COVID-19

The most important lesson for the Covid first wave was the urgent need to strengthen the state’s public health systems and infrastructure. But the current year’s budgets of both the state government and the city government ignores this need. In fact, the state’s 2021-22 budget has been criticised for its low priority to strengthening the public healthcare system overall. As of now, all attention inevitably is on managing the Covid second wave. “Rs 50 cr is earmarked towards 'natural calamities', that is, Covid management”, says Thulasi Maddineni, Special Commissioner (Finance) at BBMP. The BBMP had spent Rs 90 crore on…

Numbers of tuberculosis patients are sharply rising in Mumbai. And that is good. According to Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation data, the city records 45,000 new patients a year on average. However, last year, it was down to less than 1% of that. The health department authorities at BMC say that Covid-19 and Tuberculosis (TB) have similar symptoms. Therefore, if TB patients go unchecked in times of the pandemic, the number of patients of Covid-19 may also increase as they are difficult to differentiate. TB is a bacterial disease, which mainly affects the lungs. The bacteria that causes TB spreads when an…

On March 22nd, I opened the  Aarogya Setu app on my phone to book our appointment for the second or booster dose of the Covishield vaccine. My husband and I had had our first shot before noon on March 1st, when the union government rolled out the programme for senior citizens like us. We were told we could take the next shot after 28 days. A few days' delay would not matter, added the doctor at the vaccination centre. The earliest appointment I got (confirmed via SMS) at our preferred centre, Yashoda Multi Specialty Hospital, Kaushambi, Ghaziabad, where we had taken…

Chennai breached the 2000-case mark on April 11th, with the city registering 2124 cases. The second wave of COVID-19 is spreading fast across the city. All residents have been advised to be vigilant and follow masking, social distancing and avoid unnecessary gatherings. A fresh set of restrictions have been imposed on use of public spaces in a move to curb further spread of infection.Here is the latest testing protocol, containment strategy, vaccination specifics and restrictions in the city that we must all be aware of: On testing and hospitalisation: Where can one get tested for COVID-19? COVID-19 testing can be…

Updated on December 6, 2021 In April 2021, in the backdrop of the alarming COVID scenario across the country, as well as rising numbers within the state, the Tamil Nadu Health and Family Welfare Department had introduced a number of rules to be followed for travel to Chennai and the state. Responding to various questions from our readers, we had compiled a list of the travel protocols in place then. This article replaces our older curation with details of the current travel protocol in place, as on December 6 2021. As 2021 progressed and the pandemic situation eased, the rules…

With the rising number of COVID cases in Karnataka crossing over 6,000 per day, of which over 4,000 cases per day are in Bengaluru itself, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike has been organising a series of meetings with various Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs) to seek support in contact tracing and improving the reach of administering COVID vaccines. On April 1, the central government extended vaccination for people above 45 years, irrespective of whether they have co-morbidities.  On April 2, during an interaction with the BBMP Chief Commissioner and Commissioner for Health, an overwhelming request by the RWAs was to conduct vaccination…

Respected Sir,We, civil society organisations and activists from Maharashtra, who are engaged in human rights work with different communities and have also been extensively involved in relief work and advocacy throughout the pandemic and consequent lockdown, address this letter to you to put forth some of our pressing concerns regarding the new restrictions announced in light of increasing number of COVID cases in the state of Maharashtra. We also request for a personal meeting with you to discuss our below suggestions and explore possibilities of civil society collaborations through constructive engagement and consultation, with an aim to create an effective…

It's one of the less discussed fall-outs of the pandemic. One year of COVID-19 has reversed all the small victories and legitimised the usage of plastic and single-use products in Chennai, dealing a huge blow to the efforts at fostering a more sustainable lifestyle among its citizens. Immediately after the state government announced the plastic ban in June 2018, the city had started taking sincere steps towards minimising the use of single use plastic (the ban was implemented from January 2019), and in the months that followed Chennaiites appeared to be adapting to a more sustainable, plastic-free lifestyle. Retail and…

In view of rising COVID cases, on April 2, the Karnataka State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) issued an order imposing restrictions in public spaces. The situation of COVID in Karnataka has been reviewed and it has been observed that there has been a persistent rise in the number of COVID cases in the State during the last month, the order said. Further, a large number of social, religious and public gatherings like marriages, political rallies are being witnessed in which COVID appropriate behaviour is not being followed which may cause a setback in the appreciable gains made in the suppression…

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike plans to tap into residents' networks, health centres in industries and private hospitals to supplement its efforts and prevent the second wave of COVID-19 from getting out of hand. The novel approach was reiterated by its new Commissioner Gaurav Gupta, who assumed charge on Wednesday. While the number of vaccinations in the city hovers around 35,000 a day, the BBMP wants to double it by creating more vaccination sites. The civic body plans to involve resident welfare associations (RWAs) and also rope in industrial complexes that have their health centres, for the purpose. The new…