The award was presented at a ceremony held at Begumpet Airport, Hyderabad, by the Union Minister for Civil Aviation, Shri Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu, and the Secretary of the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA), Shri Sameer Kumar Sinha.

On this occasion, the Secretary of the Uttarakhand Civil Aviation Development Authority (UCADA), Shri Sachin Kurve; Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Ashish Chauhan; Additional Chief Executive Officer, Shri Sanjay Singh Tolia; and Head of Operations, Captain Amit Sharma, were present.

Notably, Wings India 2026 is the country’s premier aviation platform, bringing together policymakers, industry experts, investors, and stakeholders from India and abroad. The recognition received by Uttarakhand on this forum is a matter of pride for the State and is expected to open new avenues for investment and development in the future.

Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), India's leading energy explorer and producer, has announced the go-live of Pragya-AIX, its groundbreaking Artificial Intelligence and Innovation Exchange.

This marks a significant leap in digital transformation for the national oil company, integrating over 26 intelligent applications into a single, unified digital platform. The initiative moves AI from theoretical pilots to a practical, working ecosystem that powers daily operations across ONGC’s vast network of workcentres.

The Central Leprosy Division (CLD) under the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, on the occasion of National Leprosy Day, organised a comprehensive Information, Education and Communication (IEC) outreach programme at Dilli Haat today.

The programme aimed to promote awareness, early detection, and stigma reduction related to leprosy.

According to the release, a dedicated IEC stall was set up to engage the public and disseminate key messages on the signs, symptoms, prevention, and treatment of leprosy.

In Nagaland, the 5th edition of the Rüsoma Orange Festival began today at Rüsoma village, about 10 kilometres away from the state capital Kohima. Held under the theme “Abundance of Rüsoma, the two festival aims to promote village welfare, boost rural entrepreneurship, and recognise the hard work of orange growers while promoting the unique taste of Rüsoma oranges. The two-day festival features cultural presentations, fun games, and stalls offering fast food, local cuisine, orange saplings, and more. Currently, 470 out of 570 households in the village are involved in orange farming. The village aims to expand orange orchards to 100 hectares in the next six to seven years and anticipates producing 25 lakh fruits in the future.

In a major stride towards sustainable and eco-friendly rail operations, Indian Railways has successfully operationalised the nation’s first-ever LNG-Diesel dual-fuel DEMU train at Sabarmati in Ahmedabad. Under this initiative, the driving power cars of the 1,400 HP DEMU train have been converted to a dual-fuel system, utilising Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) to replace approximately 40 per cent of the traditional diesel consumption.

Divisional Railway Manager of Ahmedabad, Ved Prakash, said that these converted power cars have already undergone successful field trials covering over 2000 kilometres and are currently in regular passenger service without any operational hurdles. He said the new system offers significant environmental and economic benefits, including a substantial reduction in carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions, alongside an improvement in air quality along rail routes.

In Gujarat, Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel launched the state-wide ‘Mukhyamantri Gramotthan Yojana’ from Bhadran in Anand district today. The ambitious campaign marks a strategic shift to provide urban-equivalent facilities to the rural heartlands of the state. In the first phase of this mission, 114 villages that serve as Taluka headquarters will be equipped with modern amenities, including high-quality road networks, underground drainage, solar street lights, and digital e-Gram services.

The Chief Minister also laid the foundation stone for 2,666 Gram Panchayat Ghar-cum-Talati Awas buildings, at 663 crore rupees. Addressing the gathering, Mr Patel emphasised that the Gramotthan Abhiyan will soon be expanded to cover all villages with a population of over 10,000, ensuring that the gap between rural and urban development is bridged through inclusive growth.

Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport, operated by Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL–GMR), has been named best airport of the year at the Wings India 2026 awards, organised by the civil aviation ministry.

Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport was adjudged best airport in the above 25 Million Passengers Per Annum (MPPA) category.

Announcing the awards, the ministry said in a post on X: “#WingsIndia2026 recognised excellence across the aviation ecosystem, honouring the best in the industry at a grand ceremony. Minister of Civil Aviation, Ram Mohan Naidu presented the awards to the winners. From airports and airlines to manufacturing and services, the awards celebrated outstanding contributions that are shaping the future of Indian aviation."

The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) has operationalised a new web-based portal, PAIMANA (Project Assessment, Infrastructure Monitoring & Analytics for Nation-building), for the mandated monitoring of Central Sector Infrastructure Projects worth ₹150 crore and above, replacing the erstwhile OCMS-2006 (Online Computerized Monitoring system). In line with the principle of “one data, one entry”, PAIMANA is integrated with DPIIT’s Integrated Project Monitoring Portal (IPMP/IIG-PMG) through APIs, enabling automatic data flow of the information reported by Central Ministries/ Departments on IPMP. This integration has substantially reduced manual data entry, with about 60 per cent of projects on PAIMANA being updated automatically, contributing towards the standardised, and efficient infrastructure project monitoring by the Government of India.

The PAIMANA portal functions as a centralised national repository of infrastructure projects, enabling web-generated analytical reports and enhancing data accuracy, and operational efficiency. Key features of the portal include advanced data analytics, role-based user access, interactive dashboards, reporting and query modules, and review cases for identification of data gaps, thereby supporting improved data quality and informed decision-making. The operationalisation of PAIMANA has been undertaken in extensive coordination with over 20 Central Ministries/Departments, DEA and DPIIT, encapsulating project mapping, data migration, analytics and validation.

The government has notified the Solid Waste Management (SWM) Rules, 2026, which will come into effect from 1st April this year. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change said that the revised rules will integrate the principles of circular economy and extended producer responsibility, with a specific focus on efficient waste segregation and management. It added that under the SWM rules 2026, four-stream segregation of solid waste at source has been made mandatory.

The new rules will also provide for the levy of environmental compensation based on the Polluter Pays principle for non-compliance, including cases of operating without registration, false reporting, and improper solid waste management practices. The Ministry further said that the rules will introduce graded criteria for development around solid waste processing and disposal facilities to facilitate faster land allocation.

India is about to get its first AI-enabled University. The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) has announced a collaboration with Google Cloud and Chaudhary Charan Singh University (CCSU), Meerut, on 28 January 2026 at the AI for Learning Forum in Delhi. This initiative aims to create a national framework for educational excellence.

The project is designed to bridge the digital divide by leveraging advanced Cloud and AI technologies to modernise the country's vocational ecosystem. Under the vision of Viksit Bharat 2047, the partnership seeks to empower millions of graduates and faculty members across the nation.

Chaudhary Charan Singh University has been designated as the national pilot institution to showcase how AI can enhance higher education and training in an AI-first era. The university will utilise the Gemini Enterprise platform to tackle administrative and pedagogical challenges.