The Department of Telecommunications’ (DoT) flagship citizen-centric initiative, Sanchar Saathi, helped recover 77,692 lost or stolen mobile handsets in July, crossing the 75,000 mark in a single month for the first time since its launch, the Communications Ministry said on Friday.

Union Communications Minister Jyotiraditya M. Scindia welcomed the achievement, saying the milestone reflects growing public trust in the platform and stronger coordination among the DoT, telecom service providers (TSPs) and police departments across states and Union Territories.

“DoT, through the collaborative efforts, is capturing the feedback of stakeholders for continuous enhancements in the ecosystem focused on an increase in recoveries,” the ministry said.

The DoT’s Digital Intelligence Unit and field units worked closely with local police to trace lost or stolen devices and return them to their owners. Monthly handset recoveries rose 201 per cent between April 2025 and July 2026.

Sanchar Saathi now provides citizens with the name of the police station handling their case through SMS, email, the web portal and the mobile application, the ministry said.

The initiative also shares details of SIM cards inserted into lost or stolen handsets with police authorities. These details include alternate mobile numbers that can help police improve recovery efforts.

Sanchar Saathi also advises citizens through SMS to factory-reset recovered handsets to protect them from potential malware.

Citizens can report lost or stolen handsets through the Sanchar Saathi web portal or mobile application in a few simple steps. After receiving a report, the system blocks the handset across India’s telecom network, preventing anyone from misusing the device.

When someone attempts to use a reported handset, the telecom network detects the activity and sends alerts to the citizen and the concerned police station. Police can then trace the device and facilitate its return to the rightful owner.

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has proposed introducing a red front-of-pack warning label for processed foods and beverages that contain high levels of sugar, salt or fat, allowing consumers to make more informed choices.

“The warning label shall indicate the applicable declaration, such as ‘HIGH FAT’, ‘HIGH SUGAR’, ‘HIGH SALT’ and/or ‘HIGHLY SWEETENED BEVERAGE’ … to enable consumers to readily identify products high in the specified nutrients,” Reuters reported, citing an FSSAI filing in the Supreme Court.

The FSSAI submitted the proposal as the Supreme Court hears petitions from health activists seeking warning labels similar to those used in several Western countries. Earlier this month, the Supreme Court directed the FSSAI to expedite the introduction of such labels.

Major food companies, including Nestle, PepsiCo and Coca-Cola, have opposed the move, which could affect sales of products that fall under the proposed warning system.

During its previous hearing, the Supreme Court criticized the FSSAI over delays in implementing mandatory warning labels for packaged foods. While hearing a public interest litigation, the bench stressed that transparent nutritional disclosures can help protect citizens, particularly young children, from health risks such as obesity.

Justices J.B. Pardiwala and K. Vinod Chandran expressed strong dissatisfaction with the regulator’s pace of action and questioned whether authorities were giving sufficient priority to public health.

The bench warned that the court could issue further directions if the executive failed to act independently.

The Supreme Court also rejected arguments that front-of-pack warning labels could unfairly target traditional Indian packaged snacks. The bench said commercial interests cannot take precedence over public health concerns.

The court gave the FSSAI two weeks to establish a clear framework for the proposed labels. The judges also highlighted the aggressive marketing of ultra-processed foods to young consumers and said consumers need clear visual warnings on product packaging to understand potential nutritional risks.

Sonal Dinusha capped a defining series with a masterclass in resolve and patience, smashing an unbeaten 133 off 264 balls to help Sri Lanka secure a hard-fought draw against India in the second Test at the SSC Ground on Thursday.

The result gave India a 1-0 victory in the two-match series.

Sri Lanka, forced to follow on after scoring 290 in the first innings, began Day Five with a slender 16-run lead. Dinusha led a determined rearguard action as Sri Lanka reached 429/9 in 154 overs before declaring late in the final session.

Keshara Nuwantha and the tail-enders also produced valuable resistance, allowing the hosts to lose just three wickets on the final day.

Sri Lanka added 100 unbeaten runs in 31.2 overs during the morning session. Dinusha and Nuwantha earned a standing ovation from the hosts’ dressing room as they walked off at lunch.

India’s seemingly straightforward task of taking the remaining four wickets quickly turned into a major challenge. The Indian bowlers used defensive, spread-out fields without close catchers, allowing Dinusha and Nuwantha to rotate the strike and settle into a comfortable rhythm.

