In this week’s episode of South Central, hosts Dhanya Rajendran and Pooja Prasanna first discuss raids and inspections across the country at restaurants and the prevalence of contaminated food even at top-end eateries. They are joined by food influencer and author Krish Ashok, and TNM reporter Shivani Kava.

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Krish says that the issue must be framed against the context of a country that does not have adequate resources or regular systems in place to ensure food safety. “In general, governments, states, civil servants and so on have gotten social media savvy. There is a tendency to go after theatre, and go to places where the raids will result in drama and shock. So a lot of systemic checks are not met. We are getting better, but that does not mean things are not bad. And if we dig deeper, food safety in India has never risen above what is available in a third-world country,” he explains.

Krish also speaks about the wastage of food. “In case of expiry dates and consumption, in a poor country, there are people who are ready to take expired food…,” he says.

Shivani explains how she was drawn into investigating safety and cleanliness at eateries and cloud kitchens in her story published earlier on TNM. “We saw some violations, and we tried to find how easy the licensing for these cloud kitchens was. Swiggy and Zomato do say that they have audits, but these violations are still happening. Food Safety officials say they are understaffed or that they only investigate when they get specific complaints, and so on,” she says.

Dhanya says that food delivery apps do not remove a restaurant that serves bad food as flagged by a consumer, but they hide it for a few days from the algorithm. 

Krish speaks about the shock value of ‘catching’ bad food and identifying unhygienic conditions at hotels. “There is a certain shock to this and the outrage, therefore, is maximum. But then there is also a lot of economic pressure on people to ignore expired food or small physical consequences of consuming bad food. There is also the aspect of chemical contamination, which accumulates in our food, even if we buy raw food and cook it. So the outrage about hotels is also a bit selective, we will have to say, because our food is fundamentally contaminated and we often seem to not care about that,” he points out.

The panel further speaks about influencer culture, political will, and how our idea of food consumption has changed over time.

In the second part of the discussion, the hosts discuss the BJP’s big political reshuffle. They are joined by Aditya Menon, journalist and Political Editor of The Quint.

Dhanya starts the discussion by pointing out how the reshuffle has been more about re-allocation. Aditya says that all the key positions remain virtually the same, though Smriti Irani’s placement as second in command is significant.

“The big news is from the IT cell, of Amit Malaviya being moved out. He is being blamed for the lack of outreach with Gen Z. But we do not know; he may just be back, so we must wait and watch,” he says.

The RSS imprint cannot be missed, says Pooja. “Ram Madhav did not get along very well with Modi or Shah, but he has been brought in. BL Santosh also has been retained and continues to have some influence, though not unchecked. This is also a very Gujarat kind of functioning; this change of moving people when there is some groundswell,” she says.

On Smriti Irani, Aditya says there is also confusion about how to deal with Gen Z, and the BJP thinks they do not have enough people to reach out to that section. “She has been problematic, but in the BJP’s ecosystem, she was seen as someone who knew what she was doing,” he observes.

He also says it is a bit unfair of the RSS to make Amit Malaviya the scapegoat. “The Gen Z saying critical things about the PM is also a failure of the RSS and the ABVP. It is being positioned as a fall from Amit and that he did not tap into social media. That is true, but his failure is limited compared to how the leadership failed and were caught napping while this unrest brewed,” Aditya says.

Dhanya asks about Raghav Chadda and Sandeep Pathak. 

“It is not surprising that Sandeep was included; he will also play a role when Punjab goes to elections next year. The BJP believes he has inside information on the state. Raghav, we will have to wait and see what happens when the reshuffle happens. But his brand has been tarnished among the youth after he switched,” says Aditya.

Dhanya says that from the public purview, the BJP has been committing misstep after misstep. “For example, the BCI issue, with the students asking the CJI not to come as a guest,” she points out.

Aditya says that the problem lies with the BJP heads knowing only one way of communication–bullying and blaming. “On one hand, the PM says he is the all-forgiving patriarch, but his aides go ahead and intimidate and bully those who raise alarm,” he adds.

The panel further discuss the general swell of students across the board, and the political dissent that has long been brewing, pushing the BJP to now damage control.

Tune in to this episode here

Audio timecodes:

00:00:00 - Introduction

00:01:13 - Headlines

00:08:38 - Food Safety in India

00:51:02 - BJP rejig and PM CARES fund

01:19:34 - Recommendations

References

‘Dimaagi Naxal'- Most malicious label yet by Modi | LME 156 | Pooja Prasanna

How safe is your food? Inside Bengaluru's cloud kitchens

Inside the BJP’s big rejig | Powertrip #161

BL Santhosh: The man with unbridled powers who oversaw BJP's Karnataka loss

Why BJP has replaced Amit Malviya as party's IT cell chief

PM CARES spent just Rs 88 lakh of its Rs 8452 crore in 2024-25, put 93% in FD

In Visakhapatnam, manual scavenging is an open secret

Recommendations:

Dhanya Rajendran

War Minus The Shooting : A journey through South Asia during the 1996 Cricket World Cup

Pooja Prasanna

Democracy Now!

Krish Ashok

The Great Indian Brain Rot: Love, Lies and Algorithms in Digital India

A Nation of Idiots

Aditya Menon

Vadhandhi

Shivani Kava

Motherfaker

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Producer - Akshay Lal, Editor - Jaseem Ali, Camera - Ajay R, Social Media - Sukanya Shaji, Riya T T, Anakha C J

The Southern Zonal Council comprises Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Telangana, as well as the Union Territories of Puducherry, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep. It provides a platform for the Union Government, states and Union Territories to discuss issues involving common interests and inter-state disputes.

The meeting, chaired by Amit Shah, was attended by the Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh, Telangana Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka and representatives of the southern Union Territories.

Water disputes take centre stage

The Cauvery, Mullaperiyar, Krishna, Godavari and other river disputes figured prominently in the meeting, with Amit Shah calling for faster resolution of inter-state water conflicts through dialogue.

He said the development of southern states was closely linked to water availability, which affected agriculture, industry, public health and the environment. While acknowledging that protecting the interests of individual states was legitimate, he questioned situations where states remained deprived of water for years while the resource eventually flowed into the sea.

“We have succeeded in making water-related issues dispute-free across entire north India; we will also have to think afresh on issues of water sharing in south India,” Amit Shah said.

He called for pending disputes to be resolved through joint meetings involving the Union Ministries of Jal Shakti and Home Affairs, the Inter-State Council and the states concerned. According to the Union government, the southern states agreed to pursue the issues through mutual dialogue and constructive solutions.

Shah also advocated interlinking rivers from the Brahmaputra to the Cauvery and Godavari, saying such a network could help ensure that India faced no water shortage for the next 100 years. He said river interlinking could also create waterways, reduce fuel consumption and provide cheaper transportation.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay raised the state’s concerns over the Cauvery and Mullaperiyar disputes. He stressed the need for timely implementation of the Supreme Court’s judgment and the Cauvery Tribunal award, and said the rights of lower-riparian states should be protected through established legal mechanisms.

On Mullaperiyar, Vijay reiterated Tamil Nadu’s position that the reservoir’s water level should be raised to 152 feet. Kerala, meanwhile, used the meeting to reiterate its demand for a new Mullaperiyar dam.

Kerala Chief Minister VD Satheesan said Kerala was willing to bear the entire cost of constructing a new dam and assured Tamil Nadu that it would receive its full share of water. Under the proposal, Tamil Nadu would determine the design, location and construction arrangements for the new structure.

Tamil Nadu has maintained that the existing Mullaperiyar dam is safe, while Kerala has raised concerns over its safety and the potential impact on people living downstream.

