Could the Novak Djokovic visa mess have been avoided? | In Focus

Baby foods, drinks and protein powders have all been in the news of late – are these products harming rather than helping your health? The latest controversy has centred around Nestle, a well known brand in India – an investigation recently found that all Nestle baby cereals sold in India contained almost 3g of added sugar – but the same cereals sold in European markets had no added sugar. The harmful effects of sugar are now well known – it can contribute to obesity as well as multiple health complications later in life. The Centre has now asked the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India to look into this. Other news involved the government asking e-commerce sites to stop the classification of Bournvita and other such beverages under the ‘health drinks’ category. And just before that, we were given the shocking news that many protein powders not only do not have the amount of proteins they advertise, but may also have harmful components. So what are the laws regarding baby food and processed food in our country? How are companies allowed to advertise these foods and drinks and can they be labelled healthy? Who looks into the safety of these products that are found in our supermarkets? And what does India need to do to classify which foods are healthy, and which are unhealthy, considering the huge burden of obesity, diabetes and heart disease that the country is grappling with? Zubeda Hamid speaks to Dr Arun Gupta, public health expert, central coordinator of the Breastfeeding Promotion Network of India and convener of the Nutrition Advocacy in Public Interest.

Gukesh Dommaraju, the 17-year-old Indian chess prodigy, has become the youngest player ever to win the Candidates tournament. As he broke a 40-year-old record in the name of Garry Kasparov, Gukesh became only the second Indian after Viswanathan Anand to win a Candidates event and earn the right to challenge the world champion for the title. But Gukesh’s journey hasn’t been easy. He almost didn’t qualify for the Candidates tournament – making the cut at the last minute, thanks to a hurriedly organised event in Chennai. And the moments before his victory were full of nail-biting drama. Guest: Rakesh Rao from The Hindu’s Sports Bureau. Host: G. Sampath, Social Affairs Editor, The Hindu. Edited by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian.

Elon Musk is coming to India. He is meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and is likely to announce the entry of Tesla into the Indian market. The timing of this visit is interesting. Tesla used to be the world’s largest seller of electric vehicles or EVs – but it lost that title to China’s BYD Auto last year. Also, most of the EV markets in the West --- in North America and Europe – are in a slowdown. In China, Tesla has been losing ground to local competitors. But India, on the other hand, is looking to expand its EV density in a big way – it unveiled a new EV policy in March that is seen by many as tweaked to make the country more attractive for Tesla. What is the agenda of Musk’s visit in the context of EVs? Is the price conscious Indian market ready for the kind of expensive EVs that Musk sells? If Tesla is allowed to sell imported cars, what happens to ‘Make in India’ and technology transfer to local manufacturers? G. Sampath is joined by Randheer Singh, CEO and Founder of ForeSee Advisors, an electric mobility and battery storage consulting firm, and a former director of e-mobility at NITI Aayog.

The Indian government recently brought in an amendment to the Wildlife Protection Act with regard to captive elephants. This amendment, the rules for which came in last month, regulates the transfer or transport of captive elephants, and has sparked an outcry from animal rights activists. Elephants are, according to the Wildlife Protection Act, a Schedule 1 species – offered the highest protection under the law. Captive elephants however, because of their historical role in India where they have been part of royal estates, used in timber logging and still used in temples for religious festivals, come under a special category, but there were still strict rules governing their transfer. Now however, with this new amendment, the transfer of elephants is allowed for ‘religious or any other purposes’ – this vague definition, researchers say can revive illegal commercial trade and trafficking of elephants, something the country has been trying to curb for decades. Concerns have also been raised about Vantara, Anant Ambani’s rehabilitation centre in Jamnagar, Gujarat, which has come under criticism for its housing of a large number of elephants.  Why was this amendment brought in? What does this mean for the 2,600-or so captive elephants across the country? Are wild elephants continuing to be captured and illegally sold? And what is the way forward to rehabilitate captive elephants in the country?  Guest: Alok Hisarwala, lawyer and researcher, founder of Centre for Research and Animal Rights, Goa  Host: Zubeda Hamid  Edited by Sharmada venkatasubramanian.