India struggled to build sustained pressure, with the seamers frequently bowling away from the stumps.

Dinusha anchored Sri Lanka’s fightback with a composed innings featuring just two boundaries. His performance extended his remarkable run to four consecutive 50-plus scores in the series. He handled the spinners confidently, using deft sweeps and crisp off-side drives. The innings also placed the left-hander among an elite group of batters who have scored 50 or more in each of their first four Test innings against India.

At the other end, Nuwantha grew increasingly comfortable against both pace and spin, relying heavily on his driving. He negotiated the second new-ball spells from Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna with soft hands and considerable patience.

India’s frustration surfaced in the 90th over when Siraj used a review after a desperate caught-behind appeal against Nuwantha. DRS showed that the bat had struck the turf rather than the ball.

Nuwantha survived another scare just before lunch when on-field umpire Ahsan Raza gave him out LBW against Ravindra Jadeja. Nuwantha immediately reviewed the decision, and DRS showed that the ball was comfortably missing leg stump. Sri Lanka went into lunch as the happier side.

Sri Lanka added only 54 runs during the second session but continued to frustrate India. Dinusha earned another standing ovation from the Sri Lankan dressing room.

India finally made a breakthrough when Suthar dismissed Nuwantha at second slip, ending a 112-run partnership. Dinusha continued his patient innings, combining disciplined defence with calculated strokeplay and repeatedly using different sweep shots to disrupt the bowlers.

He found strong support from Kumara, who adopted a defensive approach to frustrate the tiring Indian attack. Although Suthar struck again early in the session, India struggled to create clear opportunities to dismiss the remaining batters.

Veteran left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja then removed Prabath Jayasuriya for two, with a catch at slip. However, Kumara continued to frustrate India, facing 56 deliveries during his unbeaten stay at the crease.

Kumara survived a close run-out opportunity after a wide throw from Prasidh Krishna allowed him to scramble back safely. He also edged a Saransh Jain delivery past an unoccupied second slip.

At the other end, Dinusha managed the strike expertly and punished any loose deliveries.

The left-hander repeatedly used the reverse sweep against Jain and Jadeja, while precise late cuts and paddle shots helped him maintain the pressure on India.

India rotated its bowling options and placed close-in fielders, but Dinusha’s disciplined batting and a pitch offering little assistance to the bowlers kept Sri Lanka secure until tea.

Dinusha reached his second century of the match with the very first ball of the final session. He clipped a full delivery from Mohammed Siraj towards mid-wicket for two runs, removed his helmet and raised his bat to acknowledge the applause.

The century made Dinusha only the third Sri Lankan batter, after Aravinda de Silva and Kumar Sangakkara, to score three centuries in a two-match Test series. It also made him the eighth Sri Lankan batter to score twin centuries in a Test.

India’s tiring attack could not break Sri Lanka’s lower-order resistance during the final session. Siraj bowled fewer overs because of a physical niggle, while Jadeja also appeared to struggle with discomfort.

Sri Lanka’s tailenders used the opportunity to completely extinguish India’s hopes of victory. Lahiru Kumara battled for an unbeaten 12 off 90 balls before Jadeja dismissed him, with Yashasvi Jaiswal taking an excellent catch at short leg.

Dinusha then accelerated, hitting sixes off Jadeja and Shubman Gill over deep mid-wicket before striking consecutive boundaries against Jaiswal’s leg-spin. He added 27 runs with Asitha Fernando in the last-wicket stand, with Fernando remaining unbeaten on 0 after facing 24 deliveries.

When the teams finally shook hands and the match ended in a draw, Dinusha had amassed 419 runs in the series at an average of 139.66.

The Sri Lankan dressing room gave the youngster a third standing ovation of the day, while Indian players congratulated him for producing a heroic marathon innings that saved the Test for the hosts.

Brief scores:

India 503/9 dec in 138 overs
Sri Lanka 290 and (f/o) 429/9 in 154 overs (Sonal Dinusha 133 not out, Pasindu Sooriyabandara 92; Manav Suthar 3-105, Ravindra Jadeja 3-94)

US-based artificial intelligence company OpenAI has announced plans to expand ChatGPT Ads to India, one of its largest markets, as it seeks to further monetise its popular chatbot ahead of a planned initial public offering (IPO).

The rollout will show ads to logged-in adults using the Free and Go tiers, with the latter priced at Rs 399 per month in India. ChatGPT will display sponsored products and services at the bottom of its responses.

