Daily Briefing: Centre asks states to track Covid positive samples; storm in RS over Kharge’s ‘dog’ remark; and more

The surge of infections in China, has prompted warnings that the country could witness over a million deaths in the coming months. What’s behind China’s recent surge, and why is it a concern for the world? Read here.

Only in Express

Data obtained by The Indian Express through a Right to Information (RTI) application shows that low-value loans are fueling Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) in the education sector. The default rate is much lower for loans disbursed to students in premier institutes, which includes IITs, IIMs, NITs and AIIMS, as compared to those in secondary institutes.

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) Bihar president Jagdanand Singh speaks to The Indian Express about the Grand Alliance’s plans for 2025 polls and everything Bihar. On Nitish Kumar’s prime ministerial ambitions, Singh said, “I only want to say that to gain the bigger prize [the PM post], you have to leave behind the smaller things [the CM post].”

From the Front Page

Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge’s comments on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s role in the freedom struggle led to stormy scenes in Rajya Sabha. While BJP members demanded an apology, Kharge refused to do so, adding, “If I repeat here what I had said outside… it will pose difficulties to these people because those people who had tendered apologies during the freedom movement are asking those who had fought for Independence to apologise.”

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After Late J Jayalalithaa and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin, BJP state president K Annamalai too has landed in a controversy for wearing an expensive watch. Though Annamalai claimed that the special edition wristwatch was made of the same material as the Rafale fighter jet and that he chose the watch model out of patriotism, neither his explanation nor the logic behind it helped him wriggle out of the controversy.

Days after Home Minister Amit Shah met CMs Basavaraj Bommai and Eknath Shinde to dial down tensions between the two border states, the Karnataka government said the state legislature would pass a resolution reiterating its position on the Belagavi border issue. While addressing the state Assembly on Tuesday, Bommai suggested a unanimous resolution in both Houses of the state legislature, signalling a hardening of position.

In our Opinion section today, former defence personnel Arun Prakash and Ashok Hukku write on the effects of the absence of a China-specific strategy in India, though it has been 60 years since the 1962 war: “The Tawang clash should serve as a harsh reminder of the close call that Arunachal Pradesh had in 1962. Though we have come a long way after that, we must, however, bear in mind that today, the Chinese threat hangs like a sword of Damocles over our heads.”

And Finally…

V Ramesh Kumar, a businessman who runs a textile factory in Tiruppur, is currently under the spotlight in the cricket circuit. He is the head curator of the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association, the man in charge of the pitch at the iconic M A Chidambaram stadium in Chennai — and now, all set to oversee preparations for the upcoming ODI against Australia and the IPL. In a chat with The Indian Express, Kumar narrated his journey and how he first grabbed eyeballs.

Delhi confidential: At the ‘millet lunch’ organised by the government on Tuesday for all MPs, as directed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, was elaborate, and many members were surprised at the spread. What most MPs preferred were the dessert items. Here’s what was on the menu.

🎧 In today’s episode of the ‘3 Things’ podcast, we discuss the human cost of the FIFA World Cup. The Indian Express’ Mihir Vasavda speaks about his 8-month long investigation into the deaths of migrant workers in Qatar, and the gruelling working conditions there. 

Until tomorrow,

Sonal Gupta and Anandu Suresh