The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), under the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Government of India, actively participated in IndusFood 2026.
The participation aligned with the government’s broader agenda of promoting agri-exports, ease of doing business, and sustainable growth.
BHARATI Startup Challenge
APEDA organised the BHARATI Startup Challenge to encourage innovation and entrepreneurship in the agricultural and processed food export sector.
The initiative focuses on supporting export-ready startups through:
Mentorship
Market access
Policy facilitation
Selected startups will receive international exposure by participating in major global trade fairs:
Gulfood, Dubai
BIOFACH, Germany
The challenge aims to help startups explore global markets and strengthen India’s agri-export ecosystem.
BHARATI Startup Zone
APEDA established the BHARATI Startup Zone, featuring over 100 agri-startup exhibitors.
Startups showcased innovations across critical areas, including:
Value addition
Agri-technology
Food processing
Packaging
Logistics
Traceability
Sustainable export solutions
The zone highlighted the role of entrepreneurship and technology in:
Strengthening agricultural value chains
Supporting MSMEs
Empowering farmers
Enhancing India’s global agri-market presence
APEDA Pavilion
The APEDA Pavilion showcased:
Export-ready agricultural and processed food products
Quality assurance systems
Traceability initiatives
GI-tagged products
Sustainability-driven practices
It served as a platform for engagement among:
Exporters
Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs)
Startups
International buyers
Facilitated networking, collaboration and business opportunities across the agri-export value chain.
Inauguration and Stakeholder Engagement
IndusFood 2026 was inaugurated by Union Minister of Food Processing Industries, Shri Chirag Paswan.
The event saw participation from senior government officials, industry leaders and key stakeholders from the agri-export ecosystem.
Overall Significance
APEDA’s presence at IndusFood 2026 reinforced the Government of India’s focus on:
Startup enablement
MSME empowerment
Sustainable agricultural exports
Policy–industry–innovation collaboration
The initiative positioned India as a reliable, competitive and future-ready global supplier of agricultural and processed food products.
Project Veer Gatha 5.0
Overview and Organising Ministries
Project Veer Gatha 5.0 is a joint initiative of the Ministry of Defence and the Ministry of Education.
It is organised as part of the Republic Day celebrations.
The project was first launched in 2021 under Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav to commemorate India’s 75th year of Independence.
Record-Breaking Participation in 2025–26
Veer Gatha 5.0 witnessed the highest participation ever since inception.
Around 1.92 crore students from approximately 1.90 lakh schools took part nationwide.
The project has shown consistent growth across all editions.
Launch and New Features
Veer Gatha 5.0 was launched on 8 September 2025.
For the first time, short-video formats were introduced, including:
Videography
Anchoring
Reporting
Storytelling
Content focused on “Samarik Parampara”—India’s military traditions, strategies, campaigns and heroic legacies.
Thematic Focus
Students explored the lives, courage and military strategies of great Indian warriors such as:
King Kharavela of Kalinga
Prithviraj Chauhan
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj
Warriors of the 1857 Revolt
Leaders of Tribal Uprisings
The themes enhanced historical awareness, cultural understanding and patriotism among students.
International Expansion
For the first time, CBSE-affiliated schools abroad participated.
28,005 students from 91 schools across 18 countries submitted entries.
This marked a major step in taking India’s stories of valour and national pride to a global audience.
Implementation Process
Activities were conducted at the school level across the country.
Nationwide interaction programmes with Gallantry awardees were organised in both offline and online modes.
Best entries were submitted through the MyGov portal.
School-level activities concluded on 10 November 2025.
Evaluation and Selection
Entries were evaluated at District and State levels before national selection.
Nearly 4,020 entries were shortlisted for national-level evaluation.
100 national winners (SUPER-100) were selected.
Category-wise Distribution of National Winners
Preparatory Stage (Classes 3–5): 25 winners
Middle Stage (Classes 6–8): 25 winners
Secondary Stage: 50 winners
Equal representation from Classes 9–10 and 11–12
Awards and Recognition
The SUPER-100 winners will be felicitated jointly by the Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Education in New Delhi.
Each winner will receive:
₹10,000 cash prize
Invitation as special guests to witness the Republic Day Parade 2026 at Kartavya Path.
Additional Recognitions
State/UT level: 8 winners (2 from each category)
District level: 4 winners (1 from each category)
These winners will be honoured by respective State/UT/District authorities.
Growth Across Editions
Edition 1 (2021): ~8 lakh participants; 25 national winners
Edition 2: ~19 lakh participants; 25 national winners
Edition 3: 1.36 crore participants; 100 national winners
Edition 4: 1.76 crore participants
Edition 5: 1.92 crore participants (highest so far)
Overall Significance
Project Veer Gatha has evolved into a nationwide and international movement.
It celebrates the bravery of Gallantry awardees and India’s military heritage.
The initiative nurtures patriotism, civic responsibility and historical consciousness among students while strengthening national pride.
Aadhaar Mascot – Udai (उदय)
Introduction of Aadhaar Mascot
The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) launched a resident-facing mascot named Udai (उदय) to simplify public understanding of Aadhaar services.
The mascot aims to make communication about Aadhaar services more relatable, friendly, and easy to understand, covering topics such as:
Updates and authentication
Offline verification
Selective sharing of information
Adoption of new technology
Responsible usage
Aadhar Mascot उदय Source: PIB
Design and Naming Competitions
UIDAI conducted open national competitions on the MyGov platform for both the mascot design and mascot name.
