The one thing that communists around the world are best renowned for is ‘tooting their own horn’ and as usual, the Pinrayai Vijayan’s communist regime in Kerala went overboard in selling the mirage of ‘Kerala Healthcare model’ in the aftermath of the Coronavirus pandemic. But it looks like, the façade is coming off and after being exposed by the reality, the Kerala government has observed a stoic radio silence.
Kerala’s model of healthcare has failed spectacularly in the state as the cases are on an unprecedented rise. Nearly ten months into the year and seven months after the Union Government announced a nationwide lockdown, the COVID-19 cases in Kerala are continuing to increase, despite having the so-called ‘best healthcare setup’ as claimed by several left-liberals.
Kerala was considered a model state at the beginning of the pandemic for being able to keep infections under control, but now the outbreak in the state has become a cause for concern. Kerala has a total of 67,061 cases as of Wednesday. Kerala’s proportion of active cases is 33 percent, while the national figure is 15.42 percent. The average positivity rate over the past week has hovered at around 12 percent for the last one week.
In the past 24 hours, Kerala saw a new daily COVID tally as 8,830 people tested positive for coronavirus. In an indication of the worsening COVID-19 scenario, the state for the first time saw its daily cases crossing the 8,000 mark. The previous single-day high was 7,445 on Sunday.
After the news of the failed Kerala Model started hitting the newsstands, the Kerala government finally woke up from its slumbers and ramped up the testing capacity and then only it could only collect 63,682 samples.
The real extent of the COVID spread in the state can be understood from the number of cases reported per million population on a peak day. Kerala is now reporting 32 new cases per million on a peak day, just behind Delhi at 38 cases per million. In contrast, neighboring states Tamil Nadu (14 cases per million, per day) and Karnataka (23 cases per million, per day) are reporting less cases on a peak day despite a bigger population.
And if you compare the award-winning Kerala healthcare model to one of the poorest states in terms of healthcare infrastructure–Bihar, the situation might look even grimmer.
@the_hindu @kunalkamra88 @ReallySwara @thewire_in @ThePrintIndia @ndtv @abpmajhatv @cpimspeak @CMOKerala @NitishKumar @Jduonline
Well done Bihar Govt. Shame on SO CALLED KERALA model….!! pic.twitter.com/sLQ06Ri7dH— Parin (Modi ka Parivaar) (@ParinMehta82) October 1, 2020
So far, Bihar has done 70 lakh tests and Kerala only 28 lakh. The test positive rate in Kerala is now among the highest in the country. And the test positive rate in Bihar is possibly the lowest. The population of Bihar is much greater than Kerala and yet the eastern state has done remarkably well in containing the virus.
The spineless Kerala government is also not accepting the recommendation for declaring a health emergency as suggested by the Indian Medical Association. Though the IMA has written to the government stressing the need to declare a health emergency considering the gravity of the situation, the chief minister said that the current situation doesn’t require declaration of a medical emergency.
The intellectual cheerleaders of the Kerala model have fallen completely silent and the lutyens media that went gaga over the so-called model is nowhere to be seen. The Chief Minister and his star Health Minister Shailja Teacher, who even received an award from the UN for tackling the coronavirus cases has refused to take the blame for the spurt in the cases.
The state is gradually becoming the next Maharashtra of the country and if its leaders continue to ignore the advice of IMA, then no one can save the Kerala Model of healthcare from deteriorating further. The Kerala Model of Healthcare has already bombed but the lives of the commoners is being put on the line by a dismissive Pinarayi Vijayan government.