COVID Deaths: Are Governments Criminally Liable for Mass Misery?
3 years, 7 months ago

COVID Deaths: Are Governments Criminally Liable for Mass Misery?

The Quint  

Under the Indian Penal Code, Section 304A defines the offence of criminal negligence. For an offence of criminal negligence to be made out, the following grounds must be ascertained: there should be a duty of care on the part of the Defendant towards the aggrieved person this duty must have been breached by the Defendant; failure to perform duty expected of the Defendant, or performing a duty not expected there should be tangible harm/damage caused to the aggrieved person because of the Defendant’s negligence. While “right to health” is not an explicitly stated fundamental right in the Constitution, the Supreme Court, through various judgments, has interpreted it to be part of the right to life under Article 21. She believes that a clear link can be drawn between the government’s refusal to foresee the current situation and its ability to act on it, and the deaths that we see spanning the country, clearly caused by lack of timely access, or any access, to life-saving medical facilities.

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History of this topic

Ready, or not: The Hindu Editorial on rising numbers of COVID-19 cases and India’s state of preparedness
1 year, 8 months ago

Ready, or not: The Hindu Editorial on rising numbers of COVID-19 cases and India’s state of preparedness

The Hindu  

The better part of management is preparedness. On April 12, a total of 7,830 new cases were reported in a 24-hour period, according to the Union Health Ministry’s data, possibly the highest in over 200 days. However, health systems can scarcely afford to be under prepared, especially considering the recent traumatic experience of a raging pandemic taking a huge toll. …

Why India must come clean on Covid-19 deaths
2 years, 7 months ago

Why India must come clean on Covid-19 deaths

Hindustan Times  

In a soft, sad tone, Jagjyot Singh talks about “fighting till the end”. His mother, Sarabjeet, admitted for Covid-19 at Delhi’s Jaipur Golden Hospital, died on the fateful night of April 23, 2021, when oxygen ran out in the intensive care unit. The death certificate issued in Jagjyot’s mother’s name describes the manner of death as “natural,” and the cause …

Settling India’s COVID-19 mortality data
2 years, 7 months ago

Settling India’s COVID-19 mortality data

The Hindu  

Over the last year, the World Health Organization has been busy, in an unprecedented effort, to calculate the global death toll from COVID-19. There are gaps Several news reports have pointed at a significant gap in India’s COVID-19 story — significantly under-reported mortality figures. Because as in these figures, India would have had close to four times the COVID-19 deaths …

40 lakh Indians died due to \'govt negligence\' during Covid: Rahul Gandhi
2 years, 8 months ago

40 lakh Indians died due to \'govt negligence\' during Covid: Rahul Gandhi

Deccan Chronicle  

New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday claimed that 40 lakh Indians died during the coronavirus pandemic due to the government's "negligence" and once again demanded that all families of the deceased be given Rs four lakh compensation each. Taking to Twitter, Gandhi shared the screenshot of a New York Times report which claimed that India is stalling the …

Vital relief: The Hindu Editorial on COVID-19 death compensation
3 years, 3 months ago

Vital relief: The Hindu Editorial on COVID-19 death compensation

The Hindu  

It took an assertive Supreme Court to persuade a reluctant Centre, and in a welcome turn of events, families of those who died of COVID-19 are to get ex gratia financial relief of ₹50,000 per deceased individual within 30 days of submitting the necessary documents. As of September 13, WHO recorded 4,45,768 COVID-19 deaths in India and 3,35,31,498 confirmed cases, …

Covid Deaths At Jaipur Golden Hospital- Delhi HC Grants Further Time To Centre, Delhi Govt For Responding To Plea Seeking SIT Investigation, Compensation
3 years, 3 months ago

Covid Deaths At Jaipur Golden Hospital- Delhi HC Grants Further Time To Centre, Delhi Govt For Responding To Plea Seeking SIT Investigation, Compensation

Live Law  

The Delhi High Court on Monday granted further six weeks time to the Centre and Delhi Government in order to file their replies in the plea moved by family of 9 victims seeking a Court monitored CBI SIT Investigation into the deaths that took place in Jaipur Golden Hospital on 23rd and 24th April, seizure of important records and CCTV …

HC Gives Time to Centre, Delhi Govt to Reply to Plea for CBI Probe into Covid Patients Death at Jaipur Golden Hospital
3 years, 4 months ago

HC Gives Time to Centre, Delhi Govt to Reply to Plea for CBI Probe into Covid Patients Death at Jaipur Golden Hospital

News 18  

The Delhi High Court Monday granted additional time of six weeks to the Centre and Delhi government to file replies on a plea seeking CBI probe into the death of 21 COVID-19 patients at Jaipur Golden Hospital here in April allegedly due to oxygen shortage. On June 4, the court had issued notice to the Centre and Delhi government on …

Dealing with denial: The Hindu Editorial on playing down the COVID-19 tragedy
3 years, 5 months ago

