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INDIA-CHINA: TENSION PEAKS IN LADAKH
DIGITAL ISSUE
www.outlookindia.com June 8, 2020
What After Home?
Lakhs of migrants have returned to their villages.
OUTLOOK tracks them to find out what lies ahead.
Mohammad Saiyub’s
friend Amrit Kumar died
on their long journey
home. Right, Saiyub in
his village Devari in UP.
R N I N O. 7 0 4 4 / 1961
MANAGING EDITOR, OUTLOOK
FROM
THE
EDITOR
Returning to
RUBEN BANERJEE
EDITOR IN CHIEF
the Returnees
and apathy have been their constant companions since
then. As entire families—the old, infirm and the ailing
I
included—attempt to plod back home, they have been sub-
NDIA is working from home; jected to ill-treatment and untold indignities by the police
Bharat is walking home—the short for violating the lockdown. Humiliation after humiliation
tweet by a friend summing up was heaped upon them endlessly as they walked, cycled and
what we, as a locked-down nation, hitchhiked long distances. They were sprayed with disin-
have been witnessing over the past fectants and fleeced by greedy transporters for painful
two months was definitely smart. rides on the back of trucks and tempos. When they thronged
The wordplay was interesting and railway stations and bus terminals in a mad rush for a seat,
impressive. But I am not too sure if they were almost always treated like cattle. It was truly
it was still adequate to encapsulate colossal the way a callous system failed them.
the scale of a disaster that has befallen mil- The collective outrage over how badly the migrants were
lions of migrants frantically attempting to let down has been equally huge. Though those in the gov-
reach home in distant towns and villages ernment may still be in denial and reluctant to acknowl-
that lie beyond urban India. We have not edge the tragedy, there has been no dearth of debates and
seen this in our living memory—certainly discussions on the migrants and their plight.
not since Partition. It is not easy to fathom Among the defining images of the agonising lockdown
the misery that the profusely sweating and has been that of Ram Pukar Pandit from Bihar’s Begusarai
mostly starving mass of people find them- weeping inconsolably on the phone upon hearing his child’s
selves in. I, for one, am at a loss for words in death as he attempted to return home; or that of Moham-
trying to articulate their tragedy. mad Saiyub, a migrant worker from Uttar Pradesh, whose
What I can safely presume, though, is friend Amrit Kumar died in the middle of their arduous
that their sufferings are manifold more trek. Their stories have seared our heart. They have even
than our middle-class angst. As the touched an emotional chord in distant places. US President
migrants trudge home, they are negotiat- Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka tweeted recently about
ing unthinkable odds. The absence of the indomitable spirit of a young Bihar girl who tirelessly
proper transport is simply appalling. cycled more than a 1,000 km to carry her ailing father home.
Cocooned inside our urban comforts, we It is but natural that the migrants’ march, with its atten-
have been forced at the most to change dant struggle, is hogging the headlines.
our daily routines. Though our own But we would be failing them all over again if we forget
future looks uncertain amid job cuts and them now. For the likes of Pandit and Saiyub who have
mounting economic losses, COVID-19 finally reached home, a more uphill struggle to survive awaits,
has not yet exacted any toll other than minus assured livelihood. Though the media’s attention span
primarily confining us to our homes. In is notoriously limited, Outlook does not give up on a story mid-
comparison, the migrants are battling to way and several of my colleagues—Salik Ahmed, Giridhar Jha,
survive in the open, braving hunger, heat, Sandeep Sahu, G.C. Sekhar, Suresh Kumar Pandey and Sandi-
and intermittent police high-handedness. pan Chatterjee—displayed exemplary enterprise to reach out
What is inexplicable is the way they to the migrants in their villages. This issue’s cover story is a
have been left in the lurch. A hurriedly reminder of the challenges that the returnees face, and our
enforced lockdown left them without collective responsibility towards them.
money and work. Soon, they ran out of
food and were forced to seek the per-
ceived safety of homes in the back of
beyond they were born into. Insensitivity
(Ruben Banerjee)
OUTLOOKINDIA.COM J U NE 8 , 2 0 2 0 | OU T LOOK 3
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S U R E S H K . PA N D E Y
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Ruben Banerjee
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Coordinator), Jitender Gupta (Photo Editor),
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DESIGN Saji C.S. (Chief Designer),
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CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Indranil Roy
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VICE PRESIDENTS Shrutika Dewan,
30
Diwan Singh Bisht
SR GENERAL MANAGERS Kabir Khattar (Corp),
Debabani Tagore, Shailender Vohra
COVER STORY
GENERAL MANAGERS Sasidharan Kollery,
Shashank Dixit Millions of bedraggled migrants marched their way
CHIEF MANAGER Shekhar Kumar Pandey
MANAGERS Shekhar Suvarana, Sudha Sharma back from the cities to their villages. Outlook caught
CIRCULATION & SUBSCRIPTION Anindya
Banerjee, Gagan Kohli, G. Ramesh (South), up with some of them at their homes...to know their
Vinod Kumar (North), Arun Kumar Jha (East)
DIGITAL Amit Mishra stories, to know their plans for the future.
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LETTERS FEEDBACK › OUTLOOK@OUTLOOKINDIA.COM
1/6/2020
NAVI MUMBAI
C.K. Subramaniam:
The Prime Minister’s speech
boosted one’s motivation—
the Rs 20 lakh crore package
shows empathy for the
country in these challenging
times. On the flip side, the
implementation of these
goals is important. It is
also disappointing to note
that the package includes
liquidity measures an-
nounced by the RBI earlier.
The Centre has to focus on
reaching out to migrants,
especially since they lack
documentation. Also, the CALCUTTA
economic package has to be Avik Debnath: On
disbursed without corrup- page 23, there is a quote
tion. But Modi is right when of Vikas Srivastava, who
he says that India can lead has been erroneously
the world—we have a young, associated in the article
capable population. Our Rs with “IIM-K”. He is an
20-lakh-crore dream will esteemed faculty member
come true soon. of IIM-L (Lucknow).
