Technically Speaking, Does India Use Predictive Policing? (Ep. 2)

Episode 1 of this series looked at the concept of predictive policing, what it entails, how it is being used across the world and the various issues with regards to it. In this next episode, we take a look at India. Do the country's police forces us any form of predictive policing? How much is known to the public about this technology? What needs to be done to ensure the safe adoption and use of the same? Let's find out. You can watch episode 1 here: https://thebastion.co.in/politics-and/tech/technically-speaking-can-you-predict-crime-ep-1/

Technically Speaking: Can You Predict Crime? (Ep. 1)

With technology rapidly evolving, police forces across the world have been searching for solutions that can help them stop crime and police more effectively. Enter, Predictive Policing. This technology has been conceptualised, implemented and in some cases, even let go, in different parts of the globe.
Predictive Policing introduces a whole new dimension of policing, eerily similar to sci-fi movies and television shows. So just what is this technology? How does it work? Why is it controversial? Let's find out.

Mapping Cyber Security in India with Pukhraj Singh

If the recent revelation that China is collecting huge amounts of data on Indian individuals is anything to go by, it's safe to say that cyber threats have gone beyond the realm of popular belief where this happens largely between North Korea, Russia, USA and China. Mix this with the growing capabilities of the Indian state to collect information about its own citizenry, and we have a confusing concoction of what the Indian cyberspace is. Against such a background, it is crucial to understand just how equipped we, individually and institutionally, are to deal with threats, both, external and internal. Pukhraj Singh, cyber intelligence analyst and expert helps us dig through this through some basic questions:
1. What security and accountability strategies should be adopted while designing government databases?
2. What are some flaws within the Personal Data Protection Bill?
3. What type of cyber strategies have been adopted by different South Asian countries?
4. How do South Asian cyber strategies differ when compared to the rest of the world?
5. Will India exploit the cyber realm in the near future?

Are Anganwadis Equipped to Handle Early Childhood Care & Education?: With Kamal Gaur

Edited by Malavika VN 
Anganwadis play a crucial function in the development of children throughout the country. Although these centres began as an effort to combat child hunger and malnutrition; today, the role of Anganwadis surpass those functions. At present, Anganwadi workers don many hats&mdash;care-givers, teachers and more. With the introduction of the New Education Policy, implementation is key to realise its true potential. And, as frontline personnel in the education sector, the importance of Anganwadi workers is vital to consider while talking about Early Childhood Care &amp; Education (ECCE). In this light, Chirag Chinnappa speaks to Kamal Gaur, the Deputy Programme Director (Education) at Save The Children, India. In specific, she explores the following questions: 1. What is the standard of qualification for Anganwadi workers? 2. How do Anganwadis differ across the country? 3. What is the role of CSOs/NGOs in making Early Childhood Care &amp; Education (ECCE) truly high quality and universal for all?

Do Applications Pose a Threat to Cyber Security? With Pukhraj Singh

Interview by Bharath Pottekkat Edited by Malavika VN
The inventions of simple-looking, yet complex, mobile and desktop applications have changed the way we consume content. Be it social media or online gaming, there&rsquo;s bound to be an application for any function we desire. If there isn&rsquo;t one right now, then it&rsquo;s just a matter of time till we spot it on Google or Apple&rsquo;s play stores. However, with such diverse sets of apps that we interact with on a daily basis, comes the threat of data misuse. Extrapolating this further, could the data we emit by simply performing mundane tasks on our devices pose a threat to our cybersecurity&mdash;personal and national? To understand whether applications pose a threat to cybersecurity, Bharath Pottekkat speaks to Pukhraj Singh, cyber intelligence analyst and expert. In this short interview, they discuss the following questions:
1. Can applications like Tiktok be used as cyber weapons?
2. Should regulations such as the Tiktok app ban be categorized as offensive or defensive strategies?

The State Of Facial Recognition In India

Research by Bharath Pottekkat Presented &amp; Edited by Sumit Krishna Yadav
The Indian State is quickly adopting new forms of emerging technologies such as facial recognition systems. Specifically, these technologies are now being used by law enforcement with the aim to recognize and identify persons of interest swiftly. From the Prime Minister's rally in Delhi to protests in UP, facial recognition technologies have been seemingly very useful for law enforcement. However, a quick look back at history tells us that there are some serious concerns with this form of technology that must be addressed. Why? Because surveillance of citizenry might be a useful tool to maintain law and order. However, it can become dangerous if it impedes citizens' fundamental rights without robust levels of accountability. Beyond the issue of privacy, the efficiency of such systems should be explored to ensure that individuals are not misidentified. In this video, we take a look at how these concerns have been identified and addressed on a global scale? How these questions are an integral part of discourse in a democracy? And what reforms are required before going forward?

