The International Monetary Fund (IMF) had granted a bailout of $3 billion to Sri Lanka in March this year. The IMF had imposed nine conditions for agreeing to the bailout. Next month, the global lender will conduct its first review -- before the next tranche of funds under the bailout are released. What are the conditions that Sri Lanka has to fulfil? What has been the public response to the austerity measures that the government has had to initiate? And what success has Sri Lanka had in restruc...
Aug 17, 2023•27 min
Doctors and MBBS students, in various fields of specialisation, across various age-groups, from diverse geographies, say they believe that while common entrance examination for medical seats is a necessity, the coaching industry skewed it in favour of urban and richer students. Unaffordability of quality coaching classes and the luxury that richer students have to drop a year to prepare for the exam, make it increasingly difficult for students from poorer and more rural backgrounds to get a seat...
Aug 16, 2023•54 min
On August 3, the Indian government brought in import restrictions for laptops, tablets and servers. The import of these products would be allowed against a valid licence for restricted imports. Following some strong reactions from industry, it has deferred the effective date to Nov 1. But to begin with, what did the government aim to achieve with these curbs? Shore up national security by having tight controls over whom we import from? Or nudge local manufacturing and thus spur job creation? Lea...
Aug 14, 2023•26 min
It sounds like a science fiction movie, but it’s all real: scientists managed to revive a pair of roundworms that had been buried deep in the Siberian permafrost 46,000 years ago. The roundworms, called nematodes, were thawed in a lab and came alive again, reproduced several generations, and then died. These nematodes first existed when the woolly mammoths did, managed to survive in the harshest of frozen conditions, and then, from a state of suspended animation, that scientists call cryptobiosi...
Aug 11, 2023•24 min
The Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, 2023 has been passed in both houses of the Parliament. The Bill has gone through many versions. Despite this, the version that has been passed has left most independent data privacy experts disappointed. It has come in for even more criticism from Right to Information (RTI) activists, who have charged that the Bill amends the RTI Act, 2005 and weakens it. So, how well does the Bill really fare on the basic metric of protecting a user’s personal data? An...
Aug 10, 2023•49 min
Seventeen-year-old grandmaster D Gukesh has become the highest-rated Indian player in FIDE rankings. He shot past his idol Viswanathan Anand when he defeated Azerbaijan’s Misratdin Iskandarov in the ongoing World Cup in Baku. With this victory, Gukesh’s live rating went up to 2755.9, higher than Anand’s 2754. As Gukesh climbed up to become world No. 9, Anand slipped to the 10th spot. This is a big departure as Anand has been India’s top-ranked player since 1987 – a period of 36 years. Now Gukesh...
Aug 09, 2023•29 min
In this episode, we are discussing the new book “The Importance of Shinzo Abe: India, Japan and the Indo-Pacific”, a collection of essays, edited by Sanjaya Baru, examining the legacy of the former Japanese leader who was the country’s longest serving Prime Minister in history. Abe stepped down in 2020 citing health reasons, and his shock assassination in 2022 stunned the world. In this podcast, we discuss Abe’s impact on Japan, its relations with India and the world. How did Abe transform Japan...
Aug 08, 2023•30 min
The Rajya Sabha on July 27 passed the Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill, 2023. This bill, among other things, brings in age-based certification for films and stringent penalties for piracy. It also provides for separate certification for the exhibition of films on TV and ‘other media’ So, what was the need for these changes to the Cinematograph Act, 1952? How will the age-based certification work and would it be in consonance with the age-based ratings in other countries? And how significant are th...
Aug 04, 2023•27 min
Last month, the Lok Sabha passed a Bill that was aimed at improving the ease of doing business in India. This Jan Vishwas Bill, passed by the Rajya Sabha, this month brought in amendments to 42 different laws, including amendments to two sections of The Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940. These drug law changes have sparked a controversy: health activists have said that it essentially decriminalises the manufacture of drugs that are not of standard quality, allowing manufacturers to get away with a f...
Aug 03, 2023•29 min
On July 24, Israel’s coalition government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu passed a key part of its proposed judicial reforms. The reforms, which essentially aim to give the executive control over the judiciary, had sparked massive protests both inside and outside the Knesset. The Opposition staged a walkout when the Bill came up for vote, and it was passed with 64 votes in favour and zero against, in the 124-member assembly. So, what does the Bill that was passed mean for Israel’s judic...
