Shadow Warrior

Quick notes: Converted xtian | F-35 vulnerability...

2026-04-05T12:18:00.004+05:30

Landmark ruling on Converted Christians SC status: It all began with land grab for Church.

Akkala Rami Reddy found that a parcel of his family land, which had been temporarily given to a distant relative for use as a cattle shed, had allegedly been converted into a Christian prayer hall. The relative had converted to Christianity and changed the site into a place of worship.

Solar is winning the energy race: The world's cheapest power source is scaling at warp speed, pushing coal, gas and nuclear aside. In 2015, Pakistan and South Africa each produced less than 1% of their electricity from solar. Ten years later, that has risen to 20% and 10% respectively.

Showing some spine: Malaysia exits US reciprocal trade deal. Becomes the first country to abandon a pact negotiated under Washington’s reciprocal tariff strategy after a court ruling removed the legal basis for the policy.

Chinese engineer shared trick to shoot F-35 fighters just days before Iran’s strike: F-35 vulnerable to low-cost systems. . Since the Operation Epic Fury started, more Chinese civilians with science, technology, engineering, and math backgrounds have been sharing military analysis online to help Iran counter U.S. airpower. These posts include technical explanations of weapons and tactical advice, and are shared without pay or official support. . . . Dutch Secretary of Defense threatens to 'jailbreak' nation's F-35 jet fighters.

🇨🇳 Chinese civilians with technical backgrounds are increasingly posting detailed military analysis online aimed at helping Iran counter U.S. forces, in a growing grassroots trend across Chinese social media, according to the South China Morning Post.

The effort appears informal… https://t.co/PjGUGvgblR
— Drop Site (@DropSiteNews) April 3, 2026

India the big loser in the US-Iran War: At the core the issue is of India being strung out between strategic subservience to the US — that has led to its Gulf policy ending in a cul de sac, and economic dependence on China, with both Washington and Beijing now hanging Modi-Jaishankar and India out to dry.

"Washington will strive to keep India down, preferably under its thumb, economically and in the technology sphere, prop up Pakistan as its main agent in the region, but will expect Delhi to help the US counterpoise China in the Indo-Pacific! Colby and Washington calculate that the Indian government is sufficiently spooked by the China threat to want to rely on the US strategically and to do so on American terms. And sure India should arm itself with American weapons, and reproduce any US military goods it wants but under license, thus lighting fire to the atmnirbharta pyre".

🇫🇷🇮🇳 France just drew a hard line… and it hits India’s airpower strategy directly.

Paris is refusing to give India access to Rafale’s core source codes, which means New Delhi cannot independently modify the jet’s most critical systems, including its radar, mission computer, and… https://t.co/YJ3H46rst0 pic.twitter.com/0Nl22cWZa7
— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) April 1, 2026

The UAE has withdrawn from funding the development of the new Rafale F5 after France refused to transfer advanced technology.
The message is clear:
Real partnership with genuine technology transfer — or no deal. pic.twitter.com/MUTheN8DHB
— سيف الدرعي| Saif alderei (@saif_aldareei) April 3, 2026

White man's angry God: Hegseth injects combative Christianity into America’s military. . . Hegseth prays for violence 'against those who deserve no mercy'

China produces >90% of its ammonia from coal gassofication: China insulated itself against energy shocks with coal gas. India didn’t move from words to action.

No LPG? No Problem: These Bengaluru Restaurants Run on Gas from Kitchen Waste.

Black pepper and healthy oils: The ingredients that super-charge the nutrients you get from food

Protein myths: “There is no evidence that habitual exercise increases protein requirements; indeed protein metabolism may become more efficient as a result of training.” ..just because it’s post workout, doesn’t mean you need oodles of whey

Bike Bus: "One of the benefits of the bike bus is that when you're cycling as a group you feel a bit safer.

"There's been a lovely buzz watching the bike bus arrive each week and the children who participated have been really happy, enthusiastic, really energised by their bike ride here to school".

"I think it's great for kids mental health as well as their physical health plus I think it's great for parents too.

"I think for the community more broadly too because there's less cars on the road, less congestion, it's better air quality, so there's a lot of benefits."
Pakistani Women's Obsession With Hindu Culture:

'The myth about SIPs': At the end of the day, in order for me to win, someone else must lose. Now, in order to create that population of losers, you need the millions of retail investors, the millions of SIP participants, for their capital to flow somewhere.

