After the conflict between China in India broke out in Ladakh and Sikkim sectors, Nepal started claiming that the area near Lipulekh along the Kali Nadi belongs to it.
These days India’s border with Nepal near the Chinese Territory is witnessing shocking and strange activities. Even as the Nepalese parliament approved a new political map showing the Indian territory near Lipulekh as its part, the Nepali Army is building a helipad and has established a camp of tents at the Indo-Nepal border.
The Nepali army has built a helipad and established a camp of tents along the Indo-Nepal border in Dharchula.
“In this temporary looking camp, one can see dozens of Nepali soldiers deployed there. This is something which has happened for the first time in this area,” sources said.
After the conflict between China in India broke out in Ladakh and Sikkim sectors, Nepal started claiming that the area near Lipulekh along the Kali Nadi belongs to it.
India Today TV also managed to get the exclusive footage of the Nepali army buildup in the region which is unprecedented. India Today TV team had reached Dharchula which is adjoining both Nepal and China and as the Chinese borders are 80 km from it. It is in Dharchula from where a road has been built between Dharchula and Lipulekh for travel to Mansarovar in Tibet.
In Dharchula, the Kali Nadi accessed the border between India and Nepal where hundreds of villages are settled and many small bridges have been built for people to travel with ease.
However, due to the lockdown measures imposed on both sides, the travel has been put on hold. The Indian side is guarded by the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and its troops can be seen patrolling along the border.
The activities of the Indian Army have also increased and the Border Roads Organisation personnel can be seen continuously working on the newly built road which is critical for military purposes as well.
The Nepali Army also built a post 40 km before Kaalapani at a place called Malabar a week ago and the personnel were dropped there by a helicopter, a local resident told India Today TV.
India-China Border Face-off: Given China’s centrality and India’s insignificant share in global trade, banning trade will barely hurt China while adversely impacting Indian consumers and businesses.
The Indian government has tried to respond to the border dispute with China by training its guns on trade. The idea resonating in Indian streets is that Indians should boycott Chinese goods and thus “teach China a lesson”.
Demonstrators raise slogans as they burn an effigy depicting Chinese President Xi Jinping during a protest against China, in Kolkata, June 18, 2020. (Reuters Photo: Rupak De Chowdhuri)
Visuals of Indians breaking and burning their fully functional Chinese appliances such as TVs have been doing the rounds in social media. Union minister Ramdas Athawale has even demanded a ban on restaurants selling Chinese food even though these would be Indian restaurants, employing Indian chefs and using largely Indian agricultural produce to serve such Chinese dishes.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=b3z6QSQEPpA
While one can understand the outrage that Indians feel when they hear about the brutal deaths of their soldiers, turning a border or defence dispute into a trade one is an ill-advised move.
There are several reasons.
1. Trade deficits are not necessarily bad
One of the main reasons why banning trade has been the first reaction is the notion that having a trade deficit is somehow a “bad” thing. The fact is altogether different. Trade deficits/surpluses are just accounting exercises and having a trade deficit against a country doesn’t make the domestic economy weaker or worse off.
For instance, if one looks at the top 25 countries with whom India trades, it has a trade surplus with the US, the UK and the Netherlands. But that doesn’t mean the Indian economy is stronger or better off than any of these three.
Similarly, it has a trade deficit with the other 22 of them (including China) — regardless of their size and geographic location. This list includes France, Germany, Nigeria, South Africa, UAE, Qatar, Russia, South Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Indonesia among others.
Yet, a trade deficit doesn’t necessarily mean that the Indian economy is worse off than South Africa’s. A trade deficit with China only means that Indians buy more Chinese products than what Chinese from India. But per se that is not a bad thing.
Why? Because it shows that Indian consumers — who made these purchase decisions individually and voluntarily — are now better off than what they would have been had they bought either, say, a Japanese or French or even an Indian alternative.
Essentially, it shows that Indian consumers, as well as the Chinese producers, gained through trading. It is this very process that generates the gains from trade. Both sides are better off than what they would have been without trade.
Of course, running persistent trade deficits across all countries raises two main issues.
One, does a country have the foreign exchange reserves to “buy” the imports. Today, India has more than $500 billion of forex — good enough to cover imports for 12 months.
