It all started as a long WhatsApp conversation in a group where people were (ironically) blaming people for the deadly second wave and lack of vaccines. One member asked if not Modi, then who? And why do we blame Modi ji because the people were careless and were roaming without masks etc. So after a long silence I decided to chime in. Read on.
Let’s look at the arguments one at a time: who is a better leader today in India? So do you agree that THIS man has failed? Let’s accept this first and then move on.
So who is better? Anyone who listens to the experts, has scientific temper and has the democratic view. You pick your choice. If not Modi, then who is a question similar to if not Jawahar, then who, if not Indira, then who, if not Vajpayee, then who, if not Gavaskar, then who, if not Tendulkar, then who, and today we have reached if not Virat, then who.
Next argument: citizens are equally responsible. Yes. Who is the best communicator as per the Modi universe? Modi himself. So who should have communicated with the masses by leading from the front? Modi ji. How did he do? First he talked about Janata Curfew of one day. We said it’s a master stroke. Then came a 21 day lockdown and Modi ji said Mahabharata war was won in 18 days, we will win this in 21 days. Didn’t happen. This period, we were told, will be used to build infrastructure etc. The lockdown was managed only to the extent that it was installed only after a political manoeuvre in Madhya Pradesh was over. There was no clarity on how are we going to deal with the migrants trapped in various states. They were left to manage all by themselves- migrants and states both. As a result, we saw people walking thousands of kilometres. A few hundred dying in this period.
The world was witnessing similar situations. Let’s see what they did. US launched Operation Warpspeed to hunt for vaccines. Sweden decided to go for herd immunity following necessary covid protocol. New Zealand, being the island it is, managed it’s access points with military zeal, managed to get rid of COVID-19. South Korea, Japan, Vietnam fared much much better than us. Forget developed world, our neighbors are in a much better state than we are. African nations put together an effort to negotiate vaccine prices by forming a consortium called GAVI.
We waited and engaged in everything else except for using scientific temper and expert advice who had warned us in April 2020. We didn’t place vaccine orders in time. We depended only on two manufacturers: Bharat Biotech and Serum Institute. Even with them, we didn’t place orders in time. We kept our eggs in just one basket and hoped that it would deliver. The trouble with Serum was that they were licensees for AstraZeneca which means they were expected to work for other countries as well. Our need was far greater than Serum’s capacity. We never explored other options. Bharat Biotech has not submitted its phase three trial data till date. As a result, WHO has not given its approval yet. Those who have taken Covaxin, have been emergency trial users and we have no data.
Today the center has absolved itself from its responsibility of providing vaccines for all. Note: the center had budgeted Rs 35000 crores in this year’s budget to procure vaccines. We don’t have any account what happened to it. Earlier, all decisions were taken by the center as epidemic act was put in place (should be pandemic, but let’s ignore that for the moment). So even the lockdown decisions were being taken by the center. Similarly, deciding which vaccines to buy, how much to buy, when to buy was all with the center. This responsibility was left to the states after a hue and cry in the first week of May. We opened vaccination for all above the age of 18 from May 1, but the orders were placed only on April 28. Now vaccines are not bhel puri where we can place orders three nights before mass vaccination. Serum naturally was not in a position to start immediately. We were placed in a queue where most nations had placed their orders during trial stages. We had developed Covaxin indigenously. If we had subjected ourselves to proper procedures, we could have got speedy approvals from WHO. My own theory is that we didn’t bulk order Covaxin because the data was not in place. Why did this happen? Because the body who is supposed to handle corona in India is a general medical research body- ICMR. This should have been done by NIV which specialises in viral diseases and had worked during SARS management. We could have used the same epidemic act and handed over the license to produce Covaxin to other companies (which we did earlier in May this year, but we have lost crucial eight months). These companies could have ramped up our Covaxin production. I read an earlier post about vaccine hesitancy. I don’t disagree that this exists. But it’s not to the extent where people were not willing to take vaccines at all. And I will go back to the same argument: who is the best communicator in our universe? Modi ji. If we say that the opposition and the leftist and the media etc created the hesitancy, then Modi should have not got elected either in 2014 or in 2019. People believe in Modi than most other politicians and hence I disagree that the opposition or anyone else created vaccine hesitancy. If Modi ji wanted, he could have and would have totally smashed it out of the park. The entire propaganda machinery run by the BJP has bulldozed so many political campaigns. This was supposed to have run efficiently to clear doubts on vaccines. In my mind, I was hesitant only about Covaxin and only because they have not been submitting the data. Modi ji took vaccine but we don’t know