March 18, 2026
76 articles published on this date
LS clears Demands for Grants for various ministries, Rs 53-lakh crore approved
The Lok Sabha cleared the Demands for Grants for various ministries in respect of Union Budget 2026-27, with Speaker Om Birla applying the guillotine to pass...
ED can't claim 'fundamental right' to probe: West Bengal to SC
The West Bengal government argued before the Supreme Court that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) — as a department of the Central Government — cannot claim a...
U.S. national debt surges past $39 trillion just weeks into war in Iran
The United States national debt crossed a record $39 trillion in mid-March 2026, with analysts attributing part of the acceleration to military expenditures ...
U.S. intel official says Iran's regime still intact but refuses to discuss talks with Trump about war
A senior U.S. intelligence official stated publicly that Iran's governing regime remains structurally intact despite three weeks of sustained US-Israel milit...
Cabinet nod for Rs 33,660 crore plan to set up 100 industrial parks
The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved the Bharat Audyogik Vikas Yojna (BHAVYA) with a total outlay of ₹33,660 crore to develop...
QatarEnergy reports 'extensive damage' after missile attacks on Ras Laffan industrial city
Iran launched five ballistic missiles at Qatar; four were intercepted by air defences, but one struck Ras Laffan Industrial City — the world's largest LNG pr...
U.S. Fed holds rates unchanged over ‘uncertain’ Iran war implications
The US Federal Reserve voted to hold its benchmark federal funds rate unchanged at 3.5%–3.75% for the second consecutive meeting, citing "uncertain" implicat...
How Maharashtra Legislature cleared the Freedom of Religion Bill, and why most of the opposition parties did not oppose it
The Maharashtra Legislature cleared the Maharashtra Freedom of Religion Bill, 2026, making Maharashtra the 13th state in India to enact legislation against f...
India weighs joining European sixth-generation fighter jet programmes FCAS or GCAP
India is actively weighing the option of joining one of two European sixth-generation fighter jet programmes: France-Germany-Spain's Future Combat Air System...
Modi speaks to Kuwait Crown Prince; says safe, free navigation through Strait of Hormuz top priority
Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a telephonic conversation with Kuwait's Crown Prince Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Mubarak Al-Sabah amid the escalatin...
Pakistan’s long-range ballistic missiles could potentially target U.S.: Tulsi Gabbard
US Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard, presenting the 2026 Annual Threat Assessment to the Senate Intelligence Committee, warned that Paki...
Syria unveils plan to eliminate Assad’s chemical weapons
Syria's new government, under President Ahmed al-Sharaa (post-Assad, since December 2024), unveiled a plan — supported by Washington — to systematically elim...
Second edition of IOS SAGAR set to boost maritime cooperation in Indian Ocean Region
The second edition of the Indian Ocean Ship (IOS) SAGAR initiative commenced on March 16, 2026, reaffirming India's commitment to collaborative maritime secu...
2-3 drones sighted along India’s border every day: Parliament panel report
A parliamentary standing committee report, drawing on Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) data, reveals that 2-3 drones are sighted along India's borders every da...
China-bound Russian oil tanker diverted to India
The Russian Aframax tanker Aqua Titan, originally carrying 7.7 lakh barrels of Urals crude and headed to the Chinese port of Rizhao, reversed course in the S...
22 India-bound ships on Hormuz evacuation list
India has 22 ships stranded on the western side of the Strait of Hormuz, carrying over 5 lakh tonnes of LNG and LPG and 16.76 lakh tonnes of crude oil — asse...
Iran hits Gulf energy sites after attack on its gas field
Israel, in coordination with the United States, struck Iran's South Pars gas field — the world's largest natural gas field — targeting Phases 3, 4, 5, and 6;...
Are publication of books, manufacture of prasadam by temples an industrial activity, Supreme Court asks
A nine-judge Constitutional Bench of the Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant commenced hearing on March 17, 2026, and concluded arguments on Mar...
Tribal Affairs Minister meets Vietnam counterpart to discuss Memorandum of Cooperation
India's Tribal Affairs Minister met his Vietnamese counterpart to discuss a draft Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) focused on tribal and indigenous community ...
China Gains Edge From Trump’s War With Iran, Officials Say
China's military and strategic community have been studying the US-Israel campaign against Iran as a live-fire laboratory, scrutinising American offensive ca...
We have order for supplying 34 Dhruv, 180 Tejas Mk1A, 156 Prachand: HAL to Par panel on defence
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) informed a parliamentary standing committee on defence that it holds current orders for 34 Dhruv advanced light helicopte...
Parliament watch: Lok Sabha clears Rs 53 lakh crore spending via guillotine; no PLI payouts for solar firms, uranium projects await clearances
Lok Sabha passed the Demands for Grants for all ministries totalling over ₹53 lakh crore for Union Budget 2026-27 using the guillotine procedure on March 18,...
India extends domestic sourcing mandate to solar wafers, ingots for RE projects. How this aims at curbing Chinese imports
The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has extended the Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM) framework to include solar ingots and wafer...
El Nino to emerge with rising temperatures and uneven rainfall ahead: APEC Climate Center
The APEC Climate Centre (APCC) has warned that a drought-inducing El Niño is likely to emerge around July 2026, coinciding with the middle of India's monsoon...
Cabinet approves ₹33,660 crore BHAVYA scheme to develop 100 industrial parks
The Union Cabinet approved the Bharat Audyogik Vikas Yojna (BHAVYA), allocating ₹33,660 crore to develop 100 plug-and-play industrial parks across India over...
2 lakh MT LPG, 16.7 lakh MT crude stuck in India-flagged vessels in Strait of Hormuz: Officials
Official data confirmed that 22 Indian-flagged vessels are stranded on the western side of the Strait of Hormuz, collectively carrying over 1.7 million metri...
India’s Cabinet approves ₹1,718 crore MSP support to cotton farmers for 2023–24 season
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved MSP (Minimum Support Price) funding of ₹1,718.56 crore to...
Amid supply crunch, govt offers 10% additional commercial LPG to states. But there’s a condition
Facing a domestic LPG supply crunch caused by the Strait of Hormuz closure, the Indian government has offered states a 10% additional allocation of commercia...
Cabinet approves ₹2,584 crore small hydro power scheme to boost clean energy
The Union Cabinet approved the Small Hydro Power (SHP) Development Scheme for FY 2026-27 to 2030-31 with a central outlay of ₹2,584.60 crore, targeting appro...
India to stay focussed on food stockholding solution as WTO draft sidesteps key issues
Ahead of the 14th WTO Ministerial Conference (MC14) in Yaounde, Cameroon (March 26-29, 2026), a draft text on agriculture has sidestepped India's demand for ...
Indian crude oil tanker “Jag Laadki” docks at Mundra with UAE shipment
The Indian-flagged crude oil tanker MT Jag Laadki docked at Adani Ports Mundra (Gujarat) on March 18, 2026, carrying 80,886 metric tonnes of crude oil loaded...
Large Hadron Collider discovers a new particle
The LHCb (Large Hadron Collider beauty) experiment at CERN has discovered a new subatomic particle named "Xi-cc-plus" (Ξcc+), making it the 80th particle ide...
Fuel, fertilizer, and food: The long tail of Iran conflict for India
The ongoing West Asia conflict, triggered by US-Israeli strikes against Iran from late February 2026, has disrupted the Strait of Hormuz, through which rough...
India's semiconductor market to reach $300 billion by 2035: Deloitte report
A Deloitte report titled "Technology, Media, and Telecommunications Predictions 2026" projects India's semiconductor market will grow from approximately $45–...
Brothers & arms: The Taliban’s complicated relationship with Pakistan
Pakistan launched an airstrike on a drug rehabilitation centre in Kabul on March 16, 2026, which the Taliban government says killed over 400 people (the UN r...
One Nation, One Election could free 26 lakh teachers from poll duty—PM advisory council paper
A paper by the Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council (EAC-PM) argues that simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies would reduce tea...
Israel claims it killed Iran Intelligence Minister; Tehran vows revenge for strike on gas field
Israel confirmed the killing of Iran's Intelligence Minister Esmail Khatib on March 18, 2026 — one day after killing Iran's national security chief Ali Larij...
