Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy's Podcast

Farmers began their protest on the borders of Delhi almost two months ago. Their major demand has been a repeal of the three new farm laws which many have termed as ‘anti-farmer’.

In the sixth episode of Season 2 of Justify, Vidhi's podcast on law and politics in India, Dr Arghya Sengupta speaks to Ireena Vittal, a long-time observer of Indian agriculture, on what the new agri laws aim to do, what the major contentions of the protesting farmers are, and on the larger reforms that Indian agriculture needs.

Watch out for Vidhi's quiz, CLATTR, at the end of the episode, and stand a chance to win a gift voucher. Write in your answer and feedback on the episode to [email protected].

Host: Sneha Visakha;

Intro Music: Wehrmut by Godmode;

Outro Music: Opheliea's Blues by Audionautix

In the fourth episode of The Feminist City podcast, we speak with Dr. Naveen Bharathi, Post-Doctoral Fellow at the Center for the Advanced Study of India (CASI), University of Pennsylvania. Naveen’s work is at the intersection of political sociology and political economy of identity and he has worked on spatial segregation in contemporary urban India. Some issues we touch upon are: urbanisation and how cities are segregated on the lines of caste and religion, history of urban development in Bengaluru, housing discrimination and impact of ghettoisation on people’s everyday life.

Explore these questions in the Feminist City podcast series, hosted by Sneha Visakha. You can read more about our guest, Dr. Naveen Bharathi here.

For background reading, we recommend perusing the literature provided below.

Neighbourhood-scale Residential Segregation in Indian Metros, Naveen Bharathi, Deepak Malghan & Andaleeb Rahman

https://www.epw.in/journal/2019/30/notes/neighbourhood-scale-residential-segregation-indian.html

Why Lucknow, Jaipur don’t see communal riots but Delhi and Ahmedabad do, Naveen Bharathi & Kashif-Ul-Huda

https://theprint.in/opinion/why-lucknow-jaipur-dont-see-communal-riots-but-delhi-and-ahmedabad-do/380171/

In Ahmedabad’s Juhapura, exploring the paradoxes of Muslim ghettoisation, Sharik Laliwala, Christophe Jaffrelot & Priyal Thakkar

https://scroll.in/article/983339/in-ahmedabads-juhapura-exploring-the-paradoxes-of-muslim-ghettoisation

Muslims in Indian cities: Degrees of segregation and the elusive ghetto, Raphael Susewind

https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/en/publications/muslims-in-indian-cities(80cf21c9-1c8d-46ea-826d-9b379d255a55).html

Employment, Exclusion and 'Merit' in the Indian IT Industry, Carol Upadhya

https://www.epw.in/journal/2007/20/special-articles/employment-exclusion-and-merit-indian-it-industry.html

Divided Cities Cannot Be Smart Cities, Alok Prasanna Kumar & Srijoni Sen

https://thewire.in/culture/divided-cities-cannot-be-smart-cities

Let’s Talk About Housing Discrimination, Gautam Bhatia

https://thewire.in/culture/lets-talk-about-housing-discrimination

Host: Sneha Visakha;

Intro Music: Wehrmut by Godmode;

Outro Music: Opheliea’s Blues by Audionautix;

In Part 2 of the third episode of The Feminist City podcast series, we speak to Dr. Sarayu Natarajan, Founder, Aapti Institute about their work on women in the platform economy and political participation of women in cities. Some issues we touch upon are: how do women participate in the platform economy, the disproportionate emotional labour women workers shoulder, algorithmic surveillance, gender roles, future of work and finally, engage with questions of political participation and the value of representation.

Explore these questions in the Feminist City podcast series, hosted by Sneha Visakha.

For background reading, we recommend perusing the links provided below.

