Smartphones For All, But Not Digital Literacy

LEARN WITH BOOM

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We've all been there. But what if I told you there’s a solution?

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It's actually quite simple. Just use these free tools: Archive.is or Wayback Machine.

Here’s how:

1. For Archive.is: Copy the link you want to save, paste it into archive.is, and click ‘save.’ The site will take a permanent screenshot of the page. Even if the original is altered later or taken down, you'll always have your saved version.

2. For Wayback Machine: Go to web.archive.org, paste your link, and it will show you a calendarised view with every saved version of that webpage on different dates across years. It's like a time machine for the internet!

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Give these tools a try and let me know what you think! And don't forget to share this with your friends.

DECODE

They Got Smartphones, They Can’t Email: Inside Bengal’s Rs 10,000 Student Scheme

In the deltaic sprawl of West Bengal’s Sundarbans, where rivers cut through mangrove forests and phone signals come and go, 18-year-old Madhumita Mandal (name changed) finally owns a smartphone. 

It was paid for by the Taruner Swapno scheme — Rs 10,000 from the state government to help her, and nearly 10 lakh other students, cross the digital divide. On paper, it’s an ambitious attempt to level access. But for Madhumita, the phone mostly means one thing: entertainment. 

When asked how the smartphone helped her apply for college, she smiles awkwardly. 

“I bought the phone three months after my exams. When I had to apply through the Centralised Admission Portal, someone else helped me,” she says. 

She has an email ID—it was created when she opened her bank account. But she’s never used it. 

Decode’s Joymala Bagchi found out, through interviews with students, teachers, and parents across the Sundarbans, Murshidabad, and Barasat, that while the scheme succeeded in putting devices into young hands, it didn’t necessarily equip them with the digital skills to use them meaningfully.

EXPLAINED

Ten-Minute Delivery? Many Delhi Warehouses Don’t Even Have Toilets

Ordering groceries in 10 minutes may feel magical for customers, but for the delivery workers making it happen, the reality is grim. A new audit by the Rajdhani App Workers’ Union (RAWU) has revealed how dark stores in Delhi National Capital Region—warehouses run by platforms like Blinkit, Zepto, Instamart, Big Basket, and Flipkart Minutes—are failing to provide even the most basic facilities for their workers. 

• Fifty-one dark stores audited across Delhi-NCR, covering Blinkit, Zepto, Instamart, Big Basket, and Flipkart Minutes. 

• Nearly a third of Delhi’s dark stores have no toilets, forcing workers to use open areas. 

• A significant share of stores lack safe drinking water, leaving some workers dependent on temple coolers. 

• Most stores have first-aid kits, but many are locked and inaccessible during emergencies. Read Hera Rizwan’s report.

'FAKE NEWS’ YOU ALMOST FELL FOR

🔍 An unrelated photo showing dead bodies from a road accident in Gonda, Uttar Pradesh, where a vehicle plunged into a canal killing 11 people is being falsely linked to the recent flash floods in Uttarkashi, Uttarakhand. Read 🔗 Anmol Alphonso’s ↗️ fact-check.

🔍 A video of a mid-air unprovoked assault on a man by a fellow passenger went viral with a false claim that the attack is communal in nature. 🔗 Shivam Bhardwaj ↗️  found out the truth.

🔍 A video claiming Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, former Foreign Minister of Pakistan said the country has representation and support in the Indian parliament is fake. 🔗 Anmol Alphonso ↗️ debunked the claim.

🅱️ RECOMMENDS

This week's recommendation is: What is AI slop? Why you are seeing more fake photos and videos in your social media feeds

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Verified By Boom is written by Divya Chandra, edited by Adrija Bose and designed by H Shiva Roy Chowdhury.

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