More than the plastic bags, chocolate wrappers and condoms challenges Mumbai’s drainage system

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June 26, 2020

Mumbai Drain, Mithi River, BMC, Storm Water, Municipal Corporation, Water, Plastic, Plastic Bags — Image Courtesy: Reuters

In the year 2010, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) decided to impose a fine on people found dumping garbage in drains. If anyone is caught throwing garbage in a drain, they will have to pay Rs 5,000 as a fine for first offence. BMC teams were formed in every ward under the ward officer who would go around the city keeping an eye out for offenders. The amount of fine was depending on how much garbage an individual dumped. Clean up marshals have also been on alert, but later on, they landed up blackmailing and extorting people. The cleanup drive and its marshals remained utter flop and the plastic bags still sunk the city but no one was caught. Some formalities were done to show the numbers. Throwing garbage in the open is not only an offence but it leads to choking of the drains. If drains are choked, that leads to flooding. People still lack civic sense. After eight years, again in 2018, the Maharashtra government has decided to ban plastic and impose fine on users.

Last week, rains exposed the double standards of BMC and the state government. Mumbai was flooding; many nullahs (drains) that pass through thickly populated slums were choked. Nullahs around the paan shops were seen with heavy garbage of pan masala’s waterproof sachets and Gutka’s plastic wraps. Areas like Pila House and Nagpada nullahs were choked with condoms. Even if the drains are cleaned, garbage from these areas was found floating in them the next day. Just plastic bags are not the issue, from chocolate wrappers to condoms all those waterproof wrappers are the challenge to Mumbai’s drainage system. Many slums which are situated on drains such as Chamdawadi nullah, that passes through the Behrampada slum in Bandra (East), gets choked with garbage that people living in homes near the drain throw in it. You cannot stop them unless and until there is a strict vigil. There are many slums on gutters, where small-scale workers throw most of the waste in these drainage pipes. The BMC finds it difficult to clean these drains regularly because most of them are difficult to access due to shanties built around them. The politicians who rule the city and the state of Maharashtra blame it on the weather but they still failed to understand the geographical conditions and drainage issues pertaining to the city.

No one disputes that the island city on the Arabian Sea gets a large share of rainfall every year. Many ambitious projects like Metro etc. that have made many ecological compromises. The systematic destruction of about 1,000 acres of the city’s mangrove cover – what’s left, about 5,000 acres, is under threat and that has deprived Mumbai of its natural flood-barrier and silt trap. Now rainwater washes silt into the bay, threatening to clog the city’s deep natural harbour. Many ecologically unsound decisions have caused huge financial damage. Meanwhile, horror stories abound of urban welfare projects have gone terribly awry. Mangroves have been cleared to build golf courses, amusement parks and rubbish dumps. Building construction is planned on thousands of acres of salt pan land. In the 16th century, 95 percent of today’s Mumbai was under water. It’s not just the “no-development zones” that have fallen prey to the frenzy of unplanned building.

Typically, 35-40 percent of rainwater is absorbed by the land, lifting groundwater levels, but there are few open spaces left in Mumbai. India has the lowest ratio of open space to people in the world – a mere four acres per 1,000 of the population, compared to the global benchmark of 12 acres. In Mumbai, this falls to a paltry 0.2 acres, and after accounting for slums, it diminishes to a measly 0.03 acres. An unholy nexus between the politicians, builders and unfettered development have brought the city to the brink of collapse. Thousands of tons of unlearned rubbish choke the city’s 100-year-old storm water drains, which urgently need an overhaul. And in a city where 88 percent of commuters use public transport, governments spend a lot on flyovers and a pittance on upgrading creaky trains and buses. In the next 50 years, the storm drains that carry rainwater out of Mumbai could be bringing sea water in, even at low tide. Storm water drains choked with ubiquitous plastic carry bags are partly responsible for Mumbai’s woes.

