Covid pandemic ravages India as people gasp for breath
Munawar Zaman
Press TV, New Delhi
The second wave of coronavirus pandemic continues to inflict mayhem in the Indian subcontinent. The country is battling with acute shortage of oxygen and medical supplies.
The total number of infections has risen to nearly 18 million based on government data but experts argue the numbers are much higher and so are the fatalities. They accuse the government of hiding the actual picture, calling it an unprecedented calamity.
It's not just the oxygen and medical supplies that are running short. Crematoriums are overflowing with Covid victims and the families have to wait for hours to burn bodies. Experts say the next 10 days are extremely critical for the country as the outbreak might reach its peak.
India’s crumbling vaccination program has vastly been criticized with health experts saying the drive was largely mismanaged and should have been rolled out for all regardless of the age group. Critics also say the government's overconfidence in handling the first wave, costing and exporting the vaccination left the country in chaos. Now the world’s biggest vaccine producer doesn’t have enough stock to vaccinate its own population. Reports say only 9 percent of the people have been vaccinated so far.
The Indian government is facing unprecedented criticism over handling the crises, critics blame the government for allowing huge election rallies and religious gatherings which they say added fuel to the pandemic.
The country’s Supreme Court on Friday directed all states against clamping down on social media as the desperate citizens have resorted to social media for grievances, many are also posting SOS messages for ambulances, oxygen and medicine.
The top court has further directed the government to follow the national immunization model. Moreover, the international aid has started pouring in but experts say it’s just a drop in an ocean considering the size and population of the country.
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