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Pressure rises for India lockdown; surge breaks more records
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi faces growing pressure to impose a strict nationwide lockdown, despite the economic pain it will exact
By NEHA MEHROTRA and ASHOK SHARMA Associated Press
May 7, 2021, 11:22 AM
• 6 min read
Catch up on the developing stories making headlines.The Associated Press
NEW DELHI Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi faced growing pressure Friday to impose a strict nationwide lockdown, despite the economic pain it will exact, as a startling surge in coronavirus cases that has pummeled the country s health system shows no signs of abating.
DEVELOPING. Story will be updated as new information can be verified. Updated 6 times AlertMe
NEW DELHI Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi faced growing pressure Friday to impose a strict nationwide lockdown, despite the economic pain it will exact, as a startling surge in coronavirus cases that has pummeled the country’s health system shows no signs of abating.
Many medical experts, opposition leaders and even Supreme Court judges are calling for national restrictions, arguing that a patchwork of state rules is insufficient to quell the rise in infections.
Indian television stations broadcast images of patients lying on stretchers outside hospitals waiting to be admitted, with hospital beds and critical oxygen in short supply. People infected with COVID-19 in villages are being treated in makeshift outdoor clinics, with IV drips hanging from trees.
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Photo: Ashish Joshi/Unsplash
On April 28, when the Narendra Modi-led Indian government opened up vaccine registrations for all adult citizens, 29-year-old Mousumi Chatterjee felt left out.
The government said citizens should sign up on CoWIN, its COVID-19 vaccine registration website, or download its coronavirus contact-tracing app, Aarogya Setu, on their phones. Vaccination slots would be made available on May 1.
But Chatterjee, a domestic worker in Kolkata, has no idea what the CoWIN website and the Aarogya Setu app are. Her mobile and internet literacy are limited to making calls, exchanging messages on WhatsApp, and browsing Facebook: the latter two only because a salesperson at a mobile store downloaded the apps on her phone and changed the language setting to Bangla, the only one she can read.
India’s large diaspora is tapping its wealth, growing political clout and expertise to help India combat a catastrophic coronavirus surge.
Modi, who held consultations with top elected leaders and officials of the worst-hit states on Thursday, has so far left the responsibility for fighting the virus to poorly equipped state governments.
Dr. Randeep Guleria, a government health expert, said a complete, aggressive lockdown is needed in India just like last year, especially in areas where more than 10% of those tested have contracted COVID-19.
Rahul Gandhi, an opposition Congress party leader, in a letter to Modi on Friday reiterated his demand for a total lockdown, warning “the human cost will result in many more tragic consequences for our people.”