Rural development: economic survey reports expanded rural road and housing scheme coverage with specified targets and completion rates.
The Economic Survey reports near-universal eligible household connectivity under the rural road programme, sanctioned and completed roads and bridges under the tribal-connectivity initiative, allocated state/UT targets for the rural housing scheme with sanctioned and completed house counts and backlog clearances, and expanded livelihood finance disbursal, using these output metrics to characterise changes in rural poverty incidence.

Nuclear energy opened to private participation to expand capacity and provide firm zero carbon baseload power.
India has enacted legislative reforms to open the nuclear energy sector to private participation, intended to expand atomic power capacity by 2047 and provide firm, zero carbon baseload power. The reforms are linked to energy security and import reduction and are presented as relying on institutional architecture, sustained financial commitment and consistent execution to realise expanded clean energy capacity and broader development objectives.

Biofuel incentives risk distorting cropping patterns unless ethanol pricing and mandates are periodically recalibrated to protect food security.
The Economic Survey warns that biofuel mandates and annually administered, feedstock differentiated ethanol prices, together with assured offtake, have created strong incentives favouring maize and reshaped cropping patterns, risking distortions in agricultural diversity and food security. It documents rising maize yields and area alongside stagnation or decline in pulses and some oilseeds, and recommends periodic recalibration of incentives, accelerated yield improvements in pulses and oilseeds, and targeted, regionally aligned expansion of ethanol crops to balance energy and food security objectives.

Guwahati Refinery supplied 19 TMT of smokeless LSLA SKO fuel to the Indian Army during Operation Sindoor for high-altitude use.
Guwahati Refinery exclusively produced and supplied 19 TMT of Low Sulphur Low Aromatics SKO as smokeless fuel for Operation Sindoor, meeting a specification of ~1 ppm sulphur, 2-3% aromatics and 30 mm smoke point, with shipments routed via Misamari, Siliguri and Agra to forward Army bases. The refinery, upgraded to 1.2 MMTPA with a crude mix of ~40% Assam and ~60% imported, is constructing a 90 KTPA Catalytic Reforming Unit to enable domestic reformate and gasoline production.

India's space sector sees rapid private-led commercialisation and government projects advancing Space Vision 2047.
The Economic Survey reports accelerated commercialisation of India's space sector led by private participation and NewSpace startups, projecting expansion from USD 8.4 billion to USD 44 billion driven by launch services, satellite communications, earth observation and downstream services. It highlights rising commercial revenues, increased private funding and NSIL's revenue growth as evidence of market strengthening. The government has approved five major projects under Space Vision 2047-including a Gaganyaan follow on module, lunar sample return and lunar polar exploration missions, a Venus orbiter, and a next generation launch vehicle-to build technological capacity and industry collaboration.

Silver surpasses Rs 4 lakh/kg; gold hits record Rs 1.83 lakh/10g amid safe haven demand and weak dollar.
Silver surged past Rs 4 lakh per kilogram and gold hit Rs 1.83 lakh per 10g, driven by safe haven investor demand, strong ETF inflows, a weak US dollar, and robust industrial demand for silver; international spot prices also reached lifetime highs amid heightened geopolitical tensions and macroeconomic uncertainty.

Economic Survey projects 6.8-7.2% growth and outlines a roadmap for manufacturing, inclusion, and Viksit Bharat nation-building.
Economic Survey highlights sustained growth and stronger macroeconomic fundamentals, emphasizes inclusive development for farmers, MSMEs, youth employment and social welfare, and outlines a roadmap to accelerate manufacturing, productivity, innovation, entrepreneurship and infrastructure to support Viksit Bharat; it projects 6.8-7.2% growth for the coming fiscal, reports 7.4% current fiscal growth, and raises potential growth to 7%.

Niamey airport attack: explosions and gunfire near a military hub and uranium shipment raise national security concerns.
An apparent armed assault occurred overnight near Niamey's Diori Hamani International Airport, with explosions and gunfire reported near the airport complex that houses a military base and a significant uranium shipment, heightening concerns for national security and protection of strategic export logistics amid increased jihadi activity and vulnerability following the 2023 coup.

Manual scavenging persists despite legal ban; recommend ULB accountability, mechanised sanitation, rehabilitation and PPE distribution.
Manual scavenging persists despite the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013 and Supreme Court directions; the Survey links this to caste-based stigma and weak enforcement. It emphasizes ULB accountability through performance-linked incentives and penalties, validation and profiling of SSWs under NAMASTE, use of Swaach Sarvekshan for baselining, distribution of PPE and safety kits, and mandates scaling and acquisition of mechanised sanitation technologies alongside rehabilitative measures including housing, healthcare, skill development and insurance coverage.

