The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has launched Mission SAKSHAM

♦ The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has launched Mission SAKSHAM for capacity building of the Urban Co-operative Banking sector. It aims to enhance managerial and operational capabilities, improve compliance culture, and strengthen institutional resilience across UCBs. Mission SAKSHAM is a mission-mode, sector-wide and all-India capacity-building training initiative for UCBs, under which the RBI will conduct a large number of training programmes, both in-person and through e-learning courses, covering about 1 crore 40 lakh participants.

♦ These programmes will target groups including board members, senior management, heads of risk, among others, and will also include content delivery in regional languages wherever feasible. Mission SAKSHAM aims to establish a sustainable, self-reinforcing ecosystem for systemic stability and the healthy growth and development of the UCB sector.

India and New Zealand signed a free trade agreement (FTA)

♦ India and New Zealand signed a free trade agreement (FTA) on 27 April 2026. The pact, which is likely to come into force later this year, will have to be ratified by the Parliament in New Zealand. New Zealand's trade minister Todd McClay and India's commerce minister Piyush Goyal signed the official document of the pact at Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi. 

♦ The agreement covers 20 chapters, including trade in goods, remedies, dispute settlement, legal provisions, and more.
Key points..

♦ Based on the fact sheet issued by both governments, New Zealand has committed to a $20 billion investment over the next 15 years.

♦ Another key feature of the FTA is that it eliminates 100 per cent of the duty on Indian exports to New Zealand.

♦ The FTA will also allow temporary employment for Indian professionals in New Zealand. Under the FTA, Opens Skilled Employment Pathways, at least 5,000 visas, called the 'Temporary Employment Entry Visa', will be guaranteed for Indian professionals in skilled occupations, with a stay of up to three years.

♦ Duty-free wine and spirits from India and wines from New Zealand will enter the domestic market at concessional duties, which will be gradually reduced over 10 years.

♦ Indian goods, including labour-intensive sectors such as textiles, plastic items, leather, and engineering goods, will enter New Zealand at zero duty.

♦ Meanwhile, India has opened 70.03 percent of its tariff lines to New Zealand, which covers 95 percent of current imports.

♦ The Oceanic country is expected to benefit from exports of its wool, wine, wood, coal and fruits such as avocados and blueberries.

♦ The FTA will also allow cooperation in agriculture and include a plan to support Indian farmers in growing kiwis and apples, as well as in the production of honey.

India and Maldives

♦ India has approved the first withdrawal of Rs.30 billion under its continuing economic and financial assistance to Maldives. The funds are being released under the first drawdown of the SAARC Currency Swap Framework, the Indian mission said in a statement. 

♦ The Indian High Commission in Male said the funds are being released as part of the first drawdown under the framework agreed between the Reserve Bank of India and the Maldives government during President Mohamed Muizzu’s state visit to New Delhi in October 2024.

Indias textile sector

♦ India’s textile sector recorded steady growth in global markets during FY 2025-26, with total exports rising by 2.1 percent to Rs.3,16,334.9 crore, according to the Ministry of Textiles. The increase from Rs.3,09,859.3 crore in FY 2024-25 reflects sustained international demand and the sector’s competitiveness across key product categories, including garments, yarn, fabrics, and handicrafts.

♦ Ready-made garments (RMG) continued to dominate India’s textile exports, growing by 2.9 percent to Rs.1,39,349.6 crore. Cotton yarn, fabrics, made-ups, and handloom products recorded relatively stable growth of 0.4 percent, reaching Rs.1,02,399.7 crore. Meanwhile, man-made textiles posted stronger gains, with exports rising 3.6 percent to Rs.42,687.8 crore.

♦ Among value-added segments, handicrafts (excluding handmade carpets) emerged as the fastest-growing category, registering a 6.1 percent increase to Rs.15,855.1 crore.

Startups

♦ The Centre on 2026, April 18 said it recognised more than 55,200 startups in 2025-26, the highest ever in a single year since the launch of the Startup India initiative in 2016. With this, the total number of recognised startups in the country has crossed 2.23 lakh as of March 31, 2026, collectively generating over 23.36 lakh direct jobs.

♦ According to the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, startup recognition grew by 51.6% year-on-year compared to FY25, while direct employment rose by 36.1% during the same period.

♦ In FY26 alone, startups created more than 4.99 lakh jobs, up from over 3.66 lakh in the previous year, reflecting continued expansion of the innovation ecosystem.

♦ Notably, nearly 48% of recognised startups – over 1.07 lakh – have at least one woman director or partner, indicating rising participation of women in entrepreneurship.

♦ The government highlighted expanded financial support through key schemes. Under the Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS), more than ₹7,000 crore has been disbursed to over 135 Alternative Investment Funds, which in turn invested over ₹26,900 crore in more than 1,420 startups. The Credit Guarantee Scheme for Startups has also been strengthened, with the guarantee cover per borrower doubled to ₹20 crore. By the end of FY26, over 410 loans worth more than ₹1,250 crore had been guaranteed.

♦ Under the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme, 219 incubators have been supported, approving funding of over ₹605 crore to more than 3,400 startups. Startup-led innovation has also driven intellectual property creation, with patent filings rising sharply from over 2,850 in FY25 to more than 4,480 in FY26.

Liebherr-Aerospace

♦ US-based aerospace maker Jeh Aerospace has signed a long-term agreement with France-based original equipment manufacturer (OEM) Liebherr-Aerospace on 15 Apeil 2026, for precision landing gear components for narrow-body commercial aircraft programmes. Under the agreement, Jeh Aerospace will manufacture and supply these components from its Hyderabad facility.

