A few minutes into his first Netflix special Buy the Dip, comedian Nimesh Patel gets the room chanting: “H-1Bs! H-1Bs!” while making a joke about immigrants in the US. He then asks whether any visa holders are in the audience. When a few people cheer, Patel cuts them off humorously. “Stay quiet man,” he says. “It’s too hot right now, the fuck’s wrong with you?”.

In a year when Indians have become a prime target for America’s anti-immigrant right wing, Indian American comedian Nimesh Patel is having a moment. The comedian, known for delivering his punchlines with a laid-back, stoner vibe, has long taken a serious, introspective look at Indian American identity, politics and culture.

He has stood out as someone who has shown the other side of the Indian American diaspora through jokes about his father, who immigrated to the US in the 1970s and ran a liquor store in New Jersey.

After the release of his Netflix special, Nimesh Patel spoke to Scroll to discuss his ideological disagreements with the diaspora and why he believes it could use a little more self-awareness about its politics and its religion.

Nimesh Patel, 40, hails from Parsippany in New Jersey, a town with a large Indian diaspora population. He was a pre-med finance graduate from New York University and considered a career in healthcare before working a series of jobs in finance while doing stand-up comedy at night.

For years, he was a regular at Comedy Cellar, one of New York’s best known stand-up comedy clubs before he was discovered by Chris Rock in 2015. Rock asked Patel to join the writing team for the Oscars. Patel became the first Indian American writer on the popular Saturday Night Live television show, where he spent one season and earned an Emmy nomination.

A decade later, his latest special titled Buy the Dip, his most Indian show yet, is making waves on Netflix after it was released in September. The name Buy the Dip is stock market terminology from his former finance career about buying a failing asset in the hope it goes up in value.

It is in part a dig at US President Donald Trump, who in April 2025 urged his followers to buy stocks hours before announcing a pause on his tariffs that sent the market soaring.

Patel discusses the Indian American diaspora intensely in the special. He occasionally brings up the side of the diaspora that is not wealthy and is working long hours to work off debt. It is a picture of the diaspora that is not often showcased in popular media, Patel said.

“I don’t think that story’s really been told, at least articulated in that sense, because we’re all really known as these planners and these type A people,” said Patel. “I’m aware that we are the richest, quote-unquote, ‘minority,’ but we’re also the group with the largest gap in our incomes.”

He added: “You have your South Asians that run Microsoft and Google and Adobe and all, and you also have the South Asians that deliver Uber and DoorDash.”

This year, many Indians on H-1B visas are facing an uncertain future in the US, a climate not helped by Republicans complaining that foreigners are displacing Americans. In the interview, Patel referred to the Vice President JD Vance calling H-1B holders “foreign indentured servants”.

“I do think, from my bird’s-eye view of it all, that [the H-1B debate] is a scapegoat for America’s problems,” Patel said. “We, as a country, tend to put Band-Aids on gunshot wounds, and then charge $2,000 for that Band-Aid.”

He said that anti-immigrant views are aired by people pushing partisan politics with very little self awareness. “The H-1B programme coming into existence is no doubt in part corporate America wanting cheaper labour,” Patel said. “It’s a problem that is easily scapegoated by the most visible minority taking ‘advantage’ of the H-1B programme and that is Indian people.”

Throughout the interview, Patel also felt compelled to respond to the rise in anti-South Asian sentiment, particularly in videos and online commentary coming from the US. A recent report found that anti-South Asian hate rose by 240% on X (formerly Twitter) from January 2024.

Last month, the situation reared its head when a 19-year-old working at a Taco Bell was arrested for allegedly planning a mass shooting at a Hindu temple outside Chicago. The surge in racism is likely to push some Indian Americans away from the Republican party after the community’s swing toward Donald Trump in 2024.

“It is crazy to see the rise,” said Patel. “I mean, it’s not crazy, I fully understand it, but it is disheartening to see the rise of the right-wing Indian, especially in America, given our relatively short history in this country, and how privy we’ve been to witnessing how America operates, and yet we still play victim to it or play into the system.”

In Buy the Dip, one of the prime targets is Federal Bureau of Investigation director Kash Patel, a Gujarati immigrant and a Trump loyalist who has become one of the representatives of the right wing Indian American. In some ways, Democrats like New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who also has Gujarati roots, are trying to win back the less wealthy Indian Americans who have been drifting from the party, with a politics that speaks to how unaffordable America has become.

Asked whether it was possible to draw Indian Americans into a left-wing coalition, Nimesh said he couldn’t speak to Mamdani’s intentions but voiced his support for the New York mayor’s policies. “I do feel [Zohran] is a fantastic representative of a voice of reasonable South Asian Americans who align a lot more with his view of the world than the capitalist shills that we have representing us otherwise, like Vivek Ramaswamy,” Patel said.

He added: “If Zohran makes it cool and appreciable to not care about money and care about other people, then maybe over a generation or two, we will start to feel that way. I think a lot of Indian people forget that we come from Nehru and Gandhi, and they’re both flawed figures, obviously, but their dream wasn’t, you know, a fully capitalist, oligarchic society where, you know, people are enslaved in practice, if not in name, you know?”

While Kash Patel and Vivek Ramaswamy are frequent targets of Patel’s comedy, he holds off on making jokes about Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Buy the Dip. In the special, he tells the audience that making fun of Hindus (or any religion for that matter) is against the law in India, punishable by up to three years in jail.

“I purposely left out super-specific religious jokes. I was asked to,” Patel told Scroll. “Netflix is a global business… It’s [Netflix’s] platform. You have to play by their rules.”

That restraint is unusual for Patel, who has never been shy about drawing the ire of Hindu nationalists, in India and the US. Some of his most viral sketches are breezy retellings of the origin stories of Hindu gods like Ganesh and Hanuman.

He has also famously taken on BAPS, the Hindu sect behind a big Hindu temple in New Jersey that came under scrutiny after Dalit labourers alleged that they had been trafficked and paid less than the minimum wage.

“Those jokes are reflections of my views of society,” Patel said. “They’re not just jokes about those things. When I make fun of Hinduism, it’s in the context of: Hindus are, like, so powerful in this world and so angry, let me cut them down a peg.”

He elaborated: “My favorite comedians have always had a political position, but their political position wasn’t always obvious. You know, whether it be Chris Rock – I mean, Chris Rock is fairly obvious, but – Patrice O’Neal, you know, those guys always had a societal stance, and you always knew what they felt about what the fuck was going on. And that was it. What the fuck is going on in America, you know?”

Patel is hopeful there is also a large part of the Indian American diaspora that is fine with jokes about his religion, even if it is not as vocal as his right-wing critics online. “Everywhere I go, if I make religious jokes, people will tell me after that they had a problem with it,” Patel said. “In Hinduism, it says, ‘Don’t be mad at anybody.’ You know? And then you go ahead and get really mad. I don’t understand that. I don’t know if people have that self-awareness. The younger people are often like, “Say whatever you want” and that gives me hope.”

The Union government issued directions to block 129 illegal betting websites this year based on two High Court orders that were found to be fake, Reuters reported on Wednesday.

The Department of Telecommunications issued the directions on July 21 and September 2, based on purported orders from the Rajasthan High Court and the Allahabad High Court.

The directives were available on the department’s website, with copies of the purported court orders attached, Reuters reported.

Scroll could independently find only the September 2 directive on the website. The purported Allahabad High Court order attached to it carried the court’s logo, seal and a QR code. Reuters reported that the code led to a webpage displaying only a case number. However, when Scroll attempted to access the QR code, it was untraceable.

Both the takedown orders do not appear in the High Courts’ online registration records, Reuters reported.

In response to queries from the news agency, the Rajasthan High Court’s registrar said that the order “appears to be fraudulent” and did not exist on its server.

The Allahabad High Court said that the order bearing its name was fake. The High Court also filed a police complaint in the case on November 6, the news agency reported. An investigation has been initiated in the case for alleged forgery and cheating.

The purported Allahabad High Court order was dated August 14 and bore the name of Justice Garima Prashad. Police documents cited by Reuters said that the judge’s office confirmed that no such order had been passed.

A person identifying himself as advocate Kartikey Pandey sent the purported Allahabad High Court order to the department on August 22, Reuters reported.

The purported Rajasthan High Court order was sent to the telecommunications department by email on July 19 and was signed by Aryan Chaudhary, described as an advocate-on-record, Reuters reported. However, an email sent to Chaudhary bounced back with a “recipient not found” notification.

The Department of Telecommunications did not respond to Reuters’ queries on the matter.

This came against the backdrop of the Delhi Police’s Crime Branch registering a first information report on Saturday about fraudulent notices sent in the department’s name to social media platform X. The notices sought to block the accounts of digital rights groups Internet Freedom Foundation and Software Freedom Law Centre.

The FIR was registered against unidentified persons under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita relating to forgery and impersonation of a public servant, as well as computer-related offences under the Information Technology Act.

On Friday, the social media platform told the Delhi High Court that an internal investigation had established that the notices were not genuine police communications and had been sent by an “imposter”.

Edited by Tanya Shrivastava.

Also read:

• Delhi Police file FIR about fake notices seeking blocking of IFF, SFLC’s X accounts
• Double hoax: Takedown notices from RSS, Delhi Police to digital rights groups turn out to be fake

Could your home be at risk from rising seas? Scroll is investigating coastal flooding in Mumbai and Kolkata, mapping vulnerable areas and examining whether developers and the authorities are accounting for the risks. Support this investigation and help us make this reporting possible. Fund the project here.

The Gauhati High Court has held that Permanent Account Number cards and voter ID cards alone cannot establish citizenship unless supported by the records used to issue them. The court made the observation on November 5, while dismissing a petition filed by a woman challenging a tribunal order that had declared her a foreigner.

A bench noted that PAN cards and Electoral Photo Identity Cards are issued on the basis of self-declarations, without formal verification by the Income Tax Department or the Election Commission. “Therefore, unless the records supplementing the PAN Card and EPIC are proved, the said exhibited documents cannot be accepted as a proof of citizenship of India,” the bench said. Read on.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath said that pollution caused by firecrackers during Diwali was “not a problem” as it would eventually “subside”. Adityanath’s statement came as Noida and Ghaziabad in the national capital region have recorded worsening pollution levels over the past few weeks.

In an apparent reference to the Samajwadi Party and the Congress, Adityanath said that nobody speaks out against those who have “polluted the entire system with corruption”. “If the public lights firecrackers and celebrates with fireworks for one day, suddenly pollution becomes an issue”, he added.

The Uttar Pradesh government had imposed no restrictions on the celebrations. Read on.

The Central Pollution Control Board clarified that its air quality monitoring system does not include particulate matter concentrations above 1,000 micrograms per cubic metre in hourly air-quality calculations. The monitoring equipment was originally calibrated to measure concentrations only up to that level, the pollution regulator said.

The statement came amid reports that more than 20 of Delhi’s 59 air quality monitoring stations had not reported readings on Diwali night. Air quality deteriorates sharply in Delhi in the winter months. Peak air pollution levels are historically observed during and immediately after Diwali. Read on.

The Revolutionary Workers’ Party of India alleged that several of its activists in Delhi were put under house arrest to prevent them from protesting against rising pollution levels. The party alleged that the Delhi Police tried to “forcibly enter” its office in Karawal Nagar, “without showing any official documents or authorisation”.

It alleged that the police, “acting at the behest of” Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, were intimidating and threatening people by attempting to enter their homes. Read on.

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Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath on Wednesday said that pollution caused by lighting firecrackers on Diwali was “not a problem” as it will eventually “subside”.

“A lot of people are saying that pollution has increased because of Diwali,” he said at a government programme in Lucknow. “Why are you worried?”

In an apparent reference to the Samajwadi Party and the Congress, he said that nobody speaks out against those who have “polluted the entire system with corruption”.

He added: “If the public lights firecrackers and celebrates with fireworks for one day, suddenly pollution becomes an issue”.

The Uttar Pradesh government had imposed no restrictions on the celebrations, Adityanath said.

“I also took part in fireworks in Ayodhya,” he said. “When something wrong is happening, nobody says anything, but when people celebrate a festival, others suddenly start talking about pollution.”

Adityanath’s remarks came as pollution levels in Delhi and nearby cities remained in “poor” and “very poor” categories days after Diwali festivities on Sunday.

At 5.05 pm on Wednesday, the average Air Quality Index in the national capital was 313, which is categorised as “very poor”, according to data from the Sameer application, which provides hourly updates published by the Central Pollution Control Board.

Ghaziabad and Noida recorded AQI readings of 297 and 290, which falls under the “poor” category.

According to government standards, an index value between 0 and 50 indicates “good” air quality, between 51 and 100 indicates “satisfactory” air quality and between 101 and 200 indicates “moderate” air quality. As the index value increases further, air quality deteriorates. A value of 201 and 300 means “poor” air quality, while between 301 and 400 indicates “very poor” air.

Between 401 and 450 indicates “severe” air pollution, while anything above the 450 threshold is termed “severe plus”.

Written by Anamika Pathak. Edited by Tanya Shrivastava.

The Central Pollution Control Board on Tuesday clarified that its air quality monitoring system does not include particulate matter concentrations above 1,000 micrograms per cubic metre in hourly air quality calculations. The monitoring equipment was originally calibrated to measure concentrations only up to that level, the pollution regulator said.

The statement came amid reports that more than 20 of Delhi’s 59 air quality monitoring stations had not reported readings on Diwali night.

Air quality deteriorates sharply in the winter months in Delhi, which is often ranked the world’s most polluted capital. Peak air pollution levels are historically observed during and immediately after Diwali.

This year, the festival was celebrated on Sunday, amid worsening air quality in the capital over the past week.

CPCB Comments on reporting of National Air Quality Index (NAQI) during the post-Diwali period.@byadavbjp @KVSinghMPGonda @moefcc @PIB_India @mygovindia pic.twitter.com/5PvGg9jeIM

— Central Pollution Control Board (@CPCB_OFFICIAL) November 10, 2026

The Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air analysed the pollution control board data on Sunday night which showed that the number of stations not reporting readings rose between midnight and 2 am, when pollution levels typically peak.

At 7 pm on Sunday, only one station was not reporting data. The number rose to seven by 10 pm and 23 by 11 pm. By midnight, 29 stations had stopped reporting readings. At 1 am on Monday, 36 stations were not reporting data. At 2 am, 35 stations were still blank.

However, data later released by the Delhi Pollution Control Committee showed that particulate matter concentrations had far exceeded the 1,000 micrograms per cubic metre threshold at several locations.

Pollution levels ‘outside range’

The Central Pollution Control Board said that when the National Air Quality Index was introduced, particulate matter analysers were calibrated to measure concentrations ranging from zero to 1,000 micrograms per cubic metre.

“The designed system of automated data validation treats hourly readings beyond the calibrated range as outside range, and such readings are not used in the computation,” it said.

The pollution regulator said that sudden increases in pollutant concentrations, such as those caused by firecrackers during Diwali, were usually short-lived.

It added that the National Air Quality Index was designed to account for prolonged exposure to air pollution rather than momentary spikes in pollutant concentrations, which it claimed were less relevant indicators of adverse health effects.

“During extreme episodes, which are occasional like Diwali firecracker bursting, this may appear as a data gap at the particular station concerned, and those hours do not contribute to the 24-hour average of relevant pollutant for concerned station,” the Central Pollution Control Board said.

The pollution regulator said that it was reviewing the methodology in light of advances in monitoring technology and evolving international practices.

How is AQI calculated

Launched in 2015, the National Air Quality Index calculates hourly AQI readings based on measurements of eight pollutants: particulate matter 2.5, particulate matter 10, carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide, ammonia, ozone and lead.

The sub-index for each pollutant is calculated using its average concentration over the preceding 24 hours, except for carbon monoxide and ozone, for which an eight-hour average is used. The highest of the eight sub-indices determines the AQI for that hour.

According to government standards, an index value between 0 and 50 indicates “good” air quality, between 51 and 100 indicates “satisfactory” air quality and between 101 and 200 indicates “moderate” air quality. As the index value increases further, air quality deteriorates. A value of 201 and 300 means “poor” air quality, while between 301 and 400 indicates “very poor” air.

Between 401 and 450 indicates “severe” air pollution, while anything above the 450 threshold is termed “severe plus”.

The pollution control board also explained why the official AQI is capped at 500. It described this as a “design feature” of the index, saying that 500 represents the highest level of health concern. The board said this level poses “almost the same health risk” as the severe category and can cause respiratory problems even in healthy people, as well as serious health impacts in those with lung diseases.

The board said differences between AQI readings on government and private applications were “attributable to differences in measurement of pollutant concentration and in methodology, and not to under-reporting”.

Written by Anamika Pathak. Edited by Tanya Shrivastava.

The Revolutionary Workers’ Party of India on Wednesday alleged that several of its activists in Delhi were put under house arrest to prevent them from protesting against rising pollution levels.

The party alleged that the Delhi Police tried to “forcibly enter” its office in Karawal Nagar, “without showing any official documents or authorisation”.

It alleged that the police, “acting at the behest of” Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, were intimidating and threatening people by attempting to enter their homes.

The party had called for a peaceful protest in Delhi against pollution on Wednesday,

Air pollution in Delhi

The air quality in Delhi remained in the “very poor” category on Wednesday, days after Diwali festivities, with two areas recording “severe” pollution levels.

At 2.05 pm, the average Air Quality Index in the national capital was 312, which is categorised as “very poor”, according to data from the Sameer application, which provides hourly updates published by the Central Pollution Control Board.

Thirty of the 58 active monitoring stations recorded “very poor” AQI while Delhi Technological University and Chhawla recorded “severe” pollution levels with 410 and 411 AQI readings. This was followed by an AQI of 398 at Chandni Chowk.

According to government standards, an index value between 0 and 50 indicates “good” air quality, between 51 and 100 indicates “satisfactory” air quality and between 101 and 200 indicates “moderate” air quality. As the index value increases further, air quality deteriorates. A value of 201 and 300 means “poor” air quality, while between 301 and 400 indicates “very poor” air.

Between 401 and 450 indicates “severe” air pollution, while anything above the 450 threshold is termed “severe plus”.

Written by Anamika Pathak. Edited by Tanya Shrivastava.

Also read: Delhi air pollution: Several monitoring stations did not report AQI readings on Diwali night

The Gauhati High Court has held that Permanent Account Number cards and voter ID cards alone cannot establish citizenship unless supported by the records used to issue them.

The court made the observation on November 5, while dismissing a petition filed by a woman challenging a tribunal order that had declared her a foreigner who entered India in March 1971.

A division bench of Justices Kalyan Rai Surana and Susmita Phukan Khaund found that Kulchan Begum had failed to establish her links to her claimed father and grandparents through reliable evidence.

Begum had also failed to prove that they had continuously lived in Assam, as required under the 1955 Citizenship Act, the judgement noted.

The woman had claimed that she was born in Assam on April 25, 1977. To establish her citizenship, she submitted electoral rolls from 1966 and 1970 listing her claimed grandparents, along with her father’s permanent account card and voter ID, her own voter ID, a ration card and an acknowledgement receipt for her National Register of Citizens application.

She also contended that her father was an Indian citizen whose name appeared in electoral records. She claimed that he had contested the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections and served as a councillor of the Guwahati Municipal Corporation.

However, the Foreigners Tribunal had rejected her claim, finding that she had failed to establish her relationship with her claimed father.

The foreigners tribunals in Assam are quasi-judicial bodies that adjudicate on matters of citizenship based on lineage and a 1971 cut-off date. They rely primarily on documents submitted by persons to establish their family’s residency in Assam or India before 1971.

Those declared foreigners by the tribunals have the option to appeal the decision before the High Court or the Supreme Court.

Foreigners’ tribunals have been accused of arbitrariness and bias, and declaring persons foreigners on the basis of minor spelling mistakes, a lack of documents or lapses in memory.

The woman had argued before the High Court that the tribunal had not properly considered her documents. She also said that her previous lawyer had advised her incorrectly that the evidence submitted was sufficient to establish her citizenship. She sought to have the case sent back to the tribunal so she could present additional witnesses, including her parents and other family members.

The High Court rejected the argument, noting that she had been given several opportunities to submit further evidence before the tribunal but had failed to do so. It said that the claim of incorrect legal advice appeared to be an “after thought”.

On the documents submitted, the High Court said that permanent account cards and Electoral Photo Identity Cards were issued on the basis of self-declarations without formal verification by the Income Tax Department or the Election Commission.

“Therefore, unless the records supplementing the PAN Card and EPIC are proved, the said exhibited documents cannot be accepted as a proof of citizenship of India,” the bench said.

It also held that her claimed father’s alleged participation in parliamentary and state polls, and his tenure as a municipal councillor, did not by themselves establish that she was his daughter.

The High Court therefore dismissed her petition and upheld the foreigners tribunal’s decision.

The court also revoked the interim bail granted to her in 2022.

The Supreme Court and different High Courts have, over the years, held that documents such as Aadhaar card, voter identity card, PAN card and a certificate issued by the Gram Panchayat Secretary, as well as ownership of a bank account or property, are not evidence of citizenship.

There is no single document that proves Indian citizenship. Only foreign citizens who take up Indian citizenship are granted actual citizenship certificates. Persons born in India do not have any such document.

Written by Sara Varghese. Edited by Nachiket Deuskar.

Also read: Why experts contest Assam CM’s use of 1950 law to justify forcing out people into Bangladesh

Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Tuesday ordered a Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the death of an Adivasi activist.

The 39-year-old activist, Nisha Bhagat, died allegedly by suicide on Friday after going live on Facebook to accuse the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha-led state government and land brokers of harassing her for highlighting problems, The Hindu reported.

Her parents alleged a conspiracy in her death and demanded an investigation.

The chief minister’s announcement came hours after the officer in charge of the Pithoria police station near Ranchi was suspended on administrative grounds amid allegations of a conspiracy in the case, The Times of India and the Hindustan Times reported.

The incident took place in the Pithoria police station area and Bhagat had allegedly called the station house officer during the live video, The Hindu reported.

The chief minister’s announcement came on the same day as the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes directed police officials to probe the death and submit a report within a week, the newspaper quoted a notice as having stated, the Hindustan Times reported.

The commission was reported to have taken suo moto cognisance of the case. It served notices to the state’s chief secretary, the director general of police and the senior superintendent of Ranchi Police, the newspaper reported.

On Saturday, the police registered a first information report against two persons based on a complaint by the woman’s father, the Hindustan Times quoted an officer as saying.

Bhagat protested the religious conversion of Adivasis and supported the demand for the delisting of communities in the Scheduled Tribes list who have converted to Christianity or Islam, The Indian Express reported on Saturday.

In her live video on Facebook, Bhagat said she was not associated with any group. However, she expressed disappointment with the Bharatiya Janata Party and its ideological parent, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, saying that despite expecting their support, the two organisations did not stand by her, the newspaper reported.

Edited by Nachiket Deuskar.

The Delhi High Court on Friday halted the eviction of a century-old Waqf-notified graveyard in Civil Lines and directed the government to maintain status quo on the premises, The Indian Express reported.

The graveyard management contested an October 22 eviction notice, which claimed that the 17-acre plot is the property of the Union government and is administered by the Land and Development Office.

The premises, located between Ludlow Castle Road and Under Hill Road, houses shrines, a mosque and a madrasa. The Qabristan Bagh Sher Jung is managed by a charitable society called Anjuman Wakil-i-Quam Punjabian, which has existed since before 1910, the newspaper reported.

The court ordered the Union government to maintain status quo until the next hearing on March 11, 2027.

On October 22, the Land and Development Office issued the eviction notice to four alleged encroachers on the graveyard premises, giving them 15 days to vacate. It also warned that it would take forcible possession if they failed to comply.

