In Focus by The Hindu

The Tribunals Reforms Bill, 2021 was passed in the Lok Sabha on August 3. Once it comes becomes law, it will replace the Tribunals Reforms (Rationalisation and Conditions of Service) Ordinance, 2021.The Bill, among other things, seeks to abolish several appellate tribunals, ranging from the Film Certification Appellate Tribunal and the Airports Appellate Tribunal to the Authority for Advanced Rulings, Intellectual Property Appellate Board, and the Plant Varieties Appellate Tribunal. The Bill also introduces changes in the terms of service of the officials serving in tribunals.There was hardly any discussion in Parliament before the Bill was passed. But some key questions merit a proper debate: What was the need for this Bill? Will the abolition of tribunals increase the workload of the judiciary? How will the Bill impact our tribunals’ independence from executive influence?Guest: Prachee Mishra, Head of Research at PRS Legislative Research, a New Delhi-based independent research non-profit.Host: G. Sampath, Social Affairs Editor, The HinduWrite to us at socmed4@thehindu.co.in Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Host: Zubeda HamidSince March 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic first struck India, a majority of our health resources have been allocated towards battling the virus. The country went through a first wave last year with an intense lockdown in place and faced a brutal second wave this year. But while we needed all available healthcare systems to fight COVID-19, what has happened to patients with other diseases who were in need of frequent care? Some studies from last year indicated a decrease in the number of surgeries and patient consultations at hospitals, affecting patients with cancer, those with kidney disease who require dialysis as well as those with a host of other conditions. Lack of transport options during the various lockdowns in States, fear of contracting the virus and the loss of incomes may all have contributed to fewer patients seeking care. Some children missed out on important, routine vaccinations though the government has made efforts to ensure that missed children get their doses. Since it looks as if COVID-19 may be with us for some time more, what can governments do, moving forward, in order to ensure healthcare services do not suffer? Do we need better primary health systems in our country, and what are the steps that can be taken to achieve this?Guest: Dr. Rajib Dasgupta, Professor at the Centre of Social Medicine and Community Health, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.Host: Zubeda HamidWrite to us: socmed4@thehindu.co.in Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Flood devastation is mostly associated with developing countries in tropical zones. But over the past fortnight, some of the world’s richest and technologically most advanced countries with sophisticated flood alert systems were devastated by flash floods. Nearly 200 people have died in floods in Germany and Belgium. There have been similar reports of flood devastation from Henan province in China, from London, and Maharashtra, where it’s almost an annual feature.Do these geographically disparate natural disasters have something in common? Are they all linked to climate change? And if they are, what are the most feasible mitigation measures?Guest: G Ananthakrishnan, Senior Associate Editor, The HinduHost: G. Sampath, Social Affairs Editor, The HinduWrite to us: socmed4@thehindu.co.in Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Guest: Anurag Behar, CEO, Azim Premji FoundationEarlier this month, the Indian Council of Medical Research's director general, Dr Balram Bhargava, said that once the country begins to consider re-opening schools, it would be wise to open primary schools before secondary schools, provided all school teachers and staff were vaccinated.A vast majority of schools in India have been shut for over 15 months now, since March 2020, affecting 24 crore students. Various states have opened temporarily for senior classes, sometimes only to shut again when COVID-19 cases rose. Online classes have been around as a substitute, but with less than 25 percent of Indian households having access to the internet as per the National Sample Survey 2017-18, how far can digital learning go? Have our students lost a year of learning and are they potentially going to forget what they learnt before the pandemic struck? Does India need a roadmap for the reopening of schools and how can it do so safely?Guest: Anurag Behar, CEO, Azim Premji FoundationHost: Zubeda HamidWrite to us: socmed4@thehindu.co.in Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We are now past the halfway point of the Tokyo Olympics, which is a good time to pause and take stock. India started off well, with an early silver for Mirabai Chanu in weightlifting. But there were several disappointments thereafter, especially in shooting, and in boxing as well.In the run-up to the Games, many in India believed that this would be India’s best Olympics ever in terms of medal haul. Our most successful Games so far, purely in terms of the number of medals won, was the 2012 London Olympics, when we came back with six medals, two silver and four bronze. So, at the halfway mark of the Tokyo