which one. Ok am digressing a bit here, but let’s talk about vaccine procurement. We left it to the states to go and bid individually. So we are not getting any account of Rs 35K crores that were budgeted this year. Secondly, when the orders get divided, we lose bargaining power. African nations came together to form a consortium to buy vaccines so that they could drive prices lower. Here, a country of 135 crores decided to go state level. So instead of a bulk 270 crore or 300 crore doses ( two doses per person plus inevitable wastage), Mumbai has floated a tender, Maharashtra will float its own, Punjab, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh etc have sent out their own. So we have lost that bargaining capacity. Secondly, I think PFizer or Moderna told Punjab govt they don’t deal with state buyers and want only center to come. PFizer had placed its vaccine for emergency trial earlier, but removed it after no response in February. Now we are saying we are open to any vaccines on WHO list. Now this list has a Chinese vaccine too. Again, this is an aside. Let’s come back to citizens being responsible, not following protocol etc. Have we seen the election footage of Bengal, Tamilnadu and Assam? At which point Modiji or Amit Shah were wearing masks or following social distancing? Which election rally was conducted following social distancing or covid protocol? Now there will be an attempt to respond to this that no other party did it. Yes. But who is the ruling party? Who is the world’s largest party? Who has cult-like following? If I am appearing in the rallies without any masks and getting happy seeing the crowds, will I have a moral high ground to come in the evening and preach about covid protocols? With power, comes responsibility and with much respect, I would like to submit that Modi ji did not discharge his duties. He and much of his party was busy in electioneering and citizens’ lives were secondary.
Now let me talk about my house, my responsibility argument. Absolutely right. The govt can do whatever it wants, but I must follow protocol to ensure I remained safe. How do I do that? I am a privileged person. I can work from home. I have a laptop, space to work from, I have a job that gives me money. How many of the 135 crores can enjoy this luxury. I believe I fall in the one percent of this country who can survive without getting out. I work out of my house where a lady comes and sets up her small eatables’ stall. When I don’t have time in the mornings, I go and buy my breakfast from her. She doesn’t have a choice to work from home. She is the only earning member of her household. This is just one lady that I am talking about. You will know countless other people who have no option but to go out. My friend works in a bank. She has to go because her manager doesn’t allow WFH. My brother works in an essential supplies company, he has to go out. People can’t stay in a lockdown forever. The only way out was vaccination and I wrote how we bungled it. People went for Kumbh because it was held. Uttarakhand govt issued advertisements in newspapers around the country inviting people. These ads had Modi ji’s photo on them. Now where do I place this responsibility or should I call it irresponsibility?
We held Tests and ODIs where we allowed people inside stadiums. This when the pandemic was not over. Who heads BCCI? Amit Shah’s son Jay Shah. In April, our PM told the world we have defeated corona without vaccines. Now when the PM, world’s biggest influencer, says we have defeated Corona without vaccines, how do you expect people to follow covid norms? He doesn’t wear mask in a rally, but wears it during video conferencing with the CMs. What sort of messaging is this? And apropos mask, social distancing by people etc. My brother, who works in the essential supplies company, got Covid. He wears mask, washes hands repeatedly, and he straight up goes to take a bath as soon as he comes back from the work. The company has provided them bus for transportation . And the covid still got him. Because he could not avoid contact with an infected colleague. Thankfully, the infection was mild and he was cured after quarantining at home. He just couldn’t avoid getting infected. Like I said, we don’t have an option but universal vaccination if we really want it out.
The vaccination program run entirely via app is excluding about 60 to 70 percent people who don’t have digital access. I hate to break this, but this govt believes everyone has access to mobile, laptop, computer, data and knows English. I have all of this and I am also hugely tech savvy (I believe) and yet I have not been able to secure slots for my kids & my wife. Imagine the plight of those who don’t have a smartphone, a computer or don’t know English. It is only last week that the government has decided to add 14 other languages to Cowin. Maharashtra govt is another bunch of privileged people who want separate app for the state. We got so many vaccines during our childhood without any registration via app. Even my daughter’s triple vaccination was done at the BMC health care Center. We assume that the privileges that we have, are with other people as well.
Now why do I hold one man responsible for this mess? Because since the outbreak last year, all decisions have been made by the PMO. This is an information revealed via RTI. Not my mann ki baat.
We hate to accept it. But we have been had.
(This blog, in a thread form, was written before the Center’s assurance to Supreme Court that all those eligible will be vaccinated before the year end. We still don’t know how and we don’t know what the center means by those eligible.)
