Hafta 249: Climate emergency, Delhi police vs lawyers, RCEP trade deal, and more

In this episode of Hafta, host Abhinandan Sekhri is joined by Newslaundry’s Madhu Trehan, Manisha Pande and Mehraj D Lone as well as two guests, Shreeshan Venkatesh, editorial head at CarbonCopy, and Vivek, a Newslaundry subscriber who is a journalist based in Chennai.

The discussion kicks off on the recent study by Climate Central, a news organisation in the United States, which estimates that coastal cities such as Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai will be underwater by 2050. “It is not a new projection, rather it is a new estimate of the impacts of earlier projections,” notes Shreeshan. He points out that this scenario is with “moderate cuts” to emissions when the real picture is much worse.  

Speaking about the ongoing clash between police and lawyers in Delhi, Madhu says, “Why do the lawyers believe they need special treatment? The way they have taken the law into their hands, beaten up cops, they really seem to think they are above the law.” Manisha adds, “Police brutality is a fact. But I don’t know if those cops who are protesting have indulged in it, so I would be sympathetic to them. I won’t judge them by the actions of their entire tribe.”

Speaking about India’s decision to pull out of Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, Vivek says, “I think there is a sense of uncompetitive behaviour in the Indian industry because we are protecting them from the competition.” Mehraj points to the ideological aspect of such trade deals. “If you go back in history, there have been similar agreements like NAFTA that have been disastrous. Such deals are the reason for Latin America’s backlash against neoliberalism that has destroyed their economies.”

The panel also discuss the revocation of the writer Aatish Taseer’s Overseas Citizenship of India card, North India’s air pollution, and more. Tune in!

Hafta Letters

References 

Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata among cities that may be submerged by 2050: Report

Prakash Javadekar was to help tackle Delhi’s pollution. He went campaigning in Maharashtra instead

Catch-22 | Joseph Heller

Can the World’s Largest Democracy Endure Another Five Years of a Modi Government?

The Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia (full film) | FRONTLINE

NL Interviews: Abhinandan Sekhri in conversation with Aatish Taseer

Recommendations

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The Way Things Were | Aatish Taseer

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Why Are Rich People So Mean? | Christopher Ryan

Ram Ke Naam

Mehraj 

‘Stripped of human dignity’: Rajasthan’s prisoners are living in appalling conditions

World Scientists’ Warning of a Climate Emergency 

Madhu 

‘Everybody has something to lose’: the exciting, depressing life of a climate writer

Obama on Call-Out Culture: ‘That’s Not Activism’

The high cost of ‘cancel culture’

Abhinandan 

Free Love, Free Market 

Black Warrant: Confessions of a Tihar Jailer

Produced by Kartik Nijhawan, recorded by Anil Kumar, edited by Umrav Singh.

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