Best of the Week: This is avocado's desi moment

Dear reader,

I’ve been living in Bengaluru for a decade now, and nothing beats the classic South Indian breakfast of dosa, idli, and filter coffee.

But lately, there’s a new contender: avocado toast. It’s not just for breakfast anymore; it’s sneaking into guacamole dips, smoothies, and even desserts.

What used to feel like an imported luxury has become a local staple, with cafés proudly serving avocado everything. It’s fascinating how quickly we’ve embraced it. Maybe that’s what defines the Indian palate today, a love for the familiar, paired with a curiosity for the new.

Across India, farmers are swapping guavas and lemons for avocados, lured by soaring prices and growing demand. Punjab farmer Gursimran Singh spent ₹7 lakh to buy 800 saplings from Coorg, hoping to earn ₹4 lakh per acre once his trees mature.

Imports of the “butter fruit” have skyrocketed from just 234 tonnes in 2020-21 to nearly 12,000 tonnes in 2024-25, with India’s health-conscious consumers driving the craze.

Once a niche fruit of hill stations, avocados are now in cafés, smoothies, and even dosas. As more farmers and investors bet on this creamy superfruit, the question is: can India grow enough to meet its demand? Sayantan Bera looks at the journey of the fruit from the Aztecs to Coorg plantations.

On to Mint's best work from this week:

Gen Z’s climate dilemma: AI’s invisible carbon cost

Artificial intelligence has quietly embedded itself into our daily life—from Google searches to office tools—but its growing energy and water demands are raising alarms among climate-conscious Gen Z and millennials. Google’s carbon emissions have jumped 51% since 2019, while data centres could consume 4.5% of global electricity by 2030. In India, where AI adoption is among the world’s highest, expanding data hubs risk straining fragile water and power systems. Young professionals feel trapped between embracing innovation and contributing to environmental harm. As “Green AI” gains attention, experts warn that without regulation, the technology’s ecological toll will only deepen.

Government readies fresh bank merger plan to create mega PSBs

The government is preparing a new plan to merge select public-sector banks (PSBs) to build scale and cut overlap. Among proposals under discussion are mergers between Union Bank of India and Bank of India, and between Indian Bank and Indian Overseas Bank. The finance ministry is also weighing the privatization of Punjab & Sind Bank and Bank of Maharashtra later. If cleared, the Union Bank-Bank of India merger would create India’s second-largest lender by assets after State Bank of India. The move marks a revival of banking-sector reforms aimed at efficiency, global competitiveness, and stronger balance sheets.

Why JioBlackRock’s quiet launch could shake up India’s investing future

When Reliance Industries joined hands with BlackRock to launch JioBlackRock AMC, many expected a Jio-style disruption. Instead, the 50:50 venture has quietly built scale through what CEO Sid Swaminathan calls “micro disruptions”, a digital-only model, ultra-low costs, and data-driven investing powered by BlackRock’s $300-billion systematic active equities (SAE) engine. SAE utilizes hundreds of alternative data points, including social-media sentiment and satellite imagery, to inform investment decisions, now adapted for India’s markets. JioBlackRock’s first active fund, a flexicap offering, aims for steady long-term alpha while protecting downside risk. Backed by the Jio Finance app and partnerships with Groww, Paytm, and Zerodha, the AMC has already onboarded 630,000 investors and ₹13,000 crore in AUM within three months.

China eases rare-earth magnet curbs, approves imports for four Indian firms

Four Indian companies—Jay Ushin, De Diamond Electric, and the Indian arms of Continental and Hitachi Astemo—have received Beijing’s approval to import rare-earth magnets, marking a breakthrough after months of export restrictions. The move comes six months after China tightened curbs amid its trade war with the US, disrupting key supply chains. The approvals follow diplomatic outreach by India, including foreign minister S. Jaishankar’s July visit to Beijing. Around 30 more Indian applications remain pending. The easing offers major relief to India’s auto and electronics sectors, which are heavily dependent on China’s near-monopoly in rare-earth magnets.

