Context

The Lok Sabha on Wednesday adopted a motion referring the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026 to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC), amid a huge uproar by the Opposition, which demanded that the Bill be withdrawn completely as it was intended to target minority institutions.

Background & Key Facts

• Composition: The JPC will have 21 members from the Lok Sabha nominated by Speaker Om Birla and 10 from the Rajya Sabha nominated by Chairman C.P. Radhakrishnan.
• Deadline: The committee must submit its report to the Lok Sabha by the last day of the first week of the Winter Session of Parliament this year.
• Procedure: The motion was added to the List of Business through a supplementary list just before the House reconvened at 2 p.m., after being adjourned within minutes of assembling at 11 a.m. Though Union Home Minister Amit Shah was listed to move it, Minister of State for Home Nityanand Rai placed it before the House and moved a similar motion in the Rajya Sabha.
• What the Bill does: It proposes to create a designated authority to manage and dispose of assets if an organisation loses its FCRA licence — which the Opposition claimed could affect legitimate foreign funding for Christian NGOs and other minority-run social welfare institutions.
• Opposition's case: Congress MP K.C. Venugopal said the Bill was clearly targeting NGOs run by minority communities: "On the one hand, the RSS is collecting donations from foreign countries, and on the other the government is targeting NGOs." Akhilesh Yadav and the DMK's T.R. Baalu also demanded withdrawal.
• Government's rebuttal: Kiren Rijiju dared the Opposition to show a single clause against minorities, said concerns could be raised in the JPC, and added: "I challenge Akhileshji to show one provision which is against minorities."
• Reasons behind the softening: On August 9, several Christian organisations launched coordinated appeals on YouTube, Facebook and WhatsApp urging the Centre either to refer the Bill to a JPC or withdraw it — seen as offering the government an honourable route to step back. Since July 6, Mr. Shah has held at least four meetings with Christian groups; the latest, on August 6, was with an 18-member delegation of Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox denominations led by DMK MP P. Wilson of the Joint Action Forum on Minorities, granted after a representation to the Prime Minister was forwarded to the Home Ministry.
• The external factor: On August 4, U.S. Congressman Riley Moore, a close ally of President Donald Trump, posted on X alleging the Bill could permit government takeovers of churches and religious charities, describing it as a "clear attack against Christians" and warning it could become a concern in India-U.S. relations.
• Reception: The Catholic Bishops' Conference of India (CBCI) and the National Council of Churches in India (NCCI) welcomed the referral as a "positive step". CBCI adviser Jonathan Lalremruata told The Hindu that regulation of foreign funds is a must and action should be taken against NGOs indulging in anti-national activities, but the law should differentiate between major and minor offences before assets are taken over.
• Timeline: The Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on March 25 and was listed for passage in the Monsoon Session, which concludes on August 13.

What the editorial ('Troubling bill') identifies as the core defects

Context

A three-member inquiry committee constituted by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has found the charges "proved" against former Delhi High Court judge Justice Yashwant Varma over the discovery of burnt currency at his official residence, holding that his explanations were "evasive and unsatisfactory". The report was tabled in both Houses of Parliament on Wednesday.

Background & Key Facts

• Composition: Headed by Supreme Court judge Justice Aravind Kumar, with Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and senior advocate of the Karnataka High Court B.V. Acharya as members.
• Finding: "The Committee therefore records its final findings that Articles of charges I, II and III are proved." The report, submitted in two volumes, contains the oral and documentary evidence gathered during the inquiry, and was submitted "for such further action as may be considered in accordance with law".
• What the judge failed to explain: The presence, source, or ownership of the cash found in the storeroom of his official residence.
• Evidence handling: The panel found that material evidence at the site had not been properly secured or preserved, and that the evidentiary condition of the storeroom had been disturbed before it was lawfully sealed and inspected.
• Standard applied: Justice Varma's explanation did not demonstrate the "candour, transparency and institutional responsibility" expected of a judge; it "remained evasive and unsatisfactory when tested against the evidence of independent official witnesses and corroborative material".
• The trigger: A fire broke out at his residence — he was then a Delhi High Court judge — on the night of March 14, 2025. Firefighters responding to the blaze allegedly found large quantities of burnt currency in a storeroom. Nearly 200 MPs subsequently moved a motion seeking his removal from office. He has since resigned, but the resignation has not yet been notified by the Union Law Ministry.
• The withdrawal question: In a communication on April 9 — sent also to the President and the Chief Justice of India — the judge informed the committee of his decision to withdraw from the proceedings, alleging procedural unfairness, reversal of burden and non-availability of CCTV footage.
• The panel's answer: A statutory inquiry cannot depend on the "unilateral" decision of a judge under inquiry, especially after the evidence has "substantially come on record". By April 9 the articles of charge had been framed, defence statements received, material supplied and inspection done, applications heard and decided, nine witnesses examined, documents and electronic material marked, and witnesses cross-examined on behalf of the judge himself. "The proceedings had, therefore, crossed the stage of mere procedural arrangement and entered, and substantially completed, the evidentiary stage."
• On silence: The panel said it chose to rebut his allegations because "silence may permit a partial account to assume the character of the whole", and that rather than making allegations he ought to have entered the witness box — he withdrew at the crucial point when he had to produce evidence in his defence.

Removal of a judge — the constitutional route

Context

A day before the Monsoon Session of Parliament was scheduled to end, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday said he was willing to have a full debate on the protests against the NEET paper leak — his first statement since the July 20 protests. Separately, the special fast-track court took cognisance of the CBI's chargesheet against 13 accused in the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak case.

Background & Key Facts

• Shah's offer: "We are ready for a discussion on all aspects from 3 p.m. today until 3 p.m. tomorrow. I will sit in the House; I will listen to everyone and respond to every point. The government has nothing to hide." He also wrote to Speaker Om Birla requesting a discussion in consultation with the Opposition, said he had been coming to Parliament regularly, and accused the Opposition of not allowing the Houses to function.
• Rijiju's addition: The government was ready to "increase the time" allotted for a debate. "Even if the Congress agrees to the debate tomorrow at 11 a.m., we will increase the time."
• Rahul Gandhi's rejection: The Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha rejected the offer, saying the youth wanted answers on who had ordered the alleged firing on protesters and the police assault on them, and "not a lecture" from Mr. Shah.
• Session scorecard: The Monsoon Session has seen little business — no Question Hour and several Bills passed amid disruptions — as the Opposition demanded that Mr. Shah respond to allegations of police excess against those protesting the NEET paper leak on July 20.
• The court proceedings: Special Judge Ajay Gupta took cognisance of the CBI chargesheet against 13 accused and sought their responses to a CBI application seeking permission to conduct further investigation. Arguments on the framing of charges begin on Thursday. The accused were produced through video conferencing from Tihar Jail.
• Media caution: The court expressed concern that details from the chargesheet, including the identities of witnesses — some of them minors — had reached the media, and stressed that all stakeholders including the media have a responsibility to ensure that reporting does not prejudice the trial. The CBI first flagged the issue; defence lawyers shared the concern.
• Origin of the case: A complaint filed by the National Testing Agency on May 12, alleging irregularities and the leakage of the NEET-UG examination paper held on May 3.
• In Jharkhand: The agitation by job aspirants over alleged irregularities in JPSC and JSSC recruitment exams entered its 19th day at the Jaipal Singh Munda Stadium. Leader of the Opposition Babulal Marandi condemned a late-night visit by Ranchi's Deputy Commissioner Manjunath Bhajantri and SSP Rakesh Ranjan to the protest site, alleging an attempt to forcibly remove students; the officials said they had come to check on protesters and urged verification of participants' identities. Student leader Kunal Singh said identifying outsiders was the special branch's job, and alleged that officials tried to separate JPSC and JSSC aspirants.
• Congress strategy: The Congress Working Committee will meet on August 19, chaired by Mallikarjun Kharge, to finalise strategy on the student protests and the allegations of "theft" of donations to the Ram Temple, and to review preparedness for Assembly elections due early next year.
• BJP's charge: Party president Nitin Nabin accused the Opposition of "fleeing" from meaningful debate, alleging they repeatedly shifted goalposts and feared their "lies" would be exposed when the Home Minister spoke.

