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.
BEIJING, May 29 (Xinhua) — President Xi Jinping on Friday encouraged scientific and technological workers across China to make new and greater contributions to building China into a global power in science and technology.
Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks in replying to a letter by 25 representatives of sci-tech workers. He also called for efforts to achieve breakthroughs in key and core technologies.
Xi extended greetings to sci-tech workers across the country ahead of China’s fourth national sci-tech workers’ day, which falls on May 30.
A vast number of sci-tech workers have dedicated themselves to serving the country through their innovative thinking and practices, Xi noted.
He pointed out that innovation is the primary driving force for development, and science and technologies are powerful tools to overcome difficulties.
Facing the sudden COVID-19 outbreak, sci-tech workers have risen up to challenges and worked day and night on the clinical treatment, vaccine research and development, material support as well as big data application, providing sci-tech support against the epidemic, Xi said.
Xi hoped that sci-tech workers across the country strive to resolve problems with key and core technologies, promote the in-depth integration of application, education and scientific research, reach the peak of science and technology and make new and greater contributions to building China into a global power in science and technology.
In November 2016, the State Council, China’s cabinet, set down May 30 as the national sci-tech workers’ day.
Recently, 25 representatives of sci-tech workers, including agronomist Yuan Longping, respiratory specialist Zhong Nanshan and space expert Ye Peijian, wrote to Xi to express their determination to make contributions in the new era of innovation and entrepreneurship.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, takes part in a deliberation with his fellow deputies from the delegation of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region at the third session of the 13th National People’s Congress (NPC) in Beijing, capital of China, May 22, 2020. (Xinhua/Ju Peng)
BEIJING, May 23 (Xinhua) — “What is people first?” Chinese President Xi Jinping asked, before offering his own answer when he was talking with lawmakers at the ongoing national legislative session.
“So many people worked together to save a single patient. This, in essence, embodies doing whatever it takes (to save lives),” he said.
Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, is a deputy to the 13th National People’s Congress.
During his deliberations with fellow deputies from Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region on Friday, “people” was a keyword.
Xi referred to a story told by another deputy that morning. Luo Jie, from the COVID-19 hard-hit province of Hubei, told reporters at the session how medical workers in his hospital spent 47 days saving an 87-year-old COVID-19 patient.
“About 10 medical workers meticulously took care of the patient for dozens of days, and finally saved the patient’s life,” Xi said. “I am really impressed.”
In the COVID-19 pandemic, health workers around the world got to know the elderly are the most difficult to treat and require the most sophisticated medical resources. China has given every patient equal treatment irrespective of their age or wealth.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, takes part in a deliberation with his fellow deputies from the delegation of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region at the third session of the 13th National People’s Congress (NPC) in Beijing, capital of China, May 22, 2020. (Xinhua/Huang Jingwen)
In Hubei alone, more than 3,600 COVID-19 patients over the age of 80 have been cured. In the provincial capital Wuhan, seven centenarian patients have been cured.
“We mobilized from around the nation the best doctors, the most advanced equipment and the most needed resources to Hubei and Wuhan, going all out to save lives,” Xi said during the deliberations, adding that the eldest patient cured is 108 years old.
“We are willing to save lives at all costs. No matter how old the patients are and how serious their conditions have become, we never give up,” Xi said.
Xi joined political advisors and lawmakers on Thursday and Friday in paying silent tribute to the lives lost to COVID-19 as the top political advisory body and the national legislature opened their annual sessions.
This year’s government work report said China’s economy posted negative growth in the first quarter of this year, but it was “a price worth paying” to contain COVID-19 as life is invaluable.
“As a developing country with 1.4 billion people, it is only by overcoming enormous difficulties that China has been able to contain COVID-19 in such a short time while also ensuring our people’s basic needs,” the report said.
Epidemic response is a reflection of China’s governing philosophy.
The fundamental goal for the Party to unite and lead the people in revolution, development and reform is “to ensure a better life for them,” Xi said.
The nation’s average life expectancy reached 77 years in 2018, more than double that in 1949, when the people’s republic was founded.
