News from Home — March 18, 2026

Headlines

Delhi building fire kills 9, including 3 children. A multi-storey building in Palam caught fire overnight. PM Modi announced Rs 2 lakh ex-gratia per family. A separate blaze in Indore killed 6 more. Two cities, two fires, same week.
Lok Sabha adjourned until March 23. Passed Demands for Grants for various ministries before rising. Parliament will resume next Monday.
2.44 lakh Indians repatriated from West Asia since Feb 28. The Iran conflict continues to push workers home. Most were in oil services, construction, and hospitality — sectors that stopped first.
Civil Aviation Ministry orders 60% of seats on every flight allocated free of cost to ensure "fair access." Airlines are adjusting.
Indian Railways expanding non-AC and sleeper coaches. Average subsidy per passenger sits at 45%. The trains, at least, are getting cheaper.

Weather

Delhi: 32°C, dry during the day. Thunderstorms and 30-40 km/h winds expected tonight. IMD warns of hail and 70 km/h gusts through March 21.
Mumbai: 34°C, sunny and humid. Dry conditions. Typical March.
Bengaluru: 30°C, partly cloudy. Pleasant by local standards.
Chennai: 33°C, humid. No rain expected.

Markets

Sensex: 76,704 (+633 pts / +0.83%) — third straight day of gains
Nifty: 23,778 (+197 pts / +0.83%) — IT and realty led the rally
INR/CAD: 67.45 — rupee holding steady against the loonie
Brent crude: Hovering near $100/barrel. Still elevated from the Iran conflict but off the $110 peak from early March.

The dip-buyers are back. After weeks of sell-offs driven by Iran fears, valuations started looking attractive again. IT stocks led the charge — Nifty IT up 2.78%. The question is whether this is a real floor or a dead cat bounce with oil still at $100.

Sports

IPL 2026 starts March 28. Ten days out. Squads are set, practice matches underway. The auction reshuffled enough that your old loyalties may need updating.
Pinaka Extended Range Rocket: Not sport, technically, but Solar Group completed the first maiden proof trial of two production lots. Worth knowing.

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