The four had been declared encroachers on a portion of the graveyard land in a civil suit filed by its management in 2018. However, the graveyard management has disputed the October notice’s claim that the entire 17-acre plot belongs to the government.

The Land and Development Office functions under the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs and is responsible for managing government-owned and leasehold properties, particularly in Delhi.

The dispute over ownership dates back several decades.

The graveyard was notified as Waqf property in 1970. A year later, the Union government filed a civil suit claiming ownership of the land, arguing that it had acquired several properties in Delhi between 1911 and 1915, when the city was being developed, including the graveyard.

A waqf is an endowment under Islamic law dedicated to a religious, educational or charitable cause. Each state has a waqf board led by a legal entity vested with the power to acquire, hold and transfer property.

However, in 1985, a district court ruled that the Union government had failed to establish ownership because it had not completed the required acquisition procedure. According to the graveyard management, the ruling was never challenged.

The notice to the graveyard came amid a wider demolition or eviction drive in Lutyens’ Delhi, the administrative and diplomatic district of the national capital. The Race Course mosque, a heritage structure near Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s official residence and nearby slum dwellers have faced threat of demolition. The government has also taken possession of the Delhi Race Club and Jaipur Polo Ground, The Indian Express reported.

On October 29, the demolition of the heritage mosque near Modi’s official residence was put on hold for four weeks after the authorities told the Delhi High Court that they would not take any coercive action against the structure during the period.

Edited by Sara Varghese.

Former Congress President Sonia Gandhi’s much-awaited memoir, Belonging: A Journey of Love, hit the stands on Tuesday, instantly setting off political debates on social media and on television channels. However, contrary to the buzz, the book has few big revelations.

Most of it, in fact, is about her life before she became a politician. The period after 2004, the year she led the grand old party to victory in the Lok Sabha elections, is covered only in passing.

Political geeks will have to strain themselves to find passages that satiate their curiosity. But there is a lot in the memoir for discerning readers willing to read between the lines. The omissions by the author speak volumes too.

For example, the name of actor Amitabh Bachchan, once a close friend of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, appears just three times in the book. His wife, Jaya Bachchan, is not mentioned at all. The Bachchans are said to have fallen out with the Gandhis after the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi.

The other Bachchans

Notably, though, Sonia Gandhi makes several references to Amitabh Bachchan’s parents, the Hindi poet Harivansh Rai Bachchan and Teji Bachchan, in whose home she stayed when she first came to India from Italy in 1968.

The couple were friends of her mother-in-law, former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, and have been described as generous hosts.

Teji Bachchan took care of Sonia Gandhi when she fell sick and gave her several gifts over the years, including a puppy after she lost her firstborn son within hours of his birth. Harivansh Rai Bachchan offered her occasional Hindi lessons as well as sage advice during her early days in Delhi.

“You must know, Sonia beti, child, that in this country it is not what you are that counts, it is what people think you to be,” he is supposed to have told her at the time.

“This warning invariably left me wondering – does he mean that I can never be myself? I was I, and that’s the way I was; how could I possibly show myself differently? So it was that on many occasions, after being dropped back by Rajiv, I’d shed some quiet tears and long for my home and my family. Rajiv tried to reassure me. But in later years I remembered Uncle Bachchan’s words. How right he’d been – a poet and a sensitive man, having himself experienced the fickleness of the public.”

Political opponents

Even those who Sonia Gandhi has opposed bitterly in the political arena for years are either not mentioned at all or discussed only briefly. For example, the book contains no references to her interactions with the veteran Bharatiya Janata Party leader, Lal Krishna Advani. Home Minister Amit Shah does not feature either.

However, there is a marked difference in how Sonia Gandhi describes her interactions with former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. She writes that she felt concern for Vajpayee when there was a terror attack on Parliament in 2001.

“My immediate thought was for the prime minister’s safety and I rang him at once. I felt relieved when he assured me that he had left the Lok Sabha more or less at the same time as I had; he was at home and secure… I heard afterwards that the prime minister had told many of his colleagues appreciatively that I had been the first to call him.”

Recollecting a heated exchange with Vajpayee during a special session of Parliament from 2002, she expresses regret for having criticised him too harshly.

“I observed in Parliament a few months later that Prime Minister Vajpayee had aged visibly and was looking far from well; his party was whispering about it, too, and soon an article appeared in Time magazine with details of his ailments. I replayed to myself the joint session scene in Central Hall… I thought I’d gone a bit too far; he was a veteran leader, and though we belonged to opposing ideologies, he was the prime minister, and I should have been more moderate in criticising him.”

In contrast, she is cold about her relationship with Modi.

“To this day, I’ve had practically no real contact with him. We meet at semi-official gatherings – for instance, at the end of every Parliament session, when leaders of the major parties customarily gather at the Speaker’s chamber. It’s a very small room, and usually many people are present, but when he comes face-to-face with me, we greet each other with a formal namaste… He tends to look away, avoiding eye contact…

When speaking in Parliament, he at times uses the same coarse language he employs in addressing a public rally. Much of the time he derides the opposition in what can only be termed a tirade.”

Imposing Emergency

Sonia Gandhi’s memoirs acknowledge the excesses committed during the Emergency, when Indira Gandhi suspended fundamental rights from 1975 to 1977. But she also offers readers a glimpse of what her mother-in-law was worried about in those days.

“Mujibur Rahman [prime minister of Bangladesh at the time] and his whole family, including a small boy of nine, had been brutally killed in his own home…

The choice of the date for the massacre was also curious – our Independence Day. While mourning Mujib and his family, Mrs. Gandhi could not overlook the possibility of a similar fate for herself and her family.”

She goes on to allege that Indira Gandhi suspected that trade union leader George Fernandes, among the many opposition politicians imprisoned during the Emergency, was conspiring to assassinate her. Fernandes would later go on to serve as defence minister in Vajpayee’s government.

The other takeaway from this section of the book is that in Sonia Gandhi’s view, part of the blame for the Emergency’s excesses lay with her brother-in-law, Sanjay Gandhi, and his wife, Maneka Gandhi.

“What is undeniable, however, is that he [Sanjay Gandhi] had a significant role in decision-making during the Emergency period, despite lacking a constitutional locus standi for some of his political interventions…

The role of Maneka, too, was worrying my mother-in-law, who felt that, rather than being a sobering influence on Sanjay, she was egging him on in his activities, even interfering in them. She had said to Cabinet Secretary PN Dhar about her young daughter-in-law: “Uske abhi se par nikalne lage hain.” (“She has started growing wings already.”)”

Her husband Rajiv Gandhi, on the other hand, is presented as someone who cautioned his mother about imposing Emergency and later tried to convey to her that Indians were growing resentful of it.

Babri Masjid demolition

It is a pattern that stretches to her description of Rajiv Gandhi’s handling of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement, which eventually led to the demolition of the Babri Masjid, the sixteenth-century mosque in Ayodhya.

The Hindutva campaign to have a temple to the deity Ram constructed at the site of the mosque had picked up steam during Rajiv Gandhi’s tenure as prime minister. He has long been criticised for failing to thwart it. In fact, it was under his government that the locks to the mosque were opened and Hindu worshippers were allowed access to the mosque.

But Sonia Gandhi’s narration, predictably, does not apportion to him any responsibility for the events followed.

“Rajiv’s aim had been to find a negotiated solution that would be legal and acceptable to all parties involved in the dispute: to let the temple be built without disturbing the mosque… Rajiv’s attempt to revive Mahatma Gandhi’s alternative conception of a ‘Ram Rajya,’ with its core ideals of virtue, morality, and justice, fell on deaf ears.”

Rajiv Gandhi lost his prime ministership in 1989. Two years later, he was assassinated by a terrorist from the Sri Lankan group Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. The Babri Masjid was demolished by a Hindutva mob a little over a year after his death.

Taking over Congress

For years, Sonia Gandhi’s opponents have accused her of being unfair to veteran Congress leader Sitaram Kesri, whom she abruptly replaced as party president in 1998. Kesri came from Bihar and belonged to an Other Backward Class community, which adds greater political significance to the charge.

Still, she addresses the issue only perfunctorily in the book.

“The Congress Working Committee decided unanimously that a change of leadership was necessary. Congress President Sitaram Kesri was made to step down and on March 14, 1998, I was elected president in his place. Kesri-ji, as I addressed him, had been an active Congressman for more than six decades; on an impulse I drove directly from the meeting to his house, greeted him, and bent down to touch his feet, as one does as a mark of respect to elders. He was taken aback by my unexpected appearance but gave me his blessing, placing his hand on my head with tears in his eyes.”

No, Yes, No and Manmohan Singh

Several of the excerpts published in the media show how Sonia Gandhi declined to become prime minister after the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance won the 2004 Lok Sabha elections. But, for a brief moment, she had agreed to take up the job before passing it on to the economist-turned-politician Manmohan Singh.

“A meeting is going on with some of the leaders of the alliance in Rajiv’s conference room at the far end of my house. They’ve been talking in turns for over an hour, urging me to agree to their proposal, while I listen silently. As the discussion comes to an end, they look towards me for a response. I muster up as much courage as I can and I say my piece.

There is an uproar amongst them, they stand up and move towards me. I, too, stand up. They physically surround me. “We will not accept this,” one of them says. “You cannot take this decision, Madam,” says another. Their tone is forceful, almost aggressive. “We will not take no for an answer.” I am shaken. I feel overpowered. “Theek hai,” (“All right,”) I mumble almost inaudibly. The assembled leaders don’t even wait for me to finish my sentence, they begin to congratulate me, one by one. “She has agreed, she has agreed,” someone says. I just stand there, numb, unable to say anything further. The leaders depart, satisfied.”

Her children, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi, intervened at that point and got her to reverse her decision before word could spread. Sonia Gandhi writes that Manmohan Singh was “persuaded to agree” to become prime minister soon after.

Though she lists Singh’s personal qualities and his professional accomplishments, the blunt political rationale behind his selection is stated in the following two sentences.

“Over a period of time, the Congress had been painted as being left of centre, and our government would now be supported by the Communist parties as well. I thought Dr. Manmohan Singh would assuage the doubts of many about our ability to manage and continue the policies that had been begun years ago.”

Identifying with Indira Gandhi

Sonia Gandhi took charge of the Congress three decades after her arrival in India. Before that, she had always maintained that she did not wish to become a politician. Her trajectory in public life makes for a stark contrast to that of Indira Gandhi, who made a series of ambitious moves and even split the original Congress party in order to establish her total control over it.

Yet, in her memoirs, Sonia Gandhi suggests that they had much in common.

“She [Indira Gandhi] confided to us how terrified she had been during her first years as prime minister when called upon to face Parliament, how unnerved when she had to speak or take part in debates. Yet she would strive to put up a calm and composed front – feeling tongue-tied, words refusing to come out, her high-pitched voice compounding her embarrassment. Many of these terrors I was to experience myself years later when I stepped into the political arena.”

Women in politics (and political families)

Not only her mother-in-law, Sonia Gandhi claims to feel strongly for other women in politics too – even those opposed to her party.

“In spite of their being political opponents I admired them and maintained a personal rapport with them, especially with Mamata Banerjee and Kumari Mayawati. All of them were in themselves impressive, hardworking, and politically astute politicians who made their name in what was very much a man’s world.”

This sympathy, she suggests, extends to women who may not have been politicians themselves but married into political families like hers. Two such women, former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s wife, Sunita Kejriwal, and Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren’s wife, Kalpana Soren, find mention towards the end of the book, when she recalls meeting them during the 2024 Lok Sabha election campaign.

“I went to the rally in Delhi to meet the wives of the two jailed chief ministers. They had suddenly found themselves compelled to manage their parties; in the Indian political tradition, going back to the Quit India movement when all the leaders of the independence struggle were imprisoned, wives step in at times when their spouses are in jail or beleaguered. I could understand how difficult it must have been for them. As I walked up to the stage, on the spur of the moment, I embraced each of them and spoke a few words of sympathy and encouragement.”

In April, two surrendered Maoist leaders, Dinesh Modiam and Papa Rao, visited Pedda Korma village in Chhattisgarh’s Bijapur district. They were accompanied by police and revenue department officials as part of a government programme called Niyad Nellanar.

Niyad Nellanar literally means “your good village” in Gondi. Chhattisgarh government launched the programme in 2024 with the aim to provide basic facilities and welfare benefits to villages in Bastar region which lie within a 5-km radius of newly built security camps.

Until recently, Bastar was the stronghold of the banned Communist Party of India (Maoist), which waged an insurgency in the forests of central and eastern India for over four decades. In March this year, the government declared victory over the Maoists after most insurgent leaders either surrendered or were killed in a two-year-long security offensive.

Dinesh Modiam, a native of Pedda Korma village, used to be the secretary of the CPI (Maoist)’s Gangaloor area committee before he surrendered to the police in March 2025. Area committees are part of Maoist divisional committees, which are further subsumed within zonal committees.

Papa Rao, a senior Maoist leader, was a member of the Dandakaranya special zonal committee – its jurisdiction stretched across Bastar region and several adjoining areas in neighbouring states. Listed with the police as a wanted Maoist whose capture carried a Rs 25 lakh-reward, he surrendered to Chhattisgarh police in March this year.

At the Niyad Nellanar event, according to residents of Pedda Korma, Rao spoke right at the end, after police and revenue officials delivered speeches outlining government schemes for the village. He told the villagers that they could accept the schemes if they stood to benefit from them.

This remark, several villagers told me, angered them. An elderly man confronted Rao, physically pushing him away. He told both the former Maoists to leave the village and never return.

Sonu, a young resident of Pedda Korma, explained: “Gussa to rahega na, bahut kuch hua hai gaon main.” It is natural to feel anger given all that has happened in our village.

Travelling across Bastar, this reporter heard similar sentiments across several villages that were once part of the Maoist area of influence. The surrenders of Maoist leaders have left many local residents feeling betrayed.

“For 40 years, the villagers supported them, fed them and hid them,” said an elderly man from a village in Bijapur’s Usur block, whom this reporter met in February 2026. “People went to jail rather than disclose their whereabouts.”

“Innocent villagers were jailed on suspicion, charged with offences they had nothing to do with,” he continued, listing the many sacrifices that people made for a movement that they believe the leaders called off without consulting them.

On their part, former Maoist leaders have maintained that they had no choice but to surrender. The Maoist organisation had grown weak on account of dwindling weapons and eroding support in the villages, a senior Maoist leader Mallojula Venugopal, known in the region as Sonu Dada, said in a public video message in November 2025, a month after he surrendered.

“Of course, they were losing our support,” said a villager from Usur block when I visited in April, “because they were randomly killing people, accusing them of being mukhbir [police informers].”

In Chhote Farasgaon village of Narayanpur district, a man whose father was killed by the Maoists on the suspicion that he was a mukhbir or police informer, said: “A people’s court would be convened over every small incident. Why, then, did they [Maoist leaders] not hold a jan adalat before surrendering?”

Overhearing this comment, another villager added: “Now they have simply abandoned the region, leaving us to deal with the powerful state.”

The man whose father was killed by the Maoists said: “When these surrendered Naxals return to their villages, they will have to face us and answer some of our questions.”

Several of these questions emerged sharply in Pedda Korma village, where even Dinesh Modiam’s family is opposed to his return.

As conflict abates in Bastar after four decades of Maoist insurgency, a painful search for truth and reconciliation has begun. Our series documents this process. This is the second part.

A fairly large village with 178 households, Pedda Korma is part of a gram panchayat that goes by the same name. The other villages part of it are Bodla Pusnar, Munga and Kake Korma.

When I visited Pedda Korma in early May, it was time for “vetti” – the community hunt, in which villagers set out in small groups, spending nights in the forest in search of wild game. The animal caught is brought back to the village and cooked for a community feast.

Men and young boys had gathered beneath the shade of a large Kosum tree, with bows and arrows in hand, waiting for others to join them. As their numbers gradually swelled, they set off in the heat and dust, moving quietly, with dogs trailing behind. Before they left, I managed to speak briefly with a few of them.

The history they recounted was a familiar one: in the 1980s, having crossed over from what was then Andhra Pradesh, the Maoists gradually expanded their presence in the forests and villages of Bijapur.

The district came to be known as the West Bastar division of the CPI (Maoist). The division had four area committees, including the Gangaloor area committee, which was established sometime in 2004.

Bhima (name changed), who served as a member of the Pedda Korma village committee, recalled why villagers started supporting the insurgents – fear of the Maoists kept forest department officials away.

“We began to feel safe in their presence,” he said, of the Maoists. “Hum jungle me jaisa chahe ghoomte the, koi darr nahi, zarurat ke cheeze lekar aate the” – we could roam about the forest freely, without any fear, and collect whatever we needed.

After spending two decades as a village committee member – a role that did not involve picking up arms – Bhima surrendered to the police in 2025. He now lives in his village, tending to his small patch of land along with his family.

In the early 2000s, he recounted, several young men from Pedda Korma, including Dinesh Modiam, joined the Maoists as armed cadres. But recruitment shot up only after Salwa Judum took shape in 2005, he said. The Judum was an anti-Maoist vigilante movement supported by the state. As Judum vigilantes went around burning homes in villages that did not support them, many fled to the forest to seek refuge.

In Pedda Korma, nearly 50-60 homes were set on fire and two elderly civilians were killed, Bhima said. The entire village had to hide in the forests for two years, he added.

With the state hiring Judum vigilantes as Special Police Officers, some people from Pedda Korma switched sides and joined the police. Others felt compelled to leave their land and move to the small towns where the government had built “relief camps for Maoist victims”.

Among those who left Pedda Korma was the then village sarpanch Pandu Modiam who moved to Bijapur. Bhima alleged Pandu pressured other villagers to support the government and the police. One of the local police recruits, Manu Modiam, was later killed by Maoist cadres in 2013, Bhima added.

I contacted Pandu Modiam, who continues to live in Bijapur, but he declined to speak with me. His son, Anil Modiam, said his father had not been keeping good health ever since Maoist cadres beat him up in 2024.

Anil, now 23, was a child when the family left Pedda Korma in 2007. He said his parents told him that their house had been burnt down by Judum activists. After spending some time hiding in the forest, they moved to Bijapur since it was not possible to move back to the village.

Anil said villagers unfairly suspected his father of collaborating with the police. Although the police had offered jobs to the family, he said they had refused to take them as that would only endanger their larger family left behind in the village.

Anil said his father largely stayed away from Pedda Korma – on the rare occasion that he visited the village, he would come back home to Bijapur well before nightfall. However, in November 2024, Pandu stayed back. Incidentally, that day, security forces had passed through the village. Maoist cadres summoned several villagers, including Pandu, to the forest, where they were beaten up, Anil alleged.

He added that his father was questioned about his failure as sarpanch, even though it was evident that the restrictions imposed by the Maoists had made it impossible for him to function.

In his father’s defence, Anil added that he used to go to police stations to help villagers who had been arrested or to identify those who had been killed by the security forces – a role that sarpanches are expected to play both by the police and the villagers.

“Those very people who beat up my father and others for leaking information to the police have now surrendered and joined the police,” Anil said, referring to Dinesh Modiam, the surrendered Maoist leader.

Internal rivalries

Dinesh Modiam’s name surfaced repeatedly in several villages I visited in the Gangaloor area. One of the party’s earliest recruits, he had followed in the footsteps of Vella Modiam, also from Pedda Korma.

Both men rose through the Maoist ranks – Dinesh Modiam became the secretary of the Gangaloor area committee, while Vella Modiam became a member of the divisional committee. Their trajectories eventually diverged, with each falling victim to the very forces they had helped set in motion.

While Dinesh Modiam surrendered to the police in March 2025 and became part of the District Reserve Guard, an anti-Maoist police unit made up of local recruits, Vella Modiam was killed in December 2025 in an ambush. This ambush, villagers said, was led by Dinesh Modiam.

In conversations with villagers, I gathered that the former secretary of the Gangaloor area committee was feared but not respected.

In fact, after Dinesh Modiam surrendered in March 2025, villagers from across the Gangaloor area had organised a protest march, accusing him of sanctioning the killings of several civilians after unfairly branding them as police informers. The villagers appealed to the police to arrest him, rather than extending him protection.

“But the police conveniently took him into their fold, despite Dinesh’s involvement in the killings of several police personnel,” said a villager from the neighbouring Mankeli village who had participated in the march.

Dinesh’s surrender and subsequent police recruitment helped the security forces establish a camp in Pedda Korma in September 2025. Once that was done, the police arrived in the village with a list of 93 names from Pedda Korma gram panchayat – 48 from Pedda Korma, 39 from Bodla Pusnar, and six from Kake Korma – claiming they were Maoist cadres and supporters, and asking them to surrender.

“Only a third of them were armed cadres,” said Bhima. “The rest were village level supporters whose identities would be known only to people like Dinesh Modiam.”

However, since resisting the police could put them in trouble, all of them, including him, lined up to surrender, he added.

But this did not bring an end to the conflict.

More murders

Two months after Dinesh Modiam’s surrender, three men from Pedda Korma were killed by the Maoists. Two of them were his brothers – Jungu Modiam and Soma Modiam. The third was a 13-year-old boy Anil Madvi, whose brother works with the police’s District Reserve Guard. The killings were attributed to Vella Modiam, the other senior leader from Pedda Korma.

Six months later, security forces ambushed and killed Vella. Within a week of his killing, the police arrested 11 people, eight from Pedda Korma and nine from Mankeli, including Vella’s wife and sister.

Most villagers saw Dinesh Modiam’s hand in this – they said this was his way of avenging the death of his brothers. But they claimed that his own extended family did not support him.

As proof, they cited the fact that when Dinesh visited the village in April this year, his relatives asked him to leave. Some of them even openly declared to the accompanying police officials that if Dinesh ever came to the village alone, they would murder him.

Hearing this, the police swiftly took away the former Maoist on a bike, a villager recalled.

Hurt sentiments

In Pedda Korma, when I visited the homes of Dinesh Modiam’s deceased brothers, his 19-year-old sister, Chhindri, was helping her widowed sisters-in-law cut unripe mangoes to dry them in the sun.

When I asked her why the family was opposed to Dinesh’s visits to the village, she said, without lifting her head: “Kyun aane denge, sian log bahut gusse me hai.” Why would we let him return, the elders in the village are angry with him.

Chhindri pointed towards her sisters-in-law, the two wives of Jugnu Modiam, and asked who was going to look after them and their 10 children.

Others in the village told me that Dinesh, while in the Maoist party, had asked his father’s elder brother, Sika Modiam, to leave the village after two of his sons had joined the police in 2017-’18. Since Dinesh had forced his own uncle into exile, the larger family resented him and was unwilling to accept his return, said another villager.

Sika had returned to the village recently. Sanki Modiam, the wife of Sika’s son, Manish Modiam, a District Reserve Guard, was now the sarpanch of the village, although both she and her husband lived in Bijapur. When I called her, Manish came on call, introducing himself as the “sarpanch pati” who handles Sanki’s official work. He brushed aside my queries about the return of surrendered Maoists, adding that everything was well in the village.

The resentment towards Dinesh ran deep in the village. Village residents listed out the names of 19 people from Pedda Korma, including four women, who were in prison. Barring two, all of them had been arrested after Dinesh had surrendered, which made villagers suspect that he had revealed their identities to the police. This was in addition to the 93 people who were made to surrender to the police. As part of the surrender protocol, they have to report to the nearest security camp on a weekly basis.

“Nineteen people are still in jail as he [Dinesh Modiam] sits with the police,” said Somu Modiam, whose younger brother is in jail. Another villager sitting next to him added: “Several cadres lost their lives safeguarding the lives of these senior leaders.”

I contacted Dinesh Modiam to seek his responses to these allegations. But he said he could speak to me only if the district superintendent of police allows him to.