Building COVID-19 Resilience in Education with Kavita Anand

COVID-19 has shaken the foundations of numerous sectors worldwide. Although many of these changes in our daily life might be temporary, some nudges might alter the way our lives function in the long term. Take the education sector for example. The pandemic has coerced students, teachers and other stakeholders to adopt digital platforms in a bid to continue the learning process. However, is this shift sustainable? There are aspects of the classroom that might not be replicable in a digital space. Moreover, based on our learnings from the current pandemic, how can we plan our education systems to be more resilient and captive to shocks like COVID-19 in the long run? Today, Kavita Anand, Founder and Director of Adhyayan Foundation explores these questions and more to help us understand what we can learn from our current situation to prepare for tomorrow.

How Do Internet Shutdowns & Web Censorship Work in India?

Research by Isha Malaviya Edited &amp; Presented by Sumit Krishna Yadav
Internet shutdowns and instances of web censorship have become a common occurrence in the country. To put this into perspective, out of 213 documented shutdown in the world, India accounted for 121. The closest country was Venezuela at a relatively mere 12 instances. Moreover, the internet shutdown in Jammu and Kashmir placed India as the country with the longest ever internet shutdown amongst democracies. With ubiquitous acknowledgement of digitization, be it digital payments or healthcare infrastructures, it&rsquo;s perplexing to observe such an immense number of internet shutdowns. Whether, its blocking of telecom services during protests or censoring the websites of environmental advocacy groups, the internet has become seemingly inaccessible for certain sections of society, hereby, having major implications. How does this censorship work? What laws and policies make the implementation of internet shutdowns possible and at such a scale? What have been the implications of such shutdowns and blockades on individuals and societies? Finally, are there enough redressal mechanisms and do they seem to work? Let's try and find out. Let us know what you think in the comments.

Early Childhood Care & Education in the NEP 2020 with Kamal Gaur

Last month, the Union Government approved the new National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. Since then, many prominent personalities have spoken about its potential for transforming India&rsquo;s education sector. The vision for 2040 outlines many new interventions including that of Early Childhood Care &amp; Education (ECCE) across anganwadis, syllabi, caregivers and private schools. However, as previous education reforms have shown, the devil lies in the implementation of the policy. This isn&rsquo;t surprising since education relies on a vast network of stakeholders including State Governments, anganwadis, teachers, parents and much more. In this light, can the NEP successfully implement positive changes in Early Childhood Care &amp; Education in India? And how? To understand this further, Chirag Chinnappa speaks to Kamal Gaur, the Deputy Programme Director (Education) at Save The Children, India. In specific, she explores the following questions:
1. What are the changes in the NEP that will be implemented regarding ECCE?
2. What is the strengthened network for implementing ECCE? How does it work?
3. Who are the stakeholders?

Decoding Cyber Sovereignty with Pukhraj Singh

Interview by Bharath Pottekkat Edited by Malavika VN
The past few years have witnessed a change in the way countries attempt to govern the vast, deep and decentralized cyber space. In the midst of large-scale disinformation campaigns threatening the very existence of public institutions, this need to govern stems from very real issues. Yet, the way we choose to do it is as vital in order to maintain the social contract between our society and the State. Regulations without a profound understanding and examination of the workings and meaning behind the cyber realm could leave us in a dire position. With this in mind, in this interview, we speak to Pukhraj Singh to explore four key questions that are critical to both our virtual and physical existence in the backdrop of national sovereignty based cyber regulations. These are as follows:
1. What is cyber sovereignty? What are the different models that exist?
2. What is the relationship between cyber sovereignty &amp; the State?
3. What has India dealt with cyber sovereignty?
4. What is the role of data localization in cyber sovereignty?
Pukhraj Singh is a cyber threat intelligence analyst who has worked with Government agencies, global response teams and start-ups in Canada, Israel, India, Malaysia and the US.

