Coronavirus in India

[KingKhanWC]

I don't know. Only hear about deaths in media. Covid has been spreading in my apartment complex for more than a month now, but nobody has died. People are recovering in home quarantine.

Hope you & your family stay safe.

In your estimation its not so serious then?

 

[RohitD]

Hope you & your family stay safe.

In your estimation its not so serious then?

Unless one has pre existing health conditions, probability of severe disease is low. Of course it is widespread currently, but I don't think mortality is high.

 

[gani999]

I assume you're Indian?

You seem to be playing down the seriousness of the situation in India. Perhaps im mistaken.

Can you please in detail explain the current Covid wave in India from your pov? How bad is it?

Nobody is downplaying anything and the situation in India is pretty grim.

When more advanced countries in Europe were in similar situations last year, it is naiive to assume that India, with all its problems, will have it any easier.

The point is that there is no use playing the blame game. It's a tough situation and India must deal with it.

And I doubt any other government would have done better, with all the lopsided urban development that has been taking place in India for the last 70 odd years.

 

[KingKhanWC]

Unless one has pre existing health conditions, probability of severe disease is low. Of course it is widespread currently, but I don't think mortality is high.

I agree as 97%+ survive. However this is a new mutation, not seen before.

Nobody is downplaying anything and the situation in India is pretty grim.

When more advanced countries in Europe were in similar situations last year, it is naiive to assume that India, with all its problems, will have it any easier.

The point is that there is no use playing the blame game. It's a tough situation and India must deal with it.

And I doubt any other government would have done better, with all the lopsided urban development that has been taking place in India for the last 70 odd years.

Not true at all. Sure the Yanks and Brit governments are a joke but many others such as the NZ, Sweden, Norway, Aus have done reallly well.

I agree India is still a 3rd world nation & with so many living in poverty esp in terrible conditions its more difficult. However the Modi regime hasnt helped. Indian Media themselves are saying he's ignoring the advice of health experts and is clueless. Allowing the Kumbh Mela to continue in that fashion has led to a dangerous situation for many, amongst other poor policies.

 

[RohitD]

Nobody is downplaying anything and the situation in India is pretty grim.

When more advanced countries in Europe were in similar situations last year, it is naiive to assume that India, with all its problems, will have it any easier.

The point is that there is no use playing the blame game. It's a tough situation and India must deal with it.

And I doubt any other government would have done better, with all the lopsided urban development that has been taking place in India for the last 70 odd years.

Yeah people just relaxed completely after the first wave ended. No masks, no social distancing. But now people have become alert again. Already 120 million vaccine doses administered. My parents got the vaccine without any hassles. So not sure about vaccine shortage either. So I feel cases and deaths will come down in few weeks.

 

[RohitD]

I agree as 97%+ survive. However this is a new mutation, not seen before.



Not true at all. Sure the Yanks and Brit governments are a joke but many others such as the NZ, Sweden, Norway, Aus have done reallly well.

I agree India is still a 3rd world nation & with so many living in poverty esp in terrible conditions its more difficult. However the Modi regime hasnt helped. Indian Media themselves are saying he's ignoring the advice of health experts and is clueless. Allowing the Kumbh Mela to continue in that fashion has led to a dangerous situation for many, amongst other poor policies.

I live in the epicenter of the new mutant, so I am talking about the new mutant only.

 

[Major]

man im really sad about what is happening in India.
Some poeple are saying Pakistan should export oxygen, but than im also not happy how India decided not to send us the vaccines, and how posters like Joshilla defended that move.

While i would want Pakistan to send them oxygen, but after the way they decided not to send us vaccines, it becomes abit hard

 

[RohitD]

man im really sad about what is happening in India.
Some poeple are saying Pakistan should export oxygen, but than im also not happy how India decided not to send us the vaccines, and how posters like Joshilla defended that move.

While i would want Pakistan to send them oxygen, but after the way they decided not to send us vaccines, it becomes abit hard

Bargain Kashmir for oxygen, it's your best chance

 

[cricketjoshila]

I assume you're Indian?

You seem to be playing down the seriousness of the situation in India. Perhaps im mistaken.

Can you please in detail explain the current Covid wave in India from your pov? How bad is it?

The CFRvis better than UK. That should suffice.

 

[ChTab]

Covid-19: Delhi hospitals run out of oxygen supplies

Six hospitals in the Indian capital Delhi have completely run out of oxygen and doctors say other hospitals have just a few hours' worth of supply left.

A number of people have died while waiting for oxygen, and more than 99% of all intensive care beds are full.

India is in the grips of a second wave of Covid infections and on Thursday recorded the highest one-day tally of new cases anywhere in the world.

The country has recorded close to 16 million confirmed infections.

There have been 314,835 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, while deaths rose by 2,104.

There have been reports of state authorities stopping oxygen tankers from travelling to other states, according to Delhi television station NDTV. Some facilities have been accused of hoarding their supplies.

Indian politician, Saurabh Bharadwaj, who is being treated in hospital for Covid, posted a plea for help in Hindi on Twitter, saying there were just three hours of oxygen left where he was.

"A lot of people are dependent on oxygen and without oxygen, these people will die just like fish die in the absence of water," he said. "This is a time for all to come together to work."

Delhi is known to have among the best healthcare facilities in India, but it has been brought to its knees by the latest surge in cases, says BBC India correspondent Yogita Limaye.

Families are also waiting hours to perform funeral rites, Reuters news agency reports, with at least one Delhi crematorium resorting to building pyres in its car park in order to cope with the numbers arriving. Crematoriums are holding mass cremations, and working day and night in several cities.

A doctor working in a government hospital in the south of India, who wished to remain anonymous, said tensions were running high.

"Patients are trying to hit doctors," they told the BBC. "They are blaming doctors for everything and even the [hospital] management is also blaming the doctors. It's a stressful environment."

"We have presently almost used 99% of oxygen ports - only 1% is left. It's a very pathetic situation."

One family's story
Sukhbinder Singh lives in Leicester in the UK and told the BBC that his mother, 90-year-old Harbans Kaur, died on Wednesday in Delhi after she and seven members of his family tested positive for Covid-19.

A nursing home refused to admit Ms Kaur without a family member to care for her, but no-one was well enough to do so and she had to stay at home.

"After several phone calls and pleading, I managed to organised the cremation through a charity for my mother, which was carried out with some usual rituals," he added. "But there were no final farewells by family and the memory of her death is very difficult to deal with mentally."

Mr Singh's brother and sister-in-law were admitted to hospital in Delhi, and using his contacts in India, he was finally able to secure the medicine and oxygen they needed - although he said he struggled in part because of rising medicine costs due to the black market.

"My lower-middle-class family is not rich to afford big private hospital fees and treatment costs. What about poor daily wagers who can't even afford paracetamol?"

How did it get so bad?
In January, the pandemic was relatively under control, but since then the situation has gone from bad to worse, for a number of reasons.

India has seen a rapid rise in case numbers over the past month driven by lax safety protocols, a Hindu festival attended by millions and variants of the virus, including a "double mutant" strain.