♦ The pact was formalised during a visit by senior Liebherr-Aerospace leadership, including Chief Operating Officer and Managing Director at Liebherr-Aerospace & Transportation SAS, Martin Wandel, to Jeh's Hyderabad facility.

Piyush Goyal

♦ Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said that filing of patent applications has increased by 30.2 percent to 1,43,729 in 2025-26 against 1,10,375 in the previous fiscal (2024-25). Over 69 per cent of patents have been filed domestically, led by innovators from Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Maharashtra. He noted that India is the world’s 6th largest patent filer, reflecting a confident India set to become a global innovation powerhouse. 

♦ Patent filings have been on a steady rise since 2016-17, when they stood at 45,444. The number increased to 47,894 in 2017-18, 50,660 in 2018-19, 56,268 in 2019-20, 58,503 in 2020-21, 66,440 in 2021-22, 82,208 in 2022-23, and 92,163 in 2023-24.

♦ Patent applications are granted only after substantive examination to ensure compliance with requirements such as novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability under the Patents Act, 1970. The examination follows a two-tier system, where applications are first examined and then reviewed by the controller. The Act also provides for pre-grant opposition by any person and post-grant opposition by any interested party, ensuring that only genuine and quality patents are granted.

Unified Payments Interface (UPI)

♦ Unified Payments Interface (UPI), the country’s most popular digital payment platform, closed the FY 26 processing transactions worth over Rs.308 lakh crore. In March 2026, UPI transaction value approached the Rs.30 lakh crore milestone amounting to an average of almost Rs.1 lakh crore daily, according to data available with the National Payments Corporation of India, which runs UPI.

♦ The full-year daily average transaction value stood at Rs.84,500 crore.

♦ The value of transactions grew by only 18.5 percent during the financial year, from Rs.260 lakh crore reported during FY 25. During the last financial year, UPI transaction value had recorded a 30 percent growth.

Reliance Retail

♦ Reliance Retail has been ranked seventh among the world’s 100 most valuable privately held, venture capital-backed companies, according to research by the Stanford Graduate School of Business. The rankings were published under Stanford's Venture Capital Initiative based on data up to January 2026.

♦ Reliance Retail has surpassed a post-money valuation of $100 billion, placing it in the elite "hectacorn" category of firms valued above this threshold, the study said. It is also the only retail-focused company in the top 7.

♦ India has three companies in the top 100 list. Alongside Reliance Retail, the National Stock Exchange of India ranks 27th with a valuation of $24 billion, while Tata EV Mobility is placed 93rd with a valuation of $9 billion.

♦ Together, these firms account for a combined valuation of $133 billion-still well below the $634 billion total valuation of Chinese companies on the list.

Reserve Bank of India

♦ The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on 8 April 2026 projected India’s real GDP growth at 7.6 percent for FY26 under a new GDP series, citing resilience driven by strong domestic demand, services activity and manufacturing expansion. For FY27, the central bank has estimated growth at 6.9 percent, indicating a likely moderation amid rising global uncertainties and cost pressures.

♦ Announcing the projections after the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting, RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra said global developments, including geopolitical tensions, continue to pose downside risks to growth.

♦ The RBI has slightly revised its quarterly projections for FY27.

♦ Growth for the first quarter has been lowered to 6.8 percent from 6.9 percent, while the second quarter estimate has been reduced to 6.7 percent from 7 percent, reflecting global headwinds and rising energy prices.

♦ On inflation, the RBI projected consumer price inflation at 4.6 percent for FY27. Quarterly estimates stand at 4 percent in Q1, 4.4 percent in Q2, 5.2 percent in Q3, and 4.7 percent in Q4.

Wind energy

♦ India has recorded its highest-ever annual wind energy capacity addition of 6.05 gigawatts (GW) in the financial year 2025–26, marking a significant milestone in the country’s renewable energy journey.

♦ The latest addition represents a sharp 46 percent increase compared to the previous financial year (2024-25), signalling a strong acceleration in onshore wind energy deployment. 

♦ With this, India’s cumulative installed wind power capacity has surpassed 56 GW, reinforcing its position among the world’s leading wind energy markets.

♦ Key states including Gujarat, Karnataka, and Maharashtra have played a major role in the capacity addition, supported by the expansion of wind-solar hybrid projects and green energy open access initiatives.

D-SII List

♦ The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has designated Life Insurance Corporation of India, The New India Assurance Company Limited and General Insurance Corporation of India as Domestic Systemically Important Insurers (D-SIIs) for FY 2025-26.

♦ The list of D-SIIs remains unchanged from the previous financial year.

♦ D-SIIs refer to insurers of such size, market importance, and domestic as well as global interconnectedness that their distress or failure could cause significant dislocation in the domestic financial system.

♦ Therefore, the continued functioning of these insurers is critical for the uninterrupted availability of insurance services to the national economy.

GST collections increased to Rs.1.78 lakh crore in March 2026

♦ India’s net Goods and Services Tax (GST) collections increased to Rs.1.78 lakh crore in March 2026, marking a rise of 8.2% compared to the previous month.

♦ Gross GST revenue for March stood at Rs.2 lakh crore, which is an 8.8% increase over the same month last year.

♦ Refunds during the month totalled Rs.0.22 lakh crore, up 13.8% on a year-on-year basis, which resulted in net GST collections of Rs.1.78 lakh crore.

♦ Domestic GST revenue reached Rs 1.46 lakh crore, registering a growth of 5.9%, while revenue from imports was recorded at Rs 0.54 lakh crore, rising sharply by 17.8% during the period.

♦ Maharashtra contributed the highest amount to the overall collections at Rs.0.13 lakh crore on a pre-settlement basis, followed by Karnataka and Gujarat.