The CBSE Class 12 marksheet may no longer decide a student's entire future, but it remains powerful enough to trigger panic when trust in the process breaks down. As a mother of a 16-year-old headed for the 2027 boards, I have to ask, why does an exam we claim matters less still hold such a chokehold on us?
A falling rupee is forcing Indian students abroad to cut meals, chase about-to-expire discounted food, and take up extra jobs. Their families are facing higher costs to sustain them in the UK or the US, even as the education loans keep ballooning.
The NEET-UG 2026 paper leak has pushed lakhs of aspirants back into uncertainty, anxiety and another cycle of mental marathon, which they thought had ended on May 3. This story is about the human cost that question paper leaks, NEET and beyond, extracts from aspirants and their families.
One of the crucial factors in the BJP's historic 2026 victory in West Bengal polls has been the silent Left supporters who backed it. Repelled by the TMC and lacking any viable alternative, scores of Left supporters voted for the BJP in the 2026 polls. The strategy of the CPI(M) supporters is similar to the one used by MMA fighters.
Households across India are turning to rooftop solar through an unusual mix of triggers. From Varanasi to Greater Noida to a village in Maharashtra, neighbours are inspiring each other to go solar. Backed by government subsidies, growing awareness, and most importantly, lower electricity bills, solar is now powering more middle-class households in India than ever.
Thousands of runners are spending heavily on travelling and participating in marathons in India like the TCS World 10K Bengaluru, and Wipro Bengaluru Marathon. Marathons have mushroomed and the number of participants has grown manifold. A simple sport like running has become a part of corporate India's fitness ritual.
The war in the Middle East has brought manufacturing in India's ceramic hub Khurja to a standstill, with 90% of the 300 units shutting shops temporarily. The election in West Bengal has added to the crisis. With workers scrambling to survive, Khurja is a microcosm of the distress in India's manufacturing hubs.
Talk about the massive raids to recover LPG cylinders from the black market in India. Have you wondered how these make it there? We think we stumbled upon one of the ways in which dealers scam the system: ghost deliveries.
For migrants, bachelors and street vendors, the small 5-kg cylinder has been a lifeline. Now the Iran war-induced LPG crunch has pushed their illegal refill rate to Rs 400-500 a kg. And the legal 5-kg cylinders are hard to find. Truly, the chhotu has become the baap, or even the granddaddy of LPG cylinders.
Internships are disappearing in India. Freshers, who once entered the workforce after completing a series of internships, now join as trainees with little to no experience. As trainee positions remain limited, many capable candidates, who would earlier have had a chance, are being filtered out. This shift is further exacerbating the skills gap, leaving young professionals without the practical exposure they miss during their education.
I was proposed lavender marriage twice within five months. Such moments seemingly unfold daily on matrimonial apps as queer people turn to this arrangement for social camouflage. A woman is offered a life of opulence abroad, but the emotional cost is huge and legal guardrails near-zero.
There is seemingly a job that AI can't take away, and it might boom during recession. Wondering what it is? It's related to India's temple economy, and is coming up as a new career path. Courses in temple management are drawing Gen Z students and retirees alike.
Promotions used to mean you had arrived. For Gen Z, it could simply mean you stopped learning too soon.
It has taken India decades to see the seriousness and scale of insurance mis-selling for what it is. We tell you the stories of some people who suffered because of it, and why the problem was allowed to go unchecked for so long.
The towers of Mumbai have seen kilometres of expanse of Dharavi's asbestos and tin roofs for decades. Most pity the slums as a place that is deprived of the basics, while others romanticise them. As Asia's largest shanty town stands at the cusp of a major overhaul, it's humming with enterprise. Beyond the filth, Dharavi runs businesses that generate a billion dollars a year.
For years, a Big Tech job in India has been sold as the ultimate middle-class dream, but for many freshers in 2026, the reality begins with a salary package that hasn't kept pace with inflation, rent, or real life. This is the story of brand-name jobs, stagnant starter pay, and a generation quietly realising that their "dream offer" comes with a 2013 pay cheque.
Former Army Chief General MM Naravane wrote in his unpublished memoir that he was handed a "hot potato" by the NDA government during the confrontation with China along the LAC in August 2020. India's history of "hot potatoes" suggests a pattern. The political leadership gives nothing but broad brush outlines to military leaders, who then exercise their judgement.
A Balochi song, Dilan Teer Bija, has been a must-play at shaadis in India's Hyderabad for years. Dilan Teer Bija was a political song of Benazir Bhutto's time from Karachi's Lyari, the canvas of Dhurandhar. But how did a PPP song become a staple in marriages in India? This Sunday Special reveals the unusual journey of music across borders.
The new middle-class nightmare isn't recession but redundancy at 40. It takes one call, one email, one "restructuring", and your peak earning years are wiped out. It is true, India is creating a 20-year gap where people are neither employed nor retired, just stuck in survival mode.
With the prices of everything increasing, young Indians are finding that inflation is not only making daily life difficult but forcing many to cut back on socialising and reshaping friendships. Here is how young people in urban India are navigating friendflation, and what experts suggest could help in such situations.