What is the India Covid variant?
Political parties have come under criticism for holding huge state election rallies - including one by Prime Minister Narendra Modi - in West Bengal. The government has defended the decision to continue with polling, which is taking place in phases, but India's election body has now banned campaign rallies.

What action is being taken?
Prime Minister Modi chaired a high-level meeting on Thursday to discuss the oxygen supply issue. According to a government statement, he was told that an "elaborate exercise" is under way, with state governments to identify their needs so they can be supplied with oxygen.

To transport oxygen around the country faster, the canisters are being airlifted and put on direct trains, the statement says.

There is no national lockdown currently in place, and regions are implementing their own rules.

Delhi announced a week-long lockdown at the weekend, leaving just government offices and essential services like hospitals, pharmacies and grocers open.

Tougher restrictions have been announced in the worst affected state of Maharashtra, which is India's richest region and home to its financial hub, Mumbai. It has also been a Covid hotspot since the start of the pandemic, accounting for a quarter of India's cases.

What is happening with the vaccine drive?

Despite a promising start in January, India's inoculation drive has been lagging.

Some 130 million doses have so far been administered, but with a population of more than a billion people, it is a small percentage, and the drive has been restricted to health workers, frontline staff, those above the age of 45 and anyone with co-morbidities.

Experts say India is unlikely to meet its target of covering 250 million people by July.

From 1 May, people above 18 will also be eligible for the vaccine. But there is a shortage of doses, which could slow it down further.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-56851265

 

[RohitD]

Covid-19: Delhi hospitals run out of oxygen supplies

Six hospitals in the Indian capital Delhi have completely run out of oxygen and doctors say other hospitals have just a few hours' worth of supply left.

A number of people have died while waiting for oxygen, and more than 99% of all intensive care beds are full.

India is in the grips of a second wave of Covid infections and on Thursday recorded the highest one-day tally of new cases anywhere in the world.

The country has recorded close to 16 million confirmed infections.

There have been 314,835 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, while deaths rose by 2,104.

There have been reports of state authorities stopping oxygen tankers from travelling to other states, according to Delhi television station NDTV. Some facilities have been accused of hoarding their supplies.

Indian politician, Saurabh Bharadwaj, who is being treated in hospital for Covid, posted a plea for help in Hindi on Twitter, saying there were just three hours of oxygen left where he was.

"A lot of people are dependent on oxygen and without oxygen, these people will die just like fish die in the absence of water," he said. "This is a time for all to come together to work."

Delhi is known to have among the best healthcare facilities in India, but it has been brought to its knees by the latest surge in cases, says BBC India correspondent Yogita Limaye.

Families are also waiting hours to perform funeral rites, Reuters news agency reports, with at least one Delhi crematorium resorting to building pyres in its car park in order to cope with the numbers arriving. Crematoriums are holding mass cremations, and working day and night in several cities.

A doctor working in a government hospital in the south of India, who wished to remain anonymous, said tensions were running high.

"Patients are trying to hit doctors," they told the BBC. "They are blaming doctors for everything and even the [hospital] management is also blaming the doctors. It's a stressful environment."

"We have presently almost used 99% of oxygen ports - only 1% is left. It's a very pathetic situation."

One family's story
Sukhbinder Singh lives in Leicester in the UK and told the BBC that his mother, 90-year-old Harbans Kaur, died on Wednesday in Delhi after she and seven members of his family tested positive for Covid-19.

A nursing home refused to admit Ms Kaur without a family member to care for her, but no-one was well enough to do so and she had to stay at home.

"After several phone calls and pleading, I managed to organised the cremation through a charity for my mother, which was carried out with some usual rituals," he added. "But there were no final farewells by family and the memory of her death is very difficult to deal with mentally."

Mr Singh's brother and sister-in-law were admitted to hospital in Delhi, and using his contacts in India, he was finally able to secure the medicine and oxygen they needed - although he said he struggled in part because of rising medicine costs due to the black market.

"My lower-middle-class family is not rich to afford big private hospital fees and treatment costs. What about poor daily wagers who can't even afford paracetamol?"

How did it get so bad?
In January, the pandemic was relatively under control, but since then the situation has gone from bad to worse, for a number of reasons.

India has seen a rapid rise in case numbers over the past month driven by lax safety protocols, a Hindu festival attended by millions and variants of the virus, including a "double mutant" strain.

What is the India Covid variant?
Political parties have come under criticism for holding huge state election rallies - including one by Prime Minister Narendra Modi - in West Bengal. The government has defended the decision to continue with polling, which is taking place in phases, but India's election body has now banned campaign rallies.

What action is being taken?
Prime Minister Modi chaired a high-level meeting on Thursday to discuss the oxygen supply issue. According to a government statement, he was told that an "elaborate exercise" is under way, with state governments to identify their needs so they can be supplied with oxygen.

To transport oxygen around the country faster, the canisters are being airlifted and put on direct trains, the statement says.

There is no national lockdown currently in place, and regions are implementing their own rules.

Delhi announced a week-long lockdown at the weekend, leaving just government offices and essential services like hospitals, pharmacies and grocers open.

Tougher restrictions have been announced in the worst affected state of Maharashtra, which is India's richest region and home to its financial hub, Mumbai. It has also been a Covid hotspot since the start of the pandemic, accounting for a quarter of India's cases.

What is happening with the vaccine drive?

Despite a promising start in January, India's inoculation drive has been lagging.

Some 130 million doses have so far been administered, but with a population of more than a billion people, it is a small percentage, and the drive has been restricted to health workers, frontline staff, those above the age of 45 and anyone with co-morbidities.

Experts say India is unlikely to meet its target of covering 250 million people by July.

From 1 May, people above 18 will also be eligible for the vaccine. But there is a shortage of doses, which could slow it down further.

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-56851265

Why do we only hear about Delhi ? What about Mumbai ?

 

[KingKhanWC]

I live in the epicenter of the new mutant, so I am talking about the new mutant only.

Glad to hear it's nothing major then.

man im really sad about what is happening in India.
Some poeple are saying Pakistan should export oxygen, but than im also not happy how India decided not to send us the vaccines, and how posters like Joshilla defended that move.

While i would want Pakistan to send them oxygen, but after the way they decided not to send us vaccines, it becomes abit hard

You were saying Pakistan has failed badly in its Covid response, with that in mind, how do you rate India's response as per current situation?

The CFRvis better than UK. That should suffice.

Great, so in 6 months India will out of the pandemic. Ill come back then to reply

 

[Ahmad-GERMANFC]

332k cases today! The worrying thing js it’s not stabilizing

 

[cric_man]

man im really sad about what is happening in India.
Some poeple are saying Pakistan should export oxygen, but than im also not happy how India decided not to send us the vaccines, and how posters like Joshilla defended that move.

While i would want Pakistan to send them oxygen, but after the way they decided not to send us vaccines, it becomes abit hard

Do we even have any surplus?

 

[Saj]

Six hospitals in the Indian capital Delhi have completely run out of oxygen and doctors say other hospitals have just a few hours' worth of supply left.

