Tag: India Covid

Categories
-Top News India News USA

Heartbreaking: Kamala Harris on India Covid crisis

United States Vice President Kamala Harris (Photo Twitter@VP)

Harris’ remarks come as India is battling the devastating second wave of the pandemic that have triggered record number of new Covid-19 cases and deaths…reports Asian Lite News

In an address to the Indian diaspora in the US, Vice President Kamala Harris lamented over the deteriorating Covidd-19 situation India, saying it was “nothing short of heartbreaking”.

“Generations of my family come from India. My mother (Shyamala Gopalan) was born and raised in India. And I have family members who live in India today. The welfare of India is critically important to the US,” Harris said in her pre-recorded message played at a diaspora event hosted by the State Department’s Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs (SCA) on Friday.

“The surge of Covid-19 infections and deaths in India is nothing short of heartbreaking. To those of you who have lost loved ones, I send my deepest condolences. As soon as the dire nature of the situation became apparent, our administration took action.

“On Monday, April 26, President Joe Biden spoke with the Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) to offer our support. By Friday, April 30, US military members and civilians were delivering relief on the ground.

“Already, we have delivered refillable oxygen cylinders, with more to come. We have delivered oxygen concentrators, with more to come. We have delivered N95 masks, and have more ready to send. We have delivered doses of Remdesivir to treat Covid patients.

“At the beginning of the pandemic, when our hospital beds were stretched, India sent assistance. And today, we are determined to help India in its hour of need.

Also readIndian Covid variant confirmed in B’desh:

“We do this as friends of India, as members of the Asian Quad, and as part of the global community. I believe that if we continue to work together, across nations and sectors, we will all get through this,” the Vice President added.

In her address, she also acknowledged diaspora groups like Indiaspora and the American India Foundation that “have built bridges between the US and India”.

“And this past year, you have provided vital contributions to Covid-19 relief efforts.”

Kerala covid toll rises

Harris’ remarks come as India is battling the devastating second wave of the pandemic that have triggered record number of new Covid-19 cases and deaths, leading to a shortage in oxygen supplies across the country, including in the national capital of New Delhi.

On Sunday, India reported 4,03,738 new cases, which took the overall tally to 2,22,96,414, the second highest in the world after the US.

Meanwhile, the country’s death toll, currently the third largest after the us and Brazil, increased to 2,42,362.

Sunday’s figure is the fifth highest since India crossed the four-lakh-mark of new Covid cases, while over 3,000 casualties have been reported for the last 11 days.

Also read:Biden’s Mideast Strategy And Its Geopolitical Implications

Categories
COVID-19 India News Woman

BMC-hospital is Covid-hit moms’ cradle for safe delivery

BMC-hospital is Covid-hit moms' cradle for safe delivery

The first such delivery of an infant by a Covid-19 positive mother took place on April 14, 2020 at the height of the pandemic…reports Asian Lite News

Marking a significant achievement, the civic-run BYL Nair Charitable Hospital has just completed its 1025th safe delivery for a woman infected by Covid-19 – and may walk into record books, excited officials said.

The first such delivery of an infant by a Covid-19 positive mother took place on April 14, 2020 at the height of the pandemic at the hospital run by BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).

“Of around 1,025 safe deliveries so far, there was one set of triplets, 19 twins and the remaining 984 were single bundles of joy whose first cries brought cheers to the lives of their anxious parents,” the hospital Dean & Director Dr Ramesh Bharmal said.

The achievement comes hand-in-hand with the Supreme Court’s observations this week patting the BMC’s handling of the Covid-19 situation and asking other states like Delhi to follow the ‘Mumbai model’.

The BMC attributes the success of Nair Hospital to the sheer dedication of the medical, para-medical and support teams at the hospital under the guidance of BMC Commissioner I.S. Chahal, Additional Municipal Commissioner Suresh Kakani, Dr Ramesh Bharmal, and other top officers.

“They slogged 6 hours consecutively without even drinking water as they wore PPE kits, did all their duties tirelessly practically 24X7, spending days in hospital without going home, and dedicated themselves without complaints to the care of the Covid-19 positive pregnant women and their special needs,” said Dr Bharmal.