The Mekedatu project, another longstanding point of conflict between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, also came up. Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar said the proposed reservoir would benefit both states during periods of water distress.

He said Karnataka would retain 5 Thousand Million Cubic (TMC) ft of water for drinking water requirements, while the remaining would be shared with Tamil Nadu. He argued that the focus should move from water sharing to cooperation based on equity and transparency. Tamil Nadu, however, maintained its position on the Cauvery dispute. 

Telangana also reiterated its position on Krishna river waters. Vikramarka said the state sought protection of its legitimate entitlements and downstream rights through established legal mechanisms.

“On Krishna waters, we seek no special privilege, but our legitimate entitlements and the protection of downstream rights through established legal frameworks,” he said.

Puducherry, which has limited surface-water resources, also sought support from the Union government and neighbouring states, particularly Tamil Nadu, to develop an integrated surface-water system and ensure reliable year-round water supply.

Southern states raise delimitation concerns

Delimitation emerged as another major concern, with Karnataka and Tamil Nadu arguing that southern states should not lose political representation because they had successfully stabilised their populations.

Shivakumar urged the council to adopt a resolution asking the Union Government to retain the 1971 Census as the basis for delimitation and maintain the Lok Sabha’s existing strength of 543 seats for the next 25 years.

He also sought the implementation of women’s reservation within the existing number of Lok Sabha seats rather than increasing the total strength of the House.

“We welcome the assurance that no southern state will lose seats, but representation is not only about numbers. It is about weight, and about voice,” Shivakumar said.

He argued that the south’s success in controlling its population should not result in a reduction in its political representation.

“I am confident that all the Chief Ministers here will support me in what I say. Let the 1971 basis be honoured, and let the strength of our voice be protected,” he said.

Tamil Nadu also expressed concern over the issue. State minister R Nirmal Kumar said the state wanted the existing freeze on 543 Lok Sabha seats nationally and 39 seats in Tamil Nadu to continue.

Vijay had also sought a legislative assurance that no state would lose its proportion of seats in Parliament because of its success in population stabilisation.

Karnataka pushes for greater fiscal devolution

Karnataka made a broader pitch for greater financial devolution to southern states, with Shivakumar describing the region as the “engine of the Indian economy” and seeking “fairness in funds, voice, and respect”.

Shivakumar said the five southern states accounted for nearly 33% of India’s GDP despite having around 20% of the country’s population. Karnataka, he said, has 5.5% of India’s population but contributes around 9% of the national GDP.

He said Karnataka accounts for 42% of India’s software exports, hosts around 1,100 Global Capability Union Governments and received more than 21% of India’s FDI equity inflows between 2019 and 2025.

“Pride demands fairness in return. We have always done our part. We contribute, we build, we grow, and we carry the nation forward. All we ask from the Union government is this: please care as much as we share,” he said.

Shivakumar pointed to Karnataka’s reduced share in the divisible pool under the 15th Finance Commission, which fell from 4.7% to 3.6%. He estimated that this had resulted in a loss of around Rs 65,000 crore to the state over six years.

He also said the special grant of Rs 5,495 crore and state-specific grants of Rs 6,000 crore recommended by the 15th Finance Commission is yet to be released.

While welcoming Karnataka’s increased share of 4.13% under the 16th Finance Commission, he said the state’s share should eventually return to 4.7%.

“Karnataka is the second largest contributor to GST and to Income Tax, and a state that performs on growth and revenue deserves to be incentivised, not penalised,” Shivakumar said.

Tamil Nadu also sought greater flexibility for states in determining GST rates and resource-raising powers.

States seek greater regional cooperation

The states also used the meeting to push for greater regional cooperation on infrastructure, connectivity and economic development.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu projected the possibility of south India becoming a $10 trillion economy by 2047 and called for stronger cooperation among the southern states.

Naidu proposed a bullet train corridor connecting Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu through Kuppam, along with a transit network linking Amaravati, Bengaluru and Chennai.

