

All Things Policy
Takshashila Institution
Ever wondered how automation will change the world? Maybe you puzzle over what India could do to ease traffic congestion, or how China's aircraft carriers will transform Indian Ocean geopolitics? All Things Policy, a daily podcast brought to you by the Takshashila Institution, brings you all the answers. Every weekday, our researchers break down complex economic and geopolitical ideas through the lens of current events. For everyone from the busy executive to the curious student, All Things Policy is all you'll need to understand the world (and appreciate your breakfast) better.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Oct 14, 2024 • 26min
Asian NATO: India's stance?
Join Yusuf Unjhawala and Arindam Goswami in this episode of All Things Policy, where they talk about the new Japanese Prime Minister's rather provocative proposal to form an Asian NATO that includes India, and what should be India's response to this proposal.
Yusuf has also recently written an op-ed on this which you can read here: https://theprint.in/opinion/india-should-steer-clear-of-an-asian-nato-its-strategic-flexibility-is-at-stake/2292874/
All Things Policy is a daily podcast on public policy brought to you by the Takshashila Institution, Bengaluru.
Find out more on our research and other work here: https://takshashila.org.in/
Check out our public policy courses here: https://school.takshashila.org.in

Oct 10, 2024 • 41min
Long-term lessons from global tech outage
In July 2024, what is being called the biggest global tech outage was caused not by a malicious actor but a cybersecurity company. A mere 40 KB faulty update pushed by CrowdStrike caused millions of devices running Windows operating system to crash. As the dust settles down, it becomes only timely to discuss the long-term lessons from the tech outage. In this episode of All Things Policy, Lokendra engages in a conversation with Dr Kailash Nadh (CTO of Zerodha) to distill the key lessons. They also discuss Kailash’s ideas on software as a discipline and his thoughts on open source software. Kailash's decades of experience as a software tinkerer combined with his passion for ideating and analysing long-term trends brings fresh insights to this discussion on tech outage.
All Things Policy is a daily podcast on public policy brought to you by the Takshashila Institution, Bengaluru.
Find out more on our research and other work here: https://takshashila.org.in/
Check out our public policy courses here: https://school.takshashila.org.in

Oct 9, 2024 • 53min
Life and times of Syeda X
Neha Dixit's The Many lives of Syeda X weaves a compelling tale around the intersectionality of poverty, gender and religion. In this episode, Miheer and Suman were in a free wheeling conversation with Neha to talk about this and a whole host of other topics around economics, regulation and its effects and more.
All Things Policy is a daily podcast on public policy brought to you by the Takshashila Institution, Bengaluru.
Find out more on our research and other work here: https://takshashila.org.in/
Check out our public policy courses here: https://school.takshashila.org.in

Oct 8, 2024 • 44min
Navigating Bengaluru’s Water Challenges
What are the major sources of water for Bengaluru? Why did the city face a water crisis earlier this year? What steps can be taken to prevent similar situations in the future? In this episode, Sarthak Pradhan speaks with urban hydrologist Shashank Palur to understand Bengaluru's water challenges.
How Water Flows Through Bengaluru: Urban Water Balance Report- https://welllabs.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/WELL-Labs_Bengaluru-Urban-Water-Balance-Report.pdf
All Things Policy is a daily podcast on public policy brought to you by the Takshashila Institution, Bengaluru.
Find out more on our research and other work here: https://takshashila.org.in/
Check out our public policy courses here: https://school.takshashila.org.in

Oct 7, 2024 • 38min
Decoding India’s unemployment crisis
In this episode of All Things Policy, Adya Madhavan speaks to entrepreneur and investor Mohit Satyanand. As a long-time investor. Mohit speaks about the entrepreneurial spirit and the start-up ecosystem. He also sheds light on the complexities of unemployment in India and the many layers of the problem. The conversation highlights the many factors that contribute to high unemployment rates through an analysis of both historical context as well as present-day issues.
All Things Policy is a daily podcast on public policy brought to you by the Takshashila Institution, Bengaluru.
Find out more on our research and other work here: https://takshashila.org.in/
Check out our public policy courses here: https://school.takshashila.org.in

Oct 4, 2024 • 31min
Will synthetic biology produce the next pandemic?
In this episode, Aditya and Shambhavi discuss the new developments in biotechnology how they can help create bioweapons and the likelihood of their use.
All Things Policy is a daily podcast on public policy brought to you by the Takshashila Institution, Bengaluru.
Find out more on our research and other work here: https://takshashila.org.in/
Check out our public policy courses here: https://school.takshashila.org.in

Oct 3, 2024 • 48min
Looking Beyond the AI Hype
The past two years have given us a glimpse of what is possible with artificial intelligence. Some say that AI will have a transformative impact to rival or even exceed that of past industrial revolutions. Rijesh Panicker and Bharath Reddy speak with Mallory Knodel, executive director of the Social Web Foundation, looking beyond the AI hype to discuss the impact of AI on society.
All Things Policy is a daily podcast on public policy brought to you by the Takshashila Institution, Bengaluru.
Find out more on our research and other work here: https://takshashila.org.in/
Check out our public policy courses here: https://school.takshashila.org.in

Oct 1, 2024 • 31min
Expanding Horizons: Quad and India-Australia dynamics
In this episode, Vanshika Saraf discusses the outcomes of the recent Quad Leaders' Summit with Professor Pradeep Taneja from the University of Melbourne. The conversation highlights the Quad's expanding agenda, a hot-mic incident involving US President Joe Biden and undoubtedly, the role of China in the Indo-Pacific. They also discuss the dynamics of the India-Australia relationship within the framework of the Quad, especially in areas of regional security and economic cooperation.
All Things Policy is a daily podcast on public policy brought to you by the Takshashila Institution, Bengaluru.
Find out more on our research and other work here: https://takshashila.org.in/
Check out our public policy courses here: https://school.takshashila.org.in

Sep 30, 2024 • 37min
Food: The Universal Language We All Understand
Lakshmi Shashidhar and Sowmya Prabhakar join Smita Murthy in an engaging conversation about food—an essential part of everyone's life. Together, they explore the intricate role that society, markets, and government play in shaping the food ecosystem. The discussion delves deeper into how the food supply chain is regulated by global and national standards, particularly CODEX and FSSAI, highlighting their impact on food safety and quality.
All Things Policy is a daily podcast on public policy brought to you by the Takshashila Institution, Bengaluru.
Find out more on our research and other work here: https://takshashila.org.in/
Check out our public policy courses here: https://school.takshashila.org.in

Sep 27, 2024 • 28min
The Fall of Homo Economicus?
The entire edifice of economics is predicated on the assumption that human beings are rational creatures, who are capable of maximising their self-interest. This idea of homo-economicus has been challenged by the newer branches of economics, namely behavioural economics. Ashish Kulkarni joins Anupam Manur in discussing whether the idea of homo-economicus can still withstand the scrutiny of our modern understanding of human behaviour and what this implies for economics and public policy.
All Things Policy is a daily podcast on public policy brought to you by the Takshashila Institution, Bengaluru.
Find out more on our research and other work here: https://takshashila.org.in/
Check out our public policy courses here: https://school.takshashila.org.in