India Celebrates 80th Independence Day on 15th August 2026: Marking 150 Years of Vande Mataram & Yuva Shakti
Government of India (GoI) celebrated the 80th Independence Day (I-Day) at the Red Fort in New Delhi (Delhi). Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi addressed the nation and delivered his 13th consecutive I-Day speech, becoming the 2nd Indian PM after Pandit (Pt.) Jawahar Lal Nehru, who delivered 17 I-Day addresses in a row.
- This year India’s Independence Day celebrations featured dual themes which included commemoration of the 150 years of the national song “Vande Mataram” and ‘Yuva Shakti-Leading the Journey to Viksit Bharat@ 2047’.
CCI Hosts BRICS Competition Authorities Meeting in Udaipur, Rajasthan
Competition Commission of India (CCI) under India’s BRICS Chairship 2026, hosted the Meeting of Heads of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India and China) Competition Authorities in Udaipur, Rajasthan, to strengthen cooperation on fair competition and emerging competition law and policy challenges.
NITI Aayog Releases Report on India’s Manufacturing Sector, Identifies Four Key Sectors for Global Manufacturing Ambition
Ashok Kumar Lahiri, Vice Chairperson of National Institution for Transforming India (NITI Aayog), released the report titled “Key Sectors to Position India as a Global Manufacturing Hub”, providing a data-driven assessment of India’s manufacturing sector.
- The report has identified 12 manufacturing sectors(automobiles, electronics, steel, capital goods, defence and drones, chemicals, solar PV, textiles, pharmaceuticals and medical devices, telecom equipment, leather and footwear and food processing) to accelerate India’s journey towards global manufacturing hub and the vision of Viksit Bharat.
IN-Space Approved India‘s First Fully Commercial Earth Observation Sat Constellation
Union Minister of State (MoS) Dr. Jitendra Singh, Department of Space (DoS), informed the Lok Sabha (House of Peoples) that Indian Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe), DoS, has approved and signed an agreement for the country’s first indigenous, fully commercial Earth Observation (EO) constellation under the Public Private Partnership (PPP) model with a private consortium named Allied Orbits Private Limited.
L&T to Set Up India’s Largest Nvidia B300 AI Factory in Chennai for Together AI
Larsen & Toubro (L&T), through its Artificial Intelligence (AI) infrastructure arm LTN Compute and data centre business Vyoma.AI, secured a Rs 10,000–15,000 crore order to build India’s largest single-cluster NVIDIA B300 AI factory at its Chennai data centre campus, Chennai, Tamil Nadu (TN), for United States of America (USA)-based Together AI (Together Computer, Inc.)
BHEL, Norway’s Hystar AS Tie-up for PEM Electrolyser Manufacturing in India
Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) and Norway-based Hystar AS entered into a strategic collaboration for phased indigenisation and local manufacturing of Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) electrolyser systems for green hydrogen projects in India.
NCLT Launched e-Inspection and e-Certified Copy Services To Enhance Access to Judicial Records
National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) launched its electronic (e)-Inspection and e-Certified Copy Services, to provide faster digital access to judicial records under the e-Courts (electronic court) 2.0 initiative in New Delhi, Delhi, improving transparency and efficiency.
- These new digital legal services were inaugurated virtually by Justice Anupinder Singh Grewal, President of the NCLT.
India–Nepal Sign MoUs for Eight Development Projects Worth NPR 803 Million
India and Nepal signed Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) for the implementation of 8 High Impact Community Development Projects (HICDPs) in Nepal with a combined estimated cost of NPR 803 million. The projects will be supported through grant assistance from the Government of India(GoI) and will focus on education, health and agriculture sectors.
- The MoUs were signed between the Embassy of India in Kathmandu, Ministry of Land Management, Cooperatives, Federal Affairs and General Administration, Nepal, and respective project implementing agencies of Nepal.
SEBI Proposes Mandatory Colour-Coded Credit Risk-o-Meter for Debt Securities
Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) released a consultation paper proposing a mandatory, colour-coded Credit Risk-o-Meter for debt securities to make credit risk easier for investors to assess and compare.
- The proposal builds on SEBI’s existing Risk-o-Meter framework for Mutual Funds(MFs), which classifies risk into six levels from Low to Very High.
- Levels: The current credit rating system, which ranges from AAA to D, would be mapped into six visual danger levels by the suggested meter.
