An exhibition to Thirst after Our 2018 TOI litfest and my recent volume for the tricentenary of Mumbai’s mystical Parsi well were both titled Waternamah. This week I again immersed myself in the ‘story of water’. ‘Thirst’ is the Wellcome Collection’s latest London exhibition. Spread over Aridity, Rain, Glaciers, Surface Water and Ground Water, its…
The son of a British couple detained in Iran on espionage charges had broke down when he learnt about his parents’ arrest, insisting they are innocent tourists.”I want to be crystal clear, my parents aren’t spies, they’re not political players, they aren’t criminals. They’re Mum and Dad,” Joe Bennett, the son of the couple said…
When the US President Donald Trump described BRICS as pursuing an “anti-American” agenda and threatened member countries with additional tariffs – possibly up to 10 percent – if they sought to build an alternative financial system to the US-led global order, it reflected a perception rather than a reality. Such rhetoric overlooks the broader transformation…
Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday announced new sanctions against a senior UN Human Rights Council official who criticized Israel’s military actions in Gaza. Rubio accused the official of leading a “campaign of political and economic warfare” against both the United States and Israel, as reported by Politico. Francesca Albanese, UN Human Rights Council…
Introduction The 3rd edition of the MSME Digital Index Report, 2025 released by PayNearby, a branchless banking and digital network reveals that over 73% of small businesses across semi-urban and rural India have experienced increased income or improved operational efficiency as a result of adoption of digital tools. The MSME Digital Index 2025 has showcased: Digital consumption; Tech awareness;…
Welcome back to another edition of My Take 5, your weekly round-up of top international news. For this edition we again focus on the war in Ukraine, China’s stand on that conflict as revealed by its foreign minister Wang Yi, Beijing’s help to Pakistan during India’s Operation Sindoor, Chinese agents’ shocking plan to attack Taiwan’s…
The media (print & visual) is full of stories of increased consumption driving economic activity. It conveniently omits to mention that much of the increased consumption is thru taking on higher Debt and not thru higher earnings. This difference between spendings from higher income and spendings by taking on higher Debt must be understood. As…
A jazzed up, illuminated version of our humble auto rickshaws are plying their trade at Wimbledon. As the nearest tube stations are a good 20-30 minutes’ walk away from the grounds, and in slightly uneven terrain, a handful of autos are willing to save you the uphill/downhill climb. Of course, at a steep price. Pound 20 for…
In a shocking case from Pakistan’s Punjab province, a man allegedly shot and killed his daughter after an argument over her TikTok activity, police said on Wednesday.The incident took place in the Dhok Choudrian Takht Pari area of Rawalpindi district. The father had repeatedly told his daughter to delete her TikTok social media account, according…
Why women are still denied their fair share We live in a world of wealth, yet millions of women remain poor.Women grow the food, care for the young, hold families and communities together, but, when it comes to land ownership, wages, or climate funding, they’re left fighting for scraps. This isn’t just inequality. It’s a…
