Chaitali

Chaitali (IPA: /t͡ʃoi̯t̪ali/; IAST: Caitālī) is a structured documentation and content development cycle on The Sunil Abraham Project (TSAP). The first Chaitali cycle runs from Sunday, 1 March 2026 to Tuesday, 14 April 2026, concluding on the final day of the month of Chaitra. Undertaken during a period recognised across several Indian calendar traditions as one of transition and renewal, Chaitali designates a focused phase for content creation, expansion of existing work, and forward planning within TSAP.

Rather than functioning as a productivity sprint, Chaitali is framed as a steady and disciplined phase of growth aligned with the transitional character of the Chaitra period. Chaitali 2026 is documented as part of the evolving institutional history of TSAP. Future iterations, if undertaken, may develop independently in scope and structure.

Scope

Chaitali focuses on the systematic expansion of existing pages, the creation of new research-oriented entries, and the strengthening of the site’s structural integrity. Work undertaken during this period includes publication additions, structural refinements, documentation improvements, and experimental design iterations within the TSAP framework.

Chaitra

Chaitra (Devanagari: चैत्र) is a traditional month name used in several Indian calendar systems. The name “Chaitra” is derived from the Chitra nakshatra (lunar asterism), with which the full moon of the month is traditionally associated. In many lunisolar calendars across northern, western, and parts of southern India, Chaitra is treated as the first month of the year and marks the beginning of a new annual cycle. In regional solar calendars such as those used in Bengal (Bangla: চৈত্র) and Odisha (Odia: ଚୈତ୍ର), Chaitra appears as the twelfth and final month of the year, preceding the start of the new regional year in mid-April.

Although calendar structures vary across India, the period corresponding to Chaitra generally falls in March–April in the Gregorian calendar and is associated with seasonal transition.

Tagore’s Chaitali

The title Chaitali derives from the same seasonal vocabulary as Chaitra, evoking the mood and temporal associations of the month. Rabindranath Tagore published a poetry collection under this title in 1896. The collection was later included in Tagore’s compiled poetical works published by Visva-Bharati.

Pages Created During Chaitali 2026

During Chaitali 2026, 95 pages have been created.

