INDIA NEWS
May 16-31, 2021 - Vol 1, Issue 22
Queensland needs long-term India strategy as Premier provides timely assistance
My heart goes to India and its people
Photo Courtesy: IANS
By Matthew Hayden AM
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ndia is in the middle of an unprecedented Covid-19 second wave battering, not seen before.
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s India grapples with the relentless battering from the double mutant covid-19 virus, the global community has been deeply moved by the sufferings that have made headlines in the international press. India’s federal and state response to deal with over 400,000 daily cases has been impeded by shortage of hospital beds, oxygen cylinders and critical oxygen supply needed for the covid patients. To ensure these services the Indian government has been working at a war footing to boost oxygen availability by train, air and road. The Indian Air Force C-17 aircrafts have undertaken non-stop sorties carrying cryogenic containers in collaboration with India Inc. from Europe and Asia. Over 450 cylinders, oxygen plants, ventilators and concentrators have been flown in from the UK, France, Germany, Singapore, Thailand, United Arab Emirates and Germany. Even the Czech firefighters have donated 500 oxygen cylinders to India. The United States has now approved of the supply of raw materials used in developing corona vaccine in India, after the initial dilly dallying. India’s PMCARES fund has made budget allocation for 551 dedicated Pressure Swing Absorption medical oxygen generation plants inside public health facilities to boost oxygen availability. The India Inc. and the Confederation of Indian Industries has recommended to the government to enforce nation-wide lockdown, based on an online survey in which 67.5% favoured a nation-wide lockdown while nearly 80% rated the situation as uncontrollable. India has announced vaccination for over 600 million people aged between 18 and 44, in addition to over 180 million vaccinated so for. Besides, over 1.7 million tests are being conducted in India daily as well. In response to the India’s covidcrisis and to lend a helping hand, the Queensland State Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk invited key Indian community leaders, including India’s honorary Consul Mrs Archana Singh, India News Editor in Chief and Institute for Australia India Engagement CEO Dr Ashutosh Misra, GOPIO Gold Coast President Mr Pradeep Gorasia, Australia India Business
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Council Treasurer Mrs Amritha Zachariah, Islamic College of Brisbane CEO Mr Ali Kadri and Federation of Indian Community of Queensland Mr Shyam Das among others. The Premier was accompanied by Deputy Chief Minister Steven Miles, Treasurer Cameron Dick, Multicultural Minister Leanne Linard, Tourism and Sport Minster Stirling Hinchcliffe, Assistant Minister for Hydrogen Development and the 50% Renewable Energy Target by 2030 Lance McCallum, Assistant Minister for Treasury Charis Mullen and Member of Parliament Jessica Pugh. At the end of the meeting the Queensland Premier announced a $2 million help to the Australian Red Cross Regional Coordinator Mr Collin Sivalingam to be used in India to fight Covid. This timely assistance has been widely welcomed by the Indian community. From here on the Queensland government needs to engage with India on a short- and longterm basis. In the short term of course, it needs to provide all the necessary financial and medical assistance to India, strongly oppose the federal government’s decision to penalise returning Indian Australians with imprisonment and fine and provide emotional support to the Indian community. In the long run, the government needs to enrich its India engagement strategies by drawing diverse perspectives at the following levels: Local Consulate and Indian High Commission at the governmentto-government level; Australia India Business Council, local Indian businesses and leaders at the business and trade level; FICQ, GOPIO and other community organisations at the community level; and Institute for Australia India Engagement, Indian Medical Association, professional associations, academic institutions, and media houses such as India News, at the strategic and policy level.
