Friday, 3 July 2020

What ails China? An analysis of Chinese expansionist policy


What ails China? An analysis of Chinese expansionist policy

A schematic representation of how China is trying to capture parts of Ladakh 
             I have been perturbed with the Chinese behaviour of needling all its neighbours needlessly over decades and now it appears that it has upped the ante.   All this happening when the world is struggling with Chinese virus and now it appears through the circumstantial evidence evolving on day to day basis that the virus had been deliberately spread to hamper the world economy and establish its hegemony.  However, it appears that the Chinese virus could not achieve in totality what it was spread for, but the Chinese regime that had already chalked out a pre-determined strategy and now cannot go back on it, having suffered huge financial losses themselves.  In order to unravel this peculiar mind set of the Chinese regime I started studying the Chinese actions of the past and this post is more India specific in its analysis.
What China is trying to negotiate by threatening war with India - the illegal CPEC arrangement with Pakistan
             In order to understand the Chinese leaders and their psyche, one will have to go through their history.  Although China has one of the most ancient histories that has survived through ages since pre-Christian era and having contributed towards science, textile and other agrarian sectors during its illustrious history, but it has been time and again plagued by foreign dominance starting from Kublai Khan an Mongol war lord, who had brought entire China under his tutelage.  There were many illustrious dynasties that ruled the region from time to time like the – Zhou Dynasty – Quin Dynasty – Han Dynasty – Tang Dynasty – Song Dynasty – Yuan Dynasty (Kublai Khan) – Ming Dynasty – Qing Dynasty – period ruled by Sun Yet Sen (Kuomintang’s) and finally by Mao Tse Tung (to read in detail about the timelines and achievements etc. of these rulers - http://www.localhistories.org/china.html).  However, the period, in between 1890s to 1930s particularly, was one of the most disastrous periods of Chinese history and there were conflicts and loss of land in wars etc.  China was mostly restricted to southern region along the South China Sea and can be demarcated along the norther borders along the Great Wall of China that had been drawn to protect it from invasion by Mongols, Turks etc.  Therefore, it can be said that there was no authoritative rule in entire China as it is, as of today and especially during the period mentioned i.e. 1890s to 1930s.  
This is how the Chinese slaughtered their citizens during Mao's rule - Harbin on Sept. 12_1966 shot by famed photographer who had hid these images under the floor of his home - Li Zhensheng
             Now to draw the pointer to the present day dispute with China, it relates to the same time line when China was at its lowest ebb as stated above.  Tibet too has a long and ancient history that has faced attacks and subjugation in the past and the longest such rule was by the Mongols.  However, during the 13th to the 16th century A.D, the Mongol rulers were influenced by Buddhist teachings, which had to large extent taken over the older Bon religion, which was in practice in Tibet and the Mongols had appointed Dalai Lama as the religious-political leader (also referred to as priest ruler by some historians) of Tibet under protectorate of the Mongols.  However, due to internal conflicts the country witnessed several upheavals until the 6th Dalai Lama was disposed of by the Mongols in 1705 A.D, but they were not able to rule as another Mongol warlord of Dzungars clan invaded Tibet and killed Lahsang Khang the Mongol ruler.  The Chinese got worried over the growing clout of the Mongols and sent an ambassador called Amban to Tibet with some forces and therefrom the Chinese assumed that they had become over lords of Tibet.  The Tibetan religious leadership thereafter isolated themselves from all sides and became a reclusive kingdom.  But due to geo-political conditions, assuming that Russia may annex this region, the British invaded Tibet in the early 20th Century, to be precise this invasion started on 3rd December, 1903 and ended on 4th September, 1904.  During the invasion the Dalai Lama fled to Mongolia and the Chinese Amban declared that the Dalai Lama had been deposed, but the locals hardly believed him and after extracting some concessions from the Tibetans, the British withdrew as they never wanted to rule Tibet.  Fearing that Tibet may become entry point for British to invade China, the Chinese rulers invaded Tibet in 1909 and the Dalai Lama fled to India.  However, this Chinese invasion was short lived and they were over thrown by the locals in 1911 and the Dalai Lama returned to Tibet in 1912.  However, in 1913 the Chinese again took control of some parts of Tibet and seeing this aggressive posture, the British entered into a treaty, known as the Shimla Accord signed on 3rd July, 1914, whereby a line dividing inner and outer Tibet was drawn by Sir Henry MacMahon.  This agreement was signed by the Tibetan representatives, but the Chinese plenipotentiary Ivan Chen declined to sign it.  The line drawn by Sir Henry MacMahon is known as the present day ‘MacMahon line’ and forms the basis of dispute.  By this agreement the inner Tibet region comprising of Qinghai, Gansu, Sichuan and Yunnan provinces were to be governed by Chinese and the remaining region of outer Tibet including Lahsa would be ruled by the Tibetans through Dalai Lama, further the agreement stipulated that China would not absorb Tibet under any conditions.  Although the Chinese repudiated this agreement, but it is evident from records that during the signing of this treaty with Tibet the Chinese had no direct control over Lahsa and hence had no direct say in this respect, as per International Laws.  The Chinese again invaded Tibet in 1918 but were beaten back and this further establishes the fact that Tibet was never under direct control of China ever.  The Chinese made several attempts to over-run Tibet in 1920s and 1930s, but finally they annexed Tibet in 1951, with country like India taking a spectators seat for reasons best known to the political establishment in power at that point of time.  The Tibetans never agreed to this Chinese annexation of their Country and stood up in revolution in 1959 that was brutally crushed by the Chinese military.  To read more in detail about the history of Tibet - http://www.localhistories.org/tibet.html
Dalai Lama arrives at Tawang in 1959