End of Bitcoin? Google research suggests encryption technique used by Bitcoin will be cracked by quantum computers around 2029 — search giant says quantum attacks need to be prepared for now

Google unveils TurboQuant, a new AI memory compression algorithm — and yes, the internet is calling it 'Pied Piper'. . . A simple explanation of the key idea behind TurboQuant

ep. 189: drones are a step change in warfare: india better pay attention

2026-04-05T09:08:00.001+05:30

https://open.substack.com/pub/rajeevsrinivasan/p/ep-189-drones-may-be-a-step-change?r=66qfh&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

ep 3, iitmaa fireside chat, on gulf war 3

2026-03-24T21:07:00.000+05:30

https://open.substack.com/pub/rajeevsrinivasan/p/ep-03-iitmaa-fireside-chat-with-dr?r=66qfh&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

More Damaging to USA Than Any Missile/WMD

2026-03-22T07:19:00.002+05:30

Ep. 188: the iran war has no winners, only losers

2026-03-18T11:17:00.001+05:30

https://open.substack.com/pub/rajeevsrinivasan/p/ep-188-the-iran-war-has-no-winners?r=66qfh&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Quick notes: Tariff exemption | Price of intelligence...

2026-02-17T12:30:00.011+05:30

India’s pollution is becoming an economic roadblock: The government’s inaction runs counter to its goals. The latest budget cut funding for pollution control.

It is all getting embarrassing. In December a cricket match between India and South Africa was called off because smog made it impossible to see the ball. In January one the world’s top badminton players pulled out of the India Open in Delhi citing the bad air (and getting a $5,000 fine). Those who did play sent an official complaint to International Olympic Committee.

Tariff exemption for apparel made with US cotton: US–Bangladesh deal jolts India’s textile calculus

The Price of Intelligence is Collapsing One developer with Claude Code can now do what took a team a month. The cost of Claude Pro or ChatGPT is $20 dollars a month, while a Max subscription is $200 dollars. The median US knowledge worker costs ~350-500 dollars a day fully loaded. An agent that handles even a fraction of their workflow a day at ~6-7 dollars is a 10-30x RoI not including improvement in intelligence.

The cost collapse is destroying the seat-based software model. There has been no bigger share shift than Microsoft’s seat-based Office 365. Most of the cash today still comes from Office. The core way of how a human interacts with a computer is about to change, and Microsoft sits at the center of the old paradigm.

Why does a company need to standardize Salesforce if an agent is just going to query data on leads on your behalf? Salesforce is a form and workflow wrapper, and the form and workflow can likely be scaffolded by AI into a database and then queried as needed.

AI fears wipe out $50 billion from Indian IT stocks. . . Software ate the world. AI is eating software.

Dr Vishal Sikka: At a time when there was no ChatGPT, Gemini, or self-driving cars, Vishal Sikka gave a presentation on AI before NITI Aayog at the PM’s request, where officials of 20 Union Ministries were gathered. . . India's risk-averse capitalism has no place people like him

"India Has a Great Opportunity in AI, Period" – Dr. Vishal Sikka (Ex-Infosys)

1. TCS has partnered with him to fight its existential crisis

2. PM & officials have met him multiple times

3. Oracle, GSK, BMW, Stanford have him on their Boards for AI

What is Vishal Sikka Saying:…
— Vikas Vij (@TheClubJunto) February 5, 2026

Engineering Talent Pipeline: Elon Musk’s impact on a new generation of engineers.

Starlink, a regime-change weapon? U.S. Smuggled Thousands of Starlink Terminals Into Iran After Protest Crackdown

Existential threat: The EU should consider either an unprecedented 30% across-the-board tariff on Chinese goods or a 30% depreciation of the euro against the renminbi to counter a flood of cheap imports, according to a French govt strategy report.

China is depleting the world's oceans of fish. Estimates are between 200,000 - 800,000 fishing vessels, going as far as Argentina.

They account for ~half of the world's fishing catch and do not respect stewardship protocols to preserve ecosystems. This is not industrial… pic.twitter.com/BfbJoGTveM
— Isabella Anderson (@IsabellaAn67) January 31, 2026

The long game: As Trump trashes the dollar, China smells opportunity

Hindus could be next: Without a Border ‘Invasion,’ Texas G.O.P. Turns to an Old Enemy, Islam. . . Muslims know how to play this game. Hindus..?

Not everything imported is healthy: Why is eating oatmeal damaging if you eat it every morning?

Sounds of Isha: Akka Kelavva (ಅಕ್ಕ ಕೇಳವ್ವ)

Ep 187: wapo and rediff

2026-02-13T11:34:00.001+05:30

https://open.substack.com/pub/rajeevsrinivasan/p/ep-187-journalism-ai-washington-post?r=66qfh&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Quick notes: SaaS-Pocalypse | Greater Balochistan...

2026-02-08T01:59:00.012+05:30

The SaaS -Pocalypse Has Begun: For most of the past two decades, enterprise software benefited from a remarkably stable economic story. Software was expensive to build. Switching costs were high. Data lived in proprietary systems.

Once a platform became the system of record, it stayed there. Recurring revenue was treated as a proxy for predictability. Contracts were assumed to be sticky. Cash flows were assumed to be resilient.

AI is now testing every part of that logic at once.

