The exam season is upon us. Like they do every year, thousands of children across the country will appear for formal assessments. As my daughter and her friends gear up for their debut half-yearly exams—in some schools in the National Capital Region (NCR), marked evaluations start only after middle school—I have come to a sad realisation. Millennial parents are not as cool as we like to think we are. Instead of steering clear of the long legacy of Indian parents hyperventilating about examinations, we seem to have added a unique stamp to this exercise.
Back in the day, our parents opted for a negative motivation strategy by quoting examples of outstanding students from their immediate environment—a cousin or a neighbour’s child. We have taken this further by scouring hundreds of WhatsApp and social media groups to cite from. There also seems to be an amnesia about our own exam days when long lost relatives would call on the landline every single day of preparatory leave to check on us. “Maths paar lag gaya toh jeevan safal ho jaayega! (Your life will be made if you succeed at maths)" one aunt had remarked to me. Sadly, these nosey parkers still exist. However, instead of learning from past experiences and standing as a wall between them and the kids, we are bringing in more noise into their lives.
“My father has formed a social media group with his office colleagues. They discuss strategies at all hours on ways in which I can maximise my revision time. Some even send flow charts and venn diagrams on exam efficiency. No one asks what works for me! Meanwhile my mom has started subscribing to websites that suggest rituals and pujas to guarantee success in exams. I feel more triggered by these messages than by the syllabus," says 13-year-old A.K., a class VIII student in Gurugram. Maybe it is time that at least one generation of parents breaks free of past convention in their children’s learning journey.
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For some time now, mental health advocates such as the Mariwala Health Initiative (MHI)—a not-for-profit specialising in mental health endeavours—have been pushing for evaluation of the very system itself. “Stress reduction should not be a crisis response. The education system should be such that undue pressure is not created in the first place, and there are choices available at every step," says Raj Mariwala.
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The Centre may partially compensate exporters for their US shipments under Donald Trump's punitive tariff regime, three people aware of the discussions said.
With the dawn of steep tariffs, Indian exporters are compelled to reduce prices to stay competitive, which makes a direct hit on their business. The government is now looking to bear 10-15% of the price cuts to help exporters stay in the game, the people cited above said on the condition of anonymity.
The relief, limited to US-bound consignments, will remain in force until the issue is settled through trade talks, which have been delayed but remain under discussion.
The proposal is being coordinated between the ministries of finance and commerce to address the mounting pressure on manufacturers and exporters, particularly those in labour-intensive sectors, which are struggling to execute confirmed orders.
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The Centre may support some of the affected sectors with 10-15% for the price sacrifice they make to keep their US business going, one of the two people cited above said, though the sectors had asked for even higher support. This aid will help exporters continue to execute their orders and keep the manufacturing process going, thepersonadded.
Duty burden
Given that US importers must pay tariffs on goods imported from India, they are asking their Indian suppliers to reduce prices to compensate for the tariff burden, exporters have said. However, doing so would be an additional burden to the Indian exporter.
The matter was discussed in separate meetings held on Thursday with finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman and commerce minister Piyush Goyal, where stakeholders highlighted the challenges in meeting deadlines for the upcoming spring season.
The government has assured that there is no need to worry about the possible impact of the US tariffs on Indian goods exported to the US, stating the issue is being closely looked at.
The relief package is being explored for labour-intensive goods such as textiles, gems and jewellery, engineering goods, leather and footwear, seafood, among others, the people cited earlier said.
Help assured
“The finance minister sounded positive, stressing that exporters will not be left to face the storm on their own. While she didn’t reveal what specific measures the government is taking, she assured that the government is seized of the matter and will step in to provide support," said Pankaj Chadha, chairman, Engineering Export Promotion Council.
“The 50% tariff undeniably dents cost competitiveness, but it also pushes Indian manufacturers to think beyond pricing. For us, the way forward is twofold - strengthening technology and design leadership so clients see value in performance, and building diversified global linkages that reduce overdependence on any one market," said Sarvadnya Kulkarni, CEO of General Instruments Consortium, an engineering company.
