Saji Mathew Kanayankal CST

QUESTION: While we are at the wreck of the second wave of covid-19, how much responsibility fall on our system and government? Could we not prevent or reduce its intensity, if we had prepared well in advance? – John Thomas

ANSWER: The question reminds me of a cartoon of Sandeep Adhwaryu that appeared in the Times of India a few days back. It gives the picture of both the mandir and an oxygen cylinder with the voice ‘Take your pick’, and the person with a dead body is struck before it! It shows the entire psyche of the country of the last few years and its present status. At the wreck of a pandemic, with all its disastrous wave, how many of us are daring enough to ask genuine questions concerning the country and its real problems. One of the comments that were prevalent in social media was also thought-provoking. It goes almost like this, “they did not promise to build new hospitals, neither did they promise to make new oxygen plants, nor offered us good health. Rather they promised to make mandir, CAA, 370, NRC and they have done it. Every country has the government it deserves.”

Apart from the dangerous attack of the Corona virus, the failure of different constitutional institutions of the country made things worse. Though it was not conclusive, many experts have already predicted the possibility of a second wave in India even amidst the first wave. Indeed, no one was aware of its density and whereabouts. After the first wave, we had at least ten months to prepare for it. Now it is proved that both the central government and state governments have miserably failed to face the crisis. Today, when people are struggling to find beds, oxygen and hospitals, and long queues in the crematoriums, perhaps at least in our subconscious, we have accepted that death and suffering are inevitable.

Failure of a Genuine Democracy

We should not forget that to govern a country like India, with all its complexities and diversities, and with such a good number of populations is a herculean task. It will be multiplied in a time of pandemic like this. Narendra Modi is an unparalleled leader with his particular charisma, personal skills, oratory styles and abilities. No one can do the wonderful ministries the way he does. On the other hand, the party is almost personified in him, and he is a ‘world leader’ for his followers. He is presented as superhuman power, and whatever good things take at this time the credit goes to him. Modi centralises to take the credit, and when they begin to collapse, he begins to ‘decentralise’ and hold the states responsible.

In failing to face the second wave of the Corona, the primary responsibility falls on the majoritarian psyche of our central government. It is very evident in the functioning of the cabinet where everything is centralised to one person. There are quite many examples. As I am penning down these lines, amidst the panic of the spreading of the pandemic, the much controversial GNCTD Bill (Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) 2021), came into force. As already noticed, the murder of democracy has taken place through a democratic process! And twitter is warned to remove all unpleasant tweets about the failure of central governments from its sites. UP Chief Minister has announced invoking NSA to anyone trying to create fear and panic if they particularly report falsely about the oxygen shortage in the hospital.

When the Covid was encompassing the country and all over the world, what was the chief concern of our government! Many anti-democratic laws, like CAA, EIA, NEP, NSA, The Farmers Bills etc are some of the examples. The administrative mechanism has spent so much energy to execute their hidden agendas during this time of pandemic under the above rules. Apart from it, the government also used its means and machineries like CBI, ED, and other offices to silence the dissents. Instead of taking care of the basic needs of the people like health, food, education, how much money have they spent for making statues or such kind of monuments, just for religious or political gains? Unfortunately, our constitutional institutions like the Supreme Court and the Election Commission as well as the media also failed miserably to do their duty to the country and the people at this crucial time.

The propaganda of ‘Team Modi’ vehemently made praises on him in the media. In early March, Harsh Vardhan, the health minister, declared the country was in the ‘endgame’ of the Covid 19 pandemic and he lauded PM Modi’s leadership as an example to the “world for international co-operation.” It blindly gave the message that India has conquered the Covid in advance to many other countries and we have done a very remarkable progress. From January onwards India started to export doses of vaccine to different countries, with the projection caption ‘vaccine diplomacy’. And there was also prorogation that India becomes the ‘vaccine guru’ of the world. In the beginning of April with the announcement of ‘vaccine fest’, (Tika Ulsav) there created a corona free mood in the public. There was indeed a sharp decline in the cases reported. By mid-February, India was counting an average of just 11,000 cases a day which was much less than September. While making such kind of claims and projections, we were not vigilant about the possibilities of a second wave. Neither we made good planning about it taking into the good advantages of the various facilities of this country.

It was pointed out that the Prime minister never thought or nor informed about the magnitude of the problem, and therefore he was never fully prepared for the size and scale of the present crisis. But who owns the responsibility? Unlike previous governments, Modi fails to promote experts and was not ready to get the advice of the wise. For example, When Raghram Rajan was against demonetisation, he did not turn to a second term. Or remember the story of Urjit Patel. While bringing the best economics, scientists, or diplomats and getting their advice, the previous Prime Ministers did not look on loyalty, but on the expertise and hard work. There are so many stories about Jawaharlal Nehru’s deep admiration for the criticism and he used it for the improvement. Instead of populists, the critiques and experts can enlighten the administration in a better way.

