After a record surge in FY25, the pace of new demat account additions moderated in FY26 as weaker market returns and rising volatility weighed on retail sentiment.

Net additions slowed to about 32 million in FY26, even as the total number of demat accounts crossed 225 million, according to data from depositories NSDL and CDSL.

Taking a swipe at the government, the Congress on Wednesday said the role played by Pakistan in bringing about the ceasefire between the US and Iran is a "severe setback" to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "highly personalised diplomacy" and "the self-styled Vishwaguru stands thoroughly exposed".

US President Donald Trump, minutes before his Tuesday deadline for Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz, shared a statement from Tehran, saying Iran has agreed to allow safe passage through the strait if attacks on its power infrastructure are ceased.

In a post on Truth Social, he shared Iran's official statement in the name of Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi.

Cash payments at toll plazas will be discontinued for travellers on national highways from April 10, the road transport and highways ministry has said.

In a gazette notification, the ministry has said that in cases where a vehicle enters a fee plaza without a valid FASTag, users can still pay via Unified Payment Interface (UPI), but at a higher charge of 1.25 times the applicable toll fee.

As the countdown continues to US President Donald Trump's ultimatum for Iran to come at the negotiating table, President Masoud Pezeshkian vowed that Iranians are ready to sacrifice their lives to defend the country.

He made the remarks in a post on X. The Iranian President said that he, too stands ready to be sacrificed for the country.

The BJP on Tuesday demanded an apology from Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge for his alleged remarks on the people of Gujarat and some other states, saying that the comment was "shameless, demeaning and utterly despicable."

Addressing a press conference here, senior BJP leader and former Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad asked Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to clarify whether they agreed with Kharge's statement.

As global supply chains remain affected by disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz, a senior Iranian adviser has warned that Tehran’s allies could shut the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, another key global shipping route, if pressure on Iran continues.

Ali Akbar Velayati, a former Iranian foreign minister and adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader, issued the warning on social media.

The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation (Amendment) Act, 2026, on Tuesday was published in the Gazette after receiving the President's assent, making Amaravati the sole capital of Andhra Pradesh.

Sharing the Gazette publication on X, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu announced, "The capital of Andhra Pradesh is Amaravati."

US President Donald Trump on Monday said the deadline he has set for Iran to reach a deal by Tuesday is final, warning of consequences if an agreement is not reached.

Trump, earlier in a post on social media, had said his final deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz was set for “Tuesday, 8:00 P.M. Eastern Time.”

Israel said it killed the intelligence chief of Iran's Revolutionary Guard on Monday.

Defence Minister Israel Katz made the announcement.

"The Revolutionary Guard are shooting at civilians and we are eliminating the leaders of the terrorists," Katz said. "Iran's leaders live with a sense of being targeted. We will continue to hunt them down one by one."

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