In Focus by The Hindu

In recent years, Sri Lanka has endured fuel queues, protests and the fall of the Rajapaksa political dynasty. Ranil Wickremesinghe stepped in and steadied the economy but angered many with austerity and loyalty to the old elite. Now, in a historic first, he’s been arrested for misusing state funds on a UK trip.

At the helm is President Anura Kumara Dissanayake. This son of a farmer and reformist leader has promised honesty and a clean break from the past.

So what does this turning point mean for Sri Lanka’s democracy, economy and its place between India and China?

Guest: Meera Srinivasan, Sri Lanka Correspondent, The Hindu

Host: Anupama Chandrasekaran

Edited and produced by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian

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India-China relations have been bogged down by two major irritants: the border issue, and China’s close military collaboration with Pakistan. But now, both India and China are looking for a reset in bilateral ties. This assumes significance especially in the context of the Trump administration’s 50% tariffs on Indian exports.

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During his Independence Day speech, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a “Deepavali gift” to the people in the form of next-generation Goods and Services Tax (GST) reforms. The Ministry of Finance subsequently said that a large part of these reforms involved moving GST from the current four-tier system to a two-tier structure of 5% and 18%, along with an overall lowering of the average tax rate.

What impact will this proposal have on revenues? And should the States be compensated for revenue loss? Here we discuss the question

Guests: Manoj Mishra, Partner at Grant Thornton Bharat; Pratik Jain, Partner at Price Waterhouse & Co LLP

Host: T.C.A. Sharad Raghavan

Edited by Jude Francis Weston

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Banks and fintechs use Artificial Intelligence to detect fraud in credit scoring, but with new opportunities come new risks, including that of bias and accountability.

The Reserve Bank of India recently released a report called Framework for Responsible and Ethical Enablement of AI (FREE-AI) to regulate the use of AI in the financial sector. The report has seven 'sutras' or guidelines and 26 recommendations to encourage innovation in this space.

Guest: Prof. Prasanna Tantri, Associate Professor of Finance and the Executive Director of the Centre for Analytical Finance at the Indian School of Business 

Host: Nivedita V

Edited by Jude Francis Weston

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Last month, OpenAI, the company that developed ChatGPT made an important change to its popular app: ChatGPT will now avoid offering specific advice on personal issues and it will also prompt users to take breaks in cases of lengthy conversations.

These changes were brought in after the company admitted that ChatGPT fell short of recognising signs of emotional dependency or delusions.

An increasing number of people across the world, are beginning to turn to ChatGPT and other AI chatbots for mental health help. And increasing number of professionals are cases of users whose mental health has been badly affected after the use of chatbots.

What is going on with chatbots and the world of mental health? Is it safe to turn to chatGPT for therapy? What are the risks involved with excessive use or personal disclosures? And how can people use chatbots safely in a world where they are increasingly becoming tools for daily use?

Guest: Soumitra Pathare, director, Centre for Mental Health, Law & Policy, Pune

Host: Zubeda Hamid

Edited by Sharmada Venkatausbramanian

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Since October 2023, more than 200 journalists have been killed in Gaza, a Palestinian territory that has seen extensive destruction, displacement and death. More recently, on August 10, 2025, an Israeli drone strike killed seven reporters in a media tent in Gaza City—underscoring the dangers of telling these stories. With food, water and medicine scarce, and press freedom under siege, the question remains: how can the world protect those who continue risking everything to report the truth?

Guest: Sarah Qudah, Middle East and North Africa Regional Director, Committee to Protect Journalists

Host: Anupama Chandrasekaran

Edited and produced by Jude Francis Weston

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India is one of the most unequal places in the known universe. It combines extreme inequality with extreme exploitation like nowhere else. And yet, the exploited, the poor working classes, have not really risen up in revolt, and it seems like they never will. Why is this so?

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The singles main draw of the US Open kicks off on August 24. Who are the favourites? Who are the dark horses? Can Jannik Sinner sustain his hard court dominance? Or, will Carlos Alcaraz avenge his defeat at Sinner’s hands in Wimbledon this year? Is a Sinner vs Alcaraz final a foregone conclusion, or can the old fox Novak Djokovic crash their party? 

On the women’s side, can Aryna Sabalenka defend her crown or will Iga Swiatek add to her growing tally of majors? And what’s with the new mixed doubles format being launched at this year’s US Open – is it unfair to the doubles pros on the ATP/WTA tour? 

We speak with former pro player and top coach Nandan Bal, who has the rare distinction of having both played for India in the Davis Cup and coached the Indian Davis Cup team.

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The Constitution (One Hundred and Thirtieth Amendment) Bill, 2025, and two allied Bills that extend its applicability to Union Territories and Jammu and Kashmir, were tabled by the government in Parliament yesterday, and they have sparked massive resistance and outrage in the Opposition ranks. 

The Bills enable the removal of Central and State Ministers, as well as the Prime Minister and Chief Minister, if they are arrested on serious criminal charges. If the Bills become law, any CM arrested on serious criminal charges will be out of office within 31 days of arrest. 

The government has justified these Bills as necessary to bring in political morality in public office. The Bills have now been referred to a Joint Committee of Parliament, which will have to submit its report by the Winter session of Parliament. 

What is the rationale behind these Bills? Are they anti-federal and anti-democratic?  And does the government have a realistic of chance of passing them in Parliament?

Guest: Sanjay Hegde, Senor Advocate at the Supreme Court

Host: G. Sampath, Podcast Editor, The Hindu 

Edited and produced by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian 

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A proposal to restructure the World Test Championship (WTC) into a two-tiered system, potentially dividing the 12 Test-playing nations into two groups of six teams, or into two groups of seven and five teams, is gaining traction. While some argue that this system could improve the quality of matches and increase competitiveness by having top teams play each other more often, others worry that lower-ranked teams will get fewer opportunities to play.

Will a two-tiered WTC do more harm than good? Here we discuss the question.

Guests: Deep Dasgputa, former Test cricketer, and cricket broadcaster; Jatin Paranjape, ODI cricketer-turned-sports marketing professional and member of the BCCI’s Cricket Advisory Committee

Host: Amol Karhadkar

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