Chindia Alert: You’ll be Living in their World Very Soon
aims to alert you to the threats and opportunities that China and India present. China and India require serious attention; case of ‘hidden dragon and crouching tiger’.
Without this attention, governments, businesses and, indeed, individuals may find themselves at a great disadvantage sooner rather than later.
The POSTs (front webpages) are mainly 'cuttings' from reliable sources, updated continuously.
The PAGEs (see Tabs, above) attempt to make the information more meaningful by putting some structure to the information we have researched and assembled since 2006.
Image copyright GETTY IMAGESImage caption An empty stretch of the road and Delhi Police barricades to screen commuters during lockdown, at Delhi Gate on April 16, 2020 in New Delhi, India.
India has eased some restrictions imposed as part of a nationwide lockdown to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
Most of the new measures are targeted at easing pressure on farming, which employs more than half the nation’s workforce.
Allowing farms to operate again has been seen as essential to avoid food shortages.
But some other measures announced last week, will not be implemented.
This includes the delivery of non-essential items such as mobile phones, computers, and refrigerators by e-commerce firms – the government reversed its decision on that on Sunday.
And none of the restrictions will be lifted in areas that are still considered “hotspots” for the virus – this includes all major Indian cities.
Domestic and international flights and inter-state travel will also remain suspended.
So what restrictions are being eased?
Most of the new measures target agricultural businesses – farming, fisheries and plantations. This will allow crops to be harvested and daily-wagers and others working in these sectors to continue earning.
To restore the supply chain in these industries, cargo trucks will also be allowed to operate across state borders to transport produce from villages to the cities.
Essential public works programmes – such as building roads and water lines in rural areas – will also reopen, but under strict instructions to follow social distancing norms. These are a huge source of employment for hundreds of thousands of daily-wage earners, and farmers looking to supplement their income.
Banks, ATMs, hospitals, clinics, pharmacies and government offices will remain open. And the self-employed – such as plumbers, electricians and carpenters – will also be allowed to work.
Some public and even private workplaces have been permitted to open in areas that are not considered hotspots.
But all businesses and services that reopen are expected to follow social distancing norms.
Who decides what to reopen?
State governments will decide where restrictions can be eased. And several state chief ministers, including Delhi’s Arvind Kejriwal, have said that none of the restrictions will be lifted in their regions.
Mr Kejriwal said the situation in the national capital was still serious and the decision would be reviewed after one week.
India’s most populous state, Uttar Pradesh, will also see all restrictions in place, as will the southern states of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Karnataka.
The southern state of Kerala, which has been widely acknowledged for its success in dealing with the virus, has announced a significant easing of the lockdown in areas that it has demarcated as “green” zones.
This includes allowing private vehicular movement and dine-in services at restaurants, with social distancing norms in place. However, it’s implementing what is known as an “odd-even” scheme – private cars with even and odd number plates will be allowed only on alternate days, to limit the number of people on the road.
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Violent clashes erupted in Delhi between police and hundreds of university students on Friday over the enactment of a new citizenship law that critics say undermines India’s secular foundations.
The unrest has already led Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to cancel a planned visit to India from Sunday.
The new law offers a way to Indian citizenship for six minority religious groups from neighbouring Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan including Hindus and Christians, but not Muslims.
RELATED COVERAGE
Explainer: What does India’s new citizenship law mean?
Clashes erupt in New Delhi between students, police over citizenship law
See more stories
Police fired tear gas and used baton charges to disperse scores of students demonstrating at Jamia Millia Islamia university in the heart of Delhi over the law.
Protesters attacked cars in the capital, and several people were injured and taken to hospital.
Zakir Riyaz, a PhD student in social work, said the new law made a mockery of India’s religious openness.
“It goes against the whole idea of a secular India,” he said, speaking by phone from the Holy Family Hospital in New Delhi where 15 of his fellow students were admitted after being injured in a police baton charge.
Police barricades were knocked down and streets were strewn with shoes and broken bricks. An official at the university dispensary said that more than 100 students had been brought in with injuries but all had been discharged.
Parvez Hashmi, a local politician who went to the protest site to speak to police, said about 50 students had been detained.
Students said it was meant to be a peaceful protest, with them trying to go from Jamia University to Parliament Street to show their opposition to the legislation. But police pushed them back, leading to clashes.
