NEET PG 2021: Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has urged for early hearing of the case in the Supreme Court.
NEW DELHI: The Federation of Resident Doctors’ Association (FORDA) has put on hold for a week, the strike against the delay in the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET)-PG counselling 2021 considering the plea of the ministry of health and family welfare for early hearing of the case.
Recommended: Check Your Admission Chances for MD/MS/Diploma in All India Quota & State Level Counselings Based on Your NEET PG Rank, Check Now -NEET PG College Predictor
Check Your Admission Chances in DNB Programs Based on your NEET PG Rank, Check Now- DNB CET College Predictor
“Considering the MoHFW_INDIA plea for expediting #NEETPGCounselling & assurance by mansukhmandviya Sir & looking at the security situation of the nation, #FORDA has decided to hold the agitation for a week,” FORDA said in a tweet.
“Considering the above and looking at the security situation of the nation owing to the untimely demise of Chief of Defence Staff, General Bipin Rawat and other army personnel in a tragic accident yesterday, FORDA has decided to hold the agitation for a period of 1 week after discussing with state RDA representatives in a virtual meeting held today,” said FORDA in an official statement.
In case, the issue is not addressed by December 16, the doctors will again call for complete shutdown of services except COVID areas, it warned.
On December 7, FORDA had announced that if their demands are not met, thousands of doctors will march to the health ministry.
On December 8, “a plea was issued by MoHFW for fast-tracking the court-hearing and we were assured by union health minister Mansukh Mandaviya that the office of Prime Minister is looking after the issue and the process will be completed within a week.”
On December 6, Mandaviya assured the FORDA delegation in a meeting that the ministry will try to get the case of NEET PG 2021 counselling delinked from that regarding reservation policy, so as to expedite the process.
The resident doctors are exhausted and overburdened and thus began the nationwide strike against delay in NEET PG counselling 2021 and admission process from November 27 onwards by withdrawing from Out-Patient Department (OPD) services. On December 4, they had announced to boycott all services including emergency.
Download Stand by Me Doraemon 2 (2020) Full Movie Hindi HD | Watch Online Full Movie :-
Download Stand by Me Doraemon 2 2020 Hindi BluRay 720p & 480p HD | Watch Online on roniksite :
DESCRIPTION: :Stand by Me Doraemon 2 (Romantic Movie) Hindi 720p HDRip x264 1GB Watch Online [G-Drive] 9xmovies, world4ufree, world4free, Khatrimaza 123Movies fmovies Gomovies gostream 300Mb Dual Audio Hindi Dubbed | Stand by Me Doraemon 22019 720p WEBRip x264 AC3 ESub Hindi DD5.1 Download Google Drive links Free on roniksite | Latest Movies Free Download & Watch Online | AMAZON PRIME | NETFLIX Free Download .
Download Stand by Me Doraemon 2 2020 Hindi HDRip Full Movie – Storyline :
Stand by Me Doraemon 2 2020 Hindi 720p Full Movie: One day Nobita Nobi found a old stuffed bear which his grandmother gave it to him. Nobita decided to go back in time to meet his grandmother. Grandma accepts Nobita’s belief that he is a young child who has suddenly arrived. Nobita’ s grandmother said “I want to see your bride once.” And from this one sentence of grandma Doraemon and Nobita’s big blasphemy begins. Nobita and Doraemon were trying to show their grandmother a marriage ceremony, but Adult Nobita escaped on the day of his marriage ceremony. Adult Gian and Suneo looking for Nobita. Shizuka who keeps waiting with confidence. Nobita and Doraemon take the time to fulfill the wishes of grandma, to meet the wishes of her family, friends and Shizuka Minamoto, who she likes very much.