A number of people have died while waiting for oxygen, and more than 99% of all intensive care beds are full.

India is in the grips of a second wave of Covid infections and on Thursday recorded the highest one-day tally of new cases anywhere in the world.

The country has recorded close to 16 million confirmed infections.

There have been 314,835 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, while deaths rose by 2,104.

 

[90MPH]

https://twitter.com/soniafaleiro/status/1385101912987607049?s=21

 

[Major]

Glad to hear it's nothing major then.



You were saying Pakistan has failed badly in its Covid response, with that in mind, how do you rate India's response as per current situation?



Great, so in 6 months India will out of the pandemic. Ill come back then to reply

I can't comment on India as i dont live there and dont know the situation.

Thing is, statistics don't tell an accurate picture. The situation is much worse everywhere and stats are not reporting an accurate result.

Anytime soon, Pakistan could face similar situation like India.

 

[Ahmad-GERMANFC]

This is not based on facts. In Europe, People were not dying on the streets and footpaths waiting and hoping to be allowed in the hospitals. Death rates were as bad or worse but there weren’t seen of people pleading for hospital beds and ventilators and seeing their relatives die in front of the hospital entrance..

[MENTION=134230]gani999[/MENTION]

Scenes such as these ( commonplace in India) never happened in Europe:

https://twitter.com/bnodesk/status/1385324157332766728?s=21

In India many people who might have been saved with medical intervention are not even getting to visit hospital

 

[Junaids]

[MENTION=134230]gani999[/MENTION]

In India many people who might have been saved with medical intervention are not even getting to visit hospital

...and are never being recorded as Covid cases.

We have seen a little bit of that with uninsured black Americans who are too young for Medicare.

But India is the first major country in which huge numbers of people are dying of Covid without receiving health care or being recorded as Covid cases. It’s quite similar to Ecuador ten months ago.

 

[Runner Up]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Respect. Hope and pray that this crisis is over ASAP. Love from Pakistan. <a href="https://t.co/kSQXfxkt4F">https://t.co/kSQXfxkt4F</a></p>— ༆༒࿇Aam Aadmi ࿇༒༆ (@Aaam_Aaadmii) <a href="https://twitter.com/Aaam_Aaadmii/status/1385370497727221770?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 22, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[Runner Up]

Trending in Pakistan right now

 

[kabbirann]

The situation was much the same in many European countries last year, despite their excellent medical infrastructure.
The government may be inefficient in India, and the mostly careless India population is most definitely to be blamed. India may not be perfect, far from it, but to say that there is a 'Institutional collapse' is just plain nonsense. We have the most serious pandemic since the black plague on our hands, and medical infrastructure is breaking down in many places, not just India. So let's stay away from the pointless criticism and keep agendas out of it.

I'm sure there are many elements in the Indian government who are working day and night, as are the common people, to meet this challenge. Let's not undermine their efforts.

And thank you for your help. I'm sure it will be of benefit to someone in these trying times.

I don't know what agenda you are talking about as I have not mentioned anywhere about Modi's criminally shoddy leadership.

India comes across as a weird dystopia where Delhi hospitals are moving court to get oxygen supplies ,you have these news reports of people gasping for breath outside hospitals and juxtaposed with that you have Modi going " didi o didi "like a road chap mawali in his rallies.

People are careless everywhere, here in NSW, the govt had to make masks compulsory to make people mask up. It is upto the leaders to lead from the front.

 

[pillionrider]

I'd say the actual numbers are a minimum of 1.5 times than what the tests are showing. Simply because there are so many who have symptoms but don't get tested. There isn't much manipulation of number of positives. It's the deaths that are being severely under-reported. And this is happening in mostly BJP-ruled states where they don't even test properly.

Maharashtra is way above UP. Yeah sure. In the same world where Modi has harnessed special ancient Himalayan powers. Actually heard this line from an educated arts and crafts shop owner some time back.

We haven't hit anywhere close to our peak yet, considering the population. And I'm not sure why people are shocked by the number of cases per day. It's still not comparable to the peaks of countries like the UK, Italy or the US.

It's only in the last few days that the din of traffic outside my house has dropped. Now people are a bit scared. But the effects of this fear will take at least a couple of weeks to show up in the numbers. By then we should have breached the half a million per day mark easily. I'm expecting the peak to be a million cases per day.

 

[RohitD]

332k cases today! The worrying thing js it’s not stabilizing

It has started to stabilise in western India. Rising in North and East.

 

[RohitD]

I don't know what agenda you are talking about as I have not mentioned anywhere about Modi's criminally shoddy leadership.

India comes across as a weird dystopia where Delhi hospitals are moving court to get oxygen supplies ,you have these news reports of people gasping for breath outside hospitals and juxtaposed with that you have Modi going " didi o didi "like a road chap mawali in his rallies.

People are careless everywhere, here in NSW, the govt had to make masks compulsory to make people mask up. It is upto the leaders to lead from the front.

All part of political blame game. The AAP govt of Delhi is master of that. The CM of Delhi thanked the center for providing oxygen yesterday, how is there a shortage next day ?

 

[Itachi]

332k cases today! The worrying thing js it’s not stabilizing

Some other states will go through the second waves by next month. so numbers will increase or stay the same. probably by Aug, it should have a downward curve.

 

[Ahmad-GERMANFC]

I'd say the actual numbers are a minimum of 1.5 times than what the tests are showing. Simply because there are so many who have symptoms but don't get tested. There isn't much manipulation of number of positives. It's the deaths that are being severely under-reported. And this is happening in mostly BJP-ruled states where they don't even test properly.

Maharashtra is way above UP. Yeah sure. In the same world where Modi has harnessed special ancient Himalayan powers. Actually heard this line from an educated arts and crafts shop owner some time back.

We haven't hit anywhere close to our peak yet, considering the population. And I'm not sure why people are shocked by the number of cases per day. It's still not comparable to the peaks of countries like the UK, Italy or the US.

It's only in the last few days that the din of traffic outside my house has dropped. Now people are a bit scared. But the effects of this fear will take at least a couple of weeks to show up in the numbers. By then we should have breached the half a million per day mark easily. I'm expecting the peak to be a million cases per day.

My friends family in Delhi pulled some strings and got a home covid test for the family. ALL of them were covid positive. Only the dad was seeing some symptoms and had been isolating.

If this family didn’t have the influence then the other 4 members of the family wouldn’t have been even tested

 

[cric_man]

Some other states will go through the second waves by next month. so numbers will increase or stay the same. probably by Aug, it should have a downward curve.

There are 100 days to August. Even if you average half of current daily 300k+ infections per day, you are looking at 15M more infections Hoping it is not as bad.

 

[RohitD]

There are 100 days to August. Even if you average half of current daily 300k+ infections per day, you are looking at 15M more infections Hoping it is not as bad.

Most of those infections are mild.

 

[cric_man]

Most of those infections are mild.

Even if 10% require hospitalization; that is 150000 beds, Oxygen, Ventilators.
Hopefully it is as you say.

