Podcast
In Focus by The Hindu
Hosted by The Hindu · EN
A podcast from The Hindu that delves deep into current developments with subject experts, and brings in context, history, perspective and analysis.
139episodes
Episodes
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Assembly poll results: How do they alter the political calculus in India?
May 500:35:54Tap to summarizeThe assembly election results have sharply changed the political landscape in India, with the BJP set to form a government on its own for the first time in West Bengal. Mamata Banerjee, the three-term chief minister often spoken of as the ‘real’ Opposition leader to the BJP, has ended up losing her own seat. In Tamil Nadu, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) a two-year-old political start-up, has emerged as the single largest party, leaving both the Dravidian behemoths, DMK and the AIADMK, in the dust. TVK chief and actor-turned-politician C. Joseph Vijay is expected to become the next Chief Minister, though questions remain about government formation. While the Congress-led UDF returned to power in Kerala, the NDA retained power in Assam and Puducherry. How do we read these mandates? What do the outcomes mean for the BJP, for the Opposition, and the Indian polity as a whole? Guest: Anand Mishra, Political Editor, Frontline. Host: G Sampath, Social Affairs Editor, The Hindu Producer and Editor: Jude Francis Weston Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Transcribe →Why are negotiations between the U.S. and Iran stalled?
May 500:34:00Tap to summarizeNegotiations between the United States and Iran have stalled due to deep disagreements over Iran’s nuclear program, economic sanctions, and regional influence. The U.S. wants stricter limits on uranium enrichment, while Iran demands sanctions relief. Mistrust built over decades, especially after the US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal, has made compromise difficult. Ongoing tensions in the Middle East further complicate efforts to reach a stable agreement. Guest: Stanly Johny Host: Smriti Sudesh Producer: Sharmada Venkatasubramanian Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Transcribe →Can high temperatures influence the sex of your baby?
May 400:22:01Tap to summarizeWe know by now that extreme heat can impact pregnancies in many ways. And with climate change contributing to extreme heat in India – and with parts of the country already reeling under scorching heat – this has become a significant health concern. But what do we know about temperature and its link with sex ratio at birth? Can exposure to intense heat during pregnancy influence whether you have a boy or a girl? A recent research paper seems to suggest it might – it shows that high temperatures in the months before birth, could be linked with fewer male births. Guest: Jasmin Abdel Ghany, Nuffield Postdoctoral Prize Research Fellow in Sociology, Nuffield College, Oxford and lead author of the research paper Host: Zubeda Hamid Producer: Sharmada Venkatasubramanian Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Transcribe →In Focus-Weekend | What do tech disruption and stagnant wages mean for India’s middle class?
May 300:51:41Tap to summarizeIs India’s middle class facing an economic crisis? A new book, ‘Breakpoint: The Crisis of the Middle Class and the Future of Work’ by Saurabh Mukherjea says that it is. It argues that three factors have upended the consumption-driven model that powered the prosperity of India’s middle class since 1991. These are: technological disruption eliminating white collar job creation, wage stagnation eroding purchasing power, and explosive household debt, which exceeds levels seen in US and China. At the same time, India’s graduate unemployment stands at 29%. If the middle class is in crisis, what does it mean for the India growth story? Will AI lead to a total collapse, or will it help in a positive transformation? Can the middle class dig itself out of its current hole? We speak with the author of Breakpoint, Saurabh Mukherjea. Host: G Sampath Producer: Shiksha Jural Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Transcribe →What are the political implications of 7 AAP MPs ‘merging’ with BJP?
May 100:29:55Tap to summarizeThe Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is facing a crisis. Seven of its 10 MPs in the Rajya Sabha, led by Raghav Chadha, have joined the BJP. Mr Chadha has framed this move as a “merger” with the BJP. Rajya Sabja Chairman C.P. Radhakrishnan has already accepted the ‘merger’ claim. AAP’s strength in the Rajya Sabha has dwindled from 10 to 3. AAP leaders have called this merger ‘illegal’. They want the seven MPs to be disqualified under the anti-defection provisions of the law. It is expected that they will take the matter to court. Are the anti-defection provisions of the Tenth Schedule inadequate? Will a legal challenge from AAP prove successful? And what are the political implications of this loss for the AAP in Punjab? We speak with political commentator Neerja Chowdhury. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Transcribe →In Focus-Parley | Does the PIL jurisdiction need to be reconsidered?
Apr 3000:56:25Tap to summarizePublic Interest Litigation (PIL) emerged in the 1970s as a transformative judicial innovation aimed at widening access to justice for the poor and marginalised. This was achieved by relaxing the strict rules of standing to permit representative actions, and by broadening the scope of judicial notice to allow courts to take suo motu cognisance of public issues and convert them into litigation. Over time, however, concerns have been raised about the misuse of this jurisdiction for partisan ends. More recently, during the ongoing proceedings in the Sabarimala reference case, the Union government has urged the Supreme Court to reconsider the PIL framework altogether, citing the rise of “agenda-driven litigation.” Does the PIL jurisdiction need to be reconsidered? Here, we discuss the question. Guest: Anuj Bhuwania and Talha Abdul Rahman Host: Aaratrika Bhaumik Producer: Jude Francis Weston Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Transcribe →India’s temporal inequality: Why the poorer you are, longer the queue
Apr 2900:32:14Tap to summarizeWe all know that India is one of the most unequal societies on the planet. But most debates around inequality are focussed on wealth and income inequality. But there is another form of inequality that isn’t talked about much – temporal inequality. How much time a person spends waiting – determines how much time she has for other life-critical activities. In India, it is the poor who spend more time waiting in queues – waiting for essential services like healthcare, rations, and in government offices. Digitisation was supposed to fix this by cutting waiting time. But has it done so? Or has ‘Digital India’ benefited the already time-rich, while further depleting the resources of the poor? Is this lopsided digital governance by accident, or by design? Guest: Ankush Pal, a sociologist trained at the London School of Economics, who works on urban spatiality, caste epistemology, and social movements. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Transcribe →What are the key challenges in PoSH reporting and implementation?
Apr 2800:38:05Tap to summarizeThe recent allegations of sexual harassment by eight female employees in Tata Consultancy Services’ (TCS) office in Nashik has brought renewed attention to workplace safety and grievance redressals of sexual harassment complaints. In this episode, Advocate Geeta Rameshashan joins us to discuss how the PoSH Act works, the limitations of internal committees, and what prevents women from reporting sexual harassment. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Transcribe →Why are Haryana's farmers resisting the new digital verification rules at mandis?
Apr 2700:32:41Tap to summarizeBy the time farmers in Haryana were ready to head to the anaj mandis (grain markets) to sell their Rabi harvest, the rules of entry had been revised. The Haryana State Agricultural Marketing Board's March 28 directive introduced a new set of conditions for crop procurement — mandatory registration on the 'Meri Fasal Mera Byora' portal, Aadhaar-based biometric verification, and vehicle number registration via the e-Kharid app. The State government says the measures are aimed at curbing fraud and improving transparency. Farmers see it as a bureaucratic maze that, whether by intent or effect, slows the procurement process to a point where the Minimum Support Price (MSP) becomes harder, and sometimes impossible, to claim.On April 11, farmers staged demonstrations across the State, calling for the compliance burden to be re-evaluated. Can digital governance work if it places the weight of reform on the farmer? When the State modernises to fix systemic fraud, who pays the price? Host: Vibha B. Madhava Guest: G.S. Mann, member of the India chapter of the Global Farmer Network and a former journalist. Producer: Jude Francis Weston Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Transcribe →In Focus-Weekend | How AI could reshape the future of species
Apr 2600:25:38Tap to summarizeIn this weekender episode, Adrian Wolfson talks us about his new book titled On the Future of Species. Artificial intelligence, he says, one day, could surpass Darwin’s evolutionary narrative on natural selection, and in this new world, he predicts AI not just editing, but authoring entirely new species using what he calls artificial biological intelligence. While we have managed to piece together the genomes of simple organisms like viruses, we will eventually write out the genome of our own species to help eradicate disease and lengthen our lifespan. Along the way, he says, we could even resurrect the extinct woolly mammoth and the dodo. The book is both dystopian and full of hope. Tune in to know how AI can reshape the future of species. Host: Divya Gandhi Producer: Jude Francis Weston Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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