Critics of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government say it is promoting a Hindu-first agenda for India and that the citizenship law excluding Muslims showed a deep-seated bias against India’s 170 million Muslims.
Imran Chowdhury, a researcher, said “either give citizenship to refugees of all religions or none at all. The constitution is being tampered with in the name of religion.”
Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party denies any religious bias but says it is opposed to the appeasement of one community. It says the new law is meant to help minority groups facing persecution in the three nearby Muslim countries.
ABE CANCELS
The United Nations human rights office voiced concern that the new law is “fundamentally discriminatory in nature”, and called for it to be reviewed.
Two people were killed in India’s Assam state on Thursday when police opened fire on mobs torching buildings and attacking railway stations in protest at the new citizenship rules signed into law on Thursday.
Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe cancelled a trip to Assam for a summit with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi that had been due to begin on Sunday.
Japan has stepped up infrastructure development work in Assam in recent years, which the two sides were expected to highlight during the summit. Abe had also planned to visit a memorial in the nearby state of Manipur where Japanese soldiers were killed in World War Two.
“With reference to the proposed visit of Japanese PM Abe Shinzo to India, both sides have decided to defer the visit to a mutually convenient date in the near future,” Indian foreign ministry spokesman Raveesh Kumar said in a tweet.
Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said both countries would decide on the appropriate timing for the visit although nothing has been decided yet.
A movement against immigrants from Bangladesh has raged in Assam for decades. Protesters there say granting Indian nationality to more people will further strain the state’s resources and lead to the marginalisation of indigenous communities.
Hong Kong’s rule of law has been pushed to the “brink of total collapse” after more than five months of protests, police have warned.
The warning came as protesters clashed with police across the city on Tuesday.
At the Chinese University of Hong Kong, police fired tear gas and rubber bullets at protesters who built barricades on the campus.
Earlier in the day, around 1,000 protesters rallied in central Hong Kong during the lunch hour blocking roads
Protesters, wearing office clothes, were seen chanting: “Fight for freedom, stand with Hong Kong!”
The demonstrations come just a day after the territory saw a marked escalation in violence, with police shooting one activist in the torso. A pro-Beijing supporter was set on fire by anti-government protesters.
The protests started in June against a now-withdrawn plan to allow extradition to mainland China, but have since morphed into wider demonstrations, with activists demanding greater democracy and police accountability in Hong Kong.
On Tuesday afternoon, police spokesman Kong Wing-cheung hit out at the protesters, saying they had “countless examples of rioters using random and indiscriminate violence against innocent” people.
“Hong Kong’s rule of law has been pushed to the brink of total collapse as masked rioters recklessly escalate their violence under the hope that they can get away with it,” he told reporters, adding that Monday’s attack on the pro-Beijing supporter was being investigated as attempted murder.
Image copyright AFPImage caption Protesters and office workers were seen blocking roads in Hong Kong’s financial district
Speaking at the same conference, Supt Li Kwai-wah defended the officer’s decision to shoot the protester on Monday.
“We found out that our colleague did not only face threat from one person, instead it was a group of people with an organised plan attempting to steal the gun,” he said.
“In a situation like this, we believe our police are reacting according to the guideline, to protect themselves as well as the people around them.”
Both the protester and the pro-Beijing supporter remain in hospital, with the latter in a critical condition.
What happened on Tuesday?
Clashes erupted at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, with police firing tear gas to disperse students, while at City University there was a standoff between students and riot police which continued into the evening.
Police continued to use tear gas to try to disperse the protesters who responded with bricks and petrol bombs. Hundreds of protesters remain at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
Image copyright REUTERSImage caption Students at Hong Kong’s Chinese University fought with police throughout the day
Students built roadblocks on streets in and around City University campus to stop police from entering. At one stage, a van used as part of a street barricade was set on fire.
Students at Hong Kong Polytechnic also tried to disrupt traffic near their campus.
In the morning, suspended railway services and road closures had already led to long traffic jams in the early rush hour. At noon, protesters moved into the city’s central business district for a flash mob protest.
Image copyright REUTERSImage caption At Festival Walk shopping mall, a Christmas tree was set on fire
Protests continued to intensify throughout the day. A Christmas tree inside Festival Walk shopping mall was set on fire by protesters while others were seen smashing a glass railing with hammers.
