BIC TALKS

Economist Dr. Indira Rajaraman talks to host Pavan Srinath about what immediate fiscal action can be taken by Union and State governments in India, as the month of May 2020 begins, and India exits the COVID-19 lockdown in a phased manner. Dr Rajaraman shares how disaster relief funds can be used and deployed rapidly to all states, how governments in India need to gain the trust of the trucking and transport industry, and enable them to resume the movement of goods across the country and within states, with a priority on foodgrains and perishable food like fruits and vegetables. She also shares her thoughts on setting fiscal targets for economic recovery, government support for the private sector, the dynamic deployment of testing resources and more. Dr. Indira Rajaraman is an eminent Indian economist and was a Member of the Thirteenth Finance Commission. From 1994 until her retirement in 2007, she held the Reserve Bank of India Chair at the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, Delhi, and from 1976 to 1994 she was on the Economics faculty of the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore. Dr. Rajaraman's research papers have appeared in journals and books published by Elsevier, Springer Verlag, John Wiley, the Brookings Institution and Oxford University Press, on a wide range of development issues. She writes regularly in the financial press. Visit the Bangalore International Centre website to stay up to date on livestreams, upcoming podcast episodes and future events.

Samhita Arni and Gautham Shenoy share their thoughts on pandemic literature and science fiction, and what light they can shed on the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, with host Pavan Srinath. Stories set during pandemics can reveal a lot about human society, conflict, power and politics – from The Iliad, to UR Ananthamurthy's Samskara, to recent science and speculative fiction books written by Cory Doctorow, Emily St. John Mandel, James SA Corey and many others. Samhita Arni is the author of four books, and retells mythological stories. Her most recent book is The Prince. Gautham Shenoy is a columnist and critic, and writes the SpecFix column in the Bangalore Mirror, and used to write a science fiction column in Factor Daily. Both are avid and enthusiastic readers of science fiction. While neither Sam nor Gautham recommend reading excessive pandemic fiction during the summer of 2020, here are some of their favourite stories. We welcome our listeners to share the most poignant pandemic fiction that they have come across, as well. Samhita Arni:The Expanse. Book series by James SA Corey & ongoing show on Amazon Prime VideoSamskara, by UR Ananthamurthy (originally written in Kannada)Little Brother, by Cory Doctorow Gautham Shenoy:Station Eleven, by Emily St. John MandelEarth Abides, by George R. StewartThe Plague, by Albert CamusThe Andromeda Strain, by Michael Crichton Other stories explored in the episode:The Iliad, by HomerThe Decameron, by Giovanni Boccacio Brave New World, by Aldous HuxleyThe Masque of Red Death, by Edgar Allen PoeThe Masque of Red Death, by Cory Doctorow

Arundhati Nag, Nandita Das and V Ravichandar join host Pavan Srinath for a conversation on the future of arts and culture. They discuss how artists from all walks of Indian society are managing in these challenging times, and what the future might hold for artists, art spaces, philanthropy and funding, for what many may see as a low priority. Arundhati Nag is an celebrated film and theatre actor, a Padma Shree and a Sangeet Natak Akademi Award recipient, and the founder of Ranga Shankara in Bangalore. Nandita Das is an actor, director and social advocate, a two-time jury member at the Cannes Film Festival, a recipient of the Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters) by the French Government, and the first Indian to be inducted into the International Hall of Fame of the International Women's Forum in Washington, DC. 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 the development of vaccines, ongoing efforts on COVID-19, and the challenges of developing immunity and resistance against the pandemic. More than a hundred vaccine candidates are being developed across the world, with several novel vaccine efforts entering human clinical trials in April 2020. Dr. Kang unpacks this unprecedented effort at vaccine development, and discusses the limits of our existing scientific knowledge about COVID-19. Dr Kang shares her thoughts on India's role in global vaccine security, and discusses our current knowledge on human immunity to the SARS-COV-2 virus. Dr Gagandeep Kang is the Executive Director of the Translational Health Science and Technology Institute. She is an award-winning medical scientist who 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 - https://bit.ly/3eDENHx.

Washington D.C. based journalist Chidanand Rajghatta talks to V Ravichandar and Pavan Srinath. New York City and the United States of America have become the global centre of the Coronavirus pandemic in April 2020, with over half a million people testing positive for SARS-COV-2 across the US, and a loss of over 20,000 people. New York City alone accounts for nearly half the affected people in the USA. Chidanand Rajghatta is a journalist, foreign affairs columnist and a Bangalorean – who has been writing for Indians from Washington DC for about 25 years. He discusses how the world's largest economy and greatest power has responded to the pandemic threat so far. He shares his views on the kind of leadership that has been seen at the State and Federal level in the United States. He also talks about the upcoming US presidential elections, and US-India relations during this crisis. 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.

Dr. Shyam K. Bhat and Anna Chandy in conversation with host Pavan Srinath. Mental health remains a stigma for most Indians today. How can Indians overcome anxiety and depression? What are the new challenges posed by a global pandemic, economic uncertainty and an indefinite lockdown? Episode 6 of BIC Talks explores various questions and misconceptions around mental health in India. Dr. Shyam K. Bhat is a Physician and Psychiatrist with over 20 years of experience, and has a special interest in holistic and integrative methods of treatment. Anna Chandy is a social psychologist and counsellor. Shyam and Anna are both trustees of the Live Love Laugh Foundation against depression. Visit the BIC Talks home page on the Bangalore international Centre website for show notes, links and more information about the guest. You can also find it at https://bit.ly/3ce8Tzp

The world in 2020 is facing an unprecedented health crisis and a daunting economic crisis. India has a festering banking crisis that makes dealing with the economic fallout of COVID-19 all the more difficult. Narayan Ramachandran talks to host Pavan Srinath and unpacks the twin economic crises and draws useful historical parallels. On Episode 6 of BIC Talks, Narayan argues for an Indian Marshall Plan, extensive reforms, broad approaches, and charts a path ahead for India. Narayan writes a fortnightly column in Mint called 'A Visible Hand'. Visit the BIC Talks home page on the Bangalore international Centre website at https://tinyurl.com/seoknpo for show notes, links and more information about the guest.

Ambassador Nirupama Menon Rao talks to historian Narayani Basu about Narayani's latest book: VP Menon: The Unsung Architect of Modern India. Who was VP Menon, and how did history forget the legendary civil servant and statesman? They discuss VP Menon's life and work, his relationships with Nehru, Jinnah and Patel, his involvement in early constitutional reform, the integration of princely states, and his legacy in the creation of modern India.

Dr. H Sudarshan Ballal, Chairman Manipal Hospital in conversation with host, Pavan Srinath. How is a COVID-19 infection different from all the other respiratory illnesses prevalent across India? How can we ensure the maximum availability of medical professionals, hospital beds, ventilators, masks and personal protection equipment (PPEs) needed for a large-scale outbreak? The BIC Talks Podcast is brought to you by the Bangalore International Centre.

Dr. Vijay Chandru, Chairman Strand Life Sciences is in conversation with Pavan Srinath. Dr. Chandru talks about the nature of the SARS-COV-2 genome and the race to ramp up testing in India.