Raveena Tandon named PETA India Person of the Year
[People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)]
Key Updates:
- Raveena Tandon was named People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals India (PETA India) 2025 Person of the Year.
- She partnered with PETA India to gift a life-sized mechanical elephant to Karnataka’s Thousand Pillars Jain Temple.
- Tandon promoted PETA India’s Compassionate Citizen programme to foster empathy in young learners.
- She personally rescued a 2-month-old kitten from Mumbai streets and starred in a PETA India campaign against buying animals from breeders or pet stores.
- Tandon urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to protect panthers losing habitat to a freight corridor project and called for action after humans strangled a leopard.
- She joined PETA India to highlight the suffering of snakes, alligators, and other animals killed for skin and publicly asked Burger King to open a fully vegan location in India or offer vegan Whoppers.
Similar / Past Coverage
- Anant Ambani became the youngest and first Asian recipient of the Global Humanitarian Award for Animal Welfare presented by the Global Humane Society.
- The award ceremony took place in Washington, DC, and recognized his leadership in creating Vantara, a large-scale conservation initiative.
- Vantara received the Global Humane Certified distinction after an exhaustive audit evaluating animal nutrition, environmental quality, behavioural enrichment, medical protocols, staffing expertise, and species-specific needs.
- Vantara combines ex situ care with in situ conservation support, including protecting endangered species, restoring fragmented populations, conducting genetic research, and collaborating with global institutions.
- The initiative aims to create pathways for reintroducing endangered or extinct species back into suitable habitats and is positioned to deepen international collaborations and expand species survival and ecosystem restoration work.
- Velamala Simmanna has been chosen for this year’s Lok Nayak Foundation’s literary award.
- The award carries ₹2 lakh in cash and will be presented on January 18, 2026.
- LNF literary awards are presented to eminent persons who have contributed to the promotion of Telugu language and literature.
- The awards are presented every year on January 18 to commemorate the death anniversaries of former Chief Minister N. T. Rama Rao and noted poet Harivansh Rai Bachchan.
- Thota Tharani has been conferred the French government’s prestigious Chevalier Award
- He is a Padma Shri awardee and has won two National Film Awards, two Tamil Nadu State Film Awards, three Nandi Awards and a Kerala State Film Award
- The award will be conferred by the French Ambassador at Alliance Française of Madras, Chennai
- Chef Vijay Kumar was named the Global Indian of the Year at CNN-News18’s Indian of the Year Awards 2025.
- He won the James Beard Foundation title of Best Chef: New York State weeks before this honour.
- Kumar hails from the farming village of Natham in Tamil Nadu and now leads a cultural shift in Manhattan’s West Village with his Tamil and South Indian cuisine.
Consumer Unity & Trust Society (CUTS) launches TRaNJA initiative to reshape WTO and global trade
[World Trade Organization (WTO)]
Key Updates:
- Consumer Unity & Trust Society (CUTS) International launched the global initiative “Trade Not Just Aid: Winners and Losers in the WTO” (TRaNJA).
- The TRaNJA steering committee is co-chaired by Shashi Tharoor, MP and former foreign minister of India, and Pascal Lamy, former Director-General of the WTO.
- The 21-member steering committee includes experts from all corners of the world.
- The launch event was organised by Konrad Adenauer Stiftung and held in Tokyo, Japan, on 2-4 December, 2025, with nearly 30 experts from 16 countries participating.
- CUTS Secretary General Pradeep S. Mehta stated that around 70% of world trade still occurs on non-discriminatory MFN terms agreed at the WTO.
- Mehta highlighted that the predictability and stability provided by the WTO system has raised world trade volumes by over 45 times the level of trade in the 1950s.
Similar / Past Coverage
- The Trade Intelligence & Analytics (TIA) portal was launched by Union commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal.
- The portal aims to empower Indian businesses to understand global trade patterns, spot emerging opportunities, and make informed decisions.
- It will open up new insights for importers, exporters, startups, and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
- Smaller businesses, even in the remotest regions, will now have access to data that was previously available only to larger enterprises.
- The Department of Commerce initiated the development of the TIA portal in March 2024.
- The portal offers more than 270 interactive visualisations across over 28 dashboards.
- Database collation has been automated via APIs for convenient user access, and a seamless data extraction capability has been developed.
- The TIA portal replaces legacy trade information dissemination portals such as the Department of Commerce Monitoring Dashboard, Niryat Portal, and Tradestat Portal.
- Brazil, the host country for the 30th Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP30), is lobbying for financing the conservation of standing forests and has proposed a global mechanism called the Tropical Forest Forever Facility (TFFF).
- The TFFF aims to establish a blended finance fund that would achieve the target of mobilising financial resources worth $125 billion through long-term debt and reserves.
- The fund would be used to pay tropical forest countries (TFC) a fixed amount of money per hectare of standing forest, with provision for a deduction based on deforestation and forest degradation.
- TFCs would need to allocate greater than or equal to 20 per cent of the payment to indigenous peoples and local communities (IPLC).
- The policy is envisaged to complement the REDD+ mechanism rather than replace it, meaning it will not generate carbon credits nor will it finance individual projects.
- The strategy behind the financing rests primarily on the Tropical Forest Investment Fund (TFIF), which would be a tool to mobilise finances from multiple investors and then invest the capital base back in financial assets such as bonds.