Also read:Canada lends helping hand to India

“Covid infection is not congenital. Even if the mother is infected, the unborn baby is not infected but can become positive after coming in contact with the mom after birth,” explained Dr Sushma Malik, head of the departments of neo-natal and pediatrics care.

As per protocols, all newborns of Covid-infected women are also tested and though some infants born here during the year were found positive, they were asymptomatic and later discharged after they tested negative, she added.

Dr Bharmal said that while a majority, or over 60 per cent of the deliveries were ‘normal’, the rest were through the Cesarian Section, and there was not a single fatality among the mothers or the infants in the first Covid-wave.

“However, this time, the second wave of Covid is affecting pregnant women, babies and children� So far in the past nearly 3 months, we have recorded around a dozen unfortunate deaths�” he added.

The hospital had to take special care to ensure hygiene in the two main departments – the obstetrics and the neonatal intensive care units to ensure they were sparkling clean with regular efforts by the ward-boys and other conservancy staffers.

Another problem that confronted the doctors was breastfeeding the newborn infants to ensure their proper nutrition but without getting infected from the mom.

Maha rashtra Covid cases surge

“For this, each woman admitted was handed a full Covid protection kit like sanitizer, soap, facemask, toothpaste, brush, oils, combs, towels, kerchiefs, and served a protein-rich diet comprising cereals, pulses, eggs besides counselling and all other precautions to ensure the baby remained infection-free,” said Dr Malik.

“During my delivery at the BMC’s Kandivali Shatabdi Hospital in April 2020, all the people, medical and non-medical staffers, security, took full precautions. Any unauthorized persons were barred on the maternity floor, no crowds anywhere, etc,” said a Dahisar housewife, Priyanka K.G. who delivered a baby girl (Kasturi) there amidst huge apprehensions.

Dr Bharmal said with pride the Nair Hospital probably the only such success story notched in the country’s medical history as per available information, and further scientific documentation with additional research is currently underway to claim an entry to Guinness Book of Records.

Also read:Switzerland sends medical aid to India

Categories
-Top News EU News India News

Switzerland sends medical aid to India

The plane carrying the medical aid has reached New Delhi with oxygen concentrators & ventilators from Switzerland(Twitter)

600 oxygen concentrators and 50 respirators, donated by the Swiss Humanitarian Aid and the Federal Department of Defense, Civil Protection and Sport, will be distributed to Indian hospitals…reports Asian Lite News

Switzerland has sent a cargo aircraft carrying medical equipment, including 600 oxygen concentrators and 50 respirators, to help alleviate supply shortages in India amid the country’s devastative second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic.

In an official statement, the Swiss government said that the aircraft which left the Zurich airport on Thursday for New Delhi, carried 13 tonnes of medical equipment worth close to 3 million Swiss francs ($3.28 million), reports Xinhua news agency.

The equipment, donated by the Swiss Humanitarian Aid and the Federal Department of Defense, Civil Protection and Sport, will be distributed to Indian hospitals in coordination with the Indian Red Cross and the Ministry of Health.

The plane carrying the medical aid has reached New Delhi with oxygen concentrators & ventilators from Switzerland(Twitter)

The statement also mentioned that body bags were sent alongside oxygen concentrators and respirators.

On Friday, India again registered a record increase in the number of single-day Covid-19 cases.

Also read:Australia to lift India travel ban from May 15

With 4,14,188 fresh Covid-19 cases recorded in the last 24 hour, the country’s overall infection tally now stood at 2,14,91,598, the second highest in the world after the US.

The plane carrying the medical aid has reached New Delhi with oxygen concentrators & ventilators from Switzerland(Twitter)

This is the the third time after May 1 that India has crossed the four lakh mark of active cases in last 24 hours.

On Thursday, the country reported 4,12,262 cases.

The death toll meanwhile increased to 2,34,083 with 3,915 new fatalities.

Friday also marked the ninth consecutive day that over 3,000 casualties have been reported.