The Environment Ministry’s decision to ban the manufacture and use of small plastic carry bags has gone unheeded, not just in Maharashtra, but also in most parts of the country. In June 1998, the Bombay Municipal Corporation passed a resolution to ban plastic carry bags only to vacate it in less than two days. The then Mumbai Mayor said no plastic bags meant putting out of work those engaged in the plastics recycling industry. India’s plastics consumption is one of the highest in the world. Yet, precious little has been done to recycle, re-use and dispose of plastic waste. The carry bags that are callously littered at every public place have low economic value and are not picked up by rag pickers. About 500 flimsy polythene bags make a kilo and fetch about Rs 12, if the bags are soiled the value is even less. Without being picked up, most of the poly-bags end up in drains and block flow of water. In absence of a long-term Government policy, we are unable to get rid of poly-bags. When sewage is blocked, municipal corporations and State pollution control boards only pass the buck. Corporations just throw up their hands when it comes to handling the enormous quantity of plastic waste. Besides choking drains, plastics are highly toxic. When burned they release cancer-causing gases. Lying in the garbage, polythene bags also find their way in the gut of the cattle, asphyxiating the animals. The Mumbai crisis serves as a grim reminder that unless our plastic waste is taken care of, we cannot dream to emulate Shanghai. The Panvel City Municipal Corporation even penalised the Kharghar-based DAV School’s canteen for using plastic spoons and glasses.

Starbucks and McDonald’s outlet, faced action for plastic articles found on their premises. These outlets were fined Rs 5,000 each, while the fast-food outlet would face further proceedings as it refused to pay up. In the neighbouring districts of Thane and Navi Mumbai, the official machinery kicked off the drive in earnest — 100 people were fined Rs 95,000 for violations in Thane, while Rs 35,000 was collected in fines at Navi Mumbai and plastic goods seized. All this hype is only during rains to save the skin of authority, Mumbai has many other plastic challenges and the government needs to be serious about it.

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After COVID its Monsoon that challenges BMC

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Afternoon Voice

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June 25, 2020

containment zone, bmc, monsoon, mumbai, covid, coronavirus, containment, mumbai zones, mumbai rains, bmc insecticide officer rajan naringrekar, — Image Courtesy: Getty Images

Last week a Mumbaikar had suggested the BMC to use drones to disinfect those containment zones which were unapproachable, said BMC insecticide officer Rajan Naringrekar. But to this suggestion, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has said that it will not use drones to disinfect containment zones in the city and has termed the process “useless.”

BMC insecticide officer Rajan Naringrekar told AV “We had discussions with various experts on the viability, we understood that drones are useless in cleansing major touch points which have been identified across the containment clusters.” He further stated that the “Drones are not in a position to treat these touch points. It will release the disinfectant on rooftops or surfaces where the virus is not present, rendering the activity completely impractical.

These unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are currently being used by the Mumbai Police to monitor the movement of citizens during the lockdown and make announcements in densely-populated containment areas where traversing by foot is difficult, he added. “Also, large network of cables in these zones will hinder spraying disinfectants,” said Naringrekar. Meanwhile, the confusion over the usage of disinfection chambers continues to prevail among state bodies despite the Centre’s advisory against its usage. While spraying disinfectants has been recommended for cleaning purposes, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare issued an advisory on Saturday that spraying disinfectants or using tunnels on individuals or groups “was not recommended under any circumstances as it is physically and psychologically harmful”.

“Even if a person is potentially exposed with the Covid-19 virus, spraying the external part of the body does not kill the virus that has entered the body. Also, there is no scientific evidence to suggest that they are effective even in disinfecting the outer clothing,” the advisory read. But in Maharashtra, disinfection tunnels have been installed across the state and the government plans to install more such chambers across marketplaces, government buildings and railways stations. “This is an unscientific process, which can lead to severe skin problems as well as health effects, if the sodium hypochlorite solution in the tunnel is inhaled in large quantities. It is best to be avoided,” said Dr Jerryl Banait, dermatologist and Supreme Court petitioner in Covid-19 matters.

However, the BMC has clarified that it will not be using disinfection chambers. Naringrekar said BMC will continue not to use disinfection chambers. “It gives a false impression that a person is cleaned and they will neglect the use of sanitizer or hand washing,” he said.

Currently, there are more than 720 containment zones across Mumbai, with the maximum ones at Worli, Prabhadevi, Byculla, Girgaum, Mazagaon and Tardeo. The insecticide department had identified five main touch points that citizens in containment zones need to be aware about to control community transmission. These touch points include common toilets, stair handles or railings connecting two or three-storied structures, parapets connecting one settlement to the other, sitting areas such as concrete platforms outside slum structures and door handles.

