South Asia Chat

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.   

Episode 25: Sri Lanka - At New Crossroads ?

Sri Lanka’s Presidential elections have just been concluded. The new government led by Gotabaya Rajapaksa faces several challenges. These challenges include strengthening social cohesion, turning around an economy in distress and managing complicated external relations. Dr Amitendu Palit from ISAS-NUS discusses these issues with Associate Professor Razeen Sally from the LKY School of Public Policy, NUS.

Episode 24: Third Pillar - Reviving Communities to Preserve Capitalism

In this episode, Dr Raghuram Rajan discusses his new book - The Third Pillar: How markets and the state leave the community behind which advocates for a community-centred focus on capitalism to fix problems caused by technological disruption and trade protectionism. Through the book, Rajan urges policymakers to devolve power down to local communities to enable citizens manage public policy challenges, particularly social and economic policy issues like health and education. Communities, Rajan argues, could help citizens overcome challenges caused by market dislocations and state incapacity.

Episode 23: Balancing the Triangle - China’s Tryst with Pakistan and India

In the week that Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with both the leaders of India and Pakistan, we speak to our Visiting Senior Research Fellow Dr Ren Yuanzhe on Beijing’s perspective of these meetings as well as the issues that may crop up.

Episode 22: India’s Strategic Relations - US, China and Pakistan

Hot on the heels off Howdy Modi, we speak to Mr Shivshankar Menon, former Indian National Security Advisor and Foreign Secretary on the status of these key relationships for India and what that may mean for its global ambitions.

Episode 21: Flushing Out India’s Water Needs

Is India facing a water crisis and, if so, will it get worse? What are the factors influencing India’s water issues at the moment? We speak to Professor Robin Jeffrey, ISAS Visiting Research Professor, to distill these issues for us.

Episode 20: Boosting India’s Retail Sector

With the Indian government relaxing some rules on single-brand retail in India, we discuss with ISAS Senior Research Fellow Dr Amitendu Palit if this move will allow the Indian retail sector to woo much needed foreign investment.

Episode 19: The Indian Economy - Rebounding ?

With the Indian economy showing signs of concerns, former Indian Comptroller and Auditor-General Mr Vinod Rai assesses the issues present and possible solutions to help the economy rebound.