OpenAI said it will clearly label the advertisements and visually separate them from ChatGPT’s answers.

Paid subscribers on the Plus, Pro, Business, Enterprise and Education tiers will continue to use ChatGPT without ads.

The company said advertisers cannot access users’ chats, chat history, memories or personal details. OpenAI also said it does not sell user data to advertisers. Instead, advertisers will receive aggregated campaign-performance data, including information on impressions and clicks.

Ads Excluded From Sensitive Topics

OpenAI said it will not show ads to accounts where users have indicated they are under 18 or where the company determines that a user is a minor. The company will also keep ads away from sensitive or regulated topics, including health, mental health and politics.

OpenAI expects more than 50 brands to launch ads this week. The company also plans to provide businesses with self-serve access to ChatGPT Ads Manager in India from September 4. Businesses will be able to sign up for daily advertising budgets starting at Rs 725.

ChatGPT crossed the 1 billion weekly global user mark earlier this month. India remains its second-largest market, with more than 100 million weekly users across students, developers, educators and enterprises as of February 2026.

OpenAI first announced plans to test ads on ChatGPT in January 2026 as it looked to diversify its revenue streams and support further expansion.

The company began its ad pilot in the United States in February. The initiative crossed $100 million in annualised revenue within six weeks of its launch before expanding to Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Brazil, Japan and South Korea.

Last week, OpenAI expanded ChatGPT Ads to 31 European countries, including Germany, France and Spain.

When Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the BHIM UPI App during the “DigiDhanMela” inauguration on December 31, 2016, he urged citizens to adopt digital payments and turn India into a cashless economy.

On Tuesday, he recalled this decade-long journey, marking a major turning point in India’s payment landscape. Highlighting its massive scale, PM Modi posted on X that every Indian could feel proud of UPI’s success. He invited citizens to share how the platform changed their daily lives.

Digital payments have reshaped how citizens transact, positioning India as a global leader in digital finance. A platform that began modestly now forms the backbone of the nation’s financial system—achieving, as the Prime Minister noted in another post, “nearly a 13,000-fold rise in transaction value.”

During its inaugural month in August 2016, UPI processed around 90,000 transactions. By FY 2025–26, it handled 84 percent of all digital payments in India.

Simultaneously, the platform expanded its live network from 44 banks in FY 2016–17 to 703 banks in FY 2025–26, integrating public, private, small finance, and cooperative institutions.

The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) developed UPI, enabling real-time payments through apps like BHIM, PhonePe, Google Pay, and Paytm. The numbers tell a compelling story: UPI processed fewer than 2 crore transactions in its first year, but by 2026, that figure surged past 24,000 crore transactions worth nearly ₹314 lakh crore. The Prime Minister frequently cites these figures, pointing out that UPI now accounts for nearly half of all global real-time digital transactions.

In its June 2025 report, “Growing Retail Digital Payments: The Value of Interoperability,” the International Monetary Fund (IMF) named UPI the largest retail fast-payment system globally by volume. The IMF noted that high interoperability drives this rapid adoption, letting users freely select apps and banks for seamless transfers.

This recognition highlights India’s digital leadership and its shift toward a cashless economy. UPI has sparked a citizen-centric revolution, empowering shoppers, street vendors, farmers, and students to pay digitally with ease.

Beyond domestic borders, international partners accept UPI payments via QR codes to serve Indian tourists, expatriates, and cross-border businesses. Countries including Bhutan, Nepal, France, the UAE, Singapore, Cyprus, and Qatar currently process UPI transactions, while expansions continue across Europe, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East. This footprint project’s India’s ambition to export technology as a form of soft power.

UPI proves India can set global standards rather than simply follow them. The platform opens doors for stronger bilateral trade and expands the nation’s international influence.

Observing this success, institutions worldwide now seek to replicate UPI’s framework. The platform tells a dual story—one of immense numerical scale, and another of national pride and financial inclusion. Over the past decade, India proved its capability to innovate at scale and democratize technology.

As UPI enters its second decade, it serves not just as a payment tool, but as a symbol of India’s digital confidence and technological transformation.

A Gartner report released on Wednesday forecasts that the global market for securing AI will reach nearly $4.8 billion in 2027—a 68.7 percent jump over 2026.

By 2028, Gartner projects the market will hit nearly $7.7 billion.

