Published in 1968, 'The Population Bomb' by Paul and Anne Ehrlich predicts catastrophic consequences, including mass starvation and environmental ruin, due to unchecked population growth. The book argues that immediate action is necessary to control population growth to prevent these dire outcomes. Although many of the Ehrlichs' predictions did not come to pass, the book significantly raised awareness about population and environmental issues and influenced public policy in the 1960s and 1970s. The authors emphasize the need for conscious regulation of human numbers and highlight the strain that growing populations place on the natural world[1][4][5].
In this book, Harry Potter faces a new challenge during his second year at Hogwarts. The Chamber of Secrets, a hidden chamber within the school, has been reopened, and a monster is petrifying Muggle-born students. Harry, along with his friends Ron and Hermione, must uncover the identity of the Heir of Salazar Slytherin and stop the attacks. Along the way, they discover a diary belonging to Tom Riddle, a former student who later became Lord Voldemort, and ultimately face the basilisk that is terrorizing the school. With the help of magical creatures and objects, Harry defeats the basilisk and saves his friend Ginny Weasley, who had been taken into the Chamber.
This book, based on the popular BBC series, humorously explores the challenges faced by a cabinet minister as he navigates the complexities of British politics. It offers a witty critique of governmental procedures and the power struggles between elected officials and bureaucrats.
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Manish Sabharwal isn’t an easy man to nail down. By that, I don’t just mean it was hard to nail down a time on his calendar to meet me for the podcast, which it was. Like with most founders and guests on First Principles, the gap between when I first invite them and when they finally appear is usually measured in months, sometimes years. I had first emailed Manish for First Principles in January 2023.
But I’m saying Manish is hard to nail down also because he defies - resists - categorisation.
Sure, he co-founded Teamlease, one of India’s largest recruitment and human resource providers. It employs over 400,000 people, is listed on the stock exchanges, and is a great barometer of broader employment trends in India.
But Manish is no longer involved with the day-to-day operations of the company, while still being the largest individual shareholder.
Instead, he leads a “portfolio life”, dividing his time serving on the boards of think tanks, regulatory bodies, universities, non-profits, and even private companies like Phonepe; advising companies and the government on a host of topics like labour markets, regulation, employment, education, economic policy and reforms; being a columnist; and reading books.
Oh yeah, he says he’s read a book a week for the last - wait for this - 42 years!
Thus, when I sat down with Manish last Thursday, I went in prepared, or as prepared as I could be, with my research and questions. But 10 minutes into the conversation, I decided to drop the conversation narrative I had in mind and instead let the conversation go where it needed to.
Yes, we do cover entrepreneurship, ambition, and finding product-market fit by letting your customers guide your evolution, but we also go much further into topics that we normally don’t. For example, India’s macroeconomic and geopolitical chances, ‘regulatory cholesterol’, higher education and the jobs crisis. All peppered with pithy aphorisms, vivid analogies, and memorable quotes every few minutes, this is something I’ve remembered Manish doing since I first met him as a journalist in the early 2010s.
Welcome to First Principles.
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This episode was produced by Hari Krishna, and the mixing and mastering of the episode was done by Rajiv CN.
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First Principles 
