Interpreting India

Even though India and France have had a strategic partnership for twenty-five years now, the bilateral relationship between these countries has received substantial impetus recently. The relationship spans common interests in the Indian Ocean Region and the Indo-Pacific, a robust military and defense partnership, cooperation in high-tech areas such as space and nuclear, and, of course, a growing economic and trade relationship. What lessons can both countries offer each other? And what are some of the commonalities and differences in the French and Indian approaches to global governance and global challenges such as climate change in a multipolar world? What are the challenges in taking this relationship to the next level?In this episode of Interpreting India, Emmanuel Lenain joins Anirudh Suri to discuss these questions.Episode ContributorsEmmanuel Lenain is the Ambassador of France to India. He began his diplomatic career in 1997, serving in the French Foreign Ministry’s United Nations Department, where he took part in peace negotiations on Kosovo. Since then, he has served in France’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York, the Embassy of France in Beijing as the Prime Minister’s technical adviser on multilateral affairs, the French Embassy in Washington, DC, as Consul General of France in Shanghai, Director for the Asia-Pacific Division of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and as Diplomatic Adviser to the Prime Minister.Anirudh Suri is a nonresident scholar with Carnegie India. His interests lie at the intersection of technology and geopolitics, climate, and strategic affairs. He is currently exploring how India is carving and cementing its role in the global tech ecosystem and the role climate technology can play in addressing the global climate challenge.

In the last decade, there has been a growing convergence of global powers in the Indo-Pacific, evident from the proliferation of multilateral initiatives in the region. It has also emerged as an arena for geopolitical competition between China and the United States. As the competition intensifies, how does China see the Indo-Pacific? How has Beijing's understanding of this region changed over time? What can India learn from the way China sees the Indo-Pacific?In this episode of Interpreting India, Manoj Kewalramani joins Shibani Mehta to answer these questions and more. Episode ContributorsManoj Kewalramani is a fellow in China Studies and the chairperson of the Indo-Pacific Studies Programme at the Takshashila Institution. His research interests range from Chinese politics, foreign policy, and approaches to new technologies to addressing questions on how India can work with like-minded partners to address challenges presented by China's rise. Manoj is the author of Smokeless War: China’s Quest for Geopolitical Dominance, which discusses China’s political, diplomatic, economic, and narrative responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. Shibani Mehta is a senior research analyst with the Security Studies Program at Carnegie India. Her research focuses on the India-China boundary dispute with the purpose of analyzing India’s foreign and security policy decisionmaking.Additional ReadingsSmokeless War: China’s Quest for Geopolitical Dominance by Manoj KewalramaniIndo-Pacific Empire: China, America and the Contest for the World's Pivotal Region by Rory MedcalfKey Moments(0:00); Introduction(2:35); Chapter 1: China’s Role in the Indo-Pacific(8:36); Chapter 2: Changing Threat Perceptions of the Term “Indo-Pacific”(13:25); Chapter 3: Different Interpretations of the Term “Indo-Pacific”(19:55); Chapter 4: The Contradictory Position Undertaken by China(28:36); Chapter 5: Beijing’s Vision for a Global Order(33:59); Chapter 6: India’s Take on China’s View of the Indo-Pacific  (43:16); Closing Comments(44:19); Outro

The past week has been momentous for those awaiting the enactment of a legal framework for data protection in India. India’s parliament passed the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, and the law has now also received the assent of the President of India. This law has been enacted after multiple rounds of deliberations and consultations. Multiple committees have submitted reports on the proposed legislation, and three previous drafts of the legislation have been circulated for public consultation. What changes has this law undergone? How will the cost of data protection and privacy compliance impact Indian businesses?In this episode of Interpreting India, Rahul Matthan joins Anirudh Burman to give us insights into these questions and more.Episode ContributorsRahul Matthan is a partner at Trilegal, one of India’s leading law firms, and heads the technology, media, and telecommunications (TMT) practice of the firm. He has extensive experience advising on high-value TMT transactions in the country. Rahul’s expertise spans several sectors in the technology space, including data protection, digital finance, cryptocurrencies, e-commerce, and more. Rahul has advised the government on the data privacy law and has served on the Kris Gopalakrishnan Committee on Non-Personal Data. He has authored numerous articles and thought pieces on various topical issues relating to computers, the internet, and other new technologies.Anirudh Burman is an associate research director and fellow at Carnegie India. He works on key issues relating to public institutions, public administration, the administrative and regulatory state, and state capacity.  He has also worked extensively on financial regulation and regulatory governance.He has published works related to parliamentary oversight in India, the freedom of movement and residence, measuring the responsiveness of independent regulators in India, the design of insolvency professionals as a regulated profession, and the right to information.Additional ReadingsGet On with Data Protection Now That the Law’s Enacted by Rahul MatthanCompanies Must Work Hard to Ensure Data Protection by Rahul MatthanResisting the Leviathan: The Key Change in India’s New Proposal to Protect Personal Data by Anirudh BurmanWill India’s Proposed Data Protection Law Protect Privacy and Promote Growth? by Anirudh Burman—-Key Moments:(0:00); Introduction (3:00); Chapter 1: The Journey of This Act(7:03); Chapter 2: Data Protection in India(10:58); Chapter 3: Key Components of the Data Protection Act (14:19); Chapter 4: Applying GDPR Compliance in India(22:00); Chapter 5: Right to Data Portability(27:57); Chapter 6: Consent Manager Framework (32:44); Chapter 7: The Indian Government’s Data Accessing Powers(37:30); Chapter 8: Restrictions on Data Fiduciaries(42:46); Chapter 9: Blocking Data Fiduciaries’ Access to Public Information  (45:18); Chapter 10: Data Localization(46:56); Chapter 11: Establishing a Data Protection Board(49:48); Closing Comments(52:40); Outro

