India's death toll has surpassed 200,000, according to official figures. Amidst underreporting and mismanagement the real numbers are much higher — and the Modi government needs to act now, says DW's Isha Bhatia Sanan.
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India is mourning more than 200,000 COVID victimsImage: Ajit Solanki/AP Photo/picture alliance
The images coming from India over the past few days are gut wrenching – and I do not just mean metaphorically. Trails of pyres for as far as the eye can see, scores of people dying outside hospitals, family members desperately searching for oxygen cylinders for their loved ones. India looks like a war zone where people are losing their lives to the enemy. Things would have been different had the enemy's potential not been underestimated.
Just a couple of months back India had started to get back to normal. People were convinced that the deadly coronavirus had left the country. While some claimed Indians had great immunity, others mocked Western countries for not being able to contain something as small as a virus.
India has been hit by an oxygen shortage for COVID patientsImage: AMIT DAVE/REUTERS
It was the end of the first wave. It was the time to take a deep breath. And it was also the time to get geared up for the second one. It was the time to take lessons from countries that were already dealing with the next wave of infections. Instead, Prime Minister Narendra Modi saw this as an opportunity to start his election campaign.
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Politics over everything else
While other countries were cancelling major events such as the Tokyo Olympics, India was getting ready for the country's biggest religious gathering, the Maha Kumbh, and for state elections. Like in any other election Modi's Hindu nationalistic party BJP did not want to leave any stone unturned this time as well. BJP made sure that it organized rallies bigger than any of the regional parties.
In fact, in one of his rallies in the state of West Bengal, Modi expressed gratitude by saying that he had "never before seen such huge crowds in a rally." These huge crowds should have been a matter of concern. And experts raised the alarm as well.
But India's Home Minister Amit Shah was quick to respond that there was no correlation between the rising number of coronavirus infections and the election campaign since "cases surged in states where there were no elections."
Isha Bhatia Sanan works for DW's Hindi service
Denying the reality
It is not just the home minister who is in denial of reality. Yogi Adityanath, the chief minister of India's most populous state Uttar Pradesh, has recently claimed that there is no shortage of oxygen and that action will be taken against hospitals spreading such rumors. This claim comes at a time when hospitals are turning people away because of lack of oxygen.
COVID crisis: Desperation in Delhi
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In Yogi's state, crematorium workers complain that space has run out as they are receiving at least 10 times more dead bodies than normal. In most cases, the sick died before reaching the hospital, and thus the cause of death was unknown.
According to official figures, the virus has claimed more than 200,00 lives so far in India. But the mishandling and underreporting of cases clearly shows that the original numbers are much higher than this.
Coronavirus wave batters India's health system
The coronavirus pandemic has hit India with full force. The already creaky health care system is buckling as a record surge in COVID-19 cases puts pressure on hospitals.
Image: Amit Dave/REUTERS
Unbearable loss
Relatives of a deceased COVID-19 patient grieve in front of a hospital in the Indian city of Ahmedabad. The health situation has spiraled out of control. The country recorded more than 333,000 new infections in the last 24 hours — the highest daily caseload in the world. That means more than 1 million people in India have been infected with the virus in the past four days alone.
Image: Amit Dave/REUTERS
Overcrowded hospitals
COVID-19 patients wait to be treated at this hospital in New Delhi. Many hospitals are completely overwhelmed. ""We are running desperately short of beds, desperately short of oxygen [and] essential medicines," Shuchin Bajaj, an Indian doctor and director of a hospital chain, told DW. "We are turning away patients. It's breaking our hearts. The situation in the country is almost apocalyptic."
Image: Danish Siddiqui/REUTERS
Waiting for hel
Many desperate patients still set out for hospital — and sometimes have to wait for hours in front of them, like this man in a motor rickshaw in Ahmedabad. At least he got one of the increasingly scarce oxygen cylinders. In Delhi alone, according to official figures, there is a shortage of around 5,000 intensive care beds, and some hospitals have almost run out of oxygen.
Image: AMIT DAVE/REUTERS
Clamor for oxygen
Many places across the country, like here in Allahabad, are seeing people crowd oxygen refilling stations with empty cylinders to bring their relatives. Oxygen is already being traded at exorbitant prices on the black market. The government is considering stopping operations at oil refineries and other industries that use oxygen for production so it can be provided to hospitals.
On Friday night, a fire broke out in this hospital near Mumbai. The entire intensive care unit burned down, killing at least 13 COVID-19 patients. The cause of the fire is still unclear. But dangerous fires often occur in India — even in hospitals. The cause is usually poor or outdated equipment. Fire protection is often inadequate and emergency exits are rare.
Image: AP/picture alliance
Non-stop cremations
Since the beginning of the pandemic, more than 186,000 Indians have died as a result of the coronavirus. Currently, the country is registering more than 2,000 deaths every day. In many parts of the country, such as here in the capital, Delhi, the crematoriums and cemeteries can barely keep up with the number of bodies.
Image: DANISH SIDDIQUI/REUTERS
'Double mutant' virus variant sparks concerns
Some experts say the situation in the country has worsened because of the rapid spread of a particularly contagious new "double mutant" variant of the coronavirus, B.1.617. It has prompted many countries to impose entry bans on travelers from India — and even issue travel warnings for the country. The United States has done that even for its citizens already vaccinated against the coronavirus.
Image: Xavier Galiana/AFP
Waiting for vaccines
India is home to more than 1.3 billion people. But less than 2 % of the adult population has been vaccinated so far. That's despite the country being one of the world's largest vaccine producers. But the order came late for Indian pharmaceutical companies to first meet domestic demand rather than exporting jabs. From May 1, vaccines will be available to all Indians over the age of 18.
Image: Amit Dave/REUTERS
Mass events fuel COVID-19 spike
Experts say it's not just the sluggish vaccination rate that is to blame for the rapid spread of the coronavirus in India. Religious, political and sporting events across the nation have also played a big role. The Kumbh Mela, India's largest Hindu pilgrimage festival, was attended by several million people. During the ritual bath in the Ganges, there were few signs of masks and social distancing.
Image: Money Sharma/AFP
Risky politics
Politics too has set a poor example so far. Regional elections were held in the state of West Bengal at the beginning of the month. There were mass rallies in the megacity of Kolkata during the campaign with leading politicians from the ruling BJP party. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also took part — and were celebrated by thousands of unmasked supporters.
Image: Kuntal Chakrabarty/IANS
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Waiting for the 'messiah'
India's middle class sees Narendra Modi as a messiah. Someone who is destined to take away their miseries. It is with this hope that the people of India voted for him in huge numbers not once but twice. The slogan "Modi hai to mumkin hai" ("If Modi is there, anything is possible") still resonates with the Indian middle class.
And so, last year, when Modi asked people to light diyas and beat thalis, the enthusiasm was unprecedented. People were convinced that Modi knew how to keep them safe. He asked them to come out in their balconies and clap for nine minutes and they followed. He asked them to hold a lit candle and they followed. He asked them to come to election rallies and they followed.
Censorship is not the way out
In democracies, governments are expected to take responsibility when actions go wrong. But the Modi government is setting a different precedent by censoring criticism on social media platforms. Twitter has pulled down dozens of posts that showed the mismanagement of the situation. Facebook and Instagram are expected to follow.
In times when people are losing their faith in the government, social media often remains their only hope. WhatsApp groups, Google docs, Facebook pages and Twitter fleets are being used to organize help. But even if this is taken away from them in the name of saving the country's "sovereignty and integrity" what other option would they be left with?
It is about time the Indian government came out of denial and took responsibility for the chaos. For the people of the country, every passing day is making it clearer that their Messiah has failed them.
