In Focus by The Hindu

Joining us for this special episode today is Milan Vaishnav, director of the South Asia program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Mr Vaishnav’s research is centred around the Political Economy of India, for instance, state capacity, corruption, governance and electoral behaviour. He is the author of When Crime Pays: Money and Muscle in Indian Politics, and has edited a number of books. Milan is also an adjunct professor at the Edmund a Walsh School of foreign service at Georgetown University. Today he joins us to discuss the results of a survey on how Indian Americans view India. Hosted by Sriram Lakshman, U.S. Correspondent, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode we will discuss the sweeping changes made by India in the regulation of geospatial data and maps. The rules governing the sector have been liberalized in a complete reversal of the government's approach till date. According to the new guidelines, entities and individuals required no prior approval or security clearance, or a license for collecting, processing, publishing or storing data. India currently relies quite heavily on foreign technologies in mapping. And so the new policy seeks to spur innovation on the ground in this sector in India. Many experts have welcomed this move and in this podcast we’ll discuss the significance of the new guidelines and what impact they could have on the ground. Our guest today is Devdatta Tengshe. He is a geographic information systems professional who works with both private and public sector clients in the mapping industry. He earlier worked with ISRO as a remote sensing scientist. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode we discuss the India Pakistan agreement for a ceasefire or a re-observance of the 2003 ceasefire agreement. Was the announcement of the agreement a surprise, is there something still going on behind the scenes and should we expect more? And is there potential now to use this agreement as a stepping stone to build on India-Pakistan ties? Guests: TCA Raghavan, Director Indian Council of World Affairs, Former High Commissioner to Pakistan Happymon Jacob, Associate Professor, Centre for International Politics, Organization and Disarmament, School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On February 19, China said for the first time that it had lost four soldiers in the June 15, 2020 clash in the Galwan valley, breaking its silence eight months after the incident. The announcement has triggered an outpouring of national sentiment in China, coupled with a media blitz on the clash from the State-run media. In this episode, we analyse how China's official media is rewriting the narrative on the border crisis, the timing of the announcement after the beginning of the disengagement process and coming amid criticism among some within China on the terms of the agreement, and what China's broader strategic community is saying about the future of relations with India. Guest: Antara Ghosal Singh, Research Associate, Centre for Social and Economic Progress (CSEP), New Delhi, and formerly a Chinese language fellow at the National Central University, Taiwan Host: Ananth Krishnan, China Correspondent, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In her Budget speech this year, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman announced that the government will set up a ‘Bad Bank’ to better manage the ‘bad loans’ (non-performing assets) of public sector banks. The idea, apparently, is to transfer the NPAs of public sector banks to the books of this Bad Bank, which will function as a two-in-one institution – an asset reconstruction company and also an asset management company. It will focus solely on asset recovery, freeing up the banks to concentrate on lending. At least that’s the theory. But will it actually work in practice? Will the Bad Bank be effective in cleaning up the NPA mess? If cleaning up the books is the objective, how is a bad bank a better option than, say, the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code? We explore these questions and more in a discussion with Vivek Kaul, the author of the bestselling Easy Money trilogy. Vivek’s most recent book is Bad Money: Inside the NPA Mess and How it Threatens the Indian Banking System. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

India’s decision to agree to a “phased” withdrawal of troops rather than a package deal for a complete disengagement across the Line of Actual Control could become a cause for concern in the future said former National Security Advisory Board (NSAB) Chairperson and former Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran in this special interview for the In Focus Podcast with The Hindu's Diplomatic Affairs Editor Suhasini Haidar. Mr Saran says that setting up a buffer zone or “no man’s land” in the Finger area of North Pangong Tso lake, even if temporarily, means that the troops would not return to the “status quo ante” or positions prior to April 2020, Mr. Saran said that the future would depend on how “smoothly” the rest of the disengagement process that began last week will go. Hosted by Suhasini Haidar, National and Diplomatic Affairs Editor, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