AI doesn't kill the software directly. It kills the headcount that uses the software. Which kills the per-seat revenue model. Which kills the business... "Software becomes a commodity; AI becomes the "brain" and the worker".

Satya Nadela is basically describing the death of the traditional SaaS model.

Explains the AI agentic future, and where the "value" lives.

Because business logic is moving from the software application to the AI agents.

Currently, you buy software for its specific features and… pic.twitter.com/LAQVWDg4af
— Rohan Paul (@rohanpaul_ai) January 21, 2026

Anthropic's new AI tools disrupts data analytics and software companies: AI developer Anthropic launched plug-ins for its Claude Cowork agent that would automate tasks across legal, sales, marketing and ‌data analysis. That move has sparked worries of an impending AI-fueled disruption of the data and professional services industry, which were once seen as major beneficiaries of the AI era.

Goldman Sachs is rolling out Anthropic’s AI model to automate accounting and compliance roles completely.

Anthropic engineers have been embedded at Goldman for 6 months, co-developing systems that act like “digital co-workers” for high-volume, process-heavy tasks.

The new setup… pic.twitter.com/KMvQkkTAMs
— Rohan Paul (@rohanpaul_ai) February 6, 2026

India's staffing-intensive IT sector shaken: "As Indian enterprises integrate Claude for critical coding workflows, dependency on large vendor teams may decline, squeezing billable hours and margins. Anthropic’s advanced AI systems also threaten entry‑level talent pool at Indian IT firms by ⁠replacing routine development and testing tasks".

'Start Considering Alternative Livelihoods': Sridhar Vembu's advice to coders

Examples are now pouring in about AI-assisted Code Engineering productivity.

The quoted post is a Bhagwad Gita app.

Anthropic has built an entire C compiler with their Claude AI. That is not an easy engineering feat at all.

At this point, it is best for those of us who… https://t.co/KbgVX8G9nU
— Sridhar Vembu (@svembu) February 6, 2026

Anything but Deep Tech: Indian corporate investment is characterised by low R&D intensity and concentration in real estate-linked, regulated, or quasi-monopolistic sectors with a relative lack of willingness and appetite to invest towards long-term risk absorption and become globally competitive.

Indian corporate investment had "flatlined since 2012": "The question that the government isn't asking is: how come for 13 straight years, corporate India has not invested?"

A 'Greater Balochistan'? There is growing trepidation in Pakistan establishment circles that there could be a new great game underway in the region to create a Greater Balochistan comprising Sistan-Baluchistan and Balochistan. This is not just a mineral-rich area, but geographically, a very pivotal area.

A Greater Balochistan will alter the geopolitics of the region, straddling not only the entire Gulf region but also providing a base to access Central Asia and keep a watch over troublesome areas in Iran, Afghanistan and a rump Pakistan. In fact, the geographical relevance that Pakistan keeps talking about comes from its control over Balochistan.

The Pakistanis are losing sleep at the thought of powerful regional and global players waking up to the importance of Balochistan. Operation Herof 2 and the larger Baloch uprising are, therefore, no longer being seen as a local separatist movement but as part of a larger global conspiracy to cut not just Iran but also Pakistan to size.

Pakistan Faces Crunch As Demand For China-Developed JF-17 Jets Surges: In the past month, Iraq, Bangladesh and Indonesia have expressed interest in acquiring the JF-17 Thunder, according to Pakistan's Armed Forces. Saudi Arabia and Libya are also exploring the aircraft.

The United States did not merely abandon the Kurds: It handed them over to terror, to knives, to silence. Allies were turned into expendable bodies. Promises were buried alongside the dead.

The United States did not merely abandon the Kurds it handed them over to terror, to knives, to silence. Allies were turned into expendable bodies. Promises were buried alongside the dead.
I am a Dutch journalist, and I refuse to look away. I feel the pain of the Kurdish people… pic.twitter.com/u5PYTJdbqD
— Botin Kurdistani (@kurdistannews24) January 29, 2026

Why Indian cities are hostile to pedestrians: Annual pedestrian deaths on Indian roads exceed fatalities reported in several active conflict zones globally, underscoring that Indian streets function as a daily warzone for walkers... “Attempts to redesign roads without prioritising pedestrians are a fundamental part of the problem. Footpaths are a default globally, not here.”

Win for American farmer: New US-India deal will export more American farm products to India's massive market, lifting prices, and pumping cash into rural America.

Thank you @POTUS for ONCE AGAIN delivering for our American farmers.

New US-India deal will export more American farm products to India's massive market, lifting prices, and pumping cash into rural America.

