We The People

There is no need for sex education in schools or to make it part of the curriculum under the new education policy proposed by the centre as it will have a negative impact on children, an educational body affiliated to the BJP's ideological mentor the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh said this week. As of now the National Education Policy draft, which was given to the Education Minister in May this year, states that sex education will be included in secondary school studies on topics like consent, harassment, respect for women, safety, family planning, and prevention of sexually transmitted diseases. We are asking tonight - Does sex education in our curriculum need an upgrade? As the country with the worlds largest youth population? Does the government need to wake up to the importance sex education? Are our policymakers blind to the fact that more teens are having sex, while few use birth control? Is India heading for a looming teen sexual revolution for which we are woefully under prepared? Is sex educatio

Could your social media accounts in the future be linked to your Aadhaar? Based on a PIL filed in the Madras High court, the Tamil Nadu government is seeking just that - one's Aadhaar be linked to one's social media profiles due to the rise of hate content, fake news and cyber-bullying. Advocates for this say it will also check the spread of pornographic and anti-national content online. We are asking tonight: "Will it actually curb fake news or will it only kill privacy and be used to censor dissent under the garb of national security? Also, what is the correct balance between the right to online privacy and the right of the state to trace the origins of hateful messages and fake news? How does one balance security needs with civil liberties? And can you make people secure by making them more vulnerable?"

In his Independence Day speech, Prime Minister Narendra Modi reiterated his government's ambition to make India a 5 trillion dollars economy in the next five years. However, the reality is that most of the sectors are suffering from dwindling growth figures. The Auto sector is facing its worst crisis in decades. In the real estate sector, the number of unsold homes have increased. The tax collection has grown by just 1.4 per cent. The big question is: Is PM Modi's goal achievable?

India, has become the first country to make Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) spending mandatory through a law. New amendments to the Companies Act have been approved by parliament to make make it impossible for companies to escape CSR. The government also plans to include a specific penal provision in the Companies Act in case of non-compliance with CSR which could include a three-year jail term for officials in companies that fail to spend funds in any given year. Will this make corporate India wake up to its wider social responsibility towards narrowing down widening inequality or is the CSR law another utopian ideal being hijacked by political interference?

Is the move to ban commercial surrogacy in India a necessary step to prevent poor women from being exploited by those seeking to rent their wombs? Or is it a move that will dash the hopes of millions of couples, as well as unmarried singles, LGBT persons, divorcees and others and in the process, leave a lot of women from underprivileged backgrounds who lend their wombs worse off?

Instagram, a social media website recently declared one of the most dangerous apps for mental health of youngsters, has announced that it is testing a new feature to hide 'likes' on its platform in some countries. On We The People, we debate, if the move will improve users' mental health.

According to the latest United Nations data, India with 1.3 billion people is the second most populated country in the world. In another eight years, it may surpass China and become the world's most populated country. Are urgent and aggressive steps to control population required in India? Do we need to punish those with more children or do we need better awareness of and access to contraception?

Earlier this week, India's city of dreams Mumbai was left paralysed due to record rainfall. Rampant encroachment and blatant violations of construction norms have been blamed for the deaths of at least 34 people. But such civic problems are not unique to Mumbai. In Chennai, a critical shortage of water has tormented its people. Delhi is the most polluted city in the world. In Bangalore and Gurgaon, traffic crawls. We are asking tonight: How can we be a 5 trillion dollar economy if this is the state of civic infrastructure in cities which are supposed to be drivers of growth?

Today on We The People we talk about an an issue that concerns everyone - India's impending water emergency. The crisis is all around us. Chennai is facing the worst water crisis it has ever seen. With lakhs of people depending on private water tankers as taps go dry, establishments have had to be shut down, children are skipping school and lining up for water. And while Chennai is the largest city facing a water crisis right now, there's a drought like situation in almost half the country. Parts of Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh too are reeling under the crisis. On tonight's show, we talk about steps we can take to prevent an impending water emergency.

Earlier this week there were media reports that 56 female housekeeping staff of an Institute of Fashion Technology in Hyderabad were sacked allegedly after they complained of sexual harassment by a male employee. The man continues to work in the institute while 56 women housekeeping staff were sacked. After protests and media scrutiny, the 56 women were reinstated in their jobs and an Internal complaints committee is looking into the matter. The same week also saw a record number of women enter India's parliament. The 17th Lok Sabha has the highest number of women MPs elected in the 2019 polls. There are a record 78 women MPs in the new Lok Sabha - but even that is a trifling 14 per cent only . We are asking what does this mean on the ground for Indian women? Will gender issues start getting some of the prominence it deserves? Does having more women in positions of leadership change anything on the ground? What does this mean for equal representation that goes beyond tokenism?

In the light of the nationwide doctors' strike which began after a colleague at a government hospital in Kolkata was assaulted by the family of a patient who died in Kolkata, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has appealed for talks. After a reconciliatory Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said she accepts all valid demands of the protesting doctors and requested them to return to work, the junior doctors have accepted her outreach and have agreed for talks - with conditions. They say In order to maintain transparency, the meeting should not be behind closed doors but open to the media. Health services were paralysed at hospitals in many states as doctors stood in solidarity with their counterparts in Bengal. The IMA is to hold a 24-hour nationwide protest on Monday and all non-essential services including OPDs will be closed starting from 6 am. On this episode of We The People, we ask, is there a trust deficit between patients and doctors? Should doctors, especially government doctors be allowed to strike? Is the

She rose from poverty to become the fastest Indian woman sprinter. Banned from competition for hyperandrogenism, she won a landmark legal battle to come back and now she's become India's first openly gay athlete. Hear her incredible story, a story of many firsts in her words.

In a special Townhall, model and actor Lisa Ray opens up on life after cancer, mothering twins via surrogacy, her accidental acting career and how she dismissed an acting offer from filmmaker Shekhar Kapoor. She also shared how she botched up her audition for the role of a Bond Girl. She doesn't regret any of it!

After one of the most polarised election campaigns India has seen, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asked newly elected parliamentarians to work without any discrimination on the basis of faith and caste, to take everyone along, including those who have not voted for the ruling alliance. PM Modi also made an addition to the BJP campaign slogan since 2014 - saying "sabka saath, sabka vikas, sabka vishwas", and stressed on the need to win over the trust of minorities. After India's most acrimonious election campaign, one studded with references to "termites", which saw the nomination to parliament of a terror accused who glorified the assassin of Mahatma Gandhi, is PM Modi's talk of inclusion too little too late?

In this last stretch of Lok Sabha polls, Prime Minister Narendra Modi continues to court controversy over his references to the armed forces. At an election rally in UP's Kushinagar, he hit out at critics saying "Will my jawans ask the Election Commission before firing a bullet?" And in a television interview this weekend, the PM claimed his inputs helped the IAF execute the Balakot strikes, as he had advised the IAF to use clouds as a shield against Pakistani radars detecting Indian fighter jets during the Balakot air strike. Can elections be won by politicising Army actions? And at what cost?

With CBSE Board examinations results out, students across India are discussing scores, cut-offs and panicking about admission lists. Many have passed with flying colours. Yet, there are many who are bearing the brunt of having scored much lower than what they and their parents, relatives and others had expected. Do grades guarantee success? There is no authoritative study to suggest a clear link between success in board exams and career-led success, so what matters more: aptitude or attitude?

The seven Lok Sabha seats of Delhi will go to the polls on May 12, the penultimate phase of 2019 elections. For the first time, air pollution - which kills over million people a year finds a mention in the BJP and the Congress's party manifestos. The Aam Aadmi Party on the other hand has put a special focus on education and health. Do election issues matter or does the voter only care about personality politics?

Once ranked India's biggest airline by market value, Jet Airways is on life support. Its survival hinges on whether investors can be found to take on the loss-making, debt-ridden aviation business. But this is not the first time that a private airline has folded it wings. India has seen the same saga with Kingfisher Airlines, Air Deccan and Air Sahara. Despite such turbulence, the Indian aviation industry is among the fastest-growing in the world. More and more Indians are flying everyday, yet nearly all the major players are facing financial pressues. Jet Airways' collapse has brought India's airline industry under the scanner and casts a shadow on India's "booming aviation sector". The question is who is to blame and how can the sector prevent this from happening again.

In an attempt to reach out to the young, undecided voter, all parties are going beyond traditional media. They've set the tempo for these polls with campaign videos, songs and slogans. Clearly political messaging is an electoral weapon in this election. Is anybody getting it right or is the voter tone deaf?

This weekend, over 200 civil society organisations launched a campaign publicly denouncing the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led BJP government saying that the current dispensation has attacked the social fabric of India. A collective of at least 150 scientists have appealed to voters to "reject those who lynch or assault people" and vote against "inequality, intimidation, discrimination". Academics to filmmakers have signed letters asking Indians to "vote the BJP and its allies" out of power, arguing that the idea of India and our constitution is under threat. Tonight on We The People, we debate whether the core ideals of India's Constitution are under threat. Is the battle for 2019, battle of governance or battle of ideology? A battle for values and not political parties? Is the 2019 election a Fight for the idea of India? If so, what is the idea of India?