1. 1 March 2026 : Chaitali — Chaitali is a structured documentation and content development cycle on The Sunil Abraham Project, first undertaken from 1 March 2026 to 14 April 2026 during the month of Chaitra.
2. 1 March 2026 : Google Goes Offline to Get Small Cos Online — A Mint news report by K. Raghu on Google India's offline outreach strategy for small businesses, with Sunil Abraham on Google's advantage in monitoring new website registrations.
3. 1 March 2026 : Govt Wants to Scrub the Internet Clean — A Mint news report by Surabhi Agarwal and Leslie D'Monte on Kapil Sibal's push to pre-screen online content, with Sunil Abraham calling it unconstitutional and technically impossible.
4. 2 March 2026 : A Grass-Roots Challenge to the UID Project — A Mint field report by Karen Leigh from Kibbanahalli, Karnataka, on the awareness gap in Aadhaar's early enrolment pilots, with Sunil Abraham on the consent problem at the programme's core.
5. 2 March 2026 : Supreme Court Provides Partial Relief for Aadhaar — A Mint news report by Apurva Vishwanath and Saurabh Kumar on the Supreme Court's October 2015 interim order expanding Aadhaar's permitted uses, with Sunil Abraham on the flawed reasoning behind the Jan Dhan carve-out.
6. 3 March 2026 : Ayodhya Trending on Twitter Sparks Censorship Concerns — A Mint news report by Surabhi Agarwal on the ShauryaDiwas and Babri Masjid hashtags trending on the 20th anniversary of the demolition, with Sunil Abraham noting that fringe groups use extreme positions to attract attention.
7. 3 March 2026 : Growing Up Geek — A Mint feature by Gopal Sathe on how Indian parents and children are navigating technology, with Sunil Abraham cautioning that tablets hinder fine motor and social skill development in young children.
8. 3 March 2026 : Govt Plans Inter-Ministerial Panel on Internet Policy — A Mint news report by Surabhi Agarwal on the government's proposed inter-ministerial Internet panel and UN-CIRP proposal, with Sunil Abraham reserving judgement until the body's actual coordination outputs are known.
9. 3 March 2026 : John Doe Order Issued for Gangs of Wasseypur — A Mint news report by Surabhi Agarwal and Shuchi Bansal on the Bombay High Court's John Doe order for Viacom 18's film, with Sunil Abraham on the disproportionate harm of blanket website blocks.
10. 3 March 2026 : Policy to Help Differently Abled Access Govt Websites Approved — A Mint news report by Moulishree Srivastava and Anirban Sen on India's National Policy on Universal Electronic Accessibility, with Sunil Abraham of CIS noting that most companies still lack the data services needed for accessibility technology.
11. 3 March 2026 : Supreme Court Sets Up Constitution Bench to Hear Aadhaar Privacy Issues — A Mint news report by Priyanka Mittal on CJI J.S. Khehar setting 18–19 July 2017 for the Supreme Court constitution bench hearing on whether the right to privacy is a fundamental right and whether Aadhaar breaches it.
12. 3 March 2026 : Issue of Duplication of Identities of Users Under Control: Nilekani — A Mint news report by Anirban Sen on UIDAI chief Nandan Nilekani's claims of 99.99% system accuracy, alongside Sunil Abraham's blog post arguing that UID's reliance on biometrics is deeply flawed in design.
13. 4 March 2026 : Are Connected Tech Toys Too Smart for Their Own Good? — A Mint feature by Abhijit Ahaskar on the privacy and security risks of IoT-enabled children's toys, with Sunil Abraham noting that smart toys are currently regulated under Section 43A of the IT Act.
14. 4 March 2026 : Telcos Want to Curb Internet Speed to 64 Kbps in Fair Usage Plans — A Mint news report by Arunabh Saikia on telecom firms' push to throttle broadband to 64 kbps under fair usage plans, with Sunil Abraham calling it anti-consumer and urging TRAI to ensure usable speeds post-FUP.
15. 5 March 2026 : Broadband User Base Still Has a Long Way to Go — A Mint feature by Leslie D'Monte and Deepti Chaudhary on India crossing 100 million internet users while broadband penetration lags, with Sunil Abraham noting the government had not done enough to facilitate broadband adoption.
16. 5 March 2026 : Pitroda Seeks to Put Govt Information in Public Domain — A Mint news report by Surabhi Agarwal and Kirthi Rao on India's first government press conference on Twitter, with Sunil Abraham cautioning that one bureaucrat available on Twitter does not substitute for a sustained government presence on social media.
17. 6 March 2026 : Ahead of Data Protection Law Roll Out, Experts Caution That It Shouldn't Limit Collection and Use of Data — A Firstpost report on an IAMAI seminar where experts including Sunil Abraham and Kamlesh Bajaj debated the shape of India's forthcoming data protection law.
