In Focus by The Hindu

While the development of a COVID-19 vaccine has been widely reported to take 12-18 months, the ICMR is looking to launch an innoculation for public health use by August 15. Deputy Science Editor Jacob Koshy discusses the feasibility and implications.Write to us with comments and feedback at socmed4@thehindu.co.in Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On June 30, the third round of Corps Commander–level talks between India and China was held, aimed at defusing the more-than-two-months-long tensions along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). While much of the attention has been focussed on Galwan Valley, where a clash on June 15 marked the worst violence since 1967, a tense stand-off remains under way at Pangong Tso (lake), where China has erected structures and remains present between Finger 4 and Finger 8 areas on India’s side of the LAC. What is the situation currently at Pangong Tso? What are the prospects of a resolution? What is behind the tensions there, and what is the way forward for restoring the status quo and maintaining peace on the LAC?Guest: Colonel S. Dinny (retd.), former commanding officer of an infantry battalion at Pangong Tso (2015-2017) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On June 22 the White House made a proclamation restricting the issuance of non-immigrant work visas across the board, which U.S. President Donald Trump said was to clamp down on American jobs going to foreign workers. The broadest impact may be felt on skilled workers abroad seeking the H-1B visa – in large part granted to Indian nationals each year. Given the additional significance of this proclamation issued less than five months before the next presidential election, can it truly shore up the precarious U.S. economy, or is it a campaign play to improve Mr. Trump’s odds of victory in November?Guest: Sheela Murthy, founder of the Murthy Law Firm specialising in immigration cases and based out of Maryland, U.S.Host: Narayan Lakshman, Associate Editor, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The consensus on disengagement reached between the Indian and Chinese Corps Commanders on June 22 is yet to be implemented, and at present it’s very much a wait-and-watch game for both sides, according to a senior defence source. Meanwhile, satellite images and reports indicate a massive build-up and construction by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) along the Line of Actual Control in Eastern Ladakh, in Galwan Valley, as well as in the Depsang Plains.This is a story with many angles, and a lot of mixed messaging — the situation along the LAC, the diplomatic relationship, and the Chinese narrative about its claims on the Galwan Valley. Helping us understand just how serious the problem is right now and the sort of time frame it may play out in are National Editor Suhasini Haidar and former China Correspondent Ananth Krishnan.Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for In Focus by The Hindu.Write to us with comments and feedback at socmed4@thehindu.co.in Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The June 15 clash in Galwan Valley, which claimed 20 Indian soldiers in the worst violence since 1967, has brought India-China relations into uncharted waters. Where do the two countries go from here? Has there been a collapse of the mechanisms carefully built to keep the peace on the border? What is the way forward for disengagement? How will India's China policy change after the Galwan tussle?Guest: Gautam Bambawale, former Indian Ambassador to China and Pakistan.Write to us with comments and feedback at socmed4@thehindu.co.in Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

While we know that children are less at risk of contracting COVID-19 and will experience less severe symptoms if infected, there have been rare cases of multi-system inflammatory syndrome reported in some parts of the world.In the midst of the pandemic, the foremost question on parents’ minds is how to keep their children safe. And will it be safe for them to resume attending school once they reopen?Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for In Focus by The Hindu.Write to us with comments and feedback at socmed4@thehindu.co.in Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Our fifth data episode on COVID-19 in India comes amidst some alarming numbers. On Monday, June 17, for instance, the country registered an additional 13,232 cases. And these are numbers that are rapidly going up as testing seems to be slowly increasing across the board. At the time of recording the podcast, we are at about 10,870 and the data has not yet come in from Delhi, where testing has been increased manifold. On Tuesday, June 18, Maharashtra added 1,328 deaths and Delhi added 400, including those previously classified as not being COVID-19-related, and these numbers pushed India's death toll past the 12,000 mark.The themes that we will touch on in this podcast are familiar one. The first thing that we’ll look at is how India compares with countries that have lifted their lockdowns and are correspondingly seeing a massive spike in cases. We’ll also talk about mortality rates and testing.Guest: Srinivasan Ramani, Deputy National Editor, The Hindu. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In a major escalation in the ongoing stand-off between India and China on the border, one Commanding Officer and two jawans of the Indian Army lost their lives during a violent faceoff with Chinese troops in the Galwan area of Eastern Ladakh on Monday night. These are the first combat deaths on the disputed boundary since 1975. After 45 years of relative peace, does this new clash mark a troubling new chapter on the Line of Actual Control (LAC)? What is the status of the more than month long stand-off on the LAC? What are the prospects of a return to status quo?Host: Ananth Krishnan, China Correspondent, The HinduGuest: Suhasini Haidar, National Editor and Diplomatic Affairs Editor, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we’ll look at two news points related to the Indian Council of Medical Research. Last week, the ICMR released some numbers from a sero survey, or a general population test for antibodies, to look at how widespread the disease is in the country. We’ll take a look at those numbers and also go a bit beyond what was in the press conference. Another report that has been in the news recently that the ICMR is actually now trying to distance itself from is a study saying that India’s COVID-19 peak may come only in November. We’ll also get a news update on the situation in Beijing, where despite some of the world’s most stringent measures on containment, a surge of new cases is being reported. Guests: Jacob Koshy, Deputy Science Editor, The Hindu; Ananth Krishnan, former Beijing Correspondent, The Hindu. Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for In Focus by The Hindu. Write to us with comments and feedback at socmed4@thehindu.co.in Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tensions along the Line of Actual Control between India and China have been high for close to a month. Stand-off incidents and heavy deployments have been reported at multiple points along the LAC. At the Pangong Lake in Ladakh, Chinese troops are now present in what India sees as its territory.On May 6, India and China held talks at the military level to address the situation, but there is as yet no agreement on returning to the status quo. How unusual are the current tensions on the border? What are the prospects of a solution? Is there a broader Chinese game in Ladakh? How do internal political developments in Beijing impact China’s posture?Guest: Jayadeva Ranade, a former Additional Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat, Government of India, and President, Centre for China Analysis and Strategy.Find the In Focus podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher. Search for In Focus by The Hindu.Write to us with comments and feedback at socmed4@thehindu.co.in Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices