At a crowded platform in Anand Vihar railway station in Delhi, 35-year-old Raju Prasad and his family prepare to leave the capital after months of struggling to secure basic necessities. Having migrated from Uttar Pradesh less than a year ago in search of work, Prasad now says the rising cost of food and an acute shortage of cooking fuel have made it impossible for his family to survive in the city.

Prasad, who worked as a ragpicker alongside his wife, said the family earned about 500 rupees per day through long hours of manual labour. However, the depletion of their cooking gas supply nearly two weeks ago marked a turning point. With no access to affordable replacements and limited alternatives, their savings were quickly exhausted. He said the family initially resorted to collecting firewood, but even that option has since run out, forcing them to return to their village in Gorakhpur.

The situation reflects a broader trend unfolding across urban centres in India, where supply disruptions linked to the ongoing geopolitical tensions in the Middle East have driven up fuel prices and reduced availability. The shortage of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), widely used for cooking in urban households and small businesses, has had cascading effects on food access and affordability, particularly among migrant workers and low-income groups.

In the same railway station, 25-year-old Sarfaraz, a construction worker from Bihar, waits for funds from his family to purchase a ticket home. Employed at the construction site of the Jewar Noida International Airport, he said his daily wage of around 550 rupees was no longer sufficient to cover rising living costs. His gas supply ran out nearly 20 days ago, and he has been unable to secure a replacement due to both shortages and sharply inflated prices in informal markets.

Sarfaraz said the cost of a gas cylinder has increased from approximately 900 rupees to as high as 4,500 rupees in the black market, placing it beyond reach for most daily wage earners. He added that food prices outside have also doubled, limiting access to even basic meals. “I’ve not had proper food for the past two days,” he said, noting that his savings had been depleted.

Urban food systems in cities such as Delhi rely heavily on a dense network of small eateries, roadside vendors, and informal food services that depend on LPG for daily operations. The shortage has disrupted these networks, leading to closures, reduced menus, and higher prices. This has disproportionately affected migrant workers, students, and other low-income residents who depend on inexpensive prepared food rather than home cooking.Restaurant owners report significant operational challenges.

Anil, who has managed a small restaurant in Nehru Place for three decades, said he has never experienced a similar disruption. He confirmed that rising input costs have forced him to increase menu prices while removing several items. He has also reverted to traditional cooking methods using a chulha, or open-fire stove, which is slower and less efficient.

Anil added that declining customer footfall and higher operational costs are putting pressure on his business and workforce. With around 10 employees dependent on the establishment, he said prolonged disruption could lead to job losses if conditions do not improve.

Government representatives acknowledge supply constraints but maintain that efforts are underway to stabilize distribution. Praveen Shankar Kapoor, spokesperson for the Bharatiya Janata Party in Delhi, said authorities are working to address shortages in both domestic and commercial LPG supply chains. He stated that while consumers using formal booking systems are receiving cylinders, smaller users particularly those relying on 5kg cylinders are facing greater challenges.

Kapoor noted that migrant workers and students often fall outside the formal distribution framework, as they are typically not registered under domestic gas consumer schemes. This has left them dependent on informal markets where prices have surged.Students have also reported significant disruption.

At Jamia Millia Islamia, many students from low-income backgrounds depend on shared accommodation and affordable canteen services.

Farheen Naaz, a media student from West Bengal, said she has not had access to cooking gas for 10 days and has been skipping meals as a result. She added that several university canteens have shut down, while those still operating have raised prices.

Naaz said the situation is affecting the health of students, particularly those living in shared housing arrangements. In her accommodation, which houses around 50 women, residents are facing similar constraints due to both fuel shortages and rising food costs.

The shortage has also affected markets for alternative cooking solutions. Retailers report a sharp increase in demand for electric appliances such as induction cooktops and rice cookers. Ahmad, a wholesale trader at ZamZam Crockery, said prices for induction stoves have risen from around 1,300 rupees to 5,000 rupees. He attributed the increase to upstream supply constraints and higher input costs, adding that prices for many electrical cooking appliances have risen significantly.

The convergence of fuel shortages, rising food prices, and limited access to affordable alternatives has triggered a reverse migration pattern in urban centres. Migrant workers, who form a substantial portion of the informal workforce in cities like Delhi, are increasingly returning to their home villages where food access is relatively more secure and traditional cooking methods remain viable.

At railway stations, scenes of families departing with limited belongings have become more frequent. For many, the decision to leave reflects not only economic strain but also the breakdown of essential urban support systems that sustain daily life for low-income populations.

As Sarfaraz continues to wait for funds to complete his journey home, he checks his phone repeatedly, hoping to join others boarding trains out of the city. His situation underscores the immediate pressures faced by migrant workers, whose livelihoods are closely tied to volatile urban conditions and limited social safety nets.

