Oneindia Editors' Roundtable: India in World Cup Finals, NEET, & Heatwaves - Big Stories of the Week
Join us for this week's Editors' Roundtable as we dive into the biggest stories making headlines. We'll discuss the latest developments in the World Cup Cricket, the controversy surrounding the NEET exams, and the impact of ongoing heatwaves. Don't miss our in-depth analysis and lively discussion!
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#WorldCupCricket #NEET #Heatwaves #OneindiaEditorsRoundtable #BigStories #WeeklyNews #NEETControversy #Roundtable #PankajMishraOneindia
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NewsTranscript
00:00Hello, and welcome.
00:00You're watching this brand new episode of Editors' Roundtable
00:04here on One India, as we promised you
00:06to bring voices of the editors from all across the country.
00:09And this time around, we are also joined by one
00:11of our editors who is right now in Canada,
00:14although in Ontario.
00:15Dee Jackson on your screen is joining us
00:18from Ontario, Canada.
00:19Avinash Sharma is the editor of MyGale.
00:22Ajay Mohan is the editor of Native Planet and Career India.
00:26And Kalpesh Kandoriya, a face that you
00:28see in all the episodes of Roundtable,
00:31joining us from Gujarat, the editor of One India Gujarati.
00:35Avinash, I want to start with you first, without much ado.
00:40Saturday is the time when India goes
00:42into the third successive World Cup ICC finals.
00:47So this time around, what is it that we can expect from India?
00:50Because time and again, the memories
00:52of last year's World Cup final is something
00:57that we would want to forget.
00:59But what do you have in store for us from Indian side?
01:02Pankaj, it's palpable excitement amongst Indian cricket fans.
01:07Not just Indian fans, in fact, the entire sporting fraternity
01:10in India is now backing Team India
01:12to finally end the 11-year-long drought of an ICC trophy
01:18victory.
01:18And we hope that Team India, this Indian side,
01:21which is doing simply phenomenal performances match
01:27after match, game after game in the Caribbean.
01:30The campaign started in the US, and now we
01:33are still unbeaten in the tournament.
01:36And the best thing about this final, Pankaj,
01:37is that two of the teams, India and South Africa,
01:44is also on a roll there.
01:47They have secured eight wins on the trot,
01:49while the Indians have secured seven wins on the trot.
01:51So it's going to be a contest between two
01:54of the best sides in the tournament.
01:57And it couldn't have been a better setting.
02:01South Africa facing India in a final.
02:03Let's go back to 1991, when the Apartheid ended.
02:07I mean, you've been there in South Africa,
02:09and you've seen things from very close quarters.
02:12And you might be able to understand
02:14how important it is for South Africa
02:17to finally make it to the finals of an ICC event.
02:20I mean, they made it to the semifinals
02:23quite a lot of times.
02:24But it is the first occasion when the South Africans are
02:27actually in the finals.
02:29And the chokers tag, which has been associated with them
02:33right from the 1992s, might finally be ending tomorrow.
02:38But let me tell you, if we talk on paper
02:42and the kind of performances that we
02:44have seen throughout the tournament,
02:45India do look favorite.
02:48Absolutely, Avinash.
02:50You're bang on when you mentioned the tag of chokers.
02:53This is also a pivotal moment for the very young cricketers
02:57also in South Africa, and cricket South Africa especially,
03:00backing them this time around, or for the last few years,
03:04I would say.
03:05The change in the team composition
03:07also, there is a black emancipation
03:11also that is going on there.
03:12And the role of key players like Kahiso Rabada
03:15and the captain himself is something
03:17that has been appreciated time and again.
03:19We'll have to wait and watch how South Africa performs.
03:21I'll come back to you to discuss how this time around the South
03:26Africans, the proteas are.
03:27But not far away from the venue, the two hosts, the United
03:31States and the Caribbeans, is Canada,
03:34where our colleague DJ Jackson is sitting very comfortably
03:37in a very pristine background.
03:38DJ, hello.
03:39How are you?
03:40And first things first, what is the excitement there
03:43in the diaspora for the cricket?
03:45Is that the city of Ontario?
03:49So yeah.
03:50So people are here like so excited.