D I G I M A G . O U T LO O K I N D I A . C O M
Grease
The Wheels FROM THE Daak Room
MUMBAI Hello mr lynes
Ashok Goswami: This refers to your
thank you very much
cover story The Flu Shot (June 1, 2020).
YO U T U B E . C O M / O U T LO O K M A G A Z I N E
The economy is no doubt in a tailspin, biographical information
but only spin doctors have come to the my life couldn’t fill a penny postcard
rescue. Economic pundits and stock i was born in pittsburgh in 1928 (like everyone else –
markets have given the economic stimu- in a steel mill)
lus a thumbs down. It failed to put i graduated from Carnegie Tech
now i’m in NY city moving from one roach infested
money where the mouths are and did
apartment to another.
nothing for demand generation. Giving
fodder to the horse is of no use if you put Andy Warhol
it behind the cart. The Opposition has
FAC E B O O K . C O M / O U T LO O K I N D I A
failed to corner the government over
this failure. RBI’s undeserved and
unwarranted rate cuts will have no effect
apart from bleeding senior citizens who
are staring at fixed deposit rates of less Me, Myself And I
than six percent and no social security In 1949, when Russell
pensions. The government should reach Lynes, managing Editor,
out to MSMEs, help them woo back the Harper’s magazine,
T W I T T E R . C O M / O U T LO O K I N D I A
workforce and arrange for working capi- asked Andy Warhol
tal. The dead can’t be resurrected, but for biographical
the dying can be saved. Instead of information, the 21-year-
announcing big numbers, the govern- old artist responded
ment must ensure that the stimulus with this postcard.
greases the jammed wheels of industries.
00 O U TLOOK6| MAY
OUTLOOK | JUNE 8 , 2020
4, 2020
LETTERS
| PICTURE: GETTY IMAGES |
News / SLUGGG/SUBSLUG FEEDBACK › OUTLOOK@OUTLOOKINDIA.COM
Farewell senior government officer, so
superciliousness took the
conducted by the National
Testing Agency may seem
better of him and he kept too dire, but the COVID-19
GOA sermonising for more time pandemic in India might not
M.N. Bhartiya: This refers than his ‘paan’ permitted. As have peaked yet. Dr
to the cover story Things I and my friends watched Randeep Guleria, the direc-
That Got Covided (May 18). anxiously, the red liquid tor of AIIMS, has said that
History has witnessed many trickled from the corners of according to modelling data
curses of nature as well as his mouth. He comfortably and the way our cases are
manmade disasters, but picked up a saucer from my increasing, it is likely that the
humanity has not changed. table and spat! While shock, peak can come in June and
People greedily exploit those dismay and ridicule followed, July. He further said that
who are weak and keep them my friend amusingly ex- there are many variables
suppressed. Any improve- remittances. And things will plained that ‘Sir’ was helpless and only with time, will we
ment in the standards of continue as before. for he had only two options know how effective the lock-
education, hygiene, habits to get rid of the fluid: down or down has been. Obviously,
etc of the poor is not in the NEW DELHI out! And it is the ‘out’ option right now, everything is
interest of upper classes sim- Sangeeta Kampani: One of he exercised like everyone uncertain. There is a need
ply because they will not be the most enduring sights and else. In case COVID-19 could for reinvention, innovation
able to exploit them. Kings, sounds of India is the red- leave its imprint on this and maximisation of all
emperors and those leaders hued spittle mark and the unsightly habit, it would be available digital resources to
concentrating power by sin- jarring ‘thoo’. While the quite a gain in these ungainly reach out to students and
ister designs while donning threat the pandemic poses is times. It would be a story I continue education. That is
the garb of democracy predicted to bring about a would love to narrate to my the way forward for us.
ensure the poor remain poor. paradigm shift in our hygiene grandchildren—how the red Nowadays, many students
Labour laws have to be more habits, the end of spitting fluid finally got covided! are getting their scheduled
stringent to suck the blood of seems nowhere in sight. I say classroom work on a smart-
the poor. There is a vacuum this out of personal experi- LUCKNOW phone. After COVID-19, it is
in the leadership of the ence. Sometime back, a col- M.C. Joshi: UGC’s sugges- going to be a changed world—
unorganised working class. league walked into my office tion of shifting the new online classrooms and
Migrant labour will silently with this mouth-watering academic session in colleges work-from-home may
return to commercial hubs delicacy in his mouth. The from July to September and become the norm for
once they exhaust their gentleman happened to be a to postpone all tests education and employment.
NEW DELHI nitely. This is all the more
Gaurav Pant: The photoes- true of the not-so-big ban-
say Ahead Is Home, Behind ners, which look at quick
Is Hunger (May 18) aptly recovery of costs and profita-
depicted how the COVID-19 bility to stay in the game.
crisis has thrown the lives Theatre owners and multi-
and livelihoods of workers plexes may not like the idea
into disarray. There is no since it puts their earnings in
doubt that COVID-19 has jeopardy, but at the same
plunged millions of people time, they do not have any
into extreme poverty and valid reason to cry foul. With
uncertainty, but those ‘social distancing’ the new
working in the informal norm, even after the virus
economy, with fragile dreams is getting spent in GURGAON bids us goodbye, the circum-
sources of income, are the their fight for survival—all Kamna Chhabra: This stances that have driven us
worst affected. Loss of that remains is a blank fu- refers to Small Screen, Big to switch to OTT platforms
wages, lack of employment ture. The world might learn Locha (June 1). The pan- are here to stay. The boom-
and rising casualties have to live with the virus, but the demic has left its mark on ing sound and the big 70 mm
prompted the mass return hardships and pain people the way films are being screen in a packed theatre is
of these migrants to their had to go through will released. In the present going to be replaced by TV
native places. What they had remain engraved in the uncertain times, releases and mobile screens. ‘Small’ is
saved for their beautiful bosom of humanity. cannot be put on hold indefi- the new ‘big’ now.
