COVID-19 Lockdown: Over 300 Dead Due to Non-virus Causes, Govt Still Silent

More than 300 people have lost their lives or killed themselves due to the ongoing nationwide lockdown, according to the data collected by a group of researchers. As per the data, the deaths have been caused by varying issues, all of which are not related to COVID-19, from hunger, financial distress and exhaustion, due to police atrocities for lockdown violations and inability to get timely medical attention.

Jamalo, a 12-year-old migrant worker, who was walking from Andhra Pradesh to her village in Chattisgarh’s Bastar collapsed 11 km short of her village. She had covered over 100 km and died due to electrolyte imbalance. The case was widely reported. However, several other cases were not as widely reported. One such case was that of 70-year-old Somariya died in Garhwa, Jharkhand as she had not eaten for three days. In Kashmir, a mother and her twin babies died due to lack of timely medical care.

Not only that, the number of people who have died by suicide, due to a number of reasons - from fear of infection to loneliness, lack of freedom of movement and alcohol withdrawal are staggering. Alcohol withdrawal, which is recognised as a medical condition, has led to deaths of as many as seven people after they consumed after-shave and sanitiser lotions. The condition of migrant workers, who are stuck in quarantine centres away from their family has been widely reported. A large number of these workers have died by suicide fearing infection, and sometimes even the stigma attached to the disease.

The data compiled by the group of researchers based on reports on newspapers and from other sources revealed the following numbers:

Starvation and Financial distress (e.g., inability to sell farm produce): 34 
Exhaustion (walking home, queuing for ration or money): 20 
Denial of timely medical care or attention to vulnerable groups: 38 
Suicides (fear of testing positive, loneliness, etc.): 73 
Deaths associated with alcohol withdrawal symptoms: 45 
Police atrocities/state violence: 11 
Lockdown related crimes (including vigilantism for violating lockdown rules): 11 
Migrants returning home dying in accidents: 40 

However, the above numbers only account for the reported deaths, which likely represent only a fraction of the actual cases. The nature of these deaths show that they could have been easily avoided if the lockdown was planned and proper arrangements were made to provide for the vulnerable sections. Starting May 3, India enters the third phase of lockdown, albeit with relaxations, but without immediate measures to deal with this humanitarian crisis the brunt of this lockdown will continue to be borne by the most vulnerable.