All Things Policy

Think about the last time you were in a crowded metro station. Did you consciously decide what to do, or did you simply follow what everyone else was doing? Public policy often assumes people are rational actors. But behaviour is shaped by something far more human: norms that tell us what others expect, habits that run on autopilot, and incentives that reward or punish us. In this episode, Arindam...

As the projectile war continues to rage on in West Asia, engulfing multiple Gulf states in addition to Israel, the US and Iran, fissures are developing in Trump's base (Make America Great Again or MAGA in short). Joseph Kent, a US counterterrorism official, has resigned, citing the ongoing war. Kent has joined a vocal section of the MAGA base that continues to criticise the US involvement in t...

In this episode of The Iran Brief by All Things Policy, we take a closer look at how the West Asian conflict is evolving as it enters its fourth week and why its consequences are now being felt far beyond the battlefield. The Takshashila team breaks down the growing energy anxieties triggered by attacks on critical oil and gas infrastructure and the disruption around the Strait of Hormuz. We try t...

In this episode of All Things Policy, Bhumika Sevkani speaks with Anushka Saxena, Staff Research Analyst at the Takshashila Institution, to unpack China’s interests amid the escalating Israel-Iran War. As China voices its opposition against the U.S. and Israel for launching military strikes against Iran, what are the economic and geopolitical stakes at play?  Anushka Saxena argues that while the c...

In this episode, Sowmya Prabhakar is in conversation with Dr Y Nithiyanandam to vent about the heat. We will examine it through the lens of Society, Markets, and Government to determine possible solutions. All Things Policy is a daily podcast on public policy brought to you by the Takshashila Institution, Bengaluru.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠...

AI systems depend on vast amounts of labelled data, produced by “data workers” who tag images, categorise text, and review content so machine-learning models can function accurately and safely. While the data-annotation market is rapidly expanding, the labour behind it often remains invisible. Much of this work uses BPO firms in countries like India, where workers - frequently women - are recruite...

In this episode of All Things Policy, Pakistan researcher Aishwaria Sonavane speaks with peace mediation expert Ameya Kilara. Drawing on her experience facilitating dialogues between India and Pakistan, as well as in Syria, Kilara discusses what the day-to-day work of mediation actually looks like beyond the negotiating table. The conversation explores how mediators operate in low-trust environmen...

In this episode of All Things Policy, Bhumika Sevkani and Anisree Suresh unpack India’s LPG supply challenges amid the ongoing crisis in West Asia. They examine how geopolitical disruptions affect India’s cooking fuel supply, assess the government’s interventions in managing LPG demand and supply, and discuss both the immediate responses and long-term solutions to strengthen India’s household ener...

In this episode of All Things Policy, Malathi Renati gets an insider view from Anil Kumar, Founder of Great SportsTech, on Financing the Future of Sport in India. As India’s sports economy accelerates toward a projected $130B opportunity, they unpack what’s really driving growth — from the ₹4,480 Cr Union sports budget and Khelo India’s expanding footprint to CSR investments, PPP models, and the g...

Federalism is a defining feature of India’s republic. It shapes the relationship between the Union government and the states. One of the important aspects of this relationship is how revenues are shared. This is where the Finance Commission comes in. It helps shape how money flows from the union to the states and how it is distributed among the states. In this episode, Sarthak Pradhan and Suman Jo...

Two recent developments have thrust Anthropic into the centre of AI geopolitics. The company has accused three Chinese research labs of running “industrial-scale” campaigns to reverse engineer its frontier models. At the same time, it has been labelled a supply-chain risk by the Trump administration over safety guardrails for the use of AI. Bharath Reddy and Shobhankita Reddy, researchers in techn...

In this episode of All Things Policy, Shobhankita Reddy and Ashwin Prasad on satellite internet, smuggled Starlink terminals in Sudan and Iran, Africa's explosive adoption, and the argument that developing nations — not developed ones — will become the biggest customers of connectivity from space. All Things Policy is a daily podcast on public policy brought to you by the Takshashila Instituti...

As China convenes its 'Two Sessions', the draft of Beijing's 15th Five-Year Plan is grabbing global attention. The plan features, among other domains, a heavy focus on building Science & Tech Self-Reliance and a modern industrial system. It also reiterates the party-states now-long time impetus for boosting domestic consumption and cracking down on involution and overcapacity. In t...

In this episode of All Things Policy, Aishwaria Sonavane and Anisree Suresh explore India’s evolving trade strategy in a volatile global environment. We discuss whether India’s growing network of FTAs can help diversify export markets, how the EU agreement could reshape trade flows, and whether domestic reforms must complement deeper trade liberalisation. All Things Policy is a daily podcast on pu...

The US and Israel struck Iran on the morning of February 28.  Israel's Air Force said it flew over 200 fighter jets and fired 1,200+ munitions at Iran on Day 1 of the joint US-Israel campaign, killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei along with top military commanders, including IRGC chief Mohammad Pakpour, Armed Forces Chief Abdolrahim Mousavi, Defence Minister Aziz Nasirzadeh, and Natio...

In this episode of the All Things Policy podcast, Vanshika Saraf and Abhishek Kadiyala examine the often-overlooked role of the U.S. Congress in shaping India–U.S. relations from independence to the present day. While the President is typically seen as the face of American foreign policy, the conversation highlights how Congress—empowered by Article I of the U.S. Constitution through its control o...

In this episode of All Things Policy, Arindam Goswami speaks with Shreya Ramakrishnan about the findings and lessons from his discussion document on technology denial regimes and the evolving tools of technological statecraft. Drawing on historical case studies from nuclear non-proliferation, space technology controls, and supercomputing sanctions, they examine what determines whether a technology...

In this episode of All Things Policy, Adya Madhavan speaks with Bharat Reddy and Anwesha Sen about the AI Impact Summit and their insights on some of the ideas that were discussed. They analyse the strategic, economic, and physical realities of India's growing AI ecosystem. All Things Policy is a daily podcast on public policy brought to you by the Takshashila Institution, Bengaluru.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠...

From local market immersion (Samaj), to capital maturity (Bazaar), to digital public goods and regulatory shifts (Sarkar), Sowmya Prabhakar and Shobhankita Reddy unpack the ecosystem changes enabling domestic founders to outperform diaspora-led teams. All Things Policy is a daily podcast on public policy brought to you by the Takshashila Institution, Bengaluru.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠...

Closely following the heels of the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos in January 2026, the conversations in the Munich Security Conference (MSC) centred around the US President Trump and the ideological contestations he represents. What exactly unfolded at the MSC? What are the key highlights? What does it mean for Europeans and even India? To answer these questions, tech geopolitics researcher...

In this episode of All Things Policy, Bhumika Sevkani speaks with Anisree Suresh, Research Analyst at the Takshashila Institution to break down the India–US interim trade agreement. They examine the key provisions and sectoral impacts, including the continued uncertainty around the deal. The episode also attempts to answer what India's trade strategy should look like going ahead. All Things Po...

Japan is at a political turning point. In this episode, Leah Govias and Vanshika Saraf break down how Japan’s system of government and electoral rules shape power, before analysing Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s historic victory - what drove her decisive mandate, how new coalition dynamics may unfold, and what her leadership means for Japan’s economic choices, defence posture, and strategic relat...

Over the past year, India has stepped up its critical mineral diplomacy with a notable urgency. There has been a flurry of activity with several international partnerships -  both bilateral and plurilateral - inked. Shobhankita Reddy is joined by Anindita Sinh, Research Associate at CSEP's Foreign Policy and Security Studies, to make sense of it all. They discuss why these partnerships are key...

High Courts across India have evolved their own unique sets of rules and processes for litigation practices and judicial administration in the courts. Over the years, legal practitioners have found that some of these rules have become redundant due to emerging technologies or changes to rules have been ad-hoc and inconsistent, creating gaps in the court ecosystem. Kripa Koshy (Staff Programme Mana...

Critical minerals are materials and, unlike oil, can be recovered and reused from end-of-life products. Importantly, recycling offers a pathway to reduce dependence on China and its overbearing processing capability. In this episode, Shobhankita Reddy and Tannmay Kumarr Baid discuss what India must do to operationalise this part of the mineral value chain. Read the research paper on urban mining i...