“The urgent need for enterprises to secure AI systems, address emerging vulnerabilities, and strengthen defenses against sophisticated cyberthreats drives this surge,” said Shailendra Upadhyay, senior principal analyst at Gartner.

Growing vulnerabilities and supply-chain attacks involving third-party and open-source software in AI projects compound the issue. Upadhyay noted that without adequate security and visibility controls, enterprise AI initiatives face a high risk of failure.

By 2029, Gartner expects access control weaknesses and prompt injections to account for over half of successful cyberattacks on AI agents.

AI application security will remain the largest spending category in 2027, reaching almost $851 million, while AI usage control will follow at $749 million.

However, AI usage control will experience the fastest growth rate at 73 percent, with AI gateways following close behind at 70.9 percent.

“As defenses like AI runtime protection and dedicated gateways become more reliable, organizations will gain confidence in these tools and accelerate adoption,” said Upadhyay.

He noted that as businesses expand their AI initiatives, autonomous AI will introduce new vulnerabilities beyond the reach of traditional monitoring, driving further demand for specialized AI security solutions.

The report emphasizes that organizations must identify, monitor, and protect AI models from these unique threats—a requirement pushing companies toward advanced AI security tools.

To build a strong defense, businesses must combine existing security systems with specialized AI security tools.

Upadhyay explained that traditional tools treat AI applications like any other software, requiring vendors to make significant updates before these tools can address AI-specific threats.

The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) released an official statement confirming it credited August pensions to 4,40,901 Kerala Zone pensioners for Onam.

EPFO typically disburses monthly pensions under the Employees’ Pension Scheme (EPS), 1995, at the end of each month. However, special arrangements allowed EPFO to release funds on August 26, 2026, so pensioners and their families could meet financial needs and celebrate Onam without delay.

The organization routed the payments through its Centralized Pension Payment System (CPPS), transferring funds directly and seamlessly into beneficiaries’ bank accounts nationwide.

EPFO reaffirmed its commitment to delivering timely social security benefits while actively improving services through tech initiatives and citizen-centric reforms.

In a major milestone, EPFO completed the full-scale nationwide rollout of CPPS across all disbursing offices.

CPPS replaces the old decentralized system, where each Zonal or Regional EPFO office maintained separate agreements with just 3 to 4 local banks.

Under CPPS, pensioners can receive payments through any bank without visiting a branch for verification when pensions commence, receiving immediate credits upon release.

Furthermore, the new system eliminates the hassle of transferring Pension Payment Orders (PPOs) between offices if a pensioner moves or switches banks—providing immense relief to retirees returning to their hometowns.

IT industry apex body Nasscom said on Tuesday that the proposed increase in US visa fees should reflect the original purpose of the H-1B programme, which allows employers to access temporary skills that face shortages in the US.

Nasscom said it remains actively engaged with all key stakeholders on the issue.

The proposed $103,265 H-1B fee comes under a US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) regulation that gives the public 30 days to submit comments.

The US administration says the fee would help recover immigration-system costs and encourage employers to hire and train American workers rather than rely on foreign labour.

Nasscom said the H-1B programme has long helped US employers address short-term skill shortages.

“It is also important to recognise that, over the past 5 years, the number of H-1B employees of Indian technology companies operating has reduced significantly, as companies have steadily expanded local hiring,” the industry body said.

The industry has also invested more than $1.1 billion in strengthening the US STEM pipeline. Nasscom said its members have worked with more than 130 universities and colleges across the US, reached 2.9 million students and upskilled more than 255,000 employees.

The Donald Trump administration has proposed an additional $103,265 fee for employers filing cap-subject H-1B petitions. The sharp increase could significantly raise the cost of hiring skilled foreign workers, including professionals from India.

DHS said the fee would apply to every cap-subject petition, including applications for workers who qualify under the advanced-degree exemption. Employers would pay the fee when they file the petition, in addition to all other applicable fees and payments.

DHS estimates that the fee could generate about $8.8 billion annually, based on an expected 85,000 cap-subject petitions each year.

The government would use the revenue to recover part of the costs of running the legal immigration system. DHS identified immigration benefit adjudication, fraud detection, national security screening, government-system modernisation and record collection among the expenses.

The US limits the annual H-1B allocation to 65,000 visas. An additional 20,000 places are available to foreign nationals who have earned a master’s degree or a higher qualification from a US institution.

