Why the Deadly Black Fungus Is Ravaging COVID Patients in India | DW News

India seems to be past the peak of its second COVID-19 wave, but the country is now fighting another crisis – those recovering from COVID19 seem to be more vulnerable to dangerous fungal infections. The black fungus, a deadly but once rare disease, has now been declared an epidemic in several Indian states.

‘Black Fungus’ Disease Linked to Covid Spreads across India

THE GUARDIAN: 7,200 mucormycosis cases reported, usually in patients with diabetes or compromised immune systems

States across India have begun declaring a “black fungus” epidemic as cases of the fatal rare infection shoot up in patients recovering from Covid-19.

The fungal disease, called mucormycosis, has a 50% mortality rate. It affects patients initially in the nose but the fungus can then spread into the brain, and can often only be treated by major surgery removing the eye or part of skull and jaw.

It is usually a rare disease, but more than 7,200 people in India have now been reported with mucormycosis and 219 have lost their lives. The rise in black fungus infections, mostly in patients who had severe cases of Covid-19, has been linked to an overuse of steroids in the treatment of the coronavirus, which can acutely compromise the immune system if taken over a prolonged period. The high incidence of diabetes in India has also been blamed, with high blood sugar levels linked to susceptibility. India has the second highest rate of diabetes in the world.

It has also been reported in Covid patients who were on ventilators in intensive care units, due to their airways being exposed to humidity and moisture. » | Hannah Ellis-Petersen in Delhi | Friday, May 21, 2021

What is the deadly ‘black fungus’ seen in Covid patients in India? »

The death of a pair of twins in India punctures country’s numbing statistics. »

Stench of Death Pervades Rural India as Ganges Swells with Covid Victims

THE GUARDIAN: Stigma and cost of wood leave families with no choice but to immerse their dead in river

There was a time before when the Ganges was “swollen with dead bodies”.

In 1918, when the great flu pandemic swept through India and killed an estimated 18 million people, the water of this river – upon which so many lives depended – was filled with the stench of death.

And so it is again. India’s official death toll from the coronavirus pandemic may be just over a quarter of a million, but experts believe the real figure to be up to five times higher, and the bodies that have begun washing up in India’s holiest river have become haunting representations of the uncounted Covid dead.

On Wednesday, India reported another record number of deaths, 4,529, as the virus continued to spread out of the big cities and into rural areas. » | Hannah Ellis-Petersen and Saurabh Sharma in Ghazipur |Thursday, May 20, 2021

Covid Desperation Is Spreading Across India

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Infections, deaths and breakdowns that began in big cities a few weeks ago are rapidly advancing into rural areas, unleashing deep fear in places with little medical safety net.

NEW DELHI — Dozens of bodies washed up on the banks of the Ganges this week, most likely the remains of people who perished from Covid-19.

States in southern India have threatened to stop sharing medical oxygen with each other, fiercely protective about holding on to whatever they have as their hospitals swell with the sick and infections skyrocket.

And at one hospital in Andhra Pradesh, a rural state in southeastern India, furious relatives went on a rampage in the intensive care unit after lifesaving oxygen suddenly ran out — the latest example of the same tragedy repeating itself, of patients dying while gasping for air.

The desperation that engulfed New Delhi, India’s capital, over the past few weeks is now spreading across the entire country, hitting states and rural areas with many fewer resources. Positivity rates are soaring in those states, and public health experts say that the rising numbers most likely fall far short of giving the true picture in places where sickness and deaths caused by Covid-19 are harder to track. » | By Jeffrey Gettleman and Suhasini Raj | Tuesday, May 11, 2021

‘Like Purgatory’: Diaspora in Despair as India Sinks Deeper into Covid Crisis

THE GUARDIAN: Indian Americans scramble to secure oxygen canisters for family members, desperately work to raise funds and pressure US legislators to lift vaccine patents

Since the pandemic began, Fatima Ahmed has lost 29 of her family members in India and one in the US to Covid-19.

A few days ago, her uncle died in his car as he was driving back home from a hospital in Hyderabad, a city in southern India. “All the hospitals were at capacity, so they couldn’t take him in,” said Ahmed. “He pulled over and he called the rest of the family, the khandan – before he passed.”

Each loss has amplified her anger – at the mass crisis unfolding 8,000 miles away, at the shortages of oxygen and vaccines, at the anti-Muslim attacks stoked by Indian officials who have scapegoated religious minorities as the country. Ahmed, an academic and activist based in New Jersey, has asked the Guardian to use a pseudonym for privacy and safety concerns.

As the US begins to emerge from the depths of the coronavirus crisis, India is sinking. And the 4.8 million members of the diaspora in the US, like Ahmed, have been anxiously monitoring their phones in case of news that an old neighbor, or relative, or close friend has died. The despair has permeated across time zones, as Indian Americans scramble to secure oxygen canisters and hospital beds for family members, desperately work to raise funds, donate resources and pressure US legislators to lift vaccine patents. » | Maanvi Singh | Monday, May 10, 2021

India's Hospitals Swamped as Daily COVID Cases Approach 380,000 | DW News

India's hospitals turn sick away as daily COVID cases approach 380,000 | DW News

India has set another global record in coronavirus cases, reporting almost 380,000 new infections in the last day. Medical aid from abroad has started arriving in the country, but hospitals are still struggling with shortages of staff and supplies, including oxygen. India's health care system is so overwhelmed that many patients are being turned away.