 

[RohitD]

Even if 10% require hospitalization; that is 150000 beds, Oxygen, Ventilators.
Hopefully it is as you say.

You are assuming same number of daily cases over 100 days. It has already started to stabilise in Western India where this wave started. That's why most of the news is coming from Delhi, not Mumbai.

 

[IAJ]

Most of those infections are mild.

The danger part is that one who is young and have only mild symptoms can pass it to his elderly grandmother who may not cope with it same way.

 

[MenInG]

New Delhi: A day after setting a world record for the biggest single-day rise in COVID-19 cases, India on Friday further extended that record by reporting around 17,000 more new cases than yesterday's count. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare also confirmed that around 13.54 crore people have been vaccinated against the coronavirus infection in the country.

According to the Health Ministry's latest bulletin, India reported 3,32,730 new COVID cases in the last 24 hours, taking the total tally to 1.63 crore. Apart from the new infections, as many 2,263 virus-related deaths were also reported during the dame duration, which took the death toll to 1.87 lakh.

On the flip side, nearly 1.94 lakh people recovered from the deadly disease in the last 24 hours, taking the total recoveries in the country to 1.36 crore. As per the Health Ministry, there are more than 24.28 lakh active cases of COVID-19 in the country, as of Friday morning.

India's COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.

It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19.

India crossed the grim milestone of 1.50 crore on April 19.

According to the ICMR, 27,44,45,653 samples have been tested up to April 22 with 17,40,550 samples being tested on Thursday

 

[cric_man]

You are assuming same number of daily cases over 100 days. It has already started to stabilise in Western India where this wave started. That's why most of the news is coming from Delhi, not Mumbai.

I using an average that is half of current daily average. Even if you take 25% of today's number you are still looking at 10-12M. When you say it is started to stabilize, what do you mean? Is it dropping or not increasing more than current daily number?
Hopefully my rough math is way off, vaccine starts to take effect and we don't see a catastrophe.

 

[cricketjoshila]

I using an average that is half of current daily average. Even if you take 25% of today's number you are still looking at 10-12M. When you say it is started to stabilize, what do you mean? Is it dropping or not increasing more than current daily number?
Hopefully my rough math is way off, vaccine starts to take effect and we don't see a catastrophe.

The wave started from Chattisgarh and Maharashtra. Chattisgarh is now reporting more recoveries than positive cases.

Maharashtra is swivelling within a range for last one week and is reporting 60k plus recoveries a day with new positives also in 60k range. It has reached peak and will now descend.

Rest of the country is 2-3 weeks behind these places and will see peak im may 1st week.

Right now the daily rise of infection is 5 percent of the previous day.

 

[MenInG]

At least 13 patients have died after a fire broke out in the intensive care unit of an Indian hospital treating Covid patients near Mumbai.

The blaze, which took place early on Friday, was extinguished and four survivors have been moved to nearby hospitals, said authorities.

The incident comes amid a deadly second wave of infections in India.

The spike has overwhelmed hospitals, creating a critical shortage of oxygen, ICU beds and ventilators.

On Friday India recorded 332,730 coronavirus cases, the highest one-day tally seen anywhere in the world for the second day in a row. Daily deaths from Covid-19 rose by a record 2,263 in the previous 24 hours.

The fire happened at the Vijay Vallabh hospital in the Virar area of the western state of Maharashtra, which is about 70km (43 miles) north of Mumbai.

It remains unclear how the blaze started, and Maharashtra's chief minister has ordered an inquiry.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has offered condolences on Twitter calling the incident "tragic".

The rising number of cases has resulted in a deepening healthcare crisis that has gripped several states. Mr Modi is due to hold meetings with chief ministers of the most affected states and oxygen manufacturers on Friday.

India's top court has asked the central government for a national plan by Friday, on bolstering supply, oxygen, medicine, treatment and vaccines.

The Supreme Court called the situation a "national health emergency" - six high courts across the country are hearing petitions involving medical shortages.

Maharashtra is the worst hit state in the country in terms of cases and faces an oxygen shortfall.

Two days earlier, 24 Covid patients died in another part of Maharashtra after they lost oxygen flow to their ventilators. A leak interrupted supply as a storage tank was being refilled at the Zakir Hussain hospital in Nashik city.

In recent days, several other hospitals in Delhi had said they either ran out of oxygen or had rapidly dwindling supplies.

A number of people have died while waiting for supplies, and the majority of intensive care beds in Delhi hospitals are full.

Max Healthcare, which runs 10 private hospitals in the New Delhi area, said on Friday morning that it had been waiting for fresh oxygen supplies for more than seven hours at two facilities.

It later said the supplies eventually arrived.

Three other Indian states - Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, and Haryana - are also facing a critical shortage of oxygen, while others are seeing depleting supplies.

Meanwhile a travel ban has taken effect in the UK for visitors from India. British and Irish citizens will still be allowed entry but will have to stay in a government appointed quarantine hotel for ten days.

Canada and the United Arab Emirates have suspended passenger flights for 30 days and Singapore has tightened restrictions on travellers from India.

BBC

 

[MenInG]

Faisal Edhi offers to help India

 

[OMB]

UAE suspends flights from India amid Covid surge


NEW DELHI: With Covid situation worsening, more countries are imposing travel restrictions on the country. After the UK travel curbs, the United Arab Emirates has barred the entry of
travellers from India for 10 days from April 25 till May 4 (both days included).
Indians can enter the UAE — even as transit passengers — only if they have stayed in some other country for at least 14 days, during this period. Etihad says the restriction period “may be extended”. But it will continue to operate flights to India, carrying flyers from Abu Dhabi.

“Following the latest UAE government directives, from April 25, 2021, passenger travel from India to the UAE has been suspended for 10 days, which may be extended. Etihad will continue to operate flights to India, carrying passengers both from our network and from Abu Dhabi. Etihad will not be permitted to carry passengers from India, however UAE nationals,
Diplomatic Passport Holders & Official Passport Holders or those holding an Official Delegation Letter are exempted from the UAE entry restriction. These passengers will be subject to acceptance and
quarantine conditions,” an Etihad spokesperson said.


“Cargo flights will continue to operate in both directions without any impact. Etihad is working closely with impacted guests to notify them of the changes to their itineraries…. This is an evolving situation and we will update guests as more information becomes available. Etihad regrets any inconvenience caused to its guests by these temporary restrictions,” the Etihad spokesperson added.


Emirates said on its website: “Effective April 24, 2021, and for the next 10 days, Emirates flights from India to the UAE will be suspended. Furthermore, passengers who have transited through India in the last 14 days will not be accepted to travel from any other point to the UAE.”

