India is actively pushing forward with a series of government schemes and policy updates across various sectors, reflecting a concerted effort towards holistic national development. Several key announcements and initiatives have taken center stage in the past day, impacting agriculture, digital economy, environment, and skill development.
Agriculture Sector Boosts
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to launch two significant agricultural initiatives, the PM Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana and the Self-Reliance in Pulses Mission, on October 11, 2025. These schemes aim to enhance farmers' income, strengthen food security, and achieve self-reliance in pulse production by expanding cultivation areas and improving productivity. Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan stated that over 1,100 projects worth more than ā¹42,000 crore in agriculture, animal husbandry, fisheries, and food processing sectors will also be inaugurated concurrently. The Pulses Mission, approved by the Union Cabinet with a financial outlay of ā¹11,440 crore for 2025-2031, targets increasing pulse production to 350 lakh tonnes and expanding cultivation to 310 lakh hectares by 2030-31.
Further strengthening the agricultural sector, the National Agriculture Market (e-NAM) platform has expanded its digital trading ecosystem by integrating nine new commodities. This addition brings the total number of tradable items on the platform to 247, with the goal of enhancing market access, ensuring fair pricing, and boosting transparency for farmers across the country. This expansion was announced on October 8, 2025, by the Department of Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare.
Digital Economy and Governance Advancements
Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the Global Fintech Fest 2025 in Mumbai on October 9, 2025, emphasizing India's transformation into one of the world's most technologically inclusive societies. He highlighted the remarkable success of the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), which now processes 20 billion transactions monthly, and showcased India's digital public infrastructure initiatives like the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) and Open Credit Enablement Network (OCEN) as tools empowering small businesses. The Prime Minister also reiterated India's commitment to the India-AI Mission, focusing on equitable access, population-scale skilling, and responsible deployment of AI, and sharing open-source platforms like MOSIP globally for digital empowerment.
In a move to enhance transparency and streamline public service delivery, the government has mandated Aadhaar authentication and the Aadhaar Enabled Payment System for all new centrally sponsored schemes for direct benefit transfers. This policy change is set to become effective from April 1, 2026, and aims to promote a digital and less-cash economy.
Environmental Conservation and Renewable Energy
India unveiled its National Red List Roadmap and Vision 2025-2030 at the IUCN World Conservation Congress 2025 on October 9, 2025. This landmark initiative aims to establish a comprehensive, science-based framework for assessing and monitoring the conservation status of India's diverse flora and fauna. The roadmap will guide the country's conservation strategy through 2030, with a goal to publish National Red Data Books for both flora and fauna.
In a significant step towards promoting renewable energy, the Maharashtra government launched the Swayampurna Maharashtra Residential Rooftop (SMART) Solar Scheme. This scheme offers substantial subsidies, up to 95%, for rooftop solar installations to low-income households, including those below the poverty line (BPL), Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), and Economically Weaker Sections (EWS), who consume less than 100 units of electricity per month. The initiative aims to make these families self-reliant in power generation and reduce their electricity bills to zero.
Skill Development and Youth Empowerment
The PM-SETU (Pradhan Mantri Skilling and Employability Transformation through Upgraded ITIs) Scheme, launched on October 4, 2025, continues to be a focus for skill development. With an investment of ā¹60,000 crore, this scheme aims to upgrade 1,000 Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) across India, aligning them with industry demands through a hub-and-spoke model. The goal is to enhance employability and prepare the youth for emerging technologies.
The Ministry of Minority Affairs furthered skill development efforts by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with IIT-Palakkad on October 8, 2025, under the Pradhan Mantri Virasat Ka Samvardhan (PM VIKAS) scheme. This collaboration will provide technical skills in emerging domains like chip design, embedded software, and drone R&D to minority communities in Kerala.
Finally, the Ministries of Education and Health & Family Welfare jointly launched the Tobacco-Free Youth Campaign 3.0 (TFYC 3.0) on October 9, 2025. This 60-day national initiative is designed to create tobacco-free learning environments across schools, colleges, and vocational training institutions, educating and empowering young people to resist tobacco use.