In 2024, America’s agricultural trade deficit with India was $1.3… https://t.co/Z04eNDfXjD
— Secretary Brooke Rollins (@SecRollins) February 2, 2026

Ep. 186: The indo-US trade 'deal' is smoke and mirrors

2026-02-05T21:30:00.001+05:30

at least until we get the small print and analyze it.

https://open.substack.com/pub/rajeevsrinivasan/p/ep-186-there-is-less-than-meets-the?r=66qfh&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Ep. 185: The Epstein Files simply show elite depravity

2026-02-03T15:15:00.000+05:30

reminded of "the great Gatsby", "eyes wide shut"," salo: 120 days of Sodom". the rich and powerful are indeed different from you and me.

https://open.substack.com/pub/rajeevsrinivasan/p/ep-185-the-epstein-files-simply-show?r=66qfh&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Quick notes: GaN technology | Xiaomi SU7...

2026-02-01T03:32:00.014+05:30

DRDO's GaN technology breakthrough: Denied access to compound chip technology by foreign powers, Indian scientists, operating in tandem from Delhi and Hyderabad, crack the code to make Gallium Nitride (GaN) monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMICs).
+ How GaN is revolutionising key industries.
India is no longer dependent on foreign powers for these high-value, cutting-edge chips. Instead, it broke into a select group of six nations—the US, France, Russia, Germany, South Korea and China. . . . . Defense as well as commercial applications!

UK FTA was terrible. EU FTA is worse: India gives away market access for nothing. Once CBAM takes effect India will be immensely disadvantaged.

Major concession on Machinery/Electrical equipment. India already runs a $16 billion deficit with EU in it. 0% tariff means domestic mfg in this sector will likely never take off. One hopes that exports from labour intensive sectors go up enough to make up for it. https://t.co/Xl1ZozajOH
— Diva Jain (@DivaJain2) January 27, 2026

WSJ: I test drove a Chinese EV. Now I don’t want to buy American cars anymore.

Ford CEO Jim Farley: Praises his Xiaomi SU7. 'I don't want to give it up'

Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe: "Chinese are ahead, even more than expected"

Foolish NRIs: The overconfidence of the Indian settler in the pre-MAGA days led to excesses. Such as the 90-foot-tall statue of Lord Hanuman, dubbed by some over-clever NRIs who installed it, as the “Statue of Union” in Sugar Land, Texas.

Besides being considered an eyesore by the enraged local Texans, it is a goad for the Christian Nationalists of the American south and southwest that make up the MAGA flock. So far they have restricted themselves to mocking the Monkey God, reviling Hindus as savages, Hinduism as satanic, and Hindu religious symbols as an affront to Christianity. Soon they may take a hammer to the statue, and run the Indians out of town.

Two Indian jewelry stores raided in Texas

Trump betrayed the Kurds?: Tell me something new.

Meet America’s 🇺🇸 newest allies in Syria, brought to you by @USAMBTurkiye.

The Kurds were betrayed for these Islamist barbarians.

Congrats. pic.twitter.com/uPUr4TCIB4
— Diliman Abdulkader (@D_abdulkader) January 25, 2026

No headscarves in Kosovo's public school classrooms: Over 95% of the population of Kosovo is Muslim.

Why are strokes rising among young adults?: Stroke deaths are climbing among people ages 25 to 34, even as overall cardiovascular deaths return to pre-COVID levels.

The scientific case for ping-pong: Why athletes — and you — should play more table tennis

How Ancient Is Indian Music? Dr. Raj Vedam on the history of Indian music

Gallery of dolts

2026-01-31T22:52:00.000+05:30

Posting after a long gap. By now, it is abundantly clear that Modi has surrounded himself with a cabal of self-aggrandizing, largely incompetent loudmouths—endless talk, little to no substance.

This isn’t intended to be a detailed or carefully crafted post, just a few irritants worth calling out.

Take Ashwini Vaishnaw, for example, who repeatedly boasts about initiatives such as indigenous fuel-cell–powered trains. It’s hard to see what problem this actually addresses. Electric traction already exists; the real technological challenge lies in miniaturizing and adapting such systems for automobiles, not in grandstanding about trains.

Here he is once again regurgitating the same “four pillars” rhetoric for the nth time:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HT3B9XC3m_w

Then there’s Amitabh Kant, who once proudly proclaimed that Aarogya Setu was the most downloaded app in the world—as if that were an organic achievement, rather than the result of forcing everyone to install it.

Dharmendra Pradhan, Nirmala Sitharaman, Gadkari...:(

Overall, this administration has let the economy down and has not meaningfully advanced Hindutva either. There may be no credible alternatives, but that only makes the situation all the more dispiriting.

Many, many disappointments from this lot :(

More later.

the india EU FTA is not going to save either india or the EU

2026-01-28T01:21:00.001+05:30

https://open.substack.com/pub/rajeevsrinivasan/p/ep-184-the-india-eu-fta-triumph-of?r=66qfh&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

geopolitics around venezuela, NATO, greenland, etc.