- The capital raised would then be housed under a multilateral development bank (MDB) such as the World Bank.
- In principle, TFFF has mentioned that investments in fossil fuel-based companies would not be allocated.
- India Global Forum (IGF) announces a first-of-its-kind $250 million fund anchored by Ved Family Office and Ananta Capital.
- The fund targets Indian consumer and industrial brands for expansion into Middle East, Africa, Europe and beyond.
- IGF partners with DP World to provide participating companies access to world-class logistics and market-entry support.
- The agreement is named the Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA). "The two sides signed the Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA) on March 10, 2024."
- The pact is between India and the four-European nation bloc EFTA. "The free trade agreement between India and four-European nation bloc EFTA..."
- The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) members are Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland. "The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) members are Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland."
- The agreement will come into force from October 1. "The free trade agreement between India and four-European nation bloc EFTA, which will come into force from October 1..."
- The two sides signed the agreement on March 10, 2024. "The two sides signed the Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA) on March 10, 2024."
- India has received an investment commitment of $100 billion in 15 years from the grouping. "Under the pact, India has received an investment commitment of $100 billion in 15 years from the grouping..."
- The investment commitment would facilitate the creation of one million direct jobs in India. "...which would facilitate the creation of one million direct jobs in India."
- India is allowing several products such as Swiss watches, chocolates and cut and polished diamonds at lower or zero duties. "...allowing several products such as Swiss watches, chocolates and cut and polished diamonds at lower or zero duties."
- India grants Switzerland improved market access for 94.7 per cent of existing exports (2018-2023, excluding gold). "India grants Switzerland improved market access for 94.7 per cent of existing exports (2018-2023, excluding gold)."
- For the first time, India has laid down legally binding provisions on trade and sustainable development in a free trade agreement. "For the first time, India has laid down legally binding provisions on trade and sustainable development in a free trade agreement."
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issues final guidelines averting restructuring for 12 bank groups
[Reserve Bank of India (RBI)]
Key Updates:
- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) final guidelines allow banks and their group entities to continue overlapping lending activities, preventing restructuring for 12 large bank groups.
- The draft guidelines would have impacted 12 bank groups, accounting for ~55% of sectoral advances, and 2-6% of consolidated advances of individual banks.
- The final framework permits overlapping lending operations subject to board approval.
- Of the 26 bank group entities with lending operations, only two currently qualify as upper-layer Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs).
- The remaining bank group entities must adopt upper-layer norms (excluding listing requirements) by March 31, 2028.
- The guidelines impose a 20% ceiling on a bank group’s shareholding in an Asset Reconstruction Company (ARC).
- There are currently 13 ARCs in which one or more banks hold stakes.
- In all but two of these ARCs, shareholding by any single bank is less than 20%.
- Banks with shareholding exceeding the 20% limit in ARCs will have to partially divest by March 2028.
Similar / Past Coverage
- India Inc’s M&A deal value in H1 2025 stood at USD 50.5 billion, according to EY data cited in the article.
- Under the draft RBI norms, Indian banks can extend acquisition-finance ECBs only up to 10% of their Tier-1 capital; lenders are asking for this ceiling to be raised to 20%-40% of net worth.
- At the current 10% limit, domestic banks have less than USD 30 billion (about Rs 2.5 lakh crore) available for acquisition financing.
- The Reserve Bank of India has constituted a Regulatory Review Cell (RRC) in the Department of Regulation with effect from 1 October 2025.
- The RRC will ensure every RBI regulation undergoes a comprehensive internal review every five to seven years.
- An independent Advisory Group on Regulation (AGR) has been formed concurrently, with an initial tenure of three years renewable by a further two years.
- Rana Ashutosh Kumar Singh, Managing Director of State Bank of India, is appointed Chairman of the AGR.
- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) imposed monetary penalties on three cooperative banks for non-compliance with various regulatory norms.
- By orders dated November 6, 2025, the RBI imposed a penalty of Rs 2 lakh on The Mumbai District Central Co-operative Bank Ltd., Maharashtra, for contravention of Section 20 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949.
- The Karaikudi Co-operative Town Bank Ltd., Tamil Nadu, faced a penalty of Rs 1.5 lakh for non-compliance with RBI directions on ‘Prudential Norms on Capital Adequacy – Primary (Urban) Co-operative Banks (UCBs)’ and ‘Know Your Customer (KYC)’ guidelines.
- The District Co-operative Central Bank Ltd., Eluru, Andhra Pradesh, was fined Rs 50,000 for violations related to KYC norms.
- The penalty on the District Co-operative Central Bank Ltd., Eluru, Andhra Pradesh, was imposed under Section 47A(1)(c) read with Sections 46(4)(i) and 56 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949.
- The government reduced the number of public sector banks from 27 in 2017 to 12 by 2020 through mergers.
- RBI has removed restrictions on bank financing of acquisitions to stimulate private investment.
- RBI has raised the caps on loans against IPO subscriptions to promote market participation.
Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and Civil Aviation Ministry slash IndiGo weekly flights by 10%.
[Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), Civil Aviation Ministry]
Key Updates:
- IndiGo’s weekly domestic departures were approved at 15,014 for the winter schedule.
- IndiGo actually operated 59,438 flights in November 2025 against 64,346 approved domestic flights.
- The airline recorded 951 flight cancellations during November 2025.
- IndiGo could operate only 339 aircraft in October 2025 and 344 aircraft in November 2025 against an estimated 403 aircraft.
