Recent 6 months news in Reports

According to the report "The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World (SOFI 2026): Understanding and Addressing the High Cost of a Healthy Diet" released by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), 645 million people (7.8% of the global population) faced hunger in 2025.

Under a quick-recovery scenario, the report projects that the number of chronically undernourished people could decrease to nearly 511 million by 2030. It is to be noted that the report was prepared by 5 specialized UN agencies: FAO, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), UNICEF, World Food Programme (WFP), and WHO.

The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) has released the quarterly update of the Project Assessment, Infrastructure Monitoring & Analytics for Nation-building (PAIMANA) performance dashboard. It now includes 44 new indicators, bringing the total to 165.

In the Civil Aviation sector, 98,920 tonnes of cargo were transported in April 2026, marking a 115% year-on-year increase. The number of aerodromes has increased from 81 in 2014 to 165 at present.

Regarding the Road, Transport and Highways sector, 9,360 kms of National Highways (NHs) were constructed during FY26. Electronic toll collection transactions reached ₹88 crore, a 39.7% year-on-year growth up to May 2026.

In the Power sector, storage requirements are projected to increase more than 10-fold, rising from 87 Gigawatt-hour (GWh) in 2027–28 to 888 GWh by 2035–36.

The Ministry of Heavy Industries (MHI) presented data in the Lok Sabha regarding the establishment of manufacturing units under the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for the automobile and auto component industry.

As of March 2026, Maharashtra leads the country with 66 manufacturing units, followed by Tamil Nadu with 38 units, while Haryana and Karnataka account for 35 units each.

According to the 15th edition of the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) Monthly Bulletin released by the National Statistical Office (NSO), the overall unemployment rate for individuals aged 15 and above remained unchanged at 5.5% in June 2026.

The unemployment rate in rural areas decreased from 5.1% in May 2026 to 5% in June 2026, while the rate in urban areas increased from 6.4% to 6.6%. The Labour Force Participation Rate for persons aged 15 and above stood at 54.4% in June 2026, and the Worker Population Ratio at the all-India level was 51.4%.

According to the 'Brand Finance India 100 Report 2026', Tata Group is ranked as the most valuable brand in India for the 10th consecutive year, with a brand value of $33.6 billion. It is followed by Infosys and LIC Group.

Adani Group is ranked 8th in the list, becoming the fastest company to enter India's 'Top 10 Most Valuable Brands'. Suzlon Energy is the fastest-growing Indian brand in 2026, while Taj Hotels is ranked as India's strongest brand for the 5th consecutive year.

The United Nations (UN) has released the Preliminary Report of the Independent International Scientific Panel on AI, which is the first UN-commissioned scientific assessment of AI. The report was prepared by a 40-member panel co-chaired by Turing Award laureate Yoshua Bengio and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Maria Ressa.

The assessment highlights a global AI imbalance, noting that the USA leads with 75% of global compute capacity and 59 AI models.

NITI Aayog has released its first-ever "Investment Friendliness Index (IFI) 2026", unveiled by its Vice Chairman Ashok Kumar Lahiri.

Gujarat emerged as the top overall performer with a score of 56.6, followed by Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Goa, and Odisha. Among large states, Gujarat is the leader, while Bihar, Jharkhand, and West Bengal are the worst performers.

Uttarakhand is the leader among Hilly & Northeastern states, and Goa is the leader among City States & UTs. Lakshadweep recorded the lowest overall score nationwide, followed by Ladakh and the Andaman & Nicobar Islands.

The index evaluates all 28 states and 8 Union Territories (UTs) based on 84 indicators across 8 economic pillars: Infrastructure, Business Climate, Government Policy, Resources, Regulatory Ease, Institutional Environment, Financial Health, and Environmental Resilience.

According to the Global Air Power Rankings 2026 released by the World Defense Military Analysis (WDMMA), the Indian Air Force (IAF) is ranked as the 3rd most powerful air force globally.

The US Air Force leads the rankings with a TVR of 242.9 and a fleet of 5,004 aircraft, followed by Russia (2nd) and China (4th). When considering the combined air arms of the Army, Navy, and Air Force, the IAF holds the 6th position with a True Value Rating (TVR) of 69.4.

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has released the second edition of the "Digital Threat Report 2025–26". The report was developed in collaboration with the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In), the Computer Security Incident Response Team in Finance (CSIRT-Fin), and SISA Information Security.

It outlines an 18-month roadmap for financial institutions to strengthen their cybersecurity. The report also introduces the "Anatomy of Cyber Failure – 4 layer Gap Archetype Framework", which explains how a cyberattack progresses from initial system weaknesses to a full-scale security breach.

The Ministry of Education (MoE) has released the 'Performance Grading Index 2.0 for States/Union Territories' (PGI 2.0-S) and the 'Performance Grading Index for Districts' (PGI-D) for 2025-26.

For the consecutive year, no state or Union Territory (UT) achieved the highest performance grade in the assessment. It is to be noted that the PGI was introduced in 2017 by the Department of School Education & Literacy (DoSEL) to measure the performance of states in the school education sector.

According to the 'Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE+) 2025-26' report released by the Ministry of Education, the total number of teachers in India rose by 8.3% to 1.02 crore in 2025-26, from 94.8 lakh in 2022-23.

