Social media chatter: From Buffett to LPG hike, top 6 trends of today

Here is a low-down of what is keeping social media busy this morning

1. Warren Buffet: Billionaire businessman Warren Buffett is giving the employees of Berkshire Hathaway a chance to win $1 million every year for life. All they need to do is guess which teams will make it to 'Sweet 16' of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) men's basketball championship. “If they can get to the Sweet 16, if there’s only one of them, whoever it is, he or she gets a million dollars a year for the rest of their life". 

Read: Warren Buffett's offer: $1 million per year for the rest of your life!

2. Gurmehar Kaur: Gurmehar Kaur, a student of Delhi’s Lady Shri Ram College came into the attention for taking on the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) for their alleged attacks on students and teachers in Ramjas College. Her social media campaign went viral and that led to a lot of abuse, threats of violence and rape and also a lot of support from all quarters. Yesterday, even Virender Sehwag came out and tweeted that she had a right to express her views without being bullied or threatened. She continues to trend on social media even now. According to a report of Hindustan Times, Kaur said on Wednesday, “The issue on which I spoke went out of hand. I would like to clarify that I do not want to enter politics. I just gave my opinion, and I never expected the whole thing to take such a turn. I had a really bad time. I am not in a state to talk about it.”

Read: DU protests: Gurmehar kaur clears the air, says has no interest in politics

3. Juhi Chowdhury:  BJP leader from Bengal, Juhi Chowdhury was trending on Twitter following her arrest in connection with the Jalpaiguri child trafficking case. The Bengal unit of BJP also removed Chowdhury from the post of general secretary of the party's Mahila Morcha (women's wing) following this arrest. The party also expelled her father, Rabindranarayan, from the state unit in which he was a committee member. Chowdhury's arrest came after a Jalpaiguri-based child adoption center came under the police scanner.

Read: Child trafficking case: BJP leader Juhi Chowdhury sent to 12-day CID remand

4. Cash transaction: Banks including HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank and Axis Bank on Wednesday began charging a minimum amount of Rs 150 per transaction for cash deposits and withdrawals beyond four free transactions in a month. ATM intercharge charges have also been re-introduced. The new charges would apply to savings as well as salary accounts effective from today, leading private sector player HDFC Bank said in a circular. 

Read: Free withdrawal days are over: ICICI, Axis, HDFC Bank restore cash charges

5. Tamil Nadu shuns Coke and Pepsi: Traders in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu have banned the sale of Coca-Cola and Pepsi in favour of local products. The ban, which was proposed by the state's top two associations of traders, came into effect on Wednesday. The initiative received a mixed response from retailers. The non-alcoholic beverage is expected to lose around Rs 1,400-1,500 crore of business every year if the ban comes into effect as expected. 

Read: Mixed response to Pepsi-Coke boycott in Tamil Nadu

6. LPG cylinder price hike: The price of non-subsidised cooking gas (LPG) was hiked by Rs 86 per cylinder on Wednesday, reflecting international trends. The hike was being discussed and debated on social media today morning.

Read: Don't have subsidy? Pay Rs 86 more for LPG cylinders from today