A COVID-19 ward in a hospital in Delhi. The hospital, like so many, is full to overflowing. Medical staff are stretched to the limit, some falling ill with the disease themselves. Just one reality in India's coronavirus emergency.

A woman receives oxygen outside a Sikh temple. She's not alone. There's no room for these people in Delhi's emergency wards. Relatives are left to cope with severely ill patients by themselves. A long line outside a Delhi gas supplier. People doing what they can to save their loved ones. Some get the oxygen they need. But there isn't enough to go round.

The state of Delhi is reporting one death from COVID-19 every four minutes. And as the hospitals can't cope with the growing numbers of patients so the cremation grounds are struggling to cope with the rising numbers of deaths. The funeral pyres are burning day and night.

Delhi is one hotspot of India's COVID-19 emergency. Maharashtra state and the city of Mumbai is another. Here vaccination centers ran out of supplies on Wednesday. India is one of the biggest producers of vaccines. But it doesn't have enough to vaccinate the next 600 million people who will become eligible for the jab.

Amid the frustration and suffering this: A 105-year-old man and his 95-year-old wife have survived a COVID-19 infection. The family says they want that story to give hope to others. For many fighting the disease, hope and prayers are all they have to help them.

‘The System Has Collapsed’: India’s Descent into Covid Hell

THE GUARDIAN: Many falsely believed that the country had defeated Covid. Now hospitals are running out of oxygen and bodies are stacking up in morgues

Looking out over a sea of jostling, maskless faces gathered at a political rally in West Bengal on Saturday, the Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, proudly proclaimed that he had “never ever seen such huge crowds”. A mask was also noticeably absent from Modi’s face.

That same day, India registered a record-breaking 234,000 new coronavirus cases and 1,341 deaths – and the numbers have kept rising since.

The country has descended into a tragedy of unprecedented proportions. Almost 1.6 million cases have been registered in a week, bringing total cases to more than 15 million. In the space of just 12 days, the Covid positivity rate doubled to 17%, while in Delhi it hit 30%. Hospitals across the country have filled to capacity but this time it is predominately the young taking up the beds; in Delhi, 65% of cases are under 40 years old.

While the unprecedented spread of the virus has been partly blamed on a more contagious variant that has emerged in India, Modi’s government has also been accused of failures of political leadership from the top, with lax attitudes emulated by state and local leaders from all parties and even health officials across the country, which led many to falsely believe in recent months that India had defeated Covid.

“Leadership across the country did not adequately convey that this was an epidemic which had not gone away,” said K Srinath Reddy, president of the Public Health Foundation of India.

“Victory was declared prematurely and that ebullient mood was communicated across the country, especially by politicians who wanted to get the economy going and wanted to get back to campaigning. And that gave the virus the chance to rise again.” » | Hannah Ellis-Petersen in Delhi | Wednesday, April 21, 2021

India Scrambles to Supply Oxygen as Covid-19 Patients Gasp for Breath »

Trump Positive for Covid-19, Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict, India Rape Cases

It was one A-M in Washington when the president of the United States confirmed he tested positive for Covid-19. Face masks were a topical issue in Tuesday's first presidential debate. Even if the other debates were cancelled, there were enough fireworks in Tuesday's 90 minute shoutfest in Cleveland to last a lifetime. In Portland, Oregon Wednesday, the arraingment of Alan Swinney, a member of the Proud Boys, on twelve charges including allegations he pointed a revolver at counterprotesters and fired a paintball gun and mace at them during a mid-August protest.

It's a three-decade old border dispute that's now escalated into what looks like all-out war between former Soviet republics Armenia and Azerbaijan. Trying to sift through the fog of war propaganda are journalists. Four injured Thursday including Le Monde's Raphael Yaghobzadeh and Allan Kaval.Turkey's president blasting Russia, France and the U-S, saying they've lost their credibility as longtime mediators in the conflict and putting Armenia in his crosshairs.

In India, outrage over two gang rapes and murders of young Dalit women Police Thursday in the country's largest state Uttar Pradesh reporting the gang rape and murder of a 22-year old while 500km away in Hatras district. There were angry protests after police officers cremated the body of a 19-year old victim without her family's permission. Rushed to hospital in New Delhi 200 kilometres away but died on Tuesday. And when he tried to go for a rally, police shoved to the ground Rahul Gandhi, the head of the opposition and prevented him from meeting with the family.

India | The Land of Jambu Trees

India Court Legalises Gay Sex

India's top court has handed down a landmark victory for gay rights in the world's largest democracy. A law dating back to British colonial rule, which made gay sex a criminal offence punishable by up to ten years in prison, has been struck down.