Download Stand by Me Doraemon 2 2020 720p Hindi Movie – Review :
This program Made my life awesome and lovely i learn from this is to how to get best best best friends form stangers i love this program verrry verry much i wish that this program will always continued life time i can always watch the program it doesn’t matter what age i will but i love this program always and i learn from this nobita and doremon bounding and i always wish that in my life i always wanted a friend like doremon, nobita,shizuka,sunueo,gian and their friendship bounding i always thankful this program and their director and all team members thanks ❤💙
In a recent report, the World Economic Forum identified cutting food waste by up to 20 million tons as one of 12 measures that could help transform global food systems by 2030. And South Korea stands out — taking the lead by recycling 95% of its food waste.
But it wasn’t always this way.
The mouth-watering array of side dishes that accompany a traditional South Korean meal — called “banchan” — are often left unfinished, contributing to one of the world’s highest rates of food waste. South Koreans each generate more than 130 kg of food waste each year. By comparison, per capita, food waste in Europe and North America is 95 to 115 kg a year, according to the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations.
But the South Korean government has taken radical action to ensure that the mountain of wasted food was recycled.
What Changed?
As far back as 2005, dumping food in landfills was banned, and in 2013 the government introduced compulsory food waste recycling using special biodegradable bags. An average four-person family pays $6 a month for the bags, a fee that helps encourage home composting. The bag charges also meet 60% of the cost of running the scheme, which has increased the amount of food waste recycled from 2% in 1995 to 95% today. The government has approved the use of recycled food waste as fertilizer, although some become animal feed.
Technology has also played a leading part in the success of the scheme. In the country’s capital, Seoul, 6,000 automated bins equipped with scales and radio frequency identification weigh food waste as it is deposited and charge residents using an ID card. The pay-as-you-recycle machines have reduced food waste in the city by 47,000 tons in six years, according to city officials.
Residents are urged to reduce the weight of the waste they deposit by removing moisture first. Not only does this cut the charges they pay — food waste is around 80% moisture — but it also saved the city $8.4 million in collection charges over the same period.
Waste collected using the biodegradable bag scheme is squeezed at the processing plant to remove moisture, which is used to create biogas and bio-oil. Dry waste is turned into fertilizer that is, in turn, helping to drive the country’s burgeoning urban farm movement.
Urban Farms
The number of urban farms or community gardens in Seoul has increased sixfold in the past seven years. They now total 170 hectares — roughly the size of 240 football fields. Most are sandwiched between apartment blocks or on top of schools and municipal buildings. One is even located in the basement of an apartment block. It is used to grow mushrooms.
The city government provides between 80% and 100% of the start-up costs. As well as providing food, proponents of the scheme say urban farms bring people together as a community in areas where residents are often isolated from one another. The city authorities are planning to install food waste composters to support urban farms.
This brings us back to banchan. In the long term, some people argue South Koreans will need to change their eating habits if they are really going to make a dent in their food waste.
Kim Mi-Hwa, chair of the Korea Zero Waste Movement Network, told Huffington Post: “There’s a limit to how much food waste fertilizer can actually be used. This means there has to be a change in our dining habits, such as shifting to a one-plate culinary culture like other countries or at least reducing the number of banchan that we layout.”
Sugar substitutes are chemical or plant-based substances used to sweeten or enhance the flavor of foods and drinks. You may have heard them called “artificial sweeteners” or “non-caloric sweeteners.” They can be used as a tabletop sweetener (for example, to sweeten a glass of iced tea) and/or as an ingredient in processed foods and drinks. Most sugar substitutes are many times sweeter than sugar. It takes a smaller amount of these sugar substitutes to provide the same level of sweetness. Some sugar substitutes are low in calories. Others have little to no calories. Sugar substitutes are regulated as food additives by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
This means that the FDA reviews scientific evidence to be sure that a sugar substitute is safe before it can be used in foods and drinks. Path to improved health Sugar substitutes provide sweetness and enhance the flavor of food without adding the calories of sugar. Unlike sugar, they don’t contribute to tooth decay. Most of them don’t raise blood sugar levels. This may be helpful if you have diabetes and have to be careful about how much sugar you consume. Sugar substitutes may also be helpful if you’re trying to control the amount of calories you consume. They are found in most of the “light,” “reduced calorie,” and “sugar-free” foods and drinks available today. Although sugar substitutes have fewer calories than sugar, it’s best to limit them and focus on healthy food choices.