Mumbai Monsoon and Mess

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Afternoon Voice

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June 25, 2020

Mumbai has specific problems with the old drainage system limited to a few lakhs of population. Another big issue is reaching each corner of the slum to disinfect the consisted areas within. After COVID19 its monsoon that is challenging the civic authorities. Encroachment of public and natural spaces that can help in solving the flood problems. A simple issue of deepening and widening of Mithi river for the past 15 years, since 2005 the last severe floods. We Mumbaikar are very successful in making all sorts of efforts during each forgetting the fact that the civic authority has always failed to manage disaster. We lack the best preventive measures and future planning commitments. The political leaders think of you when elections are approaching and the government machinery cares only when you can offer something. So why not Mumbaikar start simple agitation to set things right by the richest corporation, not only floods, pot holed roads, illegal constructions, dilapidating bridges and many more issues. Mumbaikar needs to react to all these irregularities, just RJ Malishka’s songs are not enough to open the eyes of authorities.

Natural or Geographical problem with Mumbai is that the city is aligned along the Arabian Sea, high tides pose a challenge for water to be pumped out of the mainland. As far as this issue is concerned, there is very little anyone could do about this. Having specific guidelines for road and building construction in order to minimize impact of water-logging and having a well-developed drainage system does help to an extent. Having a flood-management control room should come handy. This year there are many announcements from the government let’s see how they are going to come true on their claims. When it rains the entire city, traffic comes to a halt in Mumbai, India’s second most important city in the country after Delhi. Every year at least a dozen people get washed away in flood water here, as usual nobody cares. Monsoon puts our governments, city civic bodies and urban planners to shame every year. But nobody cares. Major cities across India resembling huge water bodies when the skies open up is a regular feature during monsoon. When it pours, life comes to a halt and lakhs of people suffer. Mumbai receives more rain than many other major cities in India; the commercial capital of the country suffers the most and makes it to headlines. Once the rain stops and flood water recedes, everybody including the people of Mumbai choose to forget it till the next monsoon.

Chennai, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Srinagar, Guwahati, Jaipur and even Dehradun and Lucknow have the same issues during monsoon. It exposes the serious lapses in our urban planning and more so in its execution. Unless we get our basic drainage system right, we can’t save our cities from monsoon fury. The need of the hour is investing in better, effective drainage systems across all major cities. We need to build good quality wide roads with no potholes to decongest the cities when the skies open up. For that we need more money, world class technology and political will and no corruption while delivering the work. Mumbai needs urgent attention from the concerned authorities. If we can’t protect them from rain, we better forget our plans or dreams of making them model cities or smart cities or world cities. Each year heavy overnight rains lashes Mumbai and adjoining areas causing water logging in several low-lying areas, resulting in slow movement of peak hour rail traffic for two days.

The local trains on the Harbour line are always stalled or run late by 15 to 20 minutes. The trains on Central and Western lines, however, make it to move. The disaster management team is keeping a tab on the situation but that is not enough. Every year monsoon arrives and exposes the authorities and government with ongoing pouring. Every year, there is at least one picture of a BMC worker who is working towards clearing the choked drainage, the silent messages depicted in pictures but what is the point in it? Every year Government is making budgets for drainage and those people are doing their jobs. The ever-procrastinating people, who are not answerable to anybody, waste much of government funds. Just one or two rains hit Mumbai, but look at the conditions around, Railways station escalators are not protected against weather, there are water logs everywhere on the stations to metro and skywalk, tiles are broken and holes. Of course, there are attempts being made to ‘advance’ the facilities to passengers by installing escalators worth nearly 80 lakhs per set, which can speed up enough to cope with the rising demand of urgency for citizens.

Before the arrival of monsoon in the city, the opposition always disputes with the ruling party, then Congress- NCP used to attack now BJP is attacking MVA, leaving these political parties aside the civic body’s claim that most of the city nullahs have been cleaned. But if you visit Borivali nullah near National Park to Andheri most of them are filthy, over flown with plastic covers and all sort of garbage. The work at the Dahisar River nullah was yet not complete. At many nullahs the parapet walls have not been built. The nullahs of Dahisar River, Chandavarkar nullah did not have proper parapet walls causing flooding during heavy rains. Lack of funds are one of the reasons that parapet walls have not been built at some nullahs. The NL Complex nullah, which starts from Dahisar east near Sanjay Gandhi National Park and flows into the Mira Bhayander creek, is still not cleaned properly. In case of high tide, there are chances that water might go backwards and flood some areas, instead of flowing into the sea. This is the main cause for water borne diseases. People suffer from different kinds of strange viral infections. Most of the seashores are dirty, beaches and dumped with all sorts of waste. Lakes are stinking. Since a large number of Mumbaiites are used to urinating, spitting and defecating in public places, rains promptly absolve us of the guilt of our reckless conduct. In this way we can continue to blame the authorities for not making our areas hygienic and mosquito free whilst ensuring ourselves unrestricted use of the freedom we won so dearly. Common public and BMC both blame each other but main issues get sidelined, above all politics kills the substance of the purpose. I have been witnessing Mumbai rains since my birth, but every year issues are the same without any solution. There is no other season or weather that can fill one with as deep and different emotions as the rains. But every season the stories are the same, just the rulers may change. You voted for this government with great faith, hope they live up to your expectations and do not leave in monsoon mess of Mumbai.

