There were 16.58 billion Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions worth Rs 23.5 trillion in October, the highest numbers for the digital system since it became operational in April 2016.

UPI’s previous peak was 15.04 billion in volume terms in September 2024 and Rs 20.64 trillion in value in July. Data from previous months shows that the growth in transactions is driven by person to merchant transactions (for buying goods or services), which got a festival season push in October. It was the first time that UPI crossed 16 billion in volume and Rs 23 trillion in value.

October witnessed a 10 per cent increase in volume and 14 per cent in value compared to September. There were 14.96 billion UPI transactions amounting to Rs 20.61 trillion in August, according to data shared by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).

The gross GST collection in November grew at 8.5% year-on-year to R1.82 lakh crore largely on the back of healthy accrual from domestic transactions. However, it is lower than the October collection of R1.87 lakh crore, which was the second highest monthly collection recorded in GST. The domestic GST revenue grew by 9.4% during the month, while import GST revenue growth of 5.4%.

This is the third month in a row that gross GST collections have shown single digit growth, showing that a fatigue has set in as far as GST collections have been concerned. Even the festive months of October (when gross collections showed a growth of 8.9%) and November have failed to give a boost to the collections.

President-elect Donald Trump on Saturday (November 30, 2024) nominated close confidante Kash Patel for the powerful position of Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, making him the highest-ranking Indian American in his incoming administration.

“I am proud to announce that Kashyap 'Kash' Patel will serve as the next Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Kash is a brilliant lawyer, investigator, and 'America First' fighter who has spent his career exposing corruption, defending Justice, and protecting the American People,” Mr. Trump announced on Truth Social, a social media platform he owns.

Mr. Trump said Mr. Patel played a pivotal role in uncovering "the Russia, Russia, Russia Hoax," standing as an advocate for truth, accountability, and the Constitution. Mr. Patel, 44, served as chief of staff to the Acting United States Secretary of Defense in the last few weeks of the Trump Administration in 2017.

President Droupadi Murmu will confer the National Awards for Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities on the International Day of Persons with Disabilities tomorrow. 22 persons and 11 Institutions will be conferred the National Awards. Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Dr Virendra Kumar will also unveil several welfare initiatives for the empowerment of Persons with Disabilities.

Amar Jain will receive the National Award for Individual Excellence in the category of Sarvshreshth Divyangjan-2024. He is a legal professional with 100 per cent visual impairment. Amar Jain shared his inspirational life story and spoke about the obstacles he has had to face during his journey.

Prateek Khandelwal, who has a 75 per cent locomotor disability, will receive the National Award for Individual Excellence in the category of Sarvshreshth Divyangjan-2024. He is the founder of ‘Ramp My City’. He shared how his start-up is helping transform urban environments in India to become more accessible for Persons with Disabilities.

The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification’s sixteenth Conference of Parties (COP16) is beginning today in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, marking the first time West Asia hosts this crucial environmental conference. India will join representatives from 197 nations at this milestone event, which coincides with UNCCD’s 30th anniversary.

India’s delegation, led by Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav and Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini, will participate in a significant side event at the IUCN Pavilion on the opening day. The delegation will present the Aravalli Green Wall Project (AGWP), a comprehensive initiative targeting the restoration of 1.15 million hectares of degraded landscape across four states in northwestern India.

The project presentation, scheduled for December 2nd, will demonstrate India’s innovative approach to combating desertification, land degradation, and drought through the integration of indigenous species afforestation, biodiversity conservation, and advanced water management strategies. The initiative employs modern GIS tools and Nature-Based Solutions while emphasizing community engagement and cultural preservation.

The Ministry of Coal has achieved a remarkable milestone in November 2024, with overall coal production reaching 90.62 million tonnes (MT) (Provisional), compared to 84.52 MT in the same month last year, marking a 7.20% growth.

Coal production from captive and other entities has shown significant progress, reaching 17.13 MT (provisional) in November 2024, up from 12.44 MT in November 2023, marking an impressive growth of 37.69% (provisional).

Cumulatively, coal production for FY 2024-25 up to November 2024 reached 628.03 MT (Provisional), compared to 591.32 MT during the same period in FY 2023-24, reflecting a growth of 6.21%. (Provisional)

State gas utility GAIL (India) Ltd on Friday signed an agreement with Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha, Ltd for long-term charter hire of a newly built LNG ship.

The pact was signed through the ship-owning company established in Singapore, GAIL said in a statement.

The LNG ship will be a modern two-stroke vessel having a tank capacity of 1,74,000 cubic metres and will be built by Samsung Heavy Industries Co Ltd, Korea, with which the ship owning company has concluded a shipbuilding contract.

The contract was signed in the presence of R K Jain, GAIL Director (Finance), Sanjay Kumar, GAIL Director (Marketing), and R K Singhal, GAIL Director (Business Development) by S Bairagi, GAIL Executive Director (Marketing - Shipping & International LNG) and Satoshi Kanamori, Managing Executive Officer (LNG, Carbon Solution Business), K-Line.

The Cabinet sub-committee constituted on Rythu Bharosa would be submitting its report and recommending modalities. The same would be discussed in the next assembly session and opinion would be sought on how to go about it, Revanth Reddy said at a press conference here on Sunday.

With an eye on local bodies’ elections, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy has started appeasing the farming community by declaring that Rythu Bharosa would be extended after Sankranti and continuation of the Rs.500 bonus for fine rice varieties in the next season. He also claimed that the crop loan waiver scheme was “completed”.

The Cabinet sub-committee constituted on Rythu Bharosa would be submitting its report and recommending modalities. The same would be discussed in the next assembly session and opinion would be sought on how to go about it, Revanth Reddy said at a press conference here on Sunday.

India and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) have signed a USD 98 million loan agreement to enhance horticulture crop productivity in the country.

The Ministry of Finance on Friday stated that the funding will support the establishment of disease-free planting material systems, boosting crop yields, quality, and resilience to climate change.

It said, “The Government of India and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) today signed a USD 98 million loan to improve horticulture crop farmers' access to certified disease-free planting materials, which will boost their crops' yield, quality, and resilience to climate impacts.”

The loan agreement, part of the "Building India's Clean Plant Programme," was signed by Juhi Mukherjee, Joint Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, and Kai Wei Yeo, Officer-in-Charge of ADB's India Resident Mission.

The Ministry of External Affairs’ proposal to establish nine One-Stop Centres (OSCs) has received approval from the Empowered Committee of the Ministry of Women and Child Development. These centres aim to provide comprehensive assistance to women in vulnerable situations, addressing their immediate needs and offering critical support.

Out of the nine proposed OSCs, seven will include shelter homes and will be set up in Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia (with centres in both Jeddah and Riyadh). The remaining two centres, located in Toronto and Singapore, will operate without shelter home facilities. To facilitate the rollout of these initiatives, the Ministry of External Affairs has opened a dedicated budget line for these missions.

The Indian Community Welfare Fund (ICWF), already operational in Indian Missions and Posts worldwide, will play a vital role in extending welfare measures to distressed Indian nationals, particularly women. Since its guidelines were comprehensively revised in September 2017, the ICWF has significantly expanded its scope to address a wide range of issues faced by overseas Indians.