03:53You know, like there's a huge Indian community in Canada.
03:55Like they're also looking forward to this India's victory
03:57over here.
03:58Definitely India is like a stronger side on the paper.
04:01And so far, we have seen a good batting
04:03and overall performances.
04:06And the whole community is looking forward
04:10to India's win on Sunday, like the match will
04:13happen on Saturday.
04:13But it will be happening on Sunday over here.
04:18Right, right.
04:19DJ, absolutely.
04:21You know, much happening there in that part of the world.
04:23So we'll come back to you to discuss
04:25how the Niger issue, once again, found mention
04:27and raised quite a storm there.
04:30But before that, talking about storm,
04:32there is something going on in India as well.
04:34Meat is something that is the controversy
04:37is refusing to die down.
04:38Ajay Mohan is there with us from Native Planet
04:41and the editor of Career India, a wing of One India.
04:46Ajay Mohanji, when we talk about the controversy of meat,
04:50there is something that the student fraternity has
04:52been given a deadly blow.
04:54And in the last course of two or three weeks,
04:58we have seen how the government also has been found,
05:02you know, erring or maybe lack of caution was there.
05:06How is the scenario unfolding in part of India
05:09where you are as of now in Bangalore?
05:11And what do you foresee?
05:12What are your vision on it?
05:15So, Pankaj, the thing is definitely
05:17it's kind of a roaring issue right now in this whole country.
05:24But once fraternity is there, you
05:27can say the segment is a student.
05:29So you can see most of the students are silent, right?
05:34And most of the coaching institutions are also silent.
05:36There are two different reasons.
05:39Silent means those I spoke to many people.
05:42There is one girl from Lucknow.
05:44She said, I got 370 marks, but I wouldn't
05:47get the MBBS seat in any of the government colleges in India.
05:51So I asked, are you going to reappear in the,
05:56are you going to prepare one more time for next year?
05:59She said, no, I won't because I have
06:01lost the trust on the NTA.
06:04Then I asked, then what is your demand right now?
06:08Do you want 3 exams for all the NIT aspirants?
06:12Then she said, I don't want any kind of 3 exams.
06:17Then I said, why are you saying like this?
06:19She said, because again, I don't know whether I
06:24can get 670 marks or not.
06:29That's the main question.
06:31So in each marks, the rank can go,
06:34rank can just push down in lakhs or in thousands.
06:38If you just compare, and I want to put up some data here.
06:45So compare the last 2023 data.
06:48Only three people got 716 marks out of 720.
06:53And this year, 72 people got.
06:56And similarly, 650, above 650, there
06:59were only around 7,228 people.
07:03But like this year, 27,000 people got 650 marks.
07:08They think about the people who are in general category,
07:11will they get this?
07:12They don't know.
07:14Even if I'm asking them, do you want
07:16to get the reassessment of the copies?
07:20They said, no.
07:21Because reassessment, how will you do it?
07:23So why not she?
07:25And negative marking is there.
07:27So they have lost the trust overall.
07:31And it doesn't augur well for a country like India.
07:35So we are just waiting for the decision from the verdict
07:38from the Honorable Supreme Court.
07:42And another set of the people, yes, definitely they want.
07:46But still, they are in dilemma whether they
07:48can score that marks or not.
07:50And third set of the people are, they
07:56actually enter the heavy mental stress.
07:58I'll tell you, see, my daughter is also
08:02preparing for the JEE exam.
08:04I know what kind of stress she is having right now
08:06for each and every question.
08:08When she feels too attempt, even face fails to solve,
08:12think about the people who are on the exam room.
08:15And again, they will have to face the same stress.
08:18So that's the main issue, which I
08:20think Honorable Supreme Court should consider.
08:24Right, right, right.
08:25Absolutely, Ajay ji, stay with us, stay with us.
08:28There is something that is also not good with Gujarat also,
08:33where paper leaks have been dominating the proceedings.
08:37Kalpesh ji,
08:38In Gujarat also, if you look at the papers,
08:41then where does this matter stop?
08:43Is it not visible that this matter will stop?
08:46No, sir, the matter will not stop until the government
08:50has formed a one nation, one policy.
08:52Where does this start from?
