China News Service, December 19 (Sweet). On December 19, local time, the total number of confirmed cases of the new crown in India exceeded 10 million, making it the second country in the world with more than 10 million confirmed cases after the United States.
While the number of COVID-19 cases exceeds 10 million, this South Asian country is looking forward to the arrival of the "antidote".
January 2021 is when the Indian government sets the start of mass vaccination.
However, in the low-latitude and hot environment, this country is facing a different problem from many countries-how to properly transport and store vaccines that require cryopreservation; at the same time, as the second most populous country in the world, the vaccine The order arrangement is testing the Modi government. However, India’s anti-epidemic problems are far more than this...
A health worker in Mumbai, India, wears a smart helmet equipped with thermal scanning sensors to check the body temperature of residents.
Is India really ready to vaccinate hundreds of millions of people?
As early as August, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi personally endorsed that the vaccine made in India "will be available soon."
But as of today, when many countries are launching large-scale vaccination, India has not yet given a clear schedule.
According to news from the Ministry of Health of India on December 8, a variety of candidate vaccines are in different stages of development, and some may be licensed in the next few weeks.
Three vaccines, including Pfizer vaccine, are applying for emergency use in India.
Indian health officials who requested anonymity told the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) that the country is expected to start vaccination in January 2021, and by August, it may cover 300 million Indians.
Several British media analyzed that India has no lack of "ambitions" on the issue of vaccinating hundreds of millions of people with the new crown vaccine.
However, even if its vaccination plan is in place, such a large-scale distribution still has hidden dangers.
New Delhi, India, the banquet hall was transformed into a temporary hospital.
——Can the new crown vaccine withstand high temperature?
Since many vaccines need to be stored and transported at extremely low temperatures, it is vital for India, in South Asia, to deal with the high temperature challenge.
Indian experts thought of a trick: a high-temperature resistant new crown vaccine.
According to a report from the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) on November 6, experts said that this vaccine can be stored at 100°C for 90 minutes, 70°C for 16 hours, and 37°C for more than a month or even more. Long time.
The idea is very good, but there is still no definite news about when the vaccine will come out.
So, is it possible to rely on India's existing cold chain system for transportation?
In response, Sandra Rahman, a member of the People’s Health Movement, a New Delhi-based non-governmental organization, warned that “the government needs to expand the scale of infrastructure to 5 to 10 times our current scale.” In addition, The cold chain system is also "limited to urban areas and almost non-existent in rural or remote areas."
Shi Yongming, an associate researcher at the China Institute of International Studies, also pointed out in an interview with Chinanews.com that because some vaccines must be stored in an environment below minus 70°C for transportation, this method may not be popular in India.
——Who will “prioritize” vaccination?
Epidemiologist Rahariya also mentioned that the "prioritization" of vaccinators will also be a big challenge.
According to the plan of the Indian government, people over 50 years old and vulnerable people will be vaccinated first.
In addition, Punawara, CEO of the Serum Institute of India, recently said that the agency expects to sell 20 to 30 million doses of vaccine to private institutions.
This means that the Indian private market will be able to buy vaccines.
In this regard, Shi Yongming pointed out that there are political differences within Indian society, "if excessive marketization will cause certain injustice and trigger contradictions."
A mask was attached to the front page of an Indian newspaper to remind the public to take precautions during the epidemic.
"If you don't have money, you can only resign yourself to fate"
A few months ago, after an outbreak in Tharavi, India’s largest slum, it was once regarded as the country’s potential biggest “epidemic bomb”.
The land area there is only 2 square kilometers, but at least 1 million people live there.
But now, it's not just Tarawi that is worrying.
The virus has spread from cities to rural areas where the Indian medical system is fragile. Officials from many important departments, including the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Interior, have successively diagnosed...
Public hospitals "have a dirty environment and a bed is hard to find", while private hospitals charge unattainable fees. For those poor people who are infected with the new crown, "no money can only be resigned".
Experts also worry that the actual infection situation in India may be more severe.
As early as September, the model of Mukherjee, professor of biostatistics and epidemiology at the University of Michigan in the United States, pointed out that there were 100 million cases of infection in India at that time. “India has chosen to go with the flow and develop herd immunity.”
In addition, although India’s death rate from the new crown is relatively low compared with some countries, considering the problems that many deaths from the new crown have not received medically confirmed reports, many deaths may have been “missed”.
On September 21, India's Taj Mahal reopened to the public.
How can the predicament of 400 million "beating workers" be solved?
"Earlier, people were scared and didn't go out and tried to keep their distance. But how long can one person be kept in one space?" Indian man Dixit said.
Since the restrictions were relaxed and his restaurant reopened, there have been no empty seats.
Like Dixit’s restaurants, large shopping malls and gyms in many parts of India have reopened; the Taj Mahal, which has been "closed door" for six months, is open to welcome customers when the number of confirmed cases continues to rise.
To prevent and control the epidemic, India implemented one of the largest blockades in the world in March, and a large number of rural migrant workers lost their jobs.
Under the huge downward pressure on the economy, the Indian government has relaxed controls in phases starting in June.
But Srinath, head of the Public Health Foundation of India, believes that the country has relaxed when the epidemic has not completely eased.
This sends a "wrong signal" to people, making them think that the epidemic may have been brought under control, but the opposite is true.
Shi Yongming believes that, considering the carrying capacity of its medical system, India should have done a good job of "prevention", but it is obviously difficult. The people's living conditions are not good and they must go out to work, which makes it difficult to control the epidemic.
India must first solve the "food problem" before it can solve other problems. This is India's dilemma.
Hu Shisheng, director of the Institute of South Asian Studies of the China Institute of Modern International Relations, also said that for some Indians, the most painful thing is not having a job and the cost of social living is very high.
In particular, about 400 million daily wage workers are faced with the question of "starving to death" or "sick to death". In the face of severe reality, the priority of epidemic prevention has been lowered.
Data map: Affected by the epidemic, a luxury resort in Kumarakom, India transformed its swimming pool into a fish farm.
"This crisis seems to have no end"
According to the Times of India, a study conducted by the Mental Health and Behavioral Sciences Department of Max Medical Group in India shows that the people of this country are suffering from the new crown anxiety disorder-every second, Indians show a certain degree of Signs of COVID-19 anxiety; one in four Indians is very stressed and needs medical intervention.
Regarding the future trend of the epidemic in India, Shi Yongming analyzed that India itself has a large population and density, especially the dense living space of the bottom people, and there is almost no safe distance.
Secondly, the level of social development in India is relatively low, especially in underdeveloped areas where sanitary conditions are poor.
"It is still very likely that India has more confirmed cases than the United States."
Indian experts believe that from the data point of view, the peak of the first wave of the epidemic in India has passed, but considering the gradual unblocking of social and economic activities, and the superimposition of winter cooling, festivals and other factors, the future situation of the epidemic is still not optimistic, and the epidemic prevention is becoming more complicated. New stage.
According to Saraya, who works at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, "This crisis seems to have no end. We are being overwhelmed by the rising number of infections." (End)