In facing the pandemic, it is accused that the top epidemiologists’ advice is not taken into consideration and there was no proper consultation with the real health experts. The government could have trust in the outstanding health secretaries who served the past governments. The past governments, including Atal Bihari Vajpayee have listened to the experts not based on partisans, rather on their technical expertise and skills. It is so sad that such kind of openness and receptivity has completely vanished from the present governing system and only the loyalists are given place to the decision-making bodies. Whenever criticism originates, Modi and his term shun it down, with the slogan of antinationalism. If the government have heard the voice of the experts in health and pandemic and could have prepared with the infrastructure within the available time, we could have tackled the second wave better and save the lives of many.

The Fading Priority

From the very beginning of the Corona pandemic the experts were suggesting and the government was insisting on social distance. In breaking the chain, we were instructed to follow the ‘social distance’ and the vast majority of the people in the country sacrificed many of their aspirations to execute it. It was all for the security and safety of self and others. However, with the announcements of recent assembly elections, we have seen that all those social distancing methods were taken away. All political parties arranged huge rallies across the country and thousands and hundreds attended these rallies with or without masks! While promoting social distance on the one hand, the announcement of our home minister that the election or rallies did not cause to the spread of the Corona was a black humour! Even amidst the spread of the Corona, in many rallies the Prime Minister himself was present and he was amazing at the packed crowd- “as far as the eye could see”! As Dushyant Dave, the former president of the Supreme Court Bar Association commented, the ruling party was completely obsessed with West Bengal, ignoring their constitutional rights and their constitutional duties to look after the health and well-being of the citizens.

It may not be right to blame the ruling party alone, but all political parties played their role and were irresponsive to their voters. It is a shame that nobody ever suggested postponing the election or using some new methods to avoid big gatherings at this pandemic season! Why have we not opted for virtual election rallies or propagation? Think of our children. During the whole year, they sacrificed their schools and colleges and opted for a virtual way of learning. Or, take the examples of many companies or employees, they learned to practise ‘work at home’, though difficult, a different way of executing things. If so, why not our political parties and the Election Commission could not think of a different way of conducting the polls?

Similarly, the government also permitted large religious gathering such as Kumbha Mela at Haridwar, where millions of people come together for pilgrimage and prayer. Without any social distancing and few Covid-19 protocols being observed, devotees gathered, and within five days, more than 2,000 infections were recorded in the city, forcing Modi to “request” devotees to curtail the festivities.

Vaccination- Profit and Inequity

There were many stories on the success of India in fighting the Covid with the invention of new vaccines. In the beginning, it has distributed to the health workers and the elders and slowly to other age groups with the announcement that people above 45 will be vaccinated freely. There was an impression that it goes on well and within a specific period all people will be vaccinated. But, at the peak of the pandemic panic, on April 19, the central government abdicated its responsibility to ensure equity in vaccine availability with the statement that free vaccination would be limited to health care frontline workers and people above 45 years of age. Moreover, it has permitted the two institutes- the Serum Institute of India and the Bharat Biotech- to decide its price as well. As per the new regulations, the two institutes will give 50% of vaccines to the central, the state and the private hospitals may get it from them as per the price decided by the company. There will not be any regulation from the government!

By withdrawing from the responsibility of vaccinating the citizens, the government acts as a myopic, because, instead of standing by the people, it is standing by the big companies. Moreover, there can be the possibility of unhealthy competition between the states as well as with the private sector, which may not be healthy for the country and its people. While abdicating its responsibility bluntly, the government fails to do its primary responsibility to the citizens of this country, to take care of their life and health.

As it is estimated the total number of people in India between 18- 44will be 595 million in 2021. This vast number of people are not included in the free vaccination policy of the government. In few months, vaccination may become obligatory for everyone. The entire vaccination should be covered either by the state governments or by the private sector. They have to buy it from the companies at their price. One can imagine the huge profit that the companies are going to make! In an interview with ND TV, on April 06, Mr Adar Poonawala, the CEO of Serum Institute told that while the company is selling the vaccine at the rate of₹150-160 per dose, the company was not selling at the cost price, but making a profit but they have sacrificed the ‘super profits.’ Now the company has got the opportunity to acquire the ‘super profit.’ It is true that the Serum institute took the initiative, burdened the risk, invested the money, and worked for it, even before the actual vaccine was cleared. They have the full right to have the profit. But taking the advantage of ‘super profit,’ when millions are striving for life and lively hood? Should the government and all our constitutional institutions be silent spectators at this moment?

And finally, what about the access of the people to the vaccination. It is already reported that there is a long queue for its registration and nobody is sure about its availability. While the rich can easily afford it through the private sector, the vast majority of the poor will be deprived of it. Many developed countries have sealed vaccine supplies many times than their total population. Most countries including the US, where health care is privatized, are vaccinating adults for free. While India, gamble the life of people in allowing companies to sell vaccines at a huge profit in a pandemic and the government withdrawing from its responsibilities.

It is high time that the government should be more vigilant and to be proactive for the people of the country. The good leaders emerge amidst the crisis. It is not the propaganda; the acts make one authentic. Let us leave it to the history!