08:54It is a company based in Ahmedabad,
08:56by conducting an HU test.
08:59In Bihar, in 2023, they were blacklisted,
09:02because they had blacklisted the person for the exam,
09:06because they had given all the responsibility for the exam to the HU test.
09:12And the government hiring was leaked in that paper.
09:16So they blacklisted Bihar.
09:18Then in 2024, this year,
09:20Uttar Pradesh gave the same contract to the same company
09:24for hiring 63,000 constables.
09:26Now they gave the responsibility to this company.
09:29The paper was leaked again.
09:31And on June 20, 2024,
09:34the UP government has also blacklisted this company, the HU test.
09:38But if one state blacklists it,
09:41why don't all the other states blacklist it immediately?
09:45The main question is,
09:46even the Gujarat government is only gifting this contract to them.
09:50Give it to any HU test,
09:52or there are 2-3 companies that have been blacklisted in some states,
09:57but still they get contracts to take the exam.
10:00And the second thing is that the government has its own facilities.
10:05It has its own press.
10:06So why do they get the paper leaked outside?
10:10Absolutely.
10:11Ajay ji, how do you view this?
10:12Kalpesh has made quite a few significant points.
10:16Where could the government actually intervene
10:20and possibly make a course correction here?
10:25See, first of all, the robust system is required.
10:29And there are loopholes we know.
10:31And regularly these paper leaks, news are coming up.
10:37So the only thing which can save the students
10:42from this kind of mental stress is the robust plan,
10:46robust system, and the, whatever you can say,
10:51the criminal offensive.
10:52It should be rigorous punishment should be there.
10:59Nothing else.
10:59We can't do anything.
11:01Because it's a big country.
11:04India is not that small.
11:05Like we can think about those items.
11:08They changed the director of NDA also.
11:10Do you think NDA is effective enough or is it a toothless one?
11:15I can't comment on that because, at least I can't comment on the new director.
11:19But definitely the chief of the organization is responsible.
11:24Responsible.
11:25Yes, yes.
11:25He has to answer the questions from the nations which
11:28are coming out of the different part of the nation.
11:32Right.
11:33Yeah, Ajayji, stay with us.
11:35I have to discuss with you one more burning issue, if I may say so,
11:40that of the heat waves.
11:42But now, thanks to the monsoon, things have subsided a bit.
11:44But let me go across very quickly to Avinash.
11:46Avinash, well, talking about cricket, there's
11:50something that even the harshest critique of the Indian team
11:56wouldn't shy away from actually watching this final match.
12:00And a lot of expectations riding on the pain in blue.
12:05But talking about South Africa, they have been unlucky also in many regards.
12:09Talk about the Duckworth-Lewis method, the rain playing the spoilsport.
12:13Pretty much chances of rain also in that part of the world
12:16where this final would be happening.
12:18How do you assess the strength of the South African team as of now?
12:23And what are the chances for one final time for the viewers of India?
12:28Well, Pankaj, the best thing is for South Africa,
12:33what's happened during this tournament in the match against West Indies,
12:37it was a decider for them, a knockout kind of a virtual quarterfinal
12:41for both the teams.
12:42And it actually went into Duckworth-Lewis.
12:46And Mr. Duckworth, may his soul rest in peace now.
12:51But eventually, the South Africans tasted a sweet victory
12:56even in a Duckworth-Lewis rain-affected encounter.
13:00So that comes as a wonderful surprise for the South Africans.
13:06And given the kind of performance this team has put up
13:09and the way Aiden Markram has led the team,
13:14will give this team a lot of confidence.
13:16The squad looks quite balanced.
13:19They have possible forces.
13:20They are T20 specialists.
13:22We've seen what the South Africans did in the IPL,
13:26which was held in India between March and May.
13:31And there too, we saw the likes of Tristan Tubbs,
13:34Kagiso Rabadas, Aiden Markram, Keshav Maharajal,
13:38and let's not forget Henrik Klassen, the big hitter,
13:42the giant slayer that he's been known for,
13:47the reputation that he holds.
13:48So these players are definitely going to play a big role.
13:53And they'll be very crucial for South Africa's chances
13:57if they wish to win this tournament
14:00and defeat the team like India, which is on song.
14:04So they have the players.
14:05They have the talent.
14:07But it all boils down to now, how
14:11are they going to handle the pressure of a big match,
14:14a final pressure?
14:16The only big tournament this team had won
14:18was back in the late 90s, the Champions Trophy,
14:22which they ended up winning.
14:24So it's been more than 24 years since South Africa has actually
14:28won a big, major tournament.
14:32The Commonwealth Games, which was held back in the 90s,
14:36they won that.
14:37So no other big tournament or trophies there in the cabinet.
14:42So when it comes to crossing the final hurdle, at times,
14:47the players, they don't have the experience
14:50of how to handle the pressure.
14:52And we've seen what has been happening
14:54with the Indian side, as you mentioned in the beginning.
14:59Three back-to-back ICC Trophy finalists.
15:02But we are yet not too sure whether we'll
15:06be able to clear the final hurdle this time around,
15:09though there's a team like South Africa.
15:11It's a vitriolic side, let's be honest.
15:13And it can go anywhere.
15:15And one aspect of this game or the tournament which
15:19comes into India's favor is that South Africa
15:21haven't played a single game in Barbados.
15:24And India have.
15:24And there, they defeated Afghanistan
15:26by a big margin of 47 runs.
15:29And the same Afghanistan side blanked New Zealand early
15:33in the tournament.
15:33And later on, it blanked the 2011 T20 world champions.
15:40And the 2023 ODI world champions are Australians.
15:44So the lack of experience of this tournament
15:50on this ground could come to South Africa's knees.
15:56You're right.
15:58No, you're right, Avinash, talking about the cricket
16:01frenzy also in South Africa.
16:04As you mentioned, I've spent some time there.
16:07And I've seen that they take the game very seriously.
16:10And cricket is not just the only game that they are good at.
16:13And be it rugby or football, the nation
16:16goes gung-ho on those games as well.
16:18So they know the spirit of the sporting, these greats
16:25that they have produced.
16:26And Avinash, for our young viewers,
16:29those who must have started watching cricket
16:32for the last 10 to 15 years.
16:34But before that, if we go back to the days of Jonty Rhodes,
16:37Mark Boucher, Jacques Kallis, that
16:41was the time when South Africa had talent.
16:44And as a team, they were one unit.
16:47The problem that I see with the proteins
16:49is that they have all the talents, the names
16:51that you took, be it Adrian Markram, be it Keshav Maharaj,
16:55or the ones that we have just recently retired,
16:58say AB de Villiers or Quinton de Kock.
17:01But they failed to perform as a team.
17:04And that's where it all starts to crumble like a pack of cards.
17:08Otherwise, you talk about AB de Villiers,
17:10when he was there in the team, one
17:12of the biggest, lusty hitter of the shots.
17:16I've seen him perform both in South Africa and abroad.
17:20And you would agree that a very athletic team that they have.
17:24Yet, we'll have to wait and watch this time around.
17:28If the Duckworth Lewis can favor South Africa,
17:31I think it's a big sign that something
17:34is there positively on the cards.
17:38Rather, other than cricket, you are in that part of the world
17:42where Indians and the Indian diaspora
17:45is there in quite a big number.
17:47Yes, they celebrate cricket.
17:48They enjoy cricket.
17:49Last time also, I remember talking
17:51to one of our representatives from Canada
17:54itself when India was in the finals with Australia
17:58at that time.
18:00But other than that, there are quite a few issues
18:03that dominate the headlines there.
18:06One of them is the Niger issue and how Justin Trudeau's
18:09government has been tackling it, has been seeing it.
18:12How is the general perception there,
18:14if you may refer, vis-a-vis the native Canadians
18:19and the Indian diaspora?
18:21How do they see this whole issue, this whole episode?
18:24So hi, Pankaj.
18:25The Indian community, we are looking forward
18:27to the entire Indian diaspora is looking forward
18:29to the Canadian election next year.
18:31So one side, we have the Trudeau government,
18:33and there is a Perry Pulliver on the other side,
18:38the Conservatives.
18:40And this Canada, the economy is failing.
18:44In the recent years, the economy is going down in a steep hill.