Dealing with denial: The Hindu Editorial on playing down the COVID-19 tragedy

The Hindu  

A touchy topic for the Centre and States has been the counting of the dead from COVID-19. In 2020, as the pandemic ravaged Europe and the U.S., Health Ministry officials would incessantly argue that India had better managed the pandemic because its deaths per million of population were comparatively lower. It is technically true that while no death certificate or …

India’s pandemic death toll could be in the millions
3 years, 5 months ago

India’s pandemic death toll could be in the millions

Associated Press  

NEW DELHI — India’s excess deaths during the coronavirus pandemic could be a staggering 10 times the official COVID-19 toll, likely making it modern India’s worst human tragedy, according to the most comprehensive research yet on the ravages of the virus in the South Asian country. It said an accurate figure may “prove elusive,” but the true death toll “is …

India’s true COVID-19 death toll is likely ‘in the several millions,’ report says
3 years, 5 months ago

India’s true COVID-19 death toll is likely ‘in the several millions,’ report says

LA Times  

Ramananda Sarkar, 43, who has cremated more than 450 COVID-19 victims, stands by burning funeral pyres in Gauhati, India. India’s “excess deaths” during the pandemic could be a staggering 10 times the official COVID-19 toll, likely making it modern India’s worst human tragedy, according to the most comprehensive research yet on the ravages of the coronavirus in the South Asian …

India did not see 5-7 times excess Covid-19 deaths. Govt explains why
3 years, 6 months ago

India did not see 5-7 times excess Covid-19 deaths. Govt explains why

Hindustan Times  

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Saturday informed that States and Union Territories record Covid-19 deaths as per guidance issued by Indian Council of Medical Research. In an official release, the ministry slammed a renowned international magazine for publishing an article that claimed that "India has suffered perhaps five to seven times 'excess deaths' than the official number …

COVID Deaths At Jaipur Golden Hospital: Families Move Delhi High Court Seeking SIT Investigation, Compensation
3 years, 6 months ago

COVID Deaths At Jaipur Golden Hospital: Families Move Delhi High Court Seeking SIT Investigation, Compensation

Live Law  

A plea has been filed in the Delhi High Court by family of 9 victims seeking a Court monitored CBI SIT Investigation into the deaths that took place in Jaipur Golden Hospital on 23rd and 24th April, seizure of important records and CCTV footage and also compensation to such families.Moved through Advocate Utsav Bains, the plea also prays for providing …

Bihar: Death and deceit
3 years, 7 months ago

Bihar: Death and deceit

The Hindu  

Dr Smriti*, a senior resident atagovernment hospital in Patna, is on the front line of the tidal second wave of COVID-19 that has caught Bihar unawares. “As they are part of the community and as there is little else by way of health care in the villages, most of my patients have already sought treatment for the first six-seven days …

Over 4500 Covid-19 deaths in 24 days not recorded by the Delhi govt
3 years, 7 months ago

Over 4500 Covid-19 deaths in 24 days not recorded by the Delhi govt

Op India  

Amidst the ongoing second wave of the coronavirus pandemic in the country, an exclusive report by The Hindu suggests that as many as 4500 Covid-19 death cases have not been recorded by the Delhi government over the last 24 days. The BJP-led civic body has alleged that the AAP-led Delhi government is making a deliberate attempt to hide the actual …

Modi’s BJP: India’s ruling party leader says ‘responsibility is ours’ for Covid-19 outbreak
3 years, 7 months ago

Modi’s BJP: India’s ruling party leader says ‘responsibility is ours’ for Covid-19 outbreak

CNN  

CNN — Responsibility for the devastating second wave of Covid-19 now sweeping India belongs “first and foremost” to the government, according to Narendra Taneja, a spokesman for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. When pressed by Amanpour as to why his party continued to hold such events as cases rose, Taneja pushed back and said the “autonomous” Election Commission of India …

As India Crosses 2 Lakh Deaths, Are Deaths Being Underreported?
3 years, 7 months ago

As India Crosses 2 Lakh Deaths, Are Deaths Being Underreported?

The Quint  

On 28 April India officially crossed a grim landmark of 2 lakh deaths from COVID-19. The alarming spike in daily cases and fatalities has not only highlighted the weak health infrastructure in the country but also led to long waiting periods at crematoriums in Delhi, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, and several other states. In today’s episode, we will go through several …

I Beg Govt to Make Arrangements for Last Rites of COVID Victims in Dignified Manner: Kumaraswamy
3 years, 8 months ago

I Beg Govt to Make Arrangements for Last Rites of COVID Victims in Dignified Manner: Kumaraswamy

News 18  

Former Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy said on Friday it is really “height of inhuman behaviour” on the part of the government as he alleged that it has failed to ensure proper arrangements for conducting the last rites of Covid patients. Noting that Bengaluru is surrounded in all its eight directions by forest land that lacks any tree cover, …

