Tejas Shirse broke his own national record in men’s 60m hurdles while finishing second at the Elite Indoor Track Meeting in Miramas, France.

Shirse clocked 7.64 seconds at the World Athletics Indoor Tour Silver level event on Friday to better his earlier national record time of 7.65 seconds, set at the CMCM Indoor Meeting in Luxembourg on January 19.

This was his third race of the season.

Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections in January, in gross terms, stood at ₹1.96 lakh crore, with a yearly jump of 12.3 per cent, according to data from the finance ministry released Saturday.

In January 2024, the total collection was to the tune of ₹1.74 lakh crore.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) has approved a series of key appointments at the Joint Secretary and equivalent levels across various ministries and departments on Saturday. These appointments are made with immediate effect for a tenure of five years or until further orders, whichever is earlier. Here is the full list:

Petal Dhillon (IRTS, 2002) has been appointed as Joint Secretary in the Department of Commerce, replacing Anant Swarup (IRPS, 1992).

Abhinav Gupta {IRS (C&IT) (2004)}, has been appointed as Additional Director General at Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), replacing SC Agarwal {IRS (C&IT, 1994)}.

Santosh Kumar Verma {IRSS (1995)}, has been appointed as Joint Secretary in the Department of Consumer Affairs, replacing Vineet Mathur {IPoS (1994)}. The appointment includes a temporary upgrade of a vacant post of Director for two years.

Samar Nanda {IRS (C&IT) (2004)}, has been appointed as Joint Secretary, Ministry of Culture, replacing Mugdha Sinha (IAS) (RJ: 1999).

Author-playwright Rajesh Talwar has come out with a book which he says is a critique of Mahatma Gandhi’s “Hind Swaraj” and exposes the contradictions and flaws in his rejection of modernity, industrialisation and Western thought.

“Hind Swaraj” is considered one of the most significant works of Gandhi, which he penned during his return from England to South Africa in November 1909. Banned by the British in 1910, this book is a clarion call for Indians to realise the criticality of unshackling from the bondage of imperialism.

H Shankar is set to be next Managing Director (MD) of Chennai Petroleum Corporation Limited (CPCL), a subsidiary of Indian Oil. He has been recommended for the post by the Public Enterprises Selection Board (PESB) Panel on Friday. Presently, he is serving as Director (Technical) in the same organisation. In addition to his present role, he is also holding the additional charge of CMD post.

Shankar has been recommended for the for the post of MD of CPCL from a list from a list seven candidates, who were interviewed by the PESB selection panel in its selection meeting held January 31. Out of seven candidates, four candidates were from Indian Oil, two from CPCL and candidate was from HPCL.

Two days before the presentation of the Union Budget for the next financial year 2025-26, the government on Wednesday approved the introduction of a new credit guarantee scheme for the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) that was announced in the FY25 Budget. The scheme, which is called Mutual Credit Guarantee Scheme for MSMEs (MCGS-MSME), will extend credit guarantee coverage to lending institutions for credit facilities of up to Rs 100 crore to eligible MSMEs, for the procurement of equipment and machinery, a statement by the Ministry of Finance said.

The MCGS- MSME aims at providing 60 per cent guarantee coverage by National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company Limited (NCGTC) to Member Lending Institutions (MLIs) for credit facility up to Rs 100 crore to eligible MSMEs for purchase of equipment/machinery, the Ministry said. “The scheme will facilitate collateral-free loans by banks and financial institutions to MSMEs who are in need of debt capital for their expansion and growth,” it said.

Sony Group Corp. is appointing Hiroki Totoki as chief executive officer, a stamp of approval for the longtime finance chief’s push to expand the Japanese company’s entertainment reach.

Along with outgoing CEO Kenichiro Yoshida, Totoki helped steer the Tokyo-based technology conglomerate to focus on growing its entertainment offerings. Last year alone, the company expressed interest in potential acquisitions ranging from Paramount Global to domestic publishing house Kadokawa Corp.

That focus on content — which spans PlayStation games, anime, music and movies — is bolstering revenue and profit at Sony. In the September quarter, operating profit grew 76 per cent amid sluggish demand for its smartphone components and image sensors, used by the likes of Apple Inc. and Xiaomi Corp.

CRED has launched the beta version of its e₹ wallet, developed in collaboration with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and YES BANK as the sponsor bank. This initiative marks the implementation of RBI's Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) on a fintech platform.

After Uttarakhand and Madhya Pradesh, cannabis cultivation for both industrial and medical purposes will be regulated by Himachal Pradesh, making it the third state in India to become involved in this business. The addition of this new business is expected to enhance the state's revenues by Rs 500 crore every year.

Places like Kullu, Manali, Mandi, Chamba, Shimla, and Sirmaur have suitable climatic conditions suitable for Agro and cannabis plants. Hence, it grows in abundance there. This recommendation was approved to the cabinet yesterday.

For the purposes of controlling cannabis cultivation in the state, the cabinet has permitted the revenue department to proceed with effective cultivation along with a pilot program for cannabis cultivation which will be done in collaboration with Chaudhary Sarwan Kumar Krishi Vishvavidyalaya from Palampur in the Kangra district and Dr YS Parmar University from Nauni in the Solan district.

Google is complying with President Donald Trump’s executive action that renamed the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. Soon, the name change will appear on Google Maps.

In a post on X, Google explained that it has a “longstanding practice of applying name changes when they have been updated in official government sources.” The name will be tweaked when the Geographic Names Information System, a government database of names and location data, is updated.

Google will also change the name of Mount McKinley, the nation’s highest peak, from Denali. Former President Barack Obama renamed the Alaska landmark to Denali in 2015 as a nod to the region’s native population.