Two, it also shows that India is not capable of producing for the needs of its own people in the most efficient manner.
At one level, no country is self-sufficient and that is why trade is such a fantastic idea. It allows countries to specialise in what they can do most efficiently and export that good while importing whatever some other country does more efficiently.
So while a persistent trade deficit merits the domestic government — the Indian government in this case — to put in place policies and create the infrastructure that raises competitiveness, it should not “force” or even “nudge” people to move away from trade because doing so will undermine efficiency and come at the cost of the consumer’s benefits.
A member of National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) holds a placard during a protest against China, in Ahmedabad, June 18, 2020. (Reuters Photo: Amit Dave)
2. Will hurt the Indian poor the most
More often than not, the poorest consumers are the worst-hit in a trade ban of this kind because they are the most price-sensitive. For instance, if Chinese ACs were replaced by either costlier Japanese ACs or less efficient Indian ones, richer Indians may still survive this ban — by buying the costlier option — but a number of poor, who could have otherwise afforded an AC, would either have to forgo buying one because it is now too costly (say a Japanese or European firm) or suffer (as a consumer) by buying a less efficient Indian one.
Similarly, the Chinese products that are in India are already paid for. By banning their sale or avoiding them, Indians will be hurting fellow Indian retailers. Again, this hit would be proportionately more on the poorest retailers because of their relative inability to cope with the unexpected losses.
3. Will punish Indian producers and exporters
Some may argue that trading with China hurts many Indian producers. This is true, but it is also true that trading hurts only the less efficient Indian producers while helping the more efficient Indian producers and businesses.
It is important to note that the list of Indian consumers of Chinese imports does not comprise just those who consume the final finished good from China; several businesses in India import intermediate goods and raw materials, which, in turn, are used to create final goods — both for the domestic Indian market as well as the global market (as Indian exports).
Contrary to popular belief an overwhelming proportion of Chinese imports are in the form of intermediate goods such as electrical machinery, nuclear reactors, fertilisers, optical and photographic measuring equipment organic chemicals etc. Such imports are used to produce final goods which are then either sold in India or exported.
Decoding LAC Conflict
Explained: Why banning trade with China will hurt India more
The road from Galwan: India’s response must be mature and resolute
The offer that Zhou made, and Nehru rejected… the lessons from it
A blanket ban on Chinese imports will hurt all these businesses at a time when they are already struggling to survive, apart from hitting India’s ability to produce finished goods.
To recap: Trade deficits are not necessarily bad; they improve the wellbeing of Indian consumers including producers and exporters. In any case, India has trade deficits with most countries so why single out China.
4. Will barely hurt China
Still, some may argue that we want to single out China because it has killed our soldiers at the border and we will now punish it through trade.
Then the question is: Will banning trade hurt China?
The truth is the exact opposite. It will hurt India and Indian far more than it will hurt China.
Let’s look at the facts again. While China accounts for 5% of India’s exports and 14% of India’s imports — in US$ value terms — India’s imports from China (that is, China’s exports) are just 3% of China’s total exports. More importantly, China’s imports from India are less than 1% of its total imports.
The point is that if India and China stop trading then — on the face of it — China would lose only 3% of its exports and less than 1% of its imports, while India will lose 5% of its exports and 14% of its imports.
Moreover, if one takes the notion of not letting China profit from the Indian purchasing power strictly, then Indians should also avoid buying all products that use Chinese goods and labour. So, forget the several obvious Chinese brands and products, Indian consumers would have to go about figuring out if China gains any money from, say, the iPhones that are sold in India. Or if the steel used in a European gadget is Chinese or not.
The trouble is this is a near-impossible task not just because of China’s centrality in global trade and global value chains but also because even teams of bureaucrats will find it tough to map Chinese involvement in all our trade on a real-time basis.
On the whole, it is much easier for China to replace India than for India to replace China.
A damaged poster of Chinese President Xi Jinping lies on the ground during a protest against China in Ahmedabad, June 18, 2020. (Reuters Photo: Amit Dave)
Here’s some food for thought: /What if Xi Jinping and the political establishment in China do the same thing to India? What if they decided to abruptly ban all trade and forbid all private investment via any route into India?/
Of course, India would survive, but at a huge cost to common Indians while depriving many Indian businesses (the start-ups with billion-dollar valuations) of Chinese funding.