- The 10% cut translates to a minimum reduction of 216 daily flights from the summer level of over 2,200 daily flights.
- Air India and Air India Express weekly domestic flights were reduced by 0.8% and 6% respectively from summer to winter schedule.
- Akasa Air’s weekly domestic schedule reduced by 5.7% from 1,089 to 1,027 flights.
- SpiceJet increased weekly domestic flights by over 26% from 1,240 to 1,568.
Similar / Past Coverage
- The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) revoked its directive that barred airlines from substituting pilots’ weekly rest days with leave.
- The regulator cited 'ongoing operational disruptions' and 'repeated representations from airlines seeking flexibility to maintain the continuity and stability of operations'.
- DGCA has also directed its own inspectors, who are hired on five-year contracts as auditors and barred from flying for commercial carriers, to operate IndiGo flights.
- IndiGo has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with China Southern Airlines to establish a codeshare and cooperation agreement aimed at improving air connectivity between India and China.
- The partnership, subject to regulatory approvals, will allow passengers to book seamless travel on both airlines’ networks with single-ticket convenience and through check-in services.
- IndiGo started direct daily flights from Delhi to Guangzhou.
- IndiGo resumed flights between Kolkata and Guangzhou, marking commencement of direct air connectivity between India and China after more than five years.
- Direct flights were operational between the two countries till early 2020 before being suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic.
- Services remained suspended in view of the eastern Ladakh border row.
- Following the recent diplomatic initiatives, it was decided to resume the direct flights between the two countries.
- Air India and Air Canada reinstated their codeshare agreement effective December 2.
- Air India places its ‘AI’ designator on Air Canada flights from Vancouver to Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Montréal and Halifax.
- Air India also places its code on Air Canada flights from London Heathrow to Vancouver and Calgary.
- Air Canada customers gain domestic India connectivity to Amritsar, Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Kochi via Delhi, and to Delhi and Mumbai via London Heathrow.
- Travellers on connecting flights operated by both carriers can use a single ticket and unified baggage allowance.
- Frequent flyers continue to earn and redeem points/miles on both airlines, with Maharaja Club elites enjoying Star Alliance Gold benefits on Air Canada flights.
- Scheme Name: UDAN (Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik); Launch: October 21, 2016; first flight 27 April 2017
- Objective: Regional air connectivity; 649 routes operationalised connecting 93 unserved/underserved airports, 15 heliports, 2 water aerodromes
- Financials: Over ₹4,300 crore disbursed as Viability Gap Funding to airlines; ₹4,638 crore invested for airport development
- Future Plan: Scheme to continue beyond April 2027 with expanded framework targeting hilly, North-Eastern and aspirational regions and around 120 new destinations
International Monetary Fund (IMF) recognises Unified Payments Interface (UPI) as world’s largest retail fast-payment system.
[International Monetary Fund (IMF)]
Key Updates:
- IMF June 2025 study Growing Retail Digital Payments (The Value of Interoperability) placed UPI ahead of other global real-time payment platforms.
- ACI Worldwide Prime Time for Real-Time 2024 report estimated UPI accounted for about 49% of global real-time payment transactions.
- India recorded 129.3 billion UPI transactions, followed by Brazil, Thailand, China and South Korea at significantly lower volumes.
- Payments Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF) subsidises deployment of point-of-sale devices and QR codes, creating around 5.45 crore digital touchpoints as of October 31, 2025.
- In FY 2024–25 approximately 56.86 crore QR codes were deployed to roughly 6.5 crore merchants.
Similar / Past Coverage
- The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has announced the launch of a new Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered support system called ‘UPI Help’.
- The AI assistant will initially focus on digital payment-related queries, grievance redressal, and UPI transaction mandate management.
- Users will be able to check the status of their UPI transactions or log and track complaints for service-related issues, with the tool sharing relevant information with issuing banks for faster dispute resolution, especially for incomplete or pending transactions under the UDIR process.
- Customers can view and manage all active UPI AutoPay mandates in one place, and the assistant will allow users to initiate actions like pause, resume, or revoke mandates through deep links to their respective UPI apps.
- ‘UPI Help’ will be accessible through multiple platforms, including member banks’ websites and chatbots, the DigiSaathi portal, and eventually through UPI apps via API integration.
- NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL) has partnered with Razorpay Curlec enabling UPI transactions in Malaysia.
- This integration will allow Indian travellers visiting Malaysia to make instant and secure payments to local merchants accepting payments directly via Razorpay Curlec’s platform using their preferred UPI-enabled apps.
- The partnership was formalized during the Global Fintech Fest (GFF) 2025.
- Ritesh Shukla is the Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer of NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL).
- Shashank Kumar is the MD & Co-founder of Razorpay.
- NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL) and Bahrain’s BENEFIT signed an agreement to connect India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) with Bahrain’s Electronic Fund Transfer System (EFTS) Fawri+ service for real-time cross-border remittances.
- The collaboration is established under the guidance of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB).
- NPCI Bharat BillPay Limited (NBBL) and Clearcorp Dealing Systems (India) Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Clearing Corporation of India Ltd. (CCIL), launched forex services on Bharat Connect by integrating with CCIL’s FX-Retail Platform.
- UPI-linked credit card transactions now account for nearly 40% of total credit card transactions by volume, up from 10% at the end of FY24.