He also sought faster resolution of issues arising from the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, and proposed integrated logistics and dry-port networks, improved power-grid connectivity and a consortium of universities and skilling institutions.

Naidu also proposed a mutual aid force for disaster response and an integrated heritage and spiritual tourism circuit.

Kerala, meanwhile, sought greater regional cooperation for its plans to establish the state as a port-led economy under the Mission Samudra initiative.

Satheesan highlighted Kerala’s efforts to develop Vizhinjam as a major transshipment and maritime hub and sought support for the state’s wider connectivity and infrastructure plans.

He also sought cooperation from Karnataka and the Railway Ministry to finalise the alignment and detailed project reports for the Thalassery-Mysore and Nilambur-Nanjangud railway lines.

On connectivity through forest areas, Satheesan sought coordination between Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu over night traffic restrictions. Instead of blanket restrictions, he proposed scientifically determined time windows and regulated convoy movement.

Kerala raises coastal and funding concerns

Kerala also raised concerns over offshore mineral extraction and coastal erosion, seeking greater financial support from the Union Government for protecting vulnerable coastal communities.

Satheesan opposed the auction of offshore mineral blocks along Kerala’s coast until a scientific assessment and a robust standard operating procedure were put in place. He cited possible environmental and social consequences for the state’s coastal ecosystem and fishing communities.

Kerala has a coastline of around 586 km, of which nearly 63% is classified as eroding, while around 30% of the state’s population lives along the coast, Satheesan said.

He sought permission to use disaster response and mitigation funds for coastal protection and the rehabilitation of families displaced by erosion.

Satheesan also sought changes to the funding structure of centrally sponsored schemes and called for state-specific premiums under Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana instead of a uniform national premium.

He sought eligibility to be aligned with the National Food Security Act database and the Union Government’s contribution to reflect the actual expenditure incurred on centrally sponsored families.

Satheesan said Kerala had borne nearly 90% of the financial burden under the Ayushman Bharat health insurance scheme in the previous year, while the National Health Authority had released only Rs 151 crore to the state.

He also sought exemption or substantially reduced toll rates for state road transport undertakings, pointing out that the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation had paid more than Rs 2.16 crore in tolls in June alone.

Other issues discussed

The meeting also covered policing, social welfare and law enforcement, with Shah calling for greater inter-state coordination to tackle narcotics trafficking, organised crime, illegal migration and emerging cyber threats.

Satheesan sought the appointment of senior inter-state police nodal officers, real-time intelligence sharing, prisoner information exchange and coordinated border patrolling.

Shah also called for faster investigation and trial of rape and POCSO cases through Fast Track Special Courts and urged Chief Ministers to approach such cases with sensitivity.

He highlighted school dropout rates, malnutrition and stunting, saying the national school dropout ratio was currently 9.5% and should be brought below 3%.

He said Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh had initiated efforts to tackle malnutrition that were subsequently adopted across the country, and called for coordinated action against drugs based on a three-year roadmap prepared by the Union Home Ministry.

Shah said South India was a major contributor to the country’s development, attributing its growth to high literacy, trained manpower and technical expertise. He said the region had contributed significantly to literature, research and development, space, IT, artificial intelligence, industry, agriculture, automobiles, pharmaceuticals and infrastructure.

He said other parts of the country could learn from southern states in areas such as innovation and revenue generation.

According to Shah, Zonal Councils had evolved from largely formal platforms into mechanisms for resolving inter-state issues. Since 2014, he said, 70 Zonal Council meetings had been held and 1,445 of 1,869 issues discussed had been resolved.

The Southern Zonal Council meeting came amid several long standing disputes and disagreements between the southern states and the Union government. Despite differences over water, fiscal devolution, delimitation and natural resources, Shah urged the states to pursue cooperative solutions through dialogue rather than confrontation.

The Enforcement Directorate conducted searches at the residences of YSRCP MP YS Avinash Reddy and several others accused in the murder case of his uncle and former MP, YS Vivekananda Reddy, on Friday, August 21. The searches were related to a money laundering case registered based on the murder probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), to look into transfer of funds in connection with the murder.

Six properties in Hyderabad and Kadapa were reportedly searched, including those of Avinash and his father, YS Bhaskar Reddy. Kadapa MP Avinash is the cousin of YSRCP chief and former Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. 

Premises of other accused, including Devireddy Shiva Shankar Reddy and Yerra Gangi Reddy, were also searched. 

Vivekananda Reddy, brother of former Chief Minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy, was murdered at his residence in Pulivendula on March 15, 2019, weeks before the Assembly elections.

The CBI had alleged that the murder was a contract killing for which Rs 40 crore was paid. 

Avinash has been questioned in the case multiple times by the CBI, which has been investigating the murder case since July 2020, and has implicated Avinash and his father Bhaskar Reddy. The CBI arrested Bhaskar Reddy in 2023. He was later released on conditional bail. 

The CBI has told the Telangana High Court on multiple occasions that Bhaskar, Avinash and their follower Devireddy Shiva Shankar Reddy hatched a conspiracy to murder Vivekananda Reddy over various reasons, including the belief that he had opposed giving the Kadapa ticket to Avinash for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Avinash has denied the allegations against him and his father, and alleged that the CBI ignored several key facts in the case.

The Special Court for cases under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act found S Abraham guilty of sexually assaulting four girls in Tirunelveli district. The court also ordered the Tamil Nadu government to pay Rs 10 lakh each as compensation to the four survivors.

Special Court judge K Suresh Kumar awarded four individual death sentences in each case to Abraham on Thursday, August 20. He also imposed a fine of Rs 52,000.

While sentencing Abraham, the court observed that the offences were extremely grave and involved sexual assault against four minor children. The judge also noted that the accused had preyed on children whom he was expected to guide and had shown no genuine remorse.

According to the prosecution, Abraham, who was reported to be 47 years old, was running a prayer hall at Mela Ilanthaikulam near Thevarkulam in Tirunelveli district. He allegedly targeted the girls while conducting moral science, Bible and music classes during their vacation.

The abuse came to light in 2022 after one of the girls, then eight years old, complained of pain in her private parts. Her mother took her to a hospital, where she learnt that the child had been sexually assaulted.

Following the disclosure, three other girls from the same extended family also told their mothers that Abraham had sexually assaulted them. The three girls were aged between 11 and 12, according to the police.

The prosecution said Abraham had taken the children to isolated places on the pretext of teaching them Bible and music. Police also said he had threatened the children with harm if they told anyone about the assaults.

Speaking to Times of India, Tirunelveli Superintendent of Police Vishwesh Balasubramaniam Shastri said the assaults allegedly began during the Covid-19 lockdown in 2020 and continued until the abuse was disclosed in 2022.

The girls' parents subsequently approached the police, following which a case was registered by the Tirunelveli Rural All Women Police Station. Abraham was arrested on July 5, 2022, and a charge sheet was later filed.

The investigation was monitored by Additional Superintendent of Police K Shanmugham. Police said the case was taken up under a ‘case officer’ system introduced in Tirunelveli in 2026 to speed up the investigation and trial of pending POCSO cases.

Under the system, designated teams were assigned individual cases, and their progress was reviewed regularly. The team headed by Shanmugham was assigned the case against Abraham, with police saying the investigation and trial were completed within six months.

When Nivin Pauly smiles at you from the big screen, you smile back. That’s just how it is; the actor’s charm is inescapable. Place that charm in a well-made film with generous sprinkles of romance, drama, action, and music, and you have Gireesh AD’s latest directorial, Bethlehem Kudumba Unit.

