Table of Contents
The Hindu Editorial Analysis
We understand the significance of reading The Hindu newspaper for enhancing reading skills, improving comprehension of passages, staying informed about current events, enhancing essay writing, and more, especially for banking aspirants who need to focus on editorials for vocabulary building. This article will explore today’s editorial points, along with practice questions and key vocabulary.
SC: Pellet guns part of graded police response
- The Supreme Court said on Thursday that the police can use pellet guns only in “exceptional circumstances” as part of a step-by-step (graded) method to control civilian protests.
- However, the court did not explain what these “exceptional circumstances” are, and it also did not ask the Union government to explain when and why pellet guns should be used during the hearing.
- Justice Joymalya Bagchi, who was one of the three judges on the Bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, said orally, “Police rules allow the use [of pellet guns] in exceptional circumstances. One of the graded responses is the use of pellet guns.”
- The court was not willing to completely ban pellet guns. Instead, it said it would look into specific cases where the police may have used pellet guns carelessly or without proper reason, in violation of the rules that lay down different levels of response for crowd control.
- The court was hearing a petition filed by former Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Yashovardhan Azad, along with two people who were injured by pellet guns, Prashant Kumar Singh and Shekh Irshad Mansoori.
- The main demand in the petition was to ban the use of projectile-activated guns (PAG) or pellet guns that fire partly or fully metallic pellets by law enforcement agencies against people gathered in civilian protests or public assemblies.
- The petition argued that using these pellet guns for crowd control does not meet the constitutional tests of necessity, proportionality, and reasonableness.
- The court said it completely agreed that the government should respond to students’ protests with non-violence and not with brutality.
- At the same time, the Bench pointed out that there is a possibility that some dishonest or anti-social people may take control of a genuine students’ protest and turn it into a violent protest.
- The court said that because such situations can arise, the police must be ready with a graded response, including the use of force if required, to deal with every possible situation while handling an angry or restless crowd.
- Justice Bagchi said, “We are completely in agreement with pleas of no-violence principle when it comes to agitation of students or persons expressing dissatisfaction with a government policy… But there is also the question of elements hijacking students’ protests. A protest must have started with a bona fide purpose, but it may end up as a vehicle for various ulterior purposes… The hijacking may even be intended to sabotage the bona fide protests.”
- Justice Bagchi also suggested that the Centre should provide the police with proper protective or defensive gear, as it would give police personnel more confidence and a few extra seconds to think before using force or violence.
- He explained, “The best way is to arm your police with defensive gear. That gives them the confidence to ponder… Everyone is a human being. If someone comes with a lathi at you,… if you wear a helmet, you would take a few more seconds to gauge the situation before deciding the course of action. These aspects must also be included in this debate here.”
Debit Cards Becoming More Expensive for Customers
- Having a bank account in India and using a debit card is becoming more expensive for customers, according to the data shared by the government in Parliament.
- An analysis by The Hindu using data shared by the Ministry of Finance in the Rajya Sabha, along with separate data from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), shows that the average annual charge taken by public sector banks (PSBs) for a debit card has increased by nearly 90% in the last five years.
- The average charge collected for not maintaining the minimum balance in bank accounts has also gone up by 21% in the last four years. However, this increase has happened because of higher charges by private banks, not public sector banks.
- The Ministry of Finance said that the 12 public sector banks collected ₹3,905.5 crore as annual maintenance charges for debit cards in 2021–22.
- By 2025–26, this amount had increased to ₹7,563.8 crore, which is a 7% increase compared to 2021–22.
- The increase in the total amount collected could also be because the number of debit cards issued has increased during this period.
- To check whether the higher collection was only because more debit cards were issued, The Hindu compared the maintenance charges collected with RBI data on the total number of debit cards issued by public sector banks.
- The analysis showed that the average annual maintenance charge collected per debit card increased from about ₹61 in 2021–22 to ₹115.1 in 2025–26, which is an increase of 88.8%.
- Responding to a question by Rajya Sabha member Abdul Wahab, the Ministry of Finance also provided data on charges levied by public sector banks and private banks for not maintaining the minimum average balance in bank accounts.
