Nearly one in ten Indians is at the risk of developing cancer before the age of 75, while about seven in every hundred face the risk of dying from the disease before reaching that age, according to the latest GLOBOCAN estimates. India recorded 1.41 million new cancer cases and 916,827 deaths in 2022, while more than 3.25 million people were living with a cancer diagnosis made within the previous five years. The burden seems to be already increasing. Experts now project that annual new cases could climb to 2.8 million by 2050, driven by population growth, aging and changing lifestyles.Search on for Ram Temple CEONitin Gadkari exclusiveMamdani’s love for soccer Big StoryIn the wake of the donation theft row, Suresh Haware, one of the three members of the committee set up to identify candidates for the post of the first Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Trust, says the primary requirement is “Ram ke prati shraddha ka bhav (devotion to Lord Ram).” In a conversation with The Indian Express, Haware called his new assignment a management challenge “bigger than Tirupati, Shirdi or even many of the country’s largest business organisations”. The CEO would become “the backbone” of the institution and oversee every aspect of its functioning and management, Haware said.In her weekly column, Neerja Chowdhury delves into the threat the unprecedented allegation of donation theft at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya poses to the outcome of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections next year. UP is also expected to decide the outcome of the Lok Sabha election battle in 2029. Highlighting the importance of the Ram temple for the BJP, Chowdhury writes: “The movement for the Ram Temple — the Ram Janmabhoomi movement — enabled the BJP’s rise in national politics. The temple is not like any other. It has deeply affected the Hindu psyche in large parts of the country and the movement to build the temple on the spot where the Babri Masjid once existed has symbolised for many an assertion of Hindu identity.”⚡ Only in Express“Show me a single car that has suffered damage because of E20 fuel. What is being circulated on social media is part of a concerted false narrative.”Story continues below this adUnion Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari, in an exclusive conversation with The Indian Express, spoke about the shift to higher ethanol blends in fuel as debate over its impact on vehicular performance grows across the country. He said since the calorific value of ethanol is lower than petrol, the average mileage can dip as ethanol content increases in the fuel. In most use cases though, the impact would be marginal, Gadkari added. He also claimed the instances of vehicular damage being circulated on social media were “overblown” and part of a concerted “false narrative”. Gadkari said the E20 blend (20% ethanol and 80% petrol) was introduced nationwide in 2025 only after clearances in multiple tests carried out by Pune-based testing lab ARAI (Automotive Research Association of India) and vehicle manufacturers. From the Front PageStrengthening ties: India and Australia on Thursday sealed a series of pacts across sectors, from defence and maritime security to energy. One of the agreements also aims to pave the way to operationalise their 2014 Civil Nuclear Agreement that secures a stable corridor for uranium supplies to India for peaceful purposes. Describing both countries as “vibrant democracies”, “multicultural societies”, and “significant ocean powers,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese that they will together strengthen peace, stability, freedom of navigation, and a rules-based order across the Indo-Pacific region.Joint venture: In one of the first major approvals to Chinese investment in a strategic sector, the Indian government cleared a joint venture between Dixon Technologies (India) Limited and Vivo Mobile India Limited (VMI) for manufacturing electronic devices and smartphones in the country. This comes as tense trade ties with the United States now seem to be pushing India towards a more balanced economic relationship with China. Dixon Technologies said the joint venture would be owned 51% by Dixon and 49% by Vivo Mobile India.Fund cuts: The Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS), one of the premier social science research centres in India, now faces deep funding cuts from the government which could cast a cloud over its viability. CSDS faces the prospect of losing its grants from Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR), an organisation under the aegis of the Ministry of Education whose grants accounts for over 83% of its income. This action follows CSDS professor Sanjay Kumar flagging discrepancies in voter data in Maharashtra which Kumar himself later said was a mis-reading and apologised for it. Must ReadStory continues below this adIn our Opinion section today, Surjit S Bhalla delves into why India needs to incorporate the US in its trade strategy conversation, as their trade relations continue to thrive without any formal trade agreements. Bhalla writes: “Given this, it’s worth asking why the US deal is so difficult to achieve. Political economy supplies part of the answer: The likely losers are inefficient Indian producers who currently enjoy protection, and China, since deeper US-India integration would reinforce the global shift away from Chinese manufacturing dominance.”Masterclass: Brazil’s push to ramp up ethanol use in its auto fuel mix is now a masterclass in biofuel adoption, thanks to the three key enabling factors. Firstly, a graded, spaced-out approach to fuel blending with predefined milestones; second, the vehicular ecosystem being given enough time to adapt to this transition in tandem with clear communication guidance to motorists; and lastly, offering the power of choice and visible price incentives for consumers to shift to ethanol that is now enshrined in a national law. However, in India’s rushed and increasingly bumbling efforts, all three established Brazilian learnings have been flouted. We explain.⏳ And Finally…Spotlight: Zohran Mamdani, within a year of assuming office, became a hero of the masses, not just for his politics, but for his love of soccer – a sport that binds New York together. “Soccer might not be the most popular sport in the US, but it’s the identity of immigrant communities in New York, especially in Queens,” says Joseph Aguilero of Uruguay FC. When FIFA’s Infantino defended ticket prices as “justified in the US market,” Mamdani made 1,000 tickets available to the five boroughs at $50 each. When FIFA banned water bottles in the summer heat, Mamdani objected, and FIFA backtracked. Before academia, before his job as a foreclosure prevention counsellor, before politics seized him, all he wanted to be was a footballer. Lastly, don’t forget to tune in to today’s episode of our 3 Things podcast, where we discuss the Women’s Reservation and the new Constitutional amendment that the Centre wants to implement; landslide in Kerala’s Wayanad that has killed three so far; and more.That’s all for today. Have a wonderful day!Until next time,AribaStory continues below this ad Business As Usual by E P Unny