Why? Because in the short to medium term, it would be both difficult and costly to replace Chinese products. Imagine diverting all our imports from China to Japan and Germany. We will only increase our total trade deficit.
If on the other hand, we decide to use Indian products, that too would cost us more — albeit just internally.
5. India will lose policy credibility
It has also been suggested that India should renege on existing contracts with China. Again, while in the short-term this may assuage hurt sentiments, it would be hugely detrimental for a country such as India which has been trying to attract foreign investment.
One of the first things an investor — especially foreign — tracks is the policy credibility and certainty. If policies can be changed overnight, if taxes can be slapped with retrospective effect, or if the government itself reneges on contracts, no investor will invest. Or, if they do, they will demand higher returns for the increased risk.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi says the Chinese attack in Galwan, in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed, was pre-planned.
New Delhi: Unrelenting in his attacks on the centre over the Ladakh clash in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed, Rahul Gandhi tweeted today that it is “crystal clear” that the government was “fast asleep” and jawans paid the price. He posted the fresh charge hours before an all-party meeting on the India-China that his mother and Congress president Sonia Gandhi is expected to attend.
“It’s now crystal clear that:
1. The Chinese attack in Galwan was pre-planned.
2. GOI was fast asleep and denied the problem.
3. The price was paid by our martyred Jawans,” the Congress leader tweeted, sharing a report quoting junior defence minister Shripad Naik as saying the attack was planned.
In an interview to news agency ANI, Mr Naik had said: “It is a matter of national security, there will be no compromise. We will not allow others to take our land. I pay tribute to all jawans who lost lives. The nation is proud of them that they made the supreme sacrifice. It won’t go in vain. It was pre-planned by China and Indian forces will give a befitting reply.”
The minister also said: “We were in talks with Chinese officials. Soldiers of both sides have demarche 2.5 KM. It is sad that China has attacked our soldiers in our territory and their soldiers have also been killed.”
Yesterday, Rahul Gandhi had posted that soldiers were sent “unarmed to martyrdom”. He was fact-checked by Foreign Minister S Jaishankar, who said soldiers always carry arms but the rules of engagement do not allow use firearms during face-offs.
Indian soldiers were assaulted with iron rods and clubs wrapped in barbed wire laced with nails in the fight with the Chinese in Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh, close to the Line of Actual Control. Many were thrown off a steep ridge and some of the soldiers fell into the river Galwan.
Mr Jaishankar told his China counterpart Wang Yi the incident would have a serious impact on the bilateral relationship and China must take corrective steps. But both ministers agreed that “neither side would take any action to escalate matters.”
Banda/Mahoba (UP): A swarm of locusts attacked trees and crops in several villages in Banda and Mahoba districts, farmers and officials said on Friday.
The swarm came from the jungles of the neighbouring Panna and Chhatarpur districts of Madhya Pradesh and entered Kartal, Bolharka, Maharajpur, Manpur, Pukari, Ragoli and Babupur villages in Banda on Thursday evening, they said.
Farmers said the locusts attacked vegetables sown in one kilometre area in an hour and returned to the jungles in Madhya Pradesh.
An administration official said the information about the locust attack was received an hour late but there is no information about any damage to crops; some trees have been damaged.
He said the local agriculture department officials have been asked to remain alert.
Deputy Director (Agriculture) G Ram said locusts were hovering over the jungles of Mahoba for three days and entered Bhagari, Bachchchar Kala, Nagaradang, Magrol and Saliya villages on Thursday but were chased away by farmers.
The agriculture department has sprayed pesticides and thousands of locusts have died due to it, he said.
Mahoba District Agriculture Officer Pramod Kumar said the swarm could again return. “We are alert and all preparations have been made,” he added.
New Delhi: The AAP has not been invited to an all-party meeting called by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the border conflict with China, two senior party leaders claimed on Friday.
AAP leader Sanjay Singh said the party has a government in Delhi and in Punjab, it is the main opposition party, but still the BJP does not want its opinion.
