BIC TALKS

Author and scholar Harini Nagendra joins host Pavan Srinath and BIC's Raghu Tenkayala to discuss how to re-wild India's cities, for the World Environment Day episode of BIC Talks. The discussion moves beyond stale formulations of environment pitted versus development. The conversation centres around how urban jungles can also allow for nature in all its glory and 'wildness' to coexist and become an integral part of any city, from roadside trees, to essential lakes to green zones and protected areas at the edge of growing cities. Harini Nagendra is a Professor of Sustainability at Azim Premji University, and is the author of numerous books and several papers on the role of nature in cities. Her books include Cities and Canopies: Trees in Indian Cities (2019, authored with Seema Mundoli) and Nature in the City: Bengaluru in the Past, Present, and Future (2016) BIC Talks is brought to you by the Bangalore International Centre. Visit the BIC website for show notes, links and more information about the guest.

Oncologist Dr. Hari Menon talks to host Pavan Srinath about how treatable cancer is today, and a how cancer diagnosis is no longer always terminal. Dr. Hari Menon is the director of hemato-oncology at Cytecare Cancer Hospital in Yelahanka, Bangalore. Previously, he was a Professor at the Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai. Don't miss filmmaker and theatre practitioner Ranjan Kamath's readings of his poems, 'Planet Under Repair" and 'Home Thoughts from Unknown Indians' in this episode of BIC Talks. BIC Talks is brought to you by the Bangalore International Centre. Visit the BIC website for show notes, links and more information about our guests.

Author, environmentalist and biochemist Pranay Lal talks to host Pavan Srinath about the fascinating world of viruses, their natural history, their biology, and their role in maintaining human and global systems. Humans have only discovered about 5,600 species of viruses till date, and a small number of them are known to cause lethal diseases in humans. During the COVID-19 epidemic, it is useful to take a step back and understand how sub-microscopic, not-fully-alive viruses shape so many aspects of the world as we know it. Pranay Lal takes listeners on a rhapsodic journey through the world of viruses and paints vivid pictures of them as cosmopolitan colonisers, as regulators of global Oxygen and Carbon Dioxide, of microbes in our own digestive systems, and as even the cause of one of the oldest economic bubbles in human history – Tulip Mania. Pranay Lal is a biochemist and an artist, who works on public health and the environment. He is the author of Indica, A Deep Natural History of the Indian Subcontinent. BIC Talks is brought to you by the Bangalore International Centre. Visit the BIC website for show notes, links and more information about the guest.

Medical Scientist Dr. Gagandeep Kang talks to host Pavan Srinath about ongoing drug development efforts against COVID-19. She discusses the challenges of developing antiviral medicines and lays out the unprecedented efforts taking place to test drugs old and new, against the novel Coronavirus. In case you missed it, Dr. Kang was previously on Episode 8 of BIC Talks, 'A Quest for Immunity', to talk about vaccine development against COVID-19. Dr. Gagandeep Kang is a 2016 Infosys Prize laureate, and is currently the Executive Director of the Translational Health Science and Technology Institute. Dr Kang is a key contributor to the understanding of diarrhoeal diseases, rotavirus epidemiology and vaccinology in India, with a stellar career at Christian Medical College Vellore. She is also the Chair of the National Technical Advisory Group for Immunisation and the Vice Chair for the Coalition of Epidemic Preparedness and Innovations. BIC Talks is brought to you by the Bangalore International Centre. Visit the BIC website for show notes, links and more information about the guest.

Indian Ambassador Nirupama Menon Rao and Pakistani singer/writer Ali Sethi engage on the meaning of South Asian identity today. Is there a logic that makes for greater South Asian integration? South Asia is an integer despite the political and security issues that create divergent narratives concerning the region. But there are numerous historical, cultural, ethnic and linguistic ties that link people across the region. This podcast explores the connections. In collaboration with The South Asian Symphony Foundation.