The then Chief of Army staff Lt. Gen. B.M Kaul whose wrong assessment lead to defeat of Indian inadequately armed soldiers 
                 The modern day China came through many revolutions against the central autocratic rule and the Qing Dynasty was last to rule was Empress Dowager, Cixi who was deposed in 1912 through abdication of throne.  The stone had been set rolling by one Mr.Sun Yet Sen who formed the revolutionary alliance in 1905 and loosely knit an association of like-minded persons, known as the Literary Society, who started gathering to force a revolution.  However, during the preparations of the revolution, a bomb went off in one of their offices in 1911 and sensing that the Government might come down with a heavy hand, they started the revolution albeit prematurely.  The Qing ruler finding himself overwhelmed by the number of regions voluntarily ceding from the Qing dynasty rule, requested a dismissed General known as Yuan Sikai to help them regain control.  However, when the troops of the General were repulsed at Nanjing, he changed sides and joined the revolutionaries and forced the ruler to abdicate her throne in 1912. As per the agreement entered into with the revolutionaries, General Yuan Sikai became the first President of Republic of China, with Sun Yet Sen’s Kuomintang emerging as the largest party.  The General had no intention of sharing power and so he dispersed the National Assembly in January, 1914 after having disbanded the Kuomintang in Dec., 1913.  However, the General died in 1916 and China entered into a state of anarchy, being ruled by several war lords and split into many parts.  In between this the Communist Party of China was formed by Mao Tse Tung in 1921 and on the other hand although the Kuomintang was banned, it had simply shifted base to Guangzhou province in China.  Taking advantage of the break down in the system, the Kuomintang embarked upon a plan to unite China and formed an army of about 1.50.000 which marched north and defeated several warlords in 1926 and large parts of north China was brought under rule of the Kuomintang.  After consolidating the powers, the Kuomintang embarked on the northern expedition again in 1928 and in April, 1928 it entered Beijing and China finally came under a central rule.  Therefore, from this it is amply evident that there was no absolute ruler in China who could have participated in any negotiation with any foreign ruler in respect of any third country i.e. Tibet and hence the claim of China about any suzerainty over Tibet during this particular period of time is totally a fallacy and based on false premises. 
A schematic representation of MacMahon line in Arunachal region

The position of MacMahon line in disputed region of Ladakh
            Now coming to the period of consolidation of China, after having forged the Communist party in China in 1921, Mao Tse Tung launched a peasant’s revolution in 1927 known as the ‘Autumn Harvest Uprising’, but the same was crushed by December, 1927 by the Kuomintang government.  There was a bitter sweet relation between the Kuomintang and the Communists that led to the Kuomintang declaring that China was not ready for democracy and Chiang Kai Shek became the dictator in 1930.  The communist continued to oppose the Kuomintang and in 1930 another rebellion was launched by Communist under leadership of Li Lisan, but this too was crushed.  Finding it difficult to directly confront the Government, Mao Tse Tung devised the modern day warfare (that is now used by the Naxalites) called the Guerrilla warfare, whereby they would make sudden attacks and then disappear, thus bleeding the Government forces and wearing them down.  Peeved at this activity, the Kuomintang Government decided to encircle the guerrilla warriors and encircled them in 1934 and finding himself cornered Mao Tse Tung decided to break through the cordon and alongwith 90,000 of this associates he broke through the cordon and started his march north wards and this is known as the ‘Long March’ by the Chinese, but at the end only 20,000 odd had survived this long journey.  Due to attack by Japan in 1937 there was a brief cease fire between the Kuomintang and Communists, but after Japanese attack had been repulsed and Russia having taken over Manchuria from Japanese handed over this region to the Communists and thus established Communist rule there in 1945.  The war between the Kuomintang and Communists again commenced in 1946 and after final war that took place in between 1948-49, the Communists finally took Beijing on January, 1949 and established the present day Communist regime.  Although it has had its ups and downs, but the expansionist policy of the party remains at the core of party politics.  The first example was the annexation of Tibet in 1951 and countries across remained largely uninterested, as this region hardly had any international significance in form of industry or natural resources.  The United Nations did not take any collective action and this had emboldened China to go on its spree of expansionist policy, albeit non-descript portions surrounding it.  Here is a map depicting the expansion by China over the years (as sourced from the internet) –
The China that is marked in purple was its initial holding and the remaining has been grabbed by it later 

            After having taken over Tibet as a cake walk, China started seeking control over all of the so called ‘Outer Tibet’ and after Dalai Lama crossed over to India, in aftermath of the rebellion being quelled by the Chinese army in 1959, to Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh then referred to North East Frontier Agency (NEFA for short).  The autocratic ruler Mao Tse Tung who just went by his own interpretation of his sense of justice and rule of law, in pursuance of his own myopic vision, had not flinched even once in killing over 1.5 million Chinese during the so called revolutions and his indignant behavior can be judged from the fact that during famine in China, he ordered killing of Sparrows stating that they ate the seeds, which in turn resulted in swarms of locust on whose spawns the Sparrows kept a check, through process of natural selection, thus aggravating the famine conditions in China.  Mao Tse Tung believed himself to be some kind of super person and through the Cultural Revolution of 1960s he tried to impose this thought process on his vassals too.  It now appears that being peeved at the safe passage granted to Dalai Lama by the Indian Government, it appears that Mao Tse Tung wanted to teach India a lesson and was looking at ways and means to do so.  Therefore, the Chinese Government machinery came up with the idea of repudiating the MacMahon line and challenging it (Here is a link to an article about this boundary dispute - The McMahon Line: A hundred years on - https://idsa.in/idsacomments/TheMcMahonLine_rskalha_030714).  It would be imperative to place here on record that despite the fact that the Chinese had no authority to negotiate the Shimla Agreement of 1914, as is amply established from the geo-political scenario existing at that point of time and detailed above, yet it tried to raise this issue.  The Chinese being opportunists, were lying in wait for the right time to strike and coupled with the poor military management by the Nehru Government, especially role of Lt. Gen. B.M Kaul, who reached that spot through nepotism, India allowed China an golden opportunity and in October, 1962 during the period when Cold War was at its height and both USA and USSR were tangled in the ‘Bay of Pigs’ controversy and also the Cuban missile crisis, China thought it fit to attack India as both super powers were engaged elsewhere.  The Indian army was ill equipped and during my visit to the Military Museum in Tawang, it could be seen that our soldiers not only were not having appropriate clothing and footwear, but also weapons of bygone era i.e. vintage 303 Rifles with a very poor range as against advanced SLRs and sub-machine guns of the Chinese Army.  Our then Prime Minister Jawahar Lal Nehru  abjectly surrendered and even stated on Radio apologizing to the Assamese people for loss of their territory to China, all this because of his skewed up thought process of Panchsheel.  The Chinese never gave a damn to his idea or ideals and made a mockery of him internationally and India lost its face internationally and Mao Tse Tung has had his revenge.
Standard Indian army equipment during Sino-Indian war in 1962 (see the quality of rifle)
Standard army issue of Chinese guns to its soldiers during 1962 (so you see where the difference lay)