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China is always a threat to India – Part 2

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Vaidehi Taman

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June 25, 2020

We all have seen how India suffered coronavirus spread, it was a very big battle to identify, isolate, and prevent the spread of this epidemic. Like the Chinese health bureaucracy, in India too there is a remarkable time lag before diseases get identified and before they get notified, if at all. India’s medical bureaucracy is often loath to report bad news. We have seen the happening in case of dengue and chikungunya outbreaks in most Indian cities, where news only emerges after a few people have died and several seriously taken ill. The risk of communicable diseases increases manifold when other factors—environmental, socioeconomic, and demographic—are considered. The Nipah virus outbreak of 2018 in Kerala has several lessons for today’s emergency. This epidemic showed how Indian infectious disease management infrastructure could be severely challenged. After its discovery in a small Malaysian village in 1999, the virus emerged in Kerala in May 2018, claiming 17 lives. The seriousness of the public health threat was underscored by the lack of a vaccine or even targeted treatment. This allowed the virus to spread unchecked initially.

No wonder India ranks high globally in the burden of communicable diseases, a burden that causes approximately 10% of deaths in the country. The issue is seriously considering the phase of rapid urbanization the country is going through—raising challenges to an already beleaguered and cash-crunched healthcare system. Barring a few states, India’s medical system is not in the best of shape. But the Indian public health machinery has shown it can fight well when it wants to. As China struggles to curtail the deadly new virus that has killed 81 people and spread to four continents, there are flashing warning lights for India. Vaccinations are among the most efficient and effective instruments for preventing diseases, operating primarily by providing acquired immunity and thereby preventing the easy spread of infectious diseases among large populations. However, developing vaccines, especially for new and mutated strains of diseases, can take a very long time. Coupled with the time and the resources needed for mass production and delivery, vaccines cannot be seen as the only solution during fast-spreading epidemics.

The coronavirus epidemic was a major crisis in China even before the news came out on 10 January and alerted the Chinese leadership. The illness by then was no longer localized. In fact, it had even travelled abroad. China’s rigid bureaucracy discourages local officials from raising bad news with central bosses. China’s health sector is so heavily compartmentalized that officials in the public health division, the disease control department, in hospital administration, and drug procurement seldom speak to each other. This makes it harder to manage, or even see, a crisis in the making. Those systemic flaws appear to have played a role in the pace at which Chinese officials responded to the outbreak, and the country’s inability to address the health risks from its so-called wet markets, which are stuffed with livestock living and dead, domesticated and wild. The real bad news is the coronavirus, which comes from a family of viruses that affect the respiratory tract, seems to be far deadlier than before. In 2002, when the SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) virus hit China, it took more than 90 days to mutate and take its new deadly form. But the coronavirus seems to have achieved the capability of transmitting among humans within the first month. The World Health Organization (WHO) has clarified that the disease only spreads from animals to humans and is not communicable between human beings. However, now questions are being raised as some among those affected claims not to have been near any animals recently. That is why the panic within the public health machinery in China is palpable, even as human resources are being mobilized and sent to the epicenter in Wuhan, the capital of central China’s Hubei province, by the thousands. For over a month from 8 December 2019 to 17 January 2020, all the confirmed cases in China were from the sole city of Wuhan, yet meanwhile, there were already confirmed cases in Japan and Thailand. Many on Chinese social media commented on the implausibility of the data and suggested that the authorities must be concealing the actual numbers, with some sardonically calling the outbreak a “patriotic virus” due to its appearance of infecting people overseas rather than people in China. The police for detained several Hong Kong media correspondents over an hour when they were interviewing in Wuhan’s Jinyintan Hospital on 14 January. Reports said the police brought the correspondents to a police station, where the police checked their travel documents and belongings, then asked them to delete video footage taken in the hospital before releasing them.

