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.
Australian pacer Mitchell Starc delivered a sensational ten-wicket haul against Bangladesh in the second Test at Mackay, surpassing Ravichandran Ashwin and Chaminda Vaas in the all-time international wicket-takers list, and earning both 'Player of the Match' and 'Player of the Series' awards.
India's Unified Payments Interface (UPI) recorded an unprecedented 24.51 billion transactions valued at Rs 29.8 lakh crore in August, largely propelled by the Raksha Bandhan festival. This surge marks a 22% annual increase in volume and 20% in value, highlighting the expanding reach and depth of the UPI ecosystem. Experts anticipate further growth during the upcoming festive season, while UPI's international acceptance now spans 11 countries.
India's women's cricket team secured a commanding 94-run victory over Thailand in their Women's T20 Asia Cup opener. Despite a batting collapse after a strong start by Shafali Verma, India posted 159-9, then bowled out Thailand for just 65, with Deepti Sharma delivering a record-breaking spell. Captain Harmanpreet Kaur acknowledged the win but cautioned against complacency.
'The sales pressure on the ground, a board and CEO not fully aligned, and a senior team that isn't pulling together -- that's when these things surface.'
India and China are in what experts call 'a cooperation-versus-competition situation'.
Ravi Teja has made a spectacular comeback at the box office with his latest Telugu action drama Irumudi.
'Value is not where you make money in India. It never has been.' 'You have to buy momentum.' 'Momentum is in technology, and I don't see that slowing down because I believe the AI infrastructure boom is going to last for a while.'
Bukayo Saka's second-half goal secured a 1-0 victory for Arsenal against Aston Villa, marking their second consecutive win in the Premier League season.
Amidst ongoing ethnic tensions, a new political alignment in Manipur sees Meitei and Naga groups uniting to demand an update to the National Register of Citizens with a 1951 base year, a move fiercely opposed by Kuki-Zo communities who fear it will disenfranchise them.
Hyderabad Black Hawks U21 have won the inaugural Guardians Trophy, defeating hosts Goa Guardians U21 3-1 in the final. The tournament provided a crucial platform for emerging Indian volleyball talent, with individual awards and prize money distributed to top performers.
American Sofia Kenin defeated compatriot Venus Williams 6-2, 7-6(6) in a US Open first-round match that started at 12:13 am on Monday, marking the latest start in women's tournament history.
Newly appointed BJP Minority Morcha national president Kunwar Basit Ali announced a strategic focus on approximately 100 Uttar Pradesh assembly seats, aiming to connect the Muslim community with the BJP by highlighting government welfare schemes and dispelling "misconceptions" about the party.
In his advice to a distressed husband rediffGURU Ravi Mittal, dating coach, CEO of online dating website Quack Quack and Rebounce, a matrimony platform, explains how to address long-standing issues in a marriage.
Analysts predict that the Indian stock market's sentiment this week will be primarily influenced by the domestic GDP data announcement, crude oil prices, and the crucial US non-farm payrolls report.
Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Haryana, and Madhya Pradesh have secured their spots in the Division A semifinals of the Junior Women National Hockey Championship in Pune. Jharkhand won a thrilling shootout against Odisha, while Haryana and Chhattisgarh recorded decisive victories. Madhya Pradesh also advanced after defeating Manipur, setting up exciting semifinal clashes.
Indian Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa drew his second game against Fabiano Caruana in the Grand Chess Tour final, missing a chance to level scores after a dominating performance.
Arthur Fils and Coco Gauff have both secured significant victories at the Cincinnati Open, with Fils winning his first ATP Masters 1000 title by defeating Frances Tiafoe, and Gauff claiming her second Cincinnati Open title over Jessica Pegula.
KL Rahul and Shubman Gill struck centuries as India dominated Afghanistan on a sweltering opening day in Mullanpur, finishing at 368/3 in the one-off Test after Rahul's third consecutive Test ton.
Grandmaster Abhijeet Gupta and USA's Vaidyanathan Kannan have emerged as joint leaders in the Pune International Grandmaster Round Robin Chess Tournament after securing their second consecutive wins. Kannan, a 13-year-old, defeated GM Aleksey Fedorov, while Gupta overcame Ashwath S. India's Kushagra Mohan also caused an upset by beating GM Aleksey Alexandrov.
