I agree with you: the increasing importance of the Indian subcontinent as a place of trade and industry is unfortunately, completely ignored by the various watch manufacturers: There is barely a GMT- or 2 Time zones watch permitting the setting of half hours.
Regarding the crown: Yes, many complicated watches with several crown settings share this problem: it is difficult to catch the right setting; especially with the smoothly and elegantly designed crown of the UN - of course a huge pilot watch's crown would help here, but who wants such a monster spoiling the good looks of his perpetual?
Yes, the marks you show between the lugs are the hallmarks of the case manufacturer.
Best regards,
Marcus