Indian Ocean Ship (IOS) SAGAR - INS Sunayna departed Phuket, Thailand on 17 Apr 2026 on completion of a high-tempo three-day Operational Turnaround (OTR), marking the successful culmination of her second port call during the ongoing deployment.
During the visit to Phuket, IOS SAGAR undertook a series of professional, strategic and cultural engagements with the Royal Thai Navy (RTN), significantly strengthening bilateral naval cooperation.
Hon’ble Chairman, Rajya Sabha has appointed Dr. K. S. Somashekhar as Secretary in the Rajya Sabha Secretariat with effect from April 18, 2026. A 1993 entrant to the Secretariat, he has held several key positions, including Additional Secretary, Joint Secretary, and Director, with extensive experience in parliamentary interpretation, administration, and committee work.
He has also served in senior capacities in the Government of Karnataka and represented India in international parliamentary forums. He has undergone specialized training in parliamentary practices in the United Kingdom and the European Union and has participated in Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) meetings in Geneva.
The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved to release an additional instalment of Dearness Allowance (DA) to Central Government employees and Dearness Relief (DR) to pensioners w.e.f. 01.01.2026 representing an increase of 2% over the existing rate of 58% of the Basic Pay/Pension, to compensate against price rise.
The combined impact on the exchequer on account of increase in both Dearness Allowance and Dearness Relief would be Rs.6791.24 crore per annum. This will benefit about 50.46 lakh Central Government employees and 68.27 lakh pensioners.
This increase is in accordance with the accepted formula, which is based on the recommendations of the 7th Central Pay Commission.
The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved the proposal for creation of a domestic insurance pool, namely ‘Bharat Maritime Insurance Pool’ (BMI pool) with a sovereign guarantee of Rs.12,980 crores to facilitate continuous maritime insurance coverages.
The pool ensures that Indian trade continues to have access to affordable insurance for vessels carrying cargo from any international origin to Indian ports and vice-versa, even when transiting volatile maritime corridors.
Further, there is high dependence of Indian vessels on International Group of Protection and Indemnity (IGP&I) Club for P&I insurance covering third-party liabilities like Oil pollution liability, Wreck removal, Cargo damage, Crew injury and repatriation, Collision liabilities and so on.
Accordingly, there was a need for a domestic maritime risk covering pool to maintain sovereignty and continuity of trade in face of withdrawal of coverage due to sanctions or due to geopolitical tensions.
The policies will be issued by insurers that are Pool members, using the combined underwriting capacity of the Pool, which would be around Rs.950 crore.
Pool will help to manage liability insurance locally, tailored to Indian Shipping conditions and regulatory requirements, develop specialized Marine underwriting, claims management and legal expertise within India.
Further, a Governing Body Constituted for this pool would oversee the formation and functioning of the pool.
Broadcast Engineering Consultants India Limited (BECIL) has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) to collaborate in the areas of advanced technologies, digital transformation and capacity building.
The collaboration will focus on joint project implementation, consultancy and technical support, and development of solutions in emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), Internet of Things (IoT), Cyber security, 5G, and Cloud Computing.
It will also enable the development of turnkey solutions across sectors and facilitate technology transfer and commercialization of innovative products. The partnership further emphasizes capacity building, workforce upskilling and skill development initiatives to strengthen technical capabilities.
The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has given its approval for the continuation of Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana-III (PMGSY-III) beyond March 2025 upto March 2028. It involves consolidation of Through Routes and Major Rural Links connecting habitations to Gramin Agricultural Markets (GrAMs), Higher Secondary Schools and Hospitals.
The revised outlay of the scheme will be Rs.83,977 crore.
The Department of Commerce, under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, has updated the list of banks authorised to import gold and silver, as per an official notification issued on April 18, 2026.
According to the notification issued by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), amendments have been made in Appendix 4B of the Handbook of Procedures, 2023, under the Foreign Trade Policy (FTP), 2023.
The World Bank said it has approved a USD 225 million loan for the highway modernisation project in Rajasthan, which will benefit more than 3 million people, improve connectivity and create jobs.
The World Bank's Board of Executive Directors has approved financing for a new project to improve highway efficiency, resilience, and safety across the Indian state of Rajasthan.
The project will benefit more than 3 million people and improve connectivity to stimulate job creation in economic corridors across the agriculture, industrial, mining, and tourism sectors.
Rajasthan is one of India's largest states and serves as a critical gateway connecting 40 per cent of India's markets.