Authorities in Wuhan and Hubei provinces have been criticized for downplaying the severity of the outbreak and responding slower than they should. Caixin blamed Wuhan for not rolling out the first level of “public health emergency response mechanism” until 24 January, which came even later than several other provinces and cities outside of the center of the outbreak. On 19 January, four days before the city’s lockdown, a “Wanjiayan,” literally meaning, “banquet of tens of thousands of families,” was held in Wuhan, with over 40,000 families turning out at the banquet tables. Experts said the authorities “lack basic common sense” for allowing such a banquet to be held. China continues to reel under the deadly Coronavirus outbreak as the sharply rising death toll reached thousands causing global alarm. The virus, which has spread across the country, has infected hundreds of people mostly in Wuhan and other Chinese cities. Meanwhile, Indian is still struggling to overcome COVID 19 cases.

China’s threat to India is multifold; its various activities since the Independence of India are worrisome. China doesn’t want to see any of the countries in Asia to rise above it. Let it spreading the pandemic to Chinese infiltration in Arunachal Pradesh and Ladakh sectors, everything is bothersome. India is a sovereign country and we will never tolerate any such tries of territorial expansion policy of China against India. We have seen in Doklam standoff how Chinese forces insulted the territorial integrity of India. This is not for a single time, but China has done it many times before also. COVID-19 pandemic is concerned; India is in a more sensitive situation than China. Researchers and journalists have been speculating for months about how the new coronavirus, SARS-CoV-2, emerged in the city of Wuhan, China.

However, Western media outlets have already reported that the virus possibly originated in the nearby Wuhan Institute of Virology. China, is geared up from all sides to economically dominate various countries, what India needs now is an iron hand to deal with them.

Read the first part

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“Interest of one family prevailed over national interest”, Amit Shah hits out at Congress

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Afternoon Voice

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June 25, 2020

Union Home Minister Amit Shah came down heavily on the Congress on Thursday, saying the interests of one family prevailed over the party and national interests, and questioned why the ‘Emergency mindset’ still remained in the opposition party. On the 45th year of the imposition of Emergency in the country, Shah claimed leaders are feeling suffocated in the Congress and the party’s disconnect with people keeps widening.

“On this day, 45 years ago one family’s greed for power led to the imposition of the Emergency. Overnight the nation was turned into a prison. The press, courts, free speech…all were trampled over. Atrocities were committed on the poor and downtrodden,” he said in a series of tweets. Former prime minister Indira Gandhi had imposed Emergency on June 25, 1975 and it continued till March 21, 1977.

The home minister said due to the efforts of lakhs of people, the Emergency was lifted, democracy was restored in India but it remained absent in the Congress. “The interests of one family prevailed over party’s interests and national interests. This sorry state of affairs thrives in today’s Congress too!,” he said.

Referring to a recent Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting, Shah said senior and younger members raised a few issues but, they were shouted down. He said a Congress party spokesperson was unceremoniously sacked and the sad truth was that leaders were feeling suffocated in Congress. “As one of India’s opposition parties, Congress needs to ask itself: Why does the Emergency mindset remain? Why are leaders who don’t belong to one dynasty unable to speak up? Why are leaders getting frustrated in Congress? “Else, their disconnect with people will keep widening,” he said. Shah also shared links of two news reports in his tweets.

The first was related to a recent CWC meeting where Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said that he was “not scared of PM Modi” and would continue to attack him, while accusing most leaders of skipping direct criticism of the prime minister. According to the news, Gandhi flew into a rage when CWC permanent invitee RPN Singh suggested that Congress must ensure that criticism of Modi on the Chinese incursion was not personal.

The second news report which Shah shared was on the removal of Sanjay Jha as a spokesperson of the Congress, days after he wrote a newspaper article critical of the party. In the article published recently, Jha had said, “The Congress has demonstrated extraordinary lassitude, and its lackadaisical attitude towards its own political obsolescence is baffling…” “I would like to call a spade a spade here and a shovel: there has been no serious effort to get the party up and running with any sense of urgency,” he had said in the article in a national daily.

