All Things Policy

Ep. 281: The Coronavirus Update

12 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Is the global Covid-19 outbreak a pandemic? What must India do to contain its fallout? Nitin Pai and Shambhavi Naik join Aditya Ramanathan to discuss ...

Ep. 280: VP Menon's Legacy

11 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

VP Menon rose from nothing to become a critical figure in both the transfer of power from the British and the integration of India's states. In this e...

Ep. 279: The Contest for Undersea Supremacy

10 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In the murky depths below Asia's oceans, competition is brewing between major powers as they seek to protect and expand their fleets of ballistic miss...

Ep. 278: Bertil Lintner on India-China Rivalry

09 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

From Wuhan to Chennai, both China and India have reiterated that they must not let differences turn into disputes.

Ep. 277: The Problem of Depressed Potatoes

06 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The humble potato emerged from the mountains of Peru to become a staple food around the world. Today, the potato suffers from inbreeding or 'depressio...

Ep. 276: Getting More Women in the Workforce

05 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

India continues to have too few women at work even in white-collar jobs. What can be done to increase their numbers? Anupam Manur asks Sowmya Nandan a...

Ep. 275: Sense and Censorship?

04 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The decision by the streaming service Hotstar to withhold the show Last Week Tonight has stirred controversy. In this episode, Manoj Kewalramani, Prat...

Ep. 274 What Next in Afghanistan?

03 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

America's deal with the Taliban is being celebrated by some as a step towards peace. Are they right? Anand Arni and Pranay Kotasthane join Aditya Rama...

Ep. 273: Indian Troops in Afghanistan?

02 Mar 2020

Contributed by Lukas

With the U.S. looking for a quick exit from Afghanistan, should India consider putting boots on the ground? Pranay Kotasthane is joined by Manoj Kewal...

Ep. 272 China's Expeditionary Forces

28 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Slowly but surely, China is developing expeditionary capabilities that will allow it to project power in the overseas territory. What's driving it to ...

Ep. 271: Fighting the Coronavirus Pt 4

27 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

While the number of new coronavirus cases are falling in China, Xi says the situation remains “grim and complex.” What’s worse, there are new ho...

Ep. 270: The Perils of Eugenics

26 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

As gene-editing technology advances, the social contexts within which it will unfold need to be understood and integrated into policy planning. Shambh...

Ep. 269: A European Nuclear Force?

25 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

French President Emmanuel Macron wants European Union countries to discuss the possibility of giving France's nuclear forces a broader role in Europea...

Ep. 268: Is a Multipolar World Good for India?

24 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Even as India receives US President Donald Trump with fanfare it remains committed to a multipolar world order. But is such an order really conducive ...

Ep. 267: Fighting the Coronavirus Pt 3

21 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A new speech by Xi Jinping shows that the Chinese leadership was aware of the outbreak well before strict measures were taken. Is this an admission of...

Ep. 266: Trump Comes to India

20 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

US President Donald Trump is set to land in Ahmedabad on February 24 on his first trip to India. But will his visit amount to anything more than hype?...

Ep. 265: India's Fiscal Future

19 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The 15th Finance Commission has come out with a slew of recommendations. Which states stand to gain and which ones stand to lose? Anupam Manur and Pra...

Ep. 264: Reading the Economist

18 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In this week’s Reading the Economist, Aditya Ramanathan is joined by Anirudh Kanisetti and Suyash Desai to discuss the failure of UN peacemaking, ar...

Ep. 263: Competition and Reassurance in the Indo-Pacific

17 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Is China now playing nice after years of assertiveness? Does India's policy of "evasive balancing" make any sense? Manoj Kewalramani and Suyash Desai ...

Ep. 262: Fighting the Coronavirus Pt 2

14 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

As the coronavirus continues to take a lethal toll across the world, Manoj Kewalramani and Shambhavi Naik take stock of recent developments and try to...