Five judges ruled it was discriminatory - and was used as a weapon to harass members of India's gay community. Outside the court, campaigners cheered and some broke down in tears as the decision was announced.

“A Beautiful Moment”: Arundhati Roy Hails Indian Court Legalizing Gay Sex, Overturning Colonial Law

India’s Supreme Court has overturned a law criminalizing consensual gay sex, in a major victory for LGBTQI groups. The ruling voids a portion of the Indian Penal Code written by Britain’s colonial government in the 1860s, which, although rarely enforced, made sodomy a crime punishable by up to life in prison. We speak with Arundhati Roy, the acclaimed activist and author based in New Delhi. She won the Booker Prize in 1997 for her first novel, “The God of Small Things.”

Inside Story - Is India Defying Western Sanctions on Iran? (2012)

India has been exploring trade opportunities with Iran, but is it willing to join in international efforts to prevent Iran's emergence as a nuclear power?

Guests: Sreeram Chaulia, Richard Weitz, Mohammad Marandi

Queen Victoria's Last Love - Relationship with an Indian Servant - Full Documentary

Terry Ramsey reviews the documentary exploring Queen Victoria's relationship with her Indian servant Abdul Karim.

Pakistani Journalist: Why Is Trump Pushing For Failed Military Solution Instead of Diplomacy?

On Monday President Trump announced an escalation of the U.S. war in Afghanistan. He also issued a warning to Afghanistan’s neighbor, Pakistan. President Trump went on to say that the U.S. would develop its strategic partnership with India, calling on the Modi government to help in Afghanistan. Observers say that the move might be a signal to Islamabad that the U.S. would back India in the struggle between the South Asian rivals, unless Pakistan severed ties with the Afghan Taliban and the Haqqani network, one of its factions. For more we speak with Pakistani journalist Raza Rumi, editor of the national Pakistani newspaper The Daily Times and a professor at Cornell University and Ithaca College.

Donald Trump Hit Pakistan On Afghanistan War With Provocative Criticism | Rachel Maddow | MSNBC

Andrea Mitchell, NBC News chief foreign affairs correspondent, talks with Rachel Maddow about Donald Trump's provocative criticism of Pakistan and the dearth of State Department officials in position to handle the diplomatic side of Trump's Afghanistan strategy.

Stephen Harper: Trump Will “Reverse the Cornerstone of 7 Decades of American Foreign Policy”

Former Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper speaks and takes questions at The Raisina Dialogue 2017, a conference of the Observer Research Foundation with the subject “The New Normal: Multilateralism with Multipolarity.” The speech took place on January 19, 2017, at the Taj Palace Hotel, New Delhi, India.

All Journalists Kicked Out of Delhi Nanny State Conference!

Faith Goldy of TheRebel.media reports from Delhi: All journalists have been banned from further reporting. She demanded answers.

‪India PM to Visit UK amid Demands to Return British Crown Jewel to India‬

India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi is heading to Britain, and he's expected to get a rock star reception... But amid the lavish and warm welcome, there could be a bone of contention as Indians plan legal action against the UK, demanding the return of Britain's most-famous crown jewel.

WIKIPEDIA: Koh-i-Noor »

Muslim Man Beaten to Death over Rumours He Had Eaten Beef in India

THE TELEGRAPH: Mohammad Akhlaq was attacked by around 100 people and despite being taken to hospital, police said "his life could not be saved"

A 50-year-old Muslim man was beaten to death over rumours he had eaten beef, a taboo in India, a Hindu-majority nation.

Mohammad Akhlaq was dragged from his house on the outskirts of the capital and attacked by around 100 people on Monday night, a police officer told AFP.

"When our team reached the spot a crowd was there outside his house. They (police) managed to rescue him and take him to the hospital, but his life could not be saved," said senior police superintendent Kiran S.

Indian police said on Wednesday they had arrested six people and "deployed additional personnel to contain any further repercussions".

Mr Akhlaq's 22-year-old son was also seriously injured in the attack and was in intensive care at a nearby hospital. » | Afp | Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Saudi Diplomat Accused of Raping Maids Leaves India under Cover of Immunity

THE TELEGRAPH: Police removed two Nepalese maids from the diplomat's home last week; they accuse him of confining and raping them for months

A Saudi Arabian diplomat accused of repeatedly raping and abusing two Nepalese maids has left India under cover of diplomatic immunity, while Nepal on Thursday called for justice for the women.

India's External Affairs Ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup identified the diplomat as Majed Hassan Ashoor, the first secretary at the Saudi Embassy in New Delhi. The statement late on Wednesday said Mr Ashoor, "who is allegedly accused of abusing two Nepali maids, has left India".

It gave no details on how the diplomat left the country, but said "the first secretary, being a diplomat, is governed by the provisions of the Vienna Convention on diplomatic relations."

The two Nepalese, working as maids in the diplomat's luxury apartment, have accused him of illegally confining and raping them during the past few months. » | AP | Thursday, September 17, 2015