Remember present day stand offs seen in media now a days - the attitude of Chinese was same in 1962 also
            But having had access into India so easily during the 1962 war wherein it had wrested control of about 42,000 square kilometers of Akasai Chin in Ladakh region, had emboldened the Chinese.  Further, there were various journalists in Britain and Australia (named Neville Maxwell), having a colonial mindset and upset with the Golden egg i.e India having been taken away from their kitty, pushed the theory that it was in fact India which was the aggressor in 1962 (Here is the link to the column that was published in 2011 - WHOSE TAWANG? A Dispute Within the Sino-Indian Boundary Dispute By Neville Maxwel - https://chinaindiaborderdispute.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/nmaxwelltawangsevensisterspostnov2011.pdf ).   These are the reasons, of the skewed perception of China created and built up by the paid media influencers, as to why Australia is today are at the receiving end of the Chinese tirade and as admitted in the Australian Parliament.  However, despite limited setbacks in 1967 war at Nathu la and Cho La suffered by the Chinese and off late the hard stance taken by India during the 2017 Dokalam incident that lasted for about 70 days, China still remains highly motivated about its own capabilities as on paper and its syndrome of grandeur.  Even the sound thrashing the Chinese troops received at the hands of Vietnamese troops in 1979 did little to dampen their spirits or drive in the harsh reality of a paper dragon as against a battle hardened army.  Due toLa the over indulgence of Chinese by the Western world that appears to have had a bias to deal with a previous vassal and thus being less than equal and as China had never been subjugated the Western world thought that they would continue with their economic imperialism and get goods manufactured in China at low rates and sell it all across the world and make easy profit.  But China had its own ancient saying/phrase tao guang yang hui (韬光养晦), “keep a low profile” in the context of China’s diplomatic policy.  The phrase was used by Deng Xiaoping in the 1980s and literally meant that - “observe calmly, secure our position, cope with affairs calmly, hide our capacities and bide our time, be good at maintaining a low profile, and never claim leadership.”  The Chinese bided their time and gathered the technology by reverse engineering and stealing i.e. by hook or by crook as the saying goes.  Although China by the current rate of growth would have achieved the numero uno position in world economy by 2040s.  The current President Xi Jinping, it appears has lost out the last and most important portion of advice of the Chinese saying totally – “….and never claim leadership”.  Apparently Xi Jinping, in order to prove himself to be a far bigger leader than Mao Tse Tung, thought of becoming the world leader by deceit and spread the Corona virus with the intent to subjugate the entire world order economically or through economic imperialism (you can check out my blog why I claim that the Corona virus was spread by China deliberately by clicking on this link - http://shantanuroybiswas.blogspot.com/2020/04/case-study-whether-sars-covid-19-is-man.html).  It appears that the intent of Xi Jinping was apparently was to celebrate 100 years of formation of Communist Party of China in style that is due in 2021 and establish himself as the greatest Chinese leader of all times in annals of history. 
How China tried to deceive India, but failed because of brave sacrifice by our armed forces of Bihar Regiment
          However, it is now evident that he started his campaign twenty years too early, as he was still not in a position to take on the world single handedly.  The Chinese in pursuance of the goal set forth by their President Xi Jinping started with domination of South China Sea region by needling Vietnam, Philippines and even Malaysia as it wanted to dominate the corridor between Arabian Sea (for supply of Oil etc.) and Japan alongwith Korea, both being adversaries in business as well as politically.  China had constructed a chain of artificial islands and tried to claim 200 nautical miles as its exclusive Economic Zone, in total disregard to the laid down International Laws, in this regard.  It is also peeved with India for having sided with Vietnam in field of off shore Oil exploration in the region and the unreported naval skirmish in which India had again bloodied the Chinese nose in the recent past, as reported in some press.  The sudden reaction from the North Korean despot by jumping into the simmering Geo-political struggle and by upping the ante with nuclear threats etc. appears to be a well-rehearsed and pre-meditated strategy by the Chinese.  This includes the recent events happening in Pakistan, which too has ramped up its terrorist and cross-border activities alongwith cyber-attack on Australia, appear to be a concerted effort to subjugate the world order.  The recent political and provoking stand taken by the Government of Nepal on behest of the Chinese is apparent on the face of it.  The role of the female Chinese ambassador to China is now at the forefront and poor Oli might become a victim of some MMS sooner than later, establishing the extent the Chinese would go to achieve their target. 
Area captured by China in 1962 and also regions illegally ceded by Pakistan