India’s first report on Nagoya Protocol highlights progress in ensuring access & benefit sharing
India submitted its first national report on the Nagoya Protocol to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) on February 27, 2026, covering the period No...
From ‘water terrorist’ to water laureate: Iran’s ‘eco-warrior’ in exile Kaveh Madani wins 2026 Stockholm Water Prize
Kaveh Madani, 44, Director of the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health (UNU-INWEH), was awarded the 2026 Stockholm Water Pri...
Cabinet approves Rs 33,600 crore BHAVYA scheme to develop plug and play industrial parks
The Union Cabinet approved the Bharat Audyogik Vikas Yojna (BHAVYA), allocating Rs 33,660 crore for developing 100 plug-and-play industrial parks across Indi...
Iran says nuclear doctrine unlikely to change, Hormuz Strait needs new protocol
Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi stated that the country's nuclear doctrine is "unlikely to change" despite the ongoing US-Israel conflict, signalling c...
Cabinet approves Rs 11,712 crore MSP support for cotton in 2023-24; 7.25 lakh farmers benefit
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved ₹1,718.56 crore as reimbursement to the Cotton Corporatio...
BHAVYA Scheme gets Cabinet nod: Govt approves plug-and-play industrial parks plan with Rs 33,660 cr outlay
The Union Cabinet approved the Bharat Audyogik Vikas Yojana (BHAVYA) scheme on March 18, 2026, with a financial outlay of Rs 33,660 crore over six years (FY2...
Cabinet nod to Rs 54,926 crore plans: BHAVYA parks, support for cotton farmers, UP highway, hydro push
The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister, approved a Rs 54,926 crore package of proposals in a single sitting on March 18, 2026. The biggest componen...
CCEA approves Rs 1,718.56 crore funding to CCI for cotton procurement operations
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) approved Rs 1,718.56 crore as funding support to the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) for MSP procurement o...
India's privatisation drive derails because of weak investor interest
India's privatisation programme has hit a significant setback, with three planned stake sales under consideration for shelving due to weak investor interest....
Cabinet nod to Rs 1,718 cr MSP funding to Cotton Corp
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved Rs 1,718.56 crore in MSP funding to the Cotton Corporatio...
'Kind people': Iran thanks India as it receives first medical aid shipment from New Delhi
India dispatched its first medical aid shipment to Iran on March 18, 2026 — Day 19 of the US-Israel war against Iran — comprising essential medicines, surgic...
6 Ukrainians held for 'terror plot', Kyiv seeks quick release
Six Ukrainian nationals — Hurba Petro, Slyviak Taras, Ivan Sukmanovskyi, Stefankiv Marian, Honcharuk Maksim, and Kaminskyi Viktor — were arrested by India's ...
67% of India's unemployed youth are graduates: Report
The State of Working India 2026 report, released by Azim Premji University, reveals that 67% of unemployed Indians aged 20–29 are graduates — up sharply from...
‘LPG (liberalisation, privatisation, globalisation) has hit industry’: SC
A nine-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice Surya Kant, is examining whether to revisit the 1978 Bangalore Water Supply & Sewe...
400 killed in Pakistan strike on Kabul hospital; India slams 'barbaric act'
On the night of March 16, 2026, Pakistan conducted airstrikes on targets in Kabul including the state-run Omid Hospital — a 2,000-bed drug rehabilitation cen...
Science & tech ministry approves setting up of quantum teaching facilities at 23 institutions
The Ministry of Science and Technology approved the establishment of quantum technology teaching facilities and undergraduate laboratories at 23 academic ins...
Govt plans to delink women's quota from delimitation exercise
The Central Government is actively consulting Opposition leaders on amending the Constitution (106th Amendment) Act, 2023 — the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam ...
Centre signs MoUs with MP, Rajasthan to implement Jal Jeevan Mission Phase 2
The Centre signed Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan for the implementation of Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) 2.0, following the U...
‘Violates federal character of Constitution’: Parliament panel spars over VBSA Bill that could redraw India’s higher education map
The 31-member Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) examining the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan (VBSA) Bill, 2025 has become divided, with Opposition member...
Explained: Supreme Court to decide what counts as an ‘industry’ under Indian labour law
A 9-judge Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant, began hearing arguments on March 17, 2026 to reconsider the correctnes...
