation of India, The New India Assurance Company Limited and General Insurance Corporation of India as Domestic Systemically Important Insurers (D-SIIs) for FY 2025-26.
National Stock Exchange of India Ltd (NSE) has announced a collaboration with Indian Gas Exchange (IGX) to introduce exchange-traded derivatives based on natural gas traded and delivered on the IGX platform.
This is towards strengthening India’s domestic natural gas market with the aim to provide efficient risk management tools, NSE said.
As part of this collaboration, NSE will launch Indian natural gas derivative contracts based on IGX’s benchmark Price Index GIXI (Gas IndeX of India). The contracts will be designed to reflect domestic gas market dynamics, with pricing linked to actual trades on the IGX platform.
Myanmar junta chief Min Aung Hlaing won a parliamentary vote on April 3, 2026 to become the country’s President, formalising his grip on political power in the war-torn nation five years after he ousted an elected government.
The 69-year-old general orchestrated a 2021 coup against the administration of Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi and placed her under arrest, sparking widespread protests that morphed into nationwide armed resistance against the junta.
Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL) Chairman and Managing Director Amarendu Prakash has resigned from his post, effective April 2, following approval from the steel ministry, a regulatory filing said.
In the interim, company's Director (Personnel) Krishna Kumar Singh has been given additional charge of Chairman and Managing Director for three months from April 2 to July 1, 2026 or until a regular incumbent joins or until further orders, whichever is earlier, as per a steel ministry order.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate and launch Sadhna Saptah 2026 this morning to enhance civil servants’ capacity development. The Department of Personnel and Training, Capacity Building Commission, and Karmayogi Bharat will collectively organise a week-long Sadhna Saptah starting in New Delhi.
It aims to build the capacity, performance and efficiency of civil servants across the country.
Employees and officers from all levels of Union ministries, departments, organisations, and states will participate in the week-long exercise, both on the iGOT platform and through other means.
Chairperson of the Capacity Building Commission, S. Radha Chauhan, said that the whole effort during the Saptah will be to see how capacity building aligns itself with realising the objectives of Viksit Bharat.
Highlighting the iGOT platform, the Chairperson said that iGOT is an end-to-end platform for capacity building that offers behavioural, functional, and domain-related courses based on specific demands.
India has surpassed Kenya to top the Athletics Integrity Unit's (AIU) list of ineligible persons due to doping violations with 148 suspended track and field athletes, which is two more than the African nation.
The latest updated list is for the period up to April 1 this year. Russia took the third spot with 66 suspended athletes.
The Education Ministry has issued a notification declaring the National Council for Educational Research and Training (NCERT), as an institution deemed to be a university, enabling it to offer courses/programmes and confer degrees.
In the notification dated March 30, 2026, the Ministry said that the University Grants Commission (UGC) had approved the expert committee’s recommendations to grant deemed university status to the NCERT — a nodal school education body — in January this year, following which the Ministry declared the NCERT as one.
The notification confers this status on the NCERT, along with its six regional institutes, provided that a list of conditions is met.
The notification also mandated the NCERT to start new programmes, off-campus or on offshore campuses, “only in accordance with the norms and guidelines issued by the UGC, from time to time, on the subject.”
Further, the Ministry has said that the NCERT “shall take appropriate steps” to begin research programmes, doctoral programmes, and “innovative academic programmes”.
The Ministry has further said that the NCERT must take all the measures required to get its academic programmes and courses rated for accreditation by the National Board of Accreditation,
and courses rated for accreditation by the National Board of Accreditation, and for the Institute itself to be accredited by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC).
The government has also mandated the NCERT to start participating in annual rankings of institutes issued by the National Institutional Ranking Framework and has asked it to “compulsorily” create Academic Bank of Credits (ABC), identities of its students, and upload their credit scores in digital lockers that can be reflected in the ABC portal.
In 2026, the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action will be commemorated under the theme "Invest in Peace; Invest in Mine Action." This theme draws out the foundational importance of lands being cleared from explosive threats and communities living in the absence of fear from these indiscriminate weapons for peace to be able to prosper.
On 8 December 2005, the General Assembly declared that 4 April of each year shall be observed as the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action.