India's Covid death toll could be TEN TIMES higher
3 years, 8 months ago

India's Covid death toll could be TEN TIMES higher

Daily Mail  

India's Covid death toll could be ten times higher than is being officially reported, according to analysis of the numbers being burned in crematoriums. Pictured: A man walks past a burning funeral pyres of people who died from Covid-19 at a crematorium ground in New Delhi Funeral pyres for Covid patients burn at a park converted into a crematorium in …

Covid-19: Bodies pile up at India crematoriums overwhelmed by virus surge
3 years, 8 months ago

Covid-19: Bodies pile up at India crematoriums overwhelmed by virus surge

Live Mint  

India’s crematoriums and burial grounds are working overtime to cope with the surging number of deaths from the country’s escalating coronavirus outbreak. Even after the crematorium doubled capacity when India’s first virus wave struck last year and started operating 24 hours a day, families still need to wait at least two to three hours to cremate the bodies of their …

Current Phase of Covid-19 Pandemic on Multiple Trajectories in Urban, Semi-urban Areas: MoS Health
4 years, 3 months ago

Current Phase of Covid-19 Pandemic on Multiple Trajectories in Urban, Semi-urban Areas: MoS Health

News 18  

The current phase of the COVID-19 pandemic in India is on multiple trajectories across urban and semi-urban areas with Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Delhi being the most affected, the Lok Sabha was informed on Friday. “Since the country has a huge population, it is expected that there would be a large number of …

'Govt Doesn't Know? We Will Tell Them': Medical Fraternity Fumes as Young Doctors Succumb to Covid
4 years, 3 months ago

'Govt Doesn't Know? We Will Tell Them': Medical Fraternity Fumes as Young Doctors Succumb to Covid

News 18  

“The government does not know? We will give a list to them,” said Dr Amarinder Singh Malhi, resident doctor of Delhi’s AIIMS, when News18 spoke with him, asking him about the government informing Parliament about the death of a total of 155 healthcare workers and their kin seeking compensation under the Prime Minister’s Garib Kalyan package. The country’s largest body …

As India’s virus cases rise, so do questions over death toll
4 years, 3 months ago

As India’s virus cases rise, so do questions over death toll

Associated Press  

NEW DELHI — When Narayan Mitra died on July 16, a day after being admitted to the hospital for fever and breathing difficulties, his name never appeared on any of the official lists put out daily of those killed by the coronavirus. The Health Ministry guidelines echo this concern, asking states to record all suspected virus deaths, including “presumptive deaths” …

COVID-19: A chain of blunders by the Central government
4 years, 3 months ago

COVID-19: A chain of blunders by the Central government

The Hindu  

“ The response to COVID-19 has been driven by political priorities rather than by public health and epidemiological expertise.” This is the retrospective assessment three well-known public health specialists have made of the manner in which the pandemic has been handled so far in the country. “The epidemic,” the scientist trio observe in TheAJTMH article, “is in different stages in …

Duty Of State Is To Save Lives Of Those Infected With Covid, Non-Availability Of ICU, Ventilators Cannot Be A Reason For Denying Admission: Bombay HC In Suo Motu Case[Read Order]
4 years, 3 months ago

Duty Of State Is To Save Lives Of Those Infected With Covid, Non-Availability Of ICU, Ventilators Cannot Be A Reason For Denying Admission: Bombay HC In Suo Motu Case[Read Order]

Live Law  

The Bombay High Court on Thursday took suo motu cognizance of issues faced by the general public due to non-availability of ventilators and oxygenated beds for Coronavirus patients with moderate and severe conditions in order to reduce the death rate in Nagpur. Division bench of Justice RK Deshpande and Justice PV Ganediwala of the Nagpur bench at the outset observed- …

No One Has The Right To Put Own Life In Jeopardy Or Others' Life At Risk', Gauhati HC Asks State Authorities To Act Tough Against COVID Protocol Violators [Read Order]
4 years, 3 months ago

No One Has The Right To Put Own Life In Jeopardy Or Others' Life At Risk', Gauhati HC Asks State Authorities To Act Tough Against COVID Protocol Violators [Read Order]

Live Law  

The Gauhati High Court on Thursday suggested the Assam Government to take strict action against those not following physical distancing norms, including the imposition of fine on violators. Background of the PIL and the Court's observations The Court was hearing a Public Interest Litigation wherein it was contended that since the directions contained in various orders and notifications issued on …

How Do Indians Die? Putting Covid-19 Fatalities Into Perspective as Country Battles Pandemic
4 years, 4 months ago

How Do Indians Die? Putting Covid-19 Fatalities Into Perspective as Country Battles Pandemic

News 18  

On January 30, 2020, the first case of the mysterious Novel Coronavirus, originating in Wuhan, China, was detected in Kerala, India. Firstly, while Covid-19 deaths in India have been surging compared to Western countries, India’s case fatality ratio remains low. On the contrary, countries with high population density, which makes it difficult to maintain physical distancing norms, such as India, …

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