The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has granted in-principle approval for the establishment of an AI Centre of Excellence (AI CoE) in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. The AI CoE will function as a national-level hub for AI innovation, startup incubation, and solution deployment.
The initiative will be implemented by the Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) under MeitY, in collaboration with Blue Cloud Softech Solutions as the industry partner.
Indian Railways has commissioned KAVACH Version 4.0 for the first time on the South Central Railway (SCR). The project involved the upgradation from KAVACH Version 3.2 to Version 4.0.
The implementation was completed on the Malkajgiri-Kamareddi section of the Hyderabad Division, covering a total distance of 108 Route Kilometres (RKm).
India has inaugurated its first farm-level soil carbon payment initiative at the Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) in Ludhiana, Punjab.
The payments are distributed as part of the ‘Aadi’ farmer carbon programme, which was launched by Grow Indigo in 2019 under the technical guidance of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR). A total of 2,550 smallholder farmers from Punjab and Haryana will receive disbursements of over ₹2.9 crore for implementing verified regenerative agricultural practices.
It is to be noted that the initial phase of the project covered 30,000 acres and generated over 50,000 verified carbon credits. Individual payouts to the farmers ranged from ₹3,000 to ₹15,000, depending on the volume of verified carbon credits generated from the landholdings.
Union Minister Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu has launched the Challenge Mode Portal for Aerodrome Development in New Delhi, marking the implementation of the modified regional connectivity scheme, Ude Desh ka Aam Naagrik (UDAN).
The challenge-based selection approach aims to reduce the construction period of airports to 18 months from the current average of 3 years.
To facilitate infrastructure development, the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the Airports Authority of India (AAI) have signed 21 MoUs with participating states and Union Territories. The Modified UDAN initiative has a target outlay of ₹30,000 crore over the next decade to develop 100 new airports. It aims to provide connectivity to 120 new destinations.
The Registration of Births and Deaths (RBD) Amendment Act, 2026 will come into force on October 1, 2026. It strengthens Section 13(3) of the RBD Act, 1969.
Under the act, reporting births or deaths after 1 year but within 2 years requires approval from the District Magistrate (DM), Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM), or an authorized Executive Magistrate, subject to verification and fee. For registrations delayed by more than 2 years, an order from the Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) is mandatory to ensure judicial scrutiny.
Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia has released a commemorative postage stamp issued by the Department of Posts (DoP) to honor Sant Malukdas. The release took place during the “Sant Samagam”, a gathering organized in memory of the saint.
India has hosted the 18th edition of the Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS) Summit at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi, under the theme “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability”. The summit was organized around these four primary pillars.
The event witnessed the launch of the BRICS Integrated Early Warning System (EWS) for infectious diseases, a Logistics Supply Chain Cooperation framework, a Startup Innovation Fund, and the BRICS Incubator Network. Other initiatives include a MSME portal, a Digital Centre for Smart Grids and Energy Storage, the Urban Mobility Hub (UMH), and CoEs for Agro-Ecology and Regenerative Agriculture.
PM Narendra Modi released two commemorative postage stamps titled “BRICS: Two Decades of Cooperation, 2006-2026” to mark the 20th anniversary of the forum. President of China Xi Jinping proposed a “5-point action plan”, including the creation of an open-source AI community. The summit concluded with the unanimous adoption of the “New Delhi Declaration”.
India and Vietnam have designated 2027 as the ‘Year of India-Vietnam Friendship’ to commemorate the 55th anniversary of diplomatic relations. The announcement was made during the 19th India-Vietnam Joint Commission Meeting (JCM) held in New Delhi.
Both nations have committed to achieving a bilateral trade target of $25 billion by 2030.
Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Dr Jitendra Singh has virtually inaugurated the 51st state-of-the-art Doppler Weather Radar (DWR) of India at Sambalpur, Odisha.
He highlighted that the national DWR network has expanded from 14 units in 2014 to the current 51. He also stated that 40 additional radars are planned for deployment under the “Mission Mausam” initiative.
Union Minister Mansukh Mandaviya has chaired the Sports Ministers’ Meeting of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. He, along with Union Minister of State (MoS) Raksha Khadse, also led the BRICS Friendship Cycling Event in Visakhapatnam.
Additionally, India has hosted the 18th BRICS Academic Forum in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, under the theme “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability”. The forum was organised as a part of the BRICS Presidency of India in 2026.
