| The antidote to the fake information problem is here. Under the new Information Technology Rules 2021, WhatsApp can now be asked to disclose the identity of the original sender of a viral message to the government. Praveen Chakravarty wrote that this is not enough. For any real impact, the identity must be available to the receivers. The mere knowledge that their identities could be revealed can act as a strong deterrent for mischievous fake messages.
Faced with a severe power crunch, the Karnataka government cited public interest and private generation companies are now forced to supply power to the state discom. Karnataka is not the first state to take such an action, nor is it the first time it has taken such an action, wrote Renuka Sane. States must plan for increase in demand. Resorting to “public interest” as a tool for crisis management is not sustainable.
Writing about theaterisation and jointness, General Manoj Mukund Naravane (retd) said that in trying to satisfy everyone, one could end up satisfying no one. The three Services should, therefore, stick to what they know and do best to avoid inducting platforms that are not vital to their primary role and charter. As a first step, therefore, towards optimisation, all land-based systems should be allocated to the Army.
The Ministry of Finance is the linchpin of the country’s economic policy. But we are in a phase where international trade concerns are having larger economic ramifications, and so the commerce ministry should assume, for some time, pole position in economic policy, wrote TCA Sharad Raghavan.
India has flagged off a ferry service from Nagapattinam in Tamil Nadu to Kankesanthurai in Jaffna that will give people from India and Sri Lanka more options to connect with each other. Why should we really care about this boat restarting after 40 years? Because it goes beyond just carrying people, it is smart economics too, wrote Jyoti Malhotra. The renewed connectivity will now include digital payments, fintech, and a joint energy grid.
Suhag Shukla hailed the California state veto of the anti-caste bill. But she warned against what she called hateful activism against Hindu minorities in the West and wrote that the stigma, harm and targeting of Hindus has only begun.
I have two stellar Ground Reports articles for you to read this week.
Gujarat’s ambitious fintech capital, called GIFT City, aspires to be a glitzy finance district, but it is no Dubai or Singapore. It has money, fancy glass-fronted buildings, and wide roads. But it lacks the booze, buzz and soul that a global youthful workforce needs to make the hub a success, wrote Manasi Phadke. But big plans are afoot as GIFT City holds its breath for greatness.
In the final article in the finely researched and reported series on the Parsi community in India, Shubahngi Misra wrote about a deep, dark secret that exposes a sort of caste order within. At the receiving end are the offspring of unions between Parsi sahibs and Gujarati tribal women. Most Mumbai Parsis don’t want to discuss their tribal brethren, even if some do acknowledge distant village cousins. Priests refuse to live in the secluded villages, and no fire temples have been built. When tribal Parsis come to cities like Mumbai or Surat, they’re handed jobs that no one else wants to do, like cleaning the Towers of Silence.
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