India accused of being behind a Canadian's assassination

Plus, inflation is going back up and an AI solution to Toronto traffic [The Star] First Up [By Kevin Jiang] By Kevin Jiang Good morning. Here’s the latest on India’s links to a Canadian’s assassination, the nation’s inflation situation and a potential solution to Toronto’s endless gridlock. DON’T MISS Canadian Press/Ethan Cairns federal politics [India may be linked to a Canadian’s assassination]( Justin Trudeau revealed “credible allegations” Monday that agents of the Indian government were behind the June assassination of a Sikh leader in B.C. The surprise announcement in the House of Commons led to the expulsion of a high-level Indian diplomat from Canada and will likely escalate tensions between the two nations, Stephanie Levitz, Joanna Chiu and Jeremy Nuttall report. Trudeau reportedly spoke with India’s prime minister about the allegations during their meeting at the G20 summit earlier this month. Confidential sources tell the Star Ottawa is deliberating further action. [Here’s what you need to know](. - Word from India: In a statement late Monday, India denied Ottawa’s allegations, calling them “absurd and motivated.” The statement also slammed Canada for harbouring so-called “Khalistani terrorists and extremists.” - Context: In June, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, an outspoken supporter of an independent Sikh homeland known as Khalistan, was gunned down outside the gurdwara of which he was president. [Days before his killing, Nijjar told friends and local journalists he feared for his life](. Paige Taylor White/The Star cost of living [Economists predict inflation crept back up in August over higher gas prices]( As Statistics Canada prepares to release its latest reading on inflation this morning, economists are forecasting the nation’s headline inflation rate re-accelerated to around four per cent last month on the back of higher gas prices, reversing months of progress. There were flickers of hope in June when the rate dropped to 2.8 per cent — within the Bank of Canada’s target range of one to three per cent for the first time since March 2021. While energy prices may be driving the current re-acceleration, economists expect headline inflation to end the year lower as consumers turn away from discretionary spending and into paying more toward mortgages and rent. [Here’s how all this could affect you](. - What we know: Since March of 2022, the Bank of Canada has been aggressively hiking its key overnight lending rate in a bid to quash inflation. The rate has since risen from 0.25 per cent to five per cent — a 22-year high. [The bank hasn’t ruled out future hikes](. - Armine Yalnizyan’s take: Aiming for a two per cent headline rate has been monetary policy for decades, [but is it worth raising interest rates and an “engineered recession” to get there? ]( Andrew Francis Wallace/The Star TRANSPORTATION [Could AI-powered traffic lights solve Toronto’s never-ending gridlock?]( Losing hours to a commute spent idling in jam-packed streets and highways is just part of the Toronto experience at this point — but maybe not for much longer. Artificial intelligence is already making inroads in helping cities around the world manage their traffic problems, Lex Harvey writes. One recent solution tested in Vancouver used an AI-powered traffic management system to control five busy intersections across UBC’s campus. In just one year, the system is estimated to have cut pedestrian wait times by 2,500 days and vehicle wait times by 4,700, while eliminating 75 tons of carbon dioxide emissions. [Could the same technology work in Toronto?]( - Go deeper: Experts tell Harvey that AI-powered traffic signals can predict congestion, pollution and pedestrian traffic. It can then use this data to optimize flow by adjusting timing or rerouting people. - Wait, what? [A recent report found Toronto ranks among the worst cities in the world to drive in]( with commuters spending nearly 200 hours every year stuck in traffic. WHAT ELSE Grocery store giants are promising to “stabilize” food prices, [but critics call their pledge “meaningless.”]( [Police took advantage of accused terrorist Nathaniel Veltman with a 1 a.m. interview]( his lawyer suggested. [“You’re always trying to get me to cry,”]( Chow tells Doug Ford during a friendly first meeting. Waterworks avoided, [Ford and Chow agreed to find a “new deal” for Toronto’s deep financial challenges](. [Canadian autoworkers have extended talks past the strike deadline]( after receiving a “substantive offer.” [Queen Elizabeth’s statue was installed in front of Queen’s Park]( despite objections from an Indigenous MPP. Ontario elementary teachers have begun [voting whether to strike amid ongoing negotiations](. Hundreds of out-of-work Canadian film and TV workers have [tapped into $1.2-million in aid](. Why Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy faces a [chillier reception on his return to America this week](. Tired of paying extra fees? [Take a look at how “fee fatigue” is impacting the restaurant industry](. The Toronto 15: [Here are the 15 players Toronto selected in the first PWHL draft](. Does the “carnivore diet” work? [Here’s what eating only meat does to your body](. POV Canadian Press/Sean Kilpatrick [Justin Trudeau and Pierre Poilievre sparred — with a brief truce — as Parliament returns.]( CLOSE-UP Canadian Press/Justin Tang OTTAWA: Bridget Tolley, founder of Families of Sisters in Spirit, participates in a rally on Parliament Hill Monday for International Day of Action. Protesters are imploring Ottawa to fund a search of a Manitoba landfill where the [bodies of two Indigenous women are believed to have been dumped by their murderer](. Thank you for reading. You can reach me and the First Up team at [firstup@thestar.ca](mailto:firstup@thestar.ca?source=newsletter&utm_source=ts_nl&utm_medium=emailutm_email=6C53B63A8E3FAD70AD4EF13004527437&utm_campaign=frst_199383). I’ll see you back here tomorrow. If you're not enjoying these emails, please tell us how we can make them better by emailing newsletterfeedback@thestar.ca. Or, if you'd prefer, you can unsubscribe from this newsletter by clicking the first link below. 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