Hyderabad: We are calling it a wave, it is actually a tsunami, said the Delhi High Court recently while hearing on the issue of oxygen crisis in Delhi. Last year, the first Covid case was reported in January and it took six months for the pandemic to cross 25 lakh cases.
In what is being termed as the second wave, the number of cases crossed 26 lakhs within a week’s time. In this period 23,800 mortalities were reported. According to government statistics, 5,417 covid mortalities took place in the month of March. The official data also states that the pandemic claimed 45,000 lives in the month of April alone.
The total covid cases have crossed the 2 crore mark in India with 34 lakh active cases at the moment. All this data indicates a major social crisis.
Several foreign agencies have warned that the daily number of cases in India will cross 10 lakhs and mortalities will be in the range of 5,000 per day this month. Following these revelations, there is strong demand for the imposition of a nation-wide lockdown once again.
According to the Union Government, 73 percent of the cases reported are from Maharashtra, UP, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamilnadu, AP, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Chattisgarh and Delhi. It is calling for stringent implementation of lockdown norms in the 150 districts where a surge of cases is reported.
Haryana and Odisha are the latest to announce lockdown. The States have imposed curfews and announced stringent measures. Yet the pandemic is refusing to come under control. Several countries have banned arrivals from India and thus locked the country from outside. The union government should strongly consider imposing lockdown in consultation with the States to cut the chain of disease transmission.
The Supreme Court too has stated recently that the government should consider imposing lockdown to protect people’s lives. While maintaining that it is aware of the socio-economic consequences of the lockdown, the court has also called for advance measures to shield the poor from hunger.
The American public health expert Antony Fauci felt that as the medical and health system of the country has collapsed, it should opt for a lockdown for a few weeks. He has also suggested that India should go for the construction of Covid hospitals on a war footing as China did. He went on to state that the country should also focus on making oxygen, drugs and beds available to the public.
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As the Prime Minister appointed Covid Task Force has also made similar recommendations, it is time to take immediate decisions to save people’s lives.
The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) is of the opinion that the ferocity of the pandemic will remain for at least four to five months. In its estimation, the country needs at least 2 lakh ICU beds and 3 lakh nurses along with another 2 lakh junior doctors.
While calling for improving the corona testing capacity and intensification of vaccination in coordination by the States, the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) has also supported the lockdown proposal.
In order to effectively deal with the unprecedented calamity faced by the nation, the Union Government should consult with States, consider the problems of the migrant laborers and act with a humane perspective while taking the decision. It should thus stop the mass mortality caused by the coronavirus.
