Kautilya

India’s Toffee Exports Rise 166% Since FY14, Showing the Growing Global Taste for Made-in-India Confectionery

The development gained wider public attention after Prime Minister Narendra Modi gifted Melody toffees to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni during his visit to Rome. The gesture became a light diplomatic moment, but it also highlighted something larger: Indian consumer brands are no longer confined to the domestic market. They are slowly gaining recognition abroad as part of India’s expanding soft-power and food-export profile.

Indian Navy Launches Sanghmitra, Next Generation Offshore Patrol Vessel Built at GRSE Kolkata

The launch of Sanghmitra is part of the Indian Navy’s larger plan to strengthen its offshore patrol and maritime security capabilities. A total of 11 Next Generation Offshore Patrol Vessels are being constructed simultaneously at two Indian shipyards — Goa Shipyard Limited in Goa and GRSE in Kolkata. These vessels are being indigenously designed and built, adding another layer to India’s growing self-reliance in warship construction.

PRAGATI 2026 Begins in Meghalaya, Bringing 12 Regional Armies Together for Joint Training

PRAGATI stands for Partnership of Regional Armies for Growth and Transformation in the Indian Ocean Region. The exercise has been designed as a platform where participating armies can train together, exchange professional experience and build stronger military-to-military understanding. Its guiding spirit is equality, friendship and mutual respect, making it more than just a military drill; it is also a regional confidence-building effort.

India and Italy Elevate Ties to Special Strategic Partnership, Set €20 Billion Trade Target by 2029

The joint declaration reflects a broad expansion of India-Italy cooperation across politics, trade, defence, technology, connectivity, migration, culture, education and multilateral affairs. Both leaders agreed to hold annual leader-level meetings, including on the sidelines of major international events, along with regular ministerial and institutional-level consultations. A Foreign Ministers-led mechanism will also be established to review the India-Italy Joint Strategic Action Plan 2025–2029 and provide strategic direction to the newly elevated partnership.

Param Robotic Mule: Indian Army’s High-Altitude Logistics Takes a Four-Legged Leap

Param belongs to a growing class of Multi-Utility Legged Equipment, or MULE-type systems. Unlike wheeled vehicles, a four-legged robotic platform can move across uneven ground, climb obstacles, negotiate slopes, enter narrow spaces and operate in areas where normal vehicles cannot go. Such a system can be used for last-mile supply, surveillance, reconnaissance, perimeter security, mine or IED detection, sensor carriage and even emergency support in dangerous zones. The key advantage is simple: the robot can go first, carry the load, scan the route and reduce risk to soldiers.

Fennel Seeds in Ayurveda: Saunf as the Gentle Digestive Spice of the Indian Kitchen

In classical Ayurvedic language, fennel is commonly identified as Mishreya, Mishi or Madhurika. The Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia of India identifies Mishreya as the dried ripe fruit of Foeniculum vulgare Mill., belonging to the Umbelliferae family, now commonly placed under Apiaceae. The plant is described as an aromatic herb, usually 1–2 metres high, cultivated widely in India and sometimes found wild. What we casually call fennel “seeds” are botanically the dried fruits of the plant.

Indian Researchers Discover Rare Blue Straggler–Brown Dwarf Binary in Ultra-Compact Orbit

The discovery is important because blue straggler stars are already among the more puzzling objects in star clusters. In a cluster where stars are expected to be of broadly similar age, blue stragglers appear brighter and bluer than the main-sequence turn-off point, making them look unusually young or rejuvenated compared to their stellar neighbours. This has long raised questions about whether they are formed through mass transfer, mergers, stellar interactions or more complex multi-star evolution.