Ep. 261: Caste Away

13 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

After hundreds of years of caste endogamy, one would think that Indian society would be far more open to intercaste marriages than it actually is. Sha...

Ep. 260: Dissing Misinformation

12 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Facebook recently stated that a doctored video of U.S. congresswoman Nancy Pelosi did not violate community guidelines. So what constitutes fake news?...

Ep. 259: Reading the Economist

11 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In this week’s Reading the Economist, Aditya Ramanathan, Anirudh Kanisetti, and Sarthak Pradhan explore everything from the consequences of the Atla...

Ep. 258: India versus the Internet

10 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Nearly six months after the internet shutdown in J&K, the Union government's decision to partially lift the shutdown has been riddled with controversy...

Epi 257: Fighting the Coronavirus

07 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The coronavirus continues to spread across China and beyond. The WHO has declared a global health emergency, and governments across the world are rush...

Ep 256: The Challenge of Theatre Commands

06 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

India's Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat announced that the armed forces would transition to theatre commands in the next three years. Why d...

Ep. 255: Does the Budget Matter

05 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Union Budgets are an annual ritual marked by pageantry and breathless commentary. But how important are they? In this episode, Anupam Manur and Pranay...

Ep. 254: The Dilemmas of Nuclear Security

04 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

How big a threat is a nuclear terrorism? How did the AQ Khan network really work? And is arms control dead? In this special episode, Matthew Bunn, Pro...

Ep. 253: China's AI Ambitions and Nuclear Weapons

03 Feb 2020

Contributed by Lukas

China's has an ambitious plan to use artificial intelligence to transform its armed forces. But how would such changes affect nuclear stability? Lora ...

Ep 252: Religion and Money In Medieval Gujarat

31 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Medieval India is far more complicated than we give it credit for - it’s full of wily merchants, pragmatic rulers, and complex interactions. Anirudh...

Ep 251: The Final Frontier

30 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Takshashila's policy proposal, 'The New Space Policy 2020' proposes a clear governance structure that paves the way for the growth of the nascent priv...

Ep. 250: The Dark Side Of The Kashmir Whitelist

29 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Tech researchers Rohini Lakshané and Prateek Waghre join Anirudh Kanisetti to discuss the whitelist of 301 sites that have been made accessible in Ja...

Ep. 249: The Rise and Fall of West Asia

28 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

West Asia is notorious today for its geopolitical instability - but has that always been the case? What do the premodern states of the region tell us ...

Ep. 248: The Virus From Wuhan

27 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The Wuhan virus is already spreading across the world and taking a deadly toll. But what is the virus anyway and how does it spread? In this episode, ...

Ep. 247: Dispatches From China

24 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Indian media coverage of China often tends to be dominated by issues like national security and border frictions. There’s little original reportage ...

Ep. 246: The Stubborn Challenge of PSU Reform

23 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

What kind of products should a state-run PSU produce? Do PSUs make a profit? In this episode, Anupam Manur, Pranay Kotasthane and Sarthak Pradhan talk...

Ep. 245: Protection from Data Protection

22 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

What power does the government have over your data? How should India approach global data sharing agreements? With the Joint Parliamentary Committee d...

Ep. 244: Ten Risks to Global Health

21 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Though people on average live longer today, there remain serious threats to global health. But do we know what these are? In this episode Anirudh Kani...

Ep. 243: Going Soft on Hard Balancing

20 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

With the rise of China and the slow decline of the international system, how should countries think about the balance of power? In this special episod...

Ep. 242: The State of India's Media

17 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

What is the role of news media in India today and how do we assess its health? In this episode, Manoj Kewalramani and Suyash Desai sit down with veter...

Ep. 241: The Meaning of Taiwan’s Elections

16 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen won a second four-year term in an historic election on January 11. Suyash Desai and Manoj Kewalramani join Anirudh K...

Ep. 240: Shooting the Messenger

15 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Should the government be allowed to know whom you’re texting? Should it be able to pressure social media companies to silence voices? With the IT Ac...