Chinese people are not just living longer but better lives, with more material wealth and broader choices to pursue individual dreams. All rural poor will bid farewell to poverty this year as part of the goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects.
The Party’s long-term governance, Xi said, rests on “always maintaining close bond with the people.”
“We must always remain true to the people’s aspiration and work in concert with them through thick and thin,” Xi said.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, checks the ecological protection work of the Fenhe River in Taiyuan, capital city of north China’s Shanxi Province, May 12, 2020. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)
BEIJING, May 13 (Xinhua) — Chinese President Xi Jinping attaches great importance to ecological conservation and environmental protection. He has spoken of the issue on many occasions. The following are some highlights of his quotes.
— Lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets.
— Ecological conservation and environmental protection are contemporary causes that will benefit many generations to come.
— A sound ecological environment is the basic foundation for the sustainable development of humanity and society.
— We should adhere to the integrated protection and restoration of mountains, rivers, forests, farmlands, lakes and grasslands, and coordinate efforts to strengthen ecological and environmental protection in river basins with efforts to promote an energy revolution, green production and lifestyle, and economic transformation and development.
— A good ecological environment is the fairest public product and the most accessible welfare for the people.
— The quality of the eco-environment is the key to building a moderately prosperous society in all respects.
— Economic development should not be achieved at the cost of the ecology. The ecological environment itself is the economy. Protecting the environment is developing productivity.
— We shall protect ecosystems as preciously as we protect our eyes, and cherish them as dearly as we cherish our lives.
— The history of civilizations shows that the rise or fall of a civilization is closely tied to the quality of the ecological environment.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, learns about poverty alleviation efforts at an organic daylily farm in Yunzhou District of Datong City, north China’s Shanxi Province, May 11, 2020. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)
— Xi stressed addressing the difficulties faced by enterprises in resuming production and operation.
— Xi underscored lifting the remaining poor population out of poverty.
— Xi required implementing pro-employment policies.
TAIYUAN, May 12 (Xinhua) — Chinese President Xi Jinping has stressed efforts to complete building a moderately prosperous society in all respects, and ride on the momentum to write a new chapter in socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era.
Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks during an inspection tour in north China’s Shanxi Province.
Xi called for efforts to overcome the adverse impacts of the COVID-19 epidemic and make greater strides in high-quality transformation and development to ensure that the target of poverty eradication is reached and the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects is completed.
During the tour from Monday to Tuesday, Xi inspected work on coordinating the regular epidemic response with economic and social development, and on consolidating the poverty eradication results.
While visiting an organic daylily farm in Yunzhou, Datong City, on Monday, Xi said what he cares about the most after poverty eradication is how to consolidate the achievements, prevent people from falling back into poverty, and make sure rural people’s incomes rise steadily.
He said an important benchmark to evaluate an official’s job performance is to see the amount of good and concrete services he or she has delivered to the people.
When visiting a community of relocated villagers, Xi said relocation is not only about better living conditions but also about chances to get rich. He called for follow-up support to residents with tailor-made rural business projects to ensure sustainable development.
Highlighting that whether the people can benefit shall be a top concern, Xi demanded more supporting policies be put in place in terms of industrial development, financing, agricultural insurance, among others.
Xi applauded the strenuous efforts made by primary-level officials on helping people fight poverty.
At the home of villager Bai Gaoshan, Xi chatted with Bai’s family as they sat on a “kang” — a bed-stove made out of clay or bricks in north China.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, learns about poverty alleviation efforts in a village of Xiping Township in Datong City, north China’s Shanxi Province, May 11, 2020. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi)
Xi said the CPC wholeheartedly seeks happiness for the Chinese people, having stopped collecting agricultural taxes and fees, helping the impoverished rural residents with housing and medical service, training them with skills, and finding ways for them to live a prosperous life.
“I believe our villagers will enjoy better days ahead,” Xi said.
On top of that, he called for consolidating achievements in poverty alleviation, and then focusing on rural vitalization to ensure a better life for rural residents.