18. 6 March 2026 : Dissent on Aadhaar: New Book Highlights Limitations of ID Project, Legal and Tech Opposition to It — A Firstpost review of Dissent on Aadhaar: Big Data Meets Big Brother, edited by Reetika Khera, examining the book's critique of India's biometric ID system.
19. 6 March 2026 : EC Guidelines on Social Media: Welcome Move, but Not Enough — A Firstpost analysis by Shruti Dhapola assessing the Election Commission's 2013 social media guidelines, with experts including Sunil Abraham flagging gaps in their scope.
20. 6 March 2026 : India's Central Monitoring System: Security Can't Come at Cost of Privacy — A Firstpost analysis by Danish examining expert concerns over India's Central Monitoring System, its lack of oversight, and the tension between surveillance and privacy.
21. 6 March 2026 : Right to Be Forgotten Poses a Legal Dilemma in India — A Mint feature by Leslie D'Monte on the legal vacuum around the right to be forgotten in India following the EU's landmark ruling, with Sunil Abraham arguing such cases should pass a public interest test.
22. 6 March 2026 : Sunil Abraham and Firstpost — An archive of Sunil Abraham's writings and media coverage in Firstpost, bringing together articles authored by him and reports quoting his commentary.
23. 7 March 2026 : Aadhaar-Privacy Debate: How the 12-Digit Number Went from Personal Identifier to All-Pervasive Transaction Tool — A Firstpost explainer tracing Aadhaar's evolution from a welfare identification scheme to a universal transaction tool, covering data leaks, biometric failures, and constitutional challenges.
24. 7 March 2026 : Indian Government Wants to Monitor Social Networks — A Firstpost report on the Union Home Ministry's directive to DoT to monitor Facebook and Twitter, with Sunil Abraham criticising blanket surveillance as wasteful and ineffective.
25. 7 March 2026 : India's Vanishing Fingerprints Put UID in Question — A Firstpost investigation by Pallavi Polanki into biometric failures at Delhi's UID enrolment centres, with Sunil Abraham questioning the project's statistical foundations.
26. 7 March 2026 : Location Tracking: Why the Govt-Mobile Manufacturer War Won't End Soon — A Firstpost report by Danish on the standoff between India's government and telecom operators over mandatory location-based services, and the privacy concerns it raises.
27. 7 March 2026 : Net Domains in Indian Languages Coming Soon — A Firstpost report on NIXI's announcement of .Bharat internationalised domain names in seven Indian languages, with expert views on its likely reach and limitations.
28. 7 March 2026 : Nowhere to Hide: Govt Making Your Personal Details Public — A Firstpost report summarising a Business Standard investigation into government departments publishing citizens' sensitive personal and financial data online without safeguards.
29. 7 March 2026 : Parl Panel Recommendations to IT Act Leave Online Activists Divided — A Firstpost report by Danish on the Parliamentary Committee's critique of the IT Intermediary Rules and Section 66A, with Sunil Abraham welcoming the proposed constitutional safeguards.
30. 8 March 2026 : Aadhaar Virtual ID: What Is It and Will It Help Keep Your Information Secure? — A News Minute explainer on UIDAI's 16-digit Virtual ID system, examining how it works and whether it adequately addresses Aadhaar data security concerns.
31. 8 March 2026 : Carnegie Global Tech Summit: Experts Discuss Data Protection Act; Hail Digitisation, Regulation in India's Financial Sector — An ANI report on the 9th Carnegie Global Tech Summit session on India's data governance approach, featuring views on the Digital Personal Data Protection Act.
32. 8 March 2026 : Every Move You Make — A Swarajya magazine feature by Seetha examining India's expanding surveillance infrastructure — from Aadhaar and NATGRID to CMS and DNA profiling — and the absence of privacy law.
33. 8 March 2026 : Facebook Is No Charity, and the 'Free' in Free Basics Comes at a Price — A News Minute piece by Mark Graham arguing that Facebook's Free Basics service violates net neutrality and serves corporate interests rather than the poor.
34. 8 March 2026 : FreedomYUG: Doc Till You Drop — An Open Source For You column urging government bodies and NGOs in India to abandon proprietary doc formats and adopt open standards, citing Sunil Abraham's advocacy work.
35. 8 March 2026 : Infosys Launches Open-Source Responsible AI Toolkit to Enhance Trust and Transparency in AI — A press release via ThePrint announcing Infosys' open-source Responsible AI Toolkit, with reactions from industry, government, and Meta's Sunil Abraham.
