Business & Appointments
Adobe names Anil Chakravarthy as next CEO
- Adobe has appointed Anil Chakravarthy as its next President and CEO, effective 1 December 2026.
- He succeeds Shantanu Narayen, who led Adobe for 18 years and will now become Executive Chair.
- Before Adobe, Chakravarthy served as CEO of Informatica.
Sachin Tendulkar becomes brand ambassador for Kissht
- Kissht, an RBI-registered NBFC (Non-Banking Financial Company), signed cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar as its brand ambassador for 3 years.
- New campaign: "Loans Without Any Hiccups."
Governance
Government forms 31-member JPC on Foreign Contribution Bill
- A Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) has been constituted to examine the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026.
- Headed by Lok Sabha MP Sanjay Jaiswal.
'Districts as Export Hubs' initiative expanded
- DEH (Districts as Export Hubs) is run by the Department of Commerce, implemented through DGFT (Directorate General of Foreign Trade).
- Goal: turn every district into an export hub by identifying local products/services and connecting producers to global markets — building on the ODOP (One District One Product) concept.
- As of January 2026, DEH covers 770+ districts across India.
Economy
India's sovereign credit rating upgraded to 'A-' by Japan's JCR
A meaningful vote of confidence from a global rating agency — signalling India is seen as a safer bet for lenders than before.
| PointDetail | |
| Upgrade | JCR (Japan Credit Rating Agency) raised India's rating one notch, from 'BBB+' to 'A-' |
| Outlook | Stable |
| Country ceiling | Also raised, from 'A-' to 'A' |
| Key reasons cited | Strong GDP growth (7.8% in FY 2025-26, and again in Q1 FY 2026-27); reforms like GST and Digital Public Infrastructure; fiscal deficit down from 4.7% of GDP (FY 2024-25) to 4.4% (FY 2025-26); stronger banking system |
Banking & Fintech
PhonePe launches UPI 123Pay for feature phones
- Lets users make UPI payments without a smartphone or internet connection, using an SMS-based system that works even with limited 2G connectivity.
- Makes PhonePe the first major TPAP (Third-Party Application Provider) to bring UPI to India's 200 million+ feature phone users.
Axis Bank and Scapia launch a no-fee travel credit card
- "Scapia Axis Bank Credit Card" — available on both Mastercard and RuPay networks.
- No joining fee, no annual fee.
Technology
IIT Madras' Bodhan AI launches 4 Indian-language AI models
- Bodhan AI (a Centre of Excellence for AI in Education at IIT Madras) built these with AI4Bharat, a research lab focused on Indian-language AI.
- The 4 models: Speech Recognition, Speech Generation, Machine Translation, and OCR (Optical Character Recognition) — together supporting around 27 Indian languages.
- Also launched: a Student TutorBot (personalised learning for Classes 6-12, 22 languages) and a Teacher Assistant Bot (helps create and assess classroom content).
Tea Board India launches 'CHAAYANKAN' for AI-based plantation monitoring
- A tripartite MoU between Tea Board India, ISRO's NRSC (National Remote Sensing Centre), and NIT Rourkela.
- CHAAYANKAN uses AI-based geospatial data analytics to monitor tea plantations; project runs till March 2029.
International
Türkiye becomes 71st country to join the Artemis Accords
- Artemis Accords, established in 2020 by NASA and the US Department of State, set common principles for civil exploration of the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
- India joined in June 2023, as the 27th signatory.
Defence
INS Sudarshini reaches Barcelona during 'Lokayan 26' expedition
- INS Sudarshini, the Navy's sail training ship, is on a 10-month, 22,000+ nautical mile transoceanic voyage — flagged off from Kochi, visiting 18 foreign ports across 13 countries and 4 continents.
Sports
Argentina wins Women's Hockey World Cup 2026
- The 16th FIH Hockey Women's World Cup was held in Belgium and the Netherlands.
- Argentina beat defending champions Netherlands in the final — their 3rd Women's Hockey World Cup title.
- Belgium beat Australia 1-0 for bronze.
National Centre of Excellence for Swimming to come up in Guwahati
- A tripartite agreement between SAI (Sports Authority of India), BAI (Badminton Association of India), and SAA (Sports Authority of Assam) will set up an NCoE (National Centre of Excellence) for swimming, at Amingaon Sports Complex, Guwahati.
Important Day
National Teachers' Day — 5 September Marks the birth anniversary of Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan — India's first Vice-President (1952-1962) and second President (1962-1967).