India’s manufacturing sector recorded double-digit growth in 2025–26 and continues to gain momentum, emerging as one of the world’s fastest-growing manufacturing hubs, driven by government schemes and rising private investment, a new report said.

The Morocco-based publication Assahifa said structural reforms and flagship programmes such as Make in India, the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, PM Gati Shakti, the National Logistics Policy and improvements in ease of doing business have started to boost industrial output, investment and exports.

Global companies increasingly view India as a preferred production and sourcing destination because of its large domestic market, competitive workforce, policy stability and improving logistics ecosystem, the report said. Rising domestic demand and deeper integration into global value chains are also accelerating growth.

Flagship initiatives such as PM Gati Shakti, industrial corridor development, multimodal logistics parks, dedicated freight corridors, port modernisation and expanded highway networks continue to reduce logistics costs and improve supply-chain efficiency.

Meanwhile, reforms such as the Goods and Services Tax (GST), digital governance, labour-law rationalisation and faster regulatory approvals have increased India’s appeal as a global manufacturing destination.

India’s expanding network of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) could further accelerate manufacturing-led exports, the report said. Ongoing negotiations with the European Union and the United Kingdom could improve market access for Indian manufacturers and strengthen their integration into global production networks.

The report cited industry body ASSOCHAM, which said average annual manufacturing growth stood at 3.44 per cent between 2016 and 2019, below the global average of 4.39 per cent. Between 2022 and 2025, after the Covid-19 pandemic, India accelerated manufacturing growth to 4.15 per cent, while the global average slowed to 2.19 per cent.

The study compared India’s performance with China, where average manufacturing growth fell from 6.79 per cent before the pandemic to -0.07 per cent between 2022 and 2025, leaving China more than two percentage points below the global benchmark.

“This reversal highlights shifting global manufacturing dynamics and presents India with an unprecedented opportunity to capture a larger share of international production and investment,” the report said.

Before the pandemic, only China, Mexico and Russia recorded manufacturing growth above the global average.

The Covid-19 pandemic exposed vulnerabilities in highly concentrated production networks. As a result, global companies began diversifying their supply chains away from traditional hubs and increasingly chose India as a production destination.

“Multinational corporations have increasingly adopted strategies such as China+1, friendshoring, and nearshoring to diversify production across multiple countries and enhance supply chain resilience,” the publication said.

India’s key advantage lies in its ability to offer manufacturers both large-scale production capabilities and strong long-term market potential.

The United Forum of Bank Unions has called a nationwide strike on September 11 over delays in five-day banking, differences on the PLI scheme and pending pension-related demands.

The UFBU, an umbrella body representing nine bank employees’ and officers’ unions, also announced plans for a three-day nationwide strike from September 28, coinciding with the half-yearly bank closure.

The unions warned that they could launch an indefinite strike from October 26 if the government and bank management fail to address their demands.

The UFBU took these decisions at a meeting on Sunday, citing what it described as the government’s negative response to several key demands.

If the unions proceed with the strikes, banking services could face disruptions, particularly across public sector banks and in several parts of the country.

September 11 falls on a Friday and precedes two bank holidays. September 14 will also mark a holiday in some states for Ganesh Chaturthi.

Five-Day Banking

On five-day banking, the unions said the Indian Banks’ Association agreed to the proposal under the 12th Bipartite Settlement and 9th Joint Note signed on March 8, 2024.

Under the proposal, banks would extend daily working hours by 40 minutes from Monday to Friday. The IBA later recommended the proposal to the government, but the government has yet to implement it, despite more than two years passing, the UFBU said.

Opposition to PLI Scheme

The unions have also opposed the government’s performance-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for bank officers in Scale IV and above.

According to the UFBU, the scheme differs from the understanding reached with the IBA, which linked incentives to the overall performance of individual banks while maintaining uniformity across employee cadres.

Under the government scheme, officers in Scale IV and above could receive PLI equivalent to up to 365 days of basic pay based on individual performance. In comparison, workmen employees and officers up to Scale III could receive a maximum of 15 days’ basic pay plus dearness allowance.

Other Pending Demands

The unions have also raised several other issues, including:

• Pension updation
• A uniform dearness allowance formula for pensioners
• An option for NPS-covered employees to switch to the old pension scheme
• Other pending recruitment and employee-related demands

The UFBU has urged the government and bank management to resolve these issues before the proposed strikes escalate.