             The development of India as an economic force along with the ability to provide manufacturing hubs to European and United States based industries was one of the fall outs that had been foreseen by the Chinese think tank, in worst case scenario, if the Corona war failed.  Therefore, China and Pakistan first got together to launch the Corona war through the now infamous ‘Tabiligi Jamat’ members, who had been indoctrinated stating the Corona and Koran were synonyms and the Muslims would therefore not be affected by this virus.  This has resulted in the catastrophe that is happening in Pakistan today and coupled with it presence of Uighur Muslims who had entered India through third countries and spread out in rural areas of India, cannot be discounted to be part of the China-Pakistan warfare against India.  But apparently, it did not have the desired impact as Prime Minister Modi was quick to implement the lockdown and thus, avoid immediate and catastrophic impact of the virus upon India.  Having failed in this attempt and coupled with the decision taken by India to make Ladakh a Union territory forced the Chinese to take note of the fact that apparently their game plan had been exposed.  Therefore, it was wary that like its historical acts in the past, if India thinks of doing the same, it might get dislodged from Aksai Chin and India might also take over Gilgit and Baltistan, which would be a death knell for the CPEC/OBOR corridor and about 45 billion dollars would go down the drain, which would be a huge embarrassment for Xi Jinpeng and may cost him his Presidency.  Knowing fully well that all the three corridors i.e. Aksai Chin, Gilgit and Baltistan occupation was illegal by China and Pakistan and it would not get any assistance from any International forum for this, Chinese thought to pressurizing India into an agreement to cede territory and back off from war at this juncture of economic deprivation that is prevailing the world over including India.  The incident in Galwan River valley on the ensuing night of 15th to 16th June, 2020 was a well thought out plan by the Chinese side to first destabilize and demoralize the Indian armed forces and after suddenly attacking the Indians to gain the advantage and consolidate their position deep inside thereby threatening the Daulat Bagh Oldie road and negotiate for OBOR on this premise.  But the turn of events left the Chinese red faced, as the paper dragons were beaten fairly and squarely by the battle hardened professional Indian army that sent jitters down the spines of the fancy Chinese army personnel.  Having lost the desired advantage and also getting exposed, the Chinese side is now busy trying to get a face saving exit, but having ventured too far this time around, it is finding it in no position to back out easily, as the false ego of their leader i.e. President Xi Jinping, having taken China to threshold of third world war, he now cannot simply back out, as he might lose his status and tall claims he perceived himself to be and to be read as in history books, would all go in vain.  Further, there are several reports of simmering discontent within the army i.e. PLA both retired soldiers as well as a faction within, who have been treated very badly and have put the actions of President Xi Jinping in question.  So this war cry is more of an attempt by Xi Jinping to remain entrenched and re-establish himself within the party as of now.  His vision as a world leader, so that his name remains etched there in the annals of Chinese history and what he perceived to portray and establish during the centenary year celebrations of the Chinese Communist Party, has all but disappeared and apparently he will go down in history as the leader who led to annihilation and total collapse of last Communist nation i.e. China akin USSR under leadership of Gorbachev.
            All the same, the Chinese cannot be trusted, as throughout their history as well as personal traits, it appears that they are back stabbers and not trustworthy at all. Apart from the activities listed hereinabove, there are a few more developments that have taken place and should find mention.  Russia was the country that provided the Chinese Communist Party a foothold in modern day China, by handing over the region of Manchuria, it had gained from Japanese after the Second World War.  However, despite its best effort, as it was unable to dissuade Russia from providing weaponry to India, the Chinese have resorted back to their habit of seeking land expansion policy as a blackmailing tactic, have now claimed Vladivostok being part of Haishenwai before Russia annexed it via unequal Treaty of Beijing.  This reflects its true color and creed i.e. ungrateful and back stabber.  In pursuance of its efforts to gain hegemony the world over it has also made territorial claims on Bhutan's Trashigang district that includes its capital Timphu.  So instead to showing restrain to maintain world peace and tranquility, it appears that China is on an expansionist policy and any show of back out should not be taken on its face value, but the world order should ensure its demilitarization and break its economic hegemony, akin to what was done with Germany after Second World War, as China may retreat today strategically, but will return back with same intentions a few years later, if not purged at this stage.  Indian army should also stand along its border till such time that the Chinese Army withdraws its forces from beyond striking range, as it may feign withdrawal and then turn back and attack with full force, as it did in Galwan valley, which was saved by the sheer will force and professionalism of our armed forces.   Whereas on one hand after every round of talks, China speaks of reducing tension in the region, but in the same breath is increasing its military deployment on an everyday basis in the region.  It appears that our Political leadership has analyzed the situation well and made mirror deployment to match China and today’s visit to Ladakh by our Prime Minister, is a direct message to China that its expansionist policy will no longer be tolerated any adventurism will be answered in a ‘Quid pro quo’ and this is the only language that the Chinese understand.  JAI HIND.
© S Roy Biswas