OUTLOOKINDIA.COM MJAY
U NE 2 ,0 2 0 2| 0OU
4, 8 | OU T LOOK0 0
T LOOK 7
THE
NEWS
Heads That Bow
Put at the centre of the COVID fight by the Odisha
CM, the sarpanch remains a figurehead
Around 300 nurses have left Calcutta
for Manipur after resigning from their Sandeep Sahu in Bhubaneswar anomalies that undermine the sar-
jobs. Earlier, it was reported that 185 panch’s authority to take a call on some-
O
nurses have quit their jobs in Calcut thing within his/her jurisdiction.
ta hospitals and returned to Imphal. N April 19, Odisha CM Naveen Neither the CM’s April 19 announce-
Cristella, a nurse said: “We are not Patnaik announced on TV what ment nor the notification issued later by
happy that we left our duties. There he described as a “historic the revenue and disaster management
was a huge shortage of PPE kits. We decision”. He said his government had department spelt out the financial and
also faced discrimination and racism. put sarpanches (elected heads) of gram administrative powers supposedly dele-
People sometimes spat on us. They panchayats at the centre of the fight gated to the sarpanches. In fact, a Febru-
questioned us everywhere we went.” against COVID-19, conferring on them ary 17 notification issued by the
the “powers of district collectors” for panchayati raj and drinking water
effective management of quarantine department continues to bar sarpanches
centres for migrant workers
returning from other states.
This was done vide Section 51
of the Disaster Management
Act, 2005, and the Epidemic
Diseases Act, 1897, read with
COVID-19 regulations, 2020.
A month later, the sarpanch-
On May 23, Delhi Police arrested Nat
es, far from enjoying the
asha Narwal and Devangana Kalita of
powers of a collector, are still
student group Pinjra Tod for participat
at the mercy of the local block
ing in anti-CAA protests. They got bail, development officer (BDO)
but were arrested again in a separate and panchayat extension
case and put in remand for two days, officer (PEO) for just about
which was extended by two more days. everything. With almost no
financial powers, the elected
panchayat heads are not even consulted
when babus take administrative Naveen Patnaik at an online
decisions. Each panchayat has been given interaction with sarpanches
Rs 5 lakh for running quarantine centres,
but the sarpanches have to run to the from incurring any expenditure without
PEOs for sanction of every little expense. the BDO’s sanction, regardless of the
“What collector’s powers? The PEO CM’s declaration of April 19. Moreover, a
insists on bills for the smallest expendi- May 11 circular asking collectors and
The Amphan cyclone has damaged the ture. Do we look after the needs of the BDOs to ensure strict adherence to
world’s largest banyan tree—one of the inmates of quarantine centres or keep guidelines regarding management of
two ‘kalpvriksha’, also known as Indian running to the PEO?” asks the sarpanch quarantine centres makes no reference
of a panchayat close to Bhubaneswar. to sarpanches nor is copied to any of
olive—in the Acharya Jagadish Chandra
Some sarpanches say they are asked to them. “These orders are in conflict with
Bose Indian Botanic Garden in Howrah.
get ration and other stuff for quarantine the announcement made by the chief
The circumference of the 342-year-old centres on credit with the promise that minister on April 19,” says a senior jour-
tree’s core stem once measured 15 the amount spent would be reimbursed. nalist who heads the Citizens’ Action
metre and that of its peripheral stem “Given the snail’s pace at which the gov- Group. “More importantly, they under-
is over 1.08 km. The core stem was ernment machinery moves, you never mine his appeal on May 11 for greater
removed in 1925. The Botanical Survey know when the reimbursement will be decentralisation in the approach to fight
of India uses the picture of this tree as done,” complains a sarpanch. COVID-19. That’s why the orders must
its logo. Banyan is India’s national tree. There are also legal and administrative be withdrawn.” O
8 O U TLO OK | JUNE 8, 2020
CAUTION !!! INDIAN STOCK MARKET 2020
AGAIN STARTED FACING A BIG CRASH. VERY
SOON NIFTY WILL HIT MINIMUM 2500 LEVEL
Caution !!! Indian stock market 2020 again started facing a big crash.
Very soon Nifty will hit minimum 2500 level in the upcoming days.
Tmarket.
his crash is going to be the biggest crash
registered in the history of Indian stock
We can see a sharp fall in this crash.
40% from life high in the month of March
2020. During the fall investors and Traders
Wealth will get affected badly. So investors
In this crash NIFTY will fall up to 80% which is and Traders of our Indian stock market must
calculated from the LIFE HIGH. It is going to be careful to deal with this Crash said by
be the consecutive crash in the year 2020 that RESEARCH ANALYST Mr. LAKSHMI NARAYANAN
our Indian stock market got corrected nearly SUNDARAM.
LAKSHMI NARAYANAN SUNDARAM
Research Analyst (Sebi Certified).
NIFTY TARGET LINEPOLIGLOT
PTI
Villagers shift from a flooded
locality following heavy rainfall in
Goalpara. Hundreds of villages are
M I X E D S H O T S under water in Lower Assam.
SNAPSHOT
UMER ASIF
statements every day mentioning
visits by people welcoming the new
domicile rules, including former and
serving top government officials.
Besides children of J&K residents
living outside J&K and West Pakistan
refugees, the April 1 order has made
eligible for domicile all
Srinagar city, a those who have resided in
house maze J&K for 15 years, or studied
for seven years and
appeared in the Class 10th
or 12th examination from an
educational institution there. The
order says children of central
government officials, including
officials of PSUs and banks, who have
served in J&K for 10 years will also be
Certified to Belong
eligible. Domicile will also be granted
to all migrants and their children
registered with the relief and
rehabilitation commissioner.