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Technically Speaking, When Can Law Enforcement Seize My Phone? With Apar Gupta

Our phones have become a vital part of our virtual and physical existence. With the ability to process large amounts of information and data from a feather touch on a screen, it's not surprising that these devices contain some of our most treasured memories and secrets. Yet, as disturbing as it may seem, we are witnessing a period in which these very messages and chats are being read out loud in public, as though voyeurism within Television has become almost normalised. This hostile atmosphere begs the question&mdash;who should have access to our personal devices and under what conditions?
Today, Swagam Dasgupta speaks to Apar Gupta, Executive Director of the Internet Freedom Foundation to understand the complexities of the law regarding smartphones and other devices. Part 1 of this series delves into a seemingly simple question with an unfortunately complicated answer&mdash;when can law enforcement seize my phone?
Please do write to us at information@thebastion.co.in

Coronavirus In India: Things You Need To Know

The deadly Coronavirus which has taken more than 3000 lives and infected 80000 people around the world has finally come knocking on our doorstep. India, a relatively safer country until now, is now counting at least 30 confirmed cases. With Delhi being the epicentre of most of these cases, it becomes very important that we take all the measures necessary to protect ourselves and others. The first step in this direction is getting the correct information about what the coronavirus exactly is? How does it spread? What is the government doing to combat this threat? And most importantly, what can you do to stay safe?
 Let&rsquo;s try and find out.
 According to the WHO-
Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses which may cause illness in animals or humans.&nbsp; In humans, several coronaviruses are known to cause respiratory infections ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). The most recently discovered coronavirus causes coronavirus disease COVID-19.
&nbsp;
 Now,&nbsp; there is no concrete theory about how this virus came to infect humans. Covid-19 is a betacoronavirus and like it&rsquo;s predecessors SARS and MERS, it has its origin in bats. Given it&rsquo;s concentration in Wuhan, it is suspected to have originated from the region&rsquo;s live seafood and animal markets.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
 But the major cause for its rapid spread has been person to person. Later investigations revealed that this might be the case, as all patients did not have exposure to animal markets.
 So, the most common way the virus spreads is via small droplets released when an infected person coughs or sneezes. It can directly infect a person if it lands on their face or clothes, and later also gets transferred to the eyes, nose or the mouth too
 . It can even survive on various surfaces for hours to even days depending on the surface. So, if you touch the surface and then touch your face, you can get infected.
 It has also been found that coronavirus can remain dormant for upto two weeks without showing any signs of infection. Thus it becomes critical to keep a close eye on your body. The usual symptoms include fever, cough and shortness of breath which can often feel like seasonal flu. In any case, it is essential that you see a doctor if you develop any of these symptoms.&nbsp;
 At the time of filming of the video, the total count of the number of patients is 30 in India. To combat the spread of this further, the government and the respective authorities are taking various steps to ensure that the virus is contained.&nbsp;
 India has started screening all passengers coming to India via International flights, instead of just from a few countries as was the case just a few days ago. Special medical staff and quarantine procedures are also being put into place. All the states have been put on high alert, especially the ones sharing their borders with other countries such as Uttarakhand and the coastal areas.
 The Delhi Government has also announced the creation of a state task force to tackle the outbreak, and prevent the black marketing of medical supplies like sanitisers and masks.
Union health minister Harsh Vardhan also said that all the states with confirmed cases have been asked to prepare more isolation facilities and to not panic.
The government is also planning to involve private hospitals in the fight against coronavirus.
&nbsp;
Now, apart from all this, there are a few things that the governments, especially in Delhi, can do to curb the spread-
Shutting down schools for a while so that small children don&rsquo;t get exposed to probable contamination. Young people are at a greater risk and going to school involves a lot of public transportation.&nbsp; The government can direct companies with their offices in Delhi-NCR to offer more work from home options to their employees to avoid heavily burdened Metro and Bus services. Such areas are hotspots for the spread of the virus. The government and medical facilities should make sure they have enough medical supplies such as masks, medicines and isolation facilities in case the situation gets worse. Hoarding of such supplies by middlemen should be strongly opposed. &nbsp;
The authorities are doing and will continue to do so but it will not be successful if we as people do not take individual responsibility. We have been updating our viewers and followers on various steps to take via our instagram posts which tell you the do&rsquo;s and don&rsquo;ts for combating this apparent pandemic. Please go through our posts to get a detailed understanding of how to protect yourself.
&nbsp;
But to summarise here are a few things to follow-
Washing your hands. Your hands are in constant contact with various surfaces all day long. Then, you often touch your face with the same hands. This can transfer the virus to you via your eyes, mouth, and eyes. so , avoid touching your face and regularly wash your hands with soap for 20 seconds.&nbsp; Carry a hand sanitiser with you. Any sanitiser with a 60% alcohol content will do the trick. If you are in a place where you can&rsquo;t wash your hands; use a sanitiser. Avoid unnecessary travel. If you can avoid travelling via public means; even cabs and taxis; please do that. Stay indoors as much as possible and keep your surroundings clean. If you feel you are falling sick or showing any symptoms, do not delay going to a hospital and seek medical help. Using a mask is essential for anybody who is sick. A healthy person wearing a mask is not as effective as a sick person wearing it because that contains the spread of droplets. Lastly, sanitise things that you use if you feel they have been out in public. Your cellphone is the top priority here. We use our phones everywhere and touch them constantly. It is very important that we sanitise something we use so frequently. &nbsp;
In the past week, new cases in China, that has the highest number of infected patients in the world, have come down. But, on the other end, it is spreading to newer areas just as fast.&nbsp;
&nbsp;
With no vaccine or medicine to cure this virus, prevention is our best weapon. Take care of yourself and the people around you. Keep a close watch on the news and the latest developments. Most importantly, do not panic because that might end up impeding the process of resolving this issue for all of us.