Fruits, vegetables, lean meats, and whole grains are the best sources of nutrition for your body. How can I tell if a food or drink contains a sugar substitute? Sugar substitutes are used in many processed foods and drinks, including baked goods, soft drinks, powdered drink mixes, candy, puddings, canned foods, jellies, and dairy products. Check the ingredient list on the nutrition facts label for the names of the sugar substitutes. This list gives ingredients in descending order by weight. Unless you add a sugar substitute yourself, it is often hard to know exactly how much of it a food or drink contains. What sugar substitutes/artificial sweeteners are approved by the FDA? The following sugar substitutes are FDA approved as food additives in the United States: Acesulfame K (brand names: Sunett® and Sweet One®) Advantame Aspartame (brand names: Equal® and NutraSweet Natural™) Neotame (brand name: Newtame™) Saccharin (brand names: Sweet ‘N Low® and Sugar Twin® Sucralose (brand name: Splenda™) According to the FDA, some sugar substitutes are “generally recognized as safe” (GRAS). This means they don’t require FDA approval because qualified experts agree the scientific evidence shows these products are safe for use in foods and drinks.
Sugar substitutes in this category include highly purified stevia extracts called “steviol glycosides” (two brand names: Pure Via and Truvia) and monk fruit extracts (two brand names: Monk Fruit in the Raw and PureLo). Sugar alcohols are another class of sweeteners that can be used as sugar substitutes. Examples include mannitol, sorbitol, and xylitol. The FDA has determined that sugar alcohols are generally recognized as safe for use in foods and drinks. Aspartame Aspartame is a common low-calorie sugar substitute. It’s a combination of 2 amino acids: aspartic acid and phenylalanine. It’s about 200 times sweeter than sugar. It can be found in thousands of processed foods and drinks. Products that contain aspartame include yogurt, frozen desserts, pudding, dry dessert mixes, chewing gum, and soft drinks. It’s used as a tabletop sweetener. It also can be found in some medicines (for example, cough drops) and vitamins.
Aspartame shouldn’t be used as a substitute for sugar when you’re baking. It loses its sweet taste when it’s heated. Is aspartame safe? Aspartame is one of the most researched sugar substitutes available in the United States. More than 100 studies have examined its safety. It has been approved by the FDA as a food additive since 1981. People who have a rare condition called phenylketonuria (PKU) shouldn’t consume aspartame. That’s because their bodies are unable to metabolize (process) phenylalanine, which is one of the amino acids in aspartame. According to the National Cancer Institute, there is no evidence that aspartame and other sugar substitutes approved for use in the United States cause cancer or other serious health problems. Medical research studies have shown these sweeteners are safe for most people when used in moderation. Acesulfame K Acesulfame K is a no-calorie sugar substitute that is 200 times sweeter than sugar. It’s also known as acesulfame potassium or Ace-K. It’s often used in combination with other sweeteners. Acesulfame K can be found in a variety of processed foods and drinks, including baked goods, candy, frozen desserts, and soft drinks. It also can be used as a tabletop sweetener. It’s used in some medicines and oral hygiene products (for example, toothpaste and mouthwash). It can be used in cooking and baking because it doesn’t lose its sweet taste at high temperatures. For best results, follow the package instructions when using it this way. Is acesulfame K safe? More than 90 studies have examined the safety of acesulfame K. It has been approved by the FDA as a food additive since 1988. According to the National Cancer Institute, there is no evidence that acesulfame K and other sugar substitutes approved for use in the United States cause cancer or other serious health problems. Saccharin Saccharin is a low-calorie sugar substitute that was first discovered in 1879. It is 200 to 700 times sweeter than sugar, depending on how it’s used. Some people may notice an aftertaste when they consume saccharin. This is often eliminated in processed foods by combining saccharin with another sugar substitute. Saccharin is found in many processed foods and drinks, including chewing gum, canned fruit, baked goods, and soft drinks. It’s also used as a tabletop sweetener. It’s used in some medicines and vitamins. Saccharin can be used as a substitute for sugar when you’re baking. For best results, follow the package instructions for using it in your recipes. Is saccharin safe? Saccharin is approved by the FDA as a food additive. You might remember that saccharin used to carry a warning label that said it was known to cause cancer in laboratory animals. However, there has been extensive research on the safety of this sugar substitute. In 2000, the U.S. government removed the requirement for a warning label on foods and drinks made with saccharin. Stevia sweeteners Stevia is a plant-based sugar substitute that has no calories. The term “stevia” refers to Stevia rebaudiana, which is a South American plant. Only certain parts of the plant are sweet. Highly purified extracts from the leaves of the plant are called “steviol glycosides.” They are 200 to 400 times sweeter than sugar. The term “stevia” can refer to the whole Stevia rebaudiana plant. However, in this article, “stevia” refers to the sugar substitute made from steviol glycosides. That is how the term is commonly used. Stevia is found in many processed foods and drinks, such as desserts, chewing gum, baked goods, candy, and yogurt. It is also used as a tabletop sweetener. Stevia can be used as a substitute for sugar when you’re baking. For best results, follow the package instructions for using it in your recipes. Is stevia safe? According to the FDA, steviol glycosides are “generally recognized as safe” (GRAS). This means that qualified experts agree the available scientific evidence about this sugar substitute shows it’s safe for use in foods and drinks. Sucralose Sucralose is a no-calorie sugar substitute. It is about 600 times sweeter than sugar. It is used in thousands of processed foods and drinks. Some examples include soft drinks, juices, sauces, syrups, candy, desserts, baked goods, and canned fruits. It is used in medicines, nutritional supplements, and vitamins. It is also used as a tabletop sweetener. Sucralose can be used in baking because it doesn’t lose its sweet taste at high temperatures. For best results, follow the package instructions for using it in your recipes. Is sucralose safe? More than 110 studies have examined the safety of sucralose. It has been approved by the FDA as a food additive since 1998. According to the National Cancer Institute, there is no evidence that sucralose and other sugar substitutes approved for use in the United States cause cancer or other serious health problems. Sugar alcohols Despite their name, sugar alcohols aren’t sugar, and they aren’t alcohol. They are carbohydrates that occur naturally in certain fruits and can also be manufactured. They get their name because they have a chemical structure similar to sugar and to alcohol. Sugar alcohols are also called “polyols.” What products contain sugar alcohols? Sugar alcohols are found in many processed foods, including hard candies, ice cream, puddings, baked goods, and chocolate. They can also be found in chewing gum, toothpaste, and mouthwash. They may be used in combination with another sugar substitute. The most common sugar alcohols found in foods include: Erythritol – 0.2 calories per gram and 60% to 80% as sweet as sugar Isomalt– 2 calories per gram and 45% to 65% as sweet as sugar Lactitol – 2 calories per gram and 30% to 40% as sweet at sugar Maltitol – 2.1 calories per gram and 90% as sweet as sugar Mannitol – 1.6 calories per gram and 50% to 70% as sweet as sugar Sorbitol – 2.6 calories per gram and 50% to 70% as sweet as sugar Xylitol – 2.4 calories per gram and the same sweetness as sugar By comparison, there are 4 calories per gram of sugar. How do I find sugar alcohols on a nutrition facts label? If a food is labeled as “sugar free,” the amount of sugar alcohol (in grams) must be listed. If the food contains only 1 sugar alcohol, the name of that specific sugar alcohol is listed. Sugar alcohols are easy to spot on the label because most of them end in “tol.” If the food contains more than 1 sugar alcohol, the term “sugar alcohols” is listed. How do sugar alcohols affect blood sugar levels? Your body doesn’t completely absorb sugar alcohols, so they don’t affect your blood sugar levels as much as sugar and other carbohydrates do. If you have diabetes, it’s important to consider sugar alcohols when you are managing your blood sugar level. Check the nutrition facts label on a processed food to find the amount