Although the state has had an annual growth rate of 11 per cent between 2015-16 and 2023-24, the state's road infrastructure has not kept pace, the World Bank said in a statement.
The USD 225 million loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) has a final maturity of 35 years, with a step-up loan feature, including a grace period of 5 years.
NASA has given approval for the agency’s Rosalind Franklin Support and Augmentation (ROSA) project to begin implementation, underscoring the agency’s continued partnership with ESA’s (European Space Agency) Rosalind Franklin mission.
The mission is led by ESA and that agency is responsible for providing the spacecraft, including the carrier module, the landing platform, as well as the rover and surface operations.
Scheduled to launch in 2028, Rosalind Franklin will be the first Mars rover to search for signs of past or present life under the Red Planet’s surface.
The ROSA project will provide designated hardware and services to ESA in support of the Rosalind Franklin mission, including the launch service, braking engines for the rover’s lander platform, and radioisotope heater units for the rover’s internal systems.
The project also includes specialized electronics and a state-of-the-art mass spectrometer for the Mars organic molecule analyzer science instrument, which will search for the building blocks of life in samples collected at the rover’s landing site, Mars’ Oxia Planum.
Vice Chairman of NITI Aayog, Suman Bery released the anthology titled Divya Bharat: A Window to the Soul of India in New Delhi. The anthology serves as a comprehensive, year-round tourism companion covering all States and Union Territories.
It presents a blend of destinations, culture, cuisine, textiles and handicrafts while showcasing both iconic sites and lesser-known attractions. The book includes a monthly travel calendar and detailed State-wise chapters aimed at promoting informed and diverse travel experiences across the country.
He added that initiatives such as Dekho Apna Desh and Swadesh Darshan, along with the government’s plan to develop 50 global destinations, reflect continued efforts to promote tourism and enhance infrastructure to global standards.
The Meghalaya cabinet approved an ordinance granting official language status to Khasi and Garo alongside English, repealing the Meghalaya State Language Act, 2005.
Under the new Meghalaya Official Languages Ordinance 2026, the main point is that from now on apart from English, Khasi and Garo language will also become official language of the state.
CM Sangma said the ordinance would gradually expand the use of Khasi and Garo in administration and governance. “Once amended, it will also enable our legislators to speak and debate in Khasi and Garo language apart from English even during their Assembly sessions,” he said.
The 61st edition of Miss India concluded in a spectacular grand finale on April 18, 2026, at the Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology (KIIT) in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. In a night that celebrated the 'Daughters of This Soil', Sadhvi Satish Sail representing Goa was crowned the winner.
She was crowned as the new Miss India by her predecessor, Nikita Porwal, and is set to represent India at the Miss World 2027 pageant.
The final three contestants – Goa’s Sadhvi Satish Sail, Maharashtra’s Rajnandini Pawar and Union Territory’s Sree Advaita .
Ahana has announced a solution-led initiative for co-operative banks built on its Data Management Solution platform and based on a proprietary Data Model that’s tailored for co-operative banks. This is to simplify RBI reporting in environments where data resides across core banking, treasury, and digital channels.
This is to simplify RBI reporting in environments where data resides across core banking, treasury, and digital channels. Reporting cycles still rely heavily on extraction, validation, reconciliation, and spreadsheet-driven workflows.
The Data Model designed by Ahana is used to deliver a regulated reporting framework for co-operative banks, focused on simplifying RBI reporting. The solution establishes a governed reporting foundation that consolidates data, standardises processing, and supports RBI and MIS reporting workflows through structured pipelines and analytics-driven consumption.
Vivek Hegde- Founder Director and CEO, Ahana.
The United Nations has six official languages: Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian, and Spanish. To emphasize the importance of linguistic and cultural diversity and promote the equitable use of these six official languages, the UN Department of Public Information (now the Department of Global Communications ) announced the launch of UN Language Days in 2010.
UN Chinese Language Day is observed annually on April 20 to celebrate multilingualism, cultural diversity, and the contribution of the Chinese language.
The Date (April 20): Chosen to coincide with "Guyu" (Grain Rain), the 6th solar term in the Chinese calendar, which commemorates the legendary inventor of Chinese characters, Cangjie.
Ajit Agarkar will continue as chairman of the senior selection committee, with the BCCI extending his contract by one year. The decision comes with a focus on preparations for the 2027 ODI World Cup.
Under Agarkar’s leadership, Indian teams selected between October 2023 and March 2026 reached four ICC tournament finals, winning three of them, including two T20 World Cups and one ICC Champions Trophy.