He then went on to visit the 1,500-year Yungang Grottoes, a “treasure house” of artifacts featuring elements blending Chinese and foreign cultures, as well as cultures of China’s ethnic minorities and the Central Plains.
Xi stressed that historical and cultural heritages are irreplaceable precious resources, and protecting them should always be put in the first place in tourism development.
Noting that tourism should not be over-commercialized, Xi said tourism should become a way for the Chinese to understand and appreciate the culture of the nation and enhance their cultural confidence.
The historical implications of communication and integration behind the Yungang Grottoes should be further explored to enhance the sense of community for the Chinese nation, said Xi.
During a research tour in a stainless steel manufacturer in the provincial capital Taiyuan on Tuesday morning, Xi said products and technology are the lifeline of businesses, calling for more efforts in technological innovation to make a greater contribution to the development of advanced manufacturing.
He also called on businesses to strictly implement epidemic prevention and control measures to ensure the safety and health of their workers, while promoting the resumption of work and production to make up for the time lost.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, waves to workers during a research tour in a stainless steel manufacturer in Taiyuan, capital city of north China’s Shanxi Province, May 12, 2020. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)
Later on, Xi went to check the ecological protection work of the Fenhe River in the city, and urged the incorporation of environment protection, energy revolution, green development, and economic transformation.
After hearing the work reports of the CPC Shanxi Provincial Committee and the provincial government on Tuesday afternoon, Xi stressed that no relaxation is allowed in epidemic prevention and control, noting that efforts should be made to guard against both imported infections and domestic rebounds, improve regular prevention and control mechanism, and prevent new outbreaks.
Xi called for efforts on more promptly and effectively addressing the difficulties faced by enterprises in resuming production and operation, on solid implementation of all the policies and measures for expanding domestic demand, and on strengthening the competitiveness and quality of the real economy, especially the manufacturing industry.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, speaks with workers during a research tour in a stainless steel manufacturer in Taiyuan, capital city of north China’s Shanxi Province, May 12, 2020. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi)
Continuous efforts should be made to promote the adjustment and optimization of China’s industrial structure, and scientific and technological innovations should be greatly enhanced to continue achieving breakthroughs in new infrastructures, technologies, materials, equipment as well as new products and business models, Xi said.
He stressed overcoming the difficulties and obstacles facing reforms in key areas, including state-owned enterprises and assets, the fiscal, tax, and financial system, business environment, the private sector, domestic demand expansion, and urban-rural integration.
Xi also highlighted efforts to improve the country’s system and mechanism for opening-up.
China will uphold the concept that lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets, and steadily implement the national strategy for ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River basin, he said.
More should be done to accelerate institutional innovation and strengthen the implementation of institutions to help form a green way of production and living, he said.
Efforts should be made to solidify the foundation for the development of agriculture and rural areas, beef up policy support for grain production and lift the remaining poor population out of poverty, Xi said.
Authorities should adhere to the people-centered development philosophy and ensure the bottom line of people’s livelihood, Xi said. He added that efforts should be made to implement pro-employment policies and facilitate the employment of key groups such as college graduates, veterans, rural migrant workers and urban people facing difficulties.
Efforts should be expedited to improve the weak areas in the public health system exposed by the epidemic and shift the focus of social governance to the primary levels, Xi said.
The rich and colorful local history and culture as well as revolutionary cultural resources should be fully drawn on and used to promote cultural advancement, Xi said.
He stressed consistent efforts to promote core socialist values to guide Party cadres as well as the public to enhance morality, cultivate good ethics and strengthen cultural confidence.
Xi also called for efforts to improve the Party’s political ecosystem, strictly observe the Party’s political discipline and rules and fight against corruption and undesirable conduct.
