Recent 6 months news in Reports

Tsinghua University (China) is ranked top for the 8th consecutive year with a score of 93.6 at the 14th edition of the “Asia University Rankings 2026” released by the UK-based Times Higher Education (THE). It is followed by Peking University (China) and the National University of Singapore (NUS).

IISc Bengaluru, is the highest-ranked Indian university, ranking 43rd in Asia with a score of 65.1. It is to be noted that India leads the overall representation with 128 universities.

The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) has proposed the introduction of a new Index of Service Production (ISP) to monitor the performance of the formal services sector in India.

The index will use FY25 as its base year and aims to cover at least 70% of the service sector at the 2-digit National Industrial Classification (NIC) level. It is to be noted that MoSPI intends to use Producer Price Indices (PPI) or sector specific Consumer Price Indices (CPI) as a deflation strategy to convert nominal turnover into real volume terms.

The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) has released the 27th edition of the publication titled “Women and Men in India 2025: Selected Indicators and Data” during the National Deliberative Summit on “Data for Development” in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. The report incorporates metadata for 50 key indicators.

According to the report, the sex ratio at birth in India improved to 917 during 2021-23, compared to 904 during 2017-19. The Total Fertility Rate (TFR) in 2023 was recorded at 1.5 for urban regions and 2.1 for rural areas.

In the education sector, the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in higher education rose from 28.5 to 30.2 for females and from 28.3 to 28.9 for males between 2021-22 and 2022-23. The Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) for the population aged 15 and above increased from 37.5% to 45.9% for rural females between 2022 and 2025.

According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) report titled “TRENDS IN WORLD MILITARY EXPENDITURE, 2025” (published as the “SIPRI Fact Sheet April 2026”), India is ranked 5th among the largest military spenders globally in 2025.

The defense expenditure of India reached $92.1 billion, which is an 8.9% increase compared to the preceding year. This expenditure accounts for 3.2% of the total global military spending.

The USA is ranked first with an expenditure of $954 billion, followed by China, Russia, and Germany.

According to a report titled “DPI@2047 for Viksit Bharat-A Strategic Roadmap to Enable Non-linear Inclusive Socio-economic Growth” released by the NITI Aayog, Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) initiatives currently account for nearly 1% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). This contribution is projected to reach 4% by 2030.

The report, which details the implementation strategy for DPI 2.0, was developed in collaboration with the EkStep Foundation and Deloitte. It establishes a two-phase strategy to facilitate the digital transformation of the country.

According to the 20th edition of “The Wealth Report 2026” released by Knight Frank, India is ranked as the 6th largest wealth market globally. India has 19,877 Ultra-High Net-Worth Individuals (UHNWIs) and 207 billionaires, accounting for 2.8% of the global ultra-wealthy population (up from 2% five years ago). USA remains the top wealth market with 2.51 lakh UHNWIs, followed by China, Germany, and UK. By 2031, the number of UHNWIs in India is projected to grow by 27% to reach 25,217, while the number of billionaires is expected to increase by 51% to 313.

According to a study titled “Spotlight on the Top 25 Methane Plumes in 2025: Landfills” released by the University of California, the Jawahar Nagar Landfill (Hyderabad) is ranked 4th globally with an estimated methane emission rate of 5.9 tonnes per hour.

The Kanjurmarg Landfill (Mumbai) is ranked 12th globally among the top methane-emitting sites identified in the report.

According to the April 2026 “World Economic Outlook” (WEO) report titled “Global Economy in the Shadow of War” released by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), India is ranked 6th in the global Gross Domestic Product (GDP) rankings.

The GDP of India is projected to grow from $3.5 trillion in 2024 to $3.92 trillion in 2025, and it is estimated to reach $6.17 trillion by 2030. In the global rankings, the USA is expected to lead with a GDP of $39 trillion, followed by China at $27.5 trillion and Germany at $5 trillion.

Union Minister Piyush Goyal highlighted that patent application filings in India increased by 30.2% to 1.44 lakh in FY26, compared to 1.1 lakh in FY25. India currently holds the 6th position globally in patent filings according to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

Domestic patent filings rose to 99,721 in FY26 from 68,201 in FY25, resulting in an increase in their share of overall filings from 61.8% to 69.4%. Among foreign applicants, the USA recorded the highest number of filings. The highest volume of patent filings in FY26 was recorded in computer-related sectors. Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Maharashtra were the top contributing states.

According to the “Growth in the New Economy: Towards a Blueprint” report released by the World Economic Forum (WEF), the global economy is projected to expand by $56 trillion over the next 5 years. Asia is set to remain the primary engine of global expansion, contributing more than 50% of the total growth.

Middle-income economies are projected to contribute 65% of the cumulative Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth between 2025 and 2030. The report further states that low-income economies will account for only about 1% of global growth.

According to the “India Digital Payments Report- Year 2025 in Review” released by Worldline SA, the UPI processed 228.5 billion transactions in 2025. This is a 33% Year-on-Year (Y-o-Y) increase from 172.2 billion transactions in 2024. The total value of transactions reached ₹299.74 trillion.

Person-to-Merchant (P2M) transactions grew by 34% to 143.82 billion. The merchant acceptance infrastructure expanded as the number of Quick Response (QR) codes increased by 15% Y-o-Y to reach 731.38 million. The report also states that the total number of payment cards in circulation exceeded 1.62 billion by the end of 2025.

According to the “India Tech Annual Funding Report 2026” released by Tracxn, Indian technology start-ups raised $11.7 billion in FY26, which is an 18% decline compared to the $14.3 billion in FY25.

India is the 4th highest funded country globally, after the USA ($426 billion), the United Kingdom (UK) ($17.8 billion), and China ($15 billion). The report recorded 13 funding rounds of over $100 million, including a $710 million investment in Nxtra.

It is to be noted that there were 47 Initial Public Offerings (IPOs), marking a 52% increase from FY25, while acquisitions dropped by 15% to 129. Bengaluru remained the primary hub for technology investments, accounting for 33% of the total funding volume.

Union Minister Giriraj Singh released the study report titled “Market for Textiles and Clothing: National Household Survey 2024” in New Delhi. The report states that the domestic demand for textiles in India recorded a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 8.3%, increasing from ₹4.89 lakh crore in 2010 to ₹14.95 lakh crore in 2024.

Household demand for textiles rose from ₹4.18 lakh crore in 2010 to ₹8.77 lakh crore in 2024. The per capita demand for textiles increased at a CAGR of 7.8%, growing from ₹2,119 in 2010 to ₹6,066 in 2024.