Aug 02, 2023•36 min
The Rajasthan government on July 21 passed the Right to Minimum Guaranteed Income Bill, 2023, a legislation that has been hailed as a ‘historic’ step towards the fulfilment of a state’s social security obligations towards citizens. The Bill has three key elements: a right to guaranteed employment, right to a minimum guaranteed income – which is not to be confused with a minimum income guarantee, or what is known as Universal Basic Income or UBI – and a right to guaranteed minimum social security...
Jul 28, 2023•29 min
President Xi Jinping has dismissed Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang after just seven months in office. Qin has been replaced by former Foreign Minister Wang Yi. This development comes a month after Qin disappeared mysteriously from public view, sparking feverish speculations about his fate. A career diplomat, Qin rose rapidly through the ranks, and was seen as close to President Xi Jinping. In March this year, he was made a State Councillor, a very senior post, and one that he stills holds. The...
Jul 27, 2023•24 min
There has been extreme civil strife in Manipur for nearly three months. Two major ethnic groups – the Valley-dwelling Meiteis and the hill-dwelling Kukis – seem to have completely lost even the bare minimum of mutual trust essential to co-exist peacefully. The barbaric sexual assault of Kuki-Zomi women on May 4, a viral video of which emerged recently, brought to national consciousness the depth, scale and toxicity of the violence in Manipur. While the state government has failed to ensure basic...
Jul 26, 2023•26 min
It’s World Hepatitis Day this week, on July 28, and perhaps an apt time to look at conditions associated with the liver. One of the first things that comes to mind is alcohol and the liver. Across the world, people have believed for decades now that a moderate amount of alcohol consumption may be good for you – that it could potentially protect you against heart disease. A study published earlier this year, however, by Canadian researchers, disputes this. The analysis, of more than 100 studies c...
Jul 25, 2023•27 min
While still frowned upon in most parts of the country, live-in relationships are becoming increasingly common. Couples can choose not to get married for a number of reasons and still stay together, share a household and possibly children. So how legal are these relationships in India? In a recent judgement, the Allahabad High Court refused to grant protection to an inter-faith couple in a live-in relationship and even stressed upon the need to create awareness about the emotional and societal pr...
Jul 24, 2023•22 min
The Biden administration has taken a decision to provide Ukraine with cluster munitions as part of military aid for its ongoing war with Russia. This has evoked concern among human rights watchdogs, as cluster munitions are known to be a deadly cause of civilian casualties. More than 120 countries have signed a treaty that bans the production, use, stockpiling or transfer of cluster munitions. As it turns out, neither the US, nor Ukraine nor Russia are signatories of this convention. The US, how...
Jul 21, 2023•28 min
Last month, the Union government stopped the sale of rice and wheat from the Central pool under the Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS). This has provoked sharp reactions from state governments led by Opposition parties, especially Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, who have accused the Centre of “playing politics” and of being “anti-poor”. State such as Tamil Nadu, which have a universal Public Distribution System (PDS), have utilised the OMSS route to procure additional food grains over and above what they ...
Jul 19, 2023•31 min
Every headline over the past few weeks has been of the staggering rise in prices of not just tomatoes, but also of potatoes, onions, rice, wheat, tur dal and milk. The steep hike in prices is affecting residents across the country, changing the amount of food we can afford to buy, what we cook and what we put on our plates and finally eat. Nutritionists and doctors have long called for healthy diets: combining an adequate amount of carbohydrates, fats, proteins to keep our bodies fit and healthy...
Jul 14, 2023•30 min
July 16 is World Snake Day. When you have a day dedicated to something, it typically denotes a call to care for, or draw attention to, the welfare of the entity to which the day is dedicated. That’s how it is with Father’s Day, Mother’s Day and so on. But with World Snake Day, things get a little complicated, as the first thing that comes to mind when you mention ‘snakes’ is the fear of snake bites, and the fact that India is the snake-bite capital of the world. So we tend to forget that snakes ...
Jul 13, 2023•26 min
The Union environment ministry has notified draft rules for implementation of a Green Credit Programme (GCP). The programme aims to create a market-based mechanism for incentivising “voluntary environmental actions” by individuals, urban local bodies, communities and the private sector. The draft is now in the public domain for suggestions and objections, for a period of 60 days, after which it will be finalised. Under this programme, certain activities will earn green credits, which can also be...