Nivin Pauly’s Justin is a 30-something ‘chronic bachelor’ who, besides running a catering company, repairs laptops, deals in real estate, produces his brother Joel’s (Sangeeth Prathap) short films, and more. Justin and family live in a Christian neighbourhood in Karukutty, where everyone knows everyone else and goes to the same church. It is to this neighbourhood that Mamitha Baiju’s Ashley and family move after they face financial difficulties at their hometown in Mundakkayam. 

Ashley, a college girl, is at first intimidated and then enamoured by Justin, who lives right next door. The film doesn’t throw many surprises and/or take any road less taken. The romance track proceeds in quite the expected direction, the conflicts are predictable, and the resolution too is no surprise. Yet, the movie manages to entertain and gives us a few good laughs.

Co-written by Girish AD and Kiran Josey, Bethlehem Kudumba Unit has everything a film needs to drive people to the theatres this Onam season. The jokes land, Vishnu Vijay’s music fits right in, and the actors, no matter the length of their roles, gave good performances. Suresh Krishna as Baiju chettan, Shyam Mohan as Hari, Roshan Shanavas as Glikson, Vinay Forrt as Alex, and others deserve special mention. 

Even the film’s sub plot involving an interfaith romance works quite well. A particular fight scene stands out for its choreography, and does not leave the audience flinching at the violence. 

But despite all its great qualities, Bethlehem Kudumba Unit leaves you with a bitter aftertaste, simply by choosing to romanticise an age-gap relationship. The film is careful not to make way for allegations of explicit grooming. It is the woman who first develops feelings; it is she who suggests meet-ups and dates, and it is she who chooses for herself. 

Yet, one cannot ignore the effort to paint as ‘cute’ the relationship between a college girl and a man almost as old as her uncle. 

A girl, abruptly forced to leave her friends and hometown, turns to an older man next door for companionship in her new neighbourhood. The older neighbour merely complies with her wishes, if one were inclined to read it naively. 

Disclaimer: This review was not paid for or commissioned by anyone associated with the film. Neither TNM nor any of its reviewers have any sort of business relationship with the film’s producers or any other members of its cast and crew.

Home Minister Priyank Kharge, replying to a question in the Karnataka Legislative Council, said the action was part of measures to identify illegal immigrants and foreign nationals residing in Karnataka without valid documents or overstaying their permitted period of stay. Of the overstaying foreign nationals, 365 have criminal cases registered against them, Kharge said, citing a police report. 

Bangladeshis accounted for the overwhelming majority of those identified, with 868 persons. The remaining 43 comprised 20 from Pakistan, 13 from Nigeria, eight from Sri Lanka, and one each from Myanmar and Uganda, according to the police. 

Police said the verification of foreign nationals was carried out using the District Police Module (DPM) and the Foreigners Identification Portal (FIP). Further action was initiated in coordination with the authorities concerned and immigration officials.

In Bengaluru city, police identified 5,304 foreign nationals during the verification exercise, of whom 446 were found to be overstaying illegally. The report did not provide the corresponding number of illegal immigrants identified in other districts of Karnataka.

Criminal cases

Of the 911 foreign nationals identified as staying illegally across Karnataka, 365 were found to have been involved in criminal cases, the report said.

Nigerian nationals accounted for the highest number among those linked to criminal cases, with 135 cases, followed by Bangladeshis with 48 and Nepalis with 44. The figures indicate that the nationality breakdown of those linked to criminal cases differs significantly from that of the overall group identified as staying illegally.

The report also listed cases involving nationals of Myanmar (20), Ivory Coast (13), Uganda (13), Ghana (11), Sudan (9), Ukraine (9), Iran (9), Kenya (8), Sri Lanka (7), Gambia (5) and Ethiopia (5).

Tanzania accounted for four cases, while nationals of the United States were linked to four cases. Cameroon and Indonesia accounted for three cases each, with several other nationalities recording one or two cases.

The police said the identification and verification process was being undertaken in coordination with relevant authorities and immigration officials as part of measures to address illegal stay by foreign nationals in the State.