N.B – Most of the photographs have been sourced from the internet and those shot by the author carries the embedded copyright instructions

Friday, 24 April 2020

A case study – whether SARS Covid-19 is man-made virus or a virus that evolved through natural mutation


A case study – whether SARS Covid-19 is man-made virus or a virus that evolved through natural mutation
(A conspiracy theory of origin of virus in China – deliberate or accidental)

A 3-D image of the Corona virus
(Sourced from the internet)
            As an aftermath of the SARS Covid-19 pandemic that has brought the entire world to its knees, a controversy is raging all across the planet that as to whether this virus was a natural phenomenon or an man-made induced virus.  Most of the affected nations are up in arms and the blame game has become an everyday affair. Consequently the majority of the population is at a loss to understand the scientific jargon and reasons for such accusations, especially being levelled against China for having unleashed a bio-weapon to effect change in the world order.  The specific reason to examine this issue in detail was provoked by the latest meme making rounds in the social platforms on the internet related to the interpretation of COVID-19 and it had been interpreted in the meme as – “Chinese Origin Virus Inducted in December 2019”.  Let us examine the issue in a step by step manner, so as to enable the readers to reach a logical conclusion.  In order to understand the history, progeny and epidemiological study of the virus, this article has been accordingly divided into several chapters/headings.

HISTORY OF CORONA VIRUS
Although there have been several pandemics, but the ones in 1700s and 1800s were mostly because of bacterial infections, in early 19th century Plague and Cholera Pandemics had hit the world hard, however, the first known viral pandemic that had devastated the world, was commonly referred to as the ‘Spanish flu’ that had hit the world during the time of first World War and ravaged the world between 1918 to 1920s.  The present pandemic has come in about a 100 years later, which is fuelled by the fast spreading Cororna virus known as SARS CoV-2 that causes Covid-19.

