WorklifeIndia

India and a number of countries around the world are slowly losing productive land and soil to desertification. More than 30% of India’s land has degraded and become unsuitable for agriculture.

Desertification, which is particularly prominent in Africa and Asia, has serious implications for food security, migration and people’s health and livelihoods.

India itself has more than a billion mouths to feed and a majority of the population here is dependent on agriculture. How can we put an end to land degradation? What role do policymakers, businesses and individual consumers play? And what practical solutions can we implement in our day-to-day lives to combat desertification?

#WorklifeIndia speaks to a prominent environmentalist, a scientist involved in the United Nations’ efforts to combat desertification, and the founder of an agri-tech start-up based in Bangalore.

Presenter: Devina Gupta

Contributors: Sunita Narain, director general, Centre for Science and Environment; Barron Joseph Orr, lead scientist, United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD); Shameek Chakravarty, founder and CEO, Farmizen

Image: Farmers ploughing dried-out soil in West Bengal, February 2017 (Credit: Frank Bienewald/LightRocket via Getty Images)

From high end fashion to expensive jewellery, celebrity invites to exotic destinations, a luxury Indian wedding has it all. Generally lasting a few days, it feels more like a festival.

With a huge, young demographic and nearly 20 million people tying the knot every year, India is the world’s second largest market for weddings. The industry is worth tens of billions of dollars and often considered “recession-proof”.

But who are the people making it all happen? And how? What do millennial couples want and what are some of their most outlandish requests?

#WorklifeIndia takes you behind the scenes of a big, fat Indian wedding with a celebrity fashion designer, a luxury wedding planner and the founder of a digital weddings discovery platform.

Presenter: Devina Gupta

Contributors: Rohit Bal, celebrity fashion designer; Neha Seth Arora, luxury wedding planner and CEO, Var Vadhu; Mehak Sagar, co-founder, WedMeGood

Image: Bollywood actors Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone pose during their wedding reception at Grand Hyatt, Santacruz on November 28, 2018 in Mumbai, India. (Credit: Pramod Thakur/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)

In many conservative families, girls are denied education and work opportunities. But many are challenging gender stereotypes by entering sports. But it’s not easy. They have to face questions on everything from their choice of sport to the way they dress, and why they want to step out of home to compete in a “man’s game". They fight prejudice at every step, for social acceptance and equal pay, hoping to bring glory to their families, their communities and the country.

We speak to three young Indian sportswomen dabbling in offbeat sports, and ask what can be done to create a fairer playing field for women in sport.

Presenter: Devina Gupta Contributors: Aishwarya Pissay (motorsport racer); Hetal Dave (Sumo wrestler); Diskit Angmo (ice hockey player)

Photo: Sindhu Pusarla at the 2019 Badminton Asia Championships Credit: STR/AFP/Getty Images

An estimated 40 million people globally are subjected to modern forms of slavery. Bonded and forced labour, child labour, sex trafficking and domestic servitude are still rife. India has adopted a United Nations goal to eradicate modern slavery by 2030, but how close are we to achieving that goal? How bad is the problem in India? How does caste-based discrimination play a role? How can businesses be made more accountable, and consumers more aware about the products they buy?

We speak to a leading human rights lawyer, the head of an organisation working to free supply chains of bonded labour, and an activist fighting for the rights of those at the bottom of India’s caste hierarchy. We ask them how we can eradicate modern-day slavery.

Presenter: Devina Gupta

Contributors: Dr Colin Gonsalves, founder, Human Rights Law Network and senior advocate, Supreme Court of India; Manoj Bhatt, director, GoodWeave India; Riya Singh, Dalit activist and PhD scholar

Photo: An Indian labourer transporting bricks on a cart in a brick kiln on the outskirts of Jalandhar. Brick kiln workers in India can be trapped in a cycle of bonded labour and cheated out of promised wages Credit: Shammi Mehra/AFP/Getty Images

After years of fast-paced growth, India’s economy is losing steam. In this country of more than a billion people, domestic consumption is one of the main drivers of growth but unemployment is rising and people's purchasing power has taken a hit.

While the government maintains that the economic slowdown is temporary and a revival is not too far ahead, for now the impact of the slowdown is being felt across industries. Car sales are declining, private investment is slowing down and the shadow banking sector is in a crisis.

India’s central bank has cut interest rates to boost the slowing economy, but is this enough? And with ambitions to become one of the world’s most powerful economies, which sectors can help drive India’s growth in the next 10 years?

We speak to the vice chairman of the Indian government’s policy think tank, an independent economic analyst, and a business journalist. We ask them what India can do to beat the current economic slowdown.

Presenter: Devina Gupta

Contributors: Rajiv Kumar, Vice Chairperson, NITI Aayog government think-tank; Pranjal Sharma, Independent Economic Analyst and author; Shweta Punj, Deputy Editor, India Today and Social Entrepreneur, Young Global Leader (World Economic Forum)

Photo: Money changes hand for lemonade at a shop in Delhi, India Credit: Getty Images

Some believe that believe cryptocurrencies are the new digital gold. From Bitcoin to Ethereum, there are over 2,000 kinds of cryptocurrencies globally, worth over $300bn in digital money. And now Facebook is planning to join the bandwagon with Libra, its own digital currency.

But many are wary of cryptocurrencies and the risks associated with them. There are concerns about scams, fraud and user privacy. Countries like India have put restrictions in place on the trade of cryptocurrencies. Now, a new government committee in India has recommended a complete ban, including holding and investing in them.

