Ophiopogon japonicus is a small grass-like herb recorded in India for the first time. It was found in West Kameng district, Arunachal Pradesh, at an elevation of 2,185 m. It is commonly known as dwarf lilyturf or mondo grass. It is an evergreen perennial with narrow, grass-like leaves, white to pale-purple flowers and blue fruits. The species is native to East Asia and occurs in China, Japan, Korea and Nepal. Its tuberous roots are traditionally used in Chinese medicine. It belongs to the Asparagaceae family. The discovery extends the known distribution of the species into the Eastern Himalaya.

India women’s cricket team won the gold medal in the Asian Games 2026 by defeating Sri Lanka by 147 runs in the final. The final was held at Aichi Prefectural Korogi Sports Park, Japan. India scored 216/3 in 20 overs, while Sri Lanka were bowled out for 69 in 15.4 overs. Smriti Mandhana was India’s top scorer with 79 runs. Richa Ghosh remained unbeaten on 49 runs. During her innings, Smriti Mandhana became the first woman cricketer to complete 11,000 international runs. The victory gave India its first-ever Asian Games gold medal in women’s cricket.

Jodhpur, Rajasthan, hosts the 2nd edition of Exercise Tarang Shakti 2026, a multinational air exercise conducted by the Indian Air Force (IAF). It is a multinational air exercise involving the air forces of friendly countries. The exercise aims to enhance interoperability, tactical coordination and operational cooperation. It involves joint aerial operations, tactical training and complex aerial missions. The exercise facilitates the exchange of operational practices, tactics and mission-planning approaches. The 1st edition was held in 2024 in two phases at Sulur, Tamil Nadu, and Jodhpur, Rajasthan.

The government is likely to extend the Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies (RoSCTL) Scheme beyond September 30, 2026. RoSCTL is an export incentive scheme for the textile sector, covering products such as apparel, garments, and woven or knitted items. Under the scheme, the government rebates embedded State and Central taxes and levies that are not otherwise refunded, helping Indian textile exports remain competitive. The textile industry has requested a five-year extension of the scheme and a doubling of its allocation from ₹5,000 crore for FY 2026–27. RoSCTL replaced the earlier Rebate of State Levies (RoSL) scheme after the introduction of GST in 2017.

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta launched the ‘Delhi PM Surya Ghar’ registration portal under the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana. The portal will facilitate rooftop solar installation for households across Delhi. Residents can use it to access information on subsidies, authorised vendors and grievance redressal. Under the scheme, the Central Government provides a subsidy of up to ₹78,000 for residential rooftop solar systems of up to 3 kW. The Delhi Government provides an additional subsidy, taking the total available support for eligible consumers to up to ₹1.56 lakh. The portal also provides options such as group net metering and community solar for households and group housing societies with limited rooftop space.