The first known discovery of the Corona Virus is attributable to one Ms. June Almeida, an electron microscope technician, who had honed her skills to such an extent that even the most renowned scientists sought her help to obtain clear images of viruses etc.  As published in the National Geographic April, 2020 edition wherein her work and immense contribution towards enhancing scientific know how has been recognized, mentions as follows – “When June Almeida peered into her electron microscope in 1964, she saw a round, grey dot covered in tiny spokes. She and her colleagues noted that the pegs formed a halo around the virus – much like the sun’s corona”.   This was a virus isolated from a very sick school boy in Surrey and Dr. David Tyrrell, who had collected the sample and labelled it as B814, was finding it difficult to cultivate it and identify it and had accordingly had sought Ms. June Almedia’s help.  The first photograph of the new strain of virus named as Corona virus can be accessed in the article by this link - https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/2020/04/june-almeida-discovered-coronaviruses-decades-ago-little-recognition/?cmpid=org=ngp::mc%E2%80%A6#/first-woman-coronavirus-151056911.jpg

Although there have been several other viral outbreaks in the past, but tracing the history or Corona viruses, the major attack came in the year 2003 when the world by hit by an pandemic triggered by the now infamous SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) virus, whose causative virus was named RT-PCR.  The disease first emerged in November, 2002 but as per the practice in China, it was declared only in the spring of 2003 as having emerged in Guagdong province of China, after it got out of their hands.  The mortality rate of this new virus strain was at about 10% and hence a major source of concern for the world.  There have been many research papers since 2003 to establish the actual cause of the infection and its source.  Although now it is an established fact that the original host of the virus are certain species of Bats (being mammals the transmission was probable after some mutations), however, nothing conclusive have evolved.  There is still some confusion regarding the zoonotic transfer, as this strain of the virus have also been found in Civets, which has more homology with the human strain.  Some of the research papers, had at that point of time also,  pointed out that the source of virus was the animal markets in China, but there is little proof of the same, especially in light of the fact that the virus that was found in the Bats was very different from the one that afflicted the humans.  Although there were veiled references to this virus also having been bred in China, but as the loss of human lives was not many hence the international community did not press for details.  However, there are verifiable reports that five top officials of the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) were punished and asked to take blame for this outbreak of SARS.  These officials, including centre Director Li Liming, were forced to take responsibility for the outbreak which started with the infection of two laboratory researchers by the SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) virus, Vice-Premier Wu Yi had publically announced this in a conference.
           
The next known world pandemic that is attributable to the same family of the Corona virus was the MERS (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome), caused by another strain of the Corona virus called the MERS-CoV.  The first reported incident of the virus was on June 13, 2012 from Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.  This virus was also a novel virus that mainly affected the adults and in some cases the mortality rate was upto 40%.  With the experience of SARS behind them, the WHO was prompt in declaring it as an emergency and appropriate medical protocols were adopted that was instrumental in its containment.  However, it would be pertinent to place here on record that this Novel Corona virus also had a reservoir source in Bats alongwith other domesticated animals like Pigs, Cows, Camels etc. although those associated with Camels i.e. rearing or slaughtering etc. were found to be percentage wise more afflicted by this deadly virus.

WHAT IS A NOVEL CORNOA VIRUS AND HOW IT INFECTS HUMANS
An artists representation of the Corona virus
(Sourced from the internet)
            Whenever, any virus appears for the first time and has no known history of earlier occurrence, it is called a ‘Novel’ virus and since the Wuhan Corona virus was also a new virus it was called as Novel.  The virus belongs of family named as Corona, which in turn gets the name from the tell-tale spikes jutting out from the blob like core that looks like a crown or corona.  These spikes interact with the receptors of the specific cells in human bodies, which these viruses attack.  The spikes act as a key to the lock and gain entry into the human body cell.  These viruses then transfer the RNA (Ribo Neuclic Acid – a single strand genetic material) into the cells, which in turn then replicates itself inside these infected cells and subsequently get released after damaging the cell wall, so as to infect more such cells around and that causes the infection in the human body.  Those who have an idea as to how the Malaria parasites enter and destroy the human Red Blood Corpuscles can visualize this better.  As for the spikes of the virus it has been found that sugars dot the outside of the spike, just like sugars dot the outside of regular human cells, as found by Dr. 
David Veesler, a structural virologist at the University of Washington who led a team that visualized the SARS-CoV-2 spike.  This carbohydrate camouflage makes the virus even more difficult for the human immune system to recognize. 

Studies on SARS- and MERS-causing viruses indicate that all three proteins in a spike have to open for it to gain access to a cell.  SARS-CoV-2 is the seventh coronavirus known to infect humans; SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV and SARS-CoV-2 can cause severe disease, whereas HKU1, NL63, OC43 and 229E are associated with mild symptoms.  As the virus is being claimed to have a ‘zoonotic transfer’ (meaning that the virus jumped from natural reservoir host to humans) from Bats or Civets etc.  Estimates of the timing of the most recent common ancestor of SARS-CoV-2 made with current sequence data point to emergence of the virus in late November 2019 to early December, 2019.   The identification of a potential intermediate host of SARS-CoV-2, as well as sequencing of the virus from very early cases, would similarly be highly informative and helpful to researchers for finding a chink in its armour. Irrespective of the exact mechanisms by which SARS-CoV-2 originated via natural selection, the ongoing surveillance of pneumonia in humans and other animals is clearly of utmost importance at present alongwith methods to cure it.

The SARS-CoV-2 or COVID-19 as explained is a blob of lipid (a kind of fat also found in human body and people can relate it with Lipid profile being ordered by doctors from time to time) enveloping the genetic material i.e. RNA inside.  This virus is known to be highly contagious as well as sturdy enough to survive in sterile (outside natural host) environments upto 36 hours or more unlike other viruses.  The mode of transmission is also to be established in detail and the only protocol now being advised is social distancing (as the current protocol) and use of Personal Protective Equipment while dealing with infection/infected persons by medical/para-medical personnel.  This virus causes an antibody reaction in the human body that produces phlegm in the lungs as mechanism to fight against the virus and excessive production results in gradual accumulation of same and its density becoming thicker with passage of time.  This results in blocking of air passages, as the body is unable of expel this stick phlegm and hence extensive use of life support system, especially respirators /Ventilators have become the immediate need of the hour, as it is an integral instrument for life support for victims of this virus.  Since at present there is no known cure or vaccination against this virus, the other methods that can be used for disinfecting and getting rid the virus are – (a) Washing hands with soap for 20 seconds or more, as the soap disintegrates the outer lipid layer and exposes the inner genetic material i.e. RNA and rendering the virus without any protection and hence it cannot propagate any further; (b) Sanitizer with more than 60% alcohol content, as it too disintegrates the outer lipid layer and renders the virus redundant; (c) By Ultra violet radiation that destroys the RNA or causes mutation in it rendering it incapable of causing infection; and (d) By Heat – as it has been seen that in temperatures above 56 degrees centigrade for 30 minutes disintegrate it’s spikes, thus rendering the virus incapable of entering the human cell.