Ep. 239: Reading Foreign Policy Magazine: From Flight Shaming to Volunteer Journalism

14 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Do countries really need a grand strategy? Can volunteers transform journalism? And what's up with the curious phenomenon of 'flight shaming'? In this...

Ep. 238: Behaving Badly in the South China Sea

13 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A high profile confrontation at sea between China and Indonesia comes even as countries in the region try to come up with a common code of conduct. Ma...

Ep. 237: Favourite Books from 2019

10 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

What books did people at Takshashila read in 2019? What is the significance of these books? In this episode, Manoj Kewalramani, Nitin Pai and Rohan Se...

Ep. 236: The Year that Changed the World

09 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A strange revolution, a catastrophic invasion, a dramatic terrorist attack, and an economic transformation. Few years in modern history have been as c...

Ep. 235: The Death of Soleimani - The US, Iran, and West Asia

08 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The killing of Qassem Soleimani, the head of Iran’s elite Quds expeditionary force, is a pivotal moment in the history of modern West Asia. Aditya R...

Ep. 234: Reading the Economist: On China, Tech and Forest Fires

07 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Anirudh Kanisetti and Utkarsh Narain join Aditya Ramanathan to discuss the most interesting stories of the week: China and the US are undergoing a div...

Ep. 233: SSF - China’s War-Winning Tool

06 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Four years after its inception, China's Strategic Support Force (SSF), which is responsible for cyber, space and electronic warfare, has become centra...

Ep. 232: The World of Public Policy

03 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

How does someone who wants to influence policy actually do so outside of government? How does a policy career help transform the country, and for that...

Ep. 231: The Many Colours of Krishna Menon - A Conversation with Jairam Ramesh

02 Jan 2020

Contributed by Lukas

V. K. Krishna Menon is probably India's most famous defence minister - especially for his role in the 1962 Sino-Indian War. But it turns out there's a...

Ep. 230: 2019 in Review: The Indian Economy

25 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

How has the Indian economy fared in 2019? From agricultural output to the GDP calculations, Apurva Kumar, Pranay Kotasthane, and Anupam Manur try to f...

Ep. 229: 2019 in Review: India and the World

24 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

How did India’s foreign policy hold up in 2019? From the ASAT test to Howdy Modi, Manoj Kewalramani, Pranay Kotasthane, Sankalp Gurjar and Suyash De...

Ep. 228: 2019 in Review: Tech in India

23 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

What did 2019 mean for the Indian tech space? Rohan Seth talks to Utkarsh Narain and Prateek Waghre about how the debate has progressed in policy circ...

Ep. 227: Cyber Insecurity: What should India do in cyberspace?

20 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

The Union government is asking for inputs on a cybersecurity strategy for a new India. Takshashila’s Tech Team, Prateek Waghre, Utkarsh Narain, and ...

Ep. 226: Beware, Warehouses!: Amazon's Fulfillment Centres and Local Economies

19 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

What happens when Amazon enters or leaves an Indian city? In this episode, Manoj Kewalramani talks to Anupam Manur and Rohan Seth about how Amazon's n...

Ep. 225: Does the Government Want Your Data?

18 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

What does the Personal Data Protection Bill say about linking Aadhar to social media? What exactly will the proposed Data Protection Authority even do...

Ep. 224: Reading the Economist: Institutional Crises and Captures

17 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

What role do institutions of the state play in shaping government policy, and how do these institutions affect policy when in peril? In this edition o...

Ep. 223: China: the Middle-Aged Kingdom

16 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

China’s fertility rate is down to just 1.6. The workforce is shrinking while the population of the elderly grows. At the same time, the now abandone...

Ep. 221: Is Cyberwarfare Coming?

12 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

The term “cyber warfare” has come into vogue in recent times, but nobody seems to know what it actually is. In this episode, Anirudh Kanisetti sit...

Ep. 220: Is NATO Going to Collapse?: The 70th Anniversary Episode

11 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

After last week's annual summit, cracks seem to be appearing in NATO over Russia, Turkey, and even the USA. Is this anti-Soviet alliance finally on it...

Ep. 219: Reading the Economist: The Rise and Fall of Economies

10 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In this week's Reading the Economist, Apurva Kumar and Suyash Desai join Anirudh Kanisetti to discuss global inequality and how bad policies are holdi...

Ep. 218: What can India do about China?

09 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Anirudh Kanisetti and Suyash Desai join Manoj Kewalramani to further unpack our report to India's Parliament on China's rise. This is part 2 of 2, exp...

Ep. 217: Why is China Powerful?

06 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Takshashila researchers Manoj Kewalramani, Anirudh Kanisetti and Shibani Mehta unpack our latest research: a report to India's Parliament about China'...

Ep. 216: The Tragedy of the Trans Bill

05 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

The Transgender Persons Bill that has been passed by Parliament has been widely decried by activists, but met with societal and political indifference...

Ep. 215: Talking Nukes with Vipin Narang

04 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Are new developments eroding the credibility of India’s no first use policy? Is North Korea going to spark a crisis in the new year? In this episode...

Ep. 214: Extinguishing the Crop Burning Problem

03 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Annual stubble burning in Punjab and Haryana is a major cause of pollution in North India and a serious public health crisis. While the problem is wel...

Ep. 213: The Primacy of Bengaluru?

02 Dec 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Do hi-tech industries create regionally unbalanced development? If so, is it a problem governments can address? In this episode, Pranay Kotasthane and...

Ep. 212: Russia’s Military Renaissance

29 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

The post-Soviet military of Russia has evolved into a fighting force for the 21st century. How has Russia achieved this and how do the Russians spend ...

Ep. 211: Algorithms at War

28 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

What do dolphins, artificial intelligence, and brain-machine interfaces have to tell us about the future of war? Manoj Kewalramani, Anirudh Kanisetti,...

Ep. 210: China’s Undersea Adventures

27 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

How does China plan to use its expanding submarine fleet? And what does it mean for India? Aditya Ramanathan, Pranav RS and Suyash Desai dive into the...

Ep. 209: Reading The Economist: From East Asian Politics to Technology Prejudices

26 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

The US-South Korea alliance is on shaky ground. China is looking to expand its nuclear arsenal. The parallels between Sri Lankan and Indian politics. ...

Ep. 208: Auditing India’s Foreign Policy

25 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar’s Ramnath Goenka Lecture last week was hailed by some as a landmark speech. But did it really lay out a new ...

Ep. 207: New Thinking on Old Nukes

22 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Since the first mushroom cloud erupted over Hiroshima, there’s been a strong belief that nukes have fundamentally changed international politics. Bu...

Ep. 206: China’s Awful Secret

21 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

A New York Times report based on leaked internal Chinese documents sheds fresh light on the unprecedented crackdown on ethnic minorities in Xinjiang. ...

Ep. 205: Toot or Dare

20 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Why have Indian Twitter users started moving to Mastodon? What is the so-called Fediverse, and will it replace Twitter? Utkarsh Narain, Anirudh Kanise...

Ep. 204: Reading the Economist: From Warships to Netflix

19 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

An unwieldy coalition is set to rule Spain but will it last? What good are aircraft carriers in today’s world? How are online platforms like Netflix...

Ep. 203: India’s Genome Project

18 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

The IndiGen project will map genes across India's ethnic groups to discover clinically actionable genetic information. Shambhavi Naik, Pranay Kotastha...

Ep. 202: Forever Young

15 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

New technologies are pushing the boundaries of how long humans beings can lead healthy lives. In this episode, Manoj Kewalramani, Shambhavi Naik, and ...

Ep. 201: The Real Nehru

14 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Was Jawaharlal Nehru a starry-eyed foreign policy optimist? Did he have a more realist strategy than we like to think? And how did his actions shape t...

Ep. 200: Can We Stop A Climate Disaster?

13 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

How will climate change transform societies and economies? What solutions do we have ready right now? Australian climate change scholar Prof Tim Flann...

Ep. 199: The Looming Shadow of Nuclear Weapons

12 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Why are nuclear arms control agreement between the US and Russia falling apart or under pressure? What new dangers do they pose? And what can be done ...

Ep. 198: The Politics of Afghanistan: The Elections

11 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

How is the post-election politics shaping up in Afghanistan? What is the prospect of peace after the Presidential elections in September? Pranay Kotas...

Ep. 197: The Counterinsurgency Puzzle and the Utilities of Force

08 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

How should great powers support local governments fighting insurgencies? And is the Indian Army’s Cold Start doctrine still relevant? In this episod...

Ep. 196: Assuring Retaliation: Why India's Nuclear No-First-Use Doctrine Makes Sense

07 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

On this episode, Dr Manpreet Sethi, distinguished fellow at the Centre for Air Power Studies, tells Aditya Ramanathan and Pranav RS why nuclear no-fir...

Ep. 195: Keepin’ it Real: Realism in Indian Foreign Policy

06 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

What is realism in international relations? Where are the Indian realists? And what do they think of the India-China relationship? Prof. Rajesh Rajago...

Ep. 194: China and the Bomb

05 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

China’s nuclear arsenal has evolved and expanded since its first nuclear test in 1964. In this episode, Sankalp Gurjar talks to Pranav RS and Suyash...

Ep. 193: Predictably Indian

04 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Standard economic wisdom tells you people are self-interested, rational actors. But behavioural science says otherwise. How can we better understand t...

Ep. 192: India's Military Options Against China

01 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

A new paper has made some interesting recommendations for how India's armed forces can manage the challenge from China. But are they feasible? General...

Ep. 191: Digital Africa

31 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In the last two decades, Africa has seen extraordinary leaps in access to mobile phones, sparking an IT revolution across the continent. Andre-Michel ...

Ep. 190: Cameras and Control

30 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

As CCTVs become more ubiquitous in Indian cities and facial recognition algorithms become more advanced, we may be moving towards a world where techno...

Ep. 189: India’s Afghan Conundrum

25 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

With an election in limbo and uncertain peace talks, Afghanistan’s long war could pack some surprises for India. In this special episode, Nitin Pai ...

Ep. 188: Xi, Modi and the Prospects for India-China Relations

24 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

The informal summit in Mamallapuram between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping may have generated photo ops, but does it provide a ...

Ep. 187: The Moral Dilemmas of IVF

23 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

In the recent past, In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) or assisted reproductive technologies has enabled women of older age to bear children. What are the e...

Ep. 186: Reading the Economist: From Hungarian Politics to Japanese Royals

22 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Viktor Orbán’s setback in Budapest; Japan’s Naruhito faces royal restrictions; psychedelics could treat depression; and China’s uncomfortable t...

Ep. 185: War on the Roof of the World

21 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

The 1962 war with China scarred India and had a lasting impact on its politics. But why did the war break out? How did the world react? And are there ...

Ep. 184: The Missiles of October: The Lessons of the Cuban Missile Crisis

18 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

This week, 57 years ago a crisis broke out in the Caribbean that brought the world closest its ever been to all-out nuclear war. In this episode, Shib...

Ep. 183: Military Revolutions and the Future of War

17 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

How do countries think about revolutionary changes in the character of war? In this episode, Manoj Kewalramani, Pranav RS, and Aditya Ramanathan debat...

Ep. 182: The Military Pensions Dilemma: Investing in Human Capital

16 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Nearly 25% of India’s defence expenditure for this year will be used to service the pension bill. Is this sustainable? And how does it impact modern...

Ep. 181: Reading the Economist: Smart Cars, Inflation, and Russia

15 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Will China have autonomous cars before the West? Is inflation no longer a worry for emerging markets? And why are the EU and Russia patching up now? M...