- Colour Coded: The proposal seeks to translate existing alphanumeric credit ratings such as AAA, AA+ and BBB- into a standardised, colour-coded visual scale.
- Six levels: Under the proposed framework, the Credit Risk-o-Meter will map credit ratings into six risk levels:
- Lowest credit risk
- Very low credit risk
- Low credit risk
- Moderate credit risk
- Moderate risk of default
- High to very high risk of default
IFSCA Grants Investment Banking License to Nexent Capital in GIFT City
International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) granted an Investment Banking license to Nexent Capital IFSC Private Limited (Nexent Capital), to operate from the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City) in Gandhinagar, Gujarat.
- The registration was granted under the IFSCA (Capital Market Intermediaries) Regulations, 2025, enabling Nexent Capital to undertake regulated investment banking activities from GIFT City.
JSW Neo Energy–DGPC Pact for 920 MW Punatsangchhu-III Hydro Project
JSW Neo Energy Limited (JSWNEL), a subsidiary of JSW Energy, and Bhutan’s Druk Green Power Corporation Limited (DGPC) have signed an agreement to jointly develop the 920 megawatt(MW) Punatsangchhu-III Hydroelectric Project, on the Punatsangchhu River in Wangdue Phodrang District, Bhutan.
Gaj Gaurav Award 2026: Honours Jaldapara Forest Staff for Elephant Rescue Operations
Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) conferred the Gaj Gaurav Awards 2026 during the national celebrations of World Elephant Day held in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh (AP), recognising individuals and institutions for their outstanding contributions to elephant conservation, management, and protection in India.
Gaj Gaurav Award 2026:
Jaldapara National Park (West Bengal): 7 Mahouts and Elephant Handlers were honoured for their exceptional bravery during severe flash floods.
- Bikash Kharia and Rajiv Oraon rescued and protected six stranded captive elephants.
- Ajibul Haque, Ajit Gabur, Momtaz Alam, Amasur Kharia, and Dilip Munda successfully guided 13 displaced wild one-horned rhinoceroses to elevated safe areas
Chandrasekaran to Step Down as Tata Sons Chairman in February 2027
Natarajan Chandrasekaran stepped down as the Executive Chairman of Tata Sons Private Limited, upon the completion of his current term on February 20, 2027.
- He was appointed as the Chairman of Tata Sons in February 2017 following the ouster of Cyrus Mistry and reappointed in 2022
Kirti Chakra Awardee Major General Sunil Kumar Razdan Passed Away
Major General Sunil Kumar Razdan (Retd), Kirti Chakra and Vishisht Seva Medal (VSM) awardee, and the Indian Army’s (IA) first wheelchair-borne General, passed away at an age of 70 in New Delhi, Delhi.
- He was born on 8 October 1954 in Happy Valley, in present-day Shillong, Meghalaya.
- Resilience: Despite his severe injuries, he overcame the challenges to become the IA’s first wheelchair-borne General.
- Award: He received the Kirti Chakra, India’s second-highest peacetime gallantry award and VSM award for his exceptional courage and sacrifice during the operation.
Partition Horrors Remembrance Day 2026 – August 14
Partition Horrors Remembrance Day (Vibhajan Vibhishika Smriti Diwas) is observed annually on August 14 in India to remember the victims of the Partition of British India in 1947 and honour the courage, resilience and sacrifices of those who suffered during the event.
- August 14, 2026 marks the 6th annual commemoration of Partition Horrors Remembrance Day in India.
Karnataka Cabinet Approves Sandhya Kiran Scheme Offering Rs 5 Lakh Cashless Healthcare Cover to Pensioners
Karnataka Cabinet approved the Sandhya Kiran scheme, a contributory cashless healthcare initiative under Ayushman Bharat–Arogya Karnataka (AB-ArK) for state pensioners below 70 years and their families in Bengaluru, Karnataka.
- The scheme will cover around 4.93 lakh beneficiaries, including 3.11 lakh state pensioners and their dependents, with Rs.5 lakh annual family health cover and standardised treatment packages and rates.
AP Govt and CSIR NGRI Sign Pact for Critical Mineral Exploration
Andhra Pradesh (AP) Government signed an agreement with the Council of Scientific & Industrial Research–National Geophysical Research Institute (CSIR-NGRI) for exploration of Lithium(Li) and Gallium(Ga) deposits in the Kadapa Basin, AP.