India's markets regulator Sebi has launched 'Demat 2.0', a pilot project for tokenisation of corporate bonds, enabling atomic settlement through integration with RBI's wholesale CBDC. This new market infrastructure uses Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) to make bond issuance, trading, and settlement faster and more efficient. India is the first country to issue corporate bonds natively on a distributed ledger with central bank digital currency settlement. Additionally, RBI Governor announced new UPI innovations: 'Tap & Pay' for faster POS transactions and MyUPI, an AI-powered customer support solution.
The NSUI's performance in the DUSU elections has highlighted significant internal issues regarding ticket distribution, with rebel candidates outperforming official nominees. This trend, observed across various university elections, points to growing dissent within the Congress's student wing under Kanhaiya Kumar's tenure, despite some recent successes.
As India's decline continued on global indices, the government first blamed methodology and then motives. This is where we remain today as we wish each other and ourselves a happy Independence Day, points out Aakar Patel.
Delhi's Ridge, encompassing areas like Kamla Nehru Ridge, played a pivotal strategic role during the 1857 Revolt against British rule, with sites like the Flagstaff Tower, Hindu Rao's house, and Pir Ghaib serving as crucial military positions and silent witnesses to the intense fighting.
The BJP has narrowly defeated the Congress in the Rajasthan urban local body elections by less than one percentage point. Independent candidates secured a significant share of votes, and NOTA outperformed several smaller parties. Prime Minister Modi lauded the BJP's performance, attributing it to public support for good governance.
Indian para shooters Millie Shah, Mona Agarwal, and Avani Lekhara secured a gold medal in the R2 women's 10m air rifle standing SH1 team event at the Changwon 2026 WSPS Para Shooting World Championships. The men's team also won silver, and individual medals were claimed by Mona Agarwal (silver) and Avani Lekhara (bronze), significantly boosting India's medal tally.
The Congress party won six out of nine wards where repolling was conducted across four urban local bodies in Rajasthan, while the BJP secured three. These results finalise the tally for all 10,244 wards, with the BJP holding the overall lead in total wards won, followed by Congress and Independents. The process for electing mayors and chairpersons is now underway.
Olympic silver medallist Vijay Kumar has called for an independent review of the National Rifle Association of India's (NRAI) coaching appointments, citing concerns about transparency, eligibility criteria, and potential conflicts of interest. The NRAI, however, asserts that appointments are merit-based and views Kumar's concerns as 'sour grapes' after his own non-selection.
The question for the next 20 years is not whether India can become a $5 trillion or $10 trillion economy. Those are attractive targets, but the real question is whether India can create enough productive jobs, educate its children properly, make its cities liveable, and give hundreds of millions of people a substantially better life, asserts Ramesh Menon.
Former Australian all-rounder Shane Watson has described India as his 'second home,' stating he felt more welcomed and supported by Indian cricket fans than in Australia, attributing this strong connection to his IPL career and the country's appreciation for the sport.
Members of the Tibetan community in exile held a symbolic protest march in Delhi's Majnu Ka Tila ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to India for the BRICS 2026 Summit, voicing opposition to Beijing's policies in Tibet.
Celebrations marking India's 80th Independence Day in the New York tri-state area culminated in a world record, with more than 1,300 US flags surrounded by Indian tricolours arranged to form the number "250", in a tribute to America's semiquincentennial anniversary.
Penguin Random House India has denied any external pressure influenced its decision not to publish Sonia Gandhi's memoir, 'Belonging: A Journey of Love', stating an 'impasse over a particular issue' led to the author's team withdrawing the book.
Mumbai-based TCR Engineering Services has become the first independent company in India to receive Nadcap accreditation for materials testing at its Navi Mumbai and Vadodara laboratories, a crucial step for Indian suppliers to enter the global aerospace supply chain.
The Brics proposal for a Grain Exchange, aimed at challenging the dominance of Western trading firms, faces significant operational and implementation hurdles, including settlement currency, regulatory frameworks, and limited participation from key members like India, according to experts.
India launched 'Suryapath Tiranga', a unique initiative involving over 50 Indian missions globally, to digitally relay images of the tricolour across multiple time zones, starting from Fiji, to mark the country's 80th Independence Day.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has emphasised that India's Olympic performance can significantly improve by increasing participation in sports where the nation currently lacks representation. Speaking at the Khelo India Dialogue, Modi highlighted that India competes in only half of the Olympic sports, leading to a missed opportunity for medals. He also reiterated his vision for sports as a nation-building process, not just about winning medals, and mentioned a nationwide talent hunt for young children.
Former chief selector and head coach Haroon Rasheed has attributed the decline of Pakistan cricket to the domestic structure changes implemented by former Prime Minister Imran Khan, who insisted on reducing first-class teams despite recommendations for a hybrid model.
India's hockey coach Craig Fulton and captain Harmanpreet Singh discuss their approach to the FIH Hockey World Cup opener against Wales. They emphasise respecting opponents, maintaining focus, and the importance of a strong start, especially on Independence Day. The team has prepared extensively, focusing on defence and consistent performance across all quarters.
TMC MP Mahua Moitra was allegedly pelted with eggs by BJP workers during a visit to Nadia district's Tehatta area, despite police presence. Moitra invoked a recent Supreme Court observation regarding her apprehension of such attacks, questioning police inaction and alleging contempt of court. The BJP has condemned the act but denied involvement.
The Finance Ministry has clarified that the decision to impose a 0.4% Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) on UPI transactions above Rs 2,000 was made independently, refuting claims of foreign influence. The ministry stated the policy aims to build a self-sustaining digital payments ecosystem, with MDR funding infrastructure and supporting small merchants.
Despite near gender parity in basic bank account ownership, women in India remain significantly underrepresented in the growing platform economy due to gaps in digital financial capability and access to credit, according to a joint report by the International Labour Organization and National Council of Applied Economic Research.
August 15 was the date of India's Independence, so why did transfer of power happen at the stroke of midnight August 14-15?
The CPI and CPI(M) have announced they will contest one Assembly segment each in the upcoming Tamil Nadu bypolls, while continuing their outside support for the ruling TVK. This decision creates a five-cornered contest and highlights the Left parties' independent stance, aimed at preventing indirect BJP influence and addressing public issues.
India's Chef de Mission for the Asian Games, Sahdev Yadav, said that he only learned after arriving in the city that organisers had removed around 30 to 35 Indian athletes from the accommodation list.
TMC MP Mahua Moitra has formally complained to the UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues, alleging that senior Muslim IAS and IPS officers in West Bengal were deliberately excluded from official events attended by Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Moitra claims these officers were sidelined due to their religion, a pattern she describes as discriminatory and potentially damaging to minority confidence in security establishments.
The BRICS Youth Ministers' Meeting, organised by India's Sports Ministry, successfully concluded in Visakhapatnam. Presided over by Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, the meeting built upon previous youth engagements, focusing on developing young leaders and promoting youth cooperation among BRICS nations.
A national study of top 75 Indian B-schools reveals a significant competency gap in AI skills among management graduates, with industry expectations far exceeding current MBA capabilities. A new framework by AIMS, EPSI, and IMC highlights the urgent need for management education to adapt to an AI-led workplace, emphasizing behavioural competencies alongside data fluency.
A significant boardroom battle has erupted at Tata Sons, India's largest conglomerate, following the board's decision to proceed with a public listing and extend N Chandrasekaran's tenure as executive chairman, moves opposed by Noel Tata, who represents the majority shareholder Tata Trusts.
The Trinamool Congress has submitted new names and symbols to the Election Commission for the upcoming West Bengal bypolls, following an interim order that temporarily barred the party from using its original name and "flowers and grass" symbol due to an ongoing internal dispute and split. The party submitted its choices under protest.
Eran Wickramaratne, chairman of Sri Lanka Cricket's interim committee, has called for a revision of the ICC's Future Tours Programme to allow Sri Lanka to play more Test matches against cricketing powerhouses like India, England, and Australia, citing the financial dependence on India and the desire to excel in the format.
Under the Odisha state premature release policy, prisoners whose death sentences were commuted to life imprisonment become eligible for remission after completing 25 years in prison, subject to recommendations by the Odisha State Sentence Review Board and approval by the state government. Dara Singh has now spent more than 26 years in prison.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, addressing the nation from the Red Fort on Independence Day, declared that India is undergoing a rapid transformation across various sectors and is firmly on track to become a developed nation by 2047.
China has strongly rejected a US bill that would impose tariffs on countries, including India, for purchasing Russian oil and gas. Beijing views the "Lindsey O Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act 2026" as an act of "long-arm jurisdiction" and interference in its sovereign trade relations, asserting that its economic cooperation with other nations is based on equality and mutual benefit.
Their message is blunt: Public scientific wealth should not be transferred at what they describe as 'throwaway prices'.capability, recruitment, promotional avenues and the voice of its employees.
An Air India Airbus A320 experienced a near-simultaneous loss of all three hydraulic systems at 36,000 feet on a Phuket-Delhi flight, injuring 24 people. The pilot-in-command was subsequently terminated after testing positive for banned psychoactive substances, though the AAIB has not linked this to the technical failure.
Underlining that students are the "architects of India's future," President Droupadi Murmu on Friday said the government is taking comprehensive steps to reform public examinations to completely curb paper leaks and unfair means, making the system transparent, secure, and trustworthy.
An Air India Airbus A320 experienced a near-simultaneous loss of all three hydraulic systems mid-flight, causing an altitude upset and injuring 24 people. A preliminary investigation revealed the pilot-in-command tested positive for a psychoactive substance post-flight, leading to their termination, while the technical aspects of the incident are still under scrutiny.
Regional OTT platform STAGE is set to release India's first AI-made biopic on farmer leader Sir Chhotu Ram. The project leverages artificial intelligence for various aspects of filmmaking, from visualisation to character generation, aiming to reduce production costs and expand storytelling possibilities for underserved cultures and languages.
The Election Commission has allotted the 'Football Player' symbol to the Mamata Banerjee-led faction of the Trinamool Congress for the upcoming West Bengal bypolls, while the rival Arup Roy-led group will contest with the 'Envelope' symbol.
