Researched by: Rachel John, Aarthi Ramnath & Anannya Parekh
Delimitation dharma: A YouTube explainer
In 2026, there will be a significant readjustment of Lok Sabha seats—granting North Indian states a decisive majority. The reason: the North has far more citizens than the South. So should the South be “punished” for population control—or is it the inevitable price of the one person one vote rule? We look at that very prickly question in our latest video explainer.
Check it out below. Stay tuned for more such explainers on the big fat election coming soon, and be sure to hit the notification button.
War on Gaza: The latest update
Hospital horrors: There is fresh outrage over last week’s raid on the Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis—the largest functioning hospital in Gaza. According to eyewitness accounts, doctors were taken outside—forced to strip down to their underwear—and left waiting in the freezing cold for hours. Israel claims all this is necessary as they could conceal “improvised explosives.” (CNN)
Israel’s costs of war: According to government data, Israel’s GDP fell by 5% between October and December. That’s a drop of 19% in annualised terms in the fourth quarter of 2023. The sharp drop was far worse than the 10.5% predicted by analysts. Reminder: Moody’s downgraded Israel’s credit rating earlier this month. At the time, Israel’s finance minister said the move “reflects a lack of confidence in Israel’s security and national strength, and also a lack of confidence in the righteousness of Israel’s path against its enemies.” (BBC News)
A rare royal comment: The British royal family almost never makes a political statement—as you know after watching hours of ‘The Crown’. So it’s notable that Prince William issued this statement:
I remain deeply concerned about the terrible human cost of the conflict in the Middle East since the Hamas terrorist attack. Too many have been killed. I, like so many others, want to see an end to the fighting as soon as possible. There is a desperate need for increased humanitarian support to Gaza. It’s critical that aid gets in and the hostages are released.
The war on Ukraine: Bad news for Kyiv
The loss of the town of Avdiivka to Russia could be a significant turning point in the war—for a Ukrainian army short on equipment and troops. Adding to the loss of morale: Hundreds of Ukrainian soldiers have disappeared during the “chaotic retreat”—many of whom may have been captured. The news comes at a time when Kyiv is struggling to recruit the 500,000 troops it desperately needs. New York Times has more on why the withdrawal was a disaster.
In related bad news for Indians: At least some Indians have been forced to fight on the frontline—after being hired to serve as “army security helpers” for Russian troops.
One of the victims from Uttar Pradesh, who is in his early 20s and who wished to remain anonymous, said three of them were given basic training in handling arms and ammunition by the “Russian Army” and were packed off to Rostov-on-Don along the Russia-Ukraine border in January where they faced bullets and were forced to fight at gunpoint.
The Hindu has an exclusive report on the plight of these men.
Chandigarh mayor polls: A final resolution?
The context: The mayoral polls in Chandigarh on January 30 were touted as the first real face-off between BJP and the opposition alliance INDIA. The results sparked a great furore on social media. A video of the proceedings suggested the presiding officer—a BJP councillor named Anil Masih—may have secretly scratched eight ballot papers—in order to declare them invalid. Coincidentally, all of them were in favour of the AAP-Congress combine. As a result, the BJP swept the polls—even though it received fewer votes.
What happened now: The Supreme Court has squashed the outcome of the polls—after finding that Masih deliberately altered the ballots. And it declared the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-Congress joint candidate Kuldeep Kumar as the new mayor:
Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud, heading a three-judge bench, said the democratic process cannot be “thwarted by such subterfuges” as otherwise it “would be destructive of the most valued principles on which the entire edifice of the democracy of our country depends”.
That’s reassuring to hear in the lead-up to a national election. Masih will face perjury charges for lying to the Court. (The Telegraph)
Private boost for nuclear power
For the very first time, the Indian government has invited private firms to invest in the nuclear energy sector. The initiative aims to raise around $26 billion—with several major players like Reliance, Tata Power, Adani Power, and Vedanta named as potential investors. Right now, the state-run Nuclear Power Corp of India (NPCIL) owns and operates nuclear power plants in the country.
Even with private investment, the right to build and operate the stations will rest with the government. FYI: Indian law does not allow private companies to set up nuclear plants.
Why this matters: Nuclear power contributes less than 2% of our total electricity generation: “The funding would help India to achieve its target of having 50% of its installed electric generation capacity use non-fossil fuels by 2030, up from 42% now.” Reuters has the exclusive.
A surprising La Niña connection to air quality
During winters, north Indian cities usually experience high levels of air pollution with a high concentration of PM2.5 particles. However, in 2022, the trend was reversed—with cities like Delhi experiencing cleaner air than Mumbai, Bengaluru and Chennai. A new study has identified the culprit: Three consecutive years of La Niña conditions (2020-23)—a rare “triple-dip” phenomenon.
Mumbai recorded the highest deterioration with a 30% increase in PM2.5 levels—followed by Coimbatore (28%), Bengaluru (20%) and Chennai (12%). The greatest improvement was evident in Ghaziabad (33%), followed by Rohtak (30%) and Noida (28%). (The Hindu)
Exercise is great for women
A new study shows that women may be receiving more benefits from exercising than men:
Women who exercised for at least 150 minutes a week were 24% less likely to die from any cause than women who exercised less than that amount. Men who exercised for at least 150 minutes each week were 15% less likely to die than other men who did not reach that threshold. Women were also 36% less likely to have a heart attack, stroke, or other cardiovascular event if they exercised, compared to a 14% reduced risk in men who exercised.