WikiLeaks founder Assange faces new indictment in US

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Afternoon Voice

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June 25, 2020

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange sought to recruit hackers at conferences in Europe and Asia who could provide his anti-secrecy website with classified information, and conspired with members of hacking organizations, according to a new Justice Department indictment announced Wednesday. The superseding indictment does not contain additional charges beyond the 18 counts the Justice Department unsealed last year. But prosecutors say it underscores Assange’s efforts to procure and release classified information, allegations that form the basis of criminal charges he already faces. Beyond recruiting hackers at conferences, the indictment accuses Assange of conspiring with members of hacking groups known as LulzSec and Anonymous. He also worked with a 17-year-old hacker who gave him information stolen from a bank and directed the teenager to steal additional material, including audio recordings of high-ranking government officials, prosecutors say.

Assange’s lawyer, Barry Pollack, said in a statement that “the government’s relentless pursuit of Julian Assange poses a grave threat to journalists everywhere and to the public’s right to know.” “While today’s superseding indictment is yet another chapter in the U.S. Government’s effort to persuade the public that its pursuit of Julian Assange is based on something other than his publication of newsworthy truthful information,” he added, “the indictment continues to charge him with violating the Espionage Act based on WikiLeaks publications exposing war crimes committed by the U.S. Government.” Assange was arrested last year after being evicted from the Ecuadorian Embassy in London, where he had sought refuge to avoid being sent to Sweden over allegations of rape and sexual assault and is at the center of an extradition tussle over whether he should be sent to the United States. The Justice Department has already charged him with conspiring with former U.S. Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning is one of the largest compromises of classified information in U.S. history by working together to crack a password to a government computer.

Prosecutors say the WikiLeaks founder damaged national security by publishing hundreds of thousands of classified documents, including diplomatic cables and military files on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, that harmed the U.S. and its allies and aided its adversaries. Assange maintains he was acting as a journalist entitled to First Amendment protection. His lawyers have argued the U.S. charges of espionage and computer misuse were politically motivated and an abuse of power.

Assange generated substantial attention during the 2016 presidential election, and in investigations that followed, after WikiLeaks published stolen Democratic emails that U.S. authorities say were hacked by Russian military intelligence officials. An investigation by special counsel Robert Mueller revealed how Trump campaign associates eagerly anticipated the email disclosures. One Trump ally, Roger Stone, was found guilty last year of lying about his efforts to gain inside information about the emails. Assange, however, was never charged in Mueller’s Russia investigation. The allegations in the new indictment center on conferences, in locations including the Netherlands and Malaysia in 2009, at which prosecutors say he and a WikiLeaks associate sought to recruit hackers who could locate classified information, including material on a “Most Wanted Leaks” list posted on WikiLeaks’ website.

According to the new indictment, he told would-be recruits that unless they were a member of the U.S. military, they faced no legal liability for stealing classified information and giving it to WikiLeaks “because ‘TOP SECRET’ meant nothing as a matter of law.” At one conference in Malaysia, called the “Hack in the Box Security Conference,” Assange told the audience, “I was a famous teenage hacker in Australia, and I’ve been reading generals’ emails since I was 17.”.

Virtual Sex work boomed: Sex workers are not allowed to resume

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Afternoon Voice

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June 23, 2020

As the world is going digital, sex workers reaching their clients online, making the best use of technology, and smartphones they are reaching their customers on WhatsApp chat or on Facebook video calling.

Mala (name changed to protect identity) a sex worker from Pila House told Afternoon Voice, “We have been told not to stand or sit outside our rooms. We are not allowed to do business and we are starving, because last two months we are absolutely out of finance. Finally, we are calling our clients on WhatsApp video chat and entertaining them, word of mouth getting some clients, but they hardly pay anything but still our one-time meal is taken care of”.

Government has asked sex workers not to display themselves on the road and maintain safety, and those are ill or infected with HIV has been asked to stay away.

Looking at the present scenario they are exploring the ‘phone sex’ option and are already into virtual sex business to earn their living… “Phone sex is quite normal in high-end call girls, but it is a new thing for sex workers here. There are some sex workers who are already using the medium and they are sharing their experiences with others. This allows them to earn their income without being exposed to any physical contact with customers, thus keeping the risk of COVID-19 aside.