In this edition of WorklifeIndia, we speak to a young professional who works at a cryptocurrency exchange, the policy head at India's leading association of software companies, and a lawyer specialising in technology and privacy. We ask them whether India should ban cryptocurrencies, or embrace them instead as the future of money.

Presenter: Devina Gupta

Contributors: Priyanka Sharma, Chief of Staff, WazirX cryptocurrency exchange; Ashish Aggarwal, Sr Director & Public Policy Head, NASSCOM; Akriti Gaur, tech lawyer and senior fellow, Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy

Photo: Businessman alalysing stock market graph Credit: Getty Images

Until a few years ago, India was known globally as a hub for commercial surrogacy. Childless couples and individuals from India and abroad were ready to pay good money to have a child, and poor women were available to rent their wombs. Thousands of infertility clinics sprung up all over India to facilitate the multi-million-dollar industry. But the government has been cracking down on this practice. In 2015, foreigners were banned from seeking commercial surrogacy in India, and now a bill is in the parliament aiming to ban the practice completely, including for Indian citizens.

Proponents of the ban say that the industry flourishes at the cost of financial and medical exploitation of the surrogates, and that commercial surrogacy poses serious questions around medical ethics. The government is pushing for altruistic surrogacy instead, which offers no financial compensation, comes under certain conditions, and excludes single parents and homosexual couples. On the other hand, supporters of the rent-a-womb industry, insist that surrogates are treated fairly, and it is a win-win situation for both surrogates and childless people seeking an alternative.

We speak to a doctor with extensive professional experience in commercial surrogacy, a public health expert who supports the ban and believes that reproductive labour is highly exploitative, and a choreographer who was one of the first single men in India to adopt a child. We also hear the voices of surrogate mothers and ask them about their experiences.

Presenter: Devina Gupta

Contributors: Dr Priti Gupta, Fertility Specialist, First Step IVF Clinic; Prof Mohan Rao, Independent Researcher and Public Health Expert; Sandip Soparrkar, Choreographer, Single Parent

Photo: Three surrogate mothers who are carrying the embryos for clients of a commercial surrogacy clinic Credit: Jonas Gratzer/LightRocket via Getty Images

A study points out that more than 40% of India’s corporate employees suffer from depression and anxiety. It’s a common illness, yet talking about it is still a taboo. And it costs the global economy $1 trillion in lost productivity each year.

What are some recognisable signs of a mental health disorder? How can you help a colleague who’s struggling to cope? How does one go about looking for professional help, and is it accessible?

In this episode of WorklifeIndia, we speak to a Bollywood star who spoke up about her struggle with depression, a therapist and counsellor working on mental health for more than two decades, the founder of a start-up bringing happiness to the corporate world, and a former corporate employee who was asked to leave her job over a mental health disorder and has now launched an initiative to sensitise workplaces.

We ask them what practical solutions workplaces can implement to provide support to their employees.

Presenter: Devina Gupta

Contributors: Deepika Padukone, Bollywood star and depression survivor; Anna Chandy, chairperson of the board of trustrees, the Live Love Laugh Foundation; Karan Behl, founder and chief happiness officer, Happiitude; Deepti Ahuja, founder, Sense of Self Mental Health Initiative

Image: Deepika Padukone, founder of the Live Love Laugh Foundation, attends the unveiling event for a report on the public perception towards mental health in India, in New Delhi on March 23, 2018 (Credit: Chandan Khanna/AFP/Getty Images)

According to a Greenpeace report, 15 of the world's 20 most polluted cities are in India. The government is keen to clean up the air, and one idea is to push for more electric vehicles on the roads to address toxic vehicular emissions. It has announced tax incentives for consumers who purchase electric vehicles, and is pushing to set up more charging stations.

But there are some bumps along the way. Does going electric really address air pollution? Is the required infrastructure in place? And are manufacturers and consumers ready to make the shift?

Presenter: Devina Gupta

Contributors: Punit Goyal, co-founder, Blu Smart Mobility; Disha Agarwal, energy expert, Shakti Foundation; Gaurav Gupta, chief commercial officer, MG Motors

Image: An electric car being charged (Credit: Manjunath Kiran/AFP/Getty Images)

It's been 50 years since the human race first set foot on the Moon. And as the United States celebrates the historic Apollo 11 mission, India is hoping to achieve another space feat.

The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is attempting to soft-land a rover on the south pole of the Moon – something no other country has done before.

The global commercial space industry is worth more than $300bn. India has developed a reputation for being a reliable launch pad for small satellites, but what more can India do to earn larger space revenues?

And as India’s space sector slowly opens up to commercialisation, where do private space start-ups come in? Can India have its own version of SpaceX?

We ask a young scientist who has developed satellites launched by both NASA and ISRO, a leading space entrepreneur with ventures in three different continents, and a researcher who specialises in India’s space programme whether India is on the right path to become a global space superpower.

Presenter: Devina Gupta

Contributors: Rifath Shaarook, student scientist, chief technology officer, Space Kidz India; Dr Susmita Mohanty, entrepreneur and CEO, Earth2Orbit; Dr. Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan, head of nuclear & space policy, Observer Research Foundation (ORF)

Image: The Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C44) launches off onboard India's Defence Research and Development Organisation's (DRDO) imaging satellite Microsat R, along with student satellite Kalamsat, at Satish Dhawan Space centre in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh state, on January 24, 2019 (Credit: Arun Sankar/AFP/Getty Images)