Bijapur district superintendent of police, Umesh Gupta, declined permission, stating that higher officials would need to be consulted for it.

A heavy toll

Like many villages in Bastar, Pedda Korma has suffered a heavy toll on account of the conflict between the Maoists and the state.

A total of 17 people from the village have been killed in the conflict since 2001, Bhima said, listing their names and the years of their death. A few were killed in genuine encounters between the two sides, but many were pulled out of their homes and killed in cold blood, he alleged.

Of the nearly 25 men and women from Pedda Korma who joined the Maoists, about 13 have died, while the rest have surrendered. Most have returned to the village after completing a skill training course organised by the police, Bhima added.

Others in the village put the number of those employed with the police and paramilitary forces at 11. Four of them, including Dinesh, belong to one family, villagers said.

While many in the village were pleased with the fact that Dinesh’s family had ostracised him, they have largely stayed away from their internal politics, a family member of Vella Modiam clarified. With the withdrawal of the Maoist party, those with the police and paramilitary forces now exercise more clout in the village, he added, by way of explanation.

When asked about the social equation in the village, Bhima said that those who are with the police have sent a loud and clear message that anyone raising a voice against them would be packed off to the prison.

As an example, he cited a recent episode in which a young boy got into a heated argument with the relatives of a man employed with the police’s District Reserve Guard. Soon after, the DRG personnel came to the village, picked up the boy and took him to the Pedda Korma security camp. The village elders had to rush to the camp and apologise on his behalf. Only then was he released, Bhima said.

In this situation, keeping their heads low and tending to their work was the only option most villagers had, Bhima said. “Our forest, our land, our river, stream and hills are now our only support.”

The Delhi Police’s Crime Branch on Saturday registered a first information report about fraudulent notices sent in the department’s name to social media platform X, seeking the blocking of accounts of digital rights groups Internet Freedom Foundation and Software Freedom Law Centre, The Print reported.

The FIR was registered against unidentified persons under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita relating to forgery and impersonation of a public servant, as well as computer-related offences under the Information Technology Act, The Hindu reported.

The police have traced a 17-year-old in Srinagar as the alleged “imposter”, The Print reported.

On Friday, the social media platform told the Delhi High Court that an internal investigation had established that the notices were not genuine police communications and had been sent by an “imposter”.

The platform also assured the court that the accounts will not be taken down.

The court was hearing a petition filed by the two digital rights groups challenging the notices.

Following the platform’s submission, the court disposed of the pleas.

Double hoax

On October 30, the digital rights groups had gone public with purported legal notices they had received in the name of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the parent organisation of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, asking them to stop documenting and opposing the government’s content restriction orders.

The RSS has not officially commented on the notices but its member Ratan Sharda and Kanchan Gupta, an advisor to the information and broadcasting ministry, denied on social media that the organisation had sent any such notices.

The digital rights groups had later received communication from X, informing them that the Delhi Police had sent an “illegal content report” asking for their posts and accounts to be taken down since they were allegedly defamatory about the RSS.

Scroll reported that the purported notices appeared to be part of an elaborate hoax that seemed to have swept in not just the digital rights groups and the RSS, but even the Delhi Police.

Read more on this: Takedown notices from RSS, Delhi Police to digital rights groups turn out to be fake

Not only was the notice sent in the name of the RSS fake, a police officer familiar with the case told Scroll that even the purported police communication to X was fabricated. The officer spoke on the condition of anonymity since he is not authorised to speak to the press.

Questions sent to Delhi Police’s spokesperson were unanswered when Scroll reported about the matter.

Besides the accounts of the Internet Freedom foundation and Software Freedom Law Centre, the notices had also been sent to X account Geo Blocked in India, which compiles blocking orders in the country.

The purported takedown order sent to X listed 40 links of 37 posts and the entire accounts of the Internet Freedom Foundation, the Software Freedom Law Center and Geo Blocked in India.

It also asked X to take down posts by 16 others, including Sharda, technology journalist Abhishek Baxi, The Wire’s Editor Seema Chishti and Congress’ Rajya Sabha MP Naseer Hussain, for commenting on the notice received by the digital rights groups.

The Internet Freedom Foundation and Software Freedom Law Center had questioned the legality of the purported notices, adding that defamation is not a police matter and that no court can take cognisance of it except on a complaint by the person who is aggrieved.

The police cannot investigate a non-cognisable offence without an order of a magistrate, the Internet Freedom Foundation said.

The police officer had told Scroll that the report sent to X had come from a fake email address purporting to be an official Delhi Police account.

The report, seen by Scroll, states that the email address through which it was sent to X: “ splcp-crime-dl@delhipolice.gov.in” – the address for Special Commissioner (Crime) Hargobinder Singh Dhaliwal. The Software Freedom Law Centre claimed that this address was present on the Delhi Police’s directory till November 4, but an email sent to it that day bounced back with an error saying that it did not exist.

On November 5, the digital rights group said that the police directory had changed Dhaliwal’s email address to “splcp[dot]crime[at]delhipolice[dot]gov[dot]in” – replacing hyphens with dots.

Edited by Nachiket Deuskar.

A Muslim Kolkata Police inspector has been suspended for posting allegedly derogatory remarks about the West Bengal government and Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, The Indian Express reported on Tuesday.

The police officer, Ekhlaque Ahmed, had made the remarks in a WhatsApp group, screenshots of which were shared online, reported NDTV.

The screenshots purportedly show Ahmed referring to Adhikari as “merchant of death”. He also made alleged communal remarks while discussing pollution caused by lighting of firecrackers during Diwali, NDTV reported.

Ahmed was suspended with effect from Monday. The order said that Ahmed’s continuance in office pending an inquiry into his conduct would be “prejudicial in the interest of public service”.

He will receive half his basic pay and allowances during the suspension. He was been asked to hand over his government-issued equipment to the Kolkata Police's Central Division.

Edited by Sneha.

The Election Commission on Tuesday extended restrictions under the Model Code of Conduct to retired government officials and other persons engaged by the governments in poll-bound states, IANS reported.

The code is a set of guidelines issued by the poll panel that political parties, candidates and the government must follow during an election. It sets guardrails for speeches, campaigning, meetings, processions, election manifestos and other aspects of the polls.

In a letter to chief secretaries and chief electoral officers of Goa, Manipur, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, the poll panel said that all restrictions and prohibitions applicable to serving government officials will also apply to re-employed government officers and employees “for whom there are no specific guidelines or rules relating to their political neutrality and conduct”.

Assembly elections will be held early next year in all five states.

These officials have been barred from summoning any election-related officer of a constituency or district where polls have been announced, whether for discussions, meetings or video conferences.

They have also been barred from taking part in any election campaign or from canvassing for any individual or political party.

“Any omission or commission of any act in contravention of commission’s directions shall be viewed seriously,” read the the poll panel’s letter.

The election commission has issued similar restrictions ahead of Assembly elections in 2022 and in transfer guidelines dated January 2019, Hindustan Times reported. However, the latest notifications broaden the scope of the restrictions.

On October 27, the Election Commission had directed the five poll-bound states to transfer election-linked officers who were either posted in home districts or who had served three years or more in a district.

The cut-off date for such transfers was March 31 in Goa, Manipur, Punjab and Uttarakhand and May 31 for Uttar Pradesh.

Edited by Sneha.

Could your home be at risk from rising seas? Scroll is investigating coastal flooding in Mumbai and Kolkata, mapping vulnerable areas and examining whether developers and the authorities are accounting for the risks. Support this investigation and help us make this reporting possible. Fund the project here.

The United States State Department served summonses to the Indian government in Khalistan separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun’s civil lawsuit alleging an assassination plot against him. Pannun’s plea named National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and former Research and Analysis Wing chief Samant Goel among the defendants.

The Ministry of External Affairs rejected the lawsuit as “frivolous” and described the allegations against Indian officials as “fabricated and malicious”.

Pannun, an American and Canadian citizen, is an advocate for Khalistan. He has sought damages over an alleged attempt on his life and has accused Doval of orchestrating the plot to assassinate him involving India’s intelligence agency. Read on.

The United States Embassy in Australia on Tuesday posted a map on X showing India as being “partly free”. The map was based on the annual report of Freedom House, a US-based non-profit organisation funded by the American government.

The organisation had classified India as a “partly free” country for the sixth consecutive year in its annual Freedom in the World report.

The report said that “while India is a multiparty democracy, the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party has presided over discriminatory policies and a rise in persecution affecting Muslims”. Read on.

The year 2026 is on track to be one of the four warmest years on record, the World Meteorological Organization said. The other three years were 2023, 2024 and 2025.

The global average temperature between January and September this year was higher than the full-year averages in 2025 and 2023, and only “somewhat lower” than 2024, which is the warmest year on record.

The report also highlighted India’s heat waves as major extreme weather events this year. “An estimated 146.5 million people in India were exposed to extreme heat in an April 2026 heatwave,” it said. Read on.
How an El Niño winter could worsen pollution in Delhi, writes Vaishnavi Rathore

Social activist and educator Sanjit “Bunker” Roy died in Tilonia, Rajasthan. He was 81.

In 1972, Bunker Roy founded the Social Work and Research Centre, a voluntary rural development organisation that advances drinking water and solar electrification initiatives, the empowerment of women, skill development and healthcare. The organisation is now known as The Barefoot College.

In 1986, he was awarded the Padma Shri, India’s fourth-highest civilian honour. Read on.

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The United States Embassy in Australia on Tuesday posted a map on X showing India as being “partly free”.

The map was based on the annual report of Freedom House, a US-based non-profit organisation funded by the American government.

The organisation had classified India as a “partly free” country for the sixth consecutive year in its annual Freedom in the World report.

The report said that “while India is a multiparty democracy, the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party has presided over discriminatory policies and a rise in persecution affecting Muslims”.

It added that the “harassment of journalists, nongovernmental organizations, and other government critics has increased significantly under Modi” .

“The BJP has increasingly used government institutions to target political opponents. Muslims, scheduled castes (Dalits), and scheduled tribes (Adivasis) remain economically and socially marginalised,” it said.

The 2026 report assessed political rights and civil liberties in 195 countries and 13 territories on a 100-point scale.

India scored 62 out of 100, a one-point decline from its score of 63 in the previous report. The country was classified as “Free” until 2020, before being downgraded to “Partly Free” in 2021.

Edited by Sneha.

The United States State Department has formally served summonses to the Indian government in Khalistan separatist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun’s civil lawsuit alleging an assassination plot against him, Firstpost reported on Tuesday.

Pannun’s lawsuit names National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and former Research and Analysis Wing chief Samant Goel among the defendants.

The Ministry of External Affairs on Tuesday rejected the lawsuits as “frivolous” and described the allegations against Indian officials as “fabricated and malicious”.

Pannun, an American and Canadian citizen, is an advocate for Khalistan, an independent state for Sikhs. He is the general counsel of an organisation called Sikhs for Justice, which was banned in India in 2019. Pannun was declared an “individual terrorist” in India under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act in 2020.

In February, an Indian man named Nikhil Gupta pleaded guilty to a plot to kill Pannun, purportedly on orders from an Indian government employee.

The state department’s diplomatic note dated October 20 said the department was legally obliged to serve the summonses and that it was not taking a position on the case, The Hindu reported.

The note was served through the Indian embassy in Washington, DC.

BREAKING: US State Department formally serves Government of India with Khalistan separatist Gurpatwant Pannun’s civil lawsuit through a diplomatic note

State Department says it was legally obliged to do so and is not taking a position on the case pic.twitter.com/6IBMWyxZ6Y

— Shashank Mattoo (@MattooShashank) November 10, 2026

Pannun has sought damages over an alleged attempt on his life and has accused Doval of orchestrating a plot involving the intelligence agency to assassinate him.

In September, Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri described Pannun’s allegations as “completely unwarranted and unsubstantiated imputations”, The Indian Express reported.

In 2023, the US Department of Justice accused Gupta of conspiring with an Indian government official to kill Pannun.

Court documents identify Gupta’s handler as Vikash Yadav, who, US officials said, had been employed “at relevant times…by the government of India’s Cabinet Secretariat, which houses India’s foreign intelligence service, the Research and Analysis Wing”.

The indictment says Yadav reported to a “boss” in the Indian government, though that person is not named in US court filings.

VIDEO | Delhi: Addressing a presser, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal says, "We reject the fabricated and malicious attacks on our high officials, as also the frivolous lawsuits. Requests for the service of judicial documents in India can only be routed through India's designated… pic.twitter.com/YJhJv5zN9e

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) November 10, 2026

New Delhi has denied involvement in the alleged plot to assassinate Khalistani separatists. However, it had said that it constituted a high-level committee to examine the inputs provided by the US.

During a press conference on Tuesday, ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that requests for the service of judicial documents in India could only be routed through the country’s designated central authority, which is the Ministry of Law and Justice.

Edited by Sneha.

The Trinamool Congress faction led by former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday alleged that the police arrested one of its MLAs after he sought to return to her camp from the rival group, The Indian Express reported.

Canning Paschim MLA Paresh Ram Das was arrested on Monday at Kolkata airport. The police said that several cases had been registered against him, including charges of extortion and rape.

Kunal Ghosh, a spokesperson for the Mamata Banerjee-led faction, said that the police had taken no action against Das while he was with the rebel group led by Arup Roy, the newspaper reported.

“As long as he was with the [Roy] faction of the Trinamool, the police took no action,” Ghosh was quoted as saying. “He recently wanted to return to Mamata-di’s camp. Only then did the police claim that he ‘wanted to flee’ and therefore ‘must be arrested.’”

Several TMC leaders have been arrested since the Bharatiya Janata Party came to power in West Bengal in May, The Hindu reported. They include five former ministers: Bishnupur MLA Dilip Mondal, Sujit Bose, Indranil Sen, Ujjwal Biswas and Udayan Guha.

The TMC has been beset by alleged coercion by the BJP after it lost the Assembly elections to the Hindutva party in May. About 60 out of the TMC’s 80 MLAs have rebelled and defied the party leadership to choose Ritabrata Banerjee as the leader of the Opposition in the Assembly. The faction later appointed Roy as its chairperson.

The group was also recognised by the Assembly speaker as the TMC’s legislature party in the House and Ritabrata Banerjee as the leader of the Opposition.

At the national level, 20 of the TMC’s 28 Lok Sabha MPs in June announced a merger with the Tripura-based Nationalist Citizens Party of India. The group is supporting the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance in the Lower House of Parliament.

Edited by Tanya Shrivastava.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Monday reiterated his demand for the Union government to scrap Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 currency notes, arguing that eliminating high-value cash transactions would help curb corruption.

Naidu’s remarks came a day after the 10th anniversary of the demonetisation exercise. On November 8, 2016, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced that Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes would cease to be legal tender from midnight. One of the stated objectives of the move was to reduce cash transactions and encourage the use of digital payments.

Modi had said that the decision had been taken to “fight corruption, black money and terrorism”.

However, a Scroll analysis of official government data and global indices found that black money – or untaxed cash – has not receded from the economy even after a decade of demonetisation. While counterfeit notes may have reduced, corruption levels have not changed, and law enforcement agencies continue to struggle with terrorist financing.

Also read: A decade after demonetisation, no dent in black money and corruption

On Monday, Naidu said that digital currency and correct implementation of technology will help facilitate wealth creation and poverty eradication.

“I was the one who gave inputs for the digital currency report,” he was quoted as saying. “I had urged the prime minister to consider this earlier and I am demanding it again now. I will keep raising this issue.”

The Telugu Desam Party chief said that only Rs 100 and Rs 200 notes should remain in circulation and added that “flawed” systems have led to a “vicious circle of corruption”.

Naidu has repeatedly called for scrapping high-denomination currency notes. He first made the demand in June 2013, seeking the withdrawal of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, when the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government was in power, The Times of India reported.

On October 12, 2016, less than a month before demonetisation, Naidu wrote to Modi urging the withdrawal of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes to curb black money. He welcomed the Union government’s subsequent decision to scrap the two denominations but opposed the introduction of Rs 2,000 notes.

Written by Anamika Pathak. Edited by Sara Varghese.

Also read: Demonetisation: A disaster in 2016, a resounding failure 10 years on

A four-year-old girl was allegedly sexually assaulted in northern Goa on Sunday, The Indian Express quoted the police as saying.

The police said that they were conducting raids to arrest the person accused in the matter, who is yet to be identified.

Reacting to the incident, the state’s Tribal Welfare Minister Ramesh Tawadkar claimed that “90% of the persons involved in such cases” had come to Goa “from outside”, The Indian Express reported.

The minister said that Goa is a tourist state and persons coming to the region to earn a livelihood could not be stopped.

“Such crimes should not happen in Goa or anywhere else in the country,” the newspaper quoted Tawadkar as saying. “The person who has committed this crime has a demonic mentality.”

He added: “The government is playing its role to control such crimes. Police should also tighten enforcement in the state to prevent such incidents.”

According to preliminary investigation, the girl, daughter of a daily-wage labourer, was abducted and taken to the basement of a dilapidated building where she was allegedly sexually assaulted, The Indian Express quoted unidentified officers as saying.

A passerby found the girl near a taxi stand on Sunday night, following which residents alerted the police. She was taken to a hospital for treatment, where her condition was stable, the police said.

Chief Minister Pramod Sawant has made similar remarks about migrants in the past.

On September 1, Sawant said that a large number of migrants come to Goa for work and become involved in cases of rape, robbery and dacoity. He was replying to questions raised by Opposition MLAs in the Assembly about the law and order in the state.

The Bharatiya Janata Party leader had made similar remarks in 2023 and alleged that migrant workers from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh were responsible for 90% of the crimes in Goa. He later said that his words were “twisted by some political leaders”.

Edited by Nachiket Deuskar.

Social activist and educator Sanjit “Bunker” Roy died in Tilonia, Rajasthan on Tuesday, his friends said. He was 81.

In 1972, Bunker Roy founded the Social Work and Research Centre, a voluntary rural development organisation that advances drinking water and solar electrification initiatives, the empowerment of women, skill development and healthcare. The organisation is now known as The Barefoot College.

In 1986, he was awarded the Padma Shri, India’s fourth-highest civilian honour.

In 2010, Time magazine recognised him as one of the 100 most influential personalities for his work in educating citizens in rural India.

Barefoot College had trained more than three million persons for jobs in the modern world such as solar engineers, teachers, midwives, weavers, architects, doctors and more, the magazine said.

He is survived by his wife, activist and former Indian Administrative Service officer Aruna Roy.

‘A visionary who empowered rural India’

Former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot said that Bunker Roy made “remarkable contributions to rural self-reliance, education and various areas of development”.

Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said that Bunker Roy was a “visionary” social activist who dedicated his life to empowering rural India through self-reliance, sustainable development and grassroots innovation.

“…He transcended conventional notions of formal education, proving that illiterate and semi-literate villagers, especially women, possessed the wisdom, skill, and capability to build, innovate, and lead,” Tharoor said.

Bunker Roy’s “extraordinary vision of training rural grandmothers into ‘Barefoot Solar Engineers’ illuminated thousands of off-grid homes” in India and the developing world, “leaving behind an indelible legacy of dignity, community empowerment and environmental stewardship”, he added.

Rajya Sabha MP Sagarika Ghose said on Tuesday that Bunker Roy was “a colossus, a giant of the barefoot movement, revolutionary in his thinking, who shunned the privileges of his upbringing and chose to work among the poor”.

The activist “transformed countless lives” and did “pioneering work in bringing sustainable water supply to villages” the Trinamool Congress leader said. The passing of Bunker Roy “is a huge loss to the nation”, Ghose said on social media.

Writer Amitav Ghosh described Bunker Roy as a “true hero and pioneer”.

Edited by Anamika Pathak and Nachiket Deuskar.

The agenda for the Conference of Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change has grown into a long list: the mitigation work programme on cutting emissions, climate finance, which developed countries are obliged to provide for climate action in developing countries; the global goal on adaptation, for coping with climate impacts, and technology transfer and capacity-building to share clean technology and skills.

Yet every presidency seeks a signature commitment from participating countries. One year it was net-zero announcements, with countries pledging to balance their emissions with removals by a set date; another, the phase-down of coal and a transition away from fossil fuels. At COP31 where the convention’s nearly 200 member-countries meet in Antalya, Turkey, this week, it is electrification.

That means swapping out fossil fuels that burn directly at the end-use, such as petrol in cars or coal in factory boilers, for electricity. Less than one-quarter of final energy in use today is electric. Electrification means cleaner power grids and cutting emissions at the point of use.

The presidency, held by Turkey as host, with Australia steering the negotiations, wants countries to raise the share of electricity in global final energy use to 35% by 2035. As catchy as “35 by 35” sounds, three questions follow: does it matter, is it achievable and how would a global target be shared among countries?

It matters, and it is close to cost-effective to reach globally. However, applying one number to every country would be unfair, because countries start from very different places and electrify for very different reasons.

Antalya should adopt a goal with differentiated electrification pathways. For instance, India cannot electrify at the rate of Japan or Australia.

Strong global backing for the COP31 Action Agenda! ⚡️

The "35% by 2035" electrification target, which has made waves on the international stage, was launched with great determination at the Bonn Climate Change Conference. Reshaping our economies with clean energy is our most… pic.twitter.com/BGvaNxH1Xb

— COP31 Türkiye (@turkiyecop31) June 9, 2026

Why 35 by 35

First, why an electrification target at all? Electrification cuts direct emissions from buildings, transport, and industry. The United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, in its Sixth Assessment Report, counts widespread electrification of end uses, alongside decarbonised electricity systems, as a core feature of a net-zero energy system. So the target matters. Is it realistic?

The International Energy Agency finds that electricity could cost-effectively meet 33% of the world’s final energy consumption by 2035, up from 23% today. It also highlights that for fuel-importing countries, electrification could cut their import bills by more than $400 billion by 2035, compared with 2025. Yet, the proposed target is more than what can be achieved cost-effectively. The question remains: who pays for the rest?

Starting points differ widely. Large developed countries such as Australia, Canada, and the US had electricity shares of 21%-24% of energy use in 2023, roughly where they had been since 2010. In Europe, France stood at 25% and Germany at 20%. China’s share, by contrast, rose sharply from 18% to 27% between 2010 and 2023, while Brazil’s edged up from 18% to 20% cent. Japan’s share was historically high at 30%.

How fast can India even electrify?

India’s share rose from 14% in 2010 to 19% in 2023. An analysis by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water projects that it will reach approximately 27% by 2035, driven by rapid adoption of air-conditioning and a shift towards electricity-based industries like defence and semiconductors.

Interpolating NITI Aayog’s electrification share for India in a business-as-usual scenario gives approximately 25% as well. Buildings, residential and commercial, and industry together consume over 80% of India’s electricity today and will still do so in 2035. Electricity’s share of building energy use is set to reach about 45% by 2035, up from 12.6% in 2010, as two trends converge: rising incomes driving adoption of air conditioners and modern appliances, and cleaner alternatives replacing inefficient traditional biomass for cooking.

Industry sees more modest growth, to about 22% from 17.5%, as firms move towards clean energy. Transport sees the steepest rise, to 7.2%, as electric vehicles spread across segments. India is on track to add about eight percentage points in 12 years, far faster than most developed economies managed in the previous 13.

The world should push for rapid electrification, and adopting a target helps. But not every country can be held to the same expectations. A uniform 35% ignores different starting points and very different levels of per-capita electricity use. It also ignores that, for the Global South, rising electricity demand is about access, affordability and development, beyond simply switching fuels.

The climate negotiations in Antalya rest on common but differentiated responsibilities, and a global electrification goal should reflect that principle.

