headlines that matter
Amazon aur Airtel ki jodi
The company is in early talks to shell out $2 billion for a 5% stake in Airtel—which, if true, is likely a response to Jio’s recent investment bonanza. Reliance’s Jio Platforms has been flooded with cash from the likes of Facebook, Silver Lakes and others. The Ambani v. Bezos wars are heating up! (Hindustan Times)
Pandemic update: The India edition
Unlock rules for stepping out: Shopping malls will reopen—but without gaming arcades or movie theatres. You can go to a temple—but there will be no prasad or touching the idols. As for restaurants, they can operate at 50% capacity with disposable napkins and menus. Offices must have staggered hours and set the AC between 24-30 degrees. (Mint)
A big spike in rural India: The number of cases has jumped anywhere between 30 and 80% in rural areas—primarily due to the return of migrants from cities. In related news, 2.6 million migrants are still stuck in relief camps or shelter homes—with zero social distancing. Point to note: The least affluent Indians may have lost Rs 4 trillion in income due to the lockdown.
Delhi’s testing positive: Every fourth sample tested in the city came up positive last week—i.e. a whopping 25.7%. In North East and South East Delhi—where testing rates are lower than the city average—the percentage of positive results was more than 38%.
In definitely not unrelated news, the Delhi government claimed that Ram Manohar Lohia hospital—one of Delhi’s largest government hospitals—is not testing samples properly. Many of the so-called positive samples re-tested by the government have proved to be false. Also: Anyone coming into Delhi from outside will now have to home quarantine for seven days.
Pandemic update: The global edition
- USA: George Floyd’s autopsy report shows that he had previously tested positive for coronavirus.
- China: Under pressure from the US, Beijing has agreed to allow 95 foreign airlines to fly to one Chinese destination once a week.
- The UK: is airlifting its test samples to the United States as its labs run out of capacity—and at least 30,000 of them have been ‘voided’. The reason: they were not analysed in time. These people now have to be tested all over again.
- Sweden: was one of the few nations that decided not to go into lockdown—and double down on ‘herd immunity’. Now, 4,500 people are dead, and the government’s chief epidemiologist admits he may have been wrong.
- Japan: is also in unlock mode, and experts are most worried about its commuter trains—which are infamously jam packed. While authorities plan to open carriage windows and disinfect ticket machines, it will do very little to mitigate the risk—which is as high as being in a crowded nightclub.
Rage over racism: in videos and images
A man sang ‘Lean On Me’ outside the White House—marking a rare moment of peace and harmony.
Gunslinging white people lined the streets in Idaho to protect themselves from protesters. Also: This is just plain nuts!
Star Wars actor John Boyega went viral for this powerful speech in London—in which he says he may not have a career after this. Turns out he was wrong.
RIP Basu Chatterjee
The man who gave us the most beloved movies of the 1970s—Chit Chor, Rajnigandha and Khatha Meetha—passed away at the age of 93. Indian Express offers a detailed tribute and some lovely throwback photos.
Free Zoom has a privacy cost
The video conferencing platform announced it will provide end-to-end encryption for its users—in response to widespread concerns about its privacy policy. But that little benefit is only available for those who pay. Company CEO Eric Yuan explained, “Free users for sure we don’t want to give [end-to-end encryption] because we also want to work together with FBI, with local law enforcement in case some people use Zoom for a bad purpose.” Translation: Only bad guys don’t pay for Zoom! (The Guardian)
Mere not-so pyaare mitron
The Mitron app was supposed to be a made-in-India alternative to Tik Tok for desh bhakt Indians. Turns out it’s just a crappy rip-off with serious privacy issues that makes the user vulnerable to hackers. The Mumbai IT cell is now asking everyone to uninstall the app. It has already been pulled off the Google Play Store. Also pulled from the Play Store: Remove Chinese Apps which auto-uninstalled all made-in-China apps because it violates Google policy.
