13th March 2026

1. DPIIT and Voltas Limited Sign MoU for Cooling and Smart Appliance Innovation
2. WHO Foundation and Novo Nordisk Partner to Combat Childhood Obesity in India
3. RBI Cancels CoR of 36 NBFCs; 9 NBFCs Voluntarily Surrender Licences
4. SBI and MUFG Bank Sign Strategic Partnership to Strengthen India–Japan Financial Ties
5. CRISIL Intelligence Projects India’s GDP Growth at 7.1% for FY27
6. HDFC ERGO General Insurance Appoints Parthanil Ghosh as its MD & CEO
7. India to Host Asia Cup Archery 2027 Second Leg in Delhi After 22 Years
8. World Kidney Day 2026
9. Razorpay Launches AI Agent Studio For the Smart Payment Automation for Businesses
10. India Overtakes China as Top Exporter of Cotton Products to the US in 2025
11. Gujarat Launches ‘Lake and Air Watch’ Initiative to Monitor AQI and Lake Health
12. Indian Orchid Festival 2026 was Concluded in Sikkim
13. India Women’s Hockey Qualified For Hockey World Cup 2026
14. Chhattisgarh Cabinet Approves Freedom of Religion Bill 2026
15. Shailesh Kumar Wins Gold at World Para Athletics Grand Prix 2026
16. Veteran Tamil Filmmaker Thakkali Srinivasan Dies at 72
17. KSRTC Wins National Award for Dhwani Spandana Innovation Helping Visually Impaired
18. International Rail Coach Expo 2026 Inaugurated at ICF Chennai
19. V.O. Chidambaranar Port Launches India’s First Digital Twin Platform
20. Chandrababu Naidu Launches ‘Araku Kouni’ Tribal Millet Menu in Andhra Pradesh

National News

Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurates projects worth ₹1,500 crore at VOC Port

• What: Union Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways Sarbananda Sonowal inaugurated and laid the foundation of projects worth more than ₹1,500 crore at V.O. Chidambaranar Port Authority (VOC Port), Tuticorin to expand infrastructure, renewable energy integration and digital modernisation.
• Tell me more:
  • VOC Port inaugurated a maritime museum and expanded infrastructure, renewable energy, digital systems and safety measures while developing green hydrogen projects and increasing cargo and container handling to strengthen operations.
  • VOC Port became the first Indian port to produce and use green hydrogen on-site.
  • A pilot green hydrogen project has operated at the port since late 2025. Authorities plan commercial-scale green hydrogen production by 2029.

State News

Gujarat launches Lake and Air Watch initiative for real-time environmental monitoring

• What: Gujarat Urban Development Mission (GUDM) will launch the ‘Lake and Air Watch’ initiative to monitor lake health and air quality in cities through real-time digital systems and coordinated action.
• Tell me more:
  • GUDM will create a ₹10 crore digital monitoring system using satellites, AQI stations and a central dashboard to track lake health and air quality and issue alerts.

Indian Orchid Festival 2026 concludes in Sikkim

• Indian Council of Agricultural Research – National Research Centre for Orchids (ICAR-NRCO) organised the Indian Orchid Festival 2026 in Pakyong district, Sikkim under the theme ‘Orchids for Beauty & Prosperity’.

Chhattisgarh Cabinet approves draft Freedom of Religion Bill 2026

• What: Chhattisgarh government approved the draft Freedom of Religion Bill 2026 during a Cabinet meeting in Raipur chaired by Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai.
• Tell me more:
  • The proposed Bill aims to prevent religious conversions through force, inducement, fraud, undue influence or misrepresentation and the government will introduce the Bill in the ongoing Budget Session of the Chhattisgarh Legislative Assembly.

Integral Coach Factory inaugurates International Rail Coach Expo 2026

• What: Integral Coach Factory (ICF) inaugurated the International Rail Coach Expo (IRCE) 2026 to provide a global platform for national and international rail industry companies.
• Tell me more:
  • Integral Coach Factory (ICF) General Manager U. Subba Rao inaugurated the International Rail Coach Expo 2026 organised by ICF in association with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).
  • The International Rail Coach Expo was previously organised in 2018.

Andhra Pradesh launches ‘Araku Kouni’ tribal millet-based food menu

• Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu launched ‘Araku Kouni’, the state’s first tribal millet-based food menu, to integrate traditional millet diets into mainstream food culture and highlight tribal culinary heritage.

International News

WHO Foundation and Novo Nordisk expand collaboration to address cardio-renal-metabolic diseases

• What: World Health Organization Foundation (WHO Foundation) expanded collaboration with Novo Nordisk to strengthen health systems and support global efforts to address cardio-renal-metabolic diseases such as obesity and diabetes.
• Tell me more:
  • WHO Foundation, Novo Nordisk, and health partners launched the Roadmap for Promoting Health and Addressing Childhood Obesity in School Settings under the Shine India initiative.
  • The roadmap aims to prevent childhood obesity and promote healthier school environments in India.
• Knowledge Nuggets:
  • WHO Foundation operates as an independent organisation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. WHO Foundation was created in 2020 to support the mission of WHO.
  • Novo Nordisk is a leading global healthcare company, founded in 1923 and headquartered in Denmark.
  • Global obesity has nearly tripled since 1975.

