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Source: Indian Express
Relevance: The period of the Covid Pandemic needs proper analysis of what worked and what went wrong.
Synopsis: Second COVID wave was marked by an Oxygen crisis in India. The number of deaths caused due to lack of Oxygen was also underestimated. Hence, there is an urgent need to establish mechanisms of accountability within the public health system.
Background
The second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic exposed the fragility of India’s healthcare systems. While several factors were responsible for the damage, an easily preventable dimension of the disaster is deaths caused due to shortages of oxygen in hospitals.
- Lack of proper official record-keeping, undercounting and denial continue to be recurring themes of the pandemic since the first wave.
Relevant points
- The Goa bench of the Bombay High Court observed that any loss of life due to lack of oxygen is an infringement of the right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution
There’s an urgent need to establish mechanisms of accountability within the public health system, along with efforts to improve health infrastructure and oxygen supply.
| Also Read: Issue of medical oxygen in India – Explained |