36. 8 March 2026 : Is the Karnataka Government Going to Be the New Goonda in the State? — A News Minute report on opposition to Karnataka's Goonda Act amendment, which extended its ambit to digital offences under the IT Act and Copyright Act.
37. 8 March 2026 : Modi Govt Warns States to Watch Out for Cyber-Security Threats, Prove Preparedness — A ThePrint report by Amrita Nayak Dutta on MeitY's directive to states to draft cyber crisis plans, appoint CISOs, and audit IT infrastructure against cyber threats.
38. 8 March 2026 : Respite from Internet Censorship? — A Digit feature by Nimish Sawant examining India's website blocking controversy of 2012 and the structural threats to internet freedom posed by the IT Intermediaries Guidelines Rules.
39. 8 March 2026 : Sunil Abraham and ThePrint — A collection of news reports in ThePrint that include commentary from Sunil Abraham on technology policy, digital rights, and internet governance.
40. 9 March 2026 : If an Indian Party Acted Like Cambridge Analytica, It Will Not Be Guilty Under Current Laws — A Newslaundry interview with Sunil Abraham on the Facebook–Cambridge Analytica scandal, India's absent data protection law, and the risks of data-driven political manipulation.
41. 9 March 2026 : Reliance Jio Chat Compromises User Security, Claims a Hackers' Collective — A Newslaundry news report by Arunabh Saikia on Anonymous India's claims that the Reliance Jio Chat app lacked encryption, with responses from Sunil Abraham, Nikhil Pahwa, and Reliance.
42. 9 March 2026 : Sunil Abraham and Newslaundry — A collection of Newslaundry reports and stories that include commentary from Sunil Abraham on technology policy, privacy, and digital governance.
43. 9 March 2026 : Under Modi Government, Foreign Funding of NGOs Has Come Down — A Newslaundry investigative report by Himadri Ghosh on the sharp decline in foreign contributions to Indian NGOs after 2014, drawing on RTI data from the Ministry of Home Affairs.
44. 9 March 2026 : What Does the Shift from Paytm Wallet to Paytm Payments Bank Limited Mean for You? — A Newslaundry explainer by Cherry Agarwal on the transition from Paytm Wallet to Paytm Payments Bank Limited, its implications for user security and accountability, with comment from Sunil Abraham.
45. 9 March 2026 : Why You Should Keep a Close Eye on the Net Neutrality Debate in the US — A Digit feature by Subhrojit Mallick on the FCC's 2017 net neutrality repeal, its global implications, and what it means for India's internet policy.
46. 10 March 2026 : Government Plans Tighter Rules for Social Media Brands Like Facebook, TikTok, ShareChat — A CNBC-TV18 news report by Sunny Sen on the Indian government's plans to tighten intermediary liability rules for social media platforms, with comment from Sunil Abraham.
47. 10 March 2026 : Parties Give Short Shrift to Privacy — A Millennium Post news report by Pratap Vikram on how the 2014 election manifestoes of major Indian political parties ignored privacy legislation, internet governance, and IT Act reform.
48. 11 March 2026 : Helping Institutions Embrace Open Access — An IndiaBioscience event report on a panel discussion at IISc on institutional open access policies, moderated by Sunil Abraham of the Centre for Internet and Society.
49. 11 March 2026 : More Pressure on WhatsApp! Govt Says Trace Origin of Messages to Fight Fake News — A Business Today news report on MeitY's third letter to WhatsApp demanding message traceability to combat fake news, with comment from Sunil Abraham on metadata-based traceability.
50. 11 March 2026 : Nokia Eyes GeNext to Tap Mobile Email Mkt — An India Today report on Nokia's push to grow its mobile email market in India by targeting youth under 25, featuring comments from Sunil Abraham of CIS.
51. 11 March 2026 : Oyo Hotels' Real-Time Digital Record Database Sparks Privacy Fears — A BloombergQuint news report by Nishant Sharma on OYO Hotels' pilot real-time guest database and its privacy implications, with comment from Sunil Abraham and Pranesh Prakash of CIS.
52. 11 March 2026 : Stad in het Vizier (City in Focus) — A farewell lecture by Caroline Nevejan delivered at the University of Amsterdam on 26 June 2025, reflecting on her tenure as Professor of Designing Urban Experience and Chief Science Officer of the City of Amsterdam. The lecture cites Sunil Abraham in a discussion of digital culture and the homogenisation of online narratives.
53. 11 March 2026 : WannaCry Ransomware: How Agencies Like NSA of US Contributed to Fragility of Global Information Society — An opinion column by Sunil Abraham in India Today on how the NSA's hoarding of zero-day vulnerabilities enabled the WannaCry ransomware attack, and the case for Free and Open Source Software.