Developed countries, whose shares have flatlined for over a decade, should move first and furthest. Emerging economies should be judged by the pace of their progress, not by a common final electrification share. If COP31 wants to electrify the world, it must first have a fair target with differentiated pathways.

Pallavi Das is Programme Lead and Vaibhav Chaturvedi is Senior Fellow at the Council on Energy, Environment and Water. Views are personal.

The air quality in Delhi remained in the “very poor” category on Tuesday, two days after Diwali festivities, with several areas recording nearly “severe” pollution levels.

At 7.05 am, the average Air Quality Index in the national capital was 307, which is categorised as “very poor”, according to data from the Sameer application, which provides hourly updates published by the Central Pollution Control Board.

Twenty-nine of the 56 active monitoring stations recorded “very poor” AQI with Chandni Chowk and Pusa recording the highest reading at 395. This was followed by an AQI of 382 at the Netaji Subhas University of Technology campus in Jaffarpur and 380 at the Commonwealth Sports Complex.

Private air quality monitors, which calculate the data differently, recorded an average AQI of 389 in Delhi at 7.30 am, which is categorised as “hazardous”.

The air quality in Ranjit Vihar was the worst at 597, showed data from AQI.in. Several other parts of the city, including Dwarka, Punjabi Bagh, Defence Colony and Nizamuddin West, recorded AQI levels above 550.

#WATCH | Delhi | Air Quality Index (AQI) around Safdarjung is 371, categorised as 'Very Poor', as per the CPCB (Central Pollution Control Board).

(Drone visuals shot around 07:20 am) pic.twitter.com/J7ZDzXEJe3

— ANI (@ANI) November 10, 2026

According to government standards, an index value between 0 and 50 indicates “good” air quality, between 51 and 100 indicates “satisfactory” air quality and between 101 and 200 indicates “moderate” air quality. As the index value increases further, air quality deteriorates. A value of 201 and 300 means “poor” air quality, while between 301 and 400 indicates “very poor” air.

Between 401 and 450 indicates “severe” air pollution, while anything above the 450 threshold is termed “severe plus”.

The cities adjoining the capital also recorded “very poor” air quality, showed data from the Central Pollution Control Board. The average AQI in Noida was 313, Gurugram 321 and Faridabad 313.

Air quality deteriorates sharply in the winter months in Delhi, which is often ranked the world’s most polluted capital. The lighting of firecrackers during Diwali along with stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana, vehicular pollution, falling temperatures, decreased wind speeds and emissions from industries and coal-fired plants contribute to the problem.

This year, Diwali was celebrated on Sunday. Peak air pollution levels are historically observed during and immediately after Diwali.

The Supreme Court had on November 2 allowed the manufacture, sale and lighting of certified green firecrackers in the National Capital Region for two days during the festival. However, Scroll found that vendors continued to sell regular firecrackers.

The court permitted the lighting of green firecrackers between 6 am and 8 pm on Saturday, and between 7 am and 10 pm on Sunday. The complete ban on firecrackers will be restored from Monday, the bench had said.

On Friday, the Commission for Air Quality Management had imposed Stage 3 restrictions under the Graded Response Action Plan in Delhi and the National Capital Region as a precautionary measure after air quality deteriorated towards the “severe” category.

GRAP is a set of incremental anti-pollution measures that are triggered to prevent further worsening of air quality once it reaches a certain threshold in Delhi-NCR.

Stage 3 measures include a ban on non-essential construction work and the closure of stone crushers and mining activities, in addition to the measures already imposed under Stage 1 and Stage 2.

They also include the shifting of primary school up to Class 5 to hybrid mode. Parents and students have the option to choose between offline and online classes wherever available.

Written by Anamika Pathak. Edited by Nachiket Deuskar.

Also read:

• Why some Delhi residents leave the city during Diwali
• Delhi air pollution: Several monitoring stations did not report AQI readings on Diwali night
• Why air quality numbers in Delhi vary widely

More than 20 of Delhi’s 59 air quality monitoring stations did not report readings on the night of the Hindu festival of Diwali, PTI quoted an analysis by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air as saying on Monday.

According to the non-profit think tank, the number of stations not reporting readings rose between midnight and 2 am, when pollution levels typically peak.

At 7 pm on Sunday, only one station was not reporting data. The number rose to seven by 10 pm and 23 by 11 pm. By midnight, 29 stations had stopped reporting readings.

At 1 am on Monday, 36 stations were not reporting data. At 2 am, 35 stations were still blank.

The analysis came as Delhi’s air quality worsened a day after Diwali celebrations. At 7.05 am, the average Air Quality Index in the national capital was 368, in the “very poor” category, according to the Sameer application, which provides hourly updates from the Central Pollution Control Board. At 7.05 pm, the average AQI was 333, also in the “very poor” category.

However, private air quality monitors, which calculate the data differently, recorded an average AQI of 895 in Delhi at 7.30 am, which is categorised as “hazardous”.

In some parts of the city, such as southern Delhi’s Safdarjung Development Area and Man Singh Road and Sundar Nagar in central Delhi, the AQI was above 1,600, showed data from AQI.in.

The average AQI on the platform was 305 at 7.50 pm.

What happens when clean air is something you have to buy?

We have been looking at air pollution beyond the smog.

At Scroll, we stay with a story and dig deeper and ask uncomfortable questions.

But we need your help to keep doing this.

Support us: https://t.co/QEgDxR0z1I pic.twitter.com/cIn4ViAV0Z

— Scroll.in (@scroll_in) November 9, 2026

The Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air said that at 3 am on Monday, 30 stations were not reporting air quality data, reported PTI. The number at 4 am was 20.

By 5 am, 19 stations were not reporting readings, followed by 16 at 6 am and 13 at 7 am.

Seven stations continued to have missing data at 8 am. The figure fell to two by 9 am, with one station continuing to report no data until 11 am.

Air quality deteriorates sharply in the winter months in Delhi, which is often ranked the world’s most polluted capital. The lighting of firecrackers during Diwali along with stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana, vehicular pollution, falling temperatures, decreased wind speeds and emissions from industries and coal-fired plants contribute to the problem.

This year, Diwali was celebrated on Sunday. Peak air pollution levels are historically observed during and immediately after Diwali.

The Supreme Court had on November 2 allowed the manufacture, sale and lighting of certified green firecrackers in the National Capital Region for two days during the festival. However, Scroll found that vendors continued to sell regular firecrackers.

The court had permitted the lighting of green firecrackers between 6 am and 8 pm on Saturday, and between 7 am and 10 pm on Sunday. The complete ban on firecrackers will be restored from Monday, the bench said.

Edited by Sneha.

Also read:

• Why some Delhi residents leave the city during Diwali

• Why air quality numbers in Delhi vary widely

On the morning of October 23, men and women sat outside the closed shops of Yingkiong’s main market in Upper Siang district, Arunachal Pradesh, talking about ordinary things, even though life in the Siang valley has been anything but.

The market was deserted on account of a bandh, following weeks of unrest over the Siang Upper Multipurpose Project. Armed personnel in fatigues roamed the streets, and by the afternoon, the internet had been shut down in the entire district.

“It feels as if they are deploying armed forces against us by force; like fighting an enemy on the border,” said Katin Burang, 44, a paddy and orange farmer from Gosang, a village near Yingkiong, who was at the market that day. “That is the change.”

Hundreds of police personnel and paramilitary forces were deployed to the region since September 14, when residents called for a halt to all pre-feasibility studies towards the Siang Upper Multipurpose Project – a massive hydroelectric and flood-control dam projected to generate roughly 11,200 MW of power.

In early October, tensions escalated when four protesters were detained under the Arunachal Pradesh Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 2014. After a protest march demanding their release turned violent on October 23 – ending in damages to two MLAs’ homes and the office of the project developer, the NHPC, being set on fire – the crackdown intensified.

The police has filed at least eight cases and arrested 26 people in connection to the violence. Search warrants were sought from the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Pasighat against youth leaders Otul Jerang, and Tajong Talom, their lawyer Sunny Tayeng, as well as Tongam Rina, the deputy editor of a news publication – The Arunachal Times.

The Arunachal Pradesh Union of Working Journalists and the Arunachal Press Club, in a joint statement, called the move against Rina as “deeply disturbing and a serious threat to press freedom, raising grave concerns over the possible misuse of investigative powers to intimidate journalists reporting on contentious public issues.”

Ebo Mili, a legal advisor to the Siang Indigenous Farmers Forum Youth Wing and a human rights activist, along with youth leader Jerang, also surrendered to the police and said he hopes that it would encourage protesting youths to stay peaceful.

A central demand from residents and agitating groups is the release of those detained by the police. “We cannot hold peace talks at gunpoint,” said Opek Taku, from the village of Geku, and a former Anchal Samiti (a local self-government) member.

A dam for ‘national security’

Although the Siang Upper Multipurpose Project has been touted as a project of national importance with security implications – on account of China’s plans to build its own hydropower project upstream of the Siang, local tribal Adi residents have resisted all efforts to allow its progress. The dam is likely to affect 27 villages in one of India’s most biodiverse regions.

The state government has justified the project by saying it is the “answer” to the Chinese dam upstream, and it will protect the region in case China releases a “water bomb” against India.

Groups such as the Adi Bane Kebang United, SUMP Affected Area Youth Association, Siang Indigenous Farmers’ Forum Youth Wing, and the Adi Galo Welfare Society have banded together to lead protests against the project.

A Chinese water bomb “can only happen from their dam breaking, an earthquake, from a war missile, or the cement concrete eroding after 100 years,” said Thomas Borang, the former president of the Adi Bane Kebang United in a press conference last month. “Won’t it cause double the damage if we build an 11,000 Megawatt dam of our own? Why should we accept this risk?” he added.

Both dams (in China and in Arunachal Pradesh) are planned in a highly siesmic zone, carrying a very high risk of damage from earthquakes.

Opposition to the Siang Upper Multipurpose Project sharpened in late 2024 when the state moved to deploy central armed police to back NHPC’s survey teams. In September this year, village residents and security forces clashed in Geku – one of the villages likely to be completely submerged – during a visit by Chief Minister Pema Khandu.

Since then, rallies demanding the release of those detained and the scrapping of the project’s pre-feasibility studies have been raised in the capital Itanagar and even New Delhi, where protesters were detained outside the Arunachal Bhawan. Clashes between protesters and security forces in Arunachal Pradesh have resulted in injuries to both sides.

On November 3, the chief minister’s office wrote to the agitating organisations proposing a meeting in Itanagar between November 5 and 7 to discuss issues related to the Siang Upper Multipurpose Project.

It was the second such invitation in a month, and it came after a public appeal by the chief minister, who said “Bandhs, blockades and attacks bring no solutions and only make our own people suffer.”

SUMP Affected Area Youth Association’s general secretary Geni Nangkar told Mongabay-India that the association would not attend the chief minister’s meeting as long as those detained under the Arunachal Pradesh Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and arrested in other cases were not released. “Our final decision is that until our demands are fulfilled, we will not meet the CM,” he said.

The legal adviser and spokesperson of SIFF, Tagori Mize, said the release of those detained was not just a matter for the courts. “It is in the government’s power, the honourable CM’s power,” he said. “If he wants, they could walk out tonight. There has to be political will.” He said that SIFF’s position is to seek the release of those detained first.

The detention cases went to an advisory board under the Arunachal Pradesh Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, headed by a retired High Court judge, on October 30, but no decision was taken. Mize said that a writ petition relating to the case in the High Court would be heard on November 10.

Security forces up

The heavy deployment of police and military forces to conduct the pre-feasibility report study has drawn criticism from the Siang Indigenous Farmers’ Forum and other Adi organisations, whose demands include the withdrawal of central forces.

The pre-feasibility study entails digging a small rig to a depth of 30 or 40 meters, and sending samples to a laboratory to assess the viability of the project in that area. Three sites in the Siang valley are currently being considered for the SUMP reservoir.

Khandu’s open letter promised that no decision on construction would happen without “detailed and extensive public consultations and public consent, as is also legally mandated”. He had earlier also promised to reduce security deployment on October 13, but this has not happened.

Upper Siang deputy commissioner Ashok Tajo told Mongabay-India that seven companies of security forces were in the district till October 22. By November 3, after violence broke out in Dite Dime, that number had gone up to “around 10 to 12 companies,” he said. The forces, he added, were there to protect the equipment for the pre-feasibility studies.

India’s Ministry of Home Affairs also reportedly sent 250 personnel from the Rapid Action Force of the Central Reserve Police Force to Pasighat following the vandalism and arson there.

Since mid-2025, the state government has announced it signed Memorandums of Understanding with at least two dozen villages and hamlets in the Siang and Upper Siang districts, with households in several villages signing in instalments.

In some, such as Janbo, Ramsing and Likor, about half the households had signed, according to a government official. A copy of one of the MoUs seen by Mongabay-India says cooperation with the pre-feasibility studies “shall not, by itself be considered, as an agreement… for construction of the SUMP”. The consent form attached says signatories give their “irrevocable consent”, “only and only for the purpose of PFR studies”.

Tagori Mize of the SIFF said that as per the Land Acquisition Act of 2013, consent comes through a public notification, a social impact assessment, and public hearing, and that the law has no provision for MoUs for a pre-feasibility study. “A provision for MoUs for a PFR? I have never heard of one,” he said.

A 300-kilometre march by the Adi Galo Welfare Society, one of the organisers of the October 23 bandh, is currently underway to demand the release of those detained, talks before any construction, the revocation of suspension orders, and the withdrawal of central forces.

Besides the MoUs, the government has also launched a livelihood scheme for the 27 affected villages, which Tajo described as a direct benefit transfer to families, funded by the Union Ministry of Jal Shakti. Since September, 322 households had received about Rs 8.05 crores, he said. Tajo maintains that the disbursements are not related to the pre-feasibility study activities, but the residents are sceptical.

Burang, a resident of Gosang village alleged that signatures were secured by circumventing the ​​traditional village council, called the kebang, whose majority decision binds everyone. He also alleged that residents were offered Rs 2.5 lakh to sign the MoU, but Mongabay-India could not independently verify this claim.

When asked, Tajo said he would “definitely” look into allegations of falsely acquired signatures. “All these schemes are meant for every household of those affected villages, not only for selected people,” he said.

Ancestral land

According to Tajo, little happens in the villages beyond a few orchards and wet-rice farming. With better education and “a handsome compensation”, people could “move to greener pastures,” he said.

But residents expressed strong ties to their lands and the river.

Opek Taku, 60, recalled how as a child, the currents of the Siang would carry him and his friends out towards a small river island and drop them back on the sand. “From November to February the river is sky blue. From June to October, it is the colour of mud. In the days of jhum cultivation, it told people when to clear the forest and when to plant paddy.”

Taku added that the Siang valley is fertile, growing various rice varieties with high yields. “Even bananas, oranges, and tea grow well here,” he said.

Kishon Tekseng, an adventurer with an eco-tourism business in Simong village, likens the Siang river to the Zambezi in Africa, a river known among rafters for its rapids. “All we hear is ‘national interest, national interest’,” he said. “When the citizens here are being removed forever, how is that national interest?”

Tekseng has helped villages around Simong set up homestays that now host researchers, birders, adventure seekers, and casual travellers to the Siang valley.

Another resident of Geku village, who did not wish to be named for fear of reprisals, said that no amount of compensation would motivate residents to leave their ancestral lands. “Even if the money is in crores, our people will spend it on fancy cars and expensive mobile phones. They will have to buy land in new places, and build their houses and lives all over again. That money will be exhausted,” he said.

“In the village everyone lives by doing this work, farming,” said Taku’s wife Otik. “If this Siang dam is built, what work will be left?”Although women have traditionally lacked land rights over ancestral lands, she said they do not want to lose it.

Women have also been at the front of the protests, often facing police at the barricades. On October 23, at least four women had to receive medical attention when protesters clashed with police at Dite Dime.

“We will live here, and we will die here,” Otik said. “Our Adi women are strong. They are not afraid of anyone.”

This article was first published on Mongabay.

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The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation banned rockets and other aerial firecrackers across Mumbai until November 25. The decision was taken after the Mumbai Fire Brigade received 137 calls for conflagrations attributed to firecrackers on Sunday, when Diwali was celebrated.

The ban on fireworks applies to both public and private spaces, including terraces, balconies, parking lots and slum areas.

In 2024, Mumbai recorded 262 fire incidents during the four-day festival period, of which 80 were attributed to firecrackers. In 2025, the city recorded 289 fire incidents, including 113 attributed to firecrackers. Read on.

The Manipur High Court has put the Census 2027 in the state on hold until April 30. The exercise will stay suspended while the Union government considers concerns raised about conducting it in the wake of the displacement of residents following ethnic violence that broke out in the state in May 2023.

The court’s directions came in response to a public interest litigation that raised concerns about the accuracy of population records and the identification of internally displaced persons in the state.

The petitioners have demanded that the original place of residence of displaced persons be recorded before the exercise. One of the representations had sought to postpone the exercise until the National Register of Citizens is updated. Read on.

A man accused of raping and murdering a minor girl in West Bengal’s Raiganj was shot dead in an alleged gunfight with the police. This is the fourth death in a gunfight in the state since the Bharatiya Janata Party government came to power in May.

The police alleged that the man was attempting to flee to Bihar when he was killed. It claimed that he opened fire at the officers when they approached him, prompting retaliatory firing. He was taken to hospital, where he was declared dead. Read on.

The Monsoon Session of Parliament has not been formally closed for 88 days since both Houses were adjourned indefinitely on August 13. The previous longest gap was 87 days in 2008.

This means that the government can still convene an extended or special sitting within the existing session with a minimum notice of two days. Convening a fresh session of Parliament requires a notice of at least 14 days.

The Congress has alleged that the Monsoon Session has not been prorogued because the Union government is trying to find a majority for the delimitation bill, which was rejected by the Lok Sabha in April. Read on.

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The Monsoon Session of Parliament has not been formally closed for 88 days since both Houses were adjourned indefinitely on August 13, PTI reported on Monday.

The previous longest gap was 87 days in 2008.

President Droupadi Murmu has not yet prorogued or formally ended the session. This means that the government can still convene an extended or special sitting within the existing session with a minimum notice of two days. Convening a fresh session of Parliament requires a notice of at least 14 days.

By this time last year, the government had announced the dates for the Winter Session.

The Congress had earlier alleged that the Monsoon Session has not been prorogued because the government is trying to find a majority for the delimitation bill. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh reiterated the allegation on Monday.

Today is 88 days since Parliament was adjourned sine die and has still NOT been prorogued.

The 8th edition of the authoritative Practice and Procedure of Parliament popularly known as Kaul and Shakdher published in mid 2024 with a Message from the PM himself. Page 192 says that…

— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) November 9, 2026

The process of fixing the boundaries of electoral constituencies is called delimitation.

During a three-day special session of Parliament in April, the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Union government introduced the 2026 Constitution 131st Amendment Bill in the Lok Sabha to amend the 2023 Women’s Reservation Act and redraw the boundaries of electoral constituencies.

The bill, one of the three draft legislations that were introduced, required a two-thirds majority of votes in Parliament to pass. The ruling National Democratic Alliance does not have a two-thirds majority of MPs in any House. Therefore, it required the support of Opposition parties to pass the amendment.

The consideration of the bill was rejected by the Lok Sabha with 298 MPs voting in its favour and 230 against. With 528 MPs present in the Lower House, the bill would have required the support of 352 of them.

Before the Monsoon Session of Parliament began on July 20, Union minister Ramdas Athawale had said that the delimitation bill would be passed in the House.

However, amid a deadlock in Parliament about the police using excessive force against youth protesters in Delhi, the bill was not listed.

Edited by Tanya Shrivastava.

The Mumbai Fire Brigade received 137 calls about fires attributed to firecrackers on Sunday, when Diwali was celebrated. A day after the unusually high number of fire incidents, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation banned rockets and other aerial firecrackers across the city until November 25.

A major fire broke out at Haji Kasam Chawl near Datta Mandir in Mumbai's Dongri on Diwali night, engulfing several shops and hutments. The Mumbai Fire Brigade classified it as a Level-I fire call at 10.11 pm, with firefighters, police and emergency teams deployed to control the… pic.twitter.com/78qRo03jl6

— IndiaToday (@IndiaToday) November 9, 2026

The ban does not cover all firecrackers. It applies to both public and private spaces, including terraces, balconies, parking lots and slum areas.

#WATCH | Mumbai, Maharashtra: Fire tenders reached the spot after a fire broke out at the Skyline Epitome building in Vidyavihar pic.twitter.com/xAqDEM1GHr

— ANI (@ANI) November 8, 2026

The 137 calls were higher than the number of firecracker-linked fires reported during the entire four-day Diwali period in each of the previous two years.

Fire reported at Raheja Gardens, Thane pic.twitter.com/z9LJX6Hova

— Mumbai Heritage (@mumbaiheritage) November 8, 2026

In 2024, Mumbai recorded 262 fire incidents during the four-day festival period, of which 80 were attributed to firecrackers. In 2025, the city recorded 289 fire incidents, including 113 attributed to firecrackers.

A fire broke outside a bungalow on BJ Road, Bandstand, at around 10 pm on November 7, with large flames and thick smoke seen rising from within the premises.

The blaze was subsequently brought under control by firefighters. pic.twitter.com/p9E1ioog1U

— Bandra Buzz (@bandrabuzz) November 9, 2026

Mumbai Mayor and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Ritu Tawde also appealed to residents to celebrate responsibly in view of the recent fire incidents.

Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawde makes a public appeal in wake of fires caused in Mumbai due to firecrackers over last two days:

“Mumbaikars reason for celebration should not become someone else’s reason for sadness. Safety must be our priority. In view of the recent fire incidents… pic.twitter.com/06N5jzQ1ZT

— Richa Pinto (@richapintoi) November 9, 2026

“Mumbaikars’ reason for celebration should not become someone else’s reason for sadness,” she said in a video message. “Safety must be our priority.”

Tawde urged residents not to light rockets and other aerial firecrackers, saying they could stray into people’s homes, damage property and endanger lives.

Referring to the Bombay High Court’s directions, Tawde said that firecrackers should not be lit on footpaths or in public places.

On October 15, the court clarified that its ban on lighting firecrackers on public streets and roads during festivals would apply throughout the year and to all festivals in Maharashtra.

Written by Tanya Shrivastava. Edited by Sneha.

The Manipur High Court has put the Census 2027 exercise in the state on hold until April 30, while the Union government considers concerns raised about conducting the exercise amid the displacement of residents following ethnic violence that broke out in the state in May 2023.

The court directed the registrar general and Census commissioner to decide on the representations by April 30.

It further said that the Census would remain on hold for four weeks after the representations were disposed of, allowing the petitioners or anyone aggrieved by the decision to approach the High Court.

The directions came in response to a public interest litigation that raised concerns about the accuracy of population records and the identification of internally displaced persons in the state.

The petitioners have demanded special measures for the state before conducting the exercise, including recording the original place of residence of displaced persons, issuing special instructions to enumerators and supervisors working in conflict-affected areas, and instituting independent monitoring to prevent manipulation.

One of the representations also seeks to postpone the exercise until the update of the National Register of Citizens, an exercise to create a list of Indian citizens and to identify undocumented immigrants.

The first phase of Census 2027, involving house listing, was scheduled to begin in Manipur on September 1 and continue till September 30.

However, preparations for the exercise were disrupted by protests against the exercise.

The Meitei and Naga civil society groups have demanded that the NRC be compiled to identify illegal immigrants who allegedly entered India following the 2021 military coup in Myanmar. They have argued that these migrants could otherwise be counted as residents in the census.

On the other hand, the Kuki-Zo groups have opposed conducting the NRC before Census, calling it “premature and unjustified”.

On August 31, the Union government had informed the High Court that it had deferred house-listing operations for Census 2027 in Manipur.