Members of a road construction team depart from the advance camp at an altitude of 6,500 meters of Mount Qomolangma in southwest China’s Tibet Autonomous Region, May 10, 2020. A road construction team will work on a route to the peak of Mount Qomolangma on May 12 if weather conditions permit. China initiated a new round of measurement on the height of Mount Qomolangma, the world’s highest peak, on April 30. The measurement team consists of members from the Ministry of Natural Resources and the national mountaineering team. (Xinhua/Sun Fei)
MOUNT QOMOLANGMA BASE CAMP, May 10 (Xinhua) — A road construction team will work on a route to the peak of Mount Qomolangma on May 12 if weather conditions permit.
In order to complete missions of building a route to the peak and transporting materials to camps below 8,300 meters above sea level, members of road construction and transportation teams departed for a camp at an altitude of 7,028 meters from the advance camp at an altitude of 6,500 meters at 7:00 a.m. Sunday.
The members eliminated potential safety hazards along the route and arrived at the camp at 2:00 p.m.
On May 12, a total of 12 guides will depart from the camp at an altitude of 7,028 meters to transport materials to another camp.
China initiated a new round of measurement on the height of Mount Qomolangma, the world’s highest peak, on April 30. The measurement team consists of members from the Ministry of Natural Resources and the national mountaineering team.
Since the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, Chinese surveyors have conducted six rounds of scaled measurement and scientific research on Mount Qomolangma and released the height of the peak twice in 1975 and 2005, which was 8,848.13 meters and 8,844.43 meters respectively.
People work at a construction site of a utility tunnel in Wuhan, central China’s Hubei Province, April 30, 2020. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu)
BEIJING, May 1 (Xinhua) — China is getting the world’s largest workforce back to work as the nationwide battle against COVID-19 has secured major strategic achievements.
The unprecedented fight has nurtured new trends in the workplace. For example, more attention is being paid to public health and e-commerce to boost consumption and emerging sectors brought by new applications based on the country’s rapid new infrastructure development of 5G networks and data centers.
In this aerial photo taken on April 29, 2020, representatives of frontline health workers fighting COVID-19 attend a bell-ringing ceremony at the Yellow Crane Tower, or Huanghelou, a landmark in Wuhan, central China’s Hubei Province. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu)
ANGELS OF PUBLIC HEALTH
Ye Man, head nurse of gastrointestinal department of Hubei General Hospital East District, one of the five remaining COVID-19 designated hospitals in Wuhan, is taking her first weeklong vacation since January.
The 34-year-old mother of two started to take a week off on Monday, one day after her hospital cleared all remaining confirmed COVID-19 patients. The nine ICU wards in her hospital had been kept occupied over the past several months.
Friday marked International Workers’ Day, and the start of China’s five-day public holiday. Ye said she planned to visit urban parks with her family during the holiday.
At her busiest point, she and her colleagues took care of a ward filled with 40 COVID-19 patients.
“It was a really tough time,” she recalled. She had to wear a protective gown and a mask for nine hours a day and be separated from her family to avoid possible cross-infections.
Wuhan, capital of central China’s Hubei Province and once hard hit by COVID-19, cleared all confirmed cases in hospitals on April 26. Over 42,000 medical workers mobilized nationwide to aid Hubei have contributed to achieving a decisive outcome in the fight to defend Hubei and Wuhan.
In an inspection tour to Wuhan on March 10, President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, lauded medical workers as “the most beautiful angels” and “messengers of light and hope.”
To reward brave and dedicated medics, major tourist sites in Hubei are offering free entry to medical staff over the following two years.
Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, learns about development of the black fungus industry in Jinmi Village of Xiaoling Township in Zhashui County, Shangluo City, northwest China’s Shaanxi Province, April 20, 2020. (Xinhua/Xie Huanchi)
LIVESTREAMING ANCHORS
“We have a new batch of supplies today. Those who did not get the goods should hurry to buy now,” said Li Xuying, a livestreaming anchorwoman selling agaric mushrooms in Zhashui, a small county deep in the Qinling Mountains in northwest China’s Shaanxi Province.
Li has been prepared for a boom of online shopping in the holiday, because online buyers rushed to her livestreaming website to place orders, after Xi inspected the county and chatted with her in the village of Jinmi during a recent tour to Shaanxi.