Also read:Asian Lite, SAJDA, IAHV join hands to save lives in India

Categories
-Top News COVID-19 India News

Asian Lite, SAJDA, IAHV join hands to save lives in India

The FUND RAISER concert on 9 May, Sunday will be a free online event that will be live streamed on SAJDA Festival UK  Facebook Page, reports Asian Lite News

Asian Lite and SAJDA Festival UK have organised a COVID RELIEF CONCERT – an evening of vocals, instrumental and more to enthral audience, uplift them and help raise funds to mitigate the shortage of oxygen and essential supplies in India.

In India on Ground Zero , The International Association for Human Values (IAHV) and The Art of Living have started an initiative of supplying oxygen concentrators and critical medical equipment and supplies to needy hospitals and people. IAHV ‘Donate for O2, Save Lives!’ is an emergency appeal to raise funds for oxygen concentrators. IAHV has a large and active team of volunteers spread across India. IAHV volunteers have made arrangements to source Oxygen Concentrators from within and outside India and distribute them to various hospitals via the state government machinery.(www.iahv.org.uk)

SAJDA
Rajan Shegunshi

The FUND RAISER concert on 9 May, Sunday at 3.00-4.15 pm BST; 7.30 pm IST will be a free online event that will be live streamed on  SAJDA Festival UK  Facebook Page

https://www.facebook.com/sajdafestival/

The organisers appeal to Donate generously to the IAHV Relief Fund https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/sajdafestgives1

The concert will present top UK artistes- Rajan Shegunshi, Rajasi Vaidya Lohokare, Ani Kaprekar, Rakesh Joshi, Mukhesh KaNnan and Sanket Jadhav. It will be hosted by eminent doctor couple Dr Rohit Arora and Dr Trupti Kulkarni who are frontline doctors working in the NHS.

Also Read – #OXYGENFRIENDSHIP: India Thanks World For The Support

Brilliant vocalist Rajan is a trained in Hindustani classical music and a passionate admirer of variety of musical genres. To his credit, he was a finalist in a famous talent-hunt TV show “Meri Awaz Suno” on Star Plus and also performed in music shows in presence of famous celebrities – OP Nayyar, Shankar Mahadevan, Anup Jalota, Manhar Ulhās to name a few. In the UK, he has performed with famous bollywood celebrities such as Vishal & Rekha Bharadwaj.

Rajasi Vaidya Lohokare

Joining him will be Rajasi another singer with a mellifluous voice from South England. She is a Hindustani Classical musician trained under Guru Pt. Meghnath Kolhapure and recently from Shilpa Puntambekar. She is also trained in semi classical vocals by her guru and mother, Madhuri Vaidya who is a Sangeet Visharad. She was a top contestant of Indian Idol Season 3. She has performed in several live professional shows in India, performing Hindi, Marathi and Kannada songs. She was part of the Choir group performing in concerts dedicated to late Salil Chowdhary.

Ani Kaprekar

Ani Kaprekar is a highly creative business and community leader, with more than 30 years of multi-faceted international leadership career. Ani is also a social media storyteller followed by more than 1 million people across the world on Facebook. Ani has performed in many shows as an anchor, actor and storyteller, including theatre and TV in India. Ani is a popular host for many virtual events in the UK on diverse platforms. He was also the host for SAJDA Season 1 and Season 2 festivals.

Rakesh Joshi

Rakesh is a renowned Artistic Director of Bharatiya Vrund Gaan & SHIVA-the Indian Youth choir of England. He is Singer, Indian Pianist & Music Composer par excellence. He has been a Music Teacher at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Manchester. Currently he is doing Ph.D in Indian music at the University of Salford.

Mukhesh is a theatre practitioner by profession and a passionate keyboard player and teacher. Mukhesh is a popular professional in the orchestra circuit in England and he teaches keyboards to young and old.

Mukhesh Kannan

Twenty-five year old Sanket is a Mechanical Engineer Graduate, doing various things in the education, engineering and technology space. He runs a small school which teaches Hindustani Classical music to a wide range of age groups starting from ages 5 to students in their 40s. Rakesh and Mukhesh both have been his Gurus.