Queries sent to the spokespersons of the Prime Minister's Office, and the ministries of finance and commerce remained unanswered.
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According to a report by Global Trade Research Initiative, the damage could be substantial if the tariff remains in place for long. Once competitors gain ground in the US market, it will be very difficult for Indian exporters to reclaim lost space, and New Delhi will need to step up its engagement with Washington, it stated. Countries such as China, Vietnam, Mexico, Turkey, and even Pakistan, Nepal, Guatemala, and Kenya stand to benefit from the US action, potentially locking India out of key markets even after the tariffs are rolled back.
Regional pacts
As reported by Mint on 21 August, New Delhi is also exploring the possibility of joining China-led Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership to mitigate potential losses arising from supply chain disruptions amid strained trade relations with the US.
On Wednesday, Peter Navarro, a top aide to US president Donald Trump, characterized the Russia-Ukraine conflict as "Modi's war," arguing that India's continued purchase of discounted Russian oil is funding Moscow's military efforts. He also criticized India for its high tariffs and for "getting in bed with authoritarians" by aligning with Russia and China.
“India, you are getting in bed with authoritarians. China invaded Aksai Chin and all your territory. They are not your friends. And Russia? Come on!" Navarro told Bloomberg Television in an interview.
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According to a second person, the government has been apprised of the fact that diversification will take time and that the textile sector is not receiving orders for summer apparel. “If the situation continues, labour-intensive industries will come under immense financial pressure, which may result in layoffs," this person said.
According to GTRI estimates, the new tariffs could slash India’s exports to the US by 43% to $49.6 billion in FY26, down from $86.5 billion in the previous year. However, India’s overall exports may still rise to $839.9 billion, supported by a 10% increase in services exports to $421.9 billion. Economic growth, meanwhile, is projected to slow from 6.5% to 5.6%.
Trade pressures
As per the commerce ministry data, the US remains India’s largest trading partner, with Indian goods exports to the country rising 11.6% in FY25—from $77.52 billion in FY24 to $86.51 billion. Imports from the US also grew, though at a slower pace of 7.42%, climbing from $42.20 billion to $45.33 billion in the fiscal year that ended on March 31.
According to a report by Crisil Ratings, US President Donald Trump’s decision to double tariffs on imports from India threatens to take the sheen off the country’s diamond polishing industry, which is concentrated in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state of Gujarat.
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India’s natural diamond polishing industry is facing its worst year in nearly two decades, with revenues projected to fall by about 22% to $12.5 billion in FY26 from $16 billion in the previous year, the report released on Thursday said.
The projected decline follows Trump’s decision to impose a punitive 25% duty on India for buying Russian oil, in addition to an earlier tariff of the same level on Indian goods entering the US. The two measures together amount to a steep 50% tariff on polished diamond exports, compounding the industry’s challenges after a 40% fall in revenue over the past three years due to weaker prices, slowing demand in the US and China, and the rapid growth of lab-grown diamonds.
India's first legal challenge to its new online gaming prohibition has emerged, with a real-money gaming firm taking the government to court. On Thursday, the Karnataka High Court agreed to hear a petition filed by Heads Digital Works Pvt. Ltd, challenging the constitutional validity of the new law.
The petition, seen by Mint, argues the law is unconstitutional because it fails to distinguish between games of skill and games of chance—a distinction upheld by Indian courts for decades. It contends that by equating skill-based games like rummy and poker with gambling, the law exceeds Parliament's legislative authority, a power traditionally reserved for state governments.
The company said the ban infringes on its fundamental rights to trade, equality, and livelihood, as protected by the Indian Constitution. The court will hear the matter on 30 August.