Sexual Violence at Gargi College: How Safe Do Women Feel Going to College in Delhi?

A women&rsquo;s college&rsquo;s cultural festival in the&nbsp; national capital. Unknown men enter the campus that&rsquo;s supposed to be secured and guarded to protect the students. They grope and sexually harass women inside the campus.
Sounds bizarre and yet, it is true. Students of Gargi College, under the University of Delhi, witnessed horrific scenes unfold&nbsp; on the 6th of February during their annual fest &ldquo;Reverie&rdquo;.&nbsp;
While this has put the administration under the scanner, it raises a very important question for all of us:
HOW SAFE DO WOMEN FEEL GOING TO COLLEGE IN DELHI?
 Let&rsquo;s try and find out.
 A normal day in a student&rsquo;s life is made up of going to the college, attending classes, participating in college activities, and coming back home.
 Before I discuss educational spaces in particular,let us see how safe women feel in Delhi, &nbsp; here are a few data points we all need to consider.
 According to the National Crime Records Bureau, Delhi topped the list of cities in India when it came to the number of crimes committed against women in 2017. Further, in a study conducted by an NGO Praja Foundation, 47% of women feel insecure while travelling within the city. Combine these two data points together, with the fact that commuting within the city via public transport is an integral part of receiving higher education, and we can see how that affects the level of safety for the average women student.
 Feeling unsafe while commuting has strong implications on education. According to a study conducted by Girija Borker which used Google Maps and mobile applications such as &ldquo;Safetipin&rdquo; and &ldquo;Safecity&rdquo; to map out the movement of students between their homes and colleges; women tend to choose to go to worse colleges than men for safety reasons.&nbsp;
 By surveying 2700 Delhi University students, she observed that women pick lower ranked colleges that are closer to their homes to avoid commuting via certain routes and modes of transport.
 In addition, she also found that women also spend more money than the entire tuition fees to travel via longer metro route and autos than public buses because they feel safer travelling via metros and autos.
 The Nirbhaya Fund, which was created to ensure safety for women in public places, has also clearly failed in its objectives then. According to a December 2019 estimate based on data provided by the government, around 89% of the sanctioned funds were not used. Now, in a country where the women&rsquo;s enrolment in higher education is 48.6%, these figures become very crucial.
 Now moving on to the next stage of a student&rsquo;s day: moving around campus. After the gruesome rape of Jyoti Singh in December 2012 in Delhi, and the enactment of the Sexual Harassment at Workplace Act in 2013, the UGC setup a committee to recommend measures to enhance the safety of women on university campuses.
 As a result, the &ldquo;Saksham&rdquo; report was created in 2013. This report recommended having counselling sessions and gender sensitization programs on a regular basis. The report also observed that despite previous UGC guidelines, the Internal Complaint Committees were ill-equipped to handle sexual harassment cases. It also suggested how these committees must be formed with student and faculty representatives to combat sexual harassment on campuses.
 Now, the report also reinforced that policing and monitoring the movement of women is detrimental to the autonomy and freedom that students should be provided with. However, in April 2015, the UGC issued another set of guidelines which suggested surveillance measures such as installing CCTV cameras to check on women students, and escalation in wall heights for hostels and campuses.&nbsp;
 This constant idea of &ldquo;protecting&rdquo; women and working in their &ldquo;best interests&rdquo; is infantilizing in nature, and goes completely against the notion of empowerment through higher education, highlighting a larger institutional issue with how we see women students.
 Also, cases where women have faced harassment and objectification on campus arise time and again. The clean chit given to Atul Johri, a Professor at JNU, who was accused by at least 9 women in an Internal Complaints Committee appeal, continues to be a matter of debate. The problem is also not just limited to Delhi, in Kerala, an assistant professor Jouhar Munavvi, was accused of objectifying women and moral policing them on their dressing when he said that women students &ldquo;dress in a way so as to reveal part of their breasts like a slice of watermelon&rdquo;.&nbsp;
 The use of such language&nbsp; is disturbing to any individual but these are just a couple of examples; the list goes much longer. Such instances pose a big threat to women safety and freedom in our colleges. It poses a challenge to the inclusive environment of equal opportunity we wish to create in our country.&nbsp;
 The numerous controversies surrounding The ICCs across various colleges in Delhi and the lack of proper implementation of such bodies is another issue to be tackled. When the people who are supposed to help you out are the ones telling you what to wear and where to go and not, it becomes a really complicated problem.
&nbsp;
The mental trauma, and the constant looking over one&rsquo;s shoulder, are just a few aspects of the consequences of these incidents. They have much more drastic and long term implications too.
&nbsp;
Coming back to the Gargi College incident, a student alleged that the principal Promila Kumar said that &ldquo;If you feel unsafe, don&rsquo;t come to these fests&rdquo; during a personal interaction. There is also news of a similar incident that had taken place last year at the same fest.&nbsp;
 The Delhi District Court has sent the 10 arrested for the incident to 14 days of judicial custody. At the same time, the College administration announced elections for student reps in the Internal Complaints Committee on Feb 28 which&nbsp; is a positive step in the right direction.
 However, with all these instances and factors, it is hard to say that we have developed an overall safe and secure educational experience for the women students of our country. If women students do not feel safe getting an education, we can not expect an equal society to flourish.
&nbsp;

