

In Focus by The Hindu
The Hindu
A podcast from The Hindu that delves deep into current developments with subject experts, and brings in context, history, perspective and analysis.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Feb 24, 2021 • 17min
How China's media is covering the border crisis | The Hindu In Focus Podcast
On February 19, China said for the first time that it had lost four soldiers in the June 15, 2020 clash in the Galwan valley, breaking its silence eight months after the incident. The announcement has triggered an outpouring of national sentiment in China, coupled with a media blitz on the clash from the State-run media. In this episode, we analyse how China's official media is rewriting the narrative on the border crisis, the timing of the announcement after the beginning of the disengagement process and coming amid criticism among some within China on the terms of the agreement, and what China's broader strategic community is saying about the future of relations with India. Guest: Antara Ghosal Singh, Research Associate, Centre for Social and Economic Progress (CSEP), New Delhi, and formerly a Chinese language fellow at the National Central University, Taiwan Host: Ananth Krishnan, China Correspondent, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feb 23, 2021 • 31min
A Bad Bank for bad loans: Is it a good idea? | The Hindu In Focus Podcast
In her Budget speech this year, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman announced that the government will set up a ‘Bad Bank’ to better manage the ‘bad loans’ (non-performing assets) of public sector banks. The idea, apparently, is to transfer the NPAs of public sector banks to the books of this Bad Bank, which will function as a two-in-one institution – an asset reconstruction company and also an asset management company. It will focus solely on asset recovery, freeing up the banks to concentrate on lending. At least that’s the theory.But will it actually work in practice? Will the Bad Bank be effective in cleaning up the NPA mess? If cleaning up the books is the objective, how is a bad bank a better option than, say, the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code? We explore these questions and more in a discussion with Vivek Kaul, the author of the bestselling Easy Money trilogy. Vivek’s most recent book is Bad Money: Inside the NPA Mess and How it Threatens the Indian Banking System. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feb 21, 2021 • 23min
Must prioritise returning to Status Quo Ante: former Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran | The Hindu In Focus Podcast
India’s decision to agree to a “phased” withdrawal of troops rather than a package deal for a complete disengagement across the Line of Actual Control could become a cause for concern in the future said former National Security Advisory Board (NSAB) Chairperson and former Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran in this special interview for the In Focus Podcast with The Hindu's Diplomatic Affairs Editor Suhasini Haidar.Mr Saran says that setting up a buffer zone or “no man’s land” in the Finger area of North Pangong Tso lake, even if temporarily, means that the troops would not return to the “status quo ante” or positions prior to April 2020, Mr. Saran said that the future would depend on how “smoothly” the rest of the disengagement process that began last week will go.Hosted by Suhasini Haidar, National and Diplomatic Affairs Editor, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feb 20, 2021 • 32min
Top Trump administration official's advice to India on China, Quad | The Hindu In Focus Podcast
India mustn't reduce its interest in the Quad as the challenges from China will continue despite the disengagement at the Line of Actual Control, says Lisa Curtis, who served as the Deputy Assistant to former US President Donald Trump (2017-2021), in this special interview for the In Focus Podcast with The Hindu's Diplomatic Affairs Editor Suhasini Haidar.Ms Curtis was the key American official on South Asia in the US National Security Council through much of the LAC tensions in 2020. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feb 17, 2021 • 21min
Looking ahead to the IPL Auction 2021 | The Hindu In Focus Podcast
In this episode, we look ahead to the IPL Auction 2021 in Chennai on Thursday, February 18. Like the previous year, this is a mini auction, which the eight franchises would use to fine-tune their squads and fill gaps caused by players being released and retirements during the off season.On Thursday, a total of 292 players will be competing for just 61 available slots across the eight franchises. For the overseas players, a maximum of 22 slots are available.There is still some uncertainty whether the forthcoming IPL would be held in India in its usual slot of April-May, though in fewer venues, owing to the COVID pandemic. We discuss the auction dynamics keeping this in mind, analyse which teams are likely to be the busiest at the bidding table, uncapped players to watch out for, who could strike big, and more.Guest: Amol Karhadkar, Senior Sports Correspondent, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feb 16, 2021 • 28min
