The Government has selected five companies in the fourth round of the Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme for White Goods, with a committed investment of 863 crore rupees. The Ministry of Commerce and Industry stated that these five companies are engaged in the manufacturing of air conditioner (AC) components and are expected to achieve a total production of over 8 thousand 300 crore rupees and generate 1,799 additional direct jobs by the Financial Year 2027-28.

The Ministry said the five firms were picked provisionally after evaluation of 13 applications received in the fourth round under the PLI Scheme for White Goods. It is informed that with the latest round, a total of 85 companies have now been selected under the PLI Scheme for White Goods, covering air conditioners and LED lights. These firms are expected to make investments of 11 thousand 198 crore rupees and achieve a cumulative production of 1 lakh 90 thousand crore rupees over the scheme period.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab has rolled out the Mukh Mantri Sehat Yojana (MMSY), a universal healthcare scheme that provides cashless medical treatment of up to Rs 10 lakh per family per year. With no exclusions, the scheme aims to bring all residents of the state under a single healthcare coverage framework.

The Scheme
It applies to all bonafide residents of Punjab. Families possessing an Aadhaar card and Voter ID are eligible for enrolment, while children below the age of 18 are covered through the voter identity documents of their parents or guardians. Government employees, pensioners and individuals engaged on contractual, outsourcing or consultancy basis with Punjab government departments, boards, corporations, trusts and societies are also included. There is no income limit under the scheme.

The Cover
The state government has stated that the scheme will cover around 65 lakh families, benefiting nearly 3 crore people. Each eligible family is entitled to cashless medical treatment of up to Rs 10 lakh annually, doubling the earlier coverage limit of Rs 5 lakh that was available under previous health insurance arrangements.

The Goa government on Wednesday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Starlink Satellite Communications Private Limited.

The partnership with the Elon Musk-owned firm will focus on providing high-speed satellite broadband connectivity to select locations with limited or no terrestrial network coverage, including government schools, healthcare facilities and disaster management centres, state officials said.

The MoU was signed between the Department of Information Technology, Electronics and Communications (DITE&C) and Starlink in the presence of Chief Minister Pramod Sawant, IT, Electronics and Communications Minister Rohan Khaunte, and chief secretary V Candavelou, among other senior officials.

Former India defender Ilyas Pasha died on Thursday after a long illness, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) informed while expressing condolences. He was 61 and is survived by his wife, two daughters and two sons.

Pasha, a dedicated and soft-spoken footballer, built a notable career in defence, mainly playing as a right wing-back. He was known for his precise timing, calm attitude and sharp game awareness. His disciplined positioning and careful tackles made life difficult for opposing wingers, giving his goalkeepers added confidence.

At the international level, Pasha made his senior India debut on January 27, 1987, against Bulgaria in the Nehru Cup at Kozhikode. He earned eight international caps, featuring in two Nehru Cup tournaments (1987 and 1991), the 1991 SAF Games and the 1992 Asian Cup qualifiers.

A Pixxel-led consortium has formally signed an agreement with the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) to build and operate India’s national Earth Observation (EO) satellite constellation. The agreement was signed on Wednesday in Bengaluru, marking India’s first privately led national EO system under a public-private partnership framework.

Under the new arrangement, Pixxel will design, build, own, and operate the constellation on behalf of the government. The project is being positioned as a major shift in how national space infrastructure is developed - moving from fully state-built systems to privately executed and financed models.

Fintech major Razorpay's offline payments arm, Razorpay POS, on Thursday said it has secured licence from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to act as an offline payment aggregator.

With this authorisation, Razorpay now holds all three key RBI licences-online payment aggregator, cross-border payment aggregator (secured in December 2025), and offline payment aggregator, according to a company statement.

The PA-P licence will allow Razorpay POS to further scale its in-store payment infrastructure, supporting high-volume transactions for diverse sectors ranging from large retail chains to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

"For us, regulation isn't an afterthought; it's core to how we build. Securing the RBI's Offline Payment Aggregator License further strengthens our ability to support businesses with scalable, compliant in-store payments as they expand their omnichannel presence," Razorpay MD and Co-founder Shashank Kumar said.

The foundation stone for the country’s first integrated private satellite plant was laid at Khoraj in Sanand in Gujarat today, marking a significant milestone in India’s space technology sector. The groundbreaking ceremony for the Electro-Optical Payload Factory of Azista Space was performed in the presence of Gujarat’s Science and Technology Minister, Arjun Modhwadia, today. This facility, known as the ‘Palmnaro’ plant, is set to become a premier hub for the indigenous manufacturing of satellites and advanced optical payloads by the private sector.

Speaking at the event, Minister Arjunbhai Modhwadia remarked that Gujarat is successfully carrying forward the legacy of Dr. Vikram Sarabhai by evolving into a new national centre for space technology. He noted that the establishment of this plant will take the resolve of a self-reliant India to new heights. Once completed, the high-tech plant is expected to significantly boost India’s aerospace manufacturing ecosystem and generate high-skilled technical employment in the region.

As part of the 16th National Voters’ Day celebration, various awareness programmes were held in the district on Friday.

The National Voters’ Day is celebrated every January 25, the foundation day of the Election Commission of India. As part of the celebrations on Friday, various awareness programmes were conducted at Salem Government Arts College in Kumarasamipatti.

District Collector R. Brindha Devi presided over the celebrations and the Voters’ Day awareness pledge was taken by the students. The Collector viewed the logo drawn by the students.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today paid homage to freedom fighter Parbati Giri of Odisha on her birth centenary. In a social media post, Mr Modi said that she played a commendable role in the movement to end colonial rule. He said, Parbati Giri’s passion for community service and work in sectors like healthcare, women’s empowerment and culture is noteworthy. Last month, in his Mann Ki Baat programme on Akashvani, Prime Minister Modi had said that Parbati Giri participated in the Quit India Movement at the age of 16 and her inspiring life will continue to guide every generation.

A sightseeing helicopter carrying three people has gone missing near Mount Aso, one of Japan's most active volcanoes. As per BBC, the aircraft took off from a zoo in Aso City at 10:52 local time (01:52 GMT) on Tuesday for a 10-minute tour but never returned, local reports say, quoting police. An object resembling an aircraft was spotted by a police helicopter inside the crater of Nakadake, one of Mount Aso's five peaks, at around 16:00. Authorities have yet to confirm if it is the missing helicopter.

The helicopter had two Taiwanese passengers - a man in his 40s and a woman in her 30s- and a Japanese pilot on board. The missing helicopter's 64-year-old pilot was a seasoned veteran with 40 years of flying experience, local media reported. The Aso Volcano Museum noted that the weather was cloudy that morning, making it difficult to clearly see Nakadake.