Not only does the government lack a comprehensive plan to tackle the current spurt in cases, it has little lined up to deal with a potential third wave of the pandemic.
On the evening of 19 April, hours before India’s national capital went under a complete lockdown to control the spread of COVID-19, relatives of 23-year-old Nidhi Kumari were struggling to find her a hospital with a vacant bed and ventilator. Nidhi, who was 25 weeks pregnant, had an oxygen saturation, or SpO2, level at a dangerously low 60.
At the time, she was in a state-run hospital which did not have a vacant bed with a ventilator. So her relatives and some volunteers engaged in a desperate search to find her a ventilator bed in any hospital that would be willing …
Akshay is an investigative reporter and former writer at The Morning Context. Based in Delhi, he writes about the environment, public policy and economy from the lens of the pulls and pressures of an ambitious democracy. Akshay uses the right to information extensively for reporting stories of vital public interest. Over the past decade and more, he has worked for HuffPost India, Frontline, The Economic Times, Down To Earth and DNA.
akshay@mailtmc.com