India's holiest river Ganges is swollen with Covid victims
1–10 of 92 posts
Re: India's holiest river Ganges is swollen with Covid victims
#2FWIW, even in normal times it's fairly common to "bury" dead people by putting them in Ganges. (Cremation is preferred, but can be prohibitively expensive for the poor.) Varanasi in particular is notorious for this.
For avoidance of doubt, it's clear that situation right now is much worse than usual, but it's also not quite as unusual as if we had bodies floating down (say) the Hudson or Thames.
Re: India's holiest river Ganges is swollen with Covid victims
#3It's getting harder to get an empty vaccine slot. I think there is a huge shortage of vaccines in my state (UP). Fortunately, I got my first shot of vaccine yesterday. At the vaccination center, I saw people breaking the line, taking pictures of their relatives getting the vaccine, and in general not maintaining a safe distance. I guess many handled their ID cards and tokens without sanitizing their hands...
It's heartbreaking to see people suffer due to this pandemic. Reminds me of the privilege I have.
Re: India's holiest river Ganges is swollen with Covid victims
#4What is the best way for someone in the US to donate to help with the situation in India? I'm not Indian so I don't know much about charities in India but news like this is just heartbreaking and I want to do my minuscule part in helping.
Thanks in advance.
Re: India's holiest river Ganges is swollen with Covid victims
#5It's getting harder to get an empty vaccine slot. I think there is a huge shortage of vaccines in my state (UP). Fortunately, I got my first shot of vaccine yesterday. At the vaccination center, I saw people breaking the line, taking pictures of their relatives getting the vaccine, and in general not maintaining a safe distance. I guess many handled their ID cards and tokens without sanitizing their hands... It's hea…
Is the vaccine supposed to work for the second variant of the virus that causes drop in oxygen level?
Re: India's holiest river Ganges is swollen with Covid victims
#6FWIW, even in normal times it's fairly common to "bury" dead people by putting them in Ganges. (Cremation is preferred, but can be prohibitively expensive for the poor.) Varanasi in particular is notorious for this. For avoidance of doubt, it's clear that situation right now is much worse than usual, but it's also not quite as unusual as if we had bodies floating down (say) the Hudson or Thames.
No it is not.
Used to be true a century ago, to a lesser extent- half a century ago. Not anymore.
Re: India's holiest river Ganges is swollen with Covid victims
#7What is the best way for someone in the US to donate to help with the situation in India? I'm not Indian so I don't know much about charities in India but news like this is just heartbreaking and I want to do my minuscule part in helping. Thanks in advance.
You can see plenty of fundraising options at https://milaap.org/
These are verified volunteers directly working at the local level.
Re: India's holiest river Ganges is swollen with Covid victims
#8The number of fatalities is 10x-100x more than what is published officially. Most people died at homes due to them being rural and all hospitals working at capacity.
At government hospitals, you have to be tested and be covid positive to be listed as covid death.
Private hospitals in rural areas simply don't send the stats back.
I don't know any family in India that didn't have a death among their relatives.
They said injustice anywhere is injustice everywhere and this is probably the price to pay for letting Modi run his private circus of his kumbh mela and election rallies. The strain has escaped India and we don't know how it will affect the rest of the world.
All his political life, him and his supporters cried for statues and temples and now they stand on the ashes of million dead people and all they can hear is a deafening silence of their gods.
Re: India's holiest river Ganges is swollen with Covid victims
#9FWIW, even in normal times it's fairly common to "bury" dead people by putting them in Ganges. (Cremation is preferred, but can be prohibitively expensive for the poor.) Varanasi in particular is notorious for this. For avoidance of doubt, it's clear that situation right now is much worse than usual, but it's also not quite as unusual as if we had bodies floating down (say) the Hudson or Thames.
No it is not. Used to be true a century ago, to a lesser extent- half a century ago. Not anymore.
From the friendly article:
> But many communities follow what is known as "Jal Pravah" - the practice of floating in the river the bodies of children, unwed girls, or those who die from infectious diseases or snake bites.
> Many poor people also cannot afford cremation, and so they wrap the body in white muslin and push it into the water. Sometimes, the bodies are tied to stones to ensure they remain submerged, but as many are floated without weights. In normal times, corpses floating in the Ganges are not an uncommon sight.
You can also find plenty of gruesome footage of decomposing corpses in the Ganges near Varanasi, shot by recent tourists.
Re: India's holiest river Ganges is swollen with Covid victims
#10FWIW, even in normal times it's fairly common to "bury" dead people by putting them in Ganges. (Cremation is preferred, but can be prohibitively expensive for the poor.) Varanasi in particular is notorious for this. For avoidance of doubt, it's clear that situation right now is much worse than usual, but it's also not quite as unusual as if we had bodies floating down (say) the Hudson or Thames.
No it is not. Used to be true a century ago, to a lesser extent- half a century ago. Not anymore.
Per TFA:
> Traditionally, Hindus cremate their dead. But many communities follow what is known as "Jal Pravah" - the practice of floating in the river the bodies of children, unwed girls, or those who die from infectious diseases or snake bites.
> Many poor people also cannot afford cremation, and so they wrap the body in white muslin and push it into the water. Sometimes, the bodies are tied to stones to ensure they remain submerged, but as many are floated without weights. In normal times, corpses floating in the Ganges are not an uncommon sight.