With the lockdown being eased, some sex workers in the red-light area want to get back to trade by taking all protections and following the standard operating procedures to stay protected against COVID-19. The livelihood of nearly thousands of sex workers in the Kamathipura area here in Mumbai has been affected by the COVID-19 outbreak and the subsequent lockdown, following which several of them moved back to their hometowns. So far there are no COVID 19 cases reported in these areas.

Some NGOs of Maharashtra has started imparting training through audio and video clips to the sex workers on what precautions they need to take during customer visits. Since there will be physical contact with customers, they have chalked out SOPs and guidelines. While condoms are mandatory, now masks and gloves are also a must during sexual activity. They have been asked to use hand sanitizers and disinfectants. Some of the sex workers have bought thermal scanners and foot-operated sanitizer dispensers and placed them outside their premises, she said. “It has been advised to ask the customer to take a shower before the activity and not to entertain any customer having a cough or fever.

China is always a threat to India – Part 1

By

Vaidehi Taman

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June 23, 2020

Chinese troops squarely preparing an attack on Indian soldiers on the Himalayan border, claiming they erected a tent on the Indian side, dammed a river, brought in machinery and then lay in wait with stones and batons wrapped in barbed wire. The incident in which 20 Indian soldiers died and 76 were injured, was the worst violence between India and China for 45 years. China has not said whether it sustained any casualties. Meanwhile US Intel Agencies confirm that China ordered the attack on Indian Troops in the Galwan river Valley. PLA Veteran Zhao approved of these operations. Time and again China has betrayed India on various occasions only reason is that India failed to take stern action against them. India-China has many similarities but just because our huge import and dependency on Chinese manufacturing units has always made us vulnerable to them.

When India just came out of the emergency horror and preparing to sustain the damages done. China was preparing for its economy and growth. China and India got a new government around the same time. China’s economy liberated in 1978, with a poor deteriorating economy compare to other Asian nations was in a bad situation in the late 1970s, and the then-leader Deng Xiaoping pushed an open-market concept increasing 70% contribution of the private sector to the economy by 2013. India is the seventh-largest economy in the world, with a capitalization of $2.25 trillion. The Indian economy was liberated after the major economic crisis our country faced in 1991. China moved on to become a manufacturing hub of the world with a speedy growth for 25 years, making it the second-largest economy in the world with a capitalization of over $11 trillion. It is the largest economy in the world in terms of PPP, where India comes third. China is built on the manufacturing sector while India is built on the software sector. Economy size speaks volumes in the global domain.

When the world’s second-largest economy decides to devalue its currency, it is going to affect all nations in the world especially India because we import a lot from China. Oil consumption is the second highest by China, thereby determining the prices and demand of oil in the world. So, our economy sensitive to oil prices will be affected if China clinches discretions effectively. India is a dependent economy, unlike China. The United States and Europe is our major export market for software. These companies based in the US and Europe outsource most of the software developed in India. If we lose this market due to various factors, our economy will be on our knees as India’s service sector contribution to the economy is close to 50%. China is a less dependent economy. The government can take bold decisions, which can help the country survive in a crisis situation, as it isn’t a multi-party system like in India. Cheap labour will keep China going on and on. And limited politics has always given them a vast scope of growth. In India huge spending, by all means, are on politics and propaganda. Here we are not self-dependent on manufacturing sectors, for every small thing we depend on in China. We Indians are dependent on China economically only on the manufactured goods. If Make in India would have been successful India could have become a self-sustained country as far as manufacturing is concerned. India can replicate what China had done in the manufacturing sector in the 1980s. Today only 20-25% of our economy is dependent on the Manufacturing sector, which means we are dependent on services a lot. A balance must be created to minimize the threat not only from China but also from the West World in software. Over-dependency on China for fabricated goods makes us more vulnerable to any adverse condition. We export software to the world but not directly as major software companies in India are outsourcing giant rather in-house developed companies. China also has a significant educated workforce, motivating them to develop new software systems. Over-dependency and imbalance in any sector aren’t good for any country including some developed countries that import everything. With Pakistan arguably as an ally of China, India is under threat from China on the borders. With lack of a buffer (Tibet) India had in the 19th Century, India is vulnerable to Chinese attacks. Look at the recent attack, they are encroaching Indian land inch by inch. China is continuously building highways between Xinjiang region and Tibet through Aksai Chin. While this might not be of much worry, the horror is that we consider Tibet is highly inhabitable for normal life to persist. Any business interests would not bear sweet fruit. Despite being landlocked region, China has developed infrastructure to trade goods to Russia and Europe through Xinjiang and Tibet, thanks to a single-party regime in China since 1949, helping them take bold decisions. China is developing rail links to the Sino-India borders such that it reduces travel time from Beijing. This is an alarm to India, as India doesn’t have sufficient groundwork to reach the borders through rail or road links.