The role of the private sector in facilitating the climate transition journey of our world has been much talked about recently. While many corporations, including those in the fossil fuel sectors, have started drafting out their own journeys to “net zero,” Ajay Banga, the newly appointed president of the World Bank, has also emphasized the need for active private sector finance in the climate transition. There is a growing realization that governments alone cannot do all that is needed to prevent the worst-case scenarios that the world is increasingly faced with. And yet, the full scope of how the private sector can actually expedite this once-in-an-era transition has not been explored enough. In this episode, Suresh Narayanan joins Anirudh Suri to explore the role of the private sector in the climate transition journey.Episode ContributorsSuresh Narayanan is the chairman and managing director of Nestlé India Limited. He has been in this role since August 2015. He also serves as the chairman of the CII National Committee on Food Processing Industries. Under Mr. Narayanan’s leadership, Nestlé India has received several accolades, including, most recently, “MNC in India of the Year” in 2022 by the All India Management Association, “Outstanding Company of the Year 2021” by CNBC TV18 India Business Leader Awards (IBLA), and “MNC of the Year” by Business Standard in 2020.Mr. Narayanan joined Nestlé in 1999 as executive vice president for sales in India. His international career commenced at Nestlé Indochina in 2003, and he has also served in the Philippines, Singapore, Egypt, and the Northeast Africa Region. He was honored as the “Entrepreneurial CEO” at the EY Entrepreneur of The Year™ Awards 2020. Business Today awarded him “Best CEO-FMCG” for two consecutive years in 2019 and 2020.Anirudh Suri is a nonresident scholar with Carnegie India. His interests lie at the intersection of technology and geopolitics, climate, and strategic affairs. He is currently exploring how India is carving and cementing its role in the global tech ecosystem and the role climate technology can play in addressing the global climate challenge.He is the author of The Great Tech Game: Shaping Geopolitics and the Destinies of Nations (HarperCollins, 2022) and is currently the managing partner at India Internet Fund, a technology-focused venture capital fund based in India and the United States. He has also written extensively on foreign policy, geopolitics, cybersecurity, climate, technology, and entrepreneurship in publications such as the Indian Express, Times of India, Hindustan Times, Foreign Policy, The Print, The New Republic, Economic Times, MoneyControl, and Asia Times. --Additional ReadingsA Comprehensive Framework for India’s Climate Finance Strategy by Anirudh SuriWhy Banga  Being a Corporate Czar is Good for World Bank by Anirudh Suri—-Key Moments:(0:00); Introduction (4:29); Mr. Narayanan’s Journey(9:45); The Private Sector’s Role in Combating Climate Change(15:49); Nestle’s Application of Common But Differentiated Responsibilities (20:09); Nestle’s Science and R&D-Based Approach (27:51); Obstacles to India’s Private Sector Spending on R&D(37:15); On Packaged Foods and Food Security (38:53); Policy Hurdles in Public-Private Collaborations (42:42); India’s Climate Opportunity Strategy (48:41); Concluding Remarks (49:15); Outro

Defense cooperation is central to the India-U.S. partnership, and it has served as a key enabler for stronger collaboration at the multilateral level. While defense ties between the two countries have gone from strength to strength over the last two decades, defense-industrial cooperation has notably failed to take off thus far. However, of late, the two countries have made a renewed push toward furthering defense-industrial cooperation. They released a roadmap in June 2023, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent state visit to the United States has given the process further impetus.In this episode of Interpreting India, Sameer Lalwani joins Rahul Bhatia to discuss these points and more.Episode ContributorsSameer Lalwani is a senior expert on South Asia at the U.S. Institute of Peace. He is also a nonresident senior fellow with the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments. His research interests include nuclear deterrence, interstate rivalry, alliances, crisis behavior, counterinsurgency, and Indo-Pacific security. Sameer has been widely published in academic journals and print media alike. He was the co-editor of the book Investigating Crises: South Asia’s Lessons, Evolving Dynamics, and Trajectories, which was published by the Stimson Center in 2018.Rahul Bhatia is a research analyst with the security studies program at Carnegie India. His research focuses on India’s borders and India’s foreign and defense policies. He is currently working on a project that looks at India’s military modernization with a focus on indigenization. He also has a keen interest in the changing geopolitical landscape in the Indo-Pacific.---Additional ReadingsModi’s Trip to Washington Marks New Heights in U.S.-India Ties by Sameer P. Lalwani, Daniel Markey, Tamanna Salikuddin, and Vikram J. SinghA Big Step Forward in U.S.-India Defense Ties by Sameer P. Lalwani and Vikram J. SinghWhat the GE Engine Deal Means for India’s Military Diversification by Rahul BhatiaCan a Defense Innovation Bridge Elevate India-U.S. Defense Cooperation? by Rahul Bhatia and Konark Bhandari---Key Moments:(0:00); Intro(2:10); Chapter 1: The Role of Defense-Industrial Cooperation(4:11); Chapter 2: The Roadmap for Defense-Industrial Partnership(7:07); Chapter 3: Why the DTTI Failed(12:41); Chapter 4: Bureaucratic Differences in the DTTI(16:48); Chapter 5: India’s History of Technology Sharing and Indigenization(24:36); Chapter 7: The Significance of the GE Deal(27:21); Chapter 8: The Role of the Indian Startup Ecosystem(29:03); Chapter 9: India-U.S. Cooperation on Undersea Domain Awareness(31:53); Chapter 10: The Significance of INDUS-X(36:48); Chapter 11: Challenges in India-U.S. Joint Defense Innovation(40:23); Outro---Carnegie India Socials:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carnegieindia/ (@CarnegieIndia)Twitter: https://twitter.com/CarnegieIndiaWebsite: https://carnegieindia.orgYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CarnegieIndia/

