In Focus by The Hindu

The Delhi winter used to be something everyone looked forward to. But over the past decade, Delhiites have come to dread the winter months due to toxic air quality, which have been linked to a spate of health issues.  

The government has developed a Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP), and a Winter Action Plan to tackle air pollution. But these measures --- seasonal and crisis-oriented in nature -- have failed to improve the air quality beyond the ‘poor’ level in the October to January period. This year, Delhi’s air quality is expected to be even more toxic compared to previous years due to climate-related factors and meteorological phenomena such as a delayed La Nina.  

What is the link between climate change and air quality in Delhi? Is an emission-focussed approach feasible any longer? And what new strategies and policies are needed so that northern India doesn’t suffocate every winter?  

Guest: Dr Gufran Beig, Chair Professor at NIAS (IISc) and Founder Project Director, SAFAR

Host: G. Sampath, Social Affairs Editor, The Hindu.

Edited by Jude Francis Weston

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The Union Health Ministry issued a set of draft guidelines on a subject that has mostly remained somewhat taboo in India: passive euthanasia. The guidelines have stated that doctors should take considered decisions on the withdrawal of life support in terminally ill patients, or consider not giving life support measures in such patients – under certain conditions.

This is not the first time passive euthanasia has come up in recent times – despite India not having any formal legislation around it, the Supreme Court allowed for it in a decision in 2018, stating that people had a right to die with dignity. The Court also allowed for citizens to make living wills or advanced medical directives.

So what is passive euthanasia? Following the Supreme Court decision have living wills been made and are these being implemented in hospitals? What is the role of palliative medicine in end of life care and support? How can doctors and families ensure patients have compassionate and dignified deaths?

Guest: Dr M R Rajagopal, chairman Emeritus of Pallium India and Adjunct Professor of Global Oncology, Queen's University, Canada

Host: Zubeda Hamid

Edited by Jude Francis Weston

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Last week Israel killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in aerial strikes over a southern suburb of Beirut, raising fears of a sharp escalation and expansion of the conflict across the region.

Even after the killing of the Hezbollah chief along with a host of senior commanders, Israel has kept up its bombardment of Lebanon and Beirut. Hezbollah spokespersons have defiantly stated that they are ready for a land invasion from Israel. Meanwhile, the US has committed to additional troop deployments in the region. And yesterday, in a video message addressed directly to the people of Iran, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised that Iran will “finally be free” and that moment will come “sooner than people think”.

What are the larger implications of the Nasrallah assassination? Can Hezbollah survive this loss? And what is Israel’s end game in Lebanon?

Guest: Iftikhar Gilani, a senior journalist who has reported for three decades from South Asia and the Middle East and is currently based in Ankara.

Host: G. Sampath, Social Affairs Editor, The Hindu.

Edited by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian.

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What’s a quick measure of how healthy you are? Most people would say Body Mass Index or BMI. But increasingly, experts have come to the conclusion that BMI has several limitations. Why? For one thing it was made using data from 19th century Europeans and does not work well across different populations. For another, it does not tell you the composition of your weight, or crucially, where that weight is located. Indians are genetically predisposed to putting on more weight around the abdomen region, and it is this fat that puts at risk of various diseases including diabetes. And this where another index comes in – the Body Roundness Index or BRI. Devised in 2013, studies over the last decade have now shown that BRI may be a better predictor of what health risks you may face. BRI, unlike BMI, takes your waist circumference into account, essentially letting you know if you are too round, and therefore unhealthy.

How does the BRI calculation work? What has research about it shown so far? And is it a better metric for Indians to use?

Guest: Diana Thomas, the mathematician who devised BRI. Dr Thomas is a a full professor in the Department of Mathematical Sciences at the United States Military Academy, West Point

Host: Zubeda Hamid

Edited by Jude Francis Weston

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India has made chess history winning both the team golds at the Budapest Olympiad, which saw participation from a staggering 193 teams in the Open section and 181 women’s teams. In the Open section, the Indian men’s team of D Gukesh, R Praggnanandha, Arjun Erigaisi, Vidit Gujrathi and P Harikrishna were so dominant they finished a good four points clear of the second-placed USA.

The Indian women’s route to the team gold was much tighter. They had to win their match on the final day, which they did.

What does the double triumph mean for Indian chess? What went into this historic achievement? And how can India build on this success?

Guest: Rakesh Rao, former Deputy Editor with The Hindu’s Sports Bureau.