54. 12 March 2026 : Big Brothers Will Keep Watching You — A Governance Now feature by Pratap Vikram Singh on India's stalled right to privacy legislation, with commentary from Sunil Abraham of CIS on the need for an omnibus law.
55. 12 March 2026 : Google, Facebook Refuse to Give In to a Paranoid Government That Wants to Gag Them — An India Today magazine report by Bhavna Vij-Aurora on the Indian government's confrontation with Google and Facebook over removal of objectionable online content in 2012.
56. 12 March 2026 : Google Takes U-Turn, Says It Won't Ban Nude Photos on Blogger — An India Today news report on Google reversing its decision to ban explicit content on Blogger, with commentary from Sunil Abraham of the Centre for Internet and Society.
57. 12 March 2026 : Google's War on Nude Photos Goes Against User Rights — An India Today feature by Sahil Mohan Gupta examining Google's 2015 Blogger policy restricting sexually explicit content and its implications for free speech and user rights.
58. 12 March 2026 : Just Wink and Grab Big E-Book Releases — An India Today report by Max Martin on Wink, an Indian e-book reader by EC Media International, featuring commentary from Sunil Abraham on accessibility and DRM.
59. 12 March 2026 : Open Letter by Indian Civil Society Organisations to the Chair of the Multistakeholder Meeting on the Future of Internet Governance to Be Held in Brazil in April, 2014 — An open letter from ten Indian civil society organisations, including Sunil Abraham of CIS, protesting the appointment of Subi Chaturvedi as civil society co-chair of the NetMundial meeting.
60. 12 March 2026 : Option Shift — A Down to Earth report by DTE Staff on the slow adoption of free and open-source software in India, featuring Sunil Abraham of Mahiti on barriers to FOSS uptake.
61. 12 March 2026 : Sunil Abraham and India Today — An archive of articles and news coverage in India Today connected to Sunil Abraham, including pieces authored by him and reports citing his commentary.
62. 12 March 2026 : Sunil Abraham and Tehelka — A collection of articles written by Sunil Abraham for Tehelka magazine, covering technology policy, digital rights, and internet governance.
63. 12 March 2026 : Unshackling Expression: A Study on Laws Criminalising Expression Online in Asia — The India chapter of APC's GISWatch special issue, authored by the Internet Democracy Project, mapping laws that criminalise online expression in India as of 2017.
64. 13 March 2026 : Aadhaar Biometric Database Raises Privacy Fears in India — A Reuters report republished by BW Businessworld on the Aadhaar Bill's national security provisions, quoting Sunil Abraham of CIS on the risks of centralised biometrics.
65. 13 March 2026 : Sunil Abraham and BW Businessworld — A collection of BW Businessworld articles that include commentary from Sunil Abraham on technology policy, privacy, and digital governance.
66. 13 March 2026 : Sunil Abraham and Internet Democracy Project — A collection of Internet Democracy Project articles that reference or discuss Sunil Abraham in the context of digital rights, internet governance, and technology policy.
67. 13 March 2026 : A Delhi High Court Judge Threatens to Go the China Way — A Tehelka feature by Rishi Majumder on India's 2012 internet censorship controversy, citing Sunil Abraham of CIS on intermediary liability and the Vinay Rai case.
68. 13 March 2026 : WWW: The Hackers' Haven — A BW Businessworld feature by Abraham C Mathews on the cyber security landscape in 2014–15, quoting Sunil Abraham on data protection and individual responsibility.
69. 14 March 2026 : Videos (2026) — Collection of videos featuring Sunil Abraham from 2026.
70. 14 March 2026 : Now, Aadhaar Details Displayed in Mizoram Too — A National Herald report by Sebastian PT on Aadhaar data leaks across Indian government websites, with extensive quotes from Sunil Abraham of CIS on biometric risks.
71. 15 March 2026 : Government Asks Twitter to Block Fake 'PMO India' Accounts; Site Fails to Respond — An Economic Times report on the Indian government's request to Twitter to block fake PMO accounts, quoting Sunil Abraham of CIS on transparency and blocking orders.
72. 15 March 2026 : Sunil Abraham and National Herald — A collection of National Herald articles that reference Sunil Abraham in discussions related to technology policy, digital rights, and internet governance.
73. 16 March 2026 : A Lifetime of Five Years on the Internet — A DNA news article by Subir Ghosh marking the fifth anniversary of CIS, with Sunil Abraham quoted on privacy, internet policy, spectrum, and intellectual property.