18:47And there's a huge immigration mess happening in the system.
18:51You can see a lot of scams.
18:53So recently, on March, the government
18:57took a decision that they're going to stop.
19:00They're going to cut down on the student intakes
19:03because people are coming, students are coming over here
19:06with a lot of hopes and with a lot of hopes.
19:11And seeing that, but all the wealth you tell,
19:13like this country cannot provide.
19:16Like when the mass immigration happens,
19:19students are fighting hard for the economies,
19:22like inflation is happening.
19:24It's skyrocketing, actually.
19:25And the students are trying hard to survive.
19:28So things are looking bad at the moment.
19:30So government has to make a decision
19:32and cut down on the student intakes across the provinces.
19:36And there is a lot of uncertainty
19:39in the Indian community as well, like regarding the work
19:43permits or the permanent residency.
19:47Right, right, right.
19:48Yeah, and I can see there are a lot of protests
19:51happening within our community to this government,
19:54I mean, showcasing against this government as well.
19:58Right, right.
20:00Indeed, Dijo, we did pick up the news
20:03that how Canada has made the rules very stringent,
20:08even for the students to come and study there,
20:10and India being one of the biggest countries.
20:13Thank you, Dijo.
20:14Thank you so much, brother.
20:15Take care.
20:15And we sitting in India could only
20:18envy the beautiful background and the beautiful weather
20:21that you have there.
20:22How is it otherwise?
20:24Is it too cold, or is it manageable?
20:27Well, it was like we had a heat warning for the past two
20:29weeks.
20:29The temperature hit around like 35 degrees Celsius.
20:3335, too hot.
20:34Yeah, but again, the atmosphere is so close
20:37when it comes to the North Pole.
20:39I mean, we live in the northern region.
20:41So heat waves are like, heat wave warning
20:43comes quite often here.
20:46So just the start of summer, things are going to get burning.
20:49That's the usual feel people are having
20:52right here, right now.
20:53Again, the reasons are like there
20:58is a global warming happening, and El Nino.
21:02Effective there.
21:04Yes, so those are Canada's weather structure at the moment.
21:08But today, it's a calm and quiet morning here.
21:12Yeah, as they say, Dijo, make hay when the sun shines.
21:17And I can see it shining right there.
21:19Thank you so much, Dijo, for joining us all the way
21:21from Ontario in Canada.
21:23Dijo mentions that the heat wave is on there.
21:26And 35 degrees in Canada, in that part of the world,
21:28let me tell you, it is no less than 45 degrees
21:31in this part of the world.
21:33Tell us, Ajayji, how do we look at this whole scenario
21:36as a part of the native planet, and your opinion on that?
21:41So I totally agree with your comment
21:43that 35 degrees there is almost 45 degrees in India.
21:47Yes, agreed.
21:48And one more point I want to add.
21:50In last month, there is a 500% jump in the hospitalization
21:56cases in US due to heat wave only.
21:59You can just think about the people are not even means.
22:02They can't bear this kind of heat.
22:05The normal temperature in US is usually
22:07like 30 degrees and 32 degrees.
22:09So last week, it went up to around 38 degrees Celsius.
22:15And if you come down here in India,
22:18so India, you saw that last month, a lot of heat wave
22:24warnings came from the IMD itself.
22:27But people are not talking about the cases.
22:30So yesterday, one report came from Climate Central.
22:35And it is published across India and all around news channels
22:41and newspapers covered it.
22:43Around 61 crore people were affected in India
22:47due to heat wave just in six days in India.
22:52So you can think about how the things are
22:55getting worse day by day.
22:59So not only India, China, 579 million.
23:02And US, 165 million people affected due to heat wave.
23:07So it's a serious concern for all.
23:10And those who are thinking like, now,
23:12they live in by the show, they don't be very happy about that.
23:17And the reason is this heat wave is not just temperature rise.
23:23Actually, it's an extreme climate event.
23:29And that extreme climate event can happen during the monsoon
23:33as well.
23:34We saw in 2013 that Uttarakhand experienced
23:40whatever, we know that.
23:41It was a disaster.
23:42In 2018, again, Kerala was the victim.
23:46In 2015, we always talk about Chennai floods and all.
