India

Hyderabad street

Indian state of Telangana order over 900 electric buses

By / / Good News For Humankind

The Telangana State Road Transport Corporation awarded a contract for 915 Telangana electric buses to GreenCell Mobility and EKA Mobility in March 2026, the first phase of a planned 2,000-bus deployment in Hyderabad under India’s PM E-DRIVE scheme. The program targets more than 14,000 zero-emission buses across nine major Indian cities, backed by government subsidies and a per-kilometer contract model that reduces financial risk for city transit authorities. India is home to 20 of the world’s 25 most polluted cities, making this shift to zero-emission public transport one of the most consequential clean air investments any government can make.

Indian girls

India set to launch free nationwide HPV vaccination for adolescent girls

By / / Good News For Humankind

The Indian government is rolling out a monumental public health initiative to provide free human papillomavirus vaccines to adolescent girls across the country. Targeting girls between the ages of nine and fourteen, the campaign aims to drastically reduce the incidence of cervical cancer. This massive undertaking is made possible by the introduction of Cervavac, an affordable, domestically produced vaccine developed by the Serum Institute of India. By integrating the vaccine into existing national immunization programs and utilizing schools as distribution hubs, India is taking a proactive step toward eliminating cervical cancer and securing a healthier future.

Medieval Indian sculpture

U.S.’s Smithsonian Institution to return stolen medieval sculptures to India

By / / Good News For Humankind

The Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art is officially returning three ancient bronze sculptures to India after an internal investigation confirmed they were illegally removed from Tamil Nadu temples in the mid-twentieth century. In a unique collaborative agreement, the Indian government will allow one returned sculpture, a tenth-century Shiva Nataraja, to remain at the Washington museum on a long-term loan for educational display. This arrangement highlights a growing international commitment to decolonizing museum spaces, prioritizing transparent provenance research, and fostering cross-cultural cooperation to correct historical wrongs.

Rhino along a river

India’s rhino stronghold records zero poaching cases in 2025

By / / Good News For Humankind

This achievement marks the second time in five years that the state has successfully protected its world-famous one-horned rhinoceros population from poachers. Before the initial success in 2022, Assam had not seen a zero-poaching year since 1977. This milestone is critical for global biodiversity, as Assam is home to roughly 70% of the world’s greater one-horned rhinos.

Indian women

Indian states sending cash transfers to 118 million women for unpaid household work

By / / Good News For Humankind

Several Indian states have launched schemes to provide unconditional monthly financial compensation to homemakers. These programs are now delivering direct cash transfers to over 118 million women nationwide. This policy innovation recognizes the immense value of unpaid domestic labor, empowering women with financial independence to support their families’ health and education. It sets a powerful global precedent for validating care work as essential to the economy.

Wind turbines in the desert

Clean energy to provide one-third of India’s utility electricity for first time ever

By / / Good News For Humankind

India’s energy sector is experiencing a monumental shift, marked by a record 20% surge in clean electricity generation in the first half of 2025. This significant increase, fueled by wind and solar power, has allowed the country to reduce its fossil fuel output by 4%. The growing share of clean power in India’s energy mix demonstrates that robust economic growth and environmental sustainability are not mutually exclusive goals.

Solar in the foreground, wind turbines in the background

India now gets 50% of its energy from non-fossil sources

By / / Good News For Humankind

The world’s most populous nation has achieved the milestone of generating a majority of its installed electricity capacity from non-fossil fuel sources — five years ahead of its 2030 target under the Paris Agreement. India’s renewable power output rose at its fastest pace since 2022 in the first half of 2025, while coal-fired generation declined nearly 3%. The country added nearly 28 GW of solar and wind in 2024 and had already added 16 GW of wind and solar capacity by June 2025.

Indian Railways train

Indian Railways to achieve net zero targets in 2025 – 5 years ahead of schedule

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Indian Railways operates roughly 12,000 trains daily, carrying over one billion tons of goods and more than 8.5 billion passengers annually. Now, over 90% of the nationwide railways’ traction energy comes from electric rather than fossil sources, with plans to increase this to 95% by 2030. This shift has led to a substantial decrease in operational costs and direct greenhouse gas emissions, with a reduction of 2.2 million tons of CO2 expected by the end of 2025.

Indian young woman at computer

Women’s participation in India’s tech sector triples in last four years

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India’s tech workforce has seen a significant shift over the past four years, with female participation increasing from 10% in 2020 to 28% in 2024, according to a new report. This growth is driven by advancements in digital infrastructure, increased access to remote work opportunities, and the expansion of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives. However, despite improvements at the entry level, women’s representation in senior leadership positions remains low, growing only marginally from 11% in 2020 to nearly 14% in 2024.

Indian flag

India has treated 6.8 million cancer patients for free in seven years

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India’s Health Minister just reported that a national insurance program has treated an astonishing 6.8 million people for cancer, three-quarters of whom live in rural areas. The cost of the work amounted to $1.5 billion USD. Managed and paid for by the country’s flagship health insurance program called Ayushman Bharat, patients could get financial assistance to fight breast, oral, cervical, and lung cancers, as well as metastatic melanoma, chronic myeloid leukemia, and Burkitt’s lymphoma.