Nothing But The Truth

In this episode, Editorial Director (Publishing) Raj Chengappa lists the 10 Big Things India needs to do in Amrit Kaal to become a developed country by 2047.

What would it take for India to be a developed nation when it celebrates 100 years of Independence?

A developed nation is defined as a  country that demonstrates sustainable economic growth with a robust and has an efficient transport and communications infrastructure. It necessarily entails a well-rounded human development index, reflecting a uniformly high standard of living with a healthy and well-educated citizenry. These countries have a high per capita incomes averaging $20,000 (nearly Rs 16.7 lakh) annually or more. Currently there are around 37 countries that are identified as developed countries.

India currently has a per capita income of $2,400 (Rs 2 lakh), which, according to the World Bank standard, puts us in the class of lower-middle-income economies, where the per capita income ranges from $1,136 to $4,465 (approximately Rs 94,400-Rs 3.7 lakh). We are, therefore, in the same boat as Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

The per capita income in China, whose GDP at $18 trillion is nearly six times India’s $3.4 trillion and whose population has now become second to ours, is $12,800 (approx. Rs 10.6 lakh). That places it in the upper-middle-income category but not in the league of developed nations.

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Produced by Anna Priyadarshini

Sound mix by Kapil Dev Singh

For close to three months now Manipur has been burning. The law-and-order machinery of the state has completely collapsed. There is now a virtual civil war between the two dominant communities in the state: The Meiteis and the Kukis. The state police force have taken sides. As a result heavily armed vigilantes from both communities now impose their writ on the districts that they have a majority in.

What is evident is that a series of blunders were omitted both by the state and Central authorities that led to such a tragic and shameful deterioration of the state.

Why cant the Centre ask Biren Singh to go? After all he is presiding over a failed state? The final resort is President’s rule – why shouldn’t the Centre have imposed it? And, what do we expect next?

To discuss why things have gone so terribly wrong in Manipur and what needs to be done, Editorial Director (Publishing) Raj Chengappa is joined by India Today magazine’s executive editor Kaushik Deka. Kaushik is an acknowledged expert in Northeastern Affairs and is the editor of India Today’s website for the region. He has also just returned after spending a week in Manipur travelling around the region and talking to a cross section of people. Besides, he has written a cover story for India Today magazine on the subject in the latest issue.

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Produced by Anna Priyadarshini

Sound mix by Sachin Dwivedi

Till now the start-up sector has been the pride of India. India now has the third largest start-up eco-system in the world, next only to the US and China. It has as many as 108 Unicorns or those start-ups that have a valuation of more than one billion dollars. Again, this number is the third largest in the world. We have all become familiar with their names. Byjus, Meeshu, Oyo, Ola, Unacademy, Nyka, Swiggy’s, Zomato and Pharmeasy are just some examples.

But, unfortunately, this success story is in deep trouble and many of these famed start-ups are experiencing a steep fall in valuations.

So why did this sector lose its sheen? What caused the fall? And what can be done about it?

In this episode of Nothing But The Truth, Editorial Director (Publishing) Raj Chengappa is joined by Tech Guru Kris Gopalakrishnan who explains why the valuation and funding of Indian start-ups have plummeted and what are his mantras for success.

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Produced by Anna Priyadarshini

Sound mix by Sachin Dwivedi

India launched its ambitious Chandrayaan-3 mission to the Moon. The spacecraft launched aboard India's heaviest rocket, Launch vehicle Mark-III a.k.a LVM3 on a journey to the Moon. The spacecraft will complete the 3,84,000 kilometers-long journey in nearly 45 days to attempt a soft-landing on the Moon by the end of August.

In this episode of Nothing But The Truth, Editorial Director (Publishing) Raj Chengappa lists the exciting experiments Indian space scientists have lined up when it lands on the lunar surface. 

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Produced by Anna Priyadarshini

Sound mix by Kapil Dev Singh

The Bhartiya Janata Party or the BJP delivered a political masterstroke in Maharashtra last week that stunned the Opposition parties. A year ago on June 30, it broke the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government that had been ruling the state since 2019 and formed its own government. This is it did by splitting the Shiv Sena and winning over Eknath Shinde and band of 39 Shiv Sena MLAs an anointing him chief minister of the new alliance that they formed with it.

On July 2, BJP played another ace by weaning away the leader of the Opposition Ajit Pawar along with a major chunk of the National Congress Party or NCP. Ajit Pawar was made a deputy chief minister and eight others NCP MLAs were sworn in as cabinet ministers.

So, in this episode of Nothing But the Truth, Editorial Director (Publishing) Raj Chengappa analyses why the strike against the NCP in Maharashtra is part of the larger BJP strategy to win the 2024 General Election.

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Produced by Anna Priyadarshini

Sound mix by Kapil Dev Singh

Analysing the chances of the nascent national alliance of 15 Opposition parties to defeat the BJP in the 2024 General Election. Listen in!

What the quantum leap in Indo-US ties holds for the future and the caveats. Listen in!

In a defining moment for India’s sportswomen, star wrestlers grapple with prejudice to bring WFI president and BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh to book for alleged sexual offences. Listen in!

The Inside Story of one of the worst rail accidents in India: what went wrong, who is to blame, and what needs to be done to improve rail safety. Listen in!

Raj Chengappa decodes the secret sauce behind PM Narendra Modi's extraordinary leadership as he completes four years of his second term. Listen in!