Sanket Jadhav

Latest updates reveal that the IAHV and Art of Living teams are working tirelessly 24X7 in this relief activity to support India – country of 1.2bn battling with a deadly pandemic.

On Ground Zero as on date the teams have organised:

*3,000 Oxygen Concentrators

*25,000 Oximeters

*20 million N95 Masks

*100 Ventilators

*250 Oxygen Cylinders

*2 Cardiac Care Ambulances

*Oxygen plant to produce 49000 litre oxygen per day in Morbi, Gujarat.

*100,000 PPE Kits

*5,604 Doctors on call

*Covid Care Centres in Bhubaneswar, Hyderabad, Delhi and Pune

*Distribution of over 80 million ration kits/meals

*Countrywide Covid Care Protocol Programs to empower people to fight the virus and stay healthy

Dr Rohit Arora and Dr Trupti Kulkarni

UK team of the IAHV has managed to raise as on date over £50,000 to support the initiative.

The 9th May event is coordinated and led by Rahul Laud, Associate Editor at Asian Lite, Curator and Producer of the SAJDA FESTIVAL UK and also volunteer of the IAHV charity.

Also Read – Ace Indian sitarist to set stage on fire at Sajda Online Festival
Also Read – Indian Influencers List MCR recognises 55 Unsung Heroes

Categories
-Top News India News

MP shocker: Patients treated in fields

Hospitals are overwhelmed with Covid patients and no beds are available in Madhya pradesh…reports Asian Lite News

 In a shocking sight from Madhya Pradesh, patients in its Agar Malwa district were seen being treated in fields with IV fluid bottles dangling from tree branches.

The increasing number of Covid patients in the district has put a lot of pressure on health care system. Hospitals are overwhelmed with Covid patients and no beds are available. In such a situation, doctors are forced to treat patients whereever they get space.

While the corona epidemic wreaks havoc, a large number of patients in the rural areas are suffering from common cold, cough but are not getting tested for Covid. They are not even ready to go to the district headquarters for treatment. In such a situation, doctors and quacks working in rural areas have found novel ways to treat patients and earn whatever they could.

: Madhya Pradesh shocker: Patients in fields, IV bottles hang from trees
Also read:Navy steps up Covid fight with Op Samudra Setu II

In the rural areas of Agar Malwa district, patients are being treated in fields with glucose bottles hanging from tree branches, in complete disregard of medical rules. The agricultural fields look like hospital beds and trees have become glucose bottle stands.

Health Officer Manish Kuril says that the action will be taken against doctors who are treating the patients like this.

Tweeting a video of patients being treated in fields, Congress spokesperson Syed Jaffer said: “Agar Malwa is a district which has been under the charge of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan for a long time. Now look at the pictures, what has he done for this district? Life is hanging through tree. How bad can it get? The condition has deriorated so much in 16 years. Now it is time for your government to hang up. Believe me.”

Also read:Thousands defy Covid curbs to gather at Gujarat temple

Categories
India News Lite Blogs UK News

Manchester students plan to help Indian kids to fight Covid 19

Mallika Kumar (17 years) and Nithya Kumar (15 years) from Withington girl’s school, Manchester narrate to Rahul Laud from Asian Lite their plan to provide relief to children in India

A first-person account and sharing by Manchester located students – Mallika Kumar and Nithya – the dynamic sister duo children of Ravi Kumar and Padma is inspiring and encouraging. In a warm tete a tete they say,‘’ In the first phase we aim to collect £10,000 to support the activities of the COVID ChildCare Taskforce. “ COVID ChildCare TaskForce is on an urgent mission to create awareness and provide resources to 10,000 families within 2 months in and around Chennai, the sisters explain.  ‘’We are working with over 200 volunteers from Chennai Tricolor Initiative and their task forces to ensure that we are able to assist children and their families in this time of need,’ they add. 

Also Read – US backs vaccine patent waiver plan proposed by India

As regards the current donation drive, the girls modestly stated, ‘’Funds will be donated to Chennai Tricolor Initiative’s COVID ChildCare Taskforce. The TaskForce aims to provide children and families affected by COVID the resources they require to deal with the pandemic (eg: masks, sanitisers, activity kits to help the child’s mental well-being, etc). 