- RuPay’s credit card market share has climbed to nearly 16%, from 3% two years ago, after the RBI allowed RuPay credit cards to be linked exclusively to UPI in late 2022.
- More than 50 million merchants now use UPI for transactions, while fewer than 10 million merchants have point-of-sale devices that accept all credit cards.
Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) overhauls merchant bankers rule; introduces capital adequacy, liquid networth criteria
[Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI)]
Key Updates:
- Sebi overhauled merchant bankers rule by introducing a capital adequacy framework, requiring a liquid net worth, and mandating minimum revenue from permitted activities.
- Sebi allowed merchant bankers to undertake activities falling outside its purview under the same firm, subject to certain conditions.
- As per a notification dated December 3, a merchant banker can undertake fee-based, non-fund based activities pertaining to the financial services sector that fall under another Financial Sector Regulator (FSR) or do not fall under Sebi or any other FSB.
- Sebi categorized merchant bankers, requiring Category 1 to have a net worth of at least ₹50 crore and allowing them to undertake all permitted activities.
- Category 2 merchant bankers must have a net worth of at least ₹10 crore and can undertake all permitted activities except managing equity issues on the main-board.
- Merchant bankers must maintain a liquid net worth of at least 25% of the minimum net worth requirement at all times.
- Underwriting obligations of merchant bankers are capped at 20 times their liquid net worth.
- Category 1 merchant bankers must have cumulative revenues of at least ₹12.5 crore in the three immediately preceding financial years, while Category 2 must have at least ₹2.5 crore.
- The revenue criteria do not apply to merchant bankers managing only the issuance of non-convertible securities, securitised debt instruments, security receipts, municipal debt securities, commercial papers, REITs, and InvITs.
- Sebi replaced merchant bankers with independent registered valuers for the valuation of Employee Stock Option Plans (ESOP) and Sweat Equity.
- Previously, merchant bankers were mandated for valuations related to ESOPs and other share-linked benefits.
Similar / Past Coverage
- The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) relaxed educational qualification criteria for Investment Advisers (IAs) and Research Analysts (RAs).
- Previously, applicants were required to hold a graduate or postgraduate degree in finance-related fields such as Finance, Business Management, Commerce, Economics, or Capital Markets.
- Under the new framework, graduates from any discipline are eligible to become IAs and RAs.
- Applicants must have a graduate degree or equivalent educational qualification from a recognized university or institution, or a CFA Charter from the CFA Institute.
- Passing the NISM certification exam or relevant certification from NISM or an NISM-accredited organization remains mandatory.
- Sebi eased the corporatisation process for individual IAs, allowing a transition period once an IA crosses the threshold of 300 clients or ₹3 crore in fees.
- The IA must immediately notify Sebi and initiate the transition process upon crossing these limits.
- The IA has three months to apply for in-principle approval and an additional three months to complete the conversion to a non-individual entity.
- During this transition period, the IA is allowed to onboard new clients and continue collecting fees.
- Earlier, an individual IA was required to complete the transition to a corporate structure within three months after crossing the prescribed client or fee limits.
- Sebi amended norms for investment advisers and research analysts to give these effects.
- Sebi has introduced a threshold-based framework to determine the materiality of related party transactions (RPTs), based on the annual consolidated turnover of the listed entity.
- The new norms are aimed at addressing practical challenges, removing ambiguities, and striking a balance between investor protection and ease of doing business under the Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements (LODR) norms.
- For entities with turnover up to Rs 20,000 crore, a transaction will be considered material if it exceeds 10 per cent of the annual consolidated turnover.
- In the case of entities with turnover between Rs 20,001 crore and Rs 40,000 crore, the threshold would be Rs 2,000 crore plus 5 per cent of the turnover exceeding Rs 20,000 crore.
- For entities with turnover exceeding Rs 40,000 crore, the threshold will be Rs 3,000 crore plus 2.5 per cent of the turnover exceeding Rs 40,000 crore, or Rs 5,000 crore, whichever is lower.
- An absolute threshold of Rs 5,000 crore as an upper ceiling has been notified for listed entities having a turnover above Rs 40,000 crore to protect the interests of minority shareholders.
- Earlier, a listed entity was required to consider an RPT as material if the transaction exceeded Rs 1,000 crore or 10 per cent of the entity's annual consolidated turnover, whichever is lower.
- The new norms came after stakeholders pointed out that the absolute materiality threshold of Rs 1,000 crore promotes a 'one-size-fits-all' approach.
- Sebi has relaxed the minimum information required to be furnished to the audit committee and shareholders for RPT approvals for smaller transactions.
- If the total value of RPTs with a related party in a financial year does not exceed 1 per cent of the listed entity's annual consolidated turnover or Rs 10 crore, whichever is lower, then a simplified set of disclosures would be submitted for approval.
- Omnibus approval granted by the shareholders for material related party transactions in an annual general meeting shall be valid till the date of the next annual general meeting (AGM).
- In case of omnibus approvals for material related party transactions, granted by shareholders in general meetings other than AGM, the validity of such omnibus approvals shall not exceed one year from the date of such approval.
- Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) introduced the SWAGAT-FI framework for Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) and Foreign Venture Capital Investors (FVCIs) through two separate notifications dated December 1.
- The new framework is named Single Window Automatic & Generalised Access for Trusted Foreign Investors (SWAGAT-FI).
