I Mind Dying
People are being asked to sacrifice to save the country – but by people, the rich white men mean the blacks and the poor, working people.
Coronavirus Lockdown: As Hunger Grows, the Fear of Starvation Is Real
Over 100 million people face food insecurity if the PDS is not universalised.
Coronavirus Lockdown: The Seven and a Half Things that Modi Said and Did Not Say
On April 14, PM Modi announced that the lockdown was being extended till April 14. In his 25-minute speech, he did not talk about several things that urgently needed to be addressed by the Modi government and the urban elite.
Coronavirus v. Free Speech: Modi Government Opens New Battlefront in Supreme Court
The Wire Analysis, 1 April 2020 On Tuesday, the Centre turned two petitions pertaining to the welfare of migrant workers affected by the 21-day lockdown into an occasion to demand the Supreme Court give it control over the media’s coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic. But though the Modi government wanted the media to be told…
The Emperor Has No Mask: The Indian State in the Time of COVID-19
Ramaa Vasudevan As the COVID-19 virus races across countries and continents, taking its deadly toll, states across the world are scrambling to deal with what has become the most wide-spread pandemic outbreak since the 1918 Spanish flu. As states grapple to navigate this uncharted territory, the pandemic has also become a lens that is bringing…
As India Faces One of its Toughest Challenges, Who Holds the Reins?
Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay As COVID-19 has unleashed an information epidemic, or infodemic – as a result of which we are constantly plied with an overabundance of information, some accurate and others misleading – it has become very difficult to stay fixated on one ‘window’ on whatever device we’re using. Consequently, commonplace queries get pushed to the…
Why India’s Founders Championed a State-Dominated Healthcare System
Kiran Kumbhar In 1943, after decades of criticism from Indian intellectuals and leaders, colonial British officials decided to finally embrace the question of the health of around 300 million native Indians. A committee was formed to undertake a grand survey and suggest recommendations. This committee became known after its chairman as the Joseph Bhore Committee….
As the Pandemic Accelerates, How Equipped Is India’s Healthcare System?
Soumitra Ghosh As per recent data, India now has 1,117 active COVID-19 cases and 32 deaths due to the outbreak of coronavirus in the country. Quite alarmingly, the known respiratory disease COVID-19 cases have increased exponentially in the last couple of weeks. Even in a mild scenario with an attack rate of 5-10% and a…
How Some States are Looking After Their People Better in These Crisis Times
1. Kerala Govt Running 65% of Shelter Camps for Migrants After Lockdown: Centre to SC Courtesy: The Wire Staff The Centre has told the Supreme Court that out of the 6.3 lakh migrant workers being sheltered in government run-camps, around half – 47% – are housed in Kerala. The southern state is also running 65%…
Myths, Rumours and Spectacles in India’s Fight Against COVID-19
Brahma Prakash The act could have been named divine comedy, but it was not poetic. In fact, it was anti-poetic. Let’s call it India’s divine formula to defeat COVID-19. The play can be named Burning Corona Down. It was April 5, 2020. As soon as the clock struck 9 pm, the nation that…