Easy money over: RBI hikes key rate by 25 bps to 5.5%, borrowers on notice

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has hiked its key policy rate, or the repo rate, by 25 basis points (bps) to 5.50 per cent, marking the first rate hike since February 2023. Repo rate is the rate at which the central bank lends short-term money to banks. 

Up to 30% of cotton area under 'illegal' GM hybrids, finds study

More than a quarter of the total area cultivated under cotton in India comprises "illegal" hybrids incorporating unapproved genetically modified (GM) traits, including resistance to glyphosate herbicide. 

Cutting across divide, 5 big states oppose end of taxmen's arrest powers

As states and the Centre converge in Delhi for the 57th Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council meeting Thursday to discuss process reforms that include a proposal mandating the removal of the arrest provision, at least five major states are learnt to have expressed concern over any sweeping curtailment of the taxmen's powers. 

India calls for de-escalation after Black Sea vessel attacks

After four commercial ships with Indian seafarers were attacked in the Black Sea in less than 36 hours, India on Wednesday once again called for dialogue and diplomacy to de-escalate tensions and enable early return of peace to the region. 

Average size of vertebrate populations declined 73% in 52 yrs: WWF

The Average size of monitored vertebrate - mammals, fish, birds and amphibians -populations declined 73% over 52 years between 1970 and 2022, according to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) biennial Living Planet Report, 2026. 

Behind the central bank's pivot, need to safeguard price stability

The Shift instance by the RBI's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), accompanied by a rate hike in its October review, was hardly unexpected. Monetary policy is shaped principally by domestic growth and inflation dynamics, with global developments playing a secondary role. Recent developments on both fronts pointed towards a recalibration of policy. 

The universe whispers through ghost particles

For centuries, astronomy has essentially been the science of observing light. However, some of the universe's most consequential events take place in environments so dense or violent that photons cannot escape. Could the universe be observed through something other than light? In 1930, when Austrian physicist Wolfgang Pauli proposed the existence of an elusive particle to explain a mystery in radioactive decay, he was laying the foundations for a new way of exploring the cosmos. 

WHO underlines rise in obesity among children, issues guidelines

The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Wednesday released guidelines addressing the sharp rise in obesity among children and adolescents, recommending against the use of weight-loss drugs and bariatric surgery for children below the age of nine, and advocating restraint for such practices in the case of adolescents between the ages of 10 and 19. 

Mirror-image molecules and the chemistry of life

Certain Molecules exist in two forms, each a non-superimposable mirror image of the other - like the left and right hands of human beings. Chemically, the two forms are the same in the sense that they are composed of the same set of atoms, connected in the same order. The difference is only in the relative three-dimensional arrangement of those atoms, such that one happens to be the mirror image of the other. 

Detention vs arrest: The extent and limits of police's powers

Article 22 of the Constitution deals with protection of an accused against arrest and detention.

It requires production of an accused person before a magistrate within 24 hours; information about the grounds of arrest; and the right to have legal representation.

The Supreme Court, in multiple cases, has held that written grounds of arrest must be furnished. 

Rural consumer confidence weakens for six straight months: RBI survey

Rural Consumer sentiment in India has weakened steadily through 2026, with households becoming increasingly pessimistic about the economy, jobs and their own incomes, even as they continue to expect spending to rise.