In recent years, international indices and rankings such as the Democracy Index and the V-Dem Index have downgraded India’s democracy. Although there are significant differences in the degrees of downgrading, most major indices suggest that Indian democracy is backsliding.Meanwhile, India is witnessing an increase in voter turnout, and people continue to participate actively and vociferously in politics. What is the reason for this disconnect between scholarly understandings of Indian democracy and ground realities?To help us make sense of this dichotomy, Rahul Verma joins Suyash Rai to discuss his recent essay titled “The Exaggerated Death of Indian Democracy.” In the essay, Dr. Verma argues that the claims of democratic backsliding in India are somewhat exaggerated.Episode ContributorsRahul Verma is a fellow at the Center for Policy Research and a visiting assistant professor at Ashoka University. His research interests include voting behavior, party politics, political violence, and the media. Dr. Verma has published papers in Asian Survey, Economic & Political Weekly, and Studies in Indian Politics. His book, co-authored with Professor Pradeep Chhibber, Ideology and Identity: The Changing Party Systems of India, develops a new approach to defining the contours of what constitutes an ideology in multiethnic countries such as India. He has a PhD in Political Science from the University of California at Berkeley.Suyash Rai is a deputy director and fellow at Carnegie India. His research focuses on the political economy of economic reforms and the performance of public institutions in India. His current research looks at the financial sector, the fiscal system, and the infrastructure sector.---Additional ReadingsThe Exaggerated Death of Indian Democracy by Rahul Verma“Symposium: Is India Still a Democracy?” Journal of Democracy, July 2023The Possibilities of Indian Electoral Politics by Suyash RaiUnderstanding the Debate on Democratic Backsliding Through Two Papers by Suyash RaiIdeology and Identity: The Changing Party Systems of India by Pradeep K. Chhibber and Rahul VermaThe Rise of the Second Dominant Party System in India: BJP’s New Social Coalition in 2019 by Pradeep K. Chhibber and Rahul VermaDalits in the New Millennium, edited by Sudha Pai, D. Shyam Babu, and Rahul VermaHow India’s Ruling Party Erodes Democracy by Ashutosh VarshneyThe Expanding Role of Majoritarianism in India by Suhas PalshikarUnderstanding the Nature of Party Competition and Politics of Majoritarianism by Suhas PalshikarFor India, ‘Middle’ Democracy Works by Subrata K. Mitra---Key Moments(00:00); Intro(4:24); Chapter 1: Why Rahul Wrote the Essay(9:53); Chapter 2: Paradoxes in Indian Polity (12:14); Chapter 3: Biases in Ranking Measures(18:53); Chapter 4: Comparing the Present with the Past(21:22); Chapter 5: Conflating Other Phenomena for Backsliding(29:20); Chapter 6: Party Dominance and Partisanship(35:03); Chapter 7: Unpacking Mass Polarization(41:00); Chapter 8: The Frequency of Protests in Past Years(49:22); Chapter 9: The Pew Survey on Religion in India(50:53); Chapter 10: Scholarly Discourse vs. Public Opinion(55:38); Chapter 11: The Current State of Indian Democracy(1:04:47); Chapter 12: Remaining Hopeful About Indian Democracy(1:08:18); Chapter 13: Closing Remarks by Suyash(1:11:52); Outro--Carnegie India Socials:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carnegieindia/ (@CarnegieIndia)Twitter: https://twitter.com/CarnegieIndiaWebsite: https://carnegieindia.orgYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CarnegieIndia/

The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act was introduced in 2016 to protect consumers who had invested in residential real estate projects from malpractices by real estate developers. After the law was passed, most states established real estate regulatory authorities to register and oversee the conduct of real estate developers. What changes did this act try to bring in, and how has this regulatory change benefited consumers? Is the increased information about property litigation that the Maharashtra RERA provides affecting housing prices? Does RERA reduce information asymmetry in the housing market?In this episode of Interpreting India, Vaidehi Tandel and Sahil Gandhi join Anirudh Burman to give us insights into these issues and more. They discuss their recent working paper, co-authored with Anupam Nanda and Nandini Agnihotri. Their study analyses how housing prices change in response to mandatory disclosures under the RERA. The paper is titled, “Do Mandatory Disclosures Squeeze the Lemons? The Case of Housing Markets in India.”Episode ContributorsVaidehi Tandel is an economist working in the areas of urban economics, political economy, and public finance, with a focus on India. Currently, Dr. Tandel is a lecturer in real estate and urban economics at the University of Manchester, UK. Her research has been featured in The Financial Times, The New York Times, The Straits Times, Livemint, and others. Her papers have been published in the Journal of Development Economics, the Journal of Urban Economics, the Journal of Regional Science, Environment and Urbanization, Cities, and BMJ Open, among others. Her current work looks at the politician-builder nexus in Mumbai, agglomeration economies in India, and climate change and adaptation across cities in developing countries.Sahil Gandhi is an urban and real estate economist. Dr. Gandhi is a lecturer at The University of Manchester’s School of Environment, Education and Development. His research is in the fields of urban economics, real estate, and land economics. His recent papers are on vacant housing in India, migration and tenure choice, housing supply in Mumbai, and so on. His research has been published in the Journal of Urban Economics, the Journal of Development Economics, the Journal of Regional Science, Environment and Urbanization, and Cities, among others. He has also led a report on affordable housing in India. Dr. Gandhi has bylines in international and Indian media outlets such as The Washington Post, The Hindu, Hindustan Times, The Economic Times, and Livemint, among others. His research has also been cited in The Financial Times, The BBC, The Straits Times, Livemint, and more.---Key Moments(0:00); Introduction(2:39); Chapter 1: The Context Behind RERA(9:56); Chapter 2: Key Regulatory Changes(15:21); Chapter 3: The Case of Maharashtra’s RERA(17:27); Chapter 4: Mumbai’s High Proportion of Litigated Projects(23:04); Chapter 5: The Aim and Findings of the Study(27:35); Chapter 6: Variations Across Housing Submarkets (32:35); Chapter 7: Luxury Housing and Mandatory Disclosures(35:02); Chapter 8: Non-Luxury Housing and Litigation Costs(36:10); Chapter 9: RERA’s Impact on Low- and Middle-Income Consumers(40:36); Chapter 10: Types of Litigation Faced by Projects(43:44); Chapter 11: Future Research in Urban Economics(48:22); Outro---Additional ReadingsDo Mandatory Disclosures Squeeze the Lemons? The Case of Housing Markets in India by Vaidehi Tandel, Sahil Gandhi, Anupam Nanda, and Nandini AgnihotriToo Slow for the Urban March: Litigations and the Real Estate Market in Mumbai, India by Sahil Gandhi, Vaidehi Tandel, Alexander Tabarrok, and Shamika RaviView: Time to Make RERA Roar by Nandini Agnihotri and Sahil GandhiIndia Has to Attack Causes of Land Litigation. Modi’s Ease of Doing Business Depends on It by Anirudh Burman Making Land Titles in India Marketable: Using Title Insurance as a Viable Alternative to Conclusive Titling by Anirudh Burman--Carnegie India Socials:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carnegieindia/ (@CarnegieIndia)Twitter: https://twitter.com/CarnegieIndiaWebsite: https://carnegieindia.orgYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CarnegieIndia/

