3 Things

The headlines of the day by The Indian Express

First, we talk to The Indian Express' Diplomatic Affairs Editor Shubhajit Roy who shares details about the India-European Union Free Trade Agreement which the two sides are currently working on. He talks about the 10 meetings that have been finalised and the first one that will be held in Delhi this week. 

Next, we talk to The Indian Express' Jayprakash Naidu who explains the situation of teachers in the Maoist-affected districts of Chhattisgarh. He shares how teachers are facing suspicion from both the police and the maoists in the region and are facing the brunt of it. (8:28)

Lastly, we talk about the online scams that are duping devotees in the name of The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams or TTD, which manages the famous Sri Venkateswara temple in Tirupati. (14:53)

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Produced and written by Niharika Nanda, Ichha Sharma, and Shashank Bhargava
Edited and mixed by Suresh Pawar

The headlines of the day by The Indian Express

First, The Indian Express’ Yubaraj Ghimire talks about Nepal, where a sweeping social media ban has triggered the country’s most violent protests in years. Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has since resigned.

Next, The Indian Express’ Arun Sharma explains the detention of Mehraj Malik, the Aam Aadmi Party’s lone MLA in Jammu and Kashmir under the Public Safety Act that has raised concerns. (10:20)

And in the end, we look at India’s auto sector, where the recent GST 2.0 reforms were expected to lower car prices but have instead left dealers facing mounting losses. (17:28)

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Written and produced by Shashank Bhargava and Ichha Sharma
Edited and mixed by Suresh Pawar

The headlines of the day by The Indian Express

First, The Indian Express’ National Legal Editor Apurva Vishwanath explains the Delhi High Court’s recent decision to deny bail to Umar Khalid and nine others accused in the 2020 Delhi riots conspiracy case. More than five years after their arrest, the trial is yet to begin.

Next, we turn to Rajasthan, where  The Indian Express’ Hamza Khan discusses a new law that seeks to regulate one of India’s largest coaching industries. (15:19)

Lastly, we look at Nepal, where protests over the government’s sudden social media ban have led to the country’s most intense unrest in years. (28:18)

Hosted by Ichha Sharma
Written and produced by Shashank Bhargava and Ichha Sharma
Edited and mixed by Suresh Pawar

The headlines of the day by The Indian Express

First, we talk to The Indian Express' Deeptiman Tiwary about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's likely visit to Manipur, over two years after the state faced ethnic conflict. He shares the significance of this visit, the current situation in the state and two key announcements that have been made in the run up to the visit. 

Next, we talk to The Indian Express' Divya Goyal about the flood situation in Punjab and how human action has compounded the impact of the floods. She shares how this has been a pattern in the state over the years and how floods are not just the result of heavy rain. (18:33)

Lastly, we talk about a tragic case where two infants allegedly died due to a rat bite while they were admitted in the NICU of the Maharaja Yeshwantrao Hospital in Indore. (30:26)

Hosted by Niharika Nanda
Produced and written by Niharika Nanda, Ichha Sharma, and Shashank Bhargava
Edited and mixed by Suresh Pawar

The headlines of this week by The Indian Express

In the 5th anniversary year of the National Education Policy 2020, the NIPUN Bharat Mission, which was launched a year later- with its emphasis on foundational learning for all children in Grades 1-3 was adopted by many states in the form of their own programmes. Uttar Pradesh was one of the early adopters of an FLN programme across more than 1.1 lakh FLN-grade schools. UP is currently achieving 68% proficiency in Language and 64% proficiency in Math as part of its FLN programme.

Starting with today’s episode, on the occasion of Teachers' Day, The Indian Express in association with Central Square Foundation brings to you a five part series, where we will discuss the importance of Foundational Literacy with experts of the field.

And to learn how UP reached where it is today, we are joined by Vinod Karate, Sr. Project Director, FLN Reforms, CSF and Vaibhav Limaye, who has been embedded with the Samagra Shiksha department in Lucknow, to understand how the change is taking shape.

Hosted and produced by Niharika Nanda
Edited and mixed by Suresh Pawar