Readings:

Futures of Workers, Shruti Gupta and Dr Sarayu Natarajan

https://www.aapti.in/blog/futures-of-workers

Covid-19 Calls for Re-Thinking Social Security for India’s Platform Workers, Sneha Visakha

https://vidhilegalpolicy.in/blog/covid-19-calls-for-re-thinking-social-security-for-indias-platform-workers/

Towards A Gender Equal Future of Work for Women, Saloni Atal

https://tandemresearch.org/publications/towards-a-gender-equal-future-of-work-for-women-a-preliminary-case-study-of-women-in-the-gig-economy-in-india-during-covid-19

Cannabis use and its regulation has been in the news over the past few months. The recent Bollywood drug raids too have reignited the debate on the legalisation of cannabis, considering the high prevalence of its use in India.

In the fifth episode of Justify Season 5, Dr Arghya Sengupta discusses with Vidhi researchers Neha Singhal and Naveed Ahmad the extent of cannabis use in India, the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act (NDPS), 1985, and the problems with criminalising cannabis use, drawing on Vidhi's research findings in Mumbai.

Read Vidhi's study 'Criminalisation Leads To Exploitation: The Mumbai Story No One Knows About' that looks at how the NDPS Act leads to the exploitation of the marginalised: https://vidhilegalpolicy.in/research/criminalisation-leads-to-exploitation-the-mumbai-story-no-one-knows-about/

Watch out for Vidhi's legal quiz, CLATTR, at the end of the episode, and stand a chance to win an Amazon voucher. Write in your answer and feedback on the episode to [email protected].

Host: Sneha Visakha;

Intro Music: Wehrmut by Godmode;

Outro Music: Opheliea's Blues by Audionautix

In Part 1 of the third episode of The Feminist City podcast series, we speak to Dr. Sarayu Natarajan, Founder, Aapti Institute about her work on challenges faced by migrant workers in accessing housing and other basic services in the city. Some issues we touch upon are: how do migrant communities navigate the city, what are the patterns in female migration and what are the specific challenges they face in participating in urban areas, the critical role of public provision of urban infrastructure and services for migrant women, and how the absence of the state providing basic services leads to private markets engaging in exploitative profiteering for access to basic urban infrastructure for vulnerable communities.

Explore these questions in the Feminist City podcast series, hosted by Sneha Visakha.

For background reading, we recommend perusing the links provided below.

Readings:

Where and How Are Indian Women Migrating? Economic and Political Weekly

https://www.epw.in/engage/article/where-and-how-are-indian-women-migrating-route-map

The Invisible Majority - Women form 70 per cent of total internal migrants, but public policy is blind to their concerns The Indian Express

https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/the-invisible-majority-women-urban-migrant-workers-5185862/

Women Hold Up Economy Yet Continue To Disappear From Workforce, Namita Bhandare, IndiaSpend

https://www.indiaspend.com/womenwork/women-hold-up-the-economy-yet-they-continue-to-disappear-from-workforce-701865?type=xhr&startIndex=3#:~:text=But%20between%202001%20and%202011,58%25%2C%20Mazumdar%20told%20IndiaSpend.

Crossroads and Boundaries, Labour Migration, Trafficking and Gender, Indrani Mazumdar and Neetha N, EPW

https://www.epw.in/journal/2020/20/review-womens-studies/crossroads-and-boundaries.html

Futures of Workers, Shruti Gupta and Dr Sarayu Natarajan

https://www.aapti.in/blog/futures-of-workers

Host: Sneha Visakha;

Edited by: Resonance Studio;

Intro Music: Wehrmut by Godmode;

Outro Music: Opheliea's Blues by Audionautix;

Assisted by: Vyshnavi Moola

TW - references to women’s unsafety in cities, harassment

In Part 2 of the second episode of The Feminist City podcast series, we continue our conversation with Dr. Sneha Annavarapu, Social Sciences Teaching Fellow, University of Chicago about her work on the politics of women’s safety, attitudes to public kissing in Mumbai, gender and class politics in urban India. Some issues we touch upon are: how urban infrastructure and its politics are a deeply feminist issue, the relationship between safety and freedom for women in the city, if the city has space and time for seeking out pleasure or intimacy, and where do the lovers go in the city?

