India seeks safeguards as US works on new tariff structure 

The India-US framework trade agreement, which was agreed upon just days before the US Supreme Court declared President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) illegal, would be signed after Washington puts in place a new tariff architecture which safeguards India's comparative advantage in the US market, a senior government official said on Monday.

Continued reliance on 2011 Census data may lead to exclusion of beneficiaries: Panel

A parliamentary Committee has asked the government to undertake a comprehensive and time-bound exercise to update the beneficiary database under the National Food Security Act (NFSA), 2013, stating that "continued reliance" on the 2011 Cen-sus for determining the coverage may lead to "exclusion of newly eligible and vulnerable house-holds". 

Panel asks govt to enhance budget allocations for agri department

A Parliamentary panel has recommended that the budget allocation for the agriculture department needs to be increased to deal with challenges like climate change and market volatility.

A Standing Committee on Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Food Processing presented a report on the agriculture department and farmers' welfare demands for grants (2026-27) in the Lok Sabha on Monday. It also pitched for subsidy on electric tractors, educational sup-port for children of small and marginal farmers. 

Gujarat UCC expert panel to submit report, draft law today

A Five-Member expert committee that the Gujarat government set up in February 2025 to assess the need for a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) is expected to submit its report along with a draft law on Tuesday. 

The draft law contains clauses similar to the UCC Act in Uttarakhand and is likely to be tabled during the ongoing Budget Session of the Gujarat Assembly that began on February 16. If passed, Gujarat will be the second state after Uttarakhand to adopt a common civil code, whose underlying theme is gender equality, government sources claimed. 

The move to impeach the CEC, though symbolic, matters

Article 324 (5) lays down that the CEC can only be removed on the same ground and by following the same procedure as established for the removal of a judge of the Supreme Court. The procedure involves impeachment by Parliament on the ground of proven "misbehaviour or incapacity". The Constitution does not tell us what kind of behaviour is expected of the Election Commissioners. 

No blanket arrangement with Iran on ship movement: EAM

With two India-bound ships getting a safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz in the last few days, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said that there was no "blanket arrangement" with Iran for Indian-flagged ships and that "every ship movement is an individual happening".

Indian LPG tanker arrives through Strait, two others expected today

Even as the government continues to be engaged in diplomatic efforts to facilitate safe passage to India-flagged vessels stuck in the Persian Gulf, a tanker carrying LPG arrived in India from West Asia on Monday and two others were expected to arrive on Tuesday.

Every country has right to act keeping own interests in mind: Israel envoy

Amid the looming energy crisis in India due to the conflict in West Asia and New Delhi coordinating with Tehran on the safe passage of India-bound ships at the Strait of Hormuz, Israel's Ambassador to India Reuven Azar said on Monday that "every country has the right to do whatever they need in order to meet their interests". 

Centre hikes Arthiyas commission on wheat, paddy procurement

The Centre on Monday announced a hike in rates of commission paid to Arthiyas (commission agents) and cooperative societies engaged in procurement of wheat and paddy on behalf of the government. The new rates will become effective from Rabi marketing season (RMS) 2026-27.

Maharashtra House passes Freedom of Religion Bill amid Opposition protest

Exposing a rare dissonance within the Opposition parties, the Maharashtra Freedom of Religion Bill, 2026 was passed in the state Assembly on Monday, backed by the ruling Mahayuti and Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) partner Shiv Sena (UBT). The Congress, NCP (SP), Samajwadi Party and CPI (M) opposed the Bill.

Sahitya Akademi Award: Navtej Sarna, Mamta Kalia among 24 winners

English Author and former ambassador Navtej Sarna and Hindi writer Mamta Kalia are among 24 authors in as many languages who will receive the Sahitya Akademi Award for 2025, the National Academy of Letters announced on Monday.

The 'discrepancies' in India's new GDP data

Changes in new GDP series

In India, from an accounting standpoint, there are three main creators of GDP:

Money spent by Indians in their individual capacity. Called Private Final Consumption Expenditure, this is the biggest contributor of India's GDP; some 60% of India's total GDP comes from such spending.

Money spent by businesses and firms towards creating new productive capacities. Think of money spent towards making new factories or buying new laptops for one's employees for office use. Called the Gross Fixed Capital Accumulation, it has typically accounted for almost 30% of India's GDP in a year. This also includes the money spent by governments towards creating productive assets such as roads, etc.

Money the government spends on its daily functioning, such as salaries, pensions, fuel, etc. This is called the Government Final Consumption Expenditure, which accounts for almost the remaining 10% of India's GDP. 

As NavIC loses atomic clock, India's own GPS remains a challenge

A GPS for India

The Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), operationally called Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC), was planned to be a seven-satellite system to provide positioning data over the Indian subcontinent and 1500 km around it: a regional system similar to the American GPS. 

Russian Urals crude delivered price for India at record high

With the US issuing a universal sanctions waiver on Russian oil purchases amid the oil supply constraints due to the West Asia conflict, the price of Russia's flagship crude grade Urals hit a record high for deliveries at India's west coast. The discount on this oil relative to international benchmark Brent crude has contracted to the lowest in four months. 

Retail loans emerge as top category for write-offs by Indian banks in FY25

In a first, retail was the top category of loan write-offs by Indian banks in 2024-25, exceeding even the likes of agriculture, industries, services, and Micro, Small, and Medium Enter-prises (MSMEs).

According to data provided by the Ministry of Finance to Parliament on Monday, retail loans worth Rs 45,404 crore were written off by public, private, foreign, and small finance banks combined in 2024-25. In comparison, loan write-offs by agriculture and allied activities for the same year stood at Rs 21,882 crore, while that of industries was Rs 37,716 crore.