The iCET was launched on the sidelines of the Quad Summit in Tokyo in May 2022. Both U.S. President Biden and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed the launch of this initiative, which was to be spearheaded by the National Security Councils of the two countries to expand partnership in critical and emerging technologies. Is the iCET more than just a deal? What is the case for comparisons between the iCET and the landmark India-U.S. Civilian Nuclear Deal? What makes the iCET different from earlier initiatives between India and the United States? Does Prime Minister Modi's upcoming state visit to the United States put the iCET under pressure to "deliver" something? What is the importance of export control measures in India-U.S. tech ties?In this episode of Interpreting India, Arun K. Singh joins Konark Bhandari to discuss these questions and more.Episode ContributorsArun K. Singh is a nonresident senior fellow at Carnegie India. Mr. Singh has extensive experience across the globe, including as India’s ambassador to the United States, Israel, and France. Throughout his distinguished career in the Indian Foreign Service spanning thirty-seven years, he has served during pivotal periods in key global capitals and was instrumental in shaping India’s policies, notably the continued progress in the U.S.-India relationship, India’s closer ties to Israel, and the formulation and implementation of India’s policies related to Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran, including in the period following 9/11.Konark Bhandari is an associate fellow with Carnegie India. Konark is a lawyer who has researched on certain areas in the digital economy, focusing primarily on approaches to antitrust regulation of companies in the digital realm.---Key Moments:(0:00); Chapter 1: Introduction(2:00); Chapter 2: iCET vs. India-U.S. Civilian Nuclear Deal(10:10); Chapter 3: Private Sector Involvement in the iCET(14:26); Chapter 4: An AUKUS-like Carve-Out for India?(17:48); Chapter 5: The Pressure to "Deliver" Under the iCET(21:25); Chapter 6: Likely Deals and Expectations During PM Modi's Visit(24:15); Chapter 7: Indian Tech Talent and U.S. Immigration Reforms(26:47); Chapter 8: Arriving at a Consensus Under the iCET(29:11); Chapter 9: The Key Factors Making the iCET a Great Bet(32:17); Outro---Additional ReadingIndia and the United States’ Good Bet: One Year of the U.S.-India Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET) by Konark Bhandari,  Arun K. Singh,  and Rudra ChaudhuriTo Compete With China on Tech, America Needs to Fix Its Immigration System by Eric SchmidtAmerica’s Bad Bet on India by Ashley J. TellisForging a High-Technology Partnership Between the United States and India in the Age of Export Controls by Konark BhandariWhat is the United States-India Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET)? by Rudra ChaudhuriThe U.S.-India Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET): The Way Forward by Rudra Chaudhuri, Konark Bhandari, and Ashima SinghHow Washington and New Delhi Can Further Tech Ties by Rudra Chaudhuri, Priyadarshini D., Konark Bhandari, Arjun Kang Joseph, and Shatakratu SahuIndia-U.S. Emerging Technologies Working Group--🎙️ Check out our podcast, Interpreting India, available now on YouTube, Spotify, Amazon Music, and iTunes!Home: https://interpreting-india.simplecast.com/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/51yeOb8SimMIPe2KgIUQ8gApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/interpreting-india/id1476357131YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeXQMWQXRkJXF71nDiX9LhlXiSkhR8JJTAmazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/f68d7bd9-1589-410f-b20d-65c94c9b3302/interpreting-india--Carnegie India Socials:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carnegieindia/ (@CarnegieIndia)Twitter: https://twitter.com/CarnegieIndiaWebsite: https://carnegieindia.orgYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CarnegieIndia/

The 17th Lok Sabha has seventy-eight women MPs, the highest since independence. Has the increase in women’s participation been meaningful? What narratives of equality and citizenship have framed the issue of electoral representation? Do women MPs carry the burden of shifting welfare policy in a gender-sensitive direction? In this episode of Interpreting India, Shirin Rai joins Shibani Mehta to discuss these questions on gender parity and disparity in the Indian Parliament.Episode ContributorsShirin Rai is an interdisciplinary scholar of international relations, area studies, political economy, history, and comparative politics. She has written extensively on issues of gender, governance and development, and gender and political institutions. Her work within feminist political economy examines gendered regimes of work and survival under globalization, which include the privatization of natural resources and the changing nature of work. Professor Rai is a distinguished research professor of politics and international relations at SOAS, University of London. She is a fellow of the British Academy. In 2022, she was awarded the Distinguished Contribution Prize by the British International Studies Association for her contribution to the promotion of excellence in the discipline of international studies over a substantial period of time. Shibani Mehta is a senior research analyst with the Security Studies Program at Carnegie India. Her research focuses on the India-China boundary dispute with the purpose of analyzing India’s foreign and security policy decisionmaking.-- Key Moments:(0:00); Introduction(2:11); Reflection on the newly built parliament building and its implications for society(7:32); Analysis of the evolution of the Indian Parliament(14:39); Examination of women's representation in Parliament throughout the years(23:33); Discussing boardroom politics and advocating for women's participation in parliament(31:26); Exploring whether women bear the burden of welfare and equality in this debate(43:55); Comparison of women's reservation in parliament at different levels of governance(50:27); Outro Additional Reading70 Years of Parliament by PRS Legislative ResearchPerforming Representation: Women Members in the Indian Parliament by Shirin M. Rai and Carole SparyThe Oxford Handbook of Politics and Performance, edited by Shirin M. Rai, Milija Gluhovic, Silvija Jestrovic, and Michael SawardExplained | On Reservation for Women in Politics by Radhika SanthanamIndian Women Are Voting More Than Ever. Will They Change Indian Society? by Milan Vaishnav--🎙️ Check out our podcast, Interpreting India, available now on YouTube, Spotify, Amazon Music, and iTunes!Home: https://interpreting-india.simplecast.com/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/51yeOb8SimMIPe2KgIUQ8gApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/interpreting-india/id1476357131YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeXQMWQXRkJXF71nDiX9LhlXiSkhR8JJTAmazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/f68d7bd9-1589-410f-b20d-65c94c9b3302/interpreting-india--Carnegie India Socials:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carnegieindia/ (@CarnegieIndia)Twitter: https://twitter.com/CarnegieIndiaWebsite: https://carnegieindia.orgYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CarnegieIndia/