- SWAGAT-FI provides easier investment access to low risk foreign investors, enables a unified registration process, and reduces repeated compliance and documentation.
- Sebi identified low risk foreign investors as government-owned funds, central banks, sovereign wealth funds, multilateral entities, highly regulated public retail funds, appropriately regulated insurance companies, and pension funds.
- Sebi amended FPIs and FVCIs regulations, which will come into force on June 1, 2026.
- Under the new framework, Sebi granted an option to SWAGAT-FIs applying for registration or already registered as FPIs to also register as FVCI without further documentation.
- Registration under both FPI and FVCI regulations enables SWAGAT-FIs to invest in listed equity instruments and debt securities as FPI, and in unlisted Indian companies and startups as FVCI.
- Sebi increased the periodicity for continuance of registration, including payment of fee and review of KYC documentation, to 10 years.
- Sebi allowed retail schemes in International Financial Services Centres (IFSCs) with a resident Indian sponsor or manager to register as FPIs.
- Sebi amended FPI Regulations to subject sponsor contributions to a maximum of 10 percent of the fund's corpus or assets under management for retail schemes.
- As of June 30, 2025, India had 11,913 registered FPIs holding assets worth ₹80.83 lakh crore.
- SWAGAT-FIs are estimated to contribute more than 70 percent of total FPIs' assets under custody.
- SEBI has capped the weight of top stocks in non-benchmark indices like Bank Nifty.
- Under the revised framework, the top constituent's weight cannot exceed 20%.
- The combined weight of the top three stocks must be capped at 45%.
- The new norms apply to popular non-benchmark indices, including BANKNIFTY, BANKEX, and FINNIFTY.
- SEBI has mandated that each of these indices must comprise at least 14 stocks to qualify for derivative trading.
- For BANKEX and FINNIFTY, full compliance is required in a single tranche by December 31, 2025.
- BANKNIFTY has been allowed a phased implementation approach spread across four monthly intervals, with a final deadline of March 31, 2026.
- The circular forms part of SEBI’s broader objective to enhance the robustness, transparency, and fairness of index-linked derivatives.
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) imposes Rs 99.30 lakh penalty on Jammu and Kashmir Bank
[Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Jammu and Kashmir]
Key Updates:
- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) imposed a fine of Rs 99.30 lakh on Jammu and Kashmir Bank.
- The penalty was for failing to comply with directions regarding grievance handling, customer communication, KYC verification, and the transfer of unclaimed deposits.
- The fines were based on the statutory inspection of the bank's financial position as of March 2024.
- The inspection found that certain complaints were not escalated to the Internal Ombudsman.
- The bank did not send final resolution letters to customers after closing complaints.
- The bank was not using face-verification technology for video-based customer identification.
- The bank was not verifying customers' financial information furnished at the time of onboarding.
- There was a delay in the transfer of eligible unclaimed deposits to the Depositor Education and Awareness Fund.
Similar / Past Coverage
- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) imposed a penalty of Rs 91 lakh on HDFC Bank.
- The penalty was for violating certain provisions of the Banking Regulation Act and non-compliance with certain directions.
- Deficiencies included those related to Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements.
- Non-compliance also pertained to ‘Interest Rate on Advances’ and ‘Guidelines on Managing Risks and Code of Conduct in Outsourcing of Financial Services by banks’.
- A Statutory Inspection for Supervisory Evaluation of HDFC Bank was conducted with reference to its financial position as on March 31, 2024.
- HDFC Bank adopted multiple benchmarks within the same loan category.
- HDFC Bank outsourced the function of determining compliance with KYC norms of certain customers to its outsourcing agents.
- A wholly-owned subsidiary of HDFC Bank undertook business not permissible under Section 6 of the Banking Regulation (BR) Act.
- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) imposed monetary penalties on three cooperative banks for non-compliance with various regulatory norms.
- By orders dated November 6, 2025, the RBI imposed a penalty of Rs 2 lakh on The Mumbai District Central Co-operative Bank Ltd., Maharashtra, for contravention of Section 20 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949.
- The Karaikudi Co-operative Town Bank Ltd., Tamil Nadu, faced a penalty of Rs 1.5 lakh for non-compliance with RBI directions on ‘Prudential Norms on Capital Adequacy – Primary (Urban) Co-operative Banks (UCBs)’ and ‘Know Your Customer (KYC)’ guidelines.
- The District Co-operative Central Bank Ltd., Eluru, Andhra Pradesh, was fined Rs 50,000 for violations related to KYC norms.
- The penalty on the District Co-operative Central Bank Ltd., Eluru, Andhra Pradesh, was imposed under Section 47A(1)(c) read with Sections 46(4)(i) and 56 of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949.
- The Reserve Bank of India has approved the appointment of S Krishnan as part-time chairman of J&K Bank.
- His appointment is effective from November 13, 2025, till March 26, 2028.
- Krishnan previously served as MD & CEO of Punjab & Sind Bank.
- He also held the top position as MD & CEO of Tamilnad Mercantile Bank in September 2022.
- Krishnan is currently an independent director on the board of Srinagar-headquartered bank.
- RBI has returned Jana SFB’s application to convert into a universal bank, citing unmet eligibility criteria.
- Jana SFB reported gross NPA of 2.75 percent and net NPA of 0.90 percent for Q2 FY26.
- The bank took accelerated provisions of Rs 72 crore in Q2 FY26 and Rs 222 crore in H1 FY26 to contain microfinance slippages.
