X Sues, Coaching Bill, Weight-Loss Drug

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It’s March 21. Today: a big legal showdown for X, Rajasthan’s coaching bill controversy, and a breakthrough weight-loss drug hits India. Plus, job openings at Salesforce, YouTube, Alt Carbon, and more in Who’s Hiring at the end.

Policy & Governance

> Punjab Police Detain Farmers, Bulldoze Protest Camps
Police in Punjab detained hundreds of farmers and demolished their protest camps at the Haryana border, where they had been demonstrating for over a year demanding legally guaranteed crop price support. The farmers had been blocked from marching to New Delhi since February 2024. (Reuters)

> Rajasthan Eases Coaching Bill Despite Rising Student Suicides
The Rajasthan government has revised the Coaching Centres (Control and Regulation) Bill, 2025, easing several provisions to address concerns from the state's ₹7,000 crore coaching industry. The changes include removing the minimum age limit and reducing compliance requirements, which coaching institutes feared would impact student registrations. However, the bill introduces stricter penalties for false advertising and mandates mental health resources for students. (Economic Times)

> Telangana Budget 2025-26
The Telangana government presented a ₹3.05 lakh crore budget for 2025-26, with major allocations including ₹40.2K crore for Scheduled Castes welfare, ₹31.6K crore for rural development, and ₹11.4K crore for Backward Classes. The agriculture budget saw a sharp cut from ₹72.6K crore last year to ₹24.4K crore. Additionally, ₹465 crore was allocated for sports development. (The Hindu)

Business

> Delayed Aircraft Deliveries Cut Akasa’s Wings
Akasa Air is grappling with Boeing’s delayed aircraft deliveries, leaving hundreds of pilots idle and disrupting its expansion plans. The airline, which operates 27 planes, has 226 Boeing 737 MAX jets on order, but deliveries have been stalled due to regulatory scrutiny and production setbacks following a mid-air panel blowout and a workers' strike. (Reuters)

> Government Investigates Ola Electric
Sources say the Heavy Industries Ministry has tasked the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) with investigating discrepancies between Ola Electric's reported sales and actual vehicle registrations, along with consumer complaints. While Ola reported over 25,000 sales in February 2025, the Vahan portal recorded only 8,652 registrations. ARAI is expected to submit its report within 15 days. (Economic Times)

> New Oil Law Ensures No Windfall Tax on Companies 
Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri stated that oil and gas companies will not face new taxes like the windfall tax under the recently passed Oilfields (Regulation and Development) Bill, 2024. The law aims to provide fiscal stability, decriminalize provisions, and enhance ease of doing business, making it difficult for the government to introduce sudden tax changes. (The Hindu)

> BIS Seizes 7,000+ Uncertified Products from Amazon, Flipkart Warehouses
The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) raided Amazon and Flipkart warehouses in Gurgaon, Lucknow, and Delhi, seizing over 7,000 uncertified products, including electric water heaters, toys, and blenders. The crackdown aims to enforce consumer safety regulations under the BIS Act, 2016. (Business Standard)

Tech, Media & Telecom

> Government Approves ₹1,500 Crore Incentive for Small UPI Transactions
The Indian government has launched the ‘Incentive Scheme for Promotion of Low-Value BHIM-UPI Transactions (P2M)’ to encourage small merchants to adopt digital payments. Running from April 1, 2024, to March 31, 2025, with a ₹1,500 crore budget, the scheme incentivizes transactions up to ₹2,000 to reduce cash dependence. Banks processing these transactions will also receive incentives. (Entrackr)

> Elon Musk’s X Sues Government
X Corp has sued the Indian government in the Karnataka High Court, challenging its content blocking orders and the new Sahyog portal, which allows agencies at all levels to issue takedown requests using a central template. X argues that only Section 69A of the IT Act should be used for blocking content, citing safeguards laid down in Shreya Singhal v. Union of India in 2015. (The Hindu)

> AI Startups Head to US for Funding and Market Access
A growing number of AI startups founded by Indian entrepreneurs are relocating to the US, seeking AI-focused investors and proximity to their primary customers. Founders say American investors are more willing to back ambitious AI bets, while Indian venture capitalists remain hesitant, citing a lack of groundbreaking innovation. Indian VCs prefer to wait for a few standout AI startups rather than fund many early-stage experiments. (Economic Times)

> India Lags on PC Exports
The production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for IT hardware has struggled to attract major brands, with companies hesitant to scale production due to a weak local supply chain. Experts estimate it will take 1-1.5 years to build the necessary infrastructure for exports. The cost gap with China remains 4-5%, and India’s PC imports for 2024-25 are projected to exceed $11 billion, while exports lag at $1 billion. (Economic Times)

Quick Hits

> The IT Ministry is in touch with X to examine how AI chatbot Grok used Hindi slang and abusive language, investigating the factors behind the incident.

> Eli Lilly has launched its diabetes and weight-loss drug Mounjaro in India after regulatory approval.

> The Telangana Assembly passed two bills increasing total reservations in education, jobs, and local governance from 50% to 70%, exceeding the Supreme Court’s cap.

> Cyber fraudsters duped an 86-year-old Mumbai woman of ₹20 crore by falsely accusing her of money laundering, staging fake online court hearings, and keeping her under constant surveillance for two months.

> Everhope Oncology, a joint venture by Narayana Health, W Health Ventures, and 2070 Health, secured $10M in seed funding to establish cancer care clinics in Delhi and Mumbai.

> Slikk, a 60-minute fashion delivery startup, is set to raise $10 million at a $40 million valuation, following its recent $3.2 million seed round.

> Anurag Kashyap slammed Netflix India as 'dishonest and morally corrupt,' accusing it of hypocrisy in greenlighting Indian content.

> BCCI announced a ₹58 crore cash reward for India's Champions Trophy-winning squad, coaches, and support staff.

> India ranks 118th in the World Happiness Report 2025, while Finland retains the top spot for the eighth year. The U.S. drops to its lowest-ever position at 24.

Worth a Look

Here’s a house tour of a mud house in Tamil Nadu with a parametric roof. It’s minimalist, but beautifully designed.

Who’s Hiring

> Salesforce is hiring a senior corporate counsel. If B2B SaaS is your jam, this is your gig.

> YouTube is hiring a strategic partner manager for content partnerships. Great opportunity for someone with a background in management consulting, business development, or content strategy.

> Alt Carbon, a carbon removal startup, is hiring for its founders’ office, a general counsel, and a community manager.

> SpotDraft is hiring a senior product manager. Probably one of the most exciting roles in legaltech.

> The World Bank is hiring a senior counsel, who will be assigned as a principal legal advisor to one or more of the bank’s clients.

A Request

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