Explained: The growing ambit of India’s online censorship mechanism
India's online content-blocking mechanism has expanded significantly beyond the centralised Section 69A pathway (Ministry-level blocking orders) to include a...
Protect constitutional right to self-identification of gender identity, urge committee
A committee — including members of the Tamil Nadu Trans and Intersex Welfare Board and civil society organisations — urged protection of the constitutional r...
3 lakh tonnes of LPG in 6 Indian ships stranded in Strait of Hormuz
Six Indian-flagged ships carrying approximately 3 lakh metric tonnes (MT) of LPG — equivalent to roughly 3 days of India's national cooking gas consumption —...
SC urges govt to bring in law on paternity leave
On March 17, 2026, a two-judge bench of the Supreme Court (Justices J.B. Pardiwala and R. Mahadevan) delivered judgment in *Hamsaanandini Nanduri v. Union of...
Terror group planned India hits, backed Myanmar rebels: Probe
India's National Investigation Agency (NIA) foiled a major conspiracy involving an alleged American mercenary (Matthew VanDyke) and six Ukrainian nationals, ...
Govt curbs import of diamond-studded gold, silver jewellery
The Indian government moved diamond-studded gold and silver jewellery to the "restricted" import category, requiring importers to obtain a prior licence from...
About 90 ships have crossed Strait of Hormuz so far as Iran exports millions of barrels of oil despite war
Despite the Strait of Hormuz effectively being shut to most commercial shipping following the US-Israel attack on Iran, approximately 90 ships have crossed t...
India's cheap weight-loss drugs could reshape global obesity fight
The patent on semaglutide — the active ingredient in blockbuster obesity and diabetes drugs Ozempic and Wegovy — expired in India on March 20, 2026, triggeri...
Iran-Israel war LIVE updates: Iran says U.S. forces' relocation out of military bases has led to urban-area strikes in Gulf
The Iranian Red Crescent Society received its first shipment of medical aid from India amid the ongoing US-Israel war on Iran, signalling India's humanitaria...
From the Strait of Hormuz to Malacca, global trade relies almost entirely on these five narrow waterways
The closure of the Strait of Hormuz following the US-Israel conflict with Iran has exposed the structural fragility of global trade, which depends overwhelmi...
U.S. military says hit Iran missile sites near Strait of Hormuz with 'bunker buster' bombs
On March 18, 2026, US military forces struck hardened Iranian anti-ship missile sites along Iran's coastline near the Strait of Hormuz using GBU-72 Advanced ...
Can the Strait of Hormuz blockade break the Internet?
For the first time in history, both the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea are simultaneously effectively closed to commercial maritime traffic, disrupting two...
US securities regulator issues long-awaited crypto guidance
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), under Chair Paul Atkins, issued its first comprehensive guidance clarifying how federal securities laws appl...
FM Sitharaman says ₹57,381 crore allocated for Economic Stabilisation Fund
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced that ₹57,381.84 crore has been allocated toward the Economic Stabilisation Fund (ESF), the first tranche of a p...
Mamata says ECI transferred officers by breaking convention. What former ECs say on the norm
Hours after announcing the assembly election schedule for West Bengal, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Assam, and Puducherry, the Election Commission of India (ECI) tran...
LPG crunch pushes PM POSHAN kitchens back to firewood, burdening women workers
Government schools running the PM POSHAN (mid-day meal) scheme across multiple states are reverting to firewood and alternative solid fuels for cooking, as a...
India joins push to cut remittance costs ahead of WTO ministerial meet
India is pushing for a multilateral framework to reduce cross-border remittance transaction costs at the 14th WTO Ministerial Conference (MC14) in Yaoundé, C...
Climate finance has failed Africa twice over — how to fix it
Africa faces a climate adaptation financing gap of catastrophic proportions: it receives less than $14 billion annually in adaptation funds against a need ex...
Watch: Why is Maharashtra’s Freedom of Religion Bill so controversial?
The Maharashtra Legislative Assembly passed the Freedom of Religion Bill, 2026 on March 16, 2026, making it one of the most stringent anti-conversion laws in...