In a big boost for local manufacturing, the country is set to witness its electronics exports surpass Rs 3 lakh crore for the first time this fiscal (FY25), driven by smartphones.

As per latest industry data, electronics exports reached Rs 2.87 lakh crore in the 11 months in FY25 (April-February), an impressive growth of 35 per cent from Rs 2.11 lakh crore in the same period last fiscal (FY24).

At Rs 1.75 lakh crore, smartphones continue to be the top contributor to electronics exports growth in the April-February period, according to industry data. It constitutes a 54 per cent jump over the corresponding figure for the same period of FY2023-24.

A glorious free-kick from Reece James set England en route to a comfortable 3-0 victory over Latvia in the UEFA qualifying for the FIFA World Cup 2026.

An inch perfect free kick from James, a composed finish from captain Harry Kane and Eberechi Eze’s deflected effort secured all three points to put England top of their World Cup qualifying group.

England monopolised possession from the outset, but Latvia packed their penalty area and limited their opponents to shooting from examining angles or distance. Reece James made the breakthrough in spectacular fashion, meshing pace and curl to send a free-kick into the top corner.

Declan Rice laid the ball across goal for Harry Kane to make it two, before substitute Eberechi Eze jinking his way into a shooting position and sealed victory.

Thomas Tuchel’s charges now sit on maximum points from two games, while Paolo Nicolato’s team remain on three.

The domestic benchmark indices opened higher on Tuesday amid positive global cues, as buying was seen in the IT sector in the early trade.

At around 9.27 am, Sensex was trading 112.50 points or 0.14 per cent up at 78,096.88 while the Nifty added 12.10 points or 0.05 per cent at 23,670.45.

According to experts, Nifty, continuing with the robust move, has indicated a V-shaped recovery with the bulls gaining strength over the bears almost reaching the previous peak of 23,800 zone.

"With further targets of 24,200 and 24,700 levels expected, the bias and sentiment has turned overall positive as of now. the important 50EMA zone of 23,000 level shall be positioned as the major support from here which needs to be sustained," said Vaishali Parekh, Vice President-Technical Research-PL Capital.

The police have registered a case against four accused in various sections of the BNS (Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita) in the case of the recent attack on a police team in Sehore district of Madhya Pradesh. All of them have been arrested.

The incident occurred late Saturday night when a group of miscreants attacked a police team, led by Sub-Inspector Ramnaryan Dhruve, that had been dispatched to Kheri village in the Ichhawar area to quell an escalating tension.

“Police have arrested all the four accused, and the sub-inspector Ramnarayan Dhruve is under treatment but out of danger,” district collector, Balaguru K. told.

Sehore is 40 km away from Bhopal. The arrested individuals have been identified as Gajraj, son of Lalji Ram Jangde; Rajaram; Vishal, son of Gajraj Jangde; and Rahul, son of Hemraj Jangade. All four hail from Gerukhal Junapani village, which falls under the jurisdiction of the Ichhawar Police Station.

As the countdown intensifies for the ‘Legends Faceoff’, eight more football greats, including the likes of Xavi Hernandez and Michael Owen, are set to join the historic showdown between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid Legends, scheduled for April 6 at the iconic DY Patil Stadium, Navi Mumbai.

Stepping onto the pitch to add even more magic to this clash of titans other than Hernandez and Owen are Rivaldo, Javier Saviola, Pepe, Phillip Cocu and Christian Karembeu.

Hernandez is a midfield maestro and one of the greatest passers in football history. He won eight La Liga titles and four UEFA Champions League trophies with FC Barcelona. He was also instrumental in Spain’s 2010 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2008 & 2012 victories.

“I’ve experienced some of the greatest rivalries in football, and now I can’t wait to relive it in front of passionate Indian fans in Mumbai. Get ready for a special night!,” Hernandez said.

The Indian stock markets on Monday continued their winning streak for the sixth consecutive trading session, with both Sensex and Nifty ending the day with robust gains.

Investors remained optimistic as key indices surged over 1 per cent each during the intra-day trade. The 30-share Sensex climbed 1,078.87 points, or 1.40 per cent, to close at 77,984.38. During the day, it even touched an intra-day high of 78,107.23.

Similarly, the Nifty index ended 307.95 points higher, or 1.32 per cent, at 23,658.35, after reaching a high of 23,708.75 earlier in the session.

Market sentiment was bullish, with 24 out of 30 Sensex stocks closing in the green. NTPC, Kotak Mahindra Bank, SBI, Tech Mahindra, and Power Grid Corporation were among the top gainers, rising up to 4.63 per cent.

Russia and the United States have begun consultations in Riyadh on Monday regarding the settlement of the ongoing conflict with Ukraine. The talks are aimed at discussing details about a partial ceasefire and cessation of hostilities to end the conflict.

This followed after the US and Ukrainian delegations held similar consultations on Sunday in the Saudi Arabia capital on a potential ceasefire deal.

The Russian delegation at the consultations is represented by the Chairman of the Federation Council Committee on International Affairs Grigory Karasin and Advisor to the Director of the Federal Security Service (FSB) Sergey Beseda.

The American delegation is led by Michael Anton, Director of Policy Planning at the US State Department, as well as advisors to Keith Kellogg, and US National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, Russia's state-run news agency reported.

As the Indian equity markets hit two-months high on Monday, Raamdeo Agrawal, Chairman and Co-founder of Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd, said on Monday that now the worst is over for the stock exchanges and "happy days are back".

Agrawal said that after the recent correction, the stock market is finally stabilising and ready for a period of recovery and growth.

The Indian stock market witnessed a sharp rally in the recent time due to positive global and domestic updates, he added.

In the past one week, Nifty and Sensex have surged more than 5 per cent. Midcap and Smallcap stocks contributed the most in the recent rally.

During this period, the Nifty Midcap 100 index shot up by more than 8 per cent and the Nifty Smallcap 100 index surged more than 9 per cent.

From April 1, Central government employees with at least 25 years of service will be eligible for a fixed pension equal to 50 per cent of their average basic salary from the last 12 months before retirement under the new Unified Pension Scheme (UPS).

The government is introducing the UPS to offer more financial security after retirement to at least 23 lakh Central government employees, particularly for those who prefer a stable and predictable income instead of a market-linked pension.

Employees, who have served for more than 10 years but less than 25 years, will receive a minimum pension of Rs 10,000 per month. In case of the pensioner’s death, their family will be entitled to 60 per cent of the last pension drawn as a family pension.