of sugar alcohol per serving (listed in grams). If a food has fewer than 5 grams of sugar alcohol per serving, it will likely have a very small effect on your blood sugar level. Are sugar alcohols safe? According to the FDA, sugar alcohols are “generally recognized as safe” (GRAS). This means that qualified experts agree the available scientific evidence shows they are safe for use in foods and drinks. However, you should consume them in moderation. Because sugar alcohols aren’t completely absorbed by your body, eating large amounts can lead to bloating and diarrhea. Things to consider Over the years, there has been much research done concerning the safety of sugar substitutes. The findings of this research support the conclusion that FDA-approved sugar substitutes are safe to use in moderation. Also, GRAS sugar substitutes (stevia extracts, monk fruit extracts, and sugar alcohols) are considered safe. While they’re considered safe, sugar substitutes can cause diarrhea.
This can happen when you consume large amounts of a product such as sugar-free candy. When to see a doctor Health experts have debated for years the use of sugar substitutes. Some would say that sugar substitutes are still controversial. However, the scientific community and FDA agree that they’re safe to use, especially in moderation. If you have concerns, you should talk to your doctor about how or when to include sugar substitutes as part of a healthy diet. Questions for your doctor Is one sugar substitute better for my health than another? Is it better to use real sugar in moderation than to use a sugar substitute? Is sugar-free eating better for my overall health? Can sugar substitutes make me fat? I’m pregnant. Are sugar substitutes safe for me? I have diabetes. Which sugar substitutes should I avoid?
On 26 November 2021,WHO designated the variant B.1.1.529 a variant of concern, named Omicron, on the advice of WHO’sTechnical Advisory Group on Virus Evolution (TAG-VE). This decision was based on the evidence presented to the TAG-VE that Omicron has several mutations that may have an impact on how it behaves, for example, on how easily it spreads or the severity of illness it causes. Here is a summary of what is currently known.
Current knowledge about Omicron
Researchers in South Africa and around the world are conducting studies to better understand many aspects of Omicron and will continue to share the findings of these studies as they become available.
Transmissibility: It is not yet clear whether Omicron is more transmissible (e.g., more easily spread from person to person) compared to other variants, including Delta. The number of people testing positive has risen in areas of South Africa affected by this variant, but epidemiologic studies are underway to understand if it is because of Omicron or other factors.
Severity of disease: It is not yet clear whether infection with Omicron causes more severe disease compared to infections with other variants, including Delta. Preliminary data suggests that there are increasing rates of hospitalization in South Africa, but this may be due to increasing overall numbers of people becoming infected, rather than a result of specific infection with Omicron. There is currently no information to suggest that symptoms associated with Omicron are different from those from other variants. Initial reported infections were among university students—younger individuals who tend to have more mild disease—but understanding the level of severity of the Omicron variant will take days to several weeks. All variants of COVID-19, including the Delta variant that is dominant worldwide, can cause severe disease or death, in particular for the most vulnerable people, and thus prevention is always key.
Effectiveness of prior SARS-CoV-2 infection
Preliminary evidence suggests there may be an increased risk of reinfection with Omicron (ie, people who have previously had COVID-19 could become reinfected more easily with Omicron), as compared to other variants of concern, but information is limited. More information on this will become available in the coming days and weeks.
Effectiveness of vaccines: WHO is working with technical partners to understand the potential impact of this variant on our existing countermeasures, including vaccines. Vaccines remain critical to reducing severe disease and death, including against the dominant circulating variant, Delta. Current vaccines remain effective against severe disease and death.