WHY CHINA IS BEING BLAMED FOR THE FIASCO
Dr.Li Wenliang - the first to warn the world of the impending disaster
(Sourced from the internet)
After the SARS-CoV-2 or COVID-19 started ravaging lives across Europe and America, charges started being levelled against the Chinese Government of both creating this virus as well as trying to supress the fact of its being so highly contagious and being non treatable with known drugs.  It is a well-established fact through scientific research that the virus came into being in late November or early December, 2019.  The reasons why questions are now being asked from Chinese authorities (that include some of my assumptions) are as follows –

  • Ø     The Chinese authorities have been trying to pin the blame of the dissemination of the virus from Wuhan animal market from its source i.e. Bats.  However, the fact remains that the concerned bats are situated 40 Kms. away from there and bats do not cover that long distances for food.  Although there is ample proof of bats being used for research in the Wuhan laboratory;
  • Ø  Further none of the first fourteen afflicted persons had any known connection with the said market;
  • Ø  Whether there was lack of proper and adequate protection measures for containment of the virus within the facility is also a question that is being put, as many photographs have appeared in many magazines, wherein the condition of refrigerators being used in the facility have been shown to be damaged;
  • Ø  Why China is not keen to inform the world of the ‘patient zero’ and his/her viscera not being released for further scientific examination.  Zero patient is the person who is known to have contacted the infection first and this helps is studying as to how the virus jumped from animal to human (zoonotic transfer);
  • Ø  Speculations are rife that an intern at Wuhan lab named Huang Yanling was the first to contact the virus and had passed it on to her boyfriend and thereafter it spread from the Wuhan animal market from a secondary person.  Although the Chinese Government has denied it on record stating that the said Huang Yanling had obtained her Ph.D in 2015 and was no longer working in the Wuhan Lab.  However, the website of Wuhan Lab lists her name, but has conveniently removed her photographs and her credentials, alongwith that of three other interns, thus raising the suspicion that the allegations of the virus having been carried outside the lab through this conduit is a plausible explanation;
  • Ø  There is another plausible link that a local animal product contractor named Li Ning had been selling off the meat of animals from the Wuhan Lab to the local market dealers and he had been subsequently sentenced to 12 years of prison, this information too is available on the internet, although the reasons for such punishment have been stated to be embezzlement;
  • Ø  The world should acknowledge the spirit and grit of Dr. Li Wenliang, who was the first to publically point out the deadly nature of the virus.  His voice was not only quashed by the totalitarian Chinese regime that not only made him write an apology letter, but later conveniently silenced him forever using the camouflage of the virus as the causative agent of his death.  Even in this photograph (that I have displayed hereinabove), there is no distress on his face that is palpable during acute respiratory problems caused by the virus.  Therefore, the act of the Chinese regime to silence him was to stop him from informing the world of how the virus spread in the region;
  • Ø  Despite the warning issued by Dr.Li Wenliang in around third week of December, 2019 the Chinese authorities continued to be in denial mode and the world was also mislead by the World Health Organization (WHO for short) through its head Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, who had been backed by the Chinese regime to assume charge as head of WHO.  It now appears that there was a sinister plan being implemented by the Chinese regime in a step by step manner.  This head of WHO has a very shady past and details of which may be accessed through this link - https://frankreport.com/2020/04/14/the-ethiopian-terrorist-in-charge-of-the-world-health-organization-dr-tedros-adhanom/?fbclid=IwAR2nvjTTGy%E2%80%A6;
  • Ø  There are other factual issues that point out towards overt and covert Chinese association with the present crisis.  As per a report of December, 2017 there were about 2.2 million workers in Government owned enterprises, about 2.75 million in private owned industries and about 1.25 million in unorganized sectors in Wuhan region.  Looking at the increase in Chinese GDP over the years, these numbers would definitely have moved upwards by Dec., 2019.   We are all aware as to how the migrant workers move towards their home states during festivals (in India like Diwali etc.) and likewise such a movement is expected in China as well during the Chinese New Year and the same fell on 25th January, 2020 this year, with holidays from 23rd to 30th January, 2020 being declared in China as per their Government calendar.  The Chinese imposed the lockdown only on 23rd January, 2020 and by that time hundreds of thousands of such migrant workers would already have migrated back to their home towns for the festivities.  But the spread of infection in other places in China was either not reported or never happened and if this was the case, it was a fallacy and the incident in Wuhan appears to be just a cover up to mislead the international forum.  Further, it is not understood or can be appreciated as to why the international flights continued to operate from China, despite the fact that the Chinese had by this time were fully aware of the virulence of this unknown virus and had taken steps like that of total lockdown;
  • Ø  It is now a well-documented fact that Wuhan was put under total quarantine and Chinese authorities acknowledged about 2300 odd persons having succumbed to the infection, which has now been revised upward of 3000, but the fact remains that the Chinese authorities still continue to hide the figures and public unrest is also growing over it, as the number of ash urns of deceased are lying in tens of thousands.  The next aspect that needs answer is that despite the migration of so many workers from Wuhan, why other parts of China were not affected by the virus at all, even if reported its impact was negligible.  The question thus that comes to mind of any logical individual would be – as to how a virus that ravaged the entire world did not affect any other part of China???  Evidently, the Chinese authorities were either hand in glove with WHO in supressing information or it was a strategy for cover up and China is still denying permission to international experts to visit its sites and to collect first-hand information;
  • Ø  Another question that crops up in my mind is that there were several photographs of Chinese origin persons holding placards stating ‘We are not virus, we are humans/Chinese – please give us a hug’ in Italy and ultimately, this country was the first to bear the full brunt of the fatalities and infections.  It would be appropriate that the Italian authorities investigate the credentials of these Chinese nationals and check as to whether they had any role in the spread of the disease in Italy?  This being done in pursuance of a part of the sinister plan woven by the Chinese Government;
  • Ø  Every tourist who visits Europe makes it a point to visit Italy and especially Venice in Florence.  This city now has a communist leaning Mayor and his role appears to be very suspect and needs to be checked by the Italian authorities, as he was the one who was encouraging the citizens to treat the Chinese with compassion and hugs.  Further, this tourist destination had been cleverly chosen, if it was a conspiracy, as during the festival season of Christmas and New Year, many thousands of tourists throng this destination and were likely to easily carry back the infection to their home countries.  Could this be the reason that forced the Chinese to gag the whistle blower, as they were reluctant to ‘get the cat out of the bag’ and thus, had initiated action against Dr. Li Wenliang, of censuring him and he being forced by the local Police to withdraw his statement about the unknown virus, as the disclosure at that juncture of time would have jeopardized their entire Chinese game plan?  A further cover up of now declaring him a ‘martyr’, is only to assuage the public sentiments in China?
  • Ø  One can consider this kind of warfare as a kind of fifth generation warfare that would be fought without crossing swords in battle fields and this concept has been in development in China since long.  Some of the military top brass, in the past, have already acknowledged that in a conventional warfare scenario, China may not be able to match up to USA and hence some other strategy was needed.  Even the takeover of the Wuhan Lab by the Chinese Military through Major General Chen Wei, China’s chief biochemical weapon defence expert, reflects that something sinister was going on that required direct military intervention, so that any information may not get leaked.  This question is also of paramount concern, as the question that whether there were no other senior Chinese civilian scientists, who could have been handed over the charge of this installation?;
  • Ø  The role of Chinese scientist Dr. Shi Zenghli of the Wuhan Laboratory where she is working as Chief Scientist and is acknowledged as expert in Virus studies conducted on Bats.  Her paper presented in 2015 where she had detailed the pseudo-typing experiments, which could ultimately be used to make tailor made viruses,  is indicative of the process that could have been adopted – here is the link to her controversial paper, after which USA stopped funding of the project - https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4797993/.  After the outbreak in Wuhan, the Chinese authorities used her name to claim that the Virus stored in Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV), was genetically different from that causing infection in humans, in simple words.  However, another Chinese scientist Dr. Botao Xiao who is a DNA specialist, however, had expressed his opinion about possibility of the virus having originated from Wuhan lab in his paper published on 5th March, 2020.  However, now the article/paper has not only been withdrawn, but his entire profile stands deleted completely.  These incidents of State controlled expression that suits their narrative of the story being churned by the Chinese, lends credence to the world opinion that points out towards some deliberate sinister role of China in this deplorable episode;
  • Ø  More recently the international magazine ‘The Week’ in series of articles published by it, have pointed fingers at deliberate Chinese hand in spread of the virus.  In the first article published in January 28, 2020 with the heading ‘Coronavirus outbreak a result of Chinese biological espionage’ had drawn a detailed picture as to how the deadly virus was ferreted out of NIH in Canada by Chinese agents and here is the link to the article - https://www.theweek.in/news/world/2020/01/28/coronavirus-outbreak-a-result-of-chinese-biological-espionage.html.  In another more recent publication dated 19th April, 2020 the Magazine had referred to interview of French Nobel laureate Luc Montagnier wherein he had claimed that the virus was man made and attributable to WIV – here is the link to the article - https://www.theweek.in/news/world/2020/04/19/coronavirus-man-made-in-wuhan-lab-says-nobel-laureate.html;

