United States Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday (local time) announced that SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk will co-lead a new War Department effort to study the future of warfare, Fox News reported.

Making the announcement during his 'State of the Force' address, Hegseth unveiled the initiative, titled "Project Meridian."

According to Fox News, the high-level advisory panel will be co-led by Elon Musk alongside defence-tech czar Palmer Luckey and former US House Speaker Newt Gingrich.

The project will operate under the supervision of the department's Chief Technology Officer, Emil Michael.

In a comprehensive move to insulate the nation's defense infrastructure against hostile cyberattacks, sabotage, and geopolitical disruptions, the United States Department of War has launched "FORTRESS America," an initiative framed as a “national insurance policy” for the homeland.

Announcing the directive, US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth on Wednesday (local time) stated that the initiative, standing for Federal Operations for Resilience, Troop Resources, Energy, Supply, and Survivability (FORTRESS), aims to make domestic military installations completely resilient to external shocks.

Under the framework, American military bases will be decoupled from the civilian power grid to ensure uninterrupted operations during national emergencies or adversary attacks.

Karnataka government has notified Textile & Apparel Policy (4.0) 2026-31, targeting Rs 20,000 crore in domestic and foreign investment and five lakh new jobs in the state's textile and apparel sector over the next five years.

The government has proposed a Rs 4,000 crore financial outlay for implementing the policy.

The policy aims to position Karnataka as a globally competitive textile and apparel manufacturing hub by promoting investments, technological upgrades, technical textiles, exports, skill development and sustainable manufacturing.

Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Bhupender Yadav today launched the Guidelines for the implementation of the National Coastal Mission (NCM) 2.0, in New Delhi.

The Central Sector Scheme, with an approved outlay of 767 crore rupees, will be implemented until 2030-31 across nine coastal states and four Union Territories of the country. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change said the scheme aims to strengthen the resilience and sustainability of India’s coastal regions and unlock the potential of the blue economy.

Launching the guidelines, Mr. Yadav said the Mission will strengthen coastal resilience through vulnerability assessments, ecosystem restoration, pollution management, biodiversity conservation, sustainable tourism, spatial planning, research and capacity building. He added that the Mission will also promote ease of doing business through a clear and streamlined implementation framework.

SatLeo Labs, an Ahmedabad-based spacetech startup, will launch its indigenous thermal infrared Earth-observation payload TAPAS-1 aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on October 1, marking the company’s entry into the commercial satellite-data market, the state government said on Wednesday.

Weighing about 3 kg, TAPAS-1 will be deployed at an altitude of around 500 km and capture thermal infrared images that map heat and temperature variations on the Earth’s surface—information not available through conventional optical satellite imagery.

The data is expected to find applications in agriculture and water-stress monitoring, urban heat management, infrastructure and industrial monitoring, defence and forest-fire detection.

Indian Navy will host second edition of commanders’ conference 2026 in New Delhi from today. Ministry of Defence said that the three day conference will provide an avenue for senior naval leadership, including outstation Operational and Area Commanders. It will undertake a comprehensive review of operational preparedness at the military-strategic level and engage with senior government functionaries through an institutionalised mechanism.

The Ministry said that the conference will be pivotal in underscoring Indian Navy’s contribution towards safeguarding India’s maritime interests, including Security of Energy amidst the ongoing conflicts in West Asia. On the Opening Day of the conference, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will share his vision and guidance on national maritime perspectives and expectations from Indian Navy. The Chief of the Defence Staff and the Chief of the Army Staff will also engage with Naval Commanders to foster tri-Services synergy and integration.

Uttarakhand has launched an initiative to strengthen monitoring of high-altitude glacial lakes, with a scientific team setting out to install the state’s first glacial lake early warning system at Vasundhara Tal in Chamoli district.

The fortnight-long expedition, scheduled to continue until October 15, will install equipment to monitor conditions that could signal a glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF).

Chief Secretary Anand Bardhan flagged off the team from the state secretariat on Tuesday.

“This initiative will be a milestone in understanding the risks and reducing the threat of glacial lake outburst floods in the years ahead,” Bardhan said. Advanced sensors, satellite communications and real-time data monitoring would help scientists track changes in the lake, he added.

The traditional musical instrument Mandar, deeply rooted in the folk culture and tribal life of Jharkhand, has received official recognition with a Geographical Indication tag.

The traditional folk instrument Mandar of Jharkhand has been accorded a GI tag, giving legal recognition to its distinctive geographical and cultural identity. The Geographical Indications Registry of the Government of India, based in Chennai, has granted the GI tag to ‘Mandar of Jharkhand’.

The application for the GI tag was filed on 24th September 2021. Its traditional craftsmanship, use of locally sourced red clay, indigenous manufacturing techniques and distinctive sound were cited as key features supporting the application.

The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) on Tuesday announced five initiatives to make Aadhaar-related services more accessible and improve the ease of digital governance.

The announcements were made at ‘Aadhaar Samvaad’ in Kolkata, held alongside the 17th Aadhaar Day. The initiatives include face authentication for the electronic public distribution system (ePDS), a new token management system, a framework to facilitate Aadhaar authentication for low-volume users, and a revamped UIDAI website.

UIDAI, the Department of Food and Public Distribution (DFPD) and the National Informatics Centre (NIC) have introduced face authentication as an additional option for beneficiaries using the electronic public distribution system (ePDS).

Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation have signed an agreement for development and strengthening of the Statistical Business Register. The Statistical Business Register is a central and regularly updated database of registered statistical units engaged in economic activities within a defined geographical territory. The agreement sets the terms and understanding between them in relation to the sharing of unit-wise data of the Udyam Registration available with MSME Department. It will facilitate a structured framework for sharing relevant information from the Udyam Registration ecosystem of the Ministries. The information will contribute to improving the coverage, consistency and reliability of business information used for statistical purposes.