India mustn't reduce its interest in the Quad as the challenges from China will continue despite the disengagement at the Line of Actual Control, says Lisa Curtis, who served as the Deputy Assistant to former US President Donald Trump (2017-2021), in this special interview for the In Focus Podcast with The Hindu's Diplomatic Affairs Editor Suhasini Haidar. Ms Curtis was the key American official on South Asia in the US National Security Council through much of the LAC tensions in 2020. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we look ahead to the IPL Auction 2021 in Chennai on Thursday, February 18. Like the previous year, this is a mini auction, which the eight franchises would use to fine-tune their squads and fill gaps caused by players being released and retirements during the off season. On Thursday, a total of 292 players will be competing for just 61 available slots across the eight franchises. For the overseas players, a maximum of 22 slots are available. There is still some uncertainty whether the forthcoming IPL would be held in India in its usual slot of April-May, though in fewer venues, owing to the COVID pandemic. We discuss the auction dynamics keeping this in mind, analyse which teams are likely to be the busiest at the bidding table, uncapped players to watch out for, who could strike big, and more. Guest: Amol Karhadkar, Senior Sports Correspondent, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we discuss the disengagement plan between India and China and ask if it helps or hurts India's long-term security interests with regard to the Line of Actual Control (LAC). Does the plan mean a full restoration of peace and the status quo? Where does this leave the unresolved points of discord along the LAC? Why is one of those points, the Depsang plains, the most significant for India's security interests? Host: Ananth Krishnan, China correspondent, The Hindu Guest: Sushant Singh, Senior Fellow, Centre For Policy Research, New Delhi Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode we discuss the high profile legal tussle between the corporate giants Amazon and Reliance industries over the acquisition of the Future Group. This is a story that has seen a lot of developments in the courts. Most recently, Amazon has filed a special leave petition in the Supreme court, appealing against a recent Delhi High Court order that allowed Future Group to go ahead with a proposed deal to sell its retail, wholesale, logistics and warehousing assets to Reliance. The Future Group, one of India’s biggest retail companies with popular chains like Big Bazaar, is in deep debt and it contends that the deal with Reliance will help it pay its lenders. Amazon on the other hand has contended that it had a pre-existing agreement with Future Group for the sale of these assets and the deal with Reliance now is in violation of those terms. The larger context of this legal tussle is the fight for the future of India’s retail market and how the two corporate giants are seeking to shape it and take the upper hand. That’s the angle that we’ll discuss in this podcast. Guest: Thomas K Thomas, Mumbai bureau chief for The Hindu Business Line Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

India and China on Thursday announced an agreement to disengage from Pangong Lake, which has been at the heart of the recent tensions along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). Speaking in Parliament, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said both sides will cease their forward deployments both on the north and south banks of the lake in a phased, coordinated, and verified manner, and return to their permanent bases. On Wednesday, China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) similarly announced an agreement “to start synchronised and organised disengagement”. Both have agreed to a temporary moratorium on patrolling in the disputed areas north and south of the lake and have already begun withdrawing armoured elements and tanks. In this episode, we examine the details behind this disengagement plan. What does this agreement mean for the recent tensions along the LAC? Where does this leave other points of discord that remain unresolved? What are the next steps, and where do India and China go from here? Guests: Dinakar Peri and Vijaita Singh, Correspondents for The Hindu Host: Ananth Krishnan Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode is a quick update on the flash floods in Uttarakhand that happened on Sunday and it’s split into two parts. We’ll briefly give you an update on the rescue operations that are still underway and we’ll also go into a slightly longer discussion as we know more now about what caused these floods and how such events might be linked to climate change and the building of hydropower plants in the region. Guests: Jacob Koshy and Vijaita Singh Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Central government has issued a notice to Twitter after the microblogging platform reinstated several accounts that the government wanted blocked. Twitter which initially complied with the request and blocked accounts and tweets that mentioned 'farmer genocide', later reinstated the content, reportedly saying that it "constituted free speech and was newsworthy." The government's initial order on January 31 asked Twitter to block 257 URLs and one hashtag, claiming that they were spreading misinformation about the ongoing farmers protest and could lead to violence. The accounts that were blocked as a result included Caravan India, a news magazine. The order had cited Section 69A of the Information technology Act in calling for the content to be blocked. How exactly does the IT Act empower the government to order intermediaries such as social media platforms and Internet Service Providers to block content? And what are the consequences for platforms like Twitter if they fail to comply. To explain these we have with us today Apar Gupta, lawyer and executive director of the Internet Freedom Foundation Host: P.J. George, Deputy Internet Editor, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode is a short explainer on a news issue that’s dominated the day which is prominent voices from outside of India speaking in support of the farmers’ protests and the Indian government’s unprecedented response. The whole issue started with tweets by the pop singer Rihanna and the climate activist Greta Thunberg, but has sort of taken on a life of its own with several developments. Ther latest is that the Delhi police has now filed an FIR against Ms Thunberg as part of what it calls an investigation into an international conspiracy. We’ll give you some of the details of the story but we’ll also ground it in a larger context, a question that we’ve asked before on this podcast, non interventionism in international politics. Guest: Suhasini Haidar, Diplomatic Affairs Editor, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode we turn our attention to international affairs and take a deep dive into what’s happening in Myanmar, where