Context

After days of deliberations — amid hectic lobbying for portfolios and attempts by Congress legislators to get inducted into the Cabinet — the D.K. Shivakumar government finally allocated ministries on the eve of the Monsoon Session to 19 newly inducted Ministers. The Karnataka Legislature's monsoon session begins on August 13 with what The Hindu's 'State of Play' column calls an ignominious first in recent history: a Cabinet without even a symbolic representation of women.

Background & Key Facts — the allocations

• K.H. Muniyappa, earlier miffed at being continued as Food and Civil Supplies Minister after seeking Social Welfare, has prevailed over the party leadership.
• Ramalinga Reddy, upset at not being given Bengaluru Development and instead given Water Resources, has been allocated Forests, Ecology and Environment.
• U.T. Khader, Health and Family Welfare Minister, has been given the additional responsibility of Minority Welfare, Haj and Wakf.
• The Chief Minister has retained Law and Parliamentary Affairs besides all other unallocated portfolios.
• Agriculture has gone to P.M. Narendraswamy and Major and Medium Irrigation to N. Cheluvarayaswamy, both from Mandya district — at a time when the State faces deficit rainfall and farmer distress.
• Puttaranga Shetty from Chamarajanagar district gets Animal Husbandry and Sericulture.

The women's representation question

• The Chief Minister's response: Asked why not a single woman was included in his 33-member Cabinet, Mr. Shivakumar candidly admitted there was "no urgency" in the matter, while assuring that the one vacant place would be filled by a woman.
• How the one name fell out: Gayathri Shanthegowda, the lone woman in the Congress high command's approved first list of Ministers, disappeared before the swearing-in ceremony as the urgent demands of other powerful interest groups took over.
• The irony: The Congress has nationally argued for 33% women's reservation without encumbering it with delimitation or other riders; in Karnataka it came to power on five guarantees, two of which — Gruha Lakshmi (₹2,000 a month to women heads of eligible families) and Shakti (free travel for women in select buses) — are aimed specifically at women.
• Voters versus power-holders: Final electoral rolls before the 2023 elections showed women voters outnumbered men in 17 of Karnataka's 34 electoral divisions.
• Civil society's framing: Naveddu Nilladiddare, a network of feminists and women's rights groups, wrote to the Chief Minister: "An all-male Cabinet is not an oversight. It is a political choice. It sends an unmistakable message that women and women's leadership remain dispensable when it comes to the exercise of state power."
• Whose absence drew protest: There were street protests by supporters of leaders demanding induction on grounds of caste, region and seniority, but hardly any against the non-inclusion of women. Brahmins not being represented drew more attention than women being denied a place; there was some noise in Belagavi over Lakshmi Hebbalkar, earlier Women and Child Development Minister under Siddaramaiah, being dropped.
• The long record: In the 2023 Assembly elections, of 2,613 candidates, 185 were women; 10 were elected (one more added in bypolls), about 4.5% of Assembly strength. In the first two elections — 1957 and 1962 — women's share was 6.25% and 8.65% respectively, the latter the highest ever. In the 1972 election, not a single woman was elected out of the 28 who contested.
• The pioneer paradox: This is a State that pioneered 50% reservation for women in local bodies.
• Ministerial history: The highest number of women Ministers was four, under the late S.M. Krishna. Women are typically given portfolios regarded as "light weight" such as Women and Child Development or Kannada and Culture.

Context

Priyanjali Malik argues that Indian independence was "an audacious bet on hope" — audacious because freedom was to be bestowed on all citizens regardless of caste, creed, class, political allegiance or gender. On the eve of India's 79th Independence Day, she writes, those promises "shine somewhat less brightly" after the misogynistic response to the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP)-organised protests at Jantar Mantar last month.

Background & Key Facts

• The historical wager: Against the backdrop of Partition, integration of the princely states and extreme post-colonial poverty — "everything was in short supply — money, education, health, housing, industry — everything apart from hope" — the Constituent Assembly gave universal franchise to all Indians above 21. Switzerland, by contrast, took until 1990 to give every woman the right to vote.
• The 1952 registration effort: Election Commission workers faced the challenge of registering 80 million eligible women and persuading them not to identify themselves as "the daughter of X" or "the wife of Y". Getting each woman registered as an individual in her own name was a "mammoth task".
• The cost: Even so, 2.8 million women were eventually struck off the rolls in 1952 because they would not identify themselves by name.
• The contrast drawn: The 1952 effort "worked to include"; the current Special Intensive Revision (SIR), the author argues, "appears to work on the presumption of exclusion".
• Progress since: By 2019, the gender gap in voting closed; identifying women by the male head of household is "largely for the history books".
• The weaponisation: Ownership of one's own name, which announces gender electoral equality, has been weaponised against women — most recently in online attacks against female protesters at Jantar Mantar.
• Doxxing: Several women who participated were doxxed in the days after the protest was called off — names, numbers, addresses and other personal details uploaded — and faced vile online abuse, including threats of rape and murder from self-described "nationalist" cyber warriors.
• The gendered response: The Prime Minister, in an Instagram reel on July 31, spoke of "forgiving" the "misguided daughters" who swore, some of them at him. In singling out the behaviour of women he divided the protesters along gendered lines: the "daughters" who used "abusive" language were transgressive and their behaviour a "cultural shock", while the men who used exactly the same language were not even noticed. Same protest, same demands, same aspirations — but gendered expectations.
• From accountability to personality: By making the reel about personal grievance, the author argues, the message "turned a protest over democratic accountability into a cult of personality". The protests were referred to only as "what happened at Jantar Mantar" rather than acknowledged as protests.
• What was missed: "It may have been the weakest of echoes, but it was there — that old hope, kindled 79 years ago, that whatever the challenges facing India, a better future was possible."

Context

Viswanathan Mohan, Soumya Swaminathan and Nijina M. Nazar argue that India's food security debate has entered a new phase. Estimates based on the latest household consumption survey suggest the share of households unable to afford the ICMR-National Institute of Nutrition (NIN) recommended diet fell from about 52% in 2011-12 to about 25% in 2023-24 — affecting 25% of rural and 21% of urban households. The draft National Food Security (Amendment) Bill, 2026 links Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) entitlements to household size.

Designing a fairer entitlement

• Present position: Priority Households receive 5 kg of foodgrains per person per month, while AAY households receive a flat 35 kg per household — which protects smaller, highly vulnerable families but provides progressively less per person as household size grows. A seven-member household gets 5 kg per person; an eight-member household about 4.4 kg, below the Priority Household entitlement.
• The draft proposal: 7 kg per person, capped at 35 kg. This would reduce support for households with one to four members by 20% to 80%, leave those with five or more unchanged, and provide no AAY household with additional foodgrain.
• Tamil Nadu's illustration: The State reports that 15.75 lakh of its 18.64 lakh AAY households (84.5%) have fewer than five members. It estimates the proposal would cut the monthly AAY allocation from 65,261 tonnes to 42,040 tonnes — a fall of about 35.6%.
• Why household composition matters: A smaller household may include an older person living alone, a widow, or a person with disability.
• The coverage problem: Although the NFSA allows coverage of up to 75% of the rural and 50% of the urban population, its 81.35-crore beneficiary ceiling remains based on Census 2011; about 80 crore people receive free foodgrains. Against an estimated population of 146.4 crore in 2025, this ceiling covers only 55.6%, and should be recalculated when Census 2027 figures become available.

Protecting grain while diversifying diets

The authors stress that foodgrain entitlement should not itself be equated with diabetes risk; the concern is that a predominantly cereal-based basket, combined with diets already high in carbohydrates and low in protein-rich foods, reinforces dietary imbalance. The solution is not to reduce cereal entitlements but to finance dietary diversification alongside — pulses, beans, milk, nuts, vegetables and fruits, supported by effective MSP procurement for pulse, millet and oilseed growers, and linked through the PDS, Anganwadi services and PM POSHAN.

The three safeguards proposed

Context

Retired Air Vice Marshal Arjun Subramaniam argues that India's military reform must be driven by deeper intellectual engagement, recalling that Prime Minister Narendra Modi came away from his first Combined Commanders Conference in 2014 disappointed with the vision placed before him, and directed the services to fast-track reform with an emphasis on operational effectiveness through synergy and cutting flab. On the same day, the Defence Ministry issued a tender worth around ₹1 lakh crore for 60 multirole transport aircraft.