Effectiveness of current tests: The widely used PCR tests continue to detect infection, including infection with Omicron, as we have seen with other variants as well. Studies are ongoing to determine whether there is any impact on other types of tests, including rapid antigen detection tests.
Effectiveness of current treatments: Corticosteroids and IL6 Receptor Blockers will still be effective for managing patients with severe COVID-19. Other treatments will be assessed to see if they are still as effective given the changes to parts of the virus in the Omicron variant.
Studies underway
At the present time, WHO is coordinating with a large number of researchers around the world to better understand Omicron. Studies currently underway or underway shortly include assessments of transmissibility, severity of infection (including symptoms), performance of vaccines and diagnostic tests, and effectiveness of treatments.
WHO encourages countries to contribute the collection and sharing of hospitalized patient data through the WHO COVID-19 Clinical Data Platform to rapidly describe clinical characteristics and patient outcomes.
More information will emerge in the coming days and weeks. WHO’s TAG-VE will continue to monitor and evaluate the data as it becomes available and assess how mutations in Omicron alter the behaviour of the virus.
Recommended actions for countries
As Omicron has been designated a Variant of Concern, there are several actions WHO recommends countries to undertake, including enhancing surveillance and sequencing of cases; sharing genome sequences on publicly available databases, such as GISAID; reporting initial cases or clusters to WHO; performing field investigations and laboratory assessments to better understand if Omicron has different transmission or disease characteristics, or impacts effectiveness of vaccines, therapeutics, diagnostics or public health and social measures. More detail in the announcement from 26 November.
Countries should continue to implement the effective public health measures to reduce COVID-19 circulation overall, using a risk analysis and science-based approach. They should increase some public health and medical capacities to manage an increase in cases. WHO is providing countries with support and guidance for both readiness and response.
In addition, it is vitally important that inequities in access to COVID-19 vaccines are urgently addressed to ensure that vulnerable groups everywhere, including health workers and older persons, receive their first and second doses, alongside equitable access to treatment and diagnostics.
Recommended actions for people
The most effective steps individuals can take to reduce the spread of the COVID-19 virus is to keep a physical distance of at least 1 metre from others; wear a well-fitting mask; open windows to improve ventilation; avoid poorly ventilated or crowded spaces; keep hands clean; cough or sneeze into a bent elbow or tissue; and get vaccinated when it’s their turn.
American statesman John Adams, who served as president from 1797 to 1801, famously said, “There are two ways to conquer and enslave a country: One is by the sword; the other is by debt.” China, choosing the second path, has embraced colonial-era practices and rapidly emerged as the world’s biggest official creditor.
With its international loans surpassing more than 5 percent of the global GDP, China has now eclipsed traditional lenders, including the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and all the creditor nations of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) put together. By extending huge loans with strings attached to financially vulnerable states, it has not only boosted its leverage over them but also ensnared some in sovereignty-eroding debt traps.
ADVERTISEMENT
The latest to fall prey to China’s debt-trap diplomacy is small Laos, which recently signed a 25-year concession agreement allowing a majority Chinese-owned company to control its national power grid, including electricity exports to neighboring countries. This shows that, even as the China-originating COVID-19 pandemic exacts a heavy toll across the world, Beijing continues to weaponize debt as part of its strategy to expand its economic, political and military presence abroad.
Instead of first evaluating a borrower country’s creditworthiness, including whether new loans could saddle it with an onerous debt crisis, China is happy to lend. The heavier the debt burden on the borrower, the greater China’s own leverage becomes.
A new international study has shed light on China’s muscular and exploitative lending practices by examining 100 of its loan contracts with 24 countries, many of which participate in its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), an imperial project that seeks to make real the mythical Middle Kingdom. The study found that these agreements arm China with considerable leverage by incorporating provisions that go beyond standard international lending contracts.