As India battles the alarming spread of the virus, the world media has spared no time in lambasting a country of a whooping 1.4 billion where the sheer numbers make the implementation and success of any public scheme a challenge. I have been visiting India for over decade now and have travelled all across the country, specially Tamil Nadu, which I consider my “spiritual home”. I have always had the highest of respect for the leaders and public officials who are entrusted with the task of running such a diverse and vast country. Wherever I went, the love and affection of the people greeted me, for which I remain in their debt. I can proudly claim that I have seen India up close over the years and that is why my heart bleeds to see it not only in agony at the moment, but also for the bad press that has been hurled at it by those who I am not sure spend any time here to understand India, Indian people and its myriad challenges. As a cricketer and lover of the game, I have maintained my association with the sport, which has allowed me to come to India to cover the Indian Premier League. Many of my fellow countrymen have also been playing in the League for many years. In this context, at a time when the world has been shutting doors on India and lambasting the government, I thought of sharing my thoughts while based in India, to give a perspective, not available to those sitting thousands of miles away in a faraway land. I am not a data person, but some of the figures that I gathered from some of the media reports are astonishing. India has already vaccinated over 160 million people (five times the size of Australia), and has been reportedly conducting 1.3 million tests daily. The point I am making is not to overlook the sheer vast numbers and the challenges associated with it. When one conjures up thoughts of India, a singular thought Photo Courtesy: Twitter
EDITORIAL
comes to mind. Incredible; a word popularised by the Indian Tourism slogan, ‘Incredible India’. Even being now caught in the political crossfire between the Morrison Government's decision to temporarily impose a ban on travel to Australia, nothing has changed my mind about this ancient civilization. As of now this heaving mass of humanity reels in the wake of the COVID pandemic. The new normal replacing various religious festivals, exotic wedding celebrations, bustling streets jam packed with street vendors, livestock, tutu’s, all sadly like the Morrison Government’s travel policy temporarily put on hold. Looking out of the window of my room overlooking the majestic ‘Garden City’ of India, Bengaluru, a truss has been established, as if a siesta has been called in respect to health authorities’ call to action for our new global anthem.
I can proudly claim that I have seen India up close over the years and that is why my heart bleeds to see it not only in agony at the moment, but also for the bad press that has been hurled at it by those who I am not sure spend any time here to understand India, Indian people and its myriad challenges. “Isolate, stay at home, sanitize your hands, wear your mask, socially distance”. A race busily running in the background in many cases for life itself as national resources like oxygen and critical medical supplies are being re-routed from manufacturing plants to hospitals and care facilities. The simple truth, demand for basic medical facilities making supply, look more like one of Usain Bolt's competitors, over his legendary hundred metre Olympic final dashes. In short, hectic has been replaced
with nervous and one can truly sense fear and anxiety as India face off against the challenges of this horrific pandemic. Begging the question, why is an ex-Aussie Cricketer travelling to India away from his beloved country and family at such a critical, even dangerous time? On the surface is the commercial value for my family, having played and worked on every Indian Premier League since its conception in 2008. It’s true, my remuneration is significant and yes it pays my family's bills. More broadly however, I have a deep connection to Mother India which docks into my life’s mission to connect people and organisations on purpose and strategy. My purpose in supporting the IPL this season is to provide a welcome relief to the monotony of extended periods of partial or hard communal lockdown due to COVID. Every night for 2 months from 6.30pm, cricket lovers, and let me tell you there are a few, can get online or turn on the television to watch their favourite franchise do battle. As a genuine lover of the game since I was 4 years old, my voice, full of excitement helps narrate our great game by bringing an authentic positive view to the cricket community. Cricket, as it so often has been throughout history, has been and is now the silver lining to our COVID cloud. The cricketers, especially in the IPL have been the soft targets of the media, and because of their contractual obligations, players cannot defend themselves and share their perspectives. It makes all the more important for people such as me, who have once been in a similar situation, but can now from the outside not only share a “player’s perspective”, but also speak-up for them. India is a rich civilisation which has very few parallels in the world, and in its hour of need, the least we can do is to appreciate its cultural, regional, linguistic, human development and other complexities before passing any judgment on it. Matthew Hayden is a former Australian cricketer, Board Member, Australia India Council (DFAT), and Goodwill Ambassador for India, Institute for Australia India Engagement.
This will help the government develop a robust and wellinformed long-term India strategy.
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