The strategically-placed Indian Ocean nation of the Maldives, which has borrowed heavily from China and shifted allegiance from India, is at high risk of “debt distress,” the IMF warned Wednesday.

Beijing has pledged more funding for the Maldives since pro-China President Mohamed Muizzu took power in November.

Muizzu thanked China last month for its “selfless assistance” for development funds after a visit to Beijing.

The International Monetary Fund did not give details of the Maldives’ foreign debt but said there was a need for “urgent policy adjustment”.

“Without significant policy changes, the overall fiscal deficits and public debt are projected to stay elevated,” the IMF said after a review of the country’s economy.

“The Maldives remains at high risk of external and overall debt distress”.

The archipelago, famed for its white sand beaches and where tourism accounts for nearly a third of the economy, has recovered economically from the Covid-19 pandemic.

But while a planned airport expansion and an increase in hotels are projected to boost growth, the IMF said “uncertainty surrounding the outlook remains high and risks are tilted to the downside.”

Muizzu’s mentor, former president Abdulla Yameen, who ruled for five years until 2018, borrowed heavily from Beijing for construction projects.

That left it owing 42 per cent of its more than $3 billion foreign debt to China in 2021, according to the World Bank, citing the Maldives’ finance ministry.

Muizzu, who has requested that Indian troops operating three reconnaissance aircraft in the Maldives leave by May 10, has vowed to strengthen his military to defend the country’s vast maritime territory.

Global east-west shipping lanes pass through the nation’s chain of 1,192 tiny coral islands, stretching around 800 kilometres across the equator.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Three southern states – Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu – have reached Delhi to knock on the doors of the central government alleging discrimination in the federal funds allocated to states.

Karnataka government was the first to take the streets as top leaders of the state, including Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his deputy DK Shivakumar, gathered at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. They claim the BJP-ruled government at the Centre is withholding funds and has purposefully reduced the state’s share of tax revenue.

Mr Shivakumar said Karnataka ranks second in Goods and Services Tax (GST) collection and is the biggest contributor to the country’s revenue.

“We are asking for our rights, we are asking for our share. The Karnataka government had sought drought relief funds from the Centre but not even a single rupee was given,” he said.

The protesters, NDTV has been told, are also demanding the centre correct the Rs 1.87 lakh crore loss incurred by the state government. According to the Chief Minister, the formula to calculate the devolution of tax revenue to states, specifically his state, was incorrectly altered by the 15th Finance Commission.

Not to be outdone, the BJP launched a protest of its own – in Bengaluru – to highlight the “failures” of the Congress government in Karnataka. BJP legislators and leaders led by the party state president BY Vijayendra staged a sit-in demonstration in front of Mahatma Gandhi’s statue near Vidhana Soudha yesterday, which houses the State Legislature and Secretariat of Karnataka.

Holding placards, the protestors raised slogans condemning the Congress government for allegedly failing to offer relief to drought-hit farmers and incentives to milk producers.

Taking a cue from Karnataka’s protest, MPs from Tamil Nadu and Kerala will also stage protests in Delhi today. Through their demonstrations, the state governments aim to highlight the “injustice” in tax devolution and grants-in-aid they have been subjected to over the past few years.

Tamil Nadu MPs of the ruling DMK and its alliance partners will protest near the Mahatma Gandhi statue in the Parliament complex today.

Kerala Chief Minister Pinaryai Vijayan and members of his Left Front government are scheduled to hold a protest at Jantar Mantar today.

The centre vs states row over funds allocation to states has heated up since Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Interim Budget on February 1. The ongoing session of Parliament has witnessed several arguments between the Centre and the Opposition over the issue. The funds allocation issue also saw Ms Sitharaman and the Congress’ Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury squabbling in Parliament.

Mr Chowdhury claimed non-BJP states, specifically in South India were “deprived of their financial dues”, including those related to GST, or Goods and Services Tax, compensation.

An incensed Ms Sitharaman hit back, explaining that “devolution to states… happens as per Finance Commission recommendation”, and that she had no “discretion” in the allocation of tax revenues.

From the administrative side, Finance Secretary TV Somanathan told NDTV yesterday that financial allocations to states are based on uniform guidelines that leave no room for discrimination.

A 23-year old Indian-American student at Purdue University, who was found dead in a nature preserve in Indiana this week, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, according to authorities.

Sameer Kamath, a US citizen, was found dead in the woods on February 5 at approximately 5pm in NICHES Land Trust – Crow’s Grove in Williamsport, Indiana.

Justin Brummett, Coroner at Warren County Coroner’s Office, said in a press release Wednesday that a forensic autopsy was performed on Kamath on February 6 in Crawfordsville, Indiana.

The press release from the coroner’s office said that the preliminary cause of death is a “”gunshot wound of the head” and Kamath died by “suicide”. A toxicology report is pending.

“Through extensive investigation by the Warren County Coroner’s Office in conjunction with multiple other local and federal agencies, we are now able to release a preliminary cause and manner of death,” the release said.

The coroner’s office said that prior to releasing this information, Kamath’s family was notified of the results.

This is an ongoing investigation with the Warren County Coroner’s Office, Warren County Sheriff’s Office, Purdue University Administration and other supporting agencies, it said.

“Our deepest sympathies and condolences go out to the family and we hope they are respected during such a difficult time,” Brummett said.

A report in The Purdue Exponent said that Kamath was a doctoral candidate in mechanical engineering. The report added that mechanical engineering head Eckhard Groll said in an email to the ME community that Kamath was from Massachusetts.

He “received his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and came to Purdue in the summer of 2021,” the Purdue Exponent report added.

Kamath was to graduate from the doctoral program in 2025, according to his LinkedIn profile, the report said.

Kamath’s death is the latest in a string of tragic incidents among students of Indian-origin and from India in the US.

Last month, another Purdue student 19-year old Neel Acharya, who had been reported missing, was found dead on the Purdue University West Lafayette campus. Acharya was a US citizen. Authorities have said that there was no trauma or significant injuries found during the autopsy on Acharya and “no foul play is suspected at this time”.

Last month, 25-year-old Indian student Vivek Saini was hammered to death by a homeless drug addict in Georgia. Earlier this month, another Indian student, Syed Mazahir Ali, hailing from Hyderabad and pursuing Masters in information technology, was chased and brutally attacked by three unidentified men in Chicago.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)