Explore these questions in the Feminist City podcast series, hosted by Sneha Visakha.

You can read more about our guest, Dr. Sneha Annavarapu and her work, here: https://www.snehanna.com/

For background reading, we recommend perusing the literature provided below.

Readings:

How to Build a Non-Sexist City, Dolores Hayden

https://adlc.hypotheses.org/files/2016/01/Hayden_What-Would-a-Non-Sexist-City-Be-Like-Speculations-on-Housing-Urban-Design-and-Human-work-1980.pdf

Risky Choices: Women and Cabs in Hyderabad, Dr. Sneha Annavarapu

https://www.publicbooks.org/risky-choices-women-and-cabs-in-hyderabad-india/

Where do all the lovers go? The cultural politics of public kissing in Mumbai, India, Dr. Sneha Annavarapu

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/johs.12205?casa_token=TDCDxW8A0IMAAAAA%3A7-8fGywjV9vM-g038sBGPxaQWqWRkQym8WpyeSVBOlJJdGmGwIoU-KRSNlOGgJvpkMCPsvtgKldYtg

‘Aap Karthe Mere Saath Sex?’ Dr. Sneha Annavarapu

http://agentsofishq.com/aap-karthe-mere-saath-sex/

The Karnataka Town and Country Planning Act, 1961

http://dpal.kar.nic.in/pdf_files/11%20of%201963%20(E).pdf

Transgender individuals demand safer, gender-neutral bathrooms in India post-Section 377 verdict, FirstPost

https://www.firstpost.com/india/transgender-individuals-demand-safer-gender-neutral-bathrooms-in-india-post-section-377-verdict-5414801.html

Reshaping the Boundaries of Public and Private Life: Gender, Condominium Development, and the Neoliberalization of Urban Living, Dr. Leslie Kern

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/239567466_Reshaping_the_Boundaries_of_Public_and_Private_Life_Gender_Condominium_Development_and_the_Neoliberalization_of_Urban_Living

A Feminist Public Restroom, The Safer Sweden Foundation

www.mynewsdesk.com/material/docume…source_document

Want to get in touch? Email [email protected]

Host: Sneha Visakha;

Edited by: Resonance Studio;

Intro Music: Wehrmut by Godmode;

Outro Music: Opheliea's Blues by Audionautix;

Assisted by: Vyshnavi Moola

TW - references to women’s unsafety in cities, street harassment

In Part 1 of the second episode of The Feminist City podcast series, we speak to Dr. Sneha Annavarapu, Social Sciences Teaching Fellow, University of Chicago, about her work on driving, road safety, gender and class relations in urban India. Some questions we engaged with are - Why do we not see more, or any, women driving autos and cabs? Whose experiences are deemed legitimate knowledge to consider for planning cities? What is the role of sociology in planning cities? How do we understand feminism in the context of cities?

Explore these questions in the Feminist City podcast series, hosted by Sneha Visakha.

For background reading, we recommend perusing the literature provided below.

Readings:

How to Build a Non-Sexist City, Dolores Hayden

https://adlc.hypotheses.org/files/2016/01/Hayden_What-Would-a-Non-Sexist-City-Be-Like-Speculations-on-Housing-Urban-Design-and-Human-work-1980.pdf

Risky Choices: Women and Cabs in Hyderabad, Dr. Sneha Annavarapu

https://www.publicbooks.org/risky-choices-women-and-cabs-in-hyderabad-india/

Where do all the lovers go? The cultural politics of public kissing in Mumbai, India, Dr. Sneha Annavarapu

https://bit.ly/2JkzSRi

‘Aap Karthe Mere Saath Sex?’ Dr. Sneha Annavarapu

http://agentsofishq.com/aap-karthe-mere-saath-sex/

The Karnataka Town and Country Planning Act, 1961

http://dpal.kar.nic.in/pdf_files/11%20of%201963%20(E).pdf

Transgender individuals demand safer, gender-neutral bathrooms in India post-Section 377 verdict, FirstPost

https://www.firstpost.com/india/transgender-individuals-demand-safer-gender-neutral-bathrooms-in-india-post-section-377-verdict-5414801.html

A Feminist Public Restroom, The Safer Sweden Foundation

http://www.mynewsdesk.com/material/document/94697/download?resource_type=resource_document

Want to get in touch? Email [email protected].