Out Of Breath: The Bhalswa Landfill

Filmed by Nabina Chakraborty
Just a few kilometres further from Delhi&rsquo;s Jahangirpuri metro station lies a &lsquo;hill&rsquo; that will leave you staring at it in bewilderment. From afar, the average viewer would believe this to be a mountain with a single peak standing over 40m tall, one that is especially lovely at night when it is lit up beautifully. As you move closer, you realize that this peak&mdash;more than half the size of the Qutub Minar&mdash;is made entirely out of the excess waste coming out of Delhi. To make matters worse, the lights are in fact useless articles of paper or plastic that are burnt so that the more expensive scrap metals can be easily dug out. To top it all off, overlooking this pile of trash are a number of birds circling around, just waiting to scavenge. This is not a mountain. This is the Bhalswa Sanitary landfill in North-West Delhi.
Delhi produces 90,00,000 kilograms of garbage a day. A significant amount of this waste finds its way to one of the city's four landfill sites&mdash;Ghazipur, Okhla, Bhalswa and Narela-Bawana. As it currently stands, three of the four landfill sites operate beyond capacity.
With a hazardous Air Quality Index (AQI) score of 384, the people near the Bhalswa landfill face a multitude of issues ranging from severe air pollution to lack of access to drinking water. Yet, there seems to be a significant population living around the clutter. For them, segregating and selling particular waste materials found in the landfill has become their primary source of income. However, given the sheer amount of garbage accumulating in Bhalswa, one can only imagine the conditions under which these waste-pickers are working every day. Today, Nabina Chakraborty aims to give you a glimpse of exactly that.

Technically Speaking, What Does the Future of TV News Behold? With Vikram Chandra (Part 1)

Television news is becoming more polarized than ever, and what used to be 9PM news updates have turned into shouting matches where either you love your country or you're anti-national.
While on the surface, it seems like anchors are pushing out their own agendas, is there a deeper reason as to why they choose to present news in a certain manner? Does the business model of television news have something to do with it? And what does the future look like for aspiring journalists?
In conversation with Chirag Chinnappa, Vikram Chandra, Founder of Editorji and former TV-anchor, breaks down these questions and gives us a glimpse of the realities behind the camera.

Technically Speaking, How Can I Safeguard My Online Data & Information? Part 2 with Apar Gupta

As technology evolves, so does our perception of what constitutes privacy and security. Over the past few years, privacy has grown from being a comfort to being recognised as a fundamental right in India. The landmark &lsquo;Puttaswamy judgment&rsquo;, as it&rsquo;s commonly referred to, gave each and every citizen of the country the right to protect their personal information. However, this right needs to be matched by our own capabilities to safeguard this data, especially in the age of instant messaging. In Part 2 of The Bastion&rsquo;s conversation with Apar Gupta of the Internet Freedom Foundation, we delve into what each of us can do in our individual capacity to safeguard our personal data and information on our devices.

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