Delhi-Dubai and Mumbai-Dubai are among the international busiest routes even during the pandemic. Both Indian and UAE carriers fly between multiple Indian cities and four in UAE — Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah.
“We expect lot of rush to fly to UAE over Friday and Saturday to reach there before the 11.59 pm on Saturday (April 24) deadline (local time). Only those who have had their Covid test within 48 hours of the flights they wish to take and have a negative report will be able to beat this deadline,” said an airline official.
Since private jets and charter flights are allowed, demand to travel from India to UAE on them will increase.
While hiring an Airbus A320/Boeing 737 type aircraft costs about Rs 40 lakh (for a Delhi-UAE-Delhi flights), smaller business jets cost about Rs 8-10 lakh less, said industry honchos.
Charter firm JetSetGo chief executive and founder Kanika Tekriwal said she had received about 100 queries for flying to UAE within three hours of the ban announcement. “There are hardly any tickets available (on commercial flights before the deadline),” she said.

AI Express said people booked with it “to fly during this period will be able to reschedule their tickets once flight operations on these sectors resume.” Cargo flights will continue to operate in both directions without any impact, says Etihad.
UAE — the biggest international destination for Indians — is the second country after UK to bar the entry of Indians due to the highly infectious new Covid strain here that has led to an explosive rise in number of cases.
Before the 10-day ban, Dubai had tightened entry norms for Indians. Travellers going from India to Dubai
from Thursday (April 22) require a negative Covid report from a test done within 48 hours — reduced from 72 hours currently — of their departure to the UAE.

From 8.30 am (IST) on Friday, Indian citizens will not be allowed to enter United Kingdom as UK has added India to its red list of countries — signifying high Covid risk.

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/uae-bans-entry-from-india-for-10-days/articleshow/82199937.cms

 

[OMB]

India added to UK travel red list as it records world's highest-ever daily case figure for second consecutive day

The India travel curbs come as cases there surge - with many hospitals on the brink and oxygen in short supply.

Britons arriving from India must now pay to quarantine in government-approved hotels for 10 days after the country was added to the travel red list.

As of 4am, only British, Irish and third-country nationals with residence rights, including long-term visa holders, can enter the UK.

Other people are banned if they have been in India in the previous 10 days.

The change has been prompted by a worrying rise in infections, with 332,730 cases reported in India on Friday - the world's highest-ever daily tally which it has now recorded for the second consecutive day - and concerns over a new COVID variant.

The last passengers to land ahead of the restrictions arrived at Heathrow on Thursday evening on a Vistara flight from Delhi.

Among them was a family of three, who were relieved they managed to change their tickets at the last minute, narrowly avoiding having to pay thousands for hotel quarantine. "It's really great - we would be having quarantine at home," said the mother - who did not want to share her name.

"That is the best part. And I am having a child with autism so it's better that he stays at home with us and have all his food preferences at home."

Hotel quarantine costs £1,750 for one adult for 10 days. An extra adult or child over 11 in the same room is £650, and a child aged 5-11 is £325.

University of Stirling student Jetal Zala, who went home to see her parents, couldn't get a flight to the UK before the restrictions kicked in and will now miss out on campus teaching.

"Our classes were meant to be face-to-face from the month of May," she says. "That's why I planned to move at the end of April and start studying at campus and have experience of college and university life in the UK."

The travel restrictions are disrupting businesses too.

Ranjit Mathrani, the chairman of MW Eat restaurant group, says most of his highly trained Indian chefs went home during the UK lockdown and are now stuck.

It could jeopardise his plans to reopen.

"Here we are, after five and a half months of lockdown, losing vast amounts of money, looking forward to limping back to normality in the first place, and we are going to be stuck with the probability and possibility of being unable to reopen, except probably on a very restricted basis in some of our key fine dining restaurants," says Mr Mathrani.

The government has said it had to act, with the health secretary saying the decision to put India on the red list was "difficult but vital".

However, some scientists think it should have happened sooner because of the dramatic surge in cases and the new Indian variant, which could have some resistance to vaccines.

More than 130 cases of the "double mutation" - known as B.1.617 - have so far been detected in Britain.

"I think we should have probably seen the writing on the wall, we've seen cases increasing in India for several weeks now and it would have been prudent to put India on the red list earlier," says Professor Mark Harris of the School of Molecular and Cellular Biology at the University of Leeds.

"It's obviously a tough decision because there's a lot of communication and travel between India and UK, but I think it would have been the right thing to do a few weeks ago."

But hundreds of millions in the country, mainly poorer Indians, do not have smartphone or social media access.

"Access to anything - beds, oxygen, medicines, doctors - is becoming more and more difficult," said children's rights activist Baidnath Kumar, who has been using WhatsApp to help people in need in Jharkhand state.

"One needs to know someone or appeal on social media for a quick response. But how many people can do that? It doesn't work."

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has described the situation as a "COVID storm".

So far, India has only administered 130 million vaccine doses out of a population of 1.35 billion.

Currently, only frontline workers and the over-45s are eligible for a jab, but all adults are expected to be allowed a dose from May.

The number of COVID-related deaths in India stands at 186,920 after another 2,263 were reported by the health ministry on Friday.

Total recorded cases are nearly 16.3 million, out of a population of more than 1.3 billion.


https://news.sky.com/story/covid-19-india-added-to-uk-travel-red-list-as-it-records-worlds-highest-ever-daily-case-figure-12284380

 

[finalfantasy7]

Indian COVID variant now being transmitted within UK after cases not linked to travel detected

https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/worl...-to-travel-detected/ar-BB1fYqKC?ocid=msedgntp

 

[gani999]

India to airlift oxygen generation plants from Germany.

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com...-plants-from-germany/articleshow/82216842.cms

Hopefully, the oxygen supply will improve in the coming days. Lots of arrangements to transport oxygen within the country are being made too. I wish them all success.

 

[Third Man]

Six hospitals in the Indian capital Delhi have completely run out of oxygen and doctors say other hospitals have just a few hours' worth of supply left.

A number of people have died while waiting for oxygen, and more than 99% of all intensive care beds are full.

India is in the grips of a second wave of Covid infections and on Thursday recorded the highest one-day tally of new cases anywhere in the world.

The country has recorded close to 16 million confirmed infections.

There have been 314,835 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours, while deaths rose by 2,104.

The thing is, some very credible experts are saying that the actual count might be in the hundreds of millions.

 

[Bhaag Viru Bhaag]

 

[marlonbrowndo]

This is apocalyptic. Praying for everyone in India

 

[Ahmad-GERMANFC]

Hope today’s a better day

 

[MP2011]

Hope today’s a better day

Not going to happen. We already have a close to 300,000 cases with Delhi's results yet to be in.

 

[Ahmad-GERMANFC]

Not going to happen. We already have a close to 300,000 cases with Delhi's results yet to be in.

Today’s official number: 344k cases, 2,620 deaths

 

[KingKhanWC]

Hope today’s a better day

Ive read the peak wont come until mid May, weeks away.

Really sad to see.

I hate the RSS extremists, dont care for them but for the rest , I pray they dont suffer or fall ill.

 

[MP2011]

Today’s official number: 344k cases, 2,620 deaths

So another all time high!

 

[Ahmad-GERMANFC]

Ive read the peak wont come until mid May, weeks away.

Really sad to see.

I hate the RSS extremists, dont care for them but for the rest , I pray they dont suffer or fall ill.