CORNAVIRUS/COVID-19 INFECTION OR WUHAN VIRUS AND ITS PERSPECTIVE VIZ A VIZ INDIA AND ACTIONS OF CHINA

            It is evident that India had its own apprehensions about the Chinese handling of the entire Wuhan Virus episode, although it has steadfastly avoided the controversy of calling it as China Virus and even the Chinese envoy stationed in India had requested India to help it counter this Western propaganda.  However, there is little on record, as detailed hereinabove whereby China can be absolved of its complicity in this entire sordid episode that would become part of World History.   India was always apprehensive of the partisan role being played by the WHO chief and his advice was accordingly and appropriately so, not heeded to the present Government in power, which instead chose to go by the advice of its own medical think tank i.e. ICMR.  The decision to impose lock down all across India on 25th March, 2020 much to dismay of WHO chief, who showed his displeasure publically through various interviews.  However, the decision taken has contained the spread of infection unlike more advanced Nations like Italy, Germany, Spain, United Kingdom, USA etc. and is now being lauded by the same Chief, as being a timely action, this after having been done after having been reprimanded badly by the USA, which had stopped all funding of WHO.   It would be imperative to mention here the sinister design of the so called Tabligi Jamat a Muslim brotherhood that supposedly spreads teachings of Islam.  This very kind of organization was responsible for spread of virus in Malaysia and therefrom to other nearby Islamic states.  India was an intended target, as many foreign nationals who entered India in guise of tourists, spread across the country and were found from remote locations, where they had no business to visit as tourists, particularly so, as they had no knowledge of the local languages and hence the plea that they wanted to spread Islam falls flat on its face.  So far the information gathered indicates that it was planned move and it would be premature to pinpoint the exact motive, but an educated guess would be that it was a two pronged strategy, stitched together by China with its all-weather friend Pakistan.   The Chinese think tank had already looked at the scenario of World backlash, in case the virus outbreak was attributed to China and consequent fall out.  The only probable Nation that would stand to gain from China’s fall out would be India, so a strategy was put in place by the Pakistan’s ISI to under guidance of the Chinese was to fester biological warfare attack upon India, as the conventional ones in the past had not yielded desirable results.  The plan was drawn to transmit and dissipate the virus, by transmitting the disease across India through these foreign agents in collaboration with the local moles.  It is accordingly advisable for Government of India and its agencies, to thoroughly check the credentials and baggage of these foreign participants to find if they were carrying disease containing vials or hawala money etc. to encourage disbursement of the virus package throughout India.  Through this act, China and Pakistan could destabilise India through a civil unrest and indications are rife in this regard, since 2015 itself, as the Muslims of India have been slowly brainwashed in active connivance with some political parties and the role of certain elements of the fourth estate also cannot be ruled out.  The economic fall out because of huge numbers getting infected, especially during the Hindu festivities of ‘Navratris’ and presumption by those across the border that the Government would not impose lockdown during this period of festivity, failed miserably in their presumptions.  The dismay and agony can be gauged from the outcry of the WHO Chief in particular, during this period, establishes this doctrine of mine albeit through surmises and conjectures.  The other aspect that many missed is that China and for that matter Pakistan barely have any value for human lives and accordingly, they spread the propaganda that the virus could not infect Muslims, as they performed ‘wazu’ (ritualistic ablution) five times a day, with the sinister motive that even if large number of Muslims die, they were likely to occupy most of the Hospital beds and they would deliberately ill-treat the medical professionals and Hindu patients, if admitted.  This would unleash a friction amongst the two communities, finally leading to a civil strife in the country and in pursuance of this agenda, not only the Muslims are resorting to various acts to enrage Hindus, but of late have also started physically attacking them and this is in connivance with various political parties/fourth estate personnel etc. and this is evident from the daily reports in social media about such incidents.  This kind of deliberate attempt to weaken India economically and the attempt to show to the world that it is a strife torn country, is with only one of the sinister intents i.e. to discourage the international community to trust India with its manufacturing etc. or to shift base out from China.   However, the central leadership of our country i.e. India is committed to welfare of India and hence these attempts till now have not gained much grounds till now.  Further, the social media alongwith the army of Indian citizens have risen to the occasion and started circulating actual footage of incidents and people are now no longer required to go by the dissemination of doctored media reports and hence the elements of the frustrated fourth estate, in the pay books of China, is not able to deliver with much punch and is generally getting exposed on a daily basis.  A glimmer of light that has emerged from behind the dark clouds, in favour of India, is that the propaganda generated by Pakistan’s ISI that the infection will not affect Muslims have now come to haunt them back albeit a Frankenstein, as despite several attempts, the Muslims in Pakistan are defying Government orders and gathering in mosques to pray and the fear of Corona infection taking a huge toll in Pakistan is looming large on its face.  Now these very elements who propagated this thought process at the first place, cannot ask them to unlearn or say that it was false propaganda, for the fear that they would stand to get exposed at international level in this sinister game plan.
            
         Another probable reason for the failure of the sinister game plan of these neighbouring countries, lies in the Hindu cultural ethos, as per my personal take on it.  ICMR in its recent report has stated that in India 80% of the patients in India are asymptomatic i.e. without any symptoms.  Like in Japan, where no lock down had to imposed because of personal hygiene and public discipline, as most Japanese wear masks as a matter of routine and wash their hands before entering offices and public places. Juxtaposed to this, in India as per Hindu ethos and traditions, most of Indians bathe in the mornings on a regular basis, do some puja etc. before embarking upon their daily routine/ journey to their work place etc.   Even after they return back in the evenings, the shoes are either kept out of the homes or in specific designated place in the house, followed by a bath or through washing of hands and feet with soap (as per weather conditions) and thereafter change of clothes for daily use at home, which too is regularly washed and dried in Sun and only after this he/she partakes any snacks/tea etc.   This would go a long way in arresting the spread of the virus, because of the practice that needs to be honed a bit more with masks etc.  In rural areas the gamcha is worn both during winters and summers, as a bandana and hence the mask bit is also covered naturally and only need is to be re-introduce it back into the culture of the younger generation.  Finally, the intake of Haldi and other condiments on a daily basis, as part of daily dietary habits in Indians, not only builds up immunity but also has the ability to fight disease causing bacteria/virus, through its active ingredient ‘curcumin’ all-round the year.  Thus, in my opinion, because of the above conditions prevailing in India, coupled with the present gradual rise in temperatures all across, the virus is not going to have the kind of impact that many thought and desired to happen in India. Last, but not the least, is a figurative condition laced with a little bit of humour, unlike Europe and America, India does not have a near perfect sanitized or sterile conditions and being used to eating all kinds of street food, prepared without much of hygienic sense and the pollution all around, Indians have a wee bit stronger immunity than the other nations around, the so called developed nations.

CONCLUSION
            
          Apart from the reasons listed under the heading - ‘Why China is being blamed for the fiasco’, the other actions of China, like the clandestine support of installing Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus as Chief of WHO and coupled with his partisan role in covering up the spread of virus, points out towards a long drawn plan on part of China.  Further, the activities of Chinese companies in mopping up shares of industries world-wide during this period points out towards intents of gaining financial supremacy over the world economy, so that it can dictate terms later.  The Chinese Government, as all industries in China are directly or indirectly controlled by it, stands exposed by exporting sub-standard medical kits all across the world, so as to gain financially at the cost of lives of citizens of other countries.  The government in China has no morality, as it stands exposed from the fact that the Indian Government had provided medical aid to it at the time of ‘so called’ crisis and in return it has exported defective testing kits to India.  Seeing the world opinion tilting towards India, in an aggressive stance, China has again published a map wherein part of Arunachal Pradesh (an integral part of sovereign India) has been shown to be part of China, just in order to provoke a diplomatic row and divert the negative attention it is getting in India because of the mishandling of Corona crisis.  It is evident that the activities undertaken by the Chinese in aftermath of the Corona pandemic, indicates that probably this was in planning for a long time and there was nothing natural about its outbreak.  It was a deliberate move intended to cripple the world economy and gain financial control all across the globe, but did not foresee its move getting exposed so quickly.  Therefore, in my opinion, China has deliberately created this fiasco, with the intent to gain financial control over the world economy and every nation should now take action against it, like the one taken against Germany, after the Second World War, so as to cripple it economically.
© S. Roy Biswas






BIBILOGRAPHY
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