Climate finance and technology is one of India’s priorities as part of its ongoing G20 presidency. Financing the climate transition of developing countries and the Global South is a complex but critical issue, as is the development, transfer, and sharing of critical climate technologies. What should India’s climate finance and technology strategy be? What role will the various pools of capital—private, public, philanthropic, impact, and multilateral development banks—play in mobilizing the necessary climate financial support for this transition? Will the new World Bank president, Ajay Banga, succeed in leveraging private capital for climate and ultimately make the Bank fit for purpose for the coming decades? Which areas of climate technology should India prioritize? Will India’s EV, solar, green hydrogen, and biofuels push suffice to position it as a climate leader? What lessons can India learn from the journeys, strategies, and priorities of other countries?In this episode of Interpreting India, Varad Pande joins Anirudh Suri to discuss these key issues around India's climate finance and technology strategy.--Episode ContributorsVarad Pande is a partner at BCG. Formerly, he was a partner with Omidyar Network India.Anirudh Suri is a nonresident scholar with Carnegie India. His interests lie at the intersection of technology and geopolitics, climate, and strategic affairs.--Additional ReadingA Comprehensive Framework for India’s Climate Finance Strategy by Anirudh SuriThe Case for a Comprehensive Indian Climate Bill by Anirudh SuriWhy Banga  Being a Corporate Czar is Good for World Bank: Activists Are Wrong Because ex-Mastercard Boss Can Mobilise Climate Finance by Tapping Private Sector Capital by Anirudh Suri--🎙️ Check out our podcast, Interpreting India, available now on YouTube, Spotify, iTunes, and Amazon Music!Home: https://interpreting-india.simplecast.com/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/51yeOb8SimMIPe2KgIUQ8gApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/interpreting-india/id1476357131YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeXQMWQXRkJXF71nDiX9LhlXiSkhR8JJTAmazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/f68d7bd9-1589-410f-b20d-65c94c9b3302/interpreting-india-- Key Moments(00:00); Introduction (02:03); Varad's diving experience in the Andaman Islands and India's ocean ecosystem(05:45); The Indian Ocean Initiative at Carnegie India(06:27); Anirudh speaks on his observations on climate change(07:45); Going from net zero to nature positive(10:11); Change in climate finance trends(12:17); Varad explains why climate finance is such a tricky problem to solve(18:31); Making India more lucrative to global climate finance capital  (28:34); Varad on the role of private and public finance in climate change(30:45); Leveraging the newly elected council of the World Bank for climate finance needs(36:55); India's climate tech strategy—EVs and green hydrogen  (45:40); Anirudh on the consumption aspect of climate technology strategies(47:13); What can India learn from the climate transition journeys of other countries?(54:34); Outro Carnegie India Socials:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carnegieindia/ (@CarnegieIndia)Twitter: https://twitter.com/CarnegieIndiaWebsite: https://carnegieindia.orgYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CarnegieIndia/

India’s development has not been uniform and has leapfrogged from agriculture to services, skipping over a manufacturing phase. However, the agriculture and services sectors typically do not create enough productive jobs for those at the bottom of the education and skills ladder. Thus, there is a need for labor-intensive manufacturing to absorb those with low levels of education and skills, but only around 11–12 percent of the total employment is in manufacturing, and this share has been essentially flat for two decades. There is also too much labor employed in the low-productivity unorganized sector, and there are too few jobs in the high-productivity formal sector. As recently as 2015–16, the unorganized sector continued to employ over 70 percent of total manufacturing employment. Inclusive growth would require us to find ways to enable formal manufacturing to prosper.In this episode of Interpreting India, Radhicka Kapoor joins Sayoudh Roy to discuss the state of labor-intensive manufacturing in India.--Episode ContributorsRadhicka Kapoor is a visiting professor at the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations, in addition to having previously worked at the Planning Commission and at the International Labour Organization, Geneva. Her research interests include poverty and inequality, labor economics and industrial performance, and she has published extensively on labor-intensive manufacturing in India. Most recently, she has edited A New Reform Paradigm, a collection of essays written in honor of Isher Judge Ahluwalia.Sayoudh Roy is a senior research analyst with the Political Economy Program at Carnegie India.  His work focuses on the macroeconomic implications of frictions in labor and financial markets and how interactions between them can affect macroeconomic aggregates.--Additional ReadingA New Reform Paradigm: Festschrift in Honour of Isher Judge Ahluwalia, edited by Radhicka KapoorCreating jobs in India’s organised manufacturing sector by Radhicka KapoorExplaining the contractualisation of India’s workforce by Radhicka Kapoor and P. P. KrishnapriyaStylized Facts on the Evolution of the Enterprise Size: Distribution in India's Manufacturing Sector by Radhicka KapoorEmployment in India by Ajit Kumar GhoseIndia Employment Report by Ajit Kumar GhoseStructural Change and Employment in India by Nomaan MajidSmall-Scale Industry Policy in India: A Critical Evaluation by Rakesh MohanIndustrialisation for Employment and Growth in India: Lessons from Small Firm Clusters and Beyond, edited by Rayaprolu Nagaraj--🎙️ Check out our podcast, Interpreting India available now on YouTube, Spotify, and iTunes!Home: https://interpreting-india.simplecast.com/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/51yeOb8SimMIPe2KgIUQ8gApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/interpreting-india/id1476357131YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeXQMWQXRkJXF71nDiX9LhlXiSkhR8JJT--Carnegie India Socials:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carnegieindia/ (@CarnegieIndia)Twitter: https://twitter.com/CarnegieIndiaWebsite: https://carnegieindia.orgYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CarnegieIndia/

Recently, there have been certain key developments in India's space sector. There are questions that need to be probed for a better understanding of the country's space sector. What does it take to set up a successful space company? What should be made of the space sector reforms unveiled three years ago? How does the recent iCET framework play out when it comes to space cooperation between India and the United States?In this episode of Interpreting India, Susmita Mohanty joins Konark Bhandari to discuss recent developments in India's space sector. --Episode ContributorsSusmita Mohanty is a spaceship designer and serial space entrepreneur. Susmita is the only space entrepreneur in the world to have co-founded companies on 3 different continents: EARTH2ORBIT Bangalore (2009-2021), MOONFRONT, San Francisco (2001-2007) and LIQUIFER Systems Group, Vienna (2004-ongoing). Her latest endeavor launched in October 2021 is Spaceport SARABHAI - India’s first dedicated space think tank that hopes to re-center the global space narrative, give India an international voice, grow the body of knowledge that informs critical areas of space law and policy, and help transform India into a developed space economy by 2030.Konark Bhandari is an associate fellow with Carnegie India. Konark is a lawyer who has researched on certain areas in the digital economy, focusing primarily on approaches to antitrust regulation of companies in the digital realm.--Additional ReadingAre we there yet? The Artemis Accords, India, and the Way Forward by Konark BhandariWhat Does the United States' MTCR Policy Reform Mean for India's Space Sector? by Konark Bhandari--🎙️ Check out our podcast, Interpreting India available now on YouTube, Spotify, and iTunes!Home: https://interpreting-india.simplecast.com/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/51yeOb8SimMIPe2KgIUQ8gApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/interpreting-india/id1476357131YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeXQMWQXRkJXF71nDiX9LhlXiSkhR8JJT--Carnegie India Socials:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carnegieindia/ (@CarnegieIndia)Twitter: https://twitter.com/CarnegieIndiaWebsite: https://carnegieindia.orgYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CarnegieIndia/

