DAILY GK 16-18 APR 2026
1.
WORLDLINE REPORT 2025: UPI TRANSACTIONS
·
Worldline SA, a payment technology company, released its annual report titled “India Digital Payments Report- Year 2025
in Review”, stating
that India’s Unified
Payments Interface (UPI) processed 228.5
billion transactions in 2025, marking a 33% year-on-year (Y-o-Y) increase from 172.2 billion transactions
in 2024.
·
The report further highlighted that the total value of these
transactions reached Rs 299.74 trillion in 2025.
·
The report highlighted that Person-to-Merchant (P2M) transactions
increased 34% to 143.82 billion.
·
The report showed the total number of cards
in circulation were more than 1.62 billion in 2025.
2.
IMF RAISES INDIA’S GDP GROWTH FORECAST TO
6.5%
·
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) released
its April 2026 World Economic
Outlook (WEO) titled “Global Economy in the Shadow of War”.
·
The report has marginally upgraded India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for
Financial Year 2026-27 (FY27) by
10 basis points (bps) to 6.5% compared
to previous estimate of 6.4% (in WEO, January2026).
·
Similarly, IMF has projected that the Indian economy will remain stable
at 6.5% in FY28.
·
India’s
inflation is expected to increase to 4.7% in FY27
over 2.1% in FY26 and is further projected to decrease to 4%, within the Reserve Bank of India (RBI)’s inflation target range, in FY28.
3.
RBI ISSUES AMENDED NORMS ON OPENING OF
BRANCHES BY NBFCS
·
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued the
amended guidelines titled RBI (Non-Banking Financial Companies
(NBFC) -Branch Authorisation)Amendment Directions, 2026, introducing
greater operational flexibility for NBFCs while maintaining regulatory
safeguards.
·
Applications must be submitted through
the PRAVAAH (Platform for Regulatory Application, Validation
And AutHorisation) portal.
·
The
conditions for opening branches for Deposit taking – NBFCs
are:Up to Rs 50 Crores (Cr): Deposit-taking NBFCs with
net owned funds (NOF) up to Rs 50 cr or with
lower credit ratings are permitted to open branches only within the state of
their registered office.
4. CHINA
EMERGED INDIA’S TOP TRADE PARTNER IN FY26
·
The Government of India (GoI)’s latest data
showed that China emerged as India’s largest trading
partner in Financial Year 2025-26 (FY26), with
bilateral trade reaching USD 151.1 billion.
·
India’s
trade deficit with China widened to USD 112.16
billion during the period.
·
China
has replaced USA which was India’s largest trading partner
for four consecutive years till FY25.
·
India’s
exports to China surged 36.66% to USD 19.47 billion in FY26, while imports increased 16% to USD 131.63
billion during the same period.
·
The data revealed the major trading partners with which India registered negative exports
growth in FY26: the Netherlands, the
United Kingdom (UK), Singapore, Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia, Australia, France,
South Africa, and Malaysia.
·
India’s
imports from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia,
Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China, Switzerland, Singapore,
Japan, South Korea, Germany, Thailand, and Malaysia recorded positive growth in FY26.
5.
FIU-INDIA SIGN MOUS WITH SEBI &
PFRDA
·
Financial Intelligence Unit-India (FIU-IND)
signed Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with the Securities and
Exchange Board of India (SEBI) and the Pension Fund Regulatory
and Development Authority (PFRDA) to enhance data sharing, strengthen fraud detection, and curb money
laundering and terror financing.
·
FIU-IND–SEBI: The
MoU strengthens coordination, intelligence sharing, and securities market
surveillance through regular exchange of financial data, reporting procedures,
and cooperation with foreign Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs).
·
FIU-IND–PFRDA: Under
the agreement, both organisations will designate dedicated nodal officers, along
with alternates, to ensure seamless coordination and communication.
6.
IMF’S GLOBAL GDP RANKINGS
·
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) released
its latest April 2026 World Economic
Outlook (WEO) titled “Global Economy in the Shadow of War”.