“This abrupt action has resulted in the potential disruption of employment of 606 employees of the petitioner; and crores of rupees in investment in the petitioner company being lost overnight; but also potential loss of livelihood of over two lakh employees across the sector, and has resulted in the total loss of over ？23,440 crore worth investments," the petition said.
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The new law bans all forms of online money gaming, casting an existential question over the sector which generated nearly $3 billion in revenue until the last fiscal. Gaming companies are now hoping for a partial strike-down of the law.
The company, which operates platforms like A23 Rummy and Poker, asked the court to temporarily block the key sections of the law and grant a protective order to prevent any enforcement action against it, its directors, or its employees while the case is pending.
The petition highlighted a long history of court rulings that recognized skill-based games as distinct from gambling. It cites a 1968 Supreme Court decision that classified rummy as a game of skill, noting that state high courts have since struck down multiple attempts to ban such games, even when played for stakes.
The petition comes as other major industry players re-evaluate their business models. Dream11, one of the industry's largest companies, recently hosted a town hall where it alerted employees to a potential pivot away from money games toward areas like content streaming.
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The petition said the government itself had favoured a self-regulatory approach and that senior leaders, including the Prime Minister and IT minister, have described online gaming as a "sunrise sector."
However, Vaishnaw has defended the law, pointing to the social harm from addictive gaming, devious algorithms that make the player lose over the long term, and protracted engagement with the industry.
"It seems like an appropriate legal move by the gaming company to approach the Karnataka High Court, especially since the court had earlier, in 2022, struck down provisions of the Karnataka Police (Amendment) Act, 2021, which sought to ban online real-money games of skill. That ruling has not been stayed by the Supreme Court, meaning it still holds, at least in the territory of Karnataka. Once the petition is filed, the Hon'ble High court while hearing the merits, may decide to admit the petition and may issue notices to the Centre and Respondents to respond," said Vidushpat Singhania, Managing Partner at Krida Legal.
In its petition, the company also raised concerns over the speed at which the legislation was passed. It said that the government's claims of a link between online gaming and social harms like suicides or financial crimes are unsubstantiated by official data.
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The petition also said that the law fails the proportionality test. It argues that a blanket ban is an excessive response when the industry already has multiple safeguards.
The company said it has raised money from both Indian and international investors, including well-known firms like Matrix Partners and Paragon Partners, as well as the Burman Family, who control Dabur Group. All of these investments were made legally and followed all relevant laws and regulations.
The petition further contends that the law fails the proportionality test. Existing safeguards in online skill gaming include Aadhaar-based KYC, age restrictions, deposit limits, self-exclusion tools, certified random number generators, anti-bot measures, and advertising regulations under ASCI codes.
Bengaluru: Warehousing and logistics companies in India are rushing to bolster their storage, transport and last-mile delivery capacities, as the upcoming festival season is expected to spark an online shopping frenzy across the country.
Warehousing companies are setting up temporary storage spaces near prominent demand hubs to keep pace with order volumes and help deliver goods quickly to consumers.
Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies as well as e-commerce and quick commerce platforms are expected to corner a bulk of the festive season demand, both in metros and beyond.
IndoSpace, the country's largest warehousing developer, is creating short-term, flexible spaces in key hubs such as National Capital Region (NCR), Bengaluru, Chennai, Pune and Mumbai.
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“This allows companies to scale their storage and distribution precisely when and where they need it, without long-term commitments. We enable both large-scale distribution and last-mile readiness, ensuring that goods are positioned directly within key consumption catchments. This strengthens supply chains at the very moment when consumer expectations are at their peak," said Anshuman Singh, managing director and chief executive officer, IndoSpace.
The Mumbai-based company provides storage services to sectors such as e-commerce, retail, FMCG and consumer durables, helping them move inventory closer to markets and manage distribution at scale.
The annual festive season in India typically begins in September, and runs till the year-end.