It was expected that Iran would respond to the bombing of its consulate in Syria on April 1 in an Israeli strike. The retaliation came last Saturday when Iran launched a direct attack on Israel. Israel claims to have intercepted 99% of the 300-odd drones and missiles fired by Iran, but a few of the missiles did sneak through its defences and hit sensitive military targets on Israeli territory. Iran has said that it would take no further action unless Israel chooses to escalate. Israel has vowed to “exact the price from Iran” when the time is right. What are the strategic implications of Iran’s unprecedented direct strikes on Israel? How serious are the risks of a wider regional war, and where does this leave the ongoing negotiations for a ceasefire in Gaza?

It’s election time in India. The Modi government is touting India’s strength abroad as one of its achievements. Earlier in April, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said at an election rally that India today kills terrorists in their own homes. Asked about a report in the Guardian newspaper that India had killed 20 alleged terrorists in recent years in Pakistan, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said Delhi would pursue and kill terrorists in Pakistan if they staged attacks in India. In 2023, Canada accused Indian agents of being responsible for the murder of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar on its territory. So, what does all this mean for India’s foreign policy and standing in the world? Is this the right approach to adopt? What are the potential dangers of such actions sparking a wider conflict with Pakistan? Or create foreign policy fissures with other countries? Guest: Nirupama Subramanian, senior journalist and former correspondent of The Hindu in Pakistan. Host: Amit Baruah, Senior Associate Editor, The Hindu. Edited by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian.

Is it okay for the Union government to impose limits on how much a State government can borrow? Or does a state government have an “enforceable right” to decide its own borrowing limits? This question, raised by the Kerala government, has been referred to a Constitution Bench by the Supreme Court. The key constitutional question that the Supreme Court wants a five-judge bench to decide is: whether ‘fiscal decentralistion’ is an integral aspect of Indian federalism, and if so, are Central regulations fixing borrowing limits on States a violation of the principle of federalism. In its suit filed before the Supreme Court, Kerala has accused the Union government of imposing arbitrary borrowing limits, due to which the Kerala government is on the verge of bankruptcy – unable to pay salaries, pensions and fulfil its various financial commitments. Have the Centre’s restrictions resulted in an unfair and/or differential treatment to Kerala? Aren’t the Centre’s restrictions in conflict with the RBI’s designated role as the nation’s “public debt manager”?

The 17th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is seeing a rather unusual controversy – Indian fans have been booing, and in some cases, abusing, a star player of the national team wherever he’s gone to play. At the receiving end is Hardik Pandya, the erstwhile captain of Gujarat Titans, who has moved to Mumbai Indians. He is now the skipper of Mumbai Indians, replacing Rohit Sharma, who led the team to the title five times in ten years. Franchises chop and change their teams and captains all the time – it is part and parcel of club sport. And yet, Pandya has faced really hostile crowds at every venue he’s played so far, to the extent that there were speculative media reports on some special security arrangements at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. What explains this hostility? Is this a phenomenon of what some commentators have described as “fan wars”? Guest: Amol Karhadkar from The Hindu’s Sports Bureau. Host: G. Sampath, Social Affairs Editor, The Hindu. Edited by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian.

India announced recently, that it has completed the 10,000 genome project – a reference database of whole-genome sequences, from people in India. About 20 institutions were involved in the project. India has a population of 1.3 billion with over 4,600 population groups, many of them endogamous.  This project is seen as an important step to find out about genetic variants that are unique to India, to customise drugs and gene-based therapies, give us answers about certain diseases, and to provide a deeper insight into the population’s diversity, and perhaps into genetic predispositions to disease that we may have.  What are the implications of this genome sequencing? How far does India have to go to reap its potential benefits? What are the ethical concerns around the sharing of this data? Is India well-enough equipped to ensure health data privacy of individuals?    Guest: Shambhavi Naik, PhD Head of Research and Chairperson of Advanced Biology Programme, Takshashila Institution  Host: Zubeda Hamid  Edited by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian.

If the data relating to electoral bonds placed the spotlight on corporate entities buying favours from political parties, the actions of enforcement agencies point to officials taking cues from their political masters in going after opposition politicians. The Indian Express newspaper reported on April 3 that as many as 23 out of 25 prominent politicians who crossed over to the BJP since 2014 earned a reprieve from prosecution. So, how is India faring in the battle against corruption? Or is selective targeting reducing the campaign against corruption to a farce? Guest: Vipul Mudgal, Director of Common Cause, a Delhi-based NGO, and a Trustee of the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR). Host: Amit Baruah, Senior Associate Editor, The Hindu. Edited by Sharmada Venkatasubramnian.