The Indian Centre has spent 37 per cent of its ~12.22 trillion capital expenditure target in the first four months of FY27, marking a 30 per cent year-on-year increase, while simultaneously keeping the fiscal deficit under control at 27 per cent of the Budget Estimate.
India opener Shafali Verma acknowledged the team's batting unit needs to address its shortcomings on turning pitches, despite securing a 94-run victory against Thailand in the Women's Asia Cup opener. Verma, who scored a brisk 64, noted that while the new ball came on well, the older ball gripped and turned, causing difficulties for the middle order. She emphasised the need for adaptation and praised Thailand's improving performance.
India faced a 2-4 defeat against England in their second Pool D match of the men's Hockey World Cup. Despite taking a 2-1 lead, India conceded three goals in the second half. This loss puts India in a precarious position, requiring a win or draw against Pakistan in their next match to qualify for the second round.
GSTAT has crossed 75,000 filings but disposed of only 83 cases, highlighting the huge backlog facing India's new GST appeals tribunal.
Bank credit to industry in India surged by 20 per cent year-on-year in July, significantly accelerating from the previous year, driven by strong expansion in sectors like engineering, gems and jewellery, and petroleum-related industries, according to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). However, growth in gold loans, while still expanding, saw a sharp moderation.
Former Australian hockey legend Jamie Dwyer believes the Indian team possesses the talent and infrastructure to become a dominant force in world hockey but stresses that 'they need to maintain consistency as a team' to realise their true potential.
The Indian women's hockey team secured a commendable fifth-place finish at the FIH World Cup by defeating Germany 3-1 in a classification match, with Navneet Kaur scoring two goals.
Maharashtra recorded the highest sales for passenger and commercial vehicles in the first quarter of fiscal year 2027, while Uttar Pradesh led the two and three-wheeler segments, according to data released by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM).
'Once you're wrestling with making a merger of that scale value-accretive, you're also under pressure to keep growing the balance sheet and chasing liabilities, and other things start to slip as a consequence.'
Security in most of India is a facade, discovers Binu Alex.
Vikramaditya Chaufla and Sidharth Nandal emerged as top performers at the All India Racketlon Open in Mumbai, securing multiple medals. Chaufla won two golds and a silver, while Nandal bagged two golds, showcasing their prowess in the multi-racket sport.
Manchester City enter a challenging post-Guardiola era, with Enzo Maresca tasked with preserving their dominance, managing squad changes and meeting immense expectations in a fiercely competitive Premier League.
The search for N Chandrasekaran's successor as Tata Sons Chairman has reportedly narrowed to Tata Steel CEO T V Narendran, Tata Sons Executive Director Saurabh Agrawal, and NSE MD & CEO Ashish Chauhan, with Chauhan emerging as a potential 'dark horse' candidate.
Indian badminton star PV Sindhu commenced her 2026 Badminton World Championships journey with a commanding straight-game victory over Sophia Noble in New Delhi.
Pakistan pacer Mohammad Abbas expressed deep concern over the team's persistent issues, including poor fielding and an inexperienced pace attack, following their heavy 194-run defeat to England at Lord's, marking their 10th loss in 11 away Tests.
Bangladesh achieved a historic milestone by defeating Australia by nine wickets in Darwin, marking their first-ever Test victory on Australian soil and becoming the fastest Asian team to do so.
Young Indian spin-bowling all-rounder Manav Suthar has made history by recording the best figures by an Indian bowler in Sri Lanka, surpassing legends Harbhajan Singh and Ravichandran Ashwin with a ten-wicket haul in the first Test in Galle.
India's top men's doubles pair, Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty, were defeated in straight games by China's Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang in the quarter-finals of the BWF World Championships, ending their bid for a third medal at the event.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have injected Rs 30,919 crore into Indian equities in August, marking their second consecutive month of net buying. This follows a Rs 20,200 crore investment in July, indicating a potential reversal after four months of significant outflows, driven by improving corporate earnings, resilient economic activity, and a stable rupee.
'You have to get private investment to somewhere between 35% to 36% of GDP. It is hovering about 30%-31%.'
