Researched by: Rachel John, Nirmal Bhansali & Aarthi Ramnath
Maharashtra melodrama: The latest update
The context: On Sunday, Ajit Pawar was sworn in as Chief Minister—breaking ranks with NCP chief and uncle Sharad Pawar to join the Shinde Sena/BJP alliance. He claims that he represents the real NCP—and has the support of a majority of its leaders.
What happened now: According to sources in the Election Commission, Ajit filed a petition claiming the party symbol. He also declared himself as the elected president of the Nationalist Congress Party. All of this was accompanied by affidavits signed by 40 NCP state legislators and MPs. What’s interesting: the petition is dated June 30—two days before he became Deputy CM and publicly declared his split with Sharad. All of which spells a Thackeray-like fate for Pawar Sr. (Indian Express)
That’s a very big nuclear reactor!
A Canadian power company plans to expand an existing nuclear power plant in Ontario—increasing its capacity to 11 gigawatts. With eight reactors and increased capacity, it will become the largest in the world—beating Japan’s Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant—which has seven reactors and more than 8 gigawatts of capacity. Why this is notable: countries are increasingly turning to nuclear power to cut down emissions—overcoming resistance from environmentalists and other activists. (Bloomberg News)
GoFirst is making a comeback!
The context: In May, the airline suspended operations citing lack of engines—which Pratt & Whitney had either not serviced or delivered. GoFirst then filed for bankruptcy—and soon after reversed course under pressure from investors.
What happened now: Pratt & Whitney have agreed to provide and service engines. And GoFirst has promised to compensate passengers who had booked tickets—but could not fly when operations were shut down. It’s expected to get permission to fly in 7-10 days. (Mint)
Toyota’s game-changing EV battery
The world’s second largest carmaker announced a technological breakthrough that will allow it to halve the weight, size and cost of batteries. We don’t know the specifics but it involves making the production of solid state batteries more simple. Why is that a big deal? Most electric vehicles use liquid or lithium-ion batteries—which are cheaper but more likely to catch fire (see: our Big Story on exploding Ola EVs). Solid state batteries, OTOH, are safer, require less charging time and have greater capacity. Toyota says its battery will have a range of 1,200 km and charge in 10 minutes or less. But it won’t be rolling out until 2027. (The Guardian)
More bad news for CPR
The context: The Centre for Policy Research is one of India’s eminent think-tanks—which has earned the ire of the government by publishing reports it doesn’t like. Back in February, the government cancelled the licence it needed to receive foreign donor funds—which constituted 75% of its grants.
What happened now: The income tax department has revoked its tax exemption status. Since February. CPR has been forced to cut its staff by half. Why any of this matters:
[T]he particular tragedy here is that institutions like CPR are central to the government’s own objectives of intellectual self-sufficiency… Far from being puppets of foreign anti-India forces, CPR’s research adds an Indian voice to global conversations… Bureaucrats rely on CPR for policy inputs that are unavailable within. Many officials who call the shots in the current government have benefitted from CPR. They now seem too scared to play up that association.
It is also one of the few institutions that offers the space and resources for deep policy research. For more: read this letter signed by scholars around the world after CPR’s foreign funding was blocked. (The Hindu)
Rise of the rural ‘super rich’ Indians
According to a new report, India will soon witness a 5X increase in the number of super rich families. These are households that earn more than Rs 20 million (Rs 2 crores) a year. Their numbers doubled to 1.8 million between 2016 to 2021—and is expected to rise to 9.1 million by 2031. Most of the increase will be fueled by rural India—which accounts for 14.2% of the current growth—compared to 10.6% for urban households.
The reason offered by the lead researcher seems vague:
People are increasingly engaged in commercial agriculture businesses as well as non-agriculture activities in rural areas. Entrepreneurs are flooding into rural areas, creating jobs and small businesses that drive the economy.
Of course, rural areas are also home to the poorest among us. The survey says the “destitute” class—with income less than $1,520 (approx Rs 125,000)—will shrink by more than half to 79 million by 2031. (Bloomberg News)
Madhya Pradesh hate crime: The latest update
A clip showing a man urinating on a tribal person in Madhya Pradesh went viral on Tuesday. For once, it outraged everyone—including the opposition parties and Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. He has now been arrested—and his house has been bulldozed—after it was suddenly “found to be illegally constructed.” (NDTV)
Second languages reduce false memories
A fascinating study out of University of Chicago shows a strong link between bilingualism and memory. We are far less likely to have a false memory when we do or see something in our second language. And we are also better at detecting misinformation in that language. And that’s because our first language is more instinctual and automatic. But we often have to pay more attention when we are doing anything in a second language: “When you're using a second language, it activates this mindset of being more careful with your judgments and your decision making.” You can read more about the study here.
Birds get ‘divorced’ too!
Relationships are tricky—and not just for humans. According to new research, birds also ‘divorce’ their partner—i.e switch mates from one breeding season to another. The reasons are very human too: infidelity. The divorce rate is closely linked to males sleeping around:
When a male bird is promiscuous, it is often perceived as a reduction of this commitment, as his attention and resources are divided among several females. This can make him less attractive as a partner, and thus more likely to be ‘divorced’ in the next breeding season.
Interestingly, female infidelity doesn’t often result in divorce—because it is impossible for the male to know who the father is. The other cause for divorce: long-distance migration—when one mate lands at the destination earlier than the other and starts messing around. Birds… they’re just like us! (The Guardian)
Something studly to see
Harley Davidson has re-entered the Indian market with a new motorbike X440. Since it was built in partnership with an Indian company—Hero MotoCorp—this bike will not be slapped with high import tariffs—which is the reason why Harley exited India in 2020. The price tag of the X440: Rs 2.3 lakh. The cheapest Harley previously available cost Rs 17 lakh. So that’s quite a big difference. NDTV has more nerdy details on this good-looking bike—which you can see below.