2026-01-26T15:32:00.000+05:30

https://open.substack.com/pub/rajeevsrinivasan/p/iitmaa-fireside-chat-ep-01-a-masterclass?r=66qfh&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Quick notes: University rankings | H200 chips...

2026-01-25T02:26:00.011+05:30

World University Rankings 2026: China shows remarkable progress. Apart from IISc, no other Indian university managed to secure a top 100 position in any subject area.

THE Subject Rankings 2026: While the US and UK institutions clinched the top ranks, China showed increasing strength, bagging seven top 10 positions across subjects. . . . . How India is failing its educated youth.

'Vishwaguru' is nowhere: From Malaysia to Germany: 10 countries where international students are heading beyond the Big Four... India continues to lag behind Asian peers such as China, Hong Kong and South Korea, Japan and Singapore in research-related performance.

Harvard is number one for Engineering in our latest subject rankings, thanks to its outstanding research environment.

Explore the full table: https://t.co/MZ9efPts8q @Harvard #THEUniRankings pic.twitter.com/4kh1gzPkro
— World University Rankings (@THEworldunirank) January 21, 2026

“Like Selling Nuclear Weapons to North Korea”: Anthropic CEO blasts U.S. decision to approve NVIDIA’s H200 AI chip exports to China. . . Congress wants veto power over Trump administration for AI chip export

Why the tech world thinks the American dream is dying: The argument is that tech companies (and their leaders) will become a class unto their own with infinite wealth. No one else will have the means to generate money for themselves because AI will have taken their jobs and opportunities.

How ASML Conquered The Chip World: Extreme Ultraviolet Lithography - the insane machines that make the most advanced computer chips.

With TACO help: Chinese EVs blow past Tesla and tariffs en route to global reign... Another record month for EV sales in China!. . . As Trump talks tariffs, his Argentine ally welcomes a first shipload of Chinese EVs

Erdogan is no Modi: Turkey now buys more Russian oil than India. . . . . RM: "There is no morality or friendship factor, regardless of verbal praise or hugs. Only pragmatic self interest. Hello India! The battlefield is not emotional feel good victories in social media".

TRUMP’S ALGORITHM AND INDIA:
1. There is no morality or friendship factor, regardless of verbal praise or hugs. Only pragmatic self interest. Hard Realism. Soft power is irrelevant.
2. Policy driven by MAGA base & CIA.
3. Desire to “change history” using hypermasculinity.
4. USA…
— Rajiv Malhotra (@RajivMessage) January 6, 2026

UK considering social media ban for under 16s: The world's first social media ban for young people took effect in Australia in December 2025, prompting other countries, including the UK, to consider following suit.

Is avoiding carbs and sugar the key to a healthy old age? No, the secret to longevity is NOT skipping carbs. Let's see what the actual data says: the world's longest-living groups (Okinawa, Sardinia, Ikaria, Nicoya, Loma Linda) eat a great amount of carbs.

Okinawans previously ate 85% carbs, and sweet potatoes and rice were their main source. Sardinians eat sourdough bread daily. These people are turning 100+ years old eating carbs in every single meal. The key isn't eliminating carbs - it's eliminating processed garbage. Sugar? Yes, added sugar is something to avoid.

5000 year-old heritage city cannot escape ugly bikAss: Manikarnika Ghat in Varanasi - the ancient & most sacred cremation ground for Hindus being bulldozed in the name of ‘redevelopment’.

the center doesn't hold. things fall apart

2026-01-20T02:38:00.000+05:30

https://open.substack.com/pub/rajeevsrinivasan/p/ep-183-things-fall-apart-the-center?r=66qfh&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Venezuela, Greenland, Fortress America: the end of globalism means a nasty interregnum is upon all of us. tough times especially for emerging powers like India.

The long-predicted end of the "liberal, rules-based international order" seems to be upon us, with a definite fin-de-siecle feeling.

trump's gamble with venezuela

2026-01-19T10:27:00.001+05:30

it looks more like american weakness rather than american strength.

https://open.substack.com/pub/rajeevsrinivasan/p/ep-182-the-trump-gamble-on-venezuela-081?r=66qfh&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

trump's gamble with venezuela

2026-01-19T10:25:00.000+05:30

it looks more like american weakness rather than american strength.

https://open.substack.com/pub/rajeevsrinivasan/p/ep-182-the-trump-gamble-on-venezuela-081?r=66qfh&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Quick notes: Shaksgam Valley | High protein diet...

2026-01-19T00:58:00.003+05:30

China Provokes India With 'Shaksgam Valley' Claim: If the Chinese and Pakistanis join hands, they have the resources to come down to Ladakh and into Leh. However, the presence of Indian troops in Siachen is a deterrent to China and Pakistan from joining hands in the Karakoram. Therefore, if that road is constructed to Aghil Pass and is connected to Khunjerab Pass, it will provide them access. China will connect as much of the Karakoram Pass as they can. They have also constructed a 170-kilometre artery from Gilgit to Siachen.