23:49So one term, actually, it is actually
23:52not being surfaced by many media organizations,
23:56the urban flooding.
23:58Urban flooding, it's actually, it
24:00was discussed in IPCC as well in last conference.
24:04And again, in the UN Biodiversity Conference,
24:09it's actually going to head in Colombia
24:11in the month of October.
24:13So this heat wave, urban flooding, along with the sea,
24:16they are there to make us, for the green,
24:22means they want to discuss the green part of the biodiversity,
24:26you can say.
24:27That's a big thing.
24:29But along with that, they are going to discuss these things.
24:34And not only India, the Pakistan are just neighboring.
24:37So you read that news that around 500 people
24:41are there in hospital.
24:43And a lot of dead bodies are coming out day by day.
24:45It's just kind of COVID kind of situation is there.
24:49Right.
24:50The thing is, government, not only government,
24:54people should be aware and people
24:55should be ready for everything.
24:59Condition is not in our hand right now.
25:02Indeed, indeed, Ajayji, quite an alarming situation here.
25:06And I just wonder that when would the climate become
25:11a voting issue, an election issue?
25:13Because the time has come.
25:15United States is going for polls.
25:17You talk about global warming, one of the biggest
25:20contributors there.
25:21Canada is also heading to polls.
25:22India just had its looks by elections.
25:25I think it's about time that we should
25:27be choosing our leaders, keeping our future in mind,
25:31not just present time.
25:32But India is ahead of a lot of other countries
25:36in whatever requirements for the Paris Agreement.
25:40So no doubt India is on the way.
25:44India is on the track.
25:46But a lot more should come from the people itself.
25:49It's a matter of awareness now.
25:51Definitely, definitely.
25:52And obviously, the use of renewable sources of energy
25:55that India is getting, solar energy is something.
25:58Prime Minister Modi also leading from the front
26:01for her Saur-Urja program.
26:03Hilpesh, before we wind up, we are hearing disturbing news
26:07coming in from Gujarat as far as the drug haul is concerned.
26:09And every time there's a new record,
26:11a new figure is added.
26:13Yes, Mr. Pankaj, Gujarat has already become a mini-Mexico.
26:25If you put it that way, there's nothing wrong with it.
26:27Because...
26:28Who is Pablo Escobar of Gujarat?
26:30Who is taking drugs from there?
26:32That will be known when the police department
26:35conducts an investigation.
26:36Because they've been investigating for the last three years,
26:38but they haven't found Pablo Escobar yet.
26:42In the last one year, they've arrested 353 people
26:46in a drug smuggling case.
26:48And a total of 87,000 kg drugs have been seized in Gujarat
26:53in the last three years.
26:54If we evaluate it, it's 9,600 crore rupees.
27:00These are just official numbers, Mr. Pankaj.
27:03You can imagine how big the unofficial numbers will be.
27:09The drugs smuggled in Gujarat are mostly from the sea border.
27:14Korbandar, Dwarka and Kutch.
27:16Mostly, drugs are smuggled in Gujarat
27:19from the sea border of these three districts.
27:22And there's a village in Dwarka, a small village,
27:27with a population of about 2,000 people.
27:29In that village, 2,500 crores worth of drugs were smuggled.
27:33So, this is the situation in Gujarat.
27:37The Gujarat police...
27:39The Gujarat police were sleeping soundly, but now they're awake.
27:44And now they've started an anti-drug campaign.
27:47So, let's see if this campaign can stop the smuggling of drugs or not.
27:53Kalpesh, thank you very much for the interview.
27:55Quite an eye-opener.
27:57This whole issue of drug menace,
27:59what we used to hear about cross-border drug peddling
28:02through the poorest border of Jammu and Kashmir,
28:05and also through Punjab, because of neighbouring Pakistan.
28:10But Gujarat being a dry state and being a coastal state
28:14is something that adds a lot of different dimension to it.
28:18Gentlemen, thank you so much for speaking to us,
28:21for taking time out.
28:23I wish you all a very happy Friday.
28:25DJ would have just started his Friday there in Canada.
28:28But thank you so much.
28:29And we promise to be back next week, same time, same place,
28:33do say, with One India.