Interviews

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    “Experimental evidence shows that when people are given unconditional cash they will by and large spend it on worthwhile things” – Pranab Bardhan

“Experimental evidence shows that when people are given unconditional cash they will by and large spend it on worthwhile things” – Pranab Bardhan

Professor Pranab Bardhan recently participated in the Ideas for India Symposium on Universal Basic Income for India with academics from LSE and other leading institutions. During Professor Bardhan’s recent visit to LSE, Sonali Campion asked him to elaborate on how he envisions basic income interacting with existing welfare provisions.
SC: You’ve talked about the feasibility and desirability of universal basic income […]

November 21st, 2016|Development, Economy, Education, Featured, Health, Interviews|0 Comments|
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    “India is essentially in denial about the costs of democracy” – Rajeev Gowda

“India is essentially in denial about the costs of democracy” – Rajeev Gowda

The issue of how to finance politics is one that plagues democracies everywhere. In the case of India it is particularly acute, as the current laws – despite good intentions – serve to encourage corruption in the system. During his recent visit to LSE to speak on this topic, Professor Rajeev Gowda sat down with Sonali Campion to discuss the problems and possible solutions, as […]

November 14th, 2016|Corruption, Featured, Interviews, Politics|1 Comment|
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  • Image: Bengaluru voting. Credit: Al Jazeera English/Nilanjan Chowdhury CC BY-SA 2.0
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    “There are phases when India falls remarkably short of the standards you would expect democracies to follow” – Ashutosh Varshney

“There are phases when India falls remarkably short of the standards you would expect democracies to follow” – Ashutosh Varshney

Last Friday Professor Ashutosh Varshney spoke at LSE on Indian Democracy. Before his presentation Sonali Campion interviewed him about India’s electoral vibrancy as well as its liberal deficits, and why these have become more marked under the current BJP-led government. They also discussed the contrasts between Indian and American elections in light of the US presidential vote. 

You frequently speak of how there should […]

November 8th, 2016|Featured, History, Interviews, LSE, Politics|Comments Off on “There are phases when India falls remarkably short of the standards you would expect democracies to follow” – Ashutosh Varshney|
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    “Inequality harms cooperative efforts. In India we see the problems this creates at local, state and national level” – Pranab Bardhan

“Inequality harms cooperative efforts. In India we see the problems this creates at local, state and national level” – Pranab Bardhan

Professor Pranab Bardhan recently visited LSE’s Economic History Department to speak about research gaps in the interface between history and development. While he was on campus, Sonali Campion interviewed him about the value of interdisciplinary approaches to social science questions, and the insights that his research sheds on key debates in India today.
You’ve been a real champion for interdisciplinary […]

November 1st, 2016|Development, Economy, Environment, Featured, Interviews, LSE, Politics, Society and Culture|Comments Off on “Inequality harms cooperative efforts. In India we see the problems this creates at local, state and national level” – Pranab Bardhan|
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    “Institutional design for decentralisation needs to move away from a solely normative approach to appreciate the political” – Satyajit Singh

“Institutional design for decentralisation needs to move away from a solely normative approach to appreciate the political” – Satyajit Singh

As governments across the globe experiment with decentralisation, Professor Satyajit Singh has written The Local in Governance: Politics, Decentralization and Environment, a book which explores this shift in India. Ahead of the publication next month, he spoke to Pankaj Kumar Jha about the existing literature on decentralisation and how he hopes his new work will impact policymaking.
PKJ: What is […]

September 23rd, 2016|Development, Environment, Featured, Interviews|Comments Off on “Institutional design for decentralisation needs to move away from a solely normative approach to appreciate the political” – Satyajit Singh|
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    “We need to think beyond images as a reflection of history, and instead consider how they constitute it” – Sumathi Ramaswamy

“We need to think beyond images as a reflection of history, and instead consider how they constitute it” – Sumathi Ramaswamy

In May, Sumathi Ramaswamy visited LSE to talk about the artist M. F. Husain and how his work contributed to the aesthetics of India’s Emergency. After her presentation, she spoke to Sonali Campion about visual history, the challenge of making artwork more widely available, and why Husain is such a controversial artist in India.

