ON APRIL 14, MAHARASHTRA’S TALLY OF coronavirus cases more than doubled in a matter of six days. With 352 new cases detected the previous day, the State’s tally reached 2,690. As many as 178 deaths were recorded until April 15. By April 17, the number of cases had soared to 3,202 with and 194 deaths.
Mumbai still leads in the number of coronavirus positive cases with 2,073 cases and 117 deaths. Apart from Mumbai, there were 350 cases in the Mumbai Metropolitan regions. Pune had 473 cases; Malegaon had 40; Nagpur had 56, Aurangabad and Ahmednagar had 28, and Sangli had 26.
Malegaon in Nashik district has seen a surge in the number of coronavirus cases. On October 13, 14 cases were reported from the area, taking the tally to 29, and by October 17 it was 40. It is being looked at as another cluster where the spread has spiked. The district authorities, in conjunction with the municipal council, are looking at demarcating containment areas in the city. Government officials are not ruling out the possibility of the presence of Delhi-returned Tablighi Jamaat members in the area.
Mapping the virus shows an interesting progression. The State took 30 days to cross the 1,000-case mark on April 7, while it crossed the 2,000 mark in just six days. However, the State Health Department is not unduly worried about the increase in cases. A ward-level doctor, requesting anonymity, said: “The spread of the virus is still at stage 2. This means [it is restricted to] people who have had a history of travel or those who have come in contact with an infected person. It is easier to detect these cases and those around them through contact tracing.”
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How Not To Handle An Epidemic
The lockdowns were meant to buy time to put in place appropriate health measures and contain the coronavirus’ spread, but they have failed to achieve the objective and heaped immense misery on the marginalised sections of society. India is still in the exponential phase of the COVID-19 infection and community transmission is a reality that the government refuses to accept.
Tragedy on foot
As the COVID-19-induced lockdown cuts the ground beneath their feet in Tamil Nadu, thousands of migrant workers are trudging along the highway to the relative safety of their upcountry homes.
Sarpanchs as game changers
Odisha manages to keep COVID-19 well under control because of the strong participation of panchayati raj institutions and the community at the grass-roots level under the leadership of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.
Scapegoating China
As the COVID-19 death rate spikes and the economy tanks in the United States, Donald Trump and his advisers target China and the World Health Organisation with an eye to winning the forthcoming presidential election.
New worries
Kerala’s measured approach to the pandemic and lockdown has yielded results. But it still has to grapple with their huge economic impact on its economy, which it feels the Centre’s special financial relief package does little to alleviate.
No love lost for labour
Taking advantage of the lockdown and the inability of workers to organise protests, many State governments introduce sweeping changes to labour laws to the detriment of workers on the pretext of reviving production and boosting the economy.
Capital's Malthusian moment
In a world that needs substantial reorienting of production and distribution, Indian capital is resorting to a militant form of moribund neoliberalism to overcome its current crisis. In this pursuit of profit, it is ready and willing to throw into mortal peril millions whom it adjudicates as not worth their means—an admixture of social Darwinism born of capital’s avarice and brutalism spawned by Hindutva. .
Understanding migration
When governments and their plans are found to be blatantly wanting in addressing reverse migration, exercises such as the Ekta Parishad’s survey of migrant workers throughout India can be useful to work out creative long-lasting solutions.
Waiting for Jabalpur moment
The Supreme Court’s role in ensuring executive accountability during the ongoing lockdown leaves much to be desired. Standing in shining contrast is the record of some High Courts.
An empty package
The Modi regime, which has been unable to control the COVID-19 infection, restore economic activity and provide relief to millions exposed to starvation, trains its sights on Indian democracy, making use of the panic generated by fear and a lockdown that forecloses paths of resistance.
