Sahitya Akademi has announced the winners of the Sahitya Akademi Awards 2025 in 24 Indian languages today. The awards, recommended by distinguished Jury members, were approved by the Competent Authority of the Sahitya Akademi. The awards will be presented on the 31st of this month in New Delhi.

This year, eight poetry books, four novels, six short stories, and two essays will be conferred the Sahitya Akademi Awards 2025. Meanwhile, one literary criticism, one autobiography, and two memoirs have also been selected for the award. Prominent writer Mamta Kalia will be awarded for her Hindi memoir Jeete Jee Allahabad. While the noted diplomat Navtej Sarna will be awarded for his English novel Crimson Spring. The award will also be conferred to the Urdu Poetry titled Safar Jaari Hai by Pritpal Singh Betab. Meanwhile, other writers who will be awarded include Devabrat Das for his novel Karhi Khelar Sadhu in the Assamese language and Prasun Bandyopadhyay for his Bengali poetry Shrestha Kabita. An amount of one lakh rupees, along with an engraved copper plaque, will be presented to all the awardees.

The Government of Gujarat has launched an intensive statewide vaccination campaign to control the spread of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD), reinforcing its efforts to safeguard livestock health and protect farmers from potential economic losses. The drive, which began on March 1, will continue until April 15 and is being carried out under the National Animal Disease Control Programme (NADCP).

Foot and Mouth Disease is a highly contagious viral infection that affects cloven-hoofed animals such as cattle, buffaloes, sheep and goats. The disease typically causes fever, mouth ulcers and excessive salivation, often leading to a sharp decline in milk production and overall animal productivity. For dairy farmers, such outbreaks can result in significant financial losses.

India hosted the BIMSTEC Young Professionals Exchange Programme in Maharashtra from the 9th to the 15th of this month. The programme was aimed at promoting knowledge exchange, strengthening cooperation, and providing exposure to India’s rapidly growing innovation, start-up, knowledge, research and technology ecosystems. The Ministry of External Affairs stated that the programme brought together 30 young innovators, technology developers, entrepreneurs and other professionals from BIMSTEC member countries.

During the programme, the participants called on Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who highlighted the state’s vibrant knowledge, innovation and technology ecosystem and its potential as a platform for international partnerships. The Ministry said the initiative provided valuable exposure to the participating young professionals, enabling them to understand India’s development model and explore opportunities for collaboration and partnership.

The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has submitted India’s First National Report on the implementation of the Nagoya Protocol on Access Benefit Sharing to the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity. The Ministry said that the report covers the period from 1 November 2017 to 31 December of last year. This report highlights the country’s progress in implementing the Nagoya Protocol while contributing to Target 13 of India’s updated National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan. It said that in line with the Nagoya Protocol, India also monitors the utilisation of foreign-sourced biological resources and associated traditional knowledge.

The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has secured victory in all five Rajya Sabha seats from Bihar. The winning candidates include Nitin Nabin and Shivesh Ram from the Bharatiya Janata Party, Nitish Kumar and Ramnath Thakur from the Janata Dal (United), and Upendra Kushwaha from the Rashtriya Lok Morcha.

All the winning candidates secured the required number of votes to ensure their election to the Rajya Sabha. However, the formal announcement of the results is still awaited.

In this election, the Mahagathbandhan failed to secure a single seat. Amarendra Dhari Singh, the candidate of the Rashtriya Janata Dal, lost the election.

India has eased foreign direct investment (FDI) rules for companies linked to China and other neighbouring countries that share land borders with it, allowing limited investments without prior government approval.

Countries that share land borders with India include China, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and Afghanistan.

The decision was cleared by the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday.

Researchers at Pune-based CSIR-National Chemical Laboratory (CSIR-NCL) have identified dimethyl ether (DME) as a potential indigenous alternative to liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), amid concerns about supply disruptions linked to the West Asia crisis.

The laboratory told the media that its scientists have developed a patent-protected technology to produce DME using an indigenously developed catalyst that enables efficient conversion of methanol into the fuel.

Zydus Lifesciences on Saturday said its drug Desidustat, used to treat anaemia in patients suffering from Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD), has received marketing approval in China, opening up a large new market for the Ahmedabad-based drugmaker.

The approval has been granted by China’s drug regulator, the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA), for the treatment of renal anaemia in adult CKD patients who are not on dialysis. The drug has been licensed to a subsidiary of China Medical System Holdings, which will commercialise the therapy in the Chinese market. CMS International Development and Management Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of China Medical System Holdings, had obtained an exclusive licence for the drug from Zydus in 2020.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday commissioned the Haldia Bulk Terminal (HBT) and formally dedicated it to the nation.

Designed to handle dry bulk cargo at an annual capacity of 4 MMTPA, the terminal is a fully automated bulk facility on the Hooghly River with direct rail connections - a structural upgrade for bulk cargo movement through India's eastern maritime corridor.

"The Haldia Bulk Terminal is a next-generation facility that brings full mechanisation and direct rail evacuation to the Hooghly, setting a new benchmark for efficiency on India's eastern seaboard. By eliminating jetty dumping and lowering cargo loss through advanced automated systems, we are ensuring cleaner, safer and more sustainable operations. The terminal will play a pivotal role in strengthening industrial supply chains of West Bengal, Odisha and Jharkhand, while supporting the Prime Minister's vision of lowering logistics costs through modern multimodal infrastructure," said Ashwani Gupta, Whole-time Director and CEO, APSEZ.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched various development projects worth 23,550 crore rupees from Silchar in Assam today. Mr Modi performed the ‘Bhumi Pujan’ or ground breaking ceremony for three projects at Ambikapur in Silchar. These are, Silchar High-Speed Corridor at a projected cost of 22 thousand 8 hundred and 64 crore rupees, Silchar Town Flyover at a projected cost of approximately 565 crore rupees, and the Patharkandi Agricultural College at a projected cost of one hundred 22 crore rupees.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Modi said, southern Assam’s Barak Valley is emerging as a crucial bridge to connect India with Southeast Asia, while accusing the Congress of neglecting the region for decades after Independence. He said that North East is now leading India’s Act East Policy. Addressing the public gathering in Silchar, the Prime Minister said the Barak Valley once served as an important trade centre but lost its strategic advantage due to decisions taken during the Congress era. He alleged that despite ruling the country and the state for decades, the Congress failed to focus on the development of Barak Valley.