- Slippages stood at Rs 591 crore in Q2 FY26, up from Rs 515 crore in the preceding quarter.
- Secured loans accounted for 72.5 percent of total advances as of September 2025, versus 64.6 percent a year earlier.
- Total unsecured book was Rs 8,715 crore, with 49 percent of the microfinance segment covered under government credit-guarantee schemes.
- Advances grew 20 percent year-on-year to Rs 31,655 crore and deposits rose 31 percent to Rs 32,532 crore in Q2 FY26.
- Liquidity coverage ratio stood at 170 percent.
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) approves Airpay Payment Services as cross-border payment aggregator.
[Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Airpay Payment Services]
Key Updates:
- Airpay Payment Services has secured approval from the Reserve Bank of India to operate as a cross-border payment aggregator.
- The company is now licensed to operate as a payment aggregator across online, physical and cross-border categories.
- Airpay projects a 30-40 per cent rise in processing volumes over the next 6-12 months.
- The company anticipates 20 per cent-plus revenue contribution from cross-border flows and onboarding over 50,000 merchants in the same period.
Similar / Past Coverage
- Razorpay becomes one of a select cohort of fintechs authorised to facilitate both inward and outward cross-border payments with complete regulatory oversight.
- Indian businesses can accept payments in over 130 currencies through cards, wallets, and local bank transfers, achieving 95% success rates on international transactions.
- Global platforms can go live in India in real-time without setting up an India entity, accessing UPI, RuPay, EMIs, netbanking, and over 100 local methods via a single integration.
- PhonePe has received the final authorization from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate as an online payment aggregator.
- PhonePe's digital payments app has over 65 crore (650+ million) registered users as of August 2025.
- PhonePe's digital payments acceptance network covers over 4.5 crore (45+ million) merchants.
- PhonePe processes over 36 crore (360+ million) transactions daily with an Annualized Total Payment Value (TPV) of over INR 150 lakh crore.
- PhonePe has received the final authorization from the Reserve Bank of India to operate as an online payment aggregator.
- PhonePe's digital payments app has over 65 crore registered users and a merchant acceptance network of over 4.5 crore merchants.
- PhonePe processes over 36 crore transactions daily with an Annualized Total Payment Value of over INR 150 lakh crore.
- PayGlocal has received final authorisation from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate as a Payment Aggregator – Cross Border – Inward & Outward (PA-CB-I&O).
- The latest authorisation follows the company’s Payment Aggregator – Online (PA-O) licence granted in September 2024.
- Founded in 2021, the Bengaluru-based company works with merchants in sectors including exports, retail, travel, education and software services.
WHO Global Summit on Traditional Medicine 2025: India to host Ashwagandha-focused side event
[World Health Organization (WHO)]
Key Updates:
- The Ministry of Ayush (MoA) will host a dedicated side event on Ashwagandha titled 'Ashwagandha: From Traditional Wisdom to Global Impact – Perspectives from Leading Global Experts' during the 2nd WHO Global Summit on Traditional Medicine.
- The side event is organised by WHO-GTMC in collaboration with the Ministry of Ayush.
- The 2nd WHO Global Summit on Traditional Medicine will be held in Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi.
Similar / Past Coverage
- India will host the 20th session of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) from 8 to 13 December 2025 at the historic Red Fort in New Delhi.
- The announcement was made by Union Minister for Culture and Tourism, Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.
- The session will examine new nominations for UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists and review safeguarding status of inscribed elements.
- The 10th Ayurveda Day will be celebrated on 23rd September 2025 at the All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA), Goa.
- For the first time, Ayurveda Day will be observed on a fixed calendar date—23rd September-departing from the earlier practice of aligning the celebration with Dhanvantari Jayanti.
- The announcement was made by Union Minister of State (Independent Charge), Ministry of Ayush and Minister of State, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Shri Prataprao Jadhav.
- The 2025 theme is “Ayurveda for People & Planet”.
- The Government of India’s vision is to promote Ayurveda as a sustainable and integrative global healthcare solution, addressing both human health and environmental well-being.
- The Ministry of Ayush has planned nationwide events across all states and union territories, along with a robust global outreach through Indian Missions abroad, international universities, wellness organizations, and diaspora networks.
- The 3rd International Ayurveda Conference was jointly organized by the Swami Vivekananda Cultural Centre (SVCC) and Conayur, Sao Paulo, Brazil.
- The two-day event was held from November 14-15, 2025, under the aegis of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR).
- The conference commemorated 40 years of Ayurveda in Brazil and brought together experts, practitioners, scholars, and students from across Latin America and India.
- The deliberations centered on the theme 'Diversity and Inclusion in Ayurveda: Caring for Everybody and Every Being'.
- Organizers announced that Ayurveda has now been included in the Brazilian Classification of Occupations, marking a historic recognition for the system.
- Ambassador of India to Brazil, Dinesh Bhatia, highlighted the growing collaboration between India and Brazil in traditional systems of healthcare.
- MoU signed between Malabar Group (through Malabar Charitable Trust) and WHO India to implement the 'Nurturing Beginnings' project.
- Objective: improve nutrition and overall well-being of mothers and children in disadvantaged urban communities and support children’s mental and intellectual development.
- Key intervention: provide free nutritious food and medical services supporting physical and mental health, focusing on the first 1,000 days from conception.
