Economy

A major component of the package is the installation of on-board Kavach Version 4.0 equipment on 232 locomotives in Southern Railway at a cost of ₹208.81 crore. The sanction falls under the umbrella programme for provision of Kavach with LTE-based communication backbone on balance routes of Indian Railways, included in the Works Programme 2024–25. PIB said Southern Railway has been earmarked a sub-umbrella allocation of ₹2,950 crore under this larger programme.

The growth was driven in particular by strong movement of fertiliser and pig iron and finished steel, both of which recorded gains of over 13%, while iron ore traffic rose 6.74% and cement movement also increased.

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry said the milestone reflects GeM’s expanding role as a transparent, technology-driven and inclusive procurement platform that connects government buyers with enterprises across India while improving efficiency and accountability in public spending. GeM CEO Mihir Kumar said the achievement signals growing confidence among buyers, sellers and institutions in the platform’s digital procurement ecosystem.

Under the agreement, RRU, working in collaboration with BCAS, will create a dedicated facility to conduct trials, performance evaluation and certification of aviation security systems used at Indian airports. The centre is expected to independently verify and certify the specifications and performance of equipment supplied by original equipment manufacturers, while submitting technically rigorous assessment reports for regulatory consideration.

The latest production figures underline the scale of that expansion. In the 2024-25 agricultural year, India recorded a foodgrain output of 357.73 million metric tonnes, up by 25.43 million metric tonnes over the previous year, with higher production of rice, wheat, maize and coarse cereals, including millets.

The ministry said the milestone highlights the impact of ongoing reforms and investments aimed at modernising port infrastructure, improving logistics efficiency and strengthening India’s standing as a major maritime economy under the Maritime Amrit Kaal Vision 2047. Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal said the record cargo throughput demonstrates the government’s push to build world-class port infrastructure and seamless logistics systems to support economic growth.

It reflects India’s central role in making affordable medicines available across both developed and developing markets, and explains why the country is so often described as the “pharmacy of the world.” India’s pharmaceutical strength has been built on its ability to manufacture large volumes of quality medicines at relatively low cost, giving it a competitive advantage in a world where healthcare affordability has become a strategic concern as much as a public health one.

A large part of this fresh capacity has come up at the Khavda renewable energy park in Gujarat, which is steadily emerging as one of the most ambitious clean-energy projects in the world. IBEF reports that Adani Green has already installed 9,413 MW at Khavda out of a planned 30 GW by 2029, a pace that reflects growing execution confidence in mega-scale renewable infrastructure.