11 year old Ruby (name changed) never saw the face of any school. Because her father is a poor farmer cultivating one bigha of land and mother Hansa Devi works as a labourer under the MNREGA or national employment guarantee scheme. That’s why the parents leave Ruby at home to take care of their two younger siblings. Early in the[Read More...]
On 27 February this year, in Maharashtra, about 40 thousand doses of Covid vaccine were dumped in the garbage can. Not only this, in the next five days, a further 240,000 doses of the vaccine were wasted. The reason behind the dumping of the Covid vaccine doses on such a large scale is because of they have remained unused past[Read More...]
It is the largest employer in India and eighth largest in the world. It is also the fourth longest railway network in the world sprawling out to a total length of 70,000 kms. It runs 21,000 trains and carries 23 million passengers and 3 million tonnes of freight per day. What was the multi-faceted impact of the Covid pandemic on[Read More...]
It is well-nigh impossible to obtain accurate information in a country where data is routinely fudged or camouflaged, be it the number of deaths due to the killer virus, or, be it the tragic index of poverty and mass unemployment. However, some figures have been trickling in from various sources, and from this scattered realm of statistics one can figure[Read More...]
The economy of the impoverished Mallah or boatmen community living in various villages of Shamli district of Uttar Pradesh (UP) received a major jolt during Covid times. Many are stuck in a non-ending cycle of debt or have lost their precious valuables to local lenders. Majid Mallah of Imrana village told Covid Response Watch, “Covid – 19 shook us completely when markets were[Read More...]
When the COVID-19 pandemic started, there was initially some concern about crowding in Indian prisons. In an overpopulated, confined environment the risk of explosion of an infectious disease is always high. That is why, rights groups from several countries advocated for the decongestion of the prisons. Especially, in India, where poor health infrastructure in prisons added even more to the[Read More...]
Note: In this series of articles senior journalist Amit Sengupta examines the role of the Indian media during the two years of the Covid pandemic. Part One: Locked up during Lockdown Even as the affluent and the middle classes were rejoicing the banging of thalis and utensils on their balconies to beat an incipient virus which had just arrived in[Read More...]
There has been a steep increase in child labour in the country during the Covid pandemic period that shows severe economic distress among large sections of the population. The figures of the government itself are telling that apart from the mental, physical health of the children, this virus has forced them to work at a young age. Children have started[Read More...]
Since it started in early 2020 the COVID pandemic has posed great challenges for many with hearing and visual impairments, particularly children. Talking with the help of hands or facial expression is the most convenient way for a person dealing with hearing impairment to communicate. Even a person with visual impairment requires support of objects and humans to move around[Read More...]
Mamata Banerjee, the Chief Minister of West Bengal, stirred up a series of trolls and memes on social media recently by claiming that “Corona does not spread in salt water”, during a press conference related to the Gangasagar Mela. The Gangasagar mela is an annual pilgrimage for Hindus, held every year during the makar sankranti festival, when thousands from all[Read More...]