In fact, such is the lopsided nature of the Chinese-dictated contracts that, while curtailing the options of the borrowing nations, they give China’s state-owned banks untrammeled discretion over any borrower, including the power to scrap loans or even demand full repayment ahead of schedule, according to the study.
“Such terms give lenders an opening to project policy influence over the sovereign borrower, and effectively limit the borrower’s policy space to cancel a Chinese loan or to issue new environmental regulations. Some of the debt contracts in our sample could pose a challenge for multilateral cooperation in debt or financial crises, since so many of their terms run directly counter to recent multilateral commitments, long-established practices, and institutional policies,” the study noted.
China leverages its state-sponsored loans to aggressively advance its trade and geopolitical interests, with the study reporting pervasive links between Chinese financial, trade and construction contracts with developing countries. Many Chinese loans, in fact, have not been publicly disclosed, thus spawning a “hidden debt” problem.
Every contract since 2014 has incorporated a sweeping confidentiality clause that compels the borrowing country to keep confidential its terms or even the loan’s existence. Such China-enforced opacity, as the study points out, breaches the principle that public debt should be public and not hidden from taxpayers so that governments can be held accountable.
Forcing the other side to keep contractual provisions under wraps is also necessitated by the fact that China’s loan accords equip it with “broad latitude to cancel loans or accelerate repayment if it disagrees with a borrower’s policies,” whether domestic or foreign policy, according to the study.
No less significant is another unique clause: The contracts, the study found, obligate the borrower to exclude the Chinese debt from any multilateral restructuring process, such as the Paris Club of official bilateral creditors, and from any “comparable debt treatment.” This is aimed at ensuring that the borrowing country remains dependent on Beijing, including for any debt relief in the event of financial distress, like in the current pandemic.
The study confirms that little of what China provides is aid or low-interest lending. Rather, its infrastructure financing comes mainly in the form of market-rate loans like those from private capital markets. The more dire the borrower’s financial situation, the higher the interest rate China is likely to charge for lending money.
In stark contrast, interest rates for Japan’s infrastructure loans to developing countries, for example, mostly run below half a percent.
Worse still, many of China’s loan agreements incorporate collateral arrangements, such as lender-controlled revenue accounts. Its collateralization practices seek to secure debt repayments by revenues flowing from, for example, commodity exports. Through various contract clauses, a commercially aggressive China, according to the study, limits the borrowing state’s crisis management options while leveraging its own role.
The study did not examine how borrowing states, when unable to repay Chinese loans, are compelled, including by contract provisions allowing debt-for-equity swaps, to cede strategic assets to China. Water-rich Laos handed China majority control of its national electric grid after its state-owned electricity company’s debt spiraled to 26 percent of national GDP. The transfer also holds implications for national water resources as hydropower makes up more than four-fifths of Laos’s total electricity generation.
One of the earliest successes of China's debt-trap diplomacy was in securing 1,158 square kilometers of strategic Pamir Mountains territory from the Central Asian nation of Tajikistan in 2011 in exchange for debt forgiveness. Tajikistan’s unending debt crisis has also forced it to grant Chinese companies rights to mine gold, silver and other mineral ores. As the Chinese military base in the Badakhshan region underscores, China has expanded its foothold in Tajikistan, thanks to a corrupt power elite there.
ADVERTISEMENT
A more famous example is the Sri Lankan transfer of the Hambantota Port, along with more than 6,000 hectares of land around it, to Beijing on a 99-year lease. The concept of a 99-year lease, ironically, emerged from the flurry of European colonial expansion in China in the 19th century. In Sri Lanka, the transfer of the Indian Ocean region’s most strategically located port in late 2017 was seen as the equivalent of a heavily indebted farmer giving away his daughter to the cruel money lender.
China’s debt-trap diplomacy has not spared Pakistan, which ranks as its sole strategic ally following the withering of Beijing’s special relationship with North Korea, once its vassal. Saddled with huge Chinese debt, Pakistan has given China exclusive rights, coupled with a tax holiday, to run Gwadar Port for the next four decades. China will pocket 91 percent of the port’s revenues. It also plans to build near the port a Djibouti-style outpost for its navy.