The intellectual argument

• Three obstacles to transformation: (i) the lop-sided reform of the Higher Defence Organisation, which places the onus solely on the armed forces rather than restructuring the entire national security architecture top-down; (ii) the lack of consensus among the three services over integration in the absence of meaningful higher direction; (iii) the snail's pace at which senior military leadership has upgraded and expressed itself cogently in the intellectual domain.
• The colonial legacy: At the heart of the post-colonial military inheritance was a strong anti-intellectual flavour — the belief that tradition, ethos, "spit and polish" and tactical acumen were sufficient to sustain a modern military.
• The exception generation: It was almost four decades before General K. Sundarji attempted an intellectual transformation in the Army in the late 1980s, engaging the political leadership on nuclear strategy and civil-military relations. Air Commodore Jasjit Singh emerged as the intellectual flag-bearer of air power in the 1990s; Rear Admiral Raja Menon advocated sea power and raised maritime consciousness. This trio teamed with K. Subrahmanyam as flag-bearers of intellectual advocacy in military affairs.
• Three reasons for the current vacuum: (i) the "upward mobility trap" that snares officers at two-star rank and above into an operational cocoon and penalises dissenting professional views where "company policy and being politically correct" is important — "speaking truth to power can only come about with serious intellectual depth"; (ii) a whole-of-government knowledge deficit from the inability to read and write seriously alongside taxing operational assignments — Montgomery, Rommel, Thimayya and Sundarji all spent hours of solitude reflecting and writing; (iii) the need for the Higher Defence Organisation, the Ministry of Defence and the political establishment to foster an enabling intellectual environment that facilitates professional debate, innovation and accelerated reform. The author suggests the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence could reflect on this.
• The author's test question: "When was the last time a paper proposing a disruptive but doable military idea, authored by a colonel, brigadier, or general, found its way to the top echelons of the country's national security leadership?"
• The optimistic note: India's Professional Military Education (PME) system is on a solid footing, though it needs greater focus on a whole-of-government approach to national security; the quality of writing and idea-generation in India's war colleges is good.
• The conclusion: "If the government can accelerate and enable economic reform, it can do the same with military reform. The challenge will be to enhance intellectual productivity in an elephant-paced, conservative and hierarchical armed forces."

The airlift tender — and the wider modernisation drive

• The tender: Around ₹1 lakh crore for 60 multirole transport aircraft (MTA) for the IAF, issued to multiple Indian companies including Hindustan Aeronautics Limited and private defence majors, to replace the ageing cargo and transport fleet and expand strategic airlift capability.
• Indian-led structure: Indian companies partnering global OEMs to manufacture in India. Mahindra Defence has tied up with Brazil's Embraer to offer the C-390 Millennium; Tata is partnering Lockheed Martin to offer the C-130J Super Hercules, already operated by the IAF for special operations.
• Indigenisation terms: About 20% of the aircraft are expected to be inducted in fly-away condition; the rest manufactured in India with more than 60% indigenous content through joint ventures.
• Capability: Rapid movement of troops, equipment and military assets over long distances; potential configuration for aerial refuelling, giving the IAF additional tanker capability.
• Existing fleet: The IAF operates 12 C-130J Super Hercules. Separately it is inducting the C-295 under a programme involving Airbus and Tata, with around 70 aircraft planned and the majority to be made in India.
• Parallel programmes: A tender for 114 multirole fighter aircraft under the long-pending fighter modernisation programme, and a plan to acquire more than 100 trainer aircraft to replace the ageing Hawk fleet.

Border backdrop

• China's Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday that the India-China border is "generally stable at the moment", responding to queries about rising tensions in Arunachal Pradesh's eastern sector. Spokesperson Guo Jiakun said the two sides held the 36th meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on China-India Border Affairs last week and agreed to maintain communication through diplomatic and military channels.
• Reports last week suggested PLA troops crossed the LAC at Pukar La and Ollo in Taksing circle of Upper Subansiri. On August 7, Chief Minister Pema Khandu denied an incursion, saying he would verify with the Army and local bodies; officials have not publicly confirmed the reports.
• An official source said: "Due to the undemarcated nature of the boundary, patrols at times face off against each other. Such incidents are resolved through existing mechanisms and protocols. The Army and the ITBP are geared up to dominate the border and monitor and check Chinese activities."

Context

The current UPI set-up is financially unsustainable and threatens critical investments in cybersecurity, fraud prevention and network infrastructure, the Standing Committee on Finance informed Parliament on Wednesday. In response, the government said it was currently looking at two ways to make the UPI platform financially self-sustaining.

Background & Key Facts

• Option one: A charge on certain high-value transactions and high-turnover merchants — "Examining the feasibility of restoring MDR for certain high threshold transactions/merchants".
• Option two: "A tiered incentive structure to phase out the Government support in the next few years" — replacing the current scheme under which the government compensates payment ecosystem players for part of the cost of processing low-value UPI transactions at small merchants.
• What MDR is: A charge that the payment ecosystem — banks, payments processors and gateways — levies on merchants. It is currently levied on most debit card and all credit card transactions, but UPI and RuPay debit card transactions were exempted in 2020.
• The mismatch: "The Committee remain deeply concerned by the staggering mismatch between the ₹2,000 crore allocation and the industry's estimated operational cost of ₹20,700 crore."
• Coverage of costs: While UPI is expected to process up to 150 billion transactions per month and add 600 million new users, the current government incentive covers "merely 11% of the industry's actual costs and 14% of potential MDR collections" and "needlessly inflates" the overall Demand for Grants of the Department.
• Source: The submissions were made by the Department of Financial Services in reply to the Committee's recommendations, and were revealed in the Committee's report placed before the Lok Sabha on Wednesday.

The two options compared

Context

Retail inflation in India rose to a 19-month high of 4.45% in July, driven up by higher food and fuel prices, official data released on Wednesday showed. The Consumer Price Index data from the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation showed transport, food, and restaurant and accommodation services becoming costlier, while inflation in healthcare and in recreation, sports and culture cooled marginally.

The numbers

A note on the data series: The CPI series was updated earlier this year with a new base year of 2024. As a result, historical data for the overall index goes back to August 2021, but sector-wise data is available only from January 2026 onwards.

Analyst readings

• Rajeev Sharan, Head of Research, Brickwork Ratings: The food increase was driven by "fresh spikes in onion and garlic alongside persistently high ginger prices, even as potato and tomato swung into deflation".
• Madan Sabnavis, Chief Economist, Bank of Baroda — on food ahead: "While the monsoon has recovered substantially in July, there has been news of crop damage due to excess rains. This, combined with a longer cropping period and hence harvest, will push up prices of pulses in particular. Global prices of edible oils are also high which is being felt in domestic markets."
• On fuel and services: "The war impact on prices can be seen from higher inflation for restaurants and food services where higher fuel prices have made units increase prices. While there is some normalisation in supply of fuel, prices remain where they are and tend to be inelastic in downward direction."

Context

Amid vocal protests by Opposition members, the Lok Sabha on Wednesday passed a Bill to amend the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act without a debate. The Rajya Sabha separately passed the National Co-operative Development Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2026 and the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, 2026.

