Fortunately, the overall situation in India is far better as compared to most of the other rich powers including the US, because the otherwise worsening pandemic due to Covid-19 has been well controlled under the visionary leadership of PM Narendra Modi, by immediately imposing three week’s lockdown and further extending it by 19 days, which has amazing reduced the likely figure of eight lakhs plus Corona virus-infected patients to around 20 thousands, as of today. This significant success in drastically containing the otherwise fast-expanding Corona menace in the country has put PM Modi on the top position in the world with 68% points among global rankings of various leaders including President Trump, fighting the pandemic in their own countries.
Notwithstanding all these concerns, the Covid-19 will inevitably lead to new doors of social, cultural, economic, strategic and defence co-operations and also scientific and technical research between and among nations to overcome the post-Corona national and global scenarios. It has already engendered significant changes in the common styles of exchanging courtesy where shaking of hands and other prevalent modes in different nations are increasingly being replaced by India’s welcome gesture with folded hands. Followed by mandatory social distancing and declining social gatherings, the consequent scenario due to Covid-19 may witness considerably reduced or negation of social interactions and community celebrations of mass festivals and marriages etc., for long time to come. Thus a radical change in human and social interactions may alter the ensuing cultural patterns in the post-Corona world.
Against this backdrop, the global East is increasingly assuming significance, in the present age of eastward shifting global geopolitics, due to India’s magnanimity – in providing medicines and its doctors to many countries in the world – prevailing over China’s supposedly notorious role in manufacturing this virus in its Wuhan Lab and then possibly releasing it in the world – thereby causing unimaginable loss of precious lives and many other long lasting impacts over the emerging global scenes. Unfortunately, China is said to be in possession of many other dangerous viruses in its afore said lab, and that probably puts the entire humanity at ransom to the hands of Beijing.
All these developments, while recognizing India’s contribution towards common welfare and service towards humanity, on the one hand, may prompt the western powers to isolate and corner China to undergo severe economic sanctions, on the other. The US has already initiated the required measures towards this end, and that will inevitably lead to further mounting of already tense bi-lateral relations between Washington and Beijing. The so-tormented western powers may withdraw their huge investments in China, as Japan has already declared the same, and may frame tough policies leading to crashing of its economy, besides breaking diplomatic relations and also initiating coercive steps against it.
Indeed, the individual loss to the US is much greater than that of any of the western powers and much more than that of the causality occurred in the earlier Axis power’s attack on Pearl Harbour during the second-World War, which America may find hard to digest. This is why, perhaps, Washington has placed its air military power, particularly the B-52 Bombers undergoing Elephant Walk, at alert mode to preempt any unforeseen eventuality. Against this, India’s largesse and preventive measures against this global menace are being praised by the global community, including the WHO – which has unfortunately clearly abdicated its much desired preventive role in containing the pandemic – and that has given it a new global identity.
Thus this virus, as a new bio-weapon – Corona-bomb – has already wrecked-havoc upon innocent humanity by infecting more than 25 lac people all over the world and killing around one lac and seventy seven thousand so-infected patients so far. In this scenario, the global community must immediately unite under the auspices of the United Nations and collectively fight against the mounting reckless and aggressive-imperialist behavior of China for the past many decades, as seen in its annexation of Tibet, attack over India, skirmishes with almost all countries of Southeast Asia and also extending its sovereign claim over the entire South China Sea despite losing the same in the international court of arbitration. While the humanity will overcome the Corona menace soon, it will indeed cause deep scares upon the global human conscience, for long. But it will be won as nothing is beyond human endeavour.
