Insights, a blog published by IMPRI.
Bihar’s 2026 Budget reflects a development approach that combines long-standing welfare programmes with newer priorities such as employment, women’s economic participation, infrastructure, tourism and water management. The state has provided for total expenditure of ₹3,47,589.76 crore in 2026 , including scheme expenditure of ₹1,22,155.42 crore.
India and Qatar have been sharing a close and mutually beneficial relationship with each other especially in the field of energy security, trade and people-to-people ties. However, this partnership has evolved significantly from the buyer-seller relationship in LNG (Liquified Natural Gas) to encompass cooperation in investment, infrastructure, technology, defence and regional security. Due to this partnership, Qatar still remains as India’s most important partner in the Gulf region, whereas India has been able to maintain its position as Qatar’s largest trading partner and a trusted source of skilled human resources.
The India-EU Trade and Technology Council (TTC) was established in 2022, to deepen cooperation between India and the European Union in the domains of trade, technology and geopolitics. The Council was designed in order to address emerging challenges such as supply chain vulnerabilities, digital transformation, critical technologies and green disruptions. The first TTC meeting was held in Brussels in 2023 and the second meeting was held in New Delhi in February 2025.
Critical Minerals such as Lithium, Cobalt, Nickel, Graphite and rare earth minerals have become indispensable for clean energy technologies, electric vehicles, semiconductors, defence manufacturing and advanced digital industries. Securing access to these minerals has emerged as one of the strategic priorities of many countries, as global supply chains have become vulnerable to geopolitical tensions. India and Australia have consequently deepened their cooperation, recognising that Australia's abundant mineral reserves complement India's expanding manufacturing sector and ambitious energy transition goals.
India and Oman share one of India's oldest and most strategically significant relationships in the Gulf and Indian Ocean region. Their historical connections go back centuries, while formal diplomatic relations were established in 1955. Bilateral relations were elevated to a Strategic Partnership in 2008, reflecting the growing importance of defence, maritime security, trade and regional cooperation. Oman occupies a particularly important position in India's West Asia policy because of its location at the entrance to the Gulf and close to major Indian Ocean sea lanes.
On 13 July 2026, India officially launched its campaign for a non-permament seat on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for the term 2028-2029. External Affairs minister, Dr. S. Jaishankar inaugurated the campaign at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, highlighting India’s long standing commitment to multilateralism, international peace and the reform of global governance institutions. The campaign reflects India’s objective of contributing constructively to international peace and security while representing the interests of the developing world.
Despite being endowed with about 40% of India's mineral wealth, including large deposits of coal, iron ore, copper, bauxite and uranium, Jharkhand has failed to build a diversified manufacturing economy; this is partly because of the state's past reliance on mineral extraction, combined with the lack of industrial infrastructure, qualified workforce, connectivity and investment in non-resource based industries. It continues to rely on mining and primary processing since its creation in 2000. This was made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic; the construction, mining, tourism, automobile and light/heavy engineering sectors are among the state's main sectors that were hit hard, as well as the disruption of supply chains and a decrease in exports. In this background, the Government of Jharkhand has notified the Jharkhand Industrial and Investment Promotion Policy (JIIPP) 2021 through Extraordinary Gazette on 13 July 2021 and Chief Minister Hemant Soren formally launched the same during an Investors' Meet in New Delhi in August 2021.