24 patients at a hospital in Chamarajanagar have died as the oxygen flow ran out. The hospital CIMS is facing a ten-fold increase in the demand for oxygen. No one in the government has understood the gravity of the situation we face, in many small towns across India.
We have concentrated even the minimal physical infrastructure for everything in a few large cities. There is a massive drop-off in almost everything even 20-30 km outside the top 3 to 5 cities. And being a large state, distance slows down the response to crises everywhere.
There was more interest shown by the government and the opposition in the bye elections in a few constituencies. It's the same story everywhere - nothing deters their attention from politics and power. The consequences are borne by ordinary citizens, paying with their lives.
Some years ago, I visited Magadi municipal council and spoke with the leadership there. They are barely a stone's throw from Bengaluru, and yet their perception of being ignored was very high. The governance distance from power grows exponentially with actual distance.
Those who wield Central and State power by denying the local councils and the districts their rights to govern themselves at their scales can never do anything good for the country. By the very structure they embrace, they becomes hostile to the welfare of the people.
Lots of people ask, 'but what can we do now?'. That's like asking, how can I catch the bus that has gone? But there are things we can do, at district scale, or at least at regional scale, by working CLOSELY with local industry in a COOPERATIVE way.
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
