New set of Rafale revelations
The French news website Mediapart has published a new investigative piece on an Indian defence deal. Here’s what you need to know.
Some quick background:
- In 2015, the Modi government inked a Rs 590 billion (59,000 crore) deal to buy Rafale fighter jets made by Dassault Aviation.
- The allegations are that a) the government overpaid for the jets and b) leaned on Dassault to pick Anil Ambani’s company Reliance Defence as its ‘offset’ partner.
- What this means: The agreement included an ‘offset’ clause, requiring Dassault to invest 50% of the contract value in Indian projects—and therefore pick Indian partners to fulfill this requirement.
- The deal has been the focus of an explosive three-part investigation by Mediapart over recent months.
The latest revelation: Dassault paid at least 7.5 million euros (nearly Rs 650 million) in bribes to a middleman to help secure the deal. Mediapart published copies of alleged false invoices created to funnel money to a middleman named Sushen Gupta via a dummy company in Mauritius.
More damningly: "Despite the existence of these documents, the Indian federal police has decided not to pursue the affair and has not begun an investigation.” The website claims that the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate has had proof of illegal payments since 2018. NDTV has the most details. If you don’t know what the Rafale controversy is all about, we highly recommend reading our past explainers here and here.
Speaking of military maneuvers: New satellite images show that China has built mockups of a US Navy aircraft carrier—and other US warships—for target practice. Why this is notable: The US and China are at loggerheads over its aggressive behaviour in the South China sea. So everyone is wondering exactly what Beijing is preparing for. Reuters has the story and the satellite image.
The Astroworld tragedy: A quick update
Eight people died at the music festival when the crowds surged during a performance by the rapper Travis Scott—who also created the annual event. Here’s the latest:
- The first lawsuits have been filed against Scott and organisers of the festival. The plaintiffs include parents of a 10-year-old who is in a medically induced coma after he was trampled at the event.
- Scott issued yet another apology—watch it here or read Vanity Fair’s report. But Los Angeles Times points to the singer’s long history of inciting crowds to defy security at his concerts.
- Also going viral: A video of medics dropping an unconscious woman on her head as they try to extricate her from the event. Warning: it’s hard to watch.
Paytm makes a muted debut
Unlike Zomato and Nykaa, the digital payments company’s IPO was a bit of a downer on the first day—when only 18% of its shares were subscribed. The reason: The big investors stayed away. Only 6% of the shares reserved for institutional investors were bought—while the percentage for high net-worth individuals was even lower at 2%. Mint has more details.
Speaking of stocks: Tesla founder Elon Musk may sell his shares after he held a Twitter poll asking: “Much is made lately of unrealized gains being a means of tax avoidance, so I propose selling 10% of my Tesla stock. Do you support this?” The result: 58% said a resounding yes. Musk said he is “prepared to accept either outcome”—which may have led the Tesla shares to fall by 4.8%. Musk owns over 17% of Tesla’s stocks worth around $200 billion—and 1/10th of it could amount to $21 billion. A lot of this drama has been framed by Musk as paying his fair share as a billionaire, but CNBC points to a more likely reason: He already faces a tax bill of more than $15 billion—and will have to sell shares to pay it. (The Wall Street Journal)
Three studies of note
One: New research shows that there is a complicated relationship between mental health and where you live—whether it is in a city or in a rural area. Now, previous studies have already established that urban environments have negative effects on mental wellness. This study shows that “people with a greater genetic predisposition to worse mental health are also more likely to move to cities.” In other words, it's a combination of nature and nurture. Inverse has more on the data.
Two: A new study reveals that your risk for stroke is linked to the type of fat you consume—not the amount. You are in far greater jeopardy if you get your fat from animal sources—i.e red or processed meat—than if you get it from vegetable oils. Happy point to note: “Fat from dairy, on the other hand, was not associated with stroke risk.” (NBC News)
Three: A new survey of 10 developed countries shows that many people are still not willing to make “significant lifestyle changes” in order to avert the climate crisis. Although 62% identified global warming as the primary environmental challenge, almost 46% “felt that there was no real need for them to change their personal habits.” Also: 74% agreed with the statement ‘I feel proud of what I am currently doing’. (The Guardian)
Indian children are starving
In response to an RTI inquiry, the government revealed that over 3.3 million (33 lakh) children in India are malnourished—and over half of them are severely malnourished. What’s truly grim: There has been a 91% increase in the number of severely malnourished kids between November 2020 and October, 2021. Also read: Our recent explainer on India’s ranking on the Global Hunger Index. (NDTV)
Speaking of rankings: India came in at #18 on the first ever Global Drug Policy index—which looked at 75 indicators across 30 countries. Indian Express has more on what this rating means.
Kamal Haasan embraces NFTs
First Big B held a big auction, and now the South Indian mega-star is planning to sell his digital avatars as non-fungible tokens (explained here). This is in partnership with the company Fantico—which is also launching a game based on the star in the metaverse. You can join the waitlist here. (Mint)
Speaking of the movie biz: Saudi Arabia plans to invest $64 billion to build its entertainment industry—and is doing its best to woo big Hollywood productions to lure them into shooting their films in the country. Why this is significant: Until a few years ago, all forms of entertainment including concerts and film screenings were banned as “un-Islamic.” Bloomberg News has more on the hurdles this Saudi makeover may face.
An amazing story of a teen rescue
A 16-year-old was abducted by a male acquaintance—and her parents declared her missing. She managed to rescue herself by flashing a special hand gesture—which she learned on TikTok—at a motorist on the highway. It signals domestic violence, and it works like this:
The police said: “Now that … the story’s been put out, we think that people will use this … universally as a distress signal. And … that’s great.” Washington Post and CNN have more details.
Two animal things
One: An Indian study on streeties shows that food is not the main reason why dogs get attached to humans. Instead, displays of affection like petting may have been the main driver for the domestication of dogs thousands of years ago: “They came for food, but stayed on for love.” The Telegraph has more on this interesting study.
Two: Eight camels and one llama were found wandering the streets of Madrid—after they escaped from a circus. Owners are blaming animal rights activists for setting them loose. They are now “safe and sound”—though the activists may disagree. (BBC News)
Three things to see
One: This happens every year in Delhi. Foolhardy folks go take a ‘holy dip’ in a Yamuna covered with toxic foam to mark Chhath puja. Though the extra enthusiasm of these devotees is quite remarkable. (NDTV)
Two: ICYMI, yesterday's Google Doodle marked the 104th birth anniversary of Kamal Ranadive—a groundbreaking cancer researcher who was the first to propose the connection between heredity and breast cancer. Cnet has more on Ranadive’s career.
Three: The foreign minister of Tuvalu—a South Pacific island nation in danger from rising sea levels—gave his speech at the COP26 summit like this. Think he may be trying to make a point. (The Hindu)