On October 30, the Union government notified the schedule for the first phase of Census while keeping Manipur out of it.

At least 310 persons have been killed and 49 are missing in Manipur since the beginning of the clashes between the Meitei and the Kuki-Zo-Hmar communities, the Assembly was informed in September. About 60,000 persons were displaced during the violence. Of them, 36,000 persons had been resettled and 24,000 remained in relief camps across Manipur.

Tensions between the Kuki and the Naga communities have also escalated in the state since February, leaving 68 dead.

Written by Anamika Pathak. Edited by Tanya Shrivastava.

The Opposition parties have accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of delivering a “political speech to uniformed personnel” during his visit to a Central Reserve Police Force camp in Chhattisgarh’s Bastar for the Hindu festival of Diwali on Sunday.

In his speech, Modi called on security personnel to identify and defeat “dimagi Naxals” or persons with “Naxal mentality”. He alleged that “dimagi Naxals” had taken control of several organisations and infiltrated political parties.

“Even today, they are instigating people against the country’s Constitution and democracy,” the prime minister said.

He had first used the term during his Independence Day speech when he said that “dimagi Naxals” are a threat to Indian society and called for them to be “found and isolated”.

He also claimed that persons with Maoist ideology had for years “established themselves in the corridors of power and influenced policy making, including as advisers on government committees”.

On Sunday, Trinamool Congress leader Saket Gokhale accused Modi of instructing CRPF personnel to “eliminate” the Opposition by labelling them “dimagi Naxals”.

He added that this is why security personnel “used pellet guns on unarmed protesters in Delhi”.

During youth protests in July, several demonstrators were injured after security personnel used lathis, fired tear gas and pellet guns to disperse the crowd.

PM instructing CRPF personnel to “eliminate” the Opposition who he labels as “dimaagi naxal”.

This crook is giving a political speech to uniformed personnel.

That’s why CRPF/RAF used pellet guns on unarmed protestors in Delhi.

What a pathetic man. pic.twitter.com/56bq4IckGv

— Saket Gokhale (@SaketGokhale) November 8, 2026

TMC MP Mahua Moitra said that the prime minister “is a disgrace”, criticising Modi for wearing military fatigues and said he should “leave the armed forces alone”.

Congress leader Pawan Khera asked what Modi meant by “dimagi Naxals” and whether he was suggesting that they should be “neutralised” by security forces.

“Does the PM now want the forces of the nation to wage a war against the youth of this nation,” Khera asked. “How low will he stoop for his cheap politics?”

His party colleague Jairam Ramesh also accused the prime minister of using a solemn, non-political occasion to target his political rivals.

“He has used a very solemn non-political occasion, donned the uniform of the security forces, and hurled invectives at his political rivals,” Ramesh said. “This is a brazen assault on all institutional norms but when has that ever stopped this man?”

The Prime Minister has not spared the nation even on Diwali day his trademark abuse.

He has once again spoken of what he calls dimagi naxals. He has used a very solemn non-political occasion, donned the uniform of the security forces, and hurled invectives at his political…

— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) November 8, 2026

The Congress leader added that the prime minister “is clearly distraught, disturbed and desperate”.

Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke said that festivals were meant to spread love and happiness, “not hatred and division”.

He urged Modi not to “politicise” festivals and said such speeches should not be made on days of religious celebrations.

Written by Sara Varghese. Edited by Sneha.

A man accused of raping and murdering a minor girl in West Bengal’s Raiganj was shot dead in an alleged gunfight with the police on Monday, The Hindu reported.

The police alleged that the man, Dilip Roy, was attempting to flee to Bihar when he was killed at around 3.30 am.

This is the fourth such death in a gunfight in the state since the Bharatiya Janata Party government came to power in May, the newspaper reported.

Roy opened fire at the officers when they approached him, prompting retaliatory firing, the police alleged. He was taken to hospital, where he was declared dead. His body was sent for an autopsy.

The police had been searching for Roy since the body of the 13-year-old girl was recovered from the Kulik Wildlife Sanctuary on Thursday.

The girl had gone missing on November 3, after leaving home on a bicycle, ABP Bangla quoted her family as saying. Her parents later filed a complaint alleging rape and murder.

Reacting to the incident, state minister Dilip Ghosh said that the “police have a duty to act if accused individuals attempt to evade the law” or escape.

“Such crimes will not be spared,” The Hindu quoted Ghosh as saying. “If everyone follows the law and order, nothing will happen.”

On October 28, Prahlad Das, accused of raping and murdering a minor girl in North 24 Parganas was shot dead in an alleged gunfight with the police.

On the same day, Samaul Sheikh, accused of murdering BJP worker Sujit Mondal in Murshidabad, was also killed in an alleged gunfight with the police.

On July 8, Prabhas Mondal, accused of raping and murdering a minor girl in South 24 Parganas was shot dead by the police when he allegedly snatched an official’s rifle.

Edited by Nachiket Deuskar.

The women’s singles tennis final of the Chennai Open between Indonesia’s Janice Tjen and Poland’s Magda Linette was postponed by a day on Sunday after poor air quality and rain disrupted play, Sportstar reported.

The final, which was scheduled to begin at 6.30 pm at the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu Stadium in Chennai, was delayed several times because of rain. After the showers stopped, organisers worked to dry the centre court and announced that the match would begin at 9 pm.

However, thick smog from Diwali fireworks engulfed the stadium, reducing visibility and preventing the match from going ahead. Both players briefly arrived at the centre court and spoke to the tournament supervisor before leaving.

ये तस्‍वीरें चेन्‍नई के एसडीएटी टेन‍िस स्टेडियम की हैं। कल यहां WTA 250 चेन्नई ओपन का महिला सिंगल्स का फाइनल मुकाबला खेला जाना था। पहले तो बहुत देर पटाखे जले और फ‍िर प्रदूषण की वजह से कोर्ट पर धुंध छा गई। मैच रद्द करना पड़ा। अब फाइनल मुकाबला आज खेला जाएगा। फाइनल‍िस्‍ट जेनिस त्जेन… pic.twitter.com/KRI390BK9j

— Bhadohi Wallah (@Mithileshdhar) November 9, 2026

Tjen, the defending champion, criticised the tournament organisers on social media. She shared a post by her coach, Chris Bint, alleging that organisers wanted the final to go ahead despite the poor air quality.

It was not immediately clear if Bint meant the local organiser or the Women’s Tennis Association, which governs the event.

The post showed thick smog surrounding the venue and a screenshot purportedly displaying an air quality index reading of 1,556. However, the monitoring platform and source of the data were not clear.

The overall air quality index in Chennai was 138 on Sunday, according to data from the Sameer application, which provides hourly updates published by the Central Pollution Control Board.

According to the government standards, an index value between 0 and 50 indicates “good” air quality, between 51 and 100 indicates “satisfactory” air quality and between 101 and 200 indicates “moderate” air quality. As the index value increases further, air quality deteriorates. A value of 201 and 300 means “poor” air quality, while between 301 and 400 indicates “very poor” air.

Private air quality monitor, AccuWeather, which calculates the data differently, described the air quality on Sunday night as “unhealthy”.

The Women’s Tennis Association confirmed the postponement, saying the final had been delayed because of “unforeseen weather conditions”, India Today reported.

The match was rescheduled for 11 am on Monday.

The ongoing edition of the Chennai Open was affected by weather interruptions throughout the week, India Today reported. The main draw matches on the opening day were washed out, while rain also caused a one-hour interruption on the second day.

The postponement of sporting events due to poor air quality has also affected cricket in the country.

In December 2025, the fourth T20 International between India and South Africa in Lucknow was abandoned without a ball being bowled because of poor visibility. While the Board for Control of Cricket in India attributed the decision to “excessive fog”, Opposition leaders alleged that smog caused by air pollution was responsible.

Lucknow’s AQI stood at 410 when the match was scheduled to begin.

In December 2017, a Test match between India and Sri Lanka was interrupted because of poor air quality in Delhi. Sri Lankan players wore masks while fielding during the match, while bowlers from both sides were seen vomiting on the ground.

Edited by Abeer Khan.

Also read: ‘Severe’ air quality recorded in several parts of Delhi amid Diwali festivities

The Air Quality Index in several parts of Delhi remained in the “severe” category on Monday morning, a day after Diwali festivities.

At 7.05 am, the average AQI in the national capital was 368, which is categorised as “very poor”, according to data from the Sameer application, which provides hourly updates published by the Central Pollution Control Board.

However, the AQI in several areas was in the “severe” category, including Burari Crossing where the index was 441, Bawana at 424, and Chandni Chowk at 418.

Fifteen of the 59 monitoring stations in the national capital recorded AQI levels above 400.

Private air quality monitors, which calculate the data differently, recorded an average AQI of 895 in Delhi at 7.30 am, which is categorised as “hazardous”.

In some parts of the city, such as southern Delhi’s Safdarjung Development Area, and Man Singh Road and Sundar Nagar in central Delhi, the AQI was above 1,600, showed data from AQI.in.

The cities adjoining the capital also recorded “very poor” air quality, showed data from the Central Pollution Control Board. The average AQI in Noida was 340, Gurugram 316, Ghaziabad 366 and Faridabad 334.

Air quality levels remained poor or very poor in several other cities as well. The average AQI in Chennai (208), Indore (238), Lucknow (246), were in the “poor” category. The AQI in Gwalior (340) and Bulandshahr (371) was “very poor”.

On Monday morning, 98 of the 100 most polluted cities globally were in India, showed data from AQI.in.

#WATCH | Delhi: The Air Quality Index (AQI) in the area around India Gate and Kartavya Path is at 381, categorised as 'Very Poor', as per the CPCB (Central Pollution Control Board).

(Visuals shot at 07.00 am) pic.twitter.com/C2k7zCuFGL

— ANI (@ANI) November 9, 2026

According to the government standards, an index value between 0 and 50 indicates “good” air quality, between 51 and 100 indicates “satisfactory” air quality and between 101 and 200 indicates “moderate” air quality. As the index value increases further, air quality deteriorates. A value of 201 and 300 means “poor” air quality, while between 301 and 400 indicates “very poor” air.

Between 401 and 450 indicates “severe” air pollution, while anything above the 450 threshold is termed “severe plus”.

Air quality deteriorates sharply in the winter months in Delhi, which is often ranked the world’s most polluted capital. The lighting of firecrackers during Diwali along with stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana, vehicular pollution, falling temperatures, decreased wind speeds and emissions from industries and coal-fired plants contribute to the problem.

This year, Diwali was celebrated on Sunday. Peak air pollution levels are historically observed during and immediately after Diwali.

The Supreme Court had on November 2 allowed the manufacture, sale and lighting of certified green firecrackers in the National Capital Region for two days during the festival. However, Scroll found that vendors continued to sell regular firecrackers.

The court had permitted the lighting of green firecrackers between 6 am and 8 pm on Saturday, and between 7 am and 10 pm on Sunday. The complete ban on firecrackers will be restored from Monday, the bench said.

Written by Abeer Khan. Edited by Nachiket Deuskar.

View this post on Instagram

Also read:

• Why some Delhi residents leave the city during Diwali
• Why air quality numbers in Delhi vary widely

A few years ago, Saku Satbhara Vartha was walking in the fields in the village of Dhavgepada in Maharashtra’s Palghar district, when she heard a woman cry out in pain.

Saku, who works as a soyeen, or traditional midwife, quickly realised that a pregnant woman who had been working in the fields had gone into labour prematurely. There was no time to take her to the public health centre nearby. Saku rushed to her aid, and managed to catch the baby as it fell to the ground, while the mother stood frozen, hunched over in pain.

Saku did not have a tool with her to cut the umbilical cord, so she helped the woman walk slowly to the woman’s hut. There, the new mother finally lay down as Saku removed the umbilical cord and placenta. “I have conducted several deliveries over the years,” Saku said in the Warli language, when Scroll met her in Palghar city, on September 26. “Back then, we used to conduct deliveries at home, but today most deliveries occur in public health centres.”

“But even today, we soyeen play an important role by taking care of the pregnant women and accompanying them to the PHC,” she added.

Midwives like Saku have long been a part of the Warli and other communities in Maharashtra, and are among a broader set of traditional roles that women play in the community.

“For centuries, women have had prominent roles in Warli society,” said social worker Kirti Vartha. “Widows known as the dhavleri are marriage officiants, married women known as the sanvasin perform important functions at weddings such as painting the traditional wedding square in Warli art, and the talanwali are funeral officiants.”

She explained that apart from serving as midwives and traditional healers, soyeen “support women from early pregnancy to childbirth and continue to provide care for the child in its childhood”.

The role of soyeen is vital in many areas where access to basic healthcare is limited – as in the instance Saku recounted, their interventions can help ensure safe deliveries for the mother and child. “The soyeen live among rural communities and are the first responders for pregnant women in far-flung areas with poor access to medical care,” said Dr Sunil Parhad, a former government medical officer who now works independently.

Since the early 2000s, however, soyeen have been gradually pushed to the sidelines. This has largely been a result of a governmental emphasis on more formalised public and private healthcare systems. As part of these developments, women have been increasingly encouraged to deliver babies in hospitals and health centres, with the aid of Accredited Social Health Activists, better known as ASHA workers, and auxiliary nurse midwives or ANMs.

Today, several of the older soyeen continue to look after women during pregnancy, accompany them to local public health centres for deliveries, and offer post-delivery care such as massages for the mother and child. But the younger generation of Warli women have largely stopped acquiring the practice from their elders in Palghar.

“Most of them are older women in their fifties and sixties, whose knowledge is not being passed on to the next generation,” Kirti said. “After this generation dies, in the coming 10-20 years, the soyeen and their knowledge might disappear entirely.”

Many feel that this would represent a loss to the community. While Kirti and others acknowledge that institutional healthcare workers are crucial, they also argue that soyeen meet important needs – for instance, they are often far more readily accessible, particularly in emergencies, can help pregnant women navigate government systems and can offer more time-intensive care through pregnancy and afterwards.

“Soyeen women have passed on traditional knowledge and medicine about childbirth and childcare for centuries,” Parhad said. While access to modern medicine and healthcare are important, he cautioned against the total erasure of traditional knowledge. “Historically, our communities used to be self-reliant,” he said.

Many argue that the work of soyeen is particularly crucial in places like Palghar, which, despite its proximity to Mumbai, has been infamous for its poor maternal health services. From 2011 onwards, more than 450 maternal deaths have been recorded in government and private facilities. In January 2025, the Maharashtra state government called for a high-level enquiry after two maternal deaths and one neonatal death in Palghar.

A study published that year by the Maharashtra Mahila Aarogya Hakk Parishad found that 10 out of 12 recent maternal deaths occurred because local hospitals lacked the capacity to deal with medical complications, forcing patients to travel several hours, to Silvasa or Valsad. “Till today, we don’t have a proper district hospital,” said Parhad. “To receive better health services, people are forced to travel to Gujarat or Mumbai, which tends to be expensive.”

Arguments for the importance of traditional midwives in such scenarios received prominence this year as part of the celebration of the International Day of the World’s Indigenous People on August 9: the theme for the year, which is allotted by the United Nations, was “Honouring Indigenous Midwives”.

A statement by the Asia Indigenous People’s Pact Foundation ahead of the day noted, “Many Indigenous communities remain geographically isolated and neglected by state health systems. In these conditions, Indigenous midwives, community health workers, barefoot doctors, and traditional healers serve as the first and often the only providers of essential healthcare. They do so despite inadequate resources, the absence of formal recognition or monetary compensation.”

Further, it noted, “Their commitment reflects not only a service to their people but also a profound responsibility to safeguard life, dignity, and collective well-being.”

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Saku, who is now in her seventies, began her journey to becoming a soyeen early. At around the age of 12, she would accompany the auxiliary nurse midwife around their block in Palghar for her work. “The nurse needed an assistant, and so I was recruited to carry her things,” she said. “I used to accompany her for injecting vaccinations, and I was also present for several deliveries. I used to boil hot water and hand over cotton and other things required.”

At the time, Saku also aspired to eventually become an auxiliary nurse midwife. But the ambition was curtailed after she was married at the age of around 14, and soon became responsible for looking after her family. Alongside, she also worked as a labourer in the local market.

One day, in the 1980s, when Saku was in her mid-thirties, a pregnant woman in her neighbourhood went into labour. Institutional deliveries were not yet the norm in rural India, and so, instead of a doctor or an auxiliary nurse midwife, villagers were awaiting a soyeen to arrive and conduct the delivery. “But the woman’s water broke and the baby was headed out, so I stepped in,” said Saku.

She relied on her experience of assisting healthcare workers, and delivered the baby – even when the soyeen arrived, Saku carried out the task of cutting the umbilical cord and removing the placenta. Word spread of Saku’s abilities and her community began to rely on her to conduct deliveries in the area. Before long, she was recognised as a soyeen.

Other soyeen Scroll spoke to described similar journeys of acquiring the skills of midwifery outside of formal healthcare systems.

Hiru Kisan Haran, a 77-year-old soyeen from Dhonga pada, learnt midwifery by assisting her mother and her mother-in-law who were also soyeen. Later in her thirties, she began conducting deliveries by herself. Since then, she estimates, she has helped between five and seven women with their deliveries every year. In her mid-thirties, Haran also received basic training from the public health centre near her village on human anatomy, foetal development and assisting in childbirth.

“We usually come to know of a woman’s pregnancy by her third month,” she said. “As her pregnancy develops, we visit her a few times, especially if she’s in pain, and perform massages. When she goes into labour, we accompany her to the PHC with the ASHA worker and assist the nurses and doctors with the deliveries. When she returns from the PHC we conduct a special ritual with the child.”

The soyeen’s work continues even after childbirth.

“We continue to visit the mother and child for a few weeks and perform massages,” Haran said. “Traditionally, we even washed the child’s clothes. As the child grows up, we can be called again if he or she falls sick or faces health issues.”

The soyeen also offers advice at crucial moments. For instance, the nearest primary health centre from Dhonga pada is around 8 km away. Since most residents in her own village and neighbouring ones do not own a vehicle, they often consult Haran first about any problems with pregnancies and seek her recommendation on whether a woman needs to be taken to the health centre.

In one such instance from last year, an eight-month-pregnant woman’s foetus had descended prominently, causing her immense pain, leading her relatives to believe she would give birth soon. The pregnant woman’s relatives thought that they did not have enough time to travel to the nearest primary health centre, and so began trying to induce labour by applying pressure on the upper part of the belly, a common technique. When Haran reached, she looked carefully at the woman’s “linea nigra”, a vertical line that appears on the stomachs of pregnant women, and deduced that there was still time left for the delivery.

“As the pregnancy progresses it grows darker,” she said. “Looking at her belly, I gauged from experience that it wasn’t time yet. So, I gave the woman a massage to help alleviate her pain and relax. The next month she had a comfortable delivery at the PHC.”

To support pregnant women, soyeen typically rely on a range of traditional techniques and remedies. “We would make a paste out of mushrooms to induce labour,” Haran said. “We also had herbal remedies for when a mother doesn’t lactate or when a baby wasn’t breastfeeding as it should.”

Soyeen employ traditional methods even in childbirth. For instance, when a woman goes into labour, the soyeen often makes her lie down on a bed, and helps deliver the baby without any equipment. Once the baby is out of its mother’s womb, they sometimes cut the umbilical cord using baru, a kind of thick, sharp grass.

Another traditional practice that is still often followed, even after institutional deliveries have become commonplace, is the use of a herb to clear mucus out of a baby’s throat after delivery. “They use a kind of herb that gets all the mucus lodged in a baby’s mouth and throat to come out,” said Parhad. “It is such a common practice in our community that we have a popular adage about it: which soyeen cleared your throat that it is so loud?”

But over the years, as development and industrialisation in Palghar has accelerated, these herbs have become harder to find. “Nowadays most people turn to the ANMs or PHCs for health concerns, so we’ve stopped using many of these treatments,” said Haran. “I have also stopped seeing them grow around us.”

But Haran’s knowledge of these remedies still comes to use. A few years ago, she recalled, a young woman who had given birth was bleeding excessively after the delivery. She and her family had made multiple rounds of the primary health centre and other clinics, but the bleeding did not reduce or stop.

They decided to approach Haran, who spent days looking for specific herbs to make a remedy for the young woman. It took her about a week to find them and make the remedy, a concoction that had to be drunk twice a day until the bleeding would stop.

Soyeen also help in complications involving the descent of the foetus toward the pelvis of its mother. “Often, the baby can come very close to the pelvis and cause discomfort to the mother,” said Parhad. Haran said that this was one of the most common issues with which pregnant women approach them. All three soyeen Scroll spoke to said that they used techniques of massaging and applying abdominal pressure on the pregnant woman’s belly to move the baby upwards and reduce discomfort.

Haran and Saku said that they had even dealt with cases of breech foetuses, where the foetus is positioned with its bottom or feet oriented toward the woman’s pelvis, rather than its head, or transverse foetuses, where the baby lies sideways across the uterus.

“In such cases, the woman can be in a lot of pain, especially if the baby has descended, so we have to be very careful and move the baby in the right position,” said Haran.

Parhad explained that while gynaecologists often use techniques such as external cephalic version to manually turn the baby into the correct position for deliveries, “Institutional deliveries have only become the norm in the last two decades.”

He explained that prior to this, “Most deliveries occurred at home.” He added, “Back then there were no doctors, so the soyeen conducting the deliveries acquired substantial knowledge and developed techniques that they’ve passed on through the generations.”

The soyeen Scroll spoke to explained that they were usually paid for some work, such as massages, but that they viewed many other responsibilities, such as helping with deliveries, as part of their duties towards the communities.

Haran, for instance, recounted that she only received a meagre informal payment for helping the woman who suffered excess bleeding. “People don’t value this work, because it’s informal,” said Kirti.

Some reasoned that this made the role a financially unviable one, and that this was a key reason the younger generation was disinclined to carry it forward. “Nowadays everybody is too focused on earning a living or managing their families,” said Saku. “Women can’t afford to run around like before without pay.”

Soyeen also carry out some culturally significant rituals and customs for their communities.

For instance, in one ritual, known as chatti, performed by soyeen on the fifth day after a child is born, the child and the mother are dressed, and worshipped using traditional implements. Soyeen then paint a sun inside the walls of the child’s house and invoke ancestral gods. They also sing a song whose lyrics carry advice for the child, beat a metal plate and sprinkle some water on the child to ensure that it responds through crying. “That is how we confirm that the child can hear and see us,” said Haran.

Kirti said that the chatti rituals were the only traditional ritual that appeared to be passing to the next generation. “Since it’s an important ritual centring a child’s coming into the world, women are still learning how to perform it,” she said. “But other, more healthcare-focused practices are not being passed on.”

Another traditional custom that soyeen follow is the removal and burial of the baby’s placenta, known as naal, after birth. It is usually buried near the house, and then covered with a large stone. “Even nowadays, whenever we accompany women to the PHC, we try to continue the custom and bring the placenta back with us and bury it near the baby’s house,” said Haran.

Kirti noted that this was an important custom tied to the community’s culture and identity. “It is how we lay claim to the land as Adivasis,” she said. “We can say that this land is ours because our naal is buried here.”

But these customs, as well as the healthcare services that soyeen can provide, often face opposition from those within the formal healthcare system. Part of this opposition stems from policies, such as those of the National Rural Health Mission, which since 2000 have encouraged institutional deliveries and discouraged home births. “It started with the cash incentives provided to ASHA workers to facilitate institutional deliveries,” Parhad said. “But later on, the administration would even threaten parents with an FIR if they conducted deliveries at home.”

Such measures gave rise to fears that soyeen and their work could be criminalised. “A common misconception is that it is illegal to have a delivery at home,” said Parhad.