“I used to sell goods worth about 50,000 yuan (7,070 U.S. dollars) on average after a six-hour livestreaming session. Now the sales are 10 times that,” she said.
Li was one of the 10 sales staff sent by the local agricultural e-commerce firm to Chinese e-commerce platform Taobao’s headquarters for livestreaming training. She said livestreaming is effective in bridging buyers and farmers, through which viewers can watch planting and harvesting online.
With the number of netizens in China reaching 904 million in March, e-commerce has been one of the popular means of promoting the sale of farm produce and helping farmers shake off poverty. Despite the impact of COVID-19, the country is determined to eradicate absolute poverty by the end of this year.
Workers work at the construction site of a 5G base station at Chongqing Hi-tech Zone in Chongqing, southwest China, April 15, 2020. (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao)
HI-TECH WORKERS IN “NEW INFRASTRUCTURE” BUILDING
As an elasticity calculation engineer of Alibaba Cloud, Zhao Kun and his colleagues always stay on alert for high data flow, for example, brought by the anticipated online shopping spike during the holiday.
“The profession, which may sound obscure, is actually closely connected to everyone’s life, as cloud computing is the infrastructure supporting high-tech applications of artificial intelligence and blockchain,” said Zhao.
The Chinese leadership has underscored expediting “new infrastructure” development to boost industrial and consumption upgrading and catalyze new growth drivers.
Seizing the opportunities of industrial digitization and digital industrialization, China needs to expedite the construction of “new infrastructure” projects such as 5G networks and data centers, and deploy strategic emerging sectors and industries of the future including the digital economy, life health services and new materials, President Xi has said.
During the epidemic, Zhao and his colleagues expanded more than 100,000 cloud servers to ensure the stable operation of “cloud classrooms” and “cloud offices” for millions of people working and studying from home.
In the “new infrastructure” building, people like Zhao contribute to constructing the virtual infrastructure of an ecosystem, which enables e-commerce, e-payment, online teaching and the digital transformation of manufacturing and supply chain management.
In early April, China released a plan on promoting the transformation of enterprises toward digitalization and intelligence by further expanding the application of cloud and data technologies, to nurture new business models of the digital economy.
BEIJING, April 28 (Xinhua) — China has achieved much progress in environmental protection and taken the lead in green development in recent years.
The efforts have exemplified Chinese President Xi Jinping’s proposal of “working together for a green and better future for all” made a year ago in his speech at the opening ceremony of the International Horticultural Exhibition 2019 Beijing.
In the keynote speech, Xi proposed a five-point initiative on promoting green development, namely pursuing harmony between man and nature, pursuing the prosperity based on green development, fostering a passion for nature-caring lifestyle, pursuing a scientific spirit in ecological governance, and joining hands to tackle environmental challenges.
China’s hard work on environment protection has paid off.
The ecological environment has improved significantly. People are enjoying more days of blue sky, cleaner water, and fertile land.
China has achieved the goal of zero growth of desertified land by 2030 set by the United Nations ahead of time. Besides, forest stock volume increased by 4.56 billion cubic meters compared with that of 2005.
Carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP in 2018 fell by 45.8 percent compared with that of 2005, exceeding the target set for the year.
After more than 30 years of hard work, the seventh largest desert in China, the Kubuqi Desert in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, once known as the “sea of death” difficult for birds to fly across, has turned into a green valley.
In January 2020, in a letter in reply to the student representatives of the Global Alliance of Universities on Climate, the Chinese president mentioned his thoughts about ecological civilization in his youth.
“Over four decades ago, I lived and worked for many years in a small village on the Loess Plateau in western China. Back then, the ecology and environment there was seriously damaged due to over-development and the local people were trapped in poverty as a result,” Xi wrote.
“This experience taught me that man and nature are a community of life and that the damage done to nature will ultimately hurt mankind,” said Xi.
China’s progress and achievements are recognized worldwide.
