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In Myanmar, armed groups battling the military junta continue to make advances across Chin, Rakhine and Shan states, part of a coordinated attack dubbed “Operation 1027”. Cartoon by Gihan de Chickera 
Podcast

Podcast: Armed groups challenge Myanmar’s junta, Sri Lanka’s 2024 budget, Uttarkashi tunnel collapse and more

Your Southasia news roundup from 7-19 November 2023, plus an interview with Sanaa Alimia on Afghans migrants in Pakistan

In this episode, we talk about armed groups challenging the military junta across Chin, Shan and Rakhine states, Sri Lanka's budget for 2024, the collapse of a tunnel in Uttarkashi, Nepal's TikTok ban, garment factory workers' strikes in Bangladesh, earthquakes in Nepal, the chequered legacy of Indian tycoon Subrata Roy, the International Cricket Council's suspension of Sri Lanka Cricket for government interference, and over 170,000 Afghan refugees fleeing Pakistan after a deportation order.

In this episode, we talk about armed groups challenging the military junta across Chin, Shan and Rakhine states, Sri Lanka's budget for 2024, the collapse of a tunnel in Uttarkashi, Nepal's TikTok ban, garment factory workers' strikes in Bangladesh, earthquakes in Nepal, the chequered legacy of Indian tycoon Subrata Roy, the International Cricket Council's suspension of Sri Lanka Cricket for government interference, and over 170,000 Afghan refugees fleeing Pakistan after a deportation order.

This week, Himal Southasian interviews Sanaa Alimia, Assistant Professor at the Aga Khan University and the author of Refugee Cities, a history of Afghan migration to Pakistan since the 1970s, in light of Pakistan's deportation order impacting Afghan refugees.

Southasiasphere is our roundup of news events and analysis of regional affairs, now out every two weeks. If you are a member, you will automatically receive links to new episodes in your inbox. If you are not yet a member, you can still get episode links for free by signing up here.

Episode Notes:

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Sanaa Alimia's reading list:

This podcast episode is now available on SoundcloudSpotifyApple Podcasts and Youtube.

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India’s massive failure to control pesticide overuse in cardamom and its spice trade

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Sri Lanka, the National People's Power and women in politics – Southasia Weekly #39