The fifth National Steering Committee (NSC) meeting under the PM Skilling and Employability Transformation through Upgraded ITIs (PM-SETU) has approved strategic investments worth ₹735.70 crore for three Industrial Training Institute (ITI) clusters. With this, the cumulative sanctioned investment under the PM-SETU initiative has increased to ₹2,171 crore across nine ITI clusters.
The approved Strategic Investment Plans (SIPs) are: Rajasthan (A SIP of ₹241 crore submitted by HG Infra Engineering Ltd), Telangana (A SIP of ₹254.3 crore submitted by ZEN Technologies Ltd) Uttar Pradesh (A SIP of ₹240.4 crore submitted by the National Skill Development Corporation).
Union Minister Rajnath Singh has visited Sri Lanka to strengthen bilateral relations and expand cooperation in defense and regional maritime security. He held meetings with President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and PM Harini Amarasuriya in Colombo to discuss the partnership between the two nations.
During the visit, they virtually inaugurated 3 Bailey Bridges constructed by the Indian Defence Forces in Sri Lanka. An MoU was signed to upgrade 6 40mm L70 anti-aircraft guns for the Sri Lankan Air Force under a grant from the Government of India (GoI). Two additional MoUs were signed to enhance institutional collaboration.
The PM Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) has completed 6 years of operation since its launch in 2020, aiming for the sustainable and responsible development of the fisheries sector.
The scheme is implemented by the Department of Fisheries under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying with a total outlay of ₹20,050 crore. It is to be noted that a record allocation of ₹2,500 crore has been designated in the Budgeted Estimates for 2026-27 to support the implementation of the scheme.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has inaugurated, dedicated to the nation, and laid the foundation stones for various development projects worth over ₹35,000 crore in Vadodara, Gujarat.
During the event, he virtually inaugurated the final three sections of the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (WDFC). The corridor connects the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) in Navi Mumbai with Dadri in Uttar Pradesh. These three final sections of the WDFC, spanning across Maharashtra and Gujarat, were developed at an estimated cost of ₹20,700 crore.
The Ministry of Coal, in collaboration with Coal India Ltd (CIL), has launched the “Comprehensive Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Framework for Indian Coal Companies” in New Delhi. This marks the first comprehensive framework for the coal sector since the implementation of the Companies Act, 2013.
The framework was developed by the Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs (IICA), under the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, to standardize CSR practices across the coal sector.
Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), an Institution of Eminence (IoE) Deemed to be University, has been selected as one of the three Indian host institutions for the US-India Fellowship for the 2026-27 academic cycle.
The fellowship is a 12-month programme designed to strengthen scientific and technological collaboration between India and the USA. Selected fellows will receive a monthly stipend of $1,650 to support their research and collaborative activities.
Union Minister Annapurna Devi has launched the 9th Rashtriya Poshan Maah in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. The month-long nationwide campaign is scheduled from September 9 to October 8, under the central theme “Hamari Anganwadi Hamari Jimmedari”.
The initiative focuses on 5 key themes: dietary diversity, protein intake, fresh hot cooked meals, community accountability, and nutrition integrated with early childhood development. It also commemorates 10 years of the PM Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY) and features a 100% saturation drive.
The Permanent Delegation of India to the UNESCO has announced the inclusion of 4 new cultural heritage sites in the Tentative List of the World Heritage Convention (WHC).
The newly added sites are the Rangpur-Sivasagar Historic Ensemble (Assam), the Colonial Penal Settlement (Andaman Islands), the Nicobarese Cultural Continuity in the Central Group of Nicobar Islands, and the Painted Haveli Towns of Shekhawati (Rajasthan). With this, the total number of sites from India on the UNESCO tentative list has increased to 73.
Vice President CP Radhakrishnan has released a commemorative postage stamp in Chennai to mark the 75th anniversary of the publication of ‘Dinamalar’, a Tamil daily newspaper.
The issuance of the stamp celebrates the 75-year history of the newspaper and its contributions to journalism and public service.
According to the first-ever district-level estimates of the “Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises” (ASUSE) released by the National Statistical Office (NSO), Haryana has emerged as the leading state in the informal non-agricultural sector.
It has 7 districts in the top 50 nationally ranked by Gross Value Added (GVA) per worker. Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana follow with 6 districts each. The report highlights that 33% of the informal sector activity of India is concentrated in the 50 most productive districts, with 40 of these districts located in just 8 states.
The national average GVA per worker in the informal sector is ₹1.56 lakh. Satara (Maharashtra) recorded the highest productivity at ₹8.7 lakh per worker, followed by Fatehgarh Sahib (Punjab) and Tonk (Rajasthan). Telangana and the Northeastern states recorded the highest female participation in the informal workforce.