The report highlights that the Pupil-Teacher Ratio (PTR) stands at 10 for Foundational, 12 for Preparatory, 17 for Middle, and 21 for Secondary levels, which remains better than the National Education Policy (NEP) recommended ratio of 30:1. The Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) at the secondary level has increased to 71.7%.

According to the All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) 2023-24, Indian higher education institutions (HEIs) attracted 58,134 foreign students from 173 countries during the 2023-24 academic year.

Nepal accounts for the largest share of foreign students at 24.1%, followed by the UAE, the USA, Bangladesh, and Nigeria.

Karnataka is the leading destination for international students in India, hosting 7,914 students, followed by Punjab, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu. The Ministry of Education launched the 'Study in India' (SII) programme in 2018 to attract international students to pursue higher education in India.

According to the "2026 World Investment Report: International Investment in a Turbulent Era" released by the UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD), India is ranked 11th globally as an FDI recipient, with inflows surging by 44% to $38.89 billion in 2025.

In terms of FDI outflows, India is ranked 18th, with outflows increasing by 47% to $35.66 billion. Global foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows increased by 6% to $1.6 trillion in 2025.

The USA remained the world's largest FDI destination with $277 billion, followed by Singapore and Hong Kong. The USA was also the world's largest source of FDI with a total outflow of $263 billion, followed by Japan, China, Luxembourg, and Hong Kong.

According to the '5th annual edition of the Global Passport Index (GPI)' released by the Global Citizen Solutions (GCS), India is ranked 125th among 197 countries with a composite score of 45.1.

Sweden holds the top position with an overall score of 96.05, followed by Switzerland, Finland, Germany, and the Netherlands. In the GPI 2026, India is ranked 136th in the Enhanced Mobility Index, 118th in the Quality of Life Index, and 94th in the Investment Index.

According to the Geographical Indications (GI) Registry, the total number of GI tags registered in India stands at 822. Between April 2025 and March 2026, 125 GIs were registered across the country, with eastern states recording a significant number of these registrations.

During this period, Madhya Pradesh recorded 26 registrations, followed by West Bengal with 24. Uttar Pradesh holds the highest cumulative number of GI registrations at 79, followed by Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.

The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) has released a series of publications tracking India's development milestones under the National Indicator Framework (NIF).

Multidimensional poverty in India declined to 14.96% in 2019–21 from 24.85% in 2015–16, while population coverage under structured social protection systems surged to 65.3% in 2026, from 22% in 2019.

Institutional deliveries overseen by skilled staff have grown to 91.3% from 81.4%. The Gross Enrolment Ratio for higher secondary schools has reached 58.40%, and school internet connectivity has increased to 84.2%.

India has achieved 100% household electrification under the 'Saubhagya' scheme. Total internet subscriptions rose to 969.10 million in 2025 from 302.36 million in 2015, with national 4G population coverage reaching 99.51%.

The number of functional waste recycling plants expanded to 3,236 in 2025–26 from 829 in 2019–20. Globally protected Ramsar sites now constitute 8.66% of India's total wetland landscape, an increase from 4.15% in 2016.

NITI Aayog has released a report titled "Strategic Roadmap for Making Ayurveda Global", prepared in collaboration with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). The roadmap focuses on shifting from basic product exports to global institution-building, using a three-pillar framework of Availability, Acceptability, and Propagation.

It outlines plans across three horizons: short-term goals up to 2029, medium-term objectives up to 2035, and a vision extending to 2047. The report recommends creating a Global Ayurveda Register (GAR) and establishing a World Federation for Ayurveda and Yoga to facilitate global integration.

The traditional medicine market of India is estimated at $61 billion. Global exports of traditional medicine have increased from $1.09 billion in 2014 to $2.16 billion, currently reaching 150 countries.

According to the 8th edition of the "Sustainability Impact Ratings 2026" released by the Times Higher Education (THE), the University of Manchester (UK) is ranked top in the overall list.

The Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE) secured the first rank in the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5, which focuses on Gender Equality. It is to be noted that the report evaluated 1,646 universities globally.

According to the 8th edition of the 'Trade Watch Quarterly (TWQ)' released by the NITI Aayog for Q4 FY26, the total merchandise and services trade of India expanded by 5.4% to $1.84 trillion.

The report states that the global pharmaceutical market recorded a demand of $1.3 trillion in 2025. India's pharmaceutical sector contributes over 1.7% to the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 7.2% to the manufacturing Gross Value Added (GVA).

The 67th edition of the TOP500 Supercomputer Rankings was released at the International Supercomputing (ISC) High Performance 2026 conference in Hamburg, Germany. China's 'LineShine' has emerged as the world's most powerful supercomputer, displacing the USA's 'El Capitan' from the top spot.

They are followed by 'Frontier' (USA), 'Aurora' (USA), and 'Jupiter' (Germany). The USA leads the list as the most represented country, with 161 systems featured.

India is ranked 16th globally, with 7 supercomputers included in the list, namely 'PARAM Siddhi-AI', 'Pratyush', 'Mihir', 'Aditya', 'SahasraT', 'Arka', and 'Param Bramha'. India's most powerful supercomputer, 'Shakti Cloud', secured the 32nd position on the list with a performance of 84.31 petaflops.