headlines that matter

Researched by: Aakriti Anand, Aarthi Ramnath, Raghav Bikhchandani & Yash Budhwar

The context: Manipur has been torn apart by ethnic violence for the past 18 months. On November 11, three Meitei women and three children—including an eight-month-old baby—were abducted by Kuki militants. Two elderly persons were also burnt alive. They were taken from a refugee camp—amid a battle with CRPF soldiers. Imphal has been entirely shut down by a bandh protesting the kidnapping. The government has rushed additional forces—to deal with any resurgence in violence. The death tally since the violence started: 240. We explained the reasons for the conflict between Meitei and Kuki communities in this Big Story.

What happened now: Bodies of some of those abducted have been found: the eight-month-old baby, a two-year-old boy, and a 61-year-old woman. Also found: The body of a 27-year-old Kuki man—who had been shot in the head with his hands tied. The death toll since the kidnapping: 20.

Adding to the chaos: A key BJP ally—NPP chief Conrad Sangma—has pulled out of the ruling coalition:

We strongly feel that the Manipur state government under the leadership of Shri Biren Singh has completely failed to resolve the crisis and restore normalcy… In the last few days, we have seen the situation further deteriorate where many more innocent lives have been lost and people in the state are going through immense suffering. 

This will not bring down the BJP government—which still has a comfortable majority—for now:

However, the pullout of a key local ally represents a political setback, signalling further erosion in support on the ground for the administration. Speaking to The Indian Express, an NPP MLA said: “The state government is already at odds with seven BJP Kuki MLAs. Without the seven NPP MLAs, he (Biren) will struggle to prove his majority in the Assembly now.”

Point to note: Indian Express is now running pieces asking whether the Army should be given a “free hand”—based on unnamed military sources. (The Hindu)

Speaking of other unspeakable horrors: as in dead babies—ten newborns were killed in a fire at a Jhansi hospital. It was caused by an electrical short circuit on the ground floor—which houses the neo-natal unit. There were 49 babies—“less than a year old and on life support.” Of those saved, 17 are still in the hospital. They were saved by parents, residents and staff:

It was a stampede-like situation there. Nobody was able to enter through the door. So, some people just broke the two windows to enter the room. They and the staff already inside just started handing over children to people standing outside. Nobody cared who was carrying whose child. Everyone just wanted to take them to safety.

The Hindu has more on the rescue efforts. (Indian Express)

Coming in 2100: A 2.7°C temperature spike

First, some context: Every year, Climate Action Tracker looks at the climate policies enacted worldwide—and estimates their effect on future greenhouse gas emissions. It then calculates how much of a temperature increase we can expect.

The terrifying estimate: Its latest analysis shows that the planet is on track to warm by a catastrophic 2.7°C by 2100. The scary bit: This estimate holds true even if countries keep the pledges they have made as part of the Paris Agreement—the 2015 treaty to keep global warming “well below” 2°C from pre-industrial levels.

Even with the implementation of current NDCs and all net-zero targets, there is still more than a 15% chance that global warming will exceed 2.5°C by the end of the century, and a just short of 5 per cent chance that it will exceed 3°C.

Why is this happening? Many advanced countries—including the US, China, EU, and India—have poured money into alternative energies. But it hasn’t made a difference “because global energy demand is growing faster than clean energy is expanding, which means fossil fuel use has been rising to fill the gap.”

The Trump effect: Contrary to popular belief, the Orange Terror cannot single-handedly destroy the planet:

The authors calculated that a complete rollback of U.S. climate policies might add as much as a few tenths of a degree of warming by 2100. The effect would be relatively limited, in part because the United States accounts for just 13% of global emissions today.

The solution: is a dramatic cutback—which are highly unlikely—at least in the short run: 

The study also calculated what countries would need to do to hold total warming closer to a long-term average of 1.5°C, as leaders have pledged. The United States would need to slash its emissions roughly 80% below 2005 levels by 2035. China would need to cut its emissions by two-thirds over the same time frame. India, Europe, Brazil, Japan and Australia would all have to make deeper cuts than they are currently planning.

Reading list: New York Times (login required), The Guardian, and The Print have more on the analysis.

Meanwhile, in Baku: Wealthy nations have agreed to create a modest $720 million climate fund—to help poorer countries cope with the disastrous effects of global warming. It will be known as the Fund for Responding to Loss and Damage. It will be managed by the United Nations, and the World Bank is its financial trustee. For now, the amount is pitiful—as are the contributions. The United States has pledged $17.5 million to the fund—which will likely go down to zero under Trump. (New York Times, login required)

Stubble burning farmers outwit satellites

Air pollution has returned with a vengeance to North India this winter. Last week, Delhi overtook Lahore to reclaim the coveted award of the world’s most polluted city—with AQI levels surpassing the “severe” mark of 400. The air outside looks like this right now:

The culprit: Every winter, the villains of the pollution saga are stubble-burning farmers. But over the past five years, the official number of stubble fires have dropped by 72% and 42% in Punjab and Haryana, respectively. But new research shows that farmers may have just found innovative ways to avoid detection—by burning stubble in the late afternoons. That’s after NASA satellites have passed overhead—and cannot record the fires. But geostationary satellites—which stay in place—tell another story. 