Naseer Ganai in Srinagar place. Unless there is some hidden When Jammu-based Panther’s Party
agenda, it makes no sense to recruit leader Harsh Dev Singh warned that
Since coming up with the tens of thousands to issue domicile the domicile rules would open the
J&K Jammu and Kashmir certificates to those who already have a floodgates of people to J&K, the BJP
Grant of Domicile Certif- PRC. Those who have been living in described such criticism as alarmist.
icate (Procedure) Rules, 2020, defining Kashmir for 5,000 years are on the “This will not add a large chunk of peo-
the procedure to obtain domicile in the same footing as those seeking to ple to the J&K population,” says the
Union territory, the J&K government acquire the domicile certificate now. BJP’s J&K president Ravinder Raina.
has announced 10,000 vacancies and Both have to prove it—erstwhile state “Instead, the new rules are inclusive of
made domicile certificate a criterion subjects by submitting a PRC, and oth- many sections within J&K who were
for applicants. Permanent residents of ers by submitting a ration card. That a being denied their fundamental rights,
the erstwhile State of J&K who were ‘state subject’ residing here for genera- including the right of domicile. The
issued the Permanent Resident Certif- tions has to regain his ‘domicile’ is order has by and large been welcomed
icate (PRC) before August 31, 2019, adding insult to injury. Does it not by a large section of people.”
shall be eligible for receiving domicile strike anyone in the governance sys- In Kashmir, both the People’s Demo-
certificates on the basis of the PRC tem that the PRC should have been cratic Party and the National Confer-
alone. The government has set a 15-day deemed to be a domicile certificate?” ence came out against the order.
deadline from the submission of appli- J&K Lt Governor Girish Chandra “Demographic change and disenfran-
cation for local revenue officers to Murmu, meanwhile, has been seeking chisement will further complicate the
issue the certificate and would deduct public approval of the new domicile J&K issue, which has claimed thou-
Rs 50,000 from the officer’s salary as rules opposed by all political parties in sands of lives. This will be resisted
penalty in case of further delay. J&K, barring the BJP. His office issues through all democratic peaceful
Critics say the process for Kashmiris means,” said the PDP in a statement.
is similar to the contentious updating “This is the first time in history that
exercise of the National Register of “Mughals, Afghans, the Kashmiri identity is facing a real
Citizens. “The new regime of domicile threat,” says political analyst Riyaz
rights strikes at the roots of the notion Sikhs, Dogras…nobody Ahmad. “This identity has survived
of who belongs to Kashmir,” says for- except democratic 400 years under various brutal
mer J&K finance minister Haseeb regimes—Mughals, Afghans, Sikhs,
Drabu. “The rules obliterate, through India tried to change Dogras—because none of them tried to
redefining, the ethnic conception of
belonging that was sought to be pro-
J&K’s demographic pro- change the demographic profile of this
place. But that is exactly what is being
tected by the domicile law in the first file,” says Riyaz Ahmad. tried in democratic India.” O
10 O U TLO OK | JUN E 8, 2020POLIGLOT
LOCUST
A Two
Punch
Combo
Outlook Bureau
T
HEY come in hordes of millions,
flying in robot-like formations
some 3km long and shearing all
forms of greenery off a landscape in a
matter of hours. Like an apocalyptic we all know blowing high to low pres-
science fiction movie—the buzzing sure areas and carrying with it the Locusts in Jaipur. Adult insects can
crepitations from their wings harmoni- migrating pestilence into the interiors consume roughly their own weight in
ous with the sci-fi parable. They are from its point of entry, the Thar along fresh food per day.
locusts—tiddi in Hindi. And India, in the India-Pakistan border.
the middle of a pandemic, is bracing for The government says the locusts are rains. That could be a double whammy
a biblical plague, probably the biggest active in Rajasthan, Gujarat, as India is already battling waves from
locust outbreak since 1993. The alarms Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and spring breeding in Iran and Pakistan.
are out, amateur videos of swarms Madhya Pradesh. The forecast is grim. India has proposed a coordinated
engulfing cropland, villages and cities Why? The attack is “escalating the dan- approach to both nations, but experts
are aplenty. The latest was from Jaipur, ger to food security”. A small swarm accuse Pakistan of inaction despite
where millenials captured an hour-long eats as much in one day as about 35,000 knowing that its border with
flypast on their cellphones. People beat people. And the UN warns that a new Afghanistan is a breeding hotspot.
utensils, burst firecrackers. The locusts, wave is expected this June. A bigger Earlier, locusts came from Africa, taking
for the din they make, hate noise. wave—a single swarm covering 1 sq km ample time to reach India. Not any-
The insects flew out of the city to can contain up to 80 million of the vora- more. India is ring-fencing its locust
greener pasture. Wherever the wind cious insects—could reach India from defence system with drones and crop-
took them, for they fly with the air cur- Africa. Billions of the young desert duster planes, while villages have their
rent—covering up to 150 km a day at 20 locusts are winging in from breeding own warning system—loudspeakers.
kmph. This is summer and the wind is grounds in Somalia in search of fresh “Tiddi aa rahi hai, apney khet bachao
flowing easterly from the hot desert, as vegetation springing up with seasonal (locusts are coming, save your fields).” O
brevis
Pulmonologist Indian hockey legend Casino tycoon Australian tennis An alligator that once
Dr Jitendra Balbir Singh Sr, Stanley Ho, great Ashley belonged to Adolf
Nath Pande, a a three-time Olympic whose business Cooper has died Hitler has died in the
former doctor at gold-winning empire dominated aged 83. He was a Moscow Zoo.