·
As per the data, India has
slipped from the 4th spot to 6th spot in global Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
rankings.
·
India’s
economy is projected to reach USD 3.92 trillion in 2025,
up from USD 3.5 trillion in 2024, placing
it behind the United Kingdom(UK) (USD 4 trillion) and Japan (USD 4.4 trillion).
·
The latest data estimated that the United
States of America (USA) will continue to retain its
position in global GDP rankings, with a projected GDP of USD 39
trillion.
·
It is followed by China (USD 27.5 trillion); Germany (USD 5 trillion).
·
As per IMF latest estimates, India’s GDP is
estimated to reach USD 6.17 trillion by 2030.
7.
SEBI EXTENDS NPO REGISTRATION VALIDITY FOR
SSE
·
The Securities
Exchange Board of India (SEBI)
relaxed key norms for the Social Stock
Exchange (SSE), extending the registration validity for Not-for-profit organisations (NPOs) and
lowering the minimum subscription requirement for Zero Coupon Zero Principal (ZCZP) instruments.
·
The regulator has extended the registration period for NPOs to 3 years from
2 years, during which NPOs can remain registered on the SSE without raising
funds.
·
SEBI
has lowered the minimum subscription requirement
for Zero Coupon Zero Principal (ZCZP). instruments to 50% from
75% to enhance fundraising flexibility for NPOs.
·
SEBI has highlighted that funds will be refunded to investors if
the minimum subscription requirement is
not met.
8.
WORLD HOMEOPATHY DAY 2026 – APRIL 10
·
World Homeopathy Day
(WHD) is observed annually across the globe on April 10 to
mark the birth anniversary of German Physician Dr. Christian Friedrich
Samuel Hahnemann, the founder of homeopathy.
·
2026 Theme: “Homoeopathy for
Sustainable Health”.
·
The Central Council for Research in
Homoeopathy (CCRH) under the Ministry of AYUSH (Ayurveda, Yoga
and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy) has commemorated WHD in India since 2016.
9.
WORLD PARKINSON’S DAY 2026 – APRIL 11
·
World Parkinson’s Day is
observed annually across the globe on April 11 to raise awareness
about Parkinson’s disease (PD) and to commemorates the birth anniversary
of Dr. James Parkinson, the English surgeon who first described PD
as “paralysis agitans” in his 1817 work.
·
2026 Theme: “Bridge the Care Gap”.
·
Established in 1997 by Parkinson’s Europe
(formerly European Parkinson’s Disease Association) with support from the World
Health Organization (WHO).
10.
ANNIVERSARY OF JALLIANWALA BAGH MASSACRE 2026
– APRIL 13
·
The anniversary of the
JallianwalaBagh Massacre, also known as the Amritsar Massacre, is observed
annually across India on 13 April to commemorate the tragic
incident that took place in 1919 in
Amritsar, Punjab (then under British India, now in India).
·
Hundreds of unarmed people gathered at
JallianwalaBagh, Amritsar, during Baisakhi.
·
Reginald Dyer ordered
troops to fire on the peaceful crowd
protesting the Rowlatt Act.
·
After the JallianwalaBagh Massacre, the British government set up the Hunter
Commission in 1919, headed by William Hunter, to investigate the incident.
11.
NATIONAL FIRE SERVICE DAY 2026 – APRIL 14
·
National Fire Service Day
is observed every year on April 14 across India to honour the
courageous firefighters who sacrificed their lives in the line of duty,
especially during the 1944 Bombay Dock Explosion.
·
2026 Theme: “Safe
School, Safe Hospital & Fire Safety Aware Society – Together for Fire
Prevention”.
·
On 14 April 1944, the British cargo
ship SS Fort Stikine, carrying explosives, cotton, and gold, caught
fire and exploded at Victoria Dock, Bombay Port
·
The explosion devastated the dock and nearby
areas, killing 231 people and injuring 476, including civilians and
firefighters.
·
In 1965, during the 11th meeting of the
Standing Fire Advisory Council (SFAC), April 14 was officially
declared NFSD.
