

The Times Of India Podcast
Times Of India
The Times of India podcast expands storytelling and reportage from India’s largest newsroom. We put the spotlight on ideas, people and stories that matter from Monday to Friday. To read views and analysis, please subscribe to TOI+ at https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/toi-plus
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jul 19, 2025 • 51min
How much safer is flying in India after AI-171?
Amit Singh, co-founder of Safety Matters Foundation with over 35 years in aviation, dives deep into the aftermath of the Air India crash report. He critiques the report's transparency issues and the biases that cloud pilot accountability. With a focus on aviation safety, he discusses the crucial role of auxiliary power units and the pressing concern of pilot fatigue. Singh emphasizes the need for systemic reforms in India’s aviation culture to enhance safety and rebuild public trust.

Jul 9, 2025 • 37min
Is the revision of electoral rolls in Bihar too intensive?
Jagdeep Chhokar, co-founder of the Association for Democratic Reforms, shares insights on the contentious Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in Bihar. He discusses the multiple legal challenges and the burdens placed on marginalized voters. The conversation highlights the struggles of migrant laborers in maintaining their voting rights and critiques the Election Commission’s handling of the process. Chhokar emphasizes the need for transparency and accountability to restore trust in the electoral system.

Jun 1, 2025 • 42min
Top Maoist leader killed, will India meet its 2026 'deadline'?
Author and security analyst Sudeep Chakravarti - a long-time observer of the Maoist rebellion - explains what the Indian state really needs to do to end Maoism completely.

May 23, 2025 • 29min
When caste data is there but isn't released
Even as the central government plans to conduct a caste census across the country, Karnataka has data on the socio-economic data of backward castes in the states for nearly a decade that it hasn't released fully. Political analyst and author Sugata Srinivasaraju explains the partial release of data and why the state may have inspired caste-based reservations in India in the past, it hasn't done very well with the current survey's data.

May 14, 2025 • 22min
Why India and Pakistan can claim victory after Operation Sindoor
Strategic affairs analyst Manoj Joshi decodes the ceasefire between India and Pakistan, how much both sides gained and lost with Operation Sindoor, the role the US played, China's role in the conflict and what it means for the future of ties between the two nations.

May 8, 2025 • 22min
What will decide how high India-Pakistan tensions go after Operation Sindoor
Commodore (retd) C Uday Bhaskar, director of think-tank Society for Policy Studies, talks about the significance of Operation Sindoor, what will decide how high tensions go between India and Pakistan and which country will decide if Pakistan escalates things.

Jan 20, 2025 • 40min
Climate movement's mistake, Donald Trump's 2009 reality and Indians writing from World War 1
A conversation with Amitav Ghosh, after the release of his latest book Wild Fictions, in which he tells us about the turning point for him as a writer and more

Dec 4, 2024 • 26min
What a Maha win means for BJP in the state and country
Suhas Palshikar, co-director of electoral think-tank Lokniti and an eminent political scientist, explains what this Maharashtra electoral verdict means for the future of opposition parties and why the BJP would want to get rid of its allies in the state.

Nov 1, 2024 • 32min
Ideas before their time
Eminent historian and author Ramchandra Guha talks about his latest book 'Speaking with Nature' about individuals who could be called India's first environmentalists, documenting noble failures, and whether environmentalists are destined to be ignored.

Oct 25, 2024 • 35min
Why this Maharashtra election won't end political chaos in the state
First, Sanjay Kumar from Lokniti-CSDS talks with Alka Dhupkar about what a Lokniti-MIT SOG survey says about political parties' prospects in the upcoming election.
Then, co-director of Lokniti and eminent political scientist Suhas Palshikar explains why this election won't sort out the political chaos in the state. He also explains why this election will be a very high-stakes one for two leaders.