News Broadcasting
Viewers to showcase travel videos in Zee News show
MUMBAI: Zee News is launching a travel show Raahi Matwale. The programme will show homemade videos of the viewers.
“Aapki baari” is the tagline of the show, which will invite people to send in their home video footage. Zee News will select one or two good home videos and re-edit them as per program needs. It would make the program more interactive.
The effort is to make its viewers endeavor to explore their surrounding to know and to feel one with the world outside. This show will give it’s viewers a boost to do a better videography which means now they will be able to see on Zee News the scenes captured by handycam on their leisure visitsBy a rough industry estimate, almost one million Indians use a handy-cam.
Commenting on the initiative, Zee Telefilms director News Group Laxmi N.Goel says, “Zee News is now presenting this unique show with a big difference from other travel shows. Zee News, in a bid to increase interactivity with its viewers, will delight it’s viewers by showing their home videos which they have shot while traveling to a place that is yet unexplored.”
Raahi Matwale will be having different segments to make the viewers enjoy every moment of it. The Big Bara Break will focus on a known tourist destination, be it a hill station, some religious centres, some seaside locations or some historical towns. Choti Chutti will take the viewers through to some lesser-known locations.
Top Stay – information about the prominent hotels. Local Bazar – showcase the local markets, the local food, handicrafts etc. Travel Tips – help the viewers in selecting things to take to the travel location like medicine pouch, playing cards. The quiz section Sawaal ek Chutti Ka for the viewers offers opportunity to answer and win prizes. Travel Facts will reveal some lesser-known facts of the known Indian travel sector, informs an official release.
The series will begin Sunday 3 April at 12:30 pm and repeat on Saturday at 2:30 pm only on Zee News.
News Broadcasting
Induction cooktop demand spikes 30× amid LPG supply concerns
Supply worries linked to West Asia tensions push households and restaurants to turn to electric cooking alternatives
MUMBAI: As geopolitical tensions in West Asia ripple through global energy supply chains, the familiar blue flame in Indian kitchens is facing an unexpected challenger: electricity.
What began as concerns over the availability of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) has quickly evolved into a technology-driven shift in cooking habits. Households across India are increasingly turning to induction cooktops and other electric appliances, initially as a backup but now, for many, a necessity.
A sudden surge in demand
Recent data from quick-commerce and grocery platform BigBasket highlights the scale of the shift. According to Seshu Kumar Tirumala, the company’s chief buying and merchandising officer, demand for induction cooktops has risen dramatically.
“Induction cooktops have seen a significant surge in demand, recording a fivefold jump on 10 March and a thirtyfold spike on 11 March,” Tirumala said.
The increase stands out sharply when compared with broader kitchen appliance trends. Most appliance categories are growing within 10 per cent of their typical demand levels, while induction cooktops have witnessed explosive growth as households rush to secure an alternative cooking option.
Major e-commerce platforms including Amazon and Flipkart have reported rising searches and orders for induction stoves. Quick-commerce apps such as Blinkit and Zepto have also witnessed stock shortages in major metropolitan areas including Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru.
What was once considered a convenient appliance for hostels, small kitchens or occasional use has suddenly become an essential addition in many homes.
A crisis thousands of miles away
The trigger for this shift lies far beyond India’s kitchens.
Escalating conflict in the Middle East has disrupted shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical energy corridors. Nearly 85 to 90 per cent of India’s LPG imports pass through this narrow waterway, making the country particularly vulnerable to supply disruptions.
The ripple effects have been swift.
India currently meets roughly 60 per cent of its LPG demand through imports, and tightening global supply has already begun to affect domestic availability and prices.
Earlier this month, the price of domestic LPG cylinders increased by Rs 60, while commercial cylinders rose by more than Rs 114.
To discourage panic buying and hoarding, the government has also extended the mandatory waiting period between domestic refill bookings from 21 days to 25 days.
Restaurants feel the pressure
The strain is not limited to households. Restaurants, hotels and roadside eateries are also grappling with supply constraints as commercial LPG availability tightens under restrictions imposed through the Essential Commodities Act.
In cities such as Bengaluru and Chennai, restaurant associations report that commercial LPG availability has dropped by as much as 75 per cent, forcing many establishments to rethink their kitchen operations.
Some restaurants have reduced menu offerings, while others are rapidly installing high-efficiency induction systems, creating hybrid kitchens where electricity now shares the workload with gas.
For smaller eateries and roadside dhabas, the shift is less about sustainability and more about survival.
A potential structural shift
The government has maintained that there is no nationwide LPG crisis and has directed refineries to increase production to stabilise supply.
Nevertheless, the developments of March 2026 may already be triggering a longer-term behavioural shift.
For decades, LPG has been the backbone of cooking in Indian households. However, recent disruptions have highlighted the risks of relying on a single fuel source.
Increasingly, households appear to be hedging against uncertainty by adopting electric cooking options to guard against price volatility and delivery delays.
If the current trend continues, the induction cooktop, once viewed as a niche appliance, could emerge as a quiet symbol of India’s evolving kitchen economy.