Claude Arpi's insights on Shaksgam Valley.

Artificial nation: Pakistan Should Actually Be 4 Different Countries.

US Companies Face Anti-Indian Backlash: Indian American entrepreneurs who obtained loans from the government-backed Small Business Administration have been singled out for coordinated harassment.

Why India-US Trade Deal Is Delayed: India has shown willingness to eliminate tariffs on nearly 95 per cent of US industrial exports and lower duties on products such as almonds, apples and avocados. Yet Washington continues to push for unrestricted access for dairy and genetically-modified crops, including corn and soybeans -- an issue deeply sensitive in India due to environmental, political and social concerns.

On trade, DJT is CCP's biggest asset: Trump's protectionist trade policies allow China to swoop in. Canada allowing Chinese EVs is the latest.

Transforming India Post into a Rural E-Commerce Powerhouse: Can India Post, a state-run entity with a massive presence and logistical network across India, reposition itself as a leading e-commerce player, not just a logistical support provider?

The answer could lie in harnessing the power of its well-established network, employees, and extensive rural reach to create a transformative e-commerce platform catering specifically to rural markets. It will also enable India Post to have a good share of the emerging e-commerce era pie, in terms of volume of sales, turnover, and profitability, making it a brand like Amul.

The Effects of High-Protein Diets on Kidney Health and Longevity: High-protein diets may be associated with a number of metabolic complications that may be detrimental to kidney health. . . Kidney disease death rate by country.

India's State-Sponsored Sugar Addiction : Thanks to our policies, India produces way more sugar than it needs, using up precious water and financial resources; and as a result, Indians end up eating more sugar than is healthy.

Madhav Gadgil, Kerala’s reluctant prophet: Gadgil was part of the scientific scrutiny that questioned the ecological wisdom of damming Silent Valley. That intervention helped reinforce an idea Kerala would never quite abandon, that development was not automatically virtuous and that expert knowledge could legitimately challenge state power.

Quick notes: Bhajan clubbing | Walkaluru...

2026-01-12T06:08:00.004+05:30

The Pied Piper of the digital age: Why India must shield young minds from algorithmic enchantment. Drawing lessons from Australia’s recent legislation, India must urgently regulate children’s access to social media and artificial intelligence.

An aversion to alcohol is moving the global party scene in an unexpected direction: From Brisbane to Mumbai, and Paris to Toronto, the movement has quickly gained traction among a segment of Gen Z-ers and younger Millennials who are drinking less and prioritizing sleep, health and wellness in their lives.
Bhajan clubbing: Today's Gen-Z have found a new way of partying that involves devotion as well.
The Sober Party Girl Revolution: A new generation rejects alcohol but isn’t quite ready to give up the party.
When Dry January becomes permanent: ‘Even though I was fit and energetic the weekends were gone’. “You’d have few drinks on Friday night because you’ve worked hard all week long, and then Saturday was sluggish. You might have a few drinks on Saturday night, and Sunday was sluggish. All of a sudden it’s Monday.”

Ugly, smog filled 'bikAss' comes with a price: India is seeing dip in foreign tourists. In contrast, Vietnam became the fastest growing market for foreign tourist arrivals in south east Asia

What urban India needs: Walkaluru walkathon highlights Bengaluru’s pedestrian infrastructure, encourages walking culture

Indore tragedy: Indore, in spotlight over 20 deaths, allocated Rs 2,450 Crore for 'Clean' Water. What makes the tragedy even more disturbing is the scale of public money that has been spent on Indore's water and sanitation infrastructure over the past five years.

60% of top 1,000 stocks delivered negative returns in 2025: Even after the recent correction, the Nifty Smallcap 100 trades at a price-to-earnings multiple of 24.6 based on one-year forward earnings, well above its 10-year average of 18.3.

Why The Americans Were Opposed To Agni: 'The heat shield technology for re-entry vehicles was first mastered in DRDO for the Agni missile.' 'This is why the Americans were so opposed to Agni in the 1980s, unlike other missiles -- it was a re-entry vehicle.'

Christian nationalist sarkar: Tulsi Gabbard sidelined from Venezuela planning

MAGA doesn't like your skin color: Sikh truckers found refuge in trucking until the Trump administration’s crackdown

DJT, the progressive socialist: Trump suddenly sounds a lot like a progressive Democrat when it comes to business. CEOs on guard.

The Chinese way: Videos and photographs show how the Chinese authorities have tried to dismantle Zion Church, a Christian network with branches across the country.

The year of Chinese robotics domination: The real AI story of 2026 will be found in the boring, the mundane—and in China. Washington's fatal miscalculation was assuming its sanctions would hammer Chinese innovation. Instead, it only hampered the viability of the West's own tech.