Mumbai-based logistics company Allcargo Supply Chain Pvt Ltd has enhanced its service delivery capabilities and temporarily added 40,000 sq ft warehousing space in Bengaluru and 17,000 sq ft in Kolkata. It plans to add 70,000-1,00,000 sq. ft space in Chennai and 1,20,000 sq. ft in Kolkata.
“This festive season, we expect a 20-40% surge in demand across consignment transport, sorting centres and distribution and logistics parks. We have partnered with leading e-commerce and quick commerce players to serve their logistics service demand in metro cities as well as tier-2, 3 and 4 cities," Allcargo's managing director Ketan Kulkarni said.
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Anshul Singhal, managing director, Welspun One, says the festive season in the country is always a high-stakes period for consumption, and by extension, for logistics.
“Festive demand is no longer about ad hoc expansions. This year, preparation started earlier as e-commerce and quick commerce players gear up to handle surging demand. While we are not adding temporary space, we maintain speculative warehouses across major metros and tier-1 cities, typically 1 to 2.5 lakh sq. ft, that are ready at least three months before peak demand cycles," Singhal said.
Besides e-commerce, quick commerce and FMCG, categories such as electronics, lifestyle and consumer durables are also creating strong requirements across multiple cities, he added.
Beyond metros
E-commerce and quick commerce companies are expected to be the biggest drivers of festive season demand, given the convenience they offer and the speed at which consumers in tier-2 and 3 cities are adopting them.
As demand swells across FMCG, retail and automotive segments, logistics and warehousing firms are expanding their focus beyond metros.
This expansion is aligned with consumption hubs in Chennai and Pune, and tier-2 and 3 cities including Hosur, Cochin, Vijayawada, Vizag, Siliguri and Coimbatore, said Aditi Kumar, joint managing director, TVS Industrial & Logistics Parks (TVS ILP).
“We expect 15-25% higher throughput volumes during festive season demand compared to regular months. We also offer workforce support during festive season to our clients on their request to ensure faster turnaround time and smooth operations," she said.
To ensure e-commerce supply chains remain scalable and responsive, Mahindra Logistics Ltd is adding around 0.8 million sq ft of temporary warehousing capacity, 50 new delivery stations, and expanding its reach to 500 additional pin codes—primarily across tier-2 and tier-3 markets such as Ludhiana, Agartala, Ranchi and Ahmedabad.
“This season, we see festive-ready supply chains will be defined by de-centralised fulfilment and data-driven responsiveness," said Hemant Sikka, managing director and CEO, Mahindra Logistics.
It is building a digitally-intelligent logistics ecosystem—embedding artificial intelligence-led forecasting and predictive analytics into operations to improve demand visibility, minimise stockouts, and enable faster, more reliable deliveries across the country, Sikka added.
Flipkart and Amazon
As the festive season approaches, large online marketplaces such as Flipkart and Amazon India are also preparing to meet the anticipated expansion in demand.
“To support this surge, we have expanded our supply chain infrastructure by adding close to one million square feet of warehousing space across 10 key locations. We have also scaled up our workforce to ensure we are fully equipped to deliver a seamless and reliable experience to millions of customers," said Hemant Badri, senior vice-president and head of supply chain, customer experience; ReCommerce, Flipkart Group.
Also Read | Amazon India creates over 1.5 lakh seasonal jobs ahead of festive season
Badri added that Flipkart is also extending its quick commerce service to 19 cities and over 400 Flipkart Grocery stores, offering 10-minute delivery for everyday essentials.
Amazon India on Thursday said it has expanded its operations network to boost delivery speed for customers across the country, with the launch of 12 new fulfilment centres (FCs) and expansion of six existing centres. This would bring the first Amazon FC to five cities including Hooghly, Tiruvallur, Krishnagiri, Visakhapatnam and Hubballi.
It has also launched six new sort centres in smaller cities such as Trivandrum, Rajpura, Gorakhpur, Moradabad and Prayagraj.
