India
India's tragic second wave of COVID-19 infections
Apr 30, 2021

Everyone has seen media coverage of the calamity unfolding across India. The scenes of distressed patients outside hospitals and makeshift funeral pyres are horrifying. AdaniWatch sends a message of solidarity and admiration to all of our brave contributors from India, who are continuing to send reports despite the grim predicament faced by their communities.

For those who wish to make donations to assist the people of India, a list of verified charities can be found here.

The circumstances that have led to proliferating infections have been described in numerous stories emanating from India. Here is a selection.

Internationally acclaimed author Arundhati Roy writes a passionate and compelling indictment of the government of Indian PM Narendra Modi in The Guardian:

https://www.theguardian.com/news/2021/apr/28/crime-against-humanity-arundhati-roy-india-covid-catastrophe

A paywalled story in The Economist describes how India's giant second wave is a disaster for the rest of the world as well:

https://www.economist.com/leaders/2021/04/24/indias-giant-second-wave-is-a-disaster-for-it-and-the-world?utm_campaign=the-economist-today&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_source=salesforce-marketing-cloud&utm_term=2021-04-22&utm_content=article-link-1&etear=nl_today_1

The government of Modi's BJP party is criticised for organising huge political rallies in the run-up to state elections during a perilous time:

https://www.news.com.au/world/coronavirus/indian-government-criticised-for-praising-political-rallies-midway-through-covid19-second-wave/news-story/0ba15c5b0713b1bebfb3f6a73429b037

More on the huge crowds at political rallies by the Japan Times, which speculates that PM Modi is losing his grip on the country:

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2021/04/26/asia-pacific/politics-diplomacy-asia-pacific/india-coronavirus-crisis-modi/

PM Modi is accused of being a 'super spreader' of the virus in a story published in The Wire:

https://thewire.in/government/pm-modi-a-super-spreader-responsible-for-covid-second-wave-imas-navjot-dahiya

A month ago, medical experts warned that an impending series of political rallies could cause a severe outbreak of new infections in West Bengal:

https://indianexpress.com/article/india/doctors-fear-bengal-is-heading-towards-severe-outbreak-of-second-wave-of-covid-7253216/

And the Guardian's article describes the 'triumphalism' and complacency that led to the catastrophic second wave:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/apr/29/we-are-not-special-how-triumphalism-led-india-to-covid-19-disaster?utm_term=c7e43f60d2c6e467784353b3149298e4&utm_campaign=GuardianTodayAUS&utm_source=esp&utm_medium=Email&CMP=GTAU_email

The Morning Context describes the absence of a plan by the Modi government to tackle the crisis:

https://themorningcontext.com/chaos/why-india-cant-get-a-grip-on-covids-second-surge/?utm_source=daily_email&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=TMC&mc_cid=23138f14b1&mc_eid=06e1989765

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