Big picture: PM Modi must realise the real challenge is without, not within.

KC Singh

THIS week focus returns to Asia as two major summits — Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and East Asia Summit (EAS) — are held in Vietnam and the Philippines, respectively. India is not a member of the first, though desirous of joining it. PM Narendra Modi shall interrupt relentless campaigning in Gujarat to attend the latter on November 12. US President Donald Trump, combining bilateral visits to Japan, the Republic of Korea (ROK), China, Vietnam and the Philippines with attending both summits, heightens interest, particularly as earlier he was skipping the EAS. Chinese President Xi Jinping, newly endorsed for a second five-year term by the 19th Party Congress, attending the APEC Summit completes the Asian drama. The US State Department announced that Trump’s focus would be on neutralising nuclear threat from the Democratic Republic of Korea (DPRK), promoting a free and open Indo-Pacific (euphemism for contesting Chinese corralling of two- thirds of South China Sea, via artificial island building) and reciprocal trade, i.e., balancing the huge US trade imbalances with China, Japan and ROK. Trump is also expected to reassure allies and partners concerned over perceived US retreat from the region. Essentially, the summits this year are a power play between the US and China and a contest between two alternative visions of growth and governance. The Western liberal, democratic and free trade model is posited against the Chinese model, fine-tuned by President Xi, of economic success through centralised and authoritarian management underpinned by  nationalism minus civil liberties and elective government. The 19th Chinese Party Congress has allowed Xi to consolidate power and perhaps become the most powerful leader since Mao Zedong, with allies and followers controlling important institutions. Significantly, no clear successor is visible, thus breaching injunction by Deng Xiaoping, father of the Chinese economic miracle that his successors would only hold two five-year terms. Among the seven-member standing committee of the politburo, the de facto Chinese cabinet, is Wang Huning — professor, ideologue and adviser to all post-Deng presidents. He devised the “Three Represents” of President Jiang Zemin, recommending party reachout to private business and professionals and is now behind “Xi Jinping Thought” embedded in the constitution. He has, over decades, provided intellectual ballast to Chinese rulers’ view that social and economic change can only be accomplished by centralised and authoritarian rule, while freezing political evolution. The Tiananmen Square uprising by students in 1989 was taken by them as confirming its validity. Xi has added an anti-graft edge, thus enhancing his own “legitimacy”, which in Chinese tradition is called the “Mandate of Heaven”. Ensuing public support has enabled him to purge potential rivals or dissenters.At the 19th Congress, President Xi reiterated his “China Dream” to make the nation a “basically modernised nation” by 2035 and a “rich and powerful socialist nation” by 2050. The 21st century continental and maritime Silk Route, called the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), is the next step to achieve this. It is imagined as a Sino-centric network for trade and investments to rival, if not supplant, existing post-World War II architecture created by the West under US leadership. The Xi-Trump summit thus assumes importance. China seeking “great power relationship” is nothing but a desire for the US to accept them as the only “other” in a bipolar engagement. Trump has frequently praised Xi in the past, even calling him “King of China”, perhaps in line with his penchant for authoritarian rulers, assuming he can flatter them for a shortcut to strategic compromise. Trump would seek China to compel DPRK to accept nuclear restraint, if not disarmament; balance bilateral trade; and end Chinese predatory trading practices and poaching of intellectual property. Xi will tactically yield some ground but is unlikely to kow-tow fully. Asian neighbours of China, concerned over Trump’s erratic and vacillating policy making, must devise alternative strategies, assuming Trump will, at best, henceforth, be an off-shore balancer. In a Pew Research Centre poll, only 24 per cent Japanese trust Trump compared to 78 per cent giving thumbs up to former President Barack Obama. PM Shinzo Abe is hewing a path by not allowing the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) to collapse, inviting 11 members, minus the US which quit, to a meeting before Trump’s visit. He has also resurrected and elevated to political level the 2007 meeting of Australia, India, Japan and the US, dubbed the Quad — a gathering of major regional democracies, expandable to include others later. As a swing power, India must use these emerging China-containing mechanisms as, indeed, alternative groupings, where China and India share space, for instance BRICS, etc. Meanwhile, authoritarianism is spreading globally like a pandemic. Polls in India indicate a vast majority preferring a “strong” ruler. The play book is almost identical, despite differences in political and historical contexts. Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman in Saudi Arabia or President Xi in China or PM Modi in India use anti-corruption crusades to purge rivals, isolate opponents and bolster public image. Trump himself operates beyond the confines of own party and the Congress, sustained by social media. Nationalism becomes the handmaiden to suppress dissent and demoralise, or even silence media. Differences of power use or abuse are obliterated between authoritarian rulers straddling different political systems. An Atlantic Council study predicts Indo-Pacific as globally the most economically dynamic region by 2050. With a fundamental power shift underway, the study concludes a “Trans-Pacific century” has already begun. China’s BRI, advances in Artificial Intelligence, Asian Infrastructure and Investment Bank, renewal energy advances and rededication to futuristic industries is its path to growth and rapid power accrual. The BJP-led Modi government, meanwhile, expends energy on eliminating opposition and constant electioneering, implementing ambitious, but poorly conceived schemes like demonetisation and now GST, corralling media, exulting in selective positive economic news and soaring stock market. The bubble may be more than in share prices and reality has been known to prick it inopportunely. PM Modi has a narrowing window to close ranks domestically and realise his challenge is without, not within. Unless he self-corrects soon, like Rajiv Gandhi in 1984 when China under Deng Xiaoping had only a four-year head-start over India, his would be a wasted mandate. The writer is a former Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs

China objects to Defence Minister Sitharaman’s visit to Arunachal

Sitharaman on Sunday visited forward army posts in remote Anjaw district of Arunachal Pradesh bordering China to take stock of the defence preparedness. PTI file

Beijing, November 6

China on Monday objected to Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s first visit to Arunachal Pradesh, saying her tour of the “disputed area” is not conducive to the peace and tranquillity in the region.

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Sitharaman on Sunday visited forward army posts in remote Anjaw district of Arunachal Pradesh bordering China to take stock of the defence preparedness.

“As to Indian Defence Minister visit to Arunachal Pradesh, you must be very clear about China’s position,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a media briefing.

“There is a dispute on the eastern section of the China-India boundary. So this visit by the Indian side to the disputed area is not conducive to the peace and tranquillity of the relevant region,” she said in a response to a question.

The Indian side should work with the Chinese side to make contribution to properly revolving the issue through dialogue and create enabling environment and conditions, she said.

“Hope India will work China for the shared goal, seek a solution acceptable to both sides and accommodate our concerns in a balanced way,” she said.

China claims Arunachal Pradesh as part of South Tibet and routinely objects to top Indian officials’ visit to the area.

The Line of Actual Control (LAC) between India and China stretches to 3,488 kms. Both sides have held 19 rounds of talks by the Special Representatives to resolve the dispute.

Sitharaman had visited Nathu La area on the India-China border in Sikkim last month and greeted the People’s Liberation Army soldiers across the border. PTI

Credit card holders’ collective liability to banks has soared to nearly 60,000 crore by the end of this September, a whop  ping 39 per cent jump in a year. Indeed, it is one of the side effects of demonetisation that was unleashed a year ago. Banks, particularly private ones, took advantage of this cash squeeze to boost credit card use; selling over 60 lakh credit cards in just one year. First time users of the plastic cards were thrilled by the new found power of nearly-unlimited purchase, unaware of its potential to land them in a debt-trap. They did not realise the ease of purchase had an attached cost – exorbitant interest rates of 40 per cent or more with the interest calculated on an average daily balance method. Banks justify the usurious interest rates in order to neutralise the impact of payment defaults. Thus, a credit card may well become an instrument non-performing asset (NPAs) for banks and debt-traps for customers. The credit card is one of the innovative and modern payment options. It is not an evil per se provided one knows how to uses it. A credit card comes in handy in cases of emergencies such as hospitalization or emergency travel. The smart user avails all its benefits including discounts, complimentary insurance, rewards points and special privileges associated with individual cards. To the frustration of banks, a smart user never allows any outstanding to accumulate. But, the temptation of ‘purchase now and pay later’ also encourages conspicuous consumption and some cardholders end up spending more on their ability to repay. Thus the debt-trap is created.Notwithstanding the accumulated arrears, banks aggressively promote their plastic cards. The industry is growing faster especially after last November’s demonetisation. It is intriguing; either the banks are sitting on another NPA bomb or they are minting money by charging high interest rates. This is alarming in either case. The card business needs to be properly regulated. Banks require to acquaint consumers unambiguously about every intricate detail associated with the usage of plastic cards. The RBI too should monitor interest rates charged by banks on credit cards.