Big Tech dominance is the talk of the town. But how do hardware markets affect these monopolies? In the first episode of ALTRnative Perspectives, we take a deeper look at the materials that make up emerging technologies, and how the markets for those materials work.

With Suthirth Vaidya, co-founder and CEO of Predible, a healthcare AI startup, we tackle the history of semiconductors, contemporary semiconductor markets, and new mergers that will affect the development of AI for a long time.

With Anish Radhakrishnan, a journalist with People's Dispatch, we talk about the recent coup in Bolivia, and how Elon Musk's ambitions with lithium may have paved the way for this imperialist aggression. This conversation will take you through an underexplored dimension of new technology's global dominance.

ALTRnative Perspectives is a podcast by the Centre for Applied Law and Technology Research, Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy. This first episode has been developed by Jai Vipra.

In this special musical episode of Justify Season 2, hear through conversation and song from Sambhaji Bhagat on the award-winning feature film 'Court', on Ambedkar and lok shahiri, experiences with the law and justice system, and ruminations on the state of the nation.

Bhagat is a Dalit activist and lokshahir who composed the music for 'Court' which takes a deep dive into the operation of India’s police and criminal justice system marked by delays, apathy, and high-handedness.

Watch out for Vidhi's legal quiz, CLATTR, at the end of the episode, and stand a chance to win an Amazon voucher. Write in your answer and feedback on the episode to [email protected].

Episode - 1: Introduction to Feminist Urbanism

Host: Sneha Visakha;

Edited by: Resonance Studios, Bangalore;

Intro Music: Wehrmut by Godmode;

Outro Music: Opheliea's Blues by Audionautix;

TW - Broad references to violence and unsafety in cities

In the introductory episode of The Feminist City podcast series, we explore why we should look at cities from a feminist perspective. How is space produced? What produces safety in cities? What is the relationship between safety and urban planning? What is feminist urbanism? What does this approach entail? What do we understand by feminist utopias?

For background reading, we recommend perusing some of the literature and videos provided below.

Readings

Sultana’s Dream, Begum Rokeya Sakhawat, 1905

http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/sultana/dream/dream.html

(Highly recommend you read this before listening to the episode!)

The Death and Life of Great American Cities, Jane Jacobs

http://www.petkovstudio.com/bg/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/The-Death-and-Life-of-Great-American-Cities_Jane-Jacobs-Complete-book.pdf

How to Build a Non-Sexist City, Dolores Hayden

https://adlc.hypotheses.org/files/2016/01/Hayden_What-Would-a-Non-Sexist-City-Be-Like-Speculations-on-Housing-Urban-Design-and-Human-work-1980.pdf

Why Loiter? By Shilpa Phadke, Sameera Khan & Shilpa Ranade

https://penguin.co.in/book/why-loiter/, https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/english/currentstudents/undergraduate/modules/globalcityliterature/term2/why_loiter_radical_possibilities_for_ge_1.pdf

For our more enthusiastic listeners,

The Production of Space, Henri Lefebvre

https://myweb.fsu.edu/jjm09f/1%20Final%20Project%20Materials/lefebvreintro.html

Reading Law Spatially, Dr. Antonia Layard (on legal geography)

(draft paper) http://antonialayard.com/s/Reading-Cases-Spatially.docx

Videos

What is feminist urbanism? Col·lectiu Punt 6, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dI4TOCPMMBA

Why Loiter? Dr. Shilpa Phadke, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlgGNv5t92A

The Feminist City, Dr. Ellie Cosgrave, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNkB7afesco

Gender Perspectives in Urban Planning, Dr. Ana Falú, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sop4fqc2NV8

Want to get in touch? Email [email protected].