Manchester
Sisters Nithya and Mallika raise fund

Their fundraiser as on date has raised over £1700. ‘’We hope to reach our goal of £10,000 within the next 2 months to provide for these families, ‘’ the sisters assured. The link to their fund raiser is: COVID CHILDCARE TASKFORCE FUNDRAISER. More information about the fundraiser is also on this page, including a link to the TaskForce website.

Asked as to how did this thought and idea arise? Mallika and Nithya explained, ‘’Being of Indian origin we were devastated by the impact of the second wave of COVID-19 on people, specifically children. We’ve experienced a situation within our own family, where we struggled to find hospital beds. We ended up searching the entire city for a hospital bed and were denied access to healthcare by all of them. We are a well-connected family, and despite this, we struggled. That made us think about the millions of people who do not have as many connections, and what their plight is.” Contemplating further they added, ‘’If this is the situation for adults, for whom facilities are inadequately developed over the past year then imagine the case for children. Until now, children were seen as immune to the virus, which led to the system being underprepared in handling this crisis. ‘’ 

Nithya, Padma, Ravi Kumar and Mallika

Both the sisters have been engaged actively to serve Indian community. ‘’A few years ago, when we lived in India, we set up an organisation called KidsForKids to enable children to help other children in need,‘’ they pointed out.  Sharing details of their work, they said, ‘’One of the projects we worked on involved us collecting and selling second hand books. We used the profits generated to fund the PE kits for an underprivileged school. Now that we are remote, we thought the best way to help is to raise funds.’’

The global pandemic has aroused humanitarian values among young and old. Indians deserve help and lives need to be saved is an indisputable fact. Sisters Mallika and Nithya deserve appreciation, support and encouragement.

Also Read –#OXYGENFRIENDSHIP: India Thanks World For The Support

Categories
-Top News India News USA

US will ban travel from India starting Tuesday

United States Vice President Kamala Harris (Photo Twitter@VP)

President Joe Biden’s Spokesperson Jen Psaki said the restrictions were being imposed because “of extraordinarily high COVID-19 caseloads and multiple variants circulating in India “, reports Arul Louis

The US is imposing restrictions on travel from India starting on Tuesday, Vice President Kamala Harris has said.

“We have announced that starting Tuesday on the advice of the CDC (Centres for Disease Control, our COVID-19 experts, medical experts and national security advisors — travel restrictions will come into force for India,” she told reporters on Friday.

Harris, who was visiting Cincinnati, said, “There is no question that it (COVID surge in India) is a great tragedy, in terms of the loss of life, and as I have said before, and I will say again, we as a country have made a commitment to the people of India to support them.”

“And we’ve made already a commitment in terms of a dollar amount that will go to PPE (personal protective equipment) and a number of other things. But it is tragic. And, you know, my prayers go to the people on the suffering, the blatant suffering that is happening,” she added.

President Joe Biden’s Spokesperson Jen Psaki said the restrictions were being imposed because “of extraordinarily high COVID-19 caseloads and multiple variants circulating in India.”

The White House and the CDC did not spell out the restrictions.

Also Read | Top diplomat Daniel Smith to head US embassy in New Delhi

But travel restrictions issued by Biden on other countries given an idea of how they may impact India.

Non-US citizens except for US legal immigrants will not be allowed into the US if they have been to the countries under the restrictions in the past 14 days.

The restrictions cover South Africa, China, Iran, Brazil, Ireland, Britain and the 29 countries belonging to the common visa zone known as the Schengen Area.

India
Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan inspecting the addition of 500 Oxygenated Beds at the Sardar Patel COVID Care Centre & Hospital, in Chhatar (PIB)

US citizens and legal residents and their immediate family members are exempt from the restrictions, as also are diplomats, but they are advised to follow precautions.

They are asked to test themselves for COVID-19 between three and five days after arrival.

If those who are vaccinated test positive, they have to isolate themselves for seven days.

