The renewed tensions between China and India, two Asian giants, along the contested Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Himalayan region of Ladakh in early May crossed the 100-day mark on Thursday.
For the first time since the Agreement on the Maintenance of Peace and Tranquility was signed by the two nations in 1993 – apropos the management of the 4,000-kilometre loose demarcation line that separates Indian and Chinese-controlled territories – there was a breakdown in the protocols carefully crafted over 27 years.
In the middle of June, 20 Indian soldiers including a colonel lost their lives in the Galwan River following a brawl with troops belonging to the People's Liberation Army of China. Beijing has yet to announce any casualties on its side, although Chinese media reports indicate that the PLA did lose personnel. In what was an anomalous development, no ordnance was used by either military at Galwan, even though both nuclear nations are militarily well-equipped. Soldiers on both sides, instead, resorted to sticks, stones and nail-studded clubs.
India has held China responsible for "pre-meditated" transgressions in various locations along the LAC, while Beijing has accused Delhi of being the "aggressor".
In their August 15 Independence Day speeches, the Indian President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi referred to the challenge of "expansionism" in the neighbourhood but did not explicitly name China. It was added that India would not be deterred by any kind of "aggression" and was capable of giving a "befitting reply".
An uneasy stalemate prevails despite several rounds of talks at the diplomatic and military command levels. The Indian assessment is that its military will have to prepare for the long haul along the LAC through the winter months.
In the run-up to the 100th day, however, some signals seem to suggest that diplomacy may yet allow for a modus vivendi of a complex and tangled territorial dispute between the world’s two most populous nations with a combined strength of 2.8 billion people.
On Friday, the Indian ambassador in Beijing Vikram Misri met with senior officials of the Chinese Military Commission to reiterate Delhi’s position on the LAC. Earlier on Wednesday, Mr Misri had met with Liu Jianchao, a senior member of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party. Media reports suggest that another round of talks could be on the cards.
Also on Wednesday, the Chinese embassy in Delhi expressed hope through a tweet that the “Indian side can meet the Chinese side half-way” and not act in any manner that would further "complicate" the border tensions. The tweet also said that China hoped India would create “favourable conditions” for maintaining peace and stability in the border areas and the healthy development of bilateral relations.
However, this was also accompanied by the Chinese ambassador to India Sun Weidong asserting in a signed article that the onus for resolving the border stand-off in the Ladakh sector of the LAC was “not on China". In short, the picture that emerges is unclear and has elements of a tentative intent to negotiate – but the article suggests it would be on terms set by Beijing. This will not be acceptable to Delhi, which seeks a return to the status quo positions along the LAC as they existed before the PLA intrusions.
The bilateral relationship between China and India has now entered a post-Galwan phase and both nations are aware that what is at stake is not just contested territoriality – but the texture and tenor of the emerging Asian strategic framework with larger global implications.
This was outlined by the Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, who earlier in the month noted: “We are seeing the parallel but differential rise of the two countries. To my mind, what it does is it puts a huge premium on reaching some kind of equilibrium or understanding between the two.” Highlighting the point that this equilibrium would have to be in the interests of both countries, he added: “How to do that is one of the big challenges that we face.”
While the Covid-19 pandemic has led to considerable uncertainty about the global economic recovery, it is expected that over the next decade, the world will see the emergence of three major single-state economies: China, the US and India, with the European Union being the fourth node.
In an earlier formulation, there was optimism about the resurgence of Asia, led by China’s economic growth followed by that of India, in addition to the sustained economic vitality of countries in the continent's north-east, south-east and west. It was envisioned that global prosperity and power would shift to the East, with the critical strategic triangle represented by China, the US and India.
This assumption, however, was predicated on a robust degree of co-operation among the major powers and a commitment to equitable globalisation in all the development sectors ranging from the economy, energy, infrastructure, investments, financial flows, trade, commerce and the sharing of technology. The past four years have turned out to be more turbulent and discordant across many tracks, and these include the souring of US-China, US-Russia and now China-India relations.
While the orientation of the US-China equation will largely be shaped by the outcome of the US presidential election in November, one factor will remain abiding – that of the swing-state relevance of India in the critical strategic triangle. How Beijing engages with Delhi in the post-Galwan era will have long-term implications for Asian equipoise and harmony – or the lack thereof.
C Uday Bhaskar is director of the New Delhi-based think tank Society for Policy Studies
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Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses
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Ophiolite: A section of the earth’s crust, which is oceanic in nature that has since been uplifted and exposed on land
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Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
How much of your income do you need to save?
The more you save, the sooner you can retire. Tuan Phan, a board member of SimplyFI.com, says if you save just 5 per cent of your salary, you can expect to work for another 66 years before you are able to retire without too large a drop in income.
In other words, you will not save enough to retire comfortably. If you save 15 per cent, you can forward to another 43 working years. Up that to 40 per cent of your income, and your remaining working life drops to just 22 years. (see table)
Obviously, this is only a rough guide. How much you save will depend on variables, not least your salary and how much you already have in your pension pot. But it shows what you need to do to achieve financial independence.
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Mohammed Abukhater, vice president at FireEye in the Middle East, said:
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Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
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INDIA SQUADS
India squad for third Test against Sri Lanka
Virat Kohli (capt), Murali Vijay, Lokesh Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Wriddhiman Saha, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Vijay Shankar
India squad for ODI series against Sri Lanka
Rohit Sharma (capt), Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Siddarth Kaul
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Why does a queen bee feast only on royal jelly?
Some facts about bees:
The queen bee eats only royal jelly, an extraordinary food created by worker bees so she lives much longer
The life cycle of a worker bee is from 40-60 days
A queen bee lives for 3-5 years
This allows her to lay millions of eggs and allows the continuity of the bee colony
About 20,000 honey bees and one queen populate each hive
Honey is packed with vital vitamins, minerals, enzymes, water and anti-oxidants.
Apart from honey, five other products are royal jelly, the special food bees feed their queen
Pollen is their protein source, a super food that is nutritious, rich in amino acids
Beewax is used to construct the combs. Due to its anti-fungal, anti-bacterial elements, it is used in skin treatments
Propolis, a resin-like material produced by bees is used to make hives. It has natural antibiotic qualities so works to sterilize hive, protects from disease, keeps their home free from germs. Also used to treat sores, infection, warts
Bee venom is used by bees to protect themselves. Has anti-inflammatory properties, sometimes used to relieve conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, nerve and muscle pain
Honey, royal jelly, pollen have health enhancing qualities
The other three products are used for therapeutic purposes
Is beekeeping dangerous?
As long as you deal with bees gently, you will be safe, says Mohammed Al Najeh, who has worked with bees since he was a boy.
“The biggest mistake people make is they panic when they see a bee. They are small but smart creatures. If you move your hand quickly to hit the bees, this is an aggressive action and bees will defend themselves. They can sense the adrenalin in our body. But if we are calm, they are move away.”