Has the LAC disengagement plan left India in a better or worse position on the China border? | The Hindu In Focus Podcast
In this episode, we discuss the disengagement plan between India and China and ask if it helps or hurts India's long-term security interests with regard to the Line of Actual Control (LAC). Does the plan mean a full restoration of peace and the status quo? Where does this leave the unresolved points of discord along the LAC? Why is one of those points, the Depsang plains, the most significant for India's security interests?Host: Ananth Krishnan, China correspondent, The HinduGuest: Sushant Singh, Senior Fellow, Centre For Policy Research, New Delhi Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feb 14, 2021 • 26min
The battle between Reliance and Amazon for the Future of Indian retail | The Hindu Podcast
In this episode we discuss the high profile legal tussle between the corporate giants Amazon and Reliance industries over the acquisition of the Future Group. This is a story that has seen a lot of developments in the courts. Most recently, Amazon has filed a special leave petition in the Supreme court, appealing against a recent Delhi High Court order that allowed Future Group to go ahead with a proposed deal to sell its retail, wholesale, logistics and warehousing assets to Reliance. The Future Group, one of India’s biggest retail companies with popular chains like Big Bazaar, is in deep debt and it contends that the deal with Reliance will help it pay its lenders. Amazon on the other hand has contended that it had a pre-existing agreement with Future Group for the sale of these assets and the deal with Reliance now is in violation of those terms. The larger context of this legal tussle is the fight for the future of India’s retail market and how the two corporate giants are seeking to shape it and take the upper hand. That’s the angle that we’ll discuss in this podcast.Guest: Thomas K Thomas, Mumbai bureau chief for The Hindu Business Line Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feb 12, 2021 • 18min
Making sense of India's and China's disengagement on the LAC | The Hindu In Focus Podcast
India and China on Thursday announced an agreement to disengage from Pangong Lake, which has been at the heart of the recent tensions along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). Speaking in Parliament, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said both sides will cease their forward deployments both on the north and south banks of the lake in a phased, coordinated, and verified manner, and return to their permanent bases. On Wednesday, China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) similarly announced an agreement “to start synchronised and organised disengagement”. Both have agreed to a temporary moratorium on patrolling in the disputed areas north and south of the lake and have already begun withdrawing armoured elements and tanks.In this episode, we examine the details behind this disengagement plan. What does this agreement mean for the recent tensions along the LAC? Where does this leave other points of discord that remain unresolved? What are the next steps, and where do India and China go from here?Guests: Dinakar Peri and Vijaita Singh, Correspondents for The Hindu Host: Ananth Krishnan Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feb 10, 2021 • 24min
Uttarakhand floods: an update on rescue operations and what caused the event | The Hindu In Focus Podcast
This episode is a quick update on the flash floods in Uttarakhand that happened on Sunday and it’s split into two parts. We’ll briefly give you an update on the rescue operations that are still underway and we’ll also go into a slightly longer discussion as we know more now about what caused these floods and how such events might be linked to climate change and the building of hydropower plants in the region.Guests: Jacob Koshy and Vijaita Singh Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feb 6, 2021 • 22min
Twitter, the IT Act, and the blocking saga explained | The Hindu In Focus Podcast
The Central government has issued a notice to Twitter after the microblogging platform reinstated several accounts that the government wanted blocked. Twitter which initially complied with the request and blocked accounts and tweets that mentioned 'farmer genocide', later reinstated the content, reportedly saying that it "constituted free speech and was newsworthy."The government's initial order on January 31 asked Twitter to block 257 URLs and one hashtag, claiming that they were spreading misinformation about the ongoing farmers protest and could lead to violence. The accounts that were blocked as a result included Caravan India, a news magazine. The order had cited Section 69A of the Information technology Act in calling for the content to be blocked. How exactly does the IT Act empower the government to order intermediaries such as social media platforms and Internet Service Providers to block content? And what are the consequences for platforms like Twitter if they fail to comply. To explain these we have with us today Apar Gupta, lawyer and executive director of the Internet Freedom FoundationHost: P.J. George, Deputy Internet Editor, The Hindu Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices