India's rail modernisation drive has reached a critical milestone. With electrification reaching 99.2 per cent, Indian Railways is among the world's leading rail systems.
Heavy rainfall of 600 mm in 24 hours triggered multiple landslides in the Karjat-Lonavala Ghat section on the Mumbai-Pune line, severely disrupting rail traffic and leading to cancellations, diversions, and short-terminations of numerous trains.
The companies will design, build and manage IT infrastructure in a deal estimated at 350 million pounds.
India's UPI International payment system is now playing a crucial role in humanitarian efforts, enabling seamless disaster relief donations from Indian users to Nepal's Prime Minister Disaster Relief Fund, showcasing its growing global acceptance and utility beyond tourism. UPI IMAGE: Kindly note that this image has been posted for representational purposes only. Photograph: Unsplash Key Points UPI International, initially for Indian tourists, is now facilitating disaster relief donations to Nepal's Prime Minister Disaster Relief Fund. The embassy of Nepal in India is actively encouraging Indian users to utilise their UPI apps for these contributions. This marks a significant shift, expanding UPI's cross-border use case beyond tourism to include inbound collection for foreign governments. The move positions UPI International alongside global payment giants like Alipay+ and UnionPay for international aid. Donors need to activate the UPI International feature on their apps to transact, with amounts converted from INR to NPR.
Heavy rainfall has caused severe waterlogging across Mumbai, disrupting traffic and daily life. The India Meteorological Department issued a red alert for Mumbai and surrounding districts, advising precautions. Specific areas recorded over 200 mm of rainfall, and the IMD forecasts continued heavy rains for the Konkan region, Goa, South Gujarat, Odisha, and Central India.
The Centre has approved a fourth railway line through the strategically important 'Chicken's Neck' corridor, a crucial link for Northeast India. This, along with other infrastructure projects like a double-line underground project and station redevelopment, aims to enhance connectivity, capacity, and passenger services in the region.
AIIMS Jammu is poised to become the first hospital in India to receive armed security from the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) due to its strategic location near the India-Pakistan international border. This move marks a significant shift in security policy for healthcare facilities, which the Ministry of Home Affairs had previously resisted. The CISF is also slated for deployment at Kolkata Metro and Donyi Polo Airport.
The new bridge will come up alongside the existing crossings at Saraighat, where two bridges currently connect the north and south banks of the Brahmaputra -- the iconic road-cum-rail Saraighat Bridge and a separate road bridge.
"Indian Railways is now the world's second-largest cargo carrier by volume, up from fourth, even as its share of the country's total freight movement remains well below potential.'
The murder of a commuter on a Mumbai suburban train has sparked a debate in the Maharashtra assembly, with the Opposition demanding answers on passenger safety. Speaker Rahul Narwekar has directed the government to provide a statement on the incident, investigation progress, and safety measures by June 29. The incident involved the fatal stabbing of a 22-year-old during an argument over train doors, with the accused already arrested.
'We looked up and there was a man dressed as Mahatma Gandhi walking with the protesters under Minto Bridge. Everyone burst into laughter. Almost instinctively, we shouted, 'Bapu ki jai ho!' It's one of those moments I'll never forget.'
Nebex, founded by former Axiom Space executives, aims to build commercial infrastructure for the global space economy.
The Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project has achieved a significant milestone with the excavation of a mountain tunnel in Palghar, Maharashtra, marking the third such achievement in the district within the last five months. This progress underscores the rapid construction pace in a geographically challenging section of the high-speed rail corridor.
Mumbai's Metro Line 3, the Aqua Line, experienced two disruptions due to technical issues, causing significant inconvenience to commuters. Passengers reported being stranded inside trains and stations, with complaints of overcrowding and poor communication from authorities.
ICICI Bank is seeking recoveries of at least 100 crore from fintech firms, alleging merchant misclassification of their business, a practice that has eroded the bank's interchange income. The dispute, lodged with global card network Visa, highlights growing discomfort among banks and intensified scrutiny from the Reserve Bank of India.
The AI-enabled system detects nine types of errors in the kitchens that are primarily responsible for unhygienic food on trains.
Mumbai and its suburbs experienced widespread pre-monsoon showers, offering relief from the recent heat and humidity. Several areas received moderate to heavy rainfall, with no major disruptions reported.
Hydrogen fuel cell technology generates electricity through a chemical reaction using hydrogen, with water vapour as the only emission, making it a cleaner alternative to conventional fossil fuel-based traction systems.
Gwadar is viewed as a critical pearl in China's maritime strategy as it would give a permanent logistical footprint near an important choke point - the Strait of Hormuz and the oil rich Persian Gulf, explains Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation has partnered with Airtel Payments Bank to launch co-branded RuPay National Common Mobility Cards (NCMC), enabling seamless payments across various transit networks nationwide.
India successfully test fired the Agni-Prime missile from a rail-based mobile launcher. The next-generation missile has a range of up to 2,000 kilometers and advanced features.
Senior IAS officer Ashwini Bhide has been appointed as the first woman commissioner of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).
Punjab Police have arrested another individual, Gurjinder Singh, in connection with the freight corridor railway track blast in Shambhu, Patiala. He is a key associate of a man who died while attempting to detonate explosives on the track. The arrest has revealed links between multiple terror acts and a pro-Khalistan terror module backed by Pakistan's ISI.
210 deaths were directly attributed to commuters falling from overcrowded trains.
Arson attacks and other 'malicious acts' has hit France's high speed train network, disrupting the transport system, the country's national rail operator said on Friday, hours before the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics.
India is the only significant power that all parties trust, or at least do not distrust, notes former defence secretary Ajay Kumar.
A combination of security pressure and rehabilitation efforts has significantly weakened Naxalism in India, leading to numerous surrenders and the elimination of key leaders.
UltraTech Cement, an Aditya Birla group company, has become the world's largest cement producer outside China, surpassing 200 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) of installed capacity in India. The company plans to invest Rs 16,000 crore to reach a target capacity of 240 mtpa by the financial year 2027-28.
Following two blasts targeting the Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor in Punjab, the Railways Ministry is intensifying security measures, including increased patrolling, expanded surveillance, and drone deployment, to safeguard railway infrastructure and prevent further disruptions.
India is conducting a special audit of 101 cities to assess ease of living from the citizen's perspective, Comptroller and Auditor General K Sanjay Murthy said.
China is set to build a rail link connecting Xinjiang province with Tibet, part of which will run near the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with India.
Faced with acute shortage of skill, Britain has imported a dozen Indian engineers to carry out urgent work on its crumbling rail network and refurbish signal boxes dating back to the Victorian era.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi criticised the ruling TMC in West Bengal, alleging corruption and appeasement politics, while promoting the BJP's development agenda ahead of the assembly elections.
Brokerage firm Jefferies maintains a 'Buy' rating for Paytm, citing its dominant merchant payments platform and projected revenue growth.
Through policy interventions, Indian cities need to be reimagined as a network of inter-connected assets and services which serve to strengthen the social contract between citizens and their cities by improving their quality of life, the Economic Survey has flagged.
Developed to meet the growing transportation needs of modern India, the fully AC Vande Bharat sleeper train would offer passengers an "airline-like travel experience at economical fares," a statement issued by the PMO stated.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis announced plans for a vast underground tunnel network in Mumbai to ease traffic congestion, describing it as a 'Paatal Lok,' a parallel road system. The tunnel grid will cover the city in multiple directions, complementing existing arterial routes and Metro corridors. Several tunnel projects are under construction, including Thane-Borivali and Mulund-Goregaon, to improve east-west connectivity. An integrated Mumbai One app has been launched to enable a common ticket for various modes of transport.
The Budget allocation includes the construction of new lines and the purchase of locomotives, wagons, and coaches, among other works.
A parliamentary committee has criticized Indian Railways for slow train speeds, discrepancies in 'superfast' fares and inadequate punctuality standards.
According to the police, the entire Kartavya Path area has been placed under constant electronic surveillance through an extensive network of CCTV cameras integrated with advanced facial recognition system (FRS) technology.