Those who are not vaccinated are asked to self-isolate for seven days, regardless of the test results.

Also Read | Prince Charles’ Charity British Asian Trust Seeks ‘Oxygen For India’

At a news conference on Friday before the restriction was announced, White House Coronavirus Response Co-ordinator Jeffrey Zientsin said, “In terms of travel from India, we remain in very close contact with our foreign counterparts and are continuously monitoring the situation.”

“Our current inbound travel precautions and mandatory testing before travel — the quarantine for unvaccinated individuals and the retesting during that quarantine period — those are all in place for all international travel and have been effective,” he added.

Last year during the height of the pandemic flights to and from India a” like with most countries a” were banned.

Both countries organised evacuation flights to bring their stranded citizens home.

On Thursday, State Department Spokesperson Ned Price said that the Biden Administration was sending COVID relief aid worth $100 million.

Two planeloads of oxygen cylinders, rapid diagnostic tests, and N95 masks to protect frontline workers have already been sent to India.

Categories
-Top News India News UK News

British Biz Forum CBI Seeks Support For India’s Covid Fight

Lord Karan Bilimoria

Lord Karan Bilimoria, President of Confederation of British Industry, appeals to the British business community to support India to overcome the current pandemic crisis … If your business can help, make your voice heard … A special report by Asian Lite International from London

CBI President Lord Karan Bilimoria, India-born founder and Chairman of Cobra Beer, has issued a statement on the need for the support of the business community to assist in the growing Covid-19 crisis within India.

“Business stands in solidarity with India in light of the devastating health crisis which is unfolding,” he said in a statement. “At this crucial moment we are urging UK firms to donate critical resources and supplies where they can. This includes: ventilators and breathing apparatus, lateral flow tests, empty refillable oxygen cylinders with 10 litres and 45 litres LMO capacity, ISO containers to facilitate transport of liquid oxygen to deficient areas, oxygen concentrators, in situ oxygen manufacturing plants for hospitals, oxygen generator plants, bilevel positive airway pressure (BPAP) machines, PPE, warehousing, transport & logistics. There is also an urgent need for Remidisvir and Favipiravir to help treat those with the virus.”

Lord Karan Bilimoria

“The UK and India share a close bond based on our enduring ties and ongoing close cooperation. The global challenge of the pandemic must be tackled on a united front. If we are not able collectively to control the spread of the virus it will remain a huge risk for lives and economies around the world. The B7 Summit hosted by the CBI on 11th and 12th May will be a crucial moment to show solidarity and strong support to our Indian friends in a moment of need and ensure a resilient global recovery from this devastating pandemic.

“In recent weeks the CBI has been rallying UK businesses to support Indian companies. I’m delighted to say that businesses including BOC Ltd, Gilead Sciences, Peak Scientific, Air Liquide, Penlon (are exploring various options to support this), PG Paper Company LTD , DHL, CEVA Logistics part of the CMA CGM Group, Wincanton, Heathrow Airport, Mott MacDonald, Accenture, KPMG, and trade associations including Association of British HealthTech Industries (ABHI), Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI), British Compressed Gases Association (BCGA) are stepping up to the plate and supporting, just as they have done here in the UK throughout the crisis.

“Our goal is to help others do the same and ensure the overall response is amplified, relevant and focused in a way that helps India.  For instance in addition we have be working with the MOD and the NHS regarding the possibility of setting up nightingale / field hospitals at speed in India. We are also working with the British Asian Trust to help raise funds for 200,000 oxygen concentrators to be distributed throughout India.”

The CBI, representing over 190,000 British firms, is working closely with the Indian High Commission to support the struggling Indian firms.

“We are working very closely with the Indian High Commissioner, Gaitri Issar Kumar, and her team in London and the British High Commissioner, Alex Ellis, and his team in Delhi. Our CBI office in Delhi is involved throughout and we are in constant touch with the CII our sister organisation in India,” Lord Bilimoria added. “I say to any business out there – If your business can help, make your voice heard.”

READ MORE: Over 40 countries offer help in India’s fight against Covid-19

READ MORE: UAE’s cargo for medical aid lands in India