Soyeen that Scroll spoke to said that their marginalisation was regrettable, particularly since they often helped women deal with staff at primary health centres who could often be rude to pregnant women. “While they treat us with respect, they can be very rude to the women,” Vimal Mere, a 60-year-old soyeen said. “Many times, they yell at the pregnant women and even hit them during labour. They also insult the women and tell them demeaning things like – ‘You enjoyed yourself earlier and now we’re all suffering because of you.’”

Indeed, experts have argued that the marginalisation of traditional midwives, like soyeen, can have pernicious effects. In a note about a study of traditional midwives, also known as dai, in India, researcher and obstetrician Mira Sadgopal wrote that while the West has acknowledged and even absorbed traditional childbirth practices into modern medical practice to some extent, India has since the 2000s “withdrawn entirely” what little support existed for the training of midwives. “The recent exclusion of Dais, along with their traditional skills and understanding in childbirth, has had deep effects,” Sadgopal wrote. “At the community level, it has devalued and denied an age-old skilled tradition that is a part of community life.”

Further, in another paper, Sadgopal argued that this marginalisation was being carried out in a roughshod manner. “A critical debate concerning the inclusion of dais in the formal maternity care system focuses on ‘whether dai-training is effective or not’ in reducing neonatal and maternal mortality”, she wrote. Yet, she noted, the answers to this debate are often made “without any serious study of practices employed by dais”.

The potential harms of this shift become particularly clear in some emergencies, Kirti observed.

“During the Covid lockdown, we heard of a few cases where pregnant women were denied services and sent back home,” she said. “At such times, the soyeen were called to help, but in the future, there might be nobody who can turn up.”

Residents of the soyeen’s villages also told Scroll that they wished for the midwives’ traditional knowledge to endure. Pratibha Daltu, who lives in Dhonga pada, recounted that when she was expecting her first child, Haran came to her aid twice when she experienced intense pain in her stomach. “There’s a different kind of comfort with the soyeen around,” she said. “We feel as if a mother-like figure is around to take care of us. At the PHC, they only keep us for two days after the delivery. The whole experience is impersonal.”

Both Daltu’s mother and mother-in-law were soyeen themselves, but she never picked up their skills. “Being a soyeen can be a lot of inconvenience. As the times have changed, people don’t want to give so much of themselves,” Saku said. “Before institutional deliveries, we could be called to the pregnant woman’s house at any time of the day or night, even if it was a false alarm.”

She added, “My children used to complain that between my work as a labourer and a soyeen, I was rarely at home to cook and take care of them. But being a soyeen was both an honour and responsibility bestowed on us by the community so I took my duties seriously.”

Kirti recounted that in 2019, she had attempted to draw attention and support to the work of soyeen, after realising that their knowledge and skills could soon become extinct. Specifically, she conducted a short study with ten soyeen women in Palghar, and, using her findings, attempted to make a case to the district administration for their inclusion in the local health system. “But there was no response from the administration,” she said. “While many soyeen work with the healthcare system today, we were hoping that the administration recognises their important role and incentivises their involvement.”

Sadgopal has made similar arguments in her writing on midwives. “Effectively integrating dais and their tradition into the formal system of childbirth care could introduce creative alternatives in policy and programmes” she noted. “Linking dais effectively with the PHCs will support safe, culturally congruent, appropriate home birth services.”

Parhad observed that this was particularly relevant in a scenario like India’s, where local healthcare systems were weak. “We are not against institutional deliveries, but alongside, why should centuries worth of traditional knowledge die out?” he said. “Especially when this traditional knowledge is even being recognised by the United Nations today.”

The Karnataka Chief Electoral Officer on Saturday admitted that multiple Elector Photo Identity Card numbers were inadvertently generated for the same person during the special intensive revision of electoral rolls due to “procedural circumstances during data processing”.

The clarification came after The Hindu reported on Wednesday that at least 803 voter IDs were linked to just 397 persons in the Mahadevapura Assembly constituency.

The report also highlighted cases in which persons held multiple voter IDs and instances where the same ID number appeared in the final electoral rolls of two different Assembly constituencies.

On Saturday, the state poll panel chief said that some applicants had submitted multiple Form 6 applications, seeking inclusion in the electoral rolls, through the Citizen Service Portal during the voter roll revision process. As these applications were processed independently, multiple voter ID numbers were inadvertently generated for the same individual.

The officer also explained that some identical voter ID numbers appeared in the electoral rolls of two constituencies because of delays in processing applications for deletion following migration.

In some cases, Form 8 applications seeking migration to another constituency had been approved and the electors’ names were included in the rolls of their new constituencies. However, the corresponding Form 7 applications, seeking deletion of their names from the previous constituencies, remained pending.

According to the Karnataka chief electoral officer, this happened because electoral roll operations had been frozen under statutory provisions ahead of the final publication of the rolls.

It added that the cases had been referred to the respective district election officers, additional district election officers and electoral registration officers for verification and necessary remedial action in accordance with the law.

“The Election Commission remains committed to ensuring absolute accuracy, transparency, and integrity of the electoral rolls,” the statement added.

The names of more than 99.3 lakh voters have been deleted from Karnataka’s final voter list published on October 27 following the special intensive revision of electoral rolls.

The number of voters fell to 4.5 crore from 5.5 crore that were on the state’s electoral rolls before the exercise began. This amounts to a decrease of about 17.9%.

Karnataka is among the 19 states and Union Territories where the voter roll revision is being carried out in the third phase of SIR.

A contentious exercise

Since the revision began, concerns have been raised that the exercise could eliminate genuine voters from the rolls and even shape electoral outcomes, as Scroll has reported.

In May, the Supreme Court upheld the legality of the revision. But it said that the exercise does not mean that the Election Commission can decide on whether the person is an Indian citizen.

Despite this, Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled states have cited the SIR to deny ration cards to those who have been eliminated from the rolls. In some cases, the police have denied permission for their passports to be renewed.

Edited by Sara Varghese.

Ten years on to the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a sweeping withdrawal of 86% of all cash in the economy. The impact of this move was immediate and devastating as millions of people scrambled to deposit or exchange their cash within a narrow window of time.

Adding to their misery, the government and the Reserve Bank of India kept changing the goal posts, imposing a limit on the exchange of notes, the amounts that could be deposited and steadily narrowing the time frame for exchanging the notes. As with the changing rules of the game, the announced objectives of demonetisation kept changing.

The tumult and chaos of those days are still fresh in our minds – small traders and hawkers without cash and working capital, unskilled workers thrown out of jobs, housewives losing cash they had hidden from abusive husbands, the lines and lines of people forced to stand in front of ATMs to withdraw measly amounts, and so much more.

The demonetisation of November 8, 2016 was a forerunner of the capriciousness, callousness and centralised nature of decision-making that has marked the Modi government’s 12-year-long tenure.

In a repeat move in March 2020, Prime Minister Modi announced a nationwide lockdown, which caused much greater human suffering. The Covid-19 lockdown, effected without prior announcement and without preparation, inflicted immense pain on millions of migrant workers who lost their jobs and were forced to march across the country.

In early 2021, the self-congratulation of the Bharatiya Janata Party and government over the limited impact of the first wave of Covid-19 left India unprepared for the devastating second wave of April-May 2021. The official figures of Covid-19 deaths have, in typical fashion, downplayed the true scale of mortality but all reliable and independent estimates point to around 4 million Indians dying because of the pandemic – to a good extent because of union government carelessness.

Ten years after the event, we could ask what Demonetisation 2016 has achieved, both in terms of its official objectives and unintended consequences. What lasting impact has it had in any form to justify that decision?

Black money, ‘terror financing’

Rooting out black money was the main objective of the exercise, a major plank of the BJP’s campaign promises in 2014. As its original promise to bring back black money stashed abroad was a non-starter, demonetisation of high denomination currency was seen as a dramatic way to capture the high moral ground. Combating counterfeit currency and terror financing were added as secondary reasons to strengthen the case.

For good measure, Indians were exhorted to view their suffering as a necessary sacrifice to achieve a noble end.

The objective had a built-in measure of success – how much of the demonetised currency did not come back into the banking system. Official sources and cheerleaders, who included some well-known economists, claimed that as much as between Rs 3 lakh crore to Rs 5 lakh crore – some 20% to 30% of the currency held by the public – estimated as black money holding would not return.

The government would have a windfall surplus of between 2% to 3% of the nominal GDP, they claimed. As well as a strike against black money, the government was predicted to generate a huge fiscal surplus.

However, it was immediately evident that despite the rapid changes in the RBI rules of currency exchange, most of the demonetised currency would be deposited in the banks. Sure enough, more than 99.3% of the demonetised currency eventually returned to the banking system.

What remained was mostly the small and pitiful holdings of the poor, the savings of women and emergency cash of old and the sick who could not exchange the notes in time. By any reckoning, this objective was a resounding failure.

Note Ban & Vote Ban (SIR) #SIR #Demonetisation pic.twitter.com/gKhhlNSGLi

— Satish Acharya (@satishacharya) October 31, 2026

The impact on counterfeiting of currency or terror financing – perhaps added on only to make demonetisation appear like a multi-objective operation – was harder to measure. With more than 99% of the notes back in the system, their scale and size would in any case have been minuscule.

Counterfeiting has always been around and will continue to do so even with the newly issued currency post-demonetisation. Terrorism is a state security matter, whose origin and containment should be sought through security operations and the law and order apparatus.

As it became evident that the demonetised notes were being returned in large volumes, the goal posts were shifted once more. The objective was now about India having less cash and moving to a more digital economy. The return of currency into the system, supporters claimed, would not only spur the growth of digital payments but also strengthen the formalisation of the economy. And with it, the growth of the tax base and further reduction of black money.

Those who could not explain the source of the large deposits of cash would be investigated and penalised. But we never heard of major investigations, penalties or seizures.

Over 450,000 “suspicious transaction” reports were filed in 2016-’17 by banks and other financial institutions with the Finance Ministry, but there was no abnormal jump in personal tax collections that year or the next.

Direct tax collections have indeed increased the past decade.

But the rise has been modest with regard to non-corporate tax (broadly personal income tax) and even less so of corporate taxes (which slumped in between because of the major tax cuts of 2019-’20).

A more noticeable increase of non-corporate tax has been in the years after Covid-19. There was no sudden jump immediately after Demonetisation 2016, belying claims that with the professed weakening of the black economy we would see vastly improved tax compliance.

Internationally too, the cash-GDP ratio has changed little over the decade. Its relative position remains just where it was earlier – as a country with one of a higher relative amount of cash in circulation.

The economic costs of demonetisation were never formally counted. There were direct costs of replacing the currency and the larger impact on the economy.

The official statistics reported an incredible picture: growth of gross national income at constant prices accelerated from 8% in 2015-’16 (the year before demonetisation) to 8.3% in 2016-’17 (the year of demonetisation).

In fact, according to the official statistics, during the decade of the 2010s, growth was the highest in 2016-’17.

The estimates for credible independent sources suggested a loss of output from 1% to 2.5% of the GDP for the 2016-’17 period. Others have indicated a much longer drag on the cash-based unorganised sector, which was especially hit hard. The fact that it was overtaken by other policy measures like the Goods and Services Tax and Covid meant that the true costs of demonetisation per se could not be counted.

On the longer-term impact of demonetisation or the lack of it, three key issues stand out. One is the role of cash in the economy. The second is the rapid growth of digital payments at the retail level. And despite this, the continued prevalence of black money in the system.

Demonetisation made no difference to the currency in circulation and its usage in the economy. The currency to GDP ratio between 2017-’18 to 2025-’26 is remarkably stable, moving from 10.7% to 12.1%, hitting a couple of highs of 14.4% and 13.3% during the Covid years of 2020-’21 and 2021-’22.

In 2015-’16, it was around 12% (RBI Annual Report 2016-17 Appendix Table 4).

The year-on-year changes to the currency in circulation over the 10 years indicates that the demand for cash took a substantial jump of 37% in 2017-’18 and continued to grow around 15% to replace the near total wiping out of the cash in the system (RBI Annual Report 2026, Appendix table 4). Thereafter it grew at a rate sufficient to meet the demand for cash in the economy.

The currency-deposit ratio is another important indicator of cash preference while bank deposits are used as a proxy for the growth of digital payments, the tax base and and more generally the formalisation of the economy: the higher the ratio, the greater the preference for cash over bank deposits.

The currency deposit ratio has remained unchanged or remained consistently high except immediately post-demonetisation – indicating that digitisation or vast expansion of bank accounts has not made much difference to the demand for currency. (RBI Annual Report 2026, Appendix Table 4; RBI Annual Report 2016-’17 Appendix Table 4)

Explosion in digital payments

The big story in digitalisation since demonetisation is of course the explosion in the use of the Unified Payments Interface – the instant payment system developed by the National Payments Corporation of India,

UPI had been set in motion earlier, but it received a fresh and high-priority push immediately after November 2016. The results are evident: the use of UPI has exploded over the past decade. As we all now experience every day, UPI has become a tool of convenience for Indians across class lines increasingly carry little cash for retail transactions.

Analysing the trends in UPI, which is a near-substitute to cash compared to all other forms of funds transfer or payments, it is clear that transactions on this platform have expanded exponentially (Chart 2) in volume terms. However growth in value, though impressive, has been low in absolute terms.

In 2025-’26, transactions by NEFT, or the National Electronic Funds Transfer system used to move funds between banks, were still 60% higher in value than over UPI: Rs 502 lakh crore vs Rs 314 lakh crore (RBI Annual Report, Table IX.1).

The average value of transactions is also small and has declined from around Rs 1,900 per transaction to Rs 1,300, showing that the UPI has substantially replaced cash in retail transactions. Although UPI accounted for 85% of all payment instruments by volume in 2025, its share in value terms is only 9.5%. (Payment System Report, December 2025, RBI – Charts 1 and 2)

While demonetisation may have played a part in this, the Covid years and the spectacular spread of smart phones played a much greater role in the growth of digital payments.

Despite this, the demand for cash remains at the pre-demonetisation level. The demand for cash is clearly for higher denominations. Indeed, the data shows that Rs 500 denomination is an overwhelming favourite, accounting for 85.5% of all notes in circulation. The position is almost identical to the pre- demonetisation period when notes of the Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 denomination together accounted for around 86% of the total value of notes in circulation.

If it was argued that the demand for cash was in part motivated by the demand for black money or tax evasion or other purported reasons, clearly demonetisation did nothing to reduce or eliminate these demands. If anything, the use now of cash for black money transactions or in electoral politics would be greater because the traditional retail transactions demand for cash is very substantially being replaced by digital transactions.

Arguably, demonetisation had very little impact on cash usage, though the reason for the demand for holding cash may have changed in the wake of substantial digitisation of retail. The demand for currency remains anchored around 12% of GDP.

Beyond the long-term economic impact of Demonetisation 2016 we have had to live with, in many ways, the event permanently affected Indian society. The first is the belief that there is an arbitrariness and ad-hoc manner in which the Indian state can strike at everyday life.

The way it destroyed 86% of legal tender and denied individuals their legal right to their savings in bank accounts has left citizens wondering if there is any arbitrary action with a mass impact that can be outside the thinking of the Indian state. If further evidence was needed, we had the overnight lockdown of March 2020.

There were institutional failures, especially in the role of the Reserve Bank of India. Between November 8 and December 31, 2016, the RBI and the Finance Ministry issued around 74 notifications, many of which placed restrictions on the exchange, deposit or withdrawal of depositors’ funds.

Moreover, the RBI, as the custodian of currency, and best placed to understand the impact of demonetisation, appeared to do the government’s bidding unquestioningly. Although the Supreme Court upheld the legality of the move, a dissenting note by Justice Nagarathna questioned whether the RBI Board’s recommendation was based on the independent application of its mind.

The RBI’s decision in 2023 to withdraw Rs 2,000-denomination notes, which had been hastily introduced in the wake of Demonetisation 2016, was an equally arbitrary exercise though tempered with caution in the light of the post-demonetisation experience.

The media was another institution that fell even further during Demonetisation 2016. Early in the Narendra Modi regime, the media had shown that it was unwilling to question the government or demand accountability. Barring a few brave examples, the press turned cheer leader and a peddler of fake news during and after Demonetisation 2016. On this foundation, it hailed demonetisation as the master stroke of a master strategist in destroying India’s black economy.

The most egregious example was the reporting on TV of plans to insert a micro-chip on all new currency notes as part of the government’s all-round strategy to track black money usage, “news” that compelled the RBI to issue a refutation. This was not laughable. It set the stage for years and years of the mainstream media – especially TV – swallowing anything fed to them and applauding anything the government did.

Demonetisation was a disaster whichever way one looks at it. Yet, there has been no introspection or accountability for the policy action. Unlike the Covid lockdown, however egregious it may have been, there were no extenuating circumstances to justify the arbitrary imposition of demonetisation.

Neither the media, nor Parliament, has demanded explanations as to who made the decision and what its consequences were. Even the Supreme Court declined to intervene in what it said was a matter of policy.

The critics of Demonetisation 2016 pointed out from the beginning that it was not going to strike at the underground economy. They have been proven right. As some have noted, from a fiscal perspective it was all pain and no gain.

The black economy emerged unscathed from the events of November 2016 and has since only grown, fuelled by continuing large ticket corruption and illegalities. Nor have the secondary and new objectives added on in haste at the time been realised.

Moreover, India continues to be a cash-intensive economy. The new and strange situation is that a high cash-GDP ratio sits alongside a high degree of digitalisation of legal transactions. We can only surmise what the cash is held for and used for.

C Rammanohar Reddy is the author of Demonetisation and the Black Economy, Orient BlackSwan, 2018.

K Jayaram is a former central banker who worked for many years in an international financial organisation.

Staying true to the promise he had made in September, Srinagar MP Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi resigned from the National Conference and the Lok Sabha on Tuesday.

“There are people who cry for the seat of power, but I feel at peace shunning the chair I am holding,” said 48-year-old Ruhullah as he announced his resignation at a massive gathering in Budgam.

Ruhullah’s resignation was preceded by a biting speech that targeted Kashmir’s grand old party, the National Conference, and its two prominent faces, the father-son team of party President Farooq Abdullah and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah. With his resignation, Ruhullah – who is also a well-known religious figure – ended his nearly two-and-a-half-decade-long association with the party.

For many in Kashmir, the Shia cleric-politician’s resignation was not unexpected. It followed his growing isolation within the National Conference. He has been a vocal critic of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Union government’s decision to scrap Jammu and Kashmir’s special status under the Constitution and statehood in August 2019. He has also been vociferous about his party’s refusal to make restoring these two items its primary agenda.

In 2024, in the run-up to the first Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir after it was downgraded to a Union Territory, the Abdullah-led National Conference pledged to restore the region’s special status if voted to power. In its manifesto for the polls, the party had also promised to “strive” to restore Article 370 and Article 35A – the two provisions that had guaranteed internal autonomy and protection in matters such as land and jobs for locals. These had also been annulled in August 2019.

While the National Conference achieved an overwhelming majority in the Assembly, many feel that the party, which has been in power for more than two years now, is not serious about taking on New Delhi over the question of restoring this special status. Ruhullah is more blunt. He claims that the National Conference has surrendered to the Bharatiya Janata Party.

Ruhullah’s rise has been fed by the growing displeasure towards the Omar Abdullah-led government in Kashmir.

So far, the junior Abdullah has avoided taking a combative posture to the Union government’s writ in Kashmir. But to his credit, Abdullah has expressed his frustration with the current governance setup in Jammu and Kashmir several times.

However, many in Kashmir want him to do more, including giving up the chair if he has no power. Abdullah’s pragmatism is not only being viewed as surrender but increasingly even as collusion.

To the major issue of restoring Article 370 and Article 35A, the party has merely paid lip service. Also pending is the task of establishing the business rules that would delineate the role and functions of the elected government and the Lieutenant Governor-led administration in the Union Territory.

While the final approval for those pending decisions remains with the unyielding Union government, Abdullah has been largely reticent in his response to the dominant Centre.

Ruhullah believes that the National Conference should make the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status and autonomy its core agenda.

However, there is a constituency in Kashmir that is sceptical about Ruhullah’s exit: they believe it will further fragment the Kashmiri Muslim voter base. That scepticism springs from the history of New Delhi’s machinations in Kashmir. For decades, Union governments have created new political outfits in the Valley, broken up existing formations or backed obscure political outfits to cut powerful regional forces down to size.

This is why the biggest challenge for Ruhullah will be to convince Kashmiris that his politics is organic and does not have the blessings of the Union government. In his speech in Budgam on Tuesday, Ruhullah hinted at creating a new political formation. However, as a senior politician himself, Ruhullah, must know that there is a difference between platforming the grievances of Kashmir through speeches and turning a viewpoint into a powerful representative force. He faces an uphill task.

So far, the question Ruhullah has not answered is how he plans to compel New Delhi to restore the legal status quo in Kashmir. At the moment, the only difference between Omar Abdullah and Ruhullah is that Ruhullah has made the restoration of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir his core agenda.

Even though Ruhullah has been taking a strong line against the BJP-led Union government for nearly six years, he has failed to attract prominent voices or leaders to his side. But to his credit, a big chunk of Kashmiri youth do seem to like him.

At a deeper level, Ruhullah’s resignation is essentially a nudge to New Delhi to engage with Kashmir and address its anxieties. Whether the reason for these developments, New Delhi should read beyond Ruhullah’s resignation.

The massive support in his resignation rally in Budgam reiterated that there is support for the restoration of special status and autonomy of Jammu and Kashmir. New Delhi should not ignore the message.

Here is a summary of last week’s top stories.

A setback for Trump. The Democrats took control of the United States Congress from the Republicans in the mid-term elections. Before the polls, President Donald Trump-led Republican party had a 53-47 majority in the 100-member Senate. It had a slim 219-214 majority in the 435-member House of Representatives.

As of 11 am Indian time on Saturday, the Democrats held 54 seats in the Senate and the Republicans had 44. In the House of Representatives, the Democrats had won 254 seats and the Republicans 162. Some seats were yet to be called. A party needs 218 seats for a majority in the Lower House.

The elections are being viewed as a verdict on Trump’s second term as president. The Democrats’ control of Congress is expected to lead to greater scrutiny of the Trump administration in the remaining two years of its tenure.

Counting in the elections to elect governors was also underway in 36 states and three territories. The Democrats won 22 gubernatorial posts where the polls were held and the Republicans 12.

Gina Hinojosa, the Democratic candidate, won the gubernatorial election in Texas, a long-standing Republican stronghold. This is the first time the state will have a Democratic party governor in three decades.

Democratic leader Keisha Lance Bottoms won in Georgia, becoming the first Black woman to be elected as a governor of any state in the US. The party’s Abdul El‑Sayed won the Senate race in Michigan, becoming the first Muslim senator in the US.

India-born Nithya Raman won the Los Angeles mayoral election on a Democratic party ticket.

Vivek Ramaswamy loses, at least four Indian-Americans win, reports Oishika Neogi.

Agniveer extension. Seventy-five percent of Agniveers who are not enrolled in the armed forces permanently after their four-year tenure will be given an option to extend their service by two more years. After this six years of service, Agniveers will get another opportunity to join the armed forces as regular soldiers, provided they meet the criteria, said Chief of Defence Staff General NS Raja Subramani.

The introduction of the short-service Agnipath scheme in June 2022 had triggered protests in several states as aspirants demanded permanent recruitment with pension benefits. The announcement on Wednesday came as around 18,000 Agniveers from the first batch are expected to complete their four-year tenure and exit in December.

Subramani said that Agniveers who opt for the additional two-year service will receive higher salaries and an increased exit package.

An Agniveer died in Operation Sindoor. A year later, his parents are still fighting for pension, reports Anant Gupta.