AIIMS, Delhi, died of centre-forward, has the former Portu- four-time Grand Slam Saturn, about 84,
COVID-19. He was 79. died in Mohali guese gambling winner—Australian had escaped from
Both Dr Pande and battling multiple enclave of Macao for Open in 1957 and Berlin Zoo in 1943. He
his wife had tested health issues. He decades, has died in 1958; Wimbledon and was found in 1946
positive. was 96. Hong Kong at age 98. US Open in 1958. and given to Moscow.
J U NE 8 , 2 0 2 0 | OU T LOOK 11POLIGLOT
MixedShots
MUSTY NUMBER, MUSKY CALLS
L
TIK TOK. HE’S THERE
S
YNDSAY Tucker, a skincare consultant at a Sephora beauty store in OCIAL media network TikTok might
San Jose, California, knew all about popping pimples and unclogging be good for subjecting the world
pores, but little about vehicles. So imagine her consternation when a to your lack of talent or a few
South African businessman called her to buy 1,000 trucks. But that wasn’t giggles, but who would have thought it
the only one—commendation for a “magnificent car” followed, as did could help find missing people and
inquiries about purchasing an ATV she had reunite families! That’s what happened
supposedly “showed off during a CyberTruck when a family in Bhadradri Kothagudem
reveal”. Turns out her telecom company had district, Telangana, found a 60-year-old
reassigned Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk’s deaf-mute man eating food in a video a
old number to her—she receives at least three calls police constable in Ludhiana had
a day meant for Musk. Poor Lindsay, she didn’t shared. The man had been missing for
even know who Musk was until this incident, let over two years and is now back with his
alone his loony ravings on Twitter. The most family—all thanks to the app, which can
surprising thing: no one has yet called to ask what is now boast of more accomplishments
than making millions lip-sync. O
up with Musk trying to name his son XÆA-12. O
H
JACK OF ALL FALLS
UMPTY Dumpty’s experience was nowhere as dismal as
Pariyaram’s, a man from Belur in Kasaragod, Kerala, who
climbed a jackfruit tree for a bountiful harvest. Not only did
he fall from the tree, a jackfruit fell on his head, cracking his spine.
He had to go for surgery, but his troubles did not end there. As per
protocol, doctors at Government Medical College, Kannur, tested
him for COVID-19 and the results came positive. If that wasn’t bad
enough, he has no idea where he contracted the disease from, rais-
ing fears of possible community transmission in the state. O
LOCKDOWN, LADDOO DOWN
I
MAGINE sitting on Rs 14,000 crore and eight tonnes of
gold and still not being able to pay your employees! Such
has been the fate of TTD, the poor rich trust that manages
the Tirupati temple in Andhra Pradesh. So it is with some
confusion that hungry devotees welcomed its decision to sell
QUARANTINE
its famed laddoos for Rs 25 instead of the earlier Rs 50 across QUEENS
W
Andhra Pradesh and in neighbouring state capitals. The
reason behind this largesse? The HEN a request for spirits to lift their
trust’s ‘e-hundi’ received spirits was turned down, a group of bar
electronic donations of dancers from Mumbai did what they do
Rs 1.97 crore in April 2020, best—dance. Only their stage was the corridor of a
Rs 18 lakh more than quarantine centre in Moradabad. They might have
what it last year. After won the approbation of beer-goggled customers in the
all, in tough times, who past, but couldn’t dance their way into the hearts of
wouldn’t want to curry the police on duty. Instead, the cops booked them
divine favour, even if it under six sections of the IPC and refused to let
entails lavish monetary them leave. Too bad no one’s watching that
inducements? O scene, digging the dancing queens. O
12 O U TLO OK | JUN E 8, 2020 I L LU S T R AT I O N S : S A A H I LMasterspeak
A Webinar Series
strateGies
for start-Ups
with
K Ganesh Serial Entrepreneur
Watch the complete
discussion between
K.Ganesh, and
N Mahalakshmi, Editor,
Outlook Business on
strategies start-ups can
adopt to retune themselves
to deal with the disruption
caused by Covid-19
To watch the video, visit
@outlookmagazine
Presented by C0-Sponsored byFOREIGN/CHINA-INDIA
Patrol Bombs
Border tensions spike suddenly along the LAC, as sections in India join
others in criticising China’s handling of COVID-19. Yet the two have
enough reasons to resolve all issues peacefully.
Pranay Sharma the past week begun to pitch tents and gone farther than usual,” he adds.
enforce their respective positions along Raghavan refers to incidents that
T
strategic points in Ladakh, in the west- started from May 5-6, when Indian
HREE years ago, a prolonged ern sector of the Line of Actual Control and Chinese soldiers were injured
stand-off between Indian and (LAC). The build-up at the border— while trading punches and throwing
Chinese troops on Bhutan’s triggered by aggressive posturing and stones at each other in a departure
Doklam plateau had sparked alarming ‘transgressions’ by soldiers of the from past norms underlining the
speculation about the proximity of an People’s Liberation Army (PLA) into avoidance of physical violence.
armed conflict between the two Asian the Indian side of the LAC—coincides Barring 1962, when the neighbours
giants, and how such a frightening with a marked rise in anti-China feel- went to war over their disputed bound-
possibility would destabilise the ings in India as sections make common ary, not a single bullet has been fired
sub-continent and the region beyond. cause with the anger against the across the Sino-Indian border since
That crisis, however, was resolved in Chinese leadership across the world in 1975. In the intervening period, there
73 days without a shot being fired. the wake of the COVID-19 crisis. have been skirmishes and face-offs. But
But similar worries have started The question arises if the two devel- they were all peacefully resolved.