- Initial rollout in urban communities of Delhi, with planned expansion to other states.
Tata Advanced Systems and Lockheed Martin announce C-130J MRO hub for Indian Air Force
[Tata Advanced Systems, Lockheed Martin]
Key Updates:
- Tata Advanced Systems Ltd. (TASL) and Lockheed Martin announced an expansion of their partnership with the launch of a new Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) facility to service the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) C-130J Super Hercules tactical airlifter fleet.
- The IAF currently flies 12 C-130J aircraft used for strategic airlift, special operations and humanitarian missions.
- Construction is scheduled to be completed by end-2026, with the first aircraft entering MRO operations in early 2027, TASL said.
- The upcoming facility will offer depot-level and heavy maintenance, component repair, structural restoration, avionics upgrades, and training for Indian engineers and technicians.
- The new MRO centre will join Lockheed Martin’s network of Certified Service Centers, with capabilities to support C-130J, KC-130J and legacy C-130 B-H variants.
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- The Safran Aircraft Engine Services India (SAESI) facility, located at the GMR Aerospace and Industrial Park - SEZ, Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Hyderabad, was inaugurated.
- SAESI is Safran’s largest Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) facility for Leading Edge Aviation Propulsion (LEAP) engines, which power the Airbus A320neo and Boeing 737 MAX aircraft.
- This MRO centre marks the first time a global engine original equipment manufacturer (OEM) has set up an MRO operation in India.
- Developed with an initial investment of around ₹1,300 crore, the facility spans 45,000 sqm and is designed to service up to 300 LEAP engines annually, featuring advanced process equipment.
- Safran also announced two defense investments to support the Rafale program in India, including new MRO centers for M88 engines and a new joint venture with BEL.
- DRDO has handed over seven cutting-edge technologies developed under the Technology Development Fund (TDF) scheme to the three Services.
- Technologies include an indigenous high-voltage power supply for airborne self-protection jammers, a tide-efficient gangway for naval jetties, advanced very low frequency–high frequency switching matrix systems, VLF loop aerials for underwater platforms, an indigenous waterjet propulsion system for fast interceptor craft, a novel process for recovery of lithium precursors from used lithium-ion batteries, and a long-life seawater battery system for sustained underwater sensing and surveillance applications.
- The handover took place at the meeting of the Empowered Committee of DRDO, held at DRDO Bhawan, New Delhi, under the chairmanship of Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and DRDO Chairman Dr. Samir V. Kamat.
- The Committee approved 12 new projects spanning strategic, aerospace, naval and electronic warfare technologies.
- Collins Aerospace (RTX subsidiary) inaugurated the Collins India Operations Center (CIOC) on a 26-acre site at KIADB Aerospace Park, Bengaluru.
- The facility will manufacture seats, lighting and cargo systems, temperature sensors, communication and navigation systems, water solutions, and evacuation slides for global markets.
- It incorporates advanced manufacturing technologies such as artificial intelligence, additive manufacturing, and robotics.
- Employment is projected to exceed 2,200 people by 2026.
- The $100 million investment forms part of RTX’s broader $250 million commitment to India, with the remaining $150 million allocated to engineering and test development centers and Pratt & Whitney India engineering center.
- India signed Letters of Offer and Acceptance (LOAs) with the United States for sustainment support of Indian Navy’s MH-60R helicopters for five years at an approximate value of Rs 7,995 crore.
- The LOAs were inked under the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) programme of the United States in the presence of Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh in New Delhi.
- Sustainment support includes provisioning of spares, support equipment, product support, training, technical support, repair & replenishment of components and setting up of ‘Intermediate’ level component repairs & Periodic Maintenance Inspection facilities in India.
- Indigenous development of these facilities aligns with the government’s Aatmanirbhar Bharat vision, ensuring long-term capability build-up and reduced dependence on the US Government.
- The support will enhance operational availability and maintainability of all-weather capable MH-60R helicopters, which also have Anti-Submarine Warfare capability.
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Approves First AI Tool for Liver Disease Trials
[U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)]
Key Updates:
- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has qualified the first AI drug development tool, the AI-Based Histologic Measurement of NASH (AIM-NASH), to help pathologists assess metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) disease activity in clinical trials.
- This cloud-based tool helps pathologists score liver biopsy components, including fat infiltration (steatosis), inflammation (hepatocellular ballooning and lobular inflammation), and scarring (fibrosis) stage.
- MASH is a serious form of fatty liver disease where too much fat in the liver causes inflammation and scarring.
- The AIM-NASH system uses AI algorithms to analyze images of liver biopsies and provides scores according to the NASH Clinical Research Network scoring system, with pathologists fully responsible for final interpretation.
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- The platform, MStarTM Global AI Connect, will form a national digital backbone linking schools with mentors, incubators, research institutions, accelerators and industry.
- It will support virtual Atal Tinkering Labs and virtual incubation centres linked to physical facilities.
- The collaboration will provide workflows for ideation-to-pilot projects, readiness-level tracking and challenge grants.
- Analytics generated by the platform will aid policy decisions at the Centre and State levels.
- Scientists at the S N Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences (S N Bose) introduced an artificial intelligence (AI) framework that could change how we understand and treat cancer, and also pave the way for personalised therapies.
- The framework, developed in collaboration with Ashoka University, gives a new lens to look at cancer -- not by its size or spread alone, but by its molecular personality.