The relationship between India and Germany doesn’t receive as much attention as it deserves. In recent years, however, the bilateral partnership has received a big impetus, both economically and geopolitically. India and Germany have had a strategic partnership since 2001, but have recently also embarked on a Green Strategic Partnership for green and sustainable development. What is that about? Where does this relationship stand currently? What are the challenges in taking this relationship to the next level? What are the economic, military and geopolitical drivers of this relationship? And what can India learn from how Germany has become an economic and industrial superpower? What can Germany learn from India’s own dynamic startup ecosystem? And finally, how can the two countries cooperate on major global challenges such as climate?In this episode of Interpreting India, Philipp Ackermann joins Anirudh Suri to discuss India and Germany's strategic partnership and the economic, military, and geopolitical drivers of this relationship. --Episode ContributorsPhilipp Ackermann is the current ambassador of Germany to India. He has studied art history and economics in Bonn, Heidelberg and Utrecht, and received his doctorate in art history in 1993, the same year that he joined the German Foreign Service. Before becoming Ambassador to India, he was Director General for Africa, Latin America, Near and Middle East at the Federal Foreign Office for five years.Anirudh Suri is a nonresident scholar with Carnegie India. His interests lie at the intersection of technology and geopolitics, climate, and strategic affairs. --Additional ReadingGermany woos India as an ally against Russia by Christoph Hasselbach--🎙️ Check out our podcast, Interpreting India available now on YouTube, Spotify, and iTunes!Home: https://interpreting-india.simplecast.com/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/51yeOb8SimMIPe2KgIUQ8gApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/interpreting-india/id1476357131YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeXQMWQXRkJXF71nDiX9LhlXiSkhR8JJT--Carnegie India Socials:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carnegieindia/ (@CarnegieIndia)Twitter: https://twitter.com/CarnegieIndiaWebsite: https://carnegieindia.orgYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CarnegieIndia/

A major puzzle for the Indian economy in the last one decade has been the weak performance in the textiles and apparel sectors. In real terms, the apparels sector has grown marginally and the textiles sector has witnessed a decline. India’s share in world trade in textiles and apparels has also declined considerably. Between the late-1990s and early 2010s, India’s share in the textiles trade has doubled, as the Indian economy revealed its comparative advantage in a variety of products in this category. But since then, India’s share in textiles trade has declined, even as many other countries have increased their share. The causes for this sudden reversal in a crucial sector is worth understanding. In this episode of Interpreting India, Abhishek Anand and Naveen Joseph Thomas join Suyash Rai to discuss how India can  reignite its manmade clothing sector. --Episode ContributorsAbhishek Anand is a consultant with PwC Middle East. Earlier, he has worked at the World Bank as a Robert S. McNamara Fellow and prior to that as a career civil servant with the Government of India. His research interest lies at the intersection of macroeconomics and economic development. Naveen Joseph Thomas completed his Ph.D. in Economics at the Department of Economics, Delhi School of Economics, University of Delhi. He received his M.Sc. in Economics from the TERI School of Advanced Studies and his B.Sc.(H) in Physics from St. Stephen’s College, University of Delhi. His research interest lies in the areas of Household Economics, Growth Theory, Labour Economics and issues of the MSME sector. His current research focusses on the role of intra-household conflict in explaining low labour force participation of women in patriarchal societies, the scope of Mutual Credit Guarantee Schemes for the development of the MSME sector in India, and the analysis of education choice of parents under constrained supply of public-funded education in rural India using the ASER dataset.Suyash Rai is a deputy director and fellow at Carnegie India. His research focuses on the political economy of economic reforms, and the performance of public institutions in India. --Additional ReadingReigniting the Manmade Clothing Sector in India by Abhishek Anand and Naveen Joseph Thomas --🎙️ Check out our podcast, Interpreting India available now on YouTube, Spotify, and iTunes!Home: https://interpreting-india.simplecast.com/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/51yeOb8SimMIPe2KgIUQ8gApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/interpreting-india/id1476357131YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeXQMWQXRkJXF71nDiX9LhlXiSkhR8JJT--Carnegie India Socials:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carnegieindia/ (@CarnegieIndia)Twitter: https://twitter.com/CarnegieIndiaWebsite: https://carnegieindia.orgYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CarnegieIndia/

In accordance with the G20 presidency conversations, one of the key conversations that has been missing from the main discourse has been the relationship between Brazil and India. Brazil will be taking over the G20 presidency from India. Therefore, it is imperative that these two countries think about some of the issues around climate finance, energy, technological innovation, global governance, and the SDGs. In this episode of Interpreting India, André Aranha Corrêa do Lago joins Anirudh Suri to discuss issues around climate finance, energy, technological innovation, global governance, and the SDGs. --Episode ContributorsAndré Aranha Corrêa do Lago is the former ambassador of Brazil to India. A recognised architecture critic and writer, has has been a member of the prestigious Pritzker Prize jury, and has served as the curator of the Brazilian Pavilion in the 2014 Venice Architecture Biennale. Between 2011 and 2013, he was also Brazil's Chief Negotiator for Climate Change and Sustainable Development, including for the Rio+20 UN Conference, which launched the Sustainable Development Goals. Between 2005 to 2016, André served as a member of the Architecture and Design Committee of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), New York, and is currently a member of the International Council of MoMA.Anirudh Suri is a nonresident scholar with Carnegie India. His interests lie at the intersection of technology and geopolitics, climate, and strategic affairs.--Additional ReadingBrazil, India can steer global transportation towards biofuels by André Aranha Corrêa do LagoBrazilian ambassador offers green growth solution to stubble burning in India by André Aranha Corrêa do LagoThe case for a comprehensive Indian climate bill by Anirudh Suri --🎙️ Check out our podcast, Interpreting India available now on YouTube, Spotify, and iTunes!Home: https://interpreting-india.simplecast.com/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/51yeOb8SimMIPe2KgIUQ8gApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/interpreting-india/id1476357131YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeXQMWQXRkJXF71nDiX9LhlXiSkhR8JJT--Carnegie India Socials:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carnegieindia/ (@CarnegieIndia)Twitter: https://twitter.com/CarnegieIndiaWebsite: https://carnegieindia.orgYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CarnegieIndia/

