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Wednesday, October 29, 2025
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The FinePrint

Gopalpur gangrape survivor has locked herself away. Tourists say ‘won’t come here, scary’

Gopalpur is a tourist hotspot for Indian and foreign travellers. The crime scene had no CCTV cameras, no lights, and no police patrols.

The history of Indian caste censuses is the history of Indian statecraft

By the 18th century, Maratha dominions and other Indian states had developed fairly detailed caste enumerations, used to regulate hierarchies and impose differential taxation and privileges.

Helicopters are Kedarnath pilgrims’ favoured transport. It’s also the most dangerous

The demand for helicopter services exceeds the supply by three or four times. This mismatch has given rise to a ticket black market and cybercriminals selling fake tickets.

Born out of ‘desperation’, DRG is first line against Maoists in Bastar. Tech is giving them an edge

Narayanpur/Jagdalpur/Dantewada: Nearly half a dozen security personnel in camouflage uniform are locked on mobile phones in a well-lit room, minutes after the sun sets in...

Ahmadiyyas in Kashmir are branded as kafirs, boycotted, spat at. They hide, pass as Sunnis

India recognises them as Muslims, but ‘other Muslims treat us like untouchables’.

How Op Sindoor fog, a hoax & Nitish tweet spun S-400 myth. Worsened soldier widow’s trauma

Journalistic errors, officials' misjudgment and political impetuosity spawned a rumour that Sepoy Rambabu Kumar Singh died operating an S-400 system. Facts show this is impossible.

Iran and Israel are fighting their demons, not a war. They are prisoners of their nightmares

The world needs leaders awake to the abyss that lies ahead of this Israel-Iran war. But there are no signs of any, not in Tehran or Tel Aviv, nor in Washington.

Behind the scenes of Gujarat’s Air India crash response—4 IAS officers, 36 DNA experts & 230 teams

Gujarat government has mobilised nearly the entire state machinery in response to the 12 June AI 171 crash that left 242 people onboard the aircraft—except one—dead.

AK-47s, Quran verses, lovers’ names —the tattoos Kashmiris are rushing to remove

Separated by a Srinagar graveyard, Basit Bashir and Ahmed Hassan are at opposite ends of the push and pull between tradition and rebellion in Kashmir. One makes tattoos, the other removes them.

Indian mangoes land in America and become ‘ticking time bombs’

Hello DC folks, I have Alphonso, Kesar & Rasalu—Indian mangoes are entering the US through WhatsApp.

On Camera

Russia’s super-missile test shows a new, expensive technological race—with dire outcomes

The test raises a question. Why have Russian nuclear strategists now invested in the Burevestnik, when the US abandoned nuclear ramjet propulsion in 1964?

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.