All Things Policy

A biodiversity crisis rages through global ecosystems; how must our economic and technological systems change to manage the crisis? Bharat Sharma speaks to Siddharth Sreekanth regarding his timely book 'The Case for Nature: Pioneering Solutions for the Other Planetary Crisis' Link to the book - https://www.amazon.com/Case-Nature-Pioneering-Solutions-Planetary-ebook/dp/B0BGDL6JS9

In May 2023, the MoHFW brought in the regulation of tobacco depiction on OCCPs or OTT content platforms, requiring them to put a health spot of a minimum of 30 seconds along with a prominent health disclaimer on online curated content. A recent report by researchers at the Koan Advisory Group, in collaboration with survey partner Youth Ki Awaaz, examines the trade-offs of mandatory health warnings...

As India’s semiconductor ecosystem sees an influx of rapid-fire investment and partnerships, Satya Sahu engages in a conversation with Prof. Navakanta Bhat, previous chair of the Center for Nanosciences and Engineering at IISc Bangalore, to gain insights into what goes into creating a semiconductor chip in India.

Prof Nithiyanandam engages in an intriguing conversation with Mr. Sanjay Sinha, a distinguished senior Consultant with the Department of Real Time Governance (also called RTGS) with the Government of Andhra Pradesh, regarding the captivating significance of Geospatial technology in India's public health planning. They delve into the present scenario and explore the enthralling impact that Geospati...

The Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) of India provide internal security and guard our international borders with our neighbouring countries. Earlier called the paramilitary forces, the CAPFs today play a critical role in maintaining the peace and security of the nation and operate under challenging conditions to fulfill these responsibilities. In the seventh episode of Police Chowki, Javeed Ahm...

Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarked on a packed three-day State visit to the US recently. In this episode of All Things Policy, Takshashila's Sachin Kalbag and Yusuf Unjhawala break down the strategic and tactical import of one of the "most consequential friendships" of the 21st century.

According to a report by United Nations, India had the largest diaspora population in the world with 18 million people from the country living outside their homeland in 2020. Several of these people left for potential job opportunities in different countries. Emigration can be one of the solutions to address our unemployment crisis. Sudisha Mishra and Sridhar Krishna invite Avinash KS from Karnata...

Can information truly serve as a natural and universal source of empowerment? How do caste, class, and gender shape the definition, production, and leveraging of information? What unintended consequences might arise if we place excessive trust in the power of information? Sarthak Pradhan talks with Janaki Srinivasan, the author of the recently launched book "The Political Lives of Information." Th...

In this episode of All Things Policy, Saurabh Todi, Pranay Kotasthane, Bharat Reddy, and Aditya Ramanathan discuss the announcements in the India-US joint statement in the field of Semiconductors, Advanced Telecommunications, and Space.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is the premier investigation agency of the Government of India. The CBI is unique in as much as it sits at the confluence of law enforcement, politics, and the rule of law in India. In this episode of Police Chowki, Javeed Ahmad (ex-IPS & Joint Director, CBI) speaks to Shrikrishna Upadhyaya about the role and function of the CBI, the contentious issues aro...

Ever since US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's visit to Beijing was postponed in February this year, analysts and policymakers intensely speculated when the visit would take place. Now, as the much-awaited visit has recently concluded, deliberations surrounding what it achieved are all the news. In this episode, Amit Kumar and Anushka Saxena chime in into these deliberations, to discuss the con...

In this episode of All Things Policy, Saurabh Todi and Shambhavi Naik discuss the potential of the Bio-economy to drive national economic growth. They discuss avenues for collaboration between India and the US in the field of biotechnology and bio-manufacturing in light of the upcoming state visit of PM Modi.

The costs of training and running a large language model (LLM) were prohibitively expensive, and only a few big tech companies could afford to do it. That understanding has been turned upside down since the time Meta open-sourced their LLM named LLaMA. Satya S Sahu and Bharath Reddy talk about the promises and pitfalls of this move.

China’s security and economic cooperation with Central Asian countries has been deepening over the decades. In May this year, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced a new blueprint for ties with the five Central Asian countries. In this episode, Manoj Kewalramani speaks to Temur Umarov from the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center to understand the shifting sands of geopolitics in Central Asia.

Women officers make up only 10-11% of police forces on average across states in India. In the fifth episode of Police Chowki - limited series on All Things Policy, Shrikrishna Upadhyaya hosts Javeed Ahmad & Sutapa Sanyal (ex-IPS officers) to discuss the interface between women and police on the one hand and the lives of women serving in the police forces on the other. They discuss the representati...

Malathi Renati gives Sowmya Nandan an overview of how the Indian Sports Policy has evolved since independence and touches upon the barriers and enablers in the current Indian sports ecosystem.

India and China have almost completed expelling each other’s journalists. Why is this happening and what impact will it have on how Indians and Chinese perceive each other? Manoj Kewalramani talks to Aditya Ramanathan about how the lack of on-the-ground reporters could hamper the aims of both governments and increase the spread of misinformation.

As India's PLI schemes for electronics and its ongoing disputes at the WTO come into stark focus, Pranay Kothasthane, Satya Sahu, and Miheer Karandikar discuss the reasons why India's divergence from the Information Technology Agreement in its trade policy may be more important in that debate than we think. Their discussion presents many of the insights gained from Takshashila's recent discussion...

The historical legacy of the Liberation War has played a significant role in shaping the political landscape of Bangladesh. With the challenges faced by the ruling Awami League government and the leadership crises within the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), the lead-up to the parliamentary elections raises stakes for the political future of the country. In this episode, Carl Jaison is joined by...

The rule of law requires the police to ensure that criminals are properly investigated, prosecuted, and punished to ensure justice for the victims. In this episode of Police Chowki, Javeed Ahmad takes Shrikrishna Upadhyaya through the nitty gritty of criminal investigations by police in India, from the crime site to criminal investigation, and till the sessions court pronounces its verdict. He ans...

The month of May witnessed a gradual resumption of high-level dialogue between the US and China. This had largely been frozen since the February spy balloon incident. How did this nascent thaw between the two sides come to be, and what are the prospects for the future of the relationship? Anushka Saxena and Manoj Kewalramani discuss.

Because of its large population, India, in absolute terms, is expected to lose the equivalent of 34 million full-time jobs in 2030 due to heat stress. Heat is linked with the deterioration of working conditions, reduction in productivity, and a compromise in workers' security and well-being. Anupriya Mohta and Sudisha Mishra contextualise the heat stress problem in India, how it's linked with job...

In this episode of All Things Policy, Saurabh Todi and Shambhavi Naik discuss the most recent draft of the proposed WHO Global Pandemic Treaty. They discuss its strengths, and weakness and how can the gaps in the current draft be strengthened. A copy of the leaked draft can be accessed here and the policy brief on the need for BWC Scientific Experts Group can be found here.

AI tools such as DeepFake have been around for years, but with the launch of advanced generative AI tools such as ChatGPT, MidJourney, DALL-E, etc, artificial intelligence has come into the front and centre of fake news generation and its spread. Boomlive's Karen Rebelo, one of India's leading fact checkers, joins Sachin Kalbag in this conversation where they dissect the ominous future of AI-led d...

Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code is typically considered the provision under which the police issue curfew orders. In this episode of the limited series Police Chowki, Javeed Ahmad and Shrikrishna Upadhyaya discuss the findings of the study “The Use and Misuse of Section 144 CrPC - An Empirical Analysis of all the Orders Passed in 2021 in Delhi”. They delve into the routine use of Sectio...