In court. The Bombay High Court said it was disturbed by remarks made by some politicians targeting actor Dia Mirza for a video she had shot on behalf of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, urging Mumbai residents not to light firecrackers on the streets during Diwali. The court directed the municipal corporation to re-upload the video to “restore the confidence of the people”.

The municipal corporation had removed the video from its social media handles after the Bharatiya Janata Party’s city chief Ameet Satam declared, “We don’t need lessons on how to celebrate Diwali from Dia Mirza.”

The court said that the objections to Mirza’s participation in the civic body’s anti-pollution campaign were unfortunate and appeared to have given the matter a communal angle.

Also on Scroll last week

• A decade after demonetisation, no dent in black money and corruption
• Double hoax: Takedown notices from RSS, Delhi Police to digital rights groups turn out to be fake
• How an El Niño winter could worsen pollution in Delhi
• ‘Everything is political’: The anger driving India’s young women to hit the streets
• Not just Arunachal. A proposed dam has set off protests in Assam and Meghalaya as well
• How Indians in post-war Japan rebuilt their lives under Allied occupation
• India has made progress in reducing poverty, but World Bank estimates are flawed
• A month since tumult at Kolkata’s film institute, students firm on protesting till VC goes
• The all-risk gamble behind ‘Gondhal’ as it charts its journey to the Oscars
• ‘Ramayana: Part 1’ review: A sleek and sumptuous spectacle

Follow the Scroll channel on WhatsApp for a curated selection of the news that matters throughout the day, and a round-up of major developments in India and around the world every evening. What you won’t get: spam.

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Delhi residents woke up to “very poor” air quality on Diwali morning, with several parts of the national capital recording pollution levels in the “severe” category.

The overall Air Quality Index stood at 383 at 8 am on Sunday, according to the Sameer application, which provides hourly updates published by the Central Pollution Control Board.

Twenty-four monitoring stations recorded AQI levels above 400, indicating “severe” air pollution. Jahangirpuri was the worst-affected area, with an AQI of 450, followed by RK Puram at 448 and Punjabi Bagh at 446.

An index value between 0 and 50 indicates “good” air quality, between 51 and 100 indicates “satisfactory” air quality and between 101 and 200 indicates “moderate” air quality. As the index value increases further, air quality deteriorates. A value of 201 and 300 means “poor” air quality, while between 301 and 400 indicates “very poor” air.

Between 401 and 450 indicates “severe” air pollution, while anything above the 450 threshold is termed “severe plus”.

The cities adjoining the capital also recorded “poor” to “very poor” air quality. While Noida recorded an AQI of 319, Gurugram recorded 322.

Air quality deteriorates sharply in the winter months in Delhi, which is often ranked the world’s most polluted capital. The lighting of firecrackers during Diwali along with stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana, vehicular pollution, falling temperatures, decreased wind speeds and emissions from industries and coal-fired plants contribute to the problem.

This year, Diwali will be celebrated on Sunday. Peak air pollution levels are historically observed during and immediately after Diwali.

The Supreme Court has allowed the manufacture, sale and lighting of certified green firecrackers in Delhi-NCR for two days during the festival. However, Scroll found that vendors continue to sell regular firecrackers.

View this post on Instagram

Edited by Sara Varghese.

The Bombay High Court has quashed the notifications and show-cause notices by the Maharashtra government seeking to acquire 84 hectares of land belonging to Tata Power Company Limited in Pune for a private Ayurvedic wellness project, reported Bar and Bench.

In March 2025, the Bharatiya Janata Party issued a notification categorising 84 hectares of land situated near the Thokarwadi Dam and Reservoir as an industrial area.

The land forms the catchment area for Tata Power’s 75-megawatt Bhivpuri Hydro Station and its proposed 1,000-megawatt Bhivpuri Pumped Storage Project.

In June 2018, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis wrote to the late industrialist Ratan Tata proposing that part of Tata Power’s land in Pune be made available for “vedic pandits to take up chanting”, The Indian Express reported.

The Maharashtra government had intended to transfer the catchment area to Maharishi Vedoddharak Foundation for a project worth Rs 1,500 crores, featuring a wellness centre and an Ayurvedic college, Bar and Bench added.

Tata Power challenged the move, contending that the land had been given to its predecessors over a century ago for the public purpose of generating hydroelectricity.

The company argued that the government violated the 2013 Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act to benefit a private company.

On Thursday, a bench of Justices Manish Pitale and Shreeram V Shirsat set aside the March 2025 notification declaring the land an industrial area and its subsequent acquisition by the private company, the newspaper added.

The court criticised the acquisition of an operational dam’s catchment area for spiritual and leisure activities.

“Can this be at the expense of the hydro-electric projects of TPCL and its catchment area?” Bar and Bench quoted the court as saying. “We find that in such a situation, the TPCL has made out a case to successfully challenge the impugned action of the respondents.”

The court also cited a March 8, 2018, government resolution prohibiting development within 500 metres of a dam’s high-flood line, and said the land “cannot be used for development activity”, The Indian Express reported.

Edited by Sneha.

American lobbying firm Mercury Public Affairs has said in its public disclosure that a social media post by United States President Donald Trump congratulating Prime Minister Narendra Modi on becoming India’s longest-serving prime minister in June was among the work it had executed as part of its monthly retainership with the Indian embassy, The Indian Express reported on Saturday.

Lobbying in US politics is the practice of individuals or interest groups attempting to influence legislative, executive or regulatory decisions made by government officials.

After Trump was elected for his second term in January 2025, the Indian embassy in Washington hired two major lobbying firms headed by individuals considered a part of the US president’s inner circle, reported The Indian Express.

One of the firms was Mercury Public Affairs, signed at a monthly retainer of $75,000, or approximately Rs 70 lakh, with Bryan Lanza, the communications director for Trump’s transition team.

A presidential transition team is the organisation formed by a president-elect after winning an election to prepare for taking over the executive branch of the US government.

Susie Wiles, Trump’s former chief of staff, was also a registered lobbyist with the firm until late 2024, reported The Indian Express.

The company disclosed the information about its retainership in its filing to the United States Department of Justice under the Foreign Agents Registration Act. The Act requires people and organisations who lobby, or act on behalf of foreign governments, parties or principals, to make public disclosure of their relationship, activities and financial compensation.

The other lobbying firm that the Indian embassy hired was SHW Partners LLC, headed by Trump’s aide Jason Miller. The embassy’s contract with Miller involved a monthly payout of $150,000, or approximately Rs 1.4 crore, reported The Indian Express.

The scope of the company’s work included “strategic counsel, tactical planning and government relations assistance on policy matters before the US government, the US Congress, state governments, academic institutions, think tanks, and other relevant stakeholders”, the newspaper quoted its filing as stating.

SHW Partners LLC also stated that it arranged phone calls between New Delhi and senior US government officials in May, ahead of Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s visit to India.

The company also reportedly listed two embassy events with Rubio on May 23 and May 24, when he was in India and attended the “America@250” events hosted by the US embassy.

Miller was also in New Delhi at the same time, the newspaper reported.

Sharing The Indian Express report on social media, Congress Media Coordinator Harmeet Kaur asked “what exactly are Indian taxpayers receiving in return” for the Union government spending $225,000, or more than Rs 2.1 crore, monthly on American lobbying firms.

“What’s the need of a paid congratulatory social media post from the US president?” asked Kaur.

$75,000 a month for lobbying.

Another $150,000 a month for access to Washington.

And even Trump's congratulatory post on @X to Narendra Modi which Modi gleefully responded and the whole BJP 's ecosystem including "certain news anchors" labelled it Vishwaguru moment, appears in…

— Harmeet Kaur K 🇮🇳 (@iamharmeetK) November 7, 2026

Edited by Sneha.

The Delhi High Court on Friday said that lawyers and judicial staff residing in the National Capital Region will be exempt from the ban on vehicles registered outside Delhi that do not meet the Bharat Stage-6 emission standards, Bar and Bench reported.

The court was hearing a plea filed by the Delhi High Court Bar Association, which argued that lawyers and judicial staff perform essential duties.

The bench ruled that the exemption would apply only on court working days.

Starting November 1, as part of the Winter Action Plan, non-Delhi vehicles below the Bharat Stage-6 emission norms are not being allowed to enter the national capital till January 31.

Several lawyers practising in Delhi live in surrounding Gurugram, Faridabad, Noida and Ghaziabad and regularly travel to the capital for work, Bar and Bench quoted the petition as stating.

The association argued that the vehicle entry ban could hamper lawyers’ ability to reach court hearings on time. It added that such an exemption was previously granted to them during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The petitioners clarified that they were not seeking a blanket exemption from environmental regulations or immunity from stricter restrictions imposed under the Graded Response Action Plan, Live Law reported.

GRAP is a set of incremental anti-pollution measures that are triggered to prevent further worsening of air quality once it reaches a certain threshold in Delhi-NCR.

Air quality deteriorates sharply in the winter months in Delhi, which is often ranked the world’s most polluted capital. The lighting of firecrackers during Diwali along with stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana, vehicular pollution, falling temperatures, decreased wind speeds and emissions from industries and coal-fired plants contribute to the problem.

This year, Diwali will be celebrated on November 8. Peak air pollution levels are historically observed during and immediately after Diwali.

On Friday, the Supreme Court said that vehicular emissions were a “major” contributor to air pollution in the National Capital Region and called for immediate, medium-term and long-term measures to address the problem.

‘Very poor’ air quality

As of 2.05 pm on Saturday, Delhi recorded an average AQI of 366, according to the Sameer application, which provides hourly updates published by the Central Pollution Control Board.

An index value between 0 and 50 indicates “good” air quality, between 51 and 100 indicates “satisfactory” air quality and between 101 and 200 indicates “moderate” air quality. As the index value increases further, air quality deteriorates. A value of 201 and 300 means “poor” air quality, while between 301 and 400 indicates “very poor” air.

Between 401 and 450 indicates “severe” air pollution, while anything above the 450 threshold is termed “severe plus”.

The cities adjoining the capital also recorded “poor” to “very poor” air quality. While Noida recorded an AQI of 288, Gurugram recorded 345.

Edited by Nachiket Deuskar.

Also read:

Why some Delhi residents leave the city during Diwali

How an El Niño winter could worsen pollution in Delhi

How Delhi’s rich are escaping air pollution

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday alleged that a “deeply sinister plot” was underway after Union minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh announced that voter ID cards, not Aadhaar, will be the basis for availing benefits under panchayati raj schemes.

Singh had said on October 30 that organisations issuing Aadhaar “are available in every locality now” and can create the identification card “for anyone within five minutes”. Therefore, Singh said, “Aadhaar won’t be the basis [for identifying beneficiaries]”.

Instead, beneficiaries will need to provide their biometric data and their Elector’s Photo Identity Card, or voter ID number, the Union panchayati raj minister said.

It was unclear what benefits Singh was referring to. But the comments came while talking about the new Pradhan Mantri Viksit Gram Swaraj Yojana, which replaces the Rashtriya Gram Swarajya Abhiyan. The new scheme is aimed at strengthening gram panchayats as the authorities for “integrated and participatory development planning”.

The announcement came amid the Opposition, activists and citizens’ groups raising concerns about how voters were being deleted during the special intensive revision of electoral rolls, alleging that 13 crore electors had been removed in states where the exercise had taken place.

On Friday, Gandhi said that the names being left off the revised voter rolls were of citizens angry at the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.

“The voter list should be in the hands of an impartial Election Commission – but now it is in the hands of [Chief Election Commissioner] Gyanesh Kumar, an employee of the Modi government, whose collusion with the BJP in vote theft we have caught red-handed with evidence,” he alleged on social media.

The leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha accused the BJP of creating a voter list that will always give the Hindutva party a majority.

Since October 2, nationwide protests have been held calling for the resignation of the chief election commissioner over concerns about the functioning of the Election Commission and the alleged irregularities in how the voter roll is being revised.

Gandhi described the new identification requirement for beneficiaries as a theft of rights.

“Today, panchayati raj schemes,” Gandhi said. “Tomorrow, rations? Pensions? MGNREGA? Housing? Scholarships? Reservations?”

He alleged that this was not politics to win elections, but an arrangement to “steal elections and a permanent setup to stay in power”.

Gandhi said that “a poor person’s pension cannot be held hostage to their voter card”, adding that voting is a right and not a condition.

In response to the Congress leader’s allegations, the Union minister accused Gandhi of distorting the facts.

Singh said the shift from Aadhaar to voter ID cards as a requirement to avail welfare benefits is aimed at ensuring that no middleman takes advantage of the schemes instead of the actual beneficiaries.

A contentious exercise

Since the revision began, concerns have been raised that the exercise could eliminate genuine voters from the rolls and even shape electoral outcomes, as Scroll has reported.

In May, the Supreme Court upheld the legality of the revision. But it said that the exercise does not mean that the Election Commission can decide on whether the person is an Indian citizen.

Despite this, BJP-ruled states have cited the SIR to deny ration cards to those who have been eliminated from the rolls. In some cases, the police have denied permission for their passports to be renewed.

Written by Abeer Khan. Edited by Nachiket Deuskar.

The Supreme Court on Friday issued notice to the office-bearers of the Congress’ Kerala unit, including the party’s state chief, seeking their response on why contempt proceedings should not be initiated against them for a social media post criticising Chief Justice Surya Kant, Live Law reported.

The court was hearing a plea filed by an advocate seeking suo moto action over the post, which has since been deleted.

The counsel for the Congress’ Kerala unit said that the post had been made by a party worker without the approval of the organisation’s leaders, and it had been taken down. The lawyer also said that the party had apologised in the matter.

Justice Aravind Kumar said that the court will examine “whether it has come from the pen or your heart”, Live Law reported.

The court said that the Constitution “is supreme” and that no person or political organisation stands above it. “Independence of the judiciary is not a matter of political convenience,” it was quoted as saying.

The bench said that while it is open to criticism, freedom of expression “cannot be a shield for intimation or interference with the administration of justice”, Live Law reported.

The authority of the court rests on the rule of law and any attempt to undermine it “needs to be dealt with an iron hand”, the legal news outlet quoted the bench as having said.

The post about Kant was made during the Opposition INDIA bloc’s march to the Supreme Court demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over concerns about the functioning of the Election Commission and the alleged irregularities in how the voter roll is being revised.

Edited by Nachiket Deuskar.

The electoral registration officer in northeastern Delhi’s Mustafabad Assembly constituency on Friday registered a police complaint seeking a first information report against a booth level agent for filling allegedly false Form 7s seeking to delete voters living at their addresses, The Hindu reported.

Form 7 is used to object to the inclusion of a name or seek the deletion of an existing name from the electoral roll.

Ajay Kumar, the district election officer in northeastern Delhi, told The Hindu that officials of the poll panel had verified the newspaper’s October 30 report and found that 36 of the 37 Form 7s that had been filed by the agent to be false.

The forms were filled as part of the special intensive revision of electoral rolls.

A complaint has been filed against the agent under the 1950 Representation of the People Act for making allegedly false declarations.

The newspaper had reported on October 30 that in polling part 129 of the constituency, voters listed in 28 Form 7s seeking their deletions were found to be living in the area.

The forms had been filled by a booth-level agent registered under the Bharatiya Janata Party, the newspaper had quoted the Election Commission’s records till October 28 as having shown.

The person had denied being an agent, filing the forms and being associated with the BJP, The Hindu reported at the time.

However, nine fresh applications were filed naming him as objector on October 29 and October 30, the newspaper reported.

“Since the BLA/objector has knowingly made false statement or declaration in the Form 7, action under Section 31 of the RP Act has been invoked for making false statement/declaration in writing in connection with preparation/revision of electoral roll,” the poll panel was quoted as saying.

In the 2025 polls, the BJP had defeated the Aam Aadmi Party in Mustafabad by less than 17,600 votes.

Delhi is among the 19 states and Union Territories where the voter roll revision is underway In the third phase.

In 2025, the first phase of the voter roll revision was conducted in Bihar. It was extended to 12 states and Union Territories in the second phase in late 2025 and the first half of 2026.

A contentious exercise

Since the exercise began, concerns have been raised that the revision could eliminate genuine voters from the rolls and even shape electoral outcomes, as Scroll has reported.

The Supreme Court on October 30 asked the Election Commission in Uttar Pradesh to take “corrective steps” against Form 7 applications filed in bulk to delete voters’ names during the exercise.

On October 5, the Telangana chief electoral officer had directed officials to take action against persons misusing Form 7 to seek the deletion of eligible voters. This came four days after the Karnataka chief electoral officer said that legal action would be initiated against persons found to be filing bulk Form 7 applications.

In May, the Supreme Court upheld the legality of the revision. But it said that the exercise does not mean that the Election Commission can decide on whether the person is an Indian citizen.

Despite this, BJP-ruled states have cited the SIR to deny ration cards to those who have been eliminated from the rolls. In some cases, the police have denied permission for their passports to be renewed.

Since October 2, nationwide protests have been held calling for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over concerns about the functioning of the Election Commission and the alleged irregularities in how the voter roll is being revised.

Edited by Nachiket Deuskar.

Also read:

• Follow Scroll’s coverage of the special intensive revision of electoral rolls here.
• SIR explained: Why the voter roll revision has become so controversial

In its October 2026 Poverty and Equity Brief, the World Bank shows a sharp decline in extreme poverty in India between 2011 and 2024. But there are significant shortcomings in its calculations.

The bank says that India’s extreme poverty rate fell from 27.1% in 2011-’12 to 2.6% in 2023-’24, and that an estimated 496 million people escaped poverty over the period. This, the bank said, was one of the fastest declines anywhere in the world.

India has made real gains in food security, housing, electricity and banking for poorer households but the Bank’s estimates are based on flawed data.

For one, it is unclear how the World Bank arrived at the estimate when data on India’s household consumption can no longer be compared due to changes in survey methods.

Second, the large decline conceals the nature of poverty among Indians, including borderline existence where one setback can push a household or family back into poverty.

Data problems

The government think tank, NITI Aayog, says multidimensional poverty fell from 29.17% in 2013-’14 to 11.28% in 2022-’23, with about 24.82 crore people moving out of poverty. These estimates were arrived at based on calculations made using data from the three rounds of the National Family Health Surveys.

Other economists using India’s own poverty lines have also found low figures for 2022-’23, as The Wire’s review of one such calculation notes. Defenders of the numbers point to expanded food transfers, housing, sanitation and electricity as real improvements in people’s lives.

The estimate compares household consumption surveys that were designed very differently. India’s consumption surveys are conducted by the National Sample Survey Office under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation.

They measure how much households spend each month on necessities such as food, clothing, rent, transport, health, education and more, which help indicate living standards and purchasing power for the economy.

In the 2011-’12 round, surveyors took down spending details from households in a single visit. The newer Household Consumption Expenditure Surveys of 2022-’23 and 2023-’24 spread this out over multiple visits, separate questionnaires for different kinds of spending, and a changed sampling design.

This difference means the two rounds are not strictly comparable, so some of the apparent rise in spending may reflect the new method, and any poverty estimates should account for this. The Indian government had withheld the 2017-’18 consumption survey, and has not updated its official poverty line since 2011-’12 – it still stands at Rs 32 per day. Instead, the government has relied on other estimates to calculate a reduction in poverty.

The World Bank’s methodology note warns of comparability problems and says changes in survey methods can substantially affect measured poverty. It tries to correct for them, but without a bridge survey that measures consumption under both methods, it is unclear how distorted the data might be.

The World Bank’s numbers have also changed sharply in a short span: in 2025, it said extreme poverty in India was at 5.3% for 2022-’23, using the same bar of $3 a day. The new brief puts it at 2.6% a year later. It is possible that poverty halved in a year, but it is also possible that the measure is sensitive to survey design.

The bar is low

The World Bank’s international poverty line of $3 a day is based on purchasing power parity, or PPP, at 2021 prices. It measures what $3 can buy in every country. In India, that works out to roughly Rs 60 per person per day. The international poverty line, however, is meant for the world’s poorest countries. For lower-middle-income countries like India, the World Bank’s framework uses a higher line of $4.20, about Rs 84 a day, in terms of purchasing power parity.

With that as the bar, the share of Indians surviving on less than Rs 82 per day falls from 57.7% to about 16%, which still leaves roughly 23 crore people. It means that roughly three in five Indians were below the line in 2011-’12, and now about one in six are.

Even as per this definition, a household spending a little over Rs 84 per person a day is not poor but precariously positioned where an illness or job loss can push the family into poverty. The World Bank’s brief projects poverty at the $4.20/day line to decline from 14.2% in 2026 to 12.1% by 2028.

The World Bank brief also measured the rural-urban divide in poverty rates. At the $4.20 line, 19.3% of the rural population is poor, while among the urban population, it is 8.6%. This indicates that poverty in India is concentrated in rural areas, so the countryside accounts for most of the country’s remaining poor. Despite employment growth, much of the rural job creation has been in low-productivity work, which limits how far it lifts household incomes.

The World Bank’s October 2026 Poverty & Equity Brief records India’s progress as one of the fastest poverty declines in the world.
The report highlights several significant gains:

✅ 49.6 crore people moved above the lower-middle-income poverty line of $4.20 a day between 2011…

— Nirmala Sitharaman (@nsitharaman) October 30, 2026

Poor jobs growth, stagnant wages

The brief acknowledges stagnant real earnings and higher youth unemployment.

A critical analysis of the report notes that agricultural employment has risen in recent years, which runs against the usual path of development, in which labour moves from farms to factories and services.

Similarly, much of the increase in female labour force participation has come through self-employment and unpaid help in family enterprises, particularly in farming. For instance, Periodic Labour Force Survey data issued this year shows that about 73.5% of rural women workers were engaged in agriculture and 72.7% were self-employed in January-March, while only about 11% held regular salaried jobs.

These women are counted as workers, but their work may add little to household earnings, and does not count the hours spent in unpaid domestic chores and household care work.

The World Bank’s brief counts employment growth among the factors, including welfare and food transfers, leading to a fall in poverty while also saying that real earnings have barely moved. It falls short of explaining the dramatic reduction in poverty.

Who is missing from the survey?

Household consumption surveys also have limits on who they reach. Surveys sample households at a fixed address, and are likely to be less suited to capturing people whose work takes them from place to place, such as seasonal migrants in brick kilns and construction sites. The World Bank acknowledges that the richest households are poorly captured, which can understate inequality.

The Bank’s consumption-based inequality measure shows a decline, while its own data show the top-earning tenth of workers making about 13 times what the bottom tenth earns.

Consumption, income and wealth are different things, and a fall in one says little about the others. Consumption is what households spend, income is what they earn, and wealth is what they own after debts.

A family can keep spending from savings or through borrowing, and can spend more when prices fall even if its income is flat. The festive season shows the difference: last year’s record Diwali sales were driven largely by cuts in the Goods and Services Tax, which lowered prices. This year, spending is expected to decline amid inflation and borrowing costs.

Way forward

The World Bank’s numbers must be used to measure how much poverty in India has declined and how securely.

India should collect consumption data under both the old and new methods in the same households, so that researchers can separate real change from measurement change. Accurate and comparable data on earnings, the quality of employment, and the time women spend on unpaid care are crucial to understanding India’s poverty decline.

Pintu Paul is an Assistant Professor at the School of Public Policy and Governance, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Hyderabad. He holds a PhD from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. Email: pintu.paul@tiss.ac.in.

The Delhi High Court on Friday verbally questioned the New Delhi Municipal Council about its decision to disconnect electricity and water electricity supplies to a heritage mosque near Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s official residence, The Times of India reported.

The court issued notice to the municipal council, seeking its response within two weeks to a petition challenging the move.

“You cannot disconnect electricity without notice,” The Indian Express quoted Justice Subramonium Prasad as saying.

