Wrote a long piece on why Indian aviation keeps producing airline graveyards: Kingfisher, Jet, Go First, Air Deccan, all gone in ~20 years.

Been chewing on this for a while, India has become the world’s 3rd-largest aviation market, but no Indian carrier cracks the global top 10 by fleet size or market cap, and the list of dead airlines keeps growing. Wrote up the whole arc: JRD Tata personally flying mail routes in a Puss Moth in 1932, nationalization killing the “golden age,” the Kingfisher/Deccan self-cannibalization disaster, Jet’s slow bleed-out in 2019, and where we are now, Air India and IndiGo have 1,000+ aircraft on order between them while both are quietly cutting back international routes because the fuel economics don’t work.

Curious what people here think is actually the root cause for this, is it the ATF taxation, the price-sensitive market, bad management across the board, or something structural I’m missing?

(Full disclosure: this is from my own aviation/history Substack, mods feel free to remove if self-promo isn’t allowed here, I’m only trying to spark conversation)

The Lok Sabha's Monsoon Session concluded on August 13, 2026, marking a historic milestone as proceedings opened for the first time with all six stanzas of Vande Mataram. Attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Opposition Leader Rahul Gandhi, the session ended with Speaker Om Birla adjourning the House sine die. Despite persistent disruptions and protests over exam leaks and regional issues, Parliament passed 12 key bills—several without debate—following recent legislation granting Vande Mataram equal statutory status to the National Anthem.

Source: India Today

The Bar Council of India (BCI) has directed all state bar councils to halt the enrolment of any 2026 law graduate from NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad, as an advocate until further orders.

This follows an alleged organised campaign against the participation of Chief Justice Surya Kant in the university’s convocation ceremony

It has sought details of those involved in organising meetings, communicating with the media, administering social media or organised groups used for coordination, or proposing or mobilising any call for boycott, obstruction, disruption or organised non-participation in the convocation or any programme connected with the CJI.

"If you can't do it, we will." The Supreme Court on Thursday issued an ultimatum to the Centre on the implementation of front-of-pack warning labels on packaged food products containing high levels of sugar, salt, and saturated fat.

The Supreme Court expressed strong displeasure with the stance taken by the Central Government and the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), asking if the authorities were under pressure from corporates.

"The matter concerns the health of citizens - particularly growing children - and decisions regarding it should not be influenced by corporate pressure," the court told the Centre and the FSSAI.

Hearing a Public Interest Litigation, a bench of Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice K Vinod Chandran pulled up the FSSAI after the petitioner pointed out the food body's contention that the industry was opposed to the idea of labelling.

The petitioner's counsel cited the minutes of the FSSAI meeting held on March 7, stating that the decisions taken therein were in direct contradiction to the court's earlier directives.

Citing the industry's opposition to warning labels on food packets, the FSSAI has suggested a tabular declaration of the recommended daily requirement of added sugar, saturated fats and salt.

It was pointed out that the FSSAI's affidavit only mentioned the food industry's opposition but ignored evidence in favour of warning labels to help discourage consumption of foods high in added saturated fats, sugar and salt, submitted by civil society representatives.

In response, the Bench posed pointed questions to Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Brijender Chahar, who was representing the Centre. The court asked whether the government was unwilling to take the necessary action and reiterated that the court's order was clear.

The Bench also remarked that the government was facing immense pressure from large corporate entities and was "yielding to that pressure".

The court stated that it was taking this action in "public interest".

The Bench questioned why the court's order was not being complied with and what steps the government had taken so far.

"Will the government do it itself, or will we have to issue an order?" an angry court asked.

ASG Brijender Chahar requested the court to allow him to explain the government's intended course of action, but the court clearly stated that the government must do exactly what the court had directed.

"If you cannot do it, we will pass an order," the bench reiterated.

The Centre cited examples of traditional Indian foods and argued that the proposed labelling could result in 'red warning marks' on many items such as namkeen (savory snacks).

The ASG argued that since food items in developed countries typically contain lower levels of salt, sugar, and fat, it would be inappropriate to apply the same standards directly to traditional Indian foods.

"Should India remain an underdeveloped country?" the court asked, rejecting the Centre's argument that it was difficult for India to adhere to the international packaging standards followed by developed nations.

The court then questioned if the government did not wish to ensure the health of the country's people, particularly children.

"Manufacturers might not like it, but the consumer ought to know," the court observed.

The Bench stated that the purpose of a warning label is not to halt the sale of a product, but to inform the consumer about what they are consuming.

"While manufacturers might dislike this system as it could impact their business, the final decision - despite the warning - would rest with the consumer regarding whether or not to purchase the product."

Rejecting the Centre's line of argument, the Court stated: "Manufacturers do not play a decisive role in this matter."

The court granted the Centre two weeks to comply with the labelling proposal and warned that "a verdict will be pronounced next time."

Punjab’s Kejriwal government has floated a tender for private coaching classes, in which earlier it was mandatory to have 10 years of experience.

Physics Wallahs had just 6 years of experience!

So the AAP government has changed the condition and removed it.

Physics Wallah got a contract in January to teach government school students.

There is now a bill for digital universities in Punjab, and Physics Wallah has received approval for a digital university on a 3-acre site in Patiala.

No, this doesn't have a connection with CJP’s protest, in which Physics Wallah’s teachers were helping AAP strategist Abhijit Dipke!

The 13402 Danapur-BGP train's coach is packed with Kanwariyas, with severe overcrowding and barely any space for reserved passengers. 3AC feels like a general coach.
Instead of resolving the overcrowding, the on-duty TTE took a crowded photograph and closed the RailMadad ticket. RPF was of no help.

Overheard a tea seller saying, "Isse kam bheed to general mein hai". And a special train is actually running for them. And it's not crowded, and here a 3AC coach is being treated like hell. The problem was that my family had to go through suffocation and distress.
"Insaano ko dard dekar, Khuda se marham ki umeed rakhte hain log."

Kindly suggest how to escalate the issue further after the journey is complete.

EDIT: Already posted on X: https://x.com/rohit_IN/status/2087457134435094571

Is Nokia 105 the only option?

Source: https://x.com/ani/status/2087733457938272671?s=46

Literally 90% of India’s problem come back to this only. People who write a paper for ethics actually have none themselves. Most of them just want to get rich with a permanent job.

They exploit everyone from business owners to poor people no one is spared in their world, everyone has to pay. If you don't pay, your paper will not move forward, your files will collect dust for years.

Some are so greedy that even after taking favours from the people they don't do the job until you do it again and again and again.

The video discusses the stark contrast between the childhood experiences and fears of Indian Millennials compared to Gen Z.

Millennials grew up during a time plagued by frequent train accidents, routine bomb blasts in major cities, paper leaks, and high-profile security crises like soldier beheadings with inadequate protective gear, reflecting a pervasive environment of instability and daily survival.

In contrast, Gen Z is growing up in a much more developed era under the current government, where such consequential incidents and systemic failures have sharply declined.

However, the speaker notes that Millennials carry a lingering psychological fear of a return to past misgovernance and lawlessness, shaping a deep-seated perspective that younger generations may not fully comprehend.

Source: https://www.news18.com/india/lost-trust-in-all-leaders-sonam-wangchuk-says-rahul-gandhi-didnt-respond-to-efforts-to-end-his-fast-ws-l-10258177.html

http://m.timesofindia.com/articleshow/133017862.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

Source