Train stations were closed across the city.
Media caption This Hong Kong protester’s shooting was livestreamed on Facebook
Eight universities have announced they will suspend classes on Wednesday.
Monday’s protests saw 260 people arrested bringing the number to more than 3,000 since the protests began in June.
Students swear they will not surrender
Grace Tsoi, BBC World Service, at the Chinese University of Hong Kong
Image copyright AFPImage caption Hundreds of protesters remain at the university
The ground was strewn with bricks. The air was filled with the smell of tear gas. Fire was raging on campus. Hundreds of protesters, most of them clad in black, formed human chains to pass bricks and petrol bombs to the front line.
One of the best universities in Hong Kong has turned into a battlefield after another day of intense clashes between students, who have been at the forefront of anti-government protests, and police.
The Chinese University students have been putting up resistance since the morning. On Monday, police seemed to change strategy by deploying forces to campuses. Students told me they should not be allowed there.
The university’s management has tried to deescalate the situation. Vice-chancellor Rocky Tuan was also tear gassed as he was negotiating with police.
Dozens of students have been injured, including at least one hit in the eye by a projectile. The night is young and students swear they will not surrender.
Image copyright GETTY IMAGESImage caption Protesters cry over felled trees in Aarey colony
India’s top court has asked officials to stop cutting trees in a forested area in Mumbai city after protesters clashed with police over the weekend.
The trees, part of a green strip known as Aarey colony, were being cut to make way for a new metro rail project.
Locals have long opposed the move, and filed petitions seeking Aarey to be declared a protected area.
But a high court dismissed the petitions on Friday, sparking protests as officials began felling the trees.
They planned to cut 2,185 trees, and admitted in the Supreme Court that more than 1,500 had already been cut. But petitioners claim that officials have cut around 2,500 trees.
Local residents, students and environmental activists clashed with police on Friday as they took to the streets to stop authorities, and even broke through barricades to enter Aarey colony. More than 50 people were arrested and police imposed restrictions on public gatherings.
The protests grabbed the national spotlight over the weekend, and the Supreme Court took suo moto (without a formal complaint from any party) notice.
What did the Supreme Court say?
A special two-judge bench heard the matter on Monday after students wrote to the chief justice, asking the court to intervene and save the trees.
The court asked the state government of Maharashtra, where Mumbai is located, to not cut any more trees.
Image copyright GETTY IMAGESImage caption Police arrested more than 50 protesters
The court also asked the government to maintain “status quo” – which means that no construction can take place – until 21 October when it will hear the matter again.
The court also ordered the release of all activists who were arrested or detained on bail.
What is Aarey colony?
Spread over 1,300 hectares (3,212 acres), Aarey is a densely forested area dotted with lakes and has the Mithi river flowing through it. It lies at the heart of Mumbai and is often referred to as its last green lung.
It’s locally known as the Aarey “milk colony” because most of the land was given to the department of dairy development in 1951. But they are allowed to grow cattle fodder only on a fraction of the land.
Image copyright GETTY IMAGESImage caption Protesters broke through barricades and clashed with police on Friday
Earlier this year, officials cleared some 40 hectares of the forested area to build a zoo, complete with a night safari. And now, locals complain, another slice of it is in danger from the metro construction.
They also fear that the government will eventually clear the way for private builders to encroach on the Sanjay Gandhi National Park, which lies to the north of Aarey colony.
Officials, however, dismiss these fears as unfounded and point out that the construction for the metro only requires 30 hectares.
How crucial is the metro rail for Mumbai?
The city badly needs a “mass rapid transport system,” Ashwini Bhide, managing director of the Mumbai metro rail corporation, had told the BBC earlier.
The land in Aarey colony, she said, was “the most suitable land due to its size, shape and location”.
She has also been defending the decision to cut the trees on Twitter.
India’s financial hub is congested and infamous for its crawling traffic jams.
Its colonial-era local train system ferries some 7.5 million people between the city’s suburbs and its centre on a daily basis.
Officials say that the metro will eventually carry around 1.7 million passengers every day and bring down the number of vehicles on the road by up to 650,000.
Image copyright GETTY IMAGES
CHINDIA ALERT: You'll be living in their world, very soon 