Background & Key Facts

• What the Bill does: The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026 prevents State governments from imposing additional taxes, cesses or levies on mineral rights and gives the Centre greater control over regulating mineral-laden lands.
• The Minister's case: Coal and Mines Minister G. Kishan Reddy said divergent fiscal levies by States had created uncertainty in the mineral sector and could raise costs, encourage imports and undermine domestic supply chains.
• The federalism objection: Revolutionary Socialist Party MP N.K. Premachandran strongly opposed the introduction, arguing it was against federalism.
• The scene: The Bill was taken up after a couple of adjournments; the Opposition trooped into the Well shouting slogans, and when the Chair, Jagdambika Pal, put the Bill to vote, members shouted "Adani, Adani". Kiren Rijiju objected to MPs crowding the Well and repeated that the government was ready to debate the NEET protests; Mr. Pal appealed to Akhilesh Yadav and K.C. Venugopal to have their members take their seats. Mr. Yadav's attempt to speak failed as his microphone was not on. The House was adjourned till Thursday.
• The Rajya Sabha's day: It functioned for about 21 minutes in the pre-lunch session before adjournment amid uproar over CPI(M) MP John Brittas's allegation that BJP MP Sushmita Dev had addressed him as 'lungiwala'. Opposition MPs protested at Makar Dwar, several male MPs wearing mundu and raising slogans celebrating "unity in diversity". Chairman C.P. Radhakrishnan ruled that members should avoid remarks that could hurt fellow MPs' sentiments; Ms. Dev said, "Neither I nor any members have cast aspersions on any State's attire."
• Session tally: The Rajya Sabha has passed about 10 Bills, other than some Money Bills returned to the Lok Sabha, during the Monsoon Session.
• Keralam: Replying on the Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill, Nityanand Rai said it continued the Kerala Assembly's 2024 resolution urging the name change to Keralam, and that the Union government was committed to removing "all symbols of slavery". Congress member Jebi Mather asked where the Home Minister was; Leader of the House J.P. Nadda asked the Chair to expunge her remarks.
• NCDC Bill: It will broaden the mandate of the National Cooperative Development Corporation to give loans and grants directly to cooperative societies.

The constitutional backdrop on mineral taxation

Context

Amid an ongoing tussle over de-reserving Union government quota posts, particularly in promotion vacancies, the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) has decided to "comprehensively review" all proposals to de-reserve government posts received from the Centre in the last three years.

Background & Key Facts

• What de-reservation is: The practice of filling up a reserved vacancy as an unreserved one; it is allowed only in exceptional circumstances.
• The dispute: The NCSC and the Centre have been clashing for two years, with the Commission saying de-reservation proposals are often incomplete and do not reveal alternate efforts made to fill the reserved posts — a "recurring issue" it has decided to examine.
• A concession already won: Nudging from the Commission led the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) to revise its procedure to double the time Commissions for SCs and STs get to object to such proposals — from two weeks to one month.
• The general rule: DoPT regulations impose a general ban on de-reserving posts, with very specific exceptions.
• Direct recruitment exception: De-reservation is permitted only where a "vacancy in a Group 'A' service cannot be allowed to remain vacant in public interest". Such a proposal must first be examined by the National Commissions for SCs, STs or OBCs (whichever applicable), then by a Committee of Secretaries of the concerned Departments, the DoPT and the Social Justice Ministry, with the final decision left to the Minister of Personnel and Training.
• The promotion loophole: For de-reserving posts in promotion vacancies, the procedure allows the concerned recruiting Department or Ministry to have the final say, even though they must submit a proposal to the National Commissions and DoPT.
• The decision: At its Full Commission meeting on June 4, the NCSC decided to undertake a full review of all de-reservation proposals with the objective of examining "recurring issues" and formulating "appropriate recommendations for ensuring effective implementation of the reservation policy".

Context

Tribal leaders have accused the Andaman and Nicobar island administration of seeking to drag the Shompen — an isolated indigenous community — into a "modern lifestyle" as part of the ₹91,000-crore Great Nicobar Island (GNI) development project, which includes a proposed power plant at Galathea, located near Shompen settlements.

Background & Key Facts

• The allegation: According to the Tribal Council of Great and Little Nicobar, when its members raised concerns at a meeting on July 16 about the Shompen being disturbed by the project, then-Chief Secretary Chandra Bhushan Kumar said the Shompen "cannot continue" living the way they do and must "adopt a modern lifestyle" that will come with GNI's development, adding that a settlement for the Shompen may be built when the project comes up.
• No response: Mr. Kumar, appointed Union Labour Secretary two weeks after that meeting, did not respond to The Hindu's queries.
• Who the Shompen are: A hunter-gatherer tribe with fewer than 300 members on Nicobar island, recognised as a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group (PVTG).
• The earlier assurance: Two years ago, Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav said in a written statement that the GNI infrastructure project "will not disturb or displace" any of the Shompen people.
• Concerns omitted: The Council says its concerns raised at the July 16 meeting were ignored, with any mention of them omitted from later directions issued by the administration. In a recent letter, it said instructions issued by the tribal welfare department referring directly to that meeting did not mention these issues. Officials of the department did not respond when reached for comment.
• The Nicobarese demand: The July 16 meeting was meant to discuss the concerns of the Nicobarese — a larger indigenous community — about the project. Council members reiterated their demand to relocate to their ancestral villages along the west coast of Greater Nicobar, and asked why their consent had not been sought regarding the notification of wildlife reserves in the Nicobar group of islands.
• Contradictory accounts: The Council said the meeting did nothing to clarify its concerns, and that on relocation and project-affected villages there were contradictory versions from the Chief Secretary and a member of the Andaman Adim Janjati Vikas Sangathan.
• Next step: The Council is set to meet administration officials again later this week to discuss plans for the township that is part of the GNI project.

The legal framework at stake

Context

The Supreme Court on Wednesday backed an NGO's petition pointing out that lakhs of families pay municipal taxes for years, are provided electricity and water connections, and are allowed to convert their properties to freehold — only to be thrown out into the streets one fine day when their homes are demolished as illegal structures.

Background & Key Facts

• The Bench: A three-judge Bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, with Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V. Mohana.
• The direction: The Court asked the Union and State governments to consider a petition filed by the NGO Centre for Law and Good Governance, seeking the formulation of a uniform policy for demolition of unauthorised constructions and simultaneous rehabilitation of affected families.
• The CJI's formulation: Demolition and rehabilitation are the "twin responsibilities" of the government in a welfare democracy — "One should not be without the other." He asked: "If you want to demolish an unauthorised construction, the question for the government is 'do you also have a policy for their rehabilitation?'"
• The NGO's argument: The laws surrounding demolition of unauthorised structures lack even "an iota of human rights jurisprudence".
• The Court's finding on record: The Bench took note in its order that States allow unauthorised constructions to survive undisturbed for decades.
• The relief sought: Constitution of an expert committee to formulate a uniform policy reconciling demolition and rehabilitation.
• The separation-of-powers caveat: Justice Joymalya Bagchi said it was settled that a person cannot be dispossessed without following the due process of law, but disagreed with the judiciary getting into the domain of policy-making.

Context

Members of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs, headed by senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, on Tuesday questioned the government on whether it plans to push a de-dollarisation agenda at the 18th BRICS Summit to be held in New Delhi in September. India assumed the rotating chairship of BRICS on January 1 and will lead it until the end of 2026.

Background & Key Facts

• The backdrop: The Reserve Bank of India has repeatedly advocated linking the official digital currencies of BRICS countries to facilitate cross-border trade and tourism payments, arguing such a framework could reduce reliance on the U.S. dollar amid rising geopolitical tensions.
• The members' questions: Why the government was not pursuing greater "financial sovereignty" that could help countries bypass U.S. sanctions.
• The rupee-rouble precedent: India's efforts to establish a local currency trade mechanism with Russia had not taken off, members noted, and they sought to know whether India, as host, would push a "BRICS-led de-dollarisation agenda".
• The external pressure: U.S. President Donald Trump has repeatedly warned BRICS countries against creating an alternative currency or taking steps that could challenge the dollar's dominance, threatening punitive tariffs and other measures.

Why local-currency trade is harder than it sounds

Context

The Department-related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health and Family Welfare, headed by Rajya Sabha MP Ram Gopal Yadav, has recommended a review and rationalisation of Foreign Direct Investment limits governing the operation and acquisition of existing private hospitals, warning that aggressive corporatisation and an influx of foreign capital could push up healthcare costs and undermine affordability. Its 176th report is on 'Affordability and Accessibility of Healthcare Facilities in Public and Private Sector'.