In small island nations, China has converted big loans into acquisition of entire islets through exclusive development rights. China took over a couple of islets in the Indian Ocean archipelago of the Maldives and one island in the South Pacific nation of the Solomon Islands. The European Union, meanwhile, has refused to bail out the tiny Balkan republic of Montenegro for mortgaging itself to China.
BRI, Chinese President Xi Jinping’s signature initiative, has been plagued by allegations of corruption and malpractice, and many of its completed projects have proved not to be financially viable. But, as an unclassified U.S. intelligence report released on April 13 said, Xi’s regime will continue to promote BRI, while fine-tuning it in response to regional and international criticism.
After all, BRI is central to its debt-trap diplomacy. China often begins as an economic partner of a small, financial weak country and then gradually enlarges its footprint in that state to become its economic master.
In her 80th year, the Babushka of Baikal still skates gracefully on the original blades her father made for her 70 years ago.
Lyubov Morekhodova has generated worldwide attention for her ice skating prowess on Siberia’s frozen Lake Baikal. But the 79-year-old woman –- affectionately known as the Babushka (meaning grandmother) of Baikal — can’t understand what all the fuss is about.
Morekhodova has been ice skating since she was eight years old. Initially, it was a resourceful way to shorten the four-kilometre hike between school and home. Over the years, the pastime has served as a peaceful escape from her hard-working lifestyle.
Lake Baikal, the largest freshwater lake in the world by volume, contains approximately 23 percent of the world’s surface water. Larger in surface area than the entire country of Belgium, with more water than all the Great Lakes combined, the temperature around Lake Baikal can plummet below minus 50˚C in midwinter.
Morekhodova was born In the village of Shara-Togot in the Irkutsk region, just weeks before World War II began. She was one of seven children to a forester father and homemaker mother. When construction began on the Irkutsk Dam, the family was relocated to the city of Khaly. Here, Morekhodova was first introduced to ice skating.
To halve the distance to school each day, she came up with a plan to skate across the lake. But where could she acquire a pair of skates in rural Siberia? Her father found a homemade solution.
“He cut two strips out of a steel saw, inserted them into planks of wood, and attached the wood to valenki [felt boots],” Morekhodova explained. “He didn’t know how to skate himself, but he went a very long way to support me.”
A few years later when she moved to boarding school, the walk home quadrupled, so again she shortened the route by skating.
“Once when I broke through the ice and fell in, I only survived because two of my classmates pulled me out,” Morekhodova recalls. “I had to run all the way back home with my clothes feeling like a sheet of ice.”
Despite that one near miss, being on the frozen lake offers a respite from her hard rural life in Siberia.
She wakes daily at 5 am to tend her cattle, which struggle to find grass during the winter. Once, three calves went missing and never came back. As she often does when she’s searching for wayward livestock, Morekhodova put on her skates for the search.
Before tending cattle, she processed fish in the family shop, worked in security and as an apprentice welder. She also worked for 42 years as a technologist in a factory. After her husband and children died, farming helped her regain a sense of purpose. She now has 11 cows, plus hens, four dogs and three cats.
To Morekhodova, skating is simply a joyful activity. But when a friend of hers posted a video of her on the ice a few years ago, she suddenly started receiving calls from all over the world.
Politely, Morekhodova answers questions all hours of the night from interested reporters. She kindly obliges them by sending photos from her simple phone, although coverage isn’t ideal in this part of Siberia. Once she was even asked to give a public speech in Moscow, a city she’d not visited since the 1970s.
Though Morekhodova may not understand her newfound attention, it’s likely that for everyone else, the joy stems from seeing such carefree grace in an elderly woman.
Seeing her swirl on the original skates built by her father all those years ago is mesmerizing.
