India is commemorating the completion of 11 transformative years of its flagship Digital India program, marking a pivotal moment where the nation is recalibrating its technological trajectory towards advanced domains like Artificial Intelligence (AI) and semiconductor manufacturing. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) highlighted that the initial decade focused on building foundational digital infrastructure, ensuring financial inclusion, and delivering citizen services at scale. Now, the vision for 'Viksit Bharat 2047' is firmly anchored in developing capabilities in frontier technologies. A substantial investment pipeline of approximately ₹1.64 lakh crore has been approved for 12 semiconductor manufacturing projects, including one fabrication unit, two compound semiconductor fabs, and nine testing and packaging facilities. This commitment is further bolstered by India Semiconductor Mission 2.0, announced in the Union Budget 2026-27, which seeks to enhance domestic capacities in equipment, materials, and indigenous intellectual property. Parallelly, the IndiaAI Mission, with an outlay of over ₹10,372 crore, is establishing a robust national AI ecosystem, featuring a shared compute facility with more than 45,000 GPUs to bolster research and deployment. These integrated efforts are not only transforming India's electronics manufacturing sector, which has grown to a ₹13 lakh crore industry and become the third-largest export category, but also aim to reduce import dependence and strengthen India's strategic position in the global technology landscape. The policy shift reflects a comprehensive strategy to foster technological self-reliance, create high-value jobs, and attract ancillary industries, thereby cementing India's role as a reliable and innovative global technology partner.
The Union Cabinet approved the extension of the Jal Jeevan Mission to December 2028 with a total outlay of ₹8.69 lakh crore. Dubbed JJM 2.0, the restructured framework shifts focus from constructing infrastructure to sustainable service delivery and digital tracking.
The Indian Air Force has launched its official Unmanned Aerial Systems Roadmap during Dronathon-2026 at the Pokhran range in Jaisalmer. The strategic document provides long-term operational guidelines for domestic defence manufacturers, start-ups, and research institutes.
The Karnataka Cabinet has approved ₹151.31 crore to purchase ballot boxes and enable live webcasting for upcoming local body elections. The decision prepares the state administration to conduct long-overdue panchayat raj polls by December 2026.
The Union Health Ministry has issued an advisory to all states declaring stem cell therapy for Autism Spectrum Disorder restricted strictly to approved clinical trials, banning commercial routine usage.