The petition was filed by the mosque’s imam after a single judge declined to order the restoration of the utilities to the religious structure, which is listed as a heritage property on the New Delhi Municipal Council’s website.

On October 19, the mosque received an eviction notice stating that the structure stands on government land and is “unauthorised”. The Land and Development Office, which functions under the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, had directed the mosque authorities to vacate the premises within six days.

On October 29, the demolition was put on hold for four weeks after the Union government informed the court that the Land and Development Office will decide on a representation by the Delhi Waqf Board and would not take any coercive action against the structure during the period.

However, the government opposed allowing access to the mosque, citing safety concerns because of the demolitions in the area.

The notice to the mosque came amid a wider demolition drive in the Race Course Road area, where the prime minister’s official residence is located, including the removal of slum dwellers.

On Friday, the lawyer appearing for the petitioner said that the municipal council disconnected water and electricity supply to the mosque on October 7, during the demolition of surrounding slum clusters, the Times of India reported.

He said that the supplies were disconnected without serving any notice or following due procedure. He added that electricity and water were essential parts of the right to life and could not be withdrawn without statutory safeguards.

The lawyer highlighted that while the action was purportedly taken in compliance with a High Court order for the demolition of nearby slum clusters, the mosque itself was not part of those proceedings, the newspaper reported.

The court will hear the matter again on December 14.

Edited by Sara Varghese.

The Commission for Air Quality Management on Friday imposed Stage 3 restrictions under the Graded Response Action Plan in Delhi and the National Capital Region as a precautionary measure after air quality deteriorated towards the “severe” category.

GRAP is a set of incremental anti-pollution measures that are triggered to prevent further worsening of air quality once it reaches a certain threshold in Delhi-NCR.

As of 5.05 pm, Delhi recorded an average AQI of 380, according to the Sameer application, which provides hourly updates published by the Central Pollution Control Board.

Twenty-five of the 58 active monitoring stations recorded “severe” air quality, while one recorded “severe plus” levels. Punjabi Bagh recorded the highest AQI at 453, followed by Jahangirpuri at 447 and Rohini at 444.

An index value between 0 and 50 indicates “good” air quality, between 51 and 100 indicates “satisfactory” air quality and between 101 and 200 indicates “moderate” air quality. As the index value increases further, air quality deteriorates. A value of 201 and 300 means “poor” air quality, while between 301 and 400 indicates “very poor” air.

Between 401 and 450 indicates “severe” air pollution, while anything above the 450 threshold is termed “severe plus”.

The cities adjoining the capital also recorded “poor” to “very poor” air quality. While Noida recorded an AQI of 300, Greater Noida 314, Ghaziabad 259 and Gurugram 365.

Stage 3 measures include a ban on non-essential construction work and the closure of stone crushers and mining activities, in addition to the measures already imposed under Stage 1 and Stage 2.

They also include the shifting of primary school up to Class 5 to hybrid mode. Parents and students have the option to choose between offline and online classes wherever available.

The restrictions under the first two stages were introduced on October 21 and November 2.

Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court said vehicular emissions were a “major” contributor to air pollution in the national capital region and called for immediate, medium-term and long-term measures to address the problem, Hindustan Times reported.

A bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant said that imposing more restrictions alone would not solve the problem and stressed the need to raise public awareness.

Air quality deteriorates sharply in the winter months in Delhi, which is often ranked the world’s most polluted capital. The lighting of firecrackers during Diwali, along with stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana, vehicular pollution, falling temperatures, decreased wind speeds and emissions from industries and coal-fired plants contribute to the problem.

This year, Diwali will be celebrated on November 8. The Supreme Court on Monday allowed the manufacture, sale and bursting of certified green firecrackers in Delhi-NCR for two days during the festival.

Written by Sara Varghese. Edited by Anamika Pathak.

Also read: How an El Niño winter could worsen pollution in Delhi

This story is the first in a series on deep-sea fishing in India, produced in partnership with the Pulitzer Center’s Ocean Reporting Network. The first story examines India’s Deep Sea Fishing Vessel Scheme and finds a mismatch between its ambitions and the realities of fishing.

Shaju Antony, a traditional fisherman from Kerala, was encouraged by his parish priest to apply for a government scheme in 2020 that provided financial assistance for deep-sea fishing vessels. He gathered about Rs 72 lakh for his part of the contribution for a boat under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana, a central government scheme.

He received the boat three years later, in December 2023. But the boat started showing signs of trouble as soon as he started using it. Antony and his crew spent another Rs 30 lakh repairing the boat. Finally, after months of sending petitions to the state government to look into the matter, he gave up. “If they are building boats for fishermen, why aren’t they consulting the fishermen?” he asks.

About 1,500 km further up, on the west coast of India, Kiran Koli, a traditional fisherman and leader of a fishers’ union from Maharashtra, had also applied for the same government scheme in 2017-’18 when it was under the government’s Neel Kranti (Blue Revolution) Mission. In 2020, when the scheme became Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana, Koli was the first person on the list, he says.

In June 2026, nearly a decade after he first applied, Koli received his boat. But the final two instalments of the subsidy from the government, which cover a percentage of the boat’s cost, are yet to arrive. “We were supposed to prosper with this new boat, but are instead caught in a deeper mess, a never-ending wait,” he told Mongabay-India. “Imagine, someone like me, a union leader, is stuck in this mess. How will a regular traditional fisherman survive this?” he asks, underscoring the concerns that make other fishers wary of participating in the scheme.

Fisheries is an important economic sector for India, contributing 1.1% to the national GDP and 7.26% to agricultural GVA (Gross Value Added). It serves nearly 28 million livelihoods in the country and contributes to nearly 8% of the global output. Coastal fishing, however, faces the challenges of overfishing, coastal erosion and development pressures. This has prompted the government to look to deeper waters to expand the sector.

With a coastline of over 11,000 kilometers, India has been pursuing deep-sea fishing, driven by the promise of high-value catch for exports, better livelihood opportunities for traditional fishers, and securing greater access to waters beyond its national jurisdiction.

As part of the broader push towards deep sea fishing, in 2020 the government launched the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana, a national fisheries scheme, under which the largest allocation of funds is to support traditional fishers to acquire deep-sea fishing vessels. With these vessels, the fishers can conduct fishing activity at sea depths greater than 200 metres. This gives fishers access to higher-value species such as oceanic tuna, billfish, sharks and oceanic squid that are less available in nearshore waters.

However, a deeper look at the actual implementation of the scheme exposes a disconnect between the policy on paper and the on-ground needs and realities of the country’s fishers.

Fishers hesitant

Traditional fishers in India are defined by their reliance on ancestral knowledge of the sea, and skills passed down through generations, alongside a deep understanding of local marine ecosystems.

The central government’s Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana aimed to convert traditional fishers into deep-sea fishers, but it has found few takers so far.

Under the scheme, a deep-sea fishing vessel, mainly a tuna longliner-and-gillnetter, worth a minimum of Rs 1.2 crore is offered to the beneficiary fisher at a subsidised cost, with the government and beneficiary sharing the costs.

The share of investment in these boats is typically 60% from the fishers and 40% from the government, with higher subsidies for women and certain disadvantaged groups, though it varies state to state. The boat costs do not include costs of the fishing gear, which the boat owners have to buy themselves.

The government had approved around Rs 470 crore for the construction of 392 deep-sea fishing vessels under the scheme’s 2020-’25 implementation period. But as of September 2026, only 131, less than half of the approved number of boats, have been ordered (constructed and under construction), according to a compilation of responses received from RTI applications and officials from each state.

Many of the fishers who invested their trust and money early on in the scheme are in debt. Delayed subsidy payments, high operational costs arising from defects and poor boat design have left them with more money lost than gained. They also do not have a robust supply chain or a market for their catch. The difficulties faced by the initial beneficiaries have made others more cautious about taking up the scheme.

The scheme intended to improve income and livelihoods has, in turn, left many fishers questioning its financial viability.

Increasing catch, expanding presence

India’s policy on marine fisheries has been motivated by its ambitions to increase fish catch for domestic markets and exports, and securing its presence in the exclusive economic zone waters and ABNJ — areas beyond national jurisdiction.

Its deep-sea fishing ambitions have historically responded to the demands of the global market. The initial demand for penaeid prawn led India to move toward mechanisation of its fishing fleets and increasing its capacity for fish catch and for surveys. This was followed by a demand for exploration of tuna and tuna-like species. India then followed the development template of several other countries pursuing deep-sea fishing. It began importing foreign vessels, forming foreign country collaborations, joint ventures, investments, technology transfers and training for gear-species diversification.

India faced resistance against foreign investment and foreign vessels in the Indian waters by the country’s traditional and small-scale fishers. This led to a shift in policy where the focus then became on building and promoting indigenous deep-sea fishing vessels.

Boats on the ground

Most of the 131 boat orders from the 392 approved are from Karnataka where 58 boats have been sanctioned and Maharashtra with 49. Some of the largest fish-producing states like Andhra Pradesh and Kerala have only six boats operational and there have been no takers from other major fishing states like Odisha, Gujarat, Goa, Tamil Nadu and others.

This variation also reflects how the scheme has been taken up across different states as well as the fishers’ ability and willingness to take on the financial costs involved.

Kerala was, in fact, the first state to implement the deep-sea fishing vessel scheme under Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana that was launched in 2020.

Their vessels were constructed by Cochin Shipyard Ltd, India’s largest shipbuilding and maintenance facility. The vessels were 22.7m long tuna-longliners-cum-gillnetters made entirely of steel, with a 230 HP engine by Indian company Greaves Cotton Ltd, with a wheelhouse and accommodation facilities. All components of the boat were of Indian make, following the protocol of Make In India, a government initiative to encourage domestic manufacturing.

All the beneficiaries of the Kerala vessels had consistent complaints – they returned to the shore with rotting fish because the cooling compressor did not work, the engine stalled mid-operation at sea, it guzzled too much fuel, the rudder did not function properly, there was seepage of water in the engine room. None of the beneficiaries are currently earning a profit on these boats and have debt rising to over Rs 4 crore collectively.

Seeing the experience of Kerala fishers, the fishers and boatyard builders in Karnataka and Maharashtra lobbied for a different design. In August 2025, during a consultation with stakeholders, the central ministry of fisheries sent a modified/amended standard operating procedure (SOP) for procurement of deep-sea fishing vessels. While the new SOP would help the next set of boats, the Kerala fishers continue to suffer.

In Maharashtra and Karnataka, two important fishing states on India’s west coast, the overall number of boats on the ground is higher than in other states, but the expenditure is still significantly less than the approved funds.

Officials of the respective states said that the fishers are hesitant to apply for the scheme because of high upfront investment and they are not confident of receiving the subsidy amount from the government in time. Work on building the boats starts once the fishers put in the first installment of their share of funds, after which the government puts in their installment. The remaining installments come through at different stages as the work on the boat construction progresses.

“For a traditional fisherman, this is a huge investment to make,” said Kiran Koli, the fisher union leader from Maharashtra. “They would be willing to take this risk if the returns are assured,” he said.

In Karnataka, the central government approved funds for 114 boats. Only 58 boat orders have been placed so far, of which only 31 boats are completely constructed. A state official from Karnataka said they had a hard time convincing fishers to take up the scheme as the fishers had doubts about it.

In Andhra Pradesh, a state on the east coast with rich fishing grounds for yellowfin tuna, the central government had approved funds for 50 deep-sea fishing vessels between 2020 and 2025. But so far, only six deep-sea fishing vessels are in operation, in the districts of Nellore, Kakinada and Tirupati.

State government officials say that fishers are not willing to come forward to avail themselves of the scheme because the vessels are too expensive and it is difficult to get loans. They added that for the deep-sea catch, there are no adequate processing or export facilities available in the existing fish landing centres and harbours. Cold storage facilities are not enough. Those who have the boats are not happy because they are not finding a good market to sell the catch at good prices.

In the Andaman & Nicobar Islands, there have been orders for three deep-sea fishing vessels that are still under construction. While in Lakshadweep, nine deep-sea fishing vessels are currently under construction.

The islands were in fact part of the 2025-’26 Union Budget announcement, where India’s finance minister emphasised a special focus on harnessing their marine fisheries potential, particularly for tuna fisheries and developing a tuna cluster in the Andamans. Officials in the Andaman & Nicobar Islands have clarified that so far no money has been spent on building tuna-related infrastructure.

No takers in some states

Meanwhile, in several major fishing states, including Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Goa and Odisha, there were no takers for Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana’s deep-sea fishing vessel scheme during its 2020–25 implementation period. Fishers in these states raised concerns over the investment required, the prescribed boat design and fishing gear. In some cases, they were also wary after earlier deep-sea fishing schemes had failed to take off.

Tamil Nadu, located on the south-eastern coast of the Indian peninsula, was, in fact, one of the early implementers of the government’s efforts towards deep-sea fishing. Under a previous scheme called Blue Revolution, the central government sanctioned 281.5 crore to the Tamil Nadu government, between 2017 and 2020, to convert 750 trawlers to longlining vessels for the fishers in the state’s Palk Bay region. But though the state government received an approval for 750 boats, state officials say they got only about 91 boat orders under the Blue Revolution scheme.

When the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana’s deep-sea fishing vessel scheme came about in 2020, no fisher in Tamil Nadu opted for it, citing high operational and construction costs, Tamil Nadu fisheries officials explained. “They say that they get insufficient landing catch as compared to the operational costs, so they do not want to go for this. They also don’t have skilled labour for longlining,” explained a state fisheries official, requesting anonymity as he was not authorised to speak to the media. The officials plan to introduce interest-free loans, aside from the existing subsidy, with the hope of attracting fishers to the scheme.

In Gujarat, a state on India’s west coast that boasts of the longest coastline of over 2400 km, and consistently tops the country with its marine-catch landings, the central government had approved a budget for 50 deep-sea fishing vessels under the 2020-2025 Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana scheme. But conversations with the state fisheries officials and the empanelled boatyards confirmed that no fisher in Gujarat has come forward to invest in the scheme.

Damodar Chamudiya, president of Mahavir Fisheries Cooperative Society, one of the largest fisheries cooperative societies in the state, with over 6,000 members, told Mongabay-India that the reason none of their members applied for the scheme so far is because the government was not offering a refund on the diesel tax. “Our boats consume over 60,000 litres of diesel every year. Our fishermen cannot earn good money if there are no tax rebates on fuel,” Chamudiya said. With rebates on fuel, the per-unit cost of fishing reduces, allowing for the boats to have incentives to venture deeper.

On June 29, 2026, the Gujarat government approved a revision to its Diesel VAT Subsidy Scheme, now also allowing vessels over 20 metres in length, which includes deep-sea fishing vessels, to take up the subsidy on VAT on high-speed diesel used in mechanised fishing boats. Chamudiya said that thirty members of his cooperative will now apply for the scheme.

In Goa, the state officials say that a majority of the fishers in Goa conduct purse seining, and they were not keen to take up longliners-cum-gillnetters. Many fishers in Maharashtra cited similar reasons for not taking the scheme.

The scheme itself, however, does not seem to be the problem; its design and implementation is, say the fishers. Shaju Antony, who is deep in debt because of the scheme, still believes that the intention behind it is good. “When we got this boat, we imagined that our people could go into the deep sea, catch fish, and bring them back. This will be an asset to our society, specifically our cooperative society. We started with that intention,” he told Mongabay-India. “Now we are in trouble because of the manufacturing of this boat.”

Lack of shore-based infrastructure

While poor boat design, high price and delayed subsidies have left the fishers, who participated in the scheme, disappointed, the absence of processing facilities and an assured market place for deep-sea catch, deter the fishers further.

“We need a tuna-specific infrastructure either on board the fishing vessels or at least at the harbours. Without it, one cannot sell the fish at good margins,” said an official from the state fisheries department of Andhra Pradesh, adding that due to a lack of strong market linkages and processing units the fishers are reluctant to take on the scheme.

NITI Aayog, India’s apex public policy think tank, states in it’s own strategy document on India’s deep-sea fishing potential, that the lack of adequate infrastructure and access to advanced technologies is one of the most significant challenges hindering the growth of India’s deep-sea and offshore fishing industry.

Deep sea push continues

On the global stage, India’s stance is that large, historically subsidised distant-water fishing nations bear primary responsibility for the depleting tuna stocks, not developing coastal states such as India, whose fishing sector, as India portrays, is predominantly small-scale and comparatively low-impact, a claim that is internally contested by the country’s small-scale fisher unions.

This is reflected in two ongoing negotiations that India is a part of: the WTO fishery subsidies agreement, which India recently signed, and the IOTC talks on criteria for tuna-catch allocation. The WTO agreement includes binding rules to curb harmful subsidies linked to overfishing, overcapacity, and illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing. The IOTC, the regulatory body overseeing tuna fishing in the Indian Ocean, recommended total allowable catch and quotas for tuna species for the 2027-2028 period

India has paired its international advocacy with domestic frameworks that operationalise the same “protect small-scale EEZ fishers, regulate high-seas activity responsibly” logic. It introduced the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana, of which the deep-sea fishing vessel scheme is a part. And in November and December 2025, with a view to regulate India’s fishing activity in the EEZ and the ABNJ regions, and driven by the imperatives of WTO and IOTC negotiations, the Ministry of External Affairs introduced fishing rules and guidelines. Then, in July 2026, the government of India launched a programme to issue letters of authorisation for Indian-flagged fishing vessels to undertake regulated fishing operations in the high seas.

Mongabay-India sent a list of questions to the Department of Fisheries, Government of India about our investigation seeking comments. The ministry has not responded yet.

As India expands its ambitions for deep-sea fishing, the experience of fishers under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana scheme so far offers an indication of what will need to be addressed before those ambitions can sail.

This article was first published on Mongabay.

This story was produced in partnership with the Pulitzer Center’s Ocean Reporting Network.

Could your home be at risk from rising seas? Scroll is investigating coastal flooding in Mumbai and Kolkata, mapping vulnerable areas and examining whether developers and the authorities are accounting for the risks. Support this investigation and help us make this reporting possible. Fund the project here.

Citizens whose names were excluded from draft electoral rolls during the special intensive revision in seven states and Union Territories can submit a fresh enumeration form to have their names included in the final list, the Election Commission said. The provision applies to those whose enumeration forms were not received, resulting in them being marked absent, shifted, dead or duplicate in the draft rolls.

The seven states are: Delhi, Maharashtra, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Telangana and Nagaland.

The booth level officers will issue fresh enumeration forms to these voters. Those who have shifted to a new address within the state must submit the form along with proof of residence. They will not need to file Form 8, which is used to update addresses, the poll body said.

Electors who have not shifted homes but were unable to submit their forms earlier must submit the form along with a statement explaining the reason for the delay. Read on.

The Gauhati High Court quashed the detention of activist Pranab Doley under the National Security Act. The Act allows for long periods of detention without trial up to a year.

Doley was arrested on July 12, days after he took part in a protest against a hotel project in Ingle Pathar, a village adjoining the Kaziranga National Park in Assam.

The police had alleged that he “unlawfully trespassed into the site of the Tea Tribes Museum and thereafter trespassed into the nearby ATDC [Assam Tourism Development Corporation] Hyatt project at Ingle Pathar with deadly weapons” during the protest. Read on.

The Supreme Court refused to suspend the 10-year prison sentence imposed on journalist Tarun Tejpal for raping and sexually harassing a junior colleague in 2013. The court rejected the journalist’s plea saying the case did not warrant such relief.

Advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Tejpal, asked the bench when it might consider suspending the sentence. “We can’t give a stage now,” the court responded. Read on.

The Supreme Court clarified that its March 11 verdict, which held that parental income alone cannot be used to determine whether a candidate belongs to the creamy layer of the Other Backward Classes category, would not apply to past appointments and admissions. The court added that the previous order would apply to the candidates who were parties to the proceedings before it.

It said that existing seniority and promotions would not be disturbed on the basis of the ruling, while cases pending before courts and other competent authorities would be decided on their own merits and entitlement.

In its March order, the Supreme Court had said that whether a person is part of the creamy layer must be determined primarily by the status and category of the posts held by the parents, not income alone. Read on.

Social media platform X told the Delhi High Court that the purported notices directing it to block the accounts of digital rights groups Internet Freedom Foundation and Software Freedom Law Centre were sent by an imposter and not the Delhi Police. The court was hearing a petition filed by the two digital rights groups challenging the notices.

The counsel representing X told the bench that the accounts would not be taken down.

“We have done an internal investigation and it turns out this was an imposter,” the lawyer said, adding that the platform had filed a complaint with the Delhi Police.

Following the platform’s submission, the court disposed of the pleas. Read on.

Takedown notices from RSS, Delhi Police to digital rights groups turn out to be fake, reports Ayush Tiwari

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People who were issued enumeration forms during the special intensive revision of electoral rolls in Delhi and six states, but whose names were excluded from the draft voter list after being marked absent, shifted, dead or duplicate, will get another opportunity to have their names included in the final rolls, the Election Commission said on Friday.

The provision applies to electors in Delhi, Maharashtra, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Telangana and Nagaland.

The booth level officers will issue fresh enumeration forms to these voters. Those who have shifted to a new address within the state must submit the form along with proof of residence. They will not need to file Form 8, which is used to update addresses, the poll body said.

The Election Commission said that district election officers and electoral registration officers must make every effort to contact the electors through booth level officers and ensure that enumeration forms are delivered to them either physically or through electronic means.

Electors who have not shifted homes but were unable to submit their forms earlier must submit the form along with a statement explaining the reason for the delay. They can submit these documents to the electoral registration officer, assistant electoral registration officer or booth level officer, the poll panel said.

The Election Commission also directed officials to publicise the measures widely, including through announcements in areas where homeless persons live. For homeless voters who do not have address documents, a field verification report by the booth level officer will be accepted as proof of residence, the poll panel said.

Enumeration forms can also be submitted through the Election Commission’s ECINET portal.

The poll panel said booth-wise lists of deleted voters, along with the “probable reasons” for their exclusion, would be displayed on notice boards at polling stations and government offices and uploaded to the chief electoral officer’s website in a readable PDF format.

It also said that voters who have already submitted Form 6 for fresh enrolment during the special intensive revision, “need not submit the enumeration form with statement afresh”.

The decision comes a week after the Election Commission on October 29 extended the deadline for filing claims and objections in the special intensive revision of electoral rolls in Delhi and Maharashtra, and expanded the processing window in Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana and Nagaland.

The poll panel also postponed the date of publication of the final voter lists in the five states and Delhi. The final voter list in Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Haryana and Nagaland will be published on November 30 and in Delhi on December 22.

The deadline for disposal of all claims and objections in Jharkhand is November 23 while the final roll is scheduled to be published on November 30.

The six states and Delhi are among the 19 states and Union Territories where the voter roll revision is being carried out in the third phase of the special intensive revision.

A contentious exercise

In 2025, the first phase of the exercise was conducted in Bihar. It was extended to 12 states and Union Territories in the second phase in late 2025 and the first half of 2026.

Since the exercise began, concerns have been raised that the revision could eliminate genuine voters from the rolls and even shape electoral outcomes, as Scroll has reported.

In May, the Supreme Court upheld the legality of the revision. But it said that the exercise does not mean that the Election Commission can decide on whether the person is an Indian citizen.

Despite this, Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled states have cited the SIR to deny ration cards to those who have been eliminated from the rolls. In some cases, the police have denied permission for their passports to be renewed.

Written by Anamika Pathak. Edited by Sara Varghese.

Also read:

• Follow Scroll’s coverage of the special intensive revision of electoral rolls here.
• Explainer: Why the Election Commission’s Form 6 for new voters has triggered a legal row
• SIR explained: Why the voter roll revision has become so controversial