The ecological civilization and green development advocated by China are actually an endeavor to find a way to balance economic development and environmental protection, said John Cobb, Jr., the founding president of the Institute for Postmodern Development of China and member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Noting that the endeavor is a remarkable exploration, he expressed his hope that it will succeed.
China is on the right path in dealing with global climate change and achieving sustainable development, said Borge Brende, president of the World Economic Forum.
In addition to making efforts at home, China has also rolled out a series of measures to support the global combat against climate change.
In September 2015, ahead of the Paris climate change conference, Xi pledged a 20-billion-yuan (3-billion-U.S. dollars) China South-South Climate Cooperation Fund, which was dedicated to help other developing countries combat climate change.
China has also been fulfilling the obligations of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement, and achieved the goal of its intended nationally determined contributions submitted to the secretariat of the Climate Change Convention as scheduled.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed his appreciation for China’s important contributions to addressing the climate change and building a green “Belt and Road,” and said he expects China to continue to play a leading role in addressing the climate change and other issues.
“Lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets,” a concept put forward by Xi in 2005 when he visited Yucun Village in southeast China’s Zhejiang Province as the party chief of the province, has become the motto of the Lao Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment.
In March 2020, when Xi returned to Yucun, he said that economic development should not be achieved at the expense of the ecological environment. To protect the ecological environment is to develop the productive forces, he said.
The history of civilizations shows that the rise or fall of a civilization is closely tied to its relationship with nature, Xi said at the International Horticultural Exhibition last year.
Only by joining hands can the humankind advance a global ecological civilization and march towards the bright future of building a community with a shared future for mankind.
SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korean officials are calling for caution amid reports that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un may be ill or is being isolated because of coronavirus concerns, emphasising that they have detected no unusual movements in North Korea.
At a closed door forum on Sunday, South Korea’s Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul, who oversees engagement with the North, said the government has the intelligence capabilities to say with confidence that there was no indications of anything unusual.
Rumours and speculation over the North Korean leader’s health began after he made no public appearance at a key state holiday on April 15, and has since remained out of sight.
South Korea media last week reported that Kim may have undergone cardiovascular surgery or was in isolation to avoid exposure to the new coronavirus.
Unification minister Kim cast doubt on the report of surgery, arguing that the hospital mentioned did not have the capabilities for such an operation.
Still, Yoon Sang-hyun, chairman of the foreign and unification committee in South Korea’s National Assembly, told a gathering of experts on Monday that Kim Jong Un’s absence from the public eye suggests “he has not been working as normally”.
“There has not been any report showing he’s making policy decisions as usual since April 11, which leads us to assume that he is either sick or being isolated because of coronavirus concerns,” Yoon said.
North Korea has said it has no confirmed cases of the new coronavirus, but some international experts have cast doubts on that claim.
On Monday, North Korean state media once again showed no new photos of Kim nor reported on his whereabouts.
However, they did carry reports that he had sent a message of gratitude to workers building a tourist resort in Wonsan, an area where some South Korean media reports have said Kim may be staying.
“Our government position is firm,” Moon Chung-in, the top foreign policy adviser to South Korean President Moon Jae-in, said in comments to news outlets in the United States.
“Kim Jong Un is alive and well. He has been staying in the Wonsan area since April 13. No suspicious movements have so far been detected.”
Satellite images from last week showed a special train possibly belonging to Kim at Wonsan, lending weight to those reports, according to 38 North, a Washington-based North Korea monitoring project.
Though the group said it was probably the North Korean leader’s personal train, Reuters has not been able to confirm that independently, or whether he was in Wonsan.
A spokeswoman for the Unification Ministry said on Monday she had nothing to confirm when asked about reports that Kim was in Wonsan.
Last week China dispatched a team to North Korea including medical experts to advise on Kim Jong Un, according to three people familiar with the situation.
Reuters was unable to immediately determine what the trip by the Chinese team signalled in terms of Kim’s health.
On Friday a South Korean source told Reuters their intelligence was that Kim Jong Un was alive and would likely make an appearance soon.