“A strange ego-ridden government is running at the Centre. The Aam Aadmi Party has a government in Delhi. Punjab has a main opposition party. There are four MPs all over the country, but still the BJP does not want its opinion on such an important matter. What will the prime minister say in the meeting, the whole country is waiting for it,” Singh also tweeted.
He also said that during a national emergency, all parties should be brought together.
AAP leader and Delhi minister Gopal Rai said it is unfortunate that the AAP was not invited. “Instead of taking all the parties together, the BJP is using mathematical formulas to ascertain who should be invited and who should not be. It is unfortunate,” he said.
It has been learnt that all recognised national parties — those with over five MPs in the Lok Sabha, leading parties from the northeast and parties with Union Cabinet ministers — have been invited for the all-party meeting.
The meeting will take place on Friday and it comes against the backdrop of demands by the opposition seeking details of the violent face-off between Indian and Chinese troops in the Galwan Valley in Ladakh which left 20 Indian Army personnel dead.
Rai said the AAP will also launch nationwide protests against the Chinese aggression on Saturday and party MLAs will stage protests in their respective constituencies.
“In protest against the attack on Indian soldiers by China, Aam Aadmi Party will hold ‘aakrosh pradarshan’ tomorrow on June 20 at 11:00 am. There will be demonstration in all the 70 assembly constituencies of Delhi. India will not stand disrespect of brave soldiers,” Rai said in a tweet.
New Delhi: India on Friday saw another record spike of 13,586 new COVID-19 cases in a single-day, pushing the tally to 3,80,532, while the death toll rose to 12,573 with 336 new fatalities, according to the Union Health Ministry data.
In some positive news, the number of recoveries crossed the two lakh mark and stands at 2,04,710, while there are 1,63,248 total COVID-19 active cases, according to the updated official figure at 8 am.
One patient had migrated.
“Thus, around 53.79 per cent patients have recovered so far,” an official said. The total number of confirmed cases include foreigners.
India registered over 10,000 cases for the eighth day in a row. The country has witnessed a surge of 1,89,997 infections from June 1 till 19 with Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh among the top five states that have seen a sharp rise in COVID-19 cases.
According to ICMR, a cumulative total of 64,26,627 samples have been tested up to June 18. A total of 1,76,959 samples have been tested on Thursday, the highest number of tests done on a day so far.
Of the 336 new deaths reported till Friday morning, 100 were in Maharashtra, 65 in Delhi, 49 in Tamil Nadu, 31 in Gujarat, 30 in Uttar Pradesh, 12 each in Karnataka and West Bengal, 10 in Rajasthan, six in Jammu and Kashmir, five in Punjab, four each in Haryana and Madhya Pradesh, three in Telangana, two in Andhra Pradesh and one each in Assam, Jharkhand and Kerala.
India is the fourth worst-hit nation by the pandemic after the US, Brazil and Russia. According to the Johns Hopkins University, which has been compiling COVID-19 data from all over the world, India is at the eighth position in terms of the death toll.
Of the total 12,573 deaths, Maharashtra accounted for the highest 5,751 fatalities followed by Delhi with 1,969 deaths, Gujarat with 1,591, Tamil Nadu with 625, West Bengal with 518, Madhya Pradesh with 486, Uttar Pradesh with 465, Rajasthan with 323 and Telangana with 195 deaths.
The COVID-19 death toll reached 134 in Haryana, 114 in Karnataka, 92 in Andhra Pradesh, 83 in Punjab, 71 in Jammu and Kashmir, 44 in Bihar, 26 in Uttarakhand, 21 in Kerala and 11 in Odisha. Jharkhand has registered 11 deaths, Chhattisgarh 10, Assam 9, Himachal Pradesh 8, Puducherry 7, Chandigarh 6 while Meghalaya, Tripura and Ladakh have reported 1 fatality each, according to the Health Ministry.
More than 70 per cent deaths took place due to comorbidities, the ministry said.
Maharashtra has reported maximum number of cases at 1,20,504 followed by Tamil Nadu at 52,334, Delhi at 49,979, Gujarat at 25,601, Uttar Pradesh at 15,181, Rajasthan at 13,857 and West Bengal at 12,735, according to the Health Ministry’s data.