Games, how do we stand in terms of beating, or at least matching, that record?In this podcast, we get some answers as well as the reasons for the underwhelming results the past week.Guest: Rakesh Rao, Deputy Editor (Sports), The HinduHost: G. Sampath, Social Affairs Editor, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Basavaraj Bommai became Karnataka’s 30th Chief Minister of Karnataka on July 28. He went from being Home Minister in the Cabinet of B.S. Yediyurappa to displacing him as the Chief Minister in a matter of 48 hours.Several reasons have been trotted out as to why BJP felt the need to replace Yediyurappa – his age, the fact that dissidence against him was on the rise within the party, and that corruption allegations had made him vulnerable. But while all these may have played a role they do not, in themselves, provide a convincing explanation as to why Yediyurappa’s departure was in the party’s best interests.So, what explains the departure of the BJP’s tallest leader in the State in the middle of his term as Chief Minister? What are the implications of the choice of Basavaraj Bommai as Yediyurappa’s successor? And will Yediyurappa fade away into retirement or continue to play a role in active politics?Guest: K.V. Aditya BharadwajHost G. Sampath Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On Wednesday, July 28, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited India and held key meetings with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, NSA Ajit Doval, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as well as representatives of civil society organisations. In this episode, we look at the main takeaways of the visit and ask where India U.S. relations are headed as they deal with shared concerns on Afghanistan and China among other issues. We also ask how the Biden administration's strong emphasis on promoting democratic values abroad figured during the visit, and how New Delhi views its approach to democracy and the contrast from the previous Trump era.Guest: Suhasini Haidar, Diplomatic Affairs Editor, The HinduHost: Ananth Krishnan, China correspondent, The HinduRead more: https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/antony-blinken-holds-talks-with-nsa-ajit-doval-meets-civil-society-representatives/article35577671.ecehttps://www.thehindu.com/news/national/indian-democracy-is-powered-by-its-freethinking-citizens-blinken/article35583397.ece Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There has been considerable debate over the Trafficking in Persons (Prevention, Care and Rehabilitation) Bill, 2021, which is likely to be introduced in the ongoing monsoon session of the Parliament.The objective of the Bill is “to prevent and counter trafficking in persons, especially women and children, to provide for care, protection, and rehabilitation to the victims, while respecting their rights, and creating a supportive legal, economic and social environment for them, the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development has said. The National Investigation Agency, a counter-terrorism agency, has been made the nodal investigative agency for trafficking crimes. The Bill also states that the consent of the victim could be immaterial, leading to concerns that it would criminalise. Other concerns raised include draconian penal provisions, including death for some offences, and a heavy-handed approach that does not adequately address the root cause of trafficking -- poverty.Guest: Kaushik Gupta, an advocate practicing in Kolkata who heads a team of lawyers from West Bengal and Maharashtra, at the anti-trafficking collective Tafteesh.Host: Zubeda Hamid Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we are examining the rise of what's being called China's wolf warrior Diplomacy, referring to an increasingly assertive brand of fiery diplomacy from many of Beijing's diplomats and foreign envoys. What exactly is wolf warrior diplomacy? Is this new diplomacy a change in merely style, or also a change in substance? What does history tell us about how domestic political trends in China shape Beijing's external behaviour? What do these changes mean for countries like India and their relations with China?Guest: Peter Martin, journalist and author of China's Civilian Army: The Making of Wolf Warrior Diplomacy.Host: Ananth Krishnan, China Correspondent, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With the Tokyo Olympics finally kicking off this week, one year late, there is both excitement as well as uncertainty around the event. Tokyo is still under a COVID emergency, and there are many who worry that the Olympics shouldn’t become a public health catastrophe. In Japan itself, public opinion is sharply divided. In fact, one of the biggest Olympic sponsors, Toyota, has said that they won’t be running TV ads in Japan – which is one indicator of the public mood about the Games.But despite the misgivings around the pandemic, the show is set to go on, and in India, there is already plenty of buzz about medal prospects. We try and get a sense of what’s in store in the coming weeks in Japan, both within the sporting arena and beyond.Guest: Rakesh Rao, Deputy Editor, Sports, The HinduHost: G. Sampath, Social Affairs Editor, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices