South Asia Chat

Episode 34: COVID-19 Special Series with the Bangladesh High Commissioner to Singapore, Md Mustafizur Rahman

In this episode, we speak to Md Mustafizur Rahman, the Bangladesh High Commissioner to Singapore, on the impact of COVID-19 on the Bangladeshi community here, and what steps are being taken to help them. During the initial period of the outbreak, only five Bangladeshi migrant workers were infected; then came the sudden outburst in the middle of March, which has continued till date. Mr Rahman explains that the priority of the High Commission is to ensure timely treatment of infected workers, their recovery, and return to a normal life. Since, the nature of the disease and restrictions on accessing the dormitories, does not allow the High Commission to directly help these workers, they have been working with Singapore government agencies.

 He commends the Singapore government’s handling of the situation within dormitories and said that even small needs like providing proper interpreters and enuring these workers get Bangladeshi food are being looked into, especially since this is the month of Ramadan.

Episode 33: Oil’s Not Well – How the Drastic Fall in Prices will Impact South Asia

Demand for the world’s most important commodity, oil, has crumbled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In the fourth week of April this year, the US oil prices plunged to below zero for first time in history. The fundamentals of the oil industry are not determined merely by demand and supply. Geopolitics, the politics of exchange rates and paper trading also impact its performance. This could be, by far, the greatest crisis the oil industry has ever faced impacting upstream and downstream activities. It is estimated that more than 400 industry-related companies worldwide will not be able to bear the production cost at US$20 per barrel.

This conversation between Dr S Narayan (Visiting Senior Research Fellow, ISAS) and Mr Vikram Mehta (Executive Chairman of Brookings India), looks at the impact and challenges that the dive in crude oil price will have on South Asia’s oil and energy sector, as well as the economic impact (consumption and net exports) on India. For India, there is also an urgent need to build linkages and pipelines between oil and gas producers in other parts of the region such as Bangladesh.

Episode 32: COVID-19 Special Series with the Indian High Commissioner HE Jawed Ashraf

The number of COVID-19 cases has risen drastically in Singapore affecting about 4,800 Indian nationals. Over 90 per cent of them are foreign workers living in dormitories across the island. To get some insights on the measures taken by both the Indian High Commission in Singapore and the Singapore government to support them, we spoke to His Excellency Jawed Ashraf, High Commissioner of India to Singapore. In this episode, HE Jawed Ashraf gave us details of what was being done to not just help Covid-affected individuals but also Indian nationals stranded here, Singapore’s contribution to India's fight against the Coronavirus and how the pandemic will impact Singapore-India bilateral relations.

Episode 1: The Bookshelf - British India, White Australia: In Search of a Social History

In the first episode of ‘The Bookshelf’, a new ISAS initiative dedicated to scholarly works on South Asia, we speak with Kama Maclean, Professor of History at the University of New South Wales in Sydney on British India, White Australia, which unearths the complicated colonial dynamics between India and Australia and their relationship before India’s independence in 1947.

In her talk, Professor Maclean discusses the Immigration Restriction Act, which earned the country the name ‘White Australia’ for its prevention of non-white migrants from settling there—often by linguistic means! She touches on racism under the Empire; the positive legacy left by Indian hawker settlers; and social bonds transcending the ‘commonwealth’ commonalities most often evoked in celebrations of the countries’ shared histories. Through a careful archival reading, Kama Maclean’s book paves the way for a nuanced, social history of old colonial ties.

Episode 31: Stuck in a Limbo - Migrant Workers amid India’s Lockdown

On 25th March 2020 the Indian Prime Minister declared a nationwide lockdown to stop the spread of Covid-19. Four hours after the Prime Minister’s announcements, all forms of transportation stopped. Millions of internal migrant workers found themselves without a job as most economic activities came to a halt and left with little choice but to walk hundreds or thousands of kilometres back to their home villages, only to find inter-state borders close. In this conversation with Dr Indrajit Roy (University of York), we look at the scale of the phenomenon, what kind of assistance are migrants receiving and what implications this massive internal migration will have on India’s political economy.

Episode 30: Sri Lankan Response to the COVID-19 Crisis - A Ground Report

Sri Lanka is among the 209 countries fighting the coronavirus. Since it reported its first case  in late January, the country has so far identified close to 200 patients. Despite being a small economy, it has managed the pandemic quite admirably. The country has not seen an exponential growth in the number of patients, which is currently at manageable levels. What measures did the Sri Lankan government take in order to contain and manage the spread of the virus? How effective have the measures been so far? In this episode, Admiral Professor Jayanath Colombage shares his insights and observations on Sri Lanka’s battle against COVID-19. Professor Colombage is the former chief of the Sri Lanka navy. Since his retirement, he is an active academic. Currently, he serves as the Additional Secretary to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. He is also the Director of the Institute of National Security Studies of Sri Lanka.

Episode 29: Intra-Afghan Talks - Obstacles and Prospects

The intra-Afghan dialogue is off to a rocky start. In recent developments, Kabul and the Taliban debated a prisoner swap, the Taliban rejected the Kabul government’s negotiation team, and attacks on Afghan forces continue amidst a draw-down of American  troops. President Ashraf Ghani and Chief Executive Officer Abdulla Abdulla also both claimed the presidency after contentious elections, splintering consensus further.

In this episode, we speak with Dr Iftekhar Chowdhury, Principal Research Fellow, ISAS, and former Foreign Minister of Bangladesh, to understand what the Taliban wants now that the crown appears within reach. He argues that a Taliban in power may have good working relations with the international community, and that the world should engage the Taliban to ensure that certain universal rights and values are respected.

Episode 28: Will COVID-19 Integrate SAARC?

In the fight against COVID-19, two notable developments took place in South Asia last week. The first was Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressing the nation for the first time on plans to tackle the outbreak. The second was the Modi-initiated teleconference with the heads of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation on confronting COVID-19 as a common threat. How successful will these initiatives and efforts be? In this episode, ISAS Director Professor C Raja Mohan shares his insights on India’s fight against COVID-19 and regional cooperation among the South Asian countries.

Episode 27: Jyotiraditya Scindia’s ‘Homecoming’ to the BJP

Jyotiraditya Scindia, a three-time Lok Sabha Member of Parliament and an important member of the Congress Party leadership, joined hands with the Bharatiya Janata Party last week, taking 22 Congress members of the Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly with him. His defection has resulted in the fall of the state government. ISAS Senior Research Fellow Ronojoy Sen discusses the significance of Scindia’s shift in allegiance and the precedent it could set for other dynamic, young Congress leaders.  

 

 

Episode 26: India's Response to COVID-19

Covid-19, now officially labeled a pandemic by the World Health Organization, has been reported in around 150 countries. Though India is low on the list of countries worst-affected by the outbreak, it could face challenges in combating the virus. In this episode, we speak with ISAS’ Senior Research Fellow Amitendu Palit about India’s response to the pandemic. He discusses: the possible scenario of the virus graduating to community-induced local spread; its ramifications on India’s economy amidst a banking crisis and a deepening global economic slowdown; the effect of trade disruption with China on India’s pharmaceutical industry; and the vulnerability of South Asia, as a region, and its push to find a strategy for this common threat.