This held true for all forms of exercise—from moderate workouts to even strength training. But, but, but: This study was observational and the researchers couldn’t prove a causal relationship. Healthline has lots more on the study.
New worries about ChatGPT
A new study shows that ChatGPT can help rewrite political ads to match the personality of each person on social media. Naturally, experts are worried about misuse:
Microtargeting — the use of online data to tailor messaging to individuals — has been used to powerful effect in past elections and became the focus of a 2018 scandal when journalists exposed the work of political consultancy firm Cambridge Analytica in the US and other countries.
ChatGPT can make such micro-targeting far more effective—thanks to the wealth of personal data on users. (New Scientist, paywall)
Moving to another AI-related disaster: Air Canada lost a lawsuit filed by a passenger who accused its chatbot of giving wrong information about the company’s bereavement policy. The chatbot claimed he could catch the flight to attend the funeral of his grandmother—and file a claim later. The reality: “Air Canada's policy explicitly stated that the airline will not provide refunds for bereavement travel after the flight is booked.” Oops! FYI: Air Canada tried to argue the chatbot was its own person—i.e “legal entity.”
Why this matters: It will make companies a lot more leery of using AI in customer service. Air Canada had hoped its chatbot would replace every service that did not require a “human touch”. Doesn’t look like that’s happening anytime soon. (Ars Technica)
In happier news about virtual reality: A Stanford University study found that older people—between the ages of 65 and 103 years old—really enjoy virtual reality, and benefit greatly from it. It found that the experience significantly improved their mood—and helped them feel less isolated. As part of the study, they could chase butterflies, ride a tank, watch stage performances or play with puppies. Mynd Immersive—the company that co-sponsored the study—has to offer more priceless experiences:
[CEO Chris] Brickler said his company’s systems will soon attach to Google Earth, so seniors can virtually visit neighborhoods where they lived, schools they attended and places they have visited, sparking further conversations with caregivers. Such virtual visits “can bring back a tremendous amount of joy, a tremendous amount of memories. And when the therapist or the other caregiver can work with that older adult and talk through things we see, we definitely see that it provides an uplift,” Brickler said.
Associated Press has more on this refreshing bit of good news about new technology.
The brightest object in the universe is…
A newly-discovered quasar—that lies 12 billion light years away! Quasars lie at the core of galaxies powered by “supermassive black holes”—which are enormous black holes that are millions or even billions of times as massive as the sun.
This celestial monster, named J0529-4351, contains the fastest-growing supermassive black hole ever observed—with a mass that is 17 billion times that of our sun. It is 500 trillion times brighter than the sun—and is devouring the equivalent of at least one sun a day. Here’s how it looked from a satellite:
See an artist’s rendition of the quasar below.
The Conversation has lots more on this fabulous quasar.
A diplomatic row over Alexander
The Greek government is furious at a new Netflix docuseries titled ‘Alexander: The Making of a God’. The reason: The series shows a romantic relationship between the Greek conqueror and his male confidante Hephaestion. The culture minister Lina Mendoni therefore attacked the series as “extremely poor-quality fiction” with “low content, rife with historical inaccuracies.”
Is she right? Now, there is no definitive proof of this relationship—but lots of speculation among experts—who argue such a romance is hardly surprising:
“Same-sex relationships were quite the norm throughout the Greek world. The Greeks did not have a word for homosexuality, or to be gay. It just wasn’t in their vocabulary whatsoever. There was just being sexual.”
Happily, Greece is not suing Netflix because its “ministry of culture does not exercise censorship.” (The Guardian)
Speaking of romance: A user is suing Tinder, Hinge and six other dating apps for having a “predatory” business model and deliberately “employing psychologically manipulative features to ensure they remain on the app perpetually as paying subscribers.”
Hah! Our Big Story series on dating apps virtually predicted this happening. Check out part one—which looks at why people are mad at them for good reason. Part two is all about the weird and wacky future of these apps thanks to AI. Washington Post has loads more on the lawsuit.
Two things to see
One: A Sikh IPS officer was called a ‘Khalistani’ by protesting BJP leaders in West Bengal—after the police barred them from entering Sandeshkhali. The district has become a flashpoint between BJP and Trinamool Congress following allegations of sexual assault against a local TMC leader. In the clip below, Singh can be heard saying in Hindi:
Just because I am wearing a turban, you assumed I am a Khalistani? You cannot say anything about my religion. Has anybody said anything about your religion? Then why did you comment on my religion? Nobody is making any comments on religion, only you are making. If any police person is wearing a turban, are they assumed as Khalistani?… I’m not discussing your faith; don’t bring up mine either. How dare you label me a Khalistani! Is this your level?”
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is now busy making political hay out of the clip. (Indian Express)
Two: Meet Cupid, a two-month old calf from Oklahoma who has the most adorable heart-shaped mark on her head—and is now a social media sensation. Yes, this is a headline that matters—to all baby cow lovers! (USA Today)