But COVID-19s danger is overstated right as per you?

 

[KingKhanWC]

But COVID-19s danger is overstated right as per you?

Depends on the the indviduals immune system. Its still a FACT 97%+ recover so it's not going to bring the end of humanity.

Of course it can mutate to something serious to all inc youth and children but this has yet to occur.

 

[Ryw]

Not fault of the ambulans driver, 1947 model ambulans ki halat to daikho, isky shor aur jumps sy to deadbody zinda hoky uth k baith jayay...

 

[MenInG]

NEW DELHI:India posted a record tally of 346,786 coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, while daily deaths from Covid-19 also jumped by a record, government data released on Saturday showed.

Deaths rose by 2,624 to reach a total of 189,544, according to health ministry data.

People across India scrambled for life-saving oxygen supplies on Friday and patients lay dying outside hospitals as the capital recorded the equivalent of one death from Covid-19 every five minutes.

For the second day running, the country's overnight infection total was higher than ever recorded anywhere in the world since the pandemic began last year, at 332,730.

India's second wave has hit with such ferocity that hospitals are running out of oxygen, beds and anti-viral drugs. Many patients have been turned away because there was no space for them, doctors in Delhi said.

Ambulance sirens sounded throughout the day in the deserted streets of the capital, one of India's worst hit cities, where a lockdown is in place to try and stem the transmission of the virus.

Mass cremations have been taking place as the crematoriums have run out of space.

At Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital in the north east of the city, critical patients gasping for air arrived in ambulances and autorickshaws. Some waited for hours on trolleys outside and one, Shayam Narayan died before being admitted, a death unlikely to be counted in the city’s rising toll.

"The system is broken," his younger brother Raj said.

Tushar Maurya, whose mother was being treated inside, urged anyone not in a serious condition to keep away.

"The staff are doing their best but there is not enough oxygen," she said.

The India Today television channel showed angry relatives outside a hospital in Ahmedabad, the largest city in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's home state of Gujarat.

"People are dying in front of hospitals while they wait for a bed to become available," one man said.

Another young man, who was not identified, said "Is this why we voted for this government? When we need it the most, we find ourselves all alone. Where will the poor go?"

Health experts say India became complacent in the winter, when new cases were running at about 10,000 a day and seemed to be under control, and lifted restrictions to allow big gatherings.

Modi himself has faced rare criticism for allowing political rallies and a Hindu religious festival, in which millions take a ritual bath in the Ganges river, to go ahead. He addressed many of the rallies with packed crowds and few people wearing masks.

"Indians let down their collective guard," Zarir Udwadia, a pulmonologist on Maharashtra's task force, wrote in the Times of India newspaper.

"We heard self-congratulatory declarations of victory from our leaders, now cruelly exposed as mere self-assured hubris."

Delhi's government declared in February it had beaten back the coronavirus. On Friday, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal went on live television to plead for medical oxygen supplies in a virtual meeting with Modi, warning that many people would die.

"All of the country's oxygen plants should immediately be taken over by the government through the army," he said.

Police in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, some wielding assault rifles, escorted trucks carrying oxygen to waiting hospitals in Delhi, while city governments traded accusations over hoarding.

Modi said the government was making a “continuous effort” to increase oxygen supplies, including steps to divert industrial oxygen.

In Washington, US health officials and a White House spokesperson on Friday said they were weighing how to help India and had been in contact with officials there, but gave no details on any possible US action.

In Mumbai, a fire broke out in a suburban hospital treating Covid-19 patients early on Friday, killing 13 people. On Wednesday, 22 patients died at a public hospital in Maharashtra where Mumbai is located when oxygen supply ran out due to a leaking tank.

World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said he was concerned about the growing case load in India, which on Thursday passed the previous global high of 297,430 recorded in January in the United States, where case numbers have fallen.

"The situation in India is a devastating reminder of what the virus can do," he told a virtual briefing in Geneva.

WHO emergencies director Mike Ryan said reducing transmission would be a "very difficult task" but the government was working on limiting mixing between people, which he said was essential.

Bhramar Mukherjee, a professor of biostatistics and epidemiology at the University of Michigan in the United States, said it seemed as if there was no social safety net for Indians.

“Everyone is fighting for their own survival and trying to protect their loved ones,” he said. “This is hard to watch.”

https://tribune.com.pk/story/229643...9-cases-rise-by-record-346786-health-ministry

 

[IAJ]

Were just watching a clip outside Jaipur Golden Hospital, relatives were waiting many hours for receiving dead bodies of their loved ones. I mean this can happen as system collapses or hospital needs time with paper work etc, but the saddest part was that dead people were just 40 years old, they probably had small kids etc

 

[IAJ]

One person said they had spent 4 lac on their affected relative and she was recovering well but suddenly they got news about hear death as the hospital ran out of oxygen. 4 lac are alot of money and more-over the relative died.

 

[Ahmad-GERMANFC]

One person said they had spent 4 lac on their affected relative and she was recovering well but suddenly they got news about hear death as the hospital ran out of oxygen. 4 lac are alot of money and more-over the relative died.

I’m sure they don’t care about the lost 4 lac. It’s small change in relative terms

 

[IAJ]

I’m sure they don’t care about the lost 4 lac. It’s small change in relative terms

Of course no money comes before the life of a human, but for poor people who sell their houses to manage this, this will have an affect later on. You need to have an eye on everything.

 

[cricketjoshila]

Were just watching a clip outside Jaipur Golden Hospital, relatives were waiting many hours for receiving dead bodies of their loved ones. I mean this can happen as system collapses or hospital needs time with paper work etc, but the saddest part was that dead people were just 40 years old, they probably had small kids etc

Any death in a hospital means atleast 3-4 hrs before the body is handed over.

 

[MenInG]

New Delhi: If anyone obstructs oxygen supply, we will not spare them, the Delhi High Court said today as it heard a hospital's petition over shortage of oxygen for seriously-ill Covid patients.

The Delhi government told the court that the system will "collapse" if the capital doesn't get 480 metric tonnes of oxygen. The worrying shortage of medical oxygen has been flagged by several hospitals which are overwhelmed by the thousands of new daily cases of COVID-19. The issue, which has come contentious in the past few days, has been raised before the High Court by several hospitals, big and small. The oxygen shortage has caused the death of Covid patients in at least one hospital in Delhi in the last 24 hours.

"If we don't get 480 metric tonnes (of oxygen), the system will collapse. We have seen in the last 24 hours. Something disastrous will happen," the Arvind Kejriwal government told the court, adding that it received only 297 metric tonnes of the medical gas yesterday. The state government also sought a detailed affidavit from the centre with clear details of oxygen allocation and supply schedule.

"When will Delhi get 480 metric tonnes? Please tell us that," the court asked the centre as it heard Maharaja Agrasen Hospital's petition.

The court asked the Delhi government to give one instance of who was obstructing the oxygen supply, also asking the state government to inform the centre too about such officials of the local administration so that it could take action against them.

In today's hearing, the centre had earlier put the blame back on the AAP government. "States are arranging from tankers to everything. We are just assisting them. But in Delhi, everything is put on us. Delhi officials have to do their job," the centre said.

"I know my responsibility. I know many things but not saying anything. Let's try and not be a cry baby," Solicitor General Tushar Mehta said in response to Delhi government lawyer Rahul Mehra's complaint that the centre was not complying with the guidelines for oxygen allocation.

"We are not fighting elections," Mr Mehta said.

Twenty-five people died last night at the Jaipur Golden Hospital in Delhi due to shortage of medical oxygen, a top official at the hospital said today. The hospital too has approached the Delhi High Court to flag the oxygen crisis.

Another hospital, which approached the High Court, said it needs 8,000 litres of oxygen, adding that it manage even with 6,000 litres. The hospital said it was given only 500 litres this morning. "We can't manage," the hospital told the court.

Delhi yesterday logged 348 deaths linked to Covid, highest in a day so far. The city - battling with the fourth Covid wave - reported 24,331 new coronavirus cases.

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/cor...t-spare-them-2420858?pfrom=home-ndtv_bigstory

 

[OldWarHorse]

One person said they had spent 4 lac on their affected relative and she was recovering well but suddenly they got news about hear death as the hospital ran out of oxygen. 4 lac are alot of money and more-over the relative died.

Money is no safety net in these times. I know people die who probably would have spent upto 10-15 lakhs if needed, but the oxygen just wasnt there. Turns out quite a few of these contacts floating around of oxygen suppliers are either mostly fake or unavailable. A family found it out the hard way.

 

[OMB]

10 states account for 74.15% of new Covid-19 cases:
Health ministry


Ten states, including , Uttar Pradesh and Delhi, reported
74.15 per cent of the new covid cases reported in a day, the said on Saturday.
It also said 12 states are displaying an upward trajectory in daily cases. These are Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Bihar and West Bengal.

A record single-day rise of 3,46,786 coronavirus cases pushed India's tally of infection to 1,66,10,481, while crossed the 25-lakh mark, according to the ministry's data updated on Saturday.
The death toll rose to 1,89,544 with a record 2,624 more fatalities in a day, the data updated at 8 am showed.

"Ten states -- Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Karnataka, Kerala, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Rajasthan -- reported 74.15 per cent of the new cases," the ministry said in a statement.
Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Kerala cumulatively account for 66.66 per cent of India's total active cases.

The Union health ministry said the cumulative number of COVID-19 vaccine doses administered in the country has crossed 13.83 crore.
These include 92,68,027 healthcare and 1,18,51,655 frontline workers who have taken the first dose, and 59,51,076 healthcare and 61,94,851 frontline workers who have taken the second one.

Also, among the senior citizens, 4,91,45,265 have taken the first dose and 71,65,338 the second dose. Among those between 45 and 60 years, 4,66,71,540 got the first dose of vaccine and 21,32,080 the second dose of vaccine.

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/10-states-account-for-74-15-of-new-covid-19-cases-health-ministry/articleshow/82229887.cms

 

[OMB]

Police look the other way as Bathinda Congress councillors party


Despite the rapid rise in Covid cases in Bathinda, the district police ignored a large celebratory function attended by Congress councillors at a luxury banquet hall on the city’s periphery on Friday night.

Photos and videos of the party at Three Palm Resorts, 6km from Bathinda on the highway to Amritsar, are being shared widely on social media. They show the Congress leaders, including senior deputy mayor Ashok Pradhan set to dine together.

Firecrackers were also let off at the resort in the evening.

When contacted, Pradhan said that the event was hosted by Sandeep Goyal, the husband of newly elected first woman mayor Raman Goyal.

He confirmed that the photos were of Friday’s event. “It was a social meeting of a small group of Congress councillors to celebrate party leaders joining top offices of the Bathinda municipal corporation. You should contact Sandeep for details,” he said.

Denying that he hosted the event, Sandeep said Covid guidelines were followed by the attendees. The photos show that the attendees were neither wearing masks nor maintaining social distancing. “I briefly stayed at the resort and there was no party. No women, including my wife, was present at the casual get-together,” he said.

Sandeep, a liquor contractor of the city, is known for his proximity with local Congress legislator and finance minister Manpreet Singh Badal.

Positive cases continue to rise

Punjab has imposed a ban on all social, political, religious and cultural gatherings. Marriages and wedding functions can be organised but only with 20 people.

The state government has also imposed a night curfew from 8pm till 5am.

With 596 new Covid cases reported on Friday, the district now has a total of 4,466 coronavirus patients since April 9.

According to the medical bulletin, 43 deaths have been reported in the last 15 days and the tally of total Covid-related fatalities has reached 329.

Different rules for different people

Taking prompt action, the local police arrested eight people for hosting a pre-wedding function at Bathinda’s elite Civil Lines Club on Wednesday.

But when 40 cars and motorcycles were reported at the resort on Friday, the police chose to overlook the information.

Gates were closed from inside and lights of the sprawling lawns and the reception areas were shut off after journalists gathered outside the resort.

Following queries of journalists, the police sent a raiding party but it left without initiating any action.

Bathinda range inspector general of police (IGP) Jaskaran Singh and senior superintendent of police (SSP) ** Virk did not respond to the phone calls.

An attempt to reach the chief minister, chief secretary, director general police and state police administration via their official Twitter handles did not elicit any response.

A large number of party attendees started leaving in their vehicles after 10pm without any action by the police.

https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/chandigarh-news/police-look-the-other-way-as-bathinda-congress-councillors-party-101619262780856.html

 

[MP2011]

Pathetic from Congress leaders. Even at this time, they are partying!

They should be dealt in strictest possible manner.

 

[MenInG]

Jammu: In view of the massive surge in the COVID-9 cases, the Jammu and Kashmir government on Saturday announced the imposition of a 34-hour "corona curfew” across the Union Territory from 8 pm tonight to 6 am Monday.

The announcement was made by the office of Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha.

“Complete corona curfew to be observed in the Union Territory from 8PM, 24th April (Saturday) till 6AM, April 26 (Monday). Essential and emergency services to be allowed. All market, commercial institutions will remain closed,” Office of J&K L-G said in a tweet.

The traders association of Jammu has decided to close the market on the weekend. "As a responsible merchant organisation, we have decided to have a weekend lockdown. Through this, we want to help the government," a trader said, ANI reported.

Meanwhile, the L-G said that it has been decided that COVID-19 vaccination for people in the age group of 18 to 45 years will be free of cost in the Union Territory, and the cost of vaccine will be borne by the government of J&K.

On April 8, the Jammu and Kashmir administration ordered the imposition of a night curfew from 10 pm to 6 am in the urban areas of eight districts and later extended it to municipal and urban local body limits of all the 20 districts in the Union Territory on April 20.