Rising costs for key inputs such as plastic bottles, caps, labels and cardboard packaging have begun to squeeze margins, with some packaged water manufacturers already increasing prices.

Rahul Kumar, deputy chief executive at SLMG Beverages, said the company would consider price adjustments depending on competitive dynamics and consumer response.“If the war continues, the packaging material cost may continue to move up,” Kumar said, noting that broad-based price increases remain constrained in a highly competitive market.

India’s soft drinks market has intensified following the re-entry of Reliance Industries into the segment with its revival of the Campa cola brand in 2023. The move has triggered aggressive pricing and expanded distribution, limiting the ability of incumbents to pass on higher costs.

Kumar said SLMG Beverages had not implemented a portfolio-wide price increase in the past seven to eight years, reflecting price sensitivity among consumers and the presence of multiple national and regional competitors.

Despite cost pressures, the company is pressing ahead with capacity expansion to capture rising demand in India’s non-alcoholic ready-to-drink beverages market, which consultancy Redseer estimates could double to about $40 billion by 2030.SLMG Beverages plans to invest between 10 billion and 12 billion rupees in each of four new plants over the next five years.

The bottler, which accounts for more than 22% of Coca-Cola’s India volumes, is targeting net revenue of 100 billion rupees by 2026–27.The expansion will focus on populous states such as Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, where consumption levels remain relatively low but incomes are rising.

The company reported strong growth in the last fiscal year, with sales rising 49% to 67.73 billion rupees and net profit increasing 76% to 2.06 billion rupees, according to data from Tofler.

The developments underscore how the Middle East conflict is feeding into global supply chains, pushing up input costs for consumer-facing industries even in markets geographically distant from the conflict zone.

Court slapped five of them seven years of imprisonment while 15 of them have received two years of imprisonment.

On August 20, a body of Vimalesh Sah, 19, a resident of Damodarpur village of Bihar, was found on railway tracks after a day he went missing.

Villagers suspected a Dalit-woman of the area for the murder. They made a large-scale arson on her house, took her out to severely beat her, and later stripped her naked in front of the village, while the women and children were watching. She was forced to parade in the village all nude.

The five culprits who received seven-years imprisonment 0were also fined Rs.10000 each along, and the rest of them were fined Rs.2000 each.

Bihar Deputy Chief Minister, Sushil Kumar tweeted, “It is a fresh example of the high benchmark of rule of law set by the NDA government. All the guilty have been punished within 100 days. But those beating their chests on law and order remain oblivious to the long arms of law”.

They are all booked under SC/ST Act, and speedy trial has taken place since the northern states of India have always faced high rate of caste related crimes.

According to local Police officials, the mob carrying Durga Puja procession was issued a prior warning to avoid the Muslim-dominated area fearing the clashes to take place.

Taking the warning as an honor-issue, the mob became wild and violent.

To vent out the frustration, they found an oblivious 80-year-old Zainul Ansari returning from his daughter’s house. The mob brutally bet their soft-target with sticks and rods, and later burnt him alive.

The pictures and videos were reportedly spread by The Millat Times, and the Police officials issued a notice to the channel to take down the videos immediately in order to avoid the future clashes.

Unfortunately, the gruesome killing has been deliberately ignored by the media.

Internet has been suspended in the area to avoid any kind of rumor mongering and political-mileage.

Vikash Burman, Superintendent of Police Sitamarhi told media, “Ansari was not part of the two warring sides. He was likely targeted by the mob when he was in the locality.”

However, six FIRs have been filed so far and 38 criminals have been arrested. More arrests are yet to take place.

It seems to be the biggest Zika outbreak in India. The Health Ministry claimed to curb the outbreak yet three new cases of pregnant ladies have been reported in Shastrinagar proximity of Jaipur.

Meanwhile, Bihar’s Siwan district has been put on high-alert after a youth who was travelling between Rajasthan and Bihar was tested positive.

According to NDTV report, Venu Gupta – the secretary of the state’s health ministry – said, “the government had taken efforts to destroy mosquito breeding grounds by conducting searches in 26,000 households.”

The first Zika virus victim was spotted in Sawai Man Singh Hospital of Jaipur on 23rd September 2018.

National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme of Central ministry offered medical support to Rajasthan.

Five testing labs have been set-up by the programme to collect the blood-samples to predict the possibility of the outbreak. Almost 450 people, including 168 pregnant women had been tested positive.

Zika virus is a flavivirus born from mosquitos. It was first identified in monkeys in Uganda in the year 1947.

According to World Health Organization (WHO), Zika virus infection in 86 countries.

Zika is transmitted same like malaria or dengue, that is through bites from the infected species of mosquitos. These mosquitos bite only in the daytime.

These mosquitos are also known to spread other diseases like yellow fever, chikungunya, and dengue.

Transmission is possible through blood contact, sexual contact, transfusion of blood from the infected person.