Since their independence from the Soviet Union, the Central Asian countries, namely Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan, have maintained close ties with Moscow. However, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has complicated the relationship. None of the Central Asian countries have expressed support for Russia’s war and are all abiding by the western sanctions imposed on Moscow. While economic ties between the region and Russia remain strong as of now, Central Asian countries are looking to diversify their economic relations, thereby opening up avenues for other powers.In this episode of Interpreting India, Jennifer Brick Murtazashvili joins Rahul Bhatia to discuss Central Asia and the Russia-Ukraine war. How are the Central Asian countries responding to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine? What could Russia’s preoccupation with the war in Ukraine mean for China’s role in the region? And, what are the implications of this on India and South Asia? --Episode ContributorsJennifer Brick Murtazashvili is a nonresident scholar in the Asia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. She is the founding director of the Center for Governance and Markets and a professor at the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Pittsburgh. Her research focuses on issues of self-governance, security, political economy, and public sector reform in the developing world. Her book Informal Order and the State in Afghanistan was published by Cambridge University Press in 2016.Rahul Bhatia is a research analyst with the Security Studies Program at Carnegie India. His research focuses on India’s borders and India’s foreign and defense policies.--Additional ReadingKazakhstan’s Tokayev Is Playing With Fire at Home—and With Russia by Jennifer Brick MurtazashviliThe Source of Ukraine’s Resilience by Jennifer Brick Murtazashvili--🎙️ Check out our podcast, Interpreting India available now on YouTube, Spotify, and iTunes!Home: https://interpreting-india.simplecast.com/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/51yeOb8SimMIPe2KgIUQ8gApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/interpreting-india/id1476357131YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeXQMWQXRkJXF71nDiX9LhlXiSkhR8JJT--Carnegie India Socials:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carnegieindia/ (@CarnegieIndia)Twitter: https://twitter.com/CarnegieIndiaWebsite: https://carnegieindia.orgYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CarnegieIndia/

Over the last three decades, cross-border violence between India and Pakistan has been interspersed with periods of relative peace. Until 2003, ceasefires along the Line of Control and International Border in Jammu and Kashmir (in 1949, 1965, and 1971) were preceded by war between India and Pakistan. On the night of November 23, 2003, an announcement of a unilateral ceasefire, starting on Eid-ul-Fitr, was made by then prime minister of Pakistan Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali. Following this, during their weekly call, the Director Generals of Military Operations or DGMOs from the two countries agreed on a ceasefire along the Line of Control, International Border, and Actual Ground Position Line. And so, the ceasefire came into effect from 25 November 2003.Given the violence of the previous 14 years, the ceasefire was a welcome move. The years between 1989 and 2003 saw cross-border violence touch record levels. 2001 and 2002 saw 4,134 and 5,767 ceasefire violations respectively by Pakistan, as reported by India. Thus, the ceasefire resulted in a stable border and immediate relief for civilians. According to some reports, there was not a single ceasefire violation between India and Pakistan between 2004 and 2006, while others report that the number was negligible. The larger change in India-Pakistan relations following the institution of the composite dialogue process also enabled different confidence-building measures on the LoC, such as the opening of passenger routes on the Poonch-Rawalakot and Srinagar-Muzaffarabad axes, enabling bus traffic and eventually cross-border trade. The period also saw the completion of border fencing on the LoC as a measure to prevent infiltration. From 2007 onwards, ceasefire violations began to rise, intensifying after 2013. The larger relationship too started to see tensions due to terror attacks in India, civil-military dynamics in Pakistan, cross-border retaliatory actions such as the surgical strikes in 2016, and the Balakot airstrikes in 2019. In 2020, India reported 5,133 CFVs on the border. A reaffirmation of the ceasefire through a DGMO conversation and a subsequent joint statement by India and Pakistan in February 2021 was a major effort to arrest this trend.--Episode ContributorsArun K. Singh is a nonresident senior fellow at Carnegie India. He has extensive experience across the globe, including as India’s ambassador to the United States, Israel, and France. Throughout his distinguished career in the Indian Foreign Service spanning thirty-seven years, he has served during pivotal periods in key global capitals and was instrumental in shaping India’s policies, notably the continued progress in the U.S.-India relationship, India’s closer ties to Israel, and the formulation and implementation of India’s policies related to Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran, including in the period following 9/11.Surya Valliappan Krishna is the associate director of projects and operations at Carnegie India. His research interests are India-Pakistan relations, border security, and cross-border violence. In particular, he works on the nature and dynamics of cross-border violence and its impact on civilian communities.--Additional ReadingBordering on Peace: Evaluating the impact of the India-Pakistan Ceasefire by Surya Valliappan KrishnaCaught in the Crossfire: Tension and Trade Along the Line of Control by Surya Valliappan KrishnaSending the Right Signal: Telecom Connectivity along the Line of Control by Surya Valliappan KrishnaMental Health on the Line (of Control) by Surya Valliappan Krishna--🎙️ Check out our podcast, Interpreting India available now on YouTube, Spotify, and iTunes!Home: https://interpreting-india.simplecast.com/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/51yeOb8SimMIPe2KgIUQ8gApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/interpreting-india/id1476357131YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeXQMWQXRkJXF71nDiX9LhlXiSkhR8JJT--Carnegie India Socials:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carnegieindia/ (@CarnegieIndia)Twitter: https://twitter.com/CarnegieIndiaWebsite: https://carnegieindia.orgYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CarnegieIndia/