- The new AI framework titled OncoMark can read the molecular “mind” of cancer and predict its behaviour.
- The team at S N Bose, led by Dr. Shubhasis Haldar and Dr. Debayan Gupta, used OncoMark to analyse 3.1 million single cells across 14 cancer types.
- S N Bose is an autonomous institute of the Department of Science and Technology (DST).
- OncoMark achieved over 99 per cent accuracy in internal testing and remained above 96 per cent across five independent cohorts.
- It was validated on 20,000 real-world patient samples from eight major datasets, showing broad applicability.
- The new framework, published in the Nature journal Communications Biology, reveals which hallmarks are active in a patient's tumour.
- Initiative offers a customised biomarker test panel for Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML) and Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) across India at subsidised rates
- IDH1 and IDH2 mutation tests for both cancers provided free of cost to patients in the government sector
- Partnership involves Servier India, MedGenome and Strand Life Sciences to expand molecular testing access beyond urban centres
- Programme launched under Servier Care patient-support platform providing financial assistance and subsidised diagnostics where legally permissible
- Early molecular testing aims to guide precision oncology treatment decisions and improve survival rates in AML and CCA
- Results from a Cleveland Clinic Phase 1, first-in-human clinical trial showed that a one-time infusion of a gene-editing therapy using CRISPR-Cas9 safely reduced LDL (“bad”) cholesterol and triglycerides in people with lipid disorders resistant to current medications.
- This trial tested CTX310, an experimental CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing treatment that is delivered as a one-time infusion.
- CTX310 carries the CRISPR editing mechanism into the liver, where it switches off a gene called ANGPTL3.
- CTX310 reduced both LDL cholesterol and triglycerides by approximately 50% on average at the highest dose.
- The treatment did not result in any serious adverse events related to the treatment during short-term follow-up.
- The study was conducted between June 2024 and August 2025 at six sites in Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
- Future Phase 2 studies are planned to begin in 2026, focusing on broader patient populations and longer-term outcomes.
Tata Electronics and Intel to explore chip packaging and AI PC solutions in India
[Tata Electronics, Intel]
Key Updates:
- Tata Electronics has signed Intel as the first major prospective customer for its upcoming semiconductor facilities in India.
- Intel and Tata intend to explore manufacturing and packaging of Intel products for local markets at Tata Electronics’ upcoming Fab and OSAT facilities.
- The collaboration will also focus on rapidly scaling tailored AI PC solutions for consumer and enterprise markets in India.
- Tata Group is building two semiconductor facilities in India worth around $14 billion, including a fabrication plant in Gujarat and an assembly and testing plant in Assam.
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- Nvidia has joined the India Deep Tech Alliance (IDTA) as a founding member and strategic technical adviser.
- The IDTA is an industry-led consortium of investors, corporates, technology partners, and ecosystem stakeholders from India and the US.
- The alliance aims to fund ‘deep tech startups’ in India, focusing on industries such as space, semiconductors, artificial intelligence, and robotics.
- The IDTA had earlier announced a commitment of $1 billion to invest in companies and has since garnered another $850 million in commitments from its newest members.
- Nvidia's role involves providing technical guidance, training, and policy input to help Indian deep-tech startups adopt its AI and computing tools.
- Nvidia will also voluntarily invest capital in deep-tech startups based in India over the next decade, similar to other IDTA members.
- The IDTA was launched in September at the Semicon India event organised by the India Semiconductor Mission (ISM) and Semiconductors and Electronics Ecosystem (Semi) in New Delhi.
- The IDTA is not a government group and seeks to offer a counterpart to the efforts of the government, which established a $12 billion Research, Development, and Innovation (RDI) Scheme.
- The Centre for Development of Telematics (C-DoT) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (IITR) to establish a centre of excellence (CoE) on the IITR campus.
- The primary objective of the C-DoT Centre of Excellence (CoE) is to accelerate indigenous research, innovation and capacity building in advanced communication technologies.
- The CoE will have a strong focus on research in the areas of wireless communication, quantum technologies, cybersecurity and AI-based applications.
- The centre will drive joint research and prototype development in key emerging domains, including 5G and 6G, RF-sub-THz integrated circuits, sensors, millimetre-wave beamforming antennas with integrated ICs, V2X Communication, data-driven wireless communication technologies and energy efficiency.
- MoU signed between Telecommunication Engineering Centre (TEC) and IIT Bombay for joint studies and technical contributions in telecom technologies and global standardisation.
- Focus areas include 6G architecture research, AI-driven telecom applications, core network studies, satellite communication systems, and signalling protocols.
- Partnership aims to develop India-specific standards and test frameworks and enhance India’s participation in ITU-T and 3GPP forums.
- Collaboration targets indigenous design of low-cost satellite communication terminals for remote sensing and rural connectivity.
- MoU signed on 7 November 2025 by Shri Amit Kumar Srivastava, DDG (Mobile Technologies), TEC and Prof. Sachin Patwardhan, Dean (R&D), IIT Bombay.
- MoU signed during 17th Joint Working Group (JWG) on defence cooperation co-chaired by Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh and Director General of Israeli Ministry of Defense Maj Gen (Res) Amir Baram in Tel Aviv
- MoU covers strategic dialogues, training, defence industrial cooperation, R&D, AI, cyber security, and promotes co-development and co-production
- JWG reviewed ongoing initiatives and discussed future tech collaboration and shared challenges like terrorism