Daily Breifing: India may surpass China’s population in 2023 says UN report; after rape ban, Uber warmed up to TOI

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In part-2 of The Uber Files, we look at the several run-ins the cab aggregator had with authorities and regulators, including courts and the Income Tax Commissioner.

🔴 Also, we look at how Uber warmed up to the Times of India group soon after it was banned in Delhi following the rape of a woman passenger by an Uber driver. Consider this: The Economic Times Editor sent an email to Uber co-founder Travis Kalanick urging him to travel to New Delhi to attend a company event and acquaint himself with decision-makers in India. Kalanick eventually deferred his India trip, but he wrote to his associates: “Let’s be sensitive to keeping a strong relationship with ToI… if there is something we can do for them that makes sense, we should do it.”

🔴 Now, meet the whistleblower, a 52-year-old career lobbyist, who provided The Guardian with 124,000 company records that constitute The Uber Files.

From the Front Page

With the rollout of the four broad labour codes getting delayed due to the pandemic, renewed deliberations are underway on a fresh implementation schedule. With most of the states ready with draft rules, the view in the Labour Ministry is converging towards a “one-go” or simultaneous implementation of all four codes, said a senior government official.

Several Shiv Sena MPs have “requested” Uddhav Thackeray to support NDA candidate Droupadi Murmu for President and open the door to a possible reconciliation with the BJP and the breakaway Eknath Shinde faction, The Indian Express has learnt.

Must Read

Among the 17 people who died in a flash flood that hit a camp near the Amarnath cave shrine were sisters-in-law Virmati (62) and Prakashi (60). Virmati’s husband told The Indian Express, “It was the first time they had gone to Amarnath… Ek lamba sapna tha (It was a long-standing dream).” They had called home at the beginning of their descent. That was the last time their families spoke to them.

Opposition members in the Parliamentary Consultative Committee on Defence asked the government to withdraw the Agnipath scheme. Congress Lok Sabha MP Manish Tewari, however, refused to sign the joint letter submitted to the Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. It is learnt that Tewari asked searching questions such as whether the scheme was aimed at rightsizing the forces and bringing down the pension bill.

After many pivots in her career, Dr Sumbul Desai, the Sweden-born with Indian roots, is now one of the most influential women in global tech — as Apple’s VP-Health. Desai speaks to The Indian Express about her career, her connection with India and her role in Apple and health tech.

And Finally…

With question marks over senior players, the coach of the team, Rahul Dravid, is exploring options for the T20 World Cup. Having walked this maze before, as the captain before the 2007 World Cup, Dravid needs to keep in mind a caustic Chappell comment. It’s about the Class of 2007, that star-studded playing XI that imploded spectacularly. “Our heavily-marketed ‘Dream Team’ was just that: a figment of too many imaginations,” writes the Aussie oracle.

🎧 In today’s episode of the ‘3 Things’ podcast, we talk about the Kanpur anti-Sikh riots of 1984 and how survivors have reacted to the recent arrests of the accused. Next, we discuss the global decline of edible oil prices and the latest update on Mohammed Zubair’s case.

Until tomorrow,
Leela Prasad and Sonal Gupta

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