clouding minds of policy planners as opments are linked. “This seems to be The 3448-km Line of Actual Control,
Indian and Chinese soldiers have over a coincidence; there is no connection behind which soldiers of the two coun-
between the two,” says historian tries stand, remains disputed and
Srinath Raghavan. “The LAC has its un-demarcated, yet is not considered a
Indian and Chinese soldiers march at the own seasonal dynamic and this is part ‘hot border’ like the one between India
border post at Bumla, Arunachal Pradesh of it. Though both sides seem to have and Pakistan. Moreover, despite their
PTIFOREIGN/CHINA-INDIA
simultaneous rise within the same for the China policy, especially the
geographical space, Indian and MEA, remains careful and meas-
Chinese leadership have so far ured in its response,” he says,
skilfully managed to avoid situa- indicating that Beijing should
tions that could lead to another look through the clutter to make
armed confrontation. But height- sense of the Indian government’s
ened tension in the past weeks, stance in this prevailing interna-
following hectic activities of tional mood.
patrolling soldiers of India and Raghavan feels joining a
China in key points along the Western chorus of criticism of
LAC, has increased unease. China makes it easier for some in
Indian officials have recorded India to express displeasure at
‘transgressions’ along the LAC in China’s handling of the pandemic.
Pangong Tso Lake, Trig Heights, “At a time when many others are
Burtse, the Doletango area and the talking tough with China, it’ll be
Galwan river valley in Ladakh and difficult for Beijing to target
also at strategic points in Sikkim. India,” he says.
“Better infrastructure, enhanced Hardliners, however, are disap-
transportation and communication pointed with the government’s
facilities have increased the proba- stand. “India is not adopting a
bility of Indian and Chinese patrols policy that is assertive enough
coming face-to-face,” explains towards China,” says former
Gautam Bambawale, former Indian foreign secretary Kanwal
ambassador to China. Coupled with Sibal. “China’s provocations that
aggressive patrolling, this could lead to Recent summits between PM Modi and touch our core interests continue,” he
the kind of situation we now witness, he President Xi have sought to iron out adds. According to Sibal, China has
explains. Bambawale reminds that there fissures in Sino-India ties not only repeatedly attempted to put
are standard operation procedures that Kashmir on the UN Security Council
the two sides have agreed to and if their Union minister Nitin Gadkari, made agenda, but also challenged India’s
soldiers adhere to them the border could critical remarks about China in public. sovereignty in Arunachal Pradesh
be relatively peaceful. But if there are “I don’t see any special change in and Ladakh.
attempts to change the ‘status quo ante’, India’s approach towards China,” says “On the latest provocations in Sikkim
it could lead to trouble, he warns. C. Raja Mohan, director of the and Ladakh, our initial reaction was
Experts say the stand-off in strategic Institute of South Asian Studies, mild and even apologetic,” feels Sibal.
points at Ladakh, like Galwan, is con- National University of Singapore. “The “But the MEA spokesperson corrected
nected to Indian construction activi- worldwide concern is about China get- the earlier mistake by accusing the
ties, including building a road from ting assertive in its responses to ques- Chinese side of hindering normal
Dharchuk via Shyok to Daulat Beg tions on its handling of the COVID-19 patrolling patterns, affirming that all
Oldie, which is now the revamped crisis,” he adds. Raja Mohan points out Indian activity is on the Indian side
advance landing ground that would that in India the public debate, espe- and that India was committed to pro-
allow C-130J aircraft to land and boost cially from the political class, has tect its sovereignty and security.”
strategic airlift capabilities. In addi- always been free-flowing; there have Bambawale, who has been part of
tion, a series of roads are being built in been voices that have always been crafting the China policy, makes it
the area to enhance India’s access to critical of China and those who reso- clear that there was nothing new about
the Karakoram highway—an area of lutely supported Beijing irrespective India’s stand. “India has for many dec-
immense strategic importance for of the merits involved. ades taken strong positions vis-a-vis
both Pakistan and China. “But the section that is responsible China where our fundamental inter-
It is the building of this access road ests were involved,” says the former
that is being vehemently opposed by envoy. He cites examples to explain the
China but India seem determined not Indian stand—referring to the 2017
to abandon its plans of building the India’s building Doklam stand-off, the Sumdorong Chu
required infrastructure—as the Chinese of access roads incident in the late 1980s or the 1998
have done on their side—to enhance decision to test a nuclear device. “India
better access to the armed forces. to the Karakoram has always taken strong, difficult deci-
Away from the border, the mood in highway is being sions when its fundamental interests
political circles in New Delhi and else- were involved. I think this continues to
where has undergone a significant vehemently and be true today,” he adds.
change. Political leaders, including those Bambawale also refers to the recent
from the ruling BJP, like its national
unfairly opposed guidelines India announced for invest-
general secretary Ram Madhav and by China. ment from China, saying, “The recent
OUTLOOKINDIA.COM J U NE 8 , 2 0 2 0 | OU T LOOK 15FOREIGN/CHINA-INDIA
Indian, Chinese soldiers in a face-off
near the Pangong lake in Ladakh
change in FDI flows from China is in
India’s basic interest. Even then, we
will continue to welcome Chinese
investment but through the govern-
ment route.” Stressing his initial point,
he says, “I believe there is more conti-
nuity than change in India’s policy
toward China.”
But the current developments play
out at a time when the US and China
are locked in a major battle for
supremacy and influence at the
global stage. How will it affect India,
whose ties with Washington have
been growing steadily over the years?
“The US affects all major bilateral
relations in the world,” says Raja
Mohan. “As the second most impor-
tant power, China does the same
today.” Referring to developments of
the 1970s, when the US engaged
China diplomatically, Raja Mohan
points out how it forced New Delhi to
lean more towards Moscow.
According to him, after four decades
of deepening economic integration,
America and China are drifting apart.