the military has once more taken over the country, declaring a year-long state of emergency and placing elected leaders like Aung San Suu Kyi under detention. It seized control following a general election which Ms Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) party won by a landslide. The armed forces had backed the opposition, who were claiming widespread fraud. And though Myanmar’s election commission said there was no evidence to support these claims the coup was staged as a new session of parliament was set to open. To understand why this coup happened now we have to go back in time to understand the strained relationship between the army and NLD, even in the years in which it seemed as if Myanmar was transitioning out of military rule. And looking ahead, we also try and understand the geopolitical implications of the situation in Myanmar and what the future now holds for Ms Suu Kyi. Guest: Stanly Johny, International Affairs Editor, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

India has begun its massive COVID-19 vaccine rollout, and over 16 lakh frontline workers have been vaccinated so far. This however, falls somewhat short of the government's targeted number. There has also been some debate with regard to the emergency use authorisation granted to one of the vaccines being used. Experts point to vaccine hesitancy as one of the reasons the expected numbers have not been met. To speak to us about how the country has fared so far with the vaccine rollout, what the government can do about hesitancy and the need for transparency to build trust, is Dr. Shahid Jameel, virologist and director, Trivedi School of Biosciences. Ashoka University Hosted by Zubeda Hamid Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We do a quick status check on the border situation with China, both about a clash that was recently reported and the continuing efforts at corps commander level talks to come to some kind of agreement on de-escalation. News broke on Monday, January 25, that Indian and Chinese troops clashed at Naku La in North Sikkim last week, in what the Army termed a “minor face-off”, resulting in some minor injuries on both sides. This was denied completely by Chinese media, but we’ll start by looking at the details of what we know about that incident. Also, on the preceding Sunday the ninth round of corps commander talks took place and by all accounts it was a marathon affair though the statement that finally emerged was rather cryptic. As we head into the tenth round of talks what can we expect? And what can we read into the incident at Naku La? We're joined by Dinakar Peri, The Hindu’s defence correspondent and Ananth Krishnan, The Hindu’s China correspondent to discuss. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We turn our attention to foreign policy in this episode and we’re going to be looking at the India-U.S. relationship specifically keeping the China factor in mind. These discussions take on particular significance as a new administration has just taken charge in the U.S. and that means a change in tone and style in the way that they deal with diplomatic relations around the world. Speaking at his confirmation hearing, President Joe Biden’s nominee for secretary of state, Anthony Blinken, said that India is ‘bipartisan success story’, and made it clear that strategic ties with India will remain strong, especially on the Indo-Pacific and there would be continuity from the Trump administration in dealing with China’s aggressive actions. Yet, while the Trump administration maintained a consistently acrimonious relationship with China, something that suited India as it was looking for assurances on security, there are indications that the Biden administration may try something more of a balancing act, taking a hard line on some issues and seeking cooperation on others like climate change and.. What could this change in style, and the new personnel that the Biden administration will soon confirm, mean for the three way relationship between India-US and China. And as we look back on the Trump Presidency, we ask what is the legacy it has left on India-US relations and how it can be built on. Guest: Tanvi Madan, Senior Fellow Foreign Policy program at the Brookings Institution Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Last week, the Cabinet Committee on Security approved the procurement of 83 Light Combat Aircraft, named Tejas. These would be manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) for the Indian Air Force (IAF) at a cost of around ₹47,000 crore, which also includes infrastructure development costs. Of the 83, 73 would be Tejas Mk1-A fighter aircraft and the remaining 10 would be Tejas MK-1 trainer aircraft. This deal has been hailed as a landmark event – in terms of achieving self-reliance in defence manufacturing, and also for addressing the longstanding problem of depleting squadron numbers. The deal also raises several questions: How indigenous really is the Tejas, given that key components are foreign-made? How soon can they realistically be inducted into the IAF? How does this acquisition fit in with the IAF’s strategic requirements? To understand these and other aspects of this deal, we speak to Sushant Singh, Senior Fellow with the Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi. Hosted by G. Sampath Guest: Sushant Singh, Senior Fellow with the Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This episode recorded on January 20, 2021 comes on a pivotal day for America. Later today, Joe Biden will be sworn in as the 46th President of the United States, following an extraordinary few days that have marked a very turbulent end to the Donald Trump presidency, following Trump's second impeachment, as well as the unprecedented mob attack on US Capitol. In the course of this podcast we will discuss what the Biden presidency may mean for India, US relations, the US role in the world as well as America's relations with China. Host: Ananth Krishnan Guest: Suhasini Haidar, National and Diplomatic Affairs Editor, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As India emerges as a major provider of vaccines in the