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Thursday, October 30, 2025
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The FinePrint

China protests a ‘grey rhino’ moment for Xi Jinping. And it will only get stronger

Chinese agitators aren’t shying away from connecting demands to lift Covid restrictions with broader political appeals.

Varanasi’s mini-Tamil Nadus live in mutts, family shivalayas and stories of saints

Centuries-old cultural connection between Varanasi and Tamil Nadu has resurfaced in public conversations since PM Modi inaugurated the Kashi Tamil Sangamam at BHU recently.

It’s a plane, no it’s a bird! Army’s training eagles & falcons to swoop down on hostile drones

The birds are also being trained for surveillance at Remount Veterinary Corps Centre in Meerut, with cameras fitted to their heads to record videos.

In Gujarat, voters want BJP’s alternative but not of Modi

After ruling Gujarat for 27 years, BJP knows how to shield election outcomes from ground realities such as people’s hardships, leaderless govt and corrupt bureaucracy.

K-pop star Kang Daniel’s India trip was a Prasar Bharati love affair, in age of social media

While several K-pop bands have performed in India in the last decade, the 2019 visit by KARD was the only epochal moment. Until Kang Daniel landed at Delhi's Siri Fort auditorium.

As BJP trots out big guns for Delhi polls, AAP goes hyperlocal with street plays, Kejriwal model

BJP has deployed chief ministers, Union ministers to woo Delhiites but with Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal campaigning in Gujarat, AAP is stressing on personal outreach.

New confusion over national monuments comes from a fixation on ‘who destroyed what’

Hindutva politics of heritage has not been able to resolve this conflict between ‘protection’ and ‘destruction’ so far.

Stalin govt is using a unique model to bridge primary school learning gap of last two years

Tamil Nadu govt's mission Ennum Ezhuthum, or 'Numbers and Letters', for primary school children is changing the way teachers teach and students learn.

Gujarat can make AAP national party but only Congress can set up Modi vs Kejriwal in 2024

AAP needs to win just two seats in Gujarat to become a national party. But it will take much more for Kejriwal to become Modi's principal challenger in 2024.

GDP data this week will indicate FY23 outlook. But analysis shows growth still below pre-Covid yrs

Analysis of industrial & consumer data not included in usual ‘high-frequency indicators’ shows although demand seems to have recovered from pandemic, it remains weak.

On Camera

From Durrani to Taliban—How Afghanistan always defeated its enemy with India’s help

Pakistan failed to understand the fiercely independent psyche of the Afghans and Pashtun nationalism, which has dominated politics in Afghanistan since its emergence in 1747.

Karnataka, Telangana, TN, Maharashtra power 40% of services output, pan-India growth uneven—NITI Aayog

Report on India's services sector examines state-level dynamics, maps disparities and suggests ways to tap into the sector’s potential.

India pulled out of Tajikistan’s strategically important Ayni air base in 2022. Here’s why

Tajikistan did not want to extend the lease because of apparent pressure from Russia & China over non-regional military personnel at the air base, it is learnt.

Deepfake on duty: when I asked AI to read Op Sindoor citations

On 21 Oct, a buzz went up that the govt had released full list of gallantry award recipients along with Op Sindoor citations. I put an AI caddy on the job. It took me into a never-ending rabbit hole.