Domestic politics in the US, awaiting a points out, there is a desire to call out risen over the past decades, while the
presidential election, has certainly Chinese handling of COVID-19 and economic relationship has become
complicated the dynamic. It can also try to position India as an alternative unbalanced, with a massive trade defi-
be presumed that domestic political destination for global value chains. cit against India that has been difficult
considerations make it ever more On the other, there seems to be an to overcome. “But the stakes for both
important for President Xi Jinping to awareness of the need for continued countries are only higher now,” he
be seen as standing up to American investment flows from China and the says. “One hopes the current tensions
pressure. “All countries will now have importance of not getting into a hos- will not escalate into a major crisis.”
to cope with worsening ties between tile fracas with a stronger neighbour. Former foreign secretary Sibal has no
US and China,” says Raja Mohan. “The tensions between these compet- illusions about the future of Sino-
Indian ties with China must navi- ing imperatives needs to be managed Indian ties. “The impact of China’s
gate these choppy waters, with India better,” adds Raghavan. hegemonic ambitions on India will
ensuring that much-needed invest- So far, India and China have done remain a serious problem, requiring,
ment from China continues to pour well to manage the contradictions in as before, engagement and hedging,”
in. “The step to change the approval their relations. As Raja Mohan indi- he observes in an opinion piece.
route for Chinese investments was cates, border tensions have steadily Bambawale is more pragmatic.
necessary to prevent China’s preda- “India-China relations have been
tory economic policies,” says Sibal. He complex. It is likely to get more so
points out that there is no bar to now”. He feels India needs to keep its
Chinese investments per se, the “Better infrastructure relation with China on track while
intent is to prevent China’s acquiring and communica- furthering its national interest. He
assets on the cheap as a result of their points out the need for a new tem-
fall in value owing to the pandemic. tions have increased plate, as the underlying realities have
Raghavan is sceptical whether chances of opposing changed. “This was the effort made at
future ties between the two neigh- the Wuhan Informal Summit. But it is
bours will be smooth. “I think New patrols coming still a work in progress,” says the
Delhi needs to be clear about the kind former envoy to China. That work, it
of relationship it wants with China,”
face-to-face,” says is to be hoped, must never be hostage
says Raghavan. On one hand, he Gautam Bambawale. to border tensions. O
16 O U TLOOK | JUNE 8, 2020T H E AU T H O R I S M E M B E R , N AT I O N A L S EC U R I T Y
O P I N I O N / Lt Gen. (retd) Subrata Saha A DV I S O RY B O A R D , A N D FO R M E R D E P U T Y C H I E F O F
A R M Y STA F F A N D K A S H M I R C O R P S C O M M A N D E R .
The Abusage Of Rhetoric
Judicious diplomacy can resolve any boundary issue through the hitherto
successful mechanism between India and Nepal for the purpose
time-honoured India- Tibet and China. Both the Rana rulers of Nepal and the Nepalese kings
THE Nepal relations are going
through yet another test—
accepted the boundary and did not raise any objection with the
Government of India after India’s Independence.
this time around it’s about In a media interview the defence minister of Nepal exacerbated the spat
the interpretation of the two-century with an attempt to incite the Gorkha soldiers who serve in the Indian
old Treaty of Sagauli, ratified on March Army. In doing so, he is trying to harm the special bond that exists
4, 1816 between the King of Nepal and between India and Nepal. India, Nepal, and UK had signed the tripartite
the British East India Company. agreement in 1947, according to which 1, 3, 4, 5, 8 and 9 Gorkha Rifles
On May 8, 2020, Union Defence joined the Indian Army and 2, 6, 7 and 10 Gurkha Rifles joined the British
Minister Rajnath Singh, through a Army. Over the years, UK has
video event, inaugurated the road link reduced the complement of Gurkhas
from Dharchula (Uttarakhand) to substantially. India, on the other
Lipulekh (on the border with China). hand, has increased the number of
The road would help boost trade and Gorkha units, with new raisings from
economic growth in this border region time to time. According to an IDSA
and facilitate the Mansarovar Yatra. article of 2017, there are
The road, constructed by the Border approximately 1,27,000 pensioners
Roads Organisation, has taken some (90,000 of the Indian Army and
time to build due to heavy snowfall, 37,000 of the Central and state
steep slopes, extremely low governments as well as
temperatures, restricted working paramilitary), in Nepal. Some
season, besides numerous flash floods members of the Communist Party in
and cloudbursts causing disruptions Nepal have tried in the past to strike
and loss of lives and equipment. at this special bond. The institutional
The Government of Nepal reacted to strength of the Army and the
the inauguration by unveiling a new qualities of the soldiers ensured that
political map of Nepal, placing the they have weathered through crises
areas of Kalapani, Limpiyadhura and like the Maoist insurgency in Nepal,
Lipulekh as part of their territory. Nepal’s sudden and the occasional standoff in the
Concomitantly, there were caustic and past. In today’s hyperactive social
unreasonable remarks made by the territorial claims media environment, extra
prime minister of Nepal in parliament. precautions against disinformation
According to the 1816 Treaty of
notwithstanding, would be in order. An outreach to the
Sagauli, Nepal renounced all claims to the Ranas and the pensioner community, to sensitise
the disputed Tarai, or lowland country, them about the vested interests, may
and ceded its conquests west of the kings had no issue also help.
river Kali and extending to the Sutlej.
Effectively, river Kali was accepted as
with the boundary According to reports appearing in
the media, the Nepalese parliament
the Western boundary of Nepal with both before and after has not passed the constitutional
British India, and post 1947, between amendment for the new map. This is
India and Nepal. At the root of the
Independence. a positive development, as there are
current controversy are Nepal’s recent mechanisms in place to settle
claims stating that the source of the boundary issues between India and Nepal. Set up in 1981, the India-Nepal
Kali lies at Limpiyadhura, hence Joint Boundary Working Group has been able to complete almost 98 per
Kalapani and Lipulekh, to the east of cent of its mandate—to resolve boundary issues, demarcate the
the Kali, belong to Nepal. The Survey international border and manage boundary pillars. Perhaps an
of India maps since the 1870s showed expeditious resolution of the remaining two per cent, through diplomatic
the area of Lipulekh down to Kalapani means, should take care of the issue. India-Nepal relations are much too
as part of British India. The British precious to be frittered away in rhetoric. O
used the Lipulekh pass for trade with (Views expressed are personal.)
J U NE 8 , 2 0 2 0 | OU T LOOK 17T H E AU T H O R I S A R E T I R E D I N D I A N FO R E ST S E R V I C E
O P I N I O N / Rathin Banerjee O F F I C E R . H E H A S N U M E R O U S P U B L I C AT I O N S I N
SCIENTIFIC JOURNALS IN INDIA AND ABROAD.
What the Otter Knows
About the Cyclone
The Sunderbans is safe—as is the tiger. Nature has no
intention to create disharmony within itself
PTI
Boats capsized
and sunk in
surging waves
during the storm
SURFACE reality can often
so batter our
lifeworld, and so
now. To recap, the formation—an estimated width of 40 km at the eye
and 120 km for the whole wall cloud—descended from the south of
coastal Digha on the Bay of Bengal, at a speed of 30-40 kmph. Its moist
overwhelm our core held the gigantic energy of a super storm rotating anti-clockwise at
senses, that it’s difficult to grasp a a speed of 160-180 kmph, accompanied by
deeper reality. Remember how we As a natural gusts up to 200 kmph. It left in its wake a
were able to think contrarian about trail of destruction as localities and
the COVID-19 pandemic—over and barrier, the streets cowered and lay blanketed in
above our natural species-level dis- darkness as power was switched off to
may—as a chance for nature to heal
Sunderbans avoid accidents. Soon, water from over-
itself? On May 20 at around 1730 took the full brunt flowing drains merged with the street to
hours, we got another chance to revisit resemble one large stream of gushing
our assumptions as the cyclone as it checked the water. It had rained a full 244 mm in
Amphan entered over the gloomy speed of cyclone approximately five hours.
expectant skies of Calcutta and its Now let’s zero in on a key site: the
adjoining areas. We know the basics by Amphan. Sunderbans forest, 120 km south-south-
18 O U TLOOK | JUNE 8, 2020O P I N I O N / Rathin Banerjee
east of Calcutta. As a peripheral
human habitat, it was as exposed and
vulnerable (if not more) as the city and
its suburbs to the huge cyclonic core of
Amphan. But as a natural barrier, it
took the full brunt as it checked the
speed of the cyclonic formation. This
is as was to be expected. In seasonal
low-pressure situations, gusty winds
and thunderstorms approach Bengal
from the south over the Sunderbans in
a unidirectional path; so the mangrove
forests act as efficient wind-breakers.
The havoc that Amphan caused to
Calcutta is there for all to see. But what
drama or tragedy was taking place in
those mangroves—the arcane depths
of Sunderbans? The sparse human set-
tlements there were torn asunder. But
what about its other denizens? After
all, it’s home to the largest and most
dangerous crocodile in the world, the
Crocodylus porosus, and the heartbeat
The Sunderbans
and pride of any Indian forest, the
tiger is a strong
charismatic tiger!
swimmer
First, a brief map. The total area of
Sunderbans is 9,630 sq km, containing
a constituted forest area of 4,260 sq
km of evergreen mangrove forest— An overall recorded in 1707, and an earthquake in
indeed, the single-most extensive 1737. Water rose by 40 feet and most
mangrove forest in the world, which balance is areas were depopulated.
has been under scientific management Now, numerous studies have been done
for over a century. The area outside it
maintained to study the effects of natural calamities
is land reclaimed from the delta in as a web of on human populations and chart out a
phases with government approval, course of action to help secure the fringe
beginning as far back as Warren interrelated population settled in Sunderbans—even
Hastings in 1770. Even those early
records show the prime objective for
factors. Take the if observed tragically in the breach. But
measuring the strains on its true deni-
reclamation to be human settlement tiger, for instance. zens, its wildlife, has never been easy.
and agriculture. We can start with what is apparent: the
The terrestrial and anthropogenic forest survives in all its pristine glory. It
(human impact on environment) foot- is as if natural calamities and storms like Amphan have made a deal with
prints on the Sundarbans reveals a the natural world. That it will save its harshest strike for the
tumultuous history. It has always been anthropogenic element, or on human activity that pollutes the
subjected to periodic ravages of environment. The natural world has no intention to cause disharmony
nature in the form of cyclones, inun- within itself. Some damage is expected—a tiger, for instance, was found
dation by tidal bores, earthquakes, dead on the forest floor following a storm in 1991. It had apparently fallen
erosion and degradation of soil when into the current of a large estuary amid incessant rain and strong winds,
estuarine rivers changed courses, as when a steep shoreline gave away under its weight. The tiger could have
also land subsidence. Early evidences managed to swim ashore but was injured by a sharp, broken stem of a tree
of human presence were mostly swept that jutted out at an angle from the river bed. Submerged and hence
away owing to subsidence in the whole unseen, the stem pierced the tiger’s abdomen—the strong current
of lower Bengal during the middle of bringing about the impalement.
6th century AD. Many popular ports But accidents do not give us a rule. An overall balance is maintained as a
and cities have thus disappeared from web of interrelated factors. Take the Sunderbans tiger. It’s a strong swim-
our maps! Even in 1688, Sagar Island mer. Its tail base is thicker and more muscular than that of other Indian
had a population of 2,00,000 people— tigers, since it habitually uses it as an oar. Plus, the high grounds of the
but land subsidence and inundation forest archipelago are not always submerged for a long period. Water
swept away the entire population that drains out to the sea quickly, unlike the stagnant, rancid pools we see in
year. A major subsidence was again cities. On the flip side, if the peaking time of the cyclonic surge coincides
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