Jul 11, 2023•26 min
For the first time in the 48-year history of ODI world cups, the West Indies will be missing from the tournament. The champions of the first two editions, in 1975 and 1979, and the 1983 runner-ups, have failed to qualify for the 13th edition of the World Cup set to take place in India later this year. In the World Cup qualifiers, they lost to Scotland in the Super Six stage of the tournament, which put them out of the reckoning. While the West Indies’ cricketing decline has been evident for some...
Jul 10, 2023•24 min
July 1 this year marked the 6th year since the Goods and Services Tax was implemented. The average monthly collection in the first year was sub-₹1 lakh crore. Now, the government expects ₹1.5 lakh crore to be the norm, with its eye ₹2 lakh crore for the near future. At the start, there were several changes that naysayers felt made compliance difficult. Others said these were necessary prerequisites for a smooth run later. Pratik Jain, Partner and National Leader for Indirect Tax in PwC India joi...
Jul 07, 2023•23 min
The recent bus accident on the Nagpur-Mumbai Samruddhi Expressway that left 25 people dead after the bus hit an iron pole and caught fire, has once again thrown the spotlight on road accidents in India. Our country has one of the highest numbers of road crash deaths and injuries in the world. In 2021, India saw over 4 lakh road accidents that killed over 1.5 lakh people. What is tragic, is that the majority of these deaths and injuries occur in young persons, generally those in the 18 to 45 age ...
Jul 06, 2023•23 min
Can Novak Djokovic win a record 24th Grand Slam title? This question is one of the central themes of the 2023 Wimbledon championship. If the Serb manages to do it, not only will be equal Margaret Court’s record of 24 grand slams – the highest across both genders – he will also equal Roger Federer’s men’s record of eight Wimbledon titles. And with Nadal out of the picture for the rest of the year, he will be on track for a calendar Grand Slam and perhaps put to rest the GOAT debate once and for a...
Jul 05, 2023•26 min
In this podcast, we look at the state of play three years after India put in place sweeping curbs on inflows of Chinese investments into India. Official data shows investments from China are slowly returning through new avenues and ventures, with New Delhi welcoming investments in some sectors such as manufacturing but remaining wary about others where data and security concerns are involved. How are Chinese companies working around the curbs on investment? Have the curbs on Chinese investment e...
Jul 04, 2023•22 min
The intellectual class of West Bengal, euphemistically termed the Bhadralok, has long held a pivotal role in shaping culture, politics and policy in the State. From producing timeless cinema to dominating political power to setting policies on welfare, reforms and state interventions, this segment of Bengali society performed an outsized role. But all indications are that its influence is fading quickly in the State and beyond. Surajit Chandra Mukhopadhyay and Sandip Roy ponder the relevance of ...
Jun 30, 2023•35 min
India has faced record-breaking temperatures this summer. The punishing heatwave across large parts of our country has killed dozens of people already, and while exact numbers remain controversial, the fact remains that heatwaves are becoming far more frequent, lasting for longer, and, as a consequence affecting more people. A large section of our population works out of doors for most of the year, and is exposed to high temperatures; this is combined with the fact that many people in our countr...
Jun 29, 2023•23 min
On June 24, the ongoing Ukraine-Russia war took a surprising turn as Russia’s Wagner Private Military Company, a paramilitary organisation, rebelled against the Russian establishment led by Vladimir Putin. The rebellion led by Yevgeny Prigozhin, the leader of Wagner, claimed control over Russia’s Southern Military District headquarters in Rostov-on-Don, a city near the Ukrainian border and then began a march towards Moscow. Mr. Prigozhin claimed it was a march for justice, alleging mistreatment ...
Jun 27, 2023•25 min
An India-wide study on the prevalence of diabetes and pre-diabetes, results of which were released recently, threw up some startling results: 10.13 crore people in our country of 140 crore could be diabetic, and another 13.6 crore are estimated to be at the pre-diabetic stage. The study was conducted by the Madras Diabetes Research Foundation in collaboration with the Indian Council of Medical Research and the Union Health Ministry. Apart from diabetes, the study also revealed that 35.5% of Indi...
Jun 15, 2023•38 min
On May 31st, the Union Health Ministry issued a notification making it mandatory for over-the-top (OTT) streaming platforms to display anti-tobacco warnings as seen in movies screened in theatres and on TV. The notification amended the rules under the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 2004. The OTT industry is quite upset with this move for various reasons, not the least of them being that it was not consulted. Critics have said that this move could disrupt the audience’s viewing experi...
Jun 14, 2023•26 min
