Kathmandu, Nepal: Most of Nepal is under lockdown, its hospitals overwhelmed. Bangladesh suspended vaccination sign-ups after promised supplies were cut off. Sri Lanka’s hopes of a tourism-led economic revival have collapsed.
As India battles a horrific surge of the coronavirus, the effects have spilled over to its neighbours. Most nearby countries have sealed their borders. Several that had been counting on Indian-made vaccines are pleading with China and Russia instead.
Same risk factors
The question is whether that will be enough, in a region that shares many of the risk factors that made India so vulnerable: densely populated cities, heavy air pollution, fragile health care systems and large populations of poor workers who must weigh the threat of the virus against the possibility of starvation.
KATHMANDU, Nepal Most of Nepal is under lockdown, its hospitals overwhelmed. Bangladesh suspended vaccination sign-ups after promised supplies were cut off. Sri Lanka’s hopes of a tourism-led economic revival have collapsed. As India battles a horrific surge of the coronavirus, the effects have spilled over to its neighbors. Most nearby countries have sealed their borders. Several that had been counting on Indian-made vaccines are pleading.
Bhadra Sharma, Aanya Wipulasena and Vivian Wang, The New York Times Published: 13 May 2021 11:42 PM BdST Updated: 13 May 2021 11:42 PM BdST Noorjahan Begum sobs as she visits the grave of her mother Rahima Begum, who died from the coronavirus disease at Dhaka Medical College Hospital on Apr 16, at Rayerbazar Graveyard on Friday, Apr 23, 2021. Photo: Mahmud Zaman Ovi A family performs last rites at the Seemapuri cremation ground in Delhi, India, where crematories have been burning day and night to keep up with deaths from COVID-19, May 6, 2021. International donors are raising millions to aid India with its coronavirus pandemic crisis, but the Modi administration has erected hurdles for overseas organisations and guided money toward officially endorsed groups. (Atul Loke/The New York Times)
As India’s COVID crisis rages, its neighbors brace for the worst
SECTIONS
As India’s COVID crisis rages, its neighbors brace for the worstBy Bhadra Sharma, Aanya Wipulasena and Vivian Wang, New York Times
Last Updated: May 13, 2021, 11:02 PM IST
Share
Synopsis
The question is whether that will be enough, in a region that shares many of the risk factors that made India so vulnerable: densely populated cities, heavy air pollution, fragile health care systems and large populations of poor workers who must weigh the threat of the virus against the possibility of starvation.
AFP
Even in countries where a spring surge has not been directly linked to the Indian outbreak, the ripple effects have created fresh pain.