The Union Territory on Friday reported 1,937 fresh COVID-19 cases, taking the tally of infection to 1,56,344. The death toll climbed to 2,111 with 19 more people succumbing to the disease, the highest-ever single-day death count.

https://www.timesnownews.com/india/...t-commercial-institutions-to-be-closed/749121

 

[finalfantasy7]

India's hospitals buckle under record Covid surge – BBC News - a must watch video, below:


<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/r2sCwT0TKuE" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

[Nikhil_cric]

Bangalore urban, where i live, has the highest number of active cases among all districts in India. To think that at the beginning of the pandemic, we were handling it better than others.

 

[kaayal]

Bangalore urban, where i live, has the highest number of active cases among all districts in India. To think that at the beginning of the pandemic, we were handling it better than others.

If we look at cases per million/day then Ernakulam district leads in India (as of yesterday’s count). Followed by Delhi>Calicut>Lucknow >Pune> Mumbai.



Kerala have 3 times medical oxygen stock according to the government and the masking has also increased considerably from last week. Hope we can control the preventable deaths as much as we can and save people.

 

[Nikhil_cric]

If we look at cases per million/day then Ernakulam district leads in India (as of yesterday’s count). Followed by Delhi>Calicut>Lucknow >Pune> Mumbai.

View attachment 108793

Kerala have 3 times medical oxygen stock according to the government and the masking has also increased considerably from last week. Hope we can control the preventable deaths as much as we can and save people.

Isn't Ernakulam in lockdown anyway? My relatives live there. I hope everyone stays safe. But I read somewhere that Michigan State University predicts that when we peak it would be 800,000-1,000,000 cases a day.

 

[kaayal]

Isn't Ernakulam in lockdown anyway? My relatives live there. I hope everyone stays safe. But I read somewhere that Michigan State University predicts that when we peak it would be 800,000-1,000,000 cases a day.

As of now ‘lockdown like restrictions’ only for weekends throughout Kerala. If the cases surge, then it will be extended for longer periods.

If the test positivity rate exceeds 30-35, then everything will be saturated and we will see a Delhi, MH like situation here also.

 

[pillionrider]

But I read somewhere that Michigan State University predicts that when we peak it would be 800,000-1,000,000 cases a day.

No need for these studies. A simple ratio proportion comparison with other countries would put our peak at 1-1.2 million per day.

 

[pillionrider]

 

[gani999]

I think what India needs now is a national emergency and some really draconian rules.

1. Complete ban on any grouping of more than 5 people
2. Death sentence for hoarders of medicines and oxygen
3. A national curfew with locality wise relaxations of an hour or two each day for purchasing essentials
4. Complete ban on political or religious gatherings, or public protests, irrespective of party or religion or cause.
5. A complete ban on foreign travel irrespective of reason. I still find idiot Indian tourists travelling abroad.
6. Massive influx of funds into medicine production and the creation of new hospitals, both temporary and permanent.

I know some of these may sound ridiculous, but they are essential. All the so-called 'rights' have to take a back seat and every able man and woman should join in this fight without reservations.

It's for your country, after all. It's the only one you have.

 

[pillionrider]

On a funnier note ....

In a bizarre turn of events, a thief who had fled with a bag containing over 1,700 doses of COVID-19 vaccine in Haryana's Jind, later had a change of heart and returned the doses.

"Sorry, I didn't know it was medicines for corona," the thief wrote in Hindi in the note attached to the returned bag full of Covishield and Covaxin doses.

https://www.livemint.com/news/india...vishield-covaxin-vaccines-11619143790973.html

 

[Runner Up]

On a funnier note ....



https://www.livemint.com/news/india...vishield-covaxin-vaccines-11619143790973.html

Kya faayda return karne ka. The vaccine might have already expired at that time.

 

[Runner Up]

As per Indian media reports, Oxygen supplies are getting better and that is a good sign.

 

[OldWarHorse]

We should take all the aid that we can get. Already oxygen generating plants being airlifted from Germany, China wants to help with medication and tech stuff. Hope these come through

 

[OMB]

Govt asks Twitter, other social media platforms to
remove misleading posts around Covid-19

The government has asked social media platforms, including Twitter and Facebook, to remove content and posts that were spreading misinformation and public panic around the pandemic, according to sources. Twitter said it has notified the impacted account holders of its action taken in response to a legal
request from the Indian government but did not give details of the affected accounts.

Sources said these flagged posts carried misleading information about Covid-19 pandemic, and were designed to incite public panic.
The development comes at a time when India is registering a record number of coronavirus infections daily. The number of Covid-19 cases touched a new daily high of 3.46 lakh cases and 2,624 fatalities on Saturday.

When contacted, a Twitter spokesperson said when it receives a valid legal request, it reviews it under both and local law. "If the content violates Twitter's Rules, the content will be removed from the service. If it is determined to be illegal in a particular jurisdiction, but not in violation of the Twitter Rules, we may withhold access to the content in India only.
"The legal requests that we receive are detailed in the biannual Twitter Transparency Report, and requests to withhold content are published on Lumen," the spokesperson said.

Reports citing Lumen database (an independent research project studying cease and desist letters concerning online content) suggested that more than 50 posts -including those by a member of , and filmmakers - were removed by Twitter on government request.
Meanwhile, Twitter said ahead of withholding the content, it has notified the account holders so that they're aware that the action has been taken in response to a legal request from the .

The microblogging platform emphasised that it is committed to the principles of openness and transparency, and that it tackles misinformation based on the highest potential for harm.
It noted that it is tackling Covid-19 misinformation using a combination of product, technology, and human review.

Facebook and Instagram did not respond to queries.
According to sources, a number of posts and content were flagged by the government to Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and other websites on Friday.

These posts carried misinformation around , were designed to incite public panic and create a feeling of ill-will towards health personnel, they added. Details of the account holders and number of such posts flagged could not be immediately ascertained

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/govt-asks-twitter-other-social-media-platforms-to-remove-misleading-posts-around-covid-19/articleshow/82235006.cms

 

[leonidas_alexandar]

My father has been diagnosed with Covid and he has been isolating at home. To be honest, I've not slept properly the last week and the helplessness of not being there with him to take care of him has been unbearable.

My younger brother and my mom are ensuring that he gets the best care available at home and so far he is doing well. He has isolated for 10 days and he needs to isolate for a few more days and hopefully he should be good.

It really is so painful to see so many people losing their lives to this horrible pandemic.

 

[OMB]

My father has been diagnosed with Covid and he has been isolating at home. To be honest, I've not slept properly the last week and the helplessness of not being there with him to take care of him has been unbearable.

My younger brother and my mom are ensuring that he gets the best care available at home and so far he is doing well. He has isolated for 10 days and he needs to isolate for a few more days and hopefully he should be good.

It really is so painful to see so many people losing their lives to this horrible pandemic.

Pray that he recovers. Have faith, be positive and give him cheer.

 

[MenInG]

My father has been diagnosed with Covid and he has been isolating at home. To be honest, I've not slept properly the last week and the helplessness of not being there with him to take care of him has been unbearable.

My younger brother and my mom are ensuring that he gets the best care available at home and so far he is doing well. He has isolated for 10 days and he needs to isolate for a few more days and hopefully he should be good.

It really is so painful to see so many people losing their lives to this horrible pandemic.

May the Almighty help in his recovery