India is under constant threat from China. If India wants to be on par with China, it needs to develop better military force and a stronger economy.

Our Country needs to promote skilled labour in the country by capitalizing hugely on set-ups. We have to focus on reducing imports by developing products in-house. India has to be serious in promoting Research and Development in Arms and Ammunition development. Promote alternatives to oil for running vehicles, trains, and electricity grid such that we are isolated from variation from oil prices. We have to improve connectivity to the Sino-Indian borders.

Making India a dependable manufacturing hub over China quantity is an urgent priority. We have to think on a larger perspective when it comes to China, be it imports, economy, border and now the virus circulation, china has damaged us the most.

(Any suggestions, comments or dispute with regards to this article send us on feedback@www.afternoonvoice.com)

Delhi violence: HC grants bail to Safoora Zargar on humanitarian ground

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Afternoon Voice

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June 23, 2020

The Delhi High Court Tuesday granted bail to Jamia student Safoora Zargar, who is pregnant and was arrested under anti-terror law UAPA in a case related to communal violence in northeast Delhi during protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act, as Solicitor General Tushar Mehta did not oppose it on humanitarian grounds. At the outset of the hearing, Mehta, representing Delhi Police, submitted that Zargar can be released on regular bail on humanitarian grounds and the decision has not been taken on merits of the case and should not be made a precedent.

Justice Rajiv Shakdher, who conducted the hearing through video conferencing, released Zargar, who is 23-week pregnant, on bail on furnishing a personal bond of Rs 10,000 and surety of like amount. The court said she shall not indulge in any activity for which she has been charged with and shall not hamper the investigation or influence the witnesses.

Profits and Losses: Gyms shut the business; Bookstores made profits

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Afternoon Voice

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June 22, 2020

Branded gyms in expensive neighborhoods like Lokhandwala and Khar West, where celebrity gyms are located, require a base investment of anywhere between Rs 2 crore and Rs 3 crore. Purchasing state-of-the-art equipment, hiring experienced trainers, and maintenance of staff cost extra. The end of the first lockdown in April was doing or dies situation for fitness trainers, they had two choices — wait until gyms were allowed to open again or go online. In the question of survival, many gym trainers proffered going online. Mumbai alone has fitness industry worth Rs 82 crores, has buckled under the weight of the lockdown, and with no date of resumption insight, Mumbai’s gyms and fitness centers are unsure how long they can carry on paying crushing rents and keep employees on their rosters.

Fitness trainer Tarun Panchal told Afternoon Voice “Gyms have gone in too much of losses as from past three long months they are kept closed, meanwhile we the trainers opted for online clientele to make some money but still, there were many glitches but somehow managed to earn bread”.

City, where alcohol made a huge profit, the fitness market crumbled. On the other hand, Schools and tuition classes might have gone online but the reopening of bookstores seems to have pleased readers. The sale of books under the children’s section is reported to have increased, even as many bookstores have switched over to online sales, seeing a dip in the number of customers visiting their stores. Earlier not many people would purchase books for their children but since lockdown, there is some market for book stores.

Kitab Khana, a popular bookstore in Fort, has not opened the physical store for visitors yet. It had closed as a precautionary measure a week before the lockdown. While it does not allow in-store browsing, it provides kerb-side delivery as well as home delivery of books. It takes orders on Instagram and WhatsApp, and delivers the next day after payments are made through bank transfer or payment methods such as GooglePay. The experience of browsing through books physically is totally different from online shopping

Granth Book Store in Juhu, on the other hand, does not provide online delivery. Store manager Herin Keniya says they are taking safety precautions, such as using masks, gloves, and thermal scanners. Footfalls have reduced though.

Smaller bookstores though are struggling without business.

Beauty Parlour, Spa and Salon businesses are in a total loss for three months, many of them are shut due to heavy rents and maintenance. Food vendors did reasonably well whereas meat and poultry industry did good business.

Lockdown has taken many jobs, street vendors have gone out of the market, small scale industries suffered without business and self-employed people had their own challenges, but looking at the overall scenario, some business made a huge profit and some just succumbed to circumstances.