India Coronavirus Dispatch: Are politicians potential super-spreaders?

Younger caseload, older fatalities in Punjab, Bihar polls may be held on schedule, informal schools become centres of learning--news on how the country is coping with the pandemic

Managing Covid-19

Younger caseload, older fatalities: In Punjab, the age group 0-50 accounts for 73.7 per cent of the total state case load. The mortality rate among those infected in this age group, however, is 26.8 per cent. The age group 51-90 accounts for 26.3 per cent of infections but has a mortality rate of 72.4 per cent. Comorbidities, experts say, are the major reason driving the high fatality rate among the elderly. Till August 28, about 17 per cent of infections were noted in the age group 41-50, some 15 per cent for those aged 51-60, around eight per cent for the 61-70 group and only three per cent for 71-80. An official further noted that diabetes is emerging as major problem in Punjab because of the state’s ‘rich diet and sedentary lifestyle’. This, he says, needs to be curbed along with following precautions like wearing face masks and maintaining social distance. Read more here.

Politicians, beware: Karnataka has seen over 40 legislators, across party lines, test positive for Covid-19 so far. Epidemiologists have now warned that those in public life must take extra caution as they run the risk of becoming super-spreaders. The state’s CM Yediyurappa and six ministers of his cabinet have so far been infected. A senior health department official has now said that most of the politicians who caught the virus were infected after attending public events and added that social distancing and other protocol were rarely followed by these leaders when in public. Other experts say that politicians are a particularly vulnerable group because they have to interact with a large number of people daily. Read more here.

Elections during corona: Multiple indicators suggest the Bihar polls will be held as per schedule. This has had political parties scrambling to figure out what elections amid a pandemic will mean, particularly in terms of voter turnouts. While politicians across the board agree that polls during Covid-19 implies that there will be a huge drop in voter percentage, oppositions leaders feel this could actually benefit them. An RJD leader has said that the fear of the virus is highest in urban areas and these are the constituencies where the BJP is expected to perform the best. This could also effect the caste equations in terms of who actually turns up to vote during polls as the creamy layer of all communities are expected to not venture out. NDA leaders, meanwhile, are hopeful that the situation will be much better in a couple of months as they say the state is already heading towards ‘normalcy’. Read more here.

Informal schools: Along the banks of Yamuna, in East Delhi, informal schools have now become the primary centres of learning for children of urban farmers. Before the pandemic hit, these schools used to provide special after-school extra classes. While MCD and government schools continue to provide remote learning, these schools offer a more direct interface for students. The set-ups were restarted sometime in July after noticing that students were cut-off from their schools due to the pandemic. These centres are now operating longer hours than before. The students in the area mostly do not have access to smartphones and their homes suffer from irregular electricity supply. Many of them haven’t even been able to pay the schooling fee. Read more here.
 

Comment

Urbanisation woes: Five years after adopting Sustainable Development Goals, the country has been hit by a pandemic. The toll of the crisis on urbanisation will be massive. According to a recent report, India will have 40 per cent dwellers in urban areas by 2036. However, this trajectory is now hampered by the fact that 90 per cent of the country’s case load is in urban areas. Sub-optimal and overcrowding make India’s cities particularly vulnerable to the outbreak. Sero-surveys across cities have showed that the condition of housing inevitably determines the extent of spread of the disease. Access to water and sanitation is the next major issue. How will this effect sustainable goals? What does it mean for the deep-rooted inequalities that India’s cities have come to represent? Read more here.

Understanding Covid-19

Asymptomatic Covid-19: Since the start of the pandemic, experts have been studying the role of asymptomatic carriers of the virus. Studies show that nearly half of all Covid-19 cases may be asymptomatic. Plus, these asymptomatic carriers can spread the disease as easily as someone with visible symptoms. We still don’t have a rough estimate of the number of asymptomatic cases around the world. Secondly, asymptomatic cases are prevalent in people belonging to all age groups. These people carry a heavy virus load, too. A recent study showed that viral load carried by asymptomatic patients to be the same as the symptomatic ones. As far as why some people are asymptomatic, the jury is still out. Worryingly, even asymptomatic cases can lead to long-term health effects including cardiac issues. Experts have been studying asymptomatic cases but a lot more surveillance of these patients is a must to understand the spread of the virus. Read more here.