AI and Indian IT sector: policy should prioritise domain-specific models, data localisation, and paced deployment to protect workers.
The Economic Survey warns that control over data, compute, and foundational models is concentrated in few firms, limiting India's ability to pursue frontier models; it recommends prioritising application-specific, domain-oriented AI and paced diffusion to facilitate labour augmentation, while adopting governance measures-including incentives for data localisation, human-capital investment, and domestic model development-to ensure economic value accrues within India.

Learjet 45 crash killed five; manufacturer pledges to support investigation and will not speculate on cause.
A Learjet 45 crashed during a second landing attempt, killing five; the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau is probing the accident and the flight recorder has been recovered. The manufacturer expressed condolences, declined to speculate on cause, and said it will support investigators and provide recommendations if needed; the aircraft was operated by a private operator.

Special intensive revision of electoral rolls in Bihar faces challenge on Election Commission's statutory power and Aadhaar admissibility.
Challenges to the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar question the Commission's power under Article 326, the Representation of the People Act and Rules to carry out a large-form SIR and allege the exercise functioned as citizenship verification; the SIR removed about 65 lakh names and required ancestral linkage for those absent from 2002-2003 rolls. The Court held that inclusion and exclusion of names are within the Commission's remit, cautioned that forgery concerns do not alone bar Aadhaar as proof, and signalled possible remedial directions if suspicious exclusions are established.

Air India converting 15 A321neo orders to A321XLR for delivery 2029-2030, enabling new non-stop international routes.
Air India converted 15 of its 210 A321neo orders to the A321XLR variant, with those aircraft expected for delivery between 2029 and 2030, as a procurement modification within its larger Airbus order book intended to enable new non-stop international services and to optimise medium-haul operations by leveraging the A321XLR's extended range and fuel efficiency.

West Bengal's NSDP rose 9.86% to Rs 16.32 lakh crore in 2024-25, improving from 8.94% in 2023-24.
West Bengal's NSDP at current prices rose 9.86% to Rs 16.32 lakh crore in 2024-25, up from 8.94% in 2023-24 and below the 17.55% peak in 2021-22; comparative state growth rates show West Bengal trailing Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Odisha but exceeding Punjab and Delhi, per the Economic Survey Statistical Appendix.

India's AI ecosystem urged to be transparent, impartial and secure, with focus on data security, ethics and skilling.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged development of a transparent, impartial and secure AI ecosystem, emphasizing data security, democratisation of technology, ethical AI use, indigenous technology adoption, and AI skilling; he urged industry to use the IndiaAI Impact Summit to foster collaborations and accelerate India's AI objectives.

Kerala budget expands pensions, restores house advances, clears DA/DR arrears, and makes undergraduate degrees free.
The budget replaces the contributory pension system with an Assured Pension Scheme guaranteeing up to 50% of last drawn basic pay plus dearness relief, offers National Pension System employees an option to switch, establishes the 12th Pay Revision Commission with a three month report timeline, and provides for phased clearance of DA/DR arrears beginning in February-March, alongside significant allocations for welfare pensions, health support and grassroots development.

Viksit Bharat employment law overhauls rural guarantee, mandates faster wage payments and integrated local planning.
The Viksit Bharat-Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act, 2025 overhauls the prior rural employment scheme to strengthen accountability, planning, and income security by requiring prompt wage disbursement (weekly or within a fortnight), localised Viksit Gram Panchayat plans integrated with national spatial systems, and aggregation of assets into the Viksit Bharat National Rural Infrastructure Stack to ensure coordinated infrastructure outcomes.

Domestic flight cancellations disrupted over 9.66 lakh passengers in December; IndiGo accounted for over 82% of cancelled services.
Domestic airlines cancelled 6,890 flights in December affecting 9,66,864 passengers, with a single carrier accounting for over 82% of cancellations. The aviation regulator curtailed that carrier's winter schedule by 10% and imposed fines totalling Rs 22.20 crore and other regulatory actions. Causes identified include over-optimisation of operations, inadequate regulatory preparedness, system software deficiencies, management and operational control shortcomings, and adverse weather-related issues.

Air India converts 15 A321neo orders to A321XLR, shifting procurement toward extended range single aisle capacity.
Air India converted 15 outstanding A321neo orders to the A321XLR variant as a transactional amendment within its broader 2023-2024 Airbus procurement programme, announced at Wings India 2026 in the presence of the Union Civil Aviation Minister, reflecting a commercial shift toward extended-range single-aisle capacity.

Silver and gold prices hit record highs in Delhi, driven by international rallies, investor demand, and geopolitical tensions.
Silver rose to Rs 4,04,500 per kilogram and 99.9% purity gold to Rs 1,83,000 per 10 grams (inclusive of taxes), recording intraday highs; traders linked the rally to international bullion peaks, strong investor demand for safe-haven assets, geopolitical tensions, and a weakening US dollar, with international gold at USD 5,595.02/oz and spot silver at USD 120.45/oz.