August 2026 | Page 2 of 5

1 Blocking Order Every 68 Seconds: Why India’s Online Takedown Surge Matters

August 19, 2026 Editor

One Blocking Order Every 68 Seconds: Why India’s Online Takedown Surge Is Raising Free-Speech Questions By: Javid Amin | 18 Aug 2026 Nearly 1.95 lakh government-backed blocking orders were sent to Instagram, Facebook and YouTube between March and July 2026 — an average of about 1,275 directions a day, or one every 68 seconds. The figure is striking enough to sound like a warning in itself. But the number needs careful unpacking. These are not 1.95 lakh separate pieces of content necessarily removed by the government, nor were all of…

Kashmir’s Lakes Are Choking: Sewage, Waste and Encroachment Push Dal, Anchar, Manasbal and Wular Towards an Ecological Crisis

August 19, 2026 Editor

Kashmir Lakes Pollution Crisis: Dal, Anchar, Manasbal and Wular Choked by Sewage, Waste and Encroachment By: Javid Amin | 18 Aug 2026 Kashmir’s Lakes Are Sending a Warning We Can No Longer Ignore From a shikara gliding across Dal Lake to fishermen casting nets in Wular, Kashmir’s waters have long been woven into the Valley’s economy, culture and identity. But beneath the postcard image is a much darker environmental story. Sewage is entering water bodies. Solid waste is accumulating along their edges. Agricultural runoff is carrying nutrients and chemicals into…

US-Iran Peace Deal Deadline Expires: Why the Real Crisis Is Now Playing Out in the Strait of Hormuz

August 18, 2026 Editor

US-Iran Peace Deal Deadline Expires: What Is Really Happening in Iran, Oman and the Strait of Hormuz? By: Javid Amin | 17 Aug 2026 The 60-day window created by the June US-Iran interim agreement has expired without a final peace settlement. Instead of producing a durable ceasefire, the deadline has exposed a much deeper problem: Washington and Tehran no longer agree on what the original agreement required, who violated it first, and what must happen before the Strait of Hormuz can reopen. The danger is no longer confined to the…

Mehbooba Mufti Says “Dimagi Naxal” Over Article 370: What Her Remark Means for Kashmir

August 18, 2026 Editor

Mehbooba Mufti Says She Is a “Dimagi Naxal” Over Article 370 Stand, Escalating Kashmir Political Row By: News Desk | 17 Aug 2026 Former Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister and PDP president Mehbooba Mufti has embraced the controversial “dimagi Naxal” label after Prime Minister Narendra Modi used the term in his Independence Day address, saying she will continue to support Article 370 despite criticism and political attacks. Her remark has added a fresh layer to the already intense debate over Article 370, dissent, Kashmir’s political identity and the limits of…

BJP Intensifies Anti-NC Agitation in J&K as Jammu Becomes Key Political Battleground

August 18, 2026 Editor

BJP Turns Up Heat on Omar Abdullah Government as Political Battle Moves to the Streets By: News Desk | 17 Aug 2026 The political contest between the Bharatiya Janata Party and the National Conference-led government in Jammu and Kashmir is moving into a more confrontational phase. The BJP has announced a mass agitation against the Omar Abdullah government, accusing the ruling party of failing to meet election commitments and falling short on governance, employment, public services and development. The campaign is not being confined to Assembly debates or press…

Jalandhar–Pathankot Highway Crash: 3 Killed, Including 2 Srinagar Residents, Near Cholang

August 17, 2026 Editor

Jalandhar–Pathankot Highway Accident: 3 Killed, Including 2 Srinagar Residents, Near Cholang Toll Plaza By: News Desk | 17 Aug 2026 Three people, including two residents of Srinagar, were killed and three others injured after a Jammu & Kashmir-registered Toyota Fronx crashed near the Cholang Toll Plaza on the Jalandhar–Pathankot National Highway on August 16. Police have begun an investigation into the fatal road accident. Jalandhar, August 17, 2026: A tragic road accident on the Jalandhar–Pathankot National Highway has claimed three lives, including those of two Srinagar residents, after a Toyota…

Rajasthan Schools Restrict Photography & Live Streaming: Child Safety Rule or Shield From Scrutiny?

August 17, 2026 Editor

Rajasthan School Entry and Photography Rules: Child Safety or a New Barrier to Public Scrutiny? By: News Desk | 16 Aug 2026 Rajasthan’s reported restrictions on unauthorised entry, photography, videography and live streaming inside government schools have triggered a larger debate: where should child privacy end and public accountability begin? JAIPUR: A new controversy is emerging around government schools in Rajasthan after restrictions were reported on unauthorised entry, photography, videography, interviews and live streaming inside school premises. The stated reason is straightforward: protect children, preserve privacy and maintain a secure…

Khwaja Digar in Kashmir: The Centuries-Old Naqshbandi Tradition That Brings Srinagar Together

August 17, 2026 Editor

Khwaja Digar: When Centuries of Kashmir’s Sufi Heritage Come Alive in Srinagar By: Javid Amin | 16 Aug 2026 Srinagar: Every year, as devotees make their way towards Khwaja Bazar in Srinagar’s Nowhatta, the narrow lanes around the historic Naqshband Sahib shrine take on a distinctly spiritual character. Prayer mats appear outside the shrine. Devotees arrive from different parts of the Valley. Religious scholars speak about the life and teachings of Hazrat Khwaja Baha-ud-Din Naqshband. And, at the heart of the observance, thousands gather for the traditional congregational prayer known…

Omar Abdullah on 1947 and 2019: Independence Day Remark Reopens Kashmir Debate

August 16, 2026 Editor

Omar Abdullah on 1947 and 2019: Independence Day Remark Reopens Kashmir’s Constitutional Debate By: News Desk | 15 Aug 2026 Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah used Independence Day to revisit one of the most politically contested chapters in the region’s history, arguing that developments across the Line of Control (LoC) have vindicated the decision taken in 1947 by his grandfather, Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, to resist tribal raiders and support Jammu and Kashmir’s accession to India. The remark, delivered on August 15, 2026, carried a clear political message:…

Five Killed in Doda Road Accident: Chenab Valley’s Dangerous Roads Again Under Scrutiny

August 15, 2026August 15, 2026 Editor

Doda Road Accident: Five Killed as Vehicle Plunges Into Gorge in J&K’s Chenab Valley By: News Desk | 15 Aug 2026 Doda Road Accident Leaves Five Dead, Reopens Old Road-Safety Questions Five members of a family were killed in a tragic road accident in Doda district of Jammu and Kashmir, after the vehicle they were travelling in went off the road and plunged into a deep gorge at Ragi Nallah near Assar. The accident took place on the Doda–Batote stretch of the Chenab Valley, one of the mountainous road corridors…