Banking and Economy

Reserve Bank of India cancels Certificate of Registration of 36 NBFCs

• What: Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cancelled the Certificate of Registration of 36 Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) and accepted surrender of licences from 9 NBFCs as part of regulatory action related to registration requirements.
• Tell me more:
  • RBI cancelled Certificate of Registration (CoR) of several NBFCs because some met criteria for unregistered Core Investment Company (CIC) status and some ceased legal existence after merger, dissolution, or strike-off.

State Bank of India partners with MUFG Bank for merger and acquisition financing

• What: State Bank of India (SBI) partnered with MUFG Bank to finance mergers and acquisitions, aviation and real estate projects, helping companies in India and Japan expand business and support cross-border investment.
• Tell me more:
  • RBI allowed banks to give loans for companies buying other companies up to 75% of the deal value, but total such loans cannot be more than 20% of the bank’s main capital.
  • SBI chairman C.S. Setty stated that SBI can disburse up to ₹94,000 crore for acquisition financing.

Razorpay launches Artificial Intelligence platform for payment infrastructure

• What: Razorpay launched an Artificial Intelligence (AI) platform called Agent Studio built on Anthropic’s Claude Agent Software Development Kit (SDK) to help businesses build, manage and automate payment infrastructure and financial operations.
• Tell me more:
  • This payment platform uses AI agents to analyse transactions, automate payment tasks, resolve issues, connect business platforms and enable conversational commerce through collaborations with Anthropic, OpenAI and NPCI.

India’s API exports exceed imports in FY2025

• • What: Chemicals and Fertilizers Minister J P Nadda stated that India’s exports of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) reached about ₹41,500 crore in the last fiscal year, exceeding imports worth ₹39,215 crore.
  • Tell me more:
    • China’s share in India’s API imports increased to 74% in 2024–25 from 70% in 2022–23.
    • Central government launched Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme with ₹6,940 crore outlay to promote domestic manufacturing of Key Starting Materials (KSMs), Drug Intermediates (DIs) and Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) and reduce import dependence on China.
    • PLI Scheme established domestic manufacturing capacity of about 56,800 tonnes per year for 28 identified critical products.
    • Government imposed anti-dumping duty and minimum import price to maintain the market.

GDP Forecasts

Crisil projects India’s economic growth at 7.1% in FY2027

• What: Crisil projected India’s real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth at 7.1% in fiscal year 2027, supported by domestic consumption and investment despite global uncertainties.
• Tell me more:
  • Crisil revised India’s real GDP growth estimate to 7.6% for fiscal year 2026 under the new GDP series.

Awards

KSRTC wins PSU National Award for Dhwani Spandana initiative

• What: Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) received the Governance Now 12th PSU National Award in the “Excellence in Innovation” category for the Dhwani Spandana onboard bus identification and navigation system for visually impaired passengers.
• Tell me more:
  • KSRTC implemented the Dhwani Spandana system in 200 Mysuru City Transport buses.
  • GIZ Germany supported the implementation of the system.

Important Days

World Kidney Day 2026 – March 12

• Theme: Kidney Health For All – Caring for People, Protecting the Planet

Sports

India to host Asia Cup Archery leg in Delhi in 2027

• What: India will host the second leg of the Asia Cup Archery in Delhi in 2027 after approval from World Archery Asia, marking the country’s return to hosting a major international archery event.
• Tell me more:
  • India last hosted a major international archery event when Delhi organised the Asian Archery Championships in 2005.

India qualifies for FIH Hockey Women’s World Cup 2026

• What: India qualified for the Fédération Internationale de Hockey (FIH) Hockey Women’s World Cup 2026 after reaching the semifinals of the qualifying tournament held in Hyderabad.
• Tell me more:
  • Two FIH Hockey Women’s World Cup Qualifiers 2026 tournaments are being held in Hyderabad, India and Santiago, Chile.
  • The FIH Hockey Women’s World Cup 2026 will take place in Belgium and the Netherlands from August 15 to August 30, 2026.
  • India holds the ninth position in the FIH women’s hockey rankings.
  • India will participate in the Women’s Hockey World Cup for the ninth time.

Shailesh Kumar wins gold at World Para Athletics Grand Prix 2026

• What: World champion Shailesh Kumar won the gold medal in the men’s high jump T63 category with a jump of 1.84 metres at the World Para Athletics Grand Prix 2026 in New Delhi.
• Tell me more:
  • Shailesh Kumar won his first major medal at the World Para Athletics Championships last year in front of the home crowd.

Memorandum of Understanding

Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade signs MoU with Voltas Limited for start-up collaboration in cooling and smart appliance sector

• What: DPIIT, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, signed an MoU with Voltas Limited to promote collaboration between industry and start-ups in cooling and smart appliance technologies.
• Tell me more:
  • DPIIT and Voltas Ltd will support start-ups developing cooling and smart appliance technologies through innovation challenges, hackathons, mentorship, testing facilities, market access, Proof-of-Concept programmes, and field trials.
  • Managing Director of Voltas Limited – Mukundan Menon

Appointments

HDFC ERGO appoints Parthanil Ghosh as MD and CEO

• What: HDFC ERGO General Insurance approved the appointment of Parthanil Ghosh as Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (MD & CEO).
• Tell me more:
  • Chairperson of HDFC ERGO General Insurance – Keki M Mistry

Miscellaneous

Veteran filmmaker Thakkali Srinivasan passes away at 72

• Veteran Tamil filmmaker, producer, director and musician Thakkali Srinivasan died at the age of 72 in Bengaluru on March 10 due to health complications.

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