Mumbai, June 20: The Indian equity benchmarks posted second consecutive week of strong gains, over investor optimism about improved geopolitical situation following the US-Iran peace agreement, and decline in Brent crude prices.

Nifty added 1.65 per cent during the week and lost 0.64 per cent on the last trading day to reach 24,013. At close, Sensex was down 607 points or 0.78 per cent at 76,802. It added 1.69 per cent during the week.

Domestic markets witnessed consolidation on the last trading day of the week largely dragged by a sharp sell-off in IT stocks after recent three sessions of benchmark gains.

Brent crude, which dipped below the $80 per barrel level on hopes of a potential US-Iran peace agreement, saw a sudden halt in price decline after abrupt cancellations of peace talks and profit booking toward the close of the week.

The rupee strengthened by roughly 79 paise during the week to around 94.35 per dollar. The improved geopolitical backdrop is expected to lend support to market sentiment next week, analysts said.

A 14-point US-Iran MoU signed during the week included the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, removal of the naval blockade and restoration of commercial shipping.

On the sectoral front, consumer durables, real estate, pharma and defence were notable gainers. Defence sector rallied 6.6 per cent over the past week, supported by strong underlying fundamentals, market participants said.

IT emerged as the biggest laggard, with the Nifty IT index plunging 6.5 per cent after Accenture lowered its FY26 constant-currency revenue growth guidance and issued a weaker-than-expected outlook.

On the monetary policy front, the US Fed maintained a cautious, data-dependent stance with limited forward guidance, reinforcing a higher-for-longer rate disposition.

With the RBI maintaining a cautious stance, declining crude prices and progress in trade deals with the UK and US could support a gradual improvement in the outlook, though clearer policy direction may take one or two more reviews, said analysts.

Broad market indices outperformed gains of benchmark indices, as Nifty Midcap100 gained 2.62 per cent, while Nifty Smallcap100 surged 3.23 per cent during the week.

Investors remain keen on India’s monsoon rainfall, with cumulative June rainfall so far tracking 38 per cent below normal amid ongoing El Nino conditions.

Any further delay in monsoon progression could heighten concerns over kharif sowing, food inflation and rural demand, market participants said.

Incoming India PMI and credit growth data, alongside US PCE and GDP prints, are other key data for market direction in near term.

New Delhi, June 19: The Department of Social Justice & Empowerment has removed the requirement for a domicile certificate for students applying under Pre‑Matric and Post‑Matric scholarship schemes for Scheduled Caste and Other Backward Classes, an official statement said on Friday.

This step is expected to reduce the compliance burden on students and simplify the application process for scholarships, enabling easier access to benefits.

Thousands of eligible applicants across the country who study in institutions other than their domicile states will be benefitted, the statement from Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment said.

Under the Pre-Matric and Post-Matric Scholarship Schemes for SCs and OBCs, nearly 1.2 crore students receive scholarship benefits annually. The removal of domicile certificate requirements will make the application process more student-friendly by reducing documentation requirements and lowering compliance costs.

Further strengthening digital governance, the Department has launched SETU (Scholarship for Educational Transformation and Upliftment) on the UMANG platform as a comprehensive solution for scholarship-related services.

The platform provides a single interface to the eligible applicants, Institutional Nodal Officers, District Nodal Officers and State officials for application registration, tracking, and validation of other services, improving transparency and efficiency.

“These initiatives are aligned with the government’s broader objective of promoting inclusion, reducing procedural barriers, and ensuring effective delivery of welfare schemes,” the statement noted.

The Department remains committed to leveraging technology-driven reforms to enhance outreach and provide timely support to students, it added.

A total of Rs 7,981.47 crore has been disbursed to over 75 lakh scheduled caste (SC) beneficiaries in FY26, an official statement said in April.

The funds were disbursed as part of schemes run by the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment focused on the educational empowerment of marginalised students belonging to Scheduled Castes.

Across key scholarship programs, expenditure rose year‑on‑year, with a 21 per cent increase under the Pre Matric Scholarship Scheme for SCs and Others, an 11.23 per cent increase under the Post Matric Scholarship Scheme for SCs, a rise of 13.5 per cent under Central Sector Scholarship of Top Class Education for SC students.

Mumbai, June 19: Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) Chairman Mukesh Ambani on Friday outlined five major value creation pathways for the Group to create a diversified growth architecture spanning energy, materials, digital infrastructure, artificial intelligence, consumer businesses, and global exports.

Addressing Reliance shareholders, Ambani said: “First, the O2C business, the mainstay of Reliance so far, will increase earnings as soon as the geopolitical situation improves. Simultaneously, and more importantly, we are reinventing this business to create a new revenue stream less vulnerable to external volatility. We will convert all the crude oil we process into new materials ─ carbon fibre, speciality materials, green chemicals, and much more. This new vision will drive margin expansion and lay the foundation for our oil-to-chemicals-and-new materials business.”

He further stated that the second pathway comprises the new energy business, which has entered the phase of accelerated commissioning and early revenues. The integrated solar manufacturing and advanced battery platform will achieve one of the world’s lowest costs of RTC green power. It will also enable the world’s most competitive green hydrogen and green chemicals ecosystem.

Besides, the underground coal gasification business has immense growth potential, and the CBG business is ready to be scaled up as the world’s largest bioenergy business, he added.

Ambani identified the third path of growth as Reliance Intelligence, with AI becoming a multi-trillion-dollar business globally. “Reliance Intelligence will lead this business in India. The infrastructure for it is being built at breakneck speed, and it will fully operationalise over the next couple of years,” he remarked.

The Reliance Chairman listed the FMCG business as a new multi-billion-dollar growth engine with plans to grow it into India’s largest FMCG company, and among the biggest in the world.

“It is already among the top few players in various categories and is expanding globally. It recently entered Europe and Africa and will enter many more global markets going forward. Our FMCG growth path is neatly aligned to that of Reliance Retail. Both are anchored in our plan to create India’s most advanced manufacturing platform and a distribution and exports platform with tens of thousands of small, medium and large partners,” he maintained.

Ambani highlighted exports as the fifth path of the group’s growth. “Reliance has long been India’s largest merchandise exporter, with a proven globally competitive world-class platform for energy and materials exports. Leveraging this experience, Reliance aims to become an anchor institution for developing a globally competitive, multi-sector export hub, with a target to enable $125-150 billion in exports by 2032. In this way, we will enlarge global markets for Made in India brands,” he observed.

Hiring the best talent for this new venture has already begun. This scalable platform will strengthen India’s export ecosystem and external economic resilience. This ambition is not only about creating a larger Reliance. It is about creating a stronger India, Ambani added.