Background & Key Facts

• The mechanism identified: The growing presence of foreign capital in private hospital chains was facilitating the acquisition of cost-effective, mid-sized hospitals by larger corporate entities.
• The warning: Such "aggressive corporatisation" was transforming healthcare from a public service into a "purely capitalistic enterprise", with potential to inflate the cost of medical procedures and trigger price increases across the healthcare ecosystem.
• Where foreign capital should go instead: Manufacture of medical devices, consumables and specialised medicines for rare diseases — while its application in the direct operation and acquisition of hospitals needs greater scrutiny. The panel recommended redirecting foreign investment towards local manufacturing of medical technologies and pharmaceuticals.
• Public hospitals as market regulator: A strong public healthcare system could act as a market regulator by providing an affordable alternative; efficiently managed public hospitals can exert competitive pressure on private providers and help reduce costs.
• The cost gap (NSS 80th round): The average cost of hospitalisation was ₹50,508 in private hospitals versus ₹6,631 in government hospitals — roughly a 7.6-fold difference.
• Key recommendations: Autonomous, efficiently managed public multispeciality hospitals in every revenue division; mechanisms to standardise and cap the cost of essential treatments, diagnostics and routine procedures in private hospitals; incentives including tax holidays to attract private investment in multispeciality hospitals in tier-2, tier-3 cities and rural areas; public-private partnerships to extend advanced medical technologies to underserved regions.
• Cross-subsidisation: Private hospitals receiving government support should consider cross-subsidisation, with revenue from higher-paying patients helping poorer patients' treatment.
• Reserved beds: Raise mandatory reservation of beds for Below Poverty Line, Economically Weaker Section and AB-PMJAY beneficiaries from 10% to 20%.
• Fees: Hospital-level ethics committees to examine professional fees.

Context

The total amount of bad loans written off by public sector banks has been declining each year, while recoveries from these loans have been steadily expanding, according to data shared by the government with Parliament. An analysis by The Hindu of answers given by the Ministry of Finance to both Houses also shows that large industries are no longer the primary beneficiaries of these write-offs — a reversal of the situation a few years ago.

The numbers

The data were shared by Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.

Context

Two developments on Wednesday extend India's economic diplomacy in opposite directions — Germany signalled interest in purchasing green hydrogen from India and expanding renewable energy engagement, while India and the five-member Southern African Customs Union signed terms of reference to begin talks on a preferential trade agreement.

1. Green hydrogen and the German interest

• The proposition: Georg Enzweiler, Chargé d'Affaires of the German Mission in India, told The Hindu: "India has the resources to produce green hydrogen which we could buy to cover our energy needs back home and not be dependent on procuring fossil fuels."
• India's advantages: "Fantastic resources" for producing renewable energy — both solar and wind — and a "dynamic forward-looking innovative business framework". Germany would bring its technological and industrial expertise.
• The business model: "India can [then look to] export the energy produced for which it could get good Euros. That could make it an attractive business model as well."
• Indigenisation: Asked about indigenising German technology amid India's self-reliance push, he affirmed it would be viable, especially with the European Union-India Free Trade Agreement in sight.
• The FTA: Negotiations on the "mother of all deals" concluded late January; it is expected to see tariffs on 99.5% of items exported by India drop to nil once in force, which he hoped would be early 2027. "We expect a big push on energy and renewables but also on the wider economy for both Europe and India." Sectors of German interest: automobiles, machinery and chemicals.
• The occasion: The eleventh edition of the 'Young Voices for Sustainable Development' summit.

2. India and the Southern African Customs Union

• The step: India and SACU signed terms of reference on Wednesday to start talks on a preferential trade agreement, as New Delhi seeks lower tariffs on exports including cars, pharmaceuticals and industrial machinery.
• The bloc: SACU comprises South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho and Eswatini — a market of about 65 million people.
• History: The move revives talks that ran through five rounds of negotiations between 2002 and 2010 without a deal.
• Significance: The pact could become India's first major trade agreement with an African regional bloc. Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said he was confident SACU countries and India would "benefit immensely" from a fair, equitable and balanced agreement.

Context

N. Chandrasekaran, chairperson of Tata Sons, said on Wednesday that he will step down at the end of his current term in February 2027, citing a six-month stand-off with a Board member who blocked his reappointment as chair of the Tata Group's holding company.

Background & Key Facts

• The statement: "I have communicated to the Tata Sons Board, that I have decided not to offer myself for reappointment when my term ends on February 20, 2027. I have asked the Board to decide on the succession soon to ensure a proper transition."
• The sequence: The Sir Dorabji Tata Trust and Sir Ratan Tata Trust, which together hold 51.54% of Tata Sons, had unanimously resolved and recommended a third five-year term. This was recorded and recommended by the Tata Sons Nomination and Remuneration Committee and tabled at the Board meeting on February 24. "However, the proposal was not carried through because one of the Board Members did not support it, and in the absence of unanimous support, I chose to defer the decision... It has been six months since that Board meeting, and no resolution has been reached till date."
• The dissenting member: Though not named, it is understood to be Tata Trusts chairperson and Tata Sons Board member Noel Tata.
• Ownership structure: Tata Sons is the principal investment holding company and promoter of the Tata Group; the Tata Trusts collectively own about 66% of Tata Sons, giving the philanthropic arm decisive influence over group governance. The Shapoorji Pallonji Group holds about 18%.
• Market reaction: TCS led the losses, sliding 3.71% to ₹2,349.70; Tata Steel fell 1.57% to ₹185.45; Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles down 1.92% to ₹342.30; Tata Elxsi down 2.23% to ₹3,724.95; Tata Technologies down 2.81% to ₹840.75.
• The succession process: A selection committee will be set up comprising two external members, two from Tata Trusts and one from Tata Sons. Names in circulation include Noel Tata (69) and his son Neville Tata (32), who leads retail businesses such as Westside, Zudio and Star Bazaar and is a trustee in many Tata Trusts; group insiders mentioned include Tata Steel MD & CEO T.V. Narendran and Jaguar Land Rover CEO P.B. Balaji.
• His record: 40 years with the Tata Group and nine years at the helm. He joined TCS as a trainee in 1987, served 30 years including eight as CEO until 2017, during which TCS became the country's most valuable company. As the first non-Parsi to lead the group, he had the backing of Ratan Tata until the latter's death in 2024.
• Strategic direction: He steered the conglomerate into semiconductors, electronics, consumer internet platforms, mobile technology and battery gigafactories, and expanded aviation through the acquisition of loss-making Air India, under the "One Tata" strategy of synergy, simplicity and scale.
• The pending questions: He was reportedly tasked with finding a way to avoid listing Tata Sons — sought by the Shapoorji Pallonji Group and relevant to RBI norms for upper-layer NBFCs — and asked by the board to cut losses at several firms including Air India and Tata Digital.

Context

In August, the government told the Lok Sabha that the ethanol blending programme had helped save around ₹2 lakh crore in foreign exchange. Opposition leaders including Rahul Gandhi and Arvind Kejriwal have launched campaigns against E20, saying it harms vehicles and that the government is forcing it on people; Mr. Kejriwal alleged that India has "yielded" to pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump to buy American ethanol.

Status of production

• The target: Produce 10-11 billion litres of ethanol so that 20% of petrol used in transport vehicles comes from ethanol produced in India, with the money funnelled into the Indian economy rather than leaving as foreign exchange through crude imports.
• Capacity: India's distillery capacity is now capable of producing some 18-20 billion litres from about 500 distilleries. For this ethanol year (November to October), oil companies have contracted to procure about 10.5 billion litres.
• Feedstock mix this ethanol year: Maize 45%; FCI rice 22%; sugarcane juice 16%; B-heavy molasses 10%; damaged foodgrains 4.5%; C-heavy molasses 1.1%.
• On the import allegation: There is no evidence of a surge in ethanol or maize imports in Ministry of Commerce statistics. Direct ethanol import for petroleum blending is banned, though the U.S. corn lobby has pushed for higher corn imports. India's maize output grew 45% in three years to 55 million tonnes in 2025-26, with more than 20% going into ethanol; Shankar Lal Jat of the Indian Council of Maize Research says there is no need to import.
• Sugar balance: The Indian Sugar Manufacturers' Association reported closing stock of about 5 million tonnes in September 2025, and expects the same this year — indicating diversion to ethanol has not affected sugar availability. But in the event of monsoon failure, crop losses and foodgrain shortages, diversion of FCI rice, sugarcane juice and B-heavy molasses would come under stress, raising the possibility of corn imports.

Should vehicle owners worry?

