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Thursday, October 30, 2025
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The FinePrint

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.

A Haryana village is fighting ASI. A Mahabharata-era excavation is at stake

The ASI claims Theh Polar village could be the site of a settlement destroyed in the battle between Pandavas and Kauravas. Villagers fled Pakistan during Partition and settled here.

Kanchan Kumari was killed for giving men what they want. And that’s the real obscenity

Kanchan Kumari’s murder represents the lethal endpoint of India’s broader moral policing epidemic. It extends far beyond religious vigilantism into systematic cultural control.

Fear grips Punjab influencers after extremists kill Kamal Kaur. ‘Dark days of 1984’

Across Punjab, social media influencers are panicking about being next on the hit list of Amritpal Singh Mehron, accused of orchestrating Kamal Kaur’s murder over ‘indecent’ content.

A minor’s rape, hospital neglect & political storm. The makings of Bihar’s RG Kar

The three recent rape cases have sparked outrage in Bihar, with opposition leaders targeting the government's inaction and pushing women's safety and hospital neglect to the forefront of the poll campaign.

Three yrs since launch, govt-backed e-commerce network ONDC is a tortoise running with the hares

Built as a novel concept to ‘democratise’ e-commerce in India, ONDC has seen limited success in specific pockets. But it’s still an emerging player in a highly competitive market.

Om Sweets’ Pakistan to Gurugram journey—3 brothers turned doda barfi into a Rs 600 cr empire

Om Sweets built a mithai empire by refusing to abandon their Rs 25 bowl of chole for the working class. Now, the Kathuria brothers are expanding with the next-gen in charge.

Israel crushed Ayatollah’s regime, but stopping Iran’s nuke programme will need total overthrow

Israel and the United States are now betting that Iran’s leadership will acknowledge their military and economic weakness and return to the negotiating table.

Rupani’s death reopens old chapter—wartime shootdown of another Gujarat CM & Pakistani pilot’s apology

Balwantrai Mehta remains the 1st & only Indian politician to have been killed in wartime action in the subcontinent. Incident unfolded during a particularly volatile phase of 1965 war.

On Camera

News channels dialled up the science on artificial rain all day — then asked us to pray

TV news channels assured viewers that once the cloud-seeding was completed, rain could be expected anytime. 'Jab chaho, baarish kar lo,' claimed Times Now Navbharat.

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.