headlines that matter
India-China jhagda heats up on the border
For nearly a month, Indian and Chinese troops have been involved in physical confrontations along the border in Sikkim and Ladakh. The Indian Army dismissed them as involving “aggressive behaviour and minor injuries on both sides.” Over the weekend, the Army also pushed back against reports that Indian soldiers were detained by their Chinese counterparts. The reason for increased tensions: Parts of Ladakh are disputed territory, and under Chinese control. India is now building 61 strategic roads to improve troop mobility along the border—which is making Beijing very cranky. China in turn is upping its military presence, and becoming more assertive about its territorial claims. And that is making New Delhi a little jittery. (The Hindu)
Hong Kong protests are back with a bang
Tear gas and water cannons returned to Hong Kong on Sunday. Thousands took to the streets to protest a national security law proposed by Beijing. The new law targets secession, sedition, terrorism and foreign interference in Hong Kong—and is similar to those used on the mainland to crush any form of dissent. CNN has more on the protests. Time has an excellent explainer on the law.
The mystery of the PIA crash
A Pakistan International Airlines Airbus crashed into a residential district in Karachi on Friday. Two of the 99 passengers and crew aboard miraculously survived. According to an eyewitness:
"It tried to land twice but its wheels were not coming out. And its belly touched the runway before the pilot pulled it up again. The second time he did that, I saw one of its engines was on fire because it had brushed the runway. It didn’t return a third time but crashed here."
In his last communication, the pilot said he had lost power from both his engines. But no one knows what happened. The airline insists there was “no defect related to the engine, landing gear or major aircraft system.” The pilot union is insisting on a transparent investigation, which also looks at the working conditions of the ground staff and crew. Watch the account of one of the survivors.
Reliance makes a big e-commerce entrance
Mukesh-bhai unveiled his online grocery mega-store JioMart over the weekend—giving the likes of Amazon and BigBasket a very rude shock. The platform—which went live across 200 cities—launched with offerings from Reliance’s own offline stores. But it plans to add kirana stores in the future, and will also set up hyperlocal ‘Reliance Smart Points’ to allow customers to pick up their shopping in person. JioMart will eventually expand beyond groceries to include its other retail offerings such as fashion and electronics. Mint explains why the tie-up with WhatsApp will turbo-boost JioMart’s fortunes.
Who is afraid of hydroxychloroquine trials?
What does Donald Trump and the Indian Council of Medical Research have in common? They both believe—against all scientific evidence and the WHO’s recommendation—that the anti-malarial drug offers protection against Covid-19. While the Donald is happily popping the pills himself, the ICMR recommends its use for healthcare workers and family members of patients. But oddly, ICMR has blocked a proposal to conduct a proper randomised trial to see if the drug actually works. It prefers to conduct its own “observational study” instead. As a senior researcher pointed out: “It’s dangerous to not even want to look for evidence.” More so if the evidence reveals one’s own foolishness. PS: Indian Express has an excellent explainer on HCQ.
In other Trump-related news….
The New York Times published a powerful front page meticulously detailing the names and details of Americans killed by the pandemic. Then someone did this with it (h/t David Yelland):
Netflix wants to save you money
The company will helpfully notify users if they have not used their streaming account for over two years—and delete them if the person does not respond to the reminder. You can change your mind and reactivate your account within ten months. Point to note: Inactive accounts make up less than 0.5% of the company's users. (Business Insider)
It’s gonna be a long, hot summer
While the northeast is deluged with rain, great parts of north and central India will experience severe heat waves for the next 4-5 days. Meteorologists predict that the temperature in Delhi will hit 46-47 degrees. (Hindustan Times)
The Covid effect: the India edition
- The Times Group is laying off dozens of its employees, but in stealth mode and without warning. One employee told News Laundry: “For days, my colleagues didn’t know I had been laid off because it was done so secretly… After I told a colleague about it, I came to know another employee had been laid off as well and nobody knew. None of us saw it coming.” The best comment on these eager-to-axe companies is here.
- Wholesale prices of vegetables are crashing—except for the always popular aloo. Yet, customer prices have remained mostly the same. The reason: middlemen are profiting from distress sales by farmers due to the lockdown.
- A global group of researchers have come together to create a public database of deaths caused by the lockdown. You can check out the database or this grim infographic of the latest figures.
Bangalore has a saffron flag problem
The Bajrang Dal is allegedly marking shops run and owned by Hindus with saffron flags. These markers also popped up in Delhi neighbourhoods in February—right before the anti-Muslim attacks. A Bangalore lawyer has now filed a complaint, forcing the police to take action. (The Federal)