Air India speeds up jet deliveries to match IndiGo’s fleet growth

Air India is now taking delivery of one aircraft every six days, matching the pace of IndiGo’s fleet expansion. The Tata-owned carrier, which has over 524 aircraft due for delivery by 2031, has already received about 50 from its mega orders with Airbus and Boeing. Air India Express plans to add 20-24 planes in 2026, while Air India adds three per month—about one new jet weekly across the group. IndiGo, meanwhile, continues to receive an aircraft every week, with 100 Airbus deliveries lined up through 2027. Analysts say maintaining this tempo, especially with Boeing’s slower supply chain, remains Air India’s key challenge.

The rupee at 100? Why fear may be trumping fundamentals

The rupee’s slide toward ₹100 per US dollar has sparked anxiety, but the panic may be misplaced. Since Donald Trump’s re-election in November 2024, the rupee has lost over 4%, but this decline aligns with long-term trends rather than a sudden collapse. Unlike past crises, India’s macro fundamentals are strong: inflation is below 4%, fiscal deficit is under control, and GDP growth remains among the best globally. The real drag lies in weaker capital inflows as foreign portfolio investors have pulled out $1.3 billion, while outward FDI has risen sharply. Tariff tensions with the US and tighter visa norms have further dampened sentiment.

Digital arrests and fake cops: Inside India’s war on online bank scams

Digital scams are spiralling across India, from “digital arrests” to fake trading apps. This has prompted the Supreme Court to demand answers from the Centre and the CBI. The RBI's data shows bank frauds jumped 194% in value to ₹36,014 crore in 2024-25, forcing banks, regulators, tech firms, and telcos to join forces against fraudsters. Banks are innovating ways to mitigate the threat, from binding payment apps to SIMs and devices (rendering them unusable for an account on a different phone) to tracing user behaviour and implementing human intervention. Even AI is being deployed to prevent cyberfraud. Apps are being designed to disable screenshots and block screen-sharing tools. From April 2026, the RBI will mandate dynamic two-factor authentication and move away from text-based OTPs.

Onion glut and export curbs crush farmers as prices hit multi-year lows

India’s onion farmers are reeling as wholesale prices have plunged over 50% amid bumper harvests, export bans, and rain damage. Despite stable prices in recent years, this steep fall—triggered by curbs such as the 2023 export ban and delayed duty rollback—has left growers dumping produce on roads. While onion production surged 27% in 2024-25, exports remain weak, deepening the glut. Heavy rainfall in Maharashtra and Karnataka has further damaged crops. Onions, which once drove inflation up, are now dragging it down—by 70 basis points in September—highlighting their powerful, recurring influence on both farmers’ incomes and India’s price stability.

RuPay rides UPI wave to challenge Visa and MasterCard

Homegrown card network RuPay is rapidly gaining ground on Visa, MasterCard and Amex, helped by its exclusive integration with India’s UPI payments system. RuPay now accounts for 38% of all credit card transactions by volume and 8% by value, up sharply from 10% and 1.8% in 2023-24, according to Bernstein. UPI-linked RuPay transactions more than doubled between April and October 2024 to 750 million, worth ₹63,826 crore. Its edge lies in UPI’s vast merchant network—50 million versus fewer than 10 million PoS terminals—and lower merchant discount rates. While banks like RBL report higher spends via UPI-linked RuPay cards, analysts say the value gap versus global networks remains wide.

Dream11 eyes stock broking after gaming ban hits core business

Dream11, once India’s fantasy gaming giant, is pivoting to stock broking after the government’s ban on online money games wiped out nearly 95% of its revenue. Backed by Tencent, Tiger Global, and TPG, the $8 billion firm has applied for a Sebi licence and plans to tap its 260 million users to enter the fast-growing broking industry. With stock investing booming, only one in 12 Indians is a registered investor. Dream11 hopes to turn gamers into traders. But can the fantasy sports pioneer successfully rebrand itself as a player in India’s fiercely competitive online broking arena?