Ustad Shujaat Khan: छाप तिलक सब छीनी रे मोसे नैना मिलाइके

Quick notes: IMEC is alive | Microplastics...

2025-12-29T12:59:00.004+05:30

IMEC resurrected: India–Turkey tensions shape IMEC route via Oman Jordan, Israel and Greece.

Three new political-economic axes have been converging in recent weeks — none of which include Turkey:

1. A renewed Qatar–Saudi axis, including the announcement of the Doha–Riyadh high-speed rail line and economic agreements between Saudi Arabia and Syria.

2. The Oman–India–Jordan axis, forming the eastern and western anchors of IMEC trade routes.

3. The Israel–Cyprus–Greece axis, connecting IMEC from the Middle East to Europe via the Mediterranean.

How Solar Saved Pakistan’s Economy (sort of):

The battle for Aravalli range: Arnab's 5 stinging questions. Who really gains?

Your Zomato order is clogging your testicles: People who have five to 10 takeaways per month might be consuming excessive microplastic from the containers their meals come in. "Miicro- and nano- plastics, have been detected in virtually every organ in our bodies, including arteries, brain, blood, placenta and testicles".

Leftists abandoning Muslim women? Who knew! "So many big names in progressive and feminist circles, would personally agree with us, but when it came to taking a public stand, they'd go back on their promise. Only Asghar Ali Engineer stuck publicly to the stand he took privately. And he bore the brunt for doing so".

Putin-Bush talks: 'A Junta with nukes'-revelations on Putin-Bush talks disclose Putin's 'Pakistan' warning

Why So Many Jews Fall In Love With Buddhism: A surprising number of American Buddhists are Jewish, enough to earn the nickname JewBus.

Madhavi Latha: The Engineer behind the Chenab Railway Bridge, the world's highest, standing at 359 meters above the Chenab River.

annus horribilis for the US

2025-12-22T14:29:00.001+05:30

2025 has been a disastrous year for the US, surely in foreign affairs and economics. The trade war, far from strengthening the economy, has shown the limits of American power: the capitulation to Chinese supplier power on rare earths, and a strategic retreat in the face of Chinese buyer power on soybeans, for example.

At the beginning of 2025, I must admit I was optimistic about Indo-US relations under Trump’s presidency. I did not think the G2 condominium would arrive so soon, especially under Trump, or that the eclipse of the US would be so sudden and so dramatic. India had at least one bright spot in 2025: the rapidly-growing economy, despite US tariffs. I really can’t see much that went well for the US. Truly an annus horribilis. In 1999, I wrote that that year was terrible for India, but 2025 may have been worse for the US, in my opinion.

https://open.substack.com/pub/rajeevsrinivasan/p/annus-horribilis-g2-spheres-of-influence?r=66qfh&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Quick notes: Golden share | Denaturalization...

2025-12-21T00:41:00.012+05:30

CEOs are learning to live with Trump’s turn to state capitalism. Last week Nvidia finally got permission to sell one its most advanced semiconductor chips to China. The catch: The federal government will take 25% of the revenue from those sales.

The Nvidia deal says something important about the relationship between business and government under Trump. His regular intrusions into the boardroom—taking equity stakes, revenue slices or a “golden share”; prodding companies to lower prices or sell drugs through a federal website—are a sort of state capitalism, in which the state doesn’t necessarily own companies, but uses its leverage to steer their behavior.

Trump's biggest gift to CCP yet: Trump’s decision to let China have Nvidia chips is dangerous. . . China can accelerate science and engineering with the H200 better than any of the newer hardware from Nvidia.

Denaturalisation: Some naturalised Americans likely to lose citizenship
"De-Indianise" Call: "1 H-1B Worker Equals 10 Illegal Aliens". . . Brown MAGAs go into hiding.

Hit hard by Trump: Tata, Infosys and Cognizant to bear brunt of Trump’s $100,000 H-1B fee

Worst fears coming true: China may have reverse engineered EUV lithography tool in covert lab, report claims — employees given fake IDs to avoid secret project being detected, prototypes expected in 2028

India's Nuclear Power Push: Big goals, slow build. Nuclear energy share in total installed capacity remains limited, fluctuating between 1.9 per cent and 2.9 per cent from FY10 to FY24.

'Thar Desert Will Reach Delhi Soon': Around 90 percent of the Aravalli hills is in the height of 30 to 80 metres. Now they are in danger of perishing. . . BikAss Gando Thayo Che

73 Ragas with Abby V:

Clerk-factory education system: Unable to learn English, Andhra student dies by suicide.

Is Iran dying?: Who Can Solve Iran’s Many Problems? Not I, Says the President.

The US reverse engineered the Iranian Shahed-136 drones! :

The US Marine Corps is testing a Low-Cost Uncrewed Combat Attack System (LUCAS) as a long range suicide drone. The US reverse engineered the Iranian Shahed-136 drones!

