NASA named three U.S. astronauts and an Italian astronaut on Tuesday (June 9, 2026) to serve as the crew for its next Artemis mission, a spacecraft docking demonstration in ‌Earth’s orbit next year that will test moon landers from Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin for the first time in space.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, at a ceremony in Houston, named U.S. astronauts Andre Douglas, Frank Rubio and ⁠Randy Bresnik and Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano of the European Space Agency as the crew for Artemis III. It is due to launch late next year, with no specific date yet announced.

“Artemis III is an incredibly exciting, complicated and highly coordinated multi-launch campaign,” Jeremy Parsons, NASA’s Artemis program manager, said at the Houston event. “It’s going to happen ‌in a short period of time with three of the world’s most powerful rockets.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has become the longest-serving elected Prime Minister of India today.

Mr Modi took the oath of office on 26th May 2014. He has surpassed the record of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, who first took the oath as an elected Prime Minister on 13th May 1952 and served until 27th May 1964. Pandit Nehru’s tenure as an elected Prime Minister amounted to four thousand 398 days. From 26th May 2014 to today, 10th June 2026, Prime Minister Modi’s continuous tenure is now four thousand 399 days, making him the longest-serving elected Prime Minister in India’s history.

The achievement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is particularly noteworthy given the scale and complexity of governance in India, a nation of over 1.4 billion people characterised by extraordinary diversity in language, culture, religion and geography.

Facebook parent Meta said on Wednesday it has tied up with Reliance Industries to build the US company’s first AI-powered data centre in India, a 168-megawatt facility located in Jamnagar.

Meta, which also owns Instagram and WhatsApp, will take this centre on lease, with an option to expand. It will cover the full cost of the energy and water for the facility.

“This investment is a significant milestone in Meta’s global infrastructure expansion and deepens our long-standing strategic partnership with Reliance — one that spans connectivity, commerce, and AI innovation in one of the world’s most dynamic digital markets,” said the company.

Uttar Pradesh government today launched ‘Project Ganga’ which will ensure last-mile digital connectivity in rural areas while expanding opportunities in digital education, telemedicine, e-governance, skill development, and technology-based employment.

Under Project Ganga, a comprehensive network of Digital Service Providers (DSPs) will be developed across the state. Through this initiative, the government aims to provide high-speed internet connectivity to approximately 20 lakh families, prepare 8 to 10 thousand Digital Service Providers, and generate more than one lakh direct and indirect employment opportunities. The project is being launched in 21 districts during its first phase in which Hinduja Group’s broadband arm OneOTT Intertainment Limited will contribute as ‘Knowledge Partner’ and ‘Implementation Enabler.

Launching the project in Lucknow, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said that Project Ganga is an important initiative towards realizing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of Digital India.

Shares of JSW Infrastructure gained nearly 5 percent on Tuesday after the company secured a major port infrastructure project from the Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port Authority (SMPA).

JSW Infrastructure shares were trading at Rs 281 on the NSE, up 4.67 percent.

In an exchange filing, the company said it has received a Letter of Award (LoA) from SMPA for the integrated development of the Outer Container Terminal comprising two berths and five berths at Netaji Subhas Dock (NSD) under the Kolkata Dock System.

A US Navy drone boat, which was used to rescue the pilot and co-pilot of an Apache helicopter that was shot down by Iranian forces near the Strait of Hormuz, was developed by a Texas-based company co-founded by Indian-American Vibhav Altekar. The rescue mission was a first of its kind, where the US military used an autonomous surface vessel, remotely piloted by a human operator, to recover personnel at sea.

The US Armed Forces have been using the drone boat Corsair, developed by Saronic Technologies, for quite some time. The 24-foot-long Corsair runs on diesel fuel and can travel at speeds of up to 35 knots and has a range of more than 1,000 nautical miles. It is reportedly powered by artificial intelligence (AI) and can carry a load of up to 1,000 pounds.

The boat is part of the US Navy's Task Force 59 -- which oversees uncrewed vessels and other drones powered by AI -- under the Pentagon's push to expand unmanned vehicles alongside traditional assets.

The Centre's ambitious Rs 81,000-crore Great Nicobar Island (GNI) development project is being driven by strategic and economic imperatives in the Indo-Pacific, with a new civilian-cum-naval airport planned as a key component after authorities reportedly concluded that expanding the existing INS Baaz naval air station was not a viable option.

The clarification comes amid growing political and environmental scrutiny of the mega project, including criticism from Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who recently alleged that the development plan was aimed at benefiting private business interests rather than serving national objectives.

According to defence ministry sources quoted by PTI and ANI, the Centre evaluated multiple options, including expansion of INS Baaz at Campbell Bay, before deciding to build a greenfield airport near Galathea Bay as part of the broader development plan.

India retained its position as the world's fifth-largest military spender and the second-largest importer of major arms, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). This, once again, reflects New Delhi's continued push to modernise its armed forces amid a rapidly evolving global security environment.

The findings, published in SIPRI Yearbook 2026, state that India's military expenditure reached $92.1 billion in 2025, marking an 8.9 percent jump from the previous year. The report, released on June 8, places India behind only the U.S., China, Russia and Germany in defence spending.

Notably, the latest assessment comes months after the Centre announced a record defence allocation of around $85 billion in the Union Budget, with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh describing the increase as "unprecedented" and necessary to equip the armed forces with fighter jets, drones, submarines, warships and other critical military platforms.

President Droupadi Murmu will present the coveted Padma awards to noted personalities, including actors and R. Madhavan, as well as Satish Shah, whose kin will receive it posthumously, during the second round of the civil investiture ceremony on June 23, officials said on Monday (June 8, 2026).

The President has approved the conferment of 131 Padma awards this year – five Padma Vibhushans, 13 Padma Bhushans and 113 Padma Shri. At the ceremony on May 25, she had conferred two Padma Vibhushans, six Padma Bhushans and 58 Padma Shris.

President Droupadi Murmu conferred Gallantry Awards to the personnel of the Armed Forces, Central Armed Police Forces, and State and Union Territory Police during the Defence Investiture Ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhawan this evening. Vice President C P Radhaskrishnan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, along with other Union Ministers and senior officials of the armed forces, were also present on the occasion.

The President conferred seven Kirti Chakras, 15 Vir Chakras and 29 Shaurya Chakras to the personnel of the Defence Forces, Central Armed Police Forces and State and Union Territory Police during the Ceremony. Inspector Laxman Kewat and Inspector Rameswar Prasad Deshmukh of Chhattisgarh Police were honoured with the Shaurya Chakra for their exceptional courage during anti-naxal operations in the state.

Major Aditya Pratap Singh was given Shaurya Chakra for exceptional bravery in foiling a major attack by insurgents in Arunachal Pradesh. Lance Naik Meenatchi Sundaram A was awarded Kirti Chakra for his indomitable spirit and exceptional bravery, wherein, despite being severely injured, he neutralised one hardcore terrorist in Jammu and Kashmir.