Raj Cherubal, CEO of Chennai Smart City Limited, talks to host Pavan Srinath and Ravichandar about his life as an outsider, now working in an executive role within government. Raj Cherubal is the first Smart City CEO who is not from the Government services. Raj shares what they have been able to accomplish so far, and situates the smart city programme within the larger governance system of a metropolitan city like Chennai. Chennai Smart City Limited is a Special Purpose Vehicle or SPV that was set up to house all the smart city initiatives in the city. Before Raj's appointment as its CEO in 2017, he was the director of projects at Chennai City Connect. With a background in physics and nuclear engineering, Raj has been actively involved in civic projects in Chennai and in Indian civil society for over a decade. His past stints include key positions at the Centre for Civil Society and Janaagraha. Ranjan Kamath is a filmmaker and a theatre practitioner, and at the end of the episode, do listen to Ranjan reading his poem, 'Alone …or Lonely?' Visit the Bangalore International Centre website for more links and show notes for the episode, and to stay up to date on livestreams, upcoming podcast episodes and future events.

Arghya Sengupta from the Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy, talks to host Pavan Srinath about the Aarogya Setu app. He discusses how the Aarogya Setu ("Health Bridge" or "Bridge to Health") app works, how it can benefit health services as well as app users, its trade-offs on privacy, and how its use should be voluntary and not mandated by rules. Aarogya Setu is a COVID-19 tracking app launched by the Government of India on April 2, 2020 and has been downloaded over a 100 million times till date. Arghya and a team from Vidhi assisted the government in drafting a Data and Knowledge Sharing Protocol for the app, which was released on May 11, 2020. Arghya is the Founder and Research Director of the Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy, a legal think tank based in Delhi and Bangalore. Arghya was also a member of the Justice B.N. Srikrishna-led committee of experts on a data protection framework for India. Visit the Bangalore International Centre website for more links and show notes for the episode, and to stay up to date on livestreams, upcoming podcast episodes and future events.

M.R. Madhavan, President of PRS Legislative Research, talks to host Pavan Srinath about how the Indian State and Union legislatures have been missing in action during the COVID-19 pandemic. While the UK, New Zealand and other democracies have had an active legislature, the Indian parliament was not addressing the pandemic until the lockdown, and has not acted since. Madhavan suggests how India can pass new laws, oversee the executive and carry out its constitutional role during the ongoing pandemic. MR Madhavan is the President and Co-Founder of PRS Legislative Research, one of India's most unique and impactful think-tanks. PRS tracks the functioning of the Indian Parliament and works with MPs across political parties and MLAs from various states. PRS provides research support to legislators via analysis of legislative issues, by providing fellowships to research assistants and more. During COVID-19, PRS has been tracking over 4,000 government orders and rules till date across State and Union levels on their website. Visit the Bangalore International Centre website for more links and show notes for the episode, and to stay up to date on livestreams, upcoming podcast episodes and future events.

Journalist Rohini Mohan talks to Clifton D'Rozario and Rajendran Narayanan on the dire challenges faced by millions of migrant workers stranded across India during the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown. Rohini Mohan (@rohini_mohan) is an award-winning independent journalist based in Bangalore, writing on human rights and politics. Clifton D' Rozario (@clifroz) is a practicing advocate with Manthan Law, and is the National Secretary, All India Central Council of Trade Unions (AICCTU) and the State Secretary CPI (ML) Liberation.Rajendran Narayanan (@rajendran_naray) is an assistant professor at Azim Premji University, and a volunteer for the Stranded Workers Action Network (SWAN). Errata: 50 crore (500 million) migrants mentioned is ~ 10 crores (100 million) Visit the Bangalore International Centre website for more links and show notes for the episode, and to stay up to date on livestreams, upcoming podcast episodes and future events.

Journalist Krishna Prasad talks to Ravichandar about the disturbing present and future of news media in India. India needs better news now more than ever, but media houses have been struggling with business models and with credible journalism well before the COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdown. Reporters without Borders ranks India at 142 out of 180 countries on press freedom in 2020. KP discusses challenges such as regulated newsprint, disappearing ad revenue, reduced readership, poor pricing and choked distribution networks. He discusses how Indian news outlets can remain relevant in 2020 and beyond, how they can shift online, invest in good journalism and more. Krishna Prasad is a journalist and was the Editor-in-Chief of Outlook Magazine from 2012-2016. Since 2006, he has been the force behind Churumuri, Indian Journalism Review and Kosambari, some of India's most popular and insightful blogs. Churumuri and Indian Journalism Review (formerly, Sans Serif) remain active to this day. He recently started J-POD, a podcast on journalism, with 17 episodes with a host of journalists and editors across English, Hindi, Kannada and other language media, till date. You can follow his work on Twitter at @churumuri, and at churumuri dot blog. Visit the Bangalore International Centre website to stay up to date on livestreams, upcoming podcast episodes and future events.