India’s patterns of urban growth came under sharp focus during the Covid-19 pandemic. Many highlighted the poor quality of urban services as contributors to the spread of the same. The pandemic laid bare many pre-existing deficiencies in urban governance that have continued to plague India’s urban areas.As India continues to grow and urbanize, the municipal bodies that govern our cities are increasing in relevance. There is a huge diversity of municipal bodies in India—from nagar panchayats or town panchayats at the lowest level to municipalities and municipal corporations. In addition, we have specialised bodies like the DDA in Delhi and the MMRDA in Mumbai responsible for urban planning and development.Cities also have specialized bodies for water and sewerage, transport, and electricity services. The composition, lines of responsibility and accountability, and the manner of appointment and selection varies for each type of body. In most cases, both the state and the local governments have complementary or overlapping powers with respect to such services. And, few municipal bodies are completely financially autonomous of state governments and completely responsible to the residents of the municipality.Given this institutional structure for urban governance, how do we achieve better outcomes in terms of service delivery? Do we need to change how these institutions are designed and their composition and powers? Or are there other solutions that we should explore? In this episode of Interpreting India, Matthew Glasser joins Anirudh Burman to answer these questions.--Episode ContributorsMatthew Glasser is currently the director for municipal law and finance at the Centre for Urban Law and Finance in Africa. Prior to this, he has been the lead urban specialist for the World Bank and has also worked extensively in India and the United States. He has authored a World Bank report titled “Institutional Models for Governance of Urban Services”.Anirudh Burman is an associate research director and fellow at Carnegie India. He works on key issues relating to public institutions, public administration, the administrative and regulatory state, and state capacity.--Additional ReadingInstitutional Models for Governance of Urban Services: Volume 1—Synthesis Report December 2021 by Matthew GlasserUnderstanding Institutions and Accountability Mechanisms in Urban Governance by Anirudh Burman--🎙️ Check out our podcast, Interpreting India available now on YouTube, Spotify, and iTunes!Home: https://interpreting-india.simplecast.com/Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/51yeOb8SimMIPe2KgIUQ8gApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/interpreting-india/id1476357131YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeXQMWQXRkJXF71nDiX9LhlXiSkhR8JJT--Carnegie India Socials:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carnegieindia/ (@CarnegieIndia)Twitter: https://twitter.com/CarnegieIndiaWebsite: https://carnegieindia.orgYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CarnegieIndia/

Welcome to a new season of Interpreting India! Last year, amid the shadow of the coronavirus pandemic, precarious geopolitical relations, and a rapidly evolving technological landscape, the second season of Interpreting India explored the many challenges and opportunities that India will confront in the coming decade. This year as well, we at Carnegie India will continue to bring voices from India and around the world to examine the role of technology, the economy, and international security in shaping India’s future as geopolitical realignments, sustainable growth, healthcare financing, inclusive digital transformations, climate change, urbanization, supply chain disruptions, and several other critical global matters envelope the world in light of India’s G20 presidency.--🎙️ Check out our podcast, Interpreting India available now on YouTube, Spotify, and iTunes!Home: https://interpreting-india.simplecast.com/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeXQMWQXRkJXF71nDiX9LhlXiSkhR8JJTSpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/51yeOb8SimMIPe2KgIUQ8gApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/interpreting-india/id1476357131--Carnegie India Socials:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carnegieindia/ (@CarnegieIndia)Twitter: https://twitter.com/CarnegieIndiaWebsite: https://carnegieindia.orgYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CarnegieIndia/

2022 has been a year of geopolitical conflict and tensions. If we were expecting a quieter end to the year, then we were apparently mistaken. On December 9, Chinese and Indian troops had a face-off along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Tawang sector of Arunachal Pradesh. While we don’t have many details yet, it appears that a few hundred soldiers were involved in a physical scuffle, and some thirty to forty, on both sides, sustained injuries. The Indian defence minister, Rajnath Singh, told the Parliament that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army troops had tried to transgress the LAC in this area and were prevented from doing so. Two days after this incident, the local commanders of the Indian Army and the People’s Liberation Army met to discuss the issue. Though it is unclear what, if anything, has been agreed upon to restore tranquility. The relations between India and China have been in deep freeze since May 2020, when troops of the two sides had clashed along the LAC in Ladakh. Both sides have since enhanced their military deployment and upgraded their logistical infrastructure along the LAC. Arunachal Pradesh has several points where the two sides have different perceptions of where the LAC runs, and both sides patrol up to the line they claim. Apropos the recent standoff, the Indian Ministry of Defence has noted that this has been the case in the Tawang sector since 2006. How do we understand China’s posture and actions along the LAC in recent years? Is a purely bilateral framework adequate to grasp Beijing’s motivations, or are larger considerations at work? And, what are India’s options in dealing with Chinese activism along the LAC? In an interesting coincidence, just as the news of the recent face-off hit the headlines a couple of days ago, Carnegie India published an important paper by Mr. Vijay Gokhale titled “A Historical Evolution of China’s India Policy: Lessons for India-China Relations”. While much has been written about India-China relations, most of it tends to be from the Indian perspective. We have few assessments of how Beijing has seen India and sought to deal with it. You can access Mr. Gokhale's excellent paper here, in which he traces and analyzes the arc of Chinese policy towards India from 1949 to the present day.In this special episode of Interpreting India, Vijay Gokhale joins Srinath Raghavan to discuss Mr. Gokhale's paper and the increasingly fraught relationship between India and China, in light of the recent clash between Indian and Chinese troops along the Line of Actual Control in the Tawang sector of Arunachal Pradesh. --Episode ContributorsVijay Gokhale is a nonresident senior fellow at Carnegie India. He retired from the Indian Foreign Service in January 2020 after a diplomatic career that spanned thirty-nine years. He has served as both the foreign secretary of India (from January 2018 to January 2020) and as India’s ambassador to China (from January 2016 to October 2017). He has worked extensively on matters relating to the Indo-Pacific region with a special emphasis on Chinese politics and diplomacy. Mr. Gokhale is the author of three books: Tiananmen Square: The Making of a Protest, The Long Game: How the Chinese Negotiate with India, and most recently After Tiananmen: The Rise of China. Srinath Raghavan is a nonresident senior fellow at Carnegie India. He is also a professor of International Relations and History at Ashoka University. His primary research focus is on the contemporary and historical aspects of India’s foreign and security policies. He is the author of War and Peace in Modern India: A Strategic History of the Nehru Years (2010), and 1971: A Global History of the Creation of Bangladesh (2013), and co-authored Non-Alignment 2.0: A Foreign and Strategic Policy for India in the 21st Century (2013), India’s War: The Making of Modern South Asia, 1939 – 45 (2016), and, most recently, The Most Dangerous Place: A History of the United States in South Asia (2018).--🎙️ Check out our podcast, Interpreting India available now on YouTube, Spotify, and iTunes!Home: https://interpreting-india.simplecast.com/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLeXQMWQXRkJXF71nDiX9LhlXiSkhR8JJTSpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/51yeOb8SimMIPe2KgIUQ8gApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/in/podcast/interpreting-india/id1476357131--Carnegie India Socials:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carnegieindia/ (@CarnegieIndia)Twitter: https://twitter.com/CarnegieIndiaWebsite: https://carnegieindia.orgYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/CarnegieIndia/