The initiative was inclusive, inviting participation from students, professionals, and designers.
Response: 875 entries nationwide.
Selection Process
A multi-tier evaluation process was adopted to ensure fairness and quality.
Winners emerged based on public imagination and institutional refinement.
The mascot was unveiled by Neelkanth Mishra, Chairman UIDAI, at a UIDAI function in Thiruvananthapuram.
The launch represents UIDAI’s effort to make Aadhaar communication simpler, more inclusive, and relatable for over a billion residents.
Significance of the Initiative
UIDAI emphasized that public participation builds trust and acceptance for Aadhaar as a public good.
The mascot will act as a companion and narrator, helping residents understand Aadhaar-related information with ease.
The initiative reflects UIDAI’s principle of making technology adoption inclusive and citizen-friendly.
National Primary Standard Facility for Solar Cell Calibration & National Environmental Standard Laboratory
Introduction and Context
CSIR-National Physical Laboratory (CSIR-NPL) inaugurated two apex calibration facilities to strengthen India’s National Quality Infrastructure.
CSIR-NPL, India’s National Metrology Institute, recently completed 80 years of service, establishing reference measurements that underpin research, manufacturing, environmental monitoring, and strategic sectors.
The Laboratory ensures accurate measurements which impact industrial quality, fair trade, environmental data reliability, and public safety.
National Primary Standard Facility for Solar Cell Calibration (NPF-SCC)
Purpose: To provide world-class calibration for reference solar cells and panels.
Technology: Built around a laser-based Differential Spectral Responsivity Primary Reference Measurement System, developed with PTB Germany.
Accuracy: Measures short-circuit current of reference solar cells with ±0.35% uncertainty at k=2, among the lowest globally.
Significance:
Establishes a complete domestic traceability chain for photovoltaic metrology.
Reduces dependence on foreign calibration and shortens turnaround times for Indian solar companies.
Calibration certificates can account for Indian climatic, humidity, and dust profiles.
Supports solar manufacturing, rooftop solar missions, exports, and PLI-linked programs.
National Environmental Standard Laboratory (NESL)
Purpose: To test and recalibrate air pollution monitoring instruments and environmental sensors under Indian environmental conditions.
Problem Addressed: Imported equipment with foreign certifications often fails under Indian temperature, humidity, pollution mix, and dust load, compromising data reliability.
Benefits:
Validates instruments locally for manufacturers, industries, and municipal agencies.
Ensures credible data for the National Clean Air Programme, industrial emission audits, and smart city monitoring.
Provides reference gases, protocols, and uncertainty evaluation services, improving public trust and evidence-based governance.
Economic and Industrial Impact
Both facilities aim to support MSMEs, start-ups, and indigenous manufacturers in:
Demonstrating product quality at lower costs.
Meeting regulatory guidelines on quality and transparency.
Overcoming trade and certification barriers.
Facilities funded by:
Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (NPF-SCC)
Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (NESL)
Demonstrates inter-ministerial collaboration in realizing world-class infrastructure.
Broader Contributions of CSIR-NPL
Works on quantum standards development, advanced materials, biomedical metrology, and maintenance of Indian Standard Time.
Highlights multidimensional contribution to India’s economy, governance, and daily life.
Reinforces CSIR-NPL’s role in providing precision for India’s progress and prosperity.
Non-invasive technique to measure Local Density of Cold atoms in real time
Introduction
Scientists have developed a non-invasive technique to measure local density of cold atoms in real time, without significantly disturbing them.
This has implications for quantum computing, quantum sensing, and real-time diagnostics of quantum systems.
Limitations of Conventional Techniques
Cold atoms are created using laser cooling and trapping to reach near absolute zero temperatures, highlighting their quantum properties.
Traditional measurement methods include:
Absorption imaging: struggles with dense atomic clouds due to poor penetration of probe beams.
Fluorescence imaging: requires longer exposure, can be destructive, and only provides global atom counts.
Both methods alter the quantum state of atoms during measurement.
Raman Driven Spin Noise Spectroscopy (RDSNS)
Developed by researchers at the Raman Research Institute (RRI), DST, India.
Principle: Combines spin noise spectroscopy (detects natural spin fluctuations via polarization of laser light) with Raman beams that coherently drive atoms between adjacent spin states.
Signal Enhancement: Raman beams increase the measurable signal by ~1 million times.
Provides direct local density measurements, not just total atom number.
Non-invasive: Probe is far-detuned, low-power, and allows microsecond-scale measurements with few percent accuracy.
Experimental Validation
Studied potassium atoms in a magneto-optical trap (MOT).
Observations:
Central density saturates within 1 second.
Total atom count (fluorescence method) saturates in ~2 seconds.
RDSNS accurately measures local packing of atoms, unlike fluorescence which measures global atom number.
Comparison with inverse Abel transform of fluorescence images confirmed accuracy.
Advantage: Works even with asymmetric or dynamically evolving atomic clouds, unlike Abel transform.
Significance
Enables real-time, non-destructive imaging for quantum sensing and quantum computing.
Captures many-body dynamics, transient microscopic density fluctuations, and provides spatially resolved data to benchmark theoretical models.
Applications in gravimeters, magnetometers, quantum simulations, quantum transport studies, and non-equilibrium dynamics.
Supports India’s National Quantum Mission, strengthening domestic research in precision quantum measurements.
Key Quote
“Progress often comes not from looking harder, but from finding gentler, smarter ways to look.” – emphasizes the innovation’s principle of non-invasive precision.
