Nutrition programmes in India come in different hues and have undergone sweeping changes in the last few years. From the ICDS to the POSHAN 2.0, we have seen varying successes across the country. What do budgetary trends indicate? Why should we track this? Apurva Kumar and Suman Joshi discuss all this and more.
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Over the last 75 years of India’s independence, there has been no dearth of ideas and policies targeting progress. Yet policy progress is dependent on policy implementation. In this episode, Aarushi Kataria talks to Pranay Kotasthane about the gap that exists between policies on paper and what they actually achieve. They talk about the Right to Information Act 2005 and the 2020 Farm Bills in...
The development of quantum technologies has increased exponentially in the last decade. Quantum now covers a wide area of applications from communications to computing. Arjun Gargeyas joins Siddharth Bannerjee, a senior policy advisor with the UK Civil Service, to discuss their upcoming document on the criticality of quantum tech and building India’s quantum ecosystem. Readings:...
For a while now, India has seen a need for Indian Health Services (IHS), akin to other all-India services like IAS, IPS, and IFS. Over the years, successive governments have looked into this issue, yet very little has been done. Mahek Nankani and Priyal Lyncia D’Almeida discuss the history, the need, the concerns and the primary steps that have been taken in this direction.
China is rolling out a new law to regulate algorithms used on apps to bring the country’s Big Tech sector in line with state policies. Rohan Seth talks to Manoj Kewalramani and Sapni G Krishna to discuss the fine print.
A two-front dilemma for a state usually involves external actors. However, Chinese strategists define the two-front war dilemma based on internal and external factors. In this episode, Suyash Desai and Megha Pardhi discuss internal and external drivers of China’s two-front war dilemma.
The Philippines recently announced the procurement of the BrahMos cruise missile for its Shore Based Anti Ship Missile Programme. As the first export customer of the system, the Philippines will gain an important capability to counter threats to its interests in the Indo-Pacific. Aditya Pareek joins Rear Admiral Sudarshan Shrikhande(Retd.) and Megha Pardhi to discuss the BRAHMOS weapons system’s...
The internet has become more ubiquitous than ever before. The National Digital Inclusion Alliance defines digital equity as “a condition in which all individuals and communities have the information technology capacity needed for full participation in our society, democracy, and economy.” Sridhar Krishna talks to Raghav Rao, a Digital Innovation Fellow at The Cleveland Foundation, and Aarushi...
Earlier this month, Russia led Collective Security Treaty Organisation(CSTO) deployed troops to quell widespread unrest in Kazakhstan. The swift CSTO operation achieved its objective and the deployed Russian, Belarusian, Tajikistani and Armenian peacekeepers are already withdrawing. With a fog of uncertainty and lack of information, many questions about the unrest and the political situation...
The mention of Bihar conjures up images of abject poverty and state apathy. The ground reality, however, has been changing in the past decade. Economist M R Sharan chronicles his time in Bihar with stories from a journey of hope, led by several hundred women, and provides insights from field research on MNREGA, grievance redressal systems, and the politics and dynamics of caste in Bihar and its...
The Digital News Publishers Association (DNPA), which represents the digital arms of a number of legacy media organisations has alleged that Google’s conduct has violated various provisions of the Competition Act. In a recently passed order, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) has directed the Director-General to investigate these charges. Rohan Seth joins Sapni GK and Prateek Waghre...
Land is an integral part of any economy and is central to individual and community identity. Thus, land disputes can hamper socio-economic development. Many conflicting land laws exist in India, and land disputes are ubiquitous. In this episode, Dr Namita Wahi discusses with Sarthak Pradhan the project of documenting India’s land laws and the potential benefits of a comprehensive land laws...
The Quad Summit which was held in September last year introduced multiple working groups ranging from climate change to information disorder. Shrey Khanna talks to Arjun Gargeyas on the potential of Quad collaboration in the biotechnology field along with the tools and technologies that the Quad can focus on.
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Responses to the COVID-19 pandemic have evoked major lifestyle changes among adults and children. Closure of schools and stay-at-home orders has threatened the health and well-being of children, causing an increase in obesity cases. In today’s episode, Aarthi Ratnam and Ruturaj Gowaikar discuss the effect of the pandemic on increasing obesity cases and how digital marketing has only...
The dual-use nature of emerging tech has blurred the line between civil and military applications of technology. How do the PLA researchers view the role of emerging tech in the military? In this episode, Aditya Pareek and Megha Pardhi discuss the latest newsletter in the Takshashila family – “China Tech Dispatch”. Subscribe to China Tech Dispatch here. Check out Takshashila’s...
The World Health Assembly held a Special Session to kickstart a process to draft a global treaty geared towards pandemic management. Priyal and Ruturaj discuss the need, scope, and history of such international instruments. Listen to our episode on Digital Monitoring of Global Public Health Suggested readings: 1. How the world failed to curb COVID 2. Book: Emperor of All...
In August 2021, the Together We Fight Society (TWFS) filed a complaint with the Competition Commission of India (CCI) alleging that Apple was abusing its dominant position in the app stores market. In a recent order, the CCI noted that the allegations merit further investigation and directed the Director-General to do so. In this episode, Rohan Seth joins Sapni GK and Prateek Waghre to discuss...
2021 has been a long year. One thing that remained constant was Takshashila’s love for books. Manoj Kewalramani talks to Rohan Seth to discuss their reading lists for this year.
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The new COVID-19 variant, Omicron has been in the news since the first case was discovered in November. Despite the rising cases around the world, it is considered mild according to the data from the UK and the US. But, how mild is omicron anyway? In this episode, Dr. Harshit Kukreja and Priyal Lyncia D’Almeida discuss how variants arise, the burden of the incoming third wave and the public...
How do citizens navigate through the complex state apparatus to acquire welfare services? What factors can facilitate this process? What obstacles do they face? In this episode, Apurva Kumar and Sarthak Pradhan discuss how citizens “claim the state”. Sources referred to in the podcast: The new social contract by Apurva Kumar How the content of claims shapes government responsiveness:...