The number of COVID-19 cases has gone up to 11,426 in Madhya Pradesh, 9,218 in Haryana, 7,944 in Karnataka, 7,518 in Andhra Pradesh and 7,025 in Bihar.
It has risen to 6,027 in Telangana, 5,555 in Jammu and Kashmir, 4,777 in Assam and 4,512 in Odisha. Punjab has reported 3,615 novel coronavirus cases so far, while Kerala has 2,794 cases.
A total of 2,102 people have been infected by the virus in Uttarakhand, 1,946 in Chhattisgarh, 1,920 in Jharkhand, 1,155 in Tripura, 705 in Goa, 687 in Ladakh, 606 in Manipur and 595 in Himachal Pradesh.
Chandigarh has registered 374 COVID-19 cases, Puducherry has 271 cases, Nagaland has 193, Mizoram has 130, Arunachal Pradesh has 103, Sikkim has 70,
Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu together have reported 58 COVID-19 cases.
Meghalaya and Andaman and Nicobar Islands have registered 44 infections each so far.
“Our figures are being reconciled with the ICMR,” the ministry said, adding 8,927 cases are being reassigned to states.
State-wise distribution is subject to further verification and reconciliation, it added.
Noida (UP): The Gautam Buddh Nagar police on Thursday arrested one more person in connection with the rape of a woman in a moving passenger bus, officials said.
The police had on Wednesday arrested one of the two accused drivers, while a search is on for two more persons in connection with the case, the officials said.
A 25-year-old woman who was travelling from Pratapgarh to Noida was allegedly raped at around 2 am on Wednesday in a privately-operated AC sleeper bus, according to the police.
“One more accused, identified as Amit alias Mayuri who is a native of Bijnore district, has been arrested by Sector 20 police team. Search is on for two more persons in connection with the case,” a police spokesperson said on Thursday night.
More details about the arrested person or the other accused could not be gathered immediately.
The woman, who was travelling with her two children to Noida where her husband works as a vegetable vendor, was allegedly raped by one of the two drivers of the long-route bus on a road stretch between Lucknow and Mathura, the police said.
There were around a dozen more passengers on board the bus at the time of the incident when the woman was allegedly raped on the last seat and threatened with dire consequences if she tried to raise an alarm, according to officials.
An FIR was registered at the Sector 20 police station in Noida under IPC sections 376 (rape), 506 (criminal intimidation), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence of offence, or giving false information to screen offender) and 212 (harbouring offender), it said.
Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court has asked why majority of the victims of alleged police excesses during the lockdown were from a particular community, even as it observed that the counter affidavit filed by police in one of the pleas on their high-handedness lacked all relevant details.
A bench, comprising Chief Justice Raghvendra Singh Chauhan and Justice B Vijaysen Reddy,asked in its observations whether a minority community was targeted.
It was hearing a batch of public interest litigation petitions on the alleged police excesses on Wednesday.
The bench asked the city police and other respondents to submit a detailed report by June 29 in the particular petition.
In its order in the petition, the court said the counter-affidavit filed by the city police commissioner lacked the relevant details.
In one instance, according to the counter-affidavit, a departmental inquiry has been initiated against a sub- inspector of police, a SHO and an ACP, calling for explanation for failure to discharge their duties responsibly.
The order said the subsequent development or progress in the departmental inquiries need to be informed to the court.
The counter filed by the police said a person, who was allegedly assaulted by police, was not in fact assaulted by them.
According to the police, he fell down while he was running away after noticing the police personnel approaching his area.
But surprisingly, his injury report has not been submitted along with thecounter affidavit, the order said.
In another incident, the petitioner alleged that the police personnel of a particular police station damaged vehicles parked outside homes in a residential area.
The police affidavit claimsthe police had checked the vehicles “using police lathis in order to seewhether coronavirus was present or not.”
Expressing surprise over the police explanation, the court sought a complete report on the issue.
Arunachal East MP Tapir Gao says India should be ready for any kind of eventualities, not only in Arunachal Pradesh but even in Sikkim.