• The chemistry: Ethanol is a polar solvent that degrades older rubber compounds and plastics, hardening and cracking fuel hoses over time. It is also hygroscopic: it absorbs atmospheric moisture, and in vehicles left parked for extended periods the ethanol-water mixture separates and settles, forming an acidic layer that corrodes tanks, damages fuel pumps and clogs filters with sludge.
• Consumer evidence: LocalCircles surveys found 66% of pre-2023 owners reporting mileage losses exceeding 10%, and 55% reporting increased maintenance.
• The institutional view: IIT Kanpur's Engine Research Laboratory maintains that E20 causes no notable damage, with efficiency loss under 5%, attributing most complaints to driving habits and traffic conditions. Independent mechanics and automotive communities dispute this, citing real-world fuel pump and injector failures traced to ethanol's solvent and low-lubricity properties.
• The government's data: One leading manufacturer serviced 2.84 crore vehicles in FY 2025-26, including about 1.5 crore legacy vehicles, without finding E20-linked engine damage; a two-wheeler maker reported similar findings. On mileage, government and manufacturer studies showed an efficiency penalty of about 2 to 6% in some vehicles designed for E10, also influenced by driving conditions and maintenance.
• The rollout comparison: Brazil's transition to high ethanol levels, with matching vehicle modifications, happened over several decades in a stable manner. India reached the 10% milestone in 2022 and ramped up to 20% within three years, with very little information and advisories coming from manufacturers.

Has blending eased the oil supply crisis?

• Government claim: Savings of around ₹2 lakh crore in foreign exchange and substitution of some 32 million tonnes of crude oil imports. Substituting 10 billion litres of petrol with ethanol equals roughly a month of crude imports.
• Price cushion claim: While crude prices rose 70% during the West Asia war, pump petrol prices rose only 7 to 8%, though under-recoveries also increased.
• The cost comparison: OMCs procure ethanol at around ₹70 per litre for blending, against a pump price of about ₹105 per litre of petrol. The base price of petrol — production, transportation and OMC margins — is typically 55-60% of the pump price. On the surface ethanol is not cheaper than petrol, but ethanol and petrol follow different costing and tax regimes, making an independent inference on price impact difficult.

Context

The Supreme Court recently held in The State of Andhra Pradesh vs Suda Suresh Veera Venkata Naga Raju that Section 187(2) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) enlarges the window during which police custody may be sought. Such custody is now available in parts — though in aggregate not exceeding 15 days — during the first 40 or 60 days of the total permissible period of detention, rather than being confined to the first 15 days of remand alone.

The case

• Facts: A custodial death case in which the body of the deceased victim remained untraced, the original hard disks of the CCTV system were yet to be discovered, and discoveries under the Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam (BSA) were imminent.
• The magistrate's order: Granted eight days of police custody and allowed the accused to nominate two advocates of his choice, one of whom could be present at any given point during investigation. The order stated that "under no circumstances shall the period of police custody granted under this order be extended".
• High Court: The Andhra Pradesh High Court modified some conditions on the period of police custody and the presence of an advocate throughout the probe. The State challenged these conditions as directly impinging on the investigating officer's right to conduct an unhindered investigation.
• The Supreme Court's holding: The investigating agency's apprehensions were justified, and the statutory scheme under the BNSS enlarging the window of police custody must be borne in mind. A magistrate or court cannot place an absolute and non-extendable outer limit on custody, since such a limit forecloses recourse to Section 187(2). The Court permitted 7 days of additional police custody so that the total would not exceed 15 days.

The law on police remand — old and new

On the advocate: The Court held that a plain reading of Section 38 does not contemplate the continuous, ongoing physical presence of an advocate for the entirety of each interrogation session; an unqualified entitlement to continuous presence would travel beyond what Section 38 contemplates. It modified the High Court's condition, holding that the lawyer may remain present within the site of interrogation where he can see the accused. It also held that instead of uninterrupted videography of the transit of the accused between locations, audio-visual recording of the actual interrogation and of any proceedings of discovery or recovery will satisfy the requirement.

Context

Debasree Purkayastha reviews three books on Assam's floods, opening with lines from Zubeen Garg's Assamese song Keufale gujori gumori baan — "From all sides, the roaring and rumbling floodwaters have arrived" — which capture how floods alter a family's life in a matter of moments. This year, more than 100 people have been reported dead and over 1.26 lakh are reeling from monsoon floods in Assam.

Background & Key Facts

• This year's driver: The deluge has been driven largely by the overflowing Dikhow river, a tributary of the Brahmaputra. Residents and officials have blamed illegal coal mining across the border in Nagaland, which they allege has worsened flooding and inundated areas previously not prone to floods.
• The 1950 earthquake: In River Traveller: Journeys on the Tsangpo-Brahmaputra from Tibet to the Bay of Bengal (Speaking Tiger Books), journalist Sanjoy Hazarika revisits the devastation after which the Brahmaputra altered its course, carved new channels and created fresh river islands.
• The river's dual nature: "This assumption that the Brahmaputra is flooding and destroying everything is erroneous. There are many factors to flooding, and not just one," Hazarika says — the river takes with one hand and gives with the other.
• The man-made component: Road building without proper drainage; deforestation of hills; extraction of rocks and soil from rivers and riverbanks; clogging of natural drainage channels. "When the natural streams are filled with silt, the water spills over. Many streams and rivulets are covered by silt and that contribute to the phenomenal energy of this wall of water and mud."
• On the Yarlung Tsangpo mega dam: Hazarika cautions against a reactive approach — "Just because China is building this monster dam doesn't mean we have to respond by building one of our own."
• Living with floods: Banamallika, editor of Riverside Stories: Writings from Assam (Zubaan), writes: "We as people who live with floods every year have learnt to live with and make lives out of floods." Rashida Tapadar's story Manowara's Library depicts a village where the annual flood organises the calendar itself — a phurna mashtor from Shundorgram who welcomes floods because they extend his summer vacation, then builds a floating library on a boat as penance, giving up that vacation.
• The long view: Arupjyoti Saikia's The Unquiet River: A Biography of the Brahmaputra draws on geology, archaeology and historical records to show how the river shaped settlement, agriculture, trade and migration; how colonial expansion, plantations, roads, railways, dams and embankments transformed its ecology; and how the river has consistently defied control, breaching embankments time and again.
• The closing argument: "If human intervention has worsened the problem, part of the solution must lie with the authorities addressing the very factors that contribute to it each year."

Why the Brahmaputra floods

Context

Dr. Alok Kulkarni, senior consultant psychiatrist at the Manas Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences, Hubballi, writes that when a young man was brought to his clinic after his first episode of psychosis, his parents asked, "Is this in our blood?" and whether their child should undergo a genetic test. Families rarely ask about psychiatric genetics out of scientific curiosity — they ask because they are looking for an explanation and, indeed, relief from blame.

