Where is my India that boasted of our missions to Space, Undersea and Antarctica? Where is my India that can move at lightning speed its defencemen and material to the frozen Himalayan Frontiers? Where are the leaders, from tall to pigmy, who were talking loud about versatile developments in hi-tech India and she being self-governed, self-dependent, self-reliant, self-sufficient in the matter of food, firearms and facilities and what not?
Even after facing the Covid brunt and paying a huge cost in term of lives and livelihood last year, they have not become wise rather preferred to be complacent and carried on low-level politics and wasted the critical time that could have saved lives, pains, agonies and nightmare. Who is responsible for this tragic situation? Of course our politicians, as for them the lives of commoners are simply numbers and do not matter in their scheme of covert things.
The men we elected for our safety, security and well-being have let us down miserably and criminally and are squarely responsible for the calamity India is facing today.
Horrifying reports of people dying in hordes are heart-rending and words fail to express the sufferings and pains of the people who are helplessly watching their loved ones dying before them. There is a huge difference between the ground reality and the official data released daily.
Now, what we are seeing is just true to the famous saying ‘Shutting the stable after the horse has bolted.’ After shaking it up by the shoulder, the government woke up to Operation O2. After initial inertia resources mobilization began on a war footing; imports ordered, Oxygen plants are being set up, industries wooed, productions enhanced, norms relaxed, red-tape/inspectorates cut, gas tankers requisitioned, Army/Airforce/Navy called in, machinery/medicines airlifted etc… but all at eleventh hour.
The situation in Jammu Kashmir may not be that worst but surely not better too. The death toll is rising with every passing day despite Administration’s claims that the UT has sufficient men, medicines, beddings and Oxygen. But, people are sceptical about such claims by the Administration and its spokesperson as the trust-deficit is obvious when one recalls similar claims by the Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal a month ago.
So, without taking any chance, the government here should strengthen and streamline the Covid treatment regime in all hospitals and health centres in Jammu Kashmir with sufficient stocks of critically needed drugs and Oxygen. Make all Help-lines and emergency phone lines functional and responsive which have been mostly found non-functional and unresponsive landlines. Let the personal mobile numbers of the important functionaries and officers on crucial jobs be uploaded in the public domain for helping people in case of need and emergency. Expedite the installation of Oxygen plants in all the hospitals and medical centres as publically announced and funds of Rs. 223 crores provided seven months ago but the works still in the process of tendering etc. The accountability for this inordinate delay in completing such critical projects may be fixed when the crises will be over.
Make District Magistrates who are heading the Disaster Management body at the district level and Director Health/Chief Medical Officers responsible for the effective management of the Covid crisis. Rope in religious and social organisations to curb misinformation and panic and to make people aware of common-sense solutions and popularise simple procedures? Let the political workers co-operate and coordinate in helping people and facilitate in getting the medical and emergency assistance. They should also help ensure the essential services at community and cluster levels. They should also assist in public service delivery to individuals like official documents – Domicile, PDS papers, Income and caste certificates etc in coordination with the District and Sub-division administration being most of these public offices out-of-bound for public due to corona panic. After all, we witnessed workers of a political party were going door to door collecting funds for the temple not very long ago.
