BY: Surjit Singh Flora
The second wave of the corona epidemic in India has gone entirely out of control, destroying the health system and the failure of governments at various levels.
Corruption and black marketing are significant problems, but the failure of government is an even greater concern. Oxygen deprivation continues for the third week in many parts of the country, including the capital Delhi. The central government claims that every effort is being made to make up for the lack of oxygen, including the rail network, the air force and even the navy.
Foreign aid is also pouring in, including oxygen generators, cylinders, and concentrators. Aid is being sent to India from around 40 countries through various channels. There are also reports that the government has been slow to distribute this foreign aid to multiple hospitals and states, which the international community and the press have noticed.
Oxygen, antiviral vaccines, remedies, ambulances and hospital beds are being blackmailed. Corona has also become challenging to perform the last rites of the dead. There are also lines of corpses in cemeteries. Many families are unable or unwilling to perform the funeral rites of their dead.
Fear of corona and lack of resources may be the main reasons for this. Many social organizations and people are conducting funerals for the deceased. Many are also victims of the corona. Led by Gurmeet Singh Shanti, a volunteer of Shaheed Bhagat Singh Seva Dal in the capital Delhi, he has been conducting funeral rites since the first wave in the year 2020. During this time, many volunteers have been victims of corona more than once. There are many others whose names do not reach the media. ‘Free Oxygen’ was started from a Gurdwara, and now many more organizations and volunteers are doing this service. The spirit of service of these people is a slap in the face to those who see the Corona epidemic as a means to get rich.
The indulgence of the central government, state governments, experts and the general public is also the cause of this great tragedy. Many people still seem to care. A video of hundreds of women going to a temple in Gujarat carrying a pot full of water without following the Corona protocol has gone viral during a special local festival at a temple in Gujarat.
When the results of the civic elections in UP came out, the winners started marching regardless of the corona. Earlier, the corona was also used in five state elections, Kumbh Mela and other festivals, which is proving to be very costly. It is difficult to believe that such a great tragedy is happening, but people are still careless.
There have also been reports of attacks on police trying to enforce corona bans in many parts of the country. There are also individuals and organizations abroad who oppose corona bans or lockdowns imposed by governments and sometimes become violent. Thousands of people die every day from corona, but there are still people who call coronavirus pandemic is a hoax.
Caring for corona patients is not an easy task. There is a lot of fear and infection of this disease. Doctors, nurses and other health workers are working very hard. This task is even more difficult in India due to a lack of oxygen, medicines and other resources. Dozens of patients have died due to a lack of oxygen in many hospitals. In such cases, the relatives of the deceased get angry and fall on the staff. Destroy hospitals. In Gurugram, when 8-9 patients died due to lack of oxygen, doctors, nurses and staff had to hide or run away for fear of enraged people. It is a great tragedy that those who treat the afflicted patients, on the one hand, are suffering from a lack of resources, and on the other hand, they are afraid of physical attacks from the families of the patients. There have also been tragic reports of a suicidal doctor from a Delhi hospital committing suicide.
The staff is not responsible for the lack of oxygen, lack of staff, lack of beds and other facilities in the hospitals. This is the responsibility of the state and central government. Coping with this dire situation requires hard work and cooperation from top to bottom. Various courts have slammed the Center and several state governments for making cash arrangements. Strict action needs to be taken against hoarders and black marketers. It is to be hoped that various governments will take stern action against such blackmailers, and when their cases come before the courts, the courts will give them the tuff punishments so that the message goes far.
