DECLARE HEALTH EMERGENCY!
YES, especially in the context of the gory second wave and imminent more horrendous third wave of Covid-19 in the country, with affected cases and deaths mounting to lakhs within weeks with not even facilities to dispose of the dead and hundreds of bodies thrown out into and floating along the rivers all over, especially Ganga and Yamuna. Ours is perhaps the only country in the world where this gruesome health calamity is exploited for the greed and profit by the all sorts of evil elements in and out of the governments, people in general are virtually left uncared for and turned destitute. This editor has all along been demanding universal health care for one and all; but now stresses – what is urgently needed is effective all-round FREE CORONA CARE, and also construction and maintenance of hundreds of hospitals with copious oxygen and ventilators facilities in the entire country. This crisis has to be taken as an opportunity and all efforts must be directed to this end. Even after 74 years of independence we are still in the lowest ranks of the world community in health expenditure: “WE INDIA are spending only some 3.6% of the GDP for health care [in 2018, now 4% or so] compared to the U.S. (16.9%) and China (5%). Further the government/ compulsory expenses in the U.S. are about 14% of GDP and in China it is about half (2.5%) whereas it is only 1% or so of the GDP in our country. Moreover from 2000 to 2018 it is almost a constantly descending graph of healthcare expenditure in our country …. This Corona Crisis should be taken as an opportunity and we must immediately enhance the healthcare expenditures to the tune of at least 5% of GDP - … build hundreds of good hospitals all over India, recruit thousands of doctors and paramedical staff, etc. pay them good salaries with better incentives and create an excellent infrastructure to counter any further calamities ….” Also it is reported widely that so many hundreds are dying mainly due to their contracting Covid-19 in mass gatherings in course of elections to various local bodies/institutions, etc. It is strange that even though lakhs have died, daily 3-4 thousand deaths are reported, a stark undercounting of the dead also being alleged in national/international journals/newspapers, the central/state governments are shirking from their responsibilities/duties to take vigorous steps to handle this calamity. THE ONLY WAY NOW IS FOR THE CENTRAL GOVERNMENT TO FORTHWITH DECLARE A NATIONAL HEALTH EMERGENCY and take, also guide State Governments to take, ample remedial measures to combat and defeat this disaster. §§§
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