Researched and collated by: Vagda Galhotra, Sara Varghese, Prafula Grace Busi & Elisha Benny
Beijing heading toward lockdown?
After Shanghai, Beijing may become the next major city to shut down due to China’s ‘zero Covid’ policy. Beijing has reported 70 new cases since an outbreak that began Friday. Authorities began mass testing of 21 million residents—who are already stocking up on essentials in panic. Point to remember: Shanghai has been locked down for more than two weeks—and reported more than 19,000 new infections and 51 deaths in the last 24 hours. (Associated Press)
Meanwhile in South Korea: Covid has been removed from the country’s riskiest category of infectious disease—which is a first step toward treating the virus more like the flu. What this means: Someone infected with the virus will no longer have to quarantine. (Wall Street Journal)
The Russian invasion: The latest update
- Moscow offered a unilateral ceasefire to allow the evacuation of people trapped inside a steel factory in Mariupol. But Ukrainian authorities don’t believe it will keep its word.
- In a surprise move, the US announced that it will reopen its embassy in Kyiv—intended as a signal that Russia is headed for defeat. And its defence secretary has amped up the rhetoric: “We want to see Russia weakened to the degree it cannot do the kinds of things that it has done in invading Ukraine.”
- Beijing’s support of Moscow has spooked foreign investors who are pulling their money from Chinese markets at an unprecedented rate. A whopping $17.5 billion left the country just in March.
Editor’s note: If you need more context, we highly recommend reading our Big Story on the historical roots of the conflict, effectiveness of economic sanctions, return of the Cold War, what is driving Vladimir Putin, India’s “balancing act” and the looming oil crisis.
Jignesh Mevani arrested… again!
The Congress MLA was first arrested in Gujarat by Assam police because of a tweet that criticised PM Modi (it has been blocked but you can read it here). The Dalit activist was sent to police custody for three days—and finally received bail on Monday—and then arrested again on a separate case. The charges: A policewoman says that Mevani “assaulted” her and touched her “inappropriately” while he was being transported. Of course, there was no mention of this FIR when he was in custody. (The Telegraph)
Meanwhile, in Bangalore: There is a new controversy brewing over bibles in school. Hindutva groups have taken aim at a Christian minority school. The reason: Its admissions process requires parents to sign a declaration that reads:
“You affirm that your child will attend all classes including Morning Assembly Scripture Class and Clubs for his/her own moral and spiritual welfare and will not object to carry the Bible and Hymn Book during his/her stay at Clarence High School.”
Point to note: The state government is planning to introduce the Bhagavad Gita in schools to give “moral values.” Firstpost has more details.
Boria Majumdar has been cancelled
The Indian cricket board will slap a two-year ban on the talk show host—who was found guilty of sending threatening texts to cricketer Wriddhiman Saha. In February, Saha tweeted screenshots of messages from Majumdar, which said things like: “You did not call. Never again will I interview you. I don’t take insults kindly. And I will remember this.” What this means for Majumdar:
“We will be informing all state units of the Indian cricket board to not allow him inside stadiums. He won’t be given media accreditation for home matches and we will also be writing to ICC to blacklist him. Players will be asked not to engage with him.”
World’s oldest woman dies at 119
Kane Tanaka of Japan held the Guinness record for the oldest living woman on the planet. She finally passed away after a series of hospitalisations. After Tanaka’s passing, the title now belongs to Lucile Randon, a 118-year-old French nun. FYI: The all-time champion in the female longevity contest: Jeanne Louise Calment who lived until she was 122 years and 164 days. BBC News has a lovely profile of the always cheerful Tanaka—or watch the Guinness video below.
Also moving on up: Gautam Adani who has sped past Warren Buffet in the race to become the planet’s biggest fatcat. He is now #5 on the list of the world’s richest people—with a net worth of $123.2 billion which is slightly more than Buffet’s $121.7 billion. Mukesh Ambani is currently way behind at #9. (Economic Times)
India’s ‘demographic dividend’ in jeopardy
Latest data shows that the country’s labour participation rate—which measures the number of people looking for a job—has fallen by a whopping 6% between 2017 and 2022. It fell from 46% to 40%—which in turn means that 21 million people left the labour market. And the fallout for women is even more alarming: About 21 million disappeared from the workforce, leaving only 9% employed or looking for positions. What this means: “[M]ore than half of the 900 million Indians of legal working age—roughly the population of the US and Russia combined—don't want a job.”
This has serious implications for our economy’s future:
“The large share of discouraged workers suggests that India is unlikely to reap the dividend that its young population has to offer. India will likely remain in a middle-income trap, with the K-shaped growth path further fueling inequality.”
Bloomberg News via NDTV has more details.
Also bad news for Indians: A new decade-long study published in The Lancet shows that only 36.3% of diagnosed diabetes patients have their blood glucose levels under control. This is compared to 48.8% and 41.5% who have controlled their blood pressure and cholesterol levels, respectively. (Indian Express)
Two things to see
One: Folks have come together to create an NFT collection—whose proceeds will go to those who lost a family member to the farm law protest. Indian Express has more details and you can check out the collection here.
Two: You have to hand it to Indian thieves—whose talent for jugaad is limitless. Watch these guys use a crane to ‘excavate’ an ATM machine in Maharashtra. Wah! (NDTV)
Good stuff to check out!
On the latest episode of the splainer podcast ‘Press Decode’, the splainer team looks at the politics of culture—be it at Coachella in the US or veganism in India. Be sure to head over to the IVM website, Spotify or Apple Podcasts to listen to it.
