The COVID situation in China, as per reports, hardly shows any sign of improvement, as a large number of people are getting infected with the virus, on a daily basis. So far, the virus has claimed thousands of lives. The local media recently reported that the situation has prompted many elderly people to commit suicide due to fear of infection, especially in rural China. As COVID-19 has hit hard in rural areas, quite a few hospitals have formally shut down their operation abruptly, mainly because of paucity of medicines.

The Chinese media have also reported that rural areas have been devastated by Coronavirus, as people have been seen struggling a lot to getting basic medical services. Many have perished without minimal treatment, while others have started committing suicide. In comparison, the situation is said to be much better in major cities.

Rural hospitals are basically facing a dearth of medical supplies. Hence, the infected people are not receiving proper treatment. Even, those patients are not having access to the requisite medicines. Unavailability of adequate medical equipment and medicines has forced the local administration to shut down some rural hospitals.

Meanwhile, Beijing has stopped publishing the daily statistics of COVID situation in face of widespread criticism at the international level. There is no official information about the number of infected people, and deaths occurring due to spread of COVID-19. However, one can get an idea about the situation in China from the scenario reported in the rural areas.

The COVID Policy of Beijing has been repeatedly criticised by the Chinese people and the global community. In 2022, the Government of China adopted a Zero COVID Policy to deal with the spread of the virus, imposing strict lockdown, and other similar restrictions across the country. Later, the Government relaxed the Policy. Although experts have backed the Government’s decision, the common people have expressed serious concern over the easing of restrictions. Now, they are facing the music.

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Published by Koushik Das

Koushik Das (born on May 16, 1976 in Kolkata) is a career journalist. Based in the Indian capital of New Delhi, Koushik writes mainly about foreign policies and current geopolitical issues, and rarely about other topics. His own political ideas are highly influenced by Antonio Gramsci, Louis Althusser, Michel Foucault, Michael Oakeshott and others. English philosopher and political theorist Oakeshott (Dec 11, 1901-Dec 19, 1990) says that “in political activity, men sail a boundless and bottomless sea. There is neither harbour for shelter nor floor for anchorage, neither starting-place, nor appointed destination. But we have to keep afloat”. (Rationalism in Politics, 1962) As a student of Political Science, Koushik loves to share his views on issues, which have great impacts on his thought process (and also on India, South Asia and of course on the global community), with his readers through his website – Boundless Ocean of Politics. By doing so, he tries to keep himself afloat. You will find some of his articles in https://inserbia.info/today/ (https://inserbia.info/today/author/kou_das13_i/), as he has been trying to assess the global geopolitics since 2003. You can also mail him at kousdas@gmail.com View all posts by Koushik Das