I think I’ve figured out COVID death discrepancy. Was looking at how states are compiling the death data that they release, and it’s crazier than one could imagine. [Thread]
Looked at 3 large states, but the figures they release of deaths are collected from hospitals!
The death figures you hear only counts people who died while COVID positive when admitted in a hospital!
Someone never admitted to hospital - not counted.
Someone released after being negative and dying due to post COVID complications - not counted.
Someone even dying outside the hospital, pleading for a bed - not counted!
The data is assuming COVID deaths is only COVID patients dying in a hospital, which is obviously going to lead to a massive undercounting of COVID deaths.
There is a source of the real numbers though...
All shamshans are maintaining the record of cremations done with COVID protocol. This data is not being digitised or compiled. It exists in physical registers at shamshans.
Some reporters have done stories using this data, but a national accounting needs to happen.
Also, Muslims would also be dying, and there would likely be a record at kabristans, but I haven’t been able to verify that.
The accurate accounting of deaths NEEDS to happen! The first part was figuring out where the under reporting is happening...
I believe more than anyone fudging data, it is this practice of only reporting hospital deaths that’s leading to such massive under reporting.
There would also be many who are dying without getting tested, but sadly that would be nearly impossible to capture.
The least we can do though, is count the ones who died outside hospitals - which is a massive number!
I believe this is how the huge underreporting is taking place. Next step is to figure out how to get the real numbers from all the shamshans and kabristans in the country.
Anyone have any insights on this, please do let me know. DM’s also open.
If any journalist / organisation is already working on this, please also let me know.
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Why is the PM missing? Why are they campaigning in Bengal? Here’s the likely answer:
In any event, the first question he asks is what’s best for his image. It’s never what’s best for people or nation, it’s always the image.
In the current crisis, they took a concerted call...
And they reached the conclusion that staying out of reach and away from the crisis was a better bet for his image.
Thought process: Nothing to be done, we’ve already exported vaccines, not allowed foreign ones or prepared hospitals and oxygen, so people will die.
If Modi leads from the front, people will associate him with the deaths and the crisis. So he’ll do nothing.
In a few weeks, when lots have died but the situation starts to get better - oxygen, medication sorted, bed situation better, vaccines being imported and made...
What can the PM do? Here’s a list for the very least!
1. Stop all public events and campaigning!
2. Ask people who can afford it to stay home.
3. Ensure oxygen and medicine supply by any means - and till that happens, give real timelines and speak the truth on situation.
4. Get oxygen plants set up - it takes 15 days by DRDO, can be done in 10.
5. Expand emergency bed capacity - stadiums, schools - put ventilators and oxygen where possible, but even basic care is better than dying outside waiting.
6. Pay for the damn VACCINES! Not funding it is criminal. Stop the data stealing app deployment, focus on giving vaccines!
7. Central Call Center to coordinate hospital, medicine and oxygen. The current system of random lists circulating is stupid and terrible! Army can man it.
I helped with someone’s mother get admitted to the hospital last night.
All systems have collapsed, and your life is worth nothing. Stay isolated and don’t get the disease, because if you do it’s truly up to pure luck if you’ll make it. The system will just watch with apathy.
Many are asking how the iPhone, crypto and jobs scammer Neel that @zoo_bear has been tweeting about is RW’s fault. It’s one individual scammer.
Well, the over 50 crores in scams happened under the guise of nationalist, pro-BJP, Hindutwawadi credentials! [Thread]
The scammer used these for credibility and reach. No one would trust a random account, but many fell for it because IT Cell ecosystem amplified Neel’s hateful content, building him up!
For every 1 person who believes BJP’s hateful rhetoric, there are 10+ in it for personal gain!
From ground RSS cadres to BJPs Twitter trolls, a majority couldn’t care less about Hindutwa, Cow and India. They’re in it for personal benefit that comes in many forms. Money is one, but for many, it is:
- Recognition in the ecosystem for spreading hate.
- Retweets and likes.
Lots of people wonder how this AAP strategy makes any sense. Strategically, it makes a lot of sense... It’s brilliant!
By attacking Congress, they position themselves as an opposition to INC - a space that BJP occupies. Then voters unhappy with INC have a choice: (Thread)
Next step in the AAP journey will be to present it’s Delhi model of schools, mohalla clinics and water+electricity to these states to show they’re better than BJP. But for now, they’ll embed in people’s minds that they’re anti INC.
There’s other stuff that AAP is doing with Hinduism - the Diwali puja and Hawans etc. that are politically ingenious.
We can all keep criticising it, but they’re doing what politically is very logical, shrewd and effective!
[Thread] This scheme for giving villagers land title to their houses seems to have skipped public discussion, but it's shocking, and HUGE!
The government really needs to talk to people who understand how things work there! It's not like it is in cities... hindustantimes.com/india-news/ove…
I really hope this goes smoothly, because the ability to get bank loans will indeed be a major positive for villagers - but the potential for disaster is so high, it's almost a certainty.
I told a few people in my own village about the scheme and they're in shock. Here's why:
1. Houses in villages are owned by families, not individuals. Giving a title in one person's name is a guarantee for conflict. This will happen in a significant number of cases, and then there'll be fights and bribery by a brother to get a larger share in records - inevitable.