neighbourhood, this episode examines India's vaccine diplomacy. From Nepal and Bangladesh to Sri Lanka and Myanmar, India is in talks to supply vaccines. How is Delhi balancing India's domestic needs with its commitment to help abroad? What are the considerations in India's outreach? What has been the impact of China's recent South Asia-focused multilateral COVID-19 diplomatic initiatives? Host: Ananth Krishnan Guests: Suhasini Haidar, national and Diplomatic Affairs Editor, The Hindu Kallol Bhattacherjee, correspondent covering foreign affairs, The Hindu Meera Srinivasan, correspondent covering Sri Lanka and the Maldives, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In today’s episode we take a detailed look at the bird flu outbreak in India, look at how serious it is and how it can be contained. Cases of bird avian influenza or bird flu have been reported from Kerala, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh in recent weeks. During the first week of January, reports of unusual deaths of a large number of birds, including wild ones, started coming in from many States, indicating that the virus is being actively transmitted among various bird groups. So what causes bird flu and how does it spread? What is its impact on birds and what is the kind of threat it can pose to human beings? Crucially, how does one come up with strategies to contain it? Guest: G. Ananthakrishnan, Senior Associate Editor, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Historian Jeffrey A. Engel, who heads the Center for Presidential History at Southern Methodist University analyzes the attack on the U.S. Capitol, its significance and consequences. Mr. Engel goes into the historic parallels to recent events and the decisions made by U.S. President Donald Trump in their aftermath. Host: Sriram Lakshman, U.S. Correspondent, The Hindu Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for ‘In Focus by The Hindu’. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Early data from the National Family Health Survey-5, for 22 States and Union Territories, throws up some worrying data on child nutrition in the country. Stunting, which is low height for age, was seen to increase in 13 of the 22 States and Union Territories surveyed. The data was collected in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic hit the country. Speaking to us today about the data and what it means, the impact of the economic slowdown on nutrition, the multi-pronged approach needed to deal with nutrition and what States can do, is Dr Purnima Menon, a senior research fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we look back on India's major foreign policy challenges in 2020, and what the next year holds in store. In the world of diplomacy too, COVID-19 was the biggest story, heightening tensions among some nations, most notably evident in the deteriorating U.S.-China relationship, while emerging as an opportunity for others who have offered medical assistance and are now pledging support in the distribution of vaccines. We look at India's outreach to the neighbourhood on the COVID-19 front, as well as how a crisis with China along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh dominated attention in 2020. Looking ahead to next year, we examine how India will likely deal with the China question and an emerging two-front scenario with Pakistan, continuing challenges in the immediate neighbourhood where China's presence is looming large, and the future of relations with a new administration in Washington and why the Quad will likely play an increasing role in the region. Guests: Suhasini Haidar: Diplomatic Affairs Editor and National Editor, The Hindu Dinakar Peri: Defence Correspondent, The Hindu Meera Srinivasan: The Hindu's Colombo correspondent covering Sri Lanka and the Maldives Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we’ll discuss the plan for India’s new parliament building, part of the Modi government’s ambitious central vista project which entails building and refurbishing the government buildings on part of the 3.5km stretches from Rashtrapati Bhavan to India Gate. On December 10, Prime Minister Modi laid the foundation stone for the new Parliament building and the new building was the need of the hour as it would be equipped with new technology and have more space for smooth functioning of Parliament and various ministries. There has also been criticism from several quarters, much of it centred on the cost of the central vista project and whether undertaking a project such as this is appropriate at a time when the economy is suffering. A batch of petitions in the Supreme Court opposing the proposed change in land usage of the Central Vista. So as we look ahead and back while trying to give context to this story one overarching question stands out - what is the case for a new parliament building and does India need one. In this episode we’ll take up that question in detail, tracking the way the role and functions of parliament have expanded since independence and whether the current infrastructure is enough to support it. We’ll also take up the question of whether an upgrade in infrastructure alone is enough to fix many of the issues with parliament’s functioning. Guest: Chakshu Roy, head of legislative and civic engagement, PRS legislative research. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In an emergency Cabinet meeting held on December 19, Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli recommended the dissolution of Parliament of Nepal and called for a general election. The decision was ratified by President Bidhya Devi Bhandari in an official announcement hours later. The dramatic move came after weeks of tension with challenger Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’, who has been demanding that Mr. Oli change his style of governance. In this episode we’ll discuss the political challenges facing Mr. Oli that led to his taking this step. We’ll also discuss what this latest round of political turmoil means for India’s ongoing efforts to resume diplomatic dialogue with Nepal. Guest: Kallol Bhattacharjee, Senior Assistant Editor, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is a rare episode in which we’re discussing sports but we’re taking a slightly different tack today - we’re going to look at the science behind why a cricket ball swings and use the opportunity to highlight some really interesting research that‘s been happening in this area. Our immediate motivation, of course, is the day night test match currently underway between India and Australia that’s being played with a pink ball. The pink ball is, of course, relatively novel in cricket and there’s still a lot of curiosity and attempts to understand how it behaves differently to the red and white ball. So, while we address the pink ball in the course of the conversation today, we don’t restrict ourselves to it. We talk overall about the general mechanics of swing and the various factors that affect it. Our guest today, Professor Sanjay Mittal teaches at the Department of Aerospace Engineering at IIT Kanpur and for the past several years he has been leading a team of researchers conducting experiments to understand the physics governing the swing of a cricket ball. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We turn to international affairs in this episode and we look at the recent Morocco-Israel deal and its implications for the region. Here’s the story so far: Morocco has become the fourth Arab country to normalise ties with Israel in five months. On December 10, U.S. President Donald Trump announced the deal, claiming that the series of normalisation agreements between Arab countries (the UAE, Bahrain, Sudan and now Morocco) and the Jewish state was bringing peace to West Asia. In return for Morocco’s decision to establish formal ties with Israel, the U.S. has recognised Moroccan sovereignty over Western Sahara, a disputed territory in northwestern Africa, which has been under Moroccan control for decades. Morocco has long been campaigning internationally, using economic pressure and diplomacy, for recognition of its claims to Western Sahara. It appears that it got what it wanted from this deal but could the move now end up reigniting a dormant conflict? Guest: Stanly Johny, International Affairs Editor, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that his country will always be there to defend the right of peaceful protest, the first world leader to voice his views on the farmers' protests, India slammed his remarks as “ill-formed” and "unwarranted". Peeved over Canada's remarks, reports said External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar would skip a Canada-led virtual meeting on COVID-19. On the same day as India protested, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh took a dig at the state of internal affairs across the border in Pakistan and on countries that "can neither make their own road nor walk on it." Do these statements suggest interventionism in international affairs is on the rise? Is domestic politics taking increasing precedence in how countries conduct foreign policy, and is the principle of non-intervention in international affairs a relic of the past that needs revisiting? Guests: Srinath Raghavan, Professor at Ashoka University; Senior Fellow at Carnegie India; Author of "The Most Dangerous Place: A History of the United States in South Asia" Suhasini Haidar, National Editor and Diplomatic Affairs Editor, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired an all-party meet at which he said that experts believe the COVID-19 vaccine will be ready in a few weeks. Eight vaccines are at different stages of preparedness in the country, he said. On Wednesday, the Serum Institute of India and Bharat Biotech’s requests for emergency-use authorisation of their vaccine candidates in India were put on hold, pending more evidence. The vaccine will have to reach the thousands healthcare workers, frontline workers and elderly persons with co-morbidities who have been prioritised to get it. How prepared is India for a vaccine roll-out? What is emergency-use authorisation, and what does it mean for a vaccine as new as the ones for COVID-19? Are people ready to take a vaccine or are there worries that may have to be combated? And what are the challenges our State healthcare system will face in rolling out what may be a vast programme that lasts for many months? Host: Zubeda Hamid Guest: Dr. Rajib Dasgupta, chairperson, Centre of Social Medicine and Community Health, Jawaharlal Nehru University. Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for ‘In Focus by The Hindu’. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Tuesday, the world’s tallest mountain added a few more centimetres to its already lofty peak after Nepal and China jointly announced the new height of Mount Everest as being 8,848.86 metres, revised from the earlier 8,848m that has been recognised since 1954. And with that, Mt. Everest has officially gained 86 centimetres, or roughly three feet. The new height was announced at a high-profile virtual ceremony, with the Presidents of China and Nepal exchanging letters, foreign ministers in attendance, all aimed at showcasing a deepening strategic relationship between the two countries, for whom the height of the mountain has been a matter of long-running debate. Host: Jayant Sriram Guest: Ananth Krishnan, former China correspondent, The Hindu. Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for ‘In Focus by The Hindu’. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this first of two episodes on COVID-19 vaccines, we give you a quick explainer on what to expect from vaccine trials and how to interpret news around it. Concerns have risen around Bharat Biotech’s vaccine candidate after Haryana Health Minister Anil Vij, who participated as a volunteer in the phase 3 trials for Covaxin, tested positive for COVID-19 two weeks after receiving the shot. As more vaccine candidates emerge, we are likely to hear of more such incidents. But it is important to remember, as we learn in this episode, that infections arising among some participants is actually part of the clinical trial design for most vaccines. Guest: Jacob Koshy, Deputy Science Editor, The Hindu. Coronavirus | About 130 Covaxin trial volunteers may test positive, says Bharat Biotech Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for ‘In Focus by The Hindu’. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This podcast was recorded on December 3, amid the continuing standoff between farmers’ groups and the Central government in Delhi and its fourth round of talks with not just Punjabi and Haryanvi farmers, but representatives from other parts of the country too. The farmers fear the recent agricultural reforms passed by the government will lead to the deregulation of crop-pricing, deny them fair remuneration for their produce and leave them at the mercy of corporations. The government, on the other hand, argues that the new laws will give farmers more autonomy in selling their produce, lead to better pricing, and free them from unfair monopolies. In this episode, we delve further into aspects of minimum support price and the APMC mandi system, which the new laws seek to bypass. These are currently the most proximate to the talks between the farmers groups and government. And we also discuss a possible way forward for both sides as the negotiations continue. Guest: R. Ramakumar, Professor, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Two senior Indian officials travelled to Nepal and Sri Lanka last week as part of India’s ongoing efforts to repair relations in the neighbourhood. In Nepal, Foreign Secretary Harsh Shringla said India and Nepal “need” each other, making a pitch to halt the downward slide in relations that set in following particularly the Kalapani border dispute. In Sri Lanka, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval discussed key bilateral issues including Indian investments and regional security with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. How successful have India’s efforts been to repair the recently deteriorating relations in the neighbourhood, and how is India responding to China’s growing political, and especially economic, influence in South Asia? Guests: Suhasini Haidar, National Editor and Diplomatic Affairs Editor, The Hindu; Meera Srinivasan, Sri Lanka Correspondent, The Hindu. Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for ‘In Focus by The Hindu’. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The assassination last Friday of top Iranian nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh has triggered the possibility of a new crisis in West Asia. This latest development comes at a crucial time for Iran. There are hopes that Joe Biden, the incoming American President, would return to talks with Iran, ending months of “maximum pressure”, a policy adopted by the outgoing President Donald Trump, which took both countries to the brink of war after the killing of General Qasem Soleimani in January this year by the United States. There are other powers in the middle east, notably Israel and Saudi Arabia, who have long seen Iran as a threat and would not welcome the U.S returning to talks or easing economic sanctions on Iran. So, there are many possible motivations for this latest assassination and many factors at play. Guest: Stanly Johny, International Affairs Editor, The Hindu. Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for ‘In Focus by The Hindu’. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Although weeks have passed since the 2020 United States presidential election, the ferment in politics continues in Washington as outgoing President Donald Trump refuses to concede power and facilitate an orderly peaceful transition. The broader transition to a new arrangement in the White House will also be impacted by the choice of officials that President-elect Joe Biden picks to serve in his Cabinet, as much as it will by the policy paradigm that the new team adopts. Here we try to explain the risks and opportunities of this sometimes opaque presidential transition process. Guest: Professor Karen Hult of Virginia Polytechnic Institute And State University, who is also a board member of the White House transition project. Host: Narayan Lakshman, Associate Editor, The Hindu. Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for ‘In Focus by The Hindu’. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pakistan is moving to grant full statehood to Gilgit-Baltistan, which appears as the northernmost part of the country in its official map. Should that happen, G-B would become the fifth province of Pakistan, although the region is claimed by India as part of the erstwhile princely State of Jammu & Kashmir as it existed in 1947 during its accession to India. In fact, elections were held on November 15 that will pave the way for fuller political rights for the roughly 1.2 million residents of the region, though there have been protests in the region over how the elections were conducted. What implications do the recent moves on G-B have for India vis-a-vis China? Guest: Suhasini Haidar, National and Diplomatic Affairs Editor, The Hindu. Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for In Focus by The Hindu. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On June 12, 2020, an Internal Working Group was set up by the Reserve Bank of India to review the current licensing and regulatory guidelines regarding ownership and control of banks in India. This working group shared its report on the RBI website last week for comments. Its most significant recommendation was that corporate houses could be given banking licences. Former RBI governor Raghuram Rajan and former RBI Deputy Governor Viral Acharya have, in a blogpost titled “Do we really need Indian corporations in banking?”, strongly criticised the RBI report, asking whether there is any need to open up the banking sector to corporate houses now; what new information has prompted a need for a change in our bank-licensing guidelines? So, why is the RBI interested in allowing corporate houses into the banking sector, and what are the risks involved? We explore these questions in a discussion with Vivek Kaul, well-known business columnist and author of five books, including the bestselling Easy Money trilogy. His most recent book is called Bad Money: Inside the NPA Mess and How it Threatens the Indian Banking System. Host: G. Sampath, Social Affairs Editor, The Hindu. Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for ‘In Focus by The Hindu’. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), the world’s largest trade bloc of 15 countries including the 10 ASEAN members, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand, was signed on November 15 without India, which was part of the long-running negotiations until it withdrew last year. While the agreement leaves the door open for India to join, that appears unlikely for now. The day after the signing, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar criticised past trade agreements for “deindustrialising” some sectors and not being advantageous to India. What is behind India’s reasoning to stay out of RCEP? How much of a factor was the presence of China? Is India now likely to turn away from regional free trade agreements in the future, and what will doing so mean for India’s trade and investment prospects? Guests: R. Ramakumar, NABARD Chair Professor, School of Development Studies, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai; Amitendu Palit, Senior Research Fellow and Research Lead (Trade and Economics), Institute of South Asian Studies, National University of Singapore. Host: Ananth Krishnan, former China Correspondent, The Hindu. Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for In Focus by The Hindu. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A conflict is taking place in Ethiopia, where the country’s Nobel Prize–winning Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has started a military operation in the rebellious Tigray region earlier this month. Mr. Abiy has said it would be a limited campaign focussing on the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), the militia-cum-political party that runs the region. However, almost two weeks into the conflict, Ethiopia risks falling into an ethnic civil war with major regional implications. Guest: Stanly Johny, International Affairs Editor, The Hindu. Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for In Focus by The Hindu. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This podcast was recorded a few days ago as a quick explainer on various States planning to enact laws against ‘love jihad’. While the term is a talking point of right-wing Hindu groups, it is not one that has a legal basis and so these laws proposed by these are being framed as legislations on freedom of religion and all of them want to ban conversion for the sole purpose of marriage. In the preceding weeks, the State governments of U.P. Haryana and Karnataka, all led by the BJP, announced intentions to enact such laws and just today, the BJP government in Madhya Pradesh said the BJP government was planning a law that would invite five years’ imprisonment for ‘love jihad’. There is a Special Marriage Act in India, enacted in the year 1954 to facilitate the marriage of couples professing different faiths and preferring a civil wedding. However, a lot of practical problems arise in registering such marriages and so many couples settle for marriage under the personal law of one of them, with the other opting for religious conversion. And this is where the political angles come into play. What are some of the problems with the 1954 Act? What are some legal provisions, already enacted in some States, against conversion for the sake of marriage, that these BJP-ruled States may now seek to borrow from? Guest: K. Venkataramanan, Associate Editor, The Hindu. Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for In Focus by The Hindu. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When President-elect Joe Biden takes office as the 46th President of the United States in January, he will face, in addition to a raging pandemic, an enormous economic challenge. America’s economic health at home will hinge on whether or not the Biden administration will be able to get one crucial relationship right, the fraying ties with China having descended into outright confrontation. What legacy does Donald Trump leave behind on the China front? Has his trade war achieved its goals? And how will Biden shape America’s China policy? What explains China’s tepid reaction to the Biden victory? (Beijing was, at the time of recording this podcast on November 11, among the few countries to not congratulate the Biden-Harris campaign or acknowledge their victory. China finally issued a terse and measured statement on November 13.) Guests: Bob Davis and Wei Lingling, authors of Superpower Showdown: How the Battle Between Trump and Xi Threatens a New Cold War Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for In Focus by The Hindu. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On November 11, the government issued an order bringing online news portals and Over The Top (OTT) content–providers such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Hotstar under the regulatory purview of the Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry. This is a move with far-reaching consequences and could kickstart an era of more frequent and stricter censorship on what online services air. The Information and Broadcasting Ministry has found a vast swathe of unregulated content, namely online news and Over the top (OTT) platforms which had escaped any architecture of regulation. While the print media were regulated by the Press Council of India, and television content — both news and entertainment — was being regulated by the Cable Networks Regulation Act (2005), content published online, the government felt, fell into a black hole that did not permit oversight. So, what kind of oversight will this be? How will it work? And what is the potential for misuse or overreach? Guest: Anuradha Raman, Associate Editor, The Hindu. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With the results of the Bihar election expected on Tuesday, November 10, major TV networks had released exit polls on Saturday evening predicting that the ruling Janata Dal United–Bharatiya Janata Party alliance is on its way out. One forecast even predicted that the Rashtriya Janata Dal–led opposition alliance could get a two-thirds majority. Others seemed to indicate that it would cross the halfway mark comfortably. We must add the caveat here that exit polls can be wrong. And it pays to reflect on the divergence we usually end up seeing between pre-poll and post-poll predictions, which will give us a window into the campaigns run by each side and where things stand as we head towards the results. Guest: Rahul Verma, a political scientist and a fellow at the centre for policy research in New Delhi. Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for In Focus by The Hindu. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There is a chance — in fact, a large chance — that the hugely consequential United States Presidential Election 2020 may not be straightforward. A huge proportion of voters in the U.S. have opted for early voting and mail-in voting, and in different States in the U.S there are different rules for the counting of these votes. Over the last six months, President Trump has sought to claim on Twitter that mail-in voting would lead to voter fraud and the Republicans are likely to throw in legal challenges in several States. Taking us through the scenarios and analysing the situation for each campaign as we head into our election coverage is Narayan Lakshman, Associate Editor of The Hindu and former U.S. correspondent. Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for In Focus by The Hindu. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Antitrust case filed by the U.S. Justice Department against Google on October 20, as well as the U.S. Congress Antitrust report which preceded it, lay out a case against the big four tech companies — Google, Amazon, Facebook and Apple. Both events are seen as major steps toward reining in the growing power of these companies and these are legal battles that are likely to get drawn out over many years. There’s a lot to unpack here, not least the timing of the U.S. Justice Department case against Google, coming as it did just days before the U.S election. Besides the possible political angle to the case, it may well have the legs to continue even if there is a change of administration in the U.S. Even beyond the U.S. context, moves have been made on regulation of big tech being in the E.U., for instance. So, what should we in India be looking out for as this all unfolds? Guest: Mishi Choudhary, Legal Director of the Software Freedom Law Centre in New York. Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for In Focus by The Hindu. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The big headline from the recently-concluded round of the 2+2 dialogue is that India and the United States have signed the basic exchange and cooperation agreement. BECA involves the sharing of navigation maps for both the air and the sea, including confidential military data, between the two countries. Crucially, it will give India access to high-quality data from U.S. precision military satellites. What does this mean for India’s defence sector? It would also useful to zoom out a bit and look at these talks and the agreement in a larger geopolitical context. The continuing standoff with China is an obvious factor that underpins the entire dialogue and the U.S. has made no secret of the fact that they are looking to build a counter to China’s growing influence in the region. There are ongoing discussions and developments in the quad alliance between Australia, India, Japan and the U.S., and amidst all that it’s worth wondering whether the signing of the BECA treaty now embeds India, which has so far avoided being seen as part of any coalition in this regard, more firmly in the U.S. camp. Guests: Suhasini Haidar, Diplomatic Affairs Editor, The Hindu; Dinakar Peri, Defence Correspondent, The Hindu. Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for In Focus by The Hindu. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As India continues to walk the challenging path of tackling COVID-19, this month there has been some excitement with regard to possible vaccines. At present, there are four vaccines in India in various stages of clinical trials — Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin, a vaccine by Zydus Cadila, AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford’s Covishield. And now, permission has been granted for clinical trials for Russia’s Sputnik V as well. Globally, there are over 150 vaccine candidates in various stages of development — with two major vaccine trials that have been in the news, paused over safety concerns and then re-started. Recently, India’s Health Minister announced that 250 million people would be vaccinated by July 2021. So what is the status of the vaccines today and how soon can we expect to be vaccinated? Guest: Dr. Gagandep Kang, Professor, Christian Medical College, Vellore. Host: Zubeda Hamid Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for In Focus by The Hindu. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we discuss the politics around the film 800, the biopic on the legendary Sri Lankan cricketer Muttiah Muralitharan and his record of being the first bowler to take 800 Test wickets. This is a film that has been mired in controversy for some time and the latest flash point this week is when the noted actor Vijay Sethupathy pulled out of starring as Murali in the biopic, acting, it seems, upon the advice of Murali himself, who said that he didn’t want the actor’s career to be tarred by the controversy. What is the controversy? While Muralitharan is a Sri Lankan Tamil who has roots in India, several groups have branded him a “betrayer of Tamils” and alleged that the cricketer supported the killing of Tamil civilians during the armed conflict between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan government. There are many more nuances and complications in this story. Guest: Meera Srinivasan, Sri Lanka Correspondent, The Hindu. Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for In Focus by The Hindu. Write to us with comments and feedback at [email protected] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices