Gross GST collections rose by 9.1% to about ₹1.84 lakh crore in February, official data showed on Saturday.

Gross Goods and Services Tax (GST) revenue includes a 10.2% jump in domestic revenues at ₹1.42 lakh crore and 5.4% rise in revenues from imports to Rs 41,702 crore during February.

As per the data, during the month, mop up from Central GST stood at ₹35,204 crore, State GST at ₹43,704 crore, Integrated GST at ₹90,870 crore and compensation cess of ₹13,868 crore.

Images from ISRO’s Aditya-L1—India’s first mission to the Sun—reveal a solar flare ‘kernel’ in the lower layers of the atmosphere, according to an analysis. This provides new insights into the star’s explosive activities.

Solar flares, seen as bright areas on the Sun, are giant explosions that send energy, light, and high-speed particles into space. These particles can impact space weather and potentially disrupt radio communications and satellite operations.

Researchers from the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA) in Pune said that on February 22, 2024, the Solar Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (SUIT) instrument onboard Aditya-L1 captured an image of the X6.3-class solar flare, one of the most intense solar eruptions.

Lead scientist Durgesh Tripathi, senior professor at IUCAA and principal investigator of SUIT, said the observations, captured in unprecedented detail, unveiled secrets hidden in the near ultraviolet wavelength for the first time.

Economic Affairs Secretary Ajay Seth was on Saturday (March 1, 2025) given additional charge of the post of Secretary, Department of Revenue, according to a Personnel Ministry order.

The vacancy was necessitated following the appointment of Revenue Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey as the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on February 27.

Mr. Pandey on Saturday (March 1, 2025) assumed charge as the chief of the Mumbai-based capital markets regulator.

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In Table Tennis, India made a stunning sweep in the WTT Youth Contender event held in Vadodara, claiming 22 out of the 24 available titles. In the Under 19 Boys’ category, Ankur Bhattacharjee delivered a flawless performance, defeating Abhinandh Pradhivadhi 3-NIL. Bhattacharjee won the category without dropping a single set, proving why he was the favourite to win the event from the start.

On the girls’ side, India’s Divyanshi Bhowmick achieved a remarkable feat by securing the most medals of any Indian player at the event. Bhowmick earned two golds in the Under 15 and 17 girls’ singles events, along with a silver medal in the Under 15 mixed doubles.

The event marked a historic milestone as the first-ever WTT Youth Contender held in India.

Rithvik Bollipalli in partnership with Nicolas Barrientos of Colombia outplayed top seeds Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni of Argentina 6-3, 6-2 in the doubles final of the $710,735 ATP tennis tournament on clay in Santiago, Chile.

It was the 14th career doubles title for the 24-year-old Rithvik, ranked 74 in the world. He had won four titles last year.

The champion team won 250 ATP points and $35,980. The runners-up got 150 points and $19,330.

In Tennis, India’s Yuki Bhambri and his partner Alexei Popyrin of Australia clinched the doubles title at the Dubai Tennis Championships. The unseeded, Indian-Australian duo defeated the second-seeded pair of Harri Heliovaara of Finland and Great Britain’s Henry Patten in the men’s doubles summit clash 3-6, 7-6, 10-8 in Dubai last night.

This was India’s first ATP title of the season. Meanwhile, it marked Yuki’s fourth career ATP doubles title and his first-ever triumph in an ATP 500 tournament. His previous three all came in the 250 level. Earlier, Bhambri and Popyrin reached the summit clash by defeating the British-Australian duo of Jamie Murray and John Peers in the semifinals.

Dr Mayank Sharma assumed the office of Controller General of Defence Accounts (CGDA) on March 01, 2025. He is a 1989-batch officer of the Indian Defence Accounts Service (IDAS) and has had a distinguished career in the government spanning more than three decades.

Dr Mayank Sharma has served in various capacities within the Government of India, including the Defence Accounts Department. He has also held key positions in the Cabinet Secretariat and represented India as the Alternate Permanent Representative at the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), UN Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, and the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law.

Additionally, the IDAS officer has represented India at the International Anti-Corruption Academy and the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna. As the Head of the Consular Division at the Indian Embassy in Vienna, he was responsible for all consular affairs and handled high-level Indian delegations at UNODC.

The Jharkhand economy is expected to grow by 7.5% in the 2025-26 fiscal, up from the current year’s estimation of 6.5%, according to the state economic survey tabled in the assembly on Friday. The survey claimed that the economic growth rate of Jharkhand exceeded that of the country in the years following the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Between the years 2020-21 and 2023-24, Jharkhand grew at an average annual rate of 9.1%, while the country grew at an average annual rate of 8.3%,” it said.

The survey, tabled in the assembly by Finance Minister Radha Krishna Kishore, gave a positive indication of the state’s intention to make Jharkhand a ₹10-trillion economy (₹10 lakh crore) by 2029-30.

India retains the fastest-growing major economy tag as the country’s GDP grew by 6.2 percent in the third quarter of FY25, up from the revised rate of 5.6 percent in the previous quarter. India recorded a GDP growth of 8.6 percent in the third quarter of the last fiscal year. The increase in the third-quarter GDP number was supported by higher rural consumption following a good monsoon and increased government spending.

As per the First Revised Estimates released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI), real GDP is estimated to grow by 6.5 percent in FY 2024-25, and nominal GDP is expected to witness a growth rate of 9.9 percent in the fiscal year. MoSPI data also highlighted that India’s real GDP grew by 9.2 percent in the financial year 2023-24, the highest annual growth in 12 years, excluding the post-pandemic rebound in FY22. This growth was attributed to double-digit growth in the ‘Manufacturing’ sector (12.3 percent), the ‘Construction’ sector (10.4 percent), and the ‘Financial, Real Estate & Professional Services’ sector (10.3 percent).