The
Left parties in Tamil Nadu, the CPI and the CPM, were shocked when they drew a
blank in the 2016 Assembly polls in the state. Together they got around 1.5 per
cent of the vote in an alliance led by Vijayakanth’s DMDK – which, on paper,
looked like a formidable alliance. From
1957 to 2016, the Left has always had their members in the assembly. The 2016
Assembly poll debacle of the Left parties came about when they failed to find a
place in either the DMK or the AIADMK alliance.
Perhaps LEFT is no longer a force in Tamil Nadu too .. ..
TN
Assembly Elections are around the corner – a fortnight away – what is worrying
for citizen is the rising nos. of Covid 19 affected and whether Corono too can
be eliminated the same way .. .. … . India
added 46,951 new cases to the tally today in its bleakest day since November 11
while daily deaths climbed above 200 for the first time since January.
Large-scale
violations of government-mandated coronavirus guidelines continue in Tamil Nadu
ahead of the state elections even as authorities have directed political
parties to ensure the wearing of masks in public meetings and roadshows. The
oversight of Covid protocols is being reported as the southern state sees a
spike in infections. It was observed
recently that only a few people with masks were seen and crowds did not follow
social distancing norms amid poll campaigning by political parties. Only a few days ago, authorities had made it
a pre-condition for political parties - seeking permission for poll-related
meetings - to ensure wearing of mask by attendees.
Tamil Nadu has seen a
100 per cent rise in COVID cases in nearly three weeks - from 474 fresh
infections on March 1 to 989 new cases on Wednesday - due to what officials
call "heightened political activity, rise in family functions including
weddings and home quarantine violations". Health Secretary Dr J
Radhakrishan said, "There is heightened political activity and many
gatherings. People do not wear mask as you show on TV. Even if one has the
virus, it spreads." A functionary of the Indian Medical Association blamed
leaders who do not set an example during campaigns. "Even many leaders,
who ought to be role models, do not wear masks," he said.
Political
parties, however, claim they are doing their best. AIADMK spokesperson said,
"Both Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam have told
party cadre to wear masks at every meeting". His DMK counterpart said,
"Our leader M K Stalin has vaccinated himself and has urged everyone to
vaccinate themselves. He also advises party workers and the general public to
wear a mask and follow social distancing to stop the spread of the virus."
Meanwhile,
MNM candidate for Chennai`s Velacherry has said he has tested positive and now
plans for a hyper-digital campaign.While political parties appear to be largely
not worried, people too have let their guard down across the state.
Globally the nos.
stand at 12,32,87,417 cases with 4,97,935 new cases in last 1 day ! USA has 29842972, followed by Brazil 11998233
and closely followed by India 11646081 – in past 1 day Brazil had 47774, while
India had 46951 that is worrisome !
Concern
over an alarming increase in new coronavirus cases in India - 131,750 over the
past 72 hours - was underlined Monday by a spike in the 'R', or 'reproduction
rate', of the virus, which has jumped to 1.32 - the highest since April last
year, when there were fewer than 27,000 cases. The 'R' factor - a statistic
used worldwide to track, and potentially, control the spread of the virus - is
a measure of how many people are being infected by one infected person. A 'R'
of 2.0 indicates that one person with COVID-19 will, on average, infect two
others. Each of those two will infect two more (spreading the disease to an
average of four people) and so on.
In a
pandemic situation the ideal 'R' target is below 1.0, which ensures that the
virus will eventually stop spreading because it cannot infect enough people to
sustain the outbreak. In India the 'R' rate was below 1.0 for several weeks
starting late November last year, which was welcome news as it forecasted a
rapid decline in new Covid cases.
Pandemic
has been spread with lot of false information and improper knowledge of things
too .. .. here is a sad incident reported in TOI. A
43-year-old Covid patient from Ramapuram, who was misguided about the
availability of ambulance services by a corporation volunteer, took two MTC
buses to get admitted at the King Institute of Preventive Medicine and Research
in Guindy. The IT professional, who had fever for more than a week, on Saturday
approached Chinna Porur Government Hospital for treatment. Doctors there
advised him to undergo blood and RTPCR tests. Next day he got a call from
Greater Chennai Corporation helpline informing him that he had tested positive.
Since his parents were aged, he did not want opt for home quarantine. Instead,
he sought support from the corporation to get admitted to an approved
government healthcare facility.
The
same day, a corporation volunteer reached his home to hand over the Covid
positive certificate. The patient asked the volunteer whether he was eligible
to use the government’s ambulance service. “The volunteer told me that the
government had stopped sending ambulances for mild infections,” he said. The man then boarded an MTC small bus along route number S26 to
reach Ashok Pillar and from there he took a regular D-series MTC bus to reach
Guindy. He walked the rest of the way to the hospital. When TOI went to King
Institute on Sunday, it found many patients, who did not have a private
vehicle, walking towards the admission ward from Guindy bus stand and railway
station.
“I know
that it is a mistake but I had no other options. I was worried about taking my
bike because I was not sure whether I could ride safely with fever. Also, I had
no idea if I would find space to park my bike safely in the hospital,” the
patient told TOI. This is only one
example of sheer negligence from a govt. hospital. When contacted, the corporation volunteer
admitted that he had told the patient about non-availability of ambulances.
However, the information was incorrect. TOI called the 108 helpline and found
that ambulance services were available for all Covid patients, the severity
level notwithstanding. A senior officer from Zone XI (Valasaravakkam) said the
patient could have contacted 108 if he needed help. The official said he would
check with the volunteer about the misinformation and sort it out.
With
regards – S. Sampathkumar
22.3.2021.
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