New Delhi: The health ministry has allowed the National Board of Examination in Medical Sciences (NBEMS) to use Aadhaar authentication, on a voluntary basis, to verify the identity of candidates in national-level medical exams. The initiative aims to prevent impersonation and other fraudulent activities with the use of Aadhaar’s biometric and demographic data to provide a reliable digital check during various stages of the exams.
The move comes in the backdrop of Mint’s report of India’s top medical education regulator, the National Medical Commission (NMC), flagging serious irregularities in the admissions for the 2024-25 academic year, prompting an urgent directive for all medical colleges to re-examine their students' data.
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The NBEMS, an autonomous body under the ministry of health, is responsible for conducting a large number of postgraduate and postdoctoral medical examinations, including crucial entrance and exit tests.
The new directive was notified on 22 August, and candidates will now have the option to use their Aadhaar number for identity verification at various stages of these examinations. This process will be voluntary, offering candidates the choice of "Yes/No" or eKYC (electronic know your customer) facilities to confirm their identity, said the notification, which was seen by Mint.
The move aims to check cases of impersonation and other malpractices, which have tainted the image of competitive examinations, and the health ministry also seeks to bring greater transparency, build trust among aspirants, and strengthen administrative accountability across the board.
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A detailed implementation plan will be outlined by NBEMS, but the core mechanism involves digital verification against the Aadhaar database. “When a candidate opts for Aadhaar authentication, their provided Aadhaar number, possibly alongside biometric (like fingerprints or facial scans) or demographic data, will be cross-referenced with the Central Identities Data Repository (CIDR) managed by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI). This real-time verification ensures that the person taking the exam is indeed the genuine candidate," the official said.
“By minimizing the chances of fraudulent practices, the system ensures that only genuinely deserving and qualified individuals secure admissions or certifications," the official added. “This upholds the credibility of medical qualifications awarded by NBEMS and, by extension, the entire medical profession. It sends a strong message that merit will be the sole determinant, thereby boosting the morale of hardworking students and their families."
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"A robust and secure examination system contributes to a stronger, more reliable healthcare workforce for the nation." the official said.
SUMY, Ukraine—In the winter, a Ukrainian commander saw 12 Russian soldiers moving across a field, leaving him with a choice of how to respond: drones or artillery?
He chose artillery, which wiped out the soldiers within minutes, said the battery commander who took the order.
Drones are pushing tanks, armored carriers and sometimes even soldiers from the Ukrainian front line. But artillery, the historic battlefield staple, is digging in.
Howitzers continue to play a major role in Ukraine and the U.S. and its allies are turning to Kyiv for advice as they contemplate their next generation of big guns and how to use them.
“For 12 soldiers, you may have needed 12 drones, and would need time to get them over there," said the battery commander, who goes by the call sign Bobcat. He fired five shells, which arrived in minutes and obliterated the area.
The war has been a global test bed for military equipment and tactics, with the use of drones, in particular, changing the face of warfare. These unmanned aerial vehicles offer a more precise way of targeting an adversary, including artillery pieces themselves, forcing artillerists to position their guns further from the front line.
But Ukrainian artillerists say they aren’t using howitzers any less because of drones. They are telling the U.S. and other allies that big guns retain some key advantages, not least greater firepower. Simplicity also matters, because complex modern software and electronics are sometimes unreliable, they say. Still, gunners must find ways to avoid being targeted by drones, such as using concealment and decoys.
Gen. James Rainey, who heads the U.S. Army Futures Command, says the army continually studies Ukraine and while drones are a major disruption for howitzers, the big guns still have their advantages.
“If you’re trying to cross a river and you have a dug in enemy, and there’s no civilians, you don’t want to be flying UAVs and picking people off one at a time," said Rainey, whose command looks at ways to equip and transform the Army. You want artillery “to set the far side of that river on fire," he said.
The weapon that Joseph Stalin is said to have called the “god of war" took an early, important role in the conflict that quickly devolved into a largely static stalemate. As supplies of shells ran low, the large-scale adoption of drones gave both sides a precise alternative.
