The long read: Asians high on UK’s Covid grim list
Prasun Sonwalkar Reuters
People with sub-continental and non-white origins have been significantly more impacted by Covid than others. What are the reasons for this vulnerability?
Scratch the surface, or read between the lines, and a different picture emerges. The grim headline that is better known across the globe refers to the United Kingdom suffering one of the worst impacts from Covid-19: over 150,000 deaths and more than 4.3 million cases. But less known outside the country is the disproportionately high impact of the virus on non-white communities comprising large numbers of people with origins in the Indian sub-continent. It is not only Rajesh Jayaseelan, 45, who moved to the UK from Bengaluru a decade ago and made a living in London as a taxi driver, but also several respected doctors such as Abdul Mabud Choudhury, 53, Poornima Nair, 56, or Anton Sebastianpillai, 70, who passed away after contracting the virus.
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