India notified the Citizenship Amendment Rules, 2024 on March 11, 2024, operationalising Section 6B of the Citizenship Act, 1955 for specified minorities from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan who entered on or before December 31, 2014. Applications are filed online and move through a District Level Committee (DLC) to an Empowered Committee (EC), with an oath…
PLI 1.2 for Specialty Steel: India has launched the third round of the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for specialty steel—“PLI 1.2”—to accelerate domestic manufacture of advanced grades critical to defence, aerospace, automobiles, energy and infrastructure. The round covers 22 product sub-categories, offers 4–15% incentives on incremental sales, resets the base year to FY 2024–25,…
RDI Fund Explained: India has formally launched the ₹1 lakh crore Research, Development & Innovation (RDI) Fund to catalyse private investment in transformative technologies. Announced at the Emerging Science, Technology & Innovation Conclave (ESTIC) in New Delhi on November 3, 2025, the scheme builds on Cabinet approval from July 1, 2025 and the Budget 2024–25…
Digital Detox: How often do you check your phone — once every few minutes? You’re not alone. Studies show the average person touches their phone over 2,600 times a day. Every ping, buzz, and vibration steals a little of our attention. But while technology connects us to the world, it’s quietly disconnecting us from ourselves….
The EPFO Employees’ Enrolment Scheme 2025 (EEC-2025) is a six-month EPFO compliance window running November 1, 2025 to April 30, 2026. It lets employers voluntarily enrol eligible employees left out of EPF coverage between July 1, 2017 and October 31, 2025, with employee share waived (if not deducted earlier), nominal ₹100 damages, and the employer…
India EU FTA: India and the European Union completed an intensive round of Free Trade Agreement (FTA) talks in New Delhi from November 3 to 7, 2025, including a senior-level stock-take on November 5–6. Officials said discussions spanned goods, services, investment, sustainable development, rules of origin and technical barriers, and that both sides would accelerate…
Nanotechnology in Postharvest Management: India ranks among the top fruit-producing nations, with mango, banana, citrus, and papaya leading the list. Yet, nearly 30–40% of these fruits are lost every year after harvesting due to poor handling, microbial spoilage, and lack of proper cold storage. The result is a huge economic loss for farmers and a…
J.D. Vance Emerges as 2028 Republican: With over two years to go before the next U.S. presidential election, Vice President J.D. Vance has emerged as the early frontrunner for the Republican Party’s 2028 nomination. Endorsed in spirit by former President Donald Trump and increasingly accepted by GOP leadership, Vance is positioning himself as the ideological…
Pollution Reduction Milestone: According to data tabled in the Lok Sabha, Mumbai has achieved a 44 % reduction in annual average PM₁₀ levels between 2017‑18 and 2024‑25, marking the highest improvement among India’s major metro cities under the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP). The Numbers & Context What Is the National Clean Air Programme (NCAP)? Launched in January 2019…
India’s luxury hotel boom and high‑end hospitality sector is entering a major growth phase. According to industry consultancy HVS Anarock, more than 20,300 new luxury hotel rooms are projected to be added in India by 2030. At the same time, leading Indian hotel groups are setting targets of 20,000+ keys (rooms) in their portfolios and…