Morning Digest: ISRO’s advanced earth observation satellite launched successfully; Smriti Mandhana surpasses Mithali Raj as women’s leading run-scorer, and more

ISRO’s advanced earth observation satellite launched successfullyISRO’s advanced Earth observation spacecraft, India’s first-ever imaging satellite in geo-orbit, was successfully launched from the spaceport here on Friday (September 4, 2026) by a GSLV rocket. The EOS-05 satellite was successfully placed in the intended sub-geosynchronous transfer orbit, about 18 minutes after it lifted off from the spaceport here, ISRO announced.Belgium assures India of no defence cooperation with Pakistan; Rajnath Singh raises technology transfer concernsBelgium has assured India that it will not pursue defence cooperation or provide technological assistance to Pakistan, sources in the government said on Thursday, following bilateral talks between Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Belgium’s Defence Minister Theo Francken. According to the sources, during the meeting in New Delhi, Mr. Singh specifically raised India’s concerns over the possibility of Belgian defence technology or expertise being extended to Pakistan. Mr. Francken assured the Indian side that Belgium stood firmly with India and that there was “no question” of defence cooperation with Pakistan.Smriti Mandhana surpasses Mithali Raj as women’s international cricket’s leading run-scorerOn that warm afternoon in Jaipur, Smriti Mandhana was talking about her childhood, about how her mother instilled a sense of competitiveness in her. “She always used to ask me to persevere in whatever I did, and not to leave in the middle but to go on till reaching the top,” Smriti told The Hindu. She also said she wanted to be the best batter in the world. She already was. And that was seven years ago.Congress’s criticism of GDP figures is a ‘dimagi Naxal’ mindset: BJPThe Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday (September 3, 2026) accused the Congress of using faulty calculations to convert India’s 7.8% real GDP growth into an “imaginary” 2.6%, terming it a “dimagi Naxal” mindset. The rebuttal came after Congress general secretary (communications) Jairam Ramesh asked why GDP estimates for all four years since 2022-23 had been revised substantially downwards, what components of the new methodology had driven the changes, who had been consulted in framing it, and why the deflator used for calculating real GDP appeared to understate the impact of inflation.Gig work a full-time job for many in India, finds surveyA nationwide survey by a non-governmental organisation, Janpahal, has found that platform work has become a long-term form of employment in the country. Nearly 57% of workers, surveyed by the organisation, said they worked more than 49 hours a week, while almost 23% worked over 70 hours. It added that more than 72.3% have remained on platforms for over one year, including 38.4% for more than two years and 18.4% for over five years.Government dropped use of OBC lists for Census as those featured ‘classes, not castes’, say officialsThe Union government had considered using the Central list and the States’ lists of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) while deciding that the 2027 Census will use an open-column method to enumerate castes, officials told The Hindu. However, following deliberations, it emerged that this would present a problem “because the list of OBCs is not a list of castes, it is a list of classes”, the officials said.Let’s both show our degrees: CJP’s Dipke to PM ModiCockroach Janata Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke on Thursday (September 3, 2026) questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his educational qualifications, urging him to publicly disclose his degree. He also questioned the Delhi High Court over “refusing to disclose” details of PM Modi’s Bachelor’s degree.Supreme Court rules that BCI has no power to punish law studentsThe Supreme Court on Thursday (September 3, 2026) declared that the Bar Council of India (BCI) and its chairperson, Manan Kumar Mishra, lack jurisdiction to discipline or penalise law students, rebuking the regulatory body’s attempts to intimidate NALSAR students exercising their constitutional right to protest.Manipur Deputy CM Nemcha Kipgen switched off phone after Naga abductions: Deputy CM Losii DikhoContinuing Naga-Kuki violence in the hill districts of Manipur will make it difficult to conduct elections for the State Assembly next year, Manipur Deputy Chief Minister Losii Dikho said on Thursday (September 3, 2026), indicating that Naga legislators may reconsider their support to the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government if their concerns are not addressed, including their demand for the removal of fellow Deputy CM Nemcha Kipgen.Nepal flash floods: Death toll rises to 1,259; missing figure crosses 5,000The death toll due to the devastating flash floods in Nepal rose to 1,259 on Thursday (September 3, 2026) as the disaster authority also reported a sharp rise in the number of missing, at 5,083. More bodies were recovered from the affected areas, while risks of fresh floods loomed due to incessant rainfall in the upstream areas of the Bhotekoshi River.Volkswagen says cutting 100,000 jobs by end of decadeGerman car giant Volkswagen said on Thursday (September 3, 2026) that management and unions had agreed to cut a further 50,000 jobs by the end of the decade, bringing total job losses to 100,000. “It is essential to systematically align workforce levels with economic realities,” the 10-brand group said in a statement.