COVID-19, Urbanisation and the Role of the Draft NUP for India’s Way Forward

Mr Utkarsh Roy is one of the co-founders of Introbot AI, a WhatsApp-based artificial intelligence software that helps people find verified covid resources in real-time. He founded this software alongside Mr. Divyaansh Anuj. Mr Roy did his MSc in Computer Science from the University of Toronto and was the co-founder and CEO of OhWow, a mobile-first file sharing tech startup for the creator economy.

Mr Rahul Raina and Mr Naman Gupta are the co-creators of the Covid Resource India bot, that provides similar services on Twitter. They are graduates of the School of Accelerated Learning in Secunderabad. Mr Raina did his Bachelors of Engineering in Production Engineering and works as a Node JS developer at Link Fields Inn. Mr Gupta did his Bachelors of Commerce from Delhi University, his Masters in Computer Applications at Indira Gandhi National University before joining the School of Accelerated Learning. He works as a backend developer at Everest Engineering.

Recorded online in June, Shivani Menon, a student of economics at King’s College London, talks to the three co-founders about the policy landscape for such operations, challenges encountered, and the prospects of AI in the future. This conversation draws from the expertise of the pioneering work of the people behind the artificial intelligence software aiding covid-resource allocation in informing the larger public policy discourse surrounding the usage of artificial intelligence in health crisis management in India.

Aswathy Dilip is a Senior Programme Manager leading the Complete Streets strategy, policy, and projects work for the ITDP India Programme. With support from her smart and enthusiastic team, she works with the National, State and City governments, providing them technical assistance on sustainable and equitable urban mobility. Her most exciting work includes transforming congested roads into vibrant streets with space for all users, helping cities implement bold parking reforms, and building support for high-quality, sustainable mass transit. With a keen interest in citizen engagement, Aswathy has organised Car-Free Sundays, intersection design testing, as well as street and public space exhibitions. Currently, she leads the team working on the preparation of the Complete Streets toolkit for the National Smart City Mission. She is also actively involved in the training and capacity development of city officials, engineers and town planners in Complete Streets and parking management. 

Recorded online in June, Aswathy takes us through her journey in the national challenge of redesigning streets to promote walking and cycling in India. Samir George talks to Ms. Dilip about two national programmes that she is working on – India Cycles4Change and Streets For People Challenge. She tells us about the role of national, state and city governments, the institutional resilience required to implement these policies and her learnings from her work!

Dr. Amir Ullah Khan is a Development economist and Professor at the MCRHRDI of the Government of Telangana. He is a Visiting Professor at TISS, Indian School of Business and at NALSAR in Hyderabad. Amir is a business columnist for LiveMint. Dr Khan has been a civil servant, then Deputy Director and Senior Advisor at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Director at the India Development Foundation and Executive Director at Encyclopedia Britannica.

Recorded online in June, Dr Kaustubh Bondre talks to Mr. Khan about the comparative analysis of India’s response to the first & second covid wave, why the vaccination strategy faltered, the issue of vaccine hesitancy and the way in which we can attempt a course correction now (or can effectively deal with the crisis facing the country). This talk was recorded prior to the announcement of the new vaccination strategy by the Prime Minister, and is our first one in Hindi.