New Delhi: BJP MP from Arunachal East, Tapir Gao, has claimed that China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has been regularly patrolling inside Arunachal Pradesh, posing a great threat to India.
Gao said it is time for action on the border for the integrity and security of the country. “The Chinese are still active along the international border and the government of India should be ready for any kind of eventualities not only in Arunachal Pradesh but even in Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand,” Gao told ThePrint Wednesday.
Tapir Gao, the MP for Arunachal East | Photo: Twitter | @TapirGao
Gao also expressed concern over Monday’s Galwan Valley incident, which resulted in at least 20 deaths on the Indian side, including the commanding officer of the 16 Bihar unit.
The MP said he had been raising the issue of PLA patrols in Arunachal Pradesh in Parliament too. “They have been patrolling inside Arunachal Pradesh daily. Last year, the Chinese army had intruded into Arunachal Pradesh’s Anjaw district too. This is a cause of concern for the security of the country,” he added.
China’s claim on Arunachal
China has claimed Arunachal Pradesh as part of its territory for decades, refusing to recognise what New Delhi has repeated asserted is an “integral and inalienable part” of India.
The BJP MP said after 1962, China had indulged in its “expansion policy”, and had established infrastructure and roads by occupying many areas.
“In 2017, China constructed a road inside the Indian territory in the Upper Siang district. It was later blocked by the Indian Army. Over a period of time since 1962, China has been following its policy of expanding its territory and has occupied a number of areas and even today they continue to patrol in several others,” Gao claimed.
In September last year too, Gao had raised issues related to Chinese intrusions, claiming that the PLA entered Arunachal Pradesh’s remote Anjaw district and constructed a bridge over a stream.
Chinese released water at high speed; charged, pushed Indian Army personnel and many fell into river, says official.
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) meticulously planned the attack on Indian troops in eastern Ladakh’s Galwan for at least two days, a senior government official said.
The Chinese blocked small rivulets in heightened areas, releasing water at high speed when Indian Army personnel appeared at the disputed site in Galwan area on June 15. “The strong gush of water made the men lose balance. The Chinese charged, pushed the Army personnel and many fell into the Galwan river,” the official said.
The Chinese did a reconnaissance by flying unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) to see the strength of the Indian troops and accordingly bolstered their presence on the other side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC), the official stated.
The Hindu reported on Wednesday that the clash took place after Colonel Santosh Babu, who was commanding the unit, dismantled a tent erected by the Chinese and later set it on fire. During the June 6 military level talks, the two sides decided to remove the tent. It has now emerged that the tent was destroyed two days before the June 15 clash. When Indian troopers were patrolling the contested site, the Chinese threw boulders on them and unleashed strong current of water by unblocking the rivulets.
The Chinese were wearing body protecters, helmets and carried spiked batons, the official noted.
MEA statement
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had issued a statement that the “Chinese side took premeditated and planned action that was directly responsible for the resulting violence and casualties.”
The official said, “The patrolling team walked into an ambush. The area had witnessed clashes on May 5 and the attack took place despite a high alert. The men were outnumbered by the Chinese. No gunshot was fired”.
As reported, some men “died on the spot” and the exercise to locate the missing bodies continued till late hours of June 16. As many as 20 Army personnel were killed and several injured.
The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), deployed with the Army along the LAC, helped move the injured to the base camp the next day. An ITBP rescue team trekked 3-4 km the next day to evacuate the injured.
At least 20 helicopter sorties from the base camp in Galwan were undertaken to evacuate the injured and retrieve the bodies.
The clash, a first of its kind in the last 45 years, came amidst a “de-escalation” process that was started last week after a month long stand-off between troops at several points along the LAC in Ladakh and Sikkim.
Demonstrators raise slogans as they burn an effigy depicting Chinese President Xi Jinping during a protest against China, in Kolkata, June 18, 2020. (Reuters Photo: Rupak De Chowdhuri)
A member of National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) holds a placard during a protest against China, in Ahmedabad, June 18, 2020. (Reuters Photo: Amit Dave)
A damaged poster of Chinese President Xi Jinping lies on the ground during a protest against China in Ahmedabad, June 18, 2020. (Reuters Photo: Amit Dave)