- Combined, public sector banks and private banks collected low-balance charges of ₹7,086.6 crore in 2025–26, 27% more than the collection in 2022–23.
- But this increase in the total amount collected also could be because the total number of bank accounts has increased.
- Moreover, such low-balance charges will also not be levied on Basic Savings Bank Deposit Accounts (BSBDAs) opened under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY).
- A preliminary analysis of the aggregate charges of low-balance charges against the number of non-PMJDY bank accounts indicates that the average charge per account has risen from ₹31 in 2022–23 to almost ₹38 in 2025–26.
- The data also shows that this rise was possible only because private banks raised their charges while public sector banks actually lowered theirs.
- Private sector banks’ low-balance account fees jumped up by almost 45% in 2025–26 compared to 2022–23.
- In contrast, the charge collected by public sector banks fell by almost 14% during the same period.
- Out of the 12 public sector banks, 10 have withdrawn the penalty on non-maintenance of minimum average balance in savings accounts.
- The remaining 2 public sector banks have reduced and revised these charges as per their board approved policies and business considerations.
- The government also said that the RBI has advised banks to inform customers through SMS, email, letter or any other suitable method if they fail to maintain minimum balance in their accounts.
- The government said that customers are normally given adequate notice to restore the required minimum balance before any penalty charges are imposed.
Ajinkya Rahane Retires from All Formats of Cricket
- One of Indian cricket’s most humble players and the captain behind one of India’s greatest overseas Test victories, Ajinkya Rahane announced his retirement Thursday after a long career built on hard work, patience and determination rather than fame.
- The 38-year-old revealed his retirement from international cricket and all formats of the game through a video posted to social media.
- His last appearance for India was in the second Test against the West Indies at Port of Spain in July 2023.
- “I have always believed in timing in batting and I have always known how valuable it is,” Rahane said. “Today is the right time for me to move on and announce my retirement from international cricket and all formats,” he said.
- Rahane was doing well in domestic cricket but had to wait a long time to get the recognition he deserved unlike many other Indian players.
- He came through Mumbai’s famous cricket system and made his international debut in 2011, going on to become one of India’s most reliable batters, particularly in overseas conditions.
- His sound technique and cool temperament, along with his ability to perform in trying conditions, made him a regular member of India’s middle order during one of the most successful eras in the team’s Test cricket history.
- During his Test career, Rahane featured in 85 matches and accumulated 5,077 runs at an average of 38.46, including 12 hundreds and 26 fifties.
- He has also played for India in 90 One Day Internationals (ODIs) and scored 2,962 runs.
- In 20-20 Internationals (T20Is) he accumulated 375 runs.
- “I have always dreamt of wearing the India cap every day, in every innings, every time I get a chance to bat,” Rahane said, looking back at his career. He also said he always followed one simple rule – his country and his team would always come before him.
- Rahane added that although his journey as an Indian cricketer has come to an end, his journey with the game will continue. He said he wants to help the next generation of cricketers, share the values that cricket has taught him, and give back to the game that has given him everything.
Important Questions
- Why did the Supreme Court decide not to completely ban the use of pellet guns during civilian protests and public assemblies?
- According to Justice Joymalya Bagchi, how can defensive gear help police personnel before making a decision to use force during crowd control?
- According to the Ministry of Finance data, by how much did the average annual maintenance charge per debit card increase between 2021–22 and 2025–26?
- Why did the average low-balance charge per account increase even though public sector banks reduced the charges for not maintaining the minimum balance?
- What qualities made Ajinkya Rahane one of India’s most reliable batters, especially in overseas conditions during the Test career?
- What future plans for contributing to cricket did Ajinkya Rahane share after announcing retirement from international cricket and all formats?
Important Vocabulary
- Exceptional – unusual; happening only in special situations.
- Proportionality – using a level of action that is suitable for the situation.
- Bona fide – genuine; honest and real.
- Ulterior – hidden; not openly stated.
- Aggregate – total after adding different amounts together.
- Levied – officially charged or imposed.
- Adequate – enough for a particular purpose.
- Revised – changed or updated.
- Temperament – the usual way a person behaves or reacts.
- Accumulated – collected over a period of time.
- Determination – strong will to achieve something.
- Featured – took part or appeared in.
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