Artillery was responsible for most combat deaths in the last century’s two world wars. In Ukraine, UAVs have accounted for around 70% to 80% of casualties, according to one Western official. They have also decimated both sides’ armored forces. Russia has lost almost 12,000 tanks, personnel carriers and other armored vehicles, mostly to drones, as of late July, according to Oryx, an independent team of analysts that tracks losses in the war.
Ukraine is using drones more than its artillery in large part because it has more of them than it does howitzers and their shells, rather than one being more effective than the other, military officials and analysts said.
On a recent visit, the battlefield in the Sumy region was almost entirely devoid of armored vehicles, while roads heading to the front line were draped in nets to stop drone attacks.
Drone pilots themselves recognize the advantages of artillery.
“Drones can be jammed, shot down, or affected by weather conditions," said Junior Sgt. Ivan Korniyenko, a UAV operator in the 93rd Separate Mechanized Brigade.
An artillery shell tends to be cheaper. Earlier this summer, a 155mm standard shell sold for around $3,200, according to one ammunition manufacturer. A Ukrainian brigade recently said it was buying two types of domestically made drones with batteries for around $16,000 and $10,000 each. Chinese made Mavic drones can cost around $1,000, but their range and ability to carry heavy payloads are lower.
Artillery also packs a punch that UAVs can’t match.
A 155mm shell fired from some howitzers has 6.6 kilograms of explosive powder—equivalent to 14.6 pounds—with some ammunition going up to 12 kilograms, said Col. Serhiy Musiyenko, deputy commander of Ukraine’s missile and artillery forces. But the danger is magnified many times over because the explosion blows shell fragments across a wider area.
A typical first-person-view drone can carry only around 1 pound, with some going up to 4？ pounds, he said.
“A drone can probably fly through the window of an apartment and explode there, but you can use a 10 kilo shell to destroy the entire house," said Musiyenko.
This gives artillery a so-called mass effect, meaning it can be used to carpet whole areas.
Western nations have been studying Ukraine closely. The Finnish army has been training on how to disperse and camouflage its artillery, while also equipping its operators with counterdrone weapons.
The U.S. and its allies sent around 500 pieces of artillery of 17 different types in the first year following Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion, according to Musiyenko. That ranged from more modern self-propelled guns, such as Germany’s Panzerhaubitze 2000 and the Swedish Archer system, to older versions of the U.S. self-propelled M109.
It is the older, simpler howitzers artillerists say they like.
Their favorite, the mainly British-made M777, has to be towed into position, which some U.S. generals have said makes it slow and obsolete because of drones’ ability to spot and target guns quickly. But more advanced self-propelled howitzers, artillery guns mounted on tracked or wheeled chassis, tend to be targeted as they are moving away from their firing position, said Musiyenko. These vehicles can also break down.
At a warehouse in the Sumy region, a mechanic attached to Bobcat’s 43rd Brigade said that at least one part or function of their Panzerhaubitzes will regularly break or fail. “Everyday," he said.
Towed pieces, such as the M777 and the smaller British L118, are simple to use and repair, artillerists said. The same applies for the aging versions of the self-propelled M109, another Ukrainian favorite.
Towed artillery is also easier to hide among trees and camouflage. Artillerists use wooden and inflatable decoys to direct fire away from the real gun. Troops often move their howitzer during twilight hours, when drone operators can’t see well and night vision isn’t as effective.
Rainey, of the U.S. Army, said that self-propelled artillery would still have an advantage in a war of rapid advances, as opposed to the mostly static front lines in Ukraine.
“Drones are really accurate and bring the shot right to the target, but artillery will cover the whole area," said Vasyl, a drone pilot who finds and pinpoints targets for the 43rd Brigade’s artillery.
“Artillery was, is and will be the god of war," he said.
Write to Alistair MacDonald at Alistair.Macdonald@wsj.com