Host: G. Sampath, Social Affairs Editor, The Hindu.

Edited by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian.

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Today we are at the Hindu discussing a topic which has been making news since yesterday. It's been over 24 hours since Akshay Shinde, who was accused in the Badlapur rape case, was shot dead in a police encounter. The police have claimed that he was trying to run away and that he snatched the service revolver and thereafter the police had to shoot him down. This incident has clearly snowballed into a political controversy, not just in Maharashtra but far and wide. The Badlapur case has been in news for quite some time now after reports emerged from the couple about few minor girls who were sexually assaulted, allegedly by Akshay Shinde. The most important question about the incident that has been making news since yesterday is what does the law say when it comes to the security of the accused? 

Guest: Mihir Desai, senior advocate, national vice president PUCL

Host: Vinaya Deshpande Pandit 

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Anurag Kumara Dissanayake of the JVP has been elected as the 9th President of Sri Lanka. The results clearly signal a dramatic change from the politics of the past in Sri Lanka.

In this episode of In Focus, we decode the Sri Lankan presidential election results. Nirupama Subramanian, and Meera Srinivasan provide in-depth analysis on what the outcome means for the country’s political landscape.

Host: Amit Baruah

Edited by Jude Francis Weston

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On June 5 this year, when NASA astronauts Barry Wilmore and Sunita Williams flew the Boeing Starliner crew capsule to the International Space Station, they expected to be back within about eight days. Now however, these seasoned astronauts will remain in space for eight months – until February 2025. What happened? Their capsule which on its first flight with a human crew was not deemed safe enough to bring them back after helium leaks and other malfunctions developed. Eventually, the Starliner capsule returned to Earth without its crew. Barry and Sunita are now scheduled to return in a SpaceX crew capsule next year.

So what happened to the Boeing Starliner? Who is on the ISS now, and is there enough space and adequate supplies for all of them? What happens to the bodies of astronauts who stay in space for extended durations and how does it affect their health? When will the ISS be decommissioned and will India be part of the next, new ISS?

Guest: T.V. Venkateswaran is a science communicator and visiting faculty member at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Mohali

Host: Zubeda Hamid

Edited by Jude Francis Weston

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The International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) is a Stockholm-based intergovernmental organisation that advocates for democracy worldwide. It has come out with a report on the health of democracies. Titled, ‘The Global State of Democracy 2024: Strengthening the Legitimacy of Elections in a Time of Radical Uncertainty’, the report has found that while one in four countries have improved in democratic metrics, a greater proportion – four out of nine – have declined.

It also says that electoral participation has declined, one in three voters live in countries where the quality of elections has declined, and in what is clearly a dangerous trend, between 2020 and 2024, in one out of five elections, the losing candidate or party rejected the electoral outcome. Interestingly, the Report also found that disputes about the credibility of elections centred mostly on voting irregularities and vote counting.

Coming to country rankings, the Report finds that India has declined on all four major categories of evaluation – Representation, Rights, Rule of Law and Participation. India is ranked 71 on Representation (a year-on-year decline by 1 place), 116th on rights (slipping down by 6 places), 80th on Rule of Law (down by 4), and 104 in Participation (down by 13 places). What is behind this democratic erosion – not just in India but across the globe? Why is voter turnout falling worldwide? And what can be done to reverse these worrying trends?

Guest: Leena Rikkila Tamang, Director for Asia and the Pacific at International IDEA.

Host: G. Sampath, Social Affairs Editor, The Hindu.

Edited by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian.

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Many African and Asian countries, including India, are leaning towards biofortification of crops. It is the process by which the nutrient density of food crops is increased by various means without sacrificing characteristic that is preferred by consumers or farmers. Thus, biofortified crops are more nutrient-dense than non-biofortified varieties.  

Experts believe that these crops can help end 'hidden hunger' or micronutrient malnutrition. 

Research is underway to add iron, Vitamin A, and Zinc to humble staple foods. Iron-biofortification of beans, cowpea and pearl millet, zinc-biofortification of maize, rice, and wheat, and pro-vitamin A carotenoid-biofortification of cassava, maize, rice, and sweet potato are currently underway and at different stages of development across the world. 

In August, PM Narendra Modi released 109 high yielding, climate resilient and biofortified varieties of crops at India Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi. So, How can India get the best use of the process? And, what are the challenges involved in it? 

Guest: Suneetha Kadiyala, Professor of Global Nutrition, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine 

Host: Nivedita V 

Edited by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian 

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