3 Things

The headlines of the day by The Indian Express

First, we talk to The Indian Express’ Sukrita Baruah about a series of detentions in Assam, where Bengali-origin Muslims declared foreigners have allegedly been pushed across the border into Bangladesh.

Next, we speak to The Indian Express’ Pratip Acharya about Mumbai’s plan to clear over 270 acres of the Deonar landfill, one of India’s oldest and largest, using bioremediation. (15:30)

And in the end, we discuss Ukraine’s latest large-scale drone operation, dubbed “Operation Spider’s Web,” which targeted five Russian military air bases. (23:55)

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Produced and written by Shashank Bhargava and Ichha Sharma
Edited and Mixed by Suresh Pawar

The headline of the day by The Indian Express

First, we talk to The Indian Express' National Education Editor Ritika Chopra about the CBSE asking its affiliate schools to map students’ mother tongues at the earliest, and prepare teaching materials before the end of the summer break. This is being done to eventually make instructions in students' mother tongue mandatory in schools at the primary level.

Next, we talk to The Indian Express' Alind Chauhan who breaks down a major scientific breakthrough for us. He talks about CRISPR-Cas9, a custom gene-editing tool that can become a solution for many genetic disorders. He also shares how an extended version of this technology helped a nine month old baby with a rare genetic condition. (14:03)

Lastly, we discuss what Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan had to say about India’s losses in Operation Sindoor. (25:43)

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Produced and written by Niharika Nanda and Shashank Bhargava.
Edited and mixed by Suresh Pawar

The headlines of the week by The Indian Express

First, we talk to The Indian Express' Amitabh Sinha about MSC Elsa 3, the container ship that capsized in the Arabian Sea on Saturday. While there has been no oil spill yet, the possibility looms large. Amitabh talks about the consequences of an oil spill, the concerns and the challenges that come with it.

Next, we talk to The Indian Express' Santosh Singh about Lalu Prasad Yadav expelling his eldest son, Tej Pratap Yadav, from both the party and the family for six years. (12:01)

Lastly, we speak about Prime Minister Modi’s first visit to West Bengal since Operation Sindoor, where he launched a sharp attack on the TMC government. (23:46)

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Produced and written by Niharika Nanda and Ichha Sharma
Edited and mixed by Suresh Pawar

The headlines of the day by The Indian Express

First, we talk to The Indian Express' Health Editor Kaunain Sheriff about the rise in the number of Covid-19 cases. He talks about the new subvariant that has surfaced, the number of cases that have been identified in India and whether or not it is a cause for concern.

Next, we talk to The Indian Express' Devansh Mittal about Uber being sent a notice by India's consumer protection watchdog -  the Central Consumer Protection Authority regarding a feature that it rolled out last month, the feature of 'advanced tip'. (12:01)

Lastly, we speak about a  report according to which Trump officials have claimed the US president utilised his tariff power to broker a ceasefire between India and Pakistan. (19:49)

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Produced and written by Niharika Nanda and Shashank Bhargava
Edited and mixed by Suresh Pawar

This is the Catch Up on 3 Things by The Indian Express and I am Ichha Sharma
Today is 28th of May and here are today’s headlines.

Amid reports of MLAs in Manipur attempting to form a government, sources at the Centre told The Indian Express that revoking President’s Rule is unlikely anytime soon. They said the current focus for both the Centre and state machinery is maintaining peace, and any political activity could disrupt the progress made so far.

And from Manipur, we turn to Assam, where a legal battle is unfolding over alleged police encounters. The Supreme Court has stayed proceedings initiated by the Assam Human Rights Commission into 171 alleged fake police encounters that occurred between May 2021 and June 2022. A petition filed by a senior advocate claimed the panel had no jurisdiction, as many of the cases were already pending before courts. The Commission had asked Assam’s top police and home officials to respond to its notice. The apex court has now called for affidavits from all parties within three weeks.

Next, in Tamil Nadu, a remark by actor Kamal Haasan has sparked a linguistic and political row. Speaking at a Tamil Sangam event, Kamal Haasan claimed Tamil predates Kannada, citing a 2,500-year-old Tamil inscription. Karnataka BJP leaders sharply objected, accusing him of stoking regional discord. CT Ravi and Basanagouda Patil Yatnal called the comment disrespectful. Haasan later clarified that he was referencing historical records, not undermining any language.

Two men in Kerala’s Palakkad district have been arrested for assaulting a 24-year-old tribal man, alleging he had stolen a hen. A video of the attack, which took place on May 18 in Malampuzha, surfaced online, prompting public outcry. The accused were identified and booked under various sections, including those of the SC/ST Atrocities Act. Police confirmed the victim belongs to the Irula tribal community.

Two Indian-origin men in the US have been sentenced to 33 and 63 months in prison for their role in a human smuggling operation. The case involved a family of four from Gujarat who died from exposure near the US-Canada border in 2022. The smugglers charged up to $100,000 for illegal crossings and had arranged the family's final, fatal attempt near Manitoba.

This was the Catch Up on 3 Things by The Indian Express

First, we talk to The Indian Express’ Soumyarendra Barik about Apple’s decision to increase iPhone production in India and the political pushback it has received from the US.

Next, we turn to Arunachal Pradesh, where protests have erupted against a hydropower project where we are joined by The Indian Express’ Sukrita Baruah to understand the strategic importance of the project, and why local communities are opposing it. (15:18)

Lastly, we discuss the Bombay High Court’s strong remarks on the arrest and rustication of a Pune engineering student over a social media post related to Operation Sindoor. (22:04)

Hosted by Ichha Sharma
Produced and written by Shashank Bhargava, Niharika Nanda and Ichha Sharma
Edited and Mixed by Suresh Pawar