Experts have cautioned that Kim has disappeared from state media coverage before, and that gathering accurate information in North Korea is notoriously difficult.
North Korea’s state media last reported on Kim’s whereabouts when he presided over a meeting on April 11.
Kim, believed to be 36, vanished from state media for more than a month in 2014 and North Korean state TV later showed him walking with a limp.
BEIJING, April 19 (Xinhua) — China will step up efforts to expedite technological research on the construction and application of digital infrastructure, according to the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT).
More support should be provided to the research and development of 5G enhancement technology and 6G technology, while the accurate matching of innovation, industrial, capital and policy chains should be promoted, said Chen Zhaoxiong, vice minister of the MIIT.
Chen also stressed the importance of emphasizing the huge demand for digital transformation and improving new digital infrastructure to facilitate economic and social upgrade of the country.
The MIIT will take a string of measures to optimize industrial development, such as expediting construction of 5G and industrial internet connecting people, machine and things, developing new types of intelligent computing facilities, advancing orderly construction and application of large data centers while upgrading micro and small data centers, enriching application scenarios and building a network security system.
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.
CHINDIA ALERT: You'll be living in their world, very soon 
South Korean officials call for caution amid reports that North Korean leader Kim is ill
SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korean officials are calling for caution amid reports that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un may be ill or is being isolated because of coronavirus concerns, emphasising that they have detected no unusual movements in North Korea.
At a closed door forum on Sunday, South Korea’s Unification Minister Kim Yeon-chul, who oversees engagement with the North, said the government has the intelligence capabilities to say with confidence that there was no indications of anything unusual.
Rumours and speculation over the North Korean leader’s health began after he made no public appearance at a key state holiday on April 15, and has since remained out of sight.
South Korea media last week reported that Kim may have undergone cardiovascular surgery or was in isolation to avoid exposure to the new coronavirus.
Unification minister Kim cast doubt on the report of surgery, arguing that the hospital mentioned did not have the capabilities for such an operation.
Still, Yoon Sang-hyun, chairman of the foreign and unification committee in South Korea’s National Assembly, told a gathering of experts on Monday that Kim Jong Un’s absence from the public eye suggests “he has not been working as normally”.
“There has not been any report showing he’s making policy decisions as usual since April 11, which leads us to assume that he is either sick or being isolated because of coronavirus concerns,” Yoon said.
North Korea has said it has no confirmed cases of the new coronavirus, but some international experts have cast doubts on that claim.
On Monday, North Korean state media once again showed no new photos of Kim nor reported on his whereabouts.
However, they did carry reports that he had sent a message of gratitude to workers building a tourist resort in Wonsan, an area where some South Korean media reports have said Kim may be staying.
“Our government position is firm,” Moon Chung-in, the top foreign policy adviser to South Korean President Moon Jae-in, said in comments to news outlets in the United States.
“Kim Jong Un is alive and well. He has been staying in the Wonsan area since April 13. No suspicious movements have so far been detected.”
Satellite images from last week showed a special train possibly belonging to Kim at Wonsan, lending weight to those reports, according to 38 North, a Washington-based North Korea monitoring project.
Though the group said it was probably the North Korean leader’s personal train, Reuters has not been able to confirm that independently, or whether he was in Wonsan.
A spokeswoman for the Unification Ministry said on Monday she had nothing to confirm when asked about reports that Kim was in Wonsan.
Last week China dispatched a team to North Korea including medical experts to advise on Kim Jong Un, according to three people familiar with the situation.
Reuters was unable to immediately determine what the trip by the Chinese team signalled in terms of Kim’s health.
On Friday a South Korean source told Reuters their intelligence was that Kim Jong Un was alive and would likely make an appearance soon.
Experts have cautioned that Kim has disappeared from state media coverage before, and that gathering accurate information in North Korea is notoriously difficult.
North Korea’s state media last reported on Kim’s whereabouts when he presided over a meeting on April 11.
Kim, believed to be 36, vanished from state media for more than a month in 2014 and North Korean state TV later showed him walking with a limp.
Source: Reuters
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