Background & Key Facts

• Why colloquialisms harm: Phrases like "genes for schizophrenia" or "genes for depression" mislead. Genes do not determine a person's destiny; vulnerability is "distributed and complicated but also inseparable from the life in which it is expressed".
• The tool — GWAS: Instead of choosing a few candidate genes, a genome-wide association study compares millions of common genetic variants across very large groups with and without a condition, to find which variants appear more often in one group.
• Polygenic, not monogenic: In common psychiatric disorders, no single variant has an effect comparable to single genes in monogenic diseases like Tay-Sachs disease or Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Risk emerges from the combined influence of thousands of variants, along with rare genetic changes, development, environment and chance.
• The landmark findings: A 2022 schizophrenia study involving tens of thousands of people identified associations at 287 genomic regions, pointing to genes active in neurons and synapses. A 2021 bipolar disorder study identified 64 associated regions.
• The interpretive caution: A genomic region is not a gene, and association is not causation. Many signals lie in stretches of DNA that regulate when and where genes are switched on rather than encoding a protein; several genes may sit near one signal; the relevant effect may occur during a narrow window of brain development. "A GWAS is more like a satellite map that highlights areas of interest."
• Diagnosis versus biology: A December 2025 Nature study reported that some inherited risk is shared across schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Diagnoses remain useful for guiding treatment and communicating prognosis, but "nature has not organised mental illness according to the chapter headings of the DSM".
• Polygenic risk scores: They cannot say whether a person will become ill, at what age, how severe the condition will be, or which medicine will work. A person with a higher score may remain well; one with a lower score may fall ill. The score captures only part of genetic liability and does not contain childhood adversity, sleep disruption, substance use, medical illness, social support or access to timely care. The International Society of Psychiatric Genetics has cautioned that current polygenic risk scores for schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and depression are not sufficiently accurate for routine clinical prediction.
• The Indian-specific caution: Genomic databases have historically drawn disproportionately from people of European ancestry, and scores developed from those datasets are less accurate elsewhere because variant frequencies and correlations differ by ancestry. Even "Indian ancestry" is too blunt a label: the GenomeIndia project, which generated whole-genome data from 10,000 healthy, unrelated Indians across 83 population groups, documented extraordinary genetic diversity. "India cannot simply import a score developed elsewhere, test it in a small urban sample, and assume it applies to all its peoples."
• What genetics can usefully do today: Reduce blame. "A mother did not cause schizophrenia by being 'too strict'. A father did not 'transmit' bipolar disorder through a moral failing. Biology matters and families often find that acknowledgement to be a relief."
• The clinician's practical advice: The risks he encounters are visible without sequencing — several nights without sleep before a manic episode, escalating cannabis use, treatment stopped because of stigma, months lost because specialist care is too far away. There is no genetic test yet that can declare a person "safe" or "doomed"; nobody should be treated as a "patient-in-waiting". Track early warning signs, avoid intoxicants, sleep well, seek help promptly, focus on recovery.
• The closing line: "Genes load the dice but you can still strategise your way through the game."

Context

To tackle the severe droughts and water shortages that plague the country, Kazakhstan has resorted to cloud seeding — a weather modification method previously unseen in Central Asia — in collaboration with the United Arab Emirates' meteorological centre.

Background & Key Facts

• How it works: "The aircraft is specifically equipped with a cloud-seeding flare system," said Ahmed Aljaberi, a pilot with the UAE meteorological centre. Cartridges fixed on the aircraft's wings contain a substance that, when dispersed, sticks to cloud droplets, making them heavy enough to fall as rain.
• The agents: "Salt particles — specifically sodium chloride and potassium chloride — are most often used," said Adnan Yarmohammed, one of the Emirati officials sharing his country's experience.
• The techniques: Either seeding rockets are burned to release a plume of particles, or the saline solution is sprayed directly into the cloud for greater precision. This "weighs down the droplets", which "grow from a few micrometres to several millimetres: up to two or three. They fall, and it rains."
• What it cannot do: The technique "does not create new clouds". The plane must "get as close as possible, detect the updrafts, and begin seeding" — delivering droplets onto parched crops requires meticulous preparation to identify suitable clouds.
• Effectiveness: At best the technique can increase precipitation by 15% to 20%, according to various scientific studies — but those involved highlight the significant risk of failure due to numerous factors, not least because not just any cloud can be seeded.
• The target area: The southern Turkestan region, Kazakhstan's leading cotton-growing area. Areas with some 9,110 square kilometres of arable land are being targeted, with estimated economic benefits of around $75 million a year through better harvests.
• Official position: The Kazakh meteorological service said the impact of the project is "local and short-lived", and that it "does not affect climate processes or alter the movement of air masses".
• The scientific verdict: The effects of boosting rainfall through cloud seeding remain uncertain, consequences difficult to measure, and large-scale application costly. The World Meteorological Organization has called for more scientific research, pointing to a "rise in demand for these activities ... due to the frequency of droughts", while ruling out any danger to human health or the environment and acknowledging potential economic benefits if the technique proved successful.
• Global spread: Already used in around 50 countries to combat drought, hail and air pollution — but new for Central Asia, a region warming twice as fast as the global average.

Context

Between July 30 and 31, approximately 72,000 people from Morocco arrived at Ceuta, Spain's enclave and one of the EU's only land borders with Africa, in hopes of making it to Spain. Within hours, 22 European Union leaders signed a letter to the European Commission criticising Spain and demanding an emergency meeting of interior ministers on migration.

Background & Key Facts

• The aftermath: Morocco's government has repeatedly stated that a large majority of those who swam for hours and reached Ceuta voluntarily returned to Morocco. About 11,000 remain on the island, according to the city's mayor. More than 80 people lost their lives in the incident.
• The paradox: Morocco's economy has improved and poverty has declined over the past few years — but this has not reduced unemployment, specifically among its youth, who comprised a majority of those who fled to Ceuta.
• The numbers: Morocco's unemployment rate has only increased in the quarters following the pandemic, standing at 13% as of Q3 2025. Its youth unemployment rate is nearly three times the overall rate. About 37% of Moroccans — two in five persons aged 15 to 24 — are not employed, nearly 20 percentage points higher than a decade ago. About 24.5% of youth were neither in education nor employed.
• The education paradox: More than half of Morocco's youth who reached higher levels of education are unemployed — nearly 65% of young women and about 54% of young men with completed higher education are without work. Higher education is not rewarded with better job prospects.
• Enforcement scale: Morocco's Interior Ministry says the country stopped almost 80,000 attempts to reach the EU in 2024.
• Share of arrivals: Moroccans made up about 20% of Spain's land and sea arrivals in 2026 so far, per UNHCR. A majority of arrivals into Spain came from Ceuta and the Balearic Islands via the Western Mediterranean route.
• The EU response: Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni imposed travel restrictions on travellers arriving from Spain from August 1; Spain responded with similar restrictions — symbolic of a broader disagreement between Ms. Meloni and Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez. The Commission letter argued that Madrid's migration policies had undermined the EU's security.
• What the data actually show: Of 54,316 persons who arrived in the EU by land or sea, about 8% arrived in Ceuta and about 22% in the Spanish mainland. Italy made up about 30% of arrivals and Greece about 36%. Most of the 2,589 Moroccans who entered the EU by land or sea arrived in Spain. 586 persons are missing or have died on the Mediterranean and West African Atlantic routes.

1. Zhu Rongji, architect of China's economic reforms, dies at 97

• The man: Zhu Rongji, the former Premier who played a key role in driving China's economic reforms and transforming the country into a global economic power, died in Beijing on Wednesday. The Communist Party obituary extolled him as "an excellent Party member, a time-tested and loyal communist fighter, and an outstanding proletarian revolutionist, statesman and leader of the Party and the State".
• His record as Premier (1998-2003): Economist Arthur Kroeber writes in China's Economy that in one term he "masterminded the reorganisation and downsizing of State-owned Enterprises, recapitalisation and reform of the banking system, privatisation of the housing market, and China's long-delayed entry into the World Trade Organisation", calling him the most effective economic leader in the history of the People's Republic.
• The path there: Born October 1928 in Changsha, Hunan — the same province as Mao Zedong. A graduate of Tsinghua University, he was purged in 1958 as a "Rightist" after criticising, during the 1957 'Hundred Flowers' campaign, the flawed focus on high growth — an obsession whose consequences appeared in the Great Leap Forward and the famine that claimed millions between 1958 and 1962. During the Cultural Revolution (1966-76) he was sent to do labour in the villages. Rehabilitated after Mao's death, he led Shanghai from 1988 as mayor and then party boss, spearheading Pudong — then barren farmland — as a pilot area of reform.
• Crisis manager: Brought to Beijing after 1989 to fix inflation and corruption; appointed Governor of the People's Bank of China and Vice Premier; helped bring down inflation and protect the economy during the Asian Financial Crisis, and was rewarded with the premiership in 1998. He broke up the SOEs — ending the "iron rice bowl" of state-guaranteed jobs and benefits, at the cost of millions of jobs.
• The India connection: He visited India in 2002 as the guest of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, telling him both countries had "similar national conditions as both of them are engaged in all-round economic reform". Trade grew from around $4 billion at the time of his visit to more than $70 billion within a decade, when China became India's biggest trade partner. Visiting Infosys in Bengaluru he declared: "India is number one in software, and China is number one in hardware. If we put these together, we can become the world's number one." He reportedly took "15 minutes" to approve, on the spot, Infosys's request to open a Shanghai office, which remains today.

