The Uttar Pradesh government has set an excise revenue target of Rs 60,000 crore for the financial year 2025-26 (FY26), according to the state’s Finance Minister Suresh Khanna.

For the current financial year, the Yogi Adityanath-led government aimed for Rs 58,000 crore in excise revenue. However, collection in the first three quarters reached only about Rs 31,000 crore, Khanna said. In the previous years, revenue stood at Rs 41,250 crore in FY23 and Rs 47,600 crore in FY24.

The state’s new excise policy has introduced an e-lottery system for allotting liquor, beer, and wine shops. Existing license holders will have the option of renewal via e-lottery in FY27. The Cabinet recently approved these proposals.

Rajat Patidar was named the captain of Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) ahead of IPL 2025, the franchise announced at a media event in Bengaluru on Thursday.

Retained Indian players Virat Kohli and Patidar were credible captaincy options, RCB Team Director Mo Bobat stated. “Virat was an option - that goes without saying. The fans would have probably leant towards Virat, but we’ve seen a lot of love for Rajat too. Virat doesn’t need a captaincy title to lead. Leadership is one of his strongest instincts,” Bobat said.

In a video message played at the event, Kohli congratulated Patidar and stated that the entire team backed him fully. RCB head coach Andy Flower did not give a definitive answer when asked if Kohli declined a captaincy offer.

Indian-origin security expert Paul Kapur, known for his extensive research on South Asian security and nuclear policy, has been nominated by US President Donald Trump as the Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs. If confirmed by the Senate, Kapur will succeed Donald Lu, who completed his term on 17 January 2025.

Kapur, currently a professor in the Department of National Security Affairs at the US Naval Postgraduate School, has played a key role in shaping US foreign policy on South and Central Asia.

From 2020 to 2021, he served on the US State Department’s Policy Planning Staff, contributing to strategies involving Indo-Pacific security and US-India relations. He has also been involved in directing US-India Track 1.5 dialogues and managing defence-related engagements between the two countries.

Reliance Consumer Products-owned beverage brand, Campa Cola has secured the co-presenting rights for the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL), considered the second most visible sponsorship deal, according to a report by The Economic Times. The deal is fixed for Rs 200 crore, bringing competition in India’s beverage market, which is dominated by global players like Coca-Cola.

According to the news report, in IPL’s last season, these rights were with Coca Cola’s Thums Up with the same amount of Rs 200 crore.

“The co-presenting / co-powered property is a plum slot. This is the first summer where all cola companies will compete nationally, as till last year, Campa was still restricted to select markets. The brand acquiring such a large national property shows its intent to scale up rapidly pan-India,” an executive from Campa Cola told The Economic Times.

Adani Green has withdrawn from a controversial $442-million renewable energy project in northern Sri Lanka amid fierce opposition from locals and a legal battle over its approval and potential environmental impact.

The company’s withdrawal from the big-ticket renewable energy project in Sri Lanka signals a significant retreat, given the Adani Group’s investment push in India’s neighbourhood in recent years. The move also amounts to a win for Sri Lanka’s President Anura Kumara Dissanayake who, ahead of his election in September 2024, vowed to cancel the “corrupt” project. Months into office, however, his government appeared willing to renegotiate it.

In January, the Dissanayake administration decided to revoke a 2024 power purchasing agreement — cleared by the predecessor Ranil Wickremesinghe government — in which Sri Lanka had agreed to purchase power at $0.0826, or 8.26 cents, per kWh from Adani Green, and sought a lower tariff.

Indians are increasingly making their mark on the global stage, not just for their expertise but also for their remarkable business strategies. A testament to this rising prominence is the inclusion of an Indian family at the top of Bloomberg's list of Asia's richest families, with several others securing spots in the top 20. Here’s a look at the rankings of the wealthiest families in Asia, showcasing the impressive fortunes amassed across generations.

1. Mukesh Ambani’s family
Topping the list is Mukesh Ambani’s family with $90.5 billion in wealth. Mukesh Ambani oversees Reliance Industries, one of India's largest conglomerates.

The Karnataka government on Thursday said that it has signed an MoU with the Swiss-Indian Chamber of Commerce (SICCI) to foster international business collaboration during the Global Investors Meet, Invest Karnataka 2025.

The signing ceremony took place in the presence of the Minister for Large and Medium Industries, M B Patil, and representatives from 19 leading Swiss companies.

According to an official release, the agreement is expected to strengthen economic relations and trade while enhancing Swiss companies’ confidence in expanding their operations in Karnataka.

The Ministry of Ayush and the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment signed MoU on Wednesday to improve the well-being of senior citizens and address the growing concern of substance abuse.

This strategic partnership seeks to implement Ayush-based interventions to promote geriatric healthcare and combat substance abuse, Union Ayush Minister Prataprao Jadhav said.

He said the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is a pioneering step to develop cooperative initiatives for health promotion among senior citizens and those affected by substance abuse.

"Geriatric healthcare and substance abuse are critical areas that require special focus, especially as we face an ageing population and growing concerns around addiction," Jadhav said.

Actor Pankaj Tripathi, renowned for his performances in films like Stree 2, Gangs of Wasseypur, and Bareilly Ki Barfi, has come on board as co-founder of Velvet, a cinematic audio stories platform.

Alongside Tripathi, Velvet was co-founded by actor and dialogue coach Vikas Kumar, Akshat Saxena, Varad Bhatnagar, and Sharib Khan. The platform’s goal is to create a unique space for listeners to experience engaging, imaginative, and cinematic audio content, predominantly in Hindi. Velvet plans to expand its offerings to include English and regional Indian languages in the near future.

In a press statement, Tripathi emphasised the deep roots of storytelling in Indian culture. “From folk tales to epics, our stories have always had the power to inspire, educate, and entertain. With this audio platform, we wanted to take this tradition and elevate it into a cinematic experience for the ears, something that transports listeners into a world of imagination while being deeply rooted in our cultural ethos,” he said.

In Sri Lanka, the High Commission of India and Kelaniya Maha Viharaya launched 5 Sinhala translated books on Jataka Tales.

The book launch was held on the occasion of Nawam Poya Day which commemorates the appointment of first two chief disciples of Buddha.

Most Venerable Prof. Kollupitiye Mahinda Sangharakkhita Thero, and Deputy High Commissioner of India Dr. Satyanjal Pandey released the books.

The books have been translated into Sinhala and published by Amar Chitra Katha. Over 5000 books will be distributed across Dhamma schools in the island nation.

In addition, an exhibition on shared Buddhist heritage was also inaugurated on the occasion.