Applications
CWG clean-up: No overhead cable in Delhi
NEW DELHI: No overhead cable in Delhi. That is what the government is working towards ahead of the Commonwealth Games.
The Delhi Municipal Corporation, under pressure to beautify the city for the Commonwealth Games, has asked the cable operators to remove their cables/wires from electricity poles.
An undated notice issued by the Advertising Department of the Corporation says “cable operators functioning in the territorial limits of the Corporation, while operating their networks, unauthorisedly and illegally tie the cables with street light poles as well as hanging over-head” and this not only “looks very shabby but is dangerous to life and spoil the aesthetic beauty of the city.”
The Corporation has, thus, requested cable operators to “remove/make alternate arrangement of their cables from the street light poles as well as those hanging overhead within one month.”
The Corporation has threatened that if this is not done, suitable action will be taken by MCD including removal of such cables at the risk and expenses of the cable operators.
Interestingly, the Delhi High Court had way back in 1997 directed the city authorities to find a way to give ‘right of way’ to cable operators.
The electricity authorities had also considered charging cable operators for right of way by taking monthly fee, but no agreement could be reached.
Later in July 2007, the Secretary in the Power Ministry had convened a meeting which had discussed the issue with cable operators. An inter-ministerial committee was set up on 5 March 2008 for rationalising the charges for right of way for the operators and held its first and so far only meeting on 11 June 2008.
Members comprise representatives of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, the Ministries of Urban Development, Rural Development, Communication and Information Technology, state governments, and MSO Alliance.
“Cable operators are removing the overhead cable and going underground. The government has been cooperative and this is a project undertaken for the betterment of the city,” says Cable Operators Federation of India president Roop Sharma.
Applications
With 57 per cent single new users, Ashley Madison rebrands as discreet dating platform
Platform says majority of new members now identify as single
INDIA: Ashley Madison is shedding the “married-dating” label that defined it for two decades, repositioning itself as a platform for discreet dating in what it calls the post-social media age.
The rebrand, unveiled in India on 27 February, 2026, marks a structural shift in business model and identity. Once synonymous with married dating, the company now describes itself as the “premier destination for discreet dating” under a new tagline: Where Desire Meets Discretion.
The pivot is data-driven. Internal figures show that 57 per cent of global sign-ups between 1 January and 31 December, 2025 identified as single: a notable departure from the platform’s married core. The company argues that its community has already evolved beyond its original positioning.
“In an age where our lives have been constantly put on public display, privacy has become the new luxury,” said Ashley Madison chief strategy officer Paul Keable. He framed the platform’s offering as “ethical discretion” for singles, separated, divorced and non-monogamous users seeking private connections.
The shift also taps into wider digital fatigue. A global survey conducted by YouGov for Ashley Madison, covering 13,071 adults across Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, India, Italy, Mexico, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and the US, found mounting discomfort with hyper-public online lives.
Among dating app users, 30 per cent cited constant swiping and messaging as a source of fatigue, while 24 per cent pointed to pressure to curate public-facing profiles and early personal disclosure. Some 27 per cent said fears of screenshots or information being shared contributed to exhaustion; an equal share cited unwanted attention.
The retreat from oversharing appears broader. According to the survey, 46 per cent of adults actively try to keep most aspects of their life private online. Only 8 per cent feel comfortable sharing most aspects publicly, while 35 per cent say they are becoming more selective about what they disclose.
Ashley Madison is betting that this cultural recalibration towards controlled visibility can be monetised. By doubling down on privacy infrastructure and reframing itself around discretion rather than infidelity, the company is attempting to convert reputational baggage into a premium proposition.