Here is a time lapse of the air over Punjab during the late afternoon:

NDTV has more on that ‘evidence’, while this thread on X has all the nerdy details and visuals you need.

Nayanthara vs Dhanush: Battle of the superstars

Netflix has released a documentary on South Indian actor Nayanthara—reverently nicknamed Lady Superstar. The autobiographical flick shares intimate details of her life and career—including her relationship with filmmaker Vignesh Shivan whom she met on the sets of ‘Naanum Rowdy Dhaan’ in 2015. Dhanush produced this film under his 'Wunderbar Films' brand.  

What happened now: Over the weekend, Nayanthara issued an open letter calling out Dhanush. He allegedly sent her a legal notice objecting to a three-second behind-the-scenes clip—included in the documentary trailer. He demanded Rs 10 crore (100 million) in damages. 

Calling Dhanush a tyrant, she asked if a producer “becomes an emperor, controlling the lives, freedom, and liberty of all the persons in the set.” She also wrote that after ten years of release, Dhanush has continued to be “vile”, and that she has not “forgotten all the horrible things” he said to her.

Reminder: When Nayanthara won the award for Best Actress for her role in the movie, her acceptance speech took a direct dig at Dhanush—so the bad blood was hardly a secret:

You can read Nayanthara’s open letter here. The News Minute and Indian Express have more on the controversy.

what caught our eye

business & tech

• YouTube has entered the creator gifting game—you can now buy ‘jewels’ to financially support your favourite YouTubers.
• According to a new report, India’s fragrances industry grew at 12% in the first three quarters this year, which is 2X the expansion of the personal care space. 
• Amazon India is moving its headquarters to the distant outskirts of Bangalore to cut costs. Employees are furious—especially now that all WFH has been cancelled. 
• Tata will buy a 60% stake in Taiwanese firm Pegatron’s iPhone manufacturing plant in Tamil Nadu.
• New York Times via The Telegraph has a must-read on the brutal ‘slash first, fix later’ cost-cutting tactic Elon Musk imposes on his companies.

sports & entertainment

• All eyes on the Border-Gavaskar trophy, which kicks off on November 22 in Perth. Hamaara kaptaan Rohit Sharma is unavailable due to paternity leave—Jasprit Bumrah will lead the side in his place. Also MIA: Shubman Gill, who has a fractured thumb. 
• The 97th Oscars host will be…Conan O’Brien!!! Hollywood’s flagship awards ceremony is scheduled for March 2, 2025. 

as for the rest

• For the first time, India has successfully test-fired a long-range hypersonic missile—a weapon that can fly at five times the speed of sound.  
• Indian students are less enthusiastic about UK universities due to limited job prospects and anti-immigration riots. 
• Sticking with desi students abroad—Australia’s new visa cap is likely to reduce international student enrollments. 
• Associated Press has a must-read deep dive on the Gujarati family that died crossing the Canada-US border, and the upcoming trial of the two men who smuggled them. Check out our Big Story for more on Indians taking the Dunki route. 
• The White House press secretary under the Trump administration is…27-year-old Karoline Leavitt, the youngest to ever take the role. 
• New York Times (login required) has a visually striking must-read on undocumented migrants who are the backbone of online delivery in the US. 
• Russia targeted Ukraine’s power grid with 200 missiles and drones—the biggest missile attack since August. 
• Hyderabad-headquartered Dr Reddy’s Laboratories and Mumbai-based FDC have recalled generic medications from the US market due to “Failed Impurities/Degradation Specification.”
• Sweden’s Gender Equality Minister Paulina Brandberg has an extreme fear of…bananas!??! Yes, it’s the "world's craziest phobia”, by her own admission.
• The Iranian government has opened “hijab removal treatment clinics” to help women who feel compelled to defy its oppressive dress code.

Four things to see

One: New Zealand MP Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke—and members of her Te Pāti Māori party—performed a traditional haka in the parliament. They were protesting a controversial bill that seeks to overturn Māori rights. You can watch her powerful performance with English subtitles below. (The Guardian)

Two: In a bizarre move, the Telangana government hit Diljit Dosanjh with a legal notice ahead of his Hyderabad concert—ordering him not to sing “songs promoting alcohol, drugs, and violence”. The singer instead added cheeky tweaks to the lyrics. For example: changing ‘theke’ (meaning bar) to ‘hotel’. More notable was Dosanjh’s response below—where he said: 

Someone from outside will come as an artist, and they will sing whatever they want and leave, doing whatever they please, without any tension. But when an Indian artist is coming home, he has to face trouble. But let me tell you one thing, I am Dosanjhanwala. I will not go away like this.

NDTV has more.

Three: The trailer for the latest instalment of the blockbuster Telugu franchise—‘Pushpa 2: The Rule’—was launched in Patna and caused a stampede. Now that’s a truly pan-Indian film. (Indian Express)

Four: Donald Trump has a new security guard—Boston Dynamics’ robot dog named Spot—who will patrol his property in Mar-a-Lago. The funny bit: Spot’s legs have a sign that says “do not pet”. (BBC News)

feel good place

One: Martin Scorsese narrates a masterpiece: His daughter’s beauty vid.

Two: The other Moo Deng: “unbothered. moisturised. happy. in my lane. focused. flourishing. chonk.”

Three: Pedro aur Denzel ki jodi!