Your book The Goddess and the […]

August 22nd, 2016|Featured, History, Interviews, Society and Culture|Comments Off on “We need to think beyond images as a reflection of history, and instead consider how they constitute it” – Sumathi Ramaswamy|
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  • Building a digital Bangladesh - Google Bus at Digital World 2015 in Dhaka. Credit: Aminul Islam Sajib/aisjournal.com
    Permalink Building a digital Bangladesh - Google Bus at Digital World 2015 in Dhaka. Credit: Aminul Islam Sajib/aisjournal.comGallery

    “Research from British institutions can offer valuable insights on how Bangladesh can achieve sustainable development” – H.E. Md. Abdul Hannan

“Research from British institutions can offer valuable insights on how Bangladesh can achieve sustainable development” – H.E. Md. Abdul Hannan

The outgoing Bangladeshi High Commissioner H.E. Mr Md. Abdul Hannan recently attended at South Asia Centre event at the LSE. During the visit, he spoke to Sonali Campion about how research conducted by Western institutions can benefit Bangladesh, the direction of UK-Bangladesh relations and the importance of fostering balanced growth.

What do you see as key themes which would benefit from […]

August 11th, 2016|Economy, Featured, Interviews, Security and Foreign Policy, Technology|Comments Off on “Research from British institutions can offer valuable insights on how Bangladesh can achieve sustainable development” – H.E. Md. Abdul Hannan|
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  • Harvesting crops. Bangladesh. Photo: Scott Wallace / World Bank CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
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    “If women’s productive activities were better understood, policy could be designed to support rather than invisiblise their contributions” – Naila Kabeer

“If women’s productive activities were better understood, policy could be designed to support rather than invisiblise their contributions” – Naila Kabeer

In June, the South Asia Centre held an event entitled “Tales of the Unexpected: gender equality and social progress in Bangladesh”. Sonali Campion spoke to panellist Naila Kabeer in greater detail about her research on the rapidly changing status of women in Bangladesh, the challenge of measuring women’s economic activities and how to design inclusive policy.

A lot of the discussions around […]

August 5th, 2016|Development, Economy, Featured, Gender, Interviews, LSE|Comments Off on “If women’s productive activities were better understood, policy could be designed to support rather than invisiblise their contributions” – Naila Kabeer|
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    “I am not aware that this has been thought through” – Jean Drèze speaks to Pragya Tiwari about the new Aadhaar Act

“I am not aware that this has been thought through” – Jean Drèze speaks to Pragya Tiwari about the new Aadhaar Act

In March, the Aadhaar Bill was passed, empowering the government to use the Unique Identity scheme for delivering subsidies and services and potentially enabling it to require that citizens enroll. However, the bill has come under significant criticism. Pragya Tiwari discusses the context of the latest dispute, and speaks to development economist Jean Drèze about the potential weaknesses of the […]

July 28th, 2016|Development, Featured, Interviews, LSE, Politics, Technology|Comments Off on “I am not aware that this has been thought through” – Jean Drèze speaks to Pragya Tiwari about the new Aadhaar Act|
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    “The media will always have axes to grind but the police have the capacity to project their side of the story better” – Neeraj Kumar

“The media will always have axes to grind but the police have the capacity to project their side of the story better” – Neeraj Kumar

Neeraj Kumar recently retired as the Commissioner of Police Delhi, having served in the Indian Police Service for over 37 years in a wide range of roles. He has now penned his first book, a collection of stories pertaining to high-profile cases solved during his nine year tenure at the Central Bureau of Investigation. Ahead of the London launch […]

July 12th, 2016|Corruption, Featured, Interviews, Security and Foreign Policy|Comments Off on “The media will always have axes to grind but the police have the capacity to project their side of the story better” – Neeraj Kumar|
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