Too bad for Iran. Not only lost against Israel, got the nuclear sites hit, but also lost drone tech. #TWZ pic.twitter.com/LntStsg8vG
— Kiran Kumar S (@KiranKS) December 12, 2025

India needs its own 'Singapore' (outside India): As global scrutiny grows, Chinese firms look to call Singapore home. "The Singapore brand is trusted worldwide. Singapore is valued for its international flavour, neutrality, and is culturally easy ‍for Chinese firms and their expats to adapt to,"

Cover up: The UK wants Apple and Google to install “Nudity-Blocking Software” on iPhones and Android phones

We don't want no AI: LG forced a Copilot web app onto its TVs but will let you delete it after user backlash.

Aravallis: With one legal stroke, over 90% of the Aravalli range was erased on paper, handing it over to mining mafias, real-estate sharks & profiteers.

#SaveTheAravallis | Over 1.8 billion years old, the Aravalli Hills form a natural barrier protecting North India from desertification and severe air pollution. A recent Supreme Court definition has altered how the range is identified, leaving nearly 90 per cent of the hills… pic.twitter.com/DYmPteIXCn
— Republic (@republic) December 20, 2025

The shameless Haryana govt passes the bill that will open the ecologically sensitive Aravallis to construction... NCR to lose more green cover... #SaveTheAravallis @I_Am_Gurgaon #AirPollution pic.twitter.com/YOAtG5E1ka
— Shruti Malhotra ‏‎ (@Shruti_Malhotra) February 28, 2019

Old Arnab Goswami is back 🔥
Everyone should watch this video of Arnab Goswami and support him.

While other journalists remain silent, he is boldly raising his voice to #SaveAravalliHills pic.twitter.com/e75WO1A6SK
— Voice of Hindus (@Warlock_Shubh) December 19, 2025

does the BJP win in Trivandrum corporation actually mean anything?

2025-12-17T08:21:06.230+05:30

BJP won the Trivandrum corporation in local body elections. is this a clear inroad into the deep south, the last remaining bastion of the communists, or just a flash in the pan?

https://open.substack.com/pub/rajeevsrinivasan/p/ep-180-what-the-bjp-win-in-trivandrum?r=66qfh&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Quick notes: Peaceful rise | Hybrid efficiency record...

2025-12-12T06:25:00.010+05:30

China’s growth is coming at the rest of the world’s expense: “China is driven by a fortress mentality and sees industrial dominance as key to wealth and power”.

The most effective way to turn back China’s export onslaught would be for the U.S. to coordinate with like-minded partners. Trump has to date shown no interest in such a united front.

Canada last year copied the U.S.’s 100% tariffs on Chinese EVs. Then Trump hit Canada with auto tariffs, and China retaliated against Canadian agriculture. Caught in a two-front trade war, Canada is reviewing its tariffs on China. . . . Trump is a blessing for CCP. . . Why China’s trade surplus just keeps growing.

Automobile superpower: China beats Toyota at its own hybrid car game with 48% gas engine efficiency record

AI superpower: U.S. Investors are going big on China AI despite concerns in Congress

China Has a Different Vision for AI: "It Might Be Smarter."

Silicon Valley has spent mountains of money in pursuit of AI’s holy grail: AGI. Enthusiasts say it will give the U.S. insurmountable military advantages, help cure cancer and solve climate change, and eliminate the need for people to perform routine work such as accounting and customer service.

In China, by contrast, leader Xi Jinping has recently had little to say about AGI. Instead, he is pushing the country’s tech industry to be “strongly oriented toward applications”—building practical, low-cost tools that boost China’s efficiency and can be marketed easily.

China leads research in 90% of crucial technologies — a dramatic shift this century

The United States tops the remaining areas in an assessment of 74 technologies.https://t.co/AZ6r7r9GKd pic.twitter.com/8Bp1xBzEXw
— Amit Paranjape (@aparanjape) December 14, 2025

Deindustrializing Germany: Germany’s industrial might was built on equilibrium cheap Russian energy, Chinese technology partnerships, and an export-driven alliance with global markets. That balance has been obliterated.

Deindustrializing Germany: The Silent Coup of Brussels, Washington & the War Economy

Germany’s collapse is no longer a distant warning it is unfolding in real time on the factory floors of Wolfsburg. Volkswagen, the crown jewel of Europe’s manufacturing prowess, is preparing to…
— Navroop Singh (@TheNavroopSingh) October 22, 2025

Swami Vivekananda on China: ‘I see before me the body of an elephant. There is a foal within. But it is a lion-cub that comes out of it. It will grow in future, and China shall become great and powerful.’

KK Mohammed Slams BJP Govt: 'Dark Age for ASI'. "We had done conservation work of around 90 temples there during the Congress period. But during the 11 years of BJP rule, only 10 temples were restored".

GDP figures not adding up: Why has the Rupee hit rock bottom - again?