2. Ukraine strikes Russia's Black Sea naval base

• Ukrainian anti-ship missiles, jet-powered aerial drones and sea drones blitzed the Russian naval base at Novorossiysk in a "unique" night-time operation, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said — describing it as "the last major stronghold of the Russian fleet in the Black Sea". The attack struck air defences, piers and other infrastructure in the Krasnodar region.
• Krasnodar Governor Veniamin Kondratyev said hundreds of Ukrainian drones attacked Novorossiysk, Anapa, Gelendzhik and the Temryuk district overnight. Russia's Defence Ministry claimed air defences downed more than 500 Ukrainian drones.
• Ukraine's uncrewed fleet has succeeded in limiting the movements of Russia's once-dominant Black Sea navy — described by Kyiv officials as one of the country's biggest accomplishments of the war.
• Mr. Zelenskyy said Mr. Putin is planning "an additional rapid mobilisation of several hundred thousand Russians by the end of the year", citing Ukrainian intelligence reports.
• Putin's threat: The Russian President threatened on Wednesday to seize ships belonging to European countries in retaliation for plans to sell off cargo seized from Russian "shadow fleet" vessels, calling the moves "piracy and banditry" — "We will be forced to respond in kind."

3. Hormuz, and the world in brief

News in Numbers

Economy & Business

• SBI and AI underwriting: State Bank of India used artificial intelligence to underwrite nearly ₹1 lakh crore in MSME loans of up to ₹5 crore each during 2025-26. MD Rama Mohan Rao Amara said at the annual FIBAC event: "In FY26, in 12 months time, we are able to underwrite loans up to ₹5 crore, both covering the new-to-bank customers, as well as existing customers."
• Ola Electric PLI: The Ministry of Heavy Industries approved revised timelines under the ACC (Advanced Chemistry Cell) production-linked incentive scheme for Ola Cell Technologies, securing a full five-year PLI window through CY2031 for the company's 20 GWh allocation and unlocking up to ₹7,240 crore in cumulative PLI incentives.
• Godrej Consumer: Shares plunged more than 11% on Wednesday — the steepest fall in over six years — after CEO Sudhir Sitapati's abrupt exit fuelled concerns over strategic execution. Finance chief Aasif Malbari was named CEO and MD, three months after Mr. Sitapati's reappointment for a five-year term.
• Repco Home Finance: Loan book grew 8.9% year-on-year to ₹15,990 crore as of June 30, 2026; Q1 FY27 net profit ₹114 crore (from ₹108 crore); total income up 6.1% to ₹468 crore; net interest income up 10.2% to ₹216 crore; loan sanctions ₹938 crore (from ₹907 crore); disbursements ₹843 crore (from ₹829 crore).
• Closing Auction Session: SEBI Chairperson Tuhin Kanta Pandey said large brokerages including ICICI Securities, Groww and Angel One will start showing indicative close on their websites by August 14, amid an uptick in adoption of the CAS — a new globally consistent closing share price calculation mechanism. Zerodha and Upstox have already done so.
• Milky Mist IPO: The ₹1,553-crore IPO is on tap; CEO and wholetime director K. Rathnam said expansion into West and North India would be funded from internal accruals rather than fresh borrowings, with a new manufacturing unit in Maharashtra. About ₹500 crore of IPO proceeds will repay debt, on top of ₹300 crore already repaid using pre-IPO placement funds; net debt stood at ₹1,671.85 crore in FY26. Anchor allotment: 3.32 million equity shares to 19 anchor investors raising about ₹465.29 crore at the upper price band of ₹140. On its high price-to-earnings ratio (about 85 times), he said the firm focuses on value-added products.

Courts, governance and States

• Meta's Rights Manager: The Delhi High Court sought clarity from Meta over its policy governing access to the Rights Manager tool, after concerns that fraudulent actors have exploited the platform's copyright-protection mechanism to target original content. Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani directed Meta to place on record its norms and eligibility criteria for granting access, and the grounds on which applications may be rejected. The directions came in a suit filed by a content creator.
• NIA arrest in Manipur: The NIA arrested S. Palal Thadou in connection with the IED attack at a residential house in Tronglaobi Awang Leikai in Manipur's Moirang on April 7, which killed two minor children and injured another person. He allegedly handled finances for UKNA, a Kuki insurgent group not engaged in peace talks with the government, and was first arrested on July 23 by the Assam Rifles and Churachandpur police.
• Mumbai landslip: Seven people were killed and several injured after a landslip struck the Ghatkopar area at 3.48 a.m. at Gaushiya Chawl, Chirag Nagar, Ghatkopar West, following heavy rain. Soil and debris from the hillside collapsed onto two or three houses; one person remained trapped. Mayor Ritu Tawde announced ₹4 lakh for the next of kin of each deceased and ₹50,000 for each injured person. Around 50 BMC personnel worked with the NDRF. BMC corporator Sandhya Doshi said notice had been given warning residents to clear the area within 15 days.
• Bengaluru: A bandh call by Kannada activist Vatal Nagaraj against the directive to release Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu was unlikely to affect normal life, as most organisations extended only moral support. Separately, a mobile phone was allegedly found in the possession of former Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna, serving a life sentence for rape at Parappana Agrahara Central Prison.
• Kasturi and Sons: Ramesh Rangarajan has been elected Chairman of Kasturi and Sons Ltd., the holding company of The Hindu Group Publishing Private Ltd. (THGPPL), publishers of The Hindu, Businessline, Frontline, and Sportstar. He is the son of the late M.S. Rangarajan, former Chairman of Kasturi and Sons Ltd.

Science, history and miscellany

• The Science Quiz — non-English words in science: Algorithm, from the name of the Persian scholar Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi. Karst, named for a plateau across Slovenia and Italy, describing landscapes where limestone or dolomite has dissolved to produce sinkholes, caves and underground drainage. Niche, from the French for "to make a nest", introduced by Joseph Grinnell and expanded by G. Evelyn Hutchinson. Tsunami, Japanese for "harbour wave". Umwelt, coined by German biologist Jakob von Uexküll in 1909 for the subjective sensory world an organism perceives and acts within.
• The Daily Quiz — the letter Z: Answers to the previous day's quiz included Thomas Alva Edison (phonograph), William Blake, Lauren Bacall, Paris Saint-Germain, John Lennon and Erwin Schrödinger.
• From the Archives (50 years ago, 13 August 1976): An ecological reconnaissance party reported on the need to conserve the traditional elephant habitat in South India, touring the proposed Jawahar National Park — a 2,000 sq km area comprising Bandipur and Nagarahole in Karnataka, Mudumalai in Tamil Nadu and Wynaad in Kerala. The study showed the Kabini reservoir, with encroachments in the vested forest of Pulpully in Kerala, had drastically reduced wildlife habitat and almost completely split it in two, severing many traditional elephant migration routes.
• From the Archives (100 years ago, 13 August 1926): The annual factory report of the Bombay presidency for 1925 recorded 1,460 factories (one-fourth of all factories in India), a net increase of 115; operatives rose from 354,853 to 370,460, about a fourth of India's factory population. Women in factories increased from 72,679 to 77,624, while children decreased from 9,779 to 8,460.
• Faith: Srivilliputhur is the pride of the South since Andal was born there on Aadi Pooram. Bhoo Devi appeared as a baby in the Tulasi garden of Periyazhwar and was named Goda. Of the nine types of bhakti, what pleases Perumal is saying His name aloud — "Kesavanai paadu, Damodharanai paadu". She observed the pavai nonbu in Margazhi and rendered the Tiruppavai, and came to be known as Andal, "one who rules over the Lord with her devotion".
• Know your English: A "red letter day" derives from religious calendars where saints' days and festivals were marked in red and ordinary days in black; from the 18th century it came to mean any memorable day. A misogynist is a man who hates women; a woman who hates men is a misandrist. "Which class are you studying?" requires "in" to be grammatically correct.
• Word of the day: Flagrant — conspicuously and outrageously bad or reprehensible. Synonyms: egregious, glaring, gross.
• Sport: Praggnanandhaa got the better of Sindarov at the Sinquefield Cup. India begins a two-Test series against Sri Lanka at Galle on Saturday; the editorial 'Lost flair' notes India is fifth and Sri Lanka sixth in the ICC World Test Championship, with Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane and R. Ashwin all retired, Mohammed Shami overlooked and Jasprit Bumrah injured.