Commuters queue up near the Elphinstone railway station foot overbridge, where a stampede killed 23 persons recently. PTI

Tribune News Service

Mumbai/New Delhi, October 31

The Army has been roped in to build foot overbridges at the Elphinstone road railway station in Mumbai where 23 persons were killed in a stampede a month ago.Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, along with Railway Minister Piyush Goyal and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, visited the railway station with engineers from the Army this morning. Fadnavis said the new overbridge would be completed by January 31. (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)The Army would also build foot overbridges at the Currey Road and Ambivali railway stations, Fadnavis said. While Currey station lies in Mumbai city limits, Ambivali lies between Kalyan and Kasara on the outskirts of the city. Earlier, the Railways had floated a tender for the construction of a foot overbridge at Elphinstone station. However, Goyal was told that the new bridge would take a year to complete. “We have decided to take help of the military…  as there is an urgent need to complete the bridges at the earliest. The three stations have been identified as these witness a very high footfall,” Goyal said.Sitharaman said this was the first time that the Army had been called in for carrying out civil work in the country’s financial capital. “The Army conducted a feasibility study to assess whether it could complete the work or contribute to the process,” Sitharaman added.The move, meanwhile, has led to severe criticism.

Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh, a 1965-war veteran, said “the Army’s job is to train for war and protect the country’s borders, not to build bridges and clean  roads”. He said there could be serious implications of such misuse of the armed forces by utilising their services for non-emergency civilian jobs.Urging Defence Minister Sitharaman to refrain from diverting critical defence resources to civilian works, he cited what he termed a mistake that Maj Gen BM Kaul, GOC of ‘Red Eagles’ 4th Division, had made before the 1962 war with China. The scandalous misuse by him of military manpower to build accommodation cost the Indian Army heavily during the Sino-Indian war, the Chief Minister said.The Defence Minister, instead of being party to this decision and announcing it with such pride, should have  rejected any such suggestion in the interest of the armed forces, Capt Amarinder said.

Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said the Army was supposed to be called in as a last resort at times of emergencies. “Now, it seems like it is the first number on speed dial,” he said. Congress’ Sanjay Nirupam said “calling in the Army to construct the bridges underlines the failure of BMC. Hope the Army will not be asked to fill potholes here”. 

1. ROHTANG SNOW: LAHAUL-SPITI CUT OFF, 50 VEHICLES STRANDED
2. CHIEF ADVISOR TO CM CALLS UPON GOG ( GUARDIANS OF GOVERNANCE) RESTORE GLORY OF PUNJAB AT ASR, JALLANDAR AND TARN TARAN
3. BANDIPUR OPERATION IS AN OMINOUS SIGN FOR TERRORISTS IN J&K BY LT GEN SYED ATA HASNAIN (RETD)
4. WHERE ARE WE TAKING INDIA LEGACY :: ARE WE LESS THAN MOGULS OR WORSE TO ERASE INDIAN HISTORY
5. RENAMING LEGACY DYAL SINGH COLLEGE SHOULD RETAIN ITS NAME
6. CHINA OBJECTS TO KOVIND’S VISIT TO ARUNACHAL
7. COUNTER-MILITANCY TRAINING HITS GARUDS HARD THREE IAF COMMANDOS KILLED IN ANTI-MILITANCY OPS IN ONE MONTH
8. POLICE COMPLAINT OVER RENAMING OF COLLEGE
9. INDIGENOUS SUB SET FOR MID-DEC SAIL FIRST OF SIX SCORPENE-CLASS VESSELS PLANNED IN 1999 TO BE COMMISSIONED
10. SPECIAL TERRORIST ZONES’ FOR LET, JEM MUST END: INDIA
11. EPIC BATTLES: REVISITING JASWANTGARH AND REZANGLA OF 1962 ON THEIR ANNIVERSARIES BY SYED ATA HASNAIN
12. OPPOSITION AGAINST BHARAT RATNA FOR KM CARIAPPA IS A DISTRACTION. THE REAL TARGET IS GENERAL BIPIN RAWAT
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Tribune News Service

Pathankot, November 10

An Army man, deployed at the air base here, reportedly committed suicide by shooting himself with his licensed revolver in the wee hours of today.The deceased has been identified as Tej Singh Hooda (30) from Rohtak (Haryana). He was set to be relieved from night shift when he shot himself.Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Vivek Sheel Soni said Hooda had strained relations with his wife.“He returned from his home town recently. He is survived by his wife and two daughters. We have informed his parents and are waiting for them to arrive,” he said.A case has been registered at Sadar police station here under Section 174 of the CrPC.