It is a different world for the 256 million children born in the past two years. In a pre-covid-19 scenario, their parents would have been relieved to bring them into a world where the current average human life expectancy is around 82 years. “At the start of 2020, more children were living to see their first birthday than at any time in history. Child mortality had fallen by 50 per cent since 2000. Maternal mortality and child marriages were on the decline and more girls were going to and staying in school than ever before,” says Henrietta Fore, executive director of the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF). One could argue that those 256 million children would have indeed inherited a planet better suited for human life in comparison to a decade ago—had they not been born in the shadow of covid-19. The pandemic has dashed this generation’s hope of a better future.
When the viral infection broke out in late 2019, the entire focus of healthcare administrators and scientists was on adults and the older population WHO were more vulnerable to covid-19; children were considered to be the least affected by it. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), between December 30, 2019, and October 25, 2021, under-five children accounted for just 2 per cent of the total global cases and 0.1 per cent of deaths; those in the age group of 5-14 years accounted for 7 per cent of cases and 0.1 per cent of deaths. But in just a few months, the pandemic began to show its myriad impacts on children which will have a lasting effect on their health, education, and ability to earn.
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In leading role again
MOVIES AND WEB SERIES ARE ONCE AGAIN BEING SET IN RUSTIC BACKGROUNDS, INDICATING A RECONNECT BETWEEN CINEMA AND THE COUNTRYSIDE
One Nation One Subscription comes at a huge cost
As top US universities scrap big deals with top scientific publishers, India’s ONOS scheme seems flawed and outdated
Return of Rambhog
Bid to revive and sell the aromatic indigenous paddy variety has led to substantial profits for farmers in Uttar Pradesh's Terai region
Scarred by mining
Natural springs of Kashmir drying up due to illegal riverbed mining
Human-to-human spread a mutation away
CANADA IN mid-November confirmed its first human case of avian influenza, with a teenager in the British Columbia being hospitalised after contracting the H5N1 virus that causes the disease. The patient developed a severe form of the disease, also called bird flu, and had respiratory issues. There was no known cause of transmission.
True rehabilitation
Residents of Madhya Pradesh's Kakdi village take relocation as an opportunity to undertake afforestation, develop sustainable practices
INESCAPABLE THREAT
Chemical pollution is the most underrated and underreported risk of the 21st century that threatens all species and regions
THAT NIGHT, 40 YEARS AGO
Bhopal gas disaster is a tragedy that people continue to face
A JOKE, INDEED
A CONFERENCE OF IRRESPONSIBLE PARTIES THAT CREATED AN OPTICAL ILLUSION TO THE REALITY OF A NEW CLIMATE
THINGS FALL APART
THE WORLD HAS MADE PROGRESS IN MITIGATING EMISSIONS AND ADAPTING TO CLIMATE IMPACTS. BUT THE PROGRESS REMAINS GROSSLY INADEQUATE
