Latest posts
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Queer love: A new book brings stories of lesbian couples and non-binary persons from across India

I met Aditi in Coimbatore in 2022. Pooja and I had gone to the city on work and, always seeking a chance to hang out with queer folx, we announced a spontaneous queer meetup on our Instagram stories. Aditi and I had already connected on Instagram by then and I invited her to the meetup…
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Kharif sowing falls 22.7% amid delayed monsoon

The sowing of Kharif crops fell by 22.7% as compared to last year as delayed southwest monsoon has slowed planting in several states, showed data released by the Union government on Monday. As of Thursday, the area under kharif crop cultivation was at 182.7 lakh hectares, down from 236.4 lakh hectares in 2025, the Ministry…
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How Mulk Raj Anand and WEB Du Bois found common ground at a moment of anti-imperialist solidarity

One of the most enduring photographs from the first Afro-Asian Writers Conference in Tashkent in 1958 shows two men standing side by side, both in suits and carrying walking sticks. One is the Indian novelist Mulk Raj Anand. The other is 90-year-old WEB Du Bois, whose passport had been confiscated by the US government just…
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Indian writer Tashan Mehta’s novel ‘Mad Sisters of Esi’ shortlisted for 2026 Ursula K Le Guin Prize

Indian writer Tashan Mehta’s novel The Mad Sisters of Esi has been shortlisted for the 2026 Ursula K Le Guin Prize for Fiction. The annual $25,000 cash prize is given to a writer for a single work of imaginative fiction. This award is intended to recognise writers who are “realists of a larger reality, who…
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‘Act of aggression’: India condemns Pakistani strikes in Afghanistan

India on Monday condemned Pakistani airstrikes in Afghanistan that killed civilians, describing it as a “blatant act of aggression” against Kabul. New Delhi said that the Pakistani military’s bombing was an assault on Afghanistan’s sovereignty, and a direct threat to regional peace and stability. “It reflects Pakistan’s persistent pattern of reckless behaviour and its futile…
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Bengal passes OBC amendment bills, removes 77 Muslim communities from list

The West Bengal Assembly on Monday passed two bills to amend laws pertaining to Other Backward Classes reservations and remove several Muslim communities from the OBC list as directed by the Calcutta High Court in May 2024, the Hindustan Times reported. The amendments will revise the share of the Other Backward Classes quota in the…
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WhatsApp Opens Username Reservations For 3 Billion Users: Here’s How You Can Chat With Others Without Sharing Your Phone Number
WhatsApp has begun rolling out username reservations for its global user base, ahead of a full feature launch planned later this year. The move allows users to start a chat or be added by a new contact without sharing their phone number, marking one of the most significant changes to how identity works on the…
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Mumbai Shocker: Kandivali’s Swagat Ashram Warden Booked For Allegedly Assaulting 2 Minors, Investigation Underway
Mumbai: The Charkop Police have booked a 21-year-old warden of Swagat Ashram, Rajesh Kumar, for allegedly physically assaulting two minors at the ashram in Kandivali West. The accused allegedly grabbed an 11-year-old boy by the throat and slapped him multiple times after the boy and his cousin woke up late. According to the FIR, the two…
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Long before climate change, heat was a matter of medical anxiety for female health in colonial India

According to an article in Down to Earth, published in May 2026, there is an imminent need to recognise heat as a gendered climate disaster. Studies show that “women’s bodies respond differently to heat stress at a physiological level. Hormonal fluctuations, body composition, and metabolic rates all affect thermoregulation, making women more susceptible to dehydration,…
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MP Government Readies Promotion Lists As High Court Verdict Holds Up 2 Lakh Employees’ Career Progression
Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): The General Administration Department (GAD) has asked around 20 departments to review their preparations related to the promotion list and prepare the seniority list up to 2029. Earlier, it was anticipated that the path for promotion of waiting officials would open shortly, but it appears difficult for now. In the meantime, the…