74. 16 March 2026 : Beyond Property Rights: Thinking About Moral Definitions of Openness — A TechPresident blog post by David Eaves drawing on a conversation with Sunil Abraham on openness, IP rights, attribution, civil disobedience, and the spectrum of permissions.
75. 16 March 2026 : Engaging on the Digital Commons — A co-authored article by Pranesh Prakash and Sunil Abraham in Common Voices (Issue 4), exploring IPR reform, open licensing, spectrum, and Internet governance through the lens of commons theory.
76. 16 March 2026 : Indian Government to Bar Politicians from Using Gmail for Official Business — A The Register report by Neil McAllister on India's proposed Gmail ban for government officials, quoting Sunil Abraham of CIS on transparency and anti-corruption grounds.
77. 16 March 2026 : Indian Govt Blocks 40 Smut Sites, Forgets to Give Reason — A The Register report by Phil Muncaster on India's unexplained ISP blocking order against 39 adult websites, quoting Sunil Abraham of CIS on government overreach.
78. 16 March 2026 : Sunil Abraham and TechPresident — A collection of TechPresident articles that reference Sunil Abraham in discussions on technology policy, digital governance, and internet rights.
79. 16 March 2026 : Sunil Abraham and The Register — A collection of articles from The Register that reference Sunil Abraham in discussions on internet governance, digital rights, and technology policy.
80. 16 March 2026 : The Uncertain Future of India's Plan to Biometrically Identify Everyone — A TechPresident blog post by Jessica McKenzie examining the contested future of India's Aadhaar biometric identification programme, with inputs from Sunil Abraham.
81. 17 March 2026 : CDAC, ICANN to Set Up Cyberattack Combat Centre — A Times of India report by Kim Arora on CDAC and ICANN's joint plan to establish the Centre for Excellence in DNS Security to tackle cyberattacks in India.
82. 17 March 2026 : Cos Spying on Competitors, Staff: Study — A The Statesman report on an Assocham survey finding that most Indian companies spy on competitors and employees, with expert views on privacy and corporate surveillance.
83. 17 March 2026 : In India, Prism-like Surveillance Slips Under the Radar — A Time news article by Anjani Trivedi on India's Central Monitoring System and its implications for privacy, civil liberties, and security, with Sunil Abraham quoted.
84. 17 March 2026 : India May Not Be Impacted by FCC's Net Neutrality Plans — An Economic Times report by Surabhi Agarwal on why India is unlikely to be affected by the FCC's proposal to repeal net neutrality regulations in the US.
85. 17 March 2026 : India for UN Body to Resolve Internet Governance Issues — A Times of India article by Kim Arora on India's push for a multilateral UN body for internet governance, with Sunil Abraham warning against centralisation and opaque governance structures.
86. 17 March 2026 : Taming the Web, Are We? — An Economic Times news article by Javed Anwer on growing government and corporate efforts to regulate the web, with Sunil Abraham commenting on post-Arab Spring concerns about online mobilisation.
87. 18 March 2026 : Data Protection Experts Slam State for Sending Mass SMSes — A The Statesman report by Lara Choksey on experts criticising the West Bengal government's mass SMS campaign as an abuse of private data and elected office.
88. 18 March 2026 : TSAP Documentation — Documentation hub for The Sunil Abraham Project, including architecture, workflows, and editorial standards.
89. 18 March 2026 : India Backs Open Source Software for E-Governance Projects — A PCWorld report by John Ribeiro on India's policy mandating open source software preference in all e-governance projects, with expert commentary on its scope and gaps.
90. 18 March 2026 : Manual of Style — Writing and formatting standards for The Sunil Abraham Project (TSAP).
91. 18 March 2026 : Markdown — Guide to Markdown syntax used across The Sunil Abraham Project (TSAP), including a practical cheatsheet.
92. 18 March 2026 : Site Structure — Overview of the directory and file structure of The Sunil Abraham Project (TSAP) repository.
93. 18 March 2026 : Sunil Abraham and The Statesman — A collection of articles from The Statesman that reference Sunil Abraham in discussions on technology policy, privacy, and digital governance.
94. 18 March 2026 : Category:TSAP Documentation — Articles, essays, policies, guidelines, help pages, style guides related to The Sunil Abraham Project (TSAP).
95. 18 March 2026 : YAML Front Matter — Guide to YAML front matter used across The Sunil Abraham Project (